Seeds: Hades and Persephone

Six

Persephone awoke to soft blankets. She opened her eyes slowly and saw that the chair Hades had sat in the night before was currently empty. She sat straight up, the familiar tingle of fear going through her spine. She quickly quelled her fear.

He is a busy man. She reasoned to herself. He probably had an emergency and had to leave. No need to trouble yourself. She told herself firmly.

It wasn't until her feet touched the hard marble flooring she realized she did not to know where she was. She assumed she was in the Underworld Palace, as dark obsidian slabs walled the room.

She was still clothed in her original spring green sundress, though, she noted, it had many tears and rips. Her bare feet padded the marble flooring and she looked around the room, trying to familiarize herself with her surroundings. To the left of the bed, she found the seat that Hades had sat on. She saw columns and columns of books, going almost to the ceiling. She briefly scanned some of the titles laying out and smiled. There were books of every sort here. Books about war, about art, and to Persephone's surprised, she found a vast array of book concerning the topic of gardening.

She turned her attention away from all of the books and scanned the room again. On the other side of the bed, there was a small counter. There was a sword made of stark white material. Persephone realized with a twist of her gut that if must have been bone. She turned to the other item on the counter and her stomach dropped. It was a simple helmet, but something about the helm terrified her.

She quickly turned away. In the center of the room, there was a dark red rug. Next to that was a leather couch, and to the right, doors to an outside balcony stood, tall and elegant. There was another door to the left, and Persephone guessed that it led to the outside hallway.

She had decided she was going to go out to the balcony, but another door caught her attention. It was to the right of the bed, and it was slightly ajar. Suddenly feeling as if she wasn't supposed to be there, she crept towards it. She peered her head in and what she saw surprised her. She laughed nervously. It was a bathroom. The largest bathroom she'd ever seen. Right next to the door, there was a large counter, made of granite. The sink was marvelous. An ever-bubbling fountain that you could wash your hands or face in. There were several toiletries lining the counter - a sign that whoever owned this room wasn't the cleanest. She realized with a start that this couldn't have been any other's room besides Hades' himself. Red hot embarrassment brought a glow to her cheeks. She felt as if she were trespassing.

The fact that Hades had just entered behind her was only fuel to the fire.

"So, I see you've found my bathroom." He said in a warm voice, tinted with laughter.

She squeaked and turned around, taking a step back. "I'm sorry!" She began apologizing profusely. "I'm so sorry! I woke up and- and you were gone, so I- I decided to have a look around, just, you know, to make sure you were gone, and I- wait, that sounds wrong. I was-" She sputtered. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"I was just curious." She stated. Heat rose off her face and she could feel how red it was. She looked up miserably and saw Hades silently laughing. "I'm sorry." She griped. He kept laughing.

"That's quite alright," He said, waving away her curiosity with a hand. "You haven't eaten in almost four days. Would you like some breakfast?"

Cheeks flaming, she realized just how hungry she was. She nodded silently, not trusting herself to speak, just in case her tongue decided to betray her and embarrass her further.

Just then a servant ran into the room. Seeing them together, she blushed and bowed low. "My Lord, breakfast is ready. If you like, I can accompany your highness to get some fresh clothes."