𝗪𝗔𝗜𝗧 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗠𝗘 ━━ l. valdez

xviii ━━ the deflation of our dreaming (leaving me bereft and reeling)

03. chapter eighteen

━━━━━━━━ ( 💫 ) ━━━━━━━━

I WAS ON THE ALL-TOO-FAMILIAR riverbank in the underworld. my mother was floating around in her river, her midnight dress wafting in the water like it was one with it. her hair cascaded around her head like a flowy crown.

"daughter," she said dreamily without disrupting her gentle float.

"mother." my tone was cold and distant.

"i see you've injured your head." now, he changed her position to maintain a steady treading motion, though it looked like she was simply one with the river.

"oh," i said, my hand reaching to touch the bandage on my head. "yeah, i fell forty-five feet."

"i hear you've been having some issues with your memory because of it," she speculated.

i quirked a brow. "how do you know that?"

"i am always with you, darling." her tone was chilling but dreamily intense. it was like every aspect of her was the river. the way she spoke was the exact way you would imagine a river that could burn your very essence to sound like.

"that's... creepy," i said. "but i am not losing my memory. i'm just having some issues recalling details. i should be fine."

"no, you won't." she said that in the way you would imagine someone would say, it may rain today, or, i am hungry.

"what do you mean i won't?" i demanded.

styx splashed around in her water like it was a kid's swimming pool. "take a dip, dear."

"um..." i made a weird face. "isn't this a dream? why would i get in the water? and isn't it supposed to like, burn the essence of those who swim in it?"

"you're my child," she stated the obvious. "your essence won't burn. and yes, this is a dream, but that doesn't mean that it isn't real. you should know this. you have control over dreams, after all."

"i do?"

"of course," styx said. "you must become more aware of your abilities if you intend to defeat the earth mother. i saw what you did to those romans with my water. i must say, i am very impressed."

"are you the reason why i don't remember it?" i questioned.

"no, dear," she said. "that is your own powers at work. you were blinded by your own hatred, making you strong on the battlefield. as you can see, it takes quite a bit of your energy. that is why i advise you take a swim."

"how would that help me?" i questioned. my mother had a special way of aggravating me while also having me want to be in her good graces. i supposed it was a thing as the titan of hatred to be able to manipulate someone's feelings in such a way. i hoped my friends didn't see me that way.

styx continued to swim about loftily like she was the water. "you need strength, camille. you are crumbling. look at yourself."

i looked down at my body. i was still wearing my pajamas i had fallen asleep in. i was especially paler than i remembered, despite the sunny summer weather. my knees were battered and bandaged. my hands were scraped and cut up. i had a wound that was currently giving me brain damage in the back of my head. the bandage wrapped around my head made me look like a mummy. i supposed i really was crumbling.