That Fatal Kiss (40 page)

“MOTHER, PLEASE DON’T
cry, you know I’ll be back to see you in six months’ time!” Persephone said, enduring yet another smothering embrace on the eve of her return to Erebus. Artemis and Athena accompanied them and they all bore torches, to mark the bride’s departure from her maternal home to that of her new husband.

“Why only look, the grass is already taking on a dry, brown appearance, and it seems the leaves on the trees are all following suit!” the Huntress noted with wonder, holding her brilliant torch aloft to better regard the terrain.

Persephone exchanged a knowing glance with Athena as the Warrior pulled her shawl more securely over her shoulders. A cool wind picked up and blew the newly fallen leaves haplessly across Mount Etna. Demeter’s mourning for Persephone had begun.

“Mother,” Persephone protested in a tired voice.

“I cannot contain my grief at your loss, it will
out
!” Demeter said with a tearful shrug.

“Hardly a loss, Demeter,” the Goddess of Wisdom pointed out. “After all, your son-in-law could have jealously kept Persephone to himself instead of allowing her to spend part of the year with you.”

Demeter grimaced. “I beg you not to refer to him in such terms, Pallas.”

“Thundering Zeus, madam, he
is
your son-in-law!” Persephone said.

“I would rather not be reminded of that fact, if you please,” Demeter grumbled. She caught the amused look her niece wore and could not help but laugh herself. “Oh, all right! I concede he has been generous, given the circumstances.” Her face grew serious again as she turned back to her daughter. “But I will miss you terribly, Kore.”

Mindful of her flaming torch, Persephone offered her mother another kiss. “And I, you. But you know, as Hades said himself, you are welcome to visit whenever you like.”

Demeter’s shudder revealed what she thought of the offer. Persephone and Athena both laughed, while Artemis gave them a good frown. “I cannot comprehend what you all find so amusing,” she said, kicking at a tuft of grass. “Nor can I grasp just why Persephone is so eager to return to her prison below.”

Persephone closed her eyes while praying for her aunt Hestia to give her patience. “It’s not a prison, you simpleton, but my home. My other home,” she added when Demeter’s eyes began to glisten again. “And I understand that you don’t know Hades as I do, but perhaps you too could come visit, to ease your concern.”

“I don’t want to spend any time whatsoever in your husband’s company, thank you! If you haven’t the good sense to see that you’re better off here, with us, and choose instead to satisfy your voracious sexual appetites with that creature, you certainly may. But I will not countenance your decision with my presence.”

“Very well. You may continue to live in ignorance if you so choose.” Persephone walked over to stand directly before the platinum-haired goddess, her face stern. “However, I will not tolerate any slur against Hades in my presence. Know, too, that I have means of regarding your every move while I reside below ground. I urge you to carefully consider any utterance you make against him, lest you arouse my displeasure. Is that clear?”

Retreating from Persephone’s threatening advance, Artemis said, “Perfectly!”

“Lo, there she is, the monstrous female who takes such delight in tormenting her poor sister!” came the jocular tones of the God of Love as he sprinted up the mountainside to join them. The goddesses turned as one to look at him and were nearly blinded by the radiance of both his torch and his blissful features.

“Castrating Cronus, the lad’s looking fit these days!” swore Demeter, causing them all to break into titters.

“Have done with your chastising, Aunt,” Eros said, grabbing hold of Persephone with one arm and giving her a wild swing around.

She emitted the obligatory screech and demanded to be put down. “Mind your torch, if you please! And where is Psyche? Can it be that your dear wife is once again incapable of leaving her marital bed? What is it you do to the poor unfortunate, that you repeatedly prostrate her?”

Eros first grinned in response, then laughed along with the others when Artemis attempted to cover both of her ears with one arm in prudish self-defense. “My wife sends you her regards, as well as her eternal gratitude,” he said.

“Thundering Zeus, will the woman never cease her effusive thanks for my trifling role in her little drama?”

The God of Love pinched his aunt’s cheek with unwarranted fervor as he corrected, “My now
immortal
wife simply wishes to reassure you that she has not forgotten your kindness and consideration.”

Persephone swatted away Eros’ hand and rubbed at her cheek. “I may soon regret my benevolence if this frightening affection is my reward.”

“Benevolence?” Demeter asked. “Little drama? Of what are you two speaking?”

When Eros looked at Persephone with confusion, she whispered out of one side of her mouth, “You’re not supposed to know I was in Erebus when Psyche visited, remember?”

“Oh!” Eros smiled wide at his great aunt’s curious look. “Oh, ‘tis but an inconsequential matter regarding the loan of some of Persephone’s beauty ointment, that is all.”

Demeter’s face expressed disbelief and so, to spare Eros further interrogation, Persephone changed the subject. “Nephew, have you performed that favor I asked of you some time ago?”

“Ah, the one regarding Hermes? Indeed I have,” he said. “He is even now contentedly basking in the rapturous love of his Penelope.”

“Oh, good! Thank you so much for that. It is easier for me to take pleasure in my return to the Underworld knowing that Hermes’ heart has been gladdened by a true love of his own.”

“It was my pleasure to assist!” Eros stated, giving her one last hearty embrace. “Now off with you, and give my regards to Hades.” And with that he sprinted back down the mountainside.

“And how will you be rejoining Hades? Is Hecate coming to fetch you?” Athena asked Persephone.

“By the Fates!” cried the Witch Goddess, who had been making her way up the other side of the mountain to find them as well. “Think you that I’ve no better activities with which to fill my nights than acting as Persephone’s escort?”

“Well said, you old trollop!” Persephone said, returning Hecate’s embrace. “In fact, I am amazed you were able to tear yourself away from your—ahem—activities.”

“You mean her deplorable rutting with Ares,” Artemis muttered in disgusted undertones.

“Hush, you simple little virgin,” Hecate said. “Let me bid the Queen of Hades goodbye.”

“Goodbye?” Persephone echoed in dismay. “Won’t I soon see you below?”

“Perhaps not,” Hecate said. “I have quite a few matters keeping me…above ground. And, as I cannot imagine
one
of those matters being overly welcome by your husband, I expect you shan’t be seeing me until you return hither.”

“Bleeding Uranus,” Persephone swore. “I cannot credit what I am about to say but I really must insist that you come to visit me below every once in a while, damn you.”

“Oh, very well,” the Witch said. “I shall make an effort to tear myself away from Ares, if he’ll allow it.”

“I trust this offer is open to the rest of your family as well,” Athena said.

“Of course it is,” Persephone exclaimed, realizing her unintended gaffe. She dropped her torch so she could embrace both Hecate and Athena and felt a gasp of sadness rise up within her chest. Perhaps it was this last embrace she shared with her best friends which set off the pang. Of course, she knew that she would see them again, but the imminence of departure—and the awareness that she consciously chose it—hit her all in a rush of emotion. She felt hopelessly childish for the fact that tears filled her eyes and tried to keep them from overflowing. Unfortunately, she was unsuccessful and soon all the goddesses cried in each other’s arms. Surprisingly, it was Artemis who broke up the throng.

“Give over, Sister,” she ordered, playfully shoving Persephone away and apart from the group. “You know very well that you are astonishingly eager to leave us all and return to your husband’s carnal clutches. Why do you cry over what you claim you chose freely?”

“Curse you,” Persephone said, shoving her sister back. “I weep because… because I shall miss all of you.”

“Even me?” asked the Huntress dubiously.

“Yes, by the Fates, even you. You idiot,” Persephone confirmed, returning Artemis’ sudden smile with a weepy chuckle.

“I am only surprised that you’re still with us,” Hecate observed, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye. “How will you be returning to Hades?”

Persephone turned her shaky smile to the Witch. “That seems to be the riddle of the evening. All the messenger said was that Hades asked me to go to Mount Etna and await him…there…” Her voice trailed off as a vivid flash of red caught her eyes. She turned to get a better look and soon wore a lopsided grin.

“What is it?” Demeter asked, through her own remaining sniffles.

“My method of summoning Hades, I expect.” Persephone walked over to the vermilion blooms. The others watched her as she leaned down to stroke a soft petal and then turned back to them. “These are the same kind of flowers that he used months ago to…capture my attention, shall we say.”

“Ah!” Demeter sighed. In an undertone, she told Artemis, “Remind me to smite them to cinders once Persephone’s out of sight.” To Persephone, Demeter said, “Then the time has come for you to return to…your husband.”

Persephone pressed her lips together to keep back a sigh of her own, knowing the great effort it took for her mother to say the word without blanching. “Yes.” Swallowing down the ache in her throat, Persephone said, “Remember that I love you and expect to see you all again soon.” She was reaching down to grasp a blossom when she heard the Grain Goddess call out, “Perhaps I
could
come visit you, in a while?”

Persephone looked up and smiled. “We’ll be counting the moments until you arrive!” Then, after shooting a wink at Athena and Hecate, she wrapped her fingers around the base of the stem and pulled it out of the ground.

And once again the wide Earth trembled and split open, and Hades’ black horses cut through the darkening sky. All eyes were raised to watch as the imposing figure of the Lord of the Underworld hovered above them before he turned the chariot around, swooped down, and collected his wife.

Unlike the first time in which Hades thus claimed her, Persephone now looked into his eyes without fear. Her sadness evaporated and her heart danced rapturously within her chest. She thrilled in the feeling of being securely enveloped by Hades’ arms and could not imagine how she had ever existed without him. Her amber eyes devoured him and his face softened as he beheld her.

“How I’ve longed for you these many nights…” he said.

“My beloved Hades,” she breathed in return, the words inhaled by him as his mouth covered hers.

“Holy Hestia, how revolting!” Artemis groused below. She yelped as Hecate and Athena’s elbows dug into either side of her.

Demeter’s tears dried as she watched her daughter’s reunion with the Host of Many. When they pulled away from their kiss, Hades wrapped his cloak about Persephone, to protect her from the chilly winds. Persephone kissed his cheek and burrowed into him.

And Demeter smiled.

Athena, who’d been watching her aunt, murmured, “Well done.”

“Well done?” Hecate squawked. “I’ve seen children kiss their
grandmothers
with greater passion than that.” But then she too saw Demeter’s expression. Her own lips quirking, the Witch said, “Well done, indeed.”

With one arm around Persephone and the other flicking the reins, Hades gave a cry and turned Thunder and Lightning around again. They bore down upon the Earth furiously and, just as suddenly as they had appeared, vanished through the fissure. The crack in the blackening ground slowly closed itself and in a matter of moments there was no sign that it had ever been.

The goddesses were silent while the wind around them picked up and brown and yellow leaves came fluttering down from their trees. “Well,” Athena said, adjusting her aegis, “you must admit, Hades knows how to make an entrance.”

Demeter laughed, then clapped her hands together and said, “Come, girls, join me for this evening’s meal. We’ll open up the jars Dionysus brought over yesterday and forget our cares.”

“Jars…of wine?” the Huntress said uncertainly. “But I must soon drive my chariot across the Heavens—”

“Don’t worry about that,” Demeter crooned, pulling the hesitant goddess along and leading her toward their stationed chariots. “Athena, Hecate, and I will be happy to accompany you on your ride tonight, to be certain you cover your appointed rounds without mishap.” She turned back to the other goddesses and, though she smiled, there was no mistaking the command in her voice. “Won’t we, my dears?”

“You ask us, madam, as if we had any other choice but to obey,” Hecate said.

The walk to their chariots was accomplished in just a few short moments and the goddesses were mounting them when the Earth gave a powerfully vicious quake. It lasted long moments and threw the divine ladies to the ground. The horses spooked and bolted. Trees uprooted and great hunks of soil sank, while others mounded. Rocks tumbled down the side of Mount Etna and flocks of birds shot into terrified flight high above them.