Hecate by stephla

HECATE HECATE

HECATE goddess of the night

a modern day narrative based on the Greek myth written by Stephanie La

hecate

ecate awoke to an unwelcome

and pulled out her phone. It was Persephone.

stream of light warming her face.

They had met a couple of years ago after

‘Dammit,’ she thought to herself grimly.

Hecate had helped her mother Dementer

Her nap had lasted longer than she had

find her after she had been kidnapped.

anticipated and now the sun was in full

Somehow, a bond had formed between the

force. She nestled back underneath the

two and they had remained good friends

covers, trying to recount her to-do list for

ever since. ‘Hiya! Let’s go on an adventure

the day but failing, thanks to her sleepy

today,’ chirped Persephone. It was way too

and hazy headspace. As her heavy eyelids

early for this. She rubbed her eyes sleepily

dropped the curtains over her eyes, she felt

and took a deep breath. ‘Hey Percy, what

a slight vibration and a familiar tune rang out.

are you doing up so early?’ She obviously

She reached a hand underneath her pillow

didn’t hide her mood well. ‘Whoops, did I

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just wake you?’ Hecate groaned internally but swallowed her annoyance, ‘Maybe, don’t worry – I had to get out of bed at one point anyway,’ she reassured. She instantly felt bad for guilt-tripping her friend. Swinging her legs out of bed, she quickly said ‘Okay okay, I’m up.’ She could sense Persephone smiling on the other end of the phone. ‘See you at the usual place, say in… half an hour?’ She pulled some of her belongings in a bag and examined her wardrobe absent-mindedly, ‘I’ll be there’, she replied. They spent the afternoon together in the forest, collecting herbs and having long conversations along the way, making sure to have constant rest stops along the way so that Hecate wouldn’t grow too weak. They had discovered a patch of opium poppies, not yet in bloom but with smooth buds that were sure to blossom by the end of the season. Hecate had uprooted a few of the plants to add to her personal greenhouse. She was sure they would come in handy someday. Now she was alone in her greenhouse with a mug of tea in hand,

hecate

“ the night always brought back her strength ”

hecate

walking slowly as she admired the rows

things like that didn’t happen due to fate. She

of plants. Hemlock, mandrake, belladonna,

turned her back on their words and placed

aconite... and now her most recent addition,

her trust in him instead. Looking back on

opium poppies. It was nearly nightfall and

it now, she would be able to trace his lies

the sunlight of golden hour bathed the

right back to that day on the train if she

greenhouse in a warm glow. ‘About time’,

was willing to relive the past but she knew

Hecate thought to herself – the night always

herself well enough that her heart would

brought back her strength. It also meant it

collapse on itself once more.

was easier to avoid all the people wandering around. Her bright purple hair always drew

It was Persephone who lifted her back up,

attention and unfortunately, made her

distracting her from the madness growing

instantly recognisable.

in her mind. In a way, Hecate was grateful for the whole Dylan situation even though

No matter how she tried to block it out,

it nearly broke her, because it brought

she could never forget the time she let her

her closer to Persephone. She had gone

walls down, put her faith in someone and

soft and Persephone stuck around even

it had turned out they had only sought her

though Hecate had prioritised Dylan above

out and intended to use her for her powers.

everyone else. They spent days hiking up

Dylan had been sitting opposite her on the

mountains and singing at the top of their

train. She was on the way to the grocery

lungs when they reached the mountain peak,

store, he had told her he was on the way to

snacking on berries they collected on their

the bank. Months later, she found out that he

way up. Temperatures soared and they would

was actually on the way to visit his wife at

often find themselves in swimming in alcoves

work. People had warned her to be careful,

of clear water to cool off. The nights up in

told her it was too good to be true, said

the mountains and valleys were frosty and

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cold up to the point where the backs of their hands wore blue and rosy pink maps of their veins. The pair of them would attempt to make a natural bonfire but they always turned back to their magic and created a fire burning with such warmth and comfort that they fell soundly asleep without fail. Hecate blinked slowly as the sunlight dimmed and the darkness took over the sky, she had drifted off back into the past without realising. She glanced back at the rows of plants before leaving the greenhouse, closing the door behind her. It was a clear night and tiny specks of light blinked down on her. She went into the house and began to prepare dinner, deciding on pesto pasta with a side of grilled chicken. Feeling nostalgic, she decided on seasoning the chicken with a recipe Dylan had always used. Turning on the radio, she began boil some water for the pasta, speeding up the process using her magic. Washing the mushrooms, capsicum and spinach leaves, she hummed along to the music. She scanned the

hecate

bookshelf for her cookbook, spotting its red spine quickly. She slid it out of its shelf and blew off the layer of dust it was hiding under. She wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have noticed the small folded envelope that fell out if it hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t dropped right on her foot. To be continued...

Atsma, A.J 2000, Hecate (Hekate), Theoi Project,

Greek Mythology 1997-2016, Hecate, Greek

viewed 24 August 2016, http://www.theoi.com/

Mythology, viewed 24 August 2016, http://www.

Khthonios/Hekate.html

greekmythology.com/Other_Gods/Hecate/ hecate.html

Goddess Gift 2002, Hecate, Greek Goddess, The Goddess Path, viewed 24 August 2016, http://www.

Mastin, L 2009, Hecate - Famous Witches,

goddessgift.com/goddess-myths/greek_goddess_

Witchcraft, viewed 24 August 2016, http://www.

Hecate.htm

witchcraftandwitches.com/witches_hecate.html

hecate