~ * Prunella ~ *
Unforgettable
Once upon a time, there was a young stableman whose beauty was beyond description. Even if all the languages that ever graced the tongues of man, in the now, the then, and the yet to be, were pooled together, sufficient enough words could not be found to give him any justice. If one were to try, however, they might say he was more beautiful than all of Elysium, with twice the splendor that did launch a thousand ships, one to whom even Aphrodite would pass the golden apple. The youth, uncorrupted by his Adonis beauty, had in him a goodness like no other; his golden heart was worth thrice all the hoarded coinage that towered in cold mountains beneath the king's royal feet.
Likened treasure could not be found in any realm of existence. But, alas, where ever good things are to be found, jealousy is never far behind. The good youth walked home that night with an empty stomach and a light head, for the young princes of the castle were so very much jealous of him, and weary his shoulders, for they did so love to burden him in their envy. Perseus was his name, which was altogether far too grand a name for a mere stableman such as himself, quoth the princes, so Percy he was called. Not that Percy minded a great deal, or at all really, because Percy was shorter and he did loath to sound like the grand princes who looked down their noses at him.
As it were, Percy was very hungry that night, his body weary from a long day at work and the moon had long since rose to her height.
Now perhaps you shall blame him for his thoughtlessness or turn up your nose without so much as a 'serves him right' for his lack of forethought, but perhaps you've never been hungry before. Not the kind of hungry that rumbles and reminds you that lunch was light and mother already invited you twice to sup, but true hunger. The kind that gnawed at your stomach and sang in every bone of your worn, weak body until everything ached and you couldn't quite think straight because it consumed you so. If you did, you would hardly blame the unlucky stableman.
This was the hunger Percy felt as he wandered along the darkened trail back to his cold, unlit quarters. And so when he passed under a tree, his head brushing against the low lying branches, and when the fruit fell, quite nicely and conveniently, right into his hands, he ate it.
Thus begins our tale . . .
It was the wind Percy noticed first, the sharpness of it cutting to his very bones and freezing the breath in his throat. The ground beneath his feet, grass overgrown and dirt soft, became hard until his heels clicked against cracked rock. The air grew cold and stale. The very world itself seemed to change, a gloom settling over his body like a physical weight. The fruit fell from his hands in shock, cracking against the floor, red seeds spilling forth in an almost grotesque display.
He was inside somewhere. Which didn't make any sense because he was just outside, in a very particular place that clearly was not here. The walls that stretched around him were barren and dark, a single torch flickering across the way, hot oil drip, dripping onto the equally barren floor.
What on earth?!
Percy blinked—and realized a man stood half in the shadows. Percy only got half a second to take in his features, not enough to get a decent appraisal but enough to distinguish the equally surprised look on his face. The man's mouth fell open in a perfect 'o', eyes wide.
"Hey," Percy started to say, taking a step forward.
He didn't get to say any more for just then an evil cackle filled the air. Percy's head whipped towards the sound, brow furrowed. The wind itself seemed to carry the terrible laughter. His head snapped back towards the shadow, but the man was gone.
"What fool?" The coldly cruel voice cackled, "What utter fool picked of my tree and ate of my fruit?"
"Uh—" was Percy's intelligent reply as the wind whipped his hair and clothes about, a dark haze swirling menacingly before him.
Out of the whirling mess, a figure emerged. It was woman-shaped but even before her grinning face solidified, Percy knew it was no woman—and that he was in big trouble. As she stepped forth, leaving the swirling wind behind, Percy had the unsettled feeling that, for a moment, he stared at the face of his dead mother, then the father he never knew, then the little boy who fell ill last summer, the woman who the princes tortured to insanity . . . .
He blinked, hard, and they vanished. He almost wished he hadn't for the image behind was infinitely worse; the woman appeared like two unlike halves seamlessly sewed together. The right side of her body was as sickly white as bone, as if the skin were entirely drained of blood. The left side was blacker than night, hardened and stretched over her features like leather. A golden dress hung mockingly over her frame, as if its sparkling slender could distract from the wrongness of her split form.
Percy hesitantly rose his eyes to meet hers and immediately regretted it; where eyes should have been only gaping, empty holes could be found. Percy couldn't help recoiling from the ghastly sight.
"Yikes," he grimaced. Then, realizing that was probably a good way to get himself killed, quickly amended, "ah, I mean. I didn't know that was your tree. Totally wouldn't have eaten the fruit if I had, I swear. My bad, I am so sorry. Won't ever happen again."
"I daresay not," the demon hissed, stalking closer. "You shall never leave my domain again, oh foolish one, much less take once more that which does not belong to you."
"Come on, I didn't know it was a special tree!" Percy exclaimed, scrambling backwards to avoid the advancing demon. "It was an honest mistake. What do you mean never leave again?"
"I mean you will never. Leave. Again." The demon grinned widely, the image terrifying with her gaping, eyeless sockets. "Whoever eats from my tree is forever bound to my service and you, oh foolish one—" she reached out, the back of her black, withered hand caressing his cheek "—ate three seeds."
"Oh you've got to be kidding me," Percy whispered, his back against the wall. "Um, look I didn't know those were the rules and I was just really, really hungry. And I'm really really sorry—"
The demon's head turned, clicking her tongue disapprovingly. "No, you're not."
"Okay, I'm not sorry I ate them, I was starving, but I am sorry that they were precious and I swear I've learned my lesson, cross my heart." He mimicked crossing his heart and tried on his best-winning smile, the one that his mother used to say could charm the socks off a snake. The demon didn't look impressed. Then again, he was seven when his mother passed . . . perhaps he lost that charming edge years ago.
Percy let his shoulders slump as he tried to put on his best-kicked puppy face. "C'mon, I didn't know, that's not fair. That's like, false advertising or something. Couldn't you make an exception? Just this once? I swear it'll never happen again."
The demon seemed to think, her lips twisting. Which was super weird by the way, with one side all pale and bloodless and the other withered and blackened. He wanted her to stop actually, it was messing with his head.
"Perhaps," the demon dramatically sighed. She narrowed her—well not her eyes because she didn't have eyes but the terrifying gaping holes where her eyes should have been narrowed. "I will give you a chance."
Percy gave a little mental shout of joy, automatically grinning, "Thanks—"
"So if you complete three tasks for me, I'll let you go free."
"Just complete three tasks?" Percy repeated. That didn't sound so bad. After all, it could hardly be worse than anything the vile princes threw at him. He worked from sunrise to sunset at the royal palace, cleaning the stables and chasing down horses, being trampled on and whipped when he was 'too slow'. If he could survive the hell that was his living life, surely he could ace any unliving tasks. "No problem, you got it."
The demon smirked and, for a moment, Percy's confidence almost wavered.
"As you wish it. But if you fail, you shall serve the rest of your life here in my domain, obeying my every command and never again may you ask to rejoin the living world. Understood?"
"Got it," Percy confidently replied, giving himself a shake as if he could physically throw off his uncertainties. "What's the first task?"
"So eager to be proven wrong," the demon hissed joyfully.
"Psh, or to prove you wrong," Percy rebutted as the demon reached her withered hand over her shoulder, blackened fingers dipping into the swirling darkness behind her.
"Fill this bucket with water from the river," the demon commanded and from the gloom she pulled a rather benign and ordinary water pail.
She gracefully gave the bucket a toss and it arched soundlessly through the air. Percy had to ungracefully dart forward to catch it, wincing as the hard metal unforgivingly banged against his arms, the handle clanging noisily against the side. The demon raised an unimpressed eyebrow. Percy fought the urge to stick his tongue out, knowing it was childish and probably suicidal. So she got points for style, he was still gonna win this. He had to; he had desperation and the innate longing for freedom on his side. Also pure, mule-like stubbornness. That had to count for something, right?
"Best luck, child of the light," she hissed, the sound snakelike and inhuman as she withdrew into her swirling cloud of darkness, the mass curling around her, obscuring her form until all he could see was the wicked smile. Then that too faded into the darkness.
"That was . . . unnecessarily dramatic," Percy muttered as the darkness disbursed into the stagnant air.
Gods, what a mess, Percy thought, swinging the bucket at his side as he craned his head, looking around the giant, empty hall. All because he ate three stupid little seeds. Because of course, this was his life after all, why did he expect anything else?
"What river and how do I get to it?" Percy wondered aloud, kicking himself for not asking. That seemed like pretty vital information.
Dammit.
"Alright, alright," he muttered, walking forward.
The hall was large and for a terrifying couple of minutes, he thought there was no way out—wouldn't that be a killer, fill my bucket from a river when you can't escape my hall ha, but no, there it was: an opening. If he expected fresh air or sun-kissed warmth, he was sorely disappointed. The air was just as motionless and stagnant here as it was inside. The gloom that curled around his ankles was the same and, tilting his head towards the heavens, his stomach twisted. There was no heaven—or at least, one he was familiar with. The world stretched on over his head, an endless abyss of darkness with no sun, no light, no cloud or frankly no anything at all.
Freaky, Percy thought, shuddering lightly and forcing his eyes back to the ground. A dense fog of sorts clung to the ground. Vague tree like shapes could be seen looming in the far distance, void of leaves or anything green, but before him stretched on a field of long stemmed grass. Figures milled around in the field, slowly, meaningless.
"Okay," Percy muttered beneath his breath. No big deal, he had this. Focus, find a river, he reminded himself as he determinedly started off across the field.
"Hey, excuse me," Percy called to the nearest meandering figure.
The figure didn't turn, their steps faltering only the slightest bit as they leaned down, fingers brushing against the tall grass.
"I don't mean to bother you," he tried again, coming over to the stranger's side. "I just need to know—hey, buddy, I'm talking to you—" he said in irritation as the figure continued to ignore him.
"Hey, I just need you to point me—" Percy grabbed the guy's shoulder and forced the figure to turn. He immediately regretted it.
His fingers fell right through the figure as though it were nothing more than the fog that swirled around his ankles and the phantom finally turned ghostly, all-seeing eyes on the shocked stableman.
"Shit," Percy gasped, almost dropping his bucket as he stumbled back. The ghost made a terrible, pained moan, staring right through Percy.
"Ah, nevermind, sorry," he gasped, hastily catching the bucket and taking two more steps backward, just in case.
The ghost already lost interest in him, dragging itself forward, eyes staring at nothing. Percy watched it go with a horrified fascination. Had this figure once been a real person? Percy sometimes heard stories about what happens to people after their death, usually something about judgment and what ring in Hades they would be doomed to spend all of eternity in. Was this one of those places? Or was this poor faded relic of life one of the demon's victims? Was that Percy fate if he failed?
Percy shook his head. It didn't matter, he told himself firmly, because he wasn't going to fail. Focus, he sharply reminded himself. Find the river. Percy determinedly trudged through the field, the bucket tucked securely under his arm as he forged onward. The ghosts, or whatever they were, paid him no mind, milling around and looking woefully into the distance, giving the occasional wail of despair. Percy figured that was appropriate, given their circumstances.
He wasn't sure what direction he trudged in (the lack of sun and stars left him utterly disorientated) but he determinedly marched on. His eyes flickered to the left, were the creepy barren trees stretched their black branches. Well, if at all possible he would like to avoid the creepy forest thank you very much, hopefully the river was this way. The grass grew longer and longer the further he tread, their long, dry stalks scratching at the thin, worn threads of his pants until their height grew too great and they began to droop, bending over and folding in on themselves. The ghost-figures grew fewer and fewer until they disappeared entirely, leaving Percy utterly alone.
"S'okay, just a creepy old field and some mostly dead grass," Percy muttered to himself, shaking his head.
Then the grass, dry and sad, began to wane, the patches becoming thin then sparse. Percy watched as the grass pulled back, revealing the coal black soil underneath, which plumed and stirred with every step he took. Percy watched the progression, one step followed by a little plume of black dust mingling with the fog around his ankles, idly contemplating whether he should turn around and head in the other direction when he heard it: the trickle of running water.
"Yes, the river," Percy cheered, grinning broadly.
The sound rejuvenated him and Percy eagerly rushed forward, leaving the edge of the overgrown field behind as he raced on. The river seemed a thin slit on the horizon but with each excited bound Percy made, it doubled in size until he came to the banks of a substantial river, easily several leagues in width. The water flowed smoothly, almost serenely. The water shimmered despite the lack of sunlight, its color a clear, pleasant blue. It was an outstandingly beautiful and tranquil sight in this hellish landscape; it took Percy's breath away and he stared, unblinkingly.
Uncertainly, Percy tilted his head to the side, looking up and down the tranquil bank of the beautiful river. It wasn't a rapids, the water flowed smoothly; the water didn't appear toxic, the spray smelled fresh; there were no sharp rocks or cliffs to trap him.
Percy was stumped.
"What's so hard about drawing water from here?" He wondered, snorting as he stepped forward with the bucket.
With his feet planted firmly (just in case something jumped out and tried to drown him), Percy leaned over, grasping the bucket firmly (again, just in case the river really was moving fast but he couldn't tell or if something tried to grab the bucket) and dipped it into the water.
"Ah, cold," Percy complained as the water splashed against his hand.
Percy blinked.
He was . . . staring at the sky.
Only, no. That wasn't right because where was the sun?
Well. He was on his back, that's for certain, and he was staring up ahead soo maybe it was night?
Nope, where was the moon?
New moon? His mind helpfully suggested. Ah, yes that must be it, it was a new moon so there wouldn't be a moon just a sky full of stars.
Wait. Where were the stars?
Percy's brow puckered, his lips turning down.
"This would be a lot easier to figure out if you weren't looming over me and blocking my view!" he complained loudly to the man currently looming over him and blocking his view.
Wait. That wasn't normal. That wasn't . . . did he know this guy?
"Do I know you?" Percy demanded, squinting at the guy.
"What's your name?" the guy asked urgently, eyes wide as he continued to loom over Percy.
He was getting closer actually, his face drawing nearer and nearer. Percy decided he'd never seen this man before in his life and promptly shoved him away, pushing himself into a sitting positon. The man stumbled, grunting a little but seemed mostly unconcerned as he lurched right back into Percy's personal space.
"Name," he demanded, peering into Percy's eyes like he was sick or something.
"Stop that," Percy said irritably, trying to swat the man away. "My name is Percy, not that it matters much to you."
"Good," the man looked relieved and he stopped examining Percy's eyes, plopping down in the dirt across from the irritated man instead.
"Alright, what's going on here, why don't I—?" Percy demanded, squinting at the strange man. "Wait—you're the guy from the hall earlier!"
The man's ears turned slightly pink. Percy narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the man before him. Under consideration, Percy realized his companion actually looked to be around his age, if not even a little younger. His hair was dark, skin olive toned yet oddly pale, and his cheek bones sharp enough to cut rock. Bags hung under dark eyes, a leather jacket and dark pants donned that almost hid a near skeletal frame. Near skeletal, because even with his shoulders hunched the way they currently were, Percy got the odd impression this guy was no light weight. He fidgeted uncomfortably under Percy's scrutiny, twisting a skeleton ring on his fingers.
Weird, Percy decided, but significantly less creepy than the demon not-woman.
"You got a name?" Percy demanded when the guy fidgeting with his ring and said nothing.
The guy cleared his throat. "Nico," he said, his voice low, "at your service."
His dark eyes flickered up, bangs half obscuring them. It was . . . almost endearing actually, made Percy kind of want to pat the guy on the head and tell him everything was going to be alright. Percy shook his head to dispel his nonsensical thoughts. The motion drew his attention to the scene behind the strange guy—Nico—at the river and the bucket laying on its side.
"The river!" Percy recalled, launching to his feet. "Ha, I found it."
"Yeah, but hey wait," Nico said, scrambling to his feet as well as Percy took two quick strides forward to snatch the bucket up.
"Uh-uh, buddy," Percy said happily, snatching the bucket up, "I do not plan on being stuck here forever so if you don't mind—"
"No wait, don't—"
He was on the ground. Sitting though, with his legs kind of sprawled out as though he'd fallen after being toss back by some great force. A bucket lay at his side. He blinked at it, then at the man cursing in front of him, pulling at his hair.
"Hey dude, you okay?" Percy asked as the guy cursed in a language Percy'd never heard before.
The man tugged at his hair so hard Percy was afraid he'd pull it out.
"How much did you touch, what did you—what's my name?"
"Man I don't know, why should I know your—Hey, wait," Percy snapped his fingers, "you're that guy from the hall!"
The guy groaned, slapping a hand over his eyes. Percy decided to ignore him, turning instead to frown at the bucket by his side.
"Why do I have a bucket?" Percy wondered out loud, plucking the thing up from its resting place on the ground. He brushed coal black dirt off the side, frowning. His mind turned sluggishly. He should . . . he should know why, shouldn't he? He felt like he . . .
"You're trying to fill that bucket with water to accomplish the first task so you might return to the surface," the man said.
"Oh!" Percy said and his brain came back online. "Oh right!"
He jumped to his feet, but the guy seemed to expect that. He jumped in front of Percy, arms spread wide and looking pained.
"No! Don't touch the water!" he exclaimed.
Percy frowned at him, then peeked under the man's arms at the innocuous blue water behind him, then back up at the crazy guy's crazed face.
"Why not?" he asked, humoring him. Percy wasn't entirely sure why, but some part of him trusted this strange skeletal looking guy.
"The water makes you forget," the man said.
Percy blinked, remembering how he was just on the ground and how exasperated the man appeared. "This isn't the first time we've had this conversation is it?" he hedged.
The man's face twisted.
"Yeah, okay, my bad. Then . . . I'll just not touch the water," Percy said, quickly ducking under the man's arms.
"It's designed so you'll touch the water—oh for Hades' sake—"
Percy was on the ground. A guy scowled at him, bent over Percy and using his own jacket to whisk away the water droplets on Percy's hands.
"I know you," Percy deduced.
The guy's eyes twitched.
"Nico," he said through clenched teeth.
"Nico! Buddy!" Percy remembered, grinning broadly.
Nico didn't look impressed. In fact, he looked about ten seconds away from throwing Percy into the river for good.
"Don't. Touch. The. Water."
"Okay fine," Percy huffed, crossing his arms after angrily reclaiming his hands. "Then how do you suppose I draw the water huh? Cause I got news for you pal, I am not staying down here with that she-demon for the rest of eternity."
"If you keep up this stupidity, you won't even remember the surface," Nico grumbled, crossing his own arms.
"Then what do you suggest I do, wise guy?"
Nico hesitated at that, his touch guy look faltering. Then his face steeled, and before Percy could react, Nico had torn the bucket out of his hands and stalked towards the walk.
"Wait, Nico, the water!" Percy called, panicked as he sprang forward to stop the man but Nico ignored him and stepped into the water, bending to let the current run into the bucket. Before Percy could reach the edge of the bank, Nico spun around and held the now full bucket out to him.
"There," he grumbled, shoving the bucket into Percy's hands. "A full bucket. Now don't—careful!—don't spill any of it."
Percy held the bucket gingerly, holding it half a length from his body. "Oh. Ah. Thanks? How are you standing—?"
Nico shifted, his eyes flickering around as he shoved his hands inside his jacket. "Doesn't affect me."
"Neat," Percy said, impressed, "that must come in handy."
Nico lips twitched and he leveled Percy with a disbelieving, exasperated look, "It's not like there are often people in Melinoë's realm to need my help."
"Right," Percy said, chuckling to himself. "Well, thanks man. I appreciate it. Just, how times did I forget your name?"
"Three."
"Yikes, my bad." Pause. "Who's Melinoë?"
"The ruler of this realm." Nico's face was impassive. "She's the one who gave you the tasks."
"Oh."
They fell into step as they walked away from the river, Nico kind of hunching into himself like a weird turtle or something.
"You said people don't often need your help," Percy recalled. "Is that because people don't often get stuck down here or does the demon not-lady have an array of crazy tasks?"
Nico peered at Percy out of the corner of his eye. Percy made sure to walk nice and even, the water sloshing around inside the bucket but not in danger of splashing out.
"People like you don't often get stuck," he said after a pause.
Percy thought about that. "What do you mean people like me?"
Nico gave an awkward, one shoulder shrug. "I mean people like . . . you."
What an explanation that was, Percy thought, opening his mouth to argue when Nico cut in.
"Just—nevermind. Don't spill any of the water."
"I haven't, I'm being very—" a wind suddenly picked up, startling the stagnant air into brief swirling currents, the field grew darker, and Nico disappeared.
Percy blinked stupidly at the place he had been moments before. What in the—?!
"Dude." The word broke free from Percy's slack jaw of its own accord as its speaker twisted around, searching for the missing man.
But Percy was alone, dry grass scraping against his mudded pants. The water sloshed around in the bucket as he twisted, Nico's parting words biting him in the ass as a droplet or two spilled over the top—don't spill any of the water. Whoops. The water fell harmlessly onto the barren field as Percy froze, tracking his package's precarious contents. The water sloshed around some more, but the innocuous liquid stayed within the harmless bounds of the bucket.
Phew.
"But dude," Percy complained out loud, careful not to twist around like a manic in search of Nico. "Give a guy some warning next time before you just, poof. I mean, who even does that?"
Nobody answered him. Percy began to walk again, holding his cargo carefully. He kept an eye out for his new strange friend but the only figures that emerged in his sight were the meandering ghost-things the closer he got to Melinoë's halls. Heading back in, he finally got the opportunity to survey the building, being a little too busy trying to get the hell out last time he'd been there. The building looked to be in decay, stones crumbling and dried, dead growth sticking out from cracks. The architecture appeared strangely familiar. Percy tilted his head to the side as he walked, trying to figure out why.
It must have once been regal, Percy thought. A royal palace.
As he crossed under the gaping hole that served as a door, the familiarity hit him: the Pantheon. It reminded him of the Pantheon.
Percy wasn't sure what the etiquette on summoning Melinoë was, she hadn't exactly given him many directions.
"Hello?" He called, his footsteps echoing loudly in the hollow space. "Melinoë?" Ma'am? Your Highness? What title did she even have?
He had a split second to wonder if he was even allowed to speak her name—Nico hadn't said anything about that had he?—when the swirling mass returned. It was significantly less dramatic this time; it appeared one second and in the same time, the demon stepped forth from within with very little pomp and circumstance. Percy figured he appreciated her relative chill.
Melinoë was just as terrifying the second time as the first, the two unlike halves of her face disconcerting as she bared her teeth at him.
"Got your water," Percy declared, holding the bucket out.
"Oh?" The she-demon hissed, her unmatched mouth pulling back into a horrifying smile. "Let me see then."
She snatched the bucket from his hands and dipped two fingers inside. Her twisted grin, well, twisted.
"What is this?" she demanded, clutching the bucket against her as she turned the gaping holes in her face to Percy. "What is this?'
"The water you asked for?" Percy reminded her, brow furrowing. "I mean—you said, fill the bucket with water from the river, and I did."
He bit his tongue before a 'right?' could follow his words. No, she said that, she definitely said that and he was going to stand his ground.
"How did you draw the water?"
"Put the bucket in, take the bucket out." Percy mimed the action, dipping his arms down like he was drawing water.
"You cannot touch the water."
"I, um, I don't remember touching the water—"
"You have to, the bucket is designed that way."
Percy vaguely remembered Nico saying something of the sort. Percy briefly thought about admitting Nico helped him, but change his mind as soon as the thought occurred to him. She might accuse him of cheating (not that any rules had been laid) or keep him down here for all eternity.
Melinoë's lips pressed together, breathing heavily. "How did you do it?"
"You never said I had to do it a certain way," Percy avoided. "You just said fill the bucket. The bucket is filled. What's my next task?"
An honest to Zeus hiss escaped Melinoë's lips, sending shivers down Percy's spin.
"Fine. The bucket is full," the words were spoken in the same horrifying hiss, "congratulations. I will collect you tomorrow for your next task. Be ready, son of the light, and enjoy your little victory for it will be brief."
With that parting warning, Melinoë disappeared the way she came, disappearing into the swirling darkness.
"What is with people around here and the disappearing into thin air?" Percy grumbled to himself, reaching up to rub at his arm where goosebumps had broken out during Melinoë's dramatic exit.
With the she-demon gone, the halls were quiet. Percy hovered in his spot for a moment, rocking back and forth on his heels and looking over his shoulder. So that was . . . that was it? First task, checkmark complete? What was he supposed to do until tomorrow?
"I don't suppose she has any guest rooms," Percy muttered, moving forward.
Time escaped him. He could have ate those damned three seeds an hour ago or three days ago, he wasn't sure. The not-sky gave no indication of time and inside the stagnant air of Melinoë's (castle?) building, time proved even more elusive. When tomorrow came, he only hoped Melinoë would fetch him.
The hall stretched on for an eternity before the colorless walls narrowed and began a passageway. Percy trailed his hand along the cracked stone, letting his fingertips trace all the crevasses and dips. A crumpling hole took shape along the wall and Percy peered inside. The new room was large, almost as large as the entrance room. Broken chandeliers hung from the ceiling, glass scattered across the floor below them and spider webs stretching along their rusted edges. Percy pulled his head out and continued down the hall. The next opening revealed the decaying remains of a dining hall, once grand chairs now faded and covered in mold, a long table riddled with holes.
Is there anything in this palace that isn't broken or decaying? Percy wondered as he continued down the hall.
A shadow caught his eye and Percy whirled, catching a glimpse of the figure before it vanished.
"Nico?" Percy called, taking a hurried step forward. "Wait!"
To his surprise, Nico actually hesitated, lingering in the shadows long enough for Percy to reach his side.
"Man, am I ever glad to see you!" Percy greeted with a grin, coming to a skidding halt before the guy. "Hey, what are you doing here?"
Nico's cheeks turned a blotchy red and he coughed, bringing his hands up to partially cover his face, "Just . . . looking—watching—I mean. Did Melinoë accept the bucket?"
"Yeah, dude, she did. And don't worry, I kept your name out of it."
"That was surprisingly . . . tactful of you."
"Thanks," Percy grinned, "I have my moments. So, do you live around here or what?"
"I live in the domain of Melinoë."
Percy had no idea what that meant.
"So like in this castle or what?"
"I don't normally like to linger in the castle," Nico admitted, his shoulders hunched as he finally lowered his hands only to shove them deep in his pockets. His eyes flickered around the room, alert and kind of dangerous looking. Oddly enough it made Percy's shoulder relax, a strange comfort descending over him at the guy's vigilance.
"Yeah, it's super dead and creepy in here," Percy agreed.
Nico hummed at that, not saying much as he ducked his head, staring at the ground as though the cracked floor was infinitely interesting.
"So," Percy said after a moment of awkward silence. At least, awkward for him. Maybe Nico was used to silence. He did live in Melinoë's creepy underground world, with only the demon herself and the weird maybe-ghosts for company. Percy decided the silence was probably totally normal and not at all awkward for the guy, unlike Percy who couldn't stand more than like, five seconds of silence before his mind started to ramble—like now, with Nico staring at him with one raised eyebrow wondering where his lost 'so' was heading.
"Did you fail your three tasks or what's the deal buddy, why are you down here?" Percy asked, quickly returning his original train of thought before his awful, short attention span ran amok again.
Nico snorted, his face twisting so his nose wrinkled up and he looked slightly less depressing, "You're not a real tactful guy are you?"
"No, not really, sorry," Percy admitted with a sheepish grin, rubbing the back of his neck. "That was kind of an asshole thing to say wasn't it? I'm sorry you don't have to answer—"
"I didn't have three tasks," Nico cut him off to say. "I was condemned to punish my father. Melinoë couldn't touch him so she went for the next best thing."
Nico ended this awful statement with a shrug of his shoulders, looking far too nonchalant for the temper that boiled in Percy at his words.
"What?" Percy exclaimed in outrage. "But—but that's not fair! You didn't do anything wrong, why should you get punished?"
Nico's shoulders hunched again as he slouched over. The movement cast shadows across his face and he suddenly seemed eons old, ancient and timeless. It made something in Percy's chest seized, made him want to reach out and make the shadows disappear. Nobody deserved to look like that, especially not someone who helped lost and clueless idiots fill up buckets with memory stealing water. Or something.
"Because she couldn't touch him."
"What the hell! You shouldn't have to—that's not!" Percy was so angry he couldn't even form words. "For all eternity?"
"Pretty much yeah."
Percy sputtered some more. "That's—that's—how can? Your dad never—?" Nico shook his head, whether in answer to Percy's unasked question or in warning not to ask it Percy wasn't sure but the words weren't coming out anyway so it didn't really matter.
"Dammit man," Percy whined finally. "Now I just want to hug you."
Nico's eyes widened to a comical degree. His ears were pink again. "That, um," Nico coughed, "um—"
"Don't worry I won't," Percy dismissed with a wave of his hand. "But how dare she? How dare she? I mean, I've heard of some rotten thing—I work at a castle up top you know—" he pointed up as if to somehow illuminate his point "—and they say some awful things and do some terrible stuff, but man. Man, that really sucks."
He paused, looking at Nico. There were permeate bags under his eyes, a permeant skeletal form to his frame. Percy wondered when the last time he saw the sun was.
"I'm sorry."
"You don't have anything to be sorry for," Nico snorted.
"I'm sorry this happened to you."
"Yeah well," Nico rubbed the back of his head. "Thanks. But I can take care of myself."
"Well I mean you can touch the forget water, so that's pretty badass."
Nico snorted, rolling his eyes. His lips gave a finite twitch, his shoulders relaxing. "You're a strange one, you know that?"
"Psh, says the guy who can literally disappear into thin air."
"It's not thin air—"
"Fine, foggy air—"
A grin twitched up Nico's face, even though the guy obviously fought to keep it down. "I can disappear into the shadows—"
"Oh yes, the shadows, how silly of me, everybody can do that."
Nico ducked his head, coughing rather sporadically into his hands.
"That's a laugh, don't even try to hide it behind those fake coughs shadow boy," Percy accused.
Nico 'coughed' some more, turning so all Percy could see was the back of his head and his shaking shoulders. Psh, Percy didn't know who he thought he was fooling. It was a lame joke though, definitely not one of Percy's better (and trust him, Percy was hysterical, just ask anyone at the palace . . . except the princes). It made him wonder when the last time Nico laughed was, which was a sad thought.
When Nico turned back around, his hysterical 'cough' all cleared up. Something must have shown on Percy's face before the impassive mask slide over Nico's face.
"Come on, you have to be tired, I'll show you the only good place here to sleep."
"Is it covered in mold?"
"Just decaying a little."
"Oh yay, only a little," Percy said, trying to reel back in the atmosphere from before but Nico was already walking on ahead.
Percy sighed then jogged to keep up. Nico took him down a long, twisting corridor, pointing out various landmarks to help him, which weren't exactly helpful ("there's the three one-eyed witch statue, turn left", "painting of three dead guys stay straight", "I don't know what that is but make sure you pass it").
"Oh, this is . . . cozy," Percy said when Nico announced they had arrived.
Their heads peeked inside a room that, true to Nico's word, was less decayed than the rest of the dark castle. At least, everything wasn't covered in mold in this one, Percy thought. There was a bed in the corner that looked like it had only been sort of chewed on by a horde of moths, the floor wasn't cracked, and the ceiling seemed in good repair.
"It's the best I know of."
"Thanks man," Percy said and he meant it. Sure the room was pretty terrifying but it didn't look liable to collapse or spew toxic spores at him so that was a win. Besides, he apparently needed a place to sleep tonight (thanks Melinoë).
Nico shifted from side to side, his head half ducked. "Yeah well . . . it's not much."
"It's not like it's your castle," Percy said with a shrug. "So, really, I appreciate it. That's really cool of you."
"It's really not much," Nico grumbled. "But whatever, weirdo. Get some sleep. Melinoë will have a second task for you tomorrow."
"Don't suppose you'd know what it might be?" Percy hedged.
"No."
"Yeah that's what I was afraid of. Well, thanks again Nico."
"Don't mention it. Seriously."
A/n The Collection lives! I'm willing to bet all my college debt that none of you have ever heard of Prunella before. It's an old Italian fairytale that is, believe it or not, considered to be a Rapunzel variant. If that means nothing to you don't worry about it, or ask me about it! I am very well versed in the realm of old fairytales. Anywho, Prunella can be found in The Grey Fairy Book, which you can ask me about if you want to hear me geek out about the colored fairy books or Andrew Lang or Prunella in general. Prunella is one of my favorite fairytales and 90% of that has to do with the fact that it is riddled with tropes and it kills me. I've made plenty of my unfortunate friends read it and they all agree it's mostly a me thing. But I'm going to subjugate you to a PJO retelling because I can! Don't worry, I've toned down the crazy a little.
I love all of you so much for sticking with the Collection! Let me know what you think and I hope you enjoyed ~ *