ONE WEEK LATER

"Let me out!" Mari screamed as she banged on the door. It was no use.

She'd tried abseiling down from the window like they did in the movies. Circe had caught her and magically removed the windows, which were her only source of sunlight and therefore her only way of telling how long had passed. She guessed a couple of days.

Then she'd tried picking the lock, but she sucked at it. Circe heard the noises and bolted the door, trying to convince Mari that this prison was where she actually wanted to be. That was some bs. Mari was smart enough not to say that to Circe's face.

She'd found a drachma in the room and tried iris-messaging Chiron, but IM's didn't work on Aeaea. Iris still took the drachma, though.

"My dear, if you continue banging on the door, your hands will start to bleed and we won't be able to begin your training," Circe said from the other side of the door.

"I don't want your stupid training! I want to go!" Mari continued to pound on the door to the tiny room. She was far from the other occupants, adjacent to Circe's personal sorcery room. She had a bed in the corner and a small wardrobe, all full of Chitons Mari hadn't touched. At least there was an adjoining bathroom of her own. Mari was still in her pajamas, and they were starting to smell like rotten eggs. But she wasn't taking any chances, and she couldn't be sure that Circe hadn't enchanted the clothes to make her want to stay or something. Drys was under her pillow.

Mari's hands froze and began to feel numb, like they were encased in a block of ice or something. She panicked. Could she produce light this way? How was she supposed to fight?

The door burst open to reveal an irritated looking Circe. "Those who turn down power turn down their very nature. If you have the opportunity to manipulate, then refusing to take it is scorning the fates. The fates do not like to be scorned, Marion. Now."

Circe waved her hand and Mari's ratty pajamas changed into a light green chiton. She didn't smell like a barn anymore. She smelled like wild flowers. Her hair was out of her face and she was wearing gold bracelets and sandals.

"Ah, that's better. Normally I allow my guests to change the manual way, but you were being difficult."

Mari touched her hair. It felt softer than usual, like it had just been conditioned.

"Come." Circe waved her hand and began walking away. Mari made to go back into the room she'd been in before, but her legs wouldn't listen to her.

She stiffly followed Circe, like some kind of fucked-up automaton. She tried to grab things on the way to stop herself from following, but they only turned to air in her hands.

The corridors changed from white marble to rough slabs of stone as they went, lit on the walls by torches of green fire. Greek fire. Mari wondered if that was even safe, but it probably wasn't something to worry about as an immortal sorceress. The air grew colder, and felt thick. Damp.

"Stop struggling. It's pointless. I will train you and in time you will come to terms with the fact that you belong here."

Mari glared at her. "What? Until you ship me off to wherever Luke tells you to?"

Circe laughed, like they were best friends and she'd just told the most hilarious joke. "Oh, my dear! Nobody ever leaves this island without my knowledge. You will leave for a time with my permission, but once the crooked one has no more need for your power, you shall be returned here. That was the deal I made with Luke."

The crooked one. Mari had heard that name before. It was an epithet. Epithets were used in place of a god when the person using them didn't want to attract the attention of said god. But who was the crooked one?

They stopped. In front of them were two double doors, made of stone.

"This is my personal training room. As you progress, we shall take some of our lessons in my sorcery room, but right now you need more space. This will be challenging and exhausting. You may not be able to move for a few days. Are you ready?" Circe clapped her hands over Mari's shoulder in a gesture she was pretty sure was supposed to be reassuring.

Mari shrugged away, resisting the urge to punch Circe in the jaw. "No! I don't even want-"

"Wonderful! Then let's get started."

Circe clicked her fingers and they were on the other side of the doors.

Mari slowly turned around. The room was circular, with bronze columns holding up a misty ceiling. Mari noticed an opening on the other side of the room, opposite the doors. It was covered by a cascade of water, making tinkling noises as it fell. They were under a waterfall.

"What... how did you do this?" Mari asked. Even if she was a prisoner, she had to admit that it was beautiful.

Circe smiled and seemed to inflate like a balloon. "It took next to no effort. This is the perfect place to train, undisturbed. Now, let us begin."

Mari shook her head and took an automatic step back, but it was no use. She blinked and was suddenly standing on a raised platform in the middle of the room, feet away from where she had been a second before. She hadn't moved a muscle to get there.

"What do you know about the mist?" Circe asked her.

Something in the way Circe said it compelled Mari to answer. Like a call. Her voice was just so pretty, she had to give her something small in return... just a little thing... "It keeps mortals from knowing about the gods. It can be used by demigods and gods alike." She rattled off what Chiron had taught her. "Control of it is overseen by-"

"-Hekate. My mother," Circe interrupted, an indulgent smile on her face. "Well done. But I'm afraid you, like every other demigod, have been severely misinformed."

Mari frowned. "But Chiron said that-"

"Bah! Why listen to Chiron, when you have me? You will not question my lessons from now on, Marion."

Circe's voice was rich and velvety, and there was something... commanding about it. Like hearing the lyrics of a song and feeling compelled to complete them, but much stronger. Mari nodded along. "Okay."

Circe raised her hands to both of her sides and smiled. Mari wondered if Circe was a theatre nerd.

"Normal demigods are able to wield the mist to create illusions but I can teach you how to manipulate it physically. You'll never need another weapon."

Mari frowned. She didn't want to question Circe's teachings after being warned, but...

"Circe?" she asked.

Circe scowled. "Lady Circe, my dear. I'll let that slide because you're new."

Mari nodded hastily. It probably wasn't a good idea to piss off the scary lady with magical powers. "Lady Circe... didn't you say anyone you taught never left?" Mari asked.

Circe nodded. "Yes. Once you learn this, I cannot allow you to take the knowledge outside of my haven. Other than the deal I have struck. But my knowledge is mine."

Mari shook her head frantically. "I don't want that!" she protested.

Circe narrowed her eye and that was the moment Mari realised she'd gone to far. "You will," Circe said, lifting her arms.

Mari's lifted too, and when she tried to move them down they wouldn't budge.

"What- how are you doing this?" she spluttered.

Circe smiled coldly. "I am infinitely more powerful than you, child. Do not fight. It will just make the process more painful."

Mari was about to ask what she meant by painful, when she lurched forward onto her knees. Her hair came undone at the movement and she was pretty sure her legs were going to bruise, but that was nothing compared to the pain.

Mari once read a Buzzfeed article about patients who had surgeries where the anaesthetic didn't work. It immobilised them so they couldn't cry out in pain, but they could feel every part of the operation. It was called Anaesthesia awareness. She'd been in a morbid mood at the time. That was how whatever was happening to her now felt.

Like her nerve endings were being burned off, only to be reattached every millisecond so that she could still feel the pain. Like she was being boiled in hot water and frozen alive at the same time. Like she was on a bed of nails. Imagine mashing them together and then adding a killer migraine? Yeah, that was how Mari felt.

"What-" Mari coughed and was horrified to see blood spill from her mouth. She started to retch and more blood followed. She felt it leaking from her nose and wondered if she was going to faint from blood loss. She didn't care if at least it made the pain go away.

"What are you doing to me?!" she managed to sputter between gasps, before coughing another, fresh round of blood into the stone floor. She was also pretty sure her chiton has a red splotch down the front.

Circe tutted like she was a misbehaving toddler in reception at primary school. Or she supposed the American equivalent was kindergarten. "I am forging your connection to the mist. I thought I made that clear."

Mari's head spun. Or was the room actually spinning? She wasn't sure. Why would she need a connection forged with the mist? Chiron had said that all demigods could manipulate it to some degree if they learned-

She wasn't allowed to question Circe. But why shouldn't she? The woman had aided in her kidnapping and was keeping her hostage.

"Hm, that should be enough for now."

Circe lowered her hands and Mari collapsed, her upper body falling to the floor. She curled into a ball. The cold stone was actually a relief to her. She looked at her arm and noticed that it was red, like she'd been given a huge rash.

Please, Dad. If you're listening, even if you don't want to do it yourself, can you please just send a message to camp, telling them to come get me? Please, I'm on Circe's weird messed up island. Please.

Mari heard light footsteps as Circe started walking around her, muttering to herself in a language couldn't hear as she did so. Something told Mari it was Minoan.

"What... did you do to me?" Mari choked out after a few minutes.

Circe glanced down, as if just remembering Mari was there. "I've started to develop your physical connection to the mist. I think that's enough for today, though. I can't have you dying before the deal is fulfilled." Circe waved her hand and Mari was back in the bed she'd been sleeping in the last few days.

Circe didn't bother to check on her, and Mari didn't bother to get up and check the door. Circe would find her anyway, and she didn't have the energy to get up. Or move. Or do anything. She hoped she wouldn't need to pee soon.

She coughed, and whispered every name she could think of.

"Chiron... Apollo... Dionysus... Athena... please.. Help me."

Mari fell asleep.

THREE MONTHS LATER

"Again."

Mari was kneeling on the floor, her teeth gritted. She still hadn't gotten used to the pain, but it was more bearable when she was only practicing.

Circe hadn't yet taken her back to the circular room for regular training. So far, this now took place in Circe's sorcery room next to where Mari slept. Circe would push her for hours, from morning until night. Mari still wasn't sure show long exactly had passed since she got there. A few weeks? A month?

Regular practice wasn't as bad as when Circe formed more of a connection with the mist. She still got migraines and her nose was constantly bleeding. She even threw up on Circe once, which was a memory she would cherish forever.

Circe taught Mari how to push objects away with the mist, kind of like a gust of wind that only effected what she was focusing it on. As time progressed, she started to get fewer headaches and the nausea went away. But she still got occasional nosebleeds.

Circe was right about one thing. She could almost feel the mist. Not all the time. But when she focused beyond the headache, it was there. The air felt damp, like when she was on the way to train with Circe in the circular room.

She'd eventually managed to push Circe away by a few metres, which was when Circe told her to move on to cooling and boiling the mist.

"Marion. Do I need to tell you again?!" Circe demanded.

A spike of pain shot through Mari's synapses. "Ah! No, Lady Circe. I'm just distracted."

Circe pursed her lips. "I see that. Continue."

Mari closed her eyes and tried to pinpoint the moistness in the air she'd come to associate with the mist. She tried to imagine ice covering every separate part of what she could find, drawing on her memories of bitterly cold winters in Trowbridge.

"Hmm. Adequate. For now," Circe hummed, shaking Mari from her effort. There were snowflakes in Circe's dark hair and the tips of her hands were red form cold. Mari herself was starting to shiver. Children of Apollo were naturally susceptible to the cold, after all. Apollo was the god of the sun. Which was warm.

Something trickled down her chin. She wiped her hand across her face to see what it was and it came away red. "Can I go, please?" Mari asked timidly. She could really use a tissue.

Circe nodded and waved her hand, and Mari was thrown through the air and out of the door like she was a basketball.

Mari gasped as she collided with someone, sending both of them toppling to the floor.

"Gah! What the Pluto are you doing?!" the girl asked.

Mari stumbled up and stuck out a hand to help the girl up. Or, she hoped so. Her head was already spinning from the falls and the blood loss from the nosebleed wasn't helping. It did kind of look like there were two girls. Or maybe she'd barreled into twins.

"Sorry," Mari mumbled.

The girl huffed and ran a hand through her hair. "Well, watch where you're going next time."

"I didn't fall on purpose!" Mari protested, the blood rushing to her face.

The girl glanced towards the door and her eyes widened, as she seemed to understand something. "Oh... you must be Marion."

Mari crosses her arms defensively. "How do you know that?"

"Lady Circe told us all she was teaching one of her newest attendants a special kind of magic. She said not to bother her, or face punishment. You must feel so lucky!" the girl enthused.

Mari nodded glumly. "Yeah. So lucky."

The girl frowned and crossed her arms. "You know, with an attitude like that I'd think you don't want to be here."

Mari said nothing.

Apparently the girl was very smart, since it didn't take long for her to interpret her silence and connect the dots.

"You... you really don't want to be here?" she asked.

Mari shook her head.

"Why not? This place is a paradise with everything we could ever want!" The girl flapped her arms like a bird as she spoke to emphasise her point.

"I miss my sibl... I just have people I miss." Mari kicked at an imaginary stone on the ground.

"Why don't you just leave then?" the girl asked.

Mari's head snapped up. "You think I haven't tried?!" she hissed.

The girl flinched and Mari felt bad for a second. She had the same expression as Drew when someone called her a airhead because she was the daughter of the love goddess. Hurt. Mari hadn't meant to be that harsh.

"She... she keeps you here?" the girl asked, her hands rising to her mouth.

Mari nodded again.

"That's... there must be some kind of mistake..." The girl nodded to herself, as if trying to convince herself of her own story. It made her look kind of like one of those bobble-head thingies that were for sale in corner shops around Christmas time.

"She removed the windows of my room because I tried to climb out," Mari deadpanned.

The girl's skin developed a slightly green tint. "I- this isn't- this cant be right." The girl glanced around the room like she thought Circe was going to jump out from under the potted plant with a water gun.

Mari grabbed the girl's arm. "If you actually think this isn't right, then help me escape. Please."

The girl shook her head. "I can't. There must be some kind of misunderstanding. Something else. Lady Circe wouldn't keep anyone here against their will."

Mari raised her eyebrow, wondering if she had ever seen what happened to the boys who washed up on Aeaea. Circe made Mari watch on the weekends.

"I don't want to be here. Please," Mari whispered, glancing back at the door to Circe's rooms behind her.

The girl shook her head. "I can't, I-"

"Reyna! You're needed in the salon!" A taller girl approached them. She had similar features to the girl- Reyna - and Mari thought they might be sisters.

Reyna gave Mari an apologetic glance, before skipping off to wherever the salon was, the older girl in tow. Mari slumped. Circe sent some of her attendants to follow her round whenever she was 'alone' in the resort, probably to report back any escape attempts. The older girl was one of them. She balled the bottom of her Chiton in her hands and trudged back to the room she slept in, alone.

SIX MONTHS LATER

Mari didn't know how long it had been anymore. Had she been on Aeaea for three months? Six months? A year? She wished she'd done that thing in movies, where people scratched days into the walls with their nails or something. She'd assumed she wouldn't be on Aeaea long enough to have to do that.

She slid out of bed and onto the floor, not bothering to change out of the soft pajamas Circe provided for her. Circe would just wave her hand to change the outfit if she didn't like Mari's clothes anyway. This was just skipping a step. She wished she had the shirt Drew had made for her with her, but then again Circe would probably just destroy it.

She raised her hand to knock on the door and was entirely unsurprised when it slid open before her hand even touched it.

"My dear, you know this will not do."

Mari's pajamas changed into a dark grey Chiton, with a bronze-coloured rope around her waist to keep it together. Mari's heart sped up in panic.

She'd figured out right before Circe taught her how to cool and heat things with the mist that Circe used the colour of her clothes to signify the pain of the lesson. Usually, it was a light blue, which meant she was probably going to get several nosebleeds and have a splitting headache by the end of the session. Red meant she was probably going to have her connection to the mist strengthened again. She'd never gotten dark grey before. This... was not good.

"Actually, Circ- Lady Circe, I just came to tell you that I'm feeling very sick today. I don't think I can practice, it might just be, you know, too taxing on my very sick body." Mari pretended to cough.

Circe narrowed her eyes. "My dear, you should know by now that it's impossible to lie to me. Not to mention that children of Apollo are all notoriously horrible liars. Sit on the floor and focus on the Guinea pig."

Mari wanted to kick herself. Of course she knew it wouldn't work! Circe was a goddess, and had divine control over her island. Nothing could get past her here. She wanted to throw her mouth out of the window for not consulting with her brain first. Actually, Circe could probably teach her how to do that. Mari tried not to think about it. She didn't know if Circe could read minds, but she didn't want to give the woman any ideas.

"Marion! Focus on the rodent!"

Mari's eyes zeroed in on the animal in the cage. "Who... who is that?" she asked.

Circe smiled. "A son of Athena who washed up here yesterday. He was rambling about some kind of 'mark'."

Mari nodded. It probably wasn't a coincidence that Circe had chosen a son of Athena. Mari didn't know how far back Athena was in her family tree, but this had to be a distant relative of some kind.

"Focus!" Circe hissed.

Mari cringed. When Circe got angry at her lack of concentration, it reminded her of a lot of her social workers and teachers.

She concentrated on the rodent, who was staring at her with pleading eyes. She wanted nothing more than to open the little cage in the middle of the room, but that wouldn't do anything other than make Circe madder than she already was.

"Gather the mist around the cage."

Mari got a bad feeling in her chest when Circe said those words. Her precognitive instincts didn't usually effect her on Aeaea, mainly because she was pretty sure if they did she would have a permanent bad feeling. Or maybe Circe found a way to block most of them.

Mari pulled the mist around the cage, trying to ignore the headache already forming. It was always worse when Circe taught her how to do something new. The mist formed around the cage, like a translucent grey blanket. She hoped it was just going to keep the son of Athena warm.

"Now wrap the rodent fully in the mist."

Mari followed Circe's instructions, trying to ignore her head starting to pound. It was especially painful when the new mist manipulation involved something detailed.

"Solidify the mist."

"I... what?"

Mari nearly lost what little control she did have. Circe had always taught her how to manipulate a mist which was more like a gas. Solidifying it... she didn't even know if she could.

"Did you mishear me? You're not doing anything. Solidify the mist." Circe demanded, and a spike of pain overlapped with Mari's already growing headache.

She cringed. What did she know about solid things? She racked her brain for something useful her primary school taught her. Solid things... had more particles in them, right? Only they weren't particles, they were something else, beginning with A... that bit didn't really matter.

Mari closed her eyes, lifted one of her hands, and tensed it. She didn't know why, but she felt like it would help. Then, she imagined the mist condensing, the little A thingies getting more... stuff-like. She couldn't explain it. Liquid trickled down her philtrum, and she didn't bother to wipe the blood away. Circe would accuse her of losing focus again.

"Hm. Adequate."

Mari opened her eyes and looked at the mist. It was still transparent, but looked kind of... shiny. Like an oddly shaped marble which was rippling in the air.

"Compress it around the rodent."

Mari dropped her hand and the mist went back to an airy consistency.

"But that would kill him!" she protested.

Circe got up from the chair she'd been sitting it and walked behind Mari. A sharper pain than usual rang through her head, but Mari managed to keep control of the physical mist. If she lost it, then she knew from experience that Circe would just make the pain even worse.

"Do you think I care?" Circe whispered.

Mari shook her head. "No, but I do."

Circe laughed. "Let me repeat myself. Do you think I care?!" she hissed, kneeling down and digging her long nails into Mari's shoulder. Mari whimpered at the pain and shook her head. Circe let go of her shoulder, walking back to her chair and sitting down as if she'd never gotten up.

"Good," she said brightly. "Now, solidify the mist again and compress it around the rodent."

The son of Athena began to squeak in panic, scratching and biting at the bars of the cage.

Mari looked away and tried to ignore the sounds of the terrified rodent, before solidifying the mist again.

She opened her eyes and then glanced back down at the rodent. It had stopped struggling and was looking up at Mari with pleading eyes, shining in the light of the green fire glowing from the braziers around the room.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, before closing her eyes again.

The rodent let out a low squeak of sorrow.

She curled her tensed hand in on itself, imagining the mist becoming tighter around the rodent as she did. What followed was a string of pained reet noises and the sound of scrabbling feet. The blood running form her nose was more of a cascade now, and when she opened her mouth to breathe she got a mouthful of blood mixed in with the air. Choking, she opened her eyes again to look at the scene around her.

Circe was grinning from ear to ear as if she was watching a close relative get married, and the son of Athena was collapsed on the floor, unmoving. Mari nearly threw up at the sight, cradling the mist around him when she felt a slight movement.

A heartbeat. He was still alive.

"Hm. You were acceptable today. Take him back to the cage in my weaving room," Circe said, waving her hand. Mari let the mist drop instantly, her head spinning. Circe gave her a rag to hold under her nose as she walked, and Mari lifted the son of Athena out of the little cage.

He had apparently figured out that playing dead was useless, and finally took gasping breaths, shivering away from Mari in fear.

Mari all but sprinted out of Circe's rooms, despite the fact that she could see four walls in the hallway instead of two and she was stumbling over her own feet. She was running (literally) on pure adrenaline now. Her adrenal gland was probably insanely overworked anyway, this wasn't anything new.

"I'm sorry." She panted as she ran, saltwater from her eyes mixing with the blood. She wondered if she'd look out of place at a Halloween party, even if people didn't really have Halloween parties in England. Probably not.

The son of Athena squeaked in fear as a response, and Mari wished she could understand rodent. "I'm sorry, I had no choice." She needed him to forgive her. She was forced to do it, she wasn't a monster, she wasn't...

She arrived at Circe's room and opened the door timidly.

The cage contained the usual inhabitants. Apparently Blackbeard was a son of Ares, and his crew were mostly legacies of other war gods. They made an enemy of Circe and Circe did what she did best. She'd overheard Calista, a daughter of Hebe and one of the oldest girls working for Circe, born sometime around the Trojan war, saying that for about fifty years Circe kept them as actual pigs before switching to Guinea pigs.

"Hi..." Mari sniffled as she approached the cage. "I'm sorry... can you please look after him?" she asked the guinea pigs, before opening the hatch and gently setting down the son of Athena.

Maybe it was because the pirates, despite being pirates, had a little compassion towards the traumatised boy, or maybe it was because Mari was one of the only people who snuck them extra food and they didn't want her to stop, but immediately a few of them nudged him towards a particularly soft-looking pile of pulp, and another offered him an extra green piece of celery, which he nibbled at whilst not taking his eyes of Mari. She didn't realise guinea pig eyes could look so hollow.

Mari choked down a sob and ran out of the room.

She got about halfway back to the room she slept in before her adrenal gland apparently went on strike, and the effects of the hormone wore off.

Her headache felt even more pronounced, and she couldn't take a step on her own. She sagged against the wall and tried to stand, failing miserably.

She didn't know how long she was there for before she felt hands pulling her up.

"It's okay. You're okay..." said a familiar voice. In her hazy state, she didn't register the features of the person helping her to the room she slept in. But she knew them from somewhere...

The person slung one of Mari's arms around her shoulder and used her free hand to help her hold the rag to her face. The blood was slowing now, at least.

"Hurts... it hurts..." Mari mumbled. The girl stilled for a second, before clearing her throat. "I'm sorry." she whispered.

She stumbled alongside the girl, and vaguely registered the sound of a door opening. A few seconds later, she was helped into a soft bed, and a cool towel was placed on her forehead. She guessed she probably had a temperature. It would make sense. She felt nauseous.

There were a few minutes of silence on the part of the other girl, before the door shut gently behind her.

Mari stared up at the ceiling of the room. The entire thing was a frieze, of the gods on Mount Olympus. The original Mount Olympus.

Zeus and Hera were sitting on twin thrones, with the rest of the Olympians gathered around them. The one with the scary shield was probably Athena, and she recognised the winged sandals of Hermes. Her eyes wondered over to the god playing the Lyre, and she looked away.

"Apollo. Athena, Chiron, somebody. Please rescue me," she whispered.

ONE YEAR LATER

Nobody was coming to rescue her.