A Lofty Choice

Chapter 26

Percy went into the cave before the two even got there.   There were a few monsters hanging around and Percy wished he was anywhere but there.   He should have contacted camp and get information and meet them at a safer location.  

Instead he was stuck in a cave full of monsters.   It was times like this where Annabeth liked to call him a seaweed brain.   Impulsiveness worked in the favor of the demigod some of the times.   This was not one of those times. 

He told himself he was practicing the silencing that Natasha had been teaching him.   He still could not believe his mom was a spy.   He thought at least one side would be normal with his mother's side being so crazy.  

Of course, life was not that simple.   Sometimes he wondered what it would be like to have a normal life, but every time he thought of it he could not imagine it.  He would be a different person.  

He would be a person who had not been shaped by the wars, his friends, and everything the world had to throw at him.   Did he wish to be away from the demigod life?   Yes, but if asked if he would change his life he would have to say no.   He wished deaths had been avoided, but to ask to change the past meant to change himself.  

One day though, he longed to college with Annabeth.   To live a relatively normal life.

The ground scraped as a monster huffed in the edge of cave.   Percy's body shifted slightly.    Percy forced himself to still.   To not move.   To not make noise.   He had to be strong mentally in order to out maneuver the monsters away from him and his friends.  

Percy was watching silently in the shadows.   One of the shadows seemed to be abnormal and Percy tried to pay extra attention to it.   Was it a monster he had missed?   His instincts seemed to be screaming at him.

As Percy watched the shadow move he saw a familiar figure.   He was scrawny wearing and aviator jacket with a skull t-shirt.   He had black hair and he looked deathly pale.   It was Nico Di Angelo, and he wasn't supposed to be here.  

                       *                 *               *

Natasha had been away from her kid, and it was like their was something missing. Yelena and Natasha now had something they could bond over. "What do you think your doing?"

"I'm driving the plane in the direction where my nephew went."

"You are not driving the plane to find Percy. We need to find the girls," Natasha said.

Yelena sighed. "I hate it when you make sense."

"I make sense all the time," Natasha said. 

Yelena made a face mocking Natasha. "I make sense all the time," Yelena said. Her voice was mocking and Natasha clenched her fist. She did turn the plane towards the prison. They need to break out their dad.

"I can clearly see your face," Natasha said.  

Yelena looked over to Natasha for a second. "I wasn't trying to hide it."   Yelena was smirking.   It was a small victory.

Natasha jerked her head towards the controls on the plane.   "Keep an eye on the plane."

"You don't think I can do both."   Tease Natasha and steer the plane.

"You are very skilled, but I don't want to test it."

"I see your afraid," Yelena said.   A laugh was in the edge of her tone.  

Natasha's face scrunched.   "I am not afraid."

"You are trembling."

Natasha looked down at herself.   "There is no trembling here."

"It's okay, I understand.   You don't have to lie to your baby sister to be tough."

"Stop, your not even my real sister."

Suddenly Yelena's playful demeanor dropped.  A switch had been turned on and now they were airing out what they had not been able to with Percy was around.   It was so easy to not focus on the tension when Percy was around.   Percy was gone now, and the gloves were off.  "I was just playing aunt to your son?   Why do you push me away like this?"

Natasha stayed quiet.

Yelena sighed fiddling with the control panels before turning her attention to Natasha and her back to the control panel.   "You shouldn't..."

"I know how to handle a plane," Yelena said abruptly.  

Natasha went back to being quiet.   "You don't want to talk?"

"I didn't mean it," Natasha said.  

"What part?  Me being an aunt or me being your sister?"  

Natasha sighed. "That's not what I meant."

"Which part?"

"Okay, so we are not biologically related."

"Unbelievable," Yelena said, clearly mad.   She turned as if to go back to the ship controls, but Natasha's voice brought her back full circle. Yelena raised an eyebrow at her which made Natasha roll her eyes. Yelena could be so infuriating.

"Let me finish speaking.  You always have to interrupt me."

Yelena stuck out her tongue but stopped talking.

Natasha paused for a bit. She needed to get the right words out. "When I took down the organization with Clint...".

Yelena interrupted. "Failed too."

Natasha looked over to her and said "Really?"

"I am just saying. You know you taking credit for something you haven't done is such a poser move."

"Would you stop bringing up the poser thing?"

Yelena looked like she was still considering it. "No," Yelena said. Looking at Natasha dead in the eyes.

"Your so frustrating!"

"And your not?"

"Ugh, anyway as I was saying...". Natasha paused waiting for Yelena to interrupt her. Yelena just looked at Natasha annoyed, so Natasha continued. "When I left and became part of the avengers I wanted to forget all the killing I had done. I wanted to remake myself."

"You wanted to forget me. Okay, got it," Yelena turned around.

"You didn't let me finish."

"If you are not going to reject me as your sister I only need to hear it once," Yelena said. She turned in her seat.

The airplane was silent. And they both did not speak to each other about the situation making it even worse. Percy leaving meant the hole between the sister's became more noticeable.