*Mt. Olympus, Greece*
"Thank you so much polyagapiménos" Thaelia exclaimed as the nymph finished filing her nails, leaving the moon princess with a perfect manicure.
Eliza, the nymph smiled in response and parted with a bow, after taking her basin of filthy water with her. That's the thing with people working under her, they never uttered a single word, which she never understood. Why was it so forbidden for them to talk with her? Just a friendly chat?
A sigh escaped her lips. That topic never left her mind, but also it’s useless to think over. It’s always been like that.
She collapsed on the chair happily, content that her nails were back to the flawless state they should constantly be at. The moon princess took great delight in having these sessions in the salon room. Also, because of the interior of the room, huge white walls decorated with beautiful white lilies always provided her with a feeling of relaxation and comfort. Not to mention the soft music playing in the background.
The moon princess remembered the first time she had visited the salon room. Thaelia was just a kid, and it had been with her mother, and she recalled loving it from the second she laid eyes on it. Spacious rooms filled with never-ending rows of white chairs, nymphs taking perfect care of each goddess, leaving them gorgeous; huge windows leading out to the colourful garden decorated with roses and fountains.
That’s when her mother had told Thaelia they would be visiting the salon every day, to keep themselves perfectly cleaned and groomed. While that had indeed happened in the past, there had been times like this one where she had to go all alone, having lost her mother. She blinked back the tears, wanting to enjoy some peace and solitude as she was taken care of. That was a long time ago.
As a moon princess and Zeus, daughter, she knew how beautiful she was, and wanted by every single God. Most only judged with their eyes for her looks and status she had enough. For once, Thaelai wanted to be loved because of her heart. As cheesy as that sounds.
“Thaelia!” She suddenly heard someone call her, completely startling her from her fantasy. Who the hell was it now?
“Thaelia, you will not believe this! After the Pipilions lost the war, the population of their kind have grown massively. Almost crossing the harpoons-“
That could only be one person.
“Clio for the millionth time I don't want war updates!” The moon princess groaned, rubbing her temple with her neatly manicured fingers as her friend kept walking closer to her.
Clio was one of the nine muses, also her sister. With her black, square glasses slipping off her nose bridge, she always had a keen interest in history. No wonder she’s called the muse of history. If the moon princess had to describe her in two words, it would probably be nerdy and obsessed (or as she would call it, determined). Most people would imagine muses to be lounging around, doing nothing as that’s what they are said to be, but not Clio. She did the research for fun.
Few nymphs looked up to see what all the commotion was about but went back to work when they saw it was only Clio interrupting, as per usual.
Clio pouted. “But you have to see this! It’s incredible, I mean, look at the facts, there hasn't been such a rapid increase in their population since... never!”
Thaelia stood up from her chair and led them to the exit. They stepped outside the huge room r hat was the salon, going into a massive, green courtyard, full of flowers of all colours with naiads watering them. She had to admit that it was impressive all the work the girls did, the moon princess could never agree to doing such a job where dirt could get trapped between her nails.
“And why do you think I should care?”
Before Clio could reply with something equally nerdy, a deep voice abruptly cut her off.
“Hi, lovely sisters. How’s it going?”
Thaelia turned around to find a goddess with dark hair, bow and arrow at the back and all-black clothes, who had just appeared out of thin air. Even in the direct sunlight, she still appeared to almost hiding in the shadows. The moon princess had no idea how she did that.
Artemis sure had a trick up her sleeve.
“Artemis came to join the party, have you?” She asked sarcastically as they began to walk again towards the outskirts of Mount Olympus. On the way they passed several guards, bowing down to them and some visibly shaking in fear. All thanks to Artemis sharp bow and arrow. Why did she have to carry it everywhere?
"I don't know, I was just passing by, my dear sister” Artemis replied, shaking Thaelia out of her momentary reverie.
Both her sisters followed the moon princess to her garden, which was where they hung out most of the time anyway. Having a huge mansion at the top of mountain was useless to say atleast. They always have to be conscious of the guards around them. Not to mention anyone can appear anytime and spy on them. That’s why Thaelia chose to sit in the gardens.
It’s her mother’s creation. So scared and pure that no one can lie about their feelings nor anyone can listen to the people sitting inside. Both of the things which the moon princess loved.
“I assume you are done with your hunt then?” Clio raised her brow at their huntress sister.
“Unfortunately not. Our dear father has asked me to train the noobs some more. They are absolutely unskilled and can’t even hold the arrow right! How do I tell that to our father?”
Clio shrugged. “Simple, you don’t.”
“That’s not very helpful” Artemis scoffed.
Thaelia cleared her throat because they could go on for a while. “Also does anyone know where the hell Nona is? I have been trying to reach her since forever but cannot find her anywhere.”
"I heard she's scouting for soldiers again,” Clio contributed, gripping tightly to her papers as the wind threatened to blow them away.
The moon princess groaned in reply, rolling her eyes before unlocking the gate to the door of her garden. Somehow it was turning out to be a beautiful day with not a cloud in the sky and the sun brightly shining.
“So basically, doing the dirty job of finding war criminals” She muttered to herself while plopping down on the nearest bench.
“I don't even get the point of doing that work in these days. Aren’t we supposed to be processed?” She asked, crossing her arms in front of her sleeveless white dress, one of her personal favourite dresses these days. It was long, but it was sleeveless, and cinched at the waist, also had a big cut in the side of her right leg, reaching up to her mid-thigh, which showcased her perfect, long legs beautifully.
She always wore it with a gold studded belt around her waist to show off her curves, and obviously a golden crown which made it look like golden vines wrapped around her head.
“Thaelia heroes are what keep Mount Olympus alive! How can you not like that? Your father sends them for quests and wars, and in return, they get to ask for one wish. The best deal out there.”
Thaelia made a face at that. She did not like to think about war.
“Clio you're hurting my brain," The moon princess groaned, scrubbing her face with her hands.
“Enough with the war talk.”
“Okay,” Clio sighed.
“Let’s talk about the upcoming party then. I heard our dear stepmother is inviting everyone.”
Thaelia frowned at the mention of Hera, their stepmother. They never got along. Even though they all lived in the same castle, none of them got along with their stepmother.
Clio sighed. “Yeah, she’s definitely up to something. Inviting everyone is a bit...extreme. It’s not even Ball season.”
Artemis hummed. “Eh. Don’t know what goes on in her brain.”
The moon princess lips quivered at that. That scared her a bit. An evening with every single one in Greece.
***
I closed the book, almost relieved that the chapter was over. It did feel kind of weird to read my own story, my previous life story.
Shaking my head, I leaned back and pushed the book in my lap. Judging from the pages in the book, I was in for a ride.
***
There was a weird feeling inside my gut. Was I going to find something I didn’t like? My heart thudded against my chest. I shook my head. No, I had to be positive. Taking a sharp breath, I settled back and flipped the page.My eyes widened at the title of the page. Lukas. It read it all bold words. The thought of my mate made my head flutter, my eyes clenching as I missed his presence around.Lukas woke up in a cold sweat, out of breath and panting hard as he bolted upright in his bed. He felt scared, terrified, absolutely hysterical over what he just dreamed. He didn’t remember much, but what he does remember was fire. The colours of orange and yellow burning away and destroying something pure. He doesn't remember what it was, but it was beautiful. The Sun of God remembered a person too, with eyes the colour of blue crystal. As blue a
Thalia spotted Jysa, flittering about the party like a butterfly, talking to every guest and ensuring they all had a drink in their hand. Dionysus latest squeeze. Atleast that's what people were talking about. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Hera talking to a minor goddess she didn't know, just playing her part. It didn't surprise her at all.
"Thank you" She breathed, blinking at the person in front of her.There was something about him. Something about the way he was staring at her like she's the only one in the room. Or maybe it's just all in her head. Stepp
Talia was reading in her bedroom in her white cotton mid-thigh dress, legs sprawled on the bed. The usual. The moon princess was waiting for a response from her dear father after she abruptly cancelled their dinner plans. He would be disappointed as Zeus countless times reminded their dinner was his favourite thing of the week.
Once they sat inside, Talia looked around the intricate details carved on the walls of the chariot. Their seat was plush and had a handle to secure them inside. She had many questions going around in her mind, but Lukas seemed to focus on his horses. To not end up in a ditch, the moon princess kept quiet.The carriage landed on the Earth. Lukas wanted her to show the secret hide out he had been harbouring for years now. She couldn’t believe it. Talia heard about the place, the opportunities and the sights it held, but she never had the chance to stay back and soak in.As soon as they got out, the moon princess took in a deep breath. She loved the smell of wild grasses on Mount Olympus, but here on Earth, they smelled even better. Clear and warm. Bending down, she picked a stem of grass and twirled it between her fingers, smiling like a fool.
As they continued exploring, Talia turned to him, a glint in her eyes. "Umm...This is embarrassing, but I am kind of hungry."The Prince sent a pointed look to Cruis, which was enough to make him alert. Lukas had almost forgotten that he should have taken her to the dining room after the tour of the first floor. His friend immediately turned around. "Alright," He said, shaking his hands over his head. "Sit tight, Talia, I'll set the table for both of you.""Thanks," The moon princess smiled at him to which he shrugged and waved as he walked off, leaving them still in the hall.She giggled, appreciative of the effort he was making to lighten the atmosphere on the way to the dining room. He noticed that she was beyond hungry at this point even to look around and appreciate the paintings in the room.
Talia held her breath as the Prince crowded her. He had a lazy smile on his face, clutching the toga in his hands. The thought of him in her space, touching her made her abdomen clench. She was hyper-aware of the elevated breathing, her heart thudding against her chest and palms getting clammy.Lukas breathed. "Lift your arms. I'll teach you." The smile that curved around his lips didn't help at all. Even though he's trying to reassure her, the moon princess shivered at their closeness.Talia did as he told her to do, and Lukas started helping by draping part of the long cloth over her left shoulder and moving to wrap the rest around her body. From up close she could see all the pores on his skin.The toga was secured in such a way that it was tight around her torso
Talia had another dream. Well, most of the Gods and Goddess dream. It's part of the whole legacy. Her dreams were usually ordinary or boring, or sometimes she woke up forgetting them altogether. But that's different tonight.The moon princess woke up in a cold sweat, out of breath and panting hard as she bolt upright in her bed. She's scared, terrified, absolutely hysterical over her dream. Talia didn't remember much, but what she did remember was fire. The colours of orange and yellow burning away and destroying something pure. Again no recollection whatsoever of the object it destroyed but its beautiful, sacred and angelic.If anything, she recalled those eyes. The eyes were full of sadness and despair, and the only thing she could tell before waking up was that they were directed at her. A chill shoot through her body as she shivered in her huge bed, all alone. Talia tried to go back to sleep after such a weird dream, but it