#[wakes up in a cold sweat] I need to put Percy in a “snap my choker” shirt now [goes back to sleep]

[vitrificvitriol]

You can't just leave food lying around, Dead End. Someone else is gonna come in and eat it when you're away

[comfortwriting]

A Summer Secret Part 4 - F.W

Masterlist, Requesting Rules, Writing Prompt Masterlist

Fred Weasley x Fem Reader

Part 4 of my mini-series 'a summer secret', please read parts 1, 2, and 3 - want to be tagged? Let me know!

Warnings: 18+, swearing, eating, mention of food.

Gideon and Fabian lifted your body into their arms, the loose bedsheet covering your breasts and sex, taking you to your room, they set you down on the bed and pulled the covers over you, waiting eagerly for you to wake up and tell them everything.

George stared at his older brother glaring at him, his patience wearing thin for him to wake up, he felt pissed off, embarrassed, concerned, how could he do this to you?

Fred's eye fluttered open, he yawned and rubbed his eyes, still expecting you to be there despite the bed being much cooler on your side.

"What the fuck were you thinking, Freddie?" George growled lowly.

Fred jumped up and pulled the covers over his bare chest, "George I-"

"Are you out of your bloody mind! She's eighteen! My sons best friend, you surely cannot think that pursuing a girl this young to be a good idea!"

"I-I, George we never meant to - it's nothing serious." Fred stuttered, finding it hard to pull himself together.

"Well, it's a good job she's off back home tomorrow! It will do her good to be away from you!"

Fred's heart jolted at the thought of you going back home to your parents who wanted nothing more than to send you off to Scorpius to get married - Fred didn't know why, but the thought of you with someone else made him slightly jealous, but why? You aren't exactly his...

"Home?!" Fred freaked "She can't go home!"

"Yes! She isn't staying under this roof with you! And until your plumber gets his shit together, you won't be going anywhere!"

You too were scared, holding the bed covers over you, Gideon and Fabian staring at you with grins on their faces.

"Go on," Fabian started "tell us everything."

You sighed, trying to swallow down the nerves with some water "we just, it just, it just happened out of nowhere, I didn't realise until after..."

You couldn't deny how painful it was to go through the memories, each intimate one of you dancing with him in little to no clothing, flour all over the kitchen floor, taking showers together, the nights you shared cuddling up on the sofa...

"But it's nothing serious," you reminded them, and yourself "just a summer fling."

Gideon smirked "I can't believe you were sleeping with our uncle! Ha!"

"And to think you were going to marry a Malfoy!" laughed Fabian.

Leaving George's and Angelina's manor left you in two minds, one: I'm going to miss Freddie, and two: I'm finally able to get my life together, and my head on straight.

Luckily enough, your impressive job application and CV landed you an apprenticeship at the ministry and you were earning enough to rent an apartment above one of the new pubs in Diagon Alley. The only downside, you found yourself passing Weasley's Wizard Wheezes every day, quickly peeking in the shop window to try and catch a glimpse of the man you fell head over heels for.

After a stressful day at work, you flunked yourself down on your bed, staring up at the plain magnolia ceiling, listening to the loud chatter and cheers from the drunks downstairs enjoying a pint or two. Your owl glided through the window, landing on the foot of your bed, dropping an orange envelope before flying over to your wardrobe, perching on top, watching you.

"Thank you," you sighed, sitting up and reaching for the envelope, slowly opening it.

You froze but continued to read on.

Dear Y/N,

I see you every morning and evening peeking in my window, I still can't figure out why you haven't popped in to say hello - next time, come on in.

Percy mentioned you are working alongside him at the ministry now, I apologise on his behalf because he's annoying and incredibly obnoxious.

I miss you, it's strange cooking without you, my house is silent and dancing to music alone gets lonely - so I thought I'd shoot my shot.

My place, tomorrow night, 9 pm?

Let me know,

see you soon.

- F.W

'I miss you' your fingers traced the words, you felt a smile creep up on your face, your heart pumping enthusiastically, but your head screaming at you, after all, summer is over.

Your heart sunk.

This isn't just a summer fling. Not anymore, and without a care in the world, you took him up on the offer, going against your minds desire.

Meeting Fred felt like the first time all over again, it was as if you never left - you spent most nights with him, and when you had to work overtime and miss out on his company, he would send you letters, your fingers tracing more words of passion and need.

Fred couldn't hide his feelings for you anymore, he couldn't lie to himself, he tossed and turned night after night, feeling lost, not knowing what to do, George's stern lecture replaying in his head.

"Are you out of your bloody mind! She's eighteen! My sons best friend, you surely cannot think that pursuing a girl this young to be a good idea!"

You stared at yourself in the mirror, putting on the burnt amber lipstick you knew Fred loved, hearing him apparate outside, you bid goodnight to your owl and hurried down the stairs, breaking out into the cold night.

George and Angelina were hosting this years Christmas dinner, they invited everyone - including you, and this was the perfect opportunity for you to come clean to Fred, to put all your cards on the table and finally take the next step in your relationship, after all, you were both on the same page, right?

"You look beautiful," Fred smiled, his eyes taking in your skirt, your turtleneck, makeup and hair.

You blushed "Thanks Freddie, shall we get going?"

Out of breath and feeling slightly travel sick, you hunched over in the front garden down the path, trying to catch your breath before a long evening of eating, drinking, and conversation.

Fred waited with you, stroking your back gently, the cold air nibbling at his cheeks, turning them pink and numb.

Standing up, Fred decided to walk down the path but you grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back slowly.

"Wait - Freddie," you breathed out.

"What is it?" he asked, staring into your eyes.

"Well," you sighed "we're turning up here together, and..." you paused "obviously this isn't just a fling, we agreed just for the summer and it's Christmas day, surely we ought to-"

Fred's face dropped "Y/N, I understand what you're trying to say but no - we can't."

'I miss you'

but I don't want you.

'Stay the night, I don't want to be alone'

but you aren't good enough to be with me all the time.

"What?!" you choked out, "Fred, you told me-"

"I know what I told you," he snapped "but this isn't right."

Tears filled your eyes, your voice wobbly, your throat tight "Why? I don't understand-"

Fred became impatient, rolling his eyes at you "You're too young for me, Y/N, it's wrong for us to be seeing each other like this -"

You clenched your fists "So what the fuck are we doing then?" you snapped back "You told me you missed me, that you had feelings for me, you wanted me to stay the night after we had sex, and now you don't want to be with me?"

"I'm allowed to express what I want, Y/N."

You scoffed "I know that Fred, but you're leading me on..." the lump in your throat expanded in size, realising what you had just said, "How dare you, Fred Weasley!"

You stormed away from Fred, inching closer and closer to the house.

"I'm not leading you on, Y/N!" Fred muttered, following behind.

You stopped in your tracks, turning to face him "So what is it, then?"

Fred didn't answer.

Molly eager to meet you and see her son became impatient, walking over to the window she spotted the two of you, anger and hurt spread across your faces, the two of you arguing, pointing fingers and shaking your heads.

George noticed his mother withdrawing from the conversation, he slowly approached her and before he could ask what was wrong, he too noticed you and Fred arguing, you crying and Fred standing there, breaking your heart piece by piece.

"I warned him," George grumbled, starting to sweat in his Christmas jumper.

Molly turned around to face him, "what are you talking about, George?"

"Nothing," he sighed "Let's set the table..."

Your cold cheeks felt warm stripes of tears roll down, stripping away your mascara and powder, "Do you want to be with me or what?" you demanded.

Fred swallowed the lump of his own, his palms itching, he knew what he wanted - you - but he also remembered what his brother told him, and the guilt was eating him alive.

"Y/N, we can't-"

"Then never talk to me again," you hissed "I refuse to be used for a shag!"

taglist: @alwaysnforeverfangirl @horrorxweasley @xmalfoyweasleyx @onlyfreds @lucymfer @holyheadharpies99 @uniquebelievercrown @becks7401 @opalsheart @amwitherspoon @whatsup-200 @avatarkanemi @manuosorioh @lina1945 @freddiemylovelg @reeophidian @inglourious-imagines 

[knuffled]

Just Practice - Chapter 15

this is the most important chapter in the story so far since chapter seven, so i hope you enjoy this! if you could drop a comment and/or reblog to support all the hard work, it would mean a lot to me! 

here’s the ao3 link

The first thing that greeted Annabeth when she stepped out of her car was the sound of crashing waves and the smell of sea salt carried on a gentle breeze. She leaned against the side of her car and drank in the view of the ocean, relishing in the way the wind tousled her hair. The beach was packed with families and college students on spring break, and for good reason. It was late March, and the weather was absolutely perfect outside. The sand was pleasantly warm between her toes, and seagulls cawed overhead in a clear blue sky.

Coming to the beach for spring break had been Rachel’s idea. Her father owned a villa not far from the shore, and she had offered to let them all stay there overnight. It was exactly what Annabeth needed after the past month and a half. After Percy’s victory at state, Annabeth had been absolutely swamped with school work. Nearly every week there was some new project deadline, essay to turn in, or exam to study for, and by the time finals rolled around, Annabeth found herself running on fumes. She hadn’t realized how bad it was until she came home after her final exam and promptly passed the fuck out in her room only to wake up the following afternoon, seventeen hours later.

Annabeth gave herself some time to just stand barefoot in the sand until Piper texted her, informing her that she and Jason were setting up camp further down the beach where it was more secluded. Taking that as her cue to move, Annabeth leisurely made her way down the beach and found Piper and Jason a few minutes later, trying to set up a beach umbrella. The umbrella was an ancient red and white striped monstrosity that looked like it had seen better days. Annabeth watched her friends struggle for a while, amused by how frustrated they were getting when the base of the umbrella slipped in the sand, until Piper noticed her and scowled.

“Are you just gonna stand there and watch or do you plan on helping out?” Piper huffed.

“But you were doing oh so well without me,” Annabeth said innocently. “I wouldn’t want to get in the way or anything.”

Jason put a hand on Piper’s shoulder before she could snap and offered Annabeth a tired smile. “We could really use your help, Annabeth.”

“Well, since you asked so nicely.”

Piper muttered something foul under her breath, but Annabeth couldn’t help grinning anyways before she went to help Jason. It took longer than she would have liked, but eventually the three of them managed to get the umbrella to stay in place, just as Hazel, Frank, and Leo arrived.

Leo pointed at the umbrella and said, “That thing looks like it came straight out of the fifties.”

“Shut it, Valdez,” Piper snapped. “We just spent nearly twenty minutes trying to get that fucker to stay still.”

Leo held his palms up in surrender. “Ok, apologies. Looks like someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. I get it. It’s cool.”

“That wasn’t an invitation to keep talking,” Piper warned.

Leo pantomimed zipping his lips, making Annabeth grin. Rolling her eyes, Hazel unzipped her backpack and handed each of them a bottle of homemade lemonade.

“Hopefully, it’s still cold and all the ice didn’t melt,” Hazel said.

Piper took a sip and moaned, “Hazel, you’re a goddamn lifesaver.”

“Don’t make noises like that in public,” Annabeth quipped.

Although she wanted to glare at Annabeth, Piper spotted Rachel and Percy further down the beach and called out to them instead. Annabeth’s heart suddenly began pounding harder in her chest, and she found herself involuntarily searching for him over her shoulder. They had barely talked or even seen each other since State, so she had expected to be more excited to see him, but she found herself strangely nervous instead. The nervousness only grew worse for some reason when Percy noticed her and sent her a warm smile.

“Sorry we’re late,” Percy said. “Rache forgot something so we had to drive back to her place.”

“Let’s not sweat the details,” Rachel said, waving her hand dismissively. “Now, I don’t know about you all, but I am dying to get into the water. Anyone know where the changing rooms are?”

“I saw some on the way here,” Hazel said. “Annabeth, did you want to join us?”

Annabeth cleared her throat and shook her head. “Uh, no, I’m wearing my swimsuit under my clothes already.”

With that, Hazel nodded and left with Rachel for the changing rooms. The boys went down to the water, but Percy stayed behind since he had brought some beach towels with him. He spread them beneath the umbrella so they wouldn’t have to sit on the sand. Piper left a short while later once she was done applying some sunscreen, leaving Annabeth and Percy alone. Annabeth borrowed Piper’s sunscreen as an excuse to leave after Percy did, but he plopped down beside her with a sigh instead.

Annabeth couldn’t help sneaking a quick sidelong glance at him. He looked good, really good. His unzipped black sweatshirt billowed in the breeze and stood in sharp contrast to the white shirt he wore underneath. There was a relaxed, easy smile on his face, and his sun-kissed skin made him look positively radiant.

“Hey, stranger,” Percy said, derailing her thoughts. “Haven’t seen you in a hot minute.”

Annabeth tucked her hair behind her reddening ears and said, “Y-Yeah, not since State, I think.”

“Glad to see you’re still in one piece,” Percy said.

Annabeth breathed a laugh. “Not entirely sure about that.”

Percy cocked his head to the side and studied her. “You do look a little worse for the wear.”

“Rude.”

“And who’s fault is that?” Percy asked, raising an eyebrow. “I distinctly remember warning you not to take three AP courses your senior year, but you wouldn’t listen to me.”

Annabeth scowled and said, “You don’t have to sound so smug about it.”

Percy laughed and leaned back on his elbows. “And what would be the fun in that? It’s not every day that you get to tell Annabeth Chase that you told her so.”

“Someone sure sounds awfully pleased with himself.”

“Oh, believe me, I am,” Percy said, grinning. “But I do suppose I can cut you some slack. You know, considering how we’re at the beach and all.”

“How magnanimous of you,” Annabeth deadpanned.

Percy made a show of clapping mildly. “Oh, well done. That sounded like an SAT word.”

Annabeth barked a laugh despite herself and shoved him, but that only made his grin widen. She was relieved to feel the awkwardness dissipating between them, but her respite was short lived because Percy suddenly removed his shirt and tossed it on the towel beside her.

“W-What are you doing? Why are you taking off your clothes?” Annabeth stammered, unable to hide the panic in her voice.

Percy looked at her like she had sprouted a second head. “It’s kind of hard to go swimming when you still have your clothes on.”

Annabeth looked away to hide the fact that her face was turning pink. “I know that! But can’t you go change in the changing rooms?”

Percy blinked in surprise and said, “Oh, sorry. You’ve seen me do this like a hundred times, so I didn’t think that you’d mind.”

He was right. She had seen him shirtless more times than she could count, so why was she suddenly being so weird about it? She needed to get a fucking grip. And yet, it was everything she could do not to stare shamelessly at him. Christ, at this proximity, the scent of his cologne was inescapable, and it only served to make her feel even more flustered.

“Annabeth, are you okay? You’ve been acting really strange,” Percy said.

“I-I’m fine,” Annabeth squeaked. “Just tired.”

“Alright, try not to push yourself,” Percy said, standing up. “I’m gonna head down to the water now. Let me know if you need anything.”

Annabeth nodded, still refusing to look at him. It was only after he was gone that she stopped holding her breath. She screwed her eyes shut and buried her face in her hands. What the fuck was she doing? Why was she acting so weird? All her feelings seemed to contradict one another. She felt a bizarre mix of exhilaration and anxiety, like thousands of butterflies fluttering about in the pit of her stomach. Her eyes were drawn to Percy even though she couldn’t bear to look at him. There was definitely something wrong with her.

Annabeth took a deep breath and forced herself to stand up and head down to the water. For now, she resolved herself to just make the most of her time at the beach instead of wallowing in her own awkwardness. Nevertheless, she did make a point of avoiding where Percy was to give herself a breather. However, in her momentary lapse of concentration, Piper snuck up on her and tackled her into the sea, sending salt water rushing up her nose.

She surfaced sputtering and discombobulated only to find Piper laughing uproariously behind her. Annabeth chased after her in a murderous rage, but Piper quickly retreated to the sea and put some distance between them. Piper had always been the better swimmer, so it took a few minutes before Annabeth finally caught her, but once she did, Annabeth dunked her underwater for a full minute as payback.

Eventually, Rachel and Hazel returned from the changing rooms and joined them in the water as well. They all splashed around together for a few hours under the midday sun, and Annabeth forgot all about how awkward she felt around Percy.

They broke for lunch after that and settled on a shack that sold burgers further up the beach. Unfortunately, the only vegetarian option on the menu was fries, so Piper had to drive herself to a nearby Taco Bell. Annabeth couldn’t help feeling sorry for her when Piper returned twenty minutes later, absolutely livid, because the rest of them had already finished eating.

“I can’t fucking believe there are still restaurants in this day and age that don’t have vegetarian options,” Piper fumed.

“Remind me to buy some stuff for dinner tonight so you don’t have to do this again,” Rachel said, yawning.

“How far away is your villa again?” Frank asked.

“Just a fifteen minute drive or so,” Rachel said, finishing her salad. “We’ve got a firepit out back, so we can have a bonfire tonight! We can make smores and everything.”

“Dibs on lighting the bonfire,” Leo said quickly.

“Abso-fucking-lutely not,” Piper said vehemently.

“C’mon, I promise I’ll keep it under control this time, Pipes,” Leo pleaded.

“The last time you were in charge of the bonfire, you nearly burned my fucking house down,” Piper snapped.

“That was like three years ago!”

“It was at my birthday last June.”

“I’ll handle the fire, Leo,” Jason interrupted. “You can help me out if you’d like.”

Leo sank in his seat and crossed his arms over his chest. “You guys are no fun.”

“A bonfire sounds nice,” Frank said, ignoring him.

“Yeah, it’ll be chill,” Rachel said, nodding. “We’ll have a section of the beach all to ourselves. I think my dad probably has some alcohol stashed away somewhere in the house.”

“Percy, watch over us and make sure we don’t do anything stupid,” Piper said, throwing an arm around his shoulder.

Percy gave her a wary look. “I don’t recall volunteering to be a babysitter.”

“But you’re the only one here that doesn’t drink,” Piper protested. “Pretty please?”

Percy raised an eyebrow. “Buttering me up isn’t going to work, you know.”

“Annabeth, help me convince your boyfriend,” Piper whined.

Annabeth paused mid-drink and looked between them. “Don’t look at me. I’m not the one that’ll get black-out drunk and try to like hunt for mermaids or something.”

That got a laugh out of everyone, much to Piper’s chagrin.

After they finished eating, they returned to their spot under the umbrella. Hazel and Frank went back to laze around in the water while Rachel and Leo decided to go build sandcastles on the beach. The rest of them sat under the umbrella and talked amongst themselves for a while, but eventually Jason left for the bathroom. Percy joined him because he said he had spotted a shop selling snow cones on the way here, leaving Annabeth alone with Piper.

Once they were out of earshot, Piper turned to Annabeth with a wolfish grin. “Lovin’ the swimsuit, babe.”

“This is hardly anything special,” Annabeth said, rolling her eyes. She was just wearing a plain black two piece she’d found at Target the summer before.

Piper raised an eyebrow and said, “Percy certainly seemed to think it was. Boy couldn’t take his eyes off you.”

Annabeth blinked in surprise. Piper had to be trolling her. Sure, she had felt his eyes on her a few times, but that didn’t mean anything.

“You’re obviously fucking with me.”

“I’m being serious,” Piper laughed. “You look hot, Annababe.”

Annabeth looked down at her swimsuit and felt her face heat up. She didn’t really think she was much to look at honestly. It wasn’t like she had low self-esteem or anything, but her body had always been more of an instrument to her than a source of beauty. If you asked her, the only things she really had going for her were her height and the slender, toned physique that she had built over years of running long distance. Beyond that, Annabeth thought she was rather plain.

“Thanks,” Annabeth mumbled.

“You’re welcome,” Piper said, stifling a yawn. “I wonder what’s taking him so long.”

Annabeth shielded her eyes from the sun and scanned the beach for Percy, but she didn’t see him anywhere. Instead of sitting around and getting stuck in her thoughts, Annabeth decided to take her mind off things and search for him instead.

She stood up and brushed the sand off her thighs and said, “I’m gonna go look for him.”

“Ok, stay safe,” Piper said. “I think I’m going to take a nap.”

Annabeth nodded and made her way back in the direction of the parking lot. Percy had said that the snow cone shop was on the other end, but he still should have gotten back by now. Maybe he was having trouble carrying all those snow cones by himself or perhaps the line was really long. She made it all the way to the shop without running into Percy, and she couldn’t see him standing in line either.

She scanned the surrounding area for him without much luck and almost gave up on her search when she spotted the familiar outline of his back. He was cradling a carton of snow cones in his arms and talking to two college aged girls. Annabeth took a step forward, trepidation filling her chest. She couldn’t make out the look on his face because his back was turned towards her, but she thought she caught a glimpse of a polite, confused smile on his face, like he wasn’t entirely sure why the girls were talking to him.

Annabeth balled her hands in fists at her sides and clenched her jaw. It was obvious by the way the girls laughed sycophantically and twirled their hair, practically thrusting their tits in his face, that they were hitting on him. What did the idiot think would happen if he was gonna waltz around the beach shirtless like that?

She had half a mind to go over and interrupt them, but for some reason she found herself rooted in place. Annabeth wasn’t sure why she disliked them so much, but the more she thought about it, the less reason she realized she had to interfere. Percy wasn’t actually her boyfriend after all. Besides, he was free to leave at any time, but he hadn’t which probably meant he wanted to be there. In any case, it was none of her business to step in.

And yet, she couldn’t force herself to simply turn on her heels and leave either.

But then one of the girls, a haughty looking redhead, started tugging on his forearm insistently. Percy made a small show of resistance, enough to show he wasn’t interested, but apparently they didn’t seem to pick up on that because the other girl decided to help her friend by tugging Percy’s other arm.

Annabeth moved without realizing what she was doing and pulled Percy against her chest. A possessive thrill rushed through her when the look of discomfort on his face gave way to relief once he saw her.

She positioned herself in front of Percy and glared at the girls. “What’s going on here?”

The redhead’s eyes flashed with irritation, but she forced herself to muster a saccharine smile. “Oh, we were just inviting him to come have some drinks with us.”

“Can’t you see he’s clearly uncomfortable?” Annabeth asked. “I’m guessing he even told you he doesn’t drink too.”

The girls exchanged looks with each other. “I mean, he was obviously joking about that.”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. “Or maybe you just don’t know how to take no for an answer.”

The girls recoiled like they had been slapped across the face. Annabeth took the opportunity to whisper to Percy that they were leaving and led him away by the hand before the girls could react. The girls protested behind them, but the only thing Annabeth could focus on was the feeling of Percy’s hand in hers. Blood pounded in Annabeth’s ears, and something simmered in her veins like magma. It took her a while to realize that Percy was calling out for her to stop.

“Annabeth, slow down,” Percy said. “You’re hurting me.”

Annabeth dropped his wrist like she’d been burned and looked away. “Sorry.”

Percy set the snow cones down and rubbed his wrist. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“Are you sur-”

“I said I’m fine,” Annabeth snapped.

Her tone was harsh enough to prove she was lying, but she couldn’t help it. Something dark smoldered in the pit of her stomach, making her restless. She didn’t know what it was, but the sensation was intolerable and she wanted it to stop.

Percy put a hand on her shoulder and forced her to face him. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

Annabeth balled her hands into fists and stared at her feet. “I-I don’t know. I’m just- I don’t know, I feel really weird.”

“What do you mean?”

“I just hated it, seeing the way they were clinging on to you,” Annabeth said tightly. “Why didn’t you just leave? It was like you wanted them to fawn all over you.”

“I tried but they wouldn’t let me leave.”

Annabeth met his eyes for the first time. “If you really wanted to leave, they wouldn’t have been able to stop you.”

Percy blinked in surprise and furrowed his brow. “Are you- are you jealous?”

Annabeth crossed her arms over her chest, and her face began to prickle. “I-I don’t know. I just didn’t like it.”

Percy’s lips tugged upwards involuntarily in a smile, making Annabeth even angrier. “What’s so funny?”

Percy hid his smile behind his hand. “Oh, um, nothing. Sorry. I just wanted to say that you didn’t have anything to worry about. They were making me super uncomfortable.”

Annabeth pursed her lips and said, “I find that kind of hard to believe.”

“Annabeth, come on, you could tell that they were creeping the fuck out of me from a mile away,” Percy said exasperatedly.

That was enough to coax a smile out of her. “You mean you didn’t like getting eye fucked by total strangers?”

Percy gave her an incredulous look and said, “You know, having tried it, I can’t really say it’s for me.”

“Yeah?” Annabeth asked, grinning.

“Yes,” Percy said flatly. “Besides, I already have a lovely fake-girlfriend willing to save me when I’m a damsel in distress.”

Annabeth’s heart skipped a beat. “Sounds like a real catch.”

“Oh, she most definitely is.”

Annabeth knew that Percy had meant it as a joke, but it made her heart squeeze a little in her chest all the same. She turned away before her face turned red and fought the ridiculous urge to smile. Christ, she needed to get ahold of herself.

“You good?” Percy asked carefully.

Annabeth nodded. “Yeah.”

“We should get going then,” Percy said. “The snow cones are starting to melt.”

“And who’s fault is that?” Annabeth said, raising an eyebrow.

“Don’t be rude to the guy that bought you a strawberry-rhubarb snow cone.”

“A thousand apologies, your majesty.”

Percy hummed happily to himself. “That’s more like it.”

:::

After sunset, they finally left the beach and made for Rachel’s villa. The villa was massive, easily twice the size of Annabeth’s house, and designed in a Spanish style. Annabeth took a moment to admire the terracotta tiled roof, and the large windows that allowed for a generous view of the Pacific. The villa had six separate bedrooms, which she personally found a bit excessive, but it proved to be for the best since there were eight of them. After Rachel took a room for herself, the rest of them drew straws to determine who would have a room to themselves, and Annabeth somehow managed to win.

Annabeth’s first course of action after dropping off her luggage was to shower. She didn’t like having to shower after spending so much time in the ocean since it made her skin all dry and wrinkly, but it was still a relief to finally wash off all the sand that had stuck to her all day. Unfortunately, Annabeth had been forced to pack in a hurry, so she could only change into what she worn earlier that morning. She had only brought a single change of clothes with her and that was for tomorrow.

She took some time to admire her room while she towel-dried her hair. It wasn’t particularly large, but it was tastefully decorated. A large queen bed sat in the center of the room, flanked by a small cherry wood drawer. Sheer linen curtains framed a tall window that looked out over the ocean. Annabeth leaned against the open window sill and drank in the view of the Pacific. The full moon hung directly overhead and cast its pale, diffused reflection onto the dark water below.

Just as she finished drying her hair, there was a knock at her door. Percy peered into her room, fiddling with the zipper on his sweatshirt.

“Hey, ready to go? I think Jason and Leo are getting the fire started.”

Annabeth set her towel aside and nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.”

The bonfire was nearly fully lit by the time they arrived. Jason sat atop one of the four logs circling the pit and kept a watchful eye on the flames. Off to the side, Frank was helping Leo dump some charcoal into the mouth of an expensive looking barbeque grill. Rachel and Hazel chatted to themselves and cut meat and vegetables at the outdoor kitchen countertop. Piper was the only one that appeared to be missing.

Percy noticed that Frank and Leo were having trouble and went over to help them with the grill, leaving Annabeth alone. She didn’t want to be the only one twiddling her thumbs so she figured she would go and help Rachel and Hazel.

“Need any help?” Annabeth asked them.

Hazel shook her head. “No thanks. We are pretty much done here, but we appreciate the offer.”

“Besides, not sure how much I trust you in the kitchen with a knife,” Rachel teased.

“I’m not completely hopeless. I made Percy chicken soup when he got sick, and he said it was pretty good,” Annabeth protested.

Rachel laughed and said, “You could literally make Percy drink poison, and he’d tell you it was delicious if you were the one that made it.”

Blood rushed to Annabeth’s face, making Rachel laugh even harder. She patted Annabeth’s shoulder benevolently and said, “Trust me. It’s for your own good, Chase.”

Annabeth shrugged her off and sat on one of the logs with a scowl. “Where’s Piper?”

“Rachel forgot to get her ingredients, so she had to go buy herself dinner again, the poor girl,” Hazel said.

Rachel looked repentant enough for Annabeth to feel sorry for her, so Annabeth tried to comfort her by saying, “She’s probably more than happy to have Taco Bell twice in one day.”

Annabeth started when someone swatted the back of her head. She turned and looked up with a frown to see Piper standing behind her, holding a burrito.

“Heard that, asshole.”

“You’re literally eating a burrito right now,” Annabeth muttered.

Piper’s face turned pink. “It’s from Chipotle! You can tell by the size!”

“Wow, someone’s getting adventurous,” Annabeth deadpanned.

Piper sat down at the log across from her, beside Jason, and narrowed her eyes. “Bite me.”

Annabeth was interrupted by Leo before she could respond. He skipped over to them with a manic grin and said, “We finally got the grill working!”

“You’re not gonna accidentally blow us up or anything right?” Piper asked dubiously.

“Pipes, charcoal can’t explode,” Leo said flatly. “I know you’re a vegetarian and all, but that’s literally second grade science class.”

“You can never be too sure when it comes to you,” Piper sniffed.

Leo rolled his eyes and waltzed over to Hazel and Rachel. “Looks like you’re almost done! I’ll start taking things over to the grill to get started.”

“Frank, make sure you keep an eye on him!” Hazel shouted when Leo took a plateful of meat and vegetables with him.

Rachel declared to the group that she would go find where her father had stashed his alcohol and returned a short while later with an assortment of liquor and a tray full of glasses. They all poured themselves drinks, apart from Percy, and sat around the fire.

Annabeth had helped herself to some fancy looking bourbon, mainly because she had never tried it before. Her first sip made her throat burn and forced her to cough. Percy gave her a worried look, but she ignored him and took another sip. Once she got over how strong it was, she had to admit that the bourbon was really good. It didn’t take long for that familiar warmth to spread through her body and soften the harsh edges of the world around her.

It took some time for the food to arrive, but it was well worth the wait. Frank had found an array of spices in the kitchen pantry to season the meat with, so even the smell was incredible. After an exhausting day at the beach, they all practically inhaled their food. Piper finished her food first since she had a head start and set up a smores station for dessert. It wasn’t long before they were fighting for spots to roast their marshmallows on the fire.

Later, Rachel disappeared inside the villa and returned with an acoustic guitar. She strummed a few chords and started singing softly, the sound of waves and the crackling fire providing an ambient backdrop. At first, she sang on her own and they were content to listen, but as they got more drunk and uninhibited, they would join in whenever she played a tune they recognized. Barring Frank and Piper, the rest of them were practically tone-deaf, so it sounded so bad that it would send them all into fits of laughter.

It was at times like this that Annabeth was struck by just how lucky she was to have such good friends. She didn’t have many good things in her life, but this was one of them and it wouldn’t last forever. There was no telling where they would all be in a years time or if they would ever be this close again, but that didn’t make her feel sad. Instead, an overwhelming sense of love and gratitude surged through her veins, compelling her to drink in every moment and seat it into her memory so that she would never forget.

But through it all, Annabeth found her eyes drawn to the boy sitting beside her the most. She unconsciously pulled herself closer to Percy over the course of the night and luxuriated in the way their elbows knocked together, a reminder that he was there. Annabeth would catch herself staring at him and the way the flames lit up his laughing face, making him all look every bit as invincible as she felt. At some point, she caught his hand and tangled his fingers between her own, and when he squeezed her hand, she smiled so hard it hurt.

As the night wore on, more of them left, unable to stay awake any longer, until eventually Percy and Annabeth were the only one remaining. The quietness was welcome change after all the noise they had been making, but it was hard not to fall asleep the sound of the rolling waves. Annabeth struggled to keep her drooping eyes open, but Percy looked perfectly fine, probably because he was the only one who hadn’t drank.

“You should go get some sleep,” Percy murmured. “Look like you’re gonna pass out.”

Annabeth hummed and rested her head on his shoulder. “Don’t want to.”

“If you’re expecting me to carry you, you’re going to be sorely mistaken,” Percy said, raising an eyebrow. “You’re too heavy.”

If she had the energy, Annabeth would have scowled. “Rude.”

Percy grinned and looked out over the ocean with a pensive, almost melancholy look. Annabeth poked his cheek with her finger to get him to look at her.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” Percy said. “About everything, I guess.”

“Hmm, deep.”

Percy laughed and said, “Alright, smarty pants, I was thinking about the future and my friends and you.”

“Then why do you look so sad?” Annabeth asked, sitting up straighter.

Percy blinked in surprise and said, “I look sad?”

Annabeth nodded and pressed a finger to his brow. “You’re giving yourself wrinkles, like you always do when you’re upset.”

There was a pause before Percy said, “Remember earlier when you saved me from those college girls?”

“What about it?”

Percy stared up at the sky and smiled bitterly. “I never imagined you would ever get jealous over me.”

Maybe it was the alcohol talking, but Annabeth found herself saying, “Neither did I.”

Percy turned to her with wide eyes, making her frown. “What?”

“I, uh, wasn’t expecting you to answer seriously.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes and nudged him affectionately. “I’m taking this seriously because you are.”

Percy smiled softly and said, “Thanks, I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome, you dork,” Annabeth said fondly. “Honestly, since when did you become the serious, responsible out of the two of us. What ever happened to the kid that caught frogs during recess and put worms in Nancy Bobofit’s locker?”

Percy laughed and said, “Well, one of us had to grow up, so I figured it might as well be me.”

Annabeth half-heartedly jabbed him with her elbow. “Jerk.”

“You’ve grown up a lot too,” Percy said. “You just don’t realize it.”

“Yeah, how so?” Annabeth asked, raising an eyebrow.

“You’ve learned to temper yourself. When you were younger, it was like fire ran through your veins. You acted like the world and everything were promised to you, not out of some sense of arrogance, but like it was your birthright. I remember how you used to argue with the teachers and stuff in front of the whole class because it never occurred to you that there were people you shouldn’t pick fights with. I was always kind of in of awe of how stupidly brave you were. I still am,” Percy said, softly.

A lump formed in Annabeth’s throat. Percy was right, about everything, but that wasn’t what was getting to her. It was the fact that his words were a testament to the fact that he had been there with her since the beginning. He had seen her as a bossy, bratty little seven year old and had stuck by her side all the way till now.

“We have been through a lot together, haven’t we?” Annabeth asked thickly.

The tender look in Percy’s eyes made her heart squeeze a little in her chest. “Yeah, we have.”

Annabeth screwed her eyes shut, unable to look at him. She didn’t want this to end, but the moment was beginning to get too much for her, so she stood up suddenly.

“Alright, enough with all the sappiness,” Annabeth said. “Race you to the beach?”

Without waiting for him to respond, Annabeth took off for the water’s edge, running as hard as she could. Percy started a moment later, humoring her like always, and quickly made up the distance. If it wasn’t for the sand and the fact that she was super drunk, Annabeth would have won, but it wasn’t long before Percy caught up to her and slung her over his shoulder. Annabeth shrieked and pounded on his back.

“You better not dump me in the water, you asshole!” Annabeth yelled.

Percy ignored her and sped towards the water, making her fear for the worst. She braced herself for impact, but it never came. Instead, he set her down onto dry sand and grinned down at her. Annabeth scowled and stood up, dusting the sand off her shorts, watching as he rolled up his shorts and waded further into the water. The encroaching tide was cold enough to make her jump when it tickled her toes, but Percy seemed perfectly fine going knee deep into it.

The moonlight streamed down on him, illuminating half his face with its pale glow. Wind rustled his hair and billowed through his clothes as he stared out at the horizon. Under the moonlight, he seemed to age backwards and actually look his eighteen years - the hard lines of worry on his brow smoothened, and the tightness and frustration in his jaws released. There was something about his pale figure standing in the inky sea that made him look so beautiful and true that it made it hard for her to breathe. It reminded her of how Piper had said she had fallen for Jason, how he had seemed to glow, and she couldn’t help feeling like she understood exactly what Piper had meant.

Percy noticed her looking and raised an eyebrow. “What?”

Annabeth balled her hands into fists at her side. She wasn’t ready to say it. Not yet. “N-Nothing.”

Percy didn’t look convinced, but he shrugged all the same. Annabeth stared down at her feet so that she wouldn’t be forced to look at him, but her heart pounded in her chest urgently. She started when Percy draped his sweatshirt over her shoulders and stepped past her. It was warm, and it smelled like him.

“I’m gonna head inside,” Percy said softly. “Don’t stay out for too long, okay?”

Annabeth nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Percy lingered there for a moment longer before leaving. Annabeth waited till she heard him enter the villa before she collapsed down on the sand and hugged her knees to her chest. An explanation for her actions and feelings today were finally starting to dawn on her, which sent equal parts terror and exhilaration coursing through her as she stared up at the moon. Her inability to look at him conflicting with her desire never to leave him, the nervousness and exhilaration, the jealousy - all of it pointed to one thing. She was just having a hard time accepting it.

Whenever Annabeth had imagined falling in love, she had expected it to strike her like a bolt of lightning, illuminating her with a sudden, arresting, all-consuming knowledge.

She hadn’t ever imagined that it would be like this: soft and gentle, like an unfolding discovery, the way the petals unfurled when a flower bloomed. And yet, just as sure, just as certain.

Annabeth buried her face in her hands. Try as she might, she couldn’t deny it any longer.

Fuck.

She was in love with him, wasn’t she? She was in love with Percy Jackson.

[firerose]

Dark-Seven part three - Jason

I apologize @reading0mens for the longtime it took me but I love Jiper angst sooo it got a bit long XD, feedback would be cool :)

- The day Gea was destroyed marked the end of the giant war

- But for Jason, it was the most horrible day of his life

- He wakes up in the infirmary without Leo and Piper

- They are dead Chiron tells him

- Leo gave his life to kill Gea and the eagles could not catch Piper on time

- Jason refuses to believe it until he runs out and sees her

- Her bloodied corpse, her lifeless eyes they will hunt him until the end of his life

- He wanted to grow old with her

-As he gently rocks her in his arms he tries to understand

- Why would Hera let her die after she screwed so much with her life already?

- Why would she let Leo sacrifice himself in such a violent way?

- He knows the truth deep in his heart

-As he watches Piper‘s body burn among the others he learns what real hate feels like

-It scares him

- He was supposed to be Hera‘s champion, a loyal soldier to the gods

- His pain gets worse when he is alone

- Percy and Annabeth leave Camp for school

- Hazel and Frank go back to Camp Jupiter

- He spends his time alone in his cabin living in the vision he saw when the gods came to help them

- Piper is alive whispering soft words to him that everything is going to be okay

- That he is a person instead of Hera‘s shallow Champion

- They even help him to continue his designs for the minor gods temples

- But soon his love for her turns to desire

- He knows that she is not really with him and who is responsible for it

- He does not want to sit around anymore doing exactly what Hera would want him to do

-“I…..I can‘t do this anymore Pipes.“, He tells her one night his body trembling in despair

-“Yes you can Jason! You are a hero that always stepped up to do what‘s needed.“ She says her words piercing into Jason‘s heart like her dagger

-To him, they feel like an accusation

- All of the sorrow and anger boils up in him

- He does not notice the wind around him growing stronger, or the thunder from outside

- He is tired of Hera, tired of being too perfect

- The papers are thrown across the room and he stands his body shaking with rage

- A yell of defiance leaves him and the storm sends lighting to hit the Cabin

- The Campers find Jason sitting still in smouldering remains

-His eyes are closed tears running down his cheeks but there is a smile on his face

- Invisible chains put on by Hera have just been broken

- Jason never felt more alive

-“I‘m done being their servant Chiron and you should be too.“, that is Jason‘s goodbye, a reminder that the centaur should be a protector not a trainer of child soldiers

- No one follows him when he leaves not even Nico

-They all saw the cold bitterness in Jason once-loyal blue eyes, they all feel his calm aura like wolve ready to strike everyone that comes to close

- Jason is glad for their fear

- He does not want anyone innocent getting hurt in his crazy plan

- Jason fly away but still stays close to the sea

- The papers of the minor gods are destroyed but he can still remember all of their names

- Kymopolaia is the first one he calls on the beach of Montauk

- She emerges from the water in all her glory and Jason can‘t suppress his joy

-He acts like Jason grace always did

- Flattering, his compliments even making the violent storm goddess blush

- Only when she wonders why he is here that he shows her a few of his true emotions

- He talks about how Hera forced his mom to give him to the wolves

- He tells her about all the friends that he lost to Hera‘s obsession with tormenting him, how much Piper and Leo gave him hope for a home, how the queen of the gods let them die

-When he is finished high waves are fluting the beach while Kymopolaia cries in pity for the young hero

- Jason‘s apology enrages her even more

-“The twelve Olympians will never respect or honour anyone who is not useful to them.No matter how many temples I build for them you are just a goddess of lower rank just like I was just their servant. I would just waste my time trying to fix their mistakes and in the end, neither of us would get what they want.“, He says true regret in his voice

-Poseidon's daughter grits her teeth while high waves flute the beach as her body is shaking

- Jason confirmed what she has been dreading since the war ended and her father made up excuses to exclude her from his royal court

-He comforts her and he can tell how he stirs up her hate for Posidon

- Jason can barely hide his satisfaction, his plan is working just like hoped it would

- He advises her to turn the sea against her father, it‘s her birthright after all

- Kymaploaia‘s eyes fill with a mad gleam, a whirlpool around her shows agreement

- She is not afraid to take on the sea, hundreds of tormented river gods will stand behind her angry because they had been forbidden to kill the humans that hurt them every day

-After Jason wished her good luck she leaves and he lets out a laugh of satisfaction

-Words can be more powerful than lightning he learned that from Piper

- A part of him still despises what he has become but he tells himself that Hera turned him into this

- She created a weapon and now she has to deal with the consequences

- He continues to travel all over the country flying over it with his storm horse, never staying at one place for long as he is sure the eyes of Hera are on him

- Every stop brings a talk to another minor god

-Hypnos and Morpheus are easy to convince

-Every mortal needs to sleep and dream so why are they never invited to mount Olympus throne room?

- Jason orders them to rebel against the Olympians in the cities of the demigod Camps first

-It is the only way to ensure that his friends will stay out of his way

- Aelous is harder

- The mad lord of the winds always hated demigods and he is not pleased when Jason holds the dozens Venti he sends to kill him still in the air with one move of his hand

-Jason uses no charm on him but instead reminders of all the times Zeus forced him to deal with storm spirits all by himself

-The idea that he can banish the storm spirits once and for all after Zeus is gone finally convinces him

-But Jason still wants the god to know that he is the leader of this rebellion who should not be messed with

- So he concentrates and moves his hands to control the storm spirits again

- He can feel their anger through the winds but he still manages to force them to turn into wolves their lightning eyes blazing with hatred

-“You will serve me from now on.“, He orders them through his mind his voice sounding like thunder in their heads and they indeed bow their heads before him

-Aelous only laughs at this sight

-“You have changed Jason Grace! If you are ready to rebel against your father just because of the Aphrodite girl and that son of Hephaistus then you are just as crazy as me.“ The lord of the winds jokes when Jason is about to leave with his new wolves

-“I‘m just ready to do anything for the people I love.“, Jason replies coldly

-From Olympus Hera hears those words too

- They seem a weak excuse for all the chaos Jason has caused

-The sea has been stormy for days swallowing ships and fluting beaches while the cities are fluted by rivers

- Zeus is barely able to control his winds and so the weather jumps from hot to cold in minutes

The gods own children are sleeping alongside hundreds of mortals unable to help their parents

- Hera knows that Jason will make things even worse if he is not stopped now

- But her love for him or rather the love for his loyalty to her is what makes her believe that she can bring him back

- Not herself she is not that naive

- Only one person can and even though she is gone Hera has figured a way to use her against Jason

-If only she could see the cruelty of her tricks

- Jason begins to hear Piper‘s voice again in his dreams

- She is not soft with him anymore

- Instead, she tells him how terrible he has become, that he acts like a pathetic child just because he failed to save her

-He yells that he is doing all this to get justice for and Leo but that only makes her laugh so loud that he has to cover his ears to drown it out

- Sometimes he also hears Leo mocking him, saying that he can‘t believe he ever looked up to him

- Jason wakes from those nightmares in sweat and tears until he decides that sleep is overrated

- He feels more comfortable moving around with his wolves anyway, it reminds him of old times, his childhood

- Unfortunately, his sleep deprivation changes his methods to gain more allies

- The nature spirits (Nymphs and dryads), aren‘t met with his charm but instead little patience and quick anger

- To Jason they are dumb, Zeus hit on them for centuries why are they so unwilling to turn against him?

-He tries to stay calm but their talks about how his plan is insane to remind him of Piper and the things she said in his dreams

- Not only once does he command his venti to burn whatever three or plant annoys him too much, the wolves happily oblige and tore the spirits apart with their electricity sparking teeth

- More and more Jason Grace begins to remind them of Zeus, unforgiving, cruel to anyone that does not obey his wishes

-When a young dryad girl dares to say that to Jason out loud he snaps

-A huge thunderstorm is summoned, lightning blasting the girl loved ones

-The forest burns in bright orange flames and Jason uses the winds to direct them towards the girls three

- She dies screaming in the flames while storm wolves bite at her to electrocute

- Jason grins at her Beggs as he looks directly into her beautiful dark eyes, Hera has those too

- Nature decides to join him out of fear

- The gods will be mad but it is the only way to avoid Jason‘s rage

-Jason feels powerful riding past them on his horse while they bow

-He can feel the wind gods around him ice cold, hot like fire

-On mount Otrys he calls for Hecate as the next step for his plan

- When she ignores his call he does not care

- Electricity runs through his veins power, it does not matter if he has to wait a bit until Olympus falls

- Suddenly a voice calls him making his blood turn cold

-He turns his head to look behind him and as expected no one is there

-He tells his rising panic that it was not real, he just hasn‘t slept for four days

- The temperature drops, darkness crawls over the hilltop, he feels watched

-“I‘m here Jason it‘s okay.“, Her voice is sweet close and yet it makes him shiver in fear 

- It can‘t be her

- Jason draws his sword and gets on his horse, the wolves growl restlessly as they can feel their master distress

-“Who are you? Show yourself!“, He demands despite his shaking voice

- Her laughter is loud wild like the summers breeze, he has heard it a thousand times before

-His eyes fly around frantically there is only the shadows of the rising night

-“I‘m your girlfriend Jason! Did you already forget that?“, the girl that can‘t be her asks amused

- A person stands in front of him out of nowhere

-Jason‘s sword falls to the ground, his eyes fill with tears

-Her clothes are nothing she would wear and yet he would recognize her blind

-Piper McLean, the love of his life stands there in a white long dress, her dark brown hair falls loose around her shoulders, her eyes of lighter brown are reaching into his soul

-“No…...this is a trick! You…….you are dead.“, Saying it hurt but it was the truth

- His venti flicker with lighting in agreement

-“I……..don‘t know why they let out but does that matter?!, I‘m here and….I missed you.“, Piper sobs, her despair finally washes away his doubts with guilt

-He slides off his horse ignoring the suspicious neighing

-Jason goes to her slowly putting his hand on her cheek, she feels real

-“I missed you too Pipes.“, He croaks and then breaks down pulling her against his chest all pain of losing her, the hatred against Hera, the things he did to convince gods and spirits to rise against their rulers, even the nightmares in which she hated him, spilling out of him

-He is scared of her backing away when he is finished, of her making his horrible dreams come true

-Instead, she looks flattered and sad as she puts a hand on his chin

-“Perhaps that is why they allowed me to leave the underworld.“, She says so softly and Jason is caught in confusion and overwhelming relief that she does not hate him

-“What do you mean?“, Jason asks suddenly feeling worried, the gods would never allow someone to cheat death especially someone close to him

-“I think the gods want me to save you from yourself.“, Piper answers with concern,

-Jason looks at her stunned then as he processes her words anger rises in him

.-Yes it does sound like Hera to use Piper that way

-“No Pipes I never felt better ! They are just scared because I make their system fall apart.“, He responds not able to hide his pride,

- He is happy that she worries for him but he wants her to know that he is okay that they are okay

-He wants to squeeze her hand as recurrence but Piper steps back with guilt in her eyes

“ Jason…….you haven‘t slept for days and all those burnt nature spirits? This isn‘t you.“, She says her words soft but they are too much like his dreams

-“Yea I have been a bit crazy lately but only because I want to make them stop Pipes. All those mistakes or wars of the gods that we have to die and fight for. Losing Leo and you was something I don‘t want any other demigod to go through. I want us to live in peace and that is only possible if we aren‘t controlled by an egoistic good and his controlling queen.“, He explains and despite his fear, he means every word

- He just wants Piper to understand so that she will fight at his side again

-The image brings a smile to his face

-The two of them standing in front of a chained up Hera in all their glory

-Piper brings him back with a sigh and the deep pity in her eyes fills him with despair

-Why is she so against opposing the gods, Wasn‘t she the one that cursed Hera and despised how the goddess put herself in charge of his life?

-A dread rises in the back of him, he suppresses it quickly

-“Our lives aren‘t controlled by the gods Jason. The fates are the ones that decide what challenges a hero has to face. You are wasting your time and ruining your own life fighting for something that will never change. Call off the rebellion Jason and tell the gods to be actual parents. Tell them to protect their children from their destines as long as possible and then go home to rest. That would be easier than a war you can‘t win.“, Piper finally says

-Despite all of his anger Jason has to admit that her advice is tempting

- The vision of him growing old with Piper could come true plus he truly is not strong enough to fight fate itself so why not ask the gods for a favour? Maybe he can convince them to change after all he is the favourite of their rulers

-But then a thought washes away that option and he figures a way to tell Piper why the Olympian council needs to be reformed

- When Piper takes his hand again he looks at her with determination

“I can‘t. Hera loves using demigods too much. Look what happened to Leo. She claimed that she wanted to prepare him for his future just to let his mom die and let him sacrifice himself. You once said that heroes have to step up and do what is right and that is what I‘m doing right now.“, He explains

-For a short moment he thinks guilt washes over Pipers face

- Suddenly he realizes how strange her pleading was

-Piper always was someone to take action, she would never tell him to just do nothing and the way she almost took all fault from the gods……..

-“Hera only did that because she knew what Leo‘s role in the war was gonna be. She may not be the best but she is not our enemy Jason. She cared for Leo and she cares about you too.“, Piper says and now Jason is sure

- He rips his hand away from her his eyes burning with rage

-“Piper would never defend Hera ! Who are you?“, He asks coldly anger numbing the shattering of his heart

-The girl looks at him in confusion, he hates that she does it through Pipers eyes

“ Jason -“

-“ Don‘t! Stop using her voice and show yourself! I want to know which god I have the honour to kill!“, Jason spats

- At this moment he forgets all of his good morals, only blind hatred is left

-The Venti come to his aid, they swirl around him like a mini hurricane and he can feel their power pulsing through him, waiting for his command

-“I‘m just trying to help you Jason even if you could kill me that would not solve anything.“She warns but it is still Piper's voice and he will make her pay for it.

-“Oh no I think this will make me feel a lot better and if Hera send you just know that what happens to know is her fault, not mine.“, Jason says with a cruel smile before turning his storms to pure lightning

- with a hand wave the spirits turn into pure lightning crashing into where she stood

-Flames light up the hill but she is not there anymore

-A huge dove is in her place attacking immediately scratching at his face

-Dark clouds gather thunder is booming, rain falls,

-the Windlords themselves lift Jason into the air pushing his attacker away

- He does not need his sword

- The sky is his weapon

-Jason chases the goddess, calls cold wind to let hail fall onto her instead of rain

- Lightning strikes and he catches it in his bare hands, it flickers over his entire body until it gets thrown towards his victim

-Despite all of this the dove keeps trying to get closer, her voice pleading for him to stop his madness

- A hysterical laugh is his answer, he remembers a time where the gods loved him for his kindness, the same one that forced him to keep Heras chains on him for too long

- This goddess is treating him like he is still a pawn but that will end now

- Jason spins himself around his arms outstretched

- Wind blows around him, the dove shrieks in panic

- A tornado is throwing her around in circles like a puppet

- She changes form to other animals, attempts to escape through the cloud storms walls

- That is when they become pure lightning

- it hits her makes her body twist unnaturally

- She falls and Jason is still in the storms eye, He feels like a god bathed in his fathers lightning bolts

- The goddess unmoving body beneath him looks so tiny almost fragile even when she has changed to her Olympian form

- He would have pitied her if he hadn‘t recognized her, now he only feels disgusted

- Another shockwave is sent through her body before Jason dissolves his tornado

- The wind gods hesitate for a moment not liking what Jason might have in mind

- Jason is stronger and so they follow him down towards his victim as only a soft breeze

-“Why?“, He spats down at her as she wakes up

- His short question holds her crime all the pain and false hope she put him through

- She gets on her knees to look up at him her ever-changing hair clothes and eyes even her skin that is healing her burns are no beauty to him anymore

-“Hera and I only wanted to help you Jason.“, Aphrodite apologizes maybe there are real tears in her eyes

-“ I need help? I‘m not the one impersonating my dead daughter to manipulate her boyfriend!“, He spats finding her trick even more disgusting as he puts it into words

- He thinks about how she held him, what would have happened if he did not find out who she was

- He feels dirty

“I always take on the form of loved ones that's why Hera send me. She knew that Piper was the only one to get you out of your grief. Love is the only thing more powerful than hate“, Aphrodite explains and with every word, she looks more and more like Piper again

- Jason realizes that she is just as bad as Hera, another god that messed with his mind

- He sees how heavy she is breathing, it is time to punish her

-“Well then let me tell you something about love.“, Jason says making a pulling motion with his hands reaching for her breath

- He bends the oxygen out of her, the goddess head being forced forward

-The winds grow stronger again, he hears their whispers to not do this, he is deaf to their pleads

-“N – No!“, She protests in horror, her body glows attempting to release her true form but his attack surprised her and is now making her too weak

-Jason continues an air bubble forming around her head

-She digs her nails into her throat until they are bloody, her eyes nearly pop out of her skull and her face is an ill shade of blue

- the chocking noises she makes are music for him

-Jason enjoys every second

-Her looking like Piper does not save her

- It only reminds him more of the future he has lost and that makes him more furious

-When her sounds and body become still and her face is one mask of fear he finally tells her

-“Love never lasts long in this world.“

-No air gets added to the bubble, it dissolves

- An Aphrodite goddess of Love and beauty falls dead to the ground killed by her daughter's lover

- Jason feels empty

- He just killed a goddess he should feel ecstatic

- But instead, he feels as if something broke inside him

-Jason stares at the sky waiting for a reaction

-“ Come on Hera! This is what you wanted me to become right? A murderer your weapon. Just come to me and admit it !“, Jason yells tears streaming down his cheeks

-He falls to the ground as the thing he did crashes down on him

-He killed for revenge just like Zeus, Hera and all other gods did for centuries

-How is he better than them now?

-His allies seem to think the same thing

-Jason can‘t summon his venti in the morning

- The winds are harder to bend under his will

- Nature hides from him it does not matter how much he burns no one shows up

- Sometimes he hears the spirits weeping but he knows it is not meant for him

- Jason gets more and more desperate

- As of last hope he goes to San Fransisco

- The first step he takes into the city shows him that it‘s full of life again

-He plays with the thought of going back to Camp Jupiter

- But he does not want his friends to see what he has become

- On Ocean Beach, he yells for Kym

-Jason tells himself that she can help him turn his fate around

-“I‘m sorry Jason but I don‘t talk to traitors.“, She whispers from under the sea

-Jason feels like a wolve being cornered

-“ I never betrayed you the gods did !“ He shouts his voice sounding childish in his ears

-“You promised to fight in my name and then went on a crazy rampage just to make Hera feel bad. I expected better from you Jason.“, Kym told him in a stern almost motherly tone

- The words are a punch to his gut, a mirror showing him the truth

-His plan was supposed to be a peaceful change of the god's council, yes he knew about the damage the minor gods would cause but that was just to get the higher gods attention

-He sees the dryad girl in the flames, aphrodite chocking as air is pulled out of her

-This rebellion started with a wish for justice for Leo and Piper, for all those treated badly by the gods

- His lust for revenge destroyed all that

-Regretful he walks into the sea the water going up to his knees

-“ I‘m sorry.“, Jason says honestly

-That is when they finally react

- The waves grow bigger a man with a trident emerging out of them, Nature spirits come out of their plants with pinecones and daggers for weapons the blond-haired woman with her crown of corn is their true goddess

- The mist rising around him lets him hear his victim screams once more

-“Jason Grace we are here to punish you for crimes against us and the entire western civilization. Surrender now or seal your fate.“All of the Command in Unison

-He thinks of giving himself up

-He was raised as a Roman, he learned when a soldier has no chance to win

- Yet the thought of kneeling and letting Hera win so easily makes him sick

- And so he refuses

- The fight does not take long

- Jason summons lightning to blast away Nyads that grasped his ankles

-He runs out of the sea directing lightning at the advancing Dryad warriors

-They burn but the flames seem to have gathered they're own concise

-Orange and high they rage towards him growing on sand which was not possible

-They burn Jason‘s arm as he attempts to fly over them

-Screaming in pain he struggles to stay in the air

-Demeter uses her giant staff to let the three roots attack him like huge arms

-Her followers throw weapons at histones that for some reason always hit no matter how much he uses wind to push them away

-Rain comes and turns into a huge rain shower blinding his view

-He is forced to fly backwards and that is when Poseidon's trident impales his gut

-Blood spills pain forbids him to breath

-His vision goes black before he falls in the threes arms

-Jason wakes in ironically on chains in front of Hera and Zeus

-"I hope you know what a disappointment you are to me.", Zeus says but Jason's eyes are fixed on Hera

-She looks at him with a deep sorrow he did not expect so he chooses the last beg

-" Whoever you choose as your next heroes Hera please don't control them. Remember me as a warning of what happens if you do.", He pleads

-He is scared of his punishment but if Hera realizes her mistakes then maybe all of this was worth it

-Hera only replies with a small nod

-Then he is dragged off to the underworld by Hades off to the cliffs that lead into Tartarus

Jason panics as he realizes

He thought that he would end up in the fields of punishment

-But of course, Zeus hates when his children ruin his good name

-He struggles against his bonds begs his uncle to at least let him see his friends one more time

Luckily Hades is one of the kinder gods 

-He summons Piper's ghost, he does not say why Leo is not there

-She smiles at him sadly and maybe with anger which Jason does not blame her for

-Her kiss on his forehead brings tears to his eyes

-"Goodbye Jason. I'm sorry I caused you so much trouble.", She whispers and he shakes his head

-"Don't be. All of this is Heras fault and mine.", He tells her and with that, she is gone again

-He thinks of her and Leo while he falls

-Hera mourns him for days

-She watches the rest of the seven holding his funeral at Camp Jupiter

-They understand his motives and that's why they still love him as the friend he was

-Hera understands him too

-She was not liked in the past few centuries and that was why the idea of her very own hero made her blind for letting him be a child

-Now that was what killed him and Zeus was already off making another hero that he can  be more proud of

-A child he warned her to not even look at

-The other demigods resent her even more

-Frank Zhang would be her other hero but Hazel Levesque would never let her near him

-She thinks about Jasons last words, his beg that she shouldn't mess with children's lives

-It's when Leo Valdez returns and learns of his friend's fate that she promises herself to remember

-The hatred in his eyes is enough to bring even a goddess to her senses 

[bellamyblakru]

For the adorable cliche prompts 49 & Merthur ❤️

oh my god i am so sorry for how late this is. like im months late. i apologize 😭😭my writing drive has been so shit, but i got the random urge today and i wrote like over 4,000 words in one sitting💀💀 i hope this is okay!!! again, i am so sorry akskksks i hope you like it, my lovely mutual❤️❤️

ill add it under the cut and it is right here on ao3! without further ado, i present: merthur + anxiety + you caught me doing something dangerous and flipped out

Merlin smiled at the servants as he passed them.

One step in front of the other, the warlock smiled on, ignoring the growing blood stain beneath his tunic. He was lightheaded, growing more unsteady as he walked through the darkened halls of the castle. He could make it to his chambers, he knew, if he just willed a bit more magic to staunch the flow of the wound. 

He paused in the middle of an abandoned corridor, leaning his head against the cold stone of the wall as he focused his power. His magic flickered sadly, already working overtime to keep him conscious. But, as always, it answered his call. Merlin felt his magic simmer over the injury as he let out a small breath of relief. 

Straightening up, Merlin stumbled his way into Gaius’s workroom, and he did not collapse until he made it to his small room in the back. 

He stared and stared at the ceiling, wondering if anyone else could feel the world spinning. He figured he should worry about that, but his magic prickled his mind then—reminding him to sleep. 

So, Merlin relented, and he fell instantly into a restless slumber. 

Waking up with a gasp, the warlock shot up in his bed. He narrowed his eyes at the light coming through his window, wondering how on earth he got here. The last thing he remembered was reading the threat against Arthur that was hidden in the king’s letters and thinking how to stop it…but the rest of the day came back blurry. He shook his head. The day needed to start—even if Merlin couldn’t remember what he did the day before, even as that thought slightly terrified him.

He moved to the edge of the bed, swinging his feet over, and he tried to stand up. The minute his feet touched the ground, the room swayed, and he came crashing back onto his cot. Merlin groaned at the searing pain in his abdomen. Lifting his tunic, he gently prodded the bruised area that covered most of his torso. 

His answer was solved, then. He must have found the threat and eradicated it, and this was his gift for doing so. Grimacing, Merlin slowly got to his feet and limped to his mirror. Looking over to his left, the warlock saw some wrapping he could use to cover the damage. Doing so, rather gingerly, he frowned at the ache. His magic usually smoothed away these pain and bruises quickly—it was why a bruise never lasted more than a few hours on him. Shrugging the thought away, however, figuring it must be taking a bit more power than usual, he threw on his purple tunic and plastered a smile on his face. 

By the time Merlin arrived at Arthur’s door with breakfast, a sweat had broken out against his neck and back. Panting a bit, Merlin shoved the wooden door open revealing an already awoken Arthur staring through the window.

“You’re late.” Merlin heard Arthur grumble.

“Yeah, sorry.” Merlin couldn’t think of a lie that suited him, so that’s all he said.

Arthur turned around. “That’s it? ‘Sorry’?”

Merlin grinned. Arthur rolled his eyes, moving to sit at his desk where Merlin dropped off his food. Arthur watched him tidy up the room for a few moments before blurting out: “Let’s go out.” 

Merlin turned around, an eyebrow raised. “Out?”

Merlin swore he saw Arthur’s cheeks redden. The king coughed. “With the knights. You know, like a hunting trip.”

Laughing a bit at Arthur’s rushed sentence, Merlin smiled. “When shall we depart?”

Arthur straightened up, tilting his head to regard his servant. “Today.”

“Okay.” Merlin saw Arthur’s palpable relief at the word, though he couldn’t fathom why. “Is everything alright, Arthur?”

Arthur smiled brightly. “I’m fine, Merlin.” 

The warlock narrowed his eyes. “If you say so.”

They fell into a comfortable silence, Arthur focused on eating and the paperwork in front of him as Merlin started grabbing the laundry thrown about. He hid his flinch as he bent down, stifled the cry wanting to escape his throat as he walked to the dresser. 

He needed to get out of here before Arthur noticed. 

“I’ll go prepare the provisions and tell the knights.” Merlin didn’t hear Arthur's response as he ran out the door, quickly shutting it and leaning against the cool wood. The guards barely blinked at his behavior—they were quite used to oddities at this point. Merlin nodded to them as he continued down the corridor. 

Today was going to be difficult, and he couldn’t imagine it would end well at this rate. 

Forcing his magic to his core, Merlin sent messages to the roundtable and to the kitchen before he found his way back to Gaius’s workroom. He was sat at the table, head in his hands, when Elyan walked into the room. 

“Merlin?”

Merlin shot his head up, regretting it when the room twisted. Blinking, he looked at the knight who somehow was sitting beside him. Merlin saw Elyan’s lips moving, so he tried to focus. 

“—lin, can you hear me? Are you okay?”

Merlin narrowed his spinning focus on Elyan’s concerned eyes. “Yeah, yeah, I’m good.”

Elyan scoffed. “I find that hard to believe, my friend.”

Merlin tried to smile. “I swear. What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

Elyan’s eyes softened even more. “No, everything is okay. Arthur sent me to fetch you. We are leaving, remember?”

Merlin blinked again. How long have I’ve been out?

“Of course.” Merlin shook his head, a sheepish smile on his face. “I must’ve fallen asleep.”

Elyan narrowed his eyes. “Merlin, you don’t seem well. I don’t want you to hurt yourself more. I’ll tell Arthur you can’t-“

“No, no, I’m okay. I can come.”

That didn’t seem to convince the knight, if the doubtful look on his face was any indication. “Merlin, you are a part of my family, and if you need to stay home, I’ll stay with you. Make sure you get better. Arthur won’t fuss if I make an excuse for us both. Maybe Gwen, you, and I could go on another picnic, yeah?”

Merlin smiled at the memory of their last adventure together. “That does sound tempting, but I am truly okay! Look!” He got up and did a little spin, making Elyan laugh at the dramatics. 

“Okay, okay. I believe you. But don’t think I won’t keep an eye on you, little brother.”

“I wouldn’t want it any other way.” Merlin grinned, pulling the knight into a strong hug, his heart feeling more full than it has in a long time. 

“We are leaving in a few moments, I’ll meet you there?”

Merlin nodded, promising to be there on time, and when the knight vanished, as did Merlin’s brief energy. Chiding himself on not taking Elyan’s offer, Merlin forced his legs to stumble into his room to throw some articles into his bag. He double checked his wrappings, and he raced out the door. 

He felt his magic flicker at his movements—it wasn’t pleased to be keeping him conscious and healing at the same time. Sighing through his teeth, he shook his head before smiling brightly at the knights. Elyan rolled his eyes while Gwaine ran up to him and pulled him into a spinning hug.

“It’s been too long, Merls!” Gwaine ruffed his hair when he put him down, a wild grin on his face.

Merlin laughed, swatting away the knight’s hand. “I saw you yesterday!”

Gwaine put his hand on his heart, a fake pout on his face. “You haven’t missed me?”

Merlin nodded, trying to ruffle Gwaine’s hair back, who squealed and ran behind Percy for protection. 

Lance walked towards him with Merlin’s mare in one hand. “How are you Merlin?” Lance whispered so only he could hear. 

Merlin took his horse, stroking her neck. “I’ve been better.”

Lance frowned. “Are you hurt?”

Merlin opened his mouth to lie, but Arthur was already on top of his horse yelling at them to hurry up or they would be left behind. Merlin shrugged his shoulders to Lance, who narrowed his eyes, but they both hopped up their respective horses. 

The ride hurt his side—a lot. Each trot sent pangs of fire through his body, rippling in his veins, spreading a wild, uncontrollable pain that caused Merlin to bite his cheeks to keep himself from yelling. 

He didn’t make a noise, though. He never does.

He stayed behind the pack, trying to feel the magic of the earth around him. The trees, the birds, the ground—all of it magic, all of it welcoming Merlin with no hesitation. He smiled slightly, his head tilted towards the sun trying to shine through the foliage. Hearing someone slow down, he forced himself to open his eyes at his companion.

Arthur watched him, curious, staring openly at him.

“May I help you, sire?” 

Arthur did a half smile at the tone. “Just…thinking, I suppose.”

Merlin opened his mouth to say his quip, but he audibly, and dramatically, snapped it shut when he saw the look on Arthur’s face—the king laughed, causing Merlin to stare at the other now. He loved Arthur’s laugh. It didn’t happen as much as Merlin would like, but the time he got it out of the man always felt like a prize like no other.

All the pain in the world would be worth hearing that sound again.

Arthur’s amused face looked away from Merlin, assessing the small clearing they just wandered into. 

“We can make camp here.”

Merlin immediately jumped off his horse, grateful for his tight wrapping he applied this morning. The bandages feeling like the only thing keeping him whole. 

“I’ll get firewood!” Merlin yelled, not waiting for anyone to say anything else as he all but ran into the forest, towards the running water he could hear was close by. Three steps in, he heard someone walking behind him. 

He sighed. “Lancelot. Why are you following me?”

The man in question caught up to him easily enough, and then right passed him, looking at the ground for usable wood.

“Well, my magical friend, as you are in pain and have not answered my previous question, I figured I could take it upon myself to annoy you until you broke in and told me what was going on with you.”

Merlin grumbled. “I’m fine.”

Lance didn’t stop searching, barely blinking at the obvious lie. 

Sighing, Merlin grabbed Lance’s arm, stopping his friend’s theatrics. “Look, I just hurt myself yesterday and it hasn't been healing properly. It’s fine, I’m fine.”

Lance quickly poked Merlin’s side, earning a loud gasp from the warlock. Merlin looked at Lance with wide eyes, shocked. “What the fuck, Lance?”

Lance scoffed. “Fine my ass, Merlin. If you say that one more time, I’ll throw you in the river.” 

Merlin scowled, while Lance just rolled his eyes. “Now, you’re going to go back to camp and let me finish collecting firewood.” And right when Merlin was about to protest, Lance glared at him. “No complaining. I am going to make sure you’re not going to do anything else stupid and hurt yourself more. Merlin,” here Lancelot’s eyes were soft, “I am here for you, always. And I am not letting you hurt yourself more.”

Merlin smiled softly, giving in and hugging the knight. “Thank you, Lance. You know I love you?”

Lance grinned, pushing Merlin gently towards the others. “Yeah, yeah, I love you too.”

Merlin hugged himself as he walked slowly back to camp. If Lance could tell, then maybe he wasn’t as good as hiding his pain as he originally thought. He frowned as he continued, his thoughts moving towards the noticeable silence of the surrounding forest. It seemed a bit too quiet, but he pushed the thought away. I’m starting to sound like Arthur, he thought with a small huff. 

Walking into the clearing, Merlin spotted Gwaine and Percy bent in an intense conversation, Elyan and Arthur parrying in the center, and their sleeping mats all nicely arranged in a circle, so he figured it would be a good time as any to start preparing dinner. Working diligently helped keep his mind off himself. As his thoughts wandered, he didn’t notice the small cracks of sticks and dried leaves coming from the other side of the clearing. 

He did see the shadowy movements, however, right before they attacked. Merlin got up quickly, shouting out an alarm that was just a few seconds too late. And the last thing Merlin saw before he was knocked out was Arthur yelling at him, and then nothing but blackness.

Merlin woke up with a resounding headache. He tried to move his hands, but he forced his eyes open when he realized they were tightly bound. 

He squinted in the bright firelight, seeing many figures encased in darkness. 

“Finally! The warlock awakens.” 

Merlin shook his head, confused. “What?” He said through his gag.

“Ungag him, will you? Let the man talk.”

Someone close to him stepped forwards, the face unremarkable and void of any expression as he roughly took off the covering.

Merlin spit blood to the side before he squinted up once more. “And you are?” Merlin said, sounding bitter and a bit bored. This shit always happens to them.

“Call me Aren.” The man said, the smile heard in his voice, as he stepped into Merlin’s view. He was a tall man with black hair and onyx colored eyes that glinted from the fire.

“Should that mean something to me?” Merlin inquired, knowing that pissing people off was usually his specialty.

Aren’s smile vanished. “We met yesterday. Don’t I look familiar?”

Merlin leaned forwards on his knees, tilting his head. “Hmm, I can’t recall. Though, I don’t usually give many of my enemies much thought.”

That made Aren grin, and Merlin took the quick pause to look more closely around him. All the knights were tied with two or three of their attackers holding them in place. Lance was here, too, so they must have caught him unawares as well. Merlin looked to Arthur next, who was glaring daggers at this Aren man. 

Aren hummed, walking around him. “How is your wound?”

Merlin saw Lance and Elyan straighten at that as Arthur’s head snapped towards the warlock. Merlin feigned confusion. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

The leader nodded to the person to Merlin’s left, and Merlin barely had a second to understand what was going to happen before the man kicked him squarely in the abdomen. 

Merlin screamed as he fell to the ground.

Aren clicked his mouth, disappointed. “See what happens when you lie?”

Merlin grunted, managing to bring himself back to his knees. He felt the blood soaking through his shirt, the color draining from his face, the intensity of the stares of his friends—from horror, or from fear, Merlin couldn’t tell.

“What do you want?” Merlin spit, getting slightly pissed off now. 

Aren shrugged. “What do any of us want, Merlin?”

The warlock lifted his gaze, finally realizing what the man said at the beginning. Warlock. This man knows I’m a warlock. Merlin quickly looked at Arthur in horror. The king looked steadily back at him, no hint of repulsion or betrayal or anger. Maybe he didn’t hear Aren say it, Merlin prayed to any of the gods that was true. 

“Ahh there it is!” Aren cheered. “The recognition. You were quicker yesterday.”

Merlin growled. “And why is it that I can’t remember anything about our little encounter?”

Aren looked to his left, grabbing someone’s hand. “Ah yes. That would be the work of my lady, Taryn. Say hello dear.”

The girl smiled, the expression more wild than not, and did a slight bow before sliding back into the darkness. Aren then watched with clear amusement as Merlin tried to use magic against the bindings. “My dear boy, what are we? Novices?” He scoffed. “We are quite skilled, I’ll have you know.”

Merlin rolled his eyes. “I don’t give a shit who you are or what you know.” A quick pause before Merlin continued: “How about we make a deal?”

Merlin heard Arthur start protesting through his gag knowing what Merlin was going to say, but the warlock tried to ignore him and the unease settled in his gut.

“Yes?” Aren said lightly.

“You can have me, without a fight, if you let my friends go. They are innocents.”

The leader laughed, loudly. “I would hardly call these men innocent, Merlin. They’ve aided and abetted the king of Camelot’s hatred of magic. Watched as true innocents were killed, watched as the king did nothing but stand to the side as our people burned. No one here is innocent.” He snarled the last part towards the group, making them look down in shame. 

“Still,” Merlin pleaded, “you have me, right? That’s all you came for. Let them go.”

Aren’s face darkened a bit, but he still seemed to consider the offer. “Willingly?”

Merlin vehemently nodded, knowing that he had mere minutes before the blood loss made him pass out. 

Aren turned towards Taryn, as Merlin quickly counted how many people there were. Thirteen held his friends down, two were to his left, two to his right, three in front. 

20 people, Merlin mused, shouldn’t be too hard. Right?

He let himself glance at Arthur, who turned to look at him at the same time. Arthur’s eyes didn't look angry, or betrayed, only fierce with a hint of distress. Merlin looked at his King for strength, knowing that if he didn’t believe their captors about his magic, he would soon. And Merlin wanted to remember his face like this—strong, unyielding, protective. His king, soon to be his doom. Merlin shut his own eyes, swallowing the terror of what he was about to do in front of his friends. If he were to die from this either way, at least his friends would make it out alive. 

With resignation and determination pounding in his blood, Merlin opened his eyes. He heard the gasps of everyone, and he knew his eyes were no longer the color of the sky, but a fiery gold. Aren snapped his head at the noise, eyes widening at Merlin.

“That’s not possible,” the man shook his head violently, “the cuffs—“

Merlin gave him a feral smile before the world ignited into a burning white light. 

Landing on his face, Merlin felt his energy quickly fade into a numbness. He laid there, breathing unsteadily, when he felt hands lift him up.

Elyan, Gwaine, and Lance surrounded him, the latter two holding him on his feet as Elyan took out his sword in front of them, Percy quickly joining the knight in front. 

Merlin coughed out blood, whimpering a little at the lack of any feeling in his body. His eyesight was blurred, but he saw Arthur stand up slowly, his hands raised like he was taming wild animals.

Merlin gasped, remembering, albeit slowly, what happened. He stumbled away, his breathing quickening, his heart pounding too quickly, too quickly. He fell, the pain in his side returning full force. The knights tried to help him, but he pushed them away, tears streaming down his face. “No, no, no,” Merlin cried, “I’m going to die. He is going to kill me.”

He saw Lance and Gwaine quickly look at each other, fear on their faces, as they stepped towards him. Merlin sobbed. “No, no, no. Get away from me. No, no!”

He couldn’t breathe. The ground started spinning beneath him, the trees started falling towards him, he heard screams, but that could’ve been himself, as the world crashed into blackness once more.

“aking up? Gaius!”

Merlin couldn’t move. His eyes felt like they had been sewn shut, and his throat felt like he had been screaming for hours on end.

“Ga’s?” Merlin rasped out, reaching out his hand for his father figure.

“I’m here, my boy, I’m here.” Gaius touched his hand, feeling his forehead with the other. “Your fever has finally gone away.” Merlin heard Gaius move away for a moment, only to return with a glass of water. He forced his eyes to open, lifting them to the court physician.

“How do you feel, Merlin?”

After gulping down the entire cup, Merlin sighed contentedly. “Like absolute shit.”

Gaius chuckled. “I would imagine.” The man helped Merlin into a sitting position, the pain in his side almost nonexistent.

“What happened, Gaius?”

Merlin looked past his caretaker, eyes landing on the king. “Arthur? Why-?”

The sad look on Arthur’s face was enough to remind Merlin exactly what happened. Merlin gasped, looking towards Gaius in terror, “Gaius had nothing to do with it, my lord. I promise.” And then remembering what the knights did, he quickly added, “Neither did the knights, I swear on my life. If I am to burn, please keep them out of it. I’ll do anything, just please don't hurt them.”

Arthur’s face fell even more, the hurt shining brightly in the king’s eyes. At the moment of silence, Gaius rubbed Merlin’s back and whispered, “Merlin, Arthur knew. It’s okay, we are all going to be okay.” And with that, the man left them alone.

Merlin couldn’t think straight. His thoughts flew faster than ever, trying to connect the pieces he was obviously missing.

“Merlin…” Arthur whispered, his voice sounding scratchy from disuse. Now that Merlin actually looked at him, the king looked horrible. His blonde hair disheveled, his stubble longer than normal, his shirt and pants dirty, his eyes baring darkness indicating he hasn’t had a good night’s sleep in a long time.

“Arthur..?” Merlin said softly, a question, a concern.

Arthur got up then, and he started pacing. Merlin could do nothing but watch as his king—his light, his reason for living—pulled violently at his hair. Confused, Merlin wanted to comfort Arthur, as always, but as he tried to get up, his legs immediately failed him. Merlin closed his eyes, expecting to hit the floor hard, when he felt strong hands hold him up.

“Merlin! You need to sit down and rest, what are you doing?”

Merlin held onto Arthur, his hands finding their way to his king’s shoulders to steady himself. They locked eyes for a minute, or for an hour—Merlin couldn’t tell—before Merlin broke it with a quiet question. “Do you hate me?”

Arthur tensed beneath his hands, and Merlin’s heart fell. It was too much to wish that this wasn’t the end. Merlin tried to stop his tears from coming, but it was no use. His heart was broken. He felt broken.

“No, no! Why are you crying, Merlin? Are you in pain?” Arthur sounded genuinely concerned, breaking Merlin even more.

“I’m fine.” Merlin tried to push himself away from him, but Arthur held on steadfast.

“Merlin, look at me, please Merlin.” And after a few beats, Merlin did. He saw Arthur’s beautiful cerulean eyes bright with unshed tears.

“I don’t hate you.”

That made Merlin’s knees weak, but Arthur didn’t let go, and he didn’t stop talking, either. It was almost like once Arthur started, he couldn’t stop.

“I don’t hate you, and I don’t think I ever could, if I’m being honest. You know what I am? Angry. Not at you keeping your secrets, or lying to me for years. I worked through that all already—I’ve been doing it for months. I always came to the same question, though. Why? Why risk yourself like this? Why help me? Why stay at my side when I’ve been unworthy of that devotion? That question wouldn’t leave me alone. I would watch you tidy up my room, humming, and wonder what on earth is keeping you at my side? At first, I was angry. Angry that you lied, angry that you were the enemy the entire time, angry that everything we had was a lie.”

Arthur tighten his hold after Merlin flinched at the words, and the king started rubbing absentminded circles on the warlock’s skin.

“But, after keeping you at a distance for a week, I’m not sure if you remember that,” Merlin did. Vividly. Arthur wouldn’t let him near him, and he wouldn’t tell Merlin why. But after that week, they returned to semi-normacy. Merlin was unsure what happened, and Arthur still held himself tightly whenever Merlin entered the room.

“I realized how stupid I was. I asked Gaius to tell me everything, not that he did it easily. He refused to know anything I was talking about,” Arthur rolled his eyes, “like I would ever believe that. But after a few days, and countless promises that I meant no harm, he told me. I was in shock for a bit after. Gaius said he didn’t have all the details, and that I should talk to you, but I was scared. Merlin. I was scared to find out why.”

Merlin still couldn’t stop the tears from falling as Arthur gently lowered him onto the cot, the king sitting next to him, still rubbing those damn patterns onto Merlin’s skin.

“Watching you for a couple more days, I started scolding myself for my own cowardice. I started thinking why the question mattered that much, why I cared at all for someone who obviously never truly trusted me. I get it, though, Merlin,” here Arthur stared directly into Merlin’s eyes, not wavering for a second, “why you never told me. Fuck, I wouldn’t have told me either if I was in your place. When did I ever give you a reason to?” Arthur scoffed at himself, still tensed and worked up.

Merlin couldn’t get a word in before Arthur continued on. “And last week, I decided enough is enough. I needed to tell you I knew. It wasn’t fair of me to keep it from you, not when you live your life in such a constant state of fear of Camelot’s laws. I needed to tell you how I was almost done rewriting the laws, how close I was to freeing your people, how sorry I was for being so idiotically blinded by my father’s hatred. And when you agreed to go to the hunt with me, I was already prepared with my speech. With you and my knights, I was going to explain the changes I was making, and I thought that would be the perfect time to tell you I knew.”

Arthur got up again, walking back and forth. “Of course it all went to shit, though, because when can we ever get a break? And, gods, Merlin, I was so angry at you for putting yourself in more danger! What was that? Not telling me you were hurt? I had to find out by some assholes kicking you so hard that you scream in pain! Merlin,” the king turned to face him, walking back to the cot, “the sound almost broke me.”

Merlin’s tears were a steady companion as Arthur took up his seat once more, his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands. “You were in agony, and I couldn’t do anything! Powerless, and terrified, and fucking useless. When you looked at me before turning into white hot flame, I saw your fear, your terror, your resignation that this was your end. I screamed, then, when you closed your eyes. I screamed at the men holding me, at the world for watching this happen, at the gods who did nothing to help. But you,” Arthur shook his head, eyes full of amazement, “You lit up. You burned so brightly, I had to shut my eyes. I’ve never seen such raw power, Merlin, you were brilliant.”

Merlin repeated the word quietly to himself, brilliant.

Arthur shook his head again, his eyes darkening. “After that, you started freaking out. You were sobbing, yelling you couldn’t breathe, backing away from everyone. Even as the knights tried to tell you that they understood, that they knew, you didn’t believe them. Gaius says you were delirious from the blood loss and the use of such magic, and it scared me. I thought we were going to lose you,” Arthur’s absentminded rubbing returned, the feeling burning through Merlin’s skin.

“The knights, Merlin, you should’ve seen them. Elyan and Percy had their weapons towards me, as Gwaine tried to help Lance pick you up. But you wouldn’t let them, saying for them to run, that they needed to get out of there. Lancelot managed to calm you down enough that you passed out, but no one moved. They were ready to protect you until their last breath, even if that meant leaving me behind to get you to safety. I explained to them quickly what I knew, and they immediately moved aside to let me near you. I had to get to you, and I think the knights saw that too.

We carried you to the horses and rode to Camelot, faster than anything we’ve ever done before. Gaius was able to stop the bleeding, but you had such a high fever for days. I didn’t leave your side. I wouldn’t. The knights came in at the beginning, and they promised me that you would be fine if I left for a moment, but I couldn’t move. You thought I hated you, I saw it in your eyes, and every time I closed my own, that was the only thing I saw. They realized it was quite a lost cause and they began to take turns staying with us, each of them telling me how they came to realize your magic. Elyan found out accidentally through Gwen, who threatened him if he harmed you in anyway, Gwaine apparently always had an inkling, ever since the plate incident when we first met him, and Percy said he had no idea, but he knew what kind of person you are and he would defend you to his dying breath.”

Merlin’s breathing hitched, the overwhelming feeling of acceptance smothering his lungs.

“Lancelot was the fiercest, if you were wondering. It took a lot of explaining on my part before he let me near you again. I knew Lancelot’s loyalty was with you, but the depth of it shook me to my core. All the knights seem more loyal to you, it seems, than their own king,” here Arthur smiled, “and I am proud of that, of them. They knew you, all of you, and did not hesitate to protect. I knew I made the correct choice picking my roundtable, wouldn’t you agree?”

Merlin nodded, still stunned enough by it all that he couldn’t say a word.

Arthur grabbed his hand then, turning himself towards the warlock. “So, no, Merlin. I do not hate you. I was mad that you put yourself at danger once again, so please stop doing that. You’re going to put me in an early grave from worry, and I think Gaius and the knights agree with me.”

Merlin gave a wet laugh, “I can’t promise that, Arthur, you know that.”

Arthur’s soft smile returned, and Merlin couldn’t help but stare at the man’s face. This was the king he chose, here was the reason he put himself at danger. Arthur wiped away Merlin’s tears, and Merlin leaned into the touch as Arthur’s fingers gently stroked his cheek.

They had so much more to discuss and to plan, but for now, Merlin let himself feel acceptance for the first time since he’s moved to Camelot. He let himself feel loved, cared for, understood.

No, this wasn’t the end of anything, Merlin realized, only the beginning of something greater.

[percysaysfuck]

THREE OLD BITCHES KNIT THE SOCKS OF DEATH

I was used to the occasional weird experience, but usually they were over quickly. This twenty-four/seven hallucination was more than I could handle. For the rest of the school year, the entire campus seemed to be playing some kind of trick on me. The students acted as if they were completely and totally convinced that Mrs. Kerr—a perky blond woman whom I'd never seen in my life until she got on our bus at the end of the field trip—had been our pre-algebra teacher since Christmas.

Every so often I would spring a Mrs. Dodds reference on somebody, just to see if I could trip them up, but they would stare at me like I was psycho.

It got so I almost believed them—Mrs. Dodds had never existed.

Almost.

But Grover couldn't fool me. When I mentioned the name Dodds to him, he would hesitate, then claim she didn't exist. But I knew he was fucking lying.

Something was going on. Something had happened at the museum.

I didn't have much time to think about it during the days, but at night, visions of Mrs. Dodds with talons and leathery wings would wake me up in a cold sweat.

The freak weather continued, which didn't help my mood. One night, a thunderstorm blew out the windows in my dorm room. A few days later, the biggest tornado ever spotted in the Hudson Valley touched down only fifty miles from Yancy Academy. One of the current events we studied in social studies class was the unusual number of small planes that had gone down in sudden squalls in the Atlantic that year.

I started feeling cranky and irritable most of the time. My grades slipped from Ds to Fs. I got into more fights with Nancy Bobofit and her shit faced friends. I was sent out into the hallway in almost every class.

Finally, when our English teacher, Mr. Nicoll, asked me for the millionth time why I was too lazy to study for spelling tests, I snapped. I called him an old sot. I wasn't even sure what it meant, but it sounded good.

The headmaster sent my mom a letter the following week, making it official: I would not be invited back next year to Yancy Academy.

Fine, I told myself. Just fine.

I was homesick.

I wanted to be with my mom in our little apartment on the Upper East Side, even if I had to go to public school and put up with my obnoxious fucking stepfather and his shitty poker parties.

And yet. . . there were things I'd miss at Yancy. The view of the woods out my dorm window, the Hudson River in the distance, the smell of pine trees. Id miss Grover, who'd been a good friend, even if he was a little fucked up. I worried how he'd survive next year without me.

I'd miss Latin class, too—Mr. Brunner's crazy tournament days and his faith that I could do well.

As exam week got closer, Latin was the only test I studied for. I hadn't forgotten what Mr. Brunner had told me about this subject being life-and-death for me. I wasn't sure why, but I'd started to believe him.

The evening before my final, I got so frustrated I threw the Cambridge Guide to Greek Mythology across my dorm room. Words had started swimming off the page, circling my head, the letters doing one-eighties as if they were riding skateboards. There was no way I was going to remember the difference between Chiron and Charon, or Polydictes and Polydeuces. And conjugating those Latin verbs? Fucking forget it.

I paced the room, feeling like ants were crawling around inside my shirt.

I remembered Mr. Brunner's serious expression, his thousand-year-old eyes. I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson. I took a deep breath. I picked up the mythology book.

I'd never asked a teacher for help before. Maybe if I talked to Mr. Brunner, he could give me some pointers. At least I could apologize for the big fat F I was about to score on his exam. I didn't want to leave Yancy Academy with him thinking I hadn't tried.

I walked downstairs to the faculty offices. Most of them were dark and empty, but Mr. Brunner's door was ajar, light from his window stretching across the hallway floor.

I was three steps from the door handle when I heard voices inside the office. Mr. Brunner asked a question. A voice that was definitely Grover's said ". . . worried about Percy, sir. "

I froze.

Shit.

I'm not usually an eavesdropper, but I dare you to try not listening if you hear your best friend talking shit about you to an adult.

I inched closer.

". . . alone this summer," Grover was saying. "I mean, a Kindly One in the school! Now that we know for sure, and they know too—"

"We would only make matters worse by rushing him," Mr. Brunner said. "We need the boy to mature more. "

"But he may not have time. The summer solstice deadline— "

"Will have to be resolved without him, Grover. Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can. "

"Sir, he saw her. . . . "

"His imagination," Mr. Brunner insisted. "The Mist over the students and staff will be enough to convince him of that. "

"Sir, I . . . I can't fail in my duties again. " Grover's voice was choked with emotion. "You know what that would mean. "

"You haven't failed, Grover," Mr. Brunner said kindly. "I should have seen her for what she was. Now lets just worry about keeping Percy alive until next fall—"

The mythology book dropped out of my hand and hit the floor with a thud.

Fuck.

Mr. Brunner went silent.

My heart hammering, I picked up the book and backed down the hall.

A shadow slid across the lighted glass of Brunner's office door, the shadow of something much taller than my wheelchair-bound teacher, holding something that looked suspiciously like an archers bow.

I opened the nearest door and slipped inside.

A few seconds later I heard a slow clop-clop-clop, like muffled wood blocks, then a sound like an animal snuffling right outside my door. A large, dark shape paused in front of the glass, then moved on.

A bead of sweat trickled down my neck.

Somewhere in the hallway, Mr. Brunner spoke. "Nothing," he murmured. "My nerves haven't been right since the winter solstice. "

"Mine neither," Grover said. "But I could have sworn . . . "

"Go back to the dorm," Mr. Brunner told him. "You've got a long day of exams tomorrow. "

"Don't remind me. "

The lights went out in Mr. Brunner's office.

I waited in the dark for what seemed like forever.

Finally, I slipped out into the hallway and made my way back up to the dorm.

Grover was lying on his bed, studying his Latin exam notes like he'd been there all night.

"Hey," he said, bleary-eyed. "You going to be ready for this test?"

I didn't answer.

"You look awful. " He frowned. "Is everything okay?"

"Just. . . tired. "

I turned so he couldn't read my expression, and started getting ready for bed.

I didn't understand what I'd heard downstairs. I wanted to believe I'd imagined the whole thing.

But one thing was clear: Grover and Mr. Brunner were talking about me behind my back. They thought I was in some kind of danger.

The next afternoon, as I was leaving the three-hour Latin exam, my eyes swimming with all the Greek and Roman names I'd misspelled, Mr. Brunner called me back inside.

For a moment, I was worried he'd found out about my eavesdropping the night before, but that didn't seem to be the problem.

"Percy," he said. "Don't be discouraged about leaving Yancy. It's . . . it's for the best. "

His tone was kind, but the words still embarrassed me. Even though he was speaking quietly, the other kids finishing the test could hear. Nancy Bobofit fucking smirked at me and made sarcastic little kissing motions with her lips.

I mumbled, "Okay, sir. "

"I mean . . . " Mr. Brunner wheeled his chair back and forth, like he wasn't sure what to say. "This isn't the right place for you. It was only a matter of time. "

My eyes stung.

Here was my favorite teacher, in front of the class, telling me I couldn't handle it. After saying he believed in me all year, now he was telling me I was destined to get kicked out.

"Right," I said, trembling.

"No, no," Mr. Brunner said. "Oh, confound it all. What I'm trying to say . . . you're not normal, Percy. That's nothing to be—"

"Thanks," I blurted. "Thanks a lot, sir, for fucking reminding me. "

"Percy—"

But I was already gone.

On the last day of the term, I shoved my clothes into my suitcase.

The other guys were joking around, talking about their vacation plans. One of them was going on a hiking trip to Switzerland. Another was cruising the Caribbean for a month. They were juvenile delinquents, like me, but they were rich juvenile delinquents. Their daddies were executives, or ambassadors, or celebrities. I was a nobody, from a family of fucking nobodies.

They asked me what Id be doing this summer and I told them I was going back to the city.

What I didn't tell them was that I'd have to get a summer job walking dogs or selling magazine subscriptions, and spend my free time worrying about where I'd go to school in the fall.

"Oh," one of the guys said. "That's cool. "

They went back to their conversation as if I'd never existed.

The only person I dreaded saying good-bye to was Grover, but as it turned out, I didn't have to. He'd booked a ticket to Manhattan on the same Greyhound as I had, so there we were, together again, heading into the city.

During the whole bus ride, Grover kept glancing nervously down the aisle, watching the other passengers. It occurred to me that he'd always acted nervous and fidgety when we left Yancy, as if he expected something bad to happen. Before, I'd always assumed he was worried about getting teased. But there was nobody to tease him on the Greyhound.

Finally I couldn't fucking stand it anymore.

I said, "Looking for Kindly Ones?"

Grover nearly jumped out of his seat. "Wha—what do you mean?"

I confessed about eavesdropping on him and Mr. Brunner the night before the exam.

Grover's eye twitched. "How much did you hear?"

"Oh . . . not much. What's the summer solstice dead-line?"

He winced. "Look, Percy . . . I was just worried for you, see? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teachers . . . "

"Grover—"

"And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you were overstressed or something, because there was no such person as Mrs. Dodds, and . . . "

"Grover, you're a really, really bad fucking liar. "

His ears turned pink.

From his shirt pocket, he fished out a grubby business card. "Just take this, okay? In case you need me this summer."

The card was in fancy script, which was murder on my dyslexic eyes, but I finally made out something like:

Grover Underwood

Keeper

Half-Blood Hill

Long Island, New York

(800) 009-0009

"What's Half—"

"Don't say it aloud!" he yelped. "That's my, um . . . summer address. "

My heart sank. Grover had a fucking summer home. I'd never considered that his family might be as rich as the others at Yancy.

"Okay," I said glumly. "So, like, if I want to come visit your mansion. "

He nodded. "Or . . . or if you need me. "

"Why the fuck would I need you?"

It came out harsher than I meant it to.

Grover blushed right down to his Adams apple. "Look, Percy, the truth is, I—I kind of have to protect you. "

I stared at him.

All year long, I'd gotten in fights, keeping bullies away from him. I'd lost sleep worrying that he'd get beaten up next year without me. And here he was acting like he was the one who fucking defended me.

"Grover," I said, "what exactly are you protecting me from?"

There was a huge grinding noise under our feet. Black smoke poured from the dashboard and the whole bus filled with a smell like rotten eggs. The driver cursed and limped the Greyhound over to the side of the highway.

After a few minutes clanking around in the engine compartment, the driver announced that we'd all have to get off. Grover and I filed outside with everybody else.

We were on a stretch of country road—no place you'd notice if you didn't break down there. On our side of the highway was nothing but maple trees and litter from passing cars. On the other side, across four lanes of asphalt shimmering with afternoon heat, was an old-fashioned fruit stand.

The stuff on sale looked really fucking good: heaping boxes of bloodred cherries and apples, walnuts and apricots, jugs of cider in a claw-foot tub full of ice. There were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest pair of socks Id ever seen.

I mean these socks were the size of sweaters, but they were clearly socks. The lady on the right knitted one of them. The lady on the left knitted the other. The lady in the middle held an enormous basket of electric-blue yarn.

All three women looked ancient, with pale faces wrinkled like fruit leather, silver hair tied back in white bandannas, bony arms sticking out of bleached cotton dresses.

The weirdest thing was, they seemed to be looking right fucking at me.

I looked over at Grover to say something about this and saw that the blood had drained from his face. His nose was twitching.

"Grover?" I said. "Hey, man—"

"Tell me they're not looking at you. They are, aren't they?"

"Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?"

"Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all. "

The old lady in the middle took out a huge pair of scissors—gold and silver, long-bladed, like shears. I heard Grover catch his breath.

"Were getting on the bus," he told me. "Come on. "

"What?" I said. "It's a thousand degrees in there. "

"Come on!" He pried open the door and climbed inside, but I stayed back.

Across the road, the old ladies were still watching me. The middle one cut the yarn, and I swear I could hear that snip across four lanes of traffic. Her two friends balled up the electric-blue socks, leaving me wondering who they could possibly be for—Sasquatch or Godzilla.

At the rear of the bus, the driver wrenched a big chunk of smoking metal out of the engine compartment. The bus shuddered, and the engine roared back to life.

The passengers cheered.

"Darn right!" yelled the driver. He slapped the bus with his hat. "Everybody back on board!"

Once we got going, I started feeling feverish, as if I'd caught the fucking flu.

Grover didn't look much better. He was shivering and his teeth were chattering.

"Grover?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you not fucking telling me?"

He dabbed his forehead with his shirt sleeve. "Percy, what did you see back at the fruit stand?"

"You mean the old ladies? What is it about them, man? They're not like . . . Mrs. Dodds, are they?"

His expression was hard to read, but I got the feeling that the fruit-stand ladies were something much, much worse than Mrs. Dodds. He said, "Just tell me what you saw. "

"The middle one took out her scissors, and she fucking cut the yarn. "

He closed his eyes and made a gesture with his fingers that might've been crossing himself, but it wasn't. It was something else, something almost—older.

He said, "You saw her snip the cord. "

"Yeah. So?" But even as I said it, I knew it was a big deal.

"This is not happening," Grover mumbled. He started chewing at his thumb. "I don't want this to be like the last time. "

"What last time?"

"Always sixth grade. They never get past sixth. "

"Grover," I said, because he was really starting to fucking scare me. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"Let me walk you home from the bus station. Promise me. "

This seemed like a strange request to me, but I promised he could.

"Is this like a superstition or something?" I asked.

No answer.

"Grover—that snipping of the yarn. Does that mean somebody is going to fucking die?"

He looked at me mournfully, like he was already picking the kind of flowers I'd like best on my coffin.

Fuck.

[dyde21]

Lone Wolf 2: The Confrontation

A continuation of the story inspired by @somethingmorecreative1 Since it got so much attention and I got some new followers I decided to pump out part two! I hope you enjoy it, it’s... intense. xD Fair warning, a bit of swearing and some more angst. Promise there will be plenty more fluffy sunshine in the future. But this plot starts dark. xD 

XxXxXxXxX

Annabeth paced back and forth in her office. Her work was done, but her head was somewhere else. She kept replaying the scene from the previous day. Different words she could have said, different approaches she could have made when talking to that boy. Piper was right, that boy could only be described as desperate. Yet, he ran off. Annabeth couldn’t help but feel that if he died she was partially responsible. Maybe she could have done more to calm him down. 

It wasn’t exactly uncommon for wolves without a pack to be a bit unbalanced. Their life was chaotic enough having a double life, and some part of their nature craved a pack. Living alone wasn’t good for their mental health nor their physical health. 

She hoped he would seek them out, she had sent out some people to keep an eye for him, incase he did start looking. But her hopes weren’t high, he seemed stubborn, to say the least. 

Still, she couldn’t get him out of her head. He reminded her of herself, when Thalia had first found her on the streets. She hadn’t been alone long, but it seemed like he had been. 

A knock on her door snapped her back to reality as she beckoned them in. 

Piper entered, looking as anxious as she felt as she took a seat in one of the seats of her office. 

“Any word?” Annabeth asked, knowing the answer.

Piper shook her head. “No. He might have left.”

Annabeth nodded. “We tried.” She offered, but her voice didn’t even convince herself. 

Piper just leaned forward, resting her head in her hands. “I don’t want him to get himself killed. He didn’t seem like a bad guy.”

Annabeth nodded, finally taking a seat of her own. “I… I know. But he ran, and I don’t think chasing him down would have helped.”

Nodding, Piper sighed. “You can’t help someone who doesn’t want help. For a moment though… I thought he was going to.”

The blonde sighed. “I thought so too. Something happened before to have him spooked. That’s all I can think of.” Looking over, she saw Piper not looking well. “Come on, let’s go get some food. I think we both need fresh air. If he turns up, we’ll be the first to know.”

Piper nodded, standing up. “You’re right.”

As they made their way down to the street, Annabeth’s phone rang. Fishing through her pocket she pulled it out quickly. “Hello?”

“Emergency in the forest.” It was Will’s voice, and he sounded panicked.

Freezing in place, Annabeth’s blood went cold. “What do you mean? What’s going on?”

Piper tugged on her sleeve, trying to figure out what was going on. 

“Some hunters went out to look for the “bear”. Apparently gunshots have been heard in the forest.” 

“On it. Meet us there, Tell everyone else to stay back, I’m going with Piper.”

She ordered, hanging up and taking off at a sprint towards the forest. Piper was at her side, trying to figure out why her Alpha started sprinting down the street. 

“Gunshots. In the forest. Hunters went out looking.”

Piper’s face contorted into horror. 

They were both thinking the same thing, there was a good chance that someone is going to die. Either Percy could kill someone if backed into a corner, or he could be put down by hunters who don’t know better.

They had to move quickly, and small because attracting too much attention could backfire if it rallied more hunters.

The second they reached the cover of the trees they shifted and tore through the woods as wolves, looking for any scent of blood. 

Annabeth could feel her pulse pounding as her eyes scanned everything, taking in every inch of detail she could manage. Before long Will had joined them, but they still weren’t having much luck with tracking down anyone. 

Another gunshot echoed through the forest and Annabeth almost tripped over a root from shock. 

Turning, they sprinted towards the sound. A few minutes later, and the scent of fresh blood hit their noses hard. Slowing slightly, Annabeth took the lead as they approached. At the sound of bushes rustling, they stopped and lowered themselves, ready to react to whoever emerged. Whatever it was was bleeding badly. 

Just then Percy emerged, holding a hunting knife, looking wide eyed. He stumbled for a step, before he collapsed into the side of a tree. 

Annabeth looked over him, and her heart skipped a beat. What was an old, slightly torn white shirt was stained a deep red, as he clutched his side. His face was pale and contorted in pain as he uselessly held out the small hunters knife in front of him as a threat. 

“Stay back. I’ll kill you.” He warned, his voice cracking from pain during the threat. 

He tried to take a step towards them, before he collapsed into a heap on the ground, curling up slightly as he held his side. Blood was pooling into the leaves around him, and Will let out a soft whine. Their doctor hated seeing people injured, threats or not.

Annabeth shifted back. “Don’t move.” She ordered her packmates as she stepped forward. 

“You’ve been shot.” She stated plainly as she made her way towards Percy, hands up and in the open to show she wasn’t a threat. “Let us help you, or you’re going to die.”

Percy grunted, forcing himself to sit up. 

“Stay away! I’ll be fine! I’ll heal! Just get the hell away from me!” He said, swinging the knife through the air between them.

“Stay away!” His voice cracked as tears threatened the corners of his eyes from pain. 

His pitiful attempts at bravado cracked Annabeth’s heart in two. He was on the verge of death and so terrified it hurt to watch.

Carefully, Annabeth pressed on towards him. “Percy, I’m not going to hurt you and I’m not going to let you die here. Trust me.”

Percy glared at her. “Never! Stay away!” 

Kneeling down, Annabeth continued to approach him. 

In one last desperate plea, Percy stabbed out with the knife, digging it into Annabeth’s leg.

Both of her packmates snarled, but Annabeth turned towards them with every ounce of authority she had in her. “STAND DOWN.” She ordered, with such force they both bowed their heads slightly.

Reached down, ignoring the burning pain spreading through her leg, she wrapped her hand around his, prying his hand from the knife without much issue. 

Shifting her leg away, the knife still in it, she held his hand. “Percy. We’re going to save you. I promise.”

He squeezed her hand, looking up at her with desperate eyes and shallow breaths. They were shaking with fear as tears started to fall. Even his broken facade fell apart. “I’m… sorry.” His voice cracked out, as he squeezed her hand a little tighter for a moment, before his head slowly fell to the forest ground.

“Will!” She ordered and in a flash Will was at her side, pulling supplies out of his bag as he did what first aid he could. “Don’t let him die. That’s an order.” Will just nodded at her outrageous command. It was obvious he was going to do what he could, but the order was mostly just to help her feel some sense of control over the situation. 

Piper rushed to her side, looking at her leg. “Are you okay?”

Annabeth nodded, wiping some sweat from her brow. “I’ll be fine. I’ve had worse and it’s just my leg. Will can help me after Percy is more stable. Call Leo, have him have a van ready to bring Percy back. He will need more help.”

Piper was on the phone a minute later as Annabeth sat back, wincing as her leg still felt like it was on fire but she was tough, she’d be fine till Will had a chance to help her. 

Percy was completely out now, but still breathing luckily. Will continued to do what little he could for now, before he moved over to Annabeth. 

“I have to remove the knife now.” He warned. 

Nodding, Annabeth took a deep breath. “Just let me kn-”

Mid sentence he pulled the knife out as quickly as he could.

“SON OF A BITCH!” Annabeth screamed, her words echoing through the forest, making Piper looked back at her over her shoulder from her phone call. 

Will just winced, with the smallest hint of a smirk on his face.

“You asshole.” She said, wincing as he started to stitch the wound. 

“I didn’t want you to tense up.” He offered. 

Annabeth just glared at him, having a few more choice words for her sadistic doctor but Percy was dulling her edge at the moment. 

A few minutes later a few more of their pack members showed up and managed to carry Percy towards the van while Piper helped Annabeth limp her way back. Her leg was already healing but it would still take a while.

As they all piled in the van, Annabeth just let out a deep sigh.

“Are you okay?” Will asked from Percy’s side.

Annabeth nodded. “Just done with today.” 

Piper let out a hollow laugh, kissing the top of her friend's head. “We saved him.”

Annabeth nodded, leaning into Piper’s shoulder as her eyes drooped slightly. Healing always drained Annabeth’s energy.

“Get some rest, I’ll wake you up when we’re back at the house.”

Annabeth nodded, and after one last glance at the boy, she was out.

XxXxXxXxX

Annabeth paced back and forth as Will finished up all he could do on Percy. 

“Will he be okay?”

Will nodded. “He’ll be fine. The wound is closing up nicely, we got there in time.” 

Annabeth felt like a weight dropped off her shoulder. Now that he was safe, they could work on helping him mentally. That last look he had given her and set her mind. He needed their help. Even if he didn’t want to admit it. She was too stubborn to let him go now. 

Looking over his frame, Annabeth frowned. “He… doesn’t look good.” 

Will nodded his head, running a hand through his hair solemnly . “He’s… drastically underweight.” He said, putting it lightly. 

That was much was clear, even to Annabeth. The guy was starving. Plus he had a few scars on him, the most notable being a large deep scar from his right shoulder to his left hip. With how fast they healed, Annabeth shuddered to think about what the wound must have been like in order to leave that. 

Annabeth couldn’t even imagine how much of a hell his life must have been to leave him in that state. 

This boy seemed like a tragic mystery to her, and she desperately wanted to figure him out. 

Seeing Will out a yawn, she stood up. “Go get some rest. You’ve been working straight for a while now. I’ll stick around in case he wakes up.”

Will opened his mouth but Annabeth cut him off. 

“Shut up. You said you’re done with him. Go get some rest, we might need you later. That’s an order.” 

Will gave her a mild glared, but nodded. “Fine. There’s some pain killers on my desk if either of you need them. Call me if you need to, don’t hesitate.”

Annabeth gave him a dismissive wave as she pulled up a chair, spinning it around and leaning over the back of it as she looked at the sleeping boy. There was so much to him, and she wanted to know why he was so adamant about refusing help even when dying. She had a feeling that scar had a lot to do with it. 

Annabeth wasn’t sure if she had fully dozed off or not, but at the sound of a groan, her eyes shot open as she saw Percy start to shift, eyes blinking. 

She watched him fully wake up, shifting before his eyes fell on her and he tensed up. 

“You drool when you sleep.” Was all she said, as she continued to stay on the chair, watching him carefully.

She saw his expression shift from fear, to anger, to relief, before settling on a forced stoic face. 

“Where am I?” He asked curtly. 

“Someplace safe. Will patched you up, make sure you thank him later for saving your life.”

Annabeth countered. 

“I didn’t ask you to.”

Glaring slightly, Annabeth shifted her weight. “I know. You actually made quite an effective argument against it when you stabbed your knife into my leg.” 

The boy winced, before  he glanced at her leg then back at her. 

“Where’s my knife?” He tried something else. 

“Someplace safe.” She repeated, a little pleased at the annoyed look that crossed his face. “You lost your privilege of having sharp things for now.”

A low growl emitted from his throat as he looked at her. “Don’t talk down to me.”

“Or what?” Annabeth challenged, sitting up. “You can’t even stand up.”

Percy glared at her, clearly attempting to sit up but that was clearly a bad idea as his face flushed as he gasped in pain. 

“For now.” He muttered childishly. 

Annabeth sighed. “Just be patient and let us heal you up then you can have your stuff back.”

“Good. Then I can get out of here.”

“OKAY. What the hell is your problem?” She snapped, kicking the chair off to the side as it hit the wall. Her frustration had gone way past her limits. 

Percy flinched at this, but he was completely at her mercy. 

“I’ve gone out of my way to save your life, even after you STABBED me. I’ve had every reason to kill your or let you die and you still are acting like we’re out to get you.” She was breathing heavily now, the frustration of the past few days finally boiling over. “What the hell is wrong with you.”

“Because I know you’re going to kill me!” Percy snapped back, forcing himself to sit up despite all the pain he was clearly in. If Annabeth wasn’t so worked up she probably would have yelled at him for that. “It’s the same with every pack. They talk sweet to you, let you in, and the second you’re seen a threat they try and kill you! I’m done with it!” He snapped back, tears boiling over. “I just want to be left alone. That’s all I want.” 

Annabeth paused, taking a few deep breaths as she was glad to finally be getting some honesty from Percy.

He glared at her, fists bunching up. “I’m sorry, okay! I’m sorry! I’m sorry for shouting at you. And insulting you. You saved my life, and I’m so relieved and thankful. I can never thank you enough. I just don’t want to die. I don’t want to hurt anyone…” His voice cracked as he full on started crying despite his best attempts to hide it. 

Annabeth felt all the steam leave her as her heart broke at the boy trying to keep it together in front of her but failing miserably. Her suspicions had been right, something had happened with a previous pack. Moving over, Annabeth sat on the edge of his bed. After a moment of hesitation, she reached out and rubbed his back. 

“It’s okay.” She said, her voice gentle. “I promise you, this pack isn’t like that. We just don’t want to see a lone wolf kill himself out of stubbornness. We’re not saying you need to join us or whatever. Just.. give us a chance. Let us help you, okay? That’s all we want. I’m the Alpha, and you have my protection as long as you’re here. No one can lay a hand on you, as long as you don’t do anything stupid.”

Percy nodded, taking a few more shaky breaths. “I… Thank you. Annabeth. Thank you. For everything.”

Annabeth smiled, messing with his hair slightly. “You’re welcome. But get some sleep. We still have a lot to talk about, but you need rest. When you wake up we can talk some more and I’ll introduce you to the people who saved you.”

He nodded, slowly laying back down. He was quiet, and Annabeth figured she wasn’t going to get much more out of him for now. It seemed there was even more to unpack than she thought. Still, knowing that he would be safe and getting help was enough for now.” Setting the chair back up, she set a glass of water next to some pain killers on the table near him and then left him alone, not the least bit surprised when she suddenly opened the door as Piper stumbled into the room from where she had been listening on the other side. “Come on, he needs some rest.” She said, deciding here wasn’t the best place to scold her friend. As she lead Piper away, Annabeth just smiled. It seemed things had finally calmed down. Now the real work could begin.

XxXxXxXxX

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it, I had a lot of fun writing it. Boy it’s hard writing angst though. As always, let me know what you think! Percy was a bit different in this one, but he’ll get back to how I usually write him soon enough. =P I hope he came across alright.  If you enjoyed this please check out my twitter HERE

Also please consider checking out my commissions HERE It really is hard to split my time between writing and working on my art to get some income so just spreading the word is enough. I can absolutely through in another chapter or request with an art commission too! Either way, thank you for looking at them!

I hope you enjoy it! Depending on the engagement I might be able to get another chapter out soon too!

[alice-beaumont-ravenclaw]

Something About Us

Summary: Alice questions why she got the Prefect’s badge while Charlie realizes something.

This is the sequel of “A New Prefect in the Family”.

Word count: around 4200 words

----------------------

After hearing the shriek from inside the tent, Alice had quickly gone back in, to see what was going on. She was scared either Tulip or Tonks had tried to prank one of the other girls, and Merlin knew how Penny and Rowan were in no mood to be pranked after the exploding pillow fight. What she saw instead were the three girls standing around Rowan, who was holding a prefect's badge.

"Oh, Rowan! Congratulations!" Alice said, beaming as she went to hug her best friend.

"Hum... Actually... It's not mine..." Rowan said, staring at Alice.

"Huh? But it's a Ravenclaw badge... Don't tell me Tulip was made Prefect?!" Alice exclaimed staring at the red-haired prankster in disbelief, resulting in the latter to laugh.

"Merlin, you can be thick when you want..." Penny muttered, slapping her forehead.

"No, you big dummy," Tonks started as she slapped Alice's back, "you were made Prefect." As she said that, Tonks took the badge from Rowan and handed it to Alice.

"You're joking, right? Me? Prefect? Is this another one of your pranks? Come on, give the badge back to Rowan. You're all trying to trick me, right?" Alice said, a slight note of panic in her voice as she looked at each of her friends, hoping to see a gleam in their eyes that would indicate they were all joking, but nothing.

"No, Alice, it's not a joke. Here, read this," Rowan said, handing her a letter.

"What the...?!" Alice said after glancing at the letter, "Have Dumbledore and Flitwick gone completely mad?! I broke so many rules, opened cursed vaults even when Dumbledore told me not to..."

"Closed said vaults, saving the school and its students in the process, excelled in your classes, helped your fellow students..." Rowan continued, smirking. "Face it, Alice. You were the best candidate."

"But... Rowan... You wanted so much to be Prefect. Aren't you angry? I thought you would get it..." Alice mumbled.

"What kind of friend would I be if I was angry that you were made Prefect? I'm happy for you," Rowan replied, smiling.

"You're sure?" Alice asked sheepishly.

"Of course!" Rowan replied, hugging her friend.

"Group hug!" Tonks exclaimed as the other three girls joined in the hug.

"Hum... By the way... why was my letter opened?" Alice asked in the middle of the hug.

"When we saw Rowan didn't have a Prefect's badge in her envelope, Tonks went straight to yours and opened it. I told her not to, but it's not like she would listen to me..." Penny explained glancing at Tonks from the corner of her eyes.

"Her envelope was heavier than ours! Had to check!" Tonks tried to justify.

"What's going on?" asked a voice behind them. As they all turned toward the entrance of the tent, they all saw Charlie holding a small bottle. Charlie soon noticed the blue pin in Alice's hand. "Oh! You're a Prefect too?"

"Yeah..." muttered Alice, still not believing she was the owner of that prefect badge.

"What do you mean 'too'? You were also made Prefect?" Rowan asked.

"Yeah... And Bill was made Head Boy..." Charlie said.

"What?! How wonderful! I'll go and congratulate him!" Rowan exclaimed, quickly leaving the tent.

"Could the girl be more obvious..." Tonks said, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, by the way," Charlie began saying, remembering the bottle he was holding, "Mum told me to give you girls this. It's supposed to help with burnt hair."

"Oh, thank Merlin! I was getting tired of looking through all those books so early in the morning," Penny said, snatching the bottle from Charlie's hand. She put some of the concoction on her hair and them some on Alice's hair, the latter still staring in disbelief at her badge.

"What about me?" Tulip exclaimed, pointing at her own scorched hair.

"You're the reason for all this! Find your own way to..." Penny started saying before Tonks grabbed the bottle from her hand and threw it at Tulip.

"Thanks!" exclaimed Tulip as she caught the bottle, but before she could open it, Penny used Accio to get it back and started running away from the two pranksters outside the tent. Said pranksters followed her out, all while Charlie stared at them in disbelief, Alice utterly oblivious to what was going on.

"Alice?" Charlie said, leaning down slightly so that his face would be in her line of sight as she was still staring at the pin in her hand.

"Huh? What? Where are the others?" Alice asked, snapping out of her daze and noticing all the other girls had left.

"Rowan went to see Bill 'cause he was made Head Boy. Penny, Tonks, and Tulip are fighting over the potion I brought to deal with your burnt hair," Charlie explained, pointing at Alice's restored hair. "We should be going... Mum also wanted me to tell you that breakfast was ready..."

"Oh! Of course! I'm starving, actually!" Alice exclaimed, grabbing Charlie's wrist and dragging him out of the tent and toward the Burrow's kitchen. This resulted in Charlie becoming red in the face. The three girls who were fighting outside over the hair potion stopped as they saw Charlie's red face. Penny and Tulip started to giggle while Tonks stared at them just as Molly Weasley stood in the doorway to tell them breakfast was ready.

They all sat down to eat the delicious food Mrs. Weasley had prepared. Ginny sat between Penny and Alice, who sat next to Charlie. Rowan sat next to Bill, still fawning over him. All their friends congratulated both Alice and Charlie for becoming Prefects and Bill for being Head Boy. Charlie wasn't red in the face anymore, but the tip of his ears became red when he had to scoot close to Alice for the picture Mr. Weasley wanted to take.

"Charlie... Why are your ears red?" Barnaby asked, noticing the reddish colour of his fellow creature enthusiast's ears as Charlie scooted back to his original spot. Penny and Tulip started to giggle once again, while Andre was smirking in his friend's direction.

"Oh! Did you get a sunburn yesterday while playing Quidditch?" Alice asked, her brows furrowing in concern as she looked at his right ear.

"Oh, Merlin!" Penny muttered after letting out a sigh.

"Hum... yeah... that must be it..." Charlie mumbled trying to avoid Alice's intense gaze. He didn't understand why it made him feel uncomfortable, why it made his cheeks grow hot. She was just a concerned friend.

"Maybe you should put on some sunscreen," Barnaby suggested.

"No shit, Sherlock!" Tonks exclaimed, causing everyone to stare at her. "What?"

"Who's Sherlock?" Tulip asked.

"He's a muggle detective," Alice explained. "Penny gave me a book about him for my 13th birthday."

"A fictional muggle detective, actually. We had to read some of the stories involving his character in Muggle Studies," Penny clarified.

"You are taking Muggle Studies?" Arthur Weasley exclaimed, looking at his sons' friends.

"Only Penny, Tonks, and Barnaby," Bill replied as his mother let out a sigh. She knew of her husband's fascination for Muggles and soon, the conversation turned to what the three teenagers had learned in their class, Arthur Weasley becoming even more interested after learning Penny's father was a Muggle.

"I'm so sorry," mumbled Charlie to Alice. "My father tends to get excited when Muggles are mentioned."

"As he should! It's amazing what they can do without magic!" exclaimed Alice to Charlie's surprise. Charlie's wide eyes staring at her made her realize with embarrassment that she may have reacted a bit strongly. "Oh... I'm sorry... It's just... After Jacob ran away, I went to live with my grandmother in a Muggle village... You see, Muggles had no idea who I was, didn't know about my brother. They treated me like a normal kid... And living in their world, I sort of became fascinated..." Alice tried to explain, whispering and furrowing her brows.

"No need to justify. I was surprised because most people don't understand my father's interest in Muggles" Charlie said, smiling gently and taking her hand to reassure her.

"Thanks!" she said, a bright smile gracing her features, making Charlie's face grow red once more. "Oh! I think you got a sunburn on your face too!" Alice said, making Penny choke on the orange juice she was drinking.

"Yeah... Really need sunscreen," Charlie mumbled, releasing Alice's hand and turning his undivided attention to his plate. Alice looked at him for a moment, thinking that something seemed off, before turning back to her own plate. Andre was busy patting Penny's back, while Barnaby looked confused.

The rest of the meal went without any itch, and, after cleaning up, everyone went outside. Late in the afternoon, Rowan, Percy, and Bill were reading under a tree. Andre, Charlie, and Barnaby played Quidditch while Ron and Ben looked on. Tulip and Tonks were with the twins, whispering about pranks and such. Penny was playing in Ginny's hair while Alice read her favourite book next to them, looking up everyone once in a while to look at the boys playing Quidditch or to try and figure out what book was captivating Rowan so much that she was taking notes.

After an hour or so, the boys landed and walked toward the Hufflepuff, the Ravenclaw, and the young Weasley.

"Hey, Curse-Breaker, are you planning to come to watch a Quidditch match this year?" Andre asked, looking at Alice.

"I'll try..." Alice replied, looking up from her book.

"That's what you say every year, and every year, you don't show up. Come on! I'm sure you'd have fun!" Penny chimed in, well aware her friend tended to use all of her free time to study the Cursed Vaults, forgetting to have fun and enjoy her time at Hogwarts. "Maybe thinking about something other than the Vaults would be good for you. Rowan told me how you keep waking up in cold sweats from nightmares about your brother and the vaults. I even saw you once asleep in the library, and you looked like someone who had the weight of the world on their shoulders. So, this year, I'll drag you to the matches if I have to. Some inter-house competition and dashing Quidditch players might take your mind off the vaults." Everyone stared at her, especially Alice.

"Hum... yeah... But you could also observe the flying skills of the players, which could help you in flying class," Andre suggested.

"Yeah, like Charlie's skills. He's so good on a broom," Barnaby added, beaming, making Charlie blush when Alice's green eyes stared at him at the mention of his name.

"But... he's in our flying class, she probably already saw his skills..." Penny pointed out.

"Yeah, but when I'm not paying attention to Madam Hooch or watching Andre's demonstration, I'm usually comforting Ben, bickering with Merula, joking with Tonks, discussing brooms and broom safety with Rowan, or gossiping with Penny. Never actually saw Charlie's flying skills. So, I guess I could go to a Quidditch game to check out said skills. Every time I compliment Andre he tells me how your skills are so much better than his," Alice said, smirking as she looked at Charlie. "By the way, did you forget to put on sunscreen?" Alice added as she noticed his red face.

"No, I saw him put some on earlier," said Barnaby, looking at Charlie's face, his brows furrowing in confusion.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake!" Penny exclaimed, but before she could add anything, Mrs. Weasley called them over for dinner.

At the dinner table, Alice asked Rowan what book she had been reading earlier.

"Oh! I was reading a book about all the rules and things to know about Hogwarts!" Rowan answered.

"Why?" Alice asked, perplexed.

"To help you be a better Prefect!" Rowan exclaimed.

"Say what now?" Alice said.

"Yes! I thought I would tell you everything I've learned so far after dinner!" Rowan continued, clearly excited at the idea.

"That's not a bad idea. I'm sure Charlie also needs some guidance on how to be a good Prefect," added Bill.

"Shay what?!" Charlie said, his mouth full.

"We could teach them together!" Rowan said, her eyes gleaming.

"Sure!" Bill replied, smiling at Rowan who was now blushing.

As Rowan and Bill enthusiastically discussed what they would teach the two new prefects, Alice and Charlie stared at each other with a look of horror on their faces.

"I think we need an escape plan," Alice whispered, to which Charlie nodded in agreement. They, therefore, spent the rest of the meal whispering about possible ways to get away from Charlie's brother and Alice's best friend.

After eating and cleaning up, Bill, Rowan, Charlie, and Alice all went outside for the "How to be a Prefect" study session.

"Wait here, I'll go fetch my notes in the tent," Rowan said as she went inside the girls' tent.

"We'll be right here," Bill replied, looking in her direction. Charlie and Alice glanced at each other and took that momentary distraction to make a run for it toward the fields.

"Hey!" Bill shouted after them, but it was too late, they were already deep in the cornfield, and both Bill and Rowan figured that it would be pointless to go after them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You think we lost them?" Alice asked, after running for a while as they stopped on a patch of soil where corn hadn't grown.

"I think so. I don't hear anyone trying to follow us," Charlie replied, jumping as he tried to see if anyone else was in the field.

"Still, we should stay here for a while," Alice said as she laid down on the ground.

"What are you doing?" Charlie asked, observing her.

"Getting comfortable while we wait for the coast to be clear," she explained, now lying on the ground, looking at the sky, her hands linked under her head.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked as he lay next to her.

"It's a free country," she replied, smirking. "Why were we chosen?" she asked, looking pensively at the darkening sky.

"Huh?" he replied, wondering what she was talking about.

"Why are we Prefects? I broke countless rules looking for the vaults. You probably broke a few yourself going into the Forbidden Forest and last year helping me find the third vault. We both break the rules as though they were only guidelines. Sure, I may have saved the school, but still. I put my life and the life of others in danger going after my brother and the vaults. You go into a forest full of creatures that could kill you looking for said creatures. I don't think either of us is an example to follow..." Alice said, frowning as she still looked toward the sky where stars were starting to appear.

"Well, there's gotta be something about us that made Dumbledore and our Heads of House think it would be a good idea to make us Prefects," Charlie pondered, glancing at the Ravenclaw.

"Do they think we'll suddenly behave if we're Prefects?" she wondered.

"Dumbledore might be off his rocker, but I don't think he's that mad. I also don't think McGonagall or Flitwick are delusional when it comes to us. Maybe they hope that the responsibility of becoming a Prefect will make us think more about our actions," he replied, looking at the now darker sky.

"As in, instead of acting first, thinking later, we'll think, then act?" she asked.

"Something along those lines, yeah," he replied, a slight smile spreading his lips.

"Makes sense... Though, with Dumbledore in the mix, we never know," Alice said, pursing her lips, deep in thoughts.

"True... But I'm glad you were made Prefect," Charlie replied.

"Why?" Alice asked, turning her head to look in his direction.

"First, you're my friend, so that's nice. Second, it's good to know there's another Prefect who doesn't always care for the rules," Charlie explained, smiling as he turned his head, his eyes meeting hers. He was glad that night had fallen and that only the moonlight shined on them as the cover of darkness hid his blushing cheeks.

"Same here. I think if I had been the only Prefect in our group I would have panicked. Not to mention Bill being Head Boy, he would have been on my case all the time, not to mention I already have detention until Merlin knows when. But since you're a Prefect too AND his brother, he'll be on your case, not mine," Alice pointed out.

"For what I've seen so far, Rowan will be on your case," Charlie countered.

"Yeah, but she's not Head Girl, so she can't do much about it," Alice said.

"Ugh... You're right. Bill being Head Boy, he'll be even more overbearing than before," Charlie said, pouting.

"Don't worry, if he becomes too much, I'll ask Tonks and Tulip to distract him," Alice replied with a laugh.

"Thanks, I appreciate," Charlie said, smiling in her direction.

"No problem," Alice said before yawning.

"Maybe we should head back?" Charlie offered after hearing her yawn.

"Mmm? No, Rowan's probably not asleep yet," Alice replied, yawning again.

"Oh, I'm sure she wouldn't make you study if she saw how sleepy you were," Charlie said.

"Think again, Weasley. One time we were studying and I fell asleep. She woke me up straight away, telling me how important it was to study and so on. The girl values study over sleep," Alice explained.

"Wow... That's intense. Anyway, you can take a nap while we wait for our two tormentors to fall asleep so that we can head back," Charlie suggested.

"You're sure?" Alice asked, not wanting to be impolite.

"Yeah! Here," he said, sitting up, "take my jacket. I'll wake you up when we can safely return to our beds." He took off his jacket and handed it over to her before laying down again.

"Thanks!" she said, smiling at him as she covered herself with the jacket.

"Don't mention it," he whispered as she quickly fell asleep.

He looked at her, thinking that she looked peaceful as she shifted to her side, facing him. He looked back toward the night sky, thinking how lucky he was to have a friend like her as his eyelids became heavier.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Charlie started to wake up when he felt something resting on his shoulder and something lighter resting on his torso. As his eyelids flickered open, the first thing he saw was a delicate hand resting on his chest. Did Ginny have a nightmare and climbed into his bed? He then lazily looked at who was sleeping on his shoulder, which quickly took him out of his stupor.

It was none other than Alice. Her face was inches from his, and as he tried to move, he realized his right arm was wrapped around her shoulders. He looked up, and, when he saw the rosy sky of sunrise, he remembered the previous evening: them running away from studying, Alice falling asleep, him closing his eyes just for a while. He must have fallen asleep himself, and in their sleep, they must have shifted in their current position. He then recalled what Penny had said the previous day, that Alice was prone to wake up from nightmares in the middle of the night. Had Alice woken up during the night and placed herself like this on him?

No, that didn't sound like her. She never initiated a hug, only patted people on the back and took people's wrist instead of their hands. He still remembered when they were in their first year, and he saw Penny hugging her, Alice's wide eyes and stiff expression indicating she was out of her comfort zone. He couldn't help but smile as he remembered that and looked toward the sleeping Ravenclaw. She looked so peaceful, not like someone who had woken up during the night due to a nightmare or who had the weight of the world on her shoulders like Penny had said. Maybe it was because they talked about being prefects instead of the vaults. Maybe it was because he was next to her...

"Now, why would I think something like that?" Charlie mumbled to himself, looking up at the now bluer sky, before looking back toward Alice.

He couldn't help but wish she would always look as peaceful as she did at that moment. She always seemed so tense when she daydreamed, her mind probably wandering to the vaults or thoughts of her brother. She always had to convince her friends that her plan regarding the latest Cursed Vault would work. She always had to reassure them. He didn't need that. He trusted her from the get-go.

They had only been friends for a year, but she had been a source of fascination ever since they were eleven. She had confronted Merula to protect Ben and still stood up to her when necessary, convinced Flitwick to teach her a duelling spell at just eleven, helped Hagrid countless of times, also helped their friends many times, had defeated three cursed vaults at 15 years of age, and still managed to find time to not only study for her classes, where she excelled, but also read on the various interests of her friends.

She was the only girl he knew who wouldn't grunt every time he started talking about dragons. In fact, she seemed to remember what he had told her in previous conversation, even blurting out one dragon factoid during Care of Magical Creatures and being awarded ten points for it. He smiled thinking about her apologizing profusely for it, saying she had not meant to steal his thunder, it just came out. He wasn't mad. How could he be mad at the one girl who paid attention to what he was saying instead of fawning over him just because he was a Quidditch player? They helped each other in various classes. She even understood his dad's passion for all things Muggle. She was the most extraordinary girl he knew, and yet she always seemed to doubt herself.

He wanted to tell her how fantastic she was. He wanted to protect her peaceful slumber. He wanted to be there when she was the one who needed reassuring. He wanted to comfort her when she doubted herself. He wanted to stand by her side when fighting whatever would be guarding the final vault. Be there if she needed him.

At that very moment, it dawned on him that maybe he liked her more than just a friend. After all, he didn't care for Andre to the point where he wanted to protect his self-esteem. He didn't blush when Rowan or Penny looked straight into his eyes. He didn't really enjoy it when Barnaby joined his study sessions with Alice.

"Oh boy... I think I-" started Charlie, but before he could finish his thought, he heard noises behind him, which seemed to disturb Alice as she grunted and rolled off his shoulder and out of his arm, landing flat on her back on the wet soil.

"There they are," said Fred as he flew above them, riding his brother's broom.

"Why is there a flying Weasley in the tent?" Alice said groggily as she started to wake up.

"What were you two doing in the cornfield?" Andre asked, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Charlie, amused.

"Why is their corn in the tent?" Alice asked, ignoring Andre, as she slowly sat up.

"We fell asleep in the cornfield after getting away from Bill and Rowan," Charlie said, answering both Ravenclaws' concerns.

"Well, you better get on the brooms then before Mum realizes you two are gone," Fred said in a cheeky tone.

"Then get off mine and go on Andre's," said Charlie as both Fred and Andre landed next to them.

"You can go with your brother and Alice can climb on mine," Andre suggested smirking.

"We're all dirty from sleeping on the floor. You wouldn't want Alice to dirty your clothes, right?" Charlie said at a fast pace, to Andre's amusement as Fred begrudgingly got off Charlie's broom.

"I could use Scour-" Alice started to say.

"Once we're out of the fields. Come on!" Charlie said, sounding nervous as he took Alice's hand, leading her toward his broom. She climbed behind him, wrapping her arms around Charlie's waist, her chin resting on his shoulder, making Charlie's face become as red as a tomato.

"You're awfully close to Charlie, aren't you, Alice?" Andre observed with a smirk as they were flying toward the Burrow.

"Never been on a broom with someone else before... Just don't want to mess up the balance. Hope you don't mind?" she said, glancing in Charlie's direction.

"Nope, not at all," he mumbled, as they started to descend.

"Hey, Charlie! Are you blush-" Fred started saying as he noticed the colour of his brother's face. Before he could finish, though, someone else's voice was heard as they landed.

"Alice Beaumont!" shouted Rowan, getting out of the tent followed by Tonks.

"Oh no..." Alice muttered as she got off the broom, letting go of Charlie.

"You may have escaped me yesterday, but not this time! I will teach you how to become a perfect Prefect, even it takes me the rest of our time here to do it," Rowan stated as she took hold of Alice's hand, dragging her toward the tent.

"Tonks! Help me!" Alice said, giving Tonks a pleading look.

"Don't worry, Alice! I'll protect you from the dark side of rule followers!" Tonks exclaimed, following Alice and Rowan inside the tent.

"So?" Andre asked as he and Charlie stared at the girl's tent while Fred entered the house.

"What?" Charlie replied.

"Don't 'What?' me, Charlie. I just saw you wanting Alice to climb on your broom and your face turning into a tomato the moment she wrapped her arms around you. You're not fooling anyone anymore! Well... except maybe Barnaby and Alice herself," Andre said, sounding exasperated. "So stop being in denial and admit to yourself that..."

"I already have," Charlie mumbled, interrupting Andre.

"Finally!" exclaimed Andre and Bill, who was standing in the doorway.

"Did you tell her?" Bill asked.

"Of course not! I don't want things to become awkward between us if she doesn't feel the same!" Charlie exclaimed.

"If you wait for Alice to confess, you may need the Philosopher stone to live that long," Andre said, aware his fellow Ravenclaw was incredibly dim when it came to romance.

"Yes, well, until then, I suggest you go change if you don't want Mum to ask you why you're wearing the same clothes as yesterday," Bill suggested as Charlie kept staring at the girl's tent.

Charlie simply nodded, glancing one last time at the tent where Alice could be heard complaining about Rowan's study plans before entering the house, a slight smile playing on his lips.

---------------------------------------

A/N: This is for @delicrieux 11k challenge. It is most definitely the longest fic I ever wrote. I tried to see if I could divide it into two stories, but it would have made two unequal stories. So yeah, this fic is long, and writing anything close to romance is out of my comfort zone. As always, I’m open to suggestions and advice.

[jflashandclash]

Attrition of Peace

Twenty-Two: Ajax

When Hugs are Too Much to Ask For

 Warning!

Contains sexual themes and some bluntness about mythological relationships. The latter half of the chapter is plot heavy though, so if you get uncomfortable and want to tap out and skip ahead, just F-search “vacuum of smoke” to run into some canon favorite characters!

  All Pax wanted when he woke up was to cuddle with someone that he would share a Reese’s Stick with.

He couldn’t bother Axel. Axel looked so peaceful for once. And he’d probably wake up screaming, in a few hours. Likely because he dreamed about stabbing Pax’s hand and going in for the kill. Plus, seeing Axel stab him didn’t really put Pax in a brotherly mood.

Pax wondered what made Axel snap. He liked to think it had something to do with sneaking a condom into Axel’s pocket on his date with Reyna—but it wasn’t Pax’s fault that he wanted Axel to be responsible when he knew his brother wouldn’t have forethought for it. It was the system’s fault for not teaching proper sex education.[1]

Sneaking into the girls’ room left Pax with a contusion on his calf. He should have known Merry would put Euna by the door. She was like an alarm system and a taser all in a tiny ball of Korean. And going to Alabaster’s room just left him enumerating all the things he’d done wrong in the last year and a half. Quite an impressive list, one that might outweigh how much of a jerk Odysseus was in the Odyssey. But only maybe.

When he walked downstairs to express the immensity of this list to Alabaster, apologize and explain that he really needed to talk about his nightmares, he found Kally and Alabaster on the porch, and Aphrodite’s prophecy rang like the worst commercial jingle in his head, the person you love will fall in love with your best friend. By now, the tune he’d devised for it was obnoxiously catchy.

His two best friends and ex-sort-of-not-lovers were falling in love. He would say it was hot—because seeing them together was hot—but he doubted they’d let him squeeze between them in that sleeping bag.

As he watched, Alabaster touched her shoulder, warping the Mist in front of them to look like some other forest, the way Alabaster used to warp the Mist to show Pax and Axel the jungles of Belize when they were homesick.

Pax was already shaking. Nausea made him woozy every time he thought about Hiro holding that gun near Percy’s baby sister. Sweat had soaked his brow from his first dream—seeing his blade jam through his palm and pin him to the ground so the one family member that cared about him could stab him to death.

As he watched his two friends, he recognized Kally’s painfully shy flirtation and Alabaster’s standard obliviousness to his own attraction to another, thinly covered by random muttering about science or magic. It was the weirdest way to pick up a person that Pax had ever seen, and he’d seen Axel and Reyna flirt.

Pax realized how little he could do for them. He couldn’t tutor Kally in chemistry. He couldn’t accelerate Alabaster’s emotional healing with song. Pax couldn’t go for a full day without severely screwing up everything for everyone.

He stepped backwards away from the back porch door. Pax didn’t notice the three weasels that watched him step through the living room to the front of the house.

All he could do was rub his palm, where his brother would inevitably pin him. Why couldn’t he make a joke about it? He’d been having the same nightmare for months and didn’t have any standup comedy prepared. Probably because he couldn’t stand up in the dream-prophecy. Well, if he couldn’t stand up, he could at least give a hand to swab the deck.[2]

That didn’t even make him crack a smile. He felt too nauseous and overwhelmed, like he’d ingested a squirrel’s winter reserve of tree nuts and left his EpiPen back in New Rome. Pax walked out the front porch, feeling the icy air blast his bare chest. Normally, Pax hated the cold, but he couldn’t tell if his shakes were from the temperature or from his nightmare.

He didn’t stop walking until the edge of the property line, cleanly distinguishable by how overgrown Alabaster’s lawn was compared to that of his neighbors. And the tiny gleam of rune barrier encircling the property.

Pax stopped there and did the manliest thing he could: he sank to his knees to cry.

And landed directly on a nail.

“Cho!” Pax cursed. Why was there a nail in the middle of the lawn?

Someone giggled.

That was when Pax realized he was in his boxers without any weapons. He sat up, attempting to compose himself to look like the scariest cute creature alive. Though, first, he plucked the nail out of his knee with dignity.

“So much mythology and literature lingers on heroes being crushed and breaking down.” Someone poofed into existence on the neighbor’s lawn, a foot outside the rune barrier. “Is it for a noble cause? Like the excitement of watching them get back up? Or the sadistic pleasure of knowing someone extraordinary crumbles just like you.”

That cheerful sentiment only befit one person. Pax tried to say something clever and witty, but could only say, “Atë,” in greeting.

From what Pax could see in the brilliant moonlight and street lamps, Atë was curled in a blanket that was made from sewn newspaper articles. Since it didn’t crinkle with her movement, he assumed they were printed on fabric. There were pictures of beheadings, half-blown buildings, fire spewing out of the Twin Towers, starving children, and an Asian man standing in front of a tank. Oh, and what Pax recognized as a cancelation of Legend of Korra.

She wore an oversized white nightshirt with black script, a black choker, and multicolored ribbons along her arms. Her jagged black hair was longer, slightly curled, and had purple, red, and white streaks this time. She looked… less like she’d rolled in a dumpster, though dirt still streaked her face and arms.

Atë tossed something at Pax that clocked him in the face.

Whatever it was didn’t kill him. The material was soft, and shockingly didn’t smell like a fresh corpse. Very considerate. When Pax unraveled the folded piece, he found a sweatshirt with the image of monster-sized weasels eating tiny stick-figure humans.

Pax wasn’t sure if the gesture was meant to upset him. Weasels normally made him happy. Whatever the intention, he felt himself choke up. “You made me a homemade sweater?” he asked.

Atë stared at him with those unblinking red eyes. Her matching lips twitched down slightly.

Pax puffed up his cheeks and popped them. Slowly, hoping there weren’t spiders bundled inside, he slipped the material on. Nothing. Either it was the world’s slowest reacting poison, or she needed to do something to set it off.

“Th—thank you,” Pax said, wrapping his arms around himself. He didn’t realize how cold he was until he felt the sweater’s warmth. He sniffled. He also didn’t realize how horrible he felt before the contrast of a kind act. He tried to talk again, but shuddered.

Atë nodded at the nail in his hand. “That was meant for someone else, but I’ll take two demigods with one nail… I thought you’d be happy to see your siblings and find out Mom’s plan.”

“Infanticide and traveling through the Underworld aren’t in the top ten ways I want my siblings to spend their free time,” Pax said. “Especially when they’re only doing it because they’re mad at me.”

Atë shrugged. “Hiro isn’t just mad at you. He’d kidnap everyone’s little sister if he could,” she assured him.

“Thanks, Atë. It’s comforting to know my little brother is an aspiring serial killer.”

She laughed. “Ajax, I like you. I don’t want Axel to be driven mad and cut you up.” She sat up and leaned closer to him. As her shirt collar hung away from her body, Pax became uncomfortably aware of the black lace of her bra. She had matched it to her choker.

“You really screwed up with Alabaster and Kalypso,” she said.

Pax wanted to laugh it off, but everything felt like it was tunneling, Alice in Wonderland style.  He looked away. “I can’t blame them,” he whispered, “It’s like you said. I’m reckless, clumsy, and especially prone to screwing up. Not great dating material. Or person material.” He could imagine someone building a Lego Pax out of baby panda images and mistakes.

“Improvising,” she corrected.

“What?”

“You’re phenomenal at improvising, not screwing up,” she said. From the deadpan expression, Pax couldn’t tell if she was mocking him or serious. Maybe both. “But, you did screw up. Of course you were going to screw up.”

Pax flinched at the way she said “you.” But, then she continued, “Everyone screws up: humans, gods, cute rodents… I know that better than anyone.” She glanced off to the side.

“Are you, the Goddess of Mischief and Ruin, trying to cheer me up?” Pax asked. The nail slipped from his fingers as he stared at her.

Atë sat back in her blanket.

“Ajax, do you know why I like you?”

“Because I’m as cute as a baby panda,” he guessed.

“The fact that you’re as cute as a dead panda is nice—”

“—I said baby—”

“—but, you’re always nice to me and you’re fun. Most people are really mean when I’m around.” She kicked her feet underneath the blanket, making an illustration of a mushroom cloud billow up like another bomb had gone off within the newspaper article. “Children of Strife are always outcasts and we always hurt the people we love. We’re designed to be bad guys—”

“We’re not bad guys!” Pax cried, “We’re j-just—”

“Clumsy…” she finished with a weird grin. Atë opened up her arms, letting all the colorful ribbons on her arms dangle. “Ajax, can I have a hug?”

That was all Pax had wanted since he woke up. He crawled into the neighbor’s yard. As soon as he touched Atë, she and the blanket poofed. When they reappeared, the blanket was tightly wrapped around the two of them and Atë nuzzled into his shoulder. Pax leaned onto his side, not expecting her to be so close.

Despite that, he relaxed, ecstatic to be curled up with someone. And warm. Now he fully realized how cold out it was.

She didn’t smell like blood for once, an afterthought Pax was thankful for. “Atë, I have a really important question, one that might change the entire situation,” he said, “What does your shirt say?”

He was hoping she might pull away a little. Instead, she giggled, “When all the truth does is make your heart ache… sometimes a lie is easier to take.”[3]

She bit his neck, hard.

“Aye! Knock it off, you little empousa,” Pax complained.

“Ajax, we’re young and reckless. Do you wanna take things way too far?”

“Did you just quote Taylor Swift at me—” She shifted to wrap her legs around him and Pax became very aware she wasn’t wearing PJ pants with her nightshirt. Her fingers felt like ice as they rolled down his back. Pax felt like his mouth had gone completely dry. “—Oh! Uh—Atë, aren’t you my half-sister? And Eris’s daughter? And my half-sister?”

Had he just stroked out or suffered from a major bout of amnesia? Very possible. Maybe he’d had all Greek mythology wrong this whole time. Maybe he was actually a child of Hera—somehow—and this was all just a joke—Yea, he thought Atë was hot, but—but—

“Mom says that’s like thirteenth cousin in the Greek world,” Atë said. She raised her head and fixated those cold, red eyes on him. Pax could feel her warm breathe on his face, how he’d imagine a gasmask might feel before you go under for dental work.

She slid one hand up to press a finger to the bottom of his chin, forcing him to maintain eye contact. “The gods all fucked their siblings. I’m a god and you’re mostly god. Besides, I have too low a self-esteem to care that I’m a rebound—sorry—a rebound off a rebound. A double rebound? And you’re too emotionally compromised to say no.”

The number of times Pax didn’t know what to say was rare, but steadily rising. This was one of those times. What?! sounded appropriate, but he couldn’t get the word out before Atë ran her tongue along his lower lip.

“Um—” was his second attempt when she nipped his upper lip.

A sense of panic made him tremble when she pressed her mouth to his. Everything felt clammy.

The sudden image of Flynn’s teary face flashed through his memory when Flynn had whispered, “Don’t talk.”

Pax shoved Atë back. “No!” he snapped. His mind stumbled over what to say—his voice had been too serious and too alarmed. “Only after dinner and a date.  By the gods, did Mom teach you any manners? You haven’t bought me flowers or chocolates or a chinchilla!” he babbled.

Atë’s eyes widened, then she gave him that unblinking smile. “This is why I like you Ajax. You’re so full of surprises.[4] You know how I said we always hurt the people we love?”

He nodded. He couldn’t decide if he was desperate enough for a hug to stay out here, or if he wanted to go inside and be alone. Where he’d think about Alabaster and Kally. And Hiro and Lapis. And Axel killing him. Man, tonight sucked. He wanted to shake a foam middle finger at the Fates, but he figured that would be like telling them… that they were uncreative… like he’d thought earlier.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

The comment didn’t sound like it was directed at kissing him.

Something light dropped on Pax from above.

Atë and her blanket poofed in a vacuum of smoke.

Pax scrambled to rip whatever was on him off, only to find his fingers caught in a tightly woven mesh net. The net constricted and he felt himself drag about a yard away from Alabaster’s house and his protective rune barrier. Had this not been a horrifying situation, he might have shouted, “Weee!”

“Got him!” a boy cheered. “The Silver Festus was right about their location.”

Had Pax known this was about to happen anyway, he wouldn’t have held off from flicking off the Fates. He would have stolen all of the money out of Camp Half-Blood’s store registers to buy the world’s biggest foam middle finger and slapped each Fate with it, dueling style.

As they were some distance away from the store, Pax resorted to a quick shout.

“It’s okay. Calm down. We’re not here to hurt you,” a girl said.

Although the night was going miserably, Pax felt some of his stress ease. She was telling the truth. Though… hearing what he readily identified as charmspeak threatened to twist his stomach back into a ball of heebie jeebies.

He didn’t have his headphones on him to cancel her out or any weapons. He was out of solution for his sleep darts anyway. Pax bit and tore at the net, but the fabric wouldn’t give.

In the street light, Pax could see three figures approaching from a hide out by the neighbor’s house. One was in a full, black camouflage outfit, except for a bright spike of blond bouncing from the boy’s head. From that and the bow, Pax could guess that was Will Solace.

He and Piper McLean flanked either side of Annabeth Chase as she walked towards Pax. The other two were more sensibly dressed in grey camo. Other than Solace, no one had a weapon drawn. If anything, Piper had her hands up to show that she was unarmed.

“Dude,” Pax said, “You have gotta start covering your hair when you’re in stealth operations.”

Will snorted. “You didn’t see me.”

Pax almost said he was distracted by his sister trying to make out with him, but he decided that was something best left quiet. Forever.[5]

“We come in peace,” Piper said. From the way she grinned over at Annabeth, Pax had the feeling she’d been waiting to say that all night.

Annabeth stopped a foot from Pax and stared down at him. Although Pax couldn’t see them directly, he could imagine the cold analysis of her grey eyes. She could be the first replaced human in a robot invasion and no one would know. She’s probably a robot right now…. “We’re a diplomacy party. The others are on standby if something goes wrong, but let’s try to make sure nothing goes wrong.”

Pax wanted to cry from happiness at the robot. He could feel a tear freeze on his cheek. Maybe he shouldn’t slap the Fates with a foam flick off finger. Maybe this was exactly what they needed.

Excellent batch of ambassadors. No one with a short temper, and the best girl ever for crowd control. Pax just had to refrain from insulting Jason or Percy…. That could be difficult.

Best of all, no Romans.

Annabeth and Piper knelt beside him.

“Connor and Matthias said you’re skittish and very quick, so we’re going to leave you in the net for now, okay?” Annabeth said.

“But we’re not going to hurt you or arrest you,” Piper added, “So stay calm.”

Pax nodded, sniffling. “That’s fine. Can I have a hug? Or a lollypop?” he asked.

“No hugs,” Will said, “I’ve examined the people you’ve stunned in the past. You’re exceptionally good at finding people’s pressure points. But here is a lollypop.” He withdrew something from a medical fanny pack around his waist and tossed it to Pax.

Piper stared at Will. “Do you keep lollypops with you everywhere you go?”

Will shrugged. “I never know when I’ll need to treat a patient.”

Pax managed to squeeze the lollypop through the net and unwrap it. He sat up and popped it into his mouth. Cherry. Acceptable. Between that and Piper’s charmspeak, he felt his breath level out. Though his teeth started to chatter in the cold.

Now, he needed to clear up stuff—and fast. Hopefully before anyone other than Merry, Calex, or Kally heard any of this. Hopefully, no one heard his first yelp. “I wasn’t part of and didn’t know Hiro was going to kidnap Percy’s little sister—”

“Someone kidnapped her?” Annabeth snapped. Her fist tightened over her dragon bone sword hilt. Piper and Will exchanged glances.

Pax swallowed. “Okay, well, that sounded bad. I just got a dream vision that it happened. My brother and sister are working for my mom—” Pax paused. He hated admitting who his mother was. “And she’s been setting me, Axel, and the others up to look like nice, furry scapegoats, or scapesatyrs—oh, I like that—”

“Focus,” Piper requested gently.

“Right,” he said. “I mean, you know Calex could never betray you guys. If you weren’t dating Percy and he didn’t have his major thing for Merry, you know he’d marry you in a heartbeat—haha—Merry—”

Annabeth made a face.

“—and Merry’s just been trying to keep us from fighting. My mom has some big evil plan to attack Camp Half-Blood with Phobetor, Melinoe, Python, and—and Atë, and all we want to do is warn camp.”

“With Backbiter and the Golden Net?” Annabeth asked skeptically. “And Percy’s kidnapped baby sister?”

“We needed those to… to arrest my dad. He was a bad guy.” Pax glanced off to the side. “Mom took the net. And I don’t know where the tiny Jackson is.”

Annabeth frowned. “Did Euna kill your father?”

Pax nodded, puffing up his cheeks and popping them. “After he sacrificed her sister in a Mesoamerican ceremony and put a string of thorns through my tongue, but let’s not get into semantics.”

Piper winced.

Annabeth tapped her fingers on the hilt of her sword. “Pax… I think I have a hunch on your mother.” Pax tensed. “Is your mother someone petty enough to attack Camp Half-Blood purely to show off that she’s better than her siblings? That she’s ‘the darkest?’”

Pax coughed. As badly as his instinct was to talk in circles, time was of the essence, and there was only one answer to that question. “Um… yes. Yes, she is.”

Annabeth rubbed her temple. “Oh my gods. This is all because of a conversation Percy and I had with Nyx when we went through Tartarus. We got her children to argue over who was the darkest to distract them.”

“You’re joking,” Will said.

“No—no—that sounds exactly like something that would set my mom off to craft an elaborate scheme to cause a lot of chaos. Or no scheme. Mom’s not much of a full planner. S-She just sets things up and watches them f-fall apart,” Pax said. He shifted in the net. Now that he wasn’t curled up with Atë and distracted from his despair, he re-remembered the cold.

“If this is who I think it is, she started the Trojan War because she wasn’t invited to a party,” Annabeth said. “Pax, Matthias and Chris said you were once called the Silver Tongued Snake because of your skills in dodging the truth.”

“W-Way to sell a b-brother out,” Pax grumbled.

“But, they also said you’re well intentioned. I think you’re being honest. Something doesn’t add up here if this isn’t some kind of set up.”

“Awes-some,” Pax said. He puffed up his cheeks and popped them. “But—l-listen—I’m c-cool with this whole ‘being c-captured in a net th-thing’ but you g-guys need to get out of here. You can s-set up a secret s-surveillance team if you want, like a badass-s-s cop movie, but I need you out of s-sight of the—”

Somewhere behind Pax, he could hear a door thump shut and the soft strum of a guitar.

All the blood felt like it drained from Pax’s body.

“Enter! Jak-Jak the Plague Bringer, stage left!” came a horrific whisper.

Pax twisted to the right, his eyes wide. Striding across the yard was a twiggy redhead in flamboyantly pink pajamas with a five string base.

Pax puffed up his cheeks and popped them. “No—no—you need to leave, n-now! Like, fly-l-like-the-wind-Bullseye kinda leave—”

“You’re going to want to release my friend,” Jack said.

Annabeth and Piper stood up.

“We came here in peace,” Piper said. She didn’t sound as calm as last time.

Jack paused, about a yard away and gave Annabeth a dashing grin. “Oh my! Luke’s pedophilic crush! Do you wanna know why the Leonis Caupt, Witch Boy and I wouldn’t let him see you unescorted when you were captured? You wouldn’t believe the things he wanted to do to the body of a tiny, innocent… what were you? Thirteen-year-old?”

Annabeth went rigid and paled. “Luke wouldn’t have—” She gritted her teeth. “Who are you?” she demanded.

Piper put her hands up again. “Hey—wait—”

Jack chuckled. “I already announced myself. Jak-Jak the Plague Bringer. Scourge of New Rome. At your service, my lovely ladies and gents. And you are a bunch of Ol’ Sissies.”

“Jack—I’m okay—just go inside,” Pax begged. Jack hadn’t yet noticed—

Jack did an excited jump. He clutched the neck of his base tightly. “That flaxen hair—that curvaceous bow—an athletic and lithe build—and a medical fanny pack,” he gasped and licked his lips, “I know you’re a child of that whore.”

Will clenched his bow. “That’s unwarranted to talk about my mom—”

“Sexist. I’m sure your mother is a lovely saint. I’m talking about the other half of our family.” Jack’s grin broadened. “Tell me… what’s your name?”

“Will Solace,” Will said, scowling.

“Well, Will Solace, tell me too… Have you ever danced with a devil in the pale moonlight?” Jack asked. “And would you rather dance alone? Or do you want your friends to join us?”

From the way Jack jittered with excitement, Pax could tell this wasn’t about Pax’s capture anymore. Jack’s mind had honed in on his sibling and wouldn’t hear anyone else. Pax didn’t know if it would make it better or worse to shout out for Axel and Alabaster. Alabaster might not stop the fight.  He might help Jack.

Maybe Piper could cut him off—or Annabeth would—

Jack laughed and strummed on his base.

“Submissive my body, tender and weak.

Closer to death, my body must be.

If I must attest, then it’s fluids at best.

Submissive my body, the pain and the rest.”[6]

As he sang, Will’s eyes went wide. He opened his mouth—likely to sing to counter Jack—but choked on a cough.

Piper went to speak, probably to say, Hey, you sound a little crazy, cool it down a few notches, but made a wrenching sound instead. She doubled over, vomiting onto the lawn. Annabeth stumbled to the side, clutching her head.  

“You know, I meant to give you acute laryngitis,” Jack hissed, strumming his strings. “But I’m a sloppy bard. Now that we made it so our two birdies can’t sing, let’s get this rock show started.”

Footnotes:

[1] Mel would like to point out that Pax and Axel were in the school system far too young for them to be teaching sex ed, so he has no right to blame the Belizean school system for his crassness.

[2] If Pax is making jokes like this now, and he’s 16, think about the Dad jokes he’ll be making if he gets old enough to be a dad.

[3] MLP, The Return of Harmony Part 1, Discord.

[4] Mel first read this as, “you’re so full of puppies.” Pax and I both prefer her interpretation of the text.

[5] False. Pax should tell someone about this, but uh—we’ve already solidly established that he makes bad decisions.

[6] Influenza in the Winter, Ryan A. Flourney. Feb 2014. Shit is about to get real! XD