SIX.
LUKE

Finding where Josette Torres had gone after leaving Camp Half-Blood for the first time in years was easy. Finding a moment where she was alone proved to be much harder.

She went by stores with a goddess who he did not know the name of, coming out of those with mysteriously empty bags or clanging noises as though she had filled them with glassware. Her face sparkled with joy whenever she won an argument – though he couldn't ever understand what was said. They were too far away for him to hear. If he could just dare to step closer when she was with the goddess... though her traveling across the country with a goddess most likely said enough already.

Then there was a boy she sometimes walked with. They weren't friends, as far as he could tell. She threatened him with her dagger more often than she did not. Oftentimes, the goddess would come between the two, her face filled with annoyance. Whenever she was not too busy trying to carve some boy's eyes out, she had him practice some magical ability he possessed, though she looked often put out by whatever happened. He didn't know what to look for, though, so perhaps he had not seen what she had witnessed.

Either way, Josette Torres always found herself in someone's company. A goddess, who would have his head before he could even get a word out. A fellow – and this was a guess, though he assumed he was right – demigod, who despite the annoyances already appeared protective over Josette. It was the stance that boy assumed whenever Josette starting fangirling over cute dogs or cats.

What pissed him off, though, was the absence of both Annabeth and Percy. When he got notice of Josette leaving Camp Half-Blood, he figured she'd take them with her. Yet, neither had made an appearance thus far. He suspected they wouldn't come. They should've noticed that Josette had gone. Some friends they were, he thought.

He had his chance to get Josette alone when she mentioned wanting a coffee. Her travel group had gotten all the way to Las Vegas, when she didn't want to go any further for the moment. No, she wanted coffee from a specific cafe in the city. The goddess and the other demigod nodded, saying they'd find a spot to stay for a moment while she went for coffee. It'd be his only chance to talk to her alone.

The smell of coffee and fresh pastries hit him as soon as he entered the cafe. He could see why Josette wanted to go here. It felt homey, like a place you'd go to if you needed comfort.

She took notice of him immediately. Judging by the way her hand rested on her hip, most likely holding a dagger to stab him with. He couldn't actually blame her for that, but still. He hoped that seeing him again might make her realize that she missed him. And that he wasn't as much the enemy as everyone claimed.

Her eyes narrowed when he got closer to the counter, and her face twisted into a scowl. He knew that she held a grudge for nearly killing Percy, but who was here right now? Not Percy Jackson, that's for sure. That kid abandoned Josette, just like she feared people would do to her.

Josette pursed her lips together. "I should kill you where you stand."

"It's good to see you, Joey."

"Cut the crap, Castellan. We both know you're in cahoots with the enemy, and you being here... talking to me? Some might say you're trying to recruit me to your sick cause."

"Why aren't Percy and Annabeth with you? Are they just letting you go?" Luke frowned. "For them to leave you hanging, that is unbelievable."

Josette shook her head. "I left."

She couldn't have simply left on her own! Now it was Luke's turn to shake his head. No, the Josette he knew never would've left Camp Half-Blood. She'd scream and fight, create illusions... Always attempting to be safe. Of course, he knew her father played a big part in that.

"No, you didn't. I know you, Joey, you'd rather wither and decay in that camp before you'd leave. Let alone go all the way to Nevada."

"Maybe I changed. Have you considered that? I lost you, because you decided being safe and sound at camp wasn't doing it anymore. You left too, so why can't I?" She snarled.

The barista nervously eyed the two of them. "My boss says you're scaring the customers. Can you please take it outside?"

Luke jerked his head. Josette, as though completely forgetting her coffee, followed after him. Apparently she could not resist the urge to yell at him for betraying everything he once stood for. Though that was fair. He had left her alone in the eleventh cabin, where people did not understand her.

Luke sighed. "Joey, I need you to understand that to me... this is more than picking sides. It is about doing what's best for us demigods. How many times have you been attacked since you left camp?"

"Zero. But I –"

"Yes, you have a godly companion, but that does not simply stop those attacks. I made sure the monsters didn't come after you. Your biggest threat thus far has been Thalia's father. Not the monsters. I kept them away from you. You're always my little sister."

"Percy's my brother, Luke. You forfeited that role when you betrayed camp." Josette clung to memories of someone who didn't care enough to come with her.

"Who is here right now? I am, I'm here Joey, because all you've ever needed to do is ask me to be there for you. That is what a brother does."

Luke could see the gears in her head turning, and slowly she nodded. The hand slipped from her dagger. He smiled, now he could tell her about her mother's wish.

"I've met your mother. She's a very powerful woman, you're much like her in that regard."

"You... you have?" Josette's eyes widened.

Luke nodded. "She stands with her brother Kronos, like all those millennia ago. And she wants to meet you. In person. Because you're her champion. Her daughter. The only mortal daughter of Theia."

"Oh. Luke, that's..." Josette closed her eyes, letting out a breath. "I can't. Not right now, I'm still traveling with..."

"Please?"

"I can send you a message when I'm ready. I need to see my father first. Uh... can I... hug you? You really don't seem as lost as Percy claimed you were."

Luke opened his arms to hug Josette tightly. He felt awful about manipulating her, yet triumphant all the same. He needed Josette on his side, before anyone else got to her. In this case he had an advantage. She was all alone, with two companions that currently had no idea of her whereabouts, and the only other friends she had appeared to have dropped her the moment she wanted to leave camp.

She'd walked right into a trap, unable to ever set herself straight again.

avery speaks!
a short one, but an important one! luke, while genuinely considering josette his sister, perfectly manipulates her by emphasizing that HE is present & would always be there, while PERCY is not ((though luke does not know that percy and jo fought before she left))

this is such a downfall moment for josie because she lets luke back in, and she WILL tell him things she shouldn't be... wonder how that will end...