ON THIS SPRING DAY
━━━━━ chapter twenty-one
━━━━━ DEATH LINGERED LIKE a friend who couldn't get the hint to go away. Or it was like that for AJ.
After the battle—and feeling suffocated by everything that had happened—the rest of the summer seemed strange because it was so normal. The daily activities continued: archery, rock climbing, and pegasus riding. They played Capture the Flag ( though everyone avoided Zeus's Fist—but especially Violet, Annabeth, and Percy ). The campers sang at the campfire, raced chariots, and played practical jokes on the other cabins. AJ spent a lot of time with Violet and Chris and the rest of Cabin Eleven, he and Violet would spend time taking care of Mrs. O'Leary like Daedalus had asked of the daughter of Eros, but the hellhound would still howl at night when she got lonely for her old master. And AJ and Annabeth pretty much avoided each other like the plague. It hurt—to avoid her, just like it always hurt—but it hurt worse being around her ... like it normally did.
He never thought it would be like this again, but he wanted to talk with Annabeth. He wanted to be around her, but it just ... hurt. Bad memories ( older and newer ), the fear of messing things up even worse with the daughter of Athena, and bringing up Luke.
AJ tried avoiding the topic of Luke Castellan, but trying to talk about the upcoming war with her, was impossible. And bringing up Luke around Annabeth would result in A). a pencil thrown at you, B). a notebook, or C). a whole shelf of a bookcase. ( She tried it once, and both Malcolm and AJ had to duck and run from Cabin Six. )
So, safe to say, AJ avoided bringing up Luke Castellan—and anything related to him—up around Annabeth.
Until she found him in the Arts & Crafts Center. AJ glanced her way, eyebrows raised, but quickly went back to his painting. Figuring if she didn't speak to him, he wouldn't start a conversation. He didn't want any art supplies thrown his way.
But Annabeth placed a sleek silver laptop on the table next to him. She slid a stool over and sat on it.
"Malcolm said I had to get out of the Cabin," she said, noticing the way AJ was watching her from the corner of his eye.
"Oh." AJ cleared his throat and busied himself. "'Suppose he has a point. You've been spending every hour of the day on that thing."
"'Cause there's so much on here," said Annabeth as the laptop whirried to life. "Daedalus is—er, was a genius, AJ."
"I know," he agreed dryly.
"I mean—video shields, swords that fold into paper origami, buildings you can transport with briefcases—"
"Annabeth, I get it," insisted AJ. "Daedalus was crazy creative. I saw the stuff he had in his workshop." He shaded a part of the painting—an old memory from what seemed like a lifetime ago; buildings built from white marble, and roofed with red tiles. Marble statues and stores lined the streets. He frowned at it for a moment, struggling to recall it all, but Annabeth spoke up.
"That's pretty," she complimented, nodding to the painting. "What's it of?"
AJ chewed on the inner part of his cheek, dipping the paintbrush in a cup of water. "An old memory I had. Before Virginia."
"When you and your family used to live in California?"
AJ's brows furrowed. "Yeah, but ... I don't really remember what it is—like where. We used to live in San Fran, I'm pretty sure, but—"
"That's not San Francisco architecture," Annabeth pointed out. AJ knew she would know best, of course, considering her obsession with architecture and living in the Californian city.
For a long moment, AJ stared at the painting. Then he sighed and asked, "Well, what's up?"
Annabeth looked at him oddly. "What do you mean what's up?"
"We've been avoiding each other since the quest ended, Annabeth," he pointed out. "And, suddenly, here you are. I know you."
Annabeth grimaced, as if hating the fact that AJ did know her too well. "Thing is ..." She shifted in her seat, as if this was hard to admit. "I was thinking you could help me with something."
AJ raised his eyebrows. "Me? You want my help?"
"Why are you saying that like it's crazy?" Annabeth scowled, eyebrows pinching together. "I already asked for your help before—the Labyrinth, remember? Besides, you and Beckendorf work together all the time in the forges—"
"So you're only asking me 'cause you don't want to bother Beckendorf?"
Annabeth slammed the laptop closed. "AJ!"
The blond grinned. "It's easy to get under your skin, you know that right?"
The daughter of Athena huffed and gathered the laptop into her arms. "Forget it, AJ. I can do it on my own—"
"No, no, no!" AJ dropped the paintbrush he was holding and grabbed Annabeth's arm. He was just glad they were arguing this time, he didn't want her to leave. "I was just pulling your leg, Beth. Seriously."
She narrowed her eyes on him, and AJ quickly added, "I would love to help. I mean—swords that can fold into origami sounds crazy cool."
For a moment, Annabeth only watched him. Then, she kicked his leg. "It wasn't funny, AJ."
"I think it was." He shrugged, turning back to his half-finished painting.
She scoffed. "You're impossible."
"So what are you thinking about making first?" he asked, glancing her way.
For a moment, she considered. Then she shrugged. "I dunno. I haven't even looked at half the stuff Daedalus put in here, to be honest ..."
"Then the video shield thing," offered AJ. "It'd be pretty handy for battles."
"And spying," Annabeth agreed.
"Then it's a done deal," said AJ, smiling at her. "We'll look at the plans soon."
He thought that'd be the end of the conversation, but Annabeth didn't go. She watched him, an odd look in her eye—not so calculating, but ... AJ couldn't figure out what the look read, but her eyes were like a storm cloud.
"I'm glad we made up," she said finally.
AJ faltered, and the paintbrush went in an odd direction. He cursed, quickly wiping his finger over the wet paint. "Why that all of a sudden?"
Annabeth turned flustered. "I was just saying!"
"Well ..." AJ struggled for the right words. "I—"
"Forget it!" Annabeth started to walk away. "See you tomorrow, AJ."
And she hurried out of the Arts & Crafts Center, leaving the other inhabitants to glance his way. AJ scowled to himself from embarrassment, fussing over the painting of his old, very faint memories.
🌷
Violet wanted to do anything but think of the future. She knew what she was about to do—run away from all her problems again. It was a consistent pattern of behavior, she didn't like facing her issues. To her, it was much easier to avoid and shove to the back of her mind. To pretend that nothing was wrong, and that everything was perfectly okay. The only problem with all of this avoiding was the fact that Violet caused a lot of her problems. Wherever she went, she was fucking something up.
Like with sneaking into the Underworld. Now, she had Hades on her back ( for only wanting the truth ). Surely, the god was waiting for the moment Violet would take her last breath and he could sick the judges of death on her to make sure she was punished.
What's even worse was she was starting to understand where Dahlia and Hades were coming from. She was too curious for her own good, and it got her in all sorts of trouble. And even worse than that? Violet was too proud ( and angry ) to ever admit that her mother might be correct about something. Her mother lied, for Violet's entire life. And Dahlia just wanted Violet to be okay with that. No matter how much Violet wanted to be in Dahlia's arms, she couldn't let go of the anger.
But the yearning to be back in the comforting embrace of her mother was nagging Violet like an endless tirade.
With Nico gone, bearing all the secrets she had uncovered was straining Violet. She reverted back to old habits—run, avoid, deflect. Run, avoid, deflect. It was like a mantra, something to keep all the feelings bottled in. If she let anything—and Violet means anything—it would become a flood. Of secrets, or of tears, or of both.
The urge to hug Dahalia and pretend nothing was wrong was getting stronger.
There was a problem with Violet's mantra—run, avoid, deflect—was that she could only run, avoid, and deflect so much at Camp Half-Blood. The others—AJ, Annabeth, and Percy—knew something was up. They knew something, what they knew, Violet didn't know. But they knew she had been down in the Underworld with Nico.
That was bad. If they found out ... gods know how they would look at her. They would be angry at her. Maybe even be scared of her. Violet didn't want to be feared, she just wanted to prove she was more than just "another child of love". She didn't want to be a legacy of Persephone, she hardly wanted to be a daughter of Eros.
She regretted it. All of it. Sneaking onto the quest last winter, agreeing to explore the Labyrinth in search of answers, looking for the answer at all. Hades was right—Violet should've let the past stay in the past.
And it helped that being around Percy also sucked. Well, it didn't suck, she just hurt being around him. Percy didn't do anything—which was part of the problem because he was so sickeningly sweet—but Violet wished he did so she could have a reason to avoid him. She still tried, don't get her wrong, but there were only so many excuses she could make. And the hurt look on his face stopped her half the time, as well.
July passed, with fireworks on the beach at the Fourth of July. August turned so hot the strawberries started baking in the fields. Finally, the last day of camp arrived. The standard form letter appeared on Violet's bed after breakfast, warning her that the cleaning harpies would devour her if she stayed past noon without informing anyone she was staying for the school year.
The decision was easy to make. Chiron didn't seem shocked Violet was saying at Camp Half-Blood.
"You and your mother are fighting again?" he noticed with raised eyebrows. It always felt like he was some mind reader to Violet, and it really freaked her out now.
"That obvious?" she responded.
"Yes." Chiron nodded. "Did you ever tell her you ... weren't dead?"
"Um ... yeah, I did."
Violet left her answer at that. No need for Chiron to know that Violet and Dahlia had a shouting match as Nico awkwardly poked at his food. ( Unless the centaur could actually read minds, then he knew everything now. )
Despite wanting to run, Violet agreed to see Percy off on the last day. She didn't want to, but she also didn't want to not see him. At least Annabeth was there ( but that made it also worse in a way since they both knew something was wrong with Violet ... )
Both Annabeth and Violet would be staying behind while Percy left for Manhattan. Annabeth had arranged to stay at Camp a little longer. She would tend to Chiron until his leg was fully recovered, and keep studying Daedalus's laptop, which had engrossed her for the last two months. Then she would head back to her father's place in San Francisco.
"There's a private school out there that I'll be going to," she said. "I'll probably hate it, but ..." She shrugged.
"But you'll keep in touch?" asked Percy.
"I will," she agreed halfheartedly. "I'll keep my eyes open for ..."
There it was again—the topic Annabeth was avoiding as much as Violet was avoiding all her own problems. Luke. Annabeth couldn't even say his name without opening up a huge box of hurt, worry, and anger.
"Annabeth," Percy said, his expression weirdly serious. "What was the rest of the prophecy?"
The daughter of Athena fixed her eyes on the woods in the distance, but she didn't say anything.
"You shall delve in the darkness of the endless maze," Percy remembered. "The dead, the traitor, and the lost one raise. We raised a lot of the dead. We saved Ethan Nakamura, who turned out to be a traitor. We raised the spirit of Pan, the lost one."
Violet shifted, crossing her arms and looking off. The next line of the prophecy—
"The gloom shall pass, the mislead shall stray." Percy looked at Violet fully, and the daughter of Eros flinched. "That line's about you, Violet. The gloom—that was mentioned in the prophecy to save Artemis."
Gloom shall descend upon the mountains. Violet remembered it like she heard it yesterday, but she didn't say a thing. She bit her tongue, looking down at Half-Blood Hill.
Her silence only irritated Percy. "And the gloom has to do with Hades. That's what your mom lied about. You went to Hades for answers—the mislead shall stray. He gave you answers about why you could control darkness."
Annabeth looked at Percy. "What—?"
"I'm right, aren't I?" Percy asked Violet. "Your mom—and you—are descended from Hades."
Violet stared, lips parted in shock. Before she could speak of a response, Annabeth beat her to the punch; "Percy, are you crazy?"
"I am not crazy!" he insisted. "Violet—I'm right, aren't I?"
She opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water. "I—I—No! That's not ..."
But Percy's expression told Violet there was no changing his mind. "You shall rise or fall by the ghost king's hand," he pressed on. "That wasn't Minos like I'd thought. It was Nico. By choosing to be on our side, he saved us. The child of night's first command." He looked hard at Violet, and she caught on that he thought this line was about her, too.
"Percy, that line has nothing to do with me!" she insisted. "I'm not a child of night. It must be about Nico. The way he got rid of Minos—"
"Violet, you've lied to us this whole summer," Percy snapped, his eyes hardened with frustration. "Why would I believe you now?"
She stared at him, an odd look in her eyes, before she pursed her lips, her chin quivering. At any moment, it looked like she was ready to start crying or ready to storm away.
"Percy," Annabeth spoke up. "Drop it."
But Percy doesn't drop it. "The child of Athena's final stand—that was Daedalus."
"Percy—"
"Destroy with a hero's final breath. That makes sense now. Daedalus died to destroy the Labyrinth. But what was the last—"
"And lose a love to worse than death." Annabeth had tears in her eyes. "That was the last line, Percy. Are you happy now?"
The sun seemed colder than it had a moment ago. Violet's hands trembled as she curled her fingers into her palms.
"Oh." Percy glanced between Ananbeth and Violet, as if just realizing the mess he made. "So —"
"Percy, I didn't know who the prophecy was talking about. I—I didn't know if ..." She faltered helplessly. "Luke and I—for years, he was the only one who really cared about me. I thought ..."
Before she could continue, a sparkle of light appeared next to them, like someone had opened a gold curtain in the air.
"You have nothing to apologize for, my dear." Standing on the hill was a tall woman in a white dress, her dark hair braided over her shoulder.
"Hera," Annabeth said.
The goddess smiled. "You found the answers, as I knew you would. Your quest was a success."
"A success?" Annabeth repeated. "Luke is gone. Daedalus is dead. Pan is dead. How is that—"
"Our family is safe," Hera insisted. "Those others are better gone, my dear. I am proud of you."
"You're the one who paid Geryon to let us through the ranch, weren't you?" Percy blurted, staring down at the goddess.
Hera shrugged. Her dress shimmered in rainbow colors. "I wanted to speed you on your way."
"But you didn't care about Nico. Or Violet. You were happy to see them turned over to the Titans."
"Oh, please." Hera waved her hand dismissively. "The son of Hades said it himself. No one wants him around. He does not belong. And Violet made it through in the end."
It was like the final jab was made. "Ta gueule! You're willing to kill us so you could get what you want? Hephaestus was right. You don't give a damn about people. You only want to look like a perfect family."
Her eyes turned dangerously bright. "I suggest you watch your mouth, Daughter of Eros. I watched you on your journey. I helped you and that blasted son of Hades through the maze—not Minos. I know you will play an important role. That is why you have found your answers. I am the one to thank."
"Thank you?" repeated Violet, her eyes dangerous. "Thank you for something you had no part in?"
Hera's eyes flashed in anger. "No part in?" She turned to Percy, as if he would back her up. "Son of Poseidon—I guided you more than any of you know in that maze. I was at your side when you faced Geryon. I let your arrow fly straight. I sent you to Calypso's island. I opened the way to the Titans' mountain. Annabeth, my dear, surely you see how I've helped. I would welcome a sacrifice for my efforts."
The daughter of Athena stood still as a statue. She could've said thank you. She could've promised to throw some barbecue on the brazier for Hera and forget the whole thing. But she clenched her jaw stubbornly. She looked just the way she had when she'd faced the Sphinx—like she wasn't going to accept an easy answer, even if it got her in serious trouble.
"Violet's right." She turned her back on the goddess. "You're the one who doesn't belong, Queen Hera. So next time, thanks ... but no thanks."
Hera's sneer was worse than an empousa's. Her form began to glow. "You will regret this insult, Annabeth. You will regret this very much."
Violet averted her eyes as the goddess turned into her true divine form and disappeared in a blaze of light.
The hilltop was peaceful again. Over at the pine tree, Peleus the dragon dozed under the Golden Fleece as if nothing had happened.
Violet clenched her jaw, her anger suddenly gone. "I—I'm sorry, you guys. I shouldn't have done that—"
"No, she deserved it." Percy crossed his arms.
Annabeth took a shuddered breath. "I—I should get back. I'll keep in touch."
"Listen, Annabeth—" Percy started, but then Argus honked his horn down at the road.
"You'd better get going," Annabeth said. "Take care, Percy."
She jogged down the hill, not once looking back.
Violet swallowed the bile in her throat. "I really am sorry," she said, but she wasn't talking about Hera this time. "I shouldn't have ..." She trailed off, losing the words in her throat.
Percy seemed to understand well enough. "You could've just been honest."
Violet only shook her head. "S'not that easy, Percy. I'm not ..." She couldn't even bring herself to say the word "legacy" or "descended".
"Scared?" asked Percy, hoping he finished the rest of her sentence right.
Before Violet could answer Yes or No ( she wasn't even sure what her answer would be, because in full honesty—she was terrified, but Percy had it for the wrong reasons ), Argus honked the horn twice.
Violet squeezed Percy's arm. "See you soon, Perce. And—happy early birthday."
And she ran back to the line of cabins in the distance.
🌷
Two days later, Violet almost punched Nico di Angelo in the face.
It wasn't her fault. Nico surprised her, and he totally deserved it for sneaking up on her. Violet was understandably jumpy after the whole exploring of the Labyrinth summer she just had.
"What the fuck?" he yelled, backing away, and holding up his hands in surrender. "Do you want to break my nose?"
"Don't sneak up on people!" Violet stomped her foot, letting her fist drop. She looked around, noticing she was surprisingly alone inside Cabin Eleven. "What are you doing here?"
"What? Can I visit you?" Nico rolled his eyes. "I told you I would visit."
He'd grown about an inch taller over the last couple of months. His hair was a shaggy black mess. He wore a black T-shirt, black jeans, and a new silver ring shaped like a skull. His Stygian iron sword hung at his side.
Violet crossed her arms. "Nico—I know you," she said. "I would like if you visited more, but ... you're you. Socially isolated and a loner."
He gave her a look. "Fine. I found something. I was going to tell Percy about it. You wanna go?"
Violet's first answer? Yes, but also no. It had only been two days since Percy left for the mortal world, and she already missed him. But she also didn't enjoy being around him—the jittery feeling of a crush, the constant, rapid-fire questions as to what happened this summer, and the constant worry about not letting anything slip. But ... she really did miss him. And it was his birthday. She'd be able to wish him a Happy birthday on his birthday—even if his birthday represented a year closer to the end of the world. Percy still deserved a happy day.
"I guess so." She shrugged, rubbing the side of her arm.
Nico grabbed her wrist. "Well, you know—on the count of three."
🌷
They landed soundlessly on the fire escape to the Jackson apartment. Percy was outside, sitting on the fire escape, but he didn't notice the visitors. He was too busy staring at a planter box, where Violet had placed a few plants there the last time she had visited. They still looked pretty good, all things considered ( because knowing Percy, even if he was at the apartment, he totally forgot to water them regularly ).
There was a new flower, too—a tiny, silver plant that had just sprung out of the dark soil. It glowed under the moon and warm summer night. Just the sight of it made Violet's chest knot up. Despite having no idea where it had come from, she just knew it had come from Calypso's island.
Nico announced their presence. "Nice plants."
Percy jumped a foot into the air, whirling around.
Violet's cheek twitched. "Hey," she greeted, but didn't sound particularly happy.
"Sorry," Nico amended, though he didn't look apologetic. "Didn't mean to startle you."
"That's—that's okay. I mean ..." Percy gave the two a suspicious look, and Violet winced, remembering what conclusion Percy had drawn, "what are you doing here?"
"I've done some exploring," Nico admitted. "Thought you'd like to know that Daedalus got his punishment."
"You saw him?"
Nico nodded. "Minos wanted to boil him in cheese fondue for eternity, but my father had other ideas. Daedalus will be building overpasses and exit ramps in Asphodel for all time. It'll help ease the traffic congestion. Truthfully, I think the old guy is pretty happy with that. He's still building. Still creating. And he gets to see his son and Perdix on the weekends."
"That's good."
Nico tapped at his silver ring. "But that's not the real reason I've come. I've found out some things. I want to make you an offer."
Percy glanced at Violet, but she skillfully ( in truth, just obviously to the side ). "What?"
"The way to beat Luke," Nico said, lowering his voice, as if the son of Hermes was somehow overhearing. "If I'm right, it's the only way you'll stand a chance."
Percy took a deep breath. "Okay. I'm listening."
Nico glanced inside my room. His eyebrows furrowed. "Is that ... is that blue birthday cake?"
Violet looked inside. On the wooden dresser was a slice of blue cake and a bowl of melting ice cream. Nico sounded hungry, maybe a little wistful. It made Violet wonder if Nico ever had a birthday party, or if he'd ever even been invited to one.
"Come inside for cake and ice cream," Percy said. "It sounds like we've got a lot to talk about."
🌷 OCT. 29TH, 2023 / i like this chapter but i don't at the same time - like it does show the slight development of annabeth and aj, and i think it does show the development of violet extremely well (with the growing dependency on nico, the fear of her powers and such, her confused feelings for percy, the anger towards dahlia)
it's a shorter chapter this time but i didn't want to drag it on because then it would be the characters just talking in circles lol
but we still have to get through the interlude (where percy's about to get a rude ass awakening) and then we're on to act three!!
anyways, thoughts?? opinions??
(not edited nor proofread)