AU fic branching off from 'The Love of an Olympian'. You'll see how it's AU from that (aside from this bein a multi-chap and Olympian bein a one-shot) in a moment.
Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or HP - this stands for all chapters of this fic.
Daughter of Mother Nature and the Titan Sun
He really didn't know why he was doing this.
Honestly, sneaking around Aphrodite's palace on Mt Olympus, five days before the winter solstice, at nine o'clock at night had not been on his list of things to do today - or tonight, whatever.
But then what the Hades was he doing there?
(He was sure it was his imagination - which was very overactive - but the air had gone colder when he'd thought that… He decided to shrug it off. No way could his uncle touch him here.)
As he turned a dimly lit corner the sound of music - that of a flute, wooden perhaps judging by the richness of the sound - reached his ears. Such sweet music that his mouth actually watered because of it. Swallowing, he strode towards the source; a pair of closed wooden doors with light flooding out from the gap beneath them onto the tile floor of the corridor. He could barely make out doves engraved upon each door.
He rolled his eyes.
How classy.
He stopped and crossed the corridor to hide himself in the shadows, leaning back against the cold, stone walls with the wooden doors to his right. He shifted his feet to find a better stance as he listened harder, catching his breath when he heard the distant sound of feminine - definitely feminine - sobbing.
He didn't know how long he stood there before the quiet sobbing stopped and a female voice said, "Stop. That's enough, you may leave me now. I shall thank your mother for her recommendation; you are just as good as one of Apollo's children." Damn you, Aphrodite… He clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes.
He would have burst in the room then and there if he himself hadn't been inclined to believe the words of the Love Goddess. However grudgingly…
"Your words are humbling, my lady." A lilting female voice put in before continuing in a softer, quieter tone, "But surely you can not compare me, a daughter of the Goddess of Harvest and Nature, to a child of-of… Well, to one of his children."
He blinked slowly as he tried to take in the demigod's tone; she'd sounded embarrassed.
He heard Aphrodite laugh lightly, "Your bashfulness bears you well, young one." Then there was a pause in which he imagined the Goddess of Love looking at Demeter's half-mortal daughter with almost calculating eyes, "You need not worry about the one who holds your heart in his hands - clueless as he is. I shall favour you greatly for what you have done this night."
Right, so that had to be the most intelligent - yet most elusive - speech he'd ever heard the flighty Goddess of Love utter.
Ever.
Not that he made it his duty to stay in her company.
Before he could think on it too much he heard one of the doors creak open slowly as soft light flooded the corridor. His breath hitched as he pressed himself further into the shadows that should have dispersed from his presence.
Lucky for him the young woman who stepped out from the room didn't notice him, even as she turned slightly to close the door softly behind her. He caught the barest flicker of long blonde hair and pale skin before the door shut noiselessly and they were both covered by shadows.
He let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding when he sensed more than heard the daughter of Demeter depart, barely hearing a soft pop before the extremely dim light of the scattered torches went out leaving him in complete and utter darkness.
"Hades," He cursed softly - ignoring the growing unnatural chill that accompanied the loaded word - as he realised that Aphrodite, who had installed those emotion sensitive lights that Hermes was always nattering on about, had fallen asleep. Thus extinguished the lights and leaving him in darkness. (There weren't even any windows near for Zeus' sake he scowled, ignoring the rumbling thunder that had sounded at the thought.)
Ah well, he thought as he sauntered down the corridor somewhat blindly, in search for the nearest exit, that nymph, Amarilis, would have trouble finding him here.