CHAPTER NINE.
it's nice to have a friend

     THERE WERE TIMES when Delia Cromwell liked to think she was better off alone. It was a strange state of mind she easily adopted after she first arrived in camp half-blood where she would start her new life. But overtime it stuck with her, like a nagging headache throbbing in the back of her skull whenever she experienced a feeling of self doubt, or if she felt more like a burden than an asset. This was one of those moments. There she was, sitting at a table with her quest-mates, staring longingly out the window of the moving train, watching as the sun started to rise, an orange hue soaring across the sky. While the others discussed the quest with one another, Delia remained alone, deep in her own thoughts.

     Believe it or not, Delia actually preferred it that way. She preferred to not be included for the most part because refusing to engage in a topic of deep importance prevented her ability to care about others. And truth be told, Delia didn't like to do the whole friendship thing.

     After the incident that took away the two people she cared about most, Delia made the tough choice to never allow herself to feel that kind of pain again — grief and unimaginable loss. But then she was forced into the world of Greek mythology, and everything she believed had to be thrown out the window. The moment she met her protector, Grover Underwood, who was given the task of getting her to camp safely, everything seemed to change. She allowed him to be her friend, believing he would be the exception, and considering Grover was hardly around, the satyr often being given more demigods to find and escort safely back to camp, Delia wasn't sure how close her and the satyr boy actually were anymore.

     Then as the months went bye, after she was claimed by her father and was moved into cabin seven, she made the exception again for her brothers and sisters who welcomed her into their fold with big smiles and open arms. Especially Feyre and Alina, who looked out for her more than anyone else in the camp. And she made the exception again for Luke because he was Feyre's best friend and she trusted Feyre enough to believe he was one of the good ones. Luke also showed Delia around during her first few days in camp, so he made it difficult to freeze him out like she did with everyone else she has met since losing. . . She couldn't even think about them without feeling that dull ache in her chest.

     But Delia made those exceptions because they were all safe behind a magical barrier that protected them from the very things that threatened their lives to begin with, and because they wouldn't let Delia push them away like everyone else. Delia accepted them as her friends because they were safe. But in a world outside camp, where danger lurked around every corner for half-bloods like herself, the girl had no choice but to be afraid. She was at risk of becoming closer with Grover, and becoming friends with Percy and Annabeth. And Delia didn't do friendships. It always meant losing them in the end, and she wouldn't allow herself to be hurt, not again.

     It was a lonely mindset — believing she was better off without friends than she was with them. Delia was aware of that fact, but she was content with it. If it meant she would never feel that gaping void in her chest that she felt once last year, then Delia could live with the everlasting feeling of loneliness for the rest of her life if she had to. She just had to place a boundary between Percy, Annabeth, and herself. How hard could that be, right?

"Hey, Delia..." The girl was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Grover's familiar voice. She then turned away from the window and looked at the satyr boy sitting opposite her. "Are you listening?" He then asked.

Delia shook her head and let out a quiet sigh. "No, sorry. What were you saying?" She replied, her words earning a concerned look from Grover at first before he decided to part his lips to speak once again.

"It's two days until we reach Los Angeles. Plenty of time before our deadline to reach the Underworld," Grover informed, a ghost of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

     The thought of the quest ending any day now was more than enough to make a small smile form across Delia's face. "Great. The sooner this quest is over, the sooner we can go home and be normal kids again...as normal as we can be at least," The girl replied excitedly, shrugging her shoulders in the process. It was true. The sooner she got back to camp, the better. At least back at camp she didn't have to worry about the lives of her quest-mates.

It was then silent for a moment before Percy piped up. "Can I ask a dumb question?" He asked wearily. His choice of words were enough to make Delia turn her head to glance at the curly haired boy sitting beside her, her brows knitted together.

"It's like you need me to make fun of you," Annabeth spoke up, a teasing look twinkling in her chestnut coloured eyes. Delia had to fight all the strength in her body to not crack a smile, not even the smallest one.

Percy didn't even react to Annabeth's words. Instead he parted his lips to speak once again with a puzzled look washing over his pale complexion. "I've never been to Los Angeles before. I'm guessing neither of you have been to Los Angeles either. So, how will we have any idea where we're going?" He elaborated further, looking around at the rest of them, hoping for some sort of answer from his companions.

     Releasing a sigh past her lips, Delia decided to be the one to answer the question for the boy. "We don't know. But I'm sure that once we get to Los Angeles we'll be drawn there somehow, like dogs following a scent," She explained, her choice of words being enough to make Percy stare back at Delia with that same confused expression plastered across his face.

     "Weird analogy...but it makes sense," Percy commented, a ghost of a smile forming across his lips once again while he continued to stare at the girl sitting next to him. "Follow-up stupid question..." He spoke up again, earning a quiet groan from Annabeth in response while Delia simply rolled her eyes, listening as Percy continued to speak. "...and you shall fail to save what matters most in the end. Back in Jersey, I told you the Oracle said this quest would fail. And no one's mentioned it since," He informed worriedly.

     Delia shot the boy a sympathetic stare. She could hear the underlining fear laced in his concerned tone of voice. She knew Percy wasn't just afraid of the quest failing and a potential civil war breaking out amongst the gods. But because this quest was even more important to him than he had originally let on. If his mother was still alive, being held prisoner in the Underworld, at the hands of Hades, doing her best to survive his wrath, then there was a small chance the Oracle had spoken about her fate in the prophecy. It could mean Percy would be unable to save his own mother's life, and Delia could see that possibility was what scared him most of all.

"It seems like something we oughta be taking a little more seriously..." Percy trailed off, his gaze slowly drifting to the window. Something had clearly caught his attention. "Hey, look at that," He piped up again, nodding his head towards the window. Delia turned around and peered out the window like she had been doing moments before to see what appeared to be centaurs running through the green fields. "Are those..."

Delia nodded her head. "Centaurs," She confirmed, surprised to see any at all. The creatures had become such a rarity in their own world, let alone the mortal world.

     "No one even knows they're there," Percy stated, looking around to see no one else was paying attention to the creatures but them.

     Grover nodded his head, his dark eyes softening at the sight of the creatures running across the green fields. "There used to be herds of them everywhere," He shared.

     "What happened to them?" Percy pushed, curious to know what had happened in the past.

     "Humans," Grover answered lowly, turning away to look down at his hands for a moment, and Delia watched as the boy began to twiddle his thumbs. "A few thousand years ago, the god of the wild, Pan, disappeared. And ever since, without Pan to protect the natural world, humans have been trying really hard to chip away at it," He explained further, lifting his gaze to glance back at Percy with a sad look in his eyes.

     Delia nudged Percy, catching his attention for a moment as she let out a breath. "As you can tell...Grover is incredibly passionate about the subject," She added.

     "The bravest satyrs volunteer to become Searchers, trying to find Pan. None have ever returned," Annabeth piped up, glancing over at Grover with a pair of sad eyes of her own.

     Percy was quiet for a short moment before his undivided attention went to the satyr boy sitting opposite him. "Your uncle we found in Medusa's, Ferdinand. He was a searcher?" Percy inquired, but Grover didn't say anything else in response.

     Deciding to change the subject, Annabeth was quick to speak up. "The Oracle didn't say the quest would fail. Fail to save what matters most. That could mean a lot of things. That's how prophecies work, that's how fate works. It could mean a lot of things. The harder you work to understand, the harder it gets to understand. Sometimes, you've just gotta let it come to you when it's ready," The girl reasoned, sincerity laced in her voice as she continued to stare at Percy from where she was seated.

The conversation was quickly cut short when the ticket officer approached the table the group were sitting at. Delia lifted her gaze, watching as the man stopped in front of them, his weary eyes wandering over each of them. "Excuse me. Can I see your tickets, please?" He asked. This caused for Annabeth to quickly retrieve the four tickets they had purchased yesterday at the station before she handed them over to the officer. He stared down at the tickets for a moment before he lifted his gaze to glance back at them again. "You're in cabin 17B?" He questioned further.

Delia Cromwell didn't quite understand why his tone and demeanour changed the second he realised what cabin they had been staying in. Her brows furrowed together for a moment when the ticket officer asked for them to follow him back to the cabin. Delia got out of her seat hesitantly, following the man through the train with Percy, Annabeth and Grover at her side. By the time they reached the cabin they had been sleeping in moments before, Delia's mouth popped open in surprise when she saw the window had been smashed, the entire interior of the cabin being completely trashed.

"You want to explain?" The ticket officer interrogated further, staring down at them with a disapproving look.

Delia realised the man was pinning the blame onto them. But they left the cabin completely intact, so she had no clue why they had returned to a mess. She wasn't the only one surprised to hear such an accusation. Percy was ready to snap at the man the second the blame was put on them. "Wait, you think we did this?" He exclaimed, sounding frustrated.

     "We got a witness here, says she heard the window smash, and then heard children's voices," The man countered, turning around and nodding towards and well-dressed woman speaking to another officer.

     "Are we under arrest?" Annabeth spoke up, her voice stern, just like her tense expression.

     The man narrowed his eyes down to the shortest of the bunch. "I don't think you wanna take that tone with me, little girl," He replied, diminishing Annabeth to nothing more than a child. Although she was exactly that — a kid — she was an extraordinary one, and in the months she had known Annabeth Chase, Delia knew she wasn't one to mess with.

     Annabeth lifted her gaze, glaring straight back at the older man, her jaw clenched before she parted her lips to speak. "Are we under arrest?" She repeated.

     Delia had grown accustomed to many things in her life. She had seen and experienced things that not many kids her age had. Most kids could only dream of a world of monsters, myths and legends, but for Delia that was her reality. However, being treated like some violent criminal was a new one, even for someone as remarkable as herself. She continued to sit next to Percy, her clammy hands clasped together while she anxiously waiting to hear what would happen to them for a crime they didn't even commit. Delia wasn't a vandal and neither were her travel companions. They didn't do anything wrong, but someone or something was trying to frame them for it.

"So, we're just killing time until we find out that guy is a werewolf or something, right?" Percy was the first to speak up amongst the group, his voice barely above a whisper before he nodded his head towards the ticket officer who had blamed them for the vandalism to begin with.

Delia looked over at the man, a frown plastered across her face before she shook her head. "I don't think so. He seems just as confused as the rest of us honestly. There's something else happening that we don't know yet," She assumed.

"Why would anyone tear our room apart?" Percy wandered, his brows knitted together while he looked around at the rest of the group.

Grover then shrugged his shoulders in response to the boy's question. "Maybe they were looking for something?" He suggested. Delia let out a loud huff, knowing the satyr boy was stating the obvious.

"We don't have anything," Percy replied, shaking his head.

"The people who think you stole Zeus's master bolt might disagree," Annabeth reminded him, knowing it was likely another monster searching for the bolt or hoping to get their clutches on a forbidden child again.

     Delia lifted her gaze when she noticed someone approaching their table from the corner of her eye. She looked up to see the same woman who was the supposed witness to their vandalism was now towering over them with a kind smile tugging at the corners of her glossed lips. She was dressed in business attire, her pink designer jacket fitting her body perfectly, her silky brown hair cascading past her shoulders while her gaze flickered between each child sitting around the table. Delia thought she seemed kind enough, but in her world there were never any guarantees. So she kept her guard up and listened as the woman began to speak.

     "Do you mind if I sit?" She asked politely. No one said anything and watched as she took a seat at the table opposite their's. Delia shuffled uncomfortably in her seat, wondering why this complete stranger was approaching them. She became even more suspicious when the woman asked for the officer standing closest to their table to leave. What was she going to say that she didn't want them to hear?

     "You poor dears. Your parents aren't here, are they?" The woman questioned further. Whining erupted from the bag on the other side of the table she was sitting at. Delia believed some sort of animal must've been inside. A small dog traditionally. "Don't children get scared when they're all alone? It's okay. I'm a mom. I know how scared you must be," She informed, her smile remaining etched at the far corners of her lips.

     Delia rolled her eyes in response to the woman's words. "Well, we're not like most children," She argued.

The woman chuckled lightly, nodding her head, like she was amused by Delia's previous statement. "That is very true. I can see that," She agreed, her choice of words being enough to make Delia stare at the woman suspiciously. "I want you to know...I don't actually think that you made that mess back there. I just wanted a moment alone with you. There are some things I need you to understand—"

"You have something on your jacket. It looks like...it looks like glass," Grover pointed out, swallowing thickly after he had spoken. Delia lowered her gaze to the woman's pink jacket to see specks of glass sticking to the fabric. The girl couldn't help but feel her blood run cold. Her suspicions were right and there was a monster lingering on the train, but she was standing right in front of them, appearing as innocent as one can be. "No one smashed the windows from inside our cabin. Someone smashed them in from the outside," Grover added, confirming their worries.

The woman laughed again in response to the accusation, followed by a hostile growl from the animal in her bag in the opposite seat. This caused for the woman to stand before she crouched down in front of the bag, whispering sweet nothings to try and calm the animal down. But considering the woman wasn't just your average woman, Delia was beginning to question whether the animal in the bag was actually an animal, or if it was something much more sinister than she could ever imagine. The thought of having to run from another monster left this feeling of dread pumping through the girl's veins, burning her from the inside out.

The woman remained stood, staring down at them with a much more serious look in her eyes. "This isn't your fault. But sadly, you're going to have to bear the burden of your parents mistakes today," She informed, pursing her lips into a thin line.

"Listen, lady. I don't know who you are, but I think I know what you are. We've run across a few monsters like you and we've sent them all packing," Percy challenged, trying to sound intimidating, but his attempt quickly failed when the woman laughed again.

"Monsters like me?" She scoffed, putting a hand to her chest, a twinkle of amusement dancing around her gaze. "Well, of course they're like me. They were my children."

Delia Cromwell felt her entire body tense when she heard the woman refer to the monsters as her children. Her throat became dry, and her eyes widened slightly in fear when she realised who she had come face to face with on what started out as an uneventful morning. Delia was staring into the eyes of the woman who created all monsters. Every specie of monsters known to mankind existed because of her, even the ones responsible for taking away her childlike innocence last year. She was the mother of monsters. She was—

     "Echidna..." Delia spoke the name out loud, a shiver running up her spine almost immediately. When she saw the woman proudly smile at the girl, the young girl sighed. "You have got to be kidding me," Delia muttered underneath her breath, shaking her head.

     "Monster. It's an odd word, considering my grandmother is your great-grandmother, and this has always been a family story," Echidna wondered, shrugging her shoulders. "But...to my eye, the demigod is the more dangerous creature. Disruptive. Violent. If I exist for anything, it is to stand in the way of monsters like you," She explained further.

     The growling coming from the designer bag quickly began to intensify. Delia shuddered at the sound of the creature becoming more irritated and restless by the second, wondering what horrors were hidden inside. "My little one here. She's just a pup now. Today, you will be her prey. Are you afraid yet?" Echidna inquired, watching as frightened looks washed over each of their faces, Delia's included. "It's all right. Fear is natural. It's also essential to the hunt. Your fear. Your doubt. Your confusion," The woman chuckled again.

     "I needed you to understand what was happening so that she could track the scent. So that could learn and grow, because that's what a good mother does for her children. Not that you would know. But who should we start with?" Echidna continued to speak, and Delia noticed the zip on the bag beginning to pull itself down so there was now an opening. Echidna's eyes then found Delia's, causing for the girl to swallow thickly. "Maybe the miracle child of the Sun God. You should start running now, my dear."

     Delia was ready there and then to be attacked, knowing she couldn't slide past Percy and run away in time before the monster attacked. She watched as a long and scaly tale, a stinger on the end came thrashing out of the bag and lunged for her in seconds. However, Delia never felt the sharp pain of the stinger pierce her flesh. When she lifted her gaze again she saw Percy had thrown himself in the direct path of the stinger so it stabbed him in the shoulder instead of her. Percy had saved her life without her having to even ask for it. For a moment, Delia didn't quite know what to say or do, the girl remaining completely frozen in place.

     That was until Annabeth grabbed ahold of the tale and stabbed her celestial bronze knife into the flesh of the monster. It gave the others enough time to make their escape just as the train came to its next stop, and without giving it a second thought, they stood up from the table and made a run for it.

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     The Gateway Arch. That was where Annabeth Chase said would be the safest place for them to go and seek refuge, hiding away from Echidna and her new monster that was chasing and hunting them down. And a sanctuary, dedicated to the Greek Goddess, Athena, seemed to be the best place to go. Annabeth reassured them that her mother would provide all of them safe harbour in a place where no monster could cross into. Delia and Annabeth may not be close, however, she trusted the girl enough to believe that if she said the Arch was safe, then they would all be protected long enough until they can make their next getaway.

Delia was looking around the interior of the Arch, her gaze travelling over every inch and crevice of the magnificent building. She could easily guess one of Athena's children were responsible for building such a beautiful monument, dedicating it to their mother, whoever that child was. And while Grover ventured off alone to find another form of travel since they essentially blew up a train, Delia was left to admire the building. Except admiring such beauty and craftsmanship became incredibly difficult when all she could think about was Percy Jackson and his brief moment of sacrifice only moments before they arrived at the Arch.

Truth is, Delia Cromwell couldn't stop thinking about it. She would continuously replay that moment over and over in her head. She remembered the monster's stinger coming for her before Percy threw himself into the line of fire and took the heavy hit to the shoulder, and all for her. Except Delia couldn't quite understand why he would do such a thing for a girl he had only just met a few days ago. Not that long ago Percy was telling her how she was more like a stranger than a friend to him, making Delia believe there would never be space in the universe for their friendship. Now he was risking his own life to protect her own, and she didn't quite understand why.

So when Delia turned on her heel to see the one and only Percy Jackson staring back at her, a ghost of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips, she grew nervous. Delia didn't quite know if she should question the boy about his previous actions and demand answers to why he would save her life, not knowing if that stinger would be strong enough to take the life of a demigod child. And when she felt like now was a good enough time to ask the boy about his reckless actions, she parted her lips to speak, except no words seemed to come out, her nerves getting the best of her once again. Percy noticed this and made the choice to speak up instead.

     "Can I ask you a question?" Percy was the first to say something between the two. Delia didn't say anything in response. Instead she just nodded her head, allowing the boy to continue. "Do you think Feyre is who the Oracle was talking about?"

     And the second those words left Percy's lips, Delia was twice as quick to respond. "No, Feyre would never betray you, and I know she would never do something like that because she's Feyre Blanchard. She's probably the most loyal and trustworthy person in that camp. She looks out for everyone. She protects everyone. Well, not everyone because she doesn't like Clarisse, or anyone from Ares cabin. But that's not the point," She rambled, causing for Percy to laugh quietly.

Delia found herself smiling when she heard Percy's laughter. "But the point is that Feyre is a good person. If you had chosen her for this quest instead of me, you would've been in safe hands," She reassured him.

Percy nodded his head. "Thank you, Delia," He replied, appearing grateful for her words of reassurance.

Percy then made an attempt to turn away from the girl soon after he had spoken. But Delia felt it again, that insatiable desire to know why someone like Percy would risk his own life for someone like her. It was an itch she couldn't quite scratch and she needed immediate relief. So without giving it another thought, the girl parted her lips to speak. "Why did you do it?" She asked him rather abruptly.

Delia's words were enough to make Percy stop because he turned back around to glance back at her, a frown washing over his pale face. "What do you mean?" He replied, sounding almost confused by her vague question.

Delia swallowed thickly again, a shaky breath leaving her lips soon afterwards. "Why did you save me back there on the train?" She asked again, making herself a lot more clearer than previously before. "You could've easily let that thing stab me with its stinger. It was meant to be for me. But you got in the way so it hit you instead. Why?" She pushed, desperation dripping from her voice while she spoke.

Percy didn't say much at first. He just stared at the girl for a moment, a quiet sigh rolling off his tongue before he decided to speak. "I don't know. I was being impulsive and stupid. That's what you would say, right?" He joked, shrugging his shoulders, like it was no big deal, but it was. It was a big deal to Delia.

Delia cracked a small smile, folding her arms over her chest in the process. "But what do you want to say?" She interrogated further, hoping to get to the root of the boy's reasons behind his recent actions. Once again, Percy smiled back at the girl, his sheepish grin becoming more prominent to the naked eye.

"It seemed like the right thing to do at the time," Percy admitted wholeheartedly. "When Echidna said you should run and that whatever that thing is would hunt you down first, it was like my entire body told me to get in the way and take that hit to stop you from getting hurt," He elaborated further.

     Delia's brows furrowed together, a puzzled look glimmering in her jade green coloured eyes. "But why would you care about what happens to me? I thought I was more like a stranger than a friend to you," She reminded him.

     Percy grew silent for a moment once again, lowering his gaze to stare at the ground before he glanced back at the girl. "Well, jumping in front of whatever that thing was...that's the kind of thing you only do for a friend. Or at least according to my calculations, that sounds like something friends would do for each other," He answered truthfully.

     That word was more than enough to make Delia tense in response. Friend. Not that long ago she was nothing more than a stranger. That was why he chose her for the quest because he couldn't be betrayed by a stranger when the Oracle informed a friend would be the culprit behind such a betrayal. Delia accepted that because she wasn't one to make friends easily. She preferred to live life without them because she found that was what was easiest for her. And now Percy was throwing that word around, it almost scared her. It made it real, and it made the risk of being hurt if she lost him more than just a nightmare. It could someday be her reality.

However, instead of allowing her fear to make an appearance, Delia nodded her head and forced a smile this time around. "A friend? Wow...we've come a long way since strangers, Sea Boy," She joked, her words being enough to make Percy chuckle lightly.

But it was what happened next that worried the girl. Percy's smile quickly faltered when he collapsed into Delia's arms, his legs giving in beneath him. Delia let out a gasp and held up Percy for as long as she could. She was just grateful Grover and Annabeth showed up when they did so they could shoulder some of the boy's weight with her. When Delia got a closer look at Percy's face again, that was when she saw his pale complexion and the dark circles burrowing deep underneath his eyes. She then raised her hand and lightly touched his forehead, sweat from his face dripping onto her skin while the scorching heat coming from his forehead transcended to her hand.

"He's burning up," Delia informed worriedly, her voice beginning to shake. "It must have been the stinger. He's been poisoned," She added.

Annabeth lifted her gaze to glance back at Delia. "Is there anything we can do?" She asked urgently.

Delia bit down on the inside of her cheek for a moment, thinking to herself before an idea crossed her mind. "Come with me," She instructed, leading the way back outside the Arch, hoping to find a solution to cure Percy of the poison consuming his body minute by minute.

Delia wouldn't let Percy die for her, refusing to allow history to repeat itself.

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authors note.
NOW I JUST WANT TO MAKE IT CLEAR THAT DELIA AND PERCY ARE JUST FRIENDS IN THIS BOOK FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS!!! Plus I wouldn't dare write around Percabeth DUH??? but I do really love Delia and Percy's friendship and they truly have a beautiful relationship (platonically of course).
And the next chapter will explain Delia's fear of getting close to others...does anyone have any theories yet? 👀

Until then I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I'll update again soon!!