I 08. I

𝑯𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔

❝ if I had a mother like yours ❞

     THE CRUEL VOICE LAUGHED AT HER FAILED ATTEMPT TO CLIMB THE STONE WALLS. Her nails bled as she tried for what felt like the thousandth time, she couldn't climb the walls and was stuck.

Ariadne was stuck in a maze. Not the best place for her. She also didn't have her ring, which meant nothing but her combat skills to defend herself.

She spun around at the growl that echoed along the walls, her eyes widened once she spotted the Hellhound walking towards her slowly.

It's paws padded against the ground while it's claws scratched it, teeth bared at the girl. She shot down the hallway, trying to gain some distance between herself and the beast.

Her hands met open air, causing the girl to step back quickly and away from the chasm below her. Rocks crumbled into it, falling deeply without any sound of reaching the bottom.

The Hellhound let out a roar behind her, eyes red with hate. Ariadne let out a whimper, her eyes flying back towards the black void before meeting those of the creature.

She tried finding a way around it, but that would only lead to her being ripped to shreds. So she did an impulsive thing that only a demigod with a Dwayne wish would do; she jumped.

Her body fell through the air, wind blowing her hair every which way while she screamed out. The Hellhound just walked away, it's task complete.

So the girl fell for what seemed like hours before colliding with the ground. Except, her back didn't hit pavement, it hit a bed of bushes.

Ariadne gasped out, sitting up quickly before picking the leaves out of her hair. She cringed at the pain in her body before freezing up at the sight of two shadows.

One was adult-sized, the other was a kid. The adult held the child in their arms before setting it down in front of a hill, holding onto its hands.

"You'll be safe here, Ariadne."

She shivered at the sound of her mother's voice, her body going stiff at the child's confused look.

Her younger self tilted her head, "But I'm safe with you, Mommy."

"No," her mother shook her head, "you're not. This place will protect you from whatever you see. I love you, my child."

Ariadne almost fell for it as her mother walked away, but she didn't run after the shadow because that wasn't what her mother said to her when she was abandoned, not even close.

The same cruel laugh from before voiced throughout the sky, "My, my, we have an intelligent one here."

She gulped down the knot in her throat, looking around like a crazy person while her eyes focused on the dark, starless sky. "Who are you?"

"Don't you wish this is what happened? A mother caring for her child? But that's not your reality, is it?"

The earth shook slightly, parts of it falling into another void. Her eyes met the edge of camp, rushing to enter it before slamming against the barrier.

Her fists babes against it while she cried out, desperate for safety. But know one came to let her in, not even as she let the tears fall down.

Ariadne was plucked from the ground, like a giant hand picked her up and dropped her and placed her in the heavens.

She watched as campers fought one another inside the camp, powers battling against others as Ares kids led the charge.

The girl gasped once she saw Castor and Pollux hit the ground, a boy standing over their bodies as he pulled his sword from their chest.

She realized it was Percy. And that made her cry harder. He fought other campers, creating a flood while leading Poseidon's side. Drowning the Zeus team which did their best to not lose as many members as they were.

Annabeth's gave a war cry, but Percy stabbed her through the stomach, a dark Look in his eyes while she dropped.

Above them, the clouds raged with lightning, the waves of the lake hurling upwards. The sky and sea fought, no rest between shots at each other.

Ariadne's eyes widened in horror once she fell, in the middle of the battle with her sword. She spun around, eyeing the campers who ignored her and shouted out as they fought.

"Stop!" She cried out, trying so desperately to get their attention. "Stop, please!"

But a voice sent shivers down her spine, "This is your fault." Her body turned towards Percy, who gave her a deadly glare with his sword in hand.

"What?"

He growled, "If you hadn't left us there. If you hadn't left us at the doors of the Underworld, if you hadn't been a coward," she flinched, "then this wouldn't happen. We could have given the bolt back. But we chased after you, and we lost time. Now look at this mess."

Ariadne felt her heart burn at the sight of dead campers, wanting nothing more than the earth to swallow her whole.

Percy raised his sword, "Maybe we should have just left you. After all, you're just a demigod lunatic."

And she snapped.

Her sword clashed against his, a silver hue exploding out. They flew back but jumped back up, swords glowing colors.

The gold sword she held glowed a purple color, while Riptide glowed with blue. Her eyes were dark while she glared at the boy, him with just as much might as hers.

Percy let out a roar, sword coming down onto her before she blocked it. She sent a blow of her own, which he blocked as well.

The two battled it out for a while, rage against rage. But soon, Ariadne got the upper hand. She slammed him into the ground as his body was tied down with vines.

She crouched down near his head, his eyes wide before he spoke. "Aidan?"

Her heart broke slightly, before it froze once again. The girl let those be his last words before stabbing him through the chest.

Percy's life left him, his eyes dull. Ariadne cried out, letting her hands slip from the swords handle while she cried from the pain of her body.

And the battlefield was wiped away, the only people there was her and Percy's body. She yelled out once it felt like her body was torn apart.

A dove appeared before her, swooping down to land on Percy's bloody body. It shook its head and cooed sadly before flying off, the boy dissolving into sea foam.

Her breath quickened once the voice spoke up, "Look what you've done. A coward because you chose the wrong side, the side of the gods. Join me, and you can rule over the gods, and maybe your friends will live."

She shook her head, "No. Never."

The voice growled before the earth shook once more, and her sword disappeared. She screamed out for it to stop but it didn't, and she fell deep into the earth as her body bled out, red blood seeping from her heart as she closed her eyes.

Ariadne woke up to the sound of a dog barking.

Her body was sore, feeling as if it had literally slammed itself into the earth. But she recalled her dream, and grimaced slightly at what had happened.

What occurred was a nightmare of everything she feared about this quest, the negative consequences, all caused by her.

The girl squinted at the bright sun, her eyes adjusting to the light once she noticed Grover and Annabeth up and moving around.

A pink poodle rested on the Satyr's lap, it blinked a few times as Ariadne stared back with confusion.

It yapped a few times, looking towards Grover who chuckled a bit. "No," he spoke to the dog, "she does not take baths in grapes."

She thought she was dreaming but Annabeth sighed, "This is real. And yes, he's talking to the poodle."

Grover gave the brunette a grin, "Glad you're up. You and Percy seemed to have made up," he nodded towards the boy next to her.

Ariadne looked over and her eyes widened in shock, Percy leaned against her, their hands intertwined tightly as he stirred slightly in his sleep. He must have been having a nightmare like her, get used to it.

She removed her hand from his, a frown crossing his face slightly at the lose of contact.

The girl opened her mouth, "Grover," he hummed, petting the dog on his lap. "Why do you have a poodle."

"His name is Gladiola. Gladiola, this is Ariadne. Gladiola is our ticket west."

She nodded, "One question; can I pet you Gladiola?"

The dog nodded enthusiastically, jumping off Grover's lap as the girl stood up, she pet the dog behind the ears which he really appreciated.

"Hello, Gladiola. I hope we can get you back to your home, wherever it is."

Gladiola licked her nose, the girl laughing slightly before a bag of chips hit her head. The girl glared at Annabeth who smirked at her, "Breakfast. Might want to him up before he starts drooling again."

Ariadne huffed, she pet the dog one more time before opening her bag of nacho flavored chips, stuffing them in her mouth to satisfy her stomach.

Percy's sea-green eyes snapped open, he was startled awake by something he had dreamed. The brunette girl raised an eye brow at his shaken state, playing it off like that hadn't happened to herself.

"Well," she swallowed the chip she had been eating, "the zombie lives."

He ignored her comment, which made her realize how bad his nightmare must've been. "How long was I asleep?"

Annabeth tossed him a bag of chips, "Long enough for me to cook breakfast. And Grover went exploring. Look, he found a friend."

The boy frowned at the poodle next to Ariadne, sitting as she pet him. Grover sat near them as well, answering the dog as it yapped once more. "No, he's not."

Percy blinked, "Are you... talking to that thing?"

Gladiola didn't like Percy, he growled but calmed down as Ariadne spoke. "Don't listen to the loser," Percy rolled his eyes at her, "he's just jealous he's not getting my attention. You're a good boy."

The dogs tail wagged rapidly as it licked her face once more, she grinned brightly at Percy who seemed to be smiling but she couldn't tell.

"That thing," Grover spoke up, "is our ticket west. Be nice to him."

"You can talk to animals?" Annabeth have a look towards Ariadne who shrugged, the blonde rolled her eyes at the girl who continued petting the dog.

Grover motioned towards the boy, "Percy, meet Gladiola. Gladiola, Percy."

Annabeth stares straight at the boy once he glanced towards her, a serious expression on her face as he looked for help.

He targeted Ariadne who raised an eyebrow, waiting with Grover and Gladiola for him to say hi to the dog. "Better do it, Perc. He's gonna help us."

Percy didn't say hi to the poodle. "I'm not saying hello to a pink poodle. Forget it."

The brunette girl grit her teeth, her voice becoming stern. "Perseus Jackson," the boy cringed at his full name, "say hello to the pink poodle or else."

Gladiola bared his teeth.

In the end, Percy said hello to him

Grover explained to them that he found Gladiola in the woods so they ended up talking. The poodle ran away from a rich family near there, the family had posted a two hindered dollar reward for him to be brought back safely. He wasn't exactly keen on returning, but he said he was okay with it if it meant he coupled help Grover and now Ariadne who he had taken a liking too.

"How does Gladiola know about the reward?" Percy questioned.

Ariadne rolled her eyes at the grumpy boy, "Isn't it obvious? He read the signs."

"Of course," he replied back snarking. "Silly me."

"Come on, Kelp Head, lighten up."

He grumbled, "Well maybe you should just darken down."

"That's the best you got?"

"Like you've got better!" He huffed, the dog growling at him as he glared towards Ariadne.

She tilted her head, "Yeah, I do. I just don't think you deserve my comebacks"

Percy opened his mouth to reply but Grover cut him off, "God! Even Gladiola hates when you two fight!"

Annabeth cut through the tension, a plan in mind. "So we turn in Gladiola, we get money and we buy tickets to Los Angeles. Simple."

"Not another bus," Percy complained.

The blonde pointed downhill, "Theres an Amtrak station half a mile that way. According to Gladiola, the westbound train Ltd leaves at noon."

Percy finally agreed, they packed up their stuff and made their way towards Gladiola's home.

Once they parted, much to the dismay of Ariadne and Grover, the latter crying into the brunette's shoulder once they left.

Luckily, they had spent two days on the train without any run-ins with monsters. But it was anything but relaxing, somehow, miraculously, Ariadne's mixtape and necklace were still in her pocket.

But her senses were in high alert, especially Percy. They tried keeping a low profile but it was difficult because Percy and Ariadne were all over the front pages of multiple East Coast newspapers.

Trenton Register-News was the lucky paper with the picture taken by the Hawaii-shirt wearing tourist that was there when the bus exploded.

The picture showed Percy with a crazed look in his eyes, his sword blurred to look like regular metal. Ariadne's face was full of anger, her sword pictured as a metal rod that she held in her hand.

The caption below it said:

Twelve year old Percy Jackson, wanted for questioning in the Ling Island disappearance of his mother two weeks ago, is shown fleeing from the bus where he accosted several elderly female passengers. The bus exploded on an east New Jersey roadside shortly after Jackson fled the scene.

Next to him, is what people believe to be the missing girl Ariadne Phoenix who disappeared long with her mother from Kentucky almost seven years ago. Thanks to the girls abnormal colored eyes, and reported birthmark on her neck, police believe this is her.

Based on eyewitness accounts, police believe the boy and girl may be traveling with two other teenage accomplices. Jackson's stepfather, Gabe Ugliano, has offered a cash reward for information leading to his capture.

In the wake of the new evidence that Ariadne Phoenix may still be alive, the case has reopened. Both New York and Kentucky are holding a nationwide search to find her and Jackson. Hopefully, we gain more evidence about her mother. And hope we answer the question of why Phoenix was traveling with Jackson.

Percy and Ariadne shared a look, this was not good. Annabeth tried soothing their nerves, "Dont worry, mortal police could never fine us." But the brunette wasn't so sure about that.

She kept her neck covered with her hood, always staring out the window so no one could catch her purple eyes.

Percy continuously tapped his foot against the floor, which was starting to annoy her. The girl decided that she couldn't sit still, even with her music which she had listened to to much.

Ariadne shifted around, sighing so much that it annoyed Percy to the point where he started pacing the train.

The police identifying her was not a good sign. She remembered the how her brothers would tell her updates about her case that they found online, talking about how they had closed it as unsolved.

But they had her name, her face, they knew of her eyes and birthmark. If they caught her, she had no idea what they would do. Probably find her grandparents, and they didn't want her, she would be shoved into a foster home.

She didn't want to be away from Camp Half-Blood, that was her true home.

They had only earned two hundred dollars for returning Gladiola, which was only enough to by tickets to Denver. But they weren't able to get berths in the sleeping car, which sucked.

Her seat was causing her back to hurt, and honestly, she preferred the ground at the campsite.

Annabeth and Grover sat next to one another, both snoring loudly which caused Ariadne some headaches.

Percy was dozing off, but he seemed to be having nightmares while a long line of drool dribbled down his chin.

The girl chuckled slightly, using his own shirt to wipe it away. He stirred, mumbling something along the lines of, "I won't help you." And she thought back to her dream, she shivered before pushing it away.

Her eyes found outside the window, watching as a Centaur family ran through the grain. They waved towards her, she waved back slightly as she looked around to make sure no one saw her.

Ariadne was not having a fun time. All around them was railroad tracks and grain. She wanted to see cities, people moving about, maybe that was just her ADHD making her restless.

Grover was causing her some annoyance, the boy was snoring louder than Annabeth's bitch she didn't think was possible. Percy stirred thanks to him, and the many times his fake foot fell off, they had to put it back on.

She was so close to just knocking him out so he wouldn't make noise but Percy stopped her, pulling the girl back into her seat as she stood up.

He placed his head onto her shoulder to rest, which she gave him a disgusted look as drool dropped onto her shirt once he was asleep. For some reason, he slept better when he was near her, and vice versa.

The girl took the time to watch him, creepy or not it was something to do as they rode on the boring train.

His hair was shaggy and all over the place, but it contrasted his tan skin perfectly. The drool dribbling of his chin had dried, but he slightly snored against her shoulder. His sea-green eyes were hidden by his closed eyelids, and she wished she could watch the oceans crash in them.

Ariadne blushed at that thought, which was odd for her. Why was she thinking that? Some part of her found Percy Jackson cute, absurd. She just thought it was because she was low on sleep, yeah, that was it.

Percy woke up, she quickly turned her head towards the window while he wiped away the drool on his face. His eyes watching her while she glanced over, giving him a smile while he smiled back.

"You haven't slept?" He whispered, she shook her head no, he frowned. "Why?"

She shrugged, "Not exactly the best place too."

The boy sighed, watching as her tired eyes dropped slightly once she looked back out the window.

"Who were you talking to?"

He shot her a confused look, "What?"

"You were talking to someone when you were sleeping, 'I won't help you.' Ring a bell?"

Percy went silent before speaking about his nightmare. The cruel voice that rattled his brain, a black abyss he fell into. And Ariadne realized it was similar to hers from a couple nights back, but she didn't speak, only listened.

He insisted it was Hades but she didn't believe that, "Doesn't sound like Hades. He always appears on a black throne."

"He offered my mother in trade. Who else could do that?"

She looked at her gold ring, who could it be? "I guess... I mean, I'm not Annabeth or a child of Athena... but, maybe, if he meant, 'Help me rise from the Underworld,' he could be insisting in a war against the Olympians. But why would he ask you for the bolt if he already had it?"

Percy didn't know what to think. His head shook while they both pondered over her idea, none of what they were doing made sense. She was questioning if then quest was what they thought originally.

Why would Hades need Percy if he already had the bolt? From The Furies asking where it was, between Percy and her dreams, and the how the monsters held back, it wasn't clear.

The Satyr behind them snorted, shifting a bit while she fixed his hat so it rested over his horns.

The girl glanced over at the boy and noticed the look in his eyes, "Percy, you can't barter with Hades." He looked as if he was a kicked puppy, and her eyes were stern, protective of him. "You know that, right? He's deceitful, heartless and greedy. I don't care if his Kindly Ones weren't aggressive this time—"

Ariadne clenched her fists as she couldn't stop speaking, "This time?" He asked, "You mean you've run into them before?"

Her hands found way to her necklace, where the third bead on it was painted white and a pine tree was in the middle.

The sadness found a home in her heart after that year, because of what happened with Thalia. "The Lord of the Dead is and never has been my favorite. You can't be tempted to make a deal for your mom."

"What would you do if it was your mom?"

Ariadne rolled her eyes, anger sparking in the crystal caves of her eyes. "Easy. I'd leave her to rot in Tartarus."

"You're not serious?"

"I told you what happened, Perc." She gripped her necklace harder, "She never cared for me even after I was born. She just drank. I tried to love her, I did, but she wouldn't take it. So she abandoned me, left me alone and vulnerable at the borders of camp." The brunette let her necklace go, "If she wanted me to think differently about her, she should've tried."

Percy became sad for her, she didn't deserve that. Ariadne was strong, to strong and filled with to much trauma.

The girl noticed his look, "But if I had a mother like yours," he looked up, "I would."

"Really?"

She nodded her head, "Yeah. But she wouldn't want you too."

"But I need her."

"I get that," her hand placed itself onto his arm, "but would she want you to fight a god for her? No. From what Grover and you have told me, your mom would want you to be alive, even if she wasn't there. She'll live a good life in the Underworld, I promise you."

Percy felt years swim in his eyes, "But even if there was the slightest chance the only person you had left was alive, wouldn't you take it?"

Ariadne gulped, "Yes. And If I died, they would never forgive me."

The boy sighed, "Who do you have left, besides your brothers and dad?"

"No one."

She wiped the tears from her eyes, never having told this story in over five years. Percy seemed to understand, he placed his hand over top of hers.

His eyes were sad too, his voice soft as he spoke. "My mom married a really, really awful guy. He's terrible to her and me. Grover said it was her way of protecting me, to hide my scent from any monsters." The oceans in his eyes allowed her to calm down a bit, "I'm not going to defend your mom, because if she's how you said she was, then she's like my stepdad. But maybe... maybe think of it like destiny, maybe you were meant to end up at camp. The gods always have a plan, right?"

Ariadne smiles a bit, "I'm glad I did. I'm glad she dropped me off, because who knows what could've happened if my dad didn't tell her. She could have found out when I was younger and then abused me even more, maybe you're right, maybe I was meant to end up at camp."

"How old were you when she left you?"

She sniffled, "Five. But it all started when I was born."

Percy interlocked their fingers, giving her a smile and didn't ask anymore questions after that, which she was thankful for.

Her head leaned against his, the two finally sleeping peacefully without any nightmares. But neither noticed the two dives flying with the bus, cooing at the sight of them together.

Aphrodite smiled from up above, amidst the chaos in the room between Poseidon and Zeus, she was happy.

Her redemption was finally coming true.

authors note:

I lied.

next chapter will be longer, I promise.