***HI GUYS...SO UH...I COULDN'T LEAVE YOU HANGING FOR TOO LONG AGAIN- PLUS , I WAS CURIOUS MYSELF TO SEE WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT...THIS CAME OUT. I HOPE YOU LIKE IT...***

About an hour and countless other frowns later, the drained Aphrodite finally exited her brother's twisted mind, relieved in a way to actually leave that unbelievably depressing place behind her….. …

"So uh …what's the verdict ?" the handsome Olympian asked impatiently, clearing his throat, definitely intrigued about what she might have sensed …Love and any other type of relationship crap was her domain of expertise after all, so if she couldn't shed some light on what was actually going on, than no one could….

" The verdict ?" Dite replied, trying hard not to laugh- despite all the previous drama, the broken vases and the river of tears…." The verdict Bro, is that - sadly-you have the IQ of a Dodo bird!" she snorted rolling her eyes at him.

Way too taken aback by both her change of mood and her upfront attack, the War God didn't bother voicing an answer- a sexily arched eyebrow as his head cocked slightly to one side being more than enough in his opinion.

" The Dodo Birds were big and stupid, Ares! Their brains were the size of a peanut!"

It was the God's turn to roll his eyes at her.

" You're not implying by any chance that big and stupid are the adequate adjectives to describe your dear old brother, are you ?" he playfully interrogated, humoring her.

" Not really…More like big and indescribably moron!" she bit, silently studying him for a few seconds while shaking her head disapprovingly.

" Well at least you got one right! Most women I've dated did mention something about the size of it!"

" Did I say Dodo Bird? I meant slug!"

" And you do happen to know that slugs are hermaphrodites, right? That would definitely be in my favour!" he challenged, grinning widely at her.

" I'm sure Amytis wouldn't mind! She would rub that filthy cunt of hers against anything that moves, so even as a slug you would definitely fit her standards …." his sister bit back, obviously still very much affected by everything she had just seen - in spite of the the jovial mood she had decided to set just for the sake of having a decent conversation with him. Slapping him silly again though, did look like a fantastic, incredibly tempting option all of a sudden.

" Speaking of which …..what can you tell me ? Was I right ? Was there anything fishy about that relationship ?" he demanded to know, his mind clearly still focused on the problem at hand.

" You mean besides EVERYTHING ? " she mocked, biting her lower lip angrily as she felt the blood racing into her veins again and in no time, her temples began throbbing and pulsating with pain. As much as she made an effort to control her emotions, she was once more becoming increasingly frustrating with this whole situation.

"Sis…..do help me out here….I could really use some answers…" he pleaded softly , instantly noticing her unexpected mood swing.

" I just can't help it Stud…Sorry. I mean…I can't stop asking myself- HOW could you be THAT blind? ! Leaving aside the fact that you are a man and that the only functional neuron you have is probably sleeping somewhere in your pants, but YOU KNEW….! "

" Knew what?!" he barked, losing his self control for a brief moment.

"That she was a witch, Ares! A WITCH! By Gaia herself, how could you have missed the fact that during your every single encounter with her – which, with only a few, insignificant exceptions took place in Babylon- she always served you the same fucking type of drink ….?!"

"Black cherry wine ….." he mused, absently rubbing his jaw - and he could just swear he was still able to taste its unique flavour on his lips.

"Like duuuuuuh!" she bantered, making sure to emphasize the ridiculousness of his reaction, by explicitly making an L sign on her forehead.

" So...what about the wine? It's tradition…..Everyone drinks it ….."

" Are you kidding me right now?! In three hundred years, she didn't offer you a glass of….sparkling water!"

" Why would anyone on the face of the earth want to drink sparkling water when they can have wine?!"

" Variety, maybe! " she shouted, refusing to believe that he still didn't get it .

" Are you saying she poisoned me or something?"

" Dark magic- that' s what I'm saying, Bro. It's everywhere in your aura, clouding your vision and your feelings for anyone else except for her…."

The War God, just stared at her in disbelief for a few seconds, not really knowing what to make of her hypothesis. She must have been overreacting.

" Don't you think I would have known if I had been under some kind of spell…?" he replied, his brain refusing to properly process the information.

Listening to his answer, Aphrodite took a deep breath to calm her already frayed nerves. He was indeed hooked. That bitch had gotten her claws into him deeper than she had initially anticipated.

" That's precisely how magic works, Dodo!"

"I was not.... enchanted! I am the God of War , and the God of War ..." he firmly retorted just to be swiftly interrupted by the nearly exploding Love Goddess.

"Well….I've got news for you, Stud Muffin…..You still are …."

By the time Ares parted his lips to say something in his self defense, ready to once again contradict her theory though, a coral pink vial appeared in his sister's pearly white palm….

" What's this ? " he inquired, squinting his eyes at the pinkish looking content, already mentally refusing any type of contact with the weird looking potion.

" This is the cure …..One sip and puff! You get to be your old self again….." Aphrodite remarked, flashing him a big, bright smile.

" Just like that ? "

" Just like that …."

" How do you know ….?"

" How do I know what ?"

"That it works ! Have you tried it before ? Has it been…. tested…-on animals at least ?!" he asked, taking a cautious step back ,as if he had been in face of a great danger….

" Well yeah …I did test it on a pair of rabbits once ….."

"And ?"

"They both died! " she snapped. "Just stop asking stupid questions and drink the damned potion already, Ar! You came to me , looking for help , remember? So have a little faith, will ya!? "she scolded, genuinely offended by his lack of trust.

" Ok…ok…..You're right…..But still….could you at least change its colour for me? Make it black….or…. green….? Dark red, even ….I'm not picky, but pink?!"

" Sorry Bro'….It only works if it's pink…" she answered, eyes sparkling with amusement as she took in the scene.. He was a goofy Dodo Bird, indeed. "Bottoms up! Do it for Xe…" she encouraged, her gaze bouncing restlessly from him to the tiny bottle and back.

" I thought you said a sip is all it takes, and PUFF!" he exclaimed, doing his very best to imitate her - a lame attempt to stall, of course, but the expression on Dite's face did put an end to his theatrical performance a tad earlier than he had planned.

As if he were just seconds away from drinking poison, the War God finally decided that a stern face was probably the most appropriate given the solemnity of the rare moment he was living.

" Here goes nothing…." he muttered, taking the crystal shaped vial from his sister's still extended hand and gulping it down in a fraction of a second…..