Calliope - In The Arms Of Morpheus

Chapter 7

Calliope scoffed to herself. A better man? What could be better than this beautiful man, with the eyes that held a universe, a long fringe to bury one's hands in, and the perfect body: slender and muscular? Poli was wrong. He was not bad, he was kind and generous and gentle. He was not dangerous, he was perfect! He was the first man Calliope had met, who would care about her, not just her body.
But he had refused her. Wasn't she beautiful enough?
Hippolitos nudged her arm.
"Oh dear Litos," she sighed.
He neighed softly as if he understood.
Was she too young? No, Muses do not age the same way Humans do. For an Endless, age should not be an issue.
But still, he had refused her. It must be her looks, then. How was she supposed to inspire, if she was lacking beauty? Was this the reason her sisters had waited so long with her inauguration? Was she not good enough? For an Endless, anyway?
Maybe she just did not get to choose whom she had to giver herself to. Maybe her sisters were right: marriage was just a transaction. Inspiration was traded against wealth and protection.
In a few days would be her inauguration. Then, she would be serving the temple too, like her sisters did. She would have her own audience room, and supplicants would come to visit her in search for inspiration. Calliope had seen how Erato received them between her legs.
"If I had just one wish, it would have been him..." She whispered into the pegasos' ear.
Hippolitos nuzzled his face into her hand as if he wanted to comfort her. Some people just did not get to pick. Something wet slid across her face and she wiped at the stupid tear with the back of her hand.
Calliope was almost grown now. Maybe it was just a matter of setting the price for her service so high, that only the rich, young and beautiful men could afford it. Or no one. No one was better. She'd come up with a request no one could fulfill.
There. Everything would be okay. She could forget the Endless, if she wanted. Or dream a little of him. Of his thick hair between her fingers. The look in his eyes. His scent, a mixture of lavender and sandalwood. The deep voice, that caressed her soul. His soft lips against hers...
"Calliope!" Crunching steps sounded on the path up the hill.
She wiped her face and straightened her back.
"Cali! There you are!" Thalia stepped through the trees and stopped. "What-?!" She stared at Hippolitos, frozen. "Where d-"
Calliope could not tell her how Hippolitos came to be. Nor tell her his name. That would give her undue power over him. "I found him," she said quickly. "Isn't he beautiful?" Calliope caressed his nose, while kicking the reigns under a bush.
"He's mine!" Thalia beamed.
"No!" How could she? "I found him. He cannot be yours."
"Oh, he's mine: I dreamed of him last night. Seems I have a secret admirer, and I know exactly who he is." Her smile grew smug while Calliope's guts twisted.
"Come here, beautiful creature, let's get you down to the temple, and await the man, who gifted me with you, for a special audience."
Blood pounded in Calliope's ears. "He is certainly not yours!"
"Oh, Cali, you are just jealous." Thalia beamed. "After the inauguration you start seeing your own admirers and the gifts will come, I promise." She squeezed Calliope's cheek.
Calliope could barely breathe nor keep the anger from her voice. "He is not yours," she hissed. "The Endless-" she couldn'd say Oneiros' name out loud, "gifted him to Erato, and when she refused him, he set the pegasos free. Hippolitos is his own!"
"Hippolitos," Thalia purred and continued caressing his nose. "Yaahhh gooood boooyyy." The pegasos seemed to enjoy her caresses and nuzzled her, gently flapping his wings.
What had she done! Calliope had told her his name. Now Thalia could use her powers on him, if she wanted.
"Yaahhh such a good boy... now let's take you down to the temple, shall we?" Thalia cooed, scanning the meadow. "You must have reigns if the Endless brought you here from his realm."
Calliope's heart sank and she stepped back, to hide the gleaming snaffle. A disastrous move, because Thaila's gaze followed her feet and right to the leather string.
"Ah, there you go." She snatched it from underneath her and slipped the upper strap across Hippolitos' ears. Before he knew what Thalia was doing, he was already bridled and ready to be lead where she wanted him.
"No! You can't just take him! He's free, he-"
"He doesn't belong to you either." For a comedic muse, Thalia had quite the death glare. "We'll ask Erato to whom she will give him."

****

A hand slipped around Morpheus' neck, warm, slender fingers. "I want you, Oneiros, only you..." Calliope's sweet Greek voice lilted at him. "I want to inspire you, Oneiros, new dreams, better dreams..." He wanted to taste her again, that sweet mixture of milk and honey, soft lips, more...
"Get Out Of My Head, Desire." Morpheus opened his eyes and stared down from his throne at his sibling, who stretched on the black leather chair, he had conjured for them, playing with a golden item. "And put that back."
"Sorry. Bad habits." Desire sighed and put the saculum back on the end table.
"Nice girl, though. Erato's sister, isn't she?" They sat and stretched their long legs, resting their bright red Loubuotins on the corresponding black baroque coffee table. "Nice girl, though. Erato's sister, isn't she?" they moaned.
"This is not important." Morpheus leaned forward and looked at his red Versache suit clad sibling. "Will you help me find a way into Eratos good graces?"
"Depends." They purred and resumed their laszive way of stretch-undulating on the chair while paying, again, with the saculum.
"Put that down." Morpheus tried to re-focus on the problem at hand. "Will you help me bring Erato the gift she desires?"
That had been his quest anyway: find something Erato wouldn't refuse.
"Yes." Their hands fumbled with the golden device.
"What do you want in return?" He could not have Morpheus' device.
"Oh dear brother, you know me sooooo well." Their voice was so sweet it hurt to listen. "I want the first fuck, no, I want..." They sucked at ther index finger thoughtfully until they pulled it out with a loud plop. "I want all the fucks with Erato." They lifted an eyebrow atop their golden eyes. "That good with you, chaste little bro?"
Morpheus nodded. "It is." That was not a gift for him to give anyway. "Now what do you want as a gift for the favor?"
"Oh nothing too complicated, Darling." They smiled a bright red lipstick smile. "I just need to borrow this, for a sec, in order to get to her."
Impossible.
"I'll get it back in a few days, I swear it on our father."

(If you want to know Calliope's plan to save Hippolits from her sister's claim, vote for theis chapter, and read the next one.)