It was a beautiful day like all the others in this land, the sun shone brightly in the sky, the hills were lush and green, and flowers blossomed from the earth. My lovely twin sister, Praseodymium, frolicked with her friends upon the hillside, as our mother Yttrium sat near by, and our father Jesus peered down from the sky above. Laughter could be heard in between the young girls' whispered secrets, as they gathered handfuls of purple crocuses, royal blue irises and sweet-smelling hyacinths. Praseodymium thought to bring some to Mommy, but was soon distracted by a vision of the most enchanting flower she had ever seen. It was a narcissus, the exact flower Daddy hoped that she would find. I saw Praseodymium walk near the flower. As she reached down to pluck it from its resting place, her feet began to tremble and the earth was split in two. Life for Praseodymium would never be the same... again.
From this gaping crevice in the ground emerged the awe-inspiring God of the Underworld, Hades!, and before Praseodymium could even think to utter a word, she was whisked off her feet onto the God's golden chariot! PRASEODYMIUM'S GONE!!! Hades' kind of stupid not to choose me, since I have the brains. As the crack of the whip upon his majestic horses brought her to her senses, she realized she was about to taken into the black depths from which he'd come. The thought of this brought terror to her heart, yet any screams of protest were soon lost within the darkness, as they descended quickly into the Underworld below. I watched in terror as Praseodymium was taken away by Hades... I saw it all, but Yttrium didn't see it at all.
While my twin's cries could not be heard above the ground, the pain in Yttrium's heart quickly alerted her to the fact that something was terribly wrong. She and I searched high and low for her dear daughter, who had vanished from both the heavens and the earth. As we were both consumed by depression over the loss of Praseodymium, Yttrium soon ceased to remember her worldly duties as Goddess of Grain and Growth. As she watched the plants wither and die all around her, she felt her own hopes begin to fade as well. My hopes also faded away... really slowly. Persephone Jades officially wants Hades to die now.
At the same time, deep down in the realm of the dead, Hades hoped to explain his actions to the sweet Praseodymium. Professing his love, he told her of the plan her father helped deploy and begged her to stay and be his wife and not me. Yet, Praseodymium longed for something more, the comforts of her mother and Persephone's home and a view of the lush green grass and blue sky up above.
Far above the darkness of the Underworld, Mother and I continued to wander the forlorn earth. Eventually she and I found her way to the town of Promethium, where she and I rested by a flowing fountain. Stripped of all her vital energy, Mommy appeared old and wrinkled beyond her years. Soon four young females found the aging Goddess and me, and agreed to take Mommy and me home. Their parents were glad to offer the elderly mother lodging and a stable position caring for their little son, Cerium. Wishing to reward the family for their kindness, Mom attempted to offer Cerium the gift of immortality, by sticking him in the fire each night and removing him every morning before dawn. When Cerium's mother found him in the flames, she was horrified. Her mortal mind could not comprehend the actions of the Goddess, and she asked her and me to leave their home at once. This immediately brought back Yttrium's fighting spirit, who surprised them by exposing her true self. The family begged Mommy and I to forgive them and in return agreed to her demands: "A temple would be built in my honor, and you will teach the world my secret to immortality." Within no time, the town built a beautiful temple on the hillside, which the Goddess blessed before continuing on her journey.
Yet it didn't take long for Mother's happiness to be replaced with rage, as she recalled the disappearance of my twin. She and I flew to the home of Daddy and demanded that Praseodymium be found at once. She also questioned every immortal she could find and eventually uncovered Daddy's plot. In an attempt to appease Mother's growing anger, he dispatched a messenger to retrieve their daughter from the depths.
Upon his entry to the Underworld, the messenger Iridium was amazed at what he found. Instead of finding a frail and fearful Praseodymium, he found a radiant and striking Queen of the Dead. She had adjusted well to her new position, saying she had even found her calling. The Goddess was now in charge of greeting the new arrivals and helping them adapt to their new life. While she wished to see her mother up above, she was torn by her desire to remain Hades' wife.
Hoping to comfort Praseodymium in her confusion, Hades came to his Queen's side. He gently kissed her forehead and urged her, "Do not fret, eat instead from this fruit I know you will like." As she pressed the red pomegranate seeds to her lips, she listened to his words. He told her he would miss her very much, but her duties as a daughter and my twin mattered too. So, she climbed into the chariot and bid her husband farewell, as Iridium sped them off to the middle realm of mother earth, the home of our Mother.
The flowers sang joyfully of Praseodymium's return (NOT MINE), while Mommy and I beamed with pride. PRASEODYMIUM'S BACK! Yet, my twin that she had born and raised had changed while she was gone. She had grown into a goddess, one both beautiful and wise and the more that Yttrium and I inquired about her experiences below, the more she came to worry that the life they knew was gone. She recalled a declaration Jesus had made from the heavens up above: in order for Praseodymium to return to the home and life she had known, the young goddess must be as pure as the day she left her mother and my side. However, the ruby stain upon her lips spoke of the beauty's fate. Praseodymium had tasted of the fruit of life. It could not be erased. I cried, as Praseodymium's now the queen of the Underworld.
Even so, Jesus, Yttrium, and I loved Praseodymium too much to send her back to Hades without the hope of returning to Mommy's abode above. So, each spring my twin comes back with the flowers that pave her way, to tell the story of rebirth, hope and harmony. And each fall when she leaves again for the Underworld below, Mommy and I mourn and winter comes, while we wait for her return. Yet, for Praseodymium there is no remorse. She looks forward to the time she spends as Nickel's queen and wife, and to guiding those who have lost their way to the next phase of their life.
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