▬▬▬ CHAPTER TWENTY NINE ▬▬▬

IT HAD BEEN ABOUT A month since Thalia was... well, turned back into a human being, and the camp had yet to get over it. People were still staring at her in awe because one, she was Thalia Grace the ex-tree girl, and two, she was Thalia Grace the daughter of Zeus.

The weird thing about her was that she was turned into a tree when she was twelve. And that was seven years ago. So naturally, she should be nineteen, right? Wrong, Thalia looked to be around Alabaster and Ethan's age, and they were a few years older than Esmerelda meaning Thalia was most likely around fourteen to fifteen. She had no idea how tree-years worked, but apparently Thalia aged slower as a tree.

It made no sense to Esmerelda, but oh well. She wasn't too concerned on that. She had other matters of importance to deal with.

Today was the last day for her to keep the gods damned mandrake leaf in her mouth and she was determined to not screw this up. So determined that she decided to stop talking and eating altogether to keep from accidentally swallowing it and redoing the whole thing all over again. Ethan and the Stoll brothers tried to tell her it was a bad idea, but she whipped out her axe and they stopped bothering her about it.

Tonight would be a full moon too, so if things went well (and it freaking better), then she could get started on making the potion. It was a good thing she collected the ingredients she needed beforehand. After that, she would have to hide the completed potion from sunlight and do that annoying chant every sunrise and sunset until a lightning storm happened. Then, she could drink the potion and become the huge beast she was certain she would become.

"Essie," Ethan's tone was near begging at this point. "You can't just not eat the entire day. Just have one meal, at least."

She glared at him for the umpteenth time.

He groaned and began eating his dinner, which was chowder poured into a bread bowl. Her stomach growled as the scent wafted into her nose. Amidst the noise, Ethan heard it and held up his spoon.

"Hungry?" He teased.

She glared even harder.

"You're still not eating?" Connor asked in amazement. "You must have pretty good self-control..."

"I'm just surprised she hasn't passed out yet." Travis mused.

"I know you're doing all this crazy stuff because you think you'll turn into some huge, scary animal but..." Connor trailed off, the corners of his lips twitching upwards. "I'm pretty sure you're gonna be a bunny rabbit."

"I know right?" Ethan snickered.

"I bet ten you drachmas it's gonna be a puppy." Travis challenged.

Connor narrowed his eyes. "You're on. Ethan, how about you?"

Ethan grinned. "A kitten."

I hate you all, she wanted to tell them. In fact, there were a couple of other mean things she wanted to say, but she couldn't risk it with the leaf still in her mouth. Instead, she opted to glare at their drinks and willed them to explode and grinned when they finally did.

"Argh! Essie!" Ethan glowered at her, his face covered in soda.

She smiled innocently in return.

After dinner, she waited until everyone was asleep before sneaking out of the cabin. She wasn't that great at the Mist quite yet so she wasn't able to hide her presence from the harpies so hopefully she could make this potion quick enough.

As quietly as she could, she darted for the woods and stopped until she reached the part where the moonlight was shining the most. She knelt on the grass and pulled out her small bag of supplies. Quickly, she took everything out: the empty phial, the dew, and the Death's-head Hawk Moth chrysalis. While still under the direct moonlight, she opened the phial and spat out the mandrake leaf into it.

Oh my gods, she thought in pure bliss. It felt so great to not have to carry that stupid leaf in her mouth anymore.

She checked her instructions for the next step: add one strand of hair to the phial.

Just when she began to pull a strand out, she heard a voice.

"What are you doing—"

"—AHHH!" She whirled around and unpinned her brooch, raising her axe at the sudden intruder.

"AHHH!" The intruder was so startled that she nearly fell on her bottom.

Esmerelda quickly lowered her axe, face red. "T-Thalia?!"

"What the Hades?!" The older girl growled, shooting her a look between bewilderment and annoyance. "What are you doing out passed curfew?" She demanded.

"Wh-what are you doing out passed curfew?" Esmerelda stammered.

Thalia scoffed. "Couldn't sleep. 'Specially since there's a gigantic statue of my dad at the center of my cabin."

Esmerelda wanted to ask why there was a statue of Lord Zeus inside the cabin in the first place, but Thalia crossed her arms and glared at her. "Now your turn."

Her face reddened some more. She cleared her throat, "I, erm, I was in the middle of making a potion."

The glare faded away from her face as a look of understanding crossed over her. "You're... a child of Hecate right? No wait, you're Esmerelda..."

She blinked in amazement. "Y-you've heard of me?"

Thalia snorted. "Who hasn't? Everyone's been talking about how the camp now has three forbidden kids. I knew the other was Percy, but then I found out about you..." For a second she looked almost guilty. "My dad wanted to kill you, right? Sorry, I guess."

"It's not your fault," Esmerelda said automatically as she plucked out a strand of her hair and stuffed it down the phial.

"So, uh," Thalia said awkwardly, then glanced at the potion. "What exactly are you making?"

"The Animagus potion," she answered. "It allows me to turn into an animal at will. I can't pick the animal but I'm hoping it's something big, like a lion. Or a rhinoceros. I dunno, something scary."

"How does it determine what animal you get?" She asked.

"It's based on personality."

Thalia turned quiet, her eyes awkwardly shifting from her and to the potion. She seemed to be having an internal debate on telling her something, but finally decided against it.

"Oh. Um. Good luck with that." She forced a smile.

"Thanks," Esmerelda said brightly. Then frowned as she looked at their surroundings. "You should probably go back to your cabin though. Our combined scents' might attract the harpies."

Thalia nodded in agreement. "You're right. I'll be going now. Good luck on your potion."

"Good night!"

As Thalia walked away, she couldn't help but mutter, "She's probably gonna turn into a bunny or something..."

╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡

When Esmerelda opened her eyes, she knew she was trapped in her dreams. She stiffened when she saw the darkness. It had been a while since she received any dreams. She braced herself to hear Kronos' voice, to feel those tendrils wrap themselves around her body and sap away her strength...

But none of those happened. Instead, she saw a faint green glow and looked ahead.

The second Esmerelda saw her mother, she started screaming.

"Persuading them to join the Titans?! Are trying to get them killed?!" She said harshly. "My siblings—your children—could die because of you!"

Hecate's eyes flashed green, just like Alabaster's would whenever he was using a lot of magic. A second later, they returned to their original piercing green color. There was a flicker of regret on her face before she schooled her expression.

"They are doing the right thing. The gods have cast me aside despite all the years of service I gave them! I abandoned my own family to join their side, and what do I get in return? No recognition, no 'thank you', not even a throne at their hall!" Hecate burst. "They've even demoted me to a 'minor' goddess!"

"Yeah and that sucks, but you don't have to drag us to fight your own battles!" Esmerelda spat, sickened with her. She used to look up to her mother, used to obey her orders, but now Hecate disgusted her. "Tell them to come back, mother! Do it!"

"They joined me out of their own volition." Hecate stated calmly.

"Oh really?" Esmerelda said through gritted teeth. "You're telling me eight year old Aiden chose to side against the gods—a decision that would get him killed—on his own free will? Not because his older siblings were doing the same thing or that his mother who he's always yearned to meet asked him to? You're telling me he made that big decision all by himself?!"

"Enough!" Hecate shouted, then froze, looking almost shocked that she had raised her voice. She forced herself to calm down and regarded Esmerelda with a look vaguely akin to desperation. "You were supposed to come with them..."

Esmerelda shook her head furiously. "No, never. Joining the Titans would be suicide."

"You don't belong at that camp, Esmerelda," Hecate told her softly. "You're not even a proper demigod. You're half titan, remember? Zeus hates titans. It doesn't help that you're a witch."

"And whose fault is that?" Esmerelda said coldly. "You're the one who created me."

The words must have sparked something in Hecate, because her calm and gentle demeanor was gone. Her eyes turned cold and her face was devoid of any emotion. "That's right..." She murmured to herself, as if remembering something. "I... created you..."

Ice washed over Esmerelda's body. The way her mother said that... It was as if she had been made for a purpose. A very specific purpose.

Hecate spoke again, and her words sent a chill down her spine.

"You'll come to us whether you want to or not, Esmerelda."

Right after the words left her mouth, Esmerelda was abruptly shaken awake from her haunting dream. Ethan's face hovered over hers, and he looked concerned.

"You okay?" He asked her hesitantly. He knew the answer, but he still wanted to ask.

She swallowed thickly and pushed herself up into a sitting position. "Y-yes. What time it is?"

"It's seven now, meaning it's twelve in London," he replied.

Oh right, she thought, blinking dazedly. She received her Hogwarts letter a few days ago and today she and Ethan would be going to Diagon Alley to get her things (along with yet another wand). Suddenly, she remembered that she was supposed to say the stupid enchantment every sunrise and scrambled up to her feet.

"Has the sun rose yet?!"

"No," he said in amusement, watching her scramble around like a headless chicken.

"Oh good," she sighed in relief.

"According to the Apollo kids, the sun will rise at exactly 7:16, so you still have sixteen minutes left." He informed her. "I would suggest you use the extra time to shower, but you take about as long as the Aphrodite kids—"

"—Have you never conditioned before?" She snapped. "You have to wait a couple of minutes before washing the conditioner off!"

He rolled his eyes. "You are such a girl."

She scoffed, gathered her things, and shoved past him as she headed for the showers.

Once she was gone, Ethan's face fell.

Just a few more days and she would be heading off to Hogwarts. He was running dangerously low on time. He'd have to tell her, then ask her, and then everything would fall apart. He wasn't ready for it.

After Esmerelda got ready and did her usual chanting of "Amato Animo Animato Animagus", the pair headed off to London and stepped into the ever-so-busy streets of Diagon Alley. The first thing they did was go to Ollivander's so Esmerelda could get her third wand after the second one broke.

"Back again?" Ollivander blinked upon seeing them.

Esmerelda waved sheepishly. "Hi. Yes, um, I sorta broke my wand. Again."

There was a silence as Ollivander stared at her, before he finally turning away.

"I see. Hopefully this time might be different than the last..." He murmured, shuffling through wand boxes. He hoped that this wand-picking would last longer, but he doubted it.

He held out a wand for her. It had a really pointy tip, she noted. Good for stabbing. "This is stronger than the last one I gave you. It's made of rigid maple wood, eight inches tall, and a phoenix tail feather for a core. Try it out."

Esmerelda took the wand and flicked it lightly in the air. A soft wind blew throughout the wind, but other than that, nothing destructive happened. Ollivander sighed in disappointment, yet another quick pick.

"That'll be twenty five galleons, miss." He said as Ethan joined her side.

The young boy rose a brow at the mischievous look she was trying (and failed) to hide. Rather than opening her magic coin purse, she reached into her pocket and pulled out... lint? He stared oddly at the scene, and nearly dropped his jaw when she handed it over to Ollivander who calmly accepted it.

When they stepped out of the store, he immediately began demanding answers.

"What the Hades was that? You just gave him lint? And he took it? Wha—what did you do?"

She smiled slyly at him, and he was nearly taken aback by how much she reminded him of the Stolls. She's been hanging out with them too much, he thought. They've corrupted her.

"Daughter of Hecate remember? I can control the Mist." She told him, the sly look never disappearing.

His eyes widened in realization. "You've been practicing." He noted, and she really had. Before, she could hardly turn a branch into a pen, and now here she was convincing mortals to accept lint as gold.

Alabaster would be proud, he almost told her, but knew the comment would only sadden her. But it was true. If Alabaster were here, he'd probably be bursting with pride and gushing tears of joy (because he was a loser and all). Once he reached the Princess Andromeda, he'd tell Alabaster all about it since he'd been begging for updates about Esmerelda.

He paused in his thoughts. Once he reached the Princess Andromeda... alone that is. He glanced over at Esmerelda, who was grinning victoriously to herself, and felt his mood damper all over again.

She would never come with him.

He tried not to show how miserable he was throughout their shopping trip. It was a good thing he was able to hide his emotions well because Esmerelda hadn't noticed anything off about him at all.

She'll be leaving for Hogwarts soon. I have to tell her, he decided. Today. I'll do it today. Right after we're done.

"So what's on your book list?" He asked as they walked over to their last store, Flourish and Blotts.

She unfolded the paper tucked into her pocket and they peered down to read it.

Second-year students will require:
The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 by Miranda Goshawk
Break with a Banshee by Gilderoy Lockhart
Gadding with Ghouls by Gilderoy Lockhart
Holidays with Hags by Gilderoy Lockhart
Travels with Trolls by Gilderoy Lockhart
Voyages with Vampires by Gilderoy Lockhart
Wandering with Werewolves by Gilderoy Lockhart
Year with the Yeti by Gilderoy Lockhart

"That's a lot of books from one dude," Ethan muttered. "And who names their kid 'Gilderoy'?"

She shrugged as she put the paper back in her pocket. "Who knows? I just hope these books have good spells in them."

As they turned a corner, they heard someone shout her name. It was Ron, the Weasley twins, Hermoine, and Harry along with the Grangers and a family of red heads.

"Who are they?" Ethan whispered to her.

"School mates," she whispered back. "And their families, I guess."

"Who is this, Ron, dear? A friend of yours?" A plump, red haired woman asked.

"Sort of," Ron answered. "This is Esmerelda, she's from Hufflepuff and she can do wandless and nonverbal magic!"

"It's true!" The twins chimed. "We saw it!"

"You can do that?" Hermione awed. "But that's really advanced magic!"

"Er, yeah, well—"

"—Essie, do some magic for us!" Fred ordered eagerly.

"Yeah, try and levitate Percy!" George grinned over at a stern looking red head.

"Fred—" He growled.

"—It's George, actually." He grinned.

"Boys," their mother hushed them.

"It's nice to see you again, Esmerelda," Mrs. Granger greeted her warmly before her eyes traveled over to Ethan. "Who's this? And where's your brother?"

Ethan stiffened as Esmerelda's face crumbled.

"I'm her friend," he said quickly, hoping Esmerelda wouldn't start crying now. "I'm Ethan."

A knowing look crossed over Hermione's face. She looked between the pair and smiled secretively.

"Where are your parents dears?" Mrs. Weasley asked in concern.

"They're somewhere else," Ethan answered vaguely. "I'm um, just accompanying Essie while she buys school supplies."

"That's very sweet of you!" Hermione exclaimed, looking between them again with a widening smile. Esmerelda turned beet red, she did not like that look.

She looked over at Harry and quickly changed the subject. "Oh and Ethan, this is Harry! He's famous!" She said, ignoring the glares the noirette was shooting her.

Ethan gave him a once over and blinked. "Oh. You a child actor or something?"

Harry smiled in relief. "No, not really."

"You don't know who he is?!" Ron gasped as if Ethan had committed the worst crime in the world. "He's Harry Potter!"

Ethan looked back at Harry with an unsure look on his face. "Are you... a singer...?"

He snorted. "No."

"He must be Muggle-born then," Hermione stated.

Ethan shook his head. "Nah. I'm a Muggle."

Mr. Weasley nearly dropped his things. "Y-you're a Muggle? Then how—"

"—We live together. Sort of." Esmerelda explained awkwardly. "So it's okay if he knows."

He slackened with relief before perking up and excitedly getting all up Ethan's face. "So you're a Muggle then! That's wonderful! I'm a fan of all things Muggles! You look to be the same age as my twins! Can you tell me what sort of Muggle activities boys your age do? Oh, wait, can you tell me about rubber ducks as well?"

Ethan backed away slowly, wide-eyed. "Er, um," he couldn't exactly say 'I like to sword-fight people who piss me off' so he settled for his second favorite activity. "I like video games."

"Video games!" Mr. Weasley cried out joyously. "What are those? Do they involve rubber ducks?"

"Um, not really—"

"—Oh, Arthur!" Mrs. Weasley exasperated. "Leave the poor boy alone! He could hardly breathe!"

Arthur backed away, looking a bit sheepish. "Right, of course, sorry lad."

Ethan shook his head, still looking a bit dazed. "Uh, it's fine..."

"Where are you two heading off to, Essie?" Hermione asked, thankfully changing the topic.

"Flourish and Blotts." She answered.

"We're going there too! Perhaps you can join us?"

"Shouldn't you be waiting for your parents, dears?" Mrs. Weasley asked worriedly, looking around in hopes to find them.

She shook her head. "No, they're busy right now. They're fine with us shopping on our own."

The older woman frowned. "...Really?"

Ethan nodded in confirmation. Mrs. Weasley finally relented, and together, they're rather large group headed over to Flourish and Blotts which was currently overflowing with customers. Female customers to be precise. The reason for it was plastered on a banner hanging across the upper windows:

GILDEROY LOCKHART
will be signing copies of his autobiography
MAGICAL ME
today 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

"What's it say?" Ethan asked her quietly.

"The dude with the funny name's having a book signing inside," she loosely translated.

"We can actually meet him!" Hermione squealed. "I mean, he's written almost the whole booklist!"

It was hard for them all to squeeze in. There was a long line leading to the back of the shop where the celebrity was currently signing his books. The students each grabbed a copy of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 and walked over to the line for the rest of the books.

Ethan dipped his head back and groaned. "Don't tell me we have to wait in line to get the other damn books."

"Language, dear," Mrs. Weasley chided him absentmindedly. She looked more busy trying to pat her hair down.

Gilderoy Lockhart slowly came into view. He was seated a table surrounded by moving photographs of his own face, smiling at the crowd. Esmerelda and Ethan were unimpressed. They had seen better-looking people from the kids at the Aphrodite cabin and the nymphs.

Harry and Ron shared the sentiment as well.

"How can people actually like this bloke?" Ron wondered aloud. "I mean, look at him, he's clearly obsessed with himself.

Harry nodded in agreement, but before he could say something, an irritated-looking photographer shoved forward.

"Out of the way, there," he snarled at Ron, stepping on his foot. "This is for the Daily Prophet!"

"Big deal," Ron muttered. Apparently he muttered it too loud because Lockhart had heard it. He looked up, saw Ron, but then his eyes traveled passed Ethan and Esmerelda and locked on Harry.

"Oh no." The bespectacled boy whispered under his breath just as the older man practically jumped to his feet.

"It can't be Harry Potter!" He shouted for the whole room to hear. Esmerelda almost laughed at the expression Harry wore. He looked like he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him whole.

Immediately, the crowd began to whisper excitedly and parted like the Red Sea as Lockhart practically dove for the poor kid.

"What exactly did Harry do to get famous?" Ethan whispered as Harry tried desperately to get away from him. The photographer was eagerly taking pictures of them.

"Uh, the wizards think he killed this one guy when he was a baby. Oh and his parents died."

Ethan gave her a weird stare.

"Ladies and gentleman!" Lockhart said loudly, waving for silence. "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time! When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography—which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge—" The crowd applauded again. "He had no idea that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, Magical Me. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

Ethan snickered and clapped a stony-faced Esmerelda on the back. "You're sure to learn loads, huh?"

"You've got to be kidding me," she said miserably to herself. "First that incompetent Quirrell and now this idiot?"

"Maybe you should just drop out," Ethan suggested, before mentally slapping himself in the face. Drop out? Seriously? That was the worst way to convince her to come with him.

She gave him a questioning look. Thankfully Harry came storming over before she could say anything.

"You have these," Harry mumbled to the female Weasley—Ginny—while dumping his signed books into her cauldron. "I'll buy my own—"

"—Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?" A familiar voice sneered. Draco Malfoy strutted over, looking mean and pompous as usual.

"Now who is that?" Ethan complained.

"It's that mean 'Pureblood' kid I told you about," Esmerelda replied.

"Oh him." He crinkled his nose in disgust.

"Famous Harry Potter," Draco drawled. "Can't even go into a bookshop without making the front page."

"Leave him alone, he didn't want all that!" Ginny defended.

Draco smirked widely. "Potter, you've got yourself a girlfriend!"

Ron and Hermione finally reached them, each carrying a set of the books they needed.

"Oh, it's you," Ron said unpleasantly. "Bet you're surprised to see Harry here, eh?"

"Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley," he retorted. "I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for all those."

Ethan's eyes narrowed and he started forward until he was towering over the platinum blonde. Draco took a step back, feeling intimidated by the older boy. "Listen here you little shit," Ethan growled, and Draco actually gulped. "I've met rich little daddy's boys like you and let me tell you, they're the easiest types to break so if you go prancing around making fun of decent family because of their social status again, I will find you, and I will end you."

"Should we stop this?" Hermione whispered frantically as Ethan started to lift Draco up by the front of his shirt.

Ron stared at the scene in utter amazement. Not prying his eyes away from it, he said in an airy voice, "No, no, let it happen."

"Your friend is awesome," Harry said to Esmerelda. "Do you think we can smuggle him into Hogwarts?"

"I wish," she lamented.

Finally, the parents arrived. Mr. Weasley reached them first, looking frazzled after having to fight through the crowd. "There you kids are! Oh, what've you got there, Ethan?"

Ethan released a pallid Draco. "Nothing sir, this kid just tripped. I was helping him up."

Arthur smiled and was about to commend him for a good deed until he actually saw who the kid was. Then, another adult entered the scene and placed a hand on Draco's shoulder.

"Well, well, well—Arthur Weasley." It was obviously Draco's dad. They looked so alike with their sneering, pale faces and platinum blonde hair, except Mr. Malfoy's hair was a helluva lot longer.

"Lucius," Arthur acknowledged in an uncharacteristically cold voice.

"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear," Lucius commented. "All those raids... I hope they're paying you overtime?" He reached into Ginny's cauldron and pulled out a battered old book.

"Obviously not," he noted as the family flushed red. "Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

Arthur looked dangerously close to exploding. "We have a very different idea of what disgraces the name of wizards, Malfoy." He said through gritted teeth.

"Clearly," Lucius said with clear disgust as he looked at the Grangers... then stopped at Ethan. If it was possible, his eyes turned even icier. "And you... If you ever lay a hand on my son ever again, Muggle scum, I won't hesitate to show you why us wizards are more superior."

"You don't scare me, Goldilocks," Ethan said coldly. "All I have to do is snap your stupid stick and you'd be as useless as a rock. I can strangle you with your hair and I wouldn't break a sweat."

Harry and Ron tried to stifle their laughter. Hermione gasped. Ginny was wide-eyed, and her father's jaw nearly dropped. Meanwhile, Esmerelda was smiling and watching everything in interest.

Lucius bared his teeth and glowered at Arthur. "The company you keep, Weasley," he hissed. "And I thought your family could sink no lower—"

There was a loud thud as Ginny's cauldron went flying. Arthur football-tackled Lucius down, knocking him backwards into a bookshelf. The kids stepped back as heavy spellbooks came raining down.

The twins and Mrs. Weasley came just in time to see it all happen.

"Get him, dad!" Fred shouted in encouragement as George applauded.

Mrs. Weasley was shrieking, "No, Arthur, no!"

Hagrid then appeared, wading through the crowd and the fallen books. Ethan's heart nearly stopped and he immediately grabbed Esmerelda. But then he saw the tall man's face and saw he had two eyes, meaning he wasn't a Cyclops. However, he kept his grip on her just in case.

"That's Hagrid," she told him reassuring. "He works at Hogwarts, so don't worry. He's not a monster or anything."

Ethan nodded and reluctantly, he released her.

Hagrid broke the fight, easily pulling Arthur and Lucius apart. Angrily, Lucius shoved himself away and thrust Ginny's old book at her.

"Here, girl—take your book—it's the best your father can give you—" Pulling himself out of Hagrid's grip he beckoned to Draco and swept from the shop.

"Well that was fun while it lasted," Ethan said casually, as if he hadn't just indirectly started a brawl between two adult men. He turned to Esmerelda. "Come on, let's go get your books."

╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡

After that eventful morning, Ethan and Esmereleda bid Harry, the Weasleys, and the Grangers goodbye before returning to New York. Their cab had dropped them off several yards away from camp so they had to walk the rest of the way, but that was fine by them.

Especially for Ethan, who needed a private moment with her.

"Essie," he began nervously. "How do you feel about the gods?"

She stopped walking, her posture suddenly tense. Slowly, she turned to look at him, her face unreadable. "...Why are you asking me this?"

He had a feeling she knew what this was about.

He let out a heavy breath. She knew.

"The gods have never treated you fairly—"

"—Ethan, what is this about?"

"I'm leaving camp." He finally said it, only to immediately wish he hadn't. Esmerelda's face fell in a way he had never seen before. She didn't just look saddened, she looked absolutely devastated. His mouth felt dry, but he forced himself to keep speaking. "I want you to come with me. Please come with me."

Instead of answering, she gave him a broken look and asked: "You knew this entire time didn't you? You knew what was going to happen to the tree, knew about Thalia... knew that my siblings were going to leave too."

He flinched, as if he had been physically slapped.

"Did you?!" She demanded.

"Yes." He answered quietly. He expected to be slapped, but the look of betrayal on her face was much worse.

"You... You... You could've stopped them." She whispered. "Do you have any idea what the gods are going to do to them? For siding with my mother? With Luke and the Titans?"

"Esmerelda, please," he begged. "You have to understand that we're doing the right thing here. The Olympians are causing a huge power imbalance, I-I just want everything to be equal. The other gods deserve recognition and respect, especially your mother after everything—"

"—Do not talk to me about her!" She snapped, her eyes flashing. "She is the one being selfish here! She's the one making my siblings die for her!"

"O-o-okay, I'm sorry!" He cried out, reaching forward and trying to grasp her shaking hands. She flinched away and he froze, his eyes watering. This was going exactly the way he expected it to go, but he didn't want it to be this way! He wanted her to understand his reasoning and go with him! He would fall to his knees and beg her if he needed to her.

"Please, please, hear me out!" He begged.

She shook her head angrily and stepped back, but he lunged forward and grabbed her by the shoulders, his grip tight and almost painful. "You have to come with me! Don't you see how much I need you?! If you don't side with us, the Titans will kill you!"

"The Gods will kill you!" She snapped, struggling to break free. All of her things had dropped to the floor when he grabbed her, and she almost stumbled over them. "Ethan, let go!"

"You can see your siblings again!" He argued, his grip becoming painful. "And once the Titans win, you won't ever have to fear the gods! They won't hurt you ever again! You can live the rest of your life with me and your siblings, and you'll be safe! Isn't that what you want?"

"I—"

"—Come with me, Essie, please just come with me." He pleaded with her desperately.

"You're crazy!"

She feared the gods for a very good reason. She saw their power. They defeated the Titans once, they could do it again. Besides, the Titans basically turned the world into a wasteland the last time they were in power. Was that seriously what Ethan wanted?

"G-get away from me," she stuttered, stumbling back. His grip had grown so weak that she was able to slip free.

He stepped forward, tears streaming down his face. This couldn't be happening. She needed to come with him. "Essie—"

"—Stay away! Just go! Gods, I hate you!" She cried out, gathering her things from the ground and sprinting for the hill.

He didn't chase after her. He was too numb with shock. He had expected this, hadn't he? So why did everything ache so much?

But he understood now. She wasn't ever going to come with him.

At least not willingly.

END OF BOOK ONE

— author's note —

It's the end of book one! Yay! Book two's gonna be a wild ride so wait 'til it comes out! I'll post an additional chapter here to tell you when it's published!