I felt a pang of empathy. ‘I will,’ I replied.
‘Friendly winds will blow tonight,’ Zephyrus said to the sky and the grass. ‘I’ll be certain that my brother Notus ensures it. He knows nothing of this quest, so Aphrodite cannot protest.’
‘Thank you,’ I said breathlessly.
‘Don’t thank me,’ Zephyrus scoffed. ‘I’m only a scatterbrainwho forgets where he puts everything and enjoys a good southern breeze.’
I pulled the stopper and drained the bottle. In the moments before the tincture took effect, a question occurred to me. ‘Zephyrus, why is the butterfly the shape of my soul? A wolf or a lioness would be more suitable. So why the butterfly?’
‘I cannot say,’ he replied. ‘Perhaps someone wiser knows.’
I did not respond. By that point, I was unable to. I made my way into the darkening sky, my delicate wings fluttering fiercely.
34
Eros
Some vital quality had vanished from the world.
The people in Greece noticed it, as did those on more distant shores. Goats and sheep ceased to mate in the fields, and their milk ran dry. Spouses and lovers snapped at one another, caught up in petty arguments. Musicians found that their compositions fell flat, and potters discovered that their work remained mere lumps of clay without the spark that made it true art. The gods too found themselves at loose ends. Zeus could not summon any interest in his favourite pastime, and even Aphrodite was moody and inconsolable.
Desire had disappeared from the world, and it was not long before someone decided to ask why.
‘Eros? What are you doing here?’
My head snapped up at the voice. It was female, but not Aphrodite’s. I tried to call out for help, but only a strangled whisper emerged from my throat.
‘I suppose she hasn’t given you anything to eat or drink,’ the voice sighed. ‘Here.’
A waterskin appeared at my lips, and I sipped hesitantly. I was rewarded by a rush not of mere water, but the ambrosia of thegods, restoration of our divinity and vitality. I drank and felt my strength growing, though unseen hands quickly snatched the waterskin back.
‘Now, an answer. What are you doing here?’
I licked my lips, chasing the last drops of ambrosia. WhatwasI doing here? The events of the last few weeks came flooding back along with recognition of the speaker.
‘Hello, Eris,’ I said, my voice rasping like bones across a dusty floor. ‘It’s been quite some time. It seems I am being punished by Aphrodite for harbouring an enemy and telling lies. My adopted mother is quite stern.’
‘Apparently. It’s dark as a hydra’s gullet in here. I can’t see anything.’ I felt the flicker of divine magic and a sudden spark.
A light, a lamp. The face of my sister staring at me in genuine astonishment, the first thing I had seen in more than a fortnight. My eyes were dazzled at the brightness.
‘Perhaps I should extinguish the lamp,’ my sister said, flinching back in revulsion. ‘You look terrible.’
‘I can assure you that however poorly I look, I feel worse,’ I replied. ‘How did you find me?’
‘We are two sides of the same coin, Eros. I always know where you are.’
‘That’s a disconcerting thought. Give me more ambrosia, please.’ The mouthful I’d taken was scarcely enough to slake my thirst, and talking exhausted me.
Eris tilted her head. ‘No,’ she said after a moment.
My heart sank. Of course my sister would hold whatever I wanted just out of reach.
A strange curve tugged at the corners of her lips. ‘I’ll break you out of here instead,’ she finished.
Eris touched their surface and the chains fell away from my wrists. The bindings may have been unbreakable to anyone else,but the goddess of discord possessed the power to drive things apart, which held as true for objects as for living relationships. I crashed to the cold stone of the floor at once, locked muscles and tendons screaming in agony. I scrabbled for a moment until my godhood healed the minute tears and dislocations.
‘Why did you free me?’ I gasped.To see me twitch on the ground like a cockroach?
