HEAVY IS THE HEAD (that wears the blood soaked crown!)
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Verona Blaze was not born into power.
Born into a family consisting of a single father who was a model turned artist, and a mother who had abandoned her mere moments after she was born, Verona certainly does have the power. Despite discovering quickly at the age of eight that she, like many other demigods, attracted danger like two magnets of opposite charges, she still does not have the power in that situation. Running away from social services at nine years old after her father is arrested and an Empousa comes for her certainly does not give her the power. Arriving at Half—Blood Hill only to be practically thrown halfway into the air and hurled into the camp accidentally past Thalia's border by a Cyclops definitely did not give her the power (it did however, give her four broken ribs, a sprained ankle and the ability to let herself go unconscious for eight days).
Being claimed most definitely did not give Verona Blaze any more power than she wanted.
The night that the small nine year old with choppy hair who had just woken up, still in baggy pants and a borrowed camp shirt was suddenly claimed by a glowing dove above her head did not give her any sense of power. And no matter how hard Silena Beauregard tried to convince the little child in the coming week of her claiming — Verona Blaze did not feel like an Aphrodite child, and she most certainly did not feel like she had any power.
Demigods rarely have power. They're tossed into a world with endless creatures out to get them, they don't get a break. They don't get the power, they get to survive. Verona knows this, she knows that she'll never be the one who gets to decide whether she lives or dies, whether she'll survive her next fight. The Fates throw obstacles at demigods like a game of hot potato, and the potato keeps on landing in Verona's lap.
So, being visited by her mother in a dream after fifteen years with no contact from her is more than alarming for Verona. Being told about a magic grattle — no wait, girdle — and how it's missing provides Verona with yet another opportunity to lose her power (honestly, she's just ready to let her mom obliterate her to pieces from the sky rather than complete that task). Being sent on a quest with a son of Hermes who Verona has honestly despised ever since he stole her only piece of jewelry the first day she arrived at Camp Half—Blood makes her want to weep, and worrying about Percy and the Hunters of Artemis and finding Annabeth makes her feel something between confused, and queasy to the stomach with an Oh fuck I might just throw up feeling.
Then again, who ever said being a demigod would be easy?
