Cora: I Open Up My Pain

I don't know what came over me. I just ran, and ran, and ran. Where I was going I didn't know. I had a vague impression of trees. But my eyes were shut and tears were threatening to over flow. I kept going, I never felt myself get tired, if anything it felt good.

When I stopped I realized where I was. I was in the woods. I shouldn't be here; Annabeth and Percy said they were stocked with monsters. But to be honest, I didn't care. I was surrounded by mammoth trees that looked hundreds of year old; a small clear pond was across the semi-clearing I was in. Please let there be no annoying Naiads there. I didn't want to deal with anyone – human or magical - right now.

I sat down against a tree trunk. The tears behind my eyes finally came out. I curled into a ball and sobbed. I cried and screamed into myself.

What are you doing? said that voice. You do not cry! You are strong, this is for the weak!

SHUT UP! I screamed back at it. I felt like that voice wasn't my own now; like it was someone else. I kept crying. No one could understand how confusing this was. I felt like this one little piece was missing, and then, maybe, I could find out who I was.

Slowly my wild sobs quieted. Until I was basically whimpering with tears escaping my eyes, the tears made my face wet. Then I heard a noise. I stiffened and looked around. Please, oh please, don't let it be a monster. Despite the horrible way my life was going, I didn't really want to die!

I swivelled my head around searching for the source of the sound. To my right I noticed movement. I scrubbed my hand across my cheeks to wipe away any trace of tears, just in case it was a person.

That Hunter boy stepped out from the foliage. I blinked and looked away. I would not let him see how miserable I was. He walked over and crouched beside me.

"Are . . . are you okay?" he asked me quietly.

"Yeah . . . I guess so," I told him, my voice cracking. I was shaking.

"No, you're not. Why are you out here?" he tried to make me face him. He seemed to have a small smile on his face. I pushed him away. I didn't want to deal with anyone.

"I don't know. I wasn't really looking," I muttered.

"You do realize you're speaking French," he told me.

"Stop saying that! I am not!" I screamed at him. Calm down I told myself, He didn't do anything, just calm down.

"Sorry, I – I didn't mean . . . I just . . ." he mumbled scuttling backwards.

"It's not your fault. It's just . . ." I felt the tears again.

"It's just what? What's wrong?" he asked me.

"Nothing, forget it. I don't want to talk about it," I muttered. If he really did speak French, then he might not know what had been happening all day. I couldn't tell my horrible tale. I didn't even understand it! I sooner give myself up to the Naiads then tell it out loud.

"It is something. Can you at least tell me what all this is about? I have no idea what anyone said," he sounded sincere.

"No, I won't, I won't ever tell it," I told him squeezing my eyes shut.

"Why not?"

I took a shaky breath. "Because I won't," I said turning to face him and opening my eyes a crack.

He opened his mouth to reply, but then he noticed something. I glanced down and realized he was looking at my Soul Key. That was a little creepy. He reached out and held it lightly in his hand. A tingling spread over my whole body.

"Where did you get this?" He whispered. Why was it so important to him?

"I don't know . . . Why?" I replied, the tingling getting more intense.

"I have one that – that . . ." His voice faded away into nothing

I was going to reply, when my body exploded in pain. It felt like my molecules were trying to break apart. I cried out, it hurt so much. I felt like something was ripping me apart from the inside.

"Hu – Hunter!" I gasped, barely able to breathe. "Let go!" My sight was blurring; my body was screaming in pain. I couldn't get air into my lungs. He yelped and let go.

Then it stopped, I lay on my back breathing heavily. Hunter crouched over me looking extremely worried. For a moment I thought he was going to do CPR or something (okay really? I have no memory but I know a bunch of stuff? Wherever I was raised must have been good at teaching people . . . I guess . . .). I calmed my breathing before sitting up clutching my spinning head.

"What happened? What did I do? You're not hurt are you?" he asked.

"I – I'm fine, I don't know what happened. Could we maybe just forget it?" He nodded and I gave a grateful smile. I blocked what had happened from my mind.

"All right. I'll forget it. Can you tell me what has you so upset now?" He was persistent. I sighed and looked away.

"No, I can't. I can't talk about it."

"Why not?" he pressed.

"Because no one understands!" I burst. So much for keeping quiet.

"I might, no one understands me. After all I've been here for two years and I've never had a real friend . . ." He said quietly. I stared at him.

"Really?" I asked him.

"Yeah, mostly from the language barrier," he said. "But can you tell me what's wrong?"

"I . . . I can't. It's hard to tell . . ." I looked away. Don't cry, don't cry, whatever you do, don't cry, I chanted in my head.

At that moment a low scuttling sound came from behind us. We shot to our feet and stood back-to-back surveying the trees, looking for the cause of the sound. The tree in front of me shook, the underbrush quivered. A scorpion pushed through the forest growth and stopped dead before me.

I could only stare at the huge, glistening amber coloured arachnid. Its beady black eyes bore into me. It was easily twice my height. I swallowed, I couldn't move. That's when it lunged.

Hunter grabbed my arm and shoved me behind him. He drew a dagger out from somewhere. A dagger. Against a giant beast. That wouldn't end well. He would get himself killed – and then I would die.

Once again, my body acted for me. Hunter was dangerously parrying the scorpion's tail with his dagger the best he could, but he wouldn't be able to lay a blow – he could barely defend. Suddenly I was on my feet with a gleaming silver sword in my hand. I charged the monster, jumping off a rock that edged the pond. Then I was on its back. Standing extremely close to its stinger, I slashed and cut the tail off at the base. The monster let out a piercing hiss and crumbled away in to dust.

I fell to the ground, the sword was gone. Disappeared as if it had never been. I landed so abruptly my shoulders whacked the earth and I would have fallen into the pond had Hunter not grabbed my arm.

"What . . . what just happened?" I mumbled in a daze, my ears were strangely ringing.

"How did you do that? Where did that sword come from? You just single-handedly took out a giant scorpion!" Hunter was excited.

"I – I don't know . . . it just happened," I admitted sitting up.

"Does this have to do with what you wouldn't tell me earlier?" he asked.

"Probably. And I'm sorry, this is my fault," I said tearing up.

"Don't say that."

"It is," I looked at him. His eyes, green with brown, they were full of concern. They tugged at my conscience. But I didn't even know him. "You promise you won't tell?" I asked in a small voice. He nodded.

"I couldn't even if I wanted to," he said. I gave a small smile; I wanted to trust him. Then I started my sad, short tale. Once I started I found I couldn't stop. It just kept rushing out of me, I told him everything – waking up with no memory, the monsters, the strange things I felt; everything - everything but the voice. Something told me not to mention that. When I was done, I was almost in tears again.

"So that's what this is all about," he said.

"Yes, and – and no one gets how hard and confusing this all is!" I cried. Here they were, the tears. Flowing ever faster down my face.

"Oh gods Cora, I am so sorry. But maybe you'll figure something out. I promise I won't tell anyone this, and you'll find a way to remember," Hunter promised. I sniffed and nodded. Scrubbing my eyes I wiped away the tears the best I could.

I noticed through the treetops that the sun was getting low in the sky. I heard footsteps and voices behind us. Standing up and looking around I saw Annabeth, Grover (that is his name right . . . ?), and Percy walking up to us.

When they saw us,their expression said they clearly had been out here for a reason. Why did I have a feeling it had to do with me?