For Persephone

Chapter 5 – The Persistent Girl

Hermes, who had always been composed and patient, was reluctant to visit the underworld when it was filled with ominous, and leering energy. The combined sounds of the Titans howling dreaded him to the core. Hades usually stayed at the Phlegethon area, but when the place was covered in thick fog, he would go out to keep a watchful eye over the outskirts of the district— where madness and insanity lie beneath the surface.

Just like today.

When he reached the dock at Acheron River, Kharon was so nervous he didn’t even look back.  “At last, the King has arrived. And there was that ‘thing’ again.” He said, clearly annoyed.

“What do you mean by that ‘thing’?”

“The yellow-eyed girl who’s hanging around all the time, always chasing the boat. Phoibos’ free slave.”

The dead resented the living beings with a fierce passion, holding grudges over the earthlings who spent their days worshipping the sun, including Persephone.

Hades was proud of himself for having remembered her at first sight, not needing to rely on anyone’s help. He remembered her face in full detail, and etched it into his memory.

The word ‘goddess’ is what fits her most. The way she hid made herself small inside her cloak, looking around the darkness with a curious gaze. Hades couldn’t tear his eyes away from her white skin, the clear indication she was alive and breathing, which was outstandingly different from the paleness of the dead ones. Her pink lips opened, letting out a small puff of air as she breathed. She shivered despite the cloak hugging her tight, and Hades was utterly mesmerized with the sight.

Was he entranced by her simply because he had only seen corpses for such a long time? Was it because all of them paled in comparison, leagues away from the beauty she possessed? Hades asked himself as he stared at her retreating form, his gaze unfaltering as she disappeared into the fog.

“Where is she heading to?” Hades said.

“She didn’t ask nor say anything.” Hermes clicked his tongue in exasperation. Some living beings lurk around the land of the dead from time to time, either to beg someone to return, or they just accidentally found themselves in the middle of the underworld, and never finding the light of day again.

It doesn’t matter what their reasons were, it was infuriating all the same.

“Which way did she go?” Hades asked.

“Why do you want to know?” Hermes countered back.

Hades shrugged nonchalantly. “I want to know what she’s doing.”

“Why bother? She just stared at us and ran off to who knows where.” Kharon said, positioning the oars on the edge of the boat and spat a ball of phlegm noisily. He pointed towards the fog where the forest lies ahead. Hades then scanned the fog with peering eyes, and changed the direction of his feet. Kharon jogged up to him, panting as he caught up with the King.

“There’s no use reasoning with her. Just tear that bloody nose of hers.” Kharon reasoned as they snickered mockingly.

*

Hades, still not at ease, stopped his inspection and started searching for the living girl. He thought she was trying to be a hassle on purpose. But she was a hassle he wanted to get involved with—the girl who left a strange impression on him. He wanted to explore her and the depths of her emotions, which bothered him even more.

Where in the vast Acheron could she have gone? He entered the mouth of the jagged forest, the darkness enveloping his figure. Though agonizing, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to find her, partly because the girl wasn’t leaving the vicinity of Acheron’s port and partly because he knew the land like he knew the back of his hand.

He felt it again and again, with every beat of his heart; a feeling hard to explain which could only be felt, as if a brass nail had nailed his foot to the ground. It wasn’t due to her ostensible beauty that had caught his eye, but the emotions that weren’t hidden—the excitement or affection, for example, began with the eyes.

–‘Have you forgotten who I am?’

Her melodic voice flowed softly to Hades’s ears. His heart felt heavy. It was a surprise how a single meeting could do that to him; it felt like a fanatic affection. The determination that came into his head fiercely resembled that of his mother. He wasn’t sure if it was because they were family that he couldn’t shake it off. Sometimes when this happened, he understood his mother with a clear view as if he were staring at a still scenery of the moment when the wind suddenly stopped blowing.

‘What should I do?’

He saw her sitting in the forest weeds. Her black hair covered her small back, enticing him to run his fingers through the silky length. Her yellow eyes, which gave him the feeling of being struck by lightning, still remained like the first time. Her hard calves and stiff chest; her neck erect as if never bent; slim jaw and plump lips.

A vulnerable beauty to her, the beauty of a girl who had been confined to an island and supported only by her mother and nymphs.

He decided to have his fun as he appeared in front of her and inquired in a curious voice.

“What are you doing just sitting there all alone in this glorious darkness?”

“Hades…?” She looked up in sheer surprise.

It was quite a welcome for Hades, who had only met a female for the second time in his life. Even when a girl explicitly calls his name.