Love Against All Odds

Percy - Helicopter Drama

Percy found himself back on Fifth Avenue, Annabeth still standing in the same spot, seemingly unaffected by his brief absence.

She caught his gaze and frowned. "What?"

"Um... nothing, I guess."

Percy glanced out of the window down the avenue, his mind swirling with thoughts of the cryptic warning from Dionysus. How much worse could things possibly get?

His eyes landed on a battered blue car. The hood bore deep dents like someone had tried to smooth out massive craters. A shiver ran down his spine. Why did that car look so familiar? Then it hit him—it was a Prius.

Paul's Prius.

Without a second thought, Percy bolted out of the room.

"Percy!" Annabeth's voice called after him. 

Percy didn't slow down, focusing entirely on reaching Paul's Prius. He vaguely saw Zoe and Oskar exiting a door on his left as he rushed by, but he didn't answer when Oskar asked, "What's wrong?" He just kept running, his mind consumed by worry.

Something wasn't right. Something had happened to Paul.

He heard two further sets of feet chase after him. Zoe shouted at Annabeth, "What's happened?" Annabeth's response was lost in the rush of adrenaline and the pounding of Percy's heart.

They reached the sidewalk, and Percy ran to the Prius.

"Where are you going?" Annabeth asked. 

Paul was slumped over in the driver's seat, unconscious. Beside him, Percy's mom slept soundly. Percy's mind felt muddled. How had he missed them before? They had been stuck in traffic amidst the chaos of battle for over a day, and he hadn't even noticed.

"They... they must've seen those blue lights in the sky." He rattled the locked doors. "I need to get them out."

"Percy, just... just hold on." Annabeth signalled to Chiron, who was conversing with some centaurs down the block. "We can push the car to a side street, all right? They're going to be fine."

His hands trembled. 

Despite everything he had faced in the past few days, Percy felt a surge of vulnerability and frustration at the sight of his mother.

Chiron galloped over. "What's... Oh dear. I see."

"They were coming to find me," Percy explained. "My mom must've sensed something was wrong."

"Most likely," Chiron said reassuringly. "But, Percy, they will be fine. The best thing we can do for them is stay focused on our job."

Oskar held Percy's shoulder. "They're right, Percy; we'll move the car, okay? I can jimmy the door. We'll move the car, and they'll be fine." 

Percy nodded, a mix of gratitude and anxiety evident in his expression.

As Oskar looked around him for anything thin and metallic, he picked up debris that would suit his purpose and started working on the car. 

Annabeth couldn't help but ask, "Do I want to ask how you know how to break into a car?" 

Oskar smirked. "I'm a man of many skills," he said with a wink.

Ever the sceptic, Zoe commented, "You're doing it wrong." 

Oskar frowned at her. "I'm not," he retorted, his concentration unbroken. There was a resounding click, and Oskar triumphantly opened the driver's door. He looked at Zoe with a smug expression. "Ye of little faith," he teased, to which Zoe responded by sticking her tongue out at him.