POMEGRANATE, addams

𝖝𝖑. 𝖛𝖎𝖔𝖑𝖊𝖓𝖙 𝖊𝖓𝖉𝖘

Thing and Persephone were left alone in the dorm after Wednesday had departed for her 'not-a-date' date. Hades normally would've been there with her but he was making sure his uncle wasn't caught by the police, who were getting a bit too close for comfort. Although Persephone missed the presence of the two Addams', Thing was very good company.

Thing taught her various card games that he would play with Gomez, though he immediately regretted this as she began to become better than him. Persephone taught him how to make a daisy chain, and they used the flowers to decorate the stair railings leading to Persephone's loft. They did arm wrestling, thumb wars and even tried to have a game of hide-and-seek before Persephone realised that Thing had a major height advantage. Overall, the two had a fun, relaxing afternoon which lifted Persephone's mood. Thing had also assured her that she wasn't out of line for confronting Wednesday, admitting that he thought Persephone was too good for the goth girl sometimes. She felt like she had been given a free therapy session from a disembodied hand.

Persephone had just headed up to her loft area to fetch some beauty items so she and Thing could enjoy a self-care pamper evening when she heard the door swing open. "Wednesday! Are you back already?" She yelled out, but didn't receive an answer. This wasn't unusual for the emotionless girl, who rarely responded when Persephone greeted her. What was unusual, was the sound of a knife stabbing flesh. Terror flooded through the girl as the face mask and hand lotion she had been carrying were immediately abandoned on the floor. Her heart pounded in her chest as she raced to the edge of her loft. Thing was pinned to the wall by a knife, straight through his palm. "Thing!"

She couldn't see anyone downstairs. It was like no one was there. But she would come to regret not searching more thoroughly. Blinded by panic, leading with her heart and not her head, she tumbled down the stairs in a race to get to Thing. But someone had hidden themselves away in the shadows of the room, lying in wait after setting Thing up as bait. The kind, compassionate girl who always put others first, would find that her selflessness was her downfall.

Persephone's foot had barely reached the final step when the back of her leg, where the monster had sunk its claws, was kicked harshly. The healing wound flared up in pain as Persephone stumbled to the floor with a scream. She tries to crawl away from her attacker but they have the upper hand. They knew Persephone was injured and they were using that to their advantage. A heavy boot pressed down on her calf, putting more and more pressure onto it. Persephone grits her teeth in pain, tears involuntarily escaping her eyes. But Persephone was a fighter, and she wasn't going down easily.

With a swift kick to the stomach, the intruder is forced backwards. Persephone tries to catch a glimpse of her assailant but they have their face and hair covered. They came prepared. She scrambles away desperately, dragging her leg across the floor. Before she can use her powers to trap the person in ropes of vine, her attacker pounces on her, sending both of them to the ground. The masked assailant sits on top of Persephone as their brawl becomes a mess of sloppy hits and punches. She can feel that the intruder is becoming increasingly frustrated with how much of a fight Persephone is putting up. They had obviously expected this to be easier.

Persephone desperately tried to reach for the knife Hades had gifted her for protection, his old favourite that she now carried with her at all times. At the time, she never thought she would find a use for it. How she wished she could've been proven right. Her fingers manage to wrap around the dagger and pull it out of her pocket but her heart sinks as she realises that the protective sheath still covers the blade. Noticing the girl's now-useless knife and being fed up of her struggle, the attacker uses their feet to trap her wrists to the floor and limit her movement. Persephone has never felt so utterly defenceless. She feels weak, and she hates it. Her powers have failed to protect her.

Her fear spikes even more as the unknown person pulled out a vial filled with a deep purple liquid that Persephone could recognise anywhere. It was a poison that her mother would brew, a recipe that people can only find in her book; The Sleeping Nightshade. Also known as the Juliet Poison as it was inspired by the famous Shakespearean play. The poison does not kill, but instead puts the person in a death like sleep. It may not be her most fatal toxin but the effects can be deadly if used effectively. Some people who have been poisoned by it are proclaimed dead and then buried alive or cremated during their funeral.

"No." She weakly whispers, straining with all her strength to get free. Her screams of anguish and protest fell on deaf ears. This person could not be swayed by pitiful tears. Pinching the girl's nose, the liquid was forced down her throat, spluttering everywhere as she attempted to fight off the effects. Sadly, she could not fight it forever.

Her manic breathing slowed down almost to a complete stop, the world spinning before her eyes. The assailant threw the girl's wrists down carelessly, knowing there was no way she could be a threat now. Her arms fell down limply as her body lost all control. She was practically paralysed. Her head flopped to the side, eyelids flickering involuntarily as she resisted against the poison that was flooding through her veins. The last thing she sees are boots. Red boots stepping into her vision.

She tried to remember that, chanting the words in her mind.

Red boots...

Red boot...

Red boo...

Red bo...

Red b...

Red.

Hades. Red reminds her of Hades. The red braiding on his blazer. The red rose from when they first met. The red paint after they danced at the Rave'N. Red is all she sees as her eyes shut firmly, not able to withstand the sleeping poison anymore.

"Hades." Her final word is whispered longingly as the person tears the dorm apart to find the books they are looking for.

Persephone's right hand rests on the wooden floorboards, dagger hanging loosely from her fingertips. The other hand lays on her stomach, now clutching a small red rose, grown from her last moments of pain and the burning desire to see her love.

And just as Juliet waited for her Romeo to wake her, Persephone could do nothing but lay in her deep sleep, awaiting anyone who might come and find her. A sleeping beauty in a fatal slumber.