The sun rises upon the side of the earth where I reside, and it's beams gleam through my little window, light dancing on my resting face. I force my eyelids to open up partially, and give a moan from my little mouth.
"Urgh, Apollo, can't you be late to pull the sun for just once!" I grumble incoherently for a few moments, and then swing my taut legs over the side of my wooden bed.
"Well," I pause and sigh, pushing my hair away from my face, "I suppose since I'm up, I shall get my day going." I rush to my closet and throw off my night attire, and replace it with a long, red cloak. I grab my toga, and throw it over my shoulder. "Should take a bath, it's been awhile." I open up my mahogany door, and tip toe over to my mother's room. I creak her door open, wincing at the noise. Peeking my head in, I observe that she's still asleep. "Hmm, well, seems like I have an hour to kill before she wakes up." I close the door, and grab a ribbon from a countertop, tying my long hair with it. Before walking to the door & to the spring, I grab a hunk of cheese. And then, without making any haste, I exit the cottage, and head towards the lovely little spring, where I like to bathe.
I strip, taking off the light velvet cloak, and fold the material. I then set it the cloak on the soft grass. I dip my toes in and wiggle them for a while, before determining and finding the willpower to jump in. I splash around for a little while, and then set to work, combing out the knots in my hair, and washing the gunk off my petite frame. Afterwards, my body floats numbly in the water, the liquid revolving around my body as I lay. The birds singings, and the soft sway of the tree's leaves, pulls me back into slumber.
Dream
It's dark. Very dark. The waning moon illuminates the ground, marring it with shadows. Somewhere in the distance, an ominous howl is heard. My bare feet walk across the ground- instead of staining it with flowers though, in its place is death itself. With every step I took, the grass withered and fell, like a wounded soldier in battle. The chilly wind bites my bare skin, leaving its marks, turning my skin a vile reddish color. I frown, and use my hands to warm up my skin. As I move my hands up and down my arms, an odd consistency takes place of where my hands have been. Shuddering, I pull my hands back and observe them...to be stained with blood. Gasping, I bend over and retch, but to no avail. My face twists into horror, and I look around once more. Everything around me…..everything is dead. The trees have gone barren, and the grass has wilted. The moon has disappeared, leaving me in desolate darkness. A light shines close by- extremely close by. I look down, and realize it's coming from me. Persephone, she who eats light.
My lungs fill with water as I take a breath to shriek. Swimming upwards, I move towards to shore of the spring, gagging and coughing up the water that my lungs absorbed during the fiasco. "What…what in the name was that….that dream!" My body shakes as I step out of the clear water, and I re-apply the clothing to my wet body. Taking hesitant steps, I walk onto the grass, and watch my footsteps as they move. Instead of death, fresh spring flowers prop up from where my foot had been. I sigh, and a weight lifts off my shoulder. "That was bizarre. Never in my life have I had a dream like so." I push my damp hair away from my face, and braid it, the cold tips leaving goose bumps against my waist. I shake my head slowly, and make my way back to the cabin, where my mother was surely to be throwing a riot. As I make my way backs, I contemplate the dream I just had. It was so odd. I've never had a nightmare as severe as that. Why would there be blood on my hands? I've never murdered anything- not even a spider for Zeus's sake! In the distance, I see the wood nymphs frolicking, their flaxen hair glistening in the sunlight. I sigh, envy of their freedom, and make way back towards my jail cell, where my officer was surely to be waiting.
Something seems off as soon as I walk through the door. Voices can be heard arguing in the kitchen- a deep bass, and a stern alto.
"WHY WOULD YOU EVER DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT ZEUS! SHE IS MINE." My mothers voice comes out shrilly, and I can hear her stomps echoing to my hiding place, behind the heavy drapery. A heavy sigh is heard, and my father, who is apparently here today, speaks in a grave tone.
"I made it unwillingly, I can assure you that. But he had become impatient, for I had been denying him for far too long. I was unable to pull back on the deal- she no longer belongs to us, I fear." My heart thrums fast in my ribcage, it's beat unsteady, and unsure. Who is she?
I can hear a dull thump on the floor. I peek around the curtain, and gasp, seeing my mother on her knees. She takes my fathers hand in both of her own, and, with a pleading voice, she begs, " Zeus, please. Anything but my Kore. Please."
My father's forehead creasing, and he shakes his head softly. Pulling my mother up, he wraps his arms around her, an intimate gesture, which I wouldn't have overlooked if not for the fact that something terribly wrong seems to be going on….something about me! "I'm afraid I cannot pull back on this deal. I've sworn it on the river of Styx." My mother, looking dejected, stares into my fathers crystal blue eyes.
"How much longer do we have?"
His eyes go downcast, before once more meeting my mothers. "A week, if not less." And with that, he sweeps out of the house, leaving my mother to herself, sobbing. I run out the door, unnoticed, and make my way towards the meadow. I need to be alone. I need to think.
Once there, I sit on the grassy floor, violets springing up around me. Curling into a ball, I move back and forth like a pendulum. Who is he? And what could he possibly want from me? I frown, and stop moving. "I can't go home tonight. I can't face my mother. She's too torn, too broken. It will do no help to ask her. I shall simply go on like normal, and wish for the best. I mean, my mother would never let anything happen to me….right?