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You froze. Even Lalage seemed taken aback. Though her back was turned to you, you could see her shoulders stiffen. "Just like that?" She gasped, her voice high with incredulity. "You... you would agree just like that?"
"Why wouldn't I?" Jungkook replied cooly.
"I just... you liked that Mortal."
Jungkook burst out laughing. It was not a nice laugh. Everything inside you locked at the cold, humorless laugh that escaped him.
"You honestly thought I would fall for a Mortal?" He finally said, catching his breath. "Damn Lalage, I knew you weren't smart but you're more dumb than I thought you were."
The demigods all exchanged looks but all their faces remained impassive, revealing nothing. They were like seven angels with faces of cold beauty.
Lalage seemed to bristle a little at that and an ominous hissing rippled around the satyrs at their mistress being insulted.
"You were protecting her!" She fired at Jungkook. "I saw the way you held her, the way you talked with her. You gave her the ocean's amulet. You wanted to bed her."
"Of course I wanted to bed her," Jungkook snorted. "What else was I supposed to do? Actually try and be friends? Build some kind of serious relationship with her?"
Well then. You forgot how to feel emotions.
Jungkook leaned forward until his was face inches from Lalage's. "Mortals are so delicate. Their lives are like candles, you just breathe on them and they snuff out. You think I'd give up Olympus, give up all the parties, give up all the fun for a mere Mortal girl?"
"You threw my satyr out a window because of her!"
More hisses of hate rippled around the satyr and some of them shifted and took a couple menacing steps towards Jungkook.
At that the demigods shifted too. A chilly wind whipped through the alley. Shimmering mist began rising from the ground itself. Electricity crackled in the air. A warning.
The satyrs quickly shut up and stepped back again. Even with their numbers and Lalage on their side, they probably wouldn't win a battle against seven angry demigods.
"The Mortal means nothing to me," Jungkook said, looking Lalage in the eye. "She was offering me a place to stay until I found a way to get to Olympus, so of course I stayed with her. But now that I have a different, easier way to get back home, I'm ready to leave."
You watched as Lalage's back slowly relaxed and you literally sensed the smirk creeping across her face. "So. Since that Mortal means nothing to you— you wouldn't care if I killed her would you? Take off her amulet and slit her pretty throat."
Oh hell no. She really was crazy. You stared at Jungkook wide-eyed. If this was some sort of ploy, he wouldn't let her kill you. He could fake pretend not to like you easily. But now cold-blooded murder was on the table.
"Whatever." Jungkook shrugged. "It's not hard to take off her necklace. Kill her, imprison her, I don't care."
Your eyes once again flashed to the other demigods, searching. Searching for some kind of sign that this was all some big plan to deceive Lalage. Searching for some kind of sign that they really hadn't just signed your death sentence.
Once more all the demigods were expressionless, faces carved from stone. They all looked pretty damn serious to you.
"Fine." Lalage stretched out her hand. "Do we have a deal then? I kill the Mortal and then we all go back to Olympus and go back to the way it used to be?"
"And you'll leave me alone?" Jungkook narrowed his eyes.
"Yes, that's part of the bargain."
Your stomach dropped when Jungkook reached out and shook her hand, sealing your fate.
"Let's go to the Mortal's house then shall we?" Lalage smirked, clinging to his hand for a second longer than necessary.
A pulse jumped in his jaw and he viciously wrenched his hand out of hers. "Lead the way."
You ducked behind the dumpsters once again, this time hands covering your mouth entirely so no one could hear how short your breaths were. You couldn't breathe. Couldn't get enough oxygen.
The sound of the many hooves clopped past you mixed with the sound of shoes against gravel and Lalage's heels clicking along the ground.
You stayed there, curled up hand over your mouth, long after the sounds of their footsteps faded away leaving you all alone in the dark.
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[Narrator's POV]
Jungkook trudged silently behind Lalage as she whispered with dark glee to her satyr minions. His chest ached when he saw the familiar apartment up ahead. Dark and unsuspecting. He finally halted on the street in front of the apartment and shoved his hands deep into his pockets.
The other demigods did the same, taking their place around him. All of them were as tense as iron, ready to jump into action if one thing went wrong.
"I'm going to wait out here," he announced.
"What?" Lalage's eyes narrowed. "Why? Too weak to watch the Mortal die?" She sneered.
Hate exploded in him and it took all his will not to lunge at Lalage. Not yet. He had to bide his time. "I told you," he spat. "Just get it over with and then let's go home."
Lalage snorted in disgust but walked up the stairs without another word trailed by her satyrs. Jungkook watched them enter the apartment. Just as the last satyr body disappeared into the building the air beside him shimmered and abruptly Hoseok appeared.
Jungkook was stunned. Equal shock was reflected with on all the other demigod's faces. Yoongi was especially surprised and the "Hoseok" that had been with them since the beginning of the meeting with Lalage disappeared into thin mist. An illusion.
"Hoseok what the hell are you doing here?" Jungkook hissed in panic. "You're supposed to be with Y/N."
They'd planned all this after the Battle of Fruits took place in the kitchen upon settling the disagreement on whether to confront Lalage face to face.
They'd call for a meeting with Lalage, knowing it would most certainly wind up with her somehow bargaining the Mortal in exchange for her to leave Jungkook alone.
That was where Hoseok came in. He would disappear and go back to the house to get you out and in hiding while Yoongi created a realistic illusion of him to keep Lalage's suspicions from arising. And when Lalage discovered that you were missing, that was when they made their move.
Hoseok's eyes were huge and dilated in pure panic. "That's the thing Jungkook," he gasped. "I came back here just as planned but it was all dark and the front door was unlocked..."
"What the Tartarus are you saying, hyung?" Jimin leaned forward anxiously.
Hoseok's next words were like stones of utter dread and horror to Jungkook. "What I'm saying you guys is that Y/N is gone. I can't find her."
On cue an infuriated screech reverberated through the apartment. Before any of the demigods could move the window facing the street banged open and a large owl, Lalage, shot out and took to the sky.
"Come on!" Taehyung leapt into action. "We have to stop her!"
Unfortunately, right at the moment, satyrs came pouring out of the apartment. Snarling and their teeth bared as they charged straight for the demigods.
Jungkook had just enough time to lift his arms before the wave of satyrs tackled him and the others to the ground.
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