CHAPTER SIXTEEN
—stupid school dances

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  —JUDITH was never sure what to think when the mail came in and there was a letter from Percy. He had Iris messaged her once, at the start of the year, and she told him to never do it again as it made talking with him even more excruciating. She thought he'd get the hint and just cease all contact, but then a few days later, a light blue envelope came in with the mail, containing horrific penmanship ( coupled with her dyslexia, it was a miracle she could even read it ). Surprisingly, however, writing with the son of Poseidon was easy.

  She could answer his questions on her own time, could ignore certain ones that she didn't feel like discussing, could wait to respond for however long she liked. Honestly, she didn't hate talking to him this way.

  Her mother — who was home for the school year — had asked about the exchange and Judith had the urge to tell her it was just some acquaintance from camp. But then, she realized, her mother would press her for more details, because no one talked to an acquaintance this much. So she'd used the word 'friend' to avoid more questions — though she was still reluctant to think of him in any way that wasn't a nuisance. But even she had to admit that when the mail would come in and that signature baby blue color wasn't there, Judith couldn't help but feel a little disappointment riddled with hurt.

  At one point during the year, Judith was bombarded with a school project and got tired of writing responses so she stopped sending letters. Then, about a week later, a collection of envelopes came in, all desperately telling her to send something back so Percy knew she wasn't killed by monsters. Instead of writing, all the girl did was send an amateur drawing of her fighting off a monster with the words 'not dead' scrawled underneath.

  After continuing to do this in response to all his letters from then on, Percy started to send them as well, telling her his fridge was covered in her messy artwork. Judith kept his art in a pile on her desk, held down by a skull paperweight. And no, she did not look at them every few days, she didn't!

  One day, an actual letter came in and she was worried he would want to return to the writing. But he was only asking for her help with a distress call he'd received from Grover. This particular call didn't seem as alarming as when he was trapped on Polyphemus' island so Judith was on the fence about even agreeing to it. But then Thalia was mentioned and Judith hopped on the idea, wanting to see the spunky daughter of Zeus again.

  Judith's mother was going to be called to base in Texas soon anyway so Judith thought it was the perfect time for a road trip; she didn't want to be alone with Dexter any longer than she had to. He seemed perfectly okay with that plan, as well.

  Living in Maine, Judith was last to be picked up in Ms. Jackson's car when the day arrived. Being the last one, she was smushed in the back with Thalia and Annabeth, both girls greeting her with an uncomfortable smile. They had been in the car much longer than Judith, and she was thankful that it was only a thirty minute ride that she had to endure like this. All the girls had some muscle on their bones so it was a tight fit.

  Percy and his mom enjoyed the spacious front with the heaters on full blast since it was blizzarding outside. Judith, feeling her finger tingle with oncoming frostbite, shoved her hand over Percy's shoulder in order to get a draft of the warm air. He tolerated it at first, but became irritated when she flicked his nose in jest, smacking her hand back to the backseat.

  "So where exactly is it that we're going again?" Judith asked after a quick chuckle.

  "Westover Hall. It's a boarding school that Grover was assigned to, two kids there," Percy said.

  Thalia piped in, leaning across the console, "And why does Grover need help?"

  "All I can feel is a strong pull and a lot of suspicion. And nervousness."

  "What makes you think that's not just you, Barnacle Breath?" Judith snarked. Percy's mom snorted out a laugh, but hushed up with the blushing look that Percy gave her.

  "I just know it's him," he said finally, looking over his shoulder with a convincing look.

  They soon arrived at what looked like a castle from medieval times: dark, stone cobbled, and old; it felt especially spooky with the storm raging around them. Judith nodded at Thalia who smirked, both of them having similar thoughts, "Oh yeah, this'll be fun."

  Percy's mom leaned out the window as they exited the small car, "Are you sure you don't want me to wait?"

  "No thanks, mom," Percy responded. "I don't know how long this will take."

  Ms. Jackson wasn't quite satiated with his response and Judith left them to argue quietly, knowing it would draw on with the mother's worry. Instead of waiting in the cold rain and sleet, the daughter of Ares made her way inside the big entryway, stomping as she went to get excess water off. Her efforts were in vain as she continued to drip from her jacket and hair.

  The other three demigods followed soon after, also doing their best with grooming but failing as well — all except Percy, who hadn't gotten a sprinkle of moisture on his person.

  He gazed around in awe, "Whoa."

  "They sure know how to welcome someone." Judith smirked at all the weaponry and battle flags everywhere.

  "Welcome you, maybe," Annabeth shivered at the decor. Judith shrugged, liking the dark atmosphere, reminded her of the Ares cabin back at camp.

  An older man approached alongside a woman, both with straight postures and squished, posh faces. The woman spoke first, "Well, what are you doing here?"

  Percy stumbled for words. "Uhh. Ma'am, we were just —"

  The man snapped his fingers like he had smelt the lie before Percy even said it, "Hah! Visitors are not allowed at the dance. You shall be eee-jected!"

  Judith grimaced in distaste over his accent and words and cracked her knuckles. Thalia stepped forward, also snapping her fingers, but in a way that made them lose focus on everything but her, "Oh, but we're not visitors, sir. We go to school here. You remember: I'm Thalia. And this is Annabeth, Judith, and Percy. We're in the eighth grade."

  Judith was nodding along with her unconsciously, believing in her heart that she actually went to this school. Judith soon realized what had happened and shook her thoughts away. Ugh, mist manipulation.

  Apparently, Thalia had also achieved the same result with the teachers, both professing that they did, in fact, know the students.

  Judith could hear an excited voice down the hall. "You made it! You —" Grover stopped short. "Oh, Mrs. Gottschalk. Dr. Thorn. I, uh —"

  "What is it, Mr. Underwood?" Dr. Thorn asked. "What do you mean they made it? The students live here." The four kids behind the man and woman widened their eyes to make sure Grover didn't spoil their cover.

  Grover was confused but put on his best acting face, "Of course, Dr. Thorn. I just meant, I'm so glad they made ... the punch for the dance! The punch was great and they made it."

  The man glared, but argued no further, "Yes, the punch is excellent. Now, run along all of you. And don't leave the gymnasium again!"

  Judith saluted to him mockingly as he turned away. She had a small gut feeling that they wouldn't be listening to his demand.

  Grover wasted no time explaining why he had summoned Percy, saying he had found two halfblood siblings — Bianca and Nico di Angelo. It was rare ( practically unheard of, actually ) to have sibling demigods who were born from the same mortal parent. There were twins, yeah, but never an older and younger sibling. Judith, finding the situation a little strange, looked over at her friend. Thalia was staring intensely at the two other kids, as if remembering something.

  Judith nudged her, "You good?"

  Thalia breathed deeply, shaking her head, "Yeah, yeah. Charm speak just gives me a headache."

  The lie was terrible, but Judith didn't have the energy to pressure her for answers when it would lead no where. If the daughter of Zeus wanted to talk, she'd confide in Annabeth or something, hopefully.

  As they all continued to stare at the two kids across the gym, Thalia finally turned to the group harshly, "Don't look at the kids, we have to wait for a chance to get them. We need to pretend we're not interested in them. Throw him off the scent," she subtly nodded at the Vice Principal that stood across the gym, eyeing them suspiciously. Most definitely the monster.

  "How?"

  "We're four powerful half-bloods. Our presence should confuse him. Mingle. Act natural. Do some dancing. But keep an eye on those kids." Thalia shrugged and made her way to Grover to start dancing.

  "Dancing?" Annabeth asked, really not into that idea.

  "We really should spread out, Thalia's got Grover to cover her scent, but Percy's in the open. You should go find someone to dance with while Annabeth and I go mingle," Judith concluded, waving Percy goodbye as her and Annabeth walked away. He gave her a clueless look, looking like she'd just told him to do the impossible.

  Judith, not one to 'mingle,' decided to try the punch that Grover had claimed that they made. It was nothing exciting, just some mixture of apple and grape or something, but it would provide her with a good cover, surrounded by the food.

  Just about to bite into a pretzel, a hand grabbed her shoulder and spun her around. "Hey," she said, ready to shove the intruder away from her.

  Percy shushed her from getting louder, "You can't just leave me alone like that; I got social anxiety," he explained.

  Judith supposed she couldn't rag on him for something she didn't want to do either, so she just shoved the pretzel in her mouth and looked away, trying to look inconspicuous, "Eat something, you look awkward just standing there."

  "Right," he said and turned to grab a cookie from the large table. He took a large bite, but then recoiled in disgust. "Oatmeal raisin." The words came out muffled as he hadn't swallowed the bite yet.

  Judith placed another handful of pretzels in her mouth in order to not smile at his revulsion, "Do not spit it out, that's nasty."

  "No, you know what's nasty? Those cookies." He took a napkin and discarded the cookie mush from his mouth. "It's a disgrace to the cookie kind. First, they make it look like chocolate chip and it turns out to be filth."

  She handed him a cup of the punch to help him drown out the taste of 'filth.' He took it and downed it in one gulp, making Judith roll her eyes, "You're so dramatic."

  "Hey, caring about cookies does not make me dramatic, it means I'm normal. The fact that you don't care tells me you have bad taste."

  "I don't have bad taste, I just don't like cookies." Judith shrugged.

  "Don't like —" He spluttered. "Who doesn't like cookies?"

  "Uh, me," she answered, bored. As she overlooked the room, she noticed something majorly amiss. "Percy."

  "What, you going to tell me you don't like cake next?" He asked, fully shocked at her revelation.

  "I don't like cake, but that doesn't matter. Percy, the kids are gone."

  He cursed and turned to look out as well, seeing no sign of the di Angelo's or Dr. Thorn.

  —SIMULTANEOUSLY, Judith and Percy had both decided they would leave the gymnasium and chase after the di Angelos instead of waiting to alert Annabeth, Thalia, and Grover. They assumed the other three would eventually find them gone and get suspicious. It was better to act fast and apologize later.

  The two demigods hastened their pace as more and more hallway seemed to appear in front of them.

  "This place is crazy," Judith huffed as it looked like they passed a set of armor that she swore they had run by two times already. If it happened one more time, Judith promised herself to tear it down. They came upon a doorway not long after, however, and entered, both with gut feelings. Luckily, they were right.

  "It's okay. We're not going to hurt you." Percy held his hands up, sword stashed away to appear unassuming. Judith wasn't quite with that idea and clutched at her belt, ready to lash out at the faintest sign of danger.

  The di Angelo's didn't answer, their eyes were full of fear. What was wrong with them? Where was Dr. Thorn? Maybe he'd sensed their presence and retreated. Coward.

  "My name's Percy and this is Judith," he said, straining to keep quiet while also trying to be heard. "We're going to take you out of here, get you somewhere safe."

  But the girl wasn't even paying attention to Percy as he tried to comfort her; she was entirely transfixed on something beyond Judith. The daughter of Ares tightened her hold on the clasp of her belt and spun around, prepared to catch the monster unawares, but had to duck as a spiked tail came soaring over her head, narrowly missing it. Percy was not granted the same luck.

  He had whipped around a second after the Judith and was swiped across the room. Judith noticed the furry body and knew immediately it was a manticore.

  "Yes, Perseus Jackson, I know who you are," the monster snarled.

  The daughter of Ares grabbed one end of her belt and yanked it out, the once curved chain link turning to a solid elongated sword with a few clicks ( courtesy of Charles Beckendorf ). She stared threateningly around in the dark, trying to gauge where Dr. Thorn was. It was ambitious of her to think that she could take on the monster herself, but at this point, she was left no choice until the others realized her and Percy had disappeared with the di Angelo's.

  She vaguely noticed Percy's limp form across the room and bit her cheek.

  "Thank you for coming out the gym. I hate middle school dances," the manticore hissed, moving towards the light. Judith swiped once, not making contact but efficiently backing the creature up a few steps. "Well, aren't you brave?"

  The taunting only made Judith angrier and she lunged into the dark. This time, she did feel something on the tip of her blade and she smirked. The next thing she knew, though, she was also whacked back into the wall. The thorn that was projected at her next pinned her hoodie onto the wall. A thorn ... shot by Dr. Thorn. How ironic, she rolled her eyes.

  Judith squirmed and looked at the thorn closely, seeing the ink black stain it left on her jacket. Poison. Her eyes searched for Percy again, making sure he was still breathing before focusing on getting herself unstuck. She saw the rise and fall of his chest and huffed.

  Bianca was breathing heavily in the corner beside her and it only made the girl yank harder, knowing the monster would kill the new demigods without hesitation if she continued to whine.

  "All four of you will come with me," Dr. Thorn said. "Quietly. Obediently. If you make a single noise, if you call out for help or try to fight, I will show you just how accurately I can throw." Judith glared at his ghoulish face and thought of all kinds of ways she could bash it in.

  The girl finally tore the thorn out from the wall and she frowned at the sight of her ruined grey jacket. She watched the di Angelo kids scramble to their feet and Judith went over and first checked Percy's wound, plucking the thorn that had hit him out of his leg. He groaned as she dragged him up against the wall.

  "Come on, you have to try and help me," she hissed, guiding one of his arms over her shoulders. As she pulled him up, his feet unsteadily found a balanced stance. They dragged continuously on the ground as they were herded outside. The carrying became harder as snow entered the picture.

  Judith grunted as they took a long snowy path to a clearing. "What have you been eating?" She asked lowly, heaving him up higher on her body.

  "I had pancakes this morning," Percy said drowsily. Ugh.

  "Stop," the manticore commanded. "We will summon your ride here." The daughter of Ares tilted her head.

  "What ride?" Bianca spoke up with courage. "Where are you taking us?"

  "Silence, you insufferable girl!"

  Judith was just about to put in her two cents when the girl's brother beat her to it, surprisingly, "Don't talk to my sister that way."

  Judith worried for a second that the monster would have no mercy. It would have ended terribly as Judith was a tad preoccupied with a son of Poseidon.

  The manticore growled, but didn't act. Judith was curious as to the ulterior motive. The two children were obviously needed for something.

  At the edge of the clearing where the monster was slowly cornering them, there was a cliff side. Percy apparently noticed and breathed it in, sensing the ocean. Whatever comfort Percy felt from the sea, Judith felt the opposite. Her stomach rolled over and over at the though of being pushed in. In his state, the boy would not be able to help her or the others; they'd be dead in the water.

  The di Angelo's came closer to the other demigods. "What is he?" Bianca asked. "How do we fight him?"

  "A manticore. And you won't be fighting. Just stay out of the way," Judith said. It sounded harsh, but it was for everyone's good. Once the others came ( which Judith hoped they would soon ), the di Angelo's would only be something extra to protect and distract her. It was better if they didn't fight.

  "Three thousand attack power and plus five to saving throws," Nico mumbled. Judith looked down at him in confusion and saw him jump as the monster yelled.

  "Stop talking!" Dr. Thorn shouted. "Face me!" Everyone followed his demand, Judith sluggishly yanking Percy the right direction.

  The manticore didn't quite look like Judith had read about. It only had the gruesome tail but not the whole lion's body to go along with it. Maybe it was an inbetween state?

  The monster pulled a cellphone out of a jacket pocket and pressed a button. "The package — it is ready to deliver."

  Percy did his best to look over his shoulder, straining while also latched onto Judith's body. She twitched, having to change her hold on his torso as he writhed.

  Dr. Thorn laughed. "By all means, son of Poseidon. Jump! There is the sea. Save yourself." He was amused and it made Judith angry.

  "What did he call you?" Bianca muttered.

  "Not the time," Judith said darkly as Percy tried to slur an answer out.

  "You do have a plan, right?" The girl whispered. Judith did have a plan ... it just involved the other members of their group. She wanted to take on the manticore herself but even she knew that was unreasonable.

  "I would kill you before you even reached the water," Dr. Thorn said, knowing where Percy's mind was wandering. Judith pinched his arm as if to tell him not to even dare think about it. "Unfortunately, you are wanted alive, if possible. Otherwise, you would already be dead."

  "Who wants us?" Bianca demanded. "Because if you think you'll get a ransom, you're wrong. We don't have any family. Nico and I ..." Her voice broke a little. "We've got no one but each other." Judith didn't understand how the girl hadn't caught onto some things yet. Obviously this wasn't a man out for money.

  "Aww," Dr. Thorn said. "Do not worry, little brats. You will be meeting my employer soon enough. Then you will have a brand-new family."

  "Luke," Percy breathed. "You work for Luke."

  The monster's face, however, grimaced and its eyes turned to narrow slits. "You have no idea what is happening, Perseus Jackson. I will let the General enlighten you. You are going to do him a great service tonight. He is looking forward to meeting you."

  "The General?" Judith asked.

  The monster seemed to smirk and Judith clenched her hands in frustration. Percy winced in pain and Judith released her grip, forgetting she was holding him.

  The manticore did not answer her and looked to the horizon. "Ah, here we are. Your transportation."

  Judith squinted at the oncoming helicopter. Since when did any monster use mortal air transportation? That was just asking for Zeus to strike them down.

  "Where are you taking us?" Nico asked fearfully.

  "You should be honored, my boy. You will have the opportunity to join a great army! Just like that silly game you play with cards and dolls." Judith listened to his words carefully. He may not work for Luke but he was definitely apart of the army he was forming.

  "They're not dolls! They're figurines! And you can take your great army and —" Judith widened her eyes and moved her hand out to clasp around his mouth. It was hypocritical of her as she trash talked anything that double crossed her, but currently, they were in no position to back up their threats.

  "Now, now," Dr. Thorn warned. "You will change your mind about joining us, my boy. And if you do not, well... there are other uses for half-bloods. We have many monstrous mouths to feed. The Great Stirring is underway."

  "The Great what?" Percy asked. He was practically standing on his own now and Judith wasn't sure why he still continued to latch onto her.

  "The stirring of monsters." Dr. Thorn smiled evilly. "The worst of them, the most powerful, are now waking. Monsters that have not been seen in thousands of years. They will cause death and destruction the likes of which mortals have never known. And soon we shall have the most important monster of all — the one that shall bring about the downfall of Olympus!"

  "Okay," Bianca whispered. "He's completely nuts." Judith rolled her eyes. The whole godly world was nuts and this wasn't even that crazy.

  "We have to jump off the cliff," Percy muttered to all of them. "Into the sea."

  Judith finally shoved him all the way off her and she stared at him in defiance. "Oh, super idea. You're completely nuts, too." No way was she jumping into the water.

  They were all suddenly knocked to the ground by an invisible force. Judith was not prepared but was ready to punch before quickly realizing it had to have been Annabeth in her invisibility cap. Judith thanked the gods and watched Thalia run out into the clearing, spear, shield, and all, "For Zeus!"

  Judith nodded enthusiastically and got up on her feet, taking out her belt sword again. This was her plan in action. Both her and Thalia took slashes at the monster and she could hear Grover in the background playing his reeds. Vines came out of the ground and wrapped around Dr. Thorn's ankles, giving the girls perfect targets.

  The manticore, enraged, grew to its full monster form and they all had to step back. The tail grew tenfold and Judith had to roll out of the way to avoid the swinging wrecking ball on the end.

  "Who are you people?" Bianca di Angelo demanded from the sidelines.

  The manticore clawed Grover's magic weeds to shreds then turned toward the defenseless kids with a snarl.

  "Get down!" Annabeth pushed the di Angelos flat into the snow. At the last second, Percy pulled out a shield from no where and not a moment too soon.

  Judith made another war cry and went after the monster's legs. There was a thwack and two yelps and the girl and Grover landed back where Judith started with Percy, Annabeth and the di Angelo's. The daughter of Ares scrambled to her feet, her back aching with exertion after having been smacked down twice already.

  "Yield!" the monster roared.

  "Never!" Thalia yelled from across the field. She charged the monster, and Judith smirked, ready to join the charge when there was a thunderous noise and a blaze of light from behind their backs. The helicopter appeared out of the mist, hovering just beyond the cliffs.

  It was a sleek black military-style gunship, with attachments on the sides that looked like laser-guided rockets. The searchlights blinded Thalia, and the manticore swatted her away with its tail. Her shield flew off into the snow and her spear flew in the other direction.

  "No!" Judith was already racing over to the girl, ready to stop anymore hits at the daughter of Zeus.

  Dr. Thorn laughed. "Now do you see how hopeless it is? Yield, little heroes."

  There was no chance ... again. Judith was tired of the constant cycle of getting the upper hand then losing it. Suddenly, there was a clear, piercing sound.

  The sound of a horn.

NOTES;
PRETTY LONG, I DON'T HATE IT.

SO JUDITH STILL DOESN'T WANT TO CONSIDER PERCY A FRIEND, BUT LIKE THEY TOTALLY ARE

edited : 07 / 04 / 2020