Chapter 3 : Girl Talk
"Hecate... Aidoneus is...actually Lord Hades." The blonde froze, violet eyes watching the passive brunette as they walked through the gardens. Persephone's was on the furthest edge of the cloud kingdom, the darkest parts that, with Zephyrus's help, brought rain to the humans below. Her plants didn't need as much light to survive and thrived with the abundant water stored. The spring goddess' daisies looked a little slumpy to indicate her current mood. "My mother had already told me what he looked like as part of her 'all men are terrible and this is why you should stay away from them' rant. But he didn't seem as terrible as she said so why? Why did he lie to me?"
The goddess of witches and magic chuckled. "Child, he did not lie. The other five gods and goddesses of the Big Six all know their brother by that name but choose to call him by that name as he is the eldest. They may seem like they are making fun of his dark demeanor now but it did start out as a sort of...respect. However isolating that respect is." She sat upon a bench bathed in the moon's glow and motioned for Persephone to sit beside her. "I believe he gave you that name so that he would no longer be separated from everyone. He desires closeness, someone to interact with him on a kinder level."
"A friend?" The smile she received was all the confirmation she needed and her daisies disappeared, white roses taking their place. "...I didn't believe all the rumors, what my mother said about him. I mean, I know he isn't innocent and there has to be some kernels of truth in what they all say but..." She looked down at the back of her hand, green eyes softening as she remembered the feel of his lips upon her skin. So gentlemanly... and though he was warned about young women staying on guard at all times, Aidoneus hadn't done anything untoward to her. He had helped her, talked with her, and seemed to enjoy her company as much as she did his. So perhaps they both were lonely and could benefit from this potential friendship. "I want to get to know him better. And maybe...we can at least be friends..."
But was that what Persephone wanted? She had a few friends already but none of them had made her feel like she had when Aidoneus had escorted her to her grove, the tingles she experienced when those dark lips touch the back of her hand. She was too inexperienced to know exactly what she wanted. For now, she would play it by ear and learn more about this infamous yet misunderstood god.
"Hey Seph~" The smooth sound of his voice sent shivers down her spine and her light tanned cheeks reddened as she turned to see the confident Lord of the dead with hesitation in his eyes. She saw him look at Hecate then back to her.
She giggled softly along with the witch goddess, the older goddess' form shifting to the body of an older lady. She gave a gentle bow to him before rising off the bench. "My lord... if you would please keep Lady Persephone company, I need to take a look at her dark garden. I will take samples to experiment with at home... have a good night, you two~" And she swept out of the area and into the darkness, leaving the spring goddess in the company of her polar opposite.
xx.xx
High above the unlikely pair, a slender god with golden curls and light blue eyes watched the scene with curiosity and a self-satisfied smirk on his face. White feathered wings fluttered as he watched Hades and Persephone quietly speak. It was too soon to imagine their whispers were of sweet nothings and love poems (AS IF!) but it was still so cute. A blind god could see how much the two already cared for each other. He had a sixth sense about the desires of the human heart. Really, his mother would be proud of him for setting up the bachelor god of the Underworld with a goddess so suppressed that she would have ended up taking the virgin oath simply because her mother demanded it.
"What did you do, Eros?" He turned to see his mother, Aphrodite, watching him with those dark blue orbs of hers. He grinned at her raised blond eyebrow and tapping foot.
"You mean, what have I done? Which, just saying, was done half a month ago. It's not like Hades didn't already have a thing for Persephone. And she enjoyed his company, platonic mind you, so it shouldn't matter if I used an arrow... they would have gotten together eventually anyway..."
Aphrodite sighed and rubbed her temple. "...what's done is done... but what about Demeter?"
He shrugged with a huff. Woman had to cut the cord sometime. "What about Psyche, Mother? I think Demeter isn't the only overbearing mom around these clouds. You got used to her after giving her Hell. And I tried to stay away but love triumphs all. I believe I gave these two soulmates their best chance...but only the Fates know the outcome." The pink-skinned goddess couldn't deny that but decided to use her own abilities to help the secluded girl discover her true feelings. She would just have to take things slow.
