| The Rising Moon: The Awakening of a Demi-Goddess |

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 ⚠️ Instead of writing a vocabulary word, I'd like to say that there is a trigger warning in the chapter. There is both Child Abuse and a bit of eating disorder, as I stated in the Author's Note (1). If you are uncomfortable, please click off. Other than that, Enjoy! ⚠️

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They shadow traveled back, and exhaustion was threatening to make Nico pass out. She immediately healed him, which wasn't a very smart move. She had basically healed someone twice and stayed up a full 24 hours, so exhaustion wasn't even the right word to describe how she was feeling.

I hope everyone else is still sleeping, she tiredly thought. Unluckily for her, they were all awake. And unfortunately, looking at them. It seemed to be breakfast time, because Jason was stuffing French toast in his mouth when they shadow traveled right in front of him.

"WHAT THE- SON OF HADES!" Jason yelled, tipping back his chair in shock and falling over. Nico shrugged his shoulders, already fully healed.

"Yep, that's me, son of Hades" He said nonchalantly. Annabeth slammed her hands on the table, glaring at the two of them.

"Where have you two been? Both of your rooms were empty this morning! You can't just-" She was cut off as Celeste dropped her second, smaller bag of desserts she had saved. Percy peered at it, an eyebrow quirked up.

"Is that.. tiramisu?" He asked, looking at it with a sudden interest. Celeste waved her hand, shooing him off.

"Don't eat it all. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to go catch up on the sleep I lost;" She said, giving a large yawn. Before Annabeth could oppose, she stepped out and walked to her room, locking the door behind her. The sleep washed over her instantly.

"What were you THINKING?!" Her mother screamed at her. They weren't in a café anymore. Now they were in their old house, the blood and broken glass all over the floor.

"I- I was just-"

"No! You think that you can just DISOBEY me?! Run off like that? You insufferable BRAT! James would listen to me!" Her mother screamed at her, then picking up a bottle of wine. Before Celeste could react, the bottle collided with her head, the sharp pain slashing as the shards of glass flew. The pain was beyond measurable as she saw the blood slowly start to trickle. This is just a dream, just a dream, she whispered to herself. A coy smile tugged at her mothers lips.

"Except it's not. Every bruise, every scratch, will all be there as a reminder. For your punishment," Her mother said snakily. Celeste froze, her fingers trembling.

"No," she whispered.

"Yes," Her mother said deviously. Celeste knew she couldn't fight back. It was too horrifying. Her mother picked up another bottle, and shifted- her features changing- into Portia. She raised the glass bottle up high, and struck.

Hours and hours of torture, blood, bruises, and pain made Celeste nauseous. Her dreams had always been short; why had this one had to be long? She let out another scream of pain, collapsing to the ground. Her vision turned blurry.

"You're waking up, you pathetic nuisance. Listen to what I tell you, child, or else the next time you sleep, it will be Tartarus," Her mother/Portia whispered.

Celeste shot up, her breathing rapid and her heart thumping. She felt her forehead. The blood was trickling, just like that... that thing promised. And she was powerless against it.

She stood up, but her legs wobbled and she collapsed to the ground, a pool of blood underneath her. No, she took a shallow breath, not willing to succumb to the exhaustion, fearing it was death.

She stripped herself of her clothes and looked at every bruise, scratch, gashes, and tears. It also felt like she had broken her ankle.

If the others found out... no, I have to keep this a secret. She would oblige to the voice. Distance herself. Or else... she may night survive. Using a first aid kit, she cleaned the wounds that she could, tried her best to cover up the bruises, and tried her best to look normal. Her ankle felt like burning fire though. She stumbled, the tears forming as they slid down her cheeks. Don't cry! Don't cry, you disappointment! She grabbed her scissors and slashed her palm, forcing herself to stay strong. The blood trickled out, and she let out a breath. She was in the middle of cleaning the cut she made when she heard a knock on her door. She stood up, pain spiraling all over her body.

"Come in," She croaked, plastering her best fake smile. Out of all the people, Leo had to be the one there. He just wants to make a fool out of you. They all do! Don't listen to him! The voices said harshly.

"Hey Celes- Is that blood?" He asked, pointing to the pool of red liquid on the floor. She silent cursed, forgetting to clean up the mess that the voices had inflicted on her.

"N-no. That's just red ink from my pen. I accidentally broke it," She lied to him, biting her tongue. He gave her a skeptical look before gesturing towards the hallway.

"You've been in here all day, it's dinner. Annabeth is going to chew you out, so better get ready," He joked. She didn't find any amusement in it.

"I'm not hungry," She said coldly, turning away from him. Yes, push them away. Do not trust anyone, the voices pressured. He gave her a confused look before reaching out to her, which caused her to flinch and punch him in the nose.

"Hey! What was that for?" He yelled, rubbing his nose. She gave him a bitter glare, rubbing her knuckles.

"I'm not hungry," She repeated, not wanting to socialize. Good job, good job. Let them know you for who you are, not who they think you are, the voices congratulated her. For some reason, it made her feel more whole, more enlightened. He frowned.

"Celeste, you can't just not eat. You have to-"

"Just send someone to bring me food if you're so worried!" She snapped at him, not wanting to converse. He looked at her, surprise and fear flashing in his eyes, before he numbly nodded and stepped out of her room. She locked the door and placed the back of her head on the wall, listening to the voices.

Good job, child. Do not listen to all of their feeble attempts to become 'friends' with you. Or else... the voice trailed of ominously, and she shuddered, then picked herself off the wall. She pulled out a few napkins she had and started to clean the blood on the floor, scrubbing vigorously. Once that was done, she closed her eyes, her back leaned against the bed, and tried to calm herself down.

"Celeste? Are you in there?" She heard Piper call out. She stumbled towards the door, her ankle burning, and reluctantly opened the door.

"I- uh- got you your-"

"Thanks," she said numbly and closed the door, not bothering a conversation. She stared at the food; the cheese, bread, steak, and grapes suddenly unappetizing. A tear plopped down. She placed the food on her table and curled up on her bed, more depressed than she had ever been.