Orphia and Eurydicius by Elyse John

Author:Elyse John
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers
Published: 2023-03-18T00:00:00+00:00

They were weeks, not years. Yet every week felt like a year, and each day contained more joy than I had known in all my years; in my breaks I would seek him out, and together we would slip out of the Muses’ walls, rambling amongst the pools and the outcrops of pale pink limestone. Sometimes we took off our sandals and walked barefoot on the grass. We swam in the lake, splashing each other, diving beneath the skin of mirrored sunlight. At times, we sat in the shallows, touching each other until our breath quickened.

Sprawled on the shore, we poked at ideas, discussing and debating. Eurydicius’ mind was always asking questions, and mine was always looking for patterns, and we turned over issues of philosophy, science and politics. Hours would slip by without my noticing the sun dropping in the sky.

‘Do you believe that life is ultimately tragic?’ His words quivered between us.

‘Melpomene says so, but it stands to reason that the Muse of Tragedy would see things that way.’ I allowed myself to ponder it for a moment. ‘I cannot agree with her. As I see it, life teems with tragedies. But one may always choose how to respond to them.’

‘And what of the gods and goddesses, knocking us down with the backs of their hands, sometimes on purpose, sometimes by chance?’ he replied. ‘What of the Oracle and the other seers who pierce the future with their gaze? Surely, you could say that your life and mine were determined long ago.’

‘Look at Jason. The heir with one sandal, returning to challenge his uncle, just as the prophecy has it. Yet whether he proves himself to be the true heir will rely on more than just a sandal. How he treats his crew and the people he meets on his quest will matter more than a prediction, I think.’

‘Do you truly believe our lives are our own to shape?’ His brow wrinkled.

‘I must believe it.’ I did not want to add more, for I feared that I had betrayed my need to see my own life as a series of choices. With choice, I might carve out a glorious destiny – one that might lead others to raise their voices and hold their heads high in the face of the arrows of doubt. If all things were set in place, I knew where my road would end.

We exchanged views on morality: on the need to show kindness to strangers, and when it was right to use force against others. With a little coaxing, Eurydicius explained that his parents’ farm had been raided and plundered when he was a young boy. His father had lacked the will to fight, while his mother had lacked the means. Eurydicius had watched his father carry on tending to his cattle and fields and his mother continue cooking and cleaning, and in time they had been robbed again. It was then that he had begun making shields.

‘Another man would have sought to kill the thieves,’ I said.

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