The Alyta Trilogy: Handmaids, Heroes, and Hierarchy.

On a tree branch above them, white light expands into Aphrodite, Cupid and Artemis. 
�See. I told you she could fight,� Artemis says between Alyta�s blows, mimicking her actions with an air-staff. 
Jason finishes with his half and looks over at Alyta.  She, too, is finished, but one of the thugs stumbles up and gets a mean look in his eyes. 
�Sure she can fight,� says Aphrodite, �but can she love?  That one.�  She says to Cupid, pointing to Jason. 
Cupid stretches the bow and aims his arrow at Jason.  Just when he�s about to let go, Artemis stretches
over and taps on his shoulder on Aphrodite�s side twice.  The arrow hits the thug about to attack Alyta.  Immediately, his eyes have a twinkle in them.
�Oh, Alyta.  How can I express my love to you?  Ah, Alyta� you are so sweet-ah, like good mince-meat-ah, you are such a treat-ah.� 
Alyta is really confused now.  She�s never seen this tactic before.  A big baboon with large arms opening for her wasn�t what she was expecting. 
�Uh� Jason� you can have this one.  He doesn�t even rhyme well.�
Jason looks at the situation.  This guy must be drunk.  He can handle him barehanded. 
�Okay, guy, I don�t know what your problem is, but just sleep it off, okay.  Stop bugging my friend here.�
The arrow-recipient looks at Jason, and all he realizes is that Jason is keeping him away from his love.  �She soooo pretty.  Like a daffodil.  This bad man.  He wants to take my daffodil,� he thinks in his dazed state. 
At least we hope he doesn�t usually think like that. 
He grabs a dagger from his belt and runs at Jason.  Jason doesn�t realize the danger of the situation and braces for a hand fight.  Alyta sees the dagger, reflecting in the light, streaming in an arc. 
�Jason!  Watch out!�  she yells, and pushes him out of the way.  The thug completes the stroke that was aimed for Jason, but grazes Alyta�s leg instead.
�Oh!  Daffodil!�  the thug exclaims in horror, leaning over her.
Jason gets up from where he was thrown, shakes his head in an attempt to rid himself of the headache he feels coming on.  He picks up a nearby staff and hits the thug squarely on the back of the head.
�Alyta?� Jason asks.
She winces in pain.  �That would be me.�
�Well at least you can talk,� he looks at the deep gash up her thigh.  �How bad is it?�
�I can�t tell.  It hurts like Tartarus though.�
�It�s okay.  We�re almost to the grove.  You can rest there.�  He picks her up and takes her a few feet
farther.  A huge gate of trees stops the path.  Jason slips through a hole between two oaks, and drags Alyta with him. 
She stops struggling with the pain for a moment as Jason sets her up against a tree.  She looks around at
her surroundings.  She is in a circular clearing with a 10-foot radius.  The place is overgrown with vines and flowers of all sorts: lilies, roses, irises, freesias, and� daffodils.  There is a deep and calm stream coming from between two of the trees and seemingly disappearing into the ground on the other side of the clearing.  Hearing a birdsong, she looks up.  The oaks extend far, far up in a perfect circle, leaving one large window through which blue sky is shining.  Birds, squirrels and small animals of all kinds find refuge in this unique circle of life. 
�Wow,� she manages to breathe.
�Yeah,� Jason says admiringly, looking both at Alyta and this place that is so special to him, this place he found so long ago but has never brought anyone.  He brings some water from the stream and washes her wound.

Beside them, though they cannot hear it, a discussion is taking place:
�It�s not my fault, mother.  My concentration was blown.  It was her,� Cupid says, pointing to Artemis.
�Hey, I didn�t want all that kissing you had planned to happen affect her performance on the thug who was about to wake up.  It�s not my fault you�re not more careful about when you set your spells,� Artemis says
in explanation.