chapter nine

Over the next week, Este had postponed her trip to the Underworld alongside her brother. The pair decided that there was too much going on and they had a lot to go over. The rain had lightened up just a bit and many notable people had disappeared from school for a few days which raised even more questions than previously. It was clear that something was happening and it was something out of the ordinary that the demigods had to deal with.

So much for a normal school year, those were rare anyway. Este and Newt had disappeared a few months into the first semester the year prior, and before that? They had been in and out like crazy as they moved between Rhode Island and Washington state. Este was sure that sooner or later there wouldn't be anything between mortals and demigods, as it seemed their worlds were colliding much sooner than anyone could have prepared for.

Este had grown more irritable upon the disappearance of the Cullen's for a few days, after another body had been discovered with similar markings. Este and Newt had made it their mission to talk to the victims, knowing that the one place that they could do so, without straining themselves by summoning the dead, was going to the Underworld. And they just so happened to be owing a trip down there to see their father rather soon.

Classes had been just as annoying as they had been previously. Thankfully, it was Friday meaning that it was the last day of the school week. Este only had one more set of classes that she'd have to deal with before she got some much deserved time off. By time off, she'd be spending most of it doing her duties in the Underworld before napping for an entire day.

"Este, hurry your ass up!" Titus continuously knocked on the girl's door as she fought the urge to open the door and throw the brush at him, "We've got to go, get your tail out of your room! Come on, Newt's already going ballistic on everyone else!" And if there was only one thing that the Devereaux twin's had in common? It was their hatred for mornings.

    And if there was a time that Este was at her worst? It had been the past few mornings, because now that she'd lost her mother's bracelet she seemed more irritable than ever.

"I'm coming, stop rushing me for the gods sake!" Este opened the door as she glared at Titus, "Really appreciate the heads up but next time, stop banging on my door," She retorted before adjusting her t-shirt and running down the stairs, "Whoever's ass is not down here, you're getting left!" She yelled as she looked over at her brother with an annoyed expression.

Newt stayed silent as he gave a swift nod as his sister went out the door before him, causing him to follow after her as Titus raced out the door. Este's hair was left down as it was slightly wet, wearing an old ACDC t-shirt with a long sleeve under it. Her jeans were torn, in spaces that once had blood on them that she cut away so that she could continue wearing them. It wasn't the best solution but she never dared to bleach anything.

"Do you think that the Cullen's are going to be back today?" Titus asked as he looked back at Kaz, sitting in the same seat that he usually did, "My teacher said that Dr. Cullen took them to see some family for a few days. Not sure how much I really believe that excuse," Titus' voice grew quieter upon seeing the expressions that everyone wore, "Sorry."

Este shrugged her shoulders as she looked at her brother, "The real question is when is Newt getting the stick out of his ass that seems to be stuck up there," She scrunched up her nose at him as she held a slight grin as she rested back in the seat, "I'm going to assume that Kaz was the one who put it up there."

"ESTE!" Both Kaz and Newt had exclaimed at the same time causing everyone to burst out in a fit of laughter, while the two boys shared a look before looking away from one another, "I don't know what you're talking about," Kaz huffed out as he rolled his eyes, "I haven't put anything in anyone."

"Sure you haven't," Este made a face before she looked at her brother once again, "I dare say, that was a squeak of guilt. So, is there something that you would like to tell me, dear brother?" She smirked as she tilted her head, "Because I believe that there is, and if I don't find out now I can guarantee that I'll find out later."

"Focus on something that isn't my life, Ghostie," Newt looked over at his sister as he rolled his eyes, "No, Este, there is nothing that I would like to tell you as of the current moment, dear sister," He mimicked her tone as he flashed a grin.

    Oh how both Devereaux twins hated mornings and could match the others attitude...

Este made a face as she mimicked her brother speaking before shooting him a smirk, "Oh come on, don't tug on my dick. Let me live my life freely," She let out a dramatic sigh before she winked at Titus, "Twerp."

Pulling into the parking lot of Forks High School caused a few uneasy looks. The twin's noticed immediately the cars parked closest to the stairs and knew exactly who they belonged to. Welcome back freaks, couldn't stay away for a bit longer, could you? It seemed today had been the day that every one of them decided to return. Personally, Este would've skipped another day just to show back up on Monday but they could do whatever they pleased. Just as long as it didn't mess with her family.

Este got out of the car after her brother, sparing a glance over in the Cullen's direction as she quickly moved her gaze to Kaz, "Ten bucks that if you tried to spray paint their skin that they'd still be just as pale."
"Este," Newt gave his sister a scolding look, but that didn't stop the amusement from creeping onto his expression, "Stop before he actually goes and tries it. You know exactly how he is."

"Make it thirty and two drachmas," Kaz looked over at her with a glimmering smirk, that familiar look of mischief visibly present on his features, "Come on, Newt, they won't know it's me. I'm a son of Ἑρμῆς," He pouted.

Newt shook his head as he rolled his eyes, "Wow thanks for the amazing fact, captain obvious," He crossed his arms as he looked at Este, "If I find out that he actually tries to do that, I will have your head and his. Got it?"

"Okay Queen Elizabeth."

"Will you actually though?" Titus asked as he drew out his words, leaning against the side of the car as he smirked, "I mean come on, you can't kill your own sister and your best friend. What kind of tale is that?"

"Better than the Greek ones of incest," Finn muttered as he joined the group, speaking under his breath causing everyone's jaws to drop as their eyes widened causing him to look up from his phone, "Shit, did I actually say that out loud?"

"I think that I just got an aneurysm," Este blinked slowly as she looked over at Kaz as she held up a finger before making a face, "You know what, I don't even know how to continue this conversation anymore. I'm going to go ahead and head to first block."

    Newt simply glared over in Finn's direction. The elder Devereaux had been less than pleased with the information that his sister had revealed about the mortal boy. And if there was one person who didn't trust like Este, it was Newt.

"Don't let the Vrykolakas take you out!" Titus let out a loud laugh before wincing as he looked around, "I probably shouldn't have said that so loud, should I?" and upon seeing everyone's dead expressions he rubbed the back of his neck, "Sorry, guys. That one was on me."

"Sometimes I wonder how the Hades a son of Νίκη," Este made a face as she shook her head before she began to walk off, stopping momentarily to see if Finn and Newt were following her, "Are you two coming?" Since they shared a first period.

"Coming," Newt confirmed as he nodded and pushed past Finn while he remained silent, the two boys following after her not a moment later though as the group split apart.

Este fixed her hair over her shoulders, trying not to be bothered by the fact it was still wet, as she continued to rub her hand on the empty area of her wrist, having lost the only non-human form of comfort that she had. Her icy glare glowering on anyone who happened to look in her direction as she carried on a conversation with her brother about some nonsense that happened to fill her mind at the moment as she tried to ignore the way Finn's entire demeanor had changed. She'd have to deal with that later, and she knew it.

Can someone please get rid of Finn next, please.

"I think everyone in this society has gone absolutely mad," Este began as they walked into AP Lang while looking at her brother, "Maybe the clouds of Forks are filled with some sort of hippie drug and that's why everyone here acts so high that they might be higher than the clouds," She theorized as she looked over at her brother.

"Or maybe that Ben kid is handing out some really strong shit," Newt shrugged his shoulders as he had a small smirk on his lips, "He's going to get busted one day and none of us will know how to help him, we'll accidentally dig him into a deeper hole and you know it," The tone of his voice signaled that he was joking, but Este knew that he was probably right.

    Ben was a kid that they had a few run-ins with on previous occasions. He had good jokes, but always smelt so strongly of weed. Este was 100% sure if anyone in Forks got called to help him out - they'd only add more charges.

"Doesn't he always hand out some really strong shit? After all, if it isn't strong enough to knock him out after two hours he won't use it," Este hummed quietly as she made a face, "He's going to kill us if he finds out this is what we were talking about on the way to English, but he won't remember it after a few hours."

Newt let out a small snicker as he shook his head, settling down into his desk as he looked at his sister, "Now that's just cruel, but not wrong. Knowing Ben the only thing he'll remember is some kind of wet dream that he had that he totally believed happened. Who was it with last time, Wendy? Poor Titus nearly had a heart attack. I think it startled Clark too."

Clark and Wendy, Este almost felt relieved to hear those names again. Clark had been a close friend of the group, but he had been off with his parents on some huge trip. Missing the first few weeks of school, Este would make fun of him for it later. And Wendy, the girl who had caught the sights of young Titus as soon as they moved to Forks. She had two older siblings, Riley and Mary, as well as a younger brother named Sam. She had been off visiting colleges with Riley as far as Este knew.

"Those are two names I haven't heard about in ages," Este stated as she shrugged her shoulders, "Shouldn't Clark be back soon?" Este hummed as she chewed on her nails, "Titus will be more than happy to see Wendy again, gods forbid someone keep that girl from him. I'm surprised Riley hasn't come for his head yet," She hummed as she dropped her hands onto her desk.

"That's because Titus learned his lesson after flirting with Wendy in front of Mary," Newt scrunched up his nose as he glared at Finn when the other boy nudged him, "Remember that? Mary chased him around the entire parking lot while Wendy stood next to you in horror. Poor Wendy had no clue what to do, and neither did you. Clark was the one to get the two to stop running if I remember correctly."

"No, I don't remember anything about Mary. Maybe it's for the best," Este simply remarked.

Este let out a small laugh as she looked down at her desk, peaceful until she felt the cold chill that hadn't been around in nearly a week, causing her eyes to fall over to the Cullen girl and Hale boy who had entered the classroom. The two slipped between the desks as their eyes fell onto Este, who simply peeled her gaze away as she felt her chest tightened. Rolling her eyes as she placed her hands on her forehead before adjusting herself in her seat. You miss a week and now decide to come back.

"Well class, let's get this party started," Mrs. Batesman turned as she smiled, holding a stack of papers in her hand as she began to walk to the desks and place some of the stacks down, "Let's see if you have the guts to get through AP Lang. Or if you are too lazy to put the work in," She flashed a smile at a few of her students before winking at Este.

The school day moved rather quickly and Este was pretty thankful for that. She had parted ways from the rest of her family, having finished Calc and Trig with Newt before she knew she needed to head down to the gym. Wondering what sort of game that Coach Clapp was going to make them play today, last week it had been some horrible rendition of tennis that he called Ball Clapp which many people made dirty jokes out of.

Este had placed her bags down by the bleachers. She changed into a pair of gym shorts and the stupid school provided t-shirts that she hated with a passion. The t-shirts reminded her of an uglier version of their old camp t-shirts. Este felt her chest tighten as she let out a huff before her fingers worked through braiding her hair to get it out of her way. As she stood in front of the first set of bleachers, she pursed her lips into a thin line as she tried to finish the braid as quickly as possible. Yet, she easily realized that she was lacking one specific item to keep her braid together. A hair tie. Seriously, the one thing I forget. She tried to hold back her annoyance before she inevitably let out a  huff of air.

"Hair tie?" The voice caused Este to raise an eyebrow as she turned around to come face to face with Alice Cullen, September 24, 1920, "I'm Alice," She smiled brightly as she practically bounced on her feet as she continued to hold out the hair tie, "I don't bite, I promise. You're Eurydice, right?"

Este gave the girl a strange look, she hesitated as she stared at the girl in front of her. The irony in the biting comment, Este couldn't help but think as she carefully took the hair tie from Alice. Giving the girl a suspicious look.

"Thanks," She muttered as she tied off her braid before flinging it back, "It's actually Este," She made a face as annoyance bubbled in her at the mention of her actual name.

"Your brother gave you that nickname, didn't he?" Alice asked as she tilted her head to the side while Este looked over at her, "I'm guessing, my brother nicknamed me Allie," She tried to pass it off as completely normal but this entire conversation wasn't normal in the slightest, "We have a few classes together."

"And I don't recall one being this one," Este couldn't help but comment as her blue eyes remained locked on the amber-eyed girl in front of her, "If I recall, it was just Rosalie Hale last time."

Este practically facepalmed at her own words, great job staying cool and taking it easy. Real good job.

"Didn't think you noticed that," The brunette recovered as she rubbed her hands together, keeping her slightly skeptical look, "Is there something you need or...?" She wasn't sure why Alice was hanging around her, was she trying to find out more about the demigods so hurting them would be a lot easier?

"Oh, no," Alice shook her head as she continued to bounce on the balls of her feet, "I just thought that we could possibly talk more, since we have so many classes together. I have a feeling we are going to be great friends!" She seemed so enthused that it made Este wonder if she got into the weed stash hidden in the C hall lockers of Forks High, "And for the record, they missed PE on my schedule so I just got transferred in."

"Ah," Este commented slowly as she eyed the shorter girl. Este pursed her lips in a thin line as she nodded her head, her uncertainty must've been clear by the way Alice looked at her, "Yeah, yeah, totally," She wondered what Newt would think of this interaction and if it would cause yet another argument amongst the house or if she would be praised for taking one for the team yet again, "Sorry, I'm not big on talking to people."

Alice waved her hands as if dismissing Este,  "Nonsense, I think you are carrying a perfectly good conversation right now. You are not big on talking to people, people just are not big on talking to you," Alice paused after she realized how that sounded, "You're very intimidating, I don't mean anything bad by that."

Este's eyes widened in the slightest at the bluntness of the girl before she really did seem apologetic, "Well, I would say you're boyfriend's sister doesn't really think so," Este tilted her head as she waited for some sort of reaction to register from Alice, yet she still seemed as bubbly as ever. Unphased by Este's statement.

Este's eyes cut over to her side, catching sight of Elijah leaning his head onto his palm as his pencil scribbled across the papers. There was no telling what he was drawing, usually he was coming up with new plays for the basketball team after they'd lose big against their local schools.

"Rosalie? She's not intimidated by any, but you did sorta catch her off guard," Alice hummed as she looked over at Edward who was standing in a corner a few feet away, almost beckoning him over as Este's chest clenched as she wanted nothing more than to tell them to try and mask their deaths easier, "You're different from how others have perceived you."

    Jesus, another one has appeared in this class.

"Thanks?" Este made a face as she crossed her arms over her chest, wondering if she should go to Coach Clapp and beg him for that stupid game he had made up just to get out of this really... slow? Slow conversation, "Well, this chat has been something to say the least but I really think that I should get to doing my gym class duties."

"What? Hitting the balls so hard that it takes out another student?" Alice remarked as Edward finally started to make his way over, "I really think that Coach Clapp is happy that you are taking a break from taking down his students one by one with that hit of yours. Don't you think so?" She chirped over at Edward who simply nodded.

    Este glanced over at Edward, their gazes locked as he looked at her expectantly. The silence grew rather uncomfortable very quickly.

Alice regained Este's attention, "Well, Eurydice," Este refrained from cringing, "I think that you are amazing to talk to. You're just a little different."

You'd know a lot about being different, wouldn't you, Alice? "Yeah, totally," Este remarked simply as she flashed a forced smile.