Puppets (Percy Jackson AU)

Reyna

Yay for this chapter bc we get insight into piper's past and spoilers for the next book. :)

after this, three more chapters and the epilogue, and then the story is over. cries.

20//REYNA//:

Reyna was stressed. She couldn't do anything because her sister still walked the halls, she wanted to know who L was, she was worrying about how she was next in line, she was afraid that Piper would spill about her big crush on Annabeth, and worst of all, Hazel called a meeting. They met in Piper's room, per usual. As soon as all the girls were in the room, Thalia grabbed Katie Gardner's arm and steered her out, slamming the door behind her. Reyna could hear their footsteps as they walked down the hall.

She flopped onto Katie's bed, Annabeth tumbling beside her. Piper smirked, giving a discreet wink to Reyna. Reyna balled up her fists in Katie's sheets.

"Whoa, tiger." Annabeth put her hand over one of Reyna's, noticing the tension, and her heart sped up. She jerked her hand away, and Annabeth looked hurt.

"Right, so I got rid of Rachel." Hazel announced and Reyna's head jerked towards her. What?

Piper voiced everyone's thoughts. "How? And why?"

Hazel's jaw set. "She killed Bianca and Zoë, if you don't quite remember. And all I had to do was call a few people and make a few deals. She's in an institution now, but not locked in some white padded room... yet." Hazel's tone sounded light and mischievous, but Reyna was shocked. A mental hospital type place? Did Rachel really deserve that?

She killed two innocent girls, her mind reminded her. She deserves that. She deserves to be locked up in a room.

"When does she get out?" Reyna asked stoically.

"I'm not sure." Hazel looked troubled. "I'll find out."

"Winter break is coming up," Piper mentioned, changing the subject. "Time's really flown by."

"True," voiced Annabeth. "I really don't want to go home to my parents though."

Piper bit her lip. "Neither do I. Hazel, Reyna, what are you doing?"

"I might visit home, I don't know. I just know that I'm staying near Nico." Hazel answered.

"I'll probably stay here. Don't have much of a family." Reyna looked at the ground.

Piper laughed. "Perfect! You guys are all coming with me to England!"

Reyna's jaw dropped. "What?"

"England. Duh. Rich family, remember? And Hazel, I'll get a ticket for your brother. Jason's coming too. But if Jason comes, so does Thalia. Ugh. Ooh, and what about your boyfriends? I'll get tickets for Frank and Percy if they can come. And we all know that the person who Reyna likes is unavailable and coming on the trip..."

Reyna resisted the urge to slap her. She reasoned in her mind that the other two girls probably thought Piper meant Jason. "I'm in."

"Same." Annabeth said, her eyes alight.

"A-are you sure?" Hazel's eyes widened. "That's awfully expensive..."

"Of course I am." Piper tossed her hair back. "My dad's new assistant will come with us." Pain flashed on Piper's face for a split second. "Never liked the old one," she mumbled.

"Sounds absolutely brilliant," Reyna said in a mock British accent. "But it's getting late, and we still have that essay due for English."

"I'm done it." Annabeth laughed.

"Oh, you can shut up." Reyna whacked her arm playfully, but all traces of joy vanished from her face as Piper mouthed, 'Reyna and Annabeth, sitting in a tree.' "I've got to go. Bye." She walked out abruptly, leaving three confused girls behind her.

As she was walking down the hallway, she bumped into a little kid. He must've been twelve, thirteen ish. Reyna knew him from somewhere, she just couldn't place it. "Sorry," she apologized.

The boy froze as he recognized her. "You knew Bianca," he said, the colour draining from his face. "I know you didn't have a chance to save her, but you didn't have to hide the truth of who it was." He spat. Nico Di Angelo, she recognized. Bianca's little brother. He tossed out a purple, leather-bound book into the floor. Reyna gasped and scrambled to pick it up.

She grabbed his arm, her voice low and menacing. "How did you get this?"

"I got a note." Nico pulled away and turned the corner. Reyna looked around the corner a moment later, but he seemed to have blended in with the shadows.

Reyna passed back by Piper's dorm, and was about to go to her own when she heard sobbing. She hesitantly turned the doorknob, not even wanting to know what had happened. There was Piper, alone on her bed, tears streaming down her face. "Get out," the choppy haired girl said.

"What happened?" Reyna asked, sitting beside Piper.

"I said get out." Piper sniffled.

"And I asked what happened." Reyna grabbed the other girl's shoulder, turning her so their eyes met. "Tell me."

And so, Piper began her story.

It had all started when Piper had just turned fourteen. Her dad had gotten signed onto a new movie, and after it was over, his new friends that had been on set helping had taken a liking to Piper. Every night they came over, a few of them would distract Tristan, and start to pick on and play with Piper. After a few occurrences, they began to take it up a notch, touching her inappropriately. It got so bad, but if she told her father, they would ruin his career. And his career meant everything to him. Piper didn't want to play the disobedient daughter again. One day, in the middle of whatever Piper called hell, Jane, her father's assistant, had walked in on them having their way with her. Instead of doing something, Jane laughed and egged them on, watching as Piper gritted her teeth and tried not to curl up in a ball and sob. This happened until she acted out for her father's attention, which got her sent away to Wilderness School, where she was soon transferred here. Even thinking about it made her freak out.

Reyna stared in horror. "W-what? That's awful!" She exclaimed as Piper looked at her feet. "I'm so sorry."

Piper's voice sounded flat. "So now you know my deepest, darkest secrets." She said bitterly. "Get out."

Reyna complied, walking out the door, trying to process all that had just happened.