"Once Upon A Narcissus"
by
C. "Sparky" Read

Chapter Six

"Wow," remarked Panic, flopping down on a rock, "I never want to see canines that close again, ever."

Persephone frowned. "Is that 'canines' as in dogs or 'canines' as in teeth?"

Panic shivered. "Both."

"Oh..." Persephone unclipped her sash and bent down to offer it to Pain, who was flapping his small wings in an attempt to shake off the last of the dog drool. "You poor thing," she said. "Here."

Pain didn't take it. "Don't do me any favors," he grumbled.

Persephone scowled a bit. "Well excuse me!" she nearly snapped, surprised at being spoken to that way. "I was only trying to help. Like you helped me."

"I wasn't helping you, I was helping me," Pain corrected the goddess. "If you had gotten hurt, who would have been in trouble? Us, that's who."

Panic sighed. "That's true," he said. "We'd be goners."

"But--" Persephone flung her arms wide-- "I wasn't hurt. You won't get in trouble. I'll tell Hades how you saved me."

"You don't get it, do you?" Pain shrugged exaggeratedly. "We always get in trouble. He'll find something that we did wrong, and we'll be toast."

"Yeah," agreed Panic. "We just can't get a break."

"Well that's not fair." Persephone's tone turned sour. "What a horrible man! I don't want to marry him! Mom was right, men do think they rule everything."

"Down here, I do rule everything."

Persephone didn't turn around. "What, are you and my father done settling on a market price for me?"

Poseidon pushed past Hades. "Now, Sephie darling," he began, "I was only thinking of what was best for you--"

"Butt out," said Demeter smoothly, pushing past both gods to put her hand on Persephone's shoulder. "Persephone, dear," she said, "look at me."

Persephone reluctantly turned around.

"Persephone," Demeter said again, "I'm afraid that...you'll have to remain here."

Persephone's eyes widened. "What?" she gasped in horror. "Why?"

Demeter sighed, and glanced over her shoulder at Poseidon and Hades. The former was scowling and leaning on his trident while the latter was trying his best to look in control of things. "Your father and Hades made a verbal agreement. According to Divine Law, that is legal and binding."

"But what about me? What if I have an opinion?"

The Earth Goddess shook her head. "You must simply...make do."

Persephone pulled away from her mother. "No!" she cried, looking between her parents desperately. "I won't stay here! And you can't make me marry him! Daddy!" she begged Poseidon, who suddenly looked very uncomfortable, "Take me out of here! ...Please?"

But the Sea Lord looked at the ground and said nothing.

Persephone took a few steps back. "All right," she said, suddenly very calm, "fine." She turned a cold gaze on Hades. "I'll stay here, then."

Demeter breathed a sigh of relief. "That's my good girl," she said, stepping forward to touch Persephone's face. Then the Earth Goddess turned to the men. "Poseidon," she said, "I'd like to speak with you in private, now." And with that she walked past the gods and out of the chamber.

Poseidon harrumphed. "Happy birthday, Angelfish," he said to Persephone before reluctantly trailing Demeter.

Persephone and Hades regarded eachother in silence for a few moments.

Hades, who really felt that he should say something, finally stated:

"Hey, this wasn't my idea, you know."

Persephone hmphed and turned away from him to glare at the opposite wall.

Hades glided forward a bit. "Hey, it's not like I was looking forward to some hyperkinetic thing to go waltzing around my Underworld hijacking my boats and disturbing the wildlife!"

Panic rolled his eyes. "Uh oh, here it comes..."

"And you!" Hades turned on the imps, getting back into his stride. "Didn't I tell you to keep an eye on her? Didn't I?"

"But we did!" wailed Panic, cringing.

"'Don't let her out of your sight'--Those were my exact words!"

Pain nodded, then switched to shaking his head. "But we didn't!" he insisted, wringing his tail.

"So, what you're telling me is," said Hades menacingly, gliding closer, "that you just watched her put her nose where it didn't belong."

Pain and Panic nodded. That was it.

"I see," said Hades, turning his attention to the purple imp. "And Pain," he went on, "I saw what you did to my guard dog. Do you know how hard it is to get a veterinarian to make a house call down here?.."

The imps glanced fearfully at one another.

Hades' hair surged red, and flame streaked down his arms to his hands as he prepared to generate a pair of fireballs. "...Do you??"

"Don't you dare!" shrieked Persephone, darting between the Lord of the Dead and his trembling victims. And she smacked him, hard, across the face with her open palm.

Hades stumbled backwards, his fireballs dissipating in his surprise as Pain and Panic made good their escape.

"Agh!" cried Hades, at the end of his rope. "You're more mentally affected than both of your crazy parents combined! What was that for?"

"Those two," growled Persephone, "don't deserve to be treated like Lil' Smokies!"

Hades blinked.

"You just think," Persephone went on, fuming, "that you can parade around down here, pushing everybody around, and making them do whatever you want? Is that what you think?"

Hades slapped his forehead. "I have been trying to explain to you--Yes! That's what I do! I'm Hades! You know, Lord of the Dead, yadda yadda! It's my job."

"Being Lord of the Dead is a job," hissed Persephone, leaning in close to the god, "but you are turning it into a disgrace."

"A disgrace?" Hades stepped back. "This from the person who goes traipsing around in...that?" he demanded, indicating the goddess's short dress with a sweep of his hand.

They glared at eachother.

Persephone turned up one corner of her mouth. "Sorry," she said at last, "but I didn't have time to pack for my vacation."

Hades rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, well," he said, "I'll have Clotho spin you something. We don't want you running around half-draped, you might give the old hags some ideas."

They both shivered.

Having nothing else to say, Persephone brushed past Hades and headed back towards the riverbank.

Hades paused, then followed her. "Why did you agree to stay here?" he had to know.

Persephone walked in silence for a moment, then responded: "It was the better choice."

"Better than what?"

"Than..." Persephone hesitated. "Than being treated like a hothouse flower."

A bit bewildered, Hades continued to follow Persephone, until they reached the river's edge, where Persephone climbed into the ferry and picked up the pole.

"Come on," she said, "I'll give you a lift."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

The wedding fell into the planning stages. As was customary for a union between two Immortals, a year's engagement, minimum, was required. So Persephone remained in the Underworld.

As the months passed, Demeter fell into a depression. At first, she had been cool and collected regarding the whole Persephone Affair (as the events came to be known among the residents of Mount Olympus), and had gone about her Divine duties in her ordinary dignified fashion. But as time wore on, Demeter became despondent, yearning for her daughter's company and seething about what had been done to her for the sake of a bet between a couple of males.

So she turned on the mortals who tended her Earth, drying up fields and destroying crops. Soon the mortals began to know hunger, and the farmers begged their patron Goddess of the Earth for mercy. When no mercy was granted they turned to Zeus, desperate for their lives.

When Zeus saw what was happening to the mortals he became alarmed. Although he was the official ruler of the Olympians, it was not his place to interfere within a god's or goddess's domain of expertise. When he asked his wife, Hera, for advice, she suggested sending someone as a messenger to Demeter, someone whom she might listen to.

So Zeus sent for Iris, the Goddess of the Rainbow, to speak to Demeter. Iris was a longtime friend and confidant of the Earth Goddess, and Zeus hoped Demeter might relent when such a close companion asked her to reconsider her actions.

But when Iris returned to the Olympian Throne Room, shaking her head sadly, Zeus knew the mortals were in more trouble than he had previously thought.