Hugo Weasley (![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} hereishugo) wrote in ![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} somerealityrpg,@ 2019-11-19 00:33:00 |
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| Entry tags: | active: hugo weasley, inactive: thalia grace |
Hugo & Thalia
WHO: Hugo Weasley & Thalia Grace
WHAT: Burger Adventures, Bonding, Revelations, Oh My
WHEN: A few days ago.
WHERE: Goodland streets & Five Guys
RATING: PG (mild language)
SPOILERS: Percy Jackson, Harry Potter
STATUS: Completed via GDOC.
Thalia had liked being twelve again more than she would ever admit. Sure, it had been difficult back in her own universe: she’d been constantly hunted by monsters who wanted to snack on Zeus’s daughter; she’d been homeless and constantly starving; and Hades himself had it out for her. Plus, there was that whole being torn apart by hellhounds and turned into a tree thing.
But it had also been the best year of her life. She’d had Luke and Annabeth, her little found family of abandoned demigods. It had been them against the world, and no amount of dumpster diving, flea infestations, or Cyclops attacks could take away the warmth and joy she’d felt at having two people she could so unequivocally count on to have her back.
Or so she’d thought, anyway.
Being twelve again, before everything had gone sideways, and in a place where there were no monsters looking to snack on a desperate demigod, had actually been pretty cool. She’d watched TV and built blanket forts with a grown-up Luke, she ate so much chocolate she got sick, and she had been so happily, blissfully aware of the betrayal that had been in her future.
Being back at her real age - forever one day short of 16 - had brought back a weight and sadness Thalia hadn’t even known she’d been carrying.
She was determined to move past it, however. Whatever was going on with the Entity or Goodland or whatever, there was no use in trying to recover a childhood that was long gone. Thalia had to look to the future and figuring out what to do with herself here.
Priorities first: finding a good burger joint. And Hugo didn’t seem like a bad companion to go burger-hunting with. He was fun and easy-going, and definitely didn’t come with the baggage of having tried to poison her before.
Thalia, always the punctual sort, was waiting in the lobby before their meeting time, idly twirling a hunting knife between her fingers.
Hugo tended to go with the flow so he had no problem randomly popping up on the network. However, for the most part, he ignored those who de-aged. He wasn’t exactly into kids. Thalia was an exception. He touched base with her before she turned twelve and enjoyed their conversation. She had a touch life, sure, but she didn’t seem to let it bring her down, which Hugo liked about her. He was used to being around strong women at home so perhaps that was why he gravitated toward her; whatever the reason, he was happy to to go on a burger expedition with her.
“Hi,” he said as he approached her. “Not planning on using that on me any time soon, are you?” He flashed a grin.
Thalia smiled back and hopped out of the chair she’d been lounging in. One smooth motion, and the knife was tucked securely in her boot. Normally she’d have it strapped to her thigh for easy access, but this was New York, and an AU one at that. Better safe than to be given grief by cops. That was a pain in the laimós.
“As long as we can find a decent burger, no one will get hurt,” she joked. She gave him an appraising, curious look. “You’re younger than I thought you’d be.”
She hadn’t really had an image of him based on their conversations on the network, but somehow she’d thought he was older. Like, in his 20s.
He raised his eyebrows at the quick movement, but he was awed, not worried. He had his wand tucked in his back pocket, which he likened to Thalia and her knife. He couldn’t really blame her after the stuff she told him about her life at home. “I got suggestions!” He laughed and held his hands up, like he was surrendering to the police. “But we’ll hit your place first,” he added, recalling her mentioning a place in her reality. He was from England so he was really a fish out of water in Goodland; at least people in the states were, well, familiar with the states. “Nineteen,” he admitted. “Although do you think I’m mature? Tell my mum!” He rolled his eyes, thinking what Hermione, the one at home, not the one in Goodland, would think about anyone calling him mature. Granted, Thalia didn’t, she just called him older, but even the hint made him chuckle. “Or was I just annoyingly in your business?”
“Well, maybe not annoyingly so,” Thalia said with a grin. She didn’t deny the “in your business” part, though, cause he kinda had been. Strangely enough, Thalia hadn’t found it offputting when either he or Tony did it. Usually she got defensive - even hostile - when someone started asking questions, but they’d been low-key enough that they hadn’t set off any red flags. They’d almost seemed...genuine. Thalia definitely wasn’t used to that.
She started heading to the door. If this New York was laid out the same way as the New York she knew, she’d know exactly how to get to the little hole-in-the-wall fusion place that was BK Jani. Whether it was actually here in this universe, however, was up in the air.
“You said you had a big overwhelming family,” she continued as they walked. It was much easier communicating face-to-face, when she didn’t have to struggle with spelling. “Are they here?”
Hugo snickered over the “not annoyingly so” bit as he trailed behind her and out into the crisp air. It was getting colder as fall gave way to winter, but it comforted Hugo since the chilly weather reminded him of home.
He exhaled when she mentioned his family. “I’ve no right complaining,” he confessed, “especially considering…” He didn’t finish that thought; he assumed she knew what he meant. His story was nothing compared to hers. “There’s a lot of us,” he continued. “You know...and my parents and uncle and even my grandmother and aunt and…” Darn, a whole lot of his relatives fought in that war, didn’t they? “They are sort of war heroes, especially my parents and my Uncle Harry.” He missed Ron and his sister and his mum at her proper age, but he realized he didn’t miss most of the rest. Would he ever? What sort of person was he?
“War heroes, huh?” Thalia gave him a sidelong look. He didn’t look old enough to have parents who’d fought in the mortal World Wars, so it must’ve been something different.
“Does that give you any pressure? To have them all here, being war heroes and you having to live up to them or something?”
The idea of big families was a foreign one to Thalia. Technically, she had a big family - thanks to her father’s perpetual raging boner - but it didn’t feel like family. It wasn’t like they got together for Thanksgiving every year or anything.
He glanced away. He wasn’t used to talking to strangers about his family. He liked spending time with his muggle grandparents precisely because no one asked about the wars or his famous relatives. However, he knew Thalia meant no harm and, well, she certainly divulged much about herself. He could at least share some of his crap with her.
“They are not all here. Only some of them.” He shrugged. “I’m sort of glad about that.” He blew out his lips, making a slight “raspberry” sound. “Sounds horrible I know. See, I’m a wizard. We have different blood statuses and it can be a big deal to some. Not as much now, but back then…” He shook his head. “Anyway, most of my family fought in the war and defeated a really bad wizard when the world was, well, total shite. My uncle? Harry Potter? Well, he was part of this prophecy about defeating that Dark Lord. And, you know? It came true. Something tells me you can relate to that?”
It was like the entire world stopped in a record screech. Thalia, who’d been walking briskly, suddenly stopped so quickly that the people behind them nearly careened into her. She barely noticed, however; she was too busy staring at him.
“Wait. Hold on. Your uncle is Harry Potter? Back. Up.”
Her mind quickly went over the facts. His name was Hugo. He claimed to be a wizard, and that his uncle was THE Harry Potter. Did Harry Potter have a nephew? He didn’t, in the books that Annabeth had made her and Luke read to her over and over. But there was something about an epilogue, and…
“You’re Hugo Weasley?”
Hugo frowned. He was pretty sure he’d know if gods were waging war in his world, but maybe he missed it? He wasn’t the best student, after all. “Um, how did you…?” He felt deflated. He liked going unrecognized and he especially liked not talking about his uncle.
This was nuts. Thalia had heard that this was an AU where characters who were fictional in her world could be real here, but she hadn’t expected to actually meet one of them. And maybe he hadn’t heard the same, because he didn’t seem to know why she’d know of them, and suddenly this had just gotten a little more complicated than just a burger run.
She wished Annabeth were here - not just because the younger girl was a huge fan of the books, but because she’d probably know what to do at this point: tell the truth, lie or prevaricate.
In the end, she decided to go with the truth. She’d always hated being kept in the dark, and she didn’t think it was fair to do it to anyone else.
“You know how you said your family was war heroes? There are actually books written about them.” She shrugged, almost apologetic. Poor guy, having to hear it from her and not something more diplomatic or something. “Some of those books made it to my AU. Or whatever it’s called.”
“I’m guessing you don’t mean history textbooks?” Hugo was accustomed to those books. He wasn’t used to other people thinking he was fictional. “Wait, how did you know me? I wasn’t around when they were off finding horcruxes.” He started walking again, but stopped short. “And...did you read those books?” The thought was weirder than being in some other dimension.
“You were in the epilogue,” Thalia said, this time definitely apologetic. She herself would hate to be a character in just the epilogue. If she had to be a fictional character in someone’s world, she’d better be the main character and have a whole 16 part opera written about her. After all, her life and accomplishments were pretty epic.
“And yeah, I did. Annabeth, my….friend -” Found sister? Bestie? Niece through their godly parents? “- she’s a big fan of the stories, and she made me read them to her over and over.”
She sounded...he wasn’t sure how to put it, but he didn’t like it. It wasn’t her fault he was some fictional footnote in someone else’s story. “She is younger? How did you become friends?” He began walking again even though he wasn’t sure he was going in the right direction at that point. He was glad to change the subject.
“She was younger, yeah, but now she’s older. This way.” Thalia indicated a turn. She, too, was glad to move on from the awkwardness, even though she had a ton of questions about the Weasleys and the Potters and everyone else she’d read about. Besides, it wasn’t as if her story was any better. There was still a prophecy and a war and tons of innocent people killed.
But there was also Annabeth. The thought of the other demigod drew a smile from her. “She was seven at the time, just run away from home. She was hiding in an alley, from monsters, when Luke - when Luke and I found her.” She barrelled on despite the hitch at the mention of Luke. “Anyway, we kinda adopted her and that was kinda it. She’s a Daughter of Athena so she was the brains of our outfit. And she loves to read. Anything and everything she could get her hands on.”
Hugo didn’t feel sorry for Thalia, but he did empathize. Pity didn’t do anyone any good, but connection did. Empathy, in his opinion, was humanity. He didn’t understand people who thought any other way, but, then again, he was raised in a different time than his elders. “That all sounds rough,” he said as he followed her. “But you seem okay. How’s that? You made of tough material?” He noticed some change in her demeanor as she spoke, but, still, it wasn’t like she broke down. He meant what he said; he thought she was made of good stock.
Thalia laughed humorlessly. “You kinda have to be, to survive this long as a demigod.” Not that she had, technically, what with the dying and all. But she’d also been up against the entire forces of Hades, so she figured she could claim extenuating circumstances.
“Demigods don’t live long. They usually get killed or eaten by monsters long before they reach thirty.” And from the looks of her, she was barely halfway there. “You learn to deal with it.”
Hugo pretended to be interested in a billboard so he could hide the grimace on his face. Her world sounded horrible. He turned back to ask, “No one is trying to change it? I can just imagine my parents and uncle in that world. They’d go charging off to fix it.”
Thalia was quiet for a moment.
“Someone tried,” she said eventually. She thought of Luke and how he’d started a war, believing it would lead to a better future for demigods. But he’d trusted the wrong person, and ended up killing the very demigods he’d tried to protect. She’d been so angry with him then, but time had allowed her to step back and understand what he’d really been doing: charging off to fix the situation that had gotten her killed. But he didn’t have the kind of script immunity Hugo’s uncle did, where the main characters survived and the war was won. No, they were Greek, and therefore got a Greek tragedy where almost everyone died.
She turned the corner and was faced with another disappointment. “Damn. No BK Jani here.”
Hugo merely nodded, unsure whether he should continue the conversation. He suspected she’d give more detail if she wanted and took it that he should go along with the change in subject. “Blimey,” he said, “Don’t worry, I have a few suggestions I got from people in the building.” He pulled out his cell phone; it was so nice to have a cell phone and not worry about magical interference! It was one of the things he liked best about his mother’s muggle world and definitely a plus in Goodland. “We can try this...Five Guys? Apparently won a bunch of awards.”
Thalia was glad he’d let the conversation go. While Hugo seemed like he’d be a good listener, she wasn’t ready to talk about it yet. It still felt too recent, the wounds too fresh.
Although she was disappointed that her favourite burger place wasn’t here, she was glad he had a backup plan. She leaned over to take a look at the screen, but all her dyslexic brain could make out was “TIve Owys”, so she nodded like she knew exactly what he was saying.
“Yeah, let’s go for it.” This time she let him lead the way, because she definitely wasn’t going to be able to read the directions properly.
“How long have you been here?” An easier topic, after all the heaviness they’d dove right into.
He put on the walking directions and led the way. “Uh, a few weeks. A month maybe?” He lost track even though it seemed like most of the others knew their anniversaries. Hugo just wasn’t that type of person. “This way,” he added, gesturing to a corner. “Ah, there it is!” He pointed to the well known east coast burger joint although he only heard of it that day. “Smells good at least.” He grabbed the door and held it for her. “Apparently I need to get a job,” he added. “What about you? How long?” He asked as he grabbed a menu and headed to the counter to order.
“Yeah, about the same,” Thalia said. “Just under a month.”
She stepped into the burger joint and grinned, her spirits uplifted by the smell of grease. “Okay, this’ll do.” She held up her hand for a high five to show her approval of his choice, then continued. “I guess I should get a job too. My Entity allowance isn’t going to last forever. I just don’t know what I can do. There aren’t many job openings for hunters around here.”
“I’m not exactly qualified for much either. I worked as a sales associate in my uncle’s joke shop back home.” He turned to the cashier and ordered a double cheeseburger all the way with fries and a drink. “What would you like, Thalia? I’ve got it.”
Thalia had told Tony that she didn’t accept food from strangers, but Hugo didn’t feel like a stranger. He was surprisingly easy to talk to, for someone she’d just met. Maybe he was made of good stuff too, as he’d say.
Besides, Thalia had been penniless long enough to take advantage of free food where she could.
“Double cheeseburger too. Large fries, gravy, and a large root beer.”
She might look tiny, but she had the metabolism of a demigod. She burned through calories like nothing.
“I feel like you could be a sales clerk anywhere here,” she said once Hugo had paid and they were waiting for their food. “Transferable skills and all.”
Hugo snorted. “My mum - the one at home, that is - would die if she heard you say that, but it is true. She wants me to get a…” He did air quotes. “Proper career.” Hermione’s concern for his future prompted him to keep his musical aspirations a secret. He had a hunch if “sales clerk” wasn’t a full time career, “struggling musician” wasn’t even on the list of mum-approved life choices.
Thalia made a sympathetic noise. Even if she had no concerned parents being opinionated about her life goals, she fully understood the conflict between trying to live your own life (or, in her case, trying to live at all) and trying to please a parent.
“Did you already have a fight about what she wants to do versus what you want to do? Or is it one of those things where you haven’t brought it up yet because you can’t face her disappointment?”
“The latter, definitely the latter,” he said as their number was called. He took the bags filled with delicious smelling food and carried them to a nearby table. “What’s it like having gods for parents? Besides the dying thing?” Might as well joke about it, right?
Thalia, who had a sense of dark humour herself, didn’t mind the joke. “They’re not exactly involved parents, you know? Like, I saw my dad twice my entire life, and the first time he didn’t even talk to me.”
She took a seat and immediately began rummaging through one of the bags. She was glad Hugo had ordered the same thing as her: she didn’t have to read the label to figure out which was which.
“It’s just what comes with having a godly parent. We get some of their power, but we also get their enemies. And some of our own. Like, the monsters I talked about? They love to eat demigods. And the stronger your godly parent, the more easily they can track you. I basically throw up the equivalent of a flashing neon sign screaming, ‘COME EAT ME I’M DELICIOUS.’”
Hugo nearly choked on his milkshake-dipped fry. “Oh Merlin, Thalia, know I shouldn’t laugh, but…” He pulled a napkin from the dispenser and dabbed his mouth. “Sorry, sorry, but ‘come eat me, I’m delicious’? Your world just might be crazier than mine!”
Thalia shrugged. She wasn’t laughing, although she didn’t fault him for finding the entire thing ridiculous. It was ridiculous. But it was also her reality.
“I was five when the first monsters came for me,” she said matter-of-factly. “Stymphalian Birds. One of them grabbed me in its claws and was about 20 yards up before I managed to bite it hard enough to let go of me. It would’ve ripped off my flesh right down to the bones if it’d gotten me to its nest.”
He wasn’t laughing now; nor was he eating. The hell was wrong with her reality? Granted, he knew his was weird (and apparently fictional to some), but her world seemed downright cruel. “Shite, Thalia, you don’t deserve that sort of place. At all.” He was starting to think maybe there was a reason Goodland existed, after all. “It is good you are here. I mean, first, who would I eat burgers with? But second? Your world doesn’t deserve you. You and me? We’re going to have plenty of adventures here.”
Now that did make Thalia laugh. It had been a long time since she’d had anyone give her such unconditional support.
“No, my world doesn’t deserve me, thank you for acknowledging that.” Hey, she was Zeus’s daughter. Arrogance was in the genes. “But I do need to get back if the Entity would ever listen to me. There’s another war, because there’s always another war, and those monsters aren’t going to kill themselves.”
She took a hearty bite of her burger and spoke around it. “But until then, I’m totally up for adventures.”
But it had also been the best year of her life. She’d had Luke and Annabeth, her little found family of abandoned demigods. It had been them against the world, and no amount of dumpster diving, flea infestations, or Cyclops attacks could take away the warmth and joy she’d felt at having two people she could so unequivocally count on to have her back.
Or so she’d thought, anyway.
Being twelve again, before everything had gone sideways, and in a place where there were no monsters looking to snack on a desperate demigod, had actually been pretty cool. She’d watched TV and built blanket forts with a grown-up Luke, she ate so much chocolate she got sick, and she had been so happily, blissfully aware of the betrayal that had been in her future.
Being back at her real age - forever one day short of 16 - had brought back a weight and sadness Thalia hadn’t even known she’d been carrying.
She was determined to move past it, however. Whatever was going on with the Entity or Goodland or whatever, there was no use in trying to recover a childhood that was long gone. Thalia had to look to the future and figuring out what to do with herself here.
Priorities first: finding a good burger joint. And Hugo didn’t seem like a bad companion to go burger-hunting with. He was fun and easy-going, and definitely didn’t come with the baggage of having tried to poison her before.
Thalia, always the punctual sort, was waiting in the lobby before their meeting time, idly twirling a hunting knife between her fingers.
Hugo tended to go with the flow so he had no problem randomly popping up on the network. However, for the most part, he ignored those who de-aged. He wasn’t exactly into kids. Thalia was an exception. He touched base with her before she turned twelve and enjoyed their conversation. She had a touch life, sure, but she didn’t seem to let it bring her down, which Hugo liked about her. He was used to being around strong women at home so perhaps that was why he gravitated toward her; whatever the reason, he was happy to to go on a burger expedition with her.
“Hi,” he said as he approached her. “Not planning on using that on me any time soon, are you?” He flashed a grin.
Thalia smiled back and hopped out of the chair she’d been lounging in. One smooth motion, and the knife was tucked securely in her boot. Normally she’d have it strapped to her thigh for easy access, but this was New York, and an AU one at that. Better safe than to be given grief by cops. That was a pain in the laimós.
“As long as we can find a decent burger, no one will get hurt,” she joked. She gave him an appraising, curious look. “You’re younger than I thought you’d be.”
She hadn’t really had an image of him based on their conversations on the network, but somehow she’d thought he was older. Like, in his 20s.
He raised his eyebrows at the quick movement, but he was awed, not worried. He had his wand tucked in his back pocket, which he likened to Thalia and her knife. He couldn’t really blame her after the stuff she told him about her life at home. “I got suggestions!” He laughed and held his hands up, like he was surrendering to the police. “But we’ll hit your place first,” he added, recalling her mentioning a place in her reality. He was from England so he was really a fish out of water in Goodland; at least people in the states were, well, familiar with the states. “Nineteen,” he admitted. “Although do you think I’m mature? Tell my mum!” He rolled his eyes, thinking what Hermione, the one at home, not the one in Goodland, would think about anyone calling him mature. Granted, Thalia didn’t, she just called him older, but even the hint made him chuckle. “Or was I just annoyingly in your business?”
“Well, maybe not annoyingly so,” Thalia said with a grin. She didn’t deny the “in your business” part, though, cause he kinda had been. Strangely enough, Thalia hadn’t found it offputting when either he or Tony did it. Usually she got defensive - even hostile - when someone started asking questions, but they’d been low-key enough that they hadn’t set off any red flags. They’d almost seemed...genuine. Thalia definitely wasn’t used to that.
She started heading to the door. If this New York was laid out the same way as the New York she knew, she’d know exactly how to get to the little hole-in-the-wall fusion place that was BK Jani. Whether it was actually here in this universe, however, was up in the air.
“You said you had a big overwhelming family,” she continued as they walked. It was much easier communicating face-to-face, when she didn’t have to struggle with spelling. “Are they here?”
Hugo snickered over the “not annoyingly so” bit as he trailed behind her and out into the crisp air. It was getting colder as fall gave way to winter, but it comforted Hugo since the chilly weather reminded him of home.
He exhaled when she mentioned his family. “I’ve no right complaining,” he confessed, “especially considering…” He didn’t finish that thought; he assumed she knew what he meant. His story was nothing compared to hers. “There’s a lot of us,” he continued. “You know...and my parents and uncle and even my grandmother and aunt and…” Darn, a whole lot of his relatives fought in that war, didn’t they? “They are sort of war heroes, especially my parents and my Uncle Harry.” He missed Ron and his sister and his mum at her proper age, but he realized he didn’t miss most of the rest. Would he ever? What sort of person was he?
“War heroes, huh?” Thalia gave him a sidelong look. He didn’t look old enough to have parents who’d fought in the mortal World Wars, so it must’ve been something different.
“Does that give you any pressure? To have them all here, being war heroes and you having to live up to them or something?”
The idea of big families was a foreign one to Thalia. Technically, she had a big family - thanks to her father’s perpetual raging boner - but it didn’t feel like family. It wasn’t like they got together for Thanksgiving every year or anything.
He glanced away. He wasn’t used to talking to strangers about his family. He liked spending time with his muggle grandparents precisely because no one asked about the wars or his famous relatives. However, he knew Thalia meant no harm and, well, she certainly divulged much about herself. He could at least share some of his crap with her.
“They are not all here. Only some of them.” He shrugged. “I’m sort of glad about that.” He blew out his lips, making a slight “raspberry” sound. “Sounds horrible I know. See, I’m a wizard. We have different blood statuses and it can be a big deal to some. Not as much now, but back then…” He shook his head. “Anyway, most of my family fought in the war and defeated a really bad wizard when the world was, well, total shite. My uncle? Harry Potter? Well, he was part of this prophecy about defeating that Dark Lord. And, you know? It came true. Something tells me you can relate to that?”
It was like the entire world stopped in a record screech. Thalia, who’d been walking briskly, suddenly stopped so quickly that the people behind them nearly careened into her. She barely noticed, however; she was too busy staring at him.
“Wait. Hold on. Your uncle is Harry Potter? Back. Up.”
Her mind quickly went over the facts. His name was Hugo. He claimed to be a wizard, and that his uncle was THE Harry Potter. Did Harry Potter have a nephew? He didn’t, in the books that Annabeth had made her and Luke read to her over and over. But there was something about an epilogue, and…
“You’re Hugo Weasley?”
Hugo frowned. He was pretty sure he’d know if gods were waging war in his world, but maybe he missed it? He wasn’t the best student, after all. “Um, how did you…?” He felt deflated. He liked going unrecognized and he especially liked not talking about his uncle.
This was nuts. Thalia had heard that this was an AU where characters who were fictional in her world could be real here, but she hadn’t expected to actually meet one of them. And maybe he hadn’t heard the same, because he didn’t seem to know why she’d know of them, and suddenly this had just gotten a little more complicated than just a burger run.
She wished Annabeth were here - not just because the younger girl was a huge fan of the books, but because she’d probably know what to do at this point: tell the truth, lie or prevaricate.
In the end, she decided to go with the truth. She’d always hated being kept in the dark, and she didn’t think it was fair to do it to anyone else.
“You know how you said your family was war heroes? There are actually books written about them.” She shrugged, almost apologetic. Poor guy, having to hear it from her and not something more diplomatic or something. “Some of those books made it to my AU. Or whatever it’s called.”
“I’m guessing you don’t mean history textbooks?” Hugo was accustomed to those books. He wasn’t used to other people thinking he was fictional. “Wait, how did you know me? I wasn’t around when they were off finding horcruxes.” He started walking again, but stopped short. “And...did you read those books?” The thought was weirder than being in some other dimension.
“You were in the epilogue,” Thalia said, this time definitely apologetic. She herself would hate to be a character in just the epilogue. If she had to be a fictional character in someone’s world, she’d better be the main character and have a whole 16 part opera written about her. After all, her life and accomplishments were pretty epic.
“And yeah, I did. Annabeth, my….friend -” Found sister? Bestie? Niece through their godly parents? “- she’s a big fan of the stories, and she made me read them to her over and over.”
She sounded...he wasn’t sure how to put it, but he didn’t like it. It wasn’t her fault he was some fictional footnote in someone else’s story. “She is younger? How did you become friends?” He began walking again even though he wasn’t sure he was going in the right direction at that point. He was glad to change the subject.
“She was younger, yeah, but now she’s older. This way.” Thalia indicated a turn. She, too, was glad to move on from the awkwardness, even though she had a ton of questions about the Weasleys and the Potters and everyone else she’d read about. Besides, it wasn’t as if her story was any better. There was still a prophecy and a war and tons of innocent people killed.
But there was also Annabeth. The thought of the other demigod drew a smile from her. “She was seven at the time, just run away from home. She was hiding in an alley, from monsters, when Luke - when Luke and I found her.” She barrelled on despite the hitch at the mention of Luke. “Anyway, we kinda adopted her and that was kinda it. She’s a Daughter of Athena so she was the brains of our outfit. And she loves to read. Anything and everything she could get her hands on.”
Hugo didn’t feel sorry for Thalia, but he did empathize. Pity didn’t do anyone any good, but connection did. Empathy, in his opinion, was humanity. He didn’t understand people who thought any other way, but, then again, he was raised in a different time than his elders. “That all sounds rough,” he said as he followed her. “But you seem okay. How’s that? You made of tough material?” He noticed some change in her demeanor as she spoke, but, still, it wasn’t like she broke down. He meant what he said; he thought she was made of good stock.
Thalia laughed humorlessly. “You kinda have to be, to survive this long as a demigod.” Not that she had, technically, what with the dying and all. But she’d also been up against the entire forces of Hades, so she figured she could claim extenuating circumstances.
“Demigods don’t live long. They usually get killed or eaten by monsters long before they reach thirty.” And from the looks of her, she was barely halfway there. “You learn to deal with it.”
Hugo pretended to be interested in a billboard so he could hide the grimace on his face. Her world sounded horrible. He turned back to ask, “No one is trying to change it? I can just imagine my parents and uncle in that world. They’d go charging off to fix it.”
Thalia was quiet for a moment.
“Someone tried,” she said eventually. She thought of Luke and how he’d started a war, believing it would lead to a better future for demigods. But he’d trusted the wrong person, and ended up killing the very demigods he’d tried to protect. She’d been so angry with him then, but time had allowed her to step back and understand what he’d really been doing: charging off to fix the situation that had gotten her killed. But he didn’t have the kind of script immunity Hugo’s uncle did, where the main characters survived and the war was won. No, they were Greek, and therefore got a Greek tragedy where almost everyone died.
She turned the corner and was faced with another disappointment. “Damn. No BK Jani here.”
Hugo merely nodded, unsure whether he should continue the conversation. He suspected she’d give more detail if she wanted and took it that he should go along with the change in subject. “Blimey,” he said, “Don’t worry, I have a few suggestions I got from people in the building.” He pulled out his cell phone; it was so nice to have a cell phone and not worry about magical interference! It was one of the things he liked best about his mother’s muggle world and definitely a plus in Goodland. “We can try this...Five Guys? Apparently won a bunch of awards.”
Thalia was glad he’d let the conversation go. While Hugo seemed like he’d be a good listener, she wasn’t ready to talk about it yet. It still felt too recent, the wounds too fresh.
Although she was disappointed that her favourite burger place wasn’t here, she was glad he had a backup plan. She leaned over to take a look at the screen, but all her dyslexic brain could make out was “TIve Owys”, so she nodded like she knew exactly what he was saying.
“Yeah, let’s go for it.” This time she let him lead the way, because she definitely wasn’t going to be able to read the directions properly.
“How long have you been here?” An easier topic, after all the heaviness they’d dove right into.
He put on the walking directions and led the way. “Uh, a few weeks. A month maybe?” He lost track even though it seemed like most of the others knew their anniversaries. Hugo just wasn’t that type of person. “This way,” he added, gesturing to a corner. “Ah, there it is!” He pointed to the well known east coast burger joint although he only heard of it that day. “Smells good at least.” He grabbed the door and held it for her. “Apparently I need to get a job,” he added. “What about you? How long?” He asked as he grabbed a menu and headed to the counter to order.
“Yeah, about the same,” Thalia said. “Just under a month.”
She stepped into the burger joint and grinned, her spirits uplifted by the smell of grease. “Okay, this’ll do.” She held up her hand for a high five to show her approval of his choice, then continued. “I guess I should get a job too. My Entity allowance isn’t going to last forever. I just don’t know what I can do. There aren’t many job openings for hunters around here.”
“I’m not exactly qualified for much either. I worked as a sales associate in my uncle’s joke shop back home.” He turned to the cashier and ordered a double cheeseburger all the way with fries and a drink. “What would you like, Thalia? I’ve got it.”
Thalia had told Tony that she didn’t accept food from strangers, but Hugo didn’t feel like a stranger. He was surprisingly easy to talk to, for someone she’d just met. Maybe he was made of good stuff too, as he’d say.
Besides, Thalia had been penniless long enough to take advantage of free food where she could.
“Double cheeseburger too. Large fries, gravy, and a large root beer.”
She might look tiny, but she had the metabolism of a demigod. She burned through calories like nothing.
“I feel like you could be a sales clerk anywhere here,” she said once Hugo had paid and they were waiting for their food. “Transferable skills and all.”
Hugo snorted. “My mum - the one at home, that is - would die if she heard you say that, but it is true. She wants me to get a…” He did air quotes. “Proper career.” Hermione’s concern for his future prompted him to keep his musical aspirations a secret. He had a hunch if “sales clerk” wasn’t a full time career, “struggling musician” wasn’t even on the list of mum-approved life choices.
Thalia made a sympathetic noise. Even if she had no concerned parents being opinionated about her life goals, she fully understood the conflict between trying to live your own life (or, in her case, trying to live at all) and trying to please a parent.
“Did you already have a fight about what she wants to do versus what you want to do? Or is it one of those things where you haven’t brought it up yet because you can’t face her disappointment?”
“The latter, definitely the latter,” he said as their number was called. He took the bags filled with delicious smelling food and carried them to a nearby table. “What’s it like having gods for parents? Besides the dying thing?” Might as well joke about it, right?
Thalia, who had a sense of dark humour herself, didn’t mind the joke. “They’re not exactly involved parents, you know? Like, I saw my dad twice my entire life, and the first time he didn’t even talk to me.”
She took a seat and immediately began rummaging through one of the bags. She was glad Hugo had ordered the same thing as her: she didn’t have to read the label to figure out which was which.
“It’s just what comes with having a godly parent. We get some of their power, but we also get their enemies. And some of our own. Like, the monsters I talked about? They love to eat demigods. And the stronger your godly parent, the more easily they can track you. I basically throw up the equivalent of a flashing neon sign screaming, ‘COME EAT ME I’M DELICIOUS.’”
Hugo nearly choked on his milkshake-dipped fry. “Oh Merlin, Thalia, know I shouldn’t laugh, but…” He pulled a napkin from the dispenser and dabbed his mouth. “Sorry, sorry, but ‘come eat me, I’m delicious’? Your world just might be crazier than mine!”
Thalia shrugged. She wasn’t laughing, although she didn’t fault him for finding the entire thing ridiculous. It was ridiculous. But it was also her reality.
“I was five when the first monsters came for me,” she said matter-of-factly. “Stymphalian Birds. One of them grabbed me in its claws and was about 20 yards up before I managed to bite it hard enough to let go of me. It would’ve ripped off my flesh right down to the bones if it’d gotten me to its nest.”
He wasn’t laughing now; nor was he eating. The hell was wrong with her reality? Granted, he knew his was weird (and apparently fictional to some), but her world seemed downright cruel. “Shite, Thalia, you don’t deserve that sort of place. At all.” He was starting to think maybe there was a reason Goodland existed, after all. “It is good you are here. I mean, first, who would I eat burgers with? But second? Your world doesn’t deserve you. You and me? We’re going to have plenty of adventures here.”
Now that did make Thalia laugh. It had been a long time since she’d had anyone give her such unconditional support.
“No, my world doesn’t deserve me, thank you for acknowledging that.” Hey, she was Zeus’s daughter. Arrogance was in the genes. “But I do need to get back if the Entity would ever listen to me. There’s another war, because there’s always another war, and those monsters aren’t going to kill themselves.”
She took a hearty bite of her burger and spoke around it. “But until then, I’m totally up for adventures.”