#sometimes she dies on the island though after theseus leaves

[yousaytomato]

Ariadne Abandoned by Theseus (1774, Oil on canvas) - By Angelica Kauffmann (1741–1807)

[lifeofroos]

Writing Ariadne fanfic is my drug (Also on AO3)

Ghost Story

‘You look pretty.’

Ariadne woke up when she heard the soft voice. ‘Phaedra? Is that you? Why aren’t you asleep…’ she quieted down when she saw a girl of about eight years old sitting at the edge of her bed. She was almost see-through. ‘Oh, hello.’

‘Hello. You look pretty.’

‘Thanks. So do you.’

The girl looked at herself. She shrugged. ‘I think you are prettier.’

‘That doesn’t mean you can’t be beautiful too. May I know what you are doing here in my room? It is already quite late.’

‘I just became like this,’ she softly said, ‘And I wanted to know what the palace looked like. I could see it from my house.’ She looked around for a moment. ‘I think it looks very nice.’

‘Yes, it sure does look nice.’

‘You fit here.’

Ariadne sighed. ‘I am not sure. You know, I always wondered what it was like on the outside of the palace. I have never seen it.’

‘Not?’ The girl looked surprised. ‘Like, never ever?’

‘Only a few glances from the windows.’ Ariadne smiled and looked at the ceiling. ‘I want to know what the sea looks like.’

‘The sea is so beautiful!’ The girl clapped her hands together. ‘I wish I could show it to you.’ She quickly glanced around the room again. 

Ariadne sat up straight. ‘If you really want to see what it looks like, I can show you the palace,’ Ariadne offered. ‘I am currently the lady of the house, so I know where everything is. My father… eh… doesn’t really have a queen, at the moment.’

The girl nodded, understanding. She had heard the rumors about queen Pasiphae. She thought for a second. ‘I wonder what it would be like to be the boss of a household.’ She sighed. ‘I’ll see it now, when you show me!’

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‘Are you really going to leave the island now?’ 

Ariadne looked up. It was the middle of the night, but it didn’t matter that Cora was here now. She wouldn’t be able to sleep anyway. 

The ghost sat down on the bed next to her. Ariadne looked at her. ‘Yes. I have instructed him on what to do.’ Her facial expression got soft. ‘He has my clue and my fathers’ sword. He should have no trouble…’ she swallowed at the idea. ‘No trouble with Him. Then we’ll set sail, to Athens, and I'll be away from here.’

Cora gave a firm nod. ‘I think that will be good. Crete has a dark shadow over it. All the ghosts here are so sad. A lot of them died because…’ the girl swallowed. ‘Him,’ she whispered, before continuing: ‘I think it is better if you leave.’ She looked at the bed. 

Ariadne gave her a sad smile. ‘I wish I could hug you goodbye.’

Cora smiled and put her arms around Ariadne. ‘I can hug you, though.’

‘Thanks, Cora.’

‘I liked being your friend, but I think you should be happy.’

Ariadne smiled. ‘Thanks. I think I love Theseus.’

‘He has your heart.’

Ariadne began to laugh, now. ‘Well, I am not sure about that.’

‘Still, you should get away if you can!’ Cora breathed in. ‘I’ll be fine.’

‘Take good care of yourself, Cora. I pray Hermes will find you soon.’

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‘Ariadne?’

She pushed her bridal vail aside. ‘Cora!’

‘You look even more beautiful than before!’

‘Cora, how did you get here, so far away from Crete?’ Ariadne laughed. ‘Come. I can put flowers into your hair.’

Cora giggled. ‘I am a ghost, silly, you know that…’

‘No, look.’ Ariadne picked up a few  flowers that grew beneath the tree. The forest was filled with light that day, so that the flowers seemed to glow. ‘Sit still.’

She began braiding the flowers into Cora’ hair, to her amazement. ‘I didn’t know you could do that!’

‘I couldn’t until now.’

Cora looked at her vail. ‘Is it because you got married?’

Ariadne snickered. ‘Sort off, yes.’

‘But, I heard Theseus didn’t marry you after all…’

Ariadne stopped moving for a second. ‘Well, no. That you heard about that...’

‘It was all the people on Crete spoke about for some time,’ Cora told her before shaking her head. ‘Anyway, who is it? Who has your heart now?’

Ariadne sighed. ‘It’s Dionysus.’

Cora jerked her head around, which made a flower Ariadne had put in fall out again. ‘The god?’

‘Yes.’

‘Why? I mean… good.’

‘Because he loves me, Cora. I have his heart, to put it in your words, and he has mine.’

Cora turned back. ‘You didn’t say that with the other guy.’

‘I think, deep inside I knew Theseus didn’t see me that way.’ No matter how much she loved her husband, it still stung a little.

Cora thought for a few seconds. ‘No-one ever told me you should be in love to marry,’ she said. ‘My mother said only love for your children mattered. I don’t think I could have loved someone like you love people.’

She felt Ariadne stop braiding for a second. ‘Well… it doesn’t happen often, when people are just told who they should marry. That’s why… I am happy I wasn’t. I still chose to go with Theseus, no matter what else happened.’

It was quiet for a moment. ‘I am happy I wasn’t told who I should marry either,’ Cora decided. She looked at the braid, which Ariadne hung over her shoulder.  ‘Oh! It’s so beautiful!’ she cheered.

‘Yes, it turned out well,’ Ariadne agreed, a little taken aback by the girls words. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------

‘Cora?’

‘Ariadne!’ The girls mouth fell open. ‘Why are you here, in the Underworld?’

Ariadne slowly shook her head. ‘Well... All humans die some day.’

‘But you were married to a god!’

‘But I wasn’t immortal. Maybe… maybe if I had asked…’ Ariadne tried to stay calm, but it proved to be difficult. After a few seconds, the tears were streaming down her face. ‘Cora, I…’

The girl reached up and wiped a few tears away. ‘Don’t cry,’ she said. ‘It isn’t so bad here. The ghosts are friendly and Hades is a good king!’

‘I am sure you are right,’ Ariadne said, while trying not to cry. ‘I am sure you are.’ 

Cora looked around. ‘I… I can braid flowers into your hair,’ she offered. ‘Like you did for me that day.’

‘That was the last time I saw you on earth.’

‘Yes. After that, Hermes found me and led me down below. It was the first day away from Crete.’

‘How was that?’

‘It wasn’t so bad,’ she muttered, while she made Ariadne sit down and she gathered a few affodils, ‘As I said, it is peaceful here. You can stay with me.’

‘Yes,’ Ariadne said flatly.

After a few minutes of silence, Cora pulled Ariadnes’ hair a little too hard. ‘Ouch!’ Ariadne swallowed. ‘What is it that you are thinking off?’

‘Do you miss Dionysus?’

‘Yes,’ Ariadne quietly agreed, ‘I miss him.’

‘You didn’t miss the palace, when you left.’

‘No, I didn’t. I didn’t love that place. My heart wasn’t there.’

‘But it was with Dionysus?’

‘Yes.’

Cora nodded. ‘I glad you did find the person who had your heart,’ she said. 

‘Where do you think your heart was?’ Ariadne asked. 

She felt the girls’ hand tremble. ‘I don’t think it was anywhere, or anyone had it.’ 

‘Of course it was somewhere…’ While she said it, Ariadne figured the girl might be right. ‘Oh, Cora, I am so…’

‘It’s okay,’ she whispered, ‘It is strange when you first die, and you probably miss…’ She fell quiet, while she bound a flower into her hair. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

‘Wait! Wait a moment.’

‘I something wrong?’

Ariadne kissed her husband. ‘I need to say goodbye to someone. Will that hurt? If it will, you must say it now, then I will come…’

‘No… no, it’s okay.’ Dionysus pushed some strands of hair out of her face. ‘You can say goodbye.’

Ariadne took a deep breath. She looked around. ‘Cora? Where are you?’

The girl appeared close to them. ‘Sorry, I hid when the surface fell,’ she told them. 

Ariadne chuckled. ‘It’s okay now, I believe,’ she told Cora, with a look on her husband. 

Cora nodded. ‘You’ll be going home now.’

‘Is it really home?’

‘It’s where your heart is.’

Ariadne hid her face behind a hand to hide a blush. Dionysus softly pushed it away. ‘That’s cute.’ She smiled.

Cora giggled. ‘You should go with him. I am happy here, I am with my friends.’

‘Those girls you met that are your age?’

‘Yes. But I’ve got one more thing to say.’ She took a deep breath. ‘You know, I have been thinking about where my own heart was, or is.’ She shrugged. ‘I don’t think it’s Crete, but I do know it was somewhere.’

‘Will you tell me, when you find out?’ Ariadne plucked an affodil and slid it into Cora’ hair. 

‘But I can’t!’

‘In a dream,’ Ariadne explained. ‘You’ll know how to do it.’

Cora slowly nodded, a little more certain of herself. ‘Okay.’

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Ariadne looked around the flowery meadow. She could feel the girl was here. ‘Cora?’

‘Ariadne!’ She came skipping towards her. She had colourful flowers in her hair. ‘Look…’

‘It’s gorgeous…’

‘I know! And I feel really gorgeous, too!’ She sighed a happy sigh. ‘I know now where my heart was. It was with you, but not the way you and your husband share it. Like you were my big sister.’

‘Was I a good big sister?’

Cora nodded. ‘Yes. Because you braided flowers into my hair, and showed me around the castle, and cared for me in the Underworld.’

‘How is it there?’ 

‘It is okay. We got many more friends.’ She began to blush. ‘And there is a boy I like.’

‘Do you want to give him your heart?’

Cora nodded. ‘Yes.’

‘Be careful.’

Cora snickered. ‘Yes.’ Her expression got more serious. ‘Will this be the last time I ever see you?’

Ariadne thought about it for a second. ‘Not if you visit me more.’

‘I will visit. I will visit very often.’

‘Then I’ll leave something on the altar for you sometimes.’

‘I like strawberries.’

‘Then it’ll be strawberries.’ Ariadne stroked her hair. ‘Sorry, you are probably too old for that.’

‘No.’ Cora laid a hand on Ariadne’s. ‘Never from you.’

Ariadne smiled. ‘I’ll see you again, Cora. Goodbye.’

‘Goodbye.’

A/N: This doesn’t seem as polished as some of my other works, but that might be the stress about final exams slowly seeping into every part of my existance.

[kabhi-haath-pakad-k-tu-mera]

And Death Sees No Justice

Theseus is sent on a quest to retrieve Thanatos, but it proves to be harder than he had thought. IWSC Round 5. Harry Potter and Greek mythology crossover.

————

     

l.

Most of Theseus’s existence in the underworld has been spent in the Fields of Asphodel, weaving through crowds of lonely, sad souls that bemoan their existence. It is disconcerting at first, it had been to him when he had died a few centuries (a millennium?) ago, but you learn to ignore them with the passing of time. You have to if you value your sanity, especially if you can understand them. He wonders sometimes if this ability that has been given to him by The Unseen One really is for his benefit. It certainly feels like a curse. So many souls, millions of them, all filled with regret that has rendered them insane. Sometimes he feels like he is one of them. He probably is, he muses. Like them, all he does now is regret the decisions he had made, and wonders if things could have been different.

 Except the Lord likes to shake him out of his reverie from time to time. Once every few centuries, he is taken to The Court of The Dead by the Erinyes themselves and dropped before Hades by whom he is given a Quest. It could be anything that The Unseen One fancies—bringing a mortal’s soul, a golden apple from The Garden of Hesperides or some artefact from the mortal world that holds power. Theseus cannot fail the quest that he is given, not because he fears for his life—he already is dead, after all. He knows, however, that he would be sent to the fields of punishment for eternity if he were to fail. He shudders involuntarily upon the thought of what the Lord Hades would do to him upon failure, and he also knows that he is waiting for him to slip, simply waiting for him to give up, and thus is his punishment for trying to abduct his Queen Persephone, and thus is his punishment for being naive enough to go along with everything that Prithous had told him, everything that has brought him to this point.

It still startles him to find himself suddenly airborne in the claws of one of the Furies no matter how many times he experiences experience it. He notices not for the first time that it is Tisiphone who carries him every time, only Tisiphone, and wonders if it has it a more sinister meaning. The Lord Hades is perched on his throne while the throne beside his is empty, meaning that the mortal world is now facing the warmer months. The court is empty, apart from The Lord. Even the Furies have now left. Theseus stands silently as The Lord considers him. It is a while before he speaks.

“Theseus, son of Poseidon, you have been summoned here for a great purpose.” his voice is quiet, but it carries over in the empty court “The underworld is in need of help. I would like to ask for your help, for you to take on a quest.” 

The demigod seethes internally at the polite, honeyed words spilling from The Lord’s mouth. As if he has a choice. Hades’s face splits into a smile and Theseus knows he that he has read his mind. A moment later his smile drops and he sits up straight, looking at him with fire in his eyes. 

He speaks again, “The underworld has lost one of its most loyal subjects—Death. I need you to find him and bring him back here by hook or by crook, demigod.” The Lord leans forward at this point. “Find him, leave no stone unturned. If word gets around that Thanatos has gone missing … The consequences could be destructive.”

It takes Theseus perhaps a second to realize the implications. The Doors of Death are now unguarded. Any soul could escape into the mortal world, not only from Erebus, but also from Tartarus. He feels a chill pass up his spine thinking of Tartarus and the spirits that reside there. From the brief moments of proximity to the place he had had, he knows that the beings there are not to be taken lightly, and if they got released into the mortal world they would wreak havoc. No wonder The Unseen One is so worried. 

“Does anyone know where he is?” The demigod speaks for the first time. There are, after all, some who know plenty about the going ons in the mortal and immortal world, like the Grey sisters, the Furies or…

“The Oracle.” the answer is short and to the point. There is no way around it. “You will be led to Delphi by the Labyrinth. I have pulled in a … favour from an old acquaintance of yours. You will be guided by the thread.”

An image of Princess Ariadne of Crete, Mistress of the Labyrinth passes through his thoughts. Is she dead? Theseus hasn't thought of her in a long time. He feels a sudden pang of guilt. Had she died on Naxos? He does not voice this thought however, he doesn’t get a chance—Tisiphone and her sisters have appeared again and he finds himself airborne, flying over the fields of punishment and towards the fields of Asphodel. Tisiphone drops him onto a flat plain that overlooks the river Styx, and then the Erinyes disappear. He gets up with some effort, trying to get his bearings and looks around. The spool of thread is instantly noticeable—golden fibre a stark contrast against the dark backdrop of the underworld. He picks it up and feels the wall behind it for a Delta, which glows a faint blue upon contact and opens a hole inches from his feet. He has no way of knowing how deep it is, it's too dark to see. He jumps in anyway.

————

II. 

The opening closes as soon as he jumps in, and torches that light up along the wall reveal that he is in some sort of a dungeon. He looks around and his eyes land upon the sword immediately. It is stuck inside a fissure in the wall. It does not surprise him when he pulls it out that it bears the Athenian crest. His sword—his father’s sword—comes to him whenever he is sent on a quest. Another pang of guilt wrecks through his body, followed by a surge of anger. What kind of a ruler had he been? What kind of a son? What kind of a father and husband? How is it that he had got to this? He shakes his head and sets off towards the oracle. 

Navigating the Labyrinth is not an easy task. He knows that he needs to keep his eyes peeled and be ready for anything that it sends his way—the labyrinth is evil, meant to misguide you—but he doesn’t, because he knows that it remains unresponsive to him. He also knows that Hades has something to do with it—another clever way to remind him of the life that he had lived, the glory he had had. He lets out a breath. The gods are all sadists. He takes the first right he gets to and starts dropping the thread. 

It isn't too long before he finds himself in a cave near the sea, right in the middle of it. He can hear the sound of waves crashing—the call of the sea. He feels more powerful than he has in a long, long time. This is his domain. He contemplates for a moment staying here forever. What were the odds? Thanatos is missing, he could perhaps live as a fugitive the way Dedalus did. He discards the thought almost immediately. The Furies would haunt him wherever he hid. He emerges from the cave into warm sunlight falling upon the Island of Delphi. His eyes rake across the sea for a few moments and he basks in the strength he feels—the power of the sea. Finally he starts scanning the horizon for the volcano in which the priestess resides. 

He sets off towards a mountain covered in green from which fumes are rising. He has always wondered how the priestess’ manage to live inside the volcano—an active volcano—where the corpse of Pythos rots. If he is being honest, Theseus doesn't think that Pythos is down there anymore. It had to have been millennia since he had been slaughtered. Monsters always reform, even if heroes don't. 

When he is at the mouth of the cave that would lead him inside he hesitates. He has always been wary of oracles and their prophecies. Going to one is sheer stupidity, always has been, but now neither he nor countless other demigods have a choice, since the others keep moving so. He still stands there for a few moments. There are mortals around, some with strange contraptions in their hands, but they do not seem to notice him—Hecate’s mist envelops him. He wonders if they can see him at all.

 He steels himself, finally, and enters the cave quietly. The heat is sweltering, and the toxic fumes have dried his throat before he finds the High Priestess of Apollo—the Oracle—in the right cavern. Unlike the others, this cavern is somehow cool and free of the vapours released by Python’s allegedly rotting body. The Priestess is sitting on a Tripod seat with a laurel branch in her hand, looking in his direction without any trace of surprise, as if Heroes from the Bronze Age come to her every other day. For all he knows, they probably do. The mounds of offerings scattered around make him realize that has forgotten to bring offerings himself. The Oracle doesn't seem to be bothered by this however, and motions him to sit before her, which he does. Even though the Priestess is seemingly human, looking at her sends chills up Theseus’s spine. Her aura is … eerie. 

��Ask, hero, what you must,” The oracle speaks, and her voice sounds far away, even though it is coming from the woman sat before him.

He draws in a breath and asks shakily, “Where is Thanatos? What am I to do?”

The Oracle gives a ghosty smile and somehow a mist, or perhaps it is the fumes, settles over them so that Theseus cannot see the Oracle clearly. All he knows in that moment is that the mist is forming images—a woman and a man … sitting on a throne, another woman standing a little off, and another man on the other side. The images get more clear and he realizes that he is looking at his parents, his mortal parents—Aethra and Aegeus—and the woman is the Lady of the Labyrinth Ariadne and the man standing away from the throne is Pirithous.

The voice comes from Aegeus first, “You shall move up North to the Albion’s land,”

Ariadne moves towards him and speaks, “You shall find the ones taken by an undead hand,”

Pirithous turns to look at him, “You shall befriend the one who has mastered death,”

It is his mother who speaks in the end, “And you shall fall down again when it all ends.”

Then, as suddenly as it had appeared, the mist disappears and Theseus is left looking again at the Priestess, his heart racing and his ears ringing. He draws in a shaky breath and gets up, nodding at the Oracle. He turns around to leave, half expecting the Oracle to call after him. She doesn't, and he hurries out towards the Labyrinth.

————

III.

The rush of adrenaline that had flowed through his body when he had heard the prophecy has still not died when he is safely inside the labyrinth. Safely inside the labyrinth. Theseus snorts. The underworld has finally been successful if driving him insane. He sits down right there and then, exhausted. 

‘You shall move up North to the Albion’s land,

You shall find the ones taken by an undead hand,

You shall befriend the one who has mastered death,

And you shall fall down again when it all ends.’

Albion’s land was where the white people lived, in the North-West, beyond even the Gaul. ‘The one who has mastered death…’ Death probably meant Thanatos. And ‘you shall fall down again with the taken's final breath.’ That was reassuring. So he had to go to Albion and find people taken by an undead hand. What was an undead hand? Someone who had already escaped from The Underworld? And one of these people had mastered Death, which was probably why Thanatos was not responding to Hades’s calls. If he had to travel so fast, it was probably best that he was travelling by the Labyrinth. But which way was he to go? He sighs, staring at the rocky walls of the labyrinth, and feels his eyes get heavy with every passing second until he finally lets them shut. 

He has a dream. This in itself isn’t unusual, but this particular dream is one of those dreams. The ones that bring messages. He hasn't had one of those in ages but he knows. He can feel it. He is on an island that he has been to before, but he cannot quite place it’s name or it’s whereabouts. There is a woman lying a little away, and this woman he does recognize. He is on Naxos. Ariadne turns towards him as if she were expecting him, but how? He had thought only Gods had the ability to call upon a hero’s soul unless … unless Ariadne had ascended to Olympus? 

She considers him for a moment then says, “Theseus, we meet again.” She grimaces. “I was told of your quest. You're on the way to find Thanatos, yes?” 

Theseus nods, only barely.

“You don’t have enough time to travel all the way to Britain—to Albion,” she continues, “It’ll be too late by then. The souls have already begun stirring in the search of the doors, they might have all escaped by the time you are able to locate his whereabouts,” She says and stops for a moment, scrutinizing him, then says, “The Labyrinth will guide you. Begin the way you always have, forward and right, and keep on towards the north. You will be led right to your destination.” She looks him over one last time. “Do what needs to be done, Theseus. Goodbye.”

And just like that he is waking up, and when he is fully awake he sends a quick prayer to Ariadne. He starts forward like he had been instructed, and goes right when he gets to the intersection. He wanders into tunnels occasionally, to check his direction and his location, and keeps moving for three days until he finally reaches a tunnel on the right that leads him into what appears to be a cupboard. 

There are people outside who are speaking in a different tongue, although he does catch a few words now and then, and he is sure that Thanatos is there somewhere around here because he can feel the energy that is radiating off him—energy that reads death. He accidentally knocks over a vial of a dark, muddy liquid and he can hear people coming towards the cabinet. The door of the cabinet is thrown open and the light, although rather dim, blinds him temporarily. When his eyes have adapted to the sudden brightness, they are looking into a young, bright green pair looking at him in bewilderment. 

————

IV. 

He realizes in a few more moments that he is inside a shop in Albion, in the company of two young people of about Sixteen years of age and a few older men. The mist does not seem to be working on them for they can very clearly see him and feel his presence. All of them spring into action at the same time, hauling him out the cupboard and drawing what look like wooden sticks while speaking in a foreign tongue, some of which is directed at him. He realizes along the way that these are all wizards, like circe. It is the young girl with long, bushy hair that finally speaks in a tongue familiar to his, if a little rusty.

“Who are you?! What were you doing in there?”

“Theseus.” is his only reply. 

He doesn't answer her other question, because what is the point? He cannot tell her that he is here looking for the God of Death—they would have him strapped into a bed in a mental asylum before he could say ‘Hades’. At his name the girl’s stick lowers and she regards him. She turns towards the others and says something to them that makes them drop their sticks too, and somehow it makes him feel a little braver. He trains his eyes over all of the people present, until his eyes stop over the man with green eyes that had let him out of the cupboard. He has a scar on his forehead, and his eyes too, tragic and haunted, are trained on him. 

He notices this look in all eyes that he has gotten the chance of looking into, although in the brunette boy it is a lot more intense. He wonders what has happened to these people. The girl then says something to the boy upon which the others seem to protest but they are all ignored. The girl motions to Theseus to follow them, which he does. They get out of the shop whose sign is written in a foreign language. She takes hold of his hand and turns, and he feels like he is being forced in and then out of a very thin pipe. He falls onto his knees when the squashing sensation stops, heaving.

They are in a sort of a lounge, a royal lounge. The two sit down and ask him to sit down also, their gazes trained at him. 

“I am called Hermione,” the girl says, “and this is Harry Potter.” She stops for a moment and stares at him long enough that Theseus starts to get uncomfortable. "Are you really Theseus?” 

He nods. “I am, Hermione, and I am here on a quest.”

“How are you still alive?” This question is asked by Harry.

“I am not. I have been sent from the Underworld by the Lord Hades to find Death. You wouldn’t happen to know about it?” 

Harry and Hermione exchange quick looks and look back at him. Neither of them are surprised.   Hermione is about to speak but Theseus cuts her off.

“I know that he is here somewhere, Wizards. I need to know where.”

Harry gets up and walks towards a set of windows and looks towards him from there. “What if he was? What would you do then? And what of the souls he was supposed to have taken? Where would they go?”

Theseus is more than a little surprised at the question. The answer is obvious. They would be taken. He says as much. Harry’s eyes flash dangerously, or maybe it is just the sunlight falling on the glasses that make him feel so. He heads towards where Hermione is sitting and sits back down, and his eyes do not leave Theuses’s. Quite suddenly, Theseus can see why such young children look mature beyond their age.

They have battle scars of their own, embedded in the skin from being made to participate in a war neither of them had wanted to fight. A demonic soul for whom even the worst punishments in the field of punishment would be insufficient, who had ruined much of these children’s childhood by trying to kill them. There had been a battle, so many lives had been lost, even if they had won the war... how many families torn apart? How many lovers estranged? How many children orphaned? And then Thanatos had come to him, to serve him, for he was now his master, the holder of the deathly hallows, and they had all come back to life. A lover, a dear friend, his closest parental figure all came back. He wouldn't let them all go away now, won’t give back Thanatos. 

It is at that moment that a Redheaded boy the same age as his companions enters the room and Theseus can tell that this boy has had life restored into him. As has Hermione. The redheaded boy stops in the doorway, looking at him. Harry and Hermione look at him too, their resolves steeled, their mouths set into firm lines. He can still feel Thanatos’s presence from the green eyed wizard but now he doesn't feel so sure about completing this quest. Hades could easily employ any creature to guard the Doors of Death. How was the death of so many who were sucked into the vortex of war justifiable? How was the death of these two, who had helped this world’s saviour win the war justifiable? How was the Undead one’s killing so many justifiable? There was no revenge for them. No revenge that could ever be possibly extracted from anyone would ever balance out this. Does he really want to take Thanatos back?

————

V.

He has stopped again for some shuteye when he feels the power of the Lord Hades summoning him. He cannot resist against it if he tries, and he is not foolish enough to do so. He finds himself back in the company of Harry and Hermione and a number of others which he assumes are wizards, a number of them resurrected. He sees Thanatos too, as beautiful as ever, dark and dangerous as he had been when he had delivered him on the banks of the Styx. The Unseen One is there also, with his eyes—literally filled with fire—looking, staring, glaring at him. He is sure that he has crossed the line this time. He would go to The Fields of Punishment now. It’d be worth it if these wizards are allowed to live, after all that they have been through. 

The Unseen One speaks finally after some time, “Theseus, son of Poseidon, you have willingly forsaken your quest and ignored direct orders from me to bring Thanatos to The Underworld. You shall be dealt with accordingly, but now…”

He is beconking Thanatos forward, who is trying to resist even though he too is a servant to the Underworld—to Hades. He finally does step forward and with him, the resurrected begin fading. The Unseen One is gone in a flash of blinding light and Theseus too feels himself being called back. There is no Justice done here he knows, and now until eternity, there will never be.

————

A/N: There are a few things that I feel the need to Point out, please bear with me.

*Hades in this story is referred to as ‘The Lord’ (as he rules the Underworld) and as ‘The Unseen One’ (which is the literal translation of his name). 

*The Erinyes are the Furies. Tisiphone’s name means ‘vengeful destruction’.

*The sword shown here is the same sword that Aegeus had left behind in Troezen for Theseus.

*Albion’s land is what the Greeks called the British Isles during the Bronze Age.

*Gaul is what France was called by the Greeks during and before the Bronze Age.

[avicebro]

The Dioscuri

OK hello everyone today we’re gonna talk about my namesake: Pollux.

Or more specifically, we’re gonna talk about the Pollux and Castor, or as they’re known, the Dioskouroi.

Their Birth

There are a couple of things that need to happen for a Greek Hero to be considered a ‘hero’. First, they need to be a demi-god. Secondly, they have to be a son (so even though Helen is a demi-goddess, she isn’t a hero – sorry honey). And third, they need to have an interesting story surrounding their birth. And boy is theirs a little weird.

So, back in Ancient Greece, during the times of Bronze Age kings, there was a beautiful queen named Leda. She’s happily married to King Tyndareus, the king of Sparta (aka why Helen is sometimes referred to as Helen of Sparta).

One day, she’s down bathing, as you do, and Zeus up in the heavens spots her. As the #1 baby daddy of Ancient Greece, he thinks, yeah, I wanna fuck this woman. But how to do it? As we’ve seen before, Zeus likes to fuck in style (raining down in gold coins, carrying them away on a bull, etc.), so he decides that the way he’s gonna fuck Leda is as a swan.

Yes, a swan.

Somehow Leda is seduced by an actual fucking swan and so they have sex. Side note, this is a very prominent theme in Roman art. I guess the Romans liked making art of swan-fucking. I don’t know.

Then, later on that day, Leda returns to King Tyndareus and fucks him too. How lovely. And as divine seed must take root, Leda becomes pregnant.

When she finally gives birth, she lays 2 eggs. Out of these eggs springs the four children: Helen, Polydeuces, Clytemnestra and Castor.

There are variants on the next part but bear with me: out of the 4 kids that Leda gives birth to, which ones are immortal and which ones are mortal are debated.

For the sisters, it’s pretty much known that Helen is the daughter of Zeus, and that is why she is the most beautiful woman on Earth. Whether or not Clytemnestra is the daughter of Zeus or Tyndareus is questioned, but since Clytemnestra is known as being the ‘attractive, but not as much as Helen’ sister, I like to think that she’s Tyndareus’ daughter.

For the Dioscuri, it can either be that both of them are mortal, or one of them is immortal. If one is immortal, then it is always Pollux, with Castor being the mortal one. This suggests that Pollux is the son of Zeus, while Castor was the son of Tyndareus.

In art, if you see them with those skull-caps, it’s because it’s supposed to hark back to the fact that they were born from an egg.

Also, just a tidbit: Castor means, “to excel, to shine”, while Pollux means “too sweet.”

Theseus is an asshole: part 3

This might be rude but I despise Theseus and he deserves hate.

So, Pollux and Castor grow up, doing a bunch of cool shit. They participate in the hunt of the Calydonian boar (the event Atalante wins). Eventually, like Atalante, they join the Argo and do a bunch of cool shit there too. The most important tidbit for those two during that time is that Pollux wins a boxing competition, which solidifies him as the patron of boxing. When Jason and the Argonauts return to Jason’s home, they help him destroy the city as well. Thanks, guys.

But I dislike Theseus so we’re gonna spend more time talking about one of the hundreds of reasons why you should hate him.

So, by this point Theseus has successfully survived the yearly Cretan “Sacrifice an Athenian to the Minotaur” event, deserted the woman he promised he would marry on an island, and made his father commit suicide. Oh, and he did 6 labours too because hey everyone’s gotta be a reference to Heracles.

(Yeah, Theseus is an asshole).

So now, bored as fuck, Theseus decides that he and his buddy, Pirithous, should pick some brides for themselves. Theseus and Pirithous have done basically a bunch of dick-measuring contests by this point so they’re best friends and what better way to pass some time than steal some girls. And since they are sons of Poseidon and Zeus respectively, they decide, yeah, we’re gonna marry daughters of Zeus.

So, Theseus decides that he wants to marry Helen.

Now this is where the timeline is a little messed up because both Theseus and Pirithous were part of the hunt for the Calydonian boar, and some sources would suggest that he was part of the Argonauts, but this doesn’t fit well with another myth of Medea and Theseus, so we’re just going to ignore the time/age logistics.

The problem with Theseus abducting Helen is that she was… a little too young.

Yeah Theseus abducts her when she’s like a young teenager. Since she was too young to marry, Theseus leaves her with his mom while he goes with Pirithous to abduct the woman he’s chosen to be his wife: Persephone.

(That one doesn’t go very well either)

Pollux and Castor learn that their sister has been stolen so they travel to Athens to beat Theseus up but he’s already gone so they just invade the kingdom and steal Theseus’ mom instead (don’t worry she gets returned after the Trojan War). They take Helen and Theseus’ mom and head back to Sparta.

This would not be the end of the Dioscuri and their women stealing ways.

Their Death

Sadly, the most well-known myth of the Dioscuri in Greek Myths is their death. So, let’s talk about that.

Pollux and Castor fall in love with Phoebe and Hilaeria, also known as the Leucippides. Unfortunately, they had already been betrothed to Pollux and Castor’s cousins, Lynceus and Idas. Since that’s supposedly how you get a bride in ancient Greece, the twins abduct the Leucippides and bring them back to Sparta.

This does not go well for them.

Lynceus and Idas decide, in revenge, to go to the Dioscuri’s cattle herd and steal them.

(Glad to see that cattle = your brides dude).

Eventually, the Dioscuri go to their cousin’s place with Helen to party. They decide that this is the perfect time to steal back their cattle and slip out. This leaves Helen to start talking to a dashing young man named Paris.

(so yeah, if the cousins hadn’t been fighting over cattle and women, maybe the trojan war wouldn’t have even happened lol)

The cousins dip out of the party and start heading back to their home. Lynceus, “the lynx”, spots Castor, who had been hiding in a tree as Pollux worked on freeing the cattle, and gets super fucking pissed, as you do. First their brides, now the cattle you had stolen from them in revenge?

Idas sneak attacks Castor, somehow, and fatally wounds him. Pollux, as he is some variant of immortal in this version, quickly makes work of Lynceus. As Idas is about to kill him, daddy Zeus from Mt. Olympus hits him with a lightning bolt, saving Pollux.

(couldn’t have helped Castor. I see)

He rushes back to his dying brother’s side, cradling him in his arms, and pleading to Zeus. As dad was still watching, he gives Pollux the option:

You can either be a sick god with me here on Olympus, or you can share your immortality with Castor.

As they’re tight af, Pollux chooses to share his immortality with his twin. Zeus brings them to the skies, making them a constellation – also known as Gemini, the twins.

(They’re also in the Elysian field? Who knows. Also, Homer says they’re dead in the Iliad but they’re alive in the Odyssey? Homer please.)

The Role of the Dioscuri

As I’ve mentioned above, both twins were known for boxing. They became the patrons of boxing, and thus of athletes and athletic events.

As they were Argonauts, they were also tied to sailing, and they were known for being strong horsemen.

They were from Sparta, where they were idolized as well. As you may know, Ares was the patron god of Sparta, but he wasn’t really, well, liked? So, The Dioscuri were almost elevated to the role of gods there, as they represented the Dual Kings system in Sparta. They have a shrine there, as well as in Athens. They were the creators of war dances and offerings would be given to them.

The pear tree, along with two cross posts with a bar, were used to represent them. Anything with twins? Probably the Dioscuri. They’re known as being blondes with fair skin and being strong built.

Now if you think they were important in Greece?

Rome and How They Really Liked the Dioscuri

I have no idea why the Romans liked the Dioscuri so much. It seems to be just something the southern Romans really liked it a lot? Some suggest that it could be due to a ritual where if a town is defeated, the winners must take their gods? We aren’t so sure.

Anyways, so Rome, when picking what parts of Greek Myth it wanted to keep, really latched onto the Dioscuri, and a la Ovid, made their own tweaks to it.

A temple to Pollux and Castor was built into the Roman forum in Lavinium, in thanks for a victory.

According to the Romans, Pollux and Castor would be in the front of the army, leading them to victory. This makes sense, as Romans were a lot more horse people than the Greeks, and their role as horsemen really does fit a lot better amongst the Romans than the Greeks, who associated horse riding with savages.

Every year on July 15, Romans would hold the Dioskouroi, an event where 1,800 horses were paraded in honour of the twins. The horses would be fully decorated, too.

(Another fun fact: in Roman plays, women would swear to Castor, while the men would swear to Pollux).

Some other random things

In the Percy Jackson books the two sons of Dionysus are named Castor and Pollux. Like the myths, Castor dies.

There is some evidence to suggest that the twins were taken and changed to James son of Zebedee and his brother John in the Bible. Whether or not this is true is up to interpretation. Other saints took over the roles that Pollux and Castor have in Greece and Rome.

The “heavenly twins” trope appears in other Indo-European cycles, like Vedic brother-horsemen the Ashvins, the Lithuanian Ašvieniai, and the Germanic Alcis (which I know nothing about but have fun reading about them!)

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New Post has been published on Mythology.net

New Post has been published on http://mythology.net/greek/greek-gods/ariadne/

Ariadne

Fast Facts:

Pronunciation: ar-ee-ad-nee

Origin: Greek mythology

Role: Goddess of labyrinths

Parents: Father – Minos, mother – Pasiphae

Consort: Dionysus and/or Theseus

Symbols: Thread, bull, serpent

Who is Ariadne?

Though many different tales exist about the Greek goddess, Ariadne, it is commonly posited that she led a life of much suffering, especially after leaving Crete. While in Crete, she was venerated as a vegetation goddess and later developed a cult following, especially on the Greek islands. Though the goddess is most commonly known for her involvement in the killing of the Minotaur in the Labyrinth in Crete, she was also the owner of the first ever dance floor, created by the brilliant inventor, Daedalus.

Legends and Stories

Androgeus, the son of Minos, participated in the Panathenaic games, held in Athens every four years. His exemplary skill, however, caused grave jealousy among the Athenians, who decided the best solution was to have him killed. In another version of this legend, the King of Athens sent him to kill the Marathonian Bull, an allegedly unconquerable beast. On hearing of his son’s death, Minos, the King of Crete, exacted revenge on Athens and decided to declare war on the city. The Athenians, not wanting to engage in brutal warfare, requested terms of surrender from Minos instead. Minos agreed to their surrender, but made sure those responsible for his son’s death paid dearly. He demanded a sacrifice of 7 maidens and 7 young men to the beast, the Minotaur, half man and half bull. Every year the sacrificial Athenian youth were sent into the Labyrinth in Crete where the beast dwelled. Since the Labyrinth was constructed by the genius inventor, Daedalus, it was thought impossible for anyone to emerge from its many twists and turns, before being annihilated by the Minotaur.

Theseus and Dionysus

Only with Daedalus’ help could Ariadne devise a plan to aid one man out of the Labyrinth. The man she chose to aid was an Athenian by the name of Theseus, with whom she had fallen in love. In return for her help, she asked him to wed her and take her to Athens. Ariadne provided Theseus with a ball of thread and a sword for his quest. Theseus used the thread to tie to the door at the maze’s entrance. This allowed him to find his way out of the Labyrinth again, after besting the Minotaur. He was able to kill the Minotaur and, after killing the beast, he escaped the intricate maze. He and the other sacrificial youth fled from Crete with Ariadne and arrived at the island of Naxos. Here, according to one version of the tale, Theseus left Ariadne on the island, perhaps because of her betrayal of her own country, which was viewed as a deplorable act at the time.

Her Death

A further version of the legend posits that, on being deserted on the island by Theseus, Ariadne hung herself from a tree. The goddess may also have died in childbirth in Cyprus after she and Theseus were married. The couple had been engaging in protracted celebrations in Crete and, after departing, had been caught in a storm at sea. Theseus managed to deposit her safely on the shore at Cyprus, but he was then washed out to sea. Ariadne was heavily pregnant and taken into the care of the Cyprian women. Later she died in childbirth and had a shrine dedicated to her.

Another version of the tale tells of Theseus abandoning the sleeping Ariadne on the island of Dia. Here she was possibly killed by Artemis, per Dionysus’ instructions or married Dionysus and was turned into an immortal by Zeus. Dionysus gave a crown to his unhappy consort to cheer her up and later turned the crown into the constellation, Corona.

Family

Ariadne had several children with Dionysus, including Staphylus, Oenopion, Thoas, Euanthes, and Maron.

Worship

The cult dedicated to the goddess spread from Crete to Argos, Naxos, Cyprus, and the other Greek islands. Followers performed ceremonial dancing, participated in orgies and sometimes even included a ceremony where a young man emulated the pains and screams of a woman going through childbirth.

Modern Influence

Richard Strauss wrote an opera called Ariadne auf Naxos, Ariadne on Naxos, which was first performed in 1912.