"You need to tell mother." Clio bunches her brows in a sympathetic manner then sighs. "You're not looking so good."

I'm laying in bed feeling like the last embers of me are fading away. "And what can she do?" I sigh curling myself into my comforter. 

Clio kneels beside me then leans on my bedside with watering eyes. "She can find you a contractee."

I sink further into my bed so that only my eyes are visable. "I don't want to tie a human to me when their lives are so precious."

She stares at me with the growing sense of fear and disbelief. "I'm going to tell her."

"Don't."

She falls to her knees and clasp my hands. "Please."

Just then my bedroom door swings open to reveal a shocked Euterpe. Her mouth is agaped while her hand is resting against the doorknob, she is speechless as she swallows a large gulp. She's experienced a similar scene before then again we all have, we all have at one point or another seen both the Gods and humans closest to us die. 

She quickly realizes what is happening as she forces her mouth closed and inhales a deep breath. She steps a percatious step forward, then gently closes the door with a soft click which is followed by an even softer turn of the lock. Even though that wouldn't keep any of us Goddesses out. 

"Did you know?" Clio states in a mutter. "That she was like this?"

Euterpe moves towards us her hands clasped together. "I knew she had to make a contract soon but I was under the impression she had more time."

Clio turns to look at me. "She looks to have five days, that's if she stays here but she may have as little as one to three days if she uses her powers."

Euterpe falls to her knees as if she's the one dying. "Oh Era," her eyes water with tears. "Why do you have a death wish."

Clio shakes her head. "Don't cry yet Euterpe. I'm going to tell mom, she can get her a contractee by the end of tomorrow."

I pull the blaket down. "No, Clio!"

"No Erato, I'm not going to let you disappear." Clio retorts standing to her feet. "We need to get you a contractee no matter what even if they don't fit your standards."

Euterpe stands up. "Yes, I agree we need to get you a contractee no matter what."

"Yes no matter what!" A third voice adds.

We all turn our heads to look at the corner of my room where the voice is coming from.

"Melpomene," Clio sighs. "You gave me a heart attack."

"Our sister is dying when there are undertones of something more. As the muse of tragedy did you think I wouldn't sense something." Her head tilts while her short bob cut hair follows. 

Her blue eyes narrow at me with slight anger. "You're going to get a contractee and that is final Erato."

I sink further into my blankets. "I don't want mother to choose a contractee."

"Erato!" Euterpe whines.

Clio shakes her head. "You need to have one."

"Then you choose." Melpomene whispers softly.

The girls turn from me to her, then to me again. 

Clio leans close to me. "Do you have somone in mind?"

I stare up at the white ceiling then the girls. There is only one human who comes to mind, the only one who has piqued my interest in the past dozen years but I've already been rejected. How can I possibly admit to my sister's that I a Goddess had been rejected by a mere mortal. 

I glance at Euterpe then back to Clio. "No, I don't have a person." They all sigh but before they can finish I continue. "But give me a day, maybe even a day and a half and I can find someone."

"Erato," Melpomene shakes her head. "How are you going to do that when you can't even leave your bed."

I pull my phone from under my pillow. "I have all the human connection I need right here."

They look amongst each other. "I'm informing mother." Clio's voice is stern with no room to budge. "But I will downplay it and give you a day to get a contractee." She holds a finger up. "A day and thats it." She looks to Melpomene. "Is that fine." 

Melpomene tilts her head side to side. "I'm not sensing anything with that deal."

"Then this is our deal between Goddesses." She says extending her hand to me. 

I reach my hand up to my sister and give it a small shake. A soft glow emits from our palms while slivers of ribbon wrap around our wrist then tie into a bow on our hands. 

I immediatley feel a sense of energy flow into me. 

"Clio," Euterpe scolds. "Mother's not going to be happy."

She turns to the girls. "It had to be done otherwise how else would she be able to make a deal." 

Clio is right, to even try to solidify a lifetime deal with a mortal I would need more power then I was with. If anything my sister was instead guranteeing that the deal will go through and I will defintley be alive for twenty four hours. Now that the deal was validified by the whole shiny ribbion glow thing (consider it the manifestion of trust)  I could now find a contractee. 

Clio looks back to me. "At least now she has the power to meet a human and make a deal." 

I sit up a bit easier now and nod.

"She's right." Melpomene says. "There's no way she would have had the energy to make a deal if she was in the state she was."

"Thank you," I mumble crossing my legs. "Now it's up to me to find a person worthy of my powers."

"You'll find one." Euterpe says softly. "Without a doubt I know you will."

I nod. "Question is who."

"Do what I do." Clio extends a slow hand to herself. "Go online and find who the major political leaders are in the world."

We all lower our brows and give her an indifferent look. 

Melpomene shakes her head. "Come on Clio that's not even fair." 

"What do you mean."

"All politicians are power hungry to the point of making deals with any powerful entity. Era has to find a poet in need of a muse of love."

"Reword." Euterpe chimes in.

Melpomene rolls her eyes. "I mean she has to find someone that's a little more morally human. A person who already is passionate for writing romance or romantic music." 

Euterpe kneels beside me. "Pherhaps you can just find a small artist nearby that would be willing to make a deal with you."

"That's my intention sisters."

"Will you need our assitance." Clio says gently with compliance.

I smile then shake my head. "No, thank you but I intend to choose my own just as I have been doing since the beggining of time."

"And she does choose well." A new voice chimes in

We all yelp at the person standing at the edge of the bed adorned  with an olive wreath crown and long ringlet curls. Her soft brown eyes peer at me while there is a subtle wrinkle in the corner of her eyes. 

"Calliope." I gulp

My oldest sister ignores me and strolls to my bed side her cornflower blue toga following behind her. Her eyes are piercing and threatening as she inspects me with growing curiousity. She extends her long hand to my face and tilts my chin up as she peers at the complexion that my sickly self is displaying. 

"Something is wrong." She concludes. 

Clio rolls her eyes. "Well that much is obvious Calli."

She shakes her head. "No what I mean is something is wrong with her not her lack of contracts."

They all look back at me. 

"Calliope," I mumble while she tilts my head side to side. "What do you mean?"

"I mean," She peers closer then looks disgusted. "It looks as though you may have had your powers drained by a-"

She cuts herself short then clicks her tongue pushing my face down. "You've met a God haven't you?"

I'm silent while Clio presses her lips into a firm line. 

Calli stands tall as she stares down her nose at me. "My recent contract should have sustained you for at least another month but it appears a God has tried to use their powers on you but your body defended the illegal contract." She sighs then crosses her arms. "We've experinced these things in our youth but it's been so long I'm sure your powers worked extra hard to defend you. Now tell me Era," She leans closer. "Who was the God?"

I look amongst the girls that are waiting in anticipation then my eyes linger on Clio who looks to be contemplating the results of our actions. 

"Aphrodite." Clio mumbles.

Calli whips her head around. "You should have said something as soon as you knew." She spins back to me. "Era!" She scorns. "How did this even happen!"

Euterpe pulls her hands to her mouth. "Does she know about the rest of us?"

I wait for Calli to say something but she says nothing, she waits for the answer to her question. 

"No I don't think she does. I had some issues with a guy-"

"A mortal?" Melpomene cringes.

I nod. "Yes, I had fainted so he took me to the only person that could help me, Aphrodite."

"How does he know her. How does he know you are a Goddess?" Calli spits with venom. 

"She has made a contract with his family in the past and as for how he knew, I have no clue. I can only assume that he guessed."

Calli clicks her tongue again. "I never thought she would lose her pride and beg humans for help." She looks back to me. "The other olympians did not."

She leans closer. "Well it seems she was trying to use you, probably to have you fall in love. If anything she didn't help you in the slightest bit. She nearly killed you." She sighs and runs her fingers through her hair. "I knew that if any of them survived we'd run into each other eventually. Just didn't anticipate that a mortal would bring us to each other."

She rubs the fingers that touched my face together, inspecting them like there was something on them that she could only see then she stops and looks to me. "Don't speak to the mortal again." She warns. 

I don't respond. 

"Erato," She chastises. "If you speak to the mortal that knows Aphrodite again then I will tell mother."

I whip my head away and look to the door. "Don't," I mumble.

"If you won't listen then this is just what I have to do as your older sister."

I sigh and whip my head back to her. "And what of the well being of this mortal."

"He is mortal a few memories lost will not kill him."

I furrow my brows. "It is cruel Calliope."

"Not as cruel as what Aphrodite wishes to do to you sister."

She is right so I hold my tongue and turn away. 

She takes the bitter silence as conformation that she is right and rises to her full height. "I do it out of concern. Your well being far presides over any human. Do not forget that." She waves a hand to the girls. "All of you come now we must talk to mother." They obey without argument.

She turns away and heads to the door. "Don't scare me again Erato." Her words sound like venom but they ring with concern and fear.

"Yes sister."

She nods and is the final one to pass through the door while I am left to find a contractee before the end of tomorrow.