𝐖𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐂! percy jackson

xv. The Past Is Best Shared

━━ chapter fifteen
the past is best shared

✿✼:*ﾟ:༅｡.｡༅:*･ﾟﾟ･⭑

━━Ella the harpy wouldn't leave them. Since they saved her from her curse, gave her jerky and such, they were all now friends, and now she sat in the Pax, nestled on the stern, happily eating her jerky and reciting random lines from Charles Dickens's 50 Tricks to Teach Your Dog. Percy knelt in the bow, steering them towards the ocean and Fiona sat in a nook in front of her seat and leaning against the wood of the Pax, watching. She fiddled with her necklace, feeling the waves rock the boat gently back and forth. Hazel and Frank were sitting shoulder to shoulder, in conversation amongst themselves. Fiona and Percy were listening, but they didn't want to intrude. Fiona knew the story of Hazel's past; about Gaea as the Voice that had taken over her mothers mind, how she had helped raise the giant Alcyoneus and how she had died, sinking the island into Resurrection Bay.

Once she was done, Frank took her hand, "You sacrificed yourself to stop the giant from waking. I could never be that brave."

Hazel frowned at him, looking tearful. "It wasn't bravery," she said. "I let my mother die. I cooperated with Gaea too long. I almost let her win."

"But you didn't," said Fiona, giving her a small smile.

Percy nodded, agreeing. "Hazel," he said. "You stood up to a goddess all by yourself. You did the right ..." his voice trailed off, as if he had an unpleasant thought. "What happened in the Underworld ... I mean, after you died? You should've gone to Elysium. But if Nico brought you back━"

"I didn't go to Elysium," Hazel took a shuddering breath. "Please, don't ask ..."

But it was too late. Fiona could see her slipping unconsciousness. She went to make her way over, but then she saw Frank pass out with her, the two of them resting against each other's heads. Fiona stopped, taken-aback.

"'Slip Sliding Away'," Ella muttered. "Number five US single. Paul Simon. Frank, go with her. Simon says, Frank, go with her."

Fiona went to wake them up, but Ella just shook her head, telling her it was okay with a mix of lines from songs and books. Fiona faltered, but fell back to her seat she had been sitting on. A silence settled between them all; a tense one. Fiona kept glancing at Hazel and Frank, worried, no matter what Ella said.

She was back to fiddling with her necklace, pulling her knees up closer to her chest. Percy pursed his lips, but returned his gaze to the water. Fiona couldn't help but think about what Phineas had said. She didn't want to, but she couldn't help it. She gripped the pendant tighter. Coward ... Fiona's gaze flickered down. She was a coward, and that's why she couldn't win. She didn't deserve to win. Just like Phineas.

Ella shuffled her feathers, and decided to nook her head underneath one wing. It took Fiona a little to realise that she was going to sleep. Now, the only people awake were Percy and Fiona, and for a while, neither spoke. Continuing to fiddle with her necklace, Fiona's sneakers scuffed against the wood of the boat wall opposite. She scratched off some old pain with her heel, for no other reason but to just distract herself from her thoughts.

Finally, Percy glanced back and nodded towards Frank and Hazel, "How long do you think they'll be out?"

Fiona shrugged. She continued to scuff the paint. "I guess it depends what memory she's reliving."

He nodded. There was another small silence. Fiona looked up and saw that he was watching her. She frowned, arching a brow in her curiosity. "What?" she asked.