After Melinoe had finished the chapters in the book about growing, and had found a couple other books for references. She began to make a list of things that she could do.
Alright, the book said that dairy helps your bones grow. Good thing that I'm not lactose intolerant. I'll start drinking at least one large glass each day. Yoga and stretching should help as well. I've got those two books with yoga instructions that I can read. And then there's my idea. The world has a gravitational pull that keeps us on the ground. And the rack pulls a person apart by force. That pulling causes them to stretch and become taller. Could I produce the same results, without as much pain by hanging off of things? Like tree branches? Time to try my scientific experiment.
She walked past the children, happily playing. She walked past the group of kids from earlier. They stopped their game and fell dead silent as she walked by.
She walked up to one of the trees and placed her books on the ground beside it.
She climbed up a few feet before grabbing onto a branch and swinging herself down. She hung there for about a minute and a half or so, before her hands gave out and she fell. Determined, she climbed back up to the branch, repeated her process, this time only lasting for about a minute, before slipping. Wincing, she stretched her fingers in pain and began to think about a new plan.
So I can't hang with my hands for long, and without pain. So what else can I do?
Five minutes later, she was back in the tree, hanging from her legs, reading her book upside down.
Atlas sat on the branch that she was hanging from. He looked down at her, with a gaze of complete judgement.
"Yes, I do know that I look like an idiot. But I don't care. Better than being a freak." she defended herself, before raising her book again.
Some of the children stopped their games to glance over toward the outcast and whisper about what she might be doing.
"She's lost her mind."
"She's like a bat, only more scary."
Hecate and Nyx eventually wandered over to their sister.
"Hey Mel, uh what are you doing?" Hecate said, confused. Melinoe let her arms drop down, removing the book from her face.
"Hey Te. Hey Nyx." she said, smiling at her sisters.
"Yeah, what Te said. Mel, we're confused. What is this?" Nyx said, gesturing towards her upside down sister.
"Oh, uh. Don't tell Momma but, I'm trying to grow taller." she responded, looking around, in case her mother was nearby.
"By hanging upside down?" Hecate asked, as confused as before.
"Yes, I'm testing my theory."
"Okay, um. Why are we not supposed to tell Mama?"
"Because she told me that once I'm taller than her, I can go to the above world."
Nyx gasped. "Why would you want to go there? Mama makes it sound so scary."
"With pain and suffering and bad people. Why would you want to leave Elysium?" Hecate said. Nyx covered her ears while Hecate talked about the horrible things up there.
"But aren't you curious? If there's so many bad things up there, then surely there's gotta be good things there as well. We've never seen anything alive. We've just heard stories. I want to see it for myself."
"Not really, I'm happy here." Hecate said. "Uh huh." Nyx agreed.
"Well I'm not. I wanna see more. So I'm gonna go up there as soon as I can." Melinoe said, raising her book again. Her sisters shrugged their shoulders and walked away.
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Lorelai arrived in the courtyard. Almost immediately she found two of her daughters.
"Mommy!" Hecate cried when she saw her mother, running towards her. "Mama!" Nyx followed at her heel.
"Oh hello my darlings, have you seen your sister? I need the three of you." she asked her children who she had wrapped into a hug.
"Oh, she was hanging off of a tree over there a while ago. I think that she could still be there." Hecate said, pointing in the direction of the bare tree.
"Alright, come along." she told them. They followed behind her, one on either side of her.
They walked up to the tree, eventually they were close enough for Lorelai to see her daughter, hanging upside down from a tree branch, book in hand, oblivious to the world around her.
Confusion overtook her and all she could wonder was That's my daughter. She's a weird one that's for sure.
"Normally I'd ask you what you're doing but I think that the more important question at this moment is why?" she said, snapping her daughter back into reality, making her lose her grip and fall on her head. Lorelai winced as Mel hit the floor.
"Momma! You're back!" Melinoe cried, looking up at her mother.
"Hello my darling, are you okay? So. What were you doing in that tree and why were you doing it?"
"An experiment." Melinoe replied, getting up and dusting off her knees.
"Which was?" Lorelai replied, raising an eyebrow.
"To grow taller." Mel answered truthuly.
"By hanging out of a tree?"
"Gravitational pull. I got the idea from the Rack."
"What's the Rack?" Nyx asked, scared.
"Nothing you need to worry about darling" she patted her on her head. "How do you know what the Rack is Melinoe?"
"Your age restriction enforcer ghouls are really easy to fool. I'd suggest you find new ways to stop kids from reading those books, I need a new puzzle to crack." she told her mother.
"Alright then, I'll add that to the list, now I have something that I need you girls to do." Lorelai crouched down to their level.
"What is it?" Nyx asked.
"I need you girls to go hide. Really good, blend with our shadows."
"Why?" Melinoe asked, curious at this request.
"I have some people coming here." she said.
"People for hell?" the young girl asked.
"No, no. Special people."
"Alive people?" Mel guessed, hopeful.
"No, spirits. Like me." Lorelai sighed.
The girls gasped. "Spirits?! Wait, are they bad spirits? Is that why you want us to hide?" Mel realized.
"Oh no, no. They're good spirits. I just don't trust them, and I don't trust what they'd do if they knew who you are. So please, promise me that you'll go hide."
"Alright." the girls said in chorus.
"Thank you, now go. Melinoe, here. This is for you." she placed a small parcel, wrapped in a piece of black cloth in her small hand before ushering the girls off in the direction of the castle.
She watched them go in, before flying off back up to the Guardians.
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"Alright, let's head up to our rooms then." Nyx said.
"Wait a minute, why don't we just stay here?" Mel asked, an idea entering her mind.
"What? No. Mama said to hide in our rooms." Nyx reminded her sister.
"Uh uh. She just told us to hide." Hecate corrected her.
"Exactly. And I don't know about you, but I wanna know what she's doing." Mel flashed Hecate a grin.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Hecate returned the Cheshire cat grin.
"Operation spy from the shadows?"
"You bet."
YOU ARE READING
Breath taker
FanfictionA Jack Frost x OC story Lorelai Azrael, known by all as the Grim Reaper is the spirit of death. She carries the suffering to a place of joy and pleasure. But since humans are selfish and hate to be left alone, they curse her name. Even the other spi...
