History Characters / Athena

* IntergenerationalRivalry: She's on the younger side of the ''KOF'' cast being a high schooler, so she often faces off against much older opponents like Terry, Ryo, the Ikari Warriors, and the various BigBad{{s}}. She has a sporting rivalry with characters like Terry, Andy, Kim, and Mai, as well as her own master Chin.

->''" Sorry about that! Are you hurt? I guess I got a bit carried away!"''

* ShesGotLegs: Her redesign in ''XII'' and ''XIII'' gave her a very prominent pair that her SailorFuku costume helps show off.

* AmbiguousSituation: The OverlyLongGag of Kensou being Athena's premiere DoggedNiceGuy has resulted in Athena perpetually refusing to answer Kensou's AnguishedDeclarationOfLove. Early on the gag worked out to Kensou being a LoonyFan and embarrassing Athena, but since ''XIII'' Kensou's feelings have been treated more sincerely, which calls their relationship into question. Other girls like Mai and Yuri have begun to notice Athena has yet to turn him down, and Luong even [[WhatTheHellHero calls her out on it]].
-->'''Luong (SNK Heroines):''' ''You know how Kensou feels about you, right? How long do you plan to make him wait? Don't you feel sorry for him?''

* OutOfFocus: Athena’s crush on Kyo stopped being mentioned after SNK’s first death circa 2001... which was the time when they made CD Dramas and related material, aka the works where Athena’s crush was born and given focus. Being reborn at the hands of other companies made SNK stop releasing those expanded universe materials, so this part of Athena’s character wouldn’t move on to be mentioned in the games proper. Their interactions in more modern titles replace this with a more platonic dynamic, often playing on Athena's friendship with both Kyo and Yuki.

* {{Shotoclone}}: Sort of. She has a fireball and {{Shoryuken}}, but lacks any kind of HurricaneKick equivalent.

-> Athena felt she had to answer such a devoted fan, she shows the letter to Chin, convincing him to follow his disciples and see how they take being popular and also being defenders of justice; Athena, Kensou, and Chin didn’t win that tournament but still did great nevertheless, at the end the team is surprised by the visit of a wheelchair-bound girl, she is [[IllGirl Kaoru Watanabe the ill-girl]] who sent that letter prior the tournament, Kaoru introduces herself and congratulates Athena is doing well again at KOF, she says the team gave her strength to also fight hard, Kaoru gets up from the wheelchair trying to show her progress by walking, she stumbles but before falling, Athena hurries to her side and supports Kaoru, with that Kaoru asks Athena if she could be their friend, Athena and the team gladly become friends with Kaoru.

[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:''KOF '98 Design (VideoGame/ValkyrieConnect Art)'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/athenavalkyrieconnect_copy.png[[/labelnote]]]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/athenavalkyrieconnect_copy.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Her design in ''[[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters98 KOF '98]]''\\
(Art from ''VideoGame/ValkyrieConnect'')]]

[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see her in ''Psycho Soldier'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/athenapsychosoldierart2.png[[/labelnote]]]]

[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see her in ''KOF XII'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/athena_kofxii_copy.png[[/labelnote]]]]

[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see her in ''KOV XIV and SNK Heroines'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/athenaheroine.png[[/labelnote]]]]

** ''[[UpToEleven Overkilled]]'' in ''XIII'' with her [[LimitBreak Neo MAX]] version of the above attack, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L74ieb2Q4VU Psycho Medley 13]], where she uses all ''twelve'' of her previous outfits and is then aided by what appears to be Princess Athena's royal guard.

* GirlyBruiser: Super girly looking but [[{{Determinator}} completely unafraid of fighting]]. Goddess Athena expresses this as a sword-wielding BadassPrincess, and Athena A. is a Kung Fu practitioner in a world full of martial artists.

* HealingHands: Rarely used, though. It's seen in ''[[VideoGame/AthenaAwakeningFromTheOrdinaryLife Athena: Awakening From the Ordinary Life]]'' [[spoiler:(heals her {{muggle|s}} friend Rika)]], in ''KOF:G'' (attempts to heal [[spoiler:Chizuru]] but is interrupted by [[spoiler:Goenitz]]), in the ''XII'' manhua (heals Kyo), as a Striker in '''99'' and ''2000'' (heals the playing character when called upon), or as an optional part of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Vw0S3MaKk0 her Psychic 10 Desperation Move]] (heals herself).

* ChainmailBikini: Somewhat {{justified|trope}}, as she unwillingly ended up in another world with nothing to defend herself; she's shown wearing a dress and [[FlungClothing losing it]] in the opening cutscene, so she's basically stuck in her underwear. She can gain more powerful and proper-looking suits of armor later on, however.

* ChainmailBikini: Somewhat {{justified|trope}}, as she unwillingly ended up in another world with nothing to defend herself; she's shown wearing a dress and [[RightOutOfMyClothes losing it]] in the opening cutscene, so she's basically stuck in her underwear. She can gain more powerful and proper-looking suits of armor later on, however.

* HotGoddess: She's noted in-universe to be very attractive, with several characters in ''SNK Vs. Capcom'' flirting with her.

!''Princess Athena''

->TheHero of the arcade title ''VideoGame/{{Athena}}''. Athena is the rebellious princess of the Kingdom of Victory, residing in the heavens. Bored with her uneventful day-to-day life in the castle, she yearns to go on exciting adventures. One day, she opens the "Door Which Shouldn't Be Opened]]" in the basement of Castle Victory, and is trapped in another realm called the "Fantasy World".\\

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_masao__7ef2536f11365f6784b57072b5715710_3.jpg]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/db94vb9_bcb08777_f8f4_4333_a24d_f040c9337e92.png]]
[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see her in ''Neo Geo Battle Coliseum'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/78d3a97580812affbae8615b1703d3ff_game_character_character_concept.jpg[[/labelnote]]]]
->'''Voiced by''':[[https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/people.php?id=56113 Mie Itou]](''Neo Geo Battle Coliseum'',''SVC Chaos''), [[https://snk.fandom.com/wiki/Haruna_Ikezawa Haruna Ikezawa]](''The King Of Fighters 2000'')

->TheHero of the arcade title, ''VideoGame/{{Athena}}''. Athena is the rebellious princess of the Kingdom of Victory, residing in the heavens. Bored with her uneventful day-to-day life in the castle, she yearns to go on exciting adventures. One day, she opens the '''''"[[PunctuatedForEmphasis Door Which Shouldn't Be Opened]]"''''' in the basement of Castle Victory, and is trapped in another realm called "Fantasy World".\\

* BadassPrincess: The princess of a celestial realm called the Kingdom of Victory. She then goes on to save her world on multiple occasions.

* TheBusCameBack: Her appearance in ''VideoGame/AthenaFullThrottle'' marks the end of a ''twenty'' year absence.
* ChainmailBikini: '''[[https://cdn.donmai.us/original/7e/f2/__princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_masao__7ef2536f11365f6784b57072b5715710.jpg Her trademark attire.]]''' Somewhat {{Justified}} as she unwillingly ended in another world with nothing to defend herself, so she really [[WalkingSwimsuitScene is just trapped running around]] in [[UnderwearOfPower her underwear]] at the beginning. She can gain [[https://cdn.thegamesdb.net/images/original/boxart/front/28913-1.jpg more powerful and proper-looking suits of armor later on, however]].
* DependingOnTheArtist: Details like her proportions and coloring have varied throughout her appearances. '''[[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/snk/images/d/df/Athena-retro.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/239?cb=20090227000004 She's a bit]]''' '''[[Main/ChubbyChaser pudgier]]''' in the original arcade title, while her newer appearances also give her long hair and slightly tanned skin.
* HotGoddess: Wearing '''[[https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/337/006/51b.jpg just a bikini]]''' while you fight [[Main/KickingAssInAllHerFinery makes you this]].
* MsFanservice[=/=]{{Impossible Hourglass Figure}}:Fighting monsters and demons '''[[https://cdn.donmai.us/sample/a2/05/sample-a2057d906447e3ec1c63f3269cd82235.jpg with just a red bikini]]''' is enough reason to get these tropes.
* RebelliousPrincess: What sets off the conflict in her debut game is her trying to escape her life as a princess to go on adventures.
* {{Stripperific}}:[[https://cdn.donmai.us/original/7e/f2/__princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_masao__7ef2536f11365f6784b57072b5715710.jpg Her outfit is essentially just a red bikini]] with some sandals.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: She can transform into a [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent mermaid]] or an angel to traverse different worlds.
* UnderwearOfPower: Athena's '''[[IconicOutfit default outfit]]''' '''[[https://cdn.donmai.us/original/7e/f2/__princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_masao__7ef2536f11365f6784b57072b5715710.jpg is a red bra and panties]]''' (''[[https://cdn.donmai.us/original/7e/f2/__princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_masao__7ef2536f11365f6784b57072b5715710.jpg it's possibly a bikini, but the arcade version shows she was wearing it under her dress.]]'') Subverted as ''[[Main/AllThereInTheScript this is her weakest outfit.]]''

* BareYourMidriff: Athena A.'s ''[='99=]'', ''2002'', and ''2003'' outfits evoke this. And then you have Goddess Athena adventuring in a red ''bikini''.

* CleavageWindow: Athena A.'s ''2003'' attire sports a heart-shaped one. And then Goddess Athena... leaves very little to the imagination in her bikini.

* GirlyBruiser: Super girly looking but [[{{Determinator}} completely unafraid of fighting]]. Goddess Athena expresses this as a sword-wielding BadassPrincess, and Athena A. is a Kung Fu practitioner in a world full of martial artists.

* TheBusCameBack: Her appearance in ''VideoGame/AthenaFullThrottle'' marks the end of a ''twenty'' year absence.

* TheBusCameBack: Her appearance in ''VideoGame/AthenaFullThrottle'' marks the end of a ''twenty'' year absence.
* ChainmailBikini: [[https://cdn.donmai.us/original/7e/f2/__princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_masao__7ef2536f11365f6784b57072b5715710.jpg Her trademark attire.]] Somewhat {{Justified}} as she unwillingly ended in another world with nothing to defend herself, so she really [[WalkingSwimsuitScene is just trapped running around]] in [[UnderwearOfPower her underwear]] at the beginning. She can gain [[https://cdn.thegamesdb.net/images/original/boxart/front/28913-1.jpg more powerful and proper-looking suits of armor later on, however]].

* DependingOnTheArtist: Details like her proportions and coloring have varied throughout her appearances. [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/snk/images/d/df/Athena-retro.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/239?cb=20090227000004 She's a bit]] [[Main/ChubbyChaser pudgier]] in the original arcade title, while her newer appearances also give her long hair and slightly tanned skin.

* HotGoddess: Wearing [[https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/337/006/51b.jpg just a bikini while you fight]] [[Main/KickingAssInAllHerFinery makes you this]].

* MsFanservice[=/=]{{Impossible Hourglass Figure}}: Fighting monsters and demons ''[[https://cdn.donmai.us/sample/a2/05/sample-a2057d906447e3ec1c63f3269cd82235.jpg with just a red bikini is enough reason to get these tropes.]]''
* {{Stripperific}}: [[https://cdn.donmai.us/original/7e/f2/__princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_masao__7ef2536f11365f6784b57072b5715710.jpg Her outfit is essentially just a red bikini]] with some sandals.

* UnderwearOfPower: Athena's [[IconicOutfit default outfit]] [[https://cdn.donmai.us/original/81/af/__princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_uno_makoto__81afd63d01ed02320b1996c0c8df473e.jpg is a red bra and panties]] (''[[https://cdn.donmai.us/original/7e/f2/__princess_athena_snk_and_1_more_drawn_by_masao__7ef2536f11365f6784b57072b5715710.jpg it's possibly a bikini, but the arcade version shows she was wearing it under her dress.]]'') Subverted as [[Main/AllThereInTheScript this is her weakest outfit.]]

->'''Voiced by''': Mie Itou, Haruna Ikezawa

->'''Voiced by''': Mie Itou

!Goddess Athena

[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see her in ''Athena'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/db94vb9_bcb08777_f8f4_4333_a24d_f040c9337e92.png[[/labelnote]]]]

* HotGoddess: Wearing [[https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/337/006/51b.jpg just a bikini while you fight]] makes you this.

* ActionGirl: Both were some of the few playable female characters with their own solo title in the Neo Geo era.

* DivergentCharacterEvolution: It happened when SNK started to use the Goddess Athena again in their merchandise in modern times; prior to that many people assumed Idol Singer Athena and Goddess Athena had the same personality, or even were the same person, which isn't entirely unfounded since the original Athena had little to no canon characterization all. Now both Athenas are polar opposites to each other:
** Goddess Athena: a [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy proud warrior amazon]] who isn't quite a nice person to boot; she's not evil, yeah, but openly belittles some of her foes for [[WhoDares daring]] to fight against a goddess. (Unless she's in merchanside that panders to a bigger demographic, like the mobile games; there, she's shown as more of a NiceGirl [[CompositeCharacter with traces of the Idol Singer Athena]] in her.)
** IdolSinger Athena: a nice MagicIdolSinger and ActionGirl with PsychicPowers, very charismatic, friendly, and is respectful to her opponents and never underestimates them.

* LegacyCharacter: They both share the name "Athena" and are the protagonists of their own games on the Neo Geo. Even their appearances are incredibly similar as they're both distant relatives.

* {{Mascot}}: An early one for SNK. Both of them were highly advertised protagonists from the UsefulNotes/NeoGeo lineup, and predate the likes of [[Characters/FatalFuryTerryBogard Terry Bogard]] and Kyo Kusanagi by several years. It was even believed that Athena A. had a grudge against Terry when he seemingly took the title from her. ''XIII'' demonstrates otherwise, as dialogue between the two shows that they have nothing but respect for each other.

* PluckyGirl: Always feisty, determined and cheerful.

->TheHero of the arcade title, ''VideoGame/{{Athena}}''. Athena is the rebellious princess of the Kingdom of Victory, residing in the heavens. Bored with her uneventful day-to-day life in the castle, she yearns to go on exciting adventures. One day, she opens the '''"[[PunctuatedForEmphasis Door Which Shouldn't Be Opened]]"''' in the basement of Castle Victory, and is trapped in another realm called "Fantasy World".\\

-> The star of ''VideoGame/PsychoSoldier'' and one of SNK’s [[{{Mascot}} mascots]] (a spot shared with Goddess Athena); Athena Asamiya is a [[ThePollyanna bright and cheerful young girl]] who was born with PsychicPowers, dubbed in-verse as Psycho Powers, [[LamarckWasRight for she is a descendant of Goddess Athena]] and possibly her {{Reincarnation}} due no other member of the Asamiya Family ever possessing special powers before Athena.

-> Athena’s trademark characteristic, that is being a Japanese IdolSinger, has its origin in ''’97''; Athena and Kensou’s charisma and notable prowess in martial arts has been earning them fans since ''’94'', but this rise in popularity made Chin become worried about his disciples losing their humble spirit and lose focus on being heroes, with that he tried to talk them off participating in the ''’97'' tournament, meanwhile Athena has received a letter from a fan, an ill-girl who wrote a heartwarming letter to the Psycho Soliders, saying they are her source of inspiration to overcome her illness, she hoped to see them again in action for the ''’97'' tournament.

-> Athena felt she had to answer such a devoted fan, she shows the letter to Chin, convincing him to follow his disciples and see how they take being popular and also being defenders of justice; Athena, Kensou and Chin didn’t win that tournament but still did great nevertheless, at the end the team is surprised by the visit of a wheelchair bound girl, she is [[IllGirl Kaoru Watanabe the ill-girl]] who sent that letter prior the tournament, Kaoru introduces herself and congratulates Athena in doing well again at KOF, she says the team gave her strength to also fight hard, Kaoru gets up from the wheelchair trying to show her progress by walking, she stumbles but before falling Athena hurries to her side and supports Kaoru, with that Kaoru asks Athena if she could be their friend, Athena and the team gladly become friends with Kaoru.

-> The other part of Athena’s character is being on the receiving end of Kensou’s long lasting romantic feelings, he tried to confess to Athena multiple times, sometimes succeeding in expressing himself (many) other times not, Athena’s reaction is mostly always the same, that is getting embarrassed and dodging an answer; [[IDontWantToRuinOurFriendship while what she really feels about Kensou may not be love]], she does think well of him as a great friend, always sticking with him.

-> In ''XIII'' during a conversation with the Women Fighters Team, upon seeing that Mai, Yuri and King all have a special someone in waiting, Athena hopes one day she will find her other half as well, Kensou immediately tries to say she already has him, Athena gets embarrassed and scolds Kensou, telling him not to say it in front of so many people.

* AmbiguousSituation: The OverlyLongGag of Kensou being Athena's premiere DoggedNiceGuy has resulted in Athena perpetually refusing to answer Kensou's AnguishedDeclarationOfLove. Early on the gag worked out to Kensou being a LoonyFan and embarrassing Athena, but since ''XIII'' Kensou's feelings have been treated more sincerely, which calls their relationship into question. Other girls like Mai and Yuri have begun to notice Athena has yet to actually turn him down, and Luong even [[WhatTheHellHero calls her out on it]].

** She's livid when she sees that a girl like Kula is participating in the tournament, given her young age, and is mad at K' and Maxima for thinking only of themselves. (...That said, she's expressed no objection to Bao, who is younger than Kula, participating and ignored the point when Kula brought it up, and later she personally recruited Momoko, a teenager with [[OlderThanTheyLook the physical appearance and emotional maturity of an elementary schooler]], and ''beat Kensou up'' for objecting).

'''Athena''': "Oh yeah, it happens all the time! Grandma always gets really angry with him though!\\

* DubPersonalityChange: Her English win quotes in early ''KOF'' are much more hostile and rude compared to the Japanese ones. This has largely been {{Subverted}} overtime as SNK's localization quality has improved

* TheEmpath: Canon isn't very clear ''how'' skilled she is at it, though. In ''XIII'' Athena can sense people's emotions (like in [[spoiler: Ash Crimson]]'s case) but there's no evidence about her being able to unlock their biggest secrets, whereas in ''KOF: KYO'' she could clearly see [[spoiler: Iori's memories of his DarkAndTroubledPast]] once her and [[spoiler: Iori]]'s clashed by accident.

* FamedInStory: Athena is extremely popular in the world of ''KOF'', not just for being a tournament fighter, but also an incredibly successful IdolSinger.

* ConspicuousGloves: Fingerless gloves are a staple of her outfits. No matter how much it changes, she always wear a pair.

* IDidWhatIHadToDo: In ''Sky Stage'', the Kula and Athena common ending say that [[spoiler: Athena lied to Kula and told her that her friends (K', Maxima, Whip, etc.) had been caught in the space-time rift to recruit her into their cause. When Kula is contacted by said friends (who have actually been searching ''for'' her all over), Athena explains everything and apologizes; Kula doesn't mind, however, as the adventure was fun and she's happy to have been able to fly, even if just temporarily.]]

** She is ''definitely'' aware of Kensou’s feelings towards her, evidenced by her embarrassment when Kensou blows a kiss in ''97'', when Kensou declares he is her knight in ''2000'', when Kensou flat out screams his love in ''2001''; Athena’s reaction is always to get fidgety and try to dodge the matter as quickly as possible.
** This is also the reason why she doesn't openly admit her feelings to Kyo; not only she's friends with him, but with his ''girlfriend''.

** She also has "Present Holiday," [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUhebGd5AD4 "Kizudarake no Blue Moon"]] ("Wounded Blue Moon"/"Banged-Up Blue Moon"; also carried over from ''Psycho Soldier''), and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmuwMKBrHt0 "My Love ~Yuuki wo Dashite~" ("My Love ~Gives Me Courage~").]]
* ImportantHaircut: According to the character stories for '''99'', Athena cut her hair short as her own way of acknowledging Kensou's unexplained DePower.

*** In another Story Mode scene, and she also refuses to let Kula explain how come K' and Maxima allow her to fight in their pre-match talk.
* InstantCostumeChange: It would be unwise to turn her costume changes into a drinking game, because nearly every game she's ever been in feature it. Hell, Athena has found a way to ''weaponize'' it -- she uses it as an instant segue between attacks, creating her Psycho Medley super. As a matter of fact, she may have given this trait to her Goddess Athena incarnation, who started doing it after the Psycho Soldier started.

-->'''Terry''': "I know how to please the crowd pretty good, but you've got me totally beat in that category!"\\

* IntergenerationalRivalry: She's on the younger side of the ''KOF'' cast being a high schooler, so she often faces off against much older opponents like Terry, Ryo, the Ikari Warriors, and the various BigBad{{s}}. She has a sporting rivalry with characters like Terry, Andy, Kim, Mai, as well as her own master Chin.

* {{Keigo}}: Her "Athena, ikimasu!" CatchPhrase is actually this. She's a rather polite speaker by Japanese standards, but almost never goes to this extreme.
* TheKnightsWhoSaySquee: She really admires King, and even wishes she could be on Team Women's Fighter someday. She eventually gets her wish in ''XV'', but not in a way she expected (Mai and Yuri roped her into teaming up with them when King, having been asked by Ryo to join the Art of Fighting team beforehand, couldn't round out the team).

** Averted up until ''XII'' (except for ''2003''). Athena typically wore loose-fitting clothes but it wasn't hiding anything indecent (even in her school uniform during ''XI'', Athena still wore bike shorts under her skirt and SNK had no problem with it fluttering about as she fought). However, following her redesign in ''XII'' (and by extension, ''XIII'' for using the same sprite pool), it's played straight (and Athena definitely has some ''high'' kicks that would normally cause some looky-loos to occur).

* MistakenForRomance: In the Special Intro Athena has with Love Heart, she seems to think Athena and Kensou are quite close to each other thus asking if they are a couple, Athena says that it isn't like that, they are just good friends, while being slightly embarrassed; Love Heart finds Kensou similar to Earth, reversing the blushing and embarrassment to herself when Athena asks if Love Heart has someone she likes.
* ModestyShorts: Her solution to wearing a school uniform skirt in ''XI''. Likewise in ''XIV'' she wears gym shorts, similar to [[VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha Sakura Kasugano]].

* RelationshipUpgrade: She starts dating Kensou in the ''Maximum Impact 2'' continuity. For a variety of reasons[[note]]Not only is it practically forbidden for idols to be in a relationship, but her management [[WhatDoesSheSeeInHim can't grasp why she'd go out with someone like him]] and thinks he alone would ruin her image.[[/note]], she's forced to keep it a secret from the public. Since this isn't canon to the main timeline, not to mention that it's only brought up [[AllThereInTheManual in her character bio]], nothing really comes of it.

** At first only in her intro animations, for fear of making her too risqué; fully embraced by ''XI''.

* {{Shoryuken}}: Her "Psycho Sword", creating a long stretch of sparkly energy as she leaps up.

* SpiritedCompetitor: This girls ''loves'' a good fight. She's always encouraging herself and her opponents to give it their all, and hates it when people underestimate or try to dissuade her from fighting.
* SpotlightStealingSquad: Athena is a ''KOF'' regular by popular demand, but SNK has acknowledged that she's had the inadvertent effect of stealing the show from her own teammates. Kensou's redesign in ''XII'' and ''XIII'' was meant to help him stand out more, in fact.
* SupremeChef: Implied to be one in the ''KOF:KYO'' manga. She's first seen making fried rice for Kensou, who likes it; in the last manga volume she makes dinner for him, Yuki, and Kyo, and the three find the dish she made for them [[note]]a Chinese traditional one involving autumn mushrooms, probably [[http://cookingsimplechinesefoodathome.com/2011/10/80chinese-mushroom-recipe-stir-fry.html this one]] [[/note]] to be ''very'' good.

''[[folder:Tropes for both of them]]''

* BadassAdorable: A teenaged goddess with a very hyper-stylized, cutesy art-style, and a cheery teenaged IdolSinger with psychic powers. Both have saved the world in their respective home series multiple times.

* OlderThanTheyLook: At age 18, Athena A. looks ''younger'' than the 14-year-old Kula in ''XII'' and ''XIII''. Hilariously, Athena gets '''pissed''' when she sees Kula fighting out there... [[ComicallyMissingThePoint and Kula doesn't even seem to get why]]. And then you have Goddess Athena who... well you can tell by the title.

''[[folder:Goddess Athena]]''

* GirlyBruiser: Super girly looking but [[Determinator completely unafraid of fighting]]. Goddess Athena expresses this as a sword-wielding BadassPrincess, and Athena A. is a Kung Fu practitioner in a world full of martial artists.

''[[folder: Athena Asamiya]]''

* {{Hypocrite}}: As point out above, she get's angered at the sight of 14-year-old Kula participating in the KOF tournament, but Kula is quick to point out that she allowed Bao, who's even younger, to participate.

* IWillOnlySlowYouDown: On the Special Ending for 99 Athena’s leg gets stuck on fallen debris, when the Team was escaping a crumbling NESTS base; Athena and Kensou were lagging behind so only he noticed, Athena tells him to go on without her, to save himself, Kensou gets desperate and awakens his Dragon Spirit, saving Athena and himself.

* MagicalGirl: She heavily evokes this; she's a high-schooler with powerful supernatural abilities, battles dark forces, emits a sparkly BattleAura with all of her attacks, and even transforms from wearing a school uniform into her battle outfit in her intro. It's really not that big of a stretch to say that Athena could have her own anime.

** Averted up until ''XII'' (except for ''2003''). Athena typically wore loose fitting clothes but it wasn't hiding anything indecent (even in her school uniform during ''XI'', Athena still wore bike shorts under her skirt and SNK had no problem with it fluttering about as she fought). However, following her redesign in ''XII'' (and by extension, ''XIII'' for using the same sprite pool), it's played straight (and Athena definitely has some ''high'' kicks that would normally cause some looky-loos to occur).

* OutOfFocus: Athena’s crush on Kyo stopped being mentioned after SNK’s first death circa 2001... which was the time where they made CD Dramas and related material, aka the works where Athena’s crush was born and given focus. Being reborn at the hands of other companies made SNK stop releasing those expanded universe materials, so this part of Athena’s character wouldn’t move on to be mentioned in the games proper. Their interactions in more modern titles replace this with a more platonic dynamic, often playing on Athena's friendship with both Kyo and Yuki.

* PsychicPowers: Which include PsychicTeleportation, {{telepathy}}, energy projection, psychic barriers, and much more.

* {{Reincarnation}}: Of the [[PhysicalGod Goddess Athena]]. It's the reason that Athena is the only person in her family to have PsychicPowers.

* SpiderSense: As seen in ''Another Day'' and [[http://mangafox.me/manga/king_of_fighters/v01/c002/75.html in]] ''[[http://mangafox.me/manga/king_of_fighters/v01/c002/76.html KOF: KYO,]]'' where she senses [[spoiler:Orochi]]'s aura in the air and this allows her, Benimaru and Kensou to find [[spoiler:Iori and a Kyo who is about to go BrainwashedAndCrazy.]]

* SupremeChef: Implied to be one in the ''KOF:KYO'' manga. She's first seen making fried rice for Kensou, who really likes it; the last manga volume she makes dinner for him, Yuki and Kyo, and the three find the dish she made for them [[note]]a Chinese traditional one involving autumn mushrooms, probably [[http://cookingsimplechinesefoodathome.com/2011/10/80chinese-mushroom-recipe-stir-fry.html this one]] [[/note]] to be ''very'' good.
* WouldntHurtAChild: She's very uncomfortable fighting Kula, a 14-year old girl, even wondering [[WhatTheHellHero just why K' and Maxima]] would let her [[HarmfulToMinors fight in tournaments]] in the first place.

[[folder:Tropes for both of them]]

[[folder:Goddess Athena]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/princess_athena_copy.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:From ''Neo Geo Battle Coliseum'']]

[[quoteright:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see her in ''Athena'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/princess_athena_retro_1.png[[/labelnote]]]]

* ChainmailBikini: Her default outfit. Somewhat {{Justified}} as she unwillingly ended in another world with nothing to defend herself, so she really is just trapped running around in her underwear at the beginning. She can gain more powerful and proper-looking suits of armor later on however.

* DependingOnTheArtist: Details like her proportions and coloring have varied throughout her appearances. She's a bit pudgier in the original arcade title, while her newer appearances also give her longer hair and slightly tanner skin.
* GirlyBruiser: Super girly looking but completely unafraid of fighting. Goddess Athena expresses this as a sword-wielding BadassPrincess, and Athena A. is a Kung Fu practitioner in a world full of martial artists.
* HotGoddess: Wearing just a bikini while you fight makes you this.

* {{Stripperific}}: Her outfit is essentially just a red bikini with some sandals.

[[folder:Athena Asamiya]]

->''"Sorry about that! Are you hurt? I guess I got a bit carried away!"''

-> The star of ''VideoGame/PsychoSoldier'' and one of SNK’s [[{{Mascot}} mascots]] (a spot shared with Goddess Athena); Athena Asamiya is a bright and cheerful young girl who was born with PsychicPowers, dubbed in-verse as Psycho Powers, [[LamarckWasRight for she is a descendant of Goddess Athena]] and possibly her {{Reincarnation}} due no other member of the Asamiya Family ever possessing special powers before Athena.

-> In the CD Dramas from ’96 to ’99, it is shown that Athena [[AllLoveIsUnrequited has one-sided feelings for Kyo]] goes to great lengths to move to a place near the Kusanagi household. In other SNK media, Athena’s feelings for Kyo have never been shown, not even hinted in the games proper, raising a case towards its actual place in canon.

* AllLovingHero: Especially in newer titles where her NiceGirl tendencies are played up more. The worst she ever really shows to anyone is pity, like towards Iori and Saiki, or justified anger, like towards Maxima who she thinks is storing photos of her. Her empathic abilities allow her to see the root of people's struggles, which lets her better sympathize with them and allow her to try and help them.

* AttackReflector: Her Psycho Reflector, which has two variations.

* BreakTheFourthWall: One of her win quote in the original Japanese release of '94 has her mention Creator/{{SNK}} by name.

** The plot of ''KOF: G'' wasn't exactly kind to her either. Specially in the last volume, where poor Athena suffers a ''severe'' HeroicBSOD [[spoiler:when Chizuru is beaten to almost death by Goenitz and shortly afterwards Kensou [[TakingTheBullet takes one of Goenitz's attacks for her.]] When Kyo and Ralf save her [[PluckyGirl Athena]] [[HesBack brings herself back]], [[ThePromise promises Chizuru]] to fight in her stead, and does so.]]

** Athena being a good cook and Kensou loving her meals is finally referenced in the games proper; in XIV Athena mistakes Kensou’s self-encouragement to confess his feelings to him being worked over her eating his meat bun earlier that day, she then promises to cook a full serving of meat buns just for Kensou to make up, this makes Kensou so happy he completely forgets about confessing.
* TheCameo: She appears in the background of KOF Stadium in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' and has a spirit battle based on her; in particular her fight is based on her ''Psycho Soldier'' appearance.

* CrystalBall: During her Shining Crystal Bit attack, she's surrounded by [[OrbitingParticleShield 2 circling crystal balls]] that guard her from enemy attacks. She can also add a followup by firing said balls forward.
* CurtainsMatchTheWindow: Her eyes and her hair are both purple.

* DistractedByTheSexy: In-universe, she's the only character who does distract people. Ironically, she's one of the most clothed characters in the cast.

* TheEmpath: Canon isn't very clear ''how'' skilled she is at it, though. In ''XIII'' Athena can sense people's emotions (like in [[spoiler:Ash Crimson]]'s case) but there's no evidence about her being able to unlock their biggest secrets, whereas in ''KOF: KYO'' she could clearly see [[spoiler:Iori's memories of his DarkAndTroubledPast]] once her and [[spoiler:Iori]]'s clashed by accident.

* HiddenDepths: According to her bio, she enjoys designing web pages, astrology, and fortune telling.
* {{Hypocrite}}: As point out above, she get's angered at the sight of 14-year old Kula participating in the KOF tournament, but Kula is quick to point out that she allowed Bao, who's even younger, to participate.

* IDidWhatIHadToDo: In ''Sky Stage'', the Kula and Athena common ending says that [[spoiler:Athena lied to Kula and told her that her friends (K', Maxima, Whip, etc.) had been caught in the space-time rift to recruit her into their cause. When Kula is contacted by said friends (who have actually been searching ''for'' her all over), Athena explains everything and apologizes; Kula doesn't mind, however, as the adventure was fun and she's happy to have been able to fly, even if just temporarily.]]

* RapunzelHair: Some iterations of her design have her reaching all the way down to her waist.

* CallBack: Athena being a good cook and Kensou loving her meals is finally referenced in the games proper; in XIV Athena mistakes Kensou’s self-encouragement to confess his feelings to him being worked over her eating his meat bun earlier that day, she then promises to cook a full serving of meat buns just for Kensou to make up, this makes Kensou so happy he completely forgets about confessing.

* DependingOnTheArtist: Details like her proportions and coloring have varied throughout her appearances. She's a it pudgier in the original arcade title, while her newer appearances also give her longer hair and slightly tanner skin.

* RelationshipUpgrade: She starts dating Kensou in the ''Maximum Impact 2'' continuity. For a variety of reasons[[note]]Not only is it practically forbidden for idols to be in a relationship, but her management
[[WhatDoesSheSeeInHim can't grasp why she'd go out with someone like him]] and fear he'd damage her image further.[[/note]], she's forced to keep it a secret from the public. Of course this isn't canon to the main timeline, so nothing really comes of it.

* RelationshipUpgrade: She starts dating Kensou in the ''Maximum Impact 2'' continuity. For a variety of reasons, she's forced to keep it a secret from the public. Of course this isn't canon to the main timeline, so nothing really comes of it.