Dad.

[ganymedex]

Ganymede ll Saturchella

So sure of yourself Baby, don't get greedy

[xiaolanhua]

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013) Dir. Francis Lawrence

[hotfamousshirtlessmen]

[divinitydiana]

"Melody was but a sweet little foul when we met," Diana reminisced happily. "Through the years I softened her up to a variety of names that would suit her and, eventually, it is what she chose among them." She turned her attention to the growing crowds as the two of them furthered into more of the center of the celebrations. Now, the mind of the huntress was primed on the potential fun of witnessing a bit of savagery. They were all beneath her when it came to competition, of course, except perhaps one or two of the divinely-touched beings that had lowered themselves to this. But Diana loved watching a good rumble and choosing her favorites among them.

"Thank Zeus for that indeed," she agreed with an indulgent smile. She did not want to see her step-father in anything less than a chiton. "Oh, I do hope Apollo came... it's quite interesting to ask if any of his Oracles have divined certain outcomes. I won't be involving myself in the outcomes, of course." As though the goddess hadn't involved herself in things she shouldn't have many times in the past. "This is play, not war. No one deserves my blessing for this... That being said, we ought to keep you far away from the matches. You can watch from atop Melody if you like."

[ganymedex]

The two of them had bonded so much while travelling the Otherworld together, Ganymede was very glad he'd bumped into Diana when she'd been on her way out. It wasn't as if the Goddess had invited him along, but once Ganymede had asked if he could come she had obviously said that was more than fine. "That's such a beautiful story, I've always loved your connection with nature. I was good friends with the Oreads near my father's palace many years ago." Hopefully they weren't all dead now, he didn't have much connection to his old life after he was spirited away.

"Oh... because of my thing." He always forgot about that, his little charm, Ulthar was very fond of it; his husband used to like to keep him close by during negotiations or important talks. People were more agreeable in Ganymede's presence, the aspect didn't really know how it worked but... His whole life people had just been nice to him. Ganymede had sort of just always assumed people were just very kind and accommodating. His father had rejected every proposal ever made for Ganymede's hand, his perfect, favourite son. It didn't matter that Ganymede's older brother went on to found Troy and name the city after their father, the younger prince was always a cut above. Unfortunately, no King could deny a God when he asked for something. "Atop Melody sounds nice. Do you have any friends fighting? You must, I think you're like me: everyone just likes you."

[wardercloud]

There were several people that Cloud surrounded themself with and several people they knew they wanted to actually be around in the first place. Just because they surrounded them didn't mean that they wanted those people's presence. All that to say that the elf didn't really mind when Ganymede was around. The other felt like a breath of fresh air sometimes. Very akin to what they often thought of Laer except much more...naive. For some reason, they felt like protecting him even though they were sure that the aspect didn't much need their help. Irregardless, here they were now at Lupercalia spending time with each other. The last thing Cloud had expected to hear in regards to that was that Gany was married with a husband that was a god and that the two of them could only be friends. That was what they had thought they were in the first place, but maybe the sanguine elf had given the wrong impression. They did spend quite a bit of time around each other so maybe that was where the lines might have blurred. It wouldn't have been so bad if they weren't just friends, but...well, Ganymede was married so it didn't much matter. "Yes, we're just friends," they said as they watched the other walk on a log. Arms folded over their chest, they looked up at him. "So how long have you been married then?"

[ganymedex]

"Good, I'm glad we got that cleared up." Ganymede didn't want any confusion because while he really liked them, it wouldn't be appropriate for them to be friends if Cloud had any ulterior motives. Ulthar wasn't exactly the most forgiving person. "Oh gosh, well, who counts these things-" Ganymede smiled, "five thousand, six hundred and ninety twenty-three years, April first is our anniversary. It's also my birthday." The aspect wasn't going to mention how he'd only been twenty-five when he and Ulthar had first met; admitting his age felt so... Embarrassing; he was an old dad with kids older than him. Hopefully, for their anniversary this year, Ulthar would come back and reconcile things; oddly enough, though, Ganymede rarely thought about his husband when he was around Cloud. Even when the elve was covered in blood, it hardly reminded the aspect of Ulthar's last feast. "Are you planning on fighting at Lupercalia? That armor you wore before looked nice on you."

[divinitydiana]

She'd had so many pegasi over the centuries but this one she'd raised while missing Harlow. Her name was simple, but maybe precisely because it wasn't an ancient tongue did her step-father have so much difficulty with it. "Melody," she replied, annoyed at first when he asked again. But affection was bright on the goddess' smiling face as the pegasi accepted a gentle pat to her neck. Melody took that as her cue to leave and took off, eager to spend some more time roaming about the Fey Forest.

She would have continued to be irked or rolled her eyes, but Ganymede's aura didn't let the annoyance linger long. "Ooooo, I can't wait to see all the fighting and it already smells like olive oil. Doesn't it remind you of the first Olympics?" Her smile was fond. "Everyone is wearing more clothes here though."

[ganymedex]

Ganymede had always been more modest than most, sometimes he showed his arms, but that was only because shirts were often too tight in this era. He'd seen a nice assortment of caftans down at the local thrift store though and had made a mental note to peruse them the next time he was nearby. "Melody, what a nice name." Ganymede praised, "Did you choose it for her or did she tell you?" He wasn't quite sure how Diana's connection was with her pegasi, but his daughter was both brilliant and powerful so one could never be sure. Her mind. "Thank Zeus for that." Ganymede said with a sigh, "Don't get met wrong, people are welcome to wear whatever they want and show as much as they want, who am I to judge? It's just not for me." Last thing Dad wanted was to sound like an old fuddy duddy.

[ganymedex]

@divinitydiana location: Lupercalia notes: favourite daughter

Ganymede let go of Diana's waist as he dismounted the flying horse in the midst of Lupercalia, "What's your horse's name again?" Ganymede asked as he stroked the proud creature's mane, like everyone else, the flying horse seemed to take to him very well. It was all that time they'd spent together riding shotgun behind Diana as she flew them all over the Otherworld. There were a lot of monsters that were meant to be scary but they all seemed docile as far as Ganymede was concerned. Not that he'd fought any of them, instead he'd just kept his eyes closed the whole time while Diana did all of that. "Sorry, I keep forgetting, this is the last time I promise."

[ganymedex]

@wardercloud location: Fey Forest, Lupercalia notes: this isn't a date

Ganymede wasn't smart, he wasn't creative, and he wasn't very realistic. He was the naive, favourite, and spoiled son of King Tros who denied every suitor that came knocking for the Prince's hand because nobody was good enough for Ganymede. Ganymede's brother had founded Troy, and still, the younger of the two could do no wrong. Ulthar was a God, a God of Gods: King God, mighty Zeus on his Olympian throne. Ganymede's father hadn't had a choice, but back then the Prince had just been happy to feel chosen by someone so important. To finally fall into romantic love that had felt as real and as genuine as Ganymede had thought it should. He'd never seen his father again, or his brother, and he hadn't been able to visit the city that came to be the focal point of so many compelling stories: Paris, Helen, Patroclus, Achilles, Hector, Cassandra, Odysseus, and so many more. He'd asked to attend the funerals, a request that was denied, his place was at Ulthar's side. People were always kinder and more complacent towards Ulthar when Ganymede was around.

Cloud was pretty uppity, Ganymede wasn't used to it but he liked it. They asked him places, that Christmas party, now this wolf thing - it was pretty violent though, which Ganymede liked less. The lycans were rude too, belching, fighting, and cussing all the time; Ganymede didn't know how people could stand it.

"I just want to be very clear about something." Ganymede said as he walked the length of a log and put one foot in front of the other, "We're friends, right? Just friends?" Technically the aspect was still married and with any luck He would come back and make everything right. "I have a husband, Ulthar, and He's a God so I don't want to give you the wrong idea."

[wardercloud]

"Okay. It looks nice." It was the least Cloud could do to give out a compliment to someone that was doing his best to try and help them. Then again, they couldn't really remember a time where people hadn't tried to help them. They were a noble elf. If people weren't falling at their mother's feet, she would have been disappointed. Cloud didn't much care about all of that though. Not that they had ever gotten the opportunity to care about it in the first place. Still, now they were nothing more than a broken shield to the dead. They might as well have been so themself. That was pretty damn gloomy though. Ganymede probably didn't want to hear all of that. Maybe. They could never tell. "You don't have to apologize. I'm used to it." Unfortunately. Loss was just something they had learned to cope with. All they could ever think about was who would be next. "You can ask. I don't know if I'm ready to answer though."

[ganymedex]

"Thank you, so do you." It always felt easy for Ganymede to make friends but it was rare for them to stick around, people were always incredibly nice to the aspect's face and then suddenly when he was gone he never heard from them again. It was kind of Cloud to invite Ganymede out to this party, and if nothing else it was a chance to spend the night not thinking about the festival going on dedicated to his husband. "I think that's answer enough, we should go, I don't want to be late and I still have to change." The last thing Ganymede would ever want to do is push someone into talking about something they weren't prepared to open up about.

[fxllenpythia]

"It's... interesting," Pythia responds, uncertainty latching onto every nerve ending that impresses upon her that this is the only place she wishes to be in that moment. Ganymede's offer felt like something of a sideswipe, and despite her unlevel footing at the time, she'd been so quick to accept. "Free appetizers? So you're taking them for fools too," Her smile, though usually sharpened at every edge, curls almost gently now, as if appraising someone she didn't wish to skin alive. "Not to worry, it's not the first time and I'm sure it certainly won't be the last." An offhanded promise, that while the asphodel being splintered did undoubtedly dampen some of her plans, it didn't derail them entirely. "But I'm well, and you? I'm sure by now, you've heard about Ulthar and Elysia."

[ganymedex]

"Yeah... yeah he left. I saw him go. I saw him-" Ganymede had been actively trying to avoid the memory, subconsciously and consciously alike he didn't like to think about it. Screaming and blood and grace strewn everywhere while Ulthar gorged himself on the seraphim that remained in the Divine Realm above before he departed for Arvandor. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, I just- I just want things to go back the way they were." When Ulthar loved him and they were happy, when the family was together and nobody was fighting. "I have a plan though to get him back, then he can put everything the way that it was. We can have our family back." The waitress came by and Ganymede ordered himself a mozzarella stick appetizer before he gestured to Pythia, "Order whatever you'd like."

[news-polish-celebrities-deactiv]

[wardercloud]

"Oh, I didn't say I didn't like it. From what I've learned of you since we met, it seems very...you." Cloud wasn't really sure how to properly compliment someone or extend niceties. Really, that was how they had gotten along so well with Mneme. She had been so stoic that it felt like they were anything but. Now that she was gone, it felt like they were always the most serious person in the room. The sanguine elf really did try not to be that way though. It was just difficult to move away from who they always had been. Luckily, Ganymede's natural disposition somehow helped with that. The aspect was very much a mixed bag of things. On one hand, he was sad. On the other, he was just the nicest person they knew. It felt like a good thing to keep Ganymede around. "Modest. Right. I don't think I know what that word means. The sun court is very..." They weren't even really sure how to describe it. "I guess we're just kind of told to be very comfortable with our bodies. Not that that makes you uncomfortable with yours." Cloud was both the former and the latter. While they didn't mind wearing as little clothes as possible, they absolutely did not feel comfortable doing anything with anyone. Hence why they never participated in those yearly orgies. They could kiss someone, but they weren't entirely sure that they'd enjoy it much. "No, no. I've just lost a few people close to me so I just...haven't been dealing with it properly."

[ganymedex]

"You can just say it looks nice." Cloud was clearly struggling, so Ganymede thought he'd offer some advice on complementing someone without making them feel bad about themselves. It wasn't as if he was any stranger to loss; his father had been his best friend, and when he'd passed, Ulthar hadn't permitted him to attend the funeral, something about it being unimportant to mingle with mortal affairs when Ganymede sat among the Gods now. He'd been right of course, his husband... ex-husband... was right about most things, at least that's what the aspect still believed. People made horrible and terrible mistakes, but they could still return from that. So many of his children were gone because of the God and it should have been easy for Ganymede to resent Ulthar for that, but more than hatred, he hoped that the God would return and set things right. Ganymede knew what he was capable of. He knew it was within his power; he just had to be patient. "I'm so sorry..." Ganymede paused before asking, "Is there a right way of dealing with it?" The aspect would have hugged them, but they didn't know each other that well, and Cloud had just left and made a mess of a bunch of bags of blood, not that Ganymede was afraid, but there was something to be said about respecting boundaries. "Can I ask who?"

[wardercloud]

"You don't have to apologize. I've been crying for the past few months. I shouldn't have said that." Then again, just because they shouldn't have said it didn't make it not a true statement. Really, Cloud should have just not said anything at all about it because it was a hypocritical statement. It was too late to go back on that now though so they just put that to the side so that it wouldn't be spoken about it again. Sometimes people needed to cry. Who were they to tell someone not to? "They gave you a phone? Right, okay." Cloud just shrugged because it seemed like something that would happen to Ganymede. Poor guy had people being nice to him all the time, but was completely oblivious. Cloud had noticed it only slightly, but they weren't usually the type to be rude to people on purpose anyway. Being nice to the aspect just seemed more natural than usual. Nevertheless, they didn't pay too much mind to it because they had to look at the outfit that Ganymede had decided to show them. Cloud looked from the phone to the aspect then back at the phone. The laugh that left their mouth was actually something akin to what they always heard from Laer. It took a moment for them to actually stop, but they simply patted Gany on the shoulder after. "That's a full suit and bunny ears. Risqué isn't the word I would use for this outfit. It's actually pretty conservative. I wear less clothes on a daily basis and I wouldn't even consider that risqué."

[ganymedex]

Ganymede thought that maybe if he cried less he wouldn't be so annoying to people. His husband in particular; Ganymede wondered what it would take to make Ulthar come home and regurgitate their children so they could all be a family again. Maybe being less of a burden and irritant would gain him an invitation back home; Ganymede was still confident that he and Ulthar could work this out. He'd need to make amends with the kids, of course, but the God was the only person who'd ever loved him besides his own father, so there was almost nothing that Ganymede wasn't willing to forgive as long as Ulthar would say it again. I love you. "You don't like it?" Ganymede looked sideways at the elve, the one who'd left a gory mess of blood around them. Cloud's laughter made Ganmede blush as he tucked his phone away, suddenly embarrassed; he thought it looked nice. It probably said something about the aspect that even amid all this playful devastation, Ganymede was relatively unphased. The blood was bothersome, but his friends at the cleaners would be willing to get anything out if he asked nicely. "I'm just... Modest." It was nice having a friend to go to this function with, even if they didn't like what Ganymede was wearing; he didn't hear from people... ever. Which was fine, the aspect knew that his children were busy, his grandchildren too and if they didn't want to come see him then he wasn't going to force his presence on them. It was totally fine. "Were you crying because of all this...?" Ganymede gestured vaguely, "I've met a lot of elves and you're the first who drinks blood." There was a pause before he raised his hands. "Not that there's anything wrong with it."

[news-polish-celebrities-deactiv]

[emlutacomigomesmo-deactivated20]

[revengebovnd]

She'd prepared for this party, both mentally and physically, and even noted how much she liked her surroundings despite her own awkwardness. Tisiphone had decided to stop by, now that she'd made a promise to herself to not hide too much. While most might just be afraid of her, that didn't mean the Erinyes had to hide or not enjoy herself if all others did. Her presence, frightening and threatening, didn't have to be just that, besides: there was nowhere else to go for the Erinyes at the moment. She drowned out the music upon hearing Ganymede, completely focusing on her step-father. "Overwhelming, isn't it? I don't know where to start," some were already moving away, avoiding her, but she didn't let that sour her mood. Instead, she grabbed one of the stronger cocktails and offered the glass to Ganymede. "You'll always have me, I promise." She felt like dancing, but probably had to drink some more to really get warm. Ironic. "How are you holding up after...," she couldn't finish.

[ganymedex]

It was hard not to feel on edge in Tisiphone's presence, Ganymede had heard that there was just something about her that made people angrier than usual. While the former prince had a lot to be angry about, it just wasn't in his nature so it felt so unnatural to him to be stood in front of her thinking about all the ways he'd been wronged over the years. "It's nice," Ganymede admitted, "being around people, I don't get out much unless it's for one of my walks or something." He never heard from his family, which again wasn't really surprising but at least Tisiphone was talking to him. Ganymede smiled, too bright to be natural. "I'm fine, what do you mean?"

[wardercloud]

Normally, Cloud would have backed away from the very awkward situation that they had somehow gotten themself involved in here. They guessed they didn't really initiate this though. When Ganymede pulled out wet wipes, the elf hadn't been sure where this was going, but then the aspect was dabbing at their mouth that was covered in blood. They wanted to back away. It felt only a little uncomfortable, but not enough for them to just slap Gany's hand away. "Yeah, I asked you, didn't I? You're not bad company when you're not crying." Not that Cloud could really say much. How long had it been since they had come out of their little hermit hole again? They couldn't even really keep track anymore. "No, we don't need to stop there. We can just go. My manifest will help me. Or Laer. Carrying blood bags around just seems a little strange." The elf didn't say anything as Ganymede seemed to get closer because they didn't really think much of it. Laer was often standing way too close so they were used to it. "Risqué? Somehow I doubt that's the case. What is it?"

[ganymedex]

"Oh, sorry, I um-" The last thing that the aspect wanted to do was get on the other's nerves but it seemed like he did that a lot, people were just too polite to say otherwise. Generally speaking that's why he cried in the safety and privacy of his home, but last time Ganymede's home had been destroyed so there wasn't anywhere to go but that pharmacy floor. "I won't do that again." It wasn't like the aspect had any friends yet, the last thing he wanted to do was chase away the one friend he'd made because he was annoying. "Here, I'll show you my outfit on this phone my friend at the Apple store gave me." Ganymede had just walked in one day when he was especially sad, after asking about a hundred questions all the people working chipped in and got him the newest one. Some of the customers too, they were just so nice and charitable. Ganymede felt himself blushing as he pulled up the picture he'd taken earlier, "Don't laugh, I know it's too much. I am going to have to go home first to get changed."