No, not a jug. A growler.
“Let’s do this.” He crooked one finger into the handle and sort of waved the growler toward me.
“A growler.” That was, I think, Aaron.
“Old family heirloom. Got it in Norway.”
It was earthenware, a nice brown and green glaze, the words WELLOFWISDOMwere written across it.
“You can buy that at Bi-Mart,” Zeus muttered.
“Doesn’t matter, does it?” Odin said. “I’m keeping the powers. They stay where I say they’ll be safe, and I say they’ll be safe in this jug.”
The gods shuffled a little as a slight mist started pushing down from the tree tops.
“That’s correct,” Ryder said.
Every head turned to him. He looked just as shocked as anyone else that those words had come out of his mouth.
Then all eyes shifted to me.
“Deities, meet Ordinary’s new warden. Warden Bailey, these are most of the gods of Ordinary.”
“Ha!” Crow yelled, and pointed at Ryder’s face. “And ha,” he added, swinging a finger my way.
I was tempted to swing a finger at him too. The middle one.
“Piper, meet the gods in town.”
She nodded and smiled like they were the best tippers she’d had all week.
“Piper is a demigod. Just thought you should all meet her. Mithra made her take the powers. She’s sorry about it and promises it will never happen again.”
She hadn’t actually promised that, but I was pretty sure she would, if asked.
“Wait,” Crow said. “Demigod. So who is her parent?”
No one moved. Someone chuckled uncomfortably.
I guess I had expected Poseidon to step forward, to recognize her. But this vessel who held Poseidon’s power was at least four Poseidons past the one who had fathered her.
Then: “Oh.” It was a soft, surprised sound. And Poseidon—the current Poseidon—stepped forward toward her.
He was a skinny guy, tall enough he had permanently hunched shoulders as if he needed to make himself shorter than he was. His hair was black and pulled back in a ponytail away from his long face. His eyes were wide and shifted between the colors of the sea.
“Piper?” He held his hands out, looking for recognition on her face. “I see you. I see you now.”
She took his hands and smiled up at him.
“Oh,” he said with soft wonder. “You’re beautiful.”
Piper blushed and that flush of interest in her eyes wasn’t a look a daughter should give her father. Which, technically, he wasn’t. Her father. That man, that vessel had died years ago. This man, this Poseidon was, well, he wasn’t my type, and while he was much older than he looked, so was Piper.
Were they falling for each other? Was it incest if they were, technically not even related? Was this just another grand way Poseidon was screwing things up?
My head hurt.“So,” I said to break up the insta-love going on because I could not deal with that right now. “Let’s get these powers stowed.”
I pulled the water bottle out of my coat and walked over to Odin. There wasn’t a ceremony involved in moving the powers. Well, no more than what was happening today, which was that most of the deities liked to come out and watch the powers actually be transferred.
