~•~

"It really is weird to meet her after hours." Nico rubs his hands together and blows into the space between them. After doing this many times, he decides that leaving them in his pockets is a better way to keep them warm.

I decide to cuddle Nova, and surprisingly, Leo is cuddled up against Rhea. She might have a soft spot for children, because I'm sure I wouldn't be happily received if I tried the same move.

"Is she even here?" Nova complains.

Her irritation grows by the minute, and I can't blame her. We've all been waiting outside the library for thirty minutes, and Blair is nowhere to be seen. If anyone drives past us, they're sure to call the police about a strange group standing outside a library, and that will lead to a lengthy explanation I'm sure no one will believe.

Even if we don't get a visit from the police, it's not fun to be standing around here. It's unexpectedly freezing, and no one here is dressed for the weather or the wait.

"She could be playing around, you know. Like those creeps at the park." Nova shakes her head. "Let's just leave."

Nova rips herself away from me, making me frown as I lose my source of warmth.

"Five more minutes?" Seeing as no one else moves away from the library, I'm glad I only have to get through to Nova. "Please, please, please, please—"

"Okay, okay." Nova chuckles. "Just stop that."

"Thank you." I smirk when she returns to my arms once again.

Hopefully Blair isn't trying to make a fool out of us. It's not something I need on a journey that is already difficult enough. I'm not sure what Blair wants to show or tell us, but I hope coming here is worth it. Honestly, it's like I'm losing hope as time passes, and I'm desperate to find something that can reignite my passion for helping Vessels.

"Over there." Rhea points to the library, and my face lights up when I see a light has been turned on.

This time, I pull away from Nova and wait for the figure to approach us. Although the person looks a bit blurry through the door, the height definitely matches Blair's, and I don't think anyone else would stay at the library this late. Stewart sure wouldn't.

I hear a click as the door unlocks and smile when Blair appears in front of us. I'm probably smiling too much, because she looks confused and slightly uncomfortable.

"Quickly." Blair holds the door open as all of us hurry through it. "I'm sorry for taking so long. I fell asleep, and when my alarm woke me up at seven, I remembered I had to deactivate the cameras."

"It's okay. I'm just happy you showed up."

Nova looks at me with her typical 'it's not okay' expression, but I turn away from her to avoid laughing.

We make way for Blair to pass through us, and we all follow her further into the library, ending up at the front desk Nova and I had the pleasure of meeting Stewart at.

Blair lifts a part of the desk, making way for her to enter the section meant for staff members and for us to follow. Leo throws himself onto the first chair he finds while Nico, being the last person to step in, closes the compartment behind us before moving to his sister's side.

We all look at each other for a while, waiting for someone to say something. I can sense that Nova feels awkward, and the way Nico slowly nods his head suggests that he feels awkward, too. Leo looks oblivious, and Rhea looks...worried.

I follow Rhea's eyes to Blair and notice a worried expression on Blair's face as well. When Blair catches my eye, she shakes her head and tries to play cool, but it's too late.

"Is something wrong?" I ask, feeling slightly scared to see Blair's eyes tear up.

"No. No, nothing's wrong." She smiles sadly. "I'm just remembering my dad and...your grandfather, and how everything happened."

This is the story I've been hoping for. If this journey does no good for Vessels, at least I can get some closure. I need to know what happened to him and why he never came back for me. It's hard to keep assuming he has passed on, but it has always been easier than thinking he abandoned me.

As Blair moves to a pillar to lean on it, Nova takes this opportunity to squeeze my hand as an act of comfort.

"What happened?" I ask.

Blair sighs, and she looks at the ground for a while. Even if she is rethinking explaining anything to me, I can't let her back out now that I know she has the answers I need.

"My dad and Peter were really good friends. They'd spend most of their time talking about the history of Vessels, but they could go on and on about anything." She smiles. "They even joined a group called Prometheus' followers. That title held more weight in the past. It was a title for families chosen to hold the secrets of Prometheus; everything the god left behind to help humans, including Vessels."

"The clutch," I state.

"Yes. Amongst many things, Prometheus left Hades' Clutch. He scattered multiple around the world for Vessels to find and use to extract their evil before it can be transferred back to Pandora's Box. He left the secret of the clutch to his real followers, and the knowledge is passed down from generation to generation."

"You're joking." Nova's eyes widen. "It's—it's all real?"

When Blair nods, Nova looks amazed. I'm sure she hoped everything I said was true, but it's good to hear someone else confirm it.

"Do you know a lot about Prometheus' followers?" Rhea sounds as if she is accusing Blair of something more than asking a simple question.

Blair looks away from Rhea's cold eyes, and turns to me. However, it doesn't feel like she's really looking at me. It's like she's trapped in some frightened memory, and she's not too sure about what's going on around her.

"One hand. One million souls."

"A mother's womb makes fire cold," I complete.

"Dad said his biggest regret was telling Peter that riddle; a silly riddle he made up when Peter realised my dad was the real deal and asked for help finding Hades' Clutch."

"What...the real what?" I ask. "What did my grandpa realise?"

"Follower," Rhea answers for Blair. "Your family are real followers of Prometheus, aren't you? That pass your knowledge down. It's why you know so much."

Blair doesn't deny this, which means it must be true. We all watch as she pulls her necklace out of her shirt and holds out the pendant toward us. It looks like some ancient coin.

"The problem was my dad and your grandad were too good of friends." Blair looks like she's about to cry. "It's not difficult to figure out that the hand and a million souls refers to Hades' Clutch, but the reference to a mother's womb...Peter was never supposed to understand."

Blair sniffs and wipes away her tears away.

"Dad believed that knowledge gave birth to us all and that books are the only thing that can develop people. To him, a library was just like a womb."

My eyes widen when I realise just what Blair is trying to say. "It's here. Hades' Clutch is here."

"Peter realised that and stole the key from my dad before breaking into the library on his own." Blair shakes her head as she dangles her necklace in front of our faces. "We didn't know he was using Kofi to hack into security cameras for months. The both of them figured out the necklace is the key and they needed our blood and...they went inside."

"Blair," I step towards, "what happened to my grandad."

She looks so hurt that I don't want to press her for any information, but I need this. I need to be able to move on, and Blair's answers might just help me do that.

"There are some things I physically cannot say."

She pulls her sleeve up and reveals a small mark. It looks like a tattoo. I have to walk closer to her to be able to make it out. Once I see the image of a boy with his fingers to his lips, it feels as if the world is against me.

I fall onto the floor and hold my head. Just when I get so close, I'm dragged back down again.

"Amora, what is it?" Nova bends over me.

"Isn't that the god of silence? Harpocrates?" Rhea asks as she looks at the mark on Blair. "Did you take an oath of silence or something?"

For Blair's case, no reply gives us the answer we need. Everyone is in disbelief.

"My job as a follower is to guide those who come to me. If I choose."

"Then guide us." Nico seems irritated. "Tell us where to go to fix everything."

Blair looks down at me before turning to a wall next to her. I didn't notice before, but there's a small dent in it; about the size of her pendant.

We all watch as Blair pulls out a needle from her pocket. She pricks her finger on it, causing a small amount of blood to seep out. This must seem like a weird ritual to everyone, but if no one is complaining, I don't even want to ask if they're alright with all of this; whatever all of this is.

Blair then presses her bloody finger against the pendant before pressing the pendant into the dent on the wall. Nothing happens for a while, but I get a fright when the ground starts to tremble.

Panicking, I stand up quickly. When I reach to grab Nova's hand, ready to tell the group that we are getting out of her, the shaking stops.

Suddenly, the wall in front of Blair parts open, and she steps back for the rest of us to get a good view of what is happening before us.

We all move towards this new entrance. It looks as if there are stairs leading down, but it's too dark to see what exactly is inside the mystery room. It smells like rotting flesh, but I don't have the courage to ask about its source.

"Do you expect us to go down there?" Nova asks, covering her nose with her hand. "No. I'm sorry, Amora, but I'm not doing that."

Blair ignores Nova, and I do the same. I won't force anyone to go down there with me. I understand that it's strange to just walk where a stranger leads you, but I've prepared for all of this. This journey was supposed to be a solo one, anyway.

"Thank you."

Blair looks a little surprised, but I am grateful. She can't tell me much, but this is enough. I have to start somewhere, and I have to take risks if I'm really trying to help Vessels. I am sad, though, that it seems to be the end of my journey of figuring out what happened to Grandpa.

"I think Leo should stay behind with Nova," I suggest.

"I'm not scared." Leo's tone contradicts his words, but I'm so happy that he is trying to be brave for me. "I'll go."

I smile at him gratefully and ruffle his hair. This time, he doesn't complain.

"I need you to be the lookout, okay?"

"The lookout?" he looks relieved.

"It's very important you make sure no one follows us."

Leo nods his head and goes to Nova's side. Nova avoids my eyes, probably feeling guilty for not tagging along.

"I know you're scared of the dark," I joke, trying to make Nova feel better for not coming with me, even though she shouldn't feel bad in the first place.

I look to Nico and Rhea, wanting to know if they're willing to enter the mystery place with me.

"How bad can it be?" Rhea shrugs, and her calm manner has a way of calming me down as well.

"I have to protect my sister."

At this, Rhea shoves Nico away and the both of them laugh. I join in, enjoying the show of sibling affection.

"Wait..." I think of Blair needing to use her blood on the pendant. "How did Grandad get your blood? Or your dad's blood?"

"Kofi was my doctor's nursing assistant. He pulled some strings, and they went though. Peter, Kofi and Kofi's child."

"And where are Kofi and his child?"

"Kwami? I haven't heard from the child in ages," Blair scratches her head, "and I haven't heard from Kofi since he went to prison."

Blair looks away before I can ask anything else, and I look at her for the last time before taking the first step into the mystery room. I hear footsteps follow and feel a hand slide over mine.

Before I can say goodbye to anyone, the door behind us closes, separating us from the Meve library and leaving us in complete darkness. I allow myself to breathe when torches, lined up against the stone walls, come on and light the path down the stairs.

It looks as if we'll be walking for some time before getting anywhere important, and although I'm scared, I'm happy we're here. It seems like our adventure is finally beginning.