Aphrodite was filing her nails--a job that many women did absently, but one that she usually gave her full attention to. She critically examined the nail on her right pointer finger, decided that the pointy look was fine for Hecate, but that she preferred something that was less obviously intended to aid in scratching out eyes. She began to round down the tip a little. "Bliss, sweetie, I want to thank you for not crashing the slumber party last night. The girls were hyped on ice cream, and any invasion by less than mature males would have had them doing harpy impressions."

Bliss, who was flopped on a nearby sofa, face down, grunted. "Well, it just wouldn't have been much fun without Accord."

Dite blew nail dust off her nail, examined it again, and decided it was properly shaped. She took up a small bar covered in suede, and began to put a shine on her nails. "I haven't seen him for a couple of months. He's fourteen, right?"

"M-hm."

"Fourteen... I guess it's about time I talked to your Dad about setting him up with his first real crush."

Bliss sat up abruptly. "Grandma!"

Aphrodite winced. "Bliss, I love being your grandma, but you don't have to rub the age thing in. What's the problem?"

"I thought that you tried to keep a 'hands off' policy on relatives."

"Sweetie, he's not really my relative, much as I love him."

"And don't you usually let the divinities take care of their own love lives?"

Aphrodite lowered her buffer, looking at him in surprise. Then her eyes narrowed in speculation. *Oh, yeah. Darn, I'm getting absentminded these days. He's due for some teasing for that grandma crack, though.* She started buffing again, and said casually, "Oh, it doesn't have to be anything serious--just a nice bout of puppy love." She slid her eyes sideways at him. "Then he wouldn't be following you around all the time. Wouldn't you like some more time to yourself?"

"No. Yes. I mean, I have enough private time. If you're worried about that, take Imp off our hands more often. I've lost count of the times she's come waltzing into the bathing chamber when I'm wearing nothing but soap and feathers."

Aphrodite giggled. "She's my bloodline, all right." She studied her nails. "Maybe I should start him out with a mortal, or a demigod. A full god might still be a little too rich for his blood."

"Who?"

*Oo, that tone was as hard and sharp as Ares sword.* "I don't know. Any suggestions?" Bliss didn't reply, but his wings gave a flap so hard that several snowy feathers shook loose. One of them floated toward Aphrodite, and she blew it away with a ladylike puff of air. "Chill, sweetie. I'm just messing with you."

"Grandma!"

She pointed at him. "That's what got you the bout of teasing, kid." She softened. "Look, hon, I'm sorry. I honestly wasn't thinking when I made the suggestion. I know how you feel about Accord."

Bliss slumped, then flopped on his face on the couch again. "How can you? I don't even know how I feel."

Aphrodite sighed fondly, leaning over to stroke his hair. "Ah, teenagers. I can't remember being a teenager myself--you know, that whole born fully-grown thing--but the teen years are when my influence really gets started." She dropped a kiss on his head. "You'll figure it out."

He rolled his head to look at her. "And you won't mix in?"

She held up her hand, palm outwards. "I promise."

He squinted at her. "And you won't try to get Dad to do anything?"

She sat back, pressing a hand to her ample bosom. "I'm shocked!"

"Shocked that I know you well enough to know that you'd weasel around the exact wording of the agreement?"

"Pooh! You're an awful spoilsport for one so young. Okay, I promise not to ask Cupid to meddle in this affair. Satisfied?"

He jumped up and kissed her on the cheek. "There's a load off my mind, anyway. I'll know that whatever there is isn't the result of an arrow or a potion."

He left. Aphrodite watched him go, then went back to buffing her nails. *It might not be an arrow or potion, but it's darn sure going to be chemistry, hon.* She giggled softly. *And I may have promised not to act directly, or ask Cupid to act, but I didn't say anything about anybody else...*

Accord knocked at the door to his fathers' bedchamber, calling, "Can I come in?" He'd been trained at an early age not to come bursting into this particular room unannounced. Cupid had occasionally wondered out loud how Ares and Joxer had managed that, as it had taken him forever to drill the concept into Bliss' head, and they still hadn't managed it with Impetua.

"That depends." It was Joxer's voice. "Are you over pouting?"

Accord thumped his forehead gently against the door, but he was smiling. "Yeah, I'm over it."

"Come on in, then."

Accord entered, and looked around. Joxer was sitting on the edge of the bed, pulling on his boots. "Where's Dad?"

"Gone with the dawn. He's pulling surprise inspections today. I'd say there's going to be an epidemic of soiled underwear, if it wasn't for the fact that I know most of the troops don't wear underwear." Accord gave him a hug. "Oof. Well, good morning to you, too. What was that for?"

Accord shrugged, but said sheepishly, "I was sort of a brat yesterday, and I never really apologized for scaring you and Dad. I'm sorry."

"I'm glad that you realize that it wasn't so much the disobeying as it was the putting yourself in danger."

Accord smiled slightly. "Well, I'm House of War--that is going to happen occasionally. Even you put yourself in risky situations."

"That's different, Cord, and you know it. With me it's in the course of doing my job, not as a way to pass time."

"Yeah, I know." Accord was silent for a moment, then said, "Pop, when am I going to be old enough to take up my duties?"

Joxer sat back a little, eyeing him. "That's a quick change of subject. I don't know. Most gods with complicated duties... And don't you dare tell Aether or Susserose I said that. I'm sure that wrangling warm breezes and putting the sound of the ocean in seashells is more complicated than it seems, but you know what I mean. Anyway, the more complicated the job, like the greater number of other peoples' jobs it will impact--the older the the god or goddess is when they are allowed to take full control of their godhood."

"What about my godhood?"

"Mediation? Accord, you do have some idea of how complicated that is, even just among mortals? You'll be lucky if you're given control before you have a beard at least as good as your Dad's."

"But I'm not growing whiskers yet. Ace says that it might change, but he was pretty sure I'd end up one of the smoothest people on Olympus, outside of Aphrodite and the Muses."

"Then you see what I mean."

Accord flopped back on the bed. "Poop!"

Joxer grinned at the combination of teenage drama and verbal restraint. He lay back beside Accord. "What's up? Why the sudden desire for responsibility? You've never been bad about avoiding your duties, but you've never exactly embraced them with zeal, and searched for ways to do more."

"I'm just tired of being a kid," Accord grumbled.

"Aw, Cord..." Joxer reached out and tucked a wave of black hair back behind his son's ear. "I wish you wouldn't be in such a hurry to grow up. This is a very short period of your life, and being a god, there's going to come a day when this time is a long, long time gone."

Accord turned on his side, and rested his head on Joxer's shoulder, while his father hugged him. This was one thing that Accord knew enough to be grateful for--neither of his parents were hesitant to show their love. That could be rare on Olympus. "You're not fooling me. You just don't want to give up having a kid around." He was quiet for a moment, then said slyly, "Why don't you and Dad have another baby?" Joxer let go and sat up abruptly. "I'm just teasing, Pop. No need to get the whinges."

"No, that's not it." Joxer looked down at Accord, and his lips quirked. "Actually, we've been discussing that very subject."

Now Accord popped up into a sitting position, eyes suddenly huge. "You're kidding!"

Joxer shook his head. "I'm not. We've just about decided to go for it. Now we're arguing about who should carry it."

"Get Aphrodite to talk to Dad about it. Everyone knows you're one of her soft spots, so if anyone can convince Dad that you shouldn't have to go through pregnancy again..."

"You're on the wrong track, Cord," said Joxer softly. "Ares insists that he's not going to let me risk myself again. He wants to carry the baby." Accord did a wonderful impression of a landed flounder, at least from the neck up. He didn't do the thrashing bit, but he had the staring and gasping down. "Yep, that's pretty much the reaction we figure we'd get from most of the rest of the world."

Finally Accord croaked, "Dad? Puh-puh-pregnant?"

"Not yet. We're both still taking the contraceptive potion. There's going to be absolutely no miscalculations this time around." He touched Accord's cheek gently. "No child has ever been as welcome as you, Cord, but let's face it--you were a bit of a surprise."

"I know, but that's not what I meant. What I meant was--the God of War--pregnant. Oh, geez, Pop--do you think the world would survive? I mean, imagine what would happen just if one of his warlords--you know how they are--made some stupid joke about wide, child bearing hips."

Joxer pursed his lips. "I'd just have to hope that if one of us wasn't there, Demeter had scheduled that area for a famine, because I believe we're definitely talking scorched earth time."

"Look, if you two do decide to go through with it--and I think it would be a great idea, by the way... Impetua can be a snot, but I can tell that Bliss loves her a lot. If you do decide to do it, then you both will be able to use some more help, right? I think I could take a lot off your hands, if I'm allowed to start actually performing duties instead of just accepting tribute, listening to prayers, and making official appearances."

Joxer cocked his head thoughtfully. "Accord, are you using your powers on me right now?"

"Huh? No! Geez, Dad, I wouldn't do that without telling you."

"I didn't think so, and I ought to be able to tell if you are, but sometimes when you're young, the manifestation of your godhood isn't entirely in your control. I'm not accusing you of being devious, Cord (though your cousin Strife would be proud of that). It's just that you're making way more sense than I think you should. If one of us is pregnant, another significant player in the House of War would be a big help. Now, is that the only reason you want to push your official maturity date up--you're tired of being a kid?"

Accord shrugged. "Maybe not tired of being a kid, but I'm sure tired of being treated like one."

"Mm. Well, if that's the case, you might consider acting more grown up--say avoiding raids on girls' slumber parties?"

Accord made a face. "Ah, well--life is sacrifice."

Joxer rubbed his hair, and laughed when Accord frowned and quickly moved to smooth it. "Accord--God of Irony. When are you going to cut your hair?"

"That's Dad's question, and you really don't care."

"No, I don't, but you might consider starting to do something to keep it out of your face, if you don't want to start getting a lot of sheepdog or Veronica Lake jokes from Strife."

"Who's Veronica Lake?"

"I'm not sure. I would have thought a water sprite, but Strife mentioned her after he'd been to the Halls of Time. Apollo had been experimenting with letting his hair grow, and trying different styles."

Accord looked thoughtful. "I think I remember that. He had one wave falling over an eye. Didn't he sort of go hermit for about four or five months right after that, then show up again with a really short cut, sort of like what Caesar has now?"

"Yes. That was the time that Strife had discovered something from the future called 'Nair'. Apollo toasted Strife's buns for him good when he figured out what had happened, and Cupid didn't even protest. He said that he liked a good joke as much as anyone, but it was a little extreme."

"Bet that didn't stop him from laughing his butt off."

"He told me it felt like a Titan had given him a bear hug--no breath, and sore ribs." They sat quietly for a moment, then Joxer said, "Accord, if we do have another baby, are Strife and Cupid going to have to worry about Imp bouncing off walls?"

"Huh? Oh, I don't think so. Maybe a little. I mean, you guys will be paying a lot of attention to the baby at first, but she's probably old enough now to realize it won't mean..."

"That isn't what I meant."

"Then what?" Joxer gave him a level look. Accord blinked. "Me?"

"It's a valid question. I mean, you've been the only baby here all your life, and..."

"Pop! Gimme some credit, okay?" He kicked his feet, staring down at them. "I dunno. Maybe if he ends up, like, the God of Courage, or the God of Intensely Macho Arms Fighting."

"Because you think that would get more of your Dad's attention?" Accord shrugged again, but didn't look at Joxer. "Cord." Joxer hugged him.

"I know he loves me, but... Well, he was able to train the crud out of Strife, and Deimos, and Phobos, and Zeus had to go and decide that I was only to be given the most basic sort of training in arms, and so much more from the other houses."

"It's to help you be more balanced. You'll need that in your..."

"I know, I know, and I can see why. It doesn't mean I'm really happy about it. It's got to be easier for the kids that are just trained in the arts of their own houses. They must be so sure of who and what they are."

"You think that, do you? Well, that tells me that you still have a little way to go before you're ready to take up your full duties. Because, son," he hugged Accord again, "teenagers are pretty much the same on that count, no matter where or how they're raised."