I spotted Kris standing by the refreshment table with a tall, blond, wannabe-surfer dude who wore an unusual gold-band necklace. Kris introduced him as Damian Tavoularis. He was from Sydney, Australia, and he was Hera’s descendant. At first, he struck me as an okay guy, but I soon changed my mind as he ignored me whenever I spoke and would jump in when Kris tried to turn the conversation my way. I imagined he had decided that a measly Regular wasn’t worth his time, just like those other girls had.

“I mean, the Gathering is great, and our queen is so thoughtful to have this in the Hyped so Regulars can join in, but I still think it would be better if Royals and Regulars had separate Gatherings. We could have ours in the Royal Quarters; Regulars could stick to the Hyped. The Hyped is so boring in comparison. Besides, it would be less crowded, and you wouldn’t have to force yourself to mingle with them. That’s why the Olympians reside on Olympus while the minor gods and goddesses live elsewhere, right?”

Damian was obnoxious.

I couldn’t put up with him anymore. I’d already made a scene once tonight with my already-famous chalice moment, and I knew if I stayed any longer I might cause another scene by arguing with this douchebag. The fact that some Royals believed they were above everyone else pissed me off. Did it really matter which god’s lineage you were a part of?

He opened his mouth and started talking about how a line must be drawn between Royals and Regulars so we’d know our place. Ignoring him, I asked Kris if she wanted to go to the bathroom and she quickly accepted. Kris, polite to a fault, informed Damian how sorry she was that she had to cut it short, but she needed to find her brother.

“Okay, I don’t actually need to go to the bathroom,” I said once we had enough distance between the sulking Damian and us. “I do need some fresh air, though. Do you want to go outside?”

Kris shook her head. “I wasn’t lying. I really need to find Vlad. He should’ve arrived thirty minutes ago.”

“Okay. You go find your brother. I’ll be outside.” I pushed through the crowd, which was halfheartedly moving in time to the blaring music, and found my way to the courtyard.

In the wintery mountain air it felt like a different world altogether. I hadn’t realized how nauseated I had felt closed in with all the others. Out here I could see the tree in the middle of the courtyard. I was interested to see if any more flowers had grown since the Awakening Ceremony. I wondered how many newly Awakened were inside having clicks as they chatted up their soul mates.