Part 3: Chapter 1

And so the winter went on, bringing with it the powers of ice and cold. It was both a thing that was a beauty and a beast; the landscape was a breath-taking scene with the enchanting and mesmerizing pure white snow covering almost its entirety, yet it brought a harsh and cold death to those who would not be able to survive it.

But the harsh coldness of the winter that plagued the land could not compare to the harsh coldness of the pain that plagued a mourning god's heart.

In the distance, one could almost hear him crying his heart out in sorrow, pining desperately for the beloved woman that he had lost.

Artemis

"He still drinks himself silly," the voice of my brother commented as he came to stand next to me at the edge of the scrying pool. "He does not look like he is going to stop this state of wallowing anytime soon."

I did not respond, only keeping quiet as I watched the moving images in the all-seeing waters.

Together, we watched as Dionysus stumbled through a barren forest full of snow, staggering with messy movements and babbling whatever nonsense that spewed from his mouth that came from being under the strong influence of excessive wine. In our younger half-brother's hand, there was a water skin that had wine spilling periodically with each drunken step he walked.

However, the smile on his face could not fool me; I could clearly see the pain and anguish that still lingered inside him underneath the façade of drunk glee. Just watching him in such a drunken state of body and a sad state of mind made me both disgusted and pitiful at the same time.

Apollo tutted and remarked skeptically, "He should really get over it soon. This act of getting drunk to drown his sorrows is getting quite pathetic, not to mention the fact that it makes him look like even more a fool than he already was before the whole thing started. It has nearly been three months, and still he mourns for her?"

Hearing his snide remarks made me frown and look at him in disapproval. "Do not be insensitive, Apollo!" I snapped at him. "Dare you say such a thing of someone who still mourns the death of the ones they had loved with all their hearts? How would you feel if the woman you loved was suddenly taken away from you?"

I turned away to look back at the image of drunk Dionysus in the waters, trying hard to not let my anger at my brother's insolence get to me. Indeed he was our father's son; he could easily be as insensitive as Zeus was.

It was only a few seconds until I felt his arms wrap around me from behind, with his chin resting gently on my shoulder. "Do not say such a thing, my dear sister," he murmured sorrowfully. "You know that if I lost you, I would feel a devastation so great that I do not think I would ever go back to being myself. My life would be completely meaningless if you are no longer present to grace my days."

I sighed then, and my hand reached up to hold onto one of his. We stayed that way for a while, not finding the urge to be parted.

But after a while of both of us watching Dionysus still in his drunken state, it was then I said, "Do you not see that is how Dionysus feels right now?"

"Explain, please," Apollo responded, not understanding what I had meant.

And so explain I did.

"When Ariadne died and became lost from his grasp forever, it was as though his entire world had broken and shattered into pieces. There is a painful emptiness in the part of his heart that held the immense love he had for his wife. She was the only love of his life, and to lose her would almost equate to losing his own life. But because he is deathless, the memory of her dying right before his very eyes continues to haunt him. I can see it in his eyes, Apollo. He is haunted and scarred by that horrible memory, and the worst part is that it seems as though it is fated that he would forever remember it."

Next to my ear, Apollo exhaled a very shaky breath, and I sighed softly at the thought that I had managed to talk some sense into him regarding Dionysus. But even I am affected by what I had just said, and the feeling of pity I had for my half-brother grew tenfold at this point.

However, all of a sudden, a new feeling erupted within me. It was so unexpected that I was stunned by it. My mind became empty as I focused on that new feeling. A sense of alarm, a feeling of dread, and the sudden pain of one of my own. It all meant only one thing.

One of my followers was in trouble.

Without a second thought, I impulsively shook Apollo off of me and turned away to stride hurriedly out of the throne room, the urgency in me driving me to hurry up.

"Sister?" I heard Apollo exclaim from behind me, overtly concerned and worried of my sudden change of behavior.

Without turning around to look at him, I replied loudly, "I must leave, Apollo. I have some sudden urgent matters to attend to immediately."

It was then I took off running through the hallways, the sudden uncomfortable feeling that had appeared inside me out of the blue growing with each passing second, making my heart heavily filled with a new sense of dread.

Ariadne

Time seemed to be an insignificant matter in the Elysian Fields. Nobody thought of it, and nobody cared of it. Because of that, it mattered little to any of the residents in the Elysian Fields about how long each of them had been here. It may have mattered from the beginning of their time after their death, but after a while, they just let go of the thought and lived the new life. Because honestly, who would care about how long they would have when they have already passed on from the world of the living?

It was the same thing for me as well. At this very moment, I do not exactly how long it has been since I had first arrived in the Elysian Fields. It could have been days, weeks, months, or even years. But it did not matter to me, for I was now still in my current state of youth, no process of aging or developing taking place within me anymore.

I was still staying with Semele in her small but quaint and comfortable house that was located at the base of some hills near the lake. I spent all my time with her, doing chores such as collecting the ever-bountiful harvests of fruits and vegetables, sewing and preparing home-cooked meals that was to be shared among ourselves or with the other friendly residents. Other than that, we also did have fun, such as singing, dancing, swimming in the lake, and chatting with the other residents who were ever so kind and friendly. We also did needlework together while telling each other stories of our previous life (excluding all the bad events that befell upon us).

As our time together went on and on, our bond grew stronger and stronger, and I had come to the point where I thought of Semele as a mother. She, in return, treated me like a daughter.

Sometimes, even Persephone would come to visit me, bringing her aura of warmth and brightness. At first, I had been nervous for being in the presence of the Queen, but overtime I grew more and more comfortable spending time with her, and indeed I had come to think of her as the sister that she always thought of me as.

Throughout my entire time here, it has been nothing but a comfortable bliss. But of course, it did not mean I had forgotten about what pained me the most. Now was such a time when I was by my lonesome as I sat in a meadow full of multi-colored flowers, for I liked to have some time to myself so that I could think of all that had happened to me. But of course, my thoughts then directed back to my husband.

But before I could start to feel pain, I was suddenly aware of an approaching presence. Coming out of my thoughts, I looked to see who it was.

"Hello, Persephone," I greeted kindly as she came to me.

Persephone smiled back and replied her hello to me. Then, she came to settle beside me among the flowers, and her hands started to pick flowers after flowers to make into a crown. Silently, I did the same.

However, I was noticing a change in behavior of the Queen. Usually, she would have been a very chatty type, always telling stories that would entertain me to no end or sing songs that would make me fall under the enchanted spell of her musical voice. But today, she was silent, with her eyes cast down focused on the flower crown in her hands and her lips pressed together in what seemed to be uncertainty.

It did not take me long to know that something was bothering her.

And so, I asked. "What is wrong, Persephone?"

Persephone's hands stopped weaving the crown, and she exhaled a long sigh. "Was I that obvious?" she asked with a small half-hearted smile.

With a shrug, I nodded my head.

Persephone sighed again and set aside the half-finished flower crown. Then she folded her hands gracefully on her lap and sat up straight. Her amber eyes clearly showed uncertainty, for she would not look at me, and I noticed the way they looked so contemplating.

"How should I tell you this…" she murmured under her breath, her voice clearly hesitant.

"Tell me what?" I pressed gently, my curiosity growing strong at this point.

Now, Persephone did look at me, and her amber eyes still held the uncertainty and hesitance, half-hearted about telling me what she wanted to tell me. I waited patiently, a part of me telling me that whatever I was about to hear was not good.

After what seemed like a long while of silence, Persephone finally told me, "Today, we received a soul of a young woman, who was sinful of attempting to start an affair with her stepson. She had manipulated her husband into killing the boy when he refused her because he was a devotee of Artemis, and later killed herself out of guilt for what she had done."

This made me confused, wondering why Persephone would tell me such a thing. Although it was indeed an interesting thing to talk about, this seemed to be not of importance to me and was no concern of mine. So, I inquired, "So what?"

It was then Persephone started to look so hesitant and uncertain again, but she did tell me after taking a deep breath.

"Ariadne… The woman was Phaedra."

I froze then as the familiar but long-forgotten name resonated through my mind. How long have I not thought of that name? How long have I not thought of my younger sister? How long have I been separated from her since that fateful day?

Too long, I was sure.

"P-Phaedra?" I question in a disbelieving murmur. "My sister Phaedra?"

Persephone pursed her lips and nodded in confirmation. "Yes," she replied.

That confirmation ignited a string of questions to immediately escape from my lips, because I was unable to sustain them despite the shock I felt. But before I could get an answer to even one, Persephone changed the topic entirely.

"Ariadne, that is not even the half of it," she told me in a grim tone. "I think it is Phaedra's back-story that will interest you even more."

"Then tell me," I urged in a rush, unable to contain the eagerness to know everything. 'Tell me everything that you think I should know."

Quietly, Persephone took my hands in hers, and she ran her thumbs gently over the back of my hands in a way to soothe me. But I could not stop myself from fidgeting with anticipation, wanting so very much to hear everything about Phaedra now. It had been so very long since I had last seen, heard and thought of my young sister, so of course I would want to know everything about her well-being.

"You see, Ariadne, Phaedra was not only convicted of the sin of attempting to commit adultery with her husband's son and planning his murder," Persephone explained. "She was convicted of something else. Something that involves you."

"Me?" I exclaimed, obviously shocked by this piece of news. "What wrong did she do to me? I know that she has done nothing! Please, Persephone. Tell me so that I will finally know!"

Once again, the look of hesitance crossed Persephone's beautiful features, but I could not have any of that at this very crucial moment. I wanted to hear it out of her right this very instance.

But thankfully, Persephone did not hold back, and she answered my question in a rush.

"Phaedra had plotted with Theseus to abandon you on Naxos, before marrying him herself."

Once again, I froze, unable to comprehend what I had just heard.

Persephone turned unsure when she saw the look on my face, but she continued on nonetheless, but with half-heartedness. "Phaedra had been in love with Theseus as well when he first came to Crete as a tribute to the Labyrinth, and she had been so very jealous of how you had gained his attentions at first. When you stole her away with you to escape Crete and your father's wrath, she and Theseus started an affair behind your back during the voyage. The affair was what prompted Theseus to choose her over you, because he found her more beautiful than you are, and he had started to tire of you. They both abandoned you on the island of Dia, because they did not want you to come between them. And afterwards, together they went to Athens, where Theseus was made king and Phaedra his queen."

When Persephone fell silent, I continued to be silent as I took in everything that she had just revealed to me. As I did so, a flurry of emotions started to react within me.

To name a few were disbelief, shock, sadness, anger and pain. Disbelief of what I was hearing. Shock that I would be hearing such a thing. Sadness as I thought of my sister's betrayal. Anger as I fumed at the thought that she had dared to back-stab me even though I had loved and cared for her all my life. Pain at the thought that it was because of her influence on Theseus that I was abandoned on Naxos in the first place.

My hands suddenly tightened into fists, with my nails pressing and almost breaking into my skin. No longer was I able to feel the air of peace and comfort of the Elysian Fields, only now feeling the spark of anger that threatened to erupt into a wildfire of rage. Now I felt the intense desire to beat Phaedra to a pulp to get revenge for all the things she had done behind my back all those years ago. I wanted to scream profanities about her and claw at her face and pull her hair and beat at her breasts. I wanted to her scream and beg for mercy as I drew her blood and disfigured her. I wanted to do anything that would make her feel pain and me feel satisfaction.

But all of a sudden, I was wrapped up in Persephone's embrace. The goddess had leaned forward to wrap her arms around me, and I could immediately feel the comforting warmth that radiated from her body. Funny to think that an Underworld goddess – no, partial Underworld goddess – could actually feel so warm like a ray of sunshine instead of feeling cold like death or hot like Tartarus.

I had not realized I had been sitting tensely until this moment, and I was then distracted by Persephone murmuring pitifully, "I am so sorry that all of this had happened to you, Ariadne… No one as good-hearted as you should have deserved such atrocities to happen to them… You did nothing to deserve any of this."

By some intuition, I began to think about all that has happened to me that fateful day seven years ago. This must be the umpteenth time I thought over such thoughts, but now was more different as I included the fact that Phaedra had been the lying, conniving betrayer that had been behind all of this.

I thought about how things might have turned out had I not brought along the wench, who I was now ashamed and disgusted of calling my sister, when I had ran away from Crete to escape my father's wrath. Would Theseus still have made me his bride, like how he had promised? Although I knew that the promises he made to me were false or at least half-hearted, but would he still have abandoned me on an island regardless?

But then I thought about what would have happened if I had stayed on the ship with him as we passed Naxos, where Dionysus had been leading his revelry in? Of course, had I not been left on the beach, I never would have met 'Dion', who would have been the god who would be my husband.

I realized now that, from all the nights of coupling I had shared with Theseus, which now made me squirm and shrug in disgust at the thought that I had actually shared a bed with that man, I was nothing more than an item of pleasure for him. Evidenced in how he had chosen Phaedra over me because he thought of her as more beautiful than I was, it showed me that I was nothing to him; I was just something he could replace with something better once he got bored with me.

Theseus was nothing but a chauvinistic pig, and I was now thankful that I had not stayed with him. Now, I was thankful that I had been abandoned by Theseus and Phaedra, because if it had not been for their wicked deed, I never would have met the one true person who would love me regardless of who I was and cherish me for all that I am despite my shortcomings.

It was at this moment that I realized that I had actually received a blessing instead of a curse from that fateful day. Since that moment, my life had been nothing but bliss and happiness, with Dionysus, the twelve great sons I had with him, and the revelry that I now thought of as my bonded family.

After what seemed to be a long while of silence, I took a deep breath before I asked Persephone, "Where is she now?"

Persephone pulled back to look at me in the eye, though her hands stayed resting gently on mine. "My husband had sentenced your sister to Tartarus," she answered, her amber eyes nearly hesitant at telling me. "She had been a wicked soul throughout her entire life; arrogant for thinking that she was higher than anyone else, miserly for not sharing her wealth with the unfortunate ones despite their begging, and cruel for abusing many and treating them as slaves. And for what she had done to you, and for plotting the death of Theseus' son, that is more than enough reason for her to burn in the fires."

I huffed haughtily, and replied in a sneer, "She deserved it then. And I do not think that I could ever refer to her as my sister again."

A spur of moments had me latching onto Persephone's hands gently. She was clearly surprised by this, and even more so when I smiled. With a new calmness in me, I told her, "I am just grateful that I have gained those who are better sisters to me than she ever was."

At that, Persephone smiled and leaned in to wrap her arms around me once again. This time, I returned the gesture, now feeling very calm from her comforting aura which managed to make me put aside poisonous thoughts.

XXX

The very second I stepped through the doorway, it was already 'evening' in the Elysian Fields. The first thing I saw was Semele sewing a dress as she sat by the hearth.

When she looked up and her brown eyes met mine, she asked in motherly concern, "My dear, you look so worn out. And I can tell that something had been bothering you. Is everything alright?"

Quietly, I merely sighed in response. "I just had a lot of things on my mind today," I admitted to her as I willed myself to smile. "I'll be alright, but thank you so very much for your concern."

But Semele was not entirely convinced. With a concerned frown, she put aside her needlework and stood up from her seat before crossing her way over to me, where she promptly raised a hand to place it on my head, her thumb gently caressing my hair. With a gentle voice, she told me, "Whatever it is, I am here to listen, alright dear?"

When she leaned in to give a gentle comforting kiss to the top of my head, I could not help but smile, internally thankful that Semele was just one more person I was absolutely fortunate to meet in my life.

Author's Note:

So Phaedra's the one that had Ariadne left on Naxos in the first place! Ugh, that damn b***h! If I had a younger sister like that (which I don't - thank goodness! - because I'm the youngest - I would surely show her no mercy!

And it looks like Dionysus had lost himself in the alcohol! This is not good... Would he ever be able to stop drowning his sorrows in liquor? Would his pain ever vanish from the emptiness in his heart?

Tune in next time on Monday!

Muse of Fanfiction