A/N: Ok, so… this is my first fanfiction. I am well aware of my shortcomings as a writer, and constructive criticism is highly appreciated. You can even tell me that my writing sucks if that's how you feel about it, though I sincerely hope that is not the case. Whatever your opinion, I ask only that you take a few moments to share it with me, and perhaps your reasoning behind it. With that being said, I would like to add that I do not now, nor have I ever owned the classical gods, and I certainly never intend to do so. I'm just borrowing them for a bit. And now, without further ado, I give you
Pomegranate
The earth has always captivated me- the warmth of sunlight, the rhythmic rain, the cool blue shade of the shadow of Mount Olympus. But most of all I adore the flowers, the bright, delicate fabric of my world. The fields and forests surrounding the great mountain were my home; I loved them, and I desperately wanted to escape them all.
I, Persephone, daughter of Demeter and the mighty Zeus, sat surrounded by wood nymphs, contemplating my loneliness. The chain of daisies in my lap was long forgotten as I stared unseeingly out at the horizon. Not that my companions would notice; as long as their lady was occupied in a safe and quiet manner, they were more or less indifferent to me. I snorted. I could be strangling myself with these daises for all they care, as long as I was quiet about it. But I, as well as my attendants, knew this really wasn't true. Demeter would bring a fate worse than death to anyone who allowed such harm to come to her precious daughter, and none of my "friends" were willing to take such a risk for so much as a few moments of privacy.
And so it came to be that I was driven away by the very forces meant to keep me forever. I knew Mother loved me and wanted only to protect me, but I had caught too many glimpses of the world outside of my own to want exclusion from it. There were endless possibilities that I could not even begin to imagine, and quite a few that I easily could. I wanted, almost more than anything, to learn to swim. How glorious it would be to wade into one of my precious streams past my calves without some worrying nymph to shoo me away! But I pushed such thoughts from my head; my opportunity had not yet arrived, and in the meantime, dwelling on the subject could easily lead to unwanted and rather unfortunate speech, which, in turn, would likely result in my inability to even look at a stream ever again.
"My lady, should we not return to your mother? Lady Demeter will surely be waiting, and you know you are expected tonight on Olympus." The nymph had made a simple enough suggestion, but I well knew that it was in no way a matter of choice. Sighing heavily, and careful to disguise my annoyance, I rose and headed for Demeter's temple.
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Both mortals and gods alike look upon the Underworld with a mixture of displeasure and wonder; it is, indeed, a mysterious place, and its Lord has worked hard to keep it that way. I, Hades, by that fateful short straw, had been bound to rule over the dead for all eternity. I had not viewed it as a sentence, however- I was no less powerful than my brothers, and arguably more so, as their impermanent realms would all eventually pass into mine. Besides, my kingdom rather suited me. I found my home to be anything but dim; the Elysian Fields are, to be sure, as breathtaking as any worldly landscape, and I am wealthier than all of my siblings combined. But my pretense of darkness took its toll.
The premise had started innocently enough; I had never quite gotten along with the rest of the inhabitants of Mount Olympus, preferring a reserved manner over their bacchanals and intelligent conversation over the more, shall we say, physical pursuits of the ruler of the gods. I convinced myself that by keeping to myself, I had the best chance at avoiding their scrutiny and ridicule. And I had been right; after years of feeding the rumors of a cold kingdom with a cold ruler, I found myself exactly where I had, presumably, wanted to be: alone.
Unfortunately, solitude was not quite the wonder I had hoped it would be. To be sure, I did not miss the vanity of Apollo or Zeus's booming inquiries as to when I would take a wife. Why? So I might squander mine as you do yours, brother? And I certainly appreciated the opportunity to rule my own kingdom as I saw fit. But Athena's wisdom I did miss, and, more and more, I found myself wishing only for contact with another being. My shades were, of course, my companions, but someone living and breathing would be nice occasionally. The corners of my mouth curved into a small smile. Tonight, on Olympus, there would definitely be living and breathing. Surely there would be someone there willing, or foolish, enough to speak with the Dark Lord. But please, may the Fates not allow it to be Apollo.
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"Remind me again, Mother, why this is necessary," I sighed, leaning onto my hand, only to be jerked back to a straight position by the fair Demeter, who was occupied with pinning my hair up, and doing so rather painfully. "Somehow I doubt that anyone is going to care about my hairstyle." Or be sober enough to remember it.
"Ah, my dear, that is where you are wrong," she said, smiling wryly. "Appearance, I'm afraid, is rather important. Besides, your fath- Zeus will be expecting you to be presentable."
Mother was, of course, right- it had been years since I'd seen my father, due in no small part to Hera's hostility toward me. I had been but a child on my last visit to Olympus, and I would be lying to myself to say that I was not nervous. Indeed, I was shaking as Mother began to pull a white shift over my head, as much from nerves as excitement. Who knew? Perhaps tonight I might find someone who was interested in more than following the satyrs or keeping me under lock and key. Someone who knew of, was part of, the elusive outside world.
Olympus was different from the way I remembered it- smaller, perhaps, but no less enchanting. Mother and I were greeted rather coolly by Hera (surprise, surprise), but Zeus was anything but disinterested. "My dear, how you have grown!" I remember him booming, going on to speak of my blooming beauty, or some such rubbish. Hera was pointedly displeased, and I could feel both of their gazes on me as I retreated from the dais.
The other gods and goddesses were mildly interested in me for a time, but one by one they became bored and moved on to more promising pursuits, no doubt driven off by my endless questions. So much for finally being able to get a glimpse of the world. In frustration, I excused myself from the festivities, as my mother was nowhere in sight. If I couldn't find someone to tell me of the world, then perhaps I could find a bit of it on my own.
Wandering the palace's passages, though at first slightly thrilling, soon became rather dull, and I was about to give up and head back to the feasting when I heard an all too familiar voice. My heart stopped, before I realized that Mother was not actually in the corridor, but rather on the other side of a cracked door not far behind me. Positioning myself in the shadows, I pressed my ear against the doorway. Perhaps my search for adventure was not so futile after all.
"Demeter, dear sister, I must say that our daughter has turned out to be quite the beauty, don't you agree? And she is pure, yes? Of course. Have you put any thought toward marriage for the girl? A flower such as she should not be wasted. I have often thought that Apollo would make a fine match…"
Apollo, indeed! I had heard stories of the god's exploits from my nymphs, none of which made me particularly inclined to want to marry him. Still, the thought of marriage was vaguely exciting; surely then I would not be watched over like some helpless babe. My slight annoyance at Zeus's choice, however, was nothing in comparison to my mother's wrath.
"Marriage!" she all but screeched. "How could you even propose such a thing? Why, Persephone is but a child- she is not ready to be sent out on her own. Besides, I could not bear to part with her; my daughter is my entire world. No, no, there shall be no talk of sending her away from me."
Although I wasn't surprised at my mother's words, I still saw red. How dare she call me a child! Surely she could see that I was no longer the carefree little girl who wanted nothing more than to skip and sing and play. I was curious, and while I may have been ignorant of many things, I was no fool. A child! Such was my anger that I did not notice the pair approaching the doorway until they were almost upon it. Wild with panic, I took the only escape route that I could see, diving through a curtain and onto one of the many balconies of the palace. I held my breath for an eternity until I could be sure that they were gone, sighing in relief when I knew I was safe. But as I turned to lean against the balcony's railing for support (as my knees had suddenly become quite weak), I was met not with carved stone, but a tall, dark mass and a pair of piercing eyes.
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I had seen the girl once before, when she was young. The daughter of Demeter had been a bright child, to be sure, but nothing in comparison to what she had become. I had watched Persephone and her mother as they entered the court, and my breath had caught; she was beautiful, but beyond that there was an air of intelligence and honest curiosity about her that was captivating. She positively glowed. It occurred to me that I was waxing poetic about her, and that I had better put a stop to it before I began to spout sonnets or something else equally embarrassing. Still, I could not help but watch her, surely unnoticed in my quiet corner. When she left the banquet I felt the need to follow her, though I told myself that my trip through the corridors and onto the balcony were merely in pursuit of some quiet. The night air did do me some good, and I was about to return from my hideout when she, of all people, should join me. There are dozens of balconies at the Olympian palace, and yet we both managed to choose the same one. Ah, irony. Or, perhaps, as the poetic part of my mind insisted, it was fate.
If I was surprised to see her, then I appeared to be the last thing that she ever expected to find in front of her. Her eyes grew wide in shock (and what I hoped was not horror), though she tried rather unsuccessfully to hide her astonishment. I was opening my mouth to introduce myself, however, when her ability to speak suddenly and brokenly came rushing back. "I- I am, er…My name is Persephone, daughter of Demeter," she stated quickly, bowing stiffly and at such a sharp angle that I had to step back to avoid being hit in the chest by the top of her head.
"And I am Hades, Lord of the Underworld," I replied with a calmness that surprised me. "To what do I owe the honor of your company this evening, Persephone?"
"I, well, the thing is, there was… I just wanted some fresh air… and, uh, you see," she faltered, and I raised my eyebrows at the obvious cover. "Oh, alright, fine. I had to come out here to escape my mother and Zeus. I'm sorry if I disturbed you." She sounded almost angry.
I laughed aloud at the thought of her ever disturbing me. "Oh, no, it's quite alright. Though I can't imagine what you would have to run from."
"Of course not," she laughed, but it was not a happy sound. "I'm sure you have the freedom to come and go as you please, without someone watching over you every second of every day. You probably can't even imagine wanting freedom, if only for a few moments, as much as the air you breathe." Her voice was far too bitter for one so young.
"I'm sorry," I breathed. "Perhaps…"
"No, no- I should be apologizing." She was suddenly quiet. "That was uncalled for."
Taking her chin gently in my hand, I forced her downcast eyes to look into mine, an action that surprised me as much as it did her. "Don't apologize for wanting freedom; it's only natural, and you certainly have the right to be irritated by being caged." I offered a small smile, which she returned. I felt my heartbeat quicken as I reluctantly lowered my hand. Here we go again.
She turned away from me to lean her arms on the railing, and we slipped into a companionable silence. I had forgotten the peace that comes from being this close to another person, though it was possible that I had never known it at all. In any case, when she spoke again some minutes later, the sound of her voice was somewhat surprising. "What is it like?" she asked, smiling at the strangeness of her own question. "That is, being free…"
"I don't know that it can be described, Persephone." The name felt sweet on my lips, or so that stubbornly poetic corner of my brain claimed. "But I think it can be shown. Tell me, what are your feelings toward stargazing? We would have to leave the palace, of course, to have a proper view, but as you do not seem to have anything against sneaking around, that shouldn't be a problem."
She grinned broadly and her eyes shone. "Now, I told you before, I was only seeking fresh air. With that being said, which way to the nearest exit?"
"Escaping" into the fields outside Olympus was not difficult, though I did not say as much for Persephone's sake; she treated the affair as her greatest adventure. Though as the child of Demeter, being anywhere without supervision was, in all likelihood, a great excitement. "I have looked on the heaven thousands of times before," she breathed. "But never have the stars shined brighter than on this evening." So, Hades, you are not the only divine poet after all.
I whistled lowly into the night to summon my chariot; surely if she found the stars so enchanting, the sight of their light blurring with speed and the feeling of wind in her hair would sweep her off her feet. Besides, I had something in store for this Persephone. Once she overcame her surprise at their arrival, my two black steeds did delight her, though she showed no inclination to go for a ride. "My lady, may I?" I asked, stepping into the chariot and holding out my hand. "I promise no harm will come to you," I reassured, noticing her wary look, "not while you are with me."
She took my hand, though there was still some fear behind her eyes. I took the reins, holding my arms around her. "Now, Persephone, this is it. Looking your fear straight in the eyes and beating it- that is freedom," I whispered. She shivered and held tightly to my arm, but nodded, and I signaled to the horses.
When they began to run, I could feel her tense, and was willing to guess that she was not breathing. I leaned forward so that she could her me say, "Open your eyes," and my idea must have been correct, for in a few moments she relaxed her grip on my arm. She even began to laugh, truly and warmly, and not at all like the bitter girl who felt trapped from all sides. She was still laughing when I pulled the chariot to a stop, though she turned to face me.
"That- that was- There really are no words," she gasped, holding her stomach and beaming. "Thank you." She rested her forehead on my shoulder while she regained her breath, and I could feel the tears from her laughter through my tunic. I was about to reply when a voice came drifting over the field from the mountain; the sound of Demeter, concerned and angry, was unmistakable. Persephone groaned, without raising her head. "I don't want to go back there."
My next action would later be called into question by many, though I have yet to regret it. In any case, I didn't give much thought to my reply, saying only, "Then don't," before I wrapped my arms tightly about the stunned Persephone as I gave the signal to my horses and willed the earth to open beneath us, sending the chariot speeding into the Underworld.