Crow of Flame

Chapter 13

We waited outside of a set of green double doors. This was, apparently, where breakfasts were to be held. We had been here for about ten minutes, waiting for them to open. Hades said they'd open when Persephone and Kronos were ready to see us. Hades was talking to Zeus and Eliot. Cadmus was leaning against a wall. I approached him.

He looked up at me, his amber eyes didn't have the same glow they normally do. I pushed his shoulder and laughed, "hey, thanks for disappearing yesterday."

He laughed and ran a hand through his golden hair, "what can I say? Duty calls, I answer."

"What did you have to do?"

He looked at me with apprehension and took a breath, "Sometimes, Kronos gets visions that are too much to handle on his own so he passes them to us. We paint them..." His voice trailed off and he looked up to make sure nobody was coming or listening. Hades, Zeus, and Eliot were all wrapped up in their own conversations. He took another steadying breath before continuing. "Some of them take it out of us. I slept for nearly 13 hours and I'm still tired... The vision I saw, Sapphire..." His voice faded in and out as he searched for the words to say what he saw. "Sapphire... You..." his voice trailed off.

I could tell this was hard for him. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug. He wrapped his arms around my waist and buried his head in my neck. "You don't have to tell me if it's too hard..." my hand ran idle circles on the back of his neck, "but if you want to talk... I'll listen..." my voice trailed off as he pulled away enough for me to meet his gaze. "I know what it's like to not be able to explain the scary shit in your head."

He laughed and sighed, "If Kronos ever finds out I even told you about vision sharing and mindscaping I'm going to be burned at the stake."

I laughed and shoved his shoulder, "well, if they light it, I'll make sure the fire burns cold." We both laughed for a moment before Cadmus' gaze caught on something behind me. I pulled my arms back and turned around just in time to see Persephone and Kronos advancing towards us with someone I didn't know. I shot one last glance at Cadmus, "Let the games begin." He shot me a playful look before shaking his head and guiding me over to Hades.

I looked at Zeus and Eliot, they both stiffened, watching the stranger approach. Eliot met my gaze and shook his head slightly. I turned my gaze to Hades, he was looking at me. He smiled and put a hand on the small of my back as the green doors opened revealing a grand dining room with large windows on every wall. The ceiling was domed and encased in gold, and the walls were white with green and gold swirling in patterns of mystery. The more I stared at them, I more drawn in I felt. Like Cletus was trying to tell me something.

In the center of the room was a grand round dark wood dining table with seven chairs evenly spaced around it.The chairs each held a gold cushion. I didn't realize I had stopped walking until I felt Persephone's hand on my shoulder. I was gaping at the room. She laughed slightly as I turned my attention to her, "we should take our seats, little one." I looked into her brown eyes and saw the kindness that fascinated me all those years ago. It was accented by a flowing peach gown, in her usual style. She had her pink lips curled into a pleasant smile and her golden hair was styled half up half down.

I nodded and she led me to a seat between Hades and the stranger. I sat down and looked to Hades. He took his green napkin and laid it on his lap. I mirrored his actions and looked to the rest of the table. Zeus was engaged in conversation with Eliot, Cadmus was resting his chin on his hand and fiddling with a golden spoon, Kronos gave Persephone a kiss on her cheek as she sat down. I finally turned my gaze to the stranger next to me.

He was staring at me with crystal blue eyes. He had blazing red hair down to his shoulders that framed his face. His skin was nearly as pale as my own. He was wearing a puffy black shirt that cinched at the wrists and matching black pants with shiny black shoes. I looked him up and down before meeting his gaze again and mimicking his smile. I gave a small nod, "I'm Sapphire,"