Journey to Big Moon

Chapter 6: Tasmanian Devil

Chapter 6: Tasmanian Devil

17:13 (Local Time)

Year 2121, October 14

Thessaloniki, Greece

"Am... Amber!... Amber!!! Ambrosia Danae Theophylaktos!!!"

I groaned then I suddenly shot out of my chair.

"Uhmnu..." My mouth mumbling incoherent words, my eyes bleariñy opening one by one. A strong slightly tanned middle-aged woman with deep black eyes stood in front of me, black curly hair framing her face. Ma?

"Ambrosia! We have to hurry and board, the plane will take off soon!" Plane! Right!

Knocked out of my stupor, I quickly grabbed my bags that are between my legs with one hand. I hurried my pace to catch up to my mother dragging me. She walking briskly before me, her hand holding my wrist. I blew away a stray strand of my curly black hair from my face. We rushed through the gate doors and into the plane. The doors shut behind us.

"That was too close." My mom, Hera, sighed. "Now where is row 4..."

Hera's eyes roamed through the cabin, regarding the area with determined eyes. Her pupils focus on two vacant seats in the row labeled 4. We walked towards the seats, stuffing our bags in the overhead compartment like we were told to by a flight attendant. Hera sighed as she slouched into her chair. I followed suit, still reeling from my little nap in the airport.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard Aegean Airlines. Please buckle your seatbelts and stow away your tray tables as we are about to take off. We will be arrived in Melbourne in 12 or so hours. Thank you."

"So are you excited to meet your relatives, paidiá?" Hera smiled in my direction.

"How did they end up there again?" A small boy with questioning dark green eyes and curly black hair looked up to my mom from my right.

"Yeah, how did they?" An exact copy of the small boy peeked out from behind the previous small kid.

"Yeah, how?" And another.

"Engonoús, don't keep forgetting how your relatives ended up. Remember, many of them died fighting against the Romans and other Greeks! They ended up buried throughout Greece, God rest their souls."

"Uh Giagiá, they asked how our relatives ended up in Australia, not how our ancient relatives ended up."

"Oh, well..."

"Ma...did you flush your hearing aids down the toilet...again?" Aphrodite turned her now squinted eyes to an elderly woman with white curls flush and fiddle with her fingers, looking out the window.

"Umm... Oh look how soft the clouds look!"

"Mána!"

I hold a fist to my mouth, trying to hide my laughter. Trying, anyway. My shaking shoulders gave me away. The three identical boys beside me not even bothering. They just burst into laughter.

"Well...the darn things just popped out of my ear when I stood up from the toilet at home this morning, and then it just...flushed all by itself!" My grandma stammered in Greek. "I tried to save them, really I did! But alas it was already too late. It vanished down the porcelein contraption we call a toilet. Trajic really..."

I couldn't hold it anymore. I burst out laughing too, clutching my stomach. I faintly hear my mother berate to my grandma in Greek. My grandma muttering under her breath as she slouched further into her seat,"Who's the mother in this relationship..."