Folks Like Us

Would you know a deity if you bumped into one on the street? I'd like to think I would. Surely they'd give off an aura or gauzy glow to give me a heads-up. But if history is any indicator, I could be out of luck.

Warning for minor spoilers for the Crossed Lines series

Ancient Greek legends often depict gods and goddesses frolicking among humans. Apparently it's rather boring to be stuck on Mount Olympus all the time. The ancient Greek gods were shapeshifters. Normally they chose appearances that weren't your average Joe from the corner drugstore. Apollo was a dazzling young blond musician—the ancient equivalent of a rock star. Zeus was described as regal and imposing with a full beard. An eagle often perched on his arm, adding to the inescapable conclusion that this was not someone to be taken lightly. Athena, Aphrodite, and the other goddesses possessed a beauty that no mortal woman could ever match . . . You get the idea.

The creative team for the TV series Supernatural takes the concept a step further. Not only do they allow immortals to masquerade as humans, but very ordinary ones at that. God, yes, the God Jehovah, is portrayed as an unprepossessing struggling novelist named Chuck. Atropos, one of the Fates, is portrayed as a young bookish woman who could easily be mistaken for a librarian. Castiel is a powerful angel in Heaven but on Earth he's a clueless innocent who has trouble understanding the most basic concepts of modern society

In our series Crossed Lines, Astrena, Queen of the Stars, is the equivalent of one of the Greek goddesses, but on Earth she's assumed the identity of Electra Stavrou. She masquerades as the owner of a bookstore in New Haven, Connecticut. Her sister Maia is ostensibly a shy graduate student at Yale University. Another sister, Gemma, teaches botany in England. Only the demon Crowley and a few others know the true nature of the sisters. Crowley asserts that Wiccans worship Electra as their Moon Goddess. She in turn calls him the King of Hell, a position Lucifer would challenge.

As for Crowley, he too easily passes himself off as human. It's only when his eyes flash red that you know this is not the Curtis Hagen of the White Collar canon.

Fireflies at Midnight on Archive of Our Own
Fireflies at Midnight on FanFiction