He nodded and strode through the door. White, gauzy fabric fluttered at the edges of the pavilion. A dais held aloft by marble pillars rose ten steps high to a large feathered mattress piled with countless golden pillows and yellow blankets. White furs spilled from the bed onto the floor. The mattress had been ripped open at some point, and white feathers covered the three occupants of the bed.
Zeus with all his golden glory lay on his stomach, nude, with a nymph under each arm. One with green hair and one with pink.
“Brother,” Hades tried.
None of the bed’s occupants stirred.
That was fine. He preferred waking Zeus in more creative ways.
Hades grasped the edge of a blanket and yanked hard. One nymph toppled from the bed with startled shrieks, and the other fell off the side in fright, their limbs flying in all directions. Zeus tried to sit upright, but wasn’t laying in the appropriate position for such a maneuver. Instead, all he managed was to entangle himself further.
“Who dares disturb the King of the Gods!” Zeus shouted as he slapped the blankets away from himself.
Yes, King of the Gods indeed. With his hair stuck straight up like he’d been electrocuted and two nymphs racing away from him as though they’d seen the end of time in his gaze.
Hades smirked and leaned against a marble pillar. “I see you had a good night. How were the nymphs?”
Zeus finally realized who had woken him. He reached beside him and yanked a blanket over his lap, then glowered at his brother. “What are you doing here? Didn’t I kick you out?”
“You can’t kick me out of Olympus, Zeus. This is my home.”
Zeus pointed at him severely. “You have a home. I gave you a new one to keep you out of mine. The entire Underworld and you’re still up here begging for scraps. Is that it?”
Oh, his brother knew better than to use words like that. But Hades needed something, so he was also trying to be the good sibling and not lose his temper. He took a deep breath and shrugged. “Nothing in Olympus tempts me, you know that. I’ve come to ask for your blessing.”
“I’ll give you no blessings,” Zeus grumbled. “You’re not even supposed to be here. Look at what you did to the nymphs. They ran off and I was planning on enjoying my morning with a little nectar.”
Somehow, Hades was certain the nectar Zeus spoke of had nothing to do with the drink left on the table. The mere thought of it made him shudder in disgust.
He stepped forward and stood beside the bed. “No. I need your blessing on a match. A marriage.”
“What mortal is it now?” Zeus looked up at him, then shielded his eyes. “Damn it, why did Helios raise the sun this early? I told him to wait and give us a little time to wake. Well, out with it. Is it that demi-god you’re so obsessed with? I can’t remember his name.”
Hades wasn’t obsessed with any demi-gods unless they were dead, and even then he found the creatures to be more trouble than they were worth. Zeus was more likely to watch their kind, but that was also because he was father to most of them.
“No, Zeus. I want you to give your blessing on my marriage.” Hades knew that would be the end of Zeus’s hangover, for better or for worse.
And it was.
Zeus’s eyes cleared, widened, and then he burst into laughter. “You? Married? What woman would I ever curse to that life?”
He ground his teeth. “Kore. Demeter’s daughter.”
The King of the Gods turned white as the inside of a seashell. Hades had thought Zeus would be a little more daring, but apparently he was wrong.
Zeus cleared his throat, struggled for words, then merely shook his head.
“Brother,” Hades tried. “You owe me.”
“Not that much. Do you remember the last time someone fought with Demeter? No? I do. Every mortal stopped providing any sacrifices to all the gods, and we suffered for nearly ten years. If she wants to keep her daughter locked up in a cage her entire life, then she can.” Zeus struggled out of bed, tripping over the tangled sheets and nearly falling before he righted himself. “You’re on your own with this one.”
“I’m not asking, Zeus.”
“I think that’s exactly what you’re doing. You want me to give you permission and I know for a fact Demeter would have my head. I already have one bloodthirsty woman