Too close to the Sun

love like a fairytale

As Heliē plotted mischief against her brother, a lady emerged with skin as fair as porcelain, flowing black hair that gently caressed her ankles, and a dress designed in various shades of blue, decorated with stars from the night sky. She was Nyx, the goddess of the moon, radiating beauty in the midst of the gathering.

"You came?" Heliē exclaimed.

"What? Aren't you happy to see me?" Nyx inquired.

"No, it's not that! It's just... So I won't be seeing any moons tonight? Not even night bloomers like the Gardenia or the Mirabile?" Heliē frowned.

"Oh, that reminds me," Nyx smiled and brought out some flower buds. She placed her hand over them, emitting bright moonbeams. The simple plant buds slowly bloomed before Heliē's very eyes.

"For you," she uttered. Heliē's eyes widened, and a gasp was heard shortly after.

"Thank you," she squealed, admiring the beautiful flowers.

"You're more than welcome," Nyx chuckled.

"You saw me the other night, didn't you? That's why you glowed so much."

"You're such a curious young lady, but yes, I did. You reached the village, we had to celebrate," Nyx declared, and they both laughed.

Heliē was just beginning to admire the flowers when suddenly a gust of wind went through the ballroom, and all the candles went out.

"Hades..." Heliē whispered with a bright smile, and with a flick of her wrist, all the lights were back on. A being whose black hair cascaded like the midnight waves, dark eyes holding the secrets of the abyss, an incredible body sculpted with divine grace, and pale skin that seemed to defy the touch of life itself entered.

Whispers swept through Mount Olympus, deeming him the very god of death, a harbinger of both awe and fear.

"Thank you for gracing us with your presence, Hades," Zeus scoffed.

"It's not a problem..." Hades grinned and walked up to his little sister.

"Heliē."

"Hades!" she beamed excitedly.

"Nyx," Hades greeted with a bow.

"Hades," Nyx smiled and bowed as well out of courtesy.

"How are things going with you?" he inquired.

"They're going great. And you? How are things with you and... Persephone?" she questioned.

"My wife? Yes, things are great," he said coldly.

"Oh..." Nyx sighed inwardly and forced a bitter smile, while Heliē was dying from the awkwardness of their conversation. Hades must have sensed it and quickly got to the point.

"Heliē, I need to speak with you."

"Okay, I'll be with you in a minute," she smiled.

"Please make haste," he pleaded and bowed to Nyx before leaving.

"Still in love with my brother, I see," Heliē uttered.

"Is it that obvious?"

"Yes... yes, it is," she stated, making Nyx curse under her breath.

"I'm really sorry..." Heliē sighed. "You didn't get the happy ending you wanted," she added in her heart.

"Don't be, it's not your fault," Nyx smiled, but Heliē had already seen right through her.

"I'll see you later, okay?"

"Okay," Nyx murmured, and Heliē hugged her before going to see her brother.

Heliē walked into her bedroom and saw Hades casually sitting on her silk sheets.

"I have to say, you coming was... unexpected," she admitted.

"But admit it, Zeus' face was priceless," Hades chuckled.

"You took all the attention away from him, as always," Heliē smirked

"Okay, enough about me... You ran away again, didn't you?" Hades inquired. Not like he needed an answer; he probably already knew the exact time she left Mount Olympus. Heliē still nodded anyway."And you're attending this party as punishment?" he added, and she nodded again. "How far did you get?" He smiled."I reached the town near the ocean," she said excitedly, almost squealing."You're getting better," Hades chuckled and messed with her hair."Hades!..." Heliē whined. "This took Aphrodite all night," she cried, and Hades raised his hands defensively."Sorry, habit..." he smiled. "But Heliē... that was very dangerous. If you want to go out next time, at least take Andreas," Hades pleaded, concern clear in his tone."What is it with you guys and protecting me? I'm not a human; I'm GODDESS HELIĒ. And I know I may not be as strong as you guys...""I smell mockery," Hades mumbled."But I'm very witty, smarter than you three combined," she said proudly."There it is..." Hades chuckled. "Okay, I'm sorry. I need to remember that you're not a little goddess anymore. You're all grown up, and I did train you to be a killing machine.""I believe the term was 'the best student I ever had'...""Even better than Poseidon..." he chuckled. "You know you're the apple of my eye, right?""I hope your wife doesn't hear that," Heliē murmured, but he heard her loud and clear."This again?" He questioned. "I don't think she likes me very much.""What makes you think that?""Because she curses me with every passing breath.""That can't be true.""And how would you know? She's overprotective about you, which means she truly loves you... just like in my fairytales," she uttered, satisfaction clear in her smile."And you'll also find someone who loves you, just like in your fairytales," he declared."I hope so... that reminds me, I have a gift for you," she smirked, walking towards her closet."Oh no, I'm scared," Hades mumbled."Say hi, Cerberus," Heliē uttered as she brought out a three-headed dog almost as big as her room."Cerberus?!..." Hades exclaimed in shock as he hugged his dog. "Where did you find him?""Hercules returned him.""But I thought he was dead?" he inquired."Oh, let's not go into details," Heliē smiled nervously."That Hercules," Hades snapped."You still hate him?" Heliē sighed."He stole my dog.""That's fair," Heliē chuckled."Sit!" Hades commanded, and the dog quickly sat, causing the room to shake slightly. They walked back and sat on the bed."Alright, Hades, tell me the story," Heliē pleaded as she rested her head on his shoulder."What story?""You know what I'm talking about," Heliē stated."Okay... Our father Cronos learned that one of his children was fated to dethrone him as the leader of the gods, so... he ate each one as soon as they were born-""What a deranged lunatic," Heliē scoffed."Now you know where Zeus gets it from..." Hades remarked, and Heliē chuckled. "When Zeus was born, our mother Rhea hid him in a cave on the island of Crete, and instead fed Cronos a stone wrapped in swaddling. Once he had grown up, Zeus used an emetic given to him by Gaia to force Cronos to disgorge the contents of his stomach in reverse order: first, the stone, which was set down at Pytho under the glens of Mount Parnassus to be a sign to mortal men, and then his two brothers and three sisters.""Eww, can't believe I was barfed out," Heliē cried."Will you just let me finish the story?""Oh, sorry," she smiled."Well, after Zeus killed our father, we had to decide on who would rule what, so we kind of did draws.""Kind of? Or that's exactly what you did?" Heliē protested."That's exactly what we did..." Hades chuckled. "People always say I had the worst draw between my brothers and me, but... I think 'god of the underworld' has a nice ring to it. Don't you?""Oh it does, it really does..." She smiled and closed her eyes gently. It was like nothing could harm her as long as her brother was around, her comfort zone. "You'll always be my favorite brother, Hades," she whispered before drifting off to sleep.Hades smiled softly. "You're also my favorite," he sighed.