Daughter of Wine

Callida

I'll never get over that disorienting feeling of being in one place one moment and another place in the next. 

I cough, smelling grapes all over myself. At least I like that smell. I see the train in the distance. It stops. Uh oh. I run to the nearest pegasus. 

"Hey, buddy." I approach. "Dionysus kid here. Could I ask for a favor?"

The horse whinnies in protest. Piss off! You smell like grapes! I don't like grapes! 

"Okay, yeah, I get that." I see a dozen figures emerging from the train, moving through the field with incredible speed. "What do you like?" 

Apples! Carrots! Donuts!

"Okay, have I got a deal for you." I tell him. The Hippopodes are closing in fast. "One sec." 

I reach down, my hand touching the grass. I manage to grow it up, about twelve feet in the air, obscuring their view of me. 

"Look, you get me to Chicago, and I'll grow you a whole garden of whatever fruits and veggies you want." 

The pegasus snorts. I don't want to go to Chicago

"Well, as close as you can get me?" I ask. 

The first hippopode breaks through the grass. "I found her!" He yells. 

His legs are shocking. He's like a satyr, but instead of goats legs, he has horse legs. No wonder they're so fast. Instinctively, a grape vine begins to grow around his hooves, wrapping him up so tightly and quickly, he can't react. The vines enclose him, squeezing, until there's a quiet poof! and golden dust pops through the cracks in the vines. 

That's terrifying The pegasus tells me. I can take you away from here. But I'm hungry. 

"Dude, you're surrounded by grass." I tell him. 

No! No more grass! I want... I want donuts.

"I can't grow donuts!" I tell him, as three more Hippopodes break through the grass. I vine the first one, and wave my hand at the other two. They morph into dolphins, clicking and flapping in the grass. I'm getting tired, and there's still eight more. 

The pegasus freaks at the sight of the dolphins. What the hell is that? Don't turn me into a fish!

"How about this!" I snap. "I don't turn you into a fish. You take me to... Detroit. And there I give you apples and carrots, and if you land me in the city, I'll give you donuts. Deal?"

I can hear the rest of the Hippopodes closing in. 

"Grape girl!" One calls through the grass. "You'll never find our treasure, so you may as well stop looking!" 

I also notice the golden dust from the Hippopodes I already killed is reforming into four figures. Already? That's not possible. 

Detroit can work. They have donuts in Detroit. 

"Cool." I climb onto his back, and he whinnies again. You stink!

"Thanks, but you don't smell much better." I tell him. "Can we please go before those guys get here?"

So impatient. I could just stay right here you know. 

"I'm not afraid to turn you into a dolphin." I remind him. 

Fine. He flaps his wings and we fly into the air. I see the Hippopodes still making their way through the grass. They point and whinny in frustration. 

"What's your name?" I ask the pegasus. 

Kyle. 

"Really?" I can't help it. "Kyle the pegasus?"

I'll drop you. 

With that, we fly into the setting sun.