Hazel hummed as she put the sheep away. Three weeks had passed since Frank had asked for her hand in marriage and the date was set for next week. Hazel had been counting the days; there were five left until she became a woman.

    She looked up to see Will approaching the house. He was carrying a rooster in his hands. The creature was a fine specimen with feathers redder than the sunset and a strong beak. "How are you doing?" Hazel asked Will.

      "Good," he said. "I came to fulfill a promise I made during war."

    Hazel watched him curiously. She knew he'd been a medic, which wasn't surprising considering his talent with herbs and his obvious empathy. She remembered once when she'd dislocated her arm (the story of how it happened involved an over anxious sheep and a rainstorm) and he'd been the one to help her. He'd distracted her with jokes and then popped her arm back in place when she wasn't expecting it. It had hurt badly for a few moments, but it healed nicely.

      Will knocked on the front door. Maria was the one who opened it. She saw the rooster and called Hades and Nico out. The three of them stepped outside and congregated near the sheep pen. Hazel had now put them all away. As she watched, Hazel observed that Will was wearing a finer tunic than normal and had oiled his hair so it was shiny and soft-looking. He gave Hades a respectful bow. "I would like to ask you if I could be your son's lover."

       Hazel remembered Nico sneaking out at night and how the two of them spent many days together. Had they fallen in love like she and Frank had? "I am presenting this rooster as a token of my love," Will said.

   Hades blinked. "My son is old enough to grow a beard. He cannot grow a whisker, but he is old enough."

    Nico shuffled his feet awkwardly. "Father, what does my lack of a beard have to do with this?"

    Hades frowned. "Some men abandon their lovers once they grow old enough to sport them."

     "I'd stay constant to Nico," Will said. "Beard or no beard."

Hades turned to Nico. "Is this what you want?"

Nico nodded. "Then, it shall be," Hades said. "Go accept your rooster, son."

Nico went forward and the rooster started freaking out. "I don't think he likes me," Nico noted.

Will laughed as he handed the squirming rooster over to Nico. The creature started crowing and pecked at Nico's fingers so hard that he let go of it. The rooster then scampered off, crowing all the way. "Shall I go after it?" Will asked.

    Nico laughed. "Nah."

     "But it's your gift," Will said, pouting.

      "It's a rooster," Nico said. "People only really use for cockfighting, which is dumb anyways. If it really upsets you, though, you can get me something else."

      "Yes, you can do that," Hades agreed.

      Will nodded and Hazel smothered her giggles. Hades slapped his son on the back. "I'm glad to see you're growing up," he said. "Don't stay up too late. You still got work to do tomorrow."

    He then turned back to the house; Maria followed him. Nico just stared at his father as he went inside. "Did this really just happen?" he asked, rubbing his temple.

    Will laughed and kissed Nico on the cheek. "You betcha."

Hazel smiled and waved the front men goodbye, leaving them to spend some time together and alone. When she got into the house, she saw Maria had pulled out a red chiton and matching peplos. "Hazel," she said. "Come over here, so I may see how I need to alter this."

Hazel stepped over and Maria scrutinized her carefully and then the garments. She used some string to make measurements. "I'll have to hem it," Maria said. "You're shorter than I am."

Hazel blinked. The garments did look familiar. Wasn't this the ensemble Maria wore during festivals? "Was this what you wore on your wedding day?" Hazel asked.

Maria nodded absentmindedly as she examined the chiton. "The red suits you nicely. Purple would too, but we cannot afford that."

She turned her gaze from the garments to Hazel. "I'll have this altered soon enough. I just need to get dinner started first and—"

Hazel cut her stepmother off by giving her a big hug. "I'll take care of dinner."

Hazel hauled some water out from the well. She decided to make a simple lentil and vegetable stew tonight. It would take a little less than an hour and most of the work involved was just cutting up vegetables and stirring the pot. She used thyme and bay leaves to flavor the dish. Their aromatic scents filled the air as she dropped the fresh herbs into the cauldron.

As she stirred it up, she thought of how busy she's been with wedding preparations. Her father had consulted their neighbors on what would be a good day. Grover had consulted some calendar he had which told which days were good for marriages and which should be avoided, which Hades used to pick a date.

She'd taken her toys to an altar of Artemis to sacrifice a week ago. It had been hard to let go of her last childhood toys, but she knew it was what each girl did as she prepared to embrace her womanhood. Hazel had knelt before the marble likeness of Artemis with her bow strapped to her back and a hunting dog at her feet, and offered a prayer. She praised the goddess of the hunt and protector of maidens, asking for protection in childbirth and for her future children. She had also visited shrines to Hera and Aphrodite, offering each goddess libations and prayers.

The soup was boiling now and Hazel's stomach grumbled as the scent of herbs and cooked lentils tickled her nose. Soon, she'd be making dinner pretty much everyday for Frank and herself. The thought made her smile and Hazel spent the rest of night in the same blissful mood.