𝓕𝓲𝓷𝓮 𝓛𝓲𝓷𝓮 // Clarisse La Rue

𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂 𝓝𝓲𝓷𝓮

After walking through the snow, shivering from the cool winter air that hit their exposed arms and legs. It didn't take long to get to the nearest town, Aspen Colorado, where they bargained for winter coats so as not to freeze to death. 

Florence and Clarisse tried to sound casual when asking the cashier the date and hid the shocks from their faces when he said December twentieth, only five days after they had initially entered the labyrinth. But it had felt like they'd spent weeks in those underground tunnels with monsters and madness lurking at every corner.

After eating a small meal and replenishing their energies Florence talked their way into a bus headed to Phoenix. The only empty seats left were close to the back and they could smell the toilet's stench all through the ride, but they made do.

Florence sat with Mia and Clarisse sat with Ella. They didn't really speak to one another other than when strictly necessary, the air around them was heavy with something thick and uncomfortable to acknowledge. 

Florence couldn't really understand what exactly had happened back in the labyrinth before their encounter with the lycanthropes. She tried to find a plausible explanation for those moments where she's played with Clarisse's curls and for a while she could even convince herself it hadn't happened, that she'd made the whole thing up. But unfortunately the blanket of awkwardness that had enveloped the two of them told her it wasn't true, from the mere way Clarisse couldn't seem to look at her too long without hastily averting her gaze.

Florence decided that this whole thing was ridiculous, nothing had happened. It had been a simple moment of adrenaline from their shared near death experiences that hadn't resulted in anything at all, so the best course of action was to sleep it off and pretend it never even happened in the first place. 

Because there was no was Clarisse La Rue liked Florence Ferrara. Florence had never heard something more absurd in her entire life.

꒰🕊꒱

Florence found herself in the same ruins she'd seen Annabeth in a few dreams ago, but this time the place wasn't nearly as empty. Now she recognized Artemis, her legs and arms bound to a rock with celestial bronze chains as she held the weight of the shy. Percy, Thalia and Zoë seemed to be arriving, running and panting.

"My lady!" Zoë rushed forward, but Artemis said:

"Stop! It is a trap. You must leave now."

Her voice was strained. She was drenched in sweat. Florence had never seen a goddess in pain before, but the weight of the sky was clearly too much for Artemis. Zoë was crying. She ran forward despite Artemis's protests, and tugged at the chains.

A booming voice spoke behind them: "Ah, how touching."

Florence turned. The General, Atlas, was standing there in his brown silk suit. At his side were Luke and half a dozen dracaenae bearing the golden sarcophagus of Kronos. Annabeth stood at Luke's side. She had her hands cuffed behind her back, a gag in her mouth and Luke was holding the point of his sword to her throat. There was a gray streak in her blonde hair now.

Florence wanted to scream but she couldn't produce any sound.

"Luke," Thalia snarled with all the disgust Florence wished she could verbalize. "Let her go."

Luke's smile was weak and pale. He looked run through, tired and sickly.

"That is the General's decision, Thalia. But it's good to see you again."

Thalia spat at him just how Florence wished she could do. The General chuckled.

"So much for old friends. And you, Zoë. It's been a long time. How is my little traitor? I will enjoy killing you."