{1} Princess - P. Jackson 🔱

"'Oh boy, here we go.' - Pt.2 feat Mc R.E.D. Available on Spotify."

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The next morning I got ready in the cabin while talking to Silena. Drew had already stressed me with her little jokes, so I was trying to stay in a good mood.

This time I was dressed in baggy jeans with a black belt holding it onto my hips, a red top big enough to only cover my bra and my Converse. I promise to buy new shoes.

I let my hair naturally, its waves falling down my back. My sword-arm cuff was already in place, its flowers circling in my arm. I finished putting on my lip gloss after putting on my accessories.

I packed the same bag as last time and gave my goodbyes. Then I hiked over Half-Blood Hill and met Annabeth and Argus on the road.

She was wearing mom jeans and a white shirt tight on her body. Her blonde hair was tied on a ponytail and she kept fidgeting with her necklace.

Percy met us right after, wearing a black shirt and dark green pants, his camp beads around his neck.

The three of us didn't speak much in the van.

Argus never spoke, probably because he had eyes all over his body, including—so I'd heard— at the tip of his tongue, and he didn't like to show that off.

Percy looked like he had a bad night of sleep, so did Annabeth, who looked queasy. "Bad dreams, Annie?" I asked at last.

She shook her head. "An Iris-message from Eurytion."

"Eurytion? Is something wrong with Nico?" I sat up straight.

"He left the ranch last night, heading back into the maze."

"What? Didn't Eurytion try to stop him?"

"Nico was gone before he woke up. Orthus tracked his scent as far as the cattle guard. Eurytion said he'd been hearing Nico talk to himself the last few nights. Only now he thinks Nico was talking with the ghost again, Minos."

"He's in danger," Percy said.

"No kidding. Minos is one of the judges of the dead, but he's got a vicious streak a mile wide. I don't know what he wants with Nico, but—"

"That's not what I meant," He cut Annabeth. "I had this dream last night..." Then he told us about Luke, how he'd mentioned Quintus, and how his men had found a half-blood alone in the maze.

My jaw clenched. "That's very, very bad."

"So what do we do?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Well, it's a good thing you have a plan to guide us, huh?"

It was Saturday, and traffic was heavy going into the city. We arrived at his mom's apartment around noon. When she answered the door, she gave him a hug only a little less overwhelming than having a hellhound jump on you.

"I told them you were all right," His mom said, but she sounded like the weight of the sky had just been lifted off her shoulders—and believe me, I know firsthand how that feels.

She sat us down at the kitchen table and insisted on feeding us her special blue chocolate-chip cookies while we caught her up on the quest. As usual, Percy tried to water down the frightening parts (which was pretty much everything), but somehow that just made it sound more dangerous.

When he got to the part about Geryon and the stables, his mom pretended like she was going to strangle him. "I can't get him to clean his room, but he'll clean a hundred tons of horse manure out of some monster's stables?"

I laughed with Annabeth. For the first time in a while, it was good to laugh again, have fun.

"So," his mom said when he was done with the story, "you wrecked Alcatraz Island, made Mount St. Helens explode, and displaced half a million people, but at least you're safe." That's Sally Jackson, always looking on the bright side.