mythopoeics

( Dragon tales and the 'water is wide'/Pirate's sail and lost boys fly/Fish bite moonbeams every night/And I love you... )

Hypnos and I got the baby checked out, and everything looks good. We've named her Dani Somna Iverson, and if all goes well she'll have the same curly dark hair as her father.

Freyja, Igraine, Mary -- thank you all again, if there's ever anything I can do for you please let me know. I love baking, so if there's any treats you like I'd love to make you something.

[When she suddenly found herself separated from Hypnos and in strange circumstances yet again, Pasithea did her best to remain calm. The room she'd found herself in seemed safe for the time being, although that quickly proved false when she started reading reports of dinosaurs in the area. Though she couldn't hear or see them, she knew that if she encountered one she'd be in a bad way. Her pregnancy had progressed to the point where she knew she could go into labor any day now, and these were not ideal circumstances.

Still, that didn't stop nature from taking its course.

She'd managed to make her way to the apartment building that up until recently had been designated a safe zone, and was preparing to get word to Hypnos when she felt the first contraction. Pasithea knew that so long as they weren't coming at least four minutes apart the baby would be fine, so she forced herself to take deep breaths as she turned on the computer. When the machine finally started up, she felt something wet soaking through her pajama pants.

This wasn't good.]

I'm not sure if anyone can help me, but my water just broke. I'm in the apartments [here]. Hypnos, if you're out there, I love you, and I'll do everything I can to keep our baby girl safe.

The baby is due any day now and I'm hoping that she can wait for us to be back in our regular time since I'd really like to have the doctor I'm familiar with taking care of the birth. However, I guess I should try and find a doctor here just in case. Or, see if anyone around knows about delivering babies, since I don't want anything to happen to me and Hypnos' little girl.

Also, I really want chili cheese fries, but some guy gave me a really mean look when I went to go and get some. He said women in my condition shouldn't be driving, but I don't think that's true. Still, he was kind of scary... not as scary as the people shooting at each other though.

Khaos was going too far again, planting people in an asylum. He had not heard from any of his siblings but he was sure if one of them was locked up he would heard about it soon. It appeared those in the asylum could communicate.

A toy fell from his son's hand with a clatter loud enough to stir him from his musings for the moment. He looked down to see the boy now occupied with Fiona, who had become rather tolerate of his son. A hand mildly ran over Nikolaas' head as the child sat, occupied with putting his hands all over the soft cat. His affection even toward his siblings (excluding Hypnos, Hypnos was always an exception) had been limited and to his child it couldn't be any different. Ma'at would make up for it (she was softer in her own way, better at all this).

And if this game affects him, I'll strangle Grandmother myself, he thought darkly.

If they could just finally get their hands on her.

[ filter; family (including pasithea) + zurvan family ]
I proposed to Pasithea. She said yes. I wanted to say earlier, but... mmm.

I've become a father! It took me awhile to tell people, because I wanted to make sure if it was a boy or girl. After a very long stare, I've decided it's a he. His name is Bob. And he's a chip off the old block. Last night, he painted a masterpiece on my wall. It's abstract. Very creative use of white space. I'm so proud of him.

I invite everyone to come over to see his work.

Has anyone tried to see what happens if you trap it?

[Filter: Family (myth & zurvan)]

I feel maybe it's time I mention something important in case I haven't. And I don't think I have. A child of mine from Zurvan came with me here. He remains mine and Ma'at's. So. I'm a father.

I don't think I need to say how incredibly new this is for me. Nephews and nieces are one thing. Knowing who and what I am makes this distracting. Not in a bad way, I think. Just distracting from the norm.

That's all.

[Filter: Charon]

I saw your post now. I had my hands full with Nikolaas and...well, yes.

You don't fuck it up by being someone other than yourself. Or so I've heard that's the best way to go. I don't know a thing about relationships other than what I've observed. And my marriage in Zurvan lasted because Ma'at's a patient woman.

I got a call today from my doctor's office, I guess I have a check-up and an ultrasound scheduled for Friday. I'd totally forgotten about it, so it's good that they do those call out reminders otherwise I might have missed finding out if everything is going well for the little one. That's an important thing to know.

Otherwise, I think Smokey is mad at me, because I won't let him lay on my stomach anymore. It's too uncomfortable, and he'd just slide off anyway. I feel kinda bad, but that just means he's been attacking my feet more often which is okay because I like the reminder that they're still there.

[ filter; hypnos ]
Did you want to come with me to the doctor's? If not, I can ask Thanatos or someone to come instead.

It's the time of the year when everything starts to die. Isn't it wonderful? Do you know what else is wonderful? Halloween. I've decided to dress up as Spock. Live long and prosper. Why? Because I can and haven't since I was 20. Besides, I think I need a change from gore.

... ... ... ...

I think I might be sick.

Quick! Someone take my temperature! Where's a doctor when you need one?!


N'kay. Enough of that. It's time to get serious. Friends, family, I'm ...wait for it... Phobetor. Or Edward. I've come out of the darkness to fill your world with light and laughter. Or was I supposed to say I've come in from the light to fill your world with darkness and screaming? Either way, you're welcome! :D

[ filter; nyx babies + morpheus ]
I've been thinking... about proposing to Pasithea. I have my parents' rings... But should I wait until the baby is born...? Would it be too much stress for her?

[Barefoot and shivering, she hadn't dared wander farther than the mailbox early that morning. With the surroundings that she could only halfway remember once knowing, too noisy and not at all comforting like what she had come to think of as home, the inn, Lethe quickly locked herself back inside for the rest of the day and perhaps the rest of the week. Something about the outside world felt unspeakably dangerous.

The only way she could recall her name, or at least the one she'd been using for the last half year, was to stare at the rain-damp envelopes grasped in her hands. Maybe it was only ten minutes or the hour it felt like that Lethe sat with her back pressed against the door. Whispering it with hollow recognition, the printed pseudonym on the backdated bills that she somehow allowed herself to neglect while in Zurvan, Lethe crumpled the mail into the trash with a surge of self-disgust. Why hadn't she been paying them? Why was her bank account completely empty? Did she still even live here?

Why did she have to come back?

How nice it had been to forget herself, to let go of her fears and allow herself to live without the constant awareness that she shouldn't be... to have a family that she cared for, and to feel safe even with Hel's constant taunting of ghosts and the dead-end fling with an Admiral.

Now she was alone again, increasingly confused and unable to keep straight the multiple contradicting realities that twisted in her mind. Rome, New York, Zurvan, and what was supposed to be eternity all blended together in her mind, taunting her with echoes of memories, some that never even existed.

She wouldn't be paying next month's bills either, Lethe decided as she turned all the faucets in her apartment to full blast and crouched by the floor of the bathtub with her laptop. The sound of running water drowned out her thoughts, her overthinking.]

I need a new

name
job
place

life.

Or an old one.

Is there a way to get back home? Has anyone tried?

[Filter: Thanatos]
I don't want to bother you. Sir.

You're here, right? Please. Please say that you're here.

[Filter: Mnemosyne]
Take them, I don't want them.

I feel I might- If I did, would you-

Tell me something real.

[Being dead was... interesting. So interesting that Hypnos remembered nothing of it upon waking up in his father's apartment, the one he'd had yet to give up. He remembered the dying -- that was hard to forget -- but everything that came after was a haze. Nevertheless, he was here now. Dying and coming back to life was so unnatural when they lived as humans without the existence of Hades, and now...

Now he needed his family.]

[ filter; family ]
Are you all at home?

[ filter; zurvan family ]
Ah. Sorry.

( do you know what's worth fighting for?/ when it's not worth dying for?/ does it take your breath away and you feel yourself suffocating?/ does the pain weigh out the pride?/and you look for a place to hide?/ did someone break your heart inside, you're in ruins... )

All I've done since coming back is slept.

I can't even remember the last time I was this tired, but this pregnancy seems to be taking all my energy the longer it goes on.

[ filter; thanatos ]

I didn't have Nikolaas before Zurvan. Apparently, that's not an issue for your grandmother.

[/]

I might be a bit busier than usual for a while.

[ filter; angrboda ]
Mother.

[ filter; cu sith ]
?

[ filter; zurvan family ]
Our time together has been good. I do not regret it.

[He'd been married. With daughters. It was the oddest of feelings but that's what had happened. Last time he recalled a sister but this time someone took things further. But there had been no mention of Khaos at all. Maybe he'd have to ask--

Oh. Oh wait.]

[Filter: Hypnos]

...I'm sorry I wasn't there to hold you as you went.

[Filter: Pasithea]

Where are you?

[Filter: Zurvan Family]

I need to leave for a while. Do...whatever you need to.

_ _ _ _ / _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ /
_ _ _ _ _ / _ _ / _ / _ _ _.

There was a cat sleeping in my bed.

[ filter; family, except pyri ]
When would it be best to set the date? For the wedding.

There was always something to be done but he had set aside today to handle the financial side things. After breakfast, he'd informed all that he wanted to be left alone, even when it came to food and that he would come out when he was good and ready. Since then, he had been working, reorganizing and double-checking all the numbers.

Without lifting his head, he intended to grab a pad of paper when a sudden crash jarred him from his paperwork. Annoyed, he rose to investigate what would have to be cleaned up. It had been the vase of poppies that had been placed on the edge of his desk had tipped, the vase cracked and the brilliant red blooms limp in the shallow puddle of water. As he reached to pick them up, a cool feeling spread through out his limbs, triggering both nausea and uncertainty. Immediately, he recoiled from the flowers and got to his feet to sit on his chaise longue, one hand pressed to his middle.

Perhaps it was best to take the rest of the day off from minding the books.

There was once an elderly man who lived with just his cat. His wife was no more, and their children had long since left the house. His cat was old, though not as old as him. They were companions, the best of friends.

One night, the cat went missing. The man searched for his friend, and unable to find him after hours of searching, he finally cried himself to sleep, worried that his cat had finally taken off after so many years. When he woke up, he searched again. He searched and searched, but the cat was nowhere to be found. For one more night, he cried himself to sleep.

When he'd wake up, he'd find his cat sitting next to him, but there was something different about him. The man didn't notice at first, but then he'd see the forked tail. Stunned, he reached out for his cat, but he dashed away. Feeling he'd been abandoned, as he'd never see the cat again, he lived his out lonely life in misery.

On the night he passed away from heartbreak, the forked-tail cat returned to lay down next to his owner, where he waited to die.

Sometimes I dream of retirement. But that's a dream that will never come until I'm dead.

[Filter: Family (in-laws included)]

There's a raccoon dog somewhere in the inn. The cook was sure she saw it stealing vegetables. I thought you should all know.


No, we many not keep it if found. In case that might be a question.

I hate July. Corpses start to stink much faster in July. Therefore, people should do their best not to die until winter, since that makes my life easier.

[Filter: Thanatos]

Lovely Lethe might like someone, either way she ought to be engaged soon. Isn't she getting old now?

[Filter: Ma'at]

I'm concerned about Hel.

There were times when the whole inn hit a moment of quiet and peace. They were few and sometimes even too rare but when they happened, Thanatos milked it for all it was worth. He closed the shades in his office and reclined back on a chaise longue he had imported from Babylon. He'd forbidden its use to everyone (excluding his wife). Five children, even with one married off, were bound to overuse it.

But the quiet. It was unlikely to last and even with the speculation of what was going on behind palace walls was concerning. Foreigners taking whoever they wanted was not a safe feeling. Though he had full trust in his government, he wanted answers. He wanted justice. He wanted to know that his daughters would never be violated or harmed by outsiders. This wasn't some barbaric region or even barbaric times. Babylon, as relaxed as their were, had laws against such practice.

Those thoughts were disturbing for his peace. He dismissed them immediately. From his reclined position, he dropped a hand to where his son was sitting on the floor, who concentrating on a book and tugged on a curl in Nikolaas' hair. This forced a surprised shriek from him as well as look that promised the shriek would not be the only thing he'd offer next time. Thanatos merely looked back, neither smiling nor annoyed. He was content with the now, with what he had. Whatever came would be handled when it happened.

Does anyone know any good bedtime stories??

[Filter: Hades]
You must be busy.

It's been louder than usual in here. I have been hearing interesting things.

If the mood gets any heavier in this inn, I might start to be afraid of talking out loud.

Though, understandable.

Why is it when I finally get the all-clear the weather is cloudy? Still going boating though, if anyone wants to come with.

Nyx woke up connected to tubes and machines. Her head hurt. Her side and ribs hurt. She felt she'd been torn open. She didn't know why. Or what. She remembered fighting in the arena. But this was NY. She could tell by the smells and the fact she was a in a real hospital. Her lips pursed as she tried to move but found she couldn't.

Her eyes drifted shut. Then snapped open. She'd DIED. Her mother had let her DIE. Her mother had engineered her death in some fashion. That made her angry. The monitor on the side of her bed started beeping as her blood pressure climbed. In a minute she was surrounded by nurses and a doctor, who were struggling to hold her down. Despite the pain (and by no mistake there was a lot of it) and wounds, she wanted to find and strangle her mother.

They shoved her back down as gently as possible, and shot something into the IV line. She had a moment of clarity before she drifted under. When she woke again a few hours later, she remained calm and made a quiet request for a laptop and that the lights remain low. She inquired as to what had happened. She was confused to learn she'd been shoved, they said, off the balcony of the second floor of Nightshade and had landed on a table, some glass and other misc bar things, and had done internal damage as well as broken a few ribs, plus some nasty gashes. "Oh. Right. I.. sorry the meds, you know." she waved her forgetfulness off with a sigh, "I don't want any more medication, please"she said softly and waited for them to leave.

Well. It's nice to be home. I think.

Also. Ow.

As soon as I get the all clear I'm going boating.

[filter; mary]
You wanna come with?

Oh.  This again.  I've never been too attached to reality.  Couldn't it have at least been on a weekend? 

But it feels good to remember how to forget. 

[Filter: Thanatos]
Which of us won? 

What I was going to ask... I guess it's no longer relevant. 

Ah.  I'm sorry about being right about Nyx and Charon

[Filter: Raphaela]
If I may still call you sister.

[Filter: Hades]
You're alive.  I'll bring flowers.  Unless you rather be alone.

[He awoke to news he wasn't entirely prepared to hear. His cellphone's standard ringtone jarred him from sleep, but rather than answering for the first couple of rings, he allowed it to go off as he stared at the bedside table. Familiar... He was home?

A doctor's voice greeted him on the other end when he answered, and groggily he admitted that yes, he was Mathias Iverson, what was this about? All the while he wondered, why wasn't he still in Rome? The news that his father had died that night in surgery went unheard for some moments, as he tried to wrap his head around several facts at the same time. Home, bed, phone. Pasithea? Hypnos glanced over at her, sleeping so peacefully at his side, Sausage pressed up against her arm.

Oh. His father. What had the doctor said? Complications during surgery, unable to resuscitate. Dead.

Oh.]

[filter; thanatos]
I need you here.

It's starting to stink around here the longer we stay here.

[Cassandra]
I haven't heard bad word, not that I would go looking for it.

He didn't want to react in public about Charon's fall or Nyx's. He didn't want to even speak with his family about or anyone else. There were memories and there was also so little that could be said. Everyone knew that there had been a chance and that death could never be avoided. And though Hypnos was the brother he was most close to, the one that he cherished and would do anything for, Charon was still his brother. Still family and vital. And, despite his endearing tininess, he was more sharp and feisty than people gave him credit for, possessing an understanding of the way things should be than most people combined.

His mother was, of course, always considered special. She birthed those most important and useful, gave the mortals gods did not go around and toy with them unnecessarily. She, too, understood everything relating to her children, a most clever and intelligent woman.

He would not ask or think of his brother or mother returning. Death could not do that, not even if it had been Hypnos. But should they return, Thanatos would be there for them if allowed. He knew, like many others, how being jerked around could affect someone, especially those who dealt with death for a living.

Not looking forward to fighting, but I guess it's what has to be done.

I'd like to place a few bets, but either it's too underground for me to find or everyone has decided it's too tasteless.

[Filter: Thanatos]

Do I call you Mors, here? 

There's something I've been wondering.  ... I'll ask when I remember.

Things are surprisingly not as bad as I expected they could be much worse. I am remembering what muscles haven't been used in awhile, though. That's for sure. Ah well, where's the next monkey wrench in our plans?

Up to tell me where you are and if you're okay? I mean, Nyx people? Hi? I'm regressing.

I'm also getting married.

Can we see how much I don't want that?

[ filter; horus ]

I'm marking this as another dot in the oddness of my life but. One more to the family?

[filter; true family]
I'm married to a woman named Kallista. But if she's here, she may be someone. I wonder who...

How are you all?

[Filter: Aaron & Underworld minus Minos]

Situations?

[Filter: Osiris]

Brother.

One cannot be a mother without children, and I am blessed with many wonderful children. Thank you for all that you do, my darlings. Life wouldn't be the same without you all. I am truly lucky. Today has been lovely so far, and it's utterly gorgeous out. I hope tonight is clear and dark and as lovely as the day is.

[Filter: Her Children\Nieces\Nephews\Grandchildren]
I do hope everyone is well - besides those whom I've recently spoken with - tell your mother how things are going?

Sunday is Mother's Day. As such, all mothers who come to Nightshade will get two free drinks all weekend long - Friday Night Through Sunday Night. So come enjoy the fun.

Filter: Private Self
Where's the redbull when I need it? It's getting so sunny out during the days. All I want to do is hibernate.

I read the other day that Maurice Sendak passed away, and I wasn't sure how to take that. He was one of my favorite writers, I still have a copy of Where the Wild Things Are from when I was little floating around here somewhere, it's a book I always felt would be worth reading to any kidlets that I might have someday, and now if those days ever come I feel like it'll mean that much more to be able to share something I loved with them.

It's easy to think about how he hopefully lived a long and fulfilling life, but at the same time it's weird to think about death being permanent considering what we've seen and dealt with here. I suppose it's different for actual people, the ones who aren't like us, but it's still something that made me stop and think.

Anyway, if anyone's interested the bakery where I work decided to make some Where the Wild Things Are cookies, and I think that's pretty cool.

Thank you, God in Heaven. Or Gods. Those who are left, anyway. Those underground too, I'm thinking they'll likely to be bit more sensible than the ones up.

Never thought being ignored by those four would be so nice. Though everyone else could have stayed. That, I wouldn't mind so much.

And back to my normal, little less crowded life.

Operation: Find New Apartment has hit a snag. Apparently, I got really lucky when I got my current place, because everywhere I look people are asking for references. While I have no idea what kind of questions someone would ask one of these so-called references ('does she keep a clean place, pay her rent on time?') I can't think of anyone to ask to help me out.

Guess that's one of the few problems with trying to stay mysterious keeping to oneself. Ah well, in the meantime my neighbor got arrested, so it's been quieter around here. Guess that's one thing in my favor.

I don't care for introductions, but here I am. Must we eventually meet, you may know me briefly as Lottie. I must have slipped up somewhere, but I really cannot recall. How long have I been torn from myself. Such a messy predicament.

Does anybody need maple syrup? Somehow I ended up with five bottles when I meant to get eggs, and I don't think I can eat that many pancakes. As delicious a challenge it may be, I lack the eggs required to make them.

I'll leave it on my doorstep. Feel welcome to make it disappear.

It's Friday. In and of itself that is a blessing. My paycheck has been deposited into my account and while I do not need that to go shopping with, it's the idea of the thing that makes shopping today so much better. I feel the need for new shoes for tonight. I think that would be best.

Nightshade will have it's usual Friday Night specials this week, two for ones and so forth. We have a new techno DJ to break in, loves, so do try to come by and give him a warm welcome. I dare say he best live up to his potential

I feel the need to wander tonight, too. The spring that is upon the cusp makes for a rather lovely evening, don't you think?

[It had been a couple of days since he had met Hermes. The pigeon comment shouldn't have weighed on his mind but it did. He was reminded of the little bastard that had come into his home, shat all over the place and then had escaped through the most clever of ways. It would have been more impressive if Thanatos had not wanted to murder the damn bird. It had been someone, he knew that much.

Most recently, his favourite nephew brought up Hermes. The thief, the swift messenger of the gods. Silver-tongued and manipulative. Why if he didn't know any better...

And then it all finally sank in.]

Hermes, you motherfucking, cocksucking whoreson.

The place where you rest your hands on your desk is home to 10 million bacteria at any given time. Well, not anymore. Seven million of them just moved to your hand. Congratulations.

I'm sufficiently bored. If you couldn't tell alone by the fact that I'm here again.

[Night had always been the time of day in which Hypnos was most active. He wasn't running around or doing aerobics, mind -- he was simply more alert. It gave him time to contemplate the things and the people in his life, those well and those unwell. His father, who had fallen ill again, had been occupying his mind for some time. But unwilling to share that information just yet, Hypnos instead turns to a comfort of his: his native tongue.

His voice comes in in soft Danish, lightly accented by his acquired American one. He speaks about his father, how the man had undergone surgery months ago, and how suddenly he was ill all over again. He mentions having Zeus as a father, but doesn't mention the man by name, simply referring to him as 'the man who was my father'. Finally, he reverts back to English, all of that off his chest.]

I wonder, sometimes, if Zurvan was just a dream or if it was real. It felt very real. But I've also had dreams that felt very real... and I've always woken up from them feeling strange.