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Cupid jerked and nearly fell over when Strife appeared in the room. "S-Strife! W-What are you doing here?"

"Cupe are you ok? Ya really pasty looking and coming from ME that's really sayin' somethin'. You ok?" Strife asked as he looked worriedly at Cupid.

Cupid froze as Dru and his mothers words echoed in his head. " 'Boink Strife's brains out!' 'Oh Cupie she's right you totally want him! It's just that you're both big dummies so you're both alone and miserable!' "

"Cupe?! Cupe hey! What's wrong?!" Strife asked getting more and more worried now that Cupid was just standing there looking ready to keel over.

"I-I'm fine. I uh just umm have some thing on my uh mind." Cupid managed to get out.

Strife frown and pushed Cupid into a chair before he fell over. "Maybe I should get Ace. Ya could be comin' down with somethin'."

"No! I-I I'm fine. Really. I just umm have uhh stress. And stuff. No big." Cupid quickly said not wanting to get anyone else involved with this.

"Ya sure? Cuz ya lookin' pretty green Cuz." Strife told him.

"Yeah I'm sure. I'm fine. So us why are you here? I mean umm don't you normally have stuff to do around now?" Cupid said trying to steer the conversation away from him self.

Now Strife looked even MORE worried. "Cupe it's way past work time. It's like dark out! What the fuck is going on with you?!"

Cupid looked at the window and cringed. He'd been so freaked he hadn't noticed how much time had passed. "I...Um It's nothing really. I'm fine. So uh you were saying why you dropped by? Did you wanna play with Bliss? He's at mom's right now...but I could go get him..."

Strife rolled his eyes. "No I didn't come ta see Bliss as much as I love teh brat. I came ta see you."

Cupid's eyes widened. "Me?! Y-You came to see me? W-Why?"

"Cupe ya really startin' ta scare me here! I've never heard ya stutter once in 300 years and now ya ain't doin' nothin' but!" Strife yelled sounding worried and slightly annoyed.

"I-I-I Uh...well you see it's umm...well you see me and mom went to find Dru before and there was an orgy and umm well they said some...things to me..." Cupid mumbled quietly.

Strife scratched his head and looked confused. "What? Ya sayin' a orgy freaked ya out?! Like ya haven't been ta a billion of them before?!"

"Guh it wasn't the orgy part that freaked me out. It was..." Cupid squeezed his eyes closed and took a deep breath. ~I can do this! I'm a grown god I can tell my best friend the insane not true thing Dru and Mom said!~ "Dru and Mom said that I...that we're in love but we're both just too stupid to realize it! And now that I'm actually saying it too you...oh sweet gods I think it's true."

Strife's mouth dropped open at the same time he went to sit down forgetting there was no chair behind him and landed on the floor. He didn't notice. "You? Me? Love? You me and love? Love and me and you? Guh."

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Dru covered her face an shook her head from where she was listening in the hall. ~Oh just great now HE'S broken even worse then Cupid! Ugh. I'm starting to think Cartoon Aphrodite was right. Love is like pluming and best left to the pros. Gah well better call in the pros I guess.~

//Aphrodite! We have an emergency here! I think I broke Cupid and Strife while trying to get them together. Umm opps?//

//You WHAT?! What did you do?!//

Dru quickly filled her in on everything from the last few minutes. //So uh can you fix it?//

//Grrr I think so. Just stay out of this from now on little girl before you mess anything else up ok?! I'll be there in a second.//

Dru sighed in relief that someone who knew what they were doing was now going to be handling this.

She peeked back into the room to see how thing were going.

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Aphrodite quickly took in what she saw as she appeared in the room. Cupid sitting in a chair looking ready to hurl or pass out. Strife sitting on the floor babbling to him self looking like he was in shock. //Well you sure did one Tartarus of a job didn't you Dru?!//

//Oops? Heh I thought I was helping....//

//Well you weren't! Stick to the Debauchery and leave the Love to the Pros!//

//Yes Sir.//

Aphrodite walked over to Cupid and Strife and knelt down. "Cupie? Sweetie? Can you hear me? It's Mommy. Ok honey listen to me. It's ok. There's nothing wrong with loving Strife. The best loves come from friendships. You've always loved him in one way or another only now you realize it. He can make you happy sweetie."

She turned to Strife. "Strife? Honey? Ok sweetie listen to me. Cupid loves you. You love him. I know it a big shock to realize it but it's true. You two will be great together you just have to get over the shock. I know this is all hard to take in but trust me you'll be happy once you two can get over all this shock and denial and admit you want each other."

Aphrodite stood up then pulled Strife up and pushed him into a chair. "I want you boys to talk. You need to talk about all this then you can get over it and just be happy. I'll keep Bliss since you're SOOO not in any shape to take care of him and check in on you guys later. I love you both. See you sweeties." She kissed both on them on the forehead then flashed out.

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Aphrodite appeared next to Dru as soon as she left Cupid and Strife. "Ok I think I've fixed things but keep your nose out of it! No more meddling!"

"Ok ok. I'm sorry I screwed up..." Dru muttered as she peered into the room where Cupid and Strife just sat there staring at each other. "Are you sure anything you said even sunk in? They still look pretty shocked."

"They'll be fine. I think. All there is to do now is wait and see where they go from here. You can watch but stay out of it. If it looks like anythings getthing...worse call me." Aphrodite told her before flashing out.

"Ugh. I sooo screwed up with them. Ok from now on I'm a Watcher. Observe and record, but never interfere. I'm gonna watch but I won't try to do any watch making unless I want Aphrodite to kill me slowly and painfully!" Dru swore softly to her self before she leaned back over to watch and see what was going to happen with the boys.

********************

Cupid and Strife sat staring at each other not talking and looking terrified.

Finely Strife snarled and stood up and started pacing "This is nuts! We been best friends fah way to long ta suddenly not be able ta even look at each othah! We gotta find a way ta deal with this before we both go nuts!"

Cupid nodded slowly and wrapped his wings around himself. "I agree. We have to so something. But what? I mean...we have to think. Is...is what Mom said true? Could we really do the whole happy married couple deal?"

Strife kept pacing for a minute then flopped back into the chair and stared intently a Cupid. "Yah. Yah I think we can. I love ya. I always have. For as long as I can rememba You've been teh only one I've ever even thought of in a squishy, mushy, gushy, lovey dovy way. I just....I just though ya could never love me. I'm Mischief. You're Love. How could ya ever love me? Yah we're friends but I never thought ya couldn't really want ta be with ME." Strife said quietly.

"What?!? How could I NOT want to be with you?! Not only are you my best friend you're sexy as Tartarus, you're wonderful with Bliss, you're funny, as much as you try to hide it you're smart, you're a great guy Strife! And Mom and Dru were right I've been a moron not to see it before this! You're every thing a person could want in a lover. You've been my best friend for 300 years, you even supported me when i married Psyche, you were ecstatic for me when Bliss was born, you were there for me when Psyche cheated on me and left me. You've always been there for me. I've been so stupid! How could I have not seen it before now?!" Cupid ranted as he started pacing.

"We're both stupid Cupe. We've both been total morons! So...what are we gonna do now? Now that's we know we've been blithering morons." Strife asked quietly.

Cupid walked over to him and grabbed him and kissed him wrapping his arms about Strife and putting every drop of Love God Skill into what he was doing.

Strife melted into him and wrapped his arms around Cupid pulling him closer.

Cupid ran his hands up and down Strife's back gently as he attempted to map every inch of his mouth.

Strife pulled back slightly and stared into Cupid's eyes. "I love you. I really, really, really love you Cupe."

Cupid grinned happily. "I love you too Strife! Gods it feels so good to say that! I love you! I love Strife! I AM IN LOVE WITH STRIFE!!"

All over Olympus gods blinked in shock or just laughed and said 'About time!'

********************

Hours later Strife and Cupid finely emerged from the bedroom tired but happy. They'd talk, kissed, talk some more, gone a LOT farther then kissing then talked even more. With all the talking they'd both come to the conclusion that Dru had been somehow involved with Strife coming to see Cupid.

They both now wanted to thank her for giving them the shove that had resulted in them getting together.

As they got near her room they slowed then blinked then full out gawked at the noises coming from her room.

"Mmmm! Oh gods! Oooh so good! Arugh! Mmm. Oh gods yes! Oh sweet mother of god how did I ever live without this?!"

Strife started giggling wildly. "I wonda who she got her claws inta?"

Cupid blinked mouth hanging open. "But....she seemed so...innocent!"

Strife fall against the wall and slid down clutching his sides laughing. "You...she...Innocent! Bahahahahaha!! Cupe fah Zeus sake she's ta Goddess of Debauchery! Ya really think she'd stay innocent fah long?"

Cupid blushed and looked sheepish. "Well no....but I wasn't really expecting this. She's so young...a baby practically! And who could she be with?" Cupid paled. "You don't think maybe Apollo do you?! You know what he's like he'll use her and toss her away like he does with everyone! I'm supposed to be taking care of her I can't let that happen!" Before Strife could even answer him Cupid was bursting into the room and startling the hell out of Dru who fell of the bed along with her bowl of Ice cream.

"Cupid! What the heck are you doing?!" Dru yelped nearly choking on a chunk of cookie dough.

"Where is he?! Where'd he go?!" Cupid asked looking around and under the bed.

"What guy?! Why the hell are you bursting into my room like this?!" Dru yelled picking her self up off the floor and checking to make sure her ice cream was ok.

"The guy you were having sex with! We heard you! All the moaning and 'Oh Gods!'ing!"

Dru rolled her eyes and stuck a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth. "You mean this? Mmmm! Oh gods! Arugh so good! Mmmm! That correct?"

Cupid blinked then glared at Strife who was laying on the floor turning red from laughing. "Yeah that. What the heck are you eating that's causing you to make noises like that?!"

Dru smirked then snapped her fingers creating another bowl of ice cream then stuck a spoonful into Cupid's mouth. "Just the best thing ever invented anywhere. Ice cream. Chocolate Cookie Dough to be precise."

Strife stopped laughing when he caught the look on Cupid's face. "Hey! What'd ya give 'im?"

Dru made a third bowl for Strife. "Chocolate Cookie Dough Ice Cream. The best thing ever made by man." She told him brightly as she stuck her own spoon full into her mouth.

Cupid slowly pulled the spoon out of his mouth looking shocked. "It's cold! Really, really cold! And...and I've never tasted anything like this!"

Strife eagerly ate a spoonful him self then a few seconds later was running around holding his head. "Woops. Forgot to warn about brain freeze." Dru commented.

"What the Tartarus just happened?!" Cupid yelled.

"That's what happens when you eat to quick. And he's being overly dramatic. It's not THAT bad. Strife! Just calm down it'll be over in a second!" Dru called out to him as she ate a neither spoonful of ice cream.

Strife stopped running around like he was on fire and blinked as he realized the pain was gone. Suddenly he burst into wild giggles and grabbed the bowl Dru had made for him. "Oh man Teh Mischief this stuff will cause! Oooh It's givin' me tingles!"

Dru grinned around her spoon at Strife's reaction and Cupid starring from his bowl to Strife to Dru and back again. Poor confused love god...

"Just remember to eat slowly and try to keep it away from the roof of your mouth and you should be ok." She told Cupid as she finished her bowl and made the bowl and spoon disappear.

"Erm...uh thanks but no." Cupid said quickly handing the bowl back.

Dru chuckled and made the bowl disappear and looked over at Strife who was guarding his ice cream protectively as he ate it.

Cupid wrinkled his nose just not getting how Strife could be back to eating the stuff that had him running around in pain not a minute before.

Dru stood up and stretched. "So was there a reason for your visit or did you just feel like bursting in screaming about men in my room?"

"Huh? Oh yeah we wanted to stop by and thank you for giving us a bit of a push we needed to get together."

"Wha? Heh I didn't do anything! Who said I did anything?! I'm innocent I tell ya! Innocent!" Dru yelled going wide eyed.

Cupid rolled his eyes. "Oh calm down! We're not saying you did anything!"

Dru coughed and blushed. "I know that. I was just... checking to make sure you knew."

Strife snickered. "Ah teh lousy covering' up of teh young! Were we evea that young Cupe?"

Just before Cupid could reply a swirl of hearts, flowers, and pink sparks appeared announcing the arrival of Aphrodite. "Hiya guys! How's it goin'?"

"Hey mom. We're great."

"Hiya Dite."

Dru just waved and grinned.

"Bitchin'! Ok so I just got this, like, totally rad idea! We should throw a full out Olympian bash for Dru! Give her a chance to meet everyone and junk!" Aphrodite crowed bouncing.

Strife shivered and giggled madly. "Ooooh! I just got a tingle!"

Dru madly switched from glaring and looking worried. "He got a tingle! That is never a good sign!" She flinched remember various descriptions of Godly parties from fics. They usually involve large amount of drinking and fighting and orgying. And she for one did NOT want to see Zeus naked! Old guy! Ew! And not the hot kind of old guy like a lot of those Hollywood actors! The icky kind!

"Aw come on! It'll be fun! And it'll give you a chance to meet all the other gods! You've only met like a hand full of us so far and if you're going to be here for a while you're gonna have to know the rest of us!" Aphrodite told her.

Dru groaned. She sensed this was NOT going to be one of those things she could get out of. "Argh. You're going to drive me loony till I say yes aren't you? Gah! Ok fine! Fine! Just no pink! And I mean it! If I see pink I'll sic the Bacchae on you! A whole heard of them! We're talking blood stains everywhere woman! Have Strife help with the decorating if you have too! I just better not see any pink! Think War colors." She paused to look over at Cupid. "Those War gods have good fashion sense. The Death gods too."

Aphrodite looked like she was being killed.

Cupid coughed to cover up his laughing. "Uh I think you may be asking a bit much of her with the no pink. How about dark pink? Red?"

"I'll except DARK pink and reds. But no...." She waved her hands at the frilly fluffy light pink nighty thing Aphrodite was wearing. "No anything like that! No lace! No frills!"

Aphrodite moaned. "She's killing me! Killing me! She stifling my creativity!"

"I mean it Dite! If I see frills, lace, fluffiness of any kind or pastels in any form I will go Horseman on your ass! Pillaging and burning and blood and death and- and-and badness of all kinds!! I'm a fanfic writer! I have Death living in my head I can do it!" Dru threatened.

All three other gods looked confused over her last couple sentences. "Errr future thing. You would understand..."

Aphrodite shook her head and sighed. "Ugh. FINE. No pink or lace or frills or pastels of any kind. But I want to to know this is gonna be a total bitch to keep it looking like a funeral!"

"I'm sure you'll struggle though some how." Dru told her smirking.

Strife was holding his sides laughing at the bickering between Dru and Aphrodite. Cupid poked him in the side with his elbow and hissed. "Quit it unless you want cranky goddesses after you! One of which and can off our sex lives!" Strife quickly smothered his giggles.

"Oooh! Well I'd better get planing this thing if were going to get it done any time this century! And it's going to be SUCH a struggle with the limits you've put on me!" Aphrodite huffed before flashing out.

Cupid shook his head looking amazed. "Man I can believe you convinced her that fast! Do you have any idea how many centuries my temple was pink even after I moved into my own place?! The woman never takes a no as an answer!"

Dru smirked and cracked her knuckles. "I think it was a threats of pillaging and burning and sicing blood suckers on her. And the slightly insane gleam in my eye telling her I'm not joking about my threats! Mwhahahahahaha! Being a Evil goddess is fun!"

That sent Strife off on another laughing fit while Cupid looked slightly frightened. Which was pretty impressive since he'd lived around War gods his whole life.

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