Strange Ties--Percy Jackson/Harry Potter

Chapter Thirty-Four

Then he heard it—a muffled gasp, barely audible over the pounding in his ears. Percy snapped his head toward the sound, half expecting the monster to have doubled back. But instead, he saw August, her eyes petrified and wide with shock.

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Percy

"August?!" he asked, surprised and concerned. "What are you doing here?"

She didn't answer, just stood there, her body trembling. Her eyes darted from the pool of water on the ground to the deep gouges in the stone floor, and then back to Percy. "What... what was that?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"August, it's not what you think," Percy said, trying to keep his voice calm despite the pain shooting through his body. "I—"

"Not what I think?" she snapped, her voice rising with panic. "Percy, there was a monster! A giant, terrifying monster! And you—you fought it with a sword! And the water—what did you do with the water? I saw it—it was like you... controlled it."

"Okay, okay," he said, holding up his good hand, trying to calm her down. "I know this looks weird—"

"Weird?" she interrupted, her voice shaky. "Weird? This is beyond weird! I followed you because I thought you were up to something, but this? What is happening? I—I'm so confused!"

Percy winced as pain got worse. The last thing he needed was for August to see all this, let alone for her to witness him controlling water. "August, it's okay, just—just breathe," he said, keeping his voice as steady as he could. "I can explain. Just give me a minute."

August was in shock, her eyes wide and filled with fear. She seemed rooted to the spot, her hands clutching her arms as if to steady herself. "You... you just fought a... thing!" she repeated, her voice shaking. "I—this doesn't make any sense! How can you do that? What was that thing? Why do you have a sword?"

Percy tried to answer, but he could feel himself losing more blood. He didn't want to further complicate things, but she already watched him with Riptide, she knew about the monsters and she knew about him controlling water. Hecate was going to kill him. "I'll explain I just...I need you to trust me and do something for me okay?"

She hesitated, her eyes darting between Percy's blood-soaked body and the sword lying on the ground. "Trust you?" she echoed, her voice filled with disbelief.

He bit back a groan of pain, feeling the warmth of blood seeping through his clothes. He needed to get to the fountain, to use the water to heal his wounds, but he could see that she was on the verge of panicking. "I know this is a lot, but please, just help me, okay?" he said, trying to keep his voice calm. "You need to help me get to that fountain."

August's hands were shaking as she looked at him. "Why? How is a fountain going to help you?" she asked, her confusion and fear evident in her voice.

"Just trust me," Percy said, his voice strained. "Do it"

August took a deep breath, her eyes flickering between the pool of water and Percy's injured shoulder. She seemed paralyzed by the sheer unreality of the situation.

"August, look at me," Percy said, using his uninjured hand to hold her gaze. "I know it's crazy, but you need to focus. Please, I need your help."

She nodded slowly, her breathing shallow and rapid. "Okay, okay, I—I'm here," she stammered, but her voice trembled. "I—uh, what do I do?"

"Just help me get to the fountain," He said, feeling the dizziness of blood loss starting to take hold. "I can use the water to... well, I can use it to help me heal."