Lies Twist The Way We Think

Chapter 16 - Apollo and Daphne

The room reminds me of a painting. It's held in dark colours, with various portraits of what must be philosophers and paintings of ancient myths I recognise on the walls. It is sort of eerie, but in a good way, in a way that makes you feel like entering a museum.

"Today we will be starting a new chapter in Ovid's metamorphosis." A woman stands at the front desk. I immediately try to picture what she's really like, try to give her exterior a matching personality. She wears glasses and her brown hair in a bob, very teacher-like. She has her lips pressed together as she waits for us to take our seats— impatiently, I realise. She's someone who hates to wait.

"We start with a myth that speaks to the heart of what it means to be in love and the consequences that come with it," Miss Leda, as my schedule tells me, says, her voice capturing our attention with a start. "I'm talking about the story of Apollo and Daphne. Can anyone tell us about it?"

I wait to see if someone else says something. There are around ten people in the room— not many for classes here, and it's awfully quiet.

"Miss Diante, what about you?" She turns to me, her eyes piercing mine.

Damn you, woman. "Of course," I say. "Apollo was the Greek god of the sun and Daphne was a nymph. In the myth, he falls madly in love with Daphne. Apollo hunts Daphne who refuses to accept his advances. Then she turns into a laurel tree."

"Good." She passes on to someone else. "Does anyone know why she was opposed to Apollo's advances?"

Another girl, with blond, curly hair and a soft smile, raises her hand. "Daphne was a nymph who was sworn to remain a virgin, following the laws of the goddess Artemis. She was a dedicated hunter and was not interested in love or romance. So, when Apollo approached her, she saw it as an affront to her beliefs and a threat to her way of life."

Someone else asks, "How did she turn into a tree, then?"

"She asked for help from her father, the river god Peneus, who turned her into a laurel tree," the blond girl answers him. He grimaces in response.

"Sounds terrifying."

Miss Leda turns to the blond girl. "Very good, Anna."

Anna's eyes light up at that. She seeks for validation. She loves when she knows things. She seems like a good person. Maybe I could talk to her.

"Let's pick up there. The significance of the laurel tree," Miss Leda continues. "Apollo's love for Daphne never faded, and he declared that the laurel would always be a symbol of his love. And indeed, it became the sacred tree of Apollo, a symbol of victory, achievement, and wisdom."

I look down on my paper, with my messy notes and my horrid handwriting. There is a single note on the side that would usually to unnoticed.

Was she cursed or saved?

"You will be translating the first five verses today. Tomorrow we will compare them in class." And with that, we start to look for the pages she means in the textbooks and I wonder, only for a moment, what the hell I am doing here.

C. R. D. - M. L. T.

Aisha calls me back around noon. I'm still feeling dizzy from my lesson, feeling as though I tapped into an unknown sphere or universe and now have access to something I hadn't before.

"This place is heaven," I tell her.

"Hawthorne House?"