"And I can see that makes you so
happy."

"Damn it Sophia! You just don't get
it. Today, you caused her to do the one thing I've never seen
her do."

"And what is that?"

Ares came nose to nose with his daughter.
"You made her cry."

The words hit Sophia hard. In the time she has
known her, Hera had always maintained her cool exterior. Even when
she was mad, she maintained this sense of control. "She
cried?"

"Yes." Ares backed away from his
daughter. "She cried because she realized how much she hurt
you. She cried because she couldn't go back and change the
past. She cried because she realized that she hurt the only person
you have ever loved…" Ares paused. "And still
love."

Sophia looked away from her father. Ares shook
his head. "You are so stubborn and pig-headed. Let me tell you
something about your grandmother. You would have been dead if it
haven't been for her."

"What are you talking about?"

He looked into his daughter eyes and made sure
he had her full attention. "I don't get it. One minute you
humans want the gods to interfere in your lives, the next you want
us to stay out. You are no different from any other human, you want
the benefits without any of the tribulations. You want the good
without the bad. Well, too bad. We are who we are and you need to
accept the whole package Sophia. We don't claim to be perfect,
just who we are. And that includes your grandmother. The only
reason the darkness did not kill you is because she made me teach
you how to control it." Ares grabbed his daughter's
hands.

"When you rejected me and the chance to
be at my side, I was a bit upset. But then you added insult to
injury by becoming a guardian of love once again. Do you know what
it is like to know that your own flesh and blood hates everything
that you stand for and chooses the other side? I didn't want to
have anything to do with you. When the darkness started to destroy
you physically and mentally, I didn't care. But Hera decided
that I should act like a loving father. And I have been a part of
your life since then; but now it is because I want to be."

She faced the God of War. "What do you
want from me Ares?"