DIVINE - A Persephone And Hades Retelling

TWENTY EIGHT || Truthful

He said not a word as he stood motionless in front of her. She could see anger clearly written on his face; eyebrows hard, jaw clenched, and a scowl reaching out to her. He was fury, stone, and rage all wrapped together. She could do nothing but watch him as she stood in front of the river bank. Shocked by his presence, like a child with her hand caught in a cookie jar.

She knew he was mad. Anyone with eyes could see his temper resting just under the surface. While his anger stung, the look of betrayal hiding behind his eyes weakened her until she broke completely. Hades had never asked much of her, but he had asked her not to bring the forgotten across the river Styx. And she had told him she wouldn't. Hades had very few people in his eternal life that he could trust. Everyone he had ever loved had left him more battered than before. His mother, his father, Zeus, Hera, and Poseidon. But not her; she was never supposed to be the one to cause such pain.

And yet she had still gone behind his back. And yet here they were. She had done something she knew would hurt him, and worst of all, she had done it selfishly for herself.

"Not. One. Word." He said to her before she had a chance to speak. His voice was cold and unemotional.

His furious eyes never left hers as he spoke to Thanatos, who was patiently waiting beside him. "Thanatos, take the woman and her child to the judges, then see them safely to Elysium." His voice was as sharp as a blade, never leaving any room for argument. All parties were silent, feeling the king's fury pulse in the air.

Persephone glanced at Thanatos, who looked carefully towards her, but there was nothing he could do. He looked at her apologetically as he took the mother and daughter and led them towards the judges. Not risking the wrath of his king.

"Hades, please, I can explain-" she pleaded with him once they were alone, but he held up his hand, stopping her.

"NO, YOU WILL NOT." He raised his voice to her for the first time in their relationship. "Not a single word." When she did not speak, he turned and began walking back towards the castle.

This time she did not follow.

He may be mad at her, but she was his wife and would not be commanded like one of his subjects. She had crossed a line, she knew it, and he had every right to be mad at her, but not like this. When he turned and saw her standing in the same space he left her, his demeanor did not change, he did not even miss a beat. He simply began to walk back to her. At first, she thought he had come back to talk with her. She soon noticed he was not slowing his approach. She saw his fists tighten and his brows pull together and knew he was in no mood for talking. When he reached her, he simply bent down to grab her around the waist and threw her over his shoulder, only to begin his walk back to the castle over again.

"Hades, put me down!" she yelled furiously at him. It seemed one way or another Hades had expected her to follow him, whether it was willingly or forcefully. The god of the Underworld always got what he wanted. Still, she banged her fists against his back. Her suborn side showing through. She tried to roll off his shoulder, but he had a tight grip on her.

"I said not a word." He answered, slapping her on the ass in reply to her struggle. She could only shriek in response. "We will talk when we are home and in private. This is not the place," he growled, making his way back to the castle.

Even after she stopped fighting, even after they passed watchful maids, and even after she asked one last hopeful time, he still did not let her down. Not until he had shut the doors to their chambers. This time he did not look at her even to glare. No, this time, he only paced the floor. Back and forth. "Explain. Tell me why you have done such a thoughtless thing."

"It was not thoughtless," she argued but immediately regretted it. She should not be antagonizing him. An angry Hades was bad enough without her pushing him any further. Yet still, she knew what she had done, although reckless and selfish, was not thoughtless. It was important. Maybe to no one else but the mortal mother, the girl, and to Persephone. But still important.