Diana wasn't sure if Ivy had understood the meaning of Poem, but she was just content in having made the woman smile. She enjoyed making Ivy happy more than she cared to admit out loud, but even as they continued to enjoy the rest of the day around Heraclea, reality flickered at the edge of her mind.
She cared for Ivy. She found her attractive, intelligent, and interesting. Her moods were growing easier to read so long as she paid attention, and the more they spoke, the more she understood that Ivy was a woman of passion and drive. There wasn't much that she didn't throw herself wholeheartedly into, and Diana respected her for that.
She also could sense that there was much that Ivy wasn't willing to share with her. A darkness that made her curl up into a tight ball at night and fear the unpredictability of crowds on the street. And there was the fact that the woman died barely a full day ago and woke up barely an hour later as if nothing had happened. She didn't want to push Ivy into explaining any of it though, sensing that darkness was painful and the death topic unwelcomed and uncomfortable for her.
But even with all she felt for the red-haired woman, and all that she wanted to know, she knew nothing could work between them. Diana was Wonder Woman, member and Co-chair of the Justice League, representative of Themyscira, daughter to Zeus, and Ivy was… well, Poison Ivy. Villainess, eco-terrorist, misanthropic man hater who had admittedly hadn't done any criminal activities in recent years, but still held a terrifying reputation.
Diana wondered what her League friends would think of this excursion. It was no secret that Ivy would do anything for Harley Quinn, so they probably would doubt Ivy's sincerity towards Diana during the past few days. They wouldn't believe how tender and understanding she was when Diana confessed her lineage to her, or playful and kind while out in nature or enjoying a concert or club.
Hell, Diana herself wouldn't have believed it had she not lived through it, and now that she had a taste of the feelings Ivy had brought up in her, she didn't want to let go.
Not wanting the game to be put on hold again, the two took the rest of the day to enjoy the tourist locations in Heraclea before stopping for dinner in a small restaurant. They talked about nothing and everything that night, and Diana wondered how much longer she'd have to enjoy spending time with the green woman's company.
She hoped she'd have at least a few more days with her, at least. They slept in the Jet again, a little closer to each other than last time, and made for the Pantheon early the next morning.
"So, how long will this journey take?" Ivy asked, leaning over Diana's seat and glancing at the computer before her.
"Not long at all. We should be there in a little over an hour." Diana gazed up at the redhead, smiling almost despite herself.
"So, what say we find ourselves a rest stop along the way and clean up a bit? The welts are healed, but we're still a mess from the other day."
"Sounds delightful." Diana agreed. "Can you look up a place in Athens for us to visit? Maybe even a hotel to spend the night in?"
"I'll get right on it." Ivy's hand trailed off the back of her seat as she disappeared into the back of the cockpit to retrieve her phone, and Diana felt oddly content with it all.
Visiting places she adored with someone she had grown close to… it was almost nauseatingly romantic if one forgot the true purpose of their journey.
Ivy found a small hotel not far off from the Parthenon, and they left the Jet in one of Ivy's trees just outside of town. They brought two small bags of things and clothes for the day, checked in, and took turns showering. As she waited on Ivy to finish, Diana tried to ignore her disappointment that they had gotten a room with two beds instead of one.
"So, where do you think the hint will be in the Parthenon?" Ivy asked as she came out of the bathroom, still drying her hair.
"I'm not quite sure. But we can freely tour the grounds, it shouldn't take us too long to find it." Diana stood with a stretch. "Come, we're losing daylight."
"Oh no, what ever shall we do without daylight?" Ivy scoffed, tossing her hair back and grabbing her phone from the bag.
Diana rolled her eyes as they left the room together.
They took a bus to the historical site and walked up the stone steps to the ruined temple. There were other tourists about, but not too many as it was the height of the day.
"I can check the perimeter of the temple, and you can check the inside?" Ivy offered, and Diana accepted.
It took a while for them to meet up again, but when she saw Ivy speaking with a small group, she guessed she hadn't found anything either.
Ivy turned to her as she approached. "No luck? Well, these people were kind enough to keep me company while I waited for you."
"That was kind of them." Diana regarded the young adults that had gathered around her, who give her small greetings and nods in return.
"There's an art market not too far from here if you two would like to join us." An American man offered.
Diana took Ivy by the arm and tugged her away. "One moment, please."
"Is something wrong?" Ivy asked once they were out of earshot.
"For a misanthrope, you are good at drawing a crowd." Diana commented. "We need to find the hint."
"First off, it's not like I intend to catch people's attention. Second, the hint obviously isn't here. You remember the market in Germany? Someone was waiting on us when we couldn't find the hint. Or even in the theater, the note was left for us after we searched. But there's nothing here. I circled the damn ruins twice before giving up."
Diana thought for a moment. "You want to wait a while and come back later."
"We've already gotten reprimanded for going too fast once. Maybe this game's running a little slow?" Ivy shrugged. "We might as well entertain ourselves for a while. Maybe come back tonight? The guy in the green tanktop over there said they light up the inside of the Parthenon at night. Won't that be a pretty sight?"
There isn't really any other option than to relent, so with a sigh, Diana nods and Ivy pulls her back towards the group. They accept the invitation and follow the tourists to the bus stop. On the drive, Diana takes over most of the talking with the tourists as Ivy dozes against her arm in the window seat under the sun. It's been a few days since she's seen the woman sunbathe. At first, she assumed it was something Ivy just liked doing, but after learning about her respiratory system, Diana wondered if the sunbathing served more purposes than one.
When they got off the buss at the market, Ivy snuck them away from the group they came with. Diana felt a little bad for abandoning them, they seemed to be kind people, but she didn't mind the idea of more one on one time with the redhead.
Diana knew Ivy wasn't really one for art, but she did show interest in the jewelry and items that had actual function.
"So, as a princess of Themyscira, this must seem pretty disappointing." Ivy goaded as they looked over some replica ancient bracelets.
"Not disappointing, just different." Diana smiled. "Also, I wasn't ever one to collect jewelry on the island. I preferred weaponry."
"Like those spears over there?" She followed Ivy's gesture to a stall selling replicas of ancient armor and swords.
"Precisely." Diana didn't even try to hide her interest, and she heard Ivy laugh behind her as she made a b-line for them.
She spoke with the stall owner for a while in Greek over the authenticity of his models while Ivy wandered over to the next stall. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Ivy do a double take on something, and then lean over the table to inspect it further.
The stall owner noticed her interest in what Ivy was doing and whispered to her "[That is my wife's stall. If you purchase something from both of us, you shall get a discount!]"
She noticed the stall owner try and speak to Ivy, but the woman politely declined further inspection and moved on. Diana turned back to the man and smile. "[Sounds like a good deal.]"
She purchased a small replica of a handheld knife and had the seller get his wife to discreetly package the piece Ivy had taken interest in. Diana was a little surprised to find the piece was a pretty golden necklace that had three charms hanging from it. A feather, a coin with Athena's profile, and a shield with a pretty blue stone at its center. It wasn't something she thought the woman would like, but she stowed it away in its little package and hurried after Ivy.
"Found something you liked?" Ivy teased her for the knife replica.
"Yes, actually," Diana showed it off gladly, twirling it in her hand with expert ease.
"Okay, okay, showoff." Ivy rolled her eyes. "We've got a few more stalls. Do you want to keep looking around, head back to the Parthenon?"
"It's only been an hour or two, we should keep looking a little while longer." She said while pulling the pack with the necklace from her pocket, but Ivy was already turning away.
"Alright, well, there's a few food stands not too far from here. Maybe we could stop for some lunch? Or would it be early dinner now? Anyways, something smells great and I'm hungry."
Deciding it would be best to wait a while, Diana stowed the necklace away for later. They found a small stall that sold some good smelling food and found a nearby park to eat at. They sat side by side, picking off each other's plates as they ate and chatted back and forth about the things they saw.
"I guess most of the references the stall owners used were from Ancient Greece, the 12th to 9th century. Themyscira is far older than that." Diana explained. "I would be surprised to more than a handful of objects that were based off my homeland."
"They sure do like Athena, though." Ivy commented, stealing a courgetti ball from Diana's plate, and in return Diana took one of her Dolmadakia. "I know the Parthenon's not thirty minutes away from this place, but still."
"I'm sure Athena's likeness brings the sellers quite a profit from tourists."
"I'm sure they do." Ivy is quiet for a moment. "Care to tell me why olives were a popular piece in Athens? They were all over the art pieces back there."
"The Olive tree is sacred to Athena." Diana knew this story by heart. "Long ago, a king desired to appoint a patron deity to his new city and two gods answered his call. Both Poseidon and Athena wished to lay claim to the new city, and in order to choose a contest was held. Whomever could bestow the more useful gift to the people of the city would be declared Patron and the city will be named in their honor.
"Poseidon gave is gift first, a beautiful spring of salt water, and then Athena planted one of her moria- or olive, trees. While Poseidon's spring was pretty, the salt water was not useful to them in any way, but Athena's olive tree could provide an abundance of goods and serve many purposes. Athena was hailed winner of the competition and Athens was named in her honor."
"First time I've heard of someone being so thankful for a tree." Ivy commented. "And now I see why Athena is so popular here."
"Back then, moria trees were more valuable than gold." Seeing an opportunity, Diana quickly took the packet from her pocket. "Speaking of gold, I saw you eying this earlier."
Ivy tilted her head at the little package and then seemed surprised as the necklace slid out of it. "Oh, Diana…"
"Save your comments," She shushed the redhead quickly. "The seller was the wife of the weapons smith. It was a paired deal, and I will not take it back."
"I couldn't," Ivy tried to refuse, but Diana wouldn't allow it.
"You shall take it and wear it with pride." Diana declared, unhooking the chain and offering to put it on her. "Think of it as a gift, for being such a delight on this mission."
Ivy let out a short laugh but moved her hair to the side and allowed her to string the chain around her neck. "I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not."
"And only Athena shall ever know for certain."
"Well, now I must find something for you." She took the charms in her hand and held them up so she could look at them better.
"No, you don't-"
"It shall be something to remember me by," Ivy cut her off immediately. "There's only two more countries left to visit for Sal's perfect vacation."
Diana felt her heart sink a little, but she tried to keep her voice light. "Remember you by? Will I not see you again after this?"
Ivy is quiet for a moment. "Well, it isn't like we run in similar social circles."
"We both know Harley."
They both laugh at that. "I guess we'll have to see. Who knows what the future holds?"
"Cheers to that." Diana offers her water bottle for a toast, and Ivy humors her.
They finish their meal in a comfortable silence, but the weight stays in Diana's chest. They return to the market and only head back to the Parthenon once the sun is setting low in the sky. All the while, Diana tries to think up excuses to visit Ivy once their mission is complete.