Reversal [by TheSuperSass]

Chapter 2

As Hades walked through the familiar field from the week before, her clothes dripping with seawater, she remembered exactly why she didn't visit Poseidon more often. Absence seemed to make the heart grow fonder, and everytime Hades foolishly thought her sister had matured beyond splashing her while fully clothed. After hundreds of years, it had never been true.

She considered skipping the longer walk home through the region Demeter and Persephone lived. Dripping wet and cold, she lost that nerve she had when she was in the Underworld, staring at the dead sunflower.

Before she could talk herself out of it, she spotted the unmistakable pop of Persephone's red hair across the field long before she could make out the details of his face. She wondered what he would think to see her.

As she got close, the urge to take her helm and disappear came over her. A small part of her didn't want Persephone to see her like this, but she quickly dismissed the thought. Why should she care what she looked like when he saw her? The rustling of her skirts in the grass broke him out of his daydreaming. Looking down at him from his seated spot on the ground, she watched surprise then recognition light up his face.

"Hades!" he declared with a smile, jumping up and jogging towards her. "You're back!"

All of her concerns about visiting immediately vanished at his response. This time she did not lean away from his hug, instead embracing him in return. She rarely let Olympian men touch her, as they managed to make something as harmless as a hug lecherous somehow, putting her on edge. Persephone hugging her did the opposite: it made her feel warm and at ease.

The embrace was over toon soon as Persephone pulled away with surprise and confusion, looking down at his arms.

"You're all wet!" Hades mentally cursed Poseidon for causing this separation.

"Yes, well my sister still seems to think it's funny to splash me when I'm not looking." Persephone laughed, and though she thought that would annoy her, she found her smile matching his.

"I can bring you something to dry off with," he suggested. She nodded and followed his lead.

He lead her to a sunny spot to sit while she waited to dry. She peeled the heavier outer layers off her damp skin, exposing her bare arms and shoulders. Persephone watched, eyes settling a little too long on her, amazed by how light her skin was. She caught him staring, unsure whether to feel self conscious or flattered by his eyes on her.

"As you may imagine, my job doesn't allow me in the sun very often." Persephone flushed, quickly looking away.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." His face burned red. "I've just never seen skin like yours before. It's so different from anyone up here." He moved next to her, holding his arm out next to hers. "See?"

She looked down as his tan skin, smattered with freckles. Her gaze followed all the way up his arms, up his biceps, back to his face.

"And you seem awfully strong for a flower god. I didn't image flowers could be so heavy." She smirked.

"They're not," he admitted with a laugh. "But I help my mothers and the mortals with the harvest. I like doing things outside."

Hades nodded and looked across the wide sky before them. She tried to imagine what a life outdoors must be like. It had been so long ago and so short of a time in the world above before she was queen. Even above, the rest of the gods spent their time in the grandiosity of Olympus, not on Earth among mortals.

Meanwhile, Persephone fidgeted, unsure of what to do or say facing the silence between them. No one he knew was so still and he didn't know how to converse with her.