Percy woke up with a start, still sitting in the chair in front of the hearth. The fire had burnt out hours ago, now only a faint swirl of smoke rose from the ashes. Percy glanced around him, confused for a second as to why he was in an unfamiliar room. Then the events of the previous day came rushing back to him, and he sat up warily. He examined his bandaged arm; the pain in his wrist had almost disappeared over the night, and he could see that the skin around the wound was less red than before. Looking at the bandages reminded him of the night before, and of Grace. He grimaced inwardly at their conversation and his refusal of her. He wondered if she had run away without him, whether she was already on the deck of a ship bound for the New World.

From behind him, he heard three loud knocks on the cell door, which must have woken him up in the first place. Percy stood up and began to walk towards the door, before noticing that a change of clothes had been set on the table, along with a large breakfast. Percy felt perturbed that someone had been in the room while he had been asleep, but his grumbling stomach soothed his worries. He hadn't eaten since his second baptism at camp, and his wound had drained him of energy.

"Just a minute!" he called out, and the knocking stopped. He wolfed down the food, a large plate of eggs with an assortment of pastries. It was richer than he was used to, but he managed to keep the food down.

After he had finished eating, Percy looked at the clothes that had been laid out for him. He looked down at his own clothes: they were dirty and full of burn holes, and his entire right sleeve was missing up to his forearm. He decided that he should look presentable for his meeting with Aphrodite.

He quickly changed into the outfit, a set of dress clothes that looked more expensive than anything he had ever owned. The tailcoat was a dark blue color, with teal buttons that ran down the front of it. He felt mildly constricted as he buttoned up the coat, though as a whole the outfit felt as if it had been tailored specifically to him. In the end, he decided to forgo the powdered wig that had been laid out for him, preferring to run a comb through his hair and call it good enough. "Alright, come in!"

The door to his cell swung open, and Lauren stepped into the room. She was wearing more casual clothing, though she still had the same formidable chestplate above them.

"My Lady demands your presence," she stated formally. "You are to be given another audience, where she will decide your fate."

"I can't wait," he muttered, walking towards the door. As he passed her, however, Lauren put her hand on his chest to stop him.

"I wouldn't talk so flippantly when in the presence of my Lady," she said sternly. "She will not tolerate disrespect in her temple."

"I apologize. I would never dream of disrespecting Aphrodite," he said dryly. Lauren narrowed her eyes, trying to determine if he was being genuine or not. She sighed, shaking her head.

"It's your own head on the line," she reminded him. She looked him over in dismay. "Who taught you how to dress yourself? A monkey?"

Percy looked down at his clothes, not seeing anything wrong. "What is it?"

"You're not supposed to close all of the buttons on your coat," she said as if this was obvious. "You look like a stuffy old man."

"Then why are they there?" he huffed, unbuttoning his coat from the bottom.

"You know what, just leave them all open; that's the fashion with young people nowadays."

He did so, noticing the coat becoming much less restrictive. When he had finished, Lauren examined him critically, pulling on seemingly random pieces of fabric until she appeared satisfied.

"There. You're presentable, at least." She shook her head. "Honestly, did your mother teach you nothing?"

"We never had much experience with fancy dress, what with us being poor and all," he said pointedly.

"That's no excuse. Even folk of modest means should take pride in their appearances." She nodded to herself. "Now, we should be going to my Lady."

Lauren led him down a series of corridors to Aphrodite's chambers, the hallways bedecked with large frescoes and murals depicting the ocean, doves in flight, or women in various states of undress. They passed a few of Aphrodite's priestesses, who exchanged pleasantries with Lauren and introduced themselves to Percy, who forgot their names almost instantly in his troubled state.

Eventually, they reached a set of oak doors that were identical to the ones to Aphrodite's chamber. Lauren pushed them open without preamble, pushing him into the room in front of her.

Aphrodite's chamber was the same as it had been the previous night, though Percy noticed less attendants were present. Aphrodite was sitting on the circular bed in full dress, letting her attendant run a brush through her hair. Her appearance had changed since the last time Percy had seen her. Her hair was darker and she was a bit paler, looking at him through light blue eyes. As he approached the dais, she smiled at him and winked, as if they shared some private joke.

"Percy Jackson, how lovely to see you. Not to be proud, but the outfit I chose for you looks absolutely marvelous. Sometimes I even impress myself."

"Thank you, ma'am. I appreciate your…hospitality."

Her smile widened. "I'm sure you do." She kept looking at him as if she was waiting for him to notice something.

Percy narrowed his eyes. "…I do. Can I ask where my friends are?"

"Your friends will be sent up later. For now, I wanted for us to talk alone. I find that best when discussing…sensitive matters."

"Sensitive matters?" he repeated.

"Let me tell you a secret." She leaned forwards. "You're my favorite," she whispered, and giggled. "Don't tell the others."

Percy furrowed his brows, very confused. "Thank you," he said cautiously.

"And because you're my favorite, I've paid special attention to you." She put her hands in her lap. "Tell me, Percy, how did you enjoy your visitor last night?"

Percy gasped. "You-"

Aphrodite nodded, smiling. "Yes, me. I do hope you treated Miss Grace with the respect she deserves. Well, I already know you did. You're a proper gentleman, aren't you?"

"You sent her to spy on me?"

Aphrodite's smile widened. "I was her. She was fashioned out of my godly grace, if you'll forgive the pun." She giggled to herself. "You have to understand, I had to make sure you weren't planning anything. Though I must admit, she…ran away from me a bit at the end there." She cleared her throat awkwardly. "Apologies. As part of my essence, I'm afraid Miss Grace is prone to…intense emotions."

"So everything she told me-"

"No, that was all true. I really was given away by my family, to that oaf Hephaestus. I guess somehow Miss Grace internalized my history." She looked at him kindly. "You know, she was right. You are an easy person to talk to."

Percy shook his head, furious. "Stop."

"I've got to commend you; most men don't have the fortitude to resist a whore in their own bedroom. But you're different, aren't you, my good sir?"

"Don't call me that," he growled.

"You seemed to enjoy it before," she teased. "What changed? Am I too old for you? If I remember right, Grace was only a few hours old."

"Stop it!" Percy shouted, causing Aphrodite's attendants to pull out daggers and look at him menacingly. "Just, stop."

Aphrodite's eyes widened, though she continued smiling. "Temper," she warned him, motioning for her servants to stand down. "Feisty, aren't you? I could tell there was something under that calm exterior. I can't say I don't like it." She reached down and sipped from a goblet of wine. "That's why you're my favorite."

"Did you call me here just to torment me?"

"Oh, I wouldn't call this torment," she chided him. "You can withstand some good-natured teasing between friends, surely?"

"You're not my friend."

"That's not a nice thing to say," she said, miming offense. "And to someone who has helped you so much already." She shook her head sadly.

"Is there a point to this?"

"Is there a point to anything?" she asked airily. "Why do any of us do anything?"

"I have no time for philosophy."

"Neither do I." She leaned back, looking at him smugly. "Do you have any questions?"

Percy stepped forward, frowning. "What would have happened if I'd agreed to Grace's…proposal?"

"For you two to run away together?" Aphrodite looked at him sadly. "Grace was a part of my essence, but not a large one. I could have broken her off, and she would have been a real girl, with human emotions and desires. I would have protected you from Athena's wrath and let you escape to the New World."

Percy swallowed heavily. "So, you're saying-"

"You would have grown old and died with your chestnut-haired love in a cottage by the sea." She cocked her head slightly, almost looking past him. "I can see your future with her. Your hair would gray, but hers wouldn't, the product of the last remnants of godly energy trapped inside of her. Her body would age, but you'd only ever see the beautiful, charming girl you'd ran away with. You would have had three children, two boys and a girl. How fiercely you would have loved those children! And eventually they would have married, and you would have loved your grandchildren even more. You would have died with twenty people crying over your deathbed—your daughter was quite fertile, apparently. You would have died in the arms of your love, and her smiling face would have been the last thing you would have ever seen."

Percy wiped a tear from his eye, crying for all that might have been. He felt Aphrodite pat him on the shoulder, but when he looked up, it was Grace, smiling sadly.

"It's not too late," she said. She took his hands in her own. "We can still have that future. We can have those children, that house by the ocean. We can still be together."

"You're not-" He choked up slightly. "You're not real."

"That's never stopped me before." Traces of a grin flickered around her mouth. "I've found that the best things in life aren't real at all." She kissed him again, and he responded fiercely, uncaring that Aphrodite and her attendants were watching. When they separated, Percy felt as if some part of him had left.

"Now that," she whispered. "Was real."

Percy looked into those eyes full of longing and hope. He pulled her into a tight embrace, tears streaking down his face. "I want to. God save me, I want to. But I can't."

Grace pulled away, sniffling. She gave him a trembling smile. "That's why I love you."

Percy wiped his eyes, and when he looked back, Grace was gone, and Aphrodite was sitting on the bed, bawling.

"That was…beautiful!" she cried, wiping her tears away prettily with a pink handkerchief. "Oh, I feel like I'm going to faint. That was the saddest thing I've seen in my life!"

"I'm glad you enjoyed the show," Percy responded thickly. He wiped his eyes again.

Aphrodite held a hand up to her heart, breathing heavily. Several of her attendants flocked to her, trying to calm her down with fans and soothing words. Aphrodite stepped forward and hugged Percy, who received her stiffly. She cried into his shoulder, leaving him to stand there awkwardly.

After a minute, she separated from him. "I'm sorry, it's just-" She dabbed at her eyes with her handkerchief. "Oh, I haven't cried this hard since Adonis…" The memory of this Adonis person brought her into another fit of tears, and she flew back to Percy's shoulder, sobbing. Percy mildly patted her on the back as her attendants watched sadly. After an uncomfortable amount of time, Aphrodite calmed down enough for her to return to the dais, hiccuping.

"I apologize," she said, fanning herself. "I get these fits sometimes, it's just that was so sad. Oh, breakups always get me. I remember, after Paris and Helen, I cried for weeks. They were so cute together." She shook her head sadly.

Percy stood there, unsure of what he was supposed to do. Aphrodite had mostly recovered when the doors to the chamber opened. Grover and Annabeth walked into the room, pushed along by some of Aphrodite's priestesses. Grover was wearing a fine dark-green tailcoat, with a large hat of the same color resting on his thick curls. Annabeth had a light blue dress on, though it seemed ill-fitting and looked as if someone else had owned it first. Her hair was slightly messed up, but she seemed no worse the wear for spending the night in Aphrodite's dungeon.

Grover stopped next to Percy, sniffing. "You smell like roses," he noted. "What happened?"

Annabeth looked at him with concern. "Have you been crying?"

"Mister Underwood and Miss Chase, how kind of you to join us," Aphrodite interrupted, fanning herself lazily. All traces of her outburst had disappeared. She didn't even have red eyes despite her copious amount of tears. "Now that you're all here, we can begin the audience."

Annabeth stepped forward, clearing her throat. "Aphrodite, we have come to ask for your-"

Aphrodite waved a hand, cutting her off. "Stop right there, dear; I've already decided to help you."

Annabeth cocked her head, confused. "Really? I thought-"

"I've taken the night to think about your predicament, and after a fine conversation with your friend here, I realized that my anger should be pointed towards my sister, not you three." She pouted at Annabeth apologetically. "You'll have to excuse me for being so hasty last night. Yesterday was not a good day for me, I'm afraid."

Annabeth adjusted her dress awkwardly before nodding. "I ask for your…forgiveness also. I spoke in error last night." Percy could tell that Annabeth was forcing herself to be polite.

Aphrodite smiled. "At least you tried. But of course I forgive you, my dear. And to show that there is no ill will between us, I am prepared to tell you the location of the object of your quest."

Grover gasped. "Really?"

"Yes." Aphrodite looked at Percy fondly. "Your friend moved my heart so much, I felt like it was that least I could do."

Grover looked at him, confused. "What did you say to her?"

Percy sighed. "Later."

Aphrodite clapped her hands together, leaning forward. "So. I have it on good authority that the sword is currently being transferred to Devonport to be delivered to British command in the colonies."

"It would take days for us to get to Devonport," Annabeth said. "Do you know when the transfer will take place?"

"My source says that the sword is planned to leave on a supply ship in one week. I'd recommend you get there before then."

"Who's your source?"

Aphrodite smirked. "The captain of the ship is a…special customer of mine. Trust me, it's the truth."

Annabeth gave a deep bow to Aphrodite. "Thank you, my lady. We will put this information to good use."

"I should hope so: that captain's a chore to listen to. I would hate for my effort to go to waste." She gave Percy a sad look. "I'm sorry it didn't work out, but know that I was rooting for you the whole time. I still am, as a matter of fact." Aphrodite winked slyly. "Don't worry, you're still my favorite." She simpered at Annabeth and Grover apologetically. "Sorry, you two."

Percy bowed his head. "Thank you," he mumbled.

"Oh, cheer up. You've a sword to steal, remember?" Aphrodite leaned back. "I'll be keeping an eye on you, Percy Jackson. I have a feeling you're going to be very interesting."

Percy nodded, stepping back. Audience over, the three of them started to leave Aphrodite's chamber. As Percy pushed open the large doors, Aphrodite called back to him.

"If you see your father, say hello from me, will you? We had such a good time back in the day."

He ignored her, letting the doors close behind him as he walked through the private rooms. The brothel was quiet at this time of the morning, with only a few drunken stragglers stumbling around and Aphrodite's priestesses cleaning up. As he walked, Annabeth and Grover followed alongside him, looking at him with concern.

Grover laid a tentative hand on his shoulder. "Is everything alright? What happened between you and Aphrodite?"

"Nothing," Percy said brusquely, shrugging off Grover's hand. He was sure that he looked like a mess, after crying heavily and having a sobbing goddess on his shoulder.

He left Aphrodite's temple in silence, not responding when Elizabeth walked out and waved at him enthusiastically. With a burst of light, they stepped out of the brothel into the busy street below. Once they had reached the bottom of the steps, Annabeth rounded on him sternly.

"Are you going to talk about what happened to you? You've definitely been crying."

Grover looked at him sadly. "Aphrodite said something didn't work out for you. What happened?"

"Nothing."

"Drop the act, you're not fooling anyone. Look at yourself, you're miserable." Annabeth crossed her arms determinedly. "I need to know that you're ready for this quest. This is the first good lead we've had; I don't want you messing it up because you're moping around."

"I'm fine. I can do the quest, don't worry." He started to walk down the street, brushing past early shoppers and people on their way to work. Annabeth and Grover chased after him, shouting.

"You don't even know where we're going!" Annabeth called to him. "Come back here!" After a second, Percy felt someone grab him by the shoulder and turn him around, bringing him face-to-face with an angry Annabeth.

"Look, I can't force you to trust me, but this isn't the way to deal with your problems. So either you tell me what the hell is going on, or you suck it up and stop acting like a lovesick child." She examined his face closely. "That's it, isn't it? You're lovesick." She smirked as his face confirmed her suspicions. "Really? That's what broke you? What happened, did one of Aphrodite's whores get to you?"

Percy wrenched out of her grip, furious. He rose his hand as if to strike her, but stopped himself, breathing heavily. She looked at him stoically, not moving. He brought his arm down slowly. "Don't. Just…" He took a deep breath. "I don't want to talk about it. But I swear, I'm fine for the mission."

"No, you're not," Annabeth insisted. Her face softened. "I get it if you don't want to talk about it, but you've got to handle this properly or you're going to get us all killed. You've got too many…emotions right now to deal with on your own."

Percy nodded, looking down.

"We'll talk about this later," Annabeth warned him before turning towards the street. She hailed a carriage that had been waiting by the side of the road. The driver was tall, wearing a large overcoat and holding the reins with gloved hands. A large tricorn covered his face.

"Where are you lot heading?" the driver asked gruffly.

"Take us to the stagecoach station outside of town," Annabeth replied, giving him a handful of coins.

The driver counted the coins, grunting. "Get in, then," he said, pointing behind him. The carriage was painted black, with heavy curtains covering the windows. They scrambled into the small space, Percy and Grover squished together on a bench with Annabeth across from them. After a few seconds, the driver shouted to the horses and the carriage began moving forwards. The ride was bumpy and the cabin was dark, forcing the three of them to lean forwards to see each other.

"Alright, this is the plan," Annabeth started. "Right now, we're going to a station outside of the city. From there, we'll take a stagecoach to Devonport. If we're lucky, we should get there with some time to grab the sword."

"And if we're not lucky?" Percy asked.

"Just pray the weather holds up," Annabeth warned.

"What are we going to do once we're there?"

She sighed, pulling a strand of hair away from her face. "We'll have to figure it out at the time. If the sword's still being transported, we might be able to hold up the coach it's on. If it's already on the ship…" She fidgeted with the dagger on her belt. "That would complicate things."

They sat in silence as the cab continued. After a few minutes, the carriage stopped, and they heard the driver climb down from his seat.

Annabeth looked around in confusion. "That was too quick. We can't be there yet." From outside, they heard the driver talk to someone loudly.

"...Got the three of them in the back. Boss'll be proud of me, huh?"

Percy's eyes widened, grabbing his necklace warily. "Other side," he whispered. He reached for the door opposite from where the driver's voice was coming from. He quickly pushed it open, momentarily blinded by the light after being in the dark carriage. When he blinked, he saw a large man blocking the exit, grinning evilly.

"Look who it is," he said gruffly. "Athena's little helpers. If it isn't my lucky day." His golden tooth glinted as he smiled. "Step out of the cab. Now."