The Chosen One | Heroes of Olympus

Hazel

Silence. That was the only thing going on between the demigods. Nobody spoke or dared to move. Nobody would even make eye contact. Hazel's breathing started to increase to the point where she was hyperventilating. Percy put a soothing arm on her back and gave her a hug.

"Haze, it's okay. I know it sucks, but if there's one thing we've learned from Piper, it's to never underestimate her. She'll find a way out of there in no time." Percy whispered in her ear and sunk back into his seat. His body language contradicted his hopeful statement, and it was obvious he didn't really believe himself.

Slowly, her friends began leaving the dining hall. First it was Annabeth, to go and think alone, as she did best. Then Frank, but not without making sure Hazel was okay. Leo and Percy followed and you could hear a door slam momentarily after. That left Hazel and Jason sitting in complete shock.

"It's my fault, you know." Jason said. He lifted his head up to look at Hazel, his eyes full of tears.

"I had a dream the night before. My father wanted me to find out who the Chosen One was, and kill them. I told her that." He tipped his head back down and let the tears escape.

"Jason." Hazel got up from her chair and sat next to him. She grabbed his hands and made him look at her.

"Do not blame yourself. She did this to save us, nothing more. You couldn't have known it was her. None of us did."

Jason looked up at her, tears glistening on his eyelashes.

"I should've known. I know her better than anyone else in this world. And the biggest, most defining part about her, I was completely clueless to." Jason scooted out his chair and quietly walked to his room with his hands tucked in his pockets.

The rest of the day went on in utter numbness. Hazel was feeling so many emotions that they all combined into a big ball of nothing. She couldn't tell if she was sad, or mad, or relieved, or guilty.

Hazel laid in her bed. It was well past midnight, but Hazel didn't want to sleep. She didn't want to let her mind drift off to a different reality that wasn't her current one. She didn't deserve that.

Hazel tried to be optimistic. Maybe Esmeralda would drain all of the power from Piper, and return her safely? Piper would be okay, right? It hurt to even imagine a world where she would make it out of this alive.

Hazel wished so much that she would've been the Chosen One. Not for the power, but to prevent Piper from being in this situation. She remembered a conversation she had with Piper before... Well.

"Piper, it's one of us girls. A 1 in 3 chance! What are we going to do? How are we going to tell the boys? What if it's me, and then Frank..." Hazel trailed off as the saltwater tears flowed down her chocolate cheeks.

Piper put her arm around Hazel's shoulders. She squeezed her shoulder as a comforting gesture.

"Hazel, don't worry. If it's you, all of us will do everything possible to protect you. That's a guarantee. Frank especially. You'll be okay, I promise." Hazel turned her head into Piper's chest and sobbed for what felt like hours.

Hazel wished she could go back to this time. When Piper was here, comforting her. The irony behind her words; her offering protection from everyone to Hazel, and yet Piper didn't get an ounce of protection in return. It left a stabbing pain in Hazel's heart, and she hoped her tears could numb the pain. She cried and cried, the pain lingering as she slowly faded from her conscious state, and entered a new state of slumber.

A pounding on Hazel's door disrupted her peaceful sleep. She didn't have a single dream, something she desperately needed.

Hazel groggily sat up as she heard half-whispering, half-shouting outside her door. Frank cracked opened the door ever so slightly and peaked into the room.

"Sorry about that. Leo doesn't understand the concept of manners." Leo pushed past Frank and into her bedroom.

"Well it woke her up, didn't it? Anyway, we gotta make a pitstop. We're running low on some ingredients to make this bad boy run! We're going to land in Arizona. Annabeth said we couldn't stop in Vegas." Leo pouted and trudged out of the room. Hazel wanted to believe it was because of Annabeth, but she had a suspicion that it wasn't.

Frank gave her his signature shrug and left the room. Hazel loved it when he did that; it was one of the most adorable things he could do.

Hazel put on some light blue shorts and an old Camp Jupiter shirt to go with her low-topped white Converse and went above deck, stopping by the dining hall to grab a quick breakfast. Everyone else was already there, standing around. An uncomfortable feeling passed between the demigods, a feeling of not knowing what to do or how to act. Leo cleared his throat and stood in front of his friends.

"I have a list of stuff that I'll grab while we're here. It won't take long. Hazel and I will be back before you know it." Leo looked at her with a pleading look.

"Let's get going, then." Hazel said.

Leo landed the ship pretty close to where they needed to go. The great thing about Arizona is that there is quite literally nothing there. Perfect for landing a massive ship full of demigods off to save the world yet again.

As Leo led the way through the town, he recited all of the required ingredients.

"Water from the River Styx, check. Lemnos Fire, check. Now, all we need is the essence of a venti. Stay here while I go check out this store. Venti are not something you want to mess with." Leo shuddered as he entered the store. Hazel found a tree nearby to sit under as she waited. She looked around at all of the people, living normal lives with their normal friends and normal families. She saw a couple enjoying lunch together at a café. A mother was pushing a stroller with her newborn baby boy sitting inside, smiling and laughing at the world around him. An old man was sitting on the bench in the park.

Wait. That wasn't just any old man. Hazel began to recognize him more and more. It couldn't be possible... He was dead. He is dead. Mr. Henry had a heart attack when Queen Marie sold him that ruby...

Hazel frantically looked away. She was surely just seeing things. She fixated on the stores, watching the people walk in and out of them. A young man walked out of a farming store carrying a large package with only one arm. No... That was because he only had one arm. Hazel immediately knew it was Charlie Gasceaux, the man her mother had sold the gold bracelet to. He lost his arm in a harvester shortly after the sale.

Hazel shut her eyes as tightly as she could. It was all a figment of her imagination. She took a deep, steady breath and opened her eyes. Mr. Henry and Charlie were gone. Hazel breathed a sigh of relief.

"You cursed me, Hazel. You did this to me!" Charlie said in her right ear. She whipped her body around to face him. His eyes were sunken in and his skin a sickeningly pale shade. His clothes were old and torn up like he had to fight his way out of something. He looked at her with an intense glare. A hand grabbed Hazel's left shoulder and turned her body. Mr. Henry gripped her, digging his nails into her skin. He looked just as bad as Charlie.

"You're a freak, kid. You don't belong in this time. You should be dead, just like me. Just like what you did to me!" Mr. Henry shouted in her face. Hazel shrieked and pushed herself away from them, burying her head in her knees. You're just seeing things. You're just seeing things. Hazel repeated over and over again in her head.

"You killed me, Hazel! You killed me, Hazel!" Mr. Henry chanted in her ear.

"Look what you've done, Hazel! Look what you've done, Hazel!" Charlie yelled in her other ear.

"You'll always be a mistake, Hazel. You'll always be a mistake, Hazel." The two men said in complete unison. They repeated this message like they were an automatic recording.

Hazel's body trembled as she let out a bloodcurdling scream, one after another, trying to drown out the voices who were confirming her biggest fear.

Who would've thought Jenna would do her best writing at one in the morning? Really proud of how this chapter turned out... Oh. And poor Hazel baby (;