Percy Jackson : ReLife

A Pink Poodle, A Self-Admission, And A Nightmare

A   N   N   A   B   E   T   H

I woke up to sneeze.

I know, that's the worst way to wake up, but what else do you expect to wkae up to when a poodle is on your face, its fur tickling your nose?

After I sneezed about ten times, I noticed that the poodle was pink in color, and had a collar around its neck that said 'Gladiola'. What the heck was a pink poodle called Gladiola doing on my face? I wondered as Gladiola stirred for a moment before falling asleep. I then noticed how shaggy its coat was. Must be a tired runaway, I deduced.

I snapped up my neck to the sound of sudden footsteps and drew my dagger from my sleeve, forgetting for a moment how I'd given it away. "Whoa, easy there," a familiar voice called out from behind the wall. I wondered how she knew about me drawing my dagger until I noticed the mirror that showed me her amused features.

"Can I come there without being gutted?" Nancy asked, the amused expression deepening.

"Of course," I laughed as I put my dagger back.

And she just had to dispel the peace in my heart immediately. "Where's Percy?"

I tensed. I hadn't seen him, so I thought they both might've been together, but it was obvious to me now that she had just woken up, like me, although probably much less violently. "I didn't see him either. Do you know any places he could be, close by?"

"No." She sounded panicked now. "What if he was killed and a monster ate him? What if he was kidnapped? What if - "

"Relax, ladies," a voice called out from a small office room door that I just noticed, and judging by the look on Nancy's face, she had just noticed it, too. "I was just rummaging for some money and supplies is all."

I then noticed the box in his hands, perfect for something about the size of a basketball. "What's that?" I asked, suspicious. I had a half mind to open it and take a peek. Hey, don't judge, it's my natural curiosity.

He laughed. "Medusa's head," he informed. I was suddenly much less willing to take a look.

"Oh," Nancy said. Real smart, lady.

He wrote an address in a slip titled 'Hermes Overnight Express' with a really neat handwriting. I leaned over his shoulder - a very difficult job, considering he was about two centimeters taller than I was - to read. Finally, after a few moments, I figured it out.

Cabin Three

Camp Half-Blood

Long Island, New York

Damn, he had good handwriting. It was much easier to read than most other people's handwriting, who seemed to love murdering my dyslexic eyes with their horrible handwriting.

He dropped a drachma in it, and it closed the pouch. The moment he did, it floated up for a moment, before disappearing with a pop!

He smiled at us, making my heart flutter. I didn't mind. Recently, I had sometimes gotten peeks of dreams I feel might've been of the future. One of them showed Percy and I falling for what seemed like an eternity, hugging. I had pressed my lips against his ears and whispered, "I love you."

Yeah, maybe I would develop feelings for him, if I hadn't already. Frankly, it was getting harder to ignore my feelings for him. I finally admitted to myself that I had a crush on him. And a damn big one too, my brain told me.

Shut it, I told it.

Unfortunately, it didn't get my message.

N   A   N   C   Y

Saying hello to the poodle was weird, but it got us our ride West, so I'm not gonna complain. Much.

You see, Percy had brought Gladiola, who had nearly starved himself (nope, I don't know why his name is Gladiola either, but, eh, just roll with it), back into the shop and patched him up before feeding him. He then returned Gladiola, and got us Amtrak rides till Las Vegas, with some money in Medusa's shop, too.

I was just appreciating the scenery in Ohio when I fell asleep.

And... I had a dream.

Now, apparently, having dreams wasn't good news for demigods, according to my half-brother Luke. Especially when there was danger lurking around the corner, as it could give you real info about events elsewhere, or maybe even the future or something. Annabeth seemed to have similar problems, for she told me once that she sometimes woke up more tired than when she went to sleep due to her dreams.

So, my dream went something like this - 

I was looking down into a deep abyss, with no bottom in sight. As I went closer to the edge, against all my instincts, I kicked a stone into it by mistake. I immediately scrambled back, much to the amusement of some... thing, in it.

"Ah, young demigod," a voice that sounded like knives against stone spoke. "Finally, you're here."

What the hell? Was the only thought in my head.

"I'll give you one offer, child. Join my side. Join me, and I shall spare your friends."

"Like hell I am going to join your side," I retorted.

"Then, I'm afraid, your friends, along with you, must die, for you are just hindrances to my plan."

What plan? Who was he? What was he planning?

"And what is the oh-so-amazing plan you speak of?" I jabbed at him, hoping to rile him up like some movie villain giving away all his plans. Unfortunately, he didn't take bait.

"You think it will work?" He mused. "Ah, you pathetic demigods, thinking you have nothing to fear. I hope to see your demise, although I might be too late for that..."

With that, some kind of power seemed to pull me... no, pull itself out using me as an anchor. I tried to scramble back, push off the power, anything I could think of, but nothing helped. 

"More, more, more, just a little more... MORE!"

I woke up sobbing.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Percy quickly asked, concern etched onto his face, his sea-green eyes showing concern along with apprehension. "Bad dream?" He enquired.

I could only nod, not trusting myself to speak as my sobs subsided. I wiped my tears with my palms, seeing as there was no other option for me right now. I then slowly explained my dream to him, thinking he could shed some light on it.

He got a grim look on his face. "I think someone's planning to try and overthrow Olympus."

--- Published on May 16th, 2021

(1100 words)