65. Change Came Suddenly
Change Came Suddenly
When you are immortal,
you learn to take life for granted.
The nights and the days
blend together into one
when you are not marching
in the direction of death.
So little prepares you for tumult
of any kind at all.
And so it was a day when Hyperion’s
chariot was especially bright
in the sky, and Asteria and I sat
in the soft white sand, our toes just
touching the sea’s waves
as they kissed the shoreline
before leaving again.
In the distance, we watched
as Metis and Leto played
with the little fox,
fire and sparks dancing
as they chased it across the beach.
I turned to Asteria and asked the question
that had troubled me since Metis’s birth.
‘Your father… does he know
that she is not his own?’
Asteria did not turn to look at me.
‘If he does know, he has said nothing.
He blessed Metis as a Goddess though,
just like Leto and me.’
Although I knew this already,
I felt a bitterness on my tongue.
I knew this was envy, and quickly,
I swallowed it away.
Was it not better that Metis had
the power of goddesshood to protect her?
Instead I asked softly,
‘What has he made her the Goddess of?’
She smiled at me and took my hand.
‘You will be proud. She is the Goddess of—’
‘Is this where you go to hide?’
A cruel, lilting voice interjected
before she could finish.