Percy Jackson's Greek Gods (Percy Jackson and the Olympians companion #5.5) - Rick Riordan Page 0,30

league. Besides, Demeter wouldn’t let any god get close to her daughter. No way in Tartarus would she let Hades date her.

Hades tried to get over her. But he was lonely down there in the Underworld with no company except the dead. He kept putting on his helmet of invisibility and sneaking up to the mortal world so he could watch Persephone frolic around. In other words, he was the world’s first stalker.

I don’t know if you’ve ever had a crush on somebody that bad, but Hades became obsessed. He kept sketches of Persephone in his pocket. He carved her name on his obsidian dining table with a knife—which took a lot of work. He dreamed about her and had imaginary conversations with her where he admitted his love and she confessed that she had always had a thing for creepy older guys who lived in caves full of dead people.

Hades got so distracted, he couldn’t even concentrate on his work. His job was to sort out the souls of the dead once they got to the Underworld, but the ghosts started escaping back into the world, or wandering into the wrong spiritual neighborhoods. The traffic jams at the gates of the Underworld got ridiculous.

Finally Hades couldn’t stand it anymore. To his credit, he didn’t try to trick Persephone or take her by force—at least not at first. He thought: Well, Demeter will never listen to me. Maybe I should talk to Persephone’s dad.

It wasn’t easy for Hades to visit Mount Olympus. He knew he wasn’t welcome there. He certainly didn’t want to ask any favors of his annoying little brother Zeus, but he put on a brave face and marched into the Olympian throne room.

He happened to catch Zeus in a good mood. The lord of the skies had just finished all his godly work for the week—scheduling the clouds, organizing the winds, and doing whatever else a sky god has to do. Now he was sitting back, drinking some nectar, and enjoying the gorgeous day. He was daydreaming about another beautiful lady he was intent on marrying, namely Hera; so when Hades came to see him, Zeus had a faraway smile on his face.

“Lord Zeus.” Hades bowed.

“Hades!” Zeus cried. “What’s up, man? Long time no see!”

Hades was tempted to remind Zeus that it was “long time, no see” because Zeus had told him he wasn’t welcome on Mount Olympus; but he decided he’d better not mention that.

“Uh, actually…” Hades tugged nervously at his black robes. “I need some advice. About a woman.”

Zeus grinned. “You’ve come to the right place. The ladies love me!”

“Okay…” Hades started to wonder if this was a good idea. “It’s about one particular lady—your daughter, Persephone.”

Zeus’s smile wavered. “Say what, now?”

Hades had been holding in his feelings for so long, he just broke down. He confessed everything, even the stalkerish stuff. He promised he would make Persephone an excellent husband. He would be devoted and give her everything she wanted, if only Zeus would give him permission to marry her.

Zeus stroked his beard. Most days, he would have gotten angry at such a ridiculous request. He would’ve brought out his lightning bolts and sent Hades back to the Underworld with his robes on fire and his hair all spiky and smoking. But today Zeus was in a good mood. He was actually sort of touched that Hades had come to him with this problem and been so honest. He felt sorry for his creepy stalker brother, and he definitely understood how a guy could get obsessed with a woman.

Sure, Persephone was his daughter; but Zeus had lots of daughters by lots of different ladies. It wasn’t like Persephone was his special favorite, or anything. He was inclined to be generous and give her away.

He drummed his fingers on the arm of his throne. “The problem is Demeter. Uh…that is Demeter’s daughter, right? I forget.”

“Yes, my lord,” Hades said.

“Her favorite daughter,” Zeus remembered. “The light of her life, whom she never lets out of her sight, et cetera.”

“Yes, my lord.” Hades started to feel uncomfortable. “Should I talk to Demeter? Perhaps if you broke the ice and made her promise to listen. Or maybe I should declare my love to Persephone?”

“What?” Zeus looked appalled. “Be honest with women? That never works, bro. You’ve got to be strong. Take what you want.”

“Uh…really?”

“Always works for me,” Zeus said. “I suggest kidnapping. When nobody is looking, capture Persephone and take her back to your crib. Demeter won’t know