It's cold outside, the snow crunching under my feet, leaving behind boot-shaped prints that prove I was here. 

Which, only now am I realizing could be a bad thing, could very well be something close to incriminating. 

I have to tell Aeolus. 

Both Altalune and the Mayor want me to keep it secret, I'm sure, but he just has to know. When his father is involved, when his sister is sneaking off everyday and he has no idea where she is? He deserves to know, he really does.

The walk back to the Theodoros' house is long and cold, and by the time I make it, I am shivering beyond belief, but thankfully, Aeolus is home. I ring the doorbell, a sense of deja-vu washing over me and when he opens it, I half-expect Angler to be standing before me, yet again. 

"Hey," I say.

"Hey." He looks confused, rightfully so.

"Can I come in? There's something I should tell you."

He still looks confused, and so I do my best to keep my expression completely neutral. Nothing guilty or despairing, and yet no hint of a smile, either. I don't particularly like giving people the wrong idea.

He takes my hand, leading me upstairs, glancing back for just a moment, smiling. "My dad's not home."

I say nothing, just nod. His room is cozy, yet cold, so I grab a blanket from behind the chair and pull it around myself, curling up in a chair. 

"So? What is it I should know?" He sits, too.

For a long moment, I consider just plain lying, saying something else entirely and expecting him to believe me, to never find out the truth. 

But those are just delusions, nothing more. The truth is real and the truth is now, and he deserves to know, so I will tell him. 

"You're not going to like it," I say, delaying, doing my best not to meet his inquisitive gaze.

"What? Is Altalune okay?"

"Yes, of course." A deep breath. "Mayor Gallopetal met with me a little bit ago."

"Why?" He's on the edge of his seat, in the truest form of the expression. 

I don't jokingly criticize him that I'll get to the point soon enough, as I usually would. Instead, I muscle on. 

"She told me that your father was falsely accused."

He inhales sharply, eyes widening. "Of..."

"Of helping the supposed rebellion, yeah."

Aeolus leans all the way back in his seat, processing. "What does this mean for us, then? That was the reason we moved, you know. Would we... move back?"

I try not to think about it, staying professional, merely the messenger, much less the girlfriend. "I don't know. I really don't. I wasn't even supposed to tell you, but... I thought you should know."

Another moment of consideration. "That's where Altalune's been, too. She's meeting with Mayor Gallopetal. That's why we saw them together, that one time. I'm assuming it was for the same reason she met with me, or maybe something similar."

Aeolus stands suddenly, taking a lap around the coffee table. "Where'd you learn all this, Daphne?"

"Well, Mayor Gallopetal told me the stuff about your father, and then I confronted Altalune and she brought me to the place they'd been meeting, introduced me to this man..."

God, what was his name? It started with a K, didn't it? Really, it's just on the tip of my tongue...

"Take me there, then."

"What? No, I can't. Altalune's still there, talking to the man about Mayor Gallopetal. He's close with her, I think. She'd be furious."

He pauses. "How furious? She knows I'd want to know this. She'd tell me, unless there was something dangerous barring her..."

Aeolus walks over to my chair, expression suddenly serious. "Maybe I shouldn't know this."

I try to ignore that he might be right. "I'm sure it'll be fine. Just don't tell anyone, and when Altalune finally does admit it to you, you can act surprised and then it'll all be fine, right?"

He shook his head. "Altalune knows I can keep a secret. But this... maybe it's too big of a secret? There has to be a reason she didn't tell me."

I hesitate. "Are you going to tell her that you know?"

He meets my gaze. "She'll find out in time. Plus, I'd never do that to you."

A ray of light in the darkness this conversation has become. I smile. 

"Do you know anything else, beyond just that?" 

Now it's my turn to shake my head. "No, I really don't. And I don't think Altalune would tell me, either, she seemed hesitant to bring me to their meeting-place, even."

"Then we'll find it out."

"And how will we do that, exactly? This is... even Altalune didn't know the stuff about your dad. What he was accused of was treason, but the accusations Mayor Gallopetal's making, suggesting the Capitol's justice system is failing or even corrupt, are just as bad."

He nods, thinking. 

I consider. "And, she doesn't have the same protections. Mayor Gallopetal said, what was it, that your dad was President Snow's personal advisor, before the trials? He must've gotten at least a little bit of leniency, because of that."

"She's the mayor, though," Aeolus counters. "She'd get leniency, too, wouldn't she?"

I give him a long look, a small truth finally coming to the surface, one more smudge on the glass of our relationship. "She's District, Aeolus."

He doesn't get it, how could he ever? He is Capitol, through-and-through, no matter where he's lived most of his life. He's named after the Greek god of wind, he lives in a mansion without having to do anything to win it. Really, he's lived the life everyone dreams for.

Although that could be hypocritical for me to say that, as I also grew up in a mansion, yet with a very different setting. Once, when I was very little, my family was happy, but money can't solve all problems, and certainly not death. 

Mom is still gone, and Salacia with her. Dad might as well be, too, with the state he's in. 

Suddenly, I'm hit with a wave of dread for returning home, to that empty house occupied only by the ghost in the attic that is biologically my father, and his kind caretaker who, try with all her might, could never fill up all the empty space. 

"I have an idea," I say out of nowhere, standing. Aeolus backs up a few steps, respectfully. 

It's crazy, and I do have serious doubts about how well it'll work, but really I do have to try. 

"What is it?"

I take a deep breath. "I'll go talk to Mayor Gallopetal."

A perfect solution: not only can I delay my going home, but I can also advance our plan. 

"You're sure?" he says, looking worried for my overall safety.

"Yes, I am. It'll be fine. She's not dangerous."

It's true. Treasonous or not, the Mayor is still simply a middle-aged woman, not really anything to be afraid of. 

I rise onto my toes, giving him a light kiss on the cheek and a smile that says, 'trust me, it will be okay.'  He doesn't seem to completely believe my unsaid words, but smiles back anyway. 

"See you later?"

"See you later," I agree. 

He leads me downstairs, past the couch, their large window looking out into a snowy wonderland. 

I imagine it's my home. I'd wake up early in the morning just to watch the sun rise from the East-facing window on the other side of the house, sipping hot cocoa made with a 80/20 ratio of cocoa to milk so it's just chocolatey enough. Everyone would get together for breakfast, something delicious and hot, and we'd laugh and tell each other about the days we were going to have. 

I imagine I have a family. 

Another hug, his sweater scratchy against my neck, and the door closes with a soft thud. 

My surname is Amphitrite, and so it will stay. I am not a Theodoros, although someday very far in the future, there's a chance I may be. 

I wonder how Altalune feels, knowing she is everything I have ever wanted to be. She's got a real family, a happy one, with no one dead or submerged in hermitage. She's let in on all of the mayor's secrets, confident enough to speak up about her inconveniences, influential enough to get them fixed. 

She has a brother she loves, who will always be there for her, a permanent friend. Not that I'd want Aeolus as my brother, obviously, but I would like someone. 

Salacia, really. I'd like Salacia. 

It's no use to muse over the millions of things I wish for, though, because they'll never come true, will they? I know who I am, and I know that will never be Altalune.