"Wait. Are you an actual Greek goddess?" Liz asked in awe.
The woman in front of them looked nothing like the goddesses she'd seen on images. They wore long, flowing dresses--albeit some wore nothing at all--and had their hair up in elaborate twists. They were accompanied by animals or weapons and they looked amazing, no matter what.
But this woman...
Her long hair was tied up in a ponytail, her clothes looked out of place in the havoc of the barn, and...large, circular glasses? Was she the female version of Harry Potter or something?
This woman didn't look like a goddess.
But she certainly acted like one. The way she carried herself with confidence and her expression calm with a small smile.
"Yes. A true blue goddess," she grinned, winking at Liz. "As you've heard my little half-moon, I am the goddess of the moon, a.k.a. the moon itself."
Liz could spot out of the corner of her eye a red-faced Luna. "Mom, don't call me half-moon," she said through gritted teeth. "I got what you requested."
Selene nodded, lifting her hand up. Some water from a nearby bucket rose, twisting its way to Luna, taking the bags from her hand and giving it to Selene.
She peered into the bags, squealing with joy. "Grape jelly and pita bread! Thank you!" she clapped cheerfully, her eyes shining with joy.
"Also, these three people need to ask you something," Luna remembered. "They're on a mission from some Lord Death person."
The name caught Selene's attention. "Thanatos? He rose up from the Underworld?" she clarified, looking at Kid.
Kid raised an eyebrow. "Thanatos? Is that my father's Greek name or something?" he asked.
Selene shook her head. "His real name," she answered. "Anyway, introduce yourselves, why don't you?"
Kid shook off his confused expression and started introducing all three of them. "My name is Death the Kid. I was named after my father, Lord Death. These two are my weapons, Liz and Patty Thompson," he began.
"So Thanatos has a son now, doesn't he?" Selene chuckled. "Go on."
"We're here to take Luna to Death City to speak with my father about matters he won't tell us," Kid continued uneasily.
This was the risk of telling her why they needed Luna. There were no reasons to give because none were given. For all Selene knew, she might never ever see her heiress again!
Selene might say no and forbid them to ever come back to the cozy village they called home. A worst-case scenario popped into Kid's head with a vision of him, Liz and Patty boiling up in a large stewpot.
The thought of that nearly made him scream externally. Oh gods, what was she going to--
"Sure, she can go."
What?
Luna looked urgently at Selene. "Mom, it's the land of the living, and outside of the protective cast from the Leons," she said. "Who knows how long I can last?"
Selene suddenly looked extremely serious, which looked strange in comparison to her previously cheerful disposition. "You're right," she agreed. "There's that risk of...hm."
She turned to Kid, looking into his eyes. "Listen, if you want my Luna to go to Death City, you have to protect her with your life, you hear?" she ordered, her dark brown eyes turning into a light blue shade.
Kid nodded, her sudden eye color change unnerving him. "I swear," he agreed, holding both of his hands up.
Selene nodded and returned to her more cheerful disposition. "Great. And Luna?" Selene called as they exited.
"Yes, Mom?"
"If you feel like you're weakening, just ask to come back, OK?" Selene implored. "Don't keep it in from anyone."
Luna looked at her, her eyes lookin momentarily guilty, but then nodding. "OK."
~~~~
Luna fiddled with the edge of her sweater as they walked to the boat. "So...um...Death City...what's it like?" she asked them nervously.
"It's huge and awesome!" Patty replied, extending her arms out to emphasize its enormity.
"Are there lots of people?" Luna questioned, helping them into the boat.
"Tons of them! Some nice, some not, but overall you'll be fine," Liz answered. Luna made a small noise of uncertainty at the back of her throat.
"Sounds...nice," she managed uneasily, untying the boat from the docks. "I won't stand out, will I?"
"Don't you want to?" Kid asked. Luna shrugged as she steered the boat around a riverbend.
"I just wanna stay low for now," Luna replied. "Standing out takes too much time."
The rest of the trip back to Moonstone Creek passed with silence and Patty singing about dogs, cats, runaway cutlery, and cows jumping over moons.
It was sundown by the time they arrived there. The town had a little less activity than that morning so finding a spot to drop anchor was easy.
If they even had an anchor.
Luna helped them out of the boat once more and walked them over to the nearest inn. "I'll see you guys at 5 in the morning then?"
"5?!" Liz protested. "But that's way too early!"
"How about 8?" Kid suggested. "Would that be alright with you?"
Luna nodded slowly, turning on her heel and walking off. "The diner at eight. See you," she managed to say, concealing her uneasiness.
~~~
"Man, Luna sure was acting weird," Liz observed. "I wonder why."
"Maybe she's just nervous about tomorrow," Patty suggested.
"Tomorrow? Do you think we rushed her?" Kid wondered. "Maybe we should wait for three days for her to say her good-byes or something."
Liz looked at him tiredly. "Kid, we've found the goddess among mortals and brought back a dog--which I figure is Luna?--so our mission is done," she reasoned. "Just go to sleep. She'll be fine. I guess."
