A/N: Hey guys! I'm back from Comic Con! It was awesome, except for one thing: somewhere in the con I lost my kindle. I also had one of my story notebooks in it, which contained the second half of a finished story. I think I'm more bummed about losing the story than about losing the kindle. I WAS done with the story... and now half of it is missing. That's a deep depression, let me tell you. Don't worry, it wasn't Demeter's Wish or Father's Love, for those of you following both my active stories right now. It was another Labyrinth fic that I was going to start posting after FL was done. Guess I'll be pushing that back for a bit...
Anyway, back to this story. We reached 100 reviews! Many, many thanks for that! It's been an awesome journey so far, and it's still going! I'm currently working on writing chapter 21, so that gives you an idea of how many chapters I'm ahead at the moment. I'm starting to reach the point of wrapping up and preparing for the climax, so I would say I'm about 2/3-3/4 of the way through the story.
Chapter 16: Learning the Underworld
Persephone woke the next morning and couldn't move at first. Her muscles had stiffened during the night, and she felt cemented in place. Her entire body was sore. Shards of glass had replaced her bones; her tendons were frayed ropes. Her skin was frightful to look at, dotted with more bruises than the other gods had given her. She eyed her battered form grimly. If she didn't know better, she would have thought the Underworld was trying to get rid of her.
"I'm not going," she said out loud, then jumped at the sound of her voice. She couldn't tell if the Underworld was actually listening to her, but she thought it best to state her intentions directly.
"I'm not leaving," she said again, drawing strength from her resolution. "I like it here, despite everything." She fretted her lip, then admitted in a whisper, "I love him." She blushed to admit it to the empty room. A feeling of warmth spread from her chest, and she knew she had spoken the truth. She didn't regret her words. They gave her the courage to sit up against the complaints of her body. It hurt, far more than she liked to think about.
She paced the small room until she was no longer walking like an old woman. It was a revelation that goddesses could get that sore. It was as if she was practically mortal! She wished she had time for a long hot soak. Unfortunately she'd already slept later than usual from her exhaustion, and barely had time to dress and make it to breakfast.
For the first time, she arrived at the same time as Lord Hades. She met him the hallway outside the parlor. Her cheeks warmed as she remembered her confession to her room. She felt the sudden urge to admit everything to him. The memory of yesterday held her back. How would he treat her this morning? Like the kind lord he was, or like a perfect stranger that didn't want anything to do with her?
He was startled to see her in the hall. She took a quick look at herself to make sure all her bruises were hidden. Thankfully the dresses she was given covered a lot of skin, and it was easy to conceal the discolorations.
"Lord Hades," she murmured uncertainly, dipping a curtsy. It would have been too painful if she tried to hug him, and he turned away like yesterday.
"Lady Persephone," he returned with a bow. An awkward moment passed as they stared at each other hesitantly. Lord Hades moved first. He offered his arm to her. Her heart rose happily. She moved forward to take it, placing her hand on his firm muscles. It wasn't the hug and kiss she longed for, but it was better than the cruel distance he'd given her yesterday. They walked together into the parlor.
Lady Hecate and Lord Thanatos looked up in shock as they entered together. It almost made her laugh. What, did they think she had spent the night with him? Then again, since she always managed to fall asleep in his study at night, she supposed he could have kept her in his rooms, and only returned her to her bed right before she woke. No, not Lord Hades. He was too honorable to take advantage of her in that way. Of course, if he asked her to stay with him, that was another matter entirely. She would have been willing to stay. She didn't know if she could welcome intimacies between them, but she knew he would never force her into anything she didn't want.
Lord Thanatos gave her a piercing stare. She met his eyes boldly. The despite the way he'd beaten her yesterday, she felt no fear of him. Lord Hades reacted strongly to the look the other god gave her. He stiffened, and held her closer. He shifted half a step in front of her, shielding her from view. Her heart jumped happily. Was he jealous of Lord Thanatos' attentions? On one hand, there was nothing to be jealous of. On the other, he wouldn't have cared if he didn't feel something for her. She enjoyed the way he protected her. She felt safe and warm next to him. For the first time she understood what drove Aphrodite to make men fight over her. The fact that Lord Hades was willing to defend her made her feel desired. It was a very heady emotion, and it was hard not to get carried away by it. Growing confident, she laid her head on his shoulder.
He shifted from glaring at Lord Thanatos to looking at her. She smiled for him alone; his face softened. She could feel it in his body, how he relaxed and turned toward her a fraction more. He continued to watch her as they went in to breakfast together. He pulled out the chair next to his. She sat without hesitation, glad to be by his side this morning. His shadow pressed to her legs like normal. She wiggled her toes in delight, glad it was there. His shadow was a part of him that others seemed to avoid for its peculiarity. To her, it was simply him and not strange at all. She even loved his shadow, she realized.
Breakfast proceeded cheerfully. Her body ached every time she moved, but her heart soared with each brush against Lord Hades. He was no longer avoiding her. His arm often brushed against hers, sending elation through her chest each time. After breakfast, Lord Thanatos left first. She didn't understand him. Considering the way he'd flirted with her yesterday, he practically ignored her today. Nor did he seem put out that she was on friendly terms with Lord Hades again. She was starting to think he'd never had a genuine interest in her. What was he playing at?
For once Lord Hades was inclined to linger after breakfast. Judgements were waiting, but he took the time to wish her a good day. His hand stayed over hers a moment longer than necessary. She did nothing to encourage him to move on. There was a faint longing in his silver eyes. If she hadn't been determined to continue learning from Lady Hecate, she would have asked if he wanted company. As it was, he bowed over her hand and pressed it one last time. He left while her heart was still thrilling from his touch. Lady Hecate watched them with amusement.
Persephone turned toward to older goddess. "Lady Hecate," she began, "I still want to work and learn from you, but could I ask a favor?"
"And what would that be?" Lady Hecate asked skeptically.
"Slightly before lunch, could I leave a little early?"
"Oh? Trying to skive off work already? Was I too hard on you, little girl?" Lady Hecate said in a sickly sweet voice.
Persephone's temper flared. "No, forget it," she snapped. "I'd rather work than have you accuse me of slacking off." She was hurt by Lady Hecate's accusation. Hadn't she proved that she was willing to work no matter what was thrown at her? At the same time she was disappointed that her request was denied. Her eyes burned stupidly, but she refused to cry.
"Now don't get feisty with me," the older goddess warned. "What did you want to time off for?"
She swallowed another angry retort. "I was hoping to watch Lord Hades judge the souls. We like to discuss it afterwards, and it's easier to join in when I've seen some of the judging."
"And how long were you thinking of watching him?"
She'd been hoping for an hour. "Half an hour?" she asked instead. Based on Lady Hecate's reaction, she doubted even that would be approved. Lady Hecate considered her thoughtfully.
"Very well then," she said after a tense moment. "I will give you two hours to be with your beau."
Persephone gaped. Two hours! It was more than she'd dreamed of! "Thank you, Lady Hecate," she stammered. "So generous… two hours… surely too much…" Then the exact words Lady Hecate used struck her. Her entire face colored.
"We're not—" she mumbled. "Lord Hades doesn't—It isn't like that, with us."
Lady Hecate's face was filled with unholy glee. "Are you sure about that?" she asked.
"Yes," Persephone said firmly. "Lord Hades—" She sighed, both longing and resignation. It was hard to admit the truth. "He is a king. And I am only a minor spring goddess. He wouldn't look at me like that." It felt important to explain she knew there was no future with him. She didn't want to look like a grasping seductress. She had hoped that he might see her as more than a little goddess foisted on him by Demeter. Who was she kidding? She never had a chance to attract someone as powerful as the lord of the Underworld. She hung her head, her heart squeezing painfully.
"Two things," Lady Hecate said sharply. "First, I don't believe there is something only about anyone, no matter how minor they think they are. Second, I suggest you ask Hades about what he feels before you assume for him." For once she wasn't sarcastic.
Persephone nodded, though she didn't believe it. In a certain light, Lady Hecate's statement was almost encouragement. She knew the real truth. Lord Hades must have many suitors stronger and more beautiful than her. He had no reason to actually look at her.
"Well, enough dawdling," Lady Hecate said abruptly. "There's work to do."
And work they did. Lady Hecate was merciless in driving her. It was as though the goddess of witchcraft was intent on getting four hours of work out of her in the remaining two hours they had. She didn't complain. The older goddess was being very generous to allow her the two hours with Lord Hades. The least she could do was work hard and not make Lady Hecate regret it.
Her body was very sore in the beginning. Thankfully not all the chores were physically demanding, allowing her time to warm up. It seemed once her muscles had loosened, Lady Hecate started in on witchcraft to activate her mind. She had a difficult time multitasking, and Lady Hecate was quick to chide her inattentiveness. Eventually she fell into a kind of trance, where she was able to direct her physical motions while still working on witchcraft. Lady Hecate appeared satisfied that she could do the work, and left her alone except for new instructions.
It was hard to maintain the trance. It required intense focus. She could feel her mind stretching as she learned the skill. A headache lingering in the background, like a muscle used too hard, but it wasn't important in the moment. No gain came without a bit of pain and struggle. It was worth it in the end. Whatever else happened while she was in the Underworld, she would always be able to do more than she could before. She would always be able to take that focus with her.
She got lost in the endless work, her hands busy cleaning while her mind worked in the new patterns of witchcraft. She couldn't do anything with the witchcraft yet; Lady Hecate said she would be very limited until she managed to manifest her goddess power as witchcraft magic. To do that required the intense focus she was building up. Maybe she felt something stir inside her, but she wouldn't know until it became visible. Lord Thanatos worked his magic through his scythe, and Charon through his coins. Lady Hecate used purple-black orbs to do her magic. Persephone didn't know what form her magic would take. She felt like she was reaching for something just beyond her reach. Sometimes her fingertips brushed it, but she couldn't tell if she was bringing it closer or knocking it further away. It was tantalizingly close, teasing her with the almost-there presence of it. If she could only reach a little bit more, like standing on her tip-toes…
"That's enough for now," Lady Hecate interrupted brusquely, "You can go running along to your beau."
Persephone's focus shattered. The thing she was reaching slipped out of her grasp like it never existed. The scrubbing brush fell out of her hands to splatter on the floor. And a sudden, vicious headache bloomed in her skull.
"Oh, ow," she gasped, bending over and pressing the heels of her hands to her forehead. She forgot what Lady Hecate had said. There was only pain.
"That's a good sign," Lady Hecate said, pleased. "It means you've almost got it. It will hurt the first few times you learn to access your power, but once you get used to it, it won't hurt at all. Take a few deep breaths. It's not as bad as you think."
No, it was far worse than she thought. She felt like her mind was being ripped apart. She wanted to curl into a ball and scream with the pain, but it hurt too much to move. It was nearly impossible to follow Lady Hecate's advice. She took in one shaky breath, not very deep. Even that seemed to help a little. She focused only on breathing, and the agony began to fade into normal migraine levels, instead of death-inducing ones.
Only once the pain in her head reduced did she feel the soreness in the rest of her body. Everywhere hurt as if she'd gone another round with Lord Thanatos. There were tender areas on her fingers where blisters were coming in. Her back ached from bending over, her knees hurt from kneeling, and her arms and shoulders ached from scrubbing. Was this really worth what she was putting herself through? She thought of the focus she'd learned, and Lady Hecate's grudging respect. Yes, it was.
She raised her head. Lady Hecate was still watching her shrewdly. That meant her work-shift was over, right? She vaguely remembered Lady Hecate saying something to that effect, though it was probably in less than flattering terms.
"Thank you, Lady Hecate," she rasped. Her throat was dry. She began to hobble away, trying to straighten her body again. The older goddess suddenly grabbed her arm. Her expression was uncharacteristically sincere.
"If you make him happy, that is thanks enough for me," she said somberly.
Persephone nodded dully, still able to form complicated thoughts. There was no question who they were talking about. It was as though all conversations in the Underworld included Lord Hades. Of course she wanted to make him happy. Wasn't it more of a question if he could be happy with her? Lady Hecate released her arm, and she left at last.
She reached the throne room and paused inside the door. Lord Hades was in the thick of judging. He was so majestic he took her breath away. She forgot her hurts as she took a moment to admire him: powerful, handsome, stern. Those same silver eyes led to Tartarus and Elysium at once. He could be grim, he could be mischievous. And he could be so kindhearted it made her yearn for him. She thought of Lady Hecate's words, and realized she would do anything to make him happy. There were already lines of strain around his eyes and mouth. She longed to ease his burden.
She moved along the line of spirits, trying to be unobtrusive. The last thing she wanted was to interrupt everything like a beggar woman stumbling into the court of the king. The hardest part was crossing the open space to reach him. She didn't like feeling so exposed. Lord Hades noticed her approach. For a moment his face remained grimly impassive. She faltered, doubting her welcome. And then his expression lightened. It was a subtle change; his eyes were more alive, his face was not so set. She doubted anyone else would have seen it. To her it was a gift of confidence. He took a few extra seconds between judgements as she moved to him. He didn't reach for her, but she didn't expect it. Here he was god and king, while she was a lowly supplicant. Only in private were they… friends? Companions? Whatever they were.
She curtsied to him, and took the same place she had before: at his feet, leaning on his legs. The deep lines of exhaustion on his face faded slightly. His shadow crept over her legs like a lap blanket. He touched the top of her head lightly. Though he said nothing, she felt his gratitude. It made her feel better about coming to watch him judge.
He turned back to his duties. She had learned from the first day of watching him that when she was touching him, she got a small part of what he felt. It wasn't the full force of experiencing the mortal lives like he did. It was more like she caught glimpses of the things that mattered most to the humans. Births. Deaths. Loves. Hatreds. Their greatest triumphs and their greatest failures. She didn't know everything about them, but she had an idea of what happened, and how the person felt about it.
She savored those defining moments, for they were often things she had never experienced. Having a child. Taking a first lover. Losing a family member. The pain was as intoxicating as the pleasure. She was a goddess, and would live for thousands of years. Yet these mortals lived more in their short lives than she ever had. She longed to experience life for herself. Viewing these glimpses was like reading about them in a scroll, only far more vivid.
Another things those brief flashes of mortal life were good for was in judging the souls. Once she saw what they held as important, she could almost always guess where Lord Hades would send them. She made careful note of the few times when she was wrong, so that she could ask him about it later. She knew better than to contradict him in public. It didn't feel right to question his authority, and in any case she trusted his judgement better than her own. He had been doing this far longer.
Two hours passed quicker than she thought possible. The souls and guards filtered out, leaving them alone in the throne room. This was her favorite time. She didn't like the way Lord Hades suffered, but it was the only time when she felt she could actually help him. He made her feel needed. She stood and faced him. As usual, he was immobilized by pain and exhaustion. Watching mortal lives made her eager to experience more, but it took something vital out of him.
His eyes watched her, dull and sunken. Her heart went out to him. She leaned in and pressed her palm to his cheek. His skin was feverishly warm.
"You sacrifice so much for your realm," she whispered. "And then you hide away your torment so no one knows the truth. What did you ever do to deserve such punishment?"
It was the wrong question to ask. He looked away in shame. She barely stopped herself from gaping at him. He really did think he had done something horrible to deserve this pain. She was equally certain that no matter what he had done, he'd already paid the price for it long ago.
"No," she said firmly, turning his head to face her again. "I didn't mean it like that. I should have asked, what did they do to deserve you, when you spend so much of yourself to help them?"
His gaze remained doubtful. Frustrated, she leaned over him and kissed his forehead. Her dirty-blond hair fell around them like a curtain. He gasped in shock, seeming to breathe in her essence. Without warning his arms came up and pulled her into his lap. He held her tightly, burying his face in her hair. Something inside of her thrilled at the way he took charge, no longer passive with pain, but seizing what he needed. And what he needed, at least for now, was her. She felt complete in his arms. Her fingers stroked through his blue curls, enjoying their softness. She reclined against him in pleasure. Her face nestled into the hollow of his throat. She loved the way his warmth soaked into her, and being surrounded by his strength. His shadow was a vast, inky pool around them, warning all others to stay away. She was his.
That was when she realized she'd lied to Lady Hecate, unintentionally. Lord Hades might not be her beau, but she couldn't pretend their relationship was strictly platonic. She didn't know what he wanted from her, but she knew she was willing to give this a chance.
They stayed together for several minutes, while Lord Hades slowly recovered. He stirred, loosening his hold on her. She missed his tight grip. She kept her body heavy and pliant against his. He made no move to push her away.
"I really should get a chair for you," he mused.
She felt a stab of disappointment. "I wish you wouldn't," she admitted softly.
He shifted to look at her. "Why?"
"Because I like being close to you," she said. "You can't put a chair next to you because it would look like another throne. The only other place for me would be against the wall so I wouldn't be in the way."
He watched her silently, not speaking for such a long time she feared she had offended him.
"I don't like watching you kneel in front of me like a slave waiting on their owner," he said at last, revealing his reason for the chair.
She started in surprise. She had never considered it that way. "That's not how I see it," she explained. "I think of it more like an apprentice come to learn at the feet of a master."
"An apprentice?" he smiled, "Do you intend to take over for me when I retire?"
Her heart jolted unpleasantly. "Are you planning on retiring soon?"
"No," he said slowly. "I don't think retirement is what the Fates have in mind for me."
No, gods generally didn't retire. If they were removed from their duties, it was usually by death. She shuddered at the thought of Lord Hades ceasing to exist, and pressed closer to him.
"Very well," he said suddenly. "I will try to think of it your way. And since you are to be my apprentice, I insist you share a meal with me as I impart my bounteous wisdom to you." He managed to look lofty and absurd at the same time.
"I wouldn't dream of anything else," she giggled. One side of his mouth rose in a half-smile that had her entranced. He stood, still holding her. Only reluctantly did he set her down, her body sliding against his as he placed her on her feet. His hands trapped her against him; she didn't try to escape. His warm, callused palm cupped her cheek. She leaned into his touch. His eyes darkened. Her heart raced. She waited, scarcely breathing. Whatever he was about to do, she wanted it. She was willing to be his, if he wanted her. She didn't know if she was worthy of him, but she would strive to not disappoint him.
He drew in a ragged breath—and abruptly turned away from her. She stifled a cry of pain. She faced away from him to hide her despair. What had she done wrong? Maybe he didn't want her after all, and everything she'd hoped for was wrong. She kept her back to Lord Hades, hugging herself tightly.
He cleared his throat and asked, "Are you ready for lunch?"
She couldn't respond. She was fighting back tears from the ache in her heart.
"Lady Persephone?" He touched her shoulder lightly. She flinched. How could he still touch her when he obviously didn't want anything to do with her? His hand fell away.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I understand if you don't want to eat with me."
Did she? No, she didn't. She wanted to run away and nurse her wounds. At the same time, she was reluctant to give up the time she spent with him. Who knew when he was going to tire of being a host and send her away? What had she called herself a few minutes ago? An apprentice. So then she would act like one and learn from Lord Hades. It would be no different than her lessons from Lady Hecate, Lord Thanatos, or Charon. She allowed the thought to strengthen her as she faced Lord Hades again.
Despite her resolve, she faltered when she saw the look of remorse on his face. Maybe… he was not as indifferent to her as she thought. It made it easier to speak.
"I would still share your company and learn from you, my lord," she said in a gentler tone than she'd intended.
His eyes flashed in surprise, but he didn't push her away. He offered his arm to her. She took it, scarcely resting her fingers on his sleeve. He led her to the dining room. They sat down to eat, and an awkward silence threatened to fall. Lord Hades seemed disinclined to speak. It reminded her of when he pulled her from the river. He had hidden his words behind his actions. She'd grown used to the sound of his voice, and was determined to draw it out of him again.
She began asking questions about the judgements as if she really was his apprentice. For the first time she asked about how he had developed his ability to peer into souls. His answers were stiff and hesitant. Part of it was the tension that remained between them, but part of it was that this was something else he had never put into words before. She didn't understand the people who lived in the Underworld. If she lived here, she would have found out everything she could about her ruler and this realm. It seemed no one else had an ounce of curiosity about Lord Hades. She was only a visitor, and she was still trying to learn all she could!
Lord Hades began to relax as he warmed to the topic. He placed his arm on the back of her chair. She had a hard time masking her surprise. Was he back to touching her now? Should she ask him? She didn't want to draw attention to his position if he hadn't realized what he'd done. They were so engrossed in conversation that it was possible. She said nothing, but gradually leaned into his arm. A thrill of bliss went through her when his fingers absently brushed her shoulder. Whatever their earlier conflicts, they would be alright.
They were still talking a couple hours later when Lord Thanatos came to summon Lord Hades for work.
"Late again," Lord Hades said in a bored tone, as if discussing weather.
"No pressing business," Lord Thanatos responded in the same tone.
Persephone was torn. On one hand, she wanted to go with Lord Thanatos to keep learning about his duties. Even knowing that he would likely put her through another self-defense lesson didn't deter her. Other the other hand, things had been so rocky with Lord Hades lately that she was afraid of doing anything to upset their precarious balance. She liked when he could lean on him, and he'd put his arms around her. When he pushed her away, it tore a hole in her heart. She didn't dare look at Lord Thanatos, and he was carefully avoiding her as well. The fragile truce with Lord Hades was too precious to risk.
He left for his study. She pretended to go to the library, but as soon as he was out of sight, she doubled back to meet Lord Thanatos. He was waiting for her in the hallway.
"In the future," he said coolly, "I expect to meet you on the front steps at this time."
She nodded, but felt a pain of guilt at deceiving Lord Hades about her destination. Perhaps if she explained what they were doing, he'd be more accepting?
"Do you think it's okay like this, meeting behind Lord Hades' back?" she asked.
Lord Thanatos suddenly blocked her path with his scythe. "Let me make something very clear," he said in a deadly serious voice. "I would do anything to avoid causing Hades pain. We are not lovers meeting behind his back. You asked to learn about the Underworld, and I obliged. There is nothing else between us. Should Hades discover our meetings, I will tell him precisely that. However, I am willing to avoid informing him now, because I believe that at this point, the knowledge can only cause him pain. Is that understood?"
She nodded, surprised at his intensity. He was deeply loyal to Lord Hades. It confirmed that he was the right one to go to when she asked to learn about this realm.
"I understand," she replied. "And Lord Thanatos? I too would do anything to avoid hurting him."
A thin smile touched his hawkish features. "Then we are in accord," he agreed. With that, he cut the air with his scythe, and they were off.
The first hour with him was more inspections. She didn't find the mineshafts to be quite so overwhelming. They were still confining and bothersome, but she could tolerate it. The hardened miners didn't intimidate her like they used to. She was under no illusion that she could fend them off if they went for her, but now she knew she was willing to fight if she had to. It gave her enough confidence that no one tried to grab her this time.
The second hour, he brought her to a fallow field for self-defense lessons. She went at it grimly. Once more, she spend a lot of time on the ground. She had foolishly hoped that with a little bit of experience, she couldn't be thrown down quite so often. She was wrong. If anything, her body seemed clumsier and slower than yesterday. Lord Thanatos was so far beyond her skill that she had no hope of defending herself against him, or landing a blow on him. In the meanwhile, he found all the bruises that had formed overnight, and compounded on them.
She bit her lips against the pain, refusing to cry out. She didn't want to show any form of weakness. It was a frustrating experience. A long grueling hour passed, until he threw he to the ground particularly hard. Her body seized up, coughing and retching. She couldn't get up. Even when she started to get her breath back she was weak and disorientated. Despite that, she tried to rise. Lord Thanatos did not tolerate failure or slacking off. He knelt by her. She flinched, still trying to move.
"Stay down," he told her, pressing lightly on her shoulder. That was all he needed to hold her in place.
She gasped for breath for a moment. "No," she managed, and tried to brush his hand off. He resisted her easily.
"Stay down," he repeated. "I wouldn't continue on with you even if you could get up. Part of your training is learning how to push past your limits—and when to respect them. This is your limit. Respect it."
Given permission to rest, she relaxed slightly. She had a feeling tomorrow's bruises would be truly spectacular. She would have to make sure her dress covered all the bruises. They would make the ones from this morning look like nothing.
It took her a very long time to sit up, long enough that she began to worry about permanent injury. The bruises and such hurt a lot, but they were all surface marks that didn't seriously hamper her. Not being able to stand meant there was more serious damage under the bruising. Eventually she made it to her feet, wobbling. She paced back and forth a few times, growing steadier as she went. Lord Thanatos rose with contemptuous ease.
"Shall I take you to Charon?" he asked.
"Yes, please," she confirmed, and he opened a slash in the air.
The foggy river bank was exactly as she remembered it. She wondered if it ever changed, or if it was always like this. A shadow appeared on the water and became Charon's boat. She strained to hear his story, but though his voice carried to the shore it was too indistinct to make out the words. Charon waved to them after the souls had been taken away.
"Hello, Thanatos, Persephone. It's good to see you again."
Lord Thanatos nodded.
"Lord Charon," she curtsied. Charon staggered, holding a hand to his chest.
"Persephone!" he chided. "I thought we had a deal. You wound me!"
She laughed. "Charon," she corrected, with a nervous glance at Lord Thanatos. He didn't appear to care about the informal address. He took his leave of them. Persephone got on the boat and moved to help Charon with the pole. He waved her off.
"No, sit down. You look like you could use a rest. You can help me on the next trip."
She sat gratefully. After Lord Thanatos' tender administrations, she didn't feel up to much. She was better able to relax with Charon, knowing he wasn't about to snap at her. They reached the far bank and loaded the spirits. She gave the ferryman a questioning look. He shook his head, letting her rest more. It was nice the way they didn't have to speak to understand each other.
He began his story. True to his word, he began where he had left off yesterday, with the birth of the gods. For once the story was familiar to her. Everyone knew how Rhea had tricked Kronos, and Zeus had come back to save everyone. In truth, she was a little disappointed to hear it again. For all that Zeus was her father and the king of the gods, it was Lord Hades that she wanted to hear about.
Except Charon's story began with the old tale, and abruptly veered away from the usual course. The heroism of Zeus was barely mentioned. Instead, Charon focused on the newborn gods emerging into the world. They were fully formed as adults, but even so there was a coltish exuberance about them. She had never heard about this before. Charon's words made it easy to imagine them experiencing the sky, wind, the earth for the first time. Was the world a place of wonder for them, or was it immediately filled with the horrors of the titan war?
She was saddened when the voyage came to an end, and with it the story. She had a feeling the next tale would be grimmer. This time when she got up to take her place at the pole, Charon didn't try to stop her. Of course she still needed his help. It would probably be years before she developed that kind of strength to push the boat by herself. For a moment the thought cheered her. If she was still here years from now, that would mean she worked out something with Lord Hades, right? She could only hope.
The next batch of ghosts boarded, and she listened eagerly for the next installment of Charon's histories. He did not disappoint. The next several stories he told were about the titan war. Once again these stories were half-familiar from Demeter's haphazard teaching. However, they differed widely in one respect. The histories she'd heard before mostly focused on Zeus, and how he led the gods to victory. It was his prowess, leadership, and cunning that won battle after battle. It was obvious who had written the histories.
The ones that Charon told were more even in their coverage of the original six gods. To her pleasure, most of the focus was on Lord Hades, but not to the exclusion of everything else. Credit was given where it was due to all the gods, not just Zeus or Lord Hades. It felt like a more honest history than the one she had learned as a child.
She found the tales of Lord Hades fascinating. She suspected Charon was deliberately toning down the war aspect of the stories for her sake. Some day she would prove she was not too delicate to hear it all, but for now she was grateful for any word of Lord Hades. It was hard to reconcile the horror stories Athena and Artemis had told her with the deliberate warrior that Charon described. Somehow she thought the real truth was somewhere between the truth. She would have it one day, she vowed, whether it was from Charon or form Lord Hades himself.
She was so caught up in the telling that she was surprised when Charon took the pole from her.
"It is time already?" she asked in shock.
He grinned at her. "I'd say it was my rugged good looks that had you so entranced, but I think rather it was my subject matter, hm?"
She blushed. "Your stories are very interesting," she began, then followed a hunch. "But there's more than you're telling me, isn't there?"
He laughed. "There's always more to the story. I cannot tell them half so well as Hades, and I have not told you half what I could! Now on you get, your dinner companion is waiting for you."
He flipped a coin in the air to create a passage for her, and she stepped through with an eager heart.