Chapter Eight

Even before Amera opened her eyes she was assaulted by sounds and smells she that had never witnessed before. The sounds were sharp, no water to muddle their clarity, and for the first time Amera could smell something other than the ocean.

She listened closely at the noises, she recognised the sound of children squealing as they played silly games, and something that sounded like a rock, banging against another rock. She didn't recognise the power tools that roared outside her window, or the sound of motorcars as they drove past the building. She focused on a slow ticking noise, noticing a circle on the wall that had the numbers one through to twelve displayed around the rim. Three sticks stuck out from the centre, the thinnest one made the ticking sound she could hear. A gargling sound broke her attention away from the clock, and she realised it was coming from the other side of the wall, followed by the sound of running water.

As she moved to look around, she realised her head was rested on soft padding and a heavy cover was draped across her body, pulled up to her chest. She could see in such clarity that her head had started to throb, so she lifted her fingers to soothe the ache, the tips brushing against some strands of hair.

She sat up abruptly, hands shaking as she raked them through her hair. It was the first time she had ever felt her hair dry, it had always either been wet or damp as she sunbathed, and, as she pulled it over her shoulder, she realised it was lighter than she was used to. Under the water her hair had been a dark brown colour, but she realised that as it dried it had become closer to a caramel brown, the tips had curled slightly without water to weigh it down.

After she had studied her hair for several minutes her attention turned to her hands, stretching them out to see how they felt without the webbing between them. Amera wasn't sure how to feel about the missing webs, but she didn't dwell on it long. She felt the cover that had been placed over her, it's softness light in her hands, and as she pulled it towards her chest, she felt the tip of her tail grow cool.

The blanket fell from her hands as she realised that it wasn't her tail at the end of the bed, but rather two feet. She'd seen what her feet would look like in Athena's world, but she'd never been able to touch them. With a trembling hand she reached down to lightly lay a finger against her foot, and, when she didn't sense any pain, she became more adventurous, placing her hand over her foot and mapping out its existence.

After exploring her new body thoroughly, Amera fell back onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. The light hanging from the roof was on, and it had four prongs attached to it that spun around in a lazy circle, it blew cool air onto her and she stared at it in amazement.

She heard people in the other room, their voice's travelling better than voices did under water. 'Are you sure you want to leave her here?' The words piqued Amera's interest and she sat back up.

On the other side of the door Kee paced the length of the hallway, her arched brows drawn together. 'I'm not exactly a crowd favourite amongst the gods.' Babysitting hadn't been on her agenda, but when she'd been summoned before Athena in the dead of night there had been no way of saying no.

Kee glowered at Poseidon when he laughed, an unapologetic glint in his eyes. 'That is precisely the reason why she has been sent to you.'

She considered her words carefully as she studied the god, he didn't seem phased by her aggressiveness towards his granddaughter, but one wrong word could mean Kee would never be able to return to Mount Olympus. 'I refuse to call her princess.'

'She wouldn't expect you to. The Mer's don't view the title of princess and prince as much more than a name. It is a role of honour, as their true leader lives on in immortality. At the age of twenty-five most princes and princesses renounce their titles and leave the place. They go on to build a life as simple citizens, and I have no doubt that Amera would have given up her title had she not taken on this task.' Poseidon watched her as she paced, his head swivelling to match her gait, never once taking his eyes from her. 'At least try to get along with her, Kee. You and Amera have much more in common than you think.'

Kee was thinking of a rebuttal when the front door flew open. A woman stood in the doorway, eyes wide in surprise as she noticed Kee with Poseidon. Her hand hovered on the door handle, her other clutching a large pink suitcase, waiting for Kee to erupt in excuses. Instead Kee regarded her coolly, her lips pursed. 'What are you doing here, Hedone?'

'Don't call me that.' Henna chirped as she fought her luggage through the door. 'Am I not allowed to visit my own mother?'

Kee watched suspiciously as Henna left her things by the kitchen counter, her eyes sweeping the apartment in search of something, 'You haven't visited me since 1931, Hedone. I'm allowed to ask questions when you turn up out of the blue.'

Henna sighed, giving up her search in favour of turning to her mother's steely gaze. 'If you must know, mother, I just broke the heart of a boy in Italy. I thought there would be a little bit more of a reception for the returning daughter, in hindsight though it appears I was wrong.'

'Hindsight is twenty-twenty.' Kee snapped, disregarding the way her daughter delighted at her annoyance. 'Did your father send you here.'

Henna smiled charmingly and settled down on the couch. 'I haven't visited father since 1903, so no, by assumption you can guess that father didn't send me here. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out.'

'You can't stay her, Hedone.'

Henna laughed softly, shaking her head slowly, 'Yes I can. In case you'd forgotten, you don't actually own the apartment, father does. I'm sure if it was between you or me, he'd pick me, in a heartbeat. So, unless you want to involve him, and break your three-thousand-year silence, I suggest you change your mind.'

Poseidon pushed up from the wall, irritated as he watched the duo argue, 'I'm sure your mother would be delighted to have you, Henna, any other time, but now doesn't work for her.'

Henna stood up, determinate to defy them both, 'I understand, I really do, but if I had to hear about your scheming with Athena through a forest nymph, and not someone with a little more prestige, then I'm assuming your house guest is supposed to remain a secret.'

'Are you threatening me!' a storm flashed in Poseidon's eyes, the wooden floor rumbling beneath them, his anger reverberating through the ground.

Henna wasn't fazed by Poseidon's anger, she simply shrugged nonchalantly, 'not at all, I'm simply here to remind you that I have a loose tongue, I'm not very good at keeping secrets. Plus, if what I've heard is true, then someone must help this girl get through this unscathed, my mother isn't exactly the best at socialising.'

'Hedone-'

'I have told you not to call me that, mother.' Henna said calmly as she watched Poseidon, waiting for him to curse her.

Kee raised her eyebrows at her daughter's rudeness, 'I named you, I can call you what I want. Just because your father condones your nonsense-'

'And what of your name?' Henna asked quickly, 'it's called hypocrisy mother, and it's typically frowned upon.'

'Ladies,' Poseidon cleared his throat, tossing them both a look that froze the words in their throats. 'I think it's time I introduce you to my granddaughter.' He held a hand out to Kee when she tried to protest, 'Henna has made a good point, I don't know how well I trust you with Amera, your daughter can provide a buffer between you and the girl.'

***

Amera still couldn't believe how beautiful Kee and Henna were. They were stark opposites, but neither could be defined as more beautiful than the other. Henna took after her mother only in the shape of her face and the dusty pink of her lips. While Kee's brown irises were dark enough to melt into the black of her pupils, Henna's eyes were a bluish green and her hair fell in loose blonde curls, her mother's hair was straight and black. The biggest difference in their appearances was the scar on Kee's face. Where her daughter's skin was like smooth marble, Kee had a white line etched into her skin, starting above her left temple and slicing down between her eyes to fall under her right ear.

Amera had spent the first hour feeling foolish in the presence of the two beautiful women, as she stumbled around like a newborn foal, her legs shaky beneath her, and Poseidon talking in her ear, explaining her task in depth. 'You'll have five weeks to learn as much as you can. In five weeks, you will start classes at the university and it is imperative that you learn how to function amongst the humans without attention.' Amera knew she'd have to devote her time to adjusting, Athena had been able to teach her many things, but they had barely scratched the surface. 'You'll need to be careful,' Poseidon declared, 'you've grown up in the water, so you will be faster and stronger than the average human. It may take some time for your senses to adapt. In a week your eyes should adjust, and you'll learn to filter the sounds and smells around you, so they are not as overwhelming. Kee and Henna will help you as much as they can.' Poseidon rested a hand upon Amera's shoulder and wished her good luck before he left the three of them alone to settle in.

They were silent, Kee regarded Amera icily from the open kitchen, annoyed that she'd suddenly become subjected to mothering again. Henna was watching Amera too, but she grinned, rather than frowned, at the mermaid. 'What's it like?' Henna asked, perching on the edge of the couch as she gave all her attention to Amera. 'Nero Palati?'

Amera didn't know how to take the attention, from one goddess she was receiving the cold shoulder, and the other she got her undivided attention. 'Mer's say it is the most beautiful palace they have ever laid eyes on, and I knew someone once who said they could not decide whether it outshone the temple on Mount Olympus. I guess it is very pretty, but I have lived there my whole life, and I...' Amera shrugged, not sure how to describe the place she'd once called home, 'I believe I have not got the best experience to explain it in all its magnificent entirety.'

'Oh, what a shame.' Henna said, a smile still on her lips as she moved over to sit more comfortably on the couch. 'I really was looking forward to hearing all about it.' She sat up, turning to Amera, her eyes blazing with excitement. 'Have you heard about the Spice Girls?' When she saw Amera's confusion Henna's smile flattered for a second, 'Oh my, we've got a lot to teach you.' Henna suddenly turned towards Kee, not at all affected by the scowl she got in return. 'Mother, I'm going to need you to go to the store. You need to get at least three bags of popcorn, two blocks of chocolate, but not milk chocolate, we don't want anything boring.' Henna shook her head, holding out a hand, 'no, wait. Three blocks of chocolate, one milk, and two random ones, make sure you have at least one Cadbury block, and get a high-end chocolate, or at least a supermarket high end, so like Lint, or something. Also,' she said so quickly that Amera's head was spinning, she was trying to follow along but there were too many words that didn't make sense, 'I want a carrot. I'm not entirely sure why, it just came into my mind and I just really think she should eat a carrot.' She paused to think for a second, her eyes narrowing on Kee. 'And do you have a Netflix account, or am I going to have to find one.'

'What do you mean, find one, you have enough money to get your own, or at the very least your father could have gotten you one.' Kee frowned, accentuating the long scar on her cheek.

'I do, but unlike you, mother, I don't exactly have a lot of spare time on my hands, and as we established earlier, I haven't visited father since 1903. Just a bit of world trivia, but the computer wasn't invented until 1938. Unfortunately, I'm not the most forward thinking in the world, and I didn't have the mind to ask him, in 1903, if I could have a Netflix account in eighty years' time.' Henna ignored the look her mother gave her in response and turned her attention to a shiny pink device that fit into the palm of her hand.

'Did you try calling him?'

Henna scoffed, finding amusement in her mother's suggestion. 'As it turns out, they don't exactly get got cell service up on Mount Olympus, I would have tried to reach Father otherwise, but alas, he does not have a phone. Which you would know if you had talked to him recently.'

'Your father and I are both adults, we can make our decisions without our adult daughter butting in. You are old enough now, Hedone, to know that your father and I will not be getting back together.' Kee huffed as she gathered up her keys and a jacket, glad for an excuse to get away from the mer-child for a while.

'I don't want you and father to get back together,' Henna laughed, shaking her head from side of side, catching Amera's eyes with a roll of her own, 'I know for a fact that he is happier now than he was when you two were together, but it would be nice if you two could at least get along.'

Kee cleared her throat loudly, her lips pursed together, 'I thought you hadn't seen your father in eighty years.'

'I didn't need to hear it from father to know he's with another woman. News travels quickly up on Mount Olympus, Hermes enjoys talking over a cup of coffee, but he's particularly talkative when I've got ambrosia on hand,' she turned to Amera, giving the stunned girl a playful wink, 'it really livens him up.'

Kee sighed heavily, 'You and I will be talking about the consequences of liquoring up the gods when I get back, but I can't be in this room with you right now.'

Without much more fanfare Kee was out the door, leaving Amera in Henna's hands. The latter was still studying a list of pop culture references when Amera leaned closer, captivated by the moving images on Henna's shiny device, 'What is that?'

'Oh sweetie, did Athena not tell you what a phone was?' Henna asked, eyes wide as she looked between the mer and her phone. 'We really do have our work cut out for us.'