𝐓𝐨 𝐁𝐞 𝐚 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐨 • 𝑱𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝑮𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆

004.

Step 3: Figure out more about Percy's backstory— about what he knows

Step 4: Ask him about Jason

Step 5: When he inevitably knows nothing about Jason, try and see if there's any connection between the two on her own.

All in all, not too complicated! She already had one of five completed, so really her odds weren't that bad, right?

Wrong. Step 2 went horribly awry almost immediately. So much for waiting to burn bridges.

In hindsight, she thinks her greatest error was in over estimating how much time she had. In her brainstorming stage— the part where she tried to figure out how to naturally corner Percy— she ended up pacing right outside of his barracks. Unfortunately for her, that's where he found her. The only lucky part of the whole thing was that Percy had been the first to arrive, probably in favor of finding his bunk before he joined the rest of his cohort in the bathhouse.

Mabel had been on her way to eroding her own straight line into the cobblestone from all her pacing, when suddenly she jolted from the low baritone of his voice.

"Uh, Mabel? Is that you?"

She jumped nearly a foot in the air like a frightened cat. Percy's eyes widened at the reaction, as if he'd been just as startled. Mabel tried to compose herself. "Percy! Hi!"

". . . Hi? If you're looking for Frank or Hazel I think they went to the bathhouse with the others—" Ah, so she had been right, then.

"No, actually, uh I was looking for you." She tried for a smile, but it was definitely more of a grimace. Gods, this was not going the way she had hoped.

"Oh." He said.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to corner you or anything— I just really really need to talk to you." She sighed, tone raw and strained, her exhaustion seeping into her speech, her accent thickening with it.

Thankfully, it seemed Percy was a sympathetic man. His stance became more open, relaxed— like her anguish had soothed his nerves— like it ensured she was only really here for help and not to try and duel him or something. "Is . . . everything ok?"

"Not really." She said, fiddling with the ears of the stuffed panda. "It, uh, hasn't really been ok for about 8 months now. But, I think you might be able to help me a little bit." She licked her lips to try and distract from the wavering of her voice.

"I'm really sorry, but if you're going to ask me if I've seen your missing praetor in my time out there, I haven't." He said.

It stung, really really stung, but she'd been expecting it. "That's . . . not great, I'll admit," she began, "but it's not really what I wanted to ask you about, anyway."

Before he could inquire further— or, gods forbid, deny her cry for help— Mabel thrusted the stuffed panda into his arms. "Here, I got a replacement for the one Octavian sent to Heaven earlier. Sorry about that, by the way. I figure y'all had traveled quite the distance together."

Miraculously, it didn't seem to weird him out. Actually, he seemed almost . . . touched. Running his fingers through the soft fur of the panda's head, Percy cleared his throat. "Thanks."

She nodded. "Of course."

An awkward silence lingered between them for a moment before Percy cleared his throat again. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"