So this was the Queen of the Norse Underworld. That explained everything. Hades moved closer both to meet her and to get a better look under the dim light that the torches provided. He admired the rotting flesh on the one side of her. The sinews. The jutting glimpses of the bones. The whole flesh on the other. Flawlessly devoid of imperfections like most goddesses. The bright eye and sincere smile. The contrast made him inhale sharply. It took his breath away.
Going straight from his father's stomach to a battlefield to ruling the Underworld had made Hades very accustomed to the gruesome and macabre. That was his world. His daily reality. He hadn't felt sensitive to any horror he'd encountered in a very long time. But this....this was something even he'd never seen the likes of before. Half decaying, half flourishing. Always dead, always living. She didn't just radiate death, she was death. He could see that now. A literal manifestation. It was amazingly creepy. And incredibly genuine.
In one way, Hades was jealous. She belonged. Anyone could see it the moment they laid eyes on her. Hades loved his realm, and did his best to rule it well, but it had been given to him due to luck rather than born suitedness, and sometimes that fact weighed on him, and made him feel inadequate. He felt completely out of place on Olympus, but didn't feel completely at home in the Underworld either. She was a fish in the water governing other fish in the water. Hades was an ornate urn made the decorative focal point in a mortal's home because it was given to them as a wedding present by an easily offended relative.
In another way, Hades was grateful. The Queen's condition couldn't be easy to live with, or to maintain. It also probably led to a lot of very awkward social situations.
Hades didn't know quite how to greet her properly. The hand he would have briefly clasped looked very fragile, and he didn't want to offend the Queen by taking the other. He eyed one, then the other, then gave up and bowed to her. “It is an honor to have you here, Queen Hel. Please call me Hades.” He gestured towards the dog, “I hope you will excuse Cerebus. Had I been informed of your visit, I would have arranged for something a bit more welcoming.” Well, at least Cerebus would have been taken elsewhere for a moment. Hades didn't really do warm friendly atmospheres well.
The offer of her dog as a playmate floored Hades. It had never occurred to him that Cerebus might enjoy companionship. The dog had seemed a bit stir crazy lately. It killed Hades, but if the Underworld could survive when Hercules “borrowed” Cerebus, the Underworld could probably survive Cerebus getting a small, manageable, social life too. “I think most of him would definitely like that.” The middle head was a wild card.
Did every Underworld have a giant dog? Better dogs than cats. Hades didn't particularly like cats. That many lives in such a small body seemed just so....wrong.
He dismissed her last comment. “That sounds like business that we should be discussing inside. I could take you to the palace. Unless you're on a tight schedule, or prefer here of course.” Wasn't she curious? Hades would be. Looking at how her halls worked would be fascinating.