There is a goddess walking these paths. She is a goddess in every sense of the word. She's beautiful, stunningly beautiful; which isn't particularly strange, and not every girl you see is a goddess, but she is. Her face is a strong one, a beauty not rooted in weakness or delicacy but of a raw flame that threatens to burn you. She is fit, with tender breasts that balance above her stomach, which is quite possibly the most toned I've ever laid eyes upon. Trickles of sweat make her body shimmer as she pauses briefly from her run to get a drink of water. Her hair is a golden brown, her eyes a piercing blue, and her skin milk white.
But she is truly a goddess in her utter indifference the opinions of humans around her. She is clad only in a black sports bra and shorts, which gives her longing looks by the males (and some of the females too). Of course, there are glances of jealousy, or disdain, but she pays them the same amount attention as the lustful ones- none at all. Her lack of clothes also shows off the most beautiful parts of her- the tattoos that decorate her body. She's got 6 that I can see. The first one is very, very small and is near her eye- two tiny triangles, one above her eye and one below it. They are the colour of blood. Another tattoo of hers is large and small at the same time, on her left bicep. It is a constellation, which I learned about so that I could try to approach her. It was definitely the warrior, Orion. It would be easy to miss as well, as it's a delicate shade of sterling silver with lines that are as wide as a strand of hair. On her other bicep, she has a tattoo of a dragon. It's not realistic though, more like a silhouette or a symbol. It's the same red as her eyes and other tattoos. Her next two are two shapes I can't recognize. They're the same crimson as before, but one is in a set of three conjoined, curved triangles that remind me of wheat split in half. The other one is a small swirl connected to a triangle, pointed like a beak. Her last tattoo is the most intriguing, and disheartening. It's a name, "Miles". I do not know who this Miles is, but this woman doesn't seem the type to tattoo just any boy's name onto her skin, but on the other hand I don't see a ring on her finger. It's font is an old Latin one, and this rests just below her left collarbone. I summon up the courage, step forward without thinking, because if I think, I will never talk to her.
"I like your tattoos!" I practically shout at her. Shit, I'm nervous. She turns to me, one dark, strong but shaped eyebrow arching at me. "Is the one on your arm Orion?" For this effort, I get a small smile. She grabs her left arm with her right.
"Yep. Orion the warrior."
"Do you... like astronomy?" I get the damned eyebrow arch again.
"Well, clearly I like I enough to get it tattooed on me." She responded dryly. I blushed, looking down. For a split second, I think I see her regret making fun of me. She sighs, and adds: "But they're also for people I've lost." She pauses, and I find myself wanting her to go on. "One who was a hero and one who was a great warrior." She elaborated a tiny but more at seeing my embarrassment, clearly throwing me a bone.
"And these?" I point to the crimson ones on her stomach.
"Same story; people I've lost. My two brothers, these were like their own personal insignia. After they died, I figured, what the hell." She explained, but with a with a twinge of sadness clear in her voice.
"Is that who Miles is?" I question. A dead brother is much better than a living boyfriend, at least for me. She shakes her head.
"It's actually pronounced mil-ays. It's Latin for soldier." She clarifies for me.
"What about the dragon?" I ask. She grins, again, a wide, genuine smile.
"It's the symbol of the Imperial Legion, which was the old Roman Army. It made history with it's battles. It's there to remind me of those who influence history." She explained. "Plus, I have ancestors I can trace to the Legion, which is why I picked it over any other organization. It was almost the illuminati triangle." She laughed at her own joke, with that same broad smile. God, she was beautiful. The way she smiled was so captivating, so clever looking, like you were only in on part of the joke, and that there were several more layers beyond your grasp.
"Latin words, Roman constellations... even the symbol of the Roman Army... You seem to really like that culture." I observe.
"Ita vero, quam latin est linga optima. English filia latinae est sed latina semper mellior est. Latinae amo." she comments. She speaks in a way that is unlike I've ever heard. Her tone, her phrasing, it all seemed to bring life to a dead language. She's not speaking in the dull latin, the "e pluribus unums" of the political world or the "nolo contendere" of the legal ones. Her words dance on her tongue, sing through the air. I've never heard someone being so happy just speaking a language, and, of course, being me, all I can do is gape. She grins halfway. "Yeah, I could guess you could say I like Latin."
I stand there in silence, not knowing what to say. She checks her clock and starts to run.
"Gotta keep running. Vale, kid!" She yells over her shoulder to me.
It's just now I realized I still don't know her name.
Wow.
A/N
This is like a series of one shots. His "goddess" is the dragonborn, who has survived to the modern era as a vampire. Also, in accordance to the real word, the Imperials are the Romans, because let's be real, the Imperials are lowkey kind of a rip off. I felt like the dragonborn would feel really nostalgic about those times- enough to tattoo them on herself. Oh, before I forget, in my rusty high school Latin, what she says is "Yes, because Latin is the best language. English is the daughter of Latin, but Latin will always be better." Also, I feel like she wouldn't give a shit about what anyone else thinks because she's, you know, killed dragons, served gods, sold her soul... why would she care what college students think.