Hades

XXIII

Ella's point of view 

I stared at Hades, waiting for him to say a word. He had his back facing me, staring out of the large window behind his desk. The gardens below were white and mostly barren yet he stared at it how someone would stare at flowers in bloom. 

I waited for him to gather his thoughts. To think of a logical way forward. Kronos was powerful, there was no way around it. Hades had spoken of his influence on people, he was followed by many and it would be easy to convince the gods to take his side in the war. 

The key to beating him would be power and alliance. We needed the gods on our side, we needed their alliance and the power and influence that came with them. 

The only way to win the war would be to fight power with power, a god with a god. 

"I have not been to Olympus in years," Hades said, his back still facing me. 

His shoulders were drawn tight and his fists clenched tightly on the arm of the armchair. His knuckles and veins strained at the skin, for a moment I thought he would snap the arm in half. His voice sounded strained and rough as if the thought of Olympus brought back terrible memories.

"Why not?" I asked, hesitant to hear his answer. 

I watched as his grip tightened beyond what I thought the armchair could resist. I could not tell if his eyes were open or not. I did not wish to know. 

"There are people, gods, that I do not wish to see," He answered. 

"What do you mean?" I questioned, desperate to know why he did not want to go to Olympus. 

Olympus was the home of the gods. I had never thought to ask him why he did not reside there. It seemed that he had not resided there in centuries. I wanted to know why but decided not to push him further. 

"My brothers and I are not on the greatest of terms." 

"Your brothers?" I asked, making sure he was serious.

"Zeus and Poseidon are my younger brothers, we got into a disagreement a few centuries ago and I never went back to Olympus," Hades said. 

The way his muscles tensed at the mention of his brothers and their disagreement indicated that this was no small disagreement. Something happened between them. Something big enough to cause Hades to never visit Olympus until now when it was necessary. 

There was a feeling deep down in me that told me to go to him and comfort him. It was an urge I could not fight off.

I walked towards him watching for any signs of rejection; nothing came. I placed my hand gently over his. His palm relaxed under my touch, releasing the death grip he held. 

"Hades this does not sound like some insignificant brotherly argument, what happened?" I asked. 

He closed his eyes and I watched as his lips pulled down into a frown. Whatever it was, bothered him. I cupped his face with the palm of my hand, smoothing over the crease lines that graced his forehead. 

"It is a long story my love," Hades whispered into my palm. 

"I have time," I whispered back. 

He sighed deeply, as if in deep thought. I drew my thumb gently along his cheek waiting for him to tell me. I knew that he would. Hades always answered my questions and I knew that if truly did not want me to know he would not have told me about his brothers. 

He looked up at me in that godly way. In a way that you would never understand unless someone had looked at you that very same way. He looked through my soul and into my future as if he himself could see everything.