Updated: 27/1/2022

Warning: Fowl Language and suggestive Suicide.

Chapter 15: The Mother of All Fights: (1)

It was the Summer Solstice. And Artemis and Apollo were in the middle of the mother of all fights. Right in the middle of the Ballroom. With everyone watching, including Demigods. Nobody was game enough to break the two up.

Apollo had been down about losing someone he loved, and Artemis had retorted how often he slept around so how could this one be any different. And it had just escalated from there.

To all sorts of topics and age-old arguments.

Different between losing friends, lovers and family to Artemis seemingly not caring about anyone of the male gender. Even her own brother at times.

Finally, Apollo just snaps.

"You are fucking heartless bitch Artemis. Absolutely heartless. Would it fucking kill you to show even an ounce of compassion to your own twin brother? Oh, right it would. Because you're a selfish, self-centred, self-absorbed little brat who doesn't know the first thing about lose and love. And never will. And even if you did try. As you are unable to find love in that cold heart of yours. And anyway, you would fail as EVERYONE would quickly see how shallow and basically racist you are to the opposite gender. I pity the thought of anyone actually trying to be friends with you let along love you. Even if they are your own family and sometimes even through you preach about how you despise men, you sometimes even treat girls and women the same way when they find love. Even going as far to punish your Hunters servery when they fall in love even with their own gender!" Apollo shouts.

"What are you saying?" Artemis asks looking actually shaken, but only to Hestia's and surprisingly Aphrodite's eyes.

"You're a bitch Artemis. A heartless bitch and I pity those that HAVE to spend time around you. So, you will get what you want like always. I am DONE with you! I am DONE trying and trying for you to act like even a half decent sister to me. I am DONE with letting you bully me and those that choice to love! And I am DONE being your brother and something I'm not and being at your beck and call only when YOU decide it is convenient and wanting something. Get a new whipping boy as I am done trying to show you, I still love you. When I know it is more fucking worthless then getting Father to stop cheating on Hera! And I really could care less with what you know do in your own fucking life and I truly come to not stand your presence near those I care about! Anyone people around you that do somehow end up close to you end up dead", Apollo shouts much to everyone's slight shock.

"You really hate me?" Artemis asks.

"Yes", Apollo growls.

"You really believe I don't care or have compassion?" Artemis asks sounding off.

"YES! Everyone does!" Apollo shouts and much to her horror they all nod but Hestia who looks saddened by what is happening.

"You really believe I don't know how to love?" Artemis asks her eyes looking blank.
"I KNOW you don't know how or WHAT love is", Apollo replies growling still very angry.

"You truly believe I am incapable of feeling?" Artemis asks sounding more off.

"We ALL know you are", Apollo snaps.

"You're really done?" Artemis asks something changing in her voice only to Hestia's ears.

"Yes", Apollo snarls his eyes flashing.

"You don't love me?" Artemis asks seeming only to Hestia to be truly shaken.

"No", Apollo says firmly his eyes as hard and as dark as diamonds.

"I…"

"What is so hard about this to understand?" Apollo shouts, "Grow up Artemis and get a reality check! Before you lose something more important to you then your own twin brother"

Silence was defending and then applause comes from around the audience.

Finally, people were saying someone had put her in her place.

Artemis couldn't speak as she saw what she believed to be her brother turning away from her for what she believed would be the final time.

Artemis hides her distress. Shielding it from the huge audience that witnessed her humiliation, her destruction and her heart shattering. And the day she lost believed she lost the most important person in her life. The day she lost the person who had kept her going all these centuries.

People begin to gossip about what they had just witnessed.

"She is cold even after all of that"

"She would never know what it is like to sacrifice everything for a loved one"

"She got what she deserved"

"How Apollo put up with her all these years is beyond me"

"Someone should have dealt with her a long time ago"

"She gives a new meaning to the froze a frozen heart or a stone heart. You would think she was Khione"
"Hey I'm not that bad!"

Artemis discretely slipped out in a daze.

Her mind had gone blank, and she felt the heart breaking pain in her heart and soul.

She felt two presences behind her. Those being Hestia and surprisingly Aphrodite.

"Artemis, are you alright?" Hestia asks softly being one of only two that had noticed her departure and the effect the fight had on her.

Hestia hated it when her family fought. And she did believe that Apollo went a little bit too far.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Artemis asks in a dead like voice, "As I don't have any love in my heart after all"

"I don't believe that for a second and I know you can love, and you love deeply. As this wouldn't be hurting you so much if you didn't have a heart", Hestia tells her gently.

"Don't try to understand Hestia", Artemis replies her eyes scaring Hestia as they look like she had died inside.

"Artemis, you and I know what Apollo said was bullshit as you have loved someone in the way Apollo does. And you love him more than anything in this world", Aphrodite states.
"How would you know?" Artemis snaps but with no real bite.

"I am the Goddess of Love. And not all love is romantic. And what Apollo said shattered your heart", Aphrodite says softly.

Artemis flinches at the sound of Apollo's name. And gripped her wrist.

"Why are you trying to help me?" Artemis asks, "You and I never have gotten along"

"Yes, we haven't gotten along. But I know about love, and you have loved two people more than anyone else on this planet. And you have held one above all others", Aphrodite replies.

Hestia looks at the two confused.

"That doesn't matter now", Artemis whispers stroking her wrist through her top.

She felt some lines on the skin through her top.

"Maybe give Apol…", Hestia starts but sees Artemis flinch at Apollo's name again, "…him time to calm down", Hestia suggests.

"I don't think even time can heal this. This can't be fixed", Artemis replies starting to walk away.

"Everything can be fixed with time. Even things such as matters of the heart", Hestia replies.

"Nothing can change this", Artemis whispers.

"Love never truly dies Artemis", Aphrodite says wisely.

Artemis doesn't look at them.

"Especially the love between twins. Apo…HE has just lost sight of the fact you love him mo…", Aphrodite starts.
"Stop. Please. Just stop", Artemis says her eyes looking dead.

She goes to walk away but Aphrodite and Hestia stop her touching her shoulder and wrist.

"Just let me go. Please", Artemis begs much to their shock.
"Artemis let us help you", Hestia says softly.

"Nobody can help me now. I am not worth the trouble", Artemis tells them her eyes looking even more dead than before.

"Yes, you are. We are here for you", Aphrodite says much to Artemis's shock.

"Don't be. Whoever is near me or helps me ends up dead or hurt or even worse. Just let me go", Artemis says scaring them with how she was acting.

"Artemis you're scaring us", Hestia admits.
"Don't be scared. It will all be over soon", Artemis whispers as she rips herself out of their grasp and flashes away.

Leaving a scared Hestia and Aphrodite.

Could this be what breaks the Moon Goddess?

Could this be her destruction?

Would this be her darkest hour?

Would they be seeing her again?

Hestia and Aphrodite had a bad, bad, well very bad feeling about this…

And Hestia wondered if she really felt what she thought she felt under Artemis's sleeve on her wrist…

Artemis gets to a clearing and starts feeling everything she had tried to suppress. And she let out a scream of emotional pain and falls to her knees.

Artemis wraps her arms around her knees and rocks herself as she sobs.

What he said was true. She was heartless and she DID get people killed.

Why couldn't she feel?

She trembles as she pulls up her sleeve to reveal dozens of healed and half healed cuts. Cuts that showed how depressed she was for the last several thousand years. She had cut to help her feel. But maybe just one big cut would set her free.

Maybe it was time to end it finally.

Nobody would miss her. And it would solve all their problems to actually finish the job this time.

But first she had a few things to finish and then she would leave them all.

After all nobody would miss her, and he would be happy with her not causing him problems. Or getting his children killed because she was careless.

So a few last things and she would free herself and everyone from the burden of her life.

After all nobody would even notice she was gone and if they did, they would be glad.

"Looks like this will be my destruction after all"

Everyone was still talking about how Artemis had finally been taken down a peg or two and how well Apollo did. Athena and Hermes had tried talking to him to show him he had handled this in the wrong way.

But Apollo was still trying hard to calm down. He wasn't sure if he had done the right thing. Everyone was telling him he had handled the situation in the best way to get the message home.

But why did he feel so terrible?

Apollo knew he had lied to her. He would always love her. But losing another of his daughters in the Hunt had hit him hard after being away from everyone for so long because of his banishment. He had just needed to let off steam.

But maybe he could admit he had taken it out on the wrong person.

Apollo suddenly had a VERY bad feeling.

Did he take this too far?

Author's Note: What do you think? Please Review:)