𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐌𝐄 𝐍𝐎𝐓! [pjo]

XVII; migraines

━━━migraines

.・゜゜・───・゜゜・

They were walking back to the boat when Callahan saw it. It was a simple fountain, grey concrete with a stone figure as the water spout. They had walked by it, Cal glancing briefly as she observed the area, but the second had her eyes focused on the figure, her head erupted in pain. She cried out, collapsing onto the concrete, whimpering as her brain pounded. Tears welled in her eyes, and she could dully hear Percy, Frank, and Hazel run forward, shouting in surprise. She whimpered again, swallowing thickly.

It felt like hot molten iron pokers were being shoved into the soft points of her brain, twisting and turning and scraping against the bone. Her eyes were watering, and something wet and sticky was running down to her mouth. Blood.

    "Make it stop, make it stop." she cried, her cheeks red. A pair of cool hands came and cupped them, brushing her hair out of her face and wiping the blood away from her nose.

    "Lucky, what's wrong?" Percy's voice was quiet and far away, soaked in worry.

    "I don't'--I don't--" She whimpered when her head flared again, burning her eyes. "It just-- gods, make it stop!" She cried.

    "Ok, ok!" Percy said, "I'm going to pick you up." Arms wrapped around her waist and under her thighs, and she was lifted up. She curled into the warmth that surrounded her, tears wetting her cheeks. Her mouth was metallic.

    Percy started jogging, his chest pounding. Cal's whimpers squeezed his heart to dust.

    "Shh, shh..." He pressed his lips to her head, "It'll be ok."

    Cal whimpered, curling tighter. Her tears were creating a puddle on his shirt, and they burned into his skin. Frank and Hazel followed behind them, both of them sick with worry.

When they got to the boat, Percy sat down with Cal in his lap, head against his chest. The boat peeled away from the dock and into the misty ocean, but Percy wasn't paying any attention. He couldn't, not with Cal curled against his chest. His fingers brushed at the hot tears and wet blood, his fingers coming away sticky. His throat shrunk a couple sizes when she nuzzled into his palm, brow creased.

As her whimpers died down and her tears slowly stopped, Percy realized she had fallen asleep. Her chest rose and fell slowly, breath soft against Percy's neck.

"What happened?" Hazel's voice was soft, whispering. Percy looked up from Cal's face and shrugged.

"I don't know." and he hated that he didn't know. This was Cal, she had been there since the beginning, since he could remember. She was the one with a smile the color of sunlight, and a laugh that sounded like home. She always smelt like roses and metal, and her hair was as soft as silk. When they kissed, Percy's vision tunneled and his heart shrunk six sizes. Home. She was home.

    "Is she gonna be ok?" Frank asked, and Percy shrugged again.

    "I-" his breath caught, "I don't know."

    He could feel Hazel staring at him.

"Memories--" Ella stuttered behind them, "her memories--they--they--"

Percy's head twisted around to look at Ella, careful to not jostle Callahan from her sleep.

"Ella, what do you mean?" Hazel asked.

Ella twitched and picked at her feathers. "She remembers the past and magic she holds." then she sneezed, feathers flying, and went back to chewing on her macrobiotic jerky.