No Strings Attached (Sequel to Puppets)

Piper

"Piper, no. Don't beat yourself up over this. It's not your fault. You never had the chance to save her." Reyna- stupid Reyna, who didn't kill anyone, who was so fucking innocent was trying to console her.

"Oh, but I did. The night before she died, right before our sleepover, I texted her an apology. She texted me a warning- not to go backstage, and just to sit there and watch the slideshow, no matter what I hear. I listened to her, and I just fucking let her die." Piper laughed bitterly. It was all her fault, wasn't it? "Look at that. I'm practically a murderer."

The girls protested against it, saying "oh, it wasn't your fault!" But it was, and Piper knew it. That was one more life added to the list of people that had died because of her, people that she failed to save. Sure, she wasn't supposed to be some almighty hero, but she had to take responsibility for Steph's death, for if she had merely walked backstage, she could've died in Steph's place.

She whipped back to reality by immediately pushing herself into a sitting position- she must have slumped to the side- and focused on calming down, her breathing laboured. She ran a hand through her hair before looking around, seeing Thalia on her right with her arm around Piper and Katie and Silena hovering over her.

"Give us a moment." Thalia snapped before turning to Piper. "Seven minutes, this time. Worst than the last one. Lucky I could see your hand was shaking and I caught you before you slammed your head against the side of my bed. Same one?"

"Yeah." Back in England, Piper had told Thalia about the flashbacks after the blue eyed girl had found Piper sprawled across the floor after having a flashback and hitting her head. Her heart seized as she thought of England, her eyes widening and her breath shortening. That was one of the sore topics to try and avoid, after they had come back with only eight students instead of nine, and the remaining one was trapped-

Thalia placed her hand over Piper's shaking one, wrapping her arm around Piper in a comforting gesture. "Close your eyes," Thalia instructed.

"Why?" Piper asked shortly.

"Just do it. I know how to handle this." Reluctantly, Piper closed her eyes. "Piper, right now, we are in our dorm room. Katie and Silena are sitting on Silena's bunk, talking quietly. You and I are sitting on the floor with our backs to the side of my bed. It's 7:11AM. Focus on my words, okay?" As Thalia continued to describe reality, Piper's hand was shaking and she felt herself slipping away, reliving the horrible memories of what had happened in England...

"Piper. Piper, are you alright?"

"Clearly, she isn't."

"What happened then, Grace?"

"She panicked. It's been happening a lot since... before the break."

"Hm. Have you been having issues? The other girls? Oh. Gardner, Beauregard, to class."

"Me? Nightmares. Just a few. No biggie. Hazel's been passing out a lot. Annabeth's been becoming self-destructive, and closed off. And Reyna completely blocked out the memory, or at least most parts. She acts like she's fine, but we hear her crying and screaming in her sleep."

Piper shot up from her position with a gasp, her nails digging into whatever was below her. She tried in vain to calm her breathing. In, out. In, out. After a moment, she had calmed enough to check her surroundings. She had been lying on her bed, and Thalia was sitting at the end of it. Mr. Apollo, the school nurse and health teacher, was standing to the side of her bed. Piper released her grip on the sheets, exhaling.

"Piper, same one?" Thalia asked gently.

Piper shook her head, biting her lip. "Winter break. How long?"

Thalia glanced away for a moment. "Um... about an hour. Cause you completely fell and slammed your head on the ground. You were also shaking, crying, screaming and you kept repeating 'No' and 'make it stop' and I don't think you could properly breathe. Then Katie panicked and ran to get Mr. Apollo and you passed out."

"Piper, I'm going to have to recommend seeing a counsellor. This is getting out of hand." Mr. Apollo stated. "However, it's up to you. But you're not going to class today, alright? If you're feeling better, you can go to classes after lunch, but not now. Speaking of class, you better run, Grace."

"True. Bye! Piper, text me, okay?" Thalia said, checking her watch and jogging out the door.

"Now. Piper. How long has this been happening?" The teacher asked.

"Right before the break." Piper answered.

"After Stephanie's suicide and the murder of Calypso?" Mr. Apollo questioned.

Piper fought back the panic after hearing those names. "Steph didn't kill herself. Calypso killed her." She spat.

"The facts we heard from the police are what we're assuming. Now, Piper, what happened over the break?" Mr. Apollo asked.

"None of your business. What happened in England stays in England." Piper said, remembering the note that they were given before their flight, saying the exact same thing.

"I'm just trying to help!" Mr. Apollo exclaimed.

"I don't need help." Piper spat, absolutely loathing the teacher.

"Let me know when you change your mind." Mr. Apollo said, walking out and slamming the door behind him. Piper exhaled, swinging her legs over to the side of the bed. She was going to go to class and completely defy Mr. Apollo.

She stood, getting increasingly dizzied by the second. After a failed attempt of taking a step, she shakily sat back down. Okay, maybe defiance would have to wait.

This was going to be a long couple of hours.

Yes, they're all messed up. Why? Because what happened was traumatizing- especially what happened over the winter break. ;) Any guesses? Predictions? :)))))))

How was that for a first chapter? It's going to be one hell of a sequel, isn't it?

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No prologue this time... but no promises for an epilogue either. Hmm... that means a Mark-of-Athena style cliffhanger is possible