Veronica Sawyer was an iconic name. And so that was what she called herself.
She would've liked to be simple, with the basic life of demigods for a backstory-mortal parent didn't want her, she ended up a year-rounder. But the Fates didn't like Veron...
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𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫𝟒: 𝐁𝐚𝐛𝐲'𝐬𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐆𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠
LABYRINTH DAY 1
PERCY WAS BOTH RELIEVED AND CONFUSED BY VERONICA'S PRESENCE IN THE LABYRINTH. Her braids were pushed back from her face, only two in the front hanging free. She was dressed for a dangerous trek, her fantasy book in hand, though Percy was now suspecting it being something else.
"Why are you here?!" Annabeth demanded. "You aren't supposed to be on the quest!"
"I'm not," Veronica said, calmly turning around. She lifted an amethyst on a string high in the air and mumbled something. It glowed faintly and she sighed in relief. "I'm doing my own thing. Calm down, no one's crashing your quest."
"She seems very nice," Tyson said. Percy realized that technically, Tyson and Veronica didn't actually know each other, but right now, he was more focused on Veronica's presence.
"Why are you here?" Annabeth demanded.
"Looking for a kid," Veronica huffed. "Don't question me. I'm not planning to get in your way."
Annabeth spluttered for a moment, about to say something else when suddenly, a voice behind them spoke.
"You're here!"
They turned and Percy took a step back. The guy had two faces. They jutted out from either side of his head, staring over his shoulders, so his head was much wider than it should've been. It was kind of like a hammerhead shark's head. Looking straight at him, all Percy could see were two overlapping ears and mirror-image sideburns.
He was dressed like a New York City doorman: a long black overcoat, shiny shoes, and a black top-hat that somehow managed to stay on his double-wide head.
"Well, Annabeth?" said his left face. "Hurry up!"
"Don't mind him," said the right face. "He's terribly rude. Right this way, miss."
Annabeth's jaw dropped. "Uh... I don't..."
Tyson frowned. "That funny man has two faces."
"The funny man has ears, you know!" the left face scolded. "Now come along, miss."
"No, no," the right face said. "This way, miss. Talk to me, please."
The two-faced man regarded Annabeth as best he could out of the corners of his eyes. It
was impossible to look at him straight on without focusing on one side or the other. And suddenly Percy realized that's what he was asking—he wanted Annabeth to choose.
Behind him were two exits, blocked by wooden doors with huge iron locks. They hadn't been there the first time the group had gone through the room. The two-faced doorman held a silver key, which he kept passing from his left hand to his right hand.
