After the dinner I had with the priest and his wife, I thanked his wife, Lady Andromeda, for the bed she had made for me. After the final words for peaceful dreams were said, I found myself tossing and turning in the bed. No different than a fawn, a victim of the sleep that had fled due to my excitement, I took refuge by the window. As the sounds of crickets and owls reached me through the trees and grass, I rested my chin on my arms, took a deep breath of the oxygen, and refreshed my lungs.
"I wonder if I had anyone I knew?" Even my quiet whisper felt like torture to my ears, and I began to doubt whether the problem was my voice or the question with its unknown answer, but I shook off this unnecessary anxiety. I didn't know who the Goddess Hera was or what her story was. All I knew from the priest was that she was the wife of the king of the gods and the goddess of marriage and bonds; my knowledge was limited to that. I gently turned my head to the sky and looked at the heavens adorned with stars and a full moon, seeking favor from existence. "What could I have done, oh gods, for you not to deem my past worthy of me?" I whispered, and I continued to look as if a response would come.
I should have been like a nonbeliever, thinking everything must be nothing, that I could kill myself right here and maybe be reborn, or put the gods to the test. However, the desire to know and to live within me, as well as the longing for my family—or, to be more accurate, the family I was doubtful existed, the family whose reality was uncertain—was biting at the most hidden corners of my soul, tearing off pieces and flinging them somewhere. It was a long way to my heart, but that didn't mean I would try to hold on and struggle as I am now until life reached my heart. My heart was warming, while my soul, in a contradiction, had accepted the reality that it would never warm up, as if it could dive into the deepest part of hell and still never get warm. My eyes moistened, my vision blurred. My chest started to ache, as if being scraped with a knife, its skin peeling. I put my hand to my lips, trying not to make a sound. I couldn't. Even while crying, there was no mother or father who would endure my screams—perhaps selfishly, perhaps for justified reasons, I would say. I could even do without a sibling; I was an orphan. I was nothing, maybe something not even nothingness cared about. Maybe I was human, maybe I was someone with a cracked soul. But I was a woman, and a woman needed her mother most in her most difficult moment.
As tears quickly escaped my eyes, I gently raised my face to the sky, trying to stop the tears from flowing. "It's not working without you, Mom..." The sound that came out as a mere whisper had toppled over like a suicidal soul. "It's not working, Dad, I don't even know if you exist, I'm nothing more than a simple orphan girl in the middle of nothingness, unaware of her own past..." I said, leaning my head against the back wall and closing my eyes tightly. "If I were sure of your existence," I swallowed hard and clenched my hand into a fist. I kept my eyes closed as if I were sure I would find a family portrait of myself, now in seclusion in the dark. "Even if you were at the end of the world, I would surely find a way to get to you..." I whispered the last words and gently stroked my half-asleep hair with one hand, trying to imagine my mother. Did she have light brown hair like me? What were her skills? What did she smell like? What did she like? Did I have a sibling? Maybe they wanted another child after me? Maybe they were looking for me town by town, maybe even city by city, country by country right now? Maybe they knew me and longed for me just as I longed for them? This thought was enough to make me smile. I quickly straightened up from where I was, and with a groan from the back pain caused by sleeping in the chair, I walked in front of the full-length mirror. My hair wasn't too messy, but it definitely needed to be fixed. I decided to ask Lady Andromeda for a comb and tried to style my hair by running my fingers through it. I went into the bathroom of the room, washed my face, and wet my hair, combing it back with my fingers. I left the bathroom and then the room, heading to the kitchen.
Lady Andromeda had already set a delicious-looking table. When I came across her, she was drying her hands with a cloth. With a very warm smile, she said, "Good morning, Eleana, how was your sleep? Did you sleep well?" I nodded in approval and said, "I am so indebted to you and your husband, I am very grateful, madam, thank you. I was deemed worthy of a sound sleep in the will of the gods." She raised her eyebrows, pleased with my answer. "I'm very happy to hear that," she said, put the cloth on the counter, and gestured to the table with her hand. "Please, don't stand..." At her words, I sat across from her at the table and started my breakfast by first putting a few types of cheese and tomatoes on my empty plate.
"How do you feel about becoming a priestess?" Lady Andromeda put the cheese on her fork into her mouth and started chewing. Because of her attentive gaze on me, I thought I had to leave a controlled impression with my reaction. I said with a smile I thought was sincere, "I am a victim of excitement and heartfelt happiness, my lady. My heart is fluttering like the heart of a weak, helpless sparrow." At my words, Lady Andromeda, who had already sent her morsel to her stomach, let out a cheerful laugh and put her hand to her lips. "Excitement is excusable, you can be sure of that, Eleana." she said, and took a sip from her full glass. In fact, there was excitement in my heart, but my heart wasn't fluttering with happiness. Yes, among all the fates, this was the most suitable path for me. The priest would ask his friend to take me to the temple in the evening. And in the meantime, I could maybe knit with Lady Andromeda to get used to my new life? Or I could help her look after her sheep? Maybe I could accompany her to milk the cows? Yes, she had cows; I remembered from the sentences the priest had told me on the way to his house, which I had paid attention to. Although I wanted to listen to the priest carefully, he could also be a potential danger, even if only a little. A part of me was pressuring me to trust Lady Andromeda and voice my suspicions, while the other side left me in a dilemma because if I trusted someone I just met and told them my suspicions, I might create the impression of being a nonbeliever. Because the biggest factor in the priest's acceptance of me was that I had caught him at his weak point: his religion. My tool for manipulating him was religion. And if I were to show now that I had some doubts about becoming a priestess, I would truly become a street cat, chased away.
I finished breakfast and helped Lady Andromeda clear the table. I took out a glass, filled it with water, drank it all down, and sighed deeply. I was getting tense with the fear of every hour approaching the evening. In an effort to occupy my mind, I put a basket on my arm and went to Lady Andromeda, who was watering her plants. I found her kneeling on the ground, examining her plants. "May your work be easy, my lady..." I said, taking refuge to the side so she could see me. Hearing me approach, Lady Andromeda turned her face and greeted me with a warm smile. Her hands were in the soil, but she seemed to enjoy it; her contentment was overflowing. "Thank you," she said, her eyes narrowing as they found the basket on my arm. "How about you keep me company?" she asked, and I smiled and nodded in a positive way, going to her and sitting on the ground. "Thank you," I whispered. She pointed to her plants with her head. "No, thank you. This interest in my plants is very flattering." At her words, my smile grew on its own; in my eyes, she had grown to a great stature, and I covered my lips with my hand. "Let's begin," she said, turning back to her plants, but then something came to her mind, and she turned her head to me. "Do you know what to do?" "Actually, no," I said, just telling the truth. "Well then, let me show you what you need to do first." She gracefully ran her fingers over the leaves of a yellow-toned flower with a purple core and spoke. "First, you should check the moisture of the soil. If it's very dry, you shouldn't hold back the water, but you should pour just the right amount. Some plants don't like too much water. And too much water will rot their roots, and if you don't clean the withered leaves, the plant's energy is wasted." she explained in a calm tone, informing me generously. "Just like us..." I whispered. When Lady Andromeda turned her head to me as if she hadn't understood what I said, I repeated my sentence out loud this time. "I meant, just like us," I said, and with my calm gaze, I shaded my smile. "Absolutely, we have to find a balance in everything. Too much love gives birth to selfishness, and when that moment comes, the love we've given is left in our arms, and we look at it and say, 'I didn't deserve this...'" she said, and I thought her sentence was incomplete. Not only did I not stop the words escaping my lips, but I encouraged them. "Then the other side doesn't deserve this love or the carelessness of this anger we've been caught up in. On the contrary, by living everything on our own scale and throwing it at someone, we cannot be more than an irresponsible person who has lost their logic due to selfish feelings." At my words, my sentence adorned with a thoughtful voice, I felt embarrassed by the look Lady Andromeda gave me, raising her eyebrows. Her gaze wasn't bad, in fact, it wasn't at all, it was very beautiful. It was full of admiration. But I took refuge in my shyness, choosing to escape these sweet, beautiful looks. I smiled and brought my gaze back to the plants in front of me. "You are very right, Eleana, even too right, but not everyone is the same," she said, letting out a troubled sigh. I had hammered her words into my mind, based on her. I first tried to understand what was wrong with the white flower in front of me, but with a memory that came to my mind, I turned to Lady Andromeda. "Before I try to understand what the flower is missing, shouldn't I look at its name and type?" I asked. Lady Andromeda's gaze was as if it had been enlightened. And in that moment, I understood that the usual methods to learn what's wrong with a plant weren't always a guarantee of healing. "Do you want me to tell you the name of the flower?" she asked, raising her eyebrows wisely, but a smile of a clumsy cricket had already appeared on my face. "I want to find the name of the flower myself, and I want to learn its species myself. I know I don't have much time, but I want to do this. Maybe I've been a burden for days, madam, but you and your flowers have awakened a desire and enthusiasm in me for something. I am grateful to you." At my words, her smile slowly fell, and a thoughtful sadness entered her face. "The importance of life is that the moment should not be the only thing that flows in everyone's veins. Otherwise, what is the difference between us and the dead underground? In them, souls flow, in us, life." At her words, her gaze fell on the white flower in front of me, and I realized how right she was. I would learn my past no matter the cost. My heart quickened, and my hand had already clenched into a fist. My memories? They died, I would resurrect them. They don't resurrect? I would recreate the same memories. If necessary, I would be born again and find my way to a mother's embrace. If things weren't happening, I would make them happen, force them to be. I would use my anger, which I didn't know who it was directed at, as a tool, and I would be on my guard. I would make a helmet, a sword, maybe an arrow, and I would learn to challenge people.
When the sun slowly began to set, I asked Lady Andromeda for books. But when she said she didn't have any, I was seized by a fleeting sadness. But I shrugged off my baseless sorrow and stood up straight, saying, "It doesn't matter, when I come again—if I do, of course—I swear to the gods, I will tell you the name of the flower, I will learn it on my own without asking anyone!" My words, born of my self-confidence, made Lady Andromeda laugh. "So be it. I will be waiting to hear the name from you with bated breath." With that, my tense mood dissipated, and I began to watch for the priest's arrival, looking at the door in the living room. There were minutes left before I left, before I became the main character of another journey. There was so little time left until I became a priestess: the first step was for the priest to arrive, the second was to be dropped off at a temple with the help of his friend, and then to become a priestess. And then my life could pass as a virgin. Maybe if I became the priestess of the goddess of marriage, things would change, and getting married would become more important than remaining a virgin.
The sound of the key turning in the door distracted me, and I began to wait for the priest to enter my frame. The door opened, and when the priest came in, I had already stood up and made a brief gesture of greeting. The priest nodded and closed the door behind him, coming inside. "Are you ready, Eleana?" My mind was practically shouting for me to nod in approval, but my heart was fluttering with excitement like a sparrow. "Yes," I said. The priest, having received the answer he wanted, put on a slight, cold smile and put his hand on my shoulder as if to support me. "No problems will arise, everything will be as it should be. Keep your heart at ease, and be proud of the sacred duty you will dedicate yourself to, my daughter." At his words, I tried to hold back tears, took a deep breath, and forced myself to smile. "This feeling is not fear, sir, it's excitement and happiness." Just as I was forcing myself, and the priest was getting ready to speak, Lady Andromeda and her voice came from the corridor. "You can use up all your words then, my dear husband, but this excitement cannot be used up with a few words. A mad, fervent excitement has taken hold of her, and rightly so, she is facing a turning point in her life. Being excited is not a wise thing, but staying calm is not possible either." she said, tilting her head to the side with a smile. I gently nodded my head as if to agree with her words. "Now, because I can't bring myself to send you off alone..." she held something behind her back and brought it into view. My surprise was immense. It was my white flower, the one that was in front of me during our conversation. "Won't the flower be damaged on that journey?" I asked, furrowing my brows at the priest's logical question. Lady Andromeda approached me and placed the potted flower in my hands. "If it has a good companion, it will protect it from all evil; how could anything befall it?" she said with a smile. The priest's voice, who had awakened me from my admiration of the flower in my hands, said, "It's time now, we must go." My smile was suspended, and emotions flew away. I took one last look at Lady Andromeda and whispered with a warm, sincere smile, "I will miss you." Lady Andromeda bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to hold back her tears. We had spent hours, not years, together, but weren't we women? We who always protect and look after each other, who understand each other's troubles with a single look and try to be a cure? Who are imprinted on each other's minds with a single conversation. I turned my face to the priest, watched him quietly go to the door, and then I too went out the door.
I held the flower in my hands close to my chest and followed the priest. I suddenly felt a premonition and looked around. I felt like someone was watching me, or was it a paranoid delusion? But I was sure, a chill had gripped my soul, and my instincts had suddenly gone on high alert. I frowned and narrowed my eyes, looking between the trees, but I was neither a hawk nor a lion; how could I stare into the distance? When I focused on the trees, the sound of the leaves rustling in the wind made me take a step back nervously. The priest's voice brought me back to myself. "Eleana?" I cleared my throat, walked quickly past him, and came to the horses. I was giving the horses strange looks, and the priest had already gotten on his horse. I could say I had never ridden a horse in my life. But as I approached the horse with determination, I heard the horse grumble, and I froze in place. "You have to try to remember things on your own, Eleana," I muttered to myself, and I gently brought my hand to the horse and stroked it. I placed the flower in one of the saddlebags hanging on either side of the horse. Feeling that I had more or less overcome my fear, I turned my head to the priest and saw that he was watching me from on top of his horse. I went and got the priest's step stool, placed it in front of my horse, and gently climbed onto it. I held the reins, swung one leg over the horse, and settled in. I was happy and proud that I could handle it on my own, but the horse also played a significant role. Its docility also helped me. "Well, let's go then." When the priest started to go ahead on his horse, I gave my horse a resentful look, not knowing how to command it. "I don't know how to make the horse walk," I said. The priest turned his horse around and faced me. "Lightly squeeze the horse's belly and apply gentle pressure. This will give it a signal to move. The reins," he gestured to the reins with his face. "Let them go a little; you must allow the horse to move forward." "Call to the horse. Commands like 'go' or 'walk' will encourage it." he explained in his deep voice. I nodded in approval and began to do what he said in order. When the horse began to move forward, I smiled and turned my face to the priest. "Thank you!" I said with cheerful joy. He came up behind me and rode next to me. We spent minutes and arrived at the sea. When a man leaning against his ship came into my view, I turned to the priest with hesitation. I felt that he wasn't too pleased either, but his confident demeanor covered it. As we went down the hill, I involuntarily squeezed the reins of my horse. But I took a deep breath, raised my chin, and made sure to stand up straight. If you are close to the ground, they will never deem you worthy of the top. My idea was unfortunately true; whether to accept it or not was not up to me; this was a noose that would both choke a person and have an aphrodisiac-like effect. First, the priest went in front of his bald, slightly chubby ship captain friend. He gently dismounted his horse, stroked it lovingly, and came to me. He gave me a look that indicated I should get off. As I was wondering how I would get off without a step stool, he said, "Hold my hands, Eleana?" I looked at him, and seeing his serious expression, I realized I was wasting time. As I was pulling my leg from the other side of the horse, I heard footsteps, and when I looked to the other side, I saw a young man coming with a step stool in his hand. The handsome, bearded young man approached. "Here you are..." he said. I smiled at the young man as he put the stool down and got off. I took the flower from one of the saddlebags and hid it in my chest. The priest held the reins of my horse, brought it closer to his, and holding the reins of both, he turned his face to me. "Come, Eleana," he said. I went to his side, and we came in front of the young man and the bald, slightly pot-bellied friend of the priest. "Hello, Loannis," the priest said in a deep voice. I watched his expression; he was looking at his friend with a slight smile. Narrowing his eyes, Mister Loannis looked at his friend with a smile that rose at one corner. "Well, Georgios, being a priest suits you. It's been a long time, hasn't it? But you were always like that." His eyes widened and his eyebrows rose. "Do you remember? When we were brave young men who puffed out our chests, we ran away from the temple one day! If your past self saw you now, I'm sure he'd let out one of those wild laughs!" he said. I watched him talk to a priest like this with exaggeratedly wide eyes. I thought he had the audacity to talk like this because of the strength of their past bond, and as I pursed my lips, I chose to look around. With the sun setting, the windows of all the houses, with their candles lit, looked like fires. As I watched my surroundings with a slight smile and great interest, a pair of eyes that were watching me suddenly entered my frame. The handsome face of the young man behind Mister Loannis and his smile, which suited his face like honey on bread, made me embarrassed and caused me to look away. The involuntary smile on my face and the blushing of my face like a beet were a reflection of the feeling I was experiencing. "Eleana?" At the priest's call, I raised my eyebrows and turned to him with a surprised, blank expression. I saw that he was also slightly frowning, looking as if to ask what was wrong. "I was lost in thought," I said. He nodded in approval. I recognized the sound of a simple knot closing a large bundle of gold, which the priest was holding with a cloth in his other hand, and I raised my eyebrows. "This is yours," he said, and I raised my eyebrows to the sky as he handed me the gold. My eyes bulged. I didn't know how else I could express my astonishment. The priest narrowed his eyes and looked at me, smiling for the first time, but his smile had a subtext. He raised his eyebrows, "Eleana, take it. Don't forget to be stingy, but also don't ever put yourself in the background." As he gestured that I shouldn't question his expressions too much, I smiled and quickly took the money. "Thank you..." I said with all my sincerity, and no matter how much I didn't want to, I added my tears to my smile. They hadn't left a single kindness unshown for a girl they had just met; now they had given me a bundle of gold as if it were so easy to earn. They had showered me with more kindness than I could ever repay. I couldn't stop the tears flowing from my eyes, and I couldn't hold myself back. I hugged the priest as if I were hugging a father. "I am so sorry for my disrespect," I said, and as I moved away from the priest, I saw him wipe a tear from his eye with a smile on his face. "I have never seen a woman in my life who can understand so easily, like a child," he said. I giggled and took a step forward.
Loannis grumbled but with a smile. "It was time. You made me tear up, and I don't like tears!" he said with a sweet protest. I couldn't help but smile. "Have a good journey, Eleana..." he said. I nodded my head in agreement. I showed him the flower in my hand. "Please tell your wife, Lady Andromeda, that I will grow the flower and bring it back to her, I will show it to her!" At his nod of approval, I turned my back to him, went to the other side of Mister Loannis, and thus moved away from the young man. I quickly put the flower in a safe place, then went back out to the courtyard. I got on the not-so-big ship carefully and watched it slowly move away by taking steps back. When I got to where the horses were, I couldn't stop the urge to cry inside and began to shed my tears. It had perhaps only taken a few hours for me to get used to their house, and I had no right to, but I had gotten used to it anyway.
"Would you like to talk for a bit, my lady?" I was startled by a young man's voice and turned my head. It was the young man who had been behind Mister Loannis. "Maybe..." I gave a noncommittal answer. But thinking that talking might open me up, I silenced my crying and wiped my tears. "Are you from their family?" he asked, hanging on the railing like me and staring at the view. "No." Of course not. I couldn't make myself part of a family in a single day. If I had mistaken politeness for love, then let me be happy for a bit in my own game. "What are you to the captain?" I wanted to change the subject as the questions started to bother me. "His son," he said in a relaxed manner. He turned and leaned on the railing behind the masts. I raised my eyebrows and watched him. Noticing that I was watching him, he also raised his eyebrows and turned his face to me. "You look like your father..." I said, looking away. My sentence was cowardly, and so was I. There was no difference between me and my words, but my words had one difference from me: unlike me, they had a bit of courage on their own. "Did you come to that conclusion without seeing my mother?" he asked. And as one corner of his mouth rose, I couldn't stop myself from wondering about his mother. "Do you get so eager to have a conversation like this with every girl you just met?" I said, taking my hair to one shoulder and wrapping it with my hand, cutting off its sacrifice to the wind. "No," he said, narrowing his eyes. The smile on his face slowly subsided, but his sincere energy was still there. "On what topic are you curious about the answer to that question?" he whispered. I was faced with the fact of how tactless my question was, and I put my hand to my lips in embarrassment. "Oh no, no, wasps, please find me and silence this unpleasant tongue of mine that speaks without question or answer!" I protested. He learned that my silent whisper wasn't silent at all thanks to his cheerful laughter. "What kind of protest is that, madam? Even when you rebel against the gods, you don't lack respect. They will doubt that you are a commendable lunatic!" he said, biting his lips to keep from laughing. As for me, I frowned and gave him an angry look for finding an excuse for even my complaint. "Disrespectful, thoughtless, lunatic, man who finds an excuse for a complaint!" I said, walking away from him just like that, but I could still hear his chuckles. Where would I stay? Would I have a place to take refuge while going to the island? The wind had intensified, and it had started to rain, which created the possibility of getting sick. I needed to take refuge somewhere, but where? I turned back to the man I had turned my back on. I was sure I wasn't being prideful with this attitude, but I still had to ask him. Just as I was about to take a step toward him. "Yes, we have a place now, and I'm going there too. Do you want me to show you the way? I don't know, maybe you do? I've stopped laughing by the way..." he said. I raised my eyebrows, as if to ask what he meant by his serious expression. "Are we going to stay in the same place?" I asked with a surprised expression. He turned his head to me, with his arms crossed and getting wet from the rain, and raised his eyebrows. "I didn't say bedroom, I said storage room." he said, and started walking. I decided to follow him. It was raining without stopping, and getting wet was not a good option. We passed the rear lock section of the ship. I followed him as he went inside with a key he took from his pocket. Darkness greeted us. He immediately closed the door, went ahead, and lit a candle, accompanied by the sound of him bumping into things. Then he brought that candle to another candle, shared its fire, and two candles were lit. He handed me a candle. "Thank you," I whispered. With the help of the candle, I saw two floor beds on the ground. There was a thin sheet, a blanket, and a pillow. "Um, is one of them for me?" I asked, turning my face. "Yes," he said. I gently went to that floor bed and sat on it. I instinctively felt like smelling it. I wondered if it was clean. Okay, I might seem ungrateful, but if a problem arose, I would be the one to deal with it. Although I felt like smelling it, I didn't, thinking it would be rude. I pulled the blanket and got into it. I put the pillow under my head and subtly sniffed it. It was clean. Okay, my mind is at ease now, I said to myself, wrapping myself in the blanket and trying to feel comfortable and fall asleep. But lying on the floor is not comfortable for me; I'm sure I'll have a backache tomorrow, I lamented to myself.
When I couldn't sleep, I sighed and sat up straight. "Are you sleeping?" When I heard Mr. Loannis move, I put the candle between us. "Couldn't you sleep?" I nodded in approval. "Do you know what goes best at night?" I asked with a smile. He raised his eyebrows in curiosity. "Stories," I said. "You're right." He frowned and looked at the candle, lost in thought. "I've thought of a story, I want to tell it first, if it's okay with you?" he asked in an authoritative way. "Absolutely!" I said, resting my hand on my cheek and began to listen to him. "A year ago, my father was carrying the belongings of the great Achilles by ship and was returning home." The admiration in his eyes was visible even in the dark. When he arrived at a suitable island, he moored the ship and tied its rope to a large rock. He missed the sand, so he went to the beach. As he dipped his feet in the water, he saw a hawk flying so sharply toward him from above, from the sky. He was surprised and prayed to the king of the gods. The hawk gently landed on the ground and then lightly flew onto his shoulder. After that, he fainted and when he woke up, he realized he was leaving the house of the best seer in the country. He said that the gods had entered his body, but I don't think that's right." I raised my eyebrows. And I thought about the validity of this theory. It seemed like a reality that was not very plausible. "I think you're right too," I said, and I yawned. "It's getting late. If you want to be alert in the morning, priestess, you should get a good night's sleep." he said, and I smiled. "Then good night to both of us," I said, blowing out the candle, rested my head on the pillow, and fell asleep.
And the first light of morning met my eyes as the door was opened hard. Mister Loannis was at the door with an overflowing happiness. "Regina Island is at your service, priestess!" he said, and with his hand, he pointed outside. Where he pointed, there was a large statue of a woman. I rubbed my eyes, stretched slowly where I was, and got up and went to the door. As Mister Loannis's bulky body moved to the side of the door, the large statue could finally enter my frame. The ancient bronze statue was an impressive structure with a magnificent stance. One of the statue's hands was bent, so I could see what it was holding and make a guess. There was a pomegranate. I knew it was a pomegranate from the details of the inner part, which was worked with magnificent craftsmanship. The other hand was pointed to the ground as if holding a weapon. And the trees were hiding what it was holding. Even in my sleepy state, the details were so beautifully worked that I couldn't help but wonder if the sculptor had modeled for the goddess Hera herself. Such a thing was not possible, but the heretical thoughts wouldn't be silent, and I didn't think I wanted them to be. With the question that came to my mind, I looked back, but he wasn't there—Loannis's son. He had obviously woken up early and left... "Mister Loannis, could you please tell me where the temple is?" I turned my head to Mister Loannis and asked. The man started to give me directions. He rubbed his bearded chin, thinking. "The temple is to the left of the statue. Go straight, you'll find it." he said. I nodded in approval. "Thank you," I said, and just as I was about to pass by him, he said my name, and I stopped and turned to him. "First, have breakfast, my girl. Will you go to the presence of the goddess to become a priestess hungry?" he said, and I had to agree with him, putting my hand on my stomach which ached from hunger. "Thank you, but I want to dedicate myself to the goddess as quickly as possible," I said, giving in to the first of the two ideas that came to my mind. I had the impatience of a child who wanted to see the result as soon as possible. I was burning with the excitement of seeing the temple. Mister Loannis sighed deeply and with a fatherly smile, "Vangelis must have already prepared it? Now you are obligated to come, if only out of politeness, Miss Impatient..." he said, raising his eyebrows. His warm demeanor made me feel good, even if only a little, in addition to making me tense, so I tried to smile, but I faltered. "Who is Vangelis?" Mister Loannis turned his face to me as he walked. "My son," he said. I raised my eyebrows in surprise. His name was instantly etched into my mind for no reason the moment I learned it. As we crossed from the ship to the land with the help of the pontoon, his name repeated itself in my mind like a broken record. There weren't many people around. Even though the sun had risen, only a few men were fishing. A table had been set, and Vangelis, who was waiting for us, sitting in a chair, slowly stood up. The table had everything. There was bread, olive oil, olive oil and honey, cheese. And there was wine and dried meat. There were three chairs at the table. "May your hands be blessed, my son, the table is delicious," Loannis said, putting his hand on his son's shoulder, giving it a light, loving squeeze. I pulled out my own chair and sat down. Vangelis sat in the chair between his father and me. As we had our delicious breakfast, I broke off a piece of hard bread and carefully dipped it in the honey when the sun's reflection fell on the honey. Whispers began to rise in my ears. I could have sworn I saw a pair of eyes in the sunlight. The slice of bread remained in my hand, and I couldn't dip it in the honey. Was my mind starting to be unable to stand being alone? My heart began to warm with this thought, the urge to cry assaulted my eyes, and my lips began to tremble. I squeezed myself to try to stop it, and I brought the slice of bread to my lips as if I were holding a knife, not a piece of bread, and with a start, I put it in my mouth, as if to defy the sharp, thorny vines wrapped around my throat. Chewing it was like agony. I felt as if I were chewing a life alive. I was sure that even if I dipped it in honey, it wouldn't sweeten this pain. "Are you okay?" At Vangelis's whisper, I shook my head, meaning no. I had chosen the first option again. Even if my choices led me to death in the end, I would go to God Hades, to the underworld, without at least a single regret left inside me... It is dangerous for a person to have regrets because it makes them reckless. Their thoughts would be blended with courage to the last degree. And I was choosing my first choices logically, according to my heart, and weaving them knot by knot.