Breakfast consisted mostly of fish. It's not the first time I've had fish this early in the morning. It definitely won't be the last.

"Is there anyway we can contact the mainland?" I asked. "Our friends are going to be worried."

"I can send Lafayette out." Jason suggested. "My guess is we'll probably need permission."

Lafayette chittered quietly.

"He says he would appreciate not being shot down today." Jason translated with a smirk.

I was happy to see him smile.

"Then we'll ask permission." I decided.

"Good luck," Percy sighed. "I don't know if their leader is the most pliable."

"I don't know if our leader is either." Jason grunted.

Percy glanced over at him. "I would like to apologize for my actions, it's been a stressful few days. I'll be working on it moving forward."

Jason just shrugged. A very Jason thing to do. Peri was scratching in the dirt at my feet, looking for seeds. I wish I could find him some fruit. I reached down a scratched his chin gently, and he let out the bird equivalent to a purr. Lafayette was absentmindedly preening. Blink, Percy's butterfly, remained vigilant, holding onto Percy's ear like an intricate earring.

"Craig Ainwir of the Northwest!" It was Bundi's voice, calling me from the outside of the tent.

I met my companions surprised glances. Then I slowly stood up, Peri climbed up my arm and rested on my shoulder. I pulled aside the rough flap of the tent. The morning sun bit into my pupils like a predator into prey. Bundi was waiting for me, hands folded, decked in another robe-gown.

"You go by sir I assume?" Bundi asked.

  "Uh, yes." I replied, nervously.

"Then good morning sir. I hope you enjoyed the complimentary breakfast. Seafood is one of most plentiful resources here on the island of Thanatos."

"I did, thank you." I replied, hey, it wasn't half that bad.

Bundi gestured to the tall orange-haired man standing adjacent to them. The same one who always seemed to be where ever Bundi was. I'm guessing he was their right-hand man or something along the like.

  "I don't believe I've introduced you. This is Nole. My second, most trustworthy man on this island, and also my boyfriend."

Nole bowed slightly. "It's an honor, sir."

  "If anything, the honor's mine." I laughed, in my awkward way. "I'm just happy to be alive."

"Yes, I would like to apologize most sincerely for that." Bundi assured. "It's the first time I've seen the Queen's face in a long time, I got a little carried away."

I shifted my weight from one foot to the other. "Um, Your Majesty- "

  "That was mostly a gag before, feel free to call me Bundi." They insisted.

"Ah, Bundi then... why does everyone here hate Perc—Queen Persephone?"

Bundi and Nole shared a glance. It wasn't a nice one either, it felt more like storm clouds gathering on the horizon.

  "All in good time." Bundi assured. "Let's start the grand tour first."

  "For our special patrons." Nole added.

"Special patrons!" Peri repeated excitedly in my ear. "Looks like you're in, kid."

I smiled, this was good...I think? I followed Bundi and Nole in an obedient manner through the camp and couldn't help but notice the dark glares I received from the other kids as I trailed behind the two leaders. It made my skin crawl uncomfortably but I was pretty sure none of them would attack me with Bundi nearby.

"If you don't me asking... why am I a special patron?"

Bundi slowed to walk next to and held out one of my palms. "Because of this, kiddo."

I glanced up at them in understanding. "Oh, my powers?"

"Your powers. My powers." They snapped their fingers and let a few sparks fly. "You're one of them, kid. One of us."

My eyes widened. "You can... you can tell me about them?"

Bundi nodded reassuringly. "You bet I can."

"Is there no one in your pack who knows of the old tales?" Nole asked, a look of concern growing on his face.

I shook my head. "No one in my pack knows... I haven't been back home in... months."

The realization made me feel really cold inside. I was suddenly overwhelmed with homesickness again. I missed my mom and the cold nights spent sipping tea by the fire with Maude stretched out on front of me. I missed Ryan, it was scary here without her. Bundi glanced up at Nole whose face hardened with a certain resoluteness.

  "Craig?" Nole started. "The motto of Thanatos is no matter who you are, or where you come from, you can find a home here. We take that very seriously."

Bundi nodded in agreement and patted me on the back. "It's going to be a-okay kiddo."

  "Thank you." I said politely even though I was blushing from embarrassment."

"I don't think we can stress this enough, actually." Nole continued.

"Honey." Bundi rolled their eyes.

"Honestly anything you need? We'll do our best. The moment you step foot on this soil I'm your new dad and Bundi is your new ren. It's part of the island's laws." Nole continued.

"That part is true." Bundi mused. "Come on Nole, you're overwhelming him."

"I will literally put my life on the line for you." Nole insisted, staring me dead in the eye, then Bundi elbowed him. "Okay, stopping."

I laughed awkwardly. "Thank you so much? I don't know what to say."

"You don't need to say anything." Nole patted my parrot-free shoulder.

The rest of the tour was conducted. I got to see the bay where they kept their ships and a few of the hunting grounds. I was chaperoned around cliffs and coves and waltzed through waters. Bundi was working on a map of the whole island but they had yet to even explore the whole thing. The two of them had come off as incredibly intimidating at first, but the more time I spent with Bundi and Nole the more I realized they were just a pair of fun-loving, dorky, fire-starting... parents. Yeah, I'm confident enough to say that. The pair didn't just rule over this mysterious island, they raised it.

  "Okay, I've had a small meal prepared." Bundi announced, leading me towards their tent. "If you would join me for lunch, Craig Ainwir, I would love to discuss magical powers with you."

  I perked up, I had been waiting to have this conversation for a long time. "Please."

Bundi and Nole's tent was considerably nicer than ours. It reminded me of my home back with the pack. Pelt lined the edges. A single chair sat in the middle, intricate and made out of wood. The back was sectioned off but my guess was bedroom. On a desk I spotted the large map Bundi was working on, large spaces of it were still incomplete. Bundi pushed the thrown out of the way to reveal a table laden with dried meat, fruits, and vegetables. They took a seat and then patted the ground next to them, beckoning me over.

"Help yourself, kid." They flashed me a supportive smile. "Let me tell you about Persephone's long history with us Daímonas, why we're here now, and what your powers mean, and do."

I picked up a mango and slid it to Peri who chittered happily and crunched down on one myself as Bundi started their story.

  "Daímonas have always existed. They pop up every few years. It's due to excess magic building up in the ecosystem that escapes in weird ways. Mutations in plants in animals, and sometimes humans that can tap into the two most powerful forces that run our world, Zoi and Than."

I felt a shiver run down my spine. You don't speak those two names often, especially not in the same sentence. Those two... they were like gods. Everybody had a different physical manifestation of life and death. Zoi was mostly commonly depicted as a tree, and Than as a deer's skull. Kind of like the designs on the residents of Thanatos' masks, actually.

"Now the symptoms always appear during the familiar ceremony, because your connection with your familiar gives you a direct link to Kosmos. Unfortunately, this almost always ends in huge disaster for us, the fire holders. It tends to get uh..." Bundi trailed off.

"Explosive." Nole offered.

  "Yes." They nodded. "My familiar ceremony was held in the grasslands, and after about an hour I had burned the whole field to the ground. It was extremely dangerous to the local wildlife and I was banded from my tribe and forbidden from ever coming back. It's part of Zoo's laws to immediately exile anything that poses as a major threat to wildlife, which I agree with to some extent."

  "I'm from the rain forest." Nole admitted. "While I set a good deal of plant life on fire, it was out before lunch. I was still banned though."

"So, this whole time Daímonas have been exiled to this island? How long has this been going on?" I asked.

"Centuries. Though it wasn't enforced and covered up by the government until about fifteen years ago." Bundi explained.

  "Can I ask why?"

Bundi nodded. "The former chief of Thanatos attacked the Capitol and murdered the king in cold blood. The whole thing is top secret, only residents of Thanatos and the royal family know what happened to this day. I have to ask you to keep quiet about this Craig. Thanatos didn't use to be a nice place. It used to be a chaotic island run by drunkards who would torture the new kids and keep all the power and resources for themselves. It was very much a death sentence."

They bit their lip and their fist closed ever so slightly. "Persephone doesn't know we've changed, and she still insists on sending children here. That's why we resent her so much."

I placed my half-eaten fruit on the table next to Peri. I lost my appetite. Sure, Percy was a little abrasive sometimes, but I had seen the warm-almost motherly look in her eyes when she talked to us. This didn't feel like something she would do. It occurred to me that Eddie had probably lived here for a period of time. I know the kid hated my guts but the thought of him suffering in a place like this because his own queen turned her back him... it was enough to cast a shade on Percy's reputation.

"I don't know what to think about this." I admitted, feeling shaky and... a little green.

"That's okay." Nole jumped in. "It's how all the kids usually feel when they first arrive. You can have all the time you need to process it."

"You... have to understand..." Bundi stated, drawing out their syllables, "we can't let Persephone's behavior go unchecked."

"Well... you have to let her go... she's got a kingdom to run-"

"We will." They assured. "If she agrees to our terms. No more banishments, and these kids are taken back to their families, we're all going back."

Nole frowned ever so slightly from Bundi's left but didn't open his mouth to say anything. I bit my lip and nodded in agreement. I found myself at a crossroads here, because I agreed and looked up to both these people. I had only known Bundi for a few hours but they had been very welcoming, and on the other hand... Percy ran my country.

  "You're not obligated to reply to any of this." Nole clarified, as he offered me a cup of water. "You just have the right to know."

  "Why...me though?"

Bundi smiled, which was a cheeky look. "I'm glad you asked! Persephone doesn't banish those with the healing hand. If they're found out, they're scooped up and given special jobs in the government. Usually to clean up after fire-wielding Daímonas. I haven't had the luck to meet one she hasn't gotten to yet. Hence why I'm glad to be your acquaintance."

"She told me she's never seen anything like my powers before..." I reeled.

Bundi scoffed. "That's a blatant lie!"

They must have seen the ashy color my face took on as the blood rushed away from it. Bundi coughed and appropriately took it down a few notches. Okay... so Percy has lied to me. This was a scenario that I had honest-to-Kosmos never planned for. It was definitely a cause for panic.

"Let's talk about something else besides Persephone for a bit." Nole suggested, glancing at his partner.

"Good idea." Bundi agreed. "You said you're from the North West? What's your family life like?"

"It's okay. I just live with my mom, who turned to actually not be my mom but that's... that's whatever. My sister is from the South, which is probably where I'm from but I don't know... I feel kind of in-between if I'm being honest, I think I'm rambling now sorry."

"No!" Bundi stared at me curiously. "No, I completely understand the feeling of being in between two large groups and belonging to neither of them. You've probably picked up on this but I'm not exactly a man... or a woman... which is what got me kicked out of my first home. I'm doing alright now, though."

"I figured." I admitted. "The North West can be like that."

"Yeah." Bundi nodded. "I know we've said it a lot kid, but if you ever need a home, you've got one here."

"Oh yeah I understand, thank you." I said graciously. "Actually, if you don't mind I think I might turn in now... I appreciate everything you've done for me really. Also, is it okay if we send a message back home? Just to let our friends know we're alive and okay."

"Feel free." Bundi nodded.

"Of course." Nole seconded.

I stood up and bowed respectively before backing out of the tent. I caught the eyes of more fire wielding Daímonas sending me fierce glares out of the corners of their eyes. It wasn't a nice feeling. Jason was sitting outside the tent with a hat over his eyes to shade himself from the sun. He looked up at me as I approached.

"You've been gone a while." He remarked.

"Bundi invited me to lunch." I said quietly.

Jason took off his hat. "You okay?"

I shrugged. "Learned a lot of weird stuff."

The auburn-haired boy patted the seat next to him. "You can tell me if you want."

I smiled and gave in, taking a seat next to him. Peri asked politely if he could go off and meet some of the familiars around town and I said yet, he flew off. I started my story and Jason listened, his was good at that. He was always good at being here when I needed him. I still had a lot to think about regarding my friendship with Percy but... I was glad Jason was here.

He seemed glad I was here too.