𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐄! percy jackson¹

viii. Mother Dearest

I sat up a little bit straighter. I wasn't surprised, not really. I had my suspicions ever since Percy found out about the quest. He loved his mother, and I have a feeling that if I had a mother such as his, I would risk everything for her too. But I couldn't help but get even angrier. He should have told us from the beginning. We were stuck in this together, we need to trust each other and be truthful to one another. But then it dawned on me, would I have told Percy, Grover and Annabeth if I did this not because of saving the world, but to bring my mother back from the dead?

Grover blew a soft note on his pipes. "I know that, Percy. But are you sure that's the only reason?"

"I'm not doing it to help my father. He doesn't care about me. I don't care about him."

I shook my head. I could tell he was lying. Maybe he didn't realise it, but I know he wants to prove himself to him. He sent Medusa's head to Olympus so his dad could see it. I didn't need to be a satyr to be able to see through Percy.

Grover gazed down from his tree branch. "Look, Percy. I'm not as smart as Annabeth. I don't have special never-to-be-seen-in-centuries powers like Claire. I'm not as brave as you. But I'm pretty good at reading emotions. You're glad your dad is alive. You feel good that he's claimed you, and part of you wants to make him proud. That's why you mailed Medusa's head to Olympus. You wanted him to notice what you'd done."

"Yeah? Well, maybe your satyr emotions work differently than human emotions. Because you're wrong. I don't care what he thinks."

I rolled my eyes. I knew I would say the same thing, despite how much I wanted to make my father proud. Show him that he gave the powers to the right person. Show him I'm strong, that I'd give him and my cabin a good name.

Grover pulled his feet up onto the branch. "Okay, Percy. Whatever."

"Besides, I haven't done anything worth bragging about. We barely got out of New York and we're stuck here with no money and no way west."

Grover looked up at the night sky like he was thinking about that problem. "How about I take first watch, huh? You get some sleep."

He then started to play Mozart, and after a few bars of Piano Concerto no. 12, I was asleep.

*

I HAD A WEIRD DREAM. I was standing in an alley way in Miami, the dark night sky still seemed to be as bright as day with all the lights from the skyscrapers and cars rushing down the street. I stared down the alley way, and my heart jumped when I saw a little girl sleeping under a thin blanket. Her blonde hair was ghostly white in the illuminated night. She looked about five or six, with a button nose and a few freckles flecked across her sun-baked skin. I then saw two small balls of light floating beside her, keeping her warm in the night. That was when it dawned on me, and my heart clenched. It was me. The little girl was six-year-old me.

Look at her, a dark, booming voice echoed throughout the alley way. I glanced up and around to see where it was coming from, but there was no one expect the younger version of me and the people minding their own business walking down the street. The voice chuckled, sending shivers down my spine. Don't you remember what it was like before your father cursed you with those powers?

I took a shaky breath when the scene changed. I was in a small apartment. It was a cosy place, with quilts on the couches and tea steaming on the coffee tables. The whole place sent a warm wash over me, it seemed so familiar. I then realised this was my home, long before my mom left.

A woman then walked into the room. She had beautiful long brown hair and blue eyes. She smiled as she bounced up and down on her feet softly, singing to the small baby in her arms. There were similar things from her to me. I had the same turned up nose and plump, pink lips. The same dimples on either cheek and single freckle on the right ear lobe.