Legendary

After the update on Bruce, Serena described possible leads on Typhon installations in the Balkans and New Persia. Superman said he'd detail a team to check them out, then it was Diana's turn to discuss what we'd learned about the possibility of some of the Greek gods driving the actions of Typhon. A heavy silence fell over the group as they digested this.

"I'll ask Thor if he'd be able to help us out on this one," Tony said, frowning. I wished Odin was still around; he was the principal Norse god of war, among other things. There was also Tyr, who inspires courage and heroism in battle. I didn't know him at all and wasn't sure if he'd survived the battle. Something to check with Loki about. Huh. And Loki himself might relish the opportunity to cause mischief on the other side. Although I'd personally never seen it, I knew he could be malicious, and he'd worked hard to keep that aspect of his nature contained. I'd need to talk to a few people.

"I need to go up to Asgard myself," I said, volunteering to talk to Thor. A pantheon for a pantheon. And I'd stop by the Norn as well. I made a mental note to pick up some snails from the pet store and chocolates.

After a little more updating, the meeting broke up. I paused in the library to run a program that Tony had written for me to collect information about the Parthenon, its building materials, artistic interpretations of how it may have looked at its height, and had the results copied to my work computer before going upstairs with my husband.

By the time I got to work, I had the information I needed and focused on creating a proposal for the Greek government offering to fund and restore the Parthenon as a working temple to Athena, throwing in a 3D scan of the ruins as well. I included cost projections and had Mei, back in the building after an extended project in China, look it over and refine it while I hustled over to Daniel's office for lunch. I waited until his executive assistant brought in our lunch before asking how things were. He rubbed his eyes.

"Diana told me what happened, what her mom told her," he said. "It's shaken her up a lot, and now she also feels humiliated that she didn't control herself in her bout with you. " He eyed me. "Gotta say, Grandma, that I'm surprised she kind of kicked your ass."

"I didn't exactly let her win," I defended myself. "But I also treated it like a training exercise, an exhibition rather than a serious fight. Or I'd have had more to show for my effort." He grinned suddenly and teased me while we ate. Afterward, I explained that I'd been told of Amazon courting traditions and wanted to know if he'd like to incorporate some of those elements in his own courtship of Diana.

"Depends," he said cautiously. "What do I need to do? I'm not the most skilled Batman in the family lines, if I have to defeat a mythological creature or something." I smiled.

"It's a different feat of strength," I said. "Tokens of the promise and pitfalls of a relationship; she'd agree to wear them until what's between you either ends or goes on to the next stage. There are supposed to be tests that each partner puts the other through to determine whether they're suited for each other and, I suspect, to teach the lessons of trust and faith. I also think that that portion of the thing is at the discretion of the two involved."

"Huh," Daniel said reflectively. "So what would I need to do?" I explained about the seed necklace, that he should say "That thou art full of promise" when putting it around her neck, then I brought out the ribbons and thorns, showed him how to create the bracelet, then undid it and made him do it himself. The result was... a bit awkward. He wasn't the arts and crafts type, but I helped him by using a needle to flatten out the ribbon and coaxed it into more of a circular shape, directing the points of the thorns more linearly.

"It's truly the thought that counts with this, and the effort," I coached him. "You say "That thou shall know the heart of another" when you tie the bracelet on. If you two decide to go forward, you can always replace it with a different bracelet." His mournful face lit and I gave him a hug and a pep talk before getting back to work.

Back at the Valkyrie, I picked up come coffee from Mom's store for me and Mei. We discussed the proposal and Mei asked what prompted it.

"Ares is abroad in the world again," I said, scowling. "Athena is probably the best bulwark against his influence." Mei scowled too. She also had experience with the Chinese pantheon. The Return, with its undeniable proof of the existence of gods, had also enabled the return of worship of gods who had been squeezed out or marginalized by Christianity and Islam. Their influence in the world was growing. We worked on clarifications and better projections of costs and timelines, and she volunteered to go to Greece herself and present the proposal to the Ministry of Culture. I accepted with enthusiasm and she took herself off to book her flight. "Be sure to get first class," I called after her.

"It's a good thing that I invested in Tony's company so heavily," I said to Damian during a mid-afternoon call. "This project is pretty much going to wipe me out." Damian just smiled.

"Even if Stark's dividends won't keep you afloat, you'll always have me, Petal," he assured me. "At least the house is paid for." He startled me into a laugh. He knew I put all the money I would have drawn as a salary back into my company. "But as your financial advisor, I have to recommend that you start paying yourself for your work. If you'd like, we can discuss it later, take a look at the numbers."

"I know it's not wise to sink so much capital into this project," I said, "but we need it. Athena needs a foothold in this world, and the best way to do it is to revitalize her main temple."

"Don't beat yourself up over it," he advised. "The Greeks will have some funds that they can kick in, and you've said that Mei is a sharp negotiator. Let her do her work and see what happens." He managed to talk me down from the consequences of my impulsivity and I went back to work feeling marginally less dumb. It's just that there isn't really time for prolonged fundraising.

After work, Serena and I trudged over to the embassy and sat down with Loki and Torunn. He listened attentively and he smiled when I asked him what he could do and if he was willing to. "Good old mayhem," he said affectionately. "I've been reining myself in these past centuries out of regard for my brother's peace of mind and security, but it will be good to cause some discord and not get in trouble for it." His smile sharpened and his finely boned face tightened. Cold prickles ran down my spine as a chill whisper of his power snaked through the room before he cut it off. "I'll coordinate with Rogers," he assured us.

"It's a little embarrassing, but I'm not quite sure who survived Ragnarok and my direct experience with gods is limited to you, Thor, Frigga, and Odin," I confessed. "I was wondering if Tyr survived and if he might be amenable to recruitment for a battle against Ares and his boys."

"He did survive," Loki said slowly, thinking about it. "He might be amenable to helping your side, especially since he is not only one of our chief war gods but also of law and justice. This attempt to overthrow the established order will offend him. However," he said merrily, glancing at me, "your well-known proclivity for causing unrest, even if your cause was just, in the realm of the AllFather is a mark against you. I can plead your cause for you."

"I could as well," Serena volunteered. "Furthermore, I could offer to establish a temple for him on this continent. It will help him get a foothold with new worshippers." She grinned at me. "I have in mind a small space that would be expanded over time, rather than going for the gold all at once." I rolled my eyes, smiling at her.

"That should help," Loki said briskly. "The problem is that the Greeks have so many more gods than virtually any other pantheon, supplemented with spirits and creatures. If Ares is behind this, he has many potential supporters in his own religious system. Somebody should help to recruit some of the others gods who may be supportive of your cause." Torunn and I looked at each other.

"I'll speak to Diana," I said. "The Amazons are Greeks, and I'm buttering up Athena. She can scout around for some other deities." Torunn looked a little apprehensive, but Diana had the best chance of succeeding. I didn't know the pantheon very well, but if we could get somebody like Nike on our side it would help a lot. Eira pranced in and I crouched beside her to give a big hug; I'd really missed her. She kept her head on my lap as I skritched behind her ears and we wrapped things up.

The kids were thrilled to see Eira too; her tail wagged so hard I thought it would break off, and the three of them bolted outside to play.

We had a nicely domestic dinner and the kids split up to do their own things; Iris took off for the stables and Miles went downstairs to practice his ballet. Alfred filled me in on what I'd missed while I was gone, and I told him many of the highlights of my trip. He clucked over the destruction of my armor, agreed with the benefits of a costume redesign, and departed for the kitchen to make cookies. Damian also had come around to the benefits of cookies in the workplace, so Alfred was benignly making cookies for both of us. Since I had the coffeeshop downstairs, I wasn't eating as many, which was balanced out by Tony's daily raids on Damian's cookie jar.

I was enjoying cuddling up to my husband and hearing about his day when the doorbell rang. Alfred sped out of the kitchen to get the door before we'd done much more than get to our feet and announced the new arrivals. Diana and Daniel stepped into the library. I noted with approval that she was wearing the thorn bracelet and there was a thin chain around her neck that supported a nectarine seed. Damian blinked at this and I realized that I hadn't told him about the Amazonian custom. Diana looked radiant and she kept hold of Daniel's hand as they were seated. For his part, I'd never seen Daniel look so happy. I smiled, Damian smiled, and they never stopped smiling. I was glad to spirits restored.

"The League did a financial analysis this morning," Daniel said. "Even with the restoration of the Hall of Justice, almost done, thank you, Grandma, we have funds that we can use to support the restoration of the Parthenon," he said, and named a sum. It was nearly half of what my bid was.

"Not going to lie, I'm grateful," I said. "I was planning on paying for it myself and it pretty much would have wiped me out. I worked up a bid for the project today and sent one of my associates off to present it. I don't think we have time to waste."

Damian rubbed his forehead. "Grandma--"

"I also stopped by the Asgardian embassy," I said briskly. "Serena and Loki have offered to approach Tyr on our behalf, since I'm a rabblerouser. Loki is also amenable to turning his gifts for chaos onto the other side, so that's another benefit to us. However, he believes, and I agree, that it would be helpful to get more of the Greek gods lined up on our side. There are tons of them, and some could be very useful to us." I sat and looked at Diana expectantly.

"I have no special claim to the worship of any beyond the five who are sacred to the Amazons," she said.

"Well, your voice, petitioning the other four, should help," I encouraged her. "Also, you could find out where other gods are being worshipped and ask their priests to intercede on our behalf."

Diana looked a little resistant. "We are all having to do things we'd rather not," I said sternly. "I was looking forward to some down time after saving the world, and I've never wanted to be a hero. Yet here I am, suiting up, ready to pretty much bankrupt myself in order to achieve our common goal of taking down Typhon. My husband has come out of retirement, and we are putting ourselves at risk despite having two young kids who depend on us. So I expect everybody to step up." Diana's eyes fell at my words and tone.

"I understand," she said, and Daniel squeezed her hand.

"We'll research and get on it," he promised me, and I nodded.

Alfred came in with a replenished cookie plate and coffee for our guests, and this turned the conversation to more general matters. Damian took Diana to look over at the shamshir he'd won from his grandfather, a treasured family heirloom after all this time, and Daniel plopped down beside me.

"We're ready to do our share," he said quietly, and I nodded. If I saw anybody slacking, I was going to kick some butt. I wanted to get this over with and go back to the comfortable life I had planned with my beloved. "There was something else," he continued, darting a quick glance where Damian was demonstrating how to use the curved blade. "You might have noticed that Diana's wearing the tokens you helped me with." I nodded and he pinked up in pleasure. "I plan to propose soon. I was wondering, and you don't have to agree, but I wondered if you'd come shopping with me, help me pick out the ring."

"I'd be happy to," I said, and squeezed his hand. We cleared out a few hours the next week and I gave him a homework assignment to look at ring styles and get an idea of things he liked.

"Thick as thieves," Damian said lightly, coming over to refresh my coffee before returning with a fresh cup of jasmine tea for himself. He hates cold tea.

"I was just telling him about my visit to the islands. Such a beautiful place, lovely people." Daniel got up, looking a little relieved, and brought a chair closer for Diana before bringing one for himself. Damian snuggled up to me and he and Daniel asked questions about Themyscira. I said nothing about Hippolyta's revelations, but the revelation that Damian had been intimate with Antiope kind of shocked Daniel.

"Geeze, Grandpa," he said, a little reproachfully. "Are you ok with that, Grandma?"

Damian and I shrugged in stereo. "Little jealous, a little intimidated," I admitted, and Damian's arm went around my waist. "But it's water under the bridge. I've snagged him for this lifetime too." My husband beamed at me, and Daniel looked like he didn't quite understand, but then he hadn't been dead yet.

We were chatting as Iris pounded into the room and announced that she wanted her own horse for her birthday, please daddy. "It could be for Christmas too," she said generously, and I laughed as her father rubbed his eye. She greeted our guests and snagged a cookie before pelting out again.

Diana and Daniel got to their feet and said goodnight. Alfred materialized to show them out and Damian went to his side of our desk to do a little work he'd brought home. I went in search of our son and found him practicing his ballet positions. I corrected his arm position a couple times, but he was doing well and I said so. He beamed, looking very much like his father and described his classes in detail. He held my hand and we chatted as we went upstairs for bedtime. After the kids were in bed, hopefully to stay, I read until Damian was done and we said goodnight to Alfred before going upstairs.