The Gates of Horn and Ivory - Chapter 6.2 The Patterns of Reality

Persephone sneaked out into the gardens the next morning, grateful to have a few quiet moments to reconnect with her plant companions.

Everything had spirit in the Underworld, even the rocks and the streams, and her beloved trees were the goddess’s most trusted friends.

The poplars flittered in the twilight, their gold leaves shimmering in ways which would have gratified Demeter, who always thought her daughter’s attire too plain for a goddess and often urged the latter to show off her riches. 

Persephone didn’t need to impress in the nether realms, where even the leaves of the trees in her garden were made of pure gold. 

She grabbed a handful of the soil beneath her feet, picked out the glossiest onyx, obsidian and jet pebbles to place in her little knapsack and let the rest fall to the ground. 

The muses had inspired her to create a mosaic that morning, and she was on a mission to pick the most colorful gemstones for its motifs.