Lyre

by Helen Harper

  Yuri blinked. ‘Are you telling me I should sleep around?’

  ‘You’re having sex already?’

  She blushed. ‘Er…’

  Medusa shook her head, causing several of her snakes to hiss softly. ‘Actually, I don’t want to know.’

  ‘I thought you liked Ozzy.’

  She sighed. ‘I do. But you’re planning your future around him.’

  ‘No, I’m not! I’m just planning a holiday! We’re hardly about to tie the knot and have two point four children.’ She blew air out through her cheeks. ‘Never mind,’ Yuri grumbled. ‘I’ll get the money from somewhere else.’

  ‘You can have the money,’ Medusa said, exasperated. ‘I’m just saying that you don’t want to shackle yourself to one boy quite so quickly.’

  ‘You make it sound like I’m in jail.’ Yuri’s eyes narrowed. ‘Is there something else going on here? Has Sibyl been doing her divination shit again?’

  ‘No. You know she promised not to go near that where you’re concerned.’

  Yuri watched her suspiciously. Medusa threw her hands up into the air. ‘What? You think I’m lying? I’m not.’

  ‘I’m not accusing you of anything.’

  ‘You were thinking it.’

  ‘Sorry,’ Yuri mumbled. She walked over and joined Medusa by the glass. The python was still slumbering away. ‘But there’s another reason why Greece would be a good idea.’

  For a long moment, Medusa didn’t speak. It was clear that she’d heard Yuri’s words, however, because her own snakes were poised, their beady eyes fixed unblinkingly towards the younger girl. Finally, she took a deep breath. ‘Olympus.’

  ‘I need to find Poseidon,’ Yuri said earnestly. ‘If I can get him to talk to me about what happened with the sirens…’

  ‘Then what? You’ll seek them out and take your revenge? Because they’re immortal, Yuri. All you’ll do is get yourself killed.’

  ‘I know that. I know revenge isn’t going to make me feel any better. But I need to understand.’

  Medusa’s face was pale. ‘You don’t want to go near Poseidon, Yuri. You have some vision of him as your saviour but, believe me, it’s only because of the mood you caught him in that day.’ She swept a gaze up and down her body. ‘You’re older now. Things may go … badly.’

  ‘I can look after myself.’

  ‘Against a god?’

  ‘Doesn’t that make him one of the good guys?’

  Medusa snarled. ‘Have you not learnt anything yet? There’s no such thing as good! It was people from Olympus who drowned your father. It was a man from Olympus who caused the death of your friend. What makes you think that the gods are better than that?’

  Taken aback, Yuri stared at her, wide-eyed. ‘But…’

  ‘No buts. Besides, he won’t be there. He prefers the sea.’

  ‘Near Greece?’ Despite the thunderous look on Medusa’s face, Yuri’s tone was hopeful.

  ‘Don’t go looking for him. I mean it, Yuri. I don’t want to see you getting hurt.’

  ‘What’s this actually about?’

  ‘Nothing.’ A man in overalls appeared at the doorway to the reptile house. Medusa jerked her chin his direction. ‘You should go. It’s feeding time for the komodo dragons.’

  Yuri remained where she was for a moment or two. From behind the glass, the python lazily opened one eye and looked at her. Sighing, she pushed back her hair from her eyes and walked off.

  *

  Sibyl shook her head. ‘No, I think this is a good thing.’

  ‘Good? How can it be good?’

  ‘You said it yourself. Poseidon won’t be there. Even if he was, he wouldn’t dare try anything. Not at Olympus.’

  ‘Like Zeus would care,’ Medusa scoffed.

  ‘Hera would.’ Sibyl reached out and put a hand on her great aunt’s shoulder. ‘Yuri needs closure about her father. We need her to break up with Ozzy.’

  Medusa sighed. ‘You were right about that. I didn’t think they’d stay together this long. Have you tried another divination?’

  ‘No. I promised her I wouldn’t and I’m not going to break my word. I don’t want her to hate me again. It took months to get her to trust me after the first one. But that vision was clear. If she’s still with him by the end of the summer, then she’ll die. I would tell her about it if I thought it would make a difference.’

  ‘You know it won’t. Not after what happened to that Brittani girl. She’ll ignore the truth of what you saw. Besides, she’s sixteen years old. You can’t trust a teenager to make the right decision.’ She tapped her long red fingernails irritably on the table. ‘She still deserves better though.’

  Sibyl chewed on her bottom lip. ‘She does. Not only that, but I don’t have many human friends. I don’t want to lose this one.’

  ‘You don’t have any other human friends.’

  She pouted, slightly stung. ‘I’m doing better than Cassandra did.’

  ‘That girl was an idiot.’

  ‘It wasn’t her fault. She didn’t have any control over her prophecies.’

  ‘Yet another thing to blame the gods for,’ Medusa said, her voice dripping with bitter scorn.

  Sibyl eyed her with empathy. ‘You know they’re not all bad. Poseidon did stop the sirens from hurting Yuri.’

  Medusa snarled while sudden guilt flashed across Sibyl’s face. ‘Sorry,’ she mumbled.

  ‘He’s a fickle prick. Like all those fucking gods.’ Her hands balled up into fists while her snakes writhed restlessly at her tension.

  ‘We can’t turn back time. But we can help Yuri.’

  ‘How?’

  Sibyl frowned. ‘If she’s away from Devon, then you will be free to seek out Antaeus. Find out why he’s so pissed off at her. Maybe you can get him to see reason and leave her alone.’

  Medusa flicked her a skeptical glance. ‘Poseidon’s son is unlikely to want to talk to me.’

  ‘I know, I know, it’s a long shot. But it might help.’

  ‘She’ll still be with the musician though. Every time she says his name you can see the stars in her eyes.’

  ‘It’s the same with him. I tried to tempt him away, you know. He barely even noticed that I was flirting with him.’

  ‘He’s another one who deserves better.’

  Sibyl nodded. ‘If things were fair and the world was a better place, then we could leave them in peace and let them live out the rest of their days in soppy harmony.’

  ‘I wonder if she’s right, you know. Yuri, I mean. If knowing the future really is a good thing.’

  ‘If it keeps her alive, then it is.’

  ‘So what do we do then? I can try and talk to Antaeus, much good it’ll do But separating the lovebirds is an entirely different matter.’

  ‘Pan.’

  Medusa raised up her head. ‘Really? I’m not sure that’s a good idea.’

  ‘It’s perfect.’

  ‘We could speak to Cupid. He could fire off a shot or two and get them to fall in love with someone else. That way they’ll both be happy.’

  ‘It won’t work. Not only is Coop a miserable bastard who hates doing any favours for anyone, but you know Yuri and Ozzy are in love. It’s too late for any of his arrows to do any good.’

  ‘If you’d stopped her from going to that party…’

  ‘It wouldn’t have made any difference. They’d still have ended up together.’

  Medusa tutted. ‘Love makes fools of us all.’

  ‘Pan,’ Sibyl said firmly. ‘He’s the way to go.’

  ‘It’ll end in tears.’

  ‘As long as it doesn’t end in more death.’

  She sighed. ‘I suppose you’re right.’

  Sibyl smiled sadly. ‘I am.’

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  GREECE, 2004

  Leaning against one of the pillars and gazing out over the city of Athens, Yuri smiled contentedly. She’d expected Greece to be filled with history and interest, but the romanticism of the ruins
and friendliness of the people had her in a permanent state of awe. There was something magical about it all. Sharing the experience with Ozzy helped with that, of course.

  ‘Here,’ he said, thrusting a white object towards her. ‘I saw you eyeing these up earlier.’

  She glanced down. It was a small facsimile of the Venus de Milo statue, complete with shorn off arms and loosely slung toga. Delighted, she grinned at him and gave him a hug. ‘Thank you!’

  ‘You know it’s tourist tat, right?’

  ‘Of course! I still love it though. I’ll keep it forever.’

  He bent his head and gave her a long, lingering kiss. ‘You’re easily pleased,’ he told her, when they finally broke apart.

  ‘No,’ she said shyly, ‘I’m actually not.’

  ‘It must be our majestic surroundings then.’

  Yuri gazed round the Acropolis with its teeming tourists, towering walls and astounding architecture, then back at Ozzy. ‘No, I don’t think that’s it.’

  He ran his tongue over his lips. ‘Well, I’m not sure what else it could be.’ His eyes danced.

  ‘Now you’re fishing.’

  ‘I don’t need to fish,’ he said, holding her hands. ‘I’ve caught the only fish in the sea I’ll ever want.’

  She reached up on her tiptoes about to kiss him again. Ozzy, however, shook his head. ‘Parent alert.’

  Yuri gave a mock groan and turned. Ozzy’s mum and dad, both also holding hands, waved to them and walked over.

  ‘This isn’t finished yet,’ he breathed in her ear. She grinned.

  ‘You two look like you’re having fun.’

  Yuri smiled at his mother. ‘Yes. It’s simply amazing here. Thank you so much for letting me come along.’

  She laughed. ‘Oh, it’s our pleasure. It keeps this one,’ she ruffled Ozzy’s hair, ‘entertained.’

  ‘Believe me,’ Ozzy replied, ‘I’m feeling very diverted.’

  Yuri reached behind and thumped him.

  ‘So, we were thinking that we’d already covered a lot of Athens and that it might be time to move on and explore somewhere else. Perhaps one of the islands. We can catch a short flight fairly easily.’

  Ozzy shrugged. ‘Sounds good to me.’

  ‘Yuri? Is there anywhere in particular you’d like to visit?’

  She shifted. ‘Um…’

  ‘It’s okay. We’re not exactly on a tight itinerary, you know. If there’s somewhere you’d like to visit, then just tell us.’

  Slightly emboldened, Yuri bit her lip and nodded. ‘Well, there is one place. It’s on the coast so you can still visit the beach. But there’s a mountain next to it as well and some lovely walks. So I’ve heard,’ she added hastily.

  ‘What’s it called?’

  ‘Litochoro.’

  ‘Oh, yes! That’s next to Mount Olympus. You’re not hoping to spot a Greek god or two, are you?’

  Yuri laughed but, even to her ears, it sounded false.

  ‘Mum, I think you’ll find I’m god enough for her.’

  She threw him a droll look. ‘My son’s ego aside, that sounds wonderful. We can hire a car and drive there first thing tomorrow.’

  Yuri’s heart leapt in her chest. ‘Really?’

  Ozzy shot her a curious look. ‘You’re keen.’

  She shrugged awkwardly, brushing it off. ‘I’d like to climb the mountain.’

  ‘’Climb every mountain’,’ Ozzy sang. ‘’Ford every stream…’’

  ‘’Follow every rainbow’,’ his dad chimed in. ‘’Till you find your dream.’’

  Yuri crossed her fingers tightly. She damned well hoped so.

  *

  ‘It’s pretty big,’ Ozzy said doubtfully craning his neck up at the summit of Olympus.

  ‘That’s why they call it a mountain.’

  ‘Funny. Are you sure you want to climb it though? We can still head to the beach with my parents.’

  Yuri cast her eyes over at the group of tourists shouldering backpacks. ‘I’m not sure climbing getting to the top will be necessary.’

  ‘Necessary for what?’

  She took a deep breath. ‘I’ve not really told you everything.’

  His brow furrowed. ‘You have a reason for being here, don’t you? Other than a spot of mountain climbing, I mean. Yuri, what’s this all about it?’

  ‘I told you my father was dead, right?’

  ‘Yes.’ Ozzy gave her a concerned look. ‘He drowned.’

  ‘Well, I’m kind of hoping that I’ll be able to get some answers about it here.’

  ‘I thought that happened in Japan.’

  ‘It did.’

  ‘Yuri, you’re not making any sense.’

  She sighed. ‘I know. It’s just … it’s complicated.’

  ‘Try me.’

  ‘You’ll think I’m crazy.’

  He crooked up the corner of his mouth. ‘I’ll love you anyway.’

  ‘I hope so.’

  ‘Yuri, there’s nothing you could say that would make me think bad of you.’

  Somehow she didn’t think that was true. It was about time she started trusting him completely though. If she’d given him her heart, then how difficult could it be to allow him to see into her soul too? ‘The gods are real.’

  He stared at her. She glanced away awkwardly. ‘The Greek gods. The ones on Olympus. They exist.’

  Ozzy watched her for a moment, then chuckled. ‘Right. Zeus and Hera and all that.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Aren’t you afraid they’ll smite you with their thunderbolts?’

  ‘It’s not a joke,’ she said quietly. ‘I’m not making this up. My father didn’t drown, Ozzy. Well, I mean, he did drown but it was actually because there was singing. There were these sirens and they made him sail towards him and he jumped into the ocean and I tried to stop him but I couldn’t and then Poseidon came except in Japan we called him Susanoo and…’

  He reached out and out a hand on her arm. ‘Yuri, you’re not making any sense.’

  She subsided. ‘You know my friend? Sibyl?’

  He nodded slowly.

  ‘She’s from Olympus. She can see into the future.’

  ‘That would come in handy with the lottery.’

  Yuri balled up her fists in frustration. ‘You’re not listening. Her aunt is called Medusa. She’s got snakes for hair.’

  Ozzy took a step back and eyed her. ‘This is a joke. You’re joking.’

  ‘No. No, I’m not. The gods are real and they’re here. And I want to talk to them to find out why they killed my father and why they rescued me. I need to speak to Poseidon.’

  He shoved his hands into pockets. ‘Okay.’

  ‘You don’t believe me.’

  ‘Yuri…’

  ‘No, it’s okay. I wouldn’t believe me either. But when we find Olympus, the real Olympus, not just the mountain, then you’ll see.’

  For a long moment he merely looked at her. Yuri could feel her heart hammering against her chest. Now she’d said the words, it suddenly seemed vitally important that he believed her.

  ‘Alright,’ he finally said. ‘Lead the way.’

  She gazed into his eyes. ‘I will prove it, Ozzy.’

  He nodded and grabbed her hand. ‘I trust you.’ He gave her a small smile. ‘But if we’re being secretly filmed for Candid Camera, you realise I’ll kill you, right?’ he joked.

  Yuri smiled tremulously back. ‘You’ll see,’ she repeated then pointed towards the departing group of tourists. ‘Let’s start by following them.’ She ignored the shadow of worry in his eyes and began to walk, keeping a brisk pace so as not to fall too far behind them. Yuri couldn’t help feeling a wave of relief, however, that Ozzy moved up so he was still with her. Physically anyway.

  It didn’t take long before they were already on the outskirts of the town and traffic on the road next to them trickled away to little more than the odd truck or farm tractor. The route up the mountain itself was well signposted, curving off to the
left and along a dusty path, lined with trees. Neither of them said very much, merely pointed out the odd interesting landmark or skittering of a nearby lizard. After a while the group in front of them slowed down, pausing for water and a short break. Yuri set her chin, determined to keep going, and passed them by. The sun was rising higher and higher in the sky and the day was already giving an indication that the weather was going be very hot and very sunny. She was so focused on moving upwards as fast as she could, that she almost missed the break in the foliage. She halted abruptly, Ozzy pulling up beside her.

  ‘What is it?’

  She jerked her head over. ‘That way.’

  He frowned. ‘Are you sure?’

  ‘Yes. It feels right.’

  ‘We might get lost.’

  ‘We won’t.’

  ‘Yuri…’

  ‘You said you trusted me,’ she reminded him.

  His shoulders tensed. ‘I do.’

  ‘Well, then.’ She tugged at his hand, leading him away from the main path and into the trees.

  ‘It’s like we’re being swallowed up,’ he whispered.

  ‘Why are you whispering?’

  He shrugged. ‘I don’t know. It just feels like I should.’

  ‘It’s because we’re getting close.’ She increased her pace. ‘Come on.’

  The overhead trees and stretching branches filtered out most of the sunlight. The new path they were on didn’t seem particularly well-trodden and on several occasions they were forced to leave it because of a huge fallen trunk or impassable bushes. It grew narrower and narrower and Yuri knew without looking back that Ozzy’s enthusiasm, as limited as it had been to begin with anyway, was on the wane. Pinpricks shivered across her skin. Despite his palpable worry, she knew in her heart of hearts that they were getting close. In fact just as his stomach was growling loud enough for her to hear it above the birdsong, she spotted the gap in the trees.

  ‘It’s here!’ she yelled excitedly, tightening her grip on her bag and speeding up.

  She crashed through, ignoring the thin branches that whipped at her skin and finally emerged out into a vast open space. Smack bang in front of her was a vast edifice that put even the Acropolis to shame. It stretched out in every direction, with gleaming marble walls which were so shiny she bet that she’d be able to see her reflection in them. There was a huge golden gate, sparkling in the late morning sun and flanked by some kind of armoured guard. Her mouth dropped open as she took in the sight. Nothing Medusa had told her had prepared her for grandeur on this scale.