A/N: First of all, to the prompter. I hope I did your prompt justice. The prompt was supposed to be waay simpler but at the last minute I got this idea in my head and loved it so much that I had to write it. Because it was so last minute, the execution may not be the best and I hope you can excuse that, hehe. To the mods! Thank you so much for putting up with my flakiness omg. I apologise for all the check ins that I have either missed, forgotten or begged an extension to. Real life has not been kind to me. But here we are now, and I actually have a fic to submit which is awesome! I hope you enjoy this fic!

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“I never knew your father lived so far away.” Yixing commented as he watched the mountains race past the car window. It was midday and the sun was shining overhead, rays of light spreading over his face.

 

He was so distracted by the emerald green mountains flashing past that he never noticed Yifan’s amused smile and the way his fingers gripped onto the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles had turned white.

 

“Yeah. He…prefers to live out where there aren’t as many people.” He muttered as he turned up the mountain road.

 

Gravel crunched under the tires of their SUV as Yifan steered the car up the sloped road carefully. They had turned off the radio the moment they crossed the border of the city and into the mountains, Yixing preferring to roll down the windows to listen to the wind whistling past them as they drove.

 

Said wind was frigid now as they drove up the mountain pass, the windows of their car frosting up with condensation. Yifan rolled up the windows the moment they passed the halfway mark of the mountain, worried that Yixing would catch a cold.

 

His boyfriend was currently fidgeting with his phone, the space between his brows creased with concentration. There was nothing to do on his phone. No signal could reach so far up the mountain.

 

“This is Mount Olympus?” Yixing asked, unable to stand the silence any longer.

 

“Mount Othrys. It is said that the god Hephaestus built his forges inside the mountain.” Yifan replied, unable to contain his smile.

 

“Really? You never told me you were so interested in Greek Mythology.” Yixing looked up from fiddling with his phone with interest. His dark brown eyes were so full of innocence that Yifan felt a pang of guilt.

 

“I’m not. But my father is Greek. Told me stories.” He lied, spotting the ledge of rock outcropping that signalled that he was close. White misty clouds swirled around them, so thick they obscured the rest of the mountain from view.

 

Yixing stared at the abyss of white worriedly.

 

“Shouldn’t we stop? I can hardly see out the window. It’s probably dangerous to drive in fog this thick.” He mumbled, looking confused.

 

“Strange. They seemed to come out of nowhere.”

 

Yifan seized the moment of his boyfriend’s inattentiveness, turning straight off the mountain road and into thin air, aiming for the rocky outcrop that was visible only to him through the veil of white clouds.

 

“Where…” Yixing turned back to him when he switched off the engine of the car, reaching for the car door.

 

“We’re here.” He got out of the car, ignoring his boyfriend’s look of confusion.

 

“But we’re…” Yixing shoved open the car door and stepped outside. He could see nothing but a swirl of white.

 

“Yifan. Where are we?” He took Yifan’s outstretched hand, stepping closer to his boyfriend.

 

“Uh, my dad wanted to put you through a hero’s test, uh, before he meets you.” Yifan waved his hand and Yixing nearly screamed in shock when the mass of roiling clouds before them cleared to reveal the thousand feet drop beneath the rock he was standing on.

 

“What???” He gasped, gripping tighter onto Yifan’s arm and spinning around to take a good look at where he was.

 

A large cave mouth yawned at him, emitting a strange red glow and warmth that melted the leftover chill from the frosty winds from the drive up.

 

“It’s nothing much to worry about, babe. It’s mainly to see if you’re worthy? Of me?” Even as he was talking, Yifan was leading him into the cave with an awkward smile on his face.

 

“What???” Yixing could hardly believe his ears. The heat of a thousand fires seared against his face and he squeezed his eyes shut. He could practically feel the moisture in his skin evaporating, the heat was so stifling. The fires also roared, so loudly that Yifan had to yell to be heard over them.

 

“This is where I leave you! Sorry, babe! Dad’s orders!” With a sheepish smile, Yifan released his arm, slowly backing away.

 

“What… Yifan, wait!” Yixing spluttered, latching onto the elder man’s arm.

 

“You can’t just leave me here without answers! What am I supposed to do? Walk through the fires of hell?!”

 

“They’re not… um.. the fires of hell.” Yifan winced at the younger’s expression.

 

“They’re um… Hephaestus’ forges. You need to pass through them to get to Olympus. That’s where my father’s at. And where I’m heading right after this.” He had to fight the curling corners of his mouth at the look on Yixing’s face.

 

He pried his boyfriend’s fingers gently from his arm and stuck a hand inside his pocket.

 

“Here, you could use this.” Yixing was still staring at him, wide eyed as he pressed a seemingly ordinary ballpoint pen into his hand.

 

“Just click the pen when you need the sword.”

 

“What???” Yixing yelped in shock, nearly dropping the celestial bronze sword that had expanded in his hand. He looked from the gleaming blade to Yifan, an expression of utter terror written on his face.

 

“The creatures shouldn’t bother you. But if they do, just swing the sword a few times and they’ll get the message.”

 

“But… But...”

 

Yifan’s face softened and he reached out, pulling his boyfriend into a hug.

 

“I know you want answers. And you will get them. But first,” His expression turned serious when the sky rumbled loudly, as if in warning.

 

“You’re on a hero’s quest now, Yixing. In order to prove yourself to my father that you are worthy of dating me. Find a way through the forges to the golden gates of Olympus. I’ll be there when you finish. I promise.”

 

He pressed a tender kiss to Yixing’s forehead and stepped out of the cave, his heart clenching when he heard Yixing cry out from behind him.

 

“But, I’m not a hero!”

 

Yixing’s lower lip trembled as he clutched the hilt of the sword close to him, the only answer he received, the roar of the fires burning in the blacksmith god’s forges.

 

He touched the end of the sword carefully where the clicker of the pen should and the sword folded in on itself immediately, turning back into an ordinary ballpoint pen.

 

Sweat dripped down his hairline as he stared around him nervously.

 

The cave seemed empty. There were no signs of human or godly inhabitants as far as he could tell other than the roaring fires he was still adamant came from Hell.

 

Or Hades.

 

Why is Greek Mythology so complicated? He grumbled to himself.

 

He felt as if he was being cooked alive as he plucked up the courage to walk deeper into the cave.

 

The ground beneanth his feet ended abruptly, dropping vertically down into a canyon that boiled with lava. If he had not walking at a snail’s pace, he would have fallen straight into the pool of death.

 

This was Hephaestus’ forge?

 

The red glow of the lava hurt his eyes and as he cast his eyes around the canyon. Red light reflected off the lava by shiny metallic things cast light upon the canyon’s roughly hewn walls.

 

As his eyes adjusted to the strange lighting, Yixing could see that what he had thought was a canyon full of lava, was actually, a pool the size of a football field filled with volcanic embers.

 

He could hear the clinking and clanking of craftsmen as they hammered metal upon anvils so large, it would have taken five men to lift. But the craftsmen were huge too, with strong bulky bodies and muscled arms. However, the strangest thing about the “men” were their faces.

 

A single large eye was set in the middle of their foreheads where there should have been two.

 

Cyclops.

 

They could not reach him where he was as he was so high above and they were far below, but that did not Yixing from biting back a whimper and backing away from the canyon.

 

He turned down the only way he could see, the rocky ledge that lined the canyon.

 

It was a precarious perch, the ledge he walked on until he came to another cave mouth carved deep into the stone, leading out of the canyon.

 

This cave had a blue glow and was much cooler than the great canyon he had just exited.

 

A cold wind ruffled his hair as he moved deeper into the cavern, one hand stuffed into the pocket where he had placed Yifan’s pen.

 

The walls of the cave shimmered blue but there was limited light in the rocky alcove. The air seemed to get colder and the light dimmer as he strode further in.

 

He could see a ravine slicing straight through the cave floor, a single slab of rock arcing across the wide gap, bridging the two halves.

 

A strong female voice penetrated the air just as he had placed one foot on the rock bridge.

 

“Halt, intruder. If you wish to proceed, you must answer my riddles correctly.”

 

Through the gloom, Yixing could barely make out the shape of what looked like a lion, stepping onto the bridge of rock. Its body blocked off the exit of the bridge.

 

As the creature moved closer, he could see a woman’s head upon the body of the lion.

 

“Sphynx!” He cried out in alarm, backing away in terror.

 

The woman’s eyes rolled with distaste and the sphynx stopped where she stood, glaring across the rest of the bridge at the strange human boy.

 

“Answer my riddles and you shall pass. Your boyfriend’s sister sent me here. I’m not to harm you even though you will be a tasty morsel for me.”

 

“Yifan has a sister?” Yixing wondered how much more about his boyfriend’s family was he blind to.

 

“The goddess Athena. She values wisdom above all traits. Now riddle me this: What is the creature that walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon and three in the evening?”

 

Yixing laughed, relieved that he had paid attention in his writing class when they had discussed Greek Mythology.

 

“You asked this to the hero Odysseus. The answer is Man.”

 

The sphynx sneered and her eyes glittered.

 

“The goddess was right to ask me not to use that riddle. Too many already know the answer. One more and you shall pass. What is not alive but grows. It has no lungs but needs air. What has no mouth but water kills it?”

 

Yixing’s face fell and his brow creased as he thought hard.

 

“The clock is ticking, young hero. Tick tock tick tock. One wrong answer and you will have to leave and go back to that terrible canyon with all that lava.” The sphynx chuckled and Yixing’s eyes lit up.

 

“Fire! Fire grows as it feeds on air but it is not alive. One splash of water will reduce it to embers!”

 

The sphynx’s eyes narrowed and she growled, clearly displeased as she stepped backwards, off the bridge.

 

“Go forth, and take care not to let me see you again.”

 

Yixing ran, bolting across the bridge so fast that his mind barely processed the creature’s words.

 

He barrelled straight past the sphynx and into the next cavern, the walls of which were decorated with metal gears and parts, whirring and spinning almost mindlessly.

 

A mechanical spider scuttled out from the piles of junk that littered the room and nearly perished right under Yixing’s feet.

 

He jumped back just in time as the spider released a string of silver thread, leaping up the nearest pile of what looked like parts made of gold and bronze.

 

“What the hell?” Yixing stepped closer, holding out his hand. The spider was made of bronze metal, fitted together so closely that it looked almost lifelike, with the exception of the fact that it was bronze and had ruby red eyes that glowed.

 

Yixing was almost positive that its eyes were indeed made of real rubies.

 

The spider rose onto its back four legs and waved the first two in front of him as if signalling to the young man.

 

“What is it?” Yixing wondered if he should feel completely stupid for talking to a spider made of metal but that sphynx from earlier had freaked him out so much that the thought was quickly away.

 

He leaned down, lowering his face to the level of the spider.

 

“Are you my next challenge?” He asked quietly and the spider leapt off its perch, trailing silver thread behind it as it scuttled in between piles of metal scraps and junk.

 

Deciding that he had nothing to lose, Yixing followed after the gleaming silver trail, mindful not to step on it.

 

At the back of the cavern, there was a gleaming gold ladder, leading up towards the ceiling.

 

The metal was warm beneath his fingertips as he climbed it, the spider swinging itself leisurely from beam to beam.

 

When he poked his head out of the ceiling, he finally understood his challenge.

 

“You’ve got to be joking.” He muttered, staring at what looked like a children’s obstacle course gone wild.

 

There was a set of monkey bars to begin with, stretching over a yawning ravine so deep that he could not see the bottom of. Which was strange, considering that he would have thought they were on top of the previous cave.

 

Across the ravine, there was an enormous stone wall rising out of the floor that he assumed he would have to scale in order to see what else there were.

 

“I’m so ed.” He mumbled and the spider made a strange whirring sound beside him. He turned to look at it and the spider clambered onto his arm, scuttling up to sit on his shoulder.

 

“You’re following me across then?” Yixing felt a smile tug at the corner of his lips despite himself. The spider was cute, far cuter than the sphynx or the cyclops.

 

A mechanical whirring sound reached his ears and he nodded his head, setting off towards the monkey bars.

 

“Alright. Let’s do this.”

 

---

 

 

“He’s doing well so far,” Yifan commented quietly, glancing at his father who sat across from him, staring at the pool intently.

 

“I will give him credit. I had trouble with Athena’s riddle.” The god did not lift his eyes from the image of the young man swinging across the golden bars, a tiny mechanical spider skittering with him.

 

“Was this really necessary, Father?” Yifan leaned back, reaching the golden chalice on his side.

 

“I do like to cause mortals pain.” The god shrugged his shoulders and Yifan sighed, eyes drawn again to his lover, who was scaling the rock wall.

 

Hephaestus seemed to have developed an interest in him as the spider kept close to Yixing even when he slid down the other side of the wall, leaping off onto his shoulder.

 

“What’s his last challenge?” He asked instead, taking a sip of his drink nervously.

 

His father cocked his head and Yifan nearly laughed aloud. He really had to thank Apollo dearly after this.

 

---

 

Yixing stared at the instrument, unable to believe his luck. The mechanical spider on his shoulder whirred, mistaking his silence for worry, lifting one of its spidery legs to his cheek gently.

 

Words etched themselves into the stone wall, spelling out a message that Yixing guessed was from the sun god Apollo.

 

You have as much time as the sand in the hourglass. Master this mortal instrument and compose a haiku about my awesomeness within that time frame.

 

Leaning carelessly against the wall, was an acoustic guitar that when plucked was completely out of tune.

 

Yixing picked up the instrument, plopping down onto the stone floor in excitement. The spider hopped off his shoulder, watching him with its beady red eyes.

 

He plucked at the strings quickly, tuning them by ear. Little did Apollo know that he did composing for a living. Or did he?

 

As the sand in the hourglass fell silently, Yixing strummed the guitar strings, humming a little melody that had been stuck in his head, words falling into place as he hummed.

 

The spider swayed, as if it were dancing and leapt onto the neck of the guitar.

 

Yixing sang aloud, watching the spider dance with a musical laugh. He was so absorbed in the music that he did not notice all of the walls around him fading to white and only the applause from the golden haired man managed to jar him from his playing.

 

“I feel like you cheated but I was never setting you up for failure anyway.” Yixing’s jaw dropped open when the guitar in his hand shivered and transformed into a lute, flying into the young man’s hand.

 

“Hi, I’m Apollo and you just greatly impressed me. Can you imagine? Me! Impressed!”

 

Yixing’s cheeks flushed with pleasure when the god strummed lightly across the strings of the lute, practically vibrating with happiness.

 

“Yifan is so lucky. If you weren’t his, I might want you for myself. Actually, who cares, maybe…”

“Enough, Apollo.” The deep voice rumbled through the air and Yixing stared. Yifan was standing beside a tall bearded man, looking incredibly sheepish.

 

“Fan!” Delight exploded across Yixing’s face and he lunged forward, Yifan’s strong arms wrapping him up immediately.

 

“I’m very proud of you, Xing.” Yifan mumbled into the nape of his boyfriend’s neck and Yixing grinned, pulling away.

 

“I still haven’t quite forgiven you, and I want answers.” He wagged a finger with mock annoyance and Yifan laughed, dipping his head to press his lips against his boyfriend’s.

 

"Ahem." The both of them looked up, startled and Yixing felt his cheeks flush when he met the eyes of the god who could only be Yifan’s father. Yifan looked very much like him, except the god was taller and had broader shoulders and had jet black hair instead of Yifan’s golden locks.

 

“Milord.” Yixing stammered, fingers tightening in Yifan’s shirt. Yifan pulled away from him, but left his hand on his shoulder, a comforting warmth that Yixing very much appreciated.

 

“Father, this is Yixing, my boyfriend. Xing, this is my dad, Zeus, Lord of the Skies.”

 

Yixing’s jaw dropped. He could not help himself. He had guessed somewhere along the way that Yifan’s father was not mortal but for him to be the king of all gods, no less? That was a stretch.

 

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Zhang Yixing.” Zeus’ voice was every bit as deep as Yifan’s but lacked his son’s honeyed tone. Yixing stood froze, unsure as to what he was supposed to do. Should he bow? Or address him again?

 

He suddenly felt terribly shabby in his best shirt and pants, standing before the Lord of the Skies in all of his puny mortal glory.

 

Thankfully, he did not have to fish for words for Apollo filled in the silence for him.

 

“Say, why don’t we head to the dinner table and actually have our meal? I am sure our hero is half starved from all that physical exertion.” Here, he gave Yixing a slow appraising once over that made Yifan’s hand tighten around Yixing’s shoulder.

 

“Come along now!” He chirped, clutching his lute close to him. Apollo, the Sun God, winked exaggeratedly at Yixing before vanishing into thin air.

 

“If you don’t mind, Father. I will Yixing through the gates.” Yixing bowed nervously as the god waved them away, disappearing in a flash as Yifan hurried him towards the gargantuan golden gates that rose before them.

 

“Holy .” Yixing gaped as they passed the gates, staring at the marble flooring that looked as if it was floating on clouds. There were tall statues of the twelve Olympian gods lining the hallways, so lifelike that Yixing felt as if Ares’ fury eyes were burning into his back as they passed his statue.

 

“It’s beautiful isn’t it?” Yifan commented, watching Yixing drink in the sheer beauty of the palace, Mount Olympus. His boyfriend nodded, mouth agape as a group of satyrs hurried past them, bearing golden trays.

 

“We better hurry, the whole family is going to be there.”

 

“What?” Yixing felt as if his blood had been turned to ice. How could he, a puny mortal, sit at the dinner table with twelve gods and be judged by them for his worthiness?

 

“Well, Hera’s not because she doesn’t like me very much and Uncle Hades is busy and Dad doesn’t like to have him…”

 

“Yifan, I can’t.” His words came out as a plea, forcing Yifan’s footsteps to a complete stop. The demigod wrapped his arms around him, pulling him so close that Yixing could hear his heart beating. He inhaled deeply, the scent of Yifan’s cologne wrapping around him. Yifan’s arms tightened.

 

“I know it’s overwhelming and a lot of take in all at once.” Yifan murmured, burying the words into Yixing’s hair.

 

“I should have prepared you better. I would have prepared you better had Father not insisted on the test.” Yixing hummed, nuzzling his face against Yifan’s warm chest.

 

The gesture made some of the tenseness in Yifan’s body leak away, as he knew that he had been forgiven.

 

“I’m sorry. We can turn around now and go home. Or I’ll tell Father to kick the others out, let it be just us. It’s not fair that you have to meet everyone on your first day.”

 

“No. Don’t. I… I passed the test didn’t I? I am worthy?” Yixing was stuttering, stammering over his words.

 

“I guess? You found your way here, so that’s a feat.” Yifan’s large hand smoothed along his back, rubbing at the bumps in his spine in an effort to soothe him.

 

“Then I’ll finish this. As long as you don’t throw me to the wolves again, I can deal.” Yixing’s voice grew stronger as he made his resolve. He would meet Yifan’s paternal family with as much confidence as he had meeting his mother.

 

“Let’s go before I lose my nerve.” He muttered and Yifan grinned.

 

“Atta boy.” An arm wrapped around his waist and Yixing leaned into it, turning his face upwards to receive the kiss that Yifan dropped against his lips.

 

“I love you for everything.”

 

Yifan murmured as he took Yixing by the hand, leading him onwards.

 

A set of golden doors swung open and they stepped inside. The room was full of people. Gods and goddesses all sat at the table, waiting.

 

As if pulled by invisible magnets, all eyes turned to face them the moment they stepped into the room and Yixing’s grip on Yifan’s hand tightened, his palm turning clammy at the attention.

 

“Aye, the hero.” With a creaking noise, the god with the leg brace rose from his seat, stepping forward. A metallic gold spider leapt from his shoulder and onto Yixing’s.

 

Yixing stopped and stared.

 

“You’re Hep…haestus.” His cheeks flushed when he stumbled over the syllables.

 

“I’m sorry, I have trouble…” Before he could finish his apologies, Hephaestus waved him off, the spider climbing off the frozen mortal and back to its maker.

 

“Everyone has trouble with my name.” He smiled and sat back down.

 

“It is a pleasure to meet you.”

 

Yixing bowed, too awed to speak.

 

“Aye, pretty one.” Apollo’s eyes twinkled and Yixing grinned weakly as Yifan guided him around the table to a pair of empty seats.

 

“Stop flirting with our brother’s boyfriend, brother.” The maiden who spoke looked as if she was nineteen, way too young to be speaking to Apollo, who looked like a young man in his twenties in that tone.

 

“Artemis.” Yifan whispered into Yixing’s ear, pulling out the chair for him. Yixing sat, eyes flickering nervously around the table.

 

There were so many faces, so many names and all of them were related to Yifan by his father.

 

By the end of dinner, Yixing’s head was spinning with all of the names Yifan had reeled off to him and the wine was getting to his head.

 

Athena, the goddess of wisdom and battle had questioned him heavily on his academics, even though he had passed her riddle with the Sphynx. Ares, the god of war, just sat and eat his bloody rare meat silently, looking for all the world as if he wanted to be anywhere else.

 

Yifan’s family had interesting dynamics and Yixing found that he could not wait to learn more about them.

 

“Did you enjoy yourself, love?” Yifan asked quietly as he led his boyfriend out of the dining hall and towards his chambers. They were to stay the night before returning home in the morning.

 

“Mm hm. Your dad isn’t as intimidating as I thought he would be.” Yixing mumbled, cuddling up to Yifan.

 

“So you wouldn’t mind coming here for more family dinners?” Yifan looked amused. Yixing shook his head, flopping onto the bed.

 

“I love you, Yifan. And I want to learn to love your family too.”