Chapter Text
Your love is scaring me
No one has ever cared for me
As much as you do
-Scary Love, The Neighborhood
THE ABDUCTION
Upon leaving home, the long-haired brunette was greeted by the scent of flowers. In front of bright cerulean eyes, a garden with the most beautiful and diverse flowers grew, completing the landscape of fresh grass. The sky was a calm and static blue, like any other day while the tall canopy trees at the end of the ranch rose like natural walls, isolating the entire garden and creating a small and perfect world.
The breeze touched his mop of brown hair and the boy finally decided to go down the small marble steps leading to the small house in which he lived. It was a cozy cottage, with windows with flowers on it. Around the property, the garden stretched perfectly vibrant, in a suffocating symmetric way.
With a sigh, he lifted his white robe, which had gold-adorned details near the neck, matching the healthy and attractive tone of skin delicately kissed by the sun. Bluish-green eyes – he once heard from a nymph that they were the same color as the kingdom of Poseidon – quickly assessed the extent of flowers and, among orchids, lilies, roses, and petunias, the boy wondered what could occupy his time on that day so beautiful, so calm and, at the same time, so monotonous.
Every day was like this.
After being taken from Mount Olympus, his mother, Demeter, took him to that little place isolated from everyone else. There were no other gods or demigods out there, it was just a deafening silence that sometimes was cut off by the sound of the breeze or by the giggle of nymphs coming from the forest.
The forest was the only unexplored region of its little corner. He knew every foot of land, every flower, every grass, every caterpillar, but he had never ventured into the forest of the great trees. Demeter, the goddess of the fertile land, also known by the human name "Carla", had told him to never venture into the woods. Some creatures wouldn't hesitate to feed on a god as gracious and special as he was, she said.
He didn't think he was special, but when he went to question his mother, the answer came with no place to argue.
-Call me Demeter, you know we can't keep using those human names! And you are rather special, Kore, the most special and most coveted god! The god of herbs, flowers, fruits, and perfumes, son of Zeus and Demeter. How dare you say you're not special, my precious Kore?
And so, with a gentle smile, she turned and disappeared to perform her goddess duties. Without a hug, without a kiss and without ever calling him by his name, but by his duty.
With a weary sigh and a smile both resigned and stressed, he walked to the middle of his creations. The earth, always wet and perfect even without a drop of rain, soiled his feet and he looked at the only things that gave him independence – relatively – in that perfect prison.
-How are you guys doing, huh?
In a calm voice, with delicate fingers he touched the vivid petals of a bright red that colored his roses. Watching around him, it was like every other day since he had been brought here. There was nothing to do, nothing to occupy, just a nauseating perfection that seemed derived from the paintings that adorned Mount Olympus.
He didn't know why he wasn't welcome on it anymore. Olympus was his home, where he was born, where he had been raised by nymphs, where he spent all his life playing with other older gods – if making pranks and deciding the fate of some humans could be considered an innocent joke.
But then, just like that, his mother carried him away and told him that he needed protection, and for that, he needed to be confined into this little ranch where no one ever showed up. Not even her, who spent weeks without visiting him, leaving him only in the company of flowers that never truly needed his attention.
All he could do to not go crazy in that caged peace was pretend. And that he could do well.
- Which one of you I will harvest today? – With false animation, he put the basket he brought on the ground and bowed down to carefully collect the perfect daffodils that flourished in his perfect land from his perfect ranch.
Eren was his name. Better known as Kore, the name that gave him his duty as the god of flowers, herbs, and plants. The one who shared a kingdom with his mother, Demeter.
But at that moment, he just felt like Eren. A boy who lived for an adventure that never came after all the spent years of immortality.
He was tired.
The breeze was blowing with the same constant force as ever. Enough to caress his hair, but not to curl the strands or to give you a refreshing feeling. The pause he lived in was suffocating. The world seemed to treat him with a delicacy that hurt, never allowing him to feel anything more than a gentle touch, an empty word of affection.
Never with intensity, never with passion. Passion for him, passion for life, passion for existing.
The basket was filled with daffodils automatically, without absolute attention. Eren, as always, was more focused on his misery than on any duty he didn't have to do. Believe it, he had already left those flowers without any care for months, while he sank into confusion as to why his mother had isolated him from the world. And yet, when he decided to leave the house, they were all perfect - the grass wet even if in that place never rained or became cloudy.
He could make tea, or maybe add decoration to the kitchen table...
When the nymphs came to keep him company, they always brought him honey to sweeten the tea. About the flowers in the vase on the kitchen table, he could always change it even if yesterday's roses were still beautiful and didn't need to be discarded.
It had been like this for months and months and months...
Eren raised his head quickly, stopping the hum of a sound he had heard when he lived on Mount Olympus, to realize that, strangely, the breeze no longer caressed his skin.
The always constant breeze had stopped.
Eyeing the territory and raising his bright eyes to the sky, Eren did not see a single cloud and the quick hope that perhaps, after a long time, he would see rainfall, was washed away quickly.
But then a deafening noise cut through the air as if a play was about to begin and some action could take the stage.
Eren watched all his flowers tremble along with the sound and he got up startled, knocking over the daffodil basket as he stumbled back to notice that each one of his flowers was taken by a black shadow who turn them to dust, quickly destroying them.
-What the...? - Terrified, he looked around to see the birds he had never seen rise up from the giant trees. He raised the bar of the light linen robe he wore, trying to leave the now dry ground. The once fertile land had become brittle, killing all the perfection he knew.
Then the noise of horses was heard thunderously as if the earth cracked on his feet. Feeling panicked, he tried to return to the peace of his life while running to the house where everything was perfect.
Then he saw the black chariot, so dark that it seemed to promise to suck all the light and life that would come near it. The horses trotted with anger and determination. There were four animals, lined up two by two, coming towards him and turning the soil under their paws into gray ground, burning his paradise to ashes.
Eren tried to run to the house to take refuge, divided into fear and curiosity for the first life that had erupted in that place for months, in addition to nymphs and his mother. But before he could even reach the marble steps, a brutal force held the back of his dress and pulled it hard against something almost massive. Before the boy could turn his face, he felt himself being lifted from the ground by the waist and when he looked down, black shadows seemed to curl up in his limbs, keeping him well attached to whatever the structure on his back was.
It was then that he felt himself being pulled to the carriage and when he thought of screaming for help, an icy hand capped his mouth and he saw all the life he knew disappear into a tunnel of light, followed by the sound of breaking earth.
----
Eren didn't know what was going on. He found himself swallowed up in darkness and had no notion of where he was, what was happening, and why he couldn't see anything. All he could rely on was the sensations, like the icy hand around his lips, while another held firmly to his waist. The sound outside was a mixture of very fierce wind, horse neighing, and many other noises that the brunette could not identify. In a panic, he had never seen such darkness in his entire life, and at that moment all he wanted was to have the ability to see and understand again.
Without thinking twice, he took both hands to the one that prevented him from speaking and when he figured that he could not remove them with all his might, Eren began to try to hit whoever was holding him.
He tried to understand what he punched and why it seemed so strong, but anxiety and fear began to radiate through his body.
Without even realizing it, warm tears flowed down his cheeks as his strength faded more and more. He still struggled to loosen some of the restrictions on his body and could feel long, thin fingers sinking into the flesh of his hip.
-Don't cry, prince.
An unknown, hoarse voice sounded right behind him and Eren became completely catatonic, wide-eyed, and with tears tarnishing his face.
-Don't cry.
Eren was never very experienced in emotions, not when Demeter never allowed him to have contact with others besides herself. But if the brunette could say anything, he would say that the voice, at that moment, expressed weakness. And even though he didn't know who the man was, Eren decided to use it to his advantage.
He needed answers before he went crazy in that deep mess he was in. Trying to stop the tremor that affected his hands, he took them back to the fingers that kept him from talking and tried to push them away with forced kindness, as if trying to deceive his abductor. A faint groan escaped his throat and Eren hoped the man might have some sympathy for him.
His guess was right and it was with immense relief that the hand holding him around his waist surrounded his torso with less force while the stranger pronounced again.
-If I let you go, will you try to burst my ears with screams?
Quickly, Eren denied it with his head and, seconds later, he felt the hand leave his mouth reluctantly. The boy felt the same hand move away and, judging by the position they were in, he could be sitting on someone's lap. Moving his neck from side to side and realizing how tense his musculature was, he felt tired.
Never in all his existence had anything so different happened. He had never felt anything but boredom and emptiness. Fear, anguish, curiosity, anxiety. It was all emotions he was experiencing for the first time and it was a lot to process.
-W-where-
Noticing his hoarse voice, Eren thought that maybe he had screamed more than he realized. Swallowing dry, he realized he was thirsty.
Immediately, something cold his lips and he tried to push away whatever was being forced on him.
-It's water. Drink.
And then liquid trickled down his chin, where the rounded metal was still being pressed against him and, resisting temptation, Eren stretched his tongue to prove what was making him wet.
Well, at his young age – in the chronology of gods – Eren could not claim to be a connoisseur of drinks or spells, but he would recognize pure water from afar and, without thinking twice, took both hands to what was shaped like a metal bowl, drinking to relieve the pain in his throat and the throbbing in his head.
The refreshing sensation was well accepted in his body and when he opened his mouth again to ask who his captor was, the empty glass was taken from his hand, and light became present.
But not any light.
A mixture of an almost natural, almost twilight scarlet filled what Eren perceived as the interior of the carriage. In front of him, there was a leather bench and the whole interior was a polished black, the windows curving in well-sculpted details and a very thin curtain prevented him from seeing the exterior.
He was filled with curiosity, an emotion that now flooded his being, to find out where his kidnapper had taken him, but it was necessary to disengage from the hands that held him protectively.
Eren realized that the hands holding him were pale and long and from his wrist, the mystery man wore something that matched the tone of the carriage. He rightly found himself sitting on someone else's lap, barefoot and dirty from a time that seemed far away in the past. The linen bar of his clothes had mud, but the rest of his body was intact. No scratches at all.
Interested in who had offered him water and had been unexpectedly kind even after kidnapping him, Eren frowned, prepared to question the being when an impact rattled the carriage, and instinctively the brunette retreated, holding on to the hands that offered him support.
Then, as if he had missed a very important detail, the boy realized that now the carriage seemed to be walking aground and not floating. And, without thinking twice and ignoring the unusual situation in which he found himself, Eren threw his body against the window, sliding into the lap of the strange, who kept only his legs in his domain.
Opening the curtain
what he saw was a huge plantation of white roses that stretched to what seemed like infinity until he met a type of sky that Eren had not yet seen. Unlike the blue, calm sky he was used to, in front of him was a sky in pink and orange tones. It was a late afternoon with sparse clouds and other well-condensed ones, through which rays of the setting sun were reflected in the white petals of the roses.
In front of the carriage, a huge gate made of shiny black metal rose from the ground, intricate and twisted contours protecting the construction to which they were headed. Just ahead, a castle made of stone and surrounded by the planting of roses presented itself. Tall black towers aggrandizing the gigantic structure held by Greek columns. The boy has never seen anything so obscure in all his brilliant years living on Mount Olympus. He had never seen such a powerful and frightening construction, painted with opaque tones that promised death.
It was in this second that a shiver spread through his spine and the emerald eyes took advantage of the light that entered the carriage to look at his captor. The white and almost translucent skin was the first thing he noticed, followed by the garments similar to his, but in dark shades. Soon his gaze was attracted to the stoic feature that stared silently at him, eyes of an almost liquid metallic blue penetrating his soul. The black and short locks were what led him to confirm his suspicion and Eren almost hiccup from surprise.
Everyone knew it was a silent rule that all the gods had grown hair. Aphrodite had magnificent black hair, almost the same hue as the god in front of him. Poseidon had long blond, straight hair that matched his eyes as blue as the sea. Zeus also had long brown hair, for which Eren inherited. However, he had heard that his hair look nothing like his father's.
Eren had long strands up to his shoulders, almost always trapped in a braid for being more comfortable while fulfilling his duties. Some more rebellious strands sometimes fall down his forehead, complementing the large, bright green eyes that were the target of many suitors.
But there was only one God who took pleasure in not following the rules of Mount Olympus. Only one lived by himself, hidden in the depths of the underworld and ruling the kingdom of the dead. The owner of eyes that reflected the rivers of death, the owner of the empire of souls, the one who had kidnapped the serenity of his monotonous life.
-Hades?
His voice sounded strange to himself, throat constricted as he watched the God Of The Dead in front of him, now far more real than any memory of his childhood on Olympus.
And honestly, he didn't realize the man could be so... devoid of height? There was no way to compare when they were both sitting, but the brunette could estimate that he was about 5 to 8 centimeters taller than the other.
-Eren.
And again he heard the grave and deep voice that belonged to the one who led the way afterlife. Almost like thunder that reverberated beneath his skin, the god's voice caught up with him and provoked chills that Eren considered to be fearful.
However, that wasn't what caught his attention the most. Hades had not called him by his name of God, Kore, but by his human name. Which was different, since not even his mother called him by his birth name. After he was given the duties of a god, Eren was Kore, the one who shared the kingdom with Demeter and the one whose touch evoked the flowers, herbs, and all the life that arose on earth.
Kore was important. Eren was just a boy who lived to the expectation and looks of the suitors.
Yet the way Hades said his name almost made it sound like Eren was far more important than his duties. Maybe that was an underworld rule? Where everyone was called by their human names and only Hades could be called by his name of god? Only Hades could reign in that abyss, while all the others were demoted to nothing?
But before he could express himself, the carriage stopped and a glance out of the window revealed the great castle, much larger than it seemed from afar, to extend toward the sky in front of his eyes. The stones, black and covered with mosses, gave a cold and strong sensation and he was startled when the door next to Hades opened.
The god then slid out, leaving Eren's legs to rest against the seat.
The boy shrank on the bench, getting as far away from that creature as possible. He preferred to stay in that carriage than step on the ground of the underworld, further soiling his garments and existence. He had no idea why he was there and why Hades, his uncle, wanted something from him.
-Come on, let's go.
There was an implicit order ion the grey orbs bored on him when Hades reached out inside the vehicle. Eren shook his head several times, dry tears leaving his cheeks glowing as he watched with wide eyes the god wait a few seconds.
-I order you to release me!
It was what came out of his mouth, his inner one contracting with anxiety and fear. His abductor looked at him with a clean and calm expression but breathed a weary sigh as he lowered his hand and muttered some words almost as low as his breath.
It was then that the same darkness and shadows that gripped him on the surface arose inside the carriage and Eren realized that he didn't exactly need to consent with his removal. He even tried to free his arms and legs that were grabbed and pulled outwards, shouting "no" and ordering them to let him go, promising that soon all Olympus would be looking for him.
But as if his supplications were in vain, Hades didn't acknowledge him, walking away when Eren was forced by the shadows to step on the ground of the underworld. He was barefoot, the bar of his dress touching the dirt and his feet were hurting from the stones they had on the ground, quite different from the soft, aerated soil he was used to.
The god watched him for a second from top to bottom and without even batting his eyes, the shadows lifted the boy and placed him on his shoulder, just as humans carried his belongings.
For a moment, Eren let out a sigh, relieved that he no longer has the pointed stones bothering his sensitive skin, but soon realized he was at the other's mercy. One of his thighs being held tightly and the other hand at the bases of his back, trying to hold him as he writhed and told him to put him on the ground.
Eren watched in horror as he was carried to a black marble staircase leading to the castle. With his hands closed, the green-eyed one tried to free himself and capture every detail of where he was, but his loose hair was falling over his eyes and at one point he had to hold onto the fabric that covered Hades' wide back to keep from falling. With his free hand, he held his long, soft threads off his face, open-mouthed when he found himself inside the castle, surrounded by candles attached to walls and a gigantic black chandelier over the living room.
They soon were on the second floor, Hades doing all the way quietly and as if Eren weigh nothing.
-Let me go! Free me!
Yet his supplications echoed the walls, no one there to assist him. He thought for a second about praying to Zeus and asking him to send someone to get him out of there, but the idea of praying to the father he had seen at most three times all his life didn't stir him up.
Hades then stopped walking and Eren heard the sound of keys and a seemingly heavy door being opened. Seconds later, he was being gently placed on a white and gold four-poster bed in the middle of a room too bright to be inside a castle of that aspect.
There was a huge window that overlooked the garden of white flowers and the walls were a shade of gold that matched the large and intricate mirror. A rug that looked like the softest fabric decorated a part of the floor, but Eren didn't have time to know if it was comfortable or to notice the rest of the carefully chosen furniture. The sound of Hades' weary sigh was heard and he leaned on his forearms, legs slightly apart, to see the god stare him in the eye again.
-Let me go! Why am I here?! Take me back!
Eren said, moving away from the edge of the bed as he watched Hades approach him to the point where his knees hit the mahogany structure that supported the bed.
For a moment, the older god looked at the blankets clean and smelling of roses, perfectly ready to give the best of sleep to a prince. The greenish eyes observed the figure as if trying to decipher the mystery that man was, frowning in confusion when the impassive face was taken by a feeling that Eren dared to say it was... regret?
-Carla has deprived you of a lot of things, Eren. – The brunette almost jumped in fright when the stern look fell on him again, trying to slip further away only to have his ankles grabbed and his body pulled to the edge again. An embarrassed scream came out of his throat as his attire curled up, leaving his long, brunette legs insight.
-She trapped you in a dollhouse and left you there as property.
The man kept talking as he held one ankle with one hand and slipped the other through the black clothing he wore. Eren widened his eyes as his pale hands resurfaced with a silver blade that almost gleamed against the low light of the candles illuminating the room. His instinct was to try again to walk away, his heart beating hard inside his chest and the idea of immortality disappearing from his head in front of the apparent promise of being hurt.
His thoughts were as bewildered as directionless winds, each pulling to one side and arousing a distinct emotion and Eren felt stunned because long ago his emptiness was not filled by so many feelings. His heart, which had been beating at a lethargic pace, had not been inflaming like that for a long time.
- W-what... Don't you dare touch me! Stop it right now!
Eren ordered, trying to do his best to keep his voice steady. He tried to sit on the bed, pulling the fabric of his tunic in vain attempt to cover his skin that had never been seen by another.
-Hades! - He addressed the god for the first time, who gave him a cloudy and impossible to read gaze.
In front of the boy leaning on his forearms, with long brown and messy threads, Hades' face stained with effort and probably with anger. The idea of someone using rules to deprive Eren of any emotion that surfaced on his human side was one of the reasons that drove Hades to continue.
-Always treating you as an object to be shown and coveted, so many things were deprived of you... – The phrase escaped through thin lips, mercury eyes failing to observe the boy and focusing on the blade. Eren couldn't help but notice that this time his tone seemed even sadder, but soon his eyes widened as he watched the sharp blade slide down the pale wrist that held his ankle.
-You, who never even felt another skin against yours, while all those pigs covet you and make orgies thinking about you. – Hades murmured lowly, oblivious to the attention of Eren himself, who could hear perfectly. Still, the angry tone with which the phrase was spoken caused Eren to bite his lower lip as he watched the thick black blood that emerged from the cut on the god's wrist glide through his pale fingers as if making a path by himself.
-How they wanted me to wait for you when it was never their intention to let you-
But then Hades abruptly interrupted the sentence, appearing more focused on the amount of blood that was allowed to come out of his body. Eren, in turn, set aside the god's monologue to observe that, indeed, the contour of the blood that began to touch his brunette skin was, in fact, purposeful.
As soon as the viscous black liquid touched him, strands of blood braided and curled into an intricate dance that crawled through his skin until it circled the entire circumference of his ankle and joined as a single twisted thread entangled.
When Eren felt the weight of what looked like metal on his skin, Hades freed his leg, moving away from the bed almost viciously. Without thinking twice, the boy pulled his legs against his torso and squirmed away as far as possible, frowning eyebrows and eyes searching the perfect posture of the man who looked at him from above.
- You say that, but you kidnapped me to own me, just like they all wanted. You're no different, Hades.
Eren accused him, feeling a determination he had not felt for a long time causing a chill in his stomach. Sharp green eyes did not lose sight of the black figure while his fingers trying to pull and release the jewel that formed from the blood and which was now well-positioned around his ankle.
- It's Levi.
That was all Hades answered, as he pulled a white handkerchief and wiped around his wrist, which showed no sign that he had been cut off at some point in his eternity. Quite the contrary, the little portion of skin that was in sight was of an alabaster tone as well carved as the best offerings that humans made.
- And yes, I desired you for a long time. But while they desired Kore, I wanted Eren.
He kept talking and Eren felt a shiver run under his skin as he was again called by that name. He had always been Kore since his childhood had been ended in favor of his duty as the son of Demeter and Zeus. No one, other than his mother, had the right to call him by his human name and he could not understand why the fixation by human names when Gods only existed to fulfill their roles.
In the end, Eren had failed to formulate an answer and Hades turned around and headed for the door. With his hand on the doorknob, the dark voice sounded again.
-You may not believe me, Eren, but I did what I did to keep you safe.
And when the god opened the door and was ready to leave, Eren practically screamed, causing him to stop a step down the hall from where they came.
-You did what you did to satisfy your wishes! Kidnapping is not keeping me safe!
Hades stopped for a few seconds and then turned his face over his shoulder, a half-smile on his lips, but his eyes down. He spoke almost bitterly.
-Heh, I always knew you had a sharp tongue underneath all that shitty Olympus rules.
And as if ignoring the accusation, he made his way out and started closing the door, but not before adding:
-And yes, I did it to have you and protect you. And I have no regrets, Eren.
However, the way it sounded, Eren had the impression that Levi was carrying the weight of guilt on his back. And besides, he went away without restricting his movements and without locking the door. The window was still open and the sunset had already given way to a dark sky. Some candles were lighting the room and the brunette knew he could very well get up, open the door and run as far as he could before being captured again.
But then he never felt his body as relaxed and heavy. Low and tired eyes observed furniture and well thought out décor for a second. Nothing there seemed to belong to a prisoner's room, even the smell of roses that wind – wind!! - brought was comforting.
His breathing had not been so tired for a long time, being beset by various smells. Wood, cleaning, and white roses. He didn't know how, but soon he felt relaxed enough to close his eyes and indulge in sleep.
Tomorrow was a promise. Tomorrow... he for sure... He for sure would... Yes... Tomorrow...
Chapter 2: The Underworld
Summary:
Notes:
HOW I IMAGINE THE CHAMPS ELYSÉES: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uSuI6dAzKA
Music that I suggest when you get to the Elysium fields part! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFyWZPKk01cThank you so much for reading, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!
Chapter Text
I'm as puzzled as a newborn child.
I'm as riddled as the tide.
Should I stand amid the breakers?
Or shall I lie with death my bride?
-Song To The Siren, This Mortal Coil
THE UNDERWORLD
Eren's eyes opened immediately when three methodical knocks were delivered against the door. For seconds, he laid down, apathetic expression as he watched around him and recalled past events.
In his isolated place, no one knocked on his door. No one came to say good morning and no one was waiting for him to eat. But that place wasn't his ranch.
He was in the Underworld, in the kingdom of Hades. Now, lying on a four-poster bed and with the windows open in the room, a soft, cool breeze came in, the scent of white roses making him hold his breath and remember the feeling of the earth always wet against his feet, the always fertile and perfect environment that his mother Demeter provided him with.
But that place wasn't his perfect little world.
Three beats sounded again, a little stronger, and Eren was startled, realizing that the noise wasn't just in his head. Instantly, he crawled to the edge of the bed and stood up in a defensive posture, firm and tight eyes staring at the door.
He still didn't have an opinion on the raven-haired god. Very worried about returning home, Eren had been exhausted after the screams and stress he went through as he was dragged into the Underworld. And now he was forced to meet the god again, even if he didn't yet have a formed opinion of him.
However, through the door, a redhead pooped out and looked into the room with frowning eyebrows. Eren fixed his gaze on the strange figure that certainly wasn't Hades. Unless Hades could turn into a girl with red hair and green eyes.
Eren looked at her entering the room and when their eyes locked, she gave him a bright smile, almost as if they were not in the depths of Tartarus.
-You're Eren, right? - The girl closed the door behind her excitedly, practically jumping to the four-poster bed and sitting on the edge of it. Eren instinctively shrank further and looked suspiciously at her. Even though he wasn't terrified of looking at her, he knew he couldn't trust someone so easily just for the innocence that was conveyed.
They were in the Kingdom Of The Dead, after all! Nothing guaranteed that this person was not just a wandering soul condemned in an eternity of suffering. And even if he didn't feel compelled to fear her, Eren really thought he could no longer rely on his feelings and judgment, since even Hades did not seem a repulsive figure to him.
Perhaps fearful, but not repulsive. Or maybe he was just confused and didn't know what to think about what had happened.
A light, relaxed laugh sounded and he looked with furrowed eyebrows at the girl who threw her head back as if she had heard the best of Greek comedies.
- You're certainly headstrong!
Eren frowned this time. No one's ever told him that before. His name was generally associated with obedience, innocent sensuality, nature, and eyes as green as the grass Demeter grew. Headstrong, never. He was always supposed to be submissive, always a few steps behind his mother, always aware of the meetings on Olympus but forbidden to give opinions.
A pretty figure couldn't be spoiled by opening his mouth, that's what his mother said.
Eren wasn't stubborn, but he didn't know what he was. The only thing that gave him a basis to be, was the title he carried.
-It's Kore. - He said in a calm and monotonous voice he was always told to have. To tell you the truth, Eren didn't even know where all that fire and desire for freedom had come from. His existence has always been destined for the normality and suffocating calm of an eternity without events. Raising your voice, shouting, arguing, giving opinions were never things that Kore, a beautiful and desired figure, could do.
-Of course, "Kore". - The girl rolled her green eyes and smiled with tranquility as if she didn't bother with rules. Eren had seen that relaxation only once, at one of the parties on Olympus. And it was reflected in the eyes of some of the most lowered and petulant Gods Eren had seen: Dionysus, the god of wine. The one who did not take orders, who did not follow protocols and who said everything that came to mind, a clear effect of the wine he always carried in his hands.
- Well, here in the Underworld we don't care about those titles. Levi thinks it's bullshit and only in special situations we are instructed to call him by his god name. - The girl shrugged and stood up, running to the window and filling her lungs with the smell of roses. - By the way, - She turned around and watched Eren from top to bottom. - today I was tasked with introducing you to our kingdom! - Raising one of her arms, she pointed to the window as if presenting a banquet and Eren wanted to arch his eyebrows to express confusion but remembered that his mother always told him that debauchery was not an expression that Kore should have.
He continued to watch in silence, but the girl didn't seem to miss the animation, running to the wardrobe and opening it. Inside it, several pieces of clothing of different colors stretched out and Eren looked curiously. She took a short garment in a reddish color, almost in a shade of fertile land, which ended right above the knees. Together, there was a sandal whose strings were intricate and were to be tied to the shins.
Eren noticed that the girl looked at him with anticipation and looked up the pieces that had been left on the bed.
Silence remained between the two until she laughed again.
-Do you need me to help you dress up? Is that something that happens on Olympus? - The way she spoke, with disrespect and no cordiality, made Eren uncomfortable, but as always, it was not his duty to express his emotions. He just stood up, thinking that this was probably an order disguised as a request, and since he was a prisoner of Hades, he could not simply go against the god.
Not until Mount Olympus and the other gods missed his presence. Which, he knew, would happen very soon.
Without hesitation, he stood up and looked confused at his body that should be dirty with remnants of tears and earth. But, contrary to expectations, Eren was completely clean and dressed in new underwear.
He wanted to ask who had done it and even opened his mouth to question the girl, but thought it wouldn't be exactly his place. Closing his lips again in a thin line, Eren shameless removed his dress, dropping it to his feet and exposing the brunette body that had been the target of many looks as he bathed in the fountains of Olympus.
Accustomed to forcing himself to be oblivious to the way they looked at him, even if he felt uncomfortable, Eren sought to ignore the curious gaze of the servant and began to wear the new pieces without complaining. Soon he was covered to the knee, ropes demarcating his waist and a shoulder uncovered by the material, causing the garment to have a cross-section. Surprisingly, both the dress and the shoes fit perfectly and soon he was staring at the girl again, waiting for further instructions.
On the contrary, the brunette received a kind look and a stretched hand.
- Well, now that you're dressed, I must introduce myself! My name is Isabel Magnolia.
-It's a pleasure, - Eren refused the hand, finding the blunt contact strange, and took the bars of the dress, lowering his head and knee slightly in an expression of cordiality. With his head down, he continued. - My name is Kore, God of herbs, fruits, flowers, and perfumes, son of the great Zeus, Lord of Heaven, and the Goddess of Agriculture, Demeter.
Eventually, he raised his head expecting some compliments as usual but only received a confused look from the girl, who soon laughed again, as Eren was beginning to understand she liked to do.
It was strange, living in the underworld and laughing in that carefree way.
-Eren, I told you, these titles are nothing but punishment. The Underworld is where the material disintegrates and all that's left is what's here. - She looked at him with sudden earnestness and put her hand on her heart. Eren followed the hand, not understanding what she meant, but then returned to look at the gentlest smile on her face, almost as if she felt sorry for him.
Again, the boy wanted to frown but stopped middle will, wondering why being in that place gave him the strange feeling of wanting to be more than he was instructed to.
-Well, as I said, we're going to introduce you to the place. - Isabel said, leaving the room and gesturing for Eren to follow her. By the time they were outside the room, Eren's green eyes began to take everything around him, from the dark colors of the hallway, so contrasting with the light of the room where he was, to the high ceiling that gave the impression of smallness.
Candles were hanging from the walls and the air seemed colder than normal, making Eren feel exposed with the skin of his bare legs. Despite this, he struggled to take everything in to get an escape route, since the path they made the night before didn't provide him with any fruitful information.
Soon both were descending staircases which, Eren noted, weren't the same as Hades carried him through. This room didn't have a red carpet like the one from the night before. There was a fireplace illuminating a large throne and large collars were tied against the stone walls.
He observed the throne, the fire, the collars, but when Isabel guided him out, it was visible that there was no one there. No Hades and no slave he kept on those collars.
Keeping quiet and having his doubts for himself, he continued following the girl until two huge wooden doors ended a corridor. He imagined that it would be another room, with another cruel and taciturn aspect of the god of that house, but as soon as the doors were pushed with great ease by the redhead, Eren came across a large sheet of white roses, the same as the day before.
The sky was as blue as a spring day and Eren did not know where that light came from, similar to the sunlight. However, unlike his ranch, there were clouds in the sky, and when he set foot on the ground, Eren knew that this land needed water, so hard and dry that it was.
His duty was to keep the flowers alive, the land fertile, the colors shining, but he held the desire to duck and transform that soil since that world was not his. That kingdom didn't belong to him.
-You can change whatever you want. - Isabel said and looked at him with animation, to which Eren looked almost like an affront.
Go ahead? How could he? With what permission? That was the Underworld, not his house! His home was Mount Olympus, where his life was quiet and he felt at peace.
Seeing the boy's incredulous expression, Isabel laughed loudly and shook her head negatively as if she knew more than Eren and this time, the brunette frowned and looked at her in questioning, eyes beginning to show confusion and irritation
-What?
Isabel asked and in an instant, he turned his gaze impassive and strained his shoulders upon realizing that he was doing everything contrary to what he had been taught, just by being a few hours into that kingdom! He began to want to show emotions and even wanted to retort for a second, getting angry at being treated with such triviality.
But why is that? Why, since that was part of the reality he was used to? Be kept isolated, quiet, obedient, just like an assistant to your mother?
Eren tried to swallow all those doubts, that incessant fire that disappeared in his childhood, after years of being trained by Carla, or rather, Demeter. He didn't even remember being a child who climbed the trees, ran, and stepped on the flowers, who smiled openly when a butterfly landed on his nose. Now his smile was restrained, a movement that did not even reach his eyes while he continued his work with rigid movements, just a duty that he would have to follow forever and ever...
-I know it looks beautiful and infinite, but the interesting thing is that it's not! - Completely oblivious to the turbulence that the brunette was going through, Isabel began to speak and Eren realized that they kept walking, on a path through the plantation, and heading to the infinity of flowers. - Levi did it because standing there hearing the screams and all that red Tartarus was exhausting. - She said, snorting like she was still irritated just remembering. And then another smirk, a cornered smile Eren didn't know the meaning of, formed.
- And because of you, of course.
He would open his mouth and, for once, question what that meant. He knew that yesterday was a day that broke his whole way of behaving, but thought that, due to the circumstances, it would be understandable, and today would be just one occasion, where he-
But before he could form the words, Isabel suddenly disappeared and before he could stop walking, his body was pulled forward and all his senses were alarmed when he faced the landscape in front of him.
No longer blue sky, white flowers and the sound of the wind stroking his hair trapped in a messy braid – by the way, he needed to redo the braid, Demeter always said that the appearance was important. At the time, however, he turned his thoughts away to focus on the almost deafening, horrifying screams around him. The blue and calm of before were replaced by a reddish sky, full of black clouds and the despair of souls condemned forever to Tartarus.
Of course, Hades' address was in the center of Tartarus.
Great walls rose in Tartarus, and the horror and warmth and all the fire and lava lived up to what Eren had heard about the Underworld. It was a place of eternal punishment for merciless and wrongful souls. Around the site, a river of lava flowed, the color so red and bubbly that Eren instinctively took a step back.
The odor of guilt, humiliation, and pain stretched through the air, a heavy atmosphere, and he just wanted to leave, get out of there and stop hearing the cries of pain from those people.
-Don't feel bad, Eren. - Isabel intervened when she saw the steps back and the frightened expression of the boy. - That's Phlegethon, the river of healing.
Eren looked at her like she was crazy. How the bloody lava from that river, with people – or were they souls? - floating in constant torture could bring healing? He locked his gaze quickly through some deformed faces submerged to the neck, others with half their body in the lava, others with only one leg trying to climb the banks of the river only to be shot by the centaurs.
It was cruel. Inhuman. So dark and hard like Hades should be.
As if realizing the course of his thoughts, Isabel put a hand at the end of his back and began to push him, both walking along the edges of Tartarus, cries of help and forgiveness beginning to push Eren to the brink.
-All these souls are cruel, merciless murderers, people who deserved the worst of judgments for the atrocities they committed in life. - She started and Eren couldn't take his eyes off the contorted, panicked faces. - The more submerged, the larger the list of sins and cruelties. And the water is made by the blood of those people they hurt. With it, souls are condemned to pass by the river and seek purification.
Eren let the information slowly get into his head.
Cruel people? He knew there was a lot of cruelty on earth. He knew humans were capable of atrocities that even the gods couldn't forgive.
- If they're here, don't be sorry. It's what they have sought in life and it's what they deserve to go through, both for the purification of their souls and for the righteousness of those who have been mistreated. - This time Eren again observed the redhead, who seemed to look with determination at those who passed by the river. He had to pay attention to the movement of her lips to be able to understand what came out almost like a whisper.
-Hades has several flaws, but none of them is to be unfair.
And just as the screams and hell came, it was gone, and Eren was sucked again by a time portal that led him to the perpetual silence that tormented the insane.
Around him, large trees with thick trunks rose towards a misty sky. Eren could tell, just by the smell of rotten wood, that those trees had no life. The flora, which was supposed to be of an intense green, was colored by a brown-green, almost rotten. Even so, they all remained on the branches, as if they were doomed to the eternity of an irrelevant life, which brought no energy, and prevented from reaching death for a new cycle.
The silence was due to the absence of wind, the morbid and heavy atmosphere, like the weather when the rain is to come but never arrives.
- This is the Asphodel Meadows. - Isabel presented, crossing her arms and observing the gray immensity in front of her. Eren looked around, noticing the half-dead vegetation came out of black earth, soil so trampled with stride marks that even the tiniest of grass couldn't grow. - This is where the "not bad but not good" are sent. Those who remained irrelevant, selfish, and bound to their own existence, those who did neither good nor evil. Those who didn't live, but just existed. That's their destiny.
"Those who did not live, but only existed."
This time the brunette felt his throat restricted again. But, unlike the pity and dread he felt during his visit in Tartarus, now Eren just felt a huge emptiness, a silence reverberating and leading his heart to accelerate by the simple idea of living in nothingness.
And worst of all, he knew that feeling. He knew the routine of doing nothing expressive, of living only by appearances, of having an empty mind, murmured thoughts just repeating an eternal routine. He knew what it felt like to wander toward a cloudy eternity, neither happiness nor sadness waiting for him. From wandering toward nothingness with only your own whispers echoing in your mind, with the "what if's" trying to seek a reality you never would have.
That was the feeling Eren had when he heard the whispers of all those souls who had an empty existence. And worse than the revulsion he felt in Tartarus, now Eren only felt empathy.
Because he lived in an eternal Asphodel Meadows, with a continuous breeze, flowers that never died, a sun that never really warmed, a reality that led to nothing.
-What's next? - He didn't even notice when he asked, his hearing too damaged by the whispers of repentance. His question almost sounded like a supplication, desire to leave, desire to live again with ignorance.
Isabel, however, didn't react, seeming not frightened by the boy's denial reaction. And with a nod, she guided him to another portal that sucked them and took them to the part of the Underworld that Eren never thought existed.
- And this is the Champs-Elysées or Elysium. It's what humans call-
- Heaven. - Eren found himself adding without realizing it, eyes wide open to taking the whole landscape in front of him.
-Or Paradise. - Isabel giggled, following the steps Eren took towards the fields, fascinated by the amount of life in the World of the Dead.
This field was completely different from the other two. And when Eren said it differently, it was in a scary sense compared to his neighbors. The sky that Demeter created for himself in the small place where he lived didn't make justice to the blue that covered the Champs Elysées. The sky that received him when he arrived in the Underworld seemed infinitely inferior to what he saw now. The shade of blue almost glowed, as if a halo wandered among the sparse clouds, colored in pastel tones and moving like waves. The clarity was almost overwhelming, but again Eren could not see the origin of the rays that made his skin shiver with the warm feeling.
This time, the wind blowing was of a freshness Eren had never felt before, and he knew he would let that wind carry him wherever it went. The grass covering the soil was so green it seemed to have raindrops amplifying its beauty and the trees that stretched, as well as the flowers, were gleaming happiness.
Unlike before, there were no souls submerged in rivers of blood and lava, nor lost souls in their oblivion. The souls that roamed the field were followed by a halo of light as if they glowed from inside out. They walked with the lightness of a petal, letting themselves be caressed by eternal peace and happiness.
- This is where those who have done good and heroic things on earth are located. Priests, heroes, the virtuous, the children. Those whose purity and goodness haven't been corrupted by the world. That river...- Isabel pointed and Eren looked with surprise at the watercourse he hasn't noticed before. Unlike the lava river, this one had calm waters, an intense and inviting green. On its shores, flowers grew and were mirrored in the water. -... is the Lethe, known as the river of oblivion.
As she had done previously, the redhead led him to Lethe's shore. The green waters, the brunette saw, reflected the bottom of the river made with stones and some underwater plants. The impression it gave is that the depth was low, but for some reason, Eren knew that this was a way of inviting souls into it.
-It seems shallow, but it's as deep as the memories of the one who jumps on it. All souls must bathe in Lethe and forget about their carnal life to enter the promised land.
Eren watched it for a few seconds and then raised his face to look once more at paradise.
The impression he has was of eternal happiness and even if being forever happy was the desire of much, Eren could not see himself living there. Maybe spend a few afternoons, rest from the duties of a god.
But forever?
Unlike the sea of storm and panic, the Elysiums were a sea of calm and neutrality. But both were immutable, being the same forever.
-But now we should go! - Isabel said, her tone changing to a lively child. - I know it seems a short visit, but this time-trip between the camps takes time! It should be dinner time now!
She began to babble and walking away from the river, Eren following her closely. Time for dinner? But he wasn't tired! Let alone hungry! Sure gods didn't need to eat, but the routine was part of life.
It was then that, as suddenly as ever, another portal sucked them and soon they were again in the fields of white roses. But to Eren's surprise, the sky now had the same shades of pink and orange as last night and exhaustion took hold of his body immediately, as if his energy was drained at once.
Feeling dizzy, he staggered a little and closed his eyes to try to recover while Isabel held him by the arms and laughed slightly.
- It's mentally exhausting, but you get the hang of it. Now we should rest and I believe you want to have dinner in the bedroom? - Eren was too weak to answer and he let himself be guided to his room without complaints.
The throne and collars were still empty as they passed by the same room and he went up the stairs wondering where Hades would be. Which was strange, because the absence of the god meant a greater chance to escape. But again, he was so tired...
When they arrived in the room, Eren was taken to a bathroom and faced with surprise as a bathtub filled with warm water was ready for him. He looked at it with suspicion but when he turned around Isabel was no longer there.
What was left for him was to take a shower and try to remember what was that important thing that appeared in his memory when the girl mentioned dinner. He just couldn't... Maybe tomorrow?
Letting his body relax against the bathtub, the brunette could not remember the last time he had one of the perks of Mount Olympus. And before he could remember - what was that again?
Before he could, sleep fell on him like a blanket and his eyes gave up right there, in that tub. No dinner and just sinking into his own doubts.
Chapter 3: Hades
Summary:
Notes:
Hi, everybody! Thank you for all the kudos, bookmarks and comments! I1m glad you guys are reading this project! We have our favorite god in this chapter! Also, you guys will notice a wheat field in this chapter, and I wanted to make clear I used "WHEATFIELD WITH CROWS" by Van Gogh as inspiration! Thank you and be safe <3
Chapter Text
[HADES]
Because this is where I want to be
Where it's so sweet and heavenly
I'm giving you all my love
Heavenly - Cigarettes After Sex
HADES
- He's more tired than expected. - Isabel said as soon as she entered the great hall decorated with a table of twelve chairs and a heavy chandelier partially illuminating the room. The dark walls had candles hanging from iron supports and paintings colored the spaces between the flames. This time there was no carpet on the floor and Isabel's footsteps could be heard as she made a beeline to the god sitting at one end of the table.
Levi lifted a disinterested look, a single plate of food, and a glass of wine as the man ate alone. Hades swallowed the small portion in his mouth and wiped the ends of his lips with a silk napkin. Clearing his throat, he spoke in a deep voice.
- He's a living god who's not yet part of the Underworld. You know how this place treats the living.
- A great treatment, sucking the energy of the living until they're dead.
Isabel rolled her eyes and sat in a chair next to the man. Immediately the double doors opened and a brunette girl with a ponytail entered accompanied by a bald boy. The girl served Isabel a plate of food and the boy filled a glass with wine, which the redhead picked up right away and took a sip with satisfaction.
-He's not going to die. - Levi recalled, looking back at the meal.
-Even if he's immortal, it doesn't change the fact that he's going to run out of energy until he can't get out of that doll room you made for him. - Isabel said and smirked when Levi stopped the fork halfway and turned to her with a sly look. - What?! It's true, it's true! - She said petulantly and shook her shoulders.
Levi remained silent and hoped that the girl would follow his example and let him finish his meal. That didn't happen, obviously.
- You still have two options, though. - She said, looking at the plate calmly. - You could marry him efficiently... - She gave him a look of judgment in her eyes.
Hades rolled his eyes and gave up eating, crossing his arms and frowning. - Or you can find a way for him to eat the food here. Either option, Eren will forever be attached to you.
-And how do you suggest I do that? - Hades asked, visibly annoyed by the options. He knew that the only way to maintain Eren's energy was to make him a member of the Underworld and for that Eren had to be wed or forced to ingest some food from the Underworld.
And all these options included abusing the boy in some way: be it sexually, to marry him and make him Queen of the Underworld; be it to force him to eat some of the cursed foods, which condemned even a god to eternity in the Kingdom of Hades.
-You should finish what you didn't have the guts to do. - She said and shrugged, sipping another sip of wine.
-And force myself onto him as all the others pigs wanted to do? - If Levi frowned a little more, Isabel swore a single eyebrow would form.
-Don't be a prune, Hades. Sex was never a big deal to gods. - She said, purposely using the title associated with death and punishment.
-He'll never trust me if I do what even Z-
Immediately the hall became silent, Levi's fury radiating through the walls when the loud phrase echoed in the dining room. Isabel remained silent and wide-eyed when she realized where the conversation would go, knowing that it would not be wise to bring that matter up.
Levi was always enraged every time the God of Heavens name was brought to the table. After all the shit Grisha put him through, the bastard still had the decency to deny him his marriage to Eren. Hades had waited for years for a positive response as soon as he asked for Kore's hand decades ago. He had fallen in love with the boy at one of the meetings on Olympus, which he was required to attend.
As soon as he saw the bright green eyes watching curiously the shadows following him, Levi became interested in the little child hiding behind Demeter's legs. He waited for the boy to turn 15 and asked Zeus for his hand, who told him to wait for an answer.
The answer never came and each day, Hades was obliged to listen to the proposals Eren received, all of which were rejected one after the other by Demeter. At first, Levi found it a noble act of the woman trying to protect her son from the prey that haunted him, but as soon as he continued to observe, he realized that Demeter treated Eren like an accessory, as someone who would always be there for her even if he did not receive news from his mother for years.
When Eren was confined to the small cottage built exclusively for him, Levi couldn't help but think that the boy lived a miserable life as a slave to eternity. And his fury was even greater when he found Zeus sneaking through the great trees that walled the cottage, desirous eyes watching his own son's movement with lust.
That infuriated him.
The bastard only supported Carla in her rejections because he had plans to take Eren for himself.
Hades then broke through the ground, shadows destroying everything in his path until he managed to get Eren out of the prison he was being confined to, serving as entertainment for Grisha and possession for Carla.
- I'm going to do what I want. - He said, way more authoritative as he rose from the table abruptly, half the food still on the plate. Levi simply made his way to the exit and before leaving, ordered without even looking back.- He's staying with me tomorrow. You don't have to entertain him. And he was gone.
Isabel continued to eat in a carefree way, very accustomed to the moods Hades had, and she counted a few seconds for the other presence in the room to show itself.
Soon a blond head emerged through a gap of the doors leading into the kitchen, light blue eyes sweeping the room and a resigned sigh coming out of his lips when he saw Levi was no longer present.
-He didn't even finish eating. - Farlan said, approaching the table and taking the place in front of Isabel. The girl looked at him with animation and made a gesture with her hand as if to say "It happens, right?". Farlan rolled his eyes and soon Sasha and Connie served him as they did Isabel.
-Ahhhnnn, I'm so hungry!! - The brunette said, practically salivating over the potatoes on the plates she was carrying. Connie followed behind her, looking angry as he muttered to himself and served the wine.
- We can't eat and drink until all the residents of the house do. You know how Levi is with his punishments, Sasha. - Connie said bitterly while his nostrils almost cried out with desire to drink the wine. Both humans had yielded to the sin of gluttony, Sasha eating until she vomited and Connie losing consciousness over drinking too much. When they reached the Underworld, their punishments were to be the last in the house to eat and drink, being forced into an eternity subjected to their sin.
- But if the princess doesn't eat, we won't be able to eat either! Never again!! - The girl whimpered, giant eyes watching the steam leaving the spiced potato whose smell filled the hall.
-Then you'd better get ready for never, Sasha. - Connie said, finishing serving the wine and turning back to the kitchen, where they were the cooks. Another sadistic detail of their punishment.
Farlan and Isabel laughed and were left alone in the hall.
----
Eren woke up seconds after two strong bangs were delivered against his door. Emerald eyes stared at the ceiling of the bed and glided through the delicate veils that formed the canopy. The knocks resounded and he finally took a deep breath, as if ready to face the day.
Sitting down, the brunette noticed a change of clothes folded meticulously on the edge of his bed and slid his fingers gently through the silk and high-quality linen. Vaguely remembering taking a bath the night before, and fully ignoring the silent question of how he woke up in bed after falling asleep in the bathtub, Eren got up and undressed, naked body shivering against the freezing air of the Underworld.
This time, the dark green silk descended to his feet, leaving no strip of skin uncovered. Again, the waist was demarcated, but this time with a gold-embroidered sash four fingers thick. The torso formed a U near his clavicle and continued to cover his arms to the elbows.
Eren looked in the mirror at the opposite wall and observed his brown hair falling like cascades over his shoulders. He felt like a peasant girl and repressed the urge to twist his lips or frown.
It's not polite, Demeter would say. It's not how you need to behave.
“Turn it off.”
“Turn off.”
“Turn–”
The crystal of the mirror vibrated when two more impatient bangs were delivered to the door and Eren hurried to it, ready to meet Isabel when he came across a small figure with a frown in the middle of its forehead.
- I'm sure the clothes were ready. - Hades looked over to the boy after he ripped Eren of his hellish paradise. - If you didn't need to sew it, I don't see the reason for the delay in opening the damn door.
A heavy and authoritative aura surrounded the man, who didn't seem to be in his best moods, if at some point he could be something less than edgy and rude.
The frown that Eren mirrored on his own face was automatic and took him more than a few seconds to realize he was facing The King of Hell face. Only when Hades arched a thin eyebrow as if questioning him, Eren came to his senses.
“Behave yourself. Suppress it.”
The boy closed his eyes tightly and when he was ready to suppress the emotions that for years hadn't habited the surface of his skin, a phrase from the man was enough to wake him up.
Why was it so hard to behave next to him? Why Hades pulled out, abruptly and unkindly, all that took him years to suppress?
- Now it takes meditation to get out of the room? - Levi looked at him from top to bottom, impatience and exasperation clear in his face. Eren couldn't tell if the illusion of an extra glow in the icy blue eyes was real. But before he could conclude, Hades turned his back and walked down the corridor with quick steps.
Eren saw no other option but to follow him, looking back in confusion and trying to keep his emotions under control. However, walking with your captor was not the best situation where one felt necessary to follow rules and conduct protocols.
He decided to be angry for his survival and when he was safe and back on Mount Olympus he would return to be Kore.
Yes. That's what he'd do.
- I demand you let me go! - The brunette said, voice so loud and sharp that even he was frightened. Ever since he was a kid, he has never been allowed to speak in that tone. No, Eren was meant to remain calm, passive, and silent. No shouting through the halls of a castle, let alone chasing after a surprisingly quick short figure.
-And what am I supposed to do with your demand? - Hades continued to walk at the same pace, without even a hesitation, and without calling out Eren's tone of voice or good conduct.
This made the boy have little more courage and stead his voice while answering him.
-You must obey it! - Eren said, convinced that this was the first time he gave orders to anyone since he was always the one who followed them. The sensation that spread through his body, the adrenaline of breaking all the rules imposed on him from a young age almost lighted up an ancient flame that only a curious little Eren with bright green eyes had.
-Oho, - Hades grumbled surprised and looked over his shoulder before turning into a hallway. - So you have the naivety to think you can order me within my kingdom?
The green-eyed man quickly frowned, stopping immediately when he saw the corner of the god's lips rise and then return to normality quickly. Levi didn't even stop for a second, returning to a stoic feature soon after and walking down the marble stairs.
Eren had to hurry as soon as he came out of his momentary confusion. He bit his lips and kept frowning as he hurried up after Hades.
- I don't care if this is your kingdom! I demand you let me go back to Mount Olympus! - He said, right after they finished the flights of stairs and headed for a gate Eren didn't recognize.
- I don't remember bringing you from Mount Olympus. - Levi answered without losing a second. - Are you sure you're allowed there?
And with that, the green-eyed one shut up immediately.
No, he wasn't allowed on Mount Olympus. For decades that little cabin was what he could call home. His world was him, a continuous breeze and immortal flowers.
- Is Olympus really where you belong? - And as if he had read Eren's thoughts, the God of Hell added, killing the conversation when he pushed two heavy doors and left the mansion toward an immense field of wheat. The sky above them was covered with dark and heavy clouds, even if it was the first hours of the "day".
Eren was silent, both for not accepting the answer and for having his attention diverted to the landscape around him.
The wheat plantation was tall, beige coloring the whole field as far as the view could see. In the cloudy sky, crows flew from side to side, some without any direction and others flying in circles continuously. There were three paths between the plantation, Eren realized, one that followed infinitely to the right, another that followed infinitely to the left and an intermediary that ended suddenly in the middle of the plantation, without a definite end.
He didn't know how long he stood watching the image in front of him while Hades kept his mouth shut as if to give him time to digest the situation. The only certainty he had was the overwhelming feeling of looking at the field and feeling like face to face with death. The golden threads of the wheat swayed rhythmically, pushed by a strong breeze. The crows kept spinning and spinning, as if ready to feed on someone's rotten body.
The icy chill that rose his spine came in the same second Levi's equally cold voice sounded again.
-What do you see? - He asked, eyes fixed in the field with a distant look as if he knew each plant like the palm of his hand, which, Eren thought, was quite likely.
Eren opened his mouth immediately to tell him the obviousness of a field of wheat in front of him but soon reproached himself to realize how quickly comfortable he was to the point of not pondering the questions addressed to him. After all, how sure was he that Hades wasn't playing with him?
With furrowed eyebrows and after a few seconds with his mouth open like a fish, he replied.
- I see you need a gardener to take care of your plantation. But if that's why you kidnapped me, you better realize I'm not helping you! - The boy replied, crossing his arms against his chest protectively when Hades looked over his shoulder with both eyebrows arched.
- I see you can be quite talkative, Eren. - That's what came out of his thin lips when Eren was clearly waiting for some retaliation. A smirk and a passive face surprised him the younger one in such a way that his arms, that previously sought to protect his body, fell to his side, hands holding the tight garment, like an anchor through the conversation with Hades.
He didn't know what to say and almost thanked Hades for taking the lead again.
-If you want to leave so badly, why didn't you attempt to escape? - Levi began to walk towards the only path that didn't have an exit, which followed meters inside the plantation to end up blocked by wheat and more wheat. However, he never stopped speaking monotonously. - Do you really want to leave or are you lying to yourself about the "freedom" you once had?
The outrage that took over the boy's body was enough to propel him to follow behind the man, wide-eyed in disbelief and heart beating hard as the words echoed in his ears.
Freedom? He certainly didn't remember the concept of freedom, but he knew the peace and monotony in which he lived was better than being kidnapped and dragged the depths of Hades. Also, the brunette was sure Hades was teasing him by saying with such volatility that Eren was free to leave.
-How dare you say that?! - Stepping hard and crushing the stones and dry remnants of wheat, he rushed to the smaller god. - You're Hades! This is your kingdom! How dare you try to deceive me when these gates only open to you and for your will?
The answer was a thoughtful murmur as if Hades considered his point while the ravens shouted louder and louder around them.
-Before we discuss this pending, Eren, don't you think it's fair to call me by my name as I do with you? In case you forgot, it's Levi.
And once again, Eren felt himself being played with. Talking to Hades always seemed to push him against his limits and force him out of his comfort zone.
Everyone knew human names were very intimate and it was cordial to call gods by their names of gods. He too was not used by being called by his human name and two days after being plucked from his hut, he still didn't understand how everyone in that place could fake equality.
-Levi or not, it doesn't change the fact that you're still Hades! - He cried, his heart pounding as he watched the man keep walking naturally as if the path didn't end meters ahead. The noises of the crows were even louder and Eren could hear the high-pitched yells and the quick flapping of wings that made him even more nervous.
From the outside, the wheat field seemed picturesque and calm, but inside it, with wheat foliage almost reaching his head, Eren felt claustrophobic, as if the dull weight of a life of regrets fell on his shoulders.
-Do you think Hades and Levi are the same?
Then, suddenly, all the noise around him stagnated and a constant buzzing began to increase.
-What's going on? - The boy asked, long-forgotten manners, and arched eyebrows in confusion while letting his emotions come to light.
Levi turned to him as soon as he reached the edge of the path, back turned toward the great tuff of wheat with a macabre undulating appearance. That wheat was a yellow so consistent that it seemed to suck everything into itself.
And instead of repeating the question, Hades looked at him deeply in the eyes and calmly asked:
-Are Kore and Eren the same person?
At the same instant, the buzz increased almost deafeningly, a sharp and excruciating cry in the background, forcing Eren to cover his ears with his hands, watching as Hades took a step back.
Immediately the world changed around them.
One more illusion, Eren realized while feeling as if the breath was expelled from his body. Blinked repeatedly, he found himself in a gigantic temple, with ceilings so high that he felt part of the decoration.
The wheat field had disappeared as it had never existed and now Eren and Hades stepped on a bright and clean marble floor. Hades stood near the balcony of the tall gallery in which they were now.
With curious eyes and a heart beating high in his chest, the boy raised his green eyes and came across the dome of a Greek temple, marble drawing the white ceiling in intricate detail. Holding the massive ceiling, thick Corinthian columns descended to the ground, in which several bronze basins were burning high flames of fire.
However, one step ahead, and what caught Eren's eye was the line of standing souls, muttering continuously as they await their call to an altar where a frighteningly normal figure was.
Sitting on a heavy throne above the aligned souls, were an old-looking man with strong eyes. A round glasses rested on his wrinkled nose and his mouth remained in a thin and thoughtful line, which was almost completely hidden by the long white beard he had. The hair, also gray, was combed back and the old man wore a gray cloak to cover his round body.
He sat with his face resting on one hand, a hammer in the other, and eyes fixed in front, not even intimidated by Hades' presence in the room. Observing the soul walking towards him, the man began to calmly hear what a boy with the same style of robe began to recite.
From the privileged view that the high gallery had, Eren felt strangely powerful watching what was going on, even though he didn't know where he was or why they were watching that trial.
Seconds later, after hearing the deeds the apathetic soul had committed in the past life, the man hit the hammer against the arm of the throne and the sound extended across the hall, shutting down all the murmurs suffered.
- Asphodel Meadows.
And then the soul went away with empty steps, accompanied by another servant, to some door. Seconds later, the murmurs resumed, weeping and whining filling the enclosure as the next in line took the place of the defendant.
- It's the trial of the dead. - Eren said, more to himself as he understood what was going on before him.
- Clever. - Hades said and even without looking at the man, Eren knew he was giving him a sarcastic smile. - But this is just one of the trials.
The information was enough to get the attention of the green-eyed boy. Although they left an argument and an important pending incomplete, Eren couldn't fight the curiosity that plagued him every time he knew something different from the usual monotony his life was.
Besides, he knew that yelling and kicking wouldn't be enough to be released, and while he was there, he could afford to let some curiosities be sated, right?
-Is there more than one? - His full, rosy lips asked before he even realized it, Hades seeming pleased with Eren's defeat in the face of his own curiosity. Still, he didn't look at him with judgment, nor did he censure him in any way, blue eyes refocusing on the next soul as he answered the young man.
-Despite all the things they say about The Underworld, we're proud of our justice. Darius Zackly down there is who you know by Minos. I hand-picked him to lead the final court. - Hades pointed, eyes neutral and confident while another soul was destined for a door after the hammer hit. Eren stopped looking at his pale, serious face and again observed what was happening while listening to the information.
-Before the souls get here, they need to pass-
-By the Charon, who lead them through the rivers for purification and then disembark them in the Great Court... - Eren said quietly, without even realizing and still focused on what was happening. His discomfort began to fade as he approached the balcony and now his voice was bathed in an admiration.
This time, Hades' smile was the greatest of the day and his eyes shone with feverish interest and deep respect for the suppressed sides of the mysterious creature Eren was.
But so busy the boy was, he didn't even realize the pride his addiction caused or even realized that he interrupted Hades' explanation of his own kingdom.
-And the Great Court is where we are. But before the souls line up in front of Darius, they must pass through Aeacus and Rhadamanthus. Darius is responsible for the final decision but Aeacus and Rhadamanthus separate the souls of the West and the East.
-Why do you need three judges? - Eren asked quickly, looking at Hades and being surprised to find the man already looking at him. The sudden realization of having crossed the line quickly hit him and for the first time, Eren felt ashamed to address Hades. He opened his mouth to go back and act as if he didn't care but soon found himself being interrupted by the god, who didn't seem at all bothered by his questions.
Contrary to what he imagined, Hades snapped his fingers, and dizziness took over his head, forcing him to close his eyes momentarily and only open them when they were in another hall.
This time, both Hades and Eren were on the ground floor, both standing near a bronze basin burning the unquenchable flame. In this hall, the ceiling and architecture remained the same, and souls also lined up to be judged. However, the man who now sat on the throne had a dark complex, with short hair, a light beard and goatee adorning his face. Unlike Zakley, this man sat with a straight posture, backs resting on the throne, and both hands resting on the armrests.
Hades didn't wait for Eren to ask.
-Nile Dok, or Aeacus, as you prefer. - Hades responded, crossing his arms and watching a European soul move toward his trial. - He's responsible for judging European events, handpicked due to rational wisdom. Zackly has hard feelings about the West and would not have been an impassive judge.
Eren solemnly nodded. Hades' response seemed to confirm what Isabel had said about the justice inherent in the judgments of souls. Hades could be taciturn but he didn't lack justice. And even though his face was always impassive, the boy began to realize that sarcastically smirking his badge.
A snap of his fingers later and Eren found himself in another hall, ignoring nausea and strangeness in favor of getting to know more about The Underworld. He tried to appear nonchalant as the scenery around him changed and ignored as much as possible the tiredness that pushed through him.
His attention, however, was quickly recovered when a man hit the hammer three times in a row, hard and angry.
-Tartarus! - He cried and the murmurs were reduced to whimpering as a soul was carried and literally pushed through a door, the soul writhing in the arms of those who took it.
-Who the hell is that? - Eren asked, wide green eyes focused on the bald man with black circles below his eyes. He sat on the edge of the chair, intimidating wrinkles on his forehead, while grabbing the hammer and arm of the throne. His clothes were identical to those of the other two judges, but his posture was punitory.
- Keith Shadis, Rhadamanthus. He's responsible for Asian souls. - Hades replied, not surprised by his judge's stance.
Eren arched his eyebrows when he saw another soul condemned to Tartarus as the judge beat the hammer with fury.
-I see no calm or justice in the fury he presents. - Eren opined, not even realizing he was letting his thoughts come out.
-Eastern souls tend to offend the gods more and Keith has been doing it for years. - Hades replied. - Despite this, none of them go directly to Tartarus. They still have to go through Zackley's trial and if they have redeemed themselves after the dread Keith broke, there may still be some salvation.
Eren nodded, but Hades's attention was caught and he widened his eyes in recognition. Eren noticed the change, looking over with curiosity at the soul that was addressed by Shadis.
He hoped that some forgotten information would be added, but then a hoarse, deep voice, filled with power and authority sounded through the hall, and if he wasn't looking directly at the man, Eren would refuse to believe that this whole power emanated from a god with so little height.
-Quiet.
Darkness fluttered around Hades' body and fury arose in his features when ice blue eyes fixed on the soul. The hall, intimidated by the presence of The God of Hell, watched in dread as the pale-skinned figure headed to the throne, and immediately Keith stood up, saluting the god and yielding his throne to him.
Hades, however, made no motion of sitting on the throne, looking down at the man in front of him by using the height advantage of the stage. Still, Eren thought, even if Levi was on the same level as that soul, he would still be looking at him intimidatingly.
- Erysichthon. - It was the first thing that came out of his lips, very quietly, almost syllable by syllable. No one dared say anything, even the judge keeping his head down for The King of The Underworld. Eren, however, kept staring at him, eager to see the power emanating from Hades and the reasons that led him to assume a trial.
- How long have you been promised to me... - A sadistic smile spread across the man's face as he was pleased to finally reach it.
-Sir, I was about to warn you about him.
The third judge said, head down as if redeemed by the mistake of not contacting the god as soon as possible. The fact that the soul was so important aroused an even greater interest in Eren, leading him to take a few steps forward to hear the reasons for such commotion.
-Silent. - Hades again ordered and by instinct, the green-eyed brunette stopped at the same instant, suddenly fearful of any movement. He thought about hiding again near the courthouse columns, but then Levi turned his head to the boy and watched him deeply, one of his hands rising as an invitation for Eren to approach.- Come on, Eren.
Eren wandered his gaze from the hand extended to the apathetic face and then to the hand again. That hand had been the same one that ripped him from the place he lived and was now stretched out to him, ready to satisfy an intimate curiosity Eren was trying to suppress.
It wasn't as if the differences between them had been overcome – quite the contrary, Hades always found a way to escape his questions. Yet, Eren felt compelled to approach and unravel that mystery.
He hadn't been so curious about any oddity for a long time and Eren wanted to enjoy the new sensations as much as possible.
Therefore, his steps were slow but determined, the bar of the garment creeping behind him. When he reached the altar, his gaze bored into Hades' blue eyes. He looked at him earnestly, and despite the exhalation of power, Eren didn't feel humiliated or demoted.
Quite the contrary, with a confidence he didn't recognize as his own, he climbed the steps by itself, completely ignoring the outstretched hand. Standing next to Levi, the boy channeled everything he ever wanted to be and abandoned the figure of an extra boy with a lowered head.
Here, Eren felt an excitement that had never flowed through his veins. Standing on an altar, next to – and not behind – an important god and looking powerful for everyone present in the hall. Even the servants didn't dare question Hades' decision or look at it with disdain.
Looking away quickly, he unconsciously sought Levi's approval, as he had taken the altar with some determination that might hurt the man's ego. However, unlike expected, Levi didn't stare at him with furrowed eyebrows or silently questioning him why he tried to look like someone he wasn't. No, Levi simply lowered his offered hand without feeling refused and Eren could swear, if he knew the man better, that a proud glow flashed in his eyes quickly before being taken over by common apathy.
-Clear us up, Keith. - Levi said, looking back at the soul and keeping Eren by his side. Soon the judge's thick, harsh voice sounded.
- Erysichthon. King of Thessaly. Accused of desecrating and not fearing the gods. In his ambition to grow his possessions and dominions, he had nature cut and ravaged around his kingdom. None of his servants, however, complied with the order. They considered the forest consecrated by the goddess Demeter.
Eren felt his heart turn upside down when he heard his mother's name and looked wide-eyed at Hades, who didn't even pay attention to him. He bit his lips and looked forward again with furrowed eyebrows as he listened to the rest.
-[...] while striking the ancient trees that possessed spirits of the Dryads, blood poured out. Yet Erysichthon didn't stop.
Eren closed his eyes tightly when he heard the reason for the death of the tree's nymphs. Out of ambition, trees and nymphs were killed and a sadness followed by a desire for justice began to ravage his body, causing him to close his fists in the fabric he wore.
-Demeter cursed him with eternal hunger and he sold all his belongings in search of satisfaction. He even sold his own daughter for more food, but nothing pleased him. Eventually, he ended up devouring himself.
A pleasurable tremor shook Eren's solid posture and he was almost startled by the relief that plagued him upon learning the man got what he deserved. With sated curiosity, he closed his eyes and prayed for the souls of the dryads that were dead and soon he was ready to leave the altar.
But Hades resumed his speech.
-Eren. - The boy raised his face quickly. Alarmed green eyes fixed on the figure who looked at the soul with disgust. He could taste bitter in Levi's words. - What punishment does he deserve?
And what was once a surprise turned into disbelief and Eren frowned, lips contorted.
-Why do you ask me that?
If Hades expected Eren to admit that he felt good to learn of someone else's punishment, he would probably be disappointed.
-I'm giving you a chance to judge that soul. - The god turned to him and there was nothing but calm and sincerity on his face.
-Why is that? Why would I believe you? - Eren immediately retorted, arms crossing and head failing to understand why Hades wanted his trust.
-Have I ever lied to you?
And while no one dared to interrupt the argument, the boy opened his mouth to scream and say that Hades was nothing more than an evil and unscrupulous king who kidnapped him and now kept him deprived of freedom.
But then...
But then he realized that he suffered harm. Hades never looked at him superiorly or increased his tone with him, and even though this was only his second encounter with the man, Eren didn't feel censored.
-I-I don't... - His confidence began to shake when his defensive posture began to fail.
-This man killed nymphs for no reason. He destroyed ancient trees for no reason. He insulted gods and sold his own daughter. What do you think his eternal punishment should be in Tartarus, Eren? - Levi rephrased the question, with the same serious and confident tone. Even though the brunette had never had an opinion on any major issue, Hades' confidence was enough for his mind to start thinking about some punishment at the time.
In his heart, Eren remembered the nymphs who kept him company on his cottage, the only ones who daily made themselves available to talk to him. For years tall trees were his walls and the boy felt a part of himself bleed from knowing that greed and power were sufficient motives to destroy an entire forest. Worse, sell your own daughter and bring ruin to the people who depended on the kingdom while enjoying gold and wine, unable to pity others' misery.
That was a man whose hunger for power massacred nymphs and humans. That was a man who deserved to spend his eternity starving for the most basic delicacies the subjects of his kingdom couldn't have.
- As punishment, he won't be able to feed anymore. - Eren said, so low and unconfidence, as if testing the words in his own mouth. Never before had the boy dared to imagine choosing someone's destiny. And most of him doubted very much that, at that moment, he was making the right decision.
Therefore, it was better to play safe and whisper low enough to withdraw the sentence if Levi feels insulted.
It wasn't what happened.
-Erysichthon, you are doomed to hunger and eternal thirst. - That's what sounded right away, even though Eren was sure Levi hadn't heard what he had said. Again, he looked incredulously at the shorter man, hearing him he accept the suggestion without even doubting Eren's opinion.
-But Sir-
-Quiet. - Hades interrupted Keith once more, who just bowed his head, not daring to direct his gaze at Eren. They heard the end of the sentence. - Erysichthon, your eternity will be of such torment that you will never wish to have coveted as much power as the gods. Surrounded you will be by water, but unable to drink a single sip of it. When trying to drink from the lake, the water should drop level and always stay away from your mouth. Surrounded you will be by trees, whose fruits will be the tastiest, but the branches will always extend out of your reach.
Louder and louder laments and whispers took over the atmosphere, but Levi never raised his voice. Eren, even though he was not the victim sentenced, felt himself shrinking under the authority of the god. Though deep down, proud surfaced when he had his opinion acknowledged.
The condemned soul was emotionless while receiving his punishment and when Levi turned to Eren, having finished his proclamation, the boy realized the power of The God of Hell.
Looking into his green eyes, Levi turned his back to the whole court, as if the boy in front of him was the only one worthy of having his attention. In a calm and passive tone, he proclaimed, without even needing a hammer to maximize his sentence:
-Tartarus.
And the weight of power shook on the shoulders of Eren, who felt his consciousness fading until only one smell permeated his existence:
Roses.
----
The next sight that invaded his senses was the top of the wheat plantation, the yellow pointing to the dark sky, and the crows still surrounding the death sentences. Now, however, Eren no longer felt so tormented, accustomed, and even feeling calm as he was gently carried in someone's arms.
-Levi... - In his extreme tiredness, he didn't even realize he called the god by name, too worried about saving a little bit of the energy that seemed to be sucked out of his body.
-Yes, Eren. - He answered, thick voice resounding through the chest where the green-eyed one was leaning. Eren closed his eyes, feeling soothed by the gentle steps.
-Can I ask you a question? - His voice came out soft and low, almost certain that there would be no denial.
- I told you I don't lie. - Levi replied, rudely and earnestly, but Eren wasn't bothered. That exterior seemed to match well with the King's figure. He continued:
-Why is Isabel here? She doesn't look like someone who did something bad to be ordered to serve you for the rest of eternity...
- Do you think serving me is a punishment? - Hades retorted at the same instant and Eren couldn't hold the giggles that escaped his tired breath. If he had his emeralds open, he would've seen the smirk directed at him, along with the tranquil look that wandered through Hades' features.
Seconds later, Levi answered him.
-Isabel and Farlan were thieves.
-Did they kill anyone? - Eren frowned, lips grimaced upon even if he didn't fret to open his eyes.
-They stole to feed street brats and were killed by the village's residents. - The god finished, and Eren reasoned a little until he released an elaborate "Oh..." and then pouted with their lips full and rosy.
-Who's Farlan? - He tried to ask, already beginning to curl up in his arms, his body warm and comfortable.
-You're going to meet him tomorrow.
-Hm... Tomorrow... - Repeated, rubbing his face against Hades' chest without realizing it.
-Yes, Eren, tomorrow. Now you can sleep.
-B-but I don't...- A yawn interrupted him, but he still tried for a few seconds, sly voice escaping. - It's so early, and I-I...
-----
-So, how'd it gone with him? - Isabel fired the question as soon as he had finished putting Eren in his bedroom and entered the living room.
-Tomorrow I don't want you to take him on any adventure. - Ignoring the sharp curiosity reflected in the dark green eyes, Levi simply sat in his armchair and waited for Sasha to serve him with a cup of herbal tea planted right there in The Underworld.
Isabel looked at him incredulously from the corner of the room, as she alternately stroked the three heads of the hellhound. She looked outraged at the animal as she honed her voice to talk to the dog, who licked and shook his tail at the redhead.
-Uh, huh? Why would you? I was already thinking of introducing him to Cerberus, right baby?! You don't want to meet the bro's little princess, huh? Don't you wanna?
Levi rolled his eyes at the ridiculous scene of Isabel playing the hell's dog while Farlan threw away pieces of meat at the animal. Unlike the girl, the blonde didn't feel at all impelled to approach the creature and it was he who asked why the decision.
- He's being less and less energetic with these trips. - Levi answered simply and Isabel countered at the same instant.
- But you told me to make him feel at home! You want him locked up all day?!
- No, I don't.
- So what are you going to do to turn The Underworld into his house? - The girl stopped stroking the dog, who started licking her leg, to pay attention to Hades' thoughtful expression.
-Hm... I wonder...
Chapter 4: The Garden
Summary:
Notes:
Hi, everyone! As promised, here is the new chapter! Thank you for the kudos and comments, I hope you guys like it! You can now discover what is the surprise Levi prepared for Eren! Also, I want to remind you guys that Agapanthus is the blue and purple flowers we can see on Attack on Titan show. I hope my English is not that bad! Have fun!
Chapter Text
Your lips, my lips, apocalypse
Go and sneak us through the rivers
Flood is rising up on your knees, oh please
Come out and haunt me, I know you want me
Come out and haunt me
Apocalypse - Cigarettes After Sex
THE GARDEN
When Eren opened his eyes, he didn't bother to question how he had arrived in his chambers. The answer was as clear as the sky he could glimpse through the window, but he still sought to avoid it. What caught his eye at the time was the redhead with messy hair in the middle of the room, jumping on her heels in excitement.
-Eren, Eren! Wake up! Wake up! - The girl demanded, excited as a child, while the brunette sat slowly on the bed, his body complaining and crying out to be back under the sheets. Isabel was having none of that and soon hovered around the bed and pulled his sheets. - You slept all morning! Come on, you won't believe what happened!
Frightened, Eren didn't have time to protest when Isabel removed him from the bed and pushed him to do his daily hygiene. He didn't know what to focus on: the intimacy with which the girl spoke to him, the fact that he had slept through the morning, or the "surprise" she continued to babble about as he tried, in vain, to disguise his bed hair.
Five minutes later, Isabel held his hand, completely oblivious to the blush on Eren's cheeks. The boy was perplexed by how the girl showed affection so naturally. He could almost feel at ease with how kind the redhead treated him.
Practically running through the castle's halls, Isabel had an ear-to-ear smile, bare feet as she guided Eren to yet another door from all those he had passed through. Eren recognized this was a singular white wood door, very distinctive from the darkness around him.
He was already frowning as they approached it.
When the girl pushed the two heavy doors, he wasn't ready for the scenario in front of him, not even in his most fanciful dreams.
Below a clear blue sky, no cloud daring to maculate it, a considerably large garden stretched. Or rather, a rich and soft-looking earth carpet stretched, making it perfect for a plantation. White fences bordered the perimeter and further away Eren could see a stream of clear water passing by, gleaming stones and birds singing from low, fruity trees. Where there wasn’t, land, stone paths cut the most genuine grass Eren had ever seen. It was not overly green, but completely natural, with even some insects hiding among the branches. And in the distance, on his left, a tall tree with a thick, twisted trunk rose, its branches pointing everywhere, forming a voluminous canopy swinging slightly.
-Eren, Eren! Isn't it beautiful? - Isabel screamed excitedly, not thinking twice before running through the garden and dipping her toes in the dark and soft earth. Of the few memories Levi allowed her to keep, one of them was the stone floor, dirty with blood and rotten food she remembered so vividly. From her human life on earth, Isabel never had the luxury of feeling anything more than hardness under her feet, straw under her back, and thirst in her mouth. To think that Levi had built all that just to keep Eren comfortable made the redhead realize the god was serious about the boy.
Farlan was ahead of them, carrying a bag of seeds in one hand and tools in the other. While he also didn't believe in the little piece of heaven that stretched in front of him, Levi had given him a job and he was not amused to be a princess' gardener.
-Isabel, if you keep trampling the earth, no plant will be born. - The blonde chose to raise his voice, making his presence recognized by Eren, who soon turned with wide green eyes to the new voice.
-Farlan! Give me these seeds and let's get started! - The girl ran up to the blonde and practically tore the bags out of his hand, ignoring the weight and digging in it.
Farlan breathed a resigned sigh and wiped his hands on his pants before finally focusing his attention on Eren, who until then stared at him quietly and curious. Inside, he had to compare the green of the boy's eyes with Isabel's, and even though the golden nuances singularized Eren's irises, it was palpable that the animation and joviality still ran through their veins, even when the brunette tried to keep his composure.
-So you're the famous Eren... - Farlan approached, hands in the pockets of the old pants he was wearing. He wore a white shirt with a gray garment over it, while Isabel had the same pants, rolled up to her knees, with an orange flannel shirt. Without waiting for an answer, the blond stretched out one hand to Eren and introduced himself: - My name is Farlan Church.
Eren observed the man suspiciously until he recognized Hades had mentioned that name.
-Kore, but you can call me Eren, since here you have this custom... - Eren began, his confidence fading until the end of the sentence when "Kore" sounded strange in his own tongue. Perhaps it was because he was getting used to being treated by his human name, Eren thought. He shook his head as if to vanish thoughts and reached his hand out with its torso turned upwards.
Farlan looked at him with an arched eyebrow but said nothing about the boy's confusion with his god name. On the contrary, with a smirk, the blond took Eren's hand in his and, unlike the expected respectful kiss, shook it three times.
-Well, formalities aside... - Farlan shrugged, turning and leaving behind a stunned Eren holding his hand protectively. - Let's plant it. - An animated cry from Isabel was heard.
The little interaction he had with man was not enough for the young god to decide to like him - well, he hadn't even been able to unravel his raptor! But the idea of planting - planting for real - sounded so divine in his ears that Eren soon found himself lifting the tail of the robe he used to approach the vegetable in quick steps.
Isabel chattered non-stop as Farlan opened the seed bags and spread the tools on the floor and Eren automatically remembered a past in which, as a child, he used those same tools before mastering his powers.
-Eren, which one do you think grows faster?! - Isabel looked at him with a huge smile, waving her hand for him to approach. - Awnn, it's so boring that we have to wait so long to see them grow! - The girl complained while Farlan began to explain that patience is the key to everything and that without effort, nothing was valid.
While taking off his sandals, Eren couldn't avoid thinking Farlan was right. The flowers he grew in his old ranch grew rapidly and didn't need any care. No pests, no gnawed leaves, no fallen petals. Perfect and yet they didn't awaken anything in his heart.
There, as his fingers littered with earth, Eren could feel the living energy radiate through his feet, taking his body with enthusiasm for what promises a divine future. He could use his fingers and gifts to create a blanket of agapanthus flowers in seconds, but the will wasn't there.
Far from it, the green and curious eyes watched excited, almost ashamed, the seeds that Farlan and Isabel removed from the bag. There were straw muggles with written names, signaling the various species of flowers and plants, and Isabel took each one with euphoria, demanding from Farlan an answer the blond didn't know.
-Do you think this one is pink because of the name? - Eren came close enough to hear a part of the question and threw the hesitation away when his eyes shone due to the number of seeds stretched out on the ground and stored in the pot. Holding the robe bar with one hand, he crouched down enough to grab the package and read it.
- Not all roses are pink.
Isabel didn't even bother to be wrong, delivering another package to Eren and starting a monologue about how they should consider a pattern for decorating the garden, while Eren focused on imagining and following her quick thoughts.
Farlan, oblivious to that discussion, just sighed wearily while Isabel and Eren were busy in a discussion about "why plant roses when there was a plantation of white ones on the other side of the castle?".
Isabel no longer recognized the determination and competence irradiating from Eren, who always seemed just another one of those gods who lived in his bubble made of wines and fruits on Mount Olympus. However, at some point in the conversation, Eren had simply stuck his fingers in the ground, soiling his palms and smelling the hummus, green eyes shining when he exclaimed that the land was in good condition for planting, albeit a little dry.
At another time, completely oblivious to the robe, Eren simply knelt on the ground, making heaps and teaching Isabel how to plant. The breeze of the blue sky helped refresh them, but sweat still left their skin shining, even if the heavy work hadn't begun yet.
- I think here we can have flowers and there some vegetables. - Eren said, pointing to the places he was referring to. Isabel, however, had a frown on her face.
-No need to plant vegetables when Levi can snap his fingers and have them on the table. - She said, with her arms sullen and Eren rolled his eyes without even realizing.
-Vegetables are good for the soil.
-Eren, you can literally fix this soil with a snap of fingers! - The girl threw her arms into the sky, unable to understand why the brunette insisted so much on doing things the hard way. She just wanted to be able to plant and see those flowers grow, preferably by the end of the day, but at that pace...
-Hey, hey! - The blonde caught their attention, both green-eyed brats seeming years younger with so excitement. Eren's big hair was tied in a soggy bun and full of dirt and Isabel had mud stains on her face. Both looked frightened when Farlan frowned, a vein pulsating on his forehead.
-Isabel, how dare you discuss gardening with the god of flowers? - The girl opened her mouth to retort, but the look Farlan directed her was enough to shut her up. - And Eren, how do you want to do anything with that inappropriate outfit?
Now it was Eren's turn to have red cheeks, ashamed for getting carried away by the situation and not realizing how dirty his clothes were. His immediate instinct was to apologize profusely and go change when Farlan approached and knelt in front of the brunette.
Eren was shocked when Farlan took the gardening scissors and cut
the bar of his robe without thinking twice, keeping the length above his knees. At the same instant, Eren felt extremely exposed and took his hands to hold the bar of what was now a skirt and protect his own dignity.
However, Farlan seemed to not even pay attention, throwing the rest of the fabric into one of the bags, picking up a shovel and a pile of seeds and practically pushing them against Eren's chest, repeating the same process with Isabel.
-Less talk and more work! - Farlan ended, turning his back and muttering to himself "I can't take this damn chitchatting anym-"
And the blond is gone, scraper in hand, as he descended the instrument with force on the farthest earth from the two green-eyed creatures.
Isabel looked at Eren who looked back at Isabel and the truth is that he couldn't remember the last time he had to put his hand in front of his lips to hide a laugh.
------
The nymphs who lived in the great forest of giant trees sneaked through the trunks and camouflaged themselves among the foliage, all wide-eyed and whispering to each other.
Demeter, who was standing at the edge of the paradise she had created for her precious Kore, watched the scene with bulging eyes, mouth lying open as she took the view in front of her.
The green grass, always bright and full of drops of water despite the total absence of rain, was now composed of dead and contorted threads emerging from the black and shattered earth. The flowers, which never died and received constant care from Kore, were decayed, petals falling lifeless, and trunks broke and trampled. The wind that always blew calmly was now stagnant, portraying the scene as a dramatic painting.
The sky was still blue, but nothing on the ground seemed alive. Cracks in the dry, black soil, smoke rising at every step Demeter took, attracted the goddess's attention. It was as if they had set fire to all the land until the ashes took place in the once beautiful cottage she hides Kore.
Oh no.
-Kore! - Carla screamed, her voice bordering on despair as she feared to lose her most precious possession. Raising the bar of the light dress she wore, she ran through what was once the garden, nymphs flying beside her and leaving frightened whispers as she watched the state of the vegetation.
It was as if death itself had sucked the whole life of the place.
Pushing the wooden door of the small house, Demeter finished climbing the steps on a ramp and observed with wide brown eyes the emptiness inside.
Kore was not sitting on the pillows waiting for time to pass with an apathetic expression as always. He was not watering the flowers to the point of drowning them for the thousandth time a day, and he was not talking to every object in the house to distract his own mind from the solitude and excruciating silence that permeated his days.
Kore wasn't there.
Demeter knew that the boy wasn't hiding because he would always stop everything and go receive his mother with overflowing joy - joy that Demeter wanted to keep to herself. Kore could smile only for herself.
She knew the boy wasn't in the cabin because there was no one hugging her as he cried and asked to be allowed to return to Mount Olympus, begging to not endure that eternal punishment.
And to be honest, not even Demeter knew how many decades Kore had been there, since for many years she had forgotten, amid her duties, to visit her son. But she would never let Kore return to Olympus.
Never.
She would never allow Kore to be taken away from her because Kore would always belong to her.
-Nymphs, search for him. - The goddess ordered, thick eyebrows frowning with fury at not finding the boy waiting for her, panic surging under her skin for imagining having lost her jewel.
The woman wandered through the small space Kore called home for a long time, observing every meticulously cleaned and organized object. She noticed some furniture in different positions, which was something the boy often did to keep him distracted.
The nymphs, who searched through the house, returned with wide glances and small hands covering their mouths as they flew stressed.
-What did you find? - The woman asked without raising her eyes from a half-eaten apple that was already rotted. That was proof that Kore had been there and if the state of the garden was anything to go by...
-My goddess Demeter... - One of the nymphs flew to the goddess, her tiny feature covered in despair and sadness. She didn't want to upset the goddess, but it was obvious that Kore was no longer there. - It's all in perfect condition... - She started until the sentence was completed by another nymph.
- Except for the garden, my goddess... - The other one said, flying nervously as she twisted her hands.
The noise of glass breaking then was a consequence of Demeter pulling the silk that covered the tiny table and knocking the wine jars on the floor. She didn't care about the damn garden, with a snap of fingers all that could be rebuilt.
The only thing she cared about...
-Where is Kore? - She asked gritting her teeth, causing a shiver of terror in the small and fragile body of the fairy nymphs. They knew pissing off a god was never a good option.
-M-my goddess, w-we think the go Kore may have been taken-
And before they could even finish exposing their suspicions, Demeter was already shouting in anger, a series of "Find him! Search! I want him back!" leaving her lips in a choleric and hoarse tone that caused all the birds of the forest to take flight and all the magical animals to seek shelter.
-----
-I told him I wouldn't be his gardener and yet... - Eren whispered, hands on his waist, sweat and dirt soiling what was once a white robe.
What was once a flower bed, now had seeds planted and lined, the fluffy aspect of the earth forming mounds like little clouds. The sky had remained blue all day long and in the distance the small stream could be heard, where the waters continued to kiss stones and reflect sunlight. The trees continued to move from side to side and his hair was trapped in a bun, allowing him to fancy his little piece of Eden.
During his work, Eren had let himself be carried away completely, moving smoothly and familiarly around Isabel and Farlan. He continued arguing with the redhead about where it was best to put some plants, either against or in favor of the sun. And he continued refusing to use his gifts, though he could make all seeds grow and bloom in a second if he buried his fingers in the earth and wished so.
But even after working all day, the reward was only to observe mounds that, months later, would blossom in flowers and plants.
Seeing plants grow was just the result of a trajectory of effort and care and there was no reward if the flowers were forced to grow. The cycle of life needed to follow its course and allow the seeds to ripen and mature in their own time. It was obvious that, like Isabel, he was eager to see the magnolias growing, which he had planted in honor of the girl. But the expectation of, day after day, seeing the flowers bloom was much more gratifying.
Because of the work and companionship of the three of them, flowers and vegetables would grow and a shy smile adorned his lips when Isabel looked at him excitedly and waved her hand as she had finished burying her row of seeds.
Yes, even if they were in the underworld, good things could flourish.
It was then that, watching Isabel stir in the vegetable seeds, Eren remembered something he had been neglecting for days. His smile died when a memory from when he was still a boy revealed itself.
The memory of the first time Eren, still a mischievous little boy hiding behind his mother's long white robes, had seen Hades. He was drawn by the shadows that followed the older man when the god made it to a reunion on Olympus. Eren's bright green eyes followed the figure of death through the dining room, where there was a meeting. His mother Demeter was also present and Eren was instructed to stand behind his mother's chair throughout the encounter.
But a six years old child was curious enough to observe and laugh innocently at the small peculiarities of each god and Hades was extremely singular when he sat in an almost isolated chair, completely oblivious and passive to the shouted arguments of the gods. The God of The Dead kept watching his cup continuously and Eren's eyes shone when the shadows surrounding the man as flames of black fire began to rotate the cup as if the movement of the liquid inside it was more interesting than the subject they discussed.
It was then that icy, sharp blue eyes met the large, curious emeralds of a child who watched him obstinately.
Hades observed him for a few seconds, arching an eyebrow and swaying the shadows frighteningly, forcing them to take the form of a crow behind the man. However different from what he expected, the child laughed, placing his tiny hand in front of small teeth to suppress his giggles.
Intrigued by the child's courage, Levi continued to form animals, among them a lion that roared silently, a bird that climbed into the table and tasted the wine, a black cat swaying its tail, and even a snake that hissed its tongue.
None of the animals frightened the boy, who remained focused frowning eyebrows as if trying to guess what the next creation was. It was then that the snake, which was once on the table, began to slide down and Eren followed her with his gaze until the shadows were under the table. Without thinking twice, the little boy bent down and crawled under the table to see the animal on the other side of the extensive dining table.
The snake had lifted a part of its body and began to move from side to side, always attracting the green orbs of little Eren. Looking at his mother, the boy noticed that the woman wasn't paying attention to him and decided to approach the friendly snake, who now had yellow eyes with vertical slits that attracted him even more.
Crawling carefully, Eren observed with joy that his friend was also getting closer, her body moving like smoke, and her eyes blinking as if she could think.
Eren was excited enough to reach out without fear and pater the palms on the snake's head, cuddling her like a pet when they were close enough. In response, the snake tipped over its head and let its long, thin tongue come out of its mouth to lick and tickle the child's palm.
Laughing softly, Eren continued to play with the animal, which curled up in his short legs and licked his cheek affectionately. And when the meeting seemed to be over, he watched wide-eyed when the snake simply squirmed and threw up an apple. An apple so, but so red that it seemed to shine even under the table.
Looking at the animal, Eren saw a slight nod, while the snake retreated and was sneaking to return to the other shadows, leaving the boy with the present. Excited and feeling loved, the little one crawled back to his mother, who had not even realized her son had disappeared for the majority of the meeting. He waited impatiently to show the woman the gift he had gained from the man with the shadows, not realizing smoking eyes staring him intently from the other side of the table.
But when he finally had the chance to show Carla the beautiful apple he had won, the woman's face turned to anger and Eren watched in horror when the woman took the apple from her hand and used magic to force it to rot and turn to dust. With his eyes full of tears and trying hard to not sob with sadness, the boy saw his mother's hand grab him by the arms and shake his fragile little body, screaming and fighting as if he was guilty of accepting a gift from a friend.
It was then that she said the phrase that Eren subconsciously tried to remember since he was taken to The Underworld.
A person who eats anything produced in The Underworld is doomed to become part of it, being forced to live forever in the kingdom of Hades.
That's what the vegetables they planted were trying to tell him he hadn't eaten in days and if he ate, he'd be imprisoned forever in that place.
Turning around, Eren noticed the giant castle of dark stones and moss rising, the towers so tall they seemed to have fog around them. Even though there weren't any clouds in the sky, the castle still looked gloomy, and even though Eren didn't feel bad watching it, the castle was still his prison in The Underworld.
But why he was so bad remembering things from his past? Why he couldn’t recall happy moments with his mom? Why his only memories were the empty feeling and loneliness a child shouldn’t feel?
He wanted to go home, even if he didn't know where home was.
Eren felt confused, as this was the first he had been allowed to do something of his own free will. Always accustomed to following orders, he had never had a garden to plant anything. However, his emotions were still poorly cultivated and he could not extract from his chest the feeling of still being trapped.
-Eren, what do you think we need to do now? - Eren was plucked from his thoughts when Isabel called him and turned to see the girl run up to him. A little confused, she pointed to the garden, as if waiting for the answer.
-The garden's a little dry, it needs water. - He said, even though he was giving an uncomfortable smile.
The redhead, however, didn't seem to notice and clapped her hands in joy. She proudly explained that Levi was the only one who could control the seasons in The Underworld and that she would order him to make it rain every day because she was too excited to see the little plants grow.
Letting himself be silent and only nodding to the girl, he declined the invitation to have dinner with them, stating he was very tired. Isabel didn't object and just let him go.
True to his word, Eren woke up at dawn with the noise of falling water and quickly got up from bed to go to the window and see, after years, the rain bathing his world. The drops falling quickly, the sound of water dripping, the smell of wet earth. All this screamed freedom and Eren felt torn. One part of his heart wanted to smile for Levi really caring about the garden to the point of making it rain and the other part was attached to Kore's personality.
Eren didn't know when he went back to bed.
Chapter Text
Eu quis te conhecer, mas tenho que aceitar
Caberá ao nosso amor o eterno ou o não dá
Pode ser cruel a eternidade
Eu ando em frente por sentir vontade
[Hades]
'Cause I can forget about myself
Trying to be everybody else
I feel alright that we can go away
And please my day
I know you stay with me cause I’ve surrender
[Persephone]
Janta – Marcelo Camelo
THE DINNING TABLE
-Where's Kore? - Carla demanded, voice braving when she made her noticeable entrance in The Great Hall of The Gods on Mount Olympus. An expression of fury transformed her harmonious human features in sharp, diamond-hard angles. Brown eyes turned to liquid gold and the marble beneath her feet shuddered at the goddess's fury.
And yet, the coexistence on Mount Olympus remained the same. The other gods did not care about the goddess' cholera attack, and only the nymphs most connected with nature bothered with the woman's mental state.
All her efforts to recover her precious Kore were in vain. After searching for clues at the ranch where she kept the boy, Demeter found nothing about Kore's abductor. Not even the creatures kept in The Forest of Giant Trees saw the kidnapper, they knew nothing about Kore's disappearance.
The visit to the oracle proved itself completely useless when stirred by the visions, the wide-eyed Pythía refused to give up information. Roaring with anger, Demeter claimed her position as a goddess, but the seer asked for forgiveness and claimed the subject matter involved gods of greater authorities.
Fulminating, the woman still decided to go after The Moiras. Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos observed Demeter silently as the goddess made her way to the three old sisters who coordinated Fate. As the wheel of fortune teed the threads of the life of every human and every god, the three calmly heard Demeter's fury, insisting on discovering the past and the person responsible for the abduction of Kore. The old women, dressed in ancient and worn costumes, could easily be mistaken as creatures of needless power, when in fact they were part of the primordial gods of the first divine generation.
So when Carla appeared demanding answers that didn't fit her fate, sardonic smiles appeared on the wrinkly faces of the sisters. While whispering, the three completely ignored the goddess's appeals, who, feeling insulted, soon withdrew from their presence. Still, curious about the fate of little Kore was enough that wires and books of life were messed up in search of that particular story.
And when Kore's fate, or rather, Persephone's, was again discovered, the Moiras couldn't help but think it would be a good punishment for Demeter.
The goddess, however, completely ignorant of the situation, immediately went to Mount Olympus and was now stared at by bored eyes. The one who held the highest position was sitting with a dull expression. Zeus watched Demeter from above, opaque green eyes barely visible behind his low eyelids. Supporting his head in his hand, Zeus, of human name Grisha, left his long brown hair loose, beard covering the entire lower half of his face.
Carla observed for seconds the one who helped bring her Kore into the world of the gods but soon resumed the angry expression, crossing her arms and letting the fury be reflected in her golden eyes.
Unaffected, the man only stared at his sister in silence for a few seconds, and, taking the woman's facial expressions, Zeus wondered slightly why he had not taken her as a wife. Still, realizing Carla's uncontrolled state, he already knew what the problem was. He also wondered why he hadn't taken Kore for himself sooner.
Yes, that would have saved him a lot of fatigue.
-----------
-Where's Eren? - Levi asked as soon as he entered the living room, a hopeful expression on his face that still kept a constantly tired passivity. Removing the dark cape he always wore, shadows forming black flames around pale skin, the god let out a sigh and massaged the temples while ignoring Isabel throwing a human femur, that is, a bone, for Cerberus to pick up.
-In the bedroom. - The redhead answered, in a disinterested way.
Farlan was sitting in Levi's chair, completely oblivious to the fact that he sat on a god's throne. He raised his blue eyes to the blond one, which looked at him firmly, but still resumed reading a thick book written by humans.
One thing Levi had to admit, despite all the stupidity, humans had enough intelligence and ability to entertain him with books for hours to come. After all, when you're trapped in your own nightmare, books could be the only things that can distract the god from his hell.
Now, the presence of a certain boy inside his castle was also causing the slow judgment of underworld souls. Trying to get around the situation, Levi went far enough to allow Eren to accompany him to trial whenever he wanted. Despite being reclusive and wary, the boy's curiosity won, and Levi knew that the fire and determination trapped in the emeraldine orbs would be unleashed someday.
He couldn't wait for that fire to consume him entirely either. And by the way...
-Call him for dinner.
Farlan and Isabel immediately perked up.
-Levi... - Farlan stood in the same second, eyebrows frowning as if the god had lost his head. Isabel continued to kneel on the ground, one of Cerberus' heads trying to pull the bone out of her hand while the other two engaged in watching Hades and licking the girl's red-haired threads. - You know that if he eats...
-Farlan. - Levi stopped the path he made to his chambers, which was the farthest of the castle. He looked over his shoulders with icy gray eyes, serious expression, and no margins for discussion. - Call Eren for dinner.
--------
The long fabric of the yellow tunic with gold threads Eren wore dragged down the stone steps. Eren had his long hair trapped in a loose ponytail thrown over one shoulder, which assembled his mother Demeter. Barefoot, which would be considered an affront in Mount Olympus, he went down the stairs of Hades' castle and headed to the dining room.
-Ahh!! Pork's rib! – An unknown female voice echoed through the stone walls and Eren automatically frowned. He hurried up, curious to know that another woman, beside Isabel, was in Levi's presence. - I still remember the taste of fat with that drink of the gods that-
-Sasha! Isn't it enough years we've been confined here?! Why are you still sinning?! – Another voice, this time masculine and more exasperated, sounded and a disgusted groan sounded again.
- But I'm so hung-OH! The princess has arrived!
The moment he set foot in the dining room all the heads looked at him. Farlan, who was sitting in a chair on the side of the table, looked him in the eye and waved civilly as he took a sip of his wine. Isabel, who sat next to him, nodded enthusiastically with a piece of meat caught between her teeth and red hair in two ponytails, one on each side of her head. Standing and beside them, there were two unknown figures, and forgetting any etiquette he had been taught, he frowned and observed them.
The tallest figure was a girl with a cheerful expression. She had brown hair pinned into a ponytail with bangs falling down the sides of her head. Beside her and standing a bit lower, was a bald boy with worried and almost hopeless expression. Unlike the casual clothes Isabel and Farlan wore, the two wore patterned white clothes with aprons and high hats on their heads.
Last and facing him, there was the owner of the most expressive eyes he had ever seen. Hades could be impassive in the features he carried, but the more time Eren spent with him while assisting him in the judgments of souls, the more it was possible to perceive the nuances of emotions behind his eyes.
Sitting at the end of the table, Levi was clad in the same old black robes, the cloak of darkness swinging around him and hardening the sharp angles of his face. Eren looked with his green and emotional eyes at him and the whole table was silent as Hades stood up and pulled the chair closer to him on his left side.
-Eren, sit with us. - Levi asked and Eren knew what that meant. Hades was trying to feed him and condemn him to the underworld forever.
He had the quick idea of shouting at the god and turning his back, running through the halls of the castle, and demanding to be released. How could he have been so naïve as to believe that behind the duty of god from hell, there was a man who cared about him enough to make it rain?
But no. He was still naïve and innocent, as Demeter often accused him, to the point where it was necessary to restrain him in an isolated ranch for him to be protected.
Yes, she was right. If all the other gods were like Levi, he didn't want any contact. The man obviously thought Eren was innocent enough to feed on something that came from the cursed land.
Levi was deliberately testing him. And that, to Eren, was an affront. It made him want to stifle the strange feeling that had been growing inside him every time he thought of Hades. After all, who did he think he was? What right did Levi have to take him out of his reality and force him to accept another world?
No. Eren refused. He was tired of following orders and seen as inferior, as naïve, as an assistant.
Quietly and with a turbulent mind, he headed up to the chair offered to him, sitting on Hades' left side. Levi waited for him to settle down first and then sat down again, Eren almost arching an eyebrow to the act.
No, he wouldn't let himself be fooled by that god's false gentleness. It doesn't matter if he had made a garden for Eren, it didn't matter if he had made it rain, it didn't matter if he had bathed and dressed him every time the excessive tiredness struck the brunette boy.
Hades had no right to kidnap him like that. Even though Eren felt that the act had woken him up from a deep slumber, he had no right to try to dictate what Eren should do from then on.
In seconds, the same girl who spoke before brought him a plate of food perfectly decorated and with attractive colors. The smell was fantastic and, in the low light of the enclosure, the meal seemed even more appetizing. Although he didn't need food since he was an immortal god, gluttony was one of the gods' favorite sins and even he was tempted to taste it.
Levi really knew about temptations from the way his smirk seemed to attract Eren like a magnet till the peculiar actions that made Eren think the man cared about him as no one else did.
-Eren, aren't you going to eat? - And even if, for anyone at the table, the tone of voice Levi used was natural, in Eren's head, the question was nothing more than a provocation. The way the food was perfect, the way the weather was nice; for Eren, it was all a setup.
As perfect as the one Carla had kept him for years and years.
-Stop mocking me. - The green-eyed one whispered, his voice low and constricted. He felt his throat close and tears of frustration began to burn his nose. The sense of betrayal burned his interior and the boy felt the emotions he had tried so hard to stifle boiled inside him.
So focused was on his inner battle that he barely noticed the way the cutlery trembled on the table. With his head down, Eren didn't even pay attention to the wide-eyed pairs that stared at him as the wine in his glass turned into blood, and the potatoes on his plate germinated with black herbs that stretched across the table.
- I can't hear you if you speak that low, Eren. Are you afraid to make yourself heard? - Levi, however, did not seem affected at all. The usual dull feature watching the boy's shaky shoulders closely, as if eagerly awaiting a reaction.
-You're trying to trick me. - Eren replied, a tone higher but still too low to make Isabel try to lean over the table to understand what both men were whispering.
-Trick you? I think I was nothing more than honest in your presence. – The god answered by taking his glass to take a sip of what was still wine, only for the crystal to break in his hand as soon as Eren rose sharply from the chair, emotions raging and uncontrolled green eyes.
It was as if, after years locked in a cage inside himself, the boy had finally lost his composure and could no longer return to his apathetic state.
Levi blinked slowly at what was left of his cup and saw Farlan and Isabel rise quickly as the roots of Eren's potatoes grew disorderly. From them, poisonous pustules arose.
Looking down, he realized that the wine poured on the table had already turned into blood, which trickled and accumulated around the herbs as if nourishing them.
Eren still seemed trapped in his own bursting with fury and remained oblivious to what his hands, now resting on the table, did.
- You have no right to choose for me! You don't know what I want! You don't know me! - The jovial voice sounded again this time loud enough for everyone in the room to hear. With rosy cheeks, frowning eyebrows, long hair cluttered by flowers that flourished on his head and which formed a crown of thorns, Eren faced Hades and calculated every movement of the god as he rose carefully and elegantly from the large and heavy chair in which he sat.
-The question is, Eren, do you know yourself? - Levi, knowing that the boy was referring to his attempt to choose Eren to stay with him in the underworld forever, decided not to try to explain his intentions and chose to gesticulate to the poisonous herbs that now spread throughout the entire length of the dining table. - Do you even know what you're capable of? Or is that something Carla hid from you, too?
Eren turned his head to the pointed spot so quickly that dizziness darkened his vision and when he was able to rationalize what was in front of him, the boy immediately removed his hands from the table as if he had been burned. Holding his wrists to himself, he stared at the thick roots bowing over the table, red mushrooms rising spontaneously and pustules of poison being released as perfume into the air.
If they were human, it was likely that all the members of the room would be lying on the floor, writhing in agony as the poison gradually paralyzed their breath and slowly killed them.
As they were immortal – or already dead, the event only caused an unexpected mess and wide-eyed glances from everyone but Levi. Even Eren took a few steps back, wide green eyes frightened by what was going on.
Still, he was willing to fight.
-This... this is what I'm talking about! You have no right to ask or to judge, sir! - Even though his voice sounded a little shaky by the fright of seeing what his hands were capable of doing, the boy tried to keep his composure and tried his best to face the god. - You were responsible for kidnapping me! You're responsible for this!
Now it was Eren who pointed to the table, blaming Hades for awakening all those immeasurable feelings he hasn't felt for years. The anger contained, an explosive feeling pressing his chest.
-Eren, do I have to repeat that I did what I did to keep you safe? - Levi replied, as always keeping the face impassive and a neutral tone of voice. Despite this, Eren was able to see how narrow his eyes were and for a second he wondered if it was a thing of his head or if he was quickly developing the ability to read the older one.
Whatever the answer, Levi's apathetic face just agitated him further and Eren closed both fists with force, taking strides until he was meters from the man.
-And yet you imprisoned me! You took my freedom away and trapped me as a bird in a cage!
And this time he was sure he saw blue-gray eyes widen only to be frowned upon as if the expelled phrase had personally disgusted him. Hades' aura then changed completely, and his stoic feature was replaced by thin, elegant furrowed eyebrows.
This time, it was Levi who approached him, and they were so close they could feel each other's hot breath.
Eren automatically suppressed the shiver that took hold of him when the penetrating orbs stared at him closely, thin lips compressed, and cheekbones impossibly prominent. Despite referring to the man by his human name, Eren was reminded of the power he possessed. He was able to feel the distinct aroma of Hades and, even up close, his skin remained the porcelain of the most talented sculptor.
Levi stared at him in silence, the air around them so dense that they no longer remembered those who were still present in the room. Trapped in each other's eyes, Levi broke eye contact and let himself gaze down the boy's pretty face until his attention was drawn to full, rosy lips.
Eren, realizing that the man's overwhelming attention had changed, felt his cheeks burn in confusion and unconsciously wet his lips in an attempt to resume the discussion between them.
Immediately, Levi locked eyes again, and this time his eyes were not only displaying indignation at being accused, but also a distinct burning flickering almost metallic. Eren got lost in the few seconds he stared deep into the fiery gaze, a kind of expression he had never seen before.
-So tell me what you want, Eren- His voice sounded so low and intimate that Eren doubted anyone other than them had heard it. It was so close that he felt the warm breath on his skin and swallowed dry the instinct to lower his head into submission.
If before Hades' voice was hoarse and deep, now he had gained a provocative and dominant tone, and the phrase sounded like an order. Eren, whom for many years had been accustomed to following the command of others, never felt so impelled to simply wave and debut everything he had in the hands of that god, even if they were in the middle of a fight.
Perhaps this was some kind of Hades power, looking in the back of his eyes impelled anyone to worship him.
Neither of them noticed when red roses materialized in the crown of thorns on Eren's head.
Taking two steps back, the brunette blinked a few times and swallowed it dry, slightly embarrassed by being stuck in Hades' body for so many minutes. Longing to resume his determination, he turned his back to no longer be distracted by the god's small, dominating stature.
-I want freedom. - He answered, voice low to cover the instability that Levi caused. At that point, his heart was beating wildly and he tried to sound as sure as ever. - I don't care if you made gardens or made it rain. I want to be free. You kidnapped me, Hades, and nothing you do can change that.
A heavy silence was made between them and the younger one realized how colder the environment suddenly became. Since he had arrived, the underworld had surprised him with mild temperatures and clear days, quite the opposite of the idea The Kingdom of The Dead had.
However, at that moment, the environment seemed to reflect what Hades felt and gradually the air began to condense with a simple breath.
It was Levi who uttered it first.
-Then take it, Eren. Take your freedom. Be free and learn from your mistakes that with great powers, came great responsibilities. You can't be free without making a choice, and you know what? You can't guarantee you won't regret the price you have to pay for freedom.
And because he didn't know how to argue, Eren acted on offense, which, not many seconds later, brought him immense regret.
-I still want it! I would rather have freedom than to be trapped in a paradise that gives me the illusion of happiness!
Eren turned once more, this time feeling fury taking over again. There was no longer the will to argue and the frustration he felt began to threaten to break the surface. It drove him to increase his tone of voice more and more.
-Is that the view you have of Hades? - Levi asked, frowning lips in an immensely disappointed expression. The flowers on Eren's head began to rot. Hades continued, this time with an even more disillusioned tone, as if all his expectations were crushed, one by one.
-This is hell, Eren. This is an inferno. But you don't like it, right? You're not happy here. Then go. Go and face your own choices.
Eren, blinded by his own emotions, did not realize the hurt behind the words and saw them as an insult.
Again, he walked fast to Levi, who stared at him with gritted jaw and forced indifference. He realized the brunet's previously greenish eyes now vibrated a golden yellow.
-Whatever you say, Hades, it still doesn't change the fact that I'm here against my will and now I'm not a little boy under the table that you're trying to fool. No matter what you say, the fact is that you're still Hades, the cruelest and least reliable god on Olympus!
Gradually, the boy's voice grew, taking proportions he could not imagine, until unthoughtful words came out of his mouth and echoed loudly in the hall. A rumbling shook the ceiling, the chandelier swaying side to side. Even the glasses on the table trembled upon the fury of the boy and everyone but Eren noticed the earthquake.
Eren was more focused on the cold that took over his entire body after the phrases were released. His wide eyes matched the surprise reflected in Levi's eyes. With his mouth still open after uttering such severe words, Eren swallowed dry, a strange sense of regret snaking into his being and forcing him to take his hand to his heart and squeeze the fabric over it. Despite this, the boy only watched the god's expression return to passivity.
And then turn into the hardest and highest wall of ice, his blue eyes becoming dark, opaque liquid mercury.
-O-oh... N-no, I... I didn't mean it like that... That's not... – The excuses poured out for his lips as instinct, a bitter sensation forcing him to swallow again and again as he took steps back as if wanting to go back in the past.
However, Levi remained silent, the thunder, which at some point began to sound around the castle, silencing itself and converting into a constant and heavy rain. Eren watched perplexed the man breathing deep and in an almost inaudible voice, saying:
-You don't have to apologize, Eren. That's the truth. If I were you, I'd leave too.
And so he disappeared between crows and shadows, the freezing atmosphere going along with him.
Eren watched the god disappear wide-eyed, without having a chance to apologize for his thoughtless sentences. When he finally realized they were not alone, his stomach turned painfully and he looked desolated at Isabel.
-Isabel... I-I don't... oh my gods, I don't know why I said it! – Taking his hands to his mouth, the boy watched with tears in his eyes the damaging herbs rot in seconds and evaporate into dust, as if they were never present. The same happened to the thorns in his head, which disappeared in a cloud of sulfur.
Isabel sighs, as if she's waiting for a migraine, and sits back at the table, snapping her fingers at a perplexed Connie and Sasha to go pick up new plates to reset the table. The servants, having never seen anyone stand up to Hades, withdrew from the dining room as soon as possible, without daring to utter a single word.
- Well, at least we know you have a talent for cruelty. - Farlan said, sitting next to Isabel and taking the glass with blood with disgust. - Oh... a good wasted wine.
Eren immediately tried to defend himself.
-But I didn't mean to! That's not true, I'm not cruel! I-I need to... – Disoriented, he swirled around a few times, trying to decide which door would take him to Hades. And before he could even organize his own thoughts, Isabel sounded again.
-Eren, this on your ankle - She paused to thank the new glass of wine in front of her and took a sip before proceeding. -... it's made of Levi's blood, right?
The boy looked perplexed at the black object around his leg. Isabel continued.
-Since you know a few things about The Underworld, it won't hurt telling you another fact. The Underworld sucks and kills the energy of the living who enter here by mistake. A human would have died by now, but you, being a god, have a certain tolerance. The only way to stay here without having your energy sucked is to be dead or being married and becoming part of those who rule The Underworld. - Eren immediately frowned, hands in front of his body as protection. - And you have another option too. It's not enough to prevent the being from losing energy, but having Hades' permission and blood in some part of its body helps slow down the process. I believe you're smart enough to interpret the rest.
And so she simply set out to eat the dish that had been put in front of her again, leaving Eren to discover for alone what was that suffocating feeling crushing his body.
Would that be the price of freedom? The suffocating sensation of being able to feel? Is that what it meant to be independent? No longer being able to ignore your feelings for decades repressed?
He could recognize pain, loneliness, sadness, and some more common emotions. But there was also that urge to get down on his knees and shrink like a fragile, abandoned child. That cruel feeling of flames taking his body as if the passive personality he had so much perfected was slowly burning in blue and eternal flames.
-------
Hermes landed on the ground devoid of grace. Strong and heavy, his winged sandals slammed against the marble. The wings on the helmet he wore and the sandals that adorned his feet, stirred, flapping around when the god made himself present.
The short tunic he wore was unable to cover his nudity, but the god didn't look fazed by it. Blue eyes observed the person responsible for his calling, and the one who had humanly been named Reiner looked curiously at Zeus.
-Sir, I heard your call. - That's how he presented himself, diverting the orbs almost as blue as Poseidon's to the red-faced and furious woman. Zeus didn't even give him a second to think and wasted no time explaining the situation to him.
-Hermes, I heard the Underworld has a new guest.
The phrase sounded almost harmless, almost like an idea or consideration. But Zeus knew everything that was going on. Both in his escapes to the human world and during the performance of his duty, Zeus was the one who had eyes and ears throughout the realm of the living, and sometimes also in the realm of the dead. And that was Hermes' job.
The god was the messenger of Olympus and patron of the travelers. He was the one who led the souls of the dead to The Kingdom of Hades and gave them to Charon. Hermes was the only god with free access to the kingdom of Hades and the only one who would confirm what Zeus already knew.
Because of the obviousness, the greater god didn't expect an answer, pointing a sloppy hand at Carla and uttering.
-This goddess insists that Kore, the god of fruits and seeds, be brought back from the Underworld. She claims that the boy was kidnapped and that he is now suffering at the arrogant hands of Hades. Do you confirm?
Hermes swallowed it dry, knowing that, one way or another, Kore's presence in The Underworld would be perceived. In recent human weeks, the earth had been cursed with the fury of the goddess of agriculture, and humans began to offer more prayers to the gods in search of food and fertility. It didn't take much to realize that Kore's absence had severely affected Demeter.
-Sir, I can only confirm the boy's presence there.
And then Carla snorted loudly, standing to pace incessantly.
-And why didn't anyone tell me where Kore was?! I've been crazy looking for him and no one bothered to warn me!
-Ma'am, I believe Underworld's affairs should remain in The Underworld. - Hermes intervened, wings on his helmet writhing in agony at the loud tone of the goddess's voice. - These are Hades' strict orders.
Demeter seemed even more dissatisfied.
-And my strict order, as Kore's mother, is that he be brought in immediately! - She cried, for the first time referring to the green-eyed boy in a less objectified way.
-I don't think Hades will simply permit-
- I don't care about Hades! I want Kore! He's mine! I want him now!
And yet with a loud voice, the roar of lightning silenced Demeter. Zeus, who was once passive, now had an angry expression, eyes with a furious gleam looking at those who dared shout in his presence.
The sound of lightning echoed through the high ceilings and Greek columns, alerting everyone from Olympus that Zeus had lost his temper. What followed was the brave voice:
-Hermes, bring Kore back to Olympus as soon as the human day dawns.
Chapter 6: Hermes
Summary:
Notes:
Hi everyone! Here's the new chapter! Thank you so much for commenting and leaving kudos behind! I would love to know what you guys think about this chapter! I think it is so canon what Hermes is about to do... You know whos blond loves to take our baby Eren away, right? hahaha Sweet kisses, be safe and enjoy!
Chapter Text
I wanna take you somewhere so you know I care
But it's so cold and I don't know where
I brought you daffodils in a pretty string
But they won't flower like they did last spring
Another Love -Tom Odell
HERMES
That day, there was no one knocking on the door of his room. When Eren woke up by himself, the clear sky didn't tell him what time it is. His green eyes opened to the ceiling spontaneously, and for seconds he waited for someone to knock on the door.
A while later, he realized no one was coming.
Sitting on the bed, the boy looked around. The fine curtains in his room swayed discreetly by the gentle breeze that rose through the window. The mirror masterfully reflected the neutral colors of the room, impeccably clean. The view he had through the window was a sea of white roses, aligned and perfectly flowery extending to the horizon. The vision he had of his own body was the same as the one he wore the night before, when...
His lips pressed against each other and he brought his hands to his lap, watching his palms with urgency and nervousness.
There was nothing different, the same old hands were there. Nothing could justify the herbs that came from him the night before. Nothing explained the crown of thorns on his head. Nothing supported the harsh words that had come out of his mouth.
Maybe that was the reason no one dared come to his door. Maybe he really wasn't worthy to live with other people. If he didn't even know the powers he had, maybe Demeter had isolated him for the protection of others. And despite the discomfort in his stomach and the knowledge of the loneliness that awaited him, he could live with the fact of walking away so that others would be happy.
Except...
Except that the cruelties he had uttered still sounded in his head and every time he tried to pursue an argument that explained why he had screamed them, Eren couldn't.
Even though he had kidnapped him, Hades had never shown himself to be a cruel god. He had offered him water and tried to calm him down the first time they saw each other and, perhaps to avoid his wrath, had asked Isabel to have the first contact. Eren was sure that if Levi had confronted him the next day, when his emotions were out of control, he would never have trusted enough to go with the man to see the underworld.
Hades had given him a break without even Eren realizing he needed one.
Is that what was happening now? Were they giving him time to calm down from the last argument? Or was this just a warning that he was no longer welcome in The World of The Dead?
For the first time, a fearful sensation took hold of him. And he only knew the name of that feeling because he felt it every time Carla spent years on end without visiting him: he feared he would be forgotten because of his little importance. Nevertheless, at that moment, amid the confusion of new emotions that gradually broke free within himself, he was able to identify that this appalling feeling was not fear of being forgotten, but rather fear of not being forgiven.
But how would he ask for forgiveness? What, for Zeus' sake, could undo the erroneous judgments he had given?
Levi seemed like the most introverted of the gods, rarely showing any other expression than the normal apathy of his face. But then Eren remembered perfectly the few moments an infamous singing smile adorned his lips. He also seemed to be a very well-educated man, as Isabel said that Hades enjoyed spending time reading or supervising the most talented musicians and singers of Asphodel. Eren didn't remember, at the time he was allowed on Mount Olympus, to have heard of Hades attending the feasts of Olympus, participating in wars or seeking nymphs.
Yes, he was definitely an introvert.
But that didn't make him a cruel or unreliable god. In fact, he had witnessed how fair Levi was. And because of the way the people who lived with him were treated, Hades didn't consider himself superior like some other gods. He managed to have the affection of his servants to the point of allowing them to have dinner at the same table and eat the same food.
What's more, The Realm of The Dead was a very interesting place for someone who was beginning to let their curiosity flourish. While planting, Isabel commented that inside each of the camps, there were places for specific people, such as the Island of the Blessed, for exemplary souls, and the Lamentation Camp, where people who lived their lives in search of non-reciprocal love were destined.
Compared to the place where his mother hid him, Hades had a vast amount of entertainment and none of them were denied. On the contrary, Levi and Isabel took him personally to visit The Underworld, a place where few gods were allowed to set foot.
He decided to change the clothes he was wearing and leave the room. Still not knowing how to face Levi after the previous night's breakdown, Eren repeated in his head like a mantra that, if they both met, it was fate that drove him to say...
Wait, say what? What words would be strong enough to remove the harsh and disappointed expression in the so peculiar blue eyes?
Maybe being in contact with the land would help his thinking?
For years, contact with the flora had kept him sane and perhaps was exactly what he needed to organize his thoughts. Without thinking anymore and already dressed in a garment that covered him up to his ankles, Eren withdrew from the room and headed toward the long stairs, going to the garden. During his journey, neither Isabel nor Farlan made themselves present and the realization only made him bite his lips.
The rudeness with which he had treated Hades and the knowledge of powers he didn't understand was what drove him to run the last steps through the castle, bursting through the large and decorated white door that had been made exclusively for himself with such care.
The air instantly touched his face and stopped him in the footsteps. In front of it, the garden remained the same, carefully made mounds and slightly wet ground as if had rained the night before.
Eren didn’t remember hearing the rain.
Gradually and breathing constantly, he walked the path of stones until his bare foot touched the damp ground, the sensation bringing him immediate comfort. Beneath him, seeds waited for their maturation so that they could embellish the world and, without knowing how he could also mature, he set out to take care of them, getting lost in thoughts.
It was then that a loud and distant howl was heard, followed by two others of the same sorts. Although he had no contact with the animal, the brunette was certain Cerberus, the dog of hell, was responsible for the sound.
Rising from the crouching position he was and holding his hair in a poorly done bun, Eren ignored his dirty feet and let curiosity guide him through the sides of the castle, hoping to find the canine facing him. However, before he could take five full steps, Farlan appeared at the white door leading to the garden, frowning eyebrows and compressed lips in an apprehensive expression.
-Eren, there’s a visitor for you.
Green eyes widened instantly. Visitor? For him? The Underworld was not a place of "visits", let alone a visit for a captive. Without thinking twice, the young god followed Farlan through the large halls of the castle. Standing in front of him, the blonde radiated a worried aura and Eren couldn't help but be anxious as they approached the main entrance of the palace.
From afar, Eren could identify Isabel, her red hair trapped in a ponytail and standing a tense posture with her arms crossed. With her back to him, the girl didn't even notice their arrival, but as soon as the visitor spotted him, his name was called.
Or rather, his duty was called.
-Kore. - A tall, well-carved god with golden hair and a blond beard called him. Blue eyes stared at him and an unknown smile rose on his face. When Eren reached the castle stairs, the man bowed and Eren's emerald eyes were drawn to a pair of sandals with golden wings at.
Hermes. Hermes, the gods and goddess's messenger, was there.
Immediately aware of the black adornment around his ankles, Eren tried to cross his ankles so that the piece would not be questioned. He didn't know why, but a part of him wanted to keep that pendant a secret.
Before Eren could say anything, Isabel, who also carried a disgusted expression on her face, turned to him and said in a poisonous tone.
-The big guy here says he's got something to talk about and he's only going to do it in your presence, Eren.
A dissatisfied smile was made on the blond's face, also known by his human name Reiner.
-Eren, who remained silent, looked at the god and gave him a nod, which, however, did not allow him to approach as he did. A little taken back by surprise, Eren looked up at the man who deliberately occupied his personal space.
-Kore, you are required on Mount Olympus immediately. Orders of King Zeus.
Eren and Isabel's green eyes widened at the same moment, while Farlan frowned further and turned his back as he shook his head negatively, absenting himself from the scene.
-What's going on? - Was the brunette's clever answer.
-In the face of Hades' kidnapping, your absence alongside the goddess Demeter is greatly felt. She searches for you and, in the meantime, neglects her own duties as a goddess of fertility. The land has suffered from drought and famine since you were taken away. The period that has passed, in human times, is three months and in the face of human supplications and Demeter itself, Zeus ordered your immediate return to Mount Olympus. - Thus, just like that and completely oblivious to Eren's shock, Reiner reached out open to Eren. - Then let's go, Kore.
The silence was made between the three, Eren turning his gaze from the blond's face to the big open hand and then to Isabel. His mouth was gaping without knowing what to do. Torn between the astonishment of what was commanded of him and moved by the idea that his mother had sought him out and missed him, Eren remained locked in the same place.
Until Isabel broke her pause, loud and unbelievable voice.
-You can't order him to leave!
-Actually, I can. - Hermes shrugged, barely bothering to look at the girl.
- No, Eren must have Hades' permission! And... And also... - She struggled to find some excuse that could give her enough time for Levi to show up and stop that madness. Without the help of a static Eren, she was even more nervous. - And he needs to get his stuff!
This time, in the face of the redhead's despair and almost scream, Reiner rolled his eyes, a sadistic smile on his lips as he looked at the girl with an arched eyebrow.
-Hades has no power regard Zeus' orders. - Isabel was going to open her mouth and fight back that the three greatest gods had the same amount of power, but the blond rudely interrupted her once more. - Besides, I doubt Kore has anything to take from this place.
Which, reluctantly, was true. Eren didn't have any clothes of yours to pick up. What was inside the wardrobe in the room he slept in was property of The Underworld. His body was his only belonging.
- So I guess it's time to go, Kore.
Hermes again looked at Eren and all he could do was go down the stairs towards the blond. Although he was treated well in The Underworld, he couldn't deny he missed his mother dearly and missed talking to nymphs as he did in his decades-long life. It was difficult to get rid of old habits, even though The World of The Dead was enough to satisfy his almost childish curiosity.
He missed home.
-No, no, no, no, no, no! - Izzy cried as soon as Eren had finished coming down the stairs and, in a perplexed and distressed expression, looked at the brunette as if the supplication in her green eyes was able to make the boy turn back. When, after minutes, Eren's expression was only one of questioning, she closed her hands on her own dress and spoke the first thing she had in mind to buy time. - I have something for you, Eren! Wait, please!
And before he even answered, she turned her back and ran into the castle.
----
The door to his quarters was opened with exemplary rudeness. The heavy wood, but very well lubricated, let the red-haired girl pass by, an angry expression on her face. Isabel, who had always been known for a happy and worry-free soul, now had her furrowed eyebrows in a bitter expression and even with her back to the girl, Levi could almost touch the disappointment that emanated from her.
-Are you really just going to hide in there? - If he had not been sitting in his private armchair, which was facing the window with a view of the field of white roses, Hades would have seen the brave pose, hands on her waist and foot hitting the stone floor.
With no response from the god, she rolled her eyes and approached the armchair, forcing her voice so high that The King of The Underworld could clearly hear all the emotions overflowing her being.
-Will you be a coward, hiding in this room, while Reiner takes Eren away? - And now the poisonous tone caused Levi to press his lips together, a sense of unwelcome possessiveness spreading through his body to the point of seeing the need to stick his nails in the armrests.
He hated Hermes with passion, especially when the weaker, by orders of Olympus, had every freedom to enter and leave The Underworld since part of his work was to guide souls to the entrance of hell. Now knowing that, in addition to invading his territory, the bastard still had his hands on Eren was beyond what his impassivity could bear.
For a second, the guilt of letting the boy go was replaced by relief for having avoided seeing the brunette again, simply because he didn't know what his reaction would be when he saw someone else dare to approach Eren.
-Levi! - Lost in thoughts, Levi held the wrist touching his shoulder tightly by pure reflex. With icy eyes, he looked at the redhead, who upon seeing the painful expression hidden by layers of apathy, immediately tried to soften her features, as well as her voice: - He's still down there, I said I needed to get something for him. Levi, are you really going to let him go?
For his sake. - The god answers, eyes focusing no longer in the roses but in the storm-laden clouds on the horizon.
- No! You say yourself that Eren was never made for Olympus, always surrounded by people who underestimated him or objectified him! Levi, you're contradicting yourself! - The redhead threw her arms up, moving away a few steps to start walking in circles as a way to vent the stress she was feeling. - You need to do something! You need to stop him and, I don't know, shove something down his throat or marry him, because, you know yourself that the chance of others courting him on Olympus is-
A grunt, almost guttural roar, sounded, creaking the stone walls. In the distance, the clouds grew darker and darker, obscured like the mood of the god who controlled them. Isabel immediately shut up, wise enough to know that Levi had been trying to control his possessiveness with Eren from the first time he saw the boy.
From the first time, in a heartbeat, Hades fell in love, his heart softening when the little creature with green eyes, too bright and curious to be shaped by Mount Olympus, looked at him.
Yes, the great Hades fell in love with the blink of an eye.
Despite this, he knew better than to just take the child from his own mother, even though Levi discredited Carla's ability to make the child happy when she herself only saw the boy as a reminder of her failed relationship with Zeus. Still, he couldn't resist the temptation to see the genuine glow in the emeralds of little Eren when, under the table of one of Olympus' meetings, the snake he conjured from its darkness offered him an apple.
Of course, because it's a conjuration and not something that grew up on the soil of The Underworld, if the boy ate it, he wouldn't be condemned to an eternity in The World of The Dead. Still, a selfish part of him, which Levi was trying to suppress, whispered that it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take the child for himself.
But no, Eren was a child and despite respecting the boy's growth, Levi could not avoid courting him and gifting him as the green-eyed one deserved. And then when, excitedly, the boy smiled big for the present, Hades had to suppress a smirk, which soon fell apart before the scene of Demeter shaking the boy with little tears in his eyes.
The hatred that consumed him was so guttural that he soon realized that the child was his destiny. Even after all disdain he received from Olympus, that child still showed him enough faith and kindness to plant a seed in the god's heart.
Tiny Eren looked with sadness at the ashes of what was once his precious gift, and the water from his tears gave power for Hades' feelings germinate. And after suppressing his rage all meeting, Levi was the first to stand up at the end, demanding a private conversation with Zeus.
That was the first time he asked permission to marry Eren when he was old enough. And after them, as he accompanied the boy's growth, with a mixture of anguish at seeing him treated like a doll, several others came. Though gradually Eren was losing curiosity and a youthful face, the seed planted decades ago still germinated and blossomed his whole heart.
It was then that, with hidden intentions, Zeus warned Demeter of the various suitors behind Eren, hinting that one of them wanted to have him when the boy was still a child.
It infuriated Hades, who never, under any circumstances, wanted to corrupt and destroy Eren's growth. And upon discovering that Demeter then decided to lock the boy in a prison disguised as paradise, Levi lost the patience he had cultivated for decades, just as he was losing patience with Isabel monologue.
-... because if you allow that-
-He's unstoppable.
The redhead stopped in the middle of her argument when Hades' deep voice sounded louder and she looked outraged when realized the man didn't give her the slightest attention.
Hades sighed deep, a hand going to massage between his eyebrows as he continued.
-Unstoppable not because he possesses powers he doesn't know. But because Eren won't submit. - He sentenced and he knew the girl was looking at him with a sarcastic look, which forced him to explain.- Not anymore, at least.
Two seconds of silence was the maximum peace the god received as Isabel reasoned the phrase in her head and then looked at it with prying eyes.
-What you mean is that that tremor yesterday was-
-The titans trapped in Tartarus. - A surprise gasp was heard and Levi removed his hand from his face to support his chin as he watched Isabel stare at him with a mixture of surprise and excitement in his features.
- Did he wake up the titans of Tartarus? - Her voice sounded like a whisper, scared to call the monsters out loud.
Although there was a Tartarus in which humans who committed cruel crimes were sent in order to be eternally punished, the Tartarus where the Primordial Titans were imprisoned was far below the surface of the kingdom of Hades. The same distance from The Underworld to Olympus was repeated from The Underworld to Titans' Tartarus, which transformed it into an underground prison as far from The Underworld as the earth is from heaven.
For a tremor to be felt on the surface, it would have to be able to pass through three layers of sky and a bronze wall, both intended to isolate the immense and freezing darkness. And judging by Eren's golden eyes when the tremor whipped the castle, strong enough to shake the candle chandeliers, Levi was certain that the boy was responsible for it, even if he wasn't aware.
-Not entirely, it just disturbed enough for a stir to start. Briareu, Cottus, and Gyges, the Hecatoncheires, have already reported and Cerberus is patrolling the bronze wall.
Izzy had her eyes wider, now in a kneeling position at the foot of Hades' throne, eagerly listening to what the pale-faced man was talking as he gazed at the approaching storm.
-Levi, do you think Eren might have anything to do with the original titans? Like, any relation to Gaia? Or who knows-
-I think Eren was unfortunate enough to inherit the blood of the one I haven't seen in centuries. As a grandson, inheritance is expected to skip a generation.
In a second, the redhead was already standing again, a different glow, almost determined in her eyes, when her voice sounded more serious than ever.
-Does that mean Eren has blood from the Founding Titan? Kronus' blood?
A short, quick nod and Levi agreeing softly:
-Kruger's blood... blood enough to shake Tartarus.
While attempting desperate measures to ensure Eren's safety and at the same time awaken what Carla had victoriously suppressed for years, Hades didn't expect Eren's powers to be awakened by a simple discussion. His plan was to feed him underworld's food and ensure that Eren no longer suffered from the abduction of energy The Underworld performed on the living and thus had enough energy for Levi to teach him what he was capable of doing.
Without paying attention to the god's inner conflict, Isabel turned her back, the new information making the girl's step faster. She didn't even bother to warn him out, closing the door behind her without a word.
Levi let her go the same way he let Eren go because when you love someone, you have to leave them to find happiness. Although the rain fell heavy when god felt that, a while later, Eren's presence was no longer in his domains, the memory of green eyes still remained carved in his memory. And though tears seemed to flood his interior, he knew that no matter what happened, what flourished in his heart would never die.
------
-Forget about this useless girl, Kore. You don't belong here. And maybe... - Ignoring Eren's stunned expression, who seemed not to believe in the god insulting Izzy for no reason, Hermes observed the storm approaching faster and faster, thick purple clouds guarding lightning and stormy thunder. -... Hades may be changing his mind about letting you go back to where you belong. Come on, cutie.
Isabel burst through the door just as Zeke had a closed hand on Eren's arm, blonde eyebrows frowning as he tried to drag the boy with him.
-Eren, wait! - The redhead went down the stairs leading to the entrance of the castle gasping as if she had climbed up and down all the stairs in one breath. Knowing the girl, Eren didn't doubt she did just that.
He looked at his friend, forgetting the rudeness he was being handled with, and gave his best smile as he pulled his arm from Hermes' grip and turned to say goodbye to Izzy.
Isabel approached him and gave a disapproving look to the god covered with muscles and pompous attitude, slightly considering insulting him by the way he was manipulating Eren. However, time was short and she could not miss the opportunity. Unlike Levi, Isabel was a little selfish with people she liked and didn't think it was a bad thing. Besides, how bad it was wanting your master to be happy?
With an expression that, for Eren, was frighteningly serious, the redhead held out a box large enough to fit in her two hands. She held it carefully and handed it over as if it were a precious asset of immeasurable value.
-Be quick. - Reiner intruded as soon as Isabel opened her mouth to speak and, with a hard look, she began to say goodbye to the brunette briefly.
-Eren, I know you didn't feel comfortable here and that's why you're leaving, but I want you to know that we all loved your presence and that we tried our best to make The Underworld a home for you. - In the middle of the speech, a heavy feeling took over Eren's heart, as if someone was holding the organ in their hands and squeezing slowly.
As she spoke, hurriedly and breathlessly, Eren's green eyes unconsciously rose through the length of the castle columns, searching frantically for someone between the windows.
There was no one.
Deep down Eren wondered where Levi was. He just needed to know if he was insignificant enough for Levi not to come say goodbye. Insignificant enough for Levi to soon forget about him. Would fate have decided that they shouldn't have one last encounter before he goes home?
But he knew he was being selfish. Maybe that feeling of needing to see the man again was just guilt of saying such cruel things without thinking and not having time to apologize.
-... Still, I want you to take this as a reminder of us.
The redhead said, having a sudden urge to laugh when she realized that, like Levi, Eren also had a habit of shutting down her monologues. Well, at least Eren had the decency to look flushed when he realized that the redhead was waiting for him to take his present.
Hearing Hermes' huff, the brunette decided not to make the god wait any longer and, even though he still had the vain hope of seeing Levi one last time, smiled and allowed himself to give Isabel a hug.
How long has it been that he last hugged? How long has it been since you had such a human contact?
Without his permission, tears filled his eyes and he also wondered when the last time he felt enough to want to cry.
-Come on, Kore. - Reiner called once again, returning to hold Eren's arm and pulling him from Isabel's embrace. Eren gave a small, half-forced smile, not trusting his own voice to say goodbye as the etiquette recommended. The name Kore itself also began to sound strange to him, especially when someone else called him for it. The boy didn't know why, but his duty sounded even more painful when it came out of Hermes' mouth.
Taking a deep breath, he thought that perhaps this was his destiny and carefully held the box against his chest. Even though he was going home, he would like to take a souvenir of the days when people treated him simply and valued his curiosity.
Soon he found himself in Hermes' arms, one of them holding him under his knees while the other supported his back. Wide-eyed green eyes questioned the blonde, but he was totally ignored. In the second after, the wings present in the god's shoes took off and Eren immediately found Hades wiser to pick him up by carriage.
However, even in an unconventional way, he was going home. Going to see his mother, going to the place he had missed so much for decades. In a few moments, he would be on Mount Olympus and the excitement of being back momentarily replaced the guilt and bitter feeling he had in his mouth as he left the confines of The Realm of The Dead.
Chapter 7: The Mount Olympus
Summary:
Notes:
Hi everyone! I'm back as promised! Thank you for all kudos and comments and I enjoyed very much reading your thoughts on the last chapter! I'm also very excited to see what you guys think of the gods in this chapter! And surprise: you all get to know Izzy's gift! Also, don't worry, our favorite Hades is back next chapter! Hope you guys like this update, pardon all English mistakes and be safe! The reference I used to describe Mount Olympus was the video clip of "Crash Boom Clash" from Roxette! ALSO Demeter is mildly inspired by Mother Gothel from Tangled! One of her dialogues is literally Mother Gothel's singing! Enjoy~~
Chapter Text
You know why we stay up in this tower
That's right, to keep you safe and sound, dear
Guess I always knew this day was coming
Knew that soon you'd want to leave the nest
Soon, but not yet
Mother knows best
Take it from your mumsy
On your own, you won't survive
Mother Knows Best - Tangled
MOUNT OLYMPUS
Eren didn't know what to expect when he found himself arriving at Mount Olympus. It had been decades since he had stepped on the marble floor that formed the great halls. Thick Greek columns rose on high ceilings that were still unable to minimize the power of the gods. Astonishing paintings stretched across the ceilings, painted in colors so soft and neutral and so realistic that one might think that at some point they would become alive.
At the top of a high hill, taking the entire summit of it, several Greek buildings rose to form the residence of the gods. The tallest and most imposed temple belonged to Zeus, the god of the gods, while at his bottoms and arranged to descend the hill, there were other smaller but no less rich temples.
Surrounding the columns that sustained the Greek might, vineyards stretched out and bunches of tasty grapes presented themselves. Illuminated by suspended lamps, which moved randomly throughout the halls, the environment was constantly kept in dim light, in contrast to the constant pastel colors of the sky.
When his feet, dirty with soil, stepped on said marble, an icy shiver took over his body and, unlike the kingdom of Hades, Eren rediscovered Mount Olympus as a cold and almost sterile place.
With colorful clothes and barefoot, as soon as Hermes delivered him and disappeared without another word, Eren was the target of judgmental looks of nymphs who lived there. They were all dressed in long costumes in plain colors, without showing any skin besides the forearms. With long hair tied in braids or well-organized buns and never barefoot, the older nymphs looked at him with disdain, while the younger ones were curious.
Feeling extremely self-conscious, he swallowed the feeling of discomfort as he passed his hand on the long and messy brown strands to trap them in a quick bun. Green eyes quickly scoured the space, not knowing where he was after years of not attending the place and when he had made the decision to wander until he found someone less hostile to ask about his mother, Demeter materialized at the end of the hall.
The woman, with her typical ponytail slumped over her shoulder and decorated with small white flowers, had an urgent expression on her face that became relieved as soon as she saw Eren. Dressed in a long brown tunic that dragged on the floor and with sleeves that fastened on bracelets on her wrist, she walked quickly to the boy, without, however, losing elegance.
Eren breathed a sigh of relief at finding his mother and he walked a few steps toward her with a smile forming on his face. While in his cottage, he kept count of the days he spent without seeing her, longing and loneliness growing at every sunsetting, now he had no idea how long he was in Underworld, so catch up on discovering a new land.
But he missed his mother, she was the only face he knew before Levi kidnapped him.
With her arms opening, Eren ran the last steps and smiled as she was close enough for the distinct smell reached Eren's nose: lilies and sun.
-Kore! – And even though his smile fluttered at the last second upon hearing the name, his green eyes still shone in admiration for her beauty.
She wrapped her arms around him so quickly and in such a loose grip the brunette didn't have time to reciprocate. A second later, she walked away and held his forearms while giving a long look all over his body, feet, and hair.
Eren lost his smile and swallowed dry when her face overflowed with dissatisfaction with what she saw.
-By the gods! Is that how you were treated, Kore? With such indecent clothes? – Carla flicked her eyes in dishonor and when Eren opened his mouth to speak for the first time, she simply interrupted him, shaking her head negatively. - This hair? – With long, icy fingers she pulled one of the brown locks that escaped his failed attempt to fix them. - What about those feet? Is that soil?!
And as controversial as it seemed, Demeter hated getting dirty. Perhaps that's why she always used her powers from an altar, never really coming into contact with the seeds and the harvest, as Eren had done in The Underworld. Looking at his own feet, Eren wiggled his toes in shame, trying to hide them and feeling suddenly unwell for disappointing his mother when all he wanted was to be perfect and have a hug.
Seeing the boy's somewhat down reaction, Demeter then let him go and calmly touched one of his cheeks with her knuckles, attracting his attention.
-Look at you, as fragile as a flower...Still a little sapling, just a sprout. It's a scary world out there, that's why we need to keep you safe and sound, dear.
Eren really was a beauty to be protected, having inherited many of Demeter’s features and eyes more vibrant than Zeus' opaque greens.
Showing a restrained, polite smile that didn't show her teeth, she let her hands fall overlapping near her womb and stood next to her son.
-Come on, Kore, let your mother take care of you. Mother will protect you. After all, your mother knows best...
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In the end, Demeter had a temple on Mount Olympus. The place was distant from the commotion of Olympus and, not surprisingly, there was a garden at the back of the house. Eren had been sent for a long bath as soon as he set foot in the place and, while being guided, his green eyes carefully took every detail in.
Unlike Hades' home, Demeter maintained a large, open house, white and clean walls, and large columns. There was no carpet on the floor and the few furniture looked almost untouchable. Eren was not surprised since Demeter was one of the goddesses who stayed more in the human world because of her duties.
-Take that death smell away from you, my son, and then we're going to have a decent lunch. - Carla gave him a tight smile as she gently pushed the boy into the spacious bathroom. The marble walls matched the bathtub and water were poured through a gold pegasus-shaped faucet.
Eren looked confused as she left without closing the door and his eyes widened as three nymphs entered the chambers, long white robes, and calm features. Immediately his cheeks took a reddish tone and he covered his own body with his arms when the three women entered and closed the door behind him.
-Kore, we've been ordered to bathe you. - One of the nymphs with long brown and curled hair said, violet eyes looking at Eren and a gentle smile on her lips. The other two nymphs, two long blond-haired girls, greeted him with a nod.
-B-but I don't need... - The boy tried to turn down the offer, satisfied with the idea of being able to adapt alone to Mount Olympus and have time to think. Hours ago he was in The Underworld, where he could go out wherever he wants and do whatever he wanted when he asked to be alone. No one knocked on his bedroom door to bother him and no one forced him to go to a trial without him wanting to.
But now he was in front of three nymphs he had never seen in his life, and although he didn't have a modesty about his own body, he had become accustomed to bathing alone, both in the place where he lived and in The Underworld.
-These are orders from the goddess Demeter. Forgive us. - And with that they gently held on to his clothes, removing them while Eren remained silent and allowed himself to be manipulated like a doll. He didn't know whether the urge to keep quiet and keep his eyes on the ground all the time was a result of tiredness, but one way or another, he had no choice but to let them bathe him.
Carefully, one of them took his hair, herbs, and shampoo being massaged into his scalp and brown strands being combed with small gold combs. Another began bathing and soaping his torso with a wet cloth, rubbing to the point where his brunette skin turned red. The third nymph took care of cleaning his legs and feet, keeping it hairless, and taking care of his nails. When the bath was done, Eren felt all his skin tingle from head to toe.
They wrapped him in a robe, not forcing him to speak, and gently led him to a room. When they opened the door, no decoration was seen. Just a simple bed with white sheets, a dresser next to the bed and, on the opposite wall, a wardrobe and a mirror.
Definitely not a doll room, with four-poster beds, rugs, and views to a field of roses.
Again, they undressed him and Eren watched as a long dress was brought to him. The color was a dull gray and the sleeves followed to his wrist. The curled-haired nymph opened the dress and lowered it to the floor, making it easier for Eren to get into it. Helping him put his arms down, Eren found himself completely covered, the collar of the dress covering his collarbone and ending at his neck. While one of the blondes tied the back, the other carried black leather shoes and fit them gently on his feet.
Soon one of them was drying and braiding his hair, and no flower is added to the brown strands.
-All right, Kore. Just like Demeter instructed us. - He saw himself facing the mirror and his green eyes tried to find the person he had met in The Underworld. Now that he didn't wear vibrant colors, Eren found his skin tone unpleasant and his feet complained about being squeezed into sweaty leather.
But then again, he needed to get dressed. And even if he still marveled at the use of the name "Kore," Eren was sure things would adjust with time. If Demeter had asked him to dress like this, it was for his own good.
He repeated that conviction as he headed to have lunch with his mother. And for the first time, she greeted him with a smile and an approving nod.
-Finally dressed appropriately, Kore! - She got up and gave him a light hug, which Eren hurried to reciprocate. After so many years of not seeing his mother, he was dazzled by the woman's smile and sat at the table still staring at her.
She, instead of asking him about his stay in the world of Hades, began to tell him the news about humans: the last wars, the last kings to fall, the last months in which his absence hurt her so much that hunger spread the earth.
And when lunch was served, she began to talk about Hestia and Artemis and how she regretted Eren being born as a little boy, because otherwise, he would surely have the vocation to be one of the eternally virgin goddesses, who never let any man touch a strip of their skin.
Green eyes widened, Eren raised his head and finished chewing on food. There was no appetizing aroma or delectable appearance, as in the world of Hades. Just plain and tasteless food. Swallowing quickly, he opened his mouth to question whether being carried by a certain god of the dead and having his dress cut off by a man would make indecent, but shaking her hands, Demeter interrupted him.
-Don't worry, my precious Kore. I'll still introduce you to Hestia and Artemis, but now I need to go and do my work. - Getting up, the woman moved to leave, completely oblivious to Eren's disappointment.
-But so soon? - The boy questioned, received a quick kiss on the top of his head, and watching his mother turn around and head out of the house.
-Unfortunately, Kore, not all gods have time to play around like Hades. - A poisonous tone suddenly appeared in the normally soft and melodious voice. Eren looked at his lap immediately, accustomed to reacting submissively to the disgust in the goddess's voice. Despite knowing how seriously Levi took his duties – to the point of not complaining about being banished from Olympus to forever rule The Underworld – Eren remained silent, the initiative to finish the meal no longer appealing him.
-Behave, son. And don't leave the house.
And so she left. Eren, as always curious, tried to distract himself by scanning the house he had grown as a child. In his memories, the place was much cozier, but now, with each room he entered, Eren found the same thing: white walls and an armchair – if he were lucky, a table with immortal roses. Never a book, as he had often found in the castle. No painting or red carpet, no prospect of emotion.
Despite this, he believed the feeling of disappointment would soon pass and it would be foolish to let a few days in the Underworld affect him so much. At some point, he would get used to it again, since Mount Olympus was the place he was destined to live.
Upon waking up in the middle of the night, calm eyes rolled over the bed and Eren looked out the window. All he could see was the base of a mountain that formed the many elevations of Mount Olympus. Yes, his window had no view of the sky or flowers, but rather of a stone wall that made him feel trapped and unreachable.
Worst of all: there was no smell of wet roses and no noise of rain that transformed the busy days in the Underworld into quiet nights.
He told himself the feeling was going to go away countless times until he fell asleep.
-------
In the first days of Eren's arrival, Demeter had made a point of waking up and having breakfast with him. After so long without cultivating the habit of eating, the boy needed a few days to get used to having food in his stomach. Although he was hardly ever allowed to speak - Demeter, unlike Isabel and Farlan, believed that speaking at the table was disrespectful - Eren was glad his mother was paying attention to him.
He was even happier when she finally allowed him to leave the house and the green-eyed one was so energetic, he just wrapped his hair in a bun to prevent a lecture from the goddess. According to her, he had to live up to the beauty he inhered and not treat his hair with so much carelessness.
As Demeter used her long, frosty fingers to tidy up his strands, Eren didn't mind, a huge smile showing how excited he was to finally see more of Olympus. Demeter had promised to take him to know the other temples and to meet Artemis and Hestia.
Almost unable to contain his own agitation, the boy found himself acting like a child, following his mother and capturing every detail with prying eyes.
Mount Olympus consisted of huge suspended stairs made from white marble. No columns were holding them and there weren't handrails to lean on. Just marble blocks that connected one temple to another. The torches were still lit uninterruptedly and, when questioned, Carla stated that Hestia, the goddess of fire, was responsible for keeping the fire of Olympus always lit. The boy became even more anxious to meet her.
It was then that, as they walked several steps and columns, the landscape always containing vines full of grapes and nymphs flying and playing with each other, mother and son entered a particularly closed and reclusive house.
Although it looked the same as Demeter's house, Eren realized it was more decorated, with bearskin rugs and chandeliers with candles. The walls were of a brownish tone and he didn't really know what led a person to have a brownish wall – except that it made perfect sense Hades had a stone castle.
-Hestia, I brought Kore. - The goddess of agriculture announced, sitting on a couch without further ceremony and giving permission for Eren to do the same. Carla's voice roamed the place and behind an arch-shaped door, a figure emerged.
Except Eren was sure Hestia wasn't known by carrying a bow and arrow around.
The woman who made herself present had a neutral face and Eren couldn't help comparing her to a certain god he knew. With medium hair and a whitish blonde coloring, she approached dressed in a knee-length white outfit. Eren frowned immediately – resulting in a pinch from Carla – when he saw such a creature exhaling so much power.
- Artemis! I didn't know you'd be here! - Carla got up and bowed in front of the other goddess, Eren fumbling to do the same.
With no smiling initiative, opaque blue eyes stared at the two for a while to finally settle her gaze on Eren.
So this was Artemis, the goddess of hunting, of the moon and of the bow and arrow. Eren had to admit that she had such a threatening presence that the boy understood why she was considered one of the most feared and worshipped goddesses by humans.
After greeting and before Eren could hear the goddess's voice, another woman was present. This one was also blonde, but with long shiny hair, almost golden. The woman had a flowery branch arranged like a crown on her head and, unlike the goddess of hunting, wore a long white dress with a red veil starting from the middle of her head and falling down her shoulders like a cape.
In her hand, she carried a lamp tangled in her finger, a scenting flame spreading an aroma of flowers from the field filling the place. Eren felt immediately more relaxed, even more so because her eyes were of a bright and benevolent blue, which matched the calm and gentle feature.
That was Hestia, one of the twelve Olympic deities, the greek virgin goddess of home, fire, and family.
-Demeter, it's an honor to have you back in my temple. - Hestia said, depositing the lamp in a table filled with statues and relics and approaching the guests with a simple smile. She stood next to Artemis and just like her, came to face Eren.
- I'm Hestia, goddess of fire, but I don't mind going by the name of Historia. And this is Artemis, as you may already know, which also goes by the name of Annie. Athena, one of the goddesses of our congregation, unfortunately, could not be present. - She said, a genuinely sad expression taking over her face.
-Hanji said she had some business with Poseidon. - Annie responded and the boy widened his eyes when Hestia, such a relevant goddess, rolled her eyes, which Demeter never allowed him to do.
Shaking her hand delicately, Historia returned to a calm and gentle expression, clapping her palms once with joy as she announced:
-Anyway, let's start the meeting!
And Eren sat for hours listening to the vow of chastity that those goddesses made in favor of their duties.
However, that much attention only lasted for a few days. In the following weeks, Demeter became increasingly absent, leaving the house before breakfast and returning days later. Sometimes she would show up in the middle of the day, only to check if he had left home, directing the three nymphs to never leave him alone and at the mercy of other gods.
Eren felt treated like a child, even though, during his childhood, Carla had also been an absent mother. Now she seemed to want to repair her behavior from decades ago by maintaining a negligent posture and imposing overprotective standards.
After some weeks, the boy fell into a dull routine of waking up, having breakfast, walking through the garden, picking flowers with nymphs, and refusing gifts from suitors.
The first time it happened, he didn't know how to react, never having won something that seemed to declare ulterior motives like that.
While sitting in the middle of the flowers, a blanket beneath his body given Carla's horror of dirt, the green-eyed boy was picking and smashing flowers unconsciously. Beside him, two of the nymphs were playing with each other, combing hair and making braids and buns decorated by the crowns they built with Eren's flowers.
The day was calm and, as always, without any event that removed Eren from the lethargy he had constantly felt since his arrival at Mount Olympus. Except that, minutes later, the third nymph came running across the plantation, the boy envying her for her freedom to walk barefoot while he was forbidden to touch the land.
With a huge smile, cheeks flushed with effort, she practically threw herself in the middle of them, Eren raising his gaze when a gold object glittered in her hands. The other two nymphs, seeing the same, opened their mouths in awe, delicate hands holding each other as if they needed support.
-Kore! They asked me to give you this! - And the nymph extended a musical object made of gold and with strings that shone the eternal sunset on the Mount. He faced the object, not knowing why they would deliver something that was not his and looked back at the nymph with a confused expression. She laughed. - Take it! It's a gift!
And while he held out his clean hands to get the golden lyre, the other two nymphs giggled excitedly, as if they didn't believe what was happening. Three pairs of violet eyes – a mark of the nymphs – looked at him with curiosity and excitement and he immediately felt uncomfortable with such expectation.
-What is this? Why would anyone give me a gift? - Eren asked, low and submissive voice coming out of his throat hoarsely since he no longer felt the urge to speak or try to start a conversation with Demeter.
Big bright smiles were directed at him and he automatically shrank a little.
-It's a courting gift, you fool! Someone's interested in you! - One of the blondes replied, in an excited tone as if she were about to sing in joy. Eren frowned and felt relieved when the three young women didn't punish him as Carla did when he showed some emotion beyond passivity.
The first image that came to his mind was the only man he knew more deeply, one of black hair like night and icy eyes that conveyed confidence. He shook his head, trying to remove Hades' image from his imagination, as he was obliged to do several times a day.
-Who sent it? - He asked while the nymphs stood up and swirled around a confused Eren, pulling him up and helping him clean the white robes he wore. They had mixed the flushing that arose on the boy's cheeks as an interest in the lyre owner.
- Some Olympus' god, of course! -One of them laughed loudly, the three holding hands and swirling around the god. Eren couldn't help but laugh at the eccentricity, having to admit their company was the only bright spot of the last few days.
He lifted up the present and observed the gold-carved object.
-Who could have sent me this? - He questioned and one of the nymphs jumped on his back, knocking them both to the ground while the other two started playing catch.
- I'd say it was... - There was suspense in her voice, and she soon stood up and let Eren sit down, both sitting face-to-face and cross-legged. A now gentle smile was on her lips. -...A-PO-LLO.
And again Eren frowned, not knowing of Apollo for years. The only thing he was sure about the god was:
-Artemis' twin brother?! - Wide-eyed, the boy immediately conjured the image of Annie.
The girl giggled.
-You know, he's a sweetie! And did you know many humans named their children after him? Which means he's a very beloved god!
Eren looked at the lyre and even if he was hearing about Apollo, he couldn't help but wonder whether any human ever named their son by the name of Levi. For Eren, the more he thought of the god of the death, the more he saw him as someone silently kind.
After all, he let him go when Hermes sought him out, putting Eren's happiness and will first, even though now Eren felt like Icarus, the human who flew too high and ended up losing everything.
-... cause he is a very kind person and I'm sure you and Armin would get along very well!
-Oh yes... - Eren replied, completely ignoring the nymph's effort to make him accept the gift. On the contrary, he simply faced with disappointment the gift.
-You need to think about it, Kore. With your looks, this isn't going to be the only gift. At least consider them!
After that she simply left, joining her friends, leaving the young god to sort out his own feelings.
With time, Eren found out she was right.
Everyday days, gifts were left at the door of the temple of Demeter. Among flowers and fruits, Hermes offered him his Kerykeion, a weapon capable of curing diseases, inducing sleep and metamorphoses.
Ares, also known as Zeke and son of Zeus with Hera, presented him with his spear, armor, and gold shield used in battles that he had been the winner. Eren could almost smell human blood in the ornaments.
Amid multicolored necklaces and flower baskets, Eren felt pressured every time one of the nymphs brought him a new courting gift, which began to be stacked in the corner of his room.
-Kore, you know that if you don't make up your mind soon, Demeter will get rid of all the presents as soon as she gets back.
One of the blonde nymphs said, sitting on the brunette nymph's lap, while the third was busy making tea in the kitchen. Eren, too focused on reading a book he had been gifted, shrugged. The girl laughed.
-Petunea, he's too attractive to worry about not having any more candidates. Even if he turned down all the presents, I bet in two days, twice as much would be on his doorstep.
-Oh, yes. Who wouldn't fall in love with green eyes and dark skin?
Sarcastic smiles were placed on their faces and Eren rolled his eyes at the comment and the provocative giggles. It wasn't like he was arrogant and enjoyed making the gods expect an answer. It was just that he didn't feel compelled to respond, or rather, he wasn't attracted to any of the personalities who gifted him.
-Stop bothering him. - The third nymph came from the kitchen, a silver plate containing four cups of tea. - You're right taking your time, Kore. Many gods are unfaithful.
-Oh, that's true! - The other blonde intruded. - The other day I heard Zeus was after one of the water nymphs.
The girl who served the tea snorted.
-I'm not surprised. The only one who's never been on these rumors is Hades, but also... - Grimacing, she didn't finish the sentence, passing two cups to other nymphs. However, when Eren was going to ask what she meant by that, a strange act happened and he stared astonished when both nymphs who received the cups of tea touched their lips on the nymph's who deliver the drink.
Sometimes, while observing the human world, he saw several people also touching the lips of others, men with men, women with women, and men with women. Some mothers also did the same with their children, but Eren somehow felt it was different. And whenever he questioned his mother about that act, Carla would tell him it was something wrong that a child like him shouldn't do.
Because of this, he couldn't help but be curious.
-What are you doing? - Giant green eyes were fixated on the three women, curious and confused.
The nymphs looked at him with arched eyebrows.
-What do you mean? - All three asked in unison.
-Touching your mouths together... - Eren pointed, a flush rising to his cheeks and he lowered his face, embarrassed by prying in the girls' lives.
A second passed and giggles erupted from them.
-Oh Kore! You're so innocent! - One of them put a hand on her mouth, as if unable to contain the cooing coming out of it.
Eren felt uneasy, not knowing what was so funny. Everybody was supposed to know what that was? He felt ignorant.
-That's a kiss! You use it to greet friends and people you love! It can be like a greeting, a farewell, a thank you... you can use it when the situation seems acceptable. - The nymph of dark hair ignored the other two and responded with a gentle smile.
Eren absorbed the information eagerly but was ashamed to ask anything else. Picking up the book and pretending to read, his head revolved around a single question:
Could a kiss count as an apology?
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Months later Eren began to think a quiet and peaceful life didn't make him feel better, but rather empty. His constant curiosity and willingness to discover things was gradually drained and now he didn't know whether peace and monotony were better than a troubled routine with secrets and lives to discover, as he did in Hades' trials.
While Levi gave him the freedom to go through the Underworld and accompany him in trials, Eren began to feel suffocated by the prohibition of leaving the garden without the company of nymphs. Moreover, Carla would not let him follow her in her tasks even if, technically, they shared the kingdom.
Or maybe he was just being ungrateful? And selfish?
When he spent his days in the company of the nymphs who, from the moment he arrived, were more present than his mother, he could not help but feel disappointed by the boring routine of Mount Olympus. A break in expectation began to grow within itself like a weed and spending days picking flowers was no longer enough.
The god began to feel erased again. Eren was also tired of having his curiosity seen as fragility and innocence, and gradually he missed the strong and aggressive person he was in The Underworld.
Sitting on the bed, the boy kept his leg close to him, his fingers lingering lightly through the black material around his ankle. On the floor, next to the wardrobe, were the courtship gifts he had received, none of them, however, important enough to be on his body or desk, as was Isabel's gift.
The present that until now he dared not to open.
Maybe it was the guilt of leaving without talking to Levi that made his heart tighten every time he stared at the little box. Perhaps it was the disappointment with Olympus that kept him away from the memory of better times in The World of The Dead. Maybe it was his inability to admit he was wrong and pride keeping him from showing he regretted it.
While Isabel did her best to keep him in The Underworld, Eren simply turned his back and went into the arms of an unknown man when his whole being, albeit muffledly, screamed for him to stay.
Stretching his arm, the boy took Isabel's gift in hand, sitting with his legs crossed and holding it with affection.
After months, he could still smell white roses so characteristic of Hades emanating from the object.
But when he opened the box in a burst of courage, there wasn't a flower in there.
Inside the coffin, ripe as if months had not passed, was a fruit, quietly waiting for its owner to come and find it. Broken in half and filled with small reddish seeds, the pomegranate from The Underworld shone in front of his eyes.
And that was Izzy's gift: a chance to redeem himself and an even greater temptation than an apple.
Chapter 8: Persephone, not Kore
Summary:
Notes:
Hii! I'M BACK! And I'm so excited about this chapter! I hope you guys don't get disappointed with it! Also, thank you sooo much for last chapter's comments! We had 10 comments!! And each one of them made me so incredibly happy! So this update is in honor of everyone who commented! I'm constantly worried about this fanfic since it's a translation and Portuguese is a rather intricate language. I was worried this would be too heavy to read, considering huge paragraphs and all. So thank you for commenting and showing me you guys are enjoying it! A kiss on the cheeks to everyone and be safe!
Chapter Text
Don't you know that it's all I feel
I wouldn't worry, you have all the love
I've heard it takes some time to get it right
I'm wasting my young years
Wasting my young years – London Grammar
PERSEPHONE, NOT KORE
The earthly seasons passed smoothly for humans, months stretching into a happy calm after times of drought and famine. For Eren, however, the months dragged on in a tortuous way, the pomegranate always beside his bed, tempting him every day. As Demeter took care of the springs and summers, however, the winters became increasingly cold and soon the humans began to feel fear again as wars began to ravage the Earth.
While the nymphs commented on Ares's deeds, some praising him for his thirst for blood, Eren kept his ears sharp for any news of The Underworld. While observing the fruit on his corner table, he gradually developed an immense curiosity about what was going on in the kingdom of Hades.
His routine remained the same and the nymphs kept him company, but now it was rare to hear Eren's voice. His figure of Kore seemed increasingly consolidated and now Demeter no longer needed to warn him about clothes or about not leaving the gardens. He did it for himself, quietly gaining independence and trust from those close to him.
Outwardly, Eren seemed like the perfect fertility god: his unshakable beauty harmonized with passivity, calm, and softness; even the boy's steps had become lighter, imperceptible to the ears of the inattentive. Eyes almost always directed to the ground, never really allowing them to be read - of course, an embarrassed and childish posture, as should be Kore.
Except that on the nights he spent holding the pomegranate in his hands, Eren became someone else. His low eyes that, for others, exhaled obedience, deliberately hide the fire that burned hot in his eyes. The silence that always followed him hide a sarcastic tone and the only people he didn't nurture anger were the three nymphs who did their best to make him comfortable.
His slow and gentle steps only conveyed the certainty about his presence on Mount Olympus not being noticed. No other god noticed his absence when they had admired his looks enough, making comments about his long brown strands and large green eyes. None of them also bothered to force him to speak because Eren's body was enough. He gave his hand to receive lascivious kisses that, once he turned his back, was cleaned in his own clothes, and his presence was soon forgotten.
One more reason to always walk with his head down: now he could no longer hide the expression of disgust when they looked at him for longer than necessary, a contempt germinating in him every time he watched the pile of gifts taking almost half of his room – Eren made no effort to stop Demeter's fit by noticing his son's suitors and then returning all the objects.
The only one he could not bear to lose, however, was the one on his ankle, about which he had received prying eyes and malicious questions. Was that a gift from a suitor? Was Eren secretly compromised? Would his lover be a human?
He simply ignored the questions, satisfied that only he knew the answer: the jewelry was a reminder of the guilt of having hurt the person who, Eren finally realized, was the only one to have patience with him.
And though he was treated with a fragile flower by all around him, Eren, the boy and not the god, rose from what was left of Kore, the personality he had been forced to maintain.
Demeter, absent for weeks on end, remained blissfully unaware of the changes that plagued Eren's depths, long-suppressed human emotions being unlocked. The child she had previously raised and isolated to prevent his growth and always have him by her side, began to transform and, although he had his doubts, Eren was now sure he wanted to grow up.
His confidence was the pomegranate that stared at him every night. It was the certainty and memory of the emptiness he had felt when he visited the Asphodel Meadows. It was the feeling of still being trapped in a cottage, on a day that never ended and never led to anything.
He no longer felt empathy for the people who allowed themselves to live an empty existence. Now all that remained was pity for himself, who again had allowed himself to be locked up in a reality that didn't give him the urge to live.
When rumors of The Underworld reached Olympus, Eren felt even more driven to achieve his plan.
In the days when thunderstorms took place on Mount Olympus, the villagers and nymphs retreated from Zeus' fury, and knowing his rage was related to a certain god of The Underworld was what caught Eren's attention. The murmurs were that as soon as the wars began, Hades had assumed much of the judgments, condemning an exorbitant amount of souls to the depths of Tartarus.
Maybe Levi was just angry about having to clean up Zeke's mess. But then Hermes brought to Olympus the news that The Underworld seemed increasingly cruel, individuals being judged more harshly and coldly.
Eren wondered why Levi, who always seemed to do his duty to stay away from the gossip of Olympus, suddenly seemed so affected by the situation of humans and he couldn't help but worry about the one god who had aroused his curiosity.
As The World of The Dead went through dark days, Eren eagerly awaited Demeter's return to warn her of his decision. Despite doubting he would receive his mother's blessing, the boy still respected her enough to not disappear again and he didn't want to start a new life with the guilt and the weight of not saying goodbye to someone again.
The brunette gradually came to realize that being within Demeter's reach didn't exactly mean being by her side. In her house, Eren just felt like a piece of furniture waiting for the owner to arrive.
He then realized that even though he missed the affection and cuddling of his mother's lap, Olympus was not his place.
Even though the architecture remained clear and breathtaking, even though the immense temples exhibited power, Eren felt strangely out of place. Contrary to what Hermes had said, Olympus was not where he belonged. Amid the suitors, parties that he was not allowed to go and nymphs who settled for a light and casual eternity, Eren wanted more. He wanted to do the "what if's" he always imagined.
What if he could run barefoot and get his feet dirty with mud while the rain fell on him? What if he no longer had to follow etiquette rules because others wanted to admire him? What if his voice was heard because he had something important to say besides apologies and thanks? What if his beauty, which had always been overrated, were nothing compared to his power? What if his wishes were taken into account and not repressed or judged?
What if he could really be pampered and appreciated by who he was, being able to make his own choices and enjoy freedom?
Perhaps his stay in The Underworld had opened his eyes to repressed desires he wanted to explore.
Olympus was clean and clear and even betrayals occurred in broad daylight, with no real intention to hide. The kingdom of Hades, on the other hand, was volatile enough that Eren would not get tired of watching through the window all day. The place practically fueled the curiosity and fascination he had for mystery and danger, emotions from which he had always been protected. Hades offered all the excitement that had been denied and even a conversation with Levi could make him feel more than months on Mount Olympus. Instead of being treated like an innocent child in need of constant care, Eren could wander around The Underworld and do whatever he wanted.
And the conflict he experienced when he missed his mother but at the same time realizing that Levi was the only person to treat him as an adult slowly succumbed to the desire to wake up from what seemed like a deep slumber.
He no longer wanted to miss his young years without knowing everything he felt and even though he needed some time to organize the whirlwind of sensation he had just discovered, Eren was ready to venture out.
As always, the boy was sitting among the flowers, the nymphs by his side having a picnic and he was very busy with a human book of poems difficult to understand. The books became his best companion as he accepted the changes he went through silently, and as he read them, Eren was able to feel calmer and more mature.
More certain of his choices and the consequences that accompanied them.
Ares, in the while, ignored the quietness as he approached in a pompous and bright armor, a confident smile on his lips.
This was not the first time Zeke had come to bother him and, unlike the docility with which he received Hermes on that fateful day in The Underworld – the day he would make one of his greatest mistakes – the emerald-eyed one simply could not stand this god's attitude.
Zeke trotted across the garden, a singing smile addressed to all the nymphs he passed by, as if no one could resist the charm of Zeus and Hera's son.
Except that Eren was extremely irritated by such an attitude of a lesser god when Levi, one of the three greatest, exuded power without even leaving The Underworld. At the same time Zeke displayed his muscles and irritating personality, Hades' name was respected and feared by anyone on Olympus.
Yes, maybe Eren was a little angry about that character, twisting his mouth when the blonde was present.
- What are four beauties doing here without the company of a man?
Eren rolled his eyes, already exasperated about Zeke ignoring the fact he was also a man, regardless of hair or clothes or pronouns. Eren had never a woman or a nymph, and even though he didn't mind being called by female pronouns, he no longer tolerated being made fun of. Everyone knew about Ares' defeats to humans and about his tendency to whine to Zeus when he couldn't get what he could.
Eren was sure that if there was a conflict between Zeke and Levi, Zeke would probably leave The Underworld half-dead even before he arrived at Hades' palace, considering how much Isabel bragged about training Cerberus to hunt things.
Snorting to the nymphs' giggles, Eren found himself in a particularly dark mood that day.
-Do you want to keep us company? - One of the blonde nymphs asked and the green-eyed one raised his eyes to her in a boring expression. The girl knew how much Eren despised Ares' attitude, especially when he didn't accept his courtship gifts returned.
Unlike the other gods, the blond simply kept sending Eren piles of gifts, mostly dirty with human blood. Necklaces, cloaks, weapons that, in the small head of the god of war served to show his greatness when, in fact, Eren was annoyed at the thought of unnecessary battles that doubled the work of those in The Underworld.
Hades was perhaps a saint for never complaining about his services. Despite being taciturn and possessing an exemplary mood, the man could be well contained and conscious even with the responsibility of a ton of deaths on his shoulders.
-I know you'd love my company, but Zeus calls me to take care of some matters for Demeter.
Eren tipped his head back immediately and realized that Zeke had been behind him all the time, watching him continuously.
-Demeter? - Green eyes were masqueraded with innocence and a deluded smile took upon Ares's face, who soon stretched out his fingers to pass them gently on the long brown strands. Eren forced himself not to shrug away from the man.
-She's in the main hall with Zeus. Apparently there was a- Kore?
The blonde widened his eyes when Eren, without even letting him finish, stand up abruptly and run up to the house he had been living in all these months.
-Kore?! What happened? - The curly-haired nymphs got up and went after him, but the brunette screamed over his shoulders that he just needed to see his mother.
That was a lie.
He was prepared to leave, his heart squeezing with the simple idea of staying another day in that place. He needed to go where he felt comfortable to be who he is, where he could express his emotions and where he could touch the earth as his powers commanded him to.
Maybe the boy would miss the nymphs who kept him company, but as he headed to his room quickly, he couldn't conjure a single reason to stay.
As he entered the room, he simply tore off his uncomfortable shoes with his fingers, rushing toward the desk and picking up the small box he always kept locked when he was away. Turning his back, he didn't look twice at the room and went down the marble stairs quickly.
The stairs of Mount Olympus never seemed so long and tall and halfway, the dress he wore began to restrict his movements. He was afraid he couldn't get to Demeter in time, and he didn't feel good about leaving his mother without telling his decision.
Ducking down, he took the dress in his hand, lifting it to half his thighs and leaving his legs free so he could get around more easily. Promptly ignoring the frightened glances, he proceeded without pause to the main hall, where Zeus' throne was located, and when he entered it, he didn't even need to see the woman to make sure she was there.
The smell of lilies quickly caught up to him and the boy let go of the dress, covering his legs in Zeus' presence.
When he entered the hall and made himself noticed, the two gods had already regarded his presence and two pairs of eyes were staring at him. Carla looked at him as if questioning his attendance and Grisha looked at him with low eyes in an expression Eren could not identify.
-Kore? What are you doing here?
Squeezing the box into both hands, he brought it to the front of his body, as if he wanted to use it as a protection.
-Mother, I'm sorry. I need to tell you something.
With this, the woman turned to her son, a rigid position when she realized the boy's hesitation. Zeus watched him from top to bottom, silent as he waited for the sweet voice to sound.
-Kore, did something happen?
After returning home for a ton of courting gifts for the brunette, the woman had instructed the nymphs, without Eren knowing, never to leave him alone, which meant that even when the boy slept someone was watching his door.
-No, Mother, it's okay, it's just t-
-Then there's no reason for you to be here. Even your feet are shoeless! What's on your mind? Go home, Kore, we'll talk when I get there.
The woman decided rigidly, not even waiting for him to finish speaking and already turning her back to resume her conversation with Zeus. Eren looked at his feet in shame, but the presence of the black band around his ankle gave him courage and reminded him of how the "conversations" with Carla resulted.
She spoke and he listened, his opinion brushed away and his voice unheard.
Eren realized that he wanted to go home, as the woman had ordered, except that the place he imagined as a "house" was not on Olympus. It was not a white single-story house and an empty room, but rather stone and icy walls filled with mystery and life. If he had to answer where home was, a face would appear in his mind, and even after months without seeing him, Eren could describe every detail of Hades' feature, still vivid since the night they fought.
-Mother, I can't take it anymore. - The boy's voice came out low, almost ashamed when he needed to struggle to actually be heard.
-Son, I've already said that yo-
-I no longer feel like Kore and I no longer belong to this place- And then, for the first time in his existence, Eren interrupted Demeter. The woman seemed haunted when her son now spoke loud enough to echo through the temple.
Zeus arched an eyebrow and Carla watched astonished Eren open the small container in his hands and remove from within a red and perfect fruit. That caught the attention of the two gods.
- Kore, what are you doing? What the hell is that? - Carla finally realized she had to pay the deserved attention when the boy dropped the case on the floor and stuck two fingers in the pomegranate. With furrowed eyebrows – which she would never allow Kore to do – the woman wondered what the boy's erratic behavior was for.
With trembling hands and discovering courage for having the pomegranate in his hands, Eren pulled out with both fingers a considerable amount of seeds. From his mouth, with a soft but determined voice, he said the only certainty he had been cultivating in the recent months.
- My home is in The Underworld, Mother. I'm sorry for taking too long to realize it. - With this, he put in his mouth the ten seeds he had collected, biting them and letting the sweet taste of pomegranate flood his mouth. Finally, after seconds of reasoning, Demeter realized that special fruit was not grown on Mount Olympus, and in desperation she ran to the boy, grabbing hard in his arms and shaking him.
-Why are you doing this?! Stop! - Carla hit his hand holding the pomegranate and, for a second, Eren panicked thinking his plan would not work. He then held the fruit harder, which made the red nectar soil his hand like blood. - Kore!! Spit it out! - Desperate and screaming, Carla brought her hands to her son's lips, trying to open them to remove the seeds from it. Frightened by his mother's sudden reaction, Eren swallowed, even with difficulty, the seeds and blinked when, suddenly, he was on the ground.
Demeter had pushed him and Eren fell sitting on the floor of Olympus, Grisha watching everything curiously as Carla puffed in anger. Seeing his mother's choleric feature, he almost regretted what he was doing, but then he remembered why he was doing it.
Answering his mother, he forced himself to stand up.
-Because that's how I feel, that's who I am.
Using the firmer voice he had at the time, even if being watched with anger and disappointment by Demeter hurt deeply, was necessary. Eren needed to stand up for himself.
-I'm Persephone, not Kore... Persephone, the destroyer and bearer of chaos and destruction. What's inside me that I still don't know how to control, Mother, is not part of the world of the living and the gods.
As if coordinated, as soon as Eren finished his declaration, the throne room darkened. Suddenly, the fire of the torches flickered and shadows arose around the Greek columns, rising their extent and taking them completely.
Looking around, Eren almost smiled when the characteristic breeze of The Underworld took over the place, Carla taking steps back when the silence became greater and only calm steps were heard. The gods turned toward the sound to see Hades rising through the shadows, darkened eyes while he observed the scene before him.
The moment someone consumed any food from The Underworld, Levi immediately felt it and appeared wherever he needed to take that person with him and make them part of his kingdom. When that feeling woke him up from the torpor of following endless days in trials, the man was almost startled by the possibility of some change in his daily life.
Since Eren left, Levi had forced himself to focus solely and exclusively on his duties, resisting the urge to invoke mirrors to observe and protect the boy from afar. And now, after months of hiding in his own solitude, there was Eren, facing him with huge and hopeful green eyes.
A quick analysis of the scenario and Levi identified Zeus' sarcastic smile and Demeter's horrified expression. Turning his gaze to the one he had missed for months, Eren watched him with his lower lip between his teeth. On his hands, a smashed pomegranate soiled his fingers red and descending from his ankle, dark blood watered his feet.
His immediate impulse was to check if the boy was injured and Eren looked at him nervously when he noticed the angry look directed at his ankle. Looking at himself, he realized that the bracelet was no longer present and now Hades' blood was marking his skin, enough for the god to think he was hurt. It was then that the boy noticed how attentive Levi was and how much he cared about him, a shy smile decorating his face when he realized it.
The first thought Levi had when seeing Eren's red lips was how red was still beautiful in him and the second was the certainty the boy had deliberately eaten the fruit of The Underworld.
-Get out of here, Hades!- Demeter's choleric voice sounded, but neither of them undid eye contact, Eren with hope in his emeralds and Levi trying to stay calm with what he saw. - Kore, if you leave this place, I will let all humans suffer from hunger. - The woman threatened and Zeus sighed irritated by the shouting, hands rubbing his eyebrows.
-Eren ate the fruit of The Underworld and so must return and rule it by my side. - Hades announced, straight posture and calm voice, knowing that no matter the intentions of Zeus or the hysteria of Demeter, that rule was unbreakable.
-I know what you want from him! - The woman cried, unable to accept Kore's fate: to be escorted back to The Underworld and to marry Hades, whom she saw as a monster. – I know why you want him in your hands! You want to take my son from me!
-Demeter, Eren is already an adult to make his own choices.
Though every mother's greatest fear was letting their children go, Demeter acted as if Eren was a bird, eternally locked up and under her wings.
- Mother, Levi never did me any harm and I chose-
The boy tried to interrupt, shaking hands grabbing the dress he was wearing, and trying to calm Carla's spirits.
-Are you already calling him by his human name?! He's corrupting you, Kore! He knows I'm protecting you and he wants to get you out of here so he can defile you!
But she did not listen and as the three argued, Grisha watched the commotion from his throne, calmly watching his son and weighing his options. Although Kore was more attractive than ever, Hades was right about the rule of The Underworld: someone who ate something from The Realm of The Dead could not be saved and the God of The Gods had no choice but to utter:
-That's enough. - Rising from the throne, the man considered the one who had renamed himself Persephone, looking deep into emerald eyes. - How many seeds did you eat, son?
Eren looked at Zeus confused and, without realizing it, looked over his shoulder at Hades, as if waiting for the man to help him. However, Levi faced his brother with force, ready to claim the law and evaporate from the hall with Eren.
-...Ten. - The boy answered and peace reigned when the right hand of the Zeus rose and his grave voice sounded strong:
-Then justice be served. For ten months, Persephone will stay in the kingdom of Hades as Queen of The Underworld and during the remaining two months of the year, he will stay on Mount Olympus, alongside his mother.
Demeter's face fell off immediately, and although Levi did not like the idea of Eren leaving for two months, orders were orders and he would do the best for the boy in the time he was entitled to him. As a smile appeared on Eren's face and he turned to go to Hades, Demeter approached Zeus again, continuing the discussion and refusing to accept the deal.
Eren and Levi, however, were more focused on how to act after months without seeing each other.
Incredibly, the first step was not from Levi. Sharp blue eyes watched Eren walk to him slowly, almost embarrassed, but never stopping. Emerald orbs were focused on the ground and at some point in his walk, the pomegranate was abandoned behind, no longer being necessary.
When he was close enough to smell Hades' characteristic roses scent, the urge to apologize was greater than the clear question in the grayish eyes. Eren certainly had to justify himself, since Levi had not come to Mount Olympus without a good explanation of why the boy, now Persephone, decided to condemn himself to The Underworld.
Not that he was complaining.
It was at that moment, then, that a pair of rosy, full lips clashed innocently with thin, pale ones. Wide-eyed, Levi observed Eren's calm and even curious feature, while he pressed them together and brought both hands around his neck.
When the boy looked at him again, a high flush on his cheeks, Levi already had his hands on Eren's waist, not even noticing excited shadows shaking around him.
-Can a kiss be an apology?
And though it's not really what he expected Persephone to say, Levi was surprised by the audacity in a little smile the boy directed him.
-Is that what you learned on Olympus? - A deep voice – and a little jealous – sounded low so that only the two of them could hear. The proximity created a more intimate and reclusive environment away from the shouting Carla directed to Grisha.
Eren dropped his head to the side, his smile replaced with a pout and an extremely innocent expression as he watched the god anxiously.
-...I saw the nymphs greeting each other like that? - Almost as a question, the youngest answered and Levi gave him a smirk, awed by the innocence and, at the same time, determination of Persephone.
Until that moment, Eren had not realized how much he missed that smile. Hades then wrapped his strong arms around his waist and Eren did the same, holding onto his neck more tightly.
-Let's go home, Eren. Your kingdom misses you.
And as suddenly as they arrived, the shadows were gone and the future bride and groom disappeared from the temple of Zeus. Only then, when they silently withdrew, did Demeter realize that she had, once and for all, lost Kore. And while mourning her loss, she didn't even realize Zeus' focused and envious gaze.
Chapter Text
There is a house built out of stone
Wooden floors, walls and windowsills
Tables and chairs worn by all of the dust
This is a place where I don't feel alone
This is a place where I feel at home
'Cause, I built a home
For you
For me
To Build a Home – The Cinematic Orchestra
HOME
Unlike Hermes, Levi took him back to the Underworld in a blink of an eye. One second, he was barefoot on the cold marble of Olympus, and in the next, his feet floated in an endless immensity.
Strong arms held him by the waist and he secured himself tightly around Hades' neck, the adrenaline overflowing his veins. The smell of roses was apparently the only thing keeping him sane, eyes closed and wind crashing into his skin.
When he thought of intertwining his legs around the god's waist for greater support, it was all over and it was like nothing happened. What to Eren seemed like an eternity, was only a few seconds being carried by the shadows back to The Realm of The Dead and soon his feet were on the ground, earth under his fingers.
Gradually, his green eyes opened and he had to blink twice to be able to see perfectly in front of him. Still in Hades' arms, Eren let himself be slowly released, looking startled at the creature near the gates of The Underworld.
A giant dog, with three huge heads staring at him intensely, was guarding the entrance to the palace. Upon seeing the image of Eren in Levi's arms, the dog approached enough to receive a glare from Levi and so all three heads lowered their ears immediately, as if reprimanded. However, Eren arched his eyebrows when, from behind the animal, an immense dragon tail swayed excitedly and he thought that, despite the monstrous appearance, the dog looked quite adorable.
-Show some respect to your queen, Spot. - And the boy turned his confused gaze at Hades when the nickname came out of his mouth. Never in his wildest dreams would he imagine the hellish dog had such a... innocent nickname.
Before he could question the faint blush on Levi's cheeks, Eren heard a large roar and turned his gaze to what was now a normal-sized dog. A dog with three heads and a dragon's tail. Other than that, the animal seemed out of his mind of joy when he came trotting up to Eren.
The brunet quickly let go of Hades when the three heads started to smell him and reached a hand out slowly, which was promptly licked affectionately.
-Oh, hello to you too, Cerberus! - It worked as a permission and soon the dog jumped on Eren's legs, forcing him to bend over and rub his hands on dark fur. A vigorous tail's swing and three tongues out showed how pleased the dog was with his new company and, when Isabel appeared running from the entrance of the castle, the animal ran to the redhead, surrounding her as if inviting her to meet the new resident of The Underworld.
Not that Isabel really needed an invitation. As soon as she spotted the second person next to Levi, the girl came racing, a smile threatening to tear her cheeks when she was close enough to recognize Eren's giant innocent eyes.
And, ah, how she missed the boy!
Without stopping her movement for a second, she made her way to him, arms opening up towards him and pulling him in a comforting welcome embrace.
That time, the affection was so warm and long that Eren automatically hugged her back, the two brunettes in a competition of whom crushed harder. Eren wondered if that was how to be welcomed with open arms. He felt so warm and happy that he briefly considered kissing the girl as a thank you.
But as soon as the thought came into his mind, a part of himself didn't think it was right and he just couldn't imagine kissing Isabel like he kissed Levi. The nymphs once explained that kisses should come when he felt necessary, and, at that moment, perhaps it was better to leave that kind of greeting reserved for Hades.
The thought caused his cheeks to warm up at the very moment Isabel broke the contact and now she held his face between her hands.
-Eren, why did you take so long?! - She cried out, a sad moan stretching her voice and showing how his absence was tiring for her. Seeing her act like a child, the boy couldn't stop the excited smile on his face, his body practically shaking with emotion.
Cerberus swirled around the two, barking cheerfully and bouncing with joy.
- I had to settle some unfinished business on Mount Olympus. - He answered, his voice taking a playful tone and matching her animation. Isabel screamed and Levi rolled his eyes, beginning to walk and pass through the brunettes.
- Old Kore's business?
Eren has never been so proud of himself as he nodded, his cheeks blushing even more.
- Kore no longer exists, I am Persephone. - He said and Isabel's eyes widened abnormally until she jumped on his neck and hugged him tightly.
-Finally!! - She practically screamed in his ear and Levi, who was passing by, frowned. Approaching the two, he slaps Isabel's head playfully, drawing her attention.
- Do you want to blow the queen's ears off before you even let him into the kingdom? - Rolling his eyes, Levi set out to walk quietly towards the palace, Spot losing interest in the green-eyed boy and following his owner cheerfully.
Isabel then made a point of entangling her arms to Eren's and walking with him through the entrance gate, faithfully guiding Persephone, The Queen of the Underworld, to his kingdom.
At the end of the short walk to the palace, the redhead quickly runs off, claiming to go find Farlan to tell him the good news. However, Eren looked confused when she poked Levi and winked at him, laughing at herself as she ran away.
For seconds, silence reigned among the rulers, Levi ready to enter the castle and Eren grabbing his garment, not really knowing how he should behave now that he was transformed into a queen, as Zeus himself consecrated.
He looked down and thought about Levi. A god who had become lonely and cold as he followed through his duties over the centuries and who was constantly misunderstood by Olympus. He who had been condemned to an immortal life dealing with dead people and who never complained about the division of kingdoms.
Considering the other personalities from Olympus, who were grumpy despite being above humans and not dealing with them, Eren began to think that Levi was by far the calmest of gods. While Ares irradiated pride and arrogance, Levi was far from selfish or self-centered, especially when he demonstrated, even if not so clearly, how much he cared about the well-being of those around him.
Eren suddenly didn't know if he was enough to be queen beside Hades and biting his lips, he focused his gaze on his feet, his head battling over what his next conduct would be. Kneel and swear submission to the kingdom? To give up the power given to him by Zeus and act as if they didn't know each other?
But Eren didn't want that. He wanted to get to know Levi and he wanted to be able to rule alongside him as gratitude for waking him up from a life living for others. He wanted to at least be able to share some of the burdens the god carried alone and maybe improve the dark circles under his eyes.
A forced cough caught his attention and he raised his head fast, green eyes staring at the being in front of him.
Levi stared right back at him with low eyes, a gentle and at the same time tired gaze as if he had been waiting for that moment for years and now just wanted to sit in a chair and rest. His right hand was stretched out toward Eren patiently.
-Eren, what are you waiting for? It's your castle. Your home. - And he never thought he needed to hear that till that moment. The words resounded in his chest, forcing him to pull a strong breath and blink a few times to dispel the burning in his eyes.
The boy gave a shaking smile, cheeks warming up when he took the offered hand, fingers bumping and gliding gently through the pale, icy skin. And if he had to describe, such a cold skin had never been as welcoming.
Levi took it upon himself to tie their hands and show him, appropriately, his new home.
Eren already knew what to expect when he entered the main entrance. Chandeliers, frames, stone walls, red carpets. A look to the side and small dark wooden tables with books on top. Fireplaces keeping the castle warm and torches leaving the environment in a dim light.
That was a home built from stones, with woody floors and high ceilings. From the centuries that the building stood, it was supposed the chairs and tables had already been taken by time and full of dust. But it was all clean and impeccable. That was a place where the walls didn't make him feel alone and the heat of the fire made him feel at home.
Everything smelled like white roses and even though he knew exactly where each room was due to his escapades on his previous visit, the castle seemed modified and he unconsciously shook his hand and vocalized his insecurities.
-Why is everything so different?
His voice came out softly, his body following Hades naturally as if he was drawn to where the man was moving. Their intertwined hands also gave him no choice but to follow him on the impromptu ride.
Levi made a sound with his throat as if considering the phrase and soon after replied.
-You're the one who changed.
Silence followed again because Eren knew the elder was correct, and now he began to remember that every little thing that came out of Levi's mouth was covered in wisdom. After all, Hades was centuries older and he was supposed to give good advice and make good decisions.
Eren wondered if ever his being Persephone could be as wise and feared as Levi, the excitement running through his veins and forcing him to want to grow up and learn how to be a good queen.
-Not entirely.
That's what he answered and he pulled Hades back without thinking twice, bringing them both to a stop in the middle of a hallway. Levi turned immediately, frowning eyebrows and concern already beginning to strain his shoulders, but then, as he fixed his gaze in emerald orbs, he saw a determined face, lower lip between white teeth and flushed cheeks.
Eren seemed about to do the craziest thing of his life and looked in a way at Levi who would surely have the man following him on any adventure. But in the end, all he wanted was:
-Levi, cut my hair.
It was from a simple request that The King of The Dead and God of The Underworld went grab a chair, scissors in his hand, and stood behind his new queen.
The brunet could almost feel the penetrating look on his back, a smile now stretching his face to the point of his cheeks hurting, excited before the prospect of rebel against Olympus' implied long-haired law. Levi looked from the long brown strands to the scissors in his hand and then to the top of Eren's head again.
- I think we should ask Isabel to cut your hair. - That was the great Hades' way of chicken out at the last moment, moving to leave the scissors on a table and not ruin Eren's hair.
-No, no, no, no, no! - The brunette quickly held his forearm, looking over his shoulders with pleading eyes, almost begging Levi to help him leave Kore behind.
When on Mount Olympus, many of his suitors praised his appearance and, while he could do nothing with the color of his eyes, it was easy to get rid of the long brown threads that framed his face, hiding part of his cheeks and falling over his eyes.
-No, please, Levi! - Eren urged, Levi stopping and arching an eyebrow to the desperate tone of voice.
-Eren, I know shit about cutting hair.
-I trust you! - The boy immediately retorted and the god pressed his eyes with two of his fingers.
-Do you trust someone who's never touched a hair to cut yours? - The question had a sarcastic hint in itself, but deep down, Levi was marveling how far they had come. They went from wanting to jump on each other's necks to trusting the other with sharp scissors in hands.
Levi huffed.
-Why cutting hair so suddenly?
The elder almost regretted asking the real reason for it when the boy shut up, touching his forehead on the back of the chair he sat on. He was straddling the chair to facilitate access to his hair. But then Eren started talking.
-I had received countless letters and gifts on Mount Olympus. - The confession made Levi squeeze the scissors in his hands. Of course, those pigs wouldn't wait to try to get Eren as soon as the kid set foot in that place. Possessiveness began to burn his veins, but he remained silent and composed, letting him continue. - But they were all for Kore and his long hair and his green eyes. Nothing for Eren.
The disappointment on his voice was what made Levi return to his position, putting himself behind Eren and moving his icy hands gently on the long wires.
-I'm going to destroy your hair. - Hades said, a hint of remorse on his words, but preparing the scissors on his fingers. If Eren wanted to get rid of the object of lust of those who courted him, Levi would not be the one to stop him.
As he had already said, Eren was obstinate and unstoppable. And the more beastly he got the more attracted Levi became.
A giggle came out of the boy, who smiled again as he felt the scissors rub through his wires and gradually cut. Locks and strands of hair gradually fell, some slipping down the dark sleeves of the dress he was forced to wear on Olympus.
While Levi cut Kore's last traits, helping him leave that personality behind, he couldn't help but think now was a good time to apologize for the words that had been hurting his conscience since months ago. Levi had received him with open arms and he was unable to see the damage he had done to God.
-Levi... - Eren whispered, eyes down as Levi finished the back of his hair. He could not imagine the result, but he felt his hair cut almost at the height of his ears, Hades' breath chilling his nape. - I was wrong.
-Hm? - Levi gave little importance, icy and sharp eyes fixed on the work in his hands. He passed his fingers on Eren's brown hair, shaking them to remove the excess hair and circled the chair. Now facing Eren, icy eyes watched the boy's heart-shaped face intensely.
-Levi, are you listening to me? - The boy tried again, closing one of his eyes in a cute way when one pale hand held strands of hair falling on his forehead and cut them with scissors.
-Yes, I'm sorry.
But knowing he was more concerned about not letting him down with the new haircut, Eren grabbed both his arms and look at him from below. Levi, surprised by the movement, blinked twice at the boy.
They were practically in an open embrace, half arm away separating them. Levi closely observed the golden threads radiating from Eren's pupils and invading the bluish-green hue of his irises.
-I was wrong. - He repeated, this time with more confidence when Levi paid full attention to him.
-About what? - Hades frowned, watching intently when his queen nibbled his lips in nervousness.
-About everything. - And then he just dumped what he needed to talk about at once, all the weight on his shoulders and the grip on his heart going away in a single breath. - About Olympus, about who I am, about who I want to be, about where my home is and where I have freedom and... and I lied when I said you were a bad god because I was so confused and I wanted to choose for myself, but in the end I... I-I don't know why I said that and it's not true! - His fingers squeezed into the porcelain skin of a bewildered Levi, slightly wide-eyed watching the little one get lost in his own line of thought. - I feel so sorry and I felt the moment I said those t-things and... And...
Levi interrupted before his eyes became even more full of tears, emotion causing him to breathe hard, and instinctively the god held Eren's face in his hand, fitting his entire world into his palms.
-Eren, that's enough. - The rigid tone is what made rosy lips shut up in the same second. The boy raised his giant eyes, Levi finally realizing that Eren had a face in a different proportion and that's why his eyes were so large compared to the whole package in his hands.
But it made him even more adorable, almost reminding him of Cerberus when he was still a puppy with three clumsy heads that couldn't decide where to go. Eren was just like a young pup: a chaotic personality in a soft body and only those who looked deeply could distinguish the fury and determination once dormant.
-It's okay being confused. It's okay not to know. - Levi gave him a short nod, tight lips and eyes conveying the forgiveness the boy wanted to hear.
Eren then realized Hades said more with his eyes and actions than with his voice and that was strangely comforting to someone who came from a place where a pompous speech was all anyone could have.
The breath that took his lung was then calm and relaxing, his shoulders losing stiffness and all the tension fading like smoke.
-You helped me discover freedom. - Eren admitted, knowing that without Levi and his peculiar way of waking him to reality, he wouldn't be there. Quietly, Eren pondered whether to ask for one more sacrifice from the god. - Now can you help me find out who I am? Discovering my powers?
Though he had almost spoken to himself, low enough to sound like a whisper, Levi was there to listen, as he always heard the prayers hidden in green eyes
-Always. Now close your eyes and let me finish this shit quietly. - It was his answer, and he passed his thumbs on Eren's eyes immediately, closing them and preventing him from seeing the blush that took his cheeks when The King of The Dead promised everything the boy deserved.
Discover yourself and be happy.
Finishing cutting the brown strands, Hades was pleased with the total personality change the new cut conveyed, but also silently thanked the impossibility of changing the colors of the eyes that attracted him so much.
The giggle that came out of Eren, as he ran up the stairs to see his new self, ripped off a smirk from Levi. All residents of The Underworld then stared in bewilderment when the sky suddenly cleared, a breeze of flowers calming the suffering of Tartarus for a few seconds.
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The person he saw in the mirror stared at him back with a force Eren didn't recognize. From that figure, he could only recognize his green eyes. The rest was completely different and the emotion that took his body was enough to give him the energy to run the entire Underworld twice, without a single breath.
The person he saw in the mirror had short brown hair, leaving his neck on display and exposed to the breeze that entered through his bedroom window – his real room, with four-poster bed, carpets, a wardrobe full of colors and a window with views of roses.
There was no longer a pendant around his ankle since now his own existence belonged to The Underworld. What was once his memory of Hades had flowed in the form of blood, soaking his feet and leaving him forever.
The person in the mirror also wore a blue dress, as clear as the sky on a cold morning. The length left half of his thighs and the rest of his legs free.
Eren could no longer understand why he was so prevented from wearing clothes like that and the person who looked at him and kept giving him courage was himself. Persephone.
And it was this same person who pushed him out of the room, a smile appearing on his face at every icy step his feet felt. Around him, the blue skirt swayed at every quick move and Eren almost felt like floating.
Never before had his body been so light and he couldn't wait for his toes to touch the ground.
Demeter, Olympus, nymphs, and courting gifts no longer in his mind as his being was properly accepted by the Kingdom of Hades. If before he felt his energy being sucked out of his body, now everything around him seemed ten times more sensitive and colorful. He felt more alive than ever in The World of the Dead, his enthusiasm growing when, upon arriving at the end of the stairs, he saw Isabel and Farlan with Cerberus by their side.
It was then that Levi realized The Underworld had never had anyone so bright.
Eren, clothed in a blue dress that pointed out his eyes, went down the stairs in an almost dancing rhythm, short hair curling lightly around his face with each movement.
And his presence was so bright that the whole room seemed to light up. A big smile - not innocent, or confused or ashamed, but a happy smile - was on his rosy lips as if the world touched by him was the most colorful.
Judging by Farlan and Isabel's choked reaction, Eren also seemed to bring them a breath of fresh air that left everyone trapped in their place, watching the queen control them without moving a finger.
The first person Persephone addressed was the short, black-haired man. Perhaps the person in that mirror simply realized emotions were not to be feared, and because of that, again, he touched his lips on Hades' lips, slowly and gently, regardless of the two beings gaping at his action.
It was a thank you. A "thank you for letting me flourish".
The smile hadn't faded when Eren stopped holding Levi's face between soft fingers. He turned to Isabel and took her in his arms, not in a hug of apology or longing, but a grateful hug. The smile was also still there when he hugged Farlan tight, ignoring the obvious discomfort due to such closeness.
The time around them seemed slower as he moved, turning his back to his past as Kore. Eren then went to the only place that represented his being who, many years ago, had been buried.
His emotions now seemed to overflow through his pores, giant emerald eyes fixating on the tall white door that led him to his piece of heaven within the supposed hell.
A hell he now called home with a smile on his face.
The three people followed him silently and when the door opened, it was as if another reality presented itself before them.
Eren stopped underneath the door, hands still gently holding the golden handles, while his wide-eyed eyes watched the scene before him. It was then that his smile finally disappeared, and tears flowed to stain his cheeks.
All the plants were well taken care of. All flowered, independent and mature. All shining under the sun, certain of their importance in the world. Those, who were once buried under sand, now received the rain, which Hades made every day with vehemence.
And perhaps that was one of the unrecognized gifts of The God of the Underworld: he knew how to let flowers blossom.
Eren went down the steps that led him to the garden and had to stop as soon as his fingers touched the grass.
At his side, Cerberus sat down, one of his head rubbing on his bare legs as if asking for affection.
He laughed chokingly, tears running but not preventing a radiant smile from appearing when Isabel came to him, giving him a side hug and respecting his moment while remaining silent.
Behind them, Farlan and Levi stood leaning against the door, soft eyes in one and confused orbs in another, watching as the two creatures hugged and enjoyed the plants for a second.
They continued to observe when Eren simply ran into his garden, stepping the grass and dirtying his feet.
Isabel laughed loudly when Spot jumped and knocked her to the ground, butterflies magically rising from the flowers to dance around them. When one of them landed on brown hair, Eren giggled and the entire Underworld seemed to absorb the graceful sound.
It was strange, living in The Underworld and laughing in a carefree way. But it was strange because never before the most hated place was the most welcoming one. For years, his house had been a prison. And his worst nightmare was the one responsible for his growing. The Underworld always gave him the strange feeling of wanting to be more and now he could finally free himself.
It was strange to climb a treetop, whose trunks were as cracked as skin, and see yourself on top of the world – of his world – after so many years asleep within himself. But he did it and climbed the thick trunks of the tree at the end of his garden as he did when he was a child.
When the breeze had come to rock him and bring him down, he held as tight as he did to Levi when getting away from Olympus. He held it as hard as he wanted to be held by one specific god.
Out in the garden where we planted the seeds
There is a tree as old as me
Branches were sewn by the color of green
Ground had arose and passed it's knees
By the cracks of the skin I climbed to the top
I climbed the tree to see the world
When the gusts came around to blow me down
I held on as tightly as you held onto me
To Build a Home – The Cinematic Orchestra
Notes:
Thank you for all the kudos and comments! It makes me sooooo happy! For this chapter, I was inspired by Wait – M83 and To Build a Home. This chapter was supposed to be in slow motion since Eren is growing and ditching his Kore personality away~~ We have Eren kissing in a "I don't exactly know what kissing is for, so here goes an innocent peck on the lips" way! Poor baby has a lot to learn! We even have Sleeping Beauty references with Eren being "asleep" for so long!! Fun fact: “Spot” is really known as Cerberus nickname! It’s a sadistic joke since Cerberus can “spot” and kill intruders hahaha Also now that our baby Eren got rid of Kore, next chapter he will start his duties as a Queen! His first mission: help a human who came up to Hades for help! Now, do you guys have any idea who is he? I WANT GUESSES!
Chapter 10: Orpheus
Summary:
Notes:
Hi guys!! By the title, you already know what will happen in this chapter, right? It’s Mythology Time!! Oh boy, I was so happy when a few of you said the man looking for help was Orpheus hahaha But no, he’s not Marco or Jean. Jean will appear in the next chapters tho! Also, this fanfic is based on “Scary Love” by The Neighborhood! There’s a dialogue in this chapter that is literally the lyrics hahaha Hope you like it! Thank you for reading and commenting and enjoy!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Breath deep, breath clear
Know that I'm here
Waiting
Stay strong, stay gold
You don't have to fear
Waiting
I see you soon
I'll see you soon
How could a heart like yours
Ever love a heart like mine?
How could I live before?
How could I have been so blind?
You opened my eyes
Heart Like Yours- Willamette Stone
ORPHEUS
Weeks after Eren finally found his freedom, the role of Queen of The Underworld came to him with tranquility. As he already participated, even as an observer, in the judgments of The Underworld, it was not difficult to fit in a throne and wear a crown – not when Levi gave him looks that transpired confidence.
As no other god had ever done, the throne of Persephone was right next to Hades' and on the same level. Both thrones were made of dark and heavy mahogany, with gold braids decorating them.
As always, Hades was dressed completely in black, his toga descending to the floor and golden bracelets decorating muscles that were almost always hidden. His right arm was completely apparent since his toga had only one sleeve on one of his shoulders.
For the first time, however, Eren saw him with black ebony threads combed back and only some wilder strands daring to brush Levi's high cheeks. Icy eyes gave him a fierce and domineering look, matching strong and sharp jawline. The only color on his face was the pink of his thin, compressed lips, since even his crown, thick and simple, and the scepter he held were a deep black.
Eren also dressed in black. His robe was as long as Levi's, but unlike his King, his two shoulders were on display when a silver choker held the front of his garment. On his waist was a silver belt encrusted with diamonds, matching perfectly with the bracelets on the boy's wrists. To finish, a crown sat on top of the soft brown hair. It stood tall, sun-ray-shaped threads coming out from his head as if there was a sun behind him. It was as dark as Levi's, made from black gold.
He sat beside the King of the Dead, equally serious expression and almost misty green eyes as he looked at the souls in front of him. With his hands on top of each other in his lap, he calmly watched each one who came to seek their postmortem's fate. His fingers kept distractedly playing with bracelets he wore.
This is how Eren assumed his role as Queen of the Underworld, attending judgments and intervening on behalf of the dead when necessary.
He also liked to watch how Levi was always serious and silent in his duty. With an impassive gaze, the king seemed to visualize the whole life story of the soul in judgment, eyes almost gleaming as he decided the sentence. His attitude as The God of the Underworld was impetuous and demanded attention and submission, so it was no wonder weaker existences knelt before him.
There, dressed in his duty and carrying Hades' weight, Levi didn't look the same person who attempted to court him with gifts over the weeks.
After watching Eren kiss Levi so naturally, no one else blinked twice when Eren gave good morning kisses to Levi. It was so innocent that everyone just brushed it off as a way to say "hi". In fact, it had become so usual that only Eren didn't realize his kissing meant so much more to Hades than to himself.
Isabel's suspicious looks and malicious smiles, however, were there with every gift Levi presented him, from bracelets to ornaments for his short hair. Unlike those on Mount Olympus, these gifts didn't seem to worship the one courting, but who was being courted and Eren was shocked to see so many beautiful articles made exclusively for himself.
Since The Underworld was also known for its abundance of jewels and minerals, Eren soon found himself getting ornaments that surrounded his head with an emerald pendant falling in the middle of his forehead. Or even gold chokers that left him with an elongated and respected figure. Hades also constantly brought new dresses of various colors and lengths with several belts attached.
He never felt more precious than at that moment and, therefore, willingly accepted all the gifts of his fiancé, always thanking him with a light and innocent kiss.
Levi knew Eren still saw the engagement between them with purity and he still didn't want to tell the boy what was really expected of people who are engaged. So far, not knowing how to proceed with his queen's volatility, he just kept reciprocating chaste kisses and spoiling him.
The days passed between them with little touches and some smiles on Eren's part. When the brunette was not accompanying Levi through The Underworld, he was tending to the flowers in his garden, burying those who naturally died and planting others in place. He was also allowed to walk through the kingdom barefoot. He always picked fruit on his way, green eyes attentive to every butterfly, bird, or soul that needed his help.
Like that one soul, kneeling right in front of the rulers of The Underworld. One who had sad, supplicating eyes. One who was still a living man that somehow entered The Underworld without Hades' knowledge.
Rising abruptly, Levi had a furious expression on his face, eyebrows tied together, and shadows licking like flames around him.
- Who allowed a living person in my kingdom?!
Levi's voice hissed, as he hardly ever did. Owner of a stupendous calm, the king always remained in control. Well, except when souls tried to deceive him and the living tried to evade death.
The man, with short blond and curled hair, was nothing more than a young man with exhausted features who knelt in front of the throne at the very moment. Icy air took over the hall and hell roared to him, Hades' fury silencing the others waiting for a judgment. Carrying a lyre, the man became fumbled to arrange his fingers on the instrument, and, seeing tears falling through the weak features, Eren stood.
-Hades... - Calling for Levi, the emerald eyes waited for the elder to face him and, as always, the god's face immediately softened when he saw his queen standing, a benevolent and determined look on his beautiful face.
It took no more than a call to make the shadows quiet, dominated by Eren's soft, calm voice.
The man then, seeing his chance at Hades' docility for Persephone, set out to play the most beautiful and hauntingly melody. With that same song, he had convinced the ferryman Charon to take him by the Acheron. He also made Cerberus fall asleep deeply rather than guard the gates of The Underworld. The loving tone of the song eased the pain of the damned in Tartarus and lightened the path of those lost Asphodel Meadows. Now that he was in front of the throne, his pain made the King of the Dead remember Eren's months on Olympus and, rather than punishing the living man for entering his kingdom without permission, Levi sat down and let the melody affect him enough to seek his queen's hand and squeeze it among his own.
When the notes dissipated in the air, after minutes playing non-stop, Hades was the first to speak.
-Orpheus, what are you doing in my kingdom?
And Orpheus raised his head, his eyes watching the King of the Underworld sitting on his throne and holding his queen's hand. Eren had thin tears dampening a merciful feature and he watched Orpheus let his lyre fall and bow down on his knees.
-Sir, I beg you. - From his eyes, sheer despair was poured out and Levi pressed Eren's delicate fingers in his hand as he listened to the human's prayers. - I will play for all eternity in your kingdom when my time comes but let me have my Eurydice back.
So that was the reason that forced Orpheus to open the gates of hell and go to The Underworld. The musician's love had her life cut off shortly after their marriage and Levi remembered the story clearly, as well as remembering the story of any soul that wandered through his kingdom.
-Orpheus, your wife was picked up by death after being bitten by a snake during her escape from one of her suitors. I'm not Death and that's why I can't do anything for you. - He explained, even if it was hurtful to ruin the hope that drove a weak and fragile being - a human - so far.
Somehow Levi sympathized with his story and Orpheus cleverly seemed to know it.
-Sir, please, I beg you. - The suffering voice came out even louder, echoing in the temple. With his forehead now glued to the ground, he continued, tears of sorrow running down his face and wetting the ground beneath him. - Think of the pain it would be to lose your queen and have mercy on my suffering! I can't live and I can't think of a future without my Eurydice!
The sound of crying was palpable and the man poured out his own pride for the love of his life. And perhaps that's what made Eren took pity on him, turning to Hades and not embarrassed by the tears that marked his cheeks.
-Hades, grant that wish and let me lead him out of The Underworld.
Holding his king's gaze firmly, Eren slid his hand from his grip and turned to face Orpheus. As if a mask was placed on his face, the queen nodded austerely and the glowing hope in the human's gaze was almost palpable.
Knowing that Levi would not interrupt his decision since now both shared the kingdom, Eren joined hands in front of himself and uttered loud and clear:
-Orpheus, I, Persephone, as Queen of The Underworld, allow the nymph Eurydice to return with you to the world of the living.
Happiness and euphoria took over Orpheus in such a way that he stood up and made an approach to Eren, perhaps to kiss his feet and thank him. However, a gaze from Levi and the human stopped, clearly frightened by The King of Hell.
Eren was obviously his most precious jewel and he wouldn't let anyone unworthy come near the boy.
-However, there is one condition. - The man visibly shrunk, but his expectation was still there, confident in the queen's benevolence. - Throughout the journey from The Underworld to Earth, you are forbidden to look back to your wife until both of you are again under the sunlight.
And it was done and Orpheus left the temple of judgments playing songs of joy and celebration, completely oblivious to the difficulty of the order given to him and the fate that awaited him.
-------
Eren burst into the castle's main room, barefoot and stomping the floor with disappointment. The black dress he wore dragged behind the queen as his subjects were supposed to do. Levi, who had a book in his hand, raised his gaze to the brunette coming towards the throne, an angry expression on his face. Leaving the book aside, he leaned against the chair while Cerberus relaxed by the fireplace.
-I can't believe it! - Eren approached, and, without thinking twice, climbed up on Levi's lap and settled there. There was no other chair in the room and he was tired of following Orpheus everywhere just to be disappointed.
Levi, however, seemed to not mind the weight in his lap, a smirk on his face while circling an arm behind the boy's back and holding him firmly against his chest.
-What happened, Eren? - Obviously, as God of The Underworld and King of the Dead, Hades already knew of the fiasco that had been the deal with Orpheus, but he chose to let Eren tell how he felt about the fact. It might have been hard to believe for outsiders, but Levi was more than comfortable letting his queen speak up and spending every second watching how his mouth moved and how his facial expression displayed all his feelings.
Eren, with each passing day, became more expressive and free so much so that at that moment he was sitting on the lap of the God of Hell, arms folded and a pout on his face.
While Levi never really chose to be in the position he held among the twelve gods, solitude accompanied him without him realizing it. Even if he didn't want to be alone, sometimes Hades would observe Eren and think that boy was too perfect for him.
The fitting between them was like two opposing pieces that perfectly completed the other, and each time he watched the brunette shine and spread light wherever he went in The Underworld, he could not deny that The Gods of Fate smiled to him.
After decades used to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, he was more than happy to share responsibility with his boy, letting him take control whenever he wanted.
- I thought he loved her enough not to be enchanted by her beauty until he had her! But no, no, no, no! He turned at the last moment, less than a meter from the last gate! - Eren said, clear frustration in his frowning eyebrows and softly inflated cheeks.
Levi smiled a little tighter, joy swimming in his blue-gray orbs as one of his hands climbed up to the brown strands, patting Eren's head. During the weeks Eren adjusted to being part of The Underworld and embracing who he was, both had gained a different freedom with each other.
Levi liked to think that, in the innocence of the boy in his lap, they were friends and behaved as the nymphs did to each other. Despite being impressed by Eren's determination and strength in contrast to Eren's purity, he continued to find it unfair to nurture so many feelings and be reciprocated with simple, chaste kisses, which for the brunette were like compliments.
Still, the older one felt that each day would get better and, not knowing they would get this far, Hades was already grateful they had an eternity to spend together.
- We can't save the dead Eren. - Levi said, letting the hand stroking the mop of brown hair fall and instinctively placing it around the boy's hip. Eren rolled his eyes, not even giving importance to the position they were, such was the disappointment flooding him.
- All he had to do was wait a little longer! - He said, exasperated. His arms began to gesticulate to Hades, trying to convince him of how easy Orpheus' part in the agreement was. - It was just being patient and following a single rule to have love! Did he really love her if he was incapable of it?
He snorted frustrated and letting his body succumb against Levi's chest. The god, as always, wore his typical black robe, which further highlighted the pale tone of his skin. He lowered his gaze at Eren, who's head leaning against his shoulder, and muttered calmly.
-He loved her I'm certain of it - Hades said lifting the boy's legs on the armrest of his throne. The position induced Eren to comfort and he had a sense of security when Levi's deep words resounded against his chest. Green eyes watched his face soften as he held him close and Eren couldn't look away from thin lips when the older man continued to speak. - Alone, he came to The Underworld to get her back and I understand the desperation of wondering whether she was able to leave with him.
-Do you understand it? - Eren asked, curiosity stamped on his face while swinging his legs childishly. A smirk was the first response he received and Levi's beautiful face looked at him in such a way he wanted to squirm in the god's arms.
He had never thought contact with Hades would be so easy until their first embrace on Mount Olympus. The kiss of forgiveness the brunette had given seemed to be good, since Levi had never complained when Eren tentatively greeted him or thanked him with a kiss. For Eren, it had become routine in his encounters with Hades, but something about the way the man looked at him after each of his compliments made him feel strange.
-Perfectly.
At that very moment, with Levi staring at him with an open feature and a soft voice, Eren could swear he had a stomach ache, his belly fluttering with the promise of hearing more of that husky voice.
- I went to Mount Olympus and broke all the rules to have you. It's a similar sacrifice. - Levi bumped his thumb tip on the boy's nose, amused when Eren frowned cutely. - And the same way I love you, I'm sure he loved her.
And again that confession he had been hearing alongside the gifts. Eren thought it was okay since they were engaged and should be at least friends. Levi, however, seemed to think different, because when Eren kissed him, he looked at him with a weird look and always said something romantic worthy of the books of poems he had read on Olympus.
- Don't treat me like a child, you know how much I hate it. - Eren said, but still didn't remove his head from his shoulder, accepting pale fingers drumming an unknown pace against his covered thighs.
Resting on Levi's lap, they both looked like a painting, black robes dragging across the floor and stares stuck in each other. Although Eren didn't really understand, for lack of knowledge, what was trapped in Hades' eyes, he somehow wanted the man to keep looking at him that way, even though some doubts still covered their relationship.
-Was it a sacrifice when you tried to make me eat an Underworld's fruit when I was a child? - Eren said simply, evoking one of the uncertainties surrounding Levi's decisions. Watching him closely, he saw when thin eyebrows furrowed and Levi lost the playful feature in favor of a serious and impatient look.
The green-eyed god almost regretted making the accusation, but Levi still held him tight, and when he spoke, he continued in a quiet tone, not startling the queen.
-That was a gift, Eren - He started, looking forward as if the scene was being passed on in his mind at that moment. - Eating that apple wouldn't trap you to me, because in the end, a conjuration is not the same as something that grew up in Underworld's land.
Levi explained and, during his speech, Eren felt a weight of distrust come out of his shoulders in such a way that even his breathing grew deeper. Hades' sincere and raw personality remained one of the things he liked the most, pleased to have his questions answered without unnecessary sarcasm or delicacy.
-Then why did you give it to me? - He was really curious as to why Levi turned his attention to a brat during a specific meeting on Mount Olympus.
The frown soon fell apart with the new question and, instead of looking into the distant past, the king looked into the present in his arms, the one who innocently saw their engagement as a friendship and who didn't realize how Hades was bewitched.
-Because ever since that moment, I couldn't fight the instinct to take care of you. If spoiling you make those green eyes of yours sparkle, then I'll spoil you all the time.
The strange sensation in his belly returned immediately and Eren rubbed his thighs together, cheeks blushing when Levi looked at him so seriously he wanted to hide. All those courting gifts were his way of spoiling him?
-Then why did you fight with me that day at dinner? - Eren uttered abruptly, desperate to remove Levi's heavy gaze from him for a second so he could take a deep breath and try to deal with those strange emotions that happened every time Hades decided to be talkative.
Levi was the one who snorted now.
-The intention was not to fight you, Eren, but to include you in our eating routine.
-There was food on that table. - And the younger one frowned, pinching his lips while saying the obvious.
-And when you questioned me about my intention, I would explain about The Underworld sucking the energy of the living and about the need for you to make a choice. But obviously that's not how it happened.
Eren found himself gaping like a fish, searching for words to continue the conversation. Unexpectedly, that explanation made a lot of sense when Eren, knowing himself, would have confronted the man about his intentions if he didn't know what fate was expected for someone who feeds on something from the Underworld.
Except that's not how the scene developed and he blushed again, this time in embarrassment as he recalled the fateful dinner night. He hoped for that occasion to no longer be remembered, since all doubts were extinguished and Eren had already made his choice.
It was then that, gradually, both let silence envelop them, only enjoying the company of one another. Cerberus was still asleep, oblivious to the bond being created between the two gods.
-Sometimes you scare me. - Eren said, voice so low and so soft Levi probably wouldn't have heard it if he wasn't close enough to fell the boy's breath against his neck. Eren played distractedly with the immaculate piece of silk Hades folded around the collar of his garment.
-Hm? Tell me why. - The god questioned, not as worried as he would have been if Eren had shouted or used a serious voice. While the boy seemed completely satisfied with his answers, he still chose to let himself be warmed by another body glued to his.
-No one has ever cared for me as much as you do.
The statement made Levi feel his heart being impaled. Still distracted by his tie, the boy didn't seem to notice the impact of a statement based on years of neglection from Carla.
Strong arms tightened around the smaller body in his lap, the desire to protect that creature so consuming that some shadows fluttered near the fire. Spot opened one eye on each head, observing the shadows displaying his owner's emotions, but soon returned to his nap.
Levi didn't know what to answer. He needed to make it clear that his special treatment was for Eren only, but he also needed to clarify the boy deserved nothing less than the world, even if they had not offered him what his exquisite existence was worthy of.
Closing his eyes, he felt the inviting bond between them coerce him to show the most hidden layers in his soul.
-Maybe it's because you bring out the best in me, Eren. I'm starstruck by you.
In the meantime, Levi again brought his long, pale fingers to the boy's face, drawing imaginary lines as he longed for that sad expression to dissipate.
-You help me feel more joy in eternity and I can't stop wanting to give you everything you want. I didn't know we'd get so far and now I need you here. I don't want to let you go anymore.
Never having heard anything so sensitive being uttered so quietly, Eren felt his whole body warm, a red color tarnishing his cheeks so much that his green eyes stood out in the dim light.
He didn't think twice before kissing Levi in thanks, even if, at that moment, a certain nervousness took hold of him, as if that touch of lips meant more than a courtesy.
-Levi... - He called with a soft and almost shy voice again. Raising his face from the King of the Dead's shoulder and sitting down, Eren took both hands gently to fit the elder's sculpted jaw. Levi looked at him intensely, as if calculating each of his movements, and the Eren wet his lips before giving him a sweet and gentle kiss, slightly longer than the others. -... thank you for not giving up on me.
And maybe that kiss really meant more, enough to allow him to see white, almost sharp teeth to appear behind pale, thin lips. Any other god who saw Hades smiling so openly, teeth at sight, and small eyes even smaller, would prepare for war, but Eren found the vision so eccentric he wanted to remember it forever.
The vision was so rare that, a second after, Hades' feature was already returning to his normal deadpan. Eren didn't feel insulted though, continuing with his hands resting on broad shoulders and tipping his head to the right when Levi seemed to ponder something.
When he finally spoke, emerald eyes shone abnormally, golden threads glimmering around his pupils.
-Eren, do you want to learn a little more about your powers?
And in a second, the boy was read and standing. He accepted the hand offered to him and left the hall holding hands with Hades.
--------------
-Where are we? - Eren questioned, eyes wide open and curious while following Hades. The place they were was unknown to the green-eyed, having been transported in Levi's lap to a bronze wall that seemed to isolate a part of The Underworld.
It seemed The Underworld still had many surprises, as expected, and he walked enthusiastically behind the man. The path they took was too narrow for them to walk side by side. It was a small fissure between two stone walls extending so high Eren could not see its end. What's more, the darkness was such that Levi carried a lamp floating in the air above them.
-You're going to see it soon. - The god said and Eren held on to a piece of Hades' black robe for safety while he stayed one step behind the older man.
The walls continued in a tortuous manner as if they were creating confusing labyrinths that only a wise man could walk. On many occasions, Levi turned in directions that, to the boy, were completely random, and he was sure if he were alone in that damp, icy place, he would spend the rest of his eternity lost.
Suddenly the stone walls around him dissipated on a gigantic cliff, so large a shiver traveled the boy's column. Now that he had enough room to move, Eren stood next to Levi and held on to one of his hands, swallowing dry and looking down at the bottom of the dark abyss in front of him.
-How much do you know about the Titanomachy, Eren?
And the boy looked down, recalling the horror stories he heard as a child. For twelve years, Titanomachy was the period of battles between the gods and the titans. That's when Zeus, with the help of his brothers Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Hestia, and Demeter, defeated the King of the Titans, Kronos.
That's what he told Levi, the basics of the little knowledge Carla allowed him to have. Clearly wanting to live up to the story, Levi set out to walk around the pit, a freezing, putrid wind coming from it causing him to frown and take on the position of King of The Underworld.
-When Uranus married Gaia, twelve titans emerged from the union. These were the first generation, just as there is the first generation of gods. - Levi began to explain, always holding Eren's hand with his left hand, while the right one stood in the air and the shadows growing enough to begin to paint the story in the war.
Uranus was represented by Heaven, while Gaia was the Mother Earth. As they joined, the shadows turned into titans, each one with its special characteristic.
-From them also born the Cyclops, the Hecatonchires and the Giants, but the six titans and the six titanides were the most important. The titanides were the female titans and were called Phoebe, Mnemosyne, Rhea, Themis, Tethys and Theia. Respectively, - And the shadows began to move, forming the images Hades uttered. -... the moon's titan, the memory' titan, Kronos' queen and consort, the justice's titan, the sea's titan, and the titan of light.
Eren stared in awe, mouth ajar, staring at him with admiration. Hades, when he showed all the wisdom he had, could become even more attractive, the knowledge making his sharp and pale features more dangerous.
-The six male titans were Oceanus, Coeus, Crius, Hyperion, Iapetus and, of course, King Kronos. Respectively, - And the shadows again shaped to what the deep voice proclaimed. - ...the titan of the ocean, the titan of the visions, the universe's one, the light's one, the west's titan, and the time titan's known as Kronos. - Levi finished and looked at Eren, who now had bright and curious green eyes, almost like a child's. Hades smirked and moved his right hand in the shadows, causing them to dissipate, as he carried it to touch the boy's excited cheeks.
-Eren, do you know who Kronos is? - And a vigorous nod begged for the whole story. Now the narrative was mirrored in the stone walls, the shadows using the lamp's light to create forms.
Uranus, while mating with Gaia, feared his children would take his throne and therefore forced them back into the womb of Mother Earth each time a new titan was conceived. The woman, however, persuaded the children to revolt and Kronos, as Uranus copulated, came out of his mother's womb as an adult and cut off his father's genitalia. It was from the blood of Uranus that the seas, mountains and forests were generated, and from his sperm, the goddess Aphrodite arose.
Kronos then became King of The Titans and married his sister Rheia. They created and gave birth to the first generation of gods. Yet Uranus, before being defeated, prophesied that, like him, Kronos would be overthrown by one of his sons, and then The Primordial Titan decided to swallow each one of the gods so that none could defeat him.
Reia, however, hid the youngest of his sons, who was named Zeus. Handing him over to the nymphs, Zeus grew up and, as an adult, used the portion made by his first wife, the titanide Methis, to force Kronos to disgorge his five adult siblings.
From Kronos' vomit came out Dina, Erwin, Historia, Carla and Levi, and maybe that's why all these gods had a greater preference for cleanliness. Being the last one to be regurgitated, Levi was taken as the shorter and uglier one, being forced to rule The Underworld isolated from the others. Together with Grisha, the five began the War of Titans period, where the first-generation gods defeated the titans and banished them to Tartarus.
Of all the titans, only Coeus, Oceanus, Thetis, Mnemosyne and Themis didn't participate in the battle and were therefore incorporated into the Greek pantheon.
-Everyone else is under here, Eren. - He pulled the kid closer to the dark pit's edge. The younger followed wide-eyed, trying to process such information. He pressed against Levi, looking at the cliff with his lower lip bitten. - What you're looking at is the Tartarus of The Titans.
As if in sync, an icy gust came from the depths, the silence so supreme it was unsettling.
-Kronos and everyone else is down there? - Eren asked softly, shaking Hades' hand as he forced his vision to see anything. But it seems so...quiet?
He stated, looking anxiously at his fiancé and seeing him smirk. Despite being on the edge of the deepest and most terrifying place in the whole world, he was not afraid as long as his hands were being held.
-Hm... - Levi grumbled and began to take him to a wider ledge, where there was a stone plank stretching literally above the dark pit. - In his last attempt to win, Kronos tried to make amends and even named himself Kruger so that we, his children, would forgive him.
Eren blinked innocently as he recalled Levi was the son of a titan and brother of Zeus and Demeter. In addition to be a god of the first generation and one of the three greatest, that also made him his uncle.
The realization left his face completely red. His uncle, centuries older than him, was his fiancé and The God of Hell, while Eren didn't even know what Hades had experienced before his conception.
He put his brown locks behind his ear and attempted to hide his burning cheeks. Eren tried to change the subject so that those strange sensations in his stomach weren't noticed.
-Ahm... And... What does that have to do with my powers?
But apparently, Hades was clever and when the boy questioned him, voice full of embarrassment by his own thoughts, the man turned to face him, a pretentious smile dancing in his mature features.
Eren wanted to believe the way his heartbeat faster was a consequence of the fascinating story and the place where he was. Except he couldn't deceive himself when a glance at silver-blue orbs caused his knees to weaken.
Levi got close enough to touch the tip of a finger on Eren's nose, as he had often been doing as a habit the boy didn't like. The youngest pouted.
-You are Kruger's grandson and apparently also inherited some of his titan's attacks.
-...What? - He shockingly asked, turning his head quickly to the pit of the titans.
But it wasn't like he didn't listen. Eren had heard well enough to understand that in his veins ran the power of a titan. A titan who caused enough destruction to have been confined to Tartarus.
-Don't dwell on it too much, I also was born from Titan. My powers also come from titans, and that doesn't make me a worse person. Eren... - Levi was now behind him, both strong hands resting on the brunette's narrow shoulders, trying to calm him down and get him out of the state of shock he was in. -... it just makes you more powerful than everyone thought. Maybe more powerful than me.
-But I don't...! How? How do you know I have these powers and how am I supposed to control it? Does my Mother know? Does anyone else know? - His doubts left rosy lips quickly and Eren brought his hands up to his shoulders, unconsciously intertwining his trembling fingers with Levi's. He knew what he had done during that dinner was far from normal, but knowing his powers came from a titan was hard to believe.
-Only Isabel and I know it. - Levi squeezed the boy's delicate fingers and removed his hands from his body, walking a few steps forward and taking him with him. Both were heading up to the stone walkway, the plank suspended over the mystery that was the titans. - Look down, Eren. Everything is so calm because they are all asleep like giant stone statues. The only person who can wake them up is me and now... - One hand stood at the base of Eren's spine and Levi pushed him to the edge, the boy staring scared when Hades turned and walked away.
-Do you want to see chaos, Eren? Try to wake them up.
And Levi simply stood on the edge again, Eren staring at him with wide green eyes and ajar mouth. Levi had ordered him to awaken the titans of The Underworld. Levi had the ordered to - But how?!
-First, focus on all the bad emotions that are inside you. - The older one started guiding him from the border, letting Eren standing on the plank by himself. - Think of the anger of being subdued, of the freedom taken from you, of the power denied to you. The beings trapped down here feel the same way. They are angry at the reign that has been taken away from them. How's that feeling, Eren?
The brunette bit his lips, turning forward and letting the ecstasy take his body. Someone was willing to guide him through the darkness and show him the dark side of his persona without judging it. Someone who knew the anger he was hiding and wanted to help him even if it was to wake up titans who could rumble and crush the world.
His body trembled and he looked at his hands trying to see the power there. He knew he was always the calm and peaceful personality he had been forced to maintain, but now that he was Persephone, there was nothing else that could be denied and then Eren had difficulty remembering the pain of rejection that had accompanied him for years.
So he pierced his teeth in his right hand, watching his blood dripping from his skin and proving that he was bleeding and feeling it. As he inflicted pain on himself, he recalled how hurt his heart had been during the decades he had spent alone.
His eternal sorrow over life and his eagerness to make the one who saved him proud was what shook the earth beneath his feet. The whole Tartarus trembled and, frightened, he stopped immediately, looking back in fear of Hades' reaction.
Levi, however, had his arms crossed and a sly smirk, black threads falling over his eyes and hiding a satisfied look.
Eren turned forward and now his blood was dripping from the stones, seeping into the depths of Tartarus and making his green eyes shine in a golden hue.
Levi was there supporting him on what happened. That was enough to spur him.
The earth again shuddered slightly, increasing in magnitude as Eren focused more on the feeling of movement beneath his feet. Stones trembled and fell into the darkness. He struggled so hard to make the ground tremble, that from the stones forming the walls, plants arose, snaking through the precipice as if they belonged to it.
When sweat trickled down his forehead, he lowered his hands to observe the silence that still remained. Disappointed, Eren opened his mouth to call for Hades again when a loud bang sounded.
And then another came and another and another.
As strong coordinated steps came from inside the hole, the sound resounded and made it tremble even more intensely. The rumble fluttered all over his body, causing his blood to roar and run through his veins, enthusiastically causing his face to flush a deep red.
Eren turned to where Levi stood, completely oblivious to the shaking of the walls and the rocks cracking around the place. He wanted to go to Levi and show him what he had done, what he was able to do and how he would be a good queen having so much power.
However, when a few steps separated them, the rocks that stretched to form the runaway gave way and Eren lost the ground beneath his feet, an expression of terror on his face when he realized he was falling into the abyss and towards the titans.
He didn't know whether he shouted for Levi or if he simply watched his fall silently, the stones rushing beside him and following him toward death. Except that, at some point, he had stopped falling, suddenly suspended in the darkness. Wide and wet green eyes watched startled his body being carried back to the edge of the cliff slowly and calmly by the shadows.
The shadows brought him close to Levi, his feet touching the ground gently. His shock was enough to cause the boy to lose strength in his legs. He would have fallen to his knees on the ground if it wasn't for The God of the Dead holding him.
The adrenaline made his whole body tremble, the thrill of living on the verge of death causing his heart to beat hard and his stomach to turn. He was never so grateful to feel Levi's arms supporting him and he never felt so eager to give himself to the man as he did at that moment.
The kiss that followed his saving was desperate, eyebrows frowned and trembling hands holding Hades' strong jaw. Eren pressed his body hard against Hades' strong chest, tiptoeing and letting Levi hold all his weight. Eren didn't know where the desire to feel Levi so close and so solid came from. Nor where the impulse to bite the oldest's lower lip hard enough to taste his blood.
But if the strong, pale hands practically sinking against Eren's waist, where anything to go by the attraction wasn't one-sided and they parted just when they both needed air.
Dilated pupils stared at him as if Eren were the tastiest meal ever served, only a thin blue ring recalling the color of Levi's eyes. Thin, reddish lips contrasting with pale skin and dark hair seeming messier, Levi had a certain color on his cheeks that caused Eren to bite his lips and brush his thumb over it.
Their bodies were so glued together that Eren was sure Hades could feel how strong his heart was beating and how fervent he was.
There, on the edge of Tartarus, on top of titans rumbling beneath them, Persephone realized he perhaps nurtured more than friendship for his fiancé.
Notes:
So, Orpheus is a myth known as “the love that opens the door of hell”. Such a coincidence, right? Also, Eren is already kissing in a “is kissing supposed to feel like this? Maybe this flutering is me mayyybe having feeling” way hahahah Poor baby! And yeah...I think it’s so hot Eren kissing his uncle like that...Levi having powers from titans is so canon, right? Same with Eren and Kruger hahaha References are everywhere! We even had The Rumbling!! And yeah...I think it’s so hot Eren kissing his uncle like that... Next chapter is going to be updated this friday or saturday! Seeyaa~
Chapter 11: The Meeting
Summary:
Notes:
Hey there! I'm back! First of all, this chapter is yet to be beta-d! We had a little delay in editing but it's nothing majors! Don't worry, the next chapter will be post 3 or 4 days from now! Enjoy!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Anyone who have a love close to this
Knows what I'm saying
Anyone who wants a dream to come true
Knows how I'm feeling
All I can think of is you and me
Doing the things I want to do
All I imagine is heaven on earth
I know it's you
Anyone – Roxette
THE MEETING
One of Eren's favorite parts in the day was when Levi dismissed him from the trials, saying he already had the help he needed. No longer wanting to sit on a throne watching souls and more souls, he never refused the offer and went to the castle to put on more comfortable clothes and get the crown out of his head.
As always, the rest of his afternoon was spent in the garden, some plants in need of special care and birds coming to poke around him in search of food. The longer he stayed there, the more he realized every day was a different novelty. First were the butterflies, then appeared earthworms and ants, some ladybugs and bees, and finally came the colorful birds that sang joyfully from the top of the food chain.
And quietly, that was one of Levi's ways of showing how much he cared about him and the things that made him happy.
The realization of that fact had been bothering him for a few days. Not because it was a bad thing, but because every time Eren realized the little gestures, an uncontrollable flushing took over his face and that's what had forced him to kiss Levi less and less.
While, at first, the greeting seemed friendly, after the last training sessions with Hades, he began to reconsider the fact. Maybe it was something about being sweaty and watching the sweat drops trickle down the god's pale skin, or maybe it was the adrenaline of having someone put him on a pedestal and focusing all his attention on Eren, and exclusively Eren. Whatever it was, the kisses, in him conception, had become longer and more emotional. When they separated, for example, Eren felt his lung burn and the need to lick his lips was great. Levi also had a vague look on his face as he let his fingertips touch the boy's swollen lips and pull it as if it was a toy.
These small interactions made him increasingly flushed when he thought of greeting the elder and, because of his shame, he had now been dodging as much as he could from moments favorable to kissing. Except that Hades seemed to realize and now Eren found himself constantly being surprised by a peck on the lips or having to face the god asking him naturally where his good morning kiss was.
Ugh, maybe his heart was weakening with decades of immortality because only the idea made him lose his breathing rhythm and press his legs together.
Legs that were dipped to the knee in the crystal clear waters of the stream that surrounded his garden. Levi had introduced him to a new concept that apparently a new human warrior tribe had: something called pants that could be cut to the thighs.
Much more liberating for gardening, the boy now wore the short stuff with a dress on top and so didn't have to worry about manners ever again. His dress was currently raised and curled to the waist and the shorts left his legs free to feel the cold water, the silence only being disturbed by the wind.
This was until a body throws itself at his side, the noise of grass being crumpled causing him to open his green eyes to find Isabel, giant smile, even if tiredness was stamped on his face, along with a piece of cloth she wore on her head and to cover her nose and mouth.
Knowing Levi and the house rules, today was cleaning day. At times, he offered to help Farlan and Isabel in their duties, but Levi always looked at him with a stern expression and only allowed him to clean his own room.
Eren wondered if that privileged treatment was because he was the queen, but even if he was, he didn't see so much trouble doing some heavy lifting. Sometimes it got boring having to sit on his throne and attend trials until he needed to intervene. Which, considering Levi's justice and ability, was very rare.
So the need to do more and participate more began to consume him slowly and the boy regretted having spent so much time isolated from Mount Olympus because now he didn't know was expected of him.
The redhead sat next to the boy, sighing dramatically as she lifted the clothes she wore and stuck her feet in the water just like Eren. A delighted moan escaped the girl, and a smile was built on her face as she threw her head back and let the wind shake her hair.
Looking at Izzy while mourning his thoughts, he didn't realize that somehow her female instincts told her she was being watched.
-What's worrying your pretty little head, Eren? Levi asked you to redo the room again?
She asked and Eren smiled in an embarrassed manner at being caught staring. It really wasn't uncommon for Levi to ask everyone to redo the castle's cleaning, always keeping it neat and organized, though never losing the essence of home. But that wasn't the beginning of his worries and the silence made Izzy open her eyes and show green orbs in a darker shade than Eren's.
-Eren?
-What do I have to do to be a good queen? - The boy with emerald eyes asked suddenly biting his lower lip when he left his doubts in the air.
Isabel looked confused for a few seconds, head tipping over as if she repeated the question to herself until she could understand the reason for her queen's afflictions. Then, in the most natural way possible, she nodded and smiled playfully, raising her right hand and beginning to lift three fingers, enumerating what she said:
-To help rule The Underworld, to be feared and to love The King.
When the answer made sense to him, Eren blushed red in the same second, big eyes blinking slowly. The wind had messed up strands of brown hair, leaving him looking almost wild and, throughout the months, he looked healthier and tanned. Green eyes always stood out wherever he moved in The Underworld, even some souls stopping their own lamentations to admire Hades' consort.
-Do you think you can do that? - Isabel asked in a low and calm voice, as if to avoid scaring a fragile animal. The boy looked away from her, focusing on his own feet and swinging them in cold water, a few drops wetting his legs.
Helping to rule The Kingdom of The Dead was the least he could do to ease Levi's burden. He liked to be useful and to be the recipient of proud smiles every time he could control a part of his powers. Moreover, being feared and seen as someone powerful beyond an odd beauty was what drove him most in his training, forcing him to the limit to show how much he had been underestimated.
Now "love the king"?
Could he love - a human feeling - the King of the Dead?
The answer was so simple that even he couldn't say it out loud. With the way Levi treated and respected him, with the power he deliberately allowed him to use, with the freedom he always tried to show him, it was almost impossible not to want to love him.
All the facets of Hades were attractive, each one with its own peculiarity. When he was sitting on his throne, stern face and exhaling power, Levi was someone to whom Eren would kneel without any shame. As he sat quietly at the dinner table while he, Farlan, and Isabel chatted excitedly, he was a calm and an incredibly familiar person, always making a point of sharing meals together.
And when he kissed him and looked at him in a different way than he looked at any other existence in The Underworld, he was someone Eren wouldn't mind falling in love with and living the rest of eternity together.
The scariest realization, however, was the innocent idea that it might have already happened.
His answer was the most appropriate at the time.
-I'll give my best. - There was the incessant fire of determination in his eyes, to which Isabel gave a proud smile while also childishly shaking her feet.
-Of course you will give your everything. - If there was any internal joke there, Eren didn't notice, still too innocent to detect the redhead's impurity.
Except that, amid the slight silence that remained, it was not Izzy's nature to not sate her curiosity, and so she soon looked at him with mischief shining in her eyes.
-But how is it going? Have you two ever done anything? - Shifting closer to the boy, she practically glued her arms to his, excited by the idea of knowing about Levi's private life. Eren looked at her uncertain about what she was talking about and began to quote all the things they both did during a busy day in The World of the Dead, such as the judgment of souls, the patrolling the fields, the reports that those who were in Hades' service always brought.
However, apparently, that information was not interesting to the redhead, a half-incredulous and half-mocked expression on her delicate face. It was in those moments she showed the thief's personality she had when alive.
-Eren, I asked if you and Levi did anything in bed... - Now her tone was sharper and more suggestive.
-Um? - Eren tried to comprehend what she was on about, a cute pout on his lips and eyebrows frowning in concentration.
Izzy arched her eyebrows as if she couldn't believe the chastity the boy had, even though it was one of the cravings of the gods on Mount Olympus. She began to understand why Levi hated it when someone objectified and sexualized Eren, since the brunette simply had no idea what lust was.
-I'm talking about the things after kissing...like...
And she gesticulated with her hands, making movements Eren didn't understand and troubled him even more.
- I don't understand... what do you mean? - With the purity and sincerity of the creature, Isabel realized she was the one with the mission to teach him, otherwise Levi would spend the rest of eternity without touching single hair of Eren.
Oh wait, he already did. Literally.
Laughing with her joke of thought, she pulled her feet out of the water and turned to him, crossing her legs beneath her body. Taking a deep breath, she took one of his hands between hers, putting on a feature so serious and maternal it was even comical. Eren observed everything stunned, completely uncertain about what Isabel was on.
-Eren, do you know what happens after the kisses? - She started slowly, watching his feature go from hesitant to interested. And she knew exactly what to use to capture all the boy's attention. - Do you know what fiancés do?
Even before Eren stopped shaking his head, Isabel was already monologuing, explaning the kinds of kisses that, for Eren, only divide into kisses for women and kisses for men. Apparently he was wrong, since Isabel began categorizing kisses on the cheek, kisses on the forehead, kisses on the eyes, kisses on the nose, kisses on the neck and other types of kisses that, according to her, were given in other parts of the body and that Levi would teach him.
-The most important thing you need to remember is kissing with your tongue. - And she explained, in a very short way, that the tongue kiss involved wrapping the tongue and pushing it in another person's mouth.
Eren looked at her with a disgusted expression.
- Like really moving your tongue out of your mouth?
-Yes!!
Excited as ever, the redhead nodded, almost bouncing off where she was sitting. She was preparing the Queen for his "duties" and could not be more proud of herself. Oblivious to her animation, Eren put his tongue out, moving it in the air while carrying a strange expression.
When Isabel said kisses were supposed to feel good, Eren couldn't imagine how sticking his tongue in another mouth would do that.
-I don't think that how it works. - The brunette said, hiding his tongue behind his teeth as it should be. That conversation was becoming slightly uncomfortable, but he couldn't be hypocritical in saying he wasn't curious about everything that was explained to him.
-It's all a matter of custom. Besides, marriage needs to be consummated. - Brought from his thoughts, he looks at her with big eyes, not understanding why kisses had to do with the coronation. Isabel continued.
-What? You're not expecting an altar and a white dress, right? That sounds like those pagans humans.
And as if it were the funniest thing in the world, she laughs when Eren's cheeks blushed again in a shy expression.
- You know that for you to really be The Queen, you need to do the... "fulfillment", right? - She smirked and Eren frowned, beginning to feel uncomfortable with how superior she was talking only for knowing a few more things than him.
-But I'm already The Queen. - He immediately retorted, his newfound personality coming to play and demanding respect. Isabel didn't seem to realize she was starting to annoy the boy's nerves.
-Oh, you're not! You're just engaged!
-Zeus said I was The Queen. - Eren kept his statement, eyebrows tied together and his full lips beginning to frown in a dissatisfied expression. Isabel rolled her eyes, sighing and speaking as if it were common sense.
-In fact, by being a god who ate the fruit of The Underworld, you automatically became Hades' fiancé. - The redhead started gesturing and he ignored a bit of his annoyance to learn more about his kingdom. - Of course, if Levi already had a queen, you'd just be a servant like me and Farlan, but that's beside the point. The point is that you are, now, the only suitor to be The Queen and to really be crowned, there needs to be consummation.
Looking at him with hope in her eyes, the redhead waited for him to react as if the information she gave had been valuable. Except that Eren seemed no longer up for any conversation, large eyes blinking slowly, while his feature remained so passive it's was scaring. Maybe he really had picked up some of Levi's quirks from their time together.
-Eren, do you-
A male voice sounded loud behind them and the girl almost jumped in fright.
-Isabel, what are you doing here? Stop running away from your services to gossip with Eren! - Farlan screamed and Eren looked over his shoulder to see the blonde dressed with the hair and mouth cloth, one hand around his waist while the other held a broom.
-Ahhh! - Isabel groaned in frustration, getting up and banging her hands on the clothes she wore, not at all excited by the prospect of hearing a lecture by Farlan. Eren didn't make a point of keeping her there, especially when he had a lot to think about.
-Consummation, huh? - He murmurs, foot continuing to swing into the river. Levi had not touched on any matter of consummation and always treated him as rightful the Queen. But maybe he really had to have a coronation? Or maybe these traditions didn't matter in The Underworld?
Whatever it was, he tried to imagine the setting of his coronation, fancy dresses and Gods being invited, completely ignorant about the true meaning of being consummated.
-----------------
Eren was lying on his belly on the floor with several cushions making himself comfortable. Facing the fireplace and with a book in hand, he quietly enjoyed the late afternoon while Isabel played with Cerberus across the room. Farlan was not present and Levi's throne was empty since The God was still fulfilling his duties.
In the last few days, the conversation he had with Isabel continued to probe his head and he tried to rationalize everything the girl had said. Although he didn't experience anything she commented on, reading the novel books humans had written helped him understand some of the feelings present between two people who were engaged.
And that's why he was constantly with his cheeks flushed as he read.
Seeking to dispel his thoughts, the brunette sought to focus on his reading, only to be interrupted seconds later, when Hades entered the room with a dark expression.
Lifting his torso, Eren knelt, thighs around him as he looked curiously at The God striding across the room and throwing himself in his throne. Apparently, Isabel didn't give importance to the sour humor the King of the Dead was in, continuing to caress Spot as if that wasn't her problem.
Green eyes turned again to The King, who now had his eyes closed and a hand massaging between his eyebrows. Biting his lips in uncertainty, Eren left the book on top of one of his pillows and crawled to the throne, which was close enough not to need to stand.
The green dress he wore dragged on the floor and formed a veil around him as he again sit on his thighs, now in front of Levi, with large eyes analyzing Hades' posture and trying to figure out what to do next.
Levi, who had not previously noticed the boy's presence, opened his eyes in surprise when two hands rested on one of his knees, Eren maintaining eye contact while supporting his chin on them. Observing his queen in that position, Levi couldn't help but think Eren looked like a puppy waiting for its owner, watching him with giant emerald eyes overflowing with worry and trust.
-Levi, what happened? -The boy asked, oblivious to the instant reaction he caused in the older one: furious heartbeating and ragged breath. Isabel, who was trying to keep a giant smile hidden, kept looking at them from the corner of her eye as she pretended to be busy with the hellhound just to watch the interaction of the rulers of The Underworld.
A weary sigh came out of Levi's thin lips and he brought one hand to caress Eren's soft, brown mop of hair. Without thinking too much and wanting to help relieve his stress, Eren simply tipped his head, allowing the man to grab his chocolate locks and massage his head.
Although Levi was obviously very angry about something, the hand petting him was still gentle, the perfect caress to make him fall asleep. And Eren really thought that was Levi's intention, since the petting followed for several minutes in silence, which Eren dared not interrupt out of respect for his fiancé.
Until what afflicted him was said.
-There will be an urgent meeting on Mount Olympus at dawn and, as God of The Underworld, I'm obliged to attend.
Eren's cute face scrunched with confession, attentive eyes seeking any a prank on Hades' pale, well-sculpted face. As expected, Levi was completely serious and continued to speak while not interrupting the massage on kneeling boy at his feet.
-Apparently, Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite were involved in an ego dispute with a human named Paris. And this dispute ended up involving a human daughter of Zeus named Helena. As always, the war was the only plausible solution and now I need to attend and hear all the nonsense at Olympus. – With an impatient tone and very obviously dissatisfied with the way of resolving conflicts between Gods and Humans, Levi snorted exasperated and Eren continued silently watching him with lovely green eyes.
After a few seconds, the brunette said the unlikely.
-You don't have to go alone. I'm your Queen and you can use me.
If he was aware of the impact his declaration had on the man sitting on the throne, it wasn't possible to know. Izzy almost choked and Levi's eyes darkened immediately, pupils dilated and fixated on the only creature in all mythology that could break his walls so easily.
Like any conversation between them, Hades had to ponder his answer, careful not to scare Eren. Frowning and squeezing his lips together, Levi removed his long, pale fingers from brown strands and gestured to Eren sit on his lap.
What had already become a tradition whenever there was no throne for the boy to sit on.
Without contesting his king's decision, the brunette rose quickly and placed himself in his lap, legs rising to bend against one of the armrests and his back leaning on the arm circling his waist. Those who looked them saw it as an intimate position, but Eren felt impossibly comfortable and protected in the arms of one of the most powerful gods.
-Does that mean you want to make your first appearance as Queen of the Underworld? - With a voice thicker than normal, Levi suggested, face so close that Eren didn't know whether to focus his gaze on thin lips or on the eyes consuming him.
Nodding his head several times, he didn't need to vocalize when a golden glow quickly appeared in his greenish orbs. Passing his arms around Hades' neck, Eren laid his head on one of his broad, strong shoulders, full eyelashes touching the pale skin of his neck.
-All right, you can do whatever you want, Eren. - And with the permission of The God of the Underworld, Eren felt pride and determination bubble in his being.
Consummating or not, he was The Queen and would prove to anyone that position was his.
----------------
Olympus' main hall was decorated with golden strings connecting the Greek columns and holding veils of fine silk. The environment was kept brighter than usual and all the most important gods were sitting at a long table in which a banquet was served. Between wines, fruits, and loaves of bread, the conversation was still loud and unbridled, some talking to friends and others dropping hints to enemies.
The table had chairs counted for every important god and all were occupied except one. At the head of it and occupying the place of greater prestige and power, was The God of the Gods, Zeus, also known as Grisha. On his right side, sat a woman with low eyes and short blond hair. The Goddess of Motherhood, Marriage, and Wives wore a light-colored tunic and palla, a crown made of peacock feathers around her head and oozing her position as Goddess of the Gods. Hera was her name, also known as Dina.
On Zeus' left side, Ares sat, dressed in a red chiton and a gold cape over his broad shoulders. On his head, a battle helmet rested, and he seemed to refuse to take it off to show his power of God of War. Next to Zeke, another blond sat down, the one whose shoes carried two pairs of wings. Reiner seemed more interested in the glass of wine in front of him, paying no attention to the conversations around him.
Beside him, a son of titans sat down. It was Helium, the God Sun, who, with his colossal height, sat almost uncomfortable, hands sweating all the time and being cleaned in the silk that covered the table. He could also be called Bertholdt.
Then Artemis sat down, Anne's opaque, boring eyes watching the table as if she was going to attack someone at any minute. Her brother Apollo was by her side, blue eyes rummaging with hidden curiosity and interest. Armin might have looked innocent, but his eyes were as cunning as the ones of the God of The Seas sitting at the other end of the table.
Poseidon, brother of Zeus and Hades, sat directly in front of Grisha, though separated by several sidelong chairs. His muscular body was imposing, biceps bouncing off the fabric that involved his body and covered only one of his shoulders. Erwin held a heavy trident in his right hand, some seaweed surrounding the golden strands of his hair and blue ocean eyes analyzing every figure present at the meeting, even more so than little Apollo.
On Poseidon's right side, Athena sat down. The Goddess of Wisdom, Intelligence, War and Justice sat with a high helmet that let her brown hair frame her face. With a rather crazy and unexpected look, Hanji's intelligence proved to be the cause of her apparent madness. In addition to the head protection, she also dressed an armor and a magic shield, and her present ended one side of the table.
On the other side, sitting next to Dina, was Hestia. Historia looked cornered but still chatted excitedly with a female titan allowed on Mount Olympus. Pestering the Goddess of Home, Fire and Family, Themis was a brunette full of freckles on her cheeks and brown hair trapped in a ponytail. Of all the women present, she was the only one who wore a knee-high brown tunic and the only one who also refused to have any human name. Themis was the daughter of Uranus and Gaia and was the Goddess of Justice. That way not having a human name kept her impartial, as justice should be.
At her side, a crestfallen and very disgruntled Demeter was found, a long black dress demonstrating his mourning for the lost of her Kore. Without giving much importance to the woman, another goddess with black hair and dark eyes was sat. The pale and clear skin gave her an odd delicacy and full red lips made her one of the most beautiful beauties of Olympus.
Aphrodite was between Demeter and the empty chair on Poseidon's left side. Greatly worshipped in South Europe and Asia, Mikasa had a calm and austere feature, not exhaling the idea of Goddess of Love, Beauty, and Sexuality at all. Still, it was impossible to deny that when Aphrodite clung to someone, she made her duty protect and love that person.
Finally, the free chair next to Poseidon belonged to the God of The Underworld, who had not yet made his appearance. Without waiting too long, Dionysus was already completing the glasses with wine, wrinkles on his face and a flush on his cheeks. By human name Pixis, the God of Wine, Intoxication, and Insomnia preferred to take an older form, since it was harder to refuse a drink when a happy old man asked.
And also it was a lot easier to get free shots.
Laughing with his thoughts, the one named as Bacchus by the Romans finished serving all the gods present at the table, not ignoring the glass in front of the empty chair. When he turned to leave, however, the candles sustained above the hall fluttered and shadows accompanied the icy breeze and the smell of roses that took over the place.
As always, a triumphant entrance.
Levi materialized behind one of the columns, his body completely covered in a black armor embracing his chest and gluing to his muscles. The shadows turned to him and wrapped around his neck, forming a cape of black feathers reminiscent of ravens'.
On his head and keeping his hair brushed back, a simple black crown stood, icy eyes staring in front of him with power and domination. The whole table silenced to respect the presence of the God of The Underworld, some visibly shrinking away from the dangerous beauty he exhaled.
On that day, however, Levi didn't remain the center of attention, for as soon as he circled the large column that partially hid him and headed for the table, everyone held their breath to the creature with an arm tied to the King of the Dead.
Sinuous curves covered by a long blood-red dress, Eren walked beside Levi, head up with a serious and almost judgmental look. Behind him, the tail of the dress that glued to his slender and tall body dragged on, covering any idea of pure and passive beauty. The one who was previously known as Kore now had short hair and his neck decorated by a heavy and intricate collar. Dark bracelets covered his arms and a high crown of black gold adorned his head. The same crown that seemed to emit rays of sunshine now demanded respect when the figure walked side by side with Hades, arms interloped, and confidence overflowing in his every step.
There was not a god at that table who didn't run his eyes through Eren's body, the embodiment of one of the most stunning beings on Mount Olympus. He was the green-eyed brunette who enchanted everyone and now his beauty carried a scary aura, power overflowing his hands.
In short, the boy's full red lips looked poisonous.
As they approached the silent table, Levi nodded in greeting, pride hidden in his eyes as he brought his queen with him.
Pulling the chair to sit, Hades looked briefly at Athena and Poseidon, whom he had the most affinity for, and nodded once more. As he sat down, the god ran his eyes through the table and witnessed the companions of each god or goddess standing behind their chairs, oblivious to the conversation and acting like objects.
Everyone was amazed when Levi pushed his chair back and slapped two times on his lap. Eren, who was still by his side, looked at Levi's pale, sharp face with a confused expression that lasted only a few seconds when he soon set in motion with a smirk on his face.
The innocent and isolated boy now wore an outrageous red dress, as red as the pomegranate, symbol of fertility and his freedom. The boy who carried a high crown over his head sat comfortably on Hades' lap as if he was the most precious treasure to Hades while the other consorts waited on their feet and behind their companions.
The power Levi was handing out to him made Eren's whole body vibrate, excitement shaking his limbs and determination overflowing his being.
Facing the couple, Athena had a big smile and Poseidon, an arched eyebrow. Aphrodite looked over quietly at the rulers of The Underworld and soon managed to feel the bound between the two, satisfied with how quickly the union was made. The rest of the table, however, did not seem so happy with the scene.
Armin seemed terribly disappointed to see the old Kore already engaged, while Annie arched an eyebrow as if to wonder where the shy boy she knew was. Bertholdt dared not raise his gaze so as not to come across the dominant aura Levi had. Reiner and Zeke both had disgruntling expressions, Zeke even more offended to see the boy who refused his advances sitting on Hades' lap. In front of them, Dina faced the commotion with curiosity, oblivious to the intense look Grisha, who now bit his lower lip, gave the boy in the red dress.
Demeter in turn remained gaping, lamenting internally the long gone hair and watching in horror as Kore dressed so inappropriately. She was sure all that had been Levi's manipulation since her innocent boy could not behave in that indecent way.
The only ones who were not aware of the situation were Historia and Themis, the last too busy observing the blonde's delicate features. It was Hestia who had to fake a cough to remove all the looks from the new queen and start the discussion.
- So, about the Trojan War...
And as expected, Hera, Aphrodite and Athena took the discussion by personal means. The rest of the gods just feasted on dinner, as if they really didn't care about the topic discussed. Only Ares tried to defend the war and even Zeus had his attention on someone else.
That someone now watched everything with frowning eyebrows, incredulous at the mess that was the meeting. Levi observed him vehemently, smirking as he realized how disappointed the boy was thinking the gods were mature and serious.
Big mistake.
Accustomed to the decay these encounters were, Hades didn't even try to intervene. Poseidon had his head resting on one hand making cyclones in his wine glass as if he needed something less childish to keep his attention.
And this interesting thing was the tremor that suddenly rattled the columns of Olympus and which was felt even if the goddesses who caused the war were shouting. The chaos immediately calmed down, wide-eyed gods looking around and searching for the reason for the tremor.
Levi, however, knew exactly from whom that power came from and, with a knowing smile, simply leaned against the throne destined to him and watched the boy on his lap intervene and lead the discussion with his consent.
-I believe that's enough screaming for today. - Eren's soft and clear voice sounded in command, attracting all attention to him. Feeling good with frightened eyes watching him, Eren rested both hands on the table and crossed his legs, completely comfortable on his fiance's lap. Remaining silent until he made sure no one would interrupt him, the boy continued:
- I am against war and in favor of the love of Helena and Paris. Therefore my kingdom will intercede for humans.
Murmurs exploded in the same second. Screams and swearing and gesticulations, many without any basis, filled the place. The immaturity of those who ruled was already annoying the green-eyed brunette and he looked back to Levi. As always, he sought for courage and approval in blue-gray eyes, gaining a look full of pride and lust instead.
Apparently, Levi didn't mind hearing him calling The Underworld his kingdom. Better yet, he seemed even arrogant as he folded his arms and rested his back, while Eren sat on himself and commanded the fight.
The idea of being the one who made Hades have his pupils dilated that way was what caused the trembling in his stomach and gave him the strength to hit his hand heavily on the table, the bang shutting everyone up immediately.
His emotions at that moment seemed wild and he didn't notice the golden glow that took his eyes for seconds while uttering in a low, hoarse voice:
-I'm going to protect Troy. - Eren uttered, green eyes focusing on every face present at the table, including those who looked at him in disbelief. - I will protect those people, even if I have to use Tartarus' titans and crush the rest of the world around it.
Aphrodite, who until then remained silent, turned her head quickly to the boy, black eyes evaluating the creature. Demeter, however, seemed affronted, not recognizing the child who had once been her son. Zeke, on the other hand, seemed livid, anger turning his face red.
The table went wild again, Ares turning to Zeus and contesting the threat. Hermes widened his eyes from side to side and Athena seemed excited at the idea of a new god having enough power to act that way.
Hera stared at Persephone with a shine in her eyes, almost as if approving the boy's position on his groom's lap. Perhaps the essence of Goddess of Marriages was superior even in that position, in which she ignored the discussion and chose to side with Trojan women and children.
It was then that a grave voice sounded, intimidating enough to silence all other gods.
-Why is Persephone making decisions, Hades? – Zeus asked, sharp opaque green eyes watching the child with short hair and red dress. In response, Levi arched an eyebrow, bending closer to Eren's torso and passing his arms around the brunette's waist, in a clear example of possession that caused Zeus to wrinkle his face.
-Grisha, you fail to realize a queen is the most important piece on a board. – Levi said, a poisonous tone referencing the multiple lovers Zeus had, and all the cheating he did that destabilized Olympus precisely by destabilizing Hera. - I say let my queen decide.
The temperature immediately dropped a few degrees, Eren looking over his shoulders trying to understand why Levi began repelling Zeus' attempt to control the situation. Apparently, Hades didn't seem so friendly with his brother and his arms squeezing Eren's waist proved his point.
-Hmmm, I get it. -Grisha continued, head leaning on one hand and eyes shining in defiance as he referred to Hades. He had a furtive expression and the tone of voice he used seemed to confront the other god. -However, as God of the Gods, I did not feel that Persephone became the consolidated queen. I believe you're having trouble consummating?
A smile ended the sentence and Eren frowned at the affront.
A roar sounded behind him and the shadows that once served as part of Levi's cloak broke free to tremble behind the chair menacingly.
- Zeus, I don't think it's smart of you to pry. - It was the first time Eren heard Levi call someone for his duty so bitterly. The eyes that were once grayish-blue seemed to darken slowly, an almost murderous expression on his pale face.
-If Kore is not yet queen, he can't opine. – Zeke pointed out, oblivious to the silent dispute between the two majors and trying to recover his wounded ego.
-It's Persephone.- Eren soon corrected, hands closing like fists. Zeke gave him a cocky smile and let out a forced laugh.
-Your confidence is admirable. I didn't think little Kore... – And he made a point of emphasizing the name in a mean way. -...was that naughty.
The anger that began to bubble in his blood made Eren want to jump the table and strangle that person. Branches of poisonous herbs began to emerge from his hairs and curl into a crown of thorns, black flowers rising and matching the boy's enraged expression.
Even Dionysus realized the tension that hung in the hall, stopping serving wine intelligently so as not to find himself sucked in that cold war. Silence reigned while Zeus, Hades, Persephone, and Ares exchanged glares until someone as strong interfered with a calm and serious expression.
- I also intercede for humans like The Queen of the Underworld. I aso believe voting is more profitable for this discussion.
Aphrodite spoke loudly and lightly, pale face making her so much like Levi, that no one dared to make them both angry at the same time. So that's how it was done.
-------
As any situation is a reason for parties and dances, right after the meeting, all the Gods gathered happily in the adjacent room to fraternize as if nothing had happened.
All except Levi who, being the introvert he was, couldn't wait to simply disappear into The Underworld and remove the armor that weighed his body. However, the scene in front of him prevented him from leaving.
Surrounded by nymphs, Demeter held Eren's hands in her own, a desperate expression begging her son not to consummate his position as queen and return to her protection. As the boy bit his lips, a painful expression while trying to deny Carla's request, several pairs of violet eyes looked at Hades from top to bottom.
Perhaps seeing him being so kind to Eren had changed the opinion of some nymphs and now The King was the target of curious and desirous glances, even though his reputation as one of the most unapproachable gods remained.
The brunette, who was now hearing Carla lament all the times she tried to enter The Underworld to search for Eren, could not distinguish the horde of feelings that plagued his being. But still, the power and happiness he felt when he was at Hades' side prevented him from wanting to get away from the older man, especially when all those nymphs looked to him as if they were going to devour him.
Eren frowned, a jealous expression being directed to the nymphs who, unlike the three who had been company during their months on Olympus, had no respect for their fiancé.
Denying her mother's pleas, Eren kissed her on the hands and let them fall as he took steps back. With each step, Demeter's expression sank further as Eren's expression became increasingly determined.
Green eyes swept through the hall and came across some figures. The goddess Aphrodite with eyes so similar to Hades' watched him curiously as she feasted on the wine of the gods. Zeus continued to sit on his throne and kept watching his son with an arched eyebrow. Ares looked him angrily in the eye, body leaning against one of the Greek columns and judging him silently.
All the thirsty nymphs staring at Levi.
He didn't know what ignited his decision. If it was a specific person or a set of them. The fact was that, as soon as he got to Levi's side, a new feeling made his body tremble with excitement and courage. If until then his voice was not heard because he hadn't gone through consummation, he felt impelled to consummate his position and his relationship with Hades as soon as possible.
Maybe that's why the way their lips met was different. Levi held him close, slightly surprised by the public affection, however, the god soon pressed his calloused hand into Eren's well-demarcated waist and reciprocated the chaste kiss.
Holding Hades' high, sharp cheekbones, Eren decided to take it a little further and, though a little confused, opened his mouth and licked Levi's lips.
It was like throwing fuel in a fire.
Immediately, pale fingers pressed their bodies hard together and the boy moved his arms to Levi's neck without even realizing it, bringing him close.
For those who had never seen Hades have any relationship with another being, that was a clear demonstration of possessiveness on both sides that drew surprised glances and some curious looks.
The kiss that began calm, turned into desperate and warm in a few seconds, Eren frowning while being struck with feelings he didn't think he would be able to feel while letting another tongue explore his mouth.
When the air was missing between them, they separated with a firm kiss and they both touched their foreheads together, eyes so different sinking into the immensity they felt for each other. Persephone then smiled with the excitement of doing something so inappropriate in the middle of the hall and in front of the other gods as Carla stared at him in horror.
And for those who didn't believe what they were seeing, the scene seemed somewhat mythological, since, a second later, shadows enveloped the two creatures and The Rulers of The Underworld disappeared between ravens and kisses.
Notes:
And in the end, the God of War gave the greeks the Trojan Horse idea, they made it inside Troy’s walls and Troy fell. Kinda like what the Colossal and Armored Titan did. By Zeke orders. See what I did here? Ha! Also, Themis is Ymir! The brunette Ymir with freckles! But since she doesn’t have a real name in the manga, I decided to give her another name. Also because Ymir, the blond, will make her appearance! Now now... Queen Eren in a red dress? With a crown? Being badass? Sitting on his King’s laps and controlling the meeting? It’s suddenly very hot int here... Also, Eren is already kissing in a "I'm so ready to love this man and I can't believe those basic bitches dared to look at my husband!" way hahaha Poor baby! Anyway! Thank you for all the comments, for all the kudos and see you guys in the next chapter!
Chapter 12: The Queen
Summary:
Notes:
Hm...Eren is such an innocent boy...Should we corrupt him in 24 pages? Also Isabel is who moves this relationship. She planted the seed of curiosity in Eren! We should all thank her. Have fun reading!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Give peace a chance
Let the fear you have fall away
I've got my eye on you
I've got my mind on you
Say yes to heaven
Say yes to me
Yes To Heaven – Lana del Rey
THE QUEEN
- Eren, I can't guess what you want if you don't talk. - Levi uttered, watching the boy, who had taken a certain taste for sitting on his lap, from bellow. Eren was wearing a light pink dress covering his knees and he played with the comfortable fabric between his fingers.
Less than 15 minutes ago, the brunette was satisfied tending to his garden, his short threads held by a hairpin so he didn't need to remove them from his eyes. But at some point, Eren abandoned his flowers and entered the hall with a determined look.
Well, he was determined until he sat on Hades' lap and lost all courage.
Watching him intently, Levi had one of his eyebrows arched as if trying to unravel the mystery that was his queen. Emerald eyes were fixed on his own lap, rising to find grayish orbs only for a blush to tint face and he looks away again.
-Hmmm could you... - The boy tried, eyes searching the ceiling and the walls for the courage necessary to confess his wishes. – Uhhh... You see, I kinda want to...
But you see, Eren didn't really know where to start. Since Isabel offered him a little more knowledge about kissing, he wondered if each of them would have the same effect as the kiss they exchanged that day on Mount Olympus.
If until that moment the boy didn't believe that a greeting would cause a rebellion in his feelings, now he was sure that everything that came from Hades could make him lose his mind.
Including just sitting in front of him, giving Eren his full attention and staring at him with an arched eyebrow.
Eren was feeling a little fuzzy.
-Just say it. - As always, the hoarse and quiet voice seemed to prompt him to say and ask whatever he wanted, as if The King of Hell wouldn't measure effort to accomplish whatever Eren's request was. Considering Levi continued to pamper him with gifts and attention, Eren had a strange feeling he might be right when thinking Levi wouldn't deny him anything.
And if Levi did everything Eren asked, surely saying what was going on in his head wouldn't make him angry, right?
The boy decided to trust his gut instinct.
-I want to know more about kissing. - He let go at once, head still low and a small pout forming on his full lips. The fingers that once played nervously with his dress now clung to it.
-...about kissing? - It was the somewhat dubious response, Hades looking at Eren with wide eyes after replaying what he had heard a few times in his head.
Eren, his innocent Eren that, in his virginal purity, hardly knew the meanings of kisses was asking him about them?
Something was wrong. He could almost smell it.
Watching him nod frantically, Levi crossed his arms and made a noise with his throat that Eren interpreted as a sign to continue. With an ashamed voice, he continued, knowing Levi had never judged him or repressed his curiosity.
-All about kisses... and about their meaning too...
Eren, his innocent Eren, asking about kinds of kisses when Levi was sure he only knew how to touch his lips gently?
Oh yeah, there was someone else's finger on it, and he had an idea who it was.
-Who told you that? - Hades asked and was not at all perplexed when the boy replied:
- ...Isabel.
Yes, of course. It had to be Isabel Magnolia's doing since she knew much more than a few perversions from his human life.
Rolling his eyes, Levi rubbed his fingers between his eyebrows, cursing the girl mentally for the position she had put him.
Eren, his innocent Eren, looked at him with giant green eyes, lower lip being nibbled on while he feared Hades would be angry at his question.
The boy was anxiously waiting for an answer and, come to think of it, perhaps that was Levi's chance to gently take advantage of the creature that denied him one of the most carnal desires.
Yes, depending on how that interaction ended, maybe Levi had to thank the redhead after decades of passion being suppressed.
Within seconds, Levi went from exasperated to curious, darkening blue eyes roaming through the sensual body on his lap. Eren really had no idea what he was doing every time he sat there, forcing Levi to control his emotions as intensely as possible.
-And I assume you came to ask me because you want me to teach you about them?
A small percentage of hope shone in the god's eyes, tongue unconsciously coming out of the mouth to moisten thin lips. The green-eyed one unconsciously observed the movement, blushing deeply when he realized he had begun to map every inch of Levi's face.
Still, he nodded, red-faced and writhing with shyness.
Levi then rested his back on the throne he was on, the room's lights immediately becoming dim at the king's command. As always, the fireplace was still lit, painting Eren's skin in an irresistible gold. As the boy looked around him, confused by the sudden change of illumination, Hades observed the slender creature over him voraciously, slowly raising his hands until they on the armrests.
Even though Eren was unconsciously offering himself, Levi wouldn't touch him until the boy's consent, as he refused to be like the other gods of Olympus.
Trying to remove the visible tension from his queen's shoulders, he gave a smirk, tapping his fingers on the throne with malice in his tone.
-Just because I'm a few years older you, I am supposed to know better?
That was at least an understatement and Eren took both hands to cover his mouth and stop a loud laugh that would come out his throat. With his rosy cheeks and bright eyes, the brunette trying to stop a laugh looked like a painting made by the most talented of men, and Levi smiled at the beauty on his lap.
-I thought a few centuries could give you wisdom. – The boy provoked, gradually becoming more comfortable and making himself comfortable in Hades' lap, thick and exposed thighs around the strong body.
-Hm...- Levi replied, a provocative smile stretching his cheeks as he approached the boy a little, looking straight into the green eyes with golden threads.
With such proximity Eren didn't know where to put his hands and brought them forward, holding them together in front of his chest. The scent of roses and Levi's warm breath were so close he felt inebriated, his body warming up in response.
Not knowing where to fix his gaze, he wandered between icy and provocative eyes, and thin pale lips.
And it wasn't like Levi hadn't realized how anxious he seemed, watching his lips and writhing on his lap. Passing one hand through the black threads that fell down his forehead, Hades again leaned against the throne, pale hands and long fingers going up to the white cravat he wore around his neck to pull it off. Now there was a muscular and pale chest revealed by the collar of his clothes and Eren bit his lips so hard they immediately swelled into a redder shade.
Hades looked exactly like the human's statues. Except he was real and warm and-
Smiling pretentiously to the reaction he caused in Eren, Levi took the boy's hands and approached them to his lips, speaking so close to them that Eren felt his lips brush on his soft skin.
-So let's start with the basics, shall we?
And a simple kiss was deposited in each of his hands, Eren widening his eyes as he found the nearly blackened orbs attentive to his every move.
-My sweet Eren, a kiss on the hand is used as a sign of respect and veneration while... – He explained, never undoing eye contact in favor of seeing Eren flushing completely. Turning the boy's hand, he placed a kiss on each palm. -... a kiss on the palm is a sign of romantic interest.
Smirking, he let go of his hands and approached their faces, watching with satisfaction Eren rest his hands on broad and strong shoulders.
-Now a nose kiss... - And he neared Eren's face slowly, like a predator preparing his prey calmly. Touching both noses together, Eren shook with fright, eyes cutely squinting while trying to keep up with the brushing movement. -... means a demonstration of affection.
Levi held on to not laugh at the boy's crooked expression, watching as he turned his eyes to their normal position and blinked twice innocently.
Letting out a laugh through his nose, Hades dragged it on Eren's skin until he reached his cheek, breathing in and filling his lungs with pure "Eren". Placing a kiss on his left cheek and then another on the right, he leaned away to explain.
-Kisses on the cheek are a sign of affection and friendship. – And moving to the boy's ear, Levi smiled when he saw him shrink all over, a choking groan coming out of his lips when Hades placed a kiss on his ear and blew on it. – But a kiss on the ear... means "desire".
With his voice hoarse, he uttered and Eren shivered completely, both hands covering his ears and a confused and embarrassed expression on his face.
-Do you want to stop, prince? – Hades asked, seeing his queen so sweetly flushed and he had to try harder to keep his own hands to themselves. When Eren shook his head, Levi almost smiled in relief.
Deciding to give him time to regain his breath, Levi then moved to the boy's forehead. And to both his eyes and chin, while muttering softly between kisses.
-Respect and affection, affection and tenderness, sensuality and expectation. - Every time the deep voice whispered against his skin, Eren felt his stomach roll over and a chill drag down his spine. It was as if every piece of skin Levi's lips touched was on fire, and the burn could only be erased with more and more touches.
-Le-Levi... - The boy practically sighed, his hand falling from his ears until they rested again around the neck of the God of the Underworld. His eyes that, during the kisses, closed, remained hidden and increasing the sensation of being kissed with such adoration, his thighs trembling with the attention he received.
-Hm? - The man murmured, the sound coming out of his throat and making Eren's body tremble. Levi, however, didn't stop, dragging his lips through the brunette's skin and placing a kiss on the corner of his lips.
Noting how shy he was, Levi backed down for a second, hands finally positioning himself at Eren's waist and this time there was a sensual connotation that Eren understood.
He didn't want them to leave, though.
-Do you still want to know their meanings, Eren?
And hearing him whisper was too much for his Eren's poor heart. He bit his lower lip, fingers intertwining at Levi's nape and head denying the proposition.
Eren was absolutely adorable in his chastity and the man didn't hold back anymore, getting even closer to give him a peck on the lips, as a kiss meant to friends.
Except that the way the boy rummaged his nails in his undercut and intertwined his fingers in dark strands quickly changed the dynamic between them and Levi frowned, trying to fight against the urge to taste his mouth.
When pale hands rose up the side of his body and wandered behind his back, Eren jerked, the blush that was once on his face, coming down his chest and making him press against Hades' body.
The need for air was what forced them to separate, dilated pupils enhancing the greyish immensity and laying bare all the feelings Levi had been cultivating all those decades.
-Is that enough for you? – And as, since the interaction had begun, Eren didn't trust his voice, he again tried to give him permission to continue to make him feel those different feelings through actions, However before he could do anything, cold hands also snaked into chocolate threads in a strong, delicious grip that caused Eren to tip his head back and open his mouth in a silent groan. - I will take that as a no.
Levi hummed against his neck, starting butterfly kisses all over the column of virgin and unmarked skin. The feeling of being the first to unravel and discover all Eren's reactions and groans was so intoxicating that Levi tried to fight the will to devour him entirely.
But when he realized, those fluttering kisses became soft bites that successfully pulled out a breathless moan from the boy. Poor Eren had never felt something like that. His body was at the mercy of someone else and he let Levi keep warming him with his lips.
All started in the incident on Mount Olympus, when kissing Hades with his tongue sparked a wish Eren had never felt.
While Levi attacked his neck and shoulder, the brunette tried to control his own body, like how his thighs trembled and tightened against Levi's body, or how his fingers held him close and against his neck, in a mute request to don't stop, please, just keep making me feel like this and-
But obviously the man also needed to breathe, and as they again crossed glances, Eren, who was beginning to have his pupils dilated, almost whimpered with the sweeping force of raw need uttered in the black orbs.
Levi had an almost murderous expression and maybe he was stupid to stay put and at his mercy. However, the way he felt, there were no forces in his legs to get him out of there. His hands trembled with anxiety and he was sure the older man could feel how tense his body was in expectation that the kisses would continue.
As this was the first time he began to feel so feverishly when in such close proximity with someone, Eren wondered what would happen after the kisses. While he did have expectations when he came to ask Levi, it wasn't in his thoughts to go straight to practice, and even if he didn't know exactly where to put his hands and how to reciprocate, a screaming part of himself didn't want it to end.
Not when Hades had kissed his chin again, harder this time, as he pulled his head back and squeezed his body against him. Instead of taking reddish lips again, however, he continued dragging his lips through Eren's jaw until he bit his lobe and kissed behind his ear.
The reaction was instantaneous.
Eren arched his back with the warm caress, another shiver running through his body and forcing him to open his legs more to get as close as possible to the man.
Eren felt as if his body was about to combust, flames of pleasure coursing through his stomach and making him feel strangely wet.
Without waiting for the boy to recover, Levi saw himself already without much patience and then went down to his neck, running through a portion of skin with his tongue and then blowing against it. And when Eren thought he could no longer explode with emotion, a loud, breathless laugh slipped from his lips due to tickles, between bites and wet kisses, that Levi made on his neck.
Eren automatically felt as a child laughing at such an inappropriate moment and his face was almost purple with shame. Even if he bit his lips, the big smile that stretched out on his cheeks was undeniable, and Levi smirked as he pulled away from his sensitive neck and saw him smiling.
-Having fun?
-Uhum... – Still with a smile on his face, Hades again sank into a romantic kiss, in which he could feel the laughing boy slowly lose his nervousness and focus on enjoying the strokes.
A long sigh sounded between the lovers, neither of them looking forward to splitting up when the kiss became passionate. The boy quickly lost his smile, a whimper leaving him. He let himself be carried away by the sensation of his heart racing and the blood pounding all over his body.
It was so good he had the urge to continue, to move on to the next step even if he didn't know what it was. It was as if the doors of a new adventure opened to him and Eren wanted more and more and more...
When Hades' tongue asked for passage, Eren didn't even think twice. With his eyes closed with confidence and lips wet with saliva, he gave permission for his mouth to be explored and caressed. Nibbling his lower lip, Levi thrust his tongue progressively until they met.
It was such a strange feeling and so intense at the same time.
With the help of the hand on his brown hair, Levi made Eren tilt his head, deepening the kiss slowly and more sensually.
At that point, Eren already had his hands grasping hard at the other's clothes, completely submitting to whatever was offered to him. Rushing apparently was not Levi's thing, who began to twist his tongue without showing fatigue. Holding his queen's waist and massaging his hair, Hades took short breaks for Eren to gasp and try to get air before being attacked again.
The green-eyed boy was ecstatic. He had never thought kisses could be so voracious, and he felt himself being devoured willingly, lungs burning with the need for air and mind screaming not to stop.
-...What about these kisses? What do they mean? - Eren managed to exhale in one of the seconds Levi paused to admire his face. Hades smiled obscenely.
-These don't mean anything. They cause something.
And it all started again, the sensations and the kisses, vanishing all control Eren had. His body looked like a doll in Levi's hands, malleable to satisfy any desire and passion of his.
At some point, a symphony of groans and sighs began to escape, the collar of Eren's dress being pushed away so Levi could occupy himself while Eren tried to breathe. The chills that took him as wet lips crawled down his neck and collarbone were uncontrollable and nothing could get him off that man.
Well, nothing except Isabel, who broke into the room without even knocking on the door, pulling out a scream of surprise from the boy.
-Lev-Oh.
And "oh" indeed.
The redhead had wide eyes as she watched a completely red Eren try to get out of Hades' lap completely without balance, neck marked with kisses and lips swollen. It was painfully obvious what they both did when Levi faced her in a murderous manner when Eren all but scrambled away from him.
-I-I-uh- the garden, I need-
Eren was running out of the room without even trying to organize his own thoughts, much to Levi's frustration. The man rolled his eyes at Izzy and spoke loudly for his queen to listen.
-Eren, my room. Tonight.
A trembling nodding was his response as delicate bare feet hurried down the aisle, determined to escape the girl's malicious gaze.
On second thought, no. Levi had nothing to thank Isabel and her stupid interruption.
-------------------
Eren was the last one to leave the dining room.
The aroma of lamb accompanied with vegetables and mashed potatoes whipped his senses, as well as the wine that was served to him and kept him company throughout the night when he didn't dare to raise his eyes to a certain man at the table.
While eating his dinner, the chill in his belly that he couldn’t guess where it came from remained and Eren made sure to focus on his plate so no one would question him.
Avoiding questions would also avoid his night plans being disrupted.
When Levi was the first to rise and withdraw from the table, Eren's heart lost a beat and he found himself coughing in shame and trying to cover his embarrassment by drinking the wine.
If he were human, he would surely be heavily drunk at that point, but since he was a god, drinking helped him deal with the doubts and anxiety that came with the promise of meeting Levi that night.
Eren never went to anyone's room but his own, not even his mother's room, let alone another man's. Not knowing what was waiting for him was stressful and at the same time tempting. The fact that Levi was the one who took him on his adventures counted as a positive point for his feet to make their way up the stairs. However, his fluttering heart was making him swallow several times and bite his lips.
The kisses they both exchanged earlier were responsible for his lips still being so delicate. The sensation of his mouth against Levi's had persisted all day, constantly reminding him of Levi's order.
And if what was waiting for him was as good as the kisses Levi had taught him, he wished to continue, climb all the ladders and see him again.
When he least expected it, the brunette stood at the door of The God of the Underworld's room, breathing uneven and hands clasping tightly the lacy white nightgown he wore.
If they were on Mount Olympus, he would never be allowed to wear something that, with lace stripes and showing part of his darkened skin, but in The Underworld, no one questioned him or looked at him twice due to his clothing choices.
He only hoped, in a jittery way, that Levi liked what he wore since he had spent several minutes choosing what he would wear that night.
With trembling hands, Eren raised his arm quickly, eyes giant and frightened, and knocked twice on the heavy wooden door that separated him from Hades. A grunt was heard from the other side, and even if the boy didn't trust his own voice, he risked asking softly.
-Can I come in?
It was painfully obvious how nervous he was, fingers finding each other and eyes wide open. The door in front of him suddenly opened and he had to force his own body against the instinct to seek refuge in his room.
But something kept him trapped where he was standing and he was absolutely sure that what held him were those eyes shining in an almost silvery tone, a libidinous smile on thin lips and pale feature well lit by the candles that surrounded the room.
-Oh, look who's here... - Levi said, canines almost showing up with clear provocation now that the boy who avoided his eyes throughout the dinner was looking at him.
Eren immediately blushed.
-You're the one who asked me to come...- He accused quietly.
Hades chuckled and that made his company even more ashamed.
-I didn't think you would come after the way you ran from the room earlier.
And of course he needed to bring up that ridiculous escape. It wasn't Eren's fault, though. He, who had never kissed so voluptuously, was caught in the lap of an older god and still had to ignore the looks Isabel had sent him all day.
Unfortunately, now Eren believed he had a weak heart, since he didn't think he could take any more of it.
Oh, how wrong he was.
-Don't make fun of me. - He argued, even though he had planned for his voice to come out more commanding and authoritarian. However, apparently he could be dominant in front of any god but Hades.
An almost guttural laugh was his answer, Eren pouting without even realizing it.
-I won't, you don't need to be so nervous, Eren.
And the door opened as if a world of possibilities was in front of him.
Levi's room, as expected, was the complete opposite of Eren's. Instead of pastel colors and delicate bed and carpet, the room of The God of the Underworld was entirely in a black tone. While the walls remained white, the four-poster bed was of a dark, seemingly heavy wood, with intricate designs rising to the canopy covered in silver silk. Eren also could see the silk white and gray sheets, fluffy pillows visible.
The rest was very similar to the room in which he was accommodated, except that Levi had no rugs and the wardrobe was the same color as the bed. Although there were side tables, the rest was simple and Eren found it valid, since Levi didn't seem like someone of extravagances.
What caught his eye, however, was the window that overlooked the same field of flowers as his and the boy wondered if they both shared the same vision when they woke up.
While exploring the chambers of The God of Hell, Eren didn't even notice the trained gaze on him, an arched eyebrow and arms folded as he let the white-clad creature enter his intimacy and pass his hands on the canopy of his bed and the edge of the window.
Sitting on the bed, Levi waited for Eren to come out of his own head. He also knew when it happened the moment the boy began to feel out of place, eyes blinking several times and fingers intertwining with each other.
Silence reigned for a few seconds, but – call him sadistic – Levi wouldn't be the first to interrupt it. With a smirk, he placed himself comfortably on the bed, arms back supporting the body while he watched Eren blush and splutter words.
-So...
-So?
Eren wanted to strangle the man, knowing Levi was playing with him. However, in doing so he completely missed the purpose of his visit and if the God wanted to test him, he would show his determination as Queen.
Well, that's inside his head, because when he said the phrase, he looked more like a human child begging for candy.
-...Can we kiss more?
Shit, even the phrase came out childish and he wanted to hide in some hole when a snicker came out of the older man's lips. Eren felt so small and so submissive that his will was to turn his back and run out of there.
What kind of person had he become? One who debauched himself with kisses right after the first contact and deliberately went to an older man's room to ask for more?
-I take it you enjoyed the lesson?
Apparently yes, because one second later Eren found himself nodding several times and, with a confidence that he hadn’t known where it came from, he walked short and fast steps, head down, until his knees met Levi's.
Levi, who sat on the edge of the bed, looked surprised at his reaction and his eyes widened even more with the words that came out of his plump lips. It was as if Eren was facing a battle within himself, determined eyes, but face completely flushed when he uttered the next words:
-Stop teasing me and kiss me again.
And so it was done.
As if in sync, the first time their lips touched was in a strong kiss, with pressure and no tongue. Eren sighed, the tension on his shoulders being replaced for the pleasure of being kissed and desired.
A short time later, a tongue asked for passage and, responding to the shiver that took his body, Eren allowed it to explore his cavity. Levi then took one hand to his waist and the other to intertwine in his hair as he forced his head to lean and deepen the kiss.
And even though they were basically repeating the steps from that morning, Eren felt like there was something else. Having The Dark Lord with his hands on him made him feel like royalty, the only one who have the right to be so close to him.
Speaking of titles...
- I-I have to... -The boy tried, panting and with fluttering eyelashes as he tried to form phrases in his head. Levi dropped his lips to his chin and neck and kept kissing it. -...need to a-ask you s-something...
He tried to stop the wet kisses on his collarbone by slightly pushing the strong body and was rewarded with black eyes, his pupils dilating in the short time Levi was allowed to feel Eren's body.
Somehow he felt like a banquet slowly being devoured.
-Go ahead. - Levi encouraged, returning to glue his mouth on the boy's skin, long fingers sliding from his waist to his back and coming back, a delicious massage that made Eren close his eyes and let himself be manhandled.
-Hm... ab-about... I want to be... Ahh... be The Queen, with consummation and all...
He managed to tell, hands holding tightly on Hades' muscle arms and his cheeks painting pink. At the same time, Levi pulled away, tongue licking his own lips as if trying to taste the boy in his tongue.
-Well... - A smirk formed on his pale lips, canines showing and drawing a sigh from Eren, who couldn't look away from that sinful mouth. - You're in luck then, Eren, because we're already consummating.
-Are you serious? - Ignoring their position for a second, green eyes widened in happiness. Levi almost laughed at his innocence.
He couldn't wait to deflower his Queen completely.
-Yes, with kisses. - Hades explained, hands starting to get more perverted and sliding down the side of Eren's hip until he reached supple thighs.
-That simple? - The boy tipped his head to the side, oblivious to long fingers squeezing his full thighs.
-Yes, but we need to get a little closer... – Levi practically whispered, bringing him closer enough to give him a kiss so sensual that Eren felt his whole body pulsating. Following his command, Eren approached and exposed his neck to be marked with the wonders of kisses that, for decades, he didn't know. – A little more... – The hoarse voice sighed against his ear, teeth biting his lobe and forcing him to bite his lips to prevent a shameful sound. Levi pressed him further against himself and still ordered:
-Closer. Don't be shy, Eren.
But they were so close their chests were pressed together, Eren's thighs between Levi's open legs and Hades' lips nibbling on his shoulders.
-I-I don't think there's any way to get cl-closer...
A groan left him completely red when a deep laugh sounded so close to his ear that Eren's whole body shivered.
-Then I'm going to have to teach you something else. - An almost cruel smile occupied his pale lips and Eren realized how much Hades was smiling. He also noticed the hands groping his legs and making him feel so hot...
-What is it?- The boy practically whispered, eyes low and pupils dilated as he felt his body become heavier and more relaxed. - Are there any more kisses I don't know about?
-Some of them. - He again sucked his queen's neck and bit him hard enough for Eren to lose the strength on his knees. Levi held him with all delicacy of the world.
However, Eren soon found himself lying on his back in the bed, the silky sheets caressing his warm skin and giving him a feeling of comfort and tranquility.
Hades pushed him enough that his queen had his head on the fluffy pillows, comfortable and fully trusting the man who came to hover over him.
-Then teach me, Levi...
And a Queen's request is an order.
Gently, Hades held the bar of the boy's gown, and when he saw frightened green eyes focus on him, he bent down and gave Eren a peck on the lips.
- You need to take that off if you want new kisses. - The older whispered between kisses and Eren clasped his hands on the pillow around his head. The brunette bit his lips so hard Levi had to remove his lips with his fingers and stop him from pulling blood. - Did anyone see you like this?
Eren really thought about the times he stripped in front of other people. When he bathed naked in the streams of Olympus or when the nymphs bathed him and touched the extent of his body. However, something told him that the "this" to which Levi referred had other meanings and, with shame, he covered his face with both hands and shook his head.
The fluffy reaction caused a whirlwind of emotions in the King, who felt torn apart by wanting to devour or worship Eren. The boy who gradually gained rebellion and independence was now lying in front of him, allowing him to remove his clothes and observe his slender body covered only with a lacey underwear.
Levi chose to worship him first.
Eren held his breath when Levi's tongue mapped his collarbones and sucked them. Not knowing where to put his hands, the boy kept them squeezing the sheets and pillows as Levi calmly ravished him, throwing away his chastity and innocence with his mouth.
And it's not like Eren wanted it to stop. Quite the contrary, there was a burning sensation on his hips, and more quickly than that morning, he felt wet and needy, wanting to hold on to that Greek God as if he were his anchor.
Levi was determined to show him a world that the innocent Eren didn't know and with the way his body writhed involuntarily, Hades could bet Eren would soon be sinking in lust.
The kisses went down to the middle of Eren's chest, flat belly rising and falling in nervousness and a surprised squeak coming out when Levi held one of his nipples between his teeth and pulled it. As an apology, he soon let it go and ran his tongue over it, stroking the little pink button starting to get stiff.
Eren had already brought a hand to his mouth, seeking to hide the shameful noises that eluded him every time another part of his skin was practically devoured.
Descending further, Hades simply stuck his tongue in his navel, causing him to arch his back with the strange sensation. Giant green eyes moved down in questioning and just looking at the boy, Levi knew that it was stranger than pleasurable to him.
No problem, Levi still had enough to teach until his Eren became lewd.
-Too weird? - He asked, to which Eren nodded and stirred himself in bed again, as if he were uncomfortable.
Smirking at his preciousness, Levi blew against the place he licked and sat on his knees, already having a good idea of why the boy was so stiff.
The volume pressing against the lace that covered his private parts was the reason, Levi licking his lips when he saw the boy's penis standing, most likely for the first time.
Eren seemed shocked, and perhaps even frightened, when a pale hand descended against his member, and thick eyebrows frowned in confusion as if the boy didn't recognize that part as his own.
-W-what-
The brunette tried, his face warming up even more when Levi pressed against it, causing a spark of new sensations he could not name.
Until then, he had never seen that private part in that weird way and the only thing that gave him a good feeling like the one he was feeling were kisses.
And so he vocalized his doubts.
-Why-why is it like this? - Eren questioned, green eyes wide like something bad was going on because he was letting someone touch him.
Levi stopped pressing his palm against the boy's penis and supported his hands on his thighs.
The elder seemed trapped in a mixture of adoration at how adorable that boy could be and desire for the flaming personality that his queen could demonstrate.
-Because you're feeling good.- The raven said, holding the bar of the lace shorts that Eren wore and pulling enough for the little member to find freedom.
Eren, as always, seemed to let his curiosity reign once more and remained leaning on his forearms when he saw that part of him take such a strange appearance.
The boy's penis hardly had the stimulation to grow, so poorly developed it was. The virginity and chastity forced on him had manipulated him to the point of neglecting a need and so he was only slightly larger than Levi's palm, his girth – Hades never thought he would use that word – was incredibly cute and his head had a pinkish virginal tone.
The thought that followed his inspection was the belief he could put the boy in his mouth at once and suck away that miserable attitude to which he had been forced.
Cutting off Levi's thoughts, Eren's soft voice sounded again, this time more undecided:
-W-why sin-since you didn't even kiss there?
But ah, sometimes he loved those depraved questions Eren asked without even noticing the impact his innocent eyes had.
Squeezing his golden thighs, Levi bent down to give a kiss against one of his protruding hipbones, a fierce expression showing up in a smile.
-Hm... So let's see how it reacts if it's kissed?- He offered, sparkling eyes at the blushing figure. It was visible how nervous Eren was, but he still wanted to continue, lips between his teeth and belly fluttering.
-Is it g-going to hurt?- It was his innocent question and Levi couldn't hold back anymore, he suffered from every second he needed to hold back for Eren. Crawling up the small body, Hades pressed against his swollen mouth so voraciously that a breathless groan left Eren's throat. The boy even had to pull his black hair as a warning he needed to breathe.
When the contact was broken, Hades ignored his question for the first time that night and the boy frowned, ready to demand an answer when his organ was suddenly engulfed by a wet, hot cavity.
A surprised and thin scream came out of his mouth, his arms losing strength and his back arching in response to the suction down there.
Hades, the God of the Underworld, King of the Dead, The Dark Lord, was with... with that in his mouth and Eren turned so red he was about to explode!
Despite this, despite having nails immediately pinned in his shoulders and hearing Eren begging him to release that dirty place, Levi continued, determined to lead his boy to his first orgasm in the best possible way.
-Le-Levi, no-ah! Ugh! St-top... It's w-weird! - Eren practically sobbed, eyes closed tightly and hands covering his face in shame. Even part of his body was reddish and a string of saliva trickled down the corner of his mouth, due to the difficulty adjusting his groans and his own breathing.
-Hm? Levi muttered around him, warm mouth sucking and tongue massaging the penis in circles, driving the boy crazy every time he pushed the tip of his tongue against his slit.
-Thi-this filthy... No... ahaah! - Overwhelmed by white-hot pleasure, Eren arches his back, writhing toes and a warm sensation taking over his belly.
When two hands came down to push Levi's head away, the elder let the penis drain from his mouth and sat down again, wiping himself with the back from his hands as he watched the boy under him try to control the ecstasy he felt.
-Don't you like it, Eren? - Taking one hand to play with him, Levi held Eren's cock with one hand and stroked his head with a thumb. Humming, Hades considered whether or not to introduce him to the greek kiss, but seeing how poorly his little queen was dealing with what he was offering, Levi decided to leave it for another opportunity.
Eren shakes his head denying the obvious, but his penis was in a furious shade of red and harder than ever. Levi smirked and licked the pre-come trickling down his cock.
-I don't believe you. - And he sucked again, even more determined to make Eren stop denying what he felt.
The green-eyed one, in turn, couldn't believe what his body was feeling, thighs shaking and back arching every time the god sucked like he was feeding on him.
Soon enough, a strange sensation warmed his hips, which had already begun to move by itself. Eren widened his eyes and pulled the black threads hard between his fingers, which caused a humming noise that shuddered his whole being.
-I-I ...Levi!, I gunna... n-need to... Aha!
-Hm? - Levi didn't even pay attention to him, realizing from the salty taste in his mouth that his queen was already close to an orgasm.
-L-let me go... Ugh! To... Oh! B-bathroom...gah!
But as expected, Eren didn't know what was going on and a strangled moan came out of him when he watched, with wide and curious eyes, Hades ignore his request and a strong shiver leave his legs sweating.
-Look, Eren...you never had any pleasure and all those pigs still desired you and made orgies for you. - The angry tone with which the phrase was said caused Eren to bite his lower lip and further squeeze the white knuckled into the black threads when the god began pumping his head up and down between his legs. Levi was probably in pain having his hair pulled so much, but he didn't stop.
-No-ah! Need... Pee... I need – A hiccup escaped him, him belly trembling and consecutive chills causing him to squirm. -... I need to do... I'm going! Levi! Levi!! I-It's coming o-out... AHH!
Consecutive chills assaulted his body and Eren felt something coming out of him, leaving him too scared to find out what it was. However, he'd never felt anything as delicious as that and, despite the fear of the unknown, it was too good to ask to stop.
Unlike what he felt seconds ago, the beginning of his orgasm gave room for everything to come out since he felt so full he just wanted to release everything, not even realizing that he was pushing his hips against Levi.
Something began to bubble inside him, a potent sensation that made his muscles tremble and he really wanted to close his legs, but Hades held them tightly, preventing him from running away from the sensation, and swallowed around his cock. It was then that Eren dropped his body against the mattress, arching his back and almost crushing the god's head between his legs as he felt himself emptying in his mouth.
-Nnnhgaah!!
A loud cry was followed by several short breaths and docile whining as pleasure exploded on his eyelids and his entire body quivered in hypersensitivity as the god continued licking him after... after... that reaction happened.
He saw the elder pull it out of his mouth and lick a thick white liquid that trickled down his mouth, looking like the embodiment of sin. Eren's breathing was completely rhythmless, but curiosity was so great that, swallowing dry, he tried to ask:
-W-what...was that?
It was then that, looking at emeralds shining with tears, Levi grimaced as if he was in pain and grunting an answer.
-I'm going to show you.
With his fingers, Hades removed his own penis from the garment he wore and wrapped his right hand on it, beginning to pump hard and quickly. Eren widened his eyes as soon as he took in Hades' size and thickness, much larger than what he had. His face stood between an innocent and frightened expression that caused Levi to bend over his body and take him in a deep kiss.
Eren even thought to ask about Levi's taste in his mouth, but only found himself biting and sucking his own fingers when he couldn't look away from the scene above him. The boy was already beginning to harden again, a flush in the face as he watched Levi touch himself.
The older one was already so excited that his entire cock was shining with pre-come, and green eyes staring with confusion at the white drops coming down his tip didn't help his self-control. It didn't take much more than watching Eren and feeling small hands hold on his hips for the hot, whitish liquid to be poured over his queen's fluffy belly, marking him completely.
In response to the grunt of pleasure Levi let loose, Eren tied his legs around Levi's torso and slid his hands underneath the shirt he was wearing, feeling his hard muscles.
He could no longer turn redder, so when black eyes fixed on him, Eren offered him a shy smile, tongue pulling out when Hades ran his fingers into his belly and offered him the milky substance on two fingers.
Though he didn't know what it was, he trusted Levi, and let him spread it across his full lips until he entered his mouth. For Hades, the sight of depraving such a pure creature was probably the high point of his existence. Especially when Eren's face scrunched in a grimace and Levi had to hold back so as not to laugh at the adorable expression.
-That's bad!-The boy complained.
-It's cum, Eren. It's not supposed to be good. - He explained, loving how brave the little one began to be and started pulling his own clothes off. After never seeing anyone naked near him, the excitement of seeing Hades without usual black colors was consuming the boy. He wanted to see what was hidden under the garments.
-Then why did you give it to me?! - He spouted, obviously trying to hold a conversation to hide shaky hands when the Greek God removed his clothes and exposed the body carved into well-defined muscles.
Eren didn't know how the stories dared to say Hades was the ugliest god for being regurgitated last, because that man above himself was the embodiment of what humans worshipped.
Eren wanted more, much more of that feeling and began to wander curious hands across the defined chest and broad shoulders. Chuckling with how distracted his boy was, Levi held out one hand to the dresser next to the bed and brought a jar of lotion.
Opening it with two fingers while his free hand kept him suspended, Levi took advantage of how absorbed Eren was in his muscles and bent down to kiss him on the cheek, chin, and neck while carrying his lubricated fingers to his entrance.
The shock of having something touching his private parts caused Eren to pull a quick breath and try to collect his legs, only for them to be further spread when Levi decided to taste more of his nipples to the limit of sensitivity.
When the older man's mouth reached him, the boy quickly lost focus, short nails abandoning his drawn abdomen and stretching around his wide back while his whole body opened up and the feeling of pleasure made him let out a relaxed groan.
So relaxed that one finger slipped into him easily and began massaging the walls patiently so as not to hurt him. When the second joined inside, Eren widened his eyes and pierced his nails into Levi's biceps, half-open lips dropping contained groans and a strange expression on his face.
-Does it hurt? - Hades asked, starting scissor movements to widen the boy and handing out kisses around his neck, so that he could hear the rapid heart beating underneath him.
-Why...why you doing t-that? - Eren sighed, hip rummaging with the not painful, but strange feeling of having something inside him. However, if it was Levi who was doing it, he trusted the motive. His skin was already so hot and his head so cloudy that he couldn't even form coherent sentences, leaving it to the god to understand his question.
-So that, my boy, you become the rightful queen.
At the same instant, the two long fingers bumped into something inside him that caused his back to arch, thighs to tremble and a pleasurable hiccup to escape his swollen lips. To be the Queen by right, Eren liked the idea. But he grew to love the way Levi held him and how being "Hades' boy" sounded even better.
And doing whatever they're doing was also better than any idea of parties in white dresses he had when thinking about consummation.
Licking his lips, Levi stopped marking him when he realized he had found Eren's sweet spot and sat down as he continuously assaulted his entrance. The feeling was so absurdly hot every time Hades' fingers touched that place, Eren closed his eyes and began rolling his hips, not even realizing when a third digit entered him and lewd noises began to fill in the room.
Again that burning sensation began to emerge, but before he begged Levi to not stop, the man removed his fingers, frowning eyebrows and impatience reflected on his angular features.
Eren opened his eyes in interrogation and let out a gasp of surprise when he saw Levi pours the oil on his cock and massaged himself a few times. Levi had a painful expression, such hardness he faced down there, and Eren let him move his legs as he pleased while observing the size of his penis, much larger and more developed than his.
He also didn't think it would fit inside him when the tip touched his entrance.
-Levi! - Eren cried out alarmedly, green eyes full of worry and delicate hands holding against his chest. -W-what are you doing?! - How did Hades think something that size would fit him? It was impossible!
-Humans call it sex, Eren, and it's the most important part of consummation.
The elder explained, but it was noticeable in his tone of voice how much giving explanations was tiring. Sweat went down his forehead and black threads glued to it. Hades had a closed but concentrated expression, and Eren got lost once again in the man's appearance.
-Sex? - He had heard about sex from the nymphs, but it had always gone through his head that maybe it was something like a gathering, when one of them said they were going to have sex with some god.
But apparently, sex was that intimate thing he let Hades do to him, unable to stop the flogging of delectable sensations that ravished his body every time the older man touched it. Like the feeling of being filled by him inch by inch and feeling so, so ful l. ..
A loud, dragged groan scratched his throat, at the same time as he tried to hold heavily on Levi's arms and back as if the man was his only salvation. He felt like falling into an abyss of pleasure that threatened to drive him mad. Gradually, more and more of himself was opening and accommodating the size within himself and at this step Eren already felt completely devastated, exposed and used in the best possible way, his breathing coming out fast and short, his lungs unable to let him breathe because moaning seemed to be the priority.
When The God of the Underworld stopped investing against Eren, the boy let his tearful green eyes watch his feature and his heart beat faster when he realized that Levi also seemed to be enjoying the feeling of "sex".
He thought that was the end when they both stopped moving. Upon feeling Hades retracting his hip, Eren drew a deep breath, feeling it pull out from him and, in his head, ending the consummation.
Except he didn't come out, just pulling out halfway and going back to shoving everything at once, bumping into the point that made Eren insane, successfully pulling out a loud scream from him.
Eren was thankful it wasn't over yet.
After that, he lost count of how many times Levi thrust in and out, the ecstasy of being filled leaving him so numb he struggled to breathe. The smell of sweat and their wet skins touching was intoxicating and he writhed every time Levi aimed to abuse that delicious.
-L-Le-Ah! Le-vi... Lev-vi... Levi! - Each strong and fast snap of hips seemed to ruin his body, as if Hades wanted to bend him like a doll and penetrate him with all his force. The bed creaked and the silk of the canopy came loose, falling on top of them as if aiming to give them privacy.
The pleasure was such the brunette had difficulty swallowing, drool coming down the corner of his mouth and making him an obscene image. Hades even had to stop the sudden pushes to let him breathe.
However, still with the violent rush, Levi bent over his smaller body, holding a soft and thick thigh with kindness and leaving delicate kisses on his collarbones.
-Good, huh? - Levi left a tender peak on his open lips. - Do you like it, Eren? - And another light kiss on his cheeks, Levi pushing his hips as deep as possible inside his queen.
Eren felt weak between sudden attacks and the caring treatment he received at the same time, his entire body shivering when Hades bit his ear, grinding their hips. He began whispering in Eren's ear how beautiful he was at that moment, how precious he was, the most perfect jewel he had ever seen.
Returning to moving very slowly and deep, Eren thought he was going to explode and held the hand intertwined with his, tears of happiness running down his cheeks when Levi said how lucky he was to be able to touch him and how cute Eren was under him, how well he took him and how delicious it was to hear his voice weak and thin that way, completely drowned in pleasure.
How beautiful he was, inside and out.
The boy practically purred with every compliment he received, trembling hands reaching down his own body to feel, in amazement, the muscles covered by pale skin contracting at each snap. Then he slips them further to open his fingers around his entrance and feel the thick penis bumping into them as it sought to thrust again in the very tight and wet entrance, which convulsed periodically.
Levi had a convinced smirk when his boy no longer hid his face, green eyes wide open to see everything that happened to him, tears of pleasure wetting his flushed cheeks and hands returning to hold Hades' forearms, unable to contain every short breath and violent shiver.
And the slower they continued, the more Eren longed for him to be consumed by the love that man presented him, enjoying the feeling of having sex. If it were like that every time, he'd want to have sex every day, drowning in the pleasure that made him soft and at Hades' mercy.
In an agonized way, he was whining to be taken, pleasure beginning to make his legs spasm.
-Now we're going to teach you how to masturbate, okay, Eren? - And with a smug smile, Levi undid his intertwined fingers and took Eren's right hand to the leaking cock on the boy's cute belly.
-B-But you're inside... - The boy sobbed, closing his fingers around the extension itself and letting the larger, pale hand guide him.
-It's even better, angel. - Levi responded, increasing his speed and smiling as the boy frowned with pleasure and began to squirm.
-W-why y-your is bi-ah-bigger? - He asked, milky liquid dripping and soiling his hand, forcing him to squeeze his limb more and sob. The sensation was so good he surrendered, writhing on the sheets.
-You need to play with your erection to make it grow... – Levi licked his lips at the end of the sentence, removing his hand and letting Eren touch himself at his own time. Levi went back to grab the full hips and began to thrust more vigorously. – ... Just like that, E-Eren, keep going.
Being his first time dealing with all that, it took no more than a few strokes and Hades' penis bumping into his sweet spot to make his whole body shake, hand squeezing around his penis and cumming for the second time with a cry so loud that Eren was embarrassed by how thin and loud his voice became.
Levi snapped his tongue as he felt the muscles around him constrict and convulse, sucking him deeper and leading him to orgasm after two erratic thrusts, hot semen marking the boy as his and proclaiming him The Queen.
Hades practically fell forward, wrapping the boy in his arms and giving him a kiss on the forehead while removing the penis from a super sensitive Eren, causing him to let out a tired sigh.
Letting him rest and breathe properly, Levi ran his hands through his black threads and threw them back, irritated by the sweat sticking on his skin but resisting the urge to take a shower so he could spend more time with his Queen.
Stretching one hand up, he snapped one of his fingers and a basket of fruits and bread - including peaches, grapes and pomegranates - appeared on one of the dressers next to the bed, as well as a bottle of wine and two glasses. Eren, who observed him with languid eyes, beamed when he saw Levi sit naked on the bed and serve wine in both glasses.
-Does The Queen accept wine?
And the boy grinned wide, pulling the silk sheets and hiding like a tight ball in the middle of the bed, happy and sated green eyes looking at Levi with mischief, the new sensations still assaulting him like ants under his skin.
The King of the Dead narrowed his eyes at the creature, wondering how someone could be so adorable and seductive at the same time and almost growled when the soft voice sounded with a child's excitement.
-Can we do it again? I... I want to be on top...
How charming.
-You just had sex, Eren.
Inflated cheeks. Absurdly adorable.
-I'm the Queen, can't I demand more?
And then an affected smile from Hades. Of course he could demand more. Levi would move heaven and earth to give that boy everything.
Taking a sip of wine to cherish the butterflies in his own stomach, Levi put another sip in his mouth but didn't swallow this time. Approaching and placing himself above the boy, he grabbed Eren's chin and the boy opened his mouth instinctively.
As soon as their lips met, the wine trickled from Hades to Persephone, making the latter's lips wet and with a sinful tone, as red as the blood of the late Kore.
-What's that? - The boy whispered, mouths leaning and quick kisses being exchanged.
-A Roman kiss and you... - Hades took his cheeks on his fingers, squeezing them as if he wanted to fight the urge to devour him once more. -... no sex until you eat something.
Eren, who groaned in displeasure at the evil affection, frowned in an expression as angry and threatening as Cerberus's when he was still a puppy. However, the expression fell apart in a malicious smile as soon as Levi, who had turned to the basket, brought him pomegranate seeds.
Seeds that, throughout his eternity, would remind him of the best choice he had made: the choice that led him to his particular Heaven.
Notes:
Own! We finally had baby Eren having sex in an innocent way! I wonder how long his innocence will last...We had the peaches as a reference to Call Me By Your Name and I’m not even sorry! Also, last phrase is a reference to the song used in this chapter! Now, another game! Next chapter we have another myth and this time a SnK person will be introduced! Any guesses from both the myth and the person? Hint: they have a rather peculiar face! Thank you for all comments and kudos! Hope everyone is safe and see you guys in 3 days!
Chapter 13: The Serpent
Summary:
Notes:
Hi, I’m back!! Oh wow, we’re almost done and I’m so grateful you guys are enjoying this fanfic! In this chapter, I feel like I should explain that I use a lot of Bible references in this fanfic. I'm a Christian even if I don't go to church, and I feel like I should call you guys out about some things. Remember the apple Levi offered to child Eren underneath the table? And remember the amount of knowledge Eren acquired after eating The Fruit of The Underworld? And how Levi, the king of hell, was his Heaven? These are all bible references (The garden is also an Eden's Garden reference) and now you’re about to face one more reference and that's why this chapter is called "The Serpent"! Enjoy!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
I'm headed straight for the castle
They wanna make me their queen
And there's an old man sitting on the throne
That's saying that I probably shouldn't be so mean
Castle - Halsey
THE SERPENT
Eren couldn't believe the things he'd missed out over the years. Come to think of it, forgetting how spontaneous the breeze could be was already a nightmare in itself, but forgetting who he was? That seemed absurd.
And yet, there was Eren, discovering what is like to finally have freedom from the unnecessary overprotection that lasted for decades. He was discovering flowers, fruits, food. He was learning how to love himself and those around him - especially a certain god. He was even adjusting Persephone's dominant personality with Eren's softness in an excellent manner. And he was also living the pleasures of touching and being touched.
Well, partially, since "touching himself" had become Eren's hobby.
After Levi taught him what was masturbating, curiosity got the best of him and then the boy decided to explore the limits of his own body himself. Well, it was to be expected that after years of not knowing himself, discovering his own penis and the pleasures that touching it provided became the Queen's newest obsession.
It wasn't past Eren to drop the whole garden in the middle of the afternoon to lock himself in his room and moan a certain name against his pillow.
And since not everything is flowers in hell, the words – or rather moans – reached The God of The Underworld, who soon frowned upon realizing that his queen was having fun alone while he might as well seek him out for pleasure.
Not that Eren wouldn't, to be clear. Especially when, in his masturbation sessions, he couldn't reach his sweet spot, which Levi called "prostate", and give himself a sublime orgasm. It got to the point where Levi forbade him from having sex more than four times a week, not wanting to turn the innocent boy into a nymphomaniac in the span of a few weeks.
Except that at that moment, sex was exactly what they were doing. By the way, Eren also found out there were different types of sex, like sweet sex or dirty sex. While Levi liked to make it clear that sex should only be between people who loved each other, that morning when he got up, he closed the bedroom door before Eren could leave and told him to lie down in bed.
- A little bird told me about your antics, Eren. - The older one said, turning the key and locking the door. The emerald-eyed one leaned on his forearms, hands automatically squeezing the sheets below him as he acknowledged well what happens when Levi locked the door.
-You're Hades, you don't talk to birds... - He said slowly, even if his throat began to close and he swallowed dry with the slow steps Levi took to the bed.
-Then consider that my ears are sharp enough to hear you masturbating at least twice a day.
Having his dirty secret thrown in his face bluntly caused the boy to blush a shade of bright red, lower lip being bitten and shame taking his being. Levi looked at him with an arched brown, scrutinizing Eren for his motivations when Eren had no ulterior reasons other than wanting to feel really good.
However, apparently, that wasn't reason enough.
-So I teach you one thing and you've already created enough independence to think your hand is the best thing in the world.
If possible, now the boy was almost purple, completely mortified by the accusation. Of course, he didn't think he was the best at it when Levi did it so well! Still, it wasn't as if Eren could order him to fuck him on the throne in the middle of a trial.
Oh, wow. That sounded so dirty...
Shaking his head as if to dispel the thoughts that now constantly surrounded his mind, wide green eyes stared at Hades, becoming adorable enough that Levi could almost kiss his forehead and send him away without further teaching.
Yes, almost.
But suddenly Eren had his thick thighs around The King of The Dead, sitting on his face while Levi lay on his back comfortably in bed. His instructions were loud and clear:
- Hands on the headboard, never remove them. Don't hide your moans, even though I don't think you could do it. - A pretentious smile appeared on the older man's face. - And of course, have fun.
And have fun, Eren did.
While helping him to get in position, Levi denied the boy the right to masturbate and muttered something about showing him another kind of kiss. When Eren asked him why they were in that position if it would be a kiss, he didn't think the reason was to kiss him in another an intimate place.
But that's exactly what Hades did as punishment for being thrown aside by his queen. Dragging his tongue through the boy's entrance, he made it his duty to drive him crazy in such a way that masturbation would never be enough. Squeezing tightly enough to mark his thighs and wide hips, Levi devoured Eren with taste, his ears blessed with loud cries and prolonged groans every time he forced the warm muscle to pass his rim and lick his interior.
As always, the dark god took his time, sucking, licking and slurping at his own pace, spit dripping down his chin and the distinct smell of Eren intoxicating him. The boy could no longer stop the involuntary movements of his hips, knuckled squeezing the headboard and penis flapping in his stomach every time he tried to roll against the tongue provoking him.
The consequence was a strong slap descending against his right thigh and Levi practically growling, keeping him frozen and at his mercy.
How they had transitioned from having sex for the first time to Eren moaning when Hades was possessive and crude, none of them knew, the moment probably lost in the space between sex nights and cuddle nights, either in the king's or the queen's chambers Despite this, the transition was nothing Eren regretted, even if at the time his patience became more and more scarce with the need to touch himself and come.
-Le-Levi... p-please... I-I can't-ah-hold an-anymore... - The boy begged, waist moving in circles against the mouth eating him out, ragged breath and head thrown back such was the pleasure he was subjected to.
Levi murmured against his entrance, causing him to squeeze and squirm, the already familiar sensation of an approaching climax forcing him to moan lasciviously.
The golden body had a thin layer of sweat that glowed against the first rays of the day, making it shine temptingly. To top it off, his full cheeks had a reddish hue, green eyes clouded with pleasure, and hard nipples so after the exclusive attention they received.
Levi knew how to make him feel precious and worthy of all the attention and affection of the world and it made Eren soften in his arms, letting him do what he wanted with his body.
Like, for example, sliding two fingers into the wet entrance and finding the boy's sweet spot in seconds.
A loud scream escaped his throat and Eren let himself fall forward, forehead with brown threads glued on it rested on the headboard as Levi licked his perineum and dragged his tongue through his smooth, soft testicles.
Continuing to brutally abuse his hole, Hades never once took his cock in his mouth and the stern gaze watching Eren, even from underneath, caused him not to dare to let go of the headboard and disobey him.
Levi was watching him like he did when Eren was sat on the queen's throne, stone-faced and so domineering that even words became difficult to utter when that heavy look was observing all his reactions.
Levi knew his body so well, it didn't take more than a few thrusts with his fingers for Eren to whine and arch his back, thighs spreading and toes squirming with an orgasm that splattered come on the headboard and on the face of The King of the Dead.
While the green-eyed continued to use the fingers inside him, sitting on them to extract even last drop of his pleasure, to know where his milk was landing was not on his list of priorities. Well, that until the digits slipped out and he looked down with a wicked expression, which soon turned into a horrified one when he saw drops of pearly come decorate Levi's cheeks, forehead and some black strands.
Eren came on his king's face.
-O-oh! Oh, Levi, I'm so sorry! - Taking his still weak thighs from around Hades and letting him move his head as he pleased, Eren stretched his arm in an erratic motion until he reached a small towel that Levi left on the bedside table for long nights. With his face full of remorse, he knelt next to the god and cleaned gently the pale skin.
The elder observed with an arched eyebrow the fuss his little one was doing, most likely thinking nonsense and worried that his action degraded him in some way.
However, in Levi's vision, having his Queen writhing in pleasure and bathing him with his come was a source of pride.
With guilty and large eyes, Eren bit his lips while lovingly wiping the drops that marked Levi's face and didn't fail to notice that dirtied with come, Levi seemed to overflow so much power that made him shiver.
-...forgive me. - He whispered again, shining green orbs begging Hades to accept his apology. In response, blue-gray eyes rolled, one strong hand pulled Eren's waist while the other interlace into chocolate wires and brought him in for a slow, tongue kiss.
Since as Levi was an introvert, after declaring his love for Eren, he began to show more of his sentiments in acts like those, which were sometimes so unpredictable, that they stole all the boy's breath and left him trembling with raw emotion.
As Hades parted the kiss, Eren was breathless and had a dazzled expression, as if he didn't know where he was. The god gave him a pretentious smile. Getting up from the bed and knowing the big green orbs would follow him like a puppy, Levi slipped on a black silk robe to hide his nudity and turned to the boy.
-I'd recommend keeping those legs steady if you want to play queen with our guest, Eren. - Levi smirked, the bastard knowing too well how much Eren's legs trembled after his orgasm. The boy spouted, looking away with inflated cheeks when he saw Hades approach, his smile growing until white teeth appeared and icy eyes diminished. - Have a nice day, my queen.
Like always, he gave Eren a long, chaste kiss on his forehead that never failed on leaving Eren with his heart beating so hard it hurt. Gradually, he started to dread the moment when Levi would leave the room for his duties, but considering the visitor waiting for him to be pestered, the boy smiled wickedly and rose in excited steps to start his evil queen's day.
----------
-Keep digging. - Eren looked up from a throne of herbs and rough trunks that had grown from the ground for him to sit. Wearing a long violet dress, he watched the sweaty man continuing to dig a huge hole in the Tartarus soils with a shovel too small for the work.
With a smirk and crown decorating his head, the boy had his legs crossed, his face resting on one hand and his elbows resting on the armchair. With malice in his beautiful features, The Queen observed the human who had been imprisoned in The Underworld for his crimes.
- What do you need me to dig so hard for?! – He complained, frowning eyebrows and sweat dripping down his skin while the sun created in The Underworld seemed especially made to punish his attempt to steal Persephone from Hades.
- I'm going to think of a reason when you're done. Maybe I'll bury you in there. – Eren shook his head from side to side, theatrically acting as if he was really thinking about the purpose of the excavation when, in fact, that was a hobby that Eren came to like: to observe and make sure the special punishments given by Levi were accomplished.
-Listen here, your little-
And that punishment was very special.
-Queen. – Eren corrected, shutting the man with two-tone hair before he could let his temper ruin the fun.
Pirithous was his birth name, one that his father Ixion had chosen. He was a friend of the Athenian hero Theseus, who, on one occasion, challenged him to fight. However, attracted by each other's beauty, both men held hands and became companions.
-Uh, if I knew you were like this, I would never have thought about kidnapping you.
Pirithous who, along with Theseus, dared to kidnap Helena of Troy when she was still a child and now dared to try to capture The Queen of the Underworld.
-Too late. – Eren laughed at the human's desolate and angry feature, a black rose sprouting from his hand to be rotated on his fingers. - Now you are at my mercy.
Pirithous, who hated his own name and called himself Jean, who, along with Theseus, descended into the depths of The Underworld to try to kidnap Persephone, separate him from his husband and force him to marry a mere mortal. A widowed and delusional man who thought Hades would let him take his precious jewel.
-Careful, I could choke that confidence off you. -Jean threatened, sticking his shovel into the dark soil and using his own anger to continue digging as he was ordered to. The Queen arched one of his eyebrows, surprised at how much stupid courage still existed in the human.
That, however, made things even more interesting.
Eren rolled his eyes, snorting and saying the obvious:
-Of course, and Levi would turn you into a centaur, just like your half-brothers. – He provoked, knowing full well how much Jean hated the centaurs due to the incident in which his half-brothers tried to abuse his late wife at his wedding party. This episode was known as Centauromachy. - You even look like a horse, Jean. Maybe it's the inheritance of your relatives.
An annoyed neigh was heard and Eren laughed loudly when Jean was taking it seriously to the point of making the characteristic features of someone who had a relative in common with centaurs come to light.
-I don't know what the fuck you did to have Hades eating out of your hand... - The man grunted, muttering under his breath as he stepped on the shovel, pushed it into the ground and kept digging the hole that had already reached his waist.
Eren blushed as he remembered exactly what it was like to have Levi in his hands but continued with the provocative face as he recalled one of man's worst mistakes. Kidnapping Helena when the girl was still a child at the age of thirteen was part of Jean and Theseus' plan. Being stopped by her brothers was a misfortune.
Both widow men decided to promise celibacy after their wives died, and the vow would remain until they marry Zeus' offspring. Together, they plotted to kidnap Helena of Troy, daughter of Zeus and Queen Leda to become Theseus' wife Pirithous, however, went further and claimed not a woman, but the wife of one of the three great gods. He claimed as his bride the god who had become Persephone, since myths put Eren on a higher level than other daughters of Zeus by being Queen of The Underworld and consort of Hades.
Big mistake and an even greater crime.
- I think you did want to know what I did to Hades when you came here and was made a puppet by him. - Proudly, Eren remembered Hades' strong and darkened feature when those two humans made their way to the palace imagining they were capable of cheating and deceiving The King of the Dead.
With icy calmness, Levi kept Eren by his side, ignoring the boy whispering in his ear that it was obvious the humans were planning something. The blue-gray orbs watched the drops of sweat dampening the temples of both anxious men, trembling legs, and stupidity causing them to stop in front of The God of the Underworld thinking they outmatch Hades.
-You fucking bitch! - Jean cried, but kept digging, knowing that it was impossible for him to ignore the Queen's order, which had the power to command him in the same way as Hades. Almost as if he were under a spell, Jean couldn't stop digging even though he hated that job.
Continuing to worse their own fate, Theseus and Pirithous accepted when Levi invited them to dinner, snapping his fingers and covering the table with dishes, wines, cheeses, and desserts that instigated gluttony and desire.
Eren was the first to sit down, the chair he always used being pulled by Levi. Afterward, Hades sat down, and only later could the humans at the table occupy their special seats. And then the feast had begun.
Hungry after struggling with the dangers of the paths to The Underworld, the friends didn't even realize when they got heavier and heavier, succumbing to the desire and lust of food without thinking twice.
When everyone was satisfied, Levi never touched the food and Eren only sipping on wine, the humans tried to get up, only to notice themselves trapped in the infernal seats. Immediately the food turned to ashes and Pirithous and Theseus' listened with horror the sentence to Tartarus for having eaten something food from The Underworld and for having desired The Queen.
-Shh, what a lack of decorum. - Eren frowned, hating that human offense which made no sense to him. Letting the black rose fall to the ground and watching it turn to acid on Tartarus' floor, Eren shrugged. - I told you it's "Queen" for you and also...everyone knows I was a virgin before I got the title.
-Yeah, but at this point, I doubt there is any part of you that is still a virgin. - Jean murmured and at times, like that, it was impossible not to find him hilarious.
Eren laughs, some chocolate threads falling down his cheeks and hiding the reddish color present in them.
-Do you want to know how Levi took my virginity and taught me the pleasures of the world? – Eren teased, a hand covering his mouth gently while staring at Jean with bright green eyes full of immorality.
-I'd rather be buried right here in this hole. - The mortal grumbled, eyes downcast in defeat and accepting the cruel fate of being The Queen's entertainment.
Eren let a sardonic smile stretch through his beautiful features as silence reigned and his own thoughts began to disturb him. It was still Mid-Afternoon and Levi had a few more hours on his chores, so there was no reason to go to the castle in search of some fun.
Moreover, something was bothering him and there was no better time to ask than that.
-But tell me, human, is this attraction to men normal? - He tipped his head to the side cutely, slipping out of his Queen's personality for a second to satisfy his curiosity. Jean didn't even look at him, just muttering in his throat at a sign he was hearing. - Or was it just you who dared to come to The Underworld after one?
A huffed laugh was heard.
-Pff, it's not men, it's you. - The man announced, simply as if he were commenting on the day.
-Me? - Eren perked in the chair, eyes wide open and ready to hear more.
Jean seemed to wonder if he should continue, hating the idea of inflating the boy's ego. But a question was a question and if he didn't speak for good, a command was enough for him to tell his whole life in a roll.
Yes, Hades had been cruel enough to let him have the memories of his mortal life and dwell on his own mistakes during his punishment.
-There isn't a person on Earth who hasn't heard of how irresistible Persephone is. The fact that Hades has you and is completely tied to you further adds to the stories. And despite knowing your personality, the fact that your appearance is unique doesn't change.
-Irresistible? I'm average, there's nothing different about me. - The emerald-eyed countered, not believing in a single word. With his mouth in a tense line and an arched eyebrow, he waited for more information.
-I'd like to say the same, but, Persephone, there's something that shines and allures to you. Like you're light, and we're all moths- Jean snorted, rolling his eyes as if he hated having to say that to the same person who led him to be in the shitty situation he was in.
Eren was silent, questioning what exactly shone in him. Levi had once said he felt Eren's presence changed things around him and made them brighter, but it was not as if he could really make something shine or be enlightened.
-You can call me Eren... - The boy broke his silence, too thoughtful to maintain his audacious posture.
Jean rolled his eyes, confused as to why The Queen seemed so silent when he had spoken nothing but the truth. Dealing with the wicked smiles and cheeky phrases was one thing, but seeing him silent, giant green eyes staring blank gave him a shiver. Only the thought of having said something wrong and being punished later by Hades himself was terrifying.
Jean decided to try to ease the situation.
-Right, " Eren " - Brown eyes looked up at the reddish sky above him as he tested the name on the tip of your tongue. Strange- But believe me, what I say is true. - He shrugged when he noticed that Eren began to blink several times as if recovering from the seconds he had been absent. Okay, he was coming back so no more punishment. - You've received several proposals, right? That's why. Everyone knows you're desired and I've heard that even Ze-
Oh, shit.
And he stopped suddenly, a sorry expression becoming horrified in seconds and it quickly attracted Eren's attention.
-What is it? – The boy ordered, watching the human swallow dry several times and re-dig harder, as if suddenly too worried about his duties.
Eren narrowed his eyes, probably Levi's influence, and crossed his arms in.
-Look, forget it, I should be focused on this punishment and not-
He tried to shut up again and pretend that nothing happened, but the present god had a bad feeling about the way Jean was nervous, as if he was afraid of losing his tongue with what he was about to say. And everyone knew Eren had an obsession with mysteries and didn't rest until he explored them.
-Say it. That's an order.
Jean sighed tiredly, already regretting what he was going to say but knowing that against an order from The Queen, no willpower won. Snorting loudly and holding the shovel in one hand, he brought the other to scratch his nape, avoiding looking at the creature in a purple dress.
-Look, don't take this the wrong way, okay? It was you who asked and... - A roll of Eren's eyes was enough for Jean to realize he was in line for a punishment from Levi and another from Eren if he didn't talk soon. - It's just that... I've even heard that... that Zeus had plans to take you.
Gradually the sentence left its mouth, filling the air as cursed words that caused the boy's stomach to flip and green eyes widen. Eren let his body slip to the edge of his throne as if needing to approach the human to hear properly.
-Zeus? Zeus, my Father? - Eren questioned, voice slightly louder in an obvious tone of discredit and his eyebrows frowning so strongly his orbs were darker.
Jean began to tap his foot on the ground, anxiety engulfing his being and making him regret having retorted the boy's taunts and put himself in that situation. Only the display of disgust on the Queen's face was proof that he was in trouble with Eren, with Hades and perhaps even with Zeus!
-Well, Hades is your uncle... - He tried to smile crookedly as if making a joke would soften the mood and everything would be right.
But the effects were even more negative when Eren looked at him in a way that made Jean begin to think about cutting out his own tongue to no longer speak the wrong things at wrong times to wrong people, or, in that case, gods.
Ignoring the obvious kinship he had with his husband, which didn't matter much when relations between gods were often incestuous, Eren preferred to pay more attention to the fact that his own father was accused of trying to wed him.
-Did you really say Zeus? And how do you know that? - He pressed, feeling the urge to puke at the thought of Zeus touching him in the same way Levi did. Only the idea made him want to crawl in a hole and hide, since he would never accept anyone without his consent. Levi himself taught him about consent.
And now that he knew what love was and what it was like to be loved, the idea of being taken by Grisha was repugnant.
-It's just tales, Eren. Don't believe everything they say. - The human tried, though Jean believed very much in that one, since it was one of those stories who remained even after Persephone had become Queen.
And it was as they said the voice of the people is the voice of the gods.
Returning to digging, Jean made the effort to remain silent and mutely thanked Eren that he also made no effort to continue the conversation.
The human was certain nothing bad would happen to him when, half an hour later, Eren stood up, the throne where he sat collapsing and returning to be part of the earth. With a thoughtful feature, the boy turned to Jean and looked at him from above, as if deciding what he was going to say.
Then The Queen gave him a cheeky smile, malicious eyes, and told him to put all the earth back into the hole he had dug. Jean, after reasoning he had slaved off for nothing, became livid and cursed his own existence when he saw the green-eyed brunette shrug and move back home.
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Eren was right when he said his afternoons were more lively when he had some punishment to take care of. While helping Levi in the morning, the rest of the day was time for himself and his garden. Frequently Eren found himself strolling around The Kingdom, sitting and listening to the artists in Asphodels, or carrying fruit in a basket for the children who had their lives cut off too soon.
But other than that, the afternoon was entirely his to do whatever he wanted, be it talking to Elizabeth, showing yourself as a benevolent Queen or resting in the garden.
Aa the time, he found himself leaning against the thick tree that decorated his garden, taking advantage of the happy breeze and dozing with his eyes closed. Levi made a point of turning the tree into a different one each month, giving it the ability to fruit mangoes, apples, and even oranges.
On that day, the resting tree had become a wide, full-top apple tree with small blue flowers around it. Muttering a melody he knew by heart, his chocolate wires were long enough to caress his cheeks, long black eyelashes resting on tall, brown cheeks.
- All those days watching from the windows... all those years outside looking in... all that time never even knowing... just how blind I've been...
Dressed in traditional Greek robes, Eren was wearing white, uncovered shoulders and dress curled up to the middle of his thighs to give him more freedom to feel the wind cool him down.
- Now I'm here blinking in the starlight... Now I'm here, suddenly I see...
The book he had brought with him was marked with a leaf, the apple he had collected laying partially eaten on top of it while the boy dozed off serenely.
- Standing here it's all so clear... I'm where I'm meant to be...
It was a strange sensation in his leg that woke him from his torpor. Opening his eyes curiously, Eren felt icy scales rub against his ankle and watched as a snake approached sinuously between the flowers, crawling across the floor lazily and approaching him.
That animal was a surprise when Eren, in all those months in The Underworld, had never seen a live reptile in his garden and, approaching the greenish eyes of the animal and its vertical pupils, the boy wondered where that creature had come from.
-What are you doing here in The World of The Dead, serpent? Did you get in through a gate? - Seeing it approach his thighs, Eren took the animal in his hand, lifting it to eye-level and staring closely at it, a reptilian tongue stretching out until it tickled his nose.
A giggle escaped his plump lips and Eren approached his thighs so he could support his arms that held the reptile on his knees. Brownish scales with yellowish islands decorated the animal's slender body, draconian features attracting the boy's gaze.
How that animal had managed to enter The Underworld is what he questioned as the reptile writhed in his hand and made a movement of wanting to return to the ground.
-Oh, you want to go down?
As if the snake understood, Eren laughed again and lowered his arms to let it go camouflage itself among the grass of his garden.
Except that, instead of drifting away, the snake remained close to the boy's legs, rubbing against his bare thighs as if seeking affection. Eren laughed at the icy sensation against his soft, warm skin and squeezed his legs together to stop the animal's frolic.
Looking at him fixedly, the reptile turned its head from side to side, forked tongue sticking out and swinging in the air.
Then it decided to get closer to the boy, this time by the feet so he could lick his fingers. Eren let out a loud laugh, writhing as the snake began to curl up in his ankle and legs as if he were a branch to be climbed.
-What's that? Why do you want to play so much?
Smiling, the boy moved his hands to get the serpent out of his body again, only to realize the animal squeezed hard enough not to be removed.
-I'm not a tree. There's an apple tree back here that's perfect for you.
However, the animal didn't seem at all interested in letting go of the soft skin in which it curled, continuing to shake its tongue while reaching the boy's knees and sticking his head inside the fabric that covered Eren's private parts.
Wide-eyed, but still with a playful feature, Eren pushed the snake's head with one hand and lowered the fabric with the other, as if blocking the passage to his dress.
-My gods, but what kind of snake are you? -The boy laughed again, though a little uncomfortable with the situation. Frowning at the persistence of the animal, he had to hit the small head of the snake a few more times, the reptile looking at him with strange opaque green eyes as if trying to convince him to let it into his dress.
-I've never seen an animal so pervert-
And then, suddenly, the dialogue he had with Jean weeks ago stirred in his mind, a bad feeling taking hold of his body and forcing him to swallow dry when he observed the animal again.
Everyone knew how much Zeus liked to turn into animals to trick Hera and cover up his cheatings...
But did that animal have anything to do with...?
As if realizing the boy's posture changed from playful to cautious, the animal tightened harder on his thigh. Pain began to bother him and Eren thought the mark of the snake's body would stick on his skin.
-No...that can't... – As if talking to himself, Eren closed his legs in a protective motion, and took both hands to try to get rid of the reptile's grip on him. - Stop it! Let it go! – The boy begged, squirming when he felt the grip increase and the animal stretch easily and dip its face down the side of his garment towards his private parts.
Now, Eren was already panicking. Because even if that snake had nothing to do with Zeus, the idea of having something in him and not being able to get rid of it left him suffocated enough for his lung to burn and he started to hyperventilate.
Something was wrong, a voice inside him spoke. He needed to get that animal out of his way and get out of here as fast as he could. He needed to get rid of it and go after Levi.
-S-stop, that's not right...
But no matter how hard he pushed the snake's head, or how hard he tried to get up or how much he tried to lower the fabric of the dress to protect himself, the animal wouldn't leave him alone and now his mind began to conjure from where those singular opaque green eyes came from.
-Levi...-The first whisper escaped his throat, the terror of remembering who had eyes like that making him try to stand up, only to trip over and fall lying on the grass. The reptile used that moment to climb the rest of his leg and rub against the tissue that covered his sex. That's when Eren screamed for the only one he trusted. - No! Get out! Levi! Levi!!
In impressive speed, a black cloud materialized and The King of The Underworld appeared, frowning eyebrows and heart throbbing as he felt his boy's distress. The scene in front of him, however, was nothing of what he expected. Eren was lying on the ground, writhing with both hands underneath the dress he wore and anguished tears wetting his rosy cheeks.
When the elder noticed the snake tail lurking between the fabric and the golden skin of his Queen, fury took him at the same instant and the god bent down enough to lift Eren's dress and locked his hand around the reptile, burning it with black flames to the point of making it release Eren.
The poor boy shrank like a ball once he was free, stretching his hands and covering himself as much as he could, while watching with frightened eyes Hades let the twisting snake fall to the ground and cut it in half with a black silver sword he hid inside his cloak.
The animal screamed in agony and its body melted into black acid when it was burned by the power contained in the weapon. Just then, a lightning cut through The Underworld' sky and Eren realized what Jean had said was true.
Levi looked up at the sky of his kingdom, his face somber and black eyes full of rage. Apparently, Hades knew about those tales, too. With his hands closed in angry fists, the sky darkened immediately and thunders sounded in response. Levi might not be the Thunder God, but he controlled The Underworld and Zeus was not allowed to enter there and cast lightning into his sky, let alone abuse his Queen.
-Levi... – A faint and obviously frightened voice sounded behind him and Levi quickly cleared his thoughts of revenge and turned to his priority. Although the sky of The Underworld was now full of dark and angry clouds, a storm making its way to the ground, Levi was still as gentle as ever when lifting his Queen in his arms and holding him tightly against his chest.
With one arm resting his back and another under the boy's knees, Eren thanked his king for thinking beforehand and holding him in a way his dress continued to cover him fully, preserving his intimacy.
-Levi... - Eren whimpered, hugging Hades' neck and pressing his tear-stained face on his shoulder.
-Eren, it's alright...you're safe now. - The god answered the anguished call, rolling his boy's name on his tongue and squeezing him as if to make sure the boy was safe and secure in his arms.
While comforting his boy, Levi raised his angry eyes to the sky and it didn't take one single word to have Thanatos, the God of Death and one of his servants, to appear in front of the couple.
-Sir. - That's what Death answered, bowing before The Rulers of The Underworld and realizing the fury emanating from The King, who looked him silently with evil intentions in his eyes. Even if Levi held his queen lovingly and didn't let his emotions reach his physical form, it was obvious to anyone who saw it, how pale and icy Levi's skin had become and how murderous was his gaze.
However a fight between Hades and Zeus was the last thing any god or human wanted, especially when The King of The Underworld was always the one misunderstood. Putting Eren at risk was also unacceptable, and even if Levi ached to burn the world for mistreating his boy, there would be nothing he could do at that moment other than lockdown his kingdom for anyone who dared to come close to his precious queen.
-Thanatos, close all the gates. Each and every God is expressly banished from trying to enter The Underworld. I'm withdrawing Zeus and Hermes' permission to set foot in my kingdom, in addition to banning anyone else who tries to enter here. Hermes must deliver the souls to Charon's main gate and no longer to the gates of the temples. - Levi ordered, voice cold and loud enough to be interpreted as an order. Eren cringed in his arms, curling as much as possible and feeling fragile in the front of the power Hades showed.
-But, sir, that's going to delay the trials. - Thanatos remembered, voice equally serious but never refusing the order of his King.
-Do I seem to care about that? - He wouldn't think twice about having to double the temple work if it meant Eren's safety.
-No, Sir. - Death has responded, knowing well his place in The Underworld.
-Then do as I say. Nobody gets in and nobody gets out. Authorize Cerberus to hunt down and tear apart any god who came in here, understand? - Levi frowned, holding Eren closer and hating the feeling of tears streaming down his neck. His blood boiled with desire for revenge and he constantly needed to remember he couldn't simply bring Mount Olympus down.
-Yes, Sir. - It was the answer, but before seeing Thanatos disappear into a cloud of ash, Hades was already carrying his queen to the castle, calming him with whispers and hiding him from the world within the icy walls of the palace.
His feet took him to one of the toilets, where there was a bathtub that, with the mere thought of the king, was filled with warm water. Putting the boy on his feet and noticing he was still in shock, Levi handled him gently, undoing the knots that kept his dress fastened and leaving him naked.
Only from the situation he had just experienced, Eren was able to differentiate Levi's touches from forceful ones and, on top of that, he was incredibly thankful Hades had no sexual intent while undressing him. Breathing deeply and trying to stop the tears flowing down his reddish cheeks, Eren let himself be guided to the bathroom and, with his husband's help, put his feet inside and sat down until only his head was out.
The older god then turned to pick herbs and lit incense with a move of his hand. Dropping bath salts into the bathtub, Levi took a white piece of cloth and poured liquid soap, beginning to rub the boy's legs as an attempt to erase the touches and memories.
Eren was immensely grateful for the acts, but still, his mouth moved to ask what bothered him even more and gave him a sense of hating his own body.
-Why...why me? What's this "shining" that attracts everyone and makes me a target?! - He questioned, outraged at himself and shrugged his knees against his chest. Levi stared at him wide-eyed for a moment and soon forced his lips into a thin, angry line.
It was then that he took Eren's face between his hands, holding him tight and trying to transfer everything he felt to the boy and prevented him from beginning to hate himself because of a third part who had no right to be called a god.
-You're the light, Eren. - Levi pointed and Eren grabbed his pale wrists as if he needed support at that moment. Emerald eyes fixed on The God of The Underworld, serious face and voice without margins for discussion. - It's who you are, it's your ability to transform the whole world. You're the one who made me stop living my life in vain, just doing my duty. You're my light, Eren, but I swear this has nothing to do with the acts of unscrupulous beings. And even if I have to bring darkness upon everyone, you will continue to be my light, my safe and sound queen.
If Eren was trying to regulate his own emotions and stop crying, that speech did just the opposite, since now the boy sobbed through tears, tired of being seen as a sexual object and pouring out all his frustrations.
-I would burn the world for you, Persephone. - Levi assured him, long thin fingers putting brown strands behind his ears so that his crying was not disturbed. He continued on his knees beside the bathtub, watching his Queen fall apart with the certainty he would pull himself even stronger.
Eren swallowed dry, throat still constricted, but determination shining in his eyes.
-And I would destroy it for you, Hades.
It didn't take another word to demonstrate how faithful they were to each other.
Notes:
Poor Eren was so shocked he didn’t even have the time to react. That’s how being sexually assaulted works... I’m pretty sure Levi was this close to destroying every god and human alive, I feel bad he can’t do that. Can you guys see the difference from Eren's reaction to Levi's snake and Zeus' snake? The learning for today, folks: KNOW FROM WHO YOU'RE LEANING. But! In the first half of this chapter, our baby Eren was already having sex in a curious manner! It’s an improvement from his shy self hahaha Just wait to see the monster Levi created! We also had another Tangled reference since Eren sang “I See The Light". I feel like I abuse the use of references, but I love that movie soo~~ You’re probably already tired, but the next two chapters will also be based on myths, so now now~~ Next chapter we have a myth about a child! And the child will be someone Canon Eren is trying to help! Any ideas? Hint: It’s a girl!
Chapter 14: Macaria
Summary:
Notes:
Sooo...Are you guys ready for more mythology and a super dope biblical reference? Thank you for all the kudos and comments and I’ll explain everything in the final notes! Yep! I mixed The Myth of Adonis + The Bible + Canon SNK and I'm not even sorry hahaha Enjoy the reading!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
MACARIA
From the top of his reign, The God of Death, Thanatos, watched the hooded creature approach the main entrance to the Kingdom of Hades. While Hades himself didn't control the death – that was Thanatos' role – he was The King of the Dead, who received and coordinated the afterlife of those who were taken by Death.
Since his existence was like a frosty sigh and with darkness forming his body, Thanatos watched from above the figure finish its steps before Charon, not at all intimidated by the row of souls previously delivered by Hermes. The figure had a basket covered with the finest and more delicate veil resting on one arm.
They raised a pale hand and pushed the black hood back until the thin Asian features were seen, long black strands framing Aphrodite's undeniable face.
The woman, who seemed to know she was being watched, looked up and, although she couldn't outline the invisible form of the God of Death, black eyes continued to stare at his direction. Slowly and without looking away, Mikasa took her free hand inside the black cloak she used and removed a small bag of fabric filled with "obols" or Charon's coins.
Extending it to Hades' boatman, Charon didn't even pay attention, only turning his dead eyes to the basket whose contents remained hidden. Still, the boatman was sure that its content was not the same as the recently dead souls who waited their turn to be taken by the rivers Styx and Acheron.
Without taking the payment, the boatman calmly denied the basket, turning to the line of souls and returning to perform his job of coordinating them for transportation. Aphrodite immediately frowned and Thanatos could see her rosy mouth open to discuss and bargain the delivery of whatever it was she was carrying.
With one of his eyebrows arched, The God of Death watched her feature get more and more frustrated, the basket on her forearm shaking to the point the thin silk covering it fell and revealed what she hid.
Wide-eyed, Thanatos noticed the outrage that was going on before the gate and stretched out his giant black wings, reaping hook tightly in his right hand while dropping himself from the sky until he was in front of The Goddess of Love. As always, the black and often torn robe didn't let the goddess see the real appearance of The Son of The Night, also known as Nix. With a lamp attacked at the end of the rook extension, he closely observed the pale and inexpressible face of Aphrodite who, being one of The Twelve Olympians, didn't retreat an inch before the presence of Death.
Turning his heavy gaze to the basket, Thanatos grunted his displeasure at what he saw, shaking his head negatively and agreeing with Charon's denial.
No matter how many coins Aphrodite had, that in her hands didn't belong to The Underworld and so it could not be there.
Except that the Goddess was not accustomed to receiving "no" and continued:
-I demand that you deliver the basket to Persephone. He'll know what to do.
The request left the two men even more confused and again the boarding of souls stopped, both facing her surprised by the audacity to order Hades' servants. Mikasa obviously didn't seem affected by the stares.
Fitting the packet of coins carefully into the basket, the woman extended it to Thanatos, as serious as someone who wouldn't accept another word against her decision. If Hades hadn't banned all Olympians from The Underworld after Zeus' failed attempt to abuse Persephone, none of that would be happening and she would be able to deliver her product without further obstacles.
It wasn't what happened, of course, and although Thanatos observed the contents of the basket with a certain intensity and admiration, the boatman remained determined not to carry it on his boat, since it was only intended for the newly dead.
- If you can't take it on the boat, put it in the river. - The goddess suggested and The God of Death looked at her startled with blasphemy as he imagined something as fragile as that navigating alone the rivers of hell. - It's not like you're going to let something bad happen to a gift to The Queen of the Underworld, right?
And there she stood, sweet voice underlaying the mortal tendency that all the gods carried with them. The threat was as clear as the duty all immortals fulfilled and Mikasa dropped the basket on the ground, putting her hood back on and letting Thanatos solve the situation.
-My work here is done. - She uttered, turning her slender body and heading to her rightful place. - Now do your job and deliver the basket to Eren.
With this, the magic belt of The Goddess of Love shone and a calm and beautiful light emerged around to take her back to Olympus in seconds, leaving behind the basket and The God of Death admiring its interior.
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That day, Eren had taken a vow that he wouldn't leave the castle. Determined to spend the day resting between pillows – books next to him and the fireplace warming his body – he told himself there were no flowers that would take him out of the palace.
His plans for the day would be to lie down in the morning and finish one of the epic novels he was reading. After lunch, he would rest for a few hours and perhaps he would dust off the giant bookcase that kept Levi's old books. And then he would go back to Hade's room, lie down in his pillow nest and wait for Levi, who would then give him all the attention he deserved during the early hours of the morning.
Yes, it was a perfect plan. Except that an uncomfortable feeling occupied his being and even though he was lying in front of the fireplace after lunch, there wasn't a position in which he was comfortable. Whether on his stomach or sideways, an overwhelming anxiety disturbed him and at some point he found himself reading the same paragraph more than three times, still not understanding a word.
Perhaps it was his own organism complaining about how static his body was when he had already made a routine of always walking around The Underworld. But wasn't it normal to want to take some time off for himself? Some hours doing nothing and just waiting for his husband so they could do some stuff?
Apparently not, for Eren soon snorted loudly, throwing the book aside and rolling his eyes. No matter how many times he forced himself to pay attention to the pages in front of him, his mind was still restless. And the more he forced himself to stand still and quiet, the more his breathing became scarce, his chest aching and the feeling of not getting enough air filling his lungs.
Therefore, unlike the plans he had made, Eren found himself trotting into the garden, determined to take some air and then retire for the rest of his plans. Barefoot and in a long baby blue dress, he found himself holding the bar of the dress and stepping on the fluffy, damp ground and taking a deep breath trying to calm himself.
In those last few weeks, the boy set out to wear more long dresses to hide the handprints and kissing marks that decorated his thighs. Although there was nothing he could do to hide the bites and hickeys in his neck, the boy at least wished he could keep his head high and have no one staring at the signs of love that Levi liked to spread through his body.
Smiling softly with an embarrassed flush on his cheeks, he went on to walk through his garden, observing the flowers and with a certain Greek God in mind. Without realizing it, his light footsteps carried him through the cool breeze, as if something called him or guided him. Eren still followed his mindless path, his anxiety slowly subduing the more he approached the stream of crystal clear waters that surrounded his garden.
That was his place in the world, where he could be whoever he wanted to be and where he could make his days in The World of the Dead as alive as possible.
Green eyes never got tired of observing what Hades built for him, the man always aiming to make him comfortable and spoil him to the fullest. With happiness beginning to spread through his body with the certainty that he was loved, the boy reached the river that served as a bathtub sometimes.
Except that, on that day, he was not alone, since his rivulet was occupied with a basket of clear straw that, in front of running water, was stuck between rocks and the land that bordered the watercourse.
With furrowed eyebrows, the brunette approached the water and realized the basket was covered with clear and thin silk, as if someone wanted to protect what was inside from the weather and the heat. Tipping his face to the side, he approached the river, crouching on the grass and extending his arm until the tip of his fingers bumped into the bow that lifted the basket.
As always letting curiosity guide him, Eren drew the basket to himself, pulling it out of the water and being surprised with how heavy it really was. Immediately, he wondered if this was another one of Levi's surprises, who seemed to have a taste for gifting him with valuable objects whenever he had the will.
With a smile on his face, the emerald-eyed one knelt near the basket and removed the veil, ready to discover another gift from Hades – perhaps fruits or perhaps precious stones that were as heavy as that.
Anything, but a baby.
A human baby.
His eyes widened comically as he discovered a blond baby lying comfortably between goose feathers and covered by a soft sheet that protected it from the cold. A baby who slept peacefully while waiting inside the basket, one who had crossed the most dangerous rivers of The Underworld until it reached Eren. A child, who in one hand had a doll made of cloth, and who lay next to a bag of coins that held a letter well hidden between the straw and the makeshift bed.
A human baby, lying in a basket, floating in his stream.
-Oh... – Breathing catching in his throat, Eren took one of his hands to his mouth, as if he didn't trust himself not to scream in fright and wake the blonde child. With his other trembling hand, he gently took his fingers to poke a rosy cheek, making sure the creature was real and alive. - Oh, my goodness...
Carefully removing the child from the basket, he noticed by the genitals that it was a little girl, and held it with great care against his chest with one hand while using the other to cover her again with the sheet that accompanied her.
Long golden eyelashes fluttered when she found herself moving and giant blue eyes opened to observe Eren with curiosity. She had cute, rosy cheeks of a baby who couldn't have been more than six months old and the child opened her mouth as if wanted to say something.
The Queen's feature became soft immediately when a babbling sound came out of baby lips and chubby hands snapped in his robe. Setting her up on his lap, Eren leaned against one of the large stones that surrounded the river and focused all his attention on the creature that seemed to scream out for affection in his arms.
-Was it you who led me here? - Eren asked, softly voiced while his index finger again stroked the small face. Looking at the girl in his lap, he realized that the bad feeling he was feeling was no longer present and that was what drove him to find the baby. – You must have been waiting all this time, huh?
As if understanding the words, the child shook her chubby legs and let out more incomprehensible grunts, a toothless smile pulling out a laugh from Eren.
-Thanatos must have liked you, child. - Eren laughed, calmly stroking the golden curls that decorated the baby's head. – To have blessed you and protected your way through the rivers of Hades... I bet you smiled this cute for Death to let you through the gates, huh?
Eren joked, even though it seemed impossible that a human child could navigate the rivers of Pain, Oblivion, and Vulnerability without suffering any harm. The Queen quickly thought that perhaps that child was a new God abandoned in The Underworld, or perhaps a new soul who suffered the end of life and was lost during its years of postmortem slavery.
However, those cheeks were too full of life for someone who had already faced death. The fragility of fair skin was too peculiar to be that of a new Olympian God and although it seemed unlikely, there was no doubt what that baby was.
-You're not a god, right? - Eren whispered, looking deep into the blue and innocent eyes of someone who didn't yet know the malice of the world. -And not a slave... You're just an innocent human baby... – The words seemed strange in his mouth and as he tried to organize his own thoughts to find out how that child had ended up there, greenish eyes noticed the letter well embedded on the edge of the basket.
Removing the paper, it took him a few seconds to open it with just one hand. Inside the envelope, Eren removed a silk paper on which his name was engraved with elegant and cursive ink. Opening it, the brunette went on to read what was written.
For Persephone.
I believe we haven't seen enough of each other for you to expect anything from me, Queen of The Underworld, but even though I've seen your eyes for only a few seconds, I realized that in you there was more passion and determination than expected. As Goddess of Love, I am the one tasked with bearing all kinds of affection, from Eros to Agape, and within you, I could see all kinds of love cultivated with Hades. And because of that, I write you this letter, begging you to have the compassion to love this bastard child.
The baby in this basket is named Ymir and the destiny of this child was influenced by me and my powers. The one who gave birth to this girl was called Myrrha, whose mother, Cenchreis , bragged of having her daughter more power and beauty than the gods. For decades, both provoked me and, as punishment, Myrrha was involved in an incestuous relationship with her father, King Cinyras of Cyprus. Satisfied with my revenge, I didn't imagine that by sleeping with her own father, Myrrha would have gotten pregnant. When Cinyras learned that his daughter had passed herself off as a prostitute to satisfy her sexual desires, the king pursued her with a knife and I, knowing that the child had nothing to do with it, felt sorry for the human still being spawned and turned Myrrha into a giant tree.
From the Myrrha tree, the child was born, attached to the vegetable mother through the cervical spine. As I passed her, I saw the baby inside the bark of the tree, healthy and human as it should be, and when I realized it was a female, I named her Ymir. Ymir, the one who was born from the poison of the incestuous relationship between father and daughter and who was born in the emptiness of the bark of a tree. Ymir, the first being to be born from a giant sequoia.
To you, Persephone, I deliver the child who, like you, has the destiny traced by an incestuous relationship.
Aphrodite.
Finishing the reading silently, Eren had narrowed eyes and compressed lips when Aphrodite wrote to him the reason why that child was there. The goddess also didn't seem apologetic in her words and Eren frowned. Without realizing it, the boy pressed the baby against his chest, vowing silently to protect her from any curse that fell upon her.
Oblivious to the turbulent thoughts that whipped the queen, Ymir continued to hold tightly in the boy's robe, snuggling against his warm body and desiring to be loved and cared as a child should be.
-Don't worry, Ymir, here you can be whoever you choose. - Planting a kiss on the baby's head, the brunette hugged her tightly and stood up from the grass. - You are the one born from the source of all organic matter in the world...from a tree and from Gaia, the mother earth herself. And I promise you that your fate hasn't been decided at your birth. Your life will be proof of that.
Determined to keep his word, he left the basket and the bag of coins behind, not supporting the thought that someone considered bribing him to keep the baby.
Walking quietly into the palace, he didn't even notice the pair of trained eyes on him, completely focused on the baby in his arms.
The moment Eren had agreed to keep the child, the cruel fate that haunted her was barred at the gate of The Underworld, in which both The Queen and The God of Death accepted the human child with open hearts.
Now only the time and the choices little Ymir would make would trace her destiny. If, over time, the child chose to return to the land of mortals, she could. But if she wished to remain in The Underworld, she would be accepted as she did the first time.
And even if The King of the Dead himself didn't know that his Queen would soon introduce him a daughter, Eren would only have to convince him with words and kisses and both would bring a solution so that Ymir wouldn't suffer from lack of energy in The Underworld.
But looking at Ymir's bluish orbs, Eren was sure that everything would be okay.
Only time would be able to show that the little baby, with thin blond hair and curious blue eyes, would become Macaria, The Goddess of Blessed Death and daughter of Persephone and Hades. A goddess who had captured the hearts of The Rulers of The Underworld and for whom Death himself had fallen in love. A Goddess whose stay in The Underworld had been blessed by the God of Death himself and who made the World of The Dead her home.
Eren took her into the palace completely unaware of the fate his daughter would have. As he carried the child bundled into his arms, he no longer had any memories of how he wanted his day to be and didn't even care about the questioning look Hades cast him as soon as he saw his Queen enter the room with a gentle smile directed to something in his arms.
Without waiting for him to ask, Eren told in a light and carefree tone:
-Levi, we have a baby.
And only time could erase Levi's haunted feature, the sound of a cup of tea falling to the ground, and Eren's loud laughter at his husband's frightened reaction.
--------
Eren had to be especially patient with Levi, since the god had lost any capacity for rationality when he saw his Queen with a blonde child in his lap. The first thing that popped into his head referred to Hermes or Ares and he had to take a deep breath and remember that Eren wasn't able to have a child for obvious reasons.
But that didn't explain why there was one in his arms. The conversation between them began with the question "where did you get this?" and the answer - "from the river" - only confused The King of the Dead. The man, who always wore a mask of impassivity and power, was completely speechless as he followed Eren around the house and watched him mutter about the child needing a bath.
-Where did you get this baby from, again?
And when the queen looked at Levi, Eren realized he was on the verge of an outbreak and still trying to stay calm.
Smiling kindly, the boy thought he now had to treat Hades as gently as he treated the baby he was carrying. Until he narrated the events and delivered the letter to Hades, things went in slow steps. And at some point, as thin eyebrows frowned at the paper, Eren proceeded to bite his lower lips, uncertain about Levi's opinion about children.
To be quite honest, the man wasn't a very friendly figure at first and perhaps he hated the little creatures called children. But Eren also refused to imagine him being cruel enough to let a child suffer in the hands of Fate.
When Levi finished reading, he blinked twice at the letter. He looked up at Eren, to the child, and then again looked deep into his Queen's emerald eyes. And when the boy thought Levi had broken, the man put on a serious expression, kneaded the letter into a ball, and approached Eren.
-Alright. - With a strong kiss on the lips of a bewildered brunette, Levi retreated seriously as if he had a duty to do.
-What? – Eren asked dumbfounded, the baby looking curiously at her surroundings and grabbing the figure she was already clinging to. Levi put a hand on the small of Eren's back and guided him to one of the castle's bathrooms.
-I'm going to heat up water for the bath and instruct Sasha to do something that little humans can eat. – The older one began to speak, ignoring a look that Eren gave him that basically screamed "are you well or have you gone crazy?" – It's obvious that by ingesting something from The Underworld, she will be part of it, but I will not let a baby starve and this child will be able to choose what she wants to be when she grows up and–
Within seconds, Levi disappeared from the bathroom, talking to himself and leaving Eren completely amazed about the paternal reaction. Soon after, there was a bowl of warm water for Ymir to be bathed, Hades grumbling that they needed clothes that fit into "human dwarfs" and trotting out once more.
Laughing at the overprotection of The God of Hell before a mere human baby, Eren smiled, never have imagined himself in the position he was in. Descending the baby carefully after checking the water temperature, he held her with one hand, supporting the soft body on his forearm, and used the other hand to clean her and leave her smelling with the herbs that were in the makeshift bathtub.
Excited, the baby began to laugh for no reason as small, chubby hands pounded in the water and splashed drops all over the place. Minutes later, a serious-faced Hades appeared holding the world's cutest whitest towel in his outstretched arms, the youngest not thinking twice and putting the baby in his lap.
The way metallic blue eyes widened in horror and fear of breaking that fragile creature was what made Eren put a smug smile on his face. Helping him make a cloth diaper, the two wrapped the baby in a makeshift fabric of what was a warm and comfortable tunic. And soon Sasha entered Eren's room, where the rulers were, with a small bowl full of porridge.
The girl went out of her way to pry why Hades ordered food for human babies, but none of the newly made parents let Ymir be seen. Taking the cook's bowl, Levi passed it onto Eren and both placed a small portion of the food in a spoon, waiting for it to cool down enough not to hurt her.
Half the bowl later, Eren had a blond package sleeping quietly and Levi arranged a nest of blankets on the floor, with pillows around, to rest the child and have no chance of her rolling from the bed and falling.
It was then that the two withdrew – Levi certifying Eren that he would feel and listen if the child woke up – and went to the elder's room. As the other bathed, Levi prepared the bed and rested on the pillows, closing his eyes and breathing deeply against the day that had passed.
The first thing Eren said when he got out of the shower was the realization of what had happened.
-Levi, there's a child in the next room. - Big green eyes widened, as if only at that moment did he realize the situation. Clutched with a towel around, he covered his entire body up to his collarbones and sat on the edge of the bed looking blankly.
Levi raised an eyebrow to the boy, realizing that Eren was the type who acted before thinking, while he was exactly the opposite, and therefore was already at peace with the idea of being a father.
Obviously, that didn't stop him from taunting his Queen.
-Hm, I didn't think I was going to get you pregnant so soon. - The elder spoke, an obscene tone in his tongue that caused Eren to turn his head and give him an outraged look.
A slap was struck on Levi's biceps, who didn't even blink at the boy's reaction.
-Whoever said you were funny was lying. - Eren said, a pout on his lips and pushing Levi with his body so he could lie down on the blankets. While Hades had a book in his hand, sitting and leaning against the headboard, Eren sat on the bed, removing the towel from his body and getting naked under the covers.
Hiding a satisfied smile with the boy's reaction, Levi kept silent and pretended not to notice the times Eren changed position and rubbed his bare legs in his. For minutes, he continued reading the book, completely ignoring the brunette's attempt to draw his attention with long, soft legs and big green eyes.
-...I'm tense. - A thin, low voice sounded like he was testing the words in the air before he even believed them. Levi had to force the smirk down, keeping his gaze indifferent while, by the corner of his eye, he could see Eren watching him like an eagle with green orbs burning with lust.
-Hm. - Hades "answered", certain that a more elaborate answer would denounce the physical response that a simple phrase from the boy caused him.
-Do you know what makes me more relaxed? - Now Eren sounded more certain, voice still low, but with a seductive tone he began to improve as he built confidence in his actions and his own body.
Levi tried to pretend to be uninterested until Eren looked at him with large innocent eyes and scarred with desire.
-I don't know what you're talking about, Eren. - Hades said. - You're a father now and you shouldn't indulge in dirty thoughts.
But it was palpable the teasing in Levi's hoarse voice, the depth the tone reached causing chills in Eren's soft, dark skin, who had to make an effort to roll his eyes.
-Since when can't parents be kind to each other? Humans do that. - He shrugged, laying with his belly down and supporting his body on his forearms. He was fully attentive to how the sheet outlined his back, the curve of his supple ass and his thick thighs, attracting Levi's attention immediately.
Greyish eyes wandered the extent of the Queen's body, tongue moistening his lips slowly as Levi gradually loosened the fine line of control and provocation, letting Eren experience the euphoria of leading the intimacy between the two.
-And since when did a boy who was a virgin until a few months ago know that? - Levi finally smirked, never looking away from Eren as he closed the book and set it aside. Eren, in turn, accompanied all movement, anxiety and excitement consuming his being and causing him to frown and bite his lower lips.
-Levi, don't make me beg.
-I would never do that.
And Eren rolled his eyes, pushing his body up and sitting on his knees, not even a trace of shame as he dropped the blanket and exposed his entire torso and flat belly. The material accumulated at the top of his thighs, teasing to be discarded.
-Sure... you have this calm posture, but you're a sadist inside... - Slowly and sensually, the boy stated. Arching his spine and stretching his arms up, Eren provided a delightful silhouette in Levi's eyes, who took his right hand up to the boy's chin and brought his face close to his.
-And why haven't you run away from me yet? Aren't you afraid of my darkness? With sparkling and perverted eyes, Hades watched all emotions go plainly through his boy's face. From excitement, surprise, confidence to the passion that burned in an eternal fire in both of them.
And of all reactions Eren could have, he chose the one that destroyed Levi's self-control gradually, causing him palpitations and making Levi question why he got out of bed every day when he could make love to the boy every hour of eternity: Eren smiles innocently, resting his chin on long pale fingers, and pulling the sheet off him.
With his nudity revealed, he remained more perfect than ever, attracting and forcing Hades' exclusive attention. Moving languidly, Eren dragged his thighs across the bed until he got close enough to lick the lobe of the god's ear.
-Nope... because you haven't seen mine yet. Now... – With a wicked smile as he noticed the surprise in Levi's gray eyes, Eren took advantage and climbed on his lap, pressing his backside against Hades' erection and letting him observe his naked glory. - ... If I were you, I'd get smarter, because soon enough I'll dominate you.
Both with dilated pupils and desire running through their veins was how another one of the battles in which they fought in the intimacy of the room began. Eren became increasingly provocative, testing Hades' control until he was thrown against the mattress and fucked until his voice was hoarse.
And on none of these occasions did he regret it. On the contrary, the idea of fighting and stirring Levi grew stronger, the sexual attraction shaped with the emotional connection in a sublime way.
So even though his breath was scarce, groans escaping his throat when he tried to be a decent father and not to moan so loudly, Eren didn't regret any choice that led him until that moment. Even if his legs trembled, sweat kept their bodies together and warm, his hands tired and wet tried to bring him to orgasm while Levi had fun inside himself, there was nowhere in the world he would rather be than here: in the place where green found blue-gray for all eternity.
Notes:
Was it obvious the reference from Eren and Ymir’s first encounter in canon? hahaha Eros and Agape as a YOI reference, but you guys can ignore that and focus on the BIBLE REFERENCE. Since I know we humans have different religions, let me explain to you! Ymir here was a reference to Moses! In the Hebrew part of The Bible, baby Moses was put in a basket and down the River Nile, so he would survive the Pharaoh’s orders to kill baby boys. The baby was found by a princess, the Pharaoh’s daughter, and the woman took care of it. That’s it hahaha That’s all you need to know! And yes, Macaria exists and yes, she’s Hades and Persephone’s daughter and yes, she and Thanatos fall in love eventually. And NOW! Did you guys see our Eren having sex in a provocative way?? The little shit is growing!! The next chapter will be the last one and I feel bad telling you guys we have YET another myth! I think it’s funny you guys totally forgot about one SnK woman and she will appear next chapter, as well as jealous Eren and Mother Demeter! Any hints? See you three days from now! Kissus!
Chapter 15: Hera Inferna
Summary:
Notes:
Be aware! Jealous Eren x Nymphs is the best Eren; Eren’s silent revenge to Zeus; Demeter losing her baby boy forever; Queen Eren’s wrath; Power Bottom Eren; and the last chapter!
Now enjoy hahaha
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
"He wears strength and darkness
equally well,
the boy has always been half god,
half hell."
- Nikita Gill, modified.”
HERA INFERNA
The first time he left his kingdom to fulfill the obligations of his duty was difficult. While Levi and Eren both knew there was no escaping the two months Eren would stay on Mount Olympus, neither was prepared to let the other go.
Eren insisted on wearing his colorful clothes, silver bracelets and the stone necklaces Ymir gave him as a gift, as an attempt to keep some of The Underworld with him while spending springtime with Demeter. Although he didn't carry the crown of Queen of The Underworld, intertwining his fingers with Levi's while the carriage carried them to Olympus kept him sane enough to remember where his home was.
And although he was surprised when the three violet-eyed nymphs greeted him with smiles, nothing prepared him for Demeter coming to him with tears in her eyes and welcoming him into a tight and sad embrace.
Eren could feel Levi's questioning look on his back when his body was clutched by his mother's, but even though Carla had some questionable actions, that hug was all he wanted for several decades. There was no way to get rid of that pleasant feeling that exploded within him, the weight of resentment giving way to a peace that only affirmed how much Eren loved where his choices led him.
When Hades left him there for the first time, alone in Olympus after the Zeus incident, it was obvious in his worried grimace how he was displeased with the arrangement. But in the months Eren had to reason with the knowledge of having to spend two moons with his mother, he felt more prepared to come out of his cocoon and face the Olympic agenda as an adult.
Now, if Hera received an anonymous letter quoting Zeus' current lovers, Eren had nothing to do with it. He just couldn't deny how hilarious the image of The God of Gods hanging upside down from the top of the highest tower on the Mount for hours as punishment was.
Gradually, he also realized that distance was what he needed for his relationship with his mother to improve. Having grown up and started a life away from Demeter was what the woman needed to finally perceive her son as a free person and not a possession.
So every time he showed more ownership of himself, Carla realized that the bold boy with bright and determined green eyes was not Kore. Every time Eren decided what to do, where to bathe, what clothes to wear, or when he left the house on Olympus, Carla realized there was no way to control that free bird anymore.
And like any mother who finds herself out of her child's life, a nostalgic sadness installed in her eyes when she saw short brown threads, bare feet, and a happy smile.
Yes, that's what made her sadder, the knowledge of the happiest smile she'd never seen on her son's face. A son who had become the queen of the most feared kingdom, Hades' husband and the guardian of a little girl. The son who visited her once a year, for two months, to help her make the flowers bloom. The one who never stopped talking proudly of Hades and their daughter Ymir.
All the years Eren did his duty, Levi was always the one who brought him to Olympus, always kissing him goodbye and promising to return and pick him up to more ten months of joy. Sometimes Ymir, who grew up frighteningly fast from living in The Underworld, accompanied her parents and gave him some token so that Eren wouldn't forget them.
Which was impossible, since no nymph could stand anymore how Persephone brag about his husband and daughter. While Eren did have a more affable and quiet personality during his months in Olympus, there was always the aura of Queen of The Underworld around him and no one dared to interrupt him when he was talking nonstop about Ymir's antics or about the gifts he got from Hades.
Gradually, the Queen's name became increasingly known. While it was public knowledge that Persephone always interfered with Hades' decisions in favor of heroes and mortals, and that he was always willing to receive those who visited the Kingdom of the Dead seeking help, the boy's power over Hades was what made him feared.
The fact that Levi would do anything and everything for Eren was what made some gods uneasy about the possibility of angering The Queen, as Zeus had done, and then having more severe retaliation than closing the gates of The Underworld. And the Greeks feared the name of Hades' husband, avoiding calling the name "Persephone", the one who brings death, and calling him "Hera Inferna."
This was how each year followed: Eren leaving his home for two months to return to being the God of herbs, flowers and fruits. He was always counting the days to be back in The Underworld and sit at Levi's feet, while Hades read some book to the little blonde girl resting on his lap. And every year, Demeter's attempt to get the boy back failed, Eren increasingly confident of what he wanted and who he was.
-That man seduced and manipulated you, Persephone! - Carla tried, watching once again the boy dress in red as he always did when Levi was about to pick him up, the black cape under his shoulders causing him to resume the posture of Queen of the Dead.
That conversation between Demeter and Eren was already customary, always occurring when he was returning to The Underworld after spring. While his mother seemed to understand the impossibility of having him back, surely knowledge didn't stop her from trying to change his mind. And even though in the early years that conversation had angered him immensely, now a smirk remained on full, red lips, the certainty that his mother's speech would never affect him.
-Mama, how many times do I need to remind you... - Eren said, soft voice and calm eyes as he finished arranging his dress, cleaning it out of any dirt. Leaving Olympus behind, he just quickly evoked his Persephone personality without any shame. - Hades didn't manipulate me, Mama. I asked him for it. For the blood, for the lust, for the sin.
And no matter how many times he was blunt about who he really was, Carla always widened her eyes with surprise and hopeless every time those dirty words were told.
- I chose and I wanted the pomegranate. I wanted darkness and I chose it. I didn't want the pearls the nymphs talk about. Nor the fine marble of palaces, nor even the reddish roses. I wanted pomegranates and I wanted him. So I grabbed my king and fled to the land of death where I reign.
At that point, hearing him speak with such a low and sensual voice, Demeter already had tears in her eyes. Even knowing how much Eren had changed, she still wanted to cling to the scenes where her boy sat on the grass and laughed innocently at the nymphs, without being feared and not being the husband of a malicious god. But every time Eren left, she was forced to remember how much the boy had grown up.
- I don't know how much you knew about me even before I grew, but I'll tell you I've changed. - And as always, there was the gentle provocation that the green-eyed one always made, pleased to see the pinch of regret in his mother's eyes. Approaching her, the innocence on his face seemed to fall apart as fast as the minutes they still had together.
-Mama, the red on my lips isn't wine, it's lust. - He smiles in an affected manner as he holds the goddess's trembling and icy hands among his. - And of course Olympus' mouths run wild, but nothing that's said, like the fact that I've been dragged, is true and you know it because you were there. Our relationship isn't half of what the rumors say.
Even though Carla had watched in horror her beloved and precious Eren walk by himself into Hades' arms, she wouldn't undo the rumors, the broken pride of having her offspring taken away from her refusing any knowledge of the God of Hell.
-B-but, Eren!
Again, too late, she seemed to realize that Kore and Persephone were just a duty and, almost begging, Demeter used her son's human name. Although the name was strange in her tongue, she still tried to look hopeful, as if there were chances to bring him back.
Eren didn't fail to smile, green eyes sparkling with the power he had over himself and the possibility of defending himself and choosing as he pleased.
- Mama, I know your heart hurts for me, but I hope you understand one day. Even with the power Hades has, out of an entire kingdom, he kneels to me. - The boy said, the smile growing even more and heart beating hard with the idea that soon enough Levi would be there to pick him up, punctually at noon, as he had always done. - He calls me Queen, calls me Hope. - And his voice overflowed with love and happiness as he described some of the intimacy that was never told, the ruler's little dirty secret. - I wasn't taken. I left. And if you only knew how his hair is the softest when he's on his knees, coaxing spring from inside of me...
At this point, Demeter was already trying to accept that there was nothing she could do after having been wrong for so many years, and watching him smile softly, she hated herself even more for letting Hades take him away.
-Mama, know that even if the bed is warm and our hearts have become cold, there's nowhere else I'd rather be. - Eren replied, finally letting her hands slip from his and taking steps back, toward the entrance door of the house overlooking Demeter's garden, which, in a few seconds, would be opened in the middle for the infernal carriage to come and fetch his Queen.
-Eren, you will... will never come back? - Crocodile tears Eren was used to see wetted her eyes and he knew that was the last argument Demeter had. He obviously responded in the best possible way, forcing her to perceive the pinch of sarcasm and the bittersweet taste that his words would leave.
- I'll come back when he bores me, Mama, but that's not today. – A wider smile was formed when Eren heard the roar of the earth began to tremble under his feet. The brunette had to hold back to not run like a child to the place where he knew the carriage would appear.
It was time to say goodbye for another ten months.
-If you miss me, don't send flowers. "Flowers are for the dead" or that's what the mortals say. - He winked at the end of his sentence, turning around and walking fast steps towards the exit, satisfied smile on his face and emerald eyes eager to see the owner of the darkness he loved so much.
-How could you grow to love him?! He took you from flowers to a kingdom where not a single living thing can grow!!
Demeter cried out behind him, following his footsteps until she saw him walk without a second thought to the black carriage drawn by equally black horses that appeared in the garden. Standing at the door of her residence, Demeter watched with her heart aching and her wounded pride being angered as Levi got out of the carriage, arms opening automatically to hold the boy who threw himself against him.
A long hug followed, and when green met blue-gray, the goddess didn't think Persephone still had business with her. In addition to being disgusted to have had her child taken from her, a portion of envy at seeing the love burning in their eyes turned her hands in angry fists.
To her surprise, Eren smiled, throwing his arms around Hades' neck and letting the god hide his face in his collarbones. Turning slightly to the figure of Carla, the queen laughed at the contradiction of how love, flowers, and a human child could grow in The Underworld, and then he continued to hug Hades in his arms.
-You're wrong, Mama. Hades gave me so much more than flowers. He gave me a crown made for the immortal flowers in my bones.
And so the rulers were gone, both eager to return to the routine they had created over the years.
Life is good when you had someone so compatible next to you. Despite being two sides of the same coin externally, in essence, Hades and Persephone completed each other and reigned together. Fights were so rare that even the residents of The Underworld were frightened when the tone of one of them increased. Most of the time, their arguments were always won by Eren, who came out of them even more spoiled.
Not that Levi complained. It was obvious Hades had a weakness for pampering the boy while the green-eyed one reveled in all the attention and power that rested in his hands.
That's why, when Eren trotted out, exhaling fury, from the castle, there wasn't a soul who didn't stop their sufferings to watch The Queen fulminating in anger. With the dress tightly clenched in his hands, livid green eyes decorated his angry red face, which seemed ready to combust at any moment. Thin brown strands were glued to his forehead and Eren went down the stairs of the palace entrance in such a hurry that Levi appeared at the door panting, as if he had followed the boy's race until that moment.
-Eren! - The god called, about to follow the younger but stopping when angry, golden eyes got him frozen in the place he stood.
-You don't dare follow me. - Eren's voice was so dark as thunder, deep and harsh, with no trace of the joviality and contagious laughter the boy had. Veins popped in his neck, the brunette's heartbeat claiming for revenge. - Is that what you need to betray me? Two months a year?
And it seemed that even the sky halted with the accusation, vibrant and yellowish eyes challenging Levi to open his mouth, knowing that if the man was intelligent, he would not make such a mistake.
Isabel, who heard Eren's screams through the halls, soon appeared beside Levi, wide-eyed and confused by the commotion.
-Wha-
She didn't even have time to question, Hades taking a few steps forward slowly, as one would do with uncontrollable animals. And Eren could be uncontrollable when he wanted to.
-Eren, we just talked whi -
-Oh, just a talk? - The boy asked in poisonous tone, pupils dilated with anger and almost covering the thin gold ring that remained of the orbs Levi loved so much. - What a beautiful date! Meeting and talking to the nymph you were having a relationship with while you couldn't have me! - Eren accused, full eyebrows so pressed that it gave him a wild look.
The black flowers that always arose when his temper was altered already decorated the mop of brown hair in an exemplary way: they emerged from branches of herbs and descended like cascades through the Queen's shoulders.
Levi pressed his thin lips in a straight line, pale face beginning to redden with exaltation and elegant eyebrows joining together.
It was rather true that The King of the Dead had maintained a relationship and made the water nymph Petra, who lived in the Cocytus river, his concubine. Except that, as soon as he met Eren and his bright green eyes, there wasn't room in him to fit another love.
Then what he felt for the red-haired nymph was quickly crushed by the hope of possessing Eren in the near future, which caused their relationship to remain sexual for a few months before they parted ways.
Petra, known as the "Nymph of The Underworld", seemed not to accept Hades' decision to break up with her, but preferred to remain proud and wait for the god to return to her, bragging that she was Hades' perfect lover.
But Eren happened and soon The Underworld got a Queen.
Enraged with jealousy, Petra couldn't believe that Levi had chosen a man to lie beside him, while a nymph like her was available. Like all other Olympian Gods, it was expected that Hades would choose a nymph or at least keep one as his mistress even after the wedding.
Except that after Eren's arrival, Petra held such little importance that she was never even mentioned, her voice soon forgotten with the same significance as a grain of sand. And then, when Eren departed from the kingdom to once again fulfill his spring duties, the nymph decided it was time to reclaim what, in her opinion, was her title.
And of course, being queen, Eren found out, which led them to the scene at that moment.
Levi was about to roll his eyes and snort, annoyed at himself for not being able to find the right words to explain that his boy was the only one and would always be the one to have his heart. Hades hated all the concubines his brothers had and the polygamous example they gave. Not that he claimed the right to judge what the other gods did, but he just couldn't imagine himself acting unfaithfully with Eren.
-Eren, I would never engage in any activity other than-
-Other than sticking your dick in some nymph when I'm not around? - The boy screamed, clearly unable to hear or reason any sentence before anger took his body. Judging by the way the grass around him turned to ashes, such annoyance would need to be blown off to help him calm down.
- Eren ! - Hades' voice roared as if he couldn't believe what he was being accused of. Even Isabel cast a startled glance at him when his scolding silenced Eren at the same instant.
Only to cause tears running down his cheeks stained with anger.
Levi's regretful feature was instantaneously and he even raised his hand as if trying to hold his Queen. Despite this, he didn't move, certain that Eren needed some time alone, and so he watched the boy turn his back and run away from the palace.
-Don't come near me!
And of course Eren had no other path in mind but the route to Cocytus.
Barefoot and marching his way to the waterbed, anger twisted into his stomach and the sense of betrayal caused his throat to hurt against the need to sob. The tears that came down his full cheeks were only a small sign of the sadness plaguing him, since all the soil trampled by him lost vegetation and turned into black powder.
It was as if cursed roots irrigated from his feet, leaving a trail of destruction wherever he passed. If before the forests of The Underworld seemed intimidating, now the black flowers that fell from Eren's brown hair rotted to let a putrid odor spread through the thick trees.
How did Levi get carried away by a nymph? How dare such an inferior being try anything with The King when everyone knew he was already taken?
No, that was a challenge to his sanity.
He was provoked to the point of awakening the deepest shadows in himself, a stream of electricity flowing in his blood as if he was being warmed from the inside out. Now green eyes had a gold sheen, fixedly observing the path he made to be certain of the target that would receive his hatred.
And Eren couldn't believe the audacity when he reached the shores of Cocytus.
Lying quietly in the rocks that decorated the crystal clear waters, a nymph with long red hair was laying peacefully. One foot in the river and the other resting on the stone, Petra had her eyes closed and a provocative smile on the thin, triangular face of a nymph. With violet eyes still hidden, Eren gritted his teeth when one of her hands came up to her flat belly tracing gentle circles on the soft skin.
Mintha. That was Mintha Petra.
The only nymph to have an affair with Hades, completely naked in front of him displaying her pubic hair and small breasts with pride while pretending to ignore The Queen's suffocating presence.
Eren, who had stopped immediately when he spotted the scene before him, grabbed tightly the dress he wore, frowning eyebrows and dry tears creating a shattered appearance that the boy wouldn't give that woman the pleasure to see.
Breathing deep, full and red lips in an angry line, Eren raised his head, piercing eyes turning from bright gold to an opaque, almost cloudy, green.
-Nymph, how dare you be in my kingdom without my permission? - The voice before soft and playful take on a demanding tone, hoarse of jealousy and possessiveness.
Immediately Petra's foot stopped dangling in the river and Eren, who was now eyeing her body, noticed the hesitation.
Not that the fact of intimidating her bothered him, quite the contrary. But the bitter taste in his mouth when the woman's slender, curved body rose from her seated position was so evident that the grimace in his face didn't go unnoticed by her.
Sitting on the stone, Mintha let her long red hair fall down her body, one part of her hair covering one breast while the other was thrown back. Sitting with her legs recoiled by her side, the woman looked at the brunette with provocative violet eyes.
-Do you like what you see? - The soft and sickling sweet voice sounded, but on the rosy lips there was a vexing smile and Eren raised an eyebrow when he turned his gaze to the nymph.
Was he enjoying what he saw? No, never. However, his pride gradually suffered the impact when he compared how different his body was from hers and if Levi had been with her in the past, he liked that body, right?
The idea of his King touching the nymph's body, kissing her skin with the same love he had with Eren, occurred in his head. Did Levi look at her with the same seductive, loving, hungry way he looked at Eren? Did he kneel to admire her body? Would he rather use that reproductive organ than Eren's?
Did Levi still have feelings for her?
Everyone knew that Eren gradually developed as a righteous, kind Queen to those in need. Everyone also knew that, to be Queen of The Underworld, something had to remain dormant within the boy, which the nymph ignored in her blind possession of Levi.
-You're not going to say anything? - Stepping on the stone to take impulse, Petra stood up and soon dropped her body into the grass that was gradually infiltrated with black branches, like angry veins being emitted. Despite this, the woman seemed oblivious in herself confidence. -Did you finally realize you're not the one for him?
With arched eyebrows, Eren raised his chin, jaw locked as he watched as an eagle the woman approaches him.
-Nymph, be careful with your words when you address me.
If anger used to make him burn inside, seeing how insane the woman was, a sense of superiority took hold of him, making him remain silent in order not to equate to her.
-Oh, why are you so quiet? Wounded pride in realizing how great my beauty is? - Petra laughed, getting close enough for her nipples to touch Eren's chest as if she were physically challenging him. Eren frowned, immediately moving away with disgust at her touch. Even so, Mintha continued to trace her own fate in the worst possible way.
-Hades will come back to me the moment he realizes the mistake he made in putting you on the throne. Or do you really think this is going to last? - She started quoting on her fingers like she had to work hard to tell him what she thought of Eren. - An overprotected, innocent virgin... who wouldn't want to dirty a little bit, right? Even Zeus tried to...
But then she reached a sensitive topic to Eren, causing a shiver so strong in the boy's body that even Eren was surprised when his voice thickened in a scary tone. He was still trying to stay calm, though his fingers were itching to strangle the one who tried to take his husband away.
-Shut up, Nymph, and get out of my kingdom. - He warned, perceiving his patience wearing out slowly, the power always contained starting to numb his fingers.
-Oh, Persephone, don't let the title go to your head. - Petra rolled her eyes theatrically, shaking her hand as if giving a child a lesson. Even if the "child" was the Queen of The Underworld. - I've been here for years while you're just a visitor. I'm the maiden of The Underworld, the Nymph of Cocytus, and the one who slept with Hades. - She exclaimed, in an arrogant and presumptuous way, unaware of Eren's arched eyebrow, who even felt like laughing when the woman proclaimed herself "maiden".
If before he was angry that Levi had wasted time talking to her while Eren was spending his months on Olympus, now he despised being diminished by someone with such absurd actions. Furthermore, how could Levi stand that nymph? The Levi he knew didn't seem like the kind of man who got excited about that squeaky voice.
Maybe the brunette had to teach his husband a few things.
Petra continued her speech, sometimes even realizing the smirk forming on his face and which caused her some vertigo. But if the woman felt the right to possess Hades before, it wasn't a strange face that would make her shut up.
-Better yet, Eren , what are you? A little boy with no confidence trying to get out of his mother's wings? Someone unable to give Levi what he needs? Your body is nothing close to mine, and you're not even capable of giving him heirs.
Eren's eyebrows frowned automatically, the roots that proliferated beneath his feet surrounding the redhead without her noticing. He didn't understand her obsession with heirs, since Hades had never mentioned the desire to expand the family. Still, they had both accepted Ymir with open arms and Levi was the one putting her to sleep every night.
-Oh, wait. Do you think that bastard kid is enough? What a shame of you, dragging Hades into your mediocre world.
And insulting his child was the limit for Eren. His little Ymir didn't deserve to have her reputation ruined by a low-ranking nymph, yet another who clung to the remnants of a sexual relationship – which Eren would make a point of erasing as soon as he was in the room with Levi.
-Quiet talking, Nymph, you obviously don't know how to control your tongue. - The brunette tried, but deep down a part of him wanted her to annoy him even more so she could taste his poison. A part of him wanted to confirm some of the rumors of how hellish The Queen could be.
-Well, Hades didn't complain when I used it. - The naughty smile he received in response only made him increasingly aware that Petra had no sense of self-preservation.
If Eren tried not to stoop to that creature before, now he approached her and looked in her intensely. He then smiled maliciously, already fed up with the woman's craziness.
-How delusional are you? - Green eyes searched Mintha's face, sheer disgust and disappointment in the green orbs. - How disgraceful are you to seek a man who's not available, huh? Maybe you're hurt to know you're so inferior that even though you're the only nymph available in The Underworld, you weren't the chosen one?
Her face went from satisfied to horrified in a matter of seconds, such was the emotional instability she demonstrated. Small hands clasped in fists, she even stomped the ground, trying to keep in control of the situation even though one of her eyebrows began to tremble in sheer anxiety at Eren's serious tone.
-Don't you dare-
Eren wouldn't let her expel any more crap out of her mouth.
- I don't care about the size of your breasts, your body, your uterus. I'm The Queen and it's me he sleeps with every night. - Eren said and this time it was he who got close enough to force her to take steps back in order to protect her personal space. - Oh, I've also never heard him complain about me not having a vagina... better yet, he says he loves how tight I am...
If nymphs could turn into little ogres when angry, that would be Petra's appearance at that moment. Choleric, her face struck a formidable shade of red and she threw her long red locks back and completely lost the sensual posture she was trying to maintain.
-How much longer do you think it's going to be news to him, huh?! He will soon see how basic you are, how little you can give –
Her shouted words were then interrupted by the sensation of strong roots curling around her ankles and the redhead looked with wide eyes at the black trunks curling like snakes in her legs.
Listening to a chorus of exclamations and hysterical questions, Eren approached until he was close to the immobilized nymph, delicate hands holding his dress in a theatrical and well-mannered way.
- It's funny...You seem so focused on heirs and vaginas, but I've never seen a plant have children...
It was his last words, green eyes displaying an innocent glow and a pout on his lips as if he were not responsible for the agonizing cries and whining of the nymph, which gradually diminished and writhed in human form until she was no bigger than the height of Eren's ankles.
What was once the redhead nymph of Cocytus who dared to defame Persephone now was nothing more than a flower named " Petrea Volubilis ", also commonly known as "queen's wreath".
With firm and rigid branches and with terminal flowering with numerous shoots, Petrea had small petals, star-shaped and the same color of the Nymph's eyes.
Eren dropped his head innocently, a smirk forming as he bent down to see what the annoying nymph had become. Passing long fingers on a wreath of purplish flowers, he arched an eyebrow in victory.
-If I can't give him kids, Petrea , neither can you. And let's remember that even though I can't, he chose me. Levi went to Olympus to have me
and now you can spend the rest of your existence reflecting on who really holds his love while decorating the gates of our world, like the creeper you are.
As he hit his dress' fabric and removed the dirt from it, The Queen turned and made his way to the palace as if nothing had happened, the silence of the creatures and the singing of the birds calming him down.
Before leaving the flower behind, however, Eren said in a playful tone, knowing he was being heard.
- I don't know if a plant of this level can still have some rationality, but I still think I was kind enough to give you such a beautiful appearance... I promise I'll ask Farlan to plant you on the doors of the classic gardens, or maybe on the sides of the main gates... You know, so that you may guard and ornament the gates of our home for all eternity without being able to enter it.
-------------
When Eren calmly entered through the castle door, Levi was standing in a millisecond, a worried feature and already opening his mouth to beg for a conversation and forgiveness. Although nothing had happened, Hades understood that Eren had been upset by the mere fact that Petra had entered their home and spent five minutes talked to Levi when the boy was in Olympus and couldn't see nor talk with his husband. And so, by understanding and loving him, Levi, the King of Hell, was ready to endure any punishment Eren thought righteous as long as he no longer needed to see the tears that cut through his heart coming down his boy's full cheeks.
Upon hearing Eren call him to the room, he didn't think twice before following his Queen, sweaty hands and a confused by how quiet the little one was.
However, of all the situations that had conjured up his mind, none of them counted on Eren sitting on top of him, his cock deep inside the boy as he rode him with dexterity and a determined look in his eyes.
-E-Eren... - Hades practically roared, feeling the warmth of his Queen engulfing him in a mind-blowing way, thick thighs caging his body and Eren's full hips rolling against his own, riding him like he was a centaur.
No, no, imagining his Eren riding a centaur caused fury to bubble inside him. He brought his hands up to Eren's still dressed waist to try to hold him possessively, pulling him against his body to spread bites and prove that Eren was taken.
Except that even before his long, pale fingers reached him, Eren was slapping his hands away and Levi looked at him with elegant furrowed eyebrows and thin lips half-open with his sighs of pleasure. Completely naked under Eren, this was the first time Hades was in a submissive position, being practically used as a toy by the brunette. He had even kept his clothes, just climbing up the skirt of his dress and fitting the penis inside with skill, as if Levi was not allowed to watch his body enveloping his dick.
-No touching. - The soft voice Levi loved so much ordered, a pinch of defiance in it and Levi hissed when the boy's well-cut nails pinned in his muscular chest.
-Shit... - Trying to control the urge to dominate him, Levi took both hands to the headboards, holding the wood tightly enough to make it grunt. The silk canopy around them was not released, leaving clear vision for anyone who wanted to see The King of the Dead be dominated by his Queen. - Eren.... Ugh! I-I think we were going to talk?
-Hm... - The kid thoughtfully tipped his head, looking innocent even as he continued to move his ass up and down in the most sensual way possible. - Y-Yeah but...I need...to teach you who you belong to...
Watching the boy bite his lower lip while seeking his own pleasure and not being able to do anything to possess him was what caused Levi's interior to whirl in admiration and desire. If before Eren was a tiny ball of shame and innocence, now he moved with such confidence it was mesmerizing. Body well demarcated with the dress he wore, sweat dripping down the short threads and Levi couldn't avoid admiring everything his Persephone was.
-Hm... and what are you going to do about Petra? - The older one asked, gray eyes closing and long black eyelashes brushing against his tall, sharp cheeks. His nails have already pierced into the wood and he tried not to pull too much and break it in half.
Eren, who rode his husband lazily, frowned at the mention of the nymph during sex and, as punishment, lowered his hip hard, making Levi dip his heels on the bed and try to move against the pressure of the body on his lap.
Taking time to regain his own breath, Eren proceeded to move in circles, grinding up on Hades and passing his hands against the sweat-soaked threads to get them off his face. The rosy cheeks and swollen lips made him a dazzling sight and he looked at Levi from above and gave him a mean smirk.
-I've dealt with her.
Oh, how The God of the Underworld was loving this. His little one had grown so much, became more confident, more self-owned and more naughty. The stupendous body he had always admired had only become more mature; his green eyes, so innocent before, could now demand respect, and even the way he walked justified his place of power.
The idea of Eren discovering all his sides, every little fold of his personality, and growing from it, made him extremely proud. But the idea of Eren mistreating someone for sheer possessiveness made him even harder.
-You're a monster, my Eren. - A dark smile surged on Hades' face and if the brunette wasn't already panting for the sex, he would've turned red.
Throwing his head back and laughing, he brought one hand between his lips, playing with them and watching the older god with sparkling and seductive eyes.
-Better a monster than an impotent god. - Eren provoked, intending to hasten his movements, but never doing so when Levi's feature clouded like the sky before the storm and his hands loosened the headboard so slowly that they resembled a snake about to attack.
-Impotent? - And Eren gave a malicious smile at the angry feature Levi presented, not even caring about the man lifting his torso and sitting on the mattress. After showing him who was in command, the brunette didn't mind letting Levi have fun if this was going to give him magical orgasms.
Tired of handing over his control, Levi hugged him and turned them into the bed, being the one on top. With the movement, his penis slid out of the youngest, who whimpered in protest when he found himself empty. Without having time to complain verbally, however, pale hands held tightly on his torso, turning him around and pulling his hip upwards, so that he was on all fours.
-Levi! - The boy protested at the rude manhandling and would probably look back to give Hades an angry look when the god's hands let go of his waist and disappeared from his body.
Until, of course, the sound of fabric being torn echoed through the room and Eren watched stupefied the fabric he wore on his back slip by his shoulders and arms and rest around his hands.
With his brunette skin in sight, Levi pulled the boy's skirt up, leaving his ass exposed and fit his cock between his ass cheeks, not resisting the temptation to mark the extension of his back with reddish kisses.
-I'll show you who's impotent, Prince.
Licking his lips with greed, Levi grabbed Eren's thick thighs and forced them more open, leaving the boy at his disposal. As Eren had already been fucked while riding, Hades didn't even wait for a second to dip his head in the tight hole, smirking at the way the boy threw his hip back, trying to swallow it up to the base.
- Not prince... Queen. - Eren sighed when he felt the inches being pushed in, his hot and wet entrance welcoming them eagerly, his body feverish.
When he was completely inside, the boy ordered, gluing his back to Levi's chest and smiling as Hades' left arm passed under his body, circling his belly and holding him close.
-I-I command you and this kingdom, Le-Levi... Now fuck me...
Fucking is what Hades did, and he did it hard to mark the boy as his own.
-Le-Levi!!! - Eren cried at the brute force with which his entrance was abused. - OH! Ugh! Slo-slower!
Of all the times they were wild in bed, that was the first Eren could barely swallow, saliva dripping down his chin and green eyes rolling back. His cries of pleasure were so loud that a large part of him was in alarm, announcing the fear of Ymir hearing them.
-You didn't want me to fuck you, my queen? - Levi whispered against his ear, panting and never failing to push hard into the boy. Eren was already a mess, saliva running down his chin and only one hand supporting his weight while the other had nailed his nails into Levi's thighs in an attempt to make him slow down. - That's the difference between fucking and making love.
Without giving Eren time to respond, Levi brought the hand that was once circling the boy's belly to his mouth, covering it and muffling the screams the boy produced. Without ever losing strength, the elder did his best to find Eren's prostate and when he found it, Eren's body trembled, threatening to collapse.
-Hmmmnnff!!
His thighs, hips and waist already had red marks from how much Levi squeezed him and brown hair fell in his eyelids, now closed because he couldn't handle so much pleasure.
-Oh, Eren, you're sucking me in so well, huh?
Losing his composure, Levi closed his eyes and marveled at the pressure inside Eren, his sobs and whines for mercy sounding like music to Hades.
As always, from the moment his prostate was found, Eren didn't take too long to cum, spasming and sobbing with pleasure. Levi was right behind, following the boy's spasms and filling him with cum.
When he removed the hand that silenced the boy, he noticed saliva soiling it but Hades couldn't be disgusted at any part of his Eren. Levi was even proud to see their cum staining his satin sheets and the reddish and abused entrance expelling semen.
Without the support of muscular arms holding him, Eren soon collapsed on the bed, lips wet with saliva and seeking air, his cheeks so red they seemed about to catch fire.
Levi didn't even care about the sweat between them, lying on his back on the bed and pulling the boy to his chest. Feeling the boy's quick, panting breath while recovering from his orgasm was always gratifying, a gentle silence stretching between them.
Caressing his fingertips gently on Eren's bare and soft back, Hades let himself close his eyes and use his free hand to pull the brunette's right thigh towards himself. Eren didn't miss the opportunity to curl around Levi, a remnant of possessiveness propelling him to hold the god as close as possible.
Thousands of things crossed his mind, from his insecurity about the nymph's body, the satisfaction he always felt when they were sexually united... to the words that had long bubbled up in his throat.
It was these secret words that made their way out before the boy even realized how much Levi needed to hear them.
-Levi...
A murmur was his answer, but Eren himself was so absorbed in his confession that he didn't care if his husband still had his eyes closed or if the affection Hades was doing on his back was causing him to become drowsy and rub his face on the pale chest. With a satisfied sigh, he began:
- You are the best and kindest thing that ever happened to me, even if that's not how our tale is told...
And after the first sentence, the rest simply followed as a delicate breath being exhaled as someone saying what was already obvious to those who knew them closely.
-When everyone treated me as if I was destined to be a forgotten god that nurtured flowers without recognizing my own strength... it was you who saw the fire inside me, it was you who saw that the determination that resides in me demanded its own throne.
At that time even Eren closed his eyes, not being able to see the smirk and Hades' flushed cheeks. But the relief of saying how grateful he was to the person who had saved him was too great to face the world at that time.
Eren just wanted to lie against him forever, feeling the scent of white flowers that was so typically Levi and feeling his palms now glide down his skin in silent gratitude.
-And even... - Eren grunted when he felt the tears clog his throat, forcing an indelicate sound from him. Levi laughed quietly, which the boy noticed from the tremors in his body. He slapped Hades' chest slightly, but let his own lips stretch in a silly smile as tears slowly flowed down his full eyelashes.
-And even if no one remembers this when they hear our duties, "Hades" and "Persephone", I will never forget how a love like ours can turn even the darkest, coldest realm into the happiest and warmest home.
-Persephone and Hades, hm... sounds powerful...
Levi pointed with a sarcastic tone, but the younger one could notice he was also touched by the way the hoarse voice became a little softer.
-Yes.. you know we could take Olympus with our power, right? - Eren laughed, leaning on Levi's pectoral and moving on top of him, greenish eyes opening to see a thin silver ring shine for him. Levi's pupils had dilated due to the words he heard.
-You know it's a lot of work and I'd rather stay here and love you, right? Besides, when did you become such an evil queen, Eren?
Eren tipped his head and gave the best innocent smile he had accompanied by several blinks.
-You don't like it? - He questioned, watching Levi's hand rise and remove the sweaty brown threads that were still on his forehead. Placing them behind his ear, Hades let his fingers trace the boy's cheeks, nose, and full lips.
-I adore it. - And the tone of voice made it clear that he loved much more than only Eren's hidden evil side.
The Queen gave a bright smile, any doubt and insecurity being crushed by the weight of the warmest cold gaze.
-I love you, my king. - Eren whispered, dipping his face slowly and brushing his lips together in a chaste kiss.
It was as if the world around them had shone when Eren finally said what he had been feeling for months, something Levi was not ashamed to put into words.
So he did it again, reciprocating the kiss:
-And I love and worship you, my queen.
Because when the depths of the earth opened to the heart of hell, not even a god could have guessed that the boy eternally underestimated by his beauty and isolated from Mount Olympus would become The Queen of The Underworld.
No one imagined that that one boy could wear strength and darkness equally, always presenting himself as half god, half hell. That he would reign over the birth of flowers and gentle beings, raising baby birds and a human baby with the same care.
No one believed he would also reign over demons and souls and that, before his fury, even Death himself paled. Nor he would be The Queen of The Underworld, reigning supreme with the fire born from his own soul, while his undying lover reigned by his side.
He would be the one who walked the soils of Hell and found the key to the gates of his own paradise. The owner of the eyes whose gaze made Hades tremble; whose reddish lips carried passion and pomegranate juice; whose fists could open the doors of The Underworld by force; whose anger could turn wine into blood and roses into poisonous herbs.
In the two months when he had to return to Olympus, the absence of the no longer underrated boy made The Underworld colder as the human land seemed more flowery. And now anyone knew it was because The God of The Underworld was mourning the absence of his Queen and waiting eagerly for the one who brought him warmth and bright smiles who flourished on the silent stone walls of The Underworld. In the end, no one else thought of The Underworld as a dark and sad place. Although Persephone couldn't restore life to the mortals, his presence evoked light and love in Hell.
"He who walks the floors of Hell finds the key to the gates of his own Heaven buried there like a seed." - Segovia Amil, modified.
Notes:
Oh, man. There’s so much left to say! I can’t believe this is the last chapter, but I’m happy it’s over. Translating is difficult hahaha Well, this chapter was based in these poems: “Letters from Persephone” from Natalie Wee; “Persephone Speaks” from Daniella Michallen; “Persephone Girl”, “Conversation with Persephone” and “Persephone to Hades” from Nikita Gill; “Underworld” from Segovia Amil. Basically, I was looking for inspiration on Pinterest and these poems and some other quotes were EVERYTHING! And I modified “Minthe” to “Mintha” because “Mintha Petra” (A and A) sounds better. And I also modified the plant Persephone transformed Mintha because I discovered a plant with Petra’s name and I loved the fact this plant was, coincidentally, called “queen’s wreath”. And of course, Hades having to keep up with Eren's newly discovered sexuality is my religion! Our Queen can be such a dirty mama hahaha
Anyway, this is the last chapter and I’m so grateful for all comments and kudos! I didn’t think this fanfic would be so welcomed! Thank you for all your kindness! For those who would like to read more, I just posted my next project called “Nine Months”! It’s on my profile! Be safe, everyone, and I see you around! Byebye!
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