They sat together on the hill, overlooking the beautiful marble city, the sun setting to a brilliant red and orange hue. The moon sleepily peeped from behind a soft cloud, as though it were a silvery maiden peering from behind a curtain, watching to see if her more splendid brother had retired for the night, but Apollo was not done with his fantastic show. Sulkily, the Moon goddess, Selene, waited behind her curtain. A warm evening breeze complimented the scene, as the young couple cuddled into each other closer. 1
"The night is so beautiful when its like this." sighed the young girl.2
The young man smiled, and raised her chin until she was looking directly at him. "Not as beautiful as you, Spuria." She blushed, and tucked her chin in, bashfully.3
The moon had now fully risen, its silvery beauty bathing the hills and city in an other-worldly light.4
These two did not want to meet out in the coldness of night, away from the city, but theirs was an forbidden love. She was the daughter of a rich senator, he was merely the son of an old washerwoman. They had seen each other across the courtyard of her father's villa one morning, as she was taking her lessons, and he was carrying goods to the kitchen. The moment they laid eyes on each other, they knew that their paths lay together, whether that path lead to death, or heaven.5
He looked down at her, curling her ebony hair around his forefinger, thanking Zeus that he had the chance to lay with this beauty, nay, even to be allowed the chance to look upon her. 6
"We should run away together." he suddenly said, a defiant look of determination burning in his blue eyes. "We'll never be together properly if we stay here, we'll always have to hide in the shadows, creep around others, never walk together in the sunshine, never be able to marry each other."7
"Marry......? You...you want to marry me?" A look of wonderment fell over her face and she smiled, a ray of sunshine to Ovidius, as he was called.8
"Yes." he replied softly. "I wish to marry you, and I wish for you to have my children."9
"Oh, Ovidius." She breathed, looking at him with shining eyes. "I want nothing better. Yes, we shall leave here. I will find what money and provisions I can from my father's villa tomorrow, and we shall flee tomorrow night. Where will we go?"10
Ovidius shrugged. "I don't care, as long as I can be with you every day for the rest of my life."11
They smiled at one another, tenderly kissed, and slowly rose to walk down the hill. They walked through the streets of Athens, by-passing poor and rich alike; dirty clothed children begging for crusts, rich patrons of the city being carried by silent servants. Spuria's father's villa was close to the centre of the city, its yellowy-white marble almost overlooking the fountains of the palace. Date palm trees adorned the mosaic-tiled pathway to the front archway, their fronds floating in the gentle wind.12
"Till tomorrow night. When our lives begin." whispered Spuria, kissing Ovidius tenderly on the lips.13
"Till tomorrow night." he repeated, holding her close for a moment, before begrudgingly letting her go.14
Unknown to them, Spuria's father watched them silently from a darkened window. 15
His face clouded over with unimaginable fury.16
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"NO!NO! Leave him alone!" Spuria's pleas fell on deaf ears. 18
Early that morning, her father had gathered all the men in the villa, to find where the boy was-and condemn him to death.19
"How dare you lie with my daughter you unworthy little shit! You will burn in Tartarus for what you have done!" Ovidius was dragged to the courtyard, kicking and cursing, Spuria screaming and pleading behind them, tears streaming down her cheeks.20
He was tied to one of the date palm trees, which was then set alight. 21
"NO!" Spuria screamed, she felt as though her insides were tearing apart and twisting.22
"Spuria! Meet me in the Fields of Ellysius, I will wait for you!" Ovidius shouted over the roar of the flames, bravely choosing not to scream, not to give Spuria's father the pleasure. 23
I love you, Spuria mouthed, tears so thick that she could barely see in front of her.24
I love you too Spuria, Ovidius mouthed back, as the flames grew higher and blackened his face.25
Her father turned to her, the glow from the flames reddening his face evilly. "You see what you have done! You shall be banished to a convent and never spoken off in this house again, you whore!"26
"AHHH!" Spuria howled at her father, pure hatred burning blackly amid her tears. "You will pay more than you can ever imagine for what you have done today. You have turned my soul black and you shall feel all of it before long!"27
Having said this, she ran from the courtyard, from the crowded streets of Athens, high into the hills, to where she and her soulmate used to meet in secret. She flung herself onto the hot grass, screaming and pulling at the grass as though she wished the world to end.28
"Gods!GODS!" She yelled to the heavens. "If you are merciful, give me the means to get my lover's revenge! Give me the means to fill this hole within me! HELP ME!" Her voice broke and she fell to the ground, sobbing.29
"Arise." spoke a soft voice, gentle and warm.30
Spuria looked up, silenced for a moment by the softness of the voice. Standing before her, was a lovely young woman, tall but delicate looking, chocolate-brown hair twisted around her shoulders, dressed in a pale blue toga. Spuria immediately knew who the vision was. 31
"Psyche." She breathed.32
The woman smiled, and nodded. "The gods have seen what happened Spuria, and they are angry with your father, they have taken pity on your plight. You shall be given the means to get Ovidius' revenge, that is," here, she paused, "that is, if you are willing to pay for it."33
"Anything! The gods have my life, my soul, my service. Just please let me make those responsible pay."34
Psyche smiled again, warmly, and touched Spuria lightly on the shoulder. "It shall be done, and not only that, I shall make sure you and Ovidius are together. I know what it is to have a love no others wish you to have."35
"Thank you! Thank you!" Spuria sobbed gratefully, a great light of hope shining through her.36
"You shall take the guise of a wolf each night, under the moon where you and your soulmate met so lovingly each night. I shall persuade Persephone and Hades to allow Ovidius to return to this world, but he shall be under the same conditions as you."37
"It does not matter." smiled Spuria. "As long as we are together."38
Psyche touched Spuria on the shoulder one last time and vanished. Spuria fell asleep on the grassy hill.39
She awoke many hours later, when the air was now cool, and owls called to one another. Remembering what Psyche had told her, she began to feel a change in her self. She had never known such pain, as her bones shifted and crunched, but she thought of her beloved Ovidius and the pain felt of nothingness.40
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Her wolf form was very different. Spuria found she could smell better, could see sharper, could move faster. The streets of Athens seemed unrecognisable to her, but she could smell where her father's villa was, the smell of hatred and murderousness, mixed with the terrible tang of burned meat.42
My lover's body, Spuria thought to herself, the flames of hatred burning brightly within her once again.43
She tore through arches and curtains, till she reached the great hall, where her father sat merrily laughing and eating with her other relatives.44
Holding back a tear in her wolfen eye, she thought of her lover's arms around her, his laughter tinkling merrily, his soft lips.......she thought about it and fanned the flames within her, until they were white hot. 45
On the wind blown through the hall, sent by Aeolus, she heard the chattering and laughter of the merry-makers at the table. Her father's voice came to her first.46
"...and that I-I! Should pay! A menancing threat indeed from a mere girl-nay, a mere whore!"47
The hall broke into laughter and roars of approval.48
"That boy was no good anyway. Always dropping things, never been quick enough. He's probably better off dead!"49
More roars of approval. Her father sat, looking very pleased with himself.50
How can he be so heartless, she thought, as to not care that he just took a man's life-and in effect, took mine, his own daughter's?51
A tear rolled onto her black fur. He had never been a real father to her, he had always said that he hated the fact she reminded him of her dead mother. He had loved her mother when she was alive, and had been bright and happy. But she had died giving birth to Spuria. This, combined with the fact Spuria was not born a boy, had made him bitter and twisted inside, secretly blaming Spuria for her mother's death.52
Although Spuria knew this, and had happily lived with it for her whole life, as he had been civil and fair to her, she never thought he would be happy with this. Was this his revenge?53
No matter, she thought to herself, wiping the tear with a soft paw down her snout, Hades shall return my lover's life, and take yours in return....54
Spuria slowly and menancingly padded into the hall, and jumped on the table. All of her family fell silent. She walked along the table, stopped before her father, and growled low in her throat, a single tear escaping the amber wolfen eye. The last sight he ever saw was the black, angry wolf-form of his daughter, just before she went for his throat.55
None of the people sat at the table escaped their fate.56
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Spuria wearily collapsed onto the hillside, as daylight broke through the velvet-black clouds of night. Silently, but painfully, Spuria's body shifted back into her small, tired body, her black hair falling onto her shoulders.58
Someone picked her up from the hillside. Wearily, she turned her head to look, and smiled, joyfully.59
"Ovidius." She croaked, weakly.60
"Spuria." His handsome face leant down to kiss her, and he squeezed her closer. "I told you we would be together."61
Spuria happily nuzzled her face into his chest as he carried her into the woods, where they soon couldn't be seen in the shade of the trees......62
(more two though)
Gold trophy winner
Silver trophy winner
Bronze trophy winner
Honorable winner
Adding your comment:
I'm a fan of ALL mythology. This really caught my eye. Perfect names, they fit the characters well. Best of luck! 
