Illustrated Fiction: Prelude to a Kiss (Ares / Aphrodite)

Hello my lovely demigoddesses and demigods,

some of you may remember the body switch story that was promised earlier in the year. The prompt was based on my own story idea for a novelette in which Ares and Aphrodite accidentally swap bodies and have to attend a family gathering pretending to be their lover. This would have been the first chapter. Let me know if you would enjoy a follow-up. 😊

The illustration was created by certified Ares fangirl MandyJam. Don't his pouty lips look adorable?

Glossary

andreia: courage, synonymous with manliness

Aphrodite Areia: epithet of Aphrodite meaning warlike Aphrodite.

Aphroditos: statue of Aphrodite with a phallus

Erotes: a group of winged love gods ("Loves") including Eros and his siblings Anteros, Himeros, Hermaphroditos, and more.

heart: seat of emotions

Hephaistos: the God of Smiths and husband to Aphrodite. He is lame in the legs but if he is ugly is in the eye of the beholder. In Ares' eyes, he is.

Kharites: better known by their Roman name: the Graces. As goddesses of all that is beautiful, they are part of Aphrodite's retinue.

klinē: an ancient Greek couch or bed. We get the English word "recline" from it.

Moirai: the three Fates in Greek mythology

Peitho: Goddess of Persuasion. She is part of Aphrodite's retinue.