by Nicole Thorn
The only thing that kept them from standing out was their human halves.
Kezia and Zander stared at each other. Zander finally straightened up and crossed his arms. He didn’t look intimidating, but like he was prepared for the worst. “How do you know we’re demigods?” He asked.
Jasmine took another deep breath. “Because this morning I had vision that the two of you were killed by something without a drop of human blood in it and you fought it in an inhuman way, with godlike powers. You didn’t feel human in my vision. Or, at least, not completely human.”
“Killed?” Kezia squeaked in surprise.
Jasmine’s face tightened. I couldn’t blame her. I hadn’t even seen the vision, but I was picturing something punching through Kezia’s chest and making blood pour onto the ground, while she died before she could even fall over.
“Yes, killed,” Juniper said. Her arms were wrapped around herself. She stood very close to me and didn’t shuffle her feet at all. “It upset her very much, so we decided to warn you. Was this the place, Jazz?” Juniper asked suddenly, like it just occurred to her that it could be.
Jasmine blinked and then walked over to a window. She pushed the curtains aside and stared down at the street. She dropped them back into place, turned around and nodded. “Yes. It was this building. I saw you two dying right downstairs. In the middle of the day.”
Again, there was a moment of silence. Zander looking at Kezia and Kezia tried not to get annoyed with all the people in her apartment. All of us Seers standing around, trying not to feel like gaudy ornamentation. That lasted for a couple of seconds before Jasmine couldn’t take it anymore. She stepped forward, forcing the demigods to turn and look at her.
“I don’t know what’s going to kill you and I don’t think you do either. I don’t want this to happen. What can we do to help?” she asked.
4: Mother of Mine
Kezia
Zander hung his head and sighed. “I’ll get the cookie dough.” He looked to Jasmine. “Don’t suppose you’ve got any on you?”
“I wish.”
I covered my face. Oh, how did we get into this mess? How did we find these damn Seers and how did we manage to get some monster to decide it wants to kill me and my brother?
“Um, why are you getting cookie dough?” Juniper asked.
I started. “Wanna meet a god?”
She blinked at me. “Huh?”
“Well, if something wants to kill us, that’ll piss off our parents. We need to talk to them.”
Jasper jumped in. “And what does cookie dough do for you?”
Zander smiled. “Mom likes cookies.”
Juniper breathed out. “So your dad isn’t Hades.”
Zander snorted. “Nope. You can’t tell who my parent is? Take a long look and guess?” He turned from the oven and held his arms out, like he was presenting himself to be looked at.
It was all kinds of unnerving for other people to know what we were. We’d never met any other demigods that we knew of. A few minor ones, but for various reasons. I’d met my sister a couple times and Eros came to visit us on Valentine’s Day. He likes messing with people and Zander was down for that. They were an interesting pair and they looked enough alike now that they could almost be twins. Though I heard that his siblings all looked alike. More than most other demigods.
Persephone looked a lot like Mom. Tan and dark hair. Long limbs and strength in her being. My human side made me look much plainer than them. I was like a blank piece of paper where they were paintings of divinity itself.
Jasmine cocked her head. “Hmm. Well, you’re pretty, but so is Kizzy. You look nothing alike, so I’m assuming you’re not really siblings.”
“Sadly not,” he said. “My mother is Aphrodite.” He started digging through the fridge, finding what he needed and laying it out on the counter.
“And you?” Jasper looked to me.
I grabbed my plant from the counter and held the pot in my hands. It was a small tree. The start of one, because I kept it like that. This little plant was used for something very specific. I watched it and took a slow breath.
I was good at this. It’s always come easy, like Zander’s Charm. It was so much a part of us that it was nothing to call on it. I watched my plant as a little bud appeared. I pulled and pulled until a full green apple blossomed from nothing at all.
I plucked it and tossed it to Jasper. “Mom prefers something fruity.”
He smiled. “Demeter?”
I set the plant down. “Yeah.”
Juniper looked between Zander and I. “So both of your parents are Olympians?”
“Yes,” I said. And that was a fairly big deal. All of the gods had demigod kids. All but Hera. Artemis and Athena, maidens and all that. Though Artemis and Athena had other ways of having children if they wanted. They just needed to get creative. They didn’t do it unless they had to. Hera wouldn’t dare. The children of the Olympians and Hades, were immortal. The minor god kids weren’t. And thank goodness for that, or we’d be overrun. Those kids weren’t much of a threat, but demigods like Zander and I were sometimes dangerous. We had power. A lot of it. Zander could run this world if he wanted to. And I could destroy it.
“Still don’t know why you’re baking,” Jasmine said, picking at the chocolate chips Zander had.
I focused on making enough apples for a pie. “Well, you can pray and the gods might hear you. There’s a way to up the odds. If you make a sacrifice, then they hear you better. Or, really, they pay more attention. They love it when you beg.”
Jasper’s brow pinched. “You’re sacrificing cookies?”
“And pie.” I smiled. “Mom doesn’t like when you harm plants, but if you’re eating them, it’s okay. It’s life giving life. So she likes pies. Zander’s mom just likes sweet things.”
Zander had all he needed,
and he preheated the oven. He was much better at baking than I was, so I let him take the lead. He started measuring and getting ready. How was he so calm when we were marked to die? I knew why I was calm and if he noticed, he would get angry with me. But a fact was a fact. I didn’t deserve to be alive.
“Listen,” I said to the Seers. “You guys can take off. You shouldn’t be tied up in all of this stuff. We don’t even know what wants to kill us.”
Jasmine set a stubborn jaw and went to stand by Zander. She started helping him measure. “I’m not leaving until I believe that you stand a chance. So get used to it.”
I took a deep breath. Strangers in my home… and I was only in a shirt and pants. I should grab a sweater and cover up.
“Where are you going?” Zander called after me.
I stopped dead. Damn. “Getting a sweater.”
“Just turn the heat up.”
I didn’t turn. “Rather have a sweater.”
“Kezia,” he said, harshly. “Please.”
I gave up and turned. “Fine.” I got stares from the strangers, but I ignored them and sat on the couch. At least Mom would be here soon.
“How do we do this?” Jasmine asked. “Like, how do you sacrifice it?”
“Burn it,” he said. “And pray.”
“Do all the gods like food?”
He shrugged. “They’re all different. Sometimes they like when you give up something you love. It proves that you’re serious. The top thing, the thing that always gets their attention, is blood. It’s a Hail Mary and not to be used lightly. Even then, sometimes they still don’t help. There are a lot of reasons, none of which they tell you.”
“Sounds selfish.”
“Sometimes. Sometimes it’s more than that.”
Jasmine rolled out balls of cookie dough, occasionally popping one into her mouth. Juniper scolded her and then walked around, telling her that she was doing it all wrong. Then she proceeded to make perfect little balls, cleaning up every drop of something that fell as she went.
Jasper came over to the couch and sat beside me. I was at the edge, so I couldn’t move farther
away. Not that he was very close, but it was close enough.
The apartment started smelling like cookies a few minutes after they started baking. Then the pie went in. Juniper started cleaning the kitchen before Zander even got the chance.
I noticed something when I looked at her again. She’s wearing the same outfit as she was the first time I met her. The shoes, that made sense. But the top and bottoms… Maybe she just happened to do the laundry since then and she picked out the same clothes. I’ve done that before.
Everyone else was in new clothes. Jasper’s were clean and Jasmine’s were fun and light looking. So it was just the other sister.
“I got it,” he said to her. “You don’t have to do that.”
Her gaze went up from the counter. “It needs to be done right. Do you know the proper way to get egg whites off of a counter? No? Didn’t think so.”
I rolled my eyes. “Zander, what the hell are we supposed to tell our mothers? They’re gonna ask questions that we can’t answer.”
“We’ll do what we always do. Tell the truth.”
I crossed my arms and legs, staring at the floor. I could see Jasper out of the corner of my eye and he was doing much the same. Staring at nothing. It made me look over with a full head turn.
“Are you okay?” I asked the blank faced boy.
He didn’t answer. I should have let it go, but I was a troublemaker. That’s what he always called me.
I shut my eyes and cast the picture and the voice away. Gone. Can’t hurt me. I’m home and safe and there’s a boy beside me who looks upset. I woke up again and tentatively reached out, putting my hand on Jasper’s shoulder and shaking him gently. “Are you okay?”
He blinked twice and looked at me. I pulled my hand back quickly. “Sorry, I guess I zoned out.”
“Ah. I do that sometimes. Zander throws socks at me.”
He smiled. “Why would he do that?”
Because I see ugly things in my head when I close my eyes. “I don’t know.”
“Ah,” was what he said back to me. I didn’t think he liked talking to me. I was somewhat off-putting. For more reasons than my godly nature.
“Cookies are done,” Zander said, pulling them from the oven. He set them on the counter and pulled his oven mitts off.
Juniper finished cleaning and set everything back just where it went. How she knew, I had no clue. But she found our silverware drawer and decided she knew a way to make it look better. No one bothered stopping her.
Zander offered Jasmine and Juniper cookies once they were cool. Juniper said no, but Jasmine took three.
“You want any, Jasper?” he asked.
He shook his head. “Not hungry. Thanks though.” His sisters eyed him, but didn’t say anything.
“Honey,” Zander said to me. “Fetch me my bucket.”
I sighed and got off of the couch. We kept the metal bucket out on the balcony now. We haven’t used it in a while, but it seemed best out there. I grabbed the matches. “Let’s light some shit up.”
Zander cut a piece of pie and grabbed three cookies before we all went out to the small balcony. We took each other’s hands and started. “Demeter and Aphrodite, we call to thee.” Zander set the pie and the cookies in the bucket and I dropped the match. It lit up in a high and bright flame. Pink and green fire licked up the sides of the metal, filling the air with the scent of grass and cherries.
“Mom,” I whispered under my breath as Zander recited his own prayer. “I’m sorry to do this to you, but I’m in trouble again.”
Zander and I waited as the flames burned out. There wasn’t a trace of the food left in the bucket. Good sign.
“What now?” Jasmine asked.
“Well.” I turned to her. “We wait and see if they’re willing to talk to us.”
“Why wouldn’t they be?”
I looked to the ground to avoid Zander’s gaze. Not your fault. He always said. They don’t blame you either.
“How long—” Juniper started. She only stopped when the door slid open.
“This is wonderful. Who put cinnamon on this?” Mom asked with a full mouth. She was eating the pie with a spoon. “Jesus Christ.”
“These are lovely, darling.” Aphrodite came through and kissed her son on the cheek, then she chewed on a cookie.
“Thanks, Ma.” He smiled.
The Seers were all so quiet as they stared at our mothers. It was a reasonable reaction. They were staring at perfection personified.
Zander’s mother was pure beauty and it was jarring to look at. Her long blonde hair curled up at her hips into perfect ringlets. Thick locks were like a curtain along her cheek. She stood at just under six feet. Her eyes matched Zander’s in their intensity. Deep blue and enough beauty to drive a man mad if he looked too long. Her features were soft, but it didn’t make her look any less intimidating. She was fierce and gentle at the same time. A blade on one side and a feather on the other.
Mom was something else. She looked just as stunning, but in a more grounded way. Where Aphrodite was a cloud, Mom was a tree. Majestic and strong. Her hair was just a bit shorter than Aphrodite’s and it was chestnut brown, also curling, but much more wild. Her eyes were different every time the seasons changed. In spring, they were bright green, like mine most of the time. Summer, they were golden. Fall, like now, they were amber and brown weaved together pleasingly. Winter was the saddest. They were black.
She was just as tall as I was and her body type was a little less pronounced. It was an inside joke that I didn’t like. I got Aphrodite’s body and Zander got Mom’s stubbornness. Mom’s skin was a healthy tan where mine was a ghostly white from being inside so much. She hated when I stayed inside.
Mom hugged me with her free arm. “Hi, honey. How are you doing?”
I hugged her back. “Same.”
She pulled back and looked me up and down. “Is that Zander’s shirt?”
I tugged on it self-consciously. “Yes.”
She looked worried. “Don’t you wanna try something that would fit you better? I bet it would be a lot more comfortable.”
Aphrodite looked at me with knowing sympathy. “Demi, she’s all right.”
Mom rubbed my arm and the parents switched. Zander greeted my mom and his hugged me.
“Hi.” I said. “Thank you for coming.”
“Of course. And who are your friends,” she asked in a voice that sounded like bells pealing. She knew who they were, of course.
“Jasper.” I gestured to him and then his sisters. “Juniper, Jasmine.”
They waved and Jasmine bowed. “Greetings from Earth,” she said in a grand voice. “We wish to help your children.”
Aphrodite laughed and patted her back. “Take a cookie and calm down, love. You’re scaring me.”
Jasmine shuddered as she stood. Her eyes were big and on nothing. “A god touched me.” She took a bite of the cookie.
Aphrodite rubbed her hands on the girl’s face. “There, now a god has fondled you. Can we move on?”
“…ahhh,” Jasmine said quietly.
Jasmine cleared her throat. “I had a vision of Kizzy and Zander dying. Very badly. I don’t know why or when, so we were hoping you could tell us.”
Our moms exchanged a look. Mine spoke. “Give me your hand.” She held hers out. Mom took it and she closed her eyes. Jasmine gasped and her eyes were unfocused as she dropped her cookie.
Mom was calm, but her jaw was set as she let go of Jasmine and opened her eyes. She looked almost angry, but it was hard to tell. She had perfect control of her emotions. She wasn’t one to wear them on her sleeve. Unlike…
“What?” Aphrodite asked with worry. “What did you see?”
Mom leaned into her ear and spoke quick and quiet.
Rage was on the goddess’s face. “Why?”
Mom’s eyes dipped. “You know why.”
Aphrodite’s fists clenched. “They did nothing wrong.”
My mother nodded. “I know that.”
&
nbsp; “Ma,” Zander said, inching closer to me. “What’s happening? Why are we going to die?”
She stared at the floor so hard that I thought it would fall out from under us. “We aren’t allowed to tell you, sweetheart. Rules and all that bullshit. If Zeus finds out we’ve helped you, it would only solidify your fate. He’s weary of interference with the fates’ designs.”
Zander lifted and dropped his shoulders. “So that’s it? Me and Kizzy are going to die.”
“No,” came from Jasmine’s direction. “Not like that. We have to do something.”
Mom crossed her arms and looked out over the balcony. “You don’t have a lot of time to stop this. But if you’re careful, you can at the very least postpone the vision. It’s being weaved, but it can be undone or changed, if you are very, very careful.”
“What do we have to do?” Zander asked.
Our mothers stood at the edge of the railing. They spoke low, fast and in Greek. It went on for a couple minutes and though I couldn’t understand them, I caught the tone.
Mom turned. “Okay, you kids.” She pointed to the Seers. “I think you need to go home. You don’t want to be part of what’s coming.”
“Hey, hey, hey.” Aphrodite held her hands up. “Don’t go tweaking with the plans I have.”
Mom huffed. “Last time you had a plan, you fucked up thousands of years of an understanding between the Hunters and werewolves.”
“It worked out!”
“Hardly. All for a damn dove.”
“Yes, a dove. Artemis should be more careful when she’s hunting. She brought it upon herself.”
Mom threw her hands up. “How could she have known you’d bring the Hunter and the wolf together? Have you thought about the baby they’re going to make?”
She shrugged. “Can’t fight love. It’s powerful and all consuming. You need no more proof than the wolf and his love. They defied nature to be together and I had nothing to do with that. I bring souls together. I don’t force them to love each other. Even I can’t do that.”
Mom just rolled her eyes. “Whatever. You better be careful here.”
