I decided to spar with Athena to refresh my memory and make sure my skill in battle was still present. What the dark goddess had said had shaken me deeply because I knew it to be true. I had seen Zeus' wandering eyes, and the tight, worried expressions that crossed my siblings' faces. They knew he was going to try to take me, but they could do nothing about it. He was our father, the king of all the gods, and his will was not easily disobeyed without dire consequences.

I had seen the damage Zeus could do to an immortal goddess. I had seen my mother, how she looked at me, how her mental wounds still hadn't healed. I was not going to let it happen willingly. I would be ready.

Visiting my mother was beginning to appeal to me more than it usually did. The mortal world would put some distance between me and my father, and I hoped his eyes would wander elsewhere while I was away.

I never learned the mysterious goddess' name, which bothered me. She left soon after her warning, and I nearly ran to my temple, though I knew it wouldn't offer me any protection. Long into the night, I eventually succumbed to sleep, and it wasn't Zeus that haunted my dreams, but her.

I didn't dare ask anyone. They would want to know what we talked about and my words had crossed the lines of blasphemy, so I held my tongue and continued about my day, the events of the previous night still weighing heavily on my mind.

Shaking my head clear, I circled around Athena with newfound concentration. I could tell she had held off an attack because she noticed I wasn't paying attention. She nodded to make sure I was back in the present, and I nodded back to her.

Athena lunged at me with her sword and I blocked it with my shield, stepping out of the way and bracing my arm for the force. She left herself vulnerable with such an aggressive attack. I swung my sword to her neck, pausing just before it reached her, and almost smiled at my victory. Her eyes glanced down and I saw her second short sword at my side. We both withdrew from the tie.

Sweat drenched my short chiton and the fabric clung to my thighs. The hair that had fallen out of its knot was plastered to the back of my neck. We had been sparring for a while and it was midday in late summer, entirely too hot. I set my weapons down to greedily drink from a water skin.

"You haven't forgotten much. That's very good." Athena smiled, sheathing her weapons at her side.

I caught my breath and wiped my brow, squinting at the sun in annoyance. "Women cannot afford to forget how to protect themselves."

Artemis, watching us from the shade and waiting until we could start archery practice, commented. "That's certainly very true." She held up a bow for me. "Are you ready?"

"No." I walked over to her and collapsed in the shade, taking the bow from her and setting it beside me. "Give me a moment to rest. I am not used to fighting as the both of you are, and it's so hot, I feel like death himself is coming to get me."

They laughed at my joke while I took off my chiton and lay in the grass as the breeze cooled me. All around my naked body, wildflowers bloomed. I picked them and wove them into a flower crown, handing it to Artemis, who accepted it happily. She was never one for jewelry or metal armor, favoring skins she could move easily in, but I knew she'd like the flower crown.

"When are you leaving, Athena?" I asked absently, making conversation.

"I think I'll leave when you do. I came home to catch you before you left. My vacation shouldn't be longer than necessary."

"That's fair. Mother should be calling on me within another day or so."

Athena looked at me strangely. "Yes, I know, Persephone. We spoke of this yesterday."

"Oh," I paled. "I had forgotten. My mind has been elsewhere."

"We've noticed." Athena glanced at Artemis. "Are you alright?"

"Has anything happened, Persephone?" Artemis paused in the midst of arranging the targets.

"No, of course not!" I scrambled to give them any excuse but the truth. "It's only the impending visit with my mother. They are never... pleasant." I busied myself by sipping more water and stretched my arms before putting my damp chiton back on. "I'm ready."

Artemis finished setting up the targets, so I grabbed the bow and quiver and stepped out into the horrid sunlight again. I cursed, "Helios, why?"

"He has been merciless this summer, hasn't he?" Athena mused. "Though there are other parts of the world hotter than this, Persephone."

"How do the mortals not melt?"

"Oh, the heat takes many of them, surely. Their bodies can't withstand it, but they don't melt," Athena said while I positioned myself in range of the targets, with Artemis at my side.

I squared my shoulders and withdrew an arrow. I kept the closest target in my sights as I tried to remember all the bits of advice Artemis had given me. I pulled back the string, arm steady, fired, withdrew another arrow, fired it at the next closest, withdrew a third arrow, and released it at the farthest target.

Artemis approached the targets to inspect them. "You aimed perfectly at the first one, but the arrows start to stray the farther away the targets are. It's to be expected, accuracy decreases the longer the range."

I frowned. "Well, if they had been people, would I have hit them all?"

"Right into the heart of the first, the shoulder of the second, and the abdomen of the third."

"It's better than I thought I would do. I've never been very good at this."

"You aren't a novice, by any means."

"Sister, you can't be the best at everything!" Athena called and I turned to her. She, too, had removed her chiton and was lying naked in the shade, watching us with her hand holding her chin, elbow propped in the grass.

"Says you!"

She laughed, a beautiful sound when she meant it. "Well, not everyone can be the goddess of wisdom, the arts, strategic warfare, courage, strength..."

Beside me, Artemis rolled her eyes. "Alright, we get it. The goddess of bragging, too."

I laughed even harder when Athena shrugged and didn't deny it, but I sobered quickly. "I don't think I've improved with this very much, which is disheartening, and I doubt I could hit a moving target."

"Would you like to know how you can remedy that?" Artemis smiled, flashing her teeth. "Athena, throw me something."

"Hmm?" Athena hummed, confused. "Oh, right. Here you go." She threw, with perfect accuracy, an apple to Artemis, who plucked it out of the air with ease.

Artemis, apple in hand, moved to put her back against the middle range target. She rubbed her head, which she kept shaved for less maintenance, and sat the apple on her head. "Hit it."

"What? With you under it? I'll probably hit you!"

"Don't worry about it. Pressure is what makes you better."

Pressure made my hands shake as I slowly withdrew another arrow from the quiver and nocked it. I pulled the string back carefully and eyed the apple, trying to test the wind. Artemis stood as still as a statue, a skill required for any good hunter, and waited, eyes clear, unafraid. My arm was starting to hurt and tremble. I straightened my posture, eyed the apple again, aimed, and released. As soon as I did, I realized my aim was slightly too low. "No!"

Artemis caught the arrow by its shaft before it had the chance to sink itself between her brows. She twisted it around between her fingers, amused. "Well, if you were aiming to kill me, I'd say you were dead on."

"I wasn't." I paused, still in awe of her ability to catch the arrow from midair. "How did you do that?"

"We can both do it!" Athena added from the shade.

"Eons of practice. I wouldn't be the goddess of archery if I could let myself be killed by a simple arrow, could I?" Artemis smiled and threw the arrow at our spectator. It flew through the air just like it had been fired from a bow and Athena caught it with ease. "You just need more practice, Persephone. It's fine. Try again."

I was readying to shoot another arrow, this time with more confidence knowing that I wouldn't maim my sibling, when Hermes appeared beside me. I yelped and let the arrow fly by accident. "Hermes! I told you to stop doing that!"

He smiled knowingly. He enjoyed startling us too much to ever want to stop. "What are you three lovely ladies doing?"

"Practicing!" Athena called from behind me.

"Persephone, look!" Artemis got my attention and I turned to see her step out from under the apple that was embedded into the target with my arrow.

"That was an accident. I wasn't even looking." I was smiling regardless of my coincidental accuracy, but I turned back to Hermes. "What are you here for?"

"You, sister. I bring a message from your mother. She wants you in Eleusis by tonight."

"So soon? I thought I had another day."

"She said she needs to speak with you, but she didn't specify what. Something private, apparently."

I wasn't prepared to leave. "Well, I would need to gather my things. I take it you are to escort me?"

"That seems to be the case. I suppose we have a few hours yet, so if you don't mind, I'm going to wander and hope I run into Peitho. Or, rather, if any of you see her, do send her my way." He disappeared without waiting for our responses because he knew we wouldn't tell her.

"Well, it seems as though our fun has been cut short." Athena stood and stepped into her chiton. "I can help you pack and see you off."

"You're welcome to." I turned to Artemis. "Until next time, sister. I will be sure to treat the animals feeding on the crops justly. Thank you for the practice. I will get it eventually."

"Thank you." Artemis leaned in for an embrace and we kissed each other on the cheek.

Athena and I went to the bathhouse closest to my temple to bathe and clean the sweat from our skin. The water was cool, shockingly so, and since I had a few more hours to waste, I savored it.

"I feel positively disgusting," I commented as I started scrubbing my skin with soap.

"Just imagine being caked in blood, dirt, and excrement."

"I'd rather not, but I know what it means to be covered in dirt." I laughed and rinsed my hair. "Tell me, have you ever been to the Underworld?"

"Why do you ask?"

"No particular reason. Just curious."

"I can't say that I have, but I haven't had a reason to go. Dead soldiers are of no use to me."

Her comment sounded callous, but I knew she was just thinking from the most logical standpoint. Much of what she said came with a similar tone, so I ignored it.

"But haven't you been curious to know what it's like?"

"I've read about it many times so I suppose my intellectual curiosity has been sated on that subject. You could ask Hermes, if you're so determined. He is required to go there periodically. If you ask me, the realm of the dead is no place for immortals."

"And what of the chthonic deities?"

"They are... different." Her gaze fell heavily on me as she tried to understand my sudden interest in the topic. "If you think you have no place on a battlefield, why is the goddess of plants asking about the Underworld?"

"It... intrigues me."

"Well, if you plan on exploring, do be careful. The Underworld has its own rules that even we must abide by. Ask Hermes about it, he will be able to tell you more."

We dried ourselves and made our way to my temple. I gathered several short chitons to be used for working during the harvest, a few simple peploi, and one ornate peplos for any rituals I had to attend. Athena's painting, still drying, was retrieved from my desk. After I was packed and ready, Athena and I socialized for a couple more hours.

Hermes found me when the sun was starting to set and Athena followed us to the edge of Olympus, my small bag of belongings in one hand and the painting in my other.

Athena bit her lip nervously while she eyed Hermes and decided to pull me in for a tight hug. As she kissed my cheek, she whispered softly to me, too quiet for him to hear. "If you don't return, write often and visit me on Earth. You are dear to me."

"I will," I murmured as I pulled away. "Thank you for the portrait. It's amazing, as always."

"Goodbye, Persephone."

Hermes looped his arm through mine and we lifted into the air. I waved goodbye to Athena, standing at the gates. "Farewell!"

He waited until we had left Olympus to start speaking. "I'm going to be honest with you, Demeter does not seem happy."

"Does she ever?"

"Point taken, but she's worse this time."

I mumbled a curse under my breath which made Hermes chuckle. When we descended from the heavens and entered the mortal world, I remembered what I actually wanted to talk to him about. "Oh, Hermes, you've been to the Underworld, right?"

"I occasionally have to accompany certain souls there, yes. Why do you ask about such a dark place, sister?"

"I was thinking of taking a vacation from Olympus, but Earth just reminds me of my mother..."

He laughed and held me at a distance to look at me, taking precautions not to let me fall. "Persephone, I had no idea you had such courage!"

"You're not going to stop me?"

"No, the opposite! I'm going to encourage it. It will shake things up if you mysteriously disappear for a while."

"I'm just weighing the idea, nothing is certain yet."

"I positively love the idea. If you do decide to go, you will need this." A strange thin disk of metal appeared in his hand.

I took it, unsure if it was divine or not. "What is this?"

"It's a type of currency called an obol. They're traded for goods and services as a payment. The mortals are rather untrusting of each other... for good reason."

"Interesting, but why would I need it in the Underworld?"

"You'll see."

"How will I get to the Underworld?" I looked to see the ground approaching quickly. I would soon be handed over to my mother for the next few weeks.

"You? Going to the Underworld is tricky if you aren't dead, you know. I suppose the closest entrance to Eleusis would be..." His brow furrowed as he thought. "Ah, yes! You'll have to travel east from your mother's home and you will eventually come to a dark grove. The grove itself is inaccessible to mortals, but you should have no trouble going through it. When you emerge on the other side, you'll be by Oceanus and there should be a cave near the shore. Follow its depths and it will take you to the Underworld."

"Sounds rather complicated, and far."

"It should only take a few hours at a good walking pace." He paused to look below us. "Look, there's your mother."

"Don't remind me."

"I'll visit if you gather the courage to take your morbid vacation. It will be an amazing trick if you do a disappearing act."

I smiled as I stuck the obol into my bag. "I'll be sure to remember that. Thank you for the advice."

Our feet touched the earth and Demeter looked at me with a forced smile that looked more like a grimace. Her following—various kinds of nymphs such as Dryades, Anthousai, and Meliai—bowed to me and Hermes.

"Aunt." Hermes nodded his respect to my mother.

"Welcome back, Neotera," Kalligeneia, my mother's favorite nymph, greeted me with an epithet of mine that was frequently used in Eleusis. Neotera meant "the younger," as "the older" referred to my mother.

"You're free to go, Hermes. Persephone will send for you when she's no longer needed here."

Hermes touched my shoulder with sympathy and promptly vanished, leaving me and my mother to stare at each other in our customary reunion silence.

"This is for you." I held out the painting awkwardly. "Athena thought you might like it."

She took it, holding it at length to look it over, and smiled faintly. "She always was amazing at her art."

"You're so beautiful in it!" Kalligeneia looked over Demeter's shoulder.

"I will be sure to thank her for it." She paused to look up at me. "It's nice to see you again, daughter."

At least she was trying. "You as well. Now, may I ask what was so urgent? I was in the middle of my fighting practice with Athena and Artemis when Hermes reached me."

Her expression darkened, brown eyes narrowing. "It's a private matter. I'll speak to you tonight. You're late and we should be attending the harvest ceremony right now. Can't you feel the air begin to chill?"

"Not in Olympus. The heat may be comparable to the surface of the sun."

"The sun does shine differently there, doesn't it?" Her words were soft and bitter, but she shook her head and regained her focus. "Kalligeneia will prepare you for the ritual." My mother motioned to me and left with the painting, her brown hair shining in the dying light.

I hadn't expected anything less from her. She had always been a distant relative that was nearly a stranger at forced family gatherings. The alienation and stiff formality were all too familiar to me, yet it still stung.

Kalligeneia touched my arm. "We need to hurry. She had a peplos and himation made for you. She wants you to wear it for the ritual."

She led me into Demeter's temple to ready me. She bathed me in earthy-smelling soaps, braided my hair with flowers, and helped me into my new peplos. Both the peplos and himation were black and embroidered, green thread twining up the fabric like vines and blooming into red poppies. The fibulae were gold, engraved with rubies that also formed poppies, matching the armbands that were slid onto my biceps.

The ritual was short and sweet, though my mother and I had to pretend we liked each other. Nymphs and mortal priestesses chanted and danced about the harvest, bringing good luck for the mortals and their crops. My mother and I drank nectar while we observed it from a distance. It was over soon enough.

My mother had been eyeing me the entire ritual, making me uneasy. She only commented on the peplos. When it was over, she led me away to the private room in her temple.

"Mother, you're worrying me. Please tell me what's going on."

"I've heard things from Olympus," she murmured while she poured more nectar into our goblets.

"What things?"

Her eyes swept my figure. "Your lack of decency."

"Decency?" I knew what she meant and laughed harshly. "Nudity is not uncommon there. You know as well as I that it means nothing to them. We think nothing of it."

"It means more when you're encouraging your father to..." She shivered and busied herself with her drink.

"Encouraging?" My voice raised.

"He wants everyone, Persephone, and he takes what he wants! Not even you are safe!" Her voice shook as it raised. "I never wanted this for you."

"You never wanted anything for me. You made that perfectly clear when you abandoned me to be raised by those... those..." I couldn't even finish. She knew the Olympians were vile gods when she chose to leave me with them, yet she dared judge me for what I had no choice in learning from them.

She moved to her balcony to look out into the night. "I called you here sooner so you would be away from him. I am hoping he will forget about his lust for you while you are gone."

"He told me to tell you that he misses you. He never forgets." I spat out the disgust that not even nectar could cover.

"Stay with me in Eleusis. You should be safe here."

"Should be? He could come here any time he wanted!"

"He doesn't."