Daughter of Death - Trip to Hell

XIV ⚜️

          School was such a relief after all the battles I'd been through. It felt so nice to see the school bus, the classes, even my friends. Especially my friends. I was quite surprised as to why the school had suddenly 'unsuspended' me. Jay told me he had gotten the school officials to let me back at school 'practically', but from the smile on his face, I knew 'practically' wasn't the case. He'd also 'talked' them into giving Enid her part back from Aliya. I was so excited to hear that. Even more excited to see my best friends again. Of course, the first one I saw was Lina.
         "Heidi!", she screamed, running towards me. She held out her arms and gave me a bear hug. If felt so wonderful to see her again, alive. Just a while ago I was pulling her out of the chasm of death. She looked pretty much the same as my best friend, but her skin was a bit paler, and she was slimmer and taller. Honestly, I would say she looked much prettier now. She still wore her signature outfit- a plain white t-shirt and blue jeans, but it fitted her better now. I was happier now that she was by my side.
         "I can't believe what happened when I was gone. Jay told me everything". She hugged me again and whispered, "Everything. Thank you Heidi"
         "It's fine, Li. I couldn't just let you fade in the underworld"
         "I'm so, so glad to see you. I honestly have no idea what happened to me after that day. Hey, look, here comes Enid"
         Enid was walking towards us, her dance outfit worn on her body. I didn't even know when she came back from her dad's place. She looked sweaty, as if she had just come back from dance practice.
         "Hey girls", she said, shoving her hair out of her face. "Just back from practice. What's up?"
         "I'm just seeing Lina", I told her. "I had no idea she'd be here"
         "Well, we didn't think you would be here. Lina and I thought maybe you would still be suspended"
         "Jay said he took care of that"
         Lina and Enid looked at each other awkwardly. "Yeah", Lina said. "Crazy mind control stuff. I know he's a demigod, but I've got no idea how he does that"
         "Oh no", I said. "I warned Jay specifically not to use that fear thing again. Goodness, why does this guy act so annoying?"
         "Speaking of annoying guys", Enid pointed, "Here's one right now"
         To my left, Jay stood, folding his arms, staring at me intensely. He raised his eyebrows. "You know", he said in his cute Aussie accent. "I definitely do not remember you telling me that"
         I still have no idea how he did that. He must have blended into the shadows and somehow appeared beside me.
         "I remember, vividly, telling you that", I scolded. "Remember, at the hotel?"
         "Hmm...I think I remember you saying so now". "Still, that luxury room was amazing. And the fight"
         "Seriously Jay, what was amazing about the fights?"
         He raised his shoulders a little. "Everything"
         Lina and Enid stared at us in puzzlement. They were obviously confused, I could tell just by looking at their faces.
         "Heidi", Enid said. "Next time you go on any adventures, make sure you invite me"
         "And me", Lina added. "I would love to join you in killing monsters and finding ancient Greek stuff"
         "That would definitely be better than playing board games with my grandma", Enid said. "Not like it's all so bad, but, you guys seemed to have a lot of fun"
         Jay and I looked at each other in disbelief. We couldn't believe our ears. Fun? We were barely holding ourselves from laughing.
         "Fun?", Jay laughed. "What made you think it was fun? Are you trying to say being chased by a hellhound is funny?"
         "Or almost getting eaten by a child-eating monster?"
         "Or getting pierced to death by metal birds"
         We continued to laugh. The two of them stared at us in confusion. The fact that they had no idea the dangers we'd been through, was all comedy for me.
         "Listen, there was absolutely nothing fun about any of it. It was completely dangerous", I told them. "It wouldn't be advisable for you to come with us, if we're going on any more adventures"
         "Please?", Lina begged. "You guys have no idea what spending time in a dark misty field has done to my brain. I need more action"
         "I'll think about it. It'll be a while before I risk going out in the open. I'm not ready to get myself killed"
         "Huh", Lina said. "I thought you were the child of the god of death?"
         I scoffed. "Just because I'm Thanatos' daughter, doesn't mean I can't die like normal people"
         "So what about him?", Enid asked, pointing at Jay.
         "Oh, he can definitely be killed. In fact, I'm the one going to kill him. I don't care whether you're the son of Hades"
         "Oh?", he asked sarcastically. "'Cause it seems ironic that you saved me, three times or so, without ever trying to kill me"
         "Shut up, Jaden"
         "Alright, fine", he said, grinning.
         "May I ask a question, Jay?", Lina asked.
         Jay frowned. "Um, yes?"
         "You're a son of Hades, right?"
         "Yeah?"
         "Which means you're related to the underworld"
         "Yeah...?"
         "And it's all dark and gloomy, right? So how come you're so cheerful, and your outfit is filled with blues and browns?"
         Jay looked confused. "What makes you think because I'm some underworld kid I've got to be dressed in all blacks? I've got my own personality too"
         "Oh. So your favorite color is blue?"
         "I did not say that"
         "Okay. And you Heidi?"
         "Does it matter, Li? Why are you asking random questions?"
          "Girl, I probably just came back from the
dead", she complained. "You need to let things normalize"
          "Yeah, things are definitely normalizing", Jay said, pointing at someone coming towards us. "And just guess who"
          "Ugh, Baker", Enid muttered, obviously annoyed.
          Aliya stood in front of us, arms akimbo, and she was glaring at us. She was obviously happy that I was suspended and she got Enid's part, but now that I was back, a lot of things must have changed for her.
          "You!", she said, pointing her pink fingernails at me. "I don't know why you came back here, or why the school allowed you, but you should have stayed where the heck you were"
          She turned to Enid. "And you, smart Alec. I don't know who gave you the audacity to steal my part"
          "Actually", Jay interrupted, "I think you stole Enid's part"
         "Shut up, Wood. And I thought you were in a coma, Libby"
         "It's Lina, dumbass. It's not even that hard to pronounce"
         Aliya rolled her eyes. "I don't care about your name, dork"
         "Don't you have something better to do, Ali, than annoy the hell out of us?", I asked angrily.
         "You're right, Heidi", she responded. "I shouldn't waste my time talking to...weirdos like you"
         People were gathered just like the last time Aliya had confronted us. This time, it was Lina who wanted to give it to her, but I held her back. I wasn't so mad with the ass anymore. All I knew was that she needed some sort of punishment.
         "You want to know something, Aliya? We might be weirdos, and you might be the richest brat in the world, but you know what we have that you don't?"
         She looked very confused.
         "We've got good friends", I told her. "And don't even try to argue, because if you did, you'd have idiots to back you up"
        Aliya looked around her. Not one student even tried to show her a sign of support.
         "Another thing you don't have, is a working brain", I said, tapping my head. "So, until you have any of these, kindly stay away from us 'weirdos'"
         There were 'oohs' and 'yikes' from the watching crowd. No one laughed, but no one showed pity for her. Aliya was a jerk to everyone.
         I stared at her. "Well, why are you still here? Get lost!"
         Aliya glared at me, but she turned and walked away. My stare worked. At least, she didn't die, but she was scared enough to leave us alone.
         Everyone cheered in an awkward way. Some clapped me on the back, saying 'Nice one Heidi', or 'She definitely deserved that'. I was afraid I had turned myself into a low level celebrity.
         "Wow, Heidi", Enid said. "I think you've just become popular"
         I stared at her in horror. "No thank you. I'm happy with my boring, deluded life"
         My friends laughed. "But really", Lina said. "I've never seen her back away before"
         "Well, she was talking to the bravest person I know", Jay told her.
         "Guys, please", I pointed out. "Enough with the flattery. I have something to tell you"
         I turned to Enid. "My dear brainiac, thank you. Thank you for not allowing our quest to come to an end. Thank you for covering for us"
         She brought two fingers to her forehead, then shot them forward, in an informal salute. "Glad to be of service"
         I smiled, and then faced Lina. "Lina, thank you for surviving. Thank you for, you know, trying to calm me down that day. Thank you for everything, really"
         She smiled. "You're welcome, bestie"
         "And you, Jay". I looked at him. "Thank you for helping me realize what I was. Without you, I probably wouldn't have survived. Thanks a lot"
         "Yeah". Jay's cheeks reddened immediately. I didn't say anything, but Jay blushed a lot. "You're welcome", he said.
         Lina and Enid looked at each other, then at Jay.
         "Um, yeah, I need to go"
         I frowned. "Go to where?". But Jay was already leaving. His hands were shoved into his pockets. "I've...got to finish the apology letter to my mom. Goodbye!"
         When Jay left, Lina and Enid turned to me. Enid looked at me in confusion. Lina asked, "Okay, what exactly happened between you two?"
          "Oh...". I suddenly remembered the spontaneous kiss Jay had given me. "Absolutely nothing", I lied. "It was just a normal, friendly quest"
          Lina stared intensely at me. She wasn't the romantic type, but she knew when something was fishy. She continued to stare at me, as if she was slowly dragging out the secrets from inside my head.
         She just shrugged. "Whatever. I still have an appointment"
         "With whom, if I may ask?", Enid said.
         "My chocolate dealer", she replied. "It's been long since I had some of the good stuff. I need some, like, now. So...bye!", she hugged me and Enid. "See you guys later". She moonwalked away, though Enid and I were afraid she would trip and fall or something. Luckily, she didn't.
         Enid gave me a quick hug. "I just wanted to tell you, I missed you a lot. After that, crazy story you told me, I was really afraid you guys weren't coming back. I'm really happy you're here"
         The bells rang.
         "I'll be late for classes". She smiled at me. "See you later, Heidi"
         I watched as every one of my friends left me. But I knew they would come back. They always did. They loved me, and I loved them too.
They were great friends. Throughout these days, I thought I was missing something. And I found it. It was just for me to believe in myself. Everyone else believed in me. I went over to my own class, thinking about how my life would never be the same...
       
          So, there you go. My messed up, Ancient Greek life. Only daughter of Thanatos. Only daughter of Amy Black. I had friends, wonderful friends, Lina, Enid, and Jay.
         And, me. My name is Heidi Black. I'm a pretty, smart and kind fourteen-year old. The only child of the god of death. It was nice meeting you...

Thank you guys so much for reading. I know it's not the best, but I'm still really grateful that you reached the end. I actually wrote this in 2022, but I thought that I had to share it with you. Thank you once again ♡

Love, ♡Calypso♡