One for the pretty god [open]

[Aphrodite]

The sun had long since abandoned its post in the sky and most people had gone to sleep. Aphrodite wandered aimlessly through the streets. Every time they passed somebody they'd wink and slow down just enough for the other person to think they had a shot before laughing and speeding up their walk again. The goddess had no qualms against playing flirty games like these. Making somebody think they had a shot with this attractive person before dashing their hopes across the pavement.

Eventually Aph's game shifted to that of looking for something else to do. They didn't want to go back to their house yet and their shop was closed for the night. The only thing open this time of night would be brothels or bars. So Aphrodite chose the latter and more decent option. There was always somebody in the Silver Eyes Bar. With nothing else to do the idea of playing some tricks on the patrons of the bar seemed like a good idea.

In their ripped black jeans, black boots, and off the shoulder white crop top, they made their way to the bar. The line to get in wasn't to long, but Aph didn't feel like waiting and so they sidled up to the bouncer. A few compliments on muscles and suggestive hints and they were in ahead of the people already waiting. They blew a kiss to the bouncer as they walked in.

The inside of the bar was dimly lit, as most places of similar patrons would be. There were a few heads turned towards Aphrodite as they walked up to the bar to get a drink. Considering that Aphrodite's power allowed them to be exactly what everybody considered beautiful and ideal this wasn't surprising. They took a seat at the bar and ordered a drink before scooting their chair over to look at the boy sitting beside them. He was cute with blonde curly hair.

"Hey handsome." Aphro purred as and leaned closer to him.

He turned to look at who had spoken and the second he saw Aphrodite he froze. His eyes darted around as if looking for who they could possibly be talking to.

"Are you talking to me?" He asked hesitantly.

Aphrodite laughed and gave him a warm smile. "Well of course darling! You are the only one with such pretty eyes around here." At their statement a few of the people listening in seemed to get self conscious and looked away.

The boy blushed and looked down at his drink before looking back up at them. "Um, can I get you something to drink?" He asked. Aphrodite was almost tempted to take him up on that offer, but they hated to get the cute boy's hopes up too far.

"Maybe best time doll." They cooed before grabbing their drink that they had ordered earlier and standing. They looked around the bar and found a few booths open, but only one with a singular person seated inside. Aphro wandered over to that booth, leaving the poor confused boy behind.

They slid into the booth with the single person in it and flashed a smile at them. "What's a hottie like you doing in a place like this?" They asked with humour dripping from their voice.

[Lumero Mordez]

    Sometimes there were days where you just needed to go and drink something to cool off. During the day, it was murder to work under the blazing sun, tending to one's plants so they didn't wither within hours. It's not that Lumero hated the heat, but he did find that there was a certain amount that he found acceptable and that amount was exceeded 5 days ago. Getting dressed into some more "formal clothing", the god of death adjusted his shirt cuffs and collar, his long black necktie, and pressed out his black slacks to be nice and crisp. Lumero didn't always dress so formal, but sometimes it felt good to change things up a bit. Saying a soft goodbye to his children, Mr. Mordez walked down the road with a relaxed step. It didn't take long for the god to walk with his swiftness, deciding to let a small breeze indicate his movement to his destination.

    In front of the bar, Lumero took a breath and exhaled deeply. He hadn't really gone out anywhere in a while, and wondered if there were any other gods that would recognize him in the bar. He shrugged away the thought, thinking that this was better than laying around the house doing nothing for a day. After waiting in line for a bit, he walked into a warm atmosphere, the aroma of alcohol present, but not overwhelming. He saw a few patrons, and kept tabs on one table with a drunk college student, heading towards the door with keys in his hand. Lumero reached out his arm and gave a soft yet incredibly firm, "No" to the patron. In the young adult's stupor, he slurred his words around as if trying to form a sentence, proceeding to swing at Mordez without any restraint. With but a glance, Lumero willed the mortal's fist to slow down and redirect the momentum to the floor, causing the intoxicated individual to fall to the floor unconscious.

    With a small sigh, he motioned to the body on the floor and openly asked, "Can someone please call this man a taxi?"

    A kind-hearted soul took over, much to Lumero's relief and he moved himself into a booth away from all of the racket. He might get himself a drink later, but for now he just wanted some quiet time. And just like that, someone caught Lumero's eye. It was a...woman? She sat next to a young blond boy with curly hair, obviously caught off guard by the woman's advances. She appeared to have him entranced, that is, until she simply left him in a daze and then started making her way toward his booth. He couldn't help but have a strange feeling that something was wrong as she got closer

    The god of death was unsure of what to make of this situation, and yet the woman, she seemed so familiar.... Lumero got even more confused when his deceased wife's face and form appeared in front of him, echoing a question of why he was at the bar. That...was impossible, he thought to himself, who is this woman? Remembering her question, Lumero cautiously asked, "How about I remove my mask and tell you once you remove yours?"

[Aphrodite]

Perhaps the strange skull mask had been the reason Aphrodite had sat down at the table with the man, or perhaps that just happened to be an added bonus, but either way, now that they were here they wanted to know what was up with the mask. The idea of somebody wearing a mask like that into a bar intrigued them. His attire wasn't something to scoff at either. The man was pretty much wearing a suit. Who wore a suit to a bar? Businessmen sometimes came in with suits on. But I if this man was just coming from work then why was he wearing the mask?

So the proposition that the man offered first instead of a greeting kind of surprised Aphrodite. This had happened before, but under different circumstance.

Every so often Aphrodite's power would make them appear as a significant other to some person. Whether it was a girlfriend, boyfriend, the one that got away, or spouse, it wasn't too rare for Aph to appear as them. What was rare was for somebody to spot it right away and for them to ask Aph to take off their 'mask' in return for the other person taking of theirs.

"I would if I could doll, but sadly, this face is here to stay." Aphrodite explained and slid in closer, draping the self over the man dramatically. "So who am I to you? Wife? Boyfriend? Ex?" They questioned, looking up at the man and trying to get a peek under his mask. They shrugged when they couldn't find any truly distinguishing features.

Aphro laughed a little as they leaned back over to their own personal space bubble and took a swig of the drink they had ordered. It was sweeter than a normal drink, but still packed enough punch to knock somebody out after a few of the beverage. They glanced back at the man's mask.

"Despite me not being able to remove the face my power makes you see, I have a feeling that the mask isn't glued to your skull. Still willing to make a deal?" Aphrodite asked and raised an eyebrow. They were trying to make it seem suggestive, but they really just had some sort contest in mind. Maybe a round in some kind of video game. They smiled at the idea of playing some sort of game against the man.

[Lumero Mordez]

    Hearing that the woman was unable to change this appearance, he breathed out a sigh. Slowly, Lumero reached up to his face and slipped the mask easily off of his face. His eyes adjusted slightly to the light now fully experienced without his skull mask, and then looked back to the woman as she drank. Aside from the clothing being something she'd never have wore, she looked just like her. His eyes softened slightly as he thought of a better time for him and his family, even if it wasn't the best for him.

    Snapping back to the present, he gave a lopsided smirk to try and amuse the woman as he revealed his face. Changing back to a neutral expression, he softly replied, "Look at that, the mask isn't glued, is it? In regards to your question...you look just like my wife. She passed away coupl'a years ago, been havin' trouble with her passin'... sorry if I came across as a bit cross, señorita. 'S just that I haven't seen her in so long, and to see you - lookin' like her - hurts a lil' bit, in a way..."

    It had been seven years since Carmen passed away. She had looked as beautiful as ever, even on the day she died...all those flowers around her...made her look like a goddess. She was a goddess, to Lumero at least. Looking towards the bar, he contemplated getting a drink, but decided to put it off for a little while longer. As painful as it was to see Carmen's face on this person, he still wished to talk to them, even if it was for such a selfish reason as to see her face moving again.

    "Well, that aside, you seem like a nice enough...person, 'side from that little heartbreak ya did to that poor boy over there. Not sure what you'd like me to call ya, in terms of pronouns 'n such. Name's Lumero, among others, by the way. Nice to meet ya...."

[Aphrodite]

The sigh the man gave off when he learned that they couldn't Chang ether appearance made Aphrodite even more curious as to why he wanted them to change it in the first place. Must have had a bad experience with the person, if what they concluded. Of course after that they didn't really expect to get the mask of the man with convincing. It wasn't necessary though, because soon after Aphro spoke the man pulled off the mask.

Aphrodite laughed when he made the comment about the mask not being glued. They had almost hoped that it had been connected to his face in some way, it would have made for an interesting story.

When he mentioned that they looked like his wife they were confused as to why he had sighed when they couldn't change out of her face. That was quickly answered though after he mentioned that his wife had died. Aphrodite sucked in a small breath and, not for the first time, kind of regretted coming over to talk to some stranger.

it wasn't any fault on his fault, In fact he seemed pretty cool about the whole situation, but it made them feel bad that they couldn't just switch their power off like some people could. It must hurt to see your dead wife in a bar.

He launched into an introduction after that and at the mention of the boy Aphrodite looked over their shoulder to see him stealing glanced their way. They smiled and gave a little wave before turning back to the man, who had now introduced himself as Lumero.

"Name's Aph. I don't really mind any pronoun actually. If you see me as your wife then you can use she if you want. Usually I go by they or them. Speaking of your wife, I'm sorry about that. If I had known about her I probably wouldn't have come over in such a way. Usually people just see me as some random person. Of course then you would have seen your wife flirting with strangers in a bar so that might be worse. Sorry I'm rambling, but yea." Aphrodite stumbled through their rant and sighed.

They finished the rest of their drink and sighed. The whole 'dead wife' thing had thrown off their game. They couldn't just go back to flirting with people because that would be weird with Lumero there, so they might as well stay and talk to him, since he was so nice. Of course this also meant that they had to dead with a man who saw them as his dead wife. This in turn made them feel awkward, which made them start rambling. They also didn't reveal the fact that they were Aphrodite, a God, because that seemed a little too much even for them, but now they had to remember not to give it away and make a big deal out of it.

They were in an ordeal to say the least.

[Lumero Mordez]

    As "Aph" continued to speak, Lumero paid attention thoughtfully; she said that she couldn't change it, and yet it sounds like everyone saw her differently. The god of Death pondered this for a moment until Aph made a mention of apologizing for bringing up bad memories. Lumero gave a gentle smile and waved it away, "Ah, think nothin' of it. Most die at some point or 'nother - she lived a good life and that's all that matters."

    Lumero laughed slightly at this and then continued, "But that's enough 'bout depressin' stuff. Pleasure to meet ya, Aph. Even if we mighta gotten off on the wrong foot, it's mighty nice of ya to stick 'round this plain ol' man. Although..."

    Mr. Mordez looked around at the other patrons of the bar, and all eyes seemed to be fixed on their booth as they sat together, "I'd hate to keep ya from your fans. Seems like everyone has taken a shinin' to ya..."

    Lumero laughed heartily at his own little observation. As world-savvy as Death was, sometimes he couldn't help but make jokes to himself that only he would truly understand. He hadn't had a good laugh in a while, and to be in a situation like this - it was refreshing, to say the least. He decided to try and keep the whole "God of Death" thing out of the conversation until she might figure it out. It certainly wouldn't get rid of the attention any time soon, but sometimes mortals actually responded positively to meeting Death at a point other than the end of their lives. Adjusting himself in his seat, he scratched his face embarrassed about how loud he laughed just then. He couldn't really help it sometimes, but it definitely kept everyone's attention. "Heh-heh, jokin' aside - anythin' in particular bring you here? Every bar I've been in has the same ol' drunk youths n' depressed workers. But you seem a lot more unique to the rest of 'em, even on an island like this."

    Giving a quick look at Aph's eyes, he noticed they were slightly odd. Usually, he could see the life sparking around in every mortal's eyes - it was one of the ways that he did his job. But this person...she lived for sure, and yet, there didn't seem to be an expiration date any time soon. Is this one even mortal? he wondered. He shoved it to the back of his mind as he waited for her response, but couldn't help but think someone "particularly special" might be sitting with him tonight. It was certainly going to be an interesting evening, at least...

[Aphrodite]

It was strange talking to Lumero. Not only did he talk very calmly about death, but he had a strange way of speaking. There was also the fact that they were simply talking in a bar when Aphrodite was usually flirting and draping theirself all over some poor SOB. It was a nice type of strange though. They didn't have to worry about him trying to follow them home. The odd time Aph had gotten a few people trying to do that. It usually ended with Aph knocking them out as they commanded the person to stand still.

When Lumero mentioned their so called, 'fans' they couldn't help but chuckle. "Well that's all thanks to my power, which I'm sure you're wondering about by now." They motioned to their face. "This isn't the real me as you could probably have guessed. My power allowes me to appear as everybody's most attractive person. For you its your wife, for somebody else it's a guy with a beard. Everybody sees something different in me and I see what everybody else sees. As long as I'm around somebody whenever I look in a mirror I get glimpses of what everybody sees. It's pretty cool watching my appearance change in mirrors." Aphrodite explained.

They glanced over at a group of boys looking at their table. Aph did a cutesy wave and then blew a kiss their way. That seemed to get their hopes up enough. They laughed and began discussing something amount themselves.

Aphrodite smiled wickedly and looked back at Lumero. "As for why I'm here, well, everybody has something they do for fun." They shrugged and chuckled. It might be a bit cruel to flirt with all these people even though none of them had a chance, but what was a god to do?

"You seem to have quite the handle of the makeup of the bar though. So where do you fit in? Are you the drunk college kid or the depressed worker? Or perhaps something else entirely?" Aphro rose an eyebrow and looked at his skull mask that he had taken off earlier again. That didn't exactly look like something either group he had described would wear.

[Lumero Mordez]

    Listening to her, Lumero whistled in wonder. That was certainly a heck of a power for a mortal to have, if they were one. Following her gaze to the boys she had blown a kiss to, he smirked slightly as they continued to get their hopes up, and then stifled a laugh as he got several death glares from the same table a few moments after. If there was a mortal here instead of himself, he definitely would have his work to be done here. Aph was a dangerous power on this island, as much as desire itself. He paused at the thought of "desire" and wondered, Could they be one of those? Humans name their kids after them all the time, but still...

    Hearing Aph ask a question, he snapped back to attention and caught her looking at his mask. With a soft smile, he looked at her and replied, "Well I ain't young enough to be in college anymore, heh. "Depressed worker"...not all of the time, I guess. I reckon one could call me an "observer" of sorts. Maybe "guide" would work well, too. It all figures in when ya see me, I suppose. I ain't one to avoid fun, though, so I can see how ya enjoy spendin' your time here..."

    Lumero looked back on his work somewhat nostalgically. It wasn't a job that anyone else would really appreciate, so the description he gave might've been the best he could've given without outright saying "I'm Death". He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, until he remembered Carmen, whose image was sitting right next to him, and stopped. Shaking the thoughts away a second time, he smiled at Aph. "Hope ya don't mind the mask, señorita. I guess you could call it part of my job description, heh-heh.... But somethin' has got me curious; you seem to leave a trail of broken hearts wherever you find yourself. Ever had someone do the same to you? 'Course ya don't have to answer if ya don't want to..."

[Aphrodite]

Aphrodite was enjoying Lumero's company, despite how he seemed a little spacey at times. Knowing that they looked like his dead wife kept them on edge but also gave them a strange sense of comfort. They listened closely as he explained his job and chuckled a little even.

"It seems like you've got quite the strange job description." The question that followed however came as a sort of surprise, to say the least.

In recent history there was nobody that Aphrodite had actually fallen for. To actually remember their exes they had to think all the way back to when they had been worshiped and had their own temples and shrines.

"Now that's quite the question." They stated and motioned for another drink to be brought over to the table. "There was one boy who I loved, long ago. Nerites. It seemed I didn't mean nearly as much to him though because when the time came he left."

Aphrodite didn't mention the part where he had been turned into a shell for daring to cross them and not return their affection. They also hoped that Lumero didn't know much about mythology because then there might be the small chance that they'd recognize the name Nerites and realize what Aph was short for.

Their drink arrived and they swallowed half of it before setting it down in front of them.

[Lumero Mordez]

    As Lumero watched Aph work on their drink, he noticed a change in her facial expression after he had asked about their relationships. Was it a look of... regret? Hurt? Whatever it was, it wretched his heart to see the face of his wife in pain, even in the full knowledge that she had moved on to a better place. He continued to listen and caught the name "Nerites" quite quickly out of her little tale. Where had he heard that name before? It was used a couple of times in the Renaissance in Italy with some variation. Where did it come from again...? He racked his mind for an answer when it struck him; Nereus. He was beginning to narrow down a little bit more of "Aph"'s past, piece by piece. He couldn't know for sure, of course, as it could simply be a coincidence. Even so, the thought of meeting one of them here was both terrifying and relieving at the same time. 

    "Mighty sorry to hear it didn't work out. You seem like someone would be lucky to have ya, if ya don't mind me sayin' so." Lumero gave a crestfallen glance to the floor as he continued, "A broken heart ain't one of the rarest things in the world, that's for sure... but you still seemed t've worked things out okay. Good on ya for doin' that. Heh..."

    After the atrociously awkward attempt at expressing sympathy at Aph's past, Lumero mentally kicked himself; "You still seemed to have worked things out okay"?!? The slurring college student over in the corner had better tact than that. The god of death, pushing past his slight self-embarrassment, decided to go with a bit of a gamble and not-so-subtly played his hand. At the very worst, he'd be some weird guy a mortal girl saw at the bar. Seeing them put down their glass, Lumero cleared his throat and spoke, "'Nerites', eh? Heard that name once or twice a good while back. Back then, I reckon people liked calling me "Nate" for short. 'Was workin' in the bedside attendant business for a while.... Speakin' of shortenings, is 'Aph' short for anythin' in particular? Just curious is all..."

[Aphrodite]

Aph chuckled a little at his way of giving sympathy. It wasn't the smoothest line they'd ever heard, but it was on the more interesting side of things. To say the least.

"I wouldn't go so far as to say that somebody would be lucky to have me, but you're right in saying that I've worked things out. It's a long time ago and long over." They shrugged and took another sip of the fruity alcohol.

Lumero seemed to be thinking for a second before he brought up the name Nerites. Aphrodite nearly stood and walked off, but they stuck it out. If Lumero suspected anything they didn't want to just confirm his suspicion. Then again they also didn't want him to figure out that Aphrodite was a God and share that information around. Despite their appearance Aph had managed to keep a pretty low profile in Paradise.

So at his question instead of getting defensive they got smart. There had to be a reason that this man was in Paradise. There also had to be some sort of dirt on him that they could exploit. He hadn't said his power yet, he had a strange skull mask that somehow tied into his job it also seemed he had quite some knowledge of history. Aphrodite smirked. They had an idea.

"How about we swap information. You tell me what your real job is and I'll tell you what my real name is." If Aphro was right, and they were fairly certain were, it wasn't hard to put two and two together and gather information about who this man was. A skull mask related to your job? Come on who else other than Death himself could have something like that. 

Aphrodite's company suddenly got a lot more interesting. Of course that was if they were right.

[Lumero Mordez]

    Seeing Aph laugh at Lumero's attempt at sympathy caused him to breath a small sigh of relief. If there was one thing Carmen had been gracious about when they were together, it was her husband's social proficiency. It was never that he disliked talking with people, more that he was terrible at talking, clumsily traipsing around conversations, unsure of whether one would mock him or respect him, regardless of what he was and what he brought. It was no wonder he had lived alone for eons...

    The god of death listened as the shapeshifter spoke about their life and how they were confident in that relationship being over. He smiled at that sort of acceptance, something that few mortals ever had for past loves, let alone Lumero himself. As Aph replied to Lumero's question he heard the offer of a trade. Trying hard not to laugh, he covered his mouth and then began to laugh heartily again. He couldn't help himself; a person with as much influence as them, who could appear as whatever someone found to be attractive, would obviously enjoy having leverage. What's more, they were trying to achieve some sort of leverage over Death... the absurdity nearly killed him laughing, not that it ever truly could.

    Composing himself once more, Lumero wiped a tear from his eye and breathed with a smile, "Clever little one, ain't ya? Well, I wasn't bein' real subtle 'bout myself when I carry this here mask around. Them Renaissance pictures hafta get their references from somewhere, don't they? 'Ga-ha-ha-ha!"

    In a jokingly theatrical manner, he placed the mask back over his face and waggled his fingers about whilst making "ghostly" sounds, half-heartedly attempting to create some form of a harrowing atmosphere in the warmly-lit bar. "I tread the earth and cause man to return to dust from whence they came...guiding all the dearly departed to the great beyond...oooOOOooooooooh..."

    Barely holding it together, Lumero tore off the mask and started laughing uproariously, drawing the gaze of adjacent booths once more. His sides had never ached this much in years. Pounding his fist weakly against the table, he slowly gained composure once more, "Ha-ha! Oh---oh, I ain't had a good laugh like that in a long while...well, you probably can put together who I make myself out t'be, so how 'bout that name? Usually I wouldn't need to ask ya if you were part of my job, but now I reckon you can tell me your real name 'n what you do. Wasn't that the deal, señorita?"

    With a sly grin Lumero chuckled to himself and motioned to the bartender who'd been keeping an eye on him ever since his little outbursts; "Reckon you would bring a mojito over here, amigo?"

    The mixer acted stoically and dutifully, clearly experienced with vocal patrons. He moved over and gave the drink with the elegance and pageantry of a world-weary actor, and continued to serve the rest of the patrons back behind the bar. Drinking thoughtfully, Lumero savored the drink as it went down smoothly, with a slight burn afterwards mixed with some sourness from the limes. This was the most fun Death had had in quite a long time, and he was going to enjoy every second of it...

[Aphrodite]

The man laughing was actually quite entertaining in and of itself. Lime to tried to contain his laughter at first but it seemed to get the better of him and he was soon guffawing enough to make Aphrodite laugh a little as well. It was interesting to say the least, the way he answered their question.

The loud laughter and spooky finger motions made Aphrodite grin from ear to ear. It was weird to be talking to another god. Would Death even be considered a god? Aphrodite shrugged when he asked for their name.

"Well I suppose it was part of the deal." They chuckled and watched as he ordered a drink. The bartender brought it over and then Aph leaned back in the booth seat a little be. Once they were sure that nobody was listening too closely they smiled. "Well I'm Aphrodite of course. It's easier to keep the fact that I'm a famed goddess under wraps, even in Paradise." They explained.

It was strange to be telling Lumero that they were Aphrodite, but hey, he was Death himself so what was the harm. If anything he'd probably be more understanding as to why they preferred not to tell anybody.

[Lumero Mordez]

    Lumero watched as Aphrodite continued to work on their drink, and responded in kind by taking a sip of his own. The lime juices gave a certain aftertaste that was enjoyable, despite the fact that he usually didn't drink alcohol. He'd lost interest after the last three centuries and how much of it was defined by the substance. That being said, he was alright with drinking ever so rarely, and it did call him back to times now passed where he could just enjoy himself away from his work. Even Death needed ways to enjoy himself sometimes...

    He smirked at Aphrodite as they explained their situation about being under wraps. He knew what it was like to be well known and not want attention beyond some occasional looks and the odd question or two. It was part of the reason he decided to stay in one place for a while, and was the reason that he found Carmen. Nodding as Aphrodite finished speaking, Death replied sympathetically, saying, "Well, you don't really need to worry about me blowin' your cover on ya. It can get tiresome when people actually do know who you are and what ya stand for. 'S part of the reason I have so many names after all these years. Folks oft get dangerously curious about me..."

    Lumero stirred the ice cubes in his drink, not really sure where to go from here in the conversation. Now he had confirmed they were in fact Aphrodite, he didn't really know much about what to ask them, despite how closely love and death are intertwined in the world. After a few moments of silence, he gave a small smile and leaned over to speak softly, "Ya mind if I ask ya a question? From one god to another? I know for me, personally, I'm here to look after some people...but you don't strike me as the kinda deity to keep that many attachments to this world. Heck, a goddess like you probably ain't got any problems escapin' capture just by wrappin' 'em around your little finger. Which brings me to my question; obviously y'ain't able to get past that barrier in the station jus' like the rest of us, but is there anythin' else stoppin' ya from leavin'?"