Chapter XIV Hades

Cerberus was saying something in his sleep. I couldn't understand the words—it was some language I'd never heard before. I figured it was the same thing he had been dreaming about earlier.

I sat by the bed, waiting for him to wake up. Cadmean, his sister, had left with Dionysus. Apparently, he'd been the one who had invited her here.

Apollo walked in from his bathroom, a fluffy towel wrapped around his waist.

"What do you think I should wear?" He asked me, noticing I was still here.

"How am I supposed to know? I'm not your lover." I told him, trying to be playful.

I saw the corners of his lips curve up. "I guess I should be happy you're not, correct?" He asked me.

"Why's that? I can't be that bad." I told him.

He turned around, looking at Cerberus. He knew something.

"What's wrong?" I asked him, almost not wanting to hear the answer.

"Nothing, Cerberus is fine. It's just taking him a while to wake up." Apollo explained.

"What do you think happened?" I asked him.

"What do I think?" He repeated, as if making sure he understood the question. "I think that he was sleep deprived and trying to push himself to please you. He was probably not taking care of himself well enough, and no sleep and no nourishment resulted in his body trying to care of one of the problems." Apollo explained. He walked over to his table and poured a glass of Ambrosia. "Here, give this to him when he wakes up. It should help with any issues."

I took the glass from my nephew. "I won't ever be able to say how thankful I am for you." I told him.

He shrugged, walking back over to his closet. "I feel like warm colors, what do you think?" He asked me, taking out some clothes.

"Whatever you think. I still don't understand why you're asking me though." I told him.

"Because you're here and I'd normally ask Artemis, but all the girls are getting ready together today." He made moved a blonde lock out of his face.

"You and Artemis are very close. I wish me and my siblings were that close." I told him.

Apollo shrugged again. "Sometimes, it's a bad thing, you know. I can't be with a girl around Artemis because she'll feel it. It embarrasses her, you know, to be able to read all of my thoughts and I hers." He explained.

"Oh," that was all I could really come up with.

"Anyways, I have to go get dressed." He told me, going back into his bathroom.

A groan escaped Cerberus's lips a moment later. I turned around, wondering if he was having another nightmare.

He blinked his eyes. "Hades?" he said softly as he woke up, clearly drowsy. "Where am I?"

"You're in Apollo's room." I told him, taking his hand in mine. "Are you alright?" I asked him.

He used my hand to help himself sit up. "I'll live," he said weakly, trying to smile.

I handed him the goblet. "Drink this," I told him.

He brought the goblet to his lips, drinking it hesitantly. He avoided my gaze as he drank the whole goblet.

"Have you missed the party because of me?" He asked.

"No, it hasn't even started yet." I told him.

He smiled. "That's good…I'd hate it if you missed an opportunity to be with your family because of me." He admitted.

I shrugged. My family wasn't the highest thing on my list of priorities. At this exact moment, it was seeing that Cerberus was going to be all right.

"They don't matter," I told him softly.

He looked at me with those maroon eyes, probably wondering if he'd heard me right. I shrugged and got up.

"You still want to go?" I asked him, extending my hand.

"Of course, you and Hyenna got all dressed up." He said, taking my hand to help himself up. He leaned against me for a moment, trying to get his balance. I was happy to be there for him.

I opened the door the two of us about to walk out, when Hera nearly ran right into us. She stopped herself right in front of Cerberus, her hair half out of its complex braid and her cheeks flushed.

"Hi," she said softly, looking just at him.

"Hi," he responded, looking uncomfortable.

"How are you?" She asked him.

"Alive and breathing," he told her.

"Well, sometimes that's the best thing we can hope for. Is Apollo still here?" She asked.

"Yeah, he's getting changed." I told her.

"Thanks," she said, walking past Cerberus. Looking over her shoulder, she spoke again. "See you guys later." She told us.

I still had to support my friend down the hall. We were about to walk into the celebration hall when he took his arm off me. "Thanks," he said softly, looking rather embarrassed.

"Cerberus…" I said his name just to get his attention. "I'd do that for you, again." I said.

His cheeks became as red as a rose. "I-"

"Hades!" I spun around to see Artemis pulling Hyenna behind her. I smiled at the sight of it. My niece spoke again. "I think that you need to say something to someone." She said, her chest heaving as if she'd just run a mile.

I looked over Hyenna, then at Artemis again. "The two of you look like the most beautiful things in the galaxy—Eos's rays and Gaia's moon," I told them.

My niece blushed scarlet, letting go of Hyenna's hand. She came closer to me, biting her lower lip. "Do you really think that?" My love asked me.

"Of course I think that, love." I said as she stepped so she was less than a foot away from me. I couldn't resist gently kissing her forehead. "You're so beautiful," I told her.

"Let's go in," she told me, taking my hand and smiling. We walked into the Celebration hall together, and for the first time since right after the war with the Titans, I felt complete.

Author's Note: This is the first part of what I like to consider the "Party." It's pretty much the first chapter in an important bit of the story. I hope everyone's enjoying it so far! Please review so I know what ya'll like : )

~HolleringHawk65