Everything was going even better than Percy had anticipated.
The two stared at each other cautiously, hands close to weapons, ready and seemingly eager to have an opportunity to strike. A dark gray thread, just a few shades before black wound between the two. Visible to all now that Percy had modified the string. Yes, that fact alone made the modification worth it, in Percy's eyes.
Lucy appeared fully into her new bond. Cobra…struggled. Funny, he would have thought it would be the other way around. Cobra attempted to talk to her, to no avail. Percy almost chuckled, but maybe that was a bit rude. He'd switch them back, or maybe substitute for another color first…
Although, hold on now…was it just his eyes playing tricks on him, or was there a new thread not present before in the room? He started to follow it, eyes narrowing…
"Lucy, you already know what you want to say to me, so just say it already!"
Percy's eyes snapped back to the two. Was Cobra inviting her to berate him, so that he had a reason to attack first? An interesting strategy, one that he perhaps used to assuage his guilt if a fight occurred.
Lucy's mouth twitched. "I don't have anything to say to you."
"Sure you do, you never shut up after all."
A sneer overtook her. "You know what? It would be a lot easier if you didn't keep encouraging it. Or do you mean when you're always in my head? Why did you have to do that to me?"
"Because I couldn't stop myself, I told you before. And I…regretted it." Cobra's posture…did it relax at that? No, Percy was looking too much into it. What about that new thread? Was it…moving?
"I'm sure you did, but only because you didn't go far enough. You got a peak of me, behind it all, but that won't ever satisfy you. You'll listen in and demand more, every secret, every shameful thought. Because that's just how it is to you. You're too curious for your own good. I can't stand the idea that you'd know and never tell me."
"I never had the luxury of being able to not know. Can you blame me? The one time I convinced myself that it didn't matter and the man literally stabbed me in the back. You don't get to have a high horse when your life is so comfortable. You never wanted for anything."
Suddenly Percy felt a light touch on his back. He shuddered and closed his eyes, counting out each of the threads, wondering if one had been taken. No, he had the same number as before. Was his mind playing tricks on him now? Might he be a little more sleep-deprived than he thought?
"I wanted for so much! Don't you dare make it sound so simple. I don't…I didn't…" the words slowed, and he heard Lucy take a shuddering breath. "That's why you were so easy to talk to."
Percy's eyes flew open as he stared at the two of them, the thought of what was behind the touch suddenly irrelevant. The argument should have continued. They should have fought by now. What was going on? Was there some magic present that he didn't know about before? Belatedly, he realized he couldn't see the new string anymore either.
Cobra gave a wry smile, and Percy's eyes drifted toward the pair's shared thread, his mouth hanging open at the sight.
Because the color was now a far lighter shade of gray.