A/N : Thank you, guest reviewer, for reminding me of that error.
Disclaimer : Yeah, I'm Rick Riordan alright. 'cus you all know that. (No I'm not, please don't sue me)
~0~
Sally Abducts a Hospital Patient
~0~
'Where the bloody hell is Ray?' Percival thought, obviously annoyed.
He stood on a tree-house near the school, conveniently hidden behind lush leaves of the forest. The German child stared at the plume of smoke rising from his seemingly former school.
They were supposed to escape the school. That was the plan.
Ever since the Columbine High School Massacre just a few months ago, he and Ray devised a plan in case a student or two get insane and start throwing bullets all over the place. Even though the IARD tactic existed, neither of them really wanted to test its effectiveness.
So the two of them carried homemade smoke bombs (Ray was surprised when he found out that Percival knew how to make these) everytime they went to school, and if a shooter appeared out of nowhere, one of them would throw theirs and engulf a room with smoke. With the diversion, they would bolt out of the room, with students that are smart enough to realize the situation following suit. After that, the two friends were supposed to meet at this tree house and call 911, if by chance the IARD tactic hasn't begun to move (like mentioned before, none of them really wanted to test its effectiveness).
However, despite the fact that the smoke had appeared like a half an hour ago, the bloody fool hadn't arrived yet.
And Percival was starting to worry about his only friend.
'Ray is resourceful,' he kept reminding himself, 'And knows how to trick people. If anyone can survive, it's him.'
Percival remembered the first time they met. The imbecile was just sitting there, watching him get pummeled and robbed. And only when the bullies left, he dropped down from the tree and introduced himself.
Percival left, just sparing him a dirty glance.
And then, a few days later, the same weird guy walked up to his desk and gave him his wallet back, with actually more money than he had in the first place.
After Percival forced Ray to elaborate, he now knew that this oddly purple-eyed kid tricked one of the bullies that his friends had been talking trash behind his back, and vice versa to the other bullies. When the bullies fought each other, Ray plucked Percival's wallet, and a few dollars from the bullies' wallets, and left the class.
The next thing the bullies knew, they got called to the principal's office for fighting, and none of the things they said actually pointed out to Ray as the culprit in the first place. After further prodding, Percival found out that Ray's lies wasn't actual lies, but words spoken out of the bullies' mouths themselves that he twisted them a bit it would sound like an insult.
From that day forward, Percival found out that Ray was a dangerous person.
But even then... it was almost an hour. His friend was nowhere to be found.
Percival was definitely worried.
"Dammit..." he muttered. "Where the heck are you, Ray?"
At the rate things were going, Percival started to think that Ray actually got trapped in the school.
Percival glowered. Maybe it was about time he should go back and help his friend.
"I don't think so."
Percival whipped around, eyes wide, and everything went black.
~0~
The grass were scorched- utterly turned black and charred by the flame. Children and adults ran around, screaming in fear. All around them, people were on the ground, neither moving nor breathing, draped by a simple white cloth to cover their faces.
Percy could only stand there, watching as the school- Ray's school- became ruins, and as he indeed watched, a section of it succumbed to the fire and fell. He could hear the trapped students' scream cut short abruptly.
Percy put his hands to his ears, barely muffling the sound around him as he lowered to his knees. Or maybe he was trying to block the sound of his own sobbing, because there were tears running down his face.
"M-mom... Ray..." he whispered tearfully, choking. "W-where... where are you...?"
Percy decided against holding his hands to his ears, and wiped his water away. As his vision cleared, he could see a child figure lying on their back on the burnt grass, their faded black hoodie became darker on the back area, the grass around their torso slowly pooled with red.
It didn't take a genius to know who it was.
Percy screamed.
~0~
"Kristen...?" Sally whispered, horrified, as her hands flew to her mouth and her eyes widened.
The doctor nodded, face grim. "Yes. It would seem that Ms. O'Brien died in the struggle against the criminal."
Sally gulped. To think that Kristen died while trying to save Ray... despite that there was a high chance she would regret knowing this, she asked anyway. "A-and what happened to Ray?"
The doctor sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Well... Ray has second degree burns on various parts of his body. His ribs are cracked too, but we patched it up just fine. The only potentially fatal problem is..."
"Is...?"
"...there was a hole through your son's stomach, and-"
Sally could feel vomit rising to her throat. "E-excuse me for a minute."
Without waiting for a reply, she stumbled to the bin in the hospital room, and proceeded to empty her stomach, while the doctor walked up to her and rubbed circles on her back.
"You don't need to worry, ma'am. We will just stitch your son to close the gap when he wakes up." He looked symphatetic again. "However, his transverse colon- er, some parts of his innards are, unfortunately, damaged quite badly, so I'm afraid we'll have to do surgery in order to remove it and replace it. "
Sally barely heard him. "My son..." she sobbed, sinking to the ground. "My beautiful son..."
The doctor plucked a water bottle from a nearby nurse who was walking while carrying some of them, and gave it to Sally. "As I said before, you don't need to worry, ma'am. He is in perfectly good hands."
Sally took a small sip of the water, still shaking, and slowly stood up. She nodded at the doctor, but her eyes were downcast. "Thanks, doc," she muttered quietly.
The man smiled sadly at her. "Think nothing about it. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm afraid I'm needed somewhere else. Despite what happened yesterday, I will still wish you a good day, Mrs. Jackson."
After the man left the room, Sally went back to sit near her youngest son, who was asleep on a small couch for a patient's visitor. In front of them, was a bed with an also sleeping Ray on it. There were dark bags underneath his eyes, an IV and other such needles was attached to him, and bandages wrapped around most of his body.
The nurses said that Ray had woke up in the middle of the night, crying and screaming, while she herself wasn't allowed to meet him yet. The nurses tried to calm him down, and when that didn't work, gave him some sleeping pills.
Sally felt like a failure. Her son was suffering, and she could only just sit uselessly outside the door, with Percy sleeping on her lap, biting her lower lip as Ray's whimpers and muffled cries were barely held back by the door.
And Kristen... God, Kristen. Sally wanted to apologize so bad. The young woman had lost her life in an effort to protect her child.
God... it was all her fault, wasn't it? Her selfishness of wanting her sons close to her cost Kristen her life. It would most probably mentally scar both Ray and Percy. All of them paid the price for her greed.
A whimper broke her from her self-loathing. To her ever-increasing worry, the whimper came from her youngest son that laid next to her.
"M-mom... Ray..." tears started to flow down from Percy's closed eyes. "W-where... where are you...?"
"Percy? Wake up," Sally whispered, shaking his body lightly, careful not to surprise either Percy or Ray. "You're having a nigthmare."
It wasn't a pleasant sight. Percy, her usually bright and cheerful young son, cried in his sleep. His forehead was damp, and his raven black hair sticked to it. Beneath his eyelids, Percy's eyes kept glancing left and right.
And then, all of a sudden, Percy's eyes snapped open, and he screamed. Seeing her, Percy jumped to her lap and sobbed to her uniform. She literally forgot she hadn't changed outfits still yesterday.
Sally drew circles on Percy's back, and whispered to his ear, "It's okay, Percy. It was just a nightmare."
"M-mom..." Percy cried, muffled slightly by her shirt. "I-it was Ray... he... he was just- just-!"
Sally put her chin on top of his head. "It's okay, Percy, it's okay. Ray's okay, I'm okay, and you're okay."
Percy whimpered to her shirt.
Suddenly, the door flew open as frantic nurses flew inside. One caught sight of her.
"We heard the scream," she explained frantically at Sally's confused look. "What happened?!"
Sally sighed. "Nightmare." She glanced down at Percy, then at Ray as if to reinforce her statement, then focused her attention to Percy again.
The nurse's eyes softened. "Do you want any help?" she offered.
Sally smiled at her wearily. "No, but thank you anyway."
The nurse nodded, and turned to her colleagues before pulling them away from the room one by one. When they all retreated from the somewhat cramped hospital room, Sally noticed that Percy just realized where they were, and realized who was on the bed.
His eyes widened.
"Ra-!" Sally clamped down her hand on her youngest son's mouth. He looked up, only to see his mother that held a reprimanding look on her face. Understanding washed over his face, and he nodded.
"Wha-what happened, mom?" Percy whispered after Sally's hand was removed from his face. His voice was so quiet Sally had to strain her ears to hear it. Percy stared at his brother's form, Ray's bandaged chest rising and lowering slowly.
What happened? That was the thing Sally wondered herself. What had truly happened at school? The teachers explained that they saw a huge, six-foot tall biker entered the school, but she couldn't really trust their words. Not that she doubted their honesty, but since no one actually found the guy again, she knew he was a monster, and the mortals just thought they saw a huge biker, though in reality it may just as well be a gigantic seven-headed serpent-dragon.
So... no, she didn't really know.
She sighed. "I... I don't know, Percy."
Percy walked over to Ray's bedside, still staring at him. He looked hesitant , as if he wanted to touch him, but was too afraid, like a single touch was what it take for Ray to suddenly just keel over and die. Percy looked stricken.
Sally, understanding what he wanted to do, pulled a plastic foldable chair from the corner of the room, unfolded it, and pushed it right next to Ray's bed.
Percy turned around to look at her, his emotions clear as day on his face. He looked scared, worried, tired, but also grateful at his mom. That wasn't the face for an six year old. It was the face of an old man.
He sat down, and flinched when he took hold of Ray's hand. The bandage on Ray's palm held a slight red tint in it, seeping through the white cloth.
So, instead, Percy just folded his arms on Ray's bed, and laid his head on them, his face looking at Ray's own sleeping one.
Sally smiled sadly, standing up. She picked up one of the blankets she brought to the hospital and draped it over her youngest son, ruffling his hair and kissed the top of his head.
Without looking up, Percy muttered, "Thanks, mom."
"Of course, honey."
...She wanted to rest, and the couch looked really comfortable at the moment.
~0~
Percy dreaded sleeping. Ever since his last nightmare, sleeping sounded like the worst thing to experience right now. Despite mom's bribery ("I'll give you a cookie when you wake up, Percy."), he really didn't want to sleep. But who was he kidding? He was six. Even before the hanging clock's long needle pointed to eight, he knew he had already lost a losing battle.
And he dreamt. Of course he dreamt.
Looking at the area he was in, Percy had hopes that he wasn't having a nightmare. He was on the sky. And he wasn't falling. He could feel wind blowing on his face, but, somehow, he stood on a... on what looked like a garden. Around him, beatiful golden and silver flowers bloomed, intermingled with each other, forming a circle on a large green patch of grass. And around the flower fence, clouds sat. White, fluffy clouds. Percy wondered how it felt. He really wanted to touch it.
In the middle of the garden, there was a nice-looking, mosaic-ish, three-tiered fountain. On top of the fountain was an eagle sculpture, spreading its wings, looking at the upper sky. Beside the fountain, was a man.
The man looked like he was having the time of his life. He wore a lazy outfit : like a t-shirt, cargo pants, and a pair of sandals. He lounged on a white garden chair, a satisfied smile on his face as he stared down at the (was that Manhattan below?!) city one of his leg on top of the other. He held a glass filled with red liquid, and on a table next to him, was a bottle filled with the same red liquid.
And to Percy's surprise, he could actually understand the writings on the bottle.
"THE CRIMSON BLESSING"
DIONYSUS BREWERIES,
MAKING BEST WINES SINCE 0012
Which was awesome considering Percy could barely read English. Though... looking at it closer... was it just him, or were the writings weren't English at all? It didn't look like English, that was for sure. Wonder what language was it if he, out of all people, could read it.
"Lord Zeus! Lord Zeus!"
The strained voice turned Percy's attention from trying to read more words on the bottle, and he noticed the man's smile turned upside down. But then, when he saw who said it, his eyes widened.
What the...?
Meanwhile, the man- Lord Zeus -scowled, and sat straighter. "What is it, satyr?"
'Satyr'? Was that the name of these creatures? The face was normal enough, he thought- this 'satyr' looked like a man in his middle years, and had a stubble on his chin. He had wild hair, and there was a pair of horns sprouting out of it.
And if that wasn't weird enough, from waist below, the guy was only wool and had only a pair of animal hooves as legs. He was like a crossbreed of a sheep and a man.
"The boy! The boy!" the 'satyr' wheezed. He sounded scared and looked scared, probably because this Lord Zeus guy looked irritated.
"Which boy?" Zeus asked with emphasis.
The satyr gasped. "The child of Poseidon is still alive!"
Zeus' face went blank.
"Tha-" the satyr cut himself off by gasping for another breath- "Thanatos reported that he couldn't take the boy's life because the boy was saved in the time he was allowed to be saved that was set by Lord Hades!" The satyr rambled, not realizing Zeus' decreasing mood. "He's still alive!"
"...Where is he."
"He's also... w-what?"
"I said whereishe?"
The wind became harsher and the temperature dropped suddenly. The white clouds around them darkened, becoming pitch black storm clouds. Around Zeus' clenched fists, something flickered and crackled.
Percy understood the implication. This Zeus guy wasn't a normal human being.
The satyr's face became ghostly white. "N-NYC Health plus Hospital..."
"WHICH ONE?!"
The satyr whimpered. "The one on sixty-five Water street..."
In a flash of light, Zeus' vacation clothes became a neatly trimmed suit, and his sandals became black shoes. The wind picked up, even faster than before, and the satyr yelped.
As Percy opened his eyes, the last thing he remembered was that Zeus looked really really angry.
~0~
Sally woke up just in time to hear several knocks, and thankfully not because of it. She turned her head around, momentarily forgetting where she was. Percy had detached himself from his brother and curled himself around her (Sally sighed when she saw that half of Percy's body dangled off the admittedly small couch, then repositioned him so he would be more comfortable), while Ray was still fast asleep.
She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, then stood up,stretching for a bit. She glanced at the clock, noticing that it was still six in the morning. Of course it was six- there weren't any sunlight. Who would come knocking at six on a Sunday morning?
After she unlocked and opened the door, she got her answer.
Apparently, Percival Schneider and his father would.
"I apologize." The blond man with icy blue eyes in his thirties sighed, then spoke with a (really) thick German accent. "Zis kleiner junge vanted to see his friend, und since our room is close to yours... he suggested ve go now. I apologize again for this."
Sally waved the apology off and smiled. "It's fine, I wasn't asleep anyway." Not like she planned on sleeping in. "Why don't you two come in?"
The man smiled wearily, and just when he set one foot in front of the other, he stopped. There were bags under his eyes. Just like her, she supposed. "...Vhere vere my manners? My name is Ludwig. Ludwig Schneider."
As the two adults were caught in the conversation, Percival was standing there, politely listening to the two of them, carrying a book- a novel, maybe- and if he was annoyed at them, he didn't show it. Sally didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
"Well, I'm Sally Jackson. Come on in," Sally said, smiling.
Percival smiled at her and stepped into the room, his father following closely. The man's exhausted face became more exhausted somehow when he caught sight of an unconscious Ray and a sleeping Percy.
"He's... Ray, isn't he?" Ludwig muttered. "The one that...?"
Sally sighed, not bothering to force a smile onto her face. She went to a small table the hospital had provided, and poured water to a couple of styrofoam cups."Yes."
"Ich entschuldige mich," the man offered weakly, sitting down. As this happened, Percival looked around the hospital room. Seeing both Percy and Ray were still asleep, he decided to sit down next to his friend and opened up the book he was carrying and begun to read.
Sally shook her head. "Don't be." Ever since Ray told her about Percival, his first ever-friend, and the fact that he was from Germany, Sally had learned basic things like 'Thank you' and 'I'm sorry' in German to make Percival feel more comfortable whenever he visited their apartement. Of course, it was all for naught when she found out Percival was only born in Germany and never actually lived in it.
"No offense, Mr. Schneider," Sally said, realizing something, "But what are you doing in this hospital? You mentioned that you're from Percival's room..."
"Ze police found him in a forest near the school, unconscious, und zey sent him here," Ludwig explained, "Thankfully, nothing seems to be vrong. He blacked out, though the cause is unclear to me."
"Thank goodness." Sally sighed.
"Ja. Did ze police caught who...?"
"No." Sally took a deep breath. "I doubt they would ever find him, anyway. He's a..." she trailed off. Not like Ludwig would understand her situation. What could she say? That her son's school just got attacked by an unknown creature- possibly an ancient monster- because her husband is a Greek god and thus a part of him resides in her sons? No, obviously.
"Ah." Ludwig's eyes narrowed. "One of zhem? When are you planning to send your son to camp?"
Sally almost dropped the cups she was holding. And her surprise seemed to be clear as day on her face, because Ludwig nodded.
"Ja, I know," The German man whispered, walking closer. "Percival is exactly like your sons. His mother's the goddess of visdom. Did anyone not tell you about vhat vould happen?"
"I... wha?" Sally just stood there, watching him with mouth agape. Then her mind snapped back to its place, and she put down the cups on the table again, before whispering back, "Y-yes, a guy named Chiron did warn me and sent me a brochure for a camp."
"Good." Ludwig gave her a satisfied smile. "Und vhen are you going to sent him, if I may ask?"
Sally sighed, sitting down on the nearest seat. She was glad that another parent that had the same circumstances as her was standing in the same room as her in the moment, but she couldn't quite appreciate the fact that it was forced down her throat at six in the morning.
"We were planning on going the day after tomorrow..." Sally's shoulder slumped. "But then, this happened."
"Overmorrow."
Both Ludwig and Sally blinked, then turned to Percival, who was also staring back at them. "What? The day after tomorrow is called overmorrow, and the day before yesterday is called ereyesterday. Isn't that right, Mrs. Jackson?"
Before Sally could answer, Ludwig growled at his son. "Percival Schneider. Vhat did I tell you about eavesdropping?"
Percival shrunk back. "Sorry. But, not like you two were quiet in the first place, father."
Ludwig let out a long breath while rubbing his forehead. He muttered several words in German under his breath, then sighed, before finally turning to look at her again. "Sorry for his-"
"He knows?!" Sally's voice almost reached the level of yelling, and her eyes were wide.
"Ja? Of course he knows. I just told him a few hours ago, before going to your son's room."
"But... why?"
"Holding information vould just prove badly in the future," Ludwig explained, "Und since the... ah, attack at the school, it offers all the more reason to release the truth."
"But... wouldn't it just endanger them?" Sally asked, concerned.
"Das Leben ist kein Ponyhof," Ludwig said, "Life is not a pony farm. Because it is already hard, I vill ensure my kleiner junge obtains knowledge and power the older he gets. To make sure he vill survive."
Sally went silent. She never considered it. Chiron told her that revealing her sons' parentage was the worst thing she could do, and she trusted him. Of course, she understood that turning her son' father's identity a secret was not how a good parent should act, and she had wondered if hiding things was a good a idea in the first place.
Ludwig shook his head. "In any case, ve are getting off topic. How are you going to send your son?"
"A bus," Sally replied, though she could hear her slight hesitance. "Or a cab. Obviously not walking."
"I would offer help, but I am afraid I do not have any vehicle." Ludwig sighed, annoyed at himself.
"It's okay. Have Percival been to this camp before?"
"I vas actually thinking to-"
"Oh, good morning, Percy." Percival's voice cut him off unintentionally.
Percy wiped his eyes, and yawned. His messy raven hair was messier than usual. When he saw that the room was crowded, he looked surprised. When he realized that one of the new occupants were someone he knew, he was even more surprised.
"Percival?"
Sally smiled at her youngest son. "Morning, Percy."
Though Percy didn't seem to hear her. "What are you doing here?"
Percival nodded his head to the bed. Percy followed his sight, and blinked, staring at Ray, looking as if he had forgotten where he was for a moment. Then he slumped, while letting out a small, "Oh."
As if he couldn't bear to look at his unconscious brother, Percy looked at the other newcomer. Then he looked back at Percival. Then at the man again. Then back at Percival.
"Are you two related?" Percy asked curiously.
Before Sally could rebuke him for such disrespect, Ludwig chuckled. "Yes, yes ve are... Percy, vas it? Percival is my son."
Percy blinked owlishly at him. "Percival has a dad?"
"Yes."
"Huh." Then Percy looked down, sadness and envy oozing out of his posture. "I wish I have a dad." Then he glanced briefly at Ray. "Though I do have Ray, and he's like my dad..."
Percy shook his head, and faced his mom. "Mom? I'm hungry."
Ludwig burst out laughing. "Erst kommt das Fressen, dann die Moral, ja?"
"Uh..."
Percival read his book again. "Don't listen to him, Percy. He's trying to mess with you."
Sally smiled, and she suddenly didn't feel as old as she thought. "Percival, Ludwig? Do you want to join us for breakfast, too?"
The answer was Percival's rumbling stomach.
"Yes," Ludwig answered for him, mercifully ignoring his son as the boy raised his book to cover his reddening face.
~0~
When Percy said he was hungry he didn't expect that to get the food he had to go outside. Getting away from his hospitalized older brother was out of the question, so he refused to go out and just asked his mom to buy food for him to go. Mom was reluctant at first, but after he used his deadly secret weapon (what Ray named as "Stare of Doom" which in reality was just him giving his cutest look) mom finally relented and left, promising to be back very soon.
That was fifteen minutes ago. Left alone with no one else to talk to, he was infinitely bored, yet he was adamant from setting one foot out of this room as long as Ray still slept on the bed. So he found other things to occupy himself, which included reading Percival's book (upside down, he later found out), playing with his toys, walking around the small room, and staring out the window.
Percy glanced at the clock.
Thatwas five minutes ago. So it had been only twenty minutes since mom and Percival and Percival's dad had left, and he was still bored.
He sighed, dramatically, and stared at Ray's sleeping face for the dozenth time in that short twenty minutes.
Then he saw something.
Above Ray's head and a bit to the right... there was a blue button on the wall. It was positioned conveniently right within arm's reach.
So of course Percy pressed it, careful not to hit Ray. The big blue button was like begging to be pressed.
For a few seconds, nothing happened. He wondered what was the purpose of this button, and then he heard a crackling sound. It came from several, small holes right beside the button.
"This is the Nurse's Office," a cheerful woman's voice replaced the crackling noise, "How can I help you?"
Percy's eyes widened. "Is... is this a phone?"
There was only silence from the holes- a speaker, mom told him once. He caught annoyed mutterings that sounded like 'Another kid pressed the button,' and then the cheerful voice- now he realized it sounded forced- came back on.
"No, this is not," it said, "Where are your parents, little boy?"
"Mom left to get breakfast," Percy answered. Finally someone he could speak to! "And I have no idea about my dad. He left when I was little."
"...oh. Uh, I'm sorry?" the voice hesitantly replied. "H-how old are you?"
And even as the speaker was just a few inches above his face, Ray still haven't woken up. To answer the mysterious voice's question, Percy counted in his head.
He then smiled. "I'm six."
"Six." The voice sounded surprised. "And your mom just left you alone in there?"
"Well... not alone, alone. My big brother's here. He's still sleeping, though. But mom promised she'd come back soon."
Then there were irrittated mutterings that came from the speaker. It sounded like 'Unresponsible adults.'
Since the voice took so long and Percy still wanted to talk, he asked, "Er... just who are you exactly?"
"Uh... I'm Hathaway."
Percy grinned. "Nice to meet you, Hathaway. I'm Percy."
"Percy. Why are you in the hospital, Percy? Are you sick?"
Percy shook his head, though he had no idea if the voice could see him doing that. "No, I'm here because my brother's hurt."
"Hurt? Is that why your brother's sleeping?"
"I dunno. I think a bad guy hurt him."
"A 'bad guy'?" Hathaway sounded concerned.
"Yeah. He was hurt in the school, because a bad guy hurt him."
"A bad guy in school..." Hathaway trailed off. "Is his school Yancy, by any chance?"
"Yup. The school was burning when we got there, though." Percy avoided the memory of his nightmare where Ray laid on the ground bleeding and dying. "So I don't know if his school is still standing."
"Your brother is a survivor from the Yancy School Assault?!"
'Yancy School Assault'? "...maybe?"
"Holy shiiiiii...take mushrooms!" Hathaway gasped. "He's still unconscious?"
Percy had no idea what 'unconscious' meant. Probably adult word for 'sleeping.' "Yeah."
"I'm sorry." Hathaway sounded genuine. "Are you hurt too?"
"No."
"Good for you."
"Yeah," Percy replied, a bit somberly. "Good for me."
"...do you want-?" Hathaway abruptly cut herself off. There were distant sounds of other people speaking on the other side, and then Hathaway returned. She sounded apologetic. "Sorry Percy, but it's my shift now. I have to go."
His shoulder slumped. "Okay."
"See you later, Percy."
"See you."
Then there was a click, and even the slight crackling sounds disappeared. He sighed, and sat down at Ray's bedside once again, staring at his sleeping brother's face.
"I hope you're awake, Ray," he whispered.
Ray's face twitched.
Percy's eyes widened. Did he...? No, he was sure he didn't imagine it.
"Ray...?" Percy whispered again.
Slowly, painfully slowly, both of Ray's eyes cracked open, and his purple eyes, tired but not hurting, stared back at him, looking a bit confused.
"Percy...?"
"Ray!"
And Percy didn't care that when mom and the Schneider family returned, they found him sobbing on Ray's bed, and Ray himself looked tired, disheveled, confused, concerned, but definitely awake.
~0~
Ray called him a man of his words, once. Percy had no idea what that meant. Though being called a man did kick his confidence up, the rest was still confusing. Mom then explained that a man of his words is a saying- it meant that someone who always keeps a promise. Ray had snorted and replied that he said that not because of his promise-keeping, but of his stubborness.
He remembered this memory for no reason. His mind just brought it up because he swore not to let Ray out of his sight, and that included glaring at Ray while eating french fries.
After Ray woke up and mom arrived, she frantically called the doctors. A couple of nurses and a doctor surged into the small room, and started inspecting him and poking him with things. Then the police officers came in, badges shining. They asked his older brother some questions, then left.
The doctor pulled mom aside and talked to her seriously about something, but Percy couldn't understand a single sentence they were saying. Too many big words and weird words he never heard of before.
"You're a man of your words." Ray grinned wearily at him, still lacking energy.
Percy didn't reply. Though he would never admit it, he was scared that if he left Ray, then he would disappear again. It was stupid, but he couldn't help it.
"Percy," mom said, "Your fries."
"Oh right."
Still staring at his brother who had porridge instead of cheeseburger like the rest of them ("Why must I suffer so?"), he slowly lowered his hand down to pick up one golden stick of salty goodness, and put it in his mouth, then munched on it.
"Is he always like this?" he heard Percival's dad ask his mom.
"No," mom answered, and Percy could hear the smile in her voice.
Percival snorted. "Ray's right, father. Percy's literally a man of his words."
Percival's dad chuckled and went silent again, probably focusing on his own breakfast. After Percy realized he finished his fries, he continued to devour his cheeseburger.
Ray rolled his eyes when he saw Percy still staring at him, though he looked amused. "Percy, you don't have to worry. I won't be going anywhere. I don't think I can go anywhere." On the last part Ray sounded annoyed.
Percy narrowed his eyes, refusing to budge. He knew he was far more stubborn than his older brother could ever hope to be. For a while, everyone just focused on their own food, and the adults chattered to each other, while Percival returned to his book, careful to not let a breadcrumb to fall on it.
"Ja." Percival's dad's voice confirmed something that his mom said. "Any injured student or teacher vill be sent here."
"Nowhere else other than the NYC plus hospitals?" mom asked.
"Nein."
Percy suddenly sat straighter. NYC plus... where did he hear that name again? He felt that he heard it recently... when was it? He furrowed his eyebrows, momentarily forgetting that he should be gluing his eyes at his brother at the moment. A few days ago? No, that didn't feel right. It felt more recent. Yesterday? No, he was mostly asleep yesterday. Then when...?
If Percy could snap his fingers, he would've done it. A dream! Something about the child of... Psyden?
"Mom?" he called out, turning around, ignoring Ray's stifled laughter.
"Yes, honey?"
"Is there a hospital called NYC plus- I mean, NYC Health plus hospital?"
Mom smiled. "Yes, Percy. We're in one."
"Oh." He felt dumb. He didn't even know the name of the hospital they were in.
"Why are you wondering, Percy?"
Percy shook his head. "I had a dream, and it was mentioned in it."
Percival's dad narrowed his eyes and leaned forward in his chair. "A dream? Can you describe vhat happened?"
At both his and his mom's questioning look, Percival's dad replied, "I am curious."
A lie, which Percy knew. Still, he conceded.
"Well," he began, remembering. "I was at this place that was really high in the sky! I could see clouds and the entire city from it. I was at a garden, I think. And there was this... guy."
Ever since the first sentence was spoken, Percy could see Percival's dad was thinking hard, while his mom just listened to him and Percival just lost in his own world, halfway through both his book and his burger.
"He looked happy, I think. He was just laying on a long chair, and smiling while drinking... uh... something called 'The Red Blessing,' I think? Anyway, and then this weird, half-sheep half-guy thing-"
"Satyr..." Percival's dad whispered, now looking more and more interested in his story.
"-came running into the garden," Percy continued, "And the guy- his name was Zeus, by the way-"
Mom's amused smile melted off, Percival's dad froze, Percival himself stopped eating, thunder rumbled in the sky, and he couldn't see Ray, who was behind him.
"-was angry because the half-sheep half-guy thing interrupted him, I think," Percy continued, ignoring the others' reaction. "But then the satyr- the half-sheep half-guy thing is call-"
"We know what they're called, Percy." Percival's voice was strained, and he clenched his book, his burger on a nearby table, forgotten.
Percy blinked at the weird hostility, then continued as if nothing happened. "Anyway, and then the satyr-thing started saying 'He's still alive! He's still alive!' and then Ze-"
"Don't say that name!" three people in the room, bar Percy and his brother, half-whispered half-shouted.
Percy's brows furrowed, but it was his brother who voiced his confusion.
"What's up with you guys?" Ray sounded as confused as he was, and Percy was glad that he wasn't the only one lost in this.
"Percy, dear, please continue." Mom ignored him, looking more and more worried and scared by every sentence jumping out of Percy's mouth.
Ray and him both shared a bewildered look, but he continued nonetheless. "Uh... the... guy... asked just who was this boy the satyr was talking about. And then the satyr said that the child of... Po... Pe... Psyden? Anyway, he said, 'The child of Psyden is still alive!'
Percival's dad dropped his burger. He turned around to look at mom, face the very definition of shock. Percival was wide-eyed, staring at him. Mom blanched, her face ghostly pale.
"You... their father is...?" Percival's dad whispered.
Percy ignored this, of course, though he looked annoyed at being kept interrupted over and over again. "And then the guy asked the satyr where this child of Psyden is, and the satyr answered NYC plus Health hospitals. That's it. The guy looked really angry, though."
Mom stood up instantly, the color returning to her face, her eyes laced with fear, though determination burned brightly in there, too. She faced him and his brother, who kept looking more and more confused per second.
"You two pack your b-" she stopped, probably realizing none of them brought any bags. "Just pack your things. We have to get out of here."
Percival's dad nodded, even though no one looked at him. He looked at his son. "Percival, you know vhat to do."
Without saying anything, Percival closed the book and jumped out of the couch and out of the room.
Percival's dad turned his attention to the remaining three occupants, blue eyes shining with determination. "You three, meet us outside ze hospital. Ve vill try bringing Ray to a safe place."
Without waiting for a reply, Percival's dad also ran out of the room.
Ray was the first to break the silence. "What on Earth?"
Mom stared at them. Her face was carefully blank, but Percy stayed with her all day so he knew when she was trying not to show her true emotions. And she was absolutely terrified.
"You two, change of plans." Ray looked up, following him. "We're all going to camp."
~0~
"What the- Hey! What are you doing?!"
Sally froze momentarily when she heard the doctor who helped Ray shouted at her. Then she kept sprinting, her eldest son latching on her back like a baby koala and her youngest latching on Ray's. Her adrenaline pumping in her veins, she ran like the Devil himself was chasing her even with both her sons on her back. Though, given the situation, it wouldn't be too far off the bat.
She finally exited the hospital lobby into the parking area, and found both Ludwig and Percival already waiting there with a cab.
"HEY! Security! She's escaping with a patient!" the doctor shouted as she heard his footfalls behind her. Then heavier footsteps joined behind her.
"Get in!" Ludwig shouted. Percival was already inside the yellow car, holding a briefcase.
Sally jumped inside, Percy giggling all the way while Ray was far less excited than her brother.
"FAHRT!" Ludwig roared, entering the passanger's seat. The driver, sweating nervously, stomped on the gas and they skidded off the hospital area. Since nobody told the driver where to go, Sally assumed that Ludwig had already told the driver before they arrived. Percy snickered, probably because Ludwig's shout sounded like 'Fart!'
"Okay, just what is going on?!" Ray shouted, looking extremely confused and disturbed.
"Ve have to get you out of here!" Ludwig shouted back, eyes scanning everything from behind them, beside them, in front of them, and even above them.
"Why?!"
"You are in danger!"
"From what?!"
"Stop shouting!" Sally yelled herself. Both quieted down, though Ludwig was not any less frantic. She sighed, then turned to Ray. "Honey, I hope you understand. We can't tell you anything at the moment. First we have to get you somewhere safe."
The driver was even more sweating nervously than before, eyes flicking from the road to the rearview mirror back and forth. He was probably thinking that his cab was probably filled with people that had loose screws.
Ray's eyebrows furrowed together. "Somewhere... safe?"
"Yes. Please understand."
He and Percival glanced at each other. "Uh... sure, I guess."
Ludwig growled at nothing in particular. "I do not like this. Nothing is chasing us at this moment." He turned around in his seat, looking at his son. "Percival, give me the briefcase,."
Silently, the German child handed his father a black leather briefcase. Ludwig opened it with a 'CLICK' and pulled something out of it. A handgun.
The driver's eyes widened at the sight of the firearm, making the cab swerve slightly, but he didn't pull over. Sally herself almost panicked at the weapon, but then she realized that the handgun was entirely silver, and there was a carving of an owl at the gun's leather grip.
Then she remembered that the Goddess of Wisdom, Athena, had owls as her sacred animal.
She crushed down the slightest of envy in her heart. Of course, she knew that if Poseidon ever interacted with them, even just the slightest thing like giving a gift, there was a high chance something bad would happen to them. But still, she couldn't help but wish.
The gun had perfect timing too, because when they almost reached the Atlantic Beach Bridge, something erupted from underneath the ground right in front of them. And the thing beneath it roared. All the other cars and such vehicles hastily braked while others turned away sharply. Not a few hit each other in the confusion.
"Go around it!" Ludwig ordered, eyes glued to the spot.
As the driver obeyed, a head- a huge lion's head- poked out of the rubble. A loud hiss was heard, and right behind the head, a long reptilian head emerged. Both heads stared at the car she was in.
"GO FASTER!" Ludwig snarled.
"There he is, my dear son!" a woman's voice laughed. A fat woman with green scales as skin, stood behind the lion's blood-coated mane, grinning at them, revealing her sharp teeth. "After them!"