I couldn't bear to leave you on a cliff hanger so here you go!

Chapter Quote:
"There are no secrets that time does not reveal."
~Jean Racine
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Chapter 9: What Did You Do

Isabelle

"Damianos. He must've gotten ahold of her and shadow-travelled to where he was keeping me underground," Brady said grimly. "And unfortunately, I have not one bloody clue as to where that is."

"How can you not know that? You were imprisoned for what... a week?" Alec demanded, glaring at the younger Winchester.

"It's kind of hard to know where you are when your captor shadow-travels with you everywhere he goes," he retorted.

"Boys," Isabelle intervened before they could get into a proper argument which her brother seemed good at starting, "We need to focus. Brady, we're not letting you out of our sight because I know Bryn would kill us if we let you get kidnapped again so Alec, you go see if you can find where she and Damianos went. I'll stay here with Brady and see what I can do about those cuffs he has on."

Her brother decided not to argue, but Isabelle was pretty sure that was because he wanted to find Bryn more than anything else. He would never say so, but she was pretty sure that her brother was starting to fall for the daughter of Zeus. She couldn't blame him. Bryn was the only person besides Isabelle that wouldn't put up with his crap, was confident and sure of herself, and underneath that hardened, battle-worm exterior, a genuinely kind-hearted person. Despite the disagreements and arguments the two of them had gotten into, Bryn and Alec seemed to be on the same page now. It seemed to have changed after the brush with madness. Isabelle hadn't let her brother know because he had enough in his plate, but that vision had messed her up, especially seeing her younger brother again; she and Alec had practically raised Simon, making sure he always had food in his stomach before they did, always making sure he had shoes on his feet and clothes on his back. Some of the responsibility had been lifted off of them when they got to camp, but they still took full responsibility over him.

Losing Simon in the war had been devastating and the memory of it was still all too fresh in Isabelle's mind...

"Long time no see," Brady said quietly, his green eyes meeting her dark brown ones. Despite his malnourished, haggard appearance, the spark of mischief was still very much in his eyes, reminding Isabelle of why she had liked the guy in the first place. He was a couple years younger than her but life had made him age and mature faster than most. In fact, that seemed to be the norm for demigods.

"I'd ask how you've been, but I can see from your appearance that you haven't been doing well."

"I was doing fine until some monsters decided to possess my friends. Now they're scattered all over the world, my sister has done god knows what to find out information about them."

"It sounds like this isn't the first time she's done something like that."

"She's the queen of getting herself into things she doesn't mean to, especially with the enemy even though it's always to protect us," he said. "I'm just wondering what deal with the devil she made this time."

"Does the name Amara mean anything to you?" Isabelle queried.

"Yes. Yes it does. Why do you ask?"

"Because we went to talk to her. I know I haven't known Bryn long, but... but she seemed different after we went and saw her. I mean Alec and I didn't see anything. We just found her passed out at the altar-"

"You what?!"

"She said she had to make a blood sacrifice to get Amara's attention. The amount needed made her pass out after she talked with her. She said Amara told her what to do but there's some things that she knows... I don't know how to explain it, I just don't have a good feeling," Isabelle admitted, feeling slightly foolish for suspecting Bryn was hiding something from them. But she didn't know the demigod that well and by the way Brady was acting, she apparently had reason to worry about Bryn.

"She better not have bloody well done what I think she has," Brady growled, standing up and making his way down the hill with Isabelle scurrying after him in protest.

"You need to rest!" She exclaimed.

"No, I need to find my sister and find out what the hell she's done," he retorted, then proceeded to shout at the top of his lungs, "Bryn! Where are you? You better not have done anything stupid!"

"What makes you think I did something stupid?" An exhausted voice remarked from behind them, making the two demigods jump. They whirled around to find Bryn giving them a smirk, but it was evident she was tired. Probably from supporting the deadweight, black haired boy who was barely conscious. He had his arm wrapped around her shoulder, and she had one hand holding onto his and her other wrapped around his waist.

"How did you-" Isabelle began but Alec interrupted her by barging onto the scene. He skidded to a stop in front of Bryn.

"Are you okay? What happened?" He asked worriedly as he placed a hand on her arm, as if to reassure himself she was actually there in front of him. Unable to help herself, Isabelle glanced over at Brady to gauge his reaction. He was studying the interaction between his sister and Alec carefully, as if he could sense the same thing Isabelle suspected.

"I'm fine, just a bit tired. The Eidolon shadow-travelled the two of us to an underground lair but I managed to get the upper hand and was able to inject the ichor. It's out of Derek now, but he's not up to making it to the car, and I'm not up to flying all of us over there. I don't think Brady is in any shape to help either," she responded.

"Here, lay him on the ground and take a load off," Alec said. She didn't need to be told twice; she carefully lowered Derek and herself to the sandy ground below, but she didn't lay him flat out. She cradled his head in her lap, with her free hand gripping one of his. In the moonlight she looked deathly pale. Whatever had happened to her when she disappeared must've shaken her or she was about to pass out. Maybe it was a mixture of both.

"We'll crash here for the night," Alec decided. "Some of these buildings are still in decent enough shape for us to stay in. Isabelle, help me set one up."

Isabelle chose not to argue because she needed to speak to her brother privately anyway. When they were out of earshot of the Winchesters, she said quietly, "She's hiding something."

"She is, but I trust her," Alec answered, opening the door of one of the shacks, peering in, and then backing out. It must not have been okay, so they made their way to the next one.

"Is that because she's given you reason to trust her or is it because you like her?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Since when are you so... hands on when you're worried about someone?"

"She looked like hell and like she was about to collapse. I put my hand on her in case she fell because then I could catch her faster. Any more insinuations?"

"I'm done for now. But Brady saw it too. He's protective of her. And remember, she has a boyfriend. A serious one. One that I'm pretty sure could kick our asses with a blindfold on and his hands tied behind his back."

"Yes, I'm aware Luke Jackson is a badass," Alec snapped.

"I'm just looking out for you," Isabelle said gently, not wanting to aggravate him further.

"I know," he told her in a softer tone. He opened another door and poked his head in before entering it fully. "We'll crash here and move to the car in the morning when Brady and Derek are up to moving."
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Brady

The moment Isabelle and Alec were out of earshot, Brady turned on his sister, hissing, "What have you done?"

"What?" Bryn replied, her eyes filling with genuine surprise, but Brady heard the tinge of fear in her voice.

"What happened when you talked to Amara? What deal did you make with her that convinced her to get rid of the Eidolons out our family?"

His sister was silent for a few seconds before saying, "I told her what was going on and that I just wanted the Eidolons out of my family members, that whatever happened afterwards we wouldn't involve her in so she wouldn't be helping with her comrades' destruction."

"It couldn't have been that simple. What did you bargain for in exchange for the information?"

"She wanted to see the world as it is now, because she's been trapped for centuries."

"Bryn, do not tell me you did what I think you did," Brady said through gritted teeth. As if he knew she was not wanting to give the information, Derek groaned, his eyes fluttering open.

"Wh-what happened? Where am I?" He mumbled.

"Hey," Bryn said softly. "You're safe now. Some friends are getting a shack ready so we can get some sleep tonight."

"Damianos... he-"

"He's not possessing you anymore. I got him out."

"I remember. You pinned him to the ground. I could've... I could've sworn I saw your eyes flash gold."

Brady clenched his teeth to prevent himself from screaming at his sister, but he couldn't prevent the electricity that sparked from his fingertips. "You did."

Bryn glanced up at him. "It was the only way to get the information in time to rescue you all of you sooner rather than later. I made her swear she was only here to help. I made her swear on the Styx. I'm not letting this turn out the way it did with Hannah."

"She's a monster, Bryn! They always have hidden agendas!" He snapped.

"What's going on?" Derek interjected, confused as to why the Winchesters were arguing.

"I'll explain later," she whispered. Her attention went back to Brady as she said, "Hold out your hands."

He did so reluctantly but was curious to see what she was going to do. Bryn made a small cut on finger using her dagger, causing a small drop of blood to form. She then placed said finger on the cuffs. They glowed a bright white before falling off. Brady rubbed his wrists ruefully, glad to have those horrible contraptions off. No matter how upset he was at his sister right now, he couldn't not have manners.

"Thank you," he said. She gave him a small smile. He knew she was doing this because she hadn't seen any other option, and while he trusted his sister, he didn't trust Amara, which prompted him to ask, "Can I speak to her?"

"To who?"

"Amara. I want to hear for myself that she means no harm to you or us."

"Amara, can you speak to him?" Bryn requested. Within the blink of an eye, her once hazel eyes were suddenly golden. It unnerved him to see Bryn like this.

"Brady Winchester. You're sister has been worried about you," Amara said. It was Bryn's voice, but you could tell it wasn't her. She sounded ancient, and the tone was very formal, very measured. Brady didn't even know how that was possible.

"My sister made you swear on the Styx you weren't helping us for any other reason than to get the Eidolons out of our family members. Is that true?"

"Yes."

"Swear it on the Styx."

"I swear on the Styx that that's what I told you sister."

"Good... that's all. Wait, for the record, I know you're an all-powerful immortal being but if you mess with my sister, I will kill you. The rest of us will be right behind me to do the same. So I suggest not double-crossing us."

"You're as strong and confident as your sister. That will serve you well in life. I will remember that. I'll give you your sister now."

Suddenly Bryn's eyes were back to normal. She blinked a few times as if to gain her senses again.

"That's so weird," she said. "I could see and hear everything going on but couldn't move. I don't like that."

"The minute we get everyone free, you're kicking her out right?"

"I'm going to head back to her temple and release her back there."

"I'm going with you, and I'm pretty sure I can speak for everyone else when I say they're going too."

Bryn smiled. "I know. I won't fight you on it either. I wouldn't want to go there alone."

"So, what's going on with you and Alec?" Brady inquired, deciding to change the subject.

"What are you talking about?"

"You two are close."

She snorted. "Didn't start out that way. We wanted to kill each other. But we found out we had a lot in common and a few life-threatening situations later, and you bond closely with your companions."

Brady couldn't help but find that scenario sound extremely similar to how she and Luke became what they were, but he refrained from mentioning that. "What happened?"

"We met Melinoë."

"... You met the goddess of madness?"

"Yes."

"What happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Amara saved my skin. If she hadn't been in me, I don't think I would've been able to break free of the madness the goddess put me in."

"What did she do to you?" Brady growled.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Bryn-"

"No. I will tell you a lot of things. But I will not tell you what I saw. I can't," she said, shivering slightly. While he thought he was going to see terror in her eyes, Brady was wrong, surprising himself to find not only a deep sadness, but what also could only be described as shame.

"You need to tell someone. Tell Luke when we see him next," Brady told her kindly. He had learned that Bryn would come to you on her own when she was ready to talk about things. All she had to know was that you were ready and willing to listen whenever she was ready to speak.

"I can't even tell Luke... whatever Alec and Isabelle saw messed them up too. They act like they're fine, but I've been where they are. I know that look on their face when they start thinking about what happened."

"Is there anything I could do to help?"

"No, but you being safe and sound helps a lot."

"Hey you two," Isabelle greeted, walking up to them with Alec behind her. "We have the shack set up. Bryn, give Derek to me and Alec. We'll get him to the shack. You help Brady and- wait, your cuffs are off?"

"Yeah, it just took a drop of blood," Bryn said. "I've read about those before. Perks of having read the library at your camp multiple times over."

Isabelle and Alec apparently chose to believe her because rather than prodding, they simply lifted Derek up, gingerly carrying him to the shack. Brady and Bryn trailed behind them. He couldn't help but notice that even though she was five years older than him, he was taller than her now. He and Bradley had both gone through massive growth spurts and were now taller than their sister. It was the one thing they could lord over her now because she could lord everything else over them.

Words couldn't begin to explain how relieved Brady was that he was free and that his sister was next to him, but he was also extremely worried about her well-being. He had a bad feeling about Amara despite having talked to her and despite having heard it himself that Amara had sworn on the Styx she was only helping to get the Eidolons out of their family. But monsters always had hidden agendas. Now it was figuring out what this one was before it destroyed them.

For the time being, however, Brady just wanted to enjoy being free and being with his sister, so he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him willingly. She might be older than him, she might be stronger than him, but she still needed him, and that warmed Brady's heart.
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