Work Text:
Thump
Thump
Thump
Hades strolled through the halls of Olympus, footsteps echoing loudly in the quiet space. The god’s face was expressionless, minus his eyes. Hades’ eyes were stern, steely even. They seemed to reflect the very essence of his domain.
The other gods glanced at each other in muted horror, each desperately hoping they weren’t the one Hades was looking for.
Hades, of course, felt the stares and heard the faint murmuring of his fellow deities as he marched through Zeus’ annoyingly long hallways. The styling was better than the structure, likely due to Hera. Another sibling that is due for a trip over my knee, Hades thought in exasperation. It seemed he had many miscreants to deal with lately. This time, however, Hades' primary target was Zeus. His annoying and out-of-control little brother.
Hades had allowed the younger god to run amok for far too long, but that all stopped today. If Zeus’ actions in both the Titan War and the War against Mother Earth weren’t a clear enough sign to Hades that things were out of control, then certainly Zeus’ treatment of Apollo was. That little boy is not going to sit right for a century, fumed Hades as all of Zeus’ current actions floated through his mind. For fuck’s sake, Rhea had raised Zeus better than that. He himself had raised Zeus better than that.
Disappointment and self-loathing swirled around in the god’s stomach. Hades knew he was part of the issue. Zeus chose to exclude him, which hurt, and then the death of his lover tipped that hurt to anger and then a never-ending well of bitterness. The anger only grew as he watched Zeus treat their family like shit, especially Perseus, who most of the gods and goddesses had grown fond of. Hades himself was fond of the godling. But that’s an issue for another time, thought Hades, scolding himself lightly.
Right now, his priority was Zeus, whose butt was about to get very well acquainted with Hades’ hand.
Thump
Thump
Thump
Finally, Hades had reached Zeus’ room. He stopped directly in front of the large and rather beautifully designed doors and glanced at the guards standing on either side. They looked close to passing out, and Hades felt a slight flicker of pity, but it was mostly drowned out by his amusement and current single-minded focus. The god waved a hand, silently dismissing the guards.
The guards tripped over themselves and each other in their haste to flee.
Once they were gone, Hades barged through the doors, slamming them behind him loudly.
Zeus, who had been lying face first on his bed, shot up startled before locking eyes with Hades. His heart leaped into his throat at the look on the older god’s face. I am fucked, thought Zeus, attempting to crawl off the bed and run towards his bathroom. Unfortunately, Hades was intimately familiar with Zeus’ tactics and grabbed both of Zeus’ ankles.
The god-king yelped, wriggling around like a fish on land.
“Unhand me, you uncultured buffoon!”
Zeus screeched, kicking his legs back at his captor.
Hades' only reply was to yank Zeus completely off the bed before taking a seat on the bed. Then, forcefully dragging Zeus to stand in between the older god’s knees.
Zeus attempted to shake Hades’ hands off his shoulders, but the god of the dead refused to be moved.
“Zeus,” said Hades, his tone stern and unrelenting. “Stop this at once.
“Stop this,” repeated Zeus, eyes lighting up in rage. “You are telling me to stop, yet you are the one who has so rudely barged into my house and my room and tackled me like fucking Poseidon! How dare you—Oww!”
“Watch your mouth, little boy. You’re in enough trouble as is,” warned Hades, eyebrows raised in a threatening manner.
“You—.” Zeus turned his head away, chest heaving from having to physically restrain himself. Oh, the words he wanted to have with this imbecile.
“Hmm. No then, seeing as the adult should go first, and I am the only adult in the room—"
“You dare to call me a child,” snapped Zeus, interrupting Hades.
“I do!” Hades snapped back before closing his eyes and releasing a breath. “You have been acting like one lately, Zeus.
“I—“
“No, zip it. It’s my turn to speak,” declared Hades, eyes hard.
Zeus’ face hardened, eyes flickering with barely restrained anger; however, the god said nothing in reply.
“Thank you. As I was saying, you have been behaving in a childish and wholly unacceptable manner for quite some time. You have been unnecessarily cruel to several of your children, specifically Apollo, as well as the rest of your family. That’s not to mention your treatment of the demigods and even myself!” Hades scolded, his voice getting stern as the lecture went on. “Not to mention your refusal to listen to those around you! Heed my words, baby brother, I put you on that throne, and I can pull you off,” threatened Hades.
Zeus flinched, eyes watering slightly in a way that made the god curse himself a hundred times over internally. He was the King of Olympus, and kings did not cry, but it was Hades. Despite Zeus’ cruelty towards Hades and Hades’ neglect towards Zeus as of late, they were still brothers, and Hades’ words hurt. Or perhaps what hurt was the fact that the older god was not wrong. Zeus could pretend all he wanted, but in the end, Hades was right.
Hades’ eyes softened at the look of heartbreak in Zeus’s own eyes. He hated punishing his younger siblings and especially hated lecturing them. Hades took no pleasure in Zeus’ pain, but neither could the god allow Zeus to continue down this path. It would ultimately harm Zeus and those around him, two things that Hades refused to allow.
“Come,” said Hades, patting his knee. “You remember how this works.”
Zeus hesitated, pride and common sense fighting each other tooth and nail. Eventually, common sense won, and Zeus reluctantly positioned himself across Hades’ knee. The god’s face turned red in embarrassment at the position and then turned even redder, and his chiton was flipped up and undergarments pulled down.
Do not cry, Zeus internally commanded himself. He was going to take this like the god and king he was.
Hades steeled himself, tugging Zeus closer and wrapping an arm around his little brother’s waist. Then, the god raised his hand high and brought it down with a loud clap.
Zeus flinched, eyes watering already at the sting. He had not been over Hades’ lap in ages, and now the god king was remembering just why he used to avoid pissing off Hades. Hell, he’s not holding back, thought Zeus, legs kicking slightly as more swats rained down on his unprotected backside.
It was agonizing, and Hades was not holding back. Worse, his brother was not lecturing him, which left Zeus to focus on the very growing sting and the reason for his current predicament.
Zeus supposed he had been unfair in his treatment of his family. Apollo, Zeus’ mind whispered. The god’s face turned regretful, and his choice of punishment for Apollo was a huge regret. His poor son would not even look at him anymore. He was desperate to fix the situation, but what could Zeus say? Sorry would never be enough. Even worse, his older children were now frightened of him too. Poseidon kept giving him disappointed looks, and Hera refused to even speak to him. Even Hestia was angry.
Smack
Zeus yelped as a hard smack hit his left thigh. The god felt something snap inside of him, and all of a sudden his quiet yelps and hisses turned to crying and then full-blown sobbing.
“Hades, please! I am sorry. I am so sorry,” cried Zeus, kicking his legs at the endless burn on his bottom and in his heart. “Please, μεγάλος αδερφός!”
Hades stopped. Hand falling to the side. Perhaps Zeus deserved a longer punishment, but Hades couldn’t. Not after the words his baby brother had just cried.
“Shh, my little lightning bringer. Hush, you are alright,” soothed Hades as he gently rubbed Zeus’ back, allowing the younger god to get his emotions out.
Hades waited till Zeus’ cries had turned to quiet sniffling before carefully fixing Zeus’ clothes and pulling the younger god onto his lap.
“I am so sorry, Hades. I am a monster just like Father,” cried Zeus, eyes watery and red.
“Ow!”
“No!” Hades declared. “Look at me, little brother.”
Zeus glanced upwards, looking into his brother’s stern and caring eyes.
“You are not a monster, and if you ever use that term again, this spanking will feel like a few love taps compared to what I will do to you then. You made mistakes, and you shall apologize and fix what you can, but heed me, Zeus. You are no monster. You are my baby brother, and I love you,” declared Hades firmly before pulling Zeus closer.
“I am sorry,” whispered Zeus, voice strained from crying.
“Hush, little one. I know, let me comfort you now,” replied Hades as he gently began to scratch at Zeus’ scalp and rock back and forth. “Let big brother take care of you.”
And so Zeus did.
The end