Deviant or Divine | Hades and Persephone

IV - 🌹

Everything had become a blur: the drive, the temple, the people, even the magic. Leila put her head to the cool glass of the car window. Other Vessels had clamored to her after the Induction, introducing themselves and giving blessings. They talked at her and all she could do is smile. 

Leila's cheeks hurt.

Her eyes drifted close for only a few moments before her stomach protested.

I guess I get car sick easily, she mused. Another thing to re-learn about myself.

She stared out the window to the passing city landscape. The night had fallen slowly, even for late August, but now the buildings and shops illuminated Leila's face as they passed by.

She squeezed her hands around the softball-sized pomegranate that was in her lap. Her mind caught on the moment she plucked the fruit from the tree that had erupted from the floor of the temple like a snag in a sweater. She didn't know why she instinctively reached up for the fruit, or even kept it with her. She didn't know if she even liked pomegranates.

"Is the floor ruined? At the temple?" She asked to break the silence. Camille's gold bangles glinted in the dark car. She glanced over to Leila with a warm smile.

"Oh, no don't worry about that, the magic of the temple will undo any damage done to it. Though I do hope they go with a different pattern on the floor this time. Could do with some updating." She laughed. "Martin— the mayor— his Induction actually blew the roof off the temple. Literally."

Leila didn't respond, but knowing that she wasn't the only one to inflict property damage at her Induction made her feel fractionally better.

They drove past the city buildings, the glass skyscrapers reached into the night and the bright restaurants and shops brimming with people. Camille gave a commentary about various businesses, the people, and her own stories of growing up in New Olympus. Leila noticed that Camille didn't really need prompting, so she just listened and looked out the window. It was comforting to sit and see magical city.

She didn't really understand a lot about the city she woke up in but she could understand its beauty. The large art galleries on every corner, white and expansive like a fresh canvas; the efficient glass and black marble skyscrapers, sturdy enough to hold up the sky; the cozy coffee shops, and the lavish boutiques, each begging you to lose afternoon in. And what she could see there were restaurants and food trucks from every part of the world. Camille promised they would eat soon, and as she talked about her favorite Persian restaurant, Leila's stomach started to growl.

Leila and Camille locked eyes and shared a surprised laughter.

"I know this is a whirlwind of a day." Camille said. "I have dinner waiting."

The city skyline soon faded to a suburban landscape. There was a river that hugged the outskirts of the city. Leila craned her neck when they went over a bridge that separated the city and suburbia. The river was black in the night but she felt like she could see the currents glittering and rushing past their car in ribbons of onyx.

"That's the river Styx," Camille clarified. "The original river is the boundary between the here and the Underworld. This one is...an extension of that. It flows down from the mountain all the way through the city and out to the ocean. Took a yacht down it at the summer solstice, so much fun."

"Cool," Leila said and let the conversation fade. She didn't exactly know where she stood with Camille, not that she knew where Camille stood with her either. Camille was very chatty and friendly— more older sister than mother. Leila wasn't that bubbly of a person so she just let Camille do all the talking at the temple. She was also the person Leila knew the most in her new life. Leila wondered if there was something Camille wanted out of her, or if she was doing this out of a favor to this Myth everyone talked about.

She looked back out the window and saw that they were headed into a more suburban area. She couldn't help herself from staring at each house, as they felt like they were plucked from different neighborhoods in space and time. The only things they had in common were that they were all large, breathtaking, and expensive looking.

"A lot of Vessels of the same god grow up together in the same houses. As you can see some of them keep the original architecture," Camille pointed to a gloomy Victorian with bulging with five or six chimneys and towers, "or they can start fresh."

"Is that where we're going? Persephone's—er, my house?" Leila asked.

Camille didn't answer right away. "Well, no. You see...you're the first Vessel for Persephone for a long time. There wasn't time to prepare anything before your Induction. We may have god-like powers but we have our limits— unfortunately."

Camille let go of the steering wheel with one hand and squeezed Leila's. Her hand felt like summer sunshine. Leila squeezed back and gave Camille a smile back, all the while wondering why there hadn't been a Vessel for Persephone.

And how long, exactly, is "a long time"?

"So, where am I going to live?" Leila asked after a minute.

Camille didn't respond, instead swung the wheel abruptly to the right, moving the car to the side of the road. She looked past Leila and pointed.

"Here."