Hera gazed at Metis; her golden eyes were limpid as a mirror, and she said earnestly and resolutely, "Metis, I don't know why Zeus has not yet borne a dear child with you, when your essence is so great and bright."
"However, I believe He surely has grander, more comprehensive plans."
"But from today on—"
She tightened her grip on Metis's hands, her words falling into her heart like a shaft of light: "I want you to become a mother to the child in my womb as well. You have shared your true love with me; only thus can I answer you."
"Please, be this child's one and only godmother! Please shine the radiance of wisdom upon His path of growth, with loving-kindness!"
"This is not just my esteem for you; it is the child's greatest honor."
"As the mothers of the God-King's firstborn, I hope it is you and I—together."
The goddess of wisdom, whose beautiful eyes had always held endless insight, opened them wide at once.
Shock, stupefaction, disbelief surged in layered waves like a tsunami.
The feeling of the inconceivable shot through her tranquil divinity in an instant.
She was truly, utterly stunned.
She knew Hera was gentle, loving, and noble in divine character; that she had come today must be to apologize out of guilt.
But she had never imagined Hera could do this!
For a Great Mother Goddess to be willing to share her child with another was like cutting out her own heart!
All the more when this was her firstborn—and the God-King's firstborn!
At the side, Eurynome—who had kept silent, only watching with careful attention—was likewise overwhelmed, unable to help drawing a sharp breath.
A thin "hiss" was clearly heard in the hall; even the air seemed to quiver with her sudden intake.
But she quickly pressed down her feelings, not daring to disturb this most sacred moment.
She looked at her elder sister, then at Hera, and in her heart a flower opened—both sour and sweet.
"Hera, you… I…" Even Metis, who had achieved perfect, supreme wisdom, found herself for a moment at a loss for words.
She drew a deep breath, forcing the violently heaving tide of her heart to calm, and only then spoke softly and solemnly: "Dear Hera, there's no need—truly none. You need not make such a sacrifice."
"How… how could I encroach upon your great honor as a mother-goddess? That is your supreme, holy right!"
"We are the best of friends. I… I cannot accept it—no, I cannot."
Hera only smiled serenely, with a firmness and relief she had never shown before. She said softly, "Dear Metis, how is this encroachment? It is my willing sharing. It is of my own accord; it is my true heart."
She leaned forward slightly, her tone soft to near entreaty: "For you, so wise and pure, to be this child's godmother—that too is the child's supreme honor."
"Dear Metis, please do not refuse me, else my divinity will never know a moment of peace."
"Generous Metis, what could be greater than the sacrifices you have made for us? You sacrificed everything for love; how could I let you be alone?"
"Are we not the best of friends? Are we not one family of gods? Since we are, why should you refuse?"
"If a child can have the love and instruction of two mother-goddesses, will not His future be the happier?"
"Surely… you do not despise the child?"
Metis shook her head again and again, nearly tripping over her denial, and said urgently, "No, no, no! How could that be? Impossible!"
Her heart was a tangle of feelings; she laughed softly, then sighed: "This… this is what I have dreamed of, yet never dared to hope for."
"Only…" Metis hesitated deeply. She truly wished to accept, and truly could not bear to accept.
So she found a pretext: "Dear Hera, I would indeed be most willing—and most joyful—only, this child is, after all, Zeus's firstborn. Will He consent?"
At that Hera let out a soft hum, with a trace of willful pride even she did not notice; her tone was gentle, yet admitted no dissent: "Dear Metis, you need not worry about that."
"I have not yet accepted becoming Zeus's wife, so as to everything concerning the child—I decide!"
"Moreover, since this is what we both wish, what objection could He possibly raise?"
Metis still wavered, and said in a low voice, "I think we should still ask Zeus's opinion."
Hera shook her head helplessly and sighed lightly: "Dear Metis, you are too yielding to Zeus—letting Him have His way in everything. Such unbroken indulgence only makes Him ever more unrestrained."
Metis smiled helplessly in turn.
They exchanged a smile; within it was only the same fondness—and the same helplessness—toward that "rascal."
Hera settled it: "Dear Metis, let this be decided. There is no need to seek any god's opinion."
"Now, you need only follow your heart. So long as you do not despise me or this child, then please accept and be His godmother!"
"From this day on He shall also call you 'Mother-Goddess,' and serve and honor you exactly as He does me. You and I alike shall be His mother-goddesses!"
With matters put so plainly, what room had Metis left to refuse?
Besides, she, too, loved children—and had no wish to refuse.
In her heart she had long yearned for a child's call.
She laid down all restraint and concern, clasped Hera's hands tight, and gazed deep into her eyes.
Then, in a tone of utmost seriousness and moved feeling, she said, word by word, "Dear Hera—thank you for your grace! This is an honor beyond my asking!"
"I, in the name of Metis, goddess of wisdom, hereby declare: I shall be this child's godmother! I shall treat Him as my own child; I will care for Him with all my heart and guard Him with all my heart! Witnessed by the name of Zeus!"
Hera's eyes were just as firm; she answered solemnly: "I, in the name of Hera, goddess of procreation, hereby declare: the goddess of wisdom, Metis, shall be the godmother of my firstborn son! This is a holy bond equivalent to that of a mother! From this day, the goddess of wisdom, Metis, just as I do, shall be this child's mother-goddess! Witnessed by the name of Zeus!"
As the words were pronounced, law followed speech. The sacred vows of the two great goddesses became two golden sigils of divinity that crossed in the air.
Then the Heavenly Dao's network showed itself faintly within the hall, and their declarations were witnessed by the order of Heaven.
At last, the sacred golden vow-sigils merged into each other's divine essence and could never be changed.
In that moment, the two goddesses reached the most thorough reconciliation and understanding—
in their shared yearning and love for the child, in their resolve to guard him together.
At the side, Eurynome watched with a bright, smiling gaze; from her heart she felt joy.
She loved her elder sister and admired Hera's divine character.
Having long dwelt on Olympus, she and Hera were quite familiar—good friends, one might say.
She truly did not wish to see her beloved sister and gentle Hera reach the far shore of enmity.
Her sister and Hera were already the best of friends, the best of goddesses, and the goddesses most beloved by the God-King.
If they had truly fought over this, it would have been a most unhappy thing.
Now, like this—everyone was happy; all was well.
In this state of things, the heaviness that had weighed upon her eased as lightly as a spring breeze.
And His Majesty the great God-King—reclining at ease upon a flowery meadow on the earth, yet all the while quietly attending to all this—finally let out a silent breath of relief.
It is said that when clams and mussels fight, the fisherman profits.
But these two goddesses—if they did not contend, then fine; once they did, they contended fiercely.
If they truly fought, the fisherman would not be at peace either.
If the two goddesses He loved most truly went at each other ruthlessly and turned good affection into hatred—that was not an outcome He wished to see.
The palm and the back of the hand are both flesh.
Just like this is best—you are well, she is well, and I am well!
Perfect!
And all of this was thanks to Hestia!
In His heart the God-King praised: Indeed! Matters of family strife must be given to Hestia to resolve!
She is the true stabilizing pillar of the great family of Olympus!
Praise Hestia!
Within the Temple of Wisdom the earlier heaviness and tautness had vanished like smoke; all grew ever more serene and light.
Hera and Metis still held each other's hands, not hastening to let go.
The warmth of their palms was like two interlacing rivulets that grew warmer as they ran. Many words were no longer needed.
Many promises had already sunk deep into the roots of their divinity, sealed by the sacred vows just now.
The gloom upon Hera's beautiful face had completely dissipated; now, as in the distant past, she had recovered the gentleness of a spring sea.
Her soul had not felt so light for too long.
Softly she began: "Dear Metis, when the child is born, I will carry Him to you myself, so He may call you 'Mother-Goddess' with His own lips."
Metis first nodded, then shook her head; her smile was full of tenderness and longing: "When His first cry rings out, I will know."
"I will teach Him all I know and all I can think of, withholding nothing, and lay the road of wisdom before Him."
"This child—our child—will surely become a great deity whose glory lights the cosmos, as His Father is."
"Mm—" Metis's tone turned, smiling with a hint of helpless teasing, "He may learn all His Father's virtues, save only one…"
"May He not learn to break goddesses' hearts as His Father does."
At that they looked at each other and smiled; all their eyes held was a shared helplessness toward that "rascal."
But this knowing smile held only the relaxed mood of reconciled hearts.
Hera answered with a light laugh, "That much—He will not."
"My dearest elder sister Hestia has granted this child the precious 'fire of civilizational creation.'"
"With her eternal warmth for His heart's fire, our child will be a warm god—He will not hurt the goddesses He loves."
"Hestia has given Him the fire?" At that, Metis's eyes flashed with true surprise—and then it melted into unalloyed joy. "That is wonderful!"
"The child is already the master of the miracle of 'creation': Zeus has given Him the 'patterns and measures' of order and rule—that is the skeleton; you have given Him the 'Sea of Procreation' of life and growth—that is the flesh and blood; hereafter I shall give Him the 'Star of Wisdom' of insight and guidance—that is the mind."
"And all of it will be fused within the furnace of creation and forging. At last, by the 'spark of inspiration' and 'eternal drive' Hestia has granted, every conception will be smelted into reality."
She looked back at Hera, and in her eyes was a light only one mother shows another: "Our child lacks nothing now!"
Metis rejoiced from the heart for this child who, even in the womb, had already received so much love.
From birth He was destined to be complete and unblemished!
Now that she too was this child's mother, she rejoiced from her heart all the more.
Eurynome had listened quietly all along; at last, the pure, lovely goddess who was serene as a lotus spoke for the first time.
Her voice was gentle and soft, like a flowing, downy white cloud, full of a lovable breath.
With a smile of expectation, she said softly, "I hope… I hope when the time comes I can help as well."
"This dear child—I can hardly wait to see Him."
At that, Hera and Metis turned to her together.
"Of course," they said in unison.
The gazes of the three goddesses crossed in the air like three softest points of starlight, forming a most stable, shining triangle.
"So do I. It will all be soon." Hera inclined her head and answered softly.
Her jade hand fell once more upon her belly; beneath her fingertips, tenderness was infinite.
From this day on, many things changed quietly:
Hera's steps grew steadier.
The channel in her heart—once full of hidden reefs and raging storms—was smoothed by the warm sunlight at her side.
Metis's sighs grew lighter.
The urgency in her heart had dissipated. By her magnanimity, what she lost were only useless fixations; what she gained were two sisters and friends to whom she could entrust everything.
And Eurynome's smile grew brighter.
She had more good sisters to care for her, and she became a pure mirror in which, as they cared for her, they could see their own fairest selves.
This was the reconciliation of promise and reality; this was the coexistence of fidelity and sharing.
Magnanimity is not retreat, but wisdom to guard what is more precious; fulfillment is not craven, but springs from a selfless love.
Two long rivers that once ran in light and shade at last, in an open place, joined into a most dazzling light.
The universe remained vast; the laws remained weighty.
Love remained a tide that cannot be avoided.
But hereafter, every returning tide had a harbor where the heart might safely lie.
Hera's harbor was the "dyke of restraint" she built as rock after the storm; Metis's harbor was the "bay of forbearance" that received all ships.
Eurynome's harbor was the "graceful shore" of perpetual calm and gentleness; Hestia's harbor was the "hearth and home," burning at the universe's center no matter how far one sails.
All had a bright future.
Only the God-King Zeus—
that indulgent, willful thunder—He could not be changed a jot.
Of course, no one held any expectations of Him. He was beyond saving long ago.
Before taking her leave, Hera once more embraced Metis lightly.
The embrace of the two supreme goddesses was light, yet laid all the heaviness upon each other's shoulders to bear together.
The wind turned gently over the mountain ridge of that sacred peak and turned the page upon all before.
The future waited to be written together.
And higher, farther still, the warm fire—Hestia—showed, likewise, a gratified smile.
Only when flame is not hoarded does warmth spread.
Kin and dear friends, only by sharing, at last become true "family."
And in all this, the one who gained the most was that child not yet born.
In order He gained bone, blood, and fortitude; in mother-love, a spring and compassion; in wisdom, cleverness and insight; in flame, strength and warmth.
On the day He rises, the stars will lift lamps for Him, and all things will sing His praise!
Myriad crafts will, through Him, have forms that can be learned; the countless living will, through Him, know tools that can be made.
And all this, because He has the warmest of mothers.
—
As for the other side, His Majesty the great God-King, seeing his beloved Hera depart, slipped quietly into the Temple of Wisdom.
Now that the "fire" in the backyard had been perfectly extinguished,
He figured it was time to properly "comfort" his beloved Metis—who had likewise been sorely put upon.
It was time, as well, to beget with Metis a child just as dear.
He loved Hera most—that partiality could never be moved.
But his guilt toward Metis was just as real.
Out of guilt, he had given Metis the title of "first wife."
And yet, in the end, he had given his firstborn to Hera.
Most of the goddesses with whom he had been intimate already had children—
only she, the first wife, had none.
This was both to untie today the knot between Hera and Metis, and to give his second son to Metis.
If he could not give her the first—then the second would do.
The firstborn to High Heaven; the second son to the elder wife. Perfect balance!
In his heart His Majesty the God-King was rather pleased with his own sagacity.
Shameless, His Majesty the God-King sneaked up to the sacred mountain where Metis dwelt.
He first carefully straightened his divine posture and even summoned a water-mirror with a wave of his hand to practice a smile that could bewitch goddesses.
Only when he had ensured he could still smile a smile to topple divinities did he stride into the temple.
The nymphs, of course, could not—and dared not—bar him; they barely had time to go and announce him.
They could only send, on the divine-thought channel, an urgent notice to their Lady.
In truth, even had they not, the instant Zeus set foot upon the floor, Metis had already sensed her beloved God-King's familiar aura.
She rolled her eyes helplessly; as for this shameless and cunning God-King of hers, she truly did not know what to say.
But her actions were not sluggish in the least.
She urged her beloved younger sister, on the divine-thought channel, to change at once!
She must put on attire that would most surely set off her goddess-entrancing figure!
As a mother-goddess, Eurynome was most simple and demure in nature—but her figure was exceedingly voluptuous and willowy.
She was the daughter of Ocean; pure water formed her tender body; waves shaped her form.
With her graceful, exquisite curves, the slightest hint was enough that one glance would make Zeus suffer a great charm-attack.
Demure, dignified Eurynome, cheeks flushed, had to muster all her courage to obey and don a starry gauze gown thin as a cicada's wing.
Her shoulders and neck were like jade; her waist reed-slim; when the hem moved, it was as if the sea broke into flowing lines.
Beneath the gauze, those breathtaking curves appeared and vanished—both shy and tense—modest, like a peach at first ripeness.
At a lowered head with a glance back, that one dip of gentleness was like a water-lily's bashful grace that could not bear the cool wind.
Just a pressed-lip shy smile was enough to make thunder stop in place.
Still, under her elder sister's tutelage, to wear such bold apparel truly made this modest, reserved goddess loath to let herself go.
Though, indeed, great boldness was not in order…
Metis, satisfied, shook her head with fond indulgence.
Silly girl—she had taught her so many times.
Dignity and stateliness are for other gods—for important occasions outside, to lend stature for their beloved.
In private, to hold herself so—never!
When it is time to make their beloved God-King take a great charm-strike, one must strike!
Still, this would do.
With such a dear and gentle younger sister—given their God-King's nature—even if his resolve were a thousand times firmer, he would still fall at her hem!
Such is the god he is!
As for Metis herself, she still wore her dignified, sober robes.
She could guess that her beloved God-King had come mostly to "make amends."
But she still decided to first create a flawless chance for her dear younger sister.
It was time for this God-King, who always fancied himself the hunter, to taste the sweetness of a trap.
Her dear younger sister had a shy, delicate heart; with such a lovable nature, if Metis did not give her a push from behind, who knew how long it would be before she truly had her wish?
As His Majesty the God-King strode into the hall, that matchless handsome face wore his sunniest, brightest smile.
He was just about to open his mouth and let loose the florid words he did best—those that had felled ten thousand goddesses—
when, at the edge of his eye, he caught sight of the pure, lovely Eurynome to one side—and at once matched Metis's expectations exactly.
______
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