acclivity

να έχεις φίλους ή να μην έχεις φίλους: to have friends or not to have friends

Lena approached the group the next morning, gathering up her nerve to tell them all about the quest. Kara, as usual, spotted Lena first, waving brightly. Lena suspected that Kara actually waited and searched for her to arrive. It did warm Lena's heart to know that Kara cared that much about her. Lena smiled at everyone, sitting down in her usual place. "Morning Lena," Kara said brightly. Lena smiled at Kara.

"Morning." She said. "I'm sorry about last night." She started. "I didn't mean to snap at you. I've just had a lot on my mind." Just like Mon-El the night before, Kara waved her off.

"Don't worry about it, Lena. It's alright." Kara said. She wasn't going to say it didn't hurt at the time, but today was a new day. But Lena shook her head.

"It's not. And I can't say anything else except sorry. And that I have something to tell everybody." She said softly, though apparently everyone heard her because they all quieted down and turned to Lena. The raven haired girl felt a little self-conscious, but Mon-El gave her an encouraging nod of his head and Kara wrapped an arm around her shoulder, a jolt of heat coursing through her body at the contact.

"So I saw J'onn yesterday and he said I had been selected to lead a quest." Kara was slightly taken aback while Alex and Maggie looked visibly surprised. Winn, Mon-El, and James didn't react one way or the other, rather waited for her to continue. But Alex jumped in.

"You? No offense Lena, but you're really.... New." Alex said. Maggie elbowed her girlfriend in the ribs. But Lena nodded.

"I had the same concerns, but J'onn said it wasn't a mistake. My father said the same." This time everyone looked surprised.

"You got a visit from Apollo?" Winn asked excitedly. Lena nodded.

"Why? Is that weird?" She asked, unsure how many times everyone else had met with their godly parent.

"It's not unheard of, but it's certainly not too common either." James supplied. "I've never met Athena and Alex has only met her once." He said, pointing to Alex who nodded.

"Meeting your godly parent is kind of a big deal." Alex agreed. "It's a pretty big deal for you to get a visit from Apollo." Lena awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck.

"Oh, I didn't realize..." She trailed off. Kara jumped in, saving her friend from the situation.

"What is the quest about?" Kara asked. Lena shot her a grateful look.

"I'm supposed to go to Mount Othrys to spy on the Titans?" She said, almost questioningly. The entire table was a mix of different reactions. Winn's jaw dropped, as did Kara's. Alex, James, and Maggie all frowned at the admission and Mon-El looked somewhat excited.

"That sounds like fun!" He said happily before Kara shot him a critical look and he backed off, transitioning into a more sympathetic look. "I mean... Man, that sounds tough."

"How many people are you allowed to bring with you?" Maggie asked her friend, smiling at her encouragingly.

"Five others," Lena replied simply. Everyone at the table looked at each other.

"Well... there's seven of us; you, Kara, Alex, Maggie, James, Winn, and Mon-El. And there are six people allowed to go. Unless you were planning on bringing some of your other friends." Kara said a little sadly. Lena shook her head, though neglected to say that she didn't really have any other friends than the people sitting at the table. Lena had given a bit of thought to the exact problem that Kara had just brought up. She knew that one of the group would have to be left behind. And while she was loathed to do so, she knew it was necessary.

"I know." Lena turned to James, giving him an apologetic look. He nodded in understanding. "I'm sorry. I really wish I could bring you." Lena said, making a mental note to talk to him privately later.