"𝚟𝚒𝚡𝚎𝚗" | 𝚙. 𝚓𝚊𝚌𝚔𝚜𝚘𝚗

𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚎, 𝚊𝚌𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚎

Percy Ruins a Perfectly Good Bus

OR

Haha, Old Grandmas Are Fighting Them- Oh...

third person omniscient

-

WHEN STELLE WAS 5, she might've wished once or twice to be some kind of worshipped hero, but that dream fell off (it was in bad taste, anyway; she much preferred to be the person the hero helped).

Anyways, so here she was, living out her surprisingly depressing childhood dreams (two gods. TWO).

It didn't take long to pack. Her backpack, which was always zipped up with all her belongings inside. She counted her things, a small habit she picked up rather than worrying about the Stolls.

Makeup, though she doubted she would have time.

A map of America, which she guessed could be useful, but didn't actually know how to use it. Annabeth probably could.

Notebook, two changes of clothes plus one for Percy, water, and snacks. Stelle knew that carrying all of it would get her exhausted halfway through, but it was all deemed necessary and packed efficiently by Luke.

Ethan approached her with a half smile and something held tightly in his hand. The feeling happened again, that of an emotion not being her own. An unsettling fluttering of her stomach.

"Ethan." She greeted.

"Hi." The Japanese boy said awkwardly. "Er... I heard you got a quest. I got you something as good luck- I mean, you probably don't need it, but I heard that heroes get good luck charms anyways..."

Stelle blinked and raised an eyebrow. "A good luck charm?"

He nodded, gesturing for her to hold out her hand. "You know... quests are dangerous. I hope you come back okay, that's all."

That made her laugh ruefully. As she cupped her palms in front of Ethan, he dropped a silver necklace in it.

"I don't know much about jewelry, or how you're supposed to get silver or gold or whatever to match your skin tone... but I thought silver would be pretty on you." He muttered, ducking his head in embarrassment.

A thin silver chain with a teardrop charm. It wasn't the most extravagant, but she liked it nonetheless. But it put her in debt to him. "It's really pretty... are you just giving it to me?"

"Yeah, It's alright." Ethan said, "But if you survive, I can cash in a favor from you, 'kay?"

Ah, that was the catch. Maybe he was just joking, but in Stelle's experience, being indebted to someone was something that was never good.

"Alright." She agreed. "Put it on for me?"

She flashed him a brief smile and lifted her hair. Another zip of butterflies. Gods, were these her own feelings or somebody else's? It was so confusing.

Ethan fumbled with the clasp for a little, but managed to clip it on. "There."

"Thanks, Ethan." Should she give him a gift as well? She dug through her backpack and with some effort, pulled out the black pearl. "Er, the naiads gave this to me, but it kinda suits you better. In exchange, scrap the favor."

Ethan took it uncertainly, holding it gingerly, as if it were a brittle jewel. His eye shone with a kind of innocent curiosity that nobody would expect from a gloomy kid like him. When he spoke, it was with a sort of sincerity that would make most feel guilty for even beginning to doubt him.