*Flash* *crack*

The second sound was displaced air, something like (though on a smaller scale) what subsequent generations would call a 'sonic boom'. Bliss was holding Accord firmly when he appeared in Cupid's temple, but Accord squirmed in his grasp. Not wanting to sound annoyed, but not being able to help it, Bliss said, "What's wrong with you?"

"Lemme go!"

"Settle down. There's no need to be angry about..."

Accord twisted free and turned away, bending over. Just in time. *blerg*

Bliss winced. "Oh, yuck."

"Thank you." Accord stood, holding his belly. "If I was doing it on purpose, you'd be wearing it right now, Birdbrain."

"No need to be insulting."

"I call you that all the time."

"Yeah, but not in that tone of voice."

"Oh, great--now you're channeling your grandad. Ares swears he can hear me roll my eyes in a sarcastic manner. I threw up because we transported too fast. Don't look so surprised--it isn't like my Dad Joxer hasn't done it a lot."

Bliss felt a little ashamed of himself, but he said, "You haven't done that since you were a little kid."

"You haven't watched me transport with a full stomach since I was a little kid."

"You're right. Sorry, Cord." Bliss multitasked. He simultaneously made the mess disappear, materialized a goblet of fresh water on a nearby table, and created a cool, damp cloth. "Hold still." He wiped Accord's face gently, or tried to.

Accord took the cloth away from him. "I can do that. I'm not a baby, you know."

"I know that, but don't your dads like to take care of you when you're sick?"

"Yeah," Accord finished wiping his face, and made the cloth disappear. He took the goblet. "But they're my dads."

Bliss shrugged. "Other people care about you, too."

Accord blinked. "Oh." He took a sip of water and swished it in his mouth, getting rid of the sour taste. Then he tilted his head back and spat it out, making as neat a stream as a fountain. He made the water disappear in mid-air, not a drop touching the floor.

Bliss found himself grinning. "That's cool. You gotta show that to Strife."

Accord smiled back. "Bet he does it at the next state banquet." He seemed to realize that he was supposed to be angry, and folded his arms, lowering dark brows. "Dude, what got into you? Why did you just snatch me out of there like that? I haven't been moved that fast since that time I was visiting Hades, and one of the condemned tried to sneak out of Tartarus. Cerberus chased him down right in front of me. Persephone was playing with me, and..." He whistled. "She grabbed me and transported me so fast that we must've arrived where we were going before we left where we were." Bliss reflected that sometimes it was really easy to tell that Accord was related to Joxer.

Bliss studied him. "Didn't you realize that...?"

One of the priests peeked into the room. "Lord Bliss, your father said you'd be gone most of the day. Do you need anything?"

"No, Caracus. I'll let you know if I do, thanks." The man nodded, and left. "Let's go in my room, so we don't have to worry about anyone butting in." He led Accord to his room.

As Bliss shut the door, Accord looked around. "You redecorated."

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I found some paintings I'd done in a corner when I was little, so I gave it a new paint job. Like the color?"

"Nice. Green can either make you queasy, or look cool. I like this shade but what I meant was the new bed. When did you finally decide to move up to a double?"

Bliss tried not to wince. Since he'd had that talk with Strife, he had always exchanged his large bed for a small one before inviting Accord into his room, but he hadn't been planning on bringing him here today. "Not too long ago. You, uh, don't think it crowds the room? Maybe I ought to change it back."

"Don't." Accord flopped on the bed, sprawling comfortably.

*Ohshithe'sonmybed. He's only wearing his drawers, and he's on my bed! I am so dead.* He felt a tingle south of his waistband. *But apparently not in the place where it would be practical.*

"I got one a couple of years ago. I'd think you'd need one more than me, what with the wings. Anyway, next time I visit, one of us, meaning me, won't have to sleep on the floor."

"Heck, Accord," said Bliss, trying to keep a shake out of his voice at the thoughts that suggestion stirred, "You never had to sleep on the floor. We have plenty of spare rooms--you can have one all to yourself."

Accord, surprised, sat up, propping himself on his elbows. "But the whole point of having a sleep over is sleeping in the same room so we can talk and stuff."

*I'm not worried about the talking--it's the 'and stuff' I have to avoid.* "I just think we'd both sleep better that way." Accord was looking more and more disappointed, and Bliss thought that he'd have to give him some sort of solid reason for his suggestion. "After all, kiddo, you snore as bad as Joxer does and..."

High color flared in Accord's cheeks, and he bolted up off the bed. "Well, if I'm so annoying to have around, you don't have to worry about that any more!"

"No, wait. I didn't mean..." *Flash* Accord was gone in a flurry of maroon and silver sparks. "...to hurt your feelings..." Bliss' voice trailed off. "Ah, crap. Looks like he was right to call me Birdbrain." He sat dejectedly on the edge of the bed.

A few moments later Strife came in. "Hey, kid. Tha priest said ya were back. What gives? I thought ya were gonna be gone mosta tha day."

"We were. Something came up."

Strife came and sat beside him. "What? I know nothin happened ta wunna tha kids, or we'd be havin this conversation at Ace's."

"Nothing like that. It's just..." He sighed. "I screwed things up with Accord."

Strife squinted at him. "Whaddid ya do?"

Bliss gave him a sour look. "I didn't grab him, or anything. I just acted stupid and jealous."

"Jealous? Correct me if I'm wrong, but ya were only with Imp an' Polly."

"It wasn't them. We went to that beach near Posiedon's basking rocks, and..." Bliss related the incident to Strife. He didn't realize it, but as he talked about Andreas touching Accord, his voice dropped in pitch, and his eyes shaded more toward green. "...and he hauled tail out of there, fast. I just grabbed Accord and brought him back here. I just couldn't stand the thought of him being anywhere near that skunk. And then Accord got sick because we went too fast, and he wasn't ready for it, and we came in here, and he noticed the bed."

"Uh-oh."

"Yeah. He was all happy because he figured now we could share it when he had a sleep-over, and he wouldn't have to sleep on the floor."

"Tell me ya didn't suggest that he sleep in anothah room?"

Bliss looked sheepish. "I said it was because he snored."

"Shit!" Strife stood up and started pacing. "Aw, geez, kid! How could ya be that dense?"

"Well..."

"I mean, yer dad is tha God of Fallin in Love. Yer descended from Dite--tha girliest girly around. Ya should know bettah when it comes ta relationships. Tartarus, even I wouldn'ta said somethin like that unless I was deliberately tryin ta piss someone off." He grinned. "Or playin with yer fathah, but ya haven't reached that stage with Accord."

"Yet."

Strife stopped pacing at that single syllable, and stared at Bliss. Finally he said slowly, "So ya made up yer mind about that, huh?" Bliss nodded. "Yer gonna hafta wait awhile yet."

"I know." Bliss sighed. "He's not quite sixteen. It's going to be over a year before I can do anything without being a shit." He put his head in his hands. "But since he was acting like he never wanted to see me again..."

Strife rolled his eyes, then sat beside Bliss again, putting an arm around his shoulders and giving him a small shake. "C'mon, Bliss. I think with Accord it's mostly just tha normal teenage drama comin out. Tha only thing on earth as prickly as a teenage girl is a teenage boy."

Bliss tilted his head to peer up at his stepfather. "Was I like that?"

"Oh, nah."

"Is that true?"

Strife grinned. "Nah. Ya were a typical brat teen, better'n most, though. Don'tcha remember? It ain't been that long passed."

"I remember that I thought no one was taking me seriously, and no one understood how things were for me."

"Like I said--typical. Ain't evah been a teenager ta walk tha earth..." He giggled, "Or Olympus, who's gone through adolescence without thinkin' that tha whole world misunderstands 'em."

"So, you think he'll speak to me again?"

Strife snorted. "He's Joxer's get. He ain't gonna be able ta stop himself from speakin any more than he's gonna be able ta hold a grudge."

"He's also Ares' get."

"There is that," Strife agreed. "Mebbe ya should wait a day or two before tryin ta make up."

Bliss rubbed his face. "Man. I didn't even let him go get his clothes. I don't know what got into me."

"Sure ya do. Don't try ta give me that clueless act."

"I guess, but I sort of felt obligated to be shocked with myself."

"I'll bet Imp just about came unglued."

"She was holding it together pretty good before I left."

"Yah?" Strife sounded disappointed. "Well, I bet she cut loose as soon as ya were outah there. It woulda been worse than me seein Gabrielle standin nexta a manure pile while Joxer was goin toward her--with a strap on his sandel comin loose, and a nice, slippery patch waitin for him right nexta her." Strife stood up. "I gotta go. I wanna cut mosta tha way through tha belly strap onna certain warlord's saddle, so that when I make his horse rear while he's reviewin his troops, he'll slide off on his ass." Strife hesitated. "Look, if he doesn't come around, an' ya can't work up the nerve to go aftah 'im, lemme know. I'll suggest that he needs ta go around with me fah awhile next, an' we can kinda 'accidentally' bump inta ya."

"Thanks, Strife." He stood up and hugged the Mischief God.

"Eh, don't get mushy on me." He hugged back. "An whatevah ya do, don't tell Cupe I offahed, huh? I'm glad I hadda work with him once--it got us tagethah a lot faster'n it mighta been othawise--but I ain't in a hurry ta do it again." He grinned wickedly. "Bustin things up is a lot easier, an' a lot more fun."

*Flash*

Joxer looked up from the goblet of wine he'd just poured as his son appeared in the temple's main sitting room. Accord was dressed in nothing but a pair of damp underwear and his own wild hair. "Cord? What's wrong?"

"Bliss is a snotty, bossy, mean, chowderhead!"

"Oh-kay. And why are you only wearing your drawers?"

Accord looked down at himself. "Poop! I forgot all about that." He was suddenly dressed in his usual dark clothes, with his hair in its usual braid. "Bliss dragged me away from the picnic, and he didn't even let me get dressed."

"That doesn't sound like Bliss. Was something happening? Did some warlords, or harpies, or something show up?"

"Just some of the merfolk, and they weren't hostile at all. In fact, they were real friendly."

"Uh-huh. How friendly?"

"Well, one of them wanted to comb my hair--that's pretty friendly."

"Yeah, unless the hairdresser is a slave, or you're paying them to do it. I'm gonna make a guess here. I bet that Bliss pitched his hissy after he saw this merman combing your hair."

"Yeah, he just... How did you know it was a merman?"

"Lucky guess." *Because Bliss knows that you're still too young for most of the female population to see you as serious nooky material, but that you're just the right age to inflame certain less ethical males.*

"He said it was because I'd had enough sun. All he had to do was say something about it, and I would have gone back to the beach and gotten under the canopy. He didn't have to just snatch me away like that."

"Is that all that's got you upset? That covers the bossy, but I don't think I'd call it snotty, or mean."

Accord dropped gracefully to sit cross-legged on the floor. "That came after we left the beach. We went back to Cupid's temple. He's redecorated his room, even got a grown up bed. I was all excited, 'cause I thought great--next time I sleep over we can lay side by side and talk all night, and we'll be close enough to see each other." Accord's face darkened. "But he doesn't want to do that. He wants me to sleep off in a whole different room, because he says I snore." Accord looked at Joxer appealingly. "I don't, do I?"

Joxer cleared his throat. he wasn't about to touch that question--not with Accord already upset. "I'm sure he was just worried about your comfort."

"But I'd be comfortable in that bed. It had plenty of room for both of us."

Joxer rubbed his forehead. *That's it. I'm going to have to say something. Please, Fates, don't let me traumatize him.* "Cord? Why do two adults usually share a bed?"

Accord thought for a moment. "Well, if they're at a crowded inn, or there are a lot of relatives staying over..."

"When was the last time anyone on Olympus didn't have enough sleeping space for visitors? What other reason?"

"It they're going to..." Accord stopped abruptly. This time the color in his cheeks wasn't from anger. "Oh. I see." Joxer felt relief that it was going to be that easy. Accord got up and went toward the door. Just before he stepped out, voice wistful, Accord said, "I guess he WILL want to be having other people sleep over so he can, um..." His voice died away, and he left.

Joxer shook his head. "So like his father."