A/N: Hey Babes. Sorry for the delay! Again. The wedding was amazing and life is now back to normal. There will be more chapters this week to help make up for the absence! 3
This chapter is plotty. The next will be naughty~
ALSO TRIGGER WARNING: The chapter involves sexual and domestic abuse.
"Wait." Poseidon dropped in between his older and younger brother, looking entirely too excited, Hades thought, given the circumstances. "So she was under the desk… and you were… and Demeter just…?"
The King of the Underworld felt himself groan inwardly. He hadn't slept a wink since she left. The dogs were restless, the house was cold, the garden was dying.
He pinched the bridge of his nose, and let his fatigue lidded eyes fall shut.
Their usual back corner at the strip club was shrouded in thick tendrils of pewter smoke.
Hades took a long drag from the cigar perched between his full lips. He raked a hand through his already mused, silvering hair, irritably. "I can't believe she's gone."
The curl of smoke that escaped his frown transformed into a beautiful lunar moth, in a wisp of mid flight. He batted it away with a tired hand.
He watched as his emerald brothers face fell, both of them glancing over a stoney faced, surprisingly pensive Zeus.
"I-Is she coming back?" The mauve skinned God asked mutely.
Hades recalled the memory from just a few days previous with another long drag.
Somehow, through his climax riddled brain he was able to convince Demeter to come back when her daughter's shift was done. Hecate took the Barley Mother and steered her back to her office, in what Hades hoped was an attempt to calm her.
Athena gave him a warm smile and nod before motioning to Ptelea that it was over. His niece turned and left without another word.
Persephone crawled out from under the desk, shaken. Her hair was down, tangled in a mess of thorns and wilting hemlock.
"I think I should work… clear my head before…" She trailed off, studying her shoes.
"Do you need anything, sweetness?" He asked, combing the dying blooms from her hair affectionately.
"I was planning to go see her… Would it be okay if I go for a bit? Make her happy..?
"Little Goddess… you are not trapped here. You can go wherever you'd like, whenever you'd like. Just please come back to me…" His voice was suddenly hoarse as he fought back a flood of emotion the pink Goddess didn't need to deal with right now.
"Thank you." He pressed a firm kiss to her forehead, and felt his heart plummet into his gut as she turned and left his office.
Persephone slumped down at her desk, feeling her chest tighten with anxiety at the mountain of scrolls waiting for her.
She leaned forward and put her head between her knees, trying to calm her clipped and strangled breaths.
'You were going to see her anyway… This is just a little sooner, but that's okay.' A small voice behind her ear reasoned.
'You know what needs to be done." Hissed the other, more mature voice. Her gaze fell on the small beaded floral bag still clutched in her hands.
"Sir… Can I leave early? I don't want this to affect my work… It's better that I deal with it now. I told her..."
Hades looked up to see Persephone standing in his office, the door a jar behind her.
"Whatever you think is best, Kore." He searched the slice of hallway, looking for emerald skin before asking, "What are you going to tell her?"
"No matter what I tell her, it's not going to go well…."
"What can I do for you, Little one?" Hades got to his feet and took a step towards her. Her hair was brushed, and back up in a simple bun. Small buds of hemlock still decorated her temples, but they were no longer wilted. 'That's a good sign…' He mused.
"Stand by me, Aidoneus."
"Always." His fingers grazed the round of her shoulders, feeling her warm skin prickle into an eruption of pleasant goosebumps. She hummed lightly.
"I love-"
The door swung open and hit the opposing wall with a slam. Hades stepped back swiftly, as Persephone was immediately silenced. Her gaze dropped to her feet, her shoulders folding forward.
Demeter was there. Waiting.
"Coming, Kore-Cob?" Her tone was now an eager sing-song.
"Yes, Momma." She looked up. Her cherise eyes locked with scarlet, telling him everything she wasn't able to.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I'll write when I know I'll be back." She turned and followed her mother out of the office, a small circle of pomelias were left where she had stood.
"Deme is going to try to keep her there…" Poseidon said with a wave to their server.
"Zeus… If it comes to that, can you intervene?" Hades asked, his tone more pleading than he had intended.
"Demeter… has ALOT of leverage on me… But I can try."
"I hope Hera kills you one day." Hades snarked, taking his drink from the server.
"Don't even joke about it. You'll summon her." Zeus retorted nervously, draining his drink and reaching for another.
"I don't know what she's going to tell Demeter but I'd better be ready."
Zeus slammed down his glass and turned back to his azure skinned brother. "So uh… Seph is.. Something else." Hades noticed the tinge of color dusting across his cheeks.
"What did you do to her?"
"Hey! She's the one that blackmailed me!"
"W-what?" Poseidon and Hades asked excitedly, in unison.
"It was…" Zeus tugged at his collar with a nervous grin. "Pretty hot actually."
"You are an absolute sack of shit." Hades scoffed, draining his own drink. The burn on his tongue was pleasant and soothed the ache behind his eyes.
"HELLO EXPLAIN!" The God of the sea exclaimed, flagging down another round of drinks.
"She was working at Thetis' desk and found… incriminating evidence. She threatened to show Hera unless I did what she wanted."
"What did she want?" Hades asked, his curiosity almost bubbling over in his stomach.
"Well… She told me not to touch her, ever." Zeus gave a 'win some-lose some' shrug. "Then she told me to stop interrupting you too with our brunch meetings unless I wanted all of Olympus leveled."
The wheels in Hades' brain turned slowly before it clicked. He let out a burst of laughter, falling back into his cushioned seat. The drink spilling all down his front.
"She said as a fertility god I, of all people should know how important it is that certain things don't get interrupted."
"I fucking love her so much."
Hades' sat up abruptly, his face dropped. His skin phased black as a detonation of ire pulsed through his veins.
'No. It can't be…' A familiar warmth flooded in his core as he felt himself being summoned.
Thousands of men, women and children all stood frozen like pillars of salt.
Her knees dropped to the soft, spoiled earth.
She reached out, cupping the brilliant yellow bud of a daffodil, watching horrified as it crumbled to ash in her palm.
She searched around, frantically. The once brilliant and thriving meadow was now a wasteland of decay.
Persephone awoke with a start.
She scrambled to her knees upon realizing she wasn't at home, tucked into sleek black sheets with the warm body of her soon to be husband cocooned round her.
She was laying in a bed of downy mint clovers, a sheer pink canopy overhead.
She was back in the greenhouse.
Her chest tightened in fear. She sprung to her feet and made for the door.
The tension loosened.
There -was- a door.
It swung open easily with a groan from the hinges, but made no motion to keep her captive.
As she stepped out into the early morning mortal realm sun, she felt her skin tingle. She vaguely wondered if Apollo had had the opportunity to experience her gift yet.
Her stepped over the threshold into the kitchen and bore witness to her mother's stress baking. Her normally sleek violet hair ran down her back in a loose braid. Her curves favored a lilac sundress over her severe pantsuits. Across the expanses of counterspace were mountains of freshly baked breads and pastries, and bowls of perfectly ripened fruit.
Persephone took a seat and while she didn't say anything her mother spun around, her face brightening.
"Kore! You're awake! I was beginning to worry! It's been two days!"
"I'm sorry, Ma." Persephone reached out to the nearest bowl and pulled out a tender, sweet scented plum.
Demeter set her mixing bowl down and leaned against the opposite end of the table.
"Where have you been living?"
"Ma…"
"Kore. I had to go on a wild goose chase all over Olympus to find you. I deserve answers."
"I was living with a friend."
"Who?"
Persephone quickly racked her brain for people that wouldn't flag her mother's suspicion. Maybe she could say she had been staying with Hecate? No. Her Mother would have already interrogated the Witch.
'Sugar snaps' She whispered internally. Hera? Oh no. That would leave her under the same roof as Zeus. Eros?
"Eros."
Demeter had turned back to the oven. She whipped around and with mitted hands slammed the still steaming bread pan down onto the table.
"God of Love, Lust and Sex, Eros?" She saw a vein throb in her mother's temple.
The Pink Goddess sunk further into her chair, not having thought about what that might look like. "We didn't…"
"So you're still a virgin? Thank the fates! When Hestia said-"
"Ma…"
"I don't know what I'd do if you wer-"
"Mom!"
"What happened? Why did they have to revoke your scholarship?"
"It's been dealt with, Momma. Can we not get into this now?" Demeter saw the wilting buds in her daughter's hair and felt her demeanor soften.
"We will discuss that later, Kore. Why did you leave school?"
"My scholarship was revoked. I was going to go back and finish once I could afford to do it on my own."
"How are you affording rent? The Underworld internship doesn't pay. I've sent a few of Zeus' nymph concubines through that program to get them out of here, and away from him."
"W-what? Ha-King Hades has been paying me a wage for my work."
Demeter gripped the edge of the hot pan tightly, leaning further across the broad table towards her daughter.
"Is he, now? What kind of work are you doing?" Her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Mom!"
"I think I'll pay him a visit. I trust Hecate, but I don't know why she works for that asshole."
"Mom you're being ridiculous!"
"I don't like what Olympus has done to you, Kore. I think you need to stay here." She threw the oven mitts down on the table and rested her hands on her hips.
"I'm not staying here! I have a job, responsibilities and a degree to finish!"
"Hades can get one of his little sluts to fill in. You have responsibilities here, away from Olympus. You have nothing there for you, Kore-Cob."
"Hades doesn't have sluts, ma! A-and I have to repay Zeus-" Persephone stopped dead, feeling her insides quell with dread as her mother's eyes flashed menacingly.
"What could you possibly owe Zeus?" Her mother asked with a skeptical tsk.
"I b-broke something and I need to pay back the damages."
"What was it? I'm sure we can settle this no problem." The emerald goddess felt her shoulders soften upon realizing that what her daughter owed the God of Thunder wasn't something more scandalous.
"It was a lyre."
"Oh. That's nothing, Honey."
"It was Apollo's Lyre." Persephone somehow sunk even further as her mother piercing coal eyes searched her.
"Kore. Why did you break Apollo's lyre? That's a very serious offense."
"Momma…" Persephone pleaded, her flower crown dissolved into ash. Demeter let out an audible gasp and took a step back.
"What did Apollo do?"
"Don't."
"You're not going back, Kore. I will settle your debts today and collect your things from Artemis and Eros."
"Momma! P-please.. Let-" Her vision flashed through a flood of tears.
"Eat your breakfast." Demeter snapped before she turned on her heel and strode out of the kitchen.
Persphone saw red. Her eyes an easy serene as she watched thick robes of ivy push up through the beautifully polished floors of her mother's home, and crawl across the decor-strewn walls.
(TRIGGER WARNING STARTS)
-KNOCK KNOCK-
"Daphne, are you in there?" Apollo stepped back as the door cracked open. A bright rouge eye scanned him wearily.
"Go away, Apollo."
"I just want to talk. That flower bitch messed everything up!"
"I'm starting to think she was right about you…"
Apollo bit back the rage of bile rising in his throat. He took a deep breath and pushed open the door. His face fixed with his most charming smile. "She's not. We talked about Hades and his influence. Did you forget, baby?"
"Apollo…" Daphne pushed back against the door, holding it steady. "You hit me."
"Daphne… I was reacting. It's not my fault that you didn't listen."
"I was trying to help you!" She pulled open the door. Apollo took in her appearance. Any other time he had seen her, she had been camera ready. Makeup flawless, not a single hair out of place. Today she sported a messy bun, her shapely body hidden under a baggy pajama shirt. Her face was bare. Under her right eye was a still swollen bruise.
'No modeling work anytime soon.' He thought bitterly, as if her injury was the most selfish thing he'd ever seen.
"I'm all better now. None of that matters!" He took a step in and with a sweep of his arms motioned that he was no longer in any pain.
"W-what happened?" Daphne took a tentative step back as he entered her home.
"Don't worry about it. It won't be a problem again." He leaned in, crowding her against the couch with his broad frame. She fell back onto the plush sage fabric as he leaned in and forced her into a kiss. He grinned, relishing in the fight she put up against his lips.
"Now. Where were we?" His fingers started on his belt, pulling it from the loops and tossing it to the floor.
Daphne scrambled back, her eyes following his motions.
"Apollo… I don't think-"
"Shh… Babe." He pulled her back, his knee resting between her thighs. He buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling the sweet scent of her hair.
Daphnes' palms were flat against his chest but her strength escaped her.
'Just tell him no…' Whispered a soft voice inside her.
"Apollo. No. I don't want t-" She gave a little groan in a weak attempt to push him away. Her entire body felt fatigued.
"You don't want this?" His voice husky. His violet fingers slipped up her curvy pink thighs.
The nymph felt a conflict pull at her chest. She had lusted after the Sun God for so long.
She waited and he wasn't listening.
He never seemed to listen.
"I think you do." His breath was warm against her ear as his fingers skated over the damp of her inner thigh.
She cursed her body for the involuntary reaction to his touch.
'Arousal is not consent' The voice inside her head screamed.
"A-apollo… Please… I don't-" She snapped her thighs closed causing him to retract his hand.
"Shhh. Babe."
She seized her lower lip in a sharp bite as he forced her thighs apart and the fabric of her undergarment to the side. She held her breath, mentally preparing.
As his fingers came in contact with her flushed skin he jerked back abruptly, as if burned. He hunched forward again, hissing. Daphne took this opportunity to scoot down the couch, away from him.
"No." Apollo snapped. "NO!" He swung his arms out, knocking the lamp and the contents of the side table to the floor. He turned back to her, his eyes flashing gold.
"How could you do this…"
"I-I didn't…"
Daphne welled up her strength and got to her feet. She whipped around to the back of the couch, the furniture creating a barricade.
She watched, with what looked like a great deal of pain, as Apollo jumped over the back of the couch, blocking her in.
The violet skinned God gripped her shoulders tight, giving her a firm shake. "Make it stop!"
"I-I cant!" Daphne sobbed, feeling his fingers bruise her arms. She pulled back to escape him but he shook her harder.
"You stupid flower cunt!" He sneered, releasing her with a hard shove. He watched with a triumphant grin as she fell back into the glass cabinet behind her. A splash of silver blood cascaded across the splintered glass that now littered the floor.
(TRIGGER WARNING ENDS)
Persephone's feet touched down on the outskirts of an ill-maintained temple. The symbol of The Unseen One etched in the crumbling stone.
Her skin was alight with heat. Her pores felt like they were on fire.
She knelt down and pressed her palms to the bare and abandoned earth.
She watched with satisfaction as the ground quaked. A forest of white poplar trees erupted around the outside of the ruins. She slammed her hands down with another pat and a ring of white and grey Asphodel sprung out from the soil in full bloom.
Her ichor was pumping. Her vision flashing.
She pulled beds of Narcissus from the earth, nestled around towering Cypress trees.
The Goddess of Spring treaded up the cracked steps to the temple, commanding her ivy to pull the broken and fractured pieces of stone back to their original placement. With a wave of her hand the ivy knotted itself like rope, holding the structure sound before snapping off and moving to the next piece.
She stood in the center of the open temple, the columns of disheveled marble standing proudly with her assistance.
She dropped her bag to the cold stone floor and got to her knees.
'You can't come back from this…' Said a timid voice pulsing against her chest.
"I know." She answered aloud. She poured the contents of her bag out onto the floor, sifting through until she picked up the beautiful ripened maroon fruit.
She split the pomegranate open, the seeds glittering like tiny rubies.
'What are you waiting for, little Kore-Cob?' Mocked the Queen.
Persephone scooped a small handful of seeds from the fruit and brought them to her lips with only a moment of hesitation.
She hummed as the tart flavor cascaded across her tongue.
She set the fruit down onto her discarded bag and placed her palms to the chilly stone, pounding it twice.
-PAT- -PAT-