Username: SkyWishes21
Clan: Overlook Station Quest Number: 2
Word Count: n/a
Response: 
Quest Number: 3
Word Count: 2009 words
Response:Zagreus had only stepped out to the mortal realm for half a second, honest! He’d wanted to take a peek at the hubbub surrounding the train station everyone was talking about, maybe make some friends with mortals. No deals, obviously. He’s heard about what’s going on with the Winter King, plus he knows his own mother has some problems with that (though he’s never heard the tale).
But when his new friend Dancing Poppy had been threatened by a coyote, he’d stepped in and bravely defended her with his fae powers. It was a truly difficult battle; the coyote got a few swipes in and stole an eye before it ran off. However, a few days on the finest ambrosia and nectar should have him back up to two sparkling emerald jewels again in no time! He’d even escorted Poppy back to her camp, safe and sound, before once more disappearing into Springtime.
And yet, here he was seasons later, still missing an eye. The stares were impossible to ignore, everyone wondering why an unseelie was walking among them. Gossip about his parentage became the norm to the point even his sister Melinoe was afflicted by the rumors. He’d taken to wearing a veiled hat whenever he went out just to fend off the glares.
To make matters worse, his missing eye meant every time Zagreus thought he was going through a door the right way he smacked his little noggin against the wall. Or, heck, sometimes he even stumbled into walls themselves. Oh, how he missed his depth perception! Not to mention how irritating the crick in his neck was; turns out having to swivel his whole head to see what was on his left caused more minor pain than it ought.
This whole thing was stupid. He’s a seelie faerie, a Prince of Springtime and the child of Persephone herself. What do you mean he’s been laid low by a mere mortal coyote?
As much as he hated it, however, when the second Springtime passed and his eye remained missing he knew he had to speak to his Mother about it. It would be difficult; now that he was grown, she spent all her time on running Springtime and less on him and his sister. Still, perhaps he could catch her in a quiet time?
The moment presented itself not long after Zagreus had made his decision: Mother had been stood up for a long awaited social call and suddenly had a whole hour with no inherent responsibilities. Before she had the chance to step away and choose a new project to fall into, Zagreus emerged into the gardens and settled himself down at the tea-table.
Mother blinked her verdant green eyes and smoothed her mottled gold and yellow fur. Rainclouds summoned by her displeasure disappeared back into the skies. “Zagreus, my son, I was not expecting to see you. Would you care for some tea?”
“I would, yes.” Thank the stars, she wasn’t upset at him. “I also have… something else I need to speak to you about.”
Persephone raised her eyebrow, considering him as she personally poured him a cup of rose tea (his sister’s favorite, not his). “Is this about your interesting choice in fashion statements?”
Ah, yes, the veil. He let out a long exhale and blew onto the bowl. Steam dispersed above him. “Well, yes, but moreso about what’s under it…”
“What happened?” Her voice grew sudden, wary, concerned.
In response, Zagreus steeled himself and pulled off the veil.
Mother’s answering gasp rung across the gardens and scared all the little birds away. His gut twisted at her shocked face; sure, it was awful, but for even Mother to react this way felt… off.
“You have not been exiled, my son?” she said, a tremor in her voice. “No, of course not. I would have known had my own child been sent away from my lands. You wouldn’t even be able to stand here before me if this were the case. Shadows would be twisting at your paws.”
That was almost reassuring for half a second before more worries crashed in. Something else was wrong, that had to be it. Or maybe his visits to the mortal realm had affected him more than he thought?
“I lost an eye while visiting Earth,” he volunteered hesitantly. “My friend Dancing Poppy was threatened by a predator, so I defended her.”
Mother’s face grew thoughtful as she munched on a delicately crafted cookie. The skies remained partially cloudy, though thankfully rain did not threaten again. “Even with that, your wounds should have healed within days upon your return to Springtime. I can’t think of– wait, have you been contacting your father?”
Zagreus furrowed his brows. Honestly, the idea hadn’t even occurred to him. “Well, no… I never bothered. Why would he have anything to do with this?”
“Well, he is a faerie touched mortal…” Mother trailed off for a moment before shaking her head back to reality. “No. He was a lovely tom, but his blood couldn’t have caused you to be unable to heal. Besides, you’ve been injured in Springtime before and you healed fine.”
“But I lose an eye on Earth…”
Mother grimaced. “That’s right. This is… very unusual, truth be told. I can’t say I’ve run into a situation like this before.”
Oh no. Zagreus’ face fell. Perhaps he should permanently attach the veil to his fur and never lift it again.
“But,” she continued, “there may be another, an unseelie, who might have some insight. I hate to think of her now and yet she may be the only one who can help you.”
Huh? Why would Mother send him to an unseelie? “I don’t understand. What unseelie would help a cat like me?”
The air grew frosty.
“My sister.”
___
Never in his life had Zagreus bothered with human cities. They stank, for one, and for another the concrete and asphalt on the ground made his bones weary. They’d never been worth it one way or the other.
And yet here he was slinking through dying bushes and past machines that polluted the air to find an exiled apparent former Seasonal Lord. Stars above, what could cause a Lord to be exiled in the first place? Mother hadn’t explained, couldn’t, had just called her sister and left it at that. If it weren’t for the tone of her voice and the failure of the other Lords to have siblings, he might have believed her.
Perhaps this ‘Kore’ might have more answers, both about his eye and about… whatever Mother refused to speak on.
The human building he’d been instructed to stop at was easily one of the largest. Massive gates of iron loomed over him, making him sick to his stomach from their sheer presence. Thank the stars he didn’t have to go inside, or else he might have simply perished.
The instructions said to look down. Out of an abundance of caution, he looked up.
“Well, well, well, the little Prince is cleverer than he looks.”
Above him, tucked in a tree branch and hiding a bundle of honey-coated feathers, was a cat who almost looked like Mother. She was paler, almost sickly looking if it weren’t for her full coat of fluff and clever eyes. Her voice was a tad lower, a hair more menacing (and Spring could be quite menacing indeed), and slightly scratchier.
“You must be Aunt Kore?” Zagreus asked, barely keeping the tremor from his voice.
“And you must be the little Prince, looking for answers,” Kore said, idly kicking the feathers away from him and towards the ground below. “I must say, I was surprised to receive her dragon. I believe the last time she reached out was to warn me away from Jack Frost and their temporary exile. Is that unpleasantness over yet?”
“Not fully… Aine has awoken again, but Jack is still building an army to take the train nexus.” He rolled his shoulders back, trying to release the tension in his neck. “Did she tell you what’s going on?”
“Indeed.”
Kore leapt down the tree with bird-like ease and gave him a once over. First she stared at him with ominous dark eyes, then she leaned in and sniffed his neck, then finally stomped on his shadow. Zagreus’ heart shuddered as she did; did she detect something wrong with him?
But no, her face was as flabbergasted as any. “Stars, child, you’re as seelie as they come. Show me the damage?”
“Yes, Aunt Kore.” He lifted the veil for but a brief moment and watched as his newfound aunt’s face grew suddenly grim.
Kore shook her head and started to pace the ungodly concrete, paws making a particularly annoying tapping noise. Whatever it was, it had upset her more deeply than he’d thought.
Finally, she stopped. Apparently whatever thoughts she’d been having had come to fruition as a new light shone in her eyes. “Tell me, did your mother tell you about Eostre?”
“Who?” Zagreus wracked his brain, but nothing came out.
“Figures.” Kore’s sigh could have levelled mountains. “Come. Let’s go find somewhere more comfortable, shall we?”
“Through there?” Anywhere but within the iron gates!
She laughed and scaled the tree. “You’ll be fine, child. Just climb the tree and jump to the other side. No big deal.”
Terrifying as it was, she was right. Zagreus was fine, even if she had to help him with the whole depth perception nonsense. No damage save for a little cut on his leg, which… yeah, compared to the whole missing eye deal he wasn’t so worried about.
Inside, the human house looked like it was built for giants. Artificial human-made furniture could have housed the entire dragon stables and still had room to spare. The scent was odd – floral, but in a pointy way that made Zagreus wrinkle his nose.
Kore led him up a series of odd ledges on the wall to a cozy little high up nook filled with strange soft things. It was peculiar, but at least he felt at ease…?
“Your mother described us as ‘sisters’, yes?” she said once he was settled in. He nodded. “That is not entirely true. We were once the same cat, the same Seasonal Lord, the same Spring Queen: Eostre.”
Zagreus blinked at her, frowning. “I don’t understand. Were you twins playing a role?”
“No, no.” Kore’s laugh was more faintly amused than anything. “Until we were split, I and she were one. One body, one voice, one mind. There was no Persephone and Kore. Just Eostre.”
This was almost an impossible consideration. How in Springtime could a cat as lovely as his mother be the same person as a strange cat like this? He shook his head. He’ll have to ask Mother about it when he returns to Springtime. “How is this relevant to my predicament?”
“Well, my darling nephew,” Kore said with a dangerous little edge, “when we were punished for our crimes as Eostre, so too were our bloodlines. My children, seelie as they come, were chased out of the Fae Forest because they were scarred on Earth while trying to be helpful. And everyone wonders why I started acting up…”
A sick feeling entered Zagreus’ stomach. That can’t be… “So just because you and Mother messed up however many seasons ago, I and my siblings can be wounded like the unseelie?”
“That’s right,” Kore confirmed.
“...How unfair..” Who did this to them? How? Why? “I should ask Mother, but since I’m here I may as well ask. What happened?”
Kore regarded him with a strange new light. “Hm… tell you what. You help me with chores around the house and I’ll tell you my tale. Deal?”
“Deal.”
A fair trade, or so he’d thought at the time… a shame he’ll come to learn differently in time. Seasons of his life will be spent trying to fulfil his terms, unrealizing that his own failure to negotiate was what caused him to be trapped aiding his peculiar, less-than-ethical, unseelie aunt.
