Did you miss me? Sorry it's been so long! Finals week was terrible! Good thing is that I am done now, and I will have more time to write! How about a few updates over the next couple of days? :D

-Addie-

It didn't take long for me to leave to see them.

The Fates did not live in Olympus. They lived in a place that you couldn't find unless they wanted you to find it. No one knew exactly where it was. They were old and powerful, far older than the gods. Even they had to bow to the Fate's will. I concentrated on them, willing myself to appear before them, and to my surprise, I appeared in front of what looked like a one bedroom home. It was hard to see in the dark, but even in the moonlight, I could tell it was old. It reminded me of the houses that were built by hand around the civil war. Not the grand mansions and plantations, but the small, dingy ones that families crammed themselves into. The door was wide open, and a scent wafted towards me. It smelled familiar for some reason, but I couldn't pin it down.

There was no one outside, no one to greet me, but the door to the shack was wide open. I could see the glow from a fire inside, and I could hear low voices speaking to one another. Either I had made it to the Fates' home, or I was about to walk into the biggest trap ever. Knowing me and my luck lately, I was going with the trap theory. With my bangles back on my wrists, I summoned my daggers into my hands. I took a deep breath, and I walked up the few steps to porch and open door. What I saw inside surprised me. There was a withered old woman standing to my side, holding out a bowl of what looked like some kind of stew. She smiled at me, but she had that detached look of an older mortal, like she was not quite all there. She attempted to hand the bowl to me, but I didn't take it. I looked quickly around, because this could have just been a god in disguise. Two other women sat in chairs by a fire-place working on knitting.

"You can put your daggers away, child. We've been expecting you," said the one holding the basket. Her eyes were milky looking, like she had cataracts. She was gazing in my direction, but she wasn't exactly looking at me.

"Clotho wants you to look in the bowl, she's not trying to poison you or anything!" snapped the one sitting beside her. She had darker hair that the other two, and her eyes were as dark as onyx stones. She had her eyes narrowed at me, glaring at the daggers in my hands. "They have you awful paranoid, don't they? Not everyone wants you dead, deary."

"Please?" Clotho whispered. I made my daggers vanish, certain that these were the real fates. I peered into the bowl, but all I saw was a dark pool of liquid. Steam rose in languid curls, tickling my face with a brush of heat.

"I don't see anything," I muttered. I look back up at her, and her gaze seemed more focused and intelligent. She met my line of sight, smiling encouragingly.

"Try again. Open your mind. You have nothing to fear from us."

I took a deep breath in an attempt to relax my mind and body. It seemed impossible. All I kept thinking about was how empty I felt and how there was this hole in my chest that ached continuously. I hated to admit it to myself, but I missed Apollo. I wanted to forgive him, but I wasn't sure I could yet. It was a lot to forgive, but I wanted to believe him. What if I was wrong, and I was just going to get hurt. Orion could be right, as he was about them lying to me. He had told me all these things, and he seemed to be telling the truth as well. How could I choose between two sides that each had someone I cared about on them? How was I supposed to know what to do? I had to relax. I was here to do a job, to figure out what to do. I had to choose, but all I really wanted was to curl up in a ball.

I looked again, and in the bowl, the darkness had vanished. It was like I was looking at a TV. A scene unfolded on the surface of the liquid, but not one I immediately remembered. I saw my mother, the beautiful thing that she was, sitting with two children. There were two babies on the floor, almost identical, with brown hair. That had to be me and my brother, but we couldn't be much older than a year. My mother set a goblet down, looking on at the two of us. My brother knocked over the vessel, the crystal clear water running over the floor. He clapped his tiny hands in delight, sending the contents in a wave all over me. I immediately started wailing, and my mother laughed. She picked me up from the floor and cradled me against her chest. My tiny arms wrapped around her neck, and my baby self buried her head into my mother's shoulder. She rubbed my back, soothing my cries. My brother looked at me in interest, like he wasn't entirely sure what he had done wrong. He stood on wobbly legs, keeping his balance by holding my mother's knees. Tiny Euadne's head rose from my mother's shoulder, and as I followed her gaze, I saw my father. Not my mortal father, but my immortal one. He was looking on the scene with a wistful look on his face, but at the same time, he looked concerned as well. He smiled at me, offering a tiny wave. My toddler self's eyes grew wide, but a high pitched giggle escaped from me.

The scene vanished, and I looked up into Clotho's eyes. She looked satisfied, and I couldn't figure out why she wanted to show me that. My dad checked on me, so what? The gods did check on their children decently often. Some of them even sent me to do it for them.

"The past holds answers, dear. Remember it," she revealed. She smiled and pulled the bowl away, directing me to go sit with the others. I tentatively walked over, keeping my eyes peeled. It was dark when I left Atlanta, and my time was on short notice. From what I could guess, I had until around lunch tomorrow. Although I couldn't tell for sure, I thought I could feel my time running out. Like a clock in my head, slowly ticking away, something inside of me was building. My body was more on edge than I normally was, and then throw on this and the fear that the others were hunting me on top of that? I was surprised I wasn't having a breakdown.

I sat down in the empty chair, and Clotho followed, sitting in the empty one across from me. I kept my head down, waiting for permission to speak. I didn't want to anger then, and as I have never interacted with them in my existence, I didn't really know how to take them.

"Your smaller than I expected," the one with the darker hair murmured.

"Atropos, leave the poor girl alone! She has been through enough already," the one holding the basket said, and I realized that she must be Lachesis, the fate of life. From what I could tell, they were currently working on something large, a blanket I thought. She put down the basket, and I saw a tiny object sitting near the top by the thread they were using for knitting. It looked like a knit cap for a baby. It was a dark navy blue, with a sun stitched on it. It was full of reds, yellows, and oranges, all of them blending together seamlessly to look like real fire on the sun.

"That's lovely," I said, gesturing to the cap.

"It is isn't it?" Atropos said with a smile. "We worked rather hard on that one." Silence ensued, and I tried to open my mouth to ask them, but the words were stuck in my throat. My hands gripped my knees as I tried to decide on what to say.

"You wanted to see us to ask about your situation. You're angry with us. You don't understand," Clotho reasoned. I met her gaze and nodded my head.

"I've heard two different sides, and I…I don't know who to trust. Gaia showed me something, what I could have had if they hadn't interfered. I need to know if it is true. Did they ruin my fate? How could you let them?"

Lachesis gazed speculatively in my direction, her hand resting against the side of her head. Even though it seemed like she couldn't see me, it felt like she was peering into the depths of my soul. "What did she show you?" I explained what I had been shown, and to my surprise, Clotho leaned and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Your situation was the last one they had where they had interfered with a mortal's life that drastically. We had to intervene," Clotho explained. "You could not be allowed to perish; it was not your time."

"Then my life could have been like that? They did mess it up," I started.

"Gaia is a manipulative creature, but that it is her nature. Just like the earth, she has many layers. Just like your gods, she is selfish. Gaia is angry that she doesn't hold a more prominent role in the universe, as she once had. She desires to return to her former glory. Just because she showed you that vision does not mean it was the truth. Do you know how fate works? Destiny?" Atropos drawled.

"Not really," I admitted. "I always kind of pictured it like a path you are meant to travel on."

"Sort of," Lachesis remarked. "It is more like points you must reach. It is up to you how you reach them. Yes, that vision most certainly could have been a possibility in your life, and yes, they took some options away from you. The plan for your life had to be altered to compensate for what they did. However, Tiberius met the fate he was destined to have."

"So that was never a possibility. I never could have had a family with him," I muttered looking down at my hands. There were silent as the grave. So, everyone had their points. Gaia was manipulating me, but she was right. They did interfere when they weren't meant to. My brother wanted me back, and I knew beyond a doubt that he loved me. Then, there was Apollo and the others. Were they truly remorseful? If I denied Gaia, Ares and a few of the others would just kill me to save the trouble of having to deal with me. Would Apollo, Artemis, or Athena try to stop them? Everything was so confusing, and my head hurt thinking of the possibilities. I had come here for answers, but I should have known better.

"How though?" I questioned desperately. "How can I fix it? How can I function?"

"We cannot tell you that child. It is not for a mortal to know," Lachesis responded sadly. I buried my face in my hands, my emotions taking hold of me once again.

"You came here for advice, child, and while we cannot tell you the course of your life, we can tell you this: Fate always works itself out. The gods know a lot, but even they cannot tell defy the will of fate. Only you can correct it, and the way to do that is to live by your rules, not theirs," Atropos explained.

"I have to follow their rules, unless I go with Gaia," I fretted.

"Perhaps," Atropos said with a knowing smile. "But you seem to manage the gods well enough. I have a feeling you will know what to do when the time comes."

They continued with their knitting, the light from the fire dancing across their withered faces. It seemed strange to me, watching these old ladies. I didn't expect any more form them. I knew they couldn't reveal what it could have been or what I was destined to do. If we forge our own path, what did I want from my life? I wanted to be strong, to not have my fears shadow me like a cloud. I wanted to protect the ones I loved. I wanted to stand up for myself and take a stand against the wrongs done by the gods and the other immortals. I had a chance to do what I wanted, and by Zeus if I wasn't going to make good use of it.

"Thank you," I said as I got up. I headed towards the door, my thoughts organizing themselves. Atropos voice called to me, and it made me stop just as I got to the door.

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to get that key," I whispered over my shoulder. I turned just enough where I could see them. They were all slightly smirking, and Lachesis nodded her head. I walked out of the house, but Lachesis's words could still be heard as I walked out of the door.

"Very interesting."

-Percy-

We had made it to Athens the night before, and anxiety rolled in my stomach. The storm that had been keeping us grounded finally slacked off, letting us fly once again. Monsters had plagued us the whole time from Delphi. We were becoming exhausted from the fighting, and we had hit a lull that we were all thankful for. It seemed that the monsters had disappeared, but the air felt like something a lot more sinister was waiting for us in Athens. We had stopped just outside of the city, perched on the top of a hill that overlooked it.

We were in the dining room eating breakfast. No one had heard anything from Addie, and truth be told, I was getting a little worried not hearing or seeing her. I knew she had to follow orders, so I figured one of the gods had pulled her to do something else. It was the only explanation Annabeth and I could think of.

Annabeth was itching to see the Parthenon. After all, it was the temple dedicated to her mother and one of the "greatest examples of architecture of all time." She hadn't stopped talking about it for the past twenty-four hours. It never bothered me how she would spit out facts like an encyclopedia, but I was starting to see the toll it was taking on the others. We had decided we would wait until this morning to go. It wouldn't hurt to look for anything that would help us while we were here.

Annabeth was on another tirade. It was the first time I had seen that light back in her eyes since we got out of Tartarus.

"Did you know the Parthenon was designed by Phidias, and-"

"Annabeth," Leo sighed dramatically. "You are one of my closest friends, but if you say one more thing about the Parthenon, I'm going to have to burn it down."

"You wouldn't dare!" Annabeth fumed back at him. She had that same harshness in her eyes that Athena looked at me with. I placed a hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. She sat back just a little, and I could feel the tension start to leave her body.

"It's just too early, can't you like, I don't know, at least wait until we get there or something?"

"Fine," Annabeth muttered petulantly.

It got quiet for just a moment, but the sound of footsteps on the top deck sounded down. I looked up following the sound with my eyes.

"You hear that?" I muttered aloud. The others nodded, and we all drew our weapons. Riptide sprang to life in my hands, and I lead the way up the stairs to the top deck. Jason and Nico were directly behind me. We inched our way up the stairs, and a figure stood with their back to me.

The person turned at the sound of our footsteps, and relief rushed through me.

"Addie?"

She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. I walked over to her embracing her in a hug. She slowly hugged me back, her touch light and cool.

"Are you okay?" I whispered to her. I pulled back, and Addie just bit her lip and shook her head. Leo came to give her a hug, and both Annabeth and Piper gave her a squeeze of her hand.

"Addie, I'm sorry," Piper began.

"Don't worry about it, I'm fine," she whispered.

"Where have you been?" Annabeth asked her.

"I had something I had to take care of," she echoed. "I have some good news though."

"What?" I asked her.

"I know where the key is. It's in the Parthenon."

So, please leave a review and tell me what you think! Is Addie getting her revenge? 0-o