gone girl.
━━━ chapter eighteen

❀

The afternoon the Camp had an assembly at the campfire to burn Beckendorf's burial shroud and say their final good-byes. Even the Ares and Apollo cabins called a temporary truce to attend.

Amaryllis was sitting with the rest of her cabin, a dark look on her face as she watched the ceremony. She avoided looking at Silena, knowing that the sight of the grief stricken girl would get her even more upset and guilty than she already was.

Amaryllis had the ability to talk to Beckendorf's ghost if she wanted to, but she didn't know how that would have helped. If she could tell Silena about her powers, maybe she could have given her the chance to speak with her boyfriend one last time. But she couldn't. The time wasn't right. She hated herself for following her father's plan, but she had grown to realise that it was the only way.

Next to her, Will rested his head on her shoulders. She knew that he was thinking of Lee. Considering there was a war happening, maybe they should have gotten used to people dying, but it still didn't make it less difficult to deal with.

Beckendorf's shroud was made out of metal links, like chain mail. Amaryllis didn't see how it would burn, but the Fates must've been helping out. The metal melted in the fire and turned to golden smoke, which rose into the sky. The campfire flames always reflected the campers' moods, and that day they burned black.

When the ceremony ended, most campers drifted off to their afternoon activities. "You coming?" Will asked her, but she shook her head.

"I'll find you later."

She approached Percy, who was just standing there, staring at the dying fire. Knowing him, he probably blamed himself for Beckendorf's death. She squeezed his shoulder and he looked up to her with teary eyes, her heart breaking at the sight. They didn't need to talk to know exactly what the other was feeling.

Silena sat nearby crying, while Clarisse and her boyfriend, Chris Rodriguez, tried to comfort her. Amaryllis followed Percy as he walked over to them. "Hey, Silena," he said, "I'm really sorry."

She sniffled. Clarisse glared at them, but she always glared at everyone, so it wasn't very surprising. Meanwhile, Chris would barely look at them. He'd been one of Luke's men until Clarisse rescued him from the Labyrinth last summer, and he probably still felt guilty about it. Amaryllis didn't exactly blame him.

Percy cleared his throat. "Silena, you know Beckendorf carried your picture. He looked at it right before we went into battle. You meant a lot to him. You made the last year the best of his life."

The daughter of Aphrodite sobbed. She didn't need to say anything, because everyone knew it was true. Silena and Beckendorf were the kind of couple that everyone adored, the Camp's mom and dad. You didn't need to be a kid of Aphrodite to feel the love oozing from them everytime they  were around each other.

"Good work, Percy," Clarisse muttered.

"No, it's all right," Silena said. "Thank- thank you, Percy. I should go."

"Do you need company?" Amaryllis asked but she shook her head and ran off.

"She's stronger than she looks," Clarisse muttered, almost to herself. "She'll survive."

"You could help with that," Percy suggested. "You could honor Beckendorf's memory by fighting with us."

Clarisse went for her knife, but it wasn't there anymore. She'd thrown it on the Ping-Pong table in the Big House. "Not my problem," she growled. "My cabin doesn't get honor, I don't fight."

For a fleeting moment, Amaryllis wondered if Clarisse was the spy. Maybe that was the reason why she didn't want to fight. Maybe it was part of her plan. But even though the daughter of Ares was mean, brash and hot-headed, Amaryllis doubted she would do something like that.

"All right," Percy told her. "I didn't want to bring this up, but you owe me one. You'd be rotting in a Cyclops's cave in the Sea of Monsters if it wasn't for me."

She clenched her jaw. "Any other favor, Percy. Not this. The Ares cabin has been dissed too many times. And don't think I don't know what people say about me behind my back."

"So, what— you're just going to let Kronos crush us?" Percy yelled.

"If you want my help so bad," Clarisse started and then pointed at Amaryllis without even looking at her, "tell your little girlfriend and her siblings to give us the chariot."

"Excuse me?" Amaryllis took a step forward, ignoring Percy's arm that was trying to stop her. "I always knew you were mean, Clarisse, but letting your friends and family die because of something as stupid as a fucking chariot? You are not just mean," she said, jabbing a finger into her chest. "You. Are. A. Coward!"

The tall girl charged her, but Chris got between them. "Whoa, guys," he said. "Clarisse, you know, maybe you should think it over—"

She sneered at him. "Not you too!"

She trudged off with Chris at her heels. "Hey, wait! I just meant—Clarisse, wait!" he said, leaving Percy and Amaryllis on their own.

The blonde let out a scoff and crossed her arms. "To hell with her."

Percy looked at her in a mixture of amazement and fear. "Wow, Mar."

She deflated at the thought of scaring him. "What? Someone needed to give her a reality check," she said softly.

"You're... not wrong," he sighed. "Let's hope that she'll snap out of it, before anything happens."

They were all alone next to the campfire that had now completely died out. The darkness might have felt uncomfortable for her a year ago, but she had learnt to embrace it. Now it was part of her. 

"I'm going to go check on Mrs. O'Leary. Coming?" he asked.

She nodded and followed after him, hoping that would take her mind off things.

❀

Mrs. O'Leary was a friendly hellhound the size of a big garbage trunk. She looked like a huge Tibetan Mastiff that smelled like sulfur and dog shampoo and she even had a pink collar that wrote her name. She used to be Daedalus' pet, but after his death, Percy promised to take care of her. She sort of became responsibility of the Camp, even though most demigods were too scared to approach her. 

Amaryllis always got along great with the hellhound. Considering hellhounds were guards of the Underworld and Amaryllis was the daughter of the king of Underworld, it wasn't that surprising. Her and Beckendorf would take care of Mrs. O' Leary when Percy wasn't around, sort of co-parenting her, but she tried not to think too much of Beckendorf or else she'd start crying again.

Mrs. O'Leary saw them before they saw her, her being camouflaged using her shadow powers. The moment the duo walked into the arena, a wall of darkness slammed into Percy and knocked him down. Amaryllis couldn't help a small smile at the sight of the hellhound licking the boy's face like he was a giant lollipop.

"Ow!" he said. "Hey, girl. Good to see you too. Ow!"

Then Mrs. O'Leary got off him and greeted the daughter of Hades with the same enthusiasm, despite having seen her some days before. "Good girl," she said as she pet the hellhound. She wondered how the hell she survived the summer with such a thick fur.

"Ah, I see that you've become best friends," Percy said. "Should I get jealous?"

"Definitely," Amaryllis said sarcastically. "I mean, I know Daedalus didn't like me that much-"

"Gee, I wonder why."

"-But his pet does so I couldn't care less," she said and kissed her snout. "Isn't that right, my girl?"

Mrs. O'Leary wanted to play fetch, so Amaryllis picked up a bronze shield and tossed it across the arena. Percy threw the shield a few times too, because the hellhound wasn't sure about the person she should bring the shield back to. After a while, she got bored and laid on the ground.

No one spoke for a while. "I need to talk to you about something," Percy said, breaking the silence". He suddenly looked very self-conscious, almost embarrassed. "I... had a dream about Rachel."

Amaryllis didn't really know how to react at that sentence. But Percy continued anyway, either not understanding her immediate discomfort or not caring enough about it. Apparently in his dream, Rachel had been looking over two photos she had recently drawn. The first was a picture of Luke when he was younger, and the second was a picture of Olympus surrounded by lightning and figures wielding weapons. When he was done, he looked at her like he expected her to say something profound.

Instead, she lowered her head. "Well, what do you want me to say? She's just a mortal."

"A mortal that can see through the Mist," Percy corrected her. "Annabeth said that Kronos might be planning to hit Olympus directly, while the gods are in the West, just like in Rachel's picture."

"If you asked Annabeth already, what do you expect me to say?" The jealousy was practically dripping from her tongue and yet, he seemed as oblivious as ever. "I'm not the smart one and Rachel is not a demigod — she's mortal, so why do you care about her drawings so much?"

"But what if her dream is true? Those other Titans — they said Olympus would be destroyed in a matter of days. They said they had plenty of other challenges. And what's with that picture of Luke as a kid-"

"Go ask Rachel about it," she said with a bitter expression. "You've spent your entire year with her anyways."

Amaryllis didn't like being jealous, but she was. She was jealous of Annabeth's intelligence and strategic skills, of Rachel's mortality and the fact that Percy clearly preferred to be with her than with the rest of the demigods, of Nico not needing to hide that he's a son of Hades, of Percy's bravery. Throughout her whole life, all she wanted was to be above average, someone people relied on and trusted and she was slowly realising that maybe she didn't deserve to be someone like that.

"Am I not allowed to have other friends?" Percy turned defensive. "It's not like you were writing back to me. You had Jake."

"Jake?"

"Your boyfriend."

"We're not dating anymore! And it's not like he ever comp-" She took a breath and stopped herself. "That's besides the point. All I'm saying is that you can't count on a mortal to predict the future, Percy."

Before he could answer, Mrs. O'Leary started barking — a sound slightly louder than an artillery gun — like she needed to go for a walk. Percy opened the gates of the arena, and she bounded straight toward the woods. Without sparing a second glance at him, Amaryllis jogged after her, not too concerned that she was getting ahead. Nothing in the woods could threaten Mrs. O'Leary, even the dragons and giant scorpions ran away when she came close. She could hear Percy running behind them, not sure if he was running after her or Mrs. O'Leary.

When they finally tracked the hellhound down, she wasn't using the facilities. She was in a familiar clearing where the Council of Cloven Elders had once put Grover on trial. The place didn't look so good — the grass had turned yellow and the three topiary thrones had lost all their leaves. But that wasn't the most surprising part. In the middle of the glade stood the weirdest trio Amaryllis had ever seen: Juniper the tree nymph, Nico, and a very old, very fat satyr.

She hadn't seen Nico for at least a week, since their last meeting. They had agreed to not meet so often, since Amaryllis' short disappearances out had started becoming more noticeable, but she had missed him a lot. During the months that they both spent living in their father's palace, they had grown to be quite close. Nico was the only one that knew the truth about Amaryllis and therefore the only person she didn't need to hide from. Despite their age difference, Nico was the one that mostly helped Amaryllis with her training, the person she confided her worries about her mission to, the person that had comforted her when she was at her lowest. It was hard for him to open up to her, but she liked to believe they were slowly getting to that point.

When she saw him, she knew it was time. 

The old satyr didn't look nearly as happy as Mrs. O'Leary was. "Will someone — what is this underworld creature doing in my forest!" He waved his arms and trotted on his hooves as if the grass were hot. "You there, Percy Jackson! Is this your beast?"

"Woof!" Mrs. O'Leary said happily.

The old satyr gulped. "Make it go away! Juniper, I will not help you under these circumstances!"

Juniper turned toward them. She was really pretty, with her purple gossamer dress and her elfish face, but her eyes were green-tinted with chlorophyll from crying. "Amaryllis, Percy," she sniffled. "I was just asking about Grover. I know something's happened. He wouldn't stay gone this long if he wasn't in trouble. I was hoping that Leneus—"

"I told you!" the satyr protested. "You are better off without that traitor."

Juniper stamped her foot. "He is not a traitor! He's the bravest satyr ever, and I want to know where he is!"

"Woof!"

Leneus's knees started knocking. "I... I won't answer questions with this hellhound sniffing my tail!" 

Nico looked like he was trying to not crack up. "I'll walk the dog," he volunteered. Before he left, he shot Amaryllis a look that confirmed her worst thoughts. He whistled, and Mrs. O'Leary bounded after him to the far end of the grove. 

Leneus huffed indignantly and brushed the twigs off his shirt. "Now, as I was trying to explain, young lady, your boyfriend has not sent any reports since we voted him into exile."

"You tried to vote him into exile," Percy corrected. "Chiron and Dionysus stopped you."

"Bah! They are honorary Council members. It wasn't a proper vote."

"I'll make sure to tell Dionysus you said that. I'm sure he'll be ecstatic," Amaryllis said, a sarcastic smile on her face.

Leneus paled. "I only meant... Now see here, Kalomiri. This is none of your business."

"Grover's our friend," Percy said. "He wasn't lying to you about Pan's death. We saw it ourselves. You were just too scared to accept the truth."

Leneus's lips quivered. "No! Grover's a liar and good riddance. We're better off without him."

He pointed at the withered thrones. "If things are going so well, where are your friends? Looks like your Council hasn't been meeting lately."

"Maron and Silenus... I- I'm sure they'll be back," the old satyr said, but Amaryllis could hear the panic in his voice. "They're just taking some time off to think. It's been a very unsettling year."

"And it's going to get worse," Amaryllis promised.

Percy insisted. "Leneus, we need Grover. There's got to be a way you can find him with your magic."

The old satyr's eye twitched. "I'm telling you, I've heard nothing. Perhaps he's dead."

Juniper choked back a sob."He's not dead," Percy said. "I can feel that much."

"Empathy links," Leneus said disdainfully. "Very unreliable."

"Move your old ass and ask around then!" Amaryllis yelled at him. She was starting to wonder if she had developed anger issues over the last year, with how often she found herself shouting at people (though it wasn't her fault, other people were just dumb). "Find him. There is a war happening and you're doing nothing. At least Grover was preparing the nature spirits."

"Without my permission! And it's not our war."  

That seemed to be Percy's last straw. He wasn't a particularly violent person, but the satyr seemed to have actually pissed him off. He grabbed him by the shirt, a scowl on his face. "Listen, Leneus. When Kronos attacks, he's going to have packs of hellhounds. He's going to destroy everything in his path — mortals, gods, demigods. Do you think he'll let the satyrs go free? You're supposed to be a leader. So lead! Get out there and see what's happening. Find Grover and bring Juniper some news. Now, go!"

It didn't seem like he pushed him that hard, but the old satyr still fell on his furry rump, then scrambled to his hooves and ran away, yelling "Grover will never be accepted! He will die anoutcast!"

When he'd disappeared into the bushes, Juniper wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry, guys. I didn't mean to getyou involved. Leneus is still a lord of the Wild. You don't want to make an enemy of him." 

"No problem," Percy said. "I've got worse enemies than overweight satyrs."

Nico walked back to them. Despite appearing nonchalant, she could tell that he was very nervous inside. "Good job, Percy. Judging from the trail of goat pellets, I'd say you shook him up pretty well," he said.

Percy tried for a smile, but it was hesitant. He had probably guessed why he was there. "Welcome back. Did you come by just to see Juniper?"

Her brother blushed. "Um, no. That was an accident. I kind of... dropped into the middle of their conversation."

"He scared us to death!" Juniper said. "Right out of the shadows. But, Nico, you are the son of Hades and all. Are you sure you haven't heard anything about Grover?"

The boy shifted his weight. "Juniper, like I tried to tell you... even if Grover died, he would reincarnate into something else in nature. I can't sense things like that, only mortal souls."

"But if you do hear anything?" she pleaded, putting her hand on his arm. "Anything at all?"

Nico's cheeks got even brighter red. "Uh, you bet. I'll keep my ears open."

"We'll find him, Juniper," Amaryllis reassured her. "Grover's a badass. There must be a simple reason why he hasn't contacted us."

She nodded glumly. "I hate not being able to leave the forest. He could be anywhere, and I'm stuck here waiting. Oh, if that silly goat has gotten himself hurt—"

Mrs. O'Leary bounded back over and took an interest in Juniper's dress. Juniper yelped. "Oh, no you don't! I know about dogs and trees. I'm gone!" She went poof into green mist. Mrs. O'Leary looked disappointed, but she lumbered off to find another target, leaving the three demigods alone. 

One son of Poseidon and two children of Hades. What could go wrong?

Nico tapped his sword on the ground. A tiny mound of animal bones erupted from the dirt. They knit themselves together into a skeletal field mouse and scampered off. "I was sorry to hear about Beckendorf."A lump formed in Amaryllis' throat.

"How did you—"

"I talked to his ghost."

"Oh... right." Percy always looked slightly uncomfortable when he remembered Nico's powers, which was one of the many reasons why Amaryllis didn't want him to find out about her. She wouldn't be able to handle it if Percy suddenly looked at her differently, although that moment was coming very soon. "Did he say anything?" he asked.

"He doesn't blame you. He figured you'd be beating yourself up, and he said you shouldn't."

"Is he going to try for rebirth?" Amaryllis asked.

Nico shook his head. "He's staying in Elysium. Said he's waiting for someone. Not sure what he meant, but he seems okay with death." Silena, she thought. He's waiting for Silena.

"I had a vision you were on Mount Tarn," Percy told Nico. "Was that—"

"Real," he said. "I didn't mean to be spying on the Titans, but I was in the neighborhood."

"Doing what?"

Nico tugged at his sword belt. "Following a lead on... you know, my family."

Nico's past was a painful subject. Until two years ago, he and his biological sister Bianca had been frozen in time at a place called the Lotus Hotel and Casino. They'd been there for like seventy years. Eventually a mysterious lawyer rescued them and checked them into a boarding school, but Nico had no memories of his life before the casino. He didn't know anything about his mother. He didn't know who the lawyer was, or why they'd been frozen in time or allowed to go free. After Bianca died and left Nico alone, he'd been obsessed with finding answers. 

Amaryllis didn't blame him. Before Hades gave her the answers she needed so desperately, she had no idea what was happening either. There was nothing more confusing and frustrating than not knowing what your past means. But the only reason why her father explained everything in the first place was because he needed her to be his pawn, his precious hero that would restore his honor. Nico, on the other hand, hadn't gotten his answers yet. Hades had promised that he'd give him information about his past and his mother, but Nico had to make sure that Percy was brought to Hades in return. He needed to make sure that, if Amaryllis decided to betray his trust and ruin the plan, Nico would still comply.

The plan was simple; Last summer Nico had told Percy his theory to gain an edge over the Titans, which was to make Percy invincible by having him bathe in the Styx. Nico and Amaryllis would take Percy in the Underworld, but instead of letting him bathe, they'd bring him to Hades. Their father had swore not to hurt him, but he still needed to make sure that he wouldn't get involved in the upcoming war. Meanwhile, Amaryllis would be the one to bathe in the River Styx to become invincible. It couldn't be earlier than that, or someone would have noticed and spoiled the surprise. Once Amaryllis was invincible, she could beat Kronos' ass and save Olympus. Of course, the Prophecy stated that she'd die in the process, but sacrifices had to be made during a war. 

It sounded simple, but it wasn't. A million things could go wrong and only the best scenarios ended with Amaryllis dead.

"So how did it go?" Percy asked. "Any luck?"

"No," he murmured. "But I may have a new lead soon."

"What's the lead?"

Nico chewed his lip. "That's not important right now. You know why I'm here." 

Percy looked at Amaryllis like he expected her to be confused, but she knew exactly what to say. "I know about Nico's plan," she said, her voice tight.

"What? Why did you tell her?"

Nico had practised his lines well. "She was the one who pestered me to tell her. She overheard us talking back at your apartment. And... and I thought you should have someone you trust with you."

"So you think I- I should do it?"

"It seems like the only way," she admitted, even though they were talking about different things. "Sometimes you don't have a better choice. You've seen us, Percy. The Camp. Most of the other Titans are unleashed now and on Kronos's side. We can't hold them off on our own."

"You know that," Nico said. She could tell he was feeling rotten as he was saying those things as well. "This comes down to you and Luke. And there's only one way you can beat Luke. We can give you the same power. You heard the Great Prophecy. Unless you want to have your soul reaped by a cursed blade..."

"You can't prevent a prophecy," Percy said.

"But you can fight it." Nico had a strange, hungry light in his eyes. "You can become invincible." 

"Maybe we should wait. Try to fight without—"

"No!" Nico snarled. "It has to be now!"

Amaryllis' held her breath. If Nico didn't save that, their cover could break. Percy stared at him. "Uh, you sure you're okay?"

He took a deep breath. "Percy, all I mean... when the fighting starts, we won't be able to make the journey. This is our last chance. I'm sorry if I'm being too pushy, but two years ago my sister gave her life to protect you. I want you to honor that. Do whatever it takes to stay alive and defeat Kronos." 

Percy looked at Amaryllis like he was trying to get some courage from her. She just nodded, trying to push down the guilt of knowing she was actively manipulating one of her best friends. It's for his own good, she tried to remember. It's for the best.

"All right," Percy said after a while. "What do we do first?"

𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒.

▊percyllis angst is so fun to write, im sorry. their dynamic be like:

the way this could go both ways <33 favourite ship

▊also the underworld siblings have so much in common and they're both so traumatized, i wish i could give them a break but i legally can't </3

▊anyways... grover appreciation ‼‼

▊comment any thoughts about this story so far! what's your favourite duo? what would you like to see more of? any predictions? any stupid little headcanons? i'd love to hear your opinions!

❛ gone girl. ❜
( part 𝒐𝒏𝒆 of gone girl series )
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