Goddess Academy: The Complete Reverse Harem Collection

by Clara Hartley

  “What are you doing?” Aphrodite asked, glancing at my fisted hand wrapped around the necklace. A deep furrow of suspicion cut between her brows. Her honeyed eyes squinted at me, and I got the sudden sensation that I’d been drawn into interrogation.

  Perhaps Clotho had lied to me about the necklace. I kept my attention on alert, awaiting a sign for her arrival. Was there supposed to be a whirring sound, or magic sparkles?

  Crash.

  All I heard was the steady sound of an ocean breeze whipping past me—nothing out of the ordinary. I didn’t want to accept that she wouldn’t come and that I would be subjected to the whims of my birth parents, but as each excruciating, awkward second stretched on, increasing levels of doubt permeated me.

  “Meditating,” I replied. “I’m slightly panicked. Trying to focus your thoughts is good for the soul.” I glanced at a pig. It was larger than the rest, so I assumed it was Theo. I bent down, wanting to get a closer look at it. The pig cocked its head, looking at me with a pleading expression.

  Save me.

  I winced at the desperation in the pig’s eyes and reached to pick it up, but before I could, Aphrodite pulled me back into a standing position and dragged me into her arms. “Caramel,” she said with a sigh. The way she said my name—filled with longing, hope… love—threw me off. Briefly, I forgot about Theo and focused my attention on my mother. She pulled away before smiling at me, revealing a gleaming row of teeth and an expression of adoration. She was beautiful. But of course she was. My mother was the goddess of love. “I’ve been wanting to meet you for so long.”

  “You did meet me before,” I said. “As Lydia, correct?”

  “She’s not me completely. There’s a difference. As an entity, she’s colder, more elusive, and I can’t project my true feelings onto her. I wanted to tell you more, but I couldn’t blow Lydia’s cover, too.”

  “She was cold.” Every time I talked to her, I thought I spoke to a businesswoman rather than family.

  “I’m sorry. But you don’t have to be lonely any longer. I’m happy that you’re with me, Caramel. You’re finally safe in your mother’s arms. You’re where you belong.” She drew her hand up, took a step forward, and tucked my hair behind my ear. “Now I can finally care for you, treat you the way you deserve to be. I might be years too late.”

  “But I wasn’t conceived like Deimos was, right?” I was born through mixing my parents’ essence with the Chiasma’s. Deimos had mentioned something of the sort. I didn’t think I came from her womb, like a normal offspring would have. That made me more of an experiment.

  “That doesn’t mean that you are not my child.” Aphrodite pulled me into another tight embrace. She tiptoed so that her lips were level with my forehead, then pressed her soft lips against my head. The tender action caught me by surprise.

  In that instant, I felt motherly love.

  A warm sensation spread through my chest, ebbing and flowing and soothing my heart. There was a niggling thought that this couldn’t be real. How could Aphrodite feel so much for me when this was the first time I’d met her? Was she using her powers on me?

  “It’s good that you are reunited,” Deimos said, smiling. “I’ve been wanting to see this.” Flecks of gold danced in his striking green eyes. He was beautiful, but the iciness he projected never left his surroundings, and he still scared the fuck out of me.

  “Have you?” I asked. Every time I faced my brother, I was unable to sweep aside a feeling of dread. He projected pride and cockiness, and he seemed so sure about the power he wielded. It could be his red hair that made him seem scarier.

  The floating rocks around his head, too, showed that he wielded large amounts of power.

  Did I hold as much power as he did? I had a suspicion that my own magic lay dormant in my body, and I just didn’t know how to activate it. Did I want to activate it? I thought it might unleash the scarier parts of me. What if I became terrible, just like Deimos?

  I didn’t know how to use my own abilities. Just like I was clueless about how to control the wings currently hanging off my back. They were heavy and strained my spine, but I had to make do with them. Why complain when given the ability to fly? “You seemed more eager about using me as a means to an end.” A tool to get Aphrodite and Ares out of this place.

  “We’re family,” Deimos said, barely batting an eyelash. “Of course I want to see us reunited. Blood should stick together.”

  I’d never understood the concept of having a blood family—siblings loving each other just because they came out of the same vagina. I’d seen how having blood ties bonded people, but because I’d never experienced it myself, I found it difficult to comprehend. “Where were you during my childhood, then?” I asked, turning my attention to Aphrodite. As I asked these questions, the dreadful understanding that my vassals had turned into pigs never left my mind. I wanted to trust Aphrodite, but perhaps that was just the forsaken girl in me talking and craving attention. “Where were you when I needed a mother?” I recalled the lonely nights, and the times I had to swallow my own emotions. I had nobody to talk to or confide in. The isolation was what made me stronger, and I hated every part of that experience.

  “Stuck here, unfortunately,” Aphrodite said with a downcast expression. She curled her dainty fingers into fists. I watched a plethora of emotions cross her face as she considered how to respond to me next. She reached for my hands and clasped them in hers. They were smooth and warmth and caring. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for you when you needed me. That is one of my biggest regrets. I thought sending Lydia over would help, but, of course, I made her to merely be an eye—and as a tool, she was too cold-hearted. I wish that you’d forgive me. Through my absence, I was a terrible mother. I promise to not fail you after this. To make you the happiest daughter to ever exist.”

  My pulse fluttered at her admission. I thought I saw sincerity through her liquid eyes.

  Honesty. Trust.

  It made me want to bare my wounds to her so she might nurse me back to health as a mother should.

  Ah, fuck.

  I was starting to become all sentimental and shit. A tear escaped the corner of my eye because emotions made me all weak and in need of a good snuggle.

  Aphrodite must have seen the shock on my face. Her response was to break into laughter. “Don’t look at me like that. You’re shaking up emotions inside of me.”

  “What emotions?”

  “I’m touched. Is that a tear?” Aphrodite reached up and swept the drop from my eye. “When I can, I’ll wipe them away for you from now onward. You won’t have to suffer loneliness anymore, dear Caramel. Your mother is here for you.”

  She rubbed her thumb over my forehead at the spot she’d kissed. I sighed in contentment.

  Was it a sin to enjoy her attention this much?

  She proved a useful distraction. The sensation of fur rubbing against me crawled up my calf. I looked down before realizing that I’d neglected my vassals. The pigs snorted, sounding annoyed that I hadn’t fixed their issue.

  I turned back Aphrodite. “Can you turn them back?” I asked. “I don’t think my vassals are very happy being pigs.”

  “Aren’t they adorable, though?”

  “They are.”

  “Edible, too.”

  I winced. “You’re not thinking about eating my vassals, are you?” That’d be a fucked-up situation.

  Oh, Cara, what happened to the loves of your lives?

  My mother ate them because they turned into pigs, that’s what.

  I shuddered at the thought.

  “No, of course not,” Aphrodite said, chuckling, as if proud that she’d made a good joke. “I love you, my daughter. So what you love, I adore. I won’t do that to you, even if they look like they’re the perfect blend of muscle and fat. Probably delicious if their rinds are seasoned properly with salt.”

  “Well,” I said. I tried desperately to ignore the sickening images that she’d drawn. “Is it possible to turn them back
to normal? They’re annoyed.”

  Aphrodite pressed her lips together, keeping me in suspense. She shook her head. “I’m sorry.”

  I cocked my head. “That’s a no?” I looked at my vassals in horror. Fenrir seemed to have gotten the gist of the conversation as well. He whined and licked the pig I thought was Liam. My stomach pitched. “That can’t be right. Will they forever stay as pigs?”

  Aphrodite waved her hand across her face. “No, of course not. The travel to the Otherside is traumatic for many individuals, but the damages of its effects doesn’t last long. They’ll be fine. Give them some time and they should return to their original forms.”

  I immediately sensed the pigs relaxing. Theo stopped rubbing against me. He grunted, paced away, and found a comfortable spot to rest in.

  “Have I addressed your concerns?” Aphrodite asked, smiling brightly.

  I nodded.

  “Good. Deimos?” She whipped around, facing her son and my brother. Deimos stepped forward and swished his hand. The rocks circling him glowed as he worked his magic. Cages made of straw misted out of nowhere. They fell against the grassy ground, all of them open. Deimos knelt to the ground in a swift motion that was impossible to follow. With godly speed, he grabbed the pigs and shoved them into the cages. The pigs squealed and grunted. Rather than sounding helpless, they oinked in an angry manner.

  Deimos had moved so quickly that nobody had any time to react. Not even Fenrir, who’d found himself in a straw cage as well.

  “What are you doing?” I shouted, rage and panic surging up my chest. “They’re my vassals. You’re not supposed to treat them like that.”

  Aphrodite placed both her hands on my shoulders. “Calm down, Cara. We’re not hurting them.”

  “Are you sure?” I asked. A fire had lit in my chest, and I wanted to punch my mother. “Because it looked like you treated them way too violently.” Like livestock. And I’d be damned if I let the ones I loved be treated like mere pigs.

  “Yes, I am,” Aphrodite said without a hint of hesitation. “Deimos’s magic is powerful. It’d hurt them if the magic touched them directly, but we need a convenient way to transport them back to our home. We don’t want them to get too affected by his power.”

  The explanation sounded valid, but watching them being mishandled still gave me doubts. I steadied my emotions and reeled back, eying Aphrodite suspiciously. I swallowed my complaints and decided to go with it. It was easier to have faith in the pleasant things. Saved a lot of trouble thinking about betrayals and whatnot. Was I being too naive?

  Deimos waved his hand, and the cages began floating. They circled him, just like the rocks that kept him company. Deimos was dread personified. Blood brother or not, he scared the shit out of me, and watching him handle my vassals like that gave me second thoughts about this familial arrangement we had going on.

  My gut was telling me that I shouldn’t associate with my own family. Perhaps doing so would only bring me trouble.

  But then I felt Aphrodite holding my hands so tenderly. I sensed her love through her touch and wanted more, because my poor upbringing had made me so hungry for it.

  Maybe I was being stupid.

  Aphrodite walked closely next to me. I soaked in her attention, like a sponge that had been dried up for too long. She rested a hand on the small of my back and edged me onward. “Come now, my child,” she said. “Let us go meet your father.”

  “Ares?”

  “Yes,” she said, chuckling. Her laughter sounded like a melody. “He’s excited to meet you, although he can be somewhat… difficult.”

  Two

  “Your father loves to cook,” Aphrodite said as she led me through the fields of the Otherside. It truly was as empty as my first impressions suggested. Nothing but blue skies, cliffs, and grass, and a few seagulls chirping here and there. It looked awesome and scenic. Growing up in the city, such sights were fantasy. Buildings and gray pavements got boring after a while. Still, I couldn’t fathom how anybody could stay here for long without getting bored. Where were the people? The drama? Excitement? I doubted they had Wi-Fi here. What did they do to keep entertained?

  I returned my thoughts to Aphrodite. “Ares. Cooking? Isn’t he supposed to be the god of war?”

  Deimos was walking in front of us, his robes floating everywhere, as usual. I worried for my vassals. They were constantly spinning around in Deimos’s baskets. They had to be somewhat giddy while trapped in there.

  Aphrodite pursed her lips. Her hips sashayed as she walked, her movements an enrapturing glide of elegance. “The man’s gotta have hobbies in his spare time. There aren’t many wars to wage here. Look around.”

  I glanced at the empty expanse again.

  She had a point.

  Aphrodite gestured to a flock of seagulls that passed us. “Sometimes, he gets the birds to fight, but he’s bored of that game. Things get awfully repetitive after spending so long here.”

  “How long have you guys been trapped?”

  “I don’t know. About three hundred years, perhaps? Ever since the last Vassal War. I’ve lost track. We don’t even have a way to look at time properly. I created you out of desperation.” She paused. “And grew to love you after that. I watched you grow up through Lydia’s eyes. My little creation, out there in the world.” She made a little finger dance.

  “I wish I’d known you earlier,” I said, resisting the urge to hug my mother. I’d always wanted to do that. I was perhaps too old, and the time to bond had passed long ago. I used to see the little kids in school running into their mothers’ arms after class finished. I got jealous most of the time.

  “A part of me is in you,” Aphrodite replied. “You have my essence, and perhaps some of my memories, if you search hard enough for them. You knew me all along.”

  I shrugged. “Yeah. But I don’t mean in that creepy, ‘oh, some of my magic is inside of you’ way, you know? Kind of like a real mother. There to support and love.”

  Aphrodite’s shoulders slackened. “I’m sorry I couldn’t give you that.”

  “Sorry?” I waved my hands in front of me, even though Aphrodite couldn’t see me from her position. “Nah, you don’t have to be. I’m just whining. You couldn’t do anything. Not from here.” I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, maybe because I wanted her to like me. I tasted desperation on my tongue. It was bitter.

  “I’m glad you understand.”

  After another five minutes of walking, the scent of delicious, roasted meat wafted toward my nostrils. My stomach growled in response. I realized I hadn’t had much to eat since traveling to meet Deimos. We were too busy being teleported between worlds, and all that activity had made me famished. I salivated from the thought of food.

  “Smells like seagull,” Aphrodite said in a chipper tone. Then again, what else could it be?

  “Seagull?” I asked. “You guys eat them?”

  “They’re the only animals around here. Not much else.”

  “Wow.”

  “I know,” Aphrodite said, dropping back so that she walked at the same pace I did. A bored, annoyed look swept over her face. “It’s delicious.”

  “You’re not acting like you find it delici—”

  “The meat’s tough. And it’s barely flavored enough. I’m absolutely sick of it.” The positivity that radiated from Aphrodite completely disappeared then, replaced with pure hatred and venom.

  We climbed up a dirt path on a grassy hill. A small, red-bricked house was at the end of the path. It had a chimney. Puffs of red smoke meandered out of the chimney. I thought I smelled sweetness. My wings, the ones I got at the centaur’s forest from eating their fruit, weighed heavily on my back as I walked, and so, midway, I called for them to disappear. Surprisingly, concentrating on that command worked, and I was able to travel light after that.

  Aphrodite waved her hand out in front of her. “Don’t mind the small house. We decided to have it changed every month or two to cope with the boredom.” Aphrodite clicked h
er fingers. Suddenly, the red-bricked house turned into a giant castle, one fit for a queen. There was even a moat around it. She clapped her hands, and the large gate flipped down, forming a path across the moat. I gaped at the sudden change. Deimos, however, shared none of my shock. He continued floating along, then moved across the path and into the castle.

  “How did you do that?” I asked.

  Aphrodite chuckled. “It’s nice having stolen some powers of the chiasma. I take little bits of it with me each time I visit it. Having some chiasma magic makes creation easy. None of the goddesses can shift matter like this, except for maybe the sisters of fate.”

  “Chiasma powers… So does that mean I have the same ability as you?”

  She nodded. “Especially you, my dear. You hold too much of its magic.” Aphrodite hooked her hands around my arm and pulled me close to her. The sudden closeness surprised me. I blinked at her. “Aren’t you excited?” Aphrodite continued, tightening her hold over me. “Your father’s been complaining about not seeing you. He’s wondering why it’s taking so long for you to get to him.”

  While walking, another question lit in my mind. “Can you not have a different kind of meat, then? You don’t have to eat seagulls every day, right?”

  “There’s a limit to how much of the chiasma’s powers we can use,” Aphrodite said. “Really, we are mostly able to use it to create or change non-living entities. When it comes to living creatures, or creatures related to the living, then its powers are limited.”

  “How much of it can you use?”

  Aphrodite pursed her lips. “Not much. I think it rejects both me and your father. It’s angry that we stole. We take what we can. It’s an unpredictable entity.” Aphrodite frowned. “How the chiasma acts… it reminds me of a child.”

  We walked across the moat. The bridge creaked underneath my weight, and I questioned its structural integrity.