Athena’s Roses

Prompt: White Rose-Innocence

Character: Alone

He'd always been the one who needed protecting, the one with a heart so soft that any form
of cruelty sliced at it. He valued life of all forms, believing animals to be no less important
than people. Deep down, he knew that humans basically had nothing but good intentions,
they simply sometimes had a hard time making the right choices. He loved the world and its
many colors, the sunshine, the rainbows, stars in the night sky, the grass under his feet. He
loved the brightness of life around him. Then slowly, that brightness started to vanish. The
world lost its color. He lost himself. On a swirl of black hair, his innocence floats away.

Prompt: Red Rose-Love/Devotion

Character: Sagittarius Sisyphos

He'd always been there for her. No matter what she'd needed, he stuck by her side. As a
young girl, he'd guarded her and watched out for her, sharing in her joy when she was
happy, ready to offer words of kindness when she was sad. Even as she stepped into her role
as a goddess, he stood by her, though she no longer needed him to protect her. Instead, she
saved him, pulling him back from the verge of breaking, offering him her salvation. It was
then that he realized his devotion for her went past simple devotion as a saint. He was in
love with her. He was in love with her and for this, he would stand by her until he drew his
last breath.

Prompt: Lavender Rose-Enchantment

Character: Aries Shion

His powers are an ancient gift, an ability not of this world. All around him, he can hear the
songs of life, their radiant tunes all a rhythm and melody of their own. As a child, he found
himself wrapped up in the wonderment of this fascinating world. To be able to sense the
thoughts and emotions, to hear the rhythm and melody of those who departed the world,
feel their courage flowing into him, he was sure he had a rare and precious gift. A gift he
took for granted until he learned all things came with a price.. He will embrace his abilities
and use them as needed, but no longer will he allow himself to be carried away by them. All
things had a balance, after all, and he uses a scar on his arm as a reminder of that. Fantasy
and reality can co-exist. He just needs to be strong enough to differentiate the two. He is.

Prompt: Burgundy Rose-Beauty

Character: Pisces Albafica

He was known as the most beautiful of Athena's Saints, a young man whose physical beauty
was eclipsed only by Athena's own. He was a proud man and a strong fighter. The perfect
being, living in an Eden of gorgeous roses. To him, however, the Eden was his own personal
Hell. To become a great saint, he'd had to become as lethal as the roses in his garden. He
hated every minute of it, hated the secluded life it forced him to lead. It wasn't until he was
on the brink of death, triumphant because he had saved a young girl who was dear to him,
that his opinion changed. Floating overhead were thousands of glorious red rose petals.
They held no fragrance, just a breathtaking burgundy hue. For the first time in his short life,
he could truly appreciate just how beautiful they were.

Prompt: Peach Rose-Loyalty

Character: Pegasus Tenma

He knew she was his Goddess, but to him, that didn't matter. To him, he was the same girl
he used to play with in his childhood. The young girl who had tried to teach him how to
read, and had read him stories when he proved to lack the patience to learn, the girl who
had so often smiled and offered words of encouragement when he was feeling down. He
knew his best friend now called himself Hades, but that didn't matter to him either. To him,
he was the same boy who would sit quietly and smile as he painted beautiful scenery. The
boy who would scold him for punching others and believed in him when no one else did.
Titles didn't matter to him. They were his friends and they would remain so until his very life
gave out.

Prompt: Yellow Rose-Friendship/Promise

Character: Aquarius Degel

The memory always brought a smile to his lips. When he closed his eyes, he could see the
scene so vividly in his mind. He can see himself clasping hands with a young, blonde-headed
prince; can hear their spoken promise under the Northern Lights as they vowed to fulfill
their assigned duties. He would become a great Saint of Athena; the young prince would
grow up and become a fair and just king, the bridge connecting a frozen domain and the
outside world. His promise to his friend had gotten him through the roughest parts of his
training and he had in fact become a Saint of Athena. He had fulfilled his promise, and
wondered if the kind-hearted prince had done the same. Deep down inside, he knew that
he had, and one day, they would be reunited under the Cygnus constellation once more.

Prompt: Blue Rose-Attaining the Impossible

Character: Gemini Asperos

It didn't seem possible-it couldn't be possible. One moment, his twin had stood in front of
him and a blinding hatred had burned through his very being. The next, his brother was
gone-and so was the hatred. He pressed a hand to his chest, marveling at how calm he felt-
how whole. His hand clenched into a fist as realization dawned on him. His brother had
 given his life to free him from the illusion he had been under. He could feel his twin's
essence inside of him. Gemini had always been represented by twins and today the two had
become one. He knew what had to be done and felt no fear in it. He owed it to his twin to
try at least. Separate they couldn't hope to accomplish this, but together, maybe they had a
shot at doing the impossible.

Prompt: Coral Rose-Passion/Desire

Character: Scorpio Kardia

He always knew he was going to die young, and it had never bothered him much. Everyone
had to go sooner or later, after all. What he was concerned about was how he would die. He
craved a Warrior's death, where his life ended only after a long and spectacularly violent
battle. For him, whose passions for fighting rose through his body and spread like a fire
through his blood, it was the only way worth going. So when he found a foe that was a
worthy adversary, his very heart sang with the excitement of a challenging battle where he
could give it his all and die as a saint of Athena. As his eyes slipped shut and the flames
within his heart cooled, leaving only a blissful feeling of lightness, he smiled. This had been
the way he was meant to go. He would die without regret.

Prompt: Orange Rose-Enthusiasm

Character: Taurus Aldebarran/Rasagado

They always brought a smile to his face, so young, so bright, and so lively. Even though he
knew in his heart that only the oldest boy would make it as a saint, he had faith that the girl
and younger boy would grow up and become honorable people. The type of people who
would make their goddess proud. They would protect those weaker than they were and
would help anyone who needed it. His young students would carry on a legacy when he
passed, he was sure. The children eagerly embraced anything he threw at them, excited by
the mere prospect of being trained by him. He looked after them as if they were his own
children and laughed with them as they goofed off after training. Their enthusiasm was
catching, after all.

Prompt: Pink Rose-Sympathy

Character: Libra Dohko

He could see it when he looked at the boy in front of him-the man was not evil. It was
exactly as his friend had said, there was no evil in the man, just violence and absolute
devotion. The man was as devoted to his god as he himself was devoted to his goddess.
How could he punish someone for being so loyal, for protecting someone so dear to him?
For being so saint-like, even though he wasn't a saint? It didn't seem right to do so, and yet
he knew he had no choice. The man was a threat to his goddess, and that would never
change. The man would not die alone, however. He would go, too, and their loyalty to their
respective deities would be remembered forever.
 Prompt: Purple Rose-Gratitude

Character: Capricorn El Cid

It was a situation he would have never expected himself to be in. For a gold saint to have to
depend on a bronze, instead of the other way around, it should have been a hit to his pride.
Yet it wasn't. Injured as he was, his body on the verge of collapse from the amount of blood
he had lost, he could not find it in himself to be ashamed to have the strong fighter at his
side. He knew he could not accomplish what he came to do-to free his friend from the
nightmare he was trapped in-without help. Not in his current state, anyway. He was
uncertain if the child had his own motives for entering the fight, nor did he care. For the
moment, they were united in a common f

. Not in his current state, anyway. He was uncertain if the child had his own motives for
entering the fight, nor did he care. For the moment, they were united in a common fight,
and he held only the deepest respect and gratitude towards the element that could tip the
battle in their favor.

Prompt: Black Rose-Death/New Beginnings

Character: Cancer Manigoldo

As a child, he didn't have respect for human life. To him, death was just a part of life, and
the dead were nothing more than trash that littered the streets and piled up like a mountain
of worthless filth, and one day, he himself would be added to that pile. How could he be
expected to think otherwise when he had to steal and even kill if he wanted to survive? And
then, he met a kind old man who would flip his entire way of thinking upside down. Under
the old man's guidance, he learned that humans could do more then simply exist and wait
to die, that they possessed amazing will and resilience and could overcome great obstacles.
His wonderfully patient and understanding mentor opened his eyes for him and he learned
that when a person let their light shine through, he or she could accomplish great things. His
former self died and a new, brilliant saint was born in his place.

Prompt: Green Rose-Tranquility

Character: Virgo Asmita

He was never one to lose his cool or jump to conclusions. The very epitome of calm, he had
the ability to both frustrate and amaze those around him with his never-failing serenity. He
trusted his own judgment more than he did anyone else's because he knew his blind eyes
saw the truth better than those who could see the lies of the world around them. Even
when he had doubts about his goddess and the type of people she had protecting her, he
did not seek the advice of others. Instead, he opted to investigate and find out first hand
what type of people they were. The results were satisfactory-not exactly impressive, but
enough that he felt comfortable enough to give up his life for his goddess's cause. With the
same tranquility he always possessed, he left behind one legacy to start another one in the
afterlife.
 Prompt: Silver Rose-Youth

Character: Leo Regulus

He was known as a prodigy among the gold saints. A genius with natural talent, the one with
the strongest attack and best battle strategies. Everyone knew his name and talked about
how great he was, how strong, how wonderful, to have been taken from his training as a
mere bronze saint and sent to work instead towards a gold cloth. He would be lying if he
said he didn't like the attention-it was only natural for him to love being in the spotlight-but
he wished his admirers could see he was more than just a strong fighter. He was the
youngest of the elite. He liked to play and goof around. He made mistakes-careless ones,
sometimes. He was no perfect being as those who spoke his name in hushed whispers
seemed to believe. He was a gold saint, and under that, he was a simple kid. Nothing more,
nothing less.