❛010❜

THEY SPENT TWO days on the amtrack train, heading west through hills, over rivers, past amber waves of grain.

there weren't any attacks, but that didn't make ivy relax. it felt like they were travelling around in a display case, being watched from above and maybe even below, that something was waiting for the right opportunity.

those two times gave ivy time to heal her burn. when they got on the train, she found some actual medicine and bandages for it after asking (or charmspeaking) the staff for it. the wound was still sensitive, but the pain turned more into stinging. most importantly, it was infected and that relieved her greatly.

percy, on the other hand, was forced to keep a low profile. his name and picture were splattered over the front pages of several east coast newspapers. the trenton register-news showed a photo taken by a tourist as he got off the greyhound bus with a wild look on his face. his sword was a metallic blur in his hands. it might've been a baseball bat or a lacrosse stick.

the picture's caption read:

thirteen-year-old percy jackson, wanted for questioning in the long island disappearance of his mother two weeks ago, is shown here fleeing from the bus where he accosted several elderly female passengers. the bus exploded on an east new jersey roadside shortly after jackson fled the scene. based on eyewitness accounts, police believe the boy may be travelling with three teenage accomplices. his stepfather, gabe ugliano, has offered a cash reward for information leading to his capture.

"don't worry," ivy told him. "mortal police could never find us." but she wasn't so sure, after all the stolls spent six months in juvie.

the rest of the day, she spent it looking out the windows, or talking with annabeth and grover. percy paced up and down the train too much to hold a conversation, even if it was an unpleasant one.

the reward money for returning gladiola the poodle had only been enough to purchase tickets as far as denver. they couldn't get beds in the sleeper car, so they dozed in their seats. ivy's neck got stiff, more so because her injury made it all more uncomfortable for a sleeping position. percy kept drooling in his sleep, thankfully he didn't get in on her or annabeth. neither of them found it at all pleasant.

grover kept snoring and bleating, causing percy to wake up from whatever nightmare he was in. once, he shuffled around and his fake foot fell off. the three demigods had to stick it back on before any of the other passengers noticed.

"so," ivy asked percy as she shared a glance with annabeth once they'd gotten grover's trainer readjusted. "who wants your help?"

"what do you mean?" he replied.

"you were mumbling in your sleep, 'i won't help you.' so who were you dreaming about?"

percy was reluctant to answer, but eventually caved. he told them about the evil voice from the pit, and that he has dreamed of it twice. ivy shared that she dreamed of it once too, but while they were still at camp.

both girls were quiet for a long time. "that doesn't sound like hades," annabeth broke the silence. "he always appears on a black throne, and he never laughs."

ivy nodded, "that's what i thought, too. but i didn't think much of it."

"he offered my mother in trade. who else could do that?"

annabeth got a pensive expression, "i guess... if he meant, 'help me rise from the underworld.' if he wants war with the olympians. but why ask you to bring him the master bolt if he already has it?"

percy shook his head. the daughter of aphrodite wished she had an answer to everything happening around them. all questions were going unanswered, if anything any time they got close to an answer it only made more come to the surface.

grover must have sensed ivy's emotions in his sleep. he snorted, muttered something about vegetables, and turned his head.

ivy readjusted his cap so it covered his horns. "jackson, you can't barter with hades. you know that, right?" she understood where he was coming from, thinking purely with his grief instead of his head. it was a horrible road that ultimately had a dead end.

"ivy's right, percy," annabeth said. "hades is a deceitful, heartless, and greedy piece of shit. i don't care if his kindly ones weren't as aggressive this–"

"this time?" he asked. "you mean you've run into them before?"

ivy internally winced at the memory of thalia's fate.

annabeth played with the bead of her first summer, a glazed white bead painted with the image of a pine tree, a sad look on her face.

deciding to let her have a moment ivy interfered, "let's say annabeth doesn't hold a place for hades in her heart. you can't be tempted to make a deal for your mom."

"what would you do if it was your dad?"

ivy tensed. her expression turned stony, as if she was facing a vicious monster. perhaps, her burden and guilt were the biggest monster she'll ever face.

"i'd leave mine to rot," annabeth sent ivy a sympathetic look that percy didn't notice. the daughter of aphrodite was entirely grateful for her best friend, the subject of her family was a tough one for her too but still chose to divert the subject towards herself.

"you're not serious?" percy looked scandalized, he was one of the few demigods ivy has met that didn't have any problems with their parental situations. well, at least with their mortal side.

annabeth's expression didn't look much different than ivy's. "my dad's resented me since the day i was born, percy," she said. "he never wanted a baby. when he got me, he asked athena to take me back and raise me on olympus because he was too busy with his work. she wasn't happy about that. she told him heroes had to be raised by their mortal parent."

"but how... i mean you weren't born in a hospital."

"i appeared on my father's doorstep, in a golden cradle, carried down from olympus by zephyr the west wind. you'd think my dad would remember that as a miracle, right? like, maybe he'd take some digital photos or something. but he always talked about my arrival as if it were the most inconvenient thing that had ever happened to him. when i was five he got married and totally forgot about athena. he got a "regular" mortal wife, and had two "regular" mortal kids, and tried to pretend I didn't exist."

ivy place her hand on top of annabeth's, the best friend didn't need much words to know they'll be there for each other no matter what.

"my mom married a really awful guy," percy said. "grover said she did it to protect me, to hide me in the scent of a human family. maybe that's what your dad was thinking."

annabeth kept findling with her necklace. she was pinching the gold college ring that hung with the beads. it was her father's college ring.

"he doesn't care about me," the blonde said. "his wife– my stepmom –treated me like a freak. she wouldn't let me play with her children. my dad went along with her. whenever something dangerous happened– you know, something with monsters –they would both look at me resentfully, like, 'how dare you put our family at risk!' finally, i took the hint. i wasn't wanted. i ran away."

ivy scowled at the mention of annabeth's poor treatment.

"how old were you?" the son of poseidon asked.

"same age as when i started camp. eight."

"but... you couldn't have got all the way to half-blood hill by yourself."

"not alone, no. athena watched over me, guided me towards help. i made a couple of unexpected friends who took care of me, for a short time, anyway." annabeth's expression dropped. "i'm going to the bathroom."

she got up and left, the daughter of athena dealt better with her emotions in private. something ivy respected, so she let her go. watching as her best friend disappeared down the hall, ivy didn't notice percy's expression forming with questions.

"you never talk about your dad," percy said blunty.

ivy rolled her eyes, "i don't like talking about dead people."

"did you have a bad relationship with your dad, too?" he placed his head against the window, crossing his arms over his chest. the son of poseidon looked genuinely interested, there was no maliciousness on his face.

she fidgeted with the zipper of the blue sweatshirt. "no, not at all. he– he was my best friend, and the best dad i could've asked for. he loved me until his last breath."

percy's eyebrows furrowed, "then why did you get to camp so young?"

ivy licked her lips. it wasn't easy to talk about, but she didn't have to tell him everything. either way it wasn't like many people knew the whole truth, the only ones that did were annabeth, silena, gabriel, and chiron.

"my dad died when i was seven. i– i was scared, and grieving for my dad so i just– i just ran. how it all happened it's all blurry. but i wandered around a bit before my protector, gleeson hedge, found me and brought me to camp. all the way from san francisco to new york, took us a little over a week."

"so you were a runaway."

"no. i was running, yeah. but i wasn't getting away from anything." her tone was final. closing the topic completely as she turned and closed her eyes for sleep.

no, she hadn't been running away. you were surviving, ivy told herself. don't blame yourself for that day.

towards the end of their second day on the train, june 13, eight days before the summer solstice, they passed through some golden hills and over the mississippi river into st louis.

annabeth craned her neck to see the the gateway arch, ivy rolled her eyes fondly at the excitement in her eyes. personally, she saw it as a giant purse handle. but maybe that was just her mind going delirious in need of an outfit change.

"i want to do that," the daughter of athena sighed.

"and you will," ivy told her confidently.

percy looked between the two girls cluelessly,"what?"

the blonde kept her eyes on the monument. "build something like that. you ever seen the parthenon, percy?"

"only in pictures," he confessed.

ivy patted annabeth's knee, "one day annie and i are going to see it in person. she's going to build the greatest monument to the gods ever. it'll last thousands of years."

annabeth flushed at the praise, grinning at her best friend.

percy laughed. "you? an architect?"

the daughter of aphrodite scowled at him. how dare he insult annabeth like. he should be glad there were mortals around, because ivy would have punched him without hesitation.

annabeth's grin dropped, her flush turned angry. "yes, an architect. athena expects her children to create things, not just tear them down, like a certain god of earthquakes i could mention."

percy stayed silent.

"sorry," annabeth said. "that was mean."

"can't we work together a little?" percy looked hopefully between the two girls. "i mean, didn't athena and poseidon ever cooperate? or with aphrodite?"

"there's the chariot..." ivy started tentatively. "athena invented it, but poseidon created horses out of the crests of waves. so they had to work together to make it complete."

percy pursed his lips to the side of his mouth. "what about aphrodite and poseidon?"

the brunette was about to lie and say they didn't get along just because she didn't want to get along with percy, but annabeth decided to throw her under the bus.

"aphrodite and poseidon have always gotten along, she almost always takes his side when arguing with zeus. in fact, aphrodite even has a connection to the sea, she was born from the foam," the blonde said in a smug tone.

what an awesome best friend i have, ivy thought sarcastically.

percy seemed pleased with their answers. "then we can all cooperate, too. right?"

ivy watched the arch disappeared behind a hotel, she threw annabeth a glance as she sighed.

"i suppose, working together doesn't mean i have to like you," she said at last.

they pulled into the amtrak station downtown. the intercom told them they'd have a three-hour stopover before departing for denver.

grover stretched. before he was even fully awake, he said, "food."

"come on, goat boy," annabeth said. "sightseeing."

"sightseeing."

"the gateway arch," the daughter of athena elaborated. "this may be my only chance to ride to the top. are you coming or not?"

ivy linked her good arm with annabeth's, "some fun won't hurt us." she looked at the boys with a raised eyebrow, daring them to say no.

grover shrugged. "as long as there's a snack bar without monsters."

the arch was about a mile from the train station. late in the day the lines to get in weren't that long. they threaded their way through the underground museum, looking at covered wagons and other junk from the 1800s. it wasn't really fun, but annabeth kept rambling about interesting facts about how the arch was built, grover and percy were eating jelly beans while ivy had a hershey's chocolate bar of her own. so none of them minded annabeth's brainiac moment.

percy was on extreme edge, looking around like a total loon, and it made ivy feel on edge, too.

"you smell anything?" percy murmured to grover, she was on close enough distance to hear.

the satyr took his nose out of the jelly-bean bag long enough to sniff. "underground," he said distastefully. "underground air always smells like monsters. probably doesn't mean anything."

a shiver went down her spine. ivy had a feeling they shouldn't be here.

"guys," percy said. "you know the gods' symbols of power?"

annabeth had been in the middle of reading about the construction equipment used to build the arch, but she looked over. "yeah?"

"well, hade–"

ivy cleared her throat. "mind your words while in public... what were you saying about our friends downstairs?"

"um, right," percy corrected hastily. "our friend way downstairs. doesn't he have a hat like annabeth's?"

"you mean the helm of darkness," annabeth said. "yeah, that's his symbol of power. i saw it next to his seat during the winter solstice council meeting."

"he was there?" percy asked.

ivy nodded. "he's there every winter solstice. it's the only time he's allowed to visit olympus– on the darkest day of the year."

"but his helmet," annabeth said. "it's a hell of a lot more powerful than my invisibility hat, if what i've heard is true..."

"it allows him to become darkness," grover confirmed. "he can melt into shadow or pass through walls. he can't be touched, or seen, or heard. and he can radiate fear so intense it can drive you insane or stop your heart. why do you think all rational creatures fear the dark?"

ivy wouldn't consider herself rational. but dark spaces did make her squeaky on the inside, she much preferred the sunlight.

"but then..." percy paled at whatever was on his mind. "how do we know he's not here right now, watching us?"

annabeth and grover exchanged looks like some cheesy romcom.

"we don't," grover said.

ivy rolled her eyes. "even if we're on a quest, i don't think he has enough time on his hands or cares enough to spy on us."

percy jutted his head towards ivy. "that's reassuring," he turned to grover. "got any blue jelly beans left?"

the four campers got shoehorned into the car to go on top of the car. a big lady and her dog, a chihuahua with a tacky rhinestone collar, were crammed with them as well. none of the guards complained about the dog, so ivy figured it was a seeing-eye chihuahua.

they started going up, inside the arch. ivy had never been in an elevator that went in a curve but it was fun. it gave her the same feeling she gets while riding a rollercoaster.

"no parents?" the big lady asked them.

she had beady eyes; pointy, coffee-stained teeth; a floppy denim hat, and a denim dress that bulged so much she looked like a blue-jean blimp. denim on denim was really not a look.

"they stayed behind," ivy decided she was going to step up this time. since no one other than her could apparently come up with a plausible lie. "heights isn't their thing. they get ill, you see."

"oh, the poor darlings."

the chihuahua growled. the woman said, "now, now sonny. behave." the dog had beady eyes like its owner, intelligent and vicious.

percy said, "sonny, is that his name?"

"no," the lady told him.

she smiled, as if that cleared everything up.

at the top of the arch, the observation deck reminded ivy of a tin can with carpeting. rows of tiny windows looked out over the city on one side and the river on the other. the view was pretty, too. she spent most of the visit looking out the windows, the city of st louis far below them.

annabeth kept talking about structural supports, how she would've made the windows bigger, and designed a see-through floor. percy stayed as far as he could from the windows, he seemed ready to go as soon as they arrived. had it been for annabeth and they could've stayed up there for hours, but luckily for percy the park ranger announced that the observation deck would be closing in a few minutes.

percy steered grover, ivy, and annabeth towards the exit, loading them into the elevator and as he was about to get in himself they realized there were already two other tourist inside. not room for him.

the park ranger said, "next car, sir."

"we'll get out," annabeth said. "we'll wait with you."

but that was going to mess everybody up and take even more time, so ivy said, "no, i'll stay with him. it's not a good idea to leave anybody alone. we'll see you guys at the bottom."

grover and annabeth both looked nervous, but they let the elevator door slide shut. their car disappeared down the ramp.

now the only people left on the observation deck were ivy, percy, a little boy with his parents, the park ranger, and the fat lady with her chihuahua.

ivy smiled uneasily at the fat lady. she smiled back, her forked tongue flickering between her teeth.

wait what the fuck?

a forked tongue?

before she could decide if she'd really seen that, her chihuahua jumped down and started yapping at percy. ivy took a step closer to him.

"now, now, sonny," the lady said. "does this look like a good time? we have all these nice people here."

"doggie!" said the little boy. "look, a doggie!"

his parents pulled him back.

"percy i don't think that's really a dog," ivy whispered to the son of poseidon.

dread filled her insides, percy gulped from beside her and said, "um, did you just call that chihuahua your son?"

"chimera, dear," the big lady corrected. "not a chihuahua. it's an easy mistake to make."

she rolled up her denim sleeves, revealing that the skin of her arms was scaly and green. when she smiled, it revealed her fangs. the pupils of her eyes were sideways slits, like a reptile's.

the chihuahua barked lourdes, and with each bark, it grew. first the size of a doberman, then to a lion. the bark became a roar.

the little boy screamed. his parents pulled him back towards the exit, straight into the park ranger, who stood, paralysed, gaping at the monster.

the chimera was now so tall its back rubbed against the roof. it had the head of a lion with a blood-caked mane, the body and hooves of a giant goat, and a serpent for a tail, a three-metre-long diamondback growing right out of its shaggy behind. the rhinestone dog collar still hung around its neck, and the plate-sized dog tag was easy to read: chimera– rabid, fire-breathing, poisonous – if found, please call tartarus - ext. 954.

ivy realized she hadn't even taken out her knife, percy was frozen like her too. they were three metres away from the chimera's bloody maw, they moved knew that as soon as they moved, the creature would lunge.

the snake lady made a hissing noise that might've been laughter. "be honoured, percy jackson and ivy fitzgerald. lord zeus rarely allows me to test heroes with one of my brood. for i am the mother of monsters, the terrible echidna!"

ivy didn't know if she was supposed to reply but percy thought it would be worth saying, "isn't that a kind of anteater?"

she howled, her reptilian face turning brown and green with rage. "i hate it when people say that! i hate australia! naming that ridiculous animal after me. for that, demigods, my son shall destroy you!"

the chimera charged, its lion teeth gnashing. ivy and percy leaped aside and dodge the bit.

they ended up next to the family and the park ranger, who were all screaming now, trying to pry open the emergency exit doors.

for a split second, percy and ivy locked eyes, a silent understanding going through them. they couldn't let the mortals get hurt. unsheathing their weapons, they ran to the other side of the deck, as they yelled simultaneously, "hey, chihuahua!" "look, you hairless rat!"

the chimera turned faster than ivy would've thought possible.

before she could slash with her knife, it opened its mouth, emitting a stench like the world's largest barbecue pit, and a shot of column of flame straight at the two demigods.

they dived through the explosion. the carpet burst into flames; the heat was so intense, it seared off her arm hair.

where she had been standing a moment before was a ragged hole in the side of the arch, with melted metal steaming around the edges.

fucking awesome, she thought. we just blowtorched a national monument.

her knife was shining golden in her hand, perdy had his riptide out. as the chimera turned, they both slashed at its neck.

the blade sparked harmlessly off the dog collar. beside her, percy lost his balance, he was so worried about defending himself against the fiery lion's mouth, he completely forgot about the serpent. ivy saw it coming, swallowing her fear she lunged herself to stab it, but it was too late as it sank its fangs into his calf.

she stabbed the serpent's scaly body, for a second she thought she was getting over her phobia. the serpent hissed in pain and turned to her with its reptilian eyes, all her fear washed over her in a huge wave. frozen in terror, the serpent retaliated by whipped itself towards her. throwing ivy in the air, she screamed as she went through the hole in the wall. barely managing to grab on the melted metal on the edge of the building, ivy dangled into the air by her left arm.

"ivy!" percy screamed as he tried to jab riptide into the chimera's mouth.

the daughter of aphrodite gritted her teeth to stop the scream of pain that bubbled at her throat. the burn of her left arm ached as she tried to pull herself up, she maneuvered her body to bring her right arm to hold onto the melted edge. just then, percy's sword flew over her head, down towards the mississippi river.

ivy knew they had lost. percy was weaponless and had been poisoned. she didn't have her entire strength because of her injured arm. if it wasn't for that, she might've been capable of pulling herself up.

percy backed into the hole she was dangling off of. the chimera advanced, growling, smoke curling from its lips. echidna cackled, "they don't make heroes like they used to, eh, son?"

the monster growled. it seemed in no hurry to finish percy off now that he was weaponless.

percy looked towards ivy, she wanted to tell him to go and save himself. but they were both aware that neither of them had nowhere else to go. percy stepped closer to the edge of the hole. far, far below, the river glittered.

"if you are the son of poseidon," echidna hissed, "you would not fear water. although your friend has no saving. jump, percy jackson. show me that the water will not harm you. jump and retrieve your sword. prove your bloodline. she's already doomed."

echidna was right, ivy realized. percy would survive the fall as a son of poseidon. on the other hand, she'd splatter on impact as if it were cement.

the chimera's mouth glowed red, heating up for another blast.

"you have no faith," echidna told percy."you do not trust the gods. i cannot blame you, little coward. better you die now. the gods are faithless. the poison is in your heart."

he backed up, ivy met his eyes. the doubt of his face formed into determination. she knew that he had a crazy idea.

"die, faithless ones," echidna rasped, and the chimera sent a column of flame towards percy.

"father, help me," he prayed.

percy turned and jumped, snatching ivy from her dangling spot and wrapping his arms around her. they plummeted towards the river.

a speaks!

i think ivy and percy deserve a ship name but i can't figure out what it can be. i mean pervy sounds like perv and icy is just NO. so maybe with theit last names like jackfitz but like kinda lame too ugh this is so complicated