Ok peeps, same deal third story (and it's a good one!) ok, fifth if you want to get technical about it… I don't own Disney's Hercules (unfortunately) but Persephone, Thanatos and all the other original characters and places that pop-up belong to me…

This story takes things from both the film and the series while it also contains some carrying themes from it's forerunners; Plight of Persephone & Daddy's Little Hellraiser (plus a few things from both short stories too) so read them first…

Little hint: if you haven't read it's forerunners then you will get confused because some things that have happened in past fics are coming back in this fate-filled fic..

And a little reminder… Disney twisted a lot of myths for their storylines so I have to do some minor tweaking of my own to make this work…

enjoy x


DakraixCresselia: From what I understand out of his dozens of children the only ones that Zeus had anything to do with during their childhood were Athena, Ares, Apollo, Artemis, Hebe, and Hermes (only because he stole Apollo's cows during the first week of his life) he had absolutely nothing to do with the rest of his children while they were kids. Zeus actually has some valid reasons for distrusting Thanatos which will be coming into the story but, yeh, right now he just looks like a jerk… it's kind of a reverse polarity of the Hercules film where Hades had no just reason to hate Hercules other than he was in the way.. Wow, you would ask to see the awkward-as-sin pair wouldn't you? LoL, I'll give it a go but father and son take ages to draw so it might be awhile before it's posted on deviant 'kay? X

November Lynneus Oradot: Yeh, I was laughing too! I was trying to find a very crude description of breast milk and I don't know why but 'boob slime' popped right into my head! XD

AngelOfDarkness1959: Yay! Love for Demeter! I just loved the way Florance Anderson made her so warm and matronly in the series and I wanted to keep her that way. She always seems to get a bad rap from everybody in their fanfics (i dunno why, maybe she's an easy villian) but I have a hard time imagining someone that nutruring and kind would be able to hold a grudge against a man who loved her child almost as much as she did... and from what i can find out in myth she was very active in the upbringing of her first grandchild so she wasn't all bad was she?

DisneyPrincess: Like I said still figuring it out but the identity of Than's mentors will give you another clue x

liliesandroses: Glad your enjoying the story hun!


The Importance of Thanatos

Chapter Seven:The Mysteries of Eleusis.. part one..

As the season changed from summer to autumn and the number of souls coming into the Underworld increased Hades and his wife switched places, meaning that now Persephone was looking after little Thanatos while Hades was out at work. It was hard for the fiery Lord of the Dead to let go of his child minding duties at first. He had spent the last six months in the constant company of his infant son and the time had just flown by so fast that he was disappointed when the time had come for him to get back to work. In the mornings he would rise and get his golden-flamed son dressed and fed before disappearing off to deal with the Underworld.

Thanatos too seemed to find the situation unfamiliar at first but the flame-haired infant deity adjusted quickly, revelling in all this new attention from his mommy and her three minions. It stung Hades a bit when the little godling began crying for 'muh-mee' instead of him and it really put Pain and Panic's noses right out of joint when their little boss called their girly counterparts 'Sy-wins' as they were still known as 'iddy-yutz'.

After Thanatos' unsuccessful trip up to Olympus both Underworld rulers were unsure that introducing him to dozens of mindless initiates of the Eleusian Mysteries was a good idea. However since the flame-haired little godling was now as much a part of the Mysteries as they were they knew that the people honouring them at least deserved at least a small glimpse of the divine child they would one day invoke… once he had a purpose that is.

This meant that for the first time since it's inception six years ago when Hades and Persephone had first married they were to attend the Eleusian Harvest Festival, or as the fiery God of the Dead preferred to call it: Ten Days of Torture.

Demeter had been thrilled to learn that her subterranean family, however grudgingly, were to attend the full ten days of the festivities and she started getting things ready, which included losing the yearly dramatization of the Underworld couple's meeting…the last thing the green-skinned Goddess of Nature wanted was another explosive outburst from Hades. Demeter was also insisting that they stayed with her on Sicily for the duration of the festivities, after all there was so much going on it was pointless to make the long journey every night to the Underworld.

The Lord of the Underworld wasn't too keen on this suggestion, leaving the imps and Sirens alone in the Underworld for ten days straight sounded like an accident waiting to happen. Sure the five of them had now long since buried their minion rivalry, apparently Hecate's long dead minions had something to do with that, and they had also proved that they were trustworthy of such a gruelling task Hades still wasn't happy about leaving them alone unsupervised. He probably could have gotten Hecate to watch over them, since she was now an underling of the Underworld regime she could easily watch the realm while he and his wife were away, but again considering the circumstances surrounding her submission to Hades the fiery god figured it was too soon to entrust her with such a position. It could tempt her back into her old ways again and he really didn't want to risk that, he was actually starting to like the witch.

Since joining the ranks of the Underworld Hecate had been assigned the job of tracking down lost souls and guiding them back to the Underworld. It wasn't a particularly strenuous job and it was one she could do easily during her night time wanderings on the surface, being a Goddess of the Crossroads it was the perfect job for her. She could direct lost souls to the Underworld while still leading lost and weary travellers to their doom. The pale-violet-skinned goddess counted herself very lucky that her new 'mistress' was very considerate of her divine duties, had it been Hades who she was serving under Hecate would no doubt be under a much more rigorous management style. The fiery god was renowned in the Underworld for being notoriously difficult to please.

Finally after much deliberation on the subject Hades came to the conclusion that he would risk leaving the imps and Sirens alone, however they were to report to him with daily updates on Underworld business, his paperwork was to be redirected to Demeter's home on Sicily and on no account were they to make any executive decisions on anything. He might not be there but he was still in command.


In no time at all the fourteenth of September rolled around and it was time to leave for the Eleusian Festivities. Persephone was getting their son ready and the Sirens were packing up the various bits he'd need for his ten-day trip to the surface. Hades meanwhile was finishing off their own packing.

'Alright.. toothbrushes.. mouthwash.. razor-blade.. Old Spice..' Hades uncorked the bottle of cologne and slapped a little on his face making his blue flames flare briefly. '-a personal favourite of mine..' The fiery god dropped it into the black trunk along with his wife's bottle of flowery perfume and a few other knick-knacks she'd need while on the surface. He then turned to the bed and picked up his pile of chitons and placed them in before turning back and picking up his wife's considerably larger pile.

'What the-?' Hades sounded confused counting at least fifteen chitons on the pile, they were only away for a week and a half.

'Yo Seph..' He swivelled his flaming head around to the open door of their bedroom and looking straight into the bedroom of his son where his wife was. '-how many chitons do ya need? We're only going for ten freakin' days..'

'Well, I don't know what I'll feel like wearing so it's best to take a few options..' Persephone's girly voice floated back over to him and the fiery god rolled his eyes.

'Yeesh babe I'm only takin' five sets, ya got enough here to last ya a month. I mean..' Hades then flashed orange for a instant before throwing her a confused and irritated look. '-c'mon your not even gonna wear half this stuff..'

'Look, just put it in the trunk and quit kvetchin' already..' Persephone's voice had a bite of impatience about it now and Hades' eyes narrowed at it.

'Fine..' Hades sounded in a falsely airy voice with a flippant wave of his wrist while dumping her chitons unceremoniously into the trunk. '-ya want me to pack anything else while we're at it, like the kitchen sink?' Hades sounded with mock-sarcasm. Persephone crossed over the thresholds of the two bedrooms carrying both Thanatos and the black shoulder bag the Sirens had packed with all his stuff inside. The white-skinned goddess raised a brow and smirked playfully at her husband.

'Oh stop bein' a jerk..' Persephone sounded lightly depositing Thanatos onto the large bed along with his bag. The little godling instantly began babbling happily and waggled Mr Skelton happily.

'And I thought that's why ya married me..' Hades drawled lazily rolling his eyes innocently upwards as his wife turned to the trunk and blinked at the jumbled mess inside.

'Hmm, well it wasn't your packing abilities that charmed me..' She sounded dryly before straightening everything out so it all sat neatly before packing up their night chitons and closing the lid.

'Got everything you need your most illustrious ones?' Pain's voice sounded as he and his other four partners appeared in the room.

'Sure do..' Hades smirked brightly before adding in an undertone directed at his wife. '-unless Sephy can think of anything else she needs..' Persephone only rolled her eyes at her husband's immature dig before turning to the minions.

'Nope, I'm all good..' She sounded with a smile and examined her long purple-painted nails.

'Ok, great..' Hades slapped his palms together and rubbed then eagerly. '-now I just wanna run over a few things with you five so that we're all clear on the score for the next ten days alright..' The two imps and three Sirens nodded enthusiastically and threw their boss matching smiles.

'Ok, number one, if there's a stiff that's not gettin' with the program whadda ya do..' Panic instantly bounced on the spot flailing his arm knowing the answer.

'Ooh, ooh..' He sounded impatiently before answering with a wide toothy leer. '-don't ask questions just jam him in the Styx.'

'Correct and if there's an arrival for Tartarus?' Hades raised a brow questioningly.

'Oh, I know, I know..' Pain sounded keenly. '-lock him up in the holding jail and inform you of his arrival!' The pink imp grinned.

'Exactly, I'll find a punishment for 'em when I get back..' The fiery god drawled.

'Heh, I think they've got it sweetie..' Persephone interrupted lightly while tapping her husband's long chin, he had been drumming in these instructions constantly for the passed week and their minions knew it by heart.

'Hey, just makin' sure..' Hades drawled lightly with a casual shrug. '-luck favours the prepared 'kay..' Persephone then picked up little Thanatos and slung his overnight bag on top of their chest before turning back to her husband.

'Yeh that's fine sweetie but c'mon, we gotta go I wanna be in Athens before the Sacred Artefacts arrive from Eleusis..' The white-skinned goddess sounded keenly.

'Ok let's blaze sugar, we gotta whole festival up there waitin' for, hey.. you..' Hades drawled carelessly as he snapped his fingers causing the large black wooden trunk with all their clothes in it and Thanatos' bag of clothes to Demeter's house on Sicily. 'Oh..' Hades' eyes widened as he looped an arm around his wife's waist, remembering something important he turned back to the imps. 'Don't forget to-' A swirl of white and blue orbs began circling the two gods at this point causing all three Underworld deities to vanish off as the fiery god's disembodied voice continued. '-feed Cerberus three undead a day..'

'Can do your flamefulness..' Pain sounded as he and his partners waved off their bosses cheerfully. The moment the orbs had dissipated both Pain and Panic grinned widely at each other… a whole ten days without Hades pushing them around?

This was gonna be sweeet...


As the Eleusis Harvest Festival got underway Hades was almost praying for the day he and his family would return to their simple and secluded home. The reason Hades had no temple of his own was not because he didn't want one but because he didn't wish to be constantly bombarded with requests from needy whiny mortals with no intuition of their own. The fiery god was a very private god and every prayer that popped telepathically into his head was considered an invasion of his privacy, unless of course he could wheedle something for himself out of it but that rarely came up these days..

The celebrations had started with a parade from Eleusis to Athens with each of the little farming settlements in between adding to it until the procession reached the big city. Nymphs and satyrs would dance and play pipes as the horse-drawn floats made their way to the Eleusinian Temple where the Sacred Artefacts would be entrusted to the curator and two priestesses chosen by Demeter herself for the task, of course their names were forbidden to be uttered outside the Mysteries.

The floats themselves were statue likenesses of Demeter and her two children, surrounded by things that the mortals associated with them; i.e. Demeter was surrounded by corn, barley and other vegetables and she was usually holding her customary Horn of Plenty, Persephone was surrounded by fresh fruits and golden ears of wheat and the couple with Bacchus either had wine, grapes and ivy vines wrapped around him.

The gods themselves watched the procession approach from above the temple and Thanatos, who had never seen anything quite like it was enraptured by the bright colours and gleeful noises of the mortals below, the Harvest parade truly was a magical time for an infant godling. He had yet to be introduced to the mortals at this point but in the time he had been on the surface his eyes had adjusted to the daylight enough for him to enjoy the sights and sounds of Athens, although he remained in the shade where the light barely touched him.

The next few days the mortals who had been initiated into the Lesser Mysteries during the Spring Celebrations would gather in the Eleusinian Temple and prepare for their purification and first communion. This was a time of meditation and reflection, under spiritual exercise they were to get their mind, body and soul ready for purification, they were to be washed so they could live just and true. Although none of the gods really needed to be present for this section of the celebrations they used the time for their own meditations seeking merely peace of mind rather than clarity. Even Hades, who's mind was usually a constant drone of afterlife regulations, self-set deadlines and quarterly targets, was offered a brief spell of release from his anxieties concerning the Underworld and how it was suffering under the imps' clumsy care. For the first time since arriving on the surface the fiery god found himself truly beginning to enjoy himself.


While his parents were off seeking inner peace Thanatos was left in the care of his chief babysitter Hermes. The skinny blue Messenger God was one of the few gods outside the family that the golden-flamed godling regarded with fondness and Hermes was more than happy to reciprocate his feelings. The tiny blue god had always been on friendly terms with the other gods and over the years he'd gotten to know many of their children but he'd never been so attached to them as he was to Thanatos, not even Hercules.

In a way the son of Hades reminded Hermes of his younger self. Thanatos was a precocious child, he was already talking and close to cutting his first baby steps, with a mischievous nature and an already well-developed innocent guise. It was true that by Thanatos' age Hermes had already been walking, talking and master-minding the theft of Apollo's finest cattle but this flame-haired little deity was well on his way to becoming a great trickster god, all he needed was the right mentor.

The blue Messenger had made no request to become Thanatos' mentor, he knew that Hades would probably be looking for a different kind of deity to mentor his son and besides the honour should go to Bacchus since he was Thanatos' uncle.

To keep the little godling amused Hermes took him along with him as he ran a few errands for a few gods. A couple of memos, some divine updates and guiding a few stray souls down to the Styx for Charon, nothing too demanding. Thanatos squealed out with delight as they zipped through the air. Usually the speed that the blue Messenger God moved at caused godly stomachs to do all kinds of crazy gymnastics but it didn't phase the infant son of Hades. In fact the faster Hermes moved and the more times he loop-de-looped the better Thanatos liked it. The tiny blue Messenger God knew that he would probably be told off by both Demeter and Persephone for jerking Thanatos around in this unsafe manner but it was worth it just to see him laugh with his infectious little baby chortles. The few gods that they met on their travels were pleased to see little Thanatos. Poseidon who had received a scroll from Demeter concerning her celebrations even bounced the godling keenly. Unlike his older brother Zeus the Ruler of the Seas was always pleased to see his little nephew and when his own newborn 'small fry' Proteus was a little older he would talk to Hades about introducing the two of them..


As the evening of the fourth night of the Harvest Celebrations came to a close both Hades and Persephone were sprawled out on the thatch roof of Demeter's farmhouse cottage waiting for the stars and their many constellations to appear. Below them they could hear the joyous laughter of their son as Hermes was playing with him.

Hades merely stretched out lazily and wrapped one arm around his wife's shoulders, rubbing them absent-mindedly to project some heat into her cold limbs. The last few days had given the god a long-needed chance to reflect on things and he had gained some perspective. He was definitely not going to worry about the state of Underworld affairs until he was back down in the big basement, if anything he should view this as a vacation, the Fates only knew how long over-due he was for one of those. He'd even flitted back and forth to work when he was supposed to be on his honeymoon seven years ago. Anyway it was only the beginning of autumn, how much damage could the imps really do?

The fiery god rolled his round eyes idly around to his wife who was watching the first of the constellations twinkle into view as Nyx weaved her magic across the sky. Virgo, her own likeness which had been created by Zeus as an apology to Demeter seven years ago, was the first one to glitter brightly against the inky indigo night. It was always the first star cluster to appear at this time of year and it's appearance marked the beginning of autumn.

'Y'know..' Hades murmured softly as his eyes wandered back to the stars. '-I've been thinking about Than's mentors..' This made Persephone's blonde head swivel around to him.

'Oh.' She sounded gently watching her husband curiously as his eyes flickered over the stars.

'Do we really need two?' The fiery god eventually turned his gaze back to her. 'I mean, I know it's tradition an' all but do ya think it's necessary?' The white-skinned goddess only smiled at her husband sweetly.

'Hey, you're the head honcho here not me..' She sounded lightly and shrugging. '-do you think our son needs two mentors?' Her brow raised questioningly and the fiery god's lips twisted into wide twisted smirk.

'Hey, I was just askin' for your opinion..' He replied in a warm tone.

'-and I appreciate that but I trust you..' Persephone interjected still smiling.

'Then honestly..' Hades sounded musing on the subject for a moment. 'No. I think Than would do just fine with one.' His white-skinned wife smiled at this.

'Then one mentor is all he'll get.' Persephone sounded happily, she then snuggled closer to her husband trying to stay warm against the cold night air. 'So who did you have in mind?' She added lightly resting her head against her husband's chin.

'I dunno..' Hades responded slightly then his attention was drawn down by the sound of Hermes' voice.

'Alright shorty, I think it's time you hit the sack whadda you say little man?'

'No.' Thanatos' tired little voice instantly responded. Hades wasn't sure where Thanatos had learnt to say that, probably from the imps objecting to being called 'iddy-yutz'.

'Yeh, well unfortunately it's not up to you so c'mon, let's go.' Hermes continued in a light friendly voice but despite his objection Thanatos seemed to let the blue god take him off to bed, just proving how tired he really was.

'But y'know..' The fiery god continued once more once everything was quiet again. '-Hermes is always an option..' In response to this Persephone kissed her husband's full blue lips before snuggling down once more to watch the stars.


Little Notes:

Ok, wow… this is still pretty long and it's only half of what the chapter size was originally going to be! Hence the quick update as this is technically half of one chapter. I've got a real horrible cold again and unfortunately it's my day off so I'm stuck at home furiously typing away to save myself from insanity and the inevitable frustration of the fact that, once again I am stuck at home on my day off with one stinker of a cold… why do they only come when I'm off? Xb

Ahem… enough venting..

After much research I finally found some information on the Mysteries of Eleusis which of course is the celebration of Demeter, Persephone and Bacchus (or Iacchos). The whole thing is about suffering and rebirth, a bit like a spiritual re-enactment of Persephone's journey to and back from the Underworld and there are many bits that echo Easter in Christian religion (the Mysteries were basically a religion themselves) with communion and purification.. I felt the need to write this chapter as the Mysteries were such a huge part of Demeter and Persephone lives that never seems to get written about or is maybe a passing mention in peoples stories… the details are easy enough to find and I urge any fans of Hades and Persephone to check it out! I'm trying to stay as true as I can but as usual I've added bits and altered facts to suit my needs… the rest of the Eleusian Mysteries will be in the next chapter.

Ok the constellation of Virgo was crated by Zeus after Hades and Persephone left for the Underworld so that Demeter could always look upon her daughter while she was away, it was such a nice piece of myth that I thought it would be an appropriate way for Zeus to apologise for his behaviour during P.o.P.

I'm not giving away anything on Than's mentor yet all I'll say is your in for a surprise… so stay tuned!

Lot's of Love… Ditzy X