"Hades is going to kill me."
For the second time, she'd snuck out of the city without warning anyone. She knew it'd look bad to be leaving the city with a man, being a virgin goddess.
Even if that man was just Ares.
It was cold and the wind blew softly as the pair of gods sat on the soft grass, watching fireworks explode in front of them. It was a first for Athena, and was an experience she'd wanted to share with the god beside her.
If only for appearances sake, they were sitting far too close. Close enough for her to easily rest her head upon his shoulder, for him to wrap an arm around her waist...
Of course, if any of that happened, it was all for show.
"I doubt he'll attempt to kill you, Laya," Ares murmured, using her mortal name. "We'll be back there in an hour or two. No one will have noticed."
She knew he was right. The only reason Hades had noticed before was because she'd been gone for a week. She hadn't meant to, it'd just... happened. Humming contently, she tilted her head to the skies as a burst of gold lit it up.
It was beautiful.
"Is it nearly midnight?" she asked, before looking at the man's expression before her. He obviously had something on his mind. "Gabriel... You should know better than to think you can hide your worries from me. Talk."
He sighed, turning away from the sky entirely to focus all of his attention on her.
"Why did you leave, that first time?"
It was a simple enough question, but not one Athena would've liked answering. Her answer, to her, made her seem weak, and she could not appear weak to him. She cared too much.
"I... needed a vacation." A phrase she'd told everyone.
He sighed, turning away from her and glancing back to the sky. There was a long pause again before any words were spoken.
"You think more clearly out here, isn't it? The constrains of the town restrict your mind."
Another long pause stood there giving Ares all the answer he needed. Athena chuckled lightly, before glancing up at the sky with him.
"When did I give you permission to know me so well?"
Suddenly, she could hear the countdown all across the field. the little mortals were preparing for the New Year to begin, directly at midnight. And there was one human tradition Athena wanted to try.
"3...2...1...Happy New Year!" And Athena reached forward and gently pressed her lips against the astonished Ares, who inevitably responded. For a moment, they simply stayed there like that, until he pulled away.
Before he could ask any questions, she sighed. "Keeping up appearances, Gabriel. We're supposed to look like a young couple over here." It'd been something they'd both decided before they came.
However, even as Ares nodded, she knew he knew what it was as well.
It had been her first kiss.