Blooms of the Underworld [Chaennie]

You, too, Hades of the world below, I call as an ally; you who have received so many bodies slain by my sword for Helen's sake, you have your payment; either restore them to life again now, or compel this woman to show herself better than her pious father, and give me back my wife.
But if you will rob me of her, I will tell you what she omitted in her speech.

- Euripides, Helen

---

When Roseanne woke, it was to Jennie's back pressed tightly to her front, the soft rise and fall of her chest echoing Roseanne's own.

Jennie looked younger as she slept and Roseanne hadn't really thought about that before - just how much Jennie's years of running weighed upon her face. As she slept, she looked more calm like she no longer had the weight of survival resting heavily upon her shoulders.

Roseanne smiled down at her, propping herself up on her elbow - completely enchanted as she brushed away a stray bit of hair from Jennie's face.

Jennie fidgeted at the touch and Roseanne stilled immediately but the younger goddess stopped as well, lifting her head slightly and opening her eyes. She peered back at Roseanne with blurry eyes, muttered something unintelligible before putting her head back down upon the pillow and closing her eyes again.

Roseanne didn't move for a while after that - hand still suspended above Jennie's cheek.

She took care not even to breathe to loudly, lest she waking the sleeping beauty that was held securely in her arms.

Throughout the night, Jennie had been restless. She had actively fought against closing her eyes and when she had, it hadn't been much better.

She moved around in her sleep, tossing and turning until finally Roseanne had wrapped her arms around her to keep her still. Her breathing had been choppy and came out fast before going too slowly that Roseanne had feared she had stopped breathing. Words came out slurred and in a multitude of ancient and modern languages that Roseanne hadn't understood. She hadn't understood the words at all but she had understood the emotions behind them so she had whispered things in soothing Greek into Jennie's ear until she had quieted again and she fell into another brief bit of rest.

"Too early," Jennie slurred out - still not properly awake," Thinking to loud - stop it."

Roseanne suppressed her chuckle and placed her own head back upon the pillow.

"Of course," She cooed.

"Sleep," Jennie ordered. She hadn't opened her eyes again and she was certainly still asleep but her words were forceful - almost an order.

"Well," Roseanne said quietly," When you put it like that, darling, I suppose that I must do as I'm told."

Besides, she was the Queen of the Underworld.

The day could start when she said it could.

---

Roseanne had holed herself up in her office after the pair of them had parted after breakfast - after, of course, an hour and a half of lying in Jennie's bed talking about their favourite books. The Queen of the dead had looked so stressed and frazzled that Jennie didn't want to interrupt her so she stayed firmly in the garden for most of the day.

Jennie sat underneath the shade of her sturdy pomegranate tree - a book in one hand while the other was occupied throwing one of the fruits up and down.

Ella was running around the hedge maze that Jennie and her gardening helpers had made a few weeks ago. The little Shade's hair was put into two pigtail braids with dark navy flowers woven between each of the hair strands. Sitting atop her head, was a crown of purple flowers that glowed whenever she got closer to Jennie.