The Running of Persephone

Kore

I ran my fingers over the dead flowers and watched as they came back to life under my touch. A smile crossed my lips as I did the same to the rest of the flowers and trees in the small grove. I drop my smile as I hear the nymphs come up behind me.

"Lady Kore you must slow down, you know your mother doesn't want you wandering alone." Filia, one of the flower nymphs calls out.

I stopped my walking and let out a frustrated sigh. Why can't mother let me do this on my own? I've finally turned 100 years old today and she still won't let me out by myself. I am the freaking goddess of spring for crying out loud! I can handle the forest on my own. When will she see that I'm not a little girl anymore?

When the nymphs had caught up with me, they made sure to keep an annoying eye on how far ahead I got. Calling me back each time I got too far as we finished growing the Earth for the first day of spring.

"Hello my sweet Kore, how was the forest." Demeter, my mother, kissed my forehead and went back to preparing dinner for us and the nymphs.

"Everything turned out beautiful. I always get such a rush reviving and growing the flowers." I let out a content sigh as I sat at the table, "I also checked on the crops for you on the way back. It looks like it'll be ready to harvest soon."

"Thank you sweetie. I'm glad you had fun today. I had heard from the nymphs you kept straying just a little too far from them. Remember what I said about always staying with them? We don't want anything to happen to you." She placed a plate of pasta and vegetables in front of me, then took a seat for herself, "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you Kore."

"I'm a 100 years old mom! I've been walking in this forest for at least 95 of that. We've never seen anything dangerous out there before. I always do everything you ask of me. Everything. I think I have deserved some freedom. I should at least be able to walk the forest by myself during the day time, or go swimming in the lake on my own." I begged with her.

"I said no Kore. Don't ask me again. I am your mother and you'll do as I say." She slammed down her utensils and whipped her head to look at me.

"Y-yes, mother." I shrank back, never seeing her so angry before. I lowered my head and finished my food. After clearing up dinner I went to my room for the night.

I sat by my window, playing with the leaves of my lower I kept on the windowsill. I wish mom would trust me more. It's not fair that she keeps me hidden. I just want to be able to experience life for myself. As I was thinking about everything, I noticed my flower start to wilt and die as I touched it. I fell back shocked and looked from my hand to my flower, slowly bringing it back up to touch the dead plant. When I touched a petal it sprang back to life. What the hell is happening.

After a few hours I listened for the sounds of any footsteps or voices and when I heard none I snuck out of my room and out the door and into the forest. I made my way through the grounds and onto the hidden path I found while out with the nymphs one day. I had only been walking for a few hours when I felt it. Someone was watching me. It couldn't have been the nymphs, they would have dragged me back home by now. Same for my mother.

I stopped at a stream nearby and pretended to admire the nature that surrounded me while listening for footsteps behind me.When I heard a crack in the bushes a few meters back I whipped around and called out.

"Hey! Who are you? Why are you following me?" I started making my way over to the bush when they made a run for it.

"Hey, wait, come back!" I started running after them. I could only make out a large figure, probably a man. Definitely not from around here. I haven't met many men in life but the ones I have met were polite and didn't run away after I tried talking to them. Whoever this is, is fast. I can barely keep up. I tried using my powers to lift tree roots from the ground but he was able to dodge everything. While trying to think of another way to stop him he just vanished. I made it into the clearing where he vanished but saw nothing. For the second time that night I thought, what the hell is happening?

A cry from the crop fields knocked me out of my trance at breakfast that morning. Me and the nymphs that were still around looked at each other before running outside. Nothing prepared us from what we found. All the crops were dead. My mom had tears in her eyes as she looked around us. You could see nymphs weaving in and out of the crops trying to find something, anything alive. As I got a closer look at the crops I felt like I couldn't breath. They looked the same way when the flower withered beneath my touch just last night... I staggered back trying to catch my breath. Did I do that? I turned around to run back inside but my name was called.

"Kore! Oh my Gods, I can't believe this happened! How could this have happened? Didn't you say you checked on the fields before you came in yesterday? I thought you said they were fine!" Mom came up to me and grabbed my shoulders while rambling in a panicked state and I can't blame her. Everything was ruined.

"I- I don't know what happened... everything was... was alive when I saw them last." But in my head I wasn't so sure. I passed them when I snuck out. I didn't pay much attention to them but I would've noticed if something was off. Right? It got harder to breathe so I shook mom off me and ran for the forest.

I heard my name being called out by my mom and nymphs but all I could focus on was the memory of the flower dying and, even if I didn't know it, the crops doing just the same only a few yards away. As I ran I heard running not far behind me. In an attempt to slow them down I made the brush grow wider and the branches grow lower so they couldn't reach me. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me and I didn't stop till I reached a small lake hidden deep in the forest.

I fell to my knees by the bank of the lake, trying to catch my breath. There's no way I could've done that to all those crops. I'm supposed to be the goddess of spring and regrowth. Not... not whatever this is. My powers shouldn't be capable of this, yet I witnessed it with my own eyes last night. I didn't know what was happening or why. I thought I was done developing my powers, I didn't want the power to destroy. To kill. I had been taught that life is precious and a gift. It was our job to help maintain it, to give life. Not take it away. I threw my hands at the ground and screamed in frustration as water splashed up around me. I screamed for my mom. I screamed for the nymphs. I screamed for the isolation that I've been kept in. I screamed for my freedom. I screamed for the life I had taken away. I just wanted this nightmare to end.

I heard rustling behind me. I stood up slowly and turned around and watched as a man came out from the trees.