HER CONFESSIONS

Hades appeared in front of the Underworld's portico, carrying Erianthe. The girl was silent, but he knew she was still awake. He didn't know what to do; comforting others was not his strong suit—in fact, he had never comforted anyone in his life, and he'd been around for millennia.

He entered the cave and began descending the stairs that led to the dock. Who would have thought he'd be descending these steps with Eri again, and in this way? He couldn't stop thinking about what the spirit of the lake had said, nor could he shake the image of that young man—the one who had been Erianthe's future fiancé.

He didn't need to be a genius to realize that this was the prince who had died five years ago. Not only that, but he had to admit, the guy was very handsome. Hades was filled with conflicting feelings, from a protective instinct over Eri to outright jealousy. "I'm getting old; this is giving me a headache," thought the god, who occasionally glanced at the young woman resting her head on his chest. "I think I need a drink."

Erianthe felt empty. After crying and reliving that night, it was as if she had a gaping hole in her chest. She didn't know what to think. She thought she'd moved on; that night was part of her past, but it seemed her heart wasn't so sure.

Likewise, she felt dirty. Those men had tried to rape her, and she was ashamed, especially because the god of the dead had seen her half-naked and vulnerable. Yet, inwardly, she was relieved when she saw him appear, even when he looked furious, displaying his fearsome power. She knew he was a dangerous god, but something told her that, deep down, he was more than just the hated lord of the dead. She had to admit she felt safe as he carried her back to the Underworld.

Her head was resting on his chest, and she could feel Hades' heartbeat—strong and powerful, like him, like those arms holding her, yet carrying her with such care, as if she were a precious piece of pottery. She noticed his warmth and his characteristic sulfur scent mixed with something else. "What is it? Oh, I know! He smells like parchment, leather, and… soil? Maybe," thought the girl as she slowly relaxed.

The daughter of Hercules stole a glance upward at the god's face. He looked serious; his expression was almost emotionless, but after spending each day with him, she could decipher subtle details: the slight furrow of his brow, the way he clenched his jaw. She knew something was bothering him, but she didn't say anything. From what little she knew of him, it was better to give him space. He wasn't a god who liked to open up to others; he was far too proud for that.

Charon was already waiting for them to board. Erianthe expected the god to set her down, so she shifted to put her feet on the ground, but instead of releasing her, Hades held her tighter.

"I'm not letting you go. I'll carry you all the way to the baths, so don't move. You might make me lose my balance, and we might end up in the water. You wouldn't want that, would you?" said the Lord of the Dead, looking at her with exasperation.

"To the baths? Hades, you can't carry me for that long! You'll get a cramp or something, plus, you won't be able to hold my weight for that long," the girl tried to protest in vain.

"Hello? Were you listening, or are you deaf? I said I'm not letting you go until we're at the baths! And that's what I'm going to do! And did you say you're heavy? Sweetheart, you weigh nothing. Besides, you're talking to a god; I'm much stronger than a mortal," replied the irritable Lord of the Dead, growing increasingly agitated. "Better not argue; I don't want to end up roasted," Eri thought. It was better not to contradict the god.

Charon was glad to see the mortal girl and immediately proceeded towards Hades' palace on the other side of the Underworld's gates. The skeleton found the scene curious; he'd never seen his lord act like this with anyone. They soon arrived at the other dock, and the skeleton watched as the god and the mortal disappeared up the stairs. "If I hadn't seen it myself, I wouldn't believe it," thought the boatman, who returned to the waters of the River Styx to wait for the souls of the dead.

Once at the palace, the King of the Underworld wasted no time and headed straight to the baths. Waiting for them there were the imps and Ajax.

"Sir, your bath is ready. And so is Erianthe's change of clothes," announced the bath attendant with a bow.

"Good, I'll leave Erianthe to you. I'm going to check if Giles has prepared the food. Can you walk?" the god asked the girl.

"Yes, I can walk. Don't worry," Eri replied. The daughter of Megara was about to enter the employees' baths when she felt someone grab her arm. She turned and saw it was Hades. "What is it?"

"They've prepared my thermal baths for you, not the employees' bath."

"But it's your private bath, Hades."

"So? Go on in. The water in my baths has healing properties, so it will help you recover, since I can't use my powers to heal you right now." Eri looked at the god. She could tell from his expression that he was serious, so she entered the private baths of the Lord of the Dead, not without first thanking the imps for helping her in the forest.

Ajax accompanied her inside. Unlike the employees' baths, there were no lockers, but there was a changing room to leave her things. The skeleton showed her where her new tunic was and handed her a basket with soap and a towel. She noticed that her black swimsuit was also in the basket in case she wanted to swim in the pool.

She thanked the skeleton for his help. Left alone, she began to undress, taking off the toga Hades had wrapped around her—it was almost like being enveloped by him, surrounded by his presence. "What are you thinking, Eri? You're going crazy down here," she told herself. "Don't fool yourself; you like spending time with him. In fact, you love it," an inner voice said. That thought made her blush deeply. She shook her head, trying to clear those ideas. Wrapping herself in a towel, she grabbed the soaps and entered the baths.

It wasn't the first time she was there; she had cleaned these baths more than once, so she already knew that the water poured directly from the walls as if they were waterfalls. She chose one of the more secluded ones and stood beneath it, letting the water fall directly onto her. The hot water instantly relaxed all her muscles. "How nice."

Hades was on his way back to the baths. He had instructed Giles to leave food ready in Erianthe's room— "food for two," he had said. Why was he feeling nervous now? "Ridiculous nonsense," the god thought to himself.

When he arrived at the baths, he noticed that Ajax was gone, so he decided to go in. Erianthe was probably already in the pool, so he could take a quick bath and then… "Maybe I could join her in the pool? Of course! What was the problem with that?" thought the god. After all, they had been talking in the pool for a while, even if they were in separate baths, so this wouldn't change anything.

He undressed and went to one of the waterfalls; the hot water would be good to help him relax. He headed for the one he always used, the one that was more secluded. Absorbed in his thoughts, he didn't notice someone humming, and as he reached the waterfall, that's when he saw her. He saw Erianthe in all her glory.

The Lord of the Dead felt his whole body heat up. "Damn it! What is she still doing here?" And just at that moment, Eri turned around and saw the Lord of the Dead standing before her, covered only by a towel over his parts, while she was completely naked. For a second, they both stood frozen until the girl reacted.

"HADES! PERVERT!" Erianthe screamed, mortified, trying to cover herself. "Don't just stand there! Leave!" She threw a bar of soap at him.

"SORRY!" He darted to the other side of the baths, dodging the soap she'd thrown at him. "I thought you were already in the pool!"

"Well, next time, ask before coming in!" Eri was flustered, her heart racing. "If he'd already seen my chest, now he's seen everything. How embarrassing!" She finished soaping up and put on her swimsuit, so at least she wouldn't be naked.

At first, she thought about leaving, but then she reconsidered and dove into the pool. She swam to the open area and, as she often did, admired the view of the underworld. The pool was a bit higher up, but the view was the same. She leaned on the edge, lost in thought about the same thing over and over: the night her grandparents and Lysander had died. It still hurts so much.

Hades heard the girl plunge into the pool. "Why do these things keep happening to me? This girl is making everything complicated," thought the god, who was still shaken, nervous, and with his pulse racing. Seeing her like that—by the gods, how was she so beautiful and so gorgeous? She could easily dethrone Aphrodite. "Hades, stop thinking these things. She's still a young girl; don't be a pervert. Don't be like your brothers."

The god managed to calm himself. He conjured up a swimsuit to wear before entering the pool; he wasn't about to dive in naked, knowing Erianthe was in the same pool. Slowly, he entered the water and swam over to where she was, leaning on the edge with her gaze lost in the depths of the underworld.

He sat beside her, keeping a bit of distance, and didn't say a word. They stayed in silence for a while until Hades decided to break it.

"Sorry about before. Really, I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable." Am I apologizing? I think this is the first time I've ever done that.

"Apology accepted," replied the girl, embarrassed as she recalled the moment. She added, "Thanks for coming for me, truly. You saved me again."

"It was nothing."

They looked at each other and smiled. The god noticed that Erianthe's gaze had lost that usual sparkle.

"Are you okay?" he asked without thinking. What? Since when do I ask these kinds of questions? Damn it.

Erianthe was taken aback by his question. It was unlike Hades to act this way, but even so, the daughter of Hercules replied.

"The truth? I'd be lying if I said I was fine. Honestly, I don't even know how to feel. It's been a hell of a night, between getting kidnapped, tortured, handled like a doll, almost drowning, and then a ghost reminded me of one of the worst days of my life… So yeah, I'd definitely be lying if I said I was fine."

"Yeah, you're definitely not okay."

They fell silent again. It was an uncomfortable silence. Hades didn't know what to say; these situations weren't his thing; in fact, he hated sentimentality. The silence made him anxious, but he also didn't want to push her to talk if she didn't want to. What do mortals do in these situations?

"That night was horrible. None of us could have predicted that our fates would change forever." Eri began to say. She looked at the god to see if she should continue, and Hades nodded. This will be hard, the girl thought.

"The princes had been living with us for a while; we'd been hiding them and living in relative peace. Until the king ordered the expropriation of our lands and wealth, and that's when he realized his nephews were in our house. Then he didn't hold back. He accused us of treason and didn't give us time to escape. That very same day, he sent the guards to our home."

"The guards?"

"Yes. The royal guard stayed at the palace; they didn't accompany the previous king to war. But beyond that, the king has a personal guard of five people. You never want to cross paths with them because if they show up, you know you're dead. There is a rumor that they are genuine assassins who have been hired by the king. And that night, one of those killers showed up at our house along with the guards."

Erianthe went silent for a moment. That memory made her chest tighten; she felt like she couldn't breathe. She closed her eyes to stop herself from crying; she didn't want Hades to see her so vulnerable, so pathetic.

The god saw that the girl was on the verge of a panic attack. No, he wasn't going to force her to recount something so traumatic. He moved closer to her and placed a hand on her head, which made her open her eyes immediately.

Hades was standing in front of her, looking at her intensely. She didn't feel nervous; in fact, she felt calmer.

"You don't have to explain everything. I'm listening. I'm not here to comfort you; don't think of me as your therapist. But if you want to talk, I'll listen. These waters can heal any wound… except those of the soul."

"I know you're not going to comfort me, and I don't want you to. Thank you, Hades," Erianthe said, offering him a gentle smile.

"Thank goodness! But if you want to keep going, I'm here," the god said with a grin. It was strange to see him smile, especially with those sharp teeth. Erianthe sighed. She needed to get this burden off her chest; she needed to start healing.

"You know, the killer who came to our house is obsessed with fire; he loves to burn and torture people with it. They call him Pyros. At first, when you got so angry that you scorched part of the throne room, I got terrified—you reminded me of him."

"I reminded you of the pyromaniac killer? Not sure whether to feel flattered or insulted," Hades said, attempting to lighten the mood a bit. He could tell the girl had to vent.

She laughed at the god's remark; he could be amusing occasionally. When her laughter ceased, she sighed. Now or never, Erianthe, she told herself.

"When they came in the middle of the night… Pyros didn't hesitate to set our house on fire while we were asleep. I can still remember that madman's laughter echoing through the house, the heat from the flames, that searing heat. The smoke was choking us, burning our lungs. Honestly, I thought I was going to die." Now, Erianthe began to cry.

Hades thought that if he ever saw that Pyros, he would burn him alive. He, too, used flames to torture and destroy; in some ways, he was like that man. But he wasn't crazy enough to burn a mortal alive; he knew that was too cruel—even for him, an expert in cruelty.

He looked at Erianthe, who was no longer looking at him but had her head down. He couldn't see her eyes, but he knew she was crying. And to think I wanted to make her suffer,he reflected. That thought left him stunned. It was true; he no longer felt the need. He didn't want that for her anymore. Now, he could use her vulnerabilities to bring her to his side, to make her his ally.

"We got out of the house as fast as we could. I still think it was a miracle that some of us made it out alive. One of the princes escaped with my mother and Zenos. My mother was reluctant to leave us behind, but the prince insisted that he would get her and my brother to safety. Behind our house, there was a path with stairs leading down to the beach, and they managed to escape that way. I was left behind with the other prince and my grandparents." Erianthe had to stop; her voice was breaking. She took a deep breath to calm herself and felt a hand on her shoulder. She knew it was Hades's hand.

"My grandparents got trapped. I tried to move the obstacles with Lysander, but we couldn't. I was ten years old and didn't have much strength. Not only that, but I still remember my grandmother telling me to go, that they had already lived long enough. It was one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make." She was crying. "I can still remember their screams of pain as they…"

"Eri, don't say it. I understand. It's okay." She looked at the god, who, for the first time, seemed to look at her with… compassion? Was Hades feeling compassion? You're imagining things, Erianthe, she thought.

"The flames were consuming us. Lysander grabbed a tapestry from the wall and wrapped me in it. The famous tapestry that survived, and we managed to get out of the house. Unfortunately, the guards blocked the path to the beach, so we had to escape into the forest path. But Pyros caught up to us and attacked Lysander, who protected me. And what you heard—that was the last thing he said to me. He told me to run, to flee without looking back, but I did look back and saw his body fall, lifeless, to the ground."

She paused once more to catch her breath.

"The guards were after me, so I had to hide. The captain of the royal guard found me, but he just looked at me and walked away. He didn't tell anyone I was there. The captain of the royal guard is Ilena and Egan's father. Before he left, he said to me, 'I'm sorry, Erianthe.' I can't hate him; he was only following orders. Thanks to him, I'm still here." She lifted her gaze to meet the Lord of the Underworld's eyes once again and smiled. In the end, he listened to her entire story. "If I had died that day, I would have saved you a lot of trouble, don't you think?"

"Don't say that!" Hades was disturbed by her comment, unwilling to even imagine her soul in the River Styx. "If you weren't here… I'd be insufferably bored." Nice going, Hades. You're an idiot, the god thought after his clumsy attempt at a comforting comment.

Erianthe was surprised, but she burst out laughing. What a thing to say, she thought, but she knew Hades wouldn't say anything better.

"I think it's time we head out," Eri said to Hades. He nodded, but before they left the pool, he indicated that she should go first and wait for him outside the baths. That way, neither would feel uncomfortable while they changed.

Once they were both dressed, they went to Erianthe's room and had something to eat. They didn't speak of the ordeal anymore. Hades mentioned that they'd found her belongings scattered through the forest, and they started discussing the design she had in mind, but before they could agree on anything, exhaustion overtook her, and she fell asleep.

Hades smiled. It seemed it had become a habit to carry the girl, although this time the journey was just from the chair to the bed. Once he had laid her down, he observed her. He could spend hours looking at her and not get tired of it. Seeing her so at peace, his gaze lingered on her lips, and he remembered the moment he had to give her mouth-to-mouth.

He shook the thought out of his head. Hades, remember, you're not a pervert. And he left the room, but he was still so agitated after everything that had happened that night that he wasn't in the mood to sleep. So he went down to Tartarus, where his new prisoners awaited eternal torment.

Hello everyone!

Sorry, I couldn't translate the chapter earlier, and continued writing the original story. So, during this weekend, you can expect the next chapter.

Erianthe has opened up to Hades, but will it be enough to heal? Hades is very lost in these things, but he's a good listener, it has to be said.

The truth is that it has been a difficult chapter to write, but I hope you like it and enjoy it, although there are also some more comical moments between Hades and Erianthe.

And remember, you can leave me your comments to let me know if you like this story or if there are things you dislike. Also, you can leave a follow/subscribe or like/kudos.

Thanks for reading!