How Do You Say Gods- Battle of the Labyrinth

19: GROVER CAUSES A STAMPEDE

Today Alex wore a baggy pink hoodie with the ASL hand signs spelling the letters in pink and green stitching, and loose black sweats. She was barefoot. Every other toenail was painted silver. It was Sunday morning somewhere as she came in making the most casual clothing in the world still somehow look like it was hand-selected with care with her green hair in a loose tail at the base of her neck sipping and blowing on a cup of coffee.

As she flopped in to her seat beside Magnus, he saw she'd done the same to her fingernails, every other one was glittering silver.

He tried to turn back and keep talking to Jason like he knew he'd been doing a whole five seconds ago...and couldn't remember what on earth they'd been talking about.

His hearing tuned in and out badly as Alex proceeded to inform everyone who entered her pronouns for the day, trying to swallow around the fact she hadn't felt the need to inform him and what that could mean.

Thalia had to manhandle Percy into the room, hands on his shoulders. He was still rubbing the heel of his hand into his eye like he couldn't believe somebody had the audacity to get him moving. They weren't sure how she managed it, and the look on her face screamed she really didn't think any of them were worth it. Yet she still picked up the book without protest, so that had to count for something.

Nico and Will came in last, Nico holding onto Will's wrist and muttering a string of curses about, "staying up to late," and, "all your fault," which did not erase either of them infusing the room with a sense of serenity for how much they were snickering as they carried platters of breakfast food for everybody which they passed out, Will even having a cup of coffee in one hand the whole time doing it. When they sat back on the couch, they were closer together than ever, just one shadow on the wall. It was a minor miracle Will's syrup covered pancakes didn't splash over Nico's crepe.

This was not going to be a pleasant day though. Nobody believed for a second Kronos was going to manage a full frontal assault on the camp without a single casualty. The best they could hope for was that someone, somehow found a way to close the entrance to the Labyrinth in camp before it got that far, but it was a long shot.

Thalia started reading with a regalness to her voice. The weight of what she was telling not lost on her for the lives gone, but also the spark of excitement in a battle pulling her in.

"I always knew Grover would find a way to put those pipes of his to good use," Percy snickered in surprise, only sorry Grover wasn't here to demand if he meant his singing voice or his reed pipes and the answer was definitely both.

"Does Grover outrank Percy on the battlefield and cause a stampede of campers?" Alex asked in excitement.

"Or he finds a way to collect The Wild together and sends barn animals at the enemy, maybe all the monsters of the forest," Magnus said in trepidation.

"As long as it's not a stampede to the enchilada diner, then you'd lose valuable warriors right before the battle," Jason chuckled.

... I felt like we'd run all the way from New Mexico.

"Sorry for the delayed question," Magnus interrupted, leaving Percy already wound up in exasperation how much he'd have to deal with before they even got to the fight. "But um, did it ever say why Pan was down there? Like, a satyr tried to give the message he'd passed on, and then, what? He went down into the labyrinth to fade, and couldn't because nobody believed that first guy? Or was he so weak he really did fall in? Not sure I follow that part."

"You are way over thinking that one Magnus," Percy shrugged. "Why do the gods do anything, show up anywhere they want? We have no more clue why Pan was down there than why Aphrodite decided to show up in the desert to make me hold a mirror."