A Muse's Inspiration (closed for Poprockz)

[Poprockz]

Euterpe had stewed in her own annoyance for the rest of the night, pacing and tending to her plants. Though eventually the intensity of her feelings fizzled out and she thought to herself that while irritating, it seemed that he had been trying to be helpful. She could let this slide, and she would. The goddess went to sleep.

The next morning she got up, dressed, groomed herself, and headed for her plants. Though there was a lot of lying in bed, lounging, and relaxing in-between these things. Once she was ready, she teleported to Blake’s house. Appearing at his plant at precisely 11:31.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Once Blake took care of the purchase and walk-in pickup arrangements, he spent the majority of the night working on his music. He wouldn't even have remembered to eat if he hadn't been forced to get up to go to the bathroom, and even the meal that he decided on was easy delivery finger food so that it interfered with his work as little as possible. Even as he worked under the inspiration of Euterpe's power, he couldn't help but be amazed by it. He'd known that it would be strong because of how confident she'd been, but this was beyond anything he could have imagined. The creative process was literally effortless for him, leaving only the physical process taking up his time. He literally worked himself to the point of exhaustion, passing out at his computer and dreaming of the music that he would create the next day.

When Blake awoke the next day to his alarm, which again he'd been lucky to remember to set on his bathroom break, he had the imprint of his keyboard keys on his face and an endless string of said keys typed on his keyboard. Thankfully he'd been saving religiously throughout the process, like he'd been tabbing back and forth while doing his purchase, ensuring that even a power surge or his computer exploding wouldn't cause his work to be lost.

The process of tearing himself away from his computer long enough to shower and pickup the thing he'd purchased was pure agony and took a literal Herculean effort. All Blake's mind and body wanted to do was create, and the thought of doing anything else was heresy of the highest order, but manage it he did.

When 11:30 ticked, and Euterpe didn't appear, Blake got worried, worried that something that had happened to her, worried that he'd grossly offended her, worried that she wasn't coming. Through his worry though, while his mind was doing one thing, his body was doing another, typing away at the work that he'd dreamed, and thus didn't need his brain to do.

Blake felt the exact moment that Euterpe arrive, just like he'd felt the exact moment that she left. He knew, because the endless stream of creativity in his brain stopped and he was able to think and breathe normally. He'd been sitting in one of the chairs of the kitchen island, working on his computer, and thus not looking at the spot where the two had teleported, but the second his brain was able to think normally again, he let his head sag forward and his hands stop moving.

"Oh thank god..." Blake said in an exaggerated but not fully exhausted tone as he turned to face Euterpe. "I thought it was never going to stop. Your power, your inspiration is incredible, but this, this peace, thank god for this." He was rambling, and he knew it, but in this moment, he didn't care. His brain was utterly exhausted from what he'd gone through since she'd left, and while he could likely get used to it, having breaks that included her presence would make it all that much more tolerable.

 

[Poprockz]

She raised an eyebrow at him, “it would seem that the inspiration has taken to you very well. Though I must say you look exhausted. Perhaps you should take a quick nap before practice, and later I will show you how to dampen the surge.” The goddess walked forward a couple paces, dressed in black skinny jeans, a dark-green vest-like shirt on that showed her midriff. Her signature gold bangle was gone, but she had some gold rings on her fingers and gold hoops in her ears.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake blushed at both the praise and the assessment. "Heh, yeah, it literally knocked me on my ass, but then I worked until I passed out. He then paused and licked his lips, his eyes flicking towards the ground for a moment before he walked around the kitchen island. "I could have gotten an extra hour or so of sleep, but..." He bent to pick something up off the ground and set it on the kitchen island between them.




"You uh, said you liked lily's, and I figured you'd want it in a pot rather than a bouquet so that it actually...lives. Plus I wanted to apologize for being an insensitive asshole yesterday..." His dark brown gaze lifted to try and find hers. "You were right. I overstepped, and I was out of line. Your feelings were your own, and it was wrong of me to try to change them. I won't ask for forgiveness, but I still wanted to say that...I'm sorry. It won't happen again.

 

[Poprockz]

She stared at him, then looked at the lilies, then looked back up at him. What he had done was… incredibly thoughtful. In their previous discussion she had mentioned liking flowers, but she hadn’t said anything about preferring them to be potted. He had taken what he knew of her and used it to get her something appropriate and thoughtful.

On top of that, he had given a sincere, genuine apology. One that showed her that he had reflected and knew what he did wrong and that he was committed to not repeating it.

Euterpe reached out and caressed one of the flower petals, a soft smile on her face before she looked up at him. Her gaze wasn’t as soft, but there was definitely appreciation there. “Your apology is accepted, and I appreciate your gift. They are… lovely, Blake. Thank you.”

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake naturally held his breath as Euterpe looked back and forth between him and the lilies. It wasn't that he expected the lilies to make up for what he'd done, but rather he genuinely hoped that she would like them. His breath hitched even more as she reached out to caress one of the large petals, and his heart jumped when he saw the soft smile on her face. Her gaze wasn't as soft when she spoke, but he could see the change, and that was enough for him. Her words were just icing on the cake. "I'm glad you...like them..." Blake said, his tone getting a bit breathy before he finally let out the one he'd been holding as he turned towards the fridge to grab a liter of Coke from the fridge.

"As for the nap, I think I will pass for today. I think between caffeine, endorphins, and good old fashioned adrenaline once we get going, I should be okay, but I am truly happy to know that there is a way to dampen the surge. It felt incredible in the moment to be sure, but I would be useless to you and your sisters in no time if I was working to exhaustion every night."

Blake crossed back over to the kitchen island with his Coke and set it down. "Now, before we get down to it, can I get you something to eat or drink? I don't know what you like, but if you can give me a list, I'd be more than happy to keep some things in stock for you."

 

[Poprockz]

“I dislike chocolate, cream, garlic, and fruit, “ she said seriously before pausing and giving him a little smile, “that was a joke. I like sweet things, and prefer humanely-raised when I purchase animal products. I technically do not have to eat, but I like to. I have been busy this past year, so there is much of your modern food I have not tried. If you think I will like something, you are welcome to give it to me. Do you currently have anything sweet?”

Euterpe eyed the coke with disinterest, as though she had tried it before and didn’t like it.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake went to pull out his list when Euterpe started listing off things, and was then relieved when the list that she gave him was a joke. "Phew, good thing too." Blake said with a smile and a chuckle. "That list definitely would have made things a bit difficult, especially today when I haven't planned for it. That said, I will make sure to set time aside to personally shop for the proteins instead of doing grocery delivery to make sure that they are humanely raised and killed." As he finished speaking, he turned away from her and crossed the short distance to the fridge.

"So I don't have too much, but I do have some chocolate walnuts brownies, not home-made of course." Blake said as he pulled the small tray of plastic-wrapped brownies out of the fridge. "I'm admittedly not the best cook, and tend to go for fast and/or simple meals when I do cook." He set the tray on the kitchen island in between them, tore the plastic wrap off, and moved to throw it in the garbage.

Even as Blake had gone about his task, he'd of course seen the look that Euterpe had cast at his Coke. He couldn't help but chuckle as he opened the bottle and drank straight from it. "Don't worry. I won't try to change your mind on this one. Caffeine drinkers tend to stick to their drink of choice, and that's okay. I've just never been a big fan of coffee. The smell just reminds me of..." He shook his head slowly, still chuckling. "Well, the people in my past who drank it I guess, and that was just kind of a turn off for me, y'know?"

 

[Poprockz]

“I understand,” she nodded, eyeing the brownies with interest. Baked goods were always a safe bet in her eyes, so she was fairly certain she would like them. Reaching out, she took a brownie from the pan and took a bite, chewing before a pleased little smile came to her face.

“That is pleasing. Walnuts and chocolate- I like the combination. I will say that it tastes… “store-bought” as they say, but it is still good.” The goddess took another bite.

It hadn’t escaped her notice that he had made a reference to something troubling in his past, but she wasn’t sure if it was her place to ask about it.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake held his breath as Euterpe brought the brownie to her lips, even though she knew it was store-bought. He happily let it out with a smile and reached for one himself when he saw the smile come to her face though. "Heh, yeah. I'll happily take store-bought over giving myself food poisoning." He said before he lifted the brownie to his lips and took a bite.

"So, judging from the look you gave my Coke, you clearly aren't a fan. Does that apply to all soda, or are you a Pepsi girl and we can never be friends, or do you have a different drink of choice?" Blake smiled once more as he asked his question and made his little joke, hoping that Euterpe didn't mind it. He knew that the two of them didn't really need to bond, or even truly like each other, for their work relationship to function, but that didn't mean that he didn't want to. I mean, even knowing that gods exist and walked among them didn't mean that he'd ever get an opportunity like this again, and what mortal woman would ever compare with Euterpe, not just in looks, but experience, past experiences, and being able to see her experience modern things for the first time as well.

 

[Poprockz]

She chuckled, “I don’t like Pepsi either, so you don’t have to worry about becoming sworn enemies. Of the soft drinks that you have in modern times, I have not tried very many, but I think my favorites so far are cream soda and…” her face screwed up as she tried to remember the name, “it’s the one that has lemon and lime…”

Euterpe thought it might have been “Sprint” or “Sierra Mountain” or something, but she couldn’t quite recount.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake chuckled along with Euterpe when she made her joke about Pepsi and them being sworn enemies. "Excellent news! It would be a shame if our mission was doomed from the start on account of our fundamental differences!" He then took a quick drink of his Coke before reaching for his phone once more, his chuckle turning into a small smile as he nodded to her. "Gotcha, I can certainly work with that, and I'll have some cold drinks ready for you in the fridge whenever you choose to drop by."

After he was done making a note of Euterpe's drink preferences in his phone, Blake set it aside once more. He leaned forward on his elbows on the kitchen island looking at her curiously as he asked, "I hope you don't mind me asking, but what all have you been up to these past eighteen months? I mean I know where you went when you left...that night, and of course small bits that led us to where we are now, but has it been all business, or have you allowed yourself some interests, hobbies, and the like?"

 

[Poprockz]

"Hmm..." she hummed thoughtfully.

"I spent several months mourning and recovering, then I took some treasures from my vault and traded them for wealth. I purchased my house and started to research where my sisters had been taken. It was difficult to track them down, but eventually I was able to find them. As far as hobbies go..." Euterpe shrugged, taking another bite of brownie and swallowing before saying, "mostly I just tried to catch up on what's happened for the past 300 years. I occasionally go out to eat to try new things, but mostly I just read, listen to music, and watch videos. There is... a lot to catch up on." She chewed on another bite, looking as though it hadn't really occurred to her yet that she should try to enjoy herself.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake had reached for a brownie while Euterpe was thinking, and lifted it towards his mouth when she first started to speak. His hand lowered as he listened, truly listened, giving her his full attention.

"Processing that much trauma over the span of just several months is..." Blake started after Euterpe finished speaking, shaking his head as he tried to wrap his head around just how difficult a task it was. "...And then running right back into the fire for your sisters..." It was hard for him to even finish each thought because of how impossible they sounded.

Even as Blake spoke and marveled inwardly about just how strong and brave Euterpe was, it didn't pass his notice that she hadn't actually mentioned any hobbies, interests, or really anything she'd done just for herself.

As the silence between them lengthened, with Blake not truly knowing what to say, partly because of rule two, and partly because anything he thought of just didn't seem fitting, and he didn't want to offend Euterpe again. So, with no ground to be gained on that front, he lifted the brownie to his mouth and took it all in one bite before washing it down with some of his Coke and closing the bottle once more. "Well, speaking of rescuing your sisters, should we get started before the guys arrive?" He asked with a genuine smile, as he truly was looking forward to working with the goddess, both for their mutual benefit, and because it would hopefully help her think of more pleasant things than the fates of her sisters while there was nothing she could do to help.

 

[Poprockz]

She knew he likely sympathized with her, understanding that not even a god could recover from 300 years of trauma over such a short time. Euterpe appreciated him not lingering on the topic though. There was work to be done, and discussing the pain of her past would do nothing to help them at the moment.

"Yes, let's get started." Euterpe nodded, putting the rest of the brownie in her mouth before dusting off her hands. Once she swallowed, she said, "hold on for just a moment." The goddess walked to his plant, disappeared, then reappeared a moment later holding a bass guitar. It was a shiny, glossy black with gold accents. She also had some sheet music in her hands, handing him a couple.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake was genuinely glad that Euterpe wanted to get down to business as well. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about her, her past, or her trauma, but he also didn't want to offend her again. He had no idea what she'd truly gone through or was still going through, and any attempt to claim otherwise might cause him to lose any ground he'd managed to regain with his gift and apology.

While Blake did of course have a couple of spare bass guitars lying around, he could hardly fault Euterpe for wanting to bring her own, especially since the instrument truly was a thing of beauty.

"Heh, I always do get a little jealous of the beautiful instruments other musicians get to hold and display." Blake said with a somewhat sheepish smile as he approached her, his hand tentatively reaching for the guitar, a look of awe on his face as he let his hand just glide along the edge for just a moment before shaking his head.

Blake took the sheet music that Euterpe offered him, and as he glanced down at it he felt a surge rush through him that made his eyes close, his hands shake, and his bottom lip quiver. His other hand found the kitchen island, and he lowered himself into one of the chairs beside it. "Your power really is something..." He said with a hint of awe after a moment of studying the music. "With the perfect pitch I normally need to hear the note to identify it, but now...I see the notes...and...I literally feel the music...like feel it inside me."

Blake realized that he was babbling and let his gaze flick up to meet Euterpe's for just a moment before pushing off of the kitchen island to stand on legs that were only a little shaky. "I think I'll be okay now."

 

[Poprockz]

She studied him, tilting her head slightly to the side in a thoughtful manner. It wasn't just that he felt the inspiration- he took to it in a way that most didn't. Regardless of how much she had sex with someone, sometimes there were limitations to how much inspiration they could get from her based on their own abilities, body, receptiveness, and her own feelings toward them. It seemed that he was set up to be quite the conduit for it, so much so that it might give him some trouble at first. Euterpe thought he might have been exaggerating regarding his night of work, but it seemed as though he really was struggling with the currents that were surging under his skin.

"Perhaps I should show you how to dampen it now. I think you may have too much inspiration to function very well at the moment." The muse stepped a bit closer to him, "you have two choices. Either I can kiss you and take some of it back, or... " she nodded downward toward his crotch. "You can masturbate. Either way, you will release some of my energy, though I'm more adept at determining how much to take from you once I get a feel for how much you have. If you do it yourself, you may have to go a few times."

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake blushed under Euterpe's thoughtful studying gaze but didn't back down from it. He even held his ground, standing as firmly as he could on his slightly shaking legs as he heard her start to speak and take her first couple of steps towards him. His gaze then lowered as his eyes flitted back and forth thoughtfully after she gestured towards his crotch and finished speaking.

The decision wasn't a particularly easy one, but when Blake's gaze lifted to find Euterpe's amber one, he nodded, swallowing hard as he did. "I think..." He started, his dark brown eyes full of uncertainty as his tongue flicked across his lips. "...That you are right. I wouldn't be able to perform at my best right now, especially after last night, and for our plan to work, I need to be able to perform at my best." He then took a step towards her. "And you're right that you're more adept at knowing how much to take. Please help me, Euterpe." He stopped at just taking that one step, his fear of offending her by seeming too eager potentially showing on his face as his bottom lip found it's way between his teeth.

 

[Poprockz]

She nodded, closing the gap between them with a final step and reaching up to place her hands on either side of his face. The muse caressed him gently but firmly, pulling him down slightly until she could lift her lips to his. Her kiss was soft at first, merely her lips lightly upon his.

However, she closed her eyes and tried to get a feeling for how much energy he had. She had her answer very quickly, finding him absolutely loaded with it. No wonder he was exhausted! He probably hadn’t had a literally wink of sleep! Had she known he would have ended up this way, she would have helped him sooner. The muse felt a little guilty… Perhaps she should have checked up on him.

The pressure of her lips upon his increased, and the started to pull the energy back into her body. Their lips tingled slightly as she did so.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake didn't move as Euterpe approached, letting her take his head in her hands and pull him down to her. He held his breath as he felt her caress, unsure what it would feel like when she took the inspiration back. That breath left him involuntarily when he felt the first brush of her lips against his though, leaving him with a soft whooshing sound.

Euterpe's kiss was soft, unexpectedly so after how he'd offended her the day before, and he found himself torn on how to respond. She'd said that she had to kiss him, not that he had to kiss her back. So when it was just her lips lightly and barely touching his, he made no move to go beyond that. When she increased the pressure though, pressing her lips harder and more fully against his, and he felt his lips start to tingle, he couldn't help but reciprocate.

Blake's free hand found it's way to Euterpe's lower back, but didn't linger long. It slowly slid up her form, her soft sandy blond hair trailing against the backs of his fingers until he reached the back of her neck and slid his fingers up through her hair properly. His hand didn't stop until it reached the back of her head, and it's then that he properly kissed her back, his own eyes closing as he fought the urge to tilt their heads and deepen the kiss. He'd only kissed her the one time, and it didn't end well. So he didn't know how she liked to be kissed, and thus was just following her lead, save for the hand that stroked her scalp as their tingling wet lips pressed and smacked with each deep kiss, the tingling feeling getting stronger with each passing second.

 

[Poprockz]

His lips felt.. nice, actually.

She could feel his hand slipping up her back, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, her body relaxed as she found herself carried away a little. His gifted energy was siphoning into her lips until she realized with a jolt that she shouldn’t take any more or it might be more than she intended.

Euterpe suddenly pulled back and caught her breath, still feeling the pressure of his lips upon her own. It was a bit disorienting, the realization that she had rather liked that exchange. Her cheeks went slightly pink and she cleared her throat, stepping away from him and saying, “there. That should do it. I’m sorry for not realizing how much energy you were given last night. Normally men aren’t as receptive to it, but you seem to have absorbed much more than most.”

 

[Lucian_Devine]

Blake was relieved when Euterpe didn't pull away when his hand touched her, nor when his hand moved up and slid through her hair. In fact he even started to lose himself in the moment before her sudden withdrawal caught him off guard. His face fell forward a touch before he managed to catch it, and when his eyes opened, he saw the pink coloring her cheeks, and it made his own cheeks flush as well.

Euterpe's apology was sweet, and it did bring a small half smile to Blake's lips, but he just shook his head. "No, it was my fault. You probably would have thought of it at some point if I hadn't been such an asshole and driven you away."

Blake took a long and slow deep breath, closing his eyes as he lifted the music before him. "What do you say we give this another shot?" He asked Euterpe sarcastically as he opened his eyes and looked at the music. He felt nothing as he looked at the first note of the song, but he felt the music flow through him as he progressed from one note to the next, feeling how they connected and the music flowed together. The feeling was strong but bearable as he took slow, deep, and measured breaths.

Blake went over the music twice, once for the notes and then again for the lyrics before lifting his gaze to meet Euterpe's, the half smile widening to a full smile. "I'm ready when you are." He said, proving it by taking a stable and steady step towards the door that led to the deck that had stairs to take them down to the playing space. There was no shakiness in his step nor his stance as he turned to look back at her, still smiling.

 

[Poprockz]

Was he referring to his kiss in the bed when he called himself an asshole? While she did feel that it was a foolish misstep on his part, she didn’t think he had been malicious. Euterpe thought to herself that he seemed to be very hard on himself, and she wondered if that had anything to do with how poorly his father had treated him. That horrid man had no doubt tried to beat Blake’s self worth out of him. She was tempted to try to fix that but… it wasn’t truly her place to do so. Maybe with time and with his continued success, he would find himself more self-assured.

In any case, at least his inspiration was tampered down to a more normal level. That was a relief. The muse gave him a satisfied look before nodding. She followed him down, glancing once again at the ocean before continuing on.

 

[Lucian_Devine]

When Blake reached the pavement at the bottom of the stairs, he stepped aside and turned around, both waiting for Euterpe and wanting to be close in the unlikely case that she tripped, missed the last step, or otherwise stumbled. Once they were both safely on the ground and walking, another question popped into his head. He waited to ask it until he got to to amplifier and handed her the plug to plug into her guitar.

"Before the guys show up, there was another thing I was curious about. When you sold your treasures and bought your house, did you get a fake identity as well, or will everyone in the mortal world know you as Euterpe as well?" Blake asked Euterpe from his knees after he'd plugged her guitar into the amplifier.

 

[Poprockz]

“I do have my own identity now,” she responded with a small smile. As always, gold can move mountains. You can call me Alexandria Turpentine.”

The woman took a card out of her pocket and held it out for him. Like her guitar, it was black with gold shavings in it, the letters themselves golden and sun-catching. It read:

Alexandria Turpentine
Manager/Music Coach
Phone: xxx-xxx-xxxx
Email: TurpentineTones@gmail.com