Epilogue: 500 years later
Calypso
Today was the twins’ five hundredth birthday, and I wanted the babies to have a very special one. So I’d snuck them over to play with Cere while I set up their birthday tent in Elysia.
Themis glanced around, her hands on her hips, and nodded expertly. “Yes, I think this will do, Caly. You’ve got a dragon for Uri and a Pegasus for Fable.”
“Yes, yes.” I batted her words away. “But have you seen the pile of cupcakes I made? I learned from the master chef in Wonderland, a girl by the name of Alice who showed me that if you dipped the fruit in choco—”
“Eeeps!” Dite squealed, clapping her hands merrily the moment she materialized beside us. “Look at this place. Oh, the darlings are simply going to love it.”
“Dite.” I gave her a stern look. “You would show up at the last minute. Heffer, do your thing. You know we can’t get this party started without it.”
Beaming like the proud aunt she was, she nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Then, with an air kiss, she released her magic to the breezes, causing the night sky to dance with tiny jeweled lights that bobbed and glimmered like lightning bugs. I busied around in the tent, making sure the placement of the gifts was just so on the table.
I patted Linx’s tank. She hated coming to the Above, but my sister refused to miss the twins’ party. Neighing softly, she contented herself with munching on the jeweled candy grass Hades had crafted for her and flicked her tail happily.
Nim and Sircco would show up later. I’d warned the boy to wear his legs tonight, but I was sure he wouldn’t. For some reason he still detested the use of them. So, just to be on the safe side, I’d turned half of Elysia into a large wading pool so the maidens and he would feel comfortable here.
A strong pair of arms slipped around my waist, and the rumble of my man’s voice whispered in my ear. “Have I ever told you just how sexy you look when you’re acting all domestic?”
Twirling, I smacked his chest and laughed. “Hm. Why don’t you tell me that again.” I wiggled my hips against him.
Even after all these years, we still mated like rabbits. I’d come to the conclusion that I would never get my fill of this beastly man.
“Down, beast, down,” Aphrodite cried laughingly, sidling up next to us. “We have guests. Let’s keep this PG since there are kids present now.”
Sighing, I patted his cheek as he pouted. “No worries, my love, I’ve a field full of carrots just waiting for you.”
“Thalassa,” he growled, and then he shook his head and chuckled. “Woman, you will be the death of me.”
I snorted. “Not hardly, Bubble Butt.”
Then with a wave and a la-de-da, I walked over to greet the guests. Young and old, ghosts, mortals, maidens, Nim and my boy Sircco, even my elemental sisters showed up, though Tiera scowled the entire time. But they all came. Dite’s little Hephy made an appearance. Grumpy thing that he was, he’d still managed to craft gifts for both Fable and Uri, matching unicorns made of wood.
“All ye need to bring them to life,” he said, gazing at the twins, “is to whisper a name in their ear, and they will be forever yours.”
Fable, the granddaughter of my very soul, was a dark-skinned, dark-haired beauty with eyes of deepest bronze just like her father’s. Her skin was as dark as the deepest depths of an ocean trench and her lips like the reddest of roses. She was heart-achingly lovely, and all who knew her loved her. But unlike her rapscallion brother, she’d not been born with the ability to wear a tail.
She accepted the bauble with a humble nod of thanks and hugged it tight to her breast.
“I will cherish it, Hephy.” She kissed his cheek, and I didn’t think it possible, but the dwarf actually blushed. Then again, Fable had that effect on everyone.
Uriah, whose flesh was an unusually stunning shade of pearlescent sea green and bore a head of shockingly bright and thick blue hair, grinned. He had Sircco’s looks, swarthy and devastatingly handsome. And with the pick of any maiden he wanted, the boy knew he was hawt and strutted through Seren like a peacock on the loose.
He was my boy through and through.
“Thanks, homey,” he said.
Nimue rolled her eyes. “Uri, that is not how a prince should speak.”
Uri, who was always in mischief of one form or another (but whom I secretly adored since he reminded me of me as that age), sighed. “Yes, Mom.”
“Uri.” Sircco growled a warning at the boy, twin bolts of lightning flaring through his bronze eyes.
Thinning his lips, my devastatingly handsome grandson grumped, “Yes, Dad. Thanks, Hephy,” he said.
The dwarf shook his hand then thumped him on the chest and said, “It’s nothing, homey.”
Then with a wink and a wave, he vanished, and everyone laughed.
“Gods help us,” Nimue cried. “How can I teach my wayward child some respect when everyone around us is bound and determined to undermine me?” But she said it with an exasperated chuckle.
Hades leaned in to my side from where we sat at the head of the table beside our grandchildren and said, “This was a wonderful idea to have the party here, my love.”
I beamed proudly. “I know. But you want to know what the very best idea is that I’ve ever had?”
Turning on my seat, I looked at him head on. Even after all this time, my heart still skipped a beat when he was near.
Grabbing my hands, he placed a tender kiss on each palm. “And what’s that?”
“The day I decided to make you my sex slave.”
He laughed, and the party went into full swing after that. Wine flowed and music blared.
Themis was in charge of the tunes tonight, and I smiled when I heard an upbeat one entirely apropos of how I felt this evening.
The song went something along the lines of “oh, oh, oh, you’ve got the best of my love.”
And yeah, that was pretty much all that needed to be said about that.
“I love you, Death Boy,” I whispered.
“And I you, Thalassa, forever, for always, eternally.”
“Oh, swoon, you say the sweetest things.”
Hades took my lips and well...you know how this story ends. Forever. For always. And eternally.