160. It Took the Life Cycle of a Day and Night
It Took the Life Cycle of a Day and Night
but Eurus carried us home.
The warm breeze kept Zelus comfortable
and Styx fed him with care.
It was strange to watch her
with a child now.
Perses squeezed my hand gently.
‘One day we will have one of our own.’
I smiled at his words, but truthfully,
given the precarity of our lives,
since the discovery of Zeus,
I was unsure I wanted to bring
a Titan child into a world
where Titans were being threatened.
But this was what was expected of us,
Goddesses and nymphs alike.
To create more deities like our consorts,
to give them children
with powers and eternities.
For Gods and mortal men alike,
progeny were their legacy.
For Goddesses and women,
children meant a lifetime
of care, nurture, giving.
The only one who did not participate
in this ritual it seemed,
despite her many, many children,
was Nyx. But then,
Nyx was also the Goddess
feared by every God
who ever existed.
When we arrived
at my father’s palace,
a strange kind of melancholy
took over my very bones.
My heart throbbed with a dull ache.
Something told me to treasure
these moments well.
So I let Perses take me
by the hand and say,
‘My father and I built
a palace long ago,
where I would bring my own consort to.
Instead of remaining here,
would you like to go
there instead?’
I should have refused.
But his amber eyes sparkled
and my desire for him
grew the closer he stepped.
I smiled and breathed,
‘Yes, take me home.’