Third pov

Paimon was having a headache. Haures's idea of leaving so suddenly without taking anything or informing anyone was dangerous,to say the least. But he had to admit it was reasonable,at least to some extent. The Dark Queen wouldn't find them in this house,the planet was hidden from energy detectors,but this was only a temporary solution.

Suddenly his thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. Thankfully,Haures was asleep. Interspace travel through cosmic energy was tiring, especially now that his body contained two energies. He approached the door with caution and a dagger at hand. It may sound like a simple weapon but in the hands of the Shadow of Pain it can cause quite a bit of damage.

But when he eventually opened the door he was surprised to see Eve standing there. When she saw the knife,she giggled.Paimon normally would get angry by her face of mockery but he was too stunned to react.

"A knife? What is it supposed to do? Empty my body's energy? Put that thing away,Paimon, I'm not a human."

"How did you come here?"

"With teleportation of course. The Dark Energy is remarkably efficient when it comes to traveling through space. Can I come in or we will be having this conversation at the door?"

Paimon reluctantly stepped aside. He wasn't sure if he was making the right choice allowing the Queen of their enemies to enter but he didn't actually have a choice in the matter.

"Just be quiet. We just arrived and Haures is upstairs sleeping."

"I would prefer him to be present for this conversation but I understand. I will get straight to the point. The Dark Queen came to see me."

"She what? Oh no what happened."

"Everything was going great at first.I tried to act ignorant but when the messenger appeared with the message of your "disappearance",well.... needless to say your Queen figured things out pretty quickly. She knows Haures is the carrier and now she is even more determined to find him. She asked for my help. I told her I would assist her but I gave her false leads. She will probably spend the next two to three months searching for you on the opposite side of the multiverse but I came to warn you regardless. This is only a temporary solution and I can't give you frequent updates. Me coming here is a risky move as it is."

"Thank you for the information,your Grace."

That was a new voice,towering above them. Eve lifted her eyes and indeed at the top of the stairs stood Haures. He was fully dressed with a suit,indicating he has been awake for a while or that he hadn't slept at all, and had a serious look on his face full of suspicion.

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"Haures,greetings to you as well. I am actually pleased to see you are here because I would want you to take part in this conversation."

"Brother,I thought you were sleeping."

"With all this noise who could possibly sleep? You should give her a spare key because from the looks of it,she will be coming here quite often."

His voice had a hint of irony and sarcasm,like he wanted to criticize the fact that the leader of their enemies was given free access to this place at a time when one,if not two,of the Princes of the Shadows was in such a vulnerable state.

Eve was smart enough to understand this.

"I am not here to cause you harm. I came to warn you. You know very well that our relationship has been the best for years. The word "enemy" has become nothing more than a teasing. You are also aware of the great respect and fear I have for the universal balance. So if you would please, I didn't come here to waste time explaining my motives. I want your help misleading your ruler."

Haures slowly came down, never taking his gaze at her. He seemed more calm but still suspicious of her. But that was to be expected. Paimon decided that this conversation was enough for now.

"Alright that's enough,let's go to the living room. There we can discuss the details."

A few minutes later

They were studying a map of the multiverse.

"The Dark Queen is not an idiot. She will understand soon enough that you are not where I sent her. And I can't keep making excuses. It's too dangerous and wont give us enough time. We have to give her somehow the impression that you are moving. But how do we do that?",Eve was thinking out loud

"So all we need is an object that carries mine and Thanos's energy?",Haures commented

"Yes that would work. At least it will buy us more time."

"Wait here."

Haures ran out of the room and came back a while later holding a silky piece of cloth at the size of a small blanket. Eve couldn't believe her eyes.

"Is that...Thanos's first baby blanket. The one he was wrapped with when she gave him to you. But how did you find it so quickly?"

Soon enough she realised it was the wrong thing to ask. When she took the cloth from his hands he saw some tears threatening to fall. Of course. Memories are the best cure for a loss,after all.

"That will do nicely. Thank you."

"Now the question is who will be responsible for diverging the Dark Queen's attention. It has to be someone who travels a lot as it is. Someone whose excessive travels won't cause suspicions.",Paimon said

"Johanna would be a reasonable choice.",Haures said calmly

"What? No forget it. That would mean that Johanna won't be able to come here because the Dark Queen will be constantly on her tracks. And you will not be in this state without medical supervision. Eve,reason with him",Paimon was yelling at this point and he was not wrong.

But Eve remained silent. Thinking.

"Eve?"

"I'm sorry to say this but I think Haures is right. Paimon,you have worked with Johanna before. You have medical experience. You can keep an eye on him. Can't you?"

Paimon was left speechless. He wanted to protest further but he knew it would be pointless. So he just nodded with a grumpy look on his face.

"Ok,now that we got that covered we can...."

Suddenly a sound was heard from Eve's phone. A notification for a new message.

"Your phone wasn't turned off?"

"Don't worry. They can't track my phone."

When she read the message,she panicked. Irini was asking where she was because there was an emergency meeting of the council right now she was in the other corner of the multiverse.

"Oh no. I have to go. We will be in touch. Don't forget to inform Johanna next time you see her."

She started running towards the door when suddenly she felt someone grab her forearm. She turned around and saw Haures's face.

"One last question,your Grace. Did the Dark Queen tell you perhaps the reason why she wants Thanos dead?"

"No,I thought she had told you",Eve normally wasn't good at lying but now she had to be. The information about Thanos's mixed soul would cause his brothers panic and that was the last thing they needed right now.

Thankfully,Haures seemed convinced and let her go. Eve hurried out of the house and then teleported herself directly in the meetings room.

She could only hope that this meeting wasn't the result of her sister's loose tongue.