Hey guys, sorry for not updating in about a week. I planned on updating much sooner, but I was tired and updating would take energy and motion—something I don't like doing in the summer. I've gotten so many PMs to update, I know, I'm sorry. I've left you with a near-dead Leo and a totally schooled Beckondorf... so here's the next chapter.

DisLAMER: I do not own the Percy Jackson series...

See what I did there? Hehe... Oh yeah...


Previously on Roman

I'm sorry, Leo." Beckondorf apologized. "But's that all we can do."

"No. It's not." Pericles suddenly went dark, not turning from the corner.

"What are you talking about?" Beckondorf stood from Leo.

You don't know all my secrets."

"And what does that have to do with this?"

"I can get out."

Beckondorf raised an eyebrow in surprise, "What?"

"I can get out."


Piper

It was late at night, and sleep evaded Piper.

She was sure Beckondorf couldn't either. Leo kept them both up with moans of pain, except when he occasionally fell unconscious from the pain. Piper and Beckondorf laid on the cold ground, a good five feet from each other and Leo, as both had offered their sleeping mats to him. Although Leo and Beckondorf didn't believe her until she'd beat Beckondorf to a pulp, she had a plan.

She was going to escape, and she'd find medicine for Leo, but that wasn't her entire plan. She'd have to go to the market to purchase—rather steal—the bandages and medicine Leo needed. However, the only market close enough for her to get there and back in a few hours would be the one she'd gotten arrested at. That's where the main part of her plan came in.

She'd be questioned as Pericles, but not as Piper.

It was a carefully crafted plan that had to be carried out with extreme caution, even Leo and Beckondorf couldn't know the entire plan. They only knew she was going to escape to get Leo medicine, and that was where she left it, and they didn't press questions.


That morning, Piper had an argument with the soldiers.

Even in his condition, they still wanted Leo to work. He couldn't move and passed out every few minutes; he was in no state to do so. The Romans had tried to pull him to his feet, but when they released their hold on him, he collapsed in a heap on the floor. This became repetitive, and Romans are not patient people, so the Captain was called to fix the problem.

"Get up!" He yelled at Leo's twisted form.

Leo muttered something inaudible, as he laid, drooling incoherently, against the cold stone floor.

The Captain gripped Leo's sweaty black hair, and yanked his head up, "Get up, or I'll kill you." He drew his sword, and pressed it to Leo's neck.

That's when Piper snapped. She stepped forward, knowing full-well that she'd probably be beheaded with Leo, and shoved the Captain away from Leo. She placed herself between Leo and the Captain, her eyes full of all the hate and rage she'd been holding back for over a month. The Captain had a look of surprise on his face. No one moved. No one spoke. Everyone wore a look a shock that someone had stood up to the Captain.

"Don't touch him." Piper spoke with order in her voice.

"How dare you touch me—"

"I know, it was so gross." Piper wiped her hand, tauntingly, on her tunic.

"Who do you think you are?!"

Piper smiled, but didn't answer.

"Well?"

"I'm the man you fear."

"I fear no one."

"Not yet, you don't."

The Captain didn't respond, only kept a look of anger on his face, but uncertainty traced the inner corners of his pupils. Piper memorized that look, and she relished in it, knowing she'd see it again. Piper kept her eyes trained on the Captain, knowing that intimidation was key to victory from her time with Chiron.

In the silence, every onlooker knew the two were having a mental battle of wit and nerve. No one blinked, not wanting to miss the moment when one relinquished their stare on the other. And it was the Captain who did so, as Piper wore a smug look on her face.

The Captain turned to the rest of the group, "Let him stay here for today. Let his wounds get infected, where there is no one to hear his cries of pain."

The Captain made it sound so awful to get a day off of work, but in reality: any man would've jumped at the chance to switch places with Leo. Well... maybe not jumped. As the Captain was talking to his soldiers, probably to double security on Piper, Piper saw a small group of keys hanging loosely from the Captain's waist belt. She wanted those keys.

As the Captain was leaving, Piper forced herself to walk up to the Captain.

She bowed her head, "My sincerest apologies, Captain, but as a man in prison, you have to appear as though you are above all. I know you do not fear me," and this took all her strength, "I fear you."

The Captain nodded to her, almost treating her as an equal, but as he turned away from her, Piper gently caught the knot holding the keys and let the Captain use his own motion to untie it. The knot fell away, releasing the keys into Piper's other hand without a sound. Piper dropped them down the front of her loosened tunic, making them unnoticeable to the naked eye.

Piper smiled slightly after the Captain, and whispered to herself, "not. I fear you not."


After a long day's work, Piper almost wanted to skip out on the escape. Almost.

It was true that she was longing for sleep, and an exhausted body did no good for running and fighting—not that she planned to do either. Not only did she not want to, the ache of her body ordered her against it. It was to be a simple: get out and get in without being noticed.

Easier said than done.

Piper had stayed up countless hours to listen, perhaps another reason she was so tired. But she did as Chiron taught her. A victorious warrior waited to attack, and he pondered his options before he did so. She had no choice but to listen, and measure.

She had learned that it was exactly forty-six steps to the exit. She knew that there were two guards on the way there, but there was also a guard shift, in which two new guards would relieve the previous two, so they could rest. The shift took about five minutes as lazy Roman soldiers, who left their duty early, didn't expect anybody could—let alone try—to escape.

She knew this shift occurred four times a night, and that the guards moved to her left—their right. She would leave on the second, and return on the fourth. It was risky. If she was late, she'd be caught and killed. She had about three hours to make it to the market about a mile away, steal the medicine, and get back without anyone noticing.

Still easier said than done.

As she lay awake on the cold floor, Piper waited for the sound of the movement. When she heard two voices speak to each other in Latin before a bunch of rustling and footsteps occurred, Piper knew it was time. She waited a small moment for the rustling to stop, and then she jumped up, removing the Captain's keys from her tunic and unlocked her cell door.

She closed and locked it behind herself. She silently crept down the hall, on the balls of her feet. Chiron had taught her to be light on her toes, so she could easily walk without being heard. She was on step forty, and the exit was only around the corner when she ran into a problem.

There were two guards standing at ready, in front of the exit. With swords.

Piper wished for her own weapon, but wishing would do her no good. She cursed herself for being so idiotic as to not think that there would be someone posted at the door. She couldn't fight her way through—not because she didn't have her dagger, but because she couldn't be discovered.

Quick and Clever.

One of Chiron's many teachings. He had told her that many great warriors didn't even need to use violence to win the bloodiest of wars, only their wit. Piper crouched by the corner, and breathed thinking what to do. She ran her fingers along the stone floor in anticipation, when her right hand found her wit.

A small piece of rubble, probably dislocated from it's original stone after years of being stepped on.

She picked it up, and tossed it low around the corner as far away from her position as she could. It landed with a small clang and the two guards' ears perked up. They both drew their swords as one pressed his finger to his lips, ordering the other silent for a sneak attack.

As they both slowly crept the wrong way to hopefully catch an escapee, Piper silently eased open the trap door that led down into the catacombs, but on that night, it led her to her freedom—however short it would be. She slid it into place, before a sudden thought hit her. How would she get back in?

Meh. She'd figure something out.

All that mattered right now was Leo. As her first steps of freedom turned into a sprint, Piper couldn't help but feel free, but she wasn't entirely yet. Outside the market was a water well. Piper remembered this when she was arrested and taken past it; it was a key part in her plan.

She pushed the bucket down, and cranked it back up when she heard a pleasing splash. She washed her face of it's grime and dirt, revealing her feminine cheekbones. She took drinks in between washes, savoring hydration. She undid the makeshift cloth tie on her hair, letting down a shoulder-length wave of an oily brown mess.

She only rinsed her hair, loving the clean feeling. When she was positive no one was around to look, she lifted her tunic and undid her chest bindings, tucking it under her tunic and into her waistline as she did with the Captain's keys. She was officially Piper McLean once more.

The first thing she noticed about the market was that it was spine-chilling at night.

It gave her the feeling that there was someone constantly behind her, breathing down her neck, making the small hairs stand up. Piper had already known that they sold different things at the market during the night, but this was unlike what she had expected.

She swallowed every few minutes as she constantly looked around, ensuring that there was no one near her. As she walked into a more lively part of town, the cat calls began. There were drunken gentlemen, sitting outside pubs and taverns calling her towards them, but Piper ignored them.

As she walked into the main square, it was lively with excitement. Secret alcohol and slave auctions were taking place, but when Piper saw someone she knew it surprised her. Prince Jason. He had a girl under each arm, both talking to him in whispered tones with small smirks upon their faces.

When he caught sight of her, he wouldn't break his stare, ignoring the two girls trying to regain his attention. Piper had to admit that he was attractive, and mysterious with a scar upon his upper lip. She found herself wanting to know where that scar came from, until she pushed herself out of it. She gave him a look of distaste, ignoring his look of confusion, and continued on.

She could feel his eyes on her as she left, memorizing every inch of her. Her hand immediately went to her hip, where Katropis used to be, she felt anger when she came back empty-handed. She increased her walking pace, knowing she had maybe thirty minutes to steal the medicine and an hour to get back as Pericles. She continued on through the square, and back into the streets, where no one could see her stealing.

It was simple. Pick the lock, grab the medicine and bandages. She did it with ease, and even locked the door behind herself. As she passed a clothing store, she felt it's pull, wanting some new clothing as she looked at her bloody tunic. And so she did.

Two thefts in the same night.

That was a new record.

She changed into her new tunic, putting her chest bindings back on. She retied her hair, hoping it didn't look too wet. She kneeled down to the ground, scooping some mud into her hand and smearing on her face. She was Pericles again, as she ran back towards the catacombs.

Then her thoughts came back to her: how was she to get back in? She had merely pushed the thought away, promising herself she'd solve the problem later. Now she didn't have a solution, and she sat outside the stone trap door, as fearfully precious moments went by. Suddenly she had it.

She roughly pushed open the stone, causing it to completely fall off as she dropped behind it—flat against the ground. The two guards on duty were immediately outside the catacombs, muttered to each other in Latin, and went to search for anyone who could have done it.

When they were out of sight, Piper quickly dropped down into the catacombs. She could hear the guards moving, as she sprinted to her cell. She unlocked it, opened and closed herself in it. She locked it behind herself, then slid the Captain's keys down the hallway away from her cell.

It was a quick set of motions, as she flew to her sleeping area and pretended to be in a deep sleep, with her new found belongings tight against her chest. When the guards were set, Piper quietly shook Beckondorf awake. He sleepily opened his eyes and blinked at her, he nearly yawned before Piper clamped her hand over his mouth and shoved the supplies at him.

He held them in his arms, and looked at her in surprise as he whispered, "I can't believe you actually—"

"Ssh!" She hushed him. "Just fix Leo."

He nodded and set to work on Leo. He gently shook him awake, and Leo seemed shocked to find that Piper had actually managed to sneak out and steal the supplies. Didn't anyone have faith in her? Piper smiled sadly to herself with the memory of her father; he had always believed in her. Once Beckondorf was done with Leo, Piper was near sleep—turned away from the two, hoping that he'd take a hint that she didn't want to talk.

But he didn't, "I'll admit, Pericles, I'm impressed."

"Thanks." Piper said, breathily.

"But I have to ask you something..." He trailed off.

"What?"

"Didn't you get in here because you were arrested for stealing?"

"Yeah."

"Did you go to the market where you were arrested?"

"Yeah."

"Then how did no one recognize you?"

"Believe me, Beckondorf, they couldn't even if they tried."


Ah. See what I did there? Sorry for spelling and grammar errors (I write fast) and sorry this chapter was a little short. So I guess that gives you a little more Jason, don't worry, he'll be in, a lot more soon. I want them to have a slow descend into their romance, and they certainly can't be together when Piper is posing as Pericles. I don't like the immediate, OHMYGOD, ILOVEYOU, types of stories. I think it should be gradual, especially when they don't really know each other yet.

So, in conclusion, Slow Jasper love—but don't worry, when I do get to it, Oh, I get to it...

I hope you guys are okay with that.

So, Read and Review!


You guys are such Awesome Possums! :oD