I twirled the peacock feather through my fingertips with a small frown, lay across the end of Thalia's bed. It had been almost four months since I left Camp, and I was closer to meeting Hades than I was Apollo or Artemis.

The thought made me sigh, and I lowered the feather to my stomach wryly. If I was being honest, I had no idea how I felt about what was coming next. Every time I thought about it, my mind wandered to Thalia's outbursts, or Percy's sudden insistence on finding distractions.

Annabeth was worse. Her constant searching for a cure was the only thing I couldn't bear.

Somewhere behind me, the door creaked open, and I lurched, instinctively tucking the peacock feather into the inside pocket of my jacket. Twisting, I glanced over my shoulder as Thalia dragged herself into the room, her spiky hair more ruffled than usual, her blue eyes dull, and her Green Day t-shirt splattered with paint.

"Hey," I smiled brightly. "Busy?"

She halted long enough to scowl at me deliberately. In her arms, she carried at least five textbooks. Grumbling something under her breath, she turned away from me pointedly and carried the books to her desk on the other side of the dorm room she shared with Annabeth.

I watched her patiently for a moment, shuffling on the spot to swing my legs off the end of the bed. "So, how are things here?" I asked.

She didn't even turn this time, fumbling with papers on her desk.

"Any plans for Christmas?"

Still nothing.

"Lost the ability to speak?"

"Shut up," she snapped over her shoulder.

"And still rude," I commented dryly, pushing myself to my feet. "You asked me to visit, Tal, so what is it this time? Why are you in a mood?"

She looked up cautiously as I leant against the wall beside her, watching and waiting patiently. As much as I loved my sister, she could be so frustrating at times. We'd been clashing for months now, and I didn't see it ever changing. We were too different to be anything else, and since finding out about Luke and the poison, she wasn't coping well.

"I got a call from Grover," she sniffed pointedly, turning her attention back to her books.

"Isn't he out looking for more demigods?" I frowned.

"Yes. He wants our help to get them to Camp."

I paused for a moment, because I couldn't see what was so wrong with his request. It certainly wouldn't be the first time I'd done anything like that. But Thalia's muscles had tensed, and her eyes were narrowed as she flicked through her papers so fast, I knew there was no chance she was actually reading anything.

Sighing, I felt my eyes roll. "Okay, so which one is it this time? Me or Luke?"

She twisted to scowl at me, her lips pulling back into a snarl. "Don't-" she started furiously.

"I'm fine, Thalia," I glowered back. "How many times do we keep having to have this argument? It doesn't matter how many times you tell me to go home and stay there, because I won't do it."

"I know that!"

"So why-"

"You can't go back to camp," she blurted irritably. I didn't say anything, but a sinking feeling grabbed hold of my stomach. Thalia groaned, running a hand through her hair. "Look, if you go back there, can you really grantee the gods aren't going to start testing you again? Can you even say for sure they aren't still watching you right now?"

I winced at the thought, shifting on my feet and running my fingers over my scar before I could stop myself. In all honesty, I couldn't say either, mainly because of Hera. But I couldn't tell her that. Now there were two daughters of Zeus, the Queen of Olympus was most definitely going to try to exact her revenge on my dear sister if I didn't do want she wanted.

Gods, I'm easy to manipulate, I thought sourly.

"I can't avoid the place forever, Tal," I mumbled, striding to the other side of the room and snatching my jacket of Annabeth's bed.

"Forever?" she snorted, and I shot her a surprised look, my jaw hanging slightly. A pained look twisted her features.

I gulped hard and shrugged my jacket on. "Calling Grover back," I told her. "Is he still in Maine?" She nodded without looking at me. "Good. I'll let Percy know and we'll pick you and Annabeth up in a couple of hours." Striding for the door, I paused long enough to hug her tightly then let myself out.

As I strode through the corridors, it was harder and harder to shake the feeling that I was being watched. I was probably being paranoid. Thalia had planted the idea in my head and now I couldn't stop thinking about it. But every now and then, a shudder ran down my spine and my lips pursed.

Fine, I thought. If they want to watch, then they can watch.

Shouldering the front door of the school open, I scooped my hair back away from my throat and wrapped it in a ponytail pointedly. The cold winter air hit the scar and a wince slipped my teeth at the contact. Shaking it off, I skipped down the stone stairs and started for Percy's apartment.

A boy, maybe sixteen, stared at my scar as I passed and let out a whistle. "Cool tattoo," he grinned. I raised an eyebrow, but forced myself to smile tightly and nod once. Shaking it off, I pulled the collar of my jacket a little higher and stuffed my hands into my pockets, picking up the pace.

It took me less than twenty minutes to walk about to Percy's apartment from the boarding school. The moment I reached the bottom of the stone steps outside, the smell of gingerbread and the sound of cringe-worthy Christmas music drafted down from one of the overhead windows that had been sound ajar.

"Oh not again," I grumbled quietly, rolling my eyes as I dragged myself up the stairs. The music got louder and louder the closer I got to the apartment, and by the time I reached the doors, my shoulders had sagged in resignation that it was – as I thought – Sally's music.

I shouldered the door open, already shrugging my jacket off my shoulders. "Percy?" I called over the music.

"Yeah!" he called back, turning the music right down. "Through here!"

I hug my jacket up and made my way over to the living room, where Percy was slouched in an armchair, flicking miserably through his Christmas homework. "Hey," I smiled.

He glanced up at me, ruffling his hair in frustration. "How'd it go?" he asked automatically.

I snorted. "Thalia? Same as always." He scoffed in reply with a small shrug of his shoulders. Once, we might have thought it was a good idea if he visited Thalia and Annabeth too. But the longer they were near each other, the more apparent it became that Percy and Thalia got on about as well as he and Clarisse did.

"Grover called," I told him as I threw myself on the couch by his side, and his attention snapped back up again. "He's in trouble with some demigod kids in Maine. Asked if we'd go up and help them."

That's when he got that strange expression on his face, the one where he thought he was successfully covering his jealousy of Grover and Annabeth's lingering tendency to turn to Thalia for help before him. Part of me understood. The other part was grateful for any amount of time that kept me away from the gods' world.

"He's asked for all of us, Perc," I yawned. "Annabeth and Thalia are getting ready. We should probably make a move before it gets dark."
"You're going too?" he blurted in surprise, and before he could stop himself, his eyes darted to the scar on my throat.

I felt my expression darken. "Yes," I answered.

He pulled a reluctant face. "Sorry, but I just didn't think you'd want to be anywhere camp right now."

I pursed my lips and curled up a little tighter on the couch. He was right, but the longer I thought about it all, the more I was sure I had to make a move. However long left I had, I had to do something to make sure Hera didn't come for Thalia and Percy afterwards. What that was going to be, I didn't know quite yet. I was just hoping that if I got back out there, if I forced myself to confront it all, I'd have some sort of epiphany and forget what they'd done.

"Acacia?"

I cast my eyes back to Percy, to see him frowning in concern. I just grimaced back. "I'm fine," I lied. "But Grover isn't. So come on. We need to get moving."

"Acacia-"

"Forget it, Percy," I dismissed, pushing myself to my feet and turning for the door. "Just get ready!"

I tried not to think too much as I strode down the hall to my room, pulling my hair out of it's bobble and braiding it back down the centre of my head. Rummaging through my wardrobe, I snatched up the thickest jumper I could find and pulled it over my head. Without even pausing for breath, I twisted.

Too fast.

I winced before I could help it, the pain shooting up my throat and burning into the back of my head. Black spots swam in front of my eyes, and I staggered into the end of the bed, gulping hard.

It was a long five minutes before the swimming stopped and I could breathe evenly again. Limbs shaking, I lowered myself to the ground with pursed lips. Focus, Acacia, I told myself, over and over. Breathe . . . just breathe.

A knock came on the door. "Acacia, honey?" Sally's voice came. "Are you alright? Do you want me to call Chiron?"

Unbidden and irrational anger flashed through me, directed mainly at myself. Since when was I so weak? I cleared my throat. "I'm fine, Sally!" I called back. "Just . . . just gimme a minute!"

There was an uncertain pause. "Okay! We'll be waiting in the lounge, alright?"

I took a shaky breath and ran my cold hands over my face. "Get it together, Acacia," I scolded myself under my breath. But in the place of pain, nerves were beginning to take hold. My stomach was squirming at the prospect of returning to camp and the gods, but I'd been putting it off for too long.

Pursing my lips, I shifted up onto the edge of the bed and opened the drawer in my bedside table. There wasn't much inside, just a few things I'd kept from my birthday at camp. On top of a book of Ancient Greek myths, however, sat my locket.

My hand paused over it, debating, and for a split second, I let myself consider what would happen if I ever saw Apollo again. Then I shook myself roughly, snatched the dagger Thalia had made for a late birthday present up and slammed the drawer shut again.

"Ready?" I asked calmly as I approached Percy and Sally.

He leapt up at the sound of my voice, scanning my expression for a sign of weakness. "Sure," he answered with a small smile. "Mom said she'd take us up to Maine for we get Annabeth and Thalia on the way."

"Sounds good," I smiled.

So the three of us headed down stairs and I climbed into the back of Sally's car, drumming my fingertips on top of my thighs. I had to get it together, keep calm, and keep focused. Whatever happened, I couldn't screw up again.

I wasn't fighting for my life anymore. I was fighting for the only family I had left.