"Belief creates the actual fact." -Anonymous
000
"This is ridiculous, they can't honestly expect us to believe this crap!" Jared scoffed.
"I don't know, there was a presidential speech on the news last night…" Jenna said uncertainly, looking slightly scared. "I know everyone's saying it's some big conspiracy theory, but the president wouldn't go on air live to the world and just-"
"It wasn't him, it was a look alike. The news stations got highjacked or something." Brad dismissed, totally unconcerned and bored of the hoax already.
"You picked that off the first tweet you read!" Jenna scolded him. "You don't know anything with certainty! Did you even look at the national news websites? They all agree it's the real deal!" She exclaimed.
"Impossible." Jared huffed. "Talking about conspiracy theories and aliens in area 51 is one thing, but coming out and claiming the government has actually met gods is ridiculous."
"But you know what a riot this is causing with all the religious groups," Kerry pointed out softly. "They wouldn't pull a joke like this and risk pissing off a large portion of the planet in saying their religions are wrong."
"Which is why this is all some big misunderstanding or hoax." Marsha declared. "They can't just up and say people's religions are wrong, it's against this country's whole ideals!"
"You didn't listen to the speech or read the news either, did you?" Jenna demanded of the boys. "They made it very clear there are several religious pantheons in the world, but the Greek gods are the only ones currently coming out to the mortal public." She explained.
"And if I remember correctly our history class, I assume they did it before in Ancient Greece," Kerry added thoughtfully. "But I guess over time we just chalked it all up to old legends: no one ever actually meeting those gods and nymphs and all that stuff in thousands of years and they just..."
"Yeah, but so did the Egyptian gods, so where are they?" Jared rolled his eyes.
"Maybe they'll come out now too." Brad said sarcastically, sharing a snicker with Jared and Marsha while the other two girls glared at them.
"Doubtful." A drawling voice said, and they jumped as Ms. Flora was suddenly standing directly behind them. "Oops, sorry to startle you!" The beautiful woman beamed at them, not seeming sorry at all.
"Ms. Flora!" Jared stuttered, blushing a bit as the goddess in disguise smiled kindly at him.
"I couldn't help but overhear your conversation," She said sweetly, her pink lips curling into a knowing smile. "I was wondering what you really thought of all this?"
"What? People claiming to be Greek gods?" Marsha clarified.
Ms. Flora's smile was marred some by the intrigued burrow of her brow. "Ah, I see… you don't believe." She deduced.
"Well, no, not really." Jared admitted with a shrug. "Should we? I mean, it can't be real, can it?" He said, even though it came across as a question in respect to the teacher— this teacher especially, who always seemed to command more respect though no one was sure why, air-headed as she was. Ms. Hoot, now that was perfectly understandable, but Ms. Flora was too out-to-lunch and airy for anyone to understand why she was just as frightening as Ms. Hoot.
"You would be surprised." She murmured knowingly, and the kids exchanged freaked looks. "Come with me, I wish to show you something." She opened her arms and ushered them down the hall, and they had no choice but to follow.
"Ms. Flora, our next classes-!"
"I'll write you a note to something." She dismissed airily. They quickly found themselves at the front door and down the main steps in the front garden. "You see, the gods cannot reveal themselves to every doubting mortal, so the rest of the Greek community is stepping up show the world it is not, as you put it, a hoax." She explained with a light, breezy laugh, although it sent shivers down their spines.
They found their way down a side path, the kids all exchanging freaked and questioning looks.
They passed the beautiful flowers and intricately designed bushes and trees that didn't seem to be wilting any even as the winter months drew closer. Not one leaf had any hint of brown or decay like they should've in fall, but for the most part the kids had just sort of assumed it was the janitors doing a great job at gardening. As they looked closer, they could still see bees and birds active as ever and flowers in full bloom, like it was the middle of spring rather than almost mid-Autumn.
"This place is beautiful." Jenna said in surprise, not having given this garden much thought other than that it was mildly pleasant to spend a study hall in. She did grow up in a city after all, it wasn't truly her thing.
"Why thank you!" A new, bright voice giggled bubbly, and they all jumped save for Ms. Flora.
"What was that!?" Jared squeaked (in a manly way of course) as the kids clustered together in reaction to their surprise at a disembodied voice in a secluded section of the garden. Talk about something straight out of a horror flick.
"You mean who was that young man! Honestly, the youth of today…" The voice sighed heavily.
"Cherry, these are some students who were in doubt of the Greek gods' existence." Ms. Flora said calmly to… a tree?
The kids gave startled yelp/screams as the cherry blossom tree just off the path seemed to shake, and then a girl popped into existence right in front of it. She had pale gray skin, just like the trees' bark, and long, wavy, bubble-gum pink hair, just like the cherry blossoms in full bloom in the tree beside her. She had flat brown eyes, but where the parts of her eyes should've been white, they were mossy green, the exact same shade of her leaf-dress and the leaves of the tree.
"My Lady," The nymph bowed respectively to Ms. Flora, who waved her off with a pleased smile.
"Please, I am a teacher here." She said, stating the obvious to the student's ears, but also commanding the nymph not to blow her cover as a goddess.
"Very good my Lady," Cherry nodded happily, before turning her freaky eyes to the shell-shocked teenagers. "So you think I don't exist then, do you?" She challenged, putting her tiny hands on her hips and giving them a look as if daring them to object.
They floundered wordlessly at her, their mouths hanging open.
"That depends…" Kerry said in a pathetically weak voice. "What… are you…?"
"A tree nymph silly!" Cherry giggled, her pink curls bouncing with her laughter. "This garden is a sanctuary for nymphs, hence the reasoning for the 'keep away' signs! Some of us can get pretty nasty when our homes are messed with." She said matter-of-factly.
They stared at her in shock.
"You sure you're not someone just dressed up as a nymph?" Jared frowned. "OW!" He screeched as the tree bent down and whacked him over the head with a thin branch, covering him in cherry blossom petals.
"Did I mention I was one of the nasty ones when messed with?" Cherry sniffed disapprovingly at the boy with a too-innocent smile.
They stared at the tree that had just come to life and attacked them like… well, like it was about to jump to life and attack them.
"Now that we're past that, over there is Ivy, and across the way it Lavender Petals, but we call her Pet-a-Rabbit—long story, you don't need to hear it—and then down a bit you'll find Kale and Coriander, even Tarragon, or Tara for short, though she's never out, grouchy old thing, and that pretty new tree is July, next to her is June Bug (don't even wave back, she'll send lightning bugs after you until you graduate) and if you want a good conversation talk to Tulipia, she's right there—no the other red one—but just don't get her started on those gods awful stink bugs, you'll be here all week, and…" She droned on and on and on, pointing out the other nymphs in the garden, and the teens felt their jaws slowly dropping down farther and farther as faces and hands started materializing before them, smiling and waving welcomingly.
"Cherry is the unofficial welcoming committee to the garden." Ms. Flora said gently to Brad and Jenna as the tree nymph continued to talk excitedly about all her friends to the other three kids. "Quite the busy body she is. With that said, nothing happens without her knowing so you know who to talk to for information." She nodded.
"… oh and don't get me started on the time those two lovey-dovey seniors tried to make out under Oakley's branches last month! Poor thing was blushing green for a week-!"
"Who were the seniors?" Jenna gasped, getting really into this gossip thing and seeming to forget she was talking to a tree nymph.
"Richard Boyce and Penny Lang?" Cherry gushed excitedly.
"No way!" Jenna freaked happily. "She was going out with Harper James at the time!"
"No!" Cherry gasped dramatically. "He's a football player right? Horrible cleats he wears, truly terrible for the grass nymphs, but so much fun to mess with! But I wouldn't worry about Penny's two-timing, you should see how many girls that jock brings back here! We finally had to ask Ivy to give him a rash just to make him think twice about taking those shorts off here!"
"I didn't need to know this." Brad shuddered while Jared looked equally disturbed. The girls however rushed forward and started in on the many flaws of Harper James, completely forgetting they were talking to a tree.
'Ms. Flora' smiled to herself devilishly—a look she'd learned and perfected from her husband. Already she could feel the flickers of power as the children stared in wide-eyed awe at the garden around them, as the garden started to stare back, waving happily at the kids.
Belief was a strong thing for a goddess, and her pleased smile grew as, all across the world, she felt her presence growing stronger.