𝕍𝕖𝕟𝕚 𝕍𝕚𝕕𝕚 𝕍𝕚𝕔𝕚¹ | ᴘᴇʀᴄʏ ᴊᴀᴄᴋꜱᴏɴ

24. Alexa play that one part in Medusa by Kaia Jette

ꕥ Lorelei hit Percy upside the head.

When they had returned to camp, they were immediately swarmed by campers who put laurels on their heads and carried them to the feast they had prepared in their honour, as per camp tradition.

Which had gotten to his head, hence the hit from Lora.

After the feast, they led a procession down to the bonfire, where they got to burn their burial shrouds made for them by their cabin mates while they were out questing.

Annabeth's shroud was beautiful – grey silk with embroidered owls – Percy told her it seemed a shame not to bury her in it. She punched him as Lorelei cackled. 

Lorelei's shroud was pretty as well - purple with blue embroidery butterflies - Percy was about to make his most amazing roast to date but Lorelei had glared at him and he decided to, wisely, keep his mouth shut.

Percy didn't have any cabin mates, so the Ares cabin had generously volunteered to make his shroud. They'd taken an old bedsheet and painted smiley faces with X'ed-out eyes around the border, and the word LOSER painted really big in the middle.

Lorelei had said it was a shame they made to burn it. It was an artwork. Percy rolled his eyes at her as he lit the shroud up. 

It was fun to burn.

As Apollo's cabin led the sing-along and passed out toasted marshmallows, Lorelei who sitting next to Percy who was surrounded by his old Hermes cabin mates, Annabeth's friends from Athena and Grover's satyr buddies, who were admiring the brand new searcher's licence he'd received from the Council of Cloven Elders.

The council had called Grover's performance on the quest 'Brave' to the point of indigestion. Horns-and-whiskers above anything they had seen in the past.'

The only ones not in a party mood were Clarisse and her cabinmates, whose poisonous looks told Percy they'd never forgive him for disgracing their dad.

Percy just smiled and waved.

Even Dionysus's welcome-back speech wasn't enough to dampen his spirits.

"Yes, yes, so the little brat didn't get himself killed, and now he'll have an even bigger head. Well, huzzah for that. In other announcements, there will be no canoe races this Saturday..."

Percy moved back into cabin three, but it didn't feel so lonely anymore. He had my friends to train with during the day. At night, he laid awake and listened to the sea, knowing his father was out there. Maybe he wasn't quite sure about him yet, but he was watching. And so far, he was proud of what he'd done. 

As for his mother, she had a chance at a new life.

Her letter arrived a week after Percy and Lora arrived back to camp. She told him Gabe had left mysteriously – disappeared off the face of the planet, in fact. She'd reported him missing to the police, but she had a funny feeling they would never find him.

On a completely unrelated subject, she'd sold her first life-size concrete sculpture, entitled The Poker Player, to a collector through an art gallery in Soho. She'd got so much money for it that she'd put a deposit down on a new apartment and made a payment on her first term's tuition at NYU. The Soho gallery was clamouring for more of her work, which they called 'a huge step forward in super-ugly neorealism'. She had also asked Lorelei if she received her package

Percy had shot Lorelei a look, but she just shrugged and said she had no idea what she was talking about, but he could see the satisfaction signing in her eyes.