If I Had Words

Back to chapter menu     
Chapter 82      Chapter 84

There was clear surprise among the gods as Hades’s voice still echoed in the chamber. Hades never — well, almost never — allowed morals a reunion with their bodies once their spirits had entered his realm. 

Yet in this rare case, Hades had said yes. 

“But only for the duration of the trial and until it can be determined where she belongs,” Hades added. 

Persephone gave Hades a loving smile. He was ever logical. 

“Alright,” Zeus said. “The council will adjourn until Psyche is brought back from the Underworld.” 

Zeus was looking forward to stretching, getting something to eat, and maybe taking a nap. This trial was taking a lot longer than expected. 

Gods and goddesses started moving out of their seats. Some disappeared completely, going off to wherever they usually went to relax. Others chatted with each other. There was soon a hearty hum in the council room.

Persephone moved to join Hades. They would be going together to get Psyche. 

Aphrodite watched Persephone, then glared at Athena. 

“I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but you are wrong,” Aphrodite said. “You — “

She stopped at the sight of Hephaestus coming towards her. There was a look of urgency on his face. He rarely concerned himself with things outside of his forge. It surprised her to see him so earnest. 

Athena moved away to give them some privacy.

“I need to speak to you,” Hephaestus said, reaching Aphrodite. 

“Not now,” Aphrodite said, moving away. “I need time to think and plan.” 

Hephaestus reached out to take Aphrodite’s arm as his brother approached. 

“I can’t take it any longer,” Ares said, barreling into the conversation. “My apologies, brother, but Aphrodite! You’re doing well! It’s just that you need to focus on a better strategy.”

Ares had enjoyed watching Aphrodite spar with Athena. Aphrodite was so beautiful and passionate. He had missed her. He needed her. But, she hadn’t needed him in so long it was driving him crazy. Here was finally a chance to be useful. Here was his chance to get Aphrodite’s attention, and hopefully, win back her love.  

His brother Hephaestus was completely useless when it came to battle strategies. How could he help? 

Ares was the God of War. 

This was his moment. 

Hephaestus’s face hardened as he let go of his wife. His brother was always getting in the way, always pretending to be superior. It was irritating, but it was clear that Aphrodite wasn’t in the mood to listen to him anyway. She was distracted by her short-sighted view of this trial. 

He had hoped to help Athena and Aphrodite, offering Aphrodite some words of wisdom so she wouldn’t feel like a fool when Athena won. 

He decided he had best find another time to speak to Aphrodite. 

Or not. 

The trial would come to its own conclusion eventually, with or without him. 

Hephaestus excused himself and left them to talk.

Aphrodite glanced briefly at her departing husband. She hoped he didn’t feel too badly. This really wasn’t the time. 

Aphrodite turned her attention to Ares. 

“What do you mean?” she said. “I have the perfect strategy.” 

“Well, of course, my love, but Athena has you in a tight spot,” Ares said, carefully. 

“How so?” Aphrodite said, still defensive. 

“She is setting you up to look like you have judged the mortal wrongly, that you have something against her personally. Don’t focus on areas which are harder to win,” he said thoughtfully. “You must give up this idea that Psyche is proud or unworthy. Athena has enough evidence to prove otherwise.”

“Are you saying Psyche didn’t deserve to be punished?” she said, elevating her head slightly.

“Oh, no. You were right to take swift and harsh action,” Ares said. “It is a serious crime for a mortal to be worshipped as the gods. And this mortal was using her love and beauty to get it, which is completely within your jurisdiction.”

“I know,” Aphrodite said, relaxing slightly. “Athena is stepping out of her lane.”

“But you need to focus on where you have a chance at decisive victory. A mortal is not meant to be a god,” Ares said. “Just focus on that. This mortal is not ready, not capable of being a goddess.” 

Of course Aphrodite knew he was right. She would lose her credibility with the other gods if she didn’t have more points to support her arguments. Ares had always proven to be a master with strategies and could change and pivot easily to find the right opening to strike and go in for the kill.  

A part of her wished she could really appreciate what he was trying to offer her, but she was handling enough already. 

“Thank you, Ares, for your advice,” Aphrodite said. “I’ll take it all into consideration.” 

Ares took heart at her appreciation. He might finally be able to win more ground with her.

“Athena is just trying to rattle you. She’s trying to make you question your judgment,” he said. “It’s a common strategy to make the enemy think they are in the wrong. All you have to do is avoid her blows all together. Focus on the ultimate prize.” 

Aphrodite found herself getting annoyed. Why did he have to be so self-centered? She’d already acknowledged he’d given good advice. What more did he want? What more did he ever want? 

“Yes, I know,” Aphrodite said. “Thank you, Ares. I’ll take your advice and adjust my strategy.” 

“Well, good,” he said, noticing that she seemed annoyed.

Ares would never understand women. Such mood swings! 

And why did it feel like she was trying to end the conversation? She should be eager for his help. War was his thing and Aphrodite was in the heat of battle with Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and Victory. 

He could help her win! 

Ares stood awkwardly for a moment, trying to think what he should say next. He felt satisfied knowing he had managed to say something helpful but his strategy had been built on the assumption that she would want more of his help. 

He didn’t know what to do now that she was done with him. 

Aphrodite noticed Ares starting to shift and fidget.

She sighed. 

Men were so needy. She reminded herself that she had been ignoring him and he was only trying to help.

Still, Aphrodite needed to take care of this herself. This was her domain, her battle to fight.  

Not his.

Trying to find something else to talk about, she caught sight of Phobos and Deimos pushing and teasing Eros as the gods mingled. Eros had been so glum throughout this whole process. It was strange to see him smile, especially around his brothers. 

“The boys seem somewhat changed, don’t you think?” Aphrodite said, drawing Ares’s attention to them. 

Ares turned to look at them.

“I guess so,” Ares said, uninterested. 

Admittedly, Ares had mainly only viewed their twins as useful tools in battle. Eros was completely useless. 

Ares didn’t have much space in his mind for his sons at the moment. 

He wanted to make sure Aphrodite knew he was there for her. If he showed her well enough how much he could help, perhaps she would reward him. 

“I hope you know, if you need anything, anything at all, I’m here for you,” he said. “This is going to be tough.”

Aphrodite smiled. It was nice of him to try to be supportive, but this was a different kind of battle. She doubted he fully understood. True, he knew Athena well, and Aphrodite would take his advice — stay focused on the points which could be won — but she didn’t need him to take over.

“You’ve helped me so much already. Thank you, Ares,” she said, trying to soften the rejection. 

“My pleasure,” he said, smiling widely. 

He hoped he wasn’t overdoing it. 

“You can do this, Aphrodite,” he added for good measure. 

She smiled, hoping her smile would be enough to satisfy him. 

“Thank you for your confidence. I think I’ll be alright,” she said, hoping he would get the hint and leave her to think.

“Right. Yes,” he said, nodding. “You’ll be alright. She is nothing compared to you. You are far superior in every way.”

“Yes, I know,” she said, feeling a bit annoyed again. “Well, I had better gather my thoughts and prepare for the next scrimmage with Athena. She’s not going to go easy on me.”

“Oh, of course,” he said. “Yes. Better leave you to plan your next move. Well, if you need anything, anything at all, I’ll be around.”

“Thank you,” she said. 

He moved off to find something else to do, hoping she didn’t notice how stiffly he walked. 

He really wished he could just be with this woman and not have to dance around their relationship all the time. He wanted her. He wanted to be with her. She just had to make things difficult by being married to his brother. 

Aphrodite watched him leave.  

She sighed.

Looking over at Psyche’s body she wondered. 

How could she have a more solid, non-exaggerated argument to use against Athena? 

Walking closer to Psyche, she examined the lifeless figure. How could Athena imagine this — this sad, lowly mortal  — to be a goddess? 

They already had a goddess of love and beauty. 

They didn’t need another. 

Back to chapter menu     
Chapter 82      Chapter 84