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Megaera knew her role in life. She was one of the furies; one of the guardians of the Underworld. It was her job to help keep all the souls in line; prevent even a single shade from escaping. It was her job to stay professional. If she had simply stuck with her sisters and stayed away from everyone else then perhaps things would be simpler. Her job would be easier to manage. But she hadn’t. Instead, Meg had made the terrible mistake of getting attached . And not only had she gotten attached to two people, one of them happened to be the son of Hades himself and the other was Death personified. How wonderful! Though, despite all her complaining, she couldn’t bring herself to regret being close to Zagreus and Thanatos. Well, mostly.
The thing with Zagreus was that he was far kinder than he had any right being. He was the prince of the Underworld, son of the mighty Hades! Yet he was sincere. He was kind to those around him and practically treated everyone as his equal. He was nothing like his father. It was something Meg had never quite understood about him. How could someone raised amongst the dead be full of such kindness ; such sincerity? She didn’t understand it but, then again, it wasn’t her place to. It was her place to guard Hades’ realm. It was her place to be cruel and vicious. It wasn’t her place to miss an old relationship. It wasn’t her place to miss him .
Thanatos was the ice to Zagreus’s flame. The two were total opposites yet worked in perfect harmony. Very few people could make Zag smile the way Thanatos could and Megaera regretted the fact she wasn’t one. Thanatos was the most practical of the three of them - even if he had a soft spot for Zagreus. He was also the busiest of them all. Whilst Meg had her duties as one of the Erinyes and Zag was busy being...Zag, Thanatos’s work was never done. After all, mortals never did seem to stop dying. Particularly when they decided to rage war against each other. Megaera never understood why nor did she care to learn. But it kept Than busy far more than she’d like.
Because that was the thing about Magaera, Zagreus, and Thanatos
They’d grown up together .
She’d known them since they were children and they had known her just as long. She had grown and they had grown with her but each had diverged. She had grown cold, Thanatos had grown practical, and Zagreus had grown kind. They had...drifted in a way. Meg had begun to throw herself into her duties, finding excuse after excuse to isolate herself away from her once-friends. Particularly after Zagrues broke her heart. Well, that wasn’t entirely true, was it? They had broken each other’s hearts. Megaera wasn’t a fool. She knew the way Zagreus had still continued to look at her; to pine for her. But she had never let herself indulge in those feelings. They were repressed entirely when Zagreus began to give the same look to Thanatos (even if she didn’t notice how Thanatos gifted both her and Zagreus that same look in return).
So Megaera worked. She took her job of keeping Zagreus in the Underworld seriously - definitely not because she wanted him to stay but simply because Hades had asked her too. That’s all it was. Just work. Just practicality. Nothing else to it. That was why she definitely didn’t mind when her sisters took over fighting Zagreus on occasion. She definitely wasn’t bitter or jealous about it! She also definitely wasn’t proud of Zag every time he killed her; every time he made it to Asphodel. She was neutral to it all! Meg wasn’t falling back in love with him as they teased each other during fights. She didn’t treasure the gifts of ambrosia and nectar he gave her. Megaera would make anyone that even dared to allude to otherwise pay for it.
Thanatos didn’t share her disdain towards Zagreus leaving. He seemed almost...endeared by it. Meg was fairly certain he’d even helped Zag a few times during his many attempts. Though, there was still a competitive streak between the two; a childhood rivalry that they couldn’t let go. Megaera was only able to watch from the sidelines and pretend it didn’t sting her heart just as much Zagreus’s blade to watch them fall in love. What was it she had once heard a few shades say? You never know what you love before you lose it. The words left a bitter taste in her mouth whenever she thought of them. Meg wasn’t even sure which she was more upset about losing. It was only as she watched them together that Megaera realised how much she loved them both.
Her attacks against Zagreus grew harsher and harsher as she abandoned their banter in the name of professionalism. She avoided Thanatos as much as she was able to. Megaera tried to keep her distance from them. She tried to push them both away in a questionable attempt to mend her own heart. But it didn’t break the curse of Aphrodite; the curse of falling in love.It only made her miss them more. It only made her wonder what it felt like to hold Thanatos’s hand in her own or have Zagreus’s arms wrapped tightly around her at night. It only made her wonder what it would be like for someone to love her.
So lost in her own self-pity, Megaera missed the way Zagreus and Thanatos looked at her. She missed the way Zag’s teasing turned into poor attempts at flirting. She missed the way Thanatos would save the nectar Zagreus gifted him for her. She missed how much of an effort the two made to have excuses to simply be close to her. She didn’t notice that they loved her just as much as she loved them. Or perhaps...perhaps Megaera refused to notice; refused to hope. She tried to make herself content with ignorance.
It was her own fault that it became unavoidable. When Zagreus lost to her, he was able to arrive back in the House of Hades, perfectly healed and healthy. When Megaera won by the smallest margin, she didn’t have the same luxury. She was left battered, bruised, and in pain. Not that she would ever voice it, of course. Meg wouldn’t let anyone even consider the possibility that she was weak or fragile. But...Zag and Than still knew her better than anyone. They knew the way to see through any walls she tried to build up.
Megaera stumbled as she landed back in the House. Her wings were in a state of disarray as was the rest of her. She was very much aware of the fact she was still bleeding but that didn’t stop her from keeping her head held high; it didn’t stop her from snapping at Achilles when he voiced even the slightest amount of concern. Dusa was scared off with a single look, and neither Hades nor Nyx offered her any concern. What she hadn’t expected was for Zagreus to notice her. He had been rightfully distracted in some poor attempt at flirting that had Thanatos falling into a fit of laughter. His laughter abruptly cut off when Zagreus called her name.
“Meg!”
She had been just about to enter the lounge; to hide away with a drink and deal with the damage. Part of Megaera was tempted to just ignore him but Zagreus wouldn’t just let her walk away. Not by a longshot. “Zagreus.” She grit her teeth, hoping that a touch of snark would be enough for him to leave her alone. That hope was quickly dashed by both Zagreus and Thanatos making their way towards her. How wonderful! “Already so eager for me to kill you again?”
All her words did was cause a frown to appear on his face. “I did this to you?” He moved to gently brush a hand over one of her wings, looking very much like a kicked puppy. Of course he’d never seen her like this. Usually either he was dead or she was. Zag never got to see the aftermath. “Meg…” For once in his life, Zagreus was lost for words. In any other situation, Megaera was certain she would have found it amusing. But right now? She was sore and tired and just wanted to rest . Especially as her eyes felt so heavy.
She tried to pull back from Zagreus’s touch but just ended up stumbling backwards, only kept upright by a pair of arms that moved to wrap around her. A pair of arms that were far too cold to be Zagreus. Thanatos . “Let us help.” His words were soft, bordering on gentle. They certainly weren’t fitting to come from Death himself but they were comforting; soothing, even. “For once, try not being stubborn enough that you ignore the fact you need help.” Zagreus’s arm moved to join Thanatos’s as they each kept an arm wrapped around her waist, keeping her upright between the two of them.
“I’m not stubborn…” Her words died in her throat when it became clear neither would believe her. “...Fine. But I’ll put you both through your worst possible nightmares if you so much as consider telling someone about this.”
That was how she found herself sat on Zag’s bed, feeling far too vulnerable and far too relaxed as she let them care for her. She didn’t protest as the pair seemed to work in harmony as they patched her up and used a washcloth to clean away the grime and dirt of battle from her skin. Meg was fairly certain she couldn’t have stood up if she wanted to and she definitely didn’t want to . She couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment she drifted off but when Megaera woke up, she found herself squashed between Zagreus and Thanatos. Both were fast asleep with Thanatos’s arm wrapped loosely around her and Zagreus having made the executive decision to use her as a pillow. Megaera couldn’t help it. She smiled. It wasn’t a smirk or sarcastic but a pure, genuine smile as she realised something.
Megaera rather liked being loved.