At the Touch of Death

by Gina Carra

  Persephone doesn’t keep her thoughts in check as much as she wishes she could. “What do you mean you can’t? You brought me here. Put me back.”

  Hades’s voice bellows throughout the caves. She’s not even speaking that loudly. It’s as if the entire Underworld is in tune with her voice and reverberates with it. “Can you grow flowers here? In the stone? Can you ask Helios to shine light on them and nourish them? Can you do any of that?”

  She actually waits for a response so Persephone manages a very weak, “No.”

  Hades rolls her eyes. “We all have limitations.” Hades watches her again. It’s like she can see Persephone’s soul and Persephone tenses, realizing that might just be true. “Gods, you’re worse than Eros.”

  Persephone isn’t sure how to respond to that. “What does Eros have to do with this?”

  “What doesn’t Eros have to do with this?” Hades looks away suddenly, mouth snapping shut as she regrets sharing those words.

  It takes Persephone a solid ten seconds to realize the god of death is in love with her. “Oh.”

  Hades doesn’t look her in the eye, hasn’t this whole time. “I have to take care of something. Feel free to walk around. Don’t touch the water and don’t eat anything.”

  Then she’s gone and Persephone shivers in the cold, alone on the bridge.

  ✽✽✽

  The stream is a soft, comforting sound to Demeter as he carries his shoes in one hand. His usual companions are mud, and weeds, and the occasional sharp gardening tool humans leave around so he allows himself the luxury of feeling the soft grass beneath his feet as he walks along the bank. He understands why Persephone refuses to wear shoes. If he could make flowers bloom anywhere the way she can, he would just walk on petals and never wear shoes ever again. He snorts as he imagines her smacking his arm, offended at the concept of him trampling over her flowers. He stares at the ground and a pumpkin forms. He laughs at himself. It’s not nearly the same effect that Persephone has.

  He turns on his heel and heads back to her. He takes a moment to wonder if he should check on the fruit trees at Hebe’s. He loves to entertain her ale-making hobby. He and Persephone benefit from the fruits of her labor. He laughs to himself at the joke only he could hear. Yeah, he and Persephone should visit Hebe tonight. She must have some fun new story for them since three days ago. They really do spend so much time there.

  He reaches the tree he’d been sitting under and frowns when he doesn’t see Persephone. He keeps walking, but still nothing. Then he spots it. A small circle of flowers: zinnias[3].

  The entire world shakes as Demeter’s eyes catch the telltale scorch marks of Hades.

  A False Sense

  A pair of familiar eyes hold her gaze as an arrow, golden and glimmering in the sunlight, whirs directly toward her. It pierces her chest, her heart—

  Hades wakes up coughing until she realizes she’s sobbing.

  This arrow is seriously screwing with her. She hadn’t dreamed in…almost a century.

  For a moment, she allows herself to remember the first time she ever dreamed. It wasn’t until after the effects of Eros’s first arrow that images played through her mind while she slept. It also wasn’t until Eros’s arrow that she slept for anything other than passing time. At first she thought the dreams were people’s memories. It’s part of her ability to review other’s memories. Dreaming felt so similar to that—fuzzy images and vaguely remembered emotions—but these images she saw at night weren’t real events.

  She’s a higher god, one of only three, but she’d never felt magic until that day. With a lingering pain in her chest from where the arrow struck her, she felt joy. She felt worth. She felt so much.

  She hasn’t felt in so long.

  And now she’s choking on it, drowning in it.

  It’s a few moments before she realizes she never checked on Persephone. It had all been too much. She needed to get away, as ironic as that was. She was practically always alone down here.

  She closes her eyes and listens. There's currently only one beating heart in the Underworld and the sound of it is like music pulsing through the caves.

  She follows the sound to find Persephone, sleeping curled up in a tapestry she pulled off the wall. She’s shivering, even in her sleep. Hades knows she should be annoyed since the tapestry is now a little torn, but instead guilt tears through her. Persephone isn’t used to the cold and she was resourceful enough to find some semblance of warmth. Hades tries to forgive herself as guilt, guilt, guilt, pours through her. She had cried herself to sleep, clutching at the sore spot in her chest where the arrow had pierced her, but the self-pity does nothing to lessen the remorse.

  She carries Persephone to her bed, careful to only touch her through the material of the tapestry, which she can repair later. She places her on the mattress and tugs the comforter over her.

  She watches for a moment, satisfied when she sees the shaking has stopped. She conjures a ghostly purple hyacinth, knowing Persephone will understand her own flower language. The flower, only an imitation of life, will disintegrate in a few hours but it should last until she wakes.

  Hades walks out of the small room and crosses the bridge over the River Styx. She pauses in the middle, staring down at the slow-moving current. She speaks softly, knowing all its inhabitants can hear her. “It’s been a while since I’ve been able to hurt with you.” She flinches. “Sorry about that rock yesterday morning. That was inconsiderate, even if you couldn’t really feel it.” She closes her eyes as the souls grow excited under the attention, excited to be heard finally. Hades grips the railing tightly as the remorse of thousands hits her harshly. “I feel your regrets as my own, but you must let go to move on to Elysium. That’s the only path away from me. I’d certainly take it if I could.”

  The souls that make up the river seems to hum in response to her words.

  Hades scoffs lightly. “Don’t talk back to me like that. You know I’m right.”

  She turns toward her bedroom for a moment and then glances back at the river. "She's beautiful, right? Like not just...could you guys see it too? Could you see her the way I did?"

  She knows they can't respond, but she had to say it to someone. Persephone's soul is beautiful. She's tainting it just by being near her.

  She stands there for what must be hours. As souls pass beneath her, she takes a moment to listen to their stories of regret. That's all they manage to think about while they're here. That's the whole point of this. They have to ruminate on every mistake they've ever made. They relive each moment they inflicted pain on others, only now they feel that pain for themselves. Some are here longer than others. Some never leave. But everyone ends up here at some point.

  The River Styx is always described as hideous and terrifying. She’d seen the way Persephone reacted to it. Hades has never seen it as anything other than beautiful and unyielding. It’s the ultimate justice. No one can run from it. No status can exempt you from it. Everyone is equal in Styx and everyone gets exactly what they deserve. Hades’s lips curve into a frown. She and her two brothers are the only ones exempt and the thought rekindles a softly burning rage in her heart. Before she can linger in hatred, the steady breath floating through the quiet world hitches slightly. Hades turns her head toward the sound.

  Persephone is awake.

  ✽✽✽

  Eros splashes in the water, watching as the sun glints off the stream. He doesn’t look up as he allows Helios to use him as a tether to get to Earth. Eros seems to know the answer, but asks anyway, “She’s just been busy, though. Hasn’t she?”

  Helios doesn’t even pretend to lie. “No, Cue. She’s been avoiding you.”

  Eros looks up at that. “Hermes told me Hades was too busy and that’s why he’s been helping with her topside errands instead of Hades coming herself.”

  Helios blinks. “For a full century?”

  Eros’s resolve falters. “...She’s all right, isn’t she? Have you talked to her?”

&n
bsp; “She knows I talk to you so, no. I haven’t talked to her.”

  Eros sighs, flopping down in the water, soaking all his clothes. “Why didn’t you tell me she was here sooner? I barely had any time to see her.”

  Helios scoffs. “Cue, you had time to shoot her.”

  Eros protests, “Okay, you know it’s not my choice most of the time.”

  Helios stays quiet long enough that Eros splashes him. He flinches and grins a little but remains serious. “It really wasn’t you?”

  Eros shakes his head. “I’m telling you, Sol. This is it for her. I don’t think she knows it yet.” It’s quiet between them for a moment. Eros’s voice is soft when he speaks again. “Do you think she’ll ever forgive me?”

  Helios sits down beside him in the running stream. Eros smiles at the display of affection and allows Helios to ignore the question, leaning into him.

  ✽✽✽

  To say Persephone wakes up unhappy is an understatement.

  She wakes without opening her eyes and immediately feels anger and pain course through her as she remembers she’s in an infertile world where flowers don’t grow.

  She’s well aware of how frivolous that sounds, but her flowers truly mean something. It took her a long time to appreciate her gift but now she does and she’s infuriated to be separated from it. Her flowers tell stories, comfort friends, grieve lost ones. Her flowers declare love and ask for forgiveness. A world without flowers is like a world without sunshine and…well, this place is both.

  And apparently it also doesn’t have beds.

  The thought crosses her mind right as she realizes she’s on a bed.

  Her eyes fly open and go a little crossed as they focus on the…thing in front of her face.

  Her tension melts slightly when she sees the flower, a purple hyacinth: regret. She’s not about to forgive, but the flower is a start even if it is a ghostly shadow of something that should be alive. She tucks it behind her ear and feels slightly more at ease with it there.

  She stalks out of the bedroom to spot Hades on the bridge, looking at her openly. It’s a little unnerving. She’d really thought the Lord of the Underworld would be…scarier, but it’s somehow even more terrifying that she’s not.

  Persephone holds onto the anger she woke up with. “Did you fucking carry me?”

  Hades holds up her hands, eyebrow curving up in amusement at Persephone’s crude choice of words. “I didn’t touch you.”

  Persephone shakes her head. “That’s not what I asked.”

  Hades shrugs. “Yeah, I carried you in the tapestry that you ripped.” Her eyes widen, surprised at her own pettiness. She usually doesn’t care about these things. She curses the arrow. “I’m very sorry.” And that’s different too—the need to apologize. It’s not such an alien feeling to Hades, though. It’s fair to account for your mistakes. She’s comfortable with the minor representation of justice. “I didn’t mean for your first night to be such a rough one. I know what you must be thinking but I truly had no part in any of this. I didn’t take you with me down here. It’s…” She pauses with a sigh. Persephone listens as some blanks are filled in for her. “I don’t know how familiar you are with Eros’s arrows?”

  Persephone purses her lips. “I’ve heard stories.”

  Hades rubs her chest and Persephone catches the motion. “Lucky.” She stares out at the river. Persephone follows her gaze and shudders at the haunting view of miserable souls drifting aimlessly. Hades continues her explanation. “You weren’t shot, but we’re still bound by the arrow. It’s not usually a rule that comes into effect but, well, you stay in the same world as the person you’re bound to so when my time ran out I had to return here and you were forced here with me. I want you to know it’s not my choice to make you stay here. The effects of the arrow should wear off and you’ll be free to go. We just have to wait a bit.”

  Persephone blinks at her. She’s wary of trusting such kind, simple words. She’s heard some stories about the arrows but she’s heard many more about Hades. Hades has been known to literally talk people to death. It’s her skill. Persephone isn’t keen on dying. She’s a goddess. She’s never even supposed to die, but again, she’s…heard stories.

  Hades shakes her head. “It’s okay, I didn’t expect you to believe me.”

  Persephone steps back at the intrusion.

  Hades curses quietly. Her voice softens. “I don’t mean to—You’re kind of an open book. You must be used to it since the flowers always give you away up there.”

  Persephone’s heart pulses in fear. “Can you hear my thoughts?”

  Hades shakes her head. “No, no, nothing like that. It’s just…” And then she’s staring again and Persephone hates it. She hates not knowing what Hades is seeing. Hades glances out over the river again. “I understand souls. That’s my thing. I’ve never had to control it. No one’s ever here.” The words are said without sadness. It’s a fact: no one’s ever here.

  Persephone wants to trust her, but how can she? She assumes Hades already knows how she feels. “I’m sorry.” The words are stiff and not completely sincere.

  Hades shrugs, eyes on the river. “Don’t be. It’s the smart decision.” She takes a breath. “I can go back up for the next full moon so worst-case scenario you’re here for a month, then we can go to Earth and…sort it out with Cue.”

  Persephone feels like she’s suddenly lost air in this world too. Part of her is surprised by the familiar nickname Hades has for Eros, but she’s much more concerned about that time estimate. “A month? I have to…stay like this…for a month?”

  Hades hangs her head. She can feel Persephone’s pain. It’s honestly impossible not to. Persephone is separated from her element and it’s like her soul is screaming. “I’ll do what I can to help, but mostly I need the arrow’s effects to fade so I really can’t be with you.” Hades responds to the question before Persephone can even ask it. “I have to fall out of this false sense of love Cue’s implanted in me and that’s going to be really hard if I keep seeing how beautiful you are.”

  She says it as a fact again. There’s no emotion tangled in it and it’s somehow more affecting because of it.

  She gazes at Persephone once more. Now that Persephone knows Hades is looking straight through to her soul, it’s even more unnerving. Hades swallows. “Be well. Get home safe.”

  And she’s gone, leaving scorched stone in her place. Persephone stares out at the river. The entire place is silent except for what sounds like a room full of hushed whispers. They’re the only company here. She speaks to them. “Is she telling the truth?”

  Nothing happens.

  She sighs and takes the flower out of her hair, staring at her one friend in this world. She just hopes Demeter isn’t tearing the earth apart looking for her.

  ✽✽✽

  The scorch marks Hades left behind gave Demeter a great idea.

  To deal with a higher god, you need the help of a higher god. Demeter is still a little miffed about Poseidon’s saltwater idea and how many of his crops it killed with the initial confusion, so Zeus it is. Even though everyone knows Zeus is a jerk and a bit of a bully, that’s kind of the energy Demeter needs right now—someone to bully Hades.

  A lesser god can’t just walk up to Olympus, so he has to get Zeus’s attention somehow. It takes a day or two for anyone to notice, but crops start to rot in the fields like a plague.

  Demeter’s heart would break thinking about all the hard work he put into those crops, the blessings he bestowed, but this is for Persephone, so his actions cause him no remorse.

  He turns his head to the sky and waits.

  Youth

  Tight ringlet curls bounce wildly, eyes forced shut as Hebe laughs with genuine mirth. She’s surrounded by children on a playground, once again masquerading as a human substitute teacher. She loves being around the children under her care and she loves that she’s not hidden away on Olympus anymore, having to send blessings from afar.

  No on
e around her knows who she is. She’s actually friends with a few of the other teachers, but they all know her as Ivy.

  She watches as they play, still too young to know about things like temptation or greed. She keeps those things out of their lives for as long as she possibly can, but she’s usually thwarted by another god on that matter.

  As if on cue, Eros and Helios wave at her from across the field. She frowns at the interruption, but waves to her friends.

  Helios whispers to her from afar, We’ll meet you at your place when you’re done?

  Hebe nods and they walk away.

  When all the kids are done, safely on the buses or picked up, she makes her way home and finds Eros and Helios waiting by her door.

  Hebe smiles, offering them both a hug, “To what do I owe the pleasure?” She changed after ‘work’ and is now wearing a crop top and high-waisted jeans, always up to date with all of the human youth’s fashion trends.

  Eros smiles widely, an obvious attempt to look cute and innocent. “Hide me?”

  Helios looks exhausted.

  Hebe lets them in without another word. Her expression is amused and a little wary of what she’s about to get herself into.

  When the door is shut and everyone’s inside, Hebe has to prompt the others to speak, “What’d you do now?”

  Helios jabs a finger at Eros. “Hades.”

  Hebe sighs. “Again?”

  Eros slaps Helios’s hand away. “Okay, traitor, it’s not like that.” He turns to Hebe. “It was real this time. I didn’t get the chance to tell her.”

  Hebe drops her face into her hands. “She’s going to kill you regardless. I hope you know that.” She waits for more information and is met with silence. She prods them again. “So? Who is it? Who’s with her?”

  Helios and Eros look at each other. Helios seems to convey that he’s not getting in the middle of this. Hebe turns her attention fully to Eros. Eros smiles sweetly, “...Persephone?”