Still, it seems a little risky to trust my fate to a bunch of sparkly things no one else in my family could even see, so I pause for a few seconds, ears straining for the sound of laughter or clapping or even the raised voice of a teacher to justify following the sparkles onto the gravel trail. But there’snothing, just the sound of a waterfall coming from somewhere close by and the rumble of thunder in the distance.
Which means if I don’t hurry, I’ll add “soaking wet” to all the other strikes I already have against me.
As if they realize I’m not following, the sparkles rush back toward me. They whirl around me several times before taking off down the left side of the fork again. Apparently, they really, really, really want me to go in that direction.
And still I’m paralyzed with indecision—I can’t afford to make the wrong choice here. Doubling back will take even more time.
Then, just as I’m about to blindly choose a direction, I see a boy walk out of the trees about a hundred yards in front of me.
He’s tall, with shaggy hair, and though his back is to me and I can’t see his face, his lean, rangy build tells me he’s a student, not a teacher. His height—a few inches taller than Paris even after he had a major growth spurt this summer—makes me think he’s an upperclasser, maybe even a fifth or sixth year.
He’s dressed in all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black boots. Even his hair is black, and so is the long cord he’s got wrapped around his left wrist.
Definitely a Hades boy, then—they’re the only ones who dress like that.
A strange shiver runs through me at the thought, a subliminal warning that this boy could be dangerous.
I ignore it as I start running down the grassy path afterhim. It’s a school mandate—more knowledge from Mom and Dad—that all students attend the opening day festivities, no matter what grade they’re in. Which means he must be heading for the amphitheater.
The sparkles wrap around me, try to convince me to go in the other direction. But I ignore them, too, as I run even faster. If I can catch up to this guy, not only will I figure out where I’m going, but maybe, just maybe, I won’t have to walk into the opening session alone.
A Hades boy is better than nothing at all.
He’s not exactly running, but he’s still moving fast enough that it takes me a couple minutes to get close to him.
“Hey!” I shout, once I’m sure I’m within hearing distance.
He doesn’t stop, doesn’t pause, doesn’t give any indication that he’s heard me at all. Which only makes me yell louder.
“Hey, wait! Can I ask you something?” Still nothing, so I pick up my speed even more. “Hello? Can you hear me?”
He finally stops and turns around to stare at me with eyes as dark and green and mysterious as the forest all around us.
They give me a jolt, as does my first glimpse of his face.
He’s younger than I thought—fourteen or fifteen instead of seventeen or eighteen. Plus he’s really good-looking, especially for a Hades boy.
High cheekbones, a ridiculously perfect nose, deep-bronze skin, and a full mouth that’s currently twisted into a smirk that rides right along the border between amused and obnoxious.
“Hard not to when you’re shouting loud enough to wake the entire Underworld,” he answers wryly.
See? Definitely a Hades boy.
“So why didn’t you answer me then?” He opens his mouth for what I can only guess is another snarky comment, so I just keep talking over him. No one has time to wade through his Underworld attitude right now, least of all me. “Never mind, it’s not important. Can I come with you?”
“Comewithme?” Now the second brow goes up. “You don’t even know where I’m going.”
“The amphitheater, right? For the first-day assembly.” I start to add more, but I’m distracted by the sparkles that are suddenly back in full force. Except instead of swirling around me, this time they are literally swarming him. Dancing around his head, his shoulders, his hips, his feet, like moths around a flame. Or bugs around one of those electric zappers.
Not that he notices. Then again, with the way he looks, he’s probably used to getting swarmed by a lot more than a few brightly colored sparkles.
Not that I care about how he looks—no, this conversation is all about getting directions and only directions, thank you very much. Under normal circumstances, Athena girlsdo notmix with Hades boys…or at least, that’s what my dad always says.
“The first-day assembly started fifteen minutes ago,” he answers as a whole set of sparkles dances along his razor-sharp jawline. “And no, that is absolutely not where I’m going.”
My stomach plummets to somewhere in the vicinity of my ankles. “But everyone has to go. It’s the rules.”
“That’s only if the rules apply to you,” he counters, his smirk growing more pronounced even as he points behind me. “See that giant tree over there? The one with the broken limb? If you take the path to the left of it, it’ll lead you straight there.”
