#hera.

hera loves her Kids. ok?? she adores them so much and anyone who suggests otherwise can get BENT. hera is a very loving mother, but she tends to be a bit of a tough love kind of mom too. she pushes her kids hard to be the best versions of themselves, and isn't afraid to call them out. that being said, she'll always be gentle with them when they need it.

i'll go in what i imagine their birth order to be.

hephaestus is her first born, and also the one with whom her relationship is rockiest. they have a very rough history to contend with - one that i've always attributed to post-partum depression as opposed to vanity or outright cruelty. the guilt that hera has felt her entire life because of that is so strong and i doubt it will ever go away. after his return to olympus and the subsequent falling out, they did reconcile. hera has done absolutely everything she can to make up for the past and has doted on hephaestus thoroughly, but she does not want to overstep. in her mind, she lost that right. she gives him as much affection as he is willing to accept, and their relationship is.. steady.

ares & eris are her beloved little war babies, but with whom her relationships are very different. ares is a momma's boy and she definitely leans into that heavily. hera goes a touch too boy mom with him, but it works well with ares because she's the only one who cherishes him, really, and they are incredibly close. eris is much more of a spitfire than her twin brother and she butts heads with her mom a lot. it doesn't make hera love her less, but it does make it harder for them to connect. they argue. eris blows up and hera gets catty and they don't talk for ages. then they reconcile and are cuddling on the couch, you know? it's complicated.

eileithyia spends the most time with hera, i think. their domains overlap a lot, so hera gets to impart a lot of wisdom and also learn a lot from her daughter. they probably have the most "normal" mother/daughter relationship of the bunch. hera loves her so much, and they're quite like-minded, so they don't argue often. hera loves to check up on her work when she can.

hebe is slightly complicated, too. she's a very easygoing person to get along with, mood swings aside, and she is mom's little angel most of the time. but hebe holds a touch of resentment towards her mother and father for her marriage to heracles (in my interpretation), so hera has to be careful what she says to hebe about the subject. they're much better in present day, but there was some tension for a while. still, hera is doting and loving.

honorable mentions: athena, hermes, and persephone - she loves most of her step kids too, but these three in particular. as far as she's concerned, athena is her kid, and hermes is a close contender as well. she doesn't get quite as involved with them, but she will act very motherly when they're around.

okay okay /rubs palms together/ just short one

cw. orgy, mentions of bxb

i've complained enough this morning so i'll just talk about something else i really wanna talk about and that's zeus and hera ok.

i've been thinking a lot about their dynamic, and in particular, how i envision hera. and i think the thing i've come to realize is that hera's anger towards the women zeus sleeps with (and their children) comes from one of two places. fear of being replaced, and disdain at being lied to.

zeus has a lot of children with other women, and i really don't think that is the inherent problem. hera desires his fidelity, but in my context (and in the context of much myth, that is), zeus' affairs were rarely born out of a very deep love. they were necessities. the world needed heroes, and the world needed gods, and as father of the gods he took it upon himself to do so. so i think there are a lot of children zeus has, and women he's taken to bed, whom hera has no issue with (i mean, the muses, athena, hermes even, though don't quote me on it, persephone, perseus, etc etc). she's not mad that zeus does this. it's how he does it, and who he chooses to do it with that really becomes the issue.

some of the biggest sufferers of hera's wrath are as follows: leto, heracles, dionysusn semele, echo, and io. there are others, but i'm going to focus on these ones.

leto was a titaness, and a powerful one. a close friend of hera's, too, i like to think. so when she and zeus have children together, hera is not angry that he did it, she's angry about who it was with - and, in fear that of all the women he took to bed, she might be the one who could replace her - or that her children might be able to outrank hera's children. the affair itself is not the issue - hera punishes leto because she is furious at the thought of being replaced, and does so in an attempt to put leto in her place.

heracles, is, again, a massive threat to hera and her children, should he attempt to do anything about it. dionysus and semele hera punishes because of how much zeus loved semele (in my opinion). she feared that semele might be the one woman zeus loved more than her, and she punishes all of them for it. dionysus, the product of their love, earns the same ire. echo is punished because of zeus' lies, as is io. she doesn't care that he did it. she cares that zeus tried to hide it and lie about it, and so unleashes her wrath.

none of this is to say that hera is necessarily justified or that their relationship is healthy. but i don't think its fair to say that hera is just vindictive and jealous either. i think she handles her husband's infidelity well most of the time, but draws the line at threats to her and her children, or secrecy in it.

——— character question sheet

▌real name: hera. ▌single or taken:  married to zeus. ▌abilities or powers: hera is immortal, heals at a rapid rate, can teleport, shapeshift, and use telekinesis. she is slightly omniscient, capable of observing people in her 'mind's eye', so to speak. and though she once believed that she received no special powers compared to that of her siblings, hera is incredibly in tune with the emotions of others and can manipulate them to her will.

▌eye colour: dark brown. ▌hair colour: dark brown, almost black, and very curly, thick, and long.

▌family members: hera was born to cronus and rhea, is a sister to hestia, hades (her twin), poseidon, demeter, & zeus. she has numerous children; hephaestus, ares, eris, enyo, eileithyia, and hebe. ▌pets: her husband has numerous cats (five, to be precise) that have become hers through association, though were not animals she chose for herself. she still loves them, though.

▌something they don’t like: dishonesty. she is not the most forgiving of people, but she will be far more merciful and fair to someone who is honest with her. lying to her is one of the easiest ways to get on her bad side, however small the lie may be. ▌hobbies/activities: hera loves the outdoors, and enjoys swimming, cycling, running, and horseback riding out in nature. she loves fashion, and enjoys giving her input on her husband's fashion line / reading magazines on the subject. she loves music, and plays the violin. she loves games, too - video, board, or card games.

▌ever hurt anyone before:  yes, of course. ▌ever killed anyone before: more than once. ▌animal that represents them: peacocks & cows, mostly.

▌worst habits: putting words in others' mouths / assuming before someone can explain their self, drinking in excess, snapping at people when she is frustrated ▌role models: hestia, metis, & hades.

▌sexual orientation: bisexual. ▌thoughts on marriage/kids: i mean, naturally as the goddess of marriage, the union is incredibly important to her. marriage to hera is a promise and a sacrifice, something to be worked at continuously every day. her own marriage is complex, but she firmly believes that love needs to be at the forefront of every marriage, and cherished regardless of hardship - which is why she never leaves zeus. because she loves him deeply, and he loves her, and despite their turmoil, they fight through it. and have come out the other side stronger! but she's also a proponent of cutting ties when someone is in danger. as a goddess of women, she recognizes that marriages can be stifling, abusive, and dangerous, and so she wholly encourages those unhappy to leave them. hera always wanted to be married, too, but knew that she would not settle for anything less than the best (hell, zeus was king and still had a lot of convincing to do). it's commitment, in more ways than one, and she wanted to be sure. motherhood is similar - she has always wanted to be a mother, and oversees that domain fairly well. her relationship to motherhood is incredibly intimate, and she values the nuances in it greatly. her relationship with her children always comes first, and she has worked hard to provide them with healthy, happy, and prosperous lives. there is a reason she is viewed not just as queen but as mother of the gods as well.

▌fears: hera is extremely claustrophobic, and to some degree, fears abandonment. ▌style preferences: in public settings, hera looks flawless. she loves beautiful dresses with a pair of heels and matching jewlery, or jumpsuits that accentuate all the right places. sometimes she'll wear a blazer, or a really powerful pair of slacks. she wears designer clothing, and it suits her a lot. at home, though, she does tend to favour a more casual, comfortable look. comfortable yoga pants or pajamas, t-shirts, etc. ▌someone they love: not to be sappy on main, but zeus. i say this because i think there's this misconception that hera does not love him on account of their spats... but there is no reason for hera to stay with him if she does not love him. she has left him before, in some myths. she's tried to overthrow him. girl is not afraid to put him in his place where she is able, nor call it quits when things are going sour. she stays with him because she adores him, despite the pain, and because both of them are on a journey of healing, growth, and reconciliation. they've both worked to be better people, for and in spite of each other. and love has flourished in that time, okay? hera loves him so much and is appalled that people think she would give up on him entirely.

▌approach to friendships: hera is very charismatic, and used to getting people to agree with / like her for the sake of diplomacy or political gain (not in a deceptive way, just in a natural i need you to like me so things work out so i'll be my kindest self sort of way). this means though that hera's truest friendships are the ones in which she doesn't have to be that way - and oftentimes, she befriends those who are honest, upfront, and unafraid of her. when she meets someone like that, she is far more inclined to befriend them, and does so pretty blatantly. as in "i like you, let's grab coffee some time."