The Rape of Persephone.
12:37 Feb 12 2016
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The gods of Greek lore were fickle and petty, even in their majesty. Ever insecure, they readily placed vital aspects of life to be decided by random, irrelevant contest and intricately managed manipulations. A common favorite, love, was not immune to such games, faithful reader. It is in this spirit, for Valentine's Day, I offer the unique and romantic events which lead to the union of Hades and Persephone, for your perusal. This is my personal interpretation of "the Rape of Persephone"; a classic retold.
It was purely by design of nature that Persephone, daughter of Zeus and Demeter, fell to the misfortune of capturing the attention of the God of Underworld. Indeed, divine birth graced her with a natural beauty; such that, despite the stark contrast, she rivaled Aphrodite herself. As Persephone came age to take a suitor, the Goddess of Beauty became maliciously jealous of the girl. Men's attention, god and human, turned away from Aphrodite to woo the maiden most fair.
In this jealousy, Aphrodite put in motion a diabolic scheme. She dripped smooth words like sweet nectar into Hades' ear, causing his passion to inflame for the unaware Persephone. The usually dour god took to his black chariot in a lustful fervor, enormous black steeds with hooves aflame took to the chase. He found her quickly, in a field picking flowers and berries, the world blooming at her mere presence. It was here that Hades spied Persephone for the first time.
No creature would dispute she a goddess. However, unlike Aphrodite, with her long blond hair and voluptuous features, Persephone was petite, with dark hair cut at the jawline to compliment the pleasant shape of her face. Her short, slender frame was clothed in a dress of woven grass still a healthy green, pale flesh brightened by bluebells that adorn the neckline. Where ever she stepped, the grass would sprout densely, forming a soft carpet meeting each footfall, then spreading slowly. Busy and beautiful flying insects danced around her in midair like bright and colorful sparkles. As she'd reach to pick something appealing, the fruit would ripen or flower would present full bloom as if an offering; where ever she plucked, two would grow in place of what was taken.
For the first time, Hades knew love. As the very creature charged with managing the afterlife, he reacted to this new emotion much as a child would, claiming a desired toy as its own. The ground split, tossing Persephone into a bush with pretty white budding blooms, but with thorns on the stems which cut at her flesh, leaving droplets to dye the petals crimson. She peered at the gaping hole startled, shrieking as great black beasts lunged forth; their speed dizzying, a dark blur that overwhelmed her vision and caused her to lose consciousness.
Persephone awoke slung over a shoulder as solid as stone, riding in a chariot delving ever deeper into earth. She was too frightened to fight even despite being unbound; the grip on her was unmistakable, as confident as steel and twice as strong. She felt as if an attack by her would be ignored much as a gnat would, her captor simply unmoved.
Suddenly, they were out of the ground and along a dark and gloomy path, void of anything considered life. From her vantage, she could only see behind the chariot; that is, when her captor's shadowy cape wasn't obfuscating her view. The span of emptiness filled her with loneliness, and she immediately missed the sun. The emptiness subsided, though, suddenly becoming populated by growing pockets of shabby people, meandering as if lost in a dense fog. Looking into some of their dead stares, Persephone almost yearned for the emptiness to return.
The melancholy rabble thinned out, which only offered a moments respite for the scene yet to pass. As it came into view, terror crept over Persephone as if she were dipped into an icy spring. Not just for the imagery, but because it confirmed their destination. In utter disbelief, she watched the comeuppance of the Gluttonous King Gahna.
Several of the soulless they had passed earlier stood around Gahna, holding his back to the ground, as he bellowed and tried to escape frantically, yet to no end. His body was bloated and covered in sores, as if he had been there for an eternity. Tears sprung from a mindless gaze, the king broken. A person walked up carrying several rocks and stones, forcing them into Gahna's toothless mouth, teeth chipped away long ago. His grotesquely obese and misshapen abdomen grumbled, then the stretched flesh split spilling the stony content of his stomach. Haphazardly, the tormentors stitched the inconsolable king back together, only to start the process again.
Persephone was on the road to the Onyx Castle at the very heart of Hades' lair; fear washed over her as Gahna's cries faded behind the roaring chariot.
II
Hermes was already waiting in the throne room as the pair entered, Persephone still draped over a shoulder and yet sobbing from the journey through the Furian Destitute and Black Forest. Hades dropped the weeping girl to the cold, hard floor, then kicked her, which slid her form into a dark corner of the huge room. The tall man cloaked in shadows stepped up the small dais, taking a seat on a grand throne made of bone as Hermes spoke.
"Hearken, Hades, Keeper of the Dead," his voice echoed like a trumpet in the cavernous surroundings. "You have been summoned to Mount Olympus to stand before Zeus. Tarry not, Hades; he is impatient as ever and displeased." Hades gave a dismissive wave of his hand, and with a sneer on his face and flutter of the wings at his boots, the herald disappeared.
Persephone raised watery blue eyes, cheeks damp with tears; Hades hovered over the trembling girl causing her to yelp. She flinched as he reached for her throat, but he stopped short from making contact with her. Instead, thin wisps of black vine sprouted from his fingertips, similar to the ferocious brier that made up the Black Forest, coiling around her neck as if a collar. Even as it touched her, the ring burst into a bloom of tiny, red petals.
"The world outside will protect you from escape," Hades began in a matter-of-fact tone, "and Cerberus will protect you from the world outside. I must take my leave, but we will speak upon my return. Do not try to depart, girl." Persephone stared deep into his cold black gaze, offering a nod with a whimper. Hades turned purposefully; his long, dark hair shifted in the breeze, and then he vanished. From a windowsill set high in the wall of the throne room, a small boy with no eyelids watched curiously.
Olympus was always a grand sight to behold, the cloud capped mountain truncated by Zeus, himself. Great white pillars jutted from the mountaintop, ascending into the sky for miles; although with the cloud cover, the pillars seemed to brace the clouds open into a mighty meeting hall for the gods. It was here that Hades found the blustering Zeus, lightning bolt in his clenched fist, accompanied by several of the deities. To his right, an exasperated Demeter stared augers at Hades, even while tears rained from her jade eyes.
"You have abducted one of my offspring, Hades!" Zeus towered over his older brother, boasting a titan's physique in comparison to Hades slender frame. "I demand you return her to her mother, at once!"
"I claim the right of preference, as explained by the pact of the Triad," he spoke as if uninterested in Zeus' demands. The once hostile Zeus, taken aback, turned to Poseidon who simply nodded a solemn assent. The hall fell silent as all eyes turned attention to Demeter, the hatred in her gaze fiercely focused on Hades.
"After a fortnight, if no food has passed my daughter's lips, then you must return her to me, God of Underworld; that is, if Persephone feasts in Underworld, so may she stay." Demeter droned on painfully in a somber tone. "Just know, Hades, every day my daughter is with you in the afterlife, so shall the world only know death. No plant will grow, all birth will be stillborn, and the earth will reject life more each dawn until only ice covers the land. Underworld will overflow with the dead, Hades."
Hades smiled. "Your terms have been heard and are accepted, Demeter."
"In addition," Zeus amended mockingly, "if you mean to wed Persephone, her virginity must be intact, Hades. You may not fuck her unless she fails!"
"Very well, 'little' brother," Hades retorted knowing how much Zeus hated being reminded he was the baby of the Triad. This brought a fresh smile to his face. Then, he vanished before the God of Heaven could burst into another tirade.
III
Persephone was still cowering in the corner when Hades returned. He wore a calculating smile that gave her the chills, but she forced herself to watch him as he stepped from the shadows and came to a stop in front of her. She looked up to him with red, puffy eyes; now more calm, she was able to focus on him more. His physiognomy was sharp and angular, with a jutting nose and a black goatee trimmed to a point. He stood a full span over her, and she realized that when standing, she'd likely only be head to his torso, maybe below the ribs.
"It has been decided," his voice was calm, but confident. "You will stay with me for the time being."
Persephone sniffed. "Decided by whom?"
"Your mother, the Goddess Demeter."
"But...I can't stay, my Lord!" She exclaimed exasperatedly, "Even now, I can feel the world above dying! It is a terrible thing..."
He slapped her solidly, cutting her sentence short. She held back the tears, but could not keep her lip from trembling. "While you are here, your focus will only be me, girl," his commanding tone caused Persephone's back to straighten, her clear blue eyes on the giant. His fingers were suddenly in her hair; Hades grabbed a fistful at the back of her head and dragged her rudely to the center of the room, before his throne.
He took both her delicate wrists in a single palm, tendrils springing from his fingers to cuff the slight girl's forearms. Lifting her easily to her feet, Hades raised her arms overhead where a vine dangling from the shadows above them tangled in the coils at her wrist. As he took a step backwards, those same red flowers on her collar covered the vines holding her, crawling up into the darkness. He regarded Persephone for a moment, then lightly touched her dress; the grass seemed to wither and die, instantly turning to dust and leaving her naked as the wind carried it away.
Persephone turned her eyes to the floor demurely, the heat of a blush covering her body. Hades studied her closely; she did not have breasts such a woman like Aphrodite, but small, perky mounds that certainly would not fill his hand. Lower still, her pussy seemed as if just a slit in her flesh at the apex of her thighs, a small tuft of black hair grew on her pubis over it.
Hades smiled, his smooth tone caressing her, "You have been given to me by Olympus, itself, in order to win your affection. I mean to lavish you in gifts and attention befitting the queen of Underworld." He took her chin in two fingers, lifting her gaze to meet his before continuing. "There are...'specifications' to your trials." From outside her view, the brier slinked across the ground to each of her ankles, twisting around like rough, bony fingers. With a gasp, the vines suddenly pulled her legs wide, sweeping her feet completely off the floor and leaving her to hang in the air.
"My Lord! May I ask the specifics!?!" The girl's words seemed to rush out of her mouth, and still, did not seem to come out quickly enough, tumbling over each other.
He turned, grabbing a stool and sitting low in front of her before answering. "They will surely reveal themselves in time, girl," he touched a careful finger to her cunt, and it seemed to drool. Hades chuckled, embarrassing Persephone anew. "One that I will share with you, in the now," as the words left his mouth, a tendril extended from his fingertip, running the length of her twat before several wire-thin appendages extended on both sides like some sort of stick insect. "Your father wishes for you to remain chaste."
Pain erupted in her crotch as the bug's legs closed, piercing deep into each side of her labia and fusing her cunt shut. She screamed loudly, tears bursting from her wide eyes, staring wildly. She screamed until out of breath, and still managed to scream longer. Then, her head sagged forward and she fell silent, save for panting softly.
"Your voice is like sweet ambrosia, even in torment," he said as he stood. "Your screams satiate me. I will feast on them, and slake my thirst on your tears as if a fine wine." He was standing with his face mere inches from hers.
Her voice sounded strained as she stammered, "My Lord...I accept that I am to be...left to your whim. But please, I beg of you, my great and merciful Lord...there is no reason the world need also suffer! Let me still breathe life into it...and I will..."
"What will 'you' do, girl?" Hades questioned mockingly as he sat at his throne.
"I will make you a bargain."
"You think you have some shred of power in your fate to negotiate, girl?"
"Certainly not, my Lord," her shoulders burned with the tension of her lewd position, spread so vulnerably. "I cannot fathom why I must endure this, but I am here, and so must I endure. However, I can recognize the endgame: that I am to be someone's prize."
"Astute; do continue."
"I propose, my Lord, that I have a secret. I have shared it with no one, but if you steal it, I will give myself over to you, completely and without question; an obedient trophy. However, every day I withhold this information, I am allowed to warm the world, even a little. If I make it through these trials, my secret safe, you will see that I get to choose my master no matter the outcome." The pain in her hips radiated up her spine and down her legs, but she tried to embody confidence despite it creeping into her voice.
Hades considered Persephone for a long moment. He stroked at the hair on his chin, and weighed her offer. She piqued his attention, this girl; he could see that she was certainly more than she seemed. Worth the risk, though?
"Accepted," he finally said, breaking the oppressive silence. "You have my word, as God of Underworld, if I am unable to learn your secret, you will be free to choose your own path."
"I swear to surrender if my secret exposed, my Lord."
Hades nodded. "Then, let us begin," a smile twitched at his lips as the vines grew taut, stretching the girl's body in three contrary directions. Persephone's cries echoed the Onyx Castle endlessly as her shoulders creaked and hips popped. From a high window, dry, unblinking eyes watched the horrifying scene with breath held, the boy not daring so much as a peep. He watched until he could no longer stomach the sound of the girl's screams and bones breaking.
IV
Persephone was dreaming; she knew because she was reliving a treasured memory from her childhood: her mother brushing through her hair while humming. She could remember her mother's smooth, careful strokes, avoiding snags by working the ends slowly. Only, Demeter wasn't humming this time; rather, her face was serious and stern.
"Persephone!" Demeter's voice seemed separate from the dream, as if spoke from just behind the imagery. "You must not let Hades feed you, Persephone! Do not eat any thing he offers you, my child!" The girl woke suddenly.
She was sore all over. Although Persephone an Immortal and her wounds and bones already healed, this did not relieve all the sensations of pain and discomfort. She slipped an idle hand to her quim, finding the chastity yet in place. The brier was covered with the same tiny red petals as on her collar, but those hid spiny thorns that pricked her fingertips. Trying to look around the room, she gingerly lifted her shoulders off the ground and sat on her bottom.
Being underground, Persephone was unable to determine if it was day or night, this world cast in a perpetual twilight. Her mind was still groggy, and she found her thoughts about before her sleep hazy, at best. She remembered being stretched until her body broken, then dropped to the ground like a ragdoll that had lost most of its stuffing. Having lost consciousness shortly after, she did not recall Hades leaving.
Nor did she remember when the dinner service was laid out, a large banquet table placed at the far side of the dais covered in a cornucopia of dishes. The servants must have set it up in her slumber, she concluded, and then wondered how long she had been out. She shook free from lethargy and slowly stood upon weak, wobbly legs.
Persephone took a few shaky steps, bracing herself against the table just before she toppled over. A quick glance over the menu caused her stomach to flip; she quickly raised a hand to gaping mouth to hide her horror, as much as, disgust. Each entrée contained some poor animal, killed and skinned, then heated by fire. It was enough to make her weep. Even if the meats didn't repulse her, she had a nagging feeling she shouldn't eat.
"Eat, girl. Eat your fill." Hades commanding tone caused her to jump as he surfaced from the shadows behind his throne.
She meekly fell to her knees before speaking, "My Lord, I have decided how I shall honor the sacrifice the world is being forced to endure in my absence. Until my secret is realized or I am released to heal the earth, I will fast, my Lord."
Hades' mood visibly darkened suddenly, but replied plainly, "Very well." Then he sank into his throne.
"Your mercy is understated, my Lord." As if on cue, the heavy wooden doors to the room swung wide, slamming loudly and prompting a squeak from Persephone as she turned to witness the commotion. Several servants scurried into the room, and she tried to shrink in on herself to hide her nudity.
"Just in time!" Hades said with a smile. "After your ordeal yesterday, I decided to give you a seat today." The gray bodies of dead men trudged forward, a league of them crawling with a giant chair upon their backs. At first glance, it seemed a brightly orange colored throne made of thick leaves and long, slender flowers, the edges of which flowing as if caught in the ebb and flow of tides. They moved it to the center of the room, then filtered out swiftly; Persephone figured no one really wanted to be in Hades presence for too long.
She marveled for several moments; the beautiful seat seemed terribly out of place in the drab surroundings. "My Lord...it's beautiful!"
"A gift from Poseidon," he said absently. Hades inconspicuously watched as the girl agonized getting to her feet; her torment brought him chagrin satisfaction. Persephone limped to the chair, stopping short to turn to Hades for permission.
"May I, my Lord?" She looked at him with pleading blue eyes.
Hades gave a shallow nod, then watched as she climbed into it excitedly. Once she was settled, he spoke, "It will be known as the Coral Throne."
Persephone sank into the seat as if it were constructed from half empty water bladders, although the texture was misleading. What appeared as lush plant life felt like course rock. Even the stringy flowers had stinging spines throughout their length, sticking to her skin. As the coral crept up each of her thighs, fire erupted over her body; Persephone began to thrash around, and the chair turned an angry magenta hue. The more she moved, the more the coral seemed to gash at her flesh. The flowers drifted towards her movements, entwining and trapping her on the throne even as they stabbed at her deeply.
The boy with no eyelids covered his ears from Persephone's deafening shrieks. From his secret spot, he watched as Hades walked up to her and placed a boot on the naked girl's chest, pushing her deeper into the seat which caused her to howl even louder.
V
It took several days for Persephone to heal, and she slept through the duration. When she finally opened her eyes, she immediately winced in pain. With trembling hands, she felt along her flanks and rump, remembering all the places she was shredded and gouged. She still laid in the place Hades had dropped her after peeling her from the Coral Throne; literally peeling her free, exposing much of her ribcage and pelvic bone as her flesh and tissue was torn away. She found she was whole again, although she was definitely hurting.
"Ah, you're awake," Hades said, sitting upon bones. Persephone rolled over, causing another wince, to see the Coral Throne had been moved to the dais next to his own. He was scratching behind Cerberus' ear, comically on the head furthest from the man. Two of the three enormous heads were sleeping, and yet, the hound's rear leg thumped at the ground repeatedly. A large tongue lulled from its monstrous maw as the beast yawned.
"Yes, my Lord." She propped herself on a weak arm; she was covered in blood and all manner of filth, but still managed a regal disposition.
Hades smacked the hound on the backside, and it woke with a surprised yelp. It sniffed at his hand, and with a snap of his fingers, the animal moved towards Persephone in a steady trot. She flinched as it neared, but merely went around her, the head that passed closest sniffing her. Then, Cerberus shuffled into the shadows and was gone.
"You have been most obstinate with your secret, girl," his tone betrayed none of the agitation he felt. "So much so, I feel you deserve some token of reward."
Persephone smiled, and no longer bothering with walking, crawled across the floor to kneel at his feet, shying away from the other seat. "I deserve a reward, my Lord?" She looked up at Hades with big blue eyes shimmering.
"Yes, and while you were resting, I located the perfect prize from my vault." With that announcement, he clapped his hands together twice loudly.
From either side of the banquet table, the food on it long turned rancid and lousy with maggots, two gargantuan figures shambled forward into view. The great twin giants, Otus and Ephialtes, each presented a large velvet box, dwarfed in their massive hands. Beside the random ravishes of death, the colossal brothers were ghastly mirror images of the other, right down to the spears lodged through each of their chest and cold, lifeless stares. Persephone shot a glance in askance towards Hades, that offered a simple nod with a smile; she pressed a warm palm against his knee as she turned to scoot towards the deceased duo. As she approached them on hands and knees, they slipped the cases open and a sparkle blinded her.
"Those are the Tears of Cronus, the last two to be shed," Hades remarked from behind her as Persephone rubbed at her eyes. She peered into the boxes once her vision cleared; what she saw made her breath catch. In each lay a huge, perfectly formed diamond in the shape of teardrops the base of which well bigger than both her fists put together, almost twice her feet in length. Her bottom rested on her heels as she sat there agape, astonished by the magnitude the gift.
Perhaps due to her amazement, Persephone did not notice Otus reaching for her. A surprised screech erupted from the girl as giant fingers wrapped around her torso. She kicked and batted against the massive fist uselessly as he pitched her onto the tabletop, shattering dishes and scattering rotten meats around her. The force she hit the table knocked the wind from her, dazing her for a few minutes.
The stench of decay cleared her head quickly, but certainly, not quickly enough. Lumbering towers positioned themselves at her head and feet, straddling the table with ease due to their size. Then, in unison, the brothers took up the diamonds, carefully locking the points into place on their matching metal codpieces like monstrous glass phalluses. Despite speaking Cant, Persephone could tell they were heatedly discussing something, although the subject eluded her.
"Get on with it," Hades' domineering tone silenced the twins instantly. "Since you have yet to share your secret, and you yet refuse to eat, I have decided to put your orifices to other uses, girl." His proclamation was responded to with an echo of oafish laughter from the two standing over her.
Ephialtes took action first. Having stationed himself at her feet, he grabbed the girl's left ankle in two fingers, lifting her lower midsection off the table and spreading her legs wide. Persephone whined being so exposed and tried scrambling away, but Otus was quick to restrain her with a lazy palm over her head and shoulders. Filled with fear, she beat at the wood surface and debris trying to square any leverage for escape, but her efforts were for naught. Ephialtes positioned himself behind her, and she felt the bulbous head of the diamond press against her clenched asshole.
One deliberate drive was all it took for the Tear of Cronus to disappear, Persephone's body offering no resistance to the rough violation. Her mouth sprung open to howl in agony, but rather than sound, only vomit came out. Every thrust of the diamond deeper into her bowel felt as if her organs were being shifted around and being punched directly in the stomach, coaxing everything from it. Each pump into her forced the air from her lungs, and she sucked in a ragged breath loudly each time the behemoth withdrew. Pain exploded throughout her body, being so incredibly stretched, she was sure her rectum had torn upon insertion.
She gasped loudly at the gyrations, and she was positive she was soon to pass out for the overwhelming power overtaking her. Otus must have sensed her surrender, lifting his hand off her and poking at her face with a fingertip as big as her head. Persephone's gaze took a far off stare, absent to the curious twin preparing to mount her throat. Already slack jawed, Otus pinned her shoulders under heavy thumbs and forced the phallus into her gullet. Persephone's eyes shot wide open in distress and misery; between the humping mammoths, she felt little more than a hollow trunk, arms and legs dangling limp.
Only Hades had the constitution to watch the spectacle continue on; the boy with no eyelids slithered away much earlier, nauseated and sporting a green complexion.
VI
The fetor of spoiled food and filth stirred Persephone from her torpor, the twins simply discarded her listless form on the tabletop among the decomposing meats once Hades dismissed them. She wasn't sure how long she had been resting. She touched her throat, remembering how Otus' brutal facefuck had shred it; likewise, she seemed to recall losing much of her large intestine when Ephialtes pulled out of her ass. Her body had suffered severe trauma, and although she had healed, she was tender all over. Much of her body felt unfamiliar, as if still realizing all its various parts and stuffing them back in place.
A large fly buzzed around her face and she suddenly became critically aware of several squirming creatures on her. She sat up and tried gracefully slipping off the banquet table, but fell directly to the floor in a heap, her legs unaccustomed to holding up her weight even as slight as she was. Huddled upon the ground, she scrubbed her flesh free of maggots and bits of undigested fruits. Despite her efforts, Persephone could not rid her nostrils of the nauseating malodor.
Persephone used the table as a crutch to struggle to her feet, and she felt as if her legs were terribly bowed. Once she managed to hold herself upright, she glanced around the room. The Tears of Cronus glimmered in the Coral Throne, and Persephone nearly tripped over her own feet trying to move further away from the dais. She also noticed she was alone in the big room, but the stench was overly distracting with the ache in her belly. Hunger felt as if it were about to devour her.
It was at this point Persephone decided to get some fresh air. Moving trepidatiously into the shadows from where she watched the throne brought in, she found the large double doors, made from thick, heavy wood with iron crossbars. She was able to push them open just enough to squeeze between, blinded by an unnatural brightness and the smell of sweet honey suckle. She gawked in astonishment once her sight cleared.
She found herself standing in Elysium, a gentle breeze rustling through waves of golden wheat that seemed to carry on for leagues and a clear blue sky overhead. A great stone wall surrounded that, the gate of which guarded by Cerberus; she had to imagine the River Lethe just beyond, and on the opposite bank would stand the Black Forest with its dark brambles that wear the skins of those that try to unwisely transverse the forest like macabre foliage. She placed her left hand on the slick wall of the stronghold behind her and started off at a slow, languid stride, not daring to get lost.
Persephone fortunately didn't have to travel far to find when she was hunting for, and she fell to her knees when she got close enough to the puddle left by a draining rain spout. Her hands shivered as they plunged into the frigid water, splashing her face and breasts. Offal and rubbish rinsed away in the spit bath; Persephone felt more like herself the more she cleansed herself, and she finished off by squeezing the excess water from her hair, trembling from the breeze. Feeling famished, the damp girl fell back against the hard onyx wall of the castle. She closed her eyes, trying vainly to fight back the queasy sensation of her stomach devouring itself. Her stomach rumbled loudly, which was likely the reason she didn't hear the approaching footsteps until they were already upon her.
As the boy with no eyelids surfaced from the rows of wheat near her, Persephone scrambled to cover herself modestly with her arms, her cheeks and chest coloring a deep maroon. Comically, the boy seemed as surprised by her as she was him, and he quickly turned to flee.
"Wait!" Persephone croaked in a harsh tone that reminded her of the discomfort in her throat. With parched, bloodshot eyes, he peered over his shoulder at her curiously. "Please, I am alone and could use a friend to converse with until I return. It seems so long since anyone showed me kindness."
The young boy gathered several handfuls of the tall wheat grass, laying them near the nude female's feet with his eyes adverted. After, he moved to the far side of the basin to sit, washing his hands as if busy work, something to do rather than fidgeting. By the time he was drying his hands on his grubby kirtle, Persephone had already woven a basic shift, a cascade of chaff meeting at her breasts. The boy smiled wide and clapped his hands together seeing her handiwork, causing Persephone to smile, as well. Then the pair started laughing, no simple endeavor for her aggravated throat.
Reaching into the folds of his oversized garment, the youth fished out a reddish fruit, coddling it in both hands as if a gemstone. The boy sunk his thumbnail into the jagged stem piece at the top, culling it from the thick skin. Then, pushing on the exposed pulp with both thumbs, he broke the sphere into multiple portions of dense white sponge with juicy red seeds that spilled into his palm. He moved closer to Persephone, proffering a piece of his snack.
Plying a seed from the pith, Persephone slipped it between her plump lips, savoring the refreshing taste on her tongue which also seemed to soothe her tender throat. She smiled in appreciation to the boy, who merely watched her with that unflinching stare. Plucking two more seed, the girl noticed the tips of her pale, slender fingers were being stained a deep violet shade, but found it difficult to stop eating the delicious morsels. After another seed consumed, Persephone raised the core to her mouth, using her teeth to pry the last couple free; she smiled contently feeling her hunger abated, even if only temporary. She giggled, looked over at the boy.
He was quick, on his feet and running passed Persephone, laughing on his way. Even as she followed the boy with her eyes, the world around Persephone seemed to morph and change; the tall blades of wheat shrunk away, the light growing ever more blinding, blotting out her vision. Once she finally blinked the darkness away, she found herself sitting within the clouds of Olympus, her rough slip turned to a fine, brilliant white tunic with a thin golden rope around the waist. The other gods stood around her as if a jury deliberating her fate.
VII
"What is this trickery, Hades?" Demeter demanded even as she wept.
Hades smiled, calm radiating from him. "No trickery of mine, I assure you. I have met your terms, Demeter, and well within the time allotted. Serendipitously, I think you'll find the girls fortitude spoiled by your own actions." He spread his left arm wide, and the boy with no eyelids stepped from the cast shadows, in awe of the heavenly scene.
Demeter gasped, causing the other gods to turn towards her. "What is it, Demeter?" Zeus finally queried.
"That filthy urchin," she began to explain, still obviously shocked by his appearance, "I caught him pilfering in my groves, stealing pomegranates. I changed him into a gecko, and as he scurried off pitifully, an owl swooped him up." With that admittance, she started to sob again. The other gods seemed too befuddled to speak.
"Six seeds!" Hades proclaimed. "The girl ingested six pomegranate seeds."
Forlorn, Zeus made the decree. "As the Fates have decided, so shall Persephone be restricted to Underworld, for six months of the year. During this time, the world will be plunged into cold and darkness, to be reborn anew in her time free of the afterlife. She is to be pledged to the God of Underworld, as her husband and master. Do you accept your boon, Hades?" The last question dripped with sarcasm.
Feeling insignificantly small on center display, Persephone turned her gaze on Hades, irises like great reflecting pools of clear blue water. Those eyes were as questioning as the inquiry yet hanging in the air, even despite their silence.
"I will let her decide what she will do," Hades finally replied, although each word seemed to pain him. The rest of the Olympians clamored and chattered among themselves, obviously astounded by the unheard of gesture, or maybe more so by the perpetrator. Demeter was so taken aback, her sobs stopped short, as if trapped in her throat.
Once the buzzing settled, Zeus looked to his little girl lovingly and said, "Persephone, my beautiful daughter, he has set you free to choose for yourself. Both Hermes and Apollo vie for your hand, and I will support you in your choice."
"I have chosen my master," Persephone spoke confidently. She rose to her feet gracefully and smoothly glided across the misty floor to kneel before Hades. "My Lord, I humbly request the honor of serving you, as slave and wife." Then, she waited for him to reply in silence.
Hades looked around the room as if to say he was as surprised as the other deities. After a stunned moment, he extended a hand to the girl. "Even knowing the consequences and costs, you chose me?"
"Yes, my Lord," Persephone retorted as she allowed him to lift her to her feet, "because of my secret!" Standing on the tips of her toes, she leaned in closely to Hades, hunching over and lowering his head to meet hers. As she whispered into his ear, a smug grin tugged at his lips. He had their hands bound immediately after, celebrating their union. The tale passes into legend with Persephone being deflowered by Hades; her screams frightened the monstrosities in Underworld, boiled the coldest depths of the Seas, and even splintered the pillars in Olympus.
There closes the courtship of Hades and Persephone, and many may question the very concept of love in which one tortures and torments another. Question not the manner in which love is expressed, my loyal reader, for it is the very nature of passion to burn. In closing, I offer Persephone's secret for consideration; being a god-like sadist myself, I have heard the secret firsthand. As she leans in close, she uses a lascivious tone to heat her whisper directed deep into my ear...
"The secret is, my Lord, that I crave your cruel attention and sadistic cunning."
END.
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