"You know, you can come sit with us." Percy urged Ali.
She was standing at the edge of the square, surveying the boisterous legion.
The five newcomers had all taken a seat at a table with Reyna, Octavian, Percy, Frank, and Hazel. Needless to say, the table was crowded, mostly with strangers.
She shook her head. "I think I'll sit this one out." She leaned against one of the buildings. "We both know I'm not great with people... especially new people."
Percy sighed. "Are you sure you're not just trying to avoid me and Annabeth?"
"What?!" She hesitated before continuing. "Of course not."
Percy met her gaze sadly. "I know it's still awkward, but it won't get any better if you run from it."
She steeled herself. "I'm not running from anything."
He sighed. "Alright. I'll save a seat for you, in case you change your mind."
Ali watched him walk away. She almost wished he wouldn't be so nice to her. It made it so much harder to lose him.
* * *
Eliza poked absently at her food, mixing it into a mushy mound on her plate.
Leo gagged. "Eliza, if you're not gonna eat it can you at least leave it alone. That's disgusting."
Jason grabbed her wrist to stop her from twirling her fork. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." She pulled free of his grip. "I just lost my appetite."
"I know it's hard for you to be back here." Jason sympathized.
"I apologize for my soldier's words." Reyna offered. "Their mouths are the one thing I can't control."
"Don't worry about it." Eliza urged. "Either of you. It's normal. If I couldn't take a few insults, I probably wouldn't be here right now."
Percy walked over, interrupting the conversation. He sat down next to Annabeth.
"No luck?" His girlfriend twined her fingers through his.
He didn't return the gesture. "No. She's being difficult."
Annabeth squeezed his hand.
"Not to sound rude." Leo interjected. "But, who is that?" He nodded towards the girl Percy had been talking to - a girl with long black hair and silver-blue eyes.
Percy stared at the girl concernedly. "Her name's Ali. She's a... friend." It looked like he had been going to say something else, but changed it at the last minute.
Eliza looked at Annabeth, remembering the stories the daughter of Athena and Aubrey had told her about a girl named Ali.
Annabeth met her gaze and nodded as if reading her thoughts. It was the same Ali. Awkward.
* * *
Midway through the meal, Leo led Octavian onto the Argo II to give him a tour. Percy was focused on Annabeth and vice versa. Jason was catching up with Reyna and Piper was sitting there awkwardly. Frank and Hazel - legionnaires that Eliza didn't know - were obviously a couple.
Eliza stood and wandered away from the table towards the edge of the square. She stared at the ground, trying not to draw attention to herself as she wove between the tables. Unfortunately, she could still hear the whispers spreading through the square like wildfire.
Finally, she reached the end of the square and ducked behind a marble pillar. She leaned her head back against the cold stone, fighting back the tears.
"In my experience, hiding never helped." A stern melodic voice sounded beside her.
Eliza turned and found the dark-haired girl from before leaning against the pillar next to her.
"Sometimes it makes the rumors worse." She watched the jovial crowd almost longingly.
"Ali." Eliza deduced.
Ali smiled sadly and nodded. "I take it Annabeth told you about me."
Eliza nodded. "Annabeth and Aubrey and Thomas, a little bit, and now Percy."
The girl hung her head and chuckled. "What's the damage?"
Eliza felt a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Nothing bad. They care about you a lot."
Ali grinned, but it quickly fell when she spotted Percy. "What about you? You've got Annabeth, that boy Jason, and I'm assuming you're pretty close to Leo and Piper too. Not to mention Reyna and whoever else in the legion cares." She sighed. "You have more people than I ever have."
Eliza scoffed. "I doubt that's true."
Ali raised an eyebrow. "Have you ever betrayed your own kind? It doesn't go over well."
Eliza crossed her arms. "Have you ever accidentally killed your fellow soldier? People don't take that well either."
"Is that why they call you 'Angel of Death'?" Ali asked.
Eliza looked away as she remembered the people she had hurt with her power, the people she had... she shoved it out of her mind. "Doesn't matter. All that matters is now they all hate me. I can never change that."
Ali turned her gaze back to Percy. "I know the feeling."
An explosion shook the square.
Eliza dropped to the cobbled street as dust cascading around her. "What was that?"
Ali helped her to her feet. "The Senate House."
A flaming ballista fired from the Argo II, colliding with one of the marble buildings.
Eliza looked up at the giant bronze ship.
Octavian climbed precariously down the ladder, his voice carrying over the whole of New Rome. "Betrayal! Treason!"
Eliza's eyes widened as another flaming projectile flew into the city. Her chest tightened, she could barely breathe. "No."
A/N
Shorter chapter. It's also a filler, but whatever.
I hope you all enjoyed it. 😁
Just a heads up, I'm going out of town next week and I'm not sure if I'll get the chance to update all that much. Just a forewarning.
Until next time. Thank you all.
-Cheshire