anthy moore (anthophile) wrote in risingthreads, @ 2019-11-29 19:03:00 |
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THE DRIVEThere were a lot of things Persephone had wanted to do for Thanksgiving. One was take Demeter home along to meet her mortal parents as well, as Hades had told her she was alone and had no family to call her own. But she had stated that she had found Iasion and they were going to meet the family he held dear. She was not going to spoil that reunion for them. It also allowed her to give her mortal parents time to adjust to the fact that her divine parents were around. Taking the family that she had with her now would be enough and most likely a little overwhelming. She found herself quite overwhelmed now as the four of them sat in traffic and Hades whiteknuckled the wheel. It took everything in her not to mention that public transportation would have been faster. Two trains and a bus, no less. Given that he was driving a group of very important individuals and they were all still mortal, Hades wanted to be extra careful. The drivers on the road were all in a hurry and he had nearly collided with another car a few times now. "You know, it would be nice if the other bloody drivers could be a little more respectful of others. As if their time is more important than-" he cut himself and hit the horn loudly. "Son of a bitch, fuck you!" Jumping slightly at Hades’ swearing, Pheme was thinking she should have offered to drive herself and Cerberus. It didn’t help that the only time she had been in an accident, someone else was driving. Glancing at Cerberus, she was thankful they were with her, since they had the magical ability to keep her calm in situations like this. Cerberus sat quietly in the back, grasping onto Pheme’s hand as if she would disappear if they let go. They did not have many good experiences when it came to families. In fact, the only good he could ever think of had been Pheme herself. Their nervousness was palpable in their body language, no matter who was in the forefront. They did not seem to notice any discussions around them or the traffic or Hades’ swearing. Persephone sighed as she looked in the backseat the two apprehensive teenagers. Hades was clearly not helping the situation, but she turned around and reached back to give their legs some reassuring pats. “We’ll be there in no time.” Turning to look at Hades, she hadn’t expected the road rage when she’d pitched this idea. “Deep breaths, honey.” INTRODUCTIONSPersphone had warned her parents she’d be bringing quite few people and gave them a vague idea that she’d quickly built a new family, but her parents did not realize they’d be staring at three teens and a guy old enough to probably be Anthy’s uncle. They stared at the strange combination of people for a moment before inviting them into their home. “Hello. I’m Mathilda and this is my husband Geoffrey,” she said moving out of the way to let everyone in. As soon as Anthy crossed the threshold, she gave her a warm hug. “You weren’t kidding when you said a lot.” “I know mama, let me help you get everyone something to drink.” It wasn’t too long before everyone was seated in the living room. Persephone’s hand was firmly set in Hades’. “So. I have some interesting news to share,” she said looking at everyone. “Apparently, I’m a forgotten goddess of Spring. Kind of like Chloris, but more than flowers. I’m also the queen of the Underworld.” It made sense for Persephone to reveal herself first, since as far as Pheme could tell this whole thing hinged on how her parents reacted. She reached for Cerberus’ hand, gently squeezing their fingers. Hades smiled politely as he greeted her parents, a little more nervous than usual, given the circumstances. He was thankful for the drink, especially after the drive, and was quiet for a bit. He squeezed her hand in response and waited for them to process what had just been said. He turned to look at Persephone and waited for her cue to let him know he should follow up. While Mathilda stared blankly, Geoffrey’s brows shot up, not really sure how to take that sudden, information. Persephone looked over at Hades and gave him a nod to let him know it was okay to go ahead. "Um, well, it just so happens that I am her husband, otherwise known as Hades, king of the underworld. Might I just say, you have raised a very lovely daughter." “Thank you…” was all Mathilda could get out, before frowning. Their daughter had come home with random people and this guy was stating he was her husband, and she didn’t even have a ring on. “This is a lot….” She began to wonder if these other people were their followers. “I’m their daughter,” Makaria piped up and waved a hand. She didn’t really want to say, ‘by the way, I’m death’ right off the bat. “I’m just a friend of the family, mainly.” Pheme figured she could have led with ‘my boyfriend is their dog’, but they seemed overwhelmed. “I know, this all sounds like a lot to take in, but what’s really crazy is that there are people out there worshipping Kronos, when he was known for eating his children. Mental, right?” "Technically, he just swallowed us whole and we developed somehow inside him." Hades smiled politely and couldn't help but notice how Geoffrey was absolutely silent. Was he planning to throw them all out? Or maybe it was just him and he was too damn nervous. A nervous laugh escaped and he took a long drink from his glass. Geoffrey wasn’t impressed by any of this. They’d all seemed so normally dressed when they arrived. He should’ve been way more suspicious than those who wore their eccentricities on the outside. Mathilda just reached over and held his hand. He looked back at her and then his daughter. “You’ve just discovered you’re the goddess of spring and queen of the underground.” “Underworld. Where people go when they die,” she corrected. “Yeah, that. So queen of dead things.” “Yes.” “And this guy who looks like he belongs in an office building, with a very expensive watch, I might add, is the king of this dead place.” “Yes.” “And this Greek girl is your daughter.” “Yes.” “And these are just friends.” “Sort of?” Persephone said taking a breath. She gave Hades hand one more reassuring squeeze before going to kneel next to her mom. “I know. I know I have brought some questionable people through this house, but…” she took her mother and father’s hand in hers turning them palms up. She was so nervous, but she focused. She needed this to work. At first, nothing happened, but her parents humored her and waited. Closing her eyes to block out any distractions, she could feel the power start to slowly channel through her. It bloomed in her chest first, before flowing through her veins into her palms. Their palms started to glow and the seedling appeared, growing, unfurling, and budding. The green bulb spread open to reveal red petals. Her eyes opened and she looked at her work. “So. Yeah. We’re all gods?” Aware that neither Cerberus or Hades could do anything that showy, and what Makaria could do would probably freak them out, Pheme raised her hand. “I’m Pheme, aka, the personification of rumor, report, and renown. I have wings.” She sat forward a little. “I could show you, if you like.” The manner in which her father laid it all out gave Hades the impression he was almost mocking them and he was less than pleased by the way he had been summed up. "The underworld is more than a place that holds dead things and so what if I look like I belong in an office building. What is that even supposed to mean?" He countered with a slight glare and moved to sit up a little straighter against the couch. Hades was proud of Persephone for what she had just done, surprised she was capable of that in the moment. Her parents were staring at their hands, afraid to move them. “Anthy,” her mother started. “I know.” Geoffrey was wondering what everyone other than the redhead could do. Hades had mentioned he’d been swallowed by Kronos and Pheme said that Kronos ate his children, which meant Hades was was a kid eaten by Kronos, but this was a grown man. “You’re not the kind of man she usually brings home,” he clarified at the man’s sudden offense. “So you’re the son of Kronos who also rules the dead and you married my daughter, and had this daughter.” He was just starting to string things together at this point. “That’s what they said,” Mathilda said looking just as baffled as her husband. “This is just one of my children,” Persephone stated. “We have found one of the others, but have not connected with him yet.” Mathilda nodded. “And do you do flowers too?” she asked the girl. “Uh...I uhm…” Makaria looked around the room a little nervously. Usually she wasn’t this weird about her identity, but it was hard when you were dealing with mortals who were usually afraid of you. Cerberus sat forward, having been silent the entire encounter and trying to make his six-foot tall body as small as possible- practically hiding behind his girlfriend and Hades (for his height). Their eyes flashed red in a protective instinct for Makaria. “She protects souls,” the calculating one interjected. Makaria smiled thankfully toward Cerberus. “I escort the souls safely to the other side. Those blessed with kind and brave hearts and innocents. Uhm, to Elysium." Mathilda and Geoffrey had been a little shocked at hearing the tall boy speak. He’d been quiet for so long, they’d forgotten he was there. And he’d talked on behalf of their daughter who was basically..as they surmised, death. “And what’s your name?” “Makaria,” she answered. Wasn't the kind of man she usually brought home. Because he was what, British, older, well dressed, white, a God? The possibilities were endless and while he very much wanted to press further, he decided to drop it. "I have married Persephone, your daughter, on the other hand, is still unwed." Hades clarified, unsure if that made things any better. "I know it's a lot to take in, but think of all the opportunities you now have." “Persephone,” Mathilda repeated. It was then Anthy realized she hadn’t even given her mother her true name. “Yeah, that’s my first...actually second name in my first life. It’s the one I took after I left Olympus to live with Hades,” she said looking across the room to where he sat. She finally let go of her parents’ hands and went to sit beside Hades again. “We’ve just rediscovered each other and woken up from a curse. We were all cursed after losing the war so long ago.” Hades was more than happy to take her hand back in his own as she sat down next to him again. He leaned over and brushed a chaste kiss to her lips. "You're amazing, and I love you." He whispered before pulling away, giving her hand a comforting squeeze. "Uh, if it helps the situation any, I suppose I could, uh...marry her? Anthy, that is, in a proper ceremony." He stumbled over his words and mentally cursed himself for being so stupid. What kind of half assed proposal was that? "Um, just for clarification, that was most certainly not a proposal. Just a suggestion, of sorts." Even Makaria sort of grimaced at that. Her dad was being so awkward. “We’ve been discussing it and how to proceed now that we’ve reunited in these new bodies,” Persephone said easily. Her parents seemed to be taking all of this very very well, which was a relief. Geoffrey, while interested in Pheme was looking past her at the boy who had spoken for his...granddaughter? Was Makaria was his granddaughter now? This was all getting a little confusing. “You going to tell us who you are?” Mathilda smacked him. “Only if you feel comfortable,” she said making a face at Geoffrey. This was clearly an awkward situation for everyone involved, but might as well try to make the most of it. Cerberus looked to Pheme, then the others, as if the parents could not possibly be speaking to them. But then, everyone had given their true name and title. They were used to people thinking they were crazy, they were the only one amongst the group with literal multiple personalities. They did not want to ruin any chance for Anthy's parents to really believe her- even with the display of powers. Swallowing, they grasped Pheme's hand tighter. She was the only one that knew his background enough to understand his hesitation. Their eyes changing to the light blue of the innocent one, posture changing, and overall aura shifting noticeably. "If Persephone thinks w- I should." They were curbing their language like they used to. Persephone only nodded to say it was okay. “It’s okay. They’ll listen and if they don’t understand now, they’ll learn to.” She had a lot of faith in her parents and their patience. They went through a lot with her. Her parents looked at her and then back to the boy. “Nothing can sound stranger than what we’ve already heard,” Geoffrey said. “I seriously thought she’d joined a cult until now, but this is strangely…” he was trying to find the right way to put it. “It’s not disturbing, just hard to--” he stopped and looked at the flower in his hand. “I’ll need a little time to process all this, but go on ahead.” Mathilda nodded to agree in an attempt to reassure everyone. "Cerberus…" they whispered, obviously shy about it. "Guardian to the gates…" They still strayed from using the plural and skipped over that they were a monstrous dog. If her parents didn't know other Greek myths than they were not about to help that along. Geoffrey just nodded his head at the simple explanation. “Okay. Now we all know each other.” There was a brief pause before he continued. “Any more surprises?” CONVERSATION BETWEEN GENTLEMENHades wasn't sure what to say exactly, but given he was going to be with his daughter, he figured a private conversation would be ideal. "Mr. Moore, I would just like to assure you that I will take great care of your daughter." With all of their money from the underworld they had more than though to support their family without working ever again, but that was not an option for Hades. "I don't have any specific plans for the future, but she will never have to worry about a thing." Geoffrey had invited Hades away from the rest of the family, because he wanted to see him alone without his daughter. The man had learned his mortal name was Robert and what he did for a living by the end of dinner. Now he'd poured him a drink and sat him down in one of those fancy high back leather chairs. He'd never had to use them often, but Robert looked like the kind of guy who just fit in one. "My daughter," he started, as he swirled the liquid in the glass. "Never has to worry about anything. You're married to her," he said, still looking a little baffled. "You know how she is,” he followed with a shrug. “A handful who can handle herself. You just need to treat her with respect." "She rules not only the underworld beside me, but also my heart. Persephone is the Queen of my everything and I would never be disrespectful." Hades leaned back in the chair, more than comfortable in the leather chair. "Besides, she's quite fierce. If I even came close to being disrespectful, she would have my head for it." His fingers tapped at the glass and he took a slow drink, feeling much more at ease now than earlier in the evening. "That's good to hear. She takes after her mother you know." There was a reason Geoffrey was mostly quiet. "Tillie raised her to think for herself. I wanted to spoil her more," he said tipping the glass in the other man's direction. "I feel like you have the same feeling." He took a sip. "She's our one and only. I think it's nice you're trying to say things you think we wanna hear, but you don't have to. I'm not worried so much for her as I am for you." With that, he gave off a short laugh. "Just like her mother," he said more to himself, before looking at Hades again. The man was tall, well-put together, older. "The last guy she brought home was all piercings and tattoos," he said, waving a hand over his own face. "She's always been interested in people who were different and attracted to dark things. I guess this explains why." "Oh, I do want to spoil her very much. But, you have to remember, I've known her for centuries. I learned the hard way not to step in and fight her battles. She wants to get just as dirty and I let her." Hades replied with a shrug and his mind began to wander back to all the times they had gotten into disagreements with each other. "Piercings and tattoos?" He questioned with a raised brow and moved to cross his legs, leaning towards one side. "That must be more Anthy, Persephone enjoys natural beauty. Don't forget, she's also the Goddess of spring. It's not all morbid for her. She split her time between above and below, six months a piece." Hades was talking about a woman Geoffrey wasn't even sure he'd ever known. It was mind blowing, the similarities that he was telling her. Did they just nurture and bring out the same girl that had been raised so long ago by gods and goddesses and who knew what else? The way Hades spoke of her put his heart at ease to a point. "She's attracted to people most others don't care for," he corrected Hades. "The piercings and tattoos lead to a lot of stigma. She taught me and her mother to look past that to see some very fine young men and women," he said with a nod. "She didn't look at them like the way she looks at you. I feel it's futile and possibly insulting, but I will gladly bear the consequences of threatening a god over the pain of my daughter." He took a sip, before casually explaining, "This is the part where I tell you I'll kill you if you ever hurt her.” She's attracted to people most others don't care for. Well, he wasn't sure how to take such a statement but then again, he wasn't like the others. "Persephone once turned someone I fancied into a plant. I'm probably more terrified of her than you, no offense. Also, I understand where you're coming from and you have nothing to worry about. I have no plans to retaliate for the threat." For Makaria and his other daughters, he would die, over and over again, just to prevent them from ever feeling any pain. "Did she now?" He said furrowing his brows. She couldn't picture Anthy doing anything that vicious, but that could be his eyes as a father to a girl who played in flowers and always tried to take in strays. "I guess I'd be afraid too. That is one thing she didn't get from Tillie." He was about to go into the whole bonding as fathers thing, considering she hadn't only brought him a son-in-law, but also a granddaughter. Would she see him that way? He'd been looking forward to grandchildren. This one was grown though and a goddess. His mouth opened to ask if Makaria would consider him family when Tillie came through the door. THE VANISHING ©Makaria was listening quietly curled up in a chair with a cup of hot apple cider in her hands and a blanket Mathilda had given her draped over her lap. It was such a nice and cozy place and her gran, which she was told to refer to her as, was so warm and kind. She loved her already. The older woman was telling them all embarrassing stories about Anthy when she was younger, and she was just tickled at hearing them. While she hadn’t been sure about how this evening would progress, this was definitely a surprisingly wonderful turn of events. That was before she felt it. Persephone hadn’t noticed it at first, but Makaria had gone stock still and her face had drained of all color. The hot liquid was splashing all over her hands as she shook violently and stared forward. “Makaria?” she asked quietly, completely drowning out whatever else was around her. “Makaria?” she asked again, getting up from her seat. The girl only continued to stare forward as tears started streaming down her face. Pheme had been listening to the stories and laughing, when she suddenly sat bolt upright and cocked her head to one side, her nose wrinkling. "That's… odd. Did anyone else…?" As she spoke, she caught a glimpse of Makaria. "Something happened… something big. Like, in that direction it was noisy, and now there's a very loud silence…" The group of them all had their different sensitivities. Cerberus might not have noticed, all the other senses always pulling at their attention, but just before Makaria had stopped Cerberus' eyes switched instinctively to the bright blue of the calculating-one. Their head spun with a changing of the futures of souls. "We think we're going to be sick…" “Makaria, please say something,” Persephone asked, moving the mug out of her hand and onto the table. She’d never seen her daughter make such a face before. Even Mathilda had moved to stand, unsure of what to do. What did you do when a death goddess was having an episode in your living room? And the boy didn’t look like he was doing too hot either. “Should I go get Hades?” "Cerby, do you want to go get some air?" Pheme asked, rubbing his back. "I almost think we should turn on the news, but…" she let her voice trail off, still worried about Makaria and Cerberus. Cerberus had sat forward to hold their head in their hands and try to settle the spinning feeling, but they shook their head at Pheme’s question. Makaria could not fully process what was happening. There was suddenly a massive blank space where there hadn’t been one before. Feeling her mother’s hand on her face, she turned to look down at the kneeling woman. “They’re gone.” Mathilda had already left the room to retrieve the men. Hades glanced over upon hearing a knock at the door and he was surprised to see Mathilda at the door. He finished off his drink and stood from the chair to leave the study. Everyone was sitting in the living room with rather cold expressions and Makaria seemed to be the most startled of them all. He set his empty glass down and hurried to kneel before her, taking her hands in his own. "Sweetheart? What's wrong, did something happen? Was there an accident somewhere?" Pheme pulled out her phone after making sure Cerberus was alright for now, scanning through her news app. “Oh shit...” she whispered, holding her phone out for Persephone to see all the articles about Poughkeepsie. “Yeah… something big went down.” "Who's gone?" Persephone asked turning to the sudden arrival of Hades. When he took Makaria's hands in his she looked over at the others. Pheme was checking her phone, which felt uncharacteristic in the grand scheme of how protective she was of Cerberus. She was grateful she did live up to her place as report. Leaving Makaria with her father, she looked at the information. Makaria hands kept on shaking in Hades' hands. "So many souls." She sobbed leaning forward into her father. Geoffrey and Mathilda just stood a little off to the side for a moment, not sure how to deal with what was unfolding before them. "You can all stay here for the night if you need to." One could tell by Geoffrey's tone that it was less of an offer and more of an insistence. "Shhh, it's okay." He whispered and moved to wrap his arms around her. Hades shifted to join her where she sat and pulled her into his arms again, kissing the top of her head. Having to lead souls to their rightful place was upsetting at times but to have so many vanish at once must have been devastating for her and he wondered if this was worse than dealing with a full out mass execution of lives. Times had changed so much and he wondered how she managed to handle it all so well. He wasn't sure why Geoffrey wanted them to spend the night. It would make little difference in the grand scheme of things. But, he didn't feel like driving home now and simply nodded in response. "Thank you, I appreciate that." Cerberus let out a shaky breath. They did not have the sense of souls like Makaria did, but they had also not realized that their ability to see into the past, present and future of souls had always been active. Only with such a dramatic change had they realized those abilities were always there. In Pheme’s defense, she had checked on Cerberus before looking anything up. The compulsion to know what was going on in the world had been staved off in favour of making sure her boyfriend wasn’t in dire straights; once she was certain of that, she gave in and pulled out her phone. “So, not for nothing, you guys don’t have any family in Poughkeepsie, do you?” she asked, trying to sound casual. Makaria curled up into her father and just continued to shake and sob. There was a slight guilt in being able to feel the comfort of his embrace once again. There were so many who would not have this simple luxury. Geoffrey nodded at Hades acceptance and Tillie put herself to work attempting to get extra pillows, sheets, and blankets for everyone. It wasn't a big house, but there was thankfully enough space. Persephone frowned, rubbing Cerberus' back in an attempt to help sooth and ground him. "No, they're all in here or in the city." “Okay, well, I’m not sure what it means, but all these articles are about people calling emergency services because they can’t get a hold of anyone in Poughkeepsie. I’m half-tempted to do a flyover once it’s really dark,” Pheme said, biting her lower lip as she considered the idea. “I’d prefer you stay here with us,” Persephone suggested. Until there was more information, she didn’t want to be sending Pheme out into the unknown. "Yes, I know you mean well, Pheme, but nobody knows what happened. I'm sure they will be monitoring the area and the last thing we want is for you to get shot down." He spoke as he continued to hold Makaria in his arms. His hand brushed along her back in comforting circles and then across her shoulders and arms. "I can't even imagine what it feels like for her these days. So many souls needing to be lead to rest." “There are no souls.” |