Eurydice asks why Seph and Hades are still married if they hate eachother so much. Hades and Seph explain why it is they love each other even after all this time. Bonus: Hades and Seph tell the story of how they fell in love :)
Eurydice glanced up at the sight of the manor in front of her, one of the rare times she ever looked up these days.
The songbird had been summoned by request of the lady, and no one ever refused Lady Persephone, not even King Hades.
Her thick work boots crunched the gravel under her feet, sickening crunches that felt worse with every step she took. The noise reminded her of the mines, reminded her that she was doomed to the mines for all eternity.
Eurydice’s eyes quickly welled up with tears, stinging as she spared a thought to her lover up above.
What was he doing now? Persephone told her after she came home this fall that Orpheus didn’t sing anymore, but promised Eurydice he was being looked after.
Eurydice remembered the fierceness in her eyes when she’d promised that, and had since wondered if that promise meant that she too was being looked after.
It would make sense, Eurydice decided, since King Hades had often invited her to dinner over the months when Persephone was gone.
They’d sit quietly, Hades enjoying the presence of another person in his home, and Eurydice enjoying the lack of loud chatter that usually accompanied the mess hall, the two picking at their meals but not eating much of anything.
The crunching of the gravel path turned into a loud clomping noise on a large wooden porch, stopping only for Eurydice to turn the doorknob to the great manor and enter.
She didn’t need to knock anymore, Hades had told her so, given the frequency of her visits, but it still felt like an intrusion.
Her boots echoed mercilessly on the clean wooden floors, wax sparkling under the Edison lights, which told Eurydice it must have been recently done for Persephone’s return to the underworld.
Eurydice didn’t need to look up to know the way into the dining room, the place she’d been told to meet her hosts, just as Eurydice didn’t need to look up to see the interior of the manor was a far cry from the dark exterior.
The walls were painted a pretty off-white, pictures adorning them in strategic clusters. The wood of the floors a pretty mahogany that must have cost a fortune to get shipped to the underworld, though Hades had the money.
A gramophone stood at attention near the sofa, green throw pillows sitting atop decadent brown leather and waiting for someone to sit on them, though Eurydice would never dare, if only to keep the leather clean, as Eurydice was seldom clean anymore.
The mines were never the cleanest place to work.
Soft humming from the kitchen caught her attention, a melody she knew with ever fiber in her being, one that sparked heartache and licked at her veins like a fire she couldn’t escape from.
A breath caught in her chest and burned, while her eyes burned with tears she wouldn’t allow herself to shed, then she heard the clicking of Persephone’s heels in front of her.
“Eurydice! It’s so good to see you!” Persephone’s voice was warm, and for the first time since she’d entered Eurydice raised her head to look on at the goddess before her.
“Lady Persephone.” The words and half smile left her tongue and played on her lips before she could stop herself, not that Persephone seemed to mind.
The goddess instead swept Eurydice into what once had been a bone-crushing hug and then brought her hands up to caress her face.
“Have you eaten?” Persephone inquired, moving her hands from Eurydice’s dirt smudged cheeks down to her shoulders.
Eurydice tried to pretend she didn’t notice the flicker of sadness in Persephone’s eyes when the goddess felt how bony her shoulders had become, they were muscular too, but thin and bony.
Eurydice shook her head, she didn’t need to eat anymore, but unless Hades or Persephone goaded her into it, she only ate enough to keep up the illusion she was taking care of herself.
“Okay. Why don’t you go into the guest bedroom and scrub up? I’ve laid something out for you on the bed. Leave the work clothes in the bathroom, I’ll see to them later.” Persephone’s words, though phrased like a question, were a demand, so Eurydice simply looked back at the floor and went into the bathroom.
After Eurydice spent an unknown amount of time scrubbing the sediment and grime from her skin and had dried herself with one of the fluffy towels Persephone had also placed for her to use, she padded into the bedroom to see the clothes she had arrived to Hadestown wearing.
Her knees buckled, and her eyes stung with tears as she grabbed the fabric of the dress and pulled it on, then the tights with too many rips up the legs, then her old boots and oversized vest.
Eurydice only paused when she reached for what should have been her scarf, then something caught her attention.
Persephone hadn’t laid out her scarf at all, she’d replaced it with one of Orpheus’ red bandanas he usually wore around his neck.
Shaking hands brought the ratty old bandana up to press into her nose, and Eurydice inhaled deeply to fill her lungs with the faint scent of her lover’s cologne, a few tears leaking from her eyes and rolling down her face.
“Orpheus...” Eurydice almost croaked, voice unused so much of the time that it wasn’t up to her standard lilting soprano.
The songbird had died, the little bird had sang it’s last note the moment Orpheus had looked back. A lark took it’s place, and larks never sing when they’re captive.
Then, Eurydice was tying the bandana around her neck, adjusting the knot so that the ties pointed in the direction that her heart would have been in if she were still alive, then she stepped out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.
There was a low murmur of conversation, Hades and Persephone’s voices going back and forth, broken only by the occasional bark from Cerberus.
“Don’t you dare tease that baby, Hades! Cerberus, baby, is daddy being mean to you?”
“Unbelievable. He’s my dog, but the moment you call he runs straight to you.”
Eurydice cracked a smile, knowing first hand how similar Hades and Cerberus really were.
They both pouted for weeks after Persephone went back up top, the only difference is that Cerberus laid out on the floor, while Hades laid out on the couch.
“What can I say, I have both of the underworld’s most frightening creatures wrapped around my little finger.” Eurydice could almost hear the triumphant grin in Persephone’s voice, almost see the little smirk on her face as she teased her husband.
“That you do, my love. That you do.” Hades added, and when Eurydice crossed the doorway into the room she saw Hades pull Persephone close and plant a soft and gentle kiss on her lips.
“I’m sure Eurydice didn’t want to see that, Hades!” Persephone prodded her husband in the arm to get him to release her, now free to hang up the tea towel on the hook by the cabinets.
Hades chuckled, which made Eurydice smile, though it was a small smile. The man was utterly devoted to his wife and came alive when she was near.
“C’mon in, Eurydice. Persephone’s made enough food to feed a small army, so we’ll both have to eat like we do it regularly.” Hades held out his arm, motioning to the table awaiting the three.
There were three places made up, one at the head of the table, and the two next to it, so Eurydice sat down quietly at one of the side places while Persephone seated herself at the head seat, Hades filing in opposite Eurydice.
When Hades was distracted by unfolding his napkin, Eurydice flashed her eyes to Persephone, touched the bandana, and mouthed her thanks. Persephone only smiled and winked, then went started passing around the dishes.
After they’d eaten, Hades quickly excused himself to his study to see to some ledgers he couldn’t ignore, leaving Persephone and Eurydice to chatter quietly.
Finally, a burning question that had come to Eurydice’s mind when Hades had kissed Persephone’s hand before he rose from his chair, then her cheek before he excused himself, could no longer be ignored.
Not but fifteen minutes had passed since the king of the mines had retired to his study, Persephone still sitting with Eurydice and stirring her glass of pomegranate juice mindlessly with her straw while they chattered.
Eurydice knew the goddess well enough to know that Persephone might be wishing there was something stronger in her glass, especially if today were a bad day.
Eurydice had seen Persephone through several good and bad days, days where the goddess had been so shaky from lack of drink that it sapped all her strength away, when her stomach turned anything she ate to bile that was promptly rejected, when the sweats and night terrors plagued her mind with all manner of horrors.
Persephone had been there for her after the turn, the least Eurydice could do was support the goddess as she tried to cleanse herself of several centuries worth of heavy drinking.
“Somethin’ wrong, little bird?” Persephone’s voice snapped Eurydice out of her endless trail of thoughts and back into the moment.
“No, nothing wrong, exactly. I’m just curious.” Eurydice was quick to assure her friend, sipping at her glass of water.
Persephone raised an eyebrow, very much mirroring her husband’s frequent quizzical looks.
“Curious about what?”, The goddess inquired, and before Eurydice could stop herself, she blurted out, “Why are you still married to Hades if you hate each other as much as you do?”.
Persephone froze, then after a few seconds she allowed a lazy smile to play on her lips.
“Oh, Eurydice. We don’t hate each other, not in the least. We’re madly in love, but we were never quite able to communicate with each other. Sure, we clash over a list of topics longer than the River Styx, get each other so riled up that we can barely be in the same house, but that’s just who we are. Our love languages are different, but we’ve been married so long that giving up was never an option.” Persephone explained, laughing to herself.
Eurydice’s brow knit together, her fingers fumbled over the fabric of her tights.
“Doesn’t seem like you love each other at all. Never seemed like it until that moment when the world came back into tune.” Again, the words came without warning or barrier, and for a moment she wondered if Persephone would tell Hades of her insolence.
Instead the goddess smiled again, taking a tiny sip of her juice before pushing her glass away.
“Don’t let my man fool you, he’s nothing more than a big softie at heart. He’s the gentlest of his brothers, though he tries to look like the toughest. Gods knows, when I’m involved in any kinda trouble it tears him up somethin’ fierce.”
Something in Eurydice’s brain just wouldn’t light, but she didn’t need to ask Persephone for clarification.
“Trouble as in I’ve been hurt or put myself in dangerous situations, like mine collapses, riots, or even the bar fights up top. Damn near makes himself sick broodin’ until I come back down and he can see for himself I’m alright.”
It was as if the goddess could read her mind, but her answers continued to puzzle and confuse Eurydice.
“Bullshit.” Eurydice snickered out, hands coming to rest at the edge of the table as Persephone laughed.
“It’s true, Eurydice, and I can prove it to you.” Persephone pushed her chair away from the table, then walked all the way up the stairs and down the hallway.
The thud of her heels on the upstairs floor echoed through the downstairs, and even so Eurydice knew Persephone would be making her way to Hades’ office.
The office door opened and shut, then several minutes passed before the door opened and shut a second time, Persephone’s heels echoing on the floor until she had reached the edge of the stairs.
One step was taken, then a loud racket brought Eurydice up to her feet and at the base of the stairs where Persephone was sitting up slowly, one hand cradling an ankle and a string of soft swears exiting her lips.
Eurydice was not the only one who’d heard the fall, Cerberus had taken a place near Persephone’s form and was standing guard. He did not growl at Eurydice as she knelt at the goddess’s side, but he watched.
Then Hades’ office door slammed against the frame with a bang, heavy footsteps pounding until his form appeared at the top of the stairs and barreled down them to Persephone’s side.
The king knelt, examining Persephone’s body and taking one of her hands.
“What happened? Are you alright?” Hades inquired lowly, voice and eyes thick with concern as Persephone grimaced.
“I got dizzy on my way down and missed one of the steps, I should be okay, I’m just rattled.” Persephone hissed out, locking eyes with her husband and allowing him to press a quick and gentle kiss to her forehead.
“Can you stand?” Hades inquired, the concern in his voice touching Eurydice who looked on silently.
“I think so.” Persephone confirmed, then allowed Hades to hold her arm as she pried herself back onto her feet.
Then her legs buckled when she started to put some weight on the ankle she had been cradling, a protest from her body that was not to be ignored. Hades wasted no time in scooping her up in his arms as she whined in pain, then he looked at Eurydice.
“Can you pull out one of the chairs?” Hades inquired, cocking his head in the direction of the kitchen and moving as soon as Eurydice had done what he’d asked.
The songbird-turned-lark watched as Hades carefully settled Persephone in the chair and pulled another closer to prop her injured ankle on it, then Hades removed her shoe and began carefully turning the ankle and rotating it to assess the injury.
Persephone didn’t make much noise, but the grimace on her face didn’t leave until Hades placed her foot back down to rest on the chair, then he furrowed his brow and slid into the chair opposite her, lifting her foot to rest on his lap.
“You need to be more careful coming down the stairs, lover. This could have been much worse.” Hades murmured, tracing carefully around her ankle with a feather-light finger.
“I know, love. I know. I was just coming to tell Eurydice our love story, I guess I got too excited.” Persephone cast her eyes down, tilting her chin down as she did so and heaving a heavy sigh.
Hades chuckled, holding out one of his hands toward Persephone and smiling when she took it in her own.
“Been a while since you wanted to tell that story.” Hades grinned, voice lighter at the mere mention of their love.
Persephone nodded, smiling herself as she squeezed Hades’ hand gently.
“Why don’t you tell it with me, darling?” She inquired, batting her eyelashes at Hades before an involuntary shiver made her body shudder and shake.
Hades carefully stood up, placing her injured ankle gently on the surface of the chair.
“In a moment, love. I’ll be right back.”
And on that note, Hades exited the kitchen and started up the stairs.
As soon as Persephone was sure Hades couldn’t see or hear her, she giggled at Eurydice as she lifted the ankle from the chair and wiggled it around without so much as a wince.
Eurydice was gobsmacked, mouth agape as she realized just how sneaky Persephone had been in luring Hades out of his office.
The goddess in question winked, then quickly settled her ankle back on the chair and resumed a look of mild misery just before Hades crossed back to her side with a knit shawl in his hands.
Eurydice watched as Hades carefully draped the shawl over Persephone’s shoulders, taking gentle hands and freeing the curls he’d trapped beneath it and helping them to once more flow over Persephone’s back and shoulders, while Persephone looked on with a tender smile.
“Hades, my light. Sit down and help me tell Eurydice how we became two halves of a whole love.” Persephone patted the chair next to her gently, Hades capturing her hand with his own as he sat and she rested her head on his shoulder.
It was odd for Eurydice to see the king be so tender toward his queen, even if it was behind the safety of their own home’s walls.
“I’m afraid the stories have painted me a villain, and Seph a victim. Most mortals believe what her mother spews, that I saw her in a field and stole her away without any consent from her. She said that I kidnapped her and assaulted her, tricked her into eating seeds that would trap her with me for half of the year. If only they knew the real story.” Hades sighed, looking at Eurydice now that Persephone was settled next to him.
Persephone nodded against his shoulder.
“The thing is that we met in secret many times before we eloped, initially we met at one of my brother’s absurd parties. It was a brief introduction to her by my brother, Demeter wouldn’t have let me within a half a mile of Persephone otherwise.” Hades began, pressing a kiss to the top of her hand and watching her smile as he spoke.
“Mama didn’t let any man within a half a mile of me unless Zeus brought them over. I snuck out to the gardens later that night and I found Hades there, hiding from the noise and ridiculous customs of an Olympian party. We bonded over feeling trapped in situations we couldn’t avoid. I remember thinkin’ how handsome he looked, how strong and brave.” Persephone added.
“All I could focus on was how beautiful she was, draped in moonlight and a dress of a simple linen, so unlike any of the other dresses on Olympus that night. Plain and demure, not flashy and ostentatious. Such a lovely flower.” He continued, winking at Persephone who scrunched her face up in embarrassment.
“Mama thought that if I dressed simply it would keep the, what phrase did she use? The insatiable gods who’d take great pleasure in deflowering me, if my memory serves.” Persephone interjected again, rolling her eyes as she flopped her head back onto Hades’ shoulder.
“Shame it worked against her plan. By the time I had to leave the gardens to return to my throne, Persephone had goaded me into weekly visits. How many visits was it till you greeted me in that field in a glittering black dress, carnations in hand?” Hades snickered, and Eurydice watched light bounce into Persephone’s eyes and smile as she grinned and gazed at her husband.
“Four, darling. But I had the best seamstress in the village start that dress the morning after the party. I knew you were the man I was fated to marry.” Persephone beamed, capturing his lips in a soft and quick kiss.
Eurydice averted her eyes, but asked another question.
“You don’t regret any of it, do you?”
Persephone and Hades immediately shook their heads.
“No, songbird. I regret our inability to communicate our insecurities and needs, but I’ll never regret marrying the love of my life.” Persephone added, lacing her fingers through Hades’ and watching as Eurydice smiled.
There was a moment of comfortable silence, then Persephone swatted Hades.
“In any case, that’s not why we called you here today. Persephone and I would like you to move into the guesthouse in the manor’s grounds. It’s much nicer than the dormitory you’ve been living in, and we’d feel much better being able to look after you. Isn’t that right, love?” Hades quickly picked up his wife’s cue.
Persephone nodded, smiling as Hades materialized a new contract from thin air and passed it over to Eurydice.
“We’d also like you to take over some of the responsibilities of the bar. You’d work alongside me, away from the mines. You have time to consider the offer, of course. We don’t expect you to accept right now.” Persephone piggybacked onto Hades’ statement, but before either god could utter a syllable more, Eurydice slammed into both of them and hugged them as tightly as she could.
“Thank you. It’s a nice offer, but... if I accept, what happens to Orpheus and I, when it’s his time to die?” Eurydice’s voice was unsteady when she pulled away, and hot tears burned her eyes as she tried to blink them away.
Persephone’s warm smile faded to a softer one, and Hades cleared his throat as he materialized another contract from the air.
“Your poet signed a contract of his own. When it’s his time to die, he’ll use a ticket that I’ve given him to wear around his neck, and not a moment before it’s his natural time to die. Then, Orpheus will come to Hadestown as a musician for the bar, and he’ll live with you in the guesthouse. He signed the deal himself.” Hades’ voice softened, and was as warm as Eurydice had ever heard it to be.
Thick, hot tears rolled down her cheeks now, Eurydice openly sobbing as she saw Orpheus’ signature on the dotted line, sobbing even as she slammed back into Persephone and wept freely into the goddess’s curls.
“Thank you.” Eurydice sobbed, whimpering as Persephone rubbed her back and hummed a familiar melody that warmed Eurydice’s heart in a way that only a mother-figure could.
“No, sweetest. Thank you.” Persephone murmured, wiping each of Eurydice’s unruly tears as she glanced over at Hades, who was gently rubbing Persephone’s shin all the while.
All would be well, Eurydice was now certain. Persephone and Hades had given her a reason to look up again, something to look forward to.
They had given her Orpheus again.
