A/N: Thank you everyone for reading and following!

Regrettably I am not Rick Riordan.

Chapter 3: We Meet a God and His Many Hungry Minions

We walked in the very specific direction of away. We had no idea what direction Half-Blood Hill was, and I had no idea where the nearest library was. So, when we found ourselves outside New York and surrounded by fields of grass, we weren't surprised in a sort of resigned way. We'd figured we were completely lost. We just hadn't realized how much.

"I don't think the library was this way," Andromache finally said.

"Yeah." I agreed. After we got into an argument about shoplifting another store, which I actually won to my surprise (all I'd done was ask if the store she'd picked might also be a front for a monster), we hadn't really talked. Andromache didn't like losing an argument. At least she wasn't still mad.

"Aren't you supposed to know your way around?" Andromache asked.

Maybe she still was annoyed. I tensed up.

"I didn't know that area," I replied as politely as I could. It came across as rather defensive. To be fair, the bridge had been the only thing I recognized in this smog-ridden area.

Andromache bit back a retort. "Whatever." Or maybe just a worse retort. "I guess there's no way but forward."

"Aren't we going to find a library? I don't see a library here."

Andromache gave me a look. I gave her one of my innocent ones.

"I don't-" Andromache started. "I want to keep moving. If we're out of a city, it's a sign we should move on. Never stay in one place too long. It's how I survived so long. It's like the monsters can smell us and the longer I linger anywhere the stronger the smell."

She fiddled with the bracelet on her wrist. A spear appeared in her hands before shifting back into a bracelet.

"Smell us?"

"I don't know," Andromache shrugged as we kept moving. "There's no other explanation for how they keep finding me all the-" she stopped suddenly and visibly swallowed "-all the time. Besides, that was how your father explained it in the car, weren't you paying attention?"

I'd been a bit busy trying to get over the shock that a monster had murdered my mother. That didn't mean I hadn't been paying attention now, though.

I shivered. "That's kind of scary. Being hunted by scent." I smelled myself but didn't detect anything out of the ordinary. "I wonder what we would smell like to them."

"I'd rather not," Andromache gulped and looked around. "But if I had to guess, I would assume dinner."

"Wait, if monsters eat demigods why didn't your step-parents eat you?"

"Good question," Andromache replied coldly. "They tried, once, but I don't want to talk about it so let's pretend you never asked it."

I never knew how to respond to replies like that. I decided on staying quiet. We continued through the field in silent contemplation. Everything was still so weird and new for me. One instant I was a normal teen and the next I let a complete stranger climb through my window, order me around, and turn my life upside down.

Andromache didn't slow down the pace until I literally tripped, fell, and discovered the ground felt really nice and soft, and cozy. The grass wiggled gently in a soft wind. It felt wonderful and my eyes gently fluttered closed. The next thing I knew there was a boot kicking me in the stomach. That wasn't too pleasant.

"Come on, wake up!" Andromache cried. "Please don't be dead!"

The 'please' almost worked. I groaned and rolled over. Just to show I wasn't dead.

"I literally spent the last five hours combing the stupid grass looking for you. I'm pooped. Wake up!"

This time I did. I groaned and pushed myself up, my head spinning as I did so. It was a lot darker than it had been when I'd initially collapsed. Though it was kind of hard to remember, I was pretty sure the sun had been on the top of the sky, not on some side.

"OK," Andromache said. "Good. Have some water."

She pushed a water bottle in front of my mouth, and I immediately began to down it. Andromache immediately pulled it away from me even as she stabilized me.

"Not so fast," she told me. "You don't want to get sick." The nurturing side of her was rather nice, though I'd have preferred it if I'd been able to drink as much water as I could. I was more thirsty than logical. "Just take it slow." She was a lot nicer now that she wasn't kicking me to wake me up or trying to tell me what to do. "I've got a fire set up."

I looked over. There was a crackling fire. I moved over. Everything about me ached, but the fire called me. For a second, I thought I saw a figure tending to our flame but then I blinked, and it vanished. So, I was seeing things. I took another sip of the water and felt a bit better.

"Hopefully no one will notice a bit of fire," Andromache sighed looking around nervously. "I'm not worried about monsters finding us because of it. They can already smell us fine without it." So, she'd noticed my nervous expression. "It's the mortals I'm worried about. Technically we're trespassing."

I nodded slowly and slid closer to the flames. They danced and played, hypnotizing me. I'd always felt like fires were a part of me. Something about them always felt safe and welcoming. When I was younger, my family had gone camping trips and we'd sit together around a campfire, singing songs, and laughing. We haven't gone camping. Not since Mom died. Nonetheless, for about a year after she'd been gone, whenever I'd have a particularly difficult day, I'd gather some wood and start a fire in our fireplace, tending to it while it grew. I hadn't realized how much I'd missed the campfire though. As I coaxed the fire, adding wood from the pile Andromache had somehow gathered for it, I started to feel stronger, more in control, and less confused.

"Where'd you learn to work with a fire?" Andromache asked me.

I told her about the family camping trips of my childhood. She listened silently.

"Must have been nice," she said softly.

I nodded.

"My parents never did anything nice like that," Andromache said calmly, then slowly her tone got sadder. "I always should have known there was something wrong about them ages ago, I just-"

Andy froze.

The silence grew.

"I'm sorry," Andromache whispered. "I shouldn't have. Way too deep, way too quickly. I-"

I wanted to say something. Something that would prove I was worthy of her trust. Something that wouldn't make Andromache close up. In novels, the main character always knew the right thing to say. The main character was also never someone who shied away from confrontation. The problem was my mind stayed horribly blank.

I fiddled at my wrist. Andromache turned her spear back into a bracelet.

"There's no reason to apologize," I finally blurted out. "We're in this together."

That wasn't too bad, was it?

Andromache smiled sadly.

"Yeah, but I've literally known you for a bit over a day. Something about the fire…" Andromache yawned. "I suppose. Does fire make you feel safe?" She pulled her hand away and promptly fell asleep.

Some people just have all the luck. I'd never been able to get a decent sleep for a single day in my life. I always seemed to have too much energy to just drift off. While she'd still been alive, my mother had used to jokingly call me her little insomniac.

I rubbed the bracelet on my wrist. It was smooth and cold. The gem glowed faintly in the dark. I placed another log on the fire. The flames eagerly licked at it.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" a voice asked me from my left.

I turned, startled, towards it.

A young girl stared at smiling shyly; she looked about seven. Something about her struck me as trustworthy. Maybe it was the way she pulled her bonnet (which didn't strike me at all as out of place) to cover more of her face and curly brown, or maybe it was her wide youthful brown eyes. Or maybe it was just something about her presence. Either way, I invited her to join Andromache and me.

"You're welcome to share our fire. We don't have much to offer in terms of food, though."

"Thank you," the girl said and sat down next to me gently. "You make a nice fire."

"Thanks."

We sat watching the crackling flames.

"I like to look for images in the flame," the girl told me. "Sometimes you can see patterns, pictures, swirling, and a never-ending, ever-changing story. There's nothing like the warmth of a fire, or its power. A candle may seem weak, but it can be the spark that sets off a forest fire. In a way all fires are connected. They all come from one source." She gave me a meaningful look. I didn't understand a single thing she'd just said.

I stared into the fire. In it, two teenagers were laughing. They seemed so happy being together as if the world was perfect just so long as they were together.

"Your parents were quite special," the girl said. I suddenly had a feeling that she wasn't actually a young child. As if to prove me right, she stuck her hands into the flame and cupped them directly under the image of my parents. She pulled them out and stared at them smiling. "They fell in love and despite the fact the world was set against them being together, they built a home safe for them and a child." I suddenly knew I was talking to a goddess. Unfortunately, I had no idea which one. "It started just as a dream but a dream of a place where even mortal enemies can sit down and talk calmly. Their love was so strong that they actually convinced the fates to rewrite their fates to allow them a few years of happiness."

There was a moment of silence where she placed my parents directly back into the heart of the fire then she looked up and smiled softly at me.

"I remember when you were born. Your parents were so happy when you finally opened your mouth and cried. I think it was one of my proudest moments when you came to life."

"Came to life?" I asked in a sort of a daze.

"Yes," the goddess said. "You weren't supposed to exist. I might have broken a couple of ancient rules bringing you to life."

I sat musing this. "Who are you?" I finally asked.

She continued smiling softly at me but didn't answer my question. "Thank you for hosting me. It was lovely being able to see you again. I must return to my place on Olympus before I'm missed." She took a step forward then looked back at me, looking at my wrist. "I'm glad your father got you your present. Sometimes the truth is far more powerful than any blade." Then she took another step as if she was walking into the fire and then suddenly, she was gone. I stared at where she had been. I rubbed the bracelet on my wrist. It buzzed gently but told me nothing and did nothing. I stared into the flames as I waited for the hours to pass until it would be time to wake up Andromache.

I wasn't quite sure when I had fallen asleep. I barely even remembered waking up Andromache for her turn at the watch only to be told off for staring directly into the fire instead of away. "Staring into a fire to watch for danger is just as useful as closing your eyes. Either way you're blinded."

I just know that when I woke up the sun was already up, and Andromache was gone. I pushed myself up off the ground, groaning. However sore and uncomfortable I'd been last night, this was worse. Instead of just my arms and legs, my back also killed, and my head. I felt my head to check for bumps. I didn't find any but that didn't stop my head from throbbing.

"Have you had some water?" Andromache asked me when she returned. "You're suffering from serious dehydration right now."

I shook my head and once the world had stopped spinning so much, I took a sip from the water container that Andromache had so nicely left by me, and I had so wonderfully failed to notice.

"We need to keep moving," Andromache told me softly. "I'm not going to push as hard as yesterday and tell me if you need a break instead of walking yourself to the ground like you did. We'll make better time that way and no one will risk serious harm."

I nodded. Then pulled the canteen to my lips.

"Whenever you're ready," Andromache told me as she went around the campsite and scattered the ashes. She covered any other visible remains with some wet fall leaves that she'd found somewhere. I'd forgotten fall was right around the corner.

I swallowed some more water and stood up. This time the world didn't spin so badly. I took another sip. It made me feel a bit better. Andromache handed me a granola bar. I looked at it.

"I found another grocery store near here. Don't worry, it's gone now," Andromache explained, noticing my expression. "I got us two backpacks which I filled with as much food as I could fit. I also took some of their currency." She showed me a purse filled with golden coins. "Not sure what good it'll be, but figured if they were hoarding it, we might be able to find some sort of use for it."

I didn't follow the logic, but I was too tired and hungry to really argue. I ate the granola bar.

"You ready?" Andromache asked me. "I hope you don't mind if I take the heavier backpack today."

I had no idea what she was talking about as the backpack she gave me was insanely heavy.

"Don't give me that look. Soon you're gonna wish the bag was heavier."

I didn't doubt her. I'd read enough books to know we were going to need as much food as possible. That didn't make my bag any easier to carry.

"Where to?" I asked.

"The woods," Andromache told me pointing towards a distant point. "There'll be plenty of wood for us to use for fires. There should be shelter for us. We may even find a place there to hole in during winter."

I wasn't too fond of the idea of staying in the woods during the winter, but I also trusted Andromache's survival skills. We hadn't gotten eaten this far.

We headed in a vague direction to where Andromache had pointed out the distant woods. We stopped at least five times, not including lunch- for another granola bar and sips of water, because apparently, I had 'stumbled too much' for Andromache. We didn't talk about our conversations the night before. I had a feeling Andromache would shut off again if I even tried to broach the subject. Still, there was a part of me that really wanted her to open up more.

This time we managed to make it most of the day without seeing hide nor hair of any monsters. Andromache pursed her lips and looked concerned with every passing hour of no monsters.

"This is too good to be true," she kept muttering to herself.

Finally, we stopped for good as the light started to fade from view. In the distance, I could see the woods.

"You get the ground ready," Andromache told me. "I'll get the branches to start a fire." She strode towards the woods and vanished from view. It always amazed me that she never seemed to run out of energy. While I was ready to curl into a ball and sleep for the next few years, she kept pounding away at the ground and somehow, I was the insomniac.

I brushed away the occasional leaf that had blown over from the woods. The leaves really were turning fast. Autumn was practically here. Weird. School had started a few weeks ago. What was I going to do if I wasn't doing school?

School had always been a big part of my life. Though my parents had homeschooled me all my life, I still started at the same time as the rest of my classmates. My parents had quickly noticed when I'd had difficulty learning to read and took me to get diagnosed. I still remember the hours they took teaching me to read. It paid off because no matter how much of a struggle it is for me to read, it is far outweighed by the enjoyment I get out of it. Not that I was going to have the chance to read any time soon.

Andromache returned with a pile of sticks and logs. I immediately set to work setting up the tinder, using some of the leaves to help start the flame. Andromache then added some thicker twigs as the tinder lit up. Andromache had used some flint and a pebble from her pocket to get the fire started.

"It seemed useful, so I picked it up," she explained as she pulled it out.

Within a half-hour of labor between the two of us, more wood runs by Andromache, and care from me, we had a nice fire going. Andromache sighed and sat down next to me.

"There's nothing like a good fire to bring one's spirit's up," she sighed.

I agreed.

We sat there side by side for a while. The night was quiet; there wasn't any other noise other than our crackling little campfire. There was a moment and then I remembered that we were outside, in the woods. Where there was supposed to be noise. I tensed. Andromache bounded to her feet, spear ready in her arms.

I couldn't see anything wrong. Then I noticed the shadows move and twist around us in a way completely unrelated to the constant dance of the fire. They slowly formed into the forms of massive wolves, triplet demon ladies, and a vast horde of terrors that looked like they had crawled up from the underworld. They waited patiently for something. It was as if something was organizing them and sending chills down our spines.

"OK," Andromache said aloud. "I think I'd kind of like to meet whoever wants to kill me so much."

"That can be arranged godling," A shadow shimmered into existence, twisted, and suddenly a god was standing a few feet away from our fireplace. The god was tall, pale, had dark hair, and his eyes seemed to have an energetic glean to them. In his arms was a metal helmet that I could somehow sense was exceptionally powerful.

"Oh," Andromache said weakly. She looked ready to kneel and just die, but she forced herself to hold her spear in front of her, moving to keep herself in between me and the god. "I was actually hoping there really wasn't an all-powerful being after my life. More like some sort of metaphorical entity that hated me..." Her voice trailed off.

The god stared down at her. Andromache stared back at her.

"You never should have been born," the god told her. "Your father ought to have known what he was doing when he sired you. He should have ended you himself when you slipped from your mortal's parent's arms. But your father always had a weak spot for his children. I don't. I'm here to rectify his mistake."

Andromache looked like she didn't even have the strength to fight for her life.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," I squeaked. They turned towards me, Andromache shook her head and her eyes begged me to run. Somehow, I didn't.

"Ah, the other godling," the god gazed at me. "I'm sorry child that you had to be dragged into this. Let us into your camp and I can promise you that your end will be swift and painless."

"Right," my mouth said. "Is there any way we can talk this out? I think we're both a bit confused as to what you're going on about."

"What's your name, godling?" the god inquired.

"I'm Eleanor."

"Well Eleanor, I'm Hades, the Lord of the Underworld. Your friend is in breach of a vow, and it is under my domain to take the souls of those who break their vows."

"What oath did Andromache make and then break?" I glanced at Andromache. She looked just as surprised as me.

Hades looked a bit taken aback by that question.

"She didn't. Her father was the one to do so. He foolishly made a vow on the River Styx. It is meant to be unbreakable and to do so warrants repercussions. Unfortunately, I cannot punish her father directly, but I can take it out on his children."

"Could we at least still talk this out?" I requested.

"I was under the impression that was what we were doing."

"Maybe find a compromise that doesn't involve anyone dying…"

Hades stared at me. If I didn't know better, it felt like he was looking into my soul. Maybe he really was. He was the god of the afterlife after all. He must have found something he liked because he seemed to change tactics.

"I'm not in the mood to parley with any person not willing to welcome me to their fire and instead keeps me out."

I got the subtle message.

"You're welcome so long as you don't use this invitation to try and kill us or otherwise harm us." I tried to say the last part as politely as I could. I still hadn't forgotten where he had offered me a painless death for letting him into the fire.

"That's implicit in the laws of hospitality, godling," Hades informed me, his eyes seeming to laugh at me. "The host or hostess cares for their guests and the guest obviously doesn't attempt any sort of harm on their host."

"Oh."

"The proper way to invoke the laws of hospitality would be to say, 'I greet thee and welcome thou into my hearth to stay under the protection of Hestia' though I suppose you can also drop the 'thee's and just use 'you' at this point."

That was about when I realized the laughter in his eyes was warm laughter. As if he found me amusing, in a good way, only he was really, really bad at showing it.

With that realization and wondering what had changed, I repeated the invitation.

"Well, we're doomed," Andromache muttered under her breath. I shot her a look and she shut up. I was relieved. I did not want her bad-mouthing our guest.

Hades ignored her and instead sat down across from her. I offered him what we had of our food. I hoped a large assortment of Monster Donut brand granola bars wouldn't be thought of as insulting. He took a bite of one and leaned back against a shadow.

"Your parents really did keep you in the dark," Hades stated. "They didn't even teach you how to offer to the gods properly."

I blushed. I still don't know what had been more startling, learning the Greek Gods were real or learning that my parents had known but had tried to keep it from me. Still, the more I learned, the less I blamed them.

"I'm going to take that as a confirmation," Hades responded to my reaction. "All it takes to sacrifice is to drop a portion of your food, preferably the best part, into the fire and say aloud which god or goddess you wish to dedicate your sacrifice towards."

I took another one of the granola bars and dropped it into the fire. "To Hades." I said.

The granola bar vanished into a puff of smoke.

Despite being the one to bring it up, Hades looked a bit startled. "It's been a long time since I've gotten a sacrifice from someone living," he explained.

"That's unfortunate," I told him, honestly. After I'd gotten past the whole creepy persona, he didn't strike me as really evil. More like a doting uncle who had no idea how to not act kinda creepy.

"Your eyes really are like your mother," Hades told me. "Kind, empathetic, and warm. My favorite Olympian apart from my wife."

I stared at him in confusion.

"My mother was a demigod," I gently corrected him. Andromache looked at me as if I sealed our doom.

"Of course," Hades replied. "Stacey Grenaldi Freysan, daughter of Apollo. Quite a hero. Died about five years ago. Caused quite a stir at her hearing. I saw to her myself."

"Her hearing?" I asked nervously.

"Of course," Hades replied. "Everyone gets judged after their death. The good go to Elysium. Bad to the Fields of Punishment." His mouth twitched slightly upward at that thought. "The rest to Asphodel." That came out a bit weary.

"Where did my mother end up?" I asked, I could hear my heart pounding.

Hades blinked for a second. "She was a complicated case, but Elysium. Now I think it's high time to actually get to business."

"Right," my throat went dry. I'd kind of forgotten that our lives were on the line here.

"Due to certain divine complications," Hades informed me. "Andromache is not technically in full violation of said vow, however, she is still the only current accessible member of the family for me to, ah, punish for her father's transgression."

"What was this 'said vow'?" I asked. Andromache tensed up next to me.

"Her father swore not to bear any more children of her sort, that is to say half mortal," Hades explained. "He swore that on the River Styx for the sake of Olympus. As I've already explained that type of vow is meant to be an unbreakable vow and any transgression is to be taken very seriously."

"So, I'm screwed because I was born?" Andromache asked.

Hades looked startled to be reminded of her presence, even though we were literally talking about her life.

"Yes," he answered.

"Glad someone finally confirmed it," Andromache muttered.

"Nothing against you personally," I hurriedly reassured the god.

"I've faced far worse barbs," Hades let it go.

"You don't want to kill her, do you?" I asked.

"I don't want to not kill her," Hades corrected me. "It would certainly put me at odds with her father, which would be unpleasant, but likely wouldn't lead to anything. Especially since he hasn't claimed her yet."

"Wait, what do you mean that my father swore an oath for the sake of Olympus?" Andromache demanded.

"That is irrelevant." Hades' lips thinned.

"If there's an oath pertaining to me, I want to at least know why my father made it."

Hades stared down at her.

"Do you remember World War II?" he asked her.

"Yeah," Andromache shrugged. "I vaguely remember learning something about that."

"It overlapped with a conflict between, well, my children and my brothers' as well as..." Hades sighed. "Tensions had been high since World War I and well, my children lost... both times.

"The official story is that my brother's forced me to join them in a pact to not have any more children as we'd found them to be too powerful. As if. If they'd been concerned, they would have made that vow long ago."

Hades looked darkly at the fire.

"The real reason is that at some point during the Second Great War a prophecy was made. A prophecy that predicted that one of our children would turn sixteen and hold the fate of Olympus in their hands. My brothers didn't like the thought of one of their children having control over their future, so they vowed to have no more children. They forced me to as well because they didn't trust me."

He stared into the fire for a long silent moment.

"The irony now is that I'm the only one who hasn't broken this vow."

"Oh," Andromache said. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault you were born, even if you must be held accountable for it."

"That's sorta fair," Andromache said the most tactfully I'd ever heard her.

"I'm not trying to be fair," Hades replied. "I'm here to take your soul or something of equal worth from you."

"You're not getting Nora," Andromache snapped back. "I'll give myself over willingly before I let that happen."

Hades looked taken aback. "I wasn't going to suggest that. I care far too much about her mother's approval to try something as lowly as that. Your willingness to protect her shows you might actually be redeemable though."

"Thanks?"

"What I want from you is your loyalty," Hades replied. "Your father hasn't gotten around to claiming you so basically I want a promise that you'll work for me as if you were one of my children until he does. You can say I'll be a patron of sorts. I reserve the right to ask you to go on simple quests for me, none which I think you'll have any moral qualms about fulfilling, such as ensuring my children get to safety."

"But you don't have any children!" Andromache protested.

"Are you going to swear, or should I take your soul?"

Andromache swore. Fortunately, it was the sort Hades had been looking for.

"For your information," Hades informed her. "I have two children. Their names are Nico and Bianca. Bianca is twelve, Nico is eleven. Neither were born in the modern era, and I expect that you have the brains to figure out how they exist without an oath broken. I will hold you personally accountable for keeping them safe."

I had no idea what he was referring to but from the serious expression on Andromache's face and the way she nodded, I had a feeling she knew exactly what Hades was referring to. That was good enough for me.

"We will do the best we can," I interrupted. "We will do our best to find them. They will always have a place at our fire."

Hades looked at me gratefully. "Thank you." Then he faded into the shadows. The monsters surrounding our campfire slowly retreated.

"What just happened?" Andromache asked.

"Well, we didn't get murdered," I told her. "In exchange for you agreeing to work for him. You know, Hades didn't seem all that bad to me. He's portrayed much worse in the myths." Just because I hadn't really paid attention to the myths before didn't mean that I didn't know some of the basics. I had seen Hercules.

"First of all, I'm starting to suspect that you just see the best in everyone. Second, it wasn't that big of a deal, having a patron tends to be a good way to not get killed. At least that's what I've heard," Andromache shrugged, "All I want is to stay alive. Us to stay alive." She shuddered. "I really pity whoever that prophecy is about. I don't think I could muster enough care about anything to even be bothered to make any sort of choice. It's not like it'll help us find my family."

If nothing else, we'd decided to at least keep our eyes open to find Andromache's family. Andromache had been very clear that wherever she'd come from her goal was to get back home. We might not be able to figure out where on earth Camp Half-Blood is, but at the very least we had some sort of destination in mind.

We stared into the fire for a while. Then gradually we started to drift off to sleep.

A/N: In case it isn't clear, no they're not going to make it to camp. Why ever would they do that?

I do have a plot picked out. And since this is a pjo fic, that means familiar faces. YAY! In fact, next chapter we get [redacted] who shows up and [redacted for more spoilers].

Anyhow, let me know what you think. What do you think of Andy and Nora's dynamic? What of their end goal? What about non-murderous Hades? Also, the most important question, when do you all think this takes place timeline-wise and why? There are a handful of clues scattered around that should spell it out without me actually having to spell it out.

As always, thank you for reading! Let me know what you think! Comments, concerns, and conjectures of what's to come are always welcome!