Divine

Chapter 7: A Desperate Plea

Demeter

I sought after him the next day.

The man who had fathered my child. The man who had barely spoken to her since the day of her birth. She hadn't ever asked for his name and I hadn't given it to her for the fear of giving her the false hope that comes so easily to children. She would have hoped that he would love her the way I did, maybe more, and maybe in a way that made her happier. And I would not be able to live with myself when that hope was crushed by a man with a heart that had been touched by pain a few too many times.

Nonetheless, I sought him out to see if he would give me some help in finding her. Praying against my judgment, hoping to everything that I was incorrect in my assumptions about the man that everyone around me praised.

When I arrived in the home of us all, I was greeted with not only the large grin of Zeus, but also his wife's deep scowl at my sudden and unwanted appearance.

He immediately jumped up from his throne and wrapped me up in his strong embrace. "It is truly a pleasure to see you, Dem," he whispered quietly in my ear, his deep voice hushed because he knew Hera would not appreciate this comment. He stood away from me and held me at arm's length, examining my unchanged body for a moment before that grin appeared again.

I smiled warily at him, avoiding Hera's piercing gaze and bitter scowl. She could never stand the sight of her husband's flirtatious behavior and I dare say that I couldn't exactly blame her. However, I could never approve of her actions toward his many loves and his many children. The way she punished them for his deeds bothered me in a way that I could not understand, but given my recent behavior towards my daughter's nymphs I was starting to.

I composed myself and tilted my head slightly to the ground to show that I knew whose home I was in and who held the power here. And after only an insignificant moment of holding my head there, I felt Zeus' strong hand pull my chin back up.

"There is no need for those irrelevant gestures here, Dem," he said sincerely, looking back to Hera and waiting for her agreement.

Her scowl had disappeared from her flawless face just before he could lay his eyes on it. Her face laid itself automatically into an emotionless mask as he turned to her, and as he looked back at her, I saw her face transform into a smile as she nodded encouragingly to me. As if she actually wanted me to be comfortable and relaxed here, but I knew that she would want nothing more than for me to leave and never return.

I sighed and looked away from Hera and back at Zeus and recognized the thoughtful expression that had made its way to his face as he looked at me. "Would you like to speak with me privately?" he asked quietly, almost reading my thoughts.

I nodded mutely and looked away from his bright eyes and back to the floor, waiting but not looking as Zeus silently alerted Hera that he wanted to speak to me alone. And I heard but didn't look as she sighed and walked past me slightly angrily, not bothering to conceal her annoyance with this request.

When I could no longer hear her footsteps, I still looked back to make sure she was gone and as I could only just see her long hair as she went out the open doorway, I assumed she would grant me the courtesy of not listening in.

I turned back to him as he settled himself back into his throne. And realized that I hadn't really thought this through enough. What could I say? What would I say? Now that he knew that it was something of importance, he would expect a long and drawn out argument from my end, but I had not made one in my mind yet.

He sat back, expectant but not pushing. He made a gesture that made it obvious he wanted me closer, patting the throne beside him after a moment of stillness from me.