Chapter 11: Lyra Pov(1)

Ring! Ring! Smack!

Ugh. Morning already? My hand shot out on its own, slapping the alarm clock off the nightstand before I even opened my eyes. It hit the floor with a satisfying thud, but the voice from the speakers kept going. Of course, it did.

"Good morning, people! Ready to stretch those bodies?"

"Let's get fit and sexy!"

"We're starting with some jumping jacks! Are you ready?"

"So, one..."

"sḏt," I mumbled into my pillow, my brain still foggy with sleep. Why do these things always have to be so loud?

I was about to drift off when the alarm clock exploded with a deafening bang. Pieces of it scattered across the room, but honestly? I didn't even flinch. Sleep was calling, and I wasn't about to let a little explosion ruin my morning.

Swish!

The curtains flew open, and sunlight poured into the room, blinding even through my closed eyelids. I groaned and buried my face deeper into the pillow. Nope. Not today. Not ever.

"Miss Lyra, please wake up. You have lectures today."

That voice. Soft, melodic, and way too cheerful for this hour. I didn't even need to look to know who it was.

"Mhmm… leave me alone, Dora," I muttered, muffled by the pillow. Go away. Let me sleep.

"But you have school today, Miss Lyra," Dora repeated, her tone annoyingly persistent. Of course, she wasn't going to let this go.

I felt the bed dip slightly as Dora hopped onto it. Before I could react, she yanked off my sleeping cap and the cool air hit my scalp. Ugh, not the snakes again. I could feel them stirring, annoyed at being disturbed.

"Wake up, everyone!" Dora chirped, and I felt a tiny swat on one of the snakes.

Hisssss!

The hissing filled my ears, and I winced. Great. Now they were mad. I could practically feel their irritation radiating off them.

"Don't you dare hiss at me!" Dora scolded, her voice rising in mock anger. I could picture her tiny face scrunched up, looking more adorable than intimidating. The snakes weren't impressed.

"Wake her up now!" Dora demanded, and I knew what was coming next.

"Ahhh! Stop it! I'm awake, I'm awake!" I shot up in bed, the hissing in my ears finally too much to ignore. The sudden movement sent Dora tumbling, but she landed lightly on the sheets, completely unfazed.

"Dora! Why did you have to wake me up like that?" I groaned, rubbing my eyes and fumbling for my glasses on the nightstand. My head felt heavy, and the snakes were still grumbling.

"You are running late, Miss Lyra," Dora said, her tone way too calm for someone who'd just orchestrated a snake-induced wake-up call. "Also, Miss Sally won't be able to pick you up today."

"Ugh, fine. Thanks for the heads-up," I muttered, stifling a yawn as I swung my legs over the side of the bed. My body felt heavy like it was still halfway in dreamland. "I'll freshen up. You handle breakfast."

"Right away, Miss Lyra!" Dora chirped, hopping off the bed and scampering toward the kitchen. I didn't even bother responding. My brain was still half-asleep, and the thought of facing the day was already exhausting.

I stepped into the indoor garden, the cool morning air hitting my face as I opened the glass door. The scent of fresh greenery filled my lungs, a welcome break from the sterile, overly clean smell. I just stood there, letting the calm wash over me.

Chirp! Twit!

A small bird fluttered onto a tree branch nearby, singing its sweet morning tune. It was nice, until I made the mistake of taking off my glasses, instantly feeling exposed and less sure of myself.

My vision blurred, and I accidentally locked eyes with the bird.

No. No, no, no!

The bird froze mid-note, its tiny body stiffening as it began to turn to stone. My stomach dropped. Not again.

"Argh! I still can't control this stupid stare!" I muttered under my breath, panic rising. I slapped my glasses back on and raised a hand, trying to undo the damage. "desr!"

The stone faded, and the bird came back to life, blinking in confusion. It flapped its wings frantically before taking off, clearly startled by its brief petrification. I couldn't blame it. I was afraid too if I'd just been turned into a statue.

I sighed, running a hand through my hair in frustration. "Tired of this already," I grumbled, brushing my bangs aside. "I'd better get to my bath before I'm late."

I hurried into the bathroom, catching a glimpse of myself in the mirror. My reflection stared back at me, looking as tired as I felt. My thick white hair was a mess, and the snakes coiled within it were already stirring, sensing what was coming.

"Now, should I shampoo my hair first?" I asked myself, eyeing my strands critically.

Hiss.

The snakes reacted immediately, writhing in irritation. I groaned, knowing exactly what was coming next.

"I know, I know—you hate it when I wash you guys," I said, rolling my eyes. "But I can't have people telling me my hair smells weird. It's embarrassing!"

The snakes hissed again, their discomfort palpable. I sighed and gently patted my hair, trying to calm them down.

"Now, be good and turn back into hair, okay?" I coaxed.

Reluctantly, the snakes began to shift, their forms blending seamlessly back into my snow-white locks until they were nothing more than ordinary hair. It was always a weird sensation like my scalp was alive and moving, but I'd gotten used to it over the years.

With a satisfied nod, I turned on the shower, the warm water inviting. Steam filled the room, and I stepped under the stream, letting it wash away the last remnants of sleep. The day ahead will be easy, but at least I'd be clean and presentable. Small victories, right?

(T/N:lYRA BACKSTORY

Let me tell you a bit about myself while I freshen up. My name's Lyra Frost. As you can probably tell, I'm not your average teenage girl. And just for the record, I'm also the childhood friend of that bastard, Andrea. Yeah, him. Don't even get me started on that guy.

Oh, and I'm part of the supernatural world—the one that quietly pulls the strings behind the scenes. You know, the kind of world where gods, monsters, and everything in between are real. And me? Well, my mom's kind of a big deal. Ever heard of Medusa? Yeah, that Medusa. The one from Greek mythology. She's my mom. No big deal or anything.

But before you start believing every wild rumor you've heard about her, let me clear up something—half of it is total fiction. Seriously, people love to twist the truth into something dramatic. Here's the real story:

Mom was once Athena's priestess and, apparently, one of the most beautiful women in the world. Like, stunning. But Athena? She was jealous. I'm talking next-level, green-with-envy, can't-stand-to-look-at-her kind of jealous. So, what did Athena do? She told Poseidon to seduce my mom. Classy, right?

But here's the thing—Mom's not just beautiful; she's clever. Like, really clever. She outsmarted Poseidon by pretending to be Zeus's girlfriend. And guess what? Poseidon, being the idiot he is, actually believed her! Can you imagine? The god of the sea, fooled by a little white lie. Classic.

When Athena's plan backfired, she lost it. I mean, full-on rage mode. She cursed Mom, turning her into the Gorgon everyone fears. But here's the twist—the curse didn't weaken her. Nope. It unleashed her true strength, her bloodline energy. Mom got so powerful that she actually defeated Athena in combat. Yeah, you heard me. Defeated Athena. The goddess of war and strategy. How's that for a plot twist?

But of course, the other gods weren't thrilled about it. Hercules, Ares, Hermes, and even crybaby Perseus all came after her. And Zeus? Oh, he tried to fight her too. At first, it was a stalemate. But as the battle wore on, Zeus realized something—the longer Mom fought, the stronger she became. So what did he do? He ran. Like, full-on ran away. The king of the gods, folks. Real brave.

Ever since then, the Greek gods have learned to keep their distance from Mom. And honestly? Can you blame them? She's basically the queen of "don't mess with me."

"She's my favorite mom-aunt ever," I say with a fond smile. "Though… I don't even know where she is now."

The thought makes me pause for a moment. Mom's always been this larger-than-life figure in my head, but the truth is, I haven't seen her in years. She's out there somewhere, doing… whatever it is she does. Probably turning people to stone and scaring the pants off gods. Typical mom stuff.

I paused, pushing my hair back as I let out a long sigh. "Oh, and before I forget—I have two moms. No dad. Weird, right? Somehow, I inherited the genes from both of them. No clue how they pulled it off—some blood-magic-magic-stuff, I guess—but voilà, here I am."

I raised an eyebrow, a playful smirk tugging at my lips. "My other mom? Amelia Frost is one of the most powerful celestial witches in existence. She can destroy and recreate worlds like it's nothing. That's right she is one of the witches that can use gods powers. No big deal or anything."

I rolled my eyes, my grin widening. "Honestly, her life story's still a bit of a mystery to me. All I know is that her parents were killed by demons way back in the year 95 from the creation of man. She went full revenge mode, got it, and then teamed up with other witches to create the World Association of Witchcraft and Witches. Blah, blah, blah—eventually, she met Medusa, fell in love, and thought, 'Hey, let's make a kid!' A bit of blood magic later, and here I am. Mom Amelia runs a university to blend in with human society. And get this—it's called Crockwell University. You wanna know why? Because she killed a giant monster chicken to build it."

I smirked, my voice dripping with pride now. "She used the chicken's bones for the foundation and the meat? Oh, the meat. That was the first Thanksgiving feast. And I'm telling you right now—that meat? Absolutely delicious."

With a wave of my hand, I dismissed my reflection in the mirror. "Anyway, enough of the history lesson. Let's get back to the story, shall we?")