𝔖𝔭𝔞𝔯𝔨𝔰 𝔉𝔩𝔶 | 𝔚𝔞𝔱𝔠𝔥𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔐𝔬𝔳𝔦𝔢𝔰

𝕋ℍ𝕀ℝ𝕋𝕐-𝕆ℕ𝔼

little bit of a spicy chapter for you

Anthea stands in Hades' room, the one that Hecate had created before they had all gone to bed the night before.

Everyone had dinner soon after finishing watching her and Percy's first quest before being sent to bed by Professor McGonagall and Hecate so that way they would be watching Anthea's second year from tomorrow morning. Along with that, it seems that McGonagall and Hecate seem to get on swimmingly, especially after they chatted away to each other during dinner.

Anthea hears the door close behind her. The smell of the room has changed since she was in here this morning. "Why?" Hades asks. "Why didn't you tell me you went through all of that?"

"It was before we started this so I didn't think you needed to know," Anthea tells him. Anthea can hear Hades' footsteps getting closer before she's embraced by his warm arms.

"You still should have told me," he whispers in her ear. Anthea lets her eyes close for a moment before letting herself relax in Hades' arms.

"I love you," Anthea whispers to her beloved causing him to smile down at her and press a kiss to the top of her head.

The words melt something in him. Something that continues to melt every time she says that to him. "I still don't understand how," he murmurs.

Anthea lifts her head slightly before turning in his arms to face him. "Why not?"

Hades exhales through his nose. "Because whenever you say it, I want to take you away from everything. Everyone. The world itself. Call me selfish," he begins, his thumb tracing her lower back gently. "I want you to be mine without distraction."

Anthea's heart stutters, warmth pooling in her stomach. "You already have me," she whispers.

"That's what frightens me," he starts, his eyes darkening, not with anger but with something deeper – something vulnerable. "We're watching your younger years unfold like a prophecy unravelling. Every moment I see, every danger you faced before I fully knew you... I keep thinking, what if I had lost you before I ever had the chance to love you?"

He lowers his forehead to her, eyes half-closed.

She cups his cheek softly. "But you didn't lose me."

His hands slide gently along her sies as if to reassure himself she's truly here.

"No," he breathes. "I didn't."

Anthea leans into him, closer, her fingers curling lightly in his top. "And I'll keep choosing you,"

Hades inhales sharply – like those words struck deeper than she intended. He lifts her hand from his chest and brings it to his lips, kissing the back of her knuckles with slow, reverent care.