Author's Note : This is a story idea that bit me in the butt. Actually, there's this country song called "I loved her first" by Heartland that inspired the plotline. What if Kronus hadn't been a total idiot and, instead of eating his children, had actually raised them? It started with Hestia's birth. She laughed and he stopped in the act of swallowing her, taking a moment to look at her. Once he did that, he felt love for her and vowed that no harm would come to her so long as he lived. Thus, the idea of monarchy started – but they kind of act like a business organization. Upon retirement, he would pass on the throne to the child best suited for the job. That turned out to be Zeus. There are a few changes in siblings. Demeter, Hades and Hera are not siblings while Hestia, Poseidon, and Zeus are the children of Kronus and Rhea. And think Sean Bean when you picture Zeus. What can I say? His performance in "Percy Jackson: Lightening Thief" inspired me.

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Zeus walked past the nymphs and dryads, as well as a few minor deities on his way to human resources. Without pausing to knock, he thrust open the double doors and stood, hands braced on the checkered marble desktop. "I need a new personal assistant," he told her. "One that understands the concept of doing her job instead of making off the cuff remarks and cow eyes at me. The last thing I need is another scandal attached to my name. Father warned me that another mark against my name would get me demoted down to the archives."

Hestia's eyebrow arched as she stared at her brother, the Heir Apparent to the Olympic Pantheon. His black eyes that were so like hers snapped with the lightening that he was known for. A gift from Grandmother Gaea, the only thing of Grandfather Ouranos that she had no reservations about. His dark hair waved carelessly about his face. Dressed in a deep blue that emphasized his physique, he screamed power and authority – not to mention seduction, a heady combination for many women.

"Perhaps if you didn't act so entitled to feminine adoration, you wouldn't have this trouble."

His eyebrow rose in inquiry. "I am entitled to their adoration."

"Then you shouldn't complain when you receive it," she pointed out. But, as most men did, he ignored the reasoning in her words.

"It has no place at work, Hestia. Mom raised you to believe the same way, just as she did with me and Poseidon," he retorted.

Suppressing a sigh, she asked, "Have you explained your position to your personal assistants?"

"Yes, and they listen very politely and continue to behave in the same manner. They all do – at least Ganymede was mostly tolerable, until I made the mistake of taking him on that business trip when you were unable to join us."

Ah, yes. Ganymede's father had created quite a scene. Kronus had told the truth, that it was a simple business meeting. Nothing happened – his son had even been in another hotel. Unfortunately, he only partially believed them. Thus, they had to let him go. A personal assistant was no good if they couldn't travel with their employer without the question of ethics being brought up.

"Zeus, this will be the fifth assistant you've gone through in the past two weeks. I am running out of available options," she said, opening her drawer. Pulling out a few folders, she opened one. "I'll look into it but until I do, can you put up with Callisto?"

"I already sacked her."

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, counting to one hundred forward and backwards as she tried to retain control of her temper. While not as explosive as Zeus – and Poseidon's temper was even worse – her temper resembled her father's, slow to erupt but when it did, it was furious and long standing. Not many would risk setting her off, for she was a difficult woman to appease.

"Then you'll have to make do with a scrollist. Unless you prefer to do without," she snidely added.

"Just make sure they understand what they are to do – and to keep their foolish daydreaming out of the office."

He disappeared and Hestia breathed out a huff of frustration, thankful that today was her ritual massage day. Zeus was grating on her last nerve. "Hermes?"

"Yes, my lovely Lady of the Flames? How may I be of service to you?" he asked, his curly brown hair glinting in the early morning light streaming in from the window. "As if I didn't already know," his blue gray eyes twinkled mischievously at her.

"Hermes, darling and most daring nephew of mine, one of these days your habit of listening in at doorways will get you in trouble," she warned him, a wan smile on her face.

"Who was listening?" he asked. "It's all over Olympus. It'd be kind of hard to hide it when Callisto went running through to her quarters in tears."

This time Hestia didn't suppress her urge. With an almost whining sound, she let her head hit the desk. "Can that girl do nothing right?"

Hermes rested his hip against her desk, one hand hovering above her head. But he pulled back, knowing she was liable to cut it off should he try to pat her head. "In her defense, Lord Zeus has never shown the harsh edge of his tongue to any of his employees. When he fired her, I imagine it was not kindly done. He can be rather harsh upon those who disappoint him."

As Zeus was his father, he spoke from personal experience. All he had to do was think of the way that he'd reacted upon hearing about his theft of Apollo's cattle. Zeus had not been pleased with him nor Apollo because his step brother hadn't reacted well to the joke.

At least, not in his presence.

She peered up at him over her folded arms, her dark blond hair falling to the side. With her delicate features, the fine bones in her face, it was not hard to figure out why she was so sought after. What was unknown was if she refused her suitors – or if Kronus did. "Off. That is not what my desk is for. And that is no excuse for such unprofessional behavior."

Composing herself, she sat up, brushing her hair back over her ear. "Send Clio in to see me. I can't take much more of this from him. Perhaps what we need is an armor clad, dedicated lesbian Amazon to deal with him."

"I doubt even that would work," he responded, escaping the office to her shout of 'What!'' It wasn't often that he got in the last word when Hestia was concerned. She was far sharper than most he came across. The only one who came close was that transfer and she'd only been there a short while.

As she waited for Clio, Hestia wondered just what she was going to do. It wasn't as if personal assistants with the correct security clearance and the right capabilities were plentiful. As this was still a new kind of organization, built up from scratch, most of the nymphs and dryads stayed in the forests and streams. They were an acknowledged part of this Pantheon but remained on the fringes. The only one whose qualifications came close was Clymene – and she outright refused to work with Zeus.

Hestia had to wonder if they had some past that wasn't officially noted.

It wouldn't have surprised her at all. Zeus' private life, while kept out of business, was far from unknown. His constant amorous pursuits had often vexed their mother – especially when he got involved with relatives. It was one of the reasons Leto had been driven all over the place, trying to find a place to have her twins that wouldn't cause trouble for the other children of the Titans'. Only on Delos had she found rest, had found peace.

But birth had been delayed by the cruelty of Ouranos. Though powerless in one regard, he still held out a grudge against any of his children and did not want them to procreate. With the birth of her and her brothers, with the further birth of her cousins Hades, Demeter, and the youngest daughter of Oceanus', the perfect balance of creation and destruction had been found.

Any children had by them would be extraordinarily powerful and charismatic. They would prevent the return of chaos. Since it was Gaea who had supported his fall and wanted to bring order to the world, he was all for bringing about its destruction. The last thing he wanted was for them to grow even more powerful. It was unfortunate for him that Zeus was most prolific when it came to children.

Shaking off her thoughts, she perused the files in front of her. It only took her moments to reject half of the candidates they had within immediate reach. Nibbling on a strand of hair, she started to read one before stopping to pull out a clip. She couldn't be caught chewing her hair.

Her hairdresser had threatened to cut it all off the next time she caught her doing so.

And Hestia knew the woman, she really would do it.

The sound of a throat clearing caused her to glance up. A stunning woman with dark red hair – so dark it was almost black in this light – stood there. Strong looking hands with long fingers clasped together bowed before her and she smiled. A wide smile that lit up her whole face.

A low, sultry voice addressed her, "I apologize for the interruption but Lady Clio asked me to give you her regrets that she is unable to be here. Something she ate this morning has violently disagreed with her. Prometheus sent her home, over her strenuous objections."

"Thank you," she paused, searching for a name.

"Hera," she gently reminded her, peacock green eyes shinning merrily. "I only recently arrived from Oceanus' branch at Kronus' request, though we regret the delay in the timing."

"Of course, he is hoping that by further integrating the Pantheons we'll become acceptable. That we may reach out farther, to other Pantheons across the world." She smiled, remembering the meeting all to well. It was one of the few times, in recent memory, when Rhea and Kronus agreed on anything dealing with how they were to do their work.

She usually took the more efficient, if costly route where their petitioners came first. While Kronus preferred the route of cheap efficiency and power, since that seemed to be the best path to getting things done. They were so disparate, it was amazing they'd been as faithful to each other as they were.

"Mother Tethys is doubtful of this working out for the best but Father Oceanus is not so displeased. Anything that lets him concentrate upon his oceans is fine with him. Plus, he likes having a young man around as opposed to all of us girls," she ended on a chuckle.

"Are you comfortable and well cared for here?"

"If you are asking if I'm doing fine, there's a little homesickness but that's to be expected. My main problem is that I don't really feel of any use here. Lady Clio does her best to find work for me but there's been no real place for one of my position. She doesn't believe me when I tell her that I'd be glad to take any job, even one in the café," she ended with a shrug.

Hestia slightly frowned at that. It didn't sound quite like Clio to neglect her job by not finding something for Hera to do. "You have no position here?"

"Oh, I have a job – as personal assistant to Lady Clio. But let's face it, she doesn't need me. Lady Clio has a sharp mind that remembers everything she's ever come across. While she has scrolls she carries around, she doesn't actually need them. On the rare occasion when she loses them, her sisters are always there to fill that gap. It's rather depressing to admit that I spend most of my time with Lady Hekate and Lord Hermes. Though they both want me to drop my formality with them, since they don't much care for it. Somehow, it bothers them for they have a raunchy sense of humor and seem to think that I'm trying to shake it out of them," she finished.

"I'll have to remedy that soon," she murmured, wondering just what she could do with her. Out of curiosity, she pulled out the file that had been delivered to her when Lady Hera had shown up. To her shame, she never really looked at it.

"Have you got me temporary help?"

"No."

Zeus frowned, "It's been two hours. Why have you not?"

"Because contrary to your conflated ego, miracles do not happen at your say so," Hera replied before Hestia could. She had turned to face him, knowing instantly who he was. And she was not impressed by him now. She hadn't been impressed by him the first time she'd met him either.

Slowly, almost in shock at the acidic answer, he turned to face her. She stood before him, bathed in the light, a vision of queenly dignity. And extreme disapproval directed solely at him. It was a new experience for him, meeting a female who did not look at him with some kind of want. And he wondered what he could do to change her low opinion of him.

"You are?" he asked, swallowing back his other reply. Also, he had to shake off his awe for the woman. It was easier – for she had a look of utter contempt on her face – and harder – she was definitely one of the most gorgeous beings he'd ever seen – then he'd expected.

"The Lady Hera," her introduction was frosty. They shook hands quickly but he noted that her grip was firm.

Hestia sat back, an idea forming in her mind. So far, Hera seemed to be utterly immune to Zeus' not inconsiderable looks. If anything, she seemed to be amused by him – though that might be stretching it on her end. Truthfully, she seemed to be annoyed by him.

"Oceanus' daughter?" he asked, knowing he'd seen her before. "The last time I saw you, you had braids in your hair. The family picnic over at Mount Etna, you were wearing a light blue chiton."

Hera refused to blush, though she was surprised that he remembered even that much. "Should I be flattered that you saw me over all those nymphs you danced about with? And I made more of an impression upon you after you won the archery contest?"

"Why not? I obviously impressed you," he replied.

Her eyes never warmed. "I hate to deflate your high opinion of yourself but the only reason I remember any of that is because I am forced to listen to my cousins go on about your apparent skill in both arenas. I hardly think either talent is something to brag of, sir."

"Lady Hera, what was your position back home?" Hestia asked before Zeus could reply.

"My father insisted that I work my way up so that I would understand how everything works. Unlike some, he doesn't believe in giving positions to family just because they are family. I worked for Amphitrite's personal assistant as a note taker and scroll organizer."

"Uh-uh, no way, Hestia," Zeus said, figuring out were she as going with this.

"Why ever not?" she asked. "You need a temp right now – and she's highly qualified."

"I am Heir to Kronus. I can't have some newbie trying to keep up with me and take care of all the business matters that come through my office."

"She's trustworthy, can write verbatim what she hears almost as well as Urania, and understands duty above all else. I doubt she'll stray from your personally mandated rules when it comes to mixing business with pleasure."

"What's the matter, Lord Zeus? Afraid that I'll run things so efficiently that you'll fall apart without me?" she asked. While she wasn't sure how she felt about this, her pride was stung. The very idea of working for this person made her uncomfortable – but she was also angry with the way he dismissed her abilities.

"I'm afraid you'll mess things up entirely," he retorted.

That got her. "I can't do any worse than you already have." Ignoring the thunderous glare, she faced Hestia. "If you think this will work, I will accept the position. But I'm only doing it for you. I'll start by writing up your letters and organizing your files, sir."

She left the office, red spots of anger coloring her cheeks.

"This won't end well," Zeus warned.

"On the contrary, she's the only one who is guaranteed not to fall in lust with you. If any problems arise, they will all be of your own doing," Hestia pointed out. "Now, I have to find you a permanent assistant – and you have work to do."

It was a clear dismissal.

Zeus entered the outer room of his office, a cynical smile on his face when he noticed that his temporary aid was nowhere to be seen. "Lady Hera?" he called out.

"In your office, picking up the rest of your personal assistant's notes. Her organizational skills – and by extension yours – are the worst I've ever seen in my entire life of working in this kind of organization." She came out, arms loaded with scrolls and various scraps of paper. "It's a wonder you get anything accomplished working from this mess."

Dropping them on her desk, she walked over to the counter and poured warmed nectar into a cup. Turning down the mini flame, she walked over to him. "Straight up with no honey, I believe is your preference. Your father was here when I arrived. Upon hearing that you were talking with Lady Hestia, he asked that I tell you to cloud call him as soon as you arrived. If you will excuse me, I have work to do, sir." She sat down and started to unroll the files, sighing in disapproval as even more loose papers fell out.

Zeus blinked at her before entering his office, cup of nectar in his hand. Slowly, he sank into his chair, staring off into space. The sound of a quill writing steadily was the only thing he heard as he sipped his drink, noting with pleasure that it was the right temperature.

The sound paused after a time, "Sir? I won't summon up a cloud for you. And he did seem to want to talk to you urgently. I don't think it wise to make him wait." The quill resumed its writing.

Reaching out his hand, he spared a moment to glare at the woman in the antechamber.