Chapter Text
She is 10, and has eyes vulnerable to otherworldly beings. Her father strikes a deal from another estate owner from their province.
She didn’t know, but at ten-years-old, Thalia is sent to Her father’s home province under the guise of training Her to care for their hacienda, the goats the only reason why She accepted. She goes with Amaltheia on the way, first a road-trip to the port with Her father and brother before She is fetched by a horse-drawn carriage to Her host’s estate.
Thalia is a special case, with a third eye since birth, you would expect Her to be used with more often than not, horrible images that She gets to see everyday. But every year, Her sixth sense just gets unbelievably stronger that She swears She can feel Her neighbor three houses to Her left is actually something more than human.
Maybe that was why Her father sent Her here, She starts to think. Maybe He had sent Her to goat therapy to compensate for the very horrid images of spirits asking Her to bring them to peace.
When She arrives to the hosting home, She is greeted by two toddlers looking at Her as if She was a doll. But then, Thalia could also think that the two daughters of Hermes were small baby dolls themselves. She used to wish for a baby sister.
Maybe being sent into the province was actually not so bad after all.
Hours after rest, Thalia finds the goat barn the toddlers were talking about, She could feel Her heart beat as She walked to the barn door, being a goat enthusiast, She knew how violent goats could get around unfamiliar people, but Alice and Julia told Her that they were friendly.
She had walked up to the door and entered the barn, as expected, a room full of goats bleating was like a music room for Her. Amaltheia, could say the same. And if Her old pet goat may be old, it definitely was still able to run around the barn, leading Thalia to a confused young man a little older than She was.
He had screamed when He saw Her, saying things like, “White lady” or “Another hacienda ghost that needs help”.
But everything seemed to calm when Amaltheia started bleating so loud it had become a choir of goats bleating in chorus. The young man gets up and realizes that the girl in front of Him must have been the visitor His father was talking about.
“I apologize, my name is Luke, Eldest of Hermes, assuming that my father has told you of my name due to my many siblings”
“Thalia. My father has mentioned you to get me to join the hacienda, He says I will have a peer close to my age to help me run my father’s estate.”
“Well, welcome to Hacienda de Hermes, Thalia. I’m pretty sure my younger siblings weren’t bothering you?”
“Oh only your sisters were attacking me with hugs, I love them. Very cute.”
“And my brothers?”
“I haven’t met any of them, I haven’t a glimpse of them as well.”
“Oh well, then Thalia, would you like a tour around the estate?”
“Actually, I went here to check on the goats, Amaltheia seemed so excited to meet some friends, that’s why She was running around.”
Luke, the young man, that She had met earlier looked at Her pet goat. And then at Her, “You seem to like goats very much.”
“Yes, I do. I find them as my lucky animal.”
“Well, I like goats too. Especially on Caldereta and Kare-Kare.”
“Oh you stupid kid, She means She loves them as pets. My god, you really take after your father.” A cringing voice calls out, referring to Luke.
Thalia looks at the woman behind Luke who was talking earlier. Luke notices Thalia’s trance before realizing what Thalia was looking at.
He holds out His hand, to Her surprise.
“Uh, Miss Thalia, Daughter of—?”
“Zeus.”
“Oh okay, Miss Thalia, Daughter of Zeus, it would be an honor to give you a tour of this hacienda.” She notices that He says it not as a question but rather a statement of obligation of some sort.
Now this time She cannot decline, and She sure wouldn’t, with a woman suddenly appearing in the goat barn, and then feeling Luke’s shift in attitude after She noticed the woman, Thalia surely wouldn’t stay in there.
Amaltheia on the other hand seemed insistent about staying in the barn with Her new friends. Thalia supposes She can’t really take the goat away from the its new peers.
Luke chuckles at the sight of Her goat interacting with an orphan kid.
“Seems like Amaltheia’s adopted Lulu.”
“Lulu? That’s the kid’s name?”
“Yeah, poor Lulu lost Her mom when she was giving birth to Her.”
Thalia saddens at the thought of a young and newborn kid losing its mother at the first few moments of their life. She remembers when Amaltheia was very lonely when they lived in the city and then the goat had children (miraculously and crazily) despite the old age. Sadly, the kids didn’t make it.
“Shall we go now, Binibini?”
“I suppose we shall, Ginoo.”
“Come with me then, and let me introduce you formally to Hacienda de Hermes, Binibining Thalia.”