Page 12 of Song of Memories

She let herself get lost in the sensation, opting for his placating words instead of the chaos that was bubbling right under the surface of her skin. It was an uncomfortable feeling, this notion that there were things unsaid between them, but she had no idea where to start.

Eurydice didn’t know how much time had passed before Orpheus kissed her forehead, murmuring gentle words against her skin.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Yes,” Eurydice sighed softly, allowing herself to surrender to the blissful feeling of being lead. There was one thing that she didn’t always mind whenever she was with Orpheus—he’d always make decisions for her, and sometimes, like this exact moment, she didn’t have any desire to pushback.

“Excellent. You probably were feeling overwhelmed. I’ll be the first one to admit that it’s…heavy seeing you again. I’ve missed you, Eurydice, but my goodness, is it something to see you again after all of these years.”

Orpheus smiled down at her, and for a second, Eurydice thought he was going to kiss her, but he seemed to change his mind at the last moment. There was something in his eyes that Eurydice couldn’t exactly pin down; it flickered for a brief second and was gone.

“Charon told me there’s a small homestead for me somewhere in this valley,” Orpheus grinned, “or off in Elysium, I think he said. I’ll be honest, I was a little preoccupied so I may have missed most of his orientation speech.”

Eurydice giggled at the idea of Charon monotoning his way through another ‘here’s what you need to know now that you’re dead’ monologue.

“I would assume Elysium, yes,” Eurydice smiled, “but we can always ask Makaria. Some souls don’t want a home in the Underworld. They prefer to remain more incorporeal, but others are much happier with a physical home, reminiscent of their time in the mortal world. I would assume you’re one of the latter?”

“Of course. A man needs his land,” Orpheus smiled, reaching down to grab Eurydice’s hand and giving it a soft squeeze. “Let’s go get your things, wherever they are, and then we can sort out where they’ve put me.”

Eurydice paused for a second, a cold chill running through her.

“…grab my things?”

“Well, of course,” Orpheus’s smile widened. “You’ll be coming to stay with me, wherever that is, won’t you? It wouldn’t do to have a wife sleeping apart from her husband.” Orpheus tugged on Eurydice’s hand and brought her closer to his body, his voice dropping lower. “Besides, we got so little time together in the mortal world once we were wed. I’ve technically never claimed my husband’s rights.”

He waggled his eyebrows in a way that was clearly supposed to be half-seductive and half-joking, but it only made Eurydice’s stomach sink lower.

“Yes, of course.” She forced a small grin on her face. “Of course I’ll be staying with you.” Eurydice forced herself not to think about surrendering her place in the forests of Asphodel, of saying goodbye to her refuge of trees and nymphs, and forgoing it all to live with Orpheus. The four stone walls of a mortal’s home had always felt like a trap to Eurydice, and it was something she had told him many times leading up to their wedding when they were alive.

He probably just forgot, Eurydice began bargaining with herself, keeping a placating grin on her face. You can always discuss it later. There’s no need to start fighting right now, not so soon after we’ve been reunited. It’s going to take time to get used to one another again. Yes, that’s it. It’s going to take some time.

Orpheus seemed completely unaware of the inner turmoil Eurydice was sorting through.

“Excellent.” Orpheus winked. “Lead the way.”

Eurydice nodded, and they began walking through the valley of Asphodel, Eurydice lost in her thoughts as she tried to reconcile everything she was feeling with the solid, nearly ominous presence of Orpheus in the flesh beside her.

He immediately launched into a series of stories regarding his last few days in the mortal world, leading up to his death, and Eurydice pretended to listen to his depictions of grandeur, wondering all the while if he would ever stop to ask her a single question about how she’d spent her decades without him.

Reunions are meant to be this overwhelming…right?

7

Eurydice was struck by the awkward silence that befell her and Orpheus as they made their way through the valley of Asphodel. It wasn’t comfortable. Even after decades apart, it should at the very least be comfortable to reunite with one’s spouse…right? Eurydice’s thoughts were spinning as she tried to focus on the sinking feeling in her stomach.

She spared a quick glance at Orpheus, trying to discern the expression on his face. He seemed content, if a little puzzled, which was likely how anyone felt arriving in the Underworld. It was not every day that a mortal died—although mortals died every day. The experience was incredibly personal. Eurydice knew that much from spending forty years in the Underworld. The memories of her life in Greece were all but background noise now, practically impossible to distinguish from a dream.

While he had undoubtedly aged throughout his lifespan, he’d reverted to the Orpheus that Eurydice recognized; if she could say she recognized him at all. He looked truly, from his head to his toes, like a favorite of Apollo. In the sunlight, he could even pass for Apollo’s son. Orpheus was impossibly charming, with clear green eyes and curly blonde hair.

One thing that Eurydice would never be able to forget was the constant barrage of comments she got from her fellow nymphs and dryads. They all fell in love with Orpheus at first glance. He had an ethereal beauty that was uncommon for human men, therefore ensnaring all the forest folk, but Eurydice viewed it differently. Orpheus was attractive, no person with vision could deny it, but she saw those pretty features every time she looked at a flower or a tree full of spring blooms. Orpheus’s beauty wasn’t uncommon; it was only uncommon in men.

If people looked beyond their own noses at the world around them more often, Orpheus’s beauty wouldn’t astound them so.

Eurydice almost physically recoiled at her own sharp thoughts, a sense of guilt beginning to stir with the nausea she hadn’t been able to shake.

That’s a horrible thing to say about your husband…

As if he could read her thoughts, Orpheus chose that moment to reach across the short distance between them and gently capture Eurydice’s hand in his. She fumbled for a quick second, unaccustomed to the casual touch, before rather awkwardly interlacing her fingers with Orpheus’s. Eurydice picked her head up and met Orpheus’s gaze, her heart lifting to find a pleasant smile now etched across his features.

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