Midnight Approaches
[sequel to Summer Has Begun]
©earthshaker528
Demeter clutches her daughter close, tears pouring down her cheeks. A few feet behind her, Zeus stands with his hands clasped behind his back, and Hermes, nearly a foot shorter than his father, scratches his hair underneath his winged cap. Persephone seems slightly uncomfortable, but allows her mother to weave her long arms around her and pats Demeter's back, soothing the distraught goddess. After several moments, she shifts uncomfortably and clears her throat.
"Ah, Mother," Persephone murmurs, pulling back as far as Demeter's hands on her shoulders will allow her to. "Midnight approaches."
The harvest-goddess lets out a wail and embraces her daughter again, holding the embodiment of springtime as close as she can. Hermes leaves his father's side, winged sandals fluttering, and approaches the embracing pair, reaching out to take Persephone's hand. Demeter struggles against the younger god's hold, but is eventually forced to surrender her precious daughter to the messenger.
"Good-bye, Mother," Persephone says, leaning away from Hermes to kiss both of Demeter's cheeks. Tears course down the elder goddess's face as she smoothes her daughter's hair and clutches her hands one final time. She maintains her hold on Persephone until Hermes rises too far into the air for her to reach, whereupon she looses her grip reluctantly.
Zeus and Demeter stand at opposite ends of the tiny meadow and watch their daughter rise higher and higher into the air, her arms wrapped tightly around her half-brother. The two disappear from view quickly, and as soon as Persephone disappears, Demeter leaves her brother's side – she has never truly forgiven him for giving their daughter up to Hades.
Hermes never ceases to be amazed by the way Persephone glows underground. He zips through the entrance to the Underworld, carrying his favorite sibling over slopes of stone steps, over the River Acheron with Charon poling his ferry across it, over Cerberus, who lifts all three of his heads and yips happily when he smells his queen.
As they soar over the Fields of Asphodel, Persephone begins to change – become darker. The flowers braided into her hair melt into dust that flutters away from the two of them. Her long, bright-green gown shortens and darkens until it became a scandalously short-cut chiton of the darkest black, trimmed in threads of silver. Her wrists and throat grow heavy with jewelry and gemstones, and the Underworld's flickering light dances across her stygian iron wedding ring.
Hermes carries her over the great black palace, landing finally in the courtyard outside Hades' throne room. As soon as he sets Persephone on her feet, she is off. The palace doors burst open without a single touch, and Persephone races through the gaping archway with an ecstatic shout. Her husband rises from his ten-foot-high throne of human bones, his eyes alight with the same joy that is pouring off Persephone in waves.
"My queen," he intones, and then she hits his chest like a wrecking ball and Hades' arms fold around her. The Queen of the Underworld is home.