Persephone sat up a bit bewildered, taking a minute to remember where she was. She practically floated out of bed when she did. Remembering Hades's kisses and the feelings he made well up in her chest. She danced over to the dresser, throwing a soft pink dress onto the bed. She poured a bowl of fresh water, and washed her face before shaking off the nightwear and slipping into the dress she picked out. There was a brand new vanity sitting along the wall, Hades had it put in for her. She gleamed in the mirror, her cheeks already hot with a deep blush as she brushed out her hair. She again dabbed herself with the lavender perfume when there was a knock at her door.
"Come in." She said, turning around on her chair.
"Good morning, Miss." The maid from yesterday stepped in, following her were the other maids. One held a large bouquet of flowers in a vase, the other carried a tray of bread and honey. "Zeus sent something for you from Olympus." She said, and the maid set the tray on a table. "His majesty wishes to see you when you're available." The final maid set the vase on the bedside table. "If that's all you need, we'll leave you be."
"That's everything, thank you." She dismissed them, turning ravenously to the bread and honey when they had gone.
She tried to savor it, but it was too good! She was quietly ashamed at how fast she had eaten her breakfast, wiping crumbs off of herself. She stood up, taking one last look in the mirror before she opened the door and headed down the hallway. Her feet tipped on the stone floors as she walked through the castle, finding Hades in the 'Scale Room,' she called it. She sat at the doorway admiring him from a distance before he noticed her.
Hades's face lit up when he saw Kore standing at the entrance of the room, "That's enough for now." He said to the daemons. He walked over to her, leaning against the archway. "Good morning, Gorgeous. How was breakfast?" He greeted her, wrapping one arm behind her back and kissing her on the forehead.
"Good morning." She blushed, remembering how she wolfed the food down. "Are we going to judge more souls today?"
"No, I worked almost all night so we could spend some time together." He smiled, "You know, get to know each other some more?"
"Okay," She smiled at him, "So what do you want to do?"
['I want to fuck you, little goddess.'] Hades thought, looking at her gold, red and pink. She was like a flower, a flower he wanted to [deflower]. He cursed his own dirty mind.
"We could regrow the garden?" He said jokingly.
"Okay!" Persephone was enthusiastic, responding to his humor seriously.
"Oh, okay!" He flowed with her, taking her arm and leading her outside. "Show me your stuff." He said.
She grinned at him, holding her hand out to a garden plot, making herbs spring from the ground. Their smell quickly filled the air, making it fresh and sweet. She continued on to more of the dead garden, springing to life flowers, herbs, vegetables, fruit trees - everything her heart desired came up from the ground. She lost herself in it for a bit, and turned around to see Hades smiling brightly at her.
She blushed and walked over to him, grabbing his hand and leading him to a pot of soil with the remains of a plant, dried and matted to the dirt. She held his hands, palm down over it. She placed her palms on the back of his hands, and willed a beautiful pomelia plant to rise from the pot, making it bud and bloom several flowers.
Hades face was in shock as he felt her power rush through him. He slid his hands out from under hers, pressing his fingertips against hers and pushing their hands up, interlocking fingers. He leaned in, pressing his lips to hers, "You are amazing Persephone." He said.
"Thank you." She blushed.
"Come." he released one of her hands and, starting to walk toward the palace. "I want to show you something."
They walked to a large room, with two rows of bright marble pillars leading up to a set of stairs. At the top sat two beautiful thrones. She tensed her grip on his arm as he lead her down the gold-embroidered carpet to the stairs. When they reached the top, Hades took her hand, and gestured to the chair on the left.
"Try it out." Hades whispered to her.
She smiled and sat down, putting both of her arms along the arms of the Large chair.
"How does it feel, My Queen?" He asked, making her heart palpitate sporadically.
"Good?" She answered in a shy tone, unable to hid her red face.
He produced a small black box holding it out to her in his palm. Her heart skipped as she picked it up, and opened it to reveal a beautiful black diamond ring. It was a solitaire teardrop that shimmered and sparkled in it's silver setting.
"Oh, Aidoneus!" She marveled at it, "It's perfect!" She said, taking it out and sliding it on her ring finger.
"I'm glad you like your engagement ring." He was beaming at her.
Hades waved his hand, and two maids approached them, carrying a tray with 2 silver chalices and a jug of wine. They proceeded to pour two glasses and hold them out on the tray to Hades. He took one, handing it to Persephone and taking the other for himself, then sat down in the throne beside her.
"Here's to us: May you be happy as my Queen." He held out his glass, to which she clanged hers lightly. He laughed when she hesitated, "It's wine from Olympus." He took a sip, making a face at it, "Though, my vineyards yield a better vintage. You can drink it when you're mine." He grinned at her.
She took a couple of sips, enjoying the rich taste, "What will my duties be, as queen?" She asked, looking into her cup.
"Well... You'll be able to judge the souls of the mortals. You can command any one of the gods here, and..." He paused, "You'll wield the powers of the Underworld."
"Which is what?" She pressed.
"You'll see... it's more of a burden than power." He flicked his wrist, holding his palm upward and producing a ball of cool blue fire. "It's not too late to back out." He assured her, making the fireball disappear by turning his hand downward.
He downed the last bit of the spirits, asking for a refill. The maid topped off Persephone's wine too.
"I wouldn't dream of it" She smiled, taking a sip, feeling the buzz set in.
"I want you to meet someone." A sly grin formed on his face, and he slipped his thumb and middle finger in his mouth, ripping a loud whistle that vibrated Persephone's eardrums. She looked at him in shock, and he responded with a steady smile.
There was a thundering of footsteps that grew louder as something large came bounding into the room. A massive black dog with 3 heads came running towards them. Persephone withdrew into her chair, feeling fear as the beast came closer, Hades sat forward with both arms outstretched, allowing the beast to slam into him, all 3 heads licking his face and crawling up to place both front paws on his shoulder. Hades was scratching them when the closest head turned and noticed her sitting beside him.
She closed her eyes and held her hand out, letting the first head to sniff her, drawing the others' attention to her as well. They acquainted themselves with her scent, gingerly nipping at her fingertips until she was able to pet one. She started out softly stroking his head, growing more and more confident until she was juggling to scratch behind all of their ears.
"This is Cerberus." Hades said proudly.
"He's wonderful!" She laughed as she received a kiss from the middle of his heads.
"He protects the Gates of the Underworld." Hades said. "He's been with me since the beginning."
"He's a very good boy." Persephone praised him. He sat beside her, just within reach for her to pet him.
"He really likes you." Hades smiled. "I'm glad."
"Me too" She said, stroking the back of the horse-sized dog.
They sat for a while, talking about the Gods of the Underworld and their duties. They stayed and drank until Persephone admitted that she had had too much wine.
"I'll walk you back to your room." He helped her up, lifting her up completely when she stumbled on the stairs.
"I'm sorry!" She laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck as he carried her back to his room.
He set her on the bed, kneeling down beside her and stroking her hair. "Whatever will I do with you?"
"Come here." She said, scooting over and making room, patting the bed for him to get on.
He crawled onto the bed, laying down facing her, his eyes a soft, glowing blue. She leaned in and kissed his lips, cupping his jaw with her hand and stroking his cheek with her thumb. He took her hand, kissing it and holding it in his as he watched her drift to sleep.
Persephone woke up alone, reaching over to find Hades had gone. She decided to take a look around the castle. She walked around, opening random doors and peeking inside. Some were empty and unused, hosting covered furnishings. She was able to find the kitchen, and the dining hall, as well as a study and another room that was decorated in a particularly feminine fashion fairly close to Hades's room.
