Drowning in the Siren's Song -II

Chapter 13

It was time for Percy to leave.

No matter the circumstance, he couldn't stay in one place for too long, especially a human area with no barriers. There was no way to mask his scent and therefore, his identity.

He was also very done with the concept of towns and cities. It wouldn't have been an exaggeration to say that he didn't like human settlements. He was probably more comparable to a wild animal than a human boy. There was just no way concrete could compare to the soft soils of the forests. The air was dry and every time he breathed, he felt it skin his lungs. He longed for the fresh oxygen of the trees and the sprinkle of water revolving around him. He was so homesick. 

He felt like the whole Minotaur fiasco was the perfect ending to leave that place and move on back to the reserve. He didn't want to leave Leo, but it was too much of a compromising situation for him to remain there with him or take him along. 

He sensed enough from Leo to know that he would grow to have his own strength of powers. It was just an instinct but Percy could feel that Leo probably already had his fair share of eyes following him, or at least new additions after noticing the Minotaur gone. Whether the eyes were from the holy or the hell did not matter to him. It was all the same anyways. 

He was more worried some god or spirit would take notice of him but he trusted the blessings of nature and especially the blessing from Artemis. Anyone who would find him suspicious because of his godly blood would be extremally confused since he would radiate the energy of Pan, a god said to be lost, and Artemis, who only bestows blessings on women. It was a weird enough combination to make them suspect he was anything except a demigod of the big three. 

But even with such a confusing concoction, the more he stayed with humans, the more risk he put himself in. Even keeping aside the 'godly' part of his weirdness, he was a young, unaccompanied boy who looked homeless but had an expensive-looking ring on his finger. His long hair and bare feet didn't reduce the stares he got, especially ones from having a literal raven sit on his shoulder.
In all, the boy who was fitting right in nature was sticking out like a sore thumb in human civilization. 

The gods finding out about him was secondary. He just wanted to leave. 

And yet, there was one last thing he wanted to do before bidding farewell to the town. He was going basking again. 

Leo had opened up a river inside him. Percy could see himself reflected in it. He had felt a tap burst open the day they shared their scars with each other. He had felt pained, but relieved. He wanted to test whether he had truly left that fear behind him or if he was still nurturing his trauma. He wanted to build a raft on that river and sail far ahead. 

He needed to actually go back into the crowd and see men and not shrink back. He wanted to prove to himself that he had not only progressed in a physical sense but broken through a mental block too. 

He had already spoken to Leo. They had a last heart-to-heart with no more tears left to spill. It was a sort of bittersweet goodbye where both were sad to separate but excited to open the next page of their lives. Leo was also planning on leaving. He was going to return to the places he'd run away from and battle in his own solitude. After giving him a few pieces of advice on living alone, Percy made him promise not to run away until he was armed with resources to last him a week at least.
"If you're going to run away, simply run away with all their food and money."

With those parting words, Percy saw him off and asked Keria to watch over him until he was relatively safe again. That was why Percy was currently alone in the center street with no Leo or Keria to accompany him. It was harder to start.
But start he did. 

It was one of those moments where one wonders what they were so afraid of. 

Sweet, sweet voice was what the careless busybodies heard as Percy started with a soft Latin song, one he'd heard roam the walls of the Wolf House. Mrs. Russo would hum often while cooking, the lyrics talking about a young girl finding meaning in life. The song itself was fast and catchy but Percy was not one who was only talented in singing. He didn't even know how he had composed a new version, but what he sang now was only a remembrance of Mrs. Russo's song.

The mood in it had passed from finding meaning in life to being lost in the vast possibilities of it. Somewhere in the middle, the girl had moved on from being excited to scared. It was now a song of surviving. 

No one in the crowd could understand the language, and yet, they knew exactly Percy was saying. His singing was spinning a tale so deep that it seemed as if the world itself was listening with rapt attention. It was nothing short of beautiful. Listeners dropped appointments as they got lost in the sad paradise. Strays stopped mid-stride to heard his voice. The plants rustled like the winds carried a thunderstorm and the ground seemed to shake with urgency.

Though all that accompanied Percy was his voice, it was no less of a performance. He wasn't channeling the siren inside him, even though it was doing its best wanting burst out. His partial focus was always on making sure no power leaking through his voice and still, the listeners were enchanted under his spell. 

This time, Percy hadn't closed his eyes. Instead it was the people who had their eyes closed in revered silence. As he moved through the song, he allowed himself to walk the young girl's path. He let her insecurities about the world pass over him. He let himself feel her fears and felt lost too. Looking at the big, burly men listening, he let himself feel a stab of chills and just like that, it was gone. 

No part of him wanted to run away or cower.
Maybe he was lost in life. Maybe he was apprehensive of the future. Maybe he wasn't channeling the young girl, but he himself was the one who was afraid.
But that was okay.
He felt afraid, and that was okay.

He wasn't all comfortable, but more than the emotions of fear and flight fighting inside him, something more important grounded him; helped him realize it was okay to feel lost.
It was the longing to sing which held his heart. 

And at last, the young girl in his song felt peace.