Fic: Overheard Conversations 11/?Author: Kerensa
Email: vkevans@y... Feedback please. Feedback or death (well, maybe that’s going a little too far)
Rating: R, so far
Fandom: Xena/Hercules, brief mention of food from Harry Potter series
Pairing: Ares/Joxer, Cupid/Strife
Disclaimer: I don’t own any of these characters, I’m just borrowing them for a little fun. The same with the Harry Potter stories. I have no money, no property, I even have to borrow the food I eat, so please don’t sue me.
Warning: m/m; MPREG; talk of nonconsensual sex; talk of underage molestation, rape, and abuse; angst
Summary: Joxer and Strife are both pregnant and end up talking. Their husbands, Ares and Cupid overhear their conversation and find out a lot more about their husband’s, especially Strife’s past, than they ever imagined.
Status: WIP
Series: Children At Play
Archive: Yes to AJCS, Beyond Cannon and MPREG; anywhere else, sure just tell me first
Website: Nope, sorry I wouldn’t know how to set one up.
Part 11
“’No big deal’, right.” Joxer’s voice rose slightly as he talked to the middle of the room. “Asclep…ius.”
Joxer jumped when Ace flashed in while he was in the middle of calling his name. It still amazed Joxer how quickly Ace came running when one of them hollered. Especially if the person was Strife.
“What’s wrong? Joxer, are you hurt? Strife, are you hurt? Is something wrong with the babies? What happened to your arm?!”
Joxer blinked at the rapid-fire interrogation. Strife just sat there and looked at him. Ace got down on one knee and carefully took Strife’s arm out of Joxer’s hands. He pulled the sleeve up farther and they could see that the elbow was swollen and bruised as well.
^^^^^^
Cupid looked at Strife’s badly bruised arm and frowned. He thought about how depressed Strife was and whimpered. He tried in vain to trace his husband’s sad face. The Fates wouldn’t allow this touch of comfort.
Ares put a hand on his son’s shoulder. Cupid looked up at him. “Dad, what’s happening?” He sounded so lost.
“I don’t know, but we will find out. And we’ll fix it.” Ares had on his ‘I’m the God of War, damnit, you will answer to me’ face. The determination in Ares’ voice helped calm Cupid’s mind.
“*Yes*, we will.” Cupid nodded forcefully. (Hey, he was no more immune to his father’s look than anybody else.)
^^^^^^
“What happened to your arm?” Ace repeated himself, in a quieter but more forceful tone this time.
Strife looked from friend to friend. He saw the dogged looks on their faces and sighed. “A statue fell and hit mah arm.”
“A statue.” Ace looked even more worried and considering the size of most of the statues gracing Olympian temples he had good reason to. “How big and how did it happen?”
“It was about, I don’t know, 2 feet tall. It was some god awful statue ah Dite. Looks nothin like her.” Strife hoped they would let the rest drop. (Like that’s going to happen.) No such luck, they all just looked at him. Strife squirmed like a child caught doing something they’re not supposed to.
“I was walkin through tha main hall in Cupid’s temple, mindin mah own business, when I saw somethin outta tha corner ah mah eye. I looked ovah in time ta see this statue fallin ovah and I jumped outta tha way.” At their skeptical looks he amended. “Well mostly anyway.” He gestured to his arm. “It hit mah arm was all.”
“Uh huh.” Ace said skeptically. He didn’t seem any more impressed with Strife’s dismissive ‘was all’ than Joxer had been. “So, why didn’t you call me as soon as you were injured?” Ace was running his hands over Strife’s arms, obviously looking for any other damage.
“Theah wasn’t any need ta bothah ya. Ya’re way taa busy ta come runnin fah somethin this small.” Seeing the others eyeing his hurt arm; Strife went on the defensive. “It ain’t like mah arm was broke or nothin.”
“I see. So your arm has to be broken before you will *bother* me. The fact that it is cracked is too insignificant, huh.” Ace spoke very quietly and Strife looked surprised. He hadn’t realized the arm was injured beyond the bruises.
“Do you think it was Tryst’s doing?” Joxer winced in sympathy when he saw how Strife flinched upon hearing Tryst’s name. It upset Strife to hear Tryst’s name at all and he never said it himself.
“Nah.” Everyone was surprised at Strife’s definite answer.
“How can you be so sure?”
“Cause when tha statue hit me, I fell on mah butt. Sa basically I was stunned, sittin in tha middle ah tha hallway. If it had been…HIM, he woulda taken advantage and attacked.”
Strife’s matter-of-fact description of his near miss with the statue and being knocked to the ground was more upsetting than reassuring. Joxer was thinking about that statue and calculating just how much a two foot tall marble statue would probably weigh. Thinking of that much weight falling on the already fragile Strife made Joxer’s hands start to shake.
“You were knocked to the ground?” At Strife’s nod, Asclepius stood up. “So you landed hard on your behind. Maybe I need to check.”
Joxer looked at the two men and started to get up. “I’ll go in the other room and give you some privacy.”
^^^^^^
Cupid’s eyes narrowed in anger. He didn’t want *anybody* looking at Strife’s butt. He was the only one allowed to do that.
Cupid tried to reign in his anger. Ace was just trying to help. He wasn’t like Apollo.
He growled as he thought of his uncle. He looked over at Ares and saw the sad, thoughtful look on his face. Cupid’s anger fled as he thought about his husband being hurt.
And another thing, what the Tartarus did Strife mean ‘Cupid’s temple’? It is *our* home. Mine, his, Bliss’ and the new baby’s.
Cupid was even more upset to realize how insecure his husband still felt about his place in Cupid and Bliss’ life. He turned his attention back to see Joxer struggling to get off of the couch.
^^^^^^
Strife waved his hand dismissively at his fellow god. “It’s okay Joxah, ya ain’t gotta go anywheah. Ya don’t hafta look at nothin Ace, cause mah bottom’s just fine.”
Ace did not look convinced. “Really. It’s just a little sore. Okay, a lot sore, but it’s just bruised, maybe.”
Ace didn’t really believe Strife, but backed off anyway. It upset Strife alot for anyone to see him naked, especially his backside. Ace could see that Strife was sitting down without too much pain. “What about your back? If you fell like that you were undoubtedly jarred pretty good.” Ace had Strife lean forward and he started feeling his back. Strife winced several times. “Well, the good news is, nothing’s the matter with your back that a little rest won’t cure.”
Ace kneeled backed down and picked Strife’s arm back up. He dealt the next bit of upsetting news to the watching crowd. (Does three count as a crowd? Yes, if they are all gods.) “How about letting me see this without the glamour.”
“Glamour?” Joxer asked in surprise. His question was unknowingly echoed by Cupid and Ares.
Strife looked surprised for a few seconds and then his face cleared as he figured out what Ace was talking about. “Oh, I’m sorry…I forgot all about that. I’ve been usin a glamour fah sa long that I forgot all about it.”
“How long have you been using a glamour?” Joxer looked at his friend; wondering what he was hiding.
“Evah since tha-tha…battlefield.”
Joxer looked at Strife sadly. “You’ve been using a glamour for *40 YEARS!*?”
Strife nodded, not saying a word.
“Oh gods, does that mean that when you were hurt this last time that you really looked worse than you did?” Joxer was horrified at the thought. Strife’s abdomen had looked awful. If that hadn’t been as bad as it really was…
Before Strife could say anything, Asclepius spoke up, “No, when he was hurt he dropped the glamour.”
They watched as Strife closed his eyes and concentrated. A faint shimmer of light passed over the injured young god and everyone got to see Strife as he really was.
At first Joxer didn’t see any changes. Then he did.
The bruises on Strife’s arm were darker and bigger than they had first appeared. Strife was a couple of shades paler and had dark smudges under his eyes. Pain and exhaustion were evident in his face. His even thinner face, as a matter of fact, Strife was a lot thinner.
Strife slumped back on the couch.
“Are you all right?” Ace’s voice was quiet and soothing. The perfect thing for a nervous young god.
“Yah, I just forgot how much energy onna those things took. It’s nice ta not have that much of an energy drain.”
^^^^^^
“Forty years! What happened forty years ago?” Cupid looked to his father for answers; unfortunately Ares was just as confused as he was.
“I don’t know, but by *Zeus* I’m gonna find out.” Ares’ eyes were flashing alarmingly and he growled low in his throat. (Woof!) He couldn’t wait to get his hands on Tryst; that was one god who was going to scream.
^^^^^^
“Stick your arms out.” Strife’s eyes popped open and he looked scared. Asclepius grimaced. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be so abrupt. Please put your arms out, I want to put this blanket under them.” A thick silvery blanket appeared in Ace’s hands.
Strife relaxed and obligingly raised his arms. Ace carefully wrapped the blanket around Strife, tucking it in behind his back. “There that will protect the baby from the magic while I fix your arm. You were right, by the way, it’s not broken, but as I said it is cracked.” Ace fixed Strife’s arm, as best he could. (This was the second time in less than a month that it had been mangled.)
Strife smiled at Asclepius. “Thanks, I hadn’t realized how much it was botherin me.”
“No problem.” Ace sat back on his haunches and looked appraisingly at the two pregnant gods. “Now, I just *know* you two weren’t sitting here without putting your feet up.”
Joxer and Strife looked at each other and gulped. Uh oh.
“I’ve had my feet up.” Joxer tried to save his butt. “See there’s my chair,” he pointed into the other room, “and see I had a stool for my feet.” Feeling a little braver he added, “I’ve only been in here for a few minutes; before that I kept my feet up.”
“That’s right, I made sure he hadda stool fah his feet.” Strife backed his friend up, hoping to avoid getting in trouble.
“Good. Feet.” At the command, Joxer quickly stuck his feet out. Ace pulled off his soft slippers and examined his feet. “Well, they’re not too badly swollen…” Joxer sighed in relief. “…and they’ll stay that way, if you keep them up.” Joxer nodded and then groaned as Asclepius rubbed his feet.
“When was the last time you had a foot massage?”
“A couple of days ago.” Ace didn’t seem impressed.
“Really. A couple of days. Hmmm, if Ares is too *busy* then maybe I should find somebody else to rub your feet.” He looked thoughtful as he pondered the possibilities. “Dad maybe.”
Joxer recoiled and Strife gasped at this idea.
“Nah. He would have too much fun rubbing your…feet.” Ace rubbed a little longer and then put the slippers back on. “I know the *perfect* person…Hercules.”
Joxer’s mouth dropped open. “*Hercules*?” His voice squeaked on the name.
“Oh yeah, when his wife, the first one, Dainera, was pregnant he would rub her feet. From all accounts he was really good at it.”
“That might not go over well.” (Now, is that an understatement, or what?)
^^^^^^
Ares was stunned at Asclepius’ suggestion. He wasn’t serious? (Of course not, he just wanted to get Ares upset. It worked.)
“A foot massage? I never even thought about that.” Cupid looked chagrinned.
“Son, after this is all over come and see me. I’ll give you some tips on how to help your pregnant spouse feel better.”
Cupid just nodded at his father. He was ashamed of himself. Just because Psyche hadn’t wanted anything like that didn’t mean Strife wouldn’t. After all, Strife was about as different (Thank god.) from his ex-wife as was possible.
^^^^^^
“And where was your chair?” Asclepius smiled sweetly.
Strife gulped. He just *knew* that he was in trouble now. “Ovah theah, close ta Joxah’s chair.”
Ace looked into the other room and then back at Strife.
“I didn’t need a stool, cause I had ta keep an eye on tha proceedins.” That wasn’t a whine.
Ace scooped Strife’s feet up and carefully raised them up, so it wouldn’t make his back hurt any worse than it already was. He gently peeled the shoes off…and stared. Strife’s feet were badly swollen and discolored. There were angry red marks where his shoes had dug into his feet.
Ace looked up at Strife’s trembling lips and didn’t have the heart to scold him. (Well…not *too* badly anyway.)
Strife jerked and grunted when Ace started rubbing his feet. After a little while he relaxed again and enjoyed the attention.
“I can see that Hercules is going to be verrry busy.” Strife giggled at the thought of Hercules playing with his feet. (Cupid growled in the background.)
Asclepius magicked up a soft pair of slippers, kind of like Joxer’s. He eased them onto Strife’s feet. Then he stood up and faced the squirming gods.
“Now. Here’s how it’s gonna be. You can go back to your party, however, you will *both* keep your feet up. Understood?” He waited until they nodded before he continued. “Joxer, you keep doing like you have been. *Strife*, after this party you will go home and go to bed, for 3 days. Do you hear me? *Three days.* That means three days in bed, with your feet up on pillows.” Strife nodded, wide-eyed. “In bed, not sitting in a chair with them up on a stool, not reclining on the couch. In bed.”
Ace smiled that smile again and both men looked at each other in consternation. “Otherwise you’ll get in trouble. Do you remember what I said would happen if you didn’t follow instructions?” Strife nodded quickly. “Good. See ya later.” With that Ace flashed away in a brilliant pinkish-orange light.
^^^^^^
Both gods sat there for a few minutes. “So, are ya ready ta go back ta yar party?”
“Not yet, I can still hear Gabrielle reading.” Strife glanced out the door. In the background you could vaguely hear the young bard talking.
“Crap. Ya mean she’s tellin a story.” Joxer nodded and Strife started giggling. “Does it scare ya that what Ace is threatenin ta punish us with is what she considahs a gift.”
“Oh yeah. You have to admit though, listening to her stories for hours on end would have one good affect.”
Strife frowned as he thought. No matter how he wracked his brain, he couldn’t see an advantage. “Really and what would that be.”
“You could catch up on your sleeping.” Strife giggled at Joxer’s joke.
Joxer smiled, happy that he had cheered up his friend, if only for the moment. He hated to spoil it, but something had upset Strife badly and he wanted to know what or who it was.
“Why do you think Cupid wouldn’t want to do the thing with honey?”
^^^^^^
Cupid heard Joxer’s question and said, “Thank you. I want to know that too.”
He watched as his husband’s face twisted in pain.
“Oh baby.” Cupid again knelt in front of his husband. (He had moved when Asclepius needed to be there.) “Please tell me what’s wrong.”
Some of Cupid’s plea must have gotten through to Strife subconsciously, because he started to talk.
^^^^^^
“I repulse him.”
“What!” Of all the answers Strife could have given, this one was the most unexpected; for everyone.
“It’s true. I…disgust him now.” Strife rubbed his tummy and started to rock slightly. “I know what ya’re gonna say. Ya’re gonna tell me that Cupid love’s me. I know that’s true. I still see love in his eyes.”
“Then I don’t understand.” Joxer placed one hand on Strife’s back, trying to calm his friend down.
“He don’t wanna be…intimate with me. I don’t mean touchin. He’ll still give me a hug and kiss, but he don’t want it ta go any furthah.”
“Maybe he’s been tired…”
“I thought sa too, tha first coupla times. Aftah that I knew it was just me. See, everythin would be fine. We’d be cuddlin an kissin and then, bam, he’d realize who he was with and he’d back off real quick.” Strife looked over to the side, not facing Joxer. “I figured it out real quick. I know I ain’t tha smartest guy around Olympus, but I ain’t stupid eithah.”
“Strife, I’m sure it’s not what you’re thinking. I’m certain there’s a logical explanation for how he’s acting.”
“Theah is Joxah. See, he had almost two weeks ta think about stuff before I got ta come ho…uh, back ta tha temple. He thought about all tha stuff with Try…HIM. All tha things I done with him.” Swallowing his tears, Strife went on. “I understand, aftah all, it disgusts me taa.”
“Strife, you didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I know. I do. I know it wasn’t mah fault, but it’s still nauseatin. Tha things he did, that he made me do, were…foul.”
Joxer sat there; he didn’t know what to say. Cupid was the only one who could help this and apparently he was the problem.
“He won ya know.”
“Who won?”
“HIM…Tryst.” Strife bit his lip and looked quickly around the room. When Tryst didn’t appear he relaxed.
“Strife he didn’t win.”
“Yeah he did. He ruined tha only good thing I’ve evah had in mah life.” Strife’s face crumbled as he started crying.
“I had love fah tha first time in mah life, I had real love. He ruined it.”
Joxer turned Strife towards him and held him awkwardly as he tried to soothe Strife’s broken spirit.
^^^^^^
“NO! No, that’s not what’s going on at all.” Cupid whimpered, seeing the distress he had caused. “No, *please* let me go to him.”
“Granted.” The voices echoed through the chamber. “Just remember, we cannot keep saving you from your follies.” Part 12
Joxer gasped and recoiled when Cupid flashed in. He was still trying to get his heart back in his chest when Ares touched him on the arm and he got another shock. (Scaring a verrry pregnant man. That’s a good idea.) When he realized it was his husband, Joxer calmed down and was silently thankful that he hadn’t had an accident because of it. (Remember, several pounds of baby were sitting on top of his bladder.)
Strife was just as surprised when Cupid suddenly appeared, kneeling on the floor at his feet. He heard Joxer’s gasp and looked over to make sure he was all right. Seeing his uncle, Strife was momentarily relieved; then he remembered that he had been in the middle of a crying jag.
His hands automatically went to his face, wiping away the tears and trying to hide what he had been doing. Strife would have used another glamour, but he knew Cupid would notice.
“That’s not what happened. Baby, you’ve got it all wrong. I understand why you feel that way and it’s all my fault. Please let me try to explain.”
Strife stopped breathing as he listened to his husband talk. “Oh gods, no, not again.” Strife panicked and tried to get off the couch, but Cupid wouldn’t let him. He refused to move from his spot on the floor and so Strife had to continue sitting there.
^^^^^^
Seeing how upset Strife was becoming Ares went over and closed the door. He waved until he got Aphrodite’s attention, so that the people at the party would know Joxer and Strife weren’t alone.
Since Tryst’s last attack on Strife, neither one of them was left alone. Strife for obvious reasons and Joxer because Tryst had made his attraction all too evident. Nobody was willing to risk either of the two men.
It was a good thing Ares came to the door when he did or they would have had another audience, rivaling the one at Ares and Joxer’s temple a few weeks back. Several of the gods and goddesses had heard Joxer’s yelp and were running to see what was wrong.
As a matter of fact, when Ares looked out the door there was quite a queue of people about to barrel into the room. Ares was touched and amused to realize that the mortals were leading the way. It was hard to tell who was in front; Xena, Jett, Jayce, Hercules or Iolaus.
At Ares’ gesture they all backed off. Not happily or graciously. Everybody was anxious and wanted to get their hands on Tryst.
^^^^^^
Strife’s nerves were already stretched to the breaking point. Hormones were running rampant in his already overtaxed body. He simply couldn’t handle any more stress right now and so he snapped.
He put his hands over his eyes, eyes that were once again streaming with tears. “No, no!” Strife had his hands mashed tightly against his head as his fingers dug into his scalp.
Cupid took hold of Strife’s hands and carefully, but firmly stopped him from abusing his head. Strife refused to look at him and Cupid refused to let go of Strife’s hands.
Strife yelled out at the middle of the room. “What is goin on heah?! Can’t anybody talk in private anymore?” He halfway glanced at Cupid and then looked at his lap before closing his eyes in defeat. “Is everybody watchin on scryin mirrahs again?”
^^^^^^
It was Ares who answered Strife’s question.
“No, it was just me and Cupid. The Fates decided we needed to do a little more listening. Nobody else is involved this time.”
Ares looked at his distraught nephew. He then looked at his sweet husband, whose heart was breaking over Strife’s distress.
^^^^^^
“Baby look at me…please.” When Strife wouldn’t look up, Cupid let go of one of his hands and gently tilted his chin up. “Please let me explain. I do love you and I *do* want you.”
Strife closed his eyes in pain, both physical and emotional. Crying made his ribs hurt even worse. His back too. He couldn’t stand to see pity coming out of his husband’s eyes. Strife knew that Cupid would now try and hide the disgust he felt. Strife didn’t want to further ruin the memory of the love they had shared for just a few short months.
“You were whimpering.”
Strife looked at Cupid in surprise. “What?”
“When we were in the bathroom, getting ready to make love, you were whimpering. I was hugging you and realized you were moaning and twisting around in pain. *I was hurting you.* I knew I had to get away from you as quickly as possible or I *wouldn’t* be able to stop myself. I have never done anything harder in my life than walking away from you.” Cupid’s eyes were luminescent with unshed tears. He was silently begging Strife to believe him and to understand.
“I don’t remembah hurtin.” Strife was so confused. Could this be true. Maybe Cupid still wanted him. He was afraid to hope. Hope and Strife were not close friends.
“You were though. I heard you whimpering and opened my eyes. I tried moving my hands to see if that helped. It didn’t. No matter where I touched you, you were still in pain.” Cupid risked letting go of Strife’s other hand, long enough to wipe the tears off of his husband’s face. “I love you so much. You have *never* disgusted me and you certainly have *never* repulsed me.”
Strife cried more as he saw the truth in Cupid’s eyes. He leaned forward and put his forehead on Cupid’s broad shoulder.
Love. He was still loved.
^^^^^^
Joxer let Ares silently pull him up off of the couch.
He could hear Cupid murmuring in Strife’s ear, explaining more times of missed loving and the reasons for them.
Joxer realized that his friend was in good hands. Everything would be all right now.
Ares put an arm around Joxer’s waist (Or at least in the general area.) and carefully guided him to the door. Once there Joxer looked back at his friend. He stood there until he caught Cupid’s eye.
Joxer looked meaningfully from Strife to Cupid and back again. He stared at Cupid until the God of Love nodded. He understood. If he ever hurt Strife like this again, he would have to answer to the God of Peace.
Smiling, Joxer let Ares lead him back to his party. They left Cupid and Strife alone awhile to heal.
^^^^^^
Strife hissed and jerked in Cupid’s arms.
“What is it baby?”
“Mah back is crampin.” Strife’s face was tight with pain.
Cupid quickly stood up and moved around to sit beside Strife on the couch. He ran his hand across Strife’s back until he found the knotted area. Gently he rubbed it until Strife relaxed.
Strife started to lean back and Cupid moved his arm. Before Strife could misinterpret this action, Cupid scooped Strife up in his arms and sat him on his lap.
At first Strife was stiff in his arms.
“Did I hurt you?”
“Nah, I’m all right.” Strife made himself relax. It was Cupid, not HIM, who was holding him. Being in somebody’s lap was hard. HE only did that when he wanted to molest Strife.
Finally Strife got used to Cupid holding him and he drooped. Not relaxed, drooped. He was so fatigued, mentally and physically.
But he was *safe*. Inside his mind the word *safe* echoed over and over again.
Strife closed his eyes and smiled in peace.
^^^^^^
Strife lightly ran his fingers over Cupid’s arm, tracing the tattoo that encircled it. He so loved that marking, it was sexy as Tartarus.
“Do you want to go home now?” Cupid’s soft question held the promise of bed…to sleep. Strife ruefully acknowledged that he couldn’t do much else right now. The party had taken more out of him than he cared to admit.
“Nah, I don’t wanna miss tha rest ah Joxah’s baby showah.”
“Are you sure you’re up to it?” Cupid kissed Strife’s temple.
“Um huh.” Actually Strife wasn’t sure of anything at the moment. All he wanted to do was stay like this the rest of the day. Rousing himself, Strife sat up and said, “We bettah get in theah before it’s all ovah.”
Cupid helped Strife get up and stood up quickly himself when Strife swayed. He held onto his husband until the dizziness passed.
When they got to the door Strife paused again. Cupid checked to make sure he wasn’t sick or hurting. Strife looked so unsure that Cupid had to hold him again. (Right, like he needed an excuse.)
“Come on baby, I want to see this bash you arranged.”
^^^^^^
Quite a few heads turned when they came into the room.
Joxer smiled when he saw Strife looking happy again. He guessed he would let Cupid live.
Apollo looked over and licked his lips mentally at how nice Strife looked. Then he saw Cupid glaring at him and he gulped. He chanced a glance at Ares and saw an equally menacing glare and started backing up. He peeked at Joxer and saw his innocent smile. Apollo yelped and flashed out in a hurry.
Cupid and Ares looked at Joxer with respect. Joxer just smiled.
Cupid immediately led Strife over to his chair and sat him down. Remembering Ace’s warning and how badly Strife’s feet had looked, Cupid thought up a foot stool and eased Strife’s feet up onto it.
^^^^^^
“All right, I can’t stand it anymore.” Joxer looked at Ares. “What in Tartarus did you do to Apollo to get that reaction out of him.”
Joxer smirked. “I went to Hephaestus and had him make a bracelet for me. The next time Apollo began to grop…uh, bother me I slapped it on him.” Ares didn’t miss Joxer’s almost-admission and Joxer didn’t miss the growl that accompanied it.
“What did the bracelet do?” Cupid was trying to divert his father’s attention. The last thing they needed was for him to beat the crap out of Apollo. Without him the sun wouldn’t come up.
“With the bracelet on Apollo couldn’t get it up. He was still as horny as ever, he just couldn’t do anything about it.” Ares grinned at his husband. “I told him he had to wear it for a month. He tried *everything* to get it to come off. After about a week he came to me, pleading with me to remove it. I told him he could take it off if he got the key. Then I told him that Ares had the key. All he had to do was explain why he needed it.” Joxer grinned at the audience that had gathered. “He wore the bracelet for the whole month. By then I think he was so ready for sex he was about to explode. It’s funny, he hasn’t bothered me since then.”
Several of the men listening backed up. Ares frowned at them and they suddenly found other things to do. (Yes, they had also propositioned Joxer.)
^^^^^^
Joxer looked at his painfully thin friend and decided more subtle direction was needed. He thought about hitting Cupid over the head with his plate and then decided that maybe that was not *subtle* enough.
“These are really good. What are they called again?” Joxer held up a bit of food in one hand.
“Nachos. Thay’re from tha future.”
“Did you like them?” At Strife’s nod he continued, “I thought so. I did see you eating…two of them.” Joxer looked pointedly again at Cupid who eyed the very small pieces of food thoughtfully.
“I’ll be right back.” Cupid walked over to the food tables.
While he was gone, Strife scanned the room, making sure all the food trays were full and drinks were plentiful. He had just spotted something that needed fixing and was about to get up when Athena appeared by his side.
Athena frowned. Why did Strife look so much worse all of the sudden? Earlier he had seemed tired, but now he looked positively worn out. She smiled at the young god and said, “Take a break, you deserve one after all the hard work you’ve done organizing everything. I’ll keep an eye on things for you.” With that she walked away before Strife could argue with her.
“Here you go baby.” Strife looked up to see Cupid holding a plate that was brimming over with food.
“I can’t eat all that.” Strife giggled at all the different foods.
That giggle warmed Cupid’s heart. He hadn’t realized that it had been missing for the last several days.
“Well you’re going to eat as much as you can.” Cupid waved his hand and Strife’s chair elongated into a small couch. He liked the way it looked and decided to call it a love seat. (Hey, who else do you think invented it.)
“What did you have for lunch?” Strife looked guilty.
“I kinda forgot in all tha rush.”
“I see…and breakfast.” Strife wiggled this time.
“I wasn’t hungry.”
Cupid sat down beside his husband and carefully pulled him closer so that Strife’s bad side was being supported by Cupid’s body. Cupid held out the plate. “Eat.” Strife took the plate and started nibbling on a sandwich. “We’ll talk later about your eating habits.”
Strife didn’t say anything and tried to eat more.
After a while, Cupid noticed that Strife’s plate was tilting at an alarming angle. He took it before it could slide out of Strife’s lax hand. Strife had fallen asleep in the middle of the loud party.
Cupid sat the plate and the glass of juice he had been holding down on a small table that appeared beside him. Somewhat satisfied with the amount of food Strife had eaten, he snuggled up with his husband and watched him sleep.
He wasn’t the only one.
Most everyone had noticed the change in Strife. Not how much happier he was, although they noticed that too. No, they noticed the abrupt change for the worse in his appearance.
Strife looked even more fragile than ever. His skin was paper white (Not that he was ever Mr. Tan.) and looked like it would tear at a touch. He looked thinner and like a slight breeze would knock him over. (Actually, at this point it wouldn’t even take that much.)
Protective instincts rose up and so did blood pressure. Gods and goddesses began to meet together to plan what they were going to do to Tryst when he was found. Some of the plans were bloodthirsty and gruesome. Then there were the *really bad* ones. (You don’t want me to tell you about the one with the starving rats, a metal bowl, some hot coals and lots and lots of straps.+)
Strife slept on, unaware of the fervor being created because he dropped the glamour.
+Thanks to Scribe for this suggestion.
Extra note: In my universe there was no Twilight of the Gods and Strife never murdered Serena, Hercules’ second wife. Bliss is only about 4 years old now, Eve (Xena’s daughter) is 7. Yes, I know he should be a lot older, but hey it’s my universe. Also, there have been no godly children born between Strife and Bliss. I’m not sure if Deimos and Phobos are supposed to be younger than Strife, but here they’re not.
Part 13
Cupid stroked Strife’s face and sighed in relief. He couldn’t believe he had been *so* stupid. After all that he had learned about Strife’s past, (And didn’t it look like there was a *lot* more to learn) and it never occurred to him that Strife would still feel insecure about their love. Cupid resolved to be a lot more observant from now on.
He ran a hand over his husband’s thin-thin body. There was no way Strife was going to get this run down again if he could help it.
Jayce walked over to stand in front of Cupid and the sleeping Strife. He had just come from giving Joxer his baby present. Jayce smiled at Strife and then looked up and smiled at the glowering Cupid. He didn’t seem fazed at all that a very powerful and *very* pissed off god (Not to mention jealous husband.) was glaring at him.
“Chou are so lucky.”
That was the last thing Cupid expected to hear. “Yeah, I know.”
“I wich I were that lucky.” Jayce sighed dramatically. (As usual.) “Here, I have a present for chou too.” Jayce giggled and handed Cupid a small jar. “Acsually it is a present for both of chou.” With a wink, Jayce turned and walked away. After a few feet he looked back over his shoulder and gave Cupid a saucy grin. He sauntered away with a distinct wiggle in his walk.
Cupid blinked. “Maybe I can see what dad sees in Joxer,” Cupid muttered to himself. He glanced over at Joxer and saw him laughing with Ares. Okay, he could definitely see the attraction. Not that he thought Joxer was good looking or anything, although he was. That kind of thinking was dangerous and icky. It was like thinking Heph was good looking or something.
Oh boy. Now he was thinking about Heph and Jayce. Quick, think of something else. Cupid opened at the jar that Jayce had given him. He started to laugh and had to clamp his lips down tight so he wouldn’t wake up Strife.
It was a jar of honey.
Looking across the room he smiled at a grinning Jayce. Honey. Now he had some really good pictures in his head. Only this time they involved Strife and a paint brush.
Strife felt the movement of Cupid’s chest and stirred. He opened his eyes and sat up. Strife blinked confusedly and with a shaky hand he pushed the hair out of his eyes.
“What did I miss?”
“Nothing, we were waiting for you to wake up.” Joxer smiled at his tousled friend.
Strife was surprised and touched. “Ya didn’t hafta wait on me.”
Joxer frowned at Strife. “You’re my best friend, of course I wanted to wait for you.” Strife smiled and blinked away the tears that this sentiment caused. Gods he was turning into sappy twit.
Joxer turned around and acknowledged the gift Poseidon was giving the baby. It was a baby bed shaped like a sea shell; covered in pearls and lined with the softest blanket made from sea weed.
Cupid pulled Strife back against him, again supporting his bad side. Strife sighed happily. Cupid gave him a drink and then picked up the plate and offered it to his husband. “Here, you need to eat some more and try eating some of the vegetables this time.”
Strife grinned and picked up a carrot. He wasn’t really hungry, but if it would make Cupid happy he would try to eat more. Strife began nibbling at the vegetable; going as slow as godly possible. Maybe if he ate leisurely Cupid wouldn’t notice that he really wasn’t eating very much.
Athena came up and gave Joxer a book. (Big surprise.) “This book contains all the knowledge that a young person will need to understand intellectual problems. If the child asks the book a question it will answer it. Within reason, of course. The book will be able to discern how old the child is and if he or she asks a question that is inappropriate for their age the book will tell the child to defer to the two of you.”
Joxer blinked at the long-winded explanation. “Thank you, that sounds wonderful.” Athena nodded her head in reply. Cupid was enjoying the relaxed mood when he felt Strife tense up. Cupid looked around the room, trying to see what had upset his husband. He couldn’t see anything or anyone that could be causing the problem. Then he realized that Strife was looking at himself in a mirror on the far wall. Cupid remembered Strife’s earlier words about being ugly.
“Baby, I love you so much. You are the hottest looking person I have ever seen. I can’t wait until you feel a little better and we can try out that jar of honey.”
Cupid was worried when instead of making Strife feel better, his words made him start crying. Joxer leaned over and gently patted Strife on the arm.
“Hormones,” he said quietly.
Strife laughed and seemed to feel better. That, in turn, made Cupid felt better. Of course, hormones. He had forgotten about them with everything else that was going on.
^^^^^^
“Strife!” Eve, Xena’s young daughter came running up. The little girl jumped up and down by Strife’s chair, her long black curls bouncing. “Hi Strife, can I feel the baby?” At Strife’s nod she put her hands on his tummy.
Xena smiled at her daughter’s antics. Eve and Strife had a close friendship and Xena could see more than a little of the imp in her daughter’s personality. It was funny, with her black hair, blue eyes and mischievous personality, she was more like you would expect a child of Strife’s to be than she was like the Warrior Princess.
“Here you go Joxer, just a little something for the baby.”
Xena gave Joxer a small, gaily wrapped present. Joxer unwrapped it and laughed happily. It was a small, leather wrapped chakram.
“It’s a teething ring.” Xena explained to the delighted Joxer. Xena looked at her father and was amazed to see him surreptitiously wiping a tear from his eye.
“Oh Xena, thank you. I love it.” Joxer impulsively gave his daughter-in-law a hug. “This is so sweet.” He placed the favorite gift a place of honor beside him on the chair.
Somebody, nobody knew who, had given them all a gift earlier. Gabrielle had *mysteriously* gotten laryngitis when she threatened, I mean offered, to read them all *another* story.
A musical laugh and a giggle caught their attention. Eve was showing Cupid and Strife how well she could juggle. She seemed to have inherited her mother’s dexterity and caught all of the thrown objects unerringly.
^^^^^^
“Joxie, here’s my gift.” Aphrodite held up a little, very little, dress for them to see. “I made it to look like my favorite outfit.” Aphrodite beamed at the two gods.
Ares scowled. “Dite…what if it’s a boy.”
“No prob Bro. The outfit will automatically change to match the baby’s sex.”
Ares didn’t look reassured. Joxer hastily thanked Aphrodite, biting the inside of his lip the whole time.
“What’s sa funny?” Strife looked at the dress Joxer was holding and shuddered.
Joxer reached over to one side and pulled up another dress. “Here’s Jayce’s present.”
Strife looked at the two outfits. “Thay’re tha same.”
“Yep.”
Strife began to giggle. The Goddess of Love and Joxer’s drag-queen brother had given the baby the exact same present. “Dite would have ah fit if she knew they was tha same.”
The two pregnant gods and their spouses all huddled together, laughing at the situation.
^^^^^^
Time passed and more people brought up their gifts.
Artemis, the Goddess of the Hunt, gave the baby a miniature unicorn. It stood less than 2 feet high and had long curly hair.
“The hair will change color once the baby is born. It’s hair will then match the baby’s hair color.”
Gaia, the Goddess of the Earth, gave a flower that would never die to Joxer and a garden to the baby.
“The garden will have grass and blooming flowers all year long. This will be a pleasant place for the baby to play in and will keep your unicorn happy and fed.”
Hercules and Iolaus came up. Hercules and Ares were trying not to glare at each other. The bonding they had done a few weeks ago had helped their relationship, but they were never going to be buddy-buddy.
Iolaus smiled at Joxer and Ares and gave them his present. It was the cutest little pair of booties and a baby blanket made from rabbit fur. “I caught the rabbits and cured the fur myself. I made it nice and soft so it won’t irritate the baby.”
Joxer smiled and rubbed the soft blanket against his face. Ares was delighted with the tiny pair of shoes.
Hercules gave them a mobile to hang in the baby’s room. It was a hand-carved wooden moon with stars floating around it.
Joxer spun the mobile and was captivated by how delicate it looked. Ares smiled (Yes he smiled.) at his brother in appreciation.
^^^^^^
Jett slid up behind Joxer and handed him a package before slipping back into the crowd. His gift turned out to be a very beautiful jeweled dagger. It was covered with gold, emeralds and rubies.
Jett came up to Strife who was, for a change, by himself. Cupid had gone off to get a sampling from the desert table, hoping to tempt Strife to eat more.
“Hey.”
“Uh, hey.”
“I just wanted to thank you.”
“Fah what?” Strife was puzzled.
“I know how much you’ve helped Joxer over the years. I heard about that time when you saved him from those men. If it weren’t for you he would have been raped and probably killed.”
“Uh, that’s okay I…”
“So, I owe you one. A freebie. Any assassination. Of *anybody*. All you have to do is tell me their name.”
“That’s real nice Jett, but I’m a god, I can kill anybody I want ta.”
“I mean *anybody*. I’ve got the means. If I can find them and you want ‘em dead, they’re dead.”
Strife looked into Jett’s eyes and gulped. He obviously had hind’s blood and was willing to use it for *him*. “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”
Jett nodded once and disappeared back into the crowd.
^^^^^^
Joxer looked exhausted, after all the party had been going on for *4* hours. Strife, who had been tired to begin with, is so far beyond exhausted it wasn’t even funny.
Aphrodite and Jayce looked at their loved ones and their respective, worried spouses and stuck their heads together, whispering. (Yikes!) In ten minutes the party went from booming to where everyone but the main four gods and Athena were the only ones still there.
“Now, what to do with all this food?” Athena peered at the bounty that was left on the tables.
“Theah’s an orphanage in Athens that could use tha food.”
Athena smiled at Strife and snapped her fingers. The food immediately vanished. Strife smiled as he got a burst of energy, emanating from the good feelings coming from all of those happy children.
“Let me handle the clean up.” With that Athena again snapped her fingers and everything was clean and back in order. “Well that took a lot.” Athena laughed at her own joke and flashed out.
“I think you’ve been a good influence on her Strife.” Ares smiled at his young nephew.
“Thank you for the wonderful party.” Joxer smiled at Strife. He reached out and gave his good friend a hug. “Are you okay now?” he whispered. Ares and Cupid had moved to one side and were talking themselves.
“Yeah, I’m okay now. Sorry about earlier.”
Joxer just shook his head and gave Strife another hug. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
^^^^^^
“Do you have any idea what happened to Strife 40 years ago?”
“No, but I intend to find out.”
“Yeah, me too. Can I make a suggestion son?”
“Sure.”
“Let’s not ask him for a while yet. He’s been through enough strain for right now.”
“I agree Dad, but soon.”
“Oh yeah…soon.”
^^^^^^
Ares walked over to his *very* pregnant husband and picked him up. Joxer giggled as Ares carried him to their bedroom. Over Ares’ shoulder, Joxer waved goodbye to Cupid and Strife.
Cupid wrapped his arms around Strife and hugged him close. Strife looked over Cupid’s shoulder and saw a mirror. He frowned and thought to himself, “still ugly.”
Strife’s thoughts were interrupted when Cupid flashed them home. Strife’s legs gave way when they arrived. Cupid wasted no time and emulated his father by scooping his sleepy husband up in his arms and carrying him to the bedroom. By the time Cupid had walked the 20 or so feet, Strife was nine-tenth’s the way asleep. Cupid laid Strife on the bed and flashed on some clean sleep clothes for Strife.
Strife always wore clothes to bed. He never felt safe sleeping in the nude, like Cupid. (Let’s face it, he never felt safe at all.)
Mindful of Asclepius’ warning, Cupid eased Strife’s shoes off and put his feet up on a couple of feathery soft pillows. Cupid lay down beside his husband, spooning up behind him, and gently rolled Strife back so that he was half-way reclining on Cupid. In this way, Strife’s back and ribs are supported without Strife having to do anything.
Strife sighed at the comfortable position he was in. He was able to relax and sleep (mostly) pain free all night.
^^^^^^
Neither god hears the bedroom door open.
Bliss walks in; his curly hair tousled, rubbing his eyes. He stops when he sees Strife and Cupid asleep on the bed.
His sweet expression drops off and he snarls.
The boy backs out of the door that silently closes in front of him. Bliss ripples and elongates until he is…Cupid-shaped. “Soon little one.” His voice was much deeper and rumbling than Cupid’s normal voice. “You are *mine* and I will *deal* with you before long.”
The Cupid-shape strode down the corridor…to Bliss’ room. He snarled again when he couldn’t get any closer to the bed than the doorway, because of a barrier that glittered in the dark.
“And you will pay for that one too, Little One.”
The Cupid-shape leaves the temple with a flash.
^^^^^^
Strife frowned and began to whimper in his sleep. Cupid woke up enough to comfort him and feeling safe, Strife snuggled back against his husband. They both fell back asleep.