The Spirits of the Universe (PJO)

Chapter 62--We Have a Talk

Aridne met my glare with an unreadable expression for a few moments—long enough that I began to wonder if I'd been wrong about my assumption, and that this situation was all a coincidence.

Then she sighed and dropped her gaze. "Okay, you're right. I followed you here."

I should've been angry at her for invading my privacy. 

Instead, I was hurt. "I'm on your side, Aridne. I know I'm not really supposed to sneak out, but I'm an adult. You should be able to trust me."

"I do trust you!" Aridne said quickly. "I just . . ."

"Just what?" Now anger began running through my veins. "You think I'm a mole or something? That I'm meeting up with Niyomina to tell her that we're laying a trap down for her? Because I can think of a lot of better places than this stupid bar for a rendezvous. Sorry." I looked at the bartender apologetically, who'd come back into earshot to refill my water glass.

He opened his mouth, but Aridne shot him another deadly glare, and he scampered off again. Then she turned to me with a sigh. "Don't be ridiculous. Of course I don't think of you like that . . ."

"Then what, Aridne? I have a whole lot of questions for you, and you can't even answer the easiest one!"

"Will you give me a break?" Aridne exploded suddenly, taking me by shock. "Okay, so maybe I'm not good with words. But do I need to remind you that the only reason I'm on this mission is to help? I . . . thought I would be helping by following you here—but I realized that isn't the case. So let me just leave and let's forget this ever happened."

"So do you want me to also forget about all the times you gave me the cold shoulder?" I asked sarcastically.

Immediately, I wished that I could take those words back. Although I was frustrated, Aridne did have a point—she had no personal stakes in this mission. She was helping me out of her own kindness. She could've—and still could—walked away at any moment, leaving Liam and I to fend for ourselves. I couldn't help but wonder how far we would've been able to carry along this mission with just the two of us. As much as I hate to admit it, Liam might be a funny guy, but that does nothing to excuse his horrid planning.

Fortunately, though, my words seemed to defuse her anger. Her shoulders sagged in resignation. "So you caught on. As much as I hate to admit it, Percy, I have been trying to avoid you for a while now. I never meant to hurt you, but it seems like I did."

"It wasn't that bad," I said sarcastically. "You only cut off, like, one of two people that I could trust."

"But, Percy, you can't only blame this one on me alone. You have been acting weird recently as well. As if Liam and I weren't the only two occupying your attention throughout this mission."

Why's she so smart? I cursed. I had no idea how to respond to that. Fortunately, Aridne was busy trying to defend herself, so she didn't notice my reaction. "Percy, you have to understand—being a Chaos soldier means I actively fight to not die. I have to trust my instincts to the maximum. And right now, with your behavior, my instincts are telling me to kill you before you can sabotage this mission."

My blood ran cold. Suddenly, I became conscious of the swords on Aridne's belt and the distance between my hand and the pen in my pocket. Would I be able to uncap Riptide before Aridne could slash my throat? It would be a close one—but something I don't really want to find the answer to. 

As I calmly sipped my water with my right hand, my other hand crawled towards my pocket, hidden from view.

But Aridne wasn't finished. "I've been suppressing the survival part of my brain for a while now. I thought I was treating you normally, but I guess I'm not used to disobeying myself. But it was a necessary action. Because . . . I can't bear to see you hurt." Her words were soft—almost defeated. 

My left hand froze. A rush of adrenaline pushed through my body. My heart beat at twice its pace. But it wasn't because I was ready to fight.

My face turned red, and a warm, fluttery feeling welled up in my chest. You can't be letting a woman affect you this much, Percy! Even if she's the most beautiful person you've ever seen . . .

I cleared my throat. "I'm sorry that I've been acting so . . . weird. There's a lot going on right now, and it's too long to explain."

"I like hearing you talk."

Then she looked at me with eyes filled with an unfamiliar emotion—one that made my heart almost stop.