In a little corner just outside the Babel tower, Nikolaos and Vasileios sat in the carriage, waiting patiently for the Denatus meeting to conclude.
The two had been tasked with escorting their goddess Bahamut to the gathering, but the young boys couldn't help but feel a tinge of boredom as the hours ticked by.
"Sigh, I shouldn't have volunteered for this," Nikolaos muttered, his voice tinged with complaint.
"I feel you, bro," Vasileios replied, exhaling deeply in exasperation.
"This is not how I envisioned my day off," Nikolaos lamented, his tail swishing with discontent.
"Me neither. It's great that this only happens once every three months, but can you imagine if we had to do this every week or even every day?" Vasileios responded, shuddering at the thought.
The two had been waiting for what felt like an eternity, the monotony of their task slowly wearing them down.
Nikolaos leaned back in his seat, his brow furrowing in frustration.
"This is madness. Bahamut-sama said the meeting would only take a few hours, but she didn't specify how many," he grumbled.
"A few hours could mean two, three, maybe even five – we have no way of knowing!" he added.
Vasileios just chuckled lightly, shaking his head in empathy.
Soon they both settled into a contemplative silence, each lost in their own thoughts.
After some time, Vasileios spoke up, a mischievous glint in his eye.
"Niko," he called out.
"Hmm?" Nikolaos responded, barely lifting his head.
"Are you really into redheads?" Vasileios asked, his tone laced with a teasing lilt.
Coughing!!! Coughing!!!
Caught off guard, Nikolaos burst into a coughing fit, nearly choking on his own saliva.
"Where in the name of the gods did that come from?" he sputtered, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment and brows furrowed in bewilderment.
"Well, Michalis said something about it, and I couldn't help but notice the weird thing you do with your eyes, whenever you see a pretty redhead," Vasileios explained, his grin widening.
Nikolaos scowled, his ear and tail swishing in irritation.
"Don't take whatever Michalis says seriously," Nikolaos responded, his tone slightly defensive.
"And what 'eye thing' are you talking about?" he asked, his curiosity piqued.
"Now, telling you that wouldn't be any fun," Vasileios teased, relishing the opportunity to rile up his brother.
Nikolaos clicked his tongue in annoyance. "I swear, you're slowly becoming a second Vasiliki," he grumbled.
"I'll take that as a compliment," Vasileios replied with a light chuckle.
Nikolaos remained silent for a bit, formulating his thoughts before speaking.
"Hypothetically speaking, if I did have a penchant for redheads, what exactly is wrong with that?" he asked.
Vasileios shrugged, a mischievous glint in his eye.
"Oh, nothing really," he said, a teasing lilt to his voice.
"I just find your taste to be a bit... narcissistic, considering you're a redhead yourself." he added.
Nikolaos' face immediately scrunched up in displeasure, his tail drooping in a display of irritation.
"You little rascal," he growled, lunging at Vasileios and initiating a playful tussle that startled the horses a bit.
Their roughhousing was abruptly interrupted by a feminine voice.
"What are you boys doing?" the voice asked, cutting through the commotion.
Nikolaos and Vasileios froze, turning to face the source of the voice.
There, standing before them, was the goddess Demeter, her vibrant honey coloured hair and motherly gaze recognizable, staring as if reprimanding them.
"Ah, Demeter-sama," they greeted in unison, immediately recognizing her, adopting a more formal tone.
They were a bit embarrassed at being caught in such a childish display, but they did their best to play it cool.
"Nikolaos and Vasileios, if I remember correctly," Demeter said, her brow furrowing slightly as she scanned the carriage interior.
"Yes, that's right," Nikolaos confirmed.
"Hmm, it seems Draco is not here yet," Demeter mused.
"Draco-nii should be returning home from the dungeon around now," Nikolaos informed her.
"I see," Demeter replied, her expression thoughtful.
Vasileios leaned in, lowering his voice.
"Uh, how should we refer to the goddess behind you?" he whispered to Demeter.
"Ah, this here is Hephaestus, goddess of the Hephaestus familia," Demeter introduced, her voice carrying a sense of warmth.
Demeter had encountered Nikolaos and Vasileios after exiting the Babel Tower, and she had assumed that Draco, the captain of the Bahamut familia, was also present.
She had intended to introduce him to Hephaestus, but he wasn't around.
Hephaestus was quite a busy goddess, so there were only a few instances when Draco would have the opportunity to meet her.
"Hephaestus-sama," Nikolaos and Vasileios both greeted.
"You both are a bit too formal, not something I was expecting from a familia that Bahamut made," Hephaestus replied, her tone carrying a hint of amusement.
"Ah, I don't mean that in a bad way," she quickly added, realizing that her earlier statement could be interpreted differently.
"By the way, is the meeting over? I don't see Bahamut-sama anywhere," Vasileios inquired, his eyes scanning the area for their goddess.
"She should be down in a bit. She had something to discuss with Ouranos," Demeter replied, her words carrying a sense of reassurance.
"Ouranus?!" Vasileios exclaimed, his eyes widening in surprise, as he was unfamiliar with this god.
"Just think of him as the guild owner," Demeter clarified.
"That aside, I couldn't help but pick up on your conversation about redheads. How about her, doesn't she qualify?, isn't she pretty?" Demeter asked, deftly changing the subject and gesturing towards Hephaestus.
Vasileios was stunned by the question, while Nikolaos currently wished that he could find a space to crawl into and disappear.
"What nonsense are you saying Demeter?" Hephaestus interjected, her voice laced with a hint of embarrassment as she tried to deflect the attention.
"And why are the two of you trying to seduce my children?" Bahamut suddenly interjected, having finished her brief meeting with Ouranos.
She had quickly made her way out of the tower, aware that she had kept Nikolaos and Michalis waiting for quite some time.
"How was the meeting?" Demeter inquired, her tone inquisitive.
"It went okay, so hopefully the next Denatus will go alright," Bahamut replied, her expression neutral.
"I see," Demeter responded, her curiosity satisfied for the moment.
"What an interesting gathering I see," a soft, succulent voice interrupted.
Turning towards the source, Bahamut could see Freya, the goddess of beauty, approaching them, accompanied by a tall, muscular man – Ottar, the strongest child in her familia and her escort.
'Tsk, what does she want?' Bahamut wondered, her lips curving into a slight frown.
Vasileios and Nikolaos were immediately captivated by Freya's enchanting presence, their mouths agape and drooling, overwhelmed by her irresistible charm.
This was their first encounter with a charm type goddess.
Without hesitation, Bahamut quickly jumped onto the carriage, knocking the two out before unceremoniously tossing them behind the carriage.
"A brute as always, but those are quite the interesting children," Freya commented, her gaze lingering on Vasileios and Nikolaos' souls.
"What do you want, Freya? I don't believe we are that close," Bahamut replied, her tone guarded and her expression stoic.
"Nothing much, I was just curious about what you and Ouranos talked about," Freya replied, her smiling face irritating to Bahamut.
"That is between me and him. I don't see how that is your concern," Bahamut retorted, her words carrying a hint of disdain.
"No need to be hostile, I was just curious," Freya responded, her voice maintaining its alluring quality.
"Well, curiosity killed the cat," Bahamut quipped, a big grin spreading across her face as wisps of her draconic aura began to leak out.
Ottar, Freya's escort, instinctively grasped the hilt of his sword, a chill running down his spine as he felt the intensity of Bahamut's presence.
"Is that a threat" Freya asked.
"Take it how you will" Bahamut replied.
"I will keep that in mind," Freya replied, her smile growing even more radiant and captivating, attracting the attention.
The tension in the air was palpable, the two goddesses engaging in a subtle yet charged exchange.
Demeter and Hephaestus decided to only observe for now and would only act if things escalated.
Bahamut's gaze remained fixed on Freya, her draconic aura swirling and pulsing, a silent warning to the goddess of beauty.
Freya, in turn, maintained her alluring smile, her own passive divine presence exuding an aura of confidence and grace.