Disclaimer: See previous.

Chapter 7

Hera liked to sleep on her side, cocooned in the warmth of her covers and luxurious bed. She did not truly feel the need to sleep, but she did so anyway because she could then visit Hypnos, the god of sleep and his consort, Pasithea. Gentle Hypnos always had a ready welcome for the great goddess who had bestowed upon him the hand of his beloved Pasithea. Although he and Pasithea lived in a large cave in the underworld, Morpheus, their son, would reach out to Hera in her dreams and bring her to their home.

She was enjoying herself, laughing and chatting with Pasithea (Hypnos having gone out) over a chalice of ambrosia, when she felt her palace alarms start to ring, warning her of someone approaching her rooms. Quickly taking leave of Pasithea, Hera relinquished Morpheus' land, instantly jerking awake.

She pulled on the dressing robes she was fond of, and ran into her bathing chamber. Water was steaming from the enormous sunken bath on the mosaic floor. Divesting herself of her robes, she entered the water, changing the temperature to suit her, and sank down. She wasn't worried – only one person had the authority to enter her palace and chambers uninvited, although even he usually knew better. Mentally, she started counting down: ten…nine…eight…seven…six…five…four…three…two…one

BANG!

"HERA!" Zeus' voice boomed around the chamber, and his consort sighed. Oh dear, whatever had gone wrong now. "Hera, I need to talk to you now!"

Hera rolled her eyes. "I'm having a bath, Zeus," she called out, making splashing sounds to suit her words. "Can't this wait?"

"I wouldn't be here if it could, would I?" replied her husband sharply.

Hera winced – of course, she'd given him the perfect opening to shoot an arrow at her, hadn't she? What had she expected, a greeting or loverlike comment?

She gathered her thoughts and donned her mental armor. It was practically an automatic action by now. Making sure her voice was mild and inquiring, she said, "Not at all. I was merely asking if you had to interrupt me while I was having a bath. Must you burst into my chambers and disturb me? Couldn't you have just called me with whatever problem you're having? Mortals aren't the only ones with phones, you know."

She smirked –any sort of technology other than his trademark lightning bolts was completely beyond Zeus. It was for that very reason that she had had the very latest telephones installed the other day, courtesy of Hermes, and obviously Zeus hadn't yet figured out how to use them.

"That's not relevant!" retorted Zeus sharply. "Will you please come out so I can talk to you? How long do you sit in that thing anyway? Whenever I come to see you, you're always in it!"

Hera uncoiled herself a tad regretfully and stood up, letting the water droplets roll off her skin and hair. She summoned a brush off her vanity and brushed out her long, thick, wavy locks, and shook them back. Putting on her dressing robe, she said: "I'm coming out, so if you would wait for me in the living room, I would appreciate it."

"Hera, we've been married for a long time," said Zeus, sounding amused. "I doubt you have anything I haven't seen yet."

Hera gritted her teeth. She would not retort the way he expected her to. She would not. "Zeus," she said in a warning tone.

"Oh all right," grumbled her husband. "Make it quick, will you? I have a lot of things to do today."

Hera heard the door close behind him, and stalked out into her chamber, glaring after her absent husband. Arrogant idiot, she smirked, choosing her outfit for the day; He always did get under her skin, but she managed to stick her jabs in here and there. She eyed herself in the mirror and approved. Then, taking a deep breath, she opened the door and walked into her living room.

Zeus was standing at the window with his back to the room, but at his wife's entrance, he turned and looked at her. Her palace was left mostly open to the sun because she loved the light. The rays were streaming through the transparent walls onto her sable locks, making them shine. She was apparently not planning to go out, for she had donned simple heeled sandals and a short dress in a green color that reminded him of apples. Brightly colored drops in the same green hue hung at her ears, artfully framing her defined features. She looked incredibly beautiful, he thought, admiring her silently as he always did. It would never do to let Hera know of his admiration. He'd learnt that lesson the hard way.

Outwardly, he frowned at her and said snidely: "Well, now that you're finally ready, perhaps we can proceed. We have a problem, Hera."

"So I understand," said Hera drily. "Perhaps you could get to the point."

"Hephaestus wants a divorce from Aphrodite," said Zeus bluntly, watching as Hera froze at the mention of her son. "He is coming in the morning to talk with me and lodge the petition. I want to know what you think."

Hera's pose did not soften. "I am the goddess of marriage, my lord Zeus," she said, her eyes glittering, "what do you think my answer will be?"

Zeus sighed. "I know, Hera," he said simply, "but this is different. I want you to think about it."

Hera tilted her head at a regal angle. "Why should I?" she asked.

"Because their marriage isn't working," replied Zeus. "Let's face it, Hera, it's been a disaster. They can't stand each other; Aphrodite is blatantly unfaithful to him; He is unhappy and so is she."

"You haven't told me anything I don't already know, Zeus," said Hera tightly. "Get to the point."

"I'm going to grant their petititon."

Hera's eyes shot furious sparks. "Absolutely not! I forbid you to do anything of the kind. How dare you!"

"Hera, be reasonable-" He started.

"Reasonable? You want me to be reasonable?" Hera came closer to Zeus, her tall stature and heels putting her on an even height with him.

"They can't go on this way," Zeus pleaded. "They're miserable. The moirae have removed Aphrodite from her post! We're only making them desperate this way. Please, let's end it!"

"We will do no such thing!" decreed Hera furiously. "So what if they're miserable? Do you think every marriage is happy? Look at us!"

She stopped at the contemptuous look on his face.

"Us?" he asked softly. "Do you really think this relationship between you and me constitutes an 'us,' Hera? No, not every marriage is happy, but every marriage should be. We have a chance here to end a marriage that has been every bit as destructive as it has been miserable for both of the parties involved. We have a chance to let them build new lives for themselves. Do you truly mean to tell me that you would deny them? Where is your compassion, goddess?"

"Don't you sit there on your throne and look down at me, Zeus," said Hera, her face set like stone. "Marriage is sacred. It defines the people who undertake it. Once entered into, it should not be undone. You may not think anything of the institution, Unfaithful one, but I, the goddess of marriage, rule on this matter."

"So you would keep punishing both of them in this way so they will always be under your rule?" asked Zeus disbelievingly. "Is this your revenge against them then? Against Hephaestus and Aphrodite?"

"I was not the one who put them together!" Hera shouted at him.

"No, it was I!" Zeus shouted back. "But it was you who refused to give your blessing. Small wonder that it has been such an unhappy union! This, then, is your revenge for what Hephaestus did to you, and for Aphrodite being my daughter! When are you going to grow up, Hera!"

"Don't talk to me about growing up, you childish lout!" Hera said in a rage. "I am simply doing my job."

"A job that you know nothing about anymore than Aphrodite apparently seems to know about love!" said Zeus, still shouting. "If so, you would understand that marriage is between two people who want to be together, not two people who have no desire to do so!"

There was silence as Zeus' words hung in the air between them.

Hera's startled eyes caught her husband's, and her lips began curling at the edges. Her sneer grew into a wicked smile and bloomed into laughter. She began laughing so quickly, she couldn't catch her breath. She sank into one of the chaise-longues, her laughter still echoing around the room.

"Stop laughing!" boomed Zeus in a rage. "Hera! What the devil has gotten into you?"

"You can't be serious," Hera said between gurgles. "You, Zeus, are giving me a lecture on how people should be together." She mopped her eyes with her skirt, and looked up at him, still bright-eyed, but with her smile shrinking now. "You, who have made cuckolds of all the husbands of the women you have cheated with."

Then her lips curled back into a sneer that had her husband mentally groaning, and the eagle-eyed Hera was back, all signs of humor gone. She looked her husband up and down, the sneer still visible on her features.

Zeus stood his ground, despite feeling slightly intimidated by his consort's suddenly venomous stare. "I understand the irony, Hera, but –"

"As you said, I did not give my blessing to Hephaestus' and Aphrodite's union, Zeus," said Hera composedly, "because I did not believe they would be happy regardless. Unless you've forgotten, Aphrodite was in love with Ares."

"That was eons ago," said Zeus scornfully. "They couldn't care less about each other now."

"Certainly not, given that you ruined any chance they may have had for happiness with each other by wedding Aphrodite to Hephaestus," continued Hera, circling Zeus like a snake, "without asking any of them, I might add."

"I know what I did, Hera," said Zeus in a low voice. "At that time, even you agreed with me. Have you forgotten that?"

"But I did not make the decision for them," said Hera immediately. "You did."

Zeus let out a maddened roar. "By all the fates, yes, woman, I did! But I have come to understand that they are not for each other, Hera. I mean it. I'm going to grant Hephaestus the divorce! You can agree to it or not, but your word on this score doesn't mean much, considering you didn't bless them in the first place. The only reason I came here was so that you could actually act like a mother, for once, and think about your children. I was wrong, and now I'm leaving."

He turned infuriatedly and left, slamming the doors behind him.

Hera stood where she was, stunned by his parting words.

The skies were dark, the clouds roiling dangerously. Flashes of lightning speared the black masses curling around Olympus. Buffeted about by the strong winds and slashing rain, Hephaestus and Thetis made their way to the Hall of the Gods, where Zeus would be waiting for them.

"It doesn't look good, judging by the weather," said Hephaestus drily, guiding Thetis toward the building.

Thetis made a sound of agreement, but they journeyed on, nevertheless, and entered the Hall together.

Like all the buildings on Olympus, the Hall was beautiful. It was a large oval structure, consisting of a domed roof, tall marbled pillars, and a floor that reflected the universe. Colorful stars and galaxies showed on its mirrored black surface, making the earth-bound Thetis slightly queasy. She looked ahead to the gilded seats where Zeus and Hera stood, waiting for them. Surprisingly, no one else was there.

Not even Aphrodite.

"My lord," said Hephaestus formally as he halted before the couple, "my lady, thank you for seeing me. I hope you are both well."

Zeus grunted, and said: "We're both fine, Hephaestus. Let's get to the heart of the problem, shall we? Where is Aphrodite?"

"I do not know, my lord," said Hephaestus, "I have not seen her since the moirae's decree."

"I don't suppose you know anything about that," said Hera in a dangerous voice, her eyes glittering. "It's surprising how often you seem to drive Aphrodite to tears and unfit public behavior."

Before Hephaestus could say anything, Thetis took up the cudgels on his behalf. "I'd say that speaks more about her own selfish behavior rather than it being Hephaestus' fault," she said, bristling. "It's not just Hephaestus who has an effect on her either. Her own son and daughter-in-law seem to bring it out, too. It's more a question of what doesn't set off Aphrodite's temper, isn't it?"

"How dare you speak to me so disrespectfully?" demanded Hera furiously.

"I'm not going to stand by and watch you put the blame on Hephaestus for Aphrodite's behavior, Hera!" exclaimed Thetis. "He has tried everything to make this marriage work, which is more than I can say for Aphrodite. My lord Zeus," she appealed to Zeus, "this situation is untenable. Aphrodite and Hephaestus continue only to make each other unhappy. That is not the purpose of marriage, my lord, indeed it degrades the very institution itself."

"Yet people have made the best of unhappy marriages before and found happiness, Thetis," said Zeus, frowning slightly. "That alone does not convince me to end this union."

Hephaestus gave a bittersweet smile. "Pateras," he said informally, "we have tried, both of us, to find happiness in this union. Everything I do offends her, hurts her, and in turn hurts me. She takes pleasure in her anger with me. We have not lived together for so many centuries, it seems absurd to even think we are wed. Perhaps, if we were both to live without the other, we could find another with whom we could be happy. Surely there can be no objection to that."

"I never would have taken you for a quitter, Hephaestus," said Hera smugly, enjoying the outrage on Thetis' face, "especially since you demanded Aphrodite in the first place."

"I did no such thing," said Hephaestus at once. "You do me an injustice, my lady, to suggest such a thing. I would never dream of coercing any woman into marriage. I simply wished for a companion with whom I could share my life – when Aphrodite's name was put forward, I made no objection. Why would I?"

"Because she was in love with someone else," said Hera, raising her eyebrows. "You destroyed her happiness by accepting her hand."

"I was unaware of her feelings for Mars," said Hephaestus composedly. "You could hardly expect me to know about it when I didn't grow up on Olympus. I have done my best to make her happy, and I have failed." He looked at Zeus. "I have failed, pateras, and I do not wish to continue to be such a failure. Please allow me to seek freedom for both of us. I believe it would be for the happiness and well-being of us both."

"I do not agree, Hephaestus," said Hera before Zeus could speak. "I believe you forget that one does not enter marriage lightly. It is not a cloak to worn and shod at will."

But Hephaestus wasn't looking at the goddess who had borne him. He was instead looking at Zeus, and Zeus was looking back at him.

"What will you do if I do not grant this wish of yours, Hephaestus?" asked Zeus softly, cutting Hera's words short.

Hephaestus kept his eyes on Zeus and said: "We will, in all likelihood, continue the way we are, my lord," he said, equally softly. "We will live our separate ways, taking lovers whom we do not care for, never truly finding happiness. I do not do this to hurt Aphrodite, but rather to give her a new life that she can live independently of me. I do not wish to be the cause of her misery, as she frequently tells me I am. I've only ever wanted someone whom I can share my life with. Someone whom I can cherish and love, and hope for the same in return. That is all, my lord."

There was a moment of silence.

Zeus spoke quickly. "I grant your request, my dear boy," he said, ignoring Hera's frightful indignation. "You will have your divorce."

"Aren't you even going to ask Aphrodite?" Hera broke in. "Doesn't she at least deserve the courtesy to be asked whether this is what she wants? You didn't take her desires into consideration all those years ago, don't make the same mistake again."

"I don't need to ask Aphrodite, my dear Hera," said Zeus sardonically. "I've received countless messages from her begging me to free her from the 'burden of being bound and chained for life' to Hephaestus. That's a direct quote that you can read from this"—he produced a letter—"if you don't believe me."

Hera snatched it in mid-air. "But this was written ten years ago," she said, appalled. "Zeus, please—"

"Then she should have thought carefully before sending me such a message," said Zeus implacably. "Now, be quiet."

About to voice another plea, Hera stopped short, her features reflecting her hurt, before she donned her mask again quickly and subsided.

Hephaestus felt a bit sorry for his creator (he refused to even think of her as his mother). Her marriage was a particularly harsh one. He wondered if she had ever been different. The similarities between her and Aphrodite, however, were becoming more apparent. He had no wish for his union with his consort to deteriorate into quite such blatant disrespect. It was better to have a clean break.

Perhaps if the moirae had done to Hera what they had done to Aphrodite, his creator would have been better off.

However, he kept his eyes on Zeus. Thunder was starting to sound, and water was coming sharply down outside the chambers. The winds were beginning to howl. Zeus picked up his staff and stood. The staff came alive at once, sending bolts of lightning fleeing hither and thither. It crackled and sizzled, cutting through the air, and charging it, bringing it to life. Hephaestus could feel the raw power of it, pure and true, wielded by the hands of a true master. Zeus motioned to Hephaestus to hold out the hand with his wedding ring. Unlike Aphrodite, Hephaestus made no attempts to hide his wedded state, so the ring shone plainly on his hand.

"I, Zeus," shouted the Father of the Gods over the boom of thunder, "do hereby announce the dissolution of the union between Hephaestus and Aphrodite. The bond of consorts is broken, leaving them independent and free. Oh ye gods, hear my decree!"

Zeus brought the staff, with the live lightning bolt sizzling, squarely down in the center of the ring.

Hephaestus had flinched despite himself. He had built the staff, and configured every inch of it, but when it came down, he had still flinched and closed his eyes. He felt the heat penetrating the ring, and cracking it.

The ring fell apart in two halves falling on to the marble floor with audible sounds. The world flashed to a light so brilliant, they could barely see anything. Hephaestus felt something inside him break free, leaving him lighter. He felt as though a chain had been removed, and as the light faded away, he looked down, expecting to see the broken links but to his surprise, the halves were floating upwards and hovering in front of Zeus.

And then they heard it.

Two more little golden semi-circles whizzed past Hephaestus, and touched the hovering pieces. And then they turned black and fell once more to the ground, lying there lifelessly.

Zeus picked them up, and eyed them sadly. He closed his fist around them for a moment and opened it again. The pieces had disappeared.

"They have gone to Hades," he said soberly. He looked at Hephaestus.

"Thank you, my lord," said Hepheastus sincerely.

"Go with my blessing, my boy," said Zeus softly.

Hephaestus looked at Hera, whose eyes were blazing with contempt, and then turned away. With his hand held in Thetis', he walked out of the temple, back to his abode.

Free, he thought, I am free!

In her chambers, Aphrodite looked at the little white circle on her finger. It was all that was left of her ring. Hephaestus had done it. He had divorced her.

She had never thought he would actually carry out his threat.

Author's Notes: This was a different kind of chapter for me :D I rather enjoyed writing Zeus and Hera. I'm so happy hearing from reviewers that they are enjoying the story and the characterization of the gods. Keep writing. I love hearing suggestions. I tried the review reply but it doesn't seem to be working, so all reviewers will be answered over here in the author's notes section.

Lmb111514 - Thanks, I'm happy you enjoyed it! Hope you had great holidays too!

Sadistic Lunatic - Thank you! Thetis is a wonderful character to write; she's so refreshing and energizing!

Kyubbiman - Thanks for the review. Glad you liked it!

AzucenaXshadows - Thanks for the review!

thewarriorzemos - Thanks for the compliment! I don't believe Zeus was ever thrown off Olympus; there is one version of the myth in which Hephaestus, in an effort to help Hera, throws Zeus off Olympus, but in this story, I'm disregarding this myth. Given Hera's and Hephaestus's bitter relationship, I highly doubt that Hephaestus ever meaningfully helps Hera in any way. While he isn't lacking in compassion, he doesn't feel that he owes her anything either. It is Thetis who is the maternal figure in his life. Hope that answers your question and that you enjoyed the chapter.

Until the next update! Have a great week, everyone!