Lassa
"I'm sorry Child, you're saying what happened?" Chiron asks. I take a shaky breath, and fight back tears. Talking about it was harder than I thought. I'm glad I brought Jesse with me. I squeeze his hand, telling him to go on for me.
"We're telling the truth, Sir. Erica is Jealous of Lassa. She hates her, for nothing Lassa did to her or has control over. Two weeks ago, she asked me to get Lassa to like me and trust me so when I wrote her a note asking her to break curfew and meet me in the woods, she would go. The plan was to kidnap her there and tie her on a cross to make fun of her faith. When I tried to back out and warn Lassa because I realized how cruel it was, Erica decided to do it last night instead of tomorrow."
"I broke curfew and went into the woods at Zeus fist." I say, getting my voice back. But I squeeze Jesse' hand tighter. "They put a blindfold on me and celestial bronze handcuffs so I couldn't use my powers. Then they put a gag in my mouth so I couldn't scream. Cyrus and Jacob from the Ares cabin were helping her. And Cyrus…he groped my chest and my crotch. I don't know if he would have done more, but I managed to break his hold on me and run away. But Erica got ahead of me since I was cuffed. She tripped me, then kicked my face to knock me out. I woke up and I was cuffed to a cross that was bolted high up in a tree in a part of the woods with no nature spirits, miles away from Zeus' fist. Jesse went to warn me, and when he found me gone he told Percy and Annabeth the truth and they came to find me.
"It took us hours, sir. She was probably on that cross anywhere from four to six hours."
"I see. And where are Percy and Annabeth now?"
"I think Annabeth's at our cabin. Percy is in the arena." I answer.
"Oh? What's he doing in the arena?"
"He's…handling what Cyrus did to Lassa." Jesse says, with a small smile on his face. Chiron sighs.
"Normally, I would have to investigate this deeply before coming to a verdict. However, since it would be foolish for you to both implicate yourselves breaking camp rules, and to involve Percy and Annabeth in the story if it were false, I'll take you on your word for it. Lassa." He says, and I look into his eyes. "This whole situation is not your fault, I want to make that clear, but could have been avoided if you had simply followed camp rules and stayed in your cabin after curfew. They're there to protect you, understand?" I nod.
"Yes sir."
"Good. I think what you've been through is punishment enough. It seems as well that you've worked things out with young Mister James here," he nods at our intertwined fingers. "And since he both broke away from the plan and helped you escape his punishment will be lighter than the others involved. But such premeditated cruelty can't go unpunished."
"I understand, Chiron." Jesse tells him.
"Good."
"Lassa, what do you think is appropriate for both parties?" He asks me.
"Wha- I get to pick their punishments?" I ask, pointing at myself.
"You get to recommend. This is going to be mostly about you feeling you got justice for what happened, and feeling safe from it happening again. While I'm grateful Zeus ended his punishment at camp early, How I do miss Mr. D in cases such as these. He would simply turn the perpetrators into Dolphins and be done with it."
"I'm okay with Jesse not being punished. He tried to help. If not for him, I would have been out there for a lot longer."
"All the same, something must be, as you kids like to say, 'dished out'."
"I guess he could be put on stable duty for the next week." I offer. "Feeding the Pegasi, cleaning the stalls and grooming them."
"I see. And Jesse, what do you think your punishment should be?"
"I'd say 4 weeks, Sir."
"I think two weeks will do fine." Chiron says gently. Jesse nods.
"Thank you, Chiron."
"You're welcome, Child. Now Lassa, what about Erica and Jacob. Cyrus too. But I must say I'm hesitant to do anything to Cyrus with what I'm sure Percy's putting him through as we speak."
"Yeah, I'm honestly surprised you're not trying to stop him." I say.
"Dear Child, if it was anyone else I would, but I learned long ago not to interfere with Percy Jackson. Especially when it comes to defending those he loves. All the same, this still won't excuse Cyrus from whatever we decide with the other two."
"I don't think expelling them from the camp is an option, is it?" I ask. "I really just don't want to see them again. Especially not Cyrus."
"Understandable. However, no, we try to avoid kicking campers out of camp where they can be attacked by monsters."
"How about night patrols around the camp border the rest of summer. Then they'll be sleeping for most of the day. It'll be easier to avoid them."
"That sounds reasonable considering the circumstances. I'll give it some thought. Tomorrow, I'll call everyone involved here and give an official sentencing. Is that acceptable?"
"Yes Sir." I say.
"Wonderful. Jesse, you can go start your stable duties. Lassa, there's one more thing I'd like to discuss with you."
"Yes Sir. Maybe now Skyfall will like me better." Jesse says and goes out the door. As he leaves, I immediately feel myself getting more anxious.
"Lassa, I'm impressed with the grace and forgiveness you're showing Young Mr. James. But is this the wisest course of action?"
"How do you mean, Sir?"
"Why are you so willing to be lenient with him with everything that he did?"
"Because he repented."
"And how can you be sure that repentance is truly what it seems and not second thoughts to avoid being in trouble?" He asks, and I feel the anxiety get worse.
"Do you think that's what he's doing?"
"I can't say for sure. I don't know Jesse James all that well. I'm just saying it's a possibility, and you should be careful, my Dear."
"I understand, Chiron. May I go now? I'd like to get some sleep. It was a long night."
"Of course, Child. You may take the day off from chores and activities. I'll see you tomorrow morning."
"Yes Sir. See you tomorrow." I say and head out the door. Right as I do, I hear a loud scream coming from the arena. I know I shouldn't, but I smile. "Thanks, Percy." I whisper and head back to my cabin.
I still don't want to be alone right now, so Annabeth stays with me. After I shower and change into a loose shirt and some shorts, I see She snuck some plates and cups out of the dining pavilion so we can eat. I decide to have Cheese Gravy and Bacon for breakfast with some tea, and when we're done Annabeth lets me curl up in the bed next to her and sleep a bit while she works on her Laptop. When I wake up, she smiles at me and strokes my hair.
"Hey, Lassa. You slept pretty hard. Any dreams?"
I shake my head.
"I don't dream much."
"That's lucky. Most half-bloods have vivid dreams. Almost Never good ones."
"I guess there's been nothing I've needed to see yet."
"I guess not. Do you want to watch a movie?"
"How?"
"My Laptop is wayyy ahead of its time. It can tap into servers from any company around the world and download any movie ever made. What do you want to watch?"
"Do you like Romance movies?"
"I do."
"How about The Longest Ride?"
"I'll pull it up." She smiles. I catch a look at her laptop as she's closing out the screen and see she's researching Christianity. I think about asking her about it, but I figure if she wants to ask she will. I look around and notice the bathroom door is open and the light's off, so Percy's not here. I purse my lips thinking about Cyrus.
"Where's Percy?"
"He's having a chat with Chiron." She says, glancing slightly in my direction. "Chiron doesn't have much of a choice but to invoke some kind of repercussions or there's going to be a lot of complaints of him playing favorites. But it won't be bad. He can't be team captain for Capture the Flag this Friday or have to work the stables the week and be surrounded by Pegasi. Which he pretends to be annoyed by but secretly loves getting to spend so much time with Sahara since she's pregnant."
"What-What about Cyrus?" I ask, not knowing if I want to know. The look in Percy's eyes scared me. "Annabeth?" I prompt when she doesn't answer. She purses her lips.
"He'll live. In what condition, I can't say for sure. Percy's really testing Will's abilities with this one. I'm pretty confident in Solace's talent, though. He hasn't failed yet. But a side of Percy showed up that, well, let's just say I wish it had stayed in Tartarus." I know I shouldn't be happy about this, but I feel a dark sense of satisfaction. Annabeth reaches over and grabs my hand. "Are you okay, Lassa?"
"I've got some conflicted emotions."
"Why?"
"I want to be able to forgive him. But I'm kinda glad Percy did what he did at the same time."
"Why would you want to forgive him?"
"Why was it so important to Bianca that Nico forgave Percy in the stories? Because holding a grudge and withholding forgiveness will hurt me more in the long run than it will hurt Cyrus, or Erica, or Jacob, or Jesse. It was easy enough to forgive Jesse. The others will be a challenge."
"You know Percy doesn't like that you plan on still hanging out with Jesse." She tells me.
"Yeah, I picked up on that. I get it. And I'm not a total idiot, I know I need to be careful around him just in case."
"Okay. Good. Now enough with heavy stuff, let's watch the movie." She says and I curl up next to her as the intro to the Longest Ride loads.
….
I stay in the cabin the rest of the day, except to go to the stables and see Skyfall and Jesse. Percy doesn't come back until lights out. Annabeth said he spent the rest of the day in the ocean. I've noticed When things get bad and his memories of Tartarus come to the surface, he spends most of his time underwater. But he goes to my bunk and picks me up in a hug and makes sure I'm doing okay before he gets in bed with Annabeth.
The next morning, I get up and go to the stables before Dawn. I'm surprised when I see Jesse is already there, mucking out one of the stalls.
"Hey Lassa." He smiles at me when I'm in his sight.
"Hey. You're up early."
"Deal was morning and night for the next two weeks." He shrugs. I walk over to Skyfall's stall and she perks up when she sees me.
Good morning, Lady Lass! She says playfully. I scratch behind her ears.
"Good morning, Skyfall." She nickers at the scratches. "Feelings change about Jesse by any chance?" I ask quietly.
Yes, my lady. While I'm angry with him for what transpired, I am much more at ease with him around now. I can sense his intentions are pure now.
"I should have trusted you the first time." I tell her. She snorts.
Yes, Lady Lass, you should have.
"Alright, no need to say I told you so." I tell her and scratch behind her ears one more time then grab a shovel.
"I'll help out." I tell Jesse and get to work. We have our Bible study as we work, me quoting various scripture passages and us talking about what they mean and how to live them out. He listens to me sing a few hymns. When we finish up, we pray together. It feels so good to be able to pray with another Christian.
"So, I'll see you at the Big House?" He asks as we walk back to our cabins to shower. I nod at him.
"See you at the Big House."
An hour later, myself, Percy, Annabeth, Jesse, Erica, Jacob, and Cyrus are all in the living room of the Big House. Cyrus is white as a sheet, on crutches and one arm in a sling. Other than that, and the look of fear on his face anytime Percy so much as glances at him, he's okay. A true testament to Will's skills as a medic. Erica and Jacob are glaring at me pretty much the whole time. I'm filled with anxiety being here with everyone, so I sit on the couch between Percy and Jesse while Annabeth stands behind me and braids my hair. It's something my mother used to do to soothe me as a baby, and it still helps now so Annabeth said she was more than happy to. It helps me take my mind off it all. When she puts two Dutch braids into a ponytail at the bottom and ties it off, Chiron wheels into the room.
"Thank you all for coming here so early." He greets us.
"Did we have a choice?" Erica snarls. Chiron patiently smiles at her.
"No, Child. You didn't. I was just being polite."
"This whole thing is Bullshit!" Jacob yells. "What you said little miss Jackson told you is a total lie. She doesn't have any proof!"
"Yeah!" Erica agrees, making my anxiety recede a bit and be replaced by anger.
"Anything to add to that, Cyrus?" Percy asks him. Cyrus refuses to meet Percy's eyes, just shakes his head.
"Jacob and Erica, if it was just Lassa's word against your own, it would be a very different situation. However, Annabeth and Percy are backing her story. As well as Jesse, who was originally involved and would gain nothing from lying."
"Just because something happened to Kelpy doesn't mean we had anything to do with it." Erica snarls.
"You do realize you being a brat isn't helping your case, right?" I tell her. "Plus while I may not have seen Y'all because of the freaking blindfold, I can recognize each of your voices." I look at Chiron. "They all three kidnapped me. He-" I point at Cyrus. "Assaulted me physically."
"I do believe he's already paid for that, so he'll just be punished for the kidnapping." Chiron looks grimly at Percy.
"We're being punished? Seriously?" Erica says, looking shocked.
"I went into the woods myself and Found the cross you left Lassa restrained to. Yes, you'll be punished, Erica. This is serious and will not be taken lightly. Between the material evidence I found in the woods proving the crime did occur along with Percy, Annabeth, and Jesse confirming it and who was involved, there is enough there for me to make my decision on what to do. As Jesse tried to prevent things from happening at the end of it all and helped to find Lassa as well as Identify you three, He'll receive the lightest sentence of being on stable duty the next two weeks." He tells them. "You three, however, will be facing much more serious consequences. Now that we have a working relationship with the Romans, I found a solution. I've spoken with Frank Zhang and Reyna Rameriez-Arellano, and they've agreed you two are to be transferred to Camp Jupiter for the rest of the summer to do the Legion's scut work." He tells them, and relief fills my body. They're leaving.
"What?!" Erica shouts, standing up. "We're being forced to join the Legion?!"
"Oh no. That would be an Honor." Percy smiles at them. "Chiron said you'll be doing the Legion's Scut Work. That means all the worst jobs no one wants to do. Cleaning the stables. Polishing everyone's gear. Scrubbing the bathhouse and latrines. Cleaning up after the elephant. Working in the kitchen. And if you fail in your duties, one of my personal favorite consequences is getting sewn into a sack with rabid weasels and thrown into the Little Tiber. So I'd try my best not to screw up." He explains. Erica turns white and sits back down.
"With Frank and Reyna's recommendation, you may return here next Summer. My decision on this is final. So all three of you go pack your bags. Gleeson Hedge will transport you by use of the golden chariot to New Rome within the hour."
"It was just a stupid prank!" Erica yells.
"It was cruel, abusive, and wrong!" Annabeth says back to her. Jesse laces his fingers with mine and squeezes my hand.
"We weren't going to leave her out there forever. Just for a day or so to make her sweat. Chiron, you're making this a wayyy bigger deal than it is!"
"I don't believe I am."
"He's not. Not at all." Jesse growls.
"Why's he not getting sent with us? He's the one who made the whole thing possible!" Jacob complains.
"Because Lassa asked for leniency." Chiron tells them. "Along with him doing the right thing in the end."
"Bullshit!" Jacob yells.
"I'm going to kill you, you little Bitch!" Erica yells and jumps to her feet, drawing her sword. Jacob jumps up too and pulls his spear, and Cyrus stands on one leg with a dagger pulled. In a second I'm on my feet too and will my Xiphie into my hands. Using the disarming move Percy taught me I knock her sword out of her hand then sweep her leg and kneel on her Chest with my swords in an X above her neck. Next to me, Jesse has Jacob against the wall with his sword to his throat and in my peripheral, I see Percy just standing over Cyrus with Riptide pulled out. It doesn't look like he put up much of a fight. Annabeth is standing behind us all, and I see her smirking towards Cyrus and Percy.
"Enough! All of you!" Chiron yells. "Put your weapons away!" Percy growls but caps Riptide, Jesse sheaths his sword, and Jacob grabs his spear from where Jesse knocked it and puts it back over his back. I look into Erica's glowing blue eyes and lean closer to her. They're defiant, but I see they're a little scared too.
"Lassa! That's enough!" Chiron says sternly.
"Your mother may give you good luck, but Skill beats chance. Remember that." I say, and get up. As I pull my swords up, one side of the blade accidentally scrapes Erica's neck. Just a scratch, but I know firsthand how bad Celestial Bronze burns. "Are we free to go, Sir?" I ask Chiron. He takes a deep breath.
"Yes. You four go back to your activities." He says to us, then turns to Erica, Jacob, and Cyrus. "You three go pack your bags. Be ready to go to New Rome within the Hour. I've already alerted Gleason Hedge to the situation, and he'll be waiting outside for you." As we head out the door, I feel a nagging pit in my stomach. I try to ignore it but I know I can't. So I turn back and look at the three of them.
"I don't like any of you. And I'm not going to ask Chiron to change his mind. But…I forgive All Y'all. Next summer let's try for a clean slate." I say, then walk out the door before anyone can respond.