Persephone's powerful side is implied by her ability to master her husband. How she accomplishes it is part of the mystery. The story hints at the wisdom found latent in her playful, innocent beauty. I believe that the meaning behind the drink kykeon is revealed in the Orphic hymns. In Homer's time the word for glittering was connected to the idea of light catching on a metal shield, or armor.
Initiates know that the real kykeon is light, and the vessel is the light body.
It is a truth that the inner child must accept to become Queen. It is a story of feminine empowerment, and overcoming the fear of being consumed by the unconscious. I think so. Alice goes underground in her first adventure, then through the looking glass in her second. Alice meets with the absurd fact of subconscious personality.