Hey guys! I've been thinking about this story a lot lately, and I realized I was NOT happy with how this chapter came out. At all. So I'm re-doing it! Let me know which version you like better. The other one was really OOC and dumb. I'll admit it! So, I'll probably be redoing a few things in this story. It'll take a while but the shorter chapters will get some work.

Bear with me guys!

The stars twinkled high up in the sky, the hunter Zöe seemed to jump across the heavens, hunting unseen animals. The majority of Olympus was asleep after a long day of fighting. Gods rarely slept, but after the long war a break was needed to revitalize their strength. Only a select few stayed up for various reasons. For example, Artemis decided to watch the stars.

The moon goddess got a new life at night and was often awake at that time in order to hunt. Though fatigue pulled at her senses, she kept a firm head while thinking about the past few weeks.

Kronos was dead and Camp Half Blood would be returning the next year. All was well. But a slight nagging tugged at the corner of her mind and told the goddess to wait in the Hall of Statues. The mental voice was not evil, and many of the gods had long ago succumbed to the wants of their minds. If one did not listen to their inner voices, chances were that bad things would happen.

So here she was, early the next morning, staring out into the sky, wanting answers. Artemis never liked the quiet because that gave her time to think. Her young girl body kept her hormones at an awkward stage in puberty so ever since she decided on being forever young; a war of the hormones took place every day. Her body battled for the want of a man by her side, but her extreme sense of self- control kept her hormones at bay.

That's why she hunted, and trained, and rarely thought. But here, in the comfortable darkness, she entertained the possibility of changing back into a full grown woman in order to crush the desire for a man, and one man in particular.

Being a strong willed goddess, these types of females were often attracted to strong types of men. Despite what kind of god you were, purity for instance, the pull was undeniable. Ever since Aphrodite arrived that had been the law and the cause for so many weak willed gods looking for a mortal mate.

She understood what her huntresses went through every day and finally why some deserted her. The pull worked for even the gods and goddesses chosen ones. It took an immense effort of self control to crush that pull, a skill that even the most purist of goddesses had yet to master. It was in that familiar dark that Artemis decided to change a few things, one of which being her appearance. She decided to tackle the body of a seventeen year old. Maybe it would make her seem more in control.

So the goddess closed her eyes and allowed her bones to grow, her body to stretch only a few more inches. She would be short so her huntresses would not feel overly intimidated. 'I'll look in the morning,' she thought to herself. The stone bench she was sitting on was comfortable, and the stars were friendly tonight.

It was only until she heard a rustle that she paused. It was a man cussing as he stubbed his toe against one of the statues.

"Who in the name of Zeus decided to turn off all the lights?" Ares voice broke through the dark and it hurt Artemis' ears. Suddenly three balls of fire erupted from his fingers to land strategically on lanterns surrounding the statues. The introduction to light caused Artemis to blink a few times in discomfort. When she could see again, her eyes landed on Ares, leaning against a pillar and rubbing his thigh in pain. She nearly smiled when she saw his own statues spear next to his injury.

After he had taken care of his wound, his eyes roamed the circular garden, taking in the different statues. He did a double take when seeing Artemis and his eyes furrowed in confusion. "Why're you here?" he asked.

Artemis didn't want to make the calming mood that the place offered but sighed and answered him. "My inner voice told me to go here."

He merely said, "Ah." Then, with a signature swagger that was only his, he walked up to the bench she sat at.

Artemis glanced up at him, her eyes conveying confusion. He just returned her look with a tired one and shook his head up to the heavens.

When a few moments of a companionable silence passed, Ares looked back at her to study her features. "You look different," he told her bluntly.

Artemis noticed with a start that Ares looked different, too. He looked younger. The tough lines that crossed his face were gone, though the battle scars remained. Now he looked like a troubled college student strayed off campus. "I needed a change," she said quietly, her mind whirring. This was the first time in many centuries when she had a conversation like this with Ares, and she took notice of the fact that when his eyes weren't burning, they were a deep hazel color. 'It makes sense,' she mused to herself. 'Hazel eyes change color easily.'

Ares sighed back, uncharacteristically. "I know what you mean." His eyes narrowed as he studied her some more and she became unnerved with his scrutiny. "You look good," he declared. "Older. More mature. You should keep it."

Artemis got suspicious at this comment. "What's wrong Ares?"

He sighed once more and looked down at his hands. "You won't think different of me?"

Artemis rolled her eyes. "I will if you keep blubbering on like this. What're you going soft?"

He sharply turned his head towards her. "No!" The fire in his eyes burned once again. But then they slowly turned hazel when his shoulders slumped. "Aphrodite and me broke up."

Artemis was truly surprised. "Why?"

"I don't know!" he exhaled quickly. "My voice just told me to take a walk and as I was walking past the lake, I saw Aphrodite. She told me that she was moving back in with her husband and didn't want to see me anymore. I have no idea why!" Artemis studied his facial expressions. She was not very experienced in the relationship process, but she did know that Ares should be more upset than he was letting on by a broken relationship that lasted a few thousand years.

"You're not upset," she announced after a while. Ares began to protest but she glared at him. "You're upset, but not about her."

He shifted uncomfortably. "I'm not sure if I'm happy or not about this. She was always goofing around and I need someone more… mature. She was all fun and games. But I don't like how I was just dumped like that."

"May I be bold?" Artemis asked him. Ares nodded. "I never liked her." A brief smile crossed his face.

"Sorry I'm telling you all this stuff," he apologized. "It's just that I know you're the only one who'd never laugh at me. Ares, the great war god, broken by a little lady."

Artemis thought over her response. "You're mean, cruel and demanding. She's mean, cruel and demanding. People thought it would work." A sarcastic smile found its way up his face. "And besides, now that you're single you have more time for war- related activities."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." He looked up in the sky once more. "That one's new," he murmured.

"Two years old," she informed him. "My dead second in command, Zöe." He nodded.

"Thalia's your new one, right? Zeus' kid?" Artemis was surprised that he actually sounded interested.

"Yeah." A few more minutes passed. "Can I tell you something that'll make you feel better?"

"Go nuts," he sounded passive.

"I've never kissed anyone before," a faint smile decorated the lover half of her face but never quite made it to her eyes.

Ares shook his head and looked at her. "Somehow that doesn't surprise me."

She raised an eyebrow. "But now you have blackmail material."

Ares laughed, a harsh sounding noise. It was obvious that it was not something he did very often. He brushed some invisible dirt off of his leather pants. He stared at his hands for a moment then stiffened, a thought occurring to him.

Sensing that something was up she asked, "What?"

"You've helped me," he started slowly. "Maybe I can help you." He now was looking straight ahead, up toward Zeus' living chambers.

Artemis was no dummy and she knew where this was going. "You want to kiss me." It was said in a monotone, very calmly.

Ares shrugged and looked at her. "Sure, I mean, you've helped me, and I'm taking away any reason people'll make fun of you. It's a win- win situation."

Artemis closed her eyes, thinking this over. Ares was a playboy, a rouge, and mostly perceived as a bad guy. But at meetings and other events she could see through his exterior and thought of him as a thoughtful, fun guy. 'It wouldn't be so bad to be his friend,' she thought. She opened her eyes and her brown gaze met his hazel one. "Okay."

He noticeably gulped; he didn't think she'd take him up on it.

He took her oval face in his hands, but not before checking that there was no one in sight, and softly placed his lips on hers.

I guess he didn't look hard enough.

…Well?