The Shifter (PJO/YJ Crossover)

Chapter 9

I really don't have any excuse as to why this took me so long so, just enjoy...

Artemis walked through the door to the observation room behind the one way mirror. The room's only other occupant looked up at her entrance. She stalked over to him with her arms crossed across her chest. She had changed out of her uniform before she had decided to confront Nightwing. No use storming in with her temper getting the best of her. Artemis knew that if she did that he would just turn it around her and she would leave frustrated and without answers.

"Okay, who is he? Why did he know we were going to be in that building? And what are you playing at?" She demanded.

"It's good to see you again too Artemis." Nightwing replied looking through the one way mirror at the teen sitting in the room. "I'm surprised you came."

"At all or not as Tigris?" She asked suspiciously.

"Both I guess. You haven't had contact with anyone on the team or Justice League related for three months and then you decide to show up to a team mission about a burning building. I'm allowed to be curious."

"It's not like you don't know what happened. Though, the same could be said for you. If I remember correctly you were the one who quit the team only to show up two months later on another so called secret mission. Then, you were somehow reinstated as co-leader. When were you planning on answering that." She shot back.

"We could swap stories now. If you prefer..."

"No! Ugh, you're doing that diversion thing again when people ask questions. So, no I'm going to get the answers I want and you can just either shut up or give me the answers." Artemis sighed frustratedly.

"Well which do you want me to do shut up or give your answers?" Nightwing asked as innocently as possible. Artemis just glared at him, though after living with the bat family for most of his life the glare was nothing.

"Who is he?" She demanded again.

"A friend." Nightwing replied stoically.

"That's not what I meant and you know it."

"What do you mean then?"

"Is he dangerous?"

"Only to his enemies."

Artemis barely restrained herself from going over there and slapping him. She could see a smirk trying to a way onto his face. "Are we his enemies?" She grit out.

"That's not really up to me is it?"

"Would you just give me a straight answer for once!" She yelled at him.

Nightwing finally turned and looked her in the eye. "Percy Jackson is a known hacker working under the alias Elpis. He can be seen as a terrorist or a cyber genius. He currently does not feel any hostility towards the Justice League or any of its counterparts. If he were to feel threatened or anything that might signal danger he will act accordingly. Let's just say he acts on his emotions and doesn't take people that think themselves above others. "

"Kind of like you then."

"You could say that at one point we were like brothers. Now we're at least allies and friends." He said frowning slightly.

"What happened?" Artemis asked.

Nightwing turned and stared back at his friend through glass. As if feeling the other's gaze, Percy looked up and locked eyes with him. His face had been wiped into a stoic mask his eyes only giving away his true turmoil. Rage, annoyance, loyalty, and trust clashed together in the sea green eyes. Nightwing ran a hand through his hair before speaking out an answer so quietly that Artemis barely caught it, "I honestly don't know."

~Flashback~

An ambulance wail pierced through the calm of the night. Twelve year old Dick Grayson paced in the waiting room of a hospital waiting for information on his friend of any kind. The car accident had been horrible. The doctors said it was an accident that the van had ran a red light and was speeding too fast when it had collided with the small car that was carrying his best friend and the kids asterous mother.

The doctors say the boy was lucky. The women died upon impact, feeling no pain. The kid was saved from relative harm, Dick didn't believe them for a second. If he was so lucky then why was he going to wake up without a mother? Why was Percy having complications during surgery?

He felt a numb feeling take over him as he heard a doctor start talking. When had she shown up? Either way she was discussing medical conditions. His heart had stopped twice on the table. He was in a recovery room now, but the doctors didn't know when or if he was going to wake up.

Dick didn't hesitate to run towards Percy's room, ignoring the calls for him to stop. When, he made it he slowly pushed open the door walking into the bleak and boring 'torture chamber' as Percy called it. Said boy was laying on the bed, oxygen mask fogging up every time he breathed out. Percy had a white bandage wrapped around his forehead and back of his head. There were long and ugly scratches all over his arms from where the shattered glass had embedded itself in his arms. Relatively unharmed, right.

"I should have listened to you." Dick mumbled out. "When, your friend shows up on your doorstep in the pouring rain you listen. You don't tell that him doesn't matter because no will be looking for an eleven year old." 'Because they will.' he continued in his thoughts angrily, 'Someone was willing to go to all of this trouble to shut his friend up permanently.'

He looked at his friend again and clenched his fists in anger. This was the friend who helped him stop bullies. The one who was there when he rambled in class about things even the teachers couldn't understand. The one who actually cared about Dick Grayson and not the rich kid that people want money from.

"You could do it you know." Percy had said to him one day after school before he had got to where the parents pick up their kids, "Build all the stuff you talk about. Change the world. You could really do it." Then turning to finally look him in the eye before Percy turned the corner to start his walk home he added one last thing. "The real question is, what's stopping you?"

The steady beeping that indicated that his heart was beating was the only sound in the horrible room before Dick Grayson sat in one of the chairs pleading."Percy you have to wake up please."

~End Flashback~

Percy wanted to bang his head on the metal table. It had felt like hours since he had been put in this room, but that was probably just his ADHD. What time even was it? He checked his watch to see that it was only around three a.m. Seriously how long were they planning to keep him here?!

'You just had to go into the burning building.' he reprimanded himself. 'Though what else was I supposed to do? Let Joker beat the crap out of one of my friends/partners? I think not.' This is definitely goes under the no good deed goes unpunished law. Try to save someone: get shot::try to save your friend from a murderous psycho clown: end up getting kidnapped by his friends and be taken to their not so secret hideout. Part of this place exploded, people noticed!

Percy took a look at the rubik's cube. As much as he'd love to use it, he couldn't because oh right his were zipped tied together and to the table. He glared at one of the people behind the mirror, "Thank you so much for giving me this. I just wish I could use it!" Suddenly the door opened beside him in the wall and in walked his supposed interrogator, Batman. Percy raised his eyebrows, this was definitely going to be interesting. After he walked in he kind of just stood of to the side of the table looking at Percy. "So who talks first? You talk first, I talk first?" Batman did not look amused. "I guess I should feel honored. I mean I have the Batman interrogating me." He said sarcastically.

"Your full name is Perseus Allen Jackson correct?" He asked stoically.

"Yes it is." Percy smiled back at him, wondering how far the whole I'm innocent act would get him. Let the games begin. 

End Chapter 9...

Lilith NightShade signing out

Bye!