#she reminds me of Scylla | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

timextoxhajima · 1 year

Text

Tea with a Lover

OLYMPUS: GENERATION SCYLLA -> JAY

"Persephone was once known as a vegetation Goddess before she married Hades and became the Goddess of the Underworld. Who were you before you let the world rid you of your identity?"

Member: ENHYPEN Jungwon

Genre: Angst, TW* Suicide

WC: 2.3k

Warnings: uh... none?

He sniffles, eyes wide as he studies the surface of the tea that's in his little ceramic cup. It has some gorgeous twirls of green and gold on the edges and the sides, and without looking, he reaches over to the sugar cubes, picking one up with the tong and plopping it into his tea.

You hadn't even noticed you were sitting right opposite him until he looks up, eyes gleaming like a curious cat with his hair neatly parted at the centre.

"Tea?" He asks, gently pushing a tea cup that seemingly formulates from thin air across the table to you. "Green? Black? Any preference?"

Above you, there's an arch, covered in green Chrysanthemums and Hydrangeas, golden leaves sprouting everywhere else as if it were the placeholder for all the green that the flowers had taken.

"Or would you prefer just biscuits and scones and muffins?"

You turn back to the table and there was a multi-layer dessert plate with the respective items he mentioned, the cup of tea that he offered you, now missing.

"Uh... I think I'd prefer to know where I am... And what I'm doing here."

He was in the middle of munching on a muffin - crumbs falling off his lips when you ask the question. He pauses, licking his lips and setting the muffin down.

He takes in a deep breath, taking a napkin and cleaning the leftover crumbs on his lips.

"Before I answer that... I have a few questions for you, and all you have to do is answer me honestly. Shall we have a deal?"

"All I want to know is where I am. I don't... think we have the time for a conversation."

"Oh, you have plenty of time. You can try to leave but you will find yourself unsuccessful. So you can either try until you've deemed your effort wasted or you can just agree to answer my questions honestly, and I will tell you where you are."

The clarity in his voice is chilling. He's sitting with his hands neatly rested on the edge of the cloth-covered table, fingers and palms intertwined with a small, inviting smile on his face.

There's an awkward silence in the air as you debate the decision to trust him, and it doesn't take him long for him to notice it.

"If you're scared, please don't be. I'm not here to hurt you, if anything, I'm here to help you. So all I need you to do is be honest with me, and that's all I am asking."

The softness in his voice. The comfort of his tone. The lack of danger posed.

You swallow, nervous.

"Okay."

He nods gently, reassuring you as he leans back in his seat, comfortable.

"Let's just... take a breather alright? Tell me about yourself. What's your favourite color? Your favourite food? Your favourite hobby?"

"Um," You rub an eye. "I like green. It reminds me of nature and people. Favourite food? Anything that doesn't have seafood in them, I'm allergic to shellfish and I'm not a huge fan of fish. Hobbies..."

A moment. For some reason, you don't remember what you loved doing.

"I... guess I don't have any. I mean I like to listen to music and go to the movies but there isn't anything I could tell someone I religiously like doing for a hobby."

"Well, what about your dislikes? Pet peeves? Bad experiences?"

"Uh... Not knowing what's... going on? Like right now. The feeling of having no control over what's happening."

His eyes are studying you, but it's not judgemental. They looked more empathetic, like he were trying to guess the words you were thinking even before you said them.

"What's your favourite memory?" He asks after a few moments of silence. "Maybe with someone, with yourself."

Memory? You scratch your brow and rub the skin on your neck, deep in thought.

"Anything that I've done with my cat. He knows when I'm sad. He knows when I'm happy and in the mood for a playful fight. We once went on a bike-hike, but that was a long time ago when he was still young. The views at the top of the hill were gorgeous and I almost lost him because he wanted so much to run into the woods."

He smiles. The ends of his eyes curl up like a cat's, and for a split moment, he looked like one.

"But after he passed, life just kind of... stopped, I guess."

"Why is that so?"

You take a moment to contemplate.

"I don't know."

He pauses. "Do you remember what life was like before you had him?"

No.

"Yeah. It was dull, but alright. You know, you just live the life of every other average Tom."

"And were there any moments in this 'dull' life you lived that you treasure?"

The question was difficult. It takes you a few moments to process it, and honestly, the answer was 'yes'.

Your first scar on your knee was from learning how to ride a bicycle, being pushed down a slope... only to fly right off because you hit the brakes all too suddenly. Going home to your mother and crying about it, only to be fed with chicken soup and have your wound dressed by her.

The scent of warm chocolate and mint in the air whilst you decorate the family Christmas tree. Watching the first snow fall from your bed, only for you to dash out into the lawn and kick it around, try to make snowballs.

Going to a party with your friends, having that sick feeling in your stomach when a boy locked eyes with you and then offered to take you for a late night stroll.

Listening to café music in a bookshop, with the scent of paper and wood in the air. The store owner was an old man who used to be a newspaper boy, and would forget about time when he brought you coffee and talked about his younger days.

"y/n," His voice breaks your train of thought. "I need you to know your life wasn't dull."

You glare at him. "You don't know what I thought about my life, and you wouldn't understand. Nobody does."

"I'm not saying I do, I'm saying that being average and being 'dull' made it any less than everybody else's."

"Unfortunately, I wanted a more-than-average life," You suck in a deep breath and look at him with some kind of authority. "My life was measured by accomplishments and the ones I had was not enough to make my life a life."

He looks at you like you were a dying puppy on the side of the road, who had been kicked at by strangers and then run over by a car.

"I don't need your pity. I don't need this therapy session. You asked me to answer your questions and I have."

He looks down at his tea cup and picks it up.

"The deal was you answer me truthfully and I answer you, but you haven't been honest."

"How will you know what's true and what's a lie? I could've been lying the entire damn time and you wouldn't know."

"But I do," He pauses, frowning and finally placing his tea cup down. "I know you were telling the truth about your cat but you were not telling the truth about how you felt about your life."

"You have no fucking right to tell me how I feel about my life."

"And you have no right to treat yourself the way everybody else has been treating you."

At this moment, the skies darken. Clouds seemingly grow thicker in just a matter of seconds and the Hydrangeas and Chrysanthemums wilt. There's a flash of lightning, then a gentle thunderclap as the rain begins to drizzle and speckle into your lashes.

"Tell me," He speaks over the sound of the rain pattering onto the arch and the surrounding ground. His voice is slightly broken, and the rain in his eyes is making it hard to tell if he was crying. "On these rainy days... Did it make you feel any worse?"

"What?" You frown at him, confused. "What do any of your questions have anything to do with rain?"

"Could you have controlled it?"

"What? The rain? No!"

The water is soaking through his hair, the water droplets falling off the edges and soaking into his emerald gown.

"Then why can't you see that half the things you blame yourself for are not within your control?"

Your heart is heavy. As heavy as the clouds and as heavy as the remorse in his voice.

"What in the world are you talking about? Where am I? What am I doing here? Who the Hell are you?"

"All those nights you cried over things that weren't in your control... The things people said and did and hurt you were not your decision to make. The feelings that made you feel the way you did is a natural reaction and none of them were your fault. Rejection is redirection, failure is a stepping stone to success. These are all just words that you can ignore but you can never forget."

Now, the rain is heavier. He's shouting across the table. The tea was getting diluted and the food on the multi-layer dessert table looked like they were falling apart.

"I exist in your heart and in your memory, and if you choose to forget the beauty that life has had to offer you, I will cease to exist."

"You're not making any sense at all," You stand abruptly, pushing the chair backwards and turning around. There were thick bushes that seemingly opened into a maze, and the thought of going into it scares you.

But he starts to shout for you, and he begins to run after you. In a bid to escape the confusion, you run into the maze.

"y/n! Where are you?"

The rain gets heavier, the winds get stronger and there are leaves flying everywhere.

You turn the corner, failing to notice the puddle of water on the floor. With a harsh exclamation, you slip and land on your knees, the pinch familiar in your legs as you look down and see the wound.

"Oh, are you alright? Come here, darling. Are you okay? Are you injured anywhere else?"

Your eyes are seeing through him, but he was there, and he felt real. Your father, patting your head and checking the bleeding wound on your knee.

"We'll wrap up for today, okay? Let's go home and get you cleaned up."

He stands, holding your hand in his.

But a flash of lightning blinds you for a second, and he disappears. Your heart drops, and you look down to see that the wound had been replaced with the scar.

You turn around to the endless lane of bush, only to see the leaves decorated with golden and silver balls. Fake snow in the form of cotton balls and bells hanging from the little branches.

Feeling sick to your stomach from how overwhelming it was, you squat, hands covering the top of your head with your forearms covering your ears.

And as the world falls to a calming silence, something warm and fuzzy brushes against your leg.

Two amber eyes stare right into yours, ears perched and curious with his head tilted to the side. His tail is politely curled to his side, sitting like a gentleman before you.

Meow.

Then there's that horrid thunderclap again, this time louder, this time harsher, and beyond him, the bush had seemingly began to be torn away, disappearing into a whitish black hole.

You reach out to the cat, and embrace him fully. Eyes shut tight and arms wrapped safely around him, you become one with everything else.

The snow is light in your beanie, gently soaking its way through and into your hair as you push the door open. The amber lighting of the store makes you feel like you had just turned back the clock.

You look around, noticing that some of the books that had normally been there had disappeared, and there were new ones on some shelves as well. There's a door opening somewhere, and you lean on one leg to peer down an isle, hoping to greet him.

He gasps, and your heart breaks when you notice he's walking with a walking stick now. "Oi, you! Where have you been? I've heard some stories all around about you being in the hospital now, what happened?"

"Nothing much," Hurrying forward to help him with his other arm, you walk him to the seating area by the window. "I'm fine now, don't worry."

"Well, the tea and chocolate is in the back, you know where it is. I'm getting on in my years and this back of mine isn't working very well anymore."

"You should retire and rest at home," You get up to get his favourite coffee. "I could help you with the shop every now and then if you need help with it."

"Awh, but you needn't. I've gotten a young lad to come have the store on my behalf. I wanted to ask you but you seem like you have to take care of yourself first."

"Oh?" You bring the cup of coffee over. "Who is it? Anybody I know?"

"No. New in town. Loves mythology. Very entertaining lad," Then the bell by the door rings. "Oh, it must be him. Come, let me introduce you, alright?"

He struggles to stand, so you hurry to him first. But you look up and at the door, and there he was, standing in a beautiful velvet-green coat and a golden flower brooch on his left chest.

"Jungwon, I'd like you to meet y/n. She's been one of my regulars since she was in school and had you not come along, I'd had given her the store. She's a part of this shop now, so be nice to her."

There's a little glimmer in Jungwon's eyes as he smiles at you. He nods.

"I'm sure we can get acquainted. I think we've met before."

#enhypennetwork #enhypen jungwon #enhypen scenarios #enhypen imagines #jungwon scenarios #jungwon imagines #enhypen one shot #enhypen fanfic #jungwon fanfic #jungwon drabble #jungwon one shot #olympus: generation scylla

36 notes · View notes

dontwantthenextcommanderiwantyou · 2 years

Note

have you seen that gifser of Petra saying the same words as alder 😭 No wonder she looked at the portrait right after murderinf that civi

I just saw it... and do you know what it reminded me of??? That time when Raelle echoed Scylla's words...

Amalia said "If Raelle uses Scylla's words, then Scylla might still be present in her heart." And here Petra is using Alder's words 😭

#Petra Bellweather #Sarah Alder #Scylla Ramshorn #Raelle Collar #Motherland Fort Salem

64 notes · View notes

i-did-not-mean-to · 1 year

Text

Monopoly and pets

IDNMT proudly presents...a prompt by @the-girl-with-the-algebra-book, @vintage-jewel, and @scyllas-revenge...

Here goes nothing lol...

Words: 2k

Warnings: None

Characters: Éomer x OC, Éowyn x Faramir

“You are aware that you’re an idiot, right?” Éowyn grinned as she sat on the floor with her brother’s massive dog trying desperately to crawl on her lap while Éomer shoved magazines and single socks between his best tableware in the old armoire standing in his living room.

“Shut up and help me instead of indulging this traitor,” he hissed; his gaze roamed around the room frantically in search of other offending items. “Why did I even invite you over?”

Éowyn cackled and got up gracefully, stepping past her brother with a mocking grin, to open the door to her own boyfriend whose expression expressed both worried disapproval and barely contained glee.

“Ah, you’ve brought young Denethor,” she cooed at the grumpy-looking cat Faramir was carrying in his arms like a baby.

“I wish you would refrain from addressing the cat by the name of my father,” he sighed and bent down to press a loving kiss onto her smiling mouth. “Take the beast; I’ll see if your brother needs any help.” Extending her arms to her darling pet, Éowyn merely shook her head in earnest pity. It was just like Faramir to offer his assistance despite the fact that her brother had gotten himself into the mess he was presently mired down in all on his own and deserved neither help nor sympathy.

Apparently, the doggy day-care in charge of the mountain of flesh parading as an actual dog that lived here had informed Éomer that said beast, Firefoot – the laziest and least fiery canine in the world – had made a friend.

In his boundless enthusiasm – for “like master, like man” – Éomer had promptly invited the owner of said “buddy” to his home; it was only after the young woman going by the much less ludicrous name of Mathilda had accepted that Éomer was reminded of his woeful shortcomings as a host.

Thankfully for him, his sister had been so amused by his tale of woe that she had offered that she and her boyfriend could come as chaperones.

It had not struck Éomer at the time he had extended this ill-advised invitation that his motives might well have been understood as sinister and potentially nefarious; he was ashamed to admit that it had taken his sister’s vocal dismay to make him fully aware of how unfortunate it would have been to entice a woman into finding herself alone at the mercy of a stranger behind a possibly locked door.

Good-natured as he was, Éomer had not thought of himself as a threat but he was nonetheless very grateful that Éowyn and her partner had been willing to come defuse the dicey situation.

Truth be told, Éomer was rather nervous about the whole evening and his broad, strong hands were just the tiniest bit unsteady as he set out empty glasses onto the freshly polished table.

The frantic energy radiating from him was probably the reason why Faramir was by now utterly infected with blind panic and so, Éowyn got to witness her two favourite men in the world run around like headless chickens; as a woman herself though, she was firmly convinced that she wanted no partner for her only sibling who would be offended by a stray sock or a horse catalogue lying around.

After all, Éomer could clean up anxiously as much as he wanted now, he’d still be a bit scatter-brained and slightly chaotic in nature and the lady in question should learn this about him as soon as possible. If one was to ask Éowyn, she’d boldly claim that Éomer’s kind and brave soul were well worth the blatant lack of tidiness and she truly hoped that the much-anticipated guest would agree.

Indeed, it seemed very unlikely to her that her brother would just invite anybody to his home only because their dogs got along well with each other; certainly, there was more to the story than that!

Slowly, she started to feel her own senses grow sharper with wariness as they waited – seemingly endlessly – for this mysterious dog owner.

As soon as Mathilda arrived, swaddled in a breath-takingly beautiful coat and handsomely flushed on account of the cool evening air, with a very well-behaved dog in tow, Éowyn’s secret suspicions were instantly and uncontestably confirmed.

‘Tilda, as the lady introduced herself, was a woman of rather short stature with a radiant smile and twinkling eyes whose pretty complexion and luscious hair would have charmed even men much more hard-hearted than Éomer.

Right now though, confusion distorted her pleasant face as she took in the suspiciously bare room and the two strangers standing around displaying varying degrees of relaxation.

“I’m Éowyn, Éomer’s sister,” Éowyn simply took the initiative as the two men just gaped dumbly at the newcomer, “and the flushed panicky dude in the corner is my boyfriend. My brother has said something about an evening of boardgames and fun, so we thought we’d tag along, if that’s okay by you?”

Éomer grunted under his breath; he had said no such thing! As a matter of fact, he avoided playing any kind of game with Éowyn as much as possible as they were both sore losers and insufferable winners.

Ever since their youngest childhood, they had managed to turn everything into a competition and, while Éomer was taller, stronger, and faster than his sister, she was wilier by far.

Faramir also blanched for he was well-aware of the rivalry between his intended and her brother; he had been the heedless witness of many a game-night massacre and had been one of the chief instigators of the “no boardgames”-rule in both their households.

“Oh,” Mathilda whispered, her astonished gaze lighting up with innocent eagerness. “That sounds like a lot of fun! Let’s do that!”

Knowing himself to be outwitted thoroughly, Éomer admitted his first defeat of the evening and went to retrieve the old Monopoly from under a stack of empty shoeboxes in his bedroom.

Within a few minutes, war was raging around the rickety table; Éowyn literally bared her teeth at her boyfriend as he considered buying a very advantageous property.

Thus threatened, Faramir decided to play it safe instead and kept his money; he seemed to prefer endless, hopeless wandering around the board to the fierce threat of unspeakable violence in Éowyn’s eyes.

He was affectionately mocked by most people in his life for his tendency to bring great sacrifices and do himself tremendous harm in order to appease or please those he held dear, and – even though this was supposed to be innocent entertainment – the present conundrum was no exception to this idiosyncrasy of his.

As for Éomer, not only did he make a few very unfortunate choices early on in the game, but he was also cursed with a streak of particularly bad luck.

“Sister,” he cried dramatically, “remember the bonds of blood that tie us to one another. Will you not come to my aid in this hour of need?”

“Eat dust, Éomer,” she declared haughtily and made her next brazen move.

In a moment of petulant weakness, Éomer consider flipping the whole table in a sudden rush of irate impatience and heartsick dissatisfaction, but he reined himself in at the last moment and merely glared at his triumphant sister through the whole round.

Mathilda meanwhile had apparently been granted all the luck Éomer was lacking and, very soon, she was the only player who had any chance of toppling Éowyn and ending her reign of terror.

Unfortunately, she turned out to be just as ambitious and competitive; eyes flashed, lips tightened, and long hair was tossed back impetuously as they plotted their next moves frantically.

“Will you not help me?” Éomer whispered at Faramir whose wide, glassy eyes stayed glued to his beloved’s face as he shook his head almost imperceptibly.

“You’re on your own, my man; I just want to survive to see my dear father’s face again,” he confessed under his breath. “Would that Boromir was here. I’m sure he would relish the chance to measure his prowess against such skill and wit.”

“What are you two conspiring about?” Éowyn bellowed from across the table pugnaciously; she was so close to her victory that she could almost taste it.

Both dogs had retreated into the kitchen, distraught by the unbearable tension in the living room, but Éowyn’s ugly cat was perched upon the armoire into which all of Éomer’s unpalatable belongings had been secreted so unceremoniously.

Just as his sister lifted her intrepid hand to make her last move, sealing their fates, the shaggy sour-faced beast leaped down and – landing on the board – made it slide off the table in an avalanche of cards and figurines.

“Ugh! Blasted cat!” Éowyn howled.

“Ah, such a shame!” Faramir cried out, swooping in to save their pet from her wrath and the wet nosing of the dogs who had sprinted back to roll around on the crumpled paper money on the floor.

“What about dinner? Mathilda? Would you care to eat something? I’m sure my sister and her boyfriend would be delighted to dogsit as it was their cat that spoiled our fun!” Éomer pounced on the opportunity to get out of the blast radius of his sister’s temper that was – by the look on her face – about to erupt in a flood of angry words and reckless actions.

Mathilda cocked her head; she was not disinclined to have a bite to eat, but she evidently thought it rude to go out without inviting the other two members of their party.

“Oh, it would be our pleasure, wouldn’t it?” Faramir replied hastily, a wicked glint stealing into his calm gaze. “We wouldn’t be sore losers, would we, my love?”

“I guess,” Éowyn grunted and shot such a withering look at both Faramir and their cat that both flinched visibly.

“That’s so very sweet of you, sister mine,” Éomer chirped and – ignoring the mess on the floor – he extended his arm to Mathilda to escort her into the foyer and help her into her coat. “We won’t be long,” he called over his shoulder cheerily. “If you’re hungry too, you could order a pizza? Be advised though, Firefoot barks when the doorbells rings and my neighbour is not overly fond of it.”

“Let him come and complain,” Éowyn yelled back – a little louder than necessary – and chuckled darkly. Knowing that she would be spoiling for a fight, Éomer accepted to sacrifice the annoying man next door – a grimy, pale-faced, lurking fellow – to her wrath.

Éomer sincerely liked his brother-in-law and consequently had no qualms to save his hide by diverting Éowyn’s frustration thus.

Moreover, he had seen the way his neighbour looked at his sister every time she came over and he delighted in the idea of having her blow him off in the most explicit and unmistakeable manner known to humanity.

He almost felt sorry that he’d probably miss that confrontation; he would have paid good money to watch his sister have a go at that slimy worm of a man.

Nevertheless, he had more important challenges to face now, and – if he didn’t want this evening to be a complete disaster – he needed to prove that he was more than just a mediocre Monopoly-player.

“Milady,” he grinned with all the charm he could muster as he turned suavely back to Mathilda. “Do not worry, my sister is much better with animals than she is with people!”

“I do not know what you allude to,” the young woman replied coolly, “I found her to be perfectly agreeable and a worthy opponent, which cannot be said of all my fellow players.”

Catching her sharp but humorous side-glance, Éomer sighed deeply; it was just his luck to meet a fascinating and enchanting woman who just so happened to be eerily similar to his beloved sister in many a way.

At the end of the day though, he understood, respected, and adored Éowyn and thus, he decided to take Mathilda’s reaction as a good and promising omen.

@fellowshipofthefics thank you for creating such an amazing environment!

@laurfilijames here is Éomer losing his cool (among other things).

Lots of love. If you've not yet joined the server, come join us! Plenty of fun things are happening over there!

Lots of love <3

28 notes · View notes

chic-beyond-the-wall-oc-acct · 4 months

Text

Scylla Blackfyre

I've been meaning to make boards for all of Abigail's children and @omnipotent-scient kinda reminded me by mentioning Scylla so thank you!! (I tried to save this as a gif but it wouldn't lol)

Princess Scylla Blackfyre is the youngest of her siblings. She was born to Abigail Blackfyre and Osferth Hill, and by the time she came along her siblings were in their teens/adulthood. She preferred to stick to herself, studying history with special focuses on her favorite distant relatives like Visenya Targaryen, Tyanna of the Tower and Shiera Seastar, for most of her childhood despite having several friends. Her best friend however, Lynul Beesbury was not one to leave her be. The two of them were basically attached at the hip, when you saw one you saw the other. When they were in their mid teens they started sleeping together, they figured, why not? At 17 Scylla found out she was pregnant, both her and Lynul were every excited. They told Abigail and requested a marriage, which Abigail reluctantly agreed and after the wedding Scylla moved away to live at Honeyholt. Unfortunately for Scylla, Lynul wasn't near as good of a husband as he had been a friend. Scylla slowly started to resent him, especially after their son, Caspian, was born because Lynul immediately wanted another child even though he payed no mind to the one they had. Over the next year Scylla and Lynul grew distant, Caspian being the biggest point of argument between the two of them. On Caspian's first name day, Scylla had persuaded Lynul to host a hunt. All went well until Lynul fell off his horse, cracked open his scull on a rock and died. Scylla did not stay at Honeyholt after her husband's death, it's said she didn't wait a day to start packing. She took Caspian to The Red Keep to once again live with her family, at least those who still lived there. In a matter of months Scylla had found herself a new lover, Lord Enber Royce, who was aspiring to be a knight. After waiting less than a year the two of them wed and any and all could see they were happy with each other. Scylla and Enber decided to stay in The Red Keep and over the course of five years, they had three daughters, Jaehaera, Abigail and Naerys.

5 notes · View notes

poisonouswritings · 2 years

Note

Hello hello! Could you write how the main 3 and whichever other characters you'd like reacting to mc accidentally turning into a smol chibi version of themselves? Imagine sage carrying you by your neck using his teeth-

Pfft this is so cute I can't-

GN!Reader, chibi cuteness, everyone is f*cking melting over how cute you are, colored bulletins are a romantic relationship with that character (Felix, Anisa, Sage)

Obviously Felix caused this with a rogue spell. He was probably trying to hit Sage with it but you happened to walk in the way.

I just,, I think it's funny if,, like you're Smol™ but you have your usual intelligence level/attitude 95% of the time. But then when you get too excited over something you get a little more childish/chibi-ish.

When the spell hits you there's this big puff of smoke and everyone is freaking out and then it fades and you're just,,, there,,, drowning in your usual clothes,,, and you're like 'WHAT THE F*CK WAS THAT' but when you try to cuss there's this loud squeaking sound

'..... What the f*ck wa- god f*cking- WHY THE F*CK- GAH!!'

The universe is literally censoring your cussing.

Once you've been scooped up and put in something a little more fitting for your current state, the Starsworn finally get a chance to properly examine you.

.... I'm sorry I think you killed all of them.

On one hand, Felix is definitely apologizing because this is his fault. On the other hand he's silently so grateful his spell fucked up because you are the cutest thing he's ever seen. He's immediately picking you up like he would with Stella. Especially if you're normally bigger than him?? He teases you for being so smol.

Anisa promises you she's gonna punish Felix for this but she also discreetly asks him to wait a day or two before reversing it because! You are!! So cute!!! She pinches your cheeks and cuddles you like a teddy bear. Definitely gives you a lot of snacks. Literally anything you do, she's gushing over. I think you have to keep reminding her that You Are Still An Adult!!! Because she keeps forgetting. Someone cusses in front of you and she reflexively covers your ears and you're like 'ANISA I CAN HEAR THE WORD SH*T!!!!'

Oh man Sage thinks this is the funniest thing ever. He 1000% brings you immediately to Tulsi. Will let you ride on his shoulders. You guys get there and Tulsi just,, someone get those poor woman some ibuprofen she has such a migraine. Sage has you sat on one of the work benches and he's poking your squishy cheeks and tweaking your nose and generally cooing over you and Tulsi is just like Sage Quit Infantilizing MC!!! Though she can't really blame him because I think he would do the same thing with smol animals too.

I'm not gonna lie tho Sage asks Tulsi to keep an eye on you for an afternoon and she's gonna end up giving you heavy things to try and lift because she thinks it's funny. Does talk to you normally tho. But then you see a sword and your eyes get all wide and sparkly and suddenly you're Full Chibi (aka cutesie and smol) and she's just like 'hey what the fuck' and you blink and go back to normal like '..... Don't tell Sage that happened he'll never let me live it down' 'Oh I'm telling him as soon as he walks through the door' 'B*stard'

Felix asks Scylla to keep you company and she promptly offers to get you drunk on wine. If you agree then you guys are just at her winery on the balcony sh*t-talking Felix and all the servers are like ???? Because it looks like she's getting a toddler drunk or whatever and that's just hilarious. Someone brings out finger sandwiches and it's like half the size of your face and Scylla is choking on her drink

Ayanna has to watch you for an afternoon and she is immediately taking you on an adventure! Your tiny little hands and cute smile are totally gonna help her steal that key she needs from the guards so she can sneak into the restricted section of the castle's library and get That One Journal she left in there years ago (back when she was Porrima's hero) that had a bunch of dirt on Escell. She's gonna use it to embarrass him because it'll be fun.

Tiny you helping Florian in the garden!! Felix Is Dead. The fucking berry bush is taller than you. He picks you up and bounces you on his hip and asks if you had fun and you immediately smush a berry on his forehead to get him dirty. He kinda just blinks and is like 'okay I deserved that'

Anisa jokes about getting one of those baby carriers (like the ones that strap to your chest) because you keep getting lost in crowds and you immediately just walk away. It takes her like an hour to find you and you're just sitting on a bench and scowling at her because You Are Not A Baby!!!! But also you might need to be on a f*cking leash or something because in actuality you did get lost for a good 45 minutes until you finally just picked a place to wait at so

Sage is a lil drunk and you come to the tavern to drag him home except you're tiny and everyone is like 'why is there a child here' and you start getting angry and then Sage, who is drunk, just,,, comes over and picks you up by the neck of your shirt with your teeth because he's an idiot and you're just flailing around trying to punch some motherf*cker

Tulsi,, makes you,,, a lil set of armor,,,,, Elowen gets you a little plastic sword,,,,,,,,,, they're such bitches and I love them

I know Stella is smol but if she was big enough for you to ride??? Felix would just Never Recover.

Anisa is proudly bringing you everywhere, including to Sunstone training. You become their little mascot. Normally you'd complain because it's demeaning but it means getting to hang around and watch Anisa practice so,,, plus people bring you snacks and drinks. There are worse ways to spend an afternoon.

Okay you know how lions will let their cubs win in play fights? You and Sage play-wrestle and he totally lets you win while praising you for being so strong!! And you're like 'I know exactly what you're doing you jack*ss but thank you'

That being said,,, Sage being really drunk and trying to groom you like a kitten (aka licking your hair) and you just whack him in the nose because How F*cking Drunk Is He???? He passes out like 10 seconds later. He was Really F*cking Drunk.

Felix,, does he have the ability to make objects levitate? I don't think we've ever actually seen it but if he does then he's 10000% flying you around Fathom and/or Blackthorn.

Anisa has those strong arms,,, she can toss you in the air and catch you,,,, spin you around,,,,,, I feel like Anisa likes kids but she always has to be in her Good Knight Persona™ around them so this is a chance for her to just be herself!! You kinda gotta let her have it because she's so excited.

Elowen kidnaps you and just carries you in a backpack,,, she packed you snacks,,,,, you ask her where you're going and she's like 'Oh I did not have a plan I just wanted to fuck with Sage. Is there anywhere you wanna go?' And you guys end up going a town over because there's an art exhibit you wanna see and children get in for free so you might as well!!

78 notes · View notes

hibernationsuit · 7 months

Note

Hello i arrive back 🕺 for the unplanned variable meme: #2 :D also #20 and #15 pls :3c <3 nyehehe

omg aaaa thank uuu <3

2. What are their attributes, perks, and flaws?

Attributes:

Below Average Strength

Average Dexterity

Very high Intelligence (the critical damage buff 🥰)

Good Perception

High Charm

Good Temperament

in other words this guy's all brains no muscles (yet still beats up ppl w/ a tossball stick)

Perks: omg long list bc sc edition allows u to choose all so i'll just write the ones that fit him or ones i always pick: toughness, slow the world, the negotiator (i always think about rac: a crack in time bc of this one btw), strider, cheetah, high maintenance, precision, Nietzsche's reward, resilient, quick and the dead, run and gun, the reaper, scanner, snake oil salesman, soliloquy, harvester, steady hand, confidence, armor master, don't go dyin' on me!, boom, headshot!

Flaws:

Guilt-ridden

Drug addiction

Smoke addiction

i also think he'd have a frost weakness </3

15. How do the companion quests go?

first things first: you have no idea how happy he is that he can help them solve their problems btw </3 people pleaser ^ 2

Max: do u have any idea how many times Tobias had to hold himself from not leaving him in the middle of nowhere bc of all the OSI things he kept talking abt in the beginning? he's had his share of ppl using religion to control ppl back on Earth already and he's not having it here </3 BUT he also realizes that Max himself is a victim and maybe, Maybe helping him out will make him realize what's up. Their relationship got a bit rocky on Monarch after the Fallbrook scene (he managed to talk Max out of killing the guy btw), and even worse bc he got...tired...of how Max was talking to Iconoclasts, specifically to Huxley after she hurt her leg. This led to a small "fight" btwn them (away from the others' eyes obviously) and he was like...ready to say that they're going different ways after Scylla. WELL then they go to Scylla (almost right away after the fight) and learn the truth abt Max + finally solve his problems. Tobias feels Really Bad abt how he acted :( They become v close friends in the end (and also have a unofficial "got practically disowned" club)

Ellie: This was a funny and short one and they mostly just had fun in the second half of the quest. As for the visit at Ellie's parents' house? That reminded him a lot of his own mother & step-father </3

Nyoka: Helping with this one was hard for Tobias tbh. Not because the task themselves were hard but because he was constantly concerned about Nyoka's wellbeing (especially after they found in Emerald Vale). Once they killed the mantiqueen, he though that she should keep the amulets to remember the good things from the past <3 Every now and then he would ask her to tell some funny stories about CHARON, she seems to enjoy talking about the good things.

Felix: "What would you do if a long lost friend contacted you suddenly" "Idk man, freak out? they're all on Earth :(" "oh yeah sorry" is one of my favorite conversations btw. ANYWAY. He knew Harlow wasn't being honest the moment they arrived to his base. He's been on Scylla and seen the ship wrecks, and some notes left from their old crews. The outlaws they saw there have to have some kind of a leader. He still decided not to say anything about it, especially to Felix, and went to meet this guy. He agreed to do what Harlow wanted, but decided to find out what actually happened, and finally voices his concern regarding Harlow to Felix. Felix doesn't know what to think but decided to go with the plan. They go to the Groundbreaker, then to Emerald Vale, where they find the guy Harlow's looking for and ask him to tell what happened. The guy tells that Harlow's working for the Board and that he has evidence. They believe him and decide to let him live. After that they go right away back to Harlow, get the evidence and confront Harlow. They talk about it and Harlow attacks them bc clearly they're not on their side. They manage to win :') I personally think that since Felix is clearly not doing well, they go back to the ship and make a self care night for him to show that he's cared abt and that he deserves better friends.

Parvati: first things first: he was so happy to help with this aaaAAAA oh my god. imagine being able to help someone ask the love of their life out for a date when u had the same problems </3 Anyway. So, after that one letter makes Parvati feel bad, they go to the Lost Hope, where he advices her to choose wine bc he heard it's good. She tells what's wrong and asks what to drink next & he just advices her to choose water sjdjjfjfdj That was a good choice tbh. Then they do all the tasks for the date (they pick the mock apple basket btw) and finally when they get to Byzantium everything's complete. Parvati & Junlei have an amazing date and Tony is so happy for them <3

20. How did those cows get onto their ship??

ADA herself takes these orders and uses it to make fun of Tobias <3

unplanned variable asks

#asks #oc: tobias

4 notes · View notes

runeberry · 9 months

Text

The romances in bg3 remind me of Scylla having a few potential romances in her og game

She was flirting with Gale, but Karlach is a buff tiefling who grew up similarly to Scylla before [redacted], and Halsin has a way of making her feel like a treasure.

With some Act 2 things, she's questioning her feelings. There are things that take higher priority than her love life, though, so that will have to wait.

#she had two definite potentials and a third crush but they never resolved in game #it's hard to pick and I'll definitely be replaying with different choices #i'm trying to play to scylla's tastes as much as possible #but man it's TOUGH #i know there's mentions of polyamory but it's limited so we'll see #i'm trying to avoid most spoilers re: romances so i haven't looked too deep #rune plays bg3

1 note · View note

mcheang · 1 year

Text

Shadow and Bone S2 E2 recap

Spoiler alert

Alina and Mal convince Sturmhond to help them find the Sea Whip. Unlike book Sturmhond, this one clearly doesn’t care about getting on Mal’s good side. I just saw Mal’s book of lives of saints. Is it just me or does it look more like the one we can buy rather the one David read in Season 1? Kirigan is clearly more physically ill than book Darkling. He is coughing black blood, and his scars cannot be fully healed by Genya. He goes to Vladim the Alkemi for help but he can only promise a temporary painkiller. Unlike the other Grisha seeking Kirigan’s protection, Genya is not as delighted. She is unsure and terrified of him and his monsters. I’ll admit I’m surprised. I never imagined her like this in Siege and Storm’s first few chapters. What I find interesting is how the nichevo’ya would have attacked Genya, believing she is hurting their master. Their instinctive nature is to protect him even before he gives the order, although they do not attack immediately. We see the flashback of when Kaz and his brother first met Pekka. I’ll admit, seeing this on screen, I already could tell this was a bad idea of the brother’s. When it comes to easy money, be suspicious. The Crows plan to get back at Pekka. But he deduces where Kaz would go to get information on him and ambushes him there. He also sets traps for Jesper and Inej. Funny how Jesper only remembers Wylan when they are in an intimate position lol Lucky for Matthias, his cell mate is Fjerdan and is willing to give him tips to survive Hellgate. What was his crime, or is he innocent too? Alina doesn’t plan to kill the Seawhip, who is not hiding among floating ice bergs like in the books but apparently on a green island. For the record I do not believe she is having dreams about the sea whip and the Firebird because they are Morozova’s amplifiers and it is destiny. Because I already know that the Firebird is not the amplifier. Alina is only having these dreams based on what she knows and because she is obsessed!

Well, the island is pretty….

A new character Fruzsi has joined the Darkling. Her appearance so makes me think of Ulla because she looks like a live action Vanessa from Little Mermaid! She is a Tidemaker who is guarding Morozova’s books and also the imprisoned Baghra, who can still see. She seems surprisingly reverent to Kirigan. I’m guessing he saved her life before the Fold. Rusalye attacks the searching party. The attack reminds of Scylla from Greek mythology only with one head and much smaller than I expected. It might be the reflection of water, but i thought it had multiple tails, making it look more like an octopus than a dragon. It’s size is so much less impressive than the books. The book sea whip gave one hell of a fight before it was captured. Alina kills the Seawhip when it attacks Mal. As she remembers the Rusalye’s last memories, she realizes he saw Mal different from everyone else. And as she absorbs the new amplifier, her light has changed from yellow to blue white. And Kirigan is also now made aware that there still exists a connection between them at this same time. When Alina loses control of her power, Mal stops and they kiss. Um…was that really the time?!!!

I like Matthias new cell mate. Tamar does not particularly strike me as reverent to saints if she address Alina with an “Oi” I was so relieved to hear Alina didn’t want to kill the stag. Everyone else? Why are they so keen on killing fairytale creatures?!!! Sturmhond even forgot Alina needs to be the one to kill it when Rusalye attacks. For how often the media and the cast try to paint Kirigan as a bad guy, except for one newspaper clipping I found that claimed him as an antihero, one can’t deny that Kirigan is better than book Aleksander for not blinding his mother. I still think Fruzsi could be Ulla and I hope she helps keep Aleksander alive. Saints know if she is Ulla, she definitely dislikes the mother who abandoned her. We finally see Tidemaker characters and their powers. The books only had the Council of Tides in Ketterdam.

#shadow and bone season 2 episode 2 #Shadow and bone spoilers #shadow and bone netflix

2 notes · View notes

hrodvitnon · 1 year

Note

Now for some of those Abraxas Qs! ;) (1) Do you have your own idea of where Scylla, Methuselah and Barb's territories are? (2) Do you have any extra bits of Abraxasverse fact trivia you can think of that haven't already been posted here? (Admittedly, these are the last non-dialogue questions I've got reminders for, so I'm probably gonna run out again quite soon.)

Yay!

I haven't really thought about their specific territories, but off the top of my head I'd say Scylla sticks to arctic regions like the north and south poles so she can focus on keeping the ice caps nice a frozen (and not start any mischief); Behemoth would stay around Brazil, maybe the Amazon rainforest and protect it from any deforestation efforts or big toothy nasties that would cause trouble, like Amhuluk; by contrast Methuselah can make his territory in a more temperate zone like somewhere in eastern Europe, but Wikizilla mentions he was originally going to emerge in the Middle East so that's also an option. Maybe our mountain turtle bull thing buddy can hang out in that new Sahara rainforest!

Let me think... so, originally Abraxas wasn't supposed to even have chapters in the double-digits. The initial idea was that, before Thor became a character, it would end following Viv n' San having their self-microwaving near death experience and recovering into their second form, escaping the Ural outpost after doing to Jonah what one does to a wishbone, possibly facing off against some mysterious creature lurking in the area (a precursor to the Many as we know them). The ending would have an air of uncertainty to it, a sort of "what do we do now?" upon Monster X emerging into a world that's all at once familiar and yet very different, leading up to a sequel where they would have to cope with... everything. Thor's character concept wound up causing the fic itself to make like the Many and get bigger and bigger until we got an 18 chapter story, to say nothing of the monstrosity that is Chapter 17!

#zerm1v0hg #fic: abraxas #abraxasverse

5 notes · View notes

halothenthehorns · 1 year

Text

Chapter 6: DEMON PIGEONS ATTACK

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate it! Here is a gift for everyone on who wants to read regardless!

Have no fears, another update is tomorrow as planned.

PJOPJOPJOPJOPJO

Annabeth lingered in Percy's mind, he was glad she wasn't in here now to see how uncomfortable this revelation had made him. Was this why she'd been acting so mean to Tyson earlier? She had known all along how Tyson was related to him, was she now disgusted by him too because of his crazy extended family in the flesh?

Thalia snorted in shock beside him when Magnus read the new title, that made the bird attack Annabeth had told her about during this sound a lot funnier than she imagined it had been.

"That is the weirdest thing to think about," Alex leaned over Magnus's shoulder. "Can those things even attack anything other than gutter bagels?"

"I guess Percy's going to find out," Magnus made no move to push him away as he began.

The next few days were torture, just like Tantalus wanted.

"It's good he's meeting his goals so early," Jason sounded so sincerely sarcastic the others couldn't help but laugh.

First there was Tyson moving into the Poseidon cabin, giggling to himself every fifteen seconds and saying, "Percy is my brother?" like he'd just won the lottery.

'Aw, that's really kind of sweet,' Hearth looked sort of forlorn as he signed that though, and Magnus had never thought to ask.

'Got any siblings?' Perhaps spending so much time looking after him had separated him from his family.

This was apparently the wrong thing to ask though as his friend winced and quickly waved Magnus on to keep reading.

"Aw, Tyson," I'd say. "It's not that simple."

But there was no explaining it to him. He was in heaven. And me ... as much as I liked the big guy, I couldn't help feeling embarrassed. Ashamed. There, I said it.

Percy sunk low in his seat, the same feelings coursing over him now...and yet there was just the tiniest kernel of something else he couldn't define. The same emotion he'd been hesitating over this whole time. It couldn't be the shame, he felt that full force now, but he clearly still had some emotion to Tyson he wasn't quite connecting with yet. Gods did he hope it wasn't another bad one, he didn't know how many betrayals he could take. Luke could have easily sent another monster to gain his trust, right?

Thinking about that big brown eye so happy every time Tyson looked at him, Percy already tried to convince himself it couldn't be that, but then why did Annabeth hate him so much?

My father, the all-powerful Poseidon, had gotten moony-eyed for some nature spirit, and Tyson had been the result. I mean, I'd read the myths about Cyclopes. I even remembered that they were often Poseidon's children. But I'd never really processed that this made them my ... family.

"So are the rest of the Olympians, and we don't hold that against each other," Will cheerfully reminded.

"You got any monster siblings?" Percy asked, more to get attention off him than anything.

Will had to think about it for a moment, which wasn't encouraging before he answered, "um, the korybantes, naked, metal, daimones who dance, but I think Hephaestus made them for him in his honor or something? And, um, some people say scylla is his, but I've never asked personally, and most people say she's the child of Keto and Phorcys, so maybe some kind of custody thing went wrong there because of Hecate."

"You know what, I'm sorry I asked," Percy hadn't followed any of that and decided he didn't want to.

Until I had Tyson living with me in the next bunk.

And then there were the comments from the other campers. Suddenly, I wasn't Percy Jackson, the cool guy who'd retrieved Zeus's lightning bolt last summer. Now I was Percy Jackson, the poor schmuck with the ugly monster for a brother.

"Oh how the mighty shall fall," Magnus mock agreed. He sort of suspected wherever he wound up after this was all over, he'd always have the homeless stigma following him around.

"I think the second title sounds cooler," Alex sniffed. "Annabeth and Grover helped you save that atomic bomb, but they can't claim to be related to a badass cyclops!"

Percy gave Alex a reluctant smile at least someone around here thought it was cool. Jason was trying to hide his own grimace of disgust while Magnus was obviously still trying to wrap his head around it. Even his own friends just had reluctant smiles on their face like they were waiting for his newest storm to pass.

"He's not my real brother!" I protested whenever Tyson wasn't around. "He's more like a halfbrother on the monstrous side of the family. Like ... a half-brother twice removed, or something."

Nobody bought it.

I admit—I was angry at my dad. I felt like being his son was now a joke.

Annabeth tried to make me feel better.

"Of course she did," Magnus smiled warmly at Percy. He couldn't wait to reconnect with his cousin and see how happy she was nowadays being with a guy so clearly in love with her he lit up every time she was mentioned.

He was worried though what had happened with Uncle Fredrick. In the following chaos of that taxi, the bull, Tyson, and now Chiron being gone, they'd never found out why she'd run into Percy in the first place, let alone what her grievance with cyclops was. He'd thought she mended that broken bridge with her dad, but who knew if she could ever patch things up with her mortal side of the family...like him.

She suggested we team up for the chariot race to take our minds off our problems. Don't get me wrong—we both hated Tantalus and we were worried sick about camp—but we didn't know what to do about it. Until we could come up with some brilliant plan to save Thalia's tree, we figured we might as well go along with the races. After all, Annabeth's mom, Athena, had invented the chariot, and my dad had created horses. Together we would own that track.

"It wouldn't surprise me if you threatened to carve your name into the ground going laps around them," Jason nodded at this formidable team up.

One morning Annabeth and I were sitting by the canoe lake sketching chariot designs when some jokers from Aphrodite's cabin walked by and asked me if I needed to borrow some eyeliner for my eye ... "Oh sorry, eyes."

Nobody laughed at the idiotic joke in here, but nobody was quick to jump up in defense either as Percy waffled on the fence, clearly still as upset about Tyson now as he was then.

As they walked away laughing, Annabeth grumbled, "Just ignore them, Percy. It isn't your fault you have a monster for a brother."

"He's not my brother!" I snapped. "And he's not a monster, either!"

"He can just be your friend still," Magnus graciously agreed.

"Not everyone has to have a permanent label on them," Alex nodded, still sitting oddly close and practically still reading over Magnus's shoulder as if just waiting to see how long until the blonde pushed him away. At this rate, it looked like never.

Annabeth raised her eyebrows. "Hey, don't get mad at me! And technically, he is a monster."

"Well you gave him permission to enter the camp."

"Because it was the only way to save your life! I mean ... I'm sorry, Percy, I didn't expect Poseidon to claim him. Cyclopes are the most deceitful, treacherous—"

"He is not! What have you got against Cyclopes, anyway?"

Annabeth's ears turned pink. I got the feeling there was something she wasn't telling me— something bad.

Oh she was, but only Thalia knew exactly what. The others weren't so sure, what was the protocol for how to treat a cyclops you weren't supposed to kill? This was just an uncomfortable grey area nobody seemed to want to discuss.

"Just forget it," she said. "Now, the axle for this chariot—"

"You're treating him like he's this horrible thing," I said. "He saved my life."

Annabeth threw down her pencil and stood. "Then maybe you should design a chariot with him."

"Maybe I should."

"Fine!"

Some part of Nico couldn't help but wonder if he'd just been taken out of that hotel one year earlier, if he'd just known Percy before this awkward phase had been patched up with Annabeth if he'd ever had a shot.

With only mild deliberation though he decided he didn't think so, even with such a silly fight before they were a couple Percy would have never considered him. It was still a despairing thought, and he quickly brushed it aside telling himself to get over it already.

She stormed off and left me feeling even worse than before.

"There goes those privilege's," Will gave Percy a tragic look.

"I could still win without her, maybe if I ask nicely all the horses will sabotage their riders," but Percy's heart clearly wasn't in it.

The next couple of days, I tried to keep my mind off my problems.

Silena Beauregard,

Magnus didn't even pause reading over that name, why would he? He looked up though when he felt Alex tense, he'd practically been resting his chin on him for a moment, but not anymore. All four Greek kids had troubled looks on their faces they tried to smooth away, only Percy was left muttering to himself as usual why he'd latched onto her. Magnus just hoped it wasn't some love triangle on the horizon, his cousin didn't need any more rivals lingering around camp.

Alex did not lean back in, but he didn't exactly move any farther away either.

one of the nicer girls from Aphrodite's cabin, gave me my first riding lesson on a pegasus. She explained that there was only one immortal winged horse named Pegasus, who still wandered free somewhere in the skies, but over the eons he'd sired a lot of children, none quite so fast or heroic, but all named after the first and greatest.

"What does he, I mean who does he," Magnus was looking at the others for help as he figured out how to ask where other Pegasus came from one male.

"He mates with regular horses and they fly away when they're old enough, usually stay in the wild, some we catch," Will shrugged.

"Cool," Magnus was starting to think he'd never get tired of this odd world.

Being the son of the sea god, I never liked going into the air. My dad had this rivalry with Zeus, so I tried to stay out of the lord of the sky's domain as much as possible. But riding a winged horse felt different. It didn't make me nearly as nervous as being in an airplane.

Maybe that was because my dad had created horses out of sea foam,

"Didn't Zeus make Pegasus though? Out of a cloud for Hercules?" Alex dimly recalled from some movie. "Which came first?"

"Depends on the myth you look into," Thalia did not look up to elaborating, she didn't think Percy would want to hear how the more popular belief was how the winged horse had sprung from Medusa's neck. Thankfully that didn't seem to happen every time.

so the pegasi were sort of ... neutral territory. I could understand their thoughts. I wasn't surprised when my pegasus went galloping over the treetops or chased a flock of seagulls into a cloud.

The problem was that Tyson wanted to ride the "chicken ponies," too, but the pegasi got skittish whenever he approached. I told them telepathically that Tyson wouldn't hurt them, but they didn't seem to believe me. That made Tyson cry.

"Someone needs to wrangle up a baby chicken pony just for him, a curious one who can grow up and be his friend," Percy said in a no nonsense kind of way to help Tyson out.

"I still don't think Tyson could ride them, but it might make him a bit happier," Will kindly agreed while trying to hide a wince he couldn't go ask Silena about that.

The only person at camp who had no problem with Tyson was Beckendorf from the Hephaestus cabin. The blacksmith god had always worked with Cyclopes in his forges, so Beckendorf took Tyson down to the armory to teach him metalworking. He said he'd have Tyson crafting magic items like a master in no time.

Percy finally, fully relaxed again as he realized he wasn't the only one around camp who was at least making an effort to include Tyson, even if he hadn't resolved a single thing in himself about his mixed emotions on the big guy.

After lunch, I worked out in the arena with Apollo's cabin. Swordplay had always been my strength. People said I was better at it than any camper in the last hundred years, except maybe Luke. People always compared me to Luke.

Will gave an awkward laugh and didn't know how to explain to Percy just how like Luke he was, on the surface. A hero to the camp, a friendly guy, a leader. He knew Percy didn't want to hear anything like that or he might get thrashed with no practice involved.

I thrashed the Apollo guys easily. I should've been testing myself against the Ares and Athena cabins, since they had the best sword fighters, but I didn't get along with Clarisse and her siblings, and after my argument with Annabeth, I just didn't want to see her.

I went to archery class,

"Where the Apollo kids got their revenge I'm sure," Jason said pragmatically.

"I always guessed that wasn't a suspicious gust of wind shooting that arrow at me," he agreed.

even though I was terrible at it, and it wasn't the same without Chiron teaching.

"The whole place wasn't the same without Chiron," Will agreed. Every time he came back from the infirmary with a new list of supplies he'd still do a double take to see Tantalus there chasing Mr. D's grapes around. Not a single thing ever got ordered in Chiron's absence, and that was only the start of the problems.

In arts and crafts, I started a marble bust of Poseidon, but it started looking like Sylvester Stallone, so I ditched it.

Alex looked appalled at him for doing such a thing and tried to engage him in an argument about how anything can still be molded into art. Percy all but got on his knees and pleaded with Magnus to keep reading before the lecture was even half over.

I scaled the climbing wall in full lava-and-earthquake mode. And in the evenings, I did border patrol. Even though Tantalus had insisted we forget trying to protect the camp, some of the campers had quietly kept it up, working out a schedule during our free times.

"The only time I ever willingly visited the Ares cabin," Percy grumbled, they'd hidden the volunteer list in the boar's head. Clarisse's name had always been at the top.

I sat at the top of Half-Blood Hill and watched the dryads come and go, singing to the dying pine tree. Satyrs brought their reed pipes and played nature magic songs, and for a while the pine needles seemed to get fuller. The flowers on the hill smelled a little sweeter and the grass looked greener. But as soon as the music stopped, the sickness crept back into the air.

"I'm sorry I never visited your tree before," Percy told her now. It felt like a stupid and impulsive thing to say, even by his standards, but he felt the need to say something to her distant gaze.

Thalia shook herself and gave him a practiced smile. "I would have dropped pinecone's on you if you introduced yourself on principle."

He knew it was false cheer, he knew her heart was somewhere else like his constantly felt being given glimpses of his girlfriend, his past in chunks of memory, but somewhere in her blue eyes he saw she knew what he did. They understood what the other was trying to do.

The whole hill seemed to be infected, dying from the poison that had sunk into the tree's roots. The longer I sat there, the angrier I got.

Luke had done this. I remembered his sly smile, the dragon-claw scar across his face. He'd pretended to be my friend, and the whole time he'd been Kronos's number-one servant.

I opened the palm of my hand. The scar Luke had given me last summer was fading, but I could still see it—a white asterisk-shaped wound where his pit scorpion had stung me.

I thought about what Luke had told me right before he'd tried to kill me: Good-bye, Percy. There is a new Golden Age coming. You won't be part of it.

Thalia looked as angry and defeated as Percy had at the time, and rather than going to Athena's cabin and talking to Annabeth like he'd so wanted to do, he tried to speak to the girl herself who had been just an idea to him.

"Thalia," he began with no idea what was going to come out.

"Don't," she sighed, not looking at him or anybody. "It's in the past, I've moved on. Let's not give Luke the satisfaction of thinking his words ever meant anything."

Percy didn't agree, he could tell Thalia had some unresolved feelings about Luke, but he had a feeling that though they were friends, he wasn't the one she really needed to talk to. Dredging all this up again was just making it worse, they needed to get back to Annabeth.

At night, I had more dreams of Grover. Sometimes, I just heard snatches of his voice. Once, I heard him say: It's here. Another time: He likes sheep.

"I mean, so do I," Jason was clearly offering a happy, if odd change of subject to help get Thalia's mind off other matters. "I don't dream of my best friend telling me that though." He was pretty sure he wouldn't anyways, if he ever did dream again.

Thalia gave him a brave smile and Percy rolled his eyes in exasperation.

I thought about telling Annabeth about my dreams, but I would've felt stupid. I mean, He likes sheep? She would've thought I was crazy.

"Can confirm," Alex nodded.

"I didn't get the choice telling you guys," Percy huffed.

The night before the race, Tyson and I finished our chariot. It was wicked cool. Tyson had made the metal parts in the armory's forges. I'd sanded the wood and put the carriage together. It was blue and white, with wave designs on the sides and a trident painted on the front.

"I'm so curious what you would have done if you'd paired up with Annabeth?" Will smiled.

"Painted it white with cans and tassels all over," Nico muttered.

Will laughed so much in surprise for the snark he missed Percy's actual answer of what the design had been.

After all that work, it seemed only fair that Tyson would ride shotgun with me, though I knew the horses wouldn't like it, and Tyson's extra weight would slow us down.

As we were turning in for bed, Tyson said, "You are mad?"

I realized I'd been scowling.

"It wasn't just about the race," Percy sounded like he was trying to convince himself as well as them. "Take your pick, I had plenty to keep me pissed off that summer."

Nobody answered, and he was starting to wish for the teasing back instead of this constant awkward silence as nobody condemned Percy for how he felt about Tyson, but they didn't seem to be all on board either, keeping their opinions to themselves. He had a feeling it was for his sake of what the outcome was.

"Nah. I'm not mad."

He lay down in his bunk and was quiet in the dark. His body was way too long for his bed. When he pulled up the covers, his feet stuck out the bottom. "I am a monster."

"Don't say that."

"It is okay. I will be a good monster. Then you will not have to be mad."

"If only the world were that simple," Thalia said sincerely.

I didn't know what to say. I stared at the ceiling and felt like I was dying slowly, right along with Thalia's tree.

"It's just... I never had a half-brother before." I tried to keep my voice from cracking. "It's really different for me. And I'm worried about the camp. And another friend of mine, Grover ... he might be in trouble. I keep feeling like I should be doing something to help, but I don't know what."

"I can't believe you haven't gone to ask that mummy for another prophecy and gone off on your own quest yet," Magnus admitted. "Annabeth would still go with you. What are you waiting for, do you really need Tantalus's approval?"

Nico sighed in relief somebody had said it for him, but nobody noticed but Will.

"We'd have no way to get anywhere without him," Percy looked like he'd force feed a lemon to the guy, curse or no curse, as he admitted it. "No money or transportation, plus with as frayed as the camp was, I felt like I should stay and help them too as long as I could. Not to mention, I don't know what would happen to Tyson if I left, or if Annabeth would go with me if he came," he finished with the exact same scowl that had started this.

Tyson said nothing.

"I'm sorry," I told him. "It's not your fault. I'm mad at Poseidon. I feel like he's trying to embarrass me, like he's trying to compare us or something, and I don't understand why."

"It could just be his misguided way of looking after you too," Will gently offered. "I'd be rather flattered if my dad sent a nearly indestructible sibling to help me out."

Percy wasn't sure he agreed with that, but he thanked Will anyways.

I heard a deep rumbling sound. Tyson was snoring.

"You can tell all of that was really weighing him down, like a blanket," Alex snickered.

Percy smiled all the same at least someone had a good nights sleep.

I sighed. "Good night, big guy."

And I closed my eyes, too.

In my dream, Grover was wearing a wedding dress.

"So that shopping adventure went well," but there was no humor in Alex's sarcasm for the bizarre circumstances they were hearing about. Grover was in trouble no matter what outfit he was wearing.

It didn't fit him very well. The gown was too long and the hem was caked with dried mud. The neckline kept falling off his shoulders. A tattered veil covered his face.

"That should be a new tradition, take a lot of pressure off being perfect if we can get the opposite style going," Thalia knew Grover made it out okay enough to at least keep her tone light, but even she sounded a little too stressed to pull it off right as scared as he must have been in that situation.

He was standing in a dank cave, lit only by torches. There was a cot in one corner and an old-fashioned loom in the other, a length of white cloth half woven on the frame. And he was staring right at me, like I was a TV program he'd been waiting for. "Thank the gods!" he yelped. "Can you hear me?"

"Since when can he do that!" Jason looked like someone just told him Grover was part goat again as insane as that seemed.

"Why hasn't he this whole time?" Magnus agreed. The first dream had been written off in the same weird style as half-bloods just getting these glimpses into the world, not actual conversations.

None of them were in any position to answer, especially as Percy was shushing Magnus and trying to get him to read all at once as he leaned forward in his seat and watched the book intently as he was finally getting some clue what was wrong with his friend.

My dream-self was slow to respond. I was still looking around, taking in the stalactite ceiling, the stench of sheep and goats,

'There's a difference in those smells?' Hearth asked.

'Wet wool is different than wet fur,' Thalia barely had time to answer as Magnus, for once, was to distracted to even notice his friend signing right next to him.

the growling and grumbling and bleating sounds that seemed to echo from behind a refrigerator-sized boulder, which was blocking the room's only exit, as if there were a much larger cavern beyond it.

"Are there demon pigeons in there?" Alex asked, still expecting those to pop up any second, and it might not be Percy they were attacking.

"Gods I hope not," Percy groaned, he didn't think Grover talking to them would stop them.

"Percy?" Grover said. "Please, I don't have the strength to project any better. You have to hear me!"

"I hear you," I said. "Grover, what's going on?"

"I'm going out on a limb here and saying not a wedding," Jason muttered.

From behind the boulder, a monstrous voice yelled, "Honeypie! Are you done yet?"

"Magnus, you should never, ever call anyone that again," Alex actually looked a little disturbed for the first time at Magnus even attempting to try and pitch his voice into some kind of monstrous state to mimic how he thought that sounded, no matter how odd this seemed.

"Glad I got you in the right mind set," he chuckled, going on with a pleased air he seemed to have found some way to stick in Alex's mind, even this one.

Grover flinched. He called out in falsetto, "Not quite, dearest! A few more days!"

"Okay, not a voluntary marriage on Grover's part," Jason was starting to look queasy on the satyr's part as he vaguely guessed what was going on.

Nico made a soft whistle and nodded at Jason in surprise at how Grover must have pulled that off. Resourceful guy.

Percy was still back on the monstrous voice calling anyone honeypie and trying to figure out how Grover was talking to him in a wedding dress as he forced himself not to leap out of his seat, sword drawn to face down what had his best friend so scared.

"Bah! Hasn't it been two weeks yet?"

"N-no, dearest. Just five days. That leaves twelve more to go."

"Grover passed his classes at Yancy, right?" Alex asked in concern for that horrendous math.

"Considering how many times he's been in the same grade, I'm confident this is more of the ruse," Thalia assured.

The monster was silent, maybe trying to do the math. He must've been worse at arithmetic than I was, because he said, "All right, but hurry! I want to SEEEEE under that veil, heh-hehheh."

Grover turned back to me. "You have to help me!

"That was clear from the last nightmare, this has escalated into Hades torture," Will assured.

No time! I'm stuck in this cave. On an island in the sea."

"Where?"

"I don't know exactly! I went to Florida and turned left."

"Um, are we sure he isn't using monster geography as well as math?" Magnus muttered, but kept reading without expecting an answer considering the other magic and madness going on in this.

"What? How did you—"

"It's a trap!" Grover said. "It's the reason no satyr has ever returned from this quest. He's a shepherd, Percy! And he has it. Its nature magic is so powerful it smells just like the great god Pan! The satyrs come here thinking they've found Pan, and they get trapped and eaten by Polyphemus!"

Something of this nature had been on all of their minds since Grover's departure, to have the answer in front of them now might have been satisfying in some other light of what had happened to all those other satyrs. Now Percy was looking on with a furiously determined expression to stop this ever happening again for whoever this Poly guy thought he was!

"Poly-who?"

"The Cyclops!" Grover said, exasperated. "I almost got away. I made it all the way to St. Augustine."

"But he followed you," I said, remembering my first dream. "And trapped you in a bridal boutique."

"That's right," Grover said. "My first empathy link must've worked then.

'Empty what?' Hearth asked while Percy somehow winced in pain and still looked excited at once, babbling something in relief. He only caught the words, 'had a feeling' and touched the back of his head.

'Empathy link' the signs still came naturally to Thalia without her having to think of them. 'Hard to explain fully,' she answered carefully, she didn't want to give Hearth a full answer anymore than she would the others in fear he'd tell Magnus and Percy's headache would just come right back. 'A satyr can share a mind link, it's very rare, but it's how they're communicating.'

Look, this bridal dress is the only thing keeping me alive.

"There's a sentence I doubt exists anywhere else on the planet," Will chuckled.

He thinks I smell good, but I told him it was just goat-scented perfume. Thank goodness he can't see very well. His eye is still half blind from the last time somebody poked it out. But soon he'll realize what I am.

"The fact that he doesn't already is kind of terrifying how low an IQ can go," Nico muttered.

He's only giving me two weeks to finish the bridal train, and he's getting impatient!"

"Wait a minute. This Cyclops thinks you're—"

"Yes!" Grover wailed. "He thinks I'm a lady Cyclops and he wants to marry me!"

Under different circumstances, I might've busted out laughing, but Grover's voice was deadly serious. He was shaking with fear.

Nobody had even cracked a smile over this in here, they were all rather fond of Grover after the lengths he'd gone to to help Percy last time and nobody wanted to hear he'd been eaten by a cyclops, especially after hearing what a nice monster Tyson was.

"I'll come rescue you," I promised. "Where are you?"

"The Sea of Monsters, of course!"

"There's a literal sea of monsters now?! Is it an ocean of snakes? Barracudas? Why am I not surprised- no, that's a lie, why am I still surprised!" Magnus groaned.

"Deep breaths Magnus," Alex patted his hand in what he clearly thought was a reassuring way, but it only made Magnus's breaths stutter more so he quickly stopped.

Percy had no more idea, but he did remind, "technically the sea was always full of monsters, killer whales, sharks, any of those could-"

"You are not helping," Will reminded.

"The sea of what?"

"I told you! I don't know exactly where! And look, Percy ... urn, I'm really sorry about this, but this empathy link ... well, I had no choice. Our emotions are connected now. If I die ..."

"Don't tell me, I'll die too."

"Is there anything involved in these stories that doesn't somehow have the chance to kill you?" Magnus asked.

All four of the Greek kids seemed to be really thinking about it for a moment before Thalia shook her head, "no, don't think so."

"It's good that you and Percy caught that so early," Will grinned.

"Oh, well, perhaps not. You might live for years in a vegetative state.

"Do I at least get to pick the vegetable this time?" Percy at least tried to put a light smile on his face like he was trying to assure Grover. Really, he was still relieved at all this was being explained, he was greatly comforted to know that he wasn't dead, which meant Grover wasn't too!

But, uh, it would be a lot better if you got me out of here."

"Honeypie!" the monster bellowed.

"What did I say Magnus!" Alex mock covered his ears as he earnestly protested.

"I cannot control what the monster says," he reminded with regret.

"Dinnertime! Yummy yummy sheep meat!"

Grover whimpered. "I have to go. Hurry!"

"Wait! You said 'it' was here. What?"

"Was Grover not enough motivation to go?" Nico asked in surprise.

"Better to have some kind of beacon other than him, I have no idea what drew him," Percy reminded, both of them missing Thalia's little wince and Will very obviously not looking at her.

But Grover's voice was already growing fainter. "Sweet dreams. Don't let me die!"

"He's just full of helpful advice," Jason frowned.

The dream faded and I woke with a start.

"And not even practicable advice," Percy huffed.

It was early morning. Tyson was staring down at me, his one big brown eye full of concern.

"Now see, if Annabeth had been taken by Polyphemus, I'd understand her dislike of him already," Magnus winced. "That's some uncomfortable realization your cyclops friend has an even worse half sibling out there than you."

"You don't know the half of it," Thalia agreed quietly, Magnus's guess wasn't far off and Percy was already frowning at him and rubbing his temple uncomfortably for the knowledge he couldn't connect.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

His voice sent a chill down my back, because he sounded almost exactly like the monster I'd heard in my dream.

"Now poor Grover's probably never going to take to Tyson too after that," Alex agreed with Magnus.

The morning of the race was hot and humid.

"I guess that answer went without saying," Jason frowned when he realized they weren't going to get Percy's answer.

"I didn't fill Tyson in, I, I wanted," Percy stopped with a guilty look in place.

"To talk to Annabeth," Nico finished blandly. "No surprise, continue." He waved at Magnus and nobody but Will seemed to spot the odd stiffness in his voice for that.

Fog lay low on the ground like sauna steam. Millions of birds were roosting in the trees—fat gray-and-white pigeons, except they didn't coo like regular pigeons. They made this annoying metallic screeching sound that reminded me of submarine radar.

"Uhoh," all eight of them muttered at once.

"I'm guessing the demon pigeons don't attack you with laurels when you win the race," Jason frowned.

The racetrack had been built in a grassy field between the archery range and the woods. Hephaestus's cabin had used the bronze bulls, which were completely tame since they'd had their heads smashed in, to plow an oval track in a matter of minutes.

Alex's eyes glimmered with interest as he exclaimed, "you did keep them!" Then dulled a bit as he realized, "but you made them tame."

"Think of it as downloading domestication into them," Will offered.

"Very violently, through the head," Percy added.

Alex still looked torn if going to see the fire-breathing mechanical bulls was now worth it since they'd lost the whole murderery factor.

There were rows of stone steps for the spectators— Tantalus, the satyrs, a few dryads, and all of the campers who weren't participating. Mr. D didn't show. He never got up before ten o'clock.

"Right!" Tantalus announced as the teams began to assemble. A naiad had brought him a big platter of pastries, and as Tantalus spoke, his right hand chased a chocolate eclair across the judge's table. "You all know the rules. A quarter-mile track. Twice around to win. Two horses per chariot. Each team will consist of a driver and a fighter. Weapons are allowed. Dirty tricks are expected. But try not to kill anybody!" Tantalus smiled at us like we were all naughty children. "Any killing will result in harsh punishment. No s'mores at the campfire for a week!

"In any other world, I'd think he was going light on you guys after his own eternal punishment," Thalia rolled her eyes.

"Thankfully even Clarisse has never killed anyone on purpose," Percy was pretty sure of that anyways.

Now ready your chariots!"

"Such instilling confidence about this camp's continued population," Magnus frowned.

'Between the backstabbing each other and the monster attacks it's a wonder these guys survive to get dessert,' Hearth agreed.

Beckendorf led the Hephaestus team onto the track. They had a sweet ride made of bronze and iron—even the horses, which were magical automatons like the Colchis bulls. I had no doubt that their chariot had all kinds of mechanical traps and more fancy options than a fully loaded Maserati.

"An army would lose their s'mores privilege's for a year to get their hands on that thing," Alex agreed.

The Ares chariot was bloodred, and pulled by two grisly horse skeletons.

"Where did she get skeleton horses?" Jason asked in fascination.

"Her dad I'm sure, he can summon dead war animals too like elephants, camels, dogs, horses," Nico ticked off. He could summon dead animals as well, though he rarely did as they did kind of creep him out, even if they had been great practice as they only took half as much energy as summoning humans.

Clarisse climbed aboard with a batch of javelins, spiked balls, caltrops, and a bunch of other nasty toys.

Apollo's chariot was trim and graceful and completely gold, pulled by two beautiful palominos. Their fighter was armed with a bow, though he had promised not to shoot regular pointed arrows at the opposing drivers.

"A gracious consideration I'm sure none of the others will follow," Will snorted. "Why do we always get in trouble for hitting people with pointy things when Clarisse jabs people with all of that stuff on a regular basis!"

"You need better branding," Thalia shrugged.

Hermes's chariot was green and kind of old-looking, as if it hadn't been out of the garage in years. It didn't look like anything special, but it was manned by the Stoll brothers, and I shuddered to think what dirty tricks they'd schemed up.

"Are fart bombs deadly? Because I feel like we're about to get an answer," Magnus muttered.

That left two chariots: one driven by Annabeth, and the other by me.

Hearth was trying to keep track of all these gods, and was surprised the rest hadn't even played. Dionysus's two kids hadn't wanted to race? Aphrodite and Demeter hadn't teamed up? He wondered if perhaps they'd worked some sort of deal with the other cabins and contributed in smaller ways instead, or just not wanted to participate.

Before the race began, I tried to approach Annabeth and tell her about my dream.

She perked up when I mentioned Grover, but when I told her what he'd said, she seemed to get distant again, suspicious.

"You're trying to distract me," she decided.

Percy looked so disheartened by that Thalia felt the need to check nobody had slapped him.

"I'd never lie about this!" He protested to nobody in here.

"What? No I'm not!"

"Oh, right! Like Grover would just happen to stumble across the one thing that could save the camp."

"Well when she puts it like that, it does sound kind of ridiculous," Alex threw his hands up as they still didn't know what this magical thing was!

"What do you mean?"

She rolled her eyes. "Go back to your chariot, Percy."

"I'm not making this up. He's in trouble, Annabeth."

She hesitated. I could tell she was trying to decide whether or not to trust me. Despite our occasional fights, we'd been through a lot together. And I knew she would never want anything bad to happen to Grover.

"Percy, an empathy link is so hard to do. I mean, it's more likely you really were dreaming."

"The Oracle," I said. "We could consult the Oracle."

Annabeth frowned.

Last summer, before my quest, I'd visited the strange spirit that lived in the Big House attic and it had given me a prophecy that came true in ways I'd never expected. The experience had freaked me out for months. Annabeth knew I'd never suggest going back there if I wasn't completely serious.

"Because who wouldn't want another prophecy about friends betraying you and failing before it even starts again," Percy huffed, but he meant it if it would get Annabeth on board.

Before she could answer, the conch horn sounded.

"Charioteers!" Tantalus called. "To your mark!"

"We'll talk later," Annabeth told me, "after I win."

Will was actually more surprised the two weren't trying to sneak off to the attic now when everyone was down there and didn't think much of Annabeth's priorities not letting one of her siblings take over so she could do this herself. Percy couldn't do the same, but could have caused a bigger distraction. Will had thought she'd be salivating at the chance to guide a quest rather than just win a race.

As I was walking back to my own chariot, I noticed how many more pigeons were in the trees now—screeching like crazy, making the whole forest rustle. Nobody else seemed to be paying them much attention, but they made me nervous. Their beaks glinted strangely. Their eyes seemed shinier than regular birds.

"I don't suppose when it said attack, they're just going to poop on us?" Percy asked.

"I get the feeling you'll be dealing with something closer to the angry birds blowing up," Jason disagreed.

Tyson was having trouble getting our horses under control. I had to talk to them a long time before they would settle down.

He's a monster, lord! they complained to me.

He's a son of Poseidon, I told them. Just like ... well, just like me.

No! they insisted. Monster! Horse-eater! Not trusted!

I'll give you sugar cubes at the end of the race, I said.

Sugar cubes?

Very big sugar cubes. And apples. Did I mention the apples?

Finally they agreed to let me harness them.

"Good to know bribery is a universal tool," Alex grinned.

Now, if you've never seen a Greek chariot, it's built for speed, not safety or comfort. It's basically a wooden basket, open at the back, mounted on an axle between two wheels. The driver stands up the whole time, and you can feel every bump in the road. The carriage is made of such light wood that if you wipe out making the hairpin turns at either end of the track, you'll probably tip over and crush both the chariot and yourself. It's an even better rush than skate-boarding.

"I'm starting to think ADHD stands for Adrenaline something something Death," Magnus frowned, at all four of them looking excited for the prospects of riding in one, even Jason!

"Adrenaline Doth Herald Death," Alex helpfully added.

None of them even denied it.

I took the reins and maneuvered the chariot to the starting line. I gave Tyson a ten-foot pole and told him that his job was to push the other chariots away if they got too close, and to deflect anything they might try to throw at us.

"No water-balloon launcher?" Jason demanded. "No aqua cannon? Come on Percy, I had higher hopes for you, not even a squirt gun?"

"I'm so sorry I couldn't live up to my dad's stereotype," Percy rolled his eyes.

"No hitting ponies with the stick," he insisted.

"No," I agreed. "Or people, either, if you can help it. We're going to run a clean race. Just keep the distractions away and let me concentrate on driving."

"We will win.'" He beamed.

We are so going to lose, I thought to myself, but I bad to try. I wanted to show the others ... well, I wasn't sure what, exactly.

Jason thought Percy had already showed them where he stood by taking all of their whispers and stares without a single insult thrown back. Far from the kid who kept getting a temper in schools, getting thrown out, Percy was showing already how he'd grown up a bit to the teenager before them still biting his lip with indecision over what Tyson was to him rather than trying to assume anything from half a story.

That Tyson wasn't such a bad guy? That I wasn't ashamed of being seen with him in public? Maybe that they hadn't hurt me with all their jokes and name calling?

All of that stuff had gotten to Percy though, and yet here he was lounging in his beanbag chair clearly still more distracted by that dream with Grover and drawing up plans in his head how to attach a few gallons of water to his chariot for next time instead of dwelling on it.

As the chariots lined up, more shiny-eyed pigeons gathered in the woods. They were screeching so loudly the campers in the stands were starting to take notice, glancing nervously at the trees, which shivered under the weight of the birds. Tantalus didn't look concerned, but he did have to speak up to be heard over the noise.

"Charioteers!" he shouted. "Attend your mark!"

He waved his hand and the starting signal dropped. The chariots roared to life. Hooves thundered against the dirt. The crowd cheered.

Almost immediately there was a loud nasty crack! I looked back in time to see the Apollo chariot flip over. The Hermes chariot had rammed into it—maybe by mistake, maybe not. The riders were thrown free, but their panicked horses dragged the golden chariot diagonally across the track. The Hermes team, Travis and Connor Stoll, were laughing at their good luck, but not for long. The Apollo horses crashed into theirs, and the Hermes chariot flipped too, leaving a pile of broken wood and four rearing horses in the dust.

Will suppressed a smile as he remembered stepping in front of Gracie wanting to practice such a thing as bandaging a head wound for Connor later that day. Of course Connor had spent the whole time asking if his brother and Katie were okay, so that's probably why he didn't remember it quite as fondly as before.

Two chariots down in the first twenty feet. I loved this sport.

'It does make the modern day showing tame in comparison,' Hearth nodded along.

'I'll be sure to tell a few jockeys to fist fight on the next lap to bring in the fans,' Magnus rolled his eyes.

I turned my attention back to the front. We were making good time, pulling ahead of Ares, but Annabeth's chariot was way ahead of us. She was already making her turn around the first post, her javelin man grinning and waving at us, shouting: "See ya!"

The Hephaestus chariot was starting to gain on us, too.

Beckendorf pressed a button, and a panel slid open on the side of his chariot.

"Sorry, Percy!" he yelled. Three sets of balls and chains shot straight toward our wheels. They would've wrecked us completely if Tyson hadn't whacked them aside with a quick swipe of his pole. He gave the Hephaestus chariot a good shove and sent them skittering sideways while we pulled ahead.

"Nice work, Tyson!" I yelled.

"Birds!" he cried.

"That's not the battle cry I would have expected," Nico was wincing already Tyson probably didn't mean the victory doves.

"What?"

We were whipping along so fast it was hard to hear or see anything, but Tyson pointed toward the woods and I saw what he was worried about. The pigeons had risen from the trees. They were spiraling like a huge tornado, heading toward the track.

No big deal, I told myself. They're just pigeons.

"You sure do lie to yourself a lot," Magnus frowned, "should I be worried we can't hear your thoughts now?"

"I didn't hear you disagreeing with Mr. Gutter Bagel's," Percy reminded as he waved at Alex.

I tried to concentrate on the race.

We made our first turn, the wheels creaking under us, the chariot threatening to tip, but we were now only ten feet behind Annabeth. If I could just get a little closer, Tyson could use his pole....

Annabeth's fighter wasn't smiling now. He pulled a javelin from his collection and took aim at me. He was about to throw when we heard the screaming.

The pigeons were swarming—thousands of them dive-bombing the spectators in the stands, attacking the other chariots. Beckendorf was mobbed. His fighter tried to bat the birds away but he couldn't see anything. The chariot veered off course and plowed through the strawberry fields, the mechanical horses steaming.

The most terrifying part was just how quickly the chaos had escalated, how Camp-Half Blood had gone from a home of fun and leisure to under attack because of some rats with wings! Was this what Luke had planned for the rest of their lives until they gave in?

In the Ares chariot, Clarisse barked an order to her fighter, who quickly threw a screen of camouflage netting over their basket. The birds swarmed around it, pecking and clawing at the fighter's hands as he tried to hold up the net, but Clarisse just gritted her teeth and kept driving. Her skeletal horses seemed immune to the distraction. The pigeons pecked uselessly at their empty eye sockets and flew through their rib cages, but the stallions kept right on running.

"That was one of the weirdest, coolest thing I've ever heard," Alex said in awe, wondering if he could make a bust of that mental image.

The spectators weren't so lucky. The birds were slashing at any bit of exposed flesh, driving everyone into a panic. Now that the birds were closer, it was clear they weren't normal pigeons. Their eyes were beady and evil-looking. Their beaks were made of bronze, and judging from the yelps of the campers, they must've been razor sharp.

'I no longer can imagine them chilling in the city with us,' Hearth shivered.

'I know I'll be avoiding the duck ponds just in case,' Magnus agreed.

"Stymphalian birds!" Annabeth yelled. She slowed down and pulled her chariot alongside mine. "They'll strip everyone to bones if we don't drive them away!"

"I've never considered pigeons with prehistoric ancestors before, and now I don't think I can unsee it," Jason muttered.

"Tyson," I said, "we're turning around!"

"Going the wrong way?" he asked.

"Always," I grumbled, but I steered the chariot toward the stands.

"Following the path of others has never been your style," Thalia agreed.

Annabeth rode right next to me. She shouted, "Heroes, to arms!" But I wasn't sure anyone could hear her over the screeching of the birds and the general chaos.

I held my reins in one hand and managed to draw Riptide as a wave of birds dived at my face, their metal beaks snapping. I slashed them out of the air and they exploded into dust and feathers, but there were still millions of them left. One nailed me in the back end and I almost jumped straight out of the chariot.

Annabeth wasn't having much better luck. The closer we got to the stands, the thicker the cloud of birds became.

Some of the spectators were trying to fight back. The Athena campers were calling for shields. The archers from Apollo's cabin brought out their bows and arrows, ready to slay the menace, but with so many campers mixed in with the birds, it wasn't safe to shoot.

"Too many!" I yelled to Annabeth. "How do you get rid of them?"

She stabbed at a pigeon with her knife. "Hercules used noise! Brass bells! He scared them away with the most horrible sound he could—"

Her eyes got wide. "Percy ... Chiron's collection!"

"His music's really that bad?" Nico asked, sort of impressed, and also a little concerned Tantalus might start using that as a punishment soon.

"You have no idea," Will was rubbing his ears as much from remembering the outcome of this day as well as having to stitch it almost back on and have ambrosia finish knitting it back to his skull.

I understood instantly. "You think it'll work?"

She handed her fighter the reins and leaped from her chariot into mine like it was the easiest thing in the world. "To the Big House! It's our only chance!"

Clarisse had just pulled across the finish line, completely unopposed, and seemed to notice for the first time how serious the bird problem was.

"Did she think she was so awesome they were all letting her win?" Alex asked in outrage. "That net couldn't have been covering up that much!"

"She's a girl of commitment and focus," Will sighed, which had its good and bad sides.

When she saw us driving away, she yelled, "You're running? The fight is here, cowards!"

"I'm surprised she hasn't learned by now Annabeth and Percy have a crazy idea," Will grumbled, still wincing himself both in memory of that day, how much healing that had to go on for days, as well as his own ripped flesh he'd ignored until Lee had forced him into a bed for his turn.

She drew her sword and charged for the stands.

I urged our horses into a gallop. The chariot rumbled through the strawberry fields, across the volleyball pit, and lurched to a halt in front of the Big House. Annabeth and I ran inside, tearing down the hallway to Chiron's apartment.

His boom box was still on his nightstand. So were his favorite CDs. I grabbed the most repulsive one I could find, Annabeth snatched the boom box, and together we ran back outside.

Down at the track, the chariots were in flames. Wounded campers ran in every direction, with birds shredding their clothes and pulling out their hair, while Tantalus chased breakfast pastries around the stands, every once in a while yelling, "Everything's under control! Not to worry.'"

"You think if we ripped off his extremities ligament by ligament we could feed them to the birds," Thalia seethed with hatred at this useless sod.

We pulled up to the finish line. Annabeth got the boom box ready. I prayed the batteries weren't dead.

I pressed PLAY and started up Chiron's favorite—the All-Time Greatest Hits of Dean Martin.

Suddenly the air was filled with violins and a bunch of guys moaning in Italian.

The demon pigeons went nuts. They started flying in circles, running into each other like they wanted to bash their own brains out.

"Hercules and Annabeth save the day again," Jason took this attack in stride rather well, still seeming more impressed at the strategies she continued to use more than anything.

Then they abandoned the track altogether and flew skyward in a huge dark wave.

"Now!" shouted Annabeth. "Archers!"

With clear targets, Apollo's archers had flawless aim. Most of them could nock five or six arrows at once.

"I think we'll keep our branding just fine," Will said with pride, immensely pleased their dad could both bless them with battle prows and healing for after, not to mention might be some inspiration for the song that scared them away. Who could ask for more?

Within minutes, the ground was littered with dead bronze-beaked pigeons, and the survivors were a distant trail of smoke on the horizon.

The camp was saved, but the wreckage wasn't pretty. Most of the chariots had been completely destroyed. Almost everyone was wounded, bleeding from multiple bird pecks.

The kids from Aphrodite's cabin were screaming because their hairdos had been ruined and their clothes pooped on.

"Bravo!" Tantalus said, but he wasn't looking at me or Annabeth. "We have our first winner!"

He walked to the finish line and awarded the golden laurels for the race to a stunned-looking Clarisse.

"At least it wasn't smug," Thalia sighed, loathing this continued pattern of late. She knew Clarisse had been essential in the fleece's quest, but Annabeth hadn't made it so clear before hand how bad things were at camp.

Then he turned and smiled at me. "And now to punish the troublemakers who disrupted this race."

"Somebody needs to tape that boombox to Tantalus's face," Percy scowled, missing Chiron more by the second. He'd even take his favorite mentor's dismay his own music had been used to drive those birds out and no dessert at this rate.