Chapter Four
Neomi saw who it was and immediately stiffened. Although she felt oddly safe with Apollo, this was Zeus, the king of the gods. He could destroy other immortal beings, even his own son, without much effort. She could only imagine what he could do to her. She saw Apollo turned; loathe to let her go, but standing so he was blocking her from Zeus' view.
"Father." He said bowing his respectfully despite remaining wary of Zeus' unexpected arrival.
"I came to see how your pet was faring." Zeus said, his tone difficult to read. Apollo could feel Neomi's hands resting on his back as she waited behind him. It was odd that her accepting his protection was reassuring to him, though he wasn't stupid enough to believe Zeus would not annihilate them both if he saw fit.
"She is recovering." Apollo said shortly, hoping to keep this conversation limited. Zeus nodded, walking closer and now easily seeing the pair of bright green eyes that peered over his son's shoulder.
"My son has risked much for you today. I can only hope you will repay him with what little a mortal woman can offer a god." Although he was not outright disdainful, there was a clear tightness in his voice that showed his anger was still fresh in his heart. Mankind had outraged him and they should fear him; Neomi felt it was wise to remain silent and not bring him further frustration. Apollo also sensed this visit would easily become heated if his father remained, watching Neomi from over his shoulder.
"She should rest, father." Apollo said quietly, hoping not to ignite his father's passions further. Zeus finally looked back to his son and nodded.
"Of course, she should be prepared for whatever she may face from here on with her mortal brethren." He turned and left, the doors closing behind him, the silence following his exit almost deafening. Apollo could almost hear her heartbeat behind him, nearly beating out of her chest. He turned to face her again and could see that her face was straining to stay calm.
"He's going to kill them all, isn't he?" she asked Apollo. Her fear for her people was admirable to him. He brushed her hair from her face, smiling to reassure more than just her.
"My father is angry—but I hope he begins to see reason soon." He said, knowing it wasn't an overwhelmingly reassuring thought. Neomi didn't take his words at face value though and looked at him pointedly.
"Is that before or after Hades slaughters hundreds of mortals?" She asked. He found himself chuckling when normally he would find her insolent. Why he found her so intriguing still eluded him. His mirth was ill timed however, as Neomi took it as him laughing at the coming storm directed at her people. She pulled back from him, struggling off the soft bed she had been laying on in her catatonic state.
"I should have realized this would be amusing to someone who has no reason to fear death." She said as she set her feet on the cold marble floor of Apollo's chambers. Apollo held out his hands as a peace offering as he watched her walk away.
"You misunderstand me, Neomi…" he began only to be interrupted by a disinterested Neomi.
"Do I? My feeble mortal mind must not comprehend." She said, her offense at his words clear. As she took another step forward, she felt weakness shoot through her and suddenly the floor was closer than it had been previously and was still coming at a break neck pace. Apollo leaped forward as he realized she was falling, grabbing her as she bent back over his arm. From where they stood it looked as though they were at the penultimate moment of a dance.
"You are much too weak to go on an adventure just yet." He said gently as he looked down upon her. She looked back at him almost wonderingly; slowly her hand lifted and let it come to rest against his face. He felt real enough, the roughness of his facial hair in stark contrast to the smooth bare skin of his face. This was all too overwhelming for her and she hated that feeling more than anything in the world.
"Why does this not surprise me?" a voice called from the door way once again. Neomi didn't break her gaze from Apollo.
"Does this happen often?" she asked, causing Apollo to laugh.
"Increasingly." He responded as he lifted her back to her feet. He held her waist as she regained her footing, but looked to see that Corrine was back to check on her patient. The old woman scuttled in toward them, muttering under her breath.
"Do not hold back, Corrine. I have no doubt my guest would agree at how despicable and churlish you say I am." He said teasingly. Corrine shook her head and waved him off, directing Neomi back to a sitting position on the bed, surprising the young woman with her strength despite her obvious age.
"It would do no good, I fear she has already become enamored with you." The old woman said, bringing about a horrified blush on Neomi's face. The look on Apollo's face was bemused, but Neomi couldn't tell if it was because he agreed she was or if he felt the elderly healer was simply taunting them. Neomi didn't know what to say in her defense so sat silent as she had before, it seemed to be the safest option. Corrine turned to Apollo and waved her hands toward the door.
"Leave us my boy—I must check to see her wounds are completely healed. Give her the courtesy of privacy." She ordered to which Apollo complied without a fuss. Neomi was shocked at what power this woman held over him, clearly there was something about her that Apollo respected far more than he did to expect it in return. Neomi watched him leave and then looked back to Corrine, expecting to be chastised for her indiscretions. She found, however, Corrine, standing before her and smiling kindly. The elder patting Neomi's hands reassuringly. Neomi remained quiet, not knowing what to say next.
"Don't look so frightened dear—I'm an old woman and hardly a threat to anyone. Besides, I said that for Apollo's benefit. He can't go long without a good ego-stroking." She said cackling loudly; when Neomi didn't join in, she looked at the younger woman, grabbing her face and inspecting it.
"For Olympus' sake, do you have a tongue child?" she asked sternly. Neomi nodded but her voice came out quietly.
"I do, but I fear my words will be my undoing." She responded, to which Corrine cackled again.
"If there is one thing I have learned in my time with the gods, which," she said with a glimmer of laughter in her eyes, "has been a very long time, it is that gods are offended whenever they feel like it. Words that made them purr the night before, cause their anger to flow to the ends of Olympus in the morning." She said, as she helped Neomi disrobe for her healer's inspection.
"So a pathetic mortal like me stands no chance then." She said as she stood bare before the wizened woman. Corrine smiled as she lifted Neomi's arms, hands hovering over her skin as though testing for wounds that couldn't be seen. Neomi knew she wouldn't be surprised if there was some magic Hades had used to injure her further. He had been very thorough in his attack.
"My dear," Corrine began as her withered fingers fluttered over Neomi's flesh, "none of us do. Live your life and what will be, will be—you are hardly pathetic for that." She said. It was then that the old woman stopped as she looked down Neomi's body, she poked at a spot on Neomi's torso, just above her hipbone.
"What is this?" she asked as she looked at whatever had caught her attention. Neomi followed her gaze and realized Corrine had found her scar. It wasn't a particularly large scar, no more than an inch or two if you made the stretch for that length but that wasn't what was interesting about it. What was interesting was if you looked at it just the right way, it looked, as a snake would be coiled and waiting for its prey.
"Oh—I've had that since I was a child." Neomi answered as the healer looked at it.
"What an odd looking scar," Corrine said meeting Neomi's eyes after looking at the mark for a moment. "What happened to create such a mark?" she asked as she looked over the rest of Neomi.
"I was a reckless child. We lived near a river where I liked to play when I was young. My mother had warned me to be careful, but I wasn't listening. I fell in the water and the current pulled me down." Neomi told her story, her eyes changing as though she were far away from Olympus.
"I don't remember much after that, but I remember before everything went dark, I felt as though I had been struck with a knife here," she continued, touching the area on her hip. "I woke up much later, home and dry. My father had found me on shore as though I had been dragged there. He said it had been the strangest thing as he had seen me slip below the water. He thought for certain he had lost me, if not for a stray beam of sunlight leading his way to me." She finished, coming back to her current surroundings and meeting Corrine's gaze.
"I suppose that's why I have always held Apollo in such reverence most of my life. My father honored him for saving my life." Neomi said, realizing she had been babbling. Corrine however, did not seem annoyed by any lost time, instead smiling at her.
"Perhaps this is why Apollo has such interest in you, child. Do not doubt your importance, there is no evidence to the contrary." The old woman said, turning toward a seat off in the corner of the chamber. Neomi hadn't noticed this before, but upon this seat was a beautiful dress, the likes Neomi had never seen. Corrine lifted it up and shuffled back toward her where she sat on the bed. Neomi stood shakily as she drew near, the old woman holding it up for Neomi to prepare to clothe herself with it.
"This dress is far too special for the likes of me, Corrine." She said, but the elder healer would not hear anything of it.
"If my hands were not bent with time I would cuff you for your words. This dress was made to be worn, there are no sacred texts or mouthy priests here to say you are not worthy of such a gift." She said as she prepared to guide the dress over Neomi's head. "Besides," she continued, "your other dress is ruined and smells of Hades. I would never allow you to wear that offense again." Realizing Corrine would not back down and was right she should present herself well; she bent down and lifted her arms to receive the dress.
The fabric was far softer than she had expected, the rough hand woven fabric of her own village had been a common sensation for her. This felt as though it were made of the softest silks and although she could see her skin was covered, it almost felt as though she were wearing nothing but air. The dress was green, as though one of the many colors of a peacock feather had been stolen to dye this dress, the color pleasing against her pale, freckled skin. The edges of the dress were trimmed in gold where they crossed her body, over one shoulder and under the other arm, cinching tightly at her waist with a woman's belt, a clasp not unlike the one Apollo was wearing, with the sun stamped on it. In a feat of incredible seamstress skill, the arms of the dress were buttoned atop her shoulders with small gold fasteners also marked with the sign of the sun, the fabric gaping until it was fastened again and once more leaving an opening for her forearms to move freely, the fabric continuing on until it reached the full skirt of her dress. She felt as though she were dressed as a great queen would be, though she would never say it aloud so as to avoid inviting the need to be humbled by those who had the power to do so to her. She was surrounded by great power and although much of her respect had been lost for many of them, there was still one she wished to show her deference to for doing what he had for her.
Before she realized what was happening, Corrine pushed her toward the large vanity on one side of the room—Here a large piece of polished bronze hung, used as a mirror. She was surprised when Corrine began to loosen the rest of her hair, the braids that had once been neatly coiled behind her head now messy and full of snags. Her face must have registered her surprise because Corrine laughed again.
"I may be a healer my dear, but that does not mean it's all I do. I never had children," she said as she picked up a brush from the table ahead of them. "I have always thought having a daughter would agree with me, I just never had the chance. Perhaps tonight you could be my adoptive child." She said as she pulled the brush gently through Neomi's hair, trying not to cause her pain by pulling at the rats in her hair. The repetitive motion suddenly caused Neomi to realize how tired she was, her eyes beginning to droop as she sat and felt Corrine's ministrations on her hair. She wasn't opposed to this alliance; Corrine clearly had a power over Apollo and if she had that, she would likely be a good ally to have for whatever the future held for her. Corrine's hands smoothed through her hair, rebraiding the strands into clean, glossy plaits behind her head once more. Her hair was very long though and Corrine's fingers though adept were slowed with age, the process was going to take a while, time which Corrine didn't waste. As her fingers twisted the strands into place, she met Neomi's eyes in the mirror.
"So, tell me more about this scar of yours." She asked. And for the next few minutes, as Corrine finished her hair, twisting pretty golden pins into the braids to add just a touch of a glitter, Neomi explained everything that had happened the day she received the scar on her hip.
After Corrine settled Neomi in, she shuffled out the door into the long hallways of Olympus. She knew she wouldn't have to look far, Apollo stood nearby, looking out upon Greece from one of the many open halls of Olympus. He turned when he heard Corrine come toward him, his patience with waiting wearing thin.
"Is she well, Corrine? May I see her?" he began, but the old woman put up a hand to silence him.
"You ask questions like love-sick young man—not the proud god you claim to be." Corrine said sternly, Apollo almost immediately quieting himself to hear the healer speak. The old woman patted his cheek from where she stood before him and then took a moment to compose her next words.
"What is it, Corrine? What have you seen?" he asked her quietly, the elder woman finally speaking.
"I have found something that may explain why this young woman is so intriguing to you." She said with great finality. Apollo simply stared at her, the words tumbling through his mind as the endless possibilities of what Corrine might have discovered swam through his mind.
Whatever it was—Apollo wanted answers now.