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I don’t remember if I had a dream while I slept just that whatever was going through my mind, kept me asleep for a long while.  When I finally regained consciousness I felt dizzy, and disoriented.  I let a moan escape my lips and I slowly raised my hand to touch my head, which was swirling around itself.  I could feel my fingertips brush my forehead, but they felt heavier, at least one did.  I realized I had lifted my left hand; the finger that weighed the most was the one next to the pinky.  I gasped and tried to sit up, but it took me all I could to open my eyes and see the diamond ring on my finger.  It wasn’t a band with a diamond, but a diamond band.  Ten diamonds were wrapped around my finger, and they glittered beautifully without any light in the room.   I reached my other hand up to pull it off, but it wouldn’t budge.  “I thought you might like it.”  Came the cold voice from the edge of my room.  I jumped, this time I was able to turn my head.  “You…”  I hissed in a quietly, my throat was still sore from the crying and screaming I had done earlier.  “Don’t say anything, I know you hate me, but it won’t last long.” He seemed to chuckle to himself over some joke.  I still couldn’t see him, the room was so dark.  Was it night?  Or right, this was hell; it was either always night, or not so dark.  “Anyway, I just wanted to see if you were awake.  Your little maids back on the island told Zeus where you were and he wants us on Olympia in two days.  Your mother isn’t too thrilled either, but that was just a perk of my whole plan.”  Hades moved from a seat in the corner, next to a table.  “We leave tomorrow early, be dressed and ready to go.  Have a wonderful night, my bride.  If you get hungry just let any servant know.  If you need me, I will be in the Throne Room; the Fates have decided we need a meeting about this new Queen, Helen or whatever.”  He walked over to my bed and pulled aside the thin black curtain.  I could see his face clearly now.  I sat up and moved away slightly, but he just wanted to look at me.  “You are beautiful.”  He sighed and held out his hand, not demandingly, but like a test, to see if I would take it.
I failed, my hands never left my side.  He gave me a sad stare and walked away quickly, opening my door and walking out.  Just before he closed it, he stopped.  Hades didn’t turn to look at me, but he waited, hoping I would say something.  Again, I failed the test and remained silent while he closed the door.  I sat there for a moment; trying to let my eyes adjust to the darkness, which they did.  I looked around my room.  It was very lavish, but something was so eerie about it.  The bed was of black mahogany, the sheets were black Egyptian silk, the curtains around them, and fine Greek lace with black rose imprints.  Outside of the bed there was a couch-like seat or two, around a black mahogany table.  A set of cards sat upon the table, so I knew what I would be doing until mother got me out of this.  On the corner near another door sat a gigantic black mahogany floor-to-ceiling dresser.  Two doors taking up the top two thirds, with two drawers on the bottom.  Curious, I walked over and opened the doors.  The huge metal handles were shaped like dragons with green glowing emerald eyes.  “He sure knows how to decorate.”  I muttered to myself and pulled all my weight backwards to open it.  Inside were four layers of extravagant and beautiful dresses.  All made from pure cotton and silk, every color of the rainbow, but the lighter ones were in the back.  I leaned forward to touch the cloth, but I could barely feel anything when my fingertips brushed the exquisite material.  It was so light and dainty that when I gathered some in my hand, it felt like feathers were caressing the skin there.
Shoes lined the entire bottom, flat sandals, and even some new attire I had heard was raging through Athens.  A cobbler had created a shoe that had a point on the heel, to make the woman taller.  A few sat in the back, obviously only there because of the fad.  The Sandals that sold everywhere else were of the finest leather and cloth, some able to lace up all the way to my knee.  I kneeled down and pulled open the bottom most drawer, gasping in surprise.  Head pieces, diadems, tiaras, even the most lavish of crowns lined the deep drawer in black velvet casings.  Stones and jewels only Hera wore were encrusted into these pieces of headgear, and they were meant for me.  I couldn’t wait to open the top drawer, but a knock on my door interrupted my exploration of the beautiful unknown.  Slowly I stood and walked towards the door, grabbing a silk robe that was hanging on the bed post, and pulled it around me.  The thick wooden door was surprisingly very light as I eased it open and stuck my head out.  A very small girl was standing there at the door, a piece of paper in her hand.  “His Holiness commanded that I bring this to you.”  She thrust it out harshly, I reached for it, but she was impatient and she pushed it into my hands, crumpling the intricate stationary as she did.  With a quick nod and turn, she left abruptly and was gone.  I was still a little perturbed at the small girl demanding me around when I looked down at the note.  The handwriting was absolutely breathtaking, the letters curling around and making a very becoming letter to me.
I am sorry to interrupt.  I was going to let you rest until our departure, but Moira has requested to see you.  I cannot say no to them, but you can if you want.
                              Throne Room, follow Julepia if you would oblige.
                                                  Hades
I huffed and threw the paper aside.  Who was he to ask my prescience?  After everything he had caused, what he was going to cause.  I was still in the hallway, but walked back into the room, picking the stationary up and placing on the table.  “Maybe I should go.  I could beg the Fates to let me go, to change my fate and let me be free.”  I said aloud and ran to my wardrobe, grabbing a dress and pulling it on.  It didn’t matter what I wore, just that I wasn’t naked in front of them.  I did happen to glance at what color it was, black, for my mourning.  I placed on an onyx and diamond circlet and reached for the top drawer.  If I was going to beg, I was going to look good doing it.  A diamond tear drop necklace screamed at me, and I let it.  Picking it up was easy, the thing was naturally light, but putting it on was different.  What if this was another trick and he just wanted me out of my room?  “No,” I shook my head. “Gods aren’t allowed to lie about the Fates, its sacrilege.”  And I clamped it around my thin pale neck and walked out.  The small girl was back, beside my door and waiting on me.  “I am to assume you are Julepia.”  I pointed.  She didn’t even respond, she just turned and started walking quickly and it took me everything, save panting, to keep up with her.
The walk to the throne room wasn’t far from mine, but it sure was confusing.  Every three steps there was a turn or a staircase.  I tried harder this time to remember where I was going.  When that failed I remembered land marks, which was easier.  Statues and tapestry’s lined the walls and sat at every corner, I could recall those better than turns.  Eventually she slowed down and stopped at a door way, letting me pass.  “Persephone!”  Hades called from a corner of the room.  He was sitting on a throne; it was really a luxurious chair perched upon the skulls of dead Kings and Princes.  “Moira, my bride and Queen, Persephone, daughter of the Goddess Demeter.”  He introduced and came down from the chair, making his way across the gigantic room in four strides.  I looked around and saw the edge of the river STYX trickling by, STYX himself was nowhere to be seen, but that didn’t mean he was far away.  Hades wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me forward.  “We know who she is; we had some fun creating her.”  The most beautiful of the trio replied quietly.  The three women were gorgeous, but their work made them undesirable. Deciding every detail of someone’s life was boring an evil.  “And we know how she got here, you devilish man.”  The youngest of the sisters snickered and winked.
The oldest was a blonde, the middle a brunette, and the youngest a red head like me.  They sat around a table that was in front of Hades’ throne, heads bowed, but now their attention was all on me.  “Beautiful certainly, but her spirit was what I liked making.  She is very headstrong, but if you can get her to trust you, she will listen.”  I gasped, that wasn’t true, and I didn’t ‘okay’ anyone except mother.  “I also made her defiant, so she’s not going to believe us.”  The brunette glanced over, devoid of emotion.  I shivered at the thought that these three women knew everything about me.  “Certainly a good choice Hades, very good, she’s also very fertile.”  The blonde put in. I moved backward now, pulling the skirt of the dress around me.  “Moira, can we return to the discussion you came here for?”  Hades moved his arm from me and walked towards his throne.  “You can sit with us, or return to your rooms.  I am sorry for not having your throne ready for you.”  He gave me a truly sorry expression.  “She’s going to go back and cry.”  The brunette said nonchalantly, never looking up from her work at the table.  I snapped my head; this was truly pissing me off.  “Be careful, sister, she still is the daughter of Demeter and has a temper, I saw to that one.  No, she’s decided she’s going to stay, just to defy us.”  Hades held up his hand.
“Sisters, if you would please cease terrorizing my bride, she has a choice and she will make it how she sees fit.”  He turned to me, but I was frozen, no matter what I did now, they were right.  “I must ready myself for the departure tomorrow.”  I finally decided.  Hades nodded and Julepia was at my side again.  If I was going to be made a fool of, I might as well not be there for the rest of it.  I bowed and turned, Julepia walking at my side until we exited and I got far enough away that I could sit down.  The girl seemed utterly annoyed that I was sitting on the stairs, leaning against the wall, my head buried in my arms.  I sat there for a while, trying to gather my thoughts and get things right in my head.  I sighed, once I had collected myself, and looked up.  “Mistress, may we leave now?”  This was the first thing Julepia had said since the note and it stunned me.  “Oh!  Certainly, I need rest.”  I stood slowly and followed her to my room.  I noticed a lot more around me this time, and even knew the last three hallways before my room, though I didn’t know the door.  Julepia rolled her eyes as I jerked at a door, but it remained locked.  She went to mine and pushed it open gently.  Quickly I walked inside and closed the door behind me.  A chandelier above me was dimly lit, and I could see the room better.   It wasn’t really much different than before, just brighter.
I ran to my bed and began to cry, the red head had been right.  I was distraught, my life would not end here in this hell it couldn’t.  I was too beautiful, too lively, and too headstrong to allow myself to get stuck here.  Mother’s warnings not to taunt Hades came rushing back in my head and I cried even harder realizing what a fool I had been.  For at least two hours I let the tears fall from my eyes heavily when I heard another knock at my door.  Quickly I wiped my tears away and walked over, straightening my dress.  I opened it slowly and saw another girl standing there, some cloth in her hands.  “My name is Sophia, madam.  His Holiness commanded I came and see if you wanted any new dresses.  I am terribly sorry at my tardiness; I was supposed to come earlier.”  She walked in my room without any real permission from me and set the stack of cloth on my table.  “These are newly acquired cloths that His Holiness thought would be lovely for you.  I meant to bring them by much earlier, but His Holiness claimed you were still ill and wouldn’t let anyone but himself in to sit with you.”
I was taken aback.  “He sat with me the entire time?”  I asked.  Sophia nodded, “Didn’t leave this room’s earshot, and demanded you be kept comfortable.  Darian got the punishment of his life.  Since the Master wants rid of him soon, he only gave him kitchens for the next one hundred years, and that included nonstop, no sleep work.”  I gasped.  “One hundred years of no sleep?”  I was appalled.  “Certainly, His Holiness was almost distraught when he found a small bruise from Darien’s hand on your wrist.”  She stated.  It had obviously gone for I had seen nothing and could not right then.  “Well, I’ll leave these for you to peruse over, I’ll come by before you later to pick up what you want.”  She bowed and left the room, closing the door behind her.  I walked over to the pile and picked around.  All the fabrics were certainly handsome, but most were black; I had to have color, so I discarded in a pile most blacks and other fabrics that weren’t my taste.  When I was done and had set what I didn’t want on one side of a couch and what I did want on the other my door opened.  It was Hades, in just a simple shift that the humans wore and bare feet.  The shift was black, but an emerald stone pulled one of the shoulders up and held it together.
“So you did get the fabric.  I told Sophia to wait; she wanted to bring them while you were still out.”  He leaned against the door.  I nodded and turned away from him, but I couldn’t resist asking him.  “She also said that you sat with me the entire time I was asleep.”  I stated and went to put my jewels away in the dresser.  “Well, I couldn’t let just anyone stay here.  All my servants are forced to be here, who knows what they would do to neglect you.”  He walked inside further and looked through the stack of ‘keep’ fabrics.  I shut the drawer to the headpieces and turned, trying to pull my necklace off, but for some reason it wouldn’t budge.  “The Fates left a while ago, obviously this Helen woman is going to create some trouble and Aphrodite isn’t helping, Athena’s in on it too.”  He shrugged and threw a few black fabrics from the ‘go’ pile into the ‘keep’ pile.  “I hate Aphrodite.”  We both stated aloud at the same time.  And just like that Hades was walking over to me, pulling me close.  I struggled but eventually went limp; I was still too tired to fight right now.  “Why can’t you love me?” he asked pitifully.
“Well, let’s see what you’ve done in the past day.  You kidnapped me, forced me to eat underworld food that’s trapped me her, abused me by throwing me into a boat, threw me out of it which was even more abuse, kissed me, and then forced me to see those awful three women!  I’m not even going to mention what you’ve ruined by doing all that.” I snapped and tried to wiggle again.  “But, I had to have you.  You’re so beautiful and untouched, I loved you the moment I saw you, and knew I needed you.”  His other hand came up behind my head and pulled me closer, our lips almost touching.  “Kiss me, kiss me like you want to kill me, I want that fire, that passion.”  He closed his eyes and encircled my lips with the tip of his nose.  I couldn’t help myself; he was terribly sexy when he begged.  In an instant my lips met his and my arms were around him.  He was really there, tasting me, kissing me.  He pressed me closer in an instant and entangled his hand in my hair.  For what seemed like the longest moment we just stood there, wrapped in each other’s arm, lips entwined.  Slowly, so that I couldn’t feel it, he started moving me around, so my back was to my bed.  I felt his hand slither up my bare arm and reach the broach on my shoulder, holding my dress up.  With one swift movement, the broach was gone and the strap holding up the soft fabric fell away.
My eyes shot open the moment I realized what he had done and I was screaming into his mouth.  My body squirmed as I tried to pull away and run.  He let me go; gasping for breath as though he was the one in trouble.  “What are you doing?”  I screamed, holding up the strap to my dress.  Hades didn’t even answer, he gave me the most, I’m going to say shocked, look and stared.  He was backed up against my wall, where I had pushed him, and I was leaning against the bed post, grabbing it with my hand behind me to steady myself.  For a second he just stared, then, with eyes still blank from horror, he left the room quickly, slamming the door behind himself.  It took me only a half moment to realize what had just happened.  The strap loose on my shoulder was what brought me back to reality.  Tears started running down my face, uncontrollable, the moment I was starting to get over my hatred, he pulls this.  I wanted to scream!  I wanted to throw sharp objects in the direction of his head!  I wanted to pick my bed up and hurl it against the wall, and at the same time, I just wanted to go home.  To cry in my mother’s arms, to let her hold and rock me