Chapter Text
Thousands upon thousands of years ago, the gods set in place something to bring people together. A world of one color, unique to each one, until they met their soulmate. Fate decided if someone was intended to have a romantic soulmate, then they chose the color they would see, that is if they needed one. If they weren’t destined to fall in love, they settled to let them have a platonic soulmate, deciding that everyone should be given a chance to see the vibrancy of the world that lay before them.
But, if someone had already met their soulmate and one of them were dying, the other would be left with duller colors. An agreement was set in place to not get rid of the color they see permanently as it would be pointless. They would not be paired with another, they would simply live in a dull place. And that is where we lay our story
A tide of emotions washing over a girl just barely twenty years old. The tide washes over the view of all that she’s ever known. It surrounds her in emotions until she is forced to give into them. Love encapsulates her and will continue for a long time. But, we must reach into other parts of the story we get ahead of ourselves.
Long before her, before him, and before the tides drowned the two momentarily, there was a god who saw the world in light blue. He dressed himself in suits and feathers, trying to stand out a little. His choice in clothing was not completely based on that, however. Traveling from the underworld and back, it was useful to show his status. Trying to blend in too much would leave the possibility of someone mistaking him for an impersonator. He was careful, cautious, and stuck to himself.
Until he met a man one day. Hermès’ world had burst into color when he laid his eyes on him. Every shade that he had missed was in view and he nearly tripped over his own feet, looking only in his eyes. The god knew that the other was entranced too. And many years passed before he was faced with the hardest truth he would ever have to deal with. He was cursed with being paired with a mortal who would soon die. Many tears fell from his eyes when he realized his love was doomed to be in the underworld in just a moment's time. Hermes begged for Hades to do something, anything, to make it so they would be able to live together without the worry of death, but to no avail,
When Hades told him that Hermès’ soulmate would have to die, he felt as if there was no purpose to continue on. The king of the underworld became angry when he noticed the others' work starting to slow down. His words of praise quickly turned into threats against him and his soulmate’s spirit. To avoid the words from becoming true, he threw himself into work. Regrets plagued his mind as he took coins from others without any hesitation, even slipping coins into the hands of some. The worst point of his career was when his hands placed those coins in the hand of his dear friend, leading to her death and her son being placed in his care.
Hermès would never forgive himself for his foolish acts and letting himself fall in love. His heart felt heavy when he looked at her son. If he had only stood up to his boss, he would not feel the urge to cry whenever his old eyes looked at the kid.
Orpheus would never know how he really got here. All he would know was that he was abandoned out of fear and nothing more. And Hermès felt guilt for that too, but he would never admit that to anyone other than Persephone. The goddess had coaxed his feelings out of him eventually and he confessed how the boy had ended up in his care. Truly, she was angry at him for causing the death of Calliope, but she knew how cruel Hades had become. As a result of her empathy, she’s found herself taking over as his caretaker during the months she was up top. Persephone could only imagine the pain Hermès was feeling and would continue to feel for the rest of time.
Around the same time of them beginning to raise the six-year old boy, there was a young girl around his age, many towns over. She sat on the dirty sidewalk in front of a run-down store, showing no regard to her muddy shoes. Whistles from the wind were clouding her thoughts as she waited for her mother to return. The girl was abandoned by her father not long after she was born and she was being raised by her single mother. They lived in a quiet and small cottage near the woods, but would occasionally have to leave it momentarily to get food and other items.
Her clothes were shabby with her coat being littered with patches and sporting torn edges. The shirt and skirt she wore were newer with little embroidered sunflowers on an area near the end of her skirt. Her mother described the top as white and the skirt as yellow. She couldn’t tell what yellow was, but she believed her.
Drops of water caused her hair to become damp and it stuck to the sides of her face, annoying her further. It was difficult to see when your hair was so close to your eyes like the water had made it to be. Quickly standing up, she changed her seat to in front of the store’s window, sinking down to the ground with a huff. This was certainly not her most ideal situation.
Eurydice turned her attention to an old-timey clock across the street. It hung on the front of a clearly aged door with boards of wood covering up the glass. There were scribbles on top of the boards, seeming to represent words, but she couldn’t read them. The distance didn’t aid in the fact that she did not know how to read. It was perhaps the most embarrassing secret she had, but didn’t exactly have a way to fix the issue.
Her family was struggling a lot financially, so she didn’t have access to any books. Eurydice didn’t know where to even find the nearby school and her mother didn’t bother to show her. She really wanted to learn, but she didn’t know how to. So, she was stuck in the trap of being unable to read or do anything that a normal six year old would be doing. What she did know was the stories, about her and her mother, that moved throughout the town. Every townsperson knew about her delayed learning and her odd mother. They didn’t care if the two heard it either. The whispers of nasty words turned into shouts and occasional shoves from nearby children. The world seemed to look down on her and the flowers that she so loved even seemed to droop when she walked by them.
And that sidewalk she sat on became one of the many she would sit on and one of the many she would fall on, scraping her knees in the dead of winter. Eurydice would sit on the sidewalks for most of the days out of the year, watching students carrying books and exchanging jokes. Her mother had agreed to homeschool her for a couple years and quit when she fell ill, but that set a ten year old back. She was already a grade behind and she knew that she would, once again, be shunned by the other kids for her lack of education. Eurydice shook her head, trying to remove those selfish thoughts from her mind. Her mother was sick and she had to help her, stealing or not. Eyeing the people passing by and noting how they dressed, checking if they wore more elaborate clothes or simpler ones.
Upon spotting two fairly well-off men walking by, she slipped behind them as soon as they couldn’t see her. She trudged on her steps lightly and looked for the right opportunity to snatch the coin purse she heard. They didn’t look back at her and she had to think quickly before they did.
Eurydice kept her head low and caught some of their conversation as she walked behind them.
“Ah well, you know that saying don’t you?”
The other shook his head, thankfully keeping his eyes closed as he did.
“‘Pity the man that sees colors brighter than all.
Pity the woman who sees no colors at all. ‘“
He threw a nasty grin to the other, seemingly proud of his hateful comment.
“Can’t say I disagree with that. Have the stones that men once held in their chest fallen apart?”
“Unnatural, isn’t it? Women shouldn’t hold such a thing. Years have proven them to be weaker.”
“Finally, someone who seems to understand. Such a shame that women here are so.. progressive dare I say.”
The vileness in the conversation seemed to grow as they continued to throw similar words back and forth. Eurydice took the chance in their discourse to grab the bag, but as she held it in her hands while walking away, she heard a shout after her. A command to give it back, but she did not listen. She ran, not looking for any particular place to go. And they chased after her, chased until she ran into someone and fell down with a small gasp. She didn’t dare look up, expecting to be chided or worse.
“You alright there, hun?” The breaking of silence by a soft voice caused her to look up. A woman, who seemed so out of place with her bright green dress and flowers in her hair, held out her hand with a smile. Before she could take it, a hand grabbed her by the back of her bag and pulled her up roughly.
“The little alcoholic’s daughter is a thief!” Her gaze turned back towards the ground as one of the men from earlier yelled out.
“Not surprised really. Did she steal from you, Miss Persephone?”
“Let her go.”
The man let her go, slightly pushing her forward as he did. The lady, Persephone, tilted the girl’s chin up gently. Her touch was almost light as the breeze that surrounded the town and she quickly pulled her hand away once Eurydice was facing her.
“What’d you steal?”
Her voice wasn’t harsh and neither was her gaze.
“Just a coin purse, miss. Don’t have the money to buy medicine for my mother.”
“Can you give it back to them? I’ll give you the money you need.”
Truly, it was terrifying to let herself trust this stranger, but she pulled out the coin purse and handed it to the man who had it. She didn’t take a second look before turning around.
“How much is it?”
Eurydice was surprised that she was keeping to her word and she tripped over her words at first before managing to get the answer out.
“Clerk said five dollars.”
The sympathy in Persephone’s eyes was oh so apparent and she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. But, she didn’t hesitate and handed her money, throwing a quick glare at the men behind Eurydice as she did.
“Thank you, miss.. Persephone?” The woman gently ruffled her hair and smiled.
“I hope your mom gets better, kid.”
Eurydice nodded and ran off to that old store she had first sat in front of just a few years ago. It felt like lifetimes since then and even as she held the medicine in her hand, things didn’t feel right.
But all of the trouble was in vain. When she made it home, the house was eerily quiet and the wooden floors seemed to creak louder than before. Everything was in place, slightly messy like it had always been. Bookshelves, never filled up with books, covered in dust and a few littered bottles. Broken glass was in a small little pile under the left side of the coffee table. The cabinet above the counter next to the fridge was always locked. She took notice. Absolutely nothing had changed.
Going to turn away, she was stopped by the view of a bright white feather near her room. Her mother couldn’t have put it there and the house wasn’t in bad enough shape to have been broken into by an animal. Her fears became a nightmare when she stepped in and realized her mother was gone.
And the myth of a man leaving a feather behind when taking souls from a parent stood heavy in her mind, but the medicine in her pocket was heavier.