Anthízo, Percy Jackson

VII. she couldn't hold back her power

KARINA DIDN'T KNOW much about the mediterranean, but she was pretty sure it wasn't supposed to freeze in july.

two days out to sea from split, gray clouds swallowed the sky. the waves turned choppy. cold drizzle sprayed across the deck, forming ice on the rails and the ropes.

"it's the scepter," nico murmured, hefting the ancient staff. "it has to be."

karina shivered and snuggled her body deeper into one of percy's old swim team sweatshirts.

yes, she had taken one of his sweatshirts.

if she was being honest, wearing it didn't bring as much sadness as she thought it would. it may have actually made her feel a little better. having the smell of the sea intoxicating her senses made her feel like she was still with him, and it brought back a sense of familiarity, and it sort of calmed her mind when she breathed in the faint scent of the fabric of the sweatshirt.

she ran her hand through her hair with a stressed sigh, catching herself off guard when her fingers met the cold air instead of her long hair after a few seconds.

she'd almost forgotten that she'd chopped off half of her hair last night.

it was a split second decision that she'd had at around 4:32 in the morning, unable to sleep. she'd been staring at herself in the mirror, and felt so invaded in her own body from gaea, that she had to do something to change it.

so, she grabbed a pair of scissors and cut her hair to where it just barely touches her collarbone. it was choppy, and layered unevenly, but it made her feel more like her own self than someone who was harboring a god in her body. there were a few strands in the front that framed her face, making it seem like she had bangs in the past that had overgrown, but she liked how they turned out.

she hadn't even thought about how much she wanted gone, or what sort of style she wanted with it— too caught up in her own self wallowing to even think about it. but, the end result suited her well enough.

she'd done it long enough to still be able to style it, though. this morning, she'd pulled around half of her hair into a loose bun on the back of her head, leaving the front strands out, and the rest of her hair beneath it.

(eren jaeger?🙀)

it made sense that the scepter might have caused this weather change. the black orb on top seemed to leach the color right out of the air. the golden eagles at its base glinted coldly. the scepter could supposedly control the dead, and it definitely gave off bad vibes. coach hedge had taken one look at the thing, turned pale, and announced that he was going to his room to console himself with chuck norris videos. (although karina suspected that he was actually making iris-messages back home to his girlfriend mellie; the coach had been acting very agitated about her lately, though he wouldn't tell anyone what was going on.)

so, yes . . . maybe the scepter could cause a freak ice storm. but karina didn't think that was it. she had a weird feeling that something even worse was was happening— she just couldn't pin point what it was.

"we can't talk up here," jason decided. "let's postpone the meeting."

they'd all gathered on the quarterdeck to discuss strategy as they got closer to epirus. now it was clearly not a good place to hang out. wind swept frost across the deck. the sea churned beneath them.

karina didn't mind the waves so much. the rocking and pitching reminded her of percy, and now he'd hold her in his arms when the ocean got rough at night, letting her relax against him— knowing that she was safe as long as he was by her. but she could tell hazel wasn't doing well. the poor girl got seasick even in calm waters. she looked like she was trying to swallow a billiard ball.