So, I'm a huge fan of Greek mythology (always have been). I'm also a huge fan of Percy Jackson (NOT the movie). My two favorite stories of Greek mythology have always been "Hades and Persephone" and "Eros and Psyche". I even have statues of "The Rape of Proserpina" by Bernini and "Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss" by Canova in my bedroom.

I'm not entirely certain where this is going, but it's been driving me mad for months now.

Kore is pronounced Core-ay and is one of Persephone's names.

AU from season 2

There will be two prequel chapters to help set the scene.

Sorry about the formal tone in this chapter, it just felt right to me.

Warning: Incest (It's Greek mythology, what did you expect?)

xoxoxo

"Oh, Hermes, if you have any sympathy in your entire body you will beat me, over the head, to death, with your caduceus." Hades let out a much beleaguered sigh as he eyed his brother's palace banquet hall with ageless weary.

Hermes released an amused chuckle and surveyed the room and all of its occupants. "It isn't that horrible. Besides, we only have these family gatherings once a century. How painful can it possibly be for you to endure a single night?"

"Observe your half-sister Aphrodite for half a moment. She hasn't stopped glancing at me and whispering mischievously to Artemis since I arrived. This promises to be a long and arduous night."

"What did you do to anger her so much?" Hermes nudged his shoulder against Hades, flashing his uncle a sly smile in the process.

"Nothing you are accusing me of. I swear on my mother I have never touched that woman in a familiar way." Shaking his head, Hades sighed yet again. "She is love. I am death. I inevitably undo all of her glorious work. She hates me like a young beauty hates the ravages of time."

"I didn't take you as the poetic type, Hades." By now the two gods had found themselves at a long banquet-style table. One of Dionysus's Maenads, his female servants, poured wine for them.

"Occasionally your half-brother Apollo inspires me."

"With that being said, I must go see my siblings. As messenger, there is always much work to be done." Hermes tipped his glass to his friend before heading off on his way.

Hades turned towards the buffet table. It was piled high with the finest meats of the land, sea and air, the best fruits and vegetables from the world over, cheeses, alcohols, breads: a feast worthy only of the gods. Always the awkward outcast at such gatherings, he self-consciously began picking at the various fares, occasionally shooting glances over his shoulder to see which of his relatives were speaking ill of him or simply glaring at him distastefully.

He found himself contemplating several varieties of cheeses when a slender arm reached past him towards a bowl of lush, ripe fruit. The arm, belonging to a short, young wisp of a girl, couldn't quite reach the bowl. Smiling down at what he assumed to be a young nymph he raised the bowl and drew it closer to her. The young girl selected a particularly red pomegranate and returned his smile pleasantly. "Thank you, Uncle."

Hades furrowed his brow in confusion. "Forgive my ignorance; who are you?"

Her smile grew wider; generally, when dealing with her relatives, being a young girl with no power, position, or domain, she was generally asked 'whose are you?' "I am Kore, daughter of your sister, Demeter."

Hades nodded solemnly, "I seem to recall hearing something about that. Well, my niece, it's a pleasure to meet you." He meant it. It was nice, for once, to be treated as a man, rather than the God of Death. Most mortals met him with fear, accusation or loathing, his siblings with petty distaste, his siblings' offspring with unrestrained scorn. It grew tiresome very quickly. He watched her as her tiny child-fingers worked the pomegranate over, slowly relieving it of its skin, and one by one, its seeds. "You must greatly love the taste of the pomegranates to put so much effort into such tiny rewards."

She smiled back up at him; her bright eyes shining as she coyly pinched a seed into her mouth. "They are my favorite of my mother's bounty."

Hades felt something stirring inside: a strange and foreign feeling, not entirely welcome, but not entirely uncomfortable either.

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"Eros, my son, come to me." Eros dutifully went to the sound of his mother's voice. "Do you see what I see?"

Eros followed his mother's gaze, spotting Hades alongside Demeter's young daughter. "It appears Uncle has met Kore."

Aphrodite let out a short, shrill laugh, unbecoming of someone with her beauty. "Oh, it is so much more than that, my son. He likes her. Imagine the audacity? He ruins the greatest of my work and I have sworn to myself that he shall never feel the soothing warmth of love nor the fiery passion of lust. I may have been too quick to pledge that to myself, however." Aphrodite petted her son affectionately. She had cursed him to never love as well, too afraid of losing her loyal little pet. But what he didn't know, couldn't hurt, could it? "What is the one thing worse than never knowing love, my sweet?"

Eros contemplated a moment. "To love that which you can never have?"

Aphrodite smiled. "Exactly. Demeter hates the God of Death almost as much as I do. And she treasures her daughter more than all of humanity. I say we let Hades endure his little crush on Kore. Your arrows will make his love for her burn like a thirst that cannot be quenched." Eros felt a sinking feeling in his gut. He hated when his mother got like this. "And Demeter will never approve of Hades. She will approve of no man. Kore will forever be a young maiden like Artemis. And Hades will forever pine for her." Stroking Eros' face, she turned him to look at her. "We'll strike after the party."

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Eros watched Kore playing with her half-sisters (by their father, Zeus), Athena and Artemis as well as some woodland nymphs. From his hiding spot he could see her plainly, as well as the road he knew Hades to be traveling on. He strung the strongest of his arrows and aimed it up the road, awaiting Hades' arrival over the horizon. He felt horrible about this. He bore his uncle no ill will. And there was no way Kore could come out of this unscathed…unless…unless…

With an aim as true as Apollo's, Eros unleashed the arrow the moment Hades' chariot became a dot on the horizon. Being a magical arrow, Hades was unaware of being struck by anything but a sudden, overwhelming urge to see his young niece again.

As Hades' chariot came closer, Eros made up his mind. Quickly stringing a second arrow, he pivoted and took aim at the young girl frolicking in the flowers. With a nearly inaudible twang, the arrow soared through the trees and struck young Kore square in the heart. Suddenly losing interest in the daisy chains she had been constructing, she wandered away from her companions, something drawing her towards the road. Her mother would be angry with her, but she felt as though something were calling to her. As she neared the ruts, worn into the dirt road by wheels, she could see Hades' black chariot and steeds approaching. She felt a sudden excited heaviness in heart. Moments later, the chariot was upon her. Before she could react, Hades scooped her up and slung her over his shoulder. Startled, confused and frightened, Kore let out a panicked scream before the chariot raced into a hole in the ground as the Earth swallowed them up.

When Demeter discovered her beloved daughter missing, she forbid the Earth to grow, holding the mortal world hostage until her daughter could be found.

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"Please, my love, stop crying." Hades kneeled on the ground before his own throne where he had placed his prize. "You will be happy here. I promise you that. I will deny you nothing. You shall rule beside me as my queen and I shall name you Persephone." He tentatively placed a hand on the crying girl's knee, afraid of frightening her more. "I have instructed my servant, Ascalaphus, to plant you your very own pomegranate orchard. Will that make you happy?" When she kept sniffling, refusing to even look up at him, he continued on, "I am the god of wealth. Would you like some pretty jewels? They grow like fruit from the trees of the Underworld. You will be the finest lady in all the world, my love, just please say something to me."

"Why?"

Hades smiled an indulgent smile like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Why? Because I love you. I love you like I have loved no other. And unlike my kin, I swear I shall never love another."

"You didn't need to kidnap me." Hade stroked the wet and matted hair away from her eyes. "I love you too, you need only have asked."

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"I swear if you don't tell me where she is, every last human on Earth will starve." Demeter attempted to stare down the council of Olympians; Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Athena, Hestia, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes and Dionysus. Several fidgeted uncomfortably, namely, Hermes, Apollo, and Zeus.

After several tense moments, Zeus broke the silence. "I feel your pain sister. I too suffer the loss of our daughter." Demeter sent a truly hateful look his way; he had never had any place in her life save the conception. Sensing Demeter's tangible anger at him, he licked his lips and continued on. "The fact remains, we cannot tell you what we do not know."

Demeter, feigning an air of reason, nodded her accordance with that statement. "So be it, then 'the fact remains' that not so much as a blade of grass shall grow upon the entirety of the wretched Earth until my daughter is found and returned to me." Scanning her audience, Demeter saw that they looked unmoved. "And, in case you need reminding, mortals require the fruit of the land to live. If they die, there shall be none to pray to you, none to worship and fear your name, none to sacrifice the fat of their stock to you." As she listed off each loss the gods would suffer, more and more began to look nervous. Several began whispering amongst themselves.

Taking a deep breath, Apollo stepped forward. "I see all that happens under the light of the sun. Your daughter is with Hades. He has taken her to his domain."

Demeter's lip began to quiver with disgust.

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"Uncle Hades! You are found out!"

Hades looked up from his work to see Hermes flying into his throne room. The enormity of Hermes' words sunk in slowly. Standing up and knocking aside stacks of parchment documenting the inventory of the Underworld, Hades grasped his chest directly over his heart. "I cannot…I cannot lose her, Hermes."

Hermes placed his palms on Hades' shoulders, steadying him. "All is not lost yet, there is hope. Where is she now?"

Hades thought that over, when she left their bedchamber this morning, where had she said she was going? "The orchards…she's in the orchards."

Hermes nodded, "All the better."

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Hermes quickly found Ascalaphus and gave him very detailed instructions. "Do you understand? A god cannot lead her astray by lying so bluntly, but you, a nymph, can do this for your master." Ascalaphus nodded. Hades had always been a good master to him and he would willingly give his life for him. "Do you swear that you act of your own free will?" Ascalaphus swore. "Do you swear that I am not leading you astray? That you know what you are to say is a lie?" Ascalaphus swore. "Good. Be on with it then."

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Ascalaphus held a pomegranate in his hand. He peeled the skin back as he watched his mistress swinging from a bench under one of her trees. "Are you hungry, my lady?"

Persephone looked up at the servant her husband had given her. He was a beautiful nymph, born to the Underworld and forever young. "The law of the Fates is that those who eat or drink in the Underworld must remain forever. I could not live knowing I'd never see the sun again."

Ascalaphus smiled. "Such a law is not for those such as yourself. Such a law is for mortals. Not gods. Have you not seen Hermes drink of my master's wine? Or eat of these very orchards?" Persephone contemplated that. "And does he not come and go as he pleases?"

Ascalaphus held his hand out to Persephone. Cupping her hand beneath his, Ascalaphus dropped six plump pomegranate seeds into her awaiting grasp.

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Hades tried to maintain his composure as his sister screamed at him. His youngest brother stood beside her, attempting to keep her under control. "Where is she? I will cast you down into Tartarus myself if you don't return her!"

Hades raised his eyes to the door as Ascalaphus entered, followed closely by Persephone. "Momma!" Persephone raced into her mother's open arms. She truly did love her husband, but after spending so many years by her mother's side, it was only natural that she yearned for her.

"Oh, my baby girl! How I have missed you!" The two women continued their embrace.

Zeus and Hades eyed each other over wearily. Zeus regretted that his brother was losing his bride, especially since he had never before sought one, but, it was what it was. Looking over at his daughter and her mother, Zeus sighed with sorrow for his brother, but couldn't help noticing how calm he was about all of this. "Are we done here, Brother?" Hades nodded. Zeus once again returned his attention to Demeter. "Come on, let us depart this place."

Demeter, her hand firmly clasped on Persephone's shoulder turned her back to Hades and steered Persephone away from him. Hades stood up from his throne. "Sister, hold." Demeter, Zeus, and Persephone all turned to face Hades. "You may see her; you may not have her."

Releasing her daughter, Demeter stormed up to her eldest brother. "She is my daughter. Neither her father nor I gave you our blessing. She is mine and you have no RIGHT to her."

Hades took a steadying breath, it wasn't often he stood up to his siblings. Despite being the oldest, and therefore having some limited authority over them, he was naturally a very non-confrontational person. Persephone was the first thing, living or otherwise, to steer him from his usual calm, logical, and impassive demeanor. "I may not, but the Underworld does."

Demeter narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

Ascalaphus stepped forward. "She has consumed food while in the Underworld. By the laws of the Fates, she is bound to it."

Persephone, outrage written plain across her features ran up to Ascalaphus, "You told me the law did not apply to the gods!"

Demeter's face fell. "Daughter, say you didn't!"

Persephone pointed accusatorily at Ascalaphus "He told me…" She then turned to Hermes; "You dine with Hades often, how are you immune to the law?"

Hermes shrugged. "I feast on that which is sacrificed in my name. No god can be denied his sacrifices; that law supersedes the law that the Fates have set forth."

Persephone shook her head, realizing she was doomed to eternity in the Underworld. Demeter turned a vengeful eye on Ascalaphus. "You…you devious, treacherous, wretched little worm!" Demeter held her hand up towards Ascalaphus, a sparkling orb of energy in her grasp.

"I forbid you from harming my servant!"

Demeter shot her brother a hateful look. The orb changed in color and intensity. Leaving her hand like the arrow had from Eros' bow, the orb shot at Ascalaphus, enveloping him in light and crackling energy. When the power flare had died down, a small owl was in his place. "I may not be permitted to harm your servant, but know this, dear brother," she spit the words like venom, "all life now suffers and dies because of you."

Hades returned the hate in Demeter's eyes, ounce for ounce. "I have done nothing. I took a bride, as all gods are right to do so. What else have I ever asked of my siblings, my family? I go about my work, as it must be done and am loathed for it. You think I wanted to be stuck with this accursed world of darkness?"

"No, so you punish others for your unhappiness!"

"I do not punish others! I seek my own happiness. Would you deny me that?"

"No, but I would gladly deny you my daughter!"

Zeus' voice roared out like thunder, "ENOUGH! Demeter, you cannot kill off all life. Hades, you cannot keep this child you have unlawfully tricked."

"I didn't-"

"You did and you know it, Brother. Now…let us reach a consensus."

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Persephone, though she loved her husband dearly, loved her mother just as fondly. So after much debate, much arguing, many thrown tables, and damaged walls, an agreement was reached. Persephone would stay with her husband for six months out of the year and with her mother for six.

Demeter, to remind the world of Hades' treachery, swore to make the Earth barren during her daughter's absence, which, in her opinion, had the added benefit of increasing Hades' workload during the time he had with his wife since more people die during the height of winter than summer.

Persephone, as soon as she was alone with her husband, after all had been settled, despite caring for him very much, made certain to display her displeasure at being tricked by slapping him as hard as she could across the face when he least expected it.

Though not as active in the affairs of mortals as their relatives, during the height of Grecian and Roman civilization they did play their part.

As per his promise, Hades did remain the most loyal of husbands (by god standards), having only two mishaps regarding other women (all due to Aphrodite's meddling) that Persephone was quick to set right.

And though they tried wholeheartedly, they found that new-life was not suited to the Underworld and that they could not conceive the family they so desperately desired…until.

xoxoxo

So, this is the first prequel. The second will deal with how they were finally able to have David.

For anyone who thinks I've said something wrong about Greek mythology, I have done my fair share of consulting with different texts (relying more so on the original stories [translated into English of course] and NOT the modern, dumbed down children and school versions). Bare in mind that these stories were told by dozens of different scholars during the Ancient Grecian era, so some thing are bound to change between the different versions (most notably, the number of pomegranate seeds. I decided to go with six [as opposed to four] since it's more fair to Hades). And of course some liberties have been taken for the story's sake!