In the Cold, I'm Warmest With You

Heaven's Advice

It was one fine average day in the Upperworld, at least for its mortal inhabitants. Instead, it was a day unlike any other as the divine mountain catered to a special guest who should've been at his usual work. The lowly heavenly servants left the throne room hurriedly in fear as they felt his dark and earthly presence.

"Aye, lil' bro, wassup?" The eyes of the King of the Gods, Loudovikos, lit up as he jumped out of the seat of his throne and ran towards his somber kin, the King of the Underworld, Aidamien. "I haven't seen you since the day we divided the world amongst ourselves!" He trapped him in a tight bear hug and ruffled his raven hair in rough, brotherly affection.

The Unseen One desperately tapped the Thunder God's sturdy arm as his pale face turned blue. "Lou- can't- breathe-"

"Oop, my bad-" Loudovikos released his headlock on his brother. Aidamien's wheezing turned stable and softer as he finally tasted the fresh air he hadn't breathed in for an eon. The God of the Dead didn't miss the Upperworld much since he made the realm below his permanent domain, though he did miss meeting his family above despite the regular written correspondence. It took him a while for his eyes to adjust to the dazzling brightness brought on by Helios.

Loudivikos returned to his grand throne and dramatically asked as if he had been preparing for this moment for a long time, "So, what brings you here to my heavenly abode, my dear brother?"

"It's good to see you again," Aidamien admitted with a small smile. He put on his hood again as he searched for the words. "I need help."

"Anything for you, Dames," The King of the Gods was quite astonished as his brother was usually the independent, capable type. "Must be something urgent, coming from someone like you."

At his words, the Unseen One's face looked as alive as his heavenly kin. It had been so long since they had last met, but his brother was still as friendly as ever.

"You okay?" Loudivikos stood up in concern.

"Nothing," Aidamien quickly denied as he averted his gaze.

"Oh, come on, bro. For nothing? Then you shouldn't have climbed the mountain."

The dark deity sighed and muttered, "Embarrassing," under his breath. He took a moment to gather courage before revealing his intentions. "There's someone I've been watching for a while..."

Loudovikos nodded. "Go on. Go on."

"And... I want to know who she is."

A dramatic gasp came out, and a mischievous grin stretched from ear to ear appeared on the Thunder God's lips as he digested his brother's words. Aidamien was starting to regret seeking counsel from him. Loudovikos rested his chin on his palms as he leaned forward. "Who's the lucky girl who had caught my little brother's eye?"

Aidamien sighed again in resignation and started describing his observations. Loudovikos already knew who his brother was talking about from the first sentence.

"Oh, that's Kayre. She's the Goddess of Verdure," he explained. "She only comes to the mountain when she has to be there. Most of the time, she lives alone amongst the humans down there. Not much of a chatterbox during gatherings, though."

Loudovikos' serious tone immediately switched back to a giddy one. "You have a crush on her, don't you, Dames?"

Before Aidamien could respond, Loudovikos was already throwing himself a teasing party, cheering and poking his cheek for a while until he was satisfied. The King of the Underworld questioned in his heart how his silly elder brother managed to become King of the Gods as he blocked out the noise.

After Loudovikos calmed down, he returned to his throne. "Couldn't blame you. From what I've seen of her, I think you'd get along with her if you came to our parties. You probably should ask Herana for these things, but she's busy now. If she were here to see you, she would love to help you."

"Oh."

"But knowing how endless your work is, how about you let your big brother help to save time?"

...

'Why did I listen to him?'

Back in the Underworld, Aidamien groaned into his hands on his work desk, realizing that, in hindsight, he probably shouldn't have followed Loudovikos' advice.

'I asked for at least a full day off that time... I should've waited for Herana to return from work. Should've told him that, and he wouldn't have quickly ushered me down the mountain...' he regretted. He knew that deep inside, his brother was a wise and caring man, yet he sometimes gave into the impulse of the situation. If anything, he could offer sound advice when the situation called for it, but it seemed that it wasn't preferable for affairs of the hearts between two people.

Still wallowing in his brooding, Aidamien's ears picked up the sound of distant barking, and his body felt the ground rumbling.

'What is Cerberus up to?' he wondered as he rose from his seat. 'Might be a rare rebel shade... Everyone ends up here in the end, and nobody can get in or out, dead or alive.'

Aidamien walked out of his office to see patches of fresh monkshood rooted to the stone floor of the hallway. He was confused as to how flowers could still manage to sprout from what was supposed to be a barren medium before it hit him.

'She couldn't be the one Cerberus is dealing with now, right?' Hopes of such an event not being the truth ran through Aidamien's mind as he followed the trail of monkshood, concluding that it led to the entrance of his grand estate after seeing the dead-ends they led to. From there, ichor-stained footprints replaced the blossoms, leading to the entrance of his realm. The sight of a god's bodily fluid made his stomach churn unpleasantly, so he focused on finding the goddess who got involved in this whole mess.

When he recognized her form at Cerberus' post, he sprinted and called the hellhound's name aloud. "CERBERUS! STOP!"

It took a few shouts for the enormous three-headed canine to halt his intimidation, as he was usually used to his master being quiet. Aidamien quickly approached him, patting two of his snouts with his hands.

"That's enough! You're scaring her!" the King of the Underworld gently admonished Cerberus. The dog shrank until he was half as tall as the goddess, and the flames from his teeth extinguished.

"That's it. Good boy," Aidamien rubbed Cerberus' three heads. When the hellhound calmed enough, his attention moved to the poor girl.

"Are you okay?" he softly asked her as their eyes met.