ELAPSE | PJO

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 20

{ past percy }

The words sent a jolt of fear into Percy's chest. It had been weird to wake up to a yard full of snakes, of course, but when the Future demigods had said Moros was coming? That scared him.

And he was surprised to realize the fear wasn't for himself or his well being, but the camp's. The people within it. He even felt a pang of sadness thinking about something that endangered the grumpy Dionysus.

It was no secret that Percy had been kicked out of countless places, sent to another, only to say goodbye and move on again. He'd learned not to bond with anyone or anything that could be ripped from his grasp in a short amount of time. It just made everything that much harder. Like anyone else, he made mistakes. Which meant he knew the pain of creating a close connection, of loving something, only to see it held just out of his reach forever. It wasn't just frustrating--no, it was a lot more than that. Confusion, grief, fear.

And now Percy had done it again. He'd even started to think of this stupid place as a home. Now something terrifying was threatening to take it away from him.

He was pulled from his thoughts as Annabeth came up next to him and grabbed his hand--it seemed almost instinctive for her now--but when he glanced at her, her grey eyes were fixed on the top of the hill.

"Let's go," she said. Her voice was low, and quieter than you'd expect of someone who's actual home was infested with weird snakes and possibly a rogue deity, but Percy could easily identify the incredible amount of determination behind it.

Annabeth wasn't making time for fear. She'd resolved to do what had to be done.

Percy shook his head (why was he admiring Annabeth right now?) and took a tentative step forward with her.

Future Percy and Annabeth were moving a lot faster than they were, side by side. Percy didn't want to think about where his future self had gained such a stealthy ability. He had a feeling he was holding Annabeth back, so he kept his head down and picked up the pace.

The four of them finally reached the top of the hill--fortunately, without incident. A cold hand grasped at Percy's heart when he felt the chill in the atmosphere of the campgrounds. His mouth fell slightly agape when he saw that the snakes kept going, covering the grassy ground, hanging off cabin roofs, wrapping around signs and other poles. It was like the forecast had called for raining snakes.

"Isn't there supposed to be some kind of barrier that keeps those kinds of things out?" Percy asked, trying not to gag unpleasantly.

"There is," Future Annabeth answered. "That's how you know something's definitely wrong."

Percy swallowed hard. He saw Annabeth do the same. He guessed she'd never dealt with something like this inside of her camp.

And it wasn't like no one had noticed. Campers were scattered, most still dressed in colorful, baggy pajamas. Some had blankets wrapped around their shoulders, huddling close to one another in the spots where snakes weren't completely covering the ground. Some were on porches, sitting on railing to avoid being touched on slithered upon by the obsidian pests.

"This is not good," Future Percy muttered. It was the first time Percy had really heard distress in his voice.

Future Annabeth began walking again, leading them down the other side of the hill. She made her way towards the Athena Cabin, where they'd finally spotted Chiron talking with Malcolm.

"Chiron!" Annabeth seemed like she wanted to yell it, but they still weren't sure if loud noises or actions would trigger the snakes. So she half whisper-hissed it, half yelled it. If that was possible.