by RM Virtues
11
Hades
Leaving his office before the sun sets is not simply uncommon. It’s unprecedented. And he’s now done it twice. Not that everyone in the casino notices. He’s always been the very definition of a higher power here, working unseen but always incredibly felt. No, the divergence weighs far more heavily on Hades himself than anyone else, and he feels almost uncomfortable, stripping off his tie and rolling up his sleeves as he enters his kitchen. He doubts he needs so much time to prepare a late dinner, but if he’s honest, he’s nervous, which would be funny if it weren’t so invasive. The first date had gone so well. How is he supposed to follow that up?
He has rarely —if ever— made it past the first date, and not entirely for lack of trying either. From the beginning, something would be missing, and by the end of it, he would be sure that there would be no salvaging it. That is the pattern he’d become accustomed to. For a plethora of reasons, he has consistently struggled to connect with anyone beyond a surface level. The only exceptions ever have been Hecate, Thana, and Charon, and not a single complaint about that has ever passed from his lips.
Then Persephone happens.
She has changed everything, quickly and irrevocably. And all in all, for the better. All of a sudden, with a relentless determination, he wants for more. More than that, he isn’t willing to settle for anything less.
He hears the elevator ding just as he pulls the lamb out of the oven, setting it atop the stove. He glances at his watch - Or rather, he glances at his wrist where his watch should be only to find the faint outline in his skin. Looking towards the balcony doors instead, he finds that it’s not yet fully dark out, so he knows it can’t be her. He looks up as the elevator opens, knowing it could only be one of three people with card access to his suite. To his surprise, it’s two of them, Thanatos and Hecate entering in full black-tie attire. Hades halts his movements and turns to them, brows raised.
“Going out?” he asks.
“My sister’s annual auction, remember?” Hecate explains.
Of course he’s forgotten. Granted, Hades tends to forget she has a sister. Circe and Hecate had only found out about each other a few years ago, well after they were both already grown, and the former doesn’t make a habit of coming around. Hades only ever sees her when he has business with Medusa’s Sarpedon District. In that, it’s difficult to see her as anyone other than Medusa’s right hand.
“We came to see if you wanted to come,” Thana goes on, flopping down on the couch only to be immediately reprimanded by Hecate for rumpling his suit. He shrugs. “Bring Persephone. I assume that’s why you’ve left your office before midnight for the first time in ages. Apart from, you know, going out last night and going to her shows, but that only serves my point, doesn’t it?”
Hades picks up a head of lettuce and launches it at him, which Thana catches with a grunt. Hecate’s glare passes over both of them.
“I just made dinner,” Hades points out, gesturing to the counter before him. “And she has a show tomorrow. She’ll want to rest.”
Thana snorts. “As if you’re going to let her rest.”
Hades smiles. “I promised.”
“Probably because he wore her out last night,” Hecate hums, softening now.
“Hush, the both of you,” Hades huffs, catching the lettuce when Thana throws it back.
Though, the air seems to thicken as he sets it back down, the three of them eyeing one another. Hecate tilts her head, inspecting Hades.
“She’s something, isn’t she?” she asks, her voice saturated with something Hades can’t quite place. Then, “Something serious.”
Immediately, he feels the sweat trickling down his neck. He tells himself it’s from the heat of the oven at his back, but he knows better. He may have already heard Hecate’s thoughts on the matter, but that doesn’t ease his apprehension.
“I don’t know,” he answers honestly, bracing his hands on the counter. “Can she be?”
“What do you mean?”
He shrugs. “I don’t know what it means, to feel this way about someone. It feels-”
“Selfish?”
Hades looks up at Thanatos, whose face is screwed up in questioning confusion following his suggestion. Though the two of them say it all in the eyes. Thana knows. He understands. How, Hades does not know, but he’s given no time to investigate that.
“Because it isn’t,” Thana goes on, his expression clearing. “You only think that because you’ve never had something for yourself. You, Hecate, me, Charon. We put everything we have into this place, this district, and that’s no complaint. It is our home, the home your father wanted for us, but he never would have asked you to do it on your own.”
Hades smiles. “I have never done it on my own.”
“You know what I mean, brother.” Thana stands up, smoothing out his suit solely for Hecate’s benefit, conveyed by the look he spares her before he looks back at Hades. “He would have wanted you to be happy. Your mother too. And if she were here to see what we’re seeing, from that night you met this woman to now, she would say the same thing. There is room for her, Hades, for Persephone. And if there isn’t, you better make some, because you deserve to be happy, not just content.”
Hades looks down at the counter again, shaking his head. He’s lucky to have them. He’s always been very lucky, and he told himself that it was enough. Through the years, he’d believed that this little bit of luck was more than he deserved, and asking for anything more was not only selfish but ungrateful. Yet here they are, the people he trusts the most, telling him otherwise. How can he deny it then?
Whatever exists between him and Persephone, he wants to see it to fruition, and he wants to make it work. Everything about her inspires this. He thought them opposites at first, but the truth is that she is so many of the things he wishes to be. Brave, bold, free. She never let anyone clip her wings, and because of that, for the first time in his life, he is questioning why he ever did.
When he looks up, Thana’s grinning. He realizes he is too.
“Is that a ‘yes, Thana, you’re a genius, and you’re right, and I’m gonna listen to you’?”
Hades and Hecate both roll their eyes though their smiles betray them.
“It’s not even close to all of that nonsense,” Hades replies, “But it’s a - ‘I’m going to try and take the one bit of good advice you’ve ever given’. How’s that?”
Thana smirks and pats Hades’ chest. “That’s a start. We’ll work on it. Now, we should get going, love, or else we’ll be late, and if there’s anything I hate more than your sister’s last-minute invitations, it’s that fucking glare Medusa gives people when they show up late. Or - show up at all really. Medusa really doesn’t like people. Not that I blame her.”
Hades laughs. “Okay, but first. Can you taste the lamb? I need to make sure it’s perfect.”
Thana is already moving towards the pan. “Absolutely. They feed you nothing at these things. We pay so much to lick an empty plate, I swear it. The portions are a nightmare.”
Hecate scoffs. “Get all of that complaining out now because I do not want to hear it once we get there, do you understand?”
Thana takes a large chunk of meat and stuffs it in his mouth before speaking around it with a large grin. “Yes, ma’am.”
12
Persephone
Persephone’s phone continues to ring nonstop as she approaches the imposing towers of Asphodel, Demeter’s name flashing across the screen on a loop. It’s almost 8, so Persephone assumes that soon enough, Zeus’s name will be interspersed, but she tries not to think about that for the time being. Or at all. Once she’s safe inside the walls of the casino, she cannot care less about what he does.
She’d gone home, quickly, after rehearsal for a quick shower, but she was edging very close to late. Unlike with Zeus, the thought of being late to dinner with Hades both thrills her and scares her, uncertain of what her punishment would be if she lingered in the
elevator a little too long. However, once she arrives, she realizes she doesn’t have that option.
She leaves her phone in the car and saunters into the casino, this time able to take it all in —or at least, a good amount of it— without the need for an immediate escape. She even has the chance to actually admire the black and violet carpet pattern that her feet had carried her across the last time. Still soft beneath her flats, you would never know that thousands of people trample over it with drinks sloshing out of their glasses daily. Hades’ people keep the place pristine. She isn’t surprised.
The casino is large, much larger than it appears from the outside, and each room feels like a whole new world. The various card tables buzz with traffic and anticipation, most of them intense and inaudible amidst the siren song of the slot machines. The slots have various themes from pop culture to a uniform default, and the sounds seem to fill the air in a heroic harmony if one only listens close enough. When she enters the main room, her attention is automatically drawn upward toward the nest where Hades dwells, but of course she sees nothing. Her gaze continues to climb up the walls to the high ceilings and silk banners that hang from them, Hades’ crest billowing in the air conditioning. Like the man himself, everything in this place is absolutely majestic. And now that she knows him, she can see that the place is a direct reflection of its owner. Her heart clenches. She cannot wait to see him.
Once again, she’s intercepted, but the guards are far more kinder and far less imposing this time, leading her up the stairs. She thinks they’re going to Hades’ office again, but instead, they lead her into a side hall across from it where an elevator resides. Judging by the seclusion and the fact that a key card is needed, she imagines that it goes straight up into his penthouse. They do not immediately board it however.
Persephone stands there idly as the woman on her left speaks into her radio, and only a few minutes later, the elevator descends and the doors open up in front of her.
There stands Hades, looking as dapper as ever in a navy blue waistcoat and matching tie secured over his white dress shirt. She has no clue how he does it with such simplicity, and again, she feels underdressed in her strapless baby blue dress. He smiles and offers his hand, pulling her into the elevator and thanking his guard with a wave. The two guards wave back before turning and heading back down the hall. Hades lets the doors close before pulling her even closer and capturing her lips with his own. She melts on impact, gripping his elbows for anchor with a groan. When he pulls away, that devilish smirk is still perfectly in place.
She wants to sit on it.
“You look amazing,” he says, brushing his fingers down the side of her face. “And you’re on time. How was rehearsal?”
“What would have happened if I wasn’t? On time?” She completely sidesteps his question in favor of her own.
His eyes glitter with mischief, the corner of his mouth curling upward. “Be glad you don’t have to find out. You know what they say about curiosity, what it does.”
“Yeah, but considering you already did that yourself last night…”
The look on his face shoots heat straight down between her thighs. As does the tone of his voice. “You want that punishment, don’t you, babygirl?”
“Mm, does it involve that belt again?”
“Yeah. This time I tie you up with it and make you beg for my attention.”
She moans without truly meaning to right there in the elevator, leaning into him. Goodness, he isn’t just turning her on, he’s turning her into something else. It’s impossible to keep her mind from wandering, conjuring up image after image of what last night’s sequel might look like. The things she could do with him, the things she would let him do to her... Her eyes dart down to his belt as if compelled to before they return to his face. Somehow, she’s forgotten all about Zeus and her mother and any other problem that awaits her outside. Here, in his tower, she’s safe. The only immediate danger is what this man before her might do to her panties before they reach the top floor, and she is more than willing to fuck around and find out.
From the moment the doors part again, she knows the place is huge. It opens into a short entryway, flanked at the end by the kitchen on the right and the living room on the left. Past that is more living room in addition to the dining room and the balcony. Three hallways branch off these main spaces, and she can only imagine his bedroom. For now at least.
“This is gorgeous, Hades,” she breathes as she moves deeper into his space, staring around the living room. Her eyes soon hone in on the dining area. There are candles lit upon the table, and it is set with the utmost attention to detail. The food looks absolutely delicious, and she would say that he gives Danae a run for her money, but Persephone could be biased. Either way, she’s ecstatic.
Hades takes two wine glasses off of the counter and offers her one before guiding her towards the dinner table. She sees another unopened bottle of pomegranate wine on a tray beside a plate of actual pomegranates that have yet to be cut. She is exceptionally impressed with the spread he has put together, taking her time in admiring it before sitting down in the seat he’s pulled out for her. She can no longer remember the void idea she’d had of him before all this, but it pales in comparison to the man in the flesh. Lucky her.
Dinner passes in a haze of wine and laughter, and they eventually wind up sitting out on the balcony on two very comfortable chairs. Another bottle of wine and the freshly cut pomegranates sit upon a table between them although neither have touched them yet. Persephone finds herself enjoying the view of the River Styx District more thoroughly than ever before. Despite the monochrome design across most of the buildings and the fog that engulfs it from the river, it’s soothing. Like the elevator and his penthouse, it feels safe, an impenetrable fortress where they may rule and reign.
“Did you like it, growing up here?” she inquires.
He smiles. “Very much so. It’s much the same too. Few people know of them, but there are a lot of hidden gems here in the district. The hot springs, the wildlife preserve, a few museums. There was always something to do here, and always a lesson to learn.” He laughs heartily. “Though I cannot tell you how much trouble Thanatos and I would get up to. Charon often got dragged into it, and Hecate either planned the whole thing or managed to get us out of it. Either way, my mother had her work cut out for her.”
She looks over at him curiously. It remains bizarrely difficult to integrate the reality of him with the legend. In the latter, he was never a child. Shit, he was never really human. He simply was. Or wasn’t. Truly, she feels like the man beside her and the leader of the Underworld are two very different people. She’s heard of the things he’s done, mainly for Zeus, and none of them match up with the being before her, the man who touches her like his favorite flower until she’s stripped bare and then makes all her wildest fantasies come true. She smiles to herself. It’s almost like she’s unlocked a side of him all her own, one she would certainly like to keep.
“Did you like growing up in the Harvest District?” he asks, and she realizes he’s looking at her now too.
She nods. “It had its wonders. Growing up by the coast was fun every summer. I spent most of my time in my Aunt Hestia’s library though, especially when my dad was around, before I transitioned. It was - it’s where I felt safe, you know?”
The look of pure adoration in his eyes doesn’t escape her, and she ducks her head as heat floods her cheeks. Though when he speaks again, her eyes dart up.
“You’re very—”
“Don’t tell me I’m brave,” she interjects. He looks up at her, surprise etched in the subtle lines of his face, and she offers a small smile. “The only reason I’m brave is because the world is cruel, and that isn’t something to glamorize. Being my mother’s daughter shields me from a lot of it, but sometimes, that just makes it feel worse. I don’t want to be brave. I want to be seen.”
He grows quiet, and at first she isn’t sure what he’s thinking. He looks contemplati
ve, as if turning her words over before responding. She doesn’t fear whatever comes next, waiting patiently and sipping her wine. After all, the hardest part is long over.
“You will have that here, with me,” he concludes at last. “I - can’t promise I’ll never make a mistake, but I can promise that I’ll be willing to learn from it, to listen and make sure that you always feel heard. And I want you to know that - I didn’t go looking for that information, and that is not something I would ever use against you. It was merely part of what I learned of your mother’s district, of her family. It had no bearing on my attraction to you.”
A soft laugh escapes her. “I figured as much, and - I believe you. I mean, I don’t really think about it often, but dating is - well, it’s still new to me really.”
His lips curl. “It’s new to me too, but we can figure it out together, right?”
“I think so, yeah. We’ve done alright so far.”
Hades accepting her doesn’t make him a hero, not in the slightest. She would not reward him or anyone else for being a decent human being, but that doesn’t minimize her relief. Yet, knowing he knew all along without her ever having to agonize over explaining it to him makes her feel foolish for hiding the truth about her ties with Zeus. That feels so miniscule in comparison, although she imagines both men might believe otherwise. Who she is should never be as controversial as what Zeus is doing, how he constantly harasses her to the point of distress. Years of her life have been threaded with that stress, and all because she had believed him to be someone other than what everyone else had warned her he was. Granted, she had done the same for Hades, but he had yet to make her regret it. That only makes it clearer for her. It isn’t her judgment of character that is at fault. It’s Zeus. If Hades is the man she believes him to be, he’ll see that too.
And if not, none of this will work anyway. It can’t.
“I have to tell you something - else.”