The following day,

"So what are you doing?" asked Aphrodite, looking at Cirrus's work.

"I’m digging." Cirrus said, shoveling away the dirt.

"I know that, but why are you the only one digging? Shouldn’t those villagers help?"

"It’s supposedly a tradition in the village that a man should build his own home."

"Hmm... That seems rather dumb."

"Yeah well, I’m not gonna get any help from them, so here I am."

"And your lover? Does she not help?"

"She brings lunch... that’s about as much as she’s able to help."

"I see…" She touched her chin in thought.

"Why don’t you help me?" He said, stopping for a second.

"Eh? Help you in…" She looked around the construction site. "Working? Do you not know who I am?"

"Yes, but isn’t that why you gods came to Gekai? To experience what we mortals experience? "

"True but me? a goddess of love, building a house with my own hands? I have my children fixing up the spare house we got from the village."

"So?" Cirrus says as he continues to dig. "Wouldn’t you feel accomplished to have made something with your own hands? I’m sure no other love or beauty goddess such as you have never made something through hard work besides pleasure of course."

She looks at Cirrus with unconfident eyes.

"Isn’t it tradition for men to build their homes?"

"You are a love god; I doubt you conform to any one particular gender or even trouble yourself with tradition. Plus, don’t you wish to know how Hephaestus feels when they complete a work?"

Aphrodite thinks on it for a good while. He was right that to her knowledge no god of beauty or love has ever built something with their own two hand. On the gender part she did turn into a man a few times for fun. Her current appearance is simply what she felt comfortable with.

'It'll be a good change of pace but... Why do I feel I'm forgetting something? Hmmm...Oh well it probably wasn't important!'

"…Fine. I’ll help you; you certainly speak your own mind, don’t you?"

"That is why I am favored. Change your clothes and help with digging."

"Oh before we start, can I ask you something personal?"

"Depends on what it is."

"Ai, you love her don't you?"

"Yes, she is my girlfriends and I met her parents. So yeah, I kinda love her."

"Hmm..." Aphrodite thinks to herself for a moment and asks another question. "Cirrus do you plan on marrying her?"

"..." Cirrus stops what he is doing and looks to Aphrodite, without hesitation he gives her his answer. "Yes. I would. But not any time soon, we are still to young to for that."

"Hm." Aphrodite nods. "Then as a goddess of love I give you my blessing for a happy and joyful life."

"That's rather sudden?"

"You are a unique person, Cirrus. I'll be sure to help you out one day."

'Depends on how if Artemis finds him.'

The two would then work on the house. Many of her children offered to help, but she refused stating that she wished to build this with her own strength. It was an odd thing for her Familia to hear, but they respected her wishes.

The villagers however confront Cirrus on her helping him.

"Uh huh you say no to her and see what happens."

The villagers look at her as she is checking the cured wood methodically.

"Um...I think we're good." One of the villagers said.

They then all leave. Aphrodite came up to him.

"You said they wouldn't mind if I helped you?"

"Yes It's called a half-truth. They were bothered but they didn't mind you helping as if they did they would have stopped you."

"...You remind me how Eris always squeaked out of conflict."

"Look I just wanted to build this fucking house within a reason time and I am not super confident it will turn out how I envision it both in my mind and in the blueprint. Oh speaking of blueprint thank you for correcting some stuff."

"That at all. As a god of beauty I have an eye for perfection!"

"So something like Freya's eyes?"

"W-well nothing like that but I do have a good eye for seeing things that match and fit! How about that?"

"Ah so like a eye for fashion?"

"Yes! Exactly! I redrew the blueprints so the home can be beautiful!"

'Those are some leaps in her attribute of Beauty but I guess she can apply it rather well in it's usage.'

 

Three weeks later, the foundation had all been built solidly along with a column or two.

"Your remarkably resilient Aphrodite." Cirrus said rather happy so much had been done.

"Hehe! Of course! If you wanna make something really shine you gotta put in some elbow grease as they say! But I would like to go and take a bath now. I have dirt everywhere."

"You can get going; I’ll finish up here and return."

"Alright."

 

Leaving early, Aphrodite returned home and took a quick shower.

"Ahh…that feels better." She said, sitting down. She looked around to find her children gone, helping the village. "Hmm, there’s no one here... I wonder what his lover is up to!" She gets up and dresses herself.

As she does, she notices some calluses on her hand.

"...Huh this is a first." She touches them to find them hard and her hands more rugged. "Are your hands like this, Hephaestus… Hm." She ignores such a sore thought. She leaves for where Ai and Cirrus were staying at, Ai’s parents’ home.

"Yo-ho! Is Ai-chan here to hang out!" she said popping out from the door.

"Hm?" said Nox lounging around reading a book with a bowl of crackers. "Oh, it’s you, Aphro."

"It’s Aph-ro-dite! I know your Nyx’s spirit, but you must have some respect for me!"

‘This spirit!! If she was a goddess, I’m sure as hell she would outshine me and all the other goddesses in beauty! Ughhh!!! How is she still so pretty while in that lazy position!’

"Whatever. Ai’s in the back yard swinging her sword nom!" She takes a bite of some crackers and got back to reading.

As Aphrodite was leaving see could see what Nox was reading.

'Economic and political advantage? Why is she reading that!? That sounds so boring!'

She leaves the room and goes out back to see Ai standing still with her hand on her sheathed sword and then.

Shing!

Swish!

Swish!!

Swish!!!

Swish!!!!

Clink!

Aphrodite was only able to see four slashes before she sheathed her blade.

"Beautiful and elegant as usual!"

"Oh, Lady Aphrodite! Did you and Cirrus finish early?"

"He let me go early. He should be coming here soon."

"So what brings you here?"

"Well, I wanted to hang with you! All my children are out helping the village, so I have time to kill!"

'Why is something nagging me? What am I forgetting??'

"Ah alright!" she says, walking up to Aphrodite and wiping her sweat with a towel.

Aphrodite could see why Cirrus would pick her; she could see her trained, slightly muscular body dripping in sweat.

"So what do you wanna do? I never really spent time with a goddess like you?"

"Ah well…"

She had nothing to do. The village didn’t have much to do. If she was in Meilstora, she would show her around and gave her the time of her life.

Ai could see Aphrodite struggling to come up with something.

"Um, Cirrus mentioned something between you and Lady Hephaestus. Can I ask what exactly happened?"

"Ah…" she said, her expression conflicted. "...How about this? I’ll tell you if you tell me something alright!"

"Hm!"

After Ai cleans up, they talk in her room.

"So back in heaven, me and Hephaestus used to…um date."

"Really! Wow! You must have been lucky to be with Lady Hephaestus! " Ai said gleefully.

"I-isn’t it the other way around? I am the goddess of beauty and love!"

"Hm? But Lady Hephaestus is always like a reliable older sister! Like Lady Astraea!"

"Well... Your not wrong but what do I give off?"

"Hmm…you seem more like a little sister that likes to have to much fun."

Stab!

Aphrodite could feel her pride as a goddess break a bit.

"But I should say you are more trustworthy than Lady Loki. I can never get a read on her. As well as Lady Ishtar granted I never met her but… From what I heard, she doesn’t treat her children very kindly, so you are better than her in that aspect!"

‘That at least is what I can be proud of!! That dam Ishtar trying to compete with Freya! It’s an uphill fight that she has already won.’

"Well, so long as I’m better than her, I’m happy!"

"Do you not wanna beat Lady Freya? I have only seen her once, but she seems to have a more umm…"

"You can say it, she has a more stronger pull to her beauty, yes?"

"Y-yes! Every time I hear she was alone with Cirrus, I get a bit worried she might have stolen him from me…"

"That’s a normal reaction, but you don’t have to worry. Cirrus seems to have built up a good resistance to a love god's charm, or it could be because of you?" She said, looking at Ai as her when a flicker of pink appeared over her emerald eyes.

"!!" Ai could feel her soul slowly starting to get drunk again, much like how she first met her but more stronger. She quickly steeled her heart again.

"Look at that! Did he teach you that?"

"Yes, he said it’s useful when talking with a god but he also said if they decided to go full strength it wouldn't work."

"That is true which is why every god of love and beauty came to a agreement on it's limits."

"So um with Lady Hephaestus?"

"Ah yes... that well, it was going fine between us but... well, she is the Goddess of the Forge, so she would lock herself away working on her weapons or inventions... leaving me alone."

"…I know how you feel, when Cirrus made a weapon for my Familia to return to this land, it took him a long time to make it, and he was so focused he didn’t notice until he was finished, and he fell asleep from exhaustion. He then did it again for his teachers and once for a commission for Lady Hephaestus."

"For Hephaestus? She requested one of his works!" Aphrodite said, surprised.

"Hm! She was really impressed by it! She even said he was the best smith under heaven. "

"That good to even get her praise, but since he is a smith of that well-regarded, regarded" Aphrodite remembers her most intimate times with Hephaestus and wonders if it was the same for Ai. "Say... his hands seem to be very strong and full of callus, also very dexterous, huh!" she said, nudging Ai. "They do wonder, huh?" She said, teasing Ai.

"That's for another time!" She looked away in a blush. "But yes, it is rather lonesome, but after they are done, w-well um…"

"Ah…the taste and touch of flesh are delectable after so long... and a smith knows exactly how to find one weak point." She said with a sly grin as she enjoyed Ai’s blushing face.

"Y-yes it is rather addicting, especially when after it’s all done, you can simply be in their arms and feel their warmth and embrace." A gentle expression grew on Ai’s face; Aphrodite herself just wanted to embrace herself, but she restrained herself.

"Yes... that is a nice feeling... but it wasn’t enough. She kept working and I... I kept trying to fill the time where I could be with her and well... she caught me cheating. "

Ai made a solemn expression.

"Don’t worry! It happened as a result of over eons upon eons of this cycle, but for you, I’m sure he won’t do that to such a cute girl!"

"Thank you, Lady Aphrodite!"

"No problem! But, um... how come you two don't have a child? You seem to have a healthy sex life but no children?"

"Ah…um, it was a gift. Wait here a second." She got up and opened up her drawer and took out a half-full glass jar of pills and sat back down. "It’s a birth control pill. They work for 24 hours, and you can take them whenever you want. B-before or um… even d-during."

Aphrodite gets it and takes a pill and looks at it.

"Ahh... So this is it... I heard this medicine has started to spread to more and more brothels around the world. Was it your friend who made it?"

"Well, um, kind of…"

"Well..." she looks at the jar again. "You certainly have been rather active." She said with a proud smile. "Want me to teach you some-"

!!!!!!!!!

Outside, there was some clamoring.

"What the hell is going on?" said Aphrodite.