How to be an Eris

Annoying...

Meda

I let out a shaky breath as my feet pounded against the sticky, damp black pavement below me that reeked of stale alcohol. Brick walls, dimly lit by one flickering streetlight, framed the alleyway I had so dumbly run through. My feet were moving so fast I could barely feel them, thanks to years of vigorous training in track back at school—and the angry shouts coming from the men who were hot on my tail.

I clutched onto my helmet, trying to figure out my next move, nearly running into a fence that told me there was nowhere else to run. As I came to an abrupt halt, I let out a groan.

“Goddammit, Meda! Have you learned nothing from the countless movies you've watched?” I scolded myself under my breath.

This always happens. The beautiful heroine runs down a dark path only to be caught at a dead end, and somehow, a handsome knight in shining armor shows up to save the day.

The thing was, I was no heroine. The people out for my blood had valid reasons to beat me to a pulp, and there most certainly was no man insane enough to get himself caught up in the mess that was my life.

“Looks like it’s the end of the road, sweetheart.”

I smirked and turned around, lifting up my helmet, then threw it as hard as I could at one of my attackers.

I laughed as blood trickled down his nose and he fell to the floor with a loud thud, knocked out cold.

My laughter was cut short when I noticed it had caused my helmet to crack.

Damn… That was my favorite helmet!

Five meatheads were now glaring daggers my way, standing about ten feet away from me.

“f**k, Meda! What the hell was that for?” said one of them.

Feigning innocence, I walked up to their leader—a tall, burly man whose red beard was so thick, it almost made up for his receding hairline that nearly shone in the moonlight.

“You’re not still angry with me, are you? It was just an innocent little joke…” I trailed my index finger around his chest and batted my eyes, looking as apologetic as possible.

His eyes softened for a quick second before he shook it off and scoffed.

“That s**t isn’t going to work this time, Meda. I’ve fallen for your tricks for the last time!”

I looked him in the eyes, leaning closer to him. I could feel the warmth irradiating behind my eyes and knew that by this time, my eyes had turned bright yellow.

He gulped as a bead of sweat trickled down his face.

“You sure about that, hon?”

His eyes were locked on mine. He tried to open his mouth to respond, but no words came out. I brought my index finger up and traced his parted, trembling bottom lip.

“Your men are weaklings without you. That’s what you get for hanging out with mortals. I’m sure it strokes your bat-s**t crazy ego to be the strongest in your little gang, doesn’t it, Toby?”

His eyes started slowly glowing white as he fought against my pull. I knew my hold on him wouldn’t last for long, so I quickly grabbed a small black apple from the fanny pack I had strapped around my waist.

“This has been fun and all, but I’ve got places to go, and people to see. Bye, hun.”

I took a tiny bite of the apple, and soon his face started fading away. A swoosh of air surrounded me, and my body felt as light as air.

After a minute, I landed on my feet and looked around.

This is not my house…

I looked around and scoffed.

Figures that stupid apple would take me anywhere but where I wanted to go. My mother made it, after all…

I took out my phone and checked the GPS.

Madrid, Spain...

I was standing on top of a building, overlooking the picturesque city. Busy humans bustled around the crowded streets below, and a chilling breeze whipped against my face, sending my dark, curly, jet-black locks slapping against my cheeks.

Annoying…

I sat down on the edge of the roof of this upscale building, letting out a sigh. I was about thirty stories high, and it would take me days to walk down the emergency stairs if I wanted to go unnoticed.

It was a beautiful town, at least. Something about city lights always made me feel so alive. The parties, the noise, the chaos...

Definitely my kind of scene.

Another gust of wind made me shiver, and I caught a golden cloud forming beside me.

“Not now…”

“Meda, aren’t you tired of running?” said an angelic yet taunting voice.

A dark figure made its presence known behind me. I turned around and looked it up and down.

There stood a beautiful woman whose face—thanks to a bath in the Fountain of Youth like most gods took at a certain age—looked just like mine... if I were ten years older, that is, around thirty-one in mortal years.

Big, bold honey-brown eyes rimmed with dark Egyptian-style eyeliner. Plump, plum-tinged lips. A small, symmetrical, perfectly shaped nose. And long blonde hair that nearly flowed to the floor. Her skin was lighter than mine, but still tan, making her resemble a Persian goddess.

She wore her usual violet toga dress that flawlessly floated beneath her, as she refused to walk on mortal ground. She was adorned with golden jewelry, including a headband and arm cuffs shaped like twin snake heads coiled around her arms. I felt a twinge in my heart until I noticed that her eyes quickly flashed into a different color.

“Nice try, Hali Rae.”

She smirked, and what seemed like water began melting down her body, only to be sucked up into a golden Grecian gourd I hadn’t noticed she was carrying.

I watched as her skin turned into a beautiful dark coffee color, and her body shrank to around five feet tall. Her hair shortened and formed into wild, loose curls that reached her midriff. Her bust grew, and her eyes transformed into a bright, shiny ocean-blue.

I raised an eyebrow at her.

“Why would you shapeshift into Eris? Are you trying to get attacked?”

She scoffed and sent me a smirk.

“You and I both know you would never lay a hand on her.”

I shrugged my shoulders.

“True... She is my mother at the end of the day, even if she sometimes makes me want to gouge my eyes out. I still hate her guts,” I said through gritted teeth.

She walked beside me happily and plopped down on the ledge, her feet dangling off the side.

“So, what brings you here?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

“The waters told me you were lost. Thought I’d come give my dumb best friend a hand.”

I shot her a goofy smile.

Hali Rae was always there to help me. She was a sea goddess and Proteus’s daughter, but she spent most of her time being my partner in crime and bailing me out of trouble. I’d have to repay her someday.

“Tobias is out for blood again,” I smirked.

She rolled her eyes.

“What in the heavens did you do this time, Meda?”

I shrugged and turned back to look out at the city lights, which made her let out a defeated sigh.

“Fine, don’t tell me. But let’s go before you get bored again.”

She stood up, brushing off her now creamy white toga, and extended a hand toward me. I grabbed it and gave her a smile as she helped me up.

“Where to?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I don’t know. Haven’t thought that far yet.”

She unfastened her gourd and opened the lid.

Soon, I felt myself being lifted off the ground as water surrounded us and hurled us off the side of the building toward the street. We dropped at an inhuman speed—something I had learned to get used to.

We landed in a matter of seconds, astounding a few bystanders, whom we ignored.

“Do you have any money? My dad will track us if we keep using magic, and I’m on restriction right now. Left a water clone pretend-sleeping in my bed,” she said.

“Nope.” I shrugged.

“Tell me how you survive in the mortal world again?”

“I have my ways...”

I gave her a coy smile and tugged on her arm while I stuck out my hand, flagging down a black-and-yellow taxi.

I opened the door and pushed her in, climbing in after her.

“Buenas noches,” I said, then asked the driver in Spanish to take us to the nearest mall.

The taxi ride was mostly quiet, but I could feel a burning sensation radiating from beside me. It was almost physically painful.

I turned to find my best friend glaring at me, skepticism burning in her fiery eyes. She didn’t need to speak—I knew she was wondering how the hell we were going to pay for the ride. When I smiled at her sweetly, she rolled her eyes.

After about twenty minutes, we came to a halt outside a fancy-looking mall. The middle-aged taxi driver turned to us and held out his hand.

My eyes began to heat up as I used my cunning on him. He stared deeply into mine, and his irises started glowing bright yellow.

Hali rolled her eyes again, stepping out of the car and muttering under her breath. I laughed and followed her.

She looked at me.

“Now that you’ve messed with that poor man’s mind and he’ll be dazed for days... what’s your plan?”

I pulled her into the mall and led her to a nice little boutique. My eyes browsed the racks until they landed on two perfect outfits.

I dragged Hali Rae into the dressing rooms. She put on her outfit and came out, glaring at me.

She looked absolutely stunning, wearing a high-waisted black flared mini skirt, a tight golden sequin crop top, and a black leather mini jacket on top.

I went in next and changed into nearly the same outfit, except my crop top was blue, and my waist was still adorned with my fanny pack.

“Okay, Meda... now that we look like matching Aphrodites, can you tell me what you’re planning?”

“Clubbing, what else?” I grinned. “Now come on, Hali! I’m getting bored—and you and I both know what happens when I’m bored.”