"Janus' mother?" Mena exclaimed. If her eyelids could've gotten any wider, she was afraid her eyeballs would fall out.

"Hel Harvestar…" the woman said, a smile curling on the living side of her face. "I'd shake your hand," the witch doctor said and held up one of her hands--it was complete bone, "but I don't want you to catch my gradual rot."

"Gradual rot?" Mena said, and preciously asked, "What are you?"

A sadness reflected in Hel's only living eye. "I was a human...like you and so many others, but…"

Hel stood up, "Where are my manners?" She began to stir the bony broth. "I've prepared a dinner for you, friends of Janus."

Mena squeaked. "How did you know we were Janus' friends?"

Hel walked over to a jar of bones that rattled around when she shook it. They were carved like dice with occult markings. "I am a seer...and I like to roll the bones of fate. I foresaw your arrival long before it happened."

"That's how…" Mena said softly. "How Janus got her death seeing powers…"

"Yes…" Hel said and rested her eye. "It's not a business anyone should get into. The contents of the hands of fate are concealed from the naked eye for a reason."

She grabbed four bowls from the shelf and began to pour the broth into four bowls. Ashlan, May and Leo all looked suspiciously at the soup. "Bone broth," Hel Harvestar said, "The marrow is what gives it flavor."

She poured Ashlan and May cups of the soup and Leo continued to eye Janus'mother suspiciously. "I like meat on my bones!" he muttered, eyeing the chunks in the soup. "And I haven't gotten a good helping of meat since...yesterday."

"Well today's yesterday's tomorrow," the death seer said with a sad smile.

"I don't like this woman," Leo pouted. "She gives me bone soup and makes my head hurt."

"Counting to ten makes your head hurt," Ashlan smirked and began to sip her soup. "Not bad."

All of Mena's friends sat down on the prickly tarp like couch behind them.

"Miss Death Seer?" Mena asked, politely sipping her soup. "Can you please tell us what's wrong with Janus?"

Hel Harvestar nodded and sat down. "Yes," she said with a wistful smile. "You see…"

Mena and her friends all watched as Hel paused and looked at the bones floating in her broth. "When you are young…" Hel said in a harrowing tone, "and you reach a certain age...your body begins to change."

Mena scratched her head. This talk sounded familiar.

"And not only that," the witch doctor said, holding her hands apart, "your mind changes too. This is called puberty!"

"What the huh?!" Mena said with two raised eyebrows and a gaping mouth. "What is this?! Hex Ed class?!"

Ashlan chuckled. "I get it...even Death goes through puberty."

"The lion girl is perceptive even without the gift of foresight," Hel Harvestar smiled.

Mena furrowed her brow in anger. She wanted to throw her soup on the floor and stomp out. "So you're telling me that rather than her voice dropping or her getting whatchamacallits, she kills people!"

Hel looked away from Mena refusing to meet the anguish in Mena's face. "Janus is terribly confused," Hel said, "That's my husband in her thinking she needs to reap souls."

"But why did she become a horrible freak?" Ashlan asked as she finished her soup.

"For the same reason I have half a face," Hel responded and began to sadly stir her marrow. "Death and life do not mix well and it is often death that wins out."

Mena stood up and placed the unfinished bowl of soup on the counter. May who had finished slurping loudly asked meekly, "Mena where are you going?"

"Do you really expect me to feel better after hearing that?" She said, heading to the exit. "I really want to punch her bones out after what she did to Tal."

Hel was silent, but eyed Mena as she made her way to the exit. "You know, there is no way to defeat my daughter as you are now. None of you could."

Mena wanted to exclaim, "you underestimate my power," at Hel but she realized that there was nothing more foolhardy than having a magical fist fight with the daughter of Death.

"What do you expect me to do?" Mena whined as she swung back in the doorway. "You think I can sit on my rear and play with wizget spinners. I need to stop Janus for Tal...and for me!"

Hel placed her bony and fleshy fingers together. "You may not be able to reach her death side, but...you must remember...Janus is half my flesh. Reach out to that side and you may have a chance."

"I don't know how you expect me to do that," Mena said with a scowl. "I have no sympathy or empathy or telepathy or any other pathy for her."

"Not even apathy?" Ashlan said wryly.

"That is the only way, I'm afraid," Hel said with a solemn nod. "And the only way I can help you.".

She collected the finished bowls of Leo, Ashlan and May and turned to them.

"I apologize I cannot come with you," she said. "But I have been in contact with beings of death for far too long and it... well…"

There was a look of understanding on everyone's face over Hel's condition. Now the half eroded skull face made total sense to Mena. She wondered if being around Janus for too long would do that to her. Fortunately, I'm through with Janus, Mena thought to herself, I hate to make that joke again but she's dead to me.

"And besides," Hel said, holding her hands to her half skeletal body. "Janus wouldn't want to see me anyway. I've estranged myself from her and Grimm."

Hel gazed at everyone with all the life in her remaining eye. "I have to live for myself now or there won't be anything left for me."

Mena may not have had much empathy for Janus, but she felt plenty sorry for her mother. They all bid Hel Harvestar farewell and the half living woman said, "I also foresaw you were looking for the great temple of Beasts. Follow my lantern and it will lead you there."

Everyone thanked Hel one last time, but the witch doctor stopped them.

"Please," Hel pleaded, "Tell Janus that I love her and that I regret not being able to be her mother for longer."

The four agreed and departed from Hel's hut and it didn't take long for them to find the destination. In a large clearing where the forest ended, two proud statues of a lion and lioness guarded the entrance of a sandblasted, sealed temple. Unfortunately for them, a familiar figure stood between the statues, a figure that Mena knew would find always find her in the end: Janus, the daughter of Death.