"Y/n, y/n, I cant let you go through with this." Your father spoke as he clung to your arms, his voice shaky. He was still on the ground near the wagon, but was much less shocked by this point, "I'm old, I dont have long anyways. Get your soul back and let me go... dont give your life away to Hades."
You sighed as you looked as your father. You knew he cared deeply for you, but you wanted him to live. And if that meant selling your soul to Hades then so be it, "Dad no no, I- I cant have you die. I need you." you whispered, tears still in your eyes from before, "I- I'll figure out a way to make this work."
Your father's eyes filled with tears before he pulled you into a tight hug... well as tight as he could anyways, "I cant loose you to a god like him." he whispered in a shake voice as he held you close.
You hugged back as tears began to fill your eyes again. Were you gonna see him again? How was this gonna play out? Hades was known to be a swindling conman god... He could really do anything now that he had your soul. "I'll make this work, dad." you whispered as you held tears back, "I'll see you again just- promise you wont come after me." you decided to say. It wouldnt be a great idea for your father to get Hades upset... it might just wreck everything even more.
"But- y/n, I cant just let him take you." he whispered as he leaned back a bit, "He's going to take away your freedom."
You sighed at that. You were never going to be free again, were you? "We should get home..." you decided to say as you began to help you father stand up.
Your father looked up at you with tears in his eyes, "I dont wanna give you up, y/n."
"Dad you're not giving me up, okay? I- Look, its not like I'll be there forever. I'm sure he'll let me go at some point." You assured him with a small smile... though really, you weren't sure if he would ever let you go. You sighed before you began to walk with your father down the dirt road, "I promise I'll figure out how to get out of this..." you whispered as you glanced over to him.
--
You sat your father down on his bed, knowing he was probably still weak. He did just get resurrected after all.
"Are you okay?" You asked as you sat down beside your father
"I'm fine, y/n..." he muttered back to you, "I just- Please, I cant have my daughter work for Hades. Y/n, let him take me, and go live your life." your father looked over to you and clasped your hands, "I cant loose you like I lost your mother." he whispered as you noticed his eyes beginning to water.
You pressed your lips together at that, your own eyes beginning to brim with tears, "I won't be gone forever... I'm sure I'll see you again."
"But what if you don't?" he whispered as he kept your hands clasped with his, "What if-"
You took a breath before cutting him off, "I'll be fine, dad... as long as your alive, I can work with this." you whispered as you looked down at your old father. You really didn't want to leave him, but you needed to get to the Underworld bright and early tomorrow... Wait. How the heck would you even get down there? You just brushed the thought off cause, well, you didnt need to worry about that until tomorrow anyways. For now... you needed to take care of your father.
You patted his hand before taking a deep breat, forcing a smile onto your face, though your eyes were still filled with sorrow, "How about I get you some food, dad? I'm sure your hungry after coming back from the dead and all."
"Oh.. y/n, you really dont-" he started to protest before you cut him off with a few tsk's.
"You need to eat, dad, you'll get weak if you dont." you replied with a tilt of your head before standing up abruptly. Suddenly, your vision went black for a second... bad idea. You stood up a bit too fast. You shook your head to snap out of it before looking down at your father, "I'm going to make you something, and you're going to eat it. I don't want you to stop eating when I- when I'm gone." you decided to say as you crossed your arms.
Your father sighed at that as he looked up at you. He frowned a bit before nodding slightly, "Okay... I just don't want you to have to take care of me on your last day here."
A small smile formed on your lips as you looked down at your father. You were really gonna miss him... but it was worth it if that meant he got to stay alive. "Dad, I've been taking care of you for years. I wouldnt want to waste my last day here by not doing just that." you said with a small, confident smile, "I'll be back with your food." you nodded before walking out of the room.
You walked downstairs to the kitchen and... well, lets just say you weren't the best cook. You bit your lip as you glanced around the kitchen. what were you supposed to make for him? Toast? No... No, that wasn't good enough. You decided to look around again and... oooh. On the counter, there was a basket full of fresh vegetables. You could always make him a nice salad. Yeah, that'd work just fine. You smiled a bit to yourself as you walked over to the basket, grabbing the things you needed. Then you just moved over to open a cabinet, grabbing your father's favorite salad dressing.
You quickly whipped up what you assumed was a nice salad. It was decent at least, but let's be honest... You weren't exactly the best cook. Though, hey, it was pretty good considering it was made by someone who usually avoids the kitchen. You grabbed the bowl of salad before making your way back up the stairs. As you were walking up, your foot got caught on one of the steps. You tripped and fell with a thud before- oh shoot. Oh no no no. You groaned as you sat up, looking at the spilled salad. It was all over the steps and... in your hair as well. You huffed as you rubbed your now sore face. Ow.
You wiped the salad into the bowl before standing up to walk back into the kitchen. Well, so much for a nice salad. A sigh escaped your nose as you tossed the vegetables into the trash, and just set the bowl in the sink. Well... what now? You had used all the vegetables except for... radishes. You scrunched up your nose a bit at that. No way you were making anything with those nasty little red vegetables. You sighed before just deciding on making a yogurt bowl. Sure, it wasn't as good as that salad, but at least it was food.
You kept a firm grip on the bowl as you walked upstairs again, focusing on trying not to trip. A small grin spread on your lips as you reached the top of the stairs without a hitch. You walked back into your father's room, and offered him the bowl, "Um... hope you like it!" you squeaked with a small, nervous grin.
Your father smiled a bit at that as he took the bowl from your hands, "Thank you, y/n..." he whispered before taking a spoonful, "You really didnt have to-"
And of course, you cut his protests of care off again, "Really, dad, I dont mind. I want to take care of you okay?"
Your father sighed at that before nodding as he swallowed, "Alright, y/n."
--
Tears welled up in your eyes as you packed your bags for tomorrow. The sun had already set, and you needed to get some rest, but of course, you needed to get ready for the coming day. You had a meeting with the devil tomorrow, and you weren't looking forward to it. Especially since he's the one who's gonna keep you away from your father. You closed your last bag with a sigh. You didn't want to leave but... you didn't exactly have a choice here, did you? Who knows what Hades would do if you went back on a deal.
You felt a few tears fall from your eyes as you piled your bags beside your bed. This was it, huh? Team Hades... He would have you help him with whatever evil schemes he was cooking up in that twisted brain of his. You grimaced a bit thinking about it. You really didn't want to help with his acts of villainy, but you wouldnt have a say in anything. He had your soul, and now he owned you. You weren't sure for how long but... You were now at the mercy of one of the most ruthless gods out there.
A huff left your mouth as you walked to your closet to grab a nightgown to sleep in tonight. It was the one thing you had left out, just so you had pajamas to sleep in tonight. You closed your door before slipping your dress off. You packed it into one of the bags before slipping the white nightgown on. And frankly, for a nightgown, it kept you quite warm. It was nice fabric, so you wouldn't have to worry about it um.. exposing anything.
You opened your door and walked into your father's room. He of course was sound asleep at this point, seeing as it was pretty late already. A smile smile spread on your lips as you approached his bed. You leaned over to kiss his head before whispering the words 'I love you.' After that, you walked back out to let him sleep. You'd say your proper goodbyes in the morning.
You looked back at him over your shoulder with tears in your eyes. You'd miss him, thats for sure. He was your father after all. You took a deep breath before walking out of his room, closing the door behind you. You made your way back to your room before flopping on the bed. As soon as your head touched the pillow, you conked out. You fell into a dreamless slumber until morning, when you were woken by the rays of the rising sun hitting your face.
You just buried your head in the pillow with a groan before... oh shoot. Hades. Shoot. You shot up and whipped your head over to the window. Shoot. He said bright and early in the morning... It must be at least eight by now. You sprang out of bed before scrambling to get changed back into your usual dress, just stuffing your nightgown into one of your bags, "Shoot, shoot, shoot-" you muttered to yourself as you packed up the bags again. You grabbed them before rushing downstairs, sitting them by the door so you could just grab them and leave. Granted they weren't very large bags but... you might need a wagon for them.
You bolted back upstairs in a mad scramble to find your sandles. Once you found them, you hopped up and down as you put one on, then the other. He was gonna kill you for being late... You rushed over to your fathers room before... tears filled up your eyes again. this was your final goodbye, huh? You quietly approached your father's bed before kneeling down beside his head, "Dad..." you whispered as you gently shook his shoulder.
He slowly woke up, his eyes fluttering open, "Y/n...?" he asked as you looked up at you
"Dad I-" you paused as you took a second to try and hold in your sobs, "I have to go."
"Go? Where are you going?" he asked, obviously still half awake.
"I made a deal with Hades, remember?" you asked as you sat a hand on his shoulder.
"No, no, dont- Dont go." he muttered as you saw tears fill his eyes, "I dont want to loose you."
Tears began to fall from your own eyes, "I know... I know, dad, I'm sorry but- I cant loose you either." you whispered through the tears, "I cant loose you."
Your father sat up before sliding out of bed, "Are you leaving now?" he asked as more tears filled his eyes.
"I have too..." you whispered as you stood up as well. More tears fell from your eyes before you both just embraced each other. Both of your eyes were watering your cheeks with tears, quiet sobs escaping your lips, "I'm sorry, dad..."
"No, no, y/n, you have nothing to be sorry about." your father replied in a shaky whisper, "You saved me..."
"But I don't want you to be alone." you whispered back with a sniffle. Gods... you really were never gonna see him again, were you?
Your father pulled back from the hug before wiping tears from his eyes, "I don't want you to be in trouble... now go." he whispered, rather reluctantly as he took a step back.
You nodded in response, "I love you, dad." you whispered as you sniffled again
"I love you too y/n." your father whispered as he continued to try to be strong for you...
You nodded again before you forced yourself to exit. You knew you'd see your father again at somepont, so why was this so hard? You wiped tears away from your eyes as you walked back downstairs. You grabbed your bags before leaving your house, finding the wagon again. You loaded the bags into there before attaching your donkey. It wasn't that heavy of a load but... it'd be heavy for you if you had to walk for a good while.
You glanced back at your house as you swallowed a lump in your throat. You sighed before climbing onto the wagon, flicking the reigns to begin to find your way to your destination. At that, a piece of paper appeared in your lap in a puff of smoke. You paused your two second ride to look at it, reading it to realize it was a map to the Underworld. Well, simple enough.
--
You had managed to find the entrance, and were now on a boat on the River Styx. You had taken note that the ferryman's name was Charon... he seemed nice enough, at least for a resident of the Underworld. He didn't talk much and was uh- Well to put it simply, he was a skeleton. You shivered a bit as you glanced back at him. His appearance was a little... unsettling to you. You decided to change your view and look at the river instead. What you saw made you recoil immediately. Souls. Great.
You grimaced a bit as you noticed how slimy they looked. Well, it was Styx after all... The famous river of souls. You leaned back in the boat a bit more so you wouldnt have to look at anything besides the boat itself.
The ride didnt last very long, and once you were dropped off, Charon was kind enough to give you directions to the throne room, where Hades was presumed to be. You thanked him before quickly making your way to where the skeleton told you to go and-
"Hold it, sister!" A slightly gruff voice yelled at you.
"M-mortals arent supposed to be down here!" Another, more timid voice spoke up, "Especially ones t-that are alive!"
You furrowed your brows at that as you glanced around, looking for the sources of the voices. Your looking was abruptly stopped as you felt a poke on your leg. You glanced down to see... two demon-like creatures; One red, one teal, "What the-" you muttered before you were cut off.
"What are you doing here, mortal?" the red creature asked you as he sat his hands on his hips.
"Y-yeah! The boss isn't gonna be happy when he finds out you're down here." The other spoke up as he crossed his arms.
You raised a brow at that, your bags still in your arms, "The boss?" you asked, rather curious.
"Hades! And you're trespassing in his territory!" the red imp spoke up once more
"Woah! Hey, I'm not trespassing!" you tried to defend yourself as your eyes widened a bit at the finger he had stuck in your face, "He um.. he took my soul and told me to come down here."
"Oh yeah? Prove it!" he said as he crossed his arms
"Um..." you furrowed your brows a bit at that. Well, there wasn't really anything for proof. Its not like he had given you a card that said 'Hades owns my soul free pass!' You huffed at that, you would have like one of those, "Alright, fine, maybe I dont have any proof, but you can ask him yourself." you said with a raise of your head. Ha, that should get em.
The imps glanced at each other, then at you, then at the room they were in front of, "Why dont you a-ask him yourself?" the teal one asked.
You furrowed your brows a bit at that, "But I thought you were trying to keep me out?"
"Well, I'm not gonna ask, he's not gonna ask so you." the purple one pointed to you as he spoke, "Are gonna ask."
You shook your head at these two. Stupid? Maybe... You just kinda slipped by them, into what seemed like a throne room with a circular table in the middle. It looked like a map of Greece with little figurines placed on it. Well, maybe Hades had a thing for action figures? You walked in a bit further as you continued to glance around the room before-
"Ah! You finally decided to show up, hm? I was beginning to think you went back on our little deal." he whispered with a small smirk.
You cleared your throat at that as you stepped in front of where the throne was placed, "Um... I... where do I put this?" you asked as you kinda just shook your arms that had your bags in them.
Hades just waved a hand, making them disappear to who knows where, "Oh dont worry about those, babe-" he muttered as he stood up, taking a few long strides to stand in front of you, "What I do need you to worry about is souls, alright? I need to you count and sort them, simple, babe. Once you're done, I'll show you to your chambers, bada bing bada boom." he said with a satisfied grin.
You furrowed your brows a bit at the sudden task, "Souls? Like... the River Styx souls?"
Hades raised a brow at that, "No, the living souls of the gods." he muttered with slightly narrowed eyes, "Yes the River Styx souls." he exclaimed with slightly orange flames.
Your eyes widened a bit before he just slid an arm around your shoulders, just making you even more uncomfortable. The smell of smoke didn't help either, "So, you think you can do that for me, hm? Right? Good, come with me." he muttered, not giving you a chance to reply as he teleported you both to the docks of the Underworld.
There was a line of dead souls waiting to be sorted out, thousands, lined up at the docks, "Well, looks like fun, right!" Hades said with mock enthusiasm as he stepped away from you, pushing a scroll into your hand, "So have fun." he said with a satisfied smirk before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
You furrowed your brows at that. What- what even... That wasn't exactly what you were expecting...