Or was it?
It happened so fast.
But it was fated to be.
Or so it seemed.
In the end, was it destiny or was it just my demise?
My plan was simple: get pregnant.
I never thought so much could go awry, so quickly.
But then again, only fools fall in love.
Part I
1
Persephone
It's the final day of the God's Olympics and I'm here at the winner's ball with my best friend, Gaia.
Everywhere I turn, another handsome god is making me melt.
These are gods and goddesses I've known all my life. Well, known is a stretch — I haven't come to a gathering like this in years; I doubt anyone would even recognize me. But, after tonight, I intend on making sure that at least one of them never forgets me.
Tonight, it is happening. "I think I'll go over and introduce myself."
"To whom?" Gaia asks.
I give her a wide smile. "All of them."
She snorts and takes the flute of nectar from my hand. I've been drinking the nectar since I arrived here tonight, but in truth, I don't need anything to give me courage.
"I feel like everyone is staring at me."
"They are." She laughs. "Persephone, this is a bad idea," she says as I look around the room, trying to narrow in on which god I should talk to first.
"No, it is a great idea. I'm ready. It's time."
"You can't go back you know. Once you get pregnant... maybe you should find a mortal to knock you up... not one of the gods on Olympus. They all have egos, and--"
I cut her off. "No. I want my offspring to be powerful."
"I know you're the Goddess of Fertility, Sephy, but I don't want you to have regrets. You're only twenty-one. You have an entire life ahead of you."
I shake my head at her words. I may be quiet, and maybe spend my time in fields instead of social gatherings, but it doesn't mean I don't know what I want.
Sure, I prefer the outdoors, visiting farms and bequeathing my skills to the patient farmers plowing the land. And yes, I love to run my hands over their flaxen hay, to sink my toes into the dark soil and lavish my love upon every crop, hoping for a plentiful yield.
But I am the goddess of more than harvest. I am the Goddess of Fertility -- this is my birthright; my claim.
This is my purpose.
"I want to be a mother. This is what I was made to do. Literally. I've been waiting until I came of age to do this. Now I am. Why wait for what I want?"
Gaia sighs. "I get nervous for you. Some decisions in life are irreversible. Having a child is one of them."
I know that once I make love with a man I will become pregnant with his baby. It's been foretold. And as I look around the room, I know already which gods I have my eyes on.
"So, which one are you going to choose, now that you see them up close after so long?" Gaia asks, following my gaze as it lands on Ares, then Poseidon, Zeus, and finally Hades.
There are four men I have been dreaming about since I was a little girl.
Tonight, I will seduce one of them, take them somewhere quiet, and sleep with them.
Yes, it is forward -- but I am not the Goddess of Love. I don't need a partner, a lover, a commitment. I can raise a child on my own, but I need help in order to get pregnant.
"I don't think I can talk you out of this," Gaia says, resigning herself at last to my plan.
"You can't. Please, don't judge me. I know we're different. You're Mother Earth; we have different needs... different wants."
"I know," she says gently, running her hands through her thick dark hair. "I just don't want you to get hurt."
I laugh. "That won't happen. I am my own woman, and I am doing this on my own terms."
Gaia rolls her eyes. "In that case, just go talk to one of them. You're practically drooling, Sephy."
"Right, because that's a thing I do." I bite the side of my lip and readjust my dress. It's magenta and strapless and not the sort of thing I usually wear. But tonight, I am doing things differently.
"You need some confidence, is all. You spend too much time alone in the fields. "
"I know. In my head, I am ready to go all in," I admit to my dearest friend. "But actually, marching over to one of them... gah! It's intimidating."
We aren't exactly two peas in a pod. I'm quiet, she's loud. I'm patient, she jumps into action. And she always manages to get in trouble. She has all the freedom in the world as she roams the Earth and makes friends with every living thing.
It's like she doesn't take anything too seriously, whereas I don't do anything lightly. My choices are measured. My decisions carry weight.