Earlier update today, and I may try and update again later if I can but I make no promises. Whoop, pain for Leo this chap- and Piper is a lil bit crazy and we love her for it. Anyway- happy update, I have been able to start writing again so that's good- I was stuck on one chapter for like a week so I've gotten past that rut at least- though I may not be able to update for a little while soon as I am going on holiday and I don't know if I'll have the time or internet. If I can I will but we shall see. And please please keep reviewing!
Replies:
Quip Scarlet: Awesome! I shall count your vote.
MKDemiGodzilla-Warrior: Your vote's been counted- and you shall see- I'm glad you're enjoying it I will say that.
Undeath9087: Yep, one of the central things in the minific is Estelle's birth- it sets of some events involving Bianca- and by the end you will probably feel very sorry for her. And before all of that they gotta deal with Medea- and Leo might be good but he's gonna have a lil bit of an issue I'm afraid- also, I am both excited and terrified for your review at the same time.
James: Your vote has been counted.
Weirdhead: I haven't forgotten the Magnetic Sally movement don't worry, it's decided by now so it's not been talked about so much! And the vote is counted.
Diamond: Your vote has been counted!
: Yep, a Leo that knows his shit is much better off than a Leo who doesn't. And I've counted your vote!
Guest: I said Bianca would be a central character in the minific- and that the first chapter of it would be bittersweet, and both are true- we get more of an insight into her- and we will feel very sorry for her. And I don't really understand what you mean- we all know there's Greek Roman Hybrids- there won't be any as closely Greek and Roman as Percy but Frank is technically one. Percy and Octavian would just be friends- best friends and almost siblings sort of friendship but friends, no love triangle there, and Hera would do that- because there's no way Poseidon would risk calling her bluff with his daughters life on the line- and if Percy was engaged to Jason then Zeus would have less of a reason to target her when he did inevitably find out.
Chris: Hahaha- then you'd hate the chapters I'm writing right now! Pure fucking pain and angst- someone get these fucking kids a therapist asap. Seriously- we don't ignore highly traumatic experiences or the fact that characters have had suicidal thoughts before and dismiss it- unlike Rick- who I love but totally does do that shit. Of course, pain can then lead to some fluff. But your vote has been counted.
Guest Superhero: I know- a part of me was horrified when I realised that- I love my Luke too much! But then actual Luke was a total asshole, still it will feel weird writing evil Luke I admit that. And your vote has been counted.
ADeadManWalking: Your votes been counted- and canon Octavian is a dick I do agree.
The Official Clarisse: Well, her birth is a central point! It motivates a lot of stuff. And the Jercy would be in the Roman AU so there would be no Perachebeth or Jiper- and Poseidon's secret would be that Percy exists.
Guest: Your vote has been counted my lovely reader.
Poll:
Option 1: 17
Option 2: 16
The woman looked surprised for a second before her eyes narrowed as she focused on Leo, and for the first time she seemed to truly look at him, "Leo Valdez-" she gave a slow smile that made Leo uneasy, "I thought I may have some trouble with the daughter of Aphrodite- not with you." and Leo's hands flared into flames as Piper rushed to Jason's side, grabbing his shoulder and talking to him in a hushed panicked voice as Leo glared fiercely at the sorceress.
"I've met people who have charmspeak before. You're strong-" even now it was very very hard for him to resist it. "But if I can refuse to give Drew Tanaka my food when she's demanding it then I can resist you. Especially now that I know who you are."
"Now now-" Medea's voice was soothing- "You don't want to fight do you?" she tilted her head, "Have you not heard the saying Leo? History is always told by the victors- my story is so very misunderstood."
"Yeah, see, no offence but I'm not to fond of people who kill their own babies-"
Medea snarled, her warm mask cracking. "An invention to ruin my reputation! The people of the Corinth—that unruly mob—killed my children and drove me out. Jason did nothing to protect me. He robbed me of everything-"
"Oh boo hoo." Leo glowered, "Get a grip you old hag-"
"Be careful Leo." Medea's voice was filled with warning, "Have I not been kind to you-" and she had been so kind- she was- he pinched his leg again, harder this time, forcing down his panic.
"Stop that." his voice was sharp, "Stop that-"
"Leo-" Piper's voice was worried "are you-"
"I can fight it." Leo's teeth were gritted, "Get Jason out of here, go down and rescue coach Hedge and get the storm spirits-"
"How very brave of you." Medea's voice was warm, almost delighted, "You truly are a hero aren't you-" there was a darkness in her eyes despite the warmth of her voice. "I long ago stopped trusting heroes young Leo, when they come asking for treasures, they will pay a heavy price. Especially when the one asking has the name of Jason-" her gaze swung towards Jason, "Jason- my dear boy- your friend is threatening me-"
"I-" Jason's gaze clouded again, "Why would- Leo why would you-"
"Oh come on-" Leo forced down his panic- in a fight Jason could probably kick his ass. "Jason she's charmspeaking you-"
"Please Jason- don't let him hurt me- he's dangerous-" and Jason's brows furrowed- he was trying to fight it, that much was obvious.
"But- Leo's my fr-"
"Is he-"
"Jason don't listen to her please!" Piper's voice was pleading, "Please she's controlling you-"
"I'm not Jason." Medea's voice was convincing- it made Leo want to trust her- it took all of his willpower to resist and it wasn't even being aimed at him- his leg was gonna be bruised with pinch marks by the time they got out of this, he was doing it hard too- he had to to keep himself focused. "Please Jason, the boy is dangerous- you know he is. He wants to hurt me- stop him-" and Jason's hand was slipping into his pocket and he pulled out his coin, flipping it into the air- and Leo stepped back as the coin transformed into his golden sword.
"No-" Piper's voice was panicked as Jason started to advance on Leo- and Leo forced down his own panic, his mind racing.
He had no weapons, no nothing, he was going to die he was-" and then suddenly Piper was moving, sprinting towards the railings at the edge of the balcony- which startled Jason into pausing, both of them twisting to watch her clamber onto the edge of the balcony, then she was turning- balancing with her arms outstretched, and Leo felt his heart leaping into his throat.
"Piper no-"
"Jason!" her voice was suddenly far more confident than it had been, "Catch me!" and she leaned backwards and fell- Leo opened his mouth and screamed- and Jason dropped his sword, sprinting towards the railings and vaulting over them, diving after her- and Leo was rushing towards the railings, almost crashing into them as he peered over, watching Piper plummet towards the ground- and then Jason reached her, grabbing her hand and yanking her close- and Leo turned around just in time as he heard Medea move, lunging away from the railings, tossing himself down and sliding across the smooth floor, his fingers quickly curling around the sword as he flipped up and onto his feet, blade pointing towards Medea, "You can back the fuck off right now you witch."
"Very smart." Medea looked angry, "A true hero aren't you?" her fingers were twitching into fists, "You and that blasted daughter of Aphrodite are tricker than I expected- still I know what I'm doing Leo Valdez, I've been preparing for this war for years, even before I was brought back to life. I'm a seer. I can tell the future as well as your little oracle. Years ago, still suffering in the Fields of Punishment, I had a vision of the seven in your so-called Great Prophecy. I saw you here, and saw that you would be an important enemy someday. I stirred the consciousness of my patron, gave her this information, and she managed to wake just a little—just enough to visit you. "
And Leo felt as if he'd been stabbed in the heart.
It was rare that he couldn't think of some smart comment, that he couldn't come up with something to say- but this? This was- it was so much worse than he'd ever expected. "You- you're the reason she-" he could barely get the words out. "My mom- my mom's dead because of you- because of you and Gaea because of this stupid prophecy. You- you wanted to break me you-" he took a step back, lowering the sword slightly out of shock more than anything else- and that would prove to be a fatal mistake- because it allowed Medea to get close enough to him that she could grab what looked like a perfume bottle and quickly spray him in the face with it before he could get away, it smelled nice- he thought absently as he stumbled backwards, kind of like lavender and honey- and then the sword clattered onto the floor, slipping from his grip as he toppled backwards and hit the ground, completely unconscious.
...
Piper could really do with going one whole day without nearly falling to her death somehow- it was happening far too often for her taste- though... at least this time she'd decided to jump herself- and it seemed like her plan had worked because Jason stopped his attempt to murder their friend and he'd ran and dove after her, and Piper had flung her arms around him as soon as he'd managed to catch her wrist and yank her close- his eyes were wide and shocked as the air around them seemed to harden and they were lowered much more slowly to the ground.
"Are you okay?" Jason's voice was shaky, "Piper did that just-"
"Now you're acting normal." Piper huffed the words, "It only took me nearly dying-"
"She- she's Medea she- she was charmspeaking me-"
"Yes." Piper shoved his shoulder gently as she released her grip on him, "You were about to try and kill Leo-"
"Oh gods." Jason paled, "I nearly killed my best friend." he looked upwards, "We should go up there he could need help-"
"We have to trust him." Piper's voice shook slightly- she wanted to rush off and help Leo just as much as Jason did- but he'd told them to get to the Storm Spirits and Coach Hedge so that was what they needed to do- so she caught Jason's hand and dragged him towards the two cages, focusing on Coach Hedge's cage first, "I don't know how to
open it what do we do?"
"If we can't get out of here we need to take the cages too." Jason said slowly, looking around, "But I don't know how we're supposed to do that. Leo would probably be able to do it but-"
"But he's distracted." Piper glanced upwards, a worried frown on her lips, "Do you think he's okay?"
"He's pretty tough." Jason's voice was hesitant, "But-"
"But she's Medea." Piper finished, "One of the the most horrible woman from the old stories." she shook her head, "Leaving Leo to handle her doesn't seem right but what if she takes control of you again if we go back up there- Leo was struggling but he was resisting it."
"You weren't affected." Jason pointed out, "You were amazing- I was useless." he grimaced, and Piper could understand why. It must be horrible, realising that someone had been controlling you like that.
"No, you were just under her control." and Piper suddenly felt very guilty for ever using Charmspeak on mortals- even if she'd never actually known what she was doing when she'd done it. She'd just thought she'd been persuasive and talked them into giving her things and they regretted it later. Knowing just how much she'd controlled them was kind of terrifying, and it wasn't something she'd do if she could avoid it. "That wasn't you fault-"
"Leo broke out of it without you having to leap off a balcony."
"Yeah but Leo's also known Drew for years-"
"Your sister right?"
"Yeah, and she's not the type to hold back, he's probably used to having to try and resist charmspeak from her, you probably haven't had to fight it before."
Jason stared at her for a moment- and Piper hated the fact that she got butterflies at the intense unreadable expression on his face before his expression softened and he reached out, grabbing her hand and squeezing gently. "Thank you." then he was letting go of her hand and stepping back, his gaze shifting to the cages, "I have no clue what to do Piper."
"Well..." Piper pressed her lips together, "Is there some way we can attach wheels or something so that we can push them?"
"That'd be Leo's field of expertise not mine." Jason admitted, a frown on his lips, "And he's busy-" they both paused at the ding of elevator doors opening and they spun around to look in the direction of the elevator- and Piper felt horror flood through her at the sight of Medea dragging the unconscious son oh Hephaestus along by the back of his tee- and in her other hand she had Jason's sword.
"Leo!" Jason went to rush forward but Piper gripped his hand tighter, yanking him backwards.
"Wait!"
"I'd be careful if I was you." Medea's voice was mocking, "You wouldn't like sweet young Leo to get even more hurt than he already is now would you?" it was almost singsong, and Piper felt tense, almost as bad as Jason, who was as tightly strung as a bow, he looked ready to spring for the woman. "Piper, dear, why don't you let me kill the boys. I'm doing you a favor. Let it happen now, and it will make your choice so much easier. Enceladus will be pleased. You could have your father back today!"
Medea's charmspeak didn't work on her, but the sorceress still had a persuasive voice. Her father back today? Despite her best intentions, Piper wanted that. She wanted her father back so much, it hurt. But not enough to betray her friends, to betray Leo who hadn't even hesitated to tell her that they'd find a way to save him.
"You work for Enceladus," she said.
Medea laughed. "Serve a giant? No. But we all serve the same greater cause—a patron you cannot begin to challenge. Walk away, child of Aphrodite. This does not have to be your death, too. Save yourself, and your father can go free. "
"You don't know Piper." Jason's voice was grim, "If you think she'd agree to that."
"Listen to me, girl. " Medea let go of Jason's sword, dropping it as she plucked a diamond off her bracelet and threw it into a spray of water from the fountain. As it passed through the multicolored light, Medea said, "O Iris, goddess of the rainbow, show me the office of Tristan McLean. "
The mist shimmered, and Piper saw her father's study. Sitting behind his desk, talking on the phone, was her dad's assistant, Jane, in her dark business suit, her hair swirled in a tight bun.
"Hello, Jane," Medea said.
Jane hung up the phone calmly. "How can I help you, ma'am? Hello, Piper. "
"You—" Piper was so angry she could hardly talk.
"Yes, child," Medea said. "Your father's assistant. Quite easy to manipulate. An organized mind for a mortal, but incredibly weak. "
"Thank you, ma'am," Jane said.
"Don't mention it," Medea said. "I just wanted to congratulate you, Jane. Getting Mr. McLean to leave town so suddenly, take his jet to Oakland without alerting the press or the police—well done! No one seems to know where he's gone. And telling him his daughter's life was on the line—that was a nice touch to get his cooperation. "
"Yes," Jane agreed in a bland tone, as if she were sleepwalking. "He was quite cooperative when he believed Piper was in danger. "
Piper looked down at her dagger. The blade trembled in her hand. She couldn't use it for a weapon any better than Helen of Troy could, but it was still a looking glass, and what she saw in it was a scared girl with no chance of winning.
"I may have new orders for you, Jane," Medea said. "If the girl cooperates, it may be time for Mr. McLean to come home. Would you arrange a suitable cover story for his absence, just in case? And I imagine the poor man will need some time in a psychiatric hospital. "
"Yes, ma'am. I will stand by. "
The image faded, and Medea turned to Piper. "There, you see?"
"You were the one who lured Piper's dad into a trap." Jason's voice was horrified, and Piper had never wanted to kill before now. Not really, but right now, seeing that, seeing Leo looking so helpless? Her best friend utterly at some bitches mercy? She was ready to kill.