Don’t forget that you still have a curse to break.Hecate made a mental list of all the things that were standing in between her and Aeëtes, and she was surprised to find that once she got out of her own way, there were very few things left. If any at all.
“If I have misspoken, Goddess, please do forgive me.” Faidra’s voice was pleading, and Hecate realized that she hadn’t spoken for a few minutes, making Faidra nervous that she had offended the goddess.
“Oh!” Hecate grabbed Faidra’s hands and gave them a comforting squeeze. “Oh, no, you’re fine, Faidra. I was thinking through what you have said. I should know by now not to deal with mortal politics before my breakfast.” She grinned widely, dropping Faidra’s hands and giving her a wink. “I do think that you might be onto something, however. Finish your prayers and your errands, and do not seek me out at the palace. I will see you the next time I summon the king and queen for an audience. Everything will be handled, Faidra.”
“Oh, Hecate! Bless you.” Faidra started crying tears of joy, throwing her arms around Hecate’s middle. Hecate hugged the woman back, placing her chin on Faidra’s head and letting her gather her composure for a few minutes longer.
“It will be sorted. I will orchestrate it so the king is the one to break the engagement between you and Aeëtes, freeing you from any repercussions. You will send a letter to your father and alert him that you are coming home, and under what conditions. Perhaps you shall find that by the time you make it back to Athens, your very enterprising father has already secured a match for you with a member of his household that he trusts, who has recently fallen into a miraculous fortune.”
Faidra pulled back from Hecate, fresh, ecstatic tears still dampening her cheeks, while she wiped at her eyes and smiled. “Goddess, I will worship you for all the days of my life. Truly, every woman is indebted to you.”
Hecate gave her another sly wink and let her glamour slowly pour back over her face until she appeared just like any other mortal woman in front of Faidra.
Faidra smiled, reaching out and giving Hecate’s hand a squeeze before she slipped out of the alley and disappeared, honoring Hecate’s request to not seek her out anymore until the time was right.
Hecate watched Faidra go, and in the deepest recesses of her chest, felt the scattered, tiny parts of her heart begin to beat again as they assembled themselves once more.
The sun was almost at midday now, and there was only one thing that Hecate needed to do next.
I need to tell Aeëtes I love him.
32
Hecate travelled on human legs, but she had never felt so free. She bid farewell to Faidra and began walking towards the palace, slowly at first, but as soon as she was out of sight from the temple, she began to run. There was something gloriously unhinged about it, hidden from her immortal identity, the hem of her peplos whipping around her ankles. She dodged in and out of the marketplace, ducking underneath a stall and not stopping when her hair fell out of her braid. She hadn’t run like this since she was a child. One of those carefree, exuberant sprints, where nothing mattered except getting where you were going asfastas you could, with no regard to how you looked or who saw you.
It was wholly undignified, and she knew if anyone recognized her, they would be shocked, but nothing else mattered except getting to the palace and finding Aeëtes.
I love him. I love him. Ilovehim!It was the only thought that rang through her head and her heart, pushing her on even when her side started to split. Not even a mortal body could get her to slow her pace. She wound up through the lemon trees and inhaled great, greedy gulps of air, nearly leaping up the palace steps and ignoring the guards. Hecate let her glamour drop but didn’t slow down, narrowly missing crashing into a servant holding a basket of food. The servant swerved at the last second and managed to avoid spilling the contents but took a few shaky steps backward.
“I’m so sorry!” Hecate called over her shoulder, but she didn’t stop.
The serving girl looked like she had seen a ghost, although Hecate did look a little half wild. Her face felt like it might crack in two with the strength of her smile, and she felt her stomach twisting. She raced through the halls, popping her head in and out various antechambers and storerooms, until she had almost made a full circle. The doors to the great hall were there to greet her, and Hecate finally slowed down slightly, wondering where she could find Aeëtes.
He hasn’t gone somewhere, has he?
No sooner did she think it than she managed to conjure him. The doors swung open, and Aeëtes walked out, his father next to him. He looked muted, dressed in a shorter chiton that matched his father’s, his features drawn in tight, and his hair pulled back. The king’s expression was no friendlier, and whatever they had been discussing hadn’t put either of them in good moods.
“Aeëtes!” Hecate called out from down the hall, and his entire body responded. Aeëtes whipped around to find the source of her voice, his face lighting up and his entire countenance brightening when he saw her.
“Hecate.” He started laughing when he saw her appearance. “Is there a fire somewhere? What has gotten into you?” He had no idea what had happened to her, but even from a distance he could see the joy in her eyes.
Hecate had run through this scenario a million different times in her head, even in moments of doubt when she was certain there was no future for them. In some versions, it was a quiet moment between the two of them. There were other renditions that involved loud declarations of undying passions. None of those made-up stories in her head proved to be nearly as exhilarating as this moment where Hecate stood, a stone’s throw from Aeëtes and the king of Colchis, and yelled down the hallway at the top of her lungs.
“I love you, Aeëtes!”
Her voice echoed throughout the palace, sounding abundant and practically effervescent. Hecate clapped her hands over her mouth immediately, and starting giggling like a schoolgirl, but she couldn’t help herself. The change in Aeëtes was instantaneous. Without warning, the entire hallway was full of a shining light that was so intense, it threatened to block out the sun. It pulsed like a beacon for a few seconds before disappearing, revealing Aeëtes, smiling like a fool and running at full speed toward her.
Hecate grabbed her peplos and held it up as she took off in a run, both of them colliding into each other with a force that rivaled gravity. That was what they were—two celestial bodies that had contained multitudes, hurt and death and everything in between, but had finally found a way to choose life. Hecate jumped up into Aeëtes’s arms and wrapped her legs around his waist as he caught her without hesitation.
Aeëtes cupped her face as he looked at her, both of them nearly panting with the exertion and excitement. He laughed, loud and unencumbered, and looked at her with the most open expression that she had ever seen.
“I love you too, little witch,” he whispered the words like they were sacraments, closing the rest of the gap between them and capturing her mouth with his. There was finally nothing that was keeping them apart, not a wound or a wall, and the embrace reflected that for the first time. Hecate gave herself entirely over to Aeëtes, relaxing all her weight onto him as he held her. The kiss… Nothing else mattered but that kiss. Aeëtes kissed her like she was water in a drought, and Hecate felt every last splinter and crack in her heart shatter until she was wide open to him. She felt his hands cupping her jaw and holding onto her waist, every part of him seemed to fit against her perfectly. Every solid inch of him was met with soft curve, and they both thought that they were going to incinerate themselves on the spot.
It set their souls on fire and burned their fears to ash, fortifying everything that they had ever felt for one another. Hecate wound her hands up into Aeëtes’s hair and pulled, breaking his lips from hers as they both tried to breathe like they’d forgotten how.
Hecate dropped her head to his shoulder as he held her, refusing to put her down. Aeëtes leaned his cheek to hers, chuckling softly until it got louder and louder, and both of them collapsed into delirious bouts of laughter right there in the middle of the hall. It had cleared out quickly after Hecate’s arrival. Aeëtes leaned against the stone and slowly slid down it, until he was sitting on the floor with Hecate straddling his lap. Neither of them said anything else; they just laughed, running their hands over each other’s faces and bodies to prove that it was real.
Aeëtes leaned in to kiss her again, his lips grazing hers as he tightened his grip on her. “Am I dreaming?” He murmured against her skin, leaving goosebumps in his wake. Hecate shivered, her whole body feeling like it was pure electricity, and she shook her head.
