I'm sad, here's a Reincarnated Pallas AU fic I wrote to cope
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She found herself going back to those memories.
The bad, sure. The bad was there to remind her exactly why she didn't allow herself to love anyone like that anymore.
But recently? She found herself sitting in Quick Thought's dimension, looking through her old memories of Lake Tritonis.
Of Pallas.
Athena watched the younger version of herself toss Pallas into the air, catching the nymph before she could hit the water below. The pair laughed and squealed happily, giggling like the young women they had been. She watched as Pallas softly tucked a strand of fiery red hair behind her younger self's ear, as the young owl snuggled her face into the blonde's hand, purring loudly.
Athena brought her own hand to her face, attempting to mimic even a fraction of that gentle touch. It didn't work, of course. The feeling of her own cold hand against her cheek was nothing compared to Pallas' hands, the way she would lovingly caress her face, counting every single freckle dotted along her cheeks and nose.
Pallas and her younger self had moved from the sky to the sand, sitting comfortably in each other's arms, gazing up at the stars and the moon in silence. Pallas was lightly kissing Athena's neck, whispering words of adoration and love. Young Athena had her face buried into the nymph's hair, inhaling the scent of the ocean as she skillfully undid her braid with her fingers.
Athena hugged herself as tightly as possible, pulling her jacket around her to replicate the pressure of a proper hug. Gods, how she missed being held like that. She hated being touched so much, but at the same time, it was something she desperately craved. Sometimes, she craved it so much, it physically hurt.
Younger Athena had fallen asleep in Pallas' arms, purring and going completely limp, as Pallas gently scratched at her scalp with her nails, smiling softly down at the goddess.
Athena reached out to hold her, to have that touch again, to have that feeling of love again.
But the memory ended. She found herself back in Quick Thought, standing on the top of her hourglass once again, instead of having the warmth of the sand beneath her feet.
Athena curled up, still trying to pull the jacket around her, still failing to replicate the hug she saw. She couldn't stop the tears from falling this time, clawing at her jacket desperately, somehow curling even more into herself.
How she longed for that feeling of love again.
