Crow of Flame

Chapter 9

Cadmus, Zeus, and Eliot all went to their rooms, Persephone and Kronos stayed in the parlor, presumably talking about me, and Hades showed me around. The Golden Palace was absurdly big. It had over 100 rooms and too many hallways to keep track of. Hades walked beside me, basically letting me explore as I pleased, while interjecting fun tidbits and facts. I stopped to look at paintings of identical looking men, and landscapes, and battles. We wandered for about an hour and a half before we reached south wing. The south wing, according to Hades, was where all the rooms that housed him and his brothers, and their households were located.

The south wing entrance was a white marble arch with roses carved flowing up to the center. In the center, the highest point of the arch, the vines of roses formed a heart shape. The doors in the archway were golden with white accents splayed around the edges, and white door knobs. The hallway leading up to the grand arch was made of golden walls with paintings evenly spaced and no windows. I hardly noticed any paintings as Hades took my hand in his. He placed my palm on the door and it opened without warning or effort.

I didn't even bother to be impressed. We entered a large sitting room with three doors branching off. The sitting room itself was huge and turquoise with white details. There were three distinct areas, each with their own set of three white couches, the same as the ones in the parlor. At each area there was a dining table with six chairs each, a desk, and a vanity. The walls of the room were lined with books, there was a grand window on the wall directly in front of the door. It faced a grand teal lake.

Hades tugged my hand towards a door. It was black and gold and opened at my touch. We walked down a long black and gold hallway before we reached a smaller sitting area. This one had three comfy looking golden couches arranged in a 'U' shape. There was an area in a corner occupied by three black arm chairs. They were surrounded by books and next to them was a window with a perfect view of the Lake. There was a fire place hidden by the chairs, it was the perfect cozy nook for reading.

Crossing to the other side of the room, Hades led me through a brown door and short to a hallway that ended with three sets of double doors. One to my left, one straight ahead, and one to my right.

One of the white doors to my left opened and Cadmus stepped out, "done with the tour?" I nodded, "Good, we're dying to see what your room looks like."

I gave him a look of confusion before Hades explained, "we were never allowed in your room."

I turned my disbelieving gaze to Hades, "how long has it been, locked?"

Hades thought for a moment, "this room has been off limits to me since I moved out of the nursery and into this wing."

I let out a laugh of disbelief, "so this is your wing?"

He took my hand in his and looked me in my eyes, "no," he looked to Cadmus for a moment. Cadmus placed a hand on my shoulder as Hades locked gazes with me once more, "this is our wing."

Hades placed my palm on the door and it began to glow a bright yellow. A loud lock clicked and the door glided open. My room was bright and big. To my right was a large four poster bed with yellow tule drapes hanging around the mattress. On one side of that was a birch wood nightstand, on the other was an ornate vanity painted gold. It had carved golden vines crawling around the outside of a round mirror and a matching cushioned stool that slid into place beneath the workspace.

Opposite the room, in one corner, was a nook with a small white couch and two matching armchairs surrounding a fireplace framed by tall bookshelves. There was a tall dark wooden ladder that climbed the height of the shelves. In another corner was a large white grand piano with a matching bench, along the wall was a cello, a violin, a guitar, a slew of brass instruments, and many music stands.