by Charlie Hart
“You were telling me all about a television show you watched as a kid. Fresh Prince something?” she says.
He nods. “Yeah. And I was showing you those dance moves.”
“I remember,” she says, a smile breaking across her face as South “And that is when I learned you were more than a pretty face; you could dance like nobody’s business.”
South laughs softly. “I wish I could dance with you on our wedding day,” he says.
“You’d marry me if we were on the surface?” she whispers, a tear falling down her cheek.
“A million times over,” he says, his mouth crashing against hers once more. “So long as you married all three of us.”
Ten’s eyes are misty, filled with dreams that will die along with us, I don’t want her to cry during our last hour.
I move toward her, needing to feel her soft skin against my own before time runs out. She reaches out to me, a look of longing on her face, her lips swollen and well kissed.
“I fell in love with you the day I told you how I died. I was sure I’d see pity in your eyes,” I tell her, wrapping my arms around her. “But instead you told me how brave you thought I was. It meant so much.”
“I remember,” she says, and I run my fingers over her bare body, relishing her soft and creamy skin. I lift her up into my arms, placing her on the bed. “I remember thinking you were the bravest man I’d ever dream of knowing. You’d been through so much... lost so much... and yet you still opened up to me.”
With her on her back, I pull myself over her body, massaging her breast as I move up her body. She gasps as my hard cock presses against her belly, and Hawthorne and South join us on the bed. It’s so quiet, the only sound that of our breath and our beating hearts, pounding so hard they are practically jumping from our chests.
This is the moment we’ve waited so long for.
The moment that will pass us by if we don’t reach out and take it as ours.
“I want you so badly,” I tell her my fingers running between her thighs, feeling how aroused she is with my touch. “But I’ve never done this before.”
“Me either.” She smiles. “Maybe South can help lead the way.”
“I don’t need to show you what to do,” he says gruffly. “You know what Ten needs.” And I realize he’s right. I may have never made love to a woman before, but with Tennyson, it isn’t forced or awkward. It is perfect.
“I love that we’re spending our last hour together in bed,” Hawthorne says, brushing a tendril of Ten’s hair from her eyes. He kisses her shoulder and then her ear and I move my cock toward her opening, wanting to fill her up with myself, feel her tightness around me, our bodies melding as one.
“Me too,” Ten says with a gasp as I begin to enter her. “Oh, Lennox,” she moans, reaching for South’s hand, needing something to hold on to as I fill her up.
“Oh God,” I groan against her, her breasts moving up and down as I ease myself deeper inside her pussy. “You feel so fucking good.”
She grins, her eyes on me. “I can’t believe we’re finally doing this,” she laughs, arching her back and wrapping her legs around me. Parts of me may be fading, but with her, underneath me, I feel whole.
“You look so beautiful,” Hawthorne tells her, leaning between us and kissing her hard nipples, our bodies are all so close, the moment so intimate. We are all we have in this in-between place and we know how precious our love is.
“I’m so glad I stopped fighting what I wanted,” Ten whispers, her legs wrapped around me. “I’ve wanted you all so badly, but it felt cruel to have you and then leave you.”
“Better one hour of bliss than none at all,” I say, as my cock buries itself deep inside her. I may be half-dead, but right now, I’ve never felt more alive.
18
Tennyson
My body opens up, as Lennox moves deeper and deeper inside me. I am so new to all of this. I never really thought I’d be here, in this moment, with the three men I love. But I am. And it is more than I ever dreamed it might be.
“Oh, Lennox,” I moan, wrapping my arms around his neck, and even though we are all fading in our own ways, I see his eyes and I press my lips against his and I notice they are beginning to fade.
“I need you all before my time is up,” I say as Lennox thrusts himself deeper inside me, causing a ripple of pleasure to move over me. “Oh, God,” I gasp as he buries himself in me. “I’m... this... oh, ohhhhh,” I cry as he releases himself inside me.
It feels so good, my pussy begins to clench as I come against him, and what is left of my body is his and he rolls me over, pulling out of me, leaning down to kiss me once more.
“Oh, God, I can’t lose you,” I say, terrified, but South moves down, wiping my pussy clean with a blanket before running his hand over my slit.
“You will always have us in your heart,” he says, moving his fingers inside of me, and I pull Hawthorne toward me as my body opens to South’s touch.
“Kiss me,” I moan, and Hawthorne obliges. His mouth is so soft and sweet, and his tongue moves against mine. I wrap my hand around his cock, feeling his rigid length, as South moves his mouth to my pussy.
My body goes limp as the pleasure mounts, and then South rolls me to my side, and I feel Lennox move behind me, his fingers on my ass.
I can hardly think or see clearly as I pump Hawthorne’s shaft, as South devours my pussy, as Lennox fingers my hole.
Needing more, I draw Hawthorne’s cock into my mouth and take him as fully as I can. I lick his length, his cock so huge and hitting the back of my throat as I begin to suck, South is between my legs, licking my pussy.
“I need your cunt,” South groans and my body thrills at his words. I need him in me too.
I pull Hawthorne from my mouth, raising my eyebrows, not sure how to take them all at once, but suddenly needing it more than anything else in the world.
South takes the lead, and he eases me on top of him. I sink down on his shaft, opening up to him and his big cock. His hands roll over my breasts, and I rock my hips ever so slightly as Lennox comes up behind me.
He begins to massage my ass, running his fingers around my opening and gently pressing his tip against my entrance.
It burns at first, but then my body seems to expand for him in an otherworldly way. Nothing right now is what it seems, and time stills, and I close my eyes, relishing the men surrounding me, accepting everything they have to give. Knowing this is all we have left.
One day can change everything.
Hawthorne kneels in front of me, so I can take his cock back into my mouth. I swirl my tongue around his tip as Lennox fills me up to my very core.
Three men are inside of me, and I roll my hips as South moves deeper into my pussy, as Lennox buries himself in my ass, as Hawthorne comes in my mouth. His milky release is so perfect and creamy and everything about this moment is almost more than I can bear.
Hot tears stream down my cheeks and though I love this moment for what it is, my heart breaks for what I will never have again. I come, and they come, and our bodies open wider as we offer up everything we have left. Knowing that the moment when we must say goodbye is fast approaching.
Hawthorne pulls himself from my mouth, leaning down to kiss me, South’s hands on my hips, Lennox resting his cheek against my back, holding onto me as if holding on for dear life.
And we are. Holding on to the precious slivers of time.
“Will I remember this in the Underworld?” I ask Hawthorne, knowing he is the only one who has gone before us.
“I couldn’t remember anything from before I became a demon,” he tells me. “You aren’t a demon. You’re the daughter of Hades, which means you’re different than anyone else there. Maybe you’ll be able to experience something there that I never could.”
“Maybe he will take one look at me and try to kill me,” I say.
South plucks my nipples, the warm afterglow of sex coating our skin. “You’ll already be dead.”
“True. Then I guess you will have to wait and see...”
“Be strong,” Lennox tells me. “You are going here to find your mother, that’s what your half-sisters seemed to imply.”
“How am I supposed to find a stranger in the Underworld?” I shake my head but Hawthorne gasps.
“What?” I ask.
“I think I know. I think... I remember, Ten.”
“Remember what?” I ask, rolling off of South, and letting him cradle me in his arms, all of us wrapped around one another in the bed.
Hawthorne leans up on his elbows. “I was down there when she came.”
“Who came.”
“Persephone. She was Hade’s’ wife. But he was angry with her and he locked her in a cage.”
“A cage?” I ask.
Hawthorne nods. “Yes, a cage. Deep in the Asphodel Meadows.”
“How do I get there?” I ask, my head spinning. Might my mother be Persephone? My father Hades?
And yet I’ve been stuck here in Styx most of my life?
“When you get off Charon’s ferry, you must follow the sound of the living. It is the only place in the Underworld where life can continue, after death.”
“How will I find it, though?” I ask, trying not to become overwhelmed.
“If it’s truly your mother, try to listen, to hear her. Most of the sounds there are moans and echoes of some past life -- but she may be able to call to you, feel your presence.”
“If Gaia sent Eric to you, there is a bigger purpose yet.”
“I don’t want a purpose if it is without you.”
“Too bad, Goddess,” South says with a smirk.
“Goddess?” I scoff, only want to relish this moment where I lie naked in their arms.
“Yes, you are the daughter of Persephone and Hades,” South says. “I only wonder why you’ve been hidden for so long.”
“Hades is forbidden to come to Styx,” Hawthorne says. “Right? Which means someone put here her for a reason, to protect her. And if Persephone was already locked away for several years... it couldn’t have been her.”
“Then who?” Lennox asks.
I gasp, beginning to piece my story together. “Gaia.”
19
Tennyson
The horn sounds and we move from the bed wordlessly, our bodies spent and our hearts nearly breaking now that it is time to say goodbye.
We dress silently, putting ourselves together before we descend the stairs and leave the empty house for another soul to find it. I cling to my memories, knowing they are the only high that will get me through whatever happens next.
I have a job to do. My sisters --strangers in my family tree-- are counting on me.
I won’t let them down if I can help it.
Charon is at the tollbooth with the same greedy look in his eyes.
“Did Eric pass through to the surface?” I ask, the words taking so much effort to utter.
Charon nods, and while it is not exactly assurance, it is the only thing I have to go by.
“It’s time to go, dearly departed,” he snarls, as if he loves watching people pass to the other side, though what a twisted pleasure it is.
Other faded souls are moving toward the ferry. I can see them faintly as they hover around the boat.
I lean in to kiss Hawthorne, South, and Lennox for a final time, but the ferry is already moving.
“Don’t go,” he cries.
But it’s too late.
I want to say I love them, will always love them, but I can’t pull them in my arms anymore. My soul is on the ferryboat and it’s leaving the dock.
But I can still see them and I watch them as the boat moves away, into the darkness of the night.
Charon’s ferry takes us down the river crammed full of souls; not a one of us knowing what lies beyond.
And I’m the only one living among the dead.
When we pass into the Underworld, my vision changes, sharpens. It’s like I can stand on my own two feet, take in a full breath of air, pull back my shoulders and shake out my hair.
I look down and see my hands are intact. My feet firmly planted on the boat. I lick my lips, I press my palms to my throat, my chest.
I am human. Not a demon. Not a monster.
Just Tennyson.
One day can change everything.
Here I am, in the Underworld, and I see that it is bright red and molten. Thick flames lick the walls of a cave, as the river shimmers with heat as Charon docks the ferry and souls lift from the boat and disperse in the fire.
I stand, lost as to what I’m to do.
“I thought it was a ruse, you saying you were the daughter of Hades,” Charon says, gliding up next to me. “But now I know you weren’t playing me for a fool.”
“How do you know that?” I ask, crossing my arms, feeling exposed here, where no other people seem to be but the two of us.
“Because I’ve figured out who your mother is. You look so much like Persephone.”
“Do you know where she is?” I ask, even though I already have an inkling from Hawthorne’s memories. Shrieks and moans reverberate from the cavernous walls and my skin crawls as I think about what creatures may lurk here.
My heart breaks as I consider the demons within and that Hawthorne spent how many years here?
Already I ache for them, the men who took my body, and who I can never hold again.
What a cruel and mad world this is.
“I have a schedule to keep. More souls coming in every hour.” He jabs me toward the dock, wanting me off his ferry.
I see a small rocky path along the river, and even though I have no clue where I’m headed, I begin my journey by taking a shaky breath and single step forward.
“Thank you,” I say, turning to Charon as I get off his boat. “For bringing me here. For making the deal and saving Eric. I wish there was a way I could repay your kindness.”
He looks startled, the slits of his eyes so narrow and tense and he pauses, looking deep into my eyes.
“What is it?” I ask, a shiver running up my spine.
“No one has ever thanked me,” he says in a hushed, reverent tone. “Your words... I’ve never heard them before in this place.”
“Oh,” I say, the tightness in my chest gone now that I realize he doesn’t want to hurt me. “Well, I mean it. Thank you.”
“Let me offer you something in return.”
At this, I step closer. My feet are still bare and my hair and clothes a rumpled mess, but my body is whole. I feel brave and strong in a way I’ve never felt before. Maybe the fire of Hades is burning brightly within me. I am his daughter after all.
“You don’t owe me anything,” I tell him, meaning it.
“I know but let me help. I can take you to her.”
“To who?”
“Your mother.”
“You know where I can find her?”
He pushes off the hood of his cloak, looking less scary and more fragile. “Yes, child. I know her. She was abducted decades ago. I saw her come against her will. She cried for her daughters every day for years.”
“How do you know I’m her daughter?”
“Because you have her likeness. Persephone is the goddess of spring, but she’s been gone for so long.”
“Why did Hades kidnap her?”
“He was a jealous husband.”
I bite my bottom lip, feeling lost. “Can you take me to her?”
He nods. “As you wish, Goddess.”
On his ferry, he guides me to the Asphodel Meadows. We pass Cerberus and the Golden Bough--landmarks I only know because Charon tells me of them. It’s strange, his kindness, and I feel overwhelmed that he has offered it to me.
“What will happen to my lovers?” I ask him as we near a dock, a meadow sprawling beyond.
“They will fade to the Elysium Fields, where their souls will rest for eternity.”
“And there is no way to stop it?”
“They aren’t gone yet, but t
he Field is better than this fiery pit. They will be at peace there.”
“I see. Of course.” I brush the tears from my eyes, knowing the time to mourn the loves of my life will come, but right now, I must be brave and find Persephone.
“Follow the path along the meadow, ordinary souls are sent there after death. It’s the perfect place to hide a goddess, no doubt. No one would look for the Divine there.”
I give Charon a hug, his body brittle against mine, his kindness toward me so great and unexpected.
Once again, I’m reminded of how naughty I’d been as a child. Had I been sweet and kind like Lark, never hiding and stealing and taunting, would I have ended up here?
Maybe not. So, perhaps my life unfolded as it was meant to. Had I followed my mother’s rules I’d never have had the privilege to love Hawthorne, South, and Lennox.
And love them I have.
I step off the ferry and plant my feet on solid ground. The fire in the distance, and ahead, a field of blackened hay and charred wheat. Nothing living, everything here is dead.
But then I listen, Eric insisted I listen for my mother for direction. And so, I do. I close my eyes and push away all other sounds, the moaning demons in the distance and the blazing fires to the east and west. I force them away and listen for my mother.
Fight for love, with your dying breath.
It’s the only thing that will set you free.
I don’t know why these words circle me again, but they do, and I follow them deeper down the path until there is a fork in the road. I want to speak, to call her name, but I’m scared of drawing attention to myself.
I try to remember what my half-sisters and mother said in the kitchen. I am needed here. I am exactly where I am supposed to be. So, where is she?
I close my eyes. Listen to my heart.