DON'T BLAME ME! (p. jackson) (#2) (ON HOLD)

- one

JULY 20, 2021

ROSE LOVED DRESSING UP.

as a child of aphrodite, putting on a dress and fixing up her hair brought her joy... usually.

now, as she hiked up a mountain, in a chiton and gladiator sandals, she wasn't feeling a lot of joy. she was hot, and very sweaty. the bun she'd worked so hard on was falling apart. thank god she didn't have any makeup on, because it would've melted right off.

"almost there." piper smiled at jason. "you're doing great."

jason was definitely... something. using hazel's magic, he'd gone from sixteen to seventy-five. his face was wrinkled. he barely looked like himself, although that was the point. his fingers were knarled and bony. he even had varicose veins.

"worst idea ever." he leaned against a cedar tree and wiped his forehead. "hazel's magic is too good. if we have to fight, i'll be useless."

"it won't come to that." annabeth was clearly uncomfortable. she'd never been one for dressing up. she kept hunching her shoulders to keep her dress straps from slipping. "we infiltrate the palace, we get the information we need, and we get out."

piper set down her amphora, the tall ceramic wine jar in which her sword was hidden. katoptris was strapped to her thigh, hidden underneath her dress. "we can rest for a second. catch your breath, jason."

annabeth's knife was hidden as well, but she looked deadly either way. her stormy eyes scanned their surroundings. if some guy asked her for a drink, she'd probably kick him in the balls. she'd been particularly protective of rose-- they all had.

despite being hard of hearing, she hadn't missed the way percy had said to jason, "hey, man... rose would kill me if i said she needed anybody to protect her."

jason had laughed. "yeah, she would."

"just... keep an eye on her, okay? she's already got ptsd, from the titan war, but it's gotten so much worse. she barely eats, and i couldn't tell you the last time she slept. her diet's been mostly monsters and sugar."

jason nodded. "for sure, man."

rose pulled herself back to the present. below them, afales bay glittered, the water so blue it looked dyed. a few hundred yards offshore, the argo ii rested at anchor. its white sails looked no bigger than postage stamps, its oars like toothpicks.

"stupid ithica," jason mumbled. "you guys sure this is the right hill? seems kinda quiet."

"the ruins are up there," piper assured him.

"i hope our disguises hold up. the suitors were nasty customers when they were alive. if they find out we're demigods..."

"hazel's magic will work," rose said, mostly trying to convince herself. "it has to."

she felt awful. her ribs ached. her legs burned. she felt a bit nauseous. she really should've eaten before she left.

they continued climbing, much to everyone's dismay.

"almost there," annabeth said. "let's—"

BOOM! the hillside rumbled. somewhere over the ridge, a crowd roared in approval, like spectators in a coliseum. the sound made rose's skin crawl. not so long ago, she'd fought for her life in the roman colosseum before a cheering ghostly audience. she wasn't anxious to repeat the experience. plus, the last time she'd been in such a big crowd of monsters, she'd been in tartarus.

she was not going to have an anxiety attack. she refused.

"what was that explosion?" jason wondered.

"don't know," piper said. "but it sounds like they're having fun. let's go make some dead friends."