“You forgot ‘Crone of chaos’,” Hecate quipped, standing up and dusting the edges of her tunic. Hermes clutched at his chest like he had been shot with an arrow.
“My memory betrays me. How could I ever forget each of your prestigious titles, dearest?” He only laughed, picking up a random leaf off the table and beginning to fidget with it.
“I’m not sure. You’re the one who gave me those.” Hecate deadpanned, sitting at her worktable while her eyes never left the god. “Now, what brings you here? I highly doubt that you’re here for a social visit.”
“Aren’t we sharp-tongued today? Maybe I just wanted to come by and have a chat.”
“Did you?” Hecate pushed him with a raise of her brow. She was surprised to see a flicker of severity in Hermes’s eyes, something that she was not used to seeing.
“I did, actually,” he said softly. There was something in his tone that Hecate couldn’t quite place as she studied him. “It seems that everyone has stayed rather busy as of late. Hades running the Underworld, Nyx and Erebus…making up for lost time.” Hermes grimaced at the last bit, giving a dramatic shudder at the implication.
“So? Good for them.” Hecate shrugged, still unsure as to what that had to do with her or why the messenger was still sitting in her kitchen. Hermes cocked his head to the side and studied Hecate, the corner of his mouth twitching up into a small smile.
“Good for them, indeed…”
“Oh, stop it!” Hecate snapped, rolling her eyes and tossing her pestle at Hermes, who dodged it with a cackling laugh as he fell off the counter. “You did not show up here forthat.”
“We had fun! You know, that one time.” Hermes was now hiding behind her counter as his voice rang out through the kitchen. “I figured if you were the only one hanging out in the Underworld, bored…”
“Hermes,” Hecate grunted, sitting up straighter and beginning to tidy up the mess on the table in front of her. She knew that there was nothing between her and Hermes. It had been oneverydrunk night at Dionysus’s. There was something that twisted her heart about Hermes’s offer, however, and it didn’t have anything to do with him. Hecate began to drift off once more as she tried to place all of the emotions that had been warring within her for weeks. Hermes seemed to sense the shift in her mood as he poked his head up, noting that she was unarmed before he slid onto the bench across from her.
“What’s going on in your head, hmm?” Hermes asked as genuinely as possible for the trickster. Hecate, against her better judgement, answered him.
“I think I need to get away for a little while.” Her voice was inquisitive, questioning, as if she said it out loud to see how it would feel. Hermes said nothing, encouraging her to go on. “I’ve been in the Underworld a long time. Things are somewhat settled now,” Hecate rolled her eyes, “and I haven’t visited one of my temples in years.”
Hermes nodded encouragingly. “It might be good for you to…get some air.” His words felt loaded, and Hecate snapped her gaze to his.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
It was Hermes’s turn to roll his eyes. “Hades may be the God of the unseen, but you don’t get around like I do without picking up a thing or two.”
“I know very well the kinds of things that you have picked up, and I already told you, I’m not interested.”
Hermes blushed. “Hey! Now, that’s not what I meant, and you know that if you gave it a chance… Never mind.” He huffed and shook his head, staring at Hecate with a look of wonderment. “You figure it out for yourself. Go to the mortal world for a while. Relish in it.”
“Why do I get the feeling that there’s something that you’re not telling me?” Hecate asked, skepticism written all over her face. Hermes held up his hands like he had been caught stealing.
“I think that you’ve been cooped up for too long, that’s all. You’ve been particularly sulky ever since everyone came back from Mt. Olympus.”
“I don’t know what you mean,” Hecate snapped quickly, grabbing another handful of dried berries and putting them in the closest empty jar. Hermes shook his head, wondering how the Goddess of women couldn’t see what was in front of her. He decided that that was a conversation for another day, and presumably, a conversation that she shouldn’t have with him.
“Where to first?” Hermes changed the subject.
“Crete, I think.” Hecate nodded, releasing a long breath.
“Beautiful.” Hermes kicked his feet out with a flourish. “Enjoy the sun, a little sand, maybe a sailor or two. See if you can’t get out of this fog that you’re in.” He waved in Hecate’s general direction while she scoffed.
“That sounds likeyouridea of a holiday, not mine.”
Hermes stood, shrugging with a smile on his face a mile wide. “We’ll see. Take the trip. Get out of here for a while.” He started walking towards the door. “But you know, if you find that you still can’t scratch whatever itch it is you’ve got…”
“Goodbye,Hermes.” Hecate waved, her face unamused. Hermes ducked out of the door and disappeared down the hall, leaving only the echo of his laughter. Hecate shook her head and looked around the kitchen, her gaze finally landing on her dogs.
“You two don’t think you could take care of yourselves for a while, do you?”
2
“Sister!” Lachesis’s voice cut through the halls as she looked for the other Fates.
