Page 130 of Styx

nothing will ever happen to you.’

I squeezed her hand for comfort,

then asked her,

‘Can we make a promise?’

Styx nodded.

‘No matter what happens

between us, we will look after

the children we will have one day,’ I said.

Styx’s eyes filled with tears.

‘Asteria… I would never let harm

come to your child.’

She put her arms around me,

a rare thing for her to do. ‘I promise.’

For the first time in a long time,

I let my body loosen. Letting go of all

the fears I had been carrying for so long.

And the voices in my head

became a soft hum

instead of a cry in the dark.

The Message

Styx and I spent the night talking

about how our lives had changed.

We tried not to speak of the unknowns

that were facing us both,

instead considered only the possibilities

now that we were consorts of two brothers.

‘We can make our own family,’

Styx told me. ‘And it will be kind.’

I agreed. ‘Our children will be good

to one another and not hurt one another.