The Gift of the Lethe

The Voice of Wisdom

An owl's call echoes through the twilight and Pallas straightens, twisting away from Apollo towards the sound. Unlike when the owls were speaking to her, this is more of a unique call, wordless. It feels summoning, pulling at her with its familiar voice. She stands, turning towards the sound and taking a step towards it. A hand latches onto her wrist to pull her back and Pallas looks behind to Apollo.

"Let go!"

He frowns at her. "Where are you trying to go?"

"You didn't hear it?"

"Hear what, Pallas?"

"The owl. You didn't hear its call?"

Apollo's eyes glow in understanding. "Let me come with you, at least."

"I don't think Z- he is going to attack me in the middle of the night, while I'm looking for a bird."

"Regardless, let me come with you. Just in case." When Pallas doesn't budge, he makes another attempt. "Even if it's highly unlikely that anything happens, I am not going to be the reason my sister loses you again."

Pallas relents, sagging. She waves her hand in a wordless assent and starts moving toward the direction of the owl's call. It vocalizes again, the sound haunting, and her pace picks up. When she reaches the source of the sound, she finds a figure standing in the middle of a clearing, shrouded in shadows. They turn towards her and take a step forward. The person grins, their smile glowing in the darkness.

"Pallas!"

Pallas darts forward, grinning."Thene? I didn't think you would come! Not with-"

Athena hugs her, clutching Pallas tightly. "I might not be able to come again, not til it's over, but I can manage this visit."

She lifts her head from Pallas' shoulder and mouths something. Leaves crunch softly as he moves away, leaving them alone. Pallas hugs Athena tighter before pulling away, looking her in the eyes. Athena stares back in confusion and opens her mouth. Pallas cuts her off.

"Thene, please tell me what's going on. I need to know. I deserve to know."

Athena sighs. "You're right. How about we sit down for this?"

Pallas nods her agreement and follows suit as Athena folds her legs beneath her to sit on the forest floor. Pallas sits across from her and reaches for Athena's hands. Athena stares down at the ground for a moment before she speaks.

"Do you remember that tapestry I burned, on our weaving night."

Pallas nods. "I didn't really see what was on it, though."

Athena wriggles a hand out to summon an image in the air before them. Pallas gasps at the sight of it, her eyes widening. When she speaks, her voice is hushed to little more than a whisper.

"Thene. Thene this is bad."

Athena grimaces. "I'm well aware. May I continue?" Pallas nods. "I wove it out of anger, and the emotions trickled down to my children. At least two of them made identical pieces, one woven and one painted. My father caught wind of it and tried to confront me. He is somehow under the misguided impression that you are the cause of it and now he wants to kill you."

Pallas blinks. "Is he delusional? That's a leap."

"You're not mad?"

"At you, or him?"

"Me? You have reason to be angry with him."

Pallas squeezes Athena's hand. "Why would I be angry with you? You haven't done anything."

"The tapestry he found, it wasn't mine. If I hadn't lied, he wouldn't be after you."

"I'd rather him be after me than a child." Pallas pauses. "How long can you stay for?"

Athena looks up at the sky, frowning at the moon. "A little longer, I think. But I shouldn't risk another visit. I can only play it off as visiting my sister for so long. So, a lighter topic then. How has your healing been going?"

Pallas smiles and starts to fill Athena in. "We found a type of sparring that doesn't bring the flashbacks."

"I think I saw that, in the mirror. With your powers, yes? It was very clever of you to purify the water to prevent it from channeling electricity."

Pallas beams.

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My babies just want some peace and time together. Will they get it? You shall see.
What do you think will happen next? Will Zeus find Pallas? Will they succeed in hiding her? Tell me your thoughts!

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~ Goddess of Fate, signing out