Offensive[]
- Children of Aphrodite can create a large plume of dense perfume or make-up which obscures them and begins to suffocate anyone else within it. This can give the user a chance to attack.
- Children of Aphrodite have the ability to fire razor sharp scallop shells at high speed which can be shot fast enough that they could pierce the skin on impact. The shells would materialize and fire from the user’s palms, so the size of them depends on the user.
Defensive[]
- Children of Aphrodite can cause people of any gender to lose all desire to attack them for a short time. Out of an artificial love, the love isn’t necessarily romantic and could be like sibling love. If the user attacks while this is in effect, it will automatically wear off.
- Children of Aphrodite have the ability to entrap an enemy in a large scallop shell, similar to the one their mother emerged from at birth. Once closed, the clam is extremely difficult to escape from. It is highly durable and cannot be teleported out of, after a short time the clam will fade from existence. The target cannot be attacked while they are inside the clam, so the power is purely defensive. It can only be summoned twice in the same fight.
Passive[]
- Children of Aphrodite cause anyone who possesses a sexual orientation towards them to be at least slightly, attracted to them.
- Children of Aphrodite have the ability to be able to resist charm speak, a charming touch etc. to an extent.
- Children of Aphrodite have the innate ability to be able to resist the effects of pheromones to an extent.
- Children of Aphrodite are able to communicate with and command doves. If the user gives too many commands, the doves will become frustrated and disobey.
Supplementary[]
- Children of Aphrodite can alter their appearance (including clothes and make-up) for short periods of time, the more they alter their appearance, and the longer they maintain the appearance, the more energy it drains.
- Children of Aphrodite can curse someone to feel like they’re completely hated and unloved, they’ll feel like they’re ugly and will sink into self-pity for a short time. This gives the user a chance to attack or flee.
- Children of Aphrodite can infuse magic into their words and ‘charm-speak’ another into doing their will or revealing a secret to them; the person will remain under the control of the charm-speak for a few minutes or until control is relinquished, the longer the control is kept.
- Children of Aphrodite can control the clothing of others, create and transform it at will (not armor). They could turn a girl’s prom dress into a red bikini, create a scarf around someone’s neck and command it to strangle someone etc. Commands and transformations only last for a short time and the target’s clothes revert to normal.
3 Months After Character is Made[]
- Children of Aphrodite are able to turn into a dove, which allows them flight, the longer they maintain this form, the more energy is drained.
6 Months After Character is Made[]
- Children of Aphrodite have the ability to control the levels of hormones related to love in humans; serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. The user has the ability to increase or decrease each of these hormones separately or all together. Increases in serotonin will make the target go temporarily insane and decreases will make the target become depressed, while increases in dopamine will make the target super sensitive to their surroundings and decreases will stiffen the movements of the target. Increases in norepinephrine will increase the rate of heart contractions of the target and decreases in this hormone can result in severely lowered heart rate. The use of this power can be extremely draining for the user depending on how extreme the alterations of the hormone levels are.
9 Months After Character is Made[]
- Children of Aphrodite have the ability to transform an area into a maze of mirrors for a moderate period of time, as one of their mother’s attributes was a mirror. Whilst in the maze, the user’s target can become disoriented and confused as all they can see is their own appearance, however, the glass is somewhat durable and cannot be broken easily. The user can move about while the maze is in place, and the sight of their own beautiful reflection empowers them a little. They innately know their way through the maze, as they created it, but they cannot change the layout of the maze once it is in place. The size of the maze depends on how large the user would like it; they can range in size up to that of a battle arena, however, the larger it is the more the user is drained. After dismantling the maze, the user is significantly drained and may not be able to move for a moderate period of time.
Traits[]
- Children of Aphrodite almost always have innate knowledge of the French language since it’s known as "the language of love" and pheromones related to love in humans.
- Children of Aphrodite are known for being incredibly attractive, seductive and flirty.
- Children of Aphrodite often enjoy things that are pretty and things that bring them pleasure. Making them quite fashionable, fun-loving and sometimes promiscuous.
- Children of Aphrodite commonly have a taste for apples.
A more aggressive Aphrodite attempted to seduce Cardinal del Monte again. This time around, she did not charge in one go. She first played with del Monte's insecurities and will to remain celibate, making him vulnerable enough to her persuasion. Finally, she succeeded but albeit experiencing utmost displeasure throughout their first and last intercourse in his chambers. The night after their affair, Aphrodite discovered that she bore the cardinal's child. As a matter of fact, the pregnancy was unexpected, even for her. Three months later, in 1536, she gave birth to a girl. Seeing that Cardinal del Monte's family was all that their daughter had, she decided to leave her in the household of his brother, Baldovino Ciocchi del Monte, in Piacenza. Aphrodite disguised herself as one of the relatives and used charm-speak to smoothly deliver a made-up story that she could not raise the child for she was terminally ill. Obviously, Baldovino believed her without sparing a second thought. He adopted the baby and named it Maria Elisabetta.
As far as Baldovino was concerned, Elisabetta was only his daughter on paper; not because he never loved her but rather it's his inability to find free time from all the responsibilities he had to fulfill as city governor. The most that he could do as compensation for his frequent absence was keeping Elisabetta company with the household's maids. Elisabetta was overly sheltered by Baldovino in her first few years. By sheltered, the latter meant she couldn't ever go outside. She was taught by a private female tutor until she was seven when her father started loosening up. Nonetheless, he was still cautious. Thus, he sent Elisabetta to an all-girls school up to her teenage years.
In 1545, a poor young man named Innocenzo arrived in the del Monte household. One source said he was taken in because his father was Baldovino's soldier, while another one claimed that he was picked up from the streets by Cardinal del Monte. In either case, he served the governor as a valero, which was just a fancy title for a footman and dogsbody. Innocenzo and Elisabetta quickly became friends despite her father's distrust on the boy. As Elisabetta's first male friend, she quickly started doting on the handsome and energetic teenager. However, Innocenzo had other thoughts that were apparently not innocent; he took advantage of her gullible and sheltered nature. There were multiple occasions that he would sexually harass her and delude her into thinking that there was nothing wrong with it.
Over a year had passed since they first met and by then, Innocenzo was becoming more and more aggressive on his desire for Elisabetta. Aphrodite, who had been watching from afar, was ready to punish him with a powerful curse when Eros confessed of the misdeeds that led to Elisabetta's birth. Further enraged by this revelation, she sent her son to deliver her final act of bitter vengeance against Cardinal del Monte and by extension, Innocenzo. Meanwhile, Elisabetta continued on with her life, still clueless of Innocenzo's lecherous acts against her. Thankfully, she saw him less as he became too occupied with attending to Cardinal del Monte, while she took care of her own matters. The lack of constant interaction eventually caused their friendship to die naturally.
The cardinal initially showed favoritism on the young man by giving him a variety of positions that entailed no responsibilities yet still gave a generous income. When he ascended into the papacy after the death of Pope Paul III in 1547, Giovanni Maria, now Pope Julius III made Innocenzo a cardinal, an elevation marred with contention from the other members of the clergy. There were two reasons: first, he was barely eighteen at the time; and second, he was illegitimate and utterly incompetent for the position. In the same year, Elisabetta moved with several members of the House of del Monte to Rome where she, along with her cousins and younger relatives, would continue their studies.
Circumstances were further confounded when Eros intervened on Aphrodite's behest. He cursed the cardinal and valero with unquenchable desire for one another. It first manifested when Julius circumvented Innocenzo's illegitimacy by adopting him into the del Monte family, and then making him his Cardinal-nephew, the official in charge of all Papal correspondence and diplomacy. Over time, their intimacy deepened as the curse worsened, and any attempt to keep it as discreet as possible was made futile by Aphrodite. She sent for Pheme, the goddess of rumor, to create a buzz out of Julius and Innocenzo's relationship. When thirteen-year old Elisabetta caught wind of it, she finally realized her history of sexual assault and swore to never leave her room out of fear that Innocenzo would come back for her. She isolated herself from everyone in the household except for a handful of loyal maids.
Locking herself up did not protect her from all sorts of harm though. Elisabetta always kept her large windows open because these were her only ways to see the outside world. This careless habit allowed three myrmekes to climb up to her room. Assunta, a huntress of Artemis pursuing the monsters, saved her from the attack and told her the same old script and story of the Greek gods. Finally, she invited Elisabetta to join the Hunt where she would be safer but the demigod refused, mainly because she could still not process everything that was being revealed to her. So instead, Assunta gave her a drachma that she could use to contact her.
It wasn't until Pope Julius III's death on March 23, 1555 that the Catholic Church undertook steps to get rid of the scandal that greatly damaged its image. After being banished and imprisoned--among other sanctions--Innocenzo died virtually forgotten in 1577. Now acting on her own accord, Pheme casually spread a rumor that the late pope had a daughter living in Baldovino del Monte's household in Piacenza, a week after his death. Suspicions were raised and investigations were done as usual, all of which led to Rome. However, Elisabetta was two steps ahead of them. Days before she was supposed to be discovered, she received a letter that bore Pope Julius III's coat of arms. And when she read it, she knew that her worst fear has come true. The letter dated from 1550 during Julius' first year of reign. It wasn't written voluntarily, of course; Aphrodite took care of the coercion part. His message never mentioned anything about Aphrodite and simply referred to her as her mother. Nothing else followed. It was just a short, concise, and not-so-sweet confirmation that Elisabetta was indeed the daughter of an unholy man--a living scandal. Elisabetta knew that once her secret was revealed she would be in jeopardy. So she brought out the drachma and followed Assunta's instructions in contacting her via Iris Message. On the same night, she deserted her home and family for a life bound in the service of Artemis under a new name: Bettina Carmen Buonaluce.
Things went smoothly for her in the following centuries until the present time when she started catching feelings for Assunta. She knew better than inciting yet another scandal. That role was up to the men. Thus, Bettina renounced her oath as a huntress and was given an honorable dismissal for her integrity. Artemis and company left her at Camp Half-Blood, where she was finally claimed by Aphrodite.Bettina's not always hateful though, at least when it comes to women (except the ones who are no different from the garbage spawns of Adam) and children. As she spent most of her life in the company of women, she became a protective and caring figure. This matriarchal disposition is her major defense and coping mechanism from being neglected by her "ever-busy" adopted father-slash-governor, which was further exacerbated by the assaults of her cockroach of a childhood abuser. Likewise, she abhors disloyalty as if the word had flashed male genitalia. She is a woman of her word, doing whatever it takes to fulfill her promises, as well as being prudent enough to discern the right time to swear her vows. If she knows she can't fulfill it, she will never give false hope.
A love languages quiz would classify her actions under quality time, receiving gifts, and acts of service. Although admittedly, she recognizes her tendencies to treat other people like kids or as if they are careless. As such, her goodwill could be mistaken as constant nagging.
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