19 The Goddess Who Would Be Queen...

Hades POV:

Plenty of time had passed since Poseidon's retreat beneath the depths of the river when I had spent conversing with Hestia. Although she had spent the entirety of her life since her birth trapped inside her father's belly, she was a keen conversationalist, and being the Goddess of the Hearth and Family, it made any conversations between us relatively smooth going. And while I would have loved to continue getting to know Demeter, she had already run deeper into the cave, most likely to converse with the local Nymphs and Dryads.

This train of thought came to an abrupt end when I caught the sight of Hera's physical body finally coming towards its completion. While I may have found the idea of spending so long on a form that you can change at any time to be a bit foolish, it was time well spent in her case...

Being the Patron of Women and the future Queen of the Heavens left me with high expectations regarding Hera's physical appearance. After all, being a goddess so beautiful that Zeus, the famous womanizer himself, was willing to trip over himself to get her to marry him, he did set the bar pretty high. It was stated that before the arrival of Aphrodite, Hera was the most beautiful being in creation. Now, I'm not sure if that is true because if it is, I don't think I can blame the entirety of Olympus for almost breaking out into civil war to be with her.

Because Hera was the definition of perfection, with a form that barely reached eight feet tall and a body that was the very definition of womanhood, wide childbearing hips, and a busty figure, yet hidden almost unnoticeably was a lining of muscle along her arms and legs, with beautiful white almost marble-like skin that radiated with golden glow of a Goddess Divinity, hers was the type of beauty kings warred for and men killed for, merely gazing upon her could cause one to fall into an infatuated lust. 

And that was before you reached her features, her face a canvas of an untouchable perfected beauty that sang with regality, enchanting bloodlike red lips lay beneath her soft nose, upturned just slightly in an arrogant smirk. Shiny black hair woven with threads of gold and silver cascaded past her collarbone and down behind her back. Like all Gods, it was her eyes that genuinely drew one's attention, and hers were no different, with an iris' that was like a peacock tail flushed with a variety of colors, from emerald green to electric blue; their pupils; however, they contained a warm brown that held a softness to them that one could be trapped in.

Overall, perfection no longer felt fitting for describing such a being...

Once Hera was finally done with her creation, a gorgeous white summer dress was conjured upon her form, decorated full of green and blue jewels as well as peacock feathers that clung to both the dress sleeves and skirt; upon her brow sat a glistening gold crown that had tales of the past, present and future engraved upon it. Everything about her screamed nobility like she was chosen by creation to become queen...

Hera took a moment to gather her bearings before quickly striding towards the Hearth with mighty footsteps. When she arrived just shy of where Hestia and I sat, she placed one hand over the other before giving a short courtesy with all the grace of someone who had done it a thousand times before.

Rising from the bow to gaze curiously between Hestia and me before being seemingly satisfied with whatever it was she was looking for, she quickly completed the last few steps that separated her and us to delicately place herself down next to us, with all the manners and etiquette that befitted a noble heiress.

Turning quickly to me her lips lifted, in what I can only assume was an attempt at a warm smile but instead came out like a slight grimace, she spoke in a voice that contained both softness and aura of authority "So you are my siblings, yes?" It was stated like a question, yet the knowledge of what her Domains were and the obviousness of it all alerted me to the fact it was said out of politeness and a way to break the ice.

Realizing if I spent too long thinking of a way to reply, I strained my grave voice again, that a prickly Goddess like Hera would probably take offense. "You would be correct." Following that statement, I released an awkward offering of my hand, the kind given after the end of a job interview that had gone poorly. Taking pity on my below-standard social skills, Hera allowed a teasing smirk to grace her face before quickly closing the gap between us in a fierce hug.

Before I had time to compute that Hera, the wrathful Goddess of the Heavens, was giving me a hug of all things, she quickly retreated, wearing the same smirk she entered the embrace with. "Do not worry, brother, a few thousand years surrounded by me and we'll have you speaking full sentences." the way she said it to most would have probably been seen as insulting, especially if they were a near all-powerful Deity. Still, the soft, teasing smirk that remained on her face throughout the entire conversation alerted me to the playful intentions behind it.

Responding only with a slight smirk and tip of the head, Hera spent the rest of the conversation telling me about the wonders of marriage and how I wouldn't have to worry as big sis Hera would make sure I'd have a great marriage. This train of conversation lead me to quickly look for an escape, which came in the form of a Hestia shaped missile striking Hera from the side, with the power of hugs as well as their shared Domains Hera and Hestia got on like a house on fire, talking about the wonders of family...

However, I did see the grimace that entered my usually happy-go-lucky sister's face when Hera brought up marriage. Hera didn't, however, and continued to tell my sister how happy she would be with whatever guy she'd set her up with. Deciding it was time, I did my significant brother's duty and intervened, only to be cut off by booming thunder. Quickly lifting my eyes to the sky, Poseidon came rushing out of the water with a start, and Demeter came running back from wherever she'd gotten off. An eagle, white with a beak of pure gold, released caws of warning before rapidly descending upon the cave. The eagle's cawing ended when it landed on the cave floor just a few feet away, looking around with unnerving intelligence.

The sound of roaring thunder and raging winds was our only warning before standing in the eagle's place. It was the form of a man just as tall and built as myself and Poseidon...