"Mom, what is it I actually...do?"

Mom took a break from tending to the fire to look at me and ask, "What do you mean, Brandy?"

I stuck another marshmallow on my skewer before replying, "I mean, what are my divine gifts, if I even have any? Like, the other demigods can eat fire or turn into giraffes or whatever. So what can I do?"

Mom sighed and looked up at the tree canopy overlooking us with a smile. As I pulled my marshmallow back and shoved it in my mouth, she answered, "Well, that's a bit of a story, pumpkin, and I can't think of any better place for it than around the campfire. It all goes back to the vow on the River Styx that I made to Zeus, that I would remain a virgin, unmarried and childless.

"Of course, over the centuries, I grew tired of it all. I spent centuries watching Zeus and the other gods run around and force themselves on women, more often than not cheating on their spouses in the process. Combine that with me noticing the hypocrisy in none of the male gods being ordered to remain virgins, and I started looking for a way out of my predicament. And eventually, I found somebody who was all too keen on helping me do so."

From behind us, someone responded, "Well, it is my vocation to make a mess of things." I turned around to see another woman in a dark blue chiton with a basket full of yellow apples and her hair done up in a long French braid strolling towards us. The woman kissed my mom on the cheek and turned to me. "Hello Brandy. I'm your other mom, Eris."

I tilted my head in confusion. "Eris? The goddess of discord?"

Hestia wrapped her arms around Eris as the latter answered, "The one and only. Hestia and I started dating in secret in order to defy Zeus, and before we knew it, you popped into our lives. Of course, we had to place you with a mortal family to keep Zeus from finding you."

"But...mom, didn't you swear on the River Styx? Doesn't breaking that warrant divine punishment?"

Hestia giggled. "Oh, indeed it does. And that is where your gifts come in." Before I could press her for an explanation, Eris let out a whistle so loud and shrill, it would've brought every cab driver in New York City to an instant halt. From the woods, a group of hellhounds charged out from the thicket and lunged at me.

But nothing happened. The pack was suspended in mid-air like they were puppets that had gotten tangled up in their strings. As the hellhounds slowly disintegrated into golden dust, Eris slung her arm around my shoulder and said, "From the moment you were born, no harm has befallen you or the ones you care for. Nothing that could kill or irreversibly hurt anyone within your circle of friends and family, be it mythological or mundane, can touch you."

"For you, dearest Brandy," Hestia continued, "Are the goddess of sanctuary, shelter, and found family. And among the Olympians, who have gone to war with one another over petty familial rivalries, there is no greater power."