Marcus had spent most of the time deep in thought when he wasn't in meetings. In order to overcome his sadistic nature he had to figure out what had triggered it to begin with. He couldn't fix himself if he couldn't find the root of his problems. So he was thinking back to the beginning of his immortal life. Needless to say that he was quite busy and unable to really participate in social events while he was away, and after being tempted to kill his assistant for nagging him he decided he couldn't stay around people while he did his soul searching.

His maker had been a vicious bitch that had forced her sadistic nature on Marcus and his siblings. He hadn't particularly enjoyed hurting people for fun, but eventually he'd turned it all off and stopped caring. It wasn't until he saw his sister being killed and was taken in by Gabriel that he turned it on again. The grief he'd felt when he'd lost his innocent sister was only overshadowed by the hatred he felt towards the Order for deciding to end all their lives because of his maker's ways.

Gabriel had been good to him and tried to make him forget all about his family. Sure, he'd been punished if he stepped out of line, but he accepted that. His past didn't really give him any trouble until Gabriel had taken all memory of how he had survived the attack on his family or his stay with him. Anger and grief fueled him for a long time, he didn't know why he traveled to the places he did, he just had a feeling he was meant to be there.

Eventually he fell in love with a human and tried to persuade her to join him, but in the end she killed herself when she learned the truth. Grief was once again his driving force, and anger with himself for letting his guard down like that. More often than not after that, he killed his human lovers by drinking them dry. It wasn't worth getting attached to them.

Talbot had been a life saver. He'd brought Marcus out of his misery and made him realize it wasn't always bad to get attached to people. They joined the army together and it turned out to be very therapeutic to fight and it was very exciting. When the fighting was done for the battle or the night, he could be gentle and loving with his lover. The fighting always made him feel renewed when it was over, not because of the kills he'd made, but because it served a purpose. It might not have been his empire or his war, but he was still fighting to protect the land he'd once considered his home.

He realized that it hadn't really gotten personal before he'd met Arya. Sure, he had used been controlling over pets he'd acquired and hurt them when they stepped out of line, but she was the root of his addiction as far as getting a rush out of hurting people. There was nothing left to do once he reached that conclusion but to talk to Arya and try to find a way the two of them could work their way out of their age old pattern.

The first thing he did when he returned to Bitter Springs was to pull Arya out of work and tell her she wouldn't be returning until they had worked things out.

Arya had really no idea what Marcus was doing while he was out of town. She was busy anyway, so she didn't really have time to worry too much, and it didn't surprise her much when Damien came to pick up Amelita. After her outburst in Sicily, she was glad to be rid of all the newborns as it gave her a chance to be by herself and think about what she wanted to do next. Ever since Marcus had brought the other two newborns into her house, Arya had regretted ever taking Gale in as she suddenly had her hands full and no time to do what she wanted.

During the week she had on her own, Arya actually got some work done for a once. She was actually excited to get her hands busy again and loved that while Marcus had used Damien for more day to day things and grooming him to take over, he'd given her the responsibility of working with people trying to think of how they could improve their business and who they ought to consider buying up. By the end of the week, they had found the perfect little publishing house to purchase and include into the company and she was the lead negotiator for the deal. Arya truly had forgotten how much she loved getting what she wanted in a fair way without playing games with people.

Once Marcus was back in town, she knew there was no way he could get her to give up her place in his company, and she also knew they had to find a way to be free of their connection for both their sakes. Sure, she didn't appreciate being forced out of work until they could sort things out, but she knew that it was best for everyone in the end. The blonde had never really seen her maker more miserable than he'd been between Damien learning the truth and now, and something had to be done about it.

There was no really nowhere else he could turn but to Arya. He couldn't go back to Damien and more or less beg him to take him back, he couldn't really ask anyone else for help either. He had gotten her home from work, and there was nothing else they could do but try to talk it out. It did seem like they had both done a lot of thinking during their time apart by the way Arya automatically led them to her own private room of sorts. He'd never actually seen the inside of the room before, as she'd always kept the doors locked, even when she was inside. In fact, he didn't think she ever really brought anyone in there as it seemed more like a sanctuary than anything else.

One wall was lined with books, some old and some seemed brand new. He couldn't help himself from looking over the shelves and running his hands down the spine of some books he recognized. He'd given her some of those books himself. They were leather-bound and they seemed to be in good condition. Looking up at Arya, he realized for the first time that she was watching him, quietly giving him permission to look around a little more.

Turning away from the bookshelf he noticed something else. There was a map laid out on the table, almost as if she was looking for someone, with little pen marks. "What are you looking for?" he asked, curious about her secret quest. He didn't really know where they should even begin with their much needed talk, so he tried talking about something else instead. Taking a seat on the edge of the surprisingly comfortable couch that stood by the table, he leaned over the map. "We can't keep doing this to ourselves you know."

Leaning back on the couch, he was wondering why exactly they kept repeating their mistakes over and over. "How do you want to move forward?" He asked, studying his hands for a moment before he looked back at Arya.

Arya had a feeling when Marcus brought her home that they had something important to talk about. There was nowhere she'd rather be than in her sanctuary when the world she'd known all her life was about to come crumbling down, so it was easy to bring Marcus there. The man seem absolutely intrigued by the trust she was showing by finally letting someone else in there.

Marcus studied the books while Arya studied Marcus. If he wanted to spend time admiring her collection, she wasn't about to stop him. It was quite comforting really to watch how happy it seemed to make him to see the books, so she let him keep looking around until she found her map. She really had forgotten that it was laid out like that, but then again, since she never had any visitors in there, it didn't matter.

"It's nothing really," she said with a dismissive shrug as that was more or less the truth of it. The map had served as a reminder of where they had been over the years and her quest for artifacts they had left behind. Stars marked the places she'd found books, crosses marked the places she'd looked for other things. In the end, a lot of the things she'd found had been brought back to her home here. Especially the books she'd loved throughout the years.

Arya knew they couldn't keep things the way they had been for the past few centuries. Things had been different ever since Damien had entered their lives, and she wasn't sure if it was for the better or worse. Since the arrival of her brother, Arya had gotten stronger, she had learned what she enjoyed doing when she was on her own and she had gotten back to being more of a person for herself. She still hadn't found another way to really feel alive though.

"More than anything, we need to sever the connection that lets us find the other, I can't keep living like this if you don't want to be with me. I can't keep knowing where to find you at all times, it's too much." Her British accent shone through again for the first time in a long time as she spoke, stepping closer to Marcus before she curled up next to him on the couch. "Why do you always want him, but keep coming back to toy with me when you two have a falling out?"

Marcus had the feeling Arya wasn't being truthful about the map, even to herself at this point. He'd recognized some of the places marked on there as places they'd lived. Places they had lived as royals, done exactly what they wanted, taken what they needed and been beyond cruel to people who crossed them. He had never wanted to be like his maker, yet when he was with Arya that was exactly what he was in danger of becoming. Somehow that woman always brought out the worst in him, and for a time he'd loved how she would let him get even by hurting her.

It had all started out quite innocently really. Before Arya was turned, he primed her to enjoy pain to give her pleasure. That way, she could never be tortured into giving away his secrets as it wouldn't really bother her much. He would be able to trust her if she wasn't afraid of what his enemies might do to try to get answers from her. She had resisted at first, but eventually she learned to take the light lashes he gave her as they were always accompanied by him being sweet and loving, pleasuring her as a reward for her courage. It wasn't until after she was turned that the pain became more intense as she needed to stand her own against anyone really. It turned into a vicious cycle after that.

He hadn't realized until it was too late that Arya had become so used to the pain that she was pretty much numb to all other things. So when he stopped hurting her for a longer period of time, he realized how quickly she was unraveling, he even found her taking off her bracelet one day and stepped into the morning sun. Enraged, he'd pulled her back and snapped her bracelet on again, watching as her sunburns healed. When he asked why she'd done it, she told him it was all just to feel something so she'd know she was still alive. After that, he got back to their old routine of hurting her whenever she did something he didn't like and eventually he found himself really enjoying it himself as well. At the time he didn't realize how much trouble it would cause in the long run.

Marcus nodded at what Arya wanted to do to first. "I don't know how to do that though, but I agree. Only way we can be apart this way is when we're half a world apart." Marcus wrapped an arm around Arya and brushed his fingers through her hair, knowing that it soothed her. There was nothing he could tell Arya that would make her understand, so he had to show her exactly how it had felt to leave Damien the last time. "I don't want to keep hurting you like that, I really don't. We need to find another way to make ourselves feel good."

Arya knew that they had a long history between them. That in the end it was her fault that they had ended up in such a vicious cycle of constantly hurting each other or other people. She had needed him to feel anything at all at one point and he seemed to need to hurt her. He'd twisted her until she didn't feel anything and she didn't care for anyone at all, except Marcus.

Over the years, she truly hadn't cared for many others, the ones she did care for eventually hurt her and she didn't care for them anymore either. Her husband was one such example. She'd learned to care for him, and for a while they seemed to get along and care for one another, but then he'd betrayed her and she hadn't let herself care again. She hadn't really let herself care for anyone else since either, it was better to be alone.

It didn't matter if Marcus didn't know how to release her, the fact that they both agreed meant they would have to find a way to do so. No matter the costs, they would find a way if they worked together. She wasn't sure what Marcus was playing at when he started stroking her hair like that, until he showed her how hurt he truly was that he couldn't be with Damien. Arya had never realized just how much her maker loved her brother until then, she'd always thought it was just a phase.

"We never had that, did we?" she asked, knowing the answer already. They had shared a great passion, but it had never been anything more than that, nothing like Marcus felt for Damien to be sure. She had to let go of Marcus, she realized that now. If he'd only shared his feelings with her before, she wouldn't have gotten between them like she had. There was a time she'd let her guard down, she could understand.

"I had that once, a long time ago," she muttered, thus silently telling him that she would leave them alone. Somehow, Marcus had made her see that she didn't truly love her maker, not in that way at least. She loved him for setting her free from the life she'd lived before she was turned, as well as for everything he'd given her. It couldn't compare to the love he had for her brother, and she could understand now why he kept trying to be with Damien. "He makes you better, I can understand that now, just please don't freeze me out and ignore me again. If you can do that, I can stop trying to get in the way." Leaning up, she kissed Marcus one last time and just snuggled up to him. It would take time to get used to not having her way or him hurting her for pleasure, but they would find a way out of it somehow and be able to get along like friends hopefully.

All he knew, was that they had to find a way to sever their connection without him instead of getting that connection with Damien. Maybe he could go see Gabriel and ask the man for a small favor, seeing as they'd shared that connection once before and it was highly unlikely that they would cross paths any time soon anyway. Or he'd have to find a witch to help with the whole thing. Either way, they were finally going to be free. They would finally be able to live their lives together, but separate at the same time, and hopefully as good friends when it was all over.

Marcus understood what she wasn't saying when she said she'd once had what he and Damien had. It seemed he'd finally gotten her to understand why he kept trying to get Damien back and how it seemed to affect everything that he did over the years. Now they just needed to find something to do that replaced their need for the whole hurting thing. He kissed her back, knowing full well it was almost a goodbye kiss since they were redefining their relationship. "Once we're free, I want you to step up at the office. I know you enjoy what you're doing now, but I need you to be my new CFO. It'll keep you busy and you might actually enjoy bossing people around without hurting them."

If he could find something for Arya to enjoy and that made her feel again without having to hurt her, that was one problem solved already. He had prepped her for a leadership position after all, so maybe she'd finally find her place. Now all that remained was finding something for himself to pick up to keep his mind off of hurting Arya when he needed to feel better. And he needed a way to prove to Damien that things really were over for good this time with him and Arya, even if he'd still insist on keeping her close. This time it would be purely platonic, but maybe Arya had to be the one to talk to Damien to try to convince him.

Getting up from the couch, he guided Arya back to the living room, glad to see that she'd repaired the damage they'd done during their fight, as well as replace the furniture. This time, he went and made the drinks. "Talbot isn't going to like it you know, if Guy helps you and James terminate your marriage. If that's what you want to do, I'll support you. I just need you to do one thing for me in return. Talk to Damien, please?"

They spent the rest of the evening trying to figure out where exactly they should find the answers they needed and what they should be doing to change their habits. When the time to say goodnight finally came, Arya stopped Marcus from going into the room that had been his for as long as he'd stayed there and guided him to the other side of the manor, there were rooms there he didn't think had even been used in a long time. "I know it's not ideal to keep living here, but I have all this space I'm not using anyway." She showed him a grand bedroom, connected to a bathroom of its own. It all seemed very newly redone to modern standards and when he walked down the hallway, he realized there was an office space and a meeting room of sorts that were available to him. "Talk to Damien," he urged her as they returned to their current, separate bedrooms. He had to move his stuff over there in the morning, it would be a step in the right direction at least.