A Happy Family

A few days ago, the Moirai - the Fates - made an unexpected appearance in the throne hall of the Underworld.

Standing before Hades and Persephone, they came bringing with them the announcements of the Underworld children's titles.

Clotho – the youngest; blonde hair with bright green eyes – announced that Macaria shall be known as the Goddess of Blessed Death.

Lachesis – the middle sister; black hair with bright green eyes – announced that Melinoe shall be known as the Goddess of Ghosts.

Atropos – the oldest; red hair with bright green eyes – announced that Zagreus shall be known as the God of the Orphic Mysteries.

With that news and after the Fates had taken their leave, Hades and Persephone prepared a great feast for their divine children.

Today was the day of the feast. It would be held in the rarely-used ballroom of the palace. It was lavished with beautiful decorations, had a great banquet table which held plenty of the most delicious of food and drink from the Aboveworld and had all of the Underworld court entertainers to perform beautiful music. All of the Underworld deities had been invited, including Hermes who was of partial Underworld title as Hermes Kthonios, and the event was sure to be a great one.

But while Hades was in the ballroom to oversee the final preparations of his children's celebration, Persephone was spending time in the Elysian Fields with them. They were all in a meadow nearby a small lake. The area was quiet and peaceful; hidden away from the souls who inhabited the Fields.

Macaria and Melinoe were playing together in the middle of the meadow, giggling and shouting joyfully as they clapped their hands and twirled around each other. Nearby, Persephone sat under a tree, with Zagreus seated in her lap. As she watched her daughters play and ran her fingers through her son's hair, Persephone couldn't help but ponder about how much all three of them had grown now.

Macaria – the sweet, gentle and caring first child with long dark brown ringlets and orange eyes; a darker version of Persephone – seemed like the perfect embodiment of a Goddess of Blessed Death. She had started going with Thanatos sometimes on his spree to collect souls, having permission from her father. While Thanatos collected the souls who were to be sent to the Underworld, Macaria would try her best to soothe their sad spirits and even ensure some good souls a happy afterlife. Judging by the fact that some good souls did in fact manage to gain entrance to the Elysian Fields after being blessed by her, it was obvious that she was doing a very good job. And throughout their time together, it was obvious that Thanatos and Macaria did have some sort of special bond between themselves; a bond that seemed more 'loving' than 'friendly'. Persephone knew that she wouldn't be surprised if Thanatos was to wish to court Macaria if she has already grown to maturity.

Melinoe – the brave, eager but somewhat mischievous second child with silky-straight shoulder-length hair of black with russet brown streaks and dark black eyes with flecks of bright amber; a mix of Hades and Persephone – truly fitted her role as the Goddess of Ghosts. She had followed Thanatos and Macaria to the Aboveworld on some occasions, finally getting permission to do so by her parents. And each time she came back, Macaria would tell stories of how her mischievous little sister would stray some souls away, usually to nearby towns. Melinoe herself would recall with an amused laugh about how dogs would start barking frantically for 'unknown reasons' if she and the souls were nearby, and how mortals would scream in fright and panic at the sight of her spooky glowing eyes and how she would playfully shout shrilly and wail like a moaning spirit. Persephone would laugh at her tales, and so would Hades.

Zagreus – the quiet, shy and calm last child with coal black hair that fell in slight waves to the half of his ears and coal black eyes; a lighter version of Hades – was still young, and did not know what exactly to do with his title of the God of Orphic Mysteries. But truthfully, he did not have to do much. His role was just to receive prayers from the Orphic people; people who studied the teachings of the prophet Orpheus, who had once descended into the Underworld and ascended back to the Aboveworld. However, there had been some strange and somewhat ridiculous tales among mortals that Zagreus was a previous incarnation of Dionysus; usually called 'the First-Born'. When Hades had heard of those tales, he would always snort and complain of how ridiculous they were, considering the fact that Dionysus was already alive and fully-grown before Zagreus was even born.

Despite their good titles, the three of them were only considered minor deities. However, Persephone did not care. To her and to Hades, they were still important in their eyes and the most precious treasures. They may not be as powerful and known as their Olympian family, but they were still powerful in their own rights as the royal children of the Underworld.

And if ever they were in trouble, Persephone knew that she and Hades would be there for them. They would forever be there for the three of them. They would nurture them, educate them, care for them, protect them and, most importantly, love them. They would never abandon their children; not now, not ever.

All of a sudden, Macaria and Melinoe stopped playing and called out happily for their father when they saw him walking towards them out of the trees. The girls rushed to him at the same time and Hades knelt down and outstretched his arms just in time for them to run into his embrace.

Zagreus then stood up from Persephone's lap to allow her to stand as well. She held his hand as the both of them walked to Hades and the girls. When Hades noticed them approaching, he released his daughters to take his son into his embrace. While in his father's arms, Zagreus placed a hand-woven wreath of four-leafed clovers on his head. He had been learning from his mother to weave wreaths for fun, and that had been his first successful one.

Hades touched the wreath gently as he smiled and said his thanks to his son. And then, he rose to his full height to meet Persephone.

With a smile, Persephone lifted her hands to his head and adjusted the green clover wreath properly. But then, she leaned in to give her husband a gentle kiss, to which he responded back with equal gentleness.

Finally, when they pulled apart, they took the hands of their children and proceeded to make their way back to the palace together, as one perfect family.

End of Children of the Underworld

Final Author's Note:

Alright! We have finally come to the end!

Wow, I really did not expect this story to be so well-liked by you guys, my lovely readers. Now, Children of the Underworld had taken over The Reincarnation as my most reviewed fanfiction! Yay! :D

I'm just glad that many of you loved it! And I'm also glad with how it all worked out. I especially loved being able to write about sweet Macaria, cheeky Melinoe and shy Zagreus. Also, I loved writing about Hades and Persephone being parents. So sweet!

Anyway, most of you are probably waiting for me to reveal what is going to be next on my list. Many of tried to guess, but only one person got the right guess by PM. But I really didn't tell her which one, since she gave me two answers.

So congrats, Brimo! My next project is... DIONYSUS!

I bet none of you were expecting that, were you? Alright, I've decided to do Dionysus and his story with his beloved wife Ariadne, since I love to write stories about not-so-much-written characters in Greek Mythology. Dionysus isn't getting as much love as he deserves on this website, so I decided to dedicate my next project entirely to him! I really do hope you guys would love it.

The story will be titled Drunk on Love and the prologue will be released on Monday. However, until Monday, I've decided to gift you guys a one-shot about your favorite Goddess of Blessed Death, and the man she like likes, the God of Death.

That's right, MacariaXThanatos shippers! I've released a loving one-shot about them for you guys! It's called Love Transcends Death and it is now available on my profile page for you guys to read! Hope you would love it!

So, as I end this on a good note, thank you so much for reading! :D

Muse of Fanfiction