Chapter Text
"Hermes, I don't know about this..." Athena looked at the glowing flower in her hand, contemplating if she really was about to do this.
"Oh please, sis. If there's anything that'll help that poor loud head of yours, this will certainly do the trick!" Hermes giggled, cocking his head to the side, tilting his glasses downward. "Besides, you've been so stressed over everything! You need to loosen up a little!"
Athena continued staring down at the root, still unsure if this was the right way to go. But, if it would help the voices in her head quiet down, and make sure she got some actual sleep...
Hesitantly, she shoved the flower into her mouth, almost immediately spitting it back out. She forced herself to swallow the herb.
"Eugh, it tastes gross..." Her face twisted with disgust, the taste lingering longer than she would've liked. "I don't feel any different." She looked down at her hands. Yep. Still her hands, still pale.
Hermes simply laughed.
"Oh trust me. You'll know when it hits."
"Why are you all here?"
"To make sure you're not completely alone when it hits." Apollo stated, placing a cup of nectar on the floor.
No thanks to Hermes, a few of her siblings had heard about what she did. Some were pleasantly surprised and amused, while others (mainly Apollo and shockingly Ares) were more concerned about how she'd react to the effects. Athena rarely allowed herself to have fun anymore, let alone do something like this.
How Hermes got her to agree so easily will forever be a mystery for the rest of them.
"I really don't think anything will happen," Athena rolled her eyes, "I ate that flower a good hour ago."
"You never know, Thena. Sometimes it takes a while for it to kick in." Aphrodite, who had been sitting on the floor criss-crossed, butted into the conversation. "It really depends on the person taking it. With Hermes it just kicks in faster, it might take a lot longer for you."
"I remember the first time Ares ate Holy Moly, he was super paranoid." Hermes snickered, earning a threatening glance from the war god. "Aph had to watch over him for the rest of the night because he was rambling on and on about-"
"Silence yourself." Ares growled, removing his head from Aphrodite's lap for a moment. Aphrodite shushed him gently, instantly shutting him up.
"You're such a kiss-ass, Ares." Apollo snorted, before directing his attention back to his sister. "Anything yet?"
"No," Athena shook her head, sighing disappointedly. "Honestly, I really don't think anything will... Oh."
She suddenly went quiet, blinking a few times. The rest of the gods watched as she looked all over the room, before glancing down at her hands.
"... Thea?"
"... Holy shit." Athena muttered, waving her hands around in the air. "Did... Did it work?"
"Oh, it worked." Hermes laughed, watching her flail her hands.
"Everything is like. Spinning. But in a good way? Not enough to make me feel queasy... if that makes sense? It's making my lightning scars feel weird too..."
"Yep, it's definitely hitting." Apollo did his best to hide his own amusement, "How are you feeling?"
"My burns are like, vibrating. I feel... Fuzzy. Like... Uhh..." Athena sat in silence for a moment, clearly trying to think of something. "I hate how slow I'm thinking right now, uhm..." She snapped her fingers, "Those cats that have big hair."
"Girl... A lion?" Aphrodite raised a brow at her, grinning at Athena's stupid little smile of victory.
"Yeah, that."
Aphrodite and Ares looked at each other, both of them trying not to laugh at the loopy goddess. Athena sat in silence again, seemingly deep in thought, before she spoke.
"Did I just forget what a lion was called? I did..." She mumbled, answering her own question. "That's... Not funny." She immediately started giggling to herself, putting a hand over her mouth to try and silence herself.
"Oh she's gone." Ares sat up from Aphrodite's lap, laughing at his sister's little snorts and giggles. "She's way gone."
"You should drink some of this to lessen the effects a bit." Apollo held out the cup of nectar to her, waiting for her to take it. Athena looked at the cup, reaching out to try and grab it.
She missed.
Confused, she tried again to grab it.
She missed it again.
"How the fuck do you grab a cup?" She began wheezing by the last word, hiding her face in her hands. The rest of the gods began laughing at her, as Apollo simply put the cup down beside his giggly high sister. It was refreshing to see her finally unwind, as all of the tension and stress seemed to leave her in an instant. Ever since... the incident... Athena had tried to get closer with the other gods, rare moments where they were simply just siblings having fun, instead of gods at war with each other.
Suddenly, the door opened, as the queen of gods herself began entering the room.
"Act natural!" Apollo whispered to Athena, who tilted her head in confusion. The other gods sat with perfect posture and gleaming smiles, as Hera entered Athena's room, eyeing them suspiciously.
"What in the Styx are you all up to that you're in here bothering Athena?"
"Hi Hera!" Athena waved enthusiastically, unaware of the sharp stare Ares and Aphrodite had given her. Apollo lightly nudged her with his elbow, trying to get her to stop talking. Hera fixed her green gaze onto the goddess of wisdom, immediately noticing something was off. Particularly, the redness of her eyes, and the dopey grin on her face.
"Athena. Are you high?" She questioned, leaning back against the door, observing her carefully. She didn't actually need an answer, it was already quite obvious. She was more curious on what Athena would respond with.
"... Am I what?" Athena tilted her head in an owl-like manner, squinting up at her.
"High." Hera did her best to hide the ever growing smile on her face.
Athena frog-blinked at her for a moment, before a goofy grin took over her face.
"Hehe, hiiii." She waved again, before snickering into her hands. Hermes laughed alongside her, as Apollo facepalmed. Aphrodite giggled a little, while Ares sighed.
"There goes our cover..."
"Well, I'm happy to see you're doing well," Hera simply chuckled, walking over to the high goddess. "But please, don't do anything stupid, okay?" She lightly ruffled Athena's already messy hair, earning another loopy giggle.
"I'm the goddess of... of..." Athena paused for a moment, deep in thought, "Wisdom. I'm smart. I won't do anything stupid." She saluted up at Hera, who wasn't bothering to hide her amusement. Athena did her best to stand up, wobbling a little before falling into Hera's waiting arms. She looked up at Hera, still grinning. "Hi mom!"
"Hi honey." Hera laughed, helping the redhead stand properly. She eyed the other gods with a warning look, "Keep a close eye on her. Don't let her leave Olympus in this state, especially if she can barely stand."
"I can feel my teeth rattling..." Athena mumbled dazedly, wheezing to herself as she went limp in Hera's arms. Hera gently set her down on the floor, watching her curl up in a ball of snorts and laughter, kicking her feet like a little girl.
"Hermes, how much did you give her?" Apollo asked, looking at the very entertained messenger god.
"Oh, that's easy darling! I gave her... Uhm.." Hermes went surprisingly quiet. "... Fuck. I don't remember-"
"Are you fucking kidding me, Hermes?" Aphrodite smacked him upside the head, "You had one job, and you blew it! Only the fates know how high she could be!"
"Definitely way up there." Ares lightly kicked Athena, who was staring silently at the ceiling, frog-blinking every once in awhile. Wherever she was, she was deep in thought.
"By the gods..." Hera pinched the bridge of her nose, "Hermes, you should've at least watched how much you had given her."
"I didn't think she'd eat the whole root!"
"A whole root? Are you insane?" Apollo butted it, "Athena doesn't get high on a daily basis, you might be able to handle that, but who knows if Athena can!"
"She's a big girl, I'm sure it's not that bad!" Hermes shrugged it off, "She's smart enough to not go anywhere, aren't you Athena?" He looked down at the floor, expecting the goddess to still be deep in thought.
Except, she wasn't.
She wasn't on the floor anymore.
She wasn't even in the room, let alone on Olympus.
Aphrodite could feel everyone's panic skyrocketing, including her own.
Ares spoke up, breaking the tense silence.
"... You don't think she went to Ithaca, do you?"