Flashback
sometime in the year 329 SKR
Miranda Page had already been chosen to be a Priestess of Idun well before she reached the age of 14, but that did not mean she was happy with it. While some of the concepts certainly spoke to her, the fact that she was not given a choice was really starting to bother her. She was taking the long way between her studies and her foster home, taking the alley near the Greek church when she saw a pretty girl, a few years younger sitting in the shadows all alone. Thinking his would be an excellent excuse for being late and would sound good to the priestess if, well when they found out, Miranda decided to stop and chat. She sat down, close but not too close.
"Hey, hope you don't mind if I sit here. Trying to avoid adults, just for a little bit. I'm Miranda. How you doing today?
The young girl stared at Miranda and slowly inhaled, trying to be subtle. Emerald had a strong sense of smell which sometimes helped her in detecting danger. In this case, Miranda smelled like apples which made Emerald feel safe. And hungry. It also made Emerald feel as though she was around someone...fancy. Apples were very scarce in the temple and were splendid treats. Miranda looked too cute to be dangerous anyhow. She had wide-set, almond-shaped eyes with a tiny nose. Emerald often converted how a person looked as a human, into how they would look as an animal. Emerald quickly decided that Miranda would be a chipmunk.
Emerald straightened her posture and glanced down at the book in her lap. Emerald loved books. She often attempted to look through the Guild's windows hoping to glimpse the walls and walls of books housed there. Alas, she was never able to see them. One day...one day, she hoped she would. Emerald made sideways eye contact with Miranda and replied, "I'm, uh, well, thank you...um...milady. Um...I'm readin' a book about Brauron. It's, um, by someone who, um, says they know all about the arktoi?." Emerald held her breath for a moment, shook her head, and blew out hard, "But I don't know if I believe it. It could just be pretend." She relaxed her posture and leaned her chin into her hand. Her head naturally tilted towards Miranda as her elbow rested on her knee.
Miranda was taken aback. Not only was this girl not in trouble, she was also pretty smart judging by the book she was reading. On top of that, Miranda was pretty sure that she was talking Greek, or about Greeks. Her plan was falling apart fast but at least she had an out.
"Wow, you're smart. I really like books too, but it seem like you might be part of a Greek family and I am with the Norse church, I am learning to help in the orphanage. I'm not sure your parents would be happy with me talking to you and the only way my teachers would be happy is if you want to learn about Norse traditions?"
Miranda waited to see if she was right, she did not want to hurt her feeling but she was not sure she was ready to try and convert someone.
“You’re Norse?” Emerald whispered as her eyes widened. “Splendid!” she exclaimed. “Oh, and my parents wouldn’t mind because,” she proudly pounded on her chest and said, “I’m an orphan.” She straightened her posture again. “And oooohhh are you right about teachers being unhappy about us talking!” Emerald pointed to the ground, “But look---Gaea has not split open and swallowed us whole!” She laughed at herself. “Priest Stiros taught us a little bit about Odin. Stiros said that Odin was just a story that people thought was real.” She paused, recalling a memory. “Yeah, he got real mad at me when I asked if Zeus was just a story that people thought was real.” Emerald blew a raspberry towards the Greek temple. “Then I said that Odin and Zeus should meet, and I got in REALLY bad trouble.”
She furrowed her brow. “I am not sure if I’m Greek or not. I am grateful that they let me stay here and read all their books. Do Norse people get to eat a lot of apples?” She sighed and said, “Even if I wanted to learn Norse, I am very busy,” she said seriously. “I’m nine years old. I have to learn the lyra, yuck, and how to speak a language, ugh.” She rolled her eyes. “So I chose to learn Goblin language! Oh, and that made Priest Daskalos mad.” She laughed at herself again. “All I really want to learn is magic,” her shoulders slumped, “but they tell me it’s never the right time. Will it EVER be the right time?!” She threw her hands up in the air out of frustration. Her book fell out of her lap. She picked it up then stood. “You’re right. We prolly shouldn’t be talking.”
Miranda tried to speak more than once while the younger, bolder, prettier Greek version of herself spoke the words that she would have like to say herself at one time. She had been warned many times that she was to stay focused on her priestly teaching and priestly duties, least she fall into disfavor at best. She could this little bundle of spunk and energy lead her quickly to that dark path.She knew she must act quickly.
Leaning away and standing slow enough as to not tumble the girl, she tried to hide the emotions and speak calm. "Perhaps when you have more time."
She stood above her for a just a moment, making sure her calculations were correct, but yes for sure. "I wish you well in your studies, even the ones you do not wish to learn."
Miranda thought she might have taken a casual moment to touch someone, teach someone or make a change in their life, but she had an off feeling that quite the opposite had happened. She had been touched, maybe even tested. Now the question was, did she pass or did she fail.
Loosend is a big city, especially for young girls, even more so for young girls focusing on their studies and avoiding the temptation of others. Friends rarely run into each other randomly, especially if they have different circles. Strangers seldom realize how often they pass by each other, but start to recognize some of the faces. For Miranda, the city seemed full of strangers and one green eyed girl that seemed to float to the surface of the sea of people every once in a while. Sometimes she would be a glimpse out of the corner of Miranda’s eye, other times she would have to change her path to avoid her but every time the emotion would come back and that was Miranda’s weakness. The other orphan that reminded Miranda of her other dream that the priestess called a distraction.
But Miranda was a good girl for awhile, it must have been almost 4 years before she ran into her alternate self up close. She was in the final stages of study and training to become a first level dagger for ‘[Idun]], her task at the moment was trying to control a pair of orphaned boys and a dog while walking an equally energetic puppy. She knew it was really more about tiring them all out, herself included, but she was focused, and dedicated, or so she thought. She lost track of who was leading whom when the pup got loose and bumped into you know who. and knocked her down. Miranda just stood there stunned, face to face, as the boys and the puppy jumped on her like it was a game. Miranda tried not to see it as a sign and she pulled the off and apologized.
‘I am so sorry, Buddy can be a little over friendly and Terry and Barry, well... they’re just as young relatively.... Oh do I know you?” She tried to hide the acknowledgment that she knew.
Emerald was so surprised by the puppy jumping on her, that she fumbled and dropped the book she'd been carrying. She couldn't decide if she should worry about the book or play with the puppy. She laughed and clambered to her feet, grabbed her book, and attempted to settle the excited pup. Emerald realized that the puppy's owner had spoken to her and glanced up to see a womanly version of a girl she met long ago.
Emerald paused with discomfort and decided to ignore the question, but stay cordial. "You seem to have your hands quite full!"
"Yea, inside they entertain each other so well, but training all of them requires trips outside. I think the High Priests wanted to teach me a lesson. Please I am sorry. I hope your book is not ruined. What are you reading? "Miranda asks with true curiosity and a bit of envy.
Emerald hesitated. She would never forget the punishment she received at the hands of Priest Stiros after sharing her exciting news of "meeting a Norse lady." The Priest forced her to hop on one leg until she urinated on herself. It was a cruel awakening for her and her first lesson in politics. While the Greeks never officially warred with the Norse, there was always a tacit distance between the cultures. Greeks hired the Norse as bodyguards and viewed them as expendable...uncultured. The Norse believed the Greeks to be lazy and spineless. It was a symbiotic relationship steeped in Greek riches and Norse blood lust. Every now and then, someone crossed the cultural line and would, quietly, pray a price. The Greeks disliked that the Norse were transparent in their intentions, sharing information among the ranks. The Greeks referred to this as immodesty. The Norse, on the other hand, found the Greeks to be secretive and treacherous. The Norse referred to this as dishonorable. Over the centuries, the two cultures found common ground and common enemies which sustained a precarious balance. Each needed the other and found a way to coexist.
The punishment was so traumatic that she forgot the woman's name, but never her face. "The book is fine," Emerald replied curtly, "I'm reading the Origin of Magical Species." Emerald bowed her head once out of courtesy and averted her gaze to avoid continuing the conversation. Her face reddened.
The hairs on the back of Miranda's neck stood on end. Never had anyone reacted to her in this way. She did not know what she had done but she knew this was not the time to try and fix this. She went down on one knee under the false pretense of gathering her charges. She spoke quietly before she rose. "I admire your dedication and strength. I will not be in your way again." Then she rose and guided the little ones along their way home. She thought long and hard about what she might have done, why such a bright young woman would avoid her. Maybe she was just more focused on what she was doing, maybe Miranda had to be even more focused herself. Only time would tell.
