Chapter 3

“Lynus, dear, your mother is in the great hall, and wants to talk to you,” Daeira said as she opened the curtains in my room, letting the light shine through. I cringed a little, and leaned into the armchair that I was settled into. Hugging a big pillow to my chest, I groaned.

            “I don’t want to speak to my mother,” I said quietly, curling further into my chair underneath my blanket.

            Daeira glared at me, and walked over to yank the pillow from my arms. I cried out in agitation and folded my arms across my chest. Daeira frowned.

            “Lynus, you’ve been in this room, avoiding everyone, for two whole weeks. You need to get your pretty little self out of here,” she commanded with a hard glare in my direction as she walked over to set the pillow on my black bed.

            “Daeira, I’m only avoiding one person, and you know exactly who that is,” I retorted. I leaned back into the chair, feeling depleted. Daeira let out a loud sigh, and came over to sit on the arm of the chair.

            “Lynus, you can’t stay away from him forever,” she murmured. “I know for a fact that he hates himself for what he did, and that he wants to apologize. You just never give him the time of day, dearest.” I covered my face with my hands and curled up into a ball. It was then that I heard the distinct clicking of my mother’s favourite high-heeled Prada boots, and knew I was in for a rough talk.

            “Lynus Scarlett Inferis! I thought you had the hospitality of a wondrous Greek woman, but it seems that I am wrong,” Aphrodite proclaimed as she strutted into my room. I looked over at her, and my brows rose. She was wearing a Greek style white dress that went down to her knees, and her gorgeous hair was piled up on her head. She almost never wore clothes that fancy to come see me, and I was slightly surprised. Then, I saw who was standing behind her, and my eyes widened. Hades was dressed in a fantastic dark suit that matched his hair, and was tailored perfectly to his magnificent body.  I met his gaze, and then he looked down to the floor with a slight grimace.

            “Mother, my hospitality is just fine, thank you,” I said with a glare. She smiled at me widely, and came to sit in the chair next to mine. Crossing her legs, she turned to me.

            “I think your hospitality could use a little work, but that’s not why I’m here.” I looked over to her and her smile got even wider.

            “You forgot all about the summer ball, didn’t you?” Aphrodite asked with a teasing glint in her eyes. My jaw dropped as I realized what she was talking about.

            Gods damn whoever made the summer ball, I thought to myself with an inaudible groan. The summer ball was a gathering that had been tradition for many years. Hades and I took in most, if not all, of the gods once a year for the summer equinox. It was held in the council hall, and was one of the best celebrations of the year. It was actually at one of these balls that my mother and father introduced me to Hades. I glanced over at him, and saw that he was watching me out of the corner of his eye. I closed my eyes, and quickly made a decision.

            “Mother, the ball is cancelled,” I said as I stood up, throwing the blanket off me and onto the floor. I heard a small gasp from where Hades was standing, and looked over at him.

            “What is it, Hades?” I asked, putting my hands on my hips as I scowled at him.

            “My dear, you are in your skivvies,” my mother commented with a quiet laugh. Daeira quickly walked over to me and picked up my blanket. I waved her away.

            “This is my room, and I am allowed to wear what I want,” I said to my mother. I then turned to Hades, “Do you have something to say about what I’m wearing?”

            Hades stared at me for a second, then turned to Aphrodite and Daeira.

            “If you ladies could please give my wife and I the room for a short while, I would be most grateful,” he said quietly. Daeira immediately walked to the door and opened it before disappearing into the hallway. My mother was slower, and her gaze flickered between Hades and I before she left the room, closing the door behind her. After watching her leave the room, I turned to Hades. He was watching me with his fiery red eyes.

            “Why did you have them leave?” I asked, folding my arms over my chest. I watched as Hades’ eyes followed my movement. When his eyes met mine again, I glared at him. He realized his mistake, and bit his full bottom lip.

            “Lynus, I had them leave because I wanted to speak with you without the supervision of your most trusted advisor and mother,” Hades divulged with a small, apologetic smile. I opened my mouth to speak, but he started before I had the chance.

            “Please, Lynus, I just need you to listen,” he pleaded. “I need to apologize to you for what happened at the carnival that I made for you. Gods, I need to apologize for the last eighty centuries! I’ve been a stupid b*****d, and I am so incredibly sorry, Lynus. I know you are probably never going to forgive me, but I just wanted you to know that it will never happen again.” Hades was blushing shamefully, and had his eyes fixed on his shoes. Then, he slid his hands into his black hair and pulled slightly.

            “Lynus, I will completely understand if you do not wish to reside in the Underworld any longer. Especially after what happened at the carnival that I made for you,” Hades said as he closed his eyes. “That was inexcusable, and I would like to apologize for what I did. I know that was something that you did not want to happen, and probably will never want to happen.” Hades started to ramble quietly to himself, and I could hear several more apologies. I realized I had had enough.

            “Shut up, Hades!” I yelled, exasperated. “You need to just shut up!” Hades’ eyes went wide as he shut his mouth with an audible snap. 

            “I don’t want your apologies, Hades,” I said as I walked closer to him. “And, I’m not going anywhere, so you can get that idea out of your mind right now.” Hades’ body relaxed, and he slumped into the armchair that I was sitting in earlier. I sat on the arm of the chair, and carefully extricated his hands from his hair.

            “Hades,” I muttered as I pressed my lips to his hand. “If you are willing, I would like to try again.” Hades’ brows pulled together in confusion.           

            “What do you mean, Lynus?” Hades inquired.

            “I would like to forget about the eighty centuries, Aidoneus,” I said with a small smile. “I want to try again.”