When you give a goddess a chocolate...

Part 8: Clearly not a cult

Dr. Zoe Pappas stares at her granddaughter over the rim of her coffee cup. It's only been a month since the girl started wearing green daily. Even though the color truly complements Lucilla's complexion, Zoe hates it now. Something is unnerving about walking into a school where almost an entire grade is now wearing the same color. They don't have uniforms. It's just an unspoken rule.

And now, there is the dinosaur with golden eyes that Lucilla takes around with her. The robot with golden eyes was weird. This purple and orange-speckled monstrosity is just creepy. Another thing for "Psyche" to work through is Zoe's guess.

It could be a reaction to Kit becoming sick; the timing does line up. Every child needs a coping mechanism. Psyche is probably hers. Well, that's what Zoe told Ms. Anya during the parent-teacher meeting they had a few weeks ago. The "We have concerns your granddaughter could be a cult leader" talk went as smoothly as expected when a teacher is dealing with a licensed psychologist. Her son laughed out loud, and Zoe went into a deep psychological analysis while providing the qualifiers of a cult. "The green group," the teachers charmingly call them, don't meet "cult qualifications."

Those Aphrodite girls wearing pink and red all the time are far more cult-like than Lucilla's group. They kicked out a girl for refusing to accept her chosen boyfriend the other day. Then, the said boyfriend fell into tears because he thought he would never find love again.

Chloe wore blue last Wednesday because her mom strategically "ran out of green clothes." The other children played with her, and everyone seemed okay.

So, Zoe is confident her granddaughter doesn't lead a cult.

"But, it's still weird," Zoe mutters to herself.

Lucilla looks up at her grandmother. "What's weird?"

"Nothing, darling," Zoe smiles. "Are you excited about school today?"

"Yep," she nods. "Today, Chloe is going to teach us a new dance. We're hoping that it will raise the spirits of everyone around us. Psyche says it might even be felt by Kit. Did you know Kit will start her tree—tray—that stuff today?" Lucilla's nose finishes in a scrunch, slightly upset with herself for forgetting the long word Psyche used.

Zoe presses her lips together, and her eyebrows go together. Did she overhear me talking with Kit's mom on the phone? But there's no way. She was at school. "How do you know about that?"

Lucilla shrugs. "Psyche told me last night in my room."

"Do you two talk every night?"

"No, not every night anymore. She needs to be with some of the others because they're sad or mad. And Kit is scared."

Lucilla cuts Zoe's words off by grabbing the dinosaur and jumping from the table. "Oh no, Grandma! We could be late! I'll go brush my teeth now."

Lucilla uses her spare hand to grab her plate and places it in the sink before running away to brush her teeth.

Nico walks into the kitchen, chuckling lightly. "She is really excited to go to school today. Something about Chloe and a dance?"

Zoe nods, standing to go join her son in the kitchen. "Yeah, she told me." Licking her lips, she gathers her thoughts before speaking. "Do you think Lucilla is doing okay?"

"Mom—"

"Wait, wait," she cuts off Nico, holding up her hands. "I just think this could be some masking. She still hasn't healed from her mother dying; now, her best friend is sick with cancer. It makes sense for her to create this magical character, and—"

Nico holds up his hand. "It's also the first time she's been happy in a long while. We will keep watching her. And can set up a meeting with one of your old coworkers if things spiral. I don't want her to think feeling this joy and excitement is wrong."