ON THIS SPRING DAY
━━━━━ chapter six
━━━━━ THE TAG-TEAM OF four emerged in Central Park just north of the Pond. Mrs. O'Leary looked pretty tired as she limped over to a cluster of boulders. She started sniffing around and Violet was afraid she might mark her territory ( because Mrs. O'Leary was still very much a dog even if she was called a hellhound ), but Nico said; "It's okay. She just smells the way home."
Percy frowned. "Through the rocks?"
"The Underworld has two major entrances," Nico told him. "You know the one in L.A."
"Charon's ferry," replied Percy, nodding. "Yeah, I know it."
Nico nodded. "Most souls go that way, but there's a smaller path, harder to find. The Door of Orpheus."
"The dude with the harp."
Violet frowned. "Dude with the lyre," she corrected. "But, yes—him. He used music to charm the earth and open a new path into the Underworld. He sang his way right into Hades's palace and almost got away with his wife's soul."
There was more to the myth, of course—it was a Greek myth, after all—but that was the summarized version. And frankly, Violet didn't know if she had the time to give the full myth—if she had the time before Kronos invaded, or if Percy would stay awake long enough for her to tell the whole tale. Besides, she didn't want to, not liking how the story ended—death. That's how it ended; Orpheus failed in bringing his wife back from the Underworld, and then called upon Death with his lyre so he could be with his wife. Just because her dad loves tragic love stories doesn't mean Violet loves tragic love stories.
"So this is the Door of Orpheus." Percy gestured toward the rocks, his eyebrows pinched. He looked to Violet and Nico, the disappointment clear on his face and in his voice. He wasn't impressed by the Doors of Orpheus. "How does it open?"
"Music, obviously." Violet shrugged, the answer obvious to her. "You any good at singing?"
Percy snorted. "Uh ... no." He looked at Nico, asking; "Can't you just, like, tell it to open? You're the son of Hades and all."
Nico shook his head. "It's not so easy. We need music."
He started to look at Violet, but the daughter of Eros raised her hands. "Don't look at me!" she told him. "Apollo would strike me down if I ever tried to sing. I'm pretty sure he's mad he can't strike me down for simply listening to music."
"O-kay ..." the son of Hades murmured. "So, no singing for Violet."
"I have a better idea," Percy announced. And he turned confidently to face the rest of Central Park and yelled; "Grover!"
Violet blinked. She looked out, finding no sign of the trusted satyr. "That's your bright idea, Fish Face?"
🌷
They waited for a long time. So long, in fact, that Mrs. O'Leary curled up and took a nap. Violet could hear the crickets in the woods and an owl hooting nearby. Traffic hummed along Central Park West; horse hooves clopped down a nearby path, maybe a mounted police patrol. She was sure they would love to find some kids hanging out in the park at one in the morning.
"It's no good," Nico said at last, shaking his head.
"We could go buy some CDs or something," Violet offered. "I can go get the CD player from my room back at my mom's apartment."
Nico shrugged. "It might work."
"No, you guys," started Percy. "I know he's here."
But both Nico and Violet weren't paying attention, let alone believing him. Violet turned to some trees—where the shadows and darkness would be darkest—to get ready to shadow travel to the Beaumont apartment. But before she could try, Percy gasped and tilted sideways. He caught himself before he hit the ground, but Violet grabbed his arm.
"What happened?" she demanded, her eyebrows pinched together.
"I got through," he told her. But Violet's expression was so bewildered that he added; "He's ... yeah. He's on his way."
"Grover?" she asked.
But she didn't need to ask. Not even a minute later, the tree next to them shivered, and Grover fell out of the branches, landing right on his head. He fell back on his back, his eyes rolling around his skull.
"Grover!" Percy yelped, rushing forward to help his friend lean up. Mrs. O'Leary barked loudly as she jerked away from her nap. Violet hooked her fingers underneath the hellhound's collar knowing how Mrs. O'Leary treated satyrs ( see in: trying to use their goat legs to play fetch with ).
Grover bleated, "Blah-haa-haa!" as he cradled his head and horns. From what Violet could see, his brown eyes were still rattling around in his skull. And not just that—the satyr protector was covered in dirt, twigs, and leaves like he had made that tree his home. Violet leaned over, picking some twigs out of his curly hair. "Grover," she said, "what were you doing in there?"
Percy nudged her. "You okay, man?" he asked Grover instead.
"Oh, I'm fine." He rubbed his head. His horns had grown so much they poked right out of his curly hair now. "I was at the other end of the park. The dryads had this great idea of passing me through the trees to get me here. They don't understand height very well."
Violet blinked. "... What?" she asked.
But Grover only grinned at her and climbed to his hooves. Since last summer, Grover had stopped trying to disguise himself as human. He never wore a cap or fake feet anymore. He didn't even wear jeans, since he had furry goat legs from the waist down. His T-shirt had a picture from that book—Where the Wild Things Are. It was covered with dirt and tree sap. His goatee looked fuller, almost manly ( or goatly? ), and he was as tall as Percy now.
"Good to see you, G-man," Percy greeted, clopping the satyr on the shoulder. "You remember Nico."
Grover nodded at Nico, then he gave the son of Poseidon a big hug. Then, he moved to hug Violet fiercely. He smelled like freshly mown lawns. "Perrrcy!" he bleated. "I missed you! I missed Violet! And Annabeth! I miss Camp. They don't serve very good enchiladas in the wilderness."
"I can imagine," Violet laughed. "You didn't ever try any street vendor's food while in cities?"
"I was worried," Percy admitted, breaking in before Grover could answer her. "Grover, where have you been the last two months?'
"The last two—" Grover's smile faded. "The last two months? What are you talking about?"
Percy and Violet exchanged glances. "Grover, we haven't heard from you since, like, June. May, maybe," Violet told him. "Juniper's worried, too. We sent Iris Messages, but—"
"Hold on." Grover held out his hand and looked up at the stars like he was trying to calculate his position. "What month is this?"
Percy frowned. "August."
The color drained from the satyr's face. "That's—that's impossible. It's June. I just lay down to take a nap and ..." He grabbed Percy's arms. "I remember now! He knocked me out. Percy, we have to stop him!"
"Whoa." The son of Poseidon shook his head. "Slow down. Tell me what happened."
Grover took a deep breath, and Violet could see his fingers trembling. "I was ... I was walking in the woods up by Harlem Meer. And I felt this tremble in the ground, like something powerful was near."
"You can sense stuff like that?" Nico asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise.
Grover nodded. "Since Pan's death, yeah. I can feel when something is wrong with nature. It's like my ears and eyes are sharper when I'm in the wild. Anyway, I started following the scent. This man in a long black coat was walking through the park, and I noticed he didn't cast a shadow. Middle of a sunny day, and he cast no shadow. He kind of shimmered as he moved."
Violet frowned, and her stomach started to churn. There weren't many things that couldn't cast shadows like that, and the few she knew of were some monster or god. "Like a mirage?" she asked.
"Yes." Grover nodded. "And whenever he passed humans—"
"The humans would pass out," Nico supplied, his lips pressed into a thin line. "Curl up and go to sleep."
Grover nodded fervently to the son of Hades. "That's—that's it exactly! They'd curl up and go to sleep like ... cats. Just like cats! Then after he was gone, they'd get up and go about their business like nothing happened."
Percy stared at Violet and Nico. "You guys know this guy in black?"
Violet sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Yeah, I do," she admitted. "I know of him, at least."
Nico's expression was grim as he asked, "Grover, what happened?"
"I followed the guy." Grover wrung the end of his dirty shirt in his hands. "He kept looking up at the buildings around the park like he was making estimates or something. This lady jogger ran by, and she curled up on the sidewalk and started snoring—really loud, by the way. Louder than Annabeth—Never mind." The satyr shook his head. "The guy in black put his hand on her forehead like he was checking her temperature. Then he kept walking. By this time, I knew he was a monster or something even worse. I followed him into this grove, to the base of a big elm tree. I was about to summon some dryads to help me capture him when he turned and ..."
Grover swallowed, and his Adam's apple bobbed. "Percy, his face. I couldn't make out his face because it kept shifting. Just looking at him made me sleepy. I said, 'What are you doing?' He said, 'Just having a look around. You should always scout a battlefield before the battle.' I said something really smart like, 'This forest is under my protection. You won't start any battles here!' And he laughed. Laughed!" Grover brayed angrily, waving his hands around. "You know what he replied with? 'You're lucky I'm saving my energy for the main event, little satyr. I'll just grant you a short nap. Pleasant dreams.' And that's the last thing I remember." Grover frowned. "I can't believe he called me little satyr. Rude."
Violet and Nico shared looks. "Grover, you met Morpheus, God of Dreams," she told the satyr. "No wonder his face kept shifting, I've heard looking at him is like how mortals can't see faces of people they dream about—I've heard that's how mortals dream, at least."
Nico sighed heavily. "Grover, you're lucky you ever woke up."
"Two months," Grover moaned, dropping his head back to look up at the stars. "He put me to sleep for two months!"
Violet crossed her arms. "Frankly, Grover, Nico has a point. I heard from a Morpheus's kid—Maya, I think—that whenever someone makes Morpheus mad, he curses them to never wake up again and they're stuck in this endless coma. And with their worst nightmares, too."
Percy shook his head at what Violet said. "Why didn't the nymphs try to wake you?" he asked Grover.
The satyr shrugged. "Most nymphs aren't good with time. Two months for a tree—that's nothing. They probably didn't think anything was wrong."
"We've got to figure out what Morpheus was doing in the park," Percy said, crossing his arms. "I don't like this 'main event' thing he mentioned."
"It's obvious," said Violet. "Morpheus's working for Kronos. A lot of minor gods are—Morpheus, Hecate, Nemesis, Melinoë. Dad told me some other names, too—Aigaios and Keto, I think. He's been keeping track of what gods are on what sides."
It was pretty easy for him, too, Violet figured. With his wings and as a messenger god, Eros could go pretty much wherever whenever he wanted. Despite not liking the fact that so many people thought of him as an ugly cherub baby, no one would really question seeing one posed since they seemed everywhere. Though Violet wasn't supposed to know that's how Eros got a lot of his information, so she tried to never bring those ugly cherubs up whenever Eros would stop by with a letter or in-person to give some information that he thought might help Camp Half-Blood.
"Have you told Chiron?" Percy asked.
Violet nodded. "Yeah, and he's not happy 'bout it. It only proves that there's going to be an invasion."
"Exactly." Nico nodded. "Percy, we have to get on with our plan."
"Wait." Grover frowned. "What plan?"
Even if he hadn't been knocked out for two months, Grover still wouldn't be in the know of Nico's plan. Violet wasn't eager to tell Grover, but if he was going to play the music, he should know. Percy and Nico gave the information as timely as two kids with ADHD could, and Grover started twirling his leg fur around his forefinger.
"You're not serious," the satyr tried to say. "Not the Underworld again."
"I'm not asking you to come, man," Percy promised, spreading his fingers out. "I know you just woke up. But we need some music to open the door. Can you do it?"
Grover took out his reed pipes. "I guess I could try. I know a few Nirvana tunes that can split rocks. But, Percy, are you sure you want to do this?"
"Please, Grover?" Violet broke in quickly. She didn't like Nico's plan as much as the next sane demigod, but they didn't stand much of a chance if Percy didn't go through with it. And they didn't need Grover convincing Percy to back out right as they were about to break in. "You don't have to go, you just need to play the music?"
She felt horrible for it, but tried to slip in charmspeak even though she didn't have the ability. But she had spent enough time with Silena, Drew, and Cabin Ten to pick up on tricks—bat your eyelashes, maybe pull out some tears, give a pretty smile, and then hope for the best.
It seemed Aphrodite helped out her granddaughter ( although Aphrodite hates anything that implies she's "old enough" to be a grandmother ). Grover whimpered and glanced at the rocks. "Oh ... alright, Violet. Here goes nothing."
Pressing the reed pipes to his lips, he played a shrill and lively tune that was rather headache-inducing for being one in the morning. The boulders must've agreed—they started to tremble, cracking open as Grover played a few more stanzas until Violet could see a triangular crevice. She peered inside, despite having a pretty good idea of what awaited her—dark steps led down into the darkness. The air smelled of mildew and death. It brought back bad memories of her trips through the Labyrinth last year, but this tunnel felt even more dangerous. It led straight to the land of Hades, and he warned her that would most likely be a one-way trip for her.
( Violet only hoped Persephone was down there. That was the only way Violet was going to get out of the Underworld alive this time. )
Percy turned to Grover. "Thanks ... I think."
Grover stared at the Doors of Orpheus. "Is Kronos really going to invade?"
The son of Poseidon's expression was pained. "I wish I could tell you better, but yeah. He will."
Violet thought Grover might chew up his reed pipes in anxiety, but the satyr straightened up and brushed off his T-shirt. She couldn't help thinking how different Grover looked from old and lazy Leneus. Juniper was right—Grover would make an amazing elder. "I've got to rally the nature spirits, then," he decided. "Maybe we can help. I'll see if we can find this Morpheus!"
Violet grabbed him by the arm before he could trot away. "You need to tell Juniper you're okay, too," she advised him. "She's worried sick about you."
His eyes widened. "Juniper! Oh, she's going to kill me!" He started to run off, then scrambled back and gave Percy another hug. "Be careful down there! Come back alive!"
Once he was gone, Nico and Violet roused Mrs. O'Leary from her nap. When she smelled the tunnel, she got excited and led the way down the steps, and Violet was glad it was the hellhound going down first. But it was a tight fit, so she hoped Mrs. O'Leary wouldn't get stuck. She couldn't imagine how much Drāno they would need to unstick a hellhound wedged halfway down a tunnel to the Underworld.
"Ready?" Nico asked the others. "It'll be fine. Don't worry." Though it sounded like he was trying to convince himself rather than Percy or Violet.
Percy looked up at the stars, as if he was trying to memorize what they looked like in case he never got the chance to see them again. Violet stopped next to him, nudging his arm with her own. Instead of saying anything, he only grabbed her hand and interlocked their fingers. She stiffened, and she had half a mind to rip her hand away from him, but the other half of her mind stopped everything, and it felt like her brain started to hum that shrill tune Grover just played.
"So ..." she started.
Percy glanced at her. "Cold feet?"
"Always. I have bad circulation, you know."
🌷
The stairs went on forever—narrow, steep, and slippery while they were at it. It was completely dark except for the light of Riptide and Larkspur. Violet was suddenly glad Percy had grabbed her hand, at least if she fell, she wasn't going to be the only one falling. Her bow, which was strung across her back, created long shadows in the already dingy stairs; Riptide made Nico's shadow even longer as Percy held the sword out in front of him.
They were all going down the stairs slowly, but Mrs. O'Leary had other ideas—she bounded ahead, barking happily. Violet called after the hellhound, but the only acknowledgment she got was barking that echoed through the tunnel like gunshots. They were not going to catch anyone by surprise when they ( hopefully ) reached the bottom.
Even Nico lagged behind, which Violet found odd.
"You okay?" she asked.
Nico glanced at her, his expression long for someone who was about to see his father again. "Fine." Well, Violet also knew that his father was Hades. In all honesty, Nico's expression made perfect sense; Hades sucked. "Just keep moving," he told them.
It wasn't like they had a choice. It was practically a one-way steep footpath into the Land of the Dead. After a long time of walking and praying she didn't fall ( and her hand tightening around Percy's whenever her foot started to slip ), Violet began to hear the sound of a river roaring beneath her. Her mind jumped from every river in the Underworld—Acheron ( the River of Misery ), Cocytus ( the River of Wailing ), Phlegethon ( the River of Fire, don't question the name ), or even Lethe ( River of Forgetfulness ), or the Styx. None of the rivers were anything good—it is the Underworld, after all—but Violet would've taken any of the other four rivers of the River Styx.
They emerged at the base of a cliff, coming to a stop on a plain of black volcanic sand. To their right, the River Styx gushed from the rocks and roared off in a cascade of rapids. To their left, far away in the gloom, fires burned on the ramparts of Erebos, the great black walls of Hades's kingdom.
Violet's heart crawled into her throat. She's been to the Underworld twice before, luckily making it out with her life both times, but that doesn't mean she's eager to try her luck for a third time. And the drive she had the first time—that never-ending curiosity that felt like it was eating away at her stomach—wasn't there anymore. She knew the truth—she was a legacy of Persephone, and that's why she could do things no other normal daughter of Eros should be able to do.
That kind of curiosity wasn't driving her decisions anymore. Don't get Violet wrong, she's still curious ( always has been, and always will be ), she's just more busy running from her problems ( see in: Percy Jackson, her feelings for Percy, Kronos, Luke, etc. ) than looking out for family secrets to uncover ( see in: the potential possibility that Ms. Aarden, her former substitute-teacher-turned-monster, is the monster that's been hunting her family down since Elain Nevitt was born ). Curiosity is her fatal flaw, an idea she's been harboring since coming face-to-face with Hades in back during the winter solstice. It made sense, of course, and has been something Dahlia always fussed about over the years—Violet was eager to know everything she could, not so she could be the smartest person in the room the way Athena's children were. But she wanted to know simply to know; not so she could rub the information in someone's face, not so she could use it to her advantage, but so she could simply know. She didn't have ulterior motives when wanting to know things, she just wanted to know so she could know.
That didn't mean it made fighting against the curiosity any easier, though. She always caught herself doing something that made her look nosey—leaning an ear out toward people who were whispering, asking not-so-discreet questions after seeing others talk, sneaking off into the Underworld to unearth her family secrets about being legacies of Persephone.
Despite herself, Violet shivered, even more despite how sweaty the hand interlocked with Percy's was. She wasn't glad to be back down here, and neither was Percy. He squeezed her hand, and his nails were starting to dig into the back of her hand. Even Nico looked fearful; the son of Hades looked pale ( even by Nico di Angelo's standards of pale ), and he sighed with worry.
The only one acting happy with Mrs. O'Leary, and that made perfect sense. She was back home, and she didn't have to worry about bathing in the River Styx the way Percy had to worry. The hellhound ran along the beach, picked up a random human leg bone, and romped back toward Violet. She dropped the bone at the daughter of Eros's feet and waited for Violet to throw it.
Violet stared at her pet hellhound. "Um ... how about later, Mrs. O'Leary?"
She said No partially because they didn't have time, but she also didn't want to toss a random bone. She didn't want to think about where the bone had come from as she played fetch with a hellhound that had probably consumed human flesh at one point or another.
Percy stared at the dark waters of the Styx, his face paling. The realization was hitting him like a tidal wave. "So, Nico ... how do we do this?"
"We have to go inside the gates first," the son of Hades replied.
"But the river's right here."
Nico frowned, looking to their left, where Hades's kingdom just barely glowed. "I have to get something," he said. "It's the only way."
Violet frowned. "Nico, what—"
But he marched off without waiting for her to finish.
Percy stared off at Nico. "What's he on about?"
She shook her head slowly. "I ... I don't know," she admitted. And the admission bothered her more than she cared to admit. In all honesty, she thought they had made it passed this point—that awkward patch between people who are close but not close enough to be completely honest. Even worse, Violet knew she couldn't push Nico too far; if she did, she wouldn't hear from him for months—and the odd chance she did hear from him, it would only be to talk about preparing for the war. It was hard to be reminded of how closed-off Nico tended to be with everyone, even if she understood why he was.
That was another awkward thing—she expected him to be one hundred percent honest, but she didn't want to be that open either. But she also thought he couldn't expect the same thing from her. It was selfishness, is what it was. And it was hard to admit just how selfish you were. Violet wanted to be able to take—have the relationship she wanted with Nico, an almost sibling-eqsue dynamic, despite her having no idea what it was like to have a sibling—but she didn't want to give him what it took to be a good sibling. Honesty. Openness. Humility. Being able to admit flaws. Trying to break bad habits before they bled over to your sibling. All those things Violet wasn't good at, and maybe if she had a sibling from either parent she would have those qualities.
Or maybe she wouldn't be, because it took more than just one person who happens to share DNA with you to make you a better person.
Even Percy seemed surprised by Violet's admission. Clearly, he thought similarly to her, as well—that Nico tended to tell Violet everything. "You ... don't?"
She shook her head. "No idea. But ... we sort of have to follow him. He knows the Underworld the best out of all of us."
"Well ..." Percy's expression was twisted with apprehension. "Alright, then."
Reluctantly, the two followed after the son of Hades. Percy dropped Violet's hand, but he quickly grabbed her upper arm. If she didn't see just how worried Percy was, she would have pried his fingers off. He kept his other hand in the pocket Riptide was stored in, and Violet knew he was holding her arm for a sense of security and fear. They had no idea that anymore Keres would pop out and try to maul them all over again.
Violet and Percy trail down the beach, heading toward the black gates of Hades's Palace. Her stomach churned as she remembered just how much she was testing her luck—if Persephone wasn't here, there was no way Violet was making it out alive. Lines of the dead stood outside waiting to get in, and Percy tensed, watching them as if he was worried they would storm the demigods. He didn't need to worry, not with Nico around. And before Violet could stop it, Mrs. O'Leary bounded toward the security checkpoint.
Cerberus, the guard dog of Hades and his kingdom, appeared out of the gloom—a three-headed Rottweiler so gigantic he made Mrs. O'Leary look like a toy poodle. Cerberus was half-transparent, so it was incredibly hard to see him until he was close enough to kill you. This time, though, he acted like he didn't care. He was too busy saying hello to Mrs. O'Leary.
"Mrs. O'Leary, no!" Percy shouted after the hellhound. "Don't sniff—oh, man."
Nico smiled. Then he looked back and his expression soured. "Come on. They won't give us any trouble in the line. You're with me."
They trudged over and slipped through the security ghouls, making their way right into the dreary Fields of Asphodel. The chill crawled back into Violet's skin, and she remembered her time last summer—running through the Labyrinth until Nico had to shadow travel them right into the Land of the Dead. That summer wasn't a fun summer.
Violet had to whistle for Mrs. O'Leary three times before the hellhound left Cerberus alone and ran after the half-bloods. They hiked over black fields of grass dotted with black poplar trees. Violet tried not to think about what it would be like if she spent her dead life here, and that reality was looking more and more real the more the Second Titan War started to come closer.
Nico trudged ahead, bringing them all closer and closer to the palace of Hades. Percy frowned at him, asking; "Hey, we're inside the gates already. Where are we—"
Mrs. O'Leary suddenly growled. A shadow appeared overhead—something dark, cold, and stinking of death. It swooped down and landed on the top of a poplar tree. The thing sneered as Violet pointed a Celestial bronze-tipped around at its face.
Unfortunately, Violet remembered something Annabeth had told her years ago. After Annabeth's first quest with Percy and Grover, she was super excited—to have made it back alive, obviously, but to have also gone on a quest at all, something she had wanted since she was seven or so. And she told Violet practically everything, and that meant what she remembered Hades's Furies looking like. And the thing staring down Violet's Celestial bronze-tipped arrow had a pretty spot-on comparison to what Annabeth said the Furies looked like—a shriveled face, a horrible blue knitted hat, and a crumpled velvet dress. Leathery bat wings sprang from her back. Her feet had sharp talons, and in her brass-clawed hands, she held a flaming whip and a paisley handbag.
Percy scowled heavily. "Mrs. Dodds."
She bared her fangs. "Welcome back, honey."
What had to be her two sisters—the other Furies—swooped down and settled next to her in the branches of the poplar.
"You know Alecto?" Nico asked Percy.
Percy's expression was sour. "If you mean the hag in the middle, yeah," he grumbled. "She was my math teacher."
Nico nodded like this didn't surprise him. He looked up at the Furies and took a deep breath. "I've done what my father asked. Take us to the palace."
Violet suddenly frowned, her fingers tensing over the string of her bow. "Nico, what—"
"I'm sorry. This is my new lead, Violet. My father promised me information about my family, but he wants to see Percy before we try the river. I'm really sorry."
Violet's stomach dropped. "You lied?" And she could feel her heart drop with her stomach, now. There's a huge lump in her throat, and she realizes it's hurt; heartbreak, even. No matter how dramatic that sounded. She always hoped they were passed the lying stage—but now she realizes how much she clung to hope considering who the both of them were. They may help one another, but they'll always put themselves first.
Nico's eyebrows pinched and he chewed on his bottom lip, one of her nervous habits he picked up from her. "Violet, I'm sorry. I have to know. It was the only way."
But she only stared at him. She was even so distracted that her bow's aim started to fall aside. It reminded her of what other campers would say before they ran away to join Kronos and Luke. They'd always say it was the "only way", but Violet could never find herself believing them. It even reminded her of Clarisse, even—the daughter of Ares refusing to help with the war because of a stupid flying chariot and her ego. That, to Clarisse, the "only way" to get that chariot was to step out of the war, despite knowing she and her cabin were the best fighters—and that the gods and Camp Half-Blood needed her and her siblings. It was selfish. That's what it was.
It was no surprise that Percy was just as shocked as Violet. But instead of letting his shock manifest into hurt, his shock manifested into anger. He reached for Riptide, the blade shimmering into his hands, and then he tried to lunge for Nico. Violet yelled at the son of Poseidon to stop ( despite knowing Percy had a reason for his reaction ), but she didn't have to do anything more—a Fury swooped down and grabbed Percy by each arm and hoisted him into the air. The son of Poseidon flailed, in the struggle dropping Riptide, which fell back down to the ground which was now sixty feet below Percy and the Fury.
Violet jumped out of the way of Riptide, and the Celestial bronze sword wobbled as it bounced against the dirt. She gathered her wits and snapped her bow back upwards, pointing a Celestial bronze arrow at one of the Furies—but that didn't matter because the second one swooped down and grabbed her arms in a similar fashion to how Alecto grabbed Percy. Violet screamed and dropped the arrow, but her bow shimmered and turned back into its purple larkspur charm. "Let me go!" she snapped, trying to fight against the Fury. Maybe this was one Tisiphone.
"Oh, don't struggle, honey," Alecto cackled, grinning at Percy. "I'd hate to drop you."
"Nico!" Violet yelled furiously. "I swear—"
Whatever threat she was going to pull out of the few wrinkles on her brain died when she spotted the son of Hades in the claws of the third Fury, Megaera. He was hovering in the air, his shoulders were practically by his ears as he frowned heavily. "Tell Mrs. O'Leary to behave, Violet," he warned her as the hellhound barked angrily and jumped for them, Mrs. O'Leary just falling short. "I don't want her to get hurt. My father is waiting. He just wants to talk. He wants to talk to Percy."
Violet looked at Percy, trying to read his expression. She wasn't sure she had ever seen him angrier; Percy didn't really get angry, and she didn't like it now that she has seen it. And it wasn't like they had a choice; all of them were already captured by one of the Furies. She wanted to scream out to tell Mrs. O'Leary to attack—but that wouldn't have done any good, and they all knew it. There was no picking a fight with the three Furies. But she still couldn't believe Nico would lead them into this trap. They were supposed to be a team, even without Percy, they were a duo. They survived the Labyrinth together, that meant something.
Her teeth grounded together as she glared at Nico. "Mrs. O'Leary, down! It's okay! ... Maybe."
The hellhound whimpered, staring up at Violet. She turned around in circles, sniffing at Riptide and the arrow Violet dropped.
Percy glared at the Furies and Nico individually. "All right, traitor," he practically growled. "You've got your prize. Take me to the stupid palace."
🌷
Violet was dropped like a sack of turnips in the middle of the palace garden. She had seen it before—twice before, and it was still just as beautifully creepy as the last two times. Skeletal white trees grew from marble basins. Flowerbeds overflowed with golden plants and gemstones. A pair of thrones, one made out of bones and one carved out of silver, sat on the balcony with a view of the Fields of Asphodel. It would've been a nice place to spend a Saturday morning—except for the sulfurous smell and the cries of tortured souls in the distance.
Skeletal warriors guarded the only exit. They wore tattered U.S. Army desert combat fatigues and carried M16s. Alecto dropped Percy and he hit the ground with a grunt. He quickly stood up, dusting off himself as he glared daggers at the Fury. He grabbed Violet by the hand as Megaera deposited Nico like one angry Amazon delivery woman ( she practically threw the son of Hades at the ground ). Then all three Furies—Alecto, Tisiphone, and Megaera—settled on the top of the skeletal throne.
Violet resisted the urge to rip her hand out of Percy's ( her hand is just sweaty, that's all ), and then to wack Nico upside the head with Elain's old sword. Then she felt bad for even having the thought—she knew Hades, and she also knew Nico; Hades was pretty slimy, and Nico was desperate to be in his father's good graces.
( Though, Violet wasn't sure if Hades even had any good graces ... )
Violet heaved a heavy sigh, watching the two thrones, knowing what would come next—gods, and the God of the Underworld specifically. Then the air shimmered. Three figures appeared—Hades and Persephone on their thrones and an older woman standing between them. They seemed to be in the middle of an argument.
"—I told you he was a bum!" the older woman snapped, giving Persephone a furious look.
"Mother!" Persephone heaved a sigh, throwing her head back in despair.
Hades noticed the three demigods. "We have visitors!" he barked at the others. "Please!"
The god smoothed out his black robes, which were covered with the terrified faces of the damned. ( Violet always wondered and wanted to ask what each of the people had deserved to be on there, but she knew Hades would only put her face on there if she asked—which would not be fair. ) He had pale skin and the intense eyes of a madman. "Percy Jackson," he said with satisfaction. "At last."
The annoyance on Persephone's face once she laid eyes on the daughter of Eros. "Hello, Violet," she greeted, giving the girl what could only be a smile in the Underworld ( and those weren't common to come across—if you ever do, that is ). In the summer, she looked like a different goddess, with lustrous black hair and warm dark-brown eyes, and her face was so similar to Elain's it gave Violet whiplash. The Goddess of Springtime and her daughter were practically identical, only Persephone's hair was black and Elain's was a honey-blonde. Persephone's dress shimmered with colors, and flowers in the fabric changed and bloomed—larkspurs, tulips, daffodils, and violets. "It is lovely to see you again."
Violet's eyes narrowed. "Oh, I'm sure." She wasn't in the mood, knowing how eager Persephone was to give out all of Violet's secrets, like her legacy.
The woman standing between them was obviously Persephone's mother, Demeter. She and Persephone shared similar features—hair color and eye color—but there was a more disapproving sense of Persephone's mother. Demeter looked older and more stern, and more serious and highly strung. She had on a long golden dress, and her own dark hair was woven with dead grass, so much so it looked like the wicker baskets Katie Gardner kept in Cabin Four. "Demigods." Demeter crossed her arms and grunted. "Just what we need."
So the coldness just runs in the family. Persephone had clearly gotten it from Demeter and the Underworld. Violet could only hope she didn't come off that cold.
Next to Violet, Nico knelt. She rolled her eyes as dramatically as possible, to make sure Hades and Persephone both saw her. Percy started patting down his pockets, looking for Riptide, intent on killing the son of Hades; Violet elbowed Percy in the ribs. "Father," Nico greeted, his voice almost ... wavering, "I have done as you asked."
"Took you long enough," Hades grumbled. Violet felt a twinge of sympathy for Nico as she saw his face twist at his father's words. "Your sister would've done a better job."
Percy glared up at the God of the Dead. "What do you want, Hades?"
"To talk, of course." The god twisted his mouth in a cruel smile. "Didn't Nico tell you?"
Violet's teeth grounded together. "So this whole thing was a lie?" she demanded. "You made Nico lie to us so you could kill Percy?"
"Oh, no, I'm afraid that is not it, Violet Beaumont." Hades shook his head. "No, Nico was quite sincere about wanting to help. The boy is as honest as he is dense. I simply convinced him to take a small detour and bring Percy here first. And you, Violet Beaumont, just happen to come along. To see I suppose."
"To see ..." Demeter repeated mockingly. "I say too much like Persephone. Both of them just had to go to the Underworld!"
"Mother!" snapped the Queen of the Underworld. "Not now!"
"Not now? Then when?! It's been ninety-one years since Elain was born—"
"Father," Nico broke in, "you promised that Percy would not be harmed. You said if I brought him, you would tell me about my past—about my mother."
Queen Persephone sighed dramatically. "Can we please not talk about that woman in my presence?"
"I'm sorry, my dove," Hades said. Violet stifled a gag that would've been heard all the way up on Olympus. "I had to promise the boy something."
Demeter huffed. "I warned you, daughter. This scoundrel Hades is no good. You could've married the god of doctors or the god of lawyers, but—No! You had to eat the pomegranate."
"Mother—"
"And get stuck in the Underworld!"
"Mother, please—"
"And here it is August, and do you come home like you're supposed to? Do you ever think about your poor lonely mother?"
"Demeter!" Hades snapped. "That is enough. You are a guest in my house."
"House ...?" Violet mumbled to herself.
Demeter raised her eyebrows at the god. "Oh, a house is it?" she asked dubiously. "You call this dump a house? Make my daughter live in this dark, damp—"
"I told you," Hades said, grinding his teeth, "there's a war in the world above. You and Persephone are better off here with me."
"Excuse me," Percy broke in angrily, "but if you're going to kill me, could you just ... get on with it?"
All three gods looked at him. Violet and Nico shifted around to glance at the son of Poseidon simultaneously.
"Well, this one has an attitude," Demeter observed, crossing her arms.
"Indeed," Hades agreed with a huff. "I'd love to kill him."
"What?" Violet shrieked. "No!"
"Father!" Nico protested. "You promised!"
"Husband, we talked about this," Persephone chided, laying a hand on his arm. "You can't go around incinerating every hero. Besides, he's brave. I like that."
Hades rolled his eyes. "You liked that Orpheus fellow, too. Look how well that turned out. Let me kill him—just a little bit."
"Father, you promised!" Nico said, his expression horrified. "You said you only wanted to talk to him! You said if I brought him, you'd explain."
Hades glowered, smoothing the folds of his robes. "And so I shall," he amended with a grumble. "Your mother—What can I tell you? She was a wonderful woman." He glanced uncomfortably at Persephone as her expression shifted. "Forgive me, my dear. I mean for a mortal, of course. Her name was Maria di Angelo. She was from Venice, but her father was a diplomat in Washington, D.C. That's where I met her. When you and your sister were young, it was a bad time to be children of Hades. World War II was brewing. A few of my—ah—other children were leading the losing side. I thought it best to put you two out of harm's way."
"That's why you hid us in the Lotus Casino?"
Hades shrugged. "You didn't age. You didn't realize time was passing. I waited for the right time to bring you out."
"But what happened to our mother? Why don't I remember her?"
The god's expression flickered. He has said as much as he was going to. "Not important," he replied snappily.
"What? Of course it's important. And you had other children—why were we the only ones who were sent away? And who was the lawyer who got us out?"
Hades gritted his teeth. "You would do well to listen more and talk less, boy. As for the lawyer ..." He snapped his fingers. On top of his throne, the Fury Alecto began to change until she was a middle-aged man in a pinstriped suit with a briefcase.
"You!" Nico gasped.
The Fury cackled. "I do lawyers and teachers very well!"
Nico was trembling. "But why did you free us from the casino?"
"You know why," Hades said. "This idiot son of Poseidon cannot be allowed to be the child of the prophecy."
Percy plucked a ruby off the nearest plant and threw it at Hades. It sank harmlessly into his robe. "You should be helping Olympus!" Percy snapped. "All the other gods are fighting Typhon, and you're just sitting here—"
"Waiting things out," Hades finished. "Yes, that's correct. When's the last time Olympus ever helped me, half-blood? When's the last time a child of mine was ever welcomed as a hero?"
"Maybe it's because you don't act like a good guy, Lord Hades," Violet offered. "Maybe if you actually, you know, fought for the Olympians, they'd treat you better. Maybe if you didn't hide your children away in casinos to keep them alive until you need them, maybe the gods wouldn't be so distrustful of you."
Demeter glanced at the God of the Dead. "She is not entirely wrong, Hades."
Hades glowered at Violet. "Listen here, Beaumont—you should know better than to think it would be that easy. Half the Olympians don't even trust your father, Eros."
"And my dad wasn't hiding demigods so he could then try to control a prophecy," she countered. "Yeah, sure, I know the Olympians look down on me, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna cower in the Underworld. In hiding, which is what you're doing."
Hades let out a disgruntled "Bah!" and slammed his fist against his throne. "It is not hiding, Beaumont. I'm only staying here to keep my forces intact."
Violet glanced at Percy, and he shrugged. "So what will you do when Kronos comes after you?" asked Percy.
"Let him try." Hades shrugged. "He'll be weakened. And my son here, Nico—" The god looked at the boy with distaste. Violet bristled with anger. "Well, he's not much now, I'll admit that. It would've been better if Bianca had lived. But give him four more years of training. We can hold out that long, surely. Nico will turn sixteen, as the prophecy says, and then he will make the decision that will save the world. And I will be king of the gods."
"You're crazy," Percy decided. "Kronos will crush you, right after he finishes pulverizing Olympus."
Hades spread his hands. "Well, you'll get a chance to find out, half-blood. Because you'll be waiting out this war in my dungeons."
"What?" Violet demanded.
"No!" Nico said. "Father, that wasn't our agreement. And you haven't told me everything!"
"I've told you all you need to know," Hades snapped at his son. "As for our agreement, I spoke with Jackson. I did not harm him. You got your information. If you wanted a better deal, you should've made me swear on the Styx. Now go to your room!" He waved his hand and Nico vanished.
"That boy needs to eat more," Demeter grumbled. "He's too skinny."
Persephone rolled her eyes. "Mother, enough with that. My lord Hades, are you sure we can't let this little hero go? He's awfully brave."
"No, my dear. I've spared his life. That's enough."
Violet almost held out hope for a moment. Hope that her ancestor, Persephone, would stand up for Percy and make Hades realize he was being temperamental. She even had some hope that Persephone would help them get out of this and to the River Styx so they stood even a chance against Kronos and Luke.
But Persephone watched Percy for a second. Then, she shrugged indifferently. "Fine," she decided. "What's for breakfast? I'm starving. And, Violet dear" —she looked at the daughter of Eros— "you may join us if you wish."
Violet's expression flickered. "Wha—Persephone! You can't think Hades is right?"
"I'm still here, Beaumont."
But Persephone waved her hand and Violet was transported with a swirl of flowers—of deep blues and purples viola flowers. Violet flowers. How original.
🌷 MAR. 11TH, 2024 / hehe heyy how yall doin'?
the reason it's been nearly a month is because of olden crown. i wanted to finish that fic before the end of march and then when i did, i lowkey was a bit burned out. the burnout wasn't anything too bad, i just needed a few days with no words - no writing, no editing, no proofreading. but when those few days passed, i was so out of my element writing for this fic that when i did, it was NOT going good so then i took even MORE days to get around to this - but i reread old chapters and i think that's helped me get back into the "groove"
i was debating on violet being basically "banished" away like how nico was after the furies captured the three of them, OR having her basically chase after persephone and demeter to talk to them - which she will NEXT chapter. it was going to happen this chapter but ... this one got too long, and i want to post it :)
i'm gonna try and get the next chapter out quickly, but don't hold out hope because i wanted to get this chapter out march 1st and it is now march 11th
but nico and violet angst <<<<< i hate writing my best found siblings duo going through it - like violet thinks that she AND nico would always put themselves first but they would actually give up their lives for the other *sobs*
mark of athena and house of hades are going to hurt SAUR BAD I CAN'T -
anyways, thoughts?? opinions??
(not edited nor proofread)