The Colour Of Pomegranates

Chapter 31

Persephone sat meditating on the brick floor in the greenhouse when she heard her mother's shrill voice. Her eyebrow twitched as she tried concentrating on her own thoughts. Surrounded by the bright flowers around her she felt more at ease, but she felt how the icey blue took her hostage. 

'Persephone?' The glass door to the greenhouse opened and Demeter stuck her head inside. 'I've been looking for you all over!' Just as Persephone wanted to tell her to go away, she saw Artemis' elegant figure walking past the tall windows. Her heart skipped a beat and she rushed outside, flinging herself into Artemis' arms. 

'I thought we would never see you again', Artemis sighed as she smelled her hair. Persephone felt how tears started flowing from her eyes and she pulled her friend closer. 'Tell me, how have you been the last eight months?' Persephone freed herself from Artemis' hug, allowing her to wipe away the tears.

'Let's go outside', the goddess of Spring offered. 'I haven't seen the sun for so long, I miss Helios' warmth and light.' They linked arms and hurried off into the fields. Demeter stayed behind, watching her go with energetic happiness. The world was more beautiful than ever. The warmth had returned, the sun glittered on the little waves of the rivers, the flowers bloomed as Persephone walked through the grass, the first green foliage appeared. Spring had come again.

'I'm so happy to see you again', Persephone sighed as they walked into the fields overgrown with daisies, daffodils and poppies. The sun shone hot on her skin, and she relished the feeling as if it were a dream long forgotten. Artemis wasn't sure whether Persephone addressed her or the World in general. But as she glanced down on her dear friend, she saw tears falling down her cheeks. 

'Persephone, come here', Artemis said with the softest voice as she pulled her into an embrace again. 'Please, tell me what is the matter.' Persephone shook her head as she cried into Artemis' blouse. They sat in the grass for a little while, until Persephone got tired of crying and took a deep breath. Artemis stroke her hair, humming a song. 

'You know', the goddess of Spring said hesitating, 'I wasn't taken.' Artemis smiled.

'I guess you weren't. No one released or liberated would ever be so sad about it.'

'I guess not', she sighed.

'Tell me about the past eight months. How was life Below?' Persephone looked up to her friend, pure happiness glittering in her eye.

'It is beautiful. Time goes so slow, it's like you have all the time in the world. The flowers around the Castle are of an intense black hue, but when I touch them, they glow with colour. The souls in Asphodel Meadows are the kindest spirits I have ever met and although the air in Tartarus is so thick it feels like you are swimming, choking with every breath, the perfumed air in Elysium makes up for it. You'd love the bathhouses in Tartarus, they are hidden in these dense pinewoods. It feels homely and secure.' She rested her head in Artemis lap and looked up at the azure blue sky. 'I forgot about how bright it was up here', she whispered. Smiling, Artemis stroke her thick, wild curls.

'What about Hades, King of the Underworld?' Persephone's dark eyes clouded.

'I loved him', she said as her voice broke. 'I still do - but I couldn't stay Below as long as everything Above was dying because of me. He isn't at all what Apollo or Zeus or my mother would have liked me to believe. He is gentle, well-read, sensual-' Artemis let out a laugh.

'Hades? Sensual?' Persephone reddened.

'I-I was... It just happened, you know', she blurted out. 'I know I took the vows, but when I was with him I knew I was never meant to be a maiden goddess. I was meant to be with him.' She got up, looking Artemis in the eye earnestly.

'It's okay, Persephone', she said. 'You can only be chaste when you fully support your own decision. In all honesty, I, myself, have doubted my vows in this regard.'

'You!' Persephone cried out. Artemis chuckled.

'We all have to stand trial, little fawn. When you had just disappeared, I asked Orion to help me find you. Together we would fly through the woods, and as the grasslands breathed below us, we breathed with it. As the winds rustled the trees, my heart fluttered. Honest to gods, I am infatuated with him. He is beautiful, Persephone, like a panther flying the savanna, barely touching the ground, like a hawk, slicing his magnificent wings through the sky. He loves me, I think.'

'That's great! But what are you going to do now?' Artemis smiled shyly.

'I don't know. Have you... consummated your love?' Again, Persephone reddened. Artemis took her hands. 'What was it like?' 

'It was like a dream, every time again. I wanted him and me to become one. I just know it always had to be this way, him and me. Every time he touches me, I feel like the most powerful being in the Realms. Every time he looks at me, I feel like the most important creature. He makes me whole, he makes me truly happy.' With a bewildered look she looked up to her friend and Artemis smiled apologetically.

'It is okay to have loved, fawn. It really is. You must not regret it.'