Masked (fem!Percy x Nightwing)

Chapter Eleven

"What do you mean with that?" Nightwing asked. Percy could just imagine him glaring at Thalia, but his mask hid it.

"What do you think I mean?" Thalia asked. "We're a group of trained hunters. We attack our enemies, but we don't attack just whoever comes by."

Nightwing didn't seem very satisfied with her answer. "Thalia, was it? I'm afraid we're gonna have to take you with us."

"What for?" Thalia asked.

"Questioning," Nightwing responded.

Percy hopes Thalia would just go with them, answer their questions and it would be over. She hoped that would happen, but she knew Thalia. Of course that wouldn't happen.

"No," Thalia scoffed, as if it was the obvious answer. "No way in Hades am I coming with you for your stupid questions. If you have any questions, you can ask me here."

Nightwing groaned in annoyance, but not loud enough for anyone to hear. "Fine, could we at least get some privacy."

Thalia nodded. "We can walk into my tent. Follow me."

Thalia started walking to the tent, and the team followed her. Once they arrived by the tent Nightwing told the rest of the team to stay outside. Percy followed Thalia into the tent and Nightwing followed.

"Why don't we get to follow them inside?" Artemis asked, irritation evident in her voice. "And Anahita— who is she? Anahita? What's that for hero name?"

"Artemis," Miss Martian said calmly. "Maybe you shouldn't—"

"Maybe I shouldn't do what, Miss Martian? Speak my mind?" Artemis snapped at her teammate.

Miss Martian took a step back.

"Artemis, calm down," Aqualad said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

She brushed away his hand from her shoulders and glared at him with her stone gray eyes. He started back at her, showing nothing through his eyes. No annoyance, no anger, nothing. "Why should I calm down? Tell me, why should I?"

"Why are you so mad?" Kid Flash asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Why am I so mad? Why do you talk? Why are you so stupid?" Artemis asked.

He put his hands up in defense. "Hey! Not cool, not cool."

"Artemis, you need to calm down," Aqualad said. "I am dead serious."

Artemis took a deep breath, glared at her teammates one last time before turning her eyes away. "Fine, I'll calm down."

Meanwhile, in the tent Nightwing was basically interrogating Thalia while Percy just stood there.

"We're here because of the reports," Nightwing explained.

"What reports?" Thalia asked.

"The reports of your group not only hunting animals, but murdering people too. A whole lot of cheerleaders, weirdly."

Percy bit her lip to keep a laugh to escape her. The mist could cause so many problems. It could cause so much confusion. She found it funny how empousai often took the form of cheerleaders. Or how the mist often disguised them as such.

"Cheerleaders?" Thalia asked, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion and looked over at Percy, perhaps for an explanation.

Empousai, Percy mouthed and realization hit Thalia like the bricks that used to hit her brother.

"There's got to be some type of mistake," Thalia said, knowing she couldn't tell these superheroes about the Gods, even though it would make it so much harder to prove the hunters innocence.

"Reports don't lie, not when there are so many of them," Nightwing said. "So tell me, what is this group. What is it really? Are you some type of cult going around killing cheerleaders? Are you hunters tired of going after animals and decided to go after humans instead? Tell me, Thalia."

"There has to be a mistake," Thalia said and snapped her fingers. Percy quickly noticed what she was doing. Bending the mist to her aid. And it started to work. Confusion spread over Nightwings face and Thalia snapped again.

"You're right," Nightwing said. "There's got to be some type of mistake, but uh, if we get more reports about this type of murder, we'll be back."

And with that he left the tent. Thalia sighed and sunk into her chair. "Mortals.

"It was nice to see you Thalia, but I gotta go now," Percy said.

"Yeah, I get it," Thalia said. "Keep in touch, Kelp Head."

"Will do, Pinecone Face."

And with that she left the tent.

"What happened?" She heard Artemis ask Nightwing.

"There was a mistake, but we'll be back if we get reports of killings by them again," Nightwing said.

"That's is?!" Artemis exclaimed. "We just go? Say there was a mistake, that it wasn't them?"

"Exactly," Nightwing said.

"I hate to agree with Artemis," Kid Flash said. "But she's right. We're just gonna leave like this?"

"Yes, we are," Percy said. "They're was a mistake, but now we've cleared it up. The hunters are innocent."

"You just say that cause their leader is your cousin," Artemis spat.

Percy just shook her head and started to walk towards the ship. She just wanted to get the travel over with and get over with all of this.

Nightwing followed her and so did the rest of the team. They quickly got onto the ship and what felt like to an eternity later they were back at the mountain, and later that night Percy was back at her apartment in Gotham.