Heaven-Sent [Zagreus x F Reader]

I. Divine Intervention

"In the name of Hades... Olympus, I accept this message."

Zagreus felt a rush of hope surge through him at the sight of another gift from his fellow gods. This particular stream of light fell upon a pink icon in the form of a heart, telling him it was sent from the goddess of love and beauty herself. With a tired but now determined sigh, Zagreus reached a hand out toward the warm glow.

"Oh, don't look so down, Godling." A blinding light flashed through the room, before fading to reveal the form of a woman with flowing, rosy hair and adornments of fine gold. "How long have you been at it this time?"

"Hello again, Aphrodite.
I'm afraid this is only my seventh chamber or so. It seems my work to reach beyond Tartarus has been in vain as of late."

The prince scanned the room as he spoke, unable to properly meet her eyes. It wasn't that he lacked a godly amount of confidence, no, but being killed and revived in a pool of blood repeatedly tends to take its toll after a while.

Since the room was now free of brimstones, Zagreus could see green walls peppered with dim flickers of light here and there. Some shards of black pottery were piled in corners — Zagreus was sure his father would hear of the damages and scold him for it soon enough. Other than that, dust had settled and the room didn't seem to make a sound.

After a moment, the heavenly cadence of Aphrodite's voice broke through the chilling silence one more. "You know, Little Godling, I think it's time I bestowed upon you another gift from yours truly."

Oh. "Right, sorry. Got carried away for a second there, taking in the positively lovely sights of this hellscape," the prince mumbled. "Erm, but in any case ...thank you." He held his hand up to the source of the warm light, toward the heavens.

Time to focus. This is the part where he chooses one of three boons to aid his quest. And right now, he could sure use a goddess's help in escaping from here.

"I'll accept your offering of-"

"Uh uh uh, Zagreus. This gift will be one of my own choosing." A playful smile graced the goddess's lips as she spoke, subtle yet charming all the same. "I think you'll find this one ... well-suited to your tastes. Just give me a moment to find the right..."

Before he could ask what in the actual hell was meant by that, Aphrodite's form had disappeared in a brilliant shower of pink — rose petals and jewels danced in the air where she had previously been.

"I... should probably know better than to expect anything 'normal' ever happening around here," Zagreus muttered, not to anyone in particular. Though he was sure the faint whispers of hapless souls in the next chamber may have heard him anyway. "But, I don't see anything she could've left behind. Perhaps I'll just... keep moving for now."

Dashing to the next exit, the prince could see that the next room he'd enter would reward him with a centaur's heart. How fortunate. His health had diminished greatly after accepting a particularly dangerous boon from Chaos earlier, and-

"Ahem!"

He instantly recognized the softness of the goddess clearing her throat. "Oh! Uh, my apologies, Lady Aphrodite. I misunderstood you to mean that my boon would come later." Zagreus stumbled while turning to face her again, hoping that she wouldn't note the awkward movement. "But, I see now that this was not the case."

"You silly Godling! When have I ever been known to keep one such as yourself waiting?" The goddess of beauty briefly covered her mouth to mask a giggle. "But really, Dear, I've got just the thing for you."

"It's very much appreciated."

"That's nice to hear. You're one tough Godling to track down, Zagreus! And that's after I so sweetly implored the other Olympians to not intervene — well, contact you, i should say — until you and I had a little chance to speak first."

So she's the reason he couldn't make it out of this damned place... if not for his incredible patience, Zagreus might have found himself quite annoyed just then. Had she any idea how disheartening it was to be stuck in the first layer of the underworld? He was beginning to think that his family had given up on sending boons altogether. And after making it all the way to Elysium before, too... he had begun to think that he simply missed his chance of escape forever.

Zagreus brushed off his thoughts before Aphrodite could question him. "Sorry to have caused you such trouble," he apologized, still genuinely courteous as ever. "In any case, I will gladly accept the gift of your choosing."

The walls shook, and the pink glow of her presence shone brilliantly before leaving the room to its former state. Dull, green, and-

"Erm, hello."

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April 3, 2022 - 829 words // Hi! This is reuploaded from my Quotev, so hopefully I can be inspired to finish it soon. Enjoy!