The Gift of the Lethe

The Tree That Bears Golden Fruit

She slows to a halt just out of the reach of the dragon curled around the tree, staring at them both in either awe or shock. Or perhaps both. When she heard that the tree was guarded by a dragon, she in no way pictured it to have a hundred heads. Numerous heads belong with a hydra, not a dragon.

The tree it guards too does not match what she envisioned. She had known it would be massive when she saw it from the entrance, but it is still jarring to see an apple tree this much larger than the normal size. It's hard for her to wrap her mind around the fact that a five-story tree even exists, despite the numerous redwood trees she has seen on the journey.

Those are a different type of tree entirely, and trees like this one, particularly fruiting trees, are not ones to grow to gigantic proportions. It would be unbelievable if she wasn't looking at it with her own eyes. Pallas takes a deep breath and takes a step forward, forcing herself to not flinch back when the dragon - Ladon, the Hesperides told her - lifts several of his heads to look at her.

Maybe she should talk to him? Would that help? It wouldn't hurt, would it? He doesn't really look like he's going to just lunge forward and eat her, so she might as well try before he starts getting irritated. Once that happens, he is going to be less inclined towards listening, and more inclined towards attacking the nuisance.

Pallas makes sure to keep her voice soft as she speaks, void of any hint of her nerves. "Hello, Ladon. My name is Pallas. Queen Hera sent me here to collect an apple."

Ladon perks up at this and moves to circle Pallas with a few of his heads, sniffing at her. He pushes her arm up to nose at her pockets, trying to figure out what is inside.

"May I?"

He tilts one head to eye her before nodding. Pallas reaches a hand toward her pockets to pull out her bag of ambrosia from one, and the tent from the other. Ladon noses at the tent for a few seconds and then dismisses it, his gaze narrowing on the ambrosia. She has to hold back a smile at the sight of Ladon acting like a begging puppy, desperate for the treat.

"Would you like some, Ladon?"

All of his heads nod, causing Pallas to giggle. She reaches into the bag to pull out a square, leaving three more inside. It doesn't take her long to break it into pieces, offering one to each of the heads surrounding her. Ladon snaps up the morsels quickly, but he doesn't seem satisfied. Pallas sighs, and gives him the rest. Once the ambrosia has vanished down his gullets, he starts to nose at her again, more insistent than he was before. Pallas laughs again.

"I'm sorry, I don't have more! That was all of it."

Ladon hangs his heads for a moment before he lifts them back up. The coils of his body shift from where they are curled around the tree, opening up to allow her access. Pallas was fully prepared to walk forward, but then Ladon surges towards her and lifts her up on one of his heads, pushing her towards the sky. She wobbles in her shock, tilting precariously toward the side, but one of his other heads moves closer to push her back.

Pallas can feel her cheeks turn bright red in embarrassment, and she murmurs out, "Thank you."

He noses her cheek softly and lifts her up until she is right beneath one of the fruit-laden branches of the tree. Pallas reaches out to touch one of the fruit, its golden surface sending sunbeams to dance across her skin. This close to the apples, she wants nothing more than to pluck them and eat them, to taste what their tantalizing scent promises.

She might have done it, but for the jerk as Ladon lowers his head. She is slowly carried back towards the ground, just barely slow enough that her hand instinctively closes around the apple and it is ripped from the tree. At the ground, Pallas slides off of Ladon's back, her feet unsteady on the hard surface.

The fruit in her hand beckons to her, inviting Pallas to bite into it, but she tears her gaze away and tucks it into her pocket as she lays her other hand on Ladon's neck. She can feel the heat on his body, warm enough that he would be perfect to curl up against in winter.

"Thank you."

He lets out a puff of air from his nostrils before curling one head around her. He pulls her in close to his body, bringing a frown to her face.

"What is it?"

"Me."

Pallas jerks at the sound of the cool voice, and looks around for it. A woman is standing before them, a mantle of multicolored feathers lying across her shoulders. Her hair is pulled back into a bun, highlighting her sharp cheekbones and giving her a slightly stern appearance. Pallas bows her head, recognizing the woman in her bones.

"Queen Hera."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What do you think of Ladon? Why do you think he puller her closer to him in Hera's presence? What do you think will happen next? Tell me your thoughts!

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~ Goddess of Fate, signing out