❝𝘴-𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯❞
❝𝙞 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪.❞
𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗖𝗬 𝗝𝗔𝗖𝗞𝗦𝗢𝗡 had met a lot of people and he had seen a lot of things that had caught his eyes. But she was a different story. The girl with the long hair was just someone he coul...
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XXXVIII. THE DAY I KNEW TOO WELL THE FEELING OF WANTING TO STRANGLE
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"It's easier holdin' a grudge,
I'd rather be angry than crushed"
"...HE'S RIGHT THERE!"
Dodie whipped her head around so quickly that she had almost sent herself into a dizzy spiral. But frankly, that was like the least of her problems as she stumbled back in shock. She couldn't believe her eyes — it just had to be some kind of trick because there was no way she could possibly be seeing him.
There he was, Percy Jackson, standing at the very edge of the amphitheatre, looking as alive as ever — he seemed to have acquired a bit of tan as well as if he had just gone on a long vacation. And don't get her started on that mischievous grin she knew so well. It had to be some kind of trick, her mind whispered because there was no way this could be real.
Dodie blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision, but her sight remained unchanging. He was still there. He was actually real.
She looked around the amphitheatre, wondering if anyone else had noticed him, and it seemed that they did as there was a chorus of gasps that resonated all throughout the amphitheatre.
"Percy!" Beckendorf grinned. And before anyone knew it, all ran down and crowded around him, clapping his back. A bunch of Ares kids exchanged hearty curses, and Clarisse just rolled her eyes, like she couldn't believe that he had the nerve to survive and return. But Dodie's heart raced as she tried to ground herself in this unexpected reality. Was this actually real? Was he actually alive? It almost seemed implausible...
Then, her mind darted back to that dream, the one that had filled her with hope in the darkest moments of her grief. Aphrodite, the island, Calypso, and Percy's promise. It had all been real, a testament to her unwavering belief that he was still out there somewhere.
He was alive. And that dream wasn't just made up from grief — wait, that actually means...
Chiron cantered over to Percy, his equine face reflecting undeniable relief. "Well, I don't believe I've ever been happier to see a camper return. But you must tell me —"
"Are you kidding me? Where have you been?" Annabeth's voice cut through the commotion. She shoved her way through the other campers and, for a moment, it looked like she might punch Percy. But then, in an unexpected turn, she enveloped him in a hug so tight that she nearly cracked his ribs "I — we thought you were dead, Seaweed Brain!"
