Freak || Percy Jackson x OC

One Hundred and Seventy: My goat is back!

PERCY

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The demigods 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 Percy was afraid she might mark her territory, but Nico said, "It's okay. She just smells the way home."

Percy frowned. "Through the rocks?"

"The Underworld has two major entrances." Nico said. "You know the one in L.A."

"Charon's ferry."

Nico nodded. "Most souls go that way, but there's a smaller path, harder to find. The Door o fOrpheus."

Percy stared at it. He knew a lot about Orpheus and Eurydice. Mostly because Sen admired them so much. Percy figured if Sen was dead, he'd probably go and storm up to Hades and demand her back any way he knew how.

But he was still mad at her, and wanted to make it clear.

"The dude with the harp."

"Dude with the lyre." Nico corrected. Sen glared at Percy and he ignored her. "But yeah, him. He used his 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."

Percy remembered the story very clearly. Orpheus wasn't supposed to look behind him when he was leading his wife back to the world, but of course he did. It was one of those typical "and-so-they-died/the-end" stories that always made everyone feel warm and fuzzy.

"So this is the Door of Orpheus." Percy tried to be impressed, but it still looked like a pile of rocks to him. He figured it'd be more... glamorous, or something. "How does it open?"

"We need music." Nico said. "How's your singing?"

"Um, no."

Nico glanced at Sen.

She shook her head. "Voice sucks from all the yelling and shadow travel."

Percy frowned and looked back at Nico. "Can't you just, like, tell it to open? You're the son of Hades and all."

"It's not so easy. We need music."

Percy was pretty sure if he tried to sing, all he would cause was an avalanche.

"I have a better idea." He turned and called, "GROVER!"

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The demigods waited for a long time. Mrs. O'Leary curled up and took a nap. Percy could hear the crickets in the woods and an owl hooting. Traffic hummed along Central Park West. Horse hooves clopped down a nearby path, maybe a mounted police patrol. Percy was sure they'd love to find three kids hanging out in the park at one in the morning.

"It's no good." Nico said at last.

"Just wait." Sen insisted.

Percy had a feeling. His empathy link was really tingling for the first time in months, which either meant a whole lot of people had suddenly switched on the Nature Channel, or Grover was close. And if Sen was agreeing with him on this, it meant he was close.