A/N- Hey guys! I totally forgot to recap what happened in chapter 10 last chapter so yeah. Anyway, chapter 10-We got a little background on Calypso and why she and Percy broke up. Hercules is a bad person yada yada. Percy's mom has been whisked away to an asylum so he has to get a job to support himself and Annabeth's trying to get her name cleared with letters. Then we end with Nico basically saying that he has no chance of clearing his name. So anyway, there are no hints of who is the killer but let's just dig deeper for a moment and think: Why do the suspects all keep a journal? Are they just writing these to clear up their tracks if the police come and look through the things and the police will find them and be like oh, they just said they didn't do it so yeah it's not them! Okay, that'd never happen but hey, something to ponder.


"Any idea what's going on with Percy?" Chiron asked me when we met later that day.

I shrugged. "Apparently he got a job and they have him working strange hours."

"Ah," Chiron replied with a nod. "I'm afraid if he keeps missing class I'll have to talk to his parents. He can't be putting his job before his education."

"I don't know if contacting his mom will do much. She's kind of out of it and I have no idea if his dad's is still in the picture."

"Right. Anything else?"

"I found that Hercules used to bully Annabeth and Nico at one point or another. Percy wasn't too fond of him either, for obvious reasons."

"That's nothing new about Percy," Chiron paused for a moment. "But Nico and Annabeth…this gives them a possible motive."

He wrote the findings down. "I'll let Argus know once I see him."

"Oh and one other thing," I said. "Today Annabeth told me that she's gotten written statements from some people who knew of whereabouts the day of the shooting. She's going to hand them over to you; she hopes they'll clear her name."

"Excellent." Chiron smiled. "Of course the police will have to verify the notes and such, but that shouldn't take too long."

I nodded. "Annabeth suggested that Nico do the same thing," I informed him. "But he seemed hesitant. Not sure why."

"Hmmm," Chiron wrote the information down. "That could be yet another strike against Nico."

"Another?" I repeated in disbelief.

"The detectives have been studying the shooter's entry point and they believed he got through the window using a makeshift grappling hook of some sort."

"A grappling hook?"

"It's a multi-pronged hook that you use to secure a rope when you want to climb somewhere high," he explained. "You stick the hook on the end until it catches, and once it's secure, you climb."

"What does that have to do with Nico?" I asked.

"Well if the police believed the grappling hook was a professionally made one-the kind you can buy at a mountaineering store-then it would have nothing to do with him." Chiron explained. "But they think it was a makeshift one. And grappling hooks weren't originally used in mountain climbing, Hestia. They were used in sieges."

I sucked in a sharp breath. "So you think that since Nico is into medieval stuff, he might know how to create a grappling hook."

"Exactly," Chiron replied. "He's the only one who I really can see possessing that skill."

I nodded again, then hesitated.

"What?" Chiron asked.

"It's just that now that I'm getting know him, I can't see Nico doing something like that," I admitted. "He's just not that kind of person, at least I don't think so."

"I can't see him doing it either. Frankly, I can't see any of those four being malicious enough to go about shooting someone." He sighed. "But we have to stay focused, Hestia-for Hercules and Calypso's sakes, and for the sake of all out students."

"I know," I replied. "It's really hard, though, especially now that I'm getting to be friends with all of them now, you know?"

Chiron nodded. "I hope we're wrong about them, I really hope it's someone we haven't thought of yet."


March 26

Dear L,

I am so incredibly angry with my father right now, and he has no clue.

Even if he knew I was upset, he would NEVER guess why.

We were watching this TV show tonight and there was a girl on the show who had attempted suicide, and she was talking about what got into her head and such, and my dad says, "Why on earth would anyone want to take their own life?"

And that just made me so angry that I had to get up and leave.

I'll tell you why, Dad.

I'll tell you why someone would ever take their life.

Maybe because they felt way too much pressure to be perfect.

Maybe they couldn't stand living with the expectations anymore.

Maybe they hated themselves because no matter what they did, it never felt like it was good enough.

Maybe because they felt like unless they conformed to the precedent set by an older sibling, they were letting down their family.

Maybe they felt like a big, fat failure.

I'm sorry I'm so weak, L. I'm sorry I can't live up to everyone's expectations of me. I'm sorry I can't keep playing the game, but I can't. I just can't.

Deal still stands. It's almost May. You have two months.

Donec mortem nobis pars,

Annabeth


04/27/2013

So…it's day 6, I've worked my butt off for three long shifts in a row, and I won't get any money for two and a half more weeks.

I'm completely exhausted and HUNGRY, and there's no food left.

Fantastic.

I have no clue where to go, whom to turn to.

What am I supposed to do?

Panhandle on the streets?

Turn myself into a foster home?

Starve?

Food bank?

I'm running out of options here.

You know what, screw it. I'm talking to Hestia tomorrow; she'll know what to do.

If she turns me into social services, so be it.


"I've been waiting for you," Percy greeted as I entered the student lounge the next day.

"Yeah?" I replied, sitting down next to him. "Well I've been wondering about you."

"So have we," Rachel put in as she and Nico walked into the room and sat down with us.

"What's going on, Percy?" I asked him.

Percy sighed and looked at the floor. "Long story."

"Okay," I prompted. "Tell us."

After a brief silence, Percy sighed again. "You remember me telling you that my mom is crazy." He finally asked.

"Vaguely." I replied.

"Well I wasn't just saying it," he informed me, glancing up briefly as Annabeth joined us. "She is actually is crazy, Hestia. She's been getting worse, and last week, well, she really lost it and they put her into a mental hospital. I've been living on my own since then."

"On your own?" I echoed.

Percy nodded grimly.

"Where's your dad?" I asked. "Why don't you go stay with him?"

"Dad left six months after Tyson died," he told me. "Haven't seen him since."

I nodded slowly, absorbing this new information. "And that's why you've been working all those weird hours at your new job?" I asked.

"Yeah," Percy said. "But I'm out of food now and I don't get paid for two more weeks."

My eyebrows shot up. "Out of food?"

Percy shrugged.

I glanced at my watch and looked around the table.

"Okay guys," I said to them, "Percy and I are going to go get him some food. You all coming?"

Half an hour later we sat in a booth at a nearby Red Robin.

I'd bought lunch for Percy and the others were splitting appetizers.

"Is this even legal?" I asked them. "Can I just take you all out of school without parental permission?"

The group shrugged, obviously indifferent.

"So who's Tyson?" Rachel asked as she took a bite out of her cheese bread.

Percy flinched. "My older brother." His voice dropped drastically. "He died when I was twelve."

"Harsh," Rachel remarked. "How'd he die?"

Now it was my turn to flinch. But Percy looked down.

"It was an accident," he told us. "Tyson went cliff jumping at a lake with some friends, and they didn't know it, but there was a boat tied up under the cliff. Tyson hit the boat when he jumped."

"That's awful," Annabeth breathed. "Percy-I'm so sorry."

"Yeah, it is." Percy voice cracked, as he returned back to his meal.

We were quiet for a few moments after that, everyone focusing on his or her food.

Finally, Percy put his fork down. "Done?" I asked him."

"Yep."

"You full?"

He nodded and smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Hestia."

I smiled at him. "We have to see if we can find someone you can stay with," I told him. "I can ask around, someone could help you out."

"Or I could ask my parents if you could stay with us." Suggested Annabeth. "We have a spare room now that Malcolm is out of the house."

"You think that could work?" I asked, looking over at her.

"Never hurts to ask, right?"


The Writings of Sir Lionel

The 28th of April, Anno Domini 2013

This day I learned the fate of my friend and fellow suspect, the noble Percy.

The poor guy has endured many tribulations, and I am deeply saddened to hear of his latest trial.

Although I was not well acquainted with his brother Tyson, my older sister Bianca was at one time a close friend of the now-deceased boy.

She was absolutely torn when she learned of his passing.

Now to hear Tyson's death resulted in the separation of Percy's parents and his mother's loss of sanity makes his passing that much more tragic.

Now it is time to speak of a merrier matter.

I must make a confession.

This humble knight is finding the fair maiden Rachel to be more and more attractive with each passing day.

She is beautiful, witty, enthusiastic, and posses much valor.

I desire to pursue her; however such a pursuit would be terrifying for a young knight such as I.

I have never before wooed a woman and have not the faintest idea how to do so.

Shall I pick her flowers from a nearby field?

Present her with a handmade suit of chain mail?

Perhaps I should take her dancing beneath the stars?

I an not certain what I should do, nor do I consider myself worthy of her attention.

Perhaps one day, though, I shall be brave….


A/N- Nico and Rachel sittin' in a tree, will they get together or not we'll see!