becoming ● reyna ramirez arellano

eighteen: the pentient

Maia just wanted to put her hands over her ears and a blindfold over her eyes.

Her habits hadn't changed from when she was younger. Anytime things got bad at home, she would scamper up to her room and hope her father forgot about her existence. She would keep quiet, do her homework, wait until everything was silent to grab dinner from the pantry. It obviously wasn't a good memory, but she wished she could go back there now instead of facing her problems head-on.

Like Reyna, for instance, who was staring straight at her.

They had about an hour until they touched down in Rome and the tension was so high that Leo had to open the blinds because he was afraid Jason would pop something if they used electricity. Maia swirled her spoon around in her coffee, staring at the mural of Camp Half-Blood wishing she could be gardening with Katie or playing basketball with the Stoll brothers. They always cheated but Maia never called them out on it; if she did, they would never win a game.

She wasn't used to people not liking her, sure, but it was different with Reyna. Maia didn't trust easily, but there was a part of her that wanted, so badly, to tell Reyna all her secrets. She felt like a dam that was clogged with mud. She wanted to scream, but she wasn't quite sure it would make much of a difference.

"She's not even paying attention," Jason reached across the table to tap her hand twice. "Come on, just let me explain."

"No way, Superman," Will scowled as Maia drew her hand away, unsure of whether she should glare at him or continue staring at the table. "Tell us about your dream."

Maia raised her head to show that she was paying attention even as Reyna kept glancing at her nervously. When they finally made eye-contact, she saw Reyna mouth, please.

She shook her head and jutted her chin towards the others. Later.

"The giants are rising sooner than expected then," Nico said, voice low and solemn. "And Percy and Annabeth are out there. We're going to have to split up."

"Oh right," Leo said sarcastically. "Like a horror movie. Just so you know, I'm not sacrificing myself for any of y'all. I'm too pretty to die."

"Ehh." Nico made the so-so motion. Maia shot Will a glance. That's not straight.

The tips of Will's ears turned red. Shut up.

"So," Maia sighed. "The question is who's going where. It's only two giants, but let's not underestimate them."

"That's fair," Nico agreed, taking charge since both Reyna and Jason were unwilling to. He looked at Will who was seated next to him. "Annabeth will need a healer."

"I think we should send the ship to them," Reyna spoke up for the first time, voice timid. She looked like she hadn't slept the night before, her lips bitten and raw. Not that Maia was looking. "Who knows what condition they'll be in?"

"Yeah, I'll go with Will," Leo agreed.

"And Maia," Jason said, hands tight, braced for conflict. "It'll be safer."

You're right," Will said sharply. "Nico, can you-?"

"I'm going," Maia interrupted once she caught up with the conversation. Her heart seemed to beat faster at the declaration, obviously unsure of whether she could go through with it. "What the hell? Piper will be there. I'm the only one who can resist charmspeak. You need me."

Leo spread his hands over the table. "I say we let do Maia what she wants because she's, you know, her own person."

"It'll be distracting," Will protested, only fueling Maia's annoyance. "Worrying about her when you guys should be fighting."

"I worry about you guys all the time," Maia argued. "I multi-task. You're not my mother, Will."

Will looked like he was about to debate with her, Nico not far behind. Jason looked unsure, which was amusing, since Maia was the only thing he ever seemed to be unsure about.

She got herself ready to fight; she was more than capable of standing up for herself even if no one seemed to believe it. But it was exhausting. Contrary to popular belief, it wasn't that easy to change your entire personality without everyone losing respect for you.

"I think Maia's more than proven herself," Reyna said then and Maia remembered to breathe. There were always people willing to fight for her. "She can come with Jason and I. Plus, she has the gods favor, in most regards."

Will didn't look like he liked it. Thankfully, it wasn't his decision to make. Maia gripped his arm in warning, not strong enough to hurt, but enough to make a point.

"Fine," Jason allowed. "But Nico's coming too. We're not taking chances with this. Go get ready. We meet on deck in an hour."

"We need to talk, Maia." The only other female on this ship's voice carried to the kitchen. Maia wanted to audibly groan, but then again, she also didn't. "If only because we have to fight with each other."

Her voice got louder. Maia turned from the fridge only to see Reyna already hovering by the doorframe. She was dressed in armor, which was bulky but they weren't about to rush in wearing t-shirts. They didn't have a death wish like Percy Jackson.

Maia quirked up an eyebrow. "I thought the point was to not fight with each other? Did I miss something?"

Reyna was quiet. Maia could see the apprehension in her eyes – a shade lighter than they usually were in the sunshine, like caramel. She wished she could reach out and touch her, know exactly what she was thinking; know if she had made a fool out herself by demanding to know what the hell she was doing kissing Jason and not her.

Okay, so that last part hadn't actually happened yet. But if Reyna brought it up, then Maia really wasn't below-

"You're too good for me." Reyna finally met her gaze instead of staring at her through stained glass. "That's-that's why. Well, and I was jealous of Will, but if that gets back to him-"

"Reyna," Maia saved her from saying something else she might regret later. "Okay, first of all, Will and I aren't a thing. We'll never be a thing. And what on earth do you mean I'm too good for you?" She asked, a mixture of bewildered and exhausted.

Reyna threw her hands in the air. "This! This is what I mean! You don't even see my point. If I were you I wouldn't even hear me out. I hurt you." She paused, "I didn't mean to, though. To clarify."

Maia closed her eyes and counted to three. "Look," she stated. "I don't really know what you want me to say. I guess, well, I guess it's clear that I like you and you like me. But if you don't want to do anything...if you want to get over me by leaving me alone, then do."

"No," Reyna said resolutely. "That's not-no." She sighed. "This is new for me?" She said, more like a question than anything Maia could understand."I'm working on it. You're not Jason, I understand that."

    Maia laughed softly, feeling the tension bunch up in her stomach and release. "That's good?"

She offered her half-smile. Reyna was wild and reckless and passionate and sincere, and there was a sort of balance between the two of them. Maia didn't need an apology; she could see in how her hands drifted nervously towards hers, in how she spoke up for Maia even when everyone else disagreed; she could see in how Reyna was standing in front of her, waiting with bated breath, watching a game she'd never before had a stake in.

"Maia!" Nico called. "Time to go!"

"Your friends aren't speaking to me," Reyna pointed out as they walked out, but she wasn't miserably downcast anymore, so Maia counted it as a win.

Maia shrugged, a surge of electricity flowing through her. Maybe they brought out the hidden sides of each other. "We'll work on it."