"You're angry-"

"You think?" I moved closer to Hades, intentionally invading his space. His back went rigid, but I knew it wasn't in him to back down. "I'm tired of being told I'm too vulnerable, too powerless, too young. I'm a goddess! My father gave me the ability to destroy cities with a smile. My mother gave me the power to create life, and you gave me power over the dead. I may never be able to do that-" I pointed to Pirithous "-to another person, but I shouldn't be defenseless. I'm done running. I'm done hiding. And I'm done letting other people fight for me. I want to go after Boreas."

"Wait. What?" Hades blinked, shaking his head. "And do what? You can't kill a god any more than he could kill you."

"Fine, I can't kill him, but I can make him wish I could." At his surprised look, I grew defensive. "What? I'm going to go all dark-side one day, anyway. I might as well do something so extreme he'll think twice next time he chooses a victim." I paused, considering. "Can gods be castrated?"

Hades coughed. "Uh..." He held up a hand, then shook his head. "Persephone, please don't take this the wrong way, but right now you don't have what it takes to go head to head with another god."

"Then teach me." A dull ache crept along the back of my head, and I rubbed at it.

Hades shook his head. "Self-defense is one thing. Teaching you to use your abilities, to protect yourself, and even giving you profiles on all the living gods so you know how to avoid drawing their attention is fine. Great idea, in fact. But I'm not letting you go after Boreas. My only goal in rescuing you was to keep Boreas from destroying you. Teaching you to go on the offensive would be counterproductive to that goal. I'll handle Boreas."

"It's the same thing." My skin was growing uncomfortably warm. It itched like bugs were crawling beneath the surface. I rubbed my arms, trying to regain my train of thought. "Doing something in my name is the same as..." I hissed as the ache in my head grew more pronounced, hand flying to my forehead.

Hades touched my temple with his index finger, eyebrows gathering together in confusion. "What the hell...?"

The door to the banquet hall burst open and Cassandra ran in, her face pale. "Hades!"

"Orpheus!" He swore, tilting my chin up so he could look into my eyes. "That idiot."

"What's happening?" I asked around the buzz in my ears.

"Persephone, I need you to focus, okay?" He grabbed both of my shoulders as my eyes glazed over. "Persephone!"

My body stiffened as my mind exploded with pain. I hit the floor, convulsing. The pain grew worse with each heartbeat. Molten glass poured through my veins. I couldn't see the banquet hall anymore. Colors flashed in and out of my vision.

I screamed. Some part of me was aware of Hades and Cassandra holding me down as I writhed back and forth.

"Listen to me!" he yelled in panic. "Persephone!"

I shrieked, fingernails trying to claw into the marble floors. I couldn't think, couldn't form words. I felt as though I could fly apart any minute. It burned; I was being burned alive from the inside out. It felt a thousand times worse than when Zachary had tried to free the soul from my body.

"Do something!" Cassandra shouted.

Hades swore, grabbing both of my hands. "Persephone! Give this to me!" He pressed his hands against mine. "Damn it! She has to consent!"

My wordless wail crescendoed. Hades pressed his hand against my forehead and my body went still. I struggled against the invisible binding. I couldn't move. The pain inside of me begged for some kind of outlet. Hades lifted me and pressed his lips to mine. His voice intruded on my thoughts. Tell me I can take this.

It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! The only cohesive thought I could form kept screaming through my head.

I can fix this, if you let me.

I struggled to interpret his words through the red fire of pain, but I grasped firmly to the hope he offered. Please!

Hades took my hands into his. I felt a pulse of energy sear through me like a burning brand, and then the pain stopped.

My eyes fluttered open and met his. His thoughts and feelings swirled through my head. They were foreign, dark, conflicted, and raw. My mind latched onto them, trying to make sense of them.

With his name on my lips, I sank into blissful darkness.

Chapter XIX.

I woke up in my bed, painfully bright light streaming through my window. I blinked, disoriented, and then the pain hit. It was as though someone had slammed a pick ax through my temple and the seven dwarves were singing "Hi-ho!" at the top of their lungs while tap dancing. I doubled over in agony, grasping my head with clawed hands. The green fabric from the dress was glaringly bright. I squeezed my eyes shut, unable to think.

"I'll let Hades know you're up," Cassandra whispered from the papasan chair.

I winced at her voice but managed a tight nod.

Seconds later Hades burst into the room. I groaned at the noise and Cassandra smacked his shoulder, making a shushing gesture with her other hand.

"What's wrong with me?"

Hades sat beside me and grabbed my hand. "Orpheus has gone public."

I struggled to remember what an Orpheus was.

"Persephone." His authoritative voice brought my eyes to his. "I need you to concentrate for a minute. Take a deep breath." He breathed in deeply, watching to make sure I did the same. "Take all that pain in your head and push it to me."

I stared at him.

"I think she needs you to clarify that," Cassandra said helpfully.

He looked frustrated. "Look, I'm not the God of Poetry or Good Descriptions, okay? Just do it. I'll explain what it means later."

I closed my eyes. Without Hades as a distraction the pain in my head came back in waves that threatened to pull me under. I struggled to hold onto consciousness. I focused on my hand clasped in his. For all his calm demeanor, his tight grip told me he was worried.

I gathered energy in my hands, surprised when they grew warm. The pain in my head lessened as I imagined more filling my hands. For a moment, I held it there, feeling like a stretched out rubber band. Then I released it into Hades.

"That's it," he murmured, releasing me.

"What are you going to use it for?" Cassandra asked.

"A grove of trees near the palace."

"That's the best you could think of?"

"Well, gods, Cassandra, if you've got any better ideas I'd love to hear them."

"My head feels better." I opened my eyes. "What were you saying about Orpheus?"

"He went public."

"Yeah, you said that," Cassandra said. "I think she wants you to elaborate."

"Cassandra!" Hades snapped. "You may leave us now."

My eyes widened. It had not been a request. Cassandra blinked, stunned, and shot him a hurt look.

"Now, Cassandra," Hades said through gritted teeth.

"As you wish, Your Highness." Her dark hair flared behind her as she spun on her heel to leave the room.

Hades returned his attention to me. "Orpheus has told every major news outlet and his fans about his adventures in the Underworld. He spoke of you in particular."

"Why?" Any other day I'd be flattered that Orpheus was talking about me, but judging by the look on Hades' face it wasn't a good thing. My throat went dry and I swallowed hard. Whatever Hades said next wasn't going to be good.

"Apparently his wife didn't make it. He looked at her as she was stepping out of the Underworld. She's in a coma."

My mouth dropped open. "That's not fair!"

Hades shrugged. "No, but there's nothing we can do about it. Her soul returned to her body, and she's alive enough to where I can't reach her."

"That sucks." I felt sick. He'd come through hell for her only to mess up at the last second. I closed my eyes. Poor Orpheus. He must feel so guilty.

"Yes. He seems to think you, your mother, or I can help. He's been telling the world about us. He's written his whole experience online, and has been interviewing all day trying to get our attention. Half the people think he's crazy, but apparently some believe him. Or at least they're all talking about us enough to constitute worship."

"Really?"

"Great news for your mother and me. Orpheus most likely meant it as a favor, or tribute, so we would be more apt to help his wife. Unfortunately, it's not good for you."

"Why not?"

"You haven't reached maturity. You're little more than a gifted human at this point, and your body isn't capable of handling worshipers."

"Surely there were child gods."

"Any you've ever heard of?"

I blinked, thinking back.

"That's because we kept them from the public until they were able to handle worshipers. As far as the humans were concerned, they just appeared one day, full-grown."

"Like my mom?"

"We're different."

"I thought you said as queen I would have my own worshipers."

"That's funneled through me. I give you enough so you can practice with your abilities, but not enough to hurt you."

Something in his expression caught my attention. My head was starting to hurt again, but I shoved that aside. "What do you mean you give me enough?"

Hades sighed. "That's not important right now."

"I think it is."

He sighed. "When Boreas attacked you and I breathed my essence into you-"

"The kiss?"

He nodded. "I gave you enough of myself so you could come here without harm. Since it's supposed to be an exchange, I had to take something from you."

Vague memories from last night surfaced. "But you needed my consent."

His grip tightened on my hand. "And you weren't being cooperative. More important, I didn't want to take anything from you. What I needed to do to save you was bad enough."

"I see." It was silly to feel hurt. Even I didn't think our impromptu marriage was an ideal situation, but hearing him say it was "bad enough" still stung.

He rolled his eyes. "That's not what I meant, and you know it. Anyway, I took something I could control, that also ensured you wouldn't be hurt. You gained powers, but they couldn't burn through you."

"That doesn't make sense."

"It's bending the rules, but it works. I got the idea from Zeus. It's how he and Hera were bound." His mouth twisted in a bitter looking grin.

"What do gods usually exchange?"

"It depends. Some did whatever it took to become equals. Some exchanged practically nothing so they could retain their own powers. Others completely drained their spouse of all their powers..." His voice trailed off, and he looked away. "Like Zeus. That bastard took everything."

I shifted, and he glanced down, looking surprised to see how tightly he was gripping my hand. "Sorry," he said, releasing me.

I rubbed my hand. "So what did I give you just now? What did I take?"

"Whatever your body couldn't handle. I didn't take it, just channeled it through me. That wasn't an exchange. Your power will continue to return to you until the level of worship dies down."

"You were in my head?" I wasn't sure if that part had happened.

He nodded.

"What was that?"

He scratched the back of his head looking embarrassed. "That could become permanent if we were ever to reach equilibrium. Otherwise it will only occur when we're in contact with one another."

I laughed. "So if I bump into you I'll be able to read your mind?" Something in his face made me stop laughing. "What?"

Hades flushed. "Er...intimate contact. In this case a simple kiss was able to suffice."

I raised an eyebrow. Intimate contact. I gave Hades a speculative look. My cheeks heated when he met my gaze. "Oh. Well...uh..." I changed the topic. "What would happen if you didn't continue to channel my power?" I swallowed, remembering the agony of last night. "How bad can it get?"

"There aren't words for what would happen to you." He averted his eyes. "It would get bad. Really bad. You could kind of...unravel."