Stuffing his clothes into a themed backpack, Ashe exit the changing room last. He wore a black swim shirt and blue floral print trunks with water shoes he deemed more comfortable than sandals.

Being the most agile, he felt it appropriate to be unrestrained by his clothing, so he was satisfied with his find.

Percy wore a black park shirt with a grey zip-up hoodie over it and red trunks. Grover wore a sea-green pullover with white park themed shorts, and sandals like Percy.

Annabeth had been first to change, wearing red floral print trunks, a big red park t-shirt, a white zip-up hoodie, and surf shoes of her own.

"So, Aphrodite and Ares. Odd pair." Ashe spoke up.

"It's old news. Gossip from nearly 3000 years ago." Annabeth seemed in the know despite the age of this infidelity. "Hephaestus was crippled as a baby, thrown off of Mount Olympus by Zeus. Can't believe someone would be handsome after all that. He's incredibly clever with his hands; so you know, he's a blacksmith."

"Aphrodite isn't known to like talent and brains, so, that's where Ares comes in." Grover added.

"And Hephaestus knows?" Percy asked.

"Oh sure. He caught them together once. Literally. In a golden net, and invited all the gods to come and laugh at them. He always tries to embarrass them. That's why they meet in out-of-the-way places like..." She gestured to the park as they continued to search for the Tunnel of Love.

Coincidentally, they arrived just as she pointed forward, revealing just what they had been looking for.

If not evident by the sign, the tunnel surrounded by a dozen bronze Cupid statues lined the pool leading to the tunnel. Marooned at the bottom of the pool was a pink and white two-seater raft with a canopy over the top and painted hearts all over it.

"Guys, look," Grover mumbled, pointing to the glint of a bronze shield seated in the left seat of the raft.

"Huh. This was surprisingly easy." Ashe muttered.

Annabeth wandered up to the nearest Cupid statue and noticed a Greek letter at the base. "Eta..." she hummed in thought as Percy walked to the edge of the pool.

"Smell any monsters, Grover?" Percy wondered.

Grover took a few seconds to sniff, and detected: "Nothing."

"Wanna go grab it?" Ashe asked Percy with a smirk. "Ew. Why would I wanna go to the 'Thrill Ride of Love' with you?" Percy asked, but it was clear he was joking.

"Yeah, whatever." Ashe nudged his side and slid down the pool with Percy following suit. As they approached the boat, they noticed another item in the right seat.

A long pink scarf with a faint glow. Ashe jogged over with a smirk and picked it up. "Woah, this is super soft."

"Don't take that, it's probably full of love magic!" Annabeth warned.

"You're right- cause I'm loving how soft it is!" Ashe shouted back, wrapping it around his neck with a grin. Annabeth glared but went back to studying the statues.

Percy went to grab the shield, and just as he pulled it back to himself, they heard a low snip. Percy and Ashe looked down to see a snapped trip wire.

"Oh... no..." Ashe muttered in disbelief.

The loud roar of gears began to echo around the pool, starting Annabeth as the bronze Cupids suddenly aimed their bows at one another. They shot golden streaks of wire forming a familiar net that made Percy and Ashe shudder.

"We gotta go!" Percy began his dash for the pool edge, but it was much more difficult to climb up than slide down.

Grover tried his hardest to hold the net back as it began to shoot even thinner, smaller webs around to try and trap the two. "Come... on!" The threads slowly tried to wrap around his hand, so he was forced to pull back.

Suddenly, the heads of the cupids rose up to reveal video cameras aimed directly at the boat. "Live to Olympus in one minute... 59 seconds, 58 seconds..."

"Oh, no, Eta is H! Hephaestus! I'm so stupid!" Annabeth panicked, unsure how they were going to help them escape.

To add insult to injury, small metal spiders began leaking from the edges of the pool in numbers far too great to count. Annabeth screamed and paced away from the pool as Ashe pulled out his sword.

With them suddenly being surrounded, Ashe and Percy took back to the boat and began slicing through the spiders and their wires. They were small in size, but certainly not quantity. Several times a limb would be tied but the wires held little strength compared to their blades.

"30 seconds, 29 seconds," the intercom continued to count down.

Grover used his flying shoes to try and pull the net away from above, but it wouldn't budge. Their struggling continued until Percy suddenly nudged Ashe and pointed to a booth in the distance.

"Grover! Get into the booth and find the on-switch!"

"But-"

"Do it!"

"13 seconds, 12 seconds," the timer had no intention of stopping this late.

Ashe and Percy continued to slash through the spiders but were gradually getting small cuts along their hands and calves- just about anywhere skin was visible.

Grover made it to the booth and began flicking and pressing every button possible as the timer neared its end. "Five seconds, four seconds."

Percy spotted Grover shrugging his shoulders violently, alerting that he had pressed every button to no avail. Percy suddenly held out his hand and closed his eyes, leading Ashe to fend all the spiders off in his stead.

"Two seconds, one seconds, zer-"

Water exploded out of the pipes as the timer finished. A massive wave of water crashed into them, washing the spiders away as they spiraled around in the sudden whirlpool.

Spotlights flashed down at the pool, showcasing the scene to Olympus from the Cupid-cams.

Ashe continued to cleave and cut through whatever spiders remained, but their numbers were severely diminished by the water short-circuiting them. Percy had to stab his sword down and concentrate on directing the boat, but opened his eyes as the water had reached a level where they got too close to the golden net for comfort.

Riding the whirlpool just right, Percy suddenly shot the boat towards the tunnel entrance and into the darkness.

Percy and Ashe screamed in horror at how fast they were flying, both trying to stay rooted to the boat with their swords from the sharp turns, steel plunges, and weird Valentine's themed decorations all around them.

As quick as they entered the tunnel, they were sent flying out. If the ride worked as intended, they would have sailed off a ramp between the "Golden Gates of Love" and splashed into a safety pool.

Unfortunately, like every other gate, this one was locked. Additionally, two broken boats were piled up against the gate, spelling a crash collision should they stay on this path.

"Hope you like Tony Hawk!" Ashe announced, steadying himself and removing his sword from the boat.

"What?!" Percy didn't like the sound of that.

As they neared the golden gates, Ashe suddenly widened his stance and slammed his foot down on the back of the boat, propping the bow of the boat upward just in time to send them soaring upward.

From the impact with the other boats, Ashe nearly fell out if not for him grabbing the edge. The boat continued to soar and Percy tried to used the water below them to soften the blow, but with their momentum, it would surely result in an injury regardless.

Luckily for them, Grover arrived in time with his shoes flapping in the wind.

He grabbed Ashe by his foot and Percy by his collar, pulling them out of the boat, but their own momentum began to carry them all downward all the same.

"Ugh! Too heavy! Going down!" Grover shouted as they barreled toward a photo-board.

Grover shot head first into the hole where Noo-Noo the Friendly Whale was, but Ashe and Percy slammed directly into it, broke the rest of the board and rolled against the ground.

Percy groaned in pain, but was relieved to find out he was only sore. He spotted Ares' shield still on his arm and grew less than pleased.

Ashe's own groan was muffled by the concrete, where he luckily hadn't lost any teeth. He sat up with Percy and stared at the Cupids still aiming their cameras at them.

"Show's over!" Percy shouted at them.

"Here all week...!" Ashe shouted with a smirk.

On cue, the cameras disappeared back under the statues' heads. Annabeth finally arrived and felt guilty about her inability to act, helping the two to their feet.

"We have to talk with Ares." Percy grumbled in annoyance.

•

"Well, well," Ares was already waiting back at the diner's parking lot with his obnoxious motorcycle. "You didn't get yourself killed."

"You knew it was trap." Percy spat standing off against him with Ashe at his side.

"Bet that crippled blacksmith was surprised when he nearly netted a couple of stupid kids. Have to say, makes for good TV."

As Percy shoved his shield back into Ares' arms, Ashe said, "least we know the God of War is afraid of exhibitionism..."

Ares gave an amused scoff, twirling his shield like a batch of pizza dough before it changed shape into a bulletproof vest. Slinging it over his back, he jerked his head towards an eighteen wheeler parked across the lot.

"There's your ride. Straight shot to L.A. with one stop in Vegas."

The truck had a sign; Kindness International: Humane Zoo Transport (Warning: Live Wild Animals)

"Wow." Ashe mumbled.

"You're kidding-"

"Free ride west, punk. Quit complaining. And here's a little something for the road since you got the job done." Ares snapped his fingers and summoned a blue nylon backpack.

Percy caught it and saw fresh clothes for the whole group, a pouch of golden drachma, and a bag full of double-stuff Oreos.

"Damn, why couldn't it be honey buns-" Ashe was elbowed by Annabeth as Percy threw the bag on his shoulders and began stomping to the truck.

Suddenly, he stopped.

"My mother?"

"Not dead. She was taken away from the Minotaur before she could die. She was turned into a shower of gold- Metamorphosis. She's being kept."

"Kept. Why?" Percy's eyes stung with emotion.

"You really need to study war, punk. She's a hostage, used to control you."

"Nobody's controlling me." Percy spat through gritted teeth.

Ares laughed softly to himself, "See you around, kid."

As Percy began to stomp off, Annabeth and Grover followed. Ashe crossed his arms, before gesturing to Aphrodite's scarf around his neck.

"She need this back?"

Ares' leered down at him in disgust. "Don't think you're safe, brat. She may have helped you once, but she won't extend the same kindness again."

"...She helped me?" Ashe was confused.

"I guess as a mortal you wouldn't comprehend when her magic has affected y-"

"Is she what made me sick?" He clearly comprehend it...

Ares clicked his tongue and decided to oblige his curiosity. "Her magic is far too strong for your human body. She healed your fractured arm as a favor. We aren't ignorant to Athena's favor with you. You're her newest little toy apparently."

"Oh- wait, did she sprain my ankle too?!" Ashe asked in shock.

"Like they said. Temperamental. Later, mutt." Ares suddenly appeared on his bike, but Ashe shrugged and began walking to the truck.

Seeing Annabeth wave him over faster, he jogged over and hopped in to see Percy and Grover sitting on mildewed feed sacks against the wall. He turned forward and saw the miserable sight of a zebra, antelope, and albino male lion.

Whatever humanity the company advertised wasn't present.

•

After the truck began moving, Percy refilled the animals water, and moved around the apparent mismatched food so they could eat properly.

The balloon tied to the antelope and the gum stuck in the zebra's hair was clear indication of abuse, and it took awhile for Grover to calm down about it. Annabeth cut the ballon from the antelope's horn, but decided against cutting the gum in the zebra's hair since the truck rocked too much.

Grover was curled up in the corner with a few sacks of feed to lie on. Percy was sitting against the wall, eyes closed in thought. Annabeth was sat beside him, guilt written on her face.

"Hey," she tapped Percy's arm, "I'm sorry for freaking out back at the water park."

"That's okay. Things worked out."

"It's just... Spiders." She clearly had an extreme fear of them.

"Noted." Ashe muttered, lying at the foot of their seat against the backpack Ares gave them. She quickly kicked his arm, making him chuckle and her roll her eyes.

"Because of the Arachne story, right?" Percy wondered.

Annabeth nodded, "Arachne's children have been taking revenge on the children of Athena ever since. If there's a spider within a mile of me, it'll find me. I hate creepy little things."

"Eh, we got the job done, right, Percy?" Ashe held up his fist, and Percy could hear the smirk in his voice as he bumped his knuckles with his own.

"Yup. And Grover finally got that flight thing down."

"I was pretty amazing, wasn't I?" They assumed him asleep, but hearing his prideful attitude made everyone laugh.

The soft atmosphere made Ashe quickly drifting to sleep, snuggling against the pink scarf he claimed.

•

Ashe opened his eyes to a blurry figure before him. He could tell by their physique it wasn't Athena like he was assuming.

He heard a low grumble as he tried to clear his vision, and as the picture cleared he heard a high pitched yelp. His eyes were soon covered by their hands as they began to mutter.

"No! No. D-Don't look! You're not supposed to see! I'm not presentable..."

Ashe grew confused and slightly flustered at the implication, but wanted to understand what was going on. He tried to remove the woman's hands from his face, but her grip proved formidable despite his strength.

"Who... are... YOU?!" Ashe shouted, tumbling to the floor and feeling a silk fabric on his skin, since the woman was so adamant on covering his eyes she fell with him.

Catching a glimpse as they fell, Ashe suddenly stopped fighting back.

"Hello, Aphrodite."

"NOOOOOOO!" She cried and began shaking him by the collar in despair.

•

Sitting criss-cross on the floor, Ashe rubbed his cheek after being victim to her relentless slapping.

He learned from her sobbing mess of an explanation that she was embarrassed about her weight gain, and didn't want him to see her upon their first impression, but Athena left out that he could see through the mist so well.

Wiping her eyes, she glared at him. "This wasn't how things were supposed to go...! I was supposed to support you anonymously! Why can you see me?!"

Her wailing continued and Ashe ignored it until she quiet down.

Being blunt as usual, Ashe asked, "Am I supposed to be affected by your physique?"

Aphrodite wanted to get up and slap him around more, but she held herself back and pouted at him. As the two locked eyes, Ashe took in her appearance.

Long, lush, curly hair a unique shade of strawberry blonde. Emphasis on the strawberry. It could even be called rose gold. Her toga was long and frilly and a stainless white that seemed to shine. She wore a lot of jewelry on her wrists, fingers and neck.

However what she was afraid of, was how plump and curvy she was beginning to look in her clothes. Ashe wasn't concerned with that in the slightest, but she was so self-conscious she didn't even realize.

It wasn't like he was supposed to impressed, he thought.

"So... thanks for healing my arm." Ashe looked up and saw her crying immediately disappear in place of a big goofy grin.

"Oh, don't mention it! It was a favor for Athena. Lost a bet." She ruffled her hair, making Ashe see exactly why she was the Goddess of Love.

Something about her was just really welcoming.

"I see you found my scarf. How is it? Is it nice?" She leaned over with her big round eyes full of anticipation.

"It's super soft. Made it much easier to sleep. Do you... want it back?" Ashe attempted to take off the scarf, but it magically appeared back around his neck.

"No, no, it looks much too good on you, sweetie. Be sure to keep it close, it will boost your vitality and slowly heal your wounds over time." Aphrodite ruffled his hair and stood up.

"That reminds me... You're super strong, human. You overcame my Love magic in a day. I've never seen a human take less than two weeks. Strange..." She hummed to herself, making Ashe confused.

"That's that fever I got, right?"

"Yes. My power is much too strong on mortals. The love they feel is so intense it sends them into an obsessive trance. I presume because of my distant intervention the side effects were much less potent." She shrugged, unsure of how it worked herself.

"It's commendable regardless. So much so that I'm letting you keep my favorite scarf, cutie." Aphrodite booped his nose and giggled.

"Ares won't hunt me down for it?" Ashe asked with a frown.

Aphrodite smirked, "Don't worry about it him. He'll get over it soon enough." She sighed happily before gazing down at Ashe. The look was concerning.

Ashe was uncomfortable by the half lidded gaze she delivered.

"Hmmm. Let's send you back. My mind is racing and it's best you hurrying along before I get the ball rolling. Later, cutie!"

Ashe shuddered as his vision went black.