Persephone and Hades: Limited Omniscient Perspective
Draped in cloaks and an ivory crown, Hades perched on his throne. The bones of the arm rests rattled beneath his godly weight, as they were weary from a millennium of usage. The god sighed and leaned back as he took in his vast kingdom. The Underworld was perfectly indecisive, with one part beautiful and sunny, and another violent and ragged. The castle was situated in the centre of it all, so both the screams of agony from Tartarus and the cheery laughter from Elysium were clear.
Hades had ruled over this place for thousands of years. Somehow, he had gotten stuck with the dreary and secluded underworld, while his brothers, Zeus and Poseidon, ruled the sky and the sea.
"It isn't fair" the god grumbled to a nearby Fury "I'm the oldest and most responsible sibling, yet I'm doomed to endlessly babysit the dead."
The Fury simply sighed, not bothering to sympathize with her king. Every monster in the Underworld had heard this story before. They were all smart enough not to interrupt or argue.
Hades shook his head at the monster's judgement. They all assumed that he was simply ungrateful, but none of them knew the real reason behind his complaints.
Hades was lonely.
He was condemned to spend eternity with nobody but monsters and body-less souls, while his siblings were worshipped like royalty. They were blessed with festivals and temples, and had songs and plays written in their honour. Then again, Hades didn't care about any of that.
"All I really want" the god thought to himself, leaning on an elbow and staring at the boisterous parties in Elysium "is a friend."
However, the King of the Dead's luck was about to change. His immortal life was about to be greatly altered by a certain runaway goddess, who was tired of her mother's somewhat oppressive parenting style.
It was nearly a week later, and Hades had just been rudely awakened by Tisiphone (one of the three Furies, and one of his messengers).
"What's the ma- "the sentence was interrupted by a yawn "-atter now, Tisiphone?"
Hades, like most people, generally didn't enjoy being woken up at half past three, especially since he was now trying to hide a sparkly stuffed Hydra under his pillow.
If the Fury noticed the toy, she didn't say anything. Instead, she lunged at the god, bearing her fangs and flapping her enormous wings. Hades let out a small squeal, before quickly covering it with a cough. He'd never get used to working with the most three most terrifying goddesses in the heavens. Tisiphone began to dig her claws into the god's cloak and torso, lifting him slowly off the bed. The pair began floating toward the open window.
"Come." The goddess hissed "There's a problem with the boat."
Hades willed himself not to look down at the kingdom below. "Why can't we ever just take a nice stroll?" He internally moaned.
As the two grew closer to the entrance of the Underworld (the mouth of the River Styx), the issue became more prevalent. There was a buildup of deceased souls crowding around the transport system (a small, wooden boat). They were waving their wispy, translucent arms, and yelling at Charon (the Ferryman of the boat). Some had even resorted to physical violence, despite their actions being useless. Souls were simply shells of their former selves, with no body or ability to touch anything.
Hades knew what the issue was as soon as he and Tisiphone landed by the crowd. He'd dealt with this instance multiple times before. To cross the River Styx into the Underworld, souls were required to give Charon a golden drachma. Most people in Greece were buried with a drachma under their tongue, but sometimes the poor and those who died by accident were unable to enter. This often-caused riots, making Charon's job very difficult.
But as he listened to the souls shouting, Hades realized that there was a much bigger problem on Earth. His eyes widened as the dead described a massive forest fire raging all around Athens. It had apparently destroyed a number of small towns. A lump grew in the god's chest as he realized that the crowd of souls was growing bigger every minute.
"Somebody has to do something" Hades reasoned with Tisiphone "Guard Charon. I'll be right back."
After a nod from the Fury, and the God of the Dead was off to fix yet another problem that could easily be avoided if his siblings would bother to do their jobs.
An hour later, Hades was flying (in the form of a screech owl, one of his sacred animals) above the blazing inferno that was threatening to engulf Athens and Thebes. The sky was flooded with smoke, and the ground was charred black. He watched woefully as the wood nymphs and naiads desperately tried to escape their burning homes. "You know, I really wish I had a sibling who could control water." Hades thought spitefully "Oh, wait. I forgot. He's lazy."
Landing on a rare still-intact tree branch (he was immortal, therefore fireproof), Hades summoned Boreas, Eurus, Notus, and Zephyrus (the gods of the four winds). They were only minor gods, so he figured that they'd love a chance to help the humans.
Almost immediately, four mini-tornados formed next to him.
"What?"
"Huh?"
"….sup?"
"Ugh."
Every other sound in the forest was muffled by the fire and wind, but the four voices were clear as day. It was almost as if the words were coming from everywhere, not just one location.
"I need you to direct this fire toward the ocean, away from anymore villages. Too many souls are trying to enter my kingdom. It's causing a buildup, and poor Charon is getting tired."
The four mini-tornados paused, as if contemplating the request.
"Should we help, guys?" Zephyr was the first to ask.
"I don't know. I'm trying to decide weather or not it's a good idea." Boreas answered, cheekily.
Notus let out a laugh. "C'mon guys, it'll be a breeze!"
"Yeah, we don't want to annoy the King of the Dead. He's probably full of… hot air!"
After Eurus' remark, it took a solid minute for the gods to calm down.
Hades rolled his eyes. Now he understood why nobody worshipped these four. "So, you'll help?"
Without answering, the four tornados began to merge, creating one big gust of wind. The gods were no longer visible, the fire was now quite obviously being pushed toward the Aegean Sea.
The god probably could have headed back into his kingdom now that the fire was being fixed, but something inside him begged to stay. There was something satisfying about watching the path of destruction slowly disappear. The nymphs and naiads who survived had already begun to heal their plants and homes, restoring the forest to its authentic green. The natural beauty was being brought back, and Hades (the "gloomy god of the dead") couldn't help getting lost in it.
That is, until he was rudely interrupted by an ear-shattering shriek filling the air.
"Persephone, darling, where are you? Mommy baked cupcakes! They even have flowers on top!"
The message itself sounded friendly and non-threatening, but way it was bellowed could make any creature quake with fear. It was a voice that Hades was all too familiar with, since it was one that belonged to his sister, Demeter.
It had been years since Hades had interacted with Demeter, but the latest gossip among the dead was that she had a daughter (he assumed that was Persephone) and was infamously quite the helicopter parent. Rumor had it that her daughter was grown up, but she didn't allow her to move out or get married. Hades couldn't help but feel for the girl. He knew what it was like to feel isolated.
Sadly, it was time to go back to that isolation. But just as the god began to fly, a new problem presented itself. The ground had begun to tremble, gradually increasing in intensity until newly-healed trees were shaking and rocks were loosened from the ground. Hades flapped his feathery wings, rising up until much of the forest was visible. From here, the cause of this anomaly was obvious. He stopped to gaze in wonder as a pack of one-hundred or so centaurs galloped majestically through the wildlife. They were winding between trees and hills, seemingly following a specific path.
Or rather, chasing a specific person.
Curious, Hades grew closer. "What kind of person could have infuriated a group of centaurs this badly?" He swooped toward the ground, dodging trees and rocks as he zipped forward. The centaurs were causing quite a racket, yelling jeers and insults as they raced on. Rocks and spears were flying through the air, threatening to injure or kill the target.
Hades almost fell out of the sky when he saw the victim. It was a young female, about twenty years old (in human years). Her face was bright red, and her chest was heaving. She was barefoot and sprinting, as long, dark hair flowed behind her. He fearfully watched as the poor girl tripped on her green chiton and tumbled to the ground.
Hades sighed at his immediate instinct to help the girl. "She's a stranger, why should he save her from her own mess?" The god reasoned with himself. But on the other hand, he didn't need this on his conscience for eternity.
His good side won, of course. Using one of his few "King of the Underworld" benefits, Hades opened Hades opened a passageway into his kingdom directly below the girl. The land beneath her began to crumble as dirty fell through the earth. Fear flashed in her eyes as she fell, screaming all the way down. Thankfully, the Underworld was well-guarded, so it was more than likely that a monster of sorts would catch her before she hit the ground.
Hades watched the confused centaurs for a second, before jumping in after the girl. He's headed home anyway, might as well take the short cut.
"You did WHAT?"
The King of the Underworld stared at the woman sitting across from him. They were sitting the castle's dining room (he liked to treat his living guests nicely) sharing a pot of tea, when the girl told him two very important pieces of information. The first being that she was Persephone, daughter of his sister. The second however, was much, much, worse.
"What do you mean, you started that forest fire? Was it an accident?"
Persephone fidgeted in her seat, looking unnerved by his accusatory tone. She took a long sip of tea before answering.
"No! I mean, yes, it was a mistake, but certainly not an accident."
Hades slammed his tea down. "May I ask what inspired you to do something as stupid as that?" He questioned, voice full of judgement.
Persephone winced. "I just… wanted a bit of alone time." She sighed "My mother hasn't left me alone for, well, a thousand years. The fire was a distraction. However, those centaurs were quite angry when I accidently destroyed their forest."
"A thousand years, you say?"
The goddess's eyes widened. "Yes! I have no friends or acquaintances. She thinks that if I go out on my own I'll get lost or hurt." She looked down in guilt. "I suppose I just proved her point, didn't I? You know, almost getting trampled by centaurs and all. I'll never hear the end of it when I go back home."
Hades may not be the luckiest god, but ever since he got stuck in the Underworld he'd become a lot smarter about asking for what he wants.
"What if you didn't have to? Go home, I mean."
Persephone perked up at the offer, but immediately slumped into her seat. "I'd love to stay, but my mother will go on a rampage if she doesn't find me. She would probably destroy Olympus if she had to."
"How bad could she be?" The king shrugged.
Later, in Olympus.
"Where. Is. My. DAUGHTER."
Zeus whimpered in response as his sister tightened the grip around his neck.
"Demeter, it's been nearly four months of you threatening us. If we knew where she was, we'd have told you." Poseidon stepped in between the fighting siblings and pulled his sister's arm away. Zeus sunk to the ground, coughing.
"And for the love of gods, stop threatening Zeus. You know how he gets when his authority is questioned. Next thing you know he'll have yet another mortal wife and Hera will be going berserk again."
Zeus sputtered in agreement.
Demeter turned to face the other twelve Olympians. "We have checked every single corner of this planet, and my dearest Persephone is still missing. Who can explain that?" The seething goddess practically spat her words, but her question was met with silence.
That is, until Athena spoke up.
"Has anyone searched the Underworld yet?" The gods and goddesses looked down, suddenly feeling very stupid.
The grey-eyed woman smirked. "You see, guys, this is why I'm the goddess of wisdom."
Hades watched in amusement as two of Cerberus's heads fought over the ball. He was meant to be the guard dog of the Underworld, but Persephone had gotten bored one day and turned a terrifying, three headed monster into an adorable house pet who can sit, beg, and shake a paw.
The goddess sat beside him, giggling at the dog's antics. Hades always marvelled at her ability to find joy in anything, whether it was a particularly pretty flower or a funny story. Though, she'd only been in the Underworld for four months. The gloom of the place hadn't affected her demeanor yet.
Hades hadn't spent a single day feeling and depressed lonely since Persephone arrived. Each day for her was another adventure, and another story for her to tell him over dinnertime. Even now, as they watched Cerberus play with the dead she was rambling on about an interesting soul she met earlier.
Both deities thrived in their current arrangement. Hades had a companion, and Persephone had her freedom. However, the King of the Dead knew that this wouldn't last for long. He'd been hearing news about the earth being barren and cold, instead of bountiful and alive. Normally, this wouldn't bother him in the least, but it was Demeter's job to take care of the human's agriculture. She had basically put the humans on an involuntary hunger strike while she searched for her daughter.
After months of human suffering, the gods would have a fit when they found Persephone was in Hades' kingdom. He couldn't even think about the dire consequences that would follow.
All he could do at this point was wait.
"WHERE IS MY DAUGHTER, YOU EVIL, HEINOUS, ABOMINABLE GORGON!"
Hades and Persephone locked eyes in fear. They were eating their dinners when the thunderous, terrifying voice of Demeter rang through the castle. Both of them understand what was about to happen.
The interruption was followed by a thunderous bang. Hades turned around to see the intimidating figure of his sister and two brothers standing in the doorway. Demeter's eyes were glowing red and her chest was heaving. She looked like the Erymanthian boar getting ready to strike an unwitting victim.
Thankfully, both Zeus and Poseidon noticed this as well. They were each holding an arm, lifting her slightly off the ground to prevent her from maiming her brother.
"We, um, just want to talk." Poseidon explained, ignoring his sister, who was shouting explicit jeers and insults at Hades.
Persephone shakily pulled out three chairs, gesturing at them to sit down.
"And that was when she decided to stay here, you know, just to feel a little independent."
Hades finished up his story, almost afraid to see his sibling's reactions. He nervously looked up, preparing himself to see his sister's angry, accusatory face.
But instead, he was met with an expression of sadness.
Demeter turned to face her daughter. "Persephone, darling, is that how you really feel? You'd honestly rather set a forest on fire than spend time with your mother?"
She looked so hurt that the god almost felt guilty for telling truth. It was amazing how she could go from fury to desolation just a few minutes.
Persephone's eyes darted back and forth between Hades and her mother, before breaking eye-contact completely. "Yes! I'm so sorry, mother. I never meant to hurt you. I'll come back home if you want me to, I promise!"
Demeter, for once, looked hesitant. "Well, maybe we can figure something out. A compromise, perhaps?"
Zeus, who had been quiet the entire time, spoke up. "What about six months in the Underworld, and six months on the earth? That is, only if Demeter promises to stop torturing the humans while Persephone isn't around."
Demeter, Persephone, and Hades stared at each other.
"I agree."
"I agree."
"I… agree."
So, in the end, all three of the deities ended up content. Hades got a friend to keep him company (as well as a newly-trained three-headed house pet), Demeter got her daughter back, and Persephone got her freedom, a new kingdom to explore, and a healthy relationship with her mother. They all truly lived happily ever after.
The end.
By Rachel Davis