Hey guys, Perky-Thief here, and I'm back from a long (and slightly writers block full) hiatus. I thought I'd put a twist on some things and jump away from anime into something a little more classical.

This is my modern re-telling of the Hades and Persephone myth. The characters are all the same, but the personalities have changed ever so slightly to my liking. I hope you enjoy this story as much as I do. Enjoy!!

!!!Disclaimer!!! I do not own any aspects of this myth.

Hades & Persephone: The Truth of the Pomegranate

The truth is seldom the way it is told. There are, after all, images to uphold, viewpoints to consider, not to mention determining what sounds best. Often the truth concocted is more palatable, but nonetheless false.

Not that the bards can be blamed. Sometimes the truth is too strange to be believed. After all, how could it be that a maiden goddess of the springtime could ever fall in love with her antithesis, the king of death?

But this is exactly what transpired…

Some say it was Cupid's arrow, some say that it was the god's own free will that he came to find Demeter's slim-ankled daughter as the object of his desire. Free will would not be too far-fetched, considering the child's youth and beauty. Others say that Aphrodite, wishing to conquer the last of the three brother gods (having thoroughly conquered Zeus for the cause of lust, and Poseidon as well), sons of Kronos, bid her son to loose a shaft into Hades black heart. Others swear it was the plot of Zeus's, that the "father of gods and men" wished for his brother to take a wife as is proper. But all agree that the god of death swept the screaming girl into his chariot, which plunged into the earth, bearing her to the House of Hades to be his unwilling bride.

But of course Persephone was not the first girl with a forbidden lover, and she let her mother think whatever she wished. But now I am getting ahead of myself. Let us begin at the beginning.

Even Hades himself cannot recall what exactly his business was that day, though it most likely had to do with the giant Typhoeus, who, imprisoned beneath Sicily, shook the earth so much that the dark god feared it would collapse inward upon his dark domain. Hades could not let this happen. Not only would it bring destruction to parts of his realm, he could not allow sunlight to enter Tartarus, much less afford the shades any opportunity to escape.

Hades squinted against the bright sunlight of the beautiful day. He was not used to this in the slightest. The weather was warm; it was late spring and the earth was in full bloom: Demeter's handiwork. He pulled his cowl low to shade his eyes. Robed entirely in the black, the sunlight warmed him overmuch; Hades was used to the cool shadows beneath the earth. He longed to return there, to brood on his throne, alone. But he could not return until he had made sure there were no weak points where the earth buckled, until he made sure that his realm was perfectly safe. He urged his chariot on. The black hell-horses snorted, steam puffing from their flared nostrils, their eyes burning red. They did not enjoy this place either. They galloped on.

Not far away, in a grove by a pond, Persephone was playing. She was not so young a girl as one would think, but still a maiden. Like Artemis, she was forever on the verge between girlhood and womanhood. She looked like a girl of sixteen, her hair golden and shining like her mother's wheat, unbound in the manner of young girls. Her skin was rosy and pink, flushed with delight. She wore a gown of the palest blue. Persephone has woven flowers into her hair, and she danced and twirled, her bare feet twisting in the fresh green grass. Birds sang for her, and the animals in the grove stopped their activities and watched her, spellbound. Such was the innocent beauty of the daughter of Demeter. Such was the beauty that stole Hades' heart.

It was by chance that his chariot galloped into that grove. The dark God pulled his horses to a stop. They stood poised, snorting steam, eyes flashing dangerously. They were unnatural animals and were not moved by the child's display. But Hades was. He stopped, hands weakening on the reins as his heart beat faster, his mouth open in wonder. She was more beautiful than the Nymphs and the Oceanids combined. So fresh and full of life was she that this dark god of the realm of the dead was moved to love her. Yes, love, not the lecherous lust that is often told of, but tender love, protective love. He wished to taste of her sweetness, to preserve it in her.

Persephone whirled giddily, giggling, unaware of the intrusion into her private grove. She caught the sound of impatient hoof-clamping and turned. At first she was frightened to see him, her dark uncle, the brother of Zeus, her father, but his countenance was not fearful to behold. He had a dark and quiet beauty, and did not look as old as Zeus, though Zeus was the younger. He was not a young man for sure, and his forehead was deeply lined, but his body was as slender and powerful as any youth's, his face bearing no beard. His skin was deathly pale, his eyes shadowy and of endless depth, his hair darker than the darkest shadows of the night. But he was not a gruesome ghoul, no skull-headed reaper. He was everything she was not, and this fascinated Persephone. She stepped closer, heedless of the hell-horses. Hades whispered a command to them, and they became stock-still and closed their fearsome eyes. He stepped down off his chariot and approached the girl.

Next Chapter up in a few days so sit tight!!

luv, Perky :)