Ari Patrowski found something worth fighting for. (too_easy) wrote in yegods, @ 2012-08-16 20:38:00
The ties that bind. WHO Ari Patrowski & Athena WHERE A small gym in Chinatown WHEN Aug 17th, around 12:30am RATING PG SUMMARY Mother and son have a meeting of the minds. STATUS Complete
The thump of fist on bag made a rhythmic tattoo that echoed off the walls of the gym. The small room in the Chinatown fitness center had a number of sandbags hanging from the ceiling, but only one of them was in use at this hour. Ari beat out a 1-2, 1-2. He came to this workout center whenever he couldn't make it to the gym in the Catacombs or didn't feel the need for the weapons that he could only use there. It was particularly useful when he felt preoccupied or couldn't sleep, like tonight. After staring up at his ceiling for a few hours, Ari had rolled out of bed, thrown on his track pants and a wifebeater, and headed to the nearby center to focus himself through physical activity.
It was no wonder his mind was a mess like it was. It was pretty clear that there wasn't much time left between now and the confrontation Ari had been working towards. And still he had not said a thing to Brady or Gus or Luz. He wasn't sure how to broach it. He wasn't even sure if he could before it was absolutely imminent. That left no time for goodbyes, but it at least extended his time with them for as long as possible. He could not deny a sense of guilt for keeping such a huge secret from them, even if his reasoning was noble.
Ari was also feeling the crunch as far as making a plan. There had been no headway with tracking the God Eater. No surprise, perhaps, since it had been killed by the son of Susanoo. That had been their only lead; now Ari was at a loss as to how they could defeat the gods causing all this. There was always the release of Chaos, but it was an irresponsible foundation for a plan. It would be too easy to destroy everything he wanted to protect. Perhaps Simon did not care about that, provided his foes were broght down, but it was an important distinction to Ari.
He slammed his fists into the bag again in a predetermined pattern. halfway through the motions, his skin prickled, the sensation strong and familiar. Catching his breath he stopped his exercise. He steadied the bag and stopped its swinging, but did not turn around. "Well, it's been a while."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Athena liked to blend in with the mortal realm when she could. Flowing robes didn't really make sense in this environment, and unlike many of her fellow gods, she did not need to impress her demigod with a grand showy entrance. She was there, that was all he needed to know, anything else was a useless exercise. These were not the days for useless exercises. Athena had, over the years, been in many, many gyms of all various sizes and states of cleanliness. Be it now, or back when Greece was king, the stale scent of human sweat and effort still stuck to the walls the same way. It was, she thought, one of the few constant things. The smell of sweat, and the smell of blood. Even the smell of books changed, which was really quite the tragedy. So few people read from papyrus these days.
"Too long, so it would seem," she said, walking slowly over to him, looking around the space, judging how well it was really fit for purpose. It lacked adequate ventilation. She stopped a few feet from Ari and looked at him. Her demigods were very clever, she was proud of that. And a vast array of clever, some used it well, others used it foolishly. And still some others wasted it. Those were her least favorite. Ari, was not one of her least favorite, but he was certainly becoming the most troublesome.
"I suppose there is something you'd like to ask me, Aristotle," she said, standing in her tailored suit, hands held together in front of her, and looking more something like a patient college professor than a goddess. Ari may never have had the experience of skipping a lecture and then running into the professor on campus, but he would have an understanding of the look on the professor's face.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Ari let out a silent, amused snort at the familiar tone of voice before turning around to face Athena. It had been a few years since the last time she had bothered to visit, but, of course, she hadn't changed at all. There was that same stern look, impeccably neat attire, and air of condescension. She wasn't dressed for training, although she could change that at whim, so Ari assumed she was here to lecture him, as she had done many times in his childhood. His expression was friendly and unconcerned, but he made no move to get closer to Athena. There had never been much affection between them, especially since Ari had rebelled against her control at a young age. Yet he did not hate her, and he never had. Facing her now, no anger pumped through him. Instead, a blanket of indifference settled upon him, his constant defense when it came to his mother.
"Oh?" he replied casually, wiping his forearm across his brow to keep the accumulated sweat from dripping into his eyes. "Having a question never really drew a visit before. From my experience, you usually come around when I've done something that makes you a bit tetchy." He smiled at Athena, his posture relaxed, but his arms now crossed in front of his chest. "But if you say I have something to ask, I reckon it must be true. So I'll go with the most obvious: what brings you down to Chinatown at such an hour? I highly doubt this is a social call, aye."
~~~~~~~~~
"It doesn't do anyone good to ask a question you already know the answer to, in fact it wastes time," she told him. And time was becoming increasingly precious. There was a whole world of things going on that he did not know about, and yet he felt the need to mess about in it. Athena had, actually, put great pains in making sure Aristotle became someone great. Greatness was never met without difficulty, hardship, and loss, so naturally he had not understood. But he was, she thought, stumbling about on the path to greatness. From what she had seen and learned, her son was attempting a great feat, but was so lost in what was going on, he was only likely to stumble and fall. A very clever failure. She was more disappointed in his stumbling than she was in what she believed he aimed to do.
And although Athena was by no means a traditional mother... and had no desire to be, she and other mothers did have that one trait in common. Athena was not angry. She was never angry with her children. She was just very, very disappointed.
She did not move toward him either, maintaining the distance that had always been there. "And I don't get 'tetchy,'" she informed him. "I simply see a plan moving off course and I attempt to correct it. And I see that now, Aristotle. I look at you and I see a dingy headed out to sea because it does not see the storm. I see the Charge of the Light Brigade."
~~~~~~~~~
The pleasant smile lingered on Ari's mouth as he reached up to scratch idly at his jawline, his expression one he might give a friend over coffee. When not facing his mother, Ari was perhaps more similar to her than he liked to admit. He too did not like to waste time where it was unwarranted, although on what it was deserved was always a point of contention between him and the Goddess of Wisdom. Here, confronted with the pinnacle of logic and directive, he found himself wanting to wander off the conversational path and force Athena to drag him back. It was an immature response, he knew, but no less appealing for it. Its drawback was that it would elongate the encounter.Ari wasn't sure the pleasure was worth the tedium at this time of night.
"Ah, a plan moving off course," he repeated, cocking his head slightly. Her human form was short, but he knew the strength that she could call. "I see. I've never been all the great about following your plans, have I? Given, I've not had much of a choice sometimes." He gazed at Athena as his mind whirled, his grey eyes a mirror image of her own. There was only one good reason for her to be interceding; she must have figured out his collusion with Simon and their determination to break the power of the gods over men. It was only a matter of time, really; after he had had to invoke her name to earn Saleh's trust, Ari had been waiting for her to catch on to his actions.
"So how do you intend to get your plan back on track, if I can ask?"
~~~~~~~~~~
She was fairly certain that her plans for Ari, and what he interpreted her plans to be for him, were in reality very different. But he was young and half-human, so she supposed it was his nature to be confused. It was not really her nature to explain things, it was not her fault when others did not understand, they would either need to learn or leave. It seemed like Ari was attempting the latter route, which was troublesome. And disappointing. Perhaps her relationships with her children would have less distance if she did explain, at least once, her desire for them. Be brilliant. Be great. Be brave. Be heroes. Among her tomes, her debates, her philosophy, Athena took joy in seeing her children being great. She often did not care in which direction, in what manner their greatness manifested, as long as they were amazing, as long as they carved themselves a place in the world.
That was not, to say, that Athena wanted this plan of Ari's, as she understood it, to succeed. She did not consider such a thing to be great, and in that respect Ari had stepped out of plan. He was heading for a disaster he was too ill-informed to see. Athena had put too much time and effort into the boy, she had hurt him too much with her masked good intentions to watch him throw it away. Which in her mind was was exactly what he aimed to do.
"I will not insult you by appealing to your human heart," which she had always found too mysterious and chaotic to try and utilize anyway. "But you must realize, Aristotle, the role we have in this realm. We are not, as you may suspect, detached. We have our fingers in the soil, our voices in the oceans, and our hair in the wind. We call this realm the human realm, you know, not because it belongs solely to you, but simply because you are here."
~~~~~~~~~~
Ari listened, his face a mask of polite attention, not belying any of his true reactions to her words. They were not so much a revelation as an interesting choice of argument. It was natural that she would appeal to his logic; it was the part of him that connected to her and the realm over which she presided. Ari knew that when it came to arguments of logic, no matter how competent and informed he was, Athena would always win. The gods were, perhaps, fallible, but in their respective areas of patronage, they were unmatched.
It was one reason Ari took so much to the human side of himself, the side that Athena could neither perceive nor understand. It was her great weakness and ultimately what confounded their relationship. For Ari humanity carried more potential than logic: it held passion and growth and the unpredictable. It worked outside of the boundaries of logic. It was exciting, and it was powerful. Whee his divinely-given logic was a boon when dealing with humans, so was his mundane-given humanity his greatest asset against Athena.
"That is nothing I don't already know. However, just because a world may be shared does not legitimize the subjugation of one occupant over another. The world is ever evolving, something that is difficult for those of eons to see. When one is so tied to tradition and a certain status quo, one misses the opportunity to direct change. You are stagnant, you and your kind, clinging to rules of interaction that have deteriorated. The denizens of this world deserve to be their own keepers, not puppets on a string." Ari delivered this calmly, his posture unmoving.
~~~~~~~~
Athena adjusted her glasses, almost an unconscious reply to how things had changed, how the world had evolved. She had never worn glasses when mankind was young. Now mankind was stumbling into adolescence, it seemed. Even being insulting. 'Stagnant' indeed. Athena was never stagnant. Athena was wisdom, philosophy, ideas. The least stagnant thing in any realm. An idea which does not move and grow was as useless as no idea to begin with. Athena blinked at him, slightly, at the concept that the gods had not seen how the world had evolved. That was nearly foolishness. The gods knew it the most. Well, the ones that weren't distracted by blood or shiny things. There was a time when Athena's children announced their presence with pride and were honored, beloved. There was a time when demigods were thankful for their gifts, thankful to be more than the people around them. There was a time when people acted in the gods' names and were remembered. A time when Athena had great cities built and named in her honor, and now the only things named for her were the daughters of pretentious academics and various cats. So many cats. She didn't understand the cats.
The human race had been separating themselves from the gods for thousands of years. If Ari did not think the gods had noticed, he really was not giving them enough credit.
"I cannot speak for all gods of all pantheons. Nor should you, Aristotle, look at me and see all gods of all pantheons. We are as unique as the demigods we create. Some, I will agree, can act quite foolishly and, indeed, selfishly when it comes to this realm." Her father immediately came to mind. "But is it from those gods you wish to sever your strings, or is it from us altogether? I believe, perhaps, you are reacting to a very vocal minority. Those gods disconnected from their pantheons, mostly likely."
Athena closed her eyes for a moment. Rebellious children. Rebellions were always such a hassle. You either had to appease or crush, and even then rebellions were nearly impossible to extinguish. Perhaps her son would always feel this way, no matter what she said or did, or how he grew. She hoped, at least, that had he realized if she wanted to fully control him, to have him be a stringed up puppet for her to play with, he would be. She would have raised him under complete control, leaving no space for him to think of turning against her. Had Athena meant to, she could have controlled him mind, body and soul. But she did not want that, she wanted him to think for himself. She just also wanted him to be ready for where his thoughts led him.
~~~~~~~
Ari's indifferent mask fell slightly as the edges of his mouth turned downwards. Did Athena think this was just an amplification of the petty struggle between mother and son? She certainly seemed to be implying that he was directing his youthful disdain towards her intentions at the gods as a whole. His eyes narrowed slightly as he stared at her. "This isn't about me," he said quietly, his arms falling to his sides. "Nor is it specifically about you. Perhaps you and I have never seen eye to eye, but I recognize that you have never sought to harm me. Our relationship is not that different from many normal families: a demanding parent, a child who wants to forge his own path. If this were about me, there would be no action. I went for years without delving into the politics of the divine and was content.
"But I came to New York, and I learned to love. I found people who made me grow and explore sides of myself that I had only considered in theory. Mum and Julia, they taught me the basics, but the friends I met here changed me. They showed me what it meant to truly belong to a place. They became my family and gave me the only reason I've ever had to stay put. They made every moment of my life worthwhile. And these people, these treasures, are constantly being used and mistreated and thrown about as part of an agenda that they have no say in. They feel helpless against it, and I can't watch that anymore."
His voice, still quiet, had sharpened, and his gaze stayed trained on Athena. "It's not something I expect you to understand. It is the human side of myself that I choose to honor, because it is my human side that has given me so much value. You have given me gifts in the past to protect that, and for that I am grateful. Beyond the traditional parent-son conflict, I have no quarrel with you. My aim is protection for those I love, and respect where currently there is none. If you can grant that of your own will, it would be an admirable thing. But, as you say, you would not be representative of every god, aye."
~~~~~~~~~
It was hard for Athena to comprehend family. Which should not be held against her, really, considering her own family. Athena was surrounded by bickering, cheating, flight-of-fancy fools with great power who abused it and each other. And she had heard differing opinions on family and love in the human realm. Some swore by it as the cure for all, others blamed it for everything. This love that Ari spoke of, she acknowledged, seemed a powerful and volatile force, and that was in part why Athena did not trust it. It was strong but unpredictable. Addictive but destructive. It could never be properly factored into a situation. And now it seemed her son was being motivated by it. He was right, Athena could not properly understand that. She had not, really, ever acted out of the best interest of someone else. No one had really proven themselves of such... devotion from her. Except perhaps, her children, and then only rarely. They were not to be dependent on her. They were to do for themselves.
She sighed out through her nose. Her son could give a speech rather well, his motives seemed pure to him, but the situation seemed to grow more troublesome. "It is difficult to respect that which is protected, Aristotle. The world has changed, it has grown soft. There are so few great people in the world, there are so few heroes. There are so few legends. I do not, nor does any god with whom I am acquainted, respect soft people. Some gods play games, true, but they are not all games. Some are tests. Others are chances to prove greatness. Perhaps the only chance to be great that your treasures will ever encounter in a soft world.
"You are different, I am sure you know this. I did not teach you to be soft. I never protected you, Aristotle, I never wanted to. I never needed to. So I knew with confidence that you could overcome the obstacles set before you. I trusted your human heart to remedy the mess Eros put the world into, even. I never coddled you. I never denied you a chance to be great. I never denied you a chance to be legendary."
Athena closed her eyes for a moment. "But the gods whose actions motivate you, I believe. The ones who make mischief and play games. I have no sympathy for them. They are pains, I grant that as fact. As much for us as for these treasures of yours. And while I acknowledge they serve some purpose in the world, it would be a lie to say I would mind terribly if they were not around. But as you have not sought to include me into the details of your plan, I must wonder how you intend to capture the bad olives alone, or if you intend to burn the entire grove."
~~~~~~~~~
Ari watched his mother as she spoke, noting little quirks that belied her disapproval and frustration. They were familiar to him, present at every meeting with the goddess. Usually they felt like small victories; indications that he was independent from her and her rigidity. This time, however, Ari found himself wanting Athena to at last understand him. It was entirely possible that this would be their final encounter. He knew very well that she would never intercede on his behalf in the coming battle, and he would never want her to. It would be nice, for once, to make her appreciate what he was: not a failed son, but a man with purpose.
It was a lot to ask, though, when that gap had never been bridged. It was a lot to hope that it might happen this time. He rubbed the thumb of his right hand over the wrapped knuckles of his left. "I don't believe that it should be your right to test us any longer," he replied, eyes falling to his hands and back up to Athena. "We've been tested enough. I seek to earn the right for us to devise our own tests and our own standards, and for those to be kept and respected. It is not your place to judge our greatness. We can craft our own tales and make our own heroes."
The topic of his plans was a sensitive one, especially since their one lead was no more. He had no idea how he and Simon and the others were going to accomplish their lofty goals. However, the last thing he was going to do was look for help from Athena or any other god. He smiled slightly at her. "It would be utter hypocrisy to come to you for this. Of course I haven't included you, and I will not. This is about men earning their right to freedom from the gods' judgment and whim. But don't worry. It has never been my intention to tear down every one of you. Besides being unnecessary, I'd be foolish to think I had a chance against all the pantheons. You should know better than anyone that I am not a fool. I know what I must accomplish, and spite is not my motivation. I will not be goaded into more than is needed."
~~~~~~~~
Athena continued to stand, perfectly still, hands held in front of her, as unmoving as a judge before a defendant on trial. She was not motherly, by nature or practice, but she was fairly certain that if one asked any mother, be her human or divine, if her son was a fool, she would mostly certainly say 'yes.' Brilliant, perhaps. Talented, brave, kind, clever. He could be decorated in achievements and titles and medals. But was he a fool? Most certainly yes.
Perhaps that was her fault. She did not admit fault easily... or aloud, but perhaps it was. Perhaps she had neglected one lesson for another. There was a time this particular lesson did not need to be taught, it was known from birth and reinforced everyday. But those were times past, Athena had perhaps not realized how important it was to now teach something that had once been everyday fact. But she had said it. She had told him, he had just not listened. The gods were the air and the water, they were flowers in bloom, they were poetry and music. The gods were love, and hate. It seemed her son was set to separate himself and his world from the gods, but the gods and this world were not strangers, they were not separate. There was no 'our,' everything was shared. It was easier to see this when the humans loved the gods more, but now that the gods were nearly forgotten, and it seemed so was their place in the world.
And if he thought the gods would part with anymore of this world than what had already been taken from them, her son was going to be rudely surprised.
"You seem to fancy yourself a revolutionary. Overthrowing the monarchy and bringing democracy and self-governing to your people." She paused. "You need a much longer beard to be Moses, Aristotle. And I wish I had time to better illustrate to you the one great flaw in your ideal, but the fact is there are many lesser flaws crawling up through the cracks that threaten to cause you to fall. There is war coming, Aristotle. A war we will fight, though I do not believe we will get a chance to choose the battlefield. It may fall to earth." She looked him over again, remembering back to when he was young, because even Athena was prone to looking at her children and seeing children. "Your treasures are in more trouble than you know."
~~~~~~~~~
Ari chuckled softly at Athena's jibe. No, they were talking past each other again, as they always had. Just as the gods would not want to relinquish their self-granted right to play with the lives of men, nor would Athena be likely to let go of her sense of superiority for even the briefest moment; a moment in which she might be able to consider things from his side. He doubted she had ever thought about the roles being switched. But they were more equal than Athena or the other gods might admit. Their power was sustained by the reverence of humans. Without it they were nothing but stories of forgotten idols, hidden in a dusty book. Perhaps a stand would finally remind them that they owed just as much to men as men did to them.
The wry smile melted off his face with her dire words, and Ari shook his head. "Skirmishes have already broken out here. Why wouldn't this become the battleground? Whatever claim you may have staked in this world, you have another realm that you can retreat to. But this earth is all we men have. I won't let it be ruined by those who have forgotten or perhaps never recognized its value." His arms crossed again, and he straightened, looking down on Athena.
"I know that they are in trouble. And no matter how deep that trouble is, I will defend them. That is my purpose, Mum." He shrugged. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."
~~~~~~~~~
Athena blinked up at him for a moment, folding her arms over her own chest, unintentionally mirroring him. Perhaps this was the point they were meant to reach. All of this talk leading to one thing they could really agree on. "I won't let this world be ruined either, Aristotle," she told him quite simply. "You must never doubt the..." Yes, she paused before this word. "...Love the gods have for this world, and for your treasures. It is possible to belong to more than just one place, I know you understand that. You would not retreat to New Zealand when the country we now stand in is threatened. Nor would many gods abandon Earth and leave it to ruin."
Her mouth formed a thin, tight straight line, as if there was something she was not permitting herself to say. "For me this world is especially... important. Other gods have godly children. I do not. All of my children stem from human brilliance. All of my children are of this realm. I may not hug, but to me even that means something. This world has raised my children when I am unable to. For that alone I appreciate it in a way you cannot yet understand."
Athena shook her head. "But that is a side issue, Aristotle. The war I am talking of is... dire. Strategies are... difficult. The gods have more to be concerned about than you and your friends, and you and your friends have more to be concerned about than the gods. You put mankind and the gods on opposing sides, but for this war that will not be a view you can afford to have."
~~~~~~~~~
It could hardly be called emotional on any scale, but Athena's words were the most Ari had ever heard from her regarding her feelings for her children and their world. His eyes widened slightly as she spoke. The goddess of wisdom and warfare was never going to be a great mother, and even these words just barely made the line between the love of family and concern for a prized possession. It was enough, however, for Ari to consider that he had perhaps judged his mother too harshly.Now, more than ever, he couldn't afford to hold on to the pettiness he had had growing up. Time was ticking; chances were quickly running out.
With a soft sigh, Ari dropped his arms and stepped closer to Athena, though not going so far as to touch her. "Perhaps you're right. What we're going into... I'm not so arrogant as to think men can defeat it on their own. Not even we who are somewhere in-between human and divine will be enough, I reckon. I think, in the end, it will come to us cooperating. Not controlling or serving, but working together. And that will take some sacrifice for many of the gods, recognizing that need, that equality. But I am more than willing to make it work. I never said that to earn our freedom we needed to burn every bridge. That's the surest way to destruction."
He sighed again, his hand reaching up for that old, familiar habit. "I reckon I've been a cocky little bastard in most of your dealings with me. And you're something of a rigid, unyielding bitch. And that's how we've gone about things. But it's silly, and things are too deep now to continue with that." He paused for a moment, eyes finding a spot on the wall, his brow furrowing slightly. When they returned to Athena, he continued, "So thank you. For all the gifts you've given me. I intend to do you proud, whether the method is what you hoped for or not."
~~~~~~~~~
Athena nodded, at least her son was looking at a bigger picture. It was hard for her to understand to what degree her children were motivated by their feelings. Mostly hate and anger, a lot of her children seemed motivated by hate and anger, she should try to analyse why. It probably had something to do with their human parent. But at least Ari seemed to be thinking at least semi-logically about it, looking beyond these actions to fixing things on a more global scale. More permanently.
"I won't say I condone your actions, Aristotle, especially since I do not know them yet. You are an individual, I raised you to be an individual and to think and act for yourself. I have never been so cruel as to limit the thoughts of any living creature. I only ask that you go into this with full knowledge of what you are getting into, and thinking clearly of the repercussions. Not just to you, for they will be great. Not just for your treasures, either. But I ask you to think of how your actions will affect the face of the entire realm, of all realms. I believe you seek to create a new order, a new world. I do not know what of that you will achieve, just be aware that it will not go to plan."
It seemed they had come to some form of agreement, or stalemate. She was not sure how to classify a conversation when it came to revealing personal things. Certainly not a debate anymore. She had come to warn him, and to scold, and had accomplished both of those. If things were turning emotional, it made logical sense that she should leave. But still, perhaps one last statement. "I never minded cocky bastards, just foolish ones."
She turned from him and took a few steps away toward the door, but paused and looked back. It seemed as though she were about to say something, but ultimately decided against it. She did not turn back again as she walked out the door and was gone.