Chapter Text
It had been working, nearly too perfectly. Leo, Jason, and Piper were dealing with Gaia. Hazel, Frank and Reyna were stopping the Romans from attacking the Greeks and making sure they fought against the monsters. Annabeth and Percy were back with the Greeks, who'd rallied to Percy as soon as she shouted her iconic "Greek, let's fight stuff!"
And then it fell apart.
First, Gaia was way more powerful and Piper's charmspeak wasn't strong enough. Sure, her charmspeak was unnaturally powerful, but against a primordial goddess? Hah, it was nothing.
Jason tired too quickly and fell with Piper, the two would've died had two Pegasi not caught them on orders of Percy.
With Gaia back on the ground, Leo was easy to stop and both he and Festus were slammed away. Percy worried, but she saw Leo rising again, so she breathed in relief.
And that was how Camp Half-blood, the Greek, and the Roman demigods were going to be defeated. Gaia was a primordial goddess and gods, Percy wanted to literally drag the gods through Tartarus for making them do this alone.
She found herself back-to-back with Frank, the two working together nearly seamlessly.
"We're losing," Frank muttered, almost amazed at the prospect.
Percy scoffed, but didn't say anything. She turned, slashing the head off another monster and stabbing the second.
"I have a plan," Frank said.
Percy twisted around Frank, her sword a whirlwind as she cut down seven more monsters with one swing. "I'm listening."
"To storm or fire," Frank quoted. Percy nearly rolled her eyes, but she didn't, nor did she say anything. Frank continued, "Lord Jupiter isn't called the Stormbringer, hell he's mainly known as the god of lightning, but..."
"My father is the Stormbringer," Percy finished. "Gods, how have we been so stupid!" Percy exclaimed, facing Frank completely this time, her eyes wide. "And you think it's me or Leo?"
Frank shook his head. He pulled out an arrow and stabbed it into the monster behind Percy, then turned and shot the next monster dead. "I think it's me or you. Stormbringer is Lord Neptune or Lord Poseidon, right? Well, Leo's fire is normal fire against the primordial goddess of the Earth, but the fire of life is a different matter."
Alarm bells rang in Percy's mind and she glared at Frank harshly. "You will die if you use that tiny stump left of your wood. I will not let you."
"There is no other way, Percy. To storm or fire. Please, help me save our friends and family."
It was a low blow and Percy knew Frank knew that, but it was also where Percy's loyalties lay; with her friends, her family, and her camps. "Dam you," she hissed, but she listened.
"Get her on your water, mess with her footing, and keep her off the ground. I'll do the rest," Frank replied.
Percy nodded, still hating the plan, but she knew the cost of not trying.
She cleared a path to the goddess, her strikes swift and smooth. Both her and Frank were soon at the goddess' feet. The ground was quaking and Percy took several deep breaths before she stabbed Riptide into the ground.
Earthshaker, she thought, trying to draw power from her father's title and simultaneously trying to tap into powers she wasn't even sure she had. The ground, though still shaking, lessened and Percy pushed back her fatigue. With the ground sorted, she turned to the primordial dirtface that ruined Percy's peace after the war.
"Hey, Queen Dirtface, how you feeling up there you godsdamed moron?" Tactic number 1: Anger the opponent for her own personal enjoyment and her lack of preservation skills.
Gaia glared down at her, the muddy woman still freakishly tall. How tall was she? 30ft, maybe?
Percy dodged the foot going to stomp on her.
Percy had a plan. It was reckless and maybe a little stupid, but she hoped it would work.
Hurricanes were hard to make and energy consuming, but Percy had done it before, hell she'd done it without meaning to before and she hadn't had a sufficient water source that time.
Great news: This time she had a better water source since she was close to the canoe lake. Un-great news: Gaia didn't like being impeded by powerful winds and a hurricane.
Percy was messing with Gaia's footing, managing to use her hurricane and push Gaia around.
She heard the cry of an eagle and saw Frank above. He was a giant eagle this time and he dived, going straight for Gaia's grassy hair—why's it so ugly?—he flew up, dragging the thirty foot tall mudface with her.
Percy whistled loudly and there was Blackjack. She flew up too, coming face-to-face with the primordial.
Percy had left Riptide on the ground, knowing the blade would return. She focused and hands of water came to her call, rising from the canoe lake and grabbing Gaia's arms and legs, holding her up.
Frank dropped the hair and Percy strained to keep the thrashing goddess up. She strained, pushing her limits. It reminded her of the time she fought Anteus. Sweat poured down her head, but she kept her eyes open because she had to watch.
She saw Frank going in for the dive, his piece of wood in his mouth. The wood ignited, burning brightly.
She saw Gaia's fall to fire. She saw her erupt in flames and crumble, along with Percy's friends.
She knew it was her–
Percy blinked, unsure of what made her think of that day. It was odd, how the day just kept coming to haunt her. She knew she deserved it, but it still ached.
Another sip of her hot coffee and Percy managed to snap out of it.
She stared out of the coffee shop windows. She'd been in Bludhaven for a total of a month and a half, and actually found herself not hating it.
Sure, Bludhaven was a dull and quite annoying place with villains attacking every five minutes, but it wasn't bad in the sense that Percy was away from family and, well, it was peaceful for her.
The coffee shop she sat in was called Snug Corners. In the far right corner, it had a cute little book nook and Percy saw loads of people grabbing books to read. Percy was sitting by the window in a corner as well, watching the people enter and exit the shop.
She'd graduated from New Rome university with a degree in Marine Biology and was using her degree for research; technically, she'd never wanted to go to college, but Annab- she had wanted Percy to go with her and whatever she wanted goes.
When she graduated, Percy had immediately gone elsewhere for a job offered in Bludhaven with a very high-paying salary. It was a branch for the Aquatic Research Centre and, Percy had found out, was owned by Bruce Wayne, as most things seemed to be.
She'd distanced herself from the entirety of the demigod world, which included the most recent problem.
Updates on the goings on came in the form of Nico di Angelo, Drew Tanaka, Hazel Levesque, Leo Valdez, Thalia, and Rachel Elizabeth Dare.
Her attention was taken by a boy entering, maybe 17 or 18 years old. He looked dead on his feet and had eyebags the size of cats. Percy watched him carefully as he went to the counter, ordered, paid, and sat on the table near hers.
While he looked like he hadn't slept in seven years, Percy could see he was trained. She noticed his calloused hands and his muscles, even if he was wearing a suit. It was obvious he was trained well, but he wasn't a threat.
Percy turned away before he caught her looking.
The boy was definitely in his late teens, near twenties. He had blue eyes, a greyish-blue that seemed to have seen a lot more than his age should've. His hair was black and slightly floppy, dropping in front of his face.
The boy looked up when his coffee arrived and Percy noted that he had maybe five espresso shots, which was honestly a mood.
"Dead inside?" Percy murmured her question softly, once again shocked at her sudden want to talk to strangers.
The boy turned to her, as if knowing she was talking to him, and nodded. "Yeah, you?"
"Oh, absolutely. Gods, you have no idea how many coffees I've had this morning." She turned a little to face the boy.
He fully turned to face her. She noticed it then. He hid it well, but he seemed to be analysing her and trying to determine if she was a threat or not. His calculative gaze reminded her of another stormy-eyed woman. Percy shut down that train of thought immediately.
"Caffeine addict?" he questioned.
"Takes one to know one," Percy replied.
The boy let out a short bark of laughter and the smile on his face changed everything. Instead of an insomniac child, he looked like a more put-together young adult. Percy returned the smile with her own, softer one. There was something about this kid that made Percy want to look after him, maybe some protective instinct, but he seemed like a nice kid.
Percy held out her hand. "Percy Jakcson," she introduced.
He shook her hand. "Tim Drake."
Percy took note of the calluses on his hand before he retracted it. She figured that he wielded a weapon, most likely one with a smooth handle. Staff, maybe?
"Isn't Percy a boy's name?"
"Aren't you a little young to be a CEO?" Percy shot back and Tim conceded.
"How'd you know?"
"I researched Aquatic Research—the company I work for—before I moved here. Not like I wanted to run into Bruce Wayne and be an ass because I can be one to people I don't know." Percy turned away for a second to take another sip of her coffee.
Tim seemed to agree with her reply.
They stayed in silence for a few more minutes when Tim interrupted the comfortable silence. "You're not talking to me because you know who I am, are you?"
Percy paused. She'd actually not really understood why she'd decided to talk to him. "No, you just looked interesting. You're trained, clearly, and you're calculative. The way you walk shows that you're ready to fight at a moment's notice. Also, I couldn't help but notice that you looked like a caffeine addict, similar to me, and usually, like-minded people talk to each other."
She watched Tim absorb her explanation and he seemed to accept it, but then his eyes narrowed. "Trained? What makes you say that?"
"Aren't most Gothamites briefed on basic self defence?" Percy replied, raising a single eyebrow. "I mean, even if they weren't, I'd assume that you were trained considering your alertness and the muscle you have. That doesn't occur naturally," she nodded at his arms as she spoke, the muscles quite obvious through the form-fitting shirt.
Tim nodded, but Percy caught the smallest look of shock at her observation. She narrowed her eyes at that, but hid the look by taking another sip of her coffee, which was slowly growing colder. It wasn't at the nice, hot temperature Percy usually preferred for her coffee, so she naturally used her powers to heat up the coffee in the mug so it was back to the temperature she liked.
They stayed in silence for a few more minutes when Tim interrupted the comfortable silence. "What do you think about the ongoing monster problem? You know, the one where the... the League of Heroes appeared?"
League of Heroes, is that what they're called? Huh, mortals truly aren't that creative, it sounds like a cheap copy of the Justice League, Percy mused, setting her now hot coffee down again. "I haven't really caught up with the goings on of the world in recent years, but the League of Heroes is referring to those guys who fight the mythological monsters who keep appearing, right?" Percy was a great liar (faker) when she wanted to be one, really.
"Yeah, so what do you think of them?"
"I haven't seen many of their fights up close, but I've heard that their weapon choices vary quite a bit, right?" She paused, thinking over what Nico said. "They also have three different groups, right?"
"Yeah," Tim nodded. "The all-female group is called the Nightshade Division. It's interesting that the other two divisions have a mix of genders, but this one only has females. Don't let that fool you though, their skill with bows are unparalleled and the leader, a woman with the codename Aegis, has a certain air around her. I only came close to her once and the air around her smelled fresh, but also a little metallic. In a way, you could say it also smelled like chlorine, the cleaning material, and a smell that only comes when lightning is about to hit."
Percy chuckled softly. "You seem interested in these guys a lot," she commented lightly. She ignored the slight pang at the name the Hunters of Artemis used. Ignored how it still hurt a little to hear Zoe's name.
"Yeah, I like knowing who's protecting us."
Percy hummed lowly, acknowledging his statement. It was smart, knowing who you were putting your trust into, and Percy commended the boy on that. "What about the other two divisions?"
"Well, the second division is the Hellenics Division. They usually use a more Greek style of fighting, which would explain why they have the name 'Hellenics,' since that's another term for Greeks. Their weapons can be bows, swords, hammers, and spears. I'm pretty sure I saw a few people with scythes," Tim continued, looking delighted to be infodumping. Percy listened with a patient smile, the infodumping reminding her of another intelligent girl who used to talk for hours on end.
Tim still hadn't paused. "And then the final division is called the Invictus Division. Invictus is Latin for unconquered, which makes that division sound kind of cocky, but you should see them battle when they're in groups. While the Hellenics Division is better in single combat, playing to their own personal strengths, the Invictus Division is awesome at battling in groups. They divide into smaller groups and conquer. It also makes sense as they follow a more Roman style of fighting."
"Is that so? You sure know a lot," she observed absentmindedly.
She noticed the boy flush slightly, as if realising he'd spilled more than expected. In all fairness, Percy understood why he wanted to know a lot, but the fact that he knew that much showed him to either be a nerd or a stalker.
"Yeah, uhm, I like analysing fights." His reply was hesitant, and almost sounded like a question. He seemed to be avoiding her eyes too, as a lot of people did.
Percy also knew why. Her friends had told her on many occasions that her eyes looked like whirlpools sometimes, constantly swirling. It was very disconcerting. They also said that in some way, she was like a siren (an extremely distant relative of hers from the sea), and she seemed to draw out information from others. Some people said it was the soft voice she used, others said she just had a kinder nature that made people want to trust her despite her rough exterior. Percy wasn't sure the exact reason, all she knew was that if people looked into her eyes too long, they tended to spill information easily, as if hypnotised.
Tim, avoiding her eyes, was clearly confused by the swirling seas within them, and no longer wanted to spill information. Percy smiled to herself as she took another sip of her coffee. Sure, it was weird how she did it, but it was amusing to see people realise they'd spilled information that wasn't necessary.
"Well, I'm glad we've got someone checking if the League of Heroes is actually looking out for our safety." She glanced at his coffee, the liquid already cooled down to a lukewarm temperature, and changed the subject, "What are you drinking?"
Tim looked up and followed the conversation, letting it flow smoothly and naturally. However, internally, Percy was wondering how he did know that much. Sure, it seemed like common knowledge, but the air around Thalia, for who else could be Aegis except the owner of Aegis, was not something a normal mortal could pick up on unless they're around other superpowered people on a regular basis.
See, Big Three kids (Thalia, Nico, Hazel, and herself) had an air around them similar to that of a minor god. While gods couldn't exactly shut off their "aura," Big Three kids could technically control theirs to a certain extent. Thalia didn't usually leave her "aura" just leaking around, so only a person who's been around people with an aura of power around them regularly could actually feel that "aura".
It was weird, and there was a lot more than a simple "aura" explanation, but that was the basics. What was so odd was that Tim seemed to be able to feel Thalia's aura at its weakest; the slightest scent of chlorine, fresh air, metallic smelling air. When Thalia's aura was fully on, the air felt like it was drenched in chlorine, like lightning was going to hit you thousands of times, like the air around you was actually crackling.
Nico usually left his aura to just leak off him. He screamed death, shadows followed him and bent towards him, his black eyes would flash gold and then normal, the air around him was clammy and dark. Hazel was different. She rarely used her aura, generally preferring to be calm. The one time she did use her aura was during the Incident, and it was incredible. Around her, she seemed to glow golden, both her eyes and not just the irises glowed, her skin prickled and seemed to look more like stones than skin.
Percy's presence was a lot different to her cousins'. She always had a certain intimidating factor to her looks, having inherited her dad's natural brooding expression. Her eyes had always been sharp and cold, swirling with unknown power, but her aura was different. When she used her aura, the entire air around her turned more humid, the clouds above darkened, her eyes glowed and turned into raging storms, and if you looked close enough, it looked like water was rippling beneath her skin, like it was begging to escape. Percy wasn't fully sure of her aura though, she rarely used it too, already having her natural intimidation factor, and she couldn't exactly see her own aura. That was what her friends described when they saw it.
Percy dragged her mind out of her thoughts and focused on the sunlight slowly weakening through the windows. Time was up, she needed to head back home.
Tim and her had sat in a comfortable silence for a majority of their time in the coffee shop, so Percy's chair suddenly scraping got the boy (who had somehow had six more cups of the coffee) out of his silent musings too.
"You leaving?"
"Yeah, got some work to finish at home. Great meeting you, Tim," she said, picking her phone up from the table. She paused for a second, staring at the plain blank screen. "Do you want to stay in touch?" she asked hesitantly.
All in all, a very successful time at a coffee shop. Percy now had the number of a little genius who also seemed to like mischief as much as the next person, maybe a more accurate description would be a chaos gremlin. Tim also seemed pleased.
Percy walked forward with her purple cloak draped over her shoulder. She stood beside Reyna, the two an unforgettable image in their praetor clothing.
They were welcoming the Greek envoy, which held their former praetor, Jason Grace, and three Greek demigods. Two new kids Percy had never met and then Percy's girlfriend, Olmypus' Architect, Annabeth Chase.
She kept a blank, empty face, as she watched the four demigods scale down the ladder and land.
"Welcome, Greeks. My fellow praetor, Percy Jackson, has informed me of your peaceful arrival, please do not taint her honour," Reyna greeted, the final part sounding more like a threat than a request.
Percy smirked a little and placed her hand on Reyna's shoulder. "Thank you," she whispered. Percy faced her girlfriend, watched the fear and uncertainty cloud her eyes, and Percy smiled at Annabeth.
Her eyes, she knew, softened as she gazed at her lover. Her smile was the one she reserved for only her; soft, a little sad, but hopeful.
And then Annabeth was running at her and Percy was running to Annabeth too.
She caught Annabeth, sweeping her off her feet and spun her around in the air.
She set her down, cupping her face, and smiling into her gorgeous grey eyes, memorising them, etching what had nearly been lost back into her mind. Stormy and alight with the familiar fire Percy knew, the one she loved.
"Gods, I never thou-"
Her words were cut off when she was abruptly flipped over Annabeth's shoulder and her back hit the gravel. Phantom pain from her Achilles heel, the small of her back, burned her, and she bit back the small yell she wanted to let out.
Percy stared up at Annabeth, masking her emotions as she'd learnt to do when she was young, when she was abused by Gabe.
Annabeth's knee was pressing down on her chest, and she had her forearm to Percy's neck.
Did she know that she'd nearly killed Percy? Did she know that the only reason Percy wasn't dead was because her Achilles spot had been washed away?
There was a rush of steps behind Percy, but she couldn't look back because Annabeth was holding her down.
"Halt! Hold!" Reyna ordered and gods, Percy couldn't believe she didn't do something about her fellow praetor being pinned down, but it made sense that she wanted to see the scene a little longer, or perhaps she couldn't read through Percy's mask. Who knew?
"If you ever leave me- I swear to the gods, Seaweed Brain, I will-"
Percy faked the smile. "Yeah, I know, Wise Girl."
Did she know how that nickname stung? How it reminded her of all the times Gabe called her "Brain Girl"? Was she even aware of the fact that it wasn't Percy's fault for leaving? She was taken forcefully, and Annabeth blamed her?
Annabeth stood slowly, and then she reached out a hand for Percy. Percy took it, the familiar callouses of Annabeth's hand, something she'd longed to feel were now something she wasn't even sure she liked.
Annabeth pulled her forward again, pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. Percy returned it, but it felt hollow.
Percy blinked. The flashback had felt like hours, but it had only been seconds, and she found herself lying on her back in the Dojo she frequented. Her judo instructor was Amelia, a normal mortal, was very skilled.
Percy sighed and stood. "Man, you always put me on my ass."
"Well, you have only been learning judo for three months and I've learnt it since I was a child," Amelia replied, sending Percy a smug smirk. "Now take a break, we'll spar again after."
Percy rolled her eyes, but the fond smile on her face could not be mistaken. She walked off the mat as the next student came forward to face Amelia.
She'd found this place, well, three months ago and had started learning different forms of martial arts purely for the fun of it. Amelia was the judo instructor, while Clemence was the Tae Kwon Do instructor. They had others, but those were the two Percy had decided to learn, both being incredibly interesting styles.
She'd only recently gotten into more hand-to-hand combat because she wanted to expand her fighting style, if only for fun. That also meant she'd gotten used to holding back her strength so as to make the fight fair.
Percy headed to her duffle bag against the wall and grabbed her bottle from beside it, twisting the cap to drink. Just before she tipped her head back and brought the bottle to her mouth, her phone rang. Percy's brow furrowed as she looked at her phone.
The name on the screen read "Kallos," so she knew exactly who it was, it was just odd that Drew would call her at that moment, especially considering Drew knew she was at Judo training on Saturday afternoons.
Percy looked around her and then answered the call, placing the phone at her ear.
"Hey Kallos, what can I do for you?"
"Hey Ocean Lady, how do you feel about becoming the second vigilante of Bludhaven?"
Percy blinked. Once. Twice. Thrice. "What?!" she let out in a hushed shout, her eyes blown wide.
"Me, Nico, Leo, and Rachel are coming over in fifteen minutes. Meet us at Special Blends, you know, Sarah's new store in Bludhaven."
"Kallos! Drew! Wait!"
But Drew had already ended the call. Percy stared at her phone, a hundred thoughts racing through her head. Vigilante?! They want me to join the League of Heroes?! Are they insane!?
Percy shook her head and packed her stuff. She informed Amelia that something came up and she needed to leave. Amelia did look a little put out, but she understood.
Percy was still in her black sports leggings and sports shirt. She was lucky the changing rooms had showers and she had a change of clothes in her duffle bag.
Five minutes later, Percy exited the changing rooms wearing dark blue cargo pants, a form-fitting light grey crop top, her usual high top trainers, and a cropped jacket left open. Her hair was wet and tied up—easier to explain wet hair than having had a shower and remained completely dry. She left, with ten minutes to get to Special Blends.
Percy, in most occasions, was a ride or die friend. Sometimes, she dropped everything for her friends. Here, she was just plain annoyed, but she still needed to understand why her friends were calling her, so she rushed to get to Special Blends.
Special Blends was a coffee shop started by a legacy of Arcus (Iris' Roman form) named Sarah Dominica. Sarah and Percy had met at New Rome University and hat hit off, bonding over their shared love of coffee. Eventually, Sarah decided she wanted her own coffee shop and had been doing odd jobs to save up, dropping out of University too.
Three weeks ago, she'd opened Special Blends, and certain drinks on the menu were made of nectar or crushed up ambrosia pieces for demigods. Of course, said drinks were on a secret menu that only Sarah and a select few employees knew about.
Percy finally arrived at the coffee shop at the corner of the street. It had a sleek modern look, but also a slightly old look to it at the same time. The doorway was painted a simple dark grey and the windows were facing the street.
This time, Percy didn't bother to stop and admire the scenery. She rushed in and followed the presence of her cousin. She found the group of demigods and the Oracle in a booth at the back of the place. Percy dropped her bag and slid onto the bench beside Rachel, accepting the drink they had already ordered for her.
"What's this about me becoming a vigilante?" she asked after a few sips.
Leo answered first, a massive grin on his face, "We need your help in the Heroes and have come to request your aid, fair Princess!"
Percy sent him a scathing glare, except it lacked the heat of a proper glare. "Absolutely not, I left for a reason."
"Look, we know that Chase is still among the Heroes, but we really need your help, Perce," Nico continued, also sending Leo a glare, this one definitely more glare-y than Percy's. "We have a new plan that we're trying to implement for the Heroes. Essentially, we're stationing two or three demigods in more monster prone areas. Since Bludhaven is third or second on the list of 'Most Monster prone Areas,' we needed someone there."
Rachel picked up from there; "We were wondering if you could be a permanent Hero in Bludhaven."
Percy scanned the table and then her eyes landed on the silent daughter of Aphrodite, who was sipping a large lemonade and analysing her nails. Sensing Percy's gaze, Drew looked at the daughter of Posiedon and sighed, "I said you wouldn't like it, but they knew you would listen to my call, no matter the shit I said on it. I don't really care what you choose, Princess, but it would be nice to have you fighting at my back again."
"Drop the 'Princess' nickname, Kallos," Percy muttered halfheartedly.
"No can do, Princess," Leo butted in. "You literally are a Princess!"
"And Neeks over there is the self-proclaimed Ghost King, why don't you call him Ghost-y, or something?" Percy pointed out, thankful she'd redirected the conversation.
Joining the Heroes was the last thing she wanted to do. Not just because she'd run into her, but also because she was done with the mythological world. She'd been away from it for around three years and she was ready to stay away for much longer.
With Nico and Leo bickering about the nickname, Percy took another sip of her coffee. The coffee they'd ordered from her was definitely the drink called Nectar of the Gods, from the secret menu. Nectar of the Gods was a pure black coffee with four or five drops of actual nectar, giving it the look of gold swirled in black.
"Enough!" Rachel raised her voice a little as she stopped the two bickering men. "Percy, redirecting the conversation was unnecessary, especially since it caused an argument." And how Rachel sounded like a mother reprimanding her child, Percy would never know. "Now, Percy, we understand your hesitance to return to the mythological world, but we really need a high-ranking demigod in Bludhaven. Since you already live there, we hoped you would consider it."
Percy did consider it. She considered it madness to ask her, her, to rejoin the world that absolutely broke her.
"I–"
"Princess, don't answer now. Take as much time as you need, we won't judge, except maybe Chase will, but that's beside the point," Drew said, adding the last part as an afterthought, the name "Chase" leaving her mouth in the most bitter tone. "I trust your judgement and if you think rejoining the mythological world is not going to help you, don't do it. We have others who can watch Bludhaven just in case, but if you ever do decide, text me as I have some suit ideas we need to go over."
Percy smiled to herself, the kindness they showed was so incredibly helpful that Percy felt like she didn't deserve it. "Wow, Drew, didn't know you had compassion in you," she joked instead, the tension easing from the airy tone.
Drew rolled her eyes. "Don't get used to it, Watergirl," she spat, but her light blue eyes were shining with amusement.
(Yes, Drew had light blue eyes, to Percy. While Piper, Drew's half-sister, had kaleidoscope eyes that changed colour constantly, Drew had eyes that changed to show the eyes of the person you loved. Sometimes, it was her mother's (Sally Jackson) eyes that Percy saw, sometimes it was her little sister, Estelle's eyes, and other times it was Nico's or Leo's. Percy held a lot of love for her friends and family, so it was no wonder she saw different colours each time.)
The conversation continued with easy banter, quick quips, and Leo begging Percy to help him prank the entire Iris cabin as payback for their prank from a week ago against the Hephaestus cabin.
Percy was glad that even amidst the ongoing crisis of monsters no longer being hidden by the Mist, her friends managed to find fun things to do and have time with each other, even if it was short.
Drew watched Piper leave the Aphrodite cabin.
After taking her position as head counsellor and then saying Jason was hers, even if he didn't know it, she hated Piper.
Drew was fourteen during the Battle of Manhattan. She turned fifteen during Piper's quest, Piper who was 16, had only ever been on one quest, Drew had fought in a war.
Drew was fourteen when she found out her favourite sister had betrayed. She was fourteen when she watched shrouds of people she knew, and some she even was friends with, being burned. Drew was fourteen when she first tasted betrayal.
Drew didn't hate Silena, but she did question everything she knew about her sister. She was fourteen when Silena's betrayal came to light. She was fourteen when she found out her sister had died, and she'd somehow died a hero. She was fourteen when she was placed in charge of cabin 10.
SHE WAS FOURTEEN! She was a child, returning from war, in pain and aching, and suddenly, she had to accept that her traitorous sister was a hero.
Drew was fifteen when betrayal smacked her in the face in the form of her cabin. She was fifteen when betrayal struck at her heart.
Piper denied that Aphrodite was her mother because she was a tomboy and Aphrodite was "girly," yet Piper was also here, running after a boy obsessively. She denied their mother while still thinking of her domain.
Drew hated Piper's entire being.
She had to watch as her older half-sister came and took her place, came and told her she was wrong to harbour hatred against a girl Piper had never even fucking met. And her older half-sister also had the gall to say that Drew shouldn't go after "her" man, when Piper was the one obsessing over him.
The cabin was empty.
Drew was on the ground.
Drew was shaking. She was hurting. She was angry, furious, betrayed, and hurt. Hurt by things no one saw, no one cared about, and no one would stay by her side because she wasn't Silena.
Perfect Silena, who could fight. Perfect Silena, who died a hero.
Drew needed space.
She needed a home.
She wanted to scream and cry and wail and plead for someone—anyone—to understand her pain–
Drew shot up, the scream held back in her throat. This dream was of Ayden, her younger brother (only 10) dying in the battle of Manhattan. He'd been slain by a cyclops, the cyclops' spear piercing Ayden's chest. And then her dream had shifted to that fateful day she left camp to seek peace with her father.
Oh how she hated it.
Drew sighed slowly, looking over the living room she had crashed at. Percy's flat and Drew was on the couch.
On the other couch, Rachel was draped across it with her red hair a mess and a blanket thrown over her messily. On the floor, Leo and Nico were both on mattresses, Leo spread eagled, half-on half-off his mattress and Nico curled up on his side.
Drew could hear the soft splattering of water and the sizzling of something in a pan. She quietly pulled herself up, leaving the blanket on the couch, and walked to the kitchen. In the doorway, she found Percy at the stove cooking pancakes. She was wearing a tank top and shorts, what she wore to bed probably.
On the table, five plates were laid out, along with cutlery, glasses, different toppings, and an already full plate of blue pancakes.
Percy turned, sending Drew a tired smile. "Morning."
"Morning," Drew greeted, and sat down at the island table in Percy's kitchen, staring at the blue plate. Percy had gotten blue plates that looked like waves crashing, and they looked beautiful against the star white marble table they were laid on.
How Percy and Drew's friendship started was odd. After the second giant war, Drew had been ostracised (even though she fought, her cabin had taken Piper's side and completely agreed with the girl that Drew was wrong and yes, she was, but she was also a scared child and she knew that now), but Percy reached out. She held out a hand, gave her a beautiful smile, and opened her arms. Drew hadn't trusted her at first, had believed it a ploy, but Percy endlessly showered her with nothing but kindness, and suddenly, Drew couldn't help but give it back.
Percy had listened and understood. Had cared and now, their relationship transcended friendship, they were like sisters.
Percy could read Drew like a book, but Drew didn't mind, not when it was her sister, the one who cared more than the others.
A pink mug was set on the table before Drew with the words "Beautiful beyond compare" printed on the mug. In the mug was Drew's favourite tea, Jasmine tea at the perfect temperature thanks to Percy's powers. She smiled into the mug as she took a sip, savouring the slightly sweet taste from the floral tea.
Drew never really talked about her nightmares. She had hid them, had acted like a bitch, but Percy had drawn her out and gotten her to talk a little. Drew was thankful for that because she truly had been drowning in the pain of not getting anyone who understood what it meant to be betrayed by your own sister and everyone saying that that sister was a hero. Yes, Silena was a hero, but she also caused several deaths and Drew had hurt. Percy had accepted every little comment and listened, Drew hadn't felt like she was drowning since.
It was one thing to hear about the endless empathy Percy had, something everyone credited to Percy's mother and Percy herself gave full credit to her mom, and another thing to actually be on the receiving end.
Drew could still be a bitch, and maybe rude, but she made sure the people she cared about knew that she cared. That was all that mattered.
"Hey Death Breath," Percy greeted, snapping Drew out her thoughts. Drew turned and sent Nico a grin. He didn't exactly return it, but he did nod at her, which was big considering Nico didn't smile much, unless with Hazel or Percy, the only two who could make him smile.
"What's for breakfast?" His voice was deeper than his teenage years, but he was still short in comparison to Percy.
"Pancakes," Drew answered as Percy flipped the next one.
Nico nodded and sat down beside Drew, his hand reaching out to snatch a pancake from the plate he'd now noticed on the table. A spatula flew out and whacked his hand, making Nico take his hand back with a hiss.
"No, wait for everyone," Percy scolded like a mother to a child. Percy would make a good mother, Drew thought as she watched the way the two cousins (who acted more like siblings) glared at each other, throwing words in Italian at each other every so often. Nico had taught Percy some Italian, enough that she could claim she was semi-fluent and able to hold a lengthy conversation. It was also enough that she could curse like a sailor in Italian.
Seven minutes later, Red and Fireboy had finally entered. Breakfast was a fun affair, with Leo trying to throw syrup at Percy and Percy stopping it midair and dumping it on Leo. Leo had to have a very thorough shower after that. The minor problem of Percy probably not going to accept the job of becoming Bludhaven's next vigilante-Hero-thing was ignored.
Percy was obviously thinking over it, her mind going over the idea a dozen times a minute, but Drew didn't push. Percy never pushed Drew, Drew would never push Percy.
Soon, they had to leave since Rachel had an art exhibition to get to—her father wanted her to get some inspiration for her next piece, Leo still had his mechanic shop in Texas (he part-timed as a Hero), Nico was the Ambassador of Hades (whatever that entailed), and Drew herself was a model—she also part-timed as a Hero.
"If you change your mind, Perce, call me!" Drew called as she left last and Percy nodded, then closed the door.
For some reason, Drew had a feeling that something horrible was going to happen. She needed to get ready though as she was on duty for the Heroes this evening.