Magnetism • Luke Castellan

VII

*warning: a bit of profanity*

As the sun rose the next morning we would have to say goodbye to the three young demigods. That's where the five of us were now, Luke and I shared the idea of sending them off from Half Blood Hill where Thalias Pine stood. To be honest, I was surprised Luke had come, considering how he avoided this tree like the plague.

The kids carried a backpack each, while Percy also carried a brown box. I had no guesses regarding its contents. Either way, they seemed prepared to set off.

" Try not to kill anyone in the arena while we're gone." Percy joked, shaking hands with Luke.

" Don't worry. As Luke's girlfriend, it's my job to make sure he doesn't commit any crimes I can't cover up." I chimed in, snagging the opportunity. Luke turned away, a sour look in his face. Annabeth and Grover simply stood confused while Percy and I shared a mischievous little laugh.

I was really going to miss kid.

I handed Percy a bag full of blue chocolate chip cookies, as promised, to take on their journey.

" Speaking of, here's your payment, Blondie." I said as I watched a nostalgic but sad smile grace the boys face.

" Thank you, Nikita." He said genuinely, and surprised me a bit as he moved forward to give me a hug. My hands paused for a second before they wrapped around the kids shoulders. I ruffled his hair as he pulled away, smiling when he went to fix it.

" No problem, Percy. You kids stay safe out there."

" Have each others backs. The real world isn't pretty." Luke added from behind me, his gaze meeting the three demigods from over my shoulder. They nodded before setting off, Luke and I watching as they slipped into the horizon.

I thought about what Luke had said. About the real world. I could never actually remember my time outside this camp, as it was so brief. But the way Luke spoke of it made me believe there were hundreds of stories from his past embedded in that statement, none of them particularly pleasant.

The sound of thumping, uncoordinated steps and someone huffing for breath caused Luke and I to turn on heel simultaneously. I think I could speak for both of us when I say we were surprised to see Cassian, hands on his knees, catching his breath as if he ran all the way here from across camp.

" Hey Cassian, what's going on?" Luke asked for us as the Aphrodite boy straightened up before speaking.

" I was the first one Chiron saw and he said it was urgent so I came straight to you guys and-" his hands were flailing around as he attempted to explain the story.

" Hey, hey, relax. What did Chiron say?" I questioned, grounding him by placing a hand on his shoulder.

" He said that you guys have been given a quest-"

" What?!" We exclaimed in synch.

" By Ares." Cassian continued.

" My father?!" My brows knit together as my jaw dropped open in shock.

" And Aphrodite." The boy concluded, leaving Luke's jaw dropped as well. We sent each other a look before hightailing it to camp with Cassian.

Once we arrived at The Big House, Cassian broke off and wished us good-luck. I stepped onto the porch, Luke close behind me as we spotted Chiron and Mr. D at their usual table, cards in hand. The centaur turned to face us.

" Oh goodie. The special snowflakes have arrived. You get a quest! You get a quest! Every kid gets a quest these days." Mr. D quipped without looking up from his cards. Luke and I had been around long enough to know it was just better to ignore the Gods words, but that didn't mean we didn't find him incredibly annoying. Chiron cleared his throat before addressing us.