Home . . .
I was never going to see it again.
* * *
The sound of singing greeted me when I woke. Rubbing my weary eyes, I stepped over Eleos quietly and pushed through the tarp hanging in the doorway.
It was Percy. He stood by the channel, lute in hand, singing Athena a ballad.
Leaning on the doorway, I caught the last few words and quickly recognized the tune. A grin spread across my face.
This was the song of the Pegasus. Though I could not recall the rest of the play, this ballad had stuck with me.
Ainwir had bought me a little yarn Pegasus. I’d treasured it.
The last line, though, I did not recall.
‘From the blood of death, the Pegasus rises.’
Percy bowed when he finished, and Athena licked the feather on his hat, coating it in spit.
“Someone’s in a good mood,” I said, joining them.
“Of course I am.” He shouldered the lute. “Who wouldn’t be, getting to accompany a beautiful woman through a breathtaking city?”
“Beautiful?” Cerys’ voice startled me, and I spun around.
She stepped from the embrace of a golden canvas, wearing the elaborate gown and headdress of the Oracle.
“Ahm.” Percy backed into Athena, who nudged his hat off.
“I had a proposition.” Cerys turned to me. “Percy blends right in with my other attendants. I think it would be beneficial for him to accompany me going forward. That way, we can pass messages more easily.”
“That’s a good idea.” I placed a hand on my hip. “As long as Percy is okay with it.”
“I, um.”Percy cleared his throat. “It would be dangerous. Let me think about it.”
“Of course. Take all the time you need.” Cerys bowed her head and swept through the tarp into the tavern.
Percy reached for his hat and missed, grabbing only air. He fit the invisible hat on his head, eyes gazing into the distance.
“What’s gotten into you?” I asked. “I thought you’d leap at an opportunity to escort her.”
Starting, Percy ran a hand through his hair when he noticed me. “She’s . . . I’m . . .” Sighing, he gathered himself. “I don’t have time.”
“I don’t follow.”
He sighed, took my arm, and pulled me closer. “I’m dying, Aethra. There’s a reason why I don’t court.”
Swallowing, my heart throbbed, and I felt compelled to share something I had been keeping bottled up for weeks.
“So am I,” I said softly.
“ . . .What?”
“My magic. Whenever I use it, I fade away a little more. It hurt a little more,” I explained. “The other Elpis maidens never returned from the Acheron. I’m dying, too.”
At a loss for words, Percy rubbed his arm and looked away. After a moment, his face softened, and he met my eye. “Oh.” He managed.
