The Seeds of Wrath

17

Sweat beaded down my forehead as I finally made it home, my hands laden with books. I paused, panicking to myself a bit as I realized that I had no free hands to try to open the door on my own. My breathing was uneven as I groaned; I tried to shift the books to one arm, but I felt a sharp pain run up my arm as I attempted that. I fumbled clumsily at the door, but within moments, it opened.

"What is it, A-oh, I see." Hermes' voice spoke from the other side of the mountain of books. I felt the weight lift from my arms, my eyes widening as I tried to warn him of how much they weighed. Hermes grinned at me widely, his voice light as he spoke. "Welcome home! Glad to see that you found those books you were looking for." I felt my heart leap a little in my chest when he held the books with ease; I tried to not stare at his arms as they flexed slightly in front of me. I forced myself to look up at him.

"Y-yeah, Athena was a bit more excitable today." I walked into the house, looking around the living room. There weren't any fires or messes; as a matter of fact, it almost looked as if he'd cleaned up my house. I gaped in shock as I looked around. He had unpacked some of my stuff, snow globes lining the ridges that were along the walls.

I turned to look at him; he seemed to notice what I had been looking at. He chuckled a little bit, running a hand along behind his neck. "Yeah, sorry, I...I got a bit bored, so I just thought I'd help out a little bit more." I smiled at him, unable to pull my eyes off him.

Knock knock. My mind jolts away from Hermes, my eyes finally finding somewhere else to look. In the wide open doorway, I recognize Artemis. She looked a bit pale, as if she'd seen too much. She looked as if she was ready to go on a hike, but bore a bow along her back.

Hermes looked to the door, his eyes widening when he recognized Artemis. He hesitated for a moment, his hands moving automatically it seemed to his crotch area as if to protect it, simultaneously dropping the books to the floor. He looked as if he'd seen a ghost. I groaned, beginning to pick up the books one at a time. Maybe I shouldn't have let him take them. Athena would kill me if these books were damaged.

Once I got them set down on a table, I turned back towards the door, seeing the uncomfortable situation that Hermes found himself in. He grinned widely, a bit too wide, as he spoke to Artemis. "H-hey, Art. I-I was just on my way out. I-I am not doing anything and I...I'm leaving now." He edged his way through the door, barely brushing against her before he flew off, his winged shoes frantically flapping.

I almost wished that Hermes had taken me with him. I stared at the Huntress, my eyes wide as I tried to be accommodating. "Uh, hello, Artemis. What-if you don't mind me asking-are you doing here?" I back up a little bit, allowing her to come into the house, closing the door behind her.

Artemis frowned at me for a moment, her eyes moving from where she'd last seen Hermes and back to me a few times. She rolled her eyes, shaking her head before she began to speak, answering my question. "I heard through the grapevine, literally, that you didn't know the first thing about taking care of a baby dragon. I do not condone giving uninformed people pets, so I am here to inform you."

I hesitated for a moment, heart picking up in my chest as I tried to think of an excuse, any excuse, to get out of this. She seemed to pick up on my uneasiness, her eyes softening just a little bit. "I understand that I have been....harsh against you, but I thought that this could be a bonding experience between us fellow women."

Maybe I wasn't being fair...

I sighed, looking down to Ambrosia. How...how do you feel about learning how to hunt? She padded up to my side, climbing her way up my leg and sitting on my shoulder, her head cocking to the side as she hummed thoughtfully in my mind.