The boys forced me into another argument one second, and the next thing I knew, I was in front of a temple. I could see the clouds below me. Turning around, there were forests with beautiful green leaves and mountains that pierced the wispy white clouds. After I recovered from my shock, I heard the boys nearby grunting. I ran over to ease them into getting back up.

As I pulled Hades right back onto his feet, he gave me a slight nod. Zeus insisted on trying to stand up by himself and swatted my hand away. I moved back as he staggered up.

"Hey Dem, mind giving me a hand here?" Poseidon winced in pain, sprawled out on the ground. I came to his aid, wrapping my arms around him, and helping him up. It's a shame this task isn't as effortless as it used to be when we were younger. He was a little skinny.

He complained about the possibility of broken ribs and scrunched his face as he looked around. "Where on earth are we?” he whispered. Oh, how I wish I had the slightest clue.

The next to plummet from the skies and join us were Hera and Aphrodite. Hera landed gracefully on her feet. I rolled my eyes as Aphrodite stumbled into Poseidon purposefully.

I don’t hate her, but she is quite annoying. As long as every silky strand of hair was in place, she couldn’t care less about anything else. She’s Zeus’ daughter and closest in age to Poseidon and Hades.

The next—and hopefully last — arrivals were Dionysus, Ares, and a girl Poseidon had told me about once. I’m fairly certain her name is Calypso.

Dionysus rushed over to me with wide eyes. He crossed his arms over his chest.

“Where are we?”

I raised my eyebrows. “You think I know? Welcome to the family reunion.”

Calypso stood awkwardly near Poseidon. They conversed in hushed tones as Zeus paced up and down the steps of the temple. He stopped in the middle and cleared his throat.

“We should go inside,” he announced in a loud voice. “Standing on these steps will answer none of our questions.”

Looking out at us, we nodded and headed inside the temple. I stopped in front of Zeus, who was wearing a smug smile.

“Scared of heights, much?” I whispered. He stammered as I walked past him, leaving a flustered Zeus to follow behind me.

The temple was enormous. On both sides of the room were eight thrones made of limestone or another material. Strong, wide pillars held up the inside of the temple. Zeus had already made himself comfortable on one of them, waving to his invisible subjects.

Hades stood in the corner of the room like a ghost, the shadows covering his face.

A sudden crack of thunder sounded, making Zeus leap off the throne. Above the back of the throne, which he was sitting on, was a bold yellow, levitating lightning bolt. He crossed his arms over his chest, looking somewhat proud of himself. I shifted my attention back to Hades, who was hiding in the back of the room.

In all the years I’ve known the boys, I have never seen Hades cry. I’ve comforted Zeus and Poseidon before, but never him. Hades never cried and never seemed upset. He just looked broken, never showing emotions. Although having the brothers he does means he’s not in the spotlight a lot.

In the center of the room was a flickering light. It quickly morphed into the form of a ginormous woman. The projection quickly got everyone’s attention. We all gathered in the center, even Hades.

“Hello, my dear children,” her voice boomed. I heard Zeus mutter, “We’re not children.” The woman heard him, too. A big grin grew on her face.

“In deity age, you’re all still children. Never mind that now. I’m here to warn you, darlings. I’m afraid my husband is still able to whisper into the minds of those not entrapped in Tarterous. Something big is happening and I'm afraid you’re all sorely underprepared,” she paused, searching for a reaction from us. “I’m Rhea. I realized I hadn’t properly introduced myself. Little gods, you need to harness your powers, and fast.”

Rhea’s eyes moved to the boys. She smiled sadly at them. “You three, rulers of the Underworld, the ocean, and the sky. Destined for great things or dark ones. If you remember one thing I tell you, remember this: protect your friends.”

Calypso stepped forward, hands on her hips. “You want us to believe that we’re some powerful gods?” Her voice was challenging, but Rhea maintained her friendly smile.

“It doesn’t matter if you believe. It’s in your blood. Now, I have to go, I leave you with my advice in mind. Protect yourself, your friends, and mortals.” With a wink, she added, “No pressure.” She faded away, but I could still see the worry in her eyes.

No, no, no. There is no way we could be gods. This isn’t happening. After months of seeing the fear in people’s eyes when I told them what I saw, they said I was crazy. Now, some lady shows up, claiming that we are gods?

From the looks on my brothers’ faces, they both believed her. Poseidon was trying to figure out which one of us fit into the three different descriptions. Sea, sky, and underworld. It took longer than I expected from him.

To me, it was obvious. Zeus had the looks and authority, so he was the sky. Poseidon was the brain and wisdom, and he was the ocean. I’m forever the shadow, and so I’m the ruler of the underworld.

Calypso scoffed. “Gods? There’s nothing special about us.” She pointed at Aphrodite.

“Conceited princess.” Hera, now. “Lovesick.” Hera blushed and turned the other way.

Calypso started throwing insults around. “Conflict resolver, the nervous one, the shadow, the self-proclaimed hero, grumpy, best friends, and the sensible one,” she finished, pointing at Poseidon.

Ares rolled his eyes at her while we all exchanged looks. Dionysus looked enraged.

“Who even are you?” Aphrodite asked, her voice icy and menacing. I stepped backward into the corner. Calypso was right about one thing, for sure. I am the shadow, always have been, and always will be.

Calypso slowly approached Aphrodite. She pulled out a dagger from her sweatshirt pocket. Aphrodite leaned backward, trying to get away from the blade pressing against her neck.

Calypso spoke clearly and quietly. “I’m the girl who’ll slit that pretty neck of yours.” She pulled her closer with a yank of her braid. “Don’t test me, princess.” She stepped back, smirking at Aphrodite’s shocked face.

Zeus hadn’t moved, but his hands were tightly clenched at his sides. As self-centered as my brother is, I have to give him credit for how much he cares about some people.

Suddenly, I was pulled into a world of blackness. Behind the veil was a balcony I slowly walked towards. Smoke filled my lungs and stung my eyes.

Lines of people...well, they seemed more like ghosts, were standing in long lines. Alon the edges of the lines were high walls of violent flames.

Hot breath made my body tense, and before I turned around, I was back in the temple.

Demeter was facing me, pale-faced and pointing at something behind me. I wasn’t still in that strange world, but I still could feel the same hot air on my neck.

Behind me was a panting, three-headed, panting, Greyhound. The hound had its head tilted down, but I bet at its full height, it could make the roof collapse.

Calypso rushed toward me, grabbing my arm and throwing me to the ground. I coughed, trying to catch my breath. Calypso held her dagger out as she slowly approached the magnificent beast. I got to my feet and shoved her out of the way. A small dagger wasn’t going to hurt this beast.

I stood before the giant, snarling dog and stared him down. Blue flames flickered in his dark eyes. Drool splattered on the floor. After a few moments of our staring contest, the dog whimpered as it lay down, sending a small tremble through the earth.

Carefully, I walked over to the dog and lifted its spiked collar.

“Cerberus,” I breathed out. Laying down, the three-headed dog looked so innocent. He couldn’t harm a fly. Behind me, I heard footsteps as Calypso muttered, “Time to put this dog down.”

“Don’t touch him,” I growled. She continued walking, so I rose to face her.

“So, you’re just going to keep a giant dog?”

As if to answer her, Cerberus shrunk down to the size of an average dog, despite the three heads.

Calypso looked down at her dagger hungrily. I stopped her from advancing with my outstretched arm, and she didn’t dare to move any closer to him.

Cerberus ran up to Demeter, panting and barking playfully. A smile crept up on me but vanished as soon as I saw Calypso cock her head to watch me.

Hades may act as though he doesn’t care about anyone, but his facade is easy to see through when he looks at Cerberus. It’s the only time I’ve seen him look somewhat happy.

Hades glared at me and I returned it. If he’s looking for someone to be afraid of him, I’m not the one he should expect that from.

Demeter bursts into giggles as Cerberus licks her cheeks. Behind her, a rose bush sprouts up from the ground. Poseidon’s grip on my arm tightens. I look back at Hades and he nods.

I walk over to Demeter and shoo away Cerberus. She glares at me before I point out the roses growing behind her. She jumped up and tenderly touched the petal of a blood-red rose. Demeter looked back at the handsome dark-skinned man smiling at her.

“I did this?” She pointed to the bush with a grin. The man nods slightly. His index finger rested on his lips.

“Your emotions must have triggered it somehow,” he whispered. Demeter squealed happily as she rushed over to the man.

“Oh, Dionysus,” she sighed. Dionysus had straightened his back as soon as she’d touched him. He waggled his eyebrows at her while everyone groaned at their annoyingly cute friendship.

Demeter must know how lucky she is to have a friend. I make acquaintances, not friends. You’re lucky if I don’t have a weapon aimed at your back.

Looking around, I spotted a glowing elevator I could’ve sworn wasn’t there before. I pointed it out to Poseidon, and he gave me a ridiculous grin before telling Zeus about it.

He rushed to the elevator, saying, "Well then, let's go." I watched as they all crammed into the elevator. Are we going to blindly trust a strange, glowing elevator? Great.

A hand led me into the electrified deathtrap on my back. My last chance to survive was still inside the temple as the doors slowly closed.

In almost a second, we were back on the busy streets of New York. Demeter and Dionysus said their goodbyes before they went back to their place. My brother Hera, Ares, Hephaestus, and Aphrodite were not as polite.

Calypso shifted her stance awkwardly. I took a breath and approached the awkward woman.

“Would you like to come to our place? Although someone will have to share a bed or sleep on the couch.” I spoke in my best confident Zeus voice. Her cheeks reddened as she slowly nodded.

As we walked, she clung close to Poseidon. I couldn’t blame her. I’m not particularly fond of people, and they don’t enjoy me. Luckily, my brothers make up for my lack of sociality.

***

When we reached the apartment, I flicked on the lights. Cerberus jumped out of my arms. Being invisible comes in handy when you’re trying to conceal a three-headed dog.

I turned to Calypso. “Do you have extra clothing?” My tone came out harsher than I’d meant for it to, but she didn’t seem to notice.

“No,” she mumbled.

“Follow me,” I told her, leading her to my bedroom. Diggin through my closet, I found an old pair of shorts and a shirt for her to wear.

Pushing them into her arms, I pointed at the bathroom down the hall. Calypso spun on her heels and left me to change in peace.

I barely had my shirt over my head, when I heard the startled squeal of Calypso. I quickly yanked down my shirt as she entered the room.

The shirt was a bit too big on her and her shorts were too long on her. Something black flashed on her collarbone.

I slowly approached her and examined what I found to be a tattoo. It was a snake, that went from her collarbone to her back.

“Why a snake?” I whispered. Calypso looked directly at me for the first time since we’ve gotten back.

“They’re competent on their own,” she replied. I stared at her for a moment, too long because she started to blush, and then I gave a fake yawn.

“Ready for bed?” She didn’t answer, but she followed me into the room silently. Poseidon was already asleep—and snoring — in the other room. I plopped down onto the air mattress laid out on the floor.

Calypso shuffled in the bed beside me. She tossed and turned until she made a harrumph and stilled.

“Can we talk for a bit?” she asked, turning to face me. “Only for a little while, until I fall asleep.” Quietly, she added,” I don’t really like silence.”

My body was crying for sleep, but I decided I could do someone else a favor every once in a while.

“What do you want to talk about?”

Calypso shrugged, causing some of her hair to fall on her face.

“What was your life like?” I watched as her body tensed. I’d hit a sensitive subject, I could tell.

“Do you really want to know?” She avoided looking into my eyes. I nodded. Sucking in the air, she began her story. “There was a little girl...”

She told the tale of a little girl with big dreams. Hopes of finding a family and a home. Abandoned at birth, she moved around constantly. From island to island, city to city, and state to state. She’d never gotten the luxury of being in one place for long. One day, she got the opportunity most kids in the system would kill for. A loving family. Although only part of that was true. Her parents couldn’t have cared less about her and the other children. One day, she packed and ran away. From that point on, she protected herself, and there was no time for making friends.

She’d said something else, but the weight on my eyelids was too much. She faded away, her voice becoming background noise.

I’m back here again. Well, not exactly the same place as before. The end of the tunnel is pitch black. A voice calls out.

“Thanks for your delivery. I’ll take it from here.” The woman’s voice is chipper than one should expect for being in a dark tunnel. I turn around, but the woman speaks again. This time more ominously. “You have a friend waiting for you at the end of the tunnel. He’ll show you around.”

Not eager to hang around, I left and was back at the fiery lines of people.

Behind a couple of lines was a large door. One said Elysium and the other said Asphodel. The wind rushed behind me. I turned around to see an incredibly skinny man in a deep red suit standing behind me. His cloak covered his face in shadows.

“Hello, Hades. I’m your delightful tour guide, Thanatos, otherwise known as Death.”

Suddenly the pizza from earlier isn’t sitting right in my stomach. “Am I dead?”

Thanatos chuckled deeply. “Not yet, young Hades. This is the Underworld. Your new home and realm.” He quickly passed the lines, pointing absentmindedly at them. “Elysium for the good, and Asphodel for the beings that are just okay.” He led me up a long winding staircase that reached a large manor I’d teleported to before. What was this place? Gargoyles stood on dark pillars along the roof of the manor.

“The House of the Dead,” Thanatos whispered in my ear. I recoiled at the smell of decay and something utterly vile. He chuckled at my clear disgust. “My signature musk: death.”

We stood at the large doors while the man (who had faded more into a shadow) looked at me expectantly. I crossed my arms as he let out a sharp laugh.

You have to embrace who you are, he whispered in my mind. Embrace who I am? I responded skeptically. A god of death? Unloved? A monster?

The doors groaned as they swung open. I turned around to face Thanatos, but the shadow was already walking into the manor. I’ve found out that I’m some God of the Underworld, and I have to hope some creepy, abandoned-looking manor is safe, on the same day.

***

The fireplace groaned brightly as Thanatos made himself at home, getting comfortable on the black leather couch.

Cerberus ran over to me, in his smaller form, tongue flopping out of his mouth. When he passed the shadowy Thanatos on the couch, he paused, giving him a low growl. Thanatos barked at him, sending a whimpering Cerberus my way.

“Don’t scare him,” I scold. How is it that now I’m in a position to be scolding Death?

“It’s strange for the Lord of the Underworld to be so protective over a monster, innit?”

“Leave my Cerberus alone,” I snap. Other than my brothers and the others, I’ve never really cared about anyone much. Except for Cerberus. I’ve always been the weak one that they had to watch over, though. Well, almost always.

***

I had been sitting in the corner, my nose in a book. I was biding time because this was just another group home. I wasn’t going to be here for much longer. Zeus and Poseidon were somewhere, off doing arm wrestling or bragging about who could eat the most food the fastest.

“Hey, creep,” Charles said, kicking my leg roughly. I didn’t bother giving that loser the attention that he so desperately craved, which might have been the wrong choice.

He hoisted me onto my feet by grabbing my collar with his meaty hands. He smiled crookedly at me.

“You’re a freak, and soon you’ll wish you and your brothers had never been born.” He swung and punched my nose. His fist was bloody when he pulled away. I remember Zeus always bothering me about controlling my temper, but it’s not like I ever listened to him.

I tackled Charles, clawing at him. We tossed and turned until he was on top of me. With each punch, his sickening grin grew wider. The other kids, including my brothers, watched as he punched away any sort of resistance left inside of me.

My jaw hurt more than anything I’ve ever felt before. He kicked me until every part of my body was sore, numb, or stinging. My brothers watched as I writhed in pain. I wished for them to pull him off me, but they didn’t. When it became too much for me, I passed out. That day I learned something I’d never forgotten.

You can’t rely on others to fight your battles.

***

Thanatos eagerly jumped off the leather couch. He left the room, and whether he’d meant for me to follow behind him or not, was irrelevant because I did, with Cerberus at my feet.

Thanatos was standing in front of an old elevator that looked like it was shut down (or needed to be shut down). A small ding sounded and then the doors opened. Cerberus eagerly jumped in after Thanatos. I’ve had just enough of that dog.

I watched the doors close, trapping us in this metal cage.

“I’m glad I got my tetanus shot,” I muttered. Cerberus jumped into my arms just as the elevator dropped three stories down.

Thanatos clapped his hands. “I’m surprised how well you handled that.” He grinned. “Humans are really annoying sometimes, talking about ‘falling to their deaths,’ or how ‘rats are disgusting vermin,’ or that the elevator is hazardous.”

I fake-laughed with him, but frankly, I’m pretty sure that those were three really valid points.

In the center of this strange, poorly lit room was where five different rivers connected. Thanatos said that the golden yellow river was River Lethe. If the newly dead drank from the river, they would lose their memory almost instantly.

Acheron was bright red. It was the river of sorrow and despair.

Cocytus was the river of wailing. It is a mesmerizing dark blue.

Phlegethon was the river of fire that flowed all the way down to Tartarus.

The river Styx separated Earth and the Underworld. It was the river of unbreakable oaths. Thanatos wouldn’t have to tell me not to touch any of the rivers.

“Now,” Thanatos began. “You have the river Styx down here that could take you back to your pitiful world, or even Olympus. The third option is you could stay here for a little while.”

I turned my back on him. I’m sure nobody’s missing me up there. A couple more hours down here couldn’t hurt anyone, right? It might even be nice.

“Sure,” I agreed.

Hades’s disappearance gave me just enough time to leave the temple while everyone else was still confused. Nobody noticed me. By the time they notice I’m gone, it will be too late.

They may know my usual apartment, but they don’t know my secret one.

I gave the secret knocks and she quickly opened the door with a frown. She closed the door with a loud slam.

I sat on the couch while she busies herself with whatever she was busy doing earlier.

“Took you a long time,” she remarked, I let go of the breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding inside.

“A lot of things have been coming up lately.” I haven’t had the time to tell her about the ‘we’re gods’ issue yet, but this was only a half-lie. A lot of stuff really has been going on. Just not the type of stuff you could ever imagine.

Persephone scoffed. “You’re always busy, and I’m always bored. You barely let me out of this dingy and depressing apartment.” She walks over with two coffee mugs.

“My darling, we’ve talked about this. Most people think that we’re dead. We can’t just ‘go out’.”

“Mom, I’m an adult. I should be able to leave the apartment. I’d be careful.” Persephone pulled at one of her dark curls.

I sigh and pull her closer to me. She grumbles but doesn’t resist. “If you want, I’ll watch some of your awful movies with you,” I say. She leaps up from the couch eagerly.

“I’ll get the snacks,” she squeals. She runs to the kitchen and returns with sodas and every possible candy she could carry.

And so, together, we watched her sappy movie that she fell asleep halfway through. I covered her with a blanket and quietly left the apartment. Dionysus is probably losing his mind about me right now.

***

Dionysus was pacing around the living room. When he first saw me, he looked immediately relieved. His relief quickly shifted to anger.

“You left! I thought you were dead! My God, Dem.” He cupped my face and studied me anxiously. Classic Dionysus. Always worrying about me.

“I’m fine,” I say. He nods, but he obviously doesn’t believe me. “I promise.” This time, his smile seems genuine.

“Where were you, though?” I came here quickly, but you weren’t her.”

“With a friend,” I blurted out. He looked at me skeptically. “I have other friends than you, you know? And I told her that I was going to sleep over with her tonight.”

Thankfully, he doesn’t decide to press me further, though he looks doubtful of my story. He gave me a quick hug and a salute as I walked out the front door. Hopefully, Persephone hasn’t woken up yet.

***

Persephone was dead asleep, muttering incoherently to herself. When I passed her, she turned under the blanket, making the couch squeak.

I lay in my bed and stared at the ceiling. Ever since I saw the newborn baby show up at the foster home, I’ve had nightmares of her.

She'd call out to me on the other side of the flames, but I was never able to save her. The smoke invaded her lungs and sent my daughter gasping for air. And all I could do was watch. Watch and listen to her pleas and shouting. She may hate living here, but she’s safe. She’s safe.

I’m so tired of being trapped in here while Mom gets to go out, socialize, and make friends. No more. I’m sick of feeling trapped. Anyways, how much could a quick library trip hurt anyone? Especially if nobody notices I’ve left.

Mom is still sprawled out on her bed. I’m sorry Mom, but I don’t want to feel stuck forever.

The bright sun rays shone through the library’s long windows. The bright light was almost strong enough to blind me. I have to open the heavy doors with my eyes barely open to avoid the sun's rays.

“You again?” Moira teases, waggling her pointer finger in my direction. I smile back at her. I can’t even count how many times I’ve snuck out here to see her.

“Just browsing,” I reply, starting down an aisle of books. Out of the corner of my eyes, I can see the elderly woman shaking her head with a smile. On my knees, I pull out the same book I’ve grabbed possibly a hundred times before. A cold chuckle comes from the end of the aisle. Slowly, I rise to my feet to meet the owner of that laugh.

A tall, lean man stares at the floor unwaveringly. He looks to be about my age, if not, then he’s barely older than me.

“Ha, you look like the type to be in the library as soon as it opens,” he says snidely. “No friends, huh?”

I clear my throat. “I have friends. Tons of them, actually.”

“I don’t think that books count as actual friends,” he challenged.

I approach him quickly, jabbing a finger at his chest. I keep my finger pointed at him until he looks at me.

“What are you doing here?” I ask, trying to get rid of some of the hostility in my voice.

He bites his lip, not looking like he’s going to answer me. I step closer to him, clearly making him nervous, as we are barely a foot apart from each other now. “Other than annoying citizens so early in the morning,” I add. The light in his eyes dim.

“Thinking,” he replies quietly. Raising an eyebrow, he adds, “Though I was hoping there’d be no pretty girls annoying me in the library.”

I punch his arm roughly. He looks at me with a pained expression. “What was that for?” he asks, wincing in pain. I roll my eyes.

“You said I’m bothering you,” I say, crossing my arms. “Which I’m not.” I turn away from the man. Long, slender fingers grab my arm tightly and twirl me around to face him.

“I’m sorry,” he says, looking askance. “I’m just not great at…people. Talking isn’t one of my strong suits.”

He looks down at where he’s holding my arm, and despite my intentions to keep calm, my face burns at his blank stare. I’m sure he can read every emotion that crosses my face, which is irritating since I can’t guess how he feels. I look away from him.

“I’m fine,” I mumble. Pulling myself out of his entrancing gaze, I ask, “What did you come here to think about?”

There’s about a twenty percent chance that he’ll answer me, but surprisingly, he does.

“We may need to sit down,” he mutters, pointing at the small, round table behind him. I nod and go to take the seat in front of him. With a long sigh, he clasps his hands together and begins to tell his story.

****

I wipe away the stray tear rolling down my cheek as he smiles sadly at me.

“Remind me to never go to a sad movie with you,” he jokes.

“What’s your name, anyway? Just in case I need to complain to somebody about you,” I say, changing the subject. He shakes my hand with a wide grin.

“Hades.”

“Persephone.”

The edges of his mouth quirked up. “I think I like Seph, better.” I smile along with him until he stiffens suddenly

“Why?” he asks out of nowhere.

I frown at him. “Why what?”

Hades shakes his head, somehow irritated by me, even though he’s the one with the cryptic questions. “Why’d you listen to my sob story? You could have left at any point, but you didn’t. Why?”

I shrug. “Human decency, I guess.” I gasp as I realize how long I’ve been in the library. Mom’s going to flip a table when I get b ack.

I chaotically rise, startling Hades. “I have to leave,” I tell him simply. His hand wraps around my arm, but not as tightly as they had been earlier.

“I’ll see you again, right?” he asks uneasily. I smile at him.

“You know where to find me,” I tell him quietly. He still looks nervous, but his grip lessened. He stares at me for a moment, before finally releasing me.

“See ya, bookworm.”

I grin.”See you, creeper,” I shoot back. A small smile grows on his face.

****

The apartment smells like coffee. Mom is up already. I creep into the living room, where Mom is waiting for me on the couch, a cup of coffee in her hands. She doesn’t even look enraged. Not my mom. She looks like she had just seen something calming. Like she wasn’t seeing her daughter sneak back into the house. She sips her coffee loudly as I shift my weight under my mother’s gaze.

“So, how was your outing?” she asks me calmly, with no hint of anger in her voice yet.

“It was fine,” I mumble back. Wrong answer. She places her mug on the coffee table, and scoffs, letting some of her irritation show.

“You directly disobeyed orders that were put into place to keep you safe!” she shouts. Her hands tremble as she speaks. “I tell you to stay inside so then you’re safe.”

I roll my eyes, suddenly filled with anger of my own. “I’m a prisoner and I hate it! I might’ve just made my first friend in twenty years.”

Mom sighs and starts walking over to me. She tries to cup my face, but I swat her hands away from me. Right now, the last thing I want is for her to try to comfort me.

“Honey,” she begins, but I cut her off.

“Don’t start,” I growl at her. She backs up, but then the world turns black and seems to swallow me whole.