InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "You are getting sleepy....."

Iris: Goddess of the Rainbow and Messenger (eiris_iris) wrote in history_dot_com,
@ 2012-04-10 18:36:00

Entry tags:

~aphrodite, ~iris

The Problems with Passion - Hesiod's Bronze Age [tag: Aphrodite]
Iris paced nervously outside of Aphrodite's temple. She had never done anything like this before. She just wasn't the type to ask for advice often, let alone from a god or goddess she rarely associated with. But there was no one else to go to that would understand the Rainbow's dilemma. Iris was a first time parent and with that came certain difficulties. Aphrodite had many children, so she would have some advice, most likely. Hera had children too and would probably be more than willing to dispense her knowledge of raising troublesome children to her messenger, after all Hera had raised Ares and Enyo.

But there were something about Aphrodite's expertise that Iris needed. Unlike Hera, Aphrodite had considerable experience in raising love gods and that was precisely what Iris thought she had on her hands. Honestly, when she discovered some of Pothos' skills she had tried to brush them off as coincidence. It wasn't possible. It simply wasn't possible. She was rainbow, his father was the west wind. Their union should have produced a son that governed like rain or the cool spring breeze or something else weather related.

Instead they got... well, Iris wasn't exactly sure what Pothos did, but there was a habit of her and her husband ending up intertwined and having the most mind blowing sex whenever Pothos was around upset about his parents not being happy with one another. It happened one time, then another. Then another. And finally she and Zephyrus weren't fooled.

Trouble wasn't that she didn't enjoy making love to her husband, quite the contrary. It was more the trouble of that sometimes spouses need to fight to sort out their troubles and that was hard to do if they kept ending up... as they did, in the middle of an argument.

Finally, deciding she'd paced enough, Iris pressed the door to the temple open and peeked her head inside. “Aphrodite?” She called. Then she was immediately set upon by attendants. Even though Hera employed a great deal, as did Zeus, it was still such a foreign concept to the Rainbow to want people messing with your things all day and escorting your guests about all willy nilly. “I'm here to see Aphrodite, is she in?”

Indicated to sit, Iris did as instructed and took the offered goblet of wine. “Is she... um. ok.” She said as she was gestured to that it would just be a moment. Iris hoped that Aphrodite was in and not occupied. She really didn't want to bother the love goddess, but she really couldn't go on without any advice either. It was just going to get worse as Pothos got older if not addressed. He would need to learn to control his powers.

For now, she would wait patiently.

(Post a new comment)

callipygos
2012-04-16 02:51 am UTC (link)

Aphrodite stretched slowly on her bed. The mortal she had taken to bed with her was still passed out. Perhaps he was just sleeping, but it was more likely that he had passed out. It was so hard to find a mortal that could keep up with her needs. She was going to have to go visit Ares again soon. Or her husband if Ares was out making war somewhere.

The attendant came in after giving a soft knock and told Dite that she had a visitor. Another attendant held out a light robe as Love got out of bed. She must admit, she was a little surprised when she was told who the visitor was. Hera’s messenger did not seem to be there on any official business. Dite had an idea what it was about then.

“It’s about time,” she muttered softly.

The love goddess made her way to the other room, pausing only long enough to pick up a goblet of wine. She wasn’t trying to keep her guest waiting; she just hated being rushed. Besides, she was always thirsty after sex.

“Iris, darling. So sorry to keep you waiting.” Dite lightly kisses the Rainbow’s cheek before she settled down on one of her temple’s many couches. “You look bothered about something. That can give you wrinkles, darling.”

(Reply to this) (Thread)

eiris_iris
2012-04-17 12:31 pm UTC (link)

Iris sighed. She wasn't particularly concerned about wrinkles. Nor gray hair, though between her husband and her son she was pretty sure if she was going to get it, she'd have it soon. Aphrodite looked, well rather like one would expect Aphrodite to look. Tousled. Refreshed. And perhaps with a slight scent of sex lingering around her. Maybe that was what made so many other goddesses uncomfortable around her -Love's openness with her sexuality. Personally, Iris didn't care, but that was neither here nor there and only partly related to her visit today.

Well, maybe more than partly. “Bothered is an understatement,” she said quietly and sipped her wine. Then it occurred to her to apologize to Aphrodite for calling on her with no notice. “I'm sorry if I'm interrupting something. I would have scheduled a meeting had I thought this could wait even one more minute.” Scheduled. Iris was so accustomed to doing things in such an organized fashion it sometimes felt foreign to not lay things out before her and select things with proper planning.

“I won't beat around the bush, but let me preface all this with saying that no matter what I may say today, no matter how distressed I am, make no question that as to my affections for him. I love my son completely. As I'm sure Zephyrus does. As all parents should.” Iris uncharacteristically fidgeted just a bit. Hera was likely going to be furious with her for not coming to her first.

Oh well, she'd cross that bridge when she came to it.

“But as a parent,” she continued, “challenges arise. But we adapt, we learn and we pass our knowledge down in the hopes that our children will understand and grow.” The Rainbow took a sip of the wine before looking at Aphrodite desperately. “And I wouldn't come here unless I thought it was of dire need, but you have raised many children and I find myself... Zephyrus and I find ourselves in a bit of a challenging situation that we're not sure how to correct.”

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

callipygos
2012-04-28 09:47 pm UTC (link)

Aphrodite sat up a little straighter. This was more serious than she thought. Anyone that starts a conversation stating that they loved their child was definitely serious. Dite would not diminish Iris’ worry by making light of this. Whatever was bothering the Rainbow might be more than what Dite had imagined it to be.

“No one has ever questioned your love for your child,” Love assured her. “I have seen little Pothos and he seems to be very happy and healthy. He has the most adorable wings.” Iris might not have as many children as Aphrodite or even Hera did, but Dite really had no reason to think that she was a bad mother in anyway. Though, in Love’s opinion, the boy did need more playmates.

Ah-ha. Maybe that is what this challenging situation was. It could be difficult for the boy to accept. Eros always had issues when it came up. But it usually ended with everyone happy.

“Iris, darling, are you and Zephyrus going to have another baby?” She reached over and took Iris’ hands. “It can be difficult to explain to a young child and I would expect there to be some jealousy once he realizes he won’t be the center of your attention any longer. My Eros is always jealous of his siblings when they are born. But he quickly loves them and I am certain Pothos will be alright with this.”

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

eiris_iris
2012-04-29 10:08 pm UTC (link)

“Creation, no.” It wasn't even that Iris hadn't considered having another child, all mothers did occasionally entertain the notion, but the timing would be poor. What with this still being relatively close on the tail of Zephyrus' infidelity with Podarge. It wasn't far enough behind them where Iris would be comfortable bringing another child into the world. Not to mention Iris wasn't entirely sure Pothos wasn't the cause behind Zephyrus' infidelity. She would never blame her child directly, but there was suspicion.

She shook her head. “Not that I haven't entertained the idea, and I'm sure Pothos would be fine... especially now that he has half-brothers. But that's not my concern.” Well, it was, but it had been mostly dealt with. She was still dealing with it. She would forever have to deal with it. Her treacherous sister and her bastard sons.

“I'm afraid that my concern,” she lifted the wine goblet again and spoke over the lip of the goblet, “lays in where I fear his purview resides.” The Rainbow took a long drink of the wine before lowering it again.

Then she thought perhaps she should explain a bit further. “We never thought much about where Poth's talents may reside and figured he would come into his powers as he grew older. But with Rainbow and Wind, one would expect... certain... results. Certain qualities in a child of such a union.” Iris fidgeted with the stem of the goblet. “One would expect him to be a weather god of some kind. But... Zephyrus and I have suspicions of otherwise.”

She paused a moment, “He doesn't seem to care for it when Zephyrus and I quarrel. No child does, I imagine. But he seems to have discovered a talent for... getting us distracted from our fight.” Iris wasn't quite sure how to put it, short of just coming out and saying it in a blatant way. “And Zephyrus and I find ourselves... later... perplexed as to how we went from fighting to intertwining.”

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

callipygos
2012-05-01 03:46 am UTC (link)

Now this was getting interesting. She was a bit disappointed that there wasn’t another child on the way. Iris and Zephyrus really did make beautiful babies. She had seen Pothos once or twice before and no one could deny that he was going to grow up to be very, very handsome. Just like his father.

But the true reason for Iris’ visit was intriguing to say the least. And something Aphrodite had a thought about since those very few times she had met the boy. She hadn’t been at all sure about it, because, as Iris said, everyone expected Pothos to be a weather god. But still, she had felt something.

“So you and Zephyrus go from fighting to having sex and neither of you can remember how? Many times a heated argument can lead to heated passion in the bedchambers. But there is usually some memory of how that happened.” How many times had she and Ares used arguing as foreplay? Bit that was because is was more like the war god’s nature. Iris and her wind were not known to be terribly violent people. If it had been that blustery North wind, Dite may feel differently, but not with these two.

“I suppose that it is possible that the love you and your husband feel for each other may have influenced your baby’s area of influence,” she said, mostly thinking out loud. “I do confess that I may have felt a bit of…. What’s the right word? Kinship, maybe, with the boy the one time I met him. But I forgot about it and assumed it was due to some relation on our twisted family tree. But it could be more than that.”

The thought of an erote having a different mother than she was not something she had thought possible. But she might be jumping to conclusions here. They couldn’t be absolutely certain about the boy just yet.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

eiris_iris
2012-05-07 12:03 am UTC (link)

“That's,” Iris started to say it was what she was afraid of, but she stopped herself. That would be an unnecessary insult on Aphrodite and really, Iris had nothing against her. She just wasn't sure she wanted her son to grow up to be an erote. “That's what I'm thinking might be the issue, actually. Pothos has actually admitted that he likes it when Zephyrus and I are as he put it... “happy” and had also admitted that he's able to make us that sort of “happy.” What other conclusion can I come to?”

She looked down. It was really and uncomfortable conversation to have to have, but it needed to be had. There was no way she was prepared to handle the sort of trouble he might be without proper guidance. And Iris didn't think either she or Zephyrus were equipped to provide the guidance Pothos needed without getting advice from someone who had going through the trials of raising and erote through adolescence and into manhood.

Iris sighed and looked back up. “He obviously has some talents, but I don't know... he needs to learn to control his power and all the responsibility that comes with it.” The Rainbow frowned. “I don't like asking for help, or advice... and I generally prefer to do things on my own but Zephyrus and I are at a loss.”

It felt like she was failing as a mother in some way. Like she should automatically know how and what to teach him. Like some sort of instinct should take over and explain everything to her. Except she hadn't a clue. “I come to you for advice. What do I do?”

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

callipygos
2012-05-17 03:37 pm UTC (link)

What should she do? That was quite a question. Aphrodite could not remember a time when someone had come to her for advice on how to raise a child. She supposed that they usually went to Hera about that. But not everyone had a potential erote as a child.

“I suppose that the first thing we should do is narrow down what his talents might be,” she suggested. It was actually a good place to start. If the boy were just able to manipulate his parents into not arguing or fighting, that would be one thing. If he actually influencing their sex drives, then that was something she should know about.

“Let’s start fairly simple, shall we?” Where to begin? “When you think he makes you ‘happy’, how do you feel? Is your love for Zephyrus enhanced? That would be the easiest, if he were simply a vessel for love. Much like my darling Eros.” Eros would probably like having a playmate with the same abilities and close to the same age.

“Or is it more of a urge to rip off you clothing and have each other right where you are standing?” That was how it usually was with her and Ares. She did love a man that could take charge. Sometimes. What the boy could do was important.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

eiris_iris
2012-05-30 01:18 am UTC (link)

“It's more like I feel as if my skin is on fire and every touch just enhances that. And in that state when Zephyrus and I do stop what we're doing it just takes over... it's the most passionate and intense feeling in the world that I'd swear I lose consciousness because I don't really think about anything. We just do it. Like it's all... enhanced.” Iris wasn't sure how to really explain it. It was such an incredible feeling.

It couldn't be something Pothos controlled, could it? She had her suspicions, but the more she talked to Aphrodite about it the more ridiculous it seemed. Pothos couldn't possibly have any affect on Iris and Zephyrus' sex life, could he?

No. His mother was the rainbow, his father the west wind. It was illogical. Though, it wasn't like logic always came into play with these things.

“This doesn't make sense at all does it?” She asked, convinced it sounded as ludicrous to Aphrodite as it did to herself.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

callipygos
2012-06-11 04:28 am UTC (link)

Aphrodite closed her eyes and smiled as Iris described her sexual encounter with Zephyrus. It sounded like such a gloriously passionate encounter. She was going to have to keep an eye on the west wind and his lovely rainbow. They were more sexual than she ever gave them credit for.

“Actually, darling, I think it might make quite a bit of sense,” she said, opening her eyes again. Dite started fitting the pieces together in her mind. The feelings Iris and her husband felt were mostly likely not naturally enhanced. Combine that with the feeling Love herself got off the boy and it could only mean one thing.

“I believe you son may be an erote, Iris.” She said, giving voice to her thoughts. “Not all the little love gods come from me. Though they usually are the best of them.” Her darling Eros was still the best of all and always would be.

The next step was terribly logical. “I should spend some time with your son. Find out if he is a little love god.” Dite smiled at the messenger. “There can never be too much love, now can there?”

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

eiris_iris
2012-06-28 01:17 am UTC (link)

Iris took a deep breath. It was as she feared, even Aphrodite suspected it just on the provided information alone. Not that there was anything inherently wrong with being a love god, it just wasn't what she had ever expected. No, there was nothing wrong with it and the Rainbow as sure she and Zephyrus would continue to love their son as they did now, regardless of where his talent lay.

“You have confirmed my suspicions,” she said quietly. “But I would appreciate your formal opinion after spending some time with my son.”

Iris took a few moments to just breathe. If her son was a love god and was responsible at least partially with the heartbreak she had sustained at her husband having sired two children on her sister, how did she reconcile that? How did she come to terms with it? Nothing would change the love she had for her son, of that she had no doubt, but would it change how she looked at him?

“I have no experience with this,” Iris said a moment later. “Pothos is my only child and likely to remain that way. How do I teach him, how to I raise him... when I have no idea how to help him control his abilities and use them ethically?”

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

callipygos
2012-07-06 06:13 am UTC (link)

She felt bad for the Rainbow. It was never easy when your child surprised you with their abilities. After Eros and Anteros, Aphrodite had assumed that all her children would be erotes. But that did not turn out to be the case. Regardless, she loved all her children, as she was certain Iris loved her son.

“It can be difficult to raise a child under ideal circumstances,” Love said, putting down her wine. “Children are always full of surprises. And this one must be quite a surprise to you. I’m sure we all thought the little darling would be a weather or sky god of some sort. An erote is quite a distance from what you and Zephyrus are familiar with.”

Dite stood up and started pacing. The simple movement helped her think. She had a thought about the situation, but she had to figure out the best way to voice it. Love was fairly certain that she knew what Iris’ reaction would be. She knew she would react the same way if it were any of her children.

She stopped pacing and sat back down on her couch. “Perhaps, once we know for certain one way or the other, perhaps then I could help with your son. I could spend time with him and teach him how to use his abilities. He could even possible study with my sons, the other erotes.” Aphrodite knew the best thing would be for her to take the boy into her temple and finish raising him. But she just could not find the words to ask Iris to give up her only son.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

eiris_iris
2012-07-08 01:53 pm UTC (link)

Iris thought for a moment, she was conflicted on the subject and it showed on her face. On one hand, Pothos was her son and she shouldn't be having anyone else really help raise her child. On the other hand, there was the saying that it took a village to raise a child and there was no reason Iris shouldn't ask for assistance from someone if they were more skilled in the area in question.

“I would like for you to spend some time with my son,” she said after a long moment's thought. “But I don't want to raise an alarm. Perhaps you can come by some afternoon for a drink and bring one of your sons along. I'm afraid he doesn't get nearly enough interaction with young gods. Maybe he'll open up to one of them, and you'd get a chance to see him for yourself.” It would be nice for Pothos to have someone to talk to, to play with. He wasn't exactly a little boy anymore, but he wasn't yet a man either and while Iris liked well-behaved children, children should still be children.

Which generally meant playing with other children. Unfortunately, Iris and Zephyrus had not decided to give him a sibling, but if Pothos was a love god, there would be many other young gods for him to interact with.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

callipygos
2012-07-15 02:20 am UTC (link)

Iris actually had a very good idea. Aphrodite could visit with Pothos and really see what he can do. It was better than Love just taking the boy. There was always the chance that she was wrong about hiss abilities. It could be complete coincidence that his parents fell into a bit of passion when he was wishing for them to stop fighting. Unlikely, but possible.

Which one of her boys should she bring with her? Eros was too old and might be a little too much love for Iris’ family. She could take Anteros, but it would depend on the mood he was in the day they visited. Himeros was a possibility. So was Harmonia for that matter. She wasn’t an erote, but she usually got along well with other children. But there was a more obvious choice she was surprised she hadn’t thought of first.

“I’ll bring Hedylogos with me for a visit in a few days,” Dite said. “Hedy is a sweet boy and a bit shy himself. He doesn’t have many friends other than the other erotes right now. So no matter what the outcome, I do hope the boys become friends.”

She reached over and gently placed her hand on the Rainbow’s arm. “Your son will be fine, darling. We will figure this out and make certain that he is cared for through this. And you and your husband, as well.”

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

eiris_iris
2012-07-17 12:44 pm UTC (link)

Even with Aphrodite's comfort, which is what Iris knew all of this was, she was still unsure. It felt so much like giving up to ask Love for help. But even with that feeling poisoning her gut, Iris knew she was being the best mother she could be and part of being the best mother she could be was knowing when she was in over her head and asking for advice and/or aid.

Perhaps her son wouldn't end up being an erote. Perhaps this was all just some strange coincidence. Though, if it was, Zephyrus was going to have some serious explaining to do as to why he felt the need to sire children on her sister. But if Pothos was an erote, well... she was going to love him just the same and figure out how to teach him to be the best he could be at being what he was in a wholly ethical sort of way.

If nothing else, maybe at least Pothos would make a friend in Hedylogos. Her son needed friends. He needed to start interacting more with other gods and goddesses.

“I know,” she finally answered Aphrodite. “And thank you. I'll look forward to your visit.” It would give Iris peace of mind to have a definitive answer on it.

(Reply to this) (Parent)