InsaneJournal

Who: Hephaestus and Atlas
What: Negotiations Part 2
Where: Downtown Miami
When: 9/25 Noon
Warnings: None



Atlas crouched in a shadowed alleyway in Downtown Miami. He looked up, growling at the noonday Miami sun. Helios was no longer at his chariot, but Atlas silently cursed the name of his fair cousin as he crouched in the thin shadows, feeling perfectly exposed. He could hear distant police sirens, but they were not as distant as he would like. Surely those mortal authorities were astonished at how quickly their prey eluded them on foot. He smiled a little. Even the so-called automobiles had not kept up. He had outmaneuvered them completely, but his gut told him he was not free yet.

He looked at his hand. His smile fell into a sneer. He clutched a Golden Delicious apple. All this noise over one piece of fruit? Were the apples truly golden, perhaps Atlas could understand. He shook his head. These mortals placed importance on the oddest things. Speaking of mortals, Atlas put his thoughts back to how to escape the ones on his tail.

"My, my," Hephaestus tsked from the mouth of the alley. "What a sorry state of affairs this is. Have you been a bad boy again, Atlas?" Hephaestus hadn't planned on teasing the Titan, but he found he couldn't help himself. All the frustration Atlas had caused him, combined with the tenuous position the Titan was in, made it impossible to resist. Not the best strategy of persuasion, but it's not like being nice had worked any better.

"Spare me, son of Zeus." Atlas spared Hephaestus but a glance before continuing to scan the area for routes of escape. "I have no time for your prattling this day." The drone of the sirens continued. Atlas cocked his head, trying to discern if they were coming closer. He would need to move. Soon.

"No, you certainly don't," Hephaestus agreed, nodding in mock seriousness. "And for what? A piece of fruit?" Hephaestus tsked again. "This is no way for a Titan to secure his meals." Hephaestus shook his head and prepared for the hard sell. "If you only would listen to me, we could avoid all this. I have prepared a place for you were your needs will be met and you will be able to use your time constructively." Reason was a losing argument with Atlas, but Hephaestus hoped that Atlas' current predicament would weigh on his decision.

Atlas turned back to Hephaestus, but there was no look of acceptance on his face. His eyes burned with rage.

"Need?" he seethed, "I took this apple because I wanted it! It pleased me to have it!" Atlas flung his arm wide, as if to encompass the landscape around him. "These mortals are the same chattel they have always been. I will use them as I see fit. There is nothing they can do to stop me!" Atlas punctuated his statement by quickly hopping wall to wall until he was on the rooftops.

Hephaestus craned his neck to look up at Atlas. Apparently this conversation was over, but Hephaestus wanted the last word this time.

"And yet you run from them." Hephaestus left undisguised scorn in his voice. "Calm yourself, fool. The sirens aren't even for your petty crime. No one cares about that apple. And in that way, you two are alike. No one would weep if I blew your head apart right now. Not my family, not any of your so-called 'friends', no one. Only I am reaching out my hand to help you. Only I am giving you the chance to have a life. A real life! But my patience will not last forever." Without another word, Hephaestus stalked away. Think on that, oaf. Try not to hurt yourself. Jumping into his roadster, he pulled into Miami traffic without looking back.



Summary: Atlas has run afoul of the law. Again. So, Hephaestus thinks it's a good idea to try his offer on Atlas. Again. It goes about as well as you'd expect.