Hercules and the Modern Girl

Meeting the Good Guys

Meeting the Good Guys

"That was too close!" Nattie cried, panting for breath, finally setting foot outside the invisible line of Hades's territory. She was so thankful she had that euro in her pocket, and Charon was kind enough to make an exception.

It took her a moment to realize she was one step closer to the small town she had seen earlier. From what she gathered, she wasn't close to home, even though she was currently in the same city. This Athens had huts instead of houses and torches instead of electricity. The Parthenon in this timeline remained intact and brand new, unlike the future - that's still under construction and less white. Then again, this was a Disney movie. She still couldn't grasp that fact entirely. Despite the adrenaline and pain, Nattie still believed it to be a dream.

Little did she know, pushing aside the pop-cultural references, the way of living was still different, starting with no electricity and a change of clothes.

The girl explored the little town, taking in the details, not realizing that people were staring. She gazed at the Greek theatre and couldn't help but laugh at the titles above.

"Toy Story, Greek Pie, Silence of the Sheep."

Nattie wanted to go in and see how they pulled off Toy Story.

"Excuse me?"

The girl perked at the man in the ticket booth paying no mind to her, merely reading his scroll.

"You gonna pay or go away?" Nattie pursed her lips, looking over her shoulder to see a line behind her. All of them stared at her in anger and disgust. She didn't know why until she heard the whispers.

"What is she wearing?"

"How inappropriate!"

"Mommy, why isn't she wearing shoes?"

Nattie widened her eyes and quickly ditched the group to hide behind the stone building. She self-consciously crossed her arms over her chest, even though she was wearing a tank top that covered her bust. She didn't have much cleavage. Nevertheless, people were talking, completely offended. The cops here might arrest her for public indecency.

"I need to find something else to wear," Nattie looked around for a clothing store or a sale sign. All she could find in the ally was stone and a woven banner of Toy Story. No pictures of Woody and Buzz, just a blue flag with white clouds as the background, the title stitched vertically in yellow. That's when it clicked.

Most women here wore silky wraps or peplos in the hot sunny weather. Nattie could use that too. Making the decision, without anyone looking, she yanked the banner down and wrapped it over her shoulder and around her legs as if it was a toga dress. She plucked bobby pins from her hair to hold the outfit together. She didn't care if the strands of her hair were falling and sticking to her sweaty cheek. Hopefully, the letters on the banner wouldn't be noticeable. She took a deep breath, bracing herself back to the outside world, going the opposite way this time. With the need to blend in, Nattie pulled her ponytail out and created a high bun instead. The loose strands remained by her cheeks.

Nattie was so caught up with the other people in her peripheral vision; she didn't see who was in front of her. Her body collided with something hard that could've easily bruised her breasts. Her ears perked at falling objects meeting the stone-tiled floor.

"Hey, would you watch where you're go..." Nattie slowed her rant to realize who she had bumped into.

He was tall, slender, with red hair. The sheepish smile and the gentle blue eyes could soften a cold woman's heart. It was none other than Hercules himself; only he wasn't as muscular as Nattie remembered him.