[ graphic tumblr: @mytholoicalnet]

a jar of secrets
09 | the mysterious stranger

"You could've woke me up!"

"But you were having a really good sleep, I didn't want to wake you."

It's ten minutes past nine. We were meant to have left here two hours ago except I slept in and someone didn't wake me.

"But now we're two hours behind schedule," I groan already heading towards the bathroom for a shower.

"It's alright, we're safe enough here for the time being and I need to make a phone call anyways."

I nod my head before closing the door and putting my towel on the sink.

My hair today has decided to stay with the blonde with no brown in sight. I'll admits it's weird as hell but kinda cool... in a strange way.

❦

Ten minutes later, i've finished my shower and changed into a nice pair of jeans and a red tank-top.

"- You think that might actually work?"

"No we can't trust Hermes.."

"- Yes she's having a shower and then we're on our way, hold on.."

I hear the front door open and shut, Hades must have gone out into the hallway.

I open the bathroom door and sure enough he's gone.

Looking around the room again, I spot the telephone sitting on the side table beside the bed. I wonder...

"Unless this is impor-"

"Ash!" I cry out in relief at hearing his voice.

"Seph? Is that really you?"

"Did you just say Seph?" I hear Pat yell out in the background.

"Where the hell are you?" Ash yells just as loud in my ear.

"I-I don't exactly know.. a day of out Misty Hallows," I try my best to answer but I don't even know the name of this town.

"Are you alright? what happened?" Pat asks worriedly, they must have put me on speaker.

"Yeah mostly I think.. but there were these guys at the house and they tried to kidnap me. Luckily there was this guy, a private detective-"

"Seph you're breaking up.. can you hear us?" Ash cries suddenly, cutting me off.

"Yes!" I say but they couldn't hear me.

"Seph?"

"Who kidnaped you?"

"Seph?"

"Patrick? Ash?"

And then the phone goes dead in my hand.

"Well that's quite unfortunate."

I drop the phone and spin around. The door is wide open and a young blonde man is standing in front of it, his arms crossed in front of him.

"Who are you? What are you doing in my room?" I yell seeing that the mans hand is bloody and covered in cloth.

"The names Adrian," he says bowing down slightly before standing upright with a grin on his face. "And you must be Persephone, am I right?"

"It's just Seph actually," I grumble watching him closely.

"Well then just Seph, Hades sent me up here to have a look at your hand," the man Adrian says with a wicked smile.

"My girlfriend is pretty good at fixing me up," he lifts his bandaged hand up to show me.

Oh so he is just one of Hades friends, I slowly drop my protective shield but not all the way.

"I bumped my hand on the sink last night," I explain lifting my still swollen wrist. "Is Hades with you?" I ask trying to look around him into the hall.

"No he's just on the phone, told me to come on up check you out and report back."

Adrian walks inside the room and gestures for me to take a seat at the couch.

"And where's your girlfriend?" I ask wearily, again trying to look around him.

"Right here of course sweetie."

I look up to see the most beautiful girl I've ever seen, long blonde curls framing her heart shape face and kind blue eyes that turn to focus in on me.

She smiles, a kind smile as she breezes into the room wearing a short black dress.

"My name is April, and this is my lover Adrian," she gestures to him. "Adrian is actually Hades nephew, although the boys don't get on too well," she explains everything with a bright smile.

"You don't want Hephastaeus to hear you say that my love," Adrian says with a smirk before turning his dark eyes back to me.

Who the hell is Hephastaeus? And what kind of name even is that? Can you imagine how hard it would've been when writing your name out in preschool.

"Oh shush Adrian, let's help the poor girl and then we must be on our way."

"On your way where? Don't you want to stay and chat with Hades?" I ask them confused.

"Oh no sweetie that's alright, we caught him out in the hall to say our hellos."

Adrian has just opened a little black bag and sat it down on the floor, he pulls out a white bandaged similar to the one he has on.

"Are you a doctor or something?" I ask as he begins to wrap the bandage around my wrist.

"Oh no dear, far from that. Adrian is more a fighter than a healer," April laughs from her place beside her 'lover'.

"I'm guessing that's how you got the blooded fist?" I say seeing how red and raw it actually looks.

"Can't stray away from a fight now, especially one that's been brewing for centuries."

I frown at Adrian's choice of words but shrug it off.

"Adrian..." April says suddenly looking a little panicked, she glances at me. "He is calling for us, we must get going."

"It was a pleasure meeting you just Seph," Adrian says bowing once more before taking his lovers hand and walking right back out the door.

I blink as I watch them go, before looking down at my bandaged wrist.

Well that was certainly weird.

I decide I may as well go and find Hades so I close the door behind me making sure it's locked before walking out into the hallway.

I don't see any sign of him so I make my way downstairs to the check in.

"Oh hi dear, did you sleep okay?"

It's the front desk elderly lady, smiling at me as she writes something down in her notebook behind the desk.

"Yes thank you, have you seen my-"

"Boyfriend? Why yes he was down here two minutes ago with two other, both blonde.. they were all heading outside the last I saw."

Boyfriend?

"Uh right, thank you so much!" I say opening the front door and going out into the sun and fresh air.

I can't see Hades nor the couple from earlier anywhere but I do catch something else sparkling in the sunlight.

I bend down and gasp when I make out what it is - Hades black IPhone, and it's smashed into pieces.

"Hades!" I yell out but I don't hear him shout anything back, I glance up and down the mostly empty street panicked.

Oh no! What if something really bad has happened to him?

My eyes catch something else and I look up to a see a beautiful rose bush beside me, all along the motels brick wall.

One of the roses have opened where all the others around that one were closed. I get the odd feeling to reach out and touch it, so I do. When I do so however, the rose beside it bursts open in a flourish and the other next to it.

I gasp clearly caught off guard.

Were they leading me to Hades? No that'd be beyond stupid and not possible but still, I find myself following the opening trail of roses anyways.

I notice up ahead theres an alleyway and sure enough that's where the roses stop flourishing.

"Hades?" I call out but again nothing, maybe it was stupid to follow opening roses.

I glance back up the empty street once more before glancing down the dark alley looking for any sign of life.

I'm about to turn back around and head to the hotel when I hear something further in the alley.

"Hades?"

I can't see much because the two buildings are tightly knit together letting hardly any light enter.

"Persephone.." it is weak but I definitely hear it this time.

"Hades I'm coming." I cry walking further into the alley way, careful not to trip over the litter and boxes full of rotten fruits.

Finally I spot him sitting down slumped over, he doesn't look good.

"Hades?" I shout rushing over to kneel beside him on the rough concrete.

"Persephone you're okay? oh thank god," he says when he spots me and before I know what's happening, he's hugging me.

"I'm so glad you're okay, I can't lose you again.. I can't," he mumbles into my hair as he pulls me closer to him.

"It's okay Hades, I'm here but we need to get you out of here," I tell him and that's when I feel something wet seek through my top.

"Please tell me you did not just pee on me," I groan. Hades laughs but starts coughing. He lets me go to place one of his hands on his leg, applying pressure.

"No it's just blood, but you're right we have to go.. it's no longer safe here."

I get Hades to a standing or limping position and help him over to the car out front, I notice he tries not to lean all his weight on me probably as not to crush me as I resemble that of a trig.

"We need to get you to a hospital Hades."

Now that we're out in the sun, I can see that's there a lot of blood and that amount of blood not in your body is not good.

I help him into the passengers side before rushing around and climbing into the drivers side. Thank god it's an auto.

I'm helping Hades with his seatbelt when he reaches out to grab my wrist, the not bandaged one thank goodness.

"No hospitals please. Just keep driving... follow the sun, I'll be okay," and then he passes out.

❦

I've been on the road for the last three hours, I glance over at Hades again.

He hasn't woken up but he's still breathing and that's the main thing, the last half hour he's also been getting more colour in his cheeks which is a good sign.

The clock on the dashboard reads 13:22, no wonder I'm starving.

I've been too afraid to pull over anywhere in case someone sees the 'dead body' in the passengers seat and asks me why the hell I'm not at a hospital or in a jail cell.

Somehow the bleeding has stopped however and I'm no scientist but blood doesn't just stop unless there's nothing left in the body, plus he's getting more colour in his cheeks so that wouldn't make sense to an officer - hell it doesn't even make sense to me.

I'm going a hundred miles an hour and yet I feel like we're hardly getting any closer to the sun that I'm meant to be following but that's the instructions and I'm going to follow them.

I just hope I don't end up killing him by doing what he said.

Just as I think I might be able to pull this all off, there's a siren blaring behind me and flashing red and blue lights.

Shit!

I look over to see Hades still passed out. Yes the bleeding has stopped but there is still blood all over his clothes, the seat and the bottom of my top.

How am I possibly going to explain all this and not get arrested?

"That is where I will come in," someone behind me laughs. I scream, slamming on the breaks so suddenly that I'm surprised the seatbelt even held me in place.

Once I make sure to check that I'm in park, I whip around to see a young man, probably around my age or a tad younger with brown hair wave at me.

"How the hell did you get in here?"

There's a living boy in the back of the car? Did he somehow sneak in without me noticing when helping Hades or did he break in the night before because he's a criminal or-

"Why magic of course, well magic shoes anyways," he laughs pointing down to his shoes. My eyes widen as I take in the little flapping wings on both shoes.

"You've got to be kidding me?!" I yell glaring wearily at him. "Shoes with wings?"

Who the hell is this kid? And what kind of shoes are they - the new nikes with wings or something?

"Actually no not this time, although I do find this whole-" he glances over at the unconscious Hades. "Situation highly amusing, my lady."

"Who even are you?" I ask still glaring at him as he moves into the seat furthest away from me.

"Now that dearly offends me..." he says looking somewhat heartbroken. "Why I'm Hermes of course, and I'm here just in time to help you with this guy. Now will you kindly move into the seat back here."

I don't know why I listened to the guy, probably because I'm freaking out but I do as he says, watching as he moves over into the drivers seat and proceeds to put his seatbelt on.

"What are you going to do?" I hiss seeing the officer come up to his side window.

"Just watch and learn princess, this is going to be fun."