Persephone whirled around to find the source of the voice. Once again she found herself looking at the tall dark figure of the stranger. Her immediate curiosity at how this could be happening was replaced with a different feeling Persephone couldn't quite place. Her breath caught in her chest as he walked closer to her, stopping only when he was mere inches away.

"It's you." She breathed, looking up into his dark features. "How did you find me? How am I here?"

"I had to finish our conversation." He smiled. His voice was a deep baritone. The rich sound of it sent a tingle down Persephone's spine.

It was becoming hard for her to keep her thoughts together while he was standing so close. However she managed to find her voice. "I...I still don't understand how...how this is possible." She stuttered.

"Well, I pulled a few strings with an acquaintance of mine. All of this is real, but you're only experiencing it in a dream." He said gesturing around the hall, taking a step back. Then he held his hand out to her. "Here, let me show you."

Persephone's heart drummed a frantic beat in her chest. She had never held a man's hand before. She remembered how warm his hands were on her waist. But as she reached out to take it, her hand slipped through his like smoke. She felt her heart drop involuntarily.

"So then it is a dream." She said looking down at her hand as it rematerialized. The look of it was quite disconcerting.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean it's not real." he said in a low voice. Again he stepped closer to her.

The gesture sent her mind into a fog again. He was so close it was hard to think properly. She couldn't help staring at him. His dark robes fastened at one shoulder which meant that she saw a good portion of his chest. His bronze skin was clean and his muscles were well toned. It wasn't until now that she realized that there was a difference since she saw him last. This time he was clean shaven. So, he had cleaned up for her. Persephone privately thought that she was glad that she hadn't changed into her night dress before falling asleep.

"In any case," she said, trying to come up with something to break the silence. Say something, she chided herself. "I didn't get a chance to ask you your name." His eyes held hers with a burning intensity. She managed to look down at his chest again. "I would like to know more about you. It seems so foolish of me not to have asked before."

There was another pause. His hand, though he couldn't touch her, hovered at her chin as if to pull her face up. She obliged without thinking.

"My name is Hades." He said in a low whisper.

His face seemed to be searching hers. Persephone knew that he was waiting for her to recognize him. But the name seemed only vaguely familiar. "It's good to finally be properly introduced, Hades. I'm Persephone. I guess I'll try not to run into you seeing as you won't be able to catch me this time." She said, grinning shyly.

A smile spread across his face. His already handsome features seemed to grow even more attractive if it was possible. This did nothing for Persephone's slipping composure. He even let out a low chuckle.

"I suppose I'll have to work on that just in case you find yourself in need of further assistance." He smiled. He paused for a moment, raising his hand. "As a matter of fact, we might be able to remedy this problem." His hand was raised as if to touch her cheek. "Tell me if you feel anything."

Persephone closed her eyes to help control her rising emotions. If her heart was racing before it was nothing compared to how it hammered now. However, as she tried to relax she began to feel a warmth on her cheek. The scent of pine seemed to fill her nostrils again. She hadn't realized that the smell was missing before.

She opened her eyes to find his face inches away from her own. "I can...umm..." Was it just her or was it getting harder to take in a lung full of air? "I can feel you." she breathed.

His thumb moved over her bottom lip before he replied, "Well, that's that problem solved." But after only a brief moment he seemed to snap out of his own trance. "Forgive me." He said, pulling his hand away.

Persephone felt like she had stepped out of a fog, finally able to see clearly again. She blushed as she turned away to look at the hall again. "Hades, you'll have to forgive me. I'm afraid I still have no idea who you are or where I am."

He stepped up beside her to look at the intricately carved wall. She stole a glance to her right to see him looking slightly shocked. But he seemed to regain his composure without much effort.

"I think I'm right in deducing that you are the daughter of Demeter." He said, as she touched one of the inlaid rubies on the wall. "In that case, it doesn't surprise me due to her own separation from Olympus. Besides, I don't think she's ever liked me very much either."

"I am glad you're not offended at my ignorance. However, if we're not on Olympus where are we?" Persephone asked, her curiosity mounting. This Hades seemed to be full of mystery and intrigue.

They faced each other now as Hades offered his hand to her for the second time. "Would you like me to show you?"

This time, her hand didn't slide through his like smoke. Instead she felt his warm fingers clasp her own as he pulled her to the entrance of the hall. They passed a grand double staircase before reaching a large set of golden double doors that led outside.

The sky was black and starless as Hades and Persephone made their way down the steps of the entrance. She couldn't see beyond the wide river that lay a little beyond the palace entrance. Nor could she see beyond the cluster of trees Hades was leading her to. This was because of a thick layer of fog that seemed to engulf everything at this hour of the night.

"Cypress." She exclaimed as they drew closer to the trees. "You must spend a lot of time here."

He looked at her with curiosity as they walked onto a winding path lined by the tall pine trees. "How did you know that?"

She shrugged not wanting to admit that she could smell it on him whenever they were close. "Lucky guess I suppose."

"Well, you're right." He said smiling slightly. "Of all the places I rule over in the underworld I believe this is the most peaceful. That's why I like to come here."

It was as if someone had flipped a switch in her head, and she stopped walking abruptly. "Hades." She said. "God of the underworld. God of the dead. This is the underworld." She said thinking out loud as it clicked. "You're the....but I..." Her thoughts seemed to be pulling her in too many directions. He looked at her with some apprehension. "I didn't...I didn't think anything could grow in the underworld." She finally said marveling at the trees.

"Actually that's been my pet project." He said proudly looking around at the trees. "You have no idea how many different species I had to try before something took to the soil." He ran a hand through his hair. "It only took me a few centuries. But I think the result was well worth the effort."

As he spoke, Persephone had taken to her knees to plunge her hands into the soil around the base of one of the trees. It seemed like the trees were very healthy. The whole thing fascinated Persephone.

She grinned up at Hades from her position on the ground, "What other species have you tried?" She had caught him staring at her. She tried to hide her blush as she stood up and dusted her hands off, careful not to soil her dress.

"All sorts." Hades said, gesturing for her to follow him.

After a short walk they reached a clearing of open soil. Persephone thought it was a rather sad sight. There were brown shriveled up plants scattered throughout the clearing of earth.

"I've put my best gardeners to work trying to find what else will grow." He said looking at the field. "But as you can tell, they haven't been successful as of yet. I'm starting to think that Cypress might be the only thing."

Again, Persephone only half listened as she got on her hands and knees. Her fingers were met with a harder soil than she was used to. It seemed the ground had been worked too much to have any of its natural loaminess left. Something that bothered her was the fact that, were she at home, it would have only taken a slight touch from her for plants to start growing spontaneously. But she supposed that since she was here in a dream her powers wouldn't work the same.

It wasn't until then that she noticed that Hades had knelt beside her. Their arms brushed as she sat up to look at him. Again, she was entranced by his steely blue/gray eyes. It was hard for her to find her voice.

"None of this is the way I imagined it." She said eventually. She looked down as she dusted off her hands for the second time.

Hades pulled her up to her feet. "Not the hellfire and doom that you expected? Because we do have that." he said a little wryly.

"Well, I just never expected the king of the underworld to be so...kind to me."

His expression softened as they looked at each other. They were close again. How did this keep happening? Persephone knew her mother would not be too enthusiastic about her behavior. Was she flirting with the god of the underworld? And if she was, was she going to stop? This felt too good to stop.

Persephone's impulses seemed to be ruling her today. She was reaching her hand up to touch his cheek. She knew it would be warm like his hands. But how would he react? After all, he had touched her lips. Surely this wouldn't be too far out of line. But before she could touch him, she noticed her hand doing something strange. It was like smoke melting.

Hades seemed to have noticed it too. "I think Hypnos has reached the limit of his powers."

She watched as the edges of her form started to blur. Again, she was disconcerted by the sight. It must have showed on her face because Hades took her fading hands into his. She could barely feel it.

"It's okay. It won't hurt you." He consoled her.

"I know." Persephone said, trying not to lose her nerve. "It's just...when will I....I just don't know when I'll see you again."

Hades face seemed to light up, but his composure was back just as quickly as it had slipped. Did that mean he felt the same way?

"Tomorrow night if you want." He answered, gently.

Persephone was only able to smile in response under the gaze of his steely eyes. She didn't want to wait that long. She wanted to continue talking with him. The way his eyes held hers melted her insides.

But she was fading fast. Not another second passed before she was engulfed in a darkness filled with dwindling smoke. 

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