#greek myth roleplay | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

in-carcerem-inferni · 9 months ago

Text

A wintry breath blew across the back of his neck the moment her expression darkened. It was what he had dreaded would come to pass, and yet the damnation he saw upon her face set his soul to howling.

He could feel his hope receding, shriveling into nothingness like the flowers she had conjured in the center of her hands. He watched dispassionately as the flowers withered, the once-bright flora turning into milky corpses at her feet.

He hadn’t dared to move in the moments the others arrived and stolen her attention. In truth, he was grateful for the interruption. Like the flowers she had manifested, he had turned into a husk of himself, deadened from the inside, out. It was a return in feeling to the days before she had illuminated these halls, back when the grey had encapsulated everything in his life, without the smallest hope of reprieve.

Hades was able to shake himself out of his stupor for long enough to summon Thanatos quietly to his side, using the reunion of the two women to issue swift orders to his lieutenant. He exited the hall on quiet feet, confident that Thanatos would follow.

Once they were out of earshot, Hades addressed him. “Tell Charon that the guard must be kept minimal for the next few days, but do not tell him why. In addition, dismiss the shades from the palace. We will get on well enough without them here. I do not want word spreading that she is here.”

Thanatos furrowed his brow. “Should we not tell Charon of the queen’s return?”

“No.”

“What about the Judges, the Fates-”

“No one,” he answered, his brow drawn and severe.

Thanatos looked as though he would continue to protest before he schooled his expression before giving a single nod of assent.

Hades studied him for a moment, impatient, before releasing an aggrieved sigh. “Just say it, ‘Natos.”

“My lord,” the god of death began, “It will not go unnoticed that you have issued an order to remove everyone from court. Suspicion will mount that all is not well and trouble will brew. It is a sign that you have something to hide.”

“What do you suggest I do?” Hades bit out.

Thanatos looked away for a moment in thought before returning his gaze to his sovereign. “Let the shades remain," he suggested. "Their memories are as tender and short-lived as a goldfish’s - they will not remember my lady’s name or face. As for the sentry, rotate them for the next week. Say that you wish to see new recruits given duties for the next few days. Hecate and I will make up for any deficiency in security.”

Hades listened to this carefully, and after a moment of consideration, nodded. “Very well. See that it is done.” Hades began to walk off, but was drawn up short at Thanatos’ next words.

“Will you not go back and speak with her?”

Hades turned around enough for Thanatos to glimpse a crescent slice of Hades’ pale and drawn face. Like the moon, the sovereign lord of the Underworld existed in phases, and Thanatos could see that Hades was waning. “She does not wish to see me. I shall give her time with Hecate and hope she may sow seeds of compassion into my lady’s heart.” Hades gave a rueful shake of his head and released a quiet, mocking laugh. “As for me,” he said, turning away again, “As ever, I have work to do.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He took a cursory tour of the palace, keeping to the public spaces and avoiding any areas where shades tended to linger. Hades’ palace was vast, colossal in stature, yet airy and open in many places. From the expansive entrance, one could walk down several stairs and cross the winding, descending, stone-walled path to glimpse the edges of Asphodel Meadows. In the distance, souls wandered that vast plain, a non-existent breeze stirring the endless sea of reeds. They never left that space, and Hades rarely visited them there, content to let them find peace in that neutral zone for the rest of eternity. He did not interfere, for that was the way of the Underworld. His was a role that required a steadiness of character and a disciplined mind.

He felt capable of neither of those things currently.

Once he sensed that Persephone and Hecate had left the throne room, he returned there. He knew his subjects, the other Chthonic gods, would expect him to hold court now that he had returned. His appearances had been brief over the last several decades, and thus whenever he returned Below, his attention and his time were seized.

Thankfully, the only god who appeared almost as soon as he sat down upon his dark throne was Hypnos. “Hecate informed me that you had returned,” he said by way of greeting, bowing at the waist with a hand over his chest. Unlike his brother, Hypnos was fair, his hair the color of bleached bone, yet his eyes were dark and dull. His face was fuller than that of his brother, who habitually looked as gaunt as the skeletons he handed off to Charon, but in all other respects, they were mirrors. Hades respected the Lord of Sleep, and let him keep his own council, but there were some occasions that required Hypnos’ involvement. It seemed as if this occasion were one of those times.

“It was unplanned and unwanted,” Hades admitted. "Nevertheless, I am here."

Hypnos tilted his head to the side.

“You are surprised?” Hades asked.

Hypnos shook his head. “One would think that the King would be only too glad to welcome home his missing Queen.”

Hades narrowed his eyes.

Hypnos lips thinned. “Hecate told me all.”

Hades sighed, but gave no other show of outward displeasure. It was just as well. Having Hypnos privy to what was taking place would be helpful to them all. “And what has she told you?”

Hypnos eyed his King for a moment as if to suss out Hades’ emotional state, but must have gathered his courage, for he continued on. “That you have reunited with our Queen, albeit under unexpected conditions. That her memories are fractured, and currently favoring the less…ah, flattering ones to your person.”

Hades scoffed, studying an imperfection in the arm of his throne, worrying at it with a pale finger. “You can say that again.”

“She also mentioned, my Lord, her conversation with Hermes.”

Hades head shot up at this.

Hypnos’ brow wrinkled. “She did not say?” At Hades’ single shake of his head, Hypnos looked ready to explain. However, it was at that very moment that the doors behind him slammed open. As if sensing their company, he said, without turning around, “Perhaps she is here to tell you now.”

Hades wait impatiently for Hecate and Thanatos to approach before he barked a single, “Speak.”

Hecate, unimpressed with his terse command, nevertheless obeyed. Hades listened with single focus, his eyes fixed on the floor before Hecate’s feet. When she was done, he looked up into the endless dark above, and closed his eyes. “My brother must know by now.”

Hecate nodded.

Thanatos scoffed. “He is the least of our worries.”

Hecate cast an amused glance at him. “He is somewhat of a worry.”

“Did you not assure me just three days ago that your mother could have overpowered Zeus in her Sleeping, had she put her mind to it?”

“Just because she could have done so does it mean it would have been for the best.”

Thanatos continued, eying Hades from the corner of his eye. “Perhaps if she had-,”

“The most pressing issue is Demeter,” Hypnos said, cutting his brother off before he went down a rabbit hole that would only stir up old hurts and resentments. “Hermes now expects that I will send her into the Dreaming while we sort out things down here.”

Hades looked at Hypnos critically. “No one has seen Demeter in years. Is it even possible for you to find her?”

Hypnos shook his head. “She has veiled herself from me for years. It must be why I have not been able to find Persephone after you ordered me to search for her. Demeter must have veiled the both of them.”

Hades shook his head. To veil oneself in their sleep, not to mention the fact that she veiled Persephone too…

Demeter truly had not wanted him to find Persephone. It was the only explanation. Persephone would not have veiled herself – she had not remembered him all these years. Hades' hands turned to fists, his purple-blue veins bulging beneath marble skin.

“However…” Hypnos continued, drawing Hades back up from the inky pit his mind was falling into, “I may be able to find her through Persephone.”

Hecate looked at Hypnos, understanding dawning in her gaze. “A blood connection,” she murmured.

Hypnos nodded.

Hades straightened. “What would it entail?”

“Her consent, mainly. I would need to lay a hand upon her in order to use her as a conduit and form the connection to Demeter.”

Hades, Thanatos, and Hecate were silent at that. They all knew the truth: that there was very little chance in Hades that Persephone would agree, such as her mental state was.

“Hermes has not promised much time. He will go to Demeter three days from now,” Hecate reminded them, her face awash with worry. “This may be our only option.”

Hades looked at her stonily. “Demeter cannot come down here. She has no options.”

“But Hermes can, and he will,” Hecate pressed.

“He may try,” Hades seethed, his voice quiet yet carrying throughout the great hall, like ice-cold waves crashing against a sandy shoreline and eroding it away.

The witch-goddess took a step forward. “Be reasonable, Aidoneous,” she pled. “He has no choice. Would you go to war again with the Earth and Sky? Surely we have learned by now that it is not worth it. And I for one will not stand by while thousands, perhaps millions, of mortals perish while you and Demeter wage war for a second time.”

It was the most vitriolic language Hecate had used with him in years, and for a moment, he could only look at her blankly. To her credit, she did not back down, her chin lifted in pride and her eyes hard as flint. In a rare show of submission, Hades backed down, his eyes falling to the floor.

He spoke at length, his voice impossibly soft. “She hates me, adelphē.”

Hecate paused and considered him before she closed the distance between them. She climbed the steps leading up to the dais upon which the two thrones sat, sparing a single moment to look at the empty throne with sadness.

She leaned down and gently lifted Hades’ chin with her finger and thumb, gazing into his face with open compassion. “She does not. Love is not forgotten, it only lies dormant. Her heart will instruct her, but you must provide the lesson-book. You have come so far, do not falter now.”

She withdrew her hand, and after a moment, Hades stood. His expression turned resolved. He exchanged a glance with Hecate before looking to Hypnos. “Make your preparations. I shall endeavor to speak with her and convince her to play her part.” He looked at Thanatos next. “Mind the shades, and make sure things remain steady here. Should Hermes appear, try and stall for time.” He nodded at the two of them. “You may go.”

He waited until Thanatos and Hypnos took their leave before he returned his attention to Hecate. “I need you to return to the apartment and lock it down. I won’t have any other immortals trespassing while we are here.”

She nodded.

“Check in on the boy, as well. And his mother. It is possible this trail might lead us back to Demeter. If so, we may be able to confront her when the time comes.”

“And will you? If the time comes?” Hecate asked, her eyes narrowing in speculation.

Hades stood to his full height. “I will keep the mortals safe from Demeter’s wrath if I can. But I will not rest until I have the truth from Demeter of how and why she kept my wife from me these last one hundred years.”

I Would Recognize Your Shadow In A Crowded Room

“She’s so high, high above me. She’s so lovely. She’s so high, like Cleopatra, Joan of Arc or Aphrodite.”

Pale, delicate fingers wrapped around the volume dial on the radio, turning it to level 15.

“Or Aphrodite… Oh yeah, she’s so high, high above me.”

She always had a soft spot for that song. So very sweet; hopeless, yet uplifting some how. Like worship, a prayer to love, with a happy ending. That and it listed some of the most amazing women in human history. She should have liked to know them, or be them, let alone be compared to them by some adorable man.

Even now, as she got ready for this ludicrous court date, it uplifted her mood. They were all high above this nonsense. To say that the child’s mother had exaggerated the state of his health after his freak accident with all those poisonous plants would be a gross understatement. They were all just grateful he hadn’t eaten any. Additionally, this was the first time in the camp’s history that a parent had pushed a case into the county court- Such mass misfortune had never occurred under her eye or any of the other councilor’s.

“Would you turn that rubbish down?” Vera’s low voice wafted in from the other room. “Why don’t you ever listen to some more talented artists? The Turtles for one.” It seemed that Vera was a true flower child, if the world had ever seen one. When she wasn’t gardening, studying botany books or creating some organic concoction, one could find her indulging in the funky sounds of the sixties and seventies.

“Today’s the day we go to court, mom.” Korrine reminded her mother, her tone void of emotion as she fetched a mug from the top shelf. She could hardly believe her own words. The incident had happened almost a week ago, but she still couldn’t come to terms with it. Vera came up beside her to pour her coffee, concern on her face.

“Today? Agh… I’m convinced that demon woman had her son living in a bubble before he started camp. This sort of thing is unheard of to begin with, and of course, it happens to befall her precious little gift to the world. When do you suppose it’ll be done with?”

“Mom, what’s important is that she doesn’t win. The camp isn’t made of money- and further, this would be a disaster in the eyes of the parents’ board. I can’t even begin to imagine what we would have to do if we lost.”

Vera paused, putting the pot down and searching her daughter’s eyes. Tucking a long lock of red-auburn hair behind Korinne’s ear, she said, “I don’t know why you’re so worried about this silly children’s camp anyhow. There are others you could work for. Nature and its bounty are everywhere you look, what confines you to that particular place?“

She didn’t even bother to give her mom a frustrated stare. They must have discussed the topic hundreds of times. "You KNOW why, mother, I see it as a second home,” She turned away, reaching for the sugar bowl. “I love the people, I love the kids. I love my special spots.” Stirring her coffee, she thought fondly of the little waterfall one could find just upstream, the dark but shallow cave the badgers liked to nest in, and the moss-covered tree house the founder of the camp had built… “I couldn’t replace it.”

“You know, Colm would follow you to any camp you chose, should the worst come to pass. Lara too.”

“Mother, it is not just about them… Ugh, I cant talk about this now. Will you put in some toast for me?” With that, Korinne picked up her mug and made for the stairs, doubting her ability to be out the door in thirty minutes.

Just as she was screwing the top back on her mascara, the Jeep pulled up the drive. A slight but stunning woman, with long dark hair and a heart-shaped face stood up on the driver’s side. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted up toward the window. “Kor! This is a reminder that this isn’t CRAFT day!"

With a sigh, Korinne met her own blue-green eyes in the mirror, hoping the determination she felt now would stay.

A moment later she was grabbing her purse and hurrying down the stairs toward the door only to be intercepted by Vera again.

"Do you have your phone?”

“Yes, of course-”

“Jacket?”

“I don’t need one-” One was shoved into her arms.

“Text me when you’re there.”

“Mhm…”

“Here’s your toast. Love you. Stay with Lara.”

“Love you, mom.”

Lara sat back down behind the wheel, giving a friendly wave to Vera. The woman nodded solemnly in return, sharing a long look with the driver as Korinne shoved the food in her mouth and slid into the passenger’s seat.

The front door clicked shut only after Demeter saw Persephone secure her seat belt.

#ok we're here!!!!#this one was a struggle idk why #sorry for making you wait so long b #anyways i hope this works lmk if you like this #we're finally starting to work with the plot threads yay!!!#and soon we'll have them getting down to business #just not to defeat the huns #more like defeating each others' pants #ey #i would recognize your shadow in a crowded room #hades/persephone au #hades/persephone rp #greek myth roleplay

47 notes · View notes