The Perils of Unrequited Love

CHAPTER X: THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT

" A butterfly can flap its wings in Peking, and in Central Park, you get rain instead of sunshine."

—— Jeff Goldblum on Chaos Theory, Jurassic Park (2013) 

Because the exhibition at The Paragon Museum was titled " Greek and Roman art: a walk through time", Rosabelle felt the need to dress accordingly. She wore a rich lilac Grecian dress with a plunging V neckline and a nipped in waistband defined by a revealing cutout. The pleated skirt was trimmed to midi length to follow the cocktail attire dress code. She adorned a complete set of hellenistic accessories from her personal collection: a gold strap necklace with a fringe of beechnut pendants, long earrings featuring heart-shaped rubies bordered by gold beading and gold armbands with herakles knot*.

Her hair was a little anachronistic as she had taken a more modern approach to greek-inspired hairstyle, letting her hair half braided and half loose.

And even though the greek didn't invent four-inch strappy high heels, she wore her christian louboutin rose-gold Youpiyou glittered sandals anyway.

" Back in the good ancient Roman times, people would mistake you for a prostitute with those heels," hermaphroditus quipped. His sense of humor was mordant.

"For your information, Di, I have walked in my Buskins and a see-through toga* during a harvest festival and attracted a praeter, four senators and the emperor. I went with the emperor naturally."

" The effect you have on men is...staggering." Hermaphroditus said darkly.

" Don't be bitter, Di" She said, " If only you could transform your appearance with magic, I would have taken you with me."

Although many gods and goddesses could disguise their forms with Magic, Hermaphropditus couldn't. His godly power was too closely tied to his intersex body, otherwise he wouldn't have left Olympus in the first place.

Without magic, it was impossible for him to not get recognized by Lord James Godfrey.

Born with a golden spoon in his mouth and trained to like finer things since young, James had sharp eyes, fine taste and a great love for beauty, which was not necessarily limited to art and antiques.

Her brother would recognize a uniquely beautiful being like Hermaphroditus at first glance, no matter how unrecognizable Rosabelle dressed him.

" James will definitely put a hit on you if I choose to bring you instead of him and I can't ask Edwin to be my escort. I don't want to endanger my brothers."

Hermaphroditus massaged between his eyebrows and sighed with frustration.

" They are full grown adults, Rosie. You shouldn't indulge them."

" Since Isabelle de Rohan died giving birth to me, I am the only constant female presence in her children's lives. You have to cut these little boys some slack, Di." she said.

" I don't trust you to go alone. We don't have a plan. I have a bad feeling. The situation is more precarious than I thought." Hermaphroditus said.

" I will be fine. It's only a couple of hours and I believe my escort is capable enough to keep me safe." She insisted.

" Take this." Hermaphroditus snapped his finger and suddenly, he was holding a small flower in his palm. Five delicate pure white petals surmounted spreading purple petals, like two different flowers put on top of each other.

" This is a glass wild columbine." Hermaphroditus' eyes shifted to green, indicating that Salmocis was speaking. " It is the plant that grows on the bank of my fountain that Lord Hermaphroditus dipped in. If you crush the flower, we will know that you are in danger and we will come to your rescue immediately."