𝐚𝐳𝐚𝐞𝐥𝐚; percy jackson

𝟎𝟑 | unexpected encounter

His chest tightened, and for a moment, all he could feel was the raw, unrelenting wave of grief crashing over him. His mother. Her smile. The Minotaur. His own helplessness. It all came back to him.

He clenched his fists at his sides, his voice coming out sharper than he intended. "You don't get to talk about her. How do you know about it anyway? Were you reading my mind or something?"

Meara, sitting casually on the edge of the infirmary bed, didn't flinch. "Reading your mind?" Her expression remained calm, almost unreadable, though her eyes seemed to size him up.

"Yes! I don't know what you people can be capable of!" Percy threw his hands around.

"You people?" She repeated, lifting her chin. "I don't know how slow you are, new boy, but you're one of us." She paused for effect, letting the words sink in before adding with a smirk, "And as for how I know? You talk in your sleep, idiot."

The mocking in her tone only seemed to stoke Percy's frustration further. "And what do you expect me to do, huh? Since you're such an expert." He snapped, his voice rising. "Just forget what happened? Pretend this is all normal? Monsters? Gods? A goat friend? None of this makes sense!"

Meara raised an eyebrow, unfazed by his outburst. "You're right, it doesn't make sense, but whining about it isn't going to change anything."

Percy blinked, thrown off for a moment by her unexpected response.

"But no," Meara continued. "I'm not saying you should pretend. I'm saying you need to start accepting it. This world doesn't make sense because you're still stuck thinking it works like the old one. It doesn't. The sooner you figure that out, the better."

He opened his mouth to argue, but the words died on his tongue when she stood, stepping closer.

"And for the record," she added, her tone quieter but still sharp, "if you hadn't been dragged here, both you and your mom would be dead. You're mad, I get it. But don't take it out on me. I was stuck here, thanks to Chiron, playing babysitter for days."

Percy snorted, crossing his arms. "Babysitting? Wow, sounds like a real hardship. Sorry my near-death experience ruined your super important plans."

Meara rolled her eyes dramatically. "Oh, trust me, it was. Three days of listening to you mutter nonsense in your sleep about blue food and...what was it? 'No, Grover, I don't want to marry a goat'?"

His face turned bright red. "I did not say that!"

She smirked, leaning casually against the doorframe, knowing that he actually didn't, she just said it to mess with him. "Sure. But hey, I'm not judging. Whatever weird dreams you've got going on, that's your business."

Percy glared at her. "You know, for someone who had to be told to help, you sure talk about it like you're some kind of a hero."

"Yeah, because someone had to keep you alive while you snored loud enough to wake the gods, that's pretty heroic in my opinion," she shot back, crossing her arms.

"Wow, that sure is," Percy said sarcastically, throwing his hands up. "Next time, don't bother."

"Next time?" Meara grinned, her eyes glinting. "Next time, I'll let the Minotaur stomp you flat."

Before Percy could come up with a comeback, she opened the door, but not before tossing one last remark over her shoulder. "And for the record, new boy, you should work on your attitude problem. Just a friendly tip."

The door clicked shut, leaving Percy staring after her, his face red with frustration. "Attitude problem? She's the one to talk." He kicked at the edge of the bed and muttered to himself, "and friendly tip? As if we were ever becoming friends."

•

The camp felt impossibly bright as Meara strode away from the infirmary, her steps quick and purposeful.

"Meara!"

Annabeth's sharp voice cut through her thoughts, and she turned to see the other girl approaching with her usual no-nonsense expression.

"Chiron wants you to help me show the new guy around," Annabeth said briskly, falling into step beside her.

"That Percy Jackson guy?" Meara asked, eyebrows raising.

"Yeah, obviously," Annabeth deadpanned.

Meara groaned. "Seriously? I already had to deal with his temper tantrum in the infirmary."

Annabeth shot her a look. "Well, now you get to deal with him outside of it. Lucky you."

Meara sighed but didn't argue, falling into step beside Annabeth as they approached the strawberry fields. Percy stood there, arms crossed, his face set in a scowl that screamed I don't want to be here.

"Percy, this is Meara," Annabeth said, motioning between them. "She's going to help with the tour."

Percy raised an eyebrow. "Oh, great. Just who I wanted to see again."

Meara tilted her head, a smirk tugging at her lips. "Oh, I'm touched. I didn't realize I made such an impression."

Annabeth groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Alright. You two don't have to like each other, but you do have to make it through this without ripping each other's heads off. Think you can do that?"

Neither answered, but their mutual silence was answer enough. Annabeth rolled her eyes and began walking, launching into her well-rehearsed Camp Half-Blood speech.

Percy trailed slightly behind, shooting sidelong glances at Meara as they walked.

She hadn't said much, but her eyes were constantly moving, sharp and alert. She walked with an ease that made Percy feel even more out of place.

After a while, he couldn't help it anymore. "So, what's your deal?"

Meara glanced at him, her expression somewhere between curious and amused. "My deal?"

"Yeah," Percy said, waving a hand vaguely in her direction. "You're not exactly a people person, are you?"

Meara stopped walking, turning to face him with an incredulous look. "Oh, I'm sorry. Was I supposed to hold your hand and squeal?"

Percy frowned. "I didn't ask to be here."

Meara crossed her arms. "Yeah, well, no one did. But here we are, so maybe stop sulking and start paying attention. This place might just save your life."

For a second, the words hung between them, heavier than Percy expected. He opened his mouth to retort, but Annabeth loudly cleared her throat.

"Okay, enough bickering," she said, clearly fed up. "Let's keep moving before I leave you both behind."