(Ah, all prettiness and happy times... for now. It was fun to write this
part, but I think I prefer the chaos to the calm.)
There was a sound of birds, and the warmth of the sun on her face. Though she was too tired, Evie began to contemplate the idea of getting up. Instinctively she reached for the hotel clock on the bedside table that she knew would be there. Instead, there was a crashing noise as something her hand touched fell to the floor.
That opened Evie's eyes, even though it was still too early to sit up yet. A woman came into the room then. She smiled when she saw Evie.
"What happened, daughter? Why aren't you awake yet, what was the crash, and why is there broken glass on the floor?" The woman began to scoop up the jagged shards of a ruined vase.
The morning confusion brought Evie to a sitting position, and she sleepily took in her surroundings. The bed she was on was not a hotel bed, but a large fluffy one covered in satins and silks, with a canopy over the top. Everything was blue. The marble floor, the columns that surrounded the area (there were no walls), the mosaics on the ceiling, and the many fabrics that lay here and there were hundreds of beautiful shades of blue.
Except for the woman. Her robes were flowing shades of forest green, which brought out the color of her green eyes. She had long brown hair, which was pulled back into a loose bun. Evie couldn't decide what age she was. She looked very old and wonderfully young at the same time.
"Persephone," the woman said as she sat on the bed beside Evie, "Do you feel feverish? Is that why you're staying in bed?" She put a cool hand on the girl's forehead.
Evie's mind was working too slowly to figure out what was going on. No, maybe it wasn't that. She couldn't tell. All she felt was confusion, so she said, "I'm just a bit confused. I had the strangest dreams last night."
The woman smiled and completely relaxed, when before it seemed as though she had been worried about something. "Yes, you should feel that way for a while. I'll just get you some breakfast. Now, you lay right back down for a bit. You can get up when you feel better."
"Can you tell me one thing?" Evie asked as she lay back down on the pillows.
"Of course, love."
"What's your name?"
The woman hesitated, then smiled again and said, "Demeter." She then left the room, and Evie remained to contemplate what was going on.
Demeter entered the kitchen of the small house. Another goddess, Hestia, was already there, making a fire in the hearth.
This goddess looked a bit older than Demeter did, with silver hair and soft orange eyes. She did not, however, look the least bit old.
"How is she? Was she affected?" asked Hestia.
"Oh, no, she'll be fine. A bit confused perhaps," Demeter replied.
"Confused? Why?"
"It's nothing to be worried about... the Fates said that she might lose her memory." When Demeter said this, she did not look at Hestia, but stared at the floor.
"Her memory? She has no recollection of who you are, what she is?" Hestia's voice remained calm and kind, though the fact clearly shocked her. "Take her to Mnemosyne, ask her to try and get it back."
"No," Demeter said, "I don't want to make things worse. We should just pretend that nothing happened. Live life like she's always been here. Maybe then she'll remember."
"If you say so. She is your daughter." Hestia returned to feeding wood into the fire.
Demeter sighed and filled a wooden bowel with fruit, and on the way out grabbed a ceramic pitcher filled with nectar. When she came into the room, Evie was still in bed, and still confused. She threw back her covers and stood when she saw the goddess, and said, "I don't know if this is some kind of joke, but what the hell happened to the class trip?"
"Persephone, it must have been that dream you had," said Demeter. "I brought you breakfast. Eat."
Perhaps because of the motherly tone that Demeter used, Evie automatically reached for the bowel, selecting a handful of ripe, purple grapes. When she put one into her mouth, the grape burst with a powerful flavor that she had never tasted before. She coughed, and Demeter smacked her back between the shoulder blades because she thought her daughter was choking.
"I didn't know grapes tasted like that!" exclaimed Evie.
"Oh, you must not have eaten them for a while and forgotten what they tasted like. You'll remember, dear. Here, drink this. It will wash down the taste if you don't like it."
"I like it; it just wasn't what I expected." Evie took the cup that Demeter handed to her, the nectar of immortality that the gods drink. It tasted very sweet, but not too sweet. It tasted like the rays of the sun, like the laughing waters of crystal clear rivers, like the sweetest fruit on the earth, all in one gulp.
After she drank, Evie no longer felt confused. Instead she felt that she needed to figure things out.
When Demeter left with the food and drink, Evie found a mirror hanging on one of the pillars, and she gazed at herself. Her skin seemed to glow, and no longer had any of the blemishes that she had the day before. The clothes she wore were the softest fabric she had ever touched, and they were the lightest shade of blue, almost white. Her hair was the same length, down to her waist, but it was thicker and shinier. The brooch she found was no longer around her neck, but holding up her dress. But her eyes were the same old green, the only comfort of familiarity to her in this strange place.
(If Demeter thinks I'm so confused, maybe I can get some questions explained,) thought Evie. So when her 'mother' returned, she asked, "Where are we, exactly?"
"On Mount Olympus, in the house of Hestia," answered Demeter. She didn't seem suspicious or anything, so Evie continued.
"Do you know what time it is?"
Demeter walked past Evie to one of the pillars and looked out. Evie followed, and saw a pretty little garden on the back of the house (if it could be called that, it was so open). A sundial was set in the middle, surrounded by multitudes of pretty flowers.
"Helios has been in his chariot for about three hours now," Demeter said.
"So... it's about seven thirty?" Evie squinted as she tried to get a better look at the sundial.
"Yes. And it's about time you go and do your chore."
Evie blinked. "Chore? What chore?"
Demeter laughed and said, "You volunteered to pick flowers for the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. Don't you remember?"
"Oh, uh, sure I do. It must've slipped my mind."
"Good. I asked Artemis if she would go with you. She said she isn't busy, so you just wait here until she comes." Demeter walked out again.
Evie sat down on the bed. Confused or not, she thought this was pretty cool, being in the place that she and her classmates were just learning about in school. So, she decided to play along for the time being.
She didn't have to wait long until Artemis came into the room. She seemed about Evie's age, and wore a short leather dress with her black hair in a braid. A bow and quiver of arrows were strapped to her back.
"Are you ready to go?" she asked Evie.
"Sure, ready when you are." The girls walked out of the house into the full sunshine. They passed other houses, which looked as though they were built out of silver and gold. Evie couldn't see inside any of them, so she had no idea who lived where.
They went down the steep stairs of the mountain, to the golden gates that barred Olympus from the mortal world. The gates swung silently open as the girls approached, and they passed through.
(I've decided that I'm not going to post any more until I get at least one review. C'mon, people! I don't care if you flame me or congratulate me, as long as I know that there's something I need to improve on or that I'm doing a good job.)
There was a sound of birds, and the warmth of the sun on her face. Though she was too tired, Evie began to contemplate the idea of getting up. Instinctively she reached for the hotel clock on the bedside table that she knew would be there. Instead, there was a crashing noise as something her hand touched fell to the floor.
That opened Evie's eyes, even though it was still too early to sit up yet. A woman came into the room then. She smiled when she saw Evie.
"What happened, daughter? Why aren't you awake yet, what was the crash, and why is there broken glass on the floor?" The woman began to scoop up the jagged shards of a ruined vase.
The morning confusion brought Evie to a sitting position, and she sleepily took in her surroundings. The bed she was on was not a hotel bed, but a large fluffy one covered in satins and silks, with a canopy over the top. Everything was blue. The marble floor, the columns that surrounded the area (there were no walls), the mosaics on the ceiling, and the many fabrics that lay here and there were hundreds of beautiful shades of blue.
Except for the woman. Her robes were flowing shades of forest green, which brought out the color of her green eyes. She had long brown hair, which was pulled back into a loose bun. Evie couldn't decide what age she was. She looked very old and wonderfully young at the same time.
"Persephone," the woman said as she sat on the bed beside Evie, "Do you feel feverish? Is that why you're staying in bed?" She put a cool hand on the girl's forehead.
Evie's mind was working too slowly to figure out what was going on. No, maybe it wasn't that. She couldn't tell. All she felt was confusion, so she said, "I'm just a bit confused. I had the strangest dreams last night."
The woman smiled and completely relaxed, when before it seemed as though she had been worried about something. "Yes, you should feel that way for a while. I'll just get you some breakfast. Now, you lay right back down for a bit. You can get up when you feel better."
"Can you tell me one thing?" Evie asked as she lay back down on the pillows.
"Of course, love."
"What's your name?"
The woman hesitated, then smiled again and said, "Demeter." She then left the room, and Evie remained to contemplate what was going on.
Demeter entered the kitchen of the small house. Another goddess, Hestia, was already there, making a fire in the hearth.
This goddess looked a bit older than Demeter did, with silver hair and soft orange eyes. She did not, however, look the least bit old.
"How is she? Was she affected?" asked Hestia.
"Oh, no, she'll be fine. A bit confused perhaps," Demeter replied.
"Confused? Why?"
"It's nothing to be worried about... the Fates said that she might lose her memory." When Demeter said this, she did not look at Hestia, but stared at the floor.
"Her memory? She has no recollection of who you are, what she is?" Hestia's voice remained calm and kind, though the fact clearly shocked her. "Take her to Mnemosyne, ask her to try and get it back."
"No," Demeter said, "I don't want to make things worse. We should just pretend that nothing happened. Live life like she's always been here. Maybe then she'll remember."
"If you say so. She is your daughter." Hestia returned to feeding wood into the fire.
Demeter sighed and filled a wooden bowel with fruit, and on the way out grabbed a ceramic pitcher filled with nectar. When she came into the room, Evie was still in bed, and still confused. She threw back her covers and stood when she saw the goddess, and said, "I don't know if this is some kind of joke, but what the hell happened to the class trip?"
"Persephone, it must have been that dream you had," said Demeter. "I brought you breakfast. Eat."
Perhaps because of the motherly tone that Demeter used, Evie automatically reached for the bowel, selecting a handful of ripe, purple grapes. When she put one into her mouth, the grape burst with a powerful flavor that she had never tasted before. She coughed, and Demeter smacked her back between the shoulder blades because she thought her daughter was choking.
"I didn't know grapes tasted like that!" exclaimed Evie.
"Oh, you must not have eaten them for a while and forgotten what they tasted like. You'll remember, dear. Here, drink this. It will wash down the taste if you don't like it."
"I like it; it just wasn't what I expected." Evie took the cup that Demeter handed to her, the nectar of immortality that the gods drink. It tasted very sweet, but not too sweet. It tasted like the rays of the sun, like the laughing waters of crystal clear rivers, like the sweetest fruit on the earth, all in one gulp.
After she drank, Evie no longer felt confused. Instead she felt that she needed to figure things out.
When Demeter left with the food and drink, Evie found a mirror hanging on one of the pillars, and she gazed at herself. Her skin seemed to glow, and no longer had any of the blemishes that she had the day before. The clothes she wore were the softest fabric she had ever touched, and they were the lightest shade of blue, almost white. Her hair was the same length, down to her waist, but it was thicker and shinier. The brooch she found was no longer around her neck, but holding up her dress. But her eyes were the same old green, the only comfort of familiarity to her in this strange place.
(If Demeter thinks I'm so confused, maybe I can get some questions explained,) thought Evie. So when her 'mother' returned, she asked, "Where are we, exactly?"
"On Mount Olympus, in the house of Hestia," answered Demeter. She didn't seem suspicious or anything, so Evie continued.
"Do you know what time it is?"
Demeter walked past Evie to one of the pillars and looked out. Evie followed, and saw a pretty little garden on the back of the house (if it could be called that, it was so open). A sundial was set in the middle, surrounded by multitudes of pretty flowers.
"Helios has been in his chariot for about three hours now," Demeter said.
"So... it's about seven thirty?" Evie squinted as she tried to get a better look at the sundial.
"Yes. And it's about time you go and do your chore."
Evie blinked. "Chore? What chore?"
Demeter laughed and said, "You volunteered to pick flowers for the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. Don't you remember?"
"Oh, uh, sure I do. It must've slipped my mind."
"Good. I asked Artemis if she would go with you. She said she isn't busy, so you just wait here until she comes." Demeter walked out again.
Evie sat down on the bed. Confused or not, she thought this was pretty cool, being in the place that she and her classmates were just learning about in school. So, she decided to play along for the time being.
She didn't have to wait long until Artemis came into the room. She seemed about Evie's age, and wore a short leather dress with her black hair in a braid. A bow and quiver of arrows were strapped to her back.
"Are you ready to go?" she asked Evie.
"Sure, ready when you are." The girls walked out of the house into the full sunshine. They passed other houses, which looked as though they were built out of silver and gold. Evie couldn't see inside any of them, so she had no idea who lived where.
They went down the steep stairs of the mountain, to the golden gates that barred Olympus from the mortal world. The gates swung silently open as the girls approached, and they passed through.
(I've decided that I'm not going to post any more until I get at least one review. C'mon, people! I don't care if you flame me or congratulate me, as long as I know that there's something I need to improve on or that I'm doing a good job.)