Hey Guys and Gals! Sorry this one took a little longer than the others. I've now caught up to where I currently am in the story. so now each chapter is gonna take a little while longer but I am still posting them. This chapter is longer than the others to help make up for the delay. Thanks!

His world was pitch black. If Hades wasn't holding Persephone hand, she would never make it through here. She felt around with her free hand and decided that they were in a cave. A lot of the rocks were damp and loose, and for about the third time Persephone stumbled on some of the rocks that she couldn't predict being there. If Hades Hadn't been holding her hand she would have fallen straight on her face. "Please, allow me mi'lady." Hades said as he stopped and turned to her. She took a shaky breath, "You may."

In one swift movement Hades scooped her up into his arms, one arm under her legs and the other behind her back. She was so light; it was almost as if he were carrying a baby. Which in his mind, he was. And he was going to protect her as one with all his might, until it killed him.

Persephone found this odd sense of comfort in his arms. It was like she belonged there. A sudden wave of exhaustion hit her, and she couldn't help but lay her head on his shoulder. The sound of his boots on the gravel and his steady sway as he walked lured her to sleep, and before she knew it she was out like a light.

The bitter cold had reached through her small dress and down to her bones. It was a hard transition, to go from the sun and warm weather to darkness and freezing temperatures. It was just her, because everyone else was by far used to it, and in time she would too. Where am I? Persephone thought.

Hades, being able to her mind, answered her. "We are approaching the river of Styx." She nodded in response. Still wrapped up in his arms, she looked around the area. Her eyes had somewhat adjusted to the darkness, so she could see a lot more than she originally could.

They were in a vast cave. The setting hadn't changed that much sense she fell asleep. It wasn't so much as a gravel path anymore, but just a bunch of cold hard pebbles. All the rocks were damp and had a dark glow about them. How long had I been asleep? Hades, again, answered that question with no hesitation. "You seemed to sleep well. You only slept for an hour or so. You looked very peaceful," His mind flashed back to her beautiful face leaning against his left shoulder. He could see what was behind all the dirt, blood, and tear streaked stains. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. "That's good." He finished. She nodded while looking at him curiously. He smiled at her. "I can read minds Persephone. More than that actually. We, you and me, can communicate through our minds. Telepathy, if you will."

"So, you're just going to be reading my mind?"

"I won't make a terrible habit of it, I can assure you of that. I just know you have many questions and I want to answer them to the best of my ability. I won't push into your private thoughts, you can be certain about that. I have a limit that I set for myself, and I know you don't want me in there. They're called private thoughts for a reason. And if you wish, I can stop reading your mind all together."

"No, I trust you."

He nodded. "Here we are." He said setting her down. She looked around and saw a gorgeous river. It was a dark midnight blue and had a glow of its own. Just like the river in my dream she thought. Hades looked at her"you've seen this river before?"

Without looking at him to answer she replied, "I had a dream last night, and it was about a river, just like this one." He nodded in reply.

Without Hades's body heat her green sundress, that barely touched her mid thigh and only had spaghetti straps, did not do her justice to keep her warm. She shivered, and goose bumps covered her arms and legs. "Here." Hades said. He swooped off his cape in somewhat of a dramatic fashion and draped it over her small frame. She smiled gratefully, now she was much warmer and his intoxicating masculine scent overwhelmed her, and she loved it. He smiled at her. "Did you just read my mind?" she eyed him suspiciously.

"No. I just saw you shiver. It's quite cold down here, but I am by far used to it. I'm not sure how long you plan to stay, but you will eventually grow used to it."

By the time he finished his sentence his boatman, Charon, arrived. He looked at Hades, to Persephone and her state of attire, and back to Hades. "It's none of my business." He shrugged.

"No it is not, just get us to the other side." Hades replied in a demanding yet polite tone.

"Yes sir." Charon offered his hand to help Persephone down to the boat and she gladly accepted it. she noticed how Charon looked. He Had dark hair and pale skin and his eyes were a beautiful shade of chocolate.

Once they were all on the boat and on their way, Persephone marveled at the place. It was so different from the upper world, and that was exactly what she loved about it. None of it reminded her of the world above, or the people in it.

Persephone gasped. Now in view was the same castle that was in her dream. Except, the dream did not do this place justice, it was much more magnificent in real life.

"Welcome home Persephone. At least for the time being." Hades got closer and crouched down next to her putting both hands on her shoulders.

"It's beautiful." She marveled.

"I'll give you a grand tour of the underworld. I want you to see, well, almost everything."

"Almost?" she turned to look at him with questioning eyes.

"There are some places where I don't want you to see for your own good. And others, well not even I can go to."

"Oh, okay."

"It will have to be tomorrow though. It's much too late to do all that now. I'll just show you your chambers, and then you can get some rest."

"Alright, thank you."

Her bed chambers were awesome. It was a very large room, but the space was filled neatly. There were dressers, mirrors, desks, a bookshelf that took up the whole wall, a couch, and a very large bed in the center of it all. All the wood was a dark cherry. "And here is the bathroom where you can bathe and what not." Hades said breaking her train of thought.

She smiled. "Thank you Hades. For everything." He nodded in reply.

"My chambers are right next door should you need anything." He pointed to a cherry door to the left when she first entered the room. "All you have to do is go through that door. The lock is on your side, should you want any privacy." Persephone nodded even though she doubted that she would ever use it. "Right then, I'll leave you to it then. I bid thee goodnight, Persephone." He said with a deep bow. She couldn't help but laugh.

"Good night Hades."

He left though the door that led to his room. Now she was alone she decided that she needed to bathe.

She plucked all the twigs and leaves from her hair and brushed it out before she got in the steaming tub. She then stripped off her dress and slowly descended into the tub. She sighed at the relief of the water. She scrubbed her body to get rid of the dried blood. She then noticed how many bruises she really did have. "I am going to be sore in the morning." She told herself.

Once she was done bathing she looked and felt a lot better. She smelt of vanilla. She slipped into a night gown and hopped into the giant bad. She breathed in the crisp clean sheets of silk. She has never in her life felt something so soft. She soon drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

"Persephone?" Hades cooed. "Persephone, mi'lady, you must wake up." Persephone groaned from under the blankets. "I promised you I would show you my world. You're not gonna make me a liar, are you?" He pulled back the covers slightly so he could look upon her face. Her hair was scattered all over the bed and her face. He chuckled to himself and brushed her hair away from her face. All the scratches and dirt was gone and her skin was soft and clean. She fluttered her sparkling emerald eyes open. Those giant doll-like eyes took Hades's breath away; he couldn't help but stare back into them.

All of a sudden Hades had a huge urge to kiss her. This is crazy Hades thought. I just officially met the girl and now I have all these urges of kissing her and touchin- NO! I will never do such things to her, not now. And especially not without her consent. Hades shook his head. "Alright now Persephone, it's time to rise. I will send in a servant to help you dress for the day. I shall come to collect you in an hour or so."

"Okay." Persephone nodded sleepily. And with that Hades rose from the bed and left the room.

Shortly after Hades left there was a small knock at Persephone's door. Persephone, still in bed, answered. "Come in!"

The large door opened and from behind it came a small girl. "Hello Mi'lady. Lord Hades has told me to assist you in getting ready for today's activities."

"Yes, thank you."

She nodded. "Alright milady you must get out of bed. We only have so long before Lord Hades come back to collect you."

"Alright." Persephone replied stretching finding the soreness in her body.

As the young girl went around the room to the right dresser, Persephone rose out of bed. She noticed that the girl moved with such grace and swiftness that could not be obtained by a mere mortal. "What is your name?" Persephone questioned.

Without hesitation the girl replied "Ariel."

"That's a very pretty name."

"Thank you mi'lady." Ariel replied, her cheeks turning almost as red as her fiery hair . She returned to Persephone holding up a violet dress. "Yes I think that'll do." Ariel muttered to herself. "Alright, Mi'lady. Can you please take off your night gown?" red spread over Persephone's neck and cheeks. "But, I'll be naked."

Ariel smiled. "We're both girls here and don't worry no one will come in. You're okay."

Persephone sighed. "Okay." She slowly slipped off the gown exposing her completely.

Ariel gasped, bringing a hand up to cover her mouth. "Mi'lady! What happened to you?!"

Persephone looked down and saw all the bruises. "Oh, um…" Ariel circled Persephone, her blueish green eyes examining Persephone completely. "I fell down a huge hill at Olympus." Ariel raised her eyebrows at her and said. "Either you're the clumsiest person ever, or something more happened." Persephone sighed.

"Both I guess. Normally I'm not clumsy but lately I've been very clumsy. I was being chased by Apollo. He was trying to attack me and I was running away from him and while I was I tripped and fell down a hill. Hades found me shortly after." Ariel nodded

"You poor thing." Persephone shivered. Ariel noticed. "Oh! Forgive me Mi'lady, you must be freezing." Ariel quickly started dressing Persephone to get her warm.

While they did so Persephone asked. "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but, you're not human are you?"

"I once was," Ariel replied as she tightened the violet dress on Persephone. "But that was a long time ago. I, and most of everyone else you will ever see here, are shades. We have all basically made a deal with Hades, or he rescued us from a more worse fate."

"And you, if I may ask, what happened to you?"

She gave Persephone a faint smile. "I was going to be sent Tartarus, but Hades rescued me. I was supposed to go there because I killed men." She dropped her head. "I was brutally beaten and raped by five men, multiple times. But one night, I took a knife and went to their homes and killed them all. The town then found out and had me killed. When I faced Lord Hades at his court, I was terrified. He knew everything about me just by looking at me. He knew what had happened to me and what I had done. He also knew that everyone else wanted me to go to Tartarus, but he refused. He thought that I didn't deserve to go there. Granted, I don't deserve any Elysian fields, but he just wouldn't let me go to that awful place. He said that the best he could do for me was to make me his servant for all eternity. I gladly accepted, but now I was terrified of him. Mortals had so many stories about how dreadful he is, but he has shown me nothing but kindness" By now Ariel was finished dressing Persephone. "He is a good man, you have nothing to fear of him Mi'lady" Persephone took in all this new information.

"I am so sorry Ariel. You had to go through all that. I cannot imagine the pain you must have gone through."

"It's alright. It's in the distant past. And besides, they're all paying for their crimes now."

"How old were you?"

"Fifteen."

"Oh my goodness."

"Like I said, it's in the past. Now," Ariel said on a lighter note. "Look at how beautiful you are.

Persephone turned around to find a beautiful woman standing in front of her. She wore the violet dress and her hair down, but clipped out of her face. "I look amazing Ariel. You did so well!"

"Thank you mi'lady. Now all we have to do is wait for Lord Hades to collect you."

Not too long lady later there was a soft knock at her door. "come in!" Persephone called. Lord Hades stepped through and stopped dead in his tracks. Persephone took his breath away once again. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. "Mi'lady," He said clearing his throat. "You look wonderful."

Persephone blushed. "Thank you Hades."

He nodded, smiling. "You may go now Ariel." He said gently turning to her. "You may go relax until I call for you."

Ariel gave a small curtsy. "Thank you mi'lord." She gave a small nod to Persephone and left the room. Hades turned to Persephone giving her his full attention. "You really do look amazing mi'lady" Persephone blushed. She loved it when Hades called her that. No one had ever called her that. He made her feel important. He is so different from all the other gods. I really like it. He seems to actually care about me and not anything else that could benefit him. He is amazing. Persephone thought.

Hades, of course, read her mind, but he did not show any signs of it. "Alright mi'lady," He started, "would you like to start our tour?" He asked giving his hand out to her. She replied with a large white smile. "Yes, I would like that very much." She said accepting his offered hand.

She took note on how he held her hand through the palace. He held her firmly, but gently. He gave her this sense of security whenever she was with him.

He talked though out the whole tour of his palace, explaining each room to her. He showered her the grand court room last. "Oh my goodness Hades, It's beautiful!"

"Yes, I suppose it is."

"It is so much bigger than the court at Olympus."

He smiled at her. "Yes it is. I don't enjoy it to be cramped, though sometimes it feels empty.

"Yes, I can see how it could. Maybe you could try plants. You could put in some lovely decorations like flowers to help it seem less empty."

"That's a good idea."

"Thank you…" She smiled.

"Lord Hades." A tall young man with unruly looking brown hair and beautiful brown eyes, entered the room. "Your horses are ready."

"Yes thank you Daniel."

The shade gave us a bow and left the room.

"Horses?" Persephone asked.

"Why of course." Hades replied. "You didn't think I was only going to show you the palace did you? There is so much more to the underworld than just that."

"Alright then. I can't wait."

Thunder rolled through the asphodel fields. The souls that wandered the fields looked up in amazement. Zeus had no power here. How is the thunder here? The sound was then joined by laughter and joyful cries. All of their attention turned to see Lord Hades himself accompanied by a young girl racing through the fields.

They went by in a blur. The souls then figured out that it was not thunder of weather, but the thunder of the horses' hooves across the ground. They all shook their heads and went back to their business.

Out of breath, Persephone leaped off of the ginger colored mare and collapsed onto the lush green grass in the shade underneath a mighty oak tree. Hades smiled at her and looked upon her in amazement. He then followed her lead by getting off of his black stallion, and lying on the ground next to her. He let his gaze fall onto her once again. She had her eyes closed and her hair was spread out around her. He watched the way her chest rose and fell as she tried to catch her breath.

He shook his head. Again with those pesky thoughts. He turned to face her on his side. "Alright mi'lady," he started. She opened her eyes and turned to mirror his position. "Now you have seen the asphodel fields, what do you think?"

"I love them! They're beautiful! I don't see how people think that the underworld is a horrible place."

"That's because people think that the whole place will be like Tartarus."

"Tartarus? I've heard it mentioned, but I don't know what that is."

Hades took a breath. "Tartarus is the worst place anyone can end up. It's dark, gloomy, and evil. It's the place where horrible souls go, if they deserve it."

"Who all goes there? What type of people?"

Hades took another breath. "Abusers, rapists, murderers. People who've disgraced the gods. The list is endless, but I guess those are the most popular."

She nodded. "How many times have you gone there?"

"Too many. I never go there by choice. I only go there when I have to."

"Hmm… I also heard the Elysian Fields? What are those?"

He smiled at her. This is a place he'd love to see. "The Elysian Fields. That, mi'lady is a wonderful place. It is where everything is good and pure. No worries about anything. Only mortals who've never done anything horrible can ever go there. Not even I can go there. But as far as I know, it's the most wonderful place that has ever been created."

"That sounds amazing Hades."

He shivered when she said his name. Her voice was sweet like honey and made him physically weak.

Hades then remembered something very important. "Mi'lady, Persephone, please forgive me, I almost forgot. You cannot eat anything that is grown down here. If you do, you'll be stuck down here forever. I thought I should tell you before we made that mistake."

She looked at him in wonder and smiled. "Thank you Hades. You could've easily fed me and I'd be stuck down here forever and I wouldn't even know it. You, Hades, are the most wonderful and most honest person I've ever met." They held a gaze in each other's eyes for what seemed like hours. He wanted her, more than anything he's ever wanted in his entire existence. He then noticed that she was directing a thought to him. Why don't you just kiss me Hades? He smiled at her and she smiled back, knowing that what she did worked. He scooted closer to her and placed one hand on the small of her back and held her small body against his. His hand was on one of her bigger bruises and she felt pain, but didn't care. She was about to kiss the most amazing person in the world. He leaned into her and the moment their lips touched, something magical opened up between them. And they knew that this was the beginning of something magical.

There it is! Hope y'all enjoyed it! Thanks for reading and please Favorite, Follow, and review! It helps a lot! Talk to Y'all later! Bye! =D