"Charon, why are there crows all over the—"
The words stalled in Hades' throat. His steps slowed as he approached the receptionist's desk. So that's why a murder of crows was currently circling the building.
A goddess draped in black leaned across Charon's desk, his chin gently clasped between black painted, claw-tipped fingers. She stood a head taller than Hades. Waist-length hair cascaded down her back, the inky darkness stark against her pale as moonlight complexion.
Hades was struck dumb by the sight of Charon blushing like a love-struck youth. The ferryman stood flustered, goggle-eyed, wearing a dopey smile that had Hades cringing. This was the first time he'd seen Charon's smile stretch that wide, he was half afraid his ferryman's face would start cracking.
He cleared his throat sharply, making his presence known. A shiver skittered down Hades' spine when the goddess glanced over her shoulder.
Pitch-black, fathomless eyes regarded him. Staring into them was akin to gazing into the abyss itself. He swore he heard phantom screeches and distant cries for help, along with the beat of war drums and the crackle of fire.
A ghost of a smile curled at the corners of her blood-red lips, and Hades found himself wondering whether it was actual blood she wore as lipstick. She looked like the type who enjoy sipping a goblet full of the blood of her enemies just for fun.
"You must be Hades." She crooned in a lilting, melodic voice; sultry and chilling all at once. Echoes of her words whispered behind her, layered in eerie harmonics that raised the hairs on his arms.
"We are The Morrigan." She extended a hand for him to shake. Her skin was cool to the touch when Hades wrapped his hand around hers.
"We?" he echoed, glancing around the room. There was no one else present besides Charon.
"She is a Celtic triple goddess. Isn't that fascinating?" Charon sighed wistfully, hearts practically dancing in his eyes.
Hades responded with a close-lipped smile; he didn't find it all that fascinating. Hecate was also a triple goddess, and the Moirai were somewhat a similar entity as well. It wasn't a new concept to Charon either, but he suspected that if Morrigan so much as sneezed, Charon would find it utterly mesmerizing.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Morrigan. Shall we…"
"It's The Morrigan."
"Pardon?"
"We prefer to be called by our proper title, TheMorrigan," she explained.
Before Hades could respond, she yanked him close and buried her nose in the crook of his neck, inhaling deeply.
Startled, Hades jerked back and slapped a hand over the spot she'd scented. Behind the reception desk, Charon was glaring daggers at him.
"You reek of power," the Morrigan purred. "It calls to mine. Makes me want to devour you." She raked her gaze down the length of his body.
Hades blinked, unsure whether she meant that literally… or if it was her version of flirting.
"Right. It's a pleasure to meet you, The Morrigan." By the gods, he felt ridiculous saying that. "Shall we head into my office?"
Hades let her walk ahead while he hung back at reception with Charon. "Take the day off from the Wellness Centre. Get someone else to cover for you," he ordered.
Charon started to protest, Hades cut him off with a slash of the hand.
"That goddess would make a chew toy out of you if given the chance. She's out of your league, and I don't have the time or patience to train a new ferryman," Hades snarled, keeping his voice low so The Morrigan wouldn't overhear.
Charon actually pouted. "Fine. But I'm telling Persephone you're flirting with a primordial goddess," he huffed and stalked off.
Hades sent a telepathic message to his wife:
Ignore whatever Charon tells you. He's just upset I won't let him flirt with a terrifying goddess during office hours.
What? Persephone's confusion came through loud and clear.
I'll explain later. I have a client waiting for me. Love you.
Love you more. She sent a caress through their bond that felt very much like a kiss.
Hades stepped into his office and froze.
A young woman, who could've been anywhere from her late-teens to early twenties, sat behind his desk flipping through his notebook. She wasn't human he could feel it. The power rolling off her was ancient. As ancient as The Morrigan's.
"Uh…"
"You've got quite an interesting clientele with equally interesting issues. I see now why you opened this clinic it must offer some relief from the ennui that plagues our kind." She snapped the book.
Now that Hades got a closer look, he realized it was still The Morrigan standing in his office just younger.
The girl came to stand in front of him.
"She'd make a chew toy out of you too, you know. So don't let her sink her claws into you," she warned, wagging a finger at him.
"Who?" Hades asked, brows drawn together.
He watched, stunned, as the girl began to grow her limbs lengthening, posture shifting until she towered over him.
"Who do you think?" The Morrigan purred in a silky smooth voice, now in her prime as a fully grown adult woman. "Unless, of course, you're one of those males who can't appreciate a strong-willed female in and out of the bedroom?" She trailed a claw-tipped nail slowly down his cheek.
Hades pushed her hand away and stepped around her, moving toward his seat. He welcomed the presence of his massive desk between them, though he doubted it would actually keep her in check.
"I'm one of those males who is deeply loyal and irrevocably in love with his wife," he replied, making sure to flash his wedding ring in the process.
"Hah!" The Morrigan let out a coarse bark of laughter.
She shifted form again, shrinking into a hunched, aged figure. Her hair thinned, turning ash grey then stark white. Her skin wrinkled and mottled with spots of hyperpigmentation, and one eye shrank smaller than the other.
"You must be newly married," she rasped. "It won't be long before ennui creeps in again, and you're both searching for ways to break the unceasing, mind-numbing boredom. Pretty soon, you'll be inviting others into your bed just to feel something again."
That was the second time she'd mentioned ennui. Was that why she was here? Had the curse of immortality and endless time finally taken hold of her?
"That will never happen," Hades firmly stated. "My wife is not the kind of woman one grows bored of."
The crone scoffed an unpleasant, phlegmy sound. "For one so old, you are surprisingly naïve. I can see why she's intrigued by you. A warning though; she's a black widow, that one. Don't let her get her claws in you. She'd fuck you as easily as she'd rip out your innards to wear around her neck and fashion a coat from your skin. And no, I don't mean your wife."
Hades swallowed hard, the image vivid and vile. Was it too late to turn her away? He wasn't sure he wanted this one as a client after all.
"Are you all The Morrigan, or do you have names I can use to refer to you individually so this doesn't get confusing?" he asked, trying to steer the conversation.
"We are The Morrigan. The three-in-one," the hag intoned, her voice layered with two others voice that echoed behind it.
"But we are also known as Macha, Badb, and Nemain. It's been so long, I forget who is who. Most mortals simply refer to us as Maiden, Mother, and Crone. I'm sure you can tell which is which." She had shifted back into the young girl as she spoke.
Hades nodded. "What brings you here today?"
The Maiden frowned and tapped a finger against her lips. "I wonder what it was. I've never been to this Underworld before. Could you give me a tour? I hear there is another Triple Goddess who dwells in your kingdom."
Hades internally cringed at the thought of introducing The Morrigan to Hecate. The latter was quite closed off and didn't take well to strangers invading her sanctuary. He too was wary of The Morrigan's intentions and until he got a better read of her, the inside of his clinic was all she'd experience of the Underworld.
"Maybe another time… When I can trust you not to cause problems within my realm."
The Morrigan shifted again, now into her 'Mother' persona.
"Oh, sweet, gentle Hades," she said, examining her nails. "'Problem' is our middle name. We are a goddess of war, fate, and sovereignty. Those three are never without conflict."
"Even more reason for me to contain your visit," Hades replied flatly.
Her eyes flashed crimson and before he could react, she clambered onto the desk and yanked him forward by the front of his toga. They were so close he could count the lashes on her eyes.
"You dare deny me?" she roared, her voice echoing like a thousand overlapping banshee screams. "You know not who you deal with, boy! When you were nothing but a cosmic speck, I roamed the realms as a queen, a warrior goddess, and fate incarnate. I could grind your bones to dust with a snap of my fingers!"
Once again, Hades heard the shrieks of pain, the terror, the clash of swords and shields and the pounding beat of war drums. He wondered if they were a figment of his imagination induced by The Morrigan's magic.
The acrid stench of death magic filled the room: rotting flesh, blood and bodily fluids, and the earthy scent of freshly dug graves. It was almost similar to the way Thanatos' magic, but the difference between the two was clear as day and night.
A sliver of trepidation skittered down Hades' spine. He was one of the most powerful gods in the pantheon, but The Morrigan felt almost as ancient as the Titans, maybe even as old as the Primordials. He didn't believe she (or they?) could kill him as easily as she implied but she could certainly inflict him some serious damage.
Irritation stirred in his gut. It looked like today was going to be one of those days and this was only his first patient. From now on, he wouldn't leave it up to Charon to schedule appointments. He'd handle the calendar himself, and vet the customers just to keep the truly dangerous ones at bay. Yes, he realized that went against the spirit of being a therapist, but there were levels to madness, and he had no desire to deal with The Morrigan or Set ever again. It simply wasn't worth the heartburn.
Just as he began to summon his own power, the red faded from The Morrigan's eyes, and a sickly sweet smile crept across her harsh features. She released his clothes and instead cupped his face as though about to kiss him. Hades tried to flinch away, but she dug her nails into his skin.
"Unless you want to keep me to yourself, locked away in this cosy office for your eyes only. I understand. I'm deathly possessive too." She whispered.
The Morrigan gathered the skirts of her gown and crawled across the desk until she was perched on the edge, her feet on the armrests of Hades' chair. She was barefoot, the soles and underside of her feet caked in dried mud and cuts.
"I knew you'd come around to my way of thinking," she smirked, pressing one dirty foot against the centre of his chest right on his pristine white toga.
Hades slid his chair back and stood, putting some distance between them, and brushed the dust from his clothes.
"I've noticed you keep switching between referring to yourself as an individual and in the collective," he said, watching her carefully. "Just as you keep cycling through different personas every few minutes. Is it…" He paused, searching for the right words. "Is it hard for you to balance… or juggle all your identities?"
The Morrigan chuckled, the sound low and husky. "Running away again? It won't help, you know. There's nothing I love more than a good chase." As soon as the words left her lips, she shifted into the crone.
"Ignore that one," the hag rasped. "She'll have forgotten about you the moment we return to our realm and she finds someone else to terrorize."
Hades feigned a grin. "Do you think you can keep her at bay for a while, so we can focus on the reason you came to see me?"
Her face blurred, rapidly shifting between her three forms before settling once again on the crone. "She's fighting me, but I think I can hold her off for a while. Back to your question. Do you struggle to balance all your identities? Husband. Father. Brother. King. God of the dead. First son of a tyrant. You've got quite a full plate," she remarked.
Hades crossed his arms. "Yes. But those are just titles held by one man or one god, if you prefer. You, on the other hand, are three goddesses in one, with distinct personas."
The hag hobbled toward him. "Is there a difference? We are The Morrigan all the same. A single entity."
Suddenly, her eyes went white and unfocused, as though she were seeing something far beyond the room.
"My lady, is all well?" Hades asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Her gaze cleared, though she continued to stare into the distance. "Looks like I'll have a lot of bloodstained clothes and armour to wash in the near future. Mortals!" She clicked her tongue and shook her head. "One would think they were allergic to peace, the way they're always at each other's throats. And I did like some of those warriors. They would've made fine leaders one day."
"Does this mean you're leaving?" It was both a relief and a disappointment. On one hand, Hades found The Morrigan exhausting to deal with but on the other, he'd been genuinely interested in their conversation before she received… whatever that was.
"Why, will you miss me?" the crone asked, though the voice that came out belonged to the one Hades had privately labelled the seductress. "I could come right back, if you want me to," she purred, shifting forms again, "but it won't be to answer any of your silly little questions."
She moved toward him, her presence once more charged and commanding, as the persona he thought she'd been holding at bay surged to the surface.
Without warning, The Morrigan leaned down and kissed Hades on the cheek. He was so stunned by the gesture that he didn't hear the office door swing open behind him.
"What's going on here?" Persephone demanded. A myriad of floral scents flooded the room, so strong he began tearing up. Hades knew that if she wished, she could suffocate mortals with that fragrance or worse, have them choke on poisonous spores. And there they were now, drifting in the air as her vines cracked up through the floor.
Hades quickly stepped back. "Darling, I promise you it's not what it looks like."
The Morrigan laughed. "Until next time," she purred into Hades' ear, then sashayed past Persephone, winking at her as she did.
Growling, Persephone stepped forward, her vines coiling and ready to strike.
Hades wrapped his arms around her from behind, holding her tightly against him. "Sweetheart, don't. I swear, there's a very reasonable explanation for what just happened. Please, just breathe."
"There will never be a reasonable explanation for finding you locked in an embrace with another woman." She tilted her head back to glare up at him, her eyes blazing. "Explain. Yourself."
And so, he did. Persephone was mildly mollified by the end though she now held a grudge against The Morrigan. She wiped the spot where the Celt had kissed Hades with the sleeve of her gown. When she was done, she wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"I can still smell her on you. Take off your clothes," she demanded, tugging insistently at the clasp of Hades' toga.
"What?" Hades chuckled.
Instead of answering, Persephone reached for the straps of her gown. Hades' minds finally caught up to what she intended, and he scrambled to shed his own clothes just as a second Persephone walked into the room.
"What in Nyx's name is going on here?" she demanded, two angry spots of colour blooming on her cheeks.