Cupid and Psyche (Greek Mythology) - DabiHawks

Venomous

After Helios pulled the sun over the sky back and forth three times, Hypnos decided to wake the mortal who slept soundly on the ebony bed. He stalked through the poppy flowers, feeling his way through the absolute darkness. No sound or light entered Hypnos' grotto, none besides the soft red glow of bioluminescence Helios dropped in the poppies and the soft sound of the river Lethe, which flowed around the cave of Hypnos and through the Underworld.

Any foolish or heartbroken person who drank from said river experienced complete forgetfulness.

Hypnos made sure to keep Touya away from it.

By resting his palm on the mortal's hand, Shouta slowly pulled Touya out of his deep slumber. It was as if he sent thin strands of golden twine down into his soul, wrapping them gently around his wrists and ankles to pull him up. When his soul was back in his body, Touya peeled his eyes open and stretched his arms out.

"Enjoy your rest?" Shouta asked, stepping back and gathering some figs and wine for the mortal.

Touya shrugged. "I feel like I rose from the dead."

"If you would've spent any more time in there," Shouta said, handing Touya the small meal, "then your soul most likely would've been lost to the river."

"Oh, how delightful," Touya scoffed sarcastically. "Where am I, anyways?"

"Cave of Hypnos," Shouta deadpanned. "In the underworld."

"You took me to the underworld?!" Touya blurted. "You're fucking mad, aren't you?!"

"Relax, drama queen," Shouta grumbled. "You'll be fine. We'll be leaving shortly. Surely three days is enough for Aphrodite to become level headed enough to spare a life."

"I want to see my husband," Touya demanded. "I need to make sure he's alright."

"I visited him yesterday," Shouta explained. "He's asleep, just like you were moments ago. If he interferes with his mother's plan of action, he could steer everything in the wrong direction. Keigo has the most loyal heart, which is his greatest strength and his biggest weakness."

Touya nodded, placing his wine down beside him. "So that's his real name? Keigo?"

Shouta hummed. "It is."

"It's... pretty," Touya whispered.

Shouta smiled at this, standing up and lazily pulling a blanket made of dark clouds around his shoulders. "Come, mortal boy. It'll be a long day."

Touya clung to Hypnos (hesitantly, only because he had no other choice) as they ascended, keeping his eyes squeezed shut. His ears popped from the change of air pressure, and he almost choked on the air when they emerged from the underworld. It was so thin and cold compared to the stuffy thickness below.

Then, from the corner of his eye, Touya saw Helios, his smile so bright it nearly blinded him. And not to mention how loud his voice was–

"SHOUTA! IS THAT A MORTAL WITH YOU? OH MY, WHAT'RE YOU DOING, MAN?"

"Hizashi, for the love of Zeus, please stop screaming," Shouta groaned, slowing to a stop as Helios and his large golden chariot galloped through the sky. "We're on a very short schedule, Hizashi. No time for fun and games."

"Heya, little dude!" Hizashi beamed, extending his hand for Touya to shake. The mortal stood completely still, hands over his eyes. The man was quite literally beaming. Every inch of him was a yellow so searing and bright that Touya thought he was going to pass out. Helios frowned. "What's wrong with this one? Isn't he supposed to worship me or something?"

"The light hurts their eyes, Zashi," Shouta explained. "Mortals are more sensitive than us."

"Man, my apologies," Hizashi chuckled. He dimmed himself as much as he could, scaling down from the brightest of a sun to that of a large fire. Touya still saw the light as he blinked himself back into reality. "I'm Hizashi, AKA Helios. It's nice to meet you. I hope Shouta's been a good host."

"Touya Todoroki," the mortal replied. "And yeah, whatever. Thankfully he's not super loud. Or bright."

Hizashi chuckled again, not quite picking up the insult thrown at him. "Anyways, where are you guys heading to? I can drop you off in the chariot."

"Nemuri's tower on Olympus. Touya here is the lover Keigo had been rambling about," Shouta explained. "But really, it's fine. We can–"

"It'll be much faster this way!" Hizashi sang. "C'mon, get in!"

Touya and Shouta ended up in the back of Hizashi's chariot not because they wanted to, but because they really had no other choice. On the bright side, (no pun intended) they reached mount Olympus much sooner than later.

"Thank you, Zashi," Shouta said as he helped Touya out of the chariot. "Now please, finish taking the sun to the west."

"My pleasure, Sho," Hizashi said with a little bow. "Best of luck. Nem can be a bit of a... what's the word you mortals use? A bit of a bitch."

Touya snickered as Helios flew away, but the amusement left him as he approached Aphrodite's tower. It was absolutely massive, like one out of a fairy tale. Touya wondered how long it took to build; for a mortal, it would've been well over a century, though Gods and Goddesses had so much strength and power–

Suddenly Touya felt unusually small. Weak. Insignificant. Ugly, in an ironic, round-a-bout way.

Shouta nudged Touya's shoulder, gesturing toward the tower. "Head up, kid," the God said. "Aphrodite despises those who are insecure even more than those who don't fear her wrath."

Touya forced a small smirk, rolling his shoulders back. He took the first step, ignoring how the liquid dread twisted in his stomach.

Aphrodite knew the mortal was there minutes before he stepped into her tower. Her sky blue eyes twinkled with malice as Touya Todoroki met her gaze. "Well, it's about time we met," Nemuri seethed, rising slowly. She towered over Touya, venom laced through her every word. "Enjoying your pretty face?"

"Not quite, actually," Touya scoffed. "I was enjoying your son's a lot more. Mind if I chat with him real quick?"

Nemuri hummed disapprovingly. "You've got quite the mouth on you, brat. Considering that you nearly killed him, I don't think my darling son would ever want to see you again."

As Touya felt the Goddess' words pierce his heart, Hypnos stepped up as his backbone. "Nem," he said softly through a gentle sigh. "What is your true intent? What would your father think if he saw you messing with mortal love once again?"

Nemuri scoffed, shooing Shouta away with her hand. "Ouranos does not care what I do," she said. "If anything, he'd be proud I'm protecting Cupid's masculinity and freedom. How could I let my son run away with a mortal parading around, pretending to be a God?"

"You're so dramatic, Nemuri," Shouta said with a scowl. "Mortals only get to live for so long. Leave them be, won't you?" The God turned to Touya, eyes solemn and narrowed. "You love Keigo, don't you?"

Touya swallowed the lump in his throat, doing his best to straighten his spine and stand tall. He couldn't help but tremble before the Gods. Still, he answered, as proudly as he could. "I do, sir."

"Fine, be in love all you'd like," Nemuri blurted. "But you will not see my son unless you complete three tasks."

"Nemuri," Shouta growled. "What are you planning?"

"Relax, Sho," Nemuri teased. "They're three simple tasks, and no, you may not come along. This is for the mortal and the mortal alone. Come, boy. We're off to the first task."

Touya had no choice but to follow.