coming from the door.
‘All is not lost.’
I turned to see Hades
standing at the door.
His head was bowed.
If I did not know Gods better,
I would almost say I saw guilt.
He walked into the room,
his gait was slow,
Kore had stopped crying.
Instead, she was staring at him
with exhaustion and suspicion.
He kneeled beside her
and reached to touch her face.
She edged back from his touch.
He sighed and withdrew his hand.
‘All is not lost,’
he said again,
his eyes full of longing.
‘How much of the pomegranate
did you eat, Kore?’
he asked her tenderly.
I could see he loved the girl.
But in his desire he had not cared
what she wanted,
not understood the damage
he was bringing upon them both.
A marriage should not begin this way.
Kore answered quietly,
‘Six seeds.’ Even now, full of fear
