Chapter 16

Persephone

I awoke to the sound of a whispered conversation. The words rang in my mind, meaningless. Gradually, they formed themselves into coherent sentences.

"...needs to be alone. I think it will help her come to terms with her new life. She hasn't had any time to be by herself." I recognized Hades's voice. He sighed. "I don't know what else to do. She's the only one who can change her mind."

Aspasia's hushed voice answered him. "Of course, my Lord. I-"

They both fell silent. I think they must have realized somehow that I was awake. After a moment, I heard the sound of their footsteps as they walked away.

Once I was sure they were gone, I opened my eyes and sat up. The room swam in front of me, and I put my hands on either side of me to steady myself. The nausea soon passed, and I was able to take stock of my current situation.

I had tried to leave. Those...monsters had pursued me (I couldn't repress a shudder at the memory.) Hades had saved me. He had also told me that there was no way to leave. He had told me that before, but I hadn't believed him, not really. Now, the reality of my situation demanded I ignore it no longer.

I lay back down on the bed, letting a wave of despair come over me. I was completely alone for hours - as Hades had said I should be - but I didn't have the strength or the desire to do anything about it. My thoughts wandered at random. I eventually came to the conclusion that I had to make a choice: either give up and live the rest of my life in despair, or accept what had happened and make the most of it. I was strongly inclined to choose the former.

No, you can't do that, I thought to myself, my eyes squeezed tight. You are a goddess, not some weak mortal woman.

Mother may have been a demanding woman, but she had taught me some lessons well. First and foremost, I was a goddess. I was a divine being that could do things that no ordinary woman could. Mother had taught me to be strong. Perhaps she hadn't meant to teach it to me directly, but her example had.

I rose from my resting place and forced myself to move. As I had guessed, I was now even weaker than before. I could still walk without too much effort. Though at the same time, my once graceful steps were more halting than they had ever been. I stumbled out of my rooms and walked through the halls of the dark castle.

They were too confining.

I walked outside and to the edge of the cliff that Hades's home stood on. It was too high to see the bottom of. I wondered what it would be like if I could let myself go into its dark embrace and face my end like any mortal could. It didn't seem fair to me, in that moment, that they had a way out of their pain while I was forced to go on. Day after day would pass with no end in sight, either of my own pain or of the farce that Hades called a marriage.

Then I remembered that even if I could die, I would still be stuck in the Underworld for eternity. This time, without even a glimmer of hope of rescue or escape.

I turned my back to the edge and began my wandering anew. I was too wrapped up in my thoughts to pay attention to where I wandered. I looked up to realize I had subconsciously retraced the route I had taken to escape.

I knew I had gone farther than I thought when - without warning - Cerberus jumped out at me, barking and snarling. I stumbled back with a yelp and lost my balance on the rocky surface.

Cerberus towered over me. His huge heads all focused on me. One head lowered and sniffed at me cautiously, growling deeply. Tentatively, I held out my hand to it, offering to let him smell me. He did. After a moment of consideration, he gave my hand a swipe with his tongue. Zeus only knows why the dog suddenly decided to like me.

I rose to my feet and inconspicuously dried off my hand behind my back.

"Nice doggie," I crooned softly, rubbing his snout. Cerberus immediately sat down and began wagging his tail. I laughed with a sudden realization. "Oh, you poor baby! You just want someone to be nice to you, don't you?"

I scratched behind his ears with both my hands, still smiling. The other two heads nosed their way under my arms, whining for their turns. I laughed and petted them all until I felt better.

I sat down at the giant dog's feet and chatted with him. He laid an enormous head in my lap. Drool covered my dress in substantial quantities. I was going to need a bath after this.

I found myself telling Cerberus about everything: my childhood, my mother, my escape from the Underworld. Hades.

"I don't know, Cerb," I sighed, idly scratching the top of his middle head. "What am I supposed to do? I mean, I obviously can't leave the Underworld. At least, not without Hades's permission. The biggest problem about this place is that there's nothing to do! When I lived with Mother, I had friends I could visit. I could run around the woods, or weave, or help Mother make pots for the mortals to store their food." I

leaned down and whispered conspiratorially in Cerberus's ear. "What I really miss is dancing. I used to dance all the time, did you know that?" Cerberus cocked his ear back, looking at me with his watery eyes. I laughed at his surprised expression. "I'll take that as a no then. That's when I first met Hades, you know. He sat there, watching the other women dance, glowering at everyone. I was so afraid of him. Well, actually, not exactly afraid. I was nervous that no one would like my dancing, and I was sure he wouldn't. But, then, afterwards, he complimented me. I was the only dancer that he even talked to." I went silent.

Cerberus thumped a wagging tail on the ground. With a laugh, I took it as encouragement to keep talking.

"I don't have the heart to dance any more. I've tried, once or twice, but I can't seem to find the rhythm. I keep misstepping, and something else is wrong. I never could dance when I felt lonely." I stood abruptly, causing Cerberus to growl slightly at me.

"I'm going to go now, alright? I'll come back soon." I gave him a final pat and backed up slowly until I was out of his reach. Then I turned and walked away. When Cerberus realized that I was leaving, he began barking like crazy with all three heads, straining at the chain that held him.

I gave him one last wave. I walked leisurely back through the Underworld to take a bath and change my clothes. It was amazing the change of outlook having a big three-headed dog drooling all over you can give you.