'Are you another God I've pissed off?'
Corey walked into the Big House, fresh clothes after Capture the Flag and her hair held back by a cap she found in the lost and found. She saw Chiron and Mr D. Chiron had a solemn expression towards Corey while Mr D seemed to have his usual bored one.
"Where's Percy? Shouldn't he be here?" She asked him, rocking back on her heels. "Not yet my dear, there is something we need to discuss with you" Chiron's voice was soft, similar to the one he used when Corey first got to camp at the traumatised age of five. Corey was ready for whatever was about to be thrown at her.
"You need to stay away from Perry" Mr D spat out, opening a can of diet coke. Corey was not prepared. Her fists balled as she clenched her teeth, "I'd rather rot in Tartarus!" She spat at them, a pit in her stomach churning with her anger. "Cordelia! Calm yourself!" Chiron warned her, stomping one of his hooves. "No I will not!" Corey sneered at him.
Tears began to form, "I've been at this camp since I was five! I watched as half-bloods came here, traumatised and sometimes thrown into this world without explanation and then barely living! Some of my friends died alone! And that was before I went missing! You think I'm gonna just abandon Percy! Are you fucking serious!" Corey screamed at them, her eyes red from the tears falling.
"Cordelia, you must understand he is a forbidden child!" Chiron tried to reason with Corey. "I AM A FORBIDDEN CHILD!" Corey screamed, her throat burning as she did. "I am not abandoning him, you can turn me into whatever animal you want but I will not willingly leave my brother" Corey spat at them.
"COREY!"
Corey's eyes opened as she gasped. Her body felt strong as she looked up. Percy was staring at her with wide eyes as his blonde curls seemed to move gently like waves on a beach. "Percy" Corey let out a sigh of relief as she wrapped her arms around the boy, holding his tightly. "You're okay...you're alive" She smiled brightly as she separated from him. Percy still seemed to be in a little shock.
"You can breathe" He stated with mixed emotions. Corey narrowed her eyes at him, "What do you mean?" Corey asked him until she felt something strange. Sand. Her eyes widened as she looked around them. They were in the Mississippi river. "So you weren't lying...you're actually..." Percy trailed off as the fight between them and the Chimera became clearer.
Corey nodded, "I'm your sister" She told him with a gulp. "Oh" Percy responded. Corey stood up, dusting off the sand from her clothes the best she could. She noticed a hole in her stomach from the Chimera's blast. "Let's get back to land, Grover and Annabeth must be worried" Corey suggested with a tight smile. Percy nodded, turning away from Corey.
~Ψ~
Corey and Percy swam to the surface, looking for somewhere to climb to shore. "Sea Pup, a dock!" Corey told him, pointing to white fences in her view. They swam over together, and climbed up. Percy went first, Corey boosting him up. "Percy! Corey!" Grover called out as Percy climbed over the fence. Corey followed him, holding on to the bars tightly so she wouldn't slip. "A little help, Sea Pup?" Corey groaned, her body growing heavy as she gripped the metal.
Percy helped her up as she jumped into the wooden ground. "Thanks" Corey smiled at him. Percy just nodded before turning to Annabeth and Grover. He was mad at her, Corey could tell. "Hi" He smiled weakly at Annabeth and Grover as they ran towards him. "Look, I'm sorry about shoving you in the stairwell. Even hearing myself say that sounds really bad, but I just-- I knew you'd never agree, and there wasn't enough time–" Annabeth cut Percy off as she hugged him tightly. Percy hugged her back, sort of surprised that she was hugging him.
Grover smiled at Corey, seeing the frown on her face. "So... you're not as dead as we thought you'd be" Grover spoke up, causing Annabeth to break the hug. "Surprise" Percy shrugged off like nothing happened. "What happened?" Grover asked him before looking at Corey, "And what happened to your hair?". Corey looked at him weirdly, "What are you talking about?" She asked them, her hands raking through her scalp. "You're ginger now" Annabeth answered. "Short version, we need to go to Santa Monica" Percy told them, the information new to Corey as she silently freaked out about her hair.. "What, like now?" Grover asked him with a little shock. "My father's gonna meet me there. He's gonna help us" Percy told them.
Corey looked at him, her eyes widening "I'm sorry, Dad wants us to go to Santa Monica?" She questioned, earning some looks from Annabeth and Grover. Percy smacked his lips, "Yeah, you were unconscious" He told her bluntly. Ouch. " Okay. Uh, just one problem with this plan. The police think that we crashed an Amtrak train and then did that '' Grover pointed to the smoking St Louis Arch and the gigantic group of law enforcement behind them.
"Th-- The cops are after us?" It was Percy's turn to be shocked. "Yeah" Grover confirmed. "Isn't that gonna make it hard for us to get on a train? Or a bus? Or really anything you need tickets for?" Percy questioned, how could this get any worse? "Looks like we're walking" Corey shrugged.
~Ψ~
The group managed to get on the highway without bumping into any law enforcement, the bright sun drying Corey and Percy's clothes. Corey had taken off her jacket and tied it around her waist due to the heat. Percy was still ignoring her, staying next to Grover and making conversation with them.
Corey stopped in her tracks, folding her arms. "Are you just gonna ignore me for the rest of this quest?" She asked, causing the kids to stop and look back at her. Grover and Annabeth shared a look as Percy glared at Corey. "Why? Are there more secrets you've been keeping from me?" He fired back at her, balling his fists. Corey shook her head, "You think I wanted to lie to you?" Corey shouted at him, flailing her hands in the air. "From the moment I figured out you were my brother, I wanted to tell you so badly...Hell I broke the most basic rules of questing to I could protect you!" She explained to him, walking closer to Percy. "I wanted to tell you so many times, you've got to believe me" Tears streamed down her face. "Then why!" Percy shouted back, his body shaking slightly "Why didn't you tell me!".
Corey felt like she was being hit by a train. How could she hide this from him, her brother? She had felt so lost for so long and when she finally found someone who could vaguely understand her, she couldn't tell him who she truly was.
Percy wanted to hate Corey. For lying to him, for not telling the truth but he couldn't. Yeah he was mad, but not at her. He was mad that Echidna didn't let her tell him on her own terms, that Corey had to be put in a position where death was the only outcome and she couldn't die without him knowing. He thought back to when he saw her crying in front of Mr D and Chiron. Was that about him? Was she upset that their father didn't claim her too?
"Because..." Corey's voice faltered slightly as she wiped her tears. "The curse... it didn't just bring me an unwanted lover. Aphrodite's curse leads anyone I love to a doomed fate. Min Jung, Elise... they died because of me. I couldn't do that to you...not you" Corey choked on her cries, looking down at her feet. It was silent, the small breeze echoing in her ears.
Grover and Annabeth stood behind Percy, shocked by Corey's past. They watched as Percy walked closer to Corey, his shoulders slumped. "Seashell" Percy called out to her, his voice hoarse from his previous shouting. Corey looked up at him, expecting him to tell her that it was just an excuse.
Percy wrapped his arms around her waist, hugging her gently as his head rested on her chest. Corey let out a breath, hugging him back just as tightly. "I'm sorry for shouting at you" Percy mumbled into Corey's charred shirt. Corey kissed the top of his head, "Never apologise for your emotions Sea Pup, ever" Corey told him with a smile.
"Can we carry on with this quest now!" Annabeth crossed her arms as she rolled her eyes at the siblings. Grover gave her nudge as he sniffled, "Annabeth" He whispered. Corey laughed at them as she walked forwards with Percy. "Are you crying?" Percy asks Grover with a small smirk. "What, no" Grover failed to lie as Percy nudged his side. Corey and Annabeth laugh at the boy's antics.
"Hey, guys. I think this quest might be harder than we thought. I've been thinking. I didn't steal the master bolt. You guys didn't steal the master bolt. We're pretty sure Hades has the master bolt, but he couldn't have stolen it himself. I mean, we don't even know who actually stole the thing, or why, or how deep this goes" Percy spoke up after a few minutes of silent walking. He looked at his friends and sister who seemed to look at him with more understanding of his theory than he did.
"I'm the last person to realise this, aren't I?" Percy slumped his shoulders, giving a quick glare at Corey who was trying her hardest not to laugh. Percy sighed, "Okay, so... maybe when we started, my head wasn't fully in this, but since the river... it all feels different somehow". He wasn't wrong, Corey was still trying to piece together why her hair colour had changed from the water.
"He saved me. My dad. I guess I just really never thought that's something he'd do for me" Percy was still surprised Poseidon had saved him. "He never did it for me" Corey mumbled, trying to look at her red hair in the sun. "So maybe I gotta take things more seriously now" Percy seemed more...prepared as he rolled back his shoulders not hearing what Corey had said. He looked ready to take on a god.
Behind them the sound of a motor was coming towards them. "Car" Corey and Grover said at the same time. "That's not a car, it's a bike. Just let it pass. Come on" Annabeth brought them behind the barriers. They all sat on the grass, hiding from view on the motorcyclist.
"I'm saying, we're not just trying to retrieve a thing. I think we might need to be detectives here, too" Percy continued his little rant. "Yeah" Annabeth brushed him off without thinking. "Why are you being weird with me again? I thought we weren't doing that anymore" Percy asked her, turning to face Annabeth properly. "I'm not being weird" Annabeth answered absentmindedly. Percy scoffed at her, "Yes, you are. You've been weird since we left the Arch" He pointed out.
Then he made a face as he said, "Oh... I get it. It doesn't have to be a thing, you know" He shrugged at her. Corey shuffled closer to Grover, "He can't be right?" She whispered into his ear. "That you hugged me" Percy assumed that was the reason. "Yep, totally oblivious" Grover whispered back as he nodded his head. "Oh, boy" Annabeth sighed as Percy continued, oblivious as ever. "I mean, we're like friends now. That seems like a thing friends do. At least I think they do" Percy seemed to hesitate. Has he ever hugged Grover?
Annabeth seemed a little fed up with Percy's assumption, "I saw the Fates" She told him with a sharp tone. "Back at the Arch, I saw the Three Fates, and I saw Atropos cut a piece of thread" She explained as the motorcycle became louder. "Wait seriously? You actually saw them?" Corey asked, feeling her fingers tingle uncomfortably. Percy was as confused and clueless as ever, "And that's bad or...?" He asked them. "The Fates weave the life strand of every living thing. When you see a string cut–" Grover tried to explain to Percy before he was interrupted. "It means one of us is going to die" Annabeth's voice sent chills down Corey's spine.
"We're all gonna die eventually" Percy responded. Corey gave him a crazed look, "Excuse me?" She questioned with a squeaky voice. Annabeth seems to be getting angrier the more Percy gets confused. "Soon. It's a warning. An omen" Annabeth tried to explain the gravity of the situation. "Okay. Guys, we need to talk about this whole fate thing. Three old ladies with a ball of yarn can't know what's gonna happen" Percy explained, how could a bunch of old ladies who obviously suck at knitting tell them someone was gonna die.
"What I choose to do changes what's gonna happen, and I can choose to do anything I... want" Percy noticed the lack of noise there was from the motorcycle. Corey felt a wave of annoyance flood her senses.
"Need some help?" a low voice called out from behind them. Everyone carefully turning around, peaking over the concrete barrier slightly. A man was sitting on a motorcycle with a very long leather jacket. Something about him was familiar. "Beg pardon?" Grover asked him with an innocent voice. The guy rolled his eyes, "I asked if you could use some help" He repeated reluctantly. "Nope. No. We're-- We're good. Appreciate you asking, though. So long" Grover responded for everyone before they simultaneously sat back on the ground . "You don't seem too good" The guy persisted with some hesitance. "We don't want anything from you" Annabeth poked her head up at him for a short moment.
"You sure? Because you guys are so behind schedule" He laughed at them. Corey was the first to get to her feet, glaring at the man. "I mean, summer solstice is just a few days away. And as much as I'd love to see a good war pop off, as your big cousin, I feel like, maybe, I wanna give you a hand" He let out a chuckle at them as the kids followed Corey's actions. "Cousin?" Percy squinted his eyes at him. "Are you another God I've pissed off?" She asked him, pointing her finger. He chuckles at her, "Not personally fish breath, but my girlfriend..." He flicked his tongue.
"Ares" Annabeth and Corey both spoke, the latter with more disgust as she crossed her arms. "You must be Athena's kid. Always gotta be the wisest one in the bunch" Ares clicked his tongue at Annabeth. "Why would you help us? How do you even know about what we're doing out here?" Annabeth asked him, suspicious of the god helping them. "Because I'm doing exactly the same thing as you. Zeus sent all of his kids out looking for the master bolt, too" Ares explained to them.
"So you're just being a good son? What have you done with the God of War?" Corey raised her eyebrow at the God who only glared at her intensely. "Now I see why you got that curse" He commented with a gruff voice. "Listen, dummies. I'm hungry. There's a halfway decent diner up the road. If you want my help, you'll meet me there. But don't dawdle. Won't wait forever" Ares cut to the chase, revving his bike and driving away without a care.
Percy looked at Corey, "How many gods have you pissed off?" He asked her. Corey shrugged, "Enough to lose count" She told him. Annabeth rolled her eyes at her, "When this is done, we need to find out just how many you've managed to annoy" She pointed at her, waving her finger.
"Let's go, Ares won't wait forever" Grover sighed as they all began to walk towards the direction of the diner Ares had mentioned.
~Ψ~
The group entered the diner, silence greeting them. Corey looked around in a childlike manner. It amazed her how far the world had come in a lifetime. She was brought out from her daze by the crude sounds of an obnoxious laugh. "Guess this is the right place" Percy sighed as they watched Ares laughing obnoxiously.
They walked towards his table, Corey ushering the kids to sit down in the small booth filled with cheeseburgers and a huge platter of fries. She stood next to Annabeth, clearing her throat at Ares. "Gimme a second, I'm just starting a fight on Twitter here" Ares tapped a small rectangular box in his hands. "What's that little box?" Corey whispered to Annabeth. "It's a phone" Annabeth answered her, giving "Nothing makes me happier than a good old-fashioned, burn-it-down fight. Ah" Ares seemed happy with his Twitter fight before putting down his metal box, it clattered against the table making Corey jump.
"So your quest..." Ares propped his elbows on the table. " ...is going to fail. Ask me how I know" He had this freaky smile that made Corey wish she stayed in the river. "It isn't gonna fail" Percy glared at him. Ares scoffs in his face as he holds up his phone, "Sure it is. For starters..." He turned the metal box around to show a moving picture of this guy with a horrendous hair style and a huge gut.
"Percy was always troubled, but I never thought he was capable of something like this" the man spoke through the small phone. Corey's jaw dropped, watching the small box in amazement. "Wh--Who's that?" Grover asked, seeing Percy's anger at the interview. "My stepdad. What's he doing?" Percy hissed at the interview.
"Wait for it" Ares was enjoying the rage coming from Percy as the video kept playing. "...you believe he may also have had something to do with your wife's disappearance?" A woman's voice asked Percy's stepdad. "A kid that messed up? What wouldn't he do?" The man choked up horribly. Not the kind that was heart wrenching but the kind that was very fake and easy to expose.
"Wild, right?" Ares interrupted with a toothy smile, "The FBI is already spreading your picture around" He added. "FBI? Don't you mean BOI? Bureau of Investigation?" Corey corrected him. Annabeth patted her arm, "No it was changed.. I'll fill you in later" She promised the girl. "It's a Camaro. I really-- We really loved that car. So much" He whimpered before Ares pressed the side of his phone and it turned off. "I'm gonna kill him" Percy gritted his teeth.
"I knew I was gonna like you" Ares smiled at Percy. "But safe to say, the chances of you three idiots hitchhiking the rest of the way to L.A. without getting arrested are slim to none." He added, smacking his lips in a discouraging sense. "Why are you sitting here then? If you're supposed to be looking for the master bolt too, shouldn't you be out there looking for it?" Annabeth sassed at Ares. "There's no fear in you, is there?" He raised his eyebrow at Annabeth's confidence.
"Doesn't matter. Whether the bolt's retrieved or not, Zeus is going to war with Poseidon" Ares shrugged his shoulders. The group shared concerned looks. "No. The Oracle said if we return the bolt, there wouldn't be a war" Percy told him. "Is that what she said? Or is that what Chiron said she meant?" Ares asked Percy.
"Yeah. You're new to the family, young one, so let me fill you in on how we work. See, years before I was born, my grandpa Kronos ate my aunts and uncles. Yeah. Then my dad made him puke them back up, then chopped him into a million pieces and chucked 'em into a bottomless pit, so that kinda set the tone right outta the gate" Ares explained with some aggression.
"Olympians fight. We betray. We backstab. We will push anyone down a flight of stairs ahead. And that's why I love my family so much" Ares slammed the table again with more enthusiasm than before. "My dad knows he's not getting this bolt back with quests or goose chases. He knows there's a war coming. And in reality, I think he's okay with that" Ares nodded solemnly, his obliviousness clearer than glass. "I think he feels it's just time for a war, so we're gonna have a war. Isn't that great?" Ares smiled brightly, looking like a kid who emotionally set foot in a candy shop.
"Now I see why your kids scare me" Corey muttered under her breath. "We're completing this quest. We're stopping this war. You said you can help. Can you?" Percy spoke firmly at Ares, wanting to get this over and done with.
Ares didn't seem offended by Percy, somehow and cut to chase. "Okay, so here it is. There's an amusement park up the road. I left my shield there. You get me my shield back, and I'll get you to the Underworld by lunch tomorrow with a plan to invade Hades' palace" Ares offered them a little too eager for Corey's taste. "You left your shield? Like, forgot it on the merry-go-round?" Annabeth tried not to laugh at him.
Now Ares was offended, "Okay. The chirping was funny to me for a minute, but it is getting old" he glared at her, his previous chill backed and happy for war aura dissipating. "Don't talk to her like that" Corey hissed at Ares, placing her hand on the table. "So do we have a deal, or am I killing all four of you so I can eat in peace?" Ares snapped at them, ignoring Corey's outburst. Percy looked at Grover, then Annabeth before Corey. The girl shrugged in a way that told him 'It's the only option'.
"Okay" Percy told him. "Great. One catch. I really do need that shield back, so I'm gonna keep the satyr here as collateral so you don't run off" Ares added quite abruptly. "What? No" Annabeth exclaimed. "Okay" Grove agreed, making Corey do a double take. "Grover, are you serious? You can't!" Corey exclaimed. "No way. We don't split up again" Percy agreed with his sister. "It's okay. If he wanted to kill us, we'd be dead by now" Grover stated, earning a prominent nod from Ares. "Can I just walk them to the door?" Grover asked him politely. Ares waved him off, not to bothered if he tried to escape a God.
Corey allowed Annabeth and Percy to get out of the booth. As Corey walked away from the table, Ares grabbed her arm tightly, "Hey!" She yelped as his fingers tightened. Percy turned around just as fast, "What is your problem, let her go!" He shouted at Ares, being held back by Grover. "I just want a word with your big sis kid, don't start a fight you can't win" Ares smiled wickedly as his grip tightened around her wrist. "Sea Pup it's fine, you two wait outside. Okay" Corey smiled at him, trying to hide the pain. Percy was reluctant, "Are you sure?" He asked her. Corey forced her smile and nodded, Percy finally walking away from them.
Ares seemed to be amused by this, letting out a chuckle. "He looks like her, you little sea brat" He commented. Corey yanked her hand out of his grip, "How in Hades do you know what my daughter looked like?" She hissed, rubbing her bruising wrist. "My girlfriend is very invested in those she curses. Especially you" Ares' pointed his finger at Corey. "Are you gonna spew a goose chase or tell me what your ever so lovely girlfriend wants from me?" Corey asked him. "Right, so there's this house of mirrors at the amusement park. My girl was admiring herself and misplaced a lovely red scarf gifted by myself and well... it has special properties if you catch my drift" Ares winked at her.
Corey groaned, "Love magic. Great and I assume she wants me to retrieve it" She smiled with faux enthusiasm. "Yes and if you survive, she's willing to lift that pesky little curse" Ares added as Grover walked back to them. Corey almost choked on her own breath. "Corey? You okay?" Grove asked, mainly eyeing the ugly red mark around her wrist. "I'm fine Grover" She smiled at him before turning to Ares. "If there is a single hair touched on him, I will find a way to make my mortal life hell for you" She warned him, though all Ares felt was slightly annoyed.