Sprawled on the cushioned seat of another gathering, an after party after the festivities honoring the goddess of love, Adris stared at nothing while combing his fingers through Aphrodite's golden strands.

"Your mind wanders, Adris?" Aphrodite asked stretched out on his lap akin to a sated lioness.
Eros rolled on the side to face him. A new conversation may have started, beating the mundane happenings around him.
The aroma of roasting pig over the fire was a thick complimented by the sweet berries and fragrant wine. The music from the Lyre and bouzouki was toe tapping yet the rhythm didn't move the three or any of the other guests.

"Doesn't yours?" Adris smiled down at her searching eyes.

"It does. But not with a frown." She said touching the crease between he is brows.

"He frowns because it's boring here." Eros left his spot and joined them on the seat forcing Aphrodite to sit up to make room for him.
"The festivities feel stale."

Aphrodite rolled her eyes.
"Wine flows in abundance all you have to do is be a little naughty and you'll have your entertainment."

Eros sighed settling back.
"That's become stale too. I don't wish them to simply fuck, I want them to fall in love and make love."
Adris ruffled Eros's head. The god was much older than he but he felt very much like a younger brother with the occasional display of naïveté.

"Argh. I shall escape in a dance before you two Dampen my mood." Deedee said.
She was immediately surrounded by bucks who'd waited for her to move.
With her gone, the maidens, were courageous to approach Eros and Adris.

"Adris, may we join you and Eros tonight?" They bowed giving the two males a generous view of their cleavage. They bore familiar faces.

"We would not deny ourselves the pleasure of your company." Eros dazzled them with his eloquent speech and smile.
His golden hair, lean features and the fact that he bore resemblance to Aphrodite made Eros irresistible to all sexes.
"I'm sure Adris won't mind keeping you company. I'll have a slice of the pig."

Adris chuckled not surprised that Eros had abandoned him.

"Does he always do that?" The brunette said placing a hand on his thigh and batting her dark lashes.

Adris shrugged.
For all his centuries with the immortal duo, Eros remained content in watching others entrapped by lust or love but he would avoid it.
He was extremely selective of friends and lovers.

"Don't worry about him. Let's discuss other matters ...like how I've missed you two." He smiled.

"If you missed us, you would have visited sooner and not waited years." The ladies teased planting kisses along his jaw.

"Listen to yourselves, aren't you being too selfish? A lover like me cannot belong to one. I have a duty, my loves. And at this moment my duty is to fill your cups."

"And later ?" The brown haired winked.

Adris smiled as he scavenged for a full jug of wine.
He was suddenly pushed back by a smaller frame marching without sight. Adris grabbed the rude woman by the arm and smiled.
But she yanked it away,
"Many pardons, sir."
She saw his face and still turned away marching on but this time making sure to avoid others.

Adris gaped at what had just happened.
What twist of fate was this?
He knew the face scripted with anger that had rudely bumped into him.
He remembered the curly haired girl with her cherries on the side of a road.

She wasn't hard to pick out in the crowd with her head of hair akin to a collection of loose wool. She reached her destination: a girl about her age with straight bone hair and a simple face.
They were joined by a man who hugged the darker one and played with her hair.
Her stern face transformed with a reluctant smile as she expressed her explanation with several hand gestures.
Adris looked into the jug when she pointed his way.
Why should he be care that he was staring? She'd would be so lucky that he would even look her way. When he looked up, they exchanged hugs once more before the two women broke away, walking towards the exit.

A hand grabbed his arm and he saw the brunette.
"You were taking so long." She whined gently tugging at him.

"Sincerest apologies, my dear." He kissed her cheek.

"He's so handsome." Someone commented.
He looked over his shoulder to find the friend of the snake-kicker starring.
He smiled at her and watched her fluster.

"Agnes, he smiled at me. He's so handsome."

"He is , now let's make haste."
Agnes dragged her friend away without so much as a glance back.

Adris was curious about this woman who clearly suffered from an ailment of the brain. How many times had she seen him? Her reaction was not normal. Maybe she wasn't.
He saw his reflection in a silver cup and checked for anything out of place.

He found Eros watching with light in his eyes and a huge grin on his face.

"Shut up." Adris said.

"Deedee has been called away that's all I was going to say. I swear." He coughed at the end.

Aphrodite had been summoned which meant he and Eros were stuck in town until she returned.
He glanced at the gates once more.