It was a rare thing for Hestia to find herself in the Mortal world, so few remembered her even among the Demigods, it was hard to maintain a presence away from a hearth these days... but today was special. Hestia herself felt something, a spark of home and a feeling of comfort that transcended faith. Demigods searching for a home, those with traces of divinity had found the place and prayed in general for it to stay standing. She was intrigued and descended to the source...
What she found, much to her surprise, was a shelter that radiated warmth and comfort on par with her hearth. Unable to stem her curiosity. Hestia masked her presence and entered the building. Warm, luscious scents, that of delicious love filled food slammed into her the moment she crossed the barrier but still the source of the Raw love and kindness she felt was unclear, and so she followed it, letting her eyes take in the weary guests she saw.
Over forty men, women and children of various ages sat at tables covered in the delicious food. The raw comfort eased their weary hearts and she felt their souls warm as the burden of life lifted just a little...
"Are you a guest?" Warm and loving, a man's voice drew her attention, and shock as a purely mortal man looked at her... seeing through her invisibility. It was a rare gift, one that transcended blood. Only one who was filled with love for all could see her. She was honored, and so she smiled honestly.
"No I am afraid not... I... smelled the delicious food and was curious as to what this place was. I rarely leave my home you see." She smiled, almost cursing her young appearance. "If you do not mind, can you tell me what this place is?"
The man, short in stature with grey hair, black skin and a few missing teeth, smiled radiantly. "Not at all my dear. This is Philia! My wife Diane and I created this place to help those without family or who need shelter get on their feet. We provide a place to live, food, medical care and job training. I do most of the cooking while my wife, a Doctor, takes care of the medical care."
Her heart filled with warmth and Hestia was unable to hide her admiration. "What a wonderful idea! I assume you have volunteer work?" She was curious, after all so many of the workers seemed old and frail, it did not seem the kind of work most would want to be paid for... or could be unless they had a lot of money. "
"Oh yes, are you interested?"
Stunned, Hestia stepped back... but something stopped her and she could not help but smile. "You know what, that sounds lovely. I have so little to do these days, and there is nothing I enjoy more then spreading warmth... I would be honored!"
"Wonderful, let me introduce you to my wife... but first, what is your name my dear?"
"Velma... Velma Highmar." The words slipped past her lips, a name that once belonged to a modern Vestal Virign.
"Well it is wonderful to meet you Velma!"
And so a pact was born, Hestia found herself working for Diane ( A Tall Hispanic women with a stern, but kind disposition but could not tolerate nonsense or stupidity ) and Deshaun ( as she learned his name was) on the daily. No one on Mount Olympus even noticed her absence, but the people of Philia noticed her presence. Her presence brought warmth and love, the powers of her domain. The food became better, giving hope and strength to the people who ate it. They found success and happiness easier then before, their bodies became stronger and all were happier.
She felt at home... and so she blessed the place, ensuring no monster found this place... ensuring that even Zeus could not dip more then a toe and ruin even more lives. These people had been burdened enough!
Unfortunately, as she would discover, monsters and Zeus were not the only evils... the Winter Solstice required her entire presence to stay ontop of Mount Olympus and so she never knew of the evils of man until it was too late...
Not until her name, Velma, was uttered in a dying prayer...
"Velma... thank God you are not here... '
Horror overtook her heart, and without being noticed, she sent a sliver of her presence to Philia...
Fire filled her vision the moment she appeared, and she knew fear. Without hesitating, she charged into the building, the fire receding from her fury and worry. She found a child, burnt beyond survival on the floor being held by her father, who was even worse... she blessed them in one motion and in another dispelled the fire, using more strength then she realized she had to send everyone out of the building into the arms of paramedics. The Mist, due to her sheer emotion, warped the world so no one questioned it.
Following the trail of prayer and suffering, she quickly found Deshaun and Diane, embracing each other in death as they had often in life. It was their prayers that had summoned her... falling to her knees, Hestia gathered them into her arms and cried, mourning the beautiful people who had reignited her will to live life... she didn't care that her divine tears fell upon their skin, or that ash and soot covered her regal cloak. All that mattered was mourning their souls...
She knew what she had to do and so They vanished as she did, appeared in the middle of the woods in an old camp of Artemis...it was unoccupied, having been so for decades, It still carried a trace of Artemis' power, repelling mortals and beasts alike. Nature flourished here under her touch... it was a perfect place for a funeral.
Without using a trace of Magic, other then to halt their spirits, Hestia gathered wood and built a pyre to be proud of. Each twig, each branch pulled by her own hand in honor of the greatest mortals she had ever known. People who bettered the world, people she would ensure landed not in Elysium but the Isles of the Blest... people who would find each other in each and every life.
She would be sure of it.
From her own clothes, she crafted shrouds of beauty, with Philia written in Greek, Latin and English. Tenderly, she wrapped their forms and placed them on the pyre, hand in hand.
Then, drawing straight from the Hearth, she set the Pyre ablaze. Bright, rich red, the powers of Hearth and Home destroyed their mortal vessels and sent them straight to Hades. He would not question her power or her request... not when he looked into their gorgeous souls and saw what she had.
She stayed, past the night, well into Dawn... and only when their vessels had entirely vanished, did she move.
Too weary to teleport, she turned and heel and started to walk away... only to freeze as a single, loud, cry stopped her... horror filled her soul, she turned around slowly and looked at the pyre, which was a mere pile of ash and embers at this point... and saw, something move within.
"Wahhh!" The voice echoed again, and it drove her to all but sprint towards it. Diving into the remains, ignoring the soot, she quickly saw the source and almost toppled over in shock.
There, laying in the ash, coughing and screaming, was baby... screaming and wiggling indignantly as only an infant could.
Hestia did not hesitate to lift the baby, banishing the soot and ash from it's body, where she realized that the child was Dark... as Dark skinned as Deshaun. It's hair was wound tightly like his... her lips were wide and redish, like Diane's... but most shocking of all was the child's eyes. Beautiful and brown with the hint of red...
Hestia was shocked beyond words, and so she investigated this child, every inch of skin being examined. Three things became clear. First she was entirely unburnt, despite the still warm embers having just touched her. Second she resembled Hestia herself, in her original form, more then a little. Lastly, and perhaps most frightfully, She radiated an aura of calm, despite her screaming, that felt identical to Hestia's own...
"This... this.. is.. my child..." Hestia collapsed, falling on her backside, careful to not let the baby fall. "How did I...haaaa… my tears... and the Hearth... like Athena and Hephestus creating Erichthonius!" Delicately. she held the child close and started to coo at it kindly. "Hello... sweetie... my name is Hestia... and I'm your Mommy."
The baby turned, clearly confused but happy to hear her soft voice. She cooed at her softly, smiling as only a baby could.
"I think I am going to name you Shaunie... like your Daddy... Shaunie Diane... my beautiful girl...I am so sorry that I brought you into this word... being a demigoddess is not what I would wish for your life... but the Fates are cruel... I am so sorry my girl... I am so sorry." Hesita wept, daughter in hand, mourning the life she had inflicted upon her for nearly an hour before she rose, sighing softly. "Let us go and find you a mortal family... as Much as I would love to raise you... I cannot... Goddesses are not allowed to raise their mortal children... sigh... my beautiful girl... I will watch over you eternally… my little Heroine... hold fast to the bravery of your mortal parents... hold fast to their kindess and you will change the world. as they did... "'
Just a oneshot about how Hestia could have a child... I hope you enjoyed...
This was so much fun to write!
Should I make it into a series? You pick!
Love, your Ninja Overlord,
Mika.