Persades

Persades is the ship between Persephone and Hades that is present in multiple fandoms, including Hades, Hadestown and Hercules.

Canon
Though the stories of how Persephone met and fell in love with Hades tend to differ, they all boil down to her somehow ending up in the Underworld, with Hades being initially aloof to her, only to warm up to her over time. Some stories have Persephone either frollicking through a field only to end up in the Underworld by accident, others have her run away from her mother, Demeter. Some darker stories have Zeus strike a deal with Hades and be offered Persephone as a gift. Regardless, all versions have Persephone eating the six pomegranate seeds out of her own free will, proving that she not only loved Hades, but was also happy enough with him to stay for six months.

Hercules
Hades and Persephone do not directly interact in this movie. Though Hades is shown without Persephone as his queen, which suggests that the movie either takes place in spring or summer, or that they haven't had their first meeting yet. Persephone appearing to congratulate Hercules on his victory against Hades implies that she harbors some dislike against him in this version.

Hadestown
This musical is an adaptation of the "Orpheus and Eurydice" story from Virgil's Georgics and Ovid's Metamorphoses. In this story, Orpheus approaches Hades and Persephone, having lost his wife Eurydice. He serenades them with a song and Persephone is so moved that she begs Hades to allow Eurydice to come back to life for Orpheus' sake.

In the musical, Hades and Persephone go through a rough patch in their marriage, which drives most of Hades' actions throughout the story.

Hades
The son of Hades and Persephone, Zagreus, is the protagonist of this story. For the longest time, he had no idea who Persephone was, believing that the goddess Nyx is his biological mother. Until he found a letter in his father's desk with Hypnos' help, revealing that Persephone was Hades' wife who ran away from the Underworld after believing her son was a stillbirth. After her departure, Nyx managed to bring Zagreus to life, but by that point Persephone was unreachable. Finding out about Persephone gives Zagreus motivation to escaping the Underworld. Once he manages to defeat his father Hades for the first time, Zagreus gets a taste of freedom and finds Persephone living in hiding at the foot of Mount Olympus. After Persephone recognizes her son, Zagreus dies right in front of her again, being bound to the Underworld, reaching her again has Zagreus suggest that she should move back into the Underworld. But Persephone sees no reason to do so, believing that Hades had forgotten her and doesn't care about her anymore. So Zagreus sees it as his responsibility to prove her wrong and finds a photo of her in his father's chambers. After reaching her again, Persephone is consent with returning to the Underworld, with Hades welcoming her. He reveals that it was Zeus's idea to have her brought to the Underworld in the first place. In the post-game, Persephone's mother, Demeter, begs her to return to her to Mount Olympus, which means that the joy of her return doesn't last. But Persephone made a promise to always return to Hades and Zagreus after visiting her mother.

Children
Zagreus

Zagreus was already the son of Hades and Persephone in the original myths (though in some myths, his father is Zeus). He has few myths to his name and information about what exactly he was the god of was lost to time. In the game Hades, Zagreus initially tries to escape the Underworld to voice his frustration with his father's treatment of him, but discovering the identity of his mother gives him new motivation. He inherited his father's black hair and his red eye color on his left. His right eye is green, like his mother's.

Melinoë

Melinoë is the goddess of ghosts, nightmares and funerary rites. She is set to be the protagonist of Hades II. She inherited her mother's blonde hair and green eye on her left. Her right eye is red, like her father's.

Fanon
Persades is one of the most iconic and beloved couples in all of mythology, with it setting the template for many future fictional couples. Part of it is due to the fact that they are the clearest example of a happy marriage in Greek Mythology, others found the dynamic of the brooding/dark man and the innocent but fierce woman to be very appealing.

The Disney version of Hades is the most common target of "redemption" fics out of any Disney villain, mostly because of his relationship with Persephone. Many, especially those who disliked that they made Hades the villain, often attempt to "fix" the story by having him fall in love with Persephone, with "Hope Springs Eternal" probably being the most well-known Hades/Persephone fic in the Hercules fandom. Interestingly, few pieces of fanart use the canon Persephone design, often only keeping her pink skin and hair color.

Many critics of Hadestown argued that Hades and Persephone stole the show and are considered far more interesting than Orpheus and Eurydice, the actual main characters of the story.

The Hades fandom does not contest the pairing either, with pairings like Hades/Nyx often being deemed rarepairs. Persephonyx does have a significant following, however.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

Trivia

 * The ship name, "Persades" originates from the fandom of Rachel Smythe's webcomic Lore Olympus.
 * In the original myths, Hades and Persephone are uncle and niece. Most modern adaptations either retcon this or simply do not mention it, making it only truly canon for the original myths themselves.

Variations

 * Zades is the ship between Hades and Zelena, who assumes the role of Persephone in the series.