by Melody Rose
No. This was bullshit. I was tired of having to clean up this mess when my brothers were perfectly capable of doing it on their own. I was more than a little tired of hiding instead of dealing with their shit head-on. When the gorge was complete, I snapped my fingers again.
If he was lucky, Zeus would survive what happened next.
8
Persephone
Poseidon’s boisterous laugh echoed throughout the room as he conjured up a large dragon made entirely out of water. The dragon hissed, causing thick white plumes of steam to shoot from its flared nostrils. Zeus seemed completely unphased by his brother’s spectacular illusion.
The dragon drifted lazily above Poseidon’s head as Zeus contemplated his next move. Suddenly, the King of the Gods clapped his large hands together. A dozen gold sparks burst from his hands, and the sparks began to take shape.
As the last spark fell into place, the product of Zeus’ manifestation trotted gallantly around the room with its head held high. A unicorn made of pure light, with a deadly horn shaped like a lightning bolt, pranced around the room until it came to a halt beside its master.
“That’s all you’ve got?” Poseidon asked with an arched brow. Poseidon was the same height as Zeus with matching silver hair. But where Zeus had a topknot with a clean undercut, Poseidon wore his hair in a long ponytail that stopped midway down his muscled back. Poseidon wore a deep navy-blue V-neck t-shirt with a pair of black shorts and matching black thong sandals, while his baby brother sported a crisp white t-shirt with dark jeans and brown loafers.
Zeus rolled his eyes as he said, “You talk a lot of shit for someone who hasn’t won a single round, old man.”
Poseidon’s hazel eyes sparkled with mischief as the dragon stopped above its master and glared down at the unicorn. The dragon opened his mouth and let out a fearsome roar before it coiled itself for attack and sprung. The unicorn pawed at the ground before it too lunged itself into battle.
The two beasts collided with a thunderous crack of thunder and a flash of light. The dragon wrapped itself around the unicorn and began to constrict its prey, but the unicorn would not give in so easily. As the unicorn bucked, it wildly lashed out with its horn until it punctured the dragon’s tail. The dragon recoiled and snapped at the unicorn’s delicate neck with its razor-sharp fangs.
It was Zeus’ turn to laugh now as his unicorn reared up onto its hind legs, and a brilliant bolt of lightning erupted from its horn. With another deafening crack of thunder, the two beasts burst into lightning and rain. I watched, albeit uncomfortably, as both Zeus and Poseidon continued to display their prowess.
This had been going on for almost two hours now. Both gods had been competing with one another in order to gain the attention of the new young goddess who had made her debut at Aphrodite’s elegant gathering.
I groaned internally. The last thing I had expected when I agreed to come to this was for both of the elder gods to be acting like hormonal teenagers. I tried to blend into the décor as best as I could, feeling more than a little uncomfortable. This was worse than how I had felt at the club the week before with Apollo. My subconscious hissed at the memory.
Well, at least now you see where Apollo gets it from. Ugh.
Shortly after we had arrived, Artemis had abandoned me to fetch us drinks. But that was nearly an hour ago, and she still hadn’t returned. I let out a breath. I hadn’t seen Aphrodite or Athena all evening either, now that I thought about it. Where was the gracious hostess hiding? Oh, no, I hope Artemis and Aphrodite aren’t killing each other somewhere.
Poseidon and Zeus exchanged a high-five as they began their contest again. This time, Zeus had conjured up an incredible golden hawk, and his brother had conjured a large lethal-looking crab. This was as good a time as any to try to sneak away from the two while they were distracted.
Aphrodite’s temple was stunning. The walls, columns, and flooring were all made from the same white and gold marble. Strung along the walls were thin transparent banners of pink and gold fabric. Lining the pathway to Aphrodite’s clamshell shaped throne were dozens of statues of Aphrodite and her family. At the center of the room, bringing the entire aesthetic together, was an impressive fountain with a carved marble statuette of her son, Eros, as a cherub, with a bow and arrow held in his tiny hands.
As I slipped myself behind the banners along the walls, I made sure to keep an eye out for any sign of Artemis. But as I snuck away from the crowd of gathered gods, I couldn’t see her or her signature crown of crimson hair anywhere. I did, however, see Apollo.
I froze behind the last remaining banner on the wall. If I moved now, he was sure to see me here. Tonight, Apollo wore an unbuttoned white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, displaying his muscled forearms, and a pair of dark jeans. His long blond hair was loose and fell in waves to his jawline, making him appear like a young, innocent youth. My stomach cramped with nervousness.
The last thing I needed tonight was for Apollo to see me and start acting like his father and his uncle. I had to think of something fast.
To my right, just off to the side from where the last banner hung, stood a large statue of Zeus. I thought for a moment. If I could sneak out from behind the banner unnoticed, I could slip behind the statue and wait for Apollo to walk by before making my escape. But first, I had to wait for the perfect opportunity.
Apollo stalked the table of food slowly, picking a random assortment of treats and piling them onto a dish. For a moment, he paused and looked over his shoulder to examine the crowd. If he had paid any closer attention to his peripheral vision, he could have seen me. Thankfully, he didn’t, and he soon returned to piling food onto his plate. When he was finished, Apollo turned and strode off towards where his father and uncle were still putting their abilities to the test.
I let out a sigh that I wasn’t aware that I had been holding before I ducked out from behind the banner and pressed myself tightly against the statue. I checked my surroundings, worried that someone had seen me. But no one seemed to notice.
Thank goodness, I thought to myself, feeling an overwhelming sense of relief wash over me. Now I just needed to find Artemis and make sure she wasn’t dead somewhere alongside Aphrodite. I turned and power-walked as quickly as possible into the corridor that led out into Aphrodite’s rose garden. Just when I was about to make my great escape, I collided with a solid mass of meat and muscle. A loud “oof” escaped my lips as I recoiled from whoever I ran into and bowed my head apologetically.
“I’m so sorry,” I said, speaking quickly. “I didn’t see you standing there! I was just looking for my friend, I didn’t mean to bump into you!”
I raised my head so I could get a better look at the stranger and gasped when I met his eyes. The same deep blue eyes that I had been mystified by at the club last week were now staring deeply into mine. The man’s deep brown hair was plastered to his forehead from the rain. Confused, I took a small step back and examined him to see that his clothes were also soaking wet, and because I had run into him, my pink gown was too. My gown, I realized, had become slightly transparent due to the water, and my breasts were clearly visible for him to see.
I felt my cheeks turn a bright shade of red as I crossed my arms over my chest. The man had grown visibly flustered as a light pink blush crept up his cheeks as well. He lowered his gaze to the floor immediately.
“I am so sorry about that,” he said.
With a snap of his fingers, the two of us were suddenly dry. I lowered my hands nervously. I had been hoping for this moment all week, and now that it was here, I wasn’t sure what to do. I had never flirted with anyone before. How was I supposed to do this? Did I compliment his eyes? Did I compliment his hair? Or did I thank him for saving me from further embarrassment after he dried my dress?
“I’m Hades,” he said, his voice barely a whisper.
I sucked in a sharp breath. Hades, my mind echoed. Every single atom in my body came to life at once as he slowly lifted his gaze t
o meet mine, and a slow, sweet smile spread over his voluptuous lips.
“I’m Persephone,” I replied. “It’s nice to meet you, Hades.”
“The pleasure is all mine. I… I’m sorry I didn’t say anything to you before. I wasn’t in the greatest of mood’s that day, and I probably wouldn’t have made the best impression. Not that I’m making a better impression on you right now,” Hades chuckled nervously.
I giggled back. “I mean, it could have been worse, right? We both could have been naked.” I mentally slapped myself. What the hell was that all about? Why did I say that? Oh, my… Where was Artemis when I needed her? This would not end well.
Hades’ eyes widened before he threw his head back and laughed. “You’re right. That probably would have been infinitely worse.”
We stood in silence, my teeth absentmindedly gnawing at my bottom lip. There was so much I wanted to say to Hades, but for some reason, my body wanted so much more than simply to talk. I allowed my gaze to explore the sharp angles of his body. Beneath his shirt, I could see that his chest was sculpted to perfection. His arms were wrapped in thick ribbons of muscle, making the veins on his forearms more prominent.
Is it hot in here all of a sudden, or is it just me?
Hades cleared his throat and said, “You look beautiful,”
“Oh!” I flushed. “Th-thank you so much. I was worried that maybe I looked kind of boring compared to the others. I mean, I’m nothing compared to Eris or Hecate.”
“You’re right,” Hades agreed. “You’re much more beautiful.”
Oh my…
My heart was beating faster again, my breath coming more quickly as my knees almost gave out from sheer delight. I was hoping to ease the butterflies in my stomach so I could feel more at ease, but I was only growing more desperate for this man by the minute.
“You’re quite handsome yourself, Hades,” I replied, trying not to sound like a complete and utter moron. When he smiled this time, a sense of warmth blossomed in my chest. For reasons unknown to me, I felt completely at ease with Hades. Unlike the other gods inside Aphrodite’s temple, Hades had the calmest demeanor about him. He didn’t waste time with catcalls or vulgar pickup lines, he wasn’t trying to impress me by summoning any sort of dangerous creature, and he certainly hadn’t tried to place his hands on me.
This was the sense of peace I was hoping to find outside of the confines of my prison. For a moment, I wondered what life would be like if I had never allowed Artemis to whisk me away from home that fateful evening. If I hadn’t seen Hades that night, would I have been so eager to go out again? And now that we had finally spoken, would I be able to handle never seeing him again?
“Were you going somewhere before I barged into you?” he asked, rousing me from my thoughts.
Oh, right! I had forgotten all about Artemis.
“Yes,” I replied, shaking off my daze. “I was actually going to go outside to look for my friend, Artemis. We came here together, but I haven’t seen her in a while. I’m worried she’s either in trouble or she’s going to be in trouble soon.”
Hades chuckled low in his throat. “I can see that. She and her brother are notorious for getting themselves into all sorts of shit. Would you mind if I came with you?”
I could feel every fiber of my being singing with joy as I nodded and said, “I’d like that.”
Hades stepped aside from the entrance and allowed me to walk past him before he joined me outside. The weather on Olympus was always perfect, but tonight there was a slight chill to the air. I chalked it up to my nerves because I was walking alongside Hades, but I couldn’t be sure. As we slowly walked side by side in silence, I couldn’t help but enjoy the beauty of the garden.
Aphrodite’s garden was just as impressive as the inside of her temple. The courtyard was divided in the middle into two walkways by a large rectangular pool in the middle. Alongside both paths of the garden sat row upon row of roses, each one a different color from the next. Above us, the sky was a combination of dark blue and purple dotted with twinkling white stars. What an incredibly romantic place for us to be together. When I looked over to Hades, I froze mid-step.
He was staring right at me.
9
Hades
Persephone stopped abruptly the moment she glanced over at me. Damn it… had she caught me staring at her? Nervously, I lowered my gaze to the floor. Persephone looked absolutely beautiful tonight. She wore a light pink gown that swung softly with every stride she took. Hidden within her long brown hair, braids and flowers were intertwined with one another. And her smell? I felt a deep hunger as I took a deep breath.
The smell of violets was intoxicating. I had tried to keep cool after I had quite literally run into her, but it was growing more impossible to do that with every passing second. When I had first manifested onto Olympus, I had gone to search for my brother in his temple. When I realized it was empty, I sought out the nearest handmaid, who explained that Aphrodite was holding a rather large gathering where my brother was sure to be. I walked here, still sopping wet from the heavy rains down in the mortal world, ready to pummel my brothers into the ground.
But the storm had seemingly slowed to a dull drizzle the moment I entered Aphrodite’s temple and slammed into Persephone. When I realized it was her, all the air that I had in my lungs at that very moment had suddenly disappeared. I struggled to regain my breath, but it was hard to in her presence. Deciding that I needed to make the first move, I had introduced myself.
The moment that Persephone said my name, a thrill shot through me. My heart was beating rapidly in my chest, and I was fairly sure that I had developed beads of sweat on my forehead. But if Persephone noticed it, she didn’t bother to say anything. Instead, she smiled, and we made small conversation.
It wasn’t until an uncomfortable silence had started to creep up between us that I said, “Were you going somewhere before I barged into you?”
Persephone thought for a moment, her nose scrunching adorably as she tried to recall.
“Yes,” she said at last. “I was actually going to go outside to look for my friend, Artemis. We came here together, but I haven’t seen her in a while. I’m worried she’s either in trouble or she’s going to be in trouble soon.”
I chuckled at that. Artemis and Apollo had been warring with one another almost since the moment of their birth. Much like my brothers, Apollo was always trying to upstage his sister in everything they did. However, Artemis wasn’t one to take shit lying down. She became quite the proficient archer and had decided that she would push herself to the limits in order to make it clear that she was her brother’s equal.
Realizing that this meant I could spend more alone time, I decided to take my chance by asking for permission to join her. Even if she did manage to find Artemis, at least I would have been by her side while she did so.
“I can see that,” I replied. “She and her brother are notorious for getting themselves into all sorts of shit. Would you mind if I came with you?”
Persephone smiled sweetly, her cheeks flushing pink. “I’d like that.”
I stepped away from the entrance to the garden and gestured for her to go first. Her smile deepened as she slipped past me and waited for me to join her. Once I did, we fell into a synchronous walk side by side. There were so many things I wanted to know about Persephone, but I wasn’t sure where to begin.
I didn’t want to start asking about her situation with her mother. If I did that, she was sure to find out that I was stalking her like some sort of creep. I sighed, trying to remain calm. I peered at Persephone from the corner of my eye to see that she was looking around at the garden, her eyes filled with wonder.
I had to give it to Aphrodite, the woman certainly knew beauty. The garden was large, almost as large as her temple. In the center of the garden, dividing the land into two separate sections, was a large infinity pool filled to the brim with dark water and speckled with hundreds of pink lotus flowers. The walkways were lined wit
h thousands of roses on either side, and the red, pink, white, and yellow roses filled the night air with their pleasant aroma. The trees that she had placed aesthetically placed throughout the garden were abundant with large red apples ripe for the taking.
Without realizing it, I was now facing Persephone completely. I took another deep breath, letting her scent rip through my senses like a raging fire as I struggled to keep myself together. My head swam from it, and I had to fight my body to keep my feet planted firmly on the ground. What was it about her that was driving my heart and body so wild? Was it the calm that she brought to my troubled mind when she was near? Was it the smell of her skin? Or was it the fact that I wanted to drown in those lavender eyes?
That was when I had realized that Persephone was staring right at me.
“Sorry,” I said as I lowered my gaze to the floor, mentally chastising myself. Way to go, creep. Now she’s probably going to wonder what the hell is wrong with you. I shook my head, feeling an entirely new kind of embarrassed. Persephone reached over and placed a warm hand on mine.
“Don’t be sorry, Hades,” she said softly.
I raised my eyes from the floor and met her gaze. She was smiling at me, and I couldn’t help but smile back. I moved to take a step towards her but thought better of it. Part of me wanted to kiss her deeply while the other part of me warned that it was much too soon. I agreed with the latter, but not happily.
“There’s something about you that I can’t put my finger on,” I admitted. Persephone’s eyes drew together in confusion as she thought for a moment.
“Something bad?” she asked, her tone laced with anxiety.
“Quite the opposite,” I replied reassuringly.
Persephone smiled and nodded, then took a step towards me. “I think I know exactly what you mean,” she said, her lips slightly parted. My body roared to life as I stared at those lips. Persephone took every ounce of my breath away. “I know we just officially met, but I feel like we’ve known each other forever. I feel… at home with you.”
