cover you now ; pjo

ten ; take me home, country roads

"and now he's gone off somewhere! That doesn't seem the least bit suspicious to you?"

"He lives here! His mom owns the diner we ate at! He's not going to be at your beck and call, ok?"

"He's in your head! We can't trust him!"

Stef snapped awake, curled in a tight ball in her sleeping bag. Sighing, she stuck her hand into the frigid air and felt around for her glasses. The argument continuing, her hand closed around them, she pulled herself out into the morning.

A fine mist covered everything, and the sun shone through the trees. Anela sat on top of her sleeping bag, scarf covering her mouth.

Carolyn and Gabi stood near the pile of ashes that used to be their fire, voices growing louder and louder. Ben stood a few feet from them, a worried look on his face.

"-no. YOU don't get it. He is the darkness. The one from the prophecy." Gabi held her dagger. Electricity rolled down it.

"How do you know that?" Carolyn's aura was brighter than Stef had ever seen it.

"He's a son of Hades, Carolyn! Why didn't he come to Camp when he was 12? It's suspicious!"

"No! He's sweet! We talked last night."

"Plus don't you think that it's a bit strange that we also found him under an oak tree? Another line of the prophecy you've seemed to forgotten!" Gabi pointed to the tree with her dagger. The electricity had spread from the blade up her arm.

"But-"

"You're corrupted! He's planted this fake image of himself in you. And, you like him. So you're out of this argument for being a dumb middle schooler."

Carolyn scoffed. "Says Miss 'everything is about me everything has to go my way'. We get it! You have fucked up trust issues because of your shitty mommy and your absentee father. But guess what? You're not the only one with a fucked up family life! So stop."

The words hung in the air.

Anela's eyes widened. Stef put her hand over her mouth.

After a few crucial moments, Ben tentatively took a step forward.

It was like a rubber band had snapped.

Gabi sniffed, dropped her dagger, and turned away from Carolyn.

"Gabi-" Carolyn began.

She ignored her.

"Stef? Want some breakfast?"

•••••

About an hour later, Gabi stood in front of the rest of the demigods (minus Mystery Boy), holding the map and laying out the plan to walk to Winnett and hitch a ride there. Carolyn stood back from the rest of the group, arms crossed as she stared at the ground and shifted her weight back and forth. She was probably daydreaming.

Stef fiddled with the zipper of her jacket. Fuck, it was cold.

Gabi kept talking. There was a tension in the group that they hadn't experienced before, even when they hadn't known each other that well, and it sucked. A lot.

Stef lifted her head to say something about how bullshit it was that these two idiots couldn't suckit up and talk about their fucking feelings when Mystery Boy walked through the trees with donuts.

A backpack was slung on his shoulders. The box in his arms was white, with the label of the diner in town etched on the side. Martha's. Stef cocked her head. Who was this kid?

Gabi sighed in exasperation and folded up the map, turning to face the boy. "What?" She said shortly.

He held out the box. "I brought.... donuts?" He said, almost apprehensively. "Apple cider flavored. My mom's recipe."

"We already ate, but... thanks?" Ben glanced over at Gabi, as if for approval, before stepping towards the boy. "We'll definitely eat them as soon as we can. They smell delicious."

"It was more of a thanks. For nursing me back to health. It was unwise to go against the manticore on my own. I get attacks like that every few months, and Alfred's been training me fine. But that was the first one since..." He cut himself off. Stef glanced at Anela, who gave her a quizzical look. Stef shrugged. "...if you hadn't gotten there and taken care of the thing I would've been done for. And Carolyn's healing abilities are impeccable." He smiled at her, almost shyly. Upon hearing her name, she looked up and smiled back.

"Anyway," he continued suddenly. "These donuts were also an offering, of some sort. To possibly have me join your quest? Or at least drop me off in Winnett so I can catch a bus to Helena. For a lot of reasons I need to get out of Cat Creek."

"What about his mom...?" Anela whispered.

Gabi blinked, quiet for a moment. "Sure!" She cried, throwing the map into the air. Ben caught it. "Why the hell not?" She said, with a sarcastic enthusiasm and a wide, fake grin on her face. "We let the weird ass kid who we just found randomly in the middle of nowhere into our party where he could possibly die! Sure sounds like a good plan to me!"

"I can go if you want-" the boy started.

"No! Come with us! Well," Gabi pretended to think. "We should at least know your name. Have a little trust at least." She shot a glare at Carolyn.

The boy squinted in confusion. "I thought Carolyn would've told you by now, but my name is Bruce."

"Bruce. A very trustworthy name indeed. Especially for someone with 'fucked up family life', right?"

Carolyn rolled her eyes. "You're really serious? You want to come with us? You could die you know." She stepped towards him and grabbed a donut from the box. "Oh my gods... this is really fucking good."

Bruce shrugged. "I won't die." He face lit up. "I know right? My mom was the best cook."

"Ok kids, as long as Bruce doesn't need to get anything from home, we're heading out now." Gabi plucked the map from Ben's hands and began to walk through the trees. Ben followed first, giving Bruce a quick nod as he passed him. Anela waved at the boy, and Stef whispered, "welcome to the big leagues, Hades kid," before running to catch up with Anela and Ben.

"Nice jacket," Carolyn said, beginning to follow the group. Bruce walked along beside her, still carrying the donut box.

He snickered. "Thanks."

They were quiet for a while. Carolyn watched her breath come out in clouds. Bruce's cheeks were pink from the cold.

When they reached the main road and began to walk on it, Carolyn finally spoke. "Why did you really come along?"

"What?"

"I mean, it can't just be because you want adventure. Unless you are not the kind of person I took you for."

"Fine." He sighed. "There are some wrongs I need to right. And I sure as hell can't do them in that sad excuse for a town I grew up in."

"Yeah but, this is an ugly path. The life of the demigod isn't pretty."

"Sometimes the ugly way is the right way."

Carolyn nodded, looking up at the sky for a bit.

She barely noticed when he shifted the donut box to one arm.

But then he took her hand. And it was so nonchalant, so integrated into their walking stride, she almost didn't have her mind melt at how warm his hand was.

They looked at each other for a split second, blushed, and looked away. They kept walking

A little voice at the back of her mind echoed over and over that maybe he really was the darkness. That he couldn't be trusted.

But he was solid and trustworthy. He would not betray them. He couldn't.

•••••

Could he?