I stared down at Annabeth's exsanguinated body, half-hoping she would get up, or that Terese would revive her, just to gloat. But nothing happened.

"What a waste of perfectly good materials," Lady Sinclair said, before turning to her remaining daughter. "You fought well and recruited a powerful ally, I can think of no one else who could eventually inherit my position."

"Thank you, Mother." Terese replied with a blood-stained smile. "The services you've provided our coven are well appreciated."

"However," she continued, smearing some of the blood from her wounds into eight floating arrays at once, "I believe a more direct approach will be needed right now, so you will be moved to a more advisory position."

"You can't be serious!" Her mother shouted, looking around for support. Unfortunately, every other witch was either looking at Terese with awe, or keeping their head down.

"You could always duel me for it?" Terese teased.

"No I- I understand." Lady Sinclair grit her teeth and awkwardly bowed. "I will serve, daughter."

"Perfect. Genie, follow me to my new offices, we have much to discuss."

---

I sat numbly in the chair across from Terese, who was rifling through the drawers of her mother's desk while mumbling to herself.

I felt tricked, I thought Terese was some poor girl who needed my help. Well she may have needed my help, but she was just as cut-throat as the other witches, maybe more. All I did was install another tyrant.

"Aha!" Terese exclaimed, pulling out a familiar piece of plain paper. "I knew my mother had one of these! Genie, I would like to broker a deal."

"If you don't start calling me by my fucking name I will find a way to ruin you, Master," I snapped, "I am a person I- was a person before this. Treat me with respect."

"Oh," Terese stared in shock, "I'm sorry, I guess I've been thinking of you like any other Outsider. You were… mortal before? I had no idea genies were mortals."

"I wished for one to be free, this is what happens when you do that," I said, holding up my wrists, "you get a fancy pair of shackles. I thought I was helping a down-on her-luck witch princess, but you are just like your mother."

"My mother drew my blood every day and forced me to regenerate every night! She cut off my fingers!" Terese exploded, "she took my eyes!" Her voice broke, "it was fine, because I could grow them back! And who got them? My sister! My idiotic teenage sister!"

Terese visibly shook with anger and sadness, drops of blood lifting off her dress and setting aflame in mid-air. She seemed to not know whether she wanted to attack or cry.

"We all have trauma, princess," I replied coldly, "how do I know you're going to be any different? What makes you think you won't just continue the cycle?"

"Get back in the necklace Tristan," she ordered.

"With pleasure."

---

Back in my study, I paced rapidly trying to cool off. Outside the window Terese seemed to be having some sort of breakdown after our conversation. She didn't know I could see out of my vessel so it was a more vulnerable moment than I wanted to be part of, and I definitely wasn't trying to feel sorry for the princess

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I waved my hand, turning the view into some mountain somewhere, and sat at my desk. Without prompt, the paper started writing.

Congratulations, thanks to your combat on your Masters behalf you have been rewarded with an extra point!

I sighed and decided to look at what Breaks I had available to distract myself.

Available Breaks:

Shared Domain: gain the ability to invite others into your vessel.(3 points)

Wish Refusal: once per Master, gain the ability to refuse to grant a wish that doesn't violate one of your Anathemas.(3 points)

Balanced Reasoning: gain more points overall when you adopt a detached relationship with your master and mortals in general. In between Masters, your vessel will appear to mortals at random. (3 points) (exclusive)

Philanthropic Reasoning: gain more points overall when helping your Master and performing selfless actions. In between Masters, your vessel will appear before mortals in need.(3 points)(exclusive)

Entropic Reasoning: gain more points overall when taking an adversarial stance towards mortals, and twisting your Master's words. In between Masters, your vessel will appear before selfish mortals.(3 points)(exclusive)

Odd, a reinforced genie-alignment set of Breaks, along with the previous two I rejected. I immediately rejected Entropic Reasoning. What kind of hypocrite would I be if I used my trauma as an excuse to treat people like shit after yelling at Terese about it.

Balanced Reasoning was appealing, after all I would have to deal with mortals forever, this way I wouldn't have to get invested in them as much. It's the logical choice.

I circled Philanthropic Reasoning.

Try as I might, I couldn't get rid of the moral compass that was burned into me by years of soup kitchens and kind neighbors. There was plenty of bad in the world, I'll be damned if I'm not going to do what good I can.

"Tristan?" Terese's somber voice rang through the house, "can I talk to you?"

I coalesced outside. Terese still sat across from me with red-rimmed eyes. We just sat for a minute, before eventually she cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry, Tristan," she started quietly, "I just felt like I needed to show them, like I needed power. But you're right, that's all my mother and sister ever wanted too. I don't want to be like my mother, or sister, but I do need to run my family, they've been sacrificing mortals and Gifted left and right, and I want to change directions."

She took a deep breath and looked me in the eyes.

"I do want to broker a deal for my family, but know that my last wish is yours." She pointed at the parchment-like sheet of paper on the table, "this is a Contract, one of the only magic items that work on your kind. With it we can negotiate wishes without the typical vessel method."

"I thought that's what that was," I shrugged, "I have one myself."

"Then you know how they work," she replied. "I propose a deal: one wish a year for my coven, and in return we'll keep this city as mortal friendly as possible. In addition, you'll be an honored guest whenever you're here. Deal? This would not be a wish from me, but a Contracted deal with the Sinclair witches."

I thought about it for a moment before replying.

"What is your third wish going to be?"

"That's easy, I want the coven to be unable to betray its leadership. I might be powerful, but the right poison in my sleep kills the same."

"Deal then," I said, "on one condition, your third wish must extend that loyalty oath to all future leadership as well, and my position as an honored guest must be included in the oath. It will be included in this deal."

She bit her lip and considered for a while before pulling it a knife to prick herself with.

"Allow me," I said.

I touched the Contract, and it began to fill with a very familiar dark pink cursive. It simply stated everything we agreed on, with a small warning at the bottom for Terese as one of her wishes was included in the terms.

We both signed, me in ink and Terese in blood. The Contract disappeared in a puff of glittery ash, but I could feel it like a sixth sense in my spirit, telling me that we were both bound.

"My fourth wish is yours, Tristan, what will you use it for?"

I smiled, because I already had an idea.

"I wish you well"

At first I wandered if it was too vague, but then my hand snapped of its own accord and power thrummed through me like usual. Only this time there was more, a finality that started to pull me soul-first towards my locket.

"Goodbye for now Tristan," she said, beaming. "Where should I put the locket?"

"Just stuff it in a normal drawer or throw it away, don't try to keep it," I replied back. "Bye, princess."

And I was pulled back into my vessel.