Word Count → 368 —
Artemis was an unknown god to her. Her mother was a Pantheist, but the deities they'd discussed didn't share a likeness to her name, which was to be expected. How haughty would her mother have to be to name her child for one of her own gods? If she'd known more about Eris' beliefs and this strange man's, she likely would have balked at the similarities between them. Both revered nature as sacred, but then again, her mother sacrificed things. A lot. The lamb by the river came to mind, blood staining its pristine white wool. Nonetheless, the term he used meant nothing to the girl. Artemis, she sent that word... Name, rather, to a chamber in her mind. Sirius would certainly be asked about the Greek gods in days to come. Grazie signore, thank you. My mom named me for wormwood, though,
She supplied after tumbling the idea over in her mind, turning the ore of idea into a gem of thought. An ingredient in absinthe, or something. Who is your... Your Artemis?
It was entirely possible that her meaning might be lost on him, but the name Artemis belonged to his culture, not hers.
'παιδί' was for someone younger, and his name was Athanasios Pace. It was a long name to say, she thought as he explained how this has provided him with some grief where he was from. The joke was lost on her though, and she thought for a moment that she was really meant to say his whole name five times, as quickly as she could. He went on to say another word, Αδελφόι, for 'the Brothers', another trinket to remember for later. Thanos,
She tested the shortened equivalent of his name and decided that, yes, she liked it. Nodding her approval, she peered into his mask as she sat across from him, looking now from his walking stick to the item on his face. What hides your face from me, signore?
Her mother had something similar for ritualistic purposes, but this was the first time she'd really starting thinking about the significance of such an item. Seen and yet unseen, her riddle came rushing back. Could this be the answer she sought?
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