#gracephone

"Won't you?"

Persephone is a woman who was utterly failed by her family. She was kidnapped by Hades and left to rot in a loveless marriage, even when she tried to escape and pleade to them for help. After centuries of torment she got fed up and slit Hades' throat and was punished for her act of defiance. Treated as a problem child by Athena that needed to be kept in check. At that point, the only one that was in her corner was Demeter, and she was gunned down in the war.

At that point, she learned to rely solely on herself, not because she picked up a copy of Atlas Shrugged and thought it maybe kinda had a point, but because the people who were supposed to have her back failed her again and again.

And this informs who she chooses as successors. She met Chastity, a woman trapped in a loveless marriage with a cruel little man and with her dying breath saved her from that life. And before Chastity inherited those memories, she took her new life into her own hands and became a powerful woman.

This way of life is why she and Calliope got on so well for a time. Calliope had ideas on what the idol should be and Persephone loved listening to this up and coming individualist go off on the chorus. The difference was that Calliope's individualism was based on principle. Persephone's was based on personal experience. While Cal was uncompromising and borderline fundamentalist, Persephone was also a realist who took things as they came and learned to be pragmatic. This resulted in them butting heads and eventually falling out. Not because Persephone even disagreed with Cal's ideas, but because she expected Persephone to do things she could never do on her own. Not before Grace.

Speaking of Grace, even before Persephone is convinced that she didn't kill Calliope, she respects every choice that Grace makes throughout her investigation. Even if it involves choosing an ally (or lover) other than her. The only choice she gets angry at is if Grace takes her throne, and even then, the fact that she lied in the first place kinda tempers her rage and she learns to respect it.

Really respect it 0///0

And what does Persephone do when Athena is out of the picture and she leads the chorus? She disbans it and lets the Idols roam free in the public eye. Not without care to their safety, of course. Those who are fearful were given a chance to hide and the rest she offers guidance towards on Olympus. She's not their leader any longer but she still feels a sense of duty towards them because she knows what it's like being left out in the wind.

"Darling... I'm working."

Persephone

Freddie

Pan

Apollo

I almost gave Freddie #1 because it is an objectively fantastic love story and we always need more Friends to Lovers. But I gave it to Persephone because while Freddie absolutely does it for me as a love interest, Persephone does it for me as a character on top of being a love interest.

Persephone has her own goals throughout the story. She's proactive in her ambitions, she shared Calliope's desire for the Idols to change and she doesn't apologize for getting shit done. On top of that, we see that she is fiercely protective of those she cares about, with both Calliope and Grace.

She's practically a dueteragonist in this regard which is why I love her so much with Grace. They have chemistry, they have playful banter (once Persephone is convinced she didn't kill Call), Persephone encourages Grace to trust in herself and take what she wants while Grace offers a sympathetic ear to her centuries of grief and solitude.

There is tension to be certain, what with Persephone's past with Calliope and her lying to Grace to get back the Throne to Hades. But those problems are not insurmountable in their budding romance and it makes it all the more satisfying to overcome, should you chose to believe that Persephone is still worth it at the end of the day.