Chapter 4
When Ares and Gabrielle popped back to Poteidea, her father had arrived. Ares left the family to their reunion after inviting Gabrielle to a picnic the next day. She agreed to the outing, and Ares shyly hugged Gabrielle goodbye.
Ares and Gabrielle saw each other every day. They went on picnics, canoe rides, and trips to foreign places. But sometimes they just talked. They talked about their families, their lives, and their dreams. Gabrielle told Ares of her dream of becoming a famous bard and Ares told Gabrielle of his dream of being seen as more than a War God. They were so happy just being together.
After two months, Ares was sure that Gabrielle loved him as much as he loved her, even if they had never said the words out loud. He was ready to ask her to become his wife. He dressed in a brand new suit of black leather and went to Gabrielle's parents to ask their permission to marry Gabrielle. Her parents received him with great joy, because they had learned to love and respect Ares very much.
Gabrielle's mother went to Gabrielle's room to tell her of Ares' arrival. She came back into the kitchen with a frightened look on her face and a small scroll in her hand. "Gabrielle's gone!!" she said, her hands trembling. Ares and Gabrielle's father jumped up from their seats and Ares cried, "Where did she go?"
"Read the scroll," said the mother, bursting into tears, running to the arms of her husband, who looking shocked and helpless, held her close.
The scroll told exactly where and why Gabrielle was gone. Ares turned bright red. Trying to contain his anger, he quietly told the parents that he would take care of this, and called for Aphrodite. She appeared in a burst of pink sparkles with her usual good humor. She soon sobered when she read the scroll and she nodded when Ares asked her to stay and comfort Gabrielle's frightened parents.
With a nod and a handshake for Gabrielle's father, he disappeared in a flash of blue light.
-TBC -