Daughter of Flames and Darkness

Cravings

Weeks had passed and the Mistress of Evil's pregnancy gradually progressed. As Maleficent's stomach grew, so did her appetite. She would be hungry almost all the time and her cravings would vary from simple and plentiful to unusual and hard to find. Even though it was hard, Hades did his best to get his wife happy and healthy while their child grew within her.

One evening while she was reading in the library again, Hades approached Maleficent and asked her, "What'll it be for dinner tonight, babe? Anything special?"

"Not certain yet. What do I want? Hmm..." She stopped to think for a few moments before a thought came to her. "Ah. How about something simple tonight? A salad, perhaps. But not just any salad. I want a salad... of rampion."

Hades raised an eyebrow. "Rampion?"

"Yes." She showed him the book she was reading; there was an illustration of a plant with thin oval leaves and a few little purple flowers scattered across it. "I've read about rampion recently. It's a breed of bellflower and it's said to be quite irresistible. And I'm rather curious to know what it tastes like." She playfully batted her eyes at her husband.

"Say no more, babe." He said with a confident smirk. "If it's rampion you want, rampion you shall have. I'll get you all the rampion you could ever eat. One question, though... how am I supposed to find any rampion?"

"Now that could be an issue. The book says it grows in the Mediterranean region as well as parts of Northern Africa, but it appears to be too long a journey just for a simple plant. I don't want you to—"

Hades stopped her by putting a finger to her lips. "Not another word, Malef. I meant what I said. If you really want it, I'll get you that rampion. I promise. And if that means I have to go to another part of the world to get it, so be it."

Maleficent wanted to argue, but a low, hungry growl from her stomach quickly stopped her. Even though she was very hesitant about letting her husband go on such a trip just to get her something to eat, she remembered how stubborn he could be and relented. "Very well. But promise me you'll be careful."

"Absolutely." He kissed her forehead and gave her belly a pat. "And don't worry. I won't take too long." He winked and held his Ember of Blue between his thumb and index finger.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Hades was right; it didn't take long to find rampion at all. In another part of the forest a few miles beyond the Forbidden Mountain, there was a plot of land that was surrounded by a thick stone wall that was too high to simply jump over, but someone would certainly climb it. There was an iron gate at the entrance; it was locked tight and there were two large dogs standing guard. Behind the gate and within the wall were a simple wood cabin near the back of the wall and an enormous garden filled with all sorts of fruits, vegetables, and herbs, including rampion. Hades had used a spell to track down any traces of rampion in the world and to his luck, he found an entire stash of it that was much closer to home than he thought. This garden was practically brimming with the stuff.

Pain and Panic, who insisted on going with him, were outside the gate and hid in the bushes so the guard dogs wouldn't see them.

Pain took out a communication crystal and said into it, "Dog Bait to Retriever. Dog Bait to Retriever. We're in. Out."

Hades, who was at the other side of the wall behind the house with Dementia, took out his crystal and said, "Retriever to Dog Bait, stay in. Don't go out."

"Understood. Out." Pain said.

"No! In! Out." Hades groaned.

"Understood. Out."