Pomegranate Seeds

"Mother!" A young lady with pretty blonde hair said, as she run up to another woman.

"Yes, Persephone?" Persephone's Mother asked, as Persephone ran up to her Mother.

"Look! What's this one called?" Persephone asked, as she held out a flower.

"That one is a lilly, those are quite beautiful flowers, what a wonderful find!" Persephone's Mother said, as she took the lilly.

"They're all beautiful! I love the flowers, and the trees, and the birds! Everything!" Persephone shouted in excitement, as she rushed back knto a field full of different types of flowers and plants.

'She's just like I was...' Persephone's Mother thought, as she watched Persephone run throughout the flowers.

"Demeter." A deep, masculine voice rang out.

"Oh, Zeus!" Demeter said in surprise. "Have you come to see our daughter?" Demeter asked, expecting a 'yes'.

"No, of course not." Zeus said, with an expression that made it look like a dumb question. "I need you for important business. Now come." Zeus continued, taking Demeter by the arm.

"Wait!" Demeter cried out.

"What?" Zeus asked, sounding bothered.

"What about Persephone?" Demeter asked, feeling like they shouldn't leave her alone.

"She's a grown Goddess, she'll be fine." Zeus said, as he continued walking. "And this place couldn't be safer, I made it myself." Zeus continued, as he took Demeter through a portal.

"Mother?" Persephone asked, as she ran back to where her Mother was. "She disappeared again..." Persephone said, feeling lonely. 'I'll just look for the most beautiful flower, and I'll give it to her as a gift!' Persephone thought, as she smiled and jumped back into the flower field.

Persephone sat on a hill that was in the middle of the flower field. "I've found so many beautiful ones, but which is most beautiful?" Persephone said, as she tried to decide. And, suddenly, a portal opened in the field, and a silver chariot came rushing through, trampling flowers. Persephone gasped at the sight. 'Who would do such a thing?!' Persephone thought, feeling terrible for the poor flowers.

The door to the chariot swung open, and a man jumped out. "Kore! What a wonderful surprise!" The man said, with a smile.

"Surprise? Uncle Hades, you know that I'm always here with my Mother." Persephone said, as she felt confused about what he meant by 'surprise'.

"Right you are, Kore. Right you are!" Hades said, as he walked up to her, trampling more flowers.

"Why are you here?" Persephone asked, finding it very odd her Hades to appear.

"I just have a question, my dear Kore." Hades said, looking at Persephone as if she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.

"Must you get so close?" Persephone asked, as Hades was infront of her.

"Indeed, I must! For this question requires it." Hades said, not understanding that she's uncomfortable.

"Well then, what is this question?" Persephone asked, finding the situation to be curious.

"Would you marry me, Kore?" Hades asked, as pulled out a ring that was completely golden and a shiny diamond in the middle, along with platinum flowers across the ring.

"Oh my..." Persephone said, as she felt speechless.

"I asked Hephaestus to make it, I gave him all the material." Hades said, as he looked into Persephone's eyes.

"I don't think I'm ready for marriage... I'm sorry, Uncle Hades." Persephone said, looking up at Hades, and closing the ring's box.

Hades' expression changed to a frown. "That's alright, my dear Kore." Hades said slowly.

"Uncle?" Persephone asked, as Hades grabbed her shoulder. "What are you doing?" Persephone continued.

"I'm going to show you why you should say yes." Hades said, as he lifted Persephone up with ease.

"No! I don't want to!" Persephone shouted, as she grew scared.

"Kore, calm down, it's all alright!" Hades insisted.

"I do not wish to accompany you!" Persephone said, as she kicked and squirmed.

"Just relax, my angel, Kore." Hades said quietly, with a smile.

Hades walks into a room in his castle. "Kore!" Hades said with excitement. "I'm happy you're finally understanding." Hades continued.

"What are you talking about?" Persephone asked, with tears in her eyes.

"You aren't trying to escape anymore." Hades said, as he walked over to the couch that Persephone sat on.

"It isn't that I understand, I just haven't the energy at the moment." Persephone said, explaining herself.

"Ah, I see." Hades said, as he sat next to Persephone.

"Why must I stay here?" Persephone asked, as she looked into Hades eyes.

"Don't look at me like that, my dear. You'll make me feel like a villain." Hades said, as he hugged Persephone. "Kore, I love you, that's why you must stay here." Hades whispered into Persephone's ear.

"What if... We make a deal?" Persephone asked, testing the idea.

"A deal? What for?" Hades asked, finding the idea amusing.

"I'll marry you-" Persephone said, as Hades cyt her off.

"Wonderful! I'll have everything prepared right away!" Hades said, as he jumped up with excitement.

"No!" Persephone shouted, finding Hades frustrating. "You didn't let me finish." Persephone continued.

"I'm sorry, Kore, I got excited. You may continue." Hades said, as he sat back down.

"I'll marry you..." Persephone paused, thinking Hades would cut her off again. "If you agree to let me leave whenever I like, but I promise to return when you want me to." Persephone said, hoping Hades would accept the offer.

"Why do you wish to leave so badly, Kore?" Hades asked, finding it hard to understand.

"I want to see the flowers again, and the birds that sing so beautifully." Persephone said, as she looked down at the floor. "I miss feeling the sun as I run through the flowers. I miss seeing my Mother smile everytime I'd ask about a flower..." Persephone said, as she began to cry.

"Kore, dear. Of course I'll accept that offer." Hades said with a soft but deep voice.

Persephone's head shot up. "Really?!" Persephone said, with a hopeful expression.

"Yes." Hades said, as he hugged Persephone.

"Thank you! Thank you!" Persephone shouted, as she hugged Hades back.

"I'd like to go back to the surface today, and see my Mother." Persephone said, as she looked toward Hades, hoping he wouldn't decline.

"Then go right ahead, my dear." Hades said with a smile.

"Thank you!" Persephone said, as she rushed away.

"Wait! Kore!" Hades called out.

Persephone stopped and went back to the room. "What is it?" Persephone asked, feeling a bit impatient.

"You should eat this, it's a sort of good luck charm, it might help you find a beautiful flower." Hades said, as he held out a pomegranate seed.

"A pomegranate seed? Well, alright." Persephone said, as she took the seed from Hades' hand and ate it.

"Very good!" Hades said, with a slight grin.

"Okay, I'll be off now." Persephone said, as she left the room.

'And ever since that day, I've been trapped here in The Underworld.' Persephone thought, as she looked up at the Gate of Hell.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Thirteen said, as she ran into the Gate's room with pepper behind her.

'It turned out, that eating food from Hades... would trap you in Hell forever, no matter what.' Persephone thought, as she felt disgusted by Hades.

"Mother?" Grimm asked, as he looked down at Persephone.

"It's nothing, Grimm." Persephone said, trying not to make Grimm worry. "Let's follow your friends." Persephone said, with a smile.

"Alright." Grimm said, as both him and Persephone walked into the room behind Thirteen and pepper.

"I made everything simpler for you all." A deep voice said from a wall to their left.

"Hades!" Persephone yelled, in surprise.

"Kore... You know you can't leave, why must you try?" Hades asked, as he came out of a secret moving wall.

"I'm not trying to escape, I'm helping these three to not have the same fate as me." Persephone said, as she tried not to fear Hades.

"And you, Death Thirteen, what do you hope to gain?" Hades asked, wondering her goal.

"I... I don't have to tell you!" Thirteen said, as she stood her ground.

"Fair enough, I'll know everything you've known in a moment anyway." Hades said, as walked closer.

"Father!" Grimm said, as he walked in front of everyone.

"Grimm." Hades said, as he acknowledged Grimm's challenge.

"I won't let you stop us." Grimm said, standing up to his Father.

"I never wished to kill my own son." Hades said, as stopped to look at Grimm. "If only you'd listened. You're just like your Mother." Hades continued.

"Why should they have to listen to you?!" Thirteen shouted, finding Hades disgusting.

"Because I know what's right for the ones that I love." Hades said, as he looked towards Thirteen.

"You can't decide that!" Thirteen shouted, disagreeing with Hades.

"I'm a God! I do whatever I please!" Hades shouted, becoming frustrated. "You people of the Tarot wouldn't understand, you're all about Fate, but Fate has no meaning to a God!" Hades shouted again.

"I don't know why the Tarot chose me, don't loop me in with them." Thirteen said, as she ran up to Grimm.

"Stay back." Grimm said, as he tried to push Thirteen away.

"I can help you!" Thirteen said, as her scythe appeared in her hand.

"You'll die if you fight him." Grimm said, sounding serious. "Only I have a chance to at least survive from his attacks." Grimm continued.

"Fine..." Thirteen said, as she ran back to pepper.

"Grimm!" Persephone shouted. Grimm looked over toward Persephone. "Take this!" Persephone shouted, as she threw a sword toward Grimm.

"A sword?" Grimm said, as he looked at it. 'This isn't just any sword... it's the Harpe...' Grimm said, as he threw the sword towards pepper. "You know I'm much better off with a gun!" Grimm said, as a black and gold pistol appeared in both of Grimm's hands.

"I don't know how to use a sword." pepper said, as he picked up the Harpe.

"It isn't just a sword." Persephone said, as she looked at pepper. "It's called the Harpe." Persephone continued.

"The Harpe?" pepper asked, as he looked at the blade. The Harpe had a sickle protrusion along one edge near the tip of the blade, and was completely black. "It isn't as heavy as it looks..." pepper said, as he swung the blade with ease.

"Of course not, it was created by Gaia for Cronus. It's made of adamantine, or rather, diamond." Persephone said, explaining a bit if the blade's history.

"That blade is fine, indeed. Perseus was supposed to use that to slay Medusa, but instead got himself killed." Hades said, as he looked at the blade.

"Medusa? That kind of sounds familiar..." pepper said to himself, quietly.

"Give that blade here, boy. Zeus would lose it if he found out that that blade is in your hands." Hades said, reaching for pepper to bring Hades the blade.

"No." pepper said, as he declined Hades.

"Very well then, I'll take it off you by force." Hades said, as he raised his left hand. Grimm's eyes went wide and he instantly turned to pepper. "Bring it here." Hades said, as pepper slowly moved toward Hades.

"What the..." pepper said, as he realized he was moving against his will.

"No!" Grimm shouted, as he raised his right hand and pepper stopped moving.

"So, you can manipulate souls too?" Hades asked, finding it interesting.

"I am your son after all." Grimm said, as he seemed to struggle against Hades' pull.

"You'll be a great successor then, I won't kill you." Hades said, as he made his final decision.

"I'll never be your successor! I don't want to be a God!" Grimm shouted, as he grew angry with Hades.

"That's completely irrational. Who wouldn't want to be a God?" Hades asked, finding Grimm's comment to be stupid.

"Say whatever you like, I refuse to listen to you." Grimm said, as he tried to remove Hades' grasp on pepper's soul.

"He can't crontrol you if you have life." Persephone said, as she touched pepper's shoulder.

"What does that mean?" pepper asked, not understanding Persephone.

"This may hurt." Persephone said, warning pepper.

"Huh?" pepper asked, trying to understand what Persephone is talking about. "Aaughh!" pepper shouted, as a light came from Persephone's hand and pepper suddenly fell to the ground.

"You go against me once again, Kore..." Hades said, as his hand slowly went to side.

"You are dead, pepper, and he is the God of Death, he can control you however he likes." Persephone said, trying to explain what happened. "I put life inside your dead soul, though without a body, it would just be painful." Persephone continued.

"I see..." pepper said, as he stood up.

"Then I'll do something that you can't counter so easily." Hades said, as he rose his arms in the air. The ground shook for a moment, and skeletons rose from the ground beneath them.

"Spooky Scary Skeltons!" pepper shouted, as a soul flew from his chest.

"Yes, Master!" Spooky Scary Skeltons said, as it flew into each of the skeletons, turning them against Hades.

"What?!" Hades said, becoming angry. 'Zeus... what kind of curses did you give these people...' Hades thought, wondering why the curse is more powerful than himself.

"I didn't think that'd work." pepper said, as all of the skeletons fell to the ground and disassembled.

"Poseidon was weak, and spared you because he cared about his daughter." Hades said, as he looked at pepper. "I won't spare you, no matter what attachment you may have to anyone." Hades continued.

"You're heartless..." Thirteen said, feeling angrier towards Hades.

"No, I'm only doing my duty. He died, so his soul is mine. It's just how everything works!" Hades shouted, trying to get them to understand.

"You lie! Poseidon didn't care about Leia!" pepper shouted, becoming angry.

"You're wrong. He only let you get away because he didn't want her to be locked up anymore. Triton felt the same." Hades explained.

'If he cared so much about her... why lock her up in the first place...?' pepper thought, trying to make sense of it.

"Hades, please." Persephone said, as she grew closer to Hades. "Don't do this..." Persephone begged.

"Kore... You know I have to, it's my duty as God of Death." Hades said, denying her plea.

"Fine!" Thirteen shouted, as she jumped at Persephone. Thirteen put her scythe to Persephone's throat. "Let us leave." Thirteen said, with a serious tone.

Hades' eyes grew wide with anger. "How dare you?!" Hades shouted, as his voice shook the rock and stones around them.

"pepper, just go!" Thirteen shouted, as she held her scythe to Persephone's throat.

"Uh... Okay!" pepper said, as he rushed to the gate.

"No!" Hades shouted, as he rose his arm.

"Hey! Don't forget about your wife!" Thirteen said, as she made Persephone's neck bleed slightly.

"Damn it!" Hades shouted, as he felt defeated.

"You go too!" Grimm shouted, as he picked up Thirteen and threw her through the Gate.

'Where... am I...' pepper thought, as he couldn't see anything. 'It's so dark...' pepper continued thinking.

"Hey!" A voice echoed throughout the darkness.

'Hello...?' pepper thought, as he tried to see anything.