#aphroditexmp

@aphroditexmp | continued from [ here ]

Yoongi had been very consciously avoiding this mother-in-law ever since he and Taemin had started dating.

Which was fairly easy, actually, since Aphrodite and Taemin did not seem particularly close. It was not like his husband tried to rope him into family dinners or anything. They didn’t invite Aphrodite over for Christmas. So it was really just a matter of not running into her on the street. And it was hardly like they ran in the same circles, so that was not really an issue either.

But, he realized when he returned from a call to find Aphrodite waiting by his desk, it looked like his luck had finally run out. And, in true mother-in-law fashion, she had convinced Osiris to give him an extra-long lunch break... for what? To get to know him? She hadn’t seemed very interested in that before. The entire thing was giving him a bad feeling, but he kept up a careful poker face as he took off Storm’s leash and took a chewy treat out of his desk drawer to occupy her while he was gone.

The evening was pleasant enough. There were drinks, lights, fitting music, even pleasant company. Only after Ivan had grabbed his second glass of scotch did he slowly but surely feel it, that familiar tug at his soul. The one that called to his very existence, one of his tattoos. Somewhere in the effervescent atmosphere, it called out to him. It had been ages, so long he hadn't even remembered the last time he'd tattooed anyone. Let alone bumped into someone, randomly, at an event planned by the City Council.

Quietly but intently Ivan scanned around, trying to find the source of the calling he knew all too well. What the hell, who could it be? His mind racked itself trying to put two and two together. The tattoo was small, its existence flickering among the wide open space of the venue. He let his feet guide him across the extravagant suits and adorned dresses, gods he hoped it wasn't the person his mind was concluding it to be.

Ivans’ skin prickled as his eyes landed on the shimmering silhouette he recognized perfectly. Against his better judgment, he put up a polite front, his nerves going ice cold. He was going to regret this, he felt it in his bones.

She shook her head, smile frozen on her otherwise pretty features, “In fact, I would much rather you never bring it up again. It’s a lot easier to like you when I’m not reminded of the fact that you sold me off to Heph, Daddy.” 

Zeus released a deep sigh at his daughter’s response. “Okay baby. I’m sorry.” he spoke, sincere. He knew he had made his daughter unhappy with the marriage and every time one of them -or someone else- brought it up he’d feel regret for ever having forced it upon her. At the time he’d been stuck. He had to fulfill his duties as a leader of Olympus and thereby he had neglected his duties as a father. In fact he had neglected his duties as a father more often.

Himeros resisted the urge to roll his eyes at his mother, her vanity one of the things that he really truly remembered about her. Although he found her exasperating and exhausting, he did love her as much as he could muster to love her. In his mind, he was truly too busy to be concerned with a bitterness towards a mother who may or may not have been there to raise him.

@aphroditexmp || @aresmp || 

Ah, how he had missed being at Mount Phoenix. His travels had been so good to him that he’d returned with a new collection of antique weapons for the Dagger and Roses shop he owned but also a new look that again somehow only he could pull off. He adjusted the ponytail he had in his hair and his sunglasses before dropping off the collected antiques at the shop before deciding to go pay a visit to his wife and maybe her boyfriend as well. As much  they had history, Hephaestus still genuinely adored his wife and her side ho. He hadn’t quite come to terms with Ares (mostly still wanting to punch the daylights out of him) but Aphro was very dear. He adjusted the jacket he wore and headed to Aphro’s shop, the Silk Peach. Maybe he’d catch her in one of the ensembles she sold there. 

with || @aphroditexmp || continued from here:

She huffed, a pout forming on her lips as she looked up at her father - the man she loved and yet had disappointed her time and time again. "I assume that you're not calling me a nightmare, Daddy," she said, the hint of hurt hidden in her playful tone, "That wouldn't be very nice of you considering how long it's been."

his smile is surprisingly warm when aphrodite pouts at him and he reaches out a hand to run a hand over her hair, careful not to ruin any part of it in the process because he knows how much her looks matter to his daughter.

“you are always a dream, beloved,” he says gently, as he lets his fingers run down the side of her face, thumb resting briefly on her chin. “i was merely joking.” he brushes his thumb over her skin and then lets go of her entirely in order to be able to take a proper look at her.

"Well, as you can see, Ares is as... Ares as ever. Same with Aphrodite. Hecate is having family drama, Eros married a Japanese goddess, Hades and Persephone are just doing their thing... And Zeus just arrived, but he's still his usual middle-aged frat boy self. So yeah, basically the same old chaos. The Greeks are nothing if not predictable, right?"

"When have I ever claimed to be nice? I'm an oracle. It's not my job to be nice- it's my job to spit facts. Is that what the kids say?"