Thanks so much for the reviews I feel the love! Here's another!

Still rated "M."

Chapter II.

What was he considering exactly? He had to have her that was true, but how was he supposed to achieve that? He could go to Demeter, however he was sure that would result not only in a denial and even worse she would then know of his attraction to her daughter. She'd go to great lengths to keep him from any possibility of seeing Persephone again. Knowing Demeter she'd confine her to some sort of inescapable prison cell.

Zeus? He was technically her father regardless of how much of an absentee one. His brother had a bad track record with children, especially the illegitimate ones. He couldn't imagine why anyone would throw her away, however Zeus tended to surprise him in a bad way. He pushed the idea quickly from his mind, entertaining Zeus with his actual feelings; especially ones so sentimental, was out of the question. He couldn't let this go, he wouldn't let it go.

"My lord…," a melodic voice began sternly. Hades looked up, his head perched upon his fingers. He ran his hand through his wavy dark hair and his dark eyes narrowed at the interruption of his thoughts. He then looked down from his tall stone podium to the glowing floor below, to see Hectate standing before him with a grimace on her face. She looked up at him stubbornly with her long porcelain arms crossed and her jet black hair intricately pulled back into a braided bun. Her eyes were so light they looked orange…she didn't seem amused.

He raised his eye brows sarcastically to acknowledge her. The room they were in was one of the most important in the underworld. The entire room was dark with exception to the floor which glowed a grayish blue and illuminated the room with water like reflection. It was meant to feel like a purgatory, not terrifying but most definitely not calming. The dead were escorted to the center of the floor that then projected their lives to Hades. No secrets and no mercy. He was notorious for judging harshly, it kept mortals living well. Today he simply didn't care about anything or anyone but her. At least 100 souls had come to him in the past two hours and every one of them had been sent straight to the Elysium Fields without even glancing at their former transgressions, until finally he neglected to pay attention at all.

"…I'm beginning to believe that one of two things is occurring. The first, that you have suddenly experienced some sort of change of heart, which is highly doubtful. The second that you are grossly distracted by something that is most likely not as important as this. I don't think I have to ponder the answer for too long." She finished having not moved from her position. He was almost positive that she had neglected to blink as well.

He sighed and sat back in his throne. She dropped her shoulders exhaustingly.

"I ask this in all respects my lord but, what is wrong with you?" She said bitterly.

When he neglected to answer her she continued. "We've all noticed that you are not your usual self, and…well not that we necessarily question your decisions, but it would seem that you are not being as f-fair as you usually are," she said carefully.

"Your mind is elsewhere that at least is true." She finished, patiently awaiting his answer.

He hadn't planned on answering her because he wasn't listening; instead he got up and silently walked out of the room.

Hectate rolled her eyes and threw her hands up in frustration. She looked up at archway in which he exited hoping that he would come back. When he neglected to do so she grunted annoyingly and stalked from the chambers.

Persephone awoke to an empty home. Demeter must have had responsibilities on Olympus that she had forgotten to mention. When she went to Olympus she was usually gone all day. Grabbing some fruit from their table she smiled to herself….finally some time to be alone! She usually tried to be obedient, and for a small second felt a pain of guilt for her desire to defy her mother. When she looked out the window into the beautiful day, she quickly decided against obedience and ran up to her room.

She changed into a comfortable cream gown. Her mother never usually allowed her to wear it because it wasn't floor length, nor did it have straps and fell mid-thigh. She tied a simple silken brown sash around the middle and fastened a loose bow just above her left hip. She was never allowed to accentuate her slender waist or hips, and especially not leave her room with completely bare shoulders. This dress achieved all of the above and she surveyed herself in the small mirror her mother had, her cheeks flushed from inner satisfaction.

She justified her decision with her location. She planned on going back to the cypress tree; she knew no one would see her anyway. She grabbed a basket for flowers and bolted from the temple. It felt amazing. She flew through the fields towards the forest with a smile on her face and wished the feeling could last for forever.

As she reached the edge of the forest she stopped running to catch her breath and slowly made her way through the shady vegetation. The cooler temperature was a relief to her, her skin was slicked with a faint layer of sweat and she pushed her hair out of her face. She walked a little further before she found the cypress tree, again overwhelmed by an odd feeling that she was being watched. She discarded her paranoia and began walking further into the forest.

She picked flowers as she went most ones she had seen before. She took pleasure in the solitude even though the activities were the same as they always were. She put down her basket and laid down in the grass, rolled over onto her side, and closed her eyes.

She took a deep breath and smiled before opening her brown eyes lazily. Her dark lashes fluttered and she squinted, trying to focus on what she saw in the distance. At the mouth of the river was a flower she'd never seen before, it was so beautiful. She picked up her head and pulled herself up to lean on an elbow in an attempt to get a better look.

Yes, it wasn't her imagination it was there and she pushed herself up and walked over to it slowly. It was so unique, so oddly placed that something inside of her feared it. It was a deep red color, rich and hearty like the color of blood.

Her hesitation at simply claiming it confused her. It was just a flower after all, regardless of how unique it was still the same as the ones she picked before. She bent down and touched a silken petal, entranced by its softness like fine velvet. Before she knew it her slender fingers had wrapped around the stem and she pulled. The roots were unnaturally long and spindly like thin wiry strands of hair. She brought it to her nose and sniffed, a spicy scent filled her nostrils and made her eyes water. She looked around and realized the forest had become unnaturally quiet. The wind wasn't blowing, none of the birds were singing. It was if everything had died.

She took a step backwards and suddenly there was a deafening roar. The ground shook and the mouth of the river exploded open with a powerful fury. Loose dirt and water sprayed in all directions and she fell onto her back with a thud knocking the wind out of her. Her heart was pounding so hard in her chest she thought she was going to die. Her eyes widened in horror as four black horses rose from the abyss pulling an incredible chariot. She clutched the flower digging her nails into her own hands as she screamed and began scooting backwards. They reared their large hooves into the air and came down with an incredible thud, nearly rolling her over. All she could see of the chariots master was a long billowing black cloak that enveloped what appeared to be an impressive figure, and a horned battle helmet.

She turned and dug her knee and toes into the ground and launched herself up into a run. She had barely made any ground when she felt a hand grip the silken sash around her middle. She screamed, feeling tears run down her face in absolute terror and struggled. She must have succeeded because she tripped slightly forward as if the sash had been ripped from the gown. She felt a hand grip her wrist, and she was pulled backwards with such strength she felt sick. She was whipped around and her head collided with armor.

She looked up to only to see the sun shining through a clearing in the trees and the silhouetted head of whoever the terrifying figure was. As hard as she tried, for the life of her she couldn't make out the features of his face. She thrashed about and tried to claw violently at the helmet and exposed neck but nothing seemed to phase him. It just looked her as if amused by her fight for her life.

She suddenly felt dizzy and weak; she could feel her body getting heavy and it felt hard to stand up. Her eyes burned and her eyelids felt sore from straining to stay open. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion and she could hear her own heart pumping within her chest. She looked up to the clearing with absolute terror and desperation, to the glimmer of light shining through the trees as her eye site began to blur. Another tear rolled down her cheek… and everything went black.

He thought everything was going to fail when he saw her launch herself up from the ground and begin to run. There was no way he could let her escape him. He jumped from the carriage to the ground and grabbed at her in whatever way he could stop her. His hand gripped the silken sash of her gown but she struggled against him and it tore from her waist. He grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her forcefully. She spun and collided against the breast plate of his armor. She looked up at him in absolute terror and tried to fight him, clawing at his helmet. Before he could restrain her properly her strength faded and she fainted.

He didn't have time to admire her then, he quickly slipped an arm under her knees and behind her back and jumped onto the chariot. He kept an arm wrapped around her waist and let her legs down so that she leaned against him. He grabbed the rains and cried out to the horses who reared their powerful legs and dove into abyss. On their way down Hades let go of the rains and once again slipped an arm under her knees and scooped her up into his arms.

He looked at her emotionless face, even unconscience she was full of life. She was so light, she felt so delicate and temporal, as if one wrong move would break her. He bent down and brushed his lips to her forehead and then to her eye lids gently. She was so soft and warm. He hadn't felt that warmth in centuries if ever at all. Her beauty beguiled him from afar, but up close it positively enslaved him. It took everything in his being to restrain himself from exploring her more. The light outline of her full breasts could be seen through the cream material of the gown, damp from the river water. He gritted his teeth feeling his member twitch. The horses landed gently onto the soft black dirt of their runway and the ghastly crater they had created slowly closed with a light rumble. Everything was quiet as he stepped off of the chariot with her limply in his arms. Her head lolled back and her dark hair hair hung down away from her face. Servants slowly glided into the room, stopped and gasped upon seeing their master with a living girl in his arms. He looked at them and then down at her, his face cracked into the smallest of smiles.

"Euanthe!" He called out to the shocked group of undead servants. A small girl with flaming red hair stepped forward and bowed her head in humility.

"Yes my master, how may I serve you?" She asked meekly.

"Prepare the chambers down the hall from mine. New gowns, oils, linens, jewels...she'll have it all, she'll have the finest," he said not taking his eyes off of her sleeping face.

The young girl curtsied and hurried away to carry out Hades' orders.

He turned and began following Euanthe to Persephone's new chambers. Unbeknownst to him she stirred weakly in his arms and tried to open her eyes but only succeeded in opening them slightly. Her head was throbbing painfully and she felt like she was being carried. She looked up at whoever's arms cradled her weak body and settled upon his blurred face. Her sight was going in and out and she was only able to make out flashes of her capture. A man's rich dark hair and pale skin, a strong jaw, sharp contoured features, dark mysterious eyes...what was happening? The pain in her head and intense vertigo once again over took her and she lulled back into complete submission.