In an attempt to protect her heart, newly single, Ember has sworn off love. Intrigued, the goddess Aphrodite decides to change the girl's mind. But when Ember's stubborn nature proves difficult, Aphrodite's intentions turn dark.
•---•---•
Ember Mich...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"Now Zeus, if I'm going to be under house arrest for one hundred years should we-" Before Aphrodite even attempted a final protest, Zeus had snapped his fingers, which was accompanied by a roar of thunder. White light filled her vision as the stormy sky, and her modest yacht faded from sight.
Aphrodite fluttered her lashes, squinting hard until her eyes adjusted and she found herself, Apollo, and Ember standing on a very familiar boardwalk.
She looked around, orienting herself until she faced the darkened storefront of her wine shop and a bittersweet smile touched her lips. "We had a good run." She said, looking up at the empty wooden sign above the door.
In just a few moments, Zeus had undone everything she created. She actually, kind of, liked the whole daily business thing. It had grown on her, partying for millennia had its perks, but maybe she really could start helping the mortals again. She did after all have more than enough time now to mull it over, surely one last case of wine on her chaise wasn't too much to ask. She pouted dramatically staring into the dark front windows to find the shop empty of all her hand-picked furnishings. As her self-pity kicked into full swing, Eros and Himeros rounded the corner coming from behind the building.
"I gave her the idea for the shop name," Himeros said, focused on his brother as they walked toward Aphrodite.
"No way! You Had Me at Merlot was my idea, and you know it." Eros argued.
"Where in the name of Hera have the two of you been?!" Aphrodite shouted.
"With Be-" Himeros' words choked off after his brother's elbow lodged into his gut.
"We've been looking for you." Eros grinned. "Hey, Ember! You're okay!"
"Of course, you're both gods too, right? That just makes sense now."
Eros smiled bashfully looking between Apollo and Aphrodite.
"Which ones are you?"
"These are the twins Eros and Himeros, they are both my blessing and my curse," Aphrodite said.
Ember's brow furrowed at the names. "Right, so they're cupids..." her mouth fell open and she looked as if she might lose her balance, "Wait, did you-"
"I didn't shoot you!" Eros screamed.
"Yes, we'll not from a lack of offering to do so." Himeros pointed out.
"Either way you two, we've been banned from the earth for one hundred years," Aphrodite stated nonchalantly.
"You were banned," Apollo corrected, "Zeus mentioned nothing of the twins."
"It was a give-in." She retorted.
"Not fair!" The twins protested in unison, "we didn't even do anything wrong!"
"You go where I go," She replied coldly, pointing two fingers at them and then at herself.
