Hades .

"O Mother, look! The fields seem so scorched and sad," a young girl groaned, her face was marred with distress. "They need more tending and growing. Please allow me, mother. I promise I will be quick."

The older woman sitting behind her sighed softly. She leaned forward and whispered into a small delicate ear.

"My sweet child, not today," she said, her hands were still busy braiding the girl's beautiful golden lock. "You will tend to your fields after our return."

The woman, whose blonde head was crowned with chaplets of corn, was Demeter - goddess of the cornfield, mistress of planting and harvesting, and lady of the fertile earth. With only a clap of her hands, the grapes sprung forth along the low lines of the arbor and the wheat ripened like a golden carpet. She was adored by the people of Greece. They would bow and pray, "O, Demeter, Mother of fertility, bless us with a bountiful harvest this year." They would bow and toss flowers at the feet of her statue. In her temples, sacred groves were offered on the altar.

The lovely girl on her lap was Persephone - the maiden of the beautiful ankles. Demeter loved this daughter above all things. Persephone was raised amongst flowers and looked like a flower herself. Her body was as lithe as a stem, her skin as soft as petals, and she had pansy bright green eyes. The young maiden took charge of flowers for her mother. She was adept at making up new kinds and naming them.

Persephone was growing up fast and free, always running beneath the sunshine and azure skies. Her glowing beauty was so ravishing that it attracted all sorts of gentle creatures wherever she went. She loved cavorting with rabbits, fawns, and other animals from the grotto of her favorite cousin Pan, god of the wild. Now the girl was on the verge of womanhood, being pampered even more so by the Barley-Mother herself.

The two goddesses were resting under a fragrant green bower while listening to the hum of praises and prayers from mortals through the vines. Then Demeter reached her hand over and plucked a newly-formed bud on the ground. The bud quickly blossomed into a beautiful white flower -a narcissus. Its golden pollens emitted a pleasant fragrance. Everything her mother touched came alive and beautiful. Persephone was in constant awe of her.

"Mother, you must teach me that!" Persephone exclaimed. Demeter smiled kindly as she placed the flower in her daughter's silken hair, which she had done braiding and oiling. Normally, this was the task of the Seirenes, the nymphs who had been Persephone's handmaidens since childhood. But this day was a special occasion. The earth goddess turned her child around and admired that sweet innocent beauty she saw. Demeter smiled fondly at her beloved daughter.

"In due time, my dear girl," Demeter said, "Now, we must not keep the other gods waiting."

Persephone nodded, though she had been dreading this meeting for quite some time. The young goddess mostly wanted to be left alone with her flowers. She would rather wander about with her mother's wood nymphs or play with the pups of wild wolves. She could stay in their perfect gardens, among the trees in the Immortal Forest -their home -and let the earth cradle her as its own child.

But not today.

They were readying themselves to meet the other Olympians. It was her first time entering the Pantheon of the Gods. Demeter shall present her to the King of Heaven - her father.

Zeus, the youngest son of the Titan Cronos and Rhea, was her sire. He was the King of Gods. The other gods in the Pantheon were also his children. Together, the twelve chief gods, including Demeter, had reigned for some three thousand years now.

The young goddess had never seen the Sky Lord in person, let alone the rest. She had heard tales of the king through the gossiping birds. Zeus would come down to earth in pursuit of wood nymphs. Hera couldn't provide him with pleasure, or that she simply loathed his ego too much to even care. Once or twice, Persephone even chanced upon a nymph who had just narrowly escaped his lust in her mother's wood. The incidence left her running into the arms of her mother, trembling with a kind of fear she had never known. Now the thought of going to his palace awoke deep anxiety within her heart.

Her mother, the tall green-clad goddess, rose from the bower and gazed at the brilliant blue sky.

"It's time to go, Persephone," she said. Persephone was dressed in her most beautiful white tunic. She wore a gold circlet gleaming in her hair and a woven gold belt around her dainty waist. There were also bracelets around her lovely ankles.

"I am afraid, mother," the girl spoke at last. Her hands fumbled over the edge of her flowing silk as she shifted her feet in nervousness. Demeter turned to her daughter and cupped her soft rosy cheeks in her hands.

"Don't be afraid," she said gently, "Olympus is our home, too."

"But I don't know anyone," Persephone said.

"They are your kith and kins. You shall meet them and they shall welcome you as a true Olympian," her mother replied and then embraced her. The young goddess felt the golden warmth, smelled the green, earthy scent, and she was somehow able to calm her anxious mind.

"Come now, sweet child."

They walked to the field together. The Seirenes awaited them beside a light wicker chariot drawn by a swift pair of winged serpents called drakones. Demeter ordered the nymphs to look after the forest during their absence.

"Do not let any mortal wander in," she said to them. "If I catch you trysting with one of the demigods, I will turn you into slugs."

The nymphs lowered their heads in respect. Demeter and Persephone mounted their chariot. After a sharp sound of the flicking rein, the drakones snarled and flapped their mighty wings, then sped through the field. They flew skyward, soaring above the clouds and heading towards the snow-peaks of Mount Olympus.

The clouds opened up and swallowed them.

The earth goddess steered their chariot towards the gigantic golden door.

When they landed on the grand causeway, Demeter put an encouraging hand on the small of Persephone's back, coaxing her out of the chariot. Then she guided her daughter through the courtyard. When minor gods, celestial nymphs, and satyrs who lingered around the gardens saw Demeter and her gallant daughter, they came over, bowing and welcoming them to the palace.

The majestic buildings were so contrasted to what Persephone was used to. Marble columns rose high and disappeared into the clouds. The unending space of countless constellations was the ever-changing ceiling above them.

There was noisy chattering inside. She could tell the gods were drinking nectar and feasting on ambrosia, laughing uproariously amongst themselves. Their powerful voices blended in with the songs and lyre music. It felt so particularly strange to think that they were her family. She willed her hands to stop trembling and raised her head high as befitting the daughter of an elder goddess.

Then a disembodied voice of a herald proclaimed so loudly, piercing through every ear.

"Here come Goddess Demeter and her daughter Persephone!"

Once inside the court, she saw the chief gods sitting on their throne. All pairs of jewel-like eyes gleamed at her mother and her. Persephone looked back in awe at those perfect golden faces and she felt as if she was shrinking smaller from embarrassment. Then they began to gather around the two goddesses, greeting them with warm words.

"Demeter, my dear sister, welcome back home!" one of the goddesses spoke. Her mother bowed to her. Persephone recognized the kind-looking woman as Hestia, the oldest sister of the Olympians. She was dressed in a simple dress and her throne was a plain wooden throne with a white woolen cushion.

Although there were twelve gods, Persephone could only see eleven thrones in the room.

Zeus rose from his seat and came towards her. His smile was dazzling and kind. His eyes were the color of the sky. He took her delicate hand in his and kissed it. Persephone greeted her father back with a bow.

"Daughter," he said, "you are as lovely as your mother had informed me. Come meet your family."

He introduced her first to his queen, Hera, who acknowledged her with a soft grunt. Her uncle, Poseidon, the sea god, also took her hand and kissed it.

"You're even lovelier than your mother, dear child," he complimented her. Demeter gave him a sharp look, and he retreated into silence again.

Her father introduced her to Athena, the armor-clad goddess. She had piercing dark eyes, a helmet on her head, an attire with an aegis, and an extremely long spear. Her crystal shield also had the head of the Gorgon on it. Persephone had never seen this goddess before. She now realized how insignificant she was compared to her half-sister. Athena looked at her with a soft gleam in her eyes though she said nothing.

"Demeter, your child is a blessing. She is even more beautiful than I had imagined," another goddess said, coming over to envelope Persephone in her arms. "She looks like she is destined for greatness."

The goddess wore a long white tunic, but it was woven of gauzy stuff dyed with the colors of the sunset. It was Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty and desire. Persephone could smell her rosy perfume in her lungs and she almost felt enchanted by it. Though her eyes were dazzled by Aphrodite's peerless beauty, she could almost see the look of subtle envy in the goddess' smile.

Then she was greeted by Hermes - the messenger of the gods, lord of thieves and travelers, master who could move freely between the worlds of the mortal and divine. He kissed her swiftly on the cheek, causing her face to form a maiden's blush.

"It is only fitting that father shall keep you among us," he said, "You belong here on the Great Olympus."

"Thank you but I would rather be with my mother on earth," Persephone replied coyly.

"What a shame," Hermes said.

Everyone took turns welcoming the young maiden. After a while, Persephone was somewhat pleased to see that the gods had accepted her wholeheartedly. She still preferred the calm and unsophisticated existence over this glorious life.

It was in that moment that the room behind them grew dark as a long shadow loomed over the interior. The burning torches on the columns burst into green flames. The silence fell on the gods like a heavy cloak. No one laughed or spoke. There was no clink of goblet or twang of the lyre. Everywhere, everyone fell to a mute spell as the black mist crept through the palace.

Persephone's mother came to her side quickly. She saw her mother's back straightened and her face grew pale. As the darkness drew like a curtain in the throne hall, Persephone also noticed the shudder in the minor gods and goddesses. They seemed to hold their breath for something. After three prolonged heartbeats, they heard the sound of footsteps upon the sleek marble floor and the light dimmed further.

"Hades has arrived!"

Persephone thought back to the tale her mother had told her of the three powerful siblings: Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, the fiercest of all the gods, who slew their father Cronos with his own scythe and destroyed the Titans. Then they shared the world, the sky, the sea, and the dark realm below. The other two brothers chose the better ones, leaving Hades with no choice but to reign over a barren kingdom of the dead.

Because the gloomy underworld was opposed to the bright heavenly Olympus, Hades was not accepted as an Olympian god and was never invited to supper in Zeus's grandiose abode. Hardly anyone mentioned Hades' name.

Artemis and Apollo, the twin gods appeared by their father's side, whispering behind their hands. Persephone felt the chill creeping up her spine as she looked at the strange happening.

A tall shadow floated into the room slowly and silently.

Then everything stopped.

Persephone gripped her mother's arm and Demeter comforted her young daughter with a soft pat. When the girl looked up again, she saw to the amazement of her mind a tall woman standing in the midst of sprawling dark mist.

The woman's eyes were black like obsidian gems. Her pale cream-colored skin shone in contrast to her long flowing cloak. Her immaculate night-colored strands of silken hair cascaded down her straight back.

The lines of her narrow jaw, nose, and cheekbones were high and proud. These made her mesmerizing like the starless sky at night.

Persephone couldn't decide at first whether the goddess was beautiful or frightening. She finally decided that the woman was both.

Her heart skipped as she was lost in those black stirring eyes. She had always thought of Hades as a man, a gruesome monarch of the Underworld, but now she was confused and intrigued.

Zeus came forward.

"Sister," he said to the goddess, "I did not know you would grace us with your presence tonight."

"I thought you all had forgotten about me," the black-robbed goddess spoke, "so I decided to come and see what the special occasion you are celebrating."

Her voice was like cold liquid, soft and melodious, but also like a piece of hauntingly sad music.

"It's Demeter's daughter coming of age," Poseidon said, "We knew you wouldn't care to join us since you might prefer the company of the dead."

There was snickering amongst the gods; however, Hades's enigmatic face remained still and placid as if she were wearing a mask.

"Persephone," Demeter whispered to her so she yanked her gaze from the unsettling presence.

"Yes, mother," the girl said. In that instance, she did not see Hades' head tilted towards the sound of her bell-chiming voice. The dark goddess turned and her eyes lit as she found the source. Hades thus began to watch the young goddess so intensely.

"We shall leave now," Demeter whispered and hastily pulled her along by the elbow. Persephone didn't have time to ask for clarity and she simply followed her mother. But as they started to leave, Hades cut them off and was suddenly standing before them, looking tall, majestic, and intimidating.

"Demeter, my sister, is that your daughter?" she asked in a tender voice. Persephone's mother frowned disapprovingly but she could not refuse to answer Hades.

"Yes, she is mine," the earth mother said curtly.

Then in a blink, the dark goddess took Persephone's small hand in hers. She turned it over and kissed it with soft chilling lips, leaving the faintest dusting of gold there. Persephone felt her heart jumped to her throat. It was a different sensation unlike when the other gods kissed her. She could feel something else, something sweet and warm, yet terrifying.

"What's your name, lovely one?" Hades asked the demure girl.

"Persephone," she murmured back.

"Such a beautiful name," Hades said.

Demeter was not at all pleased with her sister's advancement.

"Excuse us Hades, but we are leaving," she said and quickly steered her daughter away from the goddess.

Hades's dark piercing eyes followed them as they left the hall.

She knew deep in her heart that this was not the last time she and Persephone would cross paths.

Beyond the grave and funeral pyre lay a land of shadow and eternal gloom, the Underworld. Dead souls taken by the messenger of the gods, Hermes, were brought down through gloomy caverns and long winding underground paths until they came to the five rivers.

Charon, the ferryman, waited across the black shore of Styx by the Gates of Hades. The three-headed hound, Cerberus, who had an appetite for live flesh, would attack anyone but spirits. There lived the dead - heroes and cowards, shepherds, priests, and minstrels. They wandered back and forth aimlessly, waiting for their turn to be ferried across.

Once they had crossed the ink-black river, the souls must wait again for the trail by the three judges -Minos, Rhadamanthys, and Aeacus, the netherworld demigods.

Brave heroes might find themselves assigned to the blissful Elysian Fields, the Isles of the Blessed, where they can relive the joys of life. Those whose crimes warrant a sentence to eternal punishment were sent to the darkest regions of Erebus or down the pit of Tartarus.

There stood a great palace made of black rock and crystal, the abode of a tall slender goddess Hades. Her majestic black robe and puissant look made those around her cower in fear. Mortals were afraid to even mention her name. Very few knew her as Áïda. Perhaps for fear of pronouncing it, they started calling her Hades.

At the end of each day, Hades normally demanded a headcount of the dead from Charon. But now, she sat slump on her throne, sighing heavily to herself. Charon's report of arriving souls was evidently ignored. His mistress's mind seemed adrift elsewhere. Since her return from Olympus, Hades was pensive and negligent of her works. All day, she drank wine and sighed. The ferryman dared not interrupt his mistress' stupor. He somehow wondered what had possessed her thoughts.

"Should I continue, Great Hades?" Charon asked.

The goddess came back to her senses and looked at her servant.

"No need," she simply said, rubbing her temple with long slender fingers, "Let's finish it tomorrow. Surely, the dead can wait. Ask Minos to herd them off to the Field of Asphodel. I can't stand them twittering like bats around my palace."

"Yes, my lady." Charon bowed and left the throne room.

The palace grounds and the surrounding fields were called Erebus. This was the deepest part of the Underworld. No birds flew there, but the sounds of wings could be heard from the three fearsome creatures who had just returned. These were Tisiphone, Alecto, and Megaera, the Furies, the Eumenides, or the Kindly Ones. They were hags, with snarky hair, red-hot eyes, and yellow sharp teeth. They slashed through the air over Erebus Field towards Hades' palace. They carried with them metal-studded whips. If they found a victim, they would whip the flesh from his bones. Their normal task was to visit the earth and punish evil-doers, but this time, it was of a different matter.

When they reached the goddess of the dead, they circled low over the sparkling black ceiling, screaming their songs and the latest gossips from the world above.

Hades's mood promptly shifted when she saw her servants wild with news. But soon the Furies' dramatic enthusiasm irritated the goddess.

Hades stood up from her throne and bellowed in a sharp voice.

"Get down at once and give me what you were asked to seek!"

The Kindly Ones came down and bowed before their mistress.

"O Hades, ever the impatient one," Megaera said then hissed at her two other sisters, "Silence, you old hags! She wishes to know the news of the dainty maiden."

Though they knew Hades valued them, the Furies would rather stay away from their mistress' wrath. The hags of hell finally began narrating what they had gathered from the upper realm. Demeter's child was a virgin of such remarkable beauty that she was kept hidden from the eyes of wishful suitors for all of her life. The young lovely goddess spent her days idyllically gathering fragrant flowers in the fields of Nysa, which spread as far as the eyes could see. During the long summery hours, Persephone helped her mother gather seeds to pollinate and sow the fertile earth with. When Persephone smiled, Demeter's heart swelled with pride and happiness, and the crops grew high and healthy as flowers tumbled and bloomed everywhere.

"She has been shielded away by her doting mother," the Furies said, "and carefully kept from dangers that could befall so fair a creature."

"How is Persephone now?" Hades asked.

"She is fine and blossoming like the flowers which surround her sanctuary, my lady."

The more the dark goddess heard about Persephone, the more her heart burned with the hot golden ichor, rushing through her veins. If Hades wasn't a goddess, she could have been sure she was under some powerful curse she hadn't known. Or was it a spell of Aphrodite?

Hades never realized that her cold nonchalant heart could feel such things until she met the lovely maiden. That night, Hades felt the sweet confusion and grew dizzy with joy and strangeness. She had seen mortals become stupid and mad in love. They fought, killed, sacrificed, and even died for it. Now she fell victim to the same spell.

None could hardly blame Hades for her great yearning. The Underworld was the realm of the darkness, populated by the dead. Persephone's radiance could surely enliven her kingdom. There was no one more dazzling than the daughter of the earth goddess. She remembered how those eyes, the color of the emerald forest, enraptured her entire being. Persephone had the face of all the beauty in the world.

Hades sat back in her great ebony throne and drew in a long deep breath. She still relished at the thought of her lips touching that soft beautiful skin. It made her body tingle with strange needs. All of a sudden, Persephone had become more precious than anything on earth or heaven.

"Do you think I should go to Demeter and ask for Persephone?" the passionate and besotted goddess asked her three servants.

"A waste of time, Hades," Alecto said truthfully, "Demeter has an obsessed love for this child. Undoubtedly, she will never oblige to your wish."

The goddess was not used to being denied of what she wanted. Though not being regarded as the Olympian, she was still a powerful goddess, ruler of the dark yet wealthy realm, an older daughter of the Titan Cronos and Rhea. Even Zeus would be reluctant to displease her. Nothing could stop the Mistress of Soul from having the maiden of her dream.

Hades leaned herself back and closed her eyes.

She must have Persephone.

~*~

One warm sun-kissed morning, Persephone lay back on the long grasses by the idle stream which trickled through the paddock at the end of the garden. Bees hummed above the lapping waters and butterflies glided and came to rest beside the serene young maiden. An eager toad jumped at the darting dragonflies. It was a beautiful day in the summer. Persephone's beauty was accentuated by the lush green grass and by the handsome expression which embraced her exquisite features. Under the cascade of sunlight, she could hear the gentle voices of the Seirenes, singing and laughing in between whispered secrets. They gathered handfuls of purple crocuses, royal blue irises, and sweet-smelling hyacinths. They were making flower crowns for her.

Persephone had not thought of the night at Olympus after their return, but once in a while, a pair of bright obsidian eyes haunted her mind like a shadow. She quickly dismissed that unsettling feeling that seemed to itch in her heart. After getting tired of her handmaiden's gossips, Persephone decided to slip away and find a spot where she could be alone.

Across a stream through a grove of trees to a little glade, the birds sang and flowers danced as Persephone strolled through the path. She carried her paint pot along since she had seen a stand of tall waxy pale iris and lilies she had decided to stripe. It was her joy to paint their faces with colors she thought was best fitted for each kind.

As she went about painting iris, lilies, daisies, asters, and daffodils, she saw a vision of the most enchanting flower blooming on the ground. Persephone knew it was the narcissus, her favorite. She thought of bringing some to her mother and went farther to gather them.

Not far from the flowers was a strange bush with thick, green, glossy leaves. It was hung with large red berries that trembled on their stems like drops of blood. She leaned over to inspect it. As Persephone stood, staring curiously at the mysterious bush, she could not decide whether she liked it or not. The maiden who was always particular about plants and flowers found the scrub little to her liking.

She reached down to pluck up a handful of narcissus nearby from their resting ground, but it was toughly rooted and hard to pull apart from the bush. She was used to getting her own way so she set herself up for a mighty tug. Up came a bunch of beautiful white flowers with their bulky roots dragged out of the ground, leaving a big hole. She thought nothing of it and turned to go back to where she left her paint pot, but her feet began to tremble. She heard a rumbling sound and turned around to see what was happening. The noise that grew louder and louder was coming from the hole. To her horror, the earth fell away and seemed to be spreading and splitting open like a mouth. Then the rumbling grew to a jangling crashing din.

Out of the gaping crevice in the ground emerged six black horses, dragging behind them a golden chariot. In the chariot stood a tall awe-inspiring woman in a flowing black cape. On her head was a black crown. Her long moon shadow-black hair flowed like silk over her shoulders. Persephone was frozen by the sudden presence of the Underworld Monarch. She couldn't even think to utter a word before she was whisked off her feet by a pair of strong arms onto the golden chariot.

Persephone heard a crack of the whip upon the majestic horses. This brought her to her senses. As the anarchic beasts pulled the fiery chariot up into the air and back around, the young maiden realized she was about to be taken away into the black depths. The thought of this brought terror to her heart. When Persephone opened her mouth to cry for help, Hades's cold nectar-sweet lips drank all her screams. Then they plunged back down through the hole and her vision was soon lost within the darkness as they descended into the Underworld below.

After they had gone, the entrance promptly closed itself.

While Persephone's cries could not be heard above the ground, the pain in Demeter's heart quickly alerted her. The goddess knew that something was terribly wrong. Unable to stand the unease in her chest, Demeter left her dwelling and climbed onto the chariot, heading towards the field.

At the edge of the garden, she found the Seirenes scurrying hither and thither like a flock of blind birds. Demeter thus called upon them. When they heard her voice, the nymphs behaved frantically and looked panic-stricken. As the goddess' chariot approached, they began to huddle together like frightened fawns.

"It's almost eve. What silly game are you playing?" Demeter asked, "Have you seen my daughter?"

The Seirenes flinched from her questions but they remained silent. The Earth Goddess noticed the nymphs' ashen faces and frowned.

"What happened? Where is Persephone?" she asked again in a stern voice. One of them was shoved forward to answer. Her body was shaking like a leaf as she began to speak.

"We don't know where the young lady is," the maiden said, while the rest of them lowered their gazes to the ground, "We have been looking for her everywhere all noon."

"Are you telling me Persephone has been missing all this time?"

"I swear to the gods, my lady, she was just there with us but the next moment she was gone!" They sobbed. "We called for her and looked far and wide yet there's not a trace of where she might have gone astray."

Demeter felt a pang of terror and the grief struck her like lightning. She nearly dropped to her knees from the shock. When her shock was replaced by a gnawing rage from within her chest, Demeter stepped out of her chariot with fury-filled eyes.

"I entrusted my child to your care. How dare you deceive me?!" the goddess bellowed.

The nymphs fell to the ground and asked the goddess for her forgiveness. They were all trembling with fear.

"My lady, we beg for your mercy," they cried tearfully, "Let us redeem our wrong, please. We will help you look for Persephone."

"Then you shall go and find her in a form of bird-like monsters. Your wings shall carry you across the lands and seas so that all would know of my missing child. This is your punishment. You will not be released from it until someone hears your singing."

As soon as Demeter spoke, the Seirenes suddenly saw golden plumage cloaking all over their limbs. They now had feathers and feet of birds. Yet to preserve their glorious song and melodious enchantment, the goddess let them retain their fair maidens' face and sweet charming voice. It was both a blessing and a curse.

After the nymphs were made flying creatures by the will of Demeter, they wandered off, seeking their beloved mistress.

Twilight slowly descended upon the world. Demeter went on seeking her daughter from dusk to dawn, from sunrise until sunset, hour by hour without a moment of rest.

She sped here and there, calling out, "Persephone!...Persephone!"

But she heard no answer.

All day and night, Demeter kept looking for her missing daughter. She searched high and low, but it seemed the girl had vanished from the face of the earth. Consumed by worries and depression over her lost child, the goddess soon ceased to remember her worldly duties as Goddess of Grain and Growth. The plants withered and died all around her. The wheat color-haired lady grew sadder as she felt her own hopes began to fade.

She was weary and thirsty for no spring had wet her lips. Then she chanced upon a little cottage thatched with straw and knocked on its low door. An old lady came out to look at her. When she asked if the woman had seen a young maiden, the crone replied with a shake of her grey head. Sighing, Demeter instead asked her for some water, the woman brought out a sweet barley-flavoured drink. While the goddess drank, a saucy bold-faced boy stood by and laughed at her, calling her greedy. The goddess looked up. He stopped laughing. Demeter in mere irritation poured the unfinished drink with all the grains of barley over him.

Immediately, his cheeks came out in spots and where his arms had been, legs grew. A tail was added to his altered limbs. To keep his mischief small, he shrank until he was tinier than a lizard. The old crone was amazed, in tears, and bent down to touch the changeling creature, but it fled to find a hiding-crack.

It had a name to suit its coloured skin - a starry-spotted newt.

When dawn broke another day, Demeter returned to the forest and happened to pass by a glade. There the earth goddess saw the uprooted bush and the trampled grass. Then she saw something that stabbed her heart - Persephone's little paint pot overturned. Demeter leaped from her chariot. She listened to the flowers and trees and birds there. They began to whisper to her of a heedless girl, a strange bush, the hole, the chariot, and the black rider.

Demeter spoke softly, questioning them. They told her enough for her to know who had taken her beloved daughter. She lifted her face to the sky and howled with grief like a she-wolf. The earth rumbled and the birds scared out of the trees. The goddess put her face in her hands and wept.

After a moment of intense grief, she remounted her chariot and flew up to the home of gods. Demeter charged into the throne room where the King of Heaven sat. She began shunning the attention of Zeus as a father.

"Justice!" she cried, "I demand justice! Your sister has stolen my daughter - our daughter!"

"Peace, Demeter, compose yourself," said Zeus.

"How could you sit there and do naught after my child was taken?" Demeter cried, "You knew that Hades took her away from me, did you not?"

Of course, Zeus did. He learned of it just as soon as the incidence had happened, but he also knew how his sister was. Hades could be extremely difficult, unlike any other gods and goddesses.

Zeus let out a sigh.

"Hades' courtship has been a trifle abrupt perhaps, but after all, she is my sister - our sister. Think again, sweet Demeter. It is highly unlikely for our daughter to look beyond family protection."

"Family protection? With Hades?" The earth goddess growled. "Never! It must not be. Anyone but Hades!"

"My dear, when your rage cools down, you will realize that it is fortunate that Persephone will be loved and cared for in the hand of another goddess."

"No! I won't allow it. Don't you realize this is a spring child - a flower child, a delicate unopened bud? No ray of sunlight has ever reached that dank hole she calls her kingdom. My dear Persephone will wither and die!"

Though Zeus knew that his daughter would not be harmed by Hades, he also felt saddened by the thought of losing her to the world from which no mortal could return. He wavered yet reluctant to anger both sisters and was more apprehensive still of the wrath of the dark goddess.

"Persephone is our daughter," Zeus sighed at last, "I fancy she has a talent for survival. Please, think it over, Demeter."

"Once again," the goddess said in a trembling angry voice, "will you restore my daughter to me?"

"Demeter, please go back to earth and be intelligent about it."

"I will go back to earth," said Demeter bitterly, "and while my child is gone, no crops shall grow, no tree will bear, and no grass will spring. While she is gone and I mourn my loss, the earth will grow as dry and shriveled as my heart and will put forth no green thing. I shall not return until all the gods beg for me."

The rich-haired goddess furiously turned away and left Olympus.