𝐃𝐄𝐄𝐏 𝐄𝐍𝐃! percy jackson ²

xxxii. The Ghost King

     Stop it, I scolded myself. Don't feel sorry for her.

    "We'll follow the path," she said. "The brightness on the floor."

    "Uh━huh ..." I nodded. "Yeah, sure. The brightness that led us to a death trap."

     "Lay off her, Claire," Percy snapped at me, and I stared at him, taken-aback. "Okay?" he was angry at me. I had made him angry. "She's doing the best she can!"

     I clenched my fists. He was defending her. He was angry at me. I remembered what he said, I don't want to be whatever we are if I continue to treat Rachel like this. It looked like he was already ready to just go straight to her and leave me in the dirt. Because I just angered him. I just made fun of him. I was just mean.

     "Whatever," I stood up harshly. "The fire's getting low. I'll go look for some more scraps while you lot talk it up."

     I marched off into the shadows, the ball of light following me like an angry swarm of buzzing bees.

    I took this time to cool off. Maybe it's not just Rachel━perhaps it was just everything. It was Jay, it was Luke, it was Percy, everyone at camp being in danger ... it was just everything. I don't even know why I'm still angry at Rachel anymore. Percy told me it was nothing. He told me he'd pick me. He was loyal to the bone━it was his bloody fatal flaw! I knew we needed Rachel. I knew she didn't mean to lead us to that trap. I know she's trying, and she's scared, and she probably doesn't even know what she's doing but she's trying because she knows that Percy's home was in danger.

     I've never warmed up to people quickly. Whenever there's someone new, I usually push them far from me straight away before slowly shuffling back in with my tail between my legs. Rachel hasn't done anything wrong━at all.

    I kicked a stone nearby. I'm just scared, maybe that was it. Scared and taking it out on her because she's the only one out of us who has barely any knowledge of what was happening. But that would make her just as scared, if not more. I was terrified, but so was she.

    Glancing back at the way I came, I pursed my lips. I know I'm in the wrong, I just don't want to admit it.

    Walking back, I saw that Rachel and Annabeth were asleep. Percy sat by himself, gazing at the fire and brooding; keeping watch. Making my way over, passing Rachel curled up and using her backpack as a pillow, I chucked the few sticks I had found onto the fire.

    Meeting Percy's gaze, I felt embarrassed. He must think I'm such a terrible person now. He would want to walk away, and all because I was jealous and scared.

    There was a small silence between us. There was some whispers in the air━scary whimpers of the Labyrinth moving and shifting around us.

    In the end, I whispered, "I don't hate her."

   Percy knew what I was talking about immediately. "I know."

    He shuffled over to the side, and I realised he was offering for me to sit next to him. I went red and took the place by the fire. There were no more words exchanged for a while, we just both gazed into the fire until I felt brave enough to rest my cheek on his arm. I was scared that Percy would just pull away, but after a few seconds he reached for my hand. I watched him link our fingers together.

    It wasn't until then that I spoke again. "What you did with the chains, fighting Antaeus. I thought that was pretty smart."

   "Yeah?" his voice was soft, but filled with amusement. He glanced down at me, and had his troublemaker smile back on again. His sea-green eyes flickered with copper in the firelight.