AO 7 Ch 28

Aphrodite watched as Ard broke the tension with ease, nearly at awe with how comfortably he navigated the current situation. 

People were glaring at him, stifling chuckles, or even drawing weapons, yet there was no tension in any of the gestures. Ard had completely disarmed the situation in his own brand of controlled chaos. What should have been an incredibly tense situation was now calm. 

He had to know that they were trapped in the palace until the current matter was resolved. Restrictions would not lessen now that someone had died in the same manner as the Queen of Zenovia.

If the new death wasn't a bold statement from the killer, then she didn't know what would be considered bolder.

Yet despite that, bringing Ard to see the Queen's remains wasn't putting anyone ill at ease.

A smirk crossed her lips. Perhaps Ard was more skilled in navigating policitcal situations than he even realized. The thought of telling him that caused her smirk to flatten, lest Ard, with his sixth sense, shift his focus to her.

He was almost supernatural in his ability to spot weaknesses or moments of hesitation and dig into them. Though he did so without any repercussions, simply because of how he did it and created chaos with his every breath. 

Aphrodite glanced to the side at Bad Kitty, realizing quickly that she had just mentallly used Ard’s nickname for Bastet. She shook her head. Soon she was going to be calling herself Ditzy in her own mind.

"Bastet, given the concern about whatever is used to collapse these people's souls, are you able to protect Ard?" Aphrodite asked. 

The cat-eared goddess had a slow grin across her face, showing off her enlarged canines. "Oh, and why would that matter to you, Ditzy?" She enunciated Ard's nickname.

"Well, he is hosting us for now, and Missy has started this pantheon with him. Although I haven't made up my mind, it would be unfortunate to see it crumble before I made my choice." Aphrodite looked away. 

The way Bastet smirked, Aphrodite thought perhaps Bad Kitty was an appropriate name. "Just admit that you're worried about him, and I'll happily put a blessing over him to make sure that he has my full protection," Bastet said.

Aphrodite narrowed her eyes, but Bastet was the goddess of protection, and her blessing would be worth more than Aphrodite’s pride. "I have grown fond of Ard. Perhaps it is his quick tongue that is so amusing, and I don't want to see him perish. Please, give him your blessing. I know once upon a time, people relied on you for the protection of home and hearth." Aphrodite stated.

Bastet's smile faltered. "It's absolutely no fun if you give in so easily. Besides, it's already done. Even before you asked, I felt some obligation as well for Ard hosting us." 

Bastet tried to pass the act off casually, but Aphrodite knew as well as anyone that the cat-eared goddess only did what she wanted. The fact that she had gone ahead and blessed Ard ahead of any request spoke volumes. 

Then again, a capricious goddess like Bastet was ever hard to predict. "And I gave you that one for free. That was hardly the admission that I was hoping for.” Her purple tail flicked to life for a moment before disappearing.

“I think there's a lesson somewhere in there about getting your hopes up before you know what you're getting." Aprhodite stared back, not willing to give any ground on this particular issue. 

"Is that so?" Bastet asked playfully. "I'm fairly certain that I read this situation differently. Perhaps you’ve been influenced more than you realize by Arden.”

“You know how I am," Aphrodite scowled back. The two goddesses had plenty of history. Gods tended to get to know as much as possible about those with similar aspects.

"Of course, all the more reason for me to tease you about it more." Bad Kitty leaned over, her kohl-lined eyes pinching at the corners in delight.

Aphrodite felt herself cringe. A god's nature wasn't entirely dictated by themselves. How people viewed them affected them to their very core in profound ways. If collectively the people thought you were something, it was practically imprinted on you. Though they’d been trapped into this prison world and largely cut off from their prior worshipers they were still defined by what they had been.

"Oh, I know exactly how you are," Bad Kitty whispered as the two of them trailed behind the group. "You only like what you can't have. And right now, Ard has said no." Bad Kitty enunciated each word. 

"Your point?" Aphrodite growled. She hated this part of herself almost as much as she hated it being brought up. 

"You're obsessive. The way your aspect affects others is really a mirror of yourself. You might have told Ard about the belt, but he has no idea what that really means. You're eventually going to give in to your obsession, and you're going to take Ard until he's obsessed with you, and then you're going to lose any and all interest." Bad Kitty laughed. 

Aphrodite tried to swat the other goddess away. "Go rile someone else up, you bored little kitty."

Bastet prowled around to her other side with a fluid grace that even the goddess of beauty had to respect. Like her, the other goddess had part of her personality pushed upon her. At times she was more cat than woman.

Rather than snap back at her, however, the capricious goddess only chuckled and swayed closer. "You know you want to take him even worse than me. It's probably eating at you." 

"It's not that simple," Aphrodite glared. "My nature is, as you said, predisposed by how I'm seen as a goddess, and if I'm going to change that, then I have to change." 

Bad Kitty laughed like she'd heard the best joke. "The problem with our nature is it's like the fable with the frog and the scorpion. No matter how hard you try, your nature will prevail, and even if Ard might be your path across the river, given the opportunity, you'll still sting him."

Aphrodite hated just how right Bad Kitty was about her own nature. She knew exactly what the other goddess was talking about. Her nature was fickle, and that's how others saw her. She was considered a beautiful thing to possess or be possessed by, flitting from one hand to another. That perception in itself rooted deep inside of her despite her own wishes. 

She was obsessive, particularly with those things that she could not have.

Ard was already interesting, but his frank denial of her, even when she all but tied a bow on herself at the ball, had set in like a craving for sweets in the back of her mouth. It was constantly gnawing on her willpower, begging her to take just one bite. Surely it wouldn't cause any issues. But like sugar, it was very unlikely she could just take a taste and walk away. 

In her brief musing, Bastet had not left her side. Instead, she stuck close and kept that grin plastered on her face. "That is, unless of course, he can change you," Bad Kitty dangled the concept out like Persephone's pomegranate. 

"And what does that mean?" Aphrodite asked, trying to keep the desire from her tone. She knew the other goddess was always playing games and didn't want to give her any ammunition if it could be helped.

"When Ard took Missy's magic, he took her aspect as well. Can't you sense it? It's hard to tell, but she's no longer a goddess. She of course has plenty of power from Ard, and she controls magic as she did before. In essence, her power is unchanged, yet it's no longer tied up in the complexities of godhood." Bastet came up behind her and whispered in her ear as that capricious tail of hers batted at her hip.

Aphrodite narrowed her eyes at the goddess that had brought both of them into this crazy adventure. Her senses weren't nearly as honed as the old Egyptian goddess whispering on her shoulder.

However, it couldn’t really be that simple.

"And what, you think it would be so easy to slip my shackles?" Aphrodite scoffed. "How many gods have dreamed of, spent eons searching for, such a way. It has always been impossible. Why would you believe Arden is that special?”

Even as Aprhodite said the words, she couldn't deny that there had been a significant change in Missy. In a sense, it was hard to reconcile this goddess with the Hecate she had known for so long, which in itself was interesting. Gods weren't capable of change the same way that humans were when they entered a relationship. 

But Aprhodite’s musings were broken as they entered a room filled floor to ceiling with all manner of medical instruments and herbs. The mages here didn't look like the royals that had been outside.

There was a professional air about them, rather than a stately one. They were buttoned up and focused on the task at hand. 

"Who is this?" asked the man who was immediately pegged as the one in charge. 

"This is Arden Aldis, along with his protective entourage," the Serpent Vel'shae who had led them hesitated in the introductions. He was in a tight spot if he were to describe the three of them.

"And why have you brought them?" The older Vel'shae scowled. 

"He had an interesting proposition." The Vel'shae quickly stepped back, letting Arden bear the brunt of the other man's attention.

Arden didn't cower, nor did he seem to particularly care about the Vel'shae in front of him who could order his death in a snap of his fingers. Though success would be difficult at best, the Vel’shae didn’t know that. 

"Oh, don't mind me," Arden swept past. "I was merely a little curious as to how she died. So, I offered to inspect them, and if my assessment matches that of several others that you can ask separately, then you can have some confidence, or at least somewhere to start your understanding of what really happened here."

Aphrodite couldn't help but smirk as Arden's brilliant tongue successfully ran circles around the Vel'shae in the room. She liked to think that if she was freed from her shackles of godhood, she could indeed savor a healthy and long relationship. But a kernel of doubt lingered, and it was not small. 

It was hard for her to believe change could ever come. She had tried before, and she had been burned time and time again. She'd seen it more than once in humans as well. They often inevitably fell back into their old ways, even if that was the last thing they wished to happen.

"He's right," Aphrodite spoke up. "By killing someone the same way as the Queen, they must have anticipated your reaction of locking down the palace. Your choice has played perfectly into their hands. So, if you truly wish to resolve this issue before more of your royals die, the best thing you can do is let Arden here inspect the deceased. Perhaps you might learn a thing or two about magic from him in the process." Her words caused a glare from the Vel'shae. Somehow, unlike Ard, her attempt at convincing people made them more upset.

"Exactly what the beauty over there said," Ard winked at her. "Don't let the old adage fool you. She has as much brains as beauty. And as you can clearly tell, she lacks nothing in the latter's regard."

Aphrodite forced herself to remain stone-faced in the wake of his flirting, only to realize once again she was not testing her limits. She returned an inviting wink for his efforts.

"Fine," the Vel'shae in charge relinquished his position and stepped back. "However, let it be known that any desecration of the Queen's body will be met with your head rolling off its shoulders before you take your next breath."

"Intense, but fair enough," Ard said. "I can promise you that harming her is in no way, shape, or form my goal. I mean, who the heck would even try that surrounded by a bunch of grumpy Vel'shae?" Ard rolled his eyes and got to work immediately, lifting the cloth off the dead young woman’s body.

"This'll hopefully just take a minute," Ard said before his eyes went blank.

"For what it's worth, he holds your attention very well," Bastet hadn't given up and whispered into Aphrodite’s ear.

"I'm well aware of the focus of my attention. Thank you," Aphrodite said sharply.

"Ah. Apologies," Bastet slid back with a feline smile. "Though for what it's worth, I understand your pain and am incredibly thankful that nowadays, when anyone thinks of the great goddess Bastet, their minds are instantly locked on the cat part of my aspect. It's simply overridden much of their ability to even have an opinion."

Aphrodite scoffed. "Not all of us have it quite so easy. Be careful about how much you brag."

"Oh my, I'm sorry," Bastet said. "I was merely trying to explain that we're not so different. I just happen to be a little luckier in some regards. Too many people can't look past the surface and equate everything with a singular value rather than letting the world be as complex as it truly is."

"Are you done waxing and waning about the world?" Aphrodite said, feeling the harshness in her own tone and not entirely disliking it for the present situation.

"Hopefully it's not a crime to get philosophical from time to time," Bastet grinned. “Us old ladies do like to reminisce.”

"Well, if we're getting all friendly and asking questions, maybe you should tell me what's keeping you from enjoying Ard?" Aphrodite turned the tables, enjoying getting a rise out of Bastet whose eyes flashed dangerously.

“I have plans I want to see through first." Bastet answered cryptically.

Aphrodite thought that was a paper-thin excuse, but she knew that getting into it with Bastet would earn her no favors.

And there were potential favors she would need in the near future, particularly if Ard's talents weren't as helpful as they all hoped.

Aphrodite’s gaze shifted back to Arden. While he was focusing, he looked adorably serious, to the point that she was incredibly tempted to go over and kiss his cheek. Aphrodite found herself biting her lip to control the impulse, lest she make a mistake that she couldn't take back.