ᴾʰᵒᵇᵒᵖʰᵒᵇⁱᵃ [ᴶᵃˢᵒⁿ ᴳʳᵃᶜᵉ]

ε.

Leo snorted, shaking his black curls in a way that reminded Aza of the pegasi. He rolled his eyes, which were alight with a mischief that Aza assumed was normal for the boy. Whilst fiddling with the same paperclips as before, he said, "Gee, thanks. What are we, your new pets?"

It seemed that Leo's critism of Drew gave Jason the confidence to speak because he agreed, "No kidding." His electric blue eyes hardened as he finally met Drew's gaze, but he refused to back down from her. "How about some answers before you start judging us - like, what is this place, why are we here, and how long do we need to stay?"

Aza clicked her tongue and shook her head. "No one is judging you, Jason," her russet eyes found Drew's and she gave the Daughter of Aphrodite a pointed look. She flickered her gaze from Drew's to Annabeth's, and the two had a silent conversation, debating on the best way to play out the situation and to keep all parties happy. Annabeth tore her stormy grey eyes from Aza's, meeting Jason's blue ones. "Jason, I promise we'll answer your questions, and Drew," Annabeth faltered, unsure of the best way to put what she wanted to stay. Annabeth never spoke unless completely sure of every word that came out of her mouth, which is where Aza often came in. The Daughter of Phobos was less thoughtful with her articulation and was willing to speak her mind, whereas Annabeth preferred not to. She knew Annabeth wanted to say something, but she wasn't quite sure she could find the best way to articulate it, which was rather strange when it came to Annabeth.

"Drew, it's not your place to determine if they're worth the trouble," Aza shot another pointed glance at Drew, trying to communicate with the girl more through her eyes than her words. She was trying to tell Drew to play nice, to stop putting this tough and bitchy façade that she did so often, so top judging people for once. "And for the record, all demigods are worth saving."

Drew slumped slightly. Her back curled inwards and her shoulders down-sloped. She looked slightly ashamed at Aza, and the Daughter of Phobos could sense an increase in fear - she thought, no, knew, that Drew realized that Silena would never say something like that. Annabeth spoke after a moment of silence, nodding glumly at Aza's words as if wishing that they saved the person who truly mattered in that moment; the one they had meant to save. "Though I'll admit, the trip didn't accomplish what we hoped."

Aza sighed, shaking her head once more. "If anything, it asked more questions than it answered."

"Hey," Piper sniffed slightly, her body stiffening as if she were under attack. Her face hardened, brows furrowing offensively. "we didn't ask to be brought here." Piper's words, which meant to be defensive and to articulate her point, to stop them from being attacked, seems to accomplish the opposite of what she hoped. At her words, Drew straightened importantly, looking like an alpha about to establish her dominance. She quirked a brow, her face hardening and her demeanor appearing aggressive once more - it was quite clear that she saw Piper as a threat and meant to establish her territory. "Nobody wants you, hon. Does your hair always look like a dead badger?" Drew's words, whilst cold, were spoken silkily. They were soft, but held a certain power to them that made Aza feel like she was intruding in a private conversation, like she shouldn't defend Piper.

But it seemed that Piper didn't need a defense because she took a heavy step forward, her kaleidoscopic eyes flashing angrily. She rose a hand, as if to slap Drew, but Annabeth fixed her with a stormy gaze. "Piper, stop." However powerful Drew's words were, Annabeth's were tenfold. It was quite clear that her words weren't a suggestion or a question, but a demand - it was either Piper stopped right there in her tracks or something bad happened. Piper hesitated momentarily, but with once glance at Annabeth's pointed glance, stormy grey eyes and her stoic demeanor, the girl froze. Her hadn't fell back to her side and she didn't look in any hurry to disobey Annabeth.