The Goddess who Defied Fate

Chapter 7

Shiro didn’t talk to anyone unless she had to. She felt like the empty shell of the proud goddess she once was. She was the goddess of fate, Clotho. But she was also the human, Shiro. Her memories weren’t the only thing she kept from that life. She still had her divine powers. But that didn’t change the fact that she was human now. What she wanted, more than anything, was something forever out of her grasp.

“This month has been hell…” she muttered to herself.

“Don’t say that. The month isn’t over yet.” From her place lying on her bed, Shiro turned to the source of the voice.

“Vega.”

“Long time no see, Lady Shiro,” the little girl beamed.

“I wasn’t expecting to see you. Do you have a job for me?” Shiro asked, sitting up.

“I’m actually not here about work today… I’d like you to come to the mansion with me. There’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

Shiro let Vega take her to the mansion only to be met by Leon’s annoyed face.

“You’re late. It’s like you really do enjoy keeping me waiting,” he scolded her harshly.

“It’s not my fault you’re so impatient all the time,” she retorted.

“That’s no way to speak to a lady, Leo. Nice to meet you, Shiro.” Her eyes widened when she saw him.

“Karno… Long time no see. What are you doing here?” she asked. Karno’s eyes widened.

“Oh, done pretending you don’t know anything?” Leon retorted.

“So you knew,” Shiro muttered.

“You didn’t do a very good job of hiding it,” Leon replied. Karno furrowed his brows in confusion at our exchange. “This girl is the same oddball goddess she’s always been.” 

“So you retained all of your memories from when you were a goddess?” Karno asked, his eyes wide. Shiro nodded once. “And you’re Kuro’s sister, as well.” she nodded again. “When I heard about you and Kuro, I wasn’t expecting you to be so adorable.”

Shiro sighed again. “Flattery has always been your speciality.”

“I was being honest…” Karno protested. “Anyway, sorry to summon you all of a sudden. I’m here today to speak to you about Hue.” Karno’s demeanour turned serious. You see, Leo’s worried.”

“Nonsense… I don’t remember saying I was ‘worried’ about anyone,” Leon retorted, having sat back down on the sofa.

“I heard Hue became inappropriately emotional on the night of the meteor shower. I’m assuming he acted that way because he found out your memories returned…”

“They were never lost.”

“But Hue didn’t know that, did he?” Karno smiled wryly.

“No, he didn’t. Still, he acted as anyone would in that situation. Besides, it’s partly my fault for never telling him the truth.” Shiro sat down on the sofa opposite Leon.

“You and Hue were both famous in the heavens. You were the perfect couple in the eyes of all who knew you,” Karno said. She smiled wryly. “Gods in the heavens said they had never seen a couple more in love.”

“They said that about us?” She never realised.

“They did.” Karno smiled.

Her smiled faded. “I ruled over the fates, but I couldn’t stop the calamity Earth faced back then. I still remember it clearly. Nearly all humans closed their hearts to love. We couldn’t protect them. Most gods said it would be best to forget about Earth. It didn’t surprise me since so many of them looked down on humans, but I couldn’t abandon them. I had to do something.”

“You said you can change the fate of those humans who have lost the ability to love.” The faintest hint of a smile was playing on Karno’s lips. It was a sad smile. “You decided to destroy yourself in order to save the humans.”

“The great goddess of fate. She turned misfortune on its head and led the humans to happiness. So they all lived happily ever after.” The cynicism in Leon’s voice made her look away.

“I feel like I’m being mocked,” Shiro muttered. “Karno?” she looked up at the god of Cancer. “How did Hue react… after I did that?”

“He seemed to accept it. He said, ‘This is destiny’. I don’t know how he really felt.”

“Just like me, huh…” she leaned back and looked up at the ceiling. “I don’t believe in that anymore.”

“You… don’t?” Karno was visibly shocked.

Shiro shook her head. “I used to say it so much back then. It’s ironic to think how long I lived as a goddess, looking down at the humans, granting their wishes, yet I understood so little about them. I had to live as human to realise that destiny isn’t predetermined. It’s something that humans – and gods – shape with their own hands. Humans are weak, and they know they’re weak. That’s exactly why they live every day to the fullest. I never fully appreciated that about them.” Shiro looked back at the gods in front of her. “But I… never wanted Hue to be in pain like this. To go through all of it alone.”

“The story should end here, but there’s a bit more.”

She smiled wryly. “I know. Hue did something forbidden. It was a very serious sin. My soul should have ceased to exist that day, but he sacrificed the stars in his one eye so that I would be reborn. And he got exiled for it. Because he interfered with life and death…”

“Exactly. Only the king of the heavens is allowed to intervene in matters of life and death,” Karno said.

“We all instantly recognised you as a former god when we saw the stars in your eyes. I suspected you might be the goddess of fate, but to think you hung on to your memories…” Leon added.

Shiro closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again. “I’m not that goddess anymore. I’m different than that time.”

Leon sat next to her and poked her in the forehead. “Hue’s mark is more faded than anyone else’s now. Continue to spend time with Hue. Fulfil your role.”

“Leo…” Karno warned.

“What’s wrong with me telling her the truth?” Leon asked. Karno sighed.

“He’s right, Karno. I want Hue to return to the heavens, where he belongs.” She smiled slightly before leaving the room.

“Shiro.” Hue was waiting for her in the hallway.

“Hue…”

“I was waiting for you. Let’s talk. If that’s okay with you, that is,” he said.

“Yeah.” Relieved, she followed him.



Hue and Shiro walked in silence before stopping to stand in the courtyard with a patch of blooming flowers behind them. “Having you see me when I had lost my composure rattled me. But you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“That night was hard on you, too.” She looked to the side, rubbing her arm. She took an unsteady breath. “I still remember it vividly. I loved the humans and their world, but it was more than just that. The king knew, that’s why he had me work in the palace in the first place. It was my fate all along. But even if it wasn’t, I would have done it. Because I wasn’t the only one who loved humans.” Shiro looked into his eyes. “I wanted to save the humans that you loved, too. I’m glad I was able to. I wasn’t expecting to be reincarnated. I was really confused that I was, but somehow, I got the feeling you had something to do with it. I used to dream of this. Meeting you again, being with you… It was a wish I never dared to say out loud. But then I saw you again. I wanted to tell you, to embrace you, with every fibre of my being, but I knew that there would be no going back if I did that. I tried to make excuses, saying that I didn’t deserve to be with you now after leaving you like that.” Hue’s eyes widened. She felt the corners of her eyes sting and blinked rapidly. “But really, I was just scared. I know how this ends. Your sin will be absolved and you’ll return home. But I’m human now. The heavens isn’t a place I belong anymore. I didn’t want us to have to say goodbye like that again, so I hid the truth from you. I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry.”

Hue stared at her, wide-eyed. She didn’t fail to notice the silver lining his eyes. “Clotho.”

She smiled sadly and shook her head. “That isn’t my name anymore, Hue. I’m Shiro now, remember?” A long silence ensued.

“Funny, isn’t it? A straight-laced stick in the mud like me in love,” Hue finally spoke.

“I don’t see what’s so funny about it. I was happy, you know. Incredibly happy.” A breeze blew through the courtyard.

“I couldn’t understand why you, alone, had to allow yourself to be sacrificed,” Hue’s voice cracked with emotion.

“That isn’t what happened, Hue,” Shiro snapped. Hue’s eyes widened. “I gave my life of my own free will. I didn’t ‘allow myself to be sacrificed’. Don’t talk about me like I was a victim.” The wind blew harder, flower petals dancing through the air. His long fingers reached out towards her until his hand was rested on her cheek. Shiro placed her hand over his. 

“Shiro.” The way he said her name made a lump form in the back of her throat. She swallowed hard.