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Rory sat on the deck of the Argo II desperately trying to get her boyfriend to drink some water.
"Percy. Babe. Love. Honey Bunches of Oats."
Piper laughed softly. She ran her hand through Jason's hair and lifted a water bottle to his mouth. But every time she tried, his eyes would close and his head would lull back.
Percy and Jason sat with their backs against the mast, their heads slumped in exhaustion. They protected the Argo by using their powers to such a great extent, but it took a toll on them and now they looked half-dead.
"Too tired," Percy groaned.
Rory's eyebrows shot up. "To drink water?"
"And that's coming from him," Piper pointed out.
"Yeah," Rory sighed. "Well, worse comes to worst, I can dump this on his head and he'll feel better. I don't know what to tell you about him." She pointed to Jason, who looked like he was about to start snoring.
But Piper's face lit up like she had an idea. To Rory's shock, she dumped about a quarter of the water bottle onto Jason's head. His eyes snapped open and his jaw dropped. At that moment, Piper was able to force the water into his mouth and make him drink.
Rory stared at her, mouth open. "Like tricking a toddler into eating its vegetables."
Percy mumbled, "No vegetables please."
Piper burst out laughing. Rory just rolled her eyes.
"Fuck it."
She dumped the entire water bottle on his head. He still looked exhausted, but he was able to hold his head up. And it seemed to give him just enough energy to shake his head like a dog drying off, spraying water all over Rory.
The rest of the crew gathered around them. Annabeth took a seat on the floor next to Rory. Frank and Hazel walked over from where they stood just out of earshot — Rory tried not to pay attention to them because it was clear they were having an argument that involved lots of arm waving and head shaking. Leo stood next to Hazel, awkwardly glancing between her and Frank.
Frank scowled. "No sign of pursuit," he said.
"Or land," Hazel added. She looked a little green, though Rory wasn't sure if that was from the rocking of the boat or from arguing.
Rory scanned the horizon. Nothing but ocean in every direction. That shouldn't have surprised her. Leo had spent six months building a ship that she knew would cross the Atlantic. But until today, their embarking on a journey to the ancient lands hadn't seemed real. Rory had never been outside the US before. The only time she had been on the ocean was when they traveled through the Sea of Monsters. Now they were in the middle of the open sea, completely on their own, sailing to the Mare Nostrum, where all the scary monsters and nasty giants had come from. The Romans might not follow them, but they couldn't count on any help from Camp Half-Blood, either.
