I felt something touch my arm and I looked down. I was surprised to see that it was Hestia Loon. She gripped my wrist firmly and said in a fierce whisper, “You are not to step one foot inside the quad with the likes of Ladon-Tosh. Not one foot, mind you, Vega. Your poor mum. Why, she would never have allowed it. And since she’s not here to speak up for herself, I will. I’ll talk to bloody Thansius himself if I must, but you are not fighting that … that thing.”