AN: I wrote the start of this in Iceland, and finished it back home. Hopefully it's good

This was inspired by hours spent sat in the back of a campervan, staring at the landscape. I got extremely bored.

I'm sorry, I didn't do a third god. I was going to add an Aztec god, but I didn't think I could do it.

Now, l may not have been born a god of the sun, but that doesn't mean I resented the upgrade. Sure, it was scary and strange at first, but I've always been good at adapting to change so I quickly got the hang of it. It's not like driving a flaming hot chariot pulled by temperamental fire horses is hard or anything...

Anyway, back to the point. Being a sun god has its perks; for example, I'm the first thing people see in the morning as I light up the world. No one can look directly at me (cause I'm too awesome), but everyone knows I'm there. It's the perfect day job!

However, I am only one of many sun gods. Not surprisingly, most cultures on this earth decided that the giant glowing ball in the sky must be a god of some kind. And, since different parts of the world rely on the sun to varying degrees, not every sun deity is created equal. This creates quite a cluttered sky as each deity traces the same course.

Because of the abrupt and sudden way I'd been instated as the sun god, I was not made aware of just how different each solar deity was. I hadn't even met any major gods from other cultures yet! I'd only really met a few minor gods and goddesses as I travelled around Greece's surrounding territories. So meeting Ra was a shock.

It was so long ago, I barely remember why I was there. I'm pretty sure I'd been following Alexander the great as he expanded Greek territory, and looking great doing it. If I'd been a little bolder I might even have approached him about a date. But, sadly, he was much too busy with the conquering, and I was too shy. One of my many regrets!

Anyway, I somehow found my way to Egypt while the great city of Alexandria was being built. Oh, let me tell you, there was never a place like Alexandria. It was a strange concoction Greek and Egyptian culture, all mixed up and poured over a huge city. This left the place looking like no where else on earth. At least, at the time.

This mixing of cultures also led to a mix of gods. Alexandria was a heaving mess of Greek and Egyptian deities, with a few new gods added in for good measure. Speak nothing of the Greek-Roman headaches, but the migraines I got from Alexandria were the worst of my immortal life.

Despite my rank as the sun god, the Alexandrians kept trying to merge me with Horus. I know, right! It totally didn't make any sense! So while I was trying not to sprout a bird's head and wings, piloting the sun chariot was the last thing on my mind. This led to me only sending a tiny, almost unconscious part of my essence to do that duty.

The problem with this was that such an action led to me having no control over the sun chariot. Normally, this wasn't a big deal. I mean, the sun only has one path across the sky, and the fire horses know it off by heart anyway.

However, the sky over Alexandria wasn't normal. Unknowingly, I found myself sharing the sky with another god. This is where my lack of control over the sun chariot became a problem.

Just imagine this; two suns flying the same path, unaware of each other's presence, and uncontrolled because their gods have migraines. I'm sure you can guess what happened. Yep, we crashed...

Not my proudest moment, I'll admit. Being violently yanked back into the sun chariot as it tumbled towards the land below while fighting off a killer headache, and now suddenly needing to stop it from crashing wasn't an enjoyable experience. I can tell you now that I didn't stop it from smacking into the earth, but I did manage to lower the temperature of the chariot. So while I may have made the Sahara desert a lot hotter, I didn't nuke it. I have no idea what the mortals saw while this was going on, but the Mist must've been strong that day.

Stumbling out of the chariot, which was half buried in the sand while the other half was on fire, I found myself faced with a scene from Chaos itself. My horses, who had escaped from their reins, galloped wildly around the desert, searching for somewhere to go. I rushed to try and catch them, gripping the reins of one and holding it still.

"There, there, calm down. That's a good boy," mumbling to the crazed stallion, I slowly got it to stand still beside me as I stroked its nose. Glancing at the metal name tag on its bridle, I added, "good Inferno, that's better."

With one horse under control I moved to catch the rest, but something else caught my eye. I'd been so focused on getting my chariot sorted out that I hadn't noticed the large, sand-covered barque next to my downed sun. I'd seen boats like this sailing on the river Nile, but this one was much grander. Everything about had an air of ancient power. The hull was painted gold and black, with a few patterns of green. The sail was pure, crystalline white with a symbol of the sun shinning gold in the middle.

Considering that it was the sun barque, I found it surprisingly lacking in gold. Sure, it had plenty of gold trimmings and expensive-looking fabrics and wood. But, if I were Ra, I'd have made the whole boat out of gold! Maybe that's impractical, but what does that matter when you're a god?

While I was admiring the barque, a tall figure stepped out from behind it. Jumping back slightly from the new arrival, I watched them wearily. I could instantly tell he was Egyptian. That pantheon has a weird thing for animal heads on human bodies, and this god was no different. While his body resembled that of a well-aged man of about fifty, his head was that of a bird. A falcon, to be specific.

My first thought was that he was Horus, since that was the only falcon-headed god I was familiar with. Soon enough, I remembered that Horus was not the sun god and was unlikely to be the owner of this barque. My next thought was worse, because it was correct. This was Ra, the big boss of the Egyptian pantheon. And I'd just crashed into him!

Deciding that I should approach this the same way I do with Zeus, I dropped into a bow. Inferno the horse was slower on the uptake and refused to lower him head, almost yanking his reins from my hand. Giving a sharp click of my tongue, I commanded him to obey. The fire horse lowered his head reluctantly, glaring at me with smouldering eyes. I just rolled my eyes at him. Horses.

Ra marched over to me, his sandaled feet leaving light imprints in the sand. Keeping my head down, I waited for him to speak. It felt weird to be near a god more powerful than me that wasn't related to me somehow. He wasn't even from my pantheon, yet he still outranked me.

"Stand," Ra spoke no louder than one would talk in a conversation, yet his voice carried an unmistakable tone of command. Rising to my full height again, I met his eyes evenly as he continued to speak. "explain yourself."

"I'm terribly sorry, Lord Ra. I had no intention to hit your boat, really. I was just...not concentrating properly." I hurried to explain, panicking. If Ra didn't punish me for this, Zeus definitely would. I honestly couldn't have messed up more. Hitting the leader of the pantheon we were currently being mixed with would certainly get me on Zeus bad side. Not that I was ever on his good side...

Surprisingly, Ra nodded calmly as I spoke, a small smile tugging at the edges of his beak. I wasn't even aware he could smile with a falcon head.

"Yes, I guessed as much. I have also found it hard to focus these past few months." Ra told me, dismissing my hurried apology with a small hand gesture. "You're from the new pantheon, right? The Greek one?"

"Yes, that's us." Feeling more confident now that Ra seemed unlikely to attack, I replied in a more casual tone. I mean, we are both sun gods, so we have some common ground. "I'm Apollo."

"Ra. Though you seem to already know of me?"

"Of course. You're like the head-honcho of Egypt," I said, feeling slightly light-headed now that my fears were proven false. My normal, confident (no Artemis, not cocky) manner was returning, along with a little awe at meeting this major deity. "and you're also a sun god! It's very nice to meet you."

I held out a hand for him to shake. After a pause, he took it and shook it once, firmly.

"It looks like Alexandria will bring our cultures ever closer." Ra commented, studying me.

"Hopefully not too close," I couldn't help but joke, looking at the two crashed suns still laying in the sand. Inferno snorted loudly, seemingly unimpressed by my joke. I ignored him. "sorry again, about this crash."

"It's nothing that can't be fixed. Let's just try not to repeat this anytime soon."

"Of course, sir." I replied, reminding myself that he outranked me. Zeus always preferred it when I addressed him as 'sir', so Ra deserved the same title.

"Well, hopefully next time we meet will be under better circumstances." Ra told me, turning to his barque. With a flick of his wrist, the boat began to creak and groan, rising out of the sand dune and repairing itself. The freshly repaired barque sat on the sand, glowing happily. Ra turned back to me.

"Goodbye, young Apollo."

"Farewell to you too, Lord Ra."

On impulse, I held out my fist to the falcon-headed god. Amazingly, he responded, bumping fists with me. He smiled at me the way a veteran would smile at an overly enthusiastic new soldier. I found I liked that look.

Ra climbed into his barque, seating himself on the large golden throne in the middle. Without a word from its owner, the barque rose steadily into the sky, heading back towards its original path. Its glow grew in intensity as it rose. I watched it till it glowed as bright as before, tracking its path across the sky.

With a smile still on my face, I turned to deal with my own vehicle. Upon seeing what I had to deal with, my smile slipped off my face.

The horses had finished reviling in their freedom and were now nosing through the upturned chariot, searching for the treats I kept there. The chariot itself was still on fire, but most of it had died down now. Parts of it had snapped off or been bent at odd angles. This was going to need work and, unlike Ra, I didn't have a magic 'fix it' power up my sleeve.

Beside me, Inferno nickered loudly, clearly mocking me. Infuriating horse!

Sighing heavily, I reluctantly got to work.

After meeting Ra, it was quite a while till I stumbled upon any other fellow sun gods. Egypt had long fallen to dust, taking any sign of Ra and his pantheon with it. I was sure they were still around, just hiding.

Roman rose to power, overtaking the Greeks and remaking our pantheon. While I remained relatively unchanged (keeping my name and duties), I suddenly found myself closer to the bottom of the pantheon. Romans had little respect for me and didn't see me as terrible important. Artemis says that is why my name remained the same, because they just didn't care about me. I don't like listening to my sister.

With my diminished rank l felt like I was living a half-life. Getting up at the crack of dawn to drive the sun had lost its appeal (what was the point when no one cared?), finding new music didn't excite me anymore (no one would listen to it anyway!), and spreading plagues became my favourite pass time. I hate looking back on that time. I've never felt less like myself than I did then.

Artemis, now named Diana, noticed my depression after the first few weeks. I remember she began acting much nicer to me, but l barely noticed at the time. Mercury and Minerva also seemed to tip-toe around me like I was an unstable bomb, but this only served to make me feel even more bent out of shape. I stayed that way for almost two years.

Looking back, I realise that my sister must've been pretty desperate to help me, because she did something I'd never seen her do. She played the 'weak little sister' card.

I kind of hope she never plays that card again. It was extremely effective.

I'd been laying around my sun temple, tuning my lyre absentmindedly, when she arrived. Bursting into my room, she began sprouting this nonsense tale about being super bored and wanting to go exploring with me. Of course, I was instantly suspicious. She never wanted to go anywhere with me, let alone for the simple reason that she was bored!

I began to call her out on her bluff, but she wasn't done yet. Seeing that I was unfazed by her first argument, she used her ace.

It only took one mention of a male god flirting with her for me to forget about my misgivings. Diana spun a story of how this minor god had been stalking and harassing her all month, and how she wanted to go somewhere he couldn't follow.

Like any good brother, I offered to beat the brains out of this unnamed god, but she insisted she didn't want to see him beat up. I should've been much more suspicious when she said that. If there is one thing my sister likes, it's watching stupid men get what's coming to them.

Instead, she convinced me to go exploring with her, so she could get away from her stalker. I must have been foolish enough to believe her, because before I knew it I was following her around Scandinavia (modern day Norway). The Roman empire hadn't managed to conquer this part of Europe yet, so Diana was interested in checking it out before 'the silly humans' ruined it.

"This is dull. There's nothing here!" I whined for the hundredth time, trudging after my sister as she jogged through the forest. Dark pine trees rose in all directions, making me feel trapped and claustrophobic.

"What are you talking about? 'Nothing' is the last way to describe this place! I thought you were the god of poetry?" Diana laughed, teasing me. Normally I'd rise to her bait and reply with an equally witty comment, but l didn't. Instead, l made a show of yawning widely and leaning against a tree.

"All I see are trees," I said, looking in different directions as I spoke. "trees...trees..." I paused, "Oh, wait! No...just more trees..."

"Stop being such a downer. This forest is one of the last places still untouched by humans. Isn't it beautiful?"

I rolled my eyes, glancing at the forest around me. Dirt and leaf-litter covered the ground, caking on my shoes. Shadows lingered under every tree, even at high-noon. Each dark, ancient tree rose metres above my head, blotting out the sun. And, of course, like every forest, it carried less than happy memories for me.

"It looks like every other forest. Dark, damp and dull." I commented, frowning at my twin. "You know I hate forests, why did you drag me here? Better yet, why did I let you?"

"Because you're gullible..." Diana mumbled under her breath.

"What was that?" I questioned sharply, turning to her.

"Because you're a very nice brother." She corrected. I smiled and turned back to the forest, not seeing her exaggerated gagging gesture.

We wandered further into the woods, despite my best attempts at protesting. It was getting dark by the time we stopped again. My sister suddenly stood stock still in the path, letting me bump into her.

"Ow! Why'd you stop?" I snapped, rubbing my head where it had hit my sister's back. She remained silent, staring into the gloom ahead of us.

Squinting, l tried to spot what had caught her interest. Knowing my sister, it was probably just a deer or some other creature. After a few failed attempts to see into the growing shadows of the trees, I gave up and turned to my twin.

"What a-" I began to ask, only to be rudely cut off by Diana. She held up her hand in a gesture of silence.

Feeling rightfully frustrated, I opened my mouth again, fully intending to continue with my question. And again, she cut me off!

"Quiet!" she hissed fiercely, not looking at me. Her eyes remained locked on the unseen item ahead of us as she summoned her bow and loaded an arrow.

Finally meeting my eyes, she muttered, "Stay here. I'll be back in a bit."

And with that, she took off into the shadows, leaving me alone.

"Wait a minute! Where are you going?" I called after her, too late for her to possibly hear me. Stamping my foot in frustration, I looked around for a place to wait.

Finding a tree with suitably shaped roots and smooth bark, I settled down to await my sister.

After two minutes, I was bored. Not just slightly bored. No, I was astronomically bored. You mortals wouldn't understand. I'm used to constantly doing something, even if it's as simple as driving the sun or writing a new song. And, if that gets boring, I just split my essence and go do something else. I would've done so then, but I'd promised my sister that I wouldn't. Something about being 'all there' for her.

So, with nothing else to amuse myself, I began writing poetry. I used a small twig to write in the dirt, scuffing out my work when I changed my mind. My present location and mood definitely influenced the poems. I seemed to only be able to write sad or scary poems about forests. Not my best work.

It seemed like hours had passed, but it was probably only minutes, by the time I heard something. A twig snapped, and was shortly followed by a rustle of leaf-litter. Thinking it was my sister, I didn't glance up. Instead, I said.

"Took you long enough."

A low, savage growl was the only response I got.

I looked up so fast my neck got whiplash. Standing in front me were two wolves. This didn't worry me too much. Gods don't often get noticed by animals, and we're even less likely to be attacked by them. Most animals knew not to mess with deities.

"Oh, hello," I smiled, confused by the wolves' attitudes towards me. I've met lots of wolves before, so I reached out to pet the closest one. It's not like it could hurt me anyway.

Instead, the wolf growled louder, stepping away from my hand. The other wolf snarled at me, pacing closer. Both wolves had odd coats. The closest canine was adorned in russet-red fur, while its friend was a strange golden-ginger colour. But the oddest (and creepiest) thing was that both wolves had glowing blue eyes that lit the darkening forest like broken spotlights, flickering every time they blinked.

"Okay...?" I stood up, backing away from the strange wolves.

Triggered by my movement, the russet wolf jumped forward, jaws open. Its friend snarled at me, reminding me of someone trying to gargle gravel (Olympian parties get wild sometimes).

Deciding that these wolves were probably just confused and didn't recognise my godly nature, I knew what my best course of action would be. I had no desire to hurt these animals (partly because Diana would kill me for it), so I only used a small trickle of my power to create an aura of light around myself.

It wasn't nearly as bright as I'd normally like, but in the gloom of the forest it could've been mistaken for a flare. With outraged and surprised growls, the two wolves backed away, showing their teeth threateningly. A smug smile found its way onto my face. Silly wolves.

But, after recovering from the sudden flash of sunlight, the two wolves didn't run away. Instead, they continued their attack with renewed vigour. Catching me by surprise, they rushed at me, jaws open wide.

I jumped back to avoid them, caught off guard by the unexpected reaction. I probably would have avoided them, had I not forgotten the tree right behind me. So, embarrassingly, I ended up bumping my back on the rough bark of the tree, unable to avoid the wolves.

I was no longer under the impression these were normal wolves. Something was off. No sensible creature would knowingly attack a god. Even most monsters kept their distance from deities. But, unlike others, these wolves had a foreign, unfamiliar aura about them.

Eyes glowing a fierce blue flame, the russet wolf clamped its jaws around my calf. Shocked by the sudden and strangely burning pain, I let out an undignified yelp. Using distraction, the ginger wolf leapt at me, snapping its teeth at my bare arms. I knew I should've worn a sweater.

It missed by a fraction, but the wolf had succeeded in landing a nasty nip on my left hand. I'll reluctantly admit that seeing my golden ichor staining its teeth, dripping into the forest floor, made me feel a bit faint. Now, now, don't go thinking I'm the kind of god to swoon at the sight of blood. I couldn't be, I'm a god of healing. It's just that I don't bleed often, and when I do it reminds me of my worst memories. Like my battle with Python...

With a tug of its jaw, the russet wolf knocked me to the ground by dragging my leg to one side. Landing in an undignified heap, I clenched my teeth in pain and frustration. Losing my already strained temper, I blasted the area with light, revealing my true form.

If they'd been mortal wolves, the light would have burnt them to a crisp. Much to my chagrin, they lived. But the light hurt them substantially, burning their eyes and fur and driving them away temporarily.

Scrambling to my feet, I eyed the two injured animals wearily. My blast of sunlight had scorched the nearby trees, leaving them with interesting-looking burns and smouldering branches. For a five metre radius around me the ground was burnt and covered in a layer of ash. The branches over-head had been burnt away, letting sunlight illuminate the new clearing I'd inadvertently created.

Despite their burns and stunned eyes, the two wolves still looked ready to fight again. Their noses' twitched towards me as they tried to work out where I was, hackles rising as they tensed their muscles. The russet-furred wolf seemed to have regained its sight in one of its dim eyes, and was now taking the lead in the attack.

Summoning my golden bow, cursing myself for not thinking of it earlier, l loaded an arrow and aimed it pointedly at the lead wolf's head (oops, pun not intended). I mustered my best 'I'm a god so you better step the Hades away' look and stared the wolves down.

They say you should never hold a wolf's gaze, since they often take it as a challenge, but that was exactly my intention with these wolves. Drawing the bowstring back till my hand rested under my chin, l continued to hold the russet wolf's gaze.

It took the challenge. Leaping forward, it sprinted towards me, eye burning with blue fury. Its blind friend followed its lead, keeping pace with its companion.

Surprised by the determination of these wolves, it took me a second to respond. But, as soon as l did, I shot an arrow straight into the lead wolf, with enough force to send the shaft right through its chest. The arrow tip must have struck its heart instantly, because the wolf collapsed soundlessly, limp as a ragdoll. Only a tiny smudge of blood stained the fur around the arrow wound.

Given that the second wolf was blind, I'd assumed it would halt its attack after the death on its friend. I was wrong. I'd underestimated the fury that drove these wolves to assault me in the first place. So, while I was focused on the russet wolf, the golden-furred mutt made its move.

Even without sight or the guidance of its partner, the wolf located me within seconds and bit me. It over compensated slightly in its jump, so it ended up biting my hip rather than the easier target of my leg. I'm ashamed to say my first reaction wasn't to easily blast it away. Instead, l stood there like a brain-dead cow, shocked by the sudden pain. As I've said before, I'm not used to being wounded, especially by simple wolves ( though I suspected that these wolves were far from normal.) Ichor began coating the lips of the wolf as it bit me, decidedly reluctant to release me.

It took a few seconds, but soon I snapped out of it and reacted. Sadly, my reaction wasn't dignified or godly in any way, so I won't tell you ( and I definitely didn't scream like Aphrodite with a bad hair day!).

While I heroically trying to shake off the mutt ( no, Diana, I wasn't flailing like a drowning spider!), a sound aliken to a bowstring caught my ear, followed by a rush of air much to close to my arm. Before this registered in my mind, I felt the wolf's jaw go slack and release my side. Looking down, I saw the wolf, eyes glazed and jaw drooping, speared through the chest by a golden-tipped arrow.

Expecting my sister (though l was confused as to why she would use gold arrows) l cast my gaze around, looking for the source of the rescue. At first I saw nothing amongst the trees, save the two dead wolves. A whistle sounded above me, drawing my attention to the sky.

As I watched, a golden chariot very reminiscent of my own raced down into the clearing, double-bleaching the nearby foliage. Heat steamed off the metallic gold and fine silver details, increasing the local temperature by at least 4°C. Two golden-chestnut horses pranced proudly in front of the chariot, shod in luminous armour as bright as ichor.

As you can probably guess, I was considerably confused by this sudden and drastic change of circumstance. So forgive me if I was a little slow to realise the driver of the chariot was shouting at me.

Though I might just be immune to pretty ladies shouting at me.

And pretty she was, stood at the helm of the sun-bright chariot, scowling at me with frustration. As she jumped out her chariot and began marching towards me, I couldn't help but admire her figure. Unlike the petty Roman ladies I was familiar with, this young lady was toned and muscular, complemented by her natural hour-glass figure. Despite the current expression of annoyance on it, I could still see that she had a elegant oval of a face with bright brown eyes. Her clothes caught me off guard more than anything else. She wore what looked like a hybrid between a dress and battle armour. Her chest and shoulders were covered by metal and leather plates, while her legs were adorned in a pale brown dress studded with iron buttons.

At her right side, she held a simple recurve bow with interesting carvings flowing down its length. On her left, a long steel-tipped spear was sheathed at her waist. She walked bare foot, yet somehow managed to make it look comfortable on the thorny forest floor.

I may have gotten carried away with staring at her, as the next thing I knew she was directly in front of me, glaring daggers at my being. I saw her lips move, but it didn't occur to me that l should've been listening.

Desperate to regain my composer, l tacked on my winning smile and asked in my most charming voice. "I'm sorry, what?"

Okay, maybe not the right thing to say, but give me a break. I wasn't used to being the one who was lost. Normally I was the god with all the knowledge in a conversation (unless l was taking to Minerva or Diana. They had a way of making me feel stupid).

"I think you mean 'excuse me, can you repeat that?'" she corrected me, rolling her eyes as she repeated her last sentence. "I said, 'who are you and why are you here?'"

"Oh, right, yes," trying to act like l knew that all along, I replied with a wink, " my name is Apollo, god of music and a few other things. I was visiting this fine forest with my sister." It definitely wasn't a 'fine' forest, but I'd learnt that locals tend to like you better if you complement their land.

"You're not from Asgard," she stated simply, looking me up and down. "are you one of the Vanir?"

"I don't believe so, though l have signed up for a magnitude of random clubs in my time." I commented, trying to remember if I'd heard either of those words before.

"The Vanir and Aesir as not clubs! Clearly you are an örlendr." She frowned distasteful at me as if l was less than a rat in her mind.

I had no idea what örlendr meant, but l knew it was an insult to my dignity. And, as you know l don't take insults from random strangers lying down.

"Look, woman, I have no idea who you think you are, but I'll have you know I'm a high ranking member of the Roman pantheon." It normally felt good to announce my rank aloud. Except, l wasn't even sure I was still part of the Roman pantheon at this point. Heck, even Bacchus had a higher standing than me at the moment. Hopefully this lady wouldn't know that.

"Romans? You mean the invaders?" she questioned sharply, a dark look entering her eyes.

"Well...I mean they have got a few countries under their belt. But I wouldn't call them invaders, per-say." I drawled. I didn't like the word 'invaders', it sounded too evil and scary. 'Conquers' was a better word, it made them sound proud and powerful.

"Whatever helps you sleep, I guess," She dismissed my words with a sarcastic wave, "just know that we Norsemen don't go down easy. We'll have your silly little armies running south so fast they'll forget their sandals."

A few seconds past in silence, as l searched for a way to break it. I tried to remember everything Minerva had ever told me about the Norse pantheon. The only thing I knew was that it was barbaric and violent, and had a weird obsession with the number nine.

"So, may I know your name? Since you know mine." I asked cautiously.

"Sól," she began, sounding a bit less defensive than before. "I am the goddess of the sun. These are my horses, Árvakr and Alsvidr." She gestured to the two chestnut stallions, who whinnied at her in reply.

"Really? You're a sun god?" I echoed excitedly, smiling. "I'm a sun god too! What a coincidence!"

Sól smiled back at me for the first time, seemingly more at ease now. Her gaze caught on the dead wolf still at my feet, a pensive look crossing her face.

"Maybe not much of a coincidence. These wolves are cubs of Sköll. It's in their nature to hunt and kill me. They must've picked up on your sun god aura and thought it was me." Sól explained her theory, using her spear to roll the dead wolf over to reveal a sun-shaped burn on its chest.

"Sköll? Who's he?"

"He is the great immortal giant that chases me on my path across the sky each day, until he eats me at Ragnarok... He is always in the form of a golden wolf." Sól's eyes and voice grew sorrowful as she responded, casting a nervous look at the sky.

I followed her gaze, but I could see no sign of a giant wolf hunting her down. I've never been more glad that I don't have some crazy beast chasing me around the world all day. It would definitely take all the fun out of it.

Sensing his owner's distress, Árvakr trotted over to us and nuzzled Sól in the side, offering a horse's version of a hug by laying his neck over her shoulder. This was clearly the right thing to do, as Sól instantly shock off her miserable look and rubbed Árvakr nose gently.

"If you're the Norse sun god, how come I've never heard of you? I mean, I've heard of Odin, Thor and all that jazz, but I don't think I've heard of you."

"You probably wouldn't have. I'm more of a minor deity in my pantheon. The Norse aren't really that interested in the sun. They're more into war and honour."

"Doesn't that bother you? I'd hate to be a minor god. I'd despise being about as well known as Aristaeus!" I exclaimed, filled with righteous fury at the thought of a minor sun god. We were the givers of life; you can't just ignore us!

"Who?" Sól frowned at the mention of Aristaeus. I just waved my hand dismissively, encouraging her to answer my question.

"Well, it doesn't really bother me at all. I guess it would be nice to get more offerings from the mortals, but I don't think I'd be any happier if that happened. Pleasing humans just seems like a dull and thankless job." Sól explained, absentmindedly stroking Árvakr muzzle. "I'm much happier just riding the sun chariot each day, knowing that other creatures appreciate me, even if humans don't."

My first reaction was to frown at her logic, but I was surprised to find that I understood it, in a way. Pleasing humans could feel like a thankless job sometimes. You could give them every thing they'd ever need and they'd still denounce you if the tiniest thing went wrong. Maybe it would be better to just ignore them...?

But, then I remembered all the humans I'd met over the years. The funny ones, the wise ones, and even a few I'd loved. Was it worth losing the chance to meet such unique people every decade if it meant life was simpler? I wasn't sure I knew the answer.

"I guess that makes sense. I'd still rather be prayed to and have fresh sacrifices each morning, but that's just me." I quipped to hide how off-guard her answer had caught me.

Árvakr and Alsvider whinnied together, both turning their heads to glare into a patch of dense forest, ears pinned forward. Sól reacted instantly, flicking her spear around to face the sharpened tip towards the forest, eyes alert.

I was about to summon my bow, but the aura coming from the forest gave me pause. I knew that aura as well as I knew my own.

Half a second later, Diana emerged from the thicket, two hell-hounds slung over her back. Her face morphed into a brief look of surprise upon seeing Sól and her chariot, but she quickly fixed it into an expression of hostility. Drawing her silver bow up and dropping the hell-hounds, she glared at Sól, slowly moving towards me.

"Apollo, who is this?" she spoke calmly, but I could hear the uncertainty in her voice as she positioned herself between me and the Norse goddess.

"It's okay, she's friendly. Her name's Sól," I explained hurriedly, moving in front of Diana's bow, holding my hands out in a placating gesture. "she's a sun god too! Isn't that awesome?"

"I'll believe you...for now." Diana declared, lowering her bow slowly, keeping her gaze locked on Sól, who seemed pretty chill with the situation.

"Thank you." I sighed in relief.

Now that she wasn't threatening death at Sól, Diana took a second to take in the state of the clearing. A few trees were still smouldering from the sun-blasts and the two butchered wolves lay at our feet, probably giving my sister flashbacks to my last party with Bacchus and Pan (juicy gossip, ask me later).

"What in Pluto's name happened here?!" Diana turned her questioning gaze to me, looking me in the eye for the first time since she arrived.

"It wasn't me." I quickly announced, hoping to deflect blame as soon possible.

"It kind of was." Sól piped up, extremely unhelpfully.

"Hey! You're the one with the psycho wolves. I didn't ask them to attack me!" I countered.

"If you didn't smell like a sun god, you'd have been fine." Sól suggested calmly, a horribly smug look on her face. I got the distinct impression that she was enjoying placing the blame on me in front of my sister.

"It wasn't like I knew this place was filled with f-"

"Okay, I'm going to stop you right there," Diana interjected, placing a hand over my mouth, cutting me off. "now tell me what happened, properly."

After a few minutes of briefing my sister on my heroic stand against the vicious wolves (omitting the parts where I panicked and got bitten), everyone was caught up on the whole story. Sól spent the recounting of my epic fight sharpening her spear and pulling odd expressions. Diana on the other hand, seemed interested in my story for once, though she did laugh at the wrong moments.

Once I'd concluded my tale, Diana turned to Sól. "Thank you for rescuing my pathetic brother from his own stupidity." I frowned at that description. She had no need to add all those insults.

"It's no problem. I have a brother too. I'd never want him to get hurt either." Sól commented casually as she ran a whetstone over her spear tip, casting a knowing look at my sister. "Well, I'd better get going. Sköll will be here soon."

And with that, the Norse goddess of the sun jumped into her chariot and flashed away, horses neighing in excitement. This left me and Diana alone in the clearing, watching her leave.

"We're going home, now!" Diana snapped, surprising me with her sudden anger. I guessed it must have something to do with Sól's comment to her, but I knew better than to bring it up. I liked my head right where it was, thank you very much.

She grabbed my wrist, dragging me with her as she marched back into the forest. A stab of pain shot through my side. In all the excitement, I'd forgotten about the bites on my calf and thigh. With the sudden movement, they decided to make themselves known. Loudly.

Gritting my teeth against the unexpected and unfamiliar feeling, I couldn't stop the hiss of pain that slipped from my mouth. Forcing my legs to keep up with my sister, I followed her lead as she traversed the forest path only she could see. It was a pity we couldn't summon our chariots to us from here, but Norse influence was too strong in this area.

I think I did very well to keep walking as long as I did. Don't think me pathetic, but those wounds hurt! Like Greek fire had been spilled on my leg while I tried to run a marathon. Or when a certain serpent bit me (don't ask me later).

Now, I am the god of healing, so I should've been able to heal the wounds, but I soon found out something was blocking my attempts to do so. I didn't know if it was because the wolves had been from Norse mythology and not my own, or because I was currently low on worshippers to sustain me with their belief.

We were probably about three miles from the clearing when I couldn't go on. Diana had long given up trying to drag me by my wrist, so when I suddenly plopped down on the forest floor it took her a few seconds to realise I wasn't following anymore.

"What are you doing? We have to get back to our chariots!" she hissed fiercely, marching back over to me. I didn't feel like arguing with her so I pushed my aching legs up again. But instead of holding me up like they should have, they trembled and shook, forcing me to sit down again. Ichor had dried around the wounds, making them starkly illuminated in the gloom of the forest.

Diana instantly locked her gaze on them, eyes darkening. Moving forward fast enough to make me flinch, she crouched down beside me to inspect them. The frown on her face deepened as she poked at the ichor still seeping from the bite on my calf.

(AN: SLIGHTLY IMPLIED REFERENCE TO SELF-HARM. TRIGGER WARNING)

"Why didn't you tell me you were hurt? Why haven't you healed yourself?" she questioned sharply. Looking in her mind while it was open to me, I felt an odd amount of fear coming from her. She kept coming to wilder and wilder conclusions, but it was the one she kept repeating that gave me pause. She thought I'd deliberately stopped the wounds from healing, and that I'd let the wolves bite me on purpose!

"No, no, nothing like that!" I assured her hurriedly, knowing she knew I'd been listening to her mind. "I was just really slow on the uptake when the wolves attacked. And...the wounds wouldn't heal when I tried."

Diana's expression of relief soon flashed into one of frustration. Expecting a punch, I tensed my body, only to be wrapped in a tight hug. It was so unexpected that I didn't react for a few seconds, but I snapped out of it and returned the hug just as tightly.

"Don't scare me like that, ever!" Diana shouted as we pulled away, suspiciously wiping at her eyes. "you should've just told me to stop."

"I know, but you're scary when you're angry." I joked, smiling light-heartedly. She smiled back and punched me lightly on the shoulder.

"Now, let's deal with those." she snapped back into business mode, placing a hand on my calf wound.

"What are you doing?" I questioned cautiously, watching as she transferred power from her hand into my wound. Too my surprise, the injury actually started to close and scab over. She repeated the process on my other injury, with similar results.

I inspected them in amazement. Sure, it wasn't as good as I could've done, but it was definitely impressive.

"I thought you couldn't heal people?" I inquired curiously. She looked just as bamboozled as me.

"I can't. I just thought that my power might help yours work properly. I just gave it a boost, I think."

"Well, thank you very much either way," I hesitantly pushed myself to my feet, relieved to find that I could stand easily. "this is much better."

"Let's get going then. The others are going to wonder what happened to us."

Diana stood up beside me, taking the lead again. This time I kept up easily, matching her pace as we continued our trek back to the chariots, and Mt Olympus.

I couldn't help the smile on my face. After meeting Sól and hearing her attitude to mortal belief, and finding that my sister still cared about me as much as ever, I was a bit more optimistic about the future of my name. The Romans will recognise me soon enough, I'll make sure of it. But until then, I was happy just being my sister's brother.

AN: Arrrhh! This was so out of control. I definitely didn't intend to make Sól chapter that long! But I saw a chance for sibling fluff and I took it. Sorry.

In case you were curious, Aristaeus is the Greek god of cheese making and bee keeping. And Sól's brother is called Máni.

Okay, life has been hectic these past months. I started collage a month a go and things have been hard. I've also had problems with my mental health, so that also delayed this chapter. Sorry again.

I can't say for sure when the next oneshot will be. Depends if things get better for me or if I find a really interesting idea. But I will try my best to get the next one started soon.

Oh, and I got my GCSE results a few weeks ago. I was very happy with them. Especially since I was horrible at English until this time last year.

Please leave requests and review and follow

Bye

Wyrenfire