Jade's House

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Jade was up with the sun the next morning, bright and early like always. She took a quick shower and dressed in a pair of capri's and a cute flowy tank top. She left her hair loose instead of her usual braid. Today she was on a mission and ignored all thoughts of a breakfast. She slipped on a pair of sandals on her way out of the house and hurried on her way to BotO Streets of Athens Harbor

As the front door closed, Madison's door opened. She stepped out fully dressed and headed for the stairs and like Jade she ignored the kitchen in favour of slipping on her shoes and grabbing her coat. She wanted to get in some dance practice early before she went to visit Jace. With a final check of her appearance she opened the door and headed out in the direction of BotO Streets of Athens Harbor.

Ate had left. Teos wasn't sure exactly when but her warmth and weight had left his bed at some point. She had lived on this world for centuries without it burning so he tried not to worry about what she might be off doing. However, she hadn't known the descendants before now... Ah, well, it should still be alright. He opened his eyes, though dawn had not made his vision any brighter, and simply stared toward the ceiling. Something was prickling at the edge of his awareness, but he couldn't think of the question to address it, and the Fates didn't answer vague questions, so he had to set that aside as well. He mentally recounted the descendants he and Ate had spoken to so far, and those they still needed to meet, while finally pulling himself out of the bed to prepare for a walk around Athen's Harbor. With Jade and Dorian knowing now, perhaps Risk and Lena, together, might be their next stop. As he was considering the best time to speak to them, his fingers, which had been about to wash his face, bumped into something sticky on his skin. A moment's inspection had him sighing. Ate had left a bright red lipstick print on his forehead. Wonderful. Mild frustration melted into a humoring smile as he instead stepped into the shower to wash up, followed by brushing his teeth, returning to his room to dress, then quietly headed out of the house.

Haidee was halfway up the drive when she passed Teos, who gave her more encouragement which she took with an uncertain smile. The parted with her feeling somewhat more confident though so by the time she was on Jade's porch, adjusting her little picnic basket, and knocking on the door, her heartbeat was nearly under control.

At the sound of the knock, Luke's eyes snapped up towards the hall from where he sat in the kitchen. He wasn't sure how long he'd been there, but it definitely had been dark when he'd sat down with his now ice cold cup of coffee. He stood up quickly then paused and took a breath, silently telling himself to relax. Finally he stepped out towards the front door, grabbing his jacket as he did. He opened it and immediately a smile spread across his face at the sight of Haidee. "Morning."

Why did this feel like a date?? It wasnt a date! "Morning, Luke. I hope you don't mind-" She lifted the basket a little. "I packed a lunch for after morning chores. Are you ready to go?" She smiled and it was painfully sincere. Luke really was such a handsome man, honesty in every movement of his expression and actions. She was growing increasingly curious why he was still single. Was he just having trouble finding a woman that wanted to help with the farm? How could anyone not want to? It was an amazing place and he clearly cared for it lovingly. She hoped she could show it as much respect while she was allowed to help.

"Oh yeah I'm all set." Luke replied before he stepped out onto the porch, pulling his jacket on as he did. "Can I carry that for you?" He asked politely as he held a hand out towards the basket. "It's the least I can do for you for making it." He felt guilty for not thinking of packing something. Maybe I could take her out for dinner instead? He thought then suddenly blushed at the thought and quickly cleared his throat, hoping she hadn't noticed.

"Oh, yes, thank you! And it was no trouble at all, don't worry about it," Haidee assured him even as she carefully handed over the basket, making sure their hands didn't touch in the exchange, then turned and once certain he was joining her she stepped off the porch and started up the drive. "Its just a simple black bean soup and some bread I baked this morning. I wrapped them well so they should still be warm in a few hours. How are your dogs?" she asked, wanting to turn the conversation away from herself. Surely they hadn't been in the house yesterday. Luke didn't seem the type to keep animals inside more than necessary.

"Oh they're doing great. Jade let me bring them down here so they're out back running around. They love it here." Luke replied as he carefully carried the small basket so as not to spill anything inside. "I'll need to check on the horses. I managed to get them back in the barn but I might have to ask Jade if they can join hers here..I don't know if there was any damage to their field yet." He explained as they walked, heading for BotO Luke's Farm.

---

"Teos! Teos are you in here?!" Ate thundered loudly as she stomped into the house and slammed the door behind her. "That boy yelled at me!" She continued to shout as she moved into the kitchen and began to rummage through the cupboards and refrigerator in search of something sweet to eat.

Teos, who had returned barely minutes before Ate with a few bags of groceries, watched the little tornado throw their temporary home into chaos in mere minutes. Silently, he pulled the chocolate ice cream out of the bag he was sorting, along with a spoon from a drawer, and slid it as far as his arm could reach in her direction, then went back to sorting. Only then did he reply, "Luke? He seemed so mild mannered. What did he yell at you for?"

"I just tried to help him!" Ate growled as she tore off the lid to the ice cream and stabbed the spoon into it, scooping out the largest amount she could manage. "He and Haidee will never admit to their feelings if I just stood back and didn't help.." She swallowed down the ice cream then looked over at Teos and pouted. "I just made him say the real way he was feeling..I made him ask her out..I didn't realise she had heart problems." She grumbled before taking another bite of ice cream. "She started having a heart attack..so he got mad. I didn't mean for her to get hurt." She huffed heavily. "He yelled at me, told me to get out. Said he wouldn't live here whilst I was here..He got real mad. He's destroyed his farm and..and..oh boy.." She sighed and motioned towards the vase of flowers perched on Jade's table that was drooping down, all the petals lying around it's base. "Well at least we know his abilities work.." She finished still sounding moody.

Teos hummed thoughtfully. "Ate, it's only been a few days, they feel they have all the time in the world, they don't need pushed together." He thought on it a half a moment longer before he returned to putting away some crackers. "I have some good news though, if you'd like to be the one to deliver it," he offered, glancing at her to offer an almost conspiratorial smile. "Haidee can hug Luke, she can hold his hand without worrying at all. And-" He turned back to his task. "I think Sabastion and Emily will be the next ones we talk to. It will be best to speak to them together, I think, and given what they can do.. I think it is better we have them with us sooner rather than later. They could help Haidee with her health as well and then Luke won't need to worry about that either. As for that-" He motioned to the vase. "I think Haidee can fix that problem on her own."

"They wouldn't believe me if I told them that Haidee could hug Luke..they're both mad at me. They would probably think I'm up to no good." Ate grumbled. "If you want to talk to Sebastian he's over at the farm now..we could go with him to the hospital, maybe Emily will be there?"

"I think we'll wait until Emily and Sabastion finish at the hospital. I wouldn't want to disrupt their work. They're going shopping later, we can run into them then and try before the party this evening. And I think it's best we leave Luke and Haidee alone for the moment.. They're.. busy." He rolled up the bags and put them away before turning to lean on the center island facing her and offered her his most charming smile. "Do you want to go get some clothes? If there's nothing in town we can go to the next city over."

"You want to go shopping?" Ate suddenly sounded excited before she gave an eager nod. "I have Dorian's credit card too!" She grinned then suddenly set her spoon aside and grabbed for the lid to the ice cream. "Well let's go then! We've got no time to waste if I'm going to purchase a whole new wardrobe with his hard earned cash.."

Teos chuckled and took the spoon she had been using to wash it and put it away while she put the ice cream away. "I'll pay for a car then," he promised and pulled out his own phone to call for a ride. It would only take a few minutes before the simple black care to pull up the drive. Wallet grabbed in case he needed it and door locked, Teos let Ate lead the way to boto Streets of Athens Harbor and anywhere else she might want to go.

---

"OK so just through there is the kitchen.." Madison pointed as she stepped into the house and kicked off her shoes. "Then the living room is there, Jade's room is down here too and we're upstairs." She smiled back at Aiden before she headed for the stairs. "Lukes currently in that room.." She pointed to the closed door to his room. "He's pretty quiet but nice all the same. Then you have Teos and Ate's room. I don't really know much about them. He seemed nice though but she.. Well I sensed she could be a trouble maker." Madison joked with a small laugh. "And my room is just this one, feel free to stop by any time. Then finally your room!" She stopped next to the empty room and pushed open the door. "Just make yourself at home."

Aiden followed Madison into the house and nodded his head as she directed him around the house. Once he was led upstairs and explained everyone's sleeping arrangements he ducked into the open door Madison showed him too and stopped. "Wow... she really is accommodating isn't she. If you don't mind me asking, why does she have such a big house when it was just her to start off with?" He set his bag just inside the door next to the dresser and then turned back to his companion.

"I think she inherited it from her grandfather or something like that. And its perfect as it allows her to keep her horses." Madison smiled. "Jade's one of the nicest people you'll meet, she just wants to help everyone. You'll love her." She chuckled lightly then took a small step back. "Now I'm just going to get freshened up and changed so feel free to look around or just relax, whatever you want. I'll try and be as quick as I can." With that said she turned and headed for her room, disappearing inside to grab some fresh clothes.

Aiden decided on wandering around, getting familiar with the house while Madison was changing. Making his way back downstairs he found his way into Jade's very expansive library. Most every wall from floor to ceiling was covered in books. There was a coffee table in the center of the room that had a glass top housing what must be a precious set of books. He made his way over to the table and peaked inside. A smile spread across his face at the two enormous books inside. They were both first additions of The Iliad and The Odyssey. Under the table on a shelf was every book he knew of that was written about Greek mythology or Olympus. "Quite the reader..." He noted, amused by her choice or prized books. He admired the library once more before heading across the hall to the very large, open kitchen. "Wow..." 

"Ok I just need to grab my truck keys and then drive back there and then I can take Haidee home.." Luke spoke to himself as he bounded up to the front door and fished his keys out of his pocket before opening it. He hurried inside and past the kitchen but came to an abrupt halt when he spotted a stranger stood inside. "Who are you?" He asked quickly as he fumbled for his phone. "I'll call the cops.." He continued, thinking that Aiden had broken into the house.

Aiden swiveled around on his foot at the voice behind him. I'll call the cops... He knew that with his piercings, tattoos and hair, that it was possible for someone to assume he was breaking in but that fact still bothered him. Not all tatted and pierced men with crazy hair break into houses. He sighed heavily and shook his head as he held his hands out to the stranger before him. "I'm a new renter here, are you Luke or Teos?" He asked in a friendly manner, not wanting to alarm the guy further. "Madison is here as well, she brought me over to show me around. Would you like to ask her?"

Luke blinked at him then dropped his hands away from his pockets. "You're living here?" He asked then suddenly looked embarrassed. "Sorry about that. I'm Luke.." He answered just as Madison came down the stairs in a fresh pair of jeans and shirt.

"Oh you met Aiden, Luke!" She said with a smile as she entered the kitchen and smiled at the both. "He's going to be moving into the spare room."

Aiden's face lifted into a grin as the situation defused. Jamming his hands into the front pockets of his pants he shrugged gently. "Don't worry about it, I look like a stereotypical robber, I get it." He chuckled gently as Madison entered the room. "Oh yes... it was a very interesting meeting. I'm sure if he'd had a gun on him we would have met by gunpoint." He couldn't help teasing Luke, his embarrassment was just too funny.

Luke gaped at Aiden then quickly shook his head. "It was a misunderstanding!" He just said quickly as Madison raised an eyebrow at him. "What else was I going to think walking in on a complete stranger in the house when everyone else is supposed to be out?"

Aiden chuckled at Luke's reaction and gently laid a hand on his shoulder. "Chill, Luke, I was only teasing you. Sorry I guess it's a little early for that." He gave Luke a friendly smile, giving him a 'no harm, no foul' shrug of his shoulders.

Luke had opened his mouth to retort but with a small sigh he closed his mouth and sighed. He didn't have time for this. Haidee was waiting. "I'll try and catch up with you both later. I'm in a bit of a rush so have a good day..I swear it was nice meeting you Aiden." He finished jokingly in the hopes of showing that there was no hard feelings between him and the other man. He turned and picked up his keys then disappeared from the house again.

"You'll get used to him." Madison chuckled as she looked at Aiden. "He's a bit shy but he's really nice once he opens up."

Aiden gave Madison a small shrug and smiled brightly at her. "He's seems alright to me. I'll have to tone down my teasing until he gets to know me though. Don't want to stress him out." He gave her a slight once over and then nodded to the door. "Are you ready to go then?"

"Oh yeah. Let's get moving. A quick visit to my brother and then a little tour of Athens Harbor." Madison smiled at Aiden before she grabbed her jacket. "Just a heads up, ignore anything my brother might say to you..he's just a touch protective." She chuckled playfully then headed for the door, leading the way out towards BotO Athens Hospital.

---

Jade watched as her property line came into view. They'd been quiet most of the ride. She gave a soft sigh and looked over at her friend. "I'm going to be in trouble... but what was I supposed to tell them? We didn't hurt him just... stopped him from hurting himself further." She leaned her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes. "If only Teos had been there."

Adela shook her head, "The only thing you need to worry about is getting into some dry clothes." She said gently, "Go take a shower and try to calm down. I need to get down to the station, change, and make my report. The hospital will put Archer on a one to one watch for at least twenty four hours, I'm going to volunteer to help with that."

Jade nodded her head gently, a soft sigh escaping her lips. "Let me know if theres anything I can do. Thanks for the ride... and not freaking out on me." She gently patted Adela's shoulder, making sure not to bump her radio, and climbed out of the car. "Text me if you hear anything." She through over her shoulder before closing the door and heading into the house to wash off the stress of the day. As Jade approached the front porch she paused at the sight of boxes. "Strange..." unlocking the house she shuffled the boxes inside but didn't bother with them. Instead she took a quick, hot shower and changed into some fresh clothes. Once done she sat down at her kitchen table sipping some tea she'd quickly brewed and thought about calling Archers hospital room.

Adela nodded and waved to Jade, watching until the door was shut before pulling back down the driveway to head to the department before returning to boto Athens Hospital.

---

"I will not be amused if you made us come all the way down here and no one is here Teos. It will have been a complete waste of our time!" Ate complained as she stomped up to the front door, making Lena cast a glance at Teos. Ate threw the door open, only pausing to blink at the pile of boxes before she moved inside. "See! I told you! There's no one here..there's no one..Oh! Jade!" Her tone turned from annoyance to relief when she caught sight of the other woman at the table. "What happened? Someone got hurt!" She said as she moved into the kitchen.

Jade jumped at the sound of the door slamming open. She had been so far off in her mind she hadn't been listening. At the sight of Teos, Ate, and... Lena she couldn't help her eyes welling up with tears and her body began to shake. "I think I made a really big mistake... and I'm going to pay for it somehow." A few tears trickled down her face as her thoughts ran wild. Would they blame her for what happened to Archer? Would she be arrested for his injuries? She hadn't actually done anything but she feared it would all fall on her. "Archer tried to kill himself... when of course he can't really. He was lying in the water, bleeding out and I just... I reacted... I closed up his wounds with the water so he wouldn't loose anymore blood." The words just came tumbling out and once she'd started she didn't think she could stop. "Adela showed up so I had to explain to her what was happening... and then we rushed him to the hospital. Sabastion asked questions... and I lied because I didn't know what to do. If I told them I'd done it with the Ocean, they'd have locked me up... Plus... he is..." Her eyes flickered to Lena freezing for a moment. She then realized they wouldn't have brought her here if they hadn't already told her. "He's one of us... I didn't know what to do... Teos I messed up..." Jade had never worried so much in her life, with everything that happened with Dorian and now Archer trying to take his life, she was greatly overwhelmed with emotion and fear. Fear of loosing her best friend. Sure she was mad and hurt with Archer for what he had done but that didn't mean she wanted to loose him. For him to take his own life was just unthinkable to her. As that settled in over her she realized she needed to be strong, not just for herself but for her friends. They would definitely need her strength. She swiped at her cheeks brushing away tears and gave a deep, steadying sigh. Looking up to Teos with strength she hadn't had before, she smiled slightly. "What do I do? What needs to happen now?"

For a moment, Teos became acutely aware of the fact that he had accidentally surrounded himself with women with strong emotions and had to orient himself before he spoke. He also refrained from mentioning that Archer could, in fact, kill himself, he just didn't know yet how much that was going to take and Teos had no intention of telling him. He opened his arms to Jade, offering her a hug as he always did, yet again his actions somehow intensely familiar despite their new acquaintanceship. "Jade, it's going to be alright. You didn't do anything wrong. I will speak with Sabastion, and Emily. It's perfectly alright that Adela knows, though we will need to explain the details-" He looked at Ate to communicate she would also know who Adela came from and how they might go about that. "Archer will be fine-" though he had very real concerns about their newest god of war being suicidal, he kept that to himself, "-he's in very good hands and you'll be able to see him soon." He looked toward Jade and offered a comforting smile. "While we wait for Archer's assessment to finish, how about we all have a little discussion? You're a bit more familiar but Lena's only just found out about her ancestor so if the two of you have questions, or want to talk, now might be a good time, I think."

Jade stood and moved to Teos's arms, giving him a soft hug, revealing in his comfort for a moment before stepping away. She turned to Lena and smiled softly, her normal, happy, bubbily self returning now that she knew she had Teos and Ate behind her. "Lena... I'm sorry you had to see all of that. It's been a rough few days for me. Welcome to the family, though." She gave a slight shrug of her shoulder as if saying, 'what can you do'. "I'm not sure if they've told you but I'm Poseidon's, but that's probably pretty obvious now that I think about it." She chuckled and shook her head. "May I ask who you're descended from? If you're not ready to share, that's okay too..."

"Oh no it's fine." Lena replied with a smile and a wave of her hand. "I'm Hermes descendant." She added as Ate moved to Jade's side.

"Lena is our messenger, she can hear your thoughts.." Ate whispered playfully to Jade. "It'll be hard to keep any secrets from her."

"I'll do my best to not listen to anything you don't want me to hear.." Lena added quickly, looking embarrassed as she looked at the other three in front of her.

Jade paused for a moment, clearly taken by surprise. "Wonderful... so she's offensive where as my skills are mainly defense?" She teased slightly but also questioning them. "Would anyone like something to drink? I made a pitcher of tea just a bit ago." Without waiting she crossed the room and began getting a few glasses out of one of the cupboards and went to the fridge to retrieve the liquid nectar.

"That sounds lovely." Lena smiled as she moved to sit down at the table.

"Make sure mine's really sweet.." Ate added as she turned curiously towards the boxes piled out in the hall. "What are these? Someone moving in? It's starting to get a little full in here don't you think?" She said with a glance over her shoulder at Jade. "Though I should inform you that one of your tenants is making plans to move out. I scared Luke and now.." She paused to give a dramatic sigh. "..He no longer wishes to be close to me! He refuses to live here whilst I am here. Can you imagine! How incredibly rude he is.."

"The two of you will be close enough in time, even if it's not physically," Teos comforted her, wrapping his arms around the goddess from behind and holding her close for a moment. He leaned down to press a kiss to her hair before he released her. "And those are your shoes. Sit and relax, I'll take everything up to our room. And Jade?" He turned toward her, pausing in the exit from the kitchen to the main hall. "Just water for me is fine, thank you." He smiled and ducked out, intending to put away the shoes and clothes properly before returning to the group.

Jade paused in pouring tea into glasses to turn and stare at Ate. She frowned slightly, Luke was a pretty easy going guy. "What did you do to upset him? Ate... he's one of my best friends and I'd like to help him out scott free so he doesn't have to pay anything with everything going on with the farm. You need to play nice with him." She gave a soft sigh as she turned back to the drinks, leaving one glass empty she return the pitcher to the fridge and grabbed her canister of sugar from the counter. She put several scoops into Ate's tea more than was humanly needed and stirred it in with a spoon from the near by drawer. She brought Teos's empty glass to the fridge and used the ice maker and water dispenser until the glass was mostly full and then scooped up the three glasses and brought them over to the table. She slid Ate's to one end of the table for her and then moved to her seat, letting Lena choose her own.

"I kinda made him say things he wouldn't normally say to the girl he likes, she almost died because of it, he freaks out which makes his farm wilt away to nothing and then he gets told he shouldn't see her anymore by the doctor because he's obviously bad for her." Ate explained a little sheepishly as Lena blinked at her explanation."I was just trying to help him..and now he's blaming me for everything!" She pouted lightly just as the front door slammed and Luke came into view for a few seconds. When he caught sight of Ate sitting at the table he scowled and turned towards the stairs, heading up them, a bag containing his new swimming suit clutched in his hand. "See! He hates me! Maybe I should move out.." Ate finished dramatically.

"Hello Luke, how did th-" Teos started as he passed Luke on the stairs, cutting off when the other man simply passed him. He frowned, but mentally brushed it off to rejoin the group in the kitchen. "Don't worry about it," Teos assured Ate again as he took the seat next to her, gratefully accepting his glass of water. "He will have somewhere to go soon enough, but we can have Haidee convince him to stay here until then. I'll talk to her tonight."

Jade sighed softly and shook her head. "We're family Ate... and sweety, no offense, sometimes you are a little... direct." She stood and moved around the table, placing a kiss to Ate's head. "I'll talk to him, don't worry." She smiled, squeezing Ate's shoulder. "Excuse me, I'll be right back." She left the room, heading upstairs and straight to Luke's room. She knocked on the door frame before entering, leaning against the wall and watching him carefully. "I hear you've had an eventful day as well. Care to talk about it?"

"Talk about what? The fact that Ate is out to ruin my life.." Luke grumbled from where he sat on the edge of his bed. "She almost cost me everything that I hold dear and she's not even the tiniest bit sorry!" He sighed heavily then looked at Jade. "I'm sorry Jade but I can't stay here..she's going to end up killing me or something. Man..I don't even want to be part of this whole ridiculous descendant thing either.." He shook his head then cast his eyes to the floor.

Jade crossed the room and placed her hands on his shoulders so he would look at her. "What do you mean she isn't sorry? How could she not be? Have you talked to her since it happened?" She sat down on the bed next to him, scooting back far enough that her feet dangled slightly. "I know she's not going to kill you, I would never let that happen." She slipped her arm through his, leaning her chin on his shoulder. "I'm sorry this has happened... but I think the best way to move forward is to learn how to harness your powers so accidents or something can't happen. Like with me and my storms... I tend to upset the ocean when I'm upset."

"I'm tired of her teasing me Jade. I'm already pretty freaked out by all of this and having her saying that I probably won't survive it all because my abilities basically suck doesn't help.." Luke replied with a small frown before he let out a heavy sigh and looking at Jade. "It sounds like your abilities suit you perfectly.."

"She said that?!" Jade asked, her voice rising in anger. "I'm sure your abilities will be amazing once you've learned to harness them." She grabbed his hand and yanked him to his feet as she got up. "Come on..." Without waiting she pulled him along behind her.

---

"It's strange," Teos commented to Ate once Jade headed upstairs. "To see you treated almost childlike and Jade try to act so maturely when you have lived a great deal longer than she has." He lifted his glass to his lips. "She's a hurricane," he muttered before taking a sip.

"It's because I'm so youthful looking. No one can believe I'm..well you don't need to know my exact age." Ate answered playfully making Lena chuckle. "What can I do though to make Luke like me?" She asked Teos with a small pout after a moment.

"I do not know," Teos admitted, setting his glass down so he could give the goddess his full attention. "I believe Luke just likes people who are calm and understanding. Some people need a push but I don't think he's one of those people. Give him time, he'll come around."

First indication that they were returning was Jades sudden shout. "Ate! You are in so much trouble." Inhaling deeply she pulled Luke into the kitchen with her and placed her hands on her hips. "You owe him an apology! How could you tell him that his abilities suck and that he most likely wont survive?! Of course he doesn't like you, those are awful things to say!"

"It was a joke! He can't actually think I was being serious!" Ate replied with a small roll of her eyes. "Luke you need to lighten up OK?"

Luke frowned heavily at Ate then looked at Jade. "Do you understand now why I don't want to be here? She's impossible!"

"You're impossible.." Ate grumbled childishly as Lena glanced awkwardly between then took a small sip of her drink.

"Welcome to the family," Teos reiterated Jade's earlier words to Lena, but his tone and smile were comforting. He turned to face the crackling tension in the room, raising a hand palm out and slightly down in a vague 'lower volume' motion. "Luke, you're not going to die if we can help it, alright? You, no one, is going to be alone in this. It's a little petulant to not be sorry when your actions hurt other people-" he directed at Ate, "but equally petulant to think someone who has been a way for millennia is going to change because you got your feelings hurt," he added toward Luke and Jade. "I realize she's a bit much for someone like yourself, but if you think about it her actions only accelerated something you already wanted, right? And something we needed. No one likes their lives thrown into chaos, trust me, I know, but it is often necessary and for the greater good. Now would you please stop this? I do not want to have to put all of you in a time out."

"For this... family to work, we have to be kind to one another. Whether she thought of it as a joke or not, it was wrong and an apology wouldnt hurt. We never asked her to change but..." She sighed heavily. "She's a goddess, death may be funny to her but it isn't to us." Jade narrowed her eyes slightly at Teos with a frown. "In case you've forgotten you disrupted our lives. All we wanted was to be normal." Jade's tone lightened gently as she peered at Luke with a sigh. "Being a goddess doesn't mean you can outright hurt people, this is all new to us. Unlike the two of you who clearly want us all to jump feet first into this. Whatever it is." Her eyes turned back to the two of them. "Maybe a bit of humility is needed." Another sigh slipped through her lips as she ran a hand through her hair, exhausted with how the days events had turned out. "I just want a bit of peace and in my own home, that shouldn't be too hard." She placed her hand on Luke's shoulder and gave it a slight squeeze. "I'm going for a walk." With that she quickly left by ways of the back door and out into the back yard where she could once again see her beloved Ocean. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself before hurrying across the field to the fence that lined the walk way to the ocean and leaned against it.

Ate watched her go, then sharply stood up with a frown. "I'm going upstairs.." She mumbled then stomped from the kitchen as Luke quickly stepped out of her way before looking at Teos. He opened his mouth to say something then sighed and shook his head before turning and disappearing back up into his room leaving Teos and Lena alone.

"Maybe I should go.." Lena said awkwardly after a few moments of silence.

Teos gave her an apologetic smile as he returned to nursing his glass of water. "I can understand wanting to," he admitted, his voice tired already. "If I can be selfish though, can I ask you to stay? It would be nice to have someone I could talk to for a little while. If you don't mind, but I'll also understand if you need some time to process. It took a decade for me, I don't expect any of you to accept it with open arms or for everyone to get along. Regardless of how I seem, I'm not an idealist."

"I don't mind staying, I just didn't want get in the way." Lena explained with a smile at Teos. "I'm actually feeling OK about this whole situation. I'm always up for a little excitement and this just seems like the ultimate challenge." She chuckled lightly. "So why exactly do I have these abilities?"

"Well, over the natural course of life, everyone and every thing is born, and lives, and dies, and gods are no exception," Teos explained. It sounded familiar, as if repeating a story he'd heard often but the familiarity came from understanding, not memorization. "They, too, were supposed to pass on their mantle and all the rights and responsibilities that went with it. That is why they can reproduce. But when one lives as long as they have, they feel endless, entitled, and so when they found out they were supposed to pass on their positions onto the next generation, who would be better suited for the new, changing eras to come, they were selfish, and sought to eradicate any possible heirs that might come to claim their rightful place on Olympus. Some, such as your distant ancestor, managed to escape the war they brought down on the earth and continued the line all the way down to you-" He pointed at her for emphasis. "The abilities you hold don't manifest in every generation, and as with all natural things they only came to the fore when they felt the time was right, which, as it happens, is now. The single minded, desperate eradication of the half-god blood lines has ceased and we are finally able to grow and prepare to take our thrones as we were always supposed to. Unfortunately.. just because nature says it's time, doesn't mean everyone listens, especially not arrogant gods who feel they shouldn't have to give up anything, let alone everything." He returned his hand to the other so they both held his cup though the support of both was unnecessary. "Fighting for your place as an immovable fixture in the happenings of the universe against someone who has done so for millenia is, indeed, the ultimate challenge."

In the heavy silence following Teos' speech, there was a small, notifying buzz in Lena's pocket. Her phone screen lit up with Risk's name and a message from him. Lena, emergency. My employers--thus, your new employers--have just informed me they're back in town early from a trip. They're waiting at the office to be let in and we need to be there in fifteen minutes or less. You can either run back to the apartment and get me a change of clothes and meet me there, or head to the office now and stall them until I get there.

Lena had stared silently as Teos answered her question, her hands fidgeting with the glass in her hands. After a few moments of silence she opened her mouth to respond but jumped suddenly when her phone buzzed in her pocket. "Sorry.." She said as she quickly fished her phone from her pocket and quickly read the message. Her eyes widened at Risks words. She suddenly pushed her chair back and stood up, looking back at Teos as she did. "Please don't think this is a reaction to what you've just said but I have urgent business to attend to with work. And hopefully I'll still have a job by the end of it.." she told him before she looked back down at her phone and moved to respond. I'm closer to the office. I'll go there and stall. Please be quick! Once sent she pushed her phone back into her pocket. "I promise I want to continue this conversation.." She said as she moved towards the door. "Thank you for all your help today. I'll see you at the party!" She smiled and waved at Teos before turning and hurrying out, feeling flustered as she headed to Boto Streets of Athens Harbor.

"We can continue any time!" Teos called after her in farewell, but the inflection implied it was a reminder. He faced the glasses the ladies had left behind, his thoughts drifting languidly through the quiet dark of his mind. He silenced all the questions were usually posed in perpetuity and let the gale of time that blew through his head come to a slow halt and left him unsteadily in the present before he reached out and took the still mostly full glasses, carried them to the sink, emptied, and washed them before leaving them on the drying rack. Next came his own, settled in next to them. He dried his hands on the dish towel and hung it back up before leaning on the center island, facing the warm sunlight streaming through the window on the opposite wall. In case you've forgotten you disrupted our lives. All we wanted was to be normal. Jade's words raked across his consciousness like nails and he physically flinched, fingers curling into half fists on the counter. They were never normal, they just ignorantly were able to pretend they were for a short time. Maybe Ate was right. Maybe he was too nice with them. He just didn't want them to go through what he had, being forced for this to be the new reality. He wanted to give them time but all it seemed to do is give them reason to deny it, suppress it until it so suited petty desires. He forced his hands to relax and his face to match. Now now, that was just childish anger, long since repressed, wasn't it? Just because his life had been ripped from him at near infancy, that was no reason to be angry at them for having what he never would: so many years with their family and friends. He was to give patience, not expect sympathy. It would be meaningless anyway. This whole argument among his new family was just... a little chaos. His lips quirked up. Because of course it was. He should go pay his respects then. That in mind, he righted himself from the counter and headed upstairs to his room to find Ate, his expression once more patient and understanding as he tapped a knuckle on the door. "Ate?" he called gently. "May I come in?"

As Jade stared and watched the ocean, she felt a sense of calm wash over her. Just like always the ocean seemed to take over her mind, making her see clearly. The was one thing she hadn't done since her incident with Dorian and Archer. Her mind was so muddled and emotional she hadn't been thinking or seeing straight. Of course, the alcohol hadn't helped. As she let the smell of the salt water washed over her she couldn't help but smile. Today was the first day she had actually thought of the other descendants as family. What else were they really but a big extended family? With that thought came another, one she couldn't believe she'd missed. Families fought, all the time. When did every member of every family get along one hundred percent of the time. Especially when those family members were descended from Olympian Gods who rarely got along, at least if stories were half way true. Crossing her arms over her chest, she felt somewhat relieved that she'd come to this conclusion. She'd been wracking her brain trying to fix everything when in reality.. that was an almost impossible feat. I can't fix everything and even if I could... do I really need to? She chuckled softly and shook her head. She may not need to fix everything, just what she'd messed up over the past few days, starting with Ate and Teos. They were her biggest support right now and she did care about them, very deeply, which surprised her considering she hadn't known them long. She gave her beloved ocean one final look before turning and heading back to the house. On her way back towards the house she saw a car pulling down her drive. Curious... She wasn't really expecting any company. She let herself in through the backdoor and noticed an empty but clean kitchen. "Great... scared everyone off." With a soft sigh she headed for the front door and opened it, leaning against the door frame to welcome whoever was behind the wheel.

Luke sighed as he paced back and forth in his room. This whole thing was becoming one big mess. I have no idea what to do.. He groaned then looked at the door. Whatever he did though, he felt he should check on Jade. She was his best friend after all. After another breath he headed for the door, hoping Ate was still in her room. He opened the door and paused when he saw Teos knocking on her door. Good, I won't be bothered by her then.. He thought before heading for the stairs. As he reached the bottom he spotted Jade standing at the door. "Hey, what's up?" He asked curiously then moved to stand next to her, noticing the approaching car. "Who's that?"

The rental car, which was a shiny tan Cadillac, pulled to a slow stop in front of the ranch house. The driver seemed to be inspecting the outside of the house a moment before the engine cut out and the drivers door opened. Vanden stood out of the car with a practiced grace and adjusted his sunglasses before shutting the car door and heading up to the porch. He was wearing a finely tailored suit and shined leather shoes. His hair, dark and salted grey at the temples, was combed back neatly. He stopped at the base of the stairs to the porch and looked up at Jade and Luke a moment, before producing a folded paper from his pocket-- the room rental ad from the post office. He showed it to Jade. "I saw this at the post office. Room for rent. Is it still available?" he asked, his accent rolling a little.

Jade turned her head at the approach of Luke and smiled softly. "Not sure, I saw them driving up when I came back inside." She turned to glance at the car as it came to a stop and the driver got out. "We're about to find out." She muttered as a handsome, older man stepped towards them. She plastered a kind smile on her face until he spoke. Oh no... I completely forgot to take the ads down... A faint blush creeped up her cheeks as she took a step forward. "Actually... I'm kind of embarrassed about this... I completely forgot to take it down. At the moment I have a full house." She glanced over at Luke and sighed, he was possibly leaving and Madison was just there until Jace got out of the hospital. Turning back to the stranger she gave him a reassuring smile. "But it won't be for long. One of the tenants was very... very temporary. I can talk to her and even then she can either move back home or sleep with me." The blush remained as she fought for words. She'd been so distracted lately that she hadn't taken those dang flyers down. "Why don't you come inside while we figure this out?"

Vanden eyed her silently for a moment with a blink. Then he laughed. His chest bounced and his head leaned back at little as he did. He folded the ad back up and offered it to Jade as he climbed the steps to join them. "What an awkward misunderstanding. But I suppose I could go for a drink of water after all my traveling." he said with a confident smile down at Jade. "If you don't mind, anyway."

Luke eyed Vanden then glanced at Jade as she spoke. "So you've traveled far.." He commented trying not to sound rude as he tried to gain some information on who this man was before he let him in Jade's home. He was quickly remembering why he had agreed to live with her. He didn't like the thought of her being alone with all these strangers. "I'm Luke.." He said as he offered his hand to Vanden before he could enter the house. "What can we call you?"

Jade took the flyer and shook her head. "I'm so sorry... I've just been so scatter brained lately. A drink would be the least I could do." She stopped in her tracks as she went to lead the way into the house and pursed her lips together, trying not to giggle at Luke's protective nature. She loved him for it and sometimes it was needed. She often just held out a helping hand to strangers without thinking and he was her silent reminder that she needed to be careful. "Yes, I'm sorry, how rude of me... I'm Jade, this is my home, this is my best friend Luke and you are...?" She asked sweetly, not at all putoff by Luke's behavior.

"Vanden," he said easily, taking Luke's hand and trading grips with him. His confident smile stayed on, unfazed by Luke's clearly protective nature. "And yes, I have traveled a long way. I'm not from here. My plane just landed about twenty minutes ago." he explained. "It's nice to see welcome faces."

"You couldn't get a friendlier bunch of people than there is in Athens Harbor." Luke told him before motioning to Jade to lead the way inside. "What brings you to our little town?" He asked as he kept his eyes on Vanden.

"Vanden, that's an uncommon name." Jade commented as she led the way inside and to the kitchen. "Water or my famous tea? I must admit I'm pretty proud of it so if you turn it down I'll be very hurt." She gave him a genuine smile as she got down a few glasses but as she turned to look back at Vanden her breath caught in her throat. Indoors his hue was much easier to see, she hadn't noticed it before since she had grown so used to seeing them. But in her LED lighting his hue was something of beauty. She realized she had been staring and cleared her throat, setting the glasses on the counter. "Luke, tea?"

"Oh, you know... family... work... those things." Vanden said to Luke's question vaguely. He followed Luke and Jade into the kitchen of the house and looked around as he walked. He got the feeling he was being watched and turned just in time to catch Jade staring at him. He gave her a crooked grin as she pulled her eyes away, his hands stuffed aloofly in his pants pockets. "Tea sounds fantastic." he said, moving to the counter and watching her. "What can you two tell me about this town?"

"Yes please." Luke replied with a smile to Jade as he followed after her protectively, like a brother would. He glanced at Vanden, not happy with the way he was grinning at Jade. He cleared his throat as he stopped next to her. "There isn't much to tell.." He said answering his question. "We have a selection of small businesses that are run by the Blakewood family, a marina where Jade works, I run a local farm..what else should he know Jade?"

"If you like staying fit, our friend Jace owns the local Dojo, there's the new Dance studio Madison is planning, the theater." Jade pulled the pitcher out of the fridge as she spoke and poured them each a glass. "We may be a small town but we never lack for fun. Take tonight for instance. There's a yacht party we're all going to. Being new, you should come. It'll give you the perfect chance to meet everyone." Replacing the pitcher to the fridge, she handed Luke his glass and came around the counter to set hers and Vanden's on the table, where she sat at the head of it.

"I'm not one for parties." Vanden said as he received his glass of tea with a nod of thanks. He peered into it, swirled it a little, then took a sip. After a moment, he hummed and the corners of his lips pulled down into an expression of "not bad," before he took a larger drink. "I have unpacking and things like that to do anyway. No time for parties right now. I'm sure I'll have plenty of opportunities to meet people now that I live here." he smiled.

"Yeah you shouldn't worry, everyone has a habit of running into each other in this town." Luke commented as he moved to sit down. "Maybe you should contact Madison Jade, ask if she needs the room? It will allow Vanden to start settling in once he knows his room allocation." 

"Great idea." Jade comment as she pulled her phone from her pocket. She noticed a text there from Jace that hadn't been there earlier. "Oh... it appears Jace is getting out of the hospital, so I'm assuming Madison will need to return home to help him." She quickly moved through her phone to Madison's number and called the young girl. She waited as the phone rang in her ear.

"Oh yeah, sorry. Just give me a few moments." Madison replied as she grabbed up her phone and checked the caller id. "Hey Jade. Is everything OK?" She asked in a pleasant tone.

"Hey, yes everything is fine. Jace is being discharged and on his way home. He sent Adela and I a group message and she went to pick him up." She paused for a moment, thinking how to word things. "Jeez... this is weird and I hate to ask. But are you planning on staying with Jace now that he's home? I forgot to take my flyers down and a man just came into town needing a place to stay. I didn't know what else to do." Even though Madison couldn't see her cheeks, they were still blazing red.

Vanden was watching Jade from behind the rim of his glass. He sipped his tea slowly and listened, studying her red cheeks and posture. He eventually put his glass down and reached out, putting a hand on Jade's. "This is not necessary. I will find another place. I do not want to put anyone out." he said.

"Jace has been released?" Madison replied in a surprised tone. Why didn't he call me? She thought then returned to what Jade was saying. "Oh sure, don't worry about it. I'll definitely be staying with Jace now, he'll need my help. So the new guy can have my room.."

"I think just a few moments ago." Jade said softly. "I don't want to rush you out so please let me know if you don't want to leave. I'll figure something out." Jade jumped slightly at Vanden's easy physical contact and pursed her lips together in embarrassment. She pulled the phone away from her mouth and shook her head. "No no... it's fine, we'll sort it out. She was only staying with me so she wasn't in her brothers apartment all alone."

The expression on Vanden's face didn't change, but he did ease back from where he'd touched her hand and back into his seat, giving a nod. "If you say so," he said, sipping at his tea again. He glanced at Luke, then began to look around the room almost boredly.

"Would you like me to show you to your new room?" Luke asked as he noticed Vandens almost bored expression. "I could also introduce you to two other housemates.." He added, as he imagined Ate and Teos upstairs. Perhaps if Ate had someone new to focus on, she'd leave him alone.

Vanden looked at Luke. He still seemed tense to him, but Vanden nodded and stood from his seat. "Sure. Jade can join us after she finishes her phone call." he offered her with a smile and then tucked his hands into his pockets and nodded at Jace to lead the way.

"Great..Let me take you to meet them first." Luke replied then gave a silent wave to Jade as she continued the call before turning and motioning Vanden to follow him out of the kitchen and up the stairs. (continued below).

"No it's fine. It wouldn't be fair if I took up a room at your house when I have a perfectly good one here." Madison replied as she began to pace back and forth as they spoke. "I can come by later and collect my things."

"You are amazing... Thank you Madison, I felt like such a fool when he showed up." Jade sighed softly, giving Vadean a soft smile as him and Luke left the room. "Don't rush to get your things. I'll give him free reign of the house while we're at the party since he doesn't want to go. But anyway, I'll let you get back to whatever you were doing. Thanks again." She waited for Madison to say goodbye before ending the call.

---

"It's your room.." Ate answered in a moody tone. "I can't stop you coming in." She was standing by the window, watching the strange vehicle approaching the house with narrowed eyes. The room was a mess, making it obvious she had taken out her annoyance on everything she had passed.

"No," Teos agreed as he carefully opened the door and entered the room, making sure to close the barrier behind him. Better her destruction remain contained if possible, he supposed. "But you could probably maim me for entering against your wishes." He took leisurely steps across the room, enveloping her with his arms once she was in reach but otherwise didn't disturb her observation. "Jade is a child, you know that," the comforting words were muttered softly near her ear, focusing on her even as he allowed his consciousness to open and explore outward again. "Don't let her get under your skin... We all have a lot of adjusting to do to each other, it's not just about us changing to suit what they think they need."

"I shouldn't have to change at all." Ate grumbled under her breath. "I'm tired of being blamed for everything especially when I wasn't meaning to cause trouble. I'm just the easy excuse to use when things go wrong. Well not anymore. These descendants are going to learn some tough lessons soon. I'm the full blood here. I'm the one with the authority and they better respect that or I'm going to show them the true me." She huffed heavily as she watched a stranger get out of the car and disappear into the house." Seems we have another new guest.. " She sighed then shifted to face Teos."I'm tired and I shouldn't feel tired." She frowned at him.

Teos hummed thoughtfully at the mention of the guest and set about asking some questions about him even as he focused mainly on the conversation with Ate. He released her only enough to let her turn but otherwise kept her held in his embrace. "Restraint can make you feel tired," he admitted. "The party is soon. Did you want to choose my outfit? Fashion isn't exactly my forte-" He lifted a hand to wave it in front of his eyes for emphasis.

"I suppose I could help you.." Ate mumbled. "You should at least try to equal how incredible I'm going to look." She huffed for a moment then couldn't help but smile. "And I don't blame Jade for my mood, it's Luke..it's like he's trying to make everyone hate me." She explained before sighing and turning to fully face Teos. "Now what are you outfit options?"

Teos shrugged, palms up. "Anything you want," he answered simply. To illustrate the point he moved his left hand above his right, which was currently still palm up, made a fist with the left, then rolled his fingers as if crushing something. Sand, paler than beach sand, slid from the clasped palm and the cracked between his fingers, over his outreached right palm, and toward the carpet but it never seemed to make it that far, somehow smoking out of existence before contact. The sand that met his hand, however, was starting to fall off of something, something he was now holding, and after a couple of minutes he dropped his left hand and lifted the right to show her a strip of black fabric, neatly hemmed on the edges: a silk tie. "Obviously, I'll need a little more than this," he added.

"I don't know.." Ate started with a playful smirk as she slowly ran her fingers over the silk tie. "You'd surely catch peoples attention if you turned up in just that. It would definitely make me happier.." She pinched his cheek then planted a swift kiss on the same spot before chuckling. "But alas I know you will not do it. So next you need a shirt.."

Teos hummed and draped the tie around her neck. "I would do anything to make you happy," he assured her, kissed her forehead, and took a small step back. "You have to tell me what you want. I'll do my best to find it. Consider it the worlds largest closet at your disposal." He smiled, took her hands, and pressed a gentle kiss to her fingers. "You are right, of course. I would rather not bare myself before anyone but you."

"And I suppose I wouldn't want you too, I am after all a very jealous girl." Ate smirked. "For once lets not have an event I attend ending in destruction.." She giggled making it hard to decide if she was telling the truth or not. "Now lets take a look at you.." She tilted her head as eyes travelled up and down Teos's form before she smiled. "All black. Shirt, jacket, trouser's, shoes..you'll look so suave..so debonair..perfect."

He raised an eyebrow at her, though it had little to do with her fashion choices and more to do with her enthusiasm for the current situation and the potential one she described. Still, her demands were his commands, and so he crossed his arms to grip the hem of his shirt and tugged it upward as if to remove it. The fabric seemed to crumble in his grasp and shower his body in the same pale sand as before, the hissing of thousands of tiny granules touching and sliding over his skin in unison lasted only a few moments, tapering into silence as they ghosted away before touching the carpet. What was left was just Teos, arms lifted as if stretching, a black linen blazer clutched in one hand. He'd chosen for her first inspection a simple slight v-neck black tee and black trousers held in place with a supple black leather belt, ending at his feet with shined black dressy casual shoes. He lowered his arms, holding them a bit more out than up and turned for her, moving a little as he inspected the feel himself. He paused and motioned to the shirt with a frown. "Should this be a dress shirt? It might be too hot for long sleeves though..."

"I had imagined a crisp dress shirt but if you feel you will be uncomfortable with the heat then that will suffice." Ate replied as she inspected his outfit before nodding. She had shown obvious amazement at how he had dressed and seemed to quickly forget that she had already chosen an outfit for herself as she stepped up to Teos with a smile. "It's my turn. Pick something for me..I want to see what you choose for me.."

Although she nodded, at her clarification he rolled his shoulders and the tee he was wearing crumbled away, leaving a black dress shirt in its wake. He dropped the jacket on the bed so he could unbutton the cuffs of the new shirt, leaving him in the middle of rolling up the sleeves when she asked him to pick something for her, which made him pause and raise an eyebrow at her again. "For the party?" he clarified, as if insisting that if he was to do this, it would only be in that regard. After all, he had something he wanted her to wear, but like only a tie for himself, it wasn't exactly party appropriate. At least, not public party anyway. He let go of his sleeve and pointed at her. "You are not allowed to get mad at me if I do this. You asked for it, after all."

"Would I ever get mad at you?" Ate asked in a tone of mock surprise before smirking and holding her arms out to show him he could go ahead. "I'm sure whatever you have in mind can't be that bad.."

"Remember those words well..." Teos muttered but acquiesced, stepping closer to her. He viewed her in his mind's eye, the glowing vision of beauty, how he never wanted to cover her with anything but linen woven from clouds, diamonds made of stars, gold made from the sun itself. A hand came to rest on the right side of her neck, caressing gently and curling against her throat as he walked around her left side. "Close your eyes," he whispered in her ear even as his hand shifted upward, guiding her chin up until her head tilted back and rested against his chest where he had paused behind her. His gentle grasp relaxed, fingertips like trails of water caressed across her collar and over her shoulder as his right hand mirrored it on her right side, trailing down her arms her clothes fell away to nothing, leaving her bare for a moment before silked threads trickled into place, draped around her as his hands came to her wrists, having guided her arms down to her sides, and slide off to brush against her hips, over the upper section of her thighs. The gentle trailing of sand had settled around her with the weight of fabric which bunched slightly as Teos raised his hands again, barely an inch, pushing the new garment up an inch. His lips had come to rest on her forehead as he let his ministrations explore her form and so when he smiled the expression radiated clearly through the contact. What was left was a stunning goddess in a draped dress just shy of mid thigh, and exposed back, and a low cut front that led up to the halter behind her neck, holding it in place. The fabric was light and soft, creamy with soft golden sheen when she moved. His thumb slid under the hem he gathered, feeling the soft skin of her leg. "Don't blame me if you don't like it," he whispered and pressed a kiss to her forehead before tilting his head out of the way so she could move freely. His hands stayed in place, enjoying the contact, but applied no pressure to hold her still.

For once Ate had obeyed immediately, closing her eyes from the excitement of what was about the come. She allowed him to move her this way and that, waiting patiently for the moment he would allow her to look. When finally that moment came, she opened her eyes and peered down and was pleasantly surprised by what she found. "You've actually done a pretty good job..It shows off my goddess form perfectly." She said playfully before looking up into Teos's face. "We will be the envy of the party, you know. We make quite a good looking pair.."

"You could make anyone look good," Teos replied, but he smiled nonetheless. "Because your goddess form shows itself off perfectly. If anything, I've only helped tone it down so mortals are not immediately rendered blind by its flawless perfection." His fingers curled into the hem of the dress, tugging it back into place where he had lecherously pushed it up, before he finally was able to release her. She had done incredibly well, staying still, it would be wrong of him to take advantage of her trust. Besides, she was fun to chase. "I am but a humble frame, honored to show off a work of art."

"There are too many flaws in this painting to be called a work of art." Ate replied with a chuckle as she watched him readjust the hem of her dress before looking back up at him. "It seems we might be ready to go and yet the party is not due to start for a while.."

"We could get unready," Teos suggested with a little smirk, but he was reaching out again, wrapping his arms around her waist and his forehead came to rest against hers. "Then re-ready when it is time... but, first, Ate..." He leaned down so he could place a gentle kiss on her neck. "To me, you're flawless," he whispered softly, and kissed her again. And I am the only one that should matter. "To me, you are a work of art." And in me you have worship. "You are worthy of absolute devotion." And you have mine.

"You're just saying that so you can get me out of my dress." Ate joked before stroking a hand against his cheek. "You just had to ask.." She added in a seductive whisper before winking at him. She chuckled lightly then shifted to rest her head against his chest. "No one has ever been this devoted to me Teos. I could get used to it.."

"I hope so," Teos replied and embraced her affectionately, giving her waist a little squeeze. "Gods live a very long time, it would be a very long time to suffer being uncomfortable with it." One of his hands left her waist to take hers instead, lifting it about shoulder height with her as he swayed them to nonexistent music. "I don't seek to lay with you," he explained quietly. "The beds here seem almost insulting. If I should be so lucky, I would want it to be in the halls of Olympus, surrounded again in your rightful chambers in sheets of the finest silk, tall pillars etched with gold... A place deserving of your grace."

"You tease.." Ate smirked as she swayed lightly with Teos. "But I agree. I don't wish to rush something that I have waited many a year for." She added before looking up at Teos. "Will you dance with me tonight?"

He gave an agreeable nod as he assured her, "I will dance with no other, if that is your wish." He didn't know what he had done to make Ate want to be seen with him romantically, but he hoped he could do it a thousand times more. "And I don't think you will need to use your influence on me to make the world fall away and my inhibitions to become weak."

"You may dance with others..just make sure to save at least one dance for me. I know many others will wish to dance with me..I mean look at me. I'm a vision to look at." Ate joked with a smirk before she finally brought herself to a stop from their silent dancing. She opened her mouth to speak again but stopped when there was a sudden knock at their door from Luke and Vanden standing outside. Her brows furrowed slightly before she looked at Teos. "Can you answer that please.."

"Your favorite part of the night is going to be making me jealous, isn't it?" Teos asked rhetorically, but he did go to answer the door with a shake of his head. When he opened it, he was immediately filled with an unpleasant feeling, a feeling of dislike, and it made him squirm a little internally. Externally, he smiled. "Hello, Luke." Luke had come to visit of his own free will after what just happened? That was odd. "What can we help you with?"

"We have a new housemate, I thought he should meet you." Luke replied as he looked at Teos, no hint of warmth or friendliness in his tone. "And her of course." He couldn't even bring himself to say Ates name. "Vanden.." He turned to the older man and motioned to The Teos. "This is Teos. Teos.. Vanden."

Vanden stepped forward into the doorway once Luke stepped aside and offered his hand to Teos to shake. He was big, and wide, and aged compared to Teos. He held his broad hand aloft for the smaller male and nodded. "Potential housemate," he corrected Luke politely. "Nice to meet you." There was something about his accent--the way he landed on his T's, the way his rolled his I's--that said he was not from here.

"Ah, I see. Pleasure to meet you as well, Vanden," Teos replied with a friendly smile as he shook hands. He kept it to himself, but the contact left him uncomfortable into his bones. Jade felt like cool water, but this man... It was like his hand crumbled away, burned away at the roots, and yet as soon as he let go only the ghost remained. He fought the urge to flex his hand and test it. He looked over his shoulder. "Ate, do you want to come say hello?" Maybe she knew what Vanden was. "We have a- potential- new house mate." He looked at Vanden again. "Welcome to Athen's Harbor. What brings you to town?"

Jade had risen from the table to search for her companions and found them speaking to Teos and Ate. She gave both of them a loving smile. She leaned over to Teos and whispered. "Before you and Ate leave to go anywhere I'd like to speak to you both." Kissing his cheek gently she took a step away. "Vanden, the room is all yours. Madison wants to stay with her brother to help him recover from his accident."

"Just a second.." Ate called to Teos when he called to her about Vanden. She was busy checking her appearance in a small compact mirror, clasped lightly in her hand. She clicked it shut then turned just as Jade was leaning into Teos and whispering almost secretively before kissing his cheek gently. Her eyes narrowed dangerously and if steam could have rose from how much her blood was boiling from jealously, they would suddenly be standing in a sauna. Her grasp tightened around the mirror until there was a crunching sound and the plastic and glass shattered in her hand. Ate let the pieces drop to the floor then took a small breath as she stepped to the door, ignoring Teos as she stopped next to him. "Ate." She said extending a hand to Vanden as she placed her most seductive smile on and smoothed her other hand over her form fitting dress. "And you are?"

"Vanden Lancia," he said again, his tone just bordering annoyance at having to repeat himself. He reached out and took Ate's hand, his steely eyes on her. The sensation of fire and the smell of death erupted in her palm. Vanden didn't seem to notice. "You two are very beautiful people," he said of Ate and Teos. "And your names... They are Greek." Even though there was a hint of inflection in his voice, it really was more of a statement. "Έχετε προχωρήσει πολύ, όπως έχω." He withdrew his hand from Ate and slid both of his into his pockets with a closed-lipped smile.

Teos, who had looked very quickly at the sound of the mirror breaking, and with equal concern as Ate dropped it on the rug, approached the door- his concern increasing- and the way she acted to Vanden during their greeting. "Ίσως πάρα πολύ μακριά..." he said quietly. Ate was going to kill him. Then it hit him that something very strange had happened and he looked at Vanden with slightly widened eyes. "You speak Greek." It wasn't a question, he was clearly just happy about it, even while quivering inside at the tension he felt from the goddess next to him. He was going to have to fix that immediately. "It is nice to have someone we can speak with that way, I am glad to have you here, Vanden." He still didn't know what Vanden was, but it still lit that deep seed of dislike but, not knowing the reason he disliked him, Teos chose to ignore it in favor of reacting only to the rest of the new arrival. That decided, he wanted to offer to help him but he had a feeling he would need to deal with Ate first and foremost, and he made a mental apology to Jade.

Ate eyed Vanden silently, as her hand still tingled from the contact. She finally glanced at Teos and scowled slightly at his words. "Ναι, έχετε πάει σίγουρα πολύ μακριά.(Yes, you have definitely gone too far)" She growled lightly to him before looking back at Vanden. "
Φαίνεσαι σαν ένας πολύ έξυπνος άνθρωπος και ένας με καλό μάτι πάρα πολύ .. (You seem like a very smart man, and one with a good eye too..)" She said to him in response to him calling her beautiful. "I look forward to speaking with you in more detail but for now..I need to get changed. This dress just lost it's appeal.." She said then turned and disappeared back into the room.

Jade glanced around at the three of them as they spoke Greek easily with each other. She leaned over to Luke which in turn brought her to the warmth of Vanden, taking her by surprise. "Well... I think we need to learn Greek." She teased him gently as Ate extracted herself from their little group. Jade sighed softly and shook her head. "Tell her I'm sorry... and I'd like to talk to her when she's calmer." She directed at Teos before turning to Vanden. "Well come on, over here will be your room." She walked the few feet to the closed door and pushed it open. "Madison will be by later to collect her things but I can get her bag out of the way for you."

Vanden gave a bit of a bow at the waist to Teos and Ate as she walked away. He smiled at Teos with that same, almost smug closed-lipped smirk. He turned and followed Luke and Jade to his new room and inspected it from a couple of steps just inside the doorway. "Smaller than I imagined." he said absently, though it didn't sound like a negative. He moved to the closet and opened it, sticking his head inside momentarily and then closing it again. "Not bad." He returned to Jade and Luke and nodded at them. "I will consider it. For now, I am staying at the Athens Inn down the way."

Jade tilted her head as she watched Vanden wander around the room. She was a bit surprised by his comment of it being small but she let that go. After all, they had en entire house they could use, a bedroom you only slept in. How big did it need to be? Her eyebrows lifted when he returned to them, informing her that he would consider it. "OH... well alright. I could give you my number and if you decide for sure you want it you can just give me a call." She eased past him, her arm brushing against him lightly. She instantly felt the warm radiating off of him as she went to the nightstand and pulled the pen and note pad out of the drawer. She wrote her cell phone number on it and tore the little section off to hand to him. "I get spotty service out in the ocean and if I'm diving I can't be reached but I'll get to anything you need as soon as possible." She held her hand out to him, paper gently placed between two fingers as she gave him a soft smile.

Vanden reached out and pinched the paper between his index and middle fingers, and his eyes raised to look at Jade's. He smiled at her for a split second, then said, "Thank you, for your time and hospitality." He took the paper from her then and tucked it into his pocket carefully, before nodding at Luke once more and heading out of the room. He left the house and headed to his rental car, aware of the possibility that Jade and Luke could be watching him through the upstairs window. He dropped into the driver's seat smoothly, turned on the car and just drove away.

"You have to admit he's a little strange.." Luke commented as he did as Vanden thought he would, and watched his car retreat from the house. "I mean he came here about the room and then he says he has to think about it? That the room is on the small side? This house is huge..What was he expecting, a palace." He grumbled then turned to look at Jade. "I'd say forget about him.."

Jade leaned against the window sill, a faint smile spread across her face. "Strange, but cute..." She'd never been attracted to an older man before, never even considered it but Vanden was one handsome guy. She turned back to Luke with a giggle. There minds had basically been on the same wave length when Vanden called the room small. "It's okay, I'm not worried. I don't need the room to be rented, I've got misfits everywhere." Standing on her tip toes she gave his cheek an affectionate kiss. "Now, I need to get ready for the yacht party, want to help me pick out an outfit?"

"You want my opinion on an outfit?" Luke asked with a smile and a raised eyebrow. "Sure I can try." He chuckled then motioned for Jade to lead the way. "As for finding Vanden cute.. Forget about it." He said in a fatherly tone. "I didn't get a good feeling from him.."

"Sure, it'll be fun." Jade slipped her arm through Luke's and led the way to her room as she listened to his protective tone. She gently rubbed his arm as a soft smile spread across her face. "I didn't say I loved him, Luke. Just that he was cute. I barely know the guy. I mean it took me a year to even accept my feelings for Dorian... I'm like a fish out of water when it comes to relationships." Stepping into her room she released his arm and walked over to her walk in closet and opened the doors to rummage through it. She tossed out a few dresses, not concerned with them landing on the floor. "I have no idea what to wear..."

"I'm sure you have something in there Jade. You look great in everything." Luke complimented her as he moved after her, carefully picking up the dresses she discarded on the floor. "Now after we get you dressed you need to help me..I have a date with Haidee tonight..I want to look my best." He finished with a smile as he stood behind Jade.

"Thank you, Luke." She found a strapless high low dress in teal that she had bought months ago. It had a sweetheart bodice with an ombre color that reminded her of the ocean. She turned to Luke, holding it up for him to inspect as he told her about his date with Haidee. "Oh good! I'm so happy." She practically squealed with excitement that his time with Haidee was going well. "So I think this, with some cute silver heels will be good... I'm not out to empress anyone so I might as well make myself feel good, right?!"

"Exactly. Enjoy yourself tonight, that's all that's important. But as I said, you look beautiful. I bet the most beautiful girl there." Luke replied with a smile before he planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

---

"It was nice to meet you," Teos told Vanden, sincere even as the depths of him was saying it had not been. He was quick to close the door though, taking a mental deep breath, and turned to Ate. "Ate, it's not what you think," he said immediately, watching her in case she threw something at him. "Please, really, there's nothing going on-"

He was right to watch Ate as the next second the dress she had been wearing was thrown at his head. "Leave me alone.." She growled as she stomped over to her bags and began rummaging through them for something to wear. "You can attend the party alone tonight..I'm not in the mood anymore."

Teos caught it with ease and dropped it on the bed, keeping his attention on her. "I already promised you, I'm never going to leave you alone," he told her firmly. She wasn't kidding about this jealousy thing. "If you aren't going, then neither will I. It wasn't the party I wanted to be at, I wanted to be with you. Ate, please stop!" He put a hand on the bag she was rummaging through but didn't take it from her. "She's just Jade, she's family, it doesn't mean anything. The ones from you, they mean something. Please..."

Ate let out a growl and it took all her restraint to stop herself hitting Teos for stopping her search through the bag. "The descendants need you to go to the party." She grumbled as she snatched her hand away from the bag and straightened up.

"Maybe," Teos agreed, also releasing the bag. "They need you too, Ate." Let her hit him, if it made her feel better. "I need you. Please, Ate, I already told you, I'll tell you again and again, I'm not going anywhere unless I die and you already insisted you'll be the one to kill me, so unless you plan to do that you're stuck with me. No one is a threat to my devotion to you." He wasn't really sure how to do this. He could worship her, he was happy to, but he couldn't physically stop everyone that came into contact with him. Jade hadn't meant anything by it, he was pretty sure. He had his thoughts on why she'd done it, none of which he was going to verbalize. No matter how many times Ate was angry with him, she wasn't going to be able to push him away. If anything, he was grateful. She made him work for it, it's how he knew it was worth all the effort.

Ate frowned as she listened to him, moving to pull the sheet from the bed and wrap it around herself before she moved to sit down, grumbling under her breath as she did. "Go get me ice cream..chocolate." She finally said in a moody tone, though it just wasn't as threatening as before.

Thank the gods. Teos put a hand on his heart and bowed deeply. "Of course. As you wish," he said softly, then took his leave, making sure to close the door quietly behind him as he headed downstairs. He kept a mental eye on her, not wanting anyone to approach her while he was away, and searched the kitchen until he had the pint of chocolate ice cream from the freezer and a spoon from the drawer. For added measure he wrapped the little container in a dish towel to keep it from being uncomfortable to hold, and headed back upstairs, slipping into his room and closing the door again. "Ate..." he said softly and came around the bed to sit beside her, offering the ice cream. "What dress did you have picked out for tonight?" he asked curiously. "Before you asked for one from me."

"I had hoped to wear this dress I had found.. It reminded me of how I used to look.." Ate mumbled as she took hold of the ice cream and quickly dug her spoon into it. "I thought.." She stopped with a frown and shook her head. I thought you would have really like it.. She thought to herself. "I don't wish to wear it anymore. I'll go with something else." She finished, still not lifting her gaze to look at Teos.

Teos nodded patiently, not pressing for what she had been about to say. "Alright. I hope you wish to wear it some other time. I would like to see what you looked like before. I would like to see all the ways you look, past, present, and future."

"Well keep kissing other girls and that won't happen.." Ate replied though there was the smallest hint of teasing in her tone as she looked at him. "I told you I'm the jealous type Teos. I don't like people touching my things." She said with a childlike pout before she took another bite of ice cream. "I am very thankful aphrodites descendant is male..I had to put up with her stealing my things enough when I lived in Olympus."

"Arguably one of them isn't," Teos pointed out, thinking how the descendant of her full blooded son was not. At least, not entirely. He also refrained this time from pointing out he hadn't kissed anyone, since he would probably do so without thinking later on. He set his hands behind him and leaned back, propping himself up with his arms. "I don't think it'll surprise anyone that chaos is the one truly controlling time," he joked, giving her a small smile."

"Chaos controls everything Teos, people just don't want to believe it." Ate replied and finally the smallest hint of a smile returned to her lips. She took another bite of the ice cream then finally set it down. "So what did Jade want anyway?"

"To talk," Teos answered, adding with a bit more emphasis, "To both of us, though I don't know why." He fell silent, his relaxed expression slipping down into a frown. "What do you think of Vanden?"

"I couldn't help but wonder if he knew more than he was saying.." Ate replied with a thoughtful expression before she stood up and moved to rummage through her bags again. "He's definitely one of us but he spoke Greek so fluently after telling us he knew our names were Greek.. Maybe we should have changed our names.. Ate and Teos is a little strange in the modern world don't you think?" She asked with a smirk over her shoulder. "And the feeling I got when he took my hand.." She shuddered lightly. "Like death.."

"Exactly," Teos agreed soberly. "I don't know what he is.. He is like us but I don't think he is one of us. I don't worry for us, but I do for the other descendants." He sighed, pointlessly closing his eyes as he let himself fall back on the bed with a soft thump. His mind ran through questions to the Fates, listening to the answers like echoes in a dark cave. "I don't like him," he admitted somewhat reluctantly. "But I don't know why."

"Don't worry if he turns out to be the bad guy, I'll protect you." Ate replied playfully before she finally decided to wear the dress that Teos had given her again. She slipped it on then turned and stepped back towards the bed, leaning over him with a smile."No matter what he is, nothing has ever outwitted me dear Teos. I have outsmarted my father Zeus for years, Vanden is a kitten compared to him."

Teos sat up and captured her hips in his embrace, pressing a fond kiss to her exposed sternum, refraining from pointing out Hera had outwitted her, at least once. "My beautiful goddess, always watching over me," he praised affectionately. "Yes, I suppose for now I will not worry. Should we see what Jade wanted or would you rather we head straight to the party and worry about that later?"

"No no..we should find out what it is she wished to speak to both of us about before we leave.." Ate replied as she brushed her fingers through his hair as if trying to fix it for the party. "I hope it is good news whatever it is.."

Teos hummed, closing his eyes to better experience the feel of her hands in his hair. "As do I. Perhaps she wants to apologize for her behavior earlier?" he suggested, opening his eyes to kiss her again, then carefully stood and kissed her lips instead, lingering in the feeling of the contact, the feel of her waist held in his hands. He smiled, the action inadvertently breaking the kiss. "Come on. Let's go see."

"She'll probably be in her room, preparing for the party." Ate answered as she looked up at Teos before pecking one final kiss on his lips before pulling herself from his grip and heading for the door, expecting Teos to follow. She descended the stairs and moved towards Jade's room, stepping into the doorway just as Luke kissed Jade's forehead. She cleared her throat with a raised eyebrow as she rested a hand on her hip. "Are we interrupting something?" She asked teasingly making Luke frown and turn towards her.

Jade beamed at Luke and shook her head. "You have to say that, you're my best friend. But thank you, I appreciate it. Now lets get you looking hot!" She turned at the sound of Ate's voice and smiled softly. "No just some sibling affection." She gently draped her dress over the end of her bed. "Luke why don't you head upstairs and pick some stuff out and I'll be right up?"

Luke watched Ate with a frown for a few more seconds before looking back at Jade and nodding. "Sure. I'll grab a quick shower then be in my room.." He said then turned and headed past Ate just as Teos stepped up behind her.

"Teos said you wished to speak with us.." Ate commented once Luke had left and her gaze was focused on Jade. 

Jade inhaled deeply as their attention turned to her. A small smile spread across her face though as she nodded her head. "Yes... I do. I wanted to apologize before too much time got away from us. I haven't been myself lately and not at all of sound mind apparently." She clasped her hands in front of her. "When I went outside I thought on it and... Families fight, not everyone gets along but in the end we'll all still be family. I needed to realize that I can't make everyone get along and for that I am so sorry..." She licked her lips for a moment before continuing. "It's strange... the connection I've felt to the two of you since you've been here. We've barely known each other that long but I feel connected to you both and Ate you did something for me no one else ever could." Tears pricked her eyes as the memory of her short conversation with her father came to the forefront of her mind. "I'm sorry I yelled and got upset, overreacted. Can you both please forgive me?"

"I can." Teos answered only for himself only because he was pretty sure Ate wouldn't want him answering for her. "I'm just glad you understand. We're not here to disregard your feelings, Jade, or Luke's, and I'm sorry if we made you feel that way but Ate and I... we only have your best interests at heart, if we say something that scares any if you, I would hope that you'd keep in mind that it doesn't mean you'll face it alone or your life is over or something. I know it's hard to understand now, but it's not for us, but when you are goddess of the seas and Luke is god of the harvest, and we're going to do our best to make that happen, it's so much more than you could have ever hoped for. Everything we do is for you."

"Exactly. Some of the things I say might seem cruel but it's nothing compared to what is about to happen. I just.. Want to toughen you all up a little that's all.." Ate added with a wave of her hand before she straightened up and moved to Jade. "It may not seem like it, but I care deeply for all of you.. Even Luke." She said with a playful smile. "To me, you are like my children, in need of my guidance through the challenges you are all about to face. And I will always willingly put myself between you all and any danger so you have a better chance of succeeding. Even if I don't make it back to Olympus, it will make me happy knowing you and the others did." She smiled and placed a hand on Jade's shoulder."Now can we forget about all of this for tonight? We have a party to go to and the fun won't really start until I'm there.."

Jade inhaled deeply and shook her head, wrapping her arm around Ate she pulled her into a side hug so she could still look at Teos. "No no... I know all that. My mind and heart just clashed and got in the way. I wasn't thinking like myself and I should have just taken a step back to listen and... feel." She rolled her shoulders and sighed. "I can't wait to get on that yacht... I'm more at ease out there." She gave them a sheepish smile and shook her head. "Go. Figure." Giggling softly, she squeezed Ate's hips before releasing her. "Thanks for hearing me out and talking to me. Now we can move forward and I can forget about all the bad things I've done or said over the last few days."

"It is better to remember your mistakes, if only to ensure you learn from them," Teos replied, but he was smiling at her. "I am sure Ate will never let me live down any I make. And if you don't make it back to Olympus-" he said, pointing at Ate. "I'm taking you to the after lands where time has no meaning so we can stay together forever. Or until you tire of me. Whichever comes first."

"I could never grow tired of you.. I enjoy tormenting you too much." Ate teased with a smirk as she moved back to Teos, brushing a speck of dust from his shoulder once she had reached his side. "Now Jade you need to be ready to leave in thirty minutes. I've hired us a ride to take us to the yacht." She told the other woman with a smile. "Now I need to do my hair.."

Jade chuckled softly and shook her head. "Alright, let me go help Luke pick something out." She kissed Ate's cheek on her way out the door and hurried upstairs to her best friend. "Luke?" She knocked on his door frame before pushing the door open. "Hey did you pick me out some options?"

"No.." Luke replied sounding suddenly stressed as he looked over at Jade. "Because I don't have any.. I didn't buy myself any clothes today! Haidee mentioned the beach so I was so set on getting something for that.. I didn't get at clothes!" He sounded panicked before a voice suddenly sounded from behind Jade.

"Teos can help.." Ate spoke as she looked in at Luke, her hand on her hip. "Take it as my apology for any unreasonable behaviour.."

Luke blinked at her before looking unsure.

"You don't need to look so worried..I won't be involved. Teos.." Ate said as she turned towards him, expecting him to have followed her when she headed back to their room to finish getting ready. "Do your clothes thing for Luke, exactly like you did for you and me. Make him looking irresistible for his date with Haidee." She finished with a smile.

"I love how your apology is me doing something for others," Teos said sarcastically as he joined them, but he was still smiling and kissed Ate's hair as he passed by and entered the room. "You ladies just go make yourselves beautiful. Luke, can you tell me what you would like to have? Just for this evening, you can go out and get more clothes later."

Jade had moved to step closer when Ate's voice came from behind her. She smiled at the goddess, relieved to have a quick and easy solution. She pecked Luke on the cheek. "I'll be changing if you need anything." Hurrying from the room and back downstairs she closed the door to slip into her gorgeous dress and do a bit of primping. Though she didn't know why, it wasn't like she had a date.

Ate smirked at Teos's words but didn't reply before she turned and headed back into their room, leaving Luke and Teos alone.

"What would I like?" Luke asked looking unsure. "I don't really know..I want to look good for Haidee but would she want to see me in a suit?" He continued then sighed. "What would you wear for a first date?"

"I'll let you know when I have one," Teos replied with a little frown as he closed the door behind them so Luke would have privacy to change. "But I suppose it would be this." He motioned to his own all-black outfit Ate had chosen for him. "I don't think you have to worry too much... what exactly is your date?" He could probably look into that. He could probably even see exactly what Haidee would be wearing so Luke could match the dress code, but it seemed private so he'd rather keep his nose out of it.

"I-I hadn't thought of what we would do..dinner at a restaurant feels too formal but I don't want her to think I don't believe she's special enough for a fancy dinner.." Luke replied before groaning. "Honestly, if I had the choice..we'd have a private terrace somewhere, lit with candles and decorated with her favourite flowers. We'd have her favourite meal with a glass of wine and wouldn't have to worry about anyone watching us..then when we were finished, we'd go for a walk on the beach.." He finished then gave an embarrassed smile as his cheeks flushed red.

Teos blinked at him, suppressing a laugh since he didn't want t make Luke any more self conscious than he already seemed to be. "That... sounds more like a plan to propose than a first date," he pointed out. "Haidee seems to like you just the way you are, Luke. I don't think you have to go to such great lengths just for a date. Why not compromise? Just wear a new shirt with your swim shorts, bring some fruit and wine and have a small picnic on the beach? You'll probably be alone. Most of the town is going to Risk's party tonight it seems, so even though it's not a private terrace, it's probably still a nice view and lots of privacy."

If possible Luke's cheeks turned even redder than before when Teos mentioned that his idea sounded like a proposal. He appreciated the suggestion from the other man though and quickly nodded his approval. "Yeah..t-that sounds good." He said in reply. "Nice and relaxed..I think she'll like that.."

"I think you both will. Save the grand gestures for grand questions," Teos replied with a little chuckle. "Now, how about something you're familiar with." He held up his hands with his first and second fingers pinched with his thumb, hands together, then brought them out away from each other, moving his fingers as if sprinkling something. The white sand tumbled from his fingertips, leaving behind white threads that eventually became dense enough to form fabric and finally a simple white tee he was holding with the shoulders pinched by his fingers. He held it out a little further to offer it to him. "It'll match whatever your shorts are and I think it will be warm enough you shouldn't need an over shirt or anything-" He paused, then smiled. "Actually, it's better you have one. If she gets cold you can offer it to her. What color are your shorts? I can get you something to match."

"They're dark red.." Luke answered as he took the shirt from Teos. "They're not anything special. I just grabbed the first pair in my size.." He continued as he moved to carefully lay the shirt on his bed before looking back at Teos.

"A simple pair is easier to match than a patterned one," Teos assured him, but he took a moment to think about it, then shrugged, lifted his hands, and performed a similar motion as before, leaving a flannel shirt in shades of simple black and white in his hands instead. He offered it to Luke as well. "I'm sure Haidee is less concerned with what you wear on your body and more so with the smile you wear on your face, Luke," he assured the other man. "If it goes well, and I'm sure it will, will you be asking her to the Harbor Faire next week as well?"

"I don't normally go to the faire..but if Haidee was interested I guess I'd be happy to take her. If I don't completely screw up tonight then I'll ask her.." Luke replied after he had taken the flannel shirt from Teos. "So..thanks for all this. I owe you one." He continued a little awkwardly. "I hope you and uh..Ate.."He said her name a little stiffly. "..I hope you have a good time tonight..just make sure she doesn't, you know..sink the boat or anything." He finished jokingly.

Teos, however, looked toward the door as if he could see Ate through it, his expression sober. "I have no control over that," he said seriously followed by a moment of silence, then he smiled brightly at Luke. "Don't worry about 'owing me one' or anything like that. We're family. I'm happy to help you out with anything you might need. And I just thought the idea of the two of you walking around the faire holding hands, playing those little carnival games or riding the ferris wheel together just seemed very quintessentially.... you." 'You' was said in reference to them as a couple, not directly at Luke as an individual. "Winning little gold fish or something. Well, anyway, that's up to the two of you. Everyone being at the faire I suppose gives you plenty of places to be alone...." He smiled, teasing Luke for his cunning plan he knew the farmer wasn't actually planning. It was nice to see the two so smitten though. "I am sure whatever you do tonight or any time after, Haidee will be happy just spending time with you. I think you're all set for tonight. Can you think of anything else you need help with?"

"No I think I'm good.." Luke replied with a nod, choosing to ignore Teos's teasing words just as Ate reappeared at the door. It had been a quick finish up for her, simply letting her long curly hair fall loose around her shoulders instead of its usual up-style and on her feet to accompany the dress Teos had given her a pair of gold strapped high heels. She hadn't applied any make up as she was confident she didn't need it and to finish a small dab of sweet perfume on either side of her neck. She smiled at the pair.

"I'm ready Teos.." She said to him before looking at Luke, her expression turning a little more serious. "Now Luke.." She started and he seemed to prepare himself for some teasing comment. "Be careful tonight.."

Luke wasn't prepared for that. He blinked at her then glanced at Teos. "Uh..ok.." He replied in confusion.

"Teos, I and the other descendants shall be on this boat so you and Haidee need to be on your guard..if anything Olympus related happens try to reach as quickly as possible.." Ate said. "And then hide if you can until we get there. Keep each other safe." She continued then when she noticed his alarmed expression she suddenly smiled again. "But I doubt anything will happen..I just want you to be prepared."

Teos patted him on the shoulder. "It's very unlikely, don't worry about it. I would be more afraid of Haidee anyway." With a last smile he removed his hand and offered his arm to Ate. "You are stunning, and you smell divine." He leaned down to get a closer whiff and smiled at the aroma. "Shall we see if Jade is ready to go? Have fun this evening!" he called back to Luke as they stepped out and headed back downstairs to check on Jade and finally head out to the party.

"Like I always do.." Ate pointed out with a smirk as she took Teos's arm and allowed him to lead her from the room. "Don't get too jealous when every man at this party asks me to dance." She added with a wink. "You can dance with others too I suppose..just make sure to tell them you have a goddess in your life who will easily flatten them if they dare flirt." She finished with a sweet smile as they waited for Jade to join them.

Jade ran her hands down the front of her dress, smoothing it out nervously. She didn't usually dress this nice, jeans and her diving gear was basically the extent. Sighing gently her eyes trailed up to her face where she wore light makeup but enough to emphasis her beautiful green eyes. Her hair framed her face in waves, having curled it a bit and then running her fingers through it so it looked more natural. She opened her door, her silver heels making soft click clack noises on hard wood floors as she headed towards the front of the house. "This is stupid... I don't even have anyone to impress anymore." She sighed as she walked up to Teos and Ate. She would have loved to impress Dorian with her drop dead gorgeous looks tonight but she knew that wasn't likely to happen.

Aiden came down the stairs just then in all black, black tennis shoes, black slacks, black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a black vest over top of it all. "What are you talking about? You look amazing." He came up beside Jade, giving her a friendly once over. "No matter whether you have anyone to impress, I guarantee there will be many stares headed your way tonight." He gave her a wink as he took in the other two. "You both look great too."

Ate looked at Aiden and raised an eyebrow. "We look better than great but thank you." She said as she adjusted her grip on Teos's arm. "Now if we're all ready, there should be a limo waiting for us outside to take us to the yacht. Will you be joining us?" She asked looking at Aiden again.

Teos chuckled and kissed Ate's hair. He was rather glad it was one less man that would be staring at her but he had a feeling she wouldn't appreciate the same sentiment. "Since I have Ate's permission, I hope you will save a dance for me, Jade," he told her kindly. "If you have any left after all the dances with other men Ate has turned down, of course." He squeeze his date's arm affectionately.

"Aiden," Jade smiled softly at her new tenant. He was a breath of fresh air after all the stress she'd been putting herself through. At Teos's question Jade smiled and nodded her head. "Sure, if you would like a dance." She glanced up at Aiden and noticed he was just as dressed up as them. "Oh my... who are you taking?"

Aiden cleared his throat gently and shook his head. "Sorry to turn down the offer but I'm taking Madison on my bike. Apparently the girl has a hint of a wild side in her." He teased Jade, wondering if it would get a rise out of her. "But I promise to be careful with your most precious friend." He promised his landlord. "Now if all you lovely people will excuse me, I have a beautiful woman to pick up." He carefully slipped past the group and headed out the front door. His bike wasn't parked far from the front door so he quickly hopped on it, turned the bike over and took off down the drive, shifting as he went. He made his way to Boto Streets of Athens Harbor with good time and headed straight for the dojo.

"Now as it seems we are all ready, shall we go? This goddess is getting impatient to dance my loves.." Ate said with a playful smile at Jade and Teos. "Let us go and make this a night to remember..for all the right reasons might I add." She motioned for Jade to lead the way out to where the car would be waiting to take them to the marina.

Jade smiled softly and brushed her hand along Ate's arm as she moved past her to stand out on the porch. The wind had a nice, gentle breeze this evening. Hopefully they wouldn't be too chilled out on the ocean. Then it hit her, she'd never been cold around the ocean, quite the opposite actually, it always seemed to warm her. She ducked her head and shook it gently, pleased that she'd found something in her life to love wholly.


BotO Athens Harbor
Blood of the Olympians