The day Demeter realized her daughter was missing was the day her life turned for the worse.

She searched everywhere for her darling Kore. She asked every god, mortal, and nymph if they had seen her daughter, but no one had answers. It was as if she had disappeared off the face of the earth.

She searched everywhere, but there was no sign of Kore anywhere. Demeter went to every kingdom, every town, every village she could find, because Kore loved to mingle with the mortals. But still no young goddess in sight. Demeter's search was becoming more and more fruitless with every passing day.

The only good thing that Demeter had gotten out of the search was raising the baby Demophoon. When she had been asked to nurse the boy, she had begun to give up hope that she would ever find her daughter. Taking care of him had reminded her of when she had nursed Kore. She had wanted to make him immortal, to adopt him as her son and help ease the pain of losing her real child. But the boy's mother had interrupted the process just as Demophoon was about to become immortal. Even this one small light of happiness had been ripped from Demeter's grasp. She was beginning to think the Fates hated her.

If only she had known that this wasn't the end of her troubles.

The day Demeter discovered who had abducted her daughter was the day the world came crashing down on her.

She found herself at the palace of Helios. Surely he would know where her daughter had went; he saw everything that happened during the day.

"Demeter?" Helios said, his golden face brightening with welcome. "It has been too long. What brings you here so late at night?"

"Helios," Demeter began. "Have you seen my daughter? You are the only person I know who could have seen what became of my Kore. Do you know anything?"

A frown marred his sunny features. "Indeed I do, but I'm afraid you won't be pleased with what I have to say."

"Why? Has Kore been harmed? Oh, please tell me she's alright!"

"I would want nothing more than to tell you that, but I have no knowledge of your daughter's well-being. She has been abducted and taken to a place beyond my line of sight."

"Where is she?" Demeter said, tears pooling in her eyes. "Who has taken my precious daughter?"

Helios stared into her eyes, and she knew she wouldn't like what he would say.

"Your daughter was taken to the Underworld. She was abducted by Hades."

Demeter stared at him wide-eyed. She must have heard him wrong. Hades would never...he wouldn't...

"Demeter?" Helios caught her just as her legs gave out from under her and failed to hold her up. All she could do was stare ahead in shock. Why would Hades steal her daughter? He scarcely came out of the Underworld, and even when he did, it was always for business. Never for stealing away young goddesses; Demeter knew him well enough to know that he was nothing like his philandering brothers. And Demeter had always been on good terms with him, so she could see no reason why he would ever-

Then it hit her. Hades wasn't one for one-time flings; Demeter knew he wanted a lifelong companion, someone he could love and call his own for all eternity. A wife was what he wanted. He had never taken any interest in any woman before, but now...

The truth hit Demeter in the face hard. Why else would Hades steal her daughter? The only reason she could think of was this horrid truth. Demeter wanted so much to think otherwise, but she knew there could be no other explanation. The Lord of the Dead had taken a liking to young Kore. Hades wanted to make the goddess his queen.

Hades had fallen in love with Demeter's daughter.

Demeter's cry of anguish could probably be heard all over Greece.

...

Demeter returned to Eleusis to mourn. As much as she was devastated to know that her daughter had been kidnapped, that wasn't the reason she cried so much. No, she was crying because she couldn't believe that Hades would betray her like this.

She was crying because her heart was breaking.

Another wave of sobs overtook Demeter. Why did her luck have to be so terrible? She had gotten attention from Zeus, she had gotten attention from Poseidon (both of whom she hadn't wanted to notice her in the first place), but she couldn't get the one person she wanted to look her way to even spare her a glance. And even when he did, it was always in a kind, brotherly way. But that's not what she wanted from him. She wanted him to look at her the same way Zeus had all those years ago, the same way every man looked at Aphrodite.

Blast it all, she wanted him to love her the way she loved him.

Demeter threw a vase at the wall, her grief mounting to anger. Why did he choose her daughter over her? He didn't know the girl at all! What did he see in Kore that she didn't possess? She was her mother, for goodness sake! Why did he see Kore as a better consort than her when she knew him better? It made absolutely no sense to Demeter.

"I hate you!" Demeter screeched, tearing up everything and anything around her. "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you so much!"

She didn't know exactly who she hated - Hades, for choosing someone other than her for his queen, Kore, for outshining her in Hades' eyes, or herself, for ever thinking that she would ever be more than a sister to Hades and ever falling in love with him in the first place.

...

In the next village over, a young girl watched curiously as the leaves of a once vibrant tree shriveled up before her eyes and fell in a rain of gold and orange.

The day Demeter watched her daughter turn from Kore to Persephone was the day Demeter lost all of her rationality.

It had been at least three months since Kore's kidnapping, and since then Demeter refused to let anything grow on the earth. She wanted everyone to feel just as terrible as she did. A little childish on her part, but her mind was too clouded with anger and grief to keep herself from doing it. Zeus, finally paying attention to something other than women, noticed the damage Demeter was causing and ordered Hades to return Kore, since he couldn't convince Demeter to lift the winter unless Kore was returned.

Now Demeter waited, waited for Kore to rise up from the earth, to run into her arms and beg to be taken back home.

What she didn't expect to see was her daughter and Hades walking hand in hand.

Demeter almost didn't recognize Kore. She was much paler than she remembered, and her usually cheerful, sunny face had dimmed into one of serene kindness. And her clothes...Demeter would never let her daughter wear such a dark, fitting dress. Her neck and hair were heavy with the jewels of the Underworld. Jewels fit for a queen...

"Kore!" Demeter said, trying to appear as happy as possible. She was relieved to see her daughter, but she knew no harm would have come to her anyway. She knew Hades wouldn't harm her. But she did worry about what had happened between the two during the three months Kore had spent in the Underworld. They seemed far too close for Demeter's comfort.

"Hello, Mama," Kore said calmly. "It's nice to see you as well, but I would like it if you wouldn't refer to me by that name anymore."

Demeter was confused. "What?"

She smiled at the ground, her cheeks taking on a rosy hue. "Well, that name isn't very fitting anymore."

That statement was a direct stab to Demeter's heart. She stumbled back a bit, staring at the two (mainly Hades) in shock. No...she couldn't be saying...

"I am no longer Kore, the Maiden. I am Persephone, Queen of the Dead."

"K-Kore...you don't know what you're saying..."

"Yes I do, mother."

Demeter really hoped that everything she was hearing was just a nightmare conjured by Morpheus. She could feel her already breaking heart crack even more. She didn't know how much more of this she could take.

Zeus simply shrugged, not much interested in the exchange. "So, she's married. What matter is it, Demeter? You had to let go of her sooner or later."

"No!" Demeter tried so much to convince herself that this wasn't happening. "She can't be married! Not my Kore!" She turned to her daughter, her eyes burning. "Kore, stop this nonsense and come. You are my daughter, and you will not be married to anyone without my consent. Especially to..." Demeter looked at Hades, who had slinked into the shadows as usual, and whatever nasty thing she had wanted to say died in her throat. "...him."

Hades raised one perfectly arched eyebrow at her, but didn't say a word. That made Demeter even angrier. Why did he have to look so damn handsome when she was trying to hate him?

Persephone's calm smile disappeared. "Well, I actually can't come with you, mother. Not that I would have, anyway."

Demeter was taken aback. "What did you just say to me?"

"I can't come back with you. I am bound to the Underworld."

A sliver of ice ran across Demeter's heart. "No...you didn't..."

"Yes, I did. I have eaten the food of the Underworld."

Zeus sighed. "Well, now there's definitely nothing I can do, Demeter. She has eaten the food, so-"

"No!" Demeter screeched, dropping to the ground and beating the earth. "No, this can't be! It can't!"

Zeus rolled his eyes. "Get up, woman. There's no reason to be such a child about this.

"Child?! You know nothing of what I'm going through, Zeus!" Only she knew the real reason she was so distraught, but that didn't mean everyone else would. She still had her pride.

Her full fury was now directed at Hades. "You did this! You forced her to eat your food. You forced her to marry you. And now you're forcing her to make it seem like it was all by her own free will. You...you monster!"

She knew these were all just lies, but she wanted to get a reaction from him, hurt him with her words. And it seemed to work. Hades stared at her, his dark blue eyes flashing with disbelief and hurt, as if he couldn't believe Demeter would ever say such things to him. She couldn't believe her own words, either.

At first she felt good that he was hurt by her words, but then she regretted them when she saw his eyes turning cold and filling with a new emotion she wasn't used to seeing in him - hate.

"Is that really what you believe, Demeter?" he said in that deep voice that always made Demeter shiver. "You really think so low of me?" He let out a bitter laugh. "But I shouldn't have expected anything else from you. You've always been delusional, but that might be because you've always been so full of yourself."

Demeter turned away angrily, refusing to let him see how much that hurt. She breathed heavily, trying not to cry as she turned to Zeus. "If my daughter isn't returned to me, I will let nothing grow on the earth and I will let every mortal creature on this earth die."

"But you can't do that, Mother!" said Persephone.

Demeter glared at her daughter, that traitor. "I can, and I will."

Zeus pinched the bridge of his nose. "Well, I can't just let Demeter kill off the mortals, but I can't break a sacred law, either." He turned to Persephone. "What exactly did you eat?"

"Six pomegranate seeds," she said. "But that doesn't make a difference, does it?"

Zeus didn't answer her, as he was deep in thought. Then he snapped his fingers. "I've got a solution. Since Persephone ate six pomegranate seeds, she will spend six months with her mother and the other six with Hades. There. Perfect solution."

Of course, no one was happy with that compromise, especially Demeter. She wanted her daughter away from Hades all the time. Six months of the year was plenty of time for the two to make their bond stronger. Too much time for Demeter.

It was decided that Demeter would have Persephone for the first six months, since the earth needed healing. Demeter pulled her daughter's arm, but before they left, Demeter couldn't help but glance at Hades. All he did was glare at her. That's when Demeter knew that something had broken between them, and they would never be the same to each other again.

She mouthed one word at him, the only mean word she could think of now. Bastard.

And he mouthed an equally harsh word. Bitch.

It took all of her willpower not to sob.

The day Persephone had her first child was the day Demeter had to accept her terrible fate.

She wanted to believe that the bulge she saw on Persephone when she returned to her was just fat, but goddesses never like looking fat for no reason. Persephone finally confirmed her fears, telling Demeter of her pregnancy. Persephone was excited, but her mother wasn't nearly as thrilled. But how could she be, when her daughter was carrying the child of Hades?

A child she wished could have been hers.

Although she was unhappy that Persephone was having a child with Hades, she helped her take care of both the baby and herself. During that time, Demeter and Persephone bonded more than they ever had ever done since that fateful day. Demeter could almost forget the sadness and betrayal she felt every time she looked at her daughter.

Almost.

When the baby was born, Demeter managed to form a small smile. Persephone gave birth to a beautiful baby girl; she named her Macaria. She looked just like Persephone had when she was a baby, which Demeter was extremely grateful for. She was grateful that Macaria looked nothing like her father, so she wouldn't be reminded of her heartbreak.

If only she knew what the Fates had in store for her.

The day Persephone had her third child and her first son, she knew for a fact the Fates hated her.

She hadn't been with Persephone when he was born; Persephone had been in the Underworld at the time. Demeter hadn't been to the Underworld for decades, and she just couldn't bear to go there again; she would be reminded of Hades. Persephone knew her mother wouldn't come to visit, so she presented little Zagreus only when spring came around.

When Demeter got a good look at the baby, she wished Persephone had left him in the care of his father. Zagreus was a spitting image of Hades - same dark hair, same pale skin, same piercing blue eyes. There was no doubt he would turn out to be a fine god when he grew, and that's what worried Demeter. She didn't need another reminder of the one person she could never have.

The day Persephone pursued Adonis was the day Demeter wanted to kill her.

Demeter had no idea where this man had come from, but it was certain Persephone desired him just as much as Aphrodite did. All Demeter could do was watch as the two goddesses fought over who could have him. And that made Demeter furious at her daughter. What ever happened to the love for Hades which she claimed to have? Speaking of Hades, how was he dealing with his wife's blatant straying? Despite not having talked to him for quite some time, Demeter wanted to know if he was alright.

And that's how she found herself in the Underworld.

"Take me across," she said to the ferry man Charon, placing five gold coins into his hand.

Even though she had given him five times the fare to go across, he stared at her skeptically. "What business do you have here?"

"I wish to speak to Hades."

He continued to stare at her. Then he held out his bony hand, handing back the coins. "Take your money. The Dark Lord will speak to no one. In case you haven't heard-"

"I know what happened. That's why I'm here."

"I don't understand."

Demeter sighed. "I do care about my brother, you know." More than you'll ever know. "I want to make sure he is alright."

Charon was silent. Just when Demeter thought he would send her away, he closed the hand with the coins and pocketed the money. "Get in."

Demeter let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She stepped into the boat, along with an assortment of shades. She kept her gaze fixed on the dark palace ahead of her.

The ride to the other side seemed longer than she remembered, the last time she had come here. She almost considered turning back when the boat reached the black shore. She quietly thanked Charon, who simply grunted. He would never understand that goddess. One moment she despised Hades and the next she wanted to know if he was alright. He wondered what exactly her motives were and what was going on in her mind.

Demeter walked into the castle with hardly any resistance. The guards knew not to cross her. She let her feet take her to Hades, and they led her to his study room. She knocked lightly. A deep, emotion-strained voice said, "Enter."

Demeter opened the door and stepped in cautiously, as if she expected Hades to strike her down once he saw her. But he wasn't even looking at her. He was slumped in an armchair, staring into the hearth in front of him. Demeter couldn't see his face, but she was sure it was most likely a mess.

"Hades," she said softly. She could tell by the way he tensed that he didn't expect her.

"What are you doing here, Demeter?" he said numbly, not even turning to face her.

She sighed, and walked in front of him so that she could face him. He looked up at her, trying to appear emotionless, but Demeter had always been able to read him like an open book. She could see the hurt behind his bloodshot eyes. Seeing him like this pricked her heart with pain and sent a shot of anger through her when she thought of the person who had caused it. How could Persephone do this to him?

They stared at each other until the other looked away. In the flickering light of the fire, Demeter caught the glint of a tear that hadn't completely dried up. Her hand involuntarily reached out to wipe it away, but she was brought back to reality when Hades grabbed her hand.

"What are you doing here?" Hades repeated, a little colder than before.

Demeter stared at him fearfully, biting on her lip. She didn't know exactly how to answer his question; all she said to him was one thing.

"I'm so sorry."

Hades stared at her. He let go of her hand and walked over to his desk, gripping the sides. "What do you care? You hate me."

"I never hated you, Hades."

Hades turned to her, but she looked away from him. She pondered whether or not she should tell him how she truly felt. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to do it, but she couldn't bring herself to say what she wanted. She feared the consequences. She feared rejection.

"You are my brother; of course I care about you." Demeter regretted saying that. She wanted him to see her as a love interest, not a sister.

Hades was silent, then went back to glaring down at the desk. "I don't know...I don't know what I did wrong." There was an almost nonexistent break in his voice, but Demeter had caught it.

"You did nothing wrong."

"Then why did she do this? Why would she find comfort in another man if I hadn't done something wrong?"

"Perhaps it is only a temporary infatuation," Demeter said. "Perhaps Eros has shot her with one of his arrows." Demeter really wanted to sew her mouth shut. Why was she saying all the wrong things? She didn't want to justify her daughter's actions.

"It can't be. I've seen the work of Eros, and I've never seen anyone desire another the way Persephone desires Adonis." He hung his head. "All I've ever been to Persephone was kind and faithful. What did I do to deserve this?"

Demeter walked up to him, placing her hand on his shoulder. "You did nothing to deserve this, Hades. I don't know what has gotten into my daughter, but I know she is making a big mistake. She doesn't know how lucky she is to have you as a husband." Demeter then said something she wish she hadn't. "I will speak to her. Maybe I can get her to see sense."

Hades simply stared at her, and Demeter was afraid she had said something wrong (which she most definitely did). But Hades just shook his head, a faint smile on his face. "I just don't understand you anymore, Demeter. If I didn't know better, I would say you were trying to mend my marriage."

That's not what she wanted, but she went with it. "I just want everything to be okay."

"Well, thank you, Demeter. Your words mean a lot to me." He then placed a kiss on her cheek. A chaste, completely brotherly kiss, but a kiss nonetheless, and it made Demeter's heart race. She smiled, the first genuine smile she had shown in a long time. Perhaps she still had a chance.

The day Demeter found out about Minthe was the day everything she had rebuilt with Hades came crashing down again.

A few months had passed. Persephone was still fighting with Aphrodite over Adonis, but Hades didn't seem to be as upset about it as before. Demeter visited him more often, and they repaired their former bond, which Demeter was happy about. She had missed her brother's company, and this was just one more step in finding her place in Hades' heart.

She never forgot to drop subtle hints that Hades should find another woman (particularly her) but she wasn't sure if Hades picked up on any of them.

She could still see sadness in his eyes every time she saw him, though. He still couldn't get over what Persephone had done to him. Demeter hated seeing him like this, and she wanted to comfort him as much as she could. The way she most wanted to comfort him made her blush, but she would gladly let Hades have it if he asked. But as of the last few days, the sadness in his eyes seemed to have slightly faded, and Demeter had no idea what had changed him.

Until she met Minthe.

The nymph had been walking past Demeter in the hall. Demeter hadn't even noticed her because she was so intent on finding Hades; she only realized the girl existed when she addressed the goddess.

"And just who are you?"

Demeter turned and looked at Minthe, who stared at her unabashed, as if they were equals. Demeter frowned at her. She had never seen any mortal or nymph stand in the presence of a goddess and not cast their eyes down in respect. Just who did this girl think she was?

Demeter decided to answer her question anyway. "I am Demeter, dear. Surely you know who I am."

Demeter caught a cruel glint in Minthe's eyes. "Oh, so your that crazy, possessive goddess I've heard so much about."

"E-Excuse me?"

Minthe smiled, though it wasn't a kind smile. "Don't worry, Demeter. You won't have to suffer anymore. You can tell your daughter that she doesn't have to come back, because by then I'll be the new queen of the Underworld."

No. She. Didn't.

Just as Demeter was about to rip Minthe's head off, Hades came walking down the hall. "Ah, there you are, Demeter. I see you have met Minthe."

"Hades!" Minthe smiled at him, putting on a pleasant facade and latching herself on his arm. "How are you, my lord? It's always so nice to see you."

Hades rolled his eyes, and he didn't see Demeter burning with rage. If Minthe was what she thought she was...

"Hades, can I speak to you in private?"

"Of course, Demeter." Hades pried Minthe off of him, with some difficulty. Minthe whined, but then simply smirked at Demeter when Hades wasn't looking at her.

Demeter practically dragged Hades to an empty room. "Who is that wench?"

Hades frowned. "Minthe? Well, I guess you could consider her someone close."

"No shit she's close!" Demeter nearly yelled. "She was all over you in the hall. Who is she really? Don't tell me you're sleeping with her."

Please say no...Please say no...

Hades narrowed his eyes. "And what if I am?"

That confirmed Demeter's fears. She screamed and landed a clean punch to his temple. "How could you? How could you do something like this?"

He held his cheek in his hand, glaring at her fiercely. "What does it matter to you who I wish to bed? It's not like I have a wife to keep me company anymore."

"That doesn't give you any right to go sleeping with other women!"

"You're the one who was suggesting it!"

"I didn't mean someone like her!"

"Then just what did you mean, Demeter?"

"I-"

Before she could say anything else they heard laughter outside. Minthe walked into the room without permission, laughing her head off.

"Oh, this is priceless!" she said, wiping a tear. "You really are crazy. And I thought Persephone was my only competition." She looked Demeter up and down and burst into another round of laughter. "Then again, you're not much competition. To think that you actually love-"

Minthe was suddenly cut off with a swift punch from Demeter. The goddess was so enraged, she didn't stop pounding on Minthe, not once. No blood was shed, though; in her rage Demeter had turned the girl into a patch of tiny, crisp-smelling leaves.

Hades stood there dumbfounded. Then an angry expression took over his features. "What did you do that for?!"

Demeter jumped up from her place on the floor and face Hades with tears streaking down her face and an even more fearsome fire in her eyes. "You want to know why? I'll tell you why!"

She marched up to Hades and crashed her lips onto his fiercely. It felt exhilarating, intoxicating to kiss him, but at the same time she felt absolutely miserable, because her heart was finally breaking completely and she knew this would be the first and the last kiss she would ever give Hades.

She pulled away, glaring into his wide eyes. "There. That's why. That's what I've been hiding all these eons. All these years I hoped that you would see me as more than a sister, hoped that you would choose me as your queen. But apparently that's not my fate. My fate is to always be greeted with unrequited love." Her tears ran like a river now, refusing to stop. "I want to hate you so much, but I can't stop myself from loving you."

And with that Demeter left, leaving Hades staring at the place she had been. Demeter kept running, never turning back. She didn't even bother to get into Charon's boat; she practically flew across the River Styx, surprising Charon and the shades beside the river.

She reached the surface in little time. She didn't stop running. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew it would have to be a place where no one would come find her. Especially Hades. She disappeared into the foliage, never to be seen again.

What she didn't know was that her grief had caused a major change on the earth. The people in the far north and far south of the planet were surprised to see ice forming and coming upon them. What they were seeing was the creation of the polar ice caps, constant reminders of Demeter's grief.

Persephone never found out about Minthe, and no one saw any sign of Demeter again. Their only indication that she was still out there was the changing of the seasons, which meant she still had to be controlling it.

The only person who hadn't given up the search was Hades.