4
I bring my hands up to my head.
My crown is still there.
The feel of it beneath my fingertips is all that keeps me from sinking into the sand and crying my little eyes out.
Athena said the contest was moot. That we’re having a complete do-over. But she let me keep the crown. Is that her way of saying she’s rooting for me? Or does it just mean that she was afraid of crossing Hippolyta? Or did the gods just half-a*s this whole thing?
Either way, it’s a timely reminder. I won this once. I can do it again.
I am Brandee Jean. Maybe not yet the sss Queen, but at least a princess.
And anyway, having grown up with pageants, I know what it is to have a crown and then have to fight for it again.
One year, this cheese-of-the-month club had a pageant every month to celebrate their mailing. I
