Forbidden Love

Chapter 2

Layla had been right. When he returned to Capitoline that day, everyone, God and Goddess alike, stopped to stare at him. Before his hair reached the middle of his back, he often tied it back and braided it. His beard was so long it touched the top of his stomach. Now he had just enough hair to tie in a ponytail at the nape of his neck. And his beard was cut short into a goatee. He'd taken great care when he finished forging for the day to wash up. There was not a spec of dirt on him when he returned to Capitoline the day of his "transformation," as Layla liked to call it. Rather than show himself off as Layla hoped he would do, he went straight to his temple and stayed there. That was two days ago. He'd been replaying the entire day in his head since then but especially today. Today Jupiter delivered the message that he and Venus were to be married within a year to him. He had hoped to stave it off for as long as possible.

As he sat there absentmindedly staring up at the sun, Vulcan heard the double doors to his temple open. "Vulcan," Venus purred. Sighing, he turned to face her.

"Good Morning, Venus," he held out his arms, knowing that she would want to walk into them. She crossed the room at his invitation and folded herself into him.

"I waited up for you last night. I had hoped you would come to me" she peered up through her lashes as she spoke in a low sweet tone. He gave her a fake smile at her words.

"I'm sorry, Darling, I had to be up before dawn. Cupid asked that I fashion him a new bow. One made from steel. I guess he's got new arrows that Jupiter wants him to try out, and a wooden bow wasn't cutting it. I got back here as soon as I could." Venus nodded. She knew what she was saying was true because Cupid hadn't shut up about Vulcan making him a new bow for days now.

Stretching up on her tiptoes, she nipped his chin. "Have you heard the good news? We're to be wed within the year!" She said excitedly. Venus never imagined herself finding Vulcan attractive, but he had done a fantastic job cleaning himself up. Even if she hated the fact that that nymph Layla had a hand in helping him, she couldn't deny how good it turned out.

"Oh! That's not all. I've just come from Juno and Jupiter's temple. They say there's a new Volcano to be built and that there is a dispute as to whether you or Hephaestus should be the one to build it." He rolled his eyes.

"Of course there was. Who will it be? Or how will it be decided? I should say." She gave him a mischievous smile. "Well, I mentioned to Their Majesties that there should be some sort of competition to decide which of you should build the Volcano," she beamed up at him. Again he rolled his eyes. "Of course you did love, has it been decided what competition we will have as of yet?" Venus's smile grew bigger at his question.

"Not yet, but I do know that Olympus will hold it. The last time we settled a dispute between Pantheon's, it was here, so it is legally their turn." "Of course it is." He grumbled again under his breath.

*****

Later that day, Vulcan found himself standing in front of Jupiter, who paced back and forth in front of him." You and Hephaestus will compete for the right to build the new volcano in Pompeii tomorrow morning on Olympus," said Jupiter, a smug look on his face.

"So my fiancé tells me, My Lord," Jupiter smirked, he may not be thrilled at the fact that Venus no longer cared that she was engaged to Vulcan, but he could find some amusement in the fact that Vulcan had no interest in it. Then again, now that Layla has practically remade him, he would want for nothing as far as female company is concerned. There had to be a way that he could make them both miserable.

"Vulcan, what would you say if I told you that you and you're betrothed weren't allowed to take other lovers?"

Vulcan gave Jupiter a stunned look at the unexpected question. He hadn't thought about that. Until Layla "transformed him," as she liked to say, he never expected to spend time with any Goddess on Capitoline. It's true; there was a time when he would have given anything for Venus's affections. He'd even threatened Juno with physical harm once to procure her as his wife, but then he noticed her competitive side with Aphrodite that both she and Aphrodite would use their children to spy on each other. They were in constant competition even though they were never in the same space. When he discovered how self-absorbed she was, he lost interest in her.

How ironic that the person he loved from afar is now his fiancé, and he wanted absolutely nothing to do with her just as she wanted nothing to do with him until now.

"I suppose it would make no difference to me, My Lord. It's Venus you should be asking, not I." Jupiter crossed his arms in irritation at Vulcan's answer. He may be his son, but Jupiter could barely stand to look at him. So much so that he'd forbade Vulcan from referring to him and Juno as his parents.

Juno once found him so repulsive that she had abandoned him at birth, and Jupiter hadn't argued at the time. It wasn't until Vulcan had proven his worth that she had accepted him as her own. Vulcan bore no ill will toward her at his abandonment. When she welcomed him home, he'd told Juno that he most likely would have done the same at the sight of him.

"Damn it, boy, is there nothing I can do to displease you?" Jupiter asked. "why on earth would you want to, Padre?" He asked, emphasizing the word because he knew it would piss him off. Jupiter flinched at the sound of that name coming out of Vulcan's mouth. Smiling evilly, he responded to that question. "Because I hate you," he said matter of factly. Vulcan gave him a curt nod.

"You can forbid me from taking a lover all you like. I have no interest in any of the Goddesses here. It is more likely to bother Venus than I. It's a stupid move. If you tell Madre you've done so, she will be thrilled, but you will go back on it and have Venus in your bed a week later. We both know that to be true."

Jupiter threw up his hands at Vulcan's response, refusing to admit that he was correct.

"Whichever one of you can prove their fire burns hotter gets to build the Volcano in Pompeii. If you fail me, you will regret it." Jupiter turned on his heel and stormed away. As he watched Jupiter leave, Vulcan created a flame in his hand. His eyes glowed red with anger. He wanted so badly to throw it straight at Jupiter and watch him burn, but he held back because he didn't want to hurt Juno. Despite everything she had done to him, he loved her still. He supposed the reason for that was simply that she was his mother, and what child wouldn't love their mother. Since his return to Capitoline and the restoration of their relationship, Vulcan told Juno many times to end his ties to Jupiter, but she never listened. She feared if she tried, Jupiter would attack her or cast her out to the mortal realm. Vulcan offered his protection, and still, she refused.

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. The angrier he became, the more the flame in his hand grew. Growling in frustration, Vulcan tossed the flame into his fireplace and watched it go ablaze. He sat down in his armchair in front of it and started rubbing his temples. He was sure he could make his fire burn more fiercely than Hephaestus's, but that didn't mean he wanted to try. He had many a conversation with Layla about the war between the Pantheon's. How stupid he thought it was. The heavens were plenty big enough for both pantheons. It's not as though they lived on the same mountain top. No matter how many times he would drone on about it, Layla would listen intently. She indeed was the best friend he ever had. His only real one if he were being honest with himself.

As he sat there with his head in his hands, he suddenly felt a presence behind him and a pair of gentle hands on his shoulders. Despite himself, he relaxed into them, knowing that it was most likely Venus's touch he felt. He couldn't yet tell if it were her because he hadn't grown used to the attention she showed him. When he leaned back, he smelled a sweet floral scent and felt someone nuzzling his neck.

"What's wrong, Amore?" He heard Venus coo in his ear. He rolled his eyes at her, referring to him as love. Sighing, he answered her.

"Hephaestus and I are to compete by proving whose flame burns more intensely, and Jupiter has proclaimed that neither you nor I shall be allowed to take other lovers now that we are engaged." He turned to face her once he'd said it. Curious to see what her facial expression would be at those words.

Just as he thought, she was livid by them. She was undoubtedly thinking of Jupiter as she stared straight forward with the anger he felt reflecting in her eyes. She gritted her teeth and tried her best to pretend it was okay.

"I've no doubt you can make your fire burn brighter and hotter than Hephaestus's Amore. And it makes no difference to me if Jupiter has decided we can't take lovers. All I need is you." Again he rolled his eyes, knowing she was full of s**t.

"That's nice, Venus, but we both know you're lying to my face right now. Whether you'll admit it or not, you couldn't stand the sight of me before I got a helping hand from Layla, whom you only now hate because you've convinced yourself she's interested in me and you can't stand anyone man or God to love anyone, but you."

She made a pouting face at him before she spoke again. "And you, who wanted me so desperately before now, can't stand the sight of me."

"Because you're ugly Venus, hideous in fact. Were you not a Goddess, you would grow old, and your physical beauty would fade, leaving only the feelings you harbor for others on the inside. With the exception of the men and Gods who worship you, you're heinous to any and everyone. Had you loved me before I became presentable, I would want you now and probably even love you. If I'm being honest with myself, I do love you, but only in the way everyone else does. Only because of your power as a Goddess to make everyone love you. Take that away, and your existence wouldn't matter to me in the least."

Venus wanted to hate him for the things Vulcan was saying, but she couldn't. She knew he was right. Venus was desperate for everyone to love her, and she was brilliant at making men fall in love with her. Gods too, but when she thought about it, she'd never loved anyone except Jupiter. To him, she was nothing more than a passing fling. He would grow tired of her eventually. If what Vulcan was saying was true, maybe he already had. Venus needed to hear the words straight from Jupiter's mouth before she would believe them. But she was lonely now, and if she had to be saddled with Vulcan as her husband, then she needed him to love her even if she didn't love him in return.

"Please, Vulcan, let me try. I'm sure we can fall in love if we just give one another a chance."

He desperately wanted to believe her. To his knowledge, no one had ever loved him. Not in the way she was promising him now, at least.

"Okay, Venus, we'll try," he said. She reached for him then pulled him from his chair toward his bedroom.

******

After they made love, Vulcan lay there staring up at the ceiling of his temple listening to Venus's soft breathing. To his surprise, she'd stayed with him after they finished. He thought for sure she'd want to go back to her temple. He hadn't missed that while she made love to him, she kept her eyes closed. No doubt imaging it was Jupiter she rode. He was surprised when she climaxed for him. He came for her not long after he felt her explode on him. When they finished, she rolled off him. Laying on her side, she kept her back to him and fell asleep. He wondered what it must feel like to really love someone the way both Juno and Venus seemed to love Jupiter. He supposed it didn't matter now that Jupiter had decided he could have no other Paramore. Unable to think about it anymore, his mind began running through what the competition would look like. Would he succeed and have his fire burn brighter? If he did, how tall would he make the volcano, and what should he name it. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to go to Pompeii and scope out the landscape to decide just where he would like to build the volcano. Going to Pompeii would give him something to do and a chance to get away from all this wedding and love talk. Vulcan liked walking among the mortals. Their problems seemed so trivial compared to his own, and maybe he could meet someone and help them. He wasn't allowed to mix with mortals as a God, so when he wanted to truly walk amongst them and not just hover above them watching as they worshipped the Gods and Goddess of his Pantheon, he disguised himself as one of them, calling himself Victor to any who may ask him his name.