Some people think Hestia is simple, others think of her as a glorified Goddess of dishes, still others think of her as “the one that got away” (looking at you Poseidon and Apollo), and others don’t really think of her at all, preferring to focus on "greater” things.

All these people are kind of missing the point of Hestia. She is the Goddess of place, of home, and because of this she can be seen as the Goddess of beginnings and endings (where most adventures begin and end) and, for those who are so blessed, the Goddess of community.

She is the goddess of one more thing though, a strange custom that melds love, anger, frustration, contentment, and joy. A custom that has happened since we have had homes and people that we share them with. That custom is Family Dinner.

For Hestia, the most challenging part of family dinner was always getting everyone together, and the hardest part of that task was getting in front of them. Once she could talk to them she could work her magic to get them to come, but trying to track down the Olympians was much harder. Hermes was always off doing who knows what, Ares was always fighting with someone, Artemis was in the woods playing tag with Pan, and so forth. The worst were always Hades and Demeter. Cerberus was specifically warned to make sure that Hestia never entered the realm of the dead and Demeter, with her extensive travels in the mortal realm, was the only deity that was harder to find than Hermes. And so, all the Olympians were gathered except two, much to Hestia’s great irritation.

This month she decided to do something a little different. Instead of the usual ambrosia and nectar (which was usually brought by doves and eaten whenever the Gods were hungry) Hestia changed the taste and texture of the ambrosia so that it resembled the foods that mortals would eat around this time of year. A mortal walking in would see (and taste) quail eggs, roasted carrots (right down to the slight burn marks), figs, olives, bread, and gigantic slabs of rare roast beef as opposed to the white, square slabs they were used to. All the Olympians were reluctant at first but Hestia’s skill (both in persuasion and cooking) won them over in the end, and so they came to the table, sorting themselves into their various little clusters. Hephaestus next to Hera, Aphrodite next to Ares, Dionysius next to Apollo (you would think they would hate each other but they actually got on quite well), and so forth. The only seats that remained consistent were the three corners (the table was shaped like a triangle with flat points) which were intended for the three kings. At the highest point sat Zeus, the lower right was Poseidon, and the lower left was for Hades (a seat that was never filled). Once everyone got seated and Hestia thanked everyone for coming, they dug in, slowly at first but then with great enthusiasm, as novelty can overcome even perfection given a long enough life. The meal progressed like this for a time, interrupted only by the small conversations that are remarkable only to the people having them, until a clear voice rose over the din.

“Your Majesty, we have a problem,” said Hermes.

Zeus looked up from his seventh artichoke, “Problem? What is so important that you would bring it to me now?” Hestia nodded, “Precisely. Hermes, can’t this wait until after dinner?” Hermes shook his head, “I’m sorry, but I’m afraid it can’t. It’s... about Hades. We need to do something.” The ichor drained from Hestia’s face as she said a quiet, “Oh” and lowered her head.

Zeus chuckled, “Hades? What about him? Did Cerberus bite you again? I told you that if you just throw the hound a chunk of meat, you’ll be fine!” Hermes’ face hardened, “No. Zeus, he raised an army and attacked a village in Arcadia. He is restless in the lands of the dead and discontent with the ‘disorder’ that he sees. He has already risen recently, the first time since the Forgotten War, and will do so again. If we don’t do something his kingdom will encompass all that is.”

Zeus went from chuckling to outright laughter, “Quit being a coward, Hermes. I beat his armies before and together we can beat them again.” Hermes sighed, his voice barely containing his exasperation, “You aren’t getting it. His powers were at their lowest when you fought him because not that many things had died then. Things are different now. The dead far outnumber the living. If he isn’t stopped, Hades will bring the dead to walk among the living, and they shall take their food from the living. No matter how many thunderbolts you can throw, now matter how cunning Athena’s tactics are, or skillful Ares’ blade-work is, Hades can field millions of the dead and we will be crushed under the sheer weight of his numbers. If we don’t do something this may be our last dinner together.”

Zeus stopped laughing and furrowed his brow, “What do you want me to do? Until he does something, we are bound by the treaty that ended the Forgotten War, 'King shall war against king no more and peace shall reign until the world is broken and made new again.'”

A silence fell across the table until a perfect throat cleared itself and a voice so beautiful it caused shivers rose, “I know of another thing that has grown stronger as time passed.” All eyes turned to Aphrodite as she continued, “Am I the only one who has noticed that Hades only knows order and the bad side of life? Maybe if he found someone that might turn him from his present course. Perhaps...” “Perhaps we should leave him alone,” Hephaestus interrupted, his voice hard and his eyes bright red. “All he has done is try to take a tiny village in the middle of nowhere and we are talking about, what? Finding him a love mate? This is madness! Aphrodite, you...” Hestia shot Hephaestus a glare that startled everyone. Hephaestus cleared his throat and continued, “...have an opinion with which I respectfully disagree. We don’t have sufficient justification to do anything yet and even if we did this, “he gestured towards Aphrodite dismissively, “ it would never work.” Aphrodite’s warm eyes grew hot as she glared at Hephaestus, “Listen you…”

“Cyprian…” Hestia said in the tone of a warning.

Aphrodite’s face quickly turned from rage to fear , “…don’t see the merits of what I am saying, my dear. If we try and fight him, we will lose as Hermes pointed out. As far as anyone knows he has never taken a lover or even left his realm except to kill. Why, I even know just the person who could coax him out of his shell.” Zeus looked at Aphrodite, obviously intrigued, “And who is that, my Lady?”

“Well, the Kore has been the Kore long enough and she would make a perfect match for Hades.”

Hephaestus jumped up, steam coming off of him and his eyes a blinding red, “Are you mad? Demeter has protected her since the day she was born and intends for her to be a virgin goddess. If anyone so much as touches the Kore Hades will be the least of our worries. Demeter...”

Aphrodite interrupted, “...will get over it in time as all mothers do when their daughters get married. And besides, if we match the Kore with Hades Demeter may cause harm. If we don’t, Hades will eventually destroy all life. Even you should be able to see the wisdom in that.” Hephaestus’ hands gripped the table, his anger so great that even Hera could not calm him.

“Fine, Cyprian. If everyone wishes to go along with this folly, I cannot stop you. But know that when it goes up in flames, I warned you. And now, I think I need to go outside. I find the air here...” Hephaestus glared at Aphrodite, his eyes full of hate and bitterness, “stifling.” He then got up from the table and walked away, followed by Hera.

The table was silent as they both walked out, a silence that was broken by a rather crude joke made by Tyche and the rest of the dinner passed without incident. And so it was that the sequence of events that started when the world was young, ended with the abduction of the Kore and the balancing of life and death with love.

James Jones