Hades [Book Three] ON HOLD

Three

Hades 
| three | hades is seven years old. 

It was in the middle of summer when Hades first discovered the just how strong his species were. As he began to get older, Maia couldn't help but fear that there was something not right. Growing up with the fellow wolves around him, Hades was secluded. Choosing to spend most of his time away in the library, making sure he was out of the way of his siblings, he enjoyed being a solitary wolf.

However, despite the young wolf's protests, Adonis wasn't prepared to allow his heir to spend his whole life locked away inside. So despite Hades' protests, Adonis forced his eldest son to join him with training. 

A wolf's first shift could happen from any point in their life before the age of sixteen years old. As Hades would be the future Alpha to the pack, Adonis wanted to ensure that he was prepared. Looking down at the child before him, Adonis placed his hands on his hips. He watched Hades look back at his mother, who was sat a few metres away, Leto sat beside her, both with matching swollen stomachs. Zeus was curled up beside his mother, his head resting against her legs that were stretched out in front of her, her fingers running through his hair. Hercules sat between the sisters, grubby hands shoving a piece of freshly picked strawberries inside his mouth, the juice dripping down his chin. 

Beside Hercules sat Apollo, Leto's two years old son, a timid wolf who often avoided attention. He was blissfully unaware of the dark look his cousin shot at him as he grabbed a handful of grapes from the fruit bowl that was placed in the middle of the picnic blanket that rested underneath them. The youngsters began to bicker over the fruit, Leto sighing as she scolded them, looking over at her sister to back her up. 

But Maia's eyes were glued to her eldest child. 

"Right, what's the first rule to being a good leader?" Adonis questioned his son, finally gaining Hades' attention. 

Hades stared up at his father, a blank expression on his face as he shrugged. 

Adonis sighed, crouching down so that he could look directly into his son's eyes. "Look around you," He instructed, Hades doing as he was told. "You see the big men?" Hades nodded, his gaze fixating onto the males that were training just a few metres behind his mother. "You need to be as strong as them," Adonis told him. Hades looked back at his father, nodding numbly as he bit at his bottom lip. "One day, you'll be more powerful than any wolf in this pack, even me," Adonis flashed him a smile, only to let out a sigh when Hades simply stared back at him. Straightening back up, the Alpha nodded his head, clapping his hands together, "Right, let's get started." 

Leto looked over at her sister as she pried the bowl of fruit from Hercules' firm grip and offered it towards his brother. Zeus shook his head, curling up on the blanket, he closed his eyes, Leto placing the bowl back on the ground. "Are you sure you're okay with him doing this?" 

Maia kept her eyes glued to Hades who was now being taught by his father to punch correctly, a worried expression on her face. "No," She muttered, her hand unconsciously stroking her stomach. 

The two remained silent for a few moments before Leto broke it, "At least he's being trained early. I mean, Adonis isn't wrong; Hades needs to be trained." 

Maia pursed her lips, "He's a child. Not a man." Leto rolled her eyes at her sister's stubbornness, but smiled. "I think there's something wrong with him," Maia breathed. 

It was Leto's turn to frown, eyes watching over her nephew who was now being encouraged to punch his father's palms. Hades hesitated, before curling his fingers into a fist and lunging. Although the hit wasn't very strong, it was accurate, something which Adonis was pleased about. Noticing his father's approval, a small smile made its way onto the young wolf's face.