[Third Person Pov]

Lucian was hugging Hecate tightly with fake tears pooling in his eyes, clinging to her with exaggerated sentiment as he sniffled loudly. “I’m going to miss you, master. Thank you for everything you’ve taught me. I wouldn’t have made it this far without you.”

“Lucian, I’m not kidding. You have five seconds to stop touching me before I drop you off into another dimension,” Hecate retorted flatly, her expression completely straight and unamused despite the boy hanging off her like a desperate child.

Lucian looked up at her with wide puppy dog eyes, refusing to loosen his grip in the slightest. “Please don’t deny my affection,” he said with another dramatic sniffle, as if deeply wounded by the thought. “It’s the only way I know how to properly express my gratitude.”

“This was cute when you were a child. You’re now fourteen years old,” Hecate replied without even the smallest shift in her expression, staring down at him with mild irritation.

Lucian pursed his lips slightly, feigning offense at her comment. “Bringing my age into this? How unfair. Also, considering you’re like over a million years old, aren’t I still technically a cute kid to you—Ack!”

Lucian cried out in pain as Hecate promptly whacked him over the head. It had become something of a habit she developed whenever Lucian managed to annoy her enough, which unfortunately happened far more often than she would have liked. “You should know better than to mention a woman’s age, you brat.”

“So mean,” Lucian muttered with a pout, rubbing the top of his head. After a moment his lips curled back into his usual easygoing smile and he finally released her, deciding to stop fooling around.

“For real though, thank you. As always your lessons have been insightful,” Lucian said earnestly, the teasing tone leaving his voice for once.

Hecate’s expression softened slightly as she gave a faint smile and a small nod. “It certainly helps that you’re a good student. I’m anticipating what you’ll manage to surprise me with next.”

However, before leaving, Lucian couldn’t resist teasing her one last time as a farewell. “Am I going to see the crone the next time I visit? I’m quite curious about what you look like as a granny.”

Hecate scoffed and waved her hand. Her body was immediately surrounded by a veil of swirling purple mist that rolled around her like living smoke. When it dispersed, the tall, young, beautiful blonde woman was gone. In her place stood a hunched crone leaning heavily on a staff to support herself upright. “Does this satisfy your curiosity?”

Lucian blinked for a moment before slowly placing a hand over his chin, his face adopting a thoughtful and unusually serious demeanor as he examined her.

“Would”

“The heck does that mean?!”

“Nothing, I mean… Is it weird that I still find you really attractive?”

“Yes, you cheeky brat! What in Tartarus is the matter with you?” Hecate screeched shrilly, immediately swinging her staff at him in an attempt to smack him again.

“Woah!” Lucian exclaimed as he ducked under the swing, laughing. “Come on, I was being serious!”

“I know! Which is exactly why I’m trying to hit you in the head and fix whatever the heck is wrong with you! So stop dodging and get back here!” Hecate shouted as she chased after him, swinging her staff while Lucian ran out of the house laughing like a menace.

Sebastian appeared from beneath the ground in a burst of heat, leaving a trail of fire and glowing embers in his wake. Lucian leapt onto his stallion’s back in one smooth motion and turned to look back toward Hecate. With a playful grin he blew her a flirtatious kiss and gave a wink. “Don’t be a stranger~.”

Hecate stood at the entrance of her home, her brows twitching with visible indignation as she watched him ride away while cackling with laughter like a complete menace.

She clicked her tongue in annoyance before slamming the door shut with a loud bang. Purple mist swirled around her body again, shifting and reshaping until she now stood in the form of the Mother.

“Seriously, was he dropped on his head too many times? How can he possibly find the crone attractive?” she muttered to herself within the privacy of her own home.

Her face felt warm, though if anyone dared suggest she was blushing she would have denied it immediately and shut the accusation down without hesitation.

“I need a drink. Dealing with that brat always gives me a headache,” Hecate muttered while massaging her temple.

…

Lucian arrived back at camp a day before Annabeth’s birthday. Sébastien trotted through the entrance with calm confidence, the magical stallion’s hooves carrying them easily across the familiar grounds. Lucian nodded toward the other campers who greeted him as they noticed his return, offering casual waves and smiles in acknowledgment.

Before long, Lucian detected Annabeth approaching along with his siblings making their way toward him. He slid off Sébastien’s back and greeted them one by one as they welcomed him back to camp.

“You were gone for a pretty long while this time,” Annabeth said with a playful grin after he finished greeting everyone. “Did you manage to grow stronger?”

“Not necessarily,” Lucian replied with an easy smile, brushing a bit of dust from his clothes. “But I certainly became wiser. It was all worth it though in the end.”

Lucian glanced around the group and quickly noticed someone missing. Thalia hadn’t come out to greet him. His brow lifted slightly as he looked back toward Annabeth. “Where’s Thalia?”

“She’s mad at you and has decided to ignore you,” Annabeth answered casually while Bianca and Nico immediately climbed onto Sébastien’s back.

“Mind if we take him for a ride?” Nico asked excitedly. He had loved Sébastien ever since the first moment he laid eyes on the majestic magical stallion.

“Sure, just be gentle,” Lucian replied.

The stallion snorted softly before galloping away with the two siblings clinging happily to his back. Lucian turned back to Annabeth with a confused expression.

“Mad at me? What did I do? I just got here,” Lucian asked in surprise.

Annabeth simply shrugged as they began walking beside each other. “That’s not for me to figure out. Good luck though.” She patted his shoulder sympathetically. “She should be in the training hall.”

Annabeth leaned in and kissed his cheek before casually walking away, leaving Lucian standing there scratching the back of his head in confusion.

…

Lucian eventually arrived at Thalia’s personal gym.

Thalia was wearing her black training outfit, a sports bra and tight athletic shorts, as she focused on a heavy sandbag designed to absorb powerful blows.

She noticed him the moment he entered.

Thalia glanced over at Lucian and immediately huffed, an annoyed sound that Lucian personally found far too cute to take seriously. She turned her head away from him and continued punching the sandbag with renewed focus, refusing to acknowledge his presence any further.

Lucian grinned slightly as he casually walked up beside her. Without hesitation he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her gently into his embrace, resting his head over her shoulder.

“Now what’s this I hear about you being mad at me?” he asked lightly.

Thalia closed her eyes and deliberately looked in the opposite direction, refusing to make eye contact with him.

Lucian held her a little closer. “You know I won’t know what I did wrong and won’t know how to correct my mistake if you don’t tell me.”

Thalia remained quiet, stubbornly ignoring him.

“In a relationship communication is key,” Lucian continued patiently. “You giving me the silent treatment isn’t helping anyone. I need to know what I did wrong so I can own up to my mistake. Or maybe it was just a misunderstanding. Either way I won’t know until you say something.”

After a moment, Thalia’s stubborn silence finally broke. She looked down slightly as she leaned back against him.

“You didn’t come for the Fourth of July.”

Lucian blinked. “Seriously? That’s it?” he asked incredulously.

“Ugh, I knew it,” Thalia snapped as she pulled away from him. “You didn’t even bother caring enough to remember.”

“Ah, I see. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that,” Lucian replied immediately, realizing his mistake.

He reached out and gently grabbed her hand before spinning her back into his arms again.

“This day clearly means much more to you than I realized,” he continued softly. “I shouldn’t have dismissed it so casually. Can you please tell me why this day is important?”

Thalia sighed, some of the tension leaving her shoulders as she shook her head. “It’s stupid…”

“Try me.”

She hesitated before speaking again. “Last year we went on a date during the Fourth of July. I had a really great time, and I thought we were going to do it again this year. You know… kinda like a tradition. But when you didn’t show up, I couldn’t help but be disappointed.”

A look of realization slowly spread across Lucian’s face.

He grinned as he wrapped his arms around her midriff again and kissed her cheek.

“You are honestly so adorable,” he murmured. “Did you know that?”

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