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Where There's a Labyrinth
Zagreus had been doing this for years now and Hypnos always asked him to bring him an autograph from Asterius, but it was hard, as Theseus usually forbad Zagreus coming to the colosseum when not trying to escape. And Asterius always left right after their sparring to tell Theseus that ‘The Short One’ would be arriving soon. So Hypnos decided that he was going to take matters into his own hands. After all, he had a lot of days off saved up!~
It hadn’t been hard to convince Zagreus to take him to the coliseum, but it had been a bit tricky to bribe Charon to take them up to Elysium on his boat, but he had a lot of gold and Charon had a soft spot for his little brother. Hypnos was practically buzzing with excitement when they made it outside of the coliseum, Charon waiting by his boat to take them back to the house when they were ready
“Are you ready, mate? I can’t promise I won’t get kicked out immediately, but I can promise I can at least get you inside”
“Are you kidding, I’ve been waiting for this for years!~ With Elysium’s constantly changing chambers I’ve never been able to find the coliseum on my own, you’re doing me such a great favor, thank you!~”
Zagreus chuckled with a fond smile at Hypnos excitement before he turned to the doors with a sigh. He walked in and Theseus immediately whacked his spear butt onto the floor, ready to make a mocking comment, but it died on his tongue when seeing Hypnos
“My stars, it is Lord Hypnos! Blackguard, what are you doing by the side of a great god like this?! What foul treachery have you started this time!?”
Zagreus merely waved his hand dismissively at the insult, Hypnos beaming as brightly as the sun from his floating spot beside him
“I’m not here to fight you today, Theseus, I’m simply bringing Hypnos here so he can get an autograph. He's probably your number one fan”
Theseus chest puffed up in pride, standing straighter as he was filled with pride
“Of course! I am the great Theseus, king of Athens! Slayer of th-”
“Oh for the gods sake, Theseus, I wasn’t talking to you”
Theseus deflated faster than Cerberus did when told its bath time. He stuttered and stammered, trying to find the words to describe this outrage, but Zagreus merely gestured to the right. Theseus whipped his head to look over at Asterius and Hypnos and he was appalled. Though he did feel joy as well for his constant friend getting some recognition that he deserved
Hypnos was floating beside Asterius, looking way up at him with stars in his eyes as he giggled. To Asterius credit he was able to hold the intense gaze, but his nervously twitching tail showed that he had no idea what to do under such pure intended attention
“Wowie, it's really you!~ You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to come meet you, or how long I’ve been asking Zagreus to get me your autograph! I’m your biggest fan in all of the Underworld, I just can’t believe it! I’d love to watch you in a fight one day, it would be a dream come true for me! Which is funny, since I’m dream itself!”
He laughed at his own joke as Asterius floundered under the praise and compliments
“Thank you, Lord Hypnos. I’m glad you’re a fan, and I appreciate your support”
“No, no, no, silly! You can call me Hypnos, or Hyp, we’re friends now! And now that I know how to get here, I’ll be coming to see your fights as often as I can! I’ll be rooting for you, even if it's against Zag!”
Hypnos gave a giggle, ignoring the playful ‘Hey!’ coming from the forever flaming prince. Theseus was fuming more and more in the background, not liking this one bit. Sure, he had been blessed by the gods before but never once had they made a personal appearance to show their appreciation and adoration towards him. It made him bitterly jealous, so in Theseus fashion, he was quick to budge in
“I’m so glad you enjoy our fights, Lord Hypnos, and we would be honored to have you in the stadium watching us whenever you may wish to grace us with your presence! And I will be sure to vanquish that foul demon each time you arrive!”
Theseus gave his own dazzling gleam that Hypnos was quick to ignore, giving off a faint scowl
“I don’t like you, you’re very rude to the prince of the Underworld, who happens to be my best friend, you know! He’s told me allll about you, and how you refuse to ever let him here when he’s not trying to escape! And I never said I wanted to watch you fight, I said I wanted to watch Asterius fight against Zagreus!”
Hypnos huffed as Theseus was left stunned once again, Zagreus snickering at the live show of Theseus ego bashing. Hypnos quickly turned his attention back to Asterius and smiled brightly, Asterius looking awkward as he wasn’t sure what to do in this situation
“Anytime I come here, I want to see you fight, just you! No Theseus allowed, and I want to see you fight against Zagreus sometimes too! And can I have your autograph!?”
Imagine, if you will, a floating god before you, looking like he was asking for an extra piece of candy, and how you could say no. Asterius nodded instantly and patted his pockets, but Hypnos was quick to pull out a blank parchment and quill from his cloak. Asterius held them awkwardly in his large fingers, trying to decide what he should write as he wasn’t used to people specifically asking him for his autograph
‘To Hypnos, my-’
Asterius paused and looked at Hypnos again before turning back to his parchment
‘To Hypnos, my one and only, biggest fan - Asterius’
Asterius slowly handed them back and felt nervous about Hypnos reaction to it. Hypnos read it over quickly and gave a squeal as he pressed it to his chest, kicking his feet in the air in glee
“Thank you Asterius, thank you so much!~ I’m going to keep this with me forever! Oh, can I ask you one more thing?”
Hypnos gave a pure smile as Asterius nodded, feeling like melting under all this praise and the warmth radiating from Hypnos. It made him feel comfortable, like he could relax for once
“Can I watch you beat Zagreus in a fight, before I leave?”
Asterius glanced at Zagreus, who gave a crooked smile and rubbed the back of his head
“I wouldn’t mind a fight against you, Asterius, if you don’t. Hypnos might even give you a reward if you win”
“Then I would be honored to fight in your name, Lo- Hypnos”
Asterius snorted as Hypnos laughed, clapping his hands, while Theseus came over to interrupt once more while seeming to seethe
“My lord Hypnos, surely you do not wish to see me fight against that beast as well?”
Hypnos silently reached out and touched Theseus' arm, the man crumbling to the floor, dead asleep. Asterius was quick to pick him up and check for harm but Hypnos waved his hand dismissively
“Oh don’t worry, he’s not hurt, he's simply sleeping until later. I don’t want him to try and interrupt your fight to try and boost his own ego. I’ll be in the stands!”
Hypnos smiled brightly and floated up and over the railing of the seats, sitting next to Zagreus' shade, who merely shook his little flag at Hypnos to silently say Zagreus would win. Hypnos winked at the shade but watched the two fighters, excited for it to begin. Asterius nodded to Zagreus and made quick work of carrying Theseus, his spear and shield, to his champion chambers so he could rest comfortably. He made his way back to the arena and was excited, feeling invigorated as he wanted to make a god, no Hypnos, proud
Zagreus wasn’t prepared for an actual fight, he had no boons, or enhancements, or keepsakes, just Mort and Stygius. But he didn’t mind, he would fight with honor and do his best, and maybe even let Asterius win, if it came down to it. When Asterius returned, he picked up his axe and met him in the middle, though they merely nodded their heads to each other since Theseus wasn’t there to be a blowhard. They separated and a hush went over the crowd as the fight began
Since Zagreus came unprepared it didn’t take long for Asterius to win their fight and send Zagreus back to the House via the Styx. But, as he was falling, Zagreus cried out ‘Good fight!’ so Asterius knew that the short one wasn’t upset at losing. The crowd went wild, cheering his name and he roared in return. But he heard bell like laughter over it all as Hypnos floated over to give him a giant hug on his win
“Oh Asterius, that was amazing!~ Thank you, I loved watching your fight! I can’t wait to come back and watch you fight against Zag again, this was so much fun!”
Asterius awkwardly patted his back, feeling pride warm his chest at making Hypnos so happy and excited. It felt nice, to be the center of someone's attention like this, and it was clear Hypnos had no other motive besides showering Asterius in praise
“Thank you, Hypnos, I’m glad you enjoyed the fight”
Hypnos gave a coy smirk as he looked up at him, floating higher so they where at eye level once he released Asterius from the hug
“Do you know what a champion gets when winning a fight for a god?~”
Asterius felt confused and even a little nervous as he slowly shook his head, Hypnos laughing in joy. Asterius liked his laughter, it sounded like the bells he used to hear from the castle when he was stuck in the labyrinth
“You get a reward!~ And I will gladly give you a reward each and every time you win!”
Hypnos leaned forward and gave Asterius a deep kiss, looking pleased with himself as Asterius looked dazed, but happy, smiling as much as his bull mouth would allow
“The Short One must prepare to lose often now, for I wish to earn every reward”