Awaiting something? Who knows. (open to the two scary men.)

[seth_dot_com]

Seth had an ice pack against the front of his head.

He felt like shit.

But the kind of shit you felt like when you'd just had the best fucking time of your life. Where everything had gone wonderfully, and insanely, and there it was.

The kind of shit you talked about for years, starting every story about it with "This one time, I was really

Comments

[moirae_dot_com]

Clotho listened to everything her father said, and grew more and more frustrated as he continued to speak. He still looked at her as a child, after all this time, and so did Aither, she knew. He was explaining to her the ways she was in danger, but she didn't think she was in danger. Not much. And she knew her brother and father wanted to protect her, but she didn't want protecting!

When she was in Chaos, she was happy. Blissfully, obliviously happy.

Clotho also knew, however, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Da would not change his mind - at least not because of anything she could say. This knowledge made her squeeze his hand tighter as she tried to swallow how wretchedly unfair it all was.

Plenty of her siblings made bad choices. Terrible choices!

Khesis went and got tangled up with some Olympian and got herself so blind that she didn't even see him break her until she was already broken. Lethe was kissing the boys and making them forget, taken or not. And Styxie drank bleach.

Bleach!!

But these ill-advised life choices, they were okay for her sisters to make. Because they were full-grown goddesses.

Clotho had lived at least a thousand lifetimes, but Daddy still saw her as a little girl who couldn't handle herself.

That thought pushed tears into her eyes and words onto her tongue, but before she could reply, Tisiphone invited her to come with her and Rinna to see Gara.

And Gara was in a bad way.

But Clotho's hand was still in Da's, and he hadn't given her leave.

The absurdity of her rebellious thoughts juxtaposed with her inability to go without her father's permission only struck her for a moment before she said too-brightly to Tis,

"I... I would like to come, but I should finish here, I think..." she responded lamely.

When Seth spoke, she looked beseechingly at Da.

There not being a walk sounded good to Clotho.

[ruina_occasus]

Rinna looked between Grandpa and her Momma, then tilted her head backwards and looked at Daddy.

"I want to stay with..."

But the glare Tisiphone was giving her was enough.

"Oh... All right..."

She slid reluctantly out of Seth's lap and wandered over to Tisiphone, looking damned upset about it all.

[erebos_dotcom]

Tisiphone was speaking strangely. Her work had nothing to do with Xenia, except when related to homocide, perhaps. Or unfilial behavior. Neither applied here. And they were in an Egyptian's temple. Where Xenia did not apply. Even if it did matter. There was no 'work' for Tisiphone to do here. The Fury was also being rude and condescending. And slightly threatening. To him.

That would have made Erebos smirk, had he not been so angry. As if Tisiphone could do anything. He may hold love for Tisiphone, but sometimes he just did not care what she thought or said. Sometimes she got too big for her wings. With a shake of his head, he looked over to Set.

Set was entirely too eager to be hurt. Interesting. Maddening. But interesting. With a sidelong glance to Aither, Erebos stood from the chair.

"Tisiphone. Stay with your lover, if you wish." He would not acknowledge that Set was family. There was no blood shared between them. The Furies had earned their place over eons. They were reared as the children of Night and Darkness. And they were loved as if they were blood children. But Erebos did not consider Set a part of the family, just because Tisiphone got herself mixed up with him and bore an abomination of a child with him. Ruina was just barely Greek enough for him to consider her family at all. And he did not like the idea. Turning from Tis immediately, he looked to Cloey.

"Clotho," he said, an imperative marking the tone of his voice. "Wise up."

It was nearly impossible, what he demanded of her. He knew it to be true. However, his goal was to get his daughter to see reason. Granted, Cloey almost never did, unless she was Working. And clear-headed. Which she was most decidedly not. They insisted that this was good, this was beautiful, but it was dangerous. Clotho was losing a part of herself. Erebos imagined that she was giving it to this Egyptian. And the rest of her essence was clouded in Chaos. And she was so far gone, that she could not see how very, very foolish her choice was. A muscle clenched in his jaw.

"Set. I will return later. Consider what you want and what you can keep. And remember. This is my daughter. I will abide no harm to her."

He released Clotho's hand, giving her a Very. Disappointed. Look. and a small shake of his head. Then he looked to Aither.

"We return later."

Erebos walked out. The discussion would keep until there was more privacy, less reason for interruption, and a lot more thought involved.

Because obviously. It was too crowded. Set was not being reasonable. And Clotho was being downright mulishly foolish.

[erinyes_dot_com]

If Tisiphone had known what Erebos was thinking, she would have realized the elder god was quite mad and filled with forces not his own. Quite, quite mad indeed.

The thoughts that refered to Seth as her lover, the thoughts that seemed to believe she had actually bore Ruina and her child had not been the result of a single touch between two beings of chaotic magic, would have clued her in instantly to the fact that the man her mother loved was not in his right godly mind.

As it was, she knew none of this. None of his forgetfulness of the time she and her sisters had been invoked against Zeus. None of the hubris that made him believe that because he willed it so, he would not be spilling aligned and family blood, as a guest in the house of her father's child if he took things further, while they were inside.

She was quite willing to leave and let the men, be men. Sort out their disputes with their fists. Flail at each other until, hearts pounding, and breaths seesawing in their lungs, their manhood, for each in a different way, was assured.

Clotho would have to assert herself as her own goddess in her own time. Or perhaps never at all. Perhaps she would always be under the sway of a Father who believed that love was cold control.

Wrapping Ruina in her arms and wings, Tisiphone was set to leave, but then, Erebos walked out, stiff backed with pride as sheer as cliffs on Everest and no doubt leading to as big a fall.

She sent to Set [I had intended to query you as to why you allowed an Egyptian to manhandle our daughter. To pay disrespect to a Greek.] The violence was sharp and fluid in her mind.

[But perhaps you simply have a gift for infuriating even those who do recognize you as family]

She extended her hand to her sister, now with Erebos gone. "Do you need Aither's leave as well, Sister Fate ?"

[moirae_dot_com]

Clotho's jaw dropped at her father's words to her, and it stayed open at the look he gave her. Her heart plummeted into her stomach, and this feeling was only compounded when Tisiphone addressed her. Clotho shook her head at Tisiphone's question, and without looking at Aither, she walked over to her sister and niece. Giving Seth an absent-minded wave, she took Tisiphone's hand and said,

"I'm sorry, Tis. Let's go see Gara."

[ruina_occasus]

Rinna didn't want to go.

But they were going.

She tagged along behind the two others, head down, shuffling in her booty-stilletto-pvc-goodshoes.