A/N: My head hurts. If I wrote a real book, would you buy it? I probably wouldn't myself, to be honest. Anyway. My new story on this site, Shangri-la, has sex in it. But, do you think I should make a second story with the smut in it? It's... it's pretty twisted... Answer in a poll on my profile.
Oh, I changed my pen name again. I took out the "A " in the beginning. If you didn't read my profile (because let's be honest, you didn't), then consider yourself informed: Samildanach is an epithet of the Irish god Lugh, and it means "equally skilled in many things" or something like that. I spell it with an extra "h" because I intentionally misspell all my usernames and such.
Anyway, here's this chapter. 9.5k words exactly.
Disclaimer: This is a fan-made work using characters and settings primarily from "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" by Rick Riordan. This work is not intended to infringe on the copyright of any existing work.
17: Percy and Zoë Are Ordinary Friends
Even with two fewer limbs, Percy wasn't light. When he tried to cast a Half spell so he wouldn't be as big a burden on Zoë, he found that a certain Huntress had decided he wasn't "allowed" to put that much stress on his body.
Zoë helped him limp out of the junkyard, but it was extremely difficult. He had to lean on Zoë with his left arm and hop with his left leg just to move. He couldn't use a crutch, even if they'd had one, because he had no arm to support it. Zoë told Percy that given time, she'd be able to construct a kind of crutch he could use with the few inches left of his upper arm, but Percy said they had no time to waste.
"If I have to use a crutch, I'm no help to anyone, and you know it. But I've got an idea," Percy told her, his tone solemn. "Let's just get to the truck."
Zoë suddenly realized that she desperately wanted his carefree attitude and voice back. She wished she could take back every time she'd ever told him to be more mature. She had enough maturity for the both of them. Percy was supposed to be the fun one, who made her happy, and told bad jokes she accidentally laughed at sometimes. He wasn't supposed to suffer like this.
Percy didn't actually feel like he was suffering. He felt no pain from his injuries. What he did feel, though, was worse than useless. He had one single idea that kept him from resetting right then, but he wouldn't be able to investigate it for a little while. So, he had no choice but to lean on Zoë—quite literally.
He'd like to say he took it well. He'd like to say he didn't feel bad for weighing Zoë down. He'd like to say a lot of things, but they would all be lies.
Percy felt tears flowing down his cheeks as he "sat" in the shotgun seat of the tow-truck. Would he ever be strong enough to save Zoë on his own? Would it take him another hundred years? Or longer?
Zoë started the car, and Percy started explaining himself, unbidden. "When I pushed you out of the way, I tried to position myself under the maintenance hole. I missed by just a little. My arm was crushed. I thought I was dead."
"You were," Zoë whispered.
Percy nodded. "I know. Thank you for saving me."
He surrendered himself to sleep as Zoë drove off, not watching her hands tightly clench the steering wheel when he said "I know." Not watching as she started to cry again when he thanked her for "saving him."
She couldn't help but sob one word, and Zoë herself wasn't sure if she was admonishing Perseus or someone else. "Foolish."
Percy woke up not much later, only to find Chloe the tiger-striped tabby kitten standing on his one remaining leg, her front paws up on his stomach.
"Mew," she meowed up at him, her pale yellow cat eyes gazing into his sea-green human—er, demigod—ones.
"Uh, meow to you, too," Percy responded hoarsely.
"Mew, mew," the kitty repeated.
"I don't know what that means, Chloe," Percy tried to explain. "I'm sorry, I don't speak... cat."
"Mew, mew, mew!" Chloe meowed louder. She slowly closed her eyes, then opened them.
Percy had read once that a cat slow-blinking at you was a good thing, so he slow-blinked back, closing his eyes and opening them again. He felt like a moron.
"Mew."
Chloe closed her eyes and curled up on Percy's lap—what was left of it, anyway. She was basically just resting on his one remaining thigh. His leg was not thin, and the kitten was very small, so it worked.
Zoë explained what just happened, her eyes never once moving from the road. "Perhaps it is due to the manner of her birth, or perhaps it is the time she spent in close proximity to a powerful Huntress, but Chloe is beyond highly intelligent. She understands you were responsible for saving her life, and mine. She is also aware that thy injuries were sustained in doing so. She feels responsible, in addition to being extremely grateful."
Percy breathed through his nose while he thought about that. "Seems like an awful lot to say with a grand total of seven 'mews.'"
Zoë smiled briefly. "She did not say that, exactly. That is simply what I know her to believe."
Percy gave a lopsided grin. "Then what did she say?"
Zoë thought about it. She'd never told Perseus what Chloe was saying before, but then again, Chloe had never said anything directly to Perseus before. The Huntress also found herself unable to refuse the demigod sitting next to her anything at the moment.
Gods, if he asked her for something she really shouldn't give him... Well, she knew he wouldn't do that. It was part of what made him him. Part of what made her...
The Huntress blinked. "She is a cat. She said 'meow.' She is not like Liliana, who speaks strangely, but with a very specific meaning. But... I know that is not what you were asking. She was apologizing for thy hurting, and thanking thee."
"Oh," Percy said. He whispered, "Thanks, Chloe."
He went to pet the kitty's sleeping head, but his arm wasn't working for some reason.
"Right," he said out loud, surprisingly numb about not having a right arm. "I'm left now."
He petted Chloe with his left hand instead, and the kitty purred without opening her eyes.
"Perseus," Zoë said without looking at him. "I share her feelings."
Percy closed his eyes. "You shouldn't. You didn't ask me to save you."
He heard her say, "But you did."
She might've said something else, too. But he was already drifting back to sleep, so he didn't hear whatever it was.
— — — — — — —
He woke back up when he felt the truck slow down. They ran out of gas in the same place as the first time—the only other time he'd made it this far. They were at the end of the road, but there was water nearby. A river canyon.
Percy's eyes snapped open. "Water!"
He tried to leap out of the truck, but fell flat on his face.
"Fuck me," he growled from the ground. "I forgot I only have one leg."
He tried to climb back up, but he couldn't do it very easily. He rolled around and got his body positioned over his leg. He pushed up and quickly leaned against the car, preventing him from falling over again.
"Mew!" Chloe meowed loudly from within Zoë's cloak.
Zoë looked at the man who saved her life a few hours earlier, at the literal cost of an arm and a leg. "Here. The water is not far."
She offered him her body, and he collapsed against it. They slowly made their way to the water, walking half a mile to a gentler slope than the goat path they could see from their position.
If it was seawater, Percy could've manipulated it from here, but it wasn't. He'd have to be much closer, and he'd never be able to manipulate the river water as easily as water from the ocean. But it was what was here. He'd be able to see if his idea had any merit. If it…
"Held water," Percy muttered.
He hated this. He felt utterly useless. If only he'd lost an arm and a leg on opposite sides of his body, he'd be able to use a crutch to walk.
Finally, they were in view of the river, and the canoe station closed for the winter. Percy pulled some water over and splashed it on his head, revitalizing himself. He pulled a larger amount over after he felt energized. He held it in a sphere in front of him.
"Let go," he asked Zoë.
"Truly?" she asked skeptically. He'd fall over if she let go now.
"Yes," he said darkly. "I'm serious. If I can't even stand up on my own, you can just leave me here. I won't be able to fight. I certainly won't be able to hold up the sky."
Zoë exhaled loudly, but did as Percy asked.
He balanced on one leg as he pulled the water over to him. It flowed down to his right leg—the stump that remained of it, anyway. It formed itself into a rough approximation of a leg.
Percy tried putting weight on it, but it didn't work quite as he'd hoped, and he fell through it and hit the ground.
Zoë rushed over to help him up, but he wouldn't let her, holding up his only remaining arm. "Stop! Do not help me up, Zoë."
Zoë started tearing up again, and Percy's heart felt like it was getting stabbed. "Shall this be thy newest 'thing,' Perseus? Refusing my help, to satisfy thy foolish pride? Affirming thy masculinity?"
Percy sat up as he pulled more water from the river and started reforming the 'leg.' "No, of course not, Zoë. That's not what this is. I need to do this on my own, or it'll be pointless. When you leave to go back to the Hunt, I'll still need to fight on my own for another two years. I shouldn't get used to your help when I won't have it any more in a few days."
Zoë blinked her tears away, but she still sounded like she had the flu. "Right. Thou art correct."
Percy tried to stand up, and it worked a little, but not well enough. He fell forwards this time.
As he rolled over, he grumbled, "Great. Now you're mad at me."
"I am not," Zoë denied.
"Yes, you are. You brought out the 'thou art.' That means you're mad. What did I do this time?"
Zoë huffed and Chloe mewed. "If thou knoweth not the reason for my anger, I shall not inform thee."
Percy blinked, and then laughed. And then he laughed again. And again. And then he couldn't stop laughing. "Ha. Ha, ha. Ha, ha, ha. Ha, haha, hahahaha!"
Zoë spat, "Why art thou laughing? Am I a clown? Do I amuse thee?"
Percy pulled himself together and told her, "You said it. You really said it! Hahaha!"
Zoë stomped her foot in frustration, like a child. "What did I say?!"
"You said it. You said, 'If you don't know, then I'm not going to tell you.' You said the thing!"
Zoë blinked.
"Mew."
"It would seem I did," Zoë admitted frankly, not seeming to find it funny one bit. "I shall retrieve a canoe. You keep… practicing."
After he stopped laughing, he did. As Zoë lifted a canoe over her head and sat it by the river, Percy was finally on two legs again.
Sort of.
He slowly stepped over to her, growing more sure of himself with every step. It was really hard, but it worked. He had to concentrate on keeping the water a certain level of solidity, so that it didn't turn to ice, but he could still put his entire body weight onto it, while also carefully manipulating its movement and position.
As he got close to Zoë, he suddenly stumbled, and she caught him in her arms.
"Wherefore art thou crying?!" Zoë asked frantically, when she saw the tears in his eyes. "What is wrong?! Art thou in pain?!"
"No, I'm not," Percy said through the tears. "I'm just so happy. That this works. That I don't have to start over again. That I can help."
"That thou need not rely on me."
Percy blinked. "Only because you don't want me to. I wouldn't mind relying on you, but it'll upset you. I don't want that."
Zoë didn't say anything.
Percy stood up on his leg and water leg, and began walking in circles. He did a few squats. He even started balancing on his water leg alone, which he was surprised worked fine.
"Alright," he announced after around half an hour of performing various exercises and completing certain tasks. "Sorry I made you wait so long, Zoë. I just wanted to make sure I've really got this down."
Zoë just nodded, and Percy wasn't sure if she accepted his apology or didn't want it in the first place.
Percy willed the river to pick up the canoe and set it into the water. It looked very strange, staying stock still as the rapids moved around it.
The odd immortal pair hopped in, and Percy was surprised not to find any naiads in the water this time.
"Whatever," he mused, his good mood from being able to walk again still coloring his tone. "Their loss!"
He willed the currents to push them upstream, which looked bizarre, but it worked.
It was also like a training weight for him. He kept his water leg active as he controlled the river, and it wasn't long before sweat started pouring off of him.
"Art thou alright?" Zoë asked worriedly.
"You know quite well that I'm not 'all right.' But I'm fine, though, thanks for asking," Percy joked, and Zoë muttered, 'something something foolish something.'
When he had a handle on the river and the leg, he started on forming an arm, too.
He felt like his mind was about to split in half, focusing on three things at once, and that number increased to four once Zoë started talking.
As she stared into the water, she said solemnly, "You told me this was the river we talked in originally. Where I told you I expected to die. Where I said 'Nothing lasts forever.' That in two thousand years, I had not grown wiser. I feel…"
It sounded like she was saying something important, Percy couldn't hear the rest. "What did you say?"
Zoë whipped her head to look at him and recoiled in horror. "Perseus! Stop that, this instant! You cannot handle the strain!"
Percy felt like he said, "Don't worry about it. I'm fine."
However, what Zoë heard was, "Doh-woh-bow. Di-fi."
Zoë started panicking. Perhaps dying had had some negative effects on him, after all. "I know not the meaning of thy words, Perseus, but whatever it is thou sayeth, thy face is blood red! Thou art pushing it!"
"Nahhhh, di-bi poh-see-nih."
Zoë wanted to scream. "Perseus, for the love of the gods, let go of thy arm!"
"Fi, hab-ih-your way," Percy dropped control of the water arm halfway through the sentence, his speech returning to normal the instant he did so.
His face slowly returned to the tan complexion it originally possessed. "Was it really that bad, Zoë?"
"Yes," Zoë affirmed. "You were babbling."
"Babbling?" Percy asked skeptically.
"Yes," Zoë affirmed once again, at the same time Chloe poked her head out from Zoë's hood and mewed loudly.
"What was I saying?" he asked curiously.
"I have absolutely no idea," Zoë admitted. "But you definitely said 'Doh-woh-bow. Di-fi,' at some point."
"Huh," Percy made a noise. "You'd think a guy would remember saying something like that."
"You were pulling upon thy divine powers too heavily. Your brain could not control it all, as well as thy words, at the same time."
"Fascinating," Percy breathed. Then he got distracted. "Naiads! Hey, over here! You two!"
Zoë watched as the two naiads flittered over coquettishly. She exhaled loudly. "She-devils."
"Mew," Chloe agreed.
"Hey, you guys. We're headed upstream," Percy told the Naiads.
They seemed to point in Zoë's direction, and made bubbling noises.
Zoë evidently took offence to this. "Why, you little—"
"Zoë, calm down!" Percy held out his one arm and kept her from standing up in the canoe.
Zoë growled wordlessly, and Chloe seemed to imitate her momma from her position beneath Zoë's chin, but she was much, much cuter. Not that Zoë wasn't cute, because she was, but she couldn't compete with a kitten. No one could.
"Sorry about that. Do you think you could help us out?" Percy asked the Naiads.
They bubbled in agreement, and soon they were off again.
"So, what were you saying, before?" Percy asked.
"Nothing," Zoë grumbled. "It is not important."
That obviously is not what she meant, but Percy didn't push it.
Instead, he used the Naiads' relief of his canoe pushing duty to reform his water arm. It was much harder than the leg. He had to form five independent fingers, and be able to grab things, and move them. He could only barely sense when the water he was using for the hand was touching something, so it made picking things up difficult.
"It is Thursday morning," Zoë said, breaking Percy's concentration, causing his sword to fall through his water-hand and clatter onto the canoe.
Percy bit his lips. "Yeah. Sure is."
He picked up his sword, but dropped it again when Zoë added, "Tomorrow will be Friday."
Percy took a deep breath. "Yeah. Sure will."
He picked up his sword again, but he didn't know why he bothered, as he dropped it again the next second.
"It is the twentieth."
Percy looked up at the sky. "Uh-huh. And then tomorrow will be the twenty first. The solstice. I know. I super get it. Thank you, Zoë."
"Mew!" Chloe meowed angrily.
"I'm sorry," Percy apologized. He wanted to say something else, but found himself repeating, "I'm sorry."
Zoë felt her chest tightening as she looked at the water arm and water leg Percy was learning to use, all because he had saved her life. And he had the gall to suggest she had saved his.
"It is understandable," Zoë admitted, but she had waited long enough that Percy had already picked up his sword again, and her words caused him to lose concentration.
Tears threatened to fall with the celestial bronze. "I am sorry, Perseus."
"Don't be absurd, Zoë," Percy admonished. "If I can't handle a few words, this is never gonna work in a fight."
Zoë didn't say anything.
"But, thank you," Percy said guiltily. "I think you're actually helping."
Zoë didn't have the heart to tell him what she was actually apologizing for.
Instead, she just watched as he slowly familiarized himself with using a water hand to manipulate objects. To hold his sword. His new sword—because he'd given her his old one back, just because he felt she should have it.
"Foolish," she whispered as she touched the hair brooch she'd thought she'd lost forever. She still didn't know which of them she was talking about.
Percy didn't hear that, focused as he was. He muttered, "I wish the gem worked inside this sword."
Zoë frowned. "The crystal that seemed to enhance thy control of water?"
"Yeah," Percy answered. "That's the one. I got Beckendorf to forge this sword and put that gem in the handle."
"But that crystal vibrated violently whenever held by anyone but thee, did it not?" Zoë asked curiously.
Percy nodded. "Uh-huh. It wasn't easy for Beck to forge this. Cost me an arm and a leg—"
His words halted suddenly and the sword tumbled down onto the canoe. Percy swallowed roughly and paused, before trying to lighten the mood. "Whoops."
"Mew," Chloe meowed worriedly.
Percy looked at the kitten's exposed head. He guessed at what she meant by that. "I'll be alri—I mean, I'll be fine, Chloe."
Percy practiced holding his new sword in his water hand for a few more minutes, until Zoë asked, "So, the crystal simply does not activate?"
Percy nodded glumly. "Yeah."
Zoë thought for a moment. "Have you tried channeling thy divine power through thy sword? I have seen similar cases before—in which a power source behaved differently once placed within a device."
Percy thought for a second before trying it. He tried controlling the sword like it was water, but nothing happened.
"It didn't work," he announced solemnly. "I tried imagining the crystal was water, but nothing happened. Thanks, anyway."
Zoë shook her head. "No. Force thy divinity within the sword—as if you were to take control of an area at sea. Inject thy divine power directly within the crystal. Do not attempt to control it—take control of it, instead."
'Controlling something' and 'taking control of something' seemed like two things that would have the same meaning, but when Percy put Zoë's words into action, the results spoke for themselves.
The sword, held within Percy's water hand, began to vibrate intensely, which almost forced Percy to drop it.
But he didn't. In fact, his grip began to get firmer, and his arm started to become much more clearly defined, like a camera coming into focus. It began to parallel his left arm more closely, eventually resembling an exact replica of his original arm—only made of transparent liquid.
"Wow," Percy marveled. "I've never been able to make a shape this precise before. Well, not with freshwater."
He looked down at his leg, which quickly underwent the same process.
"This is incredible! Thank you so much, Zoë!"
Zoë looked at Percy's innocent expression. How genuinely glad he looked at her marginal assistance.
Zoë shook her head. "I am simply returning thy favor. You lost thy limbs in my rescue. It is only fair to repay thee."
Percy frowned and shook his head. "It's different."
Zoë didn't bother arguing, even though she knew he was wrong.
Percy started messing around, tossing the sword from one hand to the other and back again, before giving it a few experimental swings with his water arm.
"Hey!" he exclaimed. "It's perfectly balanced now!"
Zoë knitted her brows.
Percy swung with his other arm, and frowned. "Huh. It's still wrong in my left hand, but it feels perfect with my right."
Zoë said calmly, "Show me."
Percy swung a few times with his left arm, and then with his water arm.
Zoë tried her best not to gasp. "Again."
Percy showed her again. And again. And again.
"What's going on, Zoë?" he asked cautiously.
"I am doubting the validity of mine eyes."
"Huh?" Percy requested clarification.
Zoë took a deep breath. "A born master of the blade. It must be."
Percy shook his head and laughed. "What are you talking about? I've been practicing for a hundred years."
Zoë shook her head. "Unimportant. It is the instincts. Thou art—you are—unconsciously modifying thy arm to suit thy blade. Any sword would be perfectly balanced in such a case. I have never seen such a thing. The minute control of hydrokinesis necessary can be trained, one imagines, but that alone is not enough. The knowledge of swordplay, the instincts working in tandem, it is simply incredible. Given enough time, perhaps another could perform a similar feat, but to do it without even realizing… Unheard of."
Percy raised his eyebrows and smiled like a smarmy dickhead. "Sounds like I'm pretty cool, huh?"
Zoë's awed expression morphed to one of horror.
Percy went back to normal. "Come on, what's with that look? That was obviously a joke!"
Zoë's expression returned to normal, as well—only much more slowly. "With men, one can never tell."
Percy smiled, even if he wasn't sure that was meant to be a joke. "Anyway, I think it's the crystal, helping me out."
Zoë shook her head firmly. "No. Perhaps it can enhance control, or even strength, but instincts… such a thing is impossible."
Percy frowned as he started messing with his water arm, trying to stab it with the sword, seeing how hard he could make it. Without looking up, he asked, "What about the blessing of Artemis? I saw Bianca become a master in a couple days."
Zoë huffed angrily and Chloe mewed. "How can one man possess such an immense capacity for obliviousness?"
Percy smiled when she spoke next, as he realized she was just joking. She didn't get super old-timey at him, so she wasn't actually angry. "Have you not heard a single word of mine, Perseus? It is the instincts. Artemis can confer the skill of archery, but not an archer's instincts. Allow a maiden to strike a bird in flight at one hundred paces? Yes, easily. Instill the instinct to draw one's bow immediately when threatened? Impossible."
"I think I get it," Percy nodded, and Zoë expected him to say something else.
When he didn't, she held aloft her canteen she'd filled with river water, and suggested gently, "Perseus? Can you purify our water?"
Percy blinked. "Sure. Oh, yeah, I'd better refill my own water, too."
Holding his sword in his water hand, he grabbed the canteen Zoe handed him with the other. After a few seconds, he handed it back, pure as could be.
He produced his own plastic water bottles from his pack, picked one up with his good hand, and looked at it. The cap was on.
He was about to sheath his sword when Zoë took the bottle from him, filled it with water from the river, and handed it back.
Chaos reigned in his heart. He didn't even know what he was thinking as he mindlessly said, "Thank you."
He purified it, and Zoë took it back, capped it, and then put it back in his bag. "Thanks again."
Zoë took the next bottle, uncapped it, filled it with water, and handed it to Percy. He said again, "Thank you."
Every time Zoë capped or uncapped a bottle, Percy thanked her. Finally, they were on the very last bottle, and Percy began yet again, "Tha—"
But Zoë wasn't having it. She shouted, "No!"
Percy's eyes widened as he waited for an explanation.
Zoë pulled her arms back and her figure seemed to shrink. With a sadness Percy did not often hear, and wished he never had to hear again, she eked out, "Stop it. Please."
Percy thought hard about what she was upset about. It obviously wasn't just annoyance. Something about him thanking her seemed to hurt her. He had hurt her, and that hurt him. But why? If she didn't want him to thank her, did that mean she felt she was supposed to help him just, naturally? That it was something she considered so basic a thing to do that she was angered he even thought to express his gratitude? Or was it something else? Was it that she didn't want his gratefulness?
He thought carefully about what to say next.
"Sorry, Zoë. I honestly don't understand why you're upset, but if you don't want me to thank you, then I won't."
Zoë looked miserable but didn't say anything. They wordlessly finished filling and purifying the last bottle of water.
They sat in silence, but it wasn't a comfortable one, like they had often shared atop Blackjack. Even Chloe seemed scared to speak.
Eventually, Percy blurted out, "Are you up for an arm wrestle?"
Zoë frowned apprehensively.
"Oh, come on," Percy groaned playfully. "It's not even my real arm. You won't have to touch an icky boy."
Zoë realized then, that he was obviously not aware of the method in which she resuscitated him.
"I hath taken food from within thy mouth and chewed it in thy place, before feeding it to thee with my tongue. I fear not the touch of thy hand, Perseus Jackson. Perseus, foolish, foolish, Jackson."
"I fear thou shalt not be satisfied with the outcome," she droned in a monotone.
Percy rolled his eyes, feeling that her use of 'thou shalt' was more because she was distracted than angry. "If you're worried you'll beat me, don't be. That's what I'm expecting."
Percy sheathed his sword, and instantly, his water limbs lost some definition. He grunted, and the definition came back. Sweat began to drip from his brow.
"Whew," Percy breathed tiredly. "Lot tougher to channel divine power through something I'm not holding. But I'll get used to it."
Percy squatted in the canoe, banging his water elbow against the middle seat with an impressive thud!
Zoë shook her head and readied herself, gripping Percy's water hand. It felt cool, but firm, like she was holding a real hand, and not water.
From Zoë's hood and over her shoulder came what seemed to be a one-kitten cheer squad. "Mew, mew, mew! Meeeew, mew!"
"Who's she rooting for?" Percy asked.
"For thee." Zoë thought as she looked at him with her usual poker face.
"Oh. Of course, she'd be rooting for you," Percy said sheepishly. "I don't know why I asked."
"Hm." Zoë made a noise that could have meant anything. Only Artemis had been with Zoë long enough to learn to decipher her noises. Artemis could have explained that this particular 'hm' meant 'bring it.'
Percy couldn't have told anyone what that noise had meant, but it didn't matter. Because he saw what she was trying to say written in her volcanic eyes, plain as day.
"Then let's do this," he responded.
— — — — — — —
"I still can't believe you broke the canoe in half," Percy said for what must have been the twentieth time.
Zoë furrowed her brows in a way Percy found particularly cute. "I told thee you would not be satisfied with the outcome, but you insisted."
Percy jokingly argued as they climbed up the path to the Hoover Dam. "Yeah, well, I didn't think you meant you were going to break the canoe in half."
Zoë fixed the Son of the Sea with a regal look. "I have never once given less than my all in a contest with a male."
"That wasn't a contest!" Percy complained.
"Agreed," Zoë nodded. "'Twas a slaughter."
"That's not what I meant, and you know it," Percy fired back playfully.
Zoë raised her eyebrows. "Oh? You are suddenly the only one allowed to possess a sense of humor?"
Percy laughed loudly, and he wished they could just climb this path forever, talking about nothing in particular. "I guess not. I just remember hearing a certain goddess say, 'Zoë rarely kids about anything.'"
"Hmm," Zoë thought out loud. "Odd. I don't. Something else you forgot to tell me?"
"Well, it was hardly important. It was when Bianca became a Huntress. You said that Huntresses got immortality. I said, 'She's kidding, right?' Artemis said that you didn't 'kid.' I guess even a goddess can be wrong sometimes."
"Perhaps," Zoë admitted. "But not in this case. She said I kid rarely. This is merely one of those rare times."
"Oh, you've made plenty of jokes," Percy argued.
Zoë shook her head. "Incorrect. Merely saying something you find funny does not constitute a joke."
Sadly for Percy's wish of unending banter, they eventually reached the top. Happily, though, he was reminded of the good times when they approached the dam.
"We must move quickly. Let us make haste to the dam snack bar," Zoë stated without an ounce of humor.
"Yeah," Percy really couldn't help but laugh. "Pfft. Let's get some dam food."
He checked his watch. 7:46 AM. They had until roughly 5 PM before sundown. That meant they had until then to get into Mount Othrys, or Artemis would miss the council meeting the following day. They still had 600 miles between them and Frisco, and that was if they flew straight there. If they drove, they'd probably make it with just a few minutes to spare, and that was if they drove like maniacs.
He couldn't resist a little morbid gallows humor. He smiled a crooked smile that only barely hid his apprehension, and stated with a voice that was only borderline carefree, "We really don't have a lotta dam time."
"No, we do not," Zoë agreed solemnly.
Percy grinned with genuine happiness. "Luckily, I've got an idea. And a second one, if she's not here."
"She?" Zoë asked cautiously.
Percy nodded. "Yeah, she. Rachel Elizabeth Dare."
Zoë's face didn't change one bit, but her words carried a vicious bite. "Thou art referring to the girl thou kissedst."
Percy blinked to clear away the shock. "I mean, I kinda feel like she kissed me, you know? There's a pretty big distinction there."
"Thou didst enjoy it," Zoë said flatly. "Thou wouldst hath engaged her further had Charles Beckendorf not interrupted thee."
"I don't believe I ever told you I'd have done that," Percy carefully reminded.
"So it is true, then." Zoë pressed her lips into a thin line. "Thou wishest to continue that which was halted, even now!"
"Zoë, for the gods' sakes, now is not the time!" Percy threw his hand and water hand up in the air. When Zoë's eyes started glowing with anger, he hurriedly swore, "I don't want to kiss her now! Whatever I felt back then, I don't feel it now!"
Not calming down, Zoë accused, "Only because she is younger, and thou art older! Admit it! Thou lovest me not like thou sayest, and her instead!"
Tear entering her eyes as she seemed to break down, Zoë lapsed into Shakespearean insults that Percy didn't understand a word of. "Lout! Bedswerver! Dalcop! Skelpie-limmer! Scullion! Rampallion!"
Grabbing her outstretched hands carefully, Percy slowly spoke. "Zoë? I love you. Only you. Whatever the past held, whatever the future holds, right now, the only person I want to be with is you. I do not understand why you're getting so upset, but we do not have time. I'm not trying to demean you, or make light of your feelings, but we need every minute right now."
Zoë slowly collected herself, and began to blush as she thought about how forward she had just been. She looked into Percy's oceanic eyes, and felt calmer.
"Right now, we've got no time. We can discuss me being a scumbag male later, okay?"
Zoë nodded seriously, apparently content to let the matter lie. Or maybe to pretend it never happened at all.
"Rachel Elizabeth Dare was on vacation here. Why would she visit the same landmark twice in a row?" Zoë brought up an excellent point a few moments later.
"Psychic weirdo girl, remember?" Percy tapped the side of his head with a water finger. "She might've been drawn here to meet me in the first place. Who's to say she won't show up again? Besides, that's what the second plan is for."
Percy was proven right before he even knew it. A few minutes later, right after he and Zoë made out the CLOSED sign on the distant dam snack bar, a girl's shrill scream pierced the air.
Percy turned to see RED herself standing not five feet from Zoë and him.
"Ra—"
Zoë's hand clamped over Percy's mouth, preventing him from spilling the beans. He reminded himself to thank her later.
Rachel had screamed, but she didn't really seem all that scared. In her typical machine gun fashion, she fired away one question after another.
"Oh my gosh! Is your arm made of water?! Is your leg made of water? Is that a real sword? Is that made of lion fur? Is that a real kitten? Who are you? Are you two dating? You look cute, but something's weird—I think you guys need to go to couple's therapy or something."
Percy gave her the cliff notes version.
"All those weird things you see? They're real. No one else can see them, because they can't see through the Mist, but you can. My right arm and my right leg are indeed made of water, my sword is very real, my friend's cloak is the pelt of the Nemean Lion, her kitten's name is Chloe, we are not dating, and I'm Percy Jackson. My dad is Poseidon. Who are you?"
Rachel blinked. "Rachel Elizabeth Dare."
Percy nodded. "Nice to meet you, Rachel. Now, I really hate to ask this, but have you got a spare helicopter lying around or something? Because the world may literally end if me and my friend here don't get to San Francisco in…" Percy checked his watch. "Eight and a half hours."
Rachel blinked again, trying to absorb the new information. When she got her bearings straight, she smiled. "Well, Mr. 'I'm Percy Jackson, my dad is Poseidon,' you're in luck. Because I'm Miss Rachel Elizabeth Dare, and my dad is Mr. Dare."
She snapped open her flip phone and held down one of the numbers on the key pad. She muttered as it rang, "You owe me for this, big time."
When the other end picked up, she suddenly turned into a different person. "Hi, Daddy! You know that gala you wanted me to go to? Yeah, well I was…"
She started turning away and walking, so Zoë and Percy followed her. Turned out there was a helipad at the Hoover Dam. Who knew?
— — — — — — —
"So you're telling me that Greek mythology is all real, and now all the gods and monsters... they're in America?" Rachel confirmed, not bothering to keep her voice down. They were in a helicopter, so the noise was loud enough to mask their conversation from the mortal pilot.
Zoë thought for a second. "Perhaps not all are here in America. Ocean monsters, for instance. Certain gods are in Canada, if I recall correctly."
Rachel nodded. She looked at Percy, who was huddled up in the fetal position with a sword in his water hand. "And he is…?"
Zoë nodded. "Pretending to be a cloud so the Lord of the Skies does not blast this helicopter into pieces, yes."
"He looks like an idiot," Rachel observed.
"He is an idiot," Zoë corrected.
"He can also still hear you," Percy muttered dejectedly, not moving from his position.
Rachel pretended to look around, confused. "What was that? Did you hear something just now, Zoë?"
Zoë pretended to search for the noise as well. "No, I do not believe I heard anything. Perhaps it was thy imagination?"
"Hmm, yeah," Rachel agreed. "Must've been the wind."
Zoë nodded. "'Twas likely the wind."
Percy was crushed when Chloe popped her head out of Zoë's cloak and looked around, carefully avoiding his direction.
"Mew, mew."
"Damned kitten."
Zoë stood up inside the helicopter instantly, which scared Rachel half to death. "What hast thou sayest?!"
"Dam kitten, I said dam kitten!" Percy shouted frantically with his eyes closed. "We were just at the dam, so she's a dam kitten now! Yeah, that's all, okay, Zoë?"
Zoë sat down slowly. "Yes. That is what I thought you said."
Rachel looked at them like they were insane. She asked her new friend, "Is there some kind of love lost between him and that cat?"
Percy wasn't sure what to say in response to that, so he let Zoë take care of it.
"Not quite," Zoë explained. "Perseus feared I would endanger myself to protect her on our quest."
Rachel looked Zoë in the eyes. "Have you?"
"No," Zoë answered.
Rachel looked at Percy's missing limbs. "So he was like that before the quest?"
Zoë winced. She glanced at Percy, whose eyes were closed. She allowed herself a brief visage of pain before she collected herself. "No."
Rachel grimaced. "Oh. It doesn't… It doesn't look like a new thing. Sorry. I didn't mean to bring it back up."
Percy grumbled, "Not like it's had time to hide or something. Hard to bring something 'back up' that happened less than twelve hours ago."
Rachel's eyes widened. "Twelve hours?! But… it looks… "
Zoë's eyes were closed, and tears started streaking down her copper cheeks. Rachel didn't know what to do.
"It's fi-i-ine," Percy drawled. "Luckily, Zoë taught me how to… ahem, use my magic sword better, so my water limbs work... uh, better. Dunno where I'd be without her!"
Rachel watched as Percy made Zoë cry harder and harder, but she never made a sound, and he never opened his eyes, so he had no idea.
Zoë pulled herself together remarkably quickly. Rachel almost believed she hadn't been crying at all. Almost.
"So, we'll be in Frisco by noon," Rachel interrupted the awkward silence by saying. "Where do you two want to go?"
"We need to get to a certain mountain, Mt. Tamalpais," Percy explained, "but the Mist is incredibly thick there. Most people wouldn't be able to find the place we're going if they were ten feet away from it. That's where we need to get, but unless you can fly this thing, we're not gonna get very close."
Rachel nodded until she realized that Percy had not actually suggested anything at all.
"We shall require an automobile," Zoë stated.
Percy added, "A crappy one. Well, not crappy. It needs to be fast and maneuverable. But it's probably gonna get blown up, so it would be a bad idea to use a really expensive one."
Rachel grinned maniacally. "You say that like I haven't blown up really expensive cars before."
"I thought you were an artist," Percy said, still in the fetal position with his eyes closed.
Rachel sounded offended. "Explosions are art."
Percy started to laugh before he shot up like a rocket, looking out the side of the helicopter. "Styx!"
"I thought you were pretending to be a cloud!" Rachel shouted. "What's wrong?!"
A loud sound filled the air from all directions. Gunfire, and a lot of it. A ratatat! noise surrounded the helicopter.
Percy formed a shield of water from the surrounded air and hardened it, protecting the helicopter from the bullets. Rachel started shaking.
Zoë held the girl's shoulders. "Relax. For all his flaws, Perseus is immensely skilled in battle. He knows what he is doing. You are safe."
Percy really loved the vote of confidence, but four black para-military choppers filled with people had just come out of nowhere and surrounded the Dare-copter. Though the helicopter they were in was top of the line, it was still a commercial vehicle. It wasn't open to the air, and it didn't have any weapons. Otherwise, Percy could've used 'Launch' to blow the enemy choppers out of the air.
He sighed loudly. "Gonna have to do this the hard way, huh."
Percy raised his sword with his water hand, and then clenched his left hand into a fist.
Water suddenly condensed around the rotors of the enemy choppers, which were still firing bullets, and smoke began pouring from the engines as the rotors stopped spinning. The helicopters started dropping out of the sky, and Rachel whooped.
Zoë did not whoop. She was watching the move take its toll on Perseus. He didn't pass out, but his water limbs lost a lot of definition, and he had to pass his sword into his good hand so it wouldn't fall through his water one by accident.
"A marked improvement," Percy gasped, trying to joke by being overly serious sounding, but the he coughed and his usual informal tone came back. "Four at once, and I didn't even black out."
"Yes. You performed admirably," Zoë complimented. "You should rest now."
Percy wanted to laugh but it hurt when he started to, and he began to cough harder. "You know very well why I can't do that, Zoë."
Rachel looked in horror at the blood Percy had just expelled from his lungs, before looking back at Zoë.
Zoë didn't say a word, nor did her expression change, but Percy said, "No, I don't think that's a good idea."
Rachel threw her hands up. "Okay, what was that?"
Percy looked at her strangely. "What?"
Rachel stared at him pointedly. "Zoë didn't say anything, but you answered her like she did. Did you read her mind or something?"
"What?" Percy exclaimed incredulously. "Of course not! It was obvious what she was saying. I could see it on her face."
"She didn't move a muscle, Percy," Rachel deadpanned.
"Then it was in her eyes, I don't know."
"What did she say?"
Percy sighed like he was very put-upon. "I said I wouldn't rest, and that she knew why I couldn't, and then her eyes were obviously saying, 'Perhaps just a minute or two?' so I said I didn't think that was a good idea."
Rachel tossed her hands up in surrender. "Yup, that's an ordinary thing that ordinary friends do. You guys aren't in denial at all."
Percy looked at Zoë before answering, "Listen, Rachel. We do have a certain… connection. But that doesn't mean we have to be involved romantically."
"So you admit there's a connection, then?" Rachel confirmed.
Percy raised an eyebrow. "Yeah? That's pretty obvious."
Zoë made her famous noise that could mean anything. "Hm."
"What did that mean?" Rachel asked Percy.
Percy shook his head. "I have no idea."
"Mew!"
— — — — — — —
They landed very close to San Francisco, in the University of California, Berkeley. Which was in Berkeley, and not San Francisco, which made Percy anxious, but Rachel said her Dad was better connected with UC Berkeley than the city of San Francisco, which made a certain amount of sense.
Having a private helipad amount of sense? Not really, but what can you do?
Percy looked like hell, Rachel thought. Or, maybe he looked like Hades? But would that mean the god or the place? Rachel didn't know. There were so many questions she still needed answered!
Percy and Zoë were busy lovingly gazing into each other's eyes, so Rachel retrieved a Sharpie from out of her pocket and snuck over to Percy's left so she could write her phone number on his not-water-arm.
Zoë said out of nowhere, "If that is thy wish."
Percy sighed grumpily in response.
Rachel thought this was the ideal moment to strike, so imagine her surprise when Percy grabbed her hand with his water hand—which felt just like a normal hand, only colder—and said, "Oi, enough with that, Rachel. I've had enough permanent marker on my arm for a dozen lifetimes."
Rachel laughed to hide her embarrassment at being caught red handed. "Wow, that much? You must be a bigger chick magnet than I thought. No wonder Zoë won't go out with you. You're a heartbreaker, ain't ya?"
Percy rolled his eyes, not deigning to argue with that. "Listen, just write it down on a piece of paper, okay? I'll probably just Iris Message you anyway, so don't worry about it."
"You promise you'll get in contact with me?" Rachel confirmed anxiously. "Don't forget, you owe me big time for this, Percy. I have to go to a gala because of you. A freaking gala!"
"I promise. Thanks for all your help, Rachel."
Zoë nodded as well. "I thank thee, verily, Rachel Elizabeth Dare."
Rachel blinked as her two new friends sped away in a cherry red Audi TT Quattro. She muttered, "So that really wasn't, like, their thing? Zoë just calls everyone by their full names?"
In the car, Percy looked at his watch. 1:22 PM.
"We've got time before sundown, Zoë. We need to stop at the pier."
Zoë didn't look away from the road as she asked, "For Nereus?"
Percy laughed briefly. "No, not for that smelly old fart. Just for seawater. I need to soak for a while, get my energy back, or I think the sky will crush me. I also need to replace my freshwater limbs for saltwater ones."
"Hm."
They drove into San Francisco, even though it would've been faster to avoid the Golden Gate altogether. They agreed that they didn't want to risk any additional wrath if they didn't go everywhere they'd gone the first time—even if Zoë didn't remember the first time.
They didn't bother going to Annabeth's dad's house though. That would've been truly pointless. No, they figured San Francisco was good enough.
When they stopped at a pier, Percy dove in like a… well, like a fish. He breathed in the salty water, and felt like he was expelling all the impurities he'd taken in since the last time he'd been in the ocean.
He released his freshwater limbs, and reformed them using saltwater. He tried it first without the help of his sword, and was able to achieve the same level of definition he'd had with the freshwater and the sword. When he placed his left hand on the sheathed sword hilt, he felt his command of his water limbs grow much stronger. Probably almost as strong as his original limbs. Maybe, someday soon, it would actually be an improvement. For now, though, he just hoped it was enough.
When he was fully refreshed, he rose out of the water on a wave that deposited him back onto the pier, standing tall, without him needing to move a muscle. Yeah, it was a little showoff-ish, but what was the point in being half-god if you couldn't show off every once in a while?
As expected, Zoë just shook her head. "Foolish."
Percy gave her a lopsided grin, and pointed his water thumb at his chest. "That's me: Percy 'Foolish' Jackson."
Zoë sighed. "Board the vehicle, Perseus."
"Yes, ma'am."
Zoë drove across the Golden Gate Bridge like a maniac, and Percy was surprised the cops weren't on their tail when he looked behind them. They entered Marin County, and Percy's watch said it was 3:13. Good. They still had about an hour to get to the garden. Luckily, Percy's watch automatically adjusted for the timezone it was in. Tyson was a freaking technomancer or something, Percy swore.
He held his nose as a certain powerful stench began coming in through the air conditioner. "Blegh! If there's one thing I didn't miss in Oneida, it was this gods-forsaken smell!"
As they rounded a curve, Percy caught a glimpse of Luke's cruise ship, the Princess Andromeda. He shivered.
"Perseus," Zoë started to say, gripping the steering wheel tighter. "If… if we do not both survive this…"
Percy felt something change in the air and shouted, "Tell me later!"
Ignoring the potential discomfort it might cause the man-hater, Percy cut Zoë's seatbelt with his water hand he had sharpened into a blade, kicked his door off the car, grabbed Zoë, and jumped out with her in his arms.
With not a second to spare, too, as the car was crushed flat by a massive fist formed from the seawater below.
Percy and Zoë rolled to a stop, cut and bruised from the speed they'd been travelling when they jumped out. Percy had suffered the brunt of it, as he'd unconsciously protected Zoë in his arms.
He jumped to his feet and shouted at the still-visible Princess Andromeda, "Fuck off, you ancient fogey! I liked that car! I'll end you for this!"
Zoë grabbed his shoulders and shook him. She whisper-shouted, "Silence, Perseus!"
Percy shot her a look that said 'sorry' and 'thank you' at the same time, prompting Zoë to give him a look that just said, 'it is fine.'
They shared another look, as well as a piece of ambrosia. Their wounds healed as the sky grew dark.
"It is time," Zoë whispered solemnly. "Let us meet our fate, Perseus."
Percy nodded. He whispered back, "Let's."
The immortal pair walked into the Mist, side by side.
A/N: Ooh, developments. This one's for all the people who thought, "oh, I guess Percy's gonna get mechanical limbs from the junkyard or something. yawn."
I've seen plenty of stories where Percy loses an arm, and I'm always like, "So, he's not even gonna try to use a water arm, then?"
So, like you're supposed to, I wrote the story I wanted to read.
Once again, though, I can't help but put in more and more situations where characters do and say things that other people can't understand. AKA Lily, Chloe, Percy and Zoë's connection, Zoë's "Hm." It seems like that happens a lot in my stories. I'm a writer, I'm fascinated by different forms of communication. Sue me.
Yeah, Zoë kinda freaked out there. I know it seems like too much too soon, but remember that she had gone an extraordinary length of time without having any feelings for any man. Now, all of a sudden, she has a teeny tiny crush on Percy, and this is her first time ever confronting the idea that he enjoyed the company of another female at some point. She's not gonna be the most rational. It does not set the tone for her being overly jealous, but it does set yet another precedent for her being extremely insecure about certain things. She's scared, basically. I won't say more, as it will become more clear in the next chapter.
I've never liked Rachel. Dunno why, but I've tried not to let my dislike for her leak into how I portray her. When I write characters I don't like, instead of bashing them, I end up trying to make them better. Like, if I were to write Dumbledore, I'd try to justify his actions in his own mind. Though, man, Dumbledore seems like he's actively trying to make himself un-redeemable.
Anyways, check out Shangri-La, my new story. I've got plans for that one. It's a small harem with Aphrodite, Reyna, Zoë (eventually), and one or two mystery gals. It's an AU set after a long Titanomachy with a 24 year old Percy, a dead Annabeth, no second Great Prophecy, super-soldier Percy, and a lovestruck Aphrodite who's inexplicably taken with Percy, to freakish levels of loyalty, unexplained for quite some time.
Some random AO3 type tags might include: Percy needs a hug, Reyna needs a hug, Darkish!Percy, Apollo told Percy it's okay to call women sweetheart and he just never really questioned it because he's... kind of naive in a way, BAMF Percy, Unplanned Pregnancy.
Here's a random chapter title I've got in my head: Genetics Is a Science Made of Tears
Anyway, go read it. Just don't take it too seriously.
And review!
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