Seeds: Volume Two by M.M. Kin

circumstances that brought her here? No. At least, not yet. Just because he had been helpful in answering her questions didn't mean he would help her escape Hades, especially since Hekate offered her no aid. She simply didn't know him well enough to guess what he would do in any given situation, and she wasn't going to go crying to everyone she encountered down here and beg for their aid.
         “Then why are you unhappy?”
         “That is not something I am going to discuss either.” She raised her chin. After all, like Hypnos said, she was Queen of the Underworld. It wasn't a title she wanted, but she saw how important it was to act a certain way. She would keep her life close to her heart as she worked her way through her dilemma.
         “Then what do we talk about?” Hypnos asked in a light tone, hoping a bit of good-natured jibing might make her less reticent about herself.
         “You.”
         “Me?”
         “If you are going to ask me personal questions, then you better be ready to talk about yourself.”
         “Fair enough. But I must be honest, I do wonder about one thing.”
         Persephone nodded. If she didn't like the question, she wouldn't answer it.
         “That you are a goddess I do not doubt. But where do you come from? I had never heard of you or seen you before. Who is your father? I know that Rhea has a hair color similar to yours, only hers is a bit less red.”
         Persephone hesitated. It was a reasonable question. Did she want to answer it? What would Hypnos do?
         “I... do not wish to speak of my parents.”
         “... Very well,” the pale-eyed God of Sleep replied. Persephone glanced back at him calmly. Let him make of it what he would. Meanwhile, Hypnos was even more curious. Why did this lovely goddess not wish to discuss her parentage? If she was Rhea's granddaughter, then she would be a daughter of either Zeus or Poseidon. Hades? That was laughable. Relationships between fathers and their children was frowned upon, even within Gaea's brood.
         “So, what do you think of the Underworld?” Hypnos asked, changing the subject.
         “Much better than I had thought it would be.”
         “I certainly hope so,” he replied dryly, winking at her. She smiled faintly, but it was a pretty smile. They continued their walk, talking about Dis for a while before he stopped, turning to her.
         “My lady, I fear we must part. It has been a delight talking to you. If you wish to see me again, you have but to summon me.” He took her hand before she could react, and raised it to his lips, kissing it.
         “I do not think Hades will want you doing that,” she commented.
         “It will be a secret between us,” he teased. “But neither of you need worry. I am a gentleman who is merely paying his respects to a lady.”
         She nodded.
         “Until then.” The sunny landscape faded away to black, and Hypnos disappeared from sight.
     
    o0o
     
         Persephone gasped softly as she opened her eyes, seeing the garden around her, its colors brilliant despite the gray sky that hung above her head. Wait, gray? Had she been out here all night? From the color of the sky she calculated it was early morning, and wished that there was a sun down here so she could figure the time more accurately. She loved sunrise and sunset, seeing all the brilliant colors splashed along the heavens.
         As she sat there in her ruminations, she slowly realized that there was a tube-shaped pillow behind her neck. When she reached up to touch it, she felt soft velvet under her hand. It was one of Hades's pillows. Had he come down here to make sure she slept comfortably? She blushed faintly at that thought. He could have easily put her in his bed, though she knew that would have irritated her. In her other hand sat the pomegranate.
         She remembered the visions she had. Had all of that been Hypnos's