A/N: HAPPY BELATED HALLOWEEN! For those of you who don't know, Halloween's my all-time favorite holiday, and oml I had so much fun XD My friends and I went to a top-rated haunted house, and I decided to bite the bullet and stand in the front of our formation. (Front and back are the scariest places, but I refused to take back *shudders* Imho back is worse.)
Come to think of it, I'm definitely the most reckless psycho out of all of us XP Either way, it was great fun, and we had fun screaming and laughing at each other.
Hope y'all enjoyed the holiday if you celebrate it, and also Happy belated Diwali to my fellow brown babes lol. I def ate way too much sugar.
(PS I'm sorry it took so long to update. I was v occupied these past two weeks.)
Disclaimer: All rights remain.
Percy
"I am not saying I'm a prophet, only that I had a prophetic dream!"
"He lies!" someone shouted from the midst of the mob.
"How could that be possible?"
"Because it is my name! Because Calbourne means something even if you try and strip it from me! Because my bloodline represents royalty better than anyone else, and we have both the best and the worst of heroes and villains! What others say about me and what I say about myself are entirely different things!" Percy argued, losing his resolve. He was aware he sounded crazy but—this was getting out of hand. He was many things, but a liar was not one of them. However bitter a thought, he would leave the lying to his brother.
Percy was dimly aware of Annabeth fighting her way through the crowd to calm him down. He didn't want her in this circle of hatred. What if someone hit her or something crazy? He stepped away from her, her efforts rendered futile.
"He acts as if he is one with the gods, living among them! A cockroach on their council of divination and all that is real and right!"
Let's just say that exposing his dream of the girl in that white room, that Atlas girl had not been wise. He hadn't said all—he wasn't stupid—but he had told them that he'd seen a young woman with blonde hair and a pale, skinny face in his dream. He had left out the Atlas tattoo. There was just something inside of him telling him that it was her secret to keep, and he didn't tell them of the empty room either, not trusting of these people.
"He withheld information even if he is being truthful!" Some girl with dark hair pointed a skinny finger at him.
Percy's jaw tensed. "Shall I recount every dream for you at the crack of dawn?" he drawled sarcastically. "Shall I take you on a journey in my mind so that you can experience PTSD with me?" he queried, exasperated. "Or shall I just stab you in the heart with a blade of my own so that you can experience it in real life?" Annabeth was horrified, but he couldn't find it in him to give a fuck.
"He threatens us now! You see it before your very eyes and your ears do not fail you!"
"He's a witch! He killed Calypso!" a young man accused, fear etched across his face.
This time Annabeth whirled around and smacked him, and hard. "Have you lost it entirely? Are you so weak as to submit to mass hysteria? We aren't living in Salem, Massachusetts in the 1600s; there will be no burning of anybody!" Annabeth was screaming too and Percy flinched at the realization. She always had control, no matter the craziest of situations, which only proved that collective fear was stronger than the bravest of forces.
Thalia, too, had fallen victim to raising her voice as the scenario erupted into sheer chaos. "Quiet down, all of you!" she demanded. "He saved my life!" she protested, but there was no use reasoning with fear. A title of lieutenant could not mask emotion.
"Put him on trial!"
"No, just kill him; we gave him a chance once, and look how that turned out!"
"This isn't going to help Calypso!" Leo tried to make his voice heard.
"She's dead, man! He's killed her!"
"He has not!" It was Rachel this time, shoving her way to the front. Her green eyes blazed with fury. "He has committed no crime!"
"It runs in the family! They're all traitors!"
"The only thing that runs in the family is vivid dreams!" Annabeth cried out. She had read up on the Calbournes well before he had ever stepped foot into her castle.
"Calypso was loved! Save the victim!"
Reyna was breaking up a fight between Thalia and a Canadian boy. Percy watched as they turned on each other. "That's enough!" Reyna rarely raised her voice, but she did now. Still, the silence never came. Not until—
"I believe him," said Piper, and it started with a few people, but it slowly dwindled down to a stunned silence. Percy suspected it was because the Queen had herself awarded Piper a bandana, had given a royal like her this new honor in all of history. But how was Piper to defend his cause? Knots strangled him from the inside out.
"My mother, Aphrodite, and his father, Poseidon, have always been good friends, especially when Sally Jackson was the Queen," she began, and Percy scanned the dirty faces of the rebellion, but not one of her comrades dared stop her from talking. She looked to him for support and he just shrugged. This was in her hands and in her conscience, not his.
"But my mother is… an interesting individual. She can be quite petty, as I'm sure some of you know."
There were some scoffs, a few snickers. Piper didn't bat an eyelash.
"I believe Percy because," she hesitated, "Poseidon predicted me."
Percy's eyebrows furrowed together. What the hell was she talking about?
"As you all know, I'm the youngest of my family, and Aphrodite desperately wanted a son. It's not a surprise she wanted to uphold the family name as all royals do."
Reyna's jaw clenched.
"So because she knew Percy's father so well and his entire family, she asked him if he foresaw anything. Poseidon said no, he hadn't seen anything. And then one day, perhaps three months before my arrival, Poseidon had a vision, and he told my mother right away. He claimed to have heard the voices of the heavens above, and that they were singing, and that I, too, would sound like the angels."
It was no secret that the Raya family had beautiful voices, but none had been able to sing like Aphrodite's grandmother again, not after some time.
"I was to be another singer, thus giving me the name Piper," the Raya daughter explained. Some seemed skeptical, but others were fully immersed in her story. Percy nodded slowly at her words when she met his eyes again, encouraging her. He knew where this was going. Clever girl; how on Earth had she remembered this?
"Well, Aphrodite was angry, obviously, said he was lying. She cut off trade and we were starved of fish for three months—I remember because when I was younger, Drew, you all know her, told me that without a certain type of fish she'd had less clear complexion—and Percy's home was devoid of all our unique herbs."
"My mom missed saffron," Percy recalled quietly, and people glanced at him in surprise, as if they hadn't expected him to be able to use words and formulate thoughts. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
"Once I was born, I was just as Poseidon had predicted. Kaleidoscope eyes, a singing voice to rival my great grandmother's, and a girl, of course. Aphrodite apologized and they went back to trading and being friends, until Medusa of course, then they grew apart more, but that's not my point. My point is that having visions that end up to be true is just a unique trait that runs in the Calbourne bloodline, just as our voices run in my family. I'm sure the current King of Thasite has similar experiences."
A throb went through his chest. Percy remembered Luke recalling little things when they were little, like guessing when their pet turtle was going to die a week before, all because of a vision. His brother surely shared the same gift. Or curse.
"Percy's ancestors, to Poseidon's mother, to Poseidon, to Percy, all the way down to his little brother, and maybe someday their children, it is a Calbourne truth. So he is not engaging in witchcraft," she shot a glare at a man in the crowd who shrunk under her harsh gaze, "nor is he an untruthful liar who should be sentenced to death," Piper insisted.
"Is this true?" Reyna demanded, turning to Percy.
He looked her in the eye, not a drop of fear in his blood. "Yes."
"All of it?" Thalia pressed, her eyes like saucers.
"Down to the last detail of Aphrodite's pettiness," he confirmed. He rose up to the scrutinizing gaze, holding his head high.
"I still don't believe it!" someone cried out from the crowd with fear flickering on their face. Percy shook his head at them, at a loss for words, but Reyna turned to the straggler with a sharp look.
"We must be better; we were created to be better. I believe him, and as far as I'm concerned, that's all that matters. My family, too, has its strange secrets and abilities like many do. I will not fault a man for his truth," Reyna bit out. "And I will certainly not allow such violence from men and women who hope to change the world. We will surely be having a discussion about this later, with the Queen, all of you." She paused and glanced at him.
"But first, we must collectively set aside our different beliefs and interpret his vision to the best of our abilities. If it rings true in the end, we will have done our best to prevent more disastrous outcomes and we will be prepared for what is to come."
Annabeth stepped out of the crowd. Her hair was frizzy and Percy had no doubt in his mind that she'd fought tooth and nail to move forward. "Very wise, General. Percy, please enlighten us once more with your dream, and omit no detail. We can figure this out." Her grey eyes were large and curious and Percy felt the tension left in him evaporate with her words.
Then he began, telling them of the girl in his dream, of the vacant prepped cell, of the way she'd smelled and looked and cried, and with concealed anger, Leo identified that it was indeed his friend Calypso. He still kept the Atlas tattoo a secret, despite Annabeth's demand. Perhaps he would talk to her of it later, when it was just the two of them with no prying intruders or vengeful Amazons.
Percy then spoke of the men in his dream, and that was fairly sure he'd been in the White Hospital.
"I just don't know who they are," he admitted, shrugging to himself after describing both men. "The one with blue eyes… he seemed so familiar, like I've seen him once before, but I couldn't quite place my finger on it."
Annabeth pursed her lips. "Figure out who's in the dream and we potentially figure who's running this whole operation."
"Exactly," he agreed, looking up at her helplessly. Percy glanced at the faces of Annabeth's friends, only to stop at Jason's.
Jason had gone a pale white and his fists were scrunched at his sides in tight balls. "You said he had white hair too? And a scrunchy sort of face?"
Percy nodded, tilting his head at Annabeth's best friend and former bodyguard.
Jason looked at Annabeth. "I'm surprised you didn't recognize him earlier."
"You know?" Percy hissed, equally surprised, and yet, pleased.
"Of course. Make no mistake, there's only one person with a permanent scowl and a sour attitude with ice skin, though I haven't heard much of him since some of the first wars from when I was just a boy."
"And?" Annabeth asked expectantly. She flexed her fingers nervously.
"Everyone's favorite sunshine." Jason's mouth turned down. "Octavian Langen."
Annabeth
Since that night, Percy's bedchamber had become theirs. It was a wordless agreement, giving them both something to hold on to. They were both much too tired to do much more than sleep, though she was sure gossiping Canadians and Amazons thought differently.
She was pretty sure Jason thought so as well, but not Piper. Piper had an intuition for that sort of thing. Annabeth hadn't even kissed Percy since that night. They were past those surface level forms of affection, treasuring them on the rare instance, but otherwise simply finding comfort in being near each other.
Part of her wanted to join in the larger sleeping rooms, where the children whispered into the night and Hazel shushed them all. It helped them bond, but Annabeth knew she would only frighten them, so she stayed with Percy, the only person who didn't really fear her, or her royal background, or the fact that she dragged the corpse of a Queen throughout a kingdom.
Percy didn't keep her awake on purpose, but every night Annabeth felt him stir. His nightmares were worse than hers, and she knew exactly what he was dreaming of: the moment he severed his father's head from his shoulders. She pretended to sleep through it, knowing he wouldn't want to be seen in such a state, but she felt his tears on her cheeks. Sometimes they felt like they were burning her, but she didn't wake up with any new scars. At least not the kind that could be seen.
Even though they spent every night together, Percy and Annabeth didn't talk much. There wasn't much to say beyond their duties. She didn't tell him about the second note that she found on a body during another invasion, or the next ones. (But Luke still hadn't come after her, despite somehow tracking her at all times, which was even more confounding.) Though Luke was far away, he still managed to sit between her and the Crown Prince.
Annabeth could see him in Percy's eyes, a toad squatting in his brother's head, trying to poison from the inside out. He was doing the same thing to her, both in the notes and in her memories. She couldn't quite figure out why, but she couldn't destroy either of them, and she told no one of their existence.
She should've burned them, but she didn't.
Annabeth found another letter in Canada, during a recruitment. She had known Luke was on his way to the area, visiting the last major city before seeing how his armies were faring. Percy had agreed that they could beat him there. Instead, they found the King already gone.
June 29
I expected you at my coronation. It seemed like the kind of thing your Amazons would love to try to ruin, even though it was quite small. We're still supposed to be mourning Father, and a grand affair would seem disrespectful. Especially with Percy still out there, running around with you and your rabble. A precious few still owe allegiance to him, according to what my mother had said, but don't worry; they will be dealt with. No royal succession crisis will come and take my brother from your leash. If you could, wish my brother a happy early birthday for me. I've always liked telling him ahead of time, and besides, I just want to make sure to say it before it's his last.
But yours is coming, isn't it? I don't doubt we'll spend it together.
Sleep safe,
L.
His voice spoke every word, using the ink like knives. For a moment, her stomach churned, threatening to spill her dinner all over the dirt floor. The nausea passes long enough for annabeth to slip out of Percy's embrace, to her box of supplies in the corner. Like at her castle, she kept her trinkets hidden, and two more of Luke's notes, still dipped in an unmistakable red, are crumpled at the bottom.
Annabeth felt something like hands around her throat, threatening to squeeze the life from her. Each word tightened the grip, as if ink alone could strange her. For a second, she feared she might not ever breathe again. Not because Luke still insisted on tormenting her, no, the reason is much worse.
Because she missed him. Annabeth missed the boy she thought he was.
Percy stirred in the bed behind her, not from a nightmare, but because it was time to wake. Hastily, she shoved the notes away, and left the room before he could open his eyes. She didn't want to see his pity, not yet. That would be too much to bear.
"Happy birthday, Percy," she whispered to the empty tunnel hall.
…
They hadn't spoken in weeks, and she hadn't realized how much she missed him.
For a moment, Annabeth debated blurting out everything, but fought the painful urge. It hurt to hold back, to not tell him about Luke's notes, or the dead faces she saw every night, or how Percy's nightmares kept him awake. She wanted to tell him everything.
He knew Princess Annabeth as no one else did, as she knew the boy in Jason, but those people were gone. Those people had to be gone. They could not survive in a world like their own. She needed to be someone else, someone who didn't rely on anything but her own strength. He made it too easy to slip back into Annabeth, and forget the person she needed to be.
Silence lingered, soft as the clouds in the bright blue sky.
"If you die, I'll kill you."
Jason smiled sadly. "Likewise."
He was off to scout the borders of Thasite, hoping to gain more information on the Boy King's plans. Annabeth wanted to protect him as much as she wanted to protect Malcolm, and yet, both of her brothers, one of blood and one of choice, were out of her control. Both were headstrong, like her, and though they were perhaps more cautious still, worry gnawed at her aching soul.
"Besides, don't count on my death so quickly."
Annabeth's face darkened. "You know I have to."
A sympathetic expression flitted across his face.
"Being a pessimist is great; I'm always either right or pleasantly surprised." She attempted to lighten the mood.
"The optimistic outlook on pessimism," Jason noted.
Annabeth rolled her eyes.
"The paradox is high in this one." He grinned, but it didn't feel like him.
"What did Piper say?" Annabeth decided to ask finally.
Jason shrugged. "Good luck?" His cheeks flushed though, and annabeth knew that Piper had probably kissed him because that was a thing now, too.
"Idiot."
Jason pulled her close to him, resting his chin on top of her head. He had grown taller than Percy even, and she felt small next to him, but she was proud of all he'd become. "Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone."
"Says the guy running off to battle," she retorted, but she hugged him with a fierceness that surprised them both.
He offered a crooked smile before pulling away and clasping his hands behind his back, respectfully. He opened his mouth to talk, but she cut him off before he could.
"If you say bye, we're no longer friends," Annabeth informed him.
Jason laughed incredulously. "Why not?"
"You know why." People didn't say bye before battle unless they were going to die.
He took on a more somber tone. "I know. Love you," he said instead, and kissing her forehead in a way that reminded her of Malcolm too much, Jason rode off in the night, flanked by some Canadians. She told herself that she would be too busy to miss him, consoling herself in the warm summer night as he vanished over the horizon, but even she knew it was a lie.
…
Percy didn't sleep that night at all, and for a moment Annabeth feared for her friends who were traveling. Hazel had gone with Jason, too, having already been to the Thasite castle with Annabeth. She felt guilty, but she hounded him for his dreams, but he said he had not dreamt of Jason at all.
"A man with chocolate brown hair," he said instead, shaking his head.
"Oh." Despite herself, a pang of relief hits her, and then guilt. Someone had still died. "Who?"
"I didn't…" Percy froze, his face going a sickly shade of green. "Fucking hell."
"Percy?" The panic was back. "Percy!"
"King Tristan," he said finally.
Annabeth felt like throwing up. She hated Tristan, she really did. He'd killed Zoe in that cage so long ago, but he was Piper's father despite it all. "I suppose we'll have to tell her. And the entire council that a royal is dead," she said, remembering almost as an afterthought. "How?"
"Front line of the war. But he's not the only one, Annabeth." There was a line of concern in his forehead.
"Percy?" She felt small all over again, like an ant to be squashed.
"I-I think King Frederick died too."
"You mean to tell me three Kings are dead?"
"My father, yours, and Piper's. Malcolm will surely be coronated soon. As for Tristan, Charles Beckendorf and Silena had already taken over." He spoke fondly like he knew Beckendorf personally, which Annabeth was sure he did. "The only one still in rule is King Hades, but Nico's set to take over soon, and get married."
But Nico was so young. Annabeth's heart squeezed.
"I'm sorry, Wise Girl," Percy whispered. She supposed she should've missed her father, and she was sure Malcolm was grieving, and Athena, too, but she didn't. That only made her feel worse.
"How's Aphrodite faring? What if she goes on a killing streak? You know she's always had a penchant for malicious behavior and theatrics, a mini Medusa."
Percy stared at her like she was an unfeeling, cold alien, and Annabeth found herself drawing away from him.
"Forget I asked."
She was beginning to feel like that alien, anyways.
…
When Jason came back four days later, she squeezed him so hard he feared his ribs would crack. She threatened him not to tell anyone, and he just laughed and kissed her cheek before hurrying off to take a shower and surprise Piper, who had not heard of his return yet.
Only later did she learn that Phoebe, one of Reyna and Thalia's closest friends, and the best Amazon tracker other than the Queen herself, hadn't returned like the others.
Jason's eyes still glossed over when he told her the story, telling her that they couldn't bring the body back, that he was so sorry. Thalia didn't cry, only stormed out to the stream and sat there for a few hours, but Rachel's chest heaved and she had to excuse herself as the tears fell down her face. Hazel held her and they cried together.
…
"Tiresias," Annabeth stated. "He's the solution to all our problems."
"Tiresias?" Reyna raised an eyebrow. She was perched on a thick maple branch that twisted stretched out to the water. "I haven't heard that name since I was a girl, not that I remember what all the fuss about him was in the first place."
"Hear me out," she reasoned, spreading her arms. Thalia momentarily looked up from sharpening her knife, her back against the wide trunk of the tree. She shrugged, wary, but allowing the blonde to continue.
Annabeth twisted two blades of grass between her fingers as she talked. "I went into town the other day to restock some Amazon supplies and I overheard these two boys talking at the end of a vendor's table, and they were talking about this young man, Tiresias. He's our age, a little younger than me I think, but some say he can see the future."
Thalia's blade fell in the water with a distracting splash. She cursed, reaching into the shallow water and drawing out a dripping weapon. She dried it on her shirt, glancing up at the ex-Princess.
"That can't be true." The General frowned, sitting forward. "No one can predict the future."
"Monsters don't exist either," Annabeth pointed out, and Thalia flinched on her left. Percy had told her nothing, only that Thalia hadn't reacted the cyclops well.
Reyna chewed her bottom lip. "But there must be a logical reason behind that, and we know it has something to do with Octavian, that he's the one behind the crazy master plan of the White Hospital. There's no possible logical reasoning behind predicting the future."
Annabeth tilted her head to one side. "I suppose." Her mind flitted to Calypso, still locked up in the cold place. They had plans to bust her out of that prison later that very day. "But if he can truly see the future, then…" she trailed off, the answer obvious. "We could prevent so much death," she whispered. "We could figure out how to corner Luke, seeing as he's been so evasive so far. We could win."
Thalia looked sort of queasy. "You're treading dangerous territory, blondey."
Reyna was quiet. "No one can play the role of the Gods."
Annabeth blinked. "I know. I'm just saying; it couldn't hurt to try."
Reyna pursed her lips. "Why bring this up now?"
"Well, for one thing, I'm not on display in front of a court for all to see and distrust."
The corner of Thalia's mouth turned up at Annabeth's comment.
"Additionally, I bring this up because we're busting the White Hospital today to try and get to the bottom of this cruel system Octavian has either created or participated in. I bring this up because the boys in front of that vendor, they were talking that Tiresias has been locked up in the White Hospital, also. Maybe if we save him, he'll feel inclined to help us," she thought out loud, scheming. "We could ask him some questions, get some answers, and we don't have to listen to him, but perhaps his insight could help us in some way. Take his words with a grain of salt, but keep them in the back of our mind as a blueprint. Besides, if he chooses to stay with us and accepts our offer to protect him, we alone possess the knowledge of the future. Even if he won't tell us more, he can't tell anyone anything else either, giving us an advantage."
Reyna considered their options, but didn't Thalia seem on board, at all. Thalia shook her head. "Whatever he says will either be a lie, or worse, if it's somehow true, we're fucking with divine intervention and something beyond us. It's risky."
"Risks are required for the success of a revolution," Annabeth insisted.
"I don't like it," Thalia refused. "It's not up to me, but I vote against it. Reyna?"
The Puerto Rican rolled her tongue on the inside of her cheek. "Sorry, Thalia. If it's a chance, no matter how small, it's worth it. I remember my father saying the Devil was in that boy when he was born. My entire city believed it to be true, and even if it's not, what's the harm?"
"What's the harm?" Thalia pressed. "What if something goes wrong? Why can't we just stick to the plan of releasing Calypso and leave? Once we talk to Calypso, then we can talk some more if we should really go back for the future-boy or not."
Annabeth shook her head. "It's too risky to visit that cursed hospital twice. It's more efficient to get in and out once."
Thalia threw her hands up in frustration. "Fine. If Reyna agrees, and the Queen, go for it. But I'm coming with you to interrogate Tiresias. I don't fucking trust him."
Annabeth tore the blades of grass in half and scattered them among the green. "Sure."
…
"Jason," Annabeth hissed. "You take the left flank, and Reyna will take the right," she instructed. He nodded in understanding, taking off down the dark hallway. Annabeth took a sharp turn to the left, Thalia and Percy on her trail. "And we shall find Tiresias," she whispered to herself.
…
They passed room after room, many empty, some filled, but Annabeth would shut the door before the prisoner could scream and alert security of their presence. And then finally, on the last corridor to the exit of the White Hospital, she spotted him. He was huddled in the corner of his room, dressed in white like all the other prisoners, but his face was clear, as if the isolation and blinding white didn't bother him. Annabeth's heart pounded in her chest, nerves nipping at her senses.
Tiresias had dark black hair and upon further inspection, she realized his eyes were clear and milky. He was blind, she understood with a jolt.
"Annabeth Chase, I presume?" He smiled coolly, but something about it was unnerving. Thalia glared at him next to her, not that he could see her anyways. Percy's fingers twitched, as if he was aching to draw his sword. "I've been expecting you."
"Expecting me?" Her mouth went dry. "You shouldn't even know I'm here. You can't see me, and I was much too quiet, much too careful," she argued.
He nonchalantly tore another strip on the ends of his hospital gown, and Annabeth glanced down, counting four. He must have been here a while, she inferred. "But that's entirely the reason you're here," he rejected her claim. "Because I knew you were coming, but you did not."
"So it's true?" Annabeth inquired. Thalia rolled her eyes, tightening her knuckles around the hilt of her spear. "You can see the future?"
"Of course. Why do you think they locked me in this place? For fun? I'm their little freak." He grinned and Annabeth's blood ran cold.
"Will you come with us?" she asked, fearless. Thalia cringed. "We, the Amazons, we offer you protection from all other forces in trade for your knowledge, in return for you not sharing your predictions with others," she promised.
Tiresias shook his head. "I can see the future; I don't need a protector."
Perhaps she hadn't thought through this quite as well as she thought. Refusing to be denied so easily, Annabeth glanced around the room for inspiration. "Well, you can't have been entirely untouchable if these people locked you up here," she reasoned. "Come with us. We'll save you."
Tiresias shook his head once more. "No, thanks. I knew they were coming for me. I let it happen. This place is safer than out there."
"This is torture," Annabeth argued.
"No," he said, and he smiled again. The certainty in his voice rubbed Annabeth the wrong way.
She tried another tactic. "Luke will be after you too, you know. He will try to kill you."
Tiresias offered a placid smile. "You think I do not know the moment I die? I do, I assure you, Miss Chase, and it will not be at the King's hands."
"How do we even know he's telling the truth?" Thalia voiced. Percy instinctively stepped closer to Thalia, taking her side.
"She makes a fair point," Percy noted, looking at Annabeth, but she just frowned.
"He knew my name."
"Everyone knows your name," Thalia shot back.
"He's blind," she tried again.
"Maybe another person nearby saw you," Percy reasoned.
The dread in Annabeth's stomach coiled. She didn't know how she knew, but something was telling her that this man was telling the truth, that he could indeed see past what they saw, could comprehend a future unimaginable to them.
"It's alright," Tiresias said. "You come to believe me."
Annabeth shuddered.
"Sometime around the time you discover the girl's apparent amnesia." He sounded smug and then he paused. "Chiron is a friend, is he not?"
Percy's hand slipped behind them, and she opened her palm, letting him take her hand in his. Now, she realized, both of their hands were trembling.
"Yes. Is he still alive?" Percy inquired. Annabeth felt a lump in her throat and found she couldn't swallow it.
"Yes, but he is scheduled for execution by King Luke. Him and Kayla Knowles."
Annabeth felt sick. The next few moments passed by strangely, them asking their questions, and Tiresias answering before they could even finish each inquiry.
"Luke plans to announce their executions publically to set another trap for you both. They are being held at Atlantis Prison, just off the border of Thasite."
Percy made a sound in the back of his throat, and Annabeth had no doubt he recognized the name. He opened his mouth to say something, but Tiresias beat him to it, anticipating his statement beforehand.
"It isn't an abandoned place as you believe, Perseus, simply rebuilt for royal imprisonment."
Percy cringed at the use of his full name, clearly uncomfortable.
"But no, all that reconstruction isn't just for Chiron and Kayla. There are other dissenters within the cells, imprisoned for questioning the new King or crossing his mother when she was alive. And the monsters are proving to be just as difficult as the royals."
"Monsters?" exploded from Annabeth. Her eyes were wide as she cut off Tiresias, but he continued at rapid-fire.
"The ones you never ran into. They were taken to observe, to examine, but Chiron refused the study them. Even after… persuasion."
Bile rose in Annabeth's mouth. Persuasion could only mean torture.
"There are things much worse than pain, Miss Chase," Tiresias said softly. "They will be used as weapons, all of them, and they are at the mercy of Luke and his advisors." He glanced at Percy, who looked down. "And that is a very dark road, indeed. You cannot allow this to happen." He tore yet another strip down the white cotton. "It would be fatal."
"What happens if we free Chiron and the others?" She leaned forward. "Can you see that?"
If he was lying, she couldn't tell, and Annabeth was a master lie-detector. "No. I only see the current path, and however far it leads. For example, I see you now, surviving Luke's trap in two days, only to die in four days later. You waited too long to assault Atlantis. Oh wait, it's changed now that I've told you." Another strange, sad smile. "Hmm."
"This is nonsense," Percy growled, untangling his hand from hers. He stood up from against the wall. "People go crazy listening to predictions like yours, ruined by knowledge of an uncertain future."
"We have no proof but your word," Thalia chimed in. For once, she found herself in agreement with Percy, and it surprised them both. "And a few party tricks."
Party tricks. Predicting what they were going to say, those were no such things. But it was easier to believe Tiresias was an impossibility. It was why everyone believed Luke's lies about her, and Percy too. They chose to trust what they understood, not what was necessarily true. Annabeth pressed her lips in a thin line. She would make them pay for their mistakes, but she would not be as foolish as them. Something about Tiresias rattled her, and instinct told her to have faith, not in the man, but his visions. What he said was true, though his reason for confessing might have been less than honorable.
"I see a flame swallowing man whole. A gilded cage for one. A proposal denied. A boy dying on a bed while others weep. A flower crushed by a fist. A storm with one lightning bolt that—"
Thalia beat a fist against the wall. "Enough!"
"I believe him." The words tasted strange.
She couldn't trust her own friends, but here she was, allying herself with a cursed stranger. Percy looked at her like she had grown a second head, his eyes screaming a question he dared not ask out loud. Annabeth could only shrug, and avoid the searing weight of his sea green eyes. Buck up, Chase. She tilted her chin up in defiance.
"Where is Atlantis Prison?"
"Annabeth—"
"You can drop me off on the way," she shot back at Percy, not bothering to watch the verbal blow land. "I'm not leaving them to become Luke's puppets. And I won't abandon Chiron, not again."
The lines on Tiresias' face deepen, speaking of many painful years. He was younger than she had imagined, hiding his youth beneath the grey hairs he'd gotten at only 15. How much had he seen, to make him this way? Everything, she realized. Every horrible or wonderful thing that could ever happen. Death, life, and everything in between.
"You're exactly who I thought you would be," he murmured, covering her hands with his own. They were surprisingly warm, bringing her much comfort. "I'm glad to have met you."
Annabeth offered a thin but obliging smile, the best she could do. "Where is the prison?"
"They won't let you go alone." Tiresias glanced over her shoulder, but it wasn't like he could see anything anyways. "But we both know that, don't we?"
A warm blush rose to her cheeks, and she had to nod.
Tiresias stood on wavering feet, still watching something they could not see. Then he sniffed. "Rain," he warned, seconds before a downpour slammed into the roof above them. "Pity you'll have to walk."
All of a sudden, Jason ran into the room. His face was ashen. "Ambush a little to the west of here," he announced, glancing at Tiresias uneasily.
Thalia adjusted her grip on her spear, glancing between Tiresias and her brother. "Was the little beast there?"
Jason nodded. "We lost about ten lives, and guards were, so King Luke couldn't have been too far."
Thalia cursed, but Annabeth didn't know who she was angrier at: Luke for ambushing their friends, or Tiresias for being right.
Jason let out a frustrated sigh as shouts rang through the empty hallway. "We've got to go, now."
Annabeth turned for the door, but stopped when she realized Tiresias wasn't following.
"This is where I leave you."
She could only stare at him. "I thought you were going to help us at the prison." Desperation flooded into her voice, but Tiresias didn't seem to care, so she tried another tactic. "You know I can make you come with us."
Again, Tiresias smiled. "I know you can, and I know you won't. But take heart, Miss Chase. We will meet again." He tipped his head, thinking. "Yes, yes, we will."
It took all Annabeth had not to drag him behind her. "We need you, Tiresias!" She had one foot out the door already.
"Trust me when I say you don't! I leave you with these instructions—fly to the outskirts of Thasite, to Blue Lake."
Thasite, Blue Lake. She repeated the words until they committed to memory.
"Not tomorrow, not tonight, but now. You must fly now or your imprisoned friends are as good as dead. And tell Thalia, when she doubts. Tell her the answer to her question is yes."
"What question?" But he ticked a finger, almost scolding.
"Attend to your own fate, Annabeth Chase."
"And that is?"
"To rise. And rise alone." It echoed like the howl of a wolf as the rain pounded louder above them both. "I see you as you could become, no longer the thought, but the entire brain. The brain that will swallow the world whole."
For a split second, it looked like his eyes were glowing, white against grey, burning through her, to look into every future. His lips curved into that maddening smile, letting his teeth gleam in the white light. And then she raced down the hallway and he was gone.
When Annabeth stomped aboard the jet alone, soaked to the bone, Percy had the good sense to let her simmer in her anger. Only despair drowned out her rage. Rise alone. Alone. She dug her nails into her palm, trying to chase the sadness with pain. Fate could always change.
Thalia was not as tactful as Percy. She looked up from bandaging Jason's leg, her fingers sticky with scarlet blood, and she sneered. "Good, we didn't need the loon anyways."
"That loon could've won this war outright." Jason cuffed her lightly on the shoulder, earning a dark glare. "Think of what he could do with his ability."
From the pilot's seat, Percy glowered. "He's done enough." He watched Annabeth take a seat next to him, seething all the while. "You really want to storm a secret prison built for people like us?"
"Would you rather let Chiron die?" There was no answer but for a low hiss. "That's what I thought."
…
Annabeth felt rude, but she couldn't, for the life of her, stop staring at the bloodied bandages wrapped around Calypso's wrists.
"I've noticed that," Percy said from the seat next to her. He was leaning against her, but she wasn't even sure he'd realized. "I just don't understand why it's all white."
"Wouldn't a greater fear be all darkness?" Jason suggested, nodding at Percy.
Leo had taken over as pilot to give Percy a bit of a break. The plane shuddered underneath them, the dull hum of the engine fading into the background.
Annabeth pursed her lips. "I'd be inclined to agree," she mumbled, sitting forward in her chair.
Calypso shuddered as Thalia retrieved a blanket for her comrade. It had been awfully cold in that hospital. She shook her head. "There's something about that hospital… it drives you up the walls."
"And now? How do you feel now?" Annabeth could feel everyone's eyes on hers.
Calypso slid her tongue over the flat of her teeth. She hesitated. "Uneasy."
The blonde's eyes narrowed. "Why?"
"You're safe with us," Jason promised, but Annabeth didn't look at him, fully trained on Calypso.
Calypso offered a sad smile. "We're never really safe," she reasoned.
Percy shifted in his seat and it squeaked. Thalia ran her fingers through her hair. The bustle around them as people checked plans and Reyna barked orders was strangely comforting in their silence.
"In comparison to the hospital, how do you feel?" Annabeth amended. "Your cheeks are flushed, still, though I can't tell if that's from our escape and that adrenaline, or full-blown fear. Your pupils are dilated. I wonder…" she whispered the last part.
"Annabeth?" It was Piper. "What do you think?"
"Like I'm still there, but not really, but like a part of me will always be trapped there," Calypso admitted.
"I see." The blonde fell silent. She looked away then, allowing Michael Yew to finish his work, and addressed the crowd of people around them. "Yew." He glanced up at her. "Keep watching her for signs of PTSD over the next couple weeks. I wouldn't be surprised if Octavian played with her brain."
Percy winced at the mention of the disorder.
"You. What's your name?" She pointed to Calypso. The girl had only been missing for a few days so there wasn't a good chance, but still…
The girl looked at her strange. "Calypso."
Percy reached out for her, but she stood up, avoiding his touch, not now. He was much too distracting.
"What was the name of the person in the room next to you?"
Calypso blinked. "I never met them. I don't know."
Now Thalia sat up, quickly. Only two minutes prior had Calypso revealed her neighbor's name, and now she seemed to have no recollection of it. "What the hell?" the lieutenant barked out.
Annabeth grinned and it was so uncharacteristic that Piper seemed both concerned and frightened. She wasn't smiling because it was funny or to be taken lightly, but because she'd cracked the case.
"Octavian's clever," she breathed, pacing now, almost subconsciously. "White torture. A type of psychological torture that includes extreme sensory deprivation and isolation. Carrying out this type of torture makes the detainee lose personal identity through long periods of isolation," she recited. "It can include prolonged periods of solitary confinement, and the use of continual illumination to deprive sleep. Some countries in the Middle East have used it on political prisoners."
Piper blanched. Sure, everyone knew the capacity of her brain, but seeing it in action was another experience entirely.
"Iran," Percy recalled after a moment.
Annabeth clasped her hands together. "Indeed. Not authorized by the Iranian government, but used anyway." She turned to Thalia. "Get Calypso colorful clothes please, and perhaps some music. It shouldn't have any lasting impressions, but let's get her senses running again as best as we can. Show her pictures of her with family and friends." Thalia ran off to heed her orders.
She glanced at Calypso. "May I see your wrist?"
Calypso shrunk backwards. "I'd rather you not," she grit out.
"Why not?" Annabeth challenged. She glanced at Percy who'd told her all about the tattoo. She had to make sure it was real.
"They hurt," Calypso excused herself.
"I'll be gentle," Annabeth shot back, her eyes blazing. Calypso swallowed thickly. Annabeth reached for Calypso's hands and carefully turned them over, sure enough revealing the brand of Atlas. She inhaled sharply. "He's going after minorities," she told herself out loud.
The blonde bit her bottom lip, thinking back. Something about this seemed so familiar… and then it hit her.
"It's alright," Tiresias said. "You come to believe me. Sometime around the time you discover the girl's apparent amnesia… Chiron is a friend, is he not?"
The ex-Princess' entire face went stark white.
"Annabeth?" Percy's hand was on her shoulder.
The son of a bitch had been telling the truth. She'd known it! She'd known he wasn't a liar, no matter how unhonorable his intentions might have been. Annabeth faced the group of people. "Escort her out, please, Gwen." Gwen took Calypso away, and then she collected her thoughts.
"We have to storm Atlantis prison."
Thalia had returned now. "That idiot liar?" she seethed. "No. This is ridiculous."
Annabeth glared daggers. "Sometime around the time you discover the girl's apparent amnesia," she recited word-for-word, and when Thalia's face went white as well, she knew she'd figured it all out. "We save Chiron, Kayla, whoever else, we expand our army and win our wars." Her face was grim.
"And the hospital? What about others like Calypso, locked up to be tortured?" Piper asked, desperately searching for something she recognized in her friend's face. Her face fell in resignation.
"We will return," Annabeth promised, and she surprised even herself with the strength behind her voice. "I need to Octavian a few questions. But first, I need to find something in my archives, so let's just take this one step at a time."
"You're sure about this?" Thalia inquired one last time, hesitant.
Annabeth balled her fists by her sides. "I'm sure."
…
When Percy rose from the ground, a slightly dazed expression on his face, she couldn't help but see him like a phoenix rising from the ashes.
"Percy!"
He held up his hand, as if to reassure her. She refrained from tackling him in a hug.
"That was so stupid!" she chastised, and he winced when she touched his bloody cheek.
"But effective," he pointed out. The chaos outside was not lost on them, but as soon as she stepped into the now unlocked prison gates, it felt like she'd entered an alternate reality.
She offered a shy smile at him, and then running down the hallways, they popped the locks off all the cells. She recognized royals, and though many were not friends of her parents or Percy's, they had a new expression of wisdom etched across their faces, engraved for eternity. They would fight for them, the Amazons, the Canadians, and the banished, stronger as a whole than as small parts.
And at the very end in a small cage on the left were Chiron and Kayla, just as Tiresias had promised. Annabeth had never liked counting her chickens before they hatched, but for now, she allowed herself a small grin of triumph, of victory, and everything beautiful in between.
"Chiron!" she gasped, pulling the frail man into her embrace. Her old instructor and friend looked down at her with warm, brown eyes. He eyed his nephew and when both of them were standing next to each other, Annabeth could easily detect the resemblance between both men at the corners of their smiles. "And Kayla," Annabeth acknowledged, and even if she wasn't the touchy-feely type, she hugged Kayla tight, too. They were a sight for sore eyes.
"Easy, child. The battle's not won yet." But Chiron's eyes twinkled.
"There's so many of them!" Thalia exclaimed, quickly approaching them from behind. She was frowning.
"Who?" Annabeth's expression pinched down.
"Guards," the dark-haired girl panted. She shared a look with Percy.
Annabeth's skin crawled. "You mean…?"
"Luke's sent reinforcements. If it's a battle they want, we could probably win. But we'll lose too many numbers; our best bet is to get the hell out of here," Thalia explained.
"It'll take some time to board the plane," Annabeth stressed, eyes blown wide.
"Some of us can cover your back if you can get as many people onto the plane as possible. Then we pray for the best and escape," Percy suggested, level headed. "Take Chiron and Kayla with you," he said, ushering his uncle and Kayla to Thalia.
Thalia glanced around. "Fine. But hurry, and be careful." She looked at Annabeth pointedly, and trying to move both Chiron and Kayla as quickly as she could despite their largely unused legs (the prisons had been ridiculously confining), she disappeared behind the corner.
…
"Fuck." Annabeth stumbled, Percy shoving her out of harm's way. How he saw the swing of a sword before an opponent actually swung was beyond her. "There's too many of them," she breathed, her eyes blown wide with panic. "Thalia and them will never make it in time!"
Percy swung his sword in a large arc, the sheer force of the blow forcing two men, dressed from head to toe in an inky blue cloth, toppling over. Two feet down from Artemis, a few other guards crumpled, but as many as they knocked out and killed, more seemed to appear in large, dark masses just over the hill. And among them were royals too, Luke's loyal allies. She gritted her teeth so hard that it hut.
"You're only as in control as you want to be," he refused, shaking his head at her. Annabeth spun, kicking her heavy boots into another guard's chest. She tried to avoid looking at their eyes.
"That's bullshit," she angrily spat.
"But you've got to believe that it's not," he instructed, and she looked away as he cleanly thrust his sword into a tall man's abdomen.
"What happened to your pessimism?" she cried over the chaos.
"War has no place for pessimists," he spit and blood came out. The side of his face was tender and bruising. "Besides, I thought you liked converting me to your optimistic dreams." He chuckled darkly, and it frightened her more than she would've liked to admit. Percy laughing while fighting was a sight she wished not to behold.
"Dreams come true," she whispered, her voice wavering with newfound uncertainty.
He shot her a half-smile, but it was melancholy. "You forget nightmares are dreams too."
Her features pinched downwards and she schooled her expression, glancing back at the plane. Almost everyone was boarded, and… Thalia looked up as if she sensed the blonde's eyes on her figure. She shrugged half-heartedly.
"Are we clear?" Annabeth shouted over the madness. She struck her dagger down the center of a guard's face like a meat cleaver.
"What?"
"Clear?! Clear it!" she demanded.
"Get everyone together!" Thalia instructed furiously, cupping her hands around her mouth to reach Annabeth's ears. Her heart began beating wildly in her chest.
"Percy." She ran to him like the devil was hot on her trail. "Percy," she reached for him, but he slid under her fingers, avoiding the enemy. She stood back to back with him, fighting off Luke's troops together. "Thalia cleared it. We need to get everyone and get the hell out of here!"
He steadied himself on a rock, using it as momentum to kick off and knock another out flat. "Get everyone out first. I can hold my own for a bit."
Her eyes hardened. "You'll die. Let's go, Percy."
He stubbornly shook his head. "Others will die on their own first. I can hold my own for a bit, just hurry."
She glared at him. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Piper scramble onto the plane. "C'mon, everyone's fleeing." And forcefully dragging him as best as she could, she persuaded him to leave, though she suspected he'd let her pull him a bit. He was much too heavy for her to pull on her own, especially if he'd truly resisted. "Go start the plane. I don't know where Leo is." Percy's mouth was set in a straight line, but now he frowned.
Annabeth scoured the battlefield. There were enough dead from both sides that she felt a little sick, but no. Tiresias had promised it would be worth it, that they would earn enough soldiers in return from setting prisoners free, that they would save Chiron and Kayla. It had to be worth it.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Jason, and relief settled over her.
"Jason, get him to the jet," she yelled, grabbing Percy by the collar as they ran. Before he could protest, Jason did as instructed, shoving Percy onto the plane and into the arms of Thalia. Annabeth could always count on Jason to understand; Percy was one of their only two pilots. He could not die there, not when they were so close to getting away. They needed him to fly, and fly well. A split second later, Jason returned, and ushered Reyna into the jet also. Annabeth breathed another sigh of relief. Reyna was a General and like Percy, she too was invaluable.
Annabeth called on everything she had left, down to the depth of her bones. It made her slow, it made her weak, taking her will, and turning it into something strong. To her delight, a ring of guards, and a Raya cousin fell dead at her feet.
Rachel stopped next to her, her rifle tucked against her shoulder. She shot with precision, picking off their pursuers one by one. Many men stepped in front of Luke's generals, whether by their own volition or his. Luke was sure to be here, somewhere, and soon he would be within range of her, and her of him. Annabeth had only one chance.
It happened in slow motion. She glanced at the two royals locked in battle between her and the plane. A long, thin blade, like a giant needle, cut through an Amazon's neck, spilling a red fountain. Behind, was a flash of white, and Annabeth's eyes blazed in anger, immediately recognizing the culprit. Octavian spun with the momentum, directing through the Amazon, at her. Annabeth moved to duck, expecting what she thought was the worst.
She couldn't possibly see what was coming.
Only one person could've. Tiresias. He walked away from all of this. He had let this happen. He didn't want to warn them. He hadn't cared.
Jason appeared in front of her, intending to take her away from all of this. Instead, he got a cruel, gleaming needle through his heart. He didn't realize what had happened. He didn't feel any pain. He died before his knees hit the ground.
Annabeth didn't remember anything else until they were in the air. Her face ran with tears but she couldn't wipe them away. She could only stare at her hands, painted in blood and tears of regret, and wonder what would've happened if it'd been her who'd died instead.
A/N: Sooo lots of death. Two Kings (Piper and Annabeth's fathers), an Amazon (Phoebe), and the most important of all, Jason.
Also, just so y'all know, I made this chapter title, laughed at it for ten minutes, and then posted it. A grave mistake indeed. I'm 99.9% sure my death will be caused by angry readers coming after me. :D
DON'T READ THESE PARENTHESES IF YOU HAVEN'T READ TBM: (Isn't it funny how he died JUST like in The Burning Maze? Spear in the heart and all. Just my extra special present to y'all xx lol)
I finally figured out a timeframe. I've been fucking around with seasons, sometimes saying it's too hot, or it's super chilly, and I'm surprised none of y'all have called me out for it. XD I decided that it's currently near the end of June in this story. Y'all know what that means though: Annabeth and Percy's birthdays are both coming. ;)
Hopefully, next chapter I can get more POVs in. This chapter was a big plot-pusher, so it was mainly Annabeth, but I def wanna catch up with Nico and Drew and Malcolm and all of them.
(Psst… completely unrelated… but for my readers above 18 in the US, please don't forget to vote on Tuesday.)
Until next time~
Fangirl xx
BethnPercy: It's all good; I'm actually quite pleased to hear it takes you awhile to finish my chapters. I try to make them extra long, longer than most stories, especially because I update every other week. I'll take you having less to say as a compliment XP YES! Validation for my choices w Drew lmao. That was risky af for me and I wasn't sure how y'all would perceive it. Lmao I mean, spoiler but not really: Percabeth is fun next chapter. Yep! I heard quite a few people just wanting bad-boy-supreme to be sprinkled in, so I figured he'd get a few appearances. I… honestly don't know what to say. I'm so awkward with praise haha. Thank you, I suppose. I've never really considered getting published original content because I've never really thought I had the potential to compete with big-name authors, but your faith is really something. Thank you for reviewing!
AnnabethChase-Wisdom'sDaughter: Success! I never really aim to have an incredible chapter that takes over the world with its awesomeness, but I know it wasn't too shabby when someone declares it as their new favorite. XP Thank you.
Mitsuha Miyamizi: Oh, I sure hope so! My first chapters are always… rough lol. Yes xD Shakespeare is hilarious and I wish more people knew that he's actually a crude play-writer from long ago, not some elite, eloquent, old-person god, ya feel? That nostalgia's got me depressed lmao. Herondales are partially responsible for my ridiculously high standards in human beings lol rip. It's all good haha. If you're a dumb bitch, I am too ;P But I am so happy that you like the new world? Like? That's so nice of you lol; I put so much effort into keeping details consistent, and I'm grateful that it's sticking with y'all. And yes XD Painfully realistic might as well be my middle name. Characterization is perhaps my favorite part of writing, next to wicked plot twists, so I'm pretty satisfied that I got you in your feelings lol. Thank you so much for the support!
Reader: I'm glad Percabeth was a success. Ik after those two chapters apart y'all were really missing them. And your pessimism is usually pretty spot on, not gonna lie lol. Pipabeth is such a good friendship that I just had to preserve it in my FF. Since I'm never going to write an Athena POV, I decided I'll answer this the best I can. The significance of Nico mentioning that she was quiet during the meeting had more to do with the fact that he suspects Athena is worried about the wars more than anything else, which is a bad omen because the lady clearly knows how to win wars, and if she's worried, everyone else should be too.
However, I think Athena is a very cold, indifferent woman in this story. Regardless of Annabeth's distant relationship with her mother, Athena's not particularly touchy-feely with Malcolm either, or her husband Frederick. I feel that their entire family is just like that, and Malcolm happens to be a bit soft for Annabeth, and then Annabeth is the one oddball, driven by her reckless heart and vengeance as much as her brilliant mind. I believe that Athena is probably only pleased with Annabeth's actions for her own selfish reasons like the fact that Annabeth eliminated another enemy of Athena's as well in trying to eliminate an Amazonian enemy, not that's she's particularly proud of her daughter. To her, Annabeth is not not a part of the family, but Annabeth has chosen sides that aren't hers and so what her daughter does is no longer her business as long as it doesn't negatively affect her own plan. I believe Athena didn't let Annabeth speak out more not because she didn't think Annabeth was smart, but because she knew Annabeth was very emotionally-oriented and that she was easy to anger and easy to goad into reckless behavior. I hope that makes sense. At the end of the story, there will be a follow up with all our characters in an epilogue and there's a bit more with family dynamics then, so perhaps you'll understand Athena's indifferent ways a bit more then.
Percy's had these dreams all his life, just like Luke, and just like Poseidon, etc. The first scene of the next chapter has to do with the follow up on Calypso, but yes, I'm sure Percy's feeling guilty, even if his dream was just an image of the present time, and that he couldn't have actively prevented Calypso's disappearance.
I liked your review a lot, actually. Being asked questions about my story is probably one of my favorite parts. XP Sorry my reply was excessively long and thanks for reading!
Butterflies765: Ah, yes, the common struggle of updating regularly. I usually have to force myself to lol, but y'all's support and funny reactions make up for it. I get SO MUCH demand for Percabeth that I decided to finally sit myself down and freaking write it. Happy scenes are always the most difficult for yours truly to write. Maybe I'm just psychopathic lol. Yissss, TMI is out of this world. (Clace up in here setting unrealistic standards for my life). Attacks are my favorite, both personal and fictional (too far? lmfao) Ofc, my dude. Spoilers can go jump off a cliff and fans who purposefully spoil ish for others are the worst type of people imho. Me too tbh. Like prophetic dreams are the perfect setup for so much plot? What are authors doing? Foreshadowing is my reason for existence. Well, likewise haha. I can't wait for more of your reviews! :)
AnnaUnicorn: It's nice to see a new face! I'm glad you liked it, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well~