#okatokosmos

[victoriousfidelity]

"Please don't look at me like that. Have the rumours truly spread so far already?"

inbox inspired starter for @okatokosmos (Forseti) (inspo)

[vyrulent]

continued || @okatokosmos

Psyche still struggled with letting go. Every mother, she knew, had to go through it. There would always be a time when children no longer needed their mothers to accompany them places, when they no longer felt they were needed.

"Promise to stay safe," Psyche reminded, motherly infliction laced through her words. "You know you only have to call and your father and I will be there if something goes awry."

[angcltouched]

. @okatokosmos hedone asked for ares : “ How bad is it? ”

ares held the needle carefully between his fingers, one hand keeping the torn edges of flesh pressed together while the other worked with practiced precision. blood continued its slow path down the broad plane of his chest, dark crimson tracing old scars before disappearing beneath the waistband of his trousers. each puncture of the needle through his skin should have hurt. perhaps, once upon a time, it had. now, the god barely reacted.

his breathing remained even, expression unchanged as he drew the thread tighter and moved on to the next stitch. there was something unsettling in the ease with which he repaired himself, as though this had become routine long ago. as though pain had stopped being something worth acknowledging. hedone's voice finally pulled his attention away from the wound.

dark red eyes lifted toward her for a moment, lingering on the concern written so openly across her features. it struck him then, not for the first time, that others seemed to suffer more from witnessing his injuries than he ever suffered from enduring them. his gaze drifted back down to his chest. ❝ not as bad as it looks. ❞ another stitch, the thread pulled taut between bloodstained fingers. ❝ i've had worse. ❞

there was no bravado in the statement, no attempt to reassure her through false confidence. it was simply the truth. ares studied the damage with detached practicality, head tilting slightly as if assessing the outcome of a battle rather than flesh split open beneath his own hands. ❝ it'll scar, a large one, probably. ❞ the corner of his mouth shifted in something too small to be called amusement. ❝ i won't remember where i got it. ❞ again, there was no emotion behind the admission.

he had accumulated too many scars over centuries to keep track of them all. some had names attached to them, wars that had reshaped kingdoms and histories alike. others had faded into obscurity, stripped of meaning until all that remained was pale, uneven skin marking placed where blades, arrows, and claws had once found purchase. to ares, scars had never been tragedies. they were evidence, proof that he had survived long enough to earn another.

the needed pierced through skin once more before he finally glanced back toward hedone. ❝ does it bother you ? ❞ the question came abruptly, blunt in the way only ares could manage. there was no irritation in it, only genuine confusion. because he understood fear on battlefields. he understood rage, grief, desperation, but concern over him remained unfamiliar territory. ❝ it's just a wound, it will heal. ❞

𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒.

[angcltouched]

the temple had been built in her honor. marble columns stretched toward the heavens, white stone kissed by golden afternoon light, offerings scattered at the feet of statues carved in her likeness. once, every prayer spoken here had belonged to her. every flower left upon these steps had been placed with her name upon trembling lips, once.

aphrodite stood silently almost the shadows, violet eyes drifting across the gathering crowd below. they laughed, wishepered and pointed, not toward her, but toward psyche. the mortal moved through the streets like a blessing descended from the heavens themselves, and everywhere she went, heads turned. men forgot their words, woman stared with open admiration. aphrodite hated how familiar it looked. slowly, she descended the temple steps, each movement graceful enough to command attention without asking for it. the crowd parted instinctively before her presence, though many seemed reluctant to tear their eyes way from the mortal standing below.

the reluctance did not go unnoticed. her smile remained beautiful, it was also sharp enough to draw blood. aphrodite's gaze settled upon psyche, studying her with unsettling patience. not openly hostile, somehow worse ... almost disappointed. she approached until only a few feet separated them, sunlight catching in golden hair that seemed spun from the very dawn itself. for a long moment she said nothing, simply looked. the silence itself became a weapon. then came a soft laugh. ❝ oh, do not look so frightened, little mortal. i merely wished to see for myself what could possibly inspire such devotion. ❞

@okatokosmos ♡ for something from aphrodite to psyche.

[angcltouched]

zeus found her long before she noticed him. or perhaps she had noticed him immediately and simply chose not to acknowledge his presence. it was difficult to tell with rhea. she possessed that infuriating calm only mothers seemed capable of carrying, as though nothing in existence, not war, kings or gods, could truly surprise her anymore. for a moment, he remained where he was in silence.

golden eyes studied the familiar figure from across the garden, and despite all the centuries that had passed, despite the throne he sat upon and the heavens he commanded, something uncomfortable settled within his chest. zeus faced monsters without hesitation. he faced rebellion, prophecy, and the endless demands of gods and mortals alike. yet standing before his mother had always been different, because rhea never looked at him and saw the king of olympus. she saw the child she had hidden from cronus, the child she had saved. the child she had ultimately failed to protect from becoming exactly what he had once hated.

the thought irritated him immediately, his jaw tightened as he slowly approached her. the skies above remained bright, though distant clouds shifted lazily along the horizon, responding unconsciously to their king's restless mood. ❝ you have that look again. ❞ his voice broke the silence before he could stop himself. it came calmer than intended, though a familiar edge lingered beneath the words. ❝ the one where you say nothing and somehow still manage to judge me. ❞ a faint smile touched his lips, but it never quite became genuine. ❝ i suppose i should be grateful. most people need words to disappoint me. ❞

@okatokosmos ♡ for something from zeus to rhea.

[angcltouched]

the celebrations had long since begun inside the halls of olympus, yet hercules found himself standing far from them once again. the distant sound of laughter carried through the marble corridors, mingling with music and conversation, but none of it managed to hold his attention for long. his place should have been among them. that was what everyone seemed to believe. even now, after everything.

his forearms rested against the stone railing of a quiet balcony overlooking the mortal world below. countless lives stretched beneath him, entire generations passing in what felt like moments. once, he had dreamed of standing among the gods. once, he had believed olympus would feel like home. now it felt no different from any other place he had ever wandered through.

the sound of approaching footsteps drew him from his thoughts, though he did not turn immediately. instead, his gaze lingered on the world below for a few moments longer before a tired smile toouched the corner of his mouth. ❝ i was beginning to think i was the only one avoiding the festivities. ❞ the smile faded almost as quickly as it had appeared. ❝ though i suppose you've probably come to convince me to go back. ❞

@okatokosmos ♡ for something from hercules to hebe.

[victoriousfidelity]

"What has you so excited about this feast in particular, hm?" Sigyn asks, fondly teasing as she braids flowers into the younger girl's hair. "I don't recall you being so enthusiastic to attend one before now."

inbox inspired starter for @okatokosmos (Nanna) (inspo)

[victoriousfidelity]

"Please, tell me what it is that you need. I know I cannot fix things... But you know I can't do nothing."

inbox inspired starter for @okatokosmos (Jörmungandr) (inspo)