Disclaimer: I am but a humble writer, expanding on the universe that belongs completely and fully to the merciful and benevolent Mr. Riordan. So please don't sue me or anything, yeah?
A/N
Updated and revised! Enjoy.
A/N
My body ached as I woke up. I kept my eyes closed, mentally running through my injuries from last night. It wasn't great, to be honest, but considering it would have been a lot worse without the ambrosia and nectar, I didn't feel like complaining too much. Though, there was something tickling my nose that I really could do without. As I finally cracked my eyes open, I was met by a faceful of messy black hair. It took me a couple of seconds, until the mop of hair shuffled slightly and pressed up closer to me, that I realised that my arms were still wrapped around the surprisingly delicate rocker girl I met last evening. I stiffened slightly when she kept moving about in my arms, not wanting to wake her up now that she finally was able to get some real sleep. Luckily she just wiggled about for a moment before settling with a content sigh. I became aware of just how close she was when she moved, in one of the more exciting ways.
'Yeah, I'm definitely not complaining about this situation. The hormones, however, are slightly undignified,' I thought as I closed my eyes and held her warm body pressed against me. Despite that, I could actually get used to this.
I must have dozed off again, because the next time I opened my eyes the lithe girl was trying to squirm out of my grasp, which must have tightened up even further when I fell asleep.
With a low grunt, I untangled my arms and rolled over on my back so she could get loose from the blanket and arm-burrito I had her wrapped in. She was still wearing the same clothes as when I saw her yesterday, only today they looked even more crumpled. She also had those slight creases on the right side of her face that you get sometimes after a really good night's sleep. Safe to say, she looked adorable in a really sleepy sort of way. She mumbled something that might be construed, by a creative mind, as good morning. I grumbled something similar in return. Eventually, we both got the last cobwebs of sleep cleared from the various corners of our minds, and got out of bed.
"So you think there's somewhere around here where a girl can wash up a bit?" She said while reaching her arms far over her head and stretching, not dissimilarly to a cat.
"I'm pretty sure that giant got some of his gross blood on me yesterday." She continued, sniffing at her jacket and scrunching her nose up. "My clothes can probably use a quick rinse as well."
I furrowed my brow for a sec and tried to remember if I noticed anything fitting while hunting after the pack of monsters.
"I think I saw a pond a few hundred meters away when jumping through the treetops yesterday. It should be somewhere in that direction." I said and waved my arm towards the direction I had come from. She slowly got on her feet and rubbed her eyes.
"You don't happen to have a pair of sweatpants and a baggy hoodie in that cloak of yours? I could really use some comfortable clothes and a tub of ice-cream after the week I had." She asked while glancing at me expectantly.
I chuckled tiredly and shook my head.
"No, sorry, no sweatpants or ice-cream. It's kinda hard to keep it frozen out here. But I do have this." I pulled what looked like a thick sausage of stitched cloth out of a pocket and threw it to her.
As a response to her admittedly more amused than surprised look, I explained myself.
"It's a skivvy roll. It's a really compact way of packing a change of clothing. It contains a fresh shirt and underwear, rolled up inside a pair of really warm tube socks. A change of clothes is always good to have on the road." I said while smiling at her. She just chuckled at my antics.
A realization hit me that made my smile weaken a bit.
"Umm, I hope you won't mind, but I just have clean boxers in that." She looked at the roll and raised an eyebrow.
"Well, I did kinda hope there wasn't a pair of panties in it. Then I'd be worried." The corner of her mouth rose to match her eyebrow in a smirk.
"But just for future record, I do prefer boxers over briefs, so you got that right at least." She winked at me and moved toward the exit of the tent. I just watched her bum as she crawled out. After all, I am still a teenaged guy, with or without the godly blood running through my system.
Another realisation hit me the second the tent flap closed behind her.
"Hey, wait!" A tangle of black hair poked back in, closely followed by Thalia's puzzled face.
"Huh?"
"Well, I just thought, since I didn't have any cosy clothing or ice-cream, how about I provide you with a warm bath instead?" She looked at me incredulously.
"You do realise we're in the middle of a forest, right?"
Now it was my turn to smirk. I just rubbed my palms together and raised my hand in front of me.
"Just come here, would you? I promise it won't hurt."
She cautiously put her hand to mine.
"Woah. That's weird." A gentle heat shimmer radiated from our joined hands, and I knew that there was currently a warm sensation spreading through Thalia's body, seeking out every nook and cranny and heating it up. I let my hand fall to my side after a couple of seconds. I didn't want to overdo it, because the consequences of that could be really bad.
"That should do it. Hopefully sufficient for a nice and toasty bath. But try to keep it short, it'll be sort of draining after awhile." Her eyes had adapted an ember-like glow, similar to mine, but not as intense.
"What did you do?" She curiously stared at her palm and then looked up at me.
"And how did you do it?"
I waved dismissively.
"I'll tell you when you get back, but as I said, it can become exhausting for the both of us pretty quickly. So go take your bath now, while you're all heated up."
She seemed to realise this might not be a permanent solution, and gathered up her things and shuffled through the tent flap yet again. Quite hurridly, one might add.
About twenty minutes went by before she returned to camp. By then I had gotten a fire going, and had gotten breakfast started. I was slowly rolling small pieces of bread dough, which I had quickly kneaded together from a flour mixture I just so happened to be carried around, and some water. After they looked a bit like worms, I threaded it onto a stick and propped it up over the fire.
That's where Thalia found me when she came back, slowly turning the stick while the bread was baking in the heat.
Now, I keep repeating that she's really cute, I know. But as she came into the clearing with a way too big black t-shirt and wet hair that gently curled around her face in its own spiky way, it was the only thought I could hold in my head. 'Cute'
"Hey, flamehead, I think you're burning breakfast." I had completely forgotten about the bread, so it was slightly browner than I'd hoped when I pulled it out of the fire.
As I put up the next piece of bread to bake, I handed the first to Thalia, and she broke off a piece and started nibbling on it before it even had a chance to cool off.
"Hungry?" I asked smiling.
"You have no idea. I don't normally eat a lot of breakfast, but today I'm absolutely starving." She tilted her head and looked at me.
"Is that because of that heat thingy you did earlier?" She asked.
"Yeah, probably. At least partially. It's sort of hard to explain, but I essentially raised your metabolism by increasing the rate with which you burn energy. Kind of like having a little rocket furnace in your muscles. It heats you up a fair bit, so I thought it could help against the cold water. It also helps with healing wounds, and can raise the speed at which you can move for a while."
She looked at me a bit puzzled, but she seemed to get the basic concept at least.
"Oh right." She bent her head and looked at the ground. "Sorry about yesterday."
"Huh?" I had been paying attention to the bread that was currently baking, so I hadn't completely caught what she had said because of her low tone.
As I looked up, the regular atmosphere of attitude I had come to expect from Thalia was completely gone. Instead, she looked vulnerable, something that seemed completely misplaced on her face.
"That's what you did yesterday, right? When you killed the giant, and then again when… when I… pointed the sword towards you. You moved really fast, faster than a body should allow." She refused to meet my gaze and had stopped eating. Again, I felt awful.
"Hey. Stop it. You didn't do anything wrong." I shuffled over a bit so that I sat next to her.
"We only met yesterday, remember? I came flying out of the sky and killed a bunch of monsters. After the shitty time you've had, you're pretty entitled not to trust me immediately."
She finally looked up, and her slightly red eyes found mine.
"But that's just the thing. I do trust you. I don't know why, but you're so nice to me, and I haven't done anything to deserve it. People don't really care about strangers like that, much less someone like me. I've always been on my own, which is why I've never really thought about too much, but you coming along really sort of messed that up, didn't it? Because I don't want to be on my own again after I met you. Just sleeping in your arms made me feel safe, something that I've never felt in a long long time. And I don't even know why I did that! I mean, I don't even like physical contact for Zeus' sake!" She turned towards me, and her energy seemed to fall away.
"But I can't let myself become this dependant on someone I've just met. I just can't, okay? Not if you're going to just go on your merry way after dropping me off at the nearest, what, truckstop?" She could barely speak, her jaws were clenched so tight. Tears were now slowly falling from her eyes. My heart was breaking a bit with each one.
"But I feel so horrible for treating you like shit because of my problems. You've never done anything but be nice to me." She struck out with her arms and laughed morosely.
"I mean, you probably saved my life yesterday, and what did I do? I pointed your own sword against you and told you to keep your distance."
She paused, and I looked at her quietly for a few short breaths. Then I very slowly reached out and cupped her cheek. She didn't shy back, which gave me the slightest bit of hope. She looked me square in the eye, and it was like the air between us got heavy. As if there was a storm brewing. I dried a tear with my thumb and finally responded.
"I used my powers yesterday. And you pointed a sword at me. And it felt horrible. But not because of the sword, but because you looked so hurt." The tension in the air lessened, and I realized the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I continued speaking anyway.
"You seem to remember a lot about yesterday's events, but do you remember what I did after I used my power?" She looked at me with a furrowed brow and shook her head slightly. I dried another tear.
"Well, the way I remember it, I swore to always try to be honest with you. And then I hope you can get the implications when I say that I have no ambitions of leaving you any time soon." She sniffled quietly. I barged on. "I don't tend to get attached to people. But when I do, they're stuck with me." I dried the last of her tears. "It's okay Thals. I know you've had a hard time. Probably for a long time before I met you. And I'm not saying everything is great now. But I promise I'll be here. Because like you said, I have no idea why, but I genuinely care about you, and waking up with you in my arms was the greatest thing I've ever felt. So for now, I'll keep being flamehead, and you'll just be stuck with me." During the last part, I gave her a slightly crooked smile. Humor rarely hurts.
She exhaled with a noise that sounded like something between a huff, a laugh, and a sob.
I took that as a good sign. My mom had a saying when I was a kid. 'When nothing seems to help, a warm embrace and a hearty meal at least can't hurt.'
I gently moved my hand from her cheek to her back, and then pulled her close. I raised my body temperature slightly, and radiated small amounts of heat. She simply burrowed her face into my neck and hugged me back.
After a few minutes, she lightly tapped my back, and I let up a bit. She pulled away, but only so that her face was a couple of inches from mine.
"Thanks, flamehead." was all she said, and then she kissed me on the cheek. I just smiled at her as a light red tint reached my cheeks. Then I got an idea.
"Hey, close your eyes for a second, would you?" She furrowed her brow for a moment, but then she slowly closed them. I could see she was as tensed up as a violin string. I really hoped she could learn to trust me fully in time, but for now, she at least trusted me enough to close her eye.
I stretched my neck slightly and gave Thalia a quick kiss to the forehead, before retreating and observing the reaction I got. The tension in her shoulders lessened, as a small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. She slowly opened her eyes.
"Wow. You really are a sap when you're not being a fiery ball of rage, you know that?" The tugging had turned into a small smirk, and paired with her puffy eyes, she looked… I don't know. If you've ever comforted someone to the point of smiling, you'll know what I'm on about. It's a raw kind of lively beauty. I smiled in return, but gently shoved her and acted offended.
"Hey, it's not my fault. My mum is old-fashioned, and it rubbed off on me. Now shut up and eat your breakfast." I gave her shoulder a light squeeze, before peeling the still warm bread off the stick next to me.
"Okay, but just because I'm so goddamn hungry. When I'm finished, I'd like to hear more about your powers and why the hell you dropped out of the sky like a bloody meteor. You've still got a lot to explain." I grinned and made my eyes flare a bit. She rolled her eyes in return.
"Alright, but that's only if you eat up." Satisfied, she nodded contently and took a big bite from the bread. I leaned back, happier than I'd been in a while, and did the same.
After breakfast, we started packing up, trading small bits of banter back and forth. Considering we were a few miles away from the nearest road, we'd be hiking it through the forest for a couple of hours. Plenty of time for other kinds of conversations, even though I could almost feel the curiosity radiating off of Thalia. She got her stuff together quickly, considering there wasn't too much of it besides the dirty clothes she had worn before getting changed. We left the two bedrolls where we found them, and the various things I had brought stowed away nicely in the various pockets on my cloak. I put out the fire and took one last look around the camp. There were a few pieces of paper scattered inside the Giant's tent, but nothing useful survived both the fire and the trampling by the various fleeing monsters. Eventually, it was time to hit the road. We barely made it outside of the border of the encampment before the first question escaped her lips from behind my back.
"So, like, who are you? Really? Some kind of obscure minor god of fireballs?" I briefly considered not outright denying the allegation, just to see what she'd make of it. Then I realized that that might not be a good idea, considering I didn't exactly know the full extent of the impulsive oath I made just a handful of hours earlier. Plus, Hephaestus is really a pretty cool guy, so I didn't want him thinking I was trying to take over his territory. That wouldn't be good.
"Not a god, no. I'm a demigod, like you." I paused briefly, sending a glance over my shoulder and seeing a look of scepticism on Thalia's face. "Well, alright, not exactly like you. But pretty close,"
I rubbed my neck for a second, realizing that I might have benefitted from a quick wash last night as well. I had a fair bit of road dust covering my skin after a week of tracking.
"My godly parent kind of got me in a rather… unorthodox way. And since I'm her only kid, I got a pretty high concentration of the powers in her domain." I passed a rather sheepish smile her way, with just a hint of embarrassment tagged onto it. "But you'll probably get to meet her eventually, so she can tell you about that stuff better than I can." Since I had turned back to keep an eye on the rather winding deer path we were following, I missed the sight of Thalia's eyebrows nearly disappearing beneath her spiky bangs at the last statement. "Anyway, besides that, I really am just Percy. Certifiable pyromaniac and saviour extraordinaire." Just to prove the point, I lifted my hand and let tiny flames flicker to life at the tip of each finger before wiggling them slightly. I heard a snort from behind me and grinned happily before extinguishing my hand and putting it back into my pocket. "So, that's who I am. But more importantly," I lifted my eyebrow in the same way I'd seen Thalia do earlier before spinning around, "who exactly are you? You seem like you should be at camp at this point, considering your age and your apparent knowledge of the gods. You out on a quest, or did the satyrs just never managed to find you?" I said it in a joking tone, but as soon as the words were out, I saw her face darken. Much like a sudden storm, blocking out the sky with heavy clouds.
"Oh, the satyr found me alright. Me and two others. Nearly made it all the way to camp Halfblood as well, before everything went tits up." She shrugged, nearly violently, and the storm clouds went away as quickly as they came about. She smiled, with a slight tension visible around her jaws. "I'd really rather not talk about it, yeah? But it all ended with my plans for a nice stay at their lovely camp pretty fucked. So I've drifted around on my own since then, doing my best to stay alive." I saw a slight sheen cover her eyes. "Guess that plan wound up pretty fucked as well, based on how you found me."
My face contorted as I started understanding how tough Thalia must have had it. Demigods went to the camps around, what, eleven? Rarely later than thirteen at least. And for good reason. As soon as their powers started becoming apparent, they'd have monsters coming after them with a vengeance, and the camps were there to keep them safe until they learnt how to fight. Judging by Thalia's appearance, she must at least be past her 17th birthday. She must have been on her own for years, running around as a living magnet for all manners of monsters. How could the gods let that happen? What kind of parent let their kid live in constant mortal danger? I realized far too late that I had stayed silent for too long, and that my blood felt like it was quickly reaching what felt like a boiling point.
"I'm sorry. You shouldn't have had to go through that." She looked at me curiously, with that light sheen still over her eyes. She shook her head slightly, making her spiky hair bounce a bit.
"I didn't really have a choice. My dad made that very clear. It was either this or something that was far too close to death for my liking. So I chose to keep running. It wasn't so bad. I'm still here, right?" Again that tight smile that made my chest ache.
"But you shouldn't have had to be alone. No one should have to be alone like that." I had quieted down a fair bit, matching the soft voice she was using.
"Percy, it was my own choices that put me here. My dad just wanted me to be safe." I could hear a tiny waver in her voice. Just a tiny one. But it was still enough to push me past the point of passivity. I could feel my face harden as it did before a big fight.
"And who is your dad?" She hesitated for the span of a breath or two.
"Zeus." Of course. She was the daughter of Mr. Can't-keep-it-in-his-pants Zeus. The biggest bastard on Olympus. I'd bet every single Drachma I had ever owned that the decision to put Thalia in danger by having her running around alone had more to do with covering Zeus' own ass than any misguided attempt to keep her safe. It angered me beyond description, but the rage I felt was a cold one. It didn't make my blood heat up. It settled in the pit of my stomach, nesting there like a Hydra ready to strike. Returning to reality, I realized Thalia wasn't meeting my eyes. At some point, we had stopped walking, just standing in the middle of the path facing each other. This was obviously an unpleasant subject for her as well. I had to say something.
"I guess that explains the tingling sensation." Something that wasn't that. Thalia's eyes snapped up in surprise. I quickly started stammering out the next thing that came to mind, "I mean, you know, when you hit me? I get all tingly." This really wasn't going well. I could feel a blush rising annoyingly quickly. "Numb. It makes me numb, like an electric shock?" The surprise wasn't enough to keep her from laughing out loud at my stiff attempts to salvage the situation. Three good laughs, from the stomach. I just stood there like a complete tool, blushing furiously, while she wiped away a tear or two and held her belly. "It wasn't that funny y'know. I just misspoke." It didn't seem to help as I was undeniably facing a madly giggling rocker. I mean, I can handle monsters pretty well, but a cute girl laughing at me was a lot more complicated.
After a minute, she finally straightened up and wiped her cheeks dry. At least her smile wasn't one of those clenched ones she tried pulling off earlier, which made me a bit happier with the situation.
"Thanks for that flamehead. Really. I don't remember the last time I laughed like that."
I just nodded stiffly, trying to save the last shreds of my poor dignity. But when her eyes met mine I couldn't help smiling. Just a little bit. I turned back around and resumed trekking through the woods.
Barely five minutes passed before;
"So I make you all tingly eh?"
"Shut up Sparky."
A/N
Alright, a slightly longer chapter this time, but it felt weird cutting this conversation into pieces. Hopefully it didn't get too forced. As always, do leave a review if you have the time and energy. I appreciate any and all feedback!
/A/N
