Past Lives

by Kirsten Bij't Vuur

  The result was exactly as he had imagined, and the connections would hold.

  They put away the materials and the gold with care, and took it with them to the spare room, then cleaned up a little at the wash-stand. This world could

  really use some modern conveniences, but then, most of London didn't have those either.

  Finding comfort in each other's presence in the slightly smallish bed, they soon fell asleep, tired with a lot of magic-use and the memory of the dangerous situation with the village mob.

  The next morning, Lukas woke Melissa to tell her he was going for his morning run, he needed to empty his mind for some time and running was the best way. He'd also take a good look around, crossing the harbour to see what kind of ships there were, reminding himself of the village and the surroundings.

  'Won't you be in danger, love?' she asked him, and he replied: 'I can outrun even the fastest of my own kind, they'd have to use a net or a trap to catch me. But they will not try, I'm a god now and the people here respect gods, spellbound as they are.'

  They kissed, and he was off.

  As usual, Melissa snuggled against Paul for an extra hour of sleep, putting an arm and a leg around him to be as close to him as she could. To her surprise, he turned around in her arms until he was facing her, and he kissed her, his large, capable hands stroking her.

  Against his habit, he was wide awake, this early in the morning, and he must have slept well for he was in an excellent mood. 'When all's said and done, you're still the most beautiful and most loveable woman in either world,' he said, 'I'm so fortunate that you choose to love me.'

  He was beautiful himself, brown curls highlighted by the Greek sun, his young face tanned but his eyes still a startling, piercing grey, a rough beard waiting for time and the right facilities to be shaved.

  Instead of sleeping for another hour, they behaved like any couple on a holiday in a warm, beautiful country, gazing in the other's eyes, caressing each other gently, kissing a lot. Of course their caresses led to making love, slowly and lazily, as they usually did.

  'Do you miss your work?' Paul asked, as they were lying on the bed afterwards.

  Melissa thought for a while, then replied: 'Not yet, no. I haven't really had the time, there was so much to see and talk about, so much to do. When I look at a building I look at it differently, and seeing that swamp I did contemplate how to drain it or how to build a better road through it, but not in a serious way. Not as you two are expanding your abilities now, with a very

  important customer to please.'

  'Do you miss the house?'

  She had to admit: 'I do miss the conveniences, strangely enough especially the bicycles and the roads. Walking in this heat is too tiring for someone of my size, I didn't really get to enjoy the trip through the country.'

  'You'll love going by ship, they'll probably hug the coast so there will be plenty to see, and the sea breeze will keep us cool,' Paul said, 'but don't forget the sun-block spell, or you'll burn alive on the water.'

  'Do you think it is dangerous on the water?' she asked him.

  His reply echoed her thoughts: 'I cannot think of a danger that we will not be able to handle together, pirates cannot really hurt us if we can use magic openly. I tend to worry more about the next step, Hermes seems to be a beacon of stability compared to the reputation of the other gods. To be honest, I fear for you, you are so beautiful I'm afraid Aphrodite will be jealous of you.'

  'And I fear for you, beloved, Katarina warned me to keep you away from Aphrodite as much as possible, she seemed to think you might be taken against your will.' The fear on Melissa's face was real, and Paul wanted to say something encouraging, but the fact of the matter was, that Hermes'

  comments had him just as afraid of Aphrodite.

  So he just embraced her and kissed her, making the most of their time together and hoping for the best. The necklace could not but please even the most demanding goddess, it was turning out so well.

  And Paul was convinced that Hermes was now on his side, and that Lukas was stronger than they imagined, neither of them had an idea of the strength inside the frail looking young man, but a crisis would certainly bring it out, as the mob yesterday had.

  Melissa changed the subject, and said: 'You should ask Katarina for a tour of her workshop, she makes the most beautiful things, and I think both you and Lukas would benefit from her work, she had lovely shirts and tunics that you could use in winter.'

  'I'll look like a Greek next, with my new shoes and a Greek tunic. That will help me to fade into the background more, those linen shirts may make me stand out. I'll shave, most Greek men seem to be clean-shaven. No ruggedly handsome foreigner, just another local craftsman. Though next to you, everyone fades into the background.'

  He was so much in love with her, thought Melissa, preferring her over all

  those Greek beauties, but then, she felt the same about him. Sharing his love had not done their marriage any disfavours so far, but she had to admit that was also due to them having been warned and taking extra trouble to communicate their feelings.

  But there would be bigger challenges ahead, for so far they had been in rather remote and unsophisticated areas, but tomorrow they would arrive in Hermes' palace, where the women would undoubtedly be more beautiful, better dressed, and very forward.

  And Paul wouldn't be the foreigner tagging along with Lykos, but a superb artist presenting his masterpiece to a goddess. For there was no doubt in Melissa's mind that this necklace was his best work so far, not excluding her own little horses.

  When Lukas returned they talked of what he had seen in the village and the harbour. He had not been waylaid by anyone, nor had anyone spent much attention on him as he ran by, so his mood was as good as Paul's.

  There were few ships in the harbour, and none of them looked fast enough to give them any trouble once they were at sea. But this was a world of magic, and anyone with the slightest Gift could spread news far and wide relatively easily, so that didn't mean they were out of danger.

  They had breakfast with Katarina and Galan, the latter had already checked on the donkey, and done a share of his day's work so the men could work on the necklace, at least the parts that needed a forge or a solid table.

  After breakfast Melissa practically forced the guys to go with Katarina and explore her workshop, and she got them to try out several shirts and even a tunic. Both felt the difference with linen immediately, and Paul bought himself a sand-coloured shirt and an unbleached tunic.

  Lukas had an easier fit of course, and he got four shirts in brighter colours, and also a tunic, he wanted a bland colour but Katarina said: 'You're a god now, Lykos, and you need to dress the part. This is more suitable.' And she rummaged through a large wooden chest and came up with a very light tunic of deep wine red, trimmed with gold. She used his belt to arrange it nicely, and showed him the result in a real mirror.

  Where did they get such a lovely mirror? In England they had become available only recently!

  Katarina told them: 'Magic of course, the glass becomes purer, and the silver is spread thinner and more evenly.' They might have known.

  Lukas reluctantly agreed that he really did need an extremely well-made

  outfit, to present himself well in the negotiations, so he added this tunic to his total. And then both Paul and him were off to try and finish the necklace.

  And then Melissa missed her work for the first time during this trip.

  Katarina needed to finish a dress and a set of pillows before she left with them, and Galan was fascinated by the new techniques that Paul and Lukas were inventing as they worked.

  Galan did have a Gift, so he watched them carefully, to experiment on his own once everything was back to normal. Lukas urged him to try and allow Hermes into their lives, having close connections to a god would make the use of magic a lot easier.

  Soon, the figurines were all linked in the right order, and Paul held it in front of Melissa to show the effect.
It was stunning, the little creatures travelled around her throat, not in a straight line, but swimming across her chest, leaping in and out of the water, then leaping high on the left side, turning towards the right until the nose was down on the other side of the fastener, then diving back into the water nose down and swimming across her chest once more.

  They were all silent for some time, experiencing the movement in the elegant creatures for a few rounds.

  Then Galan broke the silence and said: 'It's stunning, but somehow copper looks better on you, Melissa.' They all agreed, and Paul promised: 'I'll make you a copper one with the horses frisking and leaping, my love. As soon as we're back in London.'

  Melissa wanted to see the effect too, and Paul held the necklace in front of Lukas, dropping her jaw as well. 'I didn't know anyone could do that, love, make metal move. It looks like magic. This is good enough for any goddess, I'm sure.'

  Since it was made of gold, they made the fastener especially secure, then showed the necklace to Katarina and put it away safely, along with the excess gold.

  Then they had lunch and Lukas ran to the harbour and back to see if a ship had arrived, not expecting to meet anybody on his way since the heat was killing. Even after living in cool London for months, he could stand the heat like nobody else.

  When he came back he had a belt with him that fit the tunic perfectly, he had seen it in the first shop they visited yesterday and left it as being too

  ornate, but if he was going to really present himself he saw a use for it after all.

  Melissa thought his tiny bit of vanity was just so cute, and she kissed him heartily, leaving him wondering what he had done to deserve that sudden affection.

  Meanwhile, Katarina and Galan had a difficult choice to make: would they both go, or would Galan stay at home to guard their property. Galan feared repercussions to their home once the villagers were freed from the spell, which was all the more reason for Katarina to want him along, there was no way he would be able to stop a mob anyway, and he might get hurt.

  Katarina was very afraid of having to submit to Aphrodite, and she dearly wanted her trusted husband along to make her feel slightly safe, and to share her anxiety with. She also feared he would be hurt if he stayed behind, and she'd rather lose the house and all of her possessions than the man she loved.

  Finding her wish for him to accompany her so strong, Galan packed a bag with essentials and started to secure the house against a veritable disaster, shuttering the windows and packing away all his tools in his stove, to protect them from fire. Lukas and Paul helped him, keeping an eye on the streets around the house for messengers from Hermes' ship.

  And no sooner had they prepared everything than one such arrived at the house, a human boy of about fifteen, long black hair in a tail, tanned face with the beginnings of a beard, worn clothes of a once sturdy quality.

  He faced Lukas fearlessly and said with a certain respect: 'Master Lykos, your ship is waiting for you in the harbour. The captain says, if you're on board within the hour we can sail before the tide turns.'

  Lukas looked at him with the same amount of respect, and replied: 'Thank you. We are ready to leave well within half an hour, will you wait for us?

  May I ask your name, lad?'

  'It's Feodor, master, and my captain ordered me to lead you to the ship in safety.'

  Galan went inside to let the ladies know, then fetched the luggage outside and asked the boy: 'Will your captain allow a donkey on board, Feodor?'

  'I'm afraid he will not, master, and he never makes exceptions, not even for master Hermes.'

  'In that case, we'd better leave the poor creature in the stables, or have it sent back to Ophelie,' Lykos said, 'can you pay the stable up front, Galan?

  Here's some silver for its maintenance.'

  Since it was not very far to the harbour, they managed just fine with the help of Feodor, who carried his share of the luggage.

  As they boarded the ship, Paul was surprised to see that it had oarsmen as well as a mast and sail. The ship was rather large and looked quite warlike, though the rump seemed large enough to hold cargo as well.

  The captain was waiting for them on board the ship and greeted Lykos first, almost humbly. Lukas was very nice to him, which of course had an immediate effect on the captain and the crew, and as he introduced everyone to the captain they all got a warm reception.

  The luggage was taken inside the ship, and they got a short tour, as the tide was about to turn and they needed to leave as soon as possible. The captain had to help his crew to guide the ship out of the harbour, but he asked Feodor to explain the rules of the ship, and the boy did so with great enthusiasm. He clearly loved sailing.

  They left the harbour very quickly, the oarsmen propelled the ship very adequately, though Paul wondered why they didn't just sail, there was plenty of wind. When he asked Feodor, the boy started to laugh, and said: 'But master, the wind is dead against us, how could we sail the right way?'

  Suddenly Paul realized they hadn't invented tacking yet, and the implications of that invention of the human mind were obvious, since it saved on at least thirty or forty labourers, though these were clearly slaves, not free men.

  The idea of slavery was offensive to Paul, and he had to restrain himself to keep his quiet. Lukas clearly came from a region where slavery was not very common, but as they neared civilisation they'd see more and more of it.

  Better warn Melissa, and maybe Lukas to keep Katarina from causing trouble.

  He asked Feodor: 'Don't you use magic to propel the ship?'

  'Oh no master, we dare not, magic use at sea offends Poseidon, and of course master Hermes wants to stay in his good graces.'

  This was not getting any easier. Paul was glad they had such a large ship, for he had no other ways to defend himself but magic.

  Soon they were clear of the harbour, and the sails were unfurled and caught a nice breeze. They all sat on the aft deck, where Feodor had told them they would not be in the way of the crew, watching the waves, the birds flying along and the coast not so far in the distance on their one side.

  Suddenly, someone cried out in wonder.

  It was Feodor, who took his orders very seriously and tried to keep them

  informed and entertained constantly. He pointed just in front of the ship, where five or six elegant shapes were swimming fast, keeping ahead of the ship easily. Their shapes were visible below the surface of the crystal clear waters, their strong tails propelling them, and then they leaped over the water and entered it again, not losing speed for even a moment.

  Watching their elated movement, Paul had a hard time keeping his pride down, for it was very clear that his necklace mimicked their movement perfectly. The quality of the sketches must have had something to do with that, but Paul allowed himself a lot of credit as well. Apparently he had a certain aptitude for this.

  Feodor now said: 'Master Lykos, a great honour is bestowed upon you, for these dolphins are the friends of mistress Aphrodite, and she has sent them to guide you and protect you.'

  Or to spy on us, Paul thought, thinking of Hermes' story, but nonetheless he was grateful that the boy thought they were a good omen, and he was very, very pleased to have seen them alive, no matter what happened.

  His companions were all staring at Paul in wonder, and for once he accepted the admiration as it was offered, for this time, he felt he deserved it.

  'I can't believe it myself,' he breathed, 'to have never seen one alive, and then get it just right. I must truly be an artist!'

  'You are the best, master,' Lukas said, and no-one contested that term of honour, though Feodor did raise an eyebrow at hearing a master call someone master. Had the necklace been made of copper or even silver, Paul would have loved to show it to the boy, but on a ship filled with hard-bitten seamen it seemed wiser to him to keep invaluable amounts of gold well-hidden.

  It was as if the dolphins begrudged Paul the attention, for they moved a little away from the ship
and started a veritable acrobatics show. They performed stunning leaps, with twists, screws, turns and flips. They worked together to get even more applause, and swam beside the bow to look their audience in the eye.

  They had really cute faces indeed, they seemed to smile benignly, and then they were off again, swimming just ahead of the ship, tireless and still enjoying themselves hugely just swimming. Feodor was mesmerized, and he spoke in a reverent voice: 'I have never seen them perform together, it must really be the mistress' escort.'

  With such a show, and the coastal area still quite easy to see because they

  were so close to it, time flew, and Paul couldn't remember feeling so relaxed and truly on a holiday during this trip so far. Instead of dreading to meet Aphrodite, he was now looking forward to seeing her face when she received the necklace, from Hermes' hands, not his, for he didn't want to pay for one moment of triumph with years of slavery.

  They were even served a small, light meal of cheese, fruit and salted nuts and olives, with a lovely sparkling wine to go with it, and they all helped themselves heartily, even Feodor, who said he shouldn't, but was pressed to join them for his efforts to answer all their questions.

  All too soon, they saw a large palace rise on a cliff against the blue sky, and it was a marvel to behold. It was white, and the roof seemed made of gold, which was ludicrous, but still it certainly seemed to be.

  They approached it at great speed, and soon the sail was furled and the oarsmen started to row again to the beat of a small drum in the hold of the ship. The speed levelled quickly, and Paul tried not to think of the fate of those oarsmen. He had conquered some adversity to become what he wanted to be, but he had started out at the top.

  What if he had started out on the bottom, where these slaves undoubtedly were? Would he have succeeded? He knew London had its own bottom, the factory workers among them, he had seen the rejected children and where they had lived for years, in the cold of winter, without food. But they had been free, hadn't they? Mind reeling, he tried not to think about it anymore, by asking Lukas questions about the palace in front of them.