Zeus was bored.
He had everything to do. Too much, honestly. Ruling, judging, listening to prayers that all sounded the same after a while.
It got exhausting.
He lounged on his throne, lightning idly crawling along his fingers, gaze unfocused as he looked down through the veil separating Olympus from the mortal world. Cities passed beneath his attention like ants under glass.
Too loud.
Too obedient.
Too predictable.
"Same faces," Zeus muttered. "Same pleas."
Apollo lounged nearby, polishing nothing in particular, watching him with faint amusement. "You could always not look, Father" he said.
Zeus scoffed. "And miss the only entertainment mortals provide?"
Apollo smirked. "Flattery won't save you from Hera."
Zeus waved the comment away. "Hera is always angry. That's her natural state."
He leaned forward slightly, interest sparking as his gaze drifted over Greece.
"You know," Zeus said idly, "I've grown tired of the same type."
Apollo raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
"Young," Zeus continued. "Soft. Always worshipful. It's dull."
Apollo chuckled. "Careful. That's sacrilege in some circles."
Zeus snorted. "Everything I do is sacrilege to someone."
His gaze slowed.
Then stopped.
Sparta.
Ah. There it was.
Rough land. Harsh people. Always interesting in their own unpleasant way. He watched soldiers train, women barter, children run through dust and sunlight.
Then he saw her.
Eleni.
She sat outside her home, hands folded in her lap, staring at nothing in particular. Her hair, streaked silver now, was tied back loosely. Her posture carried weariness, but not weakness.
Age had touched her gently.
There was still grace there. Still strength. Lines earned, not given.
Zeus tilted his head.
"…Now that's different."
Apollo followed his gaze. "You can't be serious."
Zeus smiled slowly. "Why not?"
"She's mortal," Apollo said flatly.
"They all are."
"She's old," Apollo added.
Zeus' smile widened. "Precisely."
Apollo sighed. "Hera is going to—"
"I know," Zeus interrupted. "She always does."
He leaned back, considering.
Something about Eleni pulled at his attention. Worry. The quiet kind. The kind mothers carried without knowing why.
"She looks like she's waiting for something," Zeus murmured.
Apollo frowned. "Or someone."
Zeus' gaze sharpened. "That makes it better."
Apollo stared at him. "You're unbelievable."
"Yes," Zeus agreed easily.
He rose from his throne, stretching like a predator shaking off sleep.
"I won't go openly," Zeus said. "That would be rude."
Apollo folded his arms. "You mean inconvenient."
Zeus laughed. "Details."
He glanced toward Hera's chambers briefly, expression unreadable. For half a heartbeat just half something like caution flickered across his face.
Then it vanished.
"She won't notice," Zeus said. "She never does until it's already happened."
Apollo shook his head. "One day..."
"One day," Zeus cut in, "I'll deal with it."
He stepped toward the edge of Olympus, lightning gathering around him like a cloak.
"Keep watch," Zeus said over his shoulder. "If she stirs."
Apollo snorted. "You mean when."
Zeus didn't answer.
The air rippled.
His form twisted, lightning folding inward, reshaping into feathers and talons. In a blink, Zeus was gone replaced by a massive eagle, wings spreading wide as he launched himself from Olympus.
Below, the mortal world waited.
Unaware.
Eleni had been sitting there longer than she realized.
The stool creaked softly beneath her weight as she shifted, hands folded in her lap, eyes drifting toward the dirt road that led nowhere in particular. Evening light stretched thin across the stones, turning dust gold, then gray.
She wondered where and how her son was faring.
That was the problem.
She felt something wrong like he was in some sort of trouble but couldn't quite place her finger on it.
She pressed her lips together.
Stop it, she told herself. He's strong. Smarter than you give him credit for.
It didn't help.
Mother's worry didn't listen to reason.
A breeze stirred, lifting the edge of her shawl. Eleni pulled it tighter around herself and glanced up at the sky, squinting against the fading light.
That was when the shadow passed over her.
Large.
Fast.
She frowned and looked up properly.
An eagle circled overhead.
Not unusual. Sparta saw them often enough. But this one was… bigger. Its wings cut the air with a sound she felt in her chest, a deep, steady rhythm that made her uneasy for reasons she couldn't name.
It circled once more.
Then descended.
Eleni stood slowly, one hand braced against the wall of her home. "Shoo," she called softly. "Go on."
The eagle landed instead.
Its talons struck the ground a few paces away, stone cracking faintly beneath the impact. It folded its wings with deliberate calm, head tilting as it studied her.
Too close.
Too still.
Eleni's breath caught.
"This isn't funny," she murmured, "Go."
The air changed.
She felt it like pressure against her skin, a weight settling where there hadn't been one before. The eagle's form shimmered, feathers unraveling into light, bone stretching and reforming in a way that made her stumble back in shock.
A man stood where the bird had been.
Tall. Broad. Cloaked in authority she'd never felt before, not even from kings or generals. Lightning lingered faintly in his eyes, though his expression was calm. Curious.
Interested.
Eleni froze.
"Don't be afraid," Zeus said gently.
His voice carried warmth, practiced and smooth, the kind meant to soothe rather than command. It only made the hair on her arms stand up.
Like those type of voice with ultimate pretense.
"Who.." Her voice wavered. She swallowed. "Who are you?"
Zeus smiled. "Someone who noticed you."
That was worse.
"I didn't ask for company," Eleni said, backing toward her door.
"And yet," Zeus replied, stepping closer without haste, "here I am."
She reached for the doorframe, grounding herself in something solid. "You should leave."
Zeus paused, studying her more closely now.
Her worry.
"You're waiting for your son," he said.
Eleni's heart lurched. "How do you...."
"He'll return," Zeus said lightly. "Not tonight. But he will."
"Besides even if he does not return, you have got me to spend time with"
Something in his certainty stole the breath from her lungs.
She wanted to scream. To call out. But the air pressed down, like a supreme will forcing itself on her.
"My lord" She Instantly fell to her knees, "This one is fragile and not good enough to satisfy you."
Zeus tilted his head. "On the contrary."
He squated down feeling her face with his hands.
"I think you will do just fine"
The last thing Eleni noticed was how quiet the street had become.
No wind.
No footsteps.
No witnesses.
Far above, Olympus gleamed, unaware or uncaring.
And somewhere beyond sight, a boy rode hard through the dark, his chest tight with a worry he didn't yet understand.