Hades and Persephone Ch 16 4.docx

1、Hades and Persephone Ch 16 4Now wait just a minute! the Goddess of the Harvest said, storming toward them.But not you. Surely if theKing of the Godscannot keep a Stygian oath, then you should not expect the fealty of those who would, he narrowed his eyes at Zeus. What do you suppose will happen the

2、next time your lady wife has had enough of your dalliances? Or if Ares or even Athena decides to follow in your footsteps, and Cronus before you, and depose you? Do you think I will be so ready to send Briareos to break your chains and subdue the gods again?What would you have me do, Aidoneus? Be ho

3、nest with yourself and look around. Your choice of bedmate and whatever we said at the Styx aeons ago meansnothingwhen measured against the ending of all things. I had to consider the greater good. Surely you can understand that.And I do. But you should have brought Demeter in line before trifling w

4、ith me. Instead, you unwisely engaged in a battle of wills with her that brought us all to the brink of ruin, he said, his voice dispassionate.Persephone noted the differences between the two kings. Her father had a thicker, more muscular figure than Aidoneus, like a wrestler, but stood almost a hea

5、d shorter than him. Her husband looked more graceful, nobler, a swordsman, a warrior in her eyes. Zeus eyes and mouth bore cracked lines of age and his blond hair was shot through with streaks of white. Aidon, though he was aeons older than Zeus, a contemporary of some of the Titans, looked far youn

6、ger. His hair shone sleek and black like a ravens wing in the sunlight. She smiled up at her husband as Zeus stammered an answer.We couldnt he stopped himself, not wanting to give away to the ruler of the Other Side how weakened by Demeters famine they truly were. Your obstinacy had a part to play i

7、n all this, you know. Did you truly understand the severity of all this, or were you too busyentertainingyour bedmate? Surely your kingdom is overwhelmed right now.It is, he said with a nod. Zeus accusation stung. It was true his singular focus on her had been a way for him to ignore the devastation

8、 of the world above. But he needed her by his side now more than ever. All the more reason to have the God and Goddess of the Dead there to set it aright.The Goddess Zeus shook his head. Yourconsort, you mean. What more is she than that?As the Lord of the Underworld, it is my right and my wish to co

9、nfer power upon her. She rules Chthonia as my equal.Oh, sothatshow you got her to stay! Demeter interjected and folded her arms in front of her. By poisoning her mind and promising her a throne at your side as you raped her into submission every night?!Aidoneus gritted his teeth, wishing with all hi

10、s might that he could taunt Demeter about howwillingher precious daughter had been to lay with him, to seduce him as many time as he had seduced her. He didnt want to embarrass his beloved by telling all the secrets of their bedchamber. Or their garden. Or their throne room. Or the pool. Or the wall

11、s or tables or a dozen other places in their palace. Instead, he snorted derisively and rolled his eyes at her. Demeter huffed angrily.Zeus spoke. Aidon, youve let Hecate and Nyx influence you for far too long. Arent you master of your own realm? Itsyour third of the cosmosfor Fates sake, not theirs

12、! And yet you callyourrealm bytheirold word for it.The Underworld is as it ever was, and what I say is the truth. My wife and I preside over Chthonia. And whats more, while Persephone and I rule side by side in Asphodel, the true source of her power lies far,fardeeper than that.Demeter and Zeus both

13、 looked at Persephone in shock and leaned away, almost imperceptibly.Hades smiled. Tartarus bends to her will. She has faced Titans. And my queen is now as much a part of my world as I am. Askalaphos!Persephone took a step forward before her plan fell to pieces. I ate the fruit of the Underworld, Mo

14、ther!Demeters legs faltered and she took a step back. No.I ate six seeds from a pomegranateTell me you did not do such a thing!A pomegranate! Zeus laughed. Pomegranates dont grow in the Underworld! Ive heard some tall tales in my time, but this one, AidonIt is the truth, Hecate said from her place b

15、eside the chariot. For aeons the seeds lay dormant. But by your daughters loving union with her husband and through their united dreams, they grew.Where else could you possibly find a pomegranate? Persephone said calmly. She reached for the fruit in Askalaphos hands and held it out to Demeter and Ze

16、us. Certainly not in thelivingworld.Demeter snatched it from her hand and turned it over in horror, then threw it to the ground. She gripped Persephones arms tightly almost shaking her. By what trick did Hades deceive you?! How did he make you eat these?! Tell me!Persephone wriggled out of her grasp

17、 and stood next to Aidoneus again.You did this! Demeter hissed at Aidoneus. You were going to lose her and it wasnt enough for you to have ruined her for all eternity, you had to bind her to your hideous dead kingdom!I did no such thing, Demeter! I didnt evenknowthat she had eaten them until after I

18、 had sent her on her way. Persephonekeptit from me! He glanced at his wife, his voice gentling when it spoke in her mind.Why didnt you tell me?Persephone winced at his words; spoken and unspoken, feeling a sting of guilt that she had deceived her husband, even for the sake of them all. I ate those s

19、eeds without Hades knowledge.Of course you would say that when threatened by your captor, Kore! Demeter cried. He forced them on you just as he forced himself on you! But we can correct this, Kore. Surely weMother, I ate them alone, and knew exactly what I was doing when I ate them. Aidon didnt find

20、 out until after I left, she said looking at him purposefully.My love, please. They would have blamed you unless I revealed it myself.They will anyway, sweet one, he answered.It makes no difference.Demeter scowled. You look tohimbefore you speak! Why should I believe what he is obviously coercing yo

21、u to say?Askalaphos stepped out from behind Aidoneus. He bowed to low before Zeus. Y-your grace, he stood and nodded to Demeter, and great Lady of the Harvest, what the Queen says is true.And who, pray tell, are you? Zeus boomed.My name is Askalaphos, s-son of Orphne, nymph of the river Styx. I am t

22、he Queens gardener.You mean Hades slave Demeter snarled.Be silent, woman! Zeus said. He turned to Askalaphos. Speak.I. he swallowed and breathed shallowly, looking from one powerful, angry god to the other. I saw the Queen go out to the garden at night, alone. She didnt know I was there and mustve t

23、hought she was alone in the grove. I-I panicked and hid so she wouldnt see me. Queen Persephone pulled a pomegranate off the tree and I saw her open it and eat six seeds. Just as she said. I didnt evenwantto come here, but Lady Nyx saw it too and told me I should say something. She saw her eat them,

24、 Erebus saw herNyx witnessed it too? Zeus asked.Demeters face grew red with rage. How dare you incriminate my daughter on behalf of your master! You lie and screech and give false witness. I ought to turn you into an owl!Askalaphos cowered behind Persephone for protection. She grasped Aidons hand an

25、d together they shielded their gardener. You will do no such thing, Mother. He speaks the truth!Persephone glanced behind her. Askalaphos had already taken off running for the safety of the caves, not waiting around for the angry earth goddess to make good on her threat.Demeters face reddened and tw

26、isted in hopelessness. She burst into tears and turned to Zeus. My lord, surely six paltry seeds isnt enough to bind my poor daughter to the Underworld! How could so fewIf she ate one seed or ate a thousand, it would make no difference! Hades yelled, bearing down on Demeter. She ate the fruit of the

27、 Underworld and is thereby bound to it for all eternity. Persephone is mine!Demeter faced him placing her hands on her hips, lifting her chin. You see?Nowyour true nature comes out, Aidon. Nothing has changed about you in all these aeons. Observe, daughter, your ravishers eternal selfishness!Selfish

28、ness?! Aidon fumed. This from you, Deme, who kept my wife a powerless child for all the aeons of her existence, denying her everything and teaching her nothing! Because if you had mentioned anything about her destined role in the cosmos then it would have ignited her beautiful curiosity. You couldnt

29、 have kept yourstrangleholdon her!You have no place and no right to tell me how to raise a child! What wouldyouknow about having children anyway?You held no more knowledge than him upon your daughters birth, Hecate scoffed quietly.Aidoneus looked at the hand that had been holding his wifes a moment

30、before and saw traces of blood on his palm. Persephones blood. His gaze flew to hers, alarmed.What is this?! What have they done to you?Nothing,she replied. Persephone flushed with embarrassment.Its. moon blood.He stared at her confused for a moment before it dawned on him. In the living world women

31、s fertility came and went each month, following the changes of the moon. Aidoneus lowered his gaze, upset at his ignorance, and stroked her back.Are you alright?Persephone thought about the stopping of her cycle, and how gladdened she was at the prospect of carrying his child, only to find out that it wasnt to be. She thought about Hecates words in the boat, how Persephone was carrying those seeds to the world above. She realized then what the Goddess of the Crossroads meant. Any union with Aidon in the world below couldnt produce children. Instead, it had become the genesis of