The boy beamed. ‘Goddess Hekate,
when I am King of Ithaca,
we will raise a statue in your name.’
I managed a smile,
I could not imagine
what he possibly meant,
but he had called me Goddess.
‘Thank you,’ I whispered,
unable to think of anything else.
‘And what is your name?’
My voice wobbled this out.
The pup was now racing
around us barking playfully.
It wanted to go
and play, it seemed.
The boy stood up
and gently helped me to my feet.
‘My name is Prince Odysseus
and this is my dog Argos.’
Years from now, the poets
won’t tell this story.
But Odysseus’ name will be
as immortal as any God’s.
The Return
I was still trying to understand
what I had managed to do
when I realized that Thanatos
had brought me back to my palace.
This palace, which had never
quite felt like home, but now
