Ira

Goddesses and queens, their places in the world are built upon unstable ground.

Ira walked with secrets. She danced with Death and made deals with devils. She, who lived among angels and spent far too long feeding her demons... She, despite her flaws, was a goddess, and I was merely a queen.

Fate was kind to me for a time; I was blessed enough to love and be loved by a deity. I must assume she was either unaware of my rank or unaware of her own; such beings are rarely naive enough to allow their hearts to be traded for those subject to the passing of time. That’s the part that always got me though: Ira was not naive. She was so wise I could have sworn she had travelled the world and spoken to everyone living in it; “25 going on 90.” we would joke.I guess it never crossed our minds that goddesses don't always live so long.

You see, Ira, had cancer and suddenly the goddess was found in possession of less life than the queen. But Ira walked with secrets. She tangoed with Death and bartered with devils. She sold her hair for 14 seconds and her dreams for more time. She sold her soul for extra strength so she could conceal her weakness and she sold her heart so she could keep it a secret; I guess a heart full of cancer isn't worth much though, because one day I found out. Three days after she stopped chemotherapy.

There will never be a time when I will forget what it was like to read the letter from my wife telling me she is dying. Not because Death is cruel and forgetting is hard, but because goddesses don't get cancer. There it was though, my goddess was dying all too quickly, from her brain, to her lungs, to her heart, to her bones and her blood. So I came to learn through 16 paragraphs and 10 medical images that my goddess was not a goddess anymore.

January 31st, the day she turned 26, she was lead off the dance floor by Death as I, the queen, watched, powerless to stop it. There was no flash of bright light or blowing away in the wind, she did not crumble to dust or shine with the secrets of the universe, she just stopped breathing.

In the end the four most excruciatingly slow minutes of my life were the last four minutes of hers and after that... Ira no longer walked with secrets. She did not care for dancing, and she had nothing left to barter. She lived not among angels and slowly her demons starved. She, despite her best attributes was not a goddess, and I, despite mine, had never been a queen.

Author's Note

If you review, I'll return the favour.

Reviews

[Coyote Poetry]

You wrote a amazing story Teressa.
"In the end the four most excruciatingly slow minutes of my life were the last four minutes of hers and after that... Ira no longer walked with secrets. She did not care for dancing, and she had nothing left to barter. She lived not among angels and slowly her demons starved. She, despite her best attributes was not a goddess, and I, despite mine, had never been a queen."
The above lines. Strong closing for this powerful tale. If you dance with the devil. Hard to regain your innocence. Thank you for sharing the amazing tale.
Coyote

[Teresa Elde]

Thank you dearly for the review I am blown away by your kind words.

[Coyote Poetry]

I enjoyed the story. Well-written, with meaning and you are welcome.

[Jacob Clifford]

Really beautiful story, and heart aching at the same time. I love the lines. The story has good progression and has a fitting and melancholy conclusion.

"Fate was kind to me for a time; I was blessed enough to love and be loved by a deity. I must assume she was either unaware of my rank or unaware of her own." Such an accurate testament and a declaration of love all on its own.

[Leo Bojalil]

Whoa...without knowing it touch a sensitive fiber in me...I have to say pretty cool you have here and or a short story and like en epilogue of a memory it´s pretty nice and you didn´t need to explain their whole lives to fully get them!!..nice..I like it.

[Philip Muls]

Hello Teresa.

I very much like the 'unusual' comparison of the characters with goddesses and queens. You do a good job of making this metaphor seem plausible.

[Teresa Elde]

A kind thanks for your review, it is much appreciated.