#KITE WHISTLED AGAIN!!!

[iveseenstrangerthings]

more than friends - a steve harrington imagine

summary: a real fluffy imagine after writing angst for the past few, best friends turns to lovers. Reader is teased about their close relationship with Steve by a jocky asshole, so Steve decides to do something about his feelings. both are obviously pining for each other but just don’t know how to do something about it!!

word count: 3.3k

warnings: really cringe asshole male talk about female character (inappropriate sexual remarks) & swearing.

thanks @urfriendlywriter for the friends to lovers confession prompt!!! <3

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Alrighty class, notes for the biological study are on the blackboard, you have the full hour to complete this. I expect everyone to have the practical experiment done, and their write up started by the bell. Am I clear with that?” Mrs Peters stands with her hands on top of her blooming belly, slightly leaning against the desk with her hip. 

The class grumble a response and Mrs Peters smiles, nodding. “I’ll float until my ankles hurt,” She starts, hinting to her swollen pregnancy ankles and gets a murmur of laughter in response, “Off you go!” 

The equipment is already lain out for you and your lab partner, Brad. He stands awfully close to you as you sort through the different brightly coloured flowers scattering your table. You have a feeling you’ll end up doing all the work, with Brad copying everything down in the last ten minutes. 

“Jheez.” Brad whistles under his breath as the class volume raises to the sound of students discussing their impending flower dissections. “Wonder who the lucky bastard is that gets a ride on her.” You turn to face him, your insides screaming with utter disgust, he motions his head to Mrs Peters and slides his eyebrows up and down. 

“You’re disgusting.” You say to the white peony that you’ve set out for your first dissection. Brad hears, and just laughs to you. He takes that as a joke, as a compliment, and it disgusts you even more. “Can you start to take the petals off those,” your eyes flit to the five other flowers laid out in a neat, colourful row, “and make notes on their type of pollination?” A tinge of annoyance already lacing your voice.

“Their type’ah what now?” He sits picking the petals off roughly, not following any of Mrs Peters prior instructions, and that fills you with rage. As someone who excels in school and wants to do well, your lab partner pairing feels like someone, somewhere, wants to torture you. You realise that it’s going to be easier, and less painful, if you just do it. Just crack on with the lab practical and let Brad sit there and sniff the pretty petals. “Can you get high on this stuff?” He says, his nose dotted with a tiny bit of pollen from where he dug it into the centre of the flower.

You widen your eyes and nod enthusiastically, “High as a kite.” You confirm, sarcastically, and his eyes glow back at you. Jesus...

Time passes and you’re in your element, investigating stigmas and anthers up close under the microscope, adding to your quick diagrams of each part with brief, but helpful, notes. Ones that Brad will no doubt copy from in due course. He’s sitting, like an impatient child, folding and tearing the petals he picked off earlier. The only time he’s made an effort so far is when Mrs Peters made her rounds and he came to stand by you and ‘make notes’ on your observations, only to sit back down again and scribble in the margin of his notebook when she slunk back away.

“Harrington shown you a good time yet, huh?” Brad’s voice breaks the silence between the two of you and your cheeks flush a deep red as you squint through the lens of the microscope. A thick glob of saliva forms under your tongue which you swiftly swallow back. “Come on, we’re in biology... can we not discuss things like that?” 

You lift your head from the lens and look at him. His face is expectant, expectant of your response, hoping for a bite back, and he calmly crosses his arms over his chest. Your cheeks are still firing up, your vision goes slightly blurry for a short while as white-hot anger burns up inside you. After glaring at him for some time, you return to your position at the microscope.

Before you could realise, he’s bumping your arm with his and leaning down to speak to you, not even the beautifully intricate flower beneath you is giving you any sanity. “If he’s too much of a pussy to do it, let me show you what a good time is really like.” He’s so close you can feel his breath warm your ear and send shivers down your spine, feeling like it’s hitting every vertebrate on the way down. 

“Steve and I are just friends.” The more uninterested you seem, the more likely he is to give up on his pursuit and just shut the fuck up. Or so you’re hoping. 

He scoffs, “Pfft.” His tongue creeps from his mouth and licks his bottom lip, “Friends with benefits? C’mon. I ain’t stupid.” He goes quiet then you feel a soft tickle forming down your spine, Brad’s finger. Then, his breath back in your ear, “Bet he doesn’t know your sweet spots.” 

You shoot back from Brad, holding your hands up, like you’ve been scolded with a hot iron, “Okay. That’s it.” You charge from your station down to the front where Mrs Peters sits, grading papers. “Mrs Peters.” You say, quietly now that you’re down here, not wanting anyone to hear your conversation. In your hands, your fingers tremble slightly with the adrenaline of the conversation you just had. “I would like to request a change of lab partner.” Your voice comes out strong and confident but your face paints a different picture. “Please.”

Mrs Peters looks behind you, at your now half empty desk, and to Brad who sits and moves stems and petals around the table into a phallic shape. He grabs the attention of the pair in front, who seem displeased at the childish distraction. She raises her brows in his direction, when he meets her glare, his cheeks flush a light pink, and he rearranges the flowers into the muddle they were before. 

“Say no more, sweet pea.” She says with an exasperated sigh, shuffling papers to pull out her seating plan. You look over as she pulls a pencil from her pot and pats her lip with the eraser. “Eleanor’s in need of a partner.” She says, tracing over the spare seat on her plan, “That sound good?” Mrs Peter’s kind eyes meet your own and she offers you a sincere smile. 

“That would be great.” Your heart leaps with relief. 

“Finish up there for today, you can move on Monday. He can stay with me.” As you make your way back to your desk, Mrs Peters calls out from hers. “Brad Norton.” The class falls silent, her usual sing-song voice has turned cold, stern. “I don’t recall asking you to make penises with your pretty little flowers. You can stay and do your lab work, tho-rough-ly,” she sounds out each syllable in the word, the veins in her neck protruding with distaste at her student, “with me in detention.” 

The classroom remains quiet as you find your seat and complete your notes. “Bitch.” Is muttered venomously from next to you and you’re unsure if it’s directed at you or Mrs Peters, but you’re past caring. 

                                                          ✦ ✦ ✦

On Friday nights, you and Steve like to walk from school to the diner which flickers welcomingly in the dark winter light as you approach. As usual, you take to your table which is located in the corner of the diner. It is cosy. You love coming here, especially with Steve. It’s a time that you can spend together, just the two of you, have a burger, have a milkshake, and just catch up on the week. You adore your Friday nights with Steve. 

Now, you’re leaning against the comfy backing of the squishy diner chair, the fabric crinkling awkwardly as you get yourself comfortable. You’ve both cleared your plates, smears of ketchup and dustings of salt lie in remnant of what was two full plates of burgers and fries. Gluttonously, as your stomach feels heavy with the greasy food that you adore, you continue to gulp your milkshake. 

“I heard Brad Norton got a detention today in bio.” Steve finishes dragging his last fry through a dreg of ketchup before placing it into his mouth, laughing at the new conversation topic. You simply roll your eyes and let the milkshake freeze your back teeth before swallowing. 

“He’s an asshole.” You retort, swirling your straw around in the thick, creamy drink. Your eyes stay fixed on the pink substance in your glass, watching the small particles of ice slowly melt the more you stir. “I’ve switched partners, finally. I asked Mrs Peters to move.” 

“Really?” 

You nod, your brows furrowing. “Uh, yeah. I don’t fancy sitting and getting creepy back strokes from him for the rest of the year.” 

Steve sits back against the seat, “He did what?” A surge of jealousy, and anger flits through him and you can see it flash across his eyes, a change so subtle you feel proud you noticed. He knows that would’ve made you uncomfortable and he knows where Brad usually goes on a Friday night, he runs over the possibility of going there and beating the shit out of him, but quickly decides that would be a terrible idea. “Is that what he got his detention for? Being a creep?” 

You laugh slightly, “Close.” You take another gulp of milkshake. “He was making dicks out of the flowers.” You realise you’re talking to your milkshake and not to Steve, he’s noticed too and realises there’s more to this story than you’re letting on. He knows you too well. 

“You sure that’s all he did?” He knows not to push things with you, but the feeling is bubbling up inside of him. 

You toy with the idea for a moment. Tell Steve, let Steve get angry and potentially make your favourite night of the week awkward? Or, don’t tell Steve, enjoy each other’s company and go from there? 

You’ve both been close to sharing your feelings with each other on multiple occasions, sat in this very booth. The diner must have an aura that allows you to become content with your feelings with one another, almost becoming more than friends. The diner is where you’ve shared feelings, ranted about shitty weeks, shitty dates; cried into milkshakes over the clear downfall of Hawkins. But it’s also where you’ve brushed hands as you reach for napkins, letting your fingertips linger a little longer than is necessary. It’s where you’ve held eye contact as you talk about things that interest you, the other listening with intent adoration. His eyes glisten as he listens to you discuss another biological theory that you love talking about with him, his lips curling as he listens intently and marvels at your passion and drive for science. You return the active listening as he discusses the trips to the Upside Down, watch little pieces of him break apart as he cracks open his memories of things he tries so hard to supress, but keep creeping back into his consciousness. 

So, with all that in mind, you decide to tell him. “He quizzed me on whether you show me a good time.” You blurt out, placing your milkshake down and folding your arms onto the table. “said he would show me a good time, said he knew my sweet spots. Basically, he spent the lesson trying to get into my pants.” 

His face is a picture of disgust, his eyebrows furrowing so deep you think they’ll knit together. “I promise you; he is one of a kind.” He holds his hands up in defence, “We are not all sex crazed lunatics who like making people feel uncomfortable.” His features soften and he looks over to you, taking in your features as he likes to here. They look softer in the glow of the luminous light that hangs above their window, the streetlights casting a yellow tinge into the corner where you sit tucked away. “I’m sorry he made you feel like that.” His voice is sincere.

You shake it off with a whip of a hand, “Shall we get out of here?” 

He nods, leaving the money on the table. “Come back to mine? We can watch a movie.” 

As you stand to straighten yourself up, you smile back at him warmly, nodding gently at his offer. 

                                                         ✦ ✦ ✦

Warm waves of air circulate out of the heater placed by your feet as you sit in Steve’s basement on the couch, watching a new film Steve rented out. You haven’t really been paying attention, you’ve been more interested in gradually moving your limbs inch by inch closer to Steve’s, your breath hitching as you feel him doing the same. Soon enough, you’re sat with your arms pressed against one another and your leg is resting comfortably against his. 

“Can’t stop thinking about what that asshole said to you.” His voice sounds weird after not talking for so long, the only sound being the grumbling heater and the soundtrack of the film playing out in front of you.

You rub his arm gently, sighing, “Stop thinking about it Steve, he’s not worth it.” 

“No, I know.” He’s quiet for a while again, the flickers of vibrant colours on the screen lighting up his features and your eyes travel around them all. He feels your eyes on him and leans to pause the TV, the sudden cut of sound making the room feel too quiet. Your breathing slows, waiting for him to start the conversation again. Sheepishly, you slowly pull your hand from his arm, suddenly feeling awkward having left it there for so long. He turns his body so he’s facing you and you scoot back a touch, propping your arm up on the back of the couch and leaning your head against your palm.

“Penny for your thoughts?” You probe delicately, you can tell he has something whirlpooling in his mind. 

He shakes his head, smiling coyly. “Just thinking.” 

“About...” Your hands tumble over one another, hinting for him to go on. 

“You.” His bluntness makes your stomach squeeze tight, as if you’ve just dropped from one of those free-fall rides at the amusement park. His face remains unchanged, his eyes studying yours. “Thinking about you.” 

Slowly, you take a deep breath in. Unaware you were holding it in the first place. “Why me?” Annoyingly, your voice comes out as quiet as the hum of the heater, almost inaudible to someone who wasn’t trained in on the conversation. Suddenly the room feels warm, and you realise this could be the time to have the conversation you’ve been longing to have.

“’Cause I think about you all the time.”

You’d hoped all this time that he does just that.

And he does, he thinks of you when you aren’t there, when he’s lonely, when he feels sad, when he lies awake at night wishing he could turn over and feel the warmth of your skin against this. Wishing he could spend the night with you in a blur of heavy breathing, lustful kisses and soft moans. Wishing he could tell you how much you mean to him afterwards, holding you close whilst you both catch your breath and settle into the sheets in a dream-like state. He’s realising now how close he is to having all of this. To having you. If you want him, that is. 

“I know you feel what I feel.” His voice is low and his hand travels to rest just in between the two of you, like he wanted to commit to holding you but got scared half-way and changed his mind. 

A speckle of heat rests on your cheeks. “What is it that you feel?” Again, your voice is quiet, and you feel the pulse thick and fast, the heat rising up your neck from your chest. 

He clears his throat. “I know we both enjoy the time we spend together, as friends. But I don’t wanna be just friends anymore.” Silence settles over the pair of you, but you know that he’s not done yet, so you wait patiently for him to continue. “You make me feel so comfortable and you always know how to cheer me up, when to give me space, when to distract me from whatever’s going on...”

Hairs on the back of your neck prickle as the tingling sensation of adrenaline courses through your body. He continues, “I hate the fact that even assholes like Brad know there is something between us.” He sighs softly but carries on, “The fact that we haven’t even done as much as discussed how we feel, yet he’s happy to make degrading sexual comments to you about us.” 

You nod along in agreement. “I know.” Suddenly, your whole body feels drawn to him and you slide back along the couch, shuffling down into his side and placing your head in the crook of his neck, resting your arm over his stomach. This feels right, you think to yourself happily. “I love spending time with you, too. I have loved growing close to you these past few months and I-”

He lets his arm fall around your shoulders and he cuts you off, “Wait.” He insists as you feel his other hand come to rest gently against your neck, his thumb resting lightly against your jaw. “Look at me when you say it.” With his hand still resting on your neck, he gradually guides your face up so that it’s inches away from his own. His eyes travelling lazily over your features he’s grown to know so well before locking in with your own. 

Inside your chest, your heart is hammering wildly. Never have you been this close. Never this intimate. “I want to be with you, Steve.” You quietly admit, although it’s not much of a shocker. A smile forms on his lips, which have now moved ever so close to your own. Impatient and running on adrenaline, you close the gap between the pair of you and bring your lips together. His hand stays firmly on your neck, his fingertips gradually gripping the hair at the nape of your neck as your fist grasps his t-shirt as the kiss intensifies. 

The months of longing are finally coming to a head here and now as you are both desperate for each other. Not just in a sexual longing, but an emotional and physical intimacy longing, too. You can feel yourself getting lulled further into the kiss as his tongue searches for your own. 

After a few moments have passed, you both pull away gently, chests slightly heaving as you both work to catch some of your breath back. You rest your forehead against his and brush your nose past his, moving back to give him a small kiss on the corner of his mouth. “What do you say then?” You can see the happiness radiating across his face, the creases by his eyes and the soft pink glow gives it all away. His thumb traces across your cheek, “You wanna give us a shot?” He says.

Nodding, you reflect the same happiness glow that Steven is portraying. “I wanna give us the best shot.” 

Satisfied, he takes his hand back from your face and you feel how hot your cheek has been under his touch. He holds you close to him as he reaches back down to play the movie. A couple minutes later, he clears his throat. “And, if ‘Brad’” He uses air-quotes around his name, “Or any of his asshole friends wanna make any comments to you again, I’ll drop those motherfuckers.” He point blank says as his eyes follow along with the scene playing out in the movie before you.

The sudden threat from Steve brings a laugh out from you and it fills the room. Your shoulders shake as your laugh intensifies; he gestures his hands towards the TV. “Hey, do you mind keeping it down? Trying to watch a movie here.” He tuts and shakes his head playfully before resting it on top of your own, tracing his fingertips over your arm so that tiny goosebumps raise on your skin. A couple of minutes later, you find your breathing rising and falling at the same time as Steve’s, your eyes fall softly closed as you’re lulled into a light sleep, cocooned under the blankets and Steve’s arms. 

[masonmtxo]

Marley and Theo’s first time watching mase in a game at old Trafford and afterwards they come down onto the pitch and are so excited to see mase

Okay so I dont have the brain capacity for full fics at the moment but have another mini drabble! For the timeline of my fics Marley was born feb 2024 and Theo in 2027 so this is a little out of sync with that.

•••

You watched as your 3 year old daughter squirmed with excitement, pointing towards the pitch with little squeals of “daddy!” everytime Mason made contact with the ball. She was kited out in her first ever united kit, ‘Daddy’ and the number 7 printed across her back, a sight which you weren’t quite used to yet, a lump still rising in your throat when you thought back the turmoil of the past few months. You weren’t completely settled in Manchester yet, but you were on your way. The knowledge that Mason was finally content with his move, Marley was already making new friends with the other kids who’s dads played for united and Theo at only 6 months was non the wiser made it easier. You still hadn’t bought a family home, you desperately missed your friends and relatives down south, but as you watched your boyfriend do what he loved with his baby girl excitedly cheering him on, all your worries washed away in an instant.

“Only a few more minutes,” Anouska nudged you with a grin, “if they can hang on that long…”

The game had been nerve wracking, the teams constantly levelling within minutes of the other breaking ahead. United had finally gone one up, but it hadn’t stopped any of the home fans from sitting at the edge of their seats, the noise almost deafening. Marley and Reign were dancing around in front of your legs, neither of them entirely sure what was going on but the screams in the stadium had them bouncing on their toes, yelling for their respective dads.

When the whistle finally blew and cheers erupted from the stands, you finally felt like you could breathe again, swiftly taking your daughters hand in yours as you shuffled Theo comfortably onto your hip, following Anouska out the back of the box Mason and Luke shared and down onto the pitch where the boys were waiting. It was United’s first home win of the season, the atmosphere electric, the players all pumped with adrenaline as their families joined them pitch side.

The second Marley caught sight of Mason’s figure she was off, releasing her grip in your hand and darting towards him as quick as her little legs would take her.

“Daddy!”

He turned at the sound of her voice, face lighting up as she thundered towards him, crouching to the ground and bundling her into his arms. You smiled as you watched them interact, kisses being pressed to every inch of Marley’s face that Mason could reach as she held herself as close to him as she could get.

Theo babbled on your hip, drawing your attention away from them, “do you wanna see your daddy too huh?” You cooed, “c’mon then little man.”

The smile on Mason’s face made your heart clench, the relief of knowing he was finally happy after months of turmoil and stress was enough to make every other little problem in life seem insignificant. His eyes gravitated to yours, an arm reaching out to grab you as you approached and draw you both in to the other-side of his damp, sweaty chest. But none of you complained as you snuggled into him, words of praise and love being whispered among you, little tears springing in your eyes with contentment at your little family.

🩷🩷🩷

[magnetothemagnificent]

I am on Spring break so I finally get to focus on birding again! Today's birds:

Little blue heron

Black vulture

Great egret

Sandhill crane

Mourning dove

Cattle egret

Great blue heron

Anhinga

Double crested cormorant

Red winged Blackbird

Limpkin

Wood stork

White ibis

Muskovy duck

Boat-tailed grackle

American crow

American coot

Common gallinule

Common grackle

Glossy ibis

Palm warbler

Common grackle

Osprey

American purple gallinule

Wood duck

Red shouldered hawk

Pied billed grebe

Royal tern

Eastern Phoebe

Roseate spoonbill

Black-bellied Whistling duck

Tricolor heron

Northern harrier

Yellow rumped warbler

Tree swallow

Swallow tailed kite

Ring billed gull

Turkey vulture

Little blue heron

Mallard

White pelican

Red eyed vireo

Mulard

Pekin x Mallard Hybrid (there was this fascinating flock of ducks consisting of mallards, feral pekins, muskovy ducks, mulards (muskovy x mallard hybrid), and Pekin/mallard hybrids)

Feral American pekin

[corporatefrog]

꒦‧₊ ꒷ HEADCANNONS: Kenny, Kyle, Stan, and Butters saving you as superheroes/villains when you're in danger! ✧.*

✧.* tags: college au, superhero au ✧.* Characters: kenny mccormick, kyle broflovski, stan marsh, butters scotch a/n: another amazing anon request! i always love the suggestions and they lead to such fun scenarios (and ways to zone out during class lol)

masterlist

Kenny/Mysterion: 

Literally the scene from the beginning of Megamind where they’re in the observatory

Except he bursts in and saves you 

You were just trying to get footage of mysterion’s press conference then suddenly you’re tied up in the storage unit- sorry, the LAIR OF CHAOS

(he gets sad when you don’t call it that)

“Ah mysterion! It is I, your greatest foe-”

“I wouldn’t say greatest”

“Professor chaos- wait what?”

“I’m just saying I've literally fought cthulhu. He’s probably the greatest”

“Well, Cthulhu was an eldritch horror ! He doesn't count!”

“Yes he does”

“No he doesn't!”

“Yes he does!”

“No he doesn't-”

“Guys I really got to piss, can we speed this up?”

Mysterion shows up a few minutes later but you don’t get ‘rescued’ for another 30 minutes because him and chaos kept arguing

He walks you home and says he’ll always be there to save you

But you know the same thing is going to happen next week

Kyle/Human Kite

You were at the park with kyle to visit the pet adoption fair being held by the south park animal shelter

But Professor Chaos had other plans. 

Suddenly all of the animals were let out of their pens and were running through the park 

It was the most adorable stampede to ever exist

You turned to tell ky that you guys had to help but he was gone?

The text he sent: “allergic to cats. Sorry.”

BRO WHAT??

You get absolutely DOG PILED

By actual dogs. 

Chaos is evilly laughing while blowing a dog whistle while General Disarray points laser pointers at people’s feet 

You were ready to give into your death by puppy

But you’re pulled out from the dog heap by human kite! 

He flies??? Over to chaos and slaps the dog whistle out of his hands and starts lecturing him

You almost feel bad for the guy

But then again, there are cats running up trees and dogs running into the street so animal safety comes first

You help them take care of the animals 

(and definitely end up adopting a furry friend :) )

Stan/Toolshed

Professor chaos has stuck you in a small cell surrounded by glass with a 2 hour timer ticking down towards an unknown demise

Usually it wouldn’t have been an issue for tool to grab a sledge hammer and take care of it 

But the cell was made of impact proof glass 

That didn’t stop Toolshed from trying to break through the glass for 30 minutes while professor chaos monologues from a tv screen in the corner

“HAHHAA! I bet you’re wondering how I managed to trap-”

WOMP

“You won’t be breaking through that glass anytime-”

WOMP

“H-Hey! Let me at least get through my-”

WOMP

“WELL GOSH DARN IT LET ME DO MY SPEECH FIRST!”

And the only way to unlock it was to complete an escape room and find a key

But professor chaos seems to have forgotten that stan loves complex board games

And what is an escape room if not a complex solo board game? 

“You need to use the cipher from the map to decode the encyclopedia for the safe code!” 

“Oh yeah, I’ll definitely do that. If I were an idiot.”

“Okay now you’re just being mean” 

“It’s obvious that the map cipher is used for the chess board to give you the steps for the dance dance revolution machine!”

“...yeah totally. I definitely knew that’s how it works.”

He has you out in like 5 minutes 

And you make a mental note to never play Settlers of Katan with him. 

Butters/Professor Chaos

The freedom pals kidnapped you to try and get information out of you since you act as tech help for chaos

Well it was really just the coon

“I thought that kidnapping was a villain thing”

“Yeah because when a superhero does it, it’s taking a villain into custody”

“I really don’t see the logic there”

“WELL YOU DONT HAVE TO SO SHUT UP”

“I thought you wanted me to talk?”

“AHHHHH”

Really you were just giving cartman shit for a few hours

Until the basement suddenly fills with smoke!

Professor Chaos threw smoke bombs into a small enclosed basement (not a good idea-)

You both barely manage to get out while coughing through the smoke

But you do it!!

Yippie!! 

Chaos insists on getting you ice cream as an apology for getting wrapped up in everything

“I mean, if I had to deal with that dickwad everyday, I’d want to cause chaos to piss him off too. I only was there for an hour and i never want to see him smile again” 

You just became the coolest person ever to him

[teabreakpancakes]

Can You do a reaction where Luca, Victor, Andrew, Edgar and Kevin (separately) s/o’s get a new skin that’s sexy where they have things like spandex, chains, corset, high heels and a whip accessory as well. Maybe the skin also makes them more dominant.

Luca, Andrew, Victor, Edgar, Kevin, and Naib's S/O with an inappropriate costume

Genre: Fluff, Some NSFW

Warning: suggestive asf

Exiting Miss Nightingale's sewing room, (Name) couldn't help but get an ominous feel from the woman's smile as she bid them goodbye, telling them that she had a surprise for them once their match started.

'Oh well, it couldn't be that bad' they thought, taking a seat in the waiting room.

𝐋𝐔𝐂𝐀 𝐁𝐀𝐋𝐒𝐀

Luca was decoding like normal, that is, until you arrived. A red blush decorated your cheeks. Now, why were you so embarrassed, he wondered, his eyes trailing down.

Red rapidly crept up his cheeks, his eyes wide, ignoring the sensation of the cipher machine shocking him—though, failing a calibration didn't stop him from staring at you.

You hit him lightly with the handle of the whip, "H, hey! snap out of it will you?! Ganji is still kiting so you best get to decoding the last cipher while I rescue Anne" they say in a strict manner, one hand on their hip as they walk away in their stilettos.

Luca nods, face still red as he forces himself to think of something other than you in that damned outfit—he wondered about how it would feel to caress your thighs in those fishnets.

he's very much a pervert but a gentlemanly one—he's your pervert tho

will squeeze your thighs in those fishnets—it's very tempting okay

thanks miss nightingale for it, he even sends a fucking letter

although he hates being treated roughly, he lowkey wants you to hit him with that whip please do it once, lightly though since you don't want him to remember being in prison

needless to say, whenever he accidentally whistles, he tells you it's one of his tics but either way, you can't actually tell slick bastard

he begs you to wear the costume again but just for him and no one else

he actually shocked norton because he stared at you for too long

but, how the hell are you walking in those things?!?!

and how are you even able to participate in matches comfortably? isn't that corset suffocating you?

He trails his hands up your thighs, letting out small groans as you tug on his hair. Your thighs wrap around his head, squeezing slightly as his tongue prods at your hole. "R, Right there" they moan out, caressing the back of his head as he works his tongue faster.

𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐖 𝐊𝐑𝐄𝐈𝐒𝐒

Andrew may be a religious man but he swears he almost drooled when he saw you in such indecent clothing. He wanted to reprimand you but it seemed that he found himself to be rather unwilling.

He snuck up behind you, placing his hands on your waist. "Are you begging for punishment by wearing such revealing clothing dear?" he whispered, the albino's voice an octave deeper than usual.

Andrew places a soft kiss on your nape, admiring the red hue dancing across your face as he cups your face. He smiles, a sadistic teasing look in his eyes as he turns to leave.

Halfway across the church, he turns to them, eyeing the whip on the back of their shorts. "I suggest hiding that from me later lest you want that to replace my hands later on" his voice echoing and leaving (Name) simmering in their anticipation.

this guy... a huge tease, a sadistic one at that

no, he will not let you dominate him, behave yourself or else he'll punish you

as much as he dislikes such scandalous clothing, he finds himself enjoying seeing it on you

if he has to rescue you, i can guarantee that he'll just lift you up instead of watching you run in those high heels, he's stronger than he looks

he will actually use that whip on you, tread carefully dear

he pokes at your butt whenever he passes by you in a match and you're wearing that costume

if anyone dares to lay a hand on you he will hit them with his shovel

he's very very possessive, he doesn't care if it's a sin, if it's you it does not matter

A loud smack echoes within the confines of Andrew's room. Soft whimpers leave your mouth as he caresses your ass, admiring the red markings his hand left. A dark chuckle leaves his mouth as they squirm, his hand steadying them on his lap. "Be good, or else I won't let you cum" he whispers, nibbling on their ear.

𝐕𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐎𝐑 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐙

Victor's blush crawled up his neck, reaching the very tips of his ears when his eyes landed on your figure. He obeyed your orders so well, smiling softly at you.

His eyes were filled with adoration, one would've thought he was so innocent—yeah no. (Name) knew from the get go that they'd be in for a lot after the match ended. Victor may be a sweetheart but he enjoys being a tease right after.

They could feel his eyes trailing up and down their figure as they moved, a soft smile being sent their way whenever their eyes met.

Victor's warm hand wrapped around their ankle, a worried look in his eyes as he removed the high heel. He set them on a bench, removing their other shoe before lifting them into his arms. "Let's get to the exit gate while the Dream Witch is occupied" (Name) orders, Victor nodding before running to the open gate.

you'd expect him to be the type that gets dominated right? well, yes and no

he'll let you dominate him but don't be fooled, he'll be much worse later one

he's a sweetheart, an absolute softie... it applies in bed as well but his teasing makes it so fucking unbearable

will massage your legs because he knows they hurt, will offer to carry you if your feet hurt

he isn't really bothered by the clothing, he's mature and in control of his libido

he thinks you look stunning in everything

don't take it too far with dominating him though, he'll be more than happy to switch your positions

will send letters to you singing praises about how good you look using wick—please pet wick when he does

he'll try to cover you up if anyone stares at you

Victor smiles lovingly, gently holding onto your waist as you hold onto his shoulders. He sat on the ground, his back propped up against the wall of his bedroom with you on top of him on his lap. (Name) pulls him close using his collar, "Victor, just take me already" they whine, impatient as they rub against the postman's thigh. Victor hums, "Alright then" he whispered against their lips, reaching into their underwear.

𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐀𝐑 𝐕𝐀𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐍

"Why are you trying to order me around?" Edgar hisses out, arms folded over his chest as he arches his eyebrow. (Name) shakes their head, "It's this stupid skin, I can't control it :(" they reply, a tired and annoyed look on their face as they shake their head.

Edgar sighs, "I'll tell the hunter that we're surrendering so we can fix this problem, we can't have you running around the map in that" he points to your clothing, a scoff leaving his lips. He takes off his capelet, wrapping it around your shoulders before walking in the direction he saw the hunter at previously.

(Name) gushes at their lover, a look of euphoria painting their face as they squeal over Edgar's actions. "Eddy I wuv you so muchhhh" they bang on the worn-down hospital's walls, a vibrant blush on their face.

Orpheus peers at them from above, shaking his head. "Valden, your S/O is just as Liam says, a simp" he deadpans, walking away from the building to decode.

he's a tsundere istg

he's not one to mind such clothing, he's painted people naked after all

he thinks you look attractive in the clothing but that's because his lovely S/O is always beautiful

if anyone even dares to stare at you and make you uncomfortable he'll throw his easel at them, he'll even threaten to poke their eyes out, what's his is his alone, alright?

he prefers seeing you in your usual clothing, his clothing even or be naked, just as long as he's the only one able to see you of course

he tried out your high heels, he hates them, he now looks up to people that wear such things

he's a grumpy cat and you're his loyal simp, quite a lovely pair

he loves you a lot, doesn't really care about anything sexual so if you want him to do something, you're gonna have to make him jealous or even better, just ask him.

"To think that you wanted me to do such things to you, how indecent of you doll" he whispered into your ear, tucking a lock of your hair behind your ear as he rubs your sensitive chest. He smiles down at you, "Don't worry, i'll take very good care of you", relishing your soft mewls of pleasure.

𝐊𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐍 𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐎

As much as the cowboy thinks you're hot in that outfit, he does not like the stares that come with it. He uses his lasso to smack both survivors and hunters that stare—it doesn't matter if you're a woman, he believes in equality.

He follows you around the entire game, letting you order him around and whatnot. You even stole his hat—did you not know what it meant to steal a cowboy's hat?

"Kevin, carry me to the exit gate, I'm tired" (Name) demands, leaning against the cowboy's chest. Kevin looks away, trying to hide the faint blush on his cheeks—who knew he'd like being ordered around.

He runs to the gate, ignoring the other two that were still in the map. A lopsided smile on his face as he turns to look down on you. You were so mean to him during the match, hitting him with the whip and leaving such painful marks on him, he was not going to let that slide.

will be a flirt the entire match, all while being extremely overprotective

will shower you in compliments because he knows damn well that you have bad thoughts of yourself

he's always thought of how you'd look in such clothing so he thinks it's a blessing that miss nightingale made it

he's a fucking simp, man is so hooked on you

he gives "you'd look good even in a trash bag" type of simp

if you ever decide to steal his hat and wear it, he'll tell you why at night and see if you consent

he kinda wants to see if he can stab someone with those high heels

"Sweetheart, did you know that when you wear the hat of a cowboy," he leaned down, pressing you against his chest as he slammed the door of his room shut, "you ride the cowboy it belongs to" his voice husky and his breath tickling your neck.

𝐍𝐀𝐈𝐁 𝐒𝐔𝐁𝐄𝐃𝐀𝐑

The mercenary whistles at the sight of his S/O decoding. He walks up to them silently, eyes trained on the plumpness of their ass. His hand meets with their bottom, a satisfying smack resounding through the air.

A squeak leaves (Name)'s mouth, they turn to him and smack him with their whip. Naib winks at them, ignoring the stinging sensation on his wrist as he smiles cockily at them.

"NAIB! GO DECODE YOU LITTLE," "What? continue, go on, what were you gonna call me?" Naib teases, watching them stumble over their words.

"Let's talk later... in private" Naib says, not letting them continue as he races off to rescue William. They stand there defeated, their ass still stinging.

he has that stupid shit-eating grin on his face—HE DOESN'T EVEN HIDE THE FACT THAT HE'S STARING

when he rescues you, he makes sure he's right behind you so he can watch your ass jiggle in those fishnets as you vault over walls and pallets

he thinks your clothes are too thin—he wonders if you’d be able to stand the cold in leo’s memory

a pervert but he's your pervert

he can't help but want his hands all over your body

gets hard during the match, you're his first lover after all, he's never had someone to love and adore beforehand

he likes it when you're a brat, much more fun to break you

admires the fact that you can run and vault walls with those heels

he likes the whip, it's a very good weapon against the hunters, now if only he could use it

Naib's blue eyes stare into your own, a soft smirk on his lips as he rubs your hips. "Do you want me to continue?" he whispers against your neck, his knee rubbing against your clothed sex as you're pushed up against his room’s door.

[tenebrius-excellium]

Dream

It is March, it's when the daisies and dandelions are out.

It's when the sky is blue and the clouds are running over the hills at rapid speeds, and everything is as cold as it is sunny and windswept.

I have sown seeds today - planted mallows and chives and sunflowers. The garden does not belong to me, but I sow in hope. Hope that with the gardening skills I learn today, I WILL end up having my own garden one day. On a different patch of land, with soil just as rich and black as the one I turned over with my hands today.

My soul sings. The person living across the street has put a silver wind chime in their window. It blinks and glitters and beckons with every gust of wind, be it strong or soft. It makes me think of flying.

My soul remembers all the things it has been fond of since long ago. My soul sings, and grieves for what has been, and longs, and yearns for a future in which the beauty that I secretly dream about might just still be possible. The line "Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return" by Leonardo Da Vinci never leaves my mind. I keep thinking of birds. I keep thinking of that fateful day when we went on a walk through the woods, and when we got out on the other side, there was the amazing view of the snow-capped mountain range right in front of us. Endlessly vast pastures stretched before us, and overhead there seems to be a frequented airplane route, because a metallic bird passes over our heads every couple of minutes. I went back to check the same spot two summers ago... the planes are still flying overhead when you reach the end of the forest and step out into the clear there.

It was that day back then - there was no doubt about it somehow - where I knew that one day I would fly just like those planes. In the very same instance, on that very same day, we discovered that I had poor eyesight. I have become a different girl that day. Withdrawn. Different. A dreamer, but never a doer, for what use is a pair of eyes when you can't do everything your brother does, and not even what you yourself want. You can't fly airplanes with bad eyesight. But the dream isn't dead. Ah yes, let your ambitions fly high, but keep your reality grounded, isn't it like that. What if this was my reality.

What if I don't even want to fly airplanes. But what if I didn't even get the chance to try it out to see if I like it. I still dream of the wind. I take a look at the clouds above me and whisper "great day for flying" or "strong winds, dangerous for flying" (details on Hiccup's map) under my breath. I'd still like to get the chance to try it out. When, doesn't exactly seem to be up to me. I'm still fine with that. For now.

So in the meantime, I do what I can do. I stay on the ground. I stay grounded. I watch the first bees of the year and taste the nectar of lamium nettles. I check whether the public water fountains have been turned on again, which means that the likeliness for nightly frosts has waned. I take a walk and lie in the wet, muddy grass and look up at the blue sky and bask in the warm Spring sun. I greet the Red Kites that come around and whistle sweetly, announcing that summer is near.

My dream is alive. I am alive. Life is abundant. Here's to flying.

[thetravelerstale]

Wishing for Peace and Rest

The night is full of lanterns, fireworks and stars. Kites had flown for hours thanks to Xianyun’s help though only a few close friends of the adeptus knew this. To most it had seemed as if another, much bigger kite had led the others back into the air. A weary traveler had long grown tired after the long day spent helping his new friend and he had retired early to indulge in a more personal matter.

He left Paimon to Zhongli’s care while seeking out the familiar temple, a meeting spot that's seen more frequent visits since his temporary stay in Liyue. He paid his respects to the statue of Pervaces, hands clasped in silent prayer that the next year may bring him peace.

“I've never been one to pray, perhaps knowing better than most that no god would ever listen…” He opened his eye to cast a side glance at the man that spoke, smiling softly when he saw the indigo haired puppet also bow his head. “I do however, have no qualms making a selfish wish if there's a chance it'd be granted.”

Aether nodded, his smile never fading as the two finished and walked outside together where they heard the soft whistling of a bird call. On the hill behind the temple stood Xiao, his clothes gently swaying in the breeze as the moon peaked behind him. For a moment the traveler thought he was facing a god, before the male beside him let go of his hand in favor of holding his hat as he turned away.

“I'll see you some other time then-”

“Wait,” Xiao called out, instantly in front of the puppet in a blink of an eye, “stay?” The man fumbled with his words for a moment, trying to find the right ones. “I… would enjoy the company of both of you.” To emphasize this, the adeptus held onto the puppet's hand, gloved fingers interlocking with ball jointed ones.

The puppet would have blushed at the sincerity of the gesture and he let out a sigh, shoulders relaxing. “You know I cannot say no to you, either of you.” He turns to give a knowing glance at the blond who only smiled before climbing to sit atop the hill. Xiao teleported back to where he had stood, bringing the puppet along with him and together the three sat on the edge and watched the stars.

After a moment, Xiao retrieved the lantern he had brought with him, his companions eyeing it curiously. “I… know it is crude looking. Menogias was much better at things like these, but I would like to release it with you both.”

“I have not participated in many festivals, but aren't you supposed to do this in the harbor?” the puppet asked with a tilt of his head, causing the adeptus to tense up for a moment.

“I would prefer to do this here, I am sure it will still count even if we are on this side of the mountains around the city.”

The puppet nodded his head, a hand coming to rest on the base of the lantern beside Xiao’s followed by the traveler's and together the three gently pushed it into the sky. A weight settled on the puppet’s lap and he looked to find Xiao's head, eyes closed already as his breath began evening out, another weight leaned on his back as the traveler wrapped his arms around his shoulders and rested his head on his neck. He sighed, but only moved to brush his fingers though Xiao's hair with a soft smile.

“Rest you two. I will be here.” He turned to face the sky again as a shooting star streaked across, disappearing behind the northern mountains where the adepti live.

[halothenthehorns]

Chapter 17: I OPEN A COFFIN

"Dracula!?" Alex gasped with hope.

"We already have real monsters, why do you want more?" Percy frowned.

"I have fantasies too Percy, it's not all about you," Alex reminded.

"If Kelli sleeps in one of those, you just know it's going to be pink," Magnus snorted.

"Grave robbing Percy? That's what you've been reduced to?" Jason chuckled.

"How sacrilegious," Will snorted.

"Yes, because I really strike you as the kind of guy to be respectful," Percy scoffed with laughter.

Nico was to busy grinning to himself nobody seemed to assume this had anything to do with him to make a snarky remark as Alex eagerly started.

Jumping out a window five hundred feet aboveground is not usually my idea of fun.

"Really? Because you seem to do it a lot," Magnus frowned at him.

"The arch, you jumped off the side of a cruise ship, you were fully prepared to jump off that cliff after Annabeth, and now you jumped down the side of a mountain," Alex nodded along as he ticked off on his fingers. "Percy, you might have an adrenaline junkie problem."

"Yeah, the problem is to much adrenaline. Please tell me there's a cure," he sighed.

Especially when I'm wearing bronze wings and flapping my arms like a duck.

"But that's the perfect time to do it," Nico told him blandly from personal experience. "If you do the chicken dance any other time, people just look at you strange."

"Now the YMCA on the other hand, that's a universal dance you don't need an excuse for," Will grinned.

Thalia forced a laugh she didn't feel, she knew she wouldn't find anything really funny again until Percy's feet were back on the ground and she could stop imagining this.

I plummeted toward the valley and the red rocks below. I was pretty sure I was going to become a grease spot in the Garden of the Gods, as Annabeth yelled from somewhere above me, "Spread your arms! Keep them extended."

The small part of my brain that wasn't engulfed in panic heard her, and my arms responded. As soon as I spread them out, the wings stiffened, caught the wind, and my descent slowed. I soared downward, but at a controlled angle, like a kite in a dive.

A sudden memory flashed back to Percy's mind. He'd been eight in the park with his mom, who had just given him an octopus kite, with its big blue nylon head and each of its legs a different color of the rainbow.

It had only fluttered in the air long enough for him to take his eyes off and smile at his mom before a flash of lightning had zapped it out of the sky. On a cloudless day.

Now he couldn't shake the mental image that was about to happen to him next, and there was no string that would fizzle his fingers as a result.

Experimentally, I flapped my arms once. I arced into the sky, the wind whistling in my ears.

"Yeah!" I yelled. The feeling was unbelievable. After getting the hang of it, I felt like the wings were part of my body. I could soar and swoop and dive anywhere I wanted to.

"Annabeth once again saving your ass," Alex snorted. "Please tell me you're keeping a tally on that?" He obviously directed to none other than Jason.

"Of course," he scoffed as if the question offended his very principles, like he even remembered what those were. "What do you take me for?"

I turned and saw my friends—Rachel, Annabeth, and Nico—spiraling above me, glinting in the sunlight. Behind them, smoke billowed from the windows of Daedalus's workshop.

"Land!" Annabeth yelled. "These wings won't last forever."

"How long?" Rachel asked.

"I don't want to find out!" Annabeth said.

We swooped down toward the Garden of the Gods. I did a complete circle around one of the rock spires and freaked out a couple of climbers.

"I bet they spend the rest of their life telling everyone they saw an eagle soar," Will offered.

"Or a really, really big sugar glider," Magnus smirked.

Then the four of us soared across the valley, over a road, and landed on the terrace of the visitor center. It was late afternoon and the place looked pretty empty, but we ripped off our wings as quickly as we could. Looking at them, I could see Annabeth was right. The self-adhesive seals that bound the wings to our backs were already melting, and we were shedding bronze feathers. It seemed a shame, but we couldn't fix them, and couldn't leave them around for the mortals, so we stuffed the wings in trash bins outside the cafeteria.

"Where they can rot next to cat litter and corpses," Thalia shivered in disgust one last time.

"I can't believe Annabeth wasn't having a conniption fit about throwing away something he made," Magnus admitted.

"I like to imagine Rachel kept a feather as a souvenir at least," Jason said with a sad smile. He definitely liked the idea of flying, it sounded immensely comforting, the idea of lounging on a cloud.

"I can't believe Daedalus still never found a way to make those better long-range," Alex looked wholly upset at a clearly failed experiment. "That had to be his life's work, right? To find a perfect set of wings that could have saved his son. I hope he never finds out they still wouldn't have worked."

"I don't think I go out of my way to mention it," Percy's promise felt lackluster, he didn't exactly have a good feeling about meeting Daedalus again...though the fact that he felt anything at all for it was a cause of concern all its own.

I used the tourist binocular camera to look up at the hill where Daedalus's workshop had been, but it had vanished. No more smoke. No broken windows. Just the side of a hill.

"Have I mentioned how awfully convenient it is your world just cleans up after itself like that," Magnus shook his head in a kind of daze all that was so close and yet so far from the world.

"Now if only we could convince the monsters and gods and titans to stop getting the world killed and we'd have it made," Percy nodded, crossing his hands behind his head and lounging back.

"The workshop moved," Annabeth guessed. "There's no telling where."

"So what do we do now?" I asked. "How do we get back in the maze?"

Percy smiled in surprise nobody pointed out a better way back to Camp would be Blackjack, because it wasn't the way of getting there. Grover and Tyson were still trapped in there, and the Camp was already as warned as they could be. They weren't going home until everybody in the quest was back together.

Annabeth gazed at the summit of Pikes Peak in the distance. "Maybe we can't. If Daedalus died...he said his life force was tied into the Labyrinth. The whole thing might've been destroyed. Maybe that will stop Luke's invasion."

"Along with Luke," Thalia said lowly. She knew that didn't happen, but there was a tiny kernel of relief in her that Annabeth had said it.

The troubled look on Percy's face meant Annabeth might not have said it with any hope, but even the acknowledgment of it gave Thalia some sense of peace Annabeth wasn't totally delusional about Luke's end.

I thought about Grover and Tyson, still down there somewhere.

Percy decidedly did not like the hesitant moment of silence that followed that sentence. He knew Alex wasn't doing it on purpose as a respectful moment because they were probably dead, but it sure felt that way to Percy for that one, horrible beat.

And Daedalus...even though he'd done some terrible things and put everybody I cared about at risk, it seemed like a pretty horrible way to die.

Will smiled at Percy, a really tender expression Percy couldn't begin to guess at. Will couldn't help it, the only person Percy had yet shown zero remorse for was Gabe. It was obviously not common around camp to get to hear insights of what everybody was thinking, Will just genuinely enjoyed the moment of hearing the constant and probable deaths on these quests weren't so easily glossed over.

"No," Nico said. "He isn't dead."

"How can you be sure?" I asked.

"I know when people die. It's this feeling I get, like a buzzing in my ears."

"Is that where that saying comes if your ears are buzzing somebody's talking about you?" Magnus asked.

"No," Nico shrugged, "I have no idea what started that myth."

"Happens to me every time I blow my nose," Jason rolled his eyes. Thalia swallowed a hysterical laugh the same thing actually happened to her, and she didn't think it was related to this nonsense.

"Hades kids get all the good superstitions," Will chuckled, "all I get is somebody blaming my dad for their allergies."

"The real question is, do Percy's ears buzz every time somebody pee's in the ocean," Alex said saintly.

"I wish I could ban you from the room," Percy frowned at him while Nico tried hard to stifle a laugh and was failing.

"What about Tyson and Grover, then?"

Nico shook his head. "That's harder. They're not humans or half-bloods. They don't have mortal souls."

"Cool," Magnus said with a blank look on his face like he wasn't sure if he meant that or not while Percy started chewing on his lip hard.

Will still gave Nico a hopeful smile though. This was the first time Nico had blatantly talked about even a hint of his powers in his past and nobody was reacting poorly at all. If anything it sounded like they really wanted to know more and just weren't sure how to phrase it.

"We have to get into town," Annabeth decided. "Our chances will be better of finding an entrance to the Labyrinth.

"Why?" Alex looked truly dumbfounded at that train of thought. "You literally know of one in your own woods. The location seems purely random."

"Man do I wish somebody had made a map of these so we could try and discern a pattern," Jason said with a smile like cherishing a long-lost loved one.

"Dude, please keep going before Jason starts writing calculations on the wall," Percy groaned.

We have to make it back to camp before Luke and his army."

"Could Rachel even get you to Camp through the labyrinth?" Jason puzzled. "If mortals aren't allowed in, which would trump the other?"

"Monsters can't get in either, but we're not betting on the maze to keep them out," Percy frowned too though as he wasn't sure if Rachel would just smack into an invisible barrier. No way would they leave her behind in there for any reason, but who knew where the nearest entrance would pop them out at.

"We could just take a plane," Rachel said.

I shuddered. "I don't fly."

"But you just did."

"That was low flying," I said, "and even that's risky. Flying up really high—that's Zeus's territory. I can't do it.

"Important things Rachel should know for future interactions with you," Thalia said agreeably.

"And yet you've flown in every adventure so far," Jason chuckled.

"I don't consider getting thrown into the stratosphere by a ship exploding flying," Percy sighed.

"And yet Zeus probably never will forgive you for it," Thalia reminded.

Besides, we don't even have time for a flight. The labyrinth is the quickest way back."

Nico pursed his lips and wondered if Percy would accept a shadow-traveling trip from his dark creepy powers if it would have gotten them back in time to save the camp. He couldn't have done it back then, to many people, he certainly hadn't the skill for it, but the thought fluttered like a shedding bronze feather in his mind...as he next wondered what Will would say if had to experience that...

I didn't want to say it, but I was also hoping that maybe, just maybe, we would find Grover and Tyson along the way.

Alex had to bite back the comment about Percy being an optimist. Those two could be in France or Utah, or dead for all he knew.

With Rachel as guide though, there was a slim chance he would find them again, and Alex liked to blame that idea more on logic than these weirdos rubbing off on him.

"So we need a car to take us into the city," Annabeth said.

Rachel looked down into the parking lot. She grimaced, as if she were about to do something she regretted. "I'll take care of it."

"Rachel can hotwire a car," Magnus said at once with absolute confidence. Was she a runaway? It seemed to fit.

"Why does Nico feel like the only good influence friend you have?" Will frowned, even knowing that wasn't true. "The rest of you nutjobs are all out here doing every illegal, objectionable, immoral, or obnoxious thing I could name, he's the only one actively choosing not to kill people."

"That's not a very high bar Will," Nico rolled his eyes.

"And yet you're still winning," Percy shrugged.

"How?" Annabeth asked.

"Just trust me."

Annabeth looked uneasy, but she nodded. "Okay,

"Prog...proggress?" Jason tried to say. At least she didn't offer a snarky comment instead.

"It takes her a while to get there, but she does trust people," Thalia said patiently.

"Exhibit A," Percy shouted, raising his hand with pride.

I'm going to buy a prism in the gift shop, try to make a rainbow, and send an Iris-message to camp."

"Did Rachel understand any of those words?" Will asked with twitching lips.

"I'm going to buy a rainbow and talk to my also fruity friends, seems plain enough," Alex nodded.

"I'll go with you," Nico said. "I'm hungry."

It also didn't hurt to get away from Percy for a second, Nico happily kept to himself. He'd only been back in his presence for twenty minutes, tops, and already several fantasies had come true about monsters and buildings exploding. All that was missing was the slow, dramatic walk away from it all as he brushed his hair aside.

The reality looking back was much grungier. Percy's shirt had been singed, he'd had a desperately unhappy look in his eyes as he worried about his missing friends and the impending attack. There had been no hand-holding or swooning from anybody.

"I'll stick with Rachel, then," I said. "Meet you guys in the parking lot."

Rachel frowned like she didn't want me with her. That made me feel kind of bad, but I followed her down to the parking lot anyway.

"Because if Percy ever took a hint we'd all have like, half as many problems," Thalia chuckled.

"There could have been very fearsome monsters in that parking lot," Percy insisted. There really was no point in reminding his curiosity on how she was going to make that happen would never let him walk away from this.

She headed toward a big black car parked at the edge of the lot. It was a chauffeured Lexus, like the kind I always saw driving around Manhattan.

The driver was out front, reading a newspaper. He wore a dark suit and tie.

"Easy money his name is Jeeves," Alex said with a very calculating look of where this was going.

"Or Jarvis, or Alfred, come on Alex, don't stereotype," Percy snorted.

"What are you going to do?" I asked Rachel.

"Beat him up, steal his keys," Thalia said with all the sarcastic confidence she had.

"Finally reveal how Annabeth chased that guy out of the car wash, all without planning on duplicating her of course," Jason smirked.

"Kick him in the shins and run for it while expecting Percy to hotwire the car," Magnus offered. Hey, he was from New York, maybe she just assumed he knew how.

"Just wait here," she said miserably. "Please."

Rachel marched straight up to the driver and talked to him. He frowned.

Rachel said something else. He turned pale and hastily folded up his magazine. He nodded and fumbled for his cell phone. After a brief call, he opened the back door of the car for Rachel to get in.

Percy watched in sympathetic commiseration as four mouths opened in shock around him. Will had certainly never heard about this at Camp, and it made Rachel's mystic arcane powers seem even more enchanting she'd been doing this before she spewed green smoke.

"She's a secret siren! I knew Percy couldn't have a normal friend!" Magnus yelped.

"What does that make you," Percy's frown was just as confused as his though.

"I never claimed to be normal," Magnus snorted.

Alex was rubbing the back of his neck though with a very contemplative look on his face. Rachel sure knew how to get around for a mortal, and he knew of one sure fire way that could be accomplished...though it didn't track at all with her going to a public school Percy would attend...unless...

She pointed back in my direction, and the driver bobbed his head some more, like Yes, ma'am. Whatever you want.

"Would you like a space necklace from the Cupar system? Would you like my firstborn child?!" Thalia said sycophantically.

"Mock me all you like, I am this close to stealing that book away and getting answers without your help, Pine Fresh," Percy sighed.

"And miss all my brilliant commentary," she sniffed, giving him a good hard poke in his spleen just because she could. He yelped in surprise while Alex went on, for once ignoring the casual violence in curiosity if there was any proof to his theory.

I couldn't figure out why he was acting so flustered.

"It's called having manners Percy, I know that's a really foreign idea to you," Jason told, but he was to bemused himself to hold much weight.

Rachel came back to get me just as Nico and Annabeth appeared from the gift shop.

"With not a snack in sight I might add," Percy said, taking his troubled eyes off the book to throw an accusing glare at Nico. "If you stuffed Skittles up your sleeve, I hope you share!"

"Annabeth and I weren't exactly walking around with spare change," Nico reminded with a raised brow. "She went to the bathroom with that prism to get any good light and water for her rainbow and I kept lookout nobody went in the podunk, lucky it was working, one-room bathroom." Percy noticed he didn't deny the claim of stolen sweets though as his stomach rumbled.

"I talked to Chiron," Annabeth said. "They're doing their best to prepare for battle, but he still wants us back. They're going to need every hero they can get.

Percy waited for the smart-ass crack about how he and Annabeth alone were going to turn the tide of battle...but it didn't come. Percy felt a sense of pride they had as much faith in his camp as he did, though the troubled look on Will's face still promised it hadn't exactly been a clean sweep of a victory with or without them.

Did we find a ride?"

"We found an alien abduction in progress," Magnus muttered.

"The driver's ready when we are," Rachel said.

The chauffeur was now talking to another guy in khakis and a polo shirt, probably his client who'd rented the car. The client was complaining, but I could hear the driver saying, "I'm sorry, sir. Emergency. I've ordered another car for you."

"If Rachel was claiming that, I would expect to see a lot more blood," Alex said cynically with a raised brow. "I don't see her or Annabeth pulling the 'my water broke' line."

"She's an artist, I would think she'd commit to the bit more, be screaming her heart out at minimum," Percy mockingly agreed.

"Come on," Rachel said. She led us to the car and got in without even looking at the flustered guy who'd rented it. A minute later we were cruising down the road.

"You and Annabeth didn't question this at all?" Magnus asked of Nico.

"We just flew down from a window in the mountain where an emposua and Canadians tried to kill us, a mortal not asking questions why we were using his car was the blessing of the day," Nico scoffed.

Magnus sighed, he'd thought he'd gotten better about keeping up with the weirdness of all this, but clearly he was starting to fall behind again.

The seats were leather. There was plenty of legroom. The backseat had flat-panel TVs built into the headrests and a mini-fridge stocked with bottled water, sodas, and snacks. We started pigging out.

"The only way to travel," Thalia shook her head in exasperation. "You should have abducted this girl back at the Hoover Dam Percy, she would have gotten us a free ride the rest of the way west too in luxray."

"I'm sorry kidnapping wasn't my first train of thought," Percy said blandly.

'It sure was Artimes's' Nico kept the burning comment to himself, and it wasn't as painful as he'd thought it was as it lit and dimmed in him quickly.

"Where to, Miss Dare?" the driver asked.

"I'm not sure yet, Robert," she said.

"Damn, guess you lost that easy money Alex," Percy chuckled.

"I'll make it back by betting when you next say something illegal, objectionable, immoral, or obnoxious." He easily promised.

Percy sighed, he should have known he'd be the sole contender on that list. Ah well, he was used to taking the blame anyway.

"We just need to drive through town and, uh, look around."

"Whatever you say, miss."

I looked at Rachel. "Do you know this guy?"

"No."

"And here my next theory was long lost cousin and blackmail," Jason admitted.

"But he dropped everything to help you. Why?"

"Just keep your eyes peeled," she said. "Help me look."

Which didn't exactly answer my question.

"Oh, well that's a relief, I thought I was just lagging behind again," Magnus frowned.

"Not in this room buddy, one speed only," Percy agreed.

We drove through Colorado Springs for about half an hour and saw nothing that Rachel considered a possible Labyrinth entrance. I was very aware of Rachel's shoulder pressing against mine. I kept wondering who she was exactly, and how she could walk up to some random chauffeur and immediately get a ride.

"Is that what it takes to impress you?" Nico asked in exasperation. "I bet I could do that." Not that he wanted to... it was the principle of the matter...

"Do I need to add a clause about not giving said chauffeur a heart attack?" Percy demanded with a raised brow.

"Well that rules out Annabeth too, guess Rachel gets to keep this unique skill to herself," Will chuckled.

"Yeah, but Rachel ate all the peanuts," Percy grinned, "I have to say, it dulled some of her mystique."

After about an hour we decided to head north toward Denver, thinking that maybe a bigger city would be more likely to have a Labyrinth entrance, but we were all getting nervous. We were losing time.

Then right as we were leaving Colorado Springs, Rachel sat bolt upright. "Get off the highway!"

"That's better than screaming, oh my god monster, but somehow not by much," Magnus sighed.

"I was half expecting her to see vampires running alongside the car," Jason admitted.

The driver glanced back. "Miss?"

"I saw something, I think. Get off here."

The driver swerved across traffic and took the exit.

Alex's gleefully evil eyes were back on full display, clearly plotting whatever diabolical thing he'd do with someone willing to dart across traffic on a whim. It only made Magnus piss his pants a little.

"What did you see?" I asked, because we were pretty much out of the city now. There wasn't anything around except hills, grassland, and some scattered farm buildings. Rachel had the driver turn down this unpromising dirt road. We drove by a sign too fast for me to read it, but Rachel said, "Western Museum of Mining & Industry."

For a museum, it didn't look like much—a little house like an oldfashioned railroad station, some drills and pumps and old steam shovels on display outside.

"You've been spoiled by visiting all the good museums already," Thalia reminded. "This is probably their major economy or something Percy, be a little more respectful."

"It's going to take a lot more steam shovels for that to happen, I demand hydraulics," Percy smirked.

"There." Rachel pointed to a hole in the side of a nearby hill—a tunnel that was boarded up and chained. "An old mine entrance."

"A door to the Labyrinth?" Annabeth asked. "How can you be sure?"

"Why is she still wasting her breath questioning this?" Nico asked in exhaustion.

"Someboyd's got to double-check our work around there, and it's not going to be me," Percy shrugged.

"Well, look at it!" Rachel said. "I mean...I can see it, okay?"

She thanked the driver and we all got out. He didn't ask for money or anything.

There was an awkward pause where everybody expected somebody to say something. Alex didn't blurt out any wild ideas about mind control, Jason didn't offer any theories of how she pulled that off though.

There was just silence as they all tried to process for a moment if this guy had just done a random nice thing for a bunch of kids.

"Are you sure you'll be all right, Miss Dare? I'd be happy to call your—"

"No!" Rachel said. "No, really. Thanks, Robert. But we're fine."

Rachel had watched him go with a look on her face Nico had recognized at the time with no clue why. Percy and Annabeth had turned attention at once to their destination, but looking back he saw now she was regretting her 'power.' Her ability to manipulate someone into doing her bidding just by invoking her father's name. It was a heedy power she toed the line with he still struggled against.

The museum seemed to be closed, so nobody bothered us as we climbed the hill to the mine shaft. When we got to the entrance, I saw the mark of Daedalus engraved on the padlock, though how Rachel had seen something so tiny all the way from the highway I had no idea.

"A valid question," Jason promised, "though I'm over here wondering who went around and put all those marks up. Did Daedalus play Where's Waldo with a US map and throw darts?"

Magnus still took an extra second to realize he was talking about Quintus, that it was possible he'd been alive so long he'd lived in every city in the states, had moved west with every new plot of land and done this himself for his own means. The idea melted his mind.

I touched the padlock and the chains fell away. We kicked down a few boards and walked inside.

For better or worse, we were back in the Labyrinth.

"Worse. I'm pretty confident it's going to be worse," Percy said with entirely to much confidence for the guy who had lived through it and couldn't remember.

The dirt tunnels turned to stone. They wound around and split off and basically tried to confuse us, but Rachel had no trouble guiding us. We told her we needed to get back to New York, and she hardly even paused when the tunnels offered a choice.

To my surprise, Rachel and Annabeth started up a conversation as we walked. Annabeth asked her more about her background, but Rachel was evasive, so they started talking about architecture. It turned out that Rachel knew something about it from studying art. They talked about different facades on buildings around New York—"Have you seen this one," blah, blah, blah,

"I get the feeling Percy was riveted by this conversation," Jason snorted in amusement, and deeply wishing he could fill in the blanks of those blahs. He was now right along with Percy in his jealousy of the universe neither girl was here!

"I'm just over here glad she's finally making friends," Thalia said with a proud smile. She worried about that a bit when she'd left for the Hunters. She knew Annabeth had Percy, and everybody in Camp respected her, but in the time they'd spent together in the mortal world catching up, her little sister hadn't exactly given a list of friends she missed at Camp. She missed the freedom of walking around on the green grass and strawberry fields without a hall pass, and the activities, and avoiding the harpies when she wanted out after curfew to sneak down to the ocean, but just a few sparse details about her half-siblings.

Another thing she'd once resented Percy for but now found herself more than grateful to. The boy made friends everywhere he went, and his friends were going to be Annabeth's friends if they wanted to stay that way.

so I hung back and walked next to Nico in uncomfortable silence.

"No, Percy, say it ain't so. Tell me how you really feel," Nico said deadpan.

"I could have started whistling show tunes to ease the mood," Percy offered just as sarcastically. "There's a pretty wild swing on people who love and hate that though, I don't know you well enough to guess."

"Imagine if someone had actually locked them in a room together," Alex said with way to much critical thinking in the tone of his voice. "Two opposing personalities, that Big Bad Kid 3 whatever tension hitting its breaking point, they'd have either killed each other or come out as best friends."

"Isn't that how everybody makes friends?" Percy shrugged, throwing an arm over Thalia's shoulders.

She smacked him and scoffed, "if we were locked in a room together they'd never find the body."

Nico scratched at his ear and decided to keep the thoughts to himself; A, they were once trapped in a room together and Percy did consider killing him and B, they were locked in a room together now and nobody had actively started killing yet; so it really was anybodys guess how this would end.

"Thanks for coming after us," I told him at last.

Will smiled that of course Percy's first instinct was to thank Nico.

Nico, however, couldn't help a little twitch under his skin that the last person who had thanked Percy was Kronos, and didn't appreciate all the easy parallel lines he could always draw there.

Nico's eyes narrowed. He didn't seem as angry as he used to—just suspicious, careful.

It seemed to be how he'd mellowed out to now, Jason noticed. Gone was that happy little kid, but at least this quiet, suspicious, careful kid didn't seem to have a hint of homicidal return. He just seemed kind of sad. Jason didn't even remember how he used to be and he cracked a smile whenever he found the easiest chance.

"I owed you for the ranch, Percy. Plus...I wanted to see Daedalus for myself. Minos was right, in a way. Daedalus should die. Nobody should be able to avoid death that long. It's not natural."

"What is natural anyways?" Thalia said with a challenging smirk. "Fire doesn't occur without a biological factor, and yet we have Greek fire." Here Nico was mocking Annabeth for wanting to always make sense when he thought he could raise the dead and have natural order.

Fire- occurs- endless gasless fire- gas feeds fire- wait what is gas again- oh right- "Dinosaurs still exist as gas," Percy sounded like he was agreeing even as he went cross-eyed. "Hey, do you think the gods rode on them? I bet they all fought over who would win in fights like we still do. Bet I could ask my dad-"

He was forced to stop his verbal ADHD rant at the loud laughter and then chuckled along until Alex got his breath back enough to keep going. He really wished Riptide would work as a pen right now though, he wanted to jot that one on his hand to ask later.

"That's what you were after all along," I said. "Trading Daedalus's soul for your sister's."

"You know what, I take it all back," Magnus rolled his eyes, "Percy does have a filter, it's just so dam clotted with blonde hair the only thoughts that don't come through are when you won't shut up about how pretty my cousin is."

"I'm always slipping through the cracks!" Nico somehow managed to make that sound like a good thing as Will looked at him in concern.

"What?" Percy still asked blankly like he couldn't figure out why anyone would scold him for bringing up a sensitive topic.

Nico walked for another fifty yards before answering. "It hasn't been easy, you know. Having only the dead for company. Knowing that I'll never be accepted by the living. Only the dead respect me, and they only do that out of fear."

Jason's mouth ticked, and he had no clue. It wasn't pleasant, to suddenly have a lurching inside him that made him wonder if he'd ever described himself like that with no clue why...but the feeling was fleeting and didn't linger as his headache immediately overrode the sensation.

Percy was biting his tongue hard, proving Magnus's statement false once again as he stopped himself saying maybe that wouldn't be a problem if he hadn't run away in the first place! If he could use the maze and the ghosts to figure out how to get around, he could have come back to camp.

"You could be accepted," I said. "You could have friends at camp."

He stared at me. "Do you really believe that, Percy?"

I didn't answer. The truth was, I didn't know. Nico had always been a little different, but since Bianca's death, he'd gotten almost...scary. He had his father's eyes—that intense, manic fire that made you suspect he was either a genius or a madman. And the way he'd banished Minos, and called himself the king of ghosts—it was kind of impressive, but it made me uncomfortable too.

"Sorry," Percy said it like a knee-jerk reaction. Like he was still on the roof about to catch him before he fell, and yet his hand twitched in his lap like he'd pull away just as fast.

Nico knew he was apologizing the thought was said out loud, not because he'd thought it.

Which was kind of a relief. A nice feeling to know what Percy really thought of him instead of constantly wondering and guessing. It's not like there had ever been a question, but getting the answer was still appreciated. Somewhere deep down. "Uhhu," was all Nico could think to say to that.

Was Percy apologizing, saying he shouldn't come back to camp because he wouldn't be accepted? He knew that. And yet Percy made a face like there were dancing skeletons doing the tango every time it was mentioned he'd run away.

"Percy's just uncomfortable around anyone competent, like Thalia and Annabeth obviously," Alex scoffed - "Hey," Percy sighed- "We accept you Nico," he reminded, looking a touch hurt he wasn't everybody's first and last thought.

"Because you've been stuck in a room with me for days and I haven't killed you all," his biting sarcasm held no weight though, he found that an odd anomaly.

"I mean, that's a bonus, not the point," Jason snorted, waving a mocking hand at Percy who pretended to look offended.

Nico struggled to answer with the sudden heat in his face. Will and Percy wouldn't have let these guys murder Luke if he'd been trapped in here, it wasn't the same. They were kicking it in luxury survival mode and would all part ways the moment they could.

"It doesn't have to be like that Nico," Will said robustly like he'd read his mind, a stern edge in his voice like he was daring anyone to say anything now.

Yet even Thalia, who knew his contribution during the Titan war, looked a little to guilty as her eyes shifted from Percy to Nico and chose not to say anything. She thought Will naive, Children of the Big Three didn't get that balance between respect and friendship, Percy seemed unique in that. She'd certainly lived the experience in her short months at camp with everybody avoiding eye contact and afraid to step on her toes lest she electrocute them. The only ones who had never been like that were Luke, Annabeth, and Percy.

"It doesn't matter now," Nico sounded calm, factual. "I'll never know the difference, they all know so it won't feel real."

Percy went crosseyed in confusion when the Camp found out about this but Will wasn't letting go that easily.

"I'm not saying you'll be universally loved! I can't stand Ashely McNabb, I swear she has Munchausen's as much as she's in the infirmary complaining about something! Nobody is, have you met Clarisse?" He threw his hands up in exasperation, ruffling the hair along Nico's neck. "We took in Chris without question! We would have taken in Ethan despite how hard that would have been on a lot of kids who still feel betrayed by Luke and wouldn't believe some idiot would flip-flop on sides like that. You could at least give the place a real chance to prove that." 

Nico didn't outright answer. Something about having a solid future like that ahead made him queasy. He still felt that need to go into Tartarus, to find out what was happening down there, and he didn't believe he could do both without being some sort of infectious plague on the camp.

When it was apparent Nico and Will were just going to have a staring contest over there, Alex kept reading. Not that this wasn't a riveting debate over universal morals, but whoever blinked first would just ruin the tension anyway and he'd rather do that himself.

Before I could figure out what to tell him, I ran into Rachel, who'd stopped in front of me.

"That's one way to end an awkward conversation," Magnus muttered. "I might just get up and run into a wall next time it starts getting to quiet in here."

"I'll have the camera ready," Alex promised without looking up.

We'd come to a crossroads. The tunnel continued straight ahead, but a side tunnel T'd off to the right—a circular shaft carved from volcanic rock.

"Do you go diamond mining?" Thalia asked with such a horribly painful build-up in her throat she was sure that didn't sound intelligible.

"I do not," Percy said with a dull flush on his face for whom his mind jumped to.

"What is it?" I asked.

Rachel stared down the dark tunnel. In the dim flashlight beam, her face looked like one of Nico's specters.

"Which is not an effect of proximity from being around him," Will added cheerfully like somebody was going to rush and check a mirror.

Yet only Nico looked soothed when nobody moved. Will would have rolled his eyes at him if it wasn't just a touch more sad.

"Is it that way?" Annabeth asked.

"No," Rachel said nervously. "Not at all."

"Why are we stopping then?" I asked.

"To make sure you're keeping up?" Jason offered.

"Not in the slightest," Percy sighed.

"Listen," Nico said.

I heard wind coming down the tunnel, as if the exit were close. And I smelled something vaguely familiar—something that brought back bad memories.

"Eucalyptus trees," I said. "Like in California."

"How's that abdication of cough drops going?" Thalia asked, wishing to plug her own nose up at just the thought.

"Surprisingly well, I don't get the flu or allergies very much," Percy resisted the urge to stuff his tongue down his throat to gag up any smell that wasn't in the memory of his nose.

Last winter, when we'd faced Luke and the Titan Atlas on top of Mount Tamalpais, the air had smelled like that.

Percy swallowed a lump in his throat as the thought easily echoed around his brain now. He'd meant to say that out loud, to warn Rachel and Nico what could have been at the other end of that tunnel, but the words had lodged in place to just leave his head feeling cluttered.

"There's something evil down that tunnel," Rachel said. "Something very powerful."

"And the smell of death," Nico added, which made me feel a whole lot better.

"The two usually go hand in hand," Jason agreed blandly, even as his innards squirmed at the idea of Percy going back there. He had no reason to...and yet Jason really wanted him to. Any time Percy got near California, and especially this mountain, the powerful feeling of his memories was always right on the cusp of being understood, no matter how painful it was.

Annabeth and I exchanged glances.

"Luke's entrance," she guessed.

"Gods, if she starts naming all the tunnels and actually trying to map this place out again you'll never leave," Alex said with an awkward laugh that still managed to sound genuine to everyone but him.

"The one to Mount Othrys—the Titans' palace."

"I have to check it out," I said.

"Percy, no."

"Two words that have never done any good," Thalia snorted.

"So we know if she ever says Percy, yes, I'll be unstoppable," Percy grinned.

"Luke could be right here," I said. "Or...or Kronos. I have to find out what's going on."

Annabeth hesitated. "Then we'll all go."

There was a collective wince around the room that Percy didn't cause this time. Absolutely nobody seemed to think it was a good idea to put Annabeth back around Luke, and yet, none of them would have tried arguing the point with her. Last time she and Percy had separated...hadn't ended well.

"No," I said. "It's too dangerous. If they got hold of Nico, or Rachel for that matter, Kronos could use them. You stay here and guard them."

Nico still felt just as small and unseen as he had then, and he still hated himself for that hold Percy would always seem to have over him no matter how desensitized he became to his crush. He didn't need guarding! He, unlike Percy and Annabeth, had never been fooled by Luke! He should have been the one to go!

He'd been about to slip away to prove as much when those girls seemingly agreed with that decision.

A very large part of him had wanted to tell Annabeth and Rachel to hit the road. To split up. He and Percy could handle this while they went to warn camp, it would have been perfect, he could have navigated the maze just fine.

And yet, he'd been far to much of a coward back then to voice such a thing, and it never would have had a good outcome. Percy would never see him as anything more than what they were now. Maybe acquaintances, possibly friends.

What I didn't say: I was also worried about Annabeth. I didn't trust what she would do if she saw Luke again. He had fooled her and manipulated her too many times before.

"Percy, don't," Rachel said. "Don't go up there alone."

"I'll be quick," I promised. "I won't do anything stupid."

Jason made a terribly mocking scoff as he looked at Percy in concern. "You can't even ask yourself what would Annabeth do to avoid that because she's just as bad!"

"Then I follow my own instincts, they've gotten me this far," Percy said simply.

"We're all doomed," Jason did not look very reassured.

Annabeth took her Yankees cap out of her pocket. "At least take this. And be careful."

"Thanks." I remembered the last time Annabeth and I had parted ways, when she'd given me a kiss for luck in Mount St. Helens. This time, all I got was the hat.

"I guess this decision isn't that stupid," Will grinned. "She only shows you affection when she's scared, so she's not that worried about you this time."

"Yeah, that's it," Percy sighed. "So what you're saying is, I should have decided to walk in backward and pretended to join their side."

"Annabeth definitely would have kissed you again if that was the stupid plan you went with," Jason rolled his eyes.

"You're assuming he had a plan at all," Thalia stage whispered.

I put it on. "Here goes nothing." And I sneaked invisibly down the dark stone tunnel.*

"And the countdown for the next disaster begins," Percy sighed for everybody this time. It did not help what a horrible feeling this place was giving him, like this quick trip to Mount Tam wasn't going to be any better than the last time.

Before I even got to the exit I heard voices: the growling, barking sounds of sea-demon smiths, the telekhines.

Percy looked mildly offended his awful stunt hadn't even vaporized all of these things. Either that or they'd just regenerated that fast because his luck was truly the worst.

"At least we salvaged the blade," one said. "The master will still reward us."

Magnus's mind flashed to a guy who lived near the local landfill who salvaged anything of value and then threw it in the ocean where he was sure his master dwelled and would one day call out to him. He was now vaguely concerned if Poseidon or some other ocean spirit could put curses on mortals or something.

"Yes! Yes!" a second shrieked. "Rewards beyond measure!"

"I wonder if they share that with all their telekhine kind, or if they're just the greedy ones who are going to hoard it for generations," Alex huffed.

"Like Kronos is going to hold up his end of the bargain anyways," Jason scoffed.

Thalia felt a horrible feeling deep in her chest that made her want to scream. This would be the last time they'd be able to speak about Kronos in the abstract...soon they'd all have a face to attach to the Titan, one she'd never wanted to look away from once.

Another voice, this one more human, said: "Um, yeah, well that's great. Now, if you're done with me—"

"No, half-blood!" a telekhine said. "You must help us make the presentation. It is a great honor!"

"Oh, well in that case," Magnus blew a raspberry and flipped off the monsters that had nearly killed Percy.

Percy chuckled appreciatively, but his stomach twisted hard at how familiar that voice had sounded. Apparently, no good deed was going to go unpunished.

"Gee, thanks," the half-blood said, and I realized it was Ethan Nakamura, the guy who'd run away after I'd saved his sorry life in the arena.

"Is this an ad to never save somebody's life again?" Thalia asked, that sick feeling in her slowly but steadily rising up, her face growing hot. "I'm thinking about throwing my hat in with that sponsorship."

"Don't forget to do a thorough background check Thals," Percy said with a deep frown of concern at her. He knew she was just kidding, she'd no more stand around and watch someone die than he would, but it was an especially bleak joke from her. There were shadows flickering in her dark blue eyes that had nothing to do with this dark room hinting when her mind really was.

I crept toward the end of the tunnel. I had to remind myself I was invisible. They shouldn't be able to see me.

"Doesn't mean you should start slacking," Jason said sharply.

"Yeah, I was going to start singing opera music or something, I thought that would be real subtle," Percy rolled his eyes.

"You don't even know any opera songs," Alex accused.

"You got me, it was going to be Led Zepplin," Percy grinned.

Thalia laughed in surprise, though she visibly winced too. Percy frowned steadily at her, that look on his face she hated the most. It was usually the dumbass expression that meant he noticed something when he was supposed to be helping her fight.

A blast of cold air hit me as I emerged. I was standing near the top of Mount Tam. The Pacific Ocean spread out below, gray under a cloudy sky.

About twenty feet downhill, two telekhines were placing something on a big rock—something long and thin and wrapped in a black cloth. Ethan was helping them open it.

"Careful, fool," the telekhine scolded. "One touch, and the blade will sever your soul from your body."

Ethan swallowed nervously. "Maybe I'll let you unwrap it, then."

"Not so brave now Percy's not about to be the one to kill him," Alex frowned.

"Thanks, I feel real special," Percy frowned along.

I glanced up at the mountain's peak, where a black marble fortress loomed, just like I'd seen in my dreams. It reminded me of an oversized mausoleum, with walls fifty feet high. I had no idea how mortals could miss the fact that it was here.

"Mount Olympus hangs above New York," Magnus was the one to remind with a completely blank face, "I'm so done questioning this." However, the fact that his face still ticked proved that a minor lie and he was just done begging the world to make sense of it.

But then again, everything below the summit seemed fuzzy to me, as if there were a thick veil between me and the lower half of the mountain.

Thalia tried hard to swallow, but it felt like her body was fighting her, she could taste the acid swiftly climbing. It had nothing to do with heights for once.

There was magic going on here—really powerful Mist.

Above me, the sky swirled into a huge funnel cloud. I couldn't see Atlas, but I could hear him groaning in the distance, still laboring under the weight of the sky, just beyond the fortress.

Percy still could have pointed to the exact boulder Zoe had been thrown into. He blinked rapidly against his painful eyes as he remembered Calypso.

He wished he could somehow add a few extra layers to Atlas's punishment.

"There!" the telekhine said. Reverently, he lifted the weapon, and my blood turned to ice.

It was a scythe—a six foot-long blade curved like a crescent moon, with a wooden handle wrapped in leather. The blade glinted two different colors— steel and bronze.

Percy rubbed his thigh where that blade had once sliced right through him. He exchanged a troubled look with Thalia, the hurt and vengeance all mingled together like the forge that had done this. Luke had used that to cut off everybody who mattered to him in service of Kronos...and they hoped it wasn't worth it.

"Is that a special telekhine ability only?" Alex asked with a rather sad smile for still getting a joke in. "If they steal my weapon, will they give me back a better one? Does the stealing have to be explicit, or do they do trades for volcanos?"

"I get the feeling that sword was a gift Alex, and Luke gave it back to them willingly," Jason told him with bland sarcasm.

"Killjoy," Alex rolled his eyes at murdering such fantasies of thieving gone right.

It was the weapon of Kronos, the one he'd used to slice up his father, Ouranos, before the gods had taken it away from him and cut Kronos to pieces, casting him into Tartarus. Now the weapon was re-forged.

"We must sanctify it in blood," the telekhine said. "Then you, half-blood, shall help present it when the lord awakes."

"But he didn't even win his fight!" Thalia protested. "What was he doing there in a place of honor?" She said that like one would of a porta potty.

"They got desperate and used the only fool they could grab," Jason scowled.

I ran toward the fortress, my pulse pounding in my ears. I didn't want to get anywhere close to that horrible black mausoleum, but I knew what I had to do. I had to stop Kronos from rising. This might be my only chance.

There was ominous silence in the room for several moments.

Then they realized Alex was just pausing dramatically for effect before he took a breath to keep going. Percy almost wished he wouldn't. He had a bad feeling about this, and not once had this kind of gut-deep bad feeling turned out to be wrong.

I dashed through a dark foyer and into the main hall. The floor shined like a mahogany piano—pure black and yet full of light. Black marble statues lined the walls. I didn't recognize the faces, but I knew I was looking at images of the Titans who'd ruled before the gods. At the end of the room, between two bronze braziers, was a dais. And on the dais, the golden sarcophagus.

The room was silent except for the crackle of the fires. Luke wasn't here.

No guards. Nothing.

"It's to easy," Magnus finally couldn't help but state the obvious.

"Which has never happened in my life and I'm finally owed one!" Percy tried to say with triumph, even shaking his fist at the sky like he was daring the god of the heavens himself to smite him for saying otherwise.

It didn't exactly invoke a feeling of safeness and assurance this was going to go well.

It was too easy, but I approached the dais.

Percy sighed and hung his head. Nobody even mocked Magnus for the book copy. It was just that awkwardly silent. "Yeah, I know," Percy said. "Time to play how does it all go wrong?"

"Well, we know it's probably not Dracula in that coffin, or if it is, Kronos has allies cooler than you and I'm not going to be rooting for you anymore, so I'm out," Alex shrugged, and seeing as he had the book, that kind of mattered the most right now.

The sarcophagus was just like I remembered—about ten feet long, much too big for a human. It was carved with elaborate scenes of death and destruction, pictures of the gods being trodden under chariots, temples and famous world landmarks being smashed and burned. The whole coffin gave off an aura of extreme cold, like I was walking into a freezer. My breath began to steam.

I drew Riptide and took a little comfort from the familiar weight of the sword in my hand.

Thalia couldn't help but paint over the image, Percy's black hair turning blond, him shooting up several inches and his eyes turning bright blue; Luke's final moments. Had he walked into the room with confidence and stopped to admire his final resting place with a smile? Had he been crying and regretting this as Kronos egged on his every step? Had he ever prayed to his father for a way out in a last desperate attempt? Would he have checked every corner, hoping beyond hope for someone to show up and help him out of this one last time?

Had he lain down in peace it was finally over?

She still remembered him throwing her arm over his shoulder, supporting all of her weight as she tried to limp along. She'd gasped he should take Annabeth and run, but he hadn't listened to her that time, instead telling her, "you can live with dignity, you can't die with it," and she hadn't said another word about it all the way to his mother's house.

What had been his final thought that day? What would he call this death? What Kronos had done to his body was perverse, as far from dignifying as she could imagine.

Whenever I'd approached Kronos before, his evil voice had spoken in my mind. Why was he silent now?

"Did he finally run out of things to say?" Nico asked without hope. "They say silence speaks louder than words, is he just trying to be louder than your constant internal monolog?"

"I have a feeling he was talking to himself when no one was around to listen in Tartarus, I doubt that's it," Percy was fighting off the urge to shiver in here. His body wasn't cold, only his memory of what was about to come.

He'd been shred into a thousand pieces, cut with his own scythe. What would I find if I opened that lid? How could they make a new body for him?

"Duct tape?" Alex offered.

"I vote a welding torch, it sounds more painful," Jason murmured, and they all felt a thrill of horror as they wondered if that's what Daedalus had done. Given someone other than himself an automaton body.

I had no answers. I just knew that if he was about to rise, I had to strike him down before he got his scythe. I had to figure out a way to stop him.

I stood over the coffin.

Jason looked blearily at the book, his gaze switching from its solid black cover to Percy and Thalia for several moments with deja vu swimming on the brain...before it clicked. Percy had dreamed of this moment once. Standing over this coffin, ready to kill Kronos...was Thalia going to appear again to help get the job done?

She looked just as pale and miserable as she had back then. He understood her expression now, truly one of mourning, which really didn't click with her having any feelings other than triumph over the Titan Lord's defeat. She'd screamed in that dream...a scream of fear for what was inside...

The lid was decorated even more intricately than the sides—with scenes of carnage and power. In the middle was an inscription carved in letters even older than Greek, a language of magic. I couldn't read it, exactly, but I knew what it said: KRONOS, LORD OF TIME.

"What a boring epitaph," Magnus raised a brow. "No, here lie's dad, he tried to eat us all and deserves this. I would have settled for, in loving memory of the dude who birthed us the second time and nothing more."

"Gods just aren't that original Magnus, we've gone over this," Nico scoffed.

"I bet the Titans made it and just couldn't be bothered," Alex rolled his eyes.

My hand touched the lid. My fingertips turned blue. Frost gathered on my sword.

"Guess Jason finally gets his answer about if I can get frostbite," Percy muttered as his stomach turned. He tried to calm it, constantly convince and remind himself nobody could possibly get hurt from this except him and he was fine...maybe he'd finally saved the world with one easy stab and Annabeth would hold his hand and kiss him this time.

Then I heard noises behind me—voices approaching. It was now or never.

I pushed back the golden lid and it fell to the floor with a huge WHOOOOM!

Thalia knew there was nothing she could do to brace herself. She wished there was, she would have done anything to feel prepared for what she knew was coming next, but there was nothing. She just felt cold, and empty, and primed for the pain that every word was going to cause her next.

I lifted my sword, ready to strike. But when I looked inside, I didn't comprehend what I was seeing. Mortal legs, dressed in gray pants. A white T-shirt, hands folded over his stomach. One piece of his chest was missing—a clean black hole about the size of a bullet wound, right where his heart should've been. His eyes were closed. His skin was pale. Blond hair...and a scar running along the left side of his face.

The body in the coffin was Luke's.

She'd known this was coming all along, reliving these horrible memories of Percy's could lead to no other choice of words than those, and yet Thalia still felt that gasp of air pass her lips. A traitorous tear slipped from her cheek.

She couldn't just sit here right now. She didn't care how weak or childish it felt, a betrayal of her own body as she jumped up with bile in her throat blocking her scream of protest.

This was not something she'd ever wanted to hear in vivid detail, and her mind claimed some protection from that as she stormed out of the room without a word...leaving a storm behind.

Percy gave her a thirty-second head start as he dodged a lightning cloud to go after her. Jason muttered something about raincoats as he ducked into the nearest room, but Percy felt eyes on the back of his neck until he very cleverly and with Sherlockian skill figured out which room she'd tried to barricade herself in by the loudest bass guitar he'd ever heard in his life.

He pushed the door open, one hand trying to reflexively come up and cover his ear to stop it bleeding. Thalia was standing with her hand inside the fridge where a large stereo was blasting music, her fingers still managing to fiddle with the links of her bracelet on that wrist awkwardly with the other.**

The lyrics weren't exactly cheery either, what he could make out through the screaming.

He knew he was probably going to get all of his bones shocked like a stupid cartoon outline and his hair would never lie flat again for this, but he went around beside her and waved his hand experimentally in front of her face to at least let her know he was here.

Her mouth twitched, the smallest degree, but her brow furrowed in concentration and somehow the music got louder. His teeth were vibrating in his skull. His eardrums felt like somebody was crumpling up sandpaper in them.

Stubbornness set in though as he leaned closer and blew on her face, disturbing the hair that was swaying along to the beat.

Her eyes snapped open, electricity crackled from her nose and he really hoped she never decided to get a nose ring, but she took her hand off the speaker and it finally dulled into a background noise as his ears popped. If he wasn't in the ocean he'd probably never get his hearing back.

"What are you, five?" She scowled. "You think I'm going to start whining you're breathing the same air as me?"

"Nah," he shrugged, "I just knew if I tapped you on the shoulder you would have murdered me without hesitation. This seemed safer."

"I probably can't kill you down here," she said with the confidence of one who had really considered it. "I don't want to hear the rest of that. Come get me when you're back in the maze."

"Fair," Percy promised. "Just wanted to check if you need anything besides new eardrums first. Punching bag? Black liquorice?"

She smiled against her will he did remember the kind of candy she liked.

He had to ruin the sweet moment though with a classic Percy, "I know you're beating yourself up, and you shouldn't. You couldn't have done anything differently."

"Go away Percy," she ground out, smile vanishing.

"What could you do?" He insisted. "Not saved his life on that hill? Pretend to join his side to talk him out of this? Annabeth thought of every plan and never found one crazy enough to use, you couldn't have changed-"

"I know!" She snapped as loud as the music had been. Thunder rumbled in the distance. "That's the worst part! I know I couldn't have fixed this and I hate him and I hate myself for hating him and I, I hate that I loved him!"

She stopped with a gasp, another exhale of air that fizzled with electricity between them and made Percy's heart zap like a paddle blast he had not needed. He swatted his chest impatiently, ignoring his fingers twitching against their will as his nerves were clearly standing on end too.

He watched her turn away, her hand reaching for the radio. Gods knew how long she'd been holding all that in. He suspected she'd never talked to Annabeth about this, or at least, it hadn't ended any better than grumpy silence if they started, considering that's all he got out of Annabeth defending Luke. He highly suspected she wouldn't talk to the other Hunters about this, the boy-hating club would just take her side and agree Luke wasn't worth the wasted breath and move on.

No one who was willing to listen without taking sides. She just needed space from any judgy opinion.

"Okay," he managed before the spark from her fingers could make contact. "I'll come get you like you asked."

"Thanks," she whispered.

He got to the door, but the music didn't start again.

"Do you really think that Percy?" She asked, face still turned away. "That we really couldn't have done anything differently?"

"Yeah," he said. He didn't need to know the whole story, or if this was all he'd found out in his life and the war was still raging on. He still believed it no matter the outcome, the two of them had done everything they could to save as many lives as possible.

"Right," she muttered with distaste. "So why put myself through listening to it, it won't change anything. It only makes me hate everything I ever remember about him."

"Right," he agreed, "no need to put yourself through that."

She hated Percy for not making this easy on her and insisting she should come hear every detail anyway or ask what she was hiding from. She knew she was playing right into his manipulative hand by falling for the 'I'm only on your side' smile on his face. If she didn't find a way to stab some nonvital part of him through that Achilles curse than she'd consider this trip a failure.

"Right," she echoed as she stomped around the bed.

He stayed in the doorway with that stupid smile. "Sure you don't need anything?"

"Move Perky!"

He stepped aside with his hands raised and she cussed him out all the way back he was taller than her and yet she could still drop-kick his ass. Why was she doing this to herself?!

She felt insane all of a sudden, like she'd been trying to convince herself she could go back to the innocence of it all. She knew all the signs coming and knew how it ended, but there was nothing she could do to turn a blind eye to it anymore. It had hit, and she just had to keep going...

They came back in to see the clouds had mostly subsided to murky black swirls that were escaping and dispersing out of the cracks in every wall, with everybody having an umbrella in hand and chilling in place like this was nothing out of the ordinary.

They were getting oddly good at that.

"How the hell do you make it rain underwater anyways?" Alex asked, sticking his hand out from under the pink and green nylon to catch a few drops, watching it fall through the cracks in the floor with interest.

"Hey Nico," Will grinned, staying close underneath Nico's arm hoisting a solid black one instead of holding his own. He looked ridiculous as ever all scrunched up and doubled over, but he had a stupidly delighted smile on his face while cupping his hands to collect some. Nico half expected to be splashed, until it spilled over Will's smooth palms to splatter into the puddle at their feet as he grinned and finished, "I think this is getting out of hand."

"So help me Solace, I will find a way to drown you down here," Nico said fondly.

"You're just mad you didn't think of that joke in time Nico," Magnus chuckled, shaking out his banana yellow umbrella and tucking it underneath his feet like he was sure he was going to need it again.

Jason was humming 'rain, rain, go away,' from under his purple umbrella and watching Thalia with those same deep, trusting blue eyes as when she'd first laughed and sang that song with him on an old, broken toy she'd stolen from a traders show to give to him. Unlike 'normal kids', that's how they'd learned their ABC's and 'twinkle twinkle little start.'

The old man bonking his head had been his favorite part. He was to young to get the joke the rain would never stop for them...only to be proven wrong as the others folded theirs up too. She supposed every storm had to run out of rain eventually.

"Sorry," Thalia sighed all the same.

"Pssh, I've gotten them all ten times more wet than this," Percy reminded.

"Anyways," Alex said loudly while Thalia struggled on whether she should address what Percy just said or not. She would either turn it into a competition or try to make him hear the double meaning and while both would be entertaining, Alex decided he had to be the mature one and finish one catastrophe before starting another.

I should have stabbed him right then. I should've brought the point of Riptide down with all my strength.

Nico resisted the impulse to tell Percy that wouldn't have worked anyway. Luke might have been in a state of in-between, he'd sensed that the closer they'd drawn something was off in that place like a soul that was screaming out and would need help being released.

Riptide wouldn't have done the trick though, not with the Achilles curse already in place to house Kronos's body.

But I was too stunned. I didn't understand. As much as I hated Luke, as much as he had betrayed me, I just didn't get why he was in the coffin, and why he looked so very, very dead.

Jason felt a horrible, sick feeling this is what all of Luke's planning had been leading up to. Some final sacrifice Kronos had needed. Wasn't it supposed to be some child of the big three to bring Kronos back? Wasn't that what this was all about? Had Luke thought he'd be good enough and his death was in vain? It was a sad, yet horribly fitting ending to the guy that had started all of this.

Then the voices of the telekhines were right behind me.

"What has happened!" one of the demons screamed when he saw the lid. I stumbled away from the dais, forgetting that I was invisible, and hid behind a column as they approached.

Magnus and Alex exchanged a whole conversation with just one look. They did not like Luke, and whatever was happening in this Greek story was well beyond them to understand.

What they did hear was the mental rant Percy was giving himself over there about losing his chance and how they were going to hear that verbally with extra effects later if this didn't end well, which had never been likely from the start.

"Careful!" the other demon warned. "Perhaps he stirs. We must present the gifts now. Immediately!"

"Swords in bed, they'll replace breakfast, love, and healthcare in no time with that method," Will said dully. This was just a horrible place to imagine from every angle and between that, and actually getting some rain in this dingy place with still not a hint of sunshine in sight was seriously starting to depress him. He longed for the natural world again more every chapter.

The two telekhines shuffled forward and knelt, holding up the scythe on its wrapping cloth. "My lord," one said. "Your symbol of power is remade."

Silence. Nothing happened in the coffin.

"That was not an impressive enough speech to get anyone to wake up," Alex scoffed. "They should try it with coffee and donuts."

"Will did just establish they think their idea is better and I don't think even you could change their mind," Magnus shrugged.

"You fool," the other telekhine muttered. "He requires the half-blood first."

Ethan stepped back. "Whoa, what do you mean, he requires me?"

Alex made a really suggestive, double-clicking sound with his mouth that made them all groan in disgust and Jason threw a bit of his beanbag at him.

"I'm sorry for putting us in the gutter but I'm electing we don't stay there," Thalia's voice was hoarse with stress. To anyone not paying attention she just hadn't thought the joke was funny and was still taking this in stride.

Alex was not one of those people and bobbed his head once in apology, mock zipping his mouth shut as he continued reading.

"Don't be a coward!" the first telekhine hissed. "He does not require your death. Only your allegiance. Pledge him your service. Renounce the gods. That is all."

"No!" I yelled. It was a stupid thing to do,

"True, but ramming a bus into the side of a tunnel is still your top impulse moment," Jason promised.

"If saving this guy's life the first time didn't convince him you knew more than these monsters I don't think shouting in his face will," Magnus agreed.

"I never shouted in his face?" Will mock grinned in confusion.

Nico pretended to spray a water bottle in his face, "bad joke, bad!"

Will laughed in delight and swatted real water still dripping from his hair, which got the most mild of chuckles out of everybody else in the room.

but I charged into the room and took off the cap.

"Annabeth's going to be so pissed at you for revealing her secret weapon, waving it around like that," Thalia managed some attempt at her usual tone.

"She can't do any worse to me?" But Percy somehow managed to phrase that as a question anyway.

"Ethan, don't!"

"Trespasser!" The telekhines bared their seal teeth. "The master will deal with you soon enough. Hurry, boy!"

"Ethan," I pleaded, "don't listen to them. Help me destroy it."

Ethan turned toward me, his eye patch blending in with the shadows on his face. His expression was something like pity. "I told you not to spare me, Percy. 'An eye for an eye.' You ever hear that saying? I learned what it means the hard way—when I discovered my godly parent. I'm the child of Nemesis, Goddess of Revenge. And this is what I was made to do."

"Could a goddess have a child that could have revenge against her? That sounds redundant," Magnus frowned.

"As Luke himself has proven, we're not hard-wired to use our powers for our parents unconditionally," Nico frowned. He still felt like he hadn't found a balance between defining himself and who his dad was.

He turned toward the dais. "I renounce the gods! What have they ever done for me? I will see them destroyed. I will serve Kronos."

The building rumbled. A wisp of blue light rose from the floor at Ethan Nakamura's feet. It drifted toward the coffin and began to shimmer, like a cloud of pure energy. Then it descended on the sarcophagus.

Each time a half-blood joins us, the Olympians grow weaker and we grow stronger. He grows stronger." Luke pointed to the gold sarcophagus... Luke himself had promised this was exactly what was happening. Not one of them had wanted to see it in action, here in as vivid a detail what a few words could do. If only Alex had the power to kill a whole word, he knew which he'd start with right now.

Luke sat bolt upright. His eyes opened, and they were no longer blue.

They were golden, the same color as the coffin. The hole in his chest was gone. He was complete. He leaped out of the coffin with ease, and where his feet touched the floor, the marble froze like craters of ice.

Thalia pressed her hand to her mouth. She didn't know what she was holding in, a scream, a gasp, a sob. It didn't matter. It was staying where it was.

He looked at Ethan and the telekhines with those horrible golden eyes, as if he were a newborn baby, not sure what he was seeing. Then he looked at me, and a smile of recognition crept across his mouth.

"This body has been well prepared." His voice was like a razor blade running over my skin. It was Luke's, but not Luke's. Underneath his voice was another, more horrible sound—an ancient, cold sound like metal scraping against rock.

Percy had always heard those voices together side by side from one of his very first dreams. It still didn't prepare him to hear them as intrinsically tied together as Backbiter now was.

"Don't you think so, Percy Jackson?"

I couldn't move. I couldn't answer.

Kronos threw back his head and laughed. The scar on his face rippled.

"Luke feared you," the Titan's voice said. "His jealously and hatred have been powerful tools. It has kept him obedient. For that I thank you."

"He's not welcome," Percy managed through gritted teeth. He could feel that guinea pig in him once more squeaking in terror and telling him to run, but he easily overrode it with anger at Luke for doing this to himself. One swipe, that's all he needed, one chance with his sword before this could possibly somehow still get worse.

Ethan collapsed in terror. He covered his face with his hands.

There was no mocking to be had, no superior laughs for the comeuppance of his words. This was something no mortal should ever have to lay eyes on.

The telekhines trembled, holding up the scythe.

Finally I found my nerve. I lunged at the thing that used to be Luke, thrusting my blade straight at his chest, but his skin deflected the blow like he was made of pure steel. He looked at me with amusement. Then he flicked his hand, and I flew across the room.

Another tear traced down Thalia's cheek, and she hated herself for that. Her nails were digging into the side of her cheek and she did not unclench any part of herself, sitting still as a tree once more as if a once cursed slumber would help the pain of this all go in easier.

I slammed against a pillar. I struggled to my feet, blinking the stars out of my eyes, but Kronos had already grasped the handle of his scythe.

"Ah...much better," he said. "Backbiter, Luke called it. An appropriate name. Now that it is re-forged completely, it shall indeed bite back."

"What have you done to Luke?" I groaned.

Kronos raised his scythe. "He serves me with his whole being, as I require. The difference is, he feared you, Percy Jackson.

"He hid that well," Jason frowned. He didn't think Luke left his secret diary lying around for notes over that, but he would have liked to hear it from the horse's mouth. Jealousy, hatred, superiority could all easily be applied to Luke, but fear?

Then Jason's eyes flickered to Thalia, and he realized Luke was afraid of exactly what happened, what Thalia herself had once feared of Percy. That he would take away those most important to him. Kronos probably kept feeding the worst of this to delude Luke long enough he never realized he'd done that to himself as Luke's once best friend stayed frozen with this pain.

He wanted to do something for her, anything. He would have stolen Zeus's thunderbolt to smite this hybrid monster, he wanted to smack Percy for dragging her back in here.

All any of them could do was just get through it.

I do not."

That's when I ran.

"Character continuity," Nico gave him a big thumbs up. Percy would have assumed he was being mocked if Nico didn't look him right in the eye with sincerity. "It's like Echidna all over again."

"I've grown some over the years," Percy grinned, "I know how to pronounce Charon now."

"We all go at our own pace," Nico nodded along.

There wasn't even any thought to it. No debate in my mind about—gee, should I stand up to him and try to fight again? Nope, I simply ran.

But my feet felt like lead. Time slowed down around me, like the world was turning to Jell-O. I'd had this feeling once before, and I knew it was the power of Kronos. His presence was so strong it could bend time itself.

"Run, little hero," he laughed. "Run!"

Percy shivered, he still remembered the feeling like his blood was infected with ice. There had been no source of water, nothing he could have done. He studied his shaking fingers that hadn't even drawn his sword on instinct in here, that's how futile he knew this was. Why wasn't he dead? Of all the times he'd asked himself that, it really didn't seem like there was an answer this time-

I glanced back and saw him approaching leisurely, swinging his scythe as if he were enjoying the feel of having it in his hands again. No weapon in the world could stop him. No amount of celestial bronze.

He was ten feet away when I heard, "PERCY!"

Rachel's voice.

"What, took, you, so, long," Will swatted Nico's shoulder with every word, sadly the only available person here he could harangue for this. "Every one of you is a disobedient protective nutjob! How did Percy even make it five steps without you guys coming to save his bacon!" He was still smacking him on the shoulder with a pretty steady rhythm too.

It was light, and playful, like a kitten batting at him. Nico smiled at the casual contact and shrugged, which didn't dislodge Will's beat. "Annabeth told us to wait there, Rachel said she was coming, and I followed. It took, um, maybe sixty seconds, but it was a long tunnel and when we saw the telekhines we didn't have our own invisibility hat so we had to move slow."

Will huffed and crossed his arms, muttering about the lot of them all about to give him a heart attack.

Something flew past me, and a blue plastic hairbrush hit Kronos in the eye.

"Ow!" he yelled. For a moment it was only Luke's voice, full of surprise and pain.

Thalia couldn't stop the noise that escaped her. An eerily similar yelp of pain like it had echoed through time right to her. That this one moment couldn't have lasted forever. That was all that needed to be done to knock some sense back into him.

How awful did that make her? That she'd rather he be frozen in pain like that in his own body forever than possessed and disintegrated from the inside out as this thing took him over?

"Sorry Thalia," Percy couldn't help but whisper, moving to gently put his arm over her shoulder.

"Yeah, I know. Me too." she whispered, eyes on the floor even as she gave his wrist a squeeze. Being sorry didn't make it feel better.

My limbs were freed and I ran straight into Rachel, Nico, and Annabeth, who were standing in the entry hall, their eyes filled with dismay.

"Luke?" Annabeth called. "What—"

I grabbed her by the shirt and hauled her after me.

Percy's hand grasped at nothing in here, as usual, though his feet twitched and the cold still felt like it was seeping in. The orange of her shirt had looked faded, the black letters peeling. She'd gotten a new one yesterday before they left camp. The gray in her hair had stood out more than ever, her face ghastly pale like being in Luke's mere presence had been aging her faster than them all.

Had Luke/ Kronos seen her and caused a second's more hesitation? Would it have been enough to draw them apart if they'd forced them back into that sarcophagus?

She'd saved his life in that arena with the tip about Gaia, now he returned the favor by saving her from Luke. It had to be that simple. Even if she did hate him for dragging her away kicking and screaming, he really didn't care. Like the sirens all over again, he'd always save her from herself.

I ran as fast as I've ever run, straight out of the fortress. We were almost back to the Labyrinth entrance when I heard the loudest bellow in the world—the voice of Kronos, coming back into control. "AFTER THEM!"

It hadn't been about impressing Percy, as Nico had sneered and a spark of anger always easily at the surface of his mind caught to life at that moment. It had been pure obstinance of being hunted down that had made him lash out with a power he'd never known to touch before.

"No!" Nico yelled. He clapped his hands together, and a jagged spire of rock the size of an eighteen-wheeler erupted from the ground right in front of the fortress. The tremor it caused was so powerful the front columns of the building came crashing down. I heard muffled screams from the telekhines inside. Dust billowed everywhere.

We plunged into the Labyrinth and kept running, the howl of the Titan lord shaking the entire world behind us.

It wasn't until Alex had finished and silently got up to hand the book to Percy, only to sign to Magnus in very choppy and slow words as he sat back down, 'I need your help to plan the best hairbrush-themed party for Rachel' did he realize he'd gone silent and his eyes were swimming with tears of laughter. Showing anything of the sort would have made Thalia really start crying for a wholly other reason though.

He nodded and smiled back, thinking how lucky he was to have landed in here with these guys as Thalia coughed and snapped at Percy to get a move on, her voice frostier than the South Pole.

Percy of course did so without comment or question, pulling his arm away and giving Thalia the space she needed.

PJOPJOPJOPJO

No, they did not stop and laugh about Rachel hitting a Titan with a blue hairbrush. Thalia was in pain over this and there will be respectful silence for their fellow person during that.

They will, however, laugh their ass off in the next chapter along with Percy when there's been a little time to cool. Don't worry, you'll all get your chuckles while I have my emotional constipation about Thalia finally relieved.

*The one and only detail that bothered me about Chalice of the Gods. Percy's worn her hat plenty of times before and never felt an itchy sensation. My headcannon for this change is that Athena did this as a reminder of Annabeth's hubris in the hopes it would save her daughter from her fatal flaw in the future, even if it took a while to kick in when she got it back in The Staff of Serapis. Otherwise, I can't get enough of psychoanalyzing how far their relationship has come from these books to that.

**If you're curious about the song I imagine Thalia was listening to during that scene, it's Downfall by Trust Company.

[sam-glade]

Find the Words Tag

Tagged by @dogmomwrites here and @talesofsorrowandofruin here. Thank you both💜

And I'll pass it gently to: @writernopal @morganwriteblr @late-to-the-fandom @acertainmoshke with the words: coin, crane, crack, creak.

I'll be looking through all my draft to find these.

From @dogmomwrites: evident, spectacular, batter, describe, and jump

EVIDENT

The landscape was crisp. Bleak sun hung above the horizon, not quite setting yet. Early March greeted them with another wave of frost, after the winter’s snows had mostly melted. The flat fields, ploughed deep after the last harvest, were dusted white, and the soil was rock-hard. The boundaries of the fields were marked by sad-looking bushes and small plum trees, no green evident on the naked branches.

SPECTACULAR

Lissan snatched his head up when he felt the gateway open in the front yard. He was sitting on the front porch reading, so he had a good view of the opening passage next to the Dragon Tree. It wasn’t spectacular, at least not to him, after he’d witnessed it so many times. A long vertical line appeared in the air like a slit. It grew sideways, to the size of a large door. Through it one could see the Void lit by brightly shimmering specks, as if someone sewed stars onto black velvet.

BATTER

He skirted a large patch of woodland, wondering how far he’d gone already — he didn’t recognise the area at all. Just as the woman had said, he found a sad-looking windmill atop a hill, its blades too battered to be serviceable. He slowed down, waiting for his breath to calm. The cold air invaded his lungs, and his ears hurt from the rush of wind, but the discomforts passed swiftly.

DESCRIBE

“Now, please describe the two people you saw there?” Lissan chewed on his lip. “The woman was thin and she didn’t look very healthy, like her skin was dry and grey, and her hair was thin and wispy. Uh… she was a little shorter than me, but not too short, average height.” He shrugged. “I’ll probably recognise her if I see her again, but I don’t know what else to tell you.” Gullin made a mental note to find someone to draw a portrait from the description. “And the man?” “Tall, tanned, clean-shaven, almost black hair, styled into smooth waves. Fairly good-looking. He had a really nice voice.” Gullin couldn’t help a snort.

JUMP

Lissan was glad to be back in the arena as soon as it stopped spitting. Part of it was indulgence, and he had to acknowledge it — he wanted to show off, and the Swords of Heavy Infantry taunted him and each other to encourage it. He enjoyed their attention and their compliments, but another part of it was giving the others the chance to likewise show off their powers. They had been reluctant at first, faced with a kid unable to describe even his manifestation. It took Gullin jumping down into the arena and throwing his full release at him to convince the other officers that Lissan was pretty hard to kill.

~*~

From @talesofsorrowandofruin (choosing four from the list): teeth, wind, wing, glare.

TEETH

“So, are you going to tell us what brings you to Redguard on this fine evening?” Gullin asked, pushing his empty bowl towards the middle of the table. Ianim kept his eyes stubbornly fixed at the residue on the bottom of his mug. “Orders to deliver a field report to my Colonel in person, so I can receive a reprimand from her right away.” Nikols whistled through his teeth. “That’s a first, ain’t it?”

WIND

Gullin pooled raw energy inside him and let it course through him. It propelled him to move, to act. Wind picked up and a whirlwind cocooned him, strong enough to deflect the smaller pebbles. A dozen of the ones floating nearby converged on him — he heard them zip through the air, his senses honed to the extreme. A gust pushed him further into the fray; the pebbles’ paths crisscrossed harmlessly behind him and they clattered to the ground.

WING

A bird knocked on the office window in the afternoon. The bird’s name was Rime and it was the only black-winged kite in the Winged Ones’ menagerie. It was small, the size of a kestrel. It had white plumage with black eye stripes and wing tips. It was beautiful in its simple appearance. Ianim hated it.

GLARE

“How could you have heard that? You were in the woods, that had to be over eighty paces.” Gullin jerked his thumb towards himself. “I would have heard it easily, Princeling.” Ianim shot him a glare over the old, old nickname. Fair enough, Gullin supposed they had a third wheel at the table. He offered a small, apologetic shrug.

[nityarawal]

3/4/2024

"What Do You Love About

Me?"

(- Kimmy DM *)

Morning Songs

What Do You Love

About Me

Do You Love Me

Enough

To Write My

Song

In Calligraphy

What Do You

Love

About Me

Is It My Stylized

Fashionista

Eyes

What Do You

Love About Me

Watching From

The Sidelines

What Do You

Love About 

Me

Muses

Who Love You

Like Mom

Don't You Want To

Return Mommies'

Assets

See Her Get

Whatever She

Wants

Son

Some Day

You'll Fall In Love

Again

And Remember

Who You Are

Someday My

Love

You'll Love

Too

Eloning Like 

Mad

You'll Wish

For That Day

When You Can

Be An Elder

Tune

Eloning

What We Have

For It's Hot

Don't I Know

To See

50 Something

Year Old

Yogis'

Running On The

Beach

Free

In Kauaii

Camping

Hiking

Alive

Singing

Regenerating

Humble

On The Floor

On Fresh

Food

Astronauts

Cleanses

It's Hot

Hitchhiking To Mars

Via Hawaii

Astronomy

Bases

They Got What

It Takes

Regenerating

Revived

Hiking

Burning Man

Self Sufficiency

Rock Climbing

Kiting

Flying

You Guys Might Be

Jealous

Of The Real

Kimmy Muses'

Model

Whose Laid

Down For A Sister

Because A

Civil Atty

You Might Be

Courting For Comissions

Jelly Of My

Armenian Goddess Sisters

Mommies'

From Tehrangeles

But Don't 

Think Trans

Green Washing

Bought

Kimmy's Brand 

No Just Because

She's Armenian

From Little

Armenia

In Tehrangeles

Just Because

She's Been

Paraded

In OJ Law

Since Puberty

Just Because

She Looks Like

Jasmin

In Alladin

No She Won't 

Be A Robot

For A Brand

Prototype

For Starbucks

'Glamor Gals'

No Kimmy

June

Might Take Us

To The Moon

With Chandra

Pravin

Lights

And Bounce

Buddha's Balls Back

With

Refunds

Like Attys

Should've 

For Chrismacah

Thanksgiving

Valentine's

Birthday

Rainchecks

Merci

We Love You

Anyways 

Peace,

Nitya Nella Davigo Azam Moezzi Huntley Rawal 

*My Divine Atty Choice is Civil Attorney Kim Kardashian! Her Kimmy (bot?) messaged to ask what I, "loved about her," last fall during Mahalakshmi- festival of lights- and as one of my Middle Eastern sisters demanding peace for #4BillionMothersStrong Civil rights- she inspired many songs.

Kimmy is a divine Saraswati Muse. Grateful She's taking a stand to support Cybermoms by driving a Cybertruck. That's Hot. Lol

For sure. My PDs Jay Curatolo & Christopher Stapleton were obsessed with Kimmy- always hoping to get a peep of her in court so they're gloating over thievery of her robot dolly!

It'll be hotter when all my ladies are refunded and managed safely with their Whistles and Kids + Lakshmi Goddess packages! Royalties transparent.

Sorry for delays! 

We're all Eloning and I'm certain Elon Musk is working overtime for my ladies justice with Kimmy, Beyonce, Paris, Britney, Taylor & Rockstar Diva friends too!

America First Legal is $50b tardy for Eloning #Muses - did anyone get a case number or decent customer service?

Xo

[kaycebishop]

where. somewhere near the tents who. @alekgray​

Kayce was, well --- high as a kite, thanks to Dante and his little party favors. Though it may not have been the best idea for him to consume any sort of drug while already freaking out, he wasn’t well known for his brilliant ideas. This one just so happened to come out in his favor, as the new world around him seemed to become only that much more interesting. Perhaps that is why his mind no longer lingered on the very fact that he had witnessed Alek rip a guy apart and then eat his heart. And perhaps that is why he had, once again, found his way to the other, with a stupid grin on his face. “I have a really important question to ask you,” he started as he approached, hands moving into his pockets in search of the cigarettes he knew he still had. “If I blow one of those dog whistles, would that cause chaos for you all?”

[weekend-whip]

The ask for fic thing, Morro and V

V. An abandoned or empty place

(Prompt List)

AO3 Version

. . .

The monastery’s a lot different than he remembers it.

...but then again, he also remembers it actually being there.

Morro intakes a breath—or as close as he can get—as he floats along the stairs that call forth so many innocent memories from his youth. Times playing with other orphaned kids upon the outer grounds, the roguish moments of swiping sweets from the trash, scuttling away whenever one of the old Masters of Spinjitzu nearly caught them in places where they shouldn’t be...

He even remembers the day Wu taught him how to fly a kite upon the mountain’s near-infinite stairs. How could he not, when that was the day the gentle spring breeze whispered to him the secrets of wind, and next thing he knew, every gust was under his command. As easy as breathing air, the wind was his, and there had never been a moment in his life as uplifting as that one since. 

Nor one that took the wind out of him like being told he wasn’t the Green Ninja.

Memories both pleasant and putrid came from that one single building. And even now, he still has mixed feelings about even being in its presence on this fateful night. Being here, at the mountain top that could see nearly all of Ninjago on the days when the clouds were forgiving...a place that filled his childhood with hope and what remained of the rest of his life with despair...

He wouldn’t call it home, but he can’t call it anything less either. 

So beholding it now, the once magnificent Monastery of Spinjitzu, reduced to a ghost of its former self...Morro struggles to take any kind of pleasure from the sight. The area is nothing more than a graveyard now, where the bones of the building’s framework sit buried in rubble and ashes, and the echoes of the past haunt the grounds through memories. Not even the whistling of the Wind serves to soothe the Master of it himself, only invoking something melancholic instead. 

Little of anything persists, and what once might have even slightly survived the threat of Fire has further decayed through Time and the sheer force of Nature. The Elements always reclaim everything in the end...

But, perhaps the place isn’t quite as abandoned as he thought...

For a man sits in the middle in the wreckage, three lanterns lit before him.

One for a father, one for a brother...

And one, Morro would like to think, for a son. 

“How touching,” he drolls in his own thoughts, eyeing that third lantern with a bit of unresolved contempt. How like Wu, to try and remember the pupil whose head he filled with so many dreams; the pupil he drove to believe was destined for something greater, something no one else would be destinedto achieve...only to rip it all away right out from under him and leave him to die. 

Only to give all those promises and praises and glory to someone else; someone who hadn’t even asked for it. 

The burn of envy still flickers somewhere in the remains of his soul; that uncomfortable feeling that festers when his mind unhelpfully supplies ‘what ifs’ and ‘should have beens’. But in hindsight, it is pretty hard to want for much of anything when you’re already dead. 

What could he even ask for now? A second chance? A fresh start? The option to do everything again, but better? All things he’s thrown away already, whether because he deserved more than that, because he deserved them on his own terms, or because he knew he didn’t deserve them at all? 

...why’s he even here? 

Morro scowls to himself, staring at the back of the old man that has yet to register his presence. He looks upon his old master, and only sees a man that’s lost far more than a weaker-willed man could have handled. It’s pathetic, and yet, admirable. 

He’s only seen a sliver of the man’s lifetime, and even Morro knows Wu’s accomplished so much...and lost even more. It’s something he hadn’t caught onto before, back when he was a child—as if he’s not still a child, to some degree—but now...Morro knows more. Better. Understands. 

Morro’s seen the way Wu throws down his own life for the sake of those he loves, even as Morro wondered for years—decades—if Wu would have ever done the same for him. If he had known how much stock Morro had in his pride, if he had known that Morro was willing to run away, if he had known that Morro had been trapped in a death of his own undoing...would Wu have come for him, then? 

Morro already knows the answer; he’s seen it in Wu’s eyes as he sank beneath the waves of Stiix, a single hand reaching out to help, with a harrowed call of desperation as another moment of regret is added upon Wu’s ever-growing list of personal failures. 

Morro sees it even now, as he beholds an old man sob profusely over a simple group of lanterns, representing people he’s failed to properly keep in his life. 

It’s why it hurts so much that Morro once looked up to this man without even a shred of a second thought. And why it hurts to know that, to some degree, he still does. Despite everything. 

He once believed Wu could have done no wrong...but he also falsely believed Wu wouldn’t feel awful for the mistakes he did make. 

Morro finally makes his presence known; Wu rises to his feet with a start. He draws his weapon, prepared for a deadly confrontation should it come to that once again. Morro can’t entirely blame him for having a less-than welcoming impression. 

“We have fought twice before,” Wu says, twirling his staff before him. “...and I will do so again, if I must.”

And he obviously doesn’t want to. Morro doesn’t really want to, either. 

“No, you misunderstand...”

Morro frowns to himself, makes a decision, and changes his grip upon his sword. 

There may be no saving those who don’t want to be saved...but those doing the saving? Those who return to abandoned places—and people—and are capable of giving them purpose again? 

They’re usually in need of being saved themselves. 

“...I did not come here to fight you. I came here...to warn you.”

But it’s the first time in a long time, perhaps for the last time...where the space in his chest where his heart used to be doesn’t feel quite so empty. 

A place, a feeling, he’d thought he’d abandoned long ago...turns out it never really left at all. 

[oshawottarchive]

Chapter 2 - Birds

Kai stared up at the statue of the Titanium Ninja. He was wearing Zane’s old falconry glove, which the falcon sat upon. He sighed, turning away. *It’s just not the same without him.*

He headed in the direction of Mezmo’s tavern, gaze turned to the ground. The falcon started squawking, jostling around on Kai’s arm. He looked up at the bird, confused.

“What’s wrong?” The falcon squawked again, fluttering to the ground. It titled its head to the side, back in the direction of the park. “What is it?” Kai followed as the raptor ran into the park’s center, letting out screeches.

Another bird appeared, fluttering down from a tree. It was smaller then the falcon, with blue and orange specked with black along its wings and back.

A Ninjargon kestrel.

Kai smiled. Zane had always loved birds, especially the raptors. He sat down, watching the kestrel and the falcon squawk at each other, hopping around. It was nice, just relaxing by himself, watching the birds.

*Is this what it was like for Zane? When he would watch the birds?* He missed him. He missed him so, so much. But, he was gone, and there was nothing he could do about it.

*Unless. . . .*

He stood, whistling to the falcon, which landed on his arm, talons sinking into the falconry glove. Kai chuckled. “You’re lucky I found this, otherwise I would have a pretty hard time carrying you around.”

He started walking away, this time in the direction of an alley. Somewhere he hadn’t been in a long, long time.

As he walked, it was almost as if he was being followed, by birds. The Ninjargon kestrel kept up with him, joined by two barn owls, a black kite, a Stiix condor, and a goose.

He watched as they fluttered and ran about, screeching various ‘songs’. At one point, the kite pushed the falcon aside, landing on the falconry glove. Kai slowed down his pace, letting the falcon catch up.

Once it reclaimed its spot, he picked up the pace, arriving at an alleyway. In front of him was a manhole cover, and below, the subway tunnels.

The tunnels he had come to so long ago, the first time he had visited Ninjago city. Last time he was here, Zane was still alive. And he was wearing bright pink.

[kingsansa]

will we be seeing flashbacks of the scenes of jon and sansa playing with kites or playing piano in wolfsong 😵‍💫 if not i would love that as a prompt pls

She was still quite young for so much sun, but Jon discovered he found it difficult to deny her anything.

“Did you see that?” She shouted giddily over her shoulder, louder than the whistling wind.

“I did.” Jon appraised, hands tucked behind him.

Her face was pink as she beamed, whether it was from joy or that she fed just a short time ago, he did not know. But he relished in it, just as he relished in the possibility that he’d made it so.

Growing up as he did, hope always made him uneasy. That day, he kept it close to him. Guards it carefully.

“Your turn.” Sansa insisted, picking up the kite from the dark sand. “Come hold it.”

It was a triangular looking thing he bought from the market simply because he saw her playing with it the first time he saw her, surrounded children of the small folk. How she’d laughed, then. All he wanted to do was make her laugh again. Even a smile—

He wanted to show her that she would not be miserable with him. That she could be, that they could be—

Even if none of this wasn’t planned.

“It won’t bite you.” She said, when he didn’t move to take it from her. Her eyes sparkled like the waves washing upon the shore mere feet away. Like the sky above them.

She was made for the sun. Even now.

The kite seemed a lot smaller in his hands than it did hers, but he held onto it to please her. He wanted her to keep smiling.

“Hold it like this.” Her hand came up to cover one of his, pulling it down to grasp the string. Her skin was soft.

At her direction, he threw it up into the air. The first time, it fell to the ground. The second time, it fluttered a little before the wind caught it, taking it high.

She jumped, elated. She held onto her straw hat with her hand, laugh ringing clear over the wind.

She watched the kite, and he watched her.

[catniplynx]

got autistic about warrior cats and had to make a spreadsheet

clan exclusive prefixes:

thunder (32): bay, briar, bumble, chestnut, cricket, dandelion, elder, flicker, flip, fuzzy, golden, goose, half, larch, long, lynx, moon, mumble, myrtle, pear, rook, rose, seed, snap, soot, spark, stem, sweet, thorn, thrift, thunder, tulip, weed

shadow (45): arch, badger, blaze, blizzard, bluebell, broken, brown, cinnamon, claw, cone, drift, ferret, fir, flax, flint, frond, gull, hope, jump, lavender, light, log, maggot, marigold, newt, nut, olive, pool, puddle, quiet, rat, russet, scorch, shadow, spire, stream, strike, stumpy, swamp, violet, wet, whisper, whorl, wish, yarrow

wind (25): bark, boulder, brook (HOW is that not riverclan??), brush, chive, crouch, dead, down, flail, flutter, furze, gale, heather, hickory, hill, hoot, midge, rye, sheep, slight, stork, stripe, whisker, whistle, woolly

river (27): copper, crooked, curl, cypress, duck, fog, hail, haven, hay, heavy, loud, mallow, minnow, misty, mossy, otter, perch, pike, primrose, river, rush, shimmer, shy, sneeze, soft, swan, vixen, wave

sky (26): bounce, brave, creek, curly, ebony, fin, fallen, fawn, fennel, fidget, fringe, gravel, hatch, kite, lichen, mistle, mottle, nectar, odd, parsley, ridge, root, sandy, sharp, shining, snip

sky again but the daylight warriors in a separate category (5): bella, billy, harry, harvey, riley (31 total with regular skyclan)

notes:

-windclan has the fewest named cats of any clan, being one fewer than skyclan

-to no one's surprise, thunderclan has the absolute fucking most cats

-shadowclan is the only clan to not have a 'robin'

-there are 3 separate seedpelts. all of which are from thunderclan.

-sky and wind are both used as prefixes in clans that aren't their respective clan (skyheart rc & windflight tc)

-surprisingly shadowclan has the most exclusive prefixes! some of these are because of stuff like rat and claw but some of them are cool like gull

possible errors:

to make things easier because i really need to sleep and shouldn't spend 2 hours on a project that is going to gain me nothing but autism points, i just copied the entire list of each clan category on the wiki and put it into a spreadsheet and compared the lists. this means that cats that switched clans, like yellowfang, may appear in multiple clans. where cats switched clans i tried to remember to put them only in their birth clan. there also could be errors in the wiki's categorization that i didn't catch such as cats that do not appear on the list (lioneye, for example, didn't appear on shadowclan's list)

[pa-anonoverflow]

Well, CDAN blind claims that chris pine was high as a kite on an edible and that harry let out a sigh/whistle because he was relieved to be sitting down away from the questions

New rumor: chris and harry did shrooms together before the carpet and olivia was mad that she didnt get to do shrooms with hwr best friend again 💔

I thought Harry looked high if I’m honest but who wouldn’t need to be to get through that!?

😂😂😂😂