AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Paris didn't take his eyes off the bulls. "He does."
She held a flower wreath she'd woven from the wildflowers she'd gathered along the way into the village. She scolded herself for approaching Paris when he
preferred looking at bulls to her and draped the floral crown on a nearby post. She took a step away and then several more, but when Paris failed to notice, she followed her aunt Chrisoula's advice, made her way to her mare and rode away.
Chapter 15
Mount Olympus
Home of the gods
Wedding plans were underway for a water nymph, a dear favorite of Zeus. He wanted the day to be perfect and confided his fears in his lovely wife as she trimmed his hair. "Eris thrives as the goddess of Discord and will make a horrid mess of things. You know she will."
Hera brushed a shorn curl from his shoulder. "Let's not invite her, beloved. Then the wedding and feast will be over before she even hears of it."
"I doubt it will be so easy. We're only delaying the inevitable, and we'll surely choke on the foul stench of her blazing anger later."
"She'll have to pretend she doesn't care about the wedding, or she'll look pathetic. She's too proud to abide that shame," Hera posed.
He turned to look up at her. "Fine, we'll not invite Eris, and she'll not be missed. Weddings are yours to perform. Will your peacocks be ready to pull your chariot?"
She bent down to kiss his ear. "They're happy to prance and fly across the sky whenever there's an opportunity. It's endearing that they're so vain."
"Is vanity a fault in those of us who are perfect in every way?" he asked.
The haircut complete, she came around him to sit upon his lap. "We're gods, my darling, and radiate perfection. We may have a few minor faults, but the peacocks are merely birds, pretty though they may be. They love to strut and show off their magnificent feathers and bob their feather crowns to gather praise. I love them, but even without their proud strut, no one could possibly fail to see them."
"All I see is you," Zeus responded, and Hera smothered her laughter against his newly shorn hair.
* * *
Despite Zeus's plan, Eris learned of the nymph's upcoming wedding and fumed at being overlooked just as he'd feared she would. She cursed and stomped until she grew hoarse and exhausted, but by then, a delicious idea had occurred to her. She needn't foment discord with shrieking fits when it could be so easily aroused with trickery. She had a golden apple made and inscribed, To the Fairest. It was a gorgeous prize for the winning goddess, but she laughed gleefully at how difficult it would be for Zeus to choose the winner. No matter whom he chose, the goddesses he passed over would scheme to pay him back for the insult, and he'd never know any peace.
At the wedding, she stood quietly on the edge of the circled guests and waited for Hera to proclaim the nymph and her mate wed. Once the celebration had begun, and nectar flowed into golden goblets, she tossed the beautiful apple into the guests' midst, and hid behind a column to observe unseen.
Hermes flew and caught the apple sailing through the air and read the inscription. "To the Fairest. For whom is this treasure meant?"
"Give it to me," Hera responded. "I'm the queen of the gods and rightfully deserve it."
"No!" Athena argued. "I'm the goddess of Wisdom, and I know the pretty apple is meant for me."
Aphrodite moved forward with a sultry dancing glide. "I'm the goddess of Love and the fairest among you all. The beautiful apple was intended for me."
Hermes shrugged unhappily and called to Zeus. "It's for you to decide, my lord, as chief among us, it's your right to choose."
Hera pressed close to her husband's side. "I must be your choice."
Aphrodite turned in a seductive swirl and reached out to caress Zeus's powerfully muscled arm. "You can easily see I'm the fairest. Your decision should be easy."
Athena refused to concede. "I'm far fairer than either of you. Your vanity clouds your mirrors as well as your thoughts, and you refuse to see the truth."
Zeus raised his hand rather than allow the goddesses' strife to continue. "This is not a choice I wish to make," he announced. "Ares, who was the handsome boy with the champion bull you challenged?"
Ares was often paired with Athena and hugged her to his side to make his own choice clear. "Paris, my lord. He lives on Mt. Ida near Troy. Shall we summon him?"
"No." Zeus turned to his messenger. "Hermes, you must find him and ask him to choose. All three of you lovely goddesses will accompany Hermes to Mount Ida, and you must promise to abide by Paris's decision."
"The boy herds cattle?" Hera asked, clearly astonished her husband would suggest such an absurd option. "How can his judgment possibly be better than yours, my love?"
