Chapter 12

Eurydice brushed her hands down the edge of her chiton, smoothing out some of the pleats in the fabric. It wasn”t a common choice for a party, and typically it wasn”t a woman”s fashion either, but Eurydice loved how it made her feel when she wore it. The drape of the fabric made her feel more powerful, which was something she gravitated towards when thinking about attending a party with Orpheus. She wanted to be a little more optimistic about the event, but she didn”t care much for the friends that Orpheus had made in the Underworld. He rubbed elbows with the rest of the Underworld”s ‘elite’, including Perseus, who was loathed by the chthonic gods and deities alike.

The dinner they were headed to that evening was held at none other than Perseus”s home, another massive monstrosity that made Eurydice wonder why Hades even allowed it in his lands.

She was lost in her thoughts and attempting to boost her own morale for the evening when there was a subtle knock at the bedroom door. Orpheus and Eurydice had been living in separate bedrooms since she moved into the property, even though Eurydice knew that Orpheus was pushing for her to join him in his bed.

“Coming,” Eurydice called out, cringing at the forced joy she heard in her tone. She crossed the bedroom and opened the door, finding Orpheus standing on the other side. He was dressed in an elaborate tunic with a brooch the size of a child”s fist at his shoulder. It was a gilded lyre, studded with gemstones, and Eurydice couldn”t help but mentally turn up her nose at it. She always preferred flowers or natural adornments to hard, cold jewels and metals.

“Is that what you”re wearing?” Orpheus blurted out, his face morphing into a sneer as he studied Eurydice”s outfit. Eurydice started grinding her teeth together.

“Yes, it is. Is that a problem for you? You can always go alone if you want to.”

“No, no,” Orpheus grunted. “Everyone is going to expect to see you by my side.” Eurydice sighed heavily, the hesitation in her veins growing as she toyed with the idea of staying home instead.

“Do you even want me to come with you? Or do you want to be seen with me because otherwise people will ask questions?”

“That”s not fair…”

“What did we just talk about this afternoon, Orpheus? This is what I want to wear. Do you want to go with me, as your date, or do you just want the infamous muse of Orpheus on your arm?”

Orpheus held his hands up in surrender. “You look lovely, Eurydice. Please.” He offered her his arm. “I simply don”t want anyone else to give you a hard time. You”re not even dressed in a woman”s garment.”

Eurydice took a step back, raising an eyebrow and leaving Orpheus with his arm extended towards her in the air awkwardly. She flipped some of her hair over her shoulder, knowing how the fabric draped over her curves—even for a man”s garment. Eurydice tightened the fabric at her shoulder, adjusting the neckline so her cleavage deepened.

“Do you really think anyone will mistake me for a man?”

“N-no,” Orpheus stuttered. His eyes were transfixed on Eurydice”s figure, and instead of feeling even more alluring or beautiful, Eurydice fought the temptation to roll her eyes at Orpheus”s simplicity of character.

“Do you see what I”m talking about?” Eurydice deadpanned, adjusting the fabric and bringing up the neckline. “We can”t even have a conversation without it turning into an argument.” Eurydice bit her lip, turning her gaze out the window. She could see the forests of Asphodel in the distance. The trees were calling to her. “Maybe it”s not the best idea for me to come with you tonight.”

Orpheus looked frightened, stepping closer to Eurydice and inviting himself into the bedroom. “Please, come with me. I”m sorry. Really, I”m simply nervous. I don”t know how to talk to you, it seems,” Orpheus grinned sheepishly.

Eurydice couldn”t help but feel her heart warm at the sight. Orpheus was excellent at always saying the right thing. He found a way to make it sound endearing that he had such horrible communication skills with his own wife.

“I’m not going to change,” Eurydice challenged. She wasn”t going to be dimmed by Orpheus”s perception of her; that was a person that she had no desire to be. “If you want to be with me, if you want to try and make this work, you need to be with me. Not the version of me that you have created through song and stanza these past forty years.”

Orpheus blushed, ducking his head slightly in embarrassment.

“I understand, Eurydice.” He offered his arm to her one more time. “Would you do me the honor of coming to dinner with me this evening? My experience will always be better if I have you alongside me.”

Eurydice tilted her head and studied him, reminding herself of her commitment to try to make this marriage work. It”s going to take some trial and error, isn”t it?

“I would love to.” Eurydice slid her arm through Orpheus”s and allowed him to escort her out of their home. The walk to dinner was a short one, several of the more grandiose mortal shades lived close to one another in the Underworld.

Eurydice could hear the party before she saw it, sounds of drunken revelry spilling out from the walled garden behind Perseus”s massive estate. It was even grander than the home Eurydice was forced to live in, and the very sight of it made her want to scowl. The marble steps leading up to the front door were covered in drunken bodies, women and men alike, sipping from shared jugs and in various stages of undress. Orpheus didn”t even react as he helped Eurydice navigate through the chaos, making Eurydice take note of his nonchalant reaction. I suppose that”s rather telling of the life he”s been used to living.

The scene inside Perseus”s house was even worse. There were bodies crammed from wall to wall, and everything smelled like alcohol and sweat. Orpheus tugged on Eurydice”s hand and dragged her to the dining hall, where the hallway opened up to a huge room that was open to the outdoors.

A long banquet table was set up, overflowing with an endless array of food and drink. There were no less than three suckling pigs over open fires and Eurydice counted a few nymphs there too.

Eurydice was no stranger to wild parties. She was a deity of the forest. Pan was her best friend, for the gods’ sake. No one threw a party like the creatures of the wild with Dionysus as their leader. The difference was palpable, however, and Eurydice knew this was the kind of party were everyone was ready to take advantage of one another, something that was vastly different from the dinners she was used to attending.

“Orpheus!” A loud voice called out over the cacophony of the hall. Eurydice turned her head and nearly spit in his face when she saw Perseus.

“My friend!” Orpheus laughed loudly, releasing Eurydice and opening his arms to embrace Perseus. The men embraced warmly, and Eurydice”s stomach turned.

“I can see you have finally brought your pretty muse around.” Perseus”s expression was lecherous as he shamelessly ogled Eurydice. “Although it is an interesting choice of dress she”s wearing. Do you intend to find a woman to take home for yourself dressed as a man, Eurydice?” Both Orpheus and Perseus broke out in exuberant laughter at that. Eurydice”s stomach dropped as she watched Orpheus nearly double over with the strength of his laughter.

Why the fuck are we together?

“Who gives a fuck if I do take a woman home?” Eurydice tilted her chin up and looked down on Perseus. “It”s not like we haven”t all heard the rumors about you and Polydectes.”

“All I ask,” Orpheus grabbed a goblet of wine from a passing servant, “is that if you take a woman home, make sure I get to come too.”

Perseus and Orpheus started laughing all over again, turning away from Eurydice and moving towards another group of drunken men. Eurydice didn”t care to follow and didn”t care to meet any more of Orpheus”s friends.

This entire thing was a mistake,Eurydice thought to herself, slipping away into the crowd and finding a quiet corner of the room to hide in.

I wish Pan were here.

For the next hour, Eurydice mingled with a few of the nymphs and dryads that were in attendance, watching Orpheus from afar. He got drunker and drunker, mingling with men who shamelessly harassed and ogled other partygoers. Eurydice was getting ready to slip out of the back and meet up with Orpheus later when she noticed him making his way to a raised dais at the far end of the room. She knew what was coming as soon as he stepped up above the crowd, plucking a lyre from somewhere within the mass of bodies.

“Attention!” Perseus shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth and getting everyone to quiet down. “The illustrious Orpheus has decided to give us a song, ladies and gentlemen! Let”s give him a hand.”

The party exploded as people started cheering, holding their hands up in the air and exalting Orpheus as if he was one of their gods. It was the first time that Eurydice got to see first-hand what sort of fame Orpheus had gotten used to while he was alive. It was daunting; an entire dining hall full of drunks dropped everything, including some of their wine cups, to hear Orpheus.

When Orpheus looked out over the crowd, his expression softened. There was a glimmer of something in his eyes that Eurydice could see all the way from the corner of the room. It sparked a little bit of remembrance in her, reminding her of a simpler time.

That was the Orpheus she remembered, the one who sang to her under the trees and wrote poetry on scraps of paper.

Orpheus held up his hand, and the applause quieted. Everyone went silent. His eyes scanned the room until they landed on Eurydice. He smiled warmly, his attention entirely focused on her. Eurydice”s heartbeat picked up, and a blush appeared on her cheeks. She wrapped her hands around herself as her stomach flipped. There was something heady and powerful about having all of Orpheus”s attention in a crowded room; the way he looked at her made her feel like the only woman in the world.

Orpheus adjusted the lyre and pushed back some of his hair, taking in a deep breath and preparing to sing. When the first few notes came out of his mouth, Eurydice nearly fell in love all over again. He sounded the way that spring felt to Eurydice. His singing reminded her of fresh flowers and fields drenched in sunlight. It was hypnotic.

“I would much prefer to see the lovely way she walks... and the radiant glance of her face...than the war chariots of the Lydians or their foot soldiers in a race…” Orpheus”s words hung in the air, and Eurydice”s heart softened. He continued to sing, and the entire crowd was raptured, not a single attendee walking away from the impromptu stage. No one even dared to breathe.

Orpheus finished, and the room exploded in applause once more. He held his hand out towards Eurydice, and she suddenly felt the weight of hundreds of pairs of eyes on her. Her heart jumped up into her throat; her blush deepened. Eurydice, through no fault of her own, was pulled toward the beautiful and wild things; she was a nymph, after all. When Orpheus sang, he was both beautiful and wild, and it was all that pulled her to him in the first place, all those years ago. She felt reckless and wild when he motioned for her to come up on the stage beside him, beckoning her, claiming her in front of the masses of people.

“Please, direct your warmth and applause to the love of my life, Eurydice. Without her, I would not exist. These songs would not exist. Give her your hands as she comes up on stage to join me.”

Eurydice said nothing but smiled gracefully as she moved through the crowds, people parting to make a path for her towards the dais. Orpheus”s hand was warm and soft as Eurydice slipped hers in his. He helped her step onto the dais and made room for her to stand beside him. Eurydice opened her mouth to address the room, planning on thanking them for the warm reception, but Orpheus seemed to sense her intention.

He quickly intercepted Eurydice, cupping her jaw with his hand and tilting her head towards him. Eurydice stiffened immediately, still unaccustomed to Orpheus”s touch unless she initiated it. Luckily, he didn”t kiss her on the mouth, but pressed a firm kiss to her cheek. The warm feeling in her chest disappeared, followed by a sinking feeling in her stomach.

I had no idea that a kiss could feel so much like a rebuke.

The crowd erupted anew at the sight of the affection between one of the Underworld”s most famous couples. Eurydice realized what Orpheus was doing with shocking clarity. She was only welcomed up on the stage next to him as a showpiece, as a decoration. He only saw her as a way to boost his own fame, and he kissed her to keep her quiet and give the audience something to talk about.

In front of such a crowd, Eurydice said nothing, but the tumultuous buzzing in her head wouldn”t stop. Her opinion about Orpheus changed every hour, and his behavior did too. Only minutes ago, she was won over once again with the memories of how it felt when he sang for her and her alone, but those days were long gone. Could she learn to love a man like this? Was it possible to reconcile this Orpheus with the one that she had very scant memories of?

Eurydice was lost again in the labyrinth of her thoughts, wishing there was someone who could tell her exactly what she was feeling so she didn”t need to decode her own emotions.

Orpheus said something else to the crowd that Eurydice didn”t catch, and then he launched into song again. Eurydice had no choice but to take another step back and watch Orpheus while she was now stuck up on the stage behind him like a tapestry.

“Your enticing laughter that indeed has stirred up the heart in my chest...For whenever I look at you even briefly, I can no longer say a single thing…” Orpheus crooned out over the audience, driving the watching crowd into a frenzy.

Eurydice spotted Perseus in the crowd, looking incredibly smug as he watched the stage and surveyed his own party.

He must be feeling very smug about this,Eurydice thought to herself. His reputation will surely skyrocket now that he got Orpheus performing with me standing beside him.

Eurydice sensed the thorns under her skin fidgeting and threatening to make an appearance.

Even the flowers in the wild were not objects only to be stared upon for their beauty. They fed the insects and strengthened the soil.

I am no mere flower, Orpheus, and I am not your object.