HELEN WASN'T A PERSON TO BE
scared easily, but it was the darkness of the Underworld that made her heart never come down from its race.
The girl was slumped in a cold, damp cell. The walls were rough and jagged, dripping with condensation, and the air was thick with the stench of decay.

On her lap layed Steve, his hands clutched around his waist.
Their bodys were weak from the lack of food and sleep. The stone floor beneath them was cold and hard, adding to their physical discomfort. But it was the emotional pain that tortured Helen the most.

"It's okay Stevie." she whispered when she heard the whimper of the boy.

"Someone's gonna find us. We'll get out!" she said reassuringly but didn't even believe her own words.
The memories of Ian death replays in her mind like a relentless nightmare. She sees Ian's determined face as he tried to protect her, the light fading from his eyes as he took his last breath.

"I'm sorry Helen." Steve whispered, his voice breaking as he chokes on a sob.

"I'm sorry I can't make it. I can't-.." he never ended his sentence, when he lost conscience.
Helen felt utterly alone, abandoned in this place of darkness and despair. Her mind was a whirlwind of guilt and sorrow, each thought more painful than the last.

She can hear the faint footsteps of Hades' minions patrolling the corridor outside her cell. Every now and then, she catches glimpses of their shadowy forms, their cold eyes watching her with amusement.

"How does it feel, little demigod, to be so utterly helpless? To have failed so spectacularly?" A voice said and Helen shook her head.

"You think you can walk around here and steal from me? You're no better than my dear family."
He steps closer, his presence suffocating and oppressive.

"Tell me where my helmet is." He said and Helen shook her head.

"I don't know about a helmet!" She said, her voice high pitched. She wasn't lying.

"Then why are you here?" Hades said, his voice not threatening anymore.

"The seeds!" Helen whispered so desperately.
Like all her hopes hang on this one single word.

The seeds.

"Then who took my helmet?" his voice was suddenly high, almost more sympathetic. He bend down in front of her.

"I don't know!" Helen wrinkled her nose in confusion.
Hades eyed the girl, then rolled his eyes.

"Alright, why am I even wasting my time?" He turned and left, the door to her cell slamming shut with a deafening finality. Helen slumps back against the wall, her strength waning. The darkness closing in around her.

Dahlia opened her eyes gasping. Her heart was racing and her body was drained in sweat. She looked beside her and saw Meg, still asleep. The blonde girl closed her eyes for a moment processing what just happened.

She now understood what Meg meant with the dream feeling too real to be made up by one's imagination. She could feel Helen's emotions so vividly and could never made up an image about how horrible Steve looked. If this was happening right now, he didn't have much more time to survive.

"Meg." Dahlia shook the shoulder of her red haired friend, feeling bad about waking her when the girl finally found some sleep. Meg opened her eyes and jumped up immediately.

"What? What happened?!" She said and Dahlia shook her head.

"Nothing but we gotta go! I had a dream about Helen. It's not looking good." She said, her tone serious and her body tense. Meg nodded and they got up.

They walked into the capital of Las Vegas where they had to get a ride to Los Angeles. Dahlia expected the loud traffic and the noice of honking cars but what she did not expect was numerous animals running free on the streets.

"What happened here?" she asked and Meg shook her head.

"No idea. Come on!" Meg answered and walked closer to the scene. Dahlia listened to the sound of honking cars and the upset voices of people when they saw the animals, when she heard familiar voices.

"I gave them a satyr's blessing so they'll be able to reach the-.." she was so sure that she heard Grover's voice and the word "satyr" only intensified her suspicion.

"I meant for the people." She heard Percy's voice and grabbed Meg's arm to get her to stop.

"Oh!.. them." Dahlia walked around the huge bush that they were walking past, when she finally saw the trio.

"I mean I'm sure they'll.. yeah I don't know but the animals are all set!" Grover said and Dahlia chuckled.

"View days off and already turning cities into zoos Grover?" She spoke and Percy, Grover and Annabeth turned to the side confused.

"Dahlia?" They said in synchron and Percy was the first one to walk towards them.

"Heyy!" Dahlia said laughing when she pulled Percy into an embrace and after him Annabeth. She then fuzzed Grover's hair and put an arm around him.

"You okay?" Meg asked, greeting them too.

"Yeah we're fine!" Grover said and Percy pointed at the transporter standing in the middle of the streets.

"We Iris messaged Luke! Dahlia, he's freaking out cause you disappeared!" He told her.

"You're not allowed to leave camp without permission!" Annabeth said concerned and also looked at Meg accusingly. Dahlia sighed.

"I know, but we had to go." She said, laying a hand on Annabeth's shoulder and looking back at Meg who nodded.

"Did he tell something about camp?" She then asked.

"The Cabins are teaming up because of the rumors that the Gods are going to war." Percy informed her.

"Are they?" Dahlia asked and Percy shrugged his shoulders.

"If we don't get into the underworld, yes." Grover said.

"Oh Clarisse." Dahlia murmured, remembering the short tempered girl and putting a hand to her temple. If she would have stayed at camp she maybe could have talked the Ares girl out of it.
She could only hope that her cabin wasn't teaming up with them.

"So what's the plan?" Meg asked, trying to cease the tension between the five of them.

"We need to find Hermes so he gets us to LA. Ares said he's in some Hotel, called the Lotus."

"Hermes?" Dahlia asked, annoyed that it had to be this exact God, that she had scolded at a year ago.

"We were planning on getting a cab, but hey let's just ask the God of travel to give us a free ride." Meg said sarcastically shrugging her shoulders.

"If we say that we're friends of Luke, maybe he'll help us, we got no time to waste!" Annabeth said, looking around.

"He didn't help Luke his entire life, what makes you think he'll help us? It's a waste of time." The blonde girl said, not fond of that idea.

"It's worth a try!" Annabeth said and Dahlia sighed, giving in.

"So.. how do we know which Hotel is the Lotus?" Percy asked and turned towards Annabeth.
The girl turned to her right, looking up.

"I'm guessing the one with the giant lotus blossom on it." She said, tilting her head mockingly. Percy now saw the big building too.

"You were like two seconds ahead of me!" He said and Annabeth smiled.

"Mhm." She hummed as they walked towards the hotel.

"Seriously!" Percy said.

"Sometimes, it might be okay to just let the easy ones go. Can we agree to just try it, maybe?"

•

The Hotel Lotus was drenched in loud music, pink light and loud chatter of people, partying.
The eyes of the demigods went wide as they looked around.

"Okay let's split up." Annabeth said.

"You said we wouldn't do that anymore. Also, you guys have seen him before, but I haven't. So I'm not gonna be much help alone." Percy said and looked at Dahlia for help.

"I can go with you. I know how he looks." The Demeter girl said assuringly.
She remembered the man all too well.

"I'll go with you. Meg and Grover, you check that side of the floor. One way or the other we meet back in the lobby in 20 minutes." The Annabeth determined and they all agreed.

"Okay. Remember guys just don't eat anything!" Annabeth said and dragged Dahlia along with her. Percy behind them.

"I still don't think this is a good idea." The blonde murmured.

"It'll be fine." The Athena girl said as they had Percy's confused look on them.

"What's your problem with Hermes?" He asked and the two girls shared a look.

"I was with Luke for a long time before Grover found us. I saw stuff Grover didn't get to see." Annabeth started talking.

"Like what? Meeting his dad?" Percy asked.

"Meeting his mom." Annabeth responded and now also gained Dahlia's attention.

"She's a seer. A human who can see through the mist. Sometimes they see stuff that messes them up. Scary stuff, stuff that hasn't happened yet. Stuff they know is gonna happen. I think it happened to her and Luke blames Hermes for it." Annabeth said.

"Nah he blames Hermes for leaving them and leaving HIM to deal with his mother when he
was 8. He said Hermes abandoned him." Dahlia said and their heads shot to her.

"And when Luke was 17. Hermes finally gave him a quest, that he knew Luke couldn't succeed in. That's where he got his scar from." Dahlia said, feeling a hatred for Hermes.

"Hermes couldn't know-.." Annabeth tried to contradict Dahlia but the blonde didn't let that happen.

"He's a greek god Annabeth. He let Luke run into this chaos along with his brothers! Luke could have died and Hermes didn't care." Dahlia held her voice calm.
A short silence hang between them.

"Still.. I think Hermes would do anything to win him back.. maybe helping us is a start." She said and Percy stayed quiet.

Dahlia didn't notice that she had lost Annabeth and Percy until she looked up from the card game  she was viewing. But she easily found the two of them and wanted to walk towards where they were standing when she heard a voice.

"So the lady falls to her knees, she looks up to the sky and said.. he's wearing a hat!" She saw the familiar man in a beige hoodie, other people laughing around him. She then felt a hand brushing hers and saw Annabeth standing next to her.

"Hey, demigods! Welcome." When Hermes' brown eyes met Dahlia's, they recognized her immediately.
You don't often forget a demigod that disrespects a Greek God.
Dahlia stared back into his eyes stubbornly, recognizing that they had the same mischievous spark, that she often saw in the Stoll-Brothers eyes and sometimes also in Luke's. It was the kind of spark when the Hermes kids were up to no good.

"We were sent to find you." Annabeth spoke up.

"Well you found me. Come join us! You kids know how to play craps?" He said looking back on his board.

"Look we don't have a lot of time. We need your help to-.." Annabeth continued talking when Hermes interrupted her.

"I know what you need my help for." His eyes found Dahlias again, a smirk on his lips. The girl already knew, they couldn't trust him.

"You want my help to sneak into the Underworld." he said.

"Wow. You're a really good guesser!" Percy said impressed.

"I exist beyond space and time, kid. Why do you think they put me in charge of delivering the mail?" He asked and then started to walk around the table.

"Look, you're not the first demigods to ask and, trust me, you won't be the first demigods to walk away disappointed. So you might as well at least play a little-.."

"We're friends of Luke's!" Annabeth said and pulled Percy a step back.
Something in Hermes whole demeanor changed at that moment. He looked at the three of them, taking a breath in like he'd been caught off guard.

"Yeah." He said, looking down like he was hurt. Dahlia wondered why he acted surprised when he seemed to have recognize her before.

"Okay." He said, walking towards them and pushing them away from the table.
With the blink of an eye, they were suddenly in another room.

"Time and space are easy, kids. Parenting is.. something else entirely." He said sitting down at one of the tables.
Dahlia scoffed quietly. She didn't like to be here at all.

"Have a seat." He said and they sat down.

"I remember you." Dahlia heard his voice and she looked up to the God. Surprisingly, he grinned at her confidently.

"You were the one there when I talked to Luke the last time. Protecting him and sending me away." He seemed to laugh at the memory. It must be silly to a god, to be send away by a little girl.
Dahlia nodded.

"Luke didn't want you there. He didn't want to talk to you." She said looking straight into his face.
Hermes nodded.

"And you, you were also there." He said to Annabeth.

"Yes." The girl answered.

"I saw you argue. I heard what he said." Annabeth looked to Dahlia before she continued.

"That what happened to his mom was your fault. That it was all your fault. His mother, his quest, his scar." Hermes gaze got tensed and serious.

"And I guess that his opinion hasn't changed?" He asked and Dahlia shook her head.

"No. He hates you. You could've done anything to protect him and yet, you never did." She responded, trying her best to keep her voice calm.

"You let him run into a disaster, knowing it would destroy his life, when all he ever wanted was to be seen by you. By his father." Dahlia couldn't help but let anger fill er voice. Pure rage was burning in her stomach by the simple memory of how hurt and broken Luke had been.
Hermes stayed quiet.

"Help us get into the Underworld. Help us retrieve Zeus' master bolt from Hades and he'll see that you care." Annabeth said and Dahlia nodded in agreement, although she thought that it took a lot more to make Luke forgive his father.
Hermes stayed quiet for an awkward little while until he spoke slowly, his voice low.

"There is a way into the Underworld, a secret way. I've helped others find it before and do you know what happens every time?" He leaned over the desk, his eyes narrowed in Percy.

"I mean every. single. time." He pronounced every word.

"You don't want my help. Trust me!" He emptied the drink that was in his glass.

"No, we actually kind of do." Percy said slowly, but Hermes stayed quiet. Dahlia scoffed and got up from her seat, she wanted to walk out of the room when Hermes called behind her.

"I was warned to stay away from Luke and his mother." The blonde girl stopped and turned around. She saw Hermes' dark eyes fixed on her. He looked intently into her eyes through his eyelashes and felt as if he was reading her mind, which he probably was.

"Warned that no matter how much I tried to help, I would just make things worse." He said, his voice emotional. Dahlia stepped a bit closer, crossing her arms.

"And I went anyway. And it wasn't just awful for Luke." He looked at his drink and back to the blonde girl.

"It was awful for all of us." He said, the pain evident in his eyes.
Dahlia sat back down and felt a hand on hers in the next moment. She saw to her right and caught Percy's blue eyes, looking at her worriedly. She nodded at him, reassuring that she was fine.

"What's your name?" Hermes asked and Dahlia turned her head towards the man.

"Dahlia. Dahlia Green." She said in a more respectful way now. She felt bad for the man, but still didn't trust that he was actually a good person. Hermes nodded, then his eyes shot back up to her as he leaned forward again, slightly swaying in his seat.

"Do you know what that feels like Dahlia?" The girl felt chills running down as he said her name.

"To be so close to someone you love, knowing neither of you has any choice but to keep hurting each other?" His eyebrows were knitted together when he looked at her almost desperately.

"I know you do."
The next thing she felt was a hand on her own and her body falling. Like a lighting, a memory replayed before her eyes.

Sitting on the other side of the door, feeling it slamming hard into her back, when her father banged against it. She remembered panic running through her body and the fight inside her brain which told her to open it.

"Open the fucking door Dahlia, I would never do this to you!" She heard her father cries when she also heard heavy steps coming up the stairs of the hallway of the apartment.
She heard muffled voices, as her father was dragged away by the police.

Dahlia snapped back, pulling her hand away from Hermes. Her face felt numb and she could feel how pale she was.

"Get out of my head!!" She hissed at him, before looking at Percy who seemed in thought too. Hermes took his hand away from the boy's and turned to Annabeth.

"Should I remind you too?" Hermes asked and wanted to take the girl's hand.

"I remember just fine!.. Are you gonna help us or not?" She asked, pulling her hand away.
Hermes shrugged and took his drink again.

"I don't get involved anymore. It's just not worth it, I'm sorry." He said uncaring. Dahlia scoffed.

"Then you're exactly like Luke said you are." Dahlia said, staring into his eyes, disappointed as they stood up.

"This was a waste of time. And we don't have time to waste." Annabeth walked away. Dahlia wanted to follow her as Hermes spoke again.

"You're right to be angry." The blonde girl turned around annoyed to see Hermes pressing his lips together and shaking his head.

"It isn't fair. None of it is." He then said, his eyes fiercely pinned onto hers.

"Thanks. That's super helpful." Percy said annoyed and got up. Dahlia stretched her arm out to him and wrapped it around his shoulder to lead him out the door.

"It was your father who warned me to stay away. He said it was awful watching you struggle and feel powerless to stop it but that sometimes, that's what parenting is." Hermes said to Percy and Dahlia shook her head.

"Go on. Find Annabeth, we meet Grover in the lobby." She murmured and gestured the boy to get out, not knowing that he would eavesdrop the next words she would say to Hermes.
She turned around to the man.

"I thought maybe Luke was wrong about you. I thought maybe he's just in so much pain that he overreacts, but he was right. Do you gods consider it parenting to make demigods and let them rot, unclaimed in the Hermes Cabin? To send us on quest for you, to watch us fight, lose, even die. Do you consider it parenting to send a 13 year old into the underworld for some seeds that make you more powerful than you already are?" She leaned with her hands on the desk, her fists bawled.

"What do you mean, a 13 year old in the Underworld?" He asked and Dahlia looked at him confused.

"My mother Demeter. She sent my sister Helen into the Underworld to retrieve the seeds of eternity and she hasn't returned ever since." Dahlia said. Hermes looked at her, honestly confused. Even he must be surprised by his sisters actions.
Percy ran into the room after he had listened to the conversation.
He took her wrist and pulled her out and into the mass of people. They met Annabeth in the lobby.

"We have to get out of here! I know it seemed like 20 minutes but it's already Thursday! Times moves differently here. Faster! We have to get Grover."

"Hermes let us sit at the table the whole time, knowing that clock was running out on our quest." Annabeth concluded.

"Yes." Percy answered.

"Then I feel a lot better about having stolen his keys." She said.

"Exactly. Wait what?" Percy asked and Dahlia laughed when Annabeth held up the key with the wings and two snakes.

"Got invisible. Picked his pocket." She said.

"You picked Hermes pocket?" Percy asked.

"The god of thieves gets his key stolen." Dahlia laughed.

"I'm multitalented."

Author's note:
I'm sorry it took me so long to update, I got school stuff and I got sick jayyy

Dam it :)

3481 words