HRM King Zeus Keraunios (hrm_king_zeus) wrote in the_greeks, @ 2010-06-23 00:23:00 |
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Entry tags: | themis, zeus |
Themis and Zeus
Who: Themis and Zeus
What: Themis informs Zeus of a prophecy
Where: Mount Olympus
Rating: K+
Word Count: 2,695 (complete log)
Themis sat near Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis, in a place she liked to call Delphi, though it was long before any human would build an Oracle dedicated to the young golden god begging for sight into the future. Now it was just a beautiful grassy hill, a favorite place of the goddess, a place she liked to come and think, and a place that seemed to give her many prophecies. Themis took a deep breath, thinking of the grand party her Majesty had put on and how the marriage to him and Metis did nothing but make her smile. Truly she was happy for them; she seemed a fine fit for the exuberant king, a nice balance. Surly the child that rested in her womb would be of a great mind and body, Themis was sure of it.
The thought had barely crossed Themis' mind before the vision struck her. A vision of a boy form Metis' womb, a boy who was covered in the golden blood of the gods. He was strong with crackling laughter as he held his father, Zeus, in his strong hands.
The vision so shook Themis that when it left her she was gasping for air atop her hill. And she was left with nothing else to do but to tell Zeus, after all he deserved to know and it was her place to tell him. So on fleeted feet she raced to Zeus, she looked for him in the throne room and did not find him, she then sought him in his chambers, she knocked repeatedly and loudly on the door not caring if she woke him. When his groom finally answered the door she almost spat out “I require an audience with the king,” she thought for a second “Alone.” Thinking he might be with Metis and she could not share this news with
his new wife. Not yet at least.
Far from having woken him, Themis had instead arrived as Zeus was pouring over papers. Announcements, invitations, potential tournaments and parties and celebrations that he was planning when the time came for the birth of the young prince or princess, all laid out across his stately desk in his study. And when the groom announced that she was there, Zeus could not help a smile, far from suspecting the news she had come to tell. He wondered, however, what she might have to tell him that required such privacy. But it was no matter, and not something he dwelled on. Sometimes people asked to speak to him alone, wanting a smaller audience, perhaps, and he shrugged it off without a second thought.
Exiting his rooms, he greeted her happily, taking her hand and kissing it.
"Themis!" he said. "To what do I owe this pleasure?" he asked. "Shall we take a turn about the courtyard? Or perhaps the gardens outside?" he asked.
Themis somehow managed a small smile as Zeus kissed his hand, “The garden would be nice,” she admitted thinking the fresh air would help clear her head and help her word what she had to say to the king “I hope your Majesty is well.” she continued as if she had nothing pressing to talk to him about, noting his demeanor she couldn't help but be adsorbed by his happy attitude. “I just have something I wish to discuss with your Majesty, I think it might be of some import,” she said carefully dropping his gaze.
"Wonderful," he said, escorting her to the lush gardens at the far side of the palace as they talked.
"I have been very well, thank you, my lady." His voice was warm, a clear indication of the happiness, that sweet marital bliss that had so lifted his spirits, that had made him very agreeable, even less than his usual competitive self around his brothers. "And how have you been?" he asked.
Reaching the garden, he led her toward a clearing, where there was a beautiful marble bench beneath an apple tree. He plucked an apple, offering it to her.
"You know you can speak plainly to me. What is it?" he asked softly.
Themis, again, couldn't help but smile at the king's good mood as they walked into the garden. Themis herself breathed deeply of the fresh air, and it did seem to calm her mind and order her thoughts. “I am well your Majesty,” she said with a small smile as he handed her the apple. She did not eat it and instead passed it between her hands and
she thought.
With his consent to speak she took a deep breath before doing so. “As your Majesty knows I have a great sight, able to see well beyond the realm of most.” she paused and looked at him, not able to hide the pain and fear from her face. What if he thought her a liar, that she
was just telling him this as some sort of political move? “I was in one of my favorite spots today, and I could not help it, but I saw something... something I felt it was my duty to tell your Majesty.”
And as she could not help the look on her face she could not help the pleading in her voice to believe her. “It is not something I should think you would want to hear,” she admitted, dropping her eyes once again.
"I'm very glad you're well." Zeus smiled as he took an apple himself, though like Themis, he did not eat it, but instead held it, tossed it from hand to hand absently—his attention was clearly on the woman in front of him.
His smile, however, faded, replaced with a frown as he looked at her, a look of curiosity making its way to his face. He reached for her hand, trying to encourage her, to assure her, though, in actuality, he was a little worried. "Themis, I know. I have heard that your sight is beyond that of most of us, and I want you to know that, whatever you tell me, I will hold in very high regard and take as truth, no matter what it might be. You've no reason to hesitate to tell me, I promise," he said, offering her a small smile and squeezing her hand, as additional signs of reassurance.
Themis was reassured as he held her hand, she looked down as the hand he held then back up into his bright blue eyes, even though they where a little darkened by his frown. “My lord, my king, I have seen something today, a vision of a son you might have with your Queen, the lady Metis,” she stopped again her words catching in her throat, she
almost had to choke out the next words “The first son you have by Metis, he will be a loathsome creature, I saw his coated in the golden blood of our kind...” she stammered slightly “And I saw you within his grasp, he was about to divide you, to do to you what you and your father before had done to their own fathers.” she looked back up at him with tears in her large brown eyes. “I don't mean to bring you this news, but it found me and I could think of no other thing to do than to warn you,” she said almost pleading for forgiveness.
An ill-concealed look of horror made its way to his features, and he stared at Themis for several moments. He could feel it in the pit of his stomach—so real and undeniable, something he had previously thought inconceivable: fear. For the first time in his immortal existence, Zeus was afraid. He let go of her hand and paced, not saying anything for a moment, running a hand through his very short hair. His palms were sweating.
"How could this happen?" And when his eyes again met hers, it was difficult to describe what lay in their depths. He did not blame her, certainly, for coming to him with this vision, but for the king, it was very difficult news.
"The Olympian Dynasty, all my work, finished, and it's MY fault!" He threw the apple onto the ground so hard that it exploded. Thunder rumbled in the distance, and lightning lit up the clouds surrounding the great Mount.
His mother had sacrificed much during her time as queen, and had undertaken many measures to ensure his safety, and the rise of her progeny. They had fought so hard to win the war against the Titans. And for what? Now, he faced the very danger to which he had scarce dared allow his mind to venture.
Things were going to be different.
He was going to make sure of it.
Zeus could feel something inside of him cool, as a breeze blew past them in the gardens, rustling the leaves of the trees. Was it better for a prince to be feared… or loved?
He knew what he needed to do. Gazing out across the horizon, his expression hardened, his very eyes becoming stormy. He would not be doomed to repeat the history that had preceded him. No. He would do whatever it took. If that meant never becoming so attached to someone, then he would do it. If that meant making sacrifices, then he would do it. He had been, all his life, a prince of virtue and honor, to which any could attest.
And his reign would not so easily be ended.
His expression softened by degrees when he looked at Themis again. "My sweet lady," he said, again reaching for her hands, bending on one knee before her. "There is nothing to forgive," he sighed heavily. But something about that previous warmth in his eyes was diminished. It was as if they'd been permanently darkened by the revelation, by the only path he saw to preventing his own downfall at the hands of his own offspring, growing within his queen as he stood there.
"I cannot thank you enough for having come to me," he said. "I can only hope that this can be avoided." He looked toward the palace, his mind made up, determination in those steely blue eyes.
Themis clasped her arms around herself as the thunder rolled and the cool breeze brushed passed her, she shivered, but not from cold. Almost as if she could feel what he was thinking. But she was not the Witch, she could not see what a person might do, only what
they did.
“I was hoping, by telling you, that perhaps with the advanced knowledge it could be avoided,” she added hopefully. “Perhaps the child Meits holds now is a girl... and this all might be avoided,” she said hopefully reaching for his hand again, for Themis was ever hopeful. “Your reign will be great, I am sure that I was sent this to protect your reign.” Themis added with a small smile holding him close. “I do not think it should end so quickly, you are meant to be king.”
"Perhaps…" Zeus nodded at the suggestion that the child might be female, but the look in his eyes was indicative that he was not going to hold out hope on the matter. The smallest hint of a smile started to spread across his lips as he looked at her while she held him.
"I cannot thank you enough," he said, his arms wrapping around her and hugging her for a moment. Conflict stirred within him. He felt all manner of things across a spectrum—near-frantic fear, disillusioned disappointment, woeful melancholy, dead-set determination—it was difficult to discern any one feeling above the rest. At best, it was an uneven mixture, sloshing about in the deepest depths of his being. He had been shaken, shaken and moved—perhaps not in the best way. And he had been hardened. He had been shaken and hardened such that something had changed within him, and he would probably never be the same.
It was like facing mortality, in a way. The son posed a very real threat, one that could bring an end to everything he had worked for, everything he had built. The son could do to him what he and his siblings had done to their own father, what their father had done to his father before that. But he was no monster, right? Of course not. And Zeus would do whatever it took, whatever needed to be done. He would not go the way of his forefathers. He would not be imprisoned in the depths of Tartaros, beyond Phlegethon, the river of fire. Of that, he would make certain, no matter what he had to do.
And he knew what that was.
"My lady eubolos Themis, to you I am endebted," he said, looking at her, the Titan goddess who had come to him with this news, who had probably brought deliverance from a fate worse than mortal death. And despite the leeriness he now felt toward almost everyone, he trusted her. She had come to him, of her own accord, to warn him, and in so doing, she had gained that trust. He placed a kiss on her forehead.
"Again, thank you, my sweet lady."
Themis was glad for the hug, for it hid the flush in her cheeks from the king. The closeness made the goddess' heart flutter deep within her chest and under her corset for she was sure that is he had not been holding her, her knees would have given way. To have such closeness with the king was after all not her place, she was sure only his queen should be held with such care.
When his lips made contact with her skin it was a place of warmth, of electricity, that from that point of contact spread through her body, along her spin to the tips of her fingers and toes. “I...I only did what I thought necessary, my king, what I feel anyone in my position would have done,” she added, and honestly that is what the goddess believed.
"Themis, you are much too generous," he said, honestly. "And as generous as you are kind." Again, he reached for her hand, ghosting his lips over it, his eyes never leaving her warm ones. She had helped save him, which to him, at that moment, seemed the definition of loyalty, kindness, and humility.
And like her, he was well aware of their proximity, and at that moment, the Sky King felt something stir within him, though he did not act on that impulse—it would perhaps be the last time he could say that, though years would pass before he came to that realization. He would think on the impulse later, contemplate its possible meaning, wonder why he might be considering such things, why it was that he felt so captivated by the lure of her flesh.
"And now, I have to do what I must," he said, looking back toward the palace, then at her, that steely resolution finding its way to his eyes. "I will call on you in several days' time, once things have settled, if it suits you," he said.
Themis' flesh tingled again under the ghost of his lips, she watched him, not sure what she was seeing in his eyes but at his words she nodded “I think... I think I should like that,” she said with a small smile. As she watched him leave she couldn't help the churning feeling in her gut, she knew something was about to happen that would not be pleasant and it would be all her fault.
“My lord,” she called before he left earshot “What is it you plan to do?” she asked boldly.
There was only a moment's hesitation as Zeus paused, turning to look back at her.
"What I must," he said. "As far as I'm concerned, my marriage is at an end. I swear to you, all will be done for the best." And he turned back to the palace, thunder rumbling around the Mount as he did so, lightning illuminating the dark clouds that had there gathered.