Breakfast at the Martins' household was a slightly awkward affair the next morning. Riley wasn't sure how to address Maira now that he knew she was a demigod. There were probably a number of things that he wanted to ask her, in particular about how she planned to protect his daughter now that Amy had been exposed as the daughter of Aphrodite. But unfortunately Joseph had cooked that morning and taken the time to start asking Maira about her Greek heritage. To her credit, the young woman was not only patient through the constant questions but also very elaborate in the details. It was from this that Amy herself found out that while Maira and her mother were both Greek, they no longer lived there. Apparently they had come to America about nine years prior and had a home in Florida.

"So how do you know Amy, then?"

"Oh, we've been friends online for a while and I came to San Francisco a few days ago. To be honest, I completely forgot that Amy lived here and when I finally remembered it was almost time to leave. I met with Amy and she offered for me to stay here for a bit while my mom made her way home first. That's if it's okay for me to stay here. I-I don't want to intrude" Maira glanced between the two men.

"Of course not!" Joseph immediately spoke.

"No, we don't mind a bit" Riley nodded. He did want to talk to her in more detail but as long as she kept his daughter safe, he didn't care when that happened.

Maira smiled at both of them politely, if not a bit distantly, then suddenly turned to Amy "So how about you show me around so I can see the things that I missed before. I think that San Francisco would be better seen from the perspective of a native"

Amy raised an eyebrow before getting the idea. Maira had no intention of sightseeing, she wanted to start explaining more things to Amy as soon as possible. Amy just took another sip of her juice and thought about it for a second "We can go out after breakfast if you want" Amy wasn't sure what the older girl could teach her but she just wanted to learn more "You can borrow some of my clothes if you want, too"

—

It was afternoon when Maira decided that it was time for Amy to take a break. They had left straight after breakfast, with Maira just throwing on one of Amy's dresses. The entire four hours since they left the house had been spent walking around and discussing all the different gods in Olympus and what their roles were, as well the number of children they all had; that included demigods and other offspring, in which Amy learned that she was actually related to Eros, much less that he was real. After that, most things bounced right off her head.

"Okay, you don't absolutely have to know everyone but I think that at a time when someone is after you, it's better to know as much as I can cram into your head" Maira admitted grudgingly as they both sat down with a coffee in hand. Amy only smirked. She was sure that Maira was a complete bookworm if given the opportunity.

"I see your point but my studying is not that great, I swear" Amy raised her hands to emphasis her point "But I'll try. You saved my life, the least I could do is listen to you when you're trying to help"

There was a shrug from Maira before silence filled in between them.

After a few moments, Amy hesitantly asked "So, what kind of abilities do I have? I mean, I saw what you did to that guy yesterday. So what about me?"

"Hmm, well, I've never met a daughter of Aphrodite before and as far I know, you're the only one. I mean I know Eros is her child but he's not human and only your half brother. I've met him once and like the myths say, he can make people fall in love" She said and then noticed the disturbed look on Amy's face "No, not by shooting arrows in people's butts. He's also not a baby that wears a diaper either. More like a normal looking guy apart from his wings but he can hide those when he's on Earth"

"So how does he make people fall in love?"

"Well, it's almost like match-making. He doesn't literally make people fall in love because that's something only Aphrodite as a goddess is capable of. It's more like Cupid can track people who would be great together and helps them to come together. It's a long process as far as I know and that's why people aren't all in love"

"So he's almost like a normal match-maker?" Amy asked.

"Aside from the fact that he's immortal, yeah" Maira nodded "But as for you, I'm not sure. I mean all demigods have a little more strength and speed than normal humans. I guess we'll find out your abilities as we go along"

"That's comforting" Amy said sarcastically.

Another shrug from Maira. Just as Amy was about to ask for more details about Eros, her eyes landed on something behind Maira. The daughter of Poseidon turned to see what it was that distracted her pupil and charge but all that she could see was people getting coffee. Amy's eyes were directly on one couple who were paying at that moment. Maira couldn't see what they looked like, but apparently Amy knew them well enough to tell them from their backs.

"Who-?"

"Let's leave, we can drink the coffee while we walk" said Amy without so much as giving Maira the chance to protest as she got up. Maira quirked her eyebrow in confusion but it wasn't until they were outside and had turned into the next street that she spoke up.

"What was that all about?"

It was then that she noticed the miserable look on Amy's face. It was strange to see, considering that what she had seen of Amy so far had been quite bright. She may have asked a lot of questions and was bold but she wasn't exactly negative. Now she looked completely beat down. It was a few more seconds after this observation that Amy answered "My ex-boyfriend, I don't really wanna see him with the girl he likes right now"

"Oh" Maira gritted her teeth at the awkwardness they had just avoided "When did you guys break up?"

"A few weeks ago. It just happened so suddenly that I didn't really get it. The girl he likes, she's the friend of a friend or I guess you could call her our friend too, but her mother died a little while ago and she was badly hurt too. We visited the hospital a lot. My ex-boyfriend, his name's Paul, he kept wanting to go and visit this girl to try and help, which I was all fine with. A little bit before her mother's funeral Paul decided to break up with me. After that, I barely saw him because he was always with this girl and he won't admit that he likes her but it's obvious. That was also her in the cafe, her name's Jasmine. I mean, she's really nice and I don't hate her because of this but I just don't wanna see them"

"Wait, a second" Maira furrowed her brows "When did you meet this Jasmine girl? Was it after you and Paul started dating?"

"Yeah, almost right after" Amy slowly responded and then noticed the uncomfortable look on Maira's face "What?"

For the first time, Maira looked apologetically at Amy "It's just that…Well, there's this rumour about something like curse or a jinx that Aphrodite's mortal children have to suffer. I always thought it was stupid gossip but listening to this story, it might actually be true. It's said that any human who loves a mortal child of Aphrodite will end up finding and falling in love with the person that they're destined for. But it would never be the demigod because they are cursed to never have the heart of a mortal" Maira looked sadly at the realisation that was washing over Amy's face and quickly turning to distress.

"You mean…" Amy gulped "I can never fall in love with someone?"

"No, you can fall in love with them but no mortal will ever truly be in love with you. Apparently as soon as they begin to have feelings for you, they will be on a course to finding their true love"

"Are you kidding me?"

"I wish I was but it looks like it might be true, it might be a slow process or a quick one but it's inevitable. I heard stories about humans that would specifically seek out the demigod offspring from Aphrodite but I always thought it was because they were beautiful. But it might have been for this" Maira concluded and added bitterly "I really am sorry Amy, it's one of those unfair things about being the child of a god"

To say that it sucked was an understatement, Amy thought. Did that mean that Paul had loved Amy and then Jasmine came along and he began to forget about Amy? It made her begin to doubt all the time they had been together, even the time when Paul had been determined to save her when she was with Jonah. When had the feelings begun to develop for Jasmine? She didn't even want to think about the part where she could never hang on to a guy again. She only lowered her head and continued walking, Maira not saying another word to her.

—

The next day had come and gone by without Amy finding her energy again. Maira still attempted to teach her more about the world of the Greek gods but all she got as a response was 'uh-huh' and 'yeah, sure' so she found herself repeating herself often. It wasn't until the fourth day after Maira had arrived that Amy finally began to perk up again and that was when Maira decided to use the time to get some basic physical training done with Amy.

"What? Like exercise and fighting? No way" Amy shook her head "That's the kind of stuff Chloe always has to learn and she hates it"

"Who's Chloe?"

"She's my best friend. She's always telling me what a hassle learning to fight is" Amy rolled her eyes at the very idea of it "Do I have to?"

Maira sighed "Of course, look I don't know what your abilities are but you're going to have to be able to know at least some self defence. I might not be able to help you if I'm fighting someone and someone else decides to attack you. Now come on, dodge this" She began by throwing her fist rather slowly so as to give Amy enough time to move aside, which she thankfully did. The younger of the two barely had time to look pleased with herself before Maira sent another punch, a slightly faster one at Amy.

This carried on for a while, Maira increasing her speed and Amy beginning to focus more and more on getting out of the way. It was a good start. The most important thing to Maira was to build Amy's confidence and desire to learn basic combat, something she definitely looked like they had achieved when they stopped an hour later. Despite only moving out of the way of some simple punches and kicks, Amy looked like she had just won the lottery. There was a small ache and bruise forming where she had misjudged the direction Maira was coming from but it didn't matter to her. This was only the beginning but she found herself eager to learn more.

"Man, I could use a bath. No wonder Chloe says the Mai push her too hard…" But Amy shut up as soon as she began to realise what she was blurting out. How had she become so at ease with Maira so quickly? It had been too much to hope for that the older girl didn't catch onto what she was saying. Surely enough, when Amy looked at her, Maira looked torn between shock and horror.

"Mai? Did you just say Mai?" She said with widening eyes "How the hell do you know Mai!?"

What was more shocking was that Maira seemed to know what Mai were. Deciding it was better to be honest now that she had blurted it out, she took in a breath and began to explain everything to the confused woman.

—

After Amy had explained everything she knew about the Mai, the Uniter and the Order, she looked to see that Maira had calmed down for the most part although there were still traces of frustration on her face. She said "To think that all this time, you were friends with Mai. No wonder you were calmer than most people would have been when I met you. I can't believe I didn't find it suspicious"

"Okay, what's the story here?" Amy threw her arms out " How do you know about Mai? And why do I get the feeling you don't like them?"

"It's not that I don't like Mai, I just don't trust them. Remember how I you told that there's all kinds of legendary figures that are real? Mai are one of them but obviously not from Greek mythology but Egyptian. I've read and studied a little about the other cultures of the world and their stories so I know a little about Mai and others but…well, let's just say that there's enough in-fighting between our own cultures without having to worry about another's. Who's to say that they won't bring their troubles and their fights to you? It might sound petty but the cultures barely clash with each other so we don't know what to think of creatures and people we've never met before"

"But they're not terrible as a whole, I mean you get bad people but that applies to everything, right?" Amy struggled to find the right words "A lot of them are just very proud" Her mind wandered to the likes of Alek but again a sadness began to wash over her when she remembered the day at the cafe when he essentially called her a burden.

"Maybe but, like you said, they're now leaving you out of the loop" Maira shook her head with a scoff "They're not here right now and I'm perfectly fine with that. Let's just head head back for today and carry on training tomorrow, okay?"

"Definitely, this was kinda fun" Amy's face brightened.

"I also have a surprise for you"

Sarcasm was already on Amy's face "You, a surprise?"

"What?" Maira said.

"I didn't see you as being the type to like surprises" Amy shrugged. Maira was definitely too focused on the task at hand. In fact, Amy had a mental image of Maira having a day planner that was crammed with every little detail of the day.

Maira paused for a minute and amusement flickered in her eyes "I don't like surprises, especially not unpleasant ones. But this wasn't meant to be surprise, you were just so out of it for the last few days that you didn't realise what I was saying" She let Amy rack her head for a few seconds for what it was she was talking about. Finally Maira took mercy "I got in touch with Hermes and convinced him to bring Eros here-"

"Eros!? As in the Cupid? My half-brother?"

Maira only looked at Amy as if to ask if there was any other kind. Then she carried on "He's here right now. I thought he might be able to tell you more about your abilities than I could. So do you want to go?"

There was a hint of hesitation in Amy's mind "What would I say to him?"

"Just talk?"

It wasn't the most helpful thing to say but Maira couldn't think of anything more. Eros was a mysterious being who rarely had time for the squabbles of demigods. If he had agreed to come and see Amy, he obviously had something he wanted to tell her. While she would withhold that fact from Amy for now, she was going to follow the younger girl to keep her safe. There was curiosity inside her that Maira needed to satisfy.

Amy carried on thinking for at least another minute before taking in a sharp breath "Okay" She said slowly "Let's go"

—

It was beginning to make her worry.

She wasn't the only one. Paul was already freaking out.

Even Alek and Jasmine were taking longer in their comforting responses whenever she voiced her worries. Which was often now.

Chloe had not heard from Amy all weekend and now she had missed school on Monday. In fact, she had trouble contacting her ever since Alek spoke to her in the cafe. She was calmer during the weekend because she had found some time to visit and Amy's fathers said that Amy was out with a friend of hers. They were surprised that Chloe wasn't with them. But now Amy was skipping school.

"What if the Order took her?" Chloe said as she chewed her already messy and broken fingernail.

"Yeah, what if they convinced Amy's dads they were her friends and kidnapped her?" Paul chimed. He only stopped pacing when he paused to talk.

Immediately Alek scoffed "Why would the Order want her? She's been completely cut off anything to do with the Mai"

"But they don't know that!" Chloe rounded on him "Amy has been my friend forever and, unlike Paul, everyone thought that it would be better to ignore her instead of protecting her. Maybe the Order decided she might know something after all"

"I understand what you two are trying to say" Jasmine interjected before Alek, who had a determined look on his face, could continue "But creating such a detailed cover just to take one of the Uniters friends just doesn't seem like them. What we need to do is find something about this friend of hers. Chloe do you think you can go back to Amy's house and see if her dads know anything more about the girl?"

"Definitely" Chloe nodded, she was already going to go regardless.

"I'll come with you" Paul walked up to her.

Alek rolled his eyes and unfolded his arms "Then I'll go and try to track her down around the city" If she was just goofing off with some new friends, he was going to kill Chloe's annoying little human friend. The only reason he was going to put in as much as effort as he did was actually due to Amy's advice helping him and Chloe smooth things over. They had finally managed to talk about the events of the night that led them all where they were. While they still had offering opinions, including that Chloe should have stopped going to visit Brian at the hospital, the awkward air around them had cleared.

Meanwhile Chloe and Paul shared a concerned look. It wasn't like Amy to not contact them. Perhaps it had been a mistake to leave her out?

—

In a large park the signs of great weather were showing themselves in the green grass and blooming flowers. Little children chorused taunts at each other as they dashed around the playground visible behind the hill near the path they were walking on. It lead from end of the park to the other, filled with some late afternoon joggers and mothers who were taking their babies on a stroll. Everyone's footsteps set a different rhythm on the small garnet coloured bricks. Amy and Maira's was a slow one as their heads moved in different directions.

They were looking for Eros. According to Maira, he was going to be waiting for them in this park until sunset. This left them a lot of time to find him. However, Amy wasn't able to contribute as she really had no idea what he looked like. She had already pointed out at least three people who were nowhere near what he was supposed to look like.

They searched for at least another half an hour before Maira brought her arm up to stop Amy "There he is" Her eyes cast on a chestnut bench with black iron handles carved into beautiful shapes. They were coming up behind it and whoever was sitting in it had their back turned to them. The only thing that Amy could see was dark hair and a navy blazer.

"How can you tell" Amy said. She wasn't aware that she had reduced to whispering. There was something about suddenly being so close that made her wish she could erase her existence. It didn't feel real, more like a film that was watching on the theatre screen and she was the annoying person who was lost and confused so she had to keep asking her friend for the answer.

Maira, on the other hand, bluntly pointed to a plaque placed on the back of the bench "Only he could choose something so cheesy" It read 'If there is one thing that everyone should be able to accomplish, it is to know love and share it.' At the sound of her voice, the man sitting down turned around. It was not what Amy had been expecting.

Eros had a beautiful face with large almond eyes in a mysterious dark, almost-ebony colour. His eyes were framed by long eyelashes above which sat his dark eyebrows. They were somewhat messy but reflected a boyish charm to them much like the smile appearing on his face. Apart from the stubble that was on his jaw and around his mouth, there were no blemishes on his skin. His height was difficult to tell while he was sitting but his long legs were comfortably stretched out in from of him. His hands had been rested on his knees, intertwining the fingers, only seconds ago. It was evident that he had been staring out at the people in the park.

"Maira" He announced in sing song voice "It's been a really a long time. You've grown since the last time I saw you"

"And you haven't aged a day, Eric" Maira countered, walking around the bench to shake his hand after he stood up, revealing that he wasn't much taller than Maira.

"Eric?" Amy raised an eyebrow.

"Eros is a little outdated. Eric is a little better to be called in public" Then his gaze turned on Amy "And here she is…My mysterious little sister" Without warning Eros/Eric spread his arms out widely and swooped down to hug Amy tightly. Normally, Amy wouldn't have a problem with shoving a guy off her when they invaded her personal space but Eros' hug was so warm and comforting that Amy welcomed it. After a few seconds, she lifted her arms around him too. He then added "Amy, it's good to finally meet you"

Amy leaned back "How did you know it was me?"

"You look a lot like our mother" He chuckled "Plus, you hug just like her too"

"I do?" She stood back in amazement "You've met our mother?"

"More than I'd like to sometimes, she can coddle a little and when you're immortal, it tends to get really boring" Eros sighed. Then he paused "Wait, that was insensitive. You've never gotten to meet her and here I am bragging about seeing her all the time. I'm sorry"

"I-"

Eros shook his head. Amy had been about to say that she didn't mind but it was like he read her mind. The expression on his face was odd, as though he wasn't as apologetic as he sounded but the look in his eyes was affectionate. As a first impression, Amy wasn't sure what to make of him. Because she knew what he was, it was now very obvious that he wasn't human. Otherwise, he would have seemed like some kind of freak to her. And once again, it was like he could read her thoughts.

Maira looked between the half siblings and sighed. It was like they were having their own conversation that she wasn't a part of. If she looked carefully, there were certain similar traits that she could see between them. However, it seemed like Eros may have followed his mother's footsteps but inherited the looks of his father, Ares.

As if Maira's reminder of her presence brought him back, he continued speaking "Now Amy, I came to see you but I actually have work to do here too. There are two people passing through this park that need to meet very soon. Do you mind sitting with me while we wait?" He gestured towards the bench he had sat at.

"Um, sure" Amy hesitantly followed him as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and stay her down.

"Can you give us some time please, Maira?" He looked to her politely but stating the obvious message that he wanted to talk to Amy alone.

For a second Maira was about to refuse. This may have been Eros but she had only met him once herself. How much could she trust him? But then again this was a family matter of sorts for both him and Amy. He could tell Amy far more about Aphrodite than she ever could. So, with much resistance, she pushed down the protective instinct she was developing for the younger girl and nodded. Let them have their family moment. She would wander around closely enough that she could come at any sign of trouble.

—

It amazed Amy how she could sit in such comfortable silences with Eros without feeling the need to talk. It seemed that by his very nature, he was a being who considered many words carefully. Perhaps it came along with the amount of thought he had to put into finding people who belonged together. Or perhaps it was just how he had grown with his immortality. Had he already run out of things to say quickly hundreds of years ago? Whatever the reason was, he made her feel at peace too.

When he did speak, she listened intently. He repeated a few things that Maira had already told her, especially about Aphrodite, but he also spoke from a perspective that only a child could about their parents. She was a woman who was used to getting what she wanted and when she was denied it, she was stubborn as a mule and impulsive in order to get it. But, according to Eros, she was also a woman who understood compassion and love more than any other god; she understood the connections between mortals like no other. After all, everything he knew about love that allowed him to bring people together had been learned from her.

Sadly there wasn't much he could confirm about her powers. For unknown reasons, Aphrodite was extremely secretive about her mortal children, keeping them under the radar where possible. Their identities were even kept secret from him and Amy's reveal had been one that Aphrodite had been too late to stop. As far as he knew, Amy was the first child Aphrodite had in hundreds of years. Her strength and speed would eventually surpass a normal human like Maira had said. Eros did add that once Amy came into her powers, she would become more alluring by them. Mortals would be more drawn her naturally whether by lust or admiration. This fact alone somewhat disturbed her.

And he confirmed what Maira had suspected; there was indeed some kind of curse on Aphrodite's mortal children. It was uncertain where or how the curse originated, only that every demigod born of Aphrodite had it. Amy's last hope for love was dashed and she was again feeling herself falling into the misery of never being able to find true love. Even Eros' positive outlook that she could at least help other people find love didn't do much to comfort her; he may have enjoyed bringing people together but Amy wanted that for herself before she brought it to other people. Instead she would eternally be stuck with people chasing her either out of lust or to find their own true love.

"Do you have anyone you love?" Amy asked him with some tears glazing her eyes as she looked out over the park.

For about a minute she was met with silence from him "Yes" He answered rather sadly. Amy looked at him surprise. In response to her, he pulled a smile "She was one of the most beautiful women alive. In order to be together, we went through a lot. She did get granted immortality so I guess you could say it was a happy ending"

Amy, suddenly thinking of her situation, blurted out "But's never that simple?"

"Yeah" His sad smile became warmer as he placed a comforting hand on the top of her head "Even hundreds of years later, we still have things to work through. Being in love always has it's challenges and it takes work. But it'll also always be worth it" His head snapped back towards the path near them "And this is how it begins" Their eyes landed on a man walking along with his bulldog on a leash. The pooch was eagerly pulling his owner with him.

Without a moment's notice, Eros stood up. He walked in the direction of the man and bumped hard in his right shoulder. Amy watched in slight alarm as the man dropped the leash, Eros mumbling a swift apology that the man probably didn't even hear as he chased his beloved pet. However, the bulldog didn't go far before he reached a stopping point. In his eagerness to get attention from other people, he collided with a woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties. The shaved ice she was carrying in her hand dropped, leaving a blue coloured stain on her clothes. She only cursed it for a second before her eyes landed on the dog and practically melted. When his owner finally caught up to the bulldog, it looked like he began to frantically apologize to the woman.

Eros sat down beside Amy once more and grinned "Now he's a polite a guy and he'll offer to show her to the nearest dry cleaners and pay for it after he buys her a temporary top so she doesn't have to go home wearing that. On the way, they'll talk and it'll actually be she who asks him to go on a date"

"Seriously?" Amy's jaw dropped.

"Yeah. I followed her around for a long time to get an idea of what's she like and then I looked for someone I thought she would be destined with. When I found him, I followed him around too so I knew how they would react in any situation. She likes to read travel magazines and a few days ago, I made sure she saw an article that praised this park as a great one-day trip in the local area. I knew this was where he walked his dog everyday. I timed it so they'd be in the park at the same time and made sure that this situation occurred"

"But how could you know this is exactly what would happen? How do you know what will happen?"

"This is the result of my research. This is why true love is difficult for everyone to find. It takes a lot of time and careful planning. The feelings people have are there, the destiny and their compatibility is too. But destiny is also lazy, so the events that lead up to it are determined by me. It seems that the only time romantic destiny works hard to make all the pieces fall into place is for you; or rather the people who fall in love with you who then end up finding someone they're meant to be with. Whereas, I'll now have to follow these two just make sure that some freak of the universe doesn't stop them. It usually works out after people meet but you can never be too careful" Eros once again stood up and soothed out the creases in his trousers.

Amy barely even registered his reference to her curse once again, as she followed him standing up "You're leaving?" There was a hint of disappointment in her tone as she looked at her half-brother with wide eyes. Like earlier, he seemed to read the thoughts of sadness swirling in her head and smiled.

"I have to, yes" He motioned slightly with his hand as he looked in the distance. There, on a small slope where she had been resting for the last hour, Maira began to approach. Instantly, he swooped down and gave Amy another tight hug "Unfortunately, love cannot easily take a break in my eyes. I don't know when we'll get to meet again but I'm so glad that I even got to see you. I'll tell our mother all about you. And, if you ever need me, I'm sure I'll find a way to get to you" After lingering for a moment, Eros straightened up once more and waved in goodbye to Maira who was slowly coming nearer. He spared one more glance at Amy before turning on his heel and began to follow the couple he brought together in the direction of the park exit.

Maira finally reached Amy a few seconds later and sighed "Did he really just leave?"

"Yeah, he didn't even say goodbye properly" Amy mumbled, slightly bemused. She was still kind of bummed out that she didn't get to talk to him longer, unaware that more than a few hours went by when they spoke. Maira too seemed to notice something was off with Amy so she tutted as she wrapped an arm around the younger girl's shoulder.

"Well, that's just his style. Isn't he just the cheesiest?" After a beat, she raised a finger to her lips "Well I guess there's a saying that love is impatient…or is it that love is patient?" She suddenly added, looking to Amy in confusion.

This brought a grin to Amy's face. Her eyes creased up in laughter and any sign of a frown was upturned "Well something like that, I guess?" She chuckled, swinging her head back and also wrapping an arm around Maira's shoulder. The two began to also make their way towards an exit while heartily laughing and debating the correct phrase to use, or rather their lack of understanding for the right now.

Neither of them so much as even noticed a blonde boy who had just happened upon the scene moments ago and was watching the two girls leave from his spot in the middle of the park. Alex was seething in frustration on what a waste this was.