Queen Of Hell & Paradise (Immortal gods: Book 1)

Chapter 23- Reflection

This chapter is dedicated to my best friend, Kassandra. Thank you for supporting me in my past journeys, and through this one as well! I love you! <3

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The council of the gods was adjourned and its twelve members vacated the arena one by one, piling into the outside gardens of Zeus' palace.

The atmosphere was filled with the chatter of a dozen voices mingling together in murmur of the topic discussed in court. All were pleasantly surprised with the abrupt news shared with them, who would have known that Hades of all gods- would remarry?

His options were exceedingly limited, how had he managed to find a girl worthy of being crowned queen- especially when the only options available were of dead spirits? How was she able to catch his eye? What girl was so enchanting, their reserved uncle would ascend from his barren domain?

The members of council gathered into their respective social groups, making conversation and arranging plans to descend to the earthly realm and pay their uncle a visit. Among the numerous questions being gossiped about outside the palace court, an unspoken uneasiness lingered in the air.

Demeter and her daughter Persephone had been present during the council hearing. The other gods and goddesses remained apprehensive and conscious of that fact. Due to Demeter's outburst during the court session, the council now knew where Demeter stood on the matter. It was no secret that she had disapproved of Hades and Persephone's marriage since the beginning.

Perhaps this is why Aphrodite found it perplexing that now, after thousands of years since Hades' split with the goddess of spring, Demeter had suddenly decided to change her mind. Her distaste filled frown stood out among the crowd of cheerful faces, it was not difficult to figure out the reason behind it.

From beside her, Artemis and Athena stop their conversation to look at an unusually silent Aphrodite.

"Aphrodite?" Artemis asks, reaching to touch her arm, concerned. Of all the gods and goddesses of Olympus, Aphrodite was the most cheerful. Given the news, she assumed the goddess of love would be the most ecstatic, especially since she could not contain her excitement during the council hearing. In fact, during the session she had been pretty vocal about her involvement in orchestrating Hades' wedding. The girl had practically been bursting with joyful energy!

Now, however, she seemed lost in thought. What was bothering her?

The goddess in question turned to look at her two companions, slightly startled out of her thoughts. She had been staring at an irritated Demeter lecture a contemplative and distracted Persephone. They were sitting on the edge of a marble fountain, overlooking Hera's entire luscious garden. It was inevitable for the goddess of spring to distract herself with the colorful flowers- they were after all, her specialty. And if their irate faces were of any indication, they were discussing her sudden intrusion of the court session.

"Aphrodite?" her friends called again, causing her to look up. This time it was Athena's voice that rang in her ears.

"Hmm?" she answered, still not entirely there. Why would Demeter be upset about Hades remarrying? she thought, tuning out her friends.

"What's wrong?" Athena prodded, noting the thoughtful expression in Aphrodite's eyes. She reaches to grab her by the arms, shaking her gently to get her attention. It works, Aphrodite snaps her eyes to hers.

"Sorry," she mumbles, reaching to tuck a stray strand of golden hair behind her ear. Her brows are still furrowed in concentration and her eyes hold a glimmer of distraction, but even so, she manages to maintain all eyes on her. Even worried, the goddess of love's beauty does not diminish.