Hera rose to her feet. “Someone hold my earrings …”
“Oooh, bruise easily?” Aphrodite dunked her bread into a small bowl of olive oil.
Shade stood quickly to move in front of Hera. He must’ve rethought that tactic as he returned to his seat. As he sat though, Shade’s gaze lingered just a moment too long on Aphrodite.
Poseidon and Amphitrite entered the room, making a shark’s line over to the food table. They piled their plates high and joined Metis and me at our table. Aphrodite glanced upward and smiled.
“Careful, girl,” Hera said in a measured tone. “I can read your thoughts.”
“Really?” Aphrodite shot back in a sing-songy tone. She arched a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. “All right. I’ll bite. What am I thinking right now?”
Hera gazed at the girl with curly puffs atop her head. “Are you sure you want me to betray your secrets?” After several moments of inactivity, Hera said, “Fine. You’re wondering what’s under Don’s tunic.”
Don nearly choked on his fig. “Wait … what? How did I get into this?” His cheeks displayed a warmer shade of red than normal.
Amphitrite’s head whipped toward Aphrodite so fast, the air displacement could’ve blown us out of our chairs.
Shade leaned back in his chair and rubbed his hands together. “This is getting good.”
“Shut up, Shade,” Hera said.
Don and Phi moved to sit several seats down from Aphrodite, next to Shade, Tia, and Metis, who were fully enjoying the spectacle. Suddenly, Don turned his back to Phi and asked Aphrodite, “Can I get you more nectar?” He shook his head as if to clear it of cobwebs … or undue influence.
Aphrodite leveled a heavy-lidded gaze at Don, her smile sure. “No. I’m fine. But thank you for asking.”
Phi elbowed Don in the ribs, hard enough to leave a mark, and then glared at the new girl. Well, newer, girl. She then turned back to Don, folded her arms, and cocked her head to the side.
A few long moments passed before Aphrodite returned her attention to Hera. “That’s a cute trick, reading people’s minds … Hera, is it?”
Hera nodded while chewing. “I told you. Don’t test me.”
A wry smile played at Aphrodite’s full lips. “If you’re so talented, tell me what I’m thinking now.”
Hera gazed down the length of the table. A rare shade of crimson invaded Hera’s cheeks.
“No way,” Tia said. “You made Hera blush? I like you already.”
Meter stood. “Like it or not, we’re all family here—”
“She’s not.” Hera pointed to Aphrodite. “By the way, Dite, can you turn off … this … this thing you do?” Hera’s hand twirled in a circle.
“What?” Aphrodite’s grayish blue eyes twinkled. “I’m not doing anything.”
“Seriously.” Hera moistened her lips and fingered the wooden bangles around her wrist. “Just make it stop. Pour some water on it, ok?”
Aphrodite laughed, almost seductively. “I promise … you can’t handle me in a wet tunic.”
“See, this is why I typically eat alone.” Hera left a half-eaten plate of food and swept toward the doorway of the Andron. “New girl, you’re overcompensating for something. And I’m gonna find out what it is.”
Aphrodite quipped, “Perhaps we could say the same for you.”
Tia walked over to Aphrodite. “Aphro … hmmm, I like that. Do you like that shortened version? Can I call you Aphro?”
Aphrodite nodded. “If you like. You can call me anything you wish. Aphro. Alpha.”
“That’s my name,” Hera said with finality as she reached the doorway to the Andron. “I’m the alpha.”
“Now there’s two, darlin’,” Aphro said.
“Good,” Tia said. “Aphro, don’t mind Hera. She was dropped on her head from the tallest mountain on Samos. Where’d you come from again?”
“Kithira,” she said between chews.
“Wait … Phi and I both went to Kithira.” Metis beamed. “I don’t remember you.” Metis turned to Amphitrite. “You remember her?”
Phi scowled and shook her head.
Aphro drank a bit of nectar and then responded. “I mostly kept to myself.”
“I bet you did. By the way,” Phi said, gesturing to Aphro’s gauzy chiton dress the color of seafoam. “You need to get in dress code.”
“You’re here from Othrys, aren’t you, Amphi?” Aphro asked.
“Yeah, so? And my shortened name is Phi. Just Phi, thank you.”
“Well,” Aphro began. “I read a file on each of you before the trip up here.”
Don stopped chewing. “You on some kind of espionage mission or something?”
The smile that reached Aphro’s greenish-bluish-gray eyes could’ve made a stone blush.
Ananke, our silver-haired guidance counselor, breezed into the room with an armful of rolled scrolls. She placed them on the table next to Rhea and then ambled to the food table. After filling a terra-cotta plate with food, she exited the room.
Once Rhea had cleaned her plate, she stood and clapped twice. “Pupils, when you’re finished eating …” She narrowed her eyes to slits. “Which should be quite sooner rather than not, I will see you in the headmistress’s quarters.” She chugged the remaining nectar in her goblet, clapped Pontus on the back and then exited the room.
Glances shot back and forth across our table. Then without a word, everyone dug into the remainder of their meals with renewed fervor. We all knew better than to keep Headmistress waiting. We might have survived Campe and Kronos last term … but we weren’t crazy.
CHAPTER NINE
After leaving the Andron, we wound our way through the Megaron Hall, past fluted, white columns guarding entries to major hallways and the miniature torches that illuminated them. We crossed the bridge that connected the two halves of the Megaron and proceeded to the exit. Everyone flooded outside and crossed the lush green yard to Rhea’s quarters. Headmistress’s office was definitely not a place to visit, other than when invited. We filed one by one through the carved, two-story doorway.
Rhea stood behind the ginormous desk topped by a white marble slab that contained a collection of scrolls and other documents. An amphora sat on the front corner of the desk. Various long-stemmed flowers stood proudly from its neck. Meter fondled and manipulated the blooms with her fingers. A smile lifted her cheeks.
Rhea waved us all into a semi-circle around her desk. “Recently, I returned from the Pantheon League Headmasters’ Summit retreat in Babylon. Beautiful place by the way. As we now all know, Iapetus, charming man that he is and father of Prometheus, Epimetheus, Menoetius, and Atlas, is the new Othrys Headmaster.”
“Oh you mean the four donkeys of the apocalypse, eh?” I quipped.
“Please refrain from any attempts at humor. We’ve much to cover.” Rhea pursed her lips. “In any case, Iapetus is officially interim Headmaster there. His full-on status depends quite squarely on the outcome of the Kronos trial. But more on that later.” She cleared her throat. “I have your class schedules for this term. I spoke to Ananke and Pontus, and following recent events, we altered your term plan to reflect the new course we’ve set for your instruction. Hestia, Metis, Amphitrite, and Hades are the only true fourth years we have right now, but we have shifted all of you to a fourth-year curriculum schedule. I have no doubts in your readiness to accept this class load and expect the classes to be rigorous and challenging, yet completely within your abilities. As we’ve stated before, you all have been handpicked by us to be the dawn of a new revolution. We challenge you academically because you are our best hope for the future of this pantheon. As it stands, we have a new professor arriving for Advanced Astronomy—”
“What? No!” Shade blurted. “No one can replace Professor O.”
Rhea glared at him. “If you interrupt me again, I can assure you … you’ll wish you hadn’t.”
Hera elbowed Shade in the ribcage.
/> “Carrying on then,” Rhea slowly dragged her gaze away from Shade, almost like she was peeling his skin away with it. “Professor Aether will arrive from Othrys in time for Astro class later this week.”
Don raised his hand. “So who is teaching Astro over there?”
“There was talk of borrowing Professore Saturn from the Matterhorn Roman Escuelo since our academies are so close in curriculum, but I think they’ll simply wait until Asteria hits post-grad status after this term and give it to her in the future. She’s the best Astro student there. She may even tandem teach with Astraeus, who is a pretty fine student in his own right.” She paused, seemingly for great emphasis. “But neither of them fully understand the power of cosmic dust like our own Hestia. Her research will lead the next round of texts to arise from this era.”
Tia struggled to contain her beaming grin. She clapped silently to herself.
“Wait …” Hera interjected. “Why do we need Professor Aether? Why can’t we just go after Professore Saturn ourselves? I’m certain he’s more knowledgeable than—”
“I am certain that he is, Hera.” Rhea dragged in a breath, paused, and crossed her arms. “The problem is that he’s not a guarantee. Aether may not be the best option, but he’s better than no option. It would be a gamble.”
“Let’s take the gamble,” Hera said.
“I’ll take it under advisement. Moving along, as you all know, or should know,” Rhea continued, “the Mighty Aztecs and the Thundering Norse Vikings are coming to Mount Olympus for our first War Games Invitational match of the season at week’s end, on Hemera Khaos. Then the day after, the night of Hemera Selenes, we’re hosting our first Pantheon-League wide Grand Symposium mixer since the schools split.”
“Yes!” Hestia blurted, clapping her hands very quickly. “I must get a new himation. Gah! What color, though? Decisions, decisions. Oh my, and sandals. I must get new sanda—”
“Hestia … breathe,” Rhea said. “Now listen closely, I know what you’re thinking … and the answer is no. No Othrys student will be allowed on campus for the event.”
“Phew!” Don uttered. “Not that I’m afraid. But we need to put this trial behind us.”
Rhea responded, “True indeed. And even then, the tension between our schools may not dissipate. It’s not likely that anyone from there will visit again. Not for a long while.”
“Not even for War Games?” Shade asked.
“What rock are you living under?” Hera chortled. “Do you really think War Games between us and them is a good idea right now? We’d murder each other.”
“Exactly!” Shade blurted.
“And we all used to be a big happy family,” Tia said.
Rhea sighed. “But Hera is correct. Look at what happened at Othrys last night. I can’t trust you alone in the wilderness with them. Now, this term we also have the other pressing matter … the pachyderm in the chamber, as it were. The trials for Hyperion and Kronos, are set for a week from today, next Hemera Gaia.” She paused and pulled at her bottom lip. “I do not want you all to stress over this. Soon, we shall prepare fully … likely in Drama class or Project period. Or possibly we’ll take a moment during War Games prep.” She nodded. “But enough about that for now. Pontus is surely waiting. Leadership class beckons. So, let’s get going. Knowledge and skills await.”
I grabbed my schedule scroll from the corner of Rhea’s marble desktop, untied the red string that encircled the document, and unfurled it.
Hemera Gaia: Morning–Leadership–Megaron 125 / Afternoon–Intramural War Games Prep–Megaron 130 & Caldron
Hemera Nyx: Morning–Intro to Strategy–Megaron 210 / Afternoon–Drama–Theatre
Hemera Aether: Morning–Advanced Metal Working–The Forge / Evening–Term II Project–TBD
Hemera Ourea: Morning–Oceanography–Megaron 230 / Evening–Advanced Astronomy–Observatory
Hemera Okeanos: (Non-Competitive Weekend) Morning–Calisthenics–Gymnasium / Afternoon–Intramural Practice (Competitive Weekend) War Games Prep–Gymnasium & Megaron 210
Hemera Khaos: Rest (Non-Competitive Weekend) War Games (Competitive Weekend)
Hemera Selenes: Rest (Non-Competitive Weekend) War Games (Competitive Weekend)
“I need to visit the bathhouses,” Aphrodite said as we all exited the Headmistress’ quarters. “Can anyone guide me?”
Don began, “I can sho—”
“Not a chance.” Phi jerked his arm.
My head turned slightly toward Aphro. Metis slid her hand softly around my wrist and grabbed it, gently at first, then applying more pressure with each step we took. I adored her gesture. Her subtle possessiveness gave me a heady rush. I wanted to kiss her right there in front of everyone.
Tia slid an arm around Aphro’s shoulder. “Everyone knows I’m the tour guide for newcomers. I’ll take her,” she said cheerfully. “Then after morning class session, I’ll take you on a proper tour. We have to get you a cabin. And school tunics. By the way, your chiton is gorgeous. I get all mine down at The Golden Himation in the Agora. Have you been to the Agora? We have so much to show you. You’re gonna love it here.”
A smile played across Aphro’s full, sculpted lips. “If everyone’s as nice as you are, I definitely will.”
“Keep your friends close and curious newcomers even closer,” Hera said. “I’ll tag along.”
“So will I,” Meter chimed in. “Because, Aphro, girl, we need to talk about what kind of concoction you put in your hair. Seriously.”
“Deal.” Aphro nodded. “But then you have to help me get my cosmetics game on.”
“Oh my Gaia. So you can become even more beautiful?” Metis huffed as she peeled away from me. “Hey, Phi, you wanna walk me to my cabin?”
“Do I have a choice?” Phi responded.
“Not really.”
I walked the rest of the way to our first class of the new term with a bit of a strut. I wasn’t sure what had brought it on, but swagger invaded my steps. Perhaps it was because I’d shapeshifted into an eagle and taken flight last term. That had been ridiculously wicked. Or maybe it was the surreal connection with Metis. Or even the prospect of finally gaining closure on Hyperion and Kronos. After I caught myself, however, I tried to even out my stride. No one likes an over-stuffed tunic.
I stopped just short of where Leadership class would be held, in a room in the Megaron that overlooked the central, grassy quad. My gaze lingered on several things on the schedule. First, Advanced Astronomy remained a mystery class without Ouranos. I obviously didn’t know Aether, but I doubted he’d be half the professor Ouranos was. We should’ve gone after Saturn. And War Games competitive weekends looked intense. Would they really take up the entire weekend?
As I entered the classroom, I took a seat beside Don and Shade in a row of carved wooden thrones that all faced the front of the room. We all clasped forearms and nodded to one another. Sunlight streamed through windows to our right, casting long shadows through which Pontus walked on his way to the podium.
“Good morning! Welcome to the new term. Young men, you are the next leaders of this world, this cosmos,” Pontus bellowed. “Ultimately, there are three realms after which you may strive to rule: The Heavens, the Earth, and the Underworld.”
Don, Shade, and I looked at one another. My chest swelled.
“Incumbent leaders always fall at some point.” Pontus paused for emphasis. “No one rules forever, not even Ouranos apparently. When you are on top, there is always someone or something that will seek to unseat you. Unfortunately, none of us are immune to the natural laws of the universe we inhabit. Let’s take a moment of silence for Ouranos.”
I stared at Pontus. Every word that fell from his lips had built upon the last, like pillars that stretched skyward. He truly embodied leadership to me. Out of respect for Ouranos, I bowed my head and closed my eyes.
“Now,” Pontus broke the silence. “As a warm up activity, take out your wax boards an
d respond to this prompt: What is leadership?”
I looked around to see Don and Shade pulling their boards to their laps. I fished mine out of my sack, and then flipped my stylus to the broad end to smooth out and erase the remains of last term’s discussions that were still on there. There. Clean slate.
The silence in the room unsettled me. Fidgeting with my stylus, I poked a hole in the wax with the pointed end. I glanced sideways. Don and Shade were hard at work with faint scratches and claws against their boards. I dug my stylus into the freshly smoothed wax again, but no clear statement came to me.
Finally, Pontus rescued me from my mental flailing. “Zeus; doesn’t look like you have much. Poseidon, what about you? You ought to have something to say given that you’ve led our school to many victories in War Games. What say you on leadership?”
“Thanks, Coach. Well, I just had that leadership is inspiring others to act, sometimes in ways they wouldn’t or couldn’t normally—”
“You mean like coaxing Zeus into jumping over the pillars in Calisthenics class last term?” A female voice rose behind us. I knew straight away who it was. Raspy. Confident.
“Hera,” Pontus began, “you’re late—”
“Nope,” she deadpanned. “You began early. Favoring Don and the boys over us girls, huh? You could’ve waited. By the looks of things, we’re talking about our definitions of leadership—” Hera stepped through the doorway, leading Metis, Tia, Meter, and Phi.
“I don’t appreciate your tone, Hera,” Pontus thundered.
“I don’t appreciate being left out, so we’re even,” Hera said coolly. “This is Leadership class. I plan to rule the Heavens and the Earth. Might as well start here.” She walked up and sat next to me. “Zeus.”
“Hera,” I responded. My mind drifted back to the moment she helped me jump the pillars.
Pontus’ expression darkened. “Hera, we will discuss this further after class.”
“I accept,” Hera said.
Shade said, “Hera, you couldn’t rule both Heaven and Earth even if you wanted to. You have to choose one.”
The High Court Page 5
