Work Text:
Title: Interlude 02 - Sibling Rivalry
Author: Jo
Series: The "Interlude" series
Disclaimer: All the characters are my interpretation of characters that featured in Greek mythology. I do not own them; they belong to the Greek people. I do, very lightly, draw upon the interpretations shown in the shows Hercules and Xena which are owned by Renaissance pictures.
Note: Wildannuette set this as a challenge fic to get me writing. She wanted something that featured some form of sibling rivalry so this is what I came up with. I have no experience with children beyond looking after my cousins for half an hour or so a year so forgive me if anything about them is wrong such as how developed they are or how they behave, I'm guessing here ^^ Also, my knowledge on Greek mythology is small and from what I read online or in books and such so somethings may be wrong.
Thanks: I would like to thank Wildannuette for giving me something to write and for reading it over for me.
Summary: A little rivalry in the house of love
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Wrapping her arms protectively around her swollen belly Aphrodite gingerly got to her feet in a motion that lacked her usual grace and poise. Her body was rounded with the fullness of a well-advanced pregnancy; her belly strained over the two lives that slept within her, her breasts were heavy with milk and her skin glowing from happiness or nausea she was not sure which. Swaying slightly as she took a step away from her bed the Goddess placed one hand on top of her stomach and another on her back to steady herself before taking another step. She had been resting hoping the twins would follow suite, they had been constantly active since she had arisen with the dawn; when she heard a crash from the room next to her own where her children were playing. At the birth of Cupid it had been decided that Aphrodite would raise the children primarily though Ares was still as involved as he could be. The task of raising the future God was a daunting task but Aphrodite rose to the challenge and did what she thought was best for her son which included giving him a brother when herself and Ares became worried over his introversive behaviour. It had worked, at first, Cupid was smitten with his tiny winged sibling; that had all changed when Anteros was old enough to become mobile causing Cupid to become incredibly jealous which he was not afraid to show. The Goddess' haven of laughter and love had been turned into a stressful battlefield that even Ares feared to cross. When he came to spend time with the children he always left looking haggard and exhausted, it was an odious chore to look after the boys when they screamed and abused one another. Finally arriving in the doorway to the playroom Aphrodite surveyed the large, neutrally decorated room to see what had caused the noise. She found it when she spotted her youngest child huddled in one of the room's corners clutching a wooden horse that Ares had fashioned for him on his second birthday. Anteros' favourite story was the one about the Trojan horse so Ares had made him one, complete with a hollow stomach where Anteros could store his toy soldiers so they could trick the Trojan's when they entered the walls of Troy. It was Anteros' most cherished possession and it hurt Aphrodite to think that her eldest son had been so spiteful as to break it. She knew she was jumping to conclusions but in her experience if something of the other's broke it was their brother's fault somehow. Slowly making her way over to her son she noted that Cupid was sitting inside a castle he had made from hundreds of wooden blocks. It was an impression structure which, under normal circumstances, would have gained Cupid her congratulations but not today. Lowering herself down next to Anteros' she stroked his tiny, pale grey wings, "Baby, what happened?" she indicated the toy held close to his chest that upon closer inspection had been broken into three pieces and was missing some of its more detailed aspects. Anteros looked at his mother with large green eyes filled with tears then he looked down on his broken toy and sniffled pitifully, "It broke," he turned to stare hatefully at his older brother who matched his stare with an equally hateful look, "Cupid threw it into the wall!" "I did not!" Cupid screamed from across the room. He had leapt to his feet at Anteros' accusation; his hands were balled into fists and his fluffy, white wings were beating so hard that the top most blocks of his castle had been knocked away from their place. "You did too! You're just jealous because Daddy likes me more!" "He does not!" "Boys!" Aphrodite shouted startling both of them out of their petty squabble; their mother rarely raised her voice and when she did it meant trouble. "Sorry, Mum," they both muttered settling back down slightly though they still glared at one another. "Cupid, get your butt over here right now so we can sort this out." Pointing to the ground besides her Aphrodite rubbed the bridge of her nose with her spare hand hoping she didn't get a headache from their screaming match. At his mother's instructions Cupid fluttered his wings hard enough to gently lift himself out of the centre of the castle and float over to where Aphrodite wanted him to sit which he did with a sullen look distorting his face. "He started it," Cupid muttered. "Just tell me what happened, Cupid." Cupid sent his brother a triumphant look before beginning his dialogue; "I finished my scroll, the one you started to read to me about Cerberos? Do you remember? "Cerberus and the Naughty Boy?" You had to stop because of the babies," he patted his mother's stomach affectionately as Aphrodite smiled indulgently at him. "Well I finished the scroll which I put away like a good boy. Anteros was napping because he's small and needs to sleep a lot. I thought I'd carry on that painting we started last week. When Daddy came over and we started to decorate the walls with a mural of Olympus? I decided to carry it on, on my own. Daddy said I'd gotten a lot better since he last saw me. See? I did that part," he pointed towards a section of the playroom wall that depicted Hera's impressive temple on Olympus and her ornate gardens that surrounded it. I even included her pea ... pea ... her prettyful birdies," he beamed up at his mother, who ruffled his blond curls affectionately, "It is very good, Cupid but back to the story please." "Well I was doing that and Anteros must have woken up because the next thing I know he's drawing his silly little stick figures really close to my mural and then he wouldn't let me paint over them to finish the mural!" Aphrodite looked at the walls and saw that Cupid was telling the truth; the mural covered two thirds of the previously white walls while the other third was taking up by a mass of myriad coloured pictures obviously done by a child with little control over their Godly powers. "So what did you do when your brother wouldn't let you carrying on painting?" Aphrodite promoted. "Er ... I took his favourite toy and threw it into a wall." Cupid looked guiltily at his mother as his wings drooped slightly, "I know it was bad but I was angry." Suddenly his wings lifted as he flapped them hard and spoke in a self righteous tone, "It wouldn't have happened if the baby let me paint over his scribbling." "Settle down, Cupid. You must remember Anteros is younger than you and that he is still learning to control his powers. I remember when you first started drawing on the walls, do you remember? You weren't very good either but your Dad and I worked with you to help you gain control. We're doing the same with Anteros and soon he'll be able to help you finish your mural. He'd be able to help even quicker if you helped him too." Cupid looked at his mother shamefully then dropped his eyes and wings as he thought of what he'd done. He just got so angry and jealous sometimes that he lashed out usually at his brother who was what caused his anger by accident. It wasn't Anteros' fault that he was younger or that he needed more attention from their parents. Leaning over he pecked Anteros' on the cheek, "I'm sorry. Maybe we could ask Daddy to fix it?" he hesitantly looked at his mother for confirmation. "I think that is a wonderful idea. Cupie, could you hold your brother? I don't think I could manage to while I look like this!" she smiled happily, glad that they'd sorted things out briefly. Her smiled grew as she watched Cupid gently take hold of Anteros' hand before taking the hand she offered him. Then together they flashed over to Ares' temple.