#just a thing...

The end of one revolution around the sun and the beginning of another.  It hadn’t really meant anything to him before.  When one’s days weren’t numbered, there was little reason to count them, after all.  Oh, he was more aware of Time’s passage then certain other immortal parties.  Ending one day passed out in bed and waking up the next morning gave even a demon outside of Time some sense of it.

Still, New Year’s had always been little more than Yet Another Excuse to Drink.  This year, however, things were a little different.  Maybe... quite a lot different.  A few months ago, not even the blink of an eye to one like him, he hadn’t been certain there would be a tomorrow, let alone a New Year’s.  But the world hadn’t ended, thanks to one very small, very human Antichrist.  The world kept spinning cheerfully around the sun, and now was completing another lap in its cyclical journey.

It wasn’t just that Armageddon had been averted.  He was free.  They... were free.  It didn’t matter if the night was spent atop a skyscraper in New York City, or downtown London, or just alone together in the bookstore surrounding by sparkling lights and sparkling drinks.  The old year, and their old shackles, slipped away.  A new one would dawn, after the parties and fireworks and alcohol.  A new year, hopefully the first of an eternity of them.  Gilded irises, no longer hidden behind tinted glasses, flicked to the blond by his side, illuminated in golden light.

Yes, this was going to be a very good year.  He’d remember it, every moment of it, forever more.  He grinned, raising a glass of sparkling cheer.

A/N: This was written for AU week... don't know how it is really, but um... imagine slave and master (not like that) Myka was sold into slavery as a child and Helena is her newest master who gives her something special... That would be love. It's not the greatest, but just wanted to put something small out there. Everything in Italics is flashback. :x

Enjoy. :)

A light knock on the door and she knew who it was. No one ever knocked on a slave girls door, unless they were lucky enough to be sold to the Wells family.

"May I come in?" A soft voice called out through thick oak.

The slave girl, Myka opened the door slowly, peering out through the small crack to see if anyone else was there before opening the door wider. "What can I do for you my lady?"

"Myka, my husband is away. You can call me Helena."

"For how long?"

"It will be a very long journey. So it will just be the two of us for a while. Is that okay?" Pale fingertips brushed wild curls out of Myka's face before caressing her cheek.

"If it pleases you." Myka knew that this was how it was. She wasn't a fool, she was born into slavery, passed on from house to house like she was nothing. She knew what it was to be used in this manner; for pleasure, for laughs. She was no stranger to shame and degradation; it was her life. But this was different. It was different because it was love.

The first time Helena came to her, it was her first day, and she had just been beaten by the master of the house for spilling his drink. Helena stood by and watched the young woman take her beating, with fire in her eyes and an ache in her heart. Everyone knew the real master was his wife; she was strong willed and beautiful, she could get anything she wanted and she wanted Myka. She wanted her safe and under her protection.

"Myka may I come in?" Helena asked through the bathing room door. It was cracked open and Helena could see the slave girl sitting in the bath trying to wash herself off.

"You may." Myka was struggling to reach her back, wincing at the sharp pain shooting through her arm.

"Here, let me help you." Helena got on her knees behind the stone tub, taking the cloth from Myka and wiping her back gently. She started at the nape of the woman's neck, slipping lower, lightly cleaning off her shoulders and then she nudged Myka forward a bit and cleaned off the rest of her back with the same amount of caution and with so much respect that the slave cried. "Are you okay? Did I hurt you love?"

"No."

"You can say more than a few words at a time you know. Although you haven't had any schooling so you probably don't know what to say."

"I haven't been to school my lady, but I read every day. I just don't know what to say because no one has ever treated me with such kindness. I was rendered speechless my lady; that's all."

Helena was intrigued by the slaves words, her voice was heavenly, music to her ears. "You're finished Myka. I'll get you something to cover up and I'll leave the room. Do you need me to help you with anything else?"

Myka was surprised. A normal master would watch as she struggled to stand up, legs still aching from the beating. They would make it harder for her by pushing her around, beating her more, throwing dirt on her or worse. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why are you showing me such kindness?"

"Because you're the strongest woman I've ever met; but you were born into unfortunate circumstances and raised to believe that you're nothing. What I want more than anything, is to show you just how strong you really are."

Helena walked to her friend and lover, a woman who had once been so broken but now stood much taller in her presence. "If it pleases me?" Before Myka knew it, a royal gown was dropped to the floor and the master of the house stood before her naked, as she often would when it was just the two of them.

"If it pleases you." Myka walked to Helena and pulled her close, they kissed then; heated and raw, a kiss filled with hunger, desire and longing. Helena would carefully peel Myka's clothes away, one layer at a time and they would fall into bed, over and over again.

Her days and nights spent with Helena were special. When it was just them, it was Helena who served Myka with so much adoration and esteem. She was honored for her strength and beauty in a way she had never been her whole life. Yes, she had been given to her masters before, forced to do as they said; but this was different. It was different because she wasn't forced, she wasn't made to do anything but exist, and she had a choice. It was different because it was love.

Thank you for reading this stuff... I hope it was alright. I know it was kind of short, but you know... just a quick thing. Please comment and review. This might be way out there and no one may like it but I had to get it out.

but i do... and i can't stop thinking about you.