II
Persephone sat outside on the steps of the cottage that she and her mother lived in. Around her shoulders was a white nylon shawl that kept her warm under the cool night breeze. Her hands grasped a warm tea cup and she gazed up at the stars eyeing them closely.
They looked beautiful.
As it turned out, her mother had decided to go to the dinner on Olympus after all. So, when Persephone had come home with her hair in a plait full of flowers and a dirty dress, she was to bathe right away.
"Oh Kore! Your hair!" her mother cried when she saw her daughter. Persephone cocked her head and played with the ends of her braid.
"You don't like it mother?" Persephone thought she looked lovely when she saw her reflection in the water.
"You look fine dear Kore," she said shaking her head, "I just want you to dress and look your age." she explained. Persephone sighed.
"How young do you want me to look mother?" she asked.
"That doesn't matter. Off you go, I've laid out a dress for you."
Oddly enough the dress that her mother had chosen was slightly more mature looking than her usual attire. It was still white. A dress made of satin with a wide round neckline that showcased her prominent collar bones. The sleeves were align and went all the way down to her wrists. There was silver piping along the hem of the dress as well.
Her hair was kept open, but was braided to resemble a crown at her hairline. And, of course her mother tucked in a white flower on her right ear.
Despite all that, Persephone was satisfied with the way that looked even though her mother didn't follow with much change.
"Kore! Kore!" She could hear her mother calling her from inside. Persephone held onto her shawl. She had added it herself since Hermes would be there. After she had seen him eye her breasts she wore it to keep his gaze averted from her. How embarrassed she would feel if he tried that on her a second time.
Her mother looked lovely as always. She preferred to wear pastel colors and tonight she was wearing a pale chiffon yellow dress. The dress looked stunning against her creamy skin and contrasted beautifully against her deep green eyes making her look ever so youthful.
Persephone and her mother didn't resemble much of each other, which was a common attribute for the Gods. Persephone was slim while Demeter was slightly rounder. Demeter's skin was creamy while Persephone's had more of an olive hue making her look especially bronzed in the sun. Her hair was longer and darker than her mother's; she had golden curly locks that reached her shoulders. Her cheeks were prominent while Persephone's cheekbones and collar bones were. Their eyes were the same deep green, but Demeter's were rounder while Persephone's were more of an almond shape. They both had the same small dainty nose and sprinkle of freckles across their nose and cheeks but only Persephone had a lone dimple on her left cheek.
"Are you ready to go Kore?" Her mother asked once Persephone entered inside. She nodded and sipped the last remains of her tea before setting it down.
"Now remember, stay away from anyone drunk, especially the Gods. I don't want to see you with a drink in your hand either young lady. And, I want you to stay away from Apollo and Hermes." she added strictly.
Persephone nodded. However not being able to talk to Apollo or Hermes was new. She suspected it had to do with the recent proposals, the same routine had happened when Ares proposed to her as well. Persephone was glad her didn't want her to marry, especially since she was scared- or feared Ares. Her mother had nothing to worry about anyways, because Persephone wasn't interested in either of them.
Olympus was stunning. Its marble tiles and pillars radiated. It was far more elegant than their small cottage- but it was home. Laughter and chatter could be heard from inside. Persephone couldn't wait to talk with Artemis and Athena. She hadn't seen them in ages.
Her mother was talking with Lady Hestia while Persephone was taking with Artemis. Athena was chatting with Lord Poseidon about Lords know what.
Artemis held a glass of red wine in her hands while Persephone had a glass of pomegranate juice. She really liked pomegranates.
"I still don't understand why your mother won't let you drink." Artemis said before taking another sip from her glass.
Persephone sighed and swirled her drink around in her glass.
"Don't blame her. She just wants to protect me. Besides, I'm not really interested in trying it either." She shrugged.
" You're, missing out Persephone," Artemis said with a smirk, she scanned the room and narrowed her eyes at a certain someone, "Hermes keeps looking here." Artemis noted. Persephone tilted her head.
"Why?" she asked. Artemis raised her brow.
"You're really oblivious sometimes. Didn't he ask for your hand?" Persephone's mouth hung open.
"W-w-who t-t-old you that?" she stuttered. Her face turned red in embarrassment.
"Apollo," Artemis giggled, "He told me how furious your mother was when she saw him kiss you too." She added raising her brow as Persephone sighed and pursed her lips.
"Please stop talking about it! Mother doesn't even want me talking to him or Apollo. I don't want anyone else to know okay, especially Lady Aphrodite." She said sternly.
Persephone didn't talk much with Lady Aphrodite. She was slightly intimidated by how beautiful she was. However, she was kind, and not as heartless as she had once thought. Her mother didn't like Aphrodite all too much because of how divulged she was in gossip which Demeter did not approve of. While Persephone herself had only heard of a few of her gossip stories she knew she didn't want Aphrodite to hear about this or Persephone wouldn't be able to show her face on Olympus ever again.
Artemis bit her bottom lip, "what is it?" Persephone asked.
"Well, Athena knows," Persephone's eyes widened, "I told her. Don't worry no one else will know. She's intelligent to know not to tell anyone!" she added.
Persephone shook her head and sighed staring into her glass of pomegranate juice. "I want to go home now." she muttered.
From across the room Apollo and Eros were as drunk as they could possibly be without the help of Dionysus's wine- which he would often bring spiked to help the Gods grow drunk quicker. Alas, it was the first time in centuries that he had forgotten. Nonetheless, Apollo could drink so much, the spiked alcohol wouldn't have been a hindrance for him.
"Shhhhh. . . Well you mustn't tell anyone. B-" Apollo couldn't finish is sentence and was cut off with a booming sense of laughter which in turn made Eros burst as well. "He-" he hiccupped, "Hermes kissed Perseph-" he couldn't finish as laughter overcame him again.
"Hermes? What an idiot." Eros said laughing,
"No, no, no wait! Demeter saw them!" Apollo managed to say before laughing like a lunatic once again. Eros burst into fits of laughter spilling some of his pink wine over him.
"Demeter! She was merciful then- letting him keep his wings!"
"Even I wouldn't risk it! Poor fellow eh, he's liked her for sooo loong. She doesn't even acknowledge it!" Apollo questioned loudly. Some heads turned towards him but they were too drunk to understand what was going on. Luckily for them Demeter was on the other side of the hall.
"He's a good man! I know!" Eros said with a smug smile as he placed his drink down, "Lemme shoot one of my arrows at her! That'll work! You won't be heartbroken will you?" Eros said cooing Apollo who laughed shaking his head.
"Gods no! Do it Eros! Let's help the fool out!" he cheered.
Eros pulled out his bow and arrows and gave one final sly smile to Apollo. All he had to do was ensure that Hermes was the first one Persephone saw. It was a foolproof plan that worked on his behalf all the time (well, only when he wasn't drunk, that is).
He had arrived later than all the other Gods and Goddesses. He didn't appreciate the party atmosphere much but he would come anyways for a while to visit his family.
His aura was powerful. He strode into the hall confidently taking long strides. His sleek black satin cape flowed elegantly behind him. His dark eyes were fixed ahead and he paid no attention the others around him. His face was emotionless which made him look like a statue. He was a royal no doubt and definitely showed it in his behavior.
"Brother Hades!" Zeus boomed once he saw who had finally arrived causing all the eyes to fixate on him. Hades took no notice.
"Zeus, how are you?" He asked as he held out his hand, his voice was low and masculine which matched his features. He was very chiseled. His jawline was sharp; the only thing that softened it out was his full goatee. His nose was pointy and incredibly symmetrical looking. His eyes were of such a dark brown that they looked like black orbs. He was, no doubt, handsome.
"I'm fine brother! Come, meet everyone else." Zeus said as he wrapped an arm around his brother's shoulders and whisked him away to meet the rest of the family after he had placed a tall glass of red wine in his hands.
"He's coming this way Persephone," Artemis said as she watched him fly over to her.
"Who?"
"Hermes!" She hissed while shaking her head. The young goddess was sometimes too innocent for her own good.
Persephone's eyes widened and she grabbed Artemis's green velvet sleeve with her free hand, "Please don't leave me alone!" She said frantically. Artemis shook her head.
"Persephone if you don't wish to talk to him you don't have to." She said, "You cannot let people walk over you." She said sternly, "The two of you need to talk alone, besides I need to keep an eye on Apollo," She said rolling her eyes, "He's drunk even without the wine spiked."
"Spiked wine?" Persephone questioned.
"Don't worry about it. I'll be over there, don't worry. He won't do anything to embarrass you." She comforted her sincerely. Persephone sighed and pursed her lips before turning around to meet Hermes's gaze.
Tonight she would disobey her mother a second time.
Hades stood in the far left corner away from most of the racket. He was talking with his dearest sister, Hestia. They always got along. Hades would visit her on Earth or Olympus (wherever she decided to be) once in a while, and she would return the favor by visiting the Underworld. The gates were always open for her.
Not long after, Poseidon and Hera had joined in the conversation. Hades was always closest to his older four siblings solely because they had spent their childhood together in the stomach of Kronos.
"Brother! What brings you to Olympus?" Poseidon questioned with a smirk.
"There is a party here tonight if I am not mistaken." He answered bluntly as he took a sip of his wine.
"Not really the party type of God, are you Hades?" Poseidon said with a smirk causing Hera to roll her eyes.
"I see no harm in visiting the family." He said.
"Haven't seen you visit my realm in centuries dear brother." Poseidon said with a twisted smile. It was true he hadn't. Truth be told, he didn't even like coming to Olympus unless he saw a legitimate reason to. These parties thrown by Zeus meant that majority of the Gods and Goddesses would attend, and when he heard of Demeter making an appearance he thought it only polite to arrive.
He hadn't seen her ages.
"Tell me brother," Hades said eyeing Poseidon carefully, "When was the last time you and your wife came to my abode?" He smirked and raised his brow, causing Poseidon to turn slightly pink with color.
"Hint taken." He muttered before clearing his throat. Hades scanned the hall and looked for—
Ah, Demeter. He had found her. He excused himself from his other siblings and smirked to himself when he heard Hestia scowling at Poseidon.
His dear family.
When he got a closer look at Demeter he could see that she was staring at her daughter who was on the other side of the hall talking with Hermes. As he got closer to her he saw as she played around with the fruit on her plate as she glared at the messenger of the Gods.
"Demeter," Hades said softly with a smile. Demeter turned and found her brother staring at her with slight concern in her conduct. Though the two had been bickering since childhood, they cared greatly for one another.
"Brother!" She said with a smile which made her look youthful once more (not that she wasn't). She gave him a soft hug, and he watched her anger slowly fade from her deep green eyes. "How are you? I haven't seen you in so long." She said.
"I believe that has something to do with you never coming to Olympus, Demeter." He said. Demeter rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her pale yellow dress.
"I could say the same for you brother." She said. He sneered,
"I have a kingdom to run. Fortunately, I work hard unlike our brothers." He said. While he cared for his younger brothers, he despised their behaviour but loved them nonetheless. Now his sisters on the other hand, Demeter, Hestia, and Hera were dearest to him among others.
"Excuse me Hades," Demeter said cutting him off, "But I must go and see Kore," She said. Hades raised a brow.
"Kore? Demeter, I thought your daughters' name was Persephone?" He questioned. Demeter waved her hand.
"That may be, but she should have been named Kore." She said glaring at Zeus, who had insisted on naming her Persephone.
"Leave her be Demeter, she seems fine." He noted. Demeter shook her head furiously.
"Oh no! That wretched Hermes won't leave her alone." She hissed.
"Hermes?" Hades scoffed, "Demeter he's but a foolish young God."
"That's exactly why I don't want him around my daughter." She snapped. Hades sighed and placed his hands on her shoulders.
"Let me scare him off. It's what I do best anyways." He said with a smile and a shrug before walking off.
"W-wait! Wait Eros! Hermes must have his back towards us! H-he can't suspect a thing!" Apollo reminded him causing Eros to scrunch his nose.
"This arrow is for Persephone! I don't want Hermes in my way!" He snapped.
"Shh. . ." Apollo placed his pointe finger on Eros's lips, "You see, you hit her thigh! It's foolproof!" He explained.
Eros had drunk to the point where he could no longer logically think—not that he was one of the smartest Gods in the first place, but he did his job well. So, without further doubt he aimed for his arrow to hit Persephone's left thigh.
"Not so fast!" They both turned to see a furious Artemis. She glared at her brother and snatched his drink from his hands. "What the Tartarus do you think you're doing?" She snapped.
Now if Apollo weren't so drunk, his sister's anger would have stopped him from proceeding with his shenanigans. But, alas he was!
"Shh. . . Sister love is in the air! Don't mess with it!" Apollo sang as he swung his arm around his sister who gave him a look of disgust.
"Ugh, Apollo your breath!" She wined as she pushed his head out of her face.
"Shut up! The both of you! Let me concentrate!" Eros whined breaking up the small quarrel between twins.
"No! That's it!" Artemis pulled Eros's bow and arrow out of his hands and glared at her brother once more once she noticed that he had gotten himself another glass of wine. The idiot.
When Artemis left Persephone, she turned around to face Hermes. The closer he got the more Persephone pulled her shawl closer to her body. He smiled, and looked at her like he always did unlike this afternoon where all he could eye was her figure.
"Kore!" He exclaimed. He held a drink in his hands and his wings fluttered as he neared her. He looked especially clean today—not that he wasn't. But, spending all day and sometimes night delivering messages from one God to the next was, no doubt, tiresome.
Although Persephone smiled she was slightly nervous. Not because of the way he had behaved towards her earlier, but the sole fact that mother had advised that she strictly not meet with either him or Apollo. She didn't really consider herself to be disobedient child, and she didn't want to be one either. Persephone bit her bottom lip and turned her head towards where her mother. She saw her talking with Lord Hades. She sighed in relief and recomposed herself.
"I didn't think you were coming tonight." He said. Persephone shrugged.
"Neither did I, but, here we are." She replied, her hand never letting go from her shawl.
"Listen," Hermes cleared his throat and fiddled with his dirty blonde hair, "About the er—proposal," Persephone bit her bottom lip and shrugged her shoulders slightly, "I just wanted to say, I hope there're no hard feelings between the two of us." He said meekly. Persephone's lips twitched into a slight smile and she shook her head.
"Not between us." She said truthfully, but she didn't want her Mother seeing her talk with Hermes. Her eyes darted towards her Mother and she was glaring at the back of Hermes's head causing Persephone to turn a frantic shade of red.
Whenever Persephone felt the least bit furious or bewildered she had the tendency to wilt. Her Mother had taught her how to control her powers, but when emotions got the best of her she wilted. Flower petals would appear wilted from under feet, sometimes they appeared by falling out of her dark wavy locks.
This was one of those times. Her wilting even added to her embarrassment causing Hermes to furrow his brows at the scene unfolding before him.
"Err—are you okay Kore?" He asked confused. She nodded and looked to Artemis for support but, alas she was screaming at her brother.
"Is something the matter?" Persephone turned her gaze to the deep masculine voice that came from in front of her and her eyes widened to see a tall pale man with dark locks who eyed Hermes intimidatingly.
Hermes turned around slowly for he recognized that voice instantly. Hades, The Rich One. Persephone was in panic now and unfortunately for her she continued to wilt to the point where people would stop, stare, and giggle.
Aphrodite, thought she looked adorable.
"Give that back!" Eros shouted who reached for his bow and arrow. Apollo couldn't care less about the situation anymore. It was all fun and games, Hermes would never get her anyways. Demeter would pick off his wings piece by piece before he'd be together with Persephone.
"No! You're too drunk! The two of you have ruined this whole night!" She yelled causing Apollo to roll his eyes.
"Excuse us but, you are the one shouting!" He snapped causing Artemis's attention to swamp back over to her brother. This allowed for Eros to quickly grab his bow and arrow.
Without thinking or bothering to check his aim, he let go of the arrow. It was as if the Fates wanted him to endure an eternity of suffering because the arrow didn't hit Persephone's thigh or leg, it hit the back of Lord Hades's leg.
"Shit!" He yelled causing Apollo and Artemis to turn their eyes towards the drunk God of Love.
Artemis's eyes widened once she realized what had happened, whereas Apollo burst into uncontrollable laughter causing his wine to spill all over him—again. Artemis quickly ran as fast as she could and pulled out the arrow from Lord Hades quick enough for him to not have noticed. Eros's head lay in shame in his hands while Apollo commented.
"Forget about Hermes, Eros you are fucked man! I won't be seeing you anytime soon cause you'll be thrown into the depths of Tartarus! He exclaimed.
"Shut up! This is entirely your fault!" He muttered. He chugged down the last of his wine and sighed. "I'm headed home. It'll be my final night sleeping on a bed." Apollo laughed again and shook his head as his eyes wandered over towards Artemis.
"Why, H—hello Lord Hades." Hermes stuttered as he turned around. He watched Lord Hades' dark eyes stare him down intensely. It wasn't his dark eyes that made him look. . . menacing. It was the way he carried himself with power, confidence, and mystery. He was structured slightly more than his brothers adding to his powerful aura. Oh, and the fact that he dressed in dark colors that contrasted against his pale cream skin added to that tremendously.
"Hermes." He dragged out his name.
This was the first time Persephone had really heard Lord Hades say anything. The previous encounters they had were just a formality of bidding one another "Hello" which often happened at Olympus during the day. But, this was night and Persephone wasn't frightened, just in slight awe.
"I—Is something the matter my Lord?" He questioned. Hades nodded while stroking his goatee. His cream hands contrasted against his bearded jawline and Persephone noted how defined it really was.
"I need you to deliver a message." He said calmly. Hermes cleared his throat and flapped his wings slightly to indicate that he was in the ready to deliver this message.
"Alright, to whom?" He questioned.
"Kronos. Off you go." He said calmly.
The color from Hermes's face left him and he flew straight away without asking a single question. He left Olympus right away and along his journey met Eros. The two of them drunk till Helios rose the following morning.
"Foolish boy." He muttered before feeling a poke at his narrowed his eyes and gave wilting Persephone a confused look which turned into a soft affectionate gaze that caused him to stare at her longer than intended, before turning around to find Artemis standing right behind him with her arms behind her back.
"Good evening Lord Hades!" She blurted quickly, "How are you?" She asked. Hades furrowed his brows.
"Fine , thank the Fates." He watched a drunken Apollo embarrass himself, "I'd advise you to go and tend to your brother Artemis." He added and watched as Artemis nodded with a smile and run. No matter how much of a huntress she was, there was a child deep inside of her.
This was an odd party indeed.
He turned back towards Persephone and observed her wilt right in front of him. It was one of the most unusual things he had seen in his lifetime. A wilting Goddess who, still looked breathtaking. She looked like an innocent and simple young lady which reflected well in the way that Demeter wanted her presented. She wore simple white dress that contrasted against her golden tan skin and dark auburn locks which made her deep green eyes stand out. He hadn't seen such simplistic beauty before and he quite liked it.
"L-lord Hades?" He was torn from his thoughts by a soft youthful voice. He averted his gaze directly towards her and watched as she looked at his face while twiddling with her fingers waiting for a reply.
"Yes." He answered.
"T-thank you." She said pulling tighter at her shawl. He gave a shrug.
"Not a problem. I know I handled this better than your Mother would have." He said honestly. Persephone tilted her head slightly and looked at the King of the Underworld in confusion.
"Wh—w—what does that mean?" Hades shrugged.
"It just means Demeter would have plucked his wings off of him and then would have thrown him off from the heavens. She can be quite temperamental."
"Uh. . ." Persephone didn't know what to say. Truth be told, she'd much rather just look at him. He was handsome no doubt and this was the first time she ever got to look at him.
"I should be leaving. Good night young one." He said while taking one final look at the stunning young Goddess in front of him before taking off with his dark cape flowing elegantly behind him. He said his goodbyes to Zeus and his other siblings and gave Demeter a curt nod and smirked before he left Olympus and retreated back to the Underworld.
What an odd party.
Authors Note: I hope that you guys found this chapter to be more entertaining than the previous one. Thank you for reading and I hoped you enjoyed.