Or do u want a monkey?

Anyway post soon or else I will cry

poost please. im still checking everyday, hoping to see a new chapter. plz? we all enjoy your writing so much! ur so good at it!

im giving up on checking. ur obviously abandoning it so... bye:(

Im with Percabeth,10 days?? 11?? C ya!

OMG i love your story, you're a really good writer you know? (:
Can't wait 'till the next chapter!
I wonder when Annabeth and Percy will meet?
Anyways, keep up the great work!

AAAAAAAAAARGH!
*slams both hands on the keyboard*
Finally!
*deep breath*
I finally finally signed in...

Well, hello to everyone new, welcome in Fanpop! And hey to everyone old, that hasn't yet given up on me -although my being so not punctual and unlucky (I mean, is there a Greek/Roman god/goddess of misfortune? 'Cause I'm definitely their child).
I'm so so sorry it's been two weeks... I haven't abandoned you, nor forgotten you, this fic will definitely finish and I'm so darn relieved in the moment that I'm almost ready to put these past days of pure torture I lived and hours of frustration and cursing I spent behind. You can't believe just how unbearable it's been, reading all the comments and spamming *cough*Sylviakitty*cough* yet being unable to respond because my stupid e-mail account presented some security problem or whatever and affected everything! And I mean e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g! Facebook, Twitter, My_Space, YοuTube, mobile9, D&D, FANPOP!!!!!! Every-single-freaking-thing! I was basically cut off from the Net for almost two miserable weeks!
*sigh*
I had to get a new password and everything for all my accounts to get them back on and going... It was really messed up and annoying and time-consuming but I finally did it and am now ready to post the next three chapters...
Here we go...
24's a bit short. And lousy. And boring. And kind of a filler. I added it only yesterday, that's why (it was like, you know, last-minute inspiration or something). Please don't hate me for writing such a horrible chappie!
25 and 26 are cool, I suppose, but I'm not all that objective, really, being the writer and all, which means yοu've gotta tell me if it's good or not. Oh, and 25's quite long, so, I guess that kinda makes up for chap. 24 and my missing from Fanpop for so long...
*sheepish smile*





Chapter XXIV(24)

Percy didn't want to leave anyone behind. He'd much rather stay back himself and wait until both Reyna and Gwen were safe and out of the building before he'd follow. But, although it was just one floor high and the river was deep enough to jump in, he couldn't leave Reyna do it alone. No, he decided as he pushed a trying-hard-not-to-show-her-panic Reyna to the shore. I couldn't have done anything else.
After climbing on shore and making sure that Reyna was alright and -thanks to him- completely dry, he got up and looked around.
The school's parking lot was visible behind the pine trees that surrounded the river and it was empty except from a blue and yellow school bus. A narrow stone path started from it, wove between the woods, reached a short gothic bridge that went over the river and then continued off to the other side. The school's buildings were almost completely obscured from sight and the high treetops reached the height of the gargoyles lining the roof. Percy doubted that he could have seen anything even if they weren't, as he and Reyna had been taken by the river's strong current and were now pretty far away from the buildings of St. Patricks.
Leaving Reyna lying on the shore's green muddy grass, Percy started walking along the river. He had just passed the bridge when he saw something black and purple floating in the water. It was Gwen's hat; the feathers drenched and its wide shape barely keeping it from sinking under the weight of the wet fabric and ribbons. It passed right in front of him, swirling in the current at top speed.
And then came what looked like Gwen.
She was completely underwater -though, thankfully, still apparently conscious. Her long dress had risen around her in a tangled cloud of dark fabric and lace, surrounding her completely and leaving the metal frame of the skirt and her hands clutching its beams visible.
Without even thinking about it, Percy dived in the river and swam as swiftly as he could against the currents. As he approached Gwen, he willed all the tiny air-bubbles trapped in the rushing -and slightly tinted pink from the blood oozing from the cuts and wounds on her skin- water to gather and form a bigger bubble around her. The moment her head entered the bubble she gasped and let her hands -which had been fumbling frantically at the metal waist of the frame-skirt- go slack in exhaustion. Percy put an arm around her waist to hold her, and, as soon as he touched her, she became dry -although still submerged in the fierce waters of the river- and her wounds started healing and fading without leaving any trace. He fingered the metal waist with his other hand, until he felt the wet ends of a ribbon and pulled them, untying the delicate bow holding the whole metal thing together.
Very carefully, he removed the metal skirt, taking extra care where the metal frame had been dented or broken by crashing on the river's jagged rocks and had grazed her skin and even managed some deep cuts, and then willed the currents to take him and Gwen to the shore, where he put her gently on the grassy ground.
Reyna was there immediately, the sight of her friend hurt obviously distracting her from the 'trauma' of having just been in the water. She dropped her backpack beside Gwen and started rummaging inside it.
"Reyna," Gwen called, rising her head slightly, still gasping for air.
Reyna quickly approached her friend and gave her a gold square of Ambrosia. "That's what you get for wearing such skirts," she said softly, and, as if an afterthought added: "Or skirts in general."
"That's not true!" Gwen protested weakly.
"Yes, it is," Reyna insisted.
"No it's not!"
"Whatever. You're the one who almost drowned herself in that death-trap of a dress."
"Hey, look on the bright side," Gwen said, sitting up and lifting the folds of her dress's skirt up to the knee. "At least, I still have the boots."
Reyna rolled her eyes and slang her backpack over one shoulder. "Get up and put them in good use, then. The parking lot's not far from here."
Without any further protests, Gwen stood shakily up, reaching for Percy's arm for support.
She looked at him, saying softly: "Thank you."
"You have nothing to thank me for," he replied, feeling shy being so close to her and slightly embarrassed under Reyna's gaze.
"Oh, I do," Gwen simply said. And then she did something Percy had definitely not expected. She leaned forward and pressed her lips on his cheek in a sweet and lingering kiss. He couldn't help but stay frozen to the spot as she looked at him in the eyes and grinned dazzlingly, touching the corner of her mouth with her tongue. When she finally turned away and started walking away, he let out the deep breath he didn't know he had been holding.
But with no amount of exhaling could he clear his head or make sense of the jumble of emotions stirred by Gwen's kiss. Although it was merely an innocent thank-yοu kiss, there was a battle going on inside him that formed a knot in his stomach and made his throat sore and dry. It was a battle between uneasiness and guilt and worry over the fact that he had actually liked the feel of Gwen's lips on his skin.
His cheek was still flushed when he forced his legs to start moving and numbly followed the two girls that were already far ahead.
Immersed in his thoughts as he was, he didn't even notice Reyna striding heavily in front of Gwen, looking pointedly straight ahead.

Chapter XXV(25)

Luckily, Reyna had some experience in borrowing vehicles -with or without the keys and the owner's permission.
She, Gwen and Percy were crouching behind some neatly tended bushes at St. Patricks Boarding School For Annoyingly Short Skirts and Insane Warrior Women, and the two latter were looking at the parking lot, discussing in low voices what to do.
Reyna didn't even bother speaking up. Actually, she refused to speak to them just yet. She was feeling a bit too grumpy to do so and didn't need to, anyway. Instead, she took out a pack of chewing gums from her bag and popped a couple gums in her mouth. She then just walked over to the school bus doors -completely ignoring Gwen's protests-, reached discreetly for one of her daggers, and parted the doors silently open. Then she made herself comfortable inside, sitting on the driver's seat as if she owned the bus, and started tinkering with some wires and stuff that she pulled from under the steering wheel. When the engine roared to life, she pushed the button to close the doors and drove off at full speed.
That was not the most inconspicuous getaway, but it worked fine for her, nevertheless.
She made sure to put some respectable distance between the bus and St. Patrick's before slowing down. Looking at Gwen through the rearview mirror, she asked her:
"Where's Percy?"
"Right here," his voice replied before Gwen had the chance to open her mouth.
Reyna was surprised -and somehow relieved- to realize that he was sitting behind her, on the other side of the bus from Gwen.
"Good," she said, the words coming out crispier than she intended. She lapsed into silence after that -an awkward silence that neither Percy nor Gwen tried to break, and that simply continued reigning over the whole drive to and in Denver.
It must have been half past ten or maybe eleven -she couldn't really tell since she didn't have a watch and felt a bit too grumpy to ask Gwen- when she parked the bus outside the train station. She had not bothered asking what the other two suggested to do next either, but she didn't really need to. Driving all the way to NY in a...borrowed school bus was out of the question. Taking the train was the best option there was. After briefly discussing that, Gwen went off immediately to purchase tickets for the three of them and Reyna and Percy sat on a bench, waiting for her. Gwen must have been a really weird sight, what with that long dress she was still wearing -though, now, without that metal thing under it, it was considerably less huge and conspicuous- and her long duster coat over it. At least that ridiculous -yup, those were Reyn's exact words- hat of hers had gotten lost in the river and she had taken off those silly girly glittery hairpins and let her curly hair down.
The train had already reached the station when Gwen came back, carrying along a bag filled with sandwiches from some canteen, and they boarded an empty passenger carriage.
The air inside was so damp and stuffy that it brought Reyna a dull headache. It was so unbearable, that, as soon as she, Gwen and Percy were in a compartment, she opened the window and took off her jacket. But even in just her jeans and purple long-sleeved Rome T-shirt she felt as if slowly suffocating. She had never liked trains -they always made her feel sick- but this was entirely different and way too extreme for her.
Looking around at the metallic compartment and rubbing the back of her neck, she figured she must have caught some cold.
Then her fingers touched the gold chain around her neck and she froze. She slowly unclasped it and took it in both hands. The necklace pulsed, she noticed, like a heart struggling to keep beating and not stop. It made her feel pity for that weak yet frantic beat. But her head was a bit clearer and she herself felt better now to realize that she couldn't feel pity for a piece of jewellery.
"What's that?"
Reyna jumped at the sound of Gwen's voice and closed her hands tightly around the necklace. It was not so much the fact that Gwen had seen the pendant that startled her as that she had been caught so off guard. True, she had been immersed in her thoughts and was not paying much attention to the other two demigods. But, for those few seconds that she'd been looking at the gold coin-charm, it had been like the rest of the world had faded out and all she could feel was that she was surrounded by thick metal walls that kept her away from the ground.
"It's nothing," Reyna rushed to reply to Gwen, and, looking for a way to change the subject, blurted out the first thing that came in her mind. "Why does everyone call Percy the son of Poseidon?"
Gwen's eyes widened ever so slightly and she looked at Percy who shrugged, looking exhausted now that he was nowhere near water.
That must be what's wrong with the necklace, too, Reyna suddenly thought. It's away from the earth right now meaning it's away from the life-source of that dirt-woman/dryad/whatever that it belongs to.
"Percy-" Gwen said, bringing Reyna back to reality.
"Now's as good a time as any," he interrupted her, leaning back on his seat and running a hand through his dark hair. "Look, Reyna," he started, drawing her attention away from his tousled hair and to his green eyes. Then he paused, looking for the right words. "Okay, this should be easy. You already know that the Roman gods exist-"
Reyna raised an eyebrow at him. "Really?" she said.
"-but the Greek ones do so, too," he finished and smirked at the you-are-either-kidding-or-for-the-loony-bi­n look she gave him. "Didn't knew that, did you?"
"Very tactful, Percy," Gwen said mockingly. "Go on, then, once you started off so nicely. Tell her about the summer and the Titan War II, too."
Before either of the two could react, Reyna had sprang on her feet, putting the gold pendant aside, and held her daggers pointed at his neck. "You were on their side," she hissed, "weren't you?"
"Reyna! Put that thing away!" Gwen scolded, standing up.
"Yeah, you're gonna hurt yourself," Percy added.
That made Reyna even more furious -IF that's possible. "Excuse me?"
Gwen rolled her eyes. "He's invincible. Duh."
Reyna narrowed her brown eyes on his green ones, mentally slapping herself when she found her mind wondering what the exact shade of their color was. "Do you think I care? He's a freaking traitor and I will keep stabbing him until I hit his weak spot."
"Reyn, he's no traitor."
"Really, I'm not," he said, looking honest but offended. "Things are a tad bit more complicated than that, I'm afraid."
"Oh?" Reyna sneered. "Well, I'm afraid I don't believe that b.s. I always suspected something was off with you -from the very first moment I saw you outside Urbs, I knew that you were bad news. Lupa didn't want to listen to me, though -she shut me up and forbid me from saying anything about it to anyone. But she won't say anything to me now that you've admitted what you are. Lupa hates traitors. We children of Rome all hate traitors. And do you know what we do to th-"
"Reyna," Gwen interrupted her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I think you should better not-"
"Shut. Up." Reyna spat and shrugged her hand off. "You're no better than him -knowing all along and not saying anything."
"Reyna," Gwen was now pleading. "It's not-"
"Not what I think, is it? You're a traitor yourself, Gwendolyn Hanagan," Reyna growled. "And you'll be treated just like the rest."
"You killed demigods?" whispered Percy's voice.
Reyna turned sharply at him, surprised at how he sounded; incredulous, horrified, repulsed.
"It happened during the battle," Gwen rushed to explain. "While we were fighting. It-it was either us or they."
Percy ignored Gwen and looked at Reyna, not paying any attention to the point of her wickedly sharp dagger practically touching his Adam’s apple. "Did it feel good?" he asked her mockingly.
Reyna was taken aback. "What?"
"Did it feel good," he repeated, "slaying your brothers and sisters?"
Anger swelled inside her once more. "Of course it didn't!" She jumped back, pulling away from him as if distance could stop his words from hurting her so much.
"Then why do you keep repeating how you killed the traitors, as if it was the right thing to do?" he inquired quietly, raising his eyebrows beautifully.
The sorrow in his eyes was so intense Reyna found herself regretting every word she said. But she clenched her teeth against that urge and composed herself. "It was the right thing to do. It was the only thing to do."
Gwen turned away, moisture filling her eyes, and, shaking her head, slumped down on the window seat and buried her face in her hands.
"It wasn't," Percy said.
"No? And what were we supposed to do? Let them kill us?" Reyna pointed out.
"You could just drop them unconscious or trap them or-"
"You can't say that, Percy, 'cause you weren't there. You were not at the Mountain of Despair, in the midst of all the fighting, being constantly afraid that you will die. That your best friend will die," she pointed at Gwen who was still hiding her face in her hands.
"That everyone you love will die," she continued, her voice quieter now, sadder. "That They will win and the world will be destroyed along with everything else you may care or not about." Reyna plopped down on the seat behind her, breathing heavily and blinking rapidly back the inappropriate for a daughter of Mars tears that filled her eyes. "You were not there," she whispered. "You were not there."
"I know how it felt like, Reyn," Percy told her gently. "I might not have been there with you, but my friends and I were fighting another battle at that exact same moment. Yours was just on Mt. Othrys and ours in Manhattan."
"And you expect me to believe that, too?" she asked, sounding terribly miserable.
"I know it sounds insane but we were there, and we were fighting right outside the Empire State building, trying to stop Kronos from getting on Olympus."
Reyna snorted. "And who's 'we'?"
He reached in his pocket and took out a clay bead necklace. "My Greek demigod friends and I. This is a reminder of that summer," he explained, pointing at a bead with the shape of a building on it and tiny gold words around it. "The words are the names of those who fell during all the fighting. And, among others, there is this one of Luke Castellan, who was the first one to be tricked and side with the Titan King. He became his vessel, he left him possess him, but in the end he did all he could to stop him -giving up and stabbing himself on his own Achilles spot. He did that because he finally saw the truth, and even then, just as Kronos was about to destroy the Palace and it appeared that all hope was lost and it was too late for him, Luke turned the odds on the Titan's face and sacrificed himself to preserve Olympus.
"And there's another one: Ethan Nakamura. Extremely annoying, he was -child of Nemesis. I spared his life the first time only to see him pledge allegiance to Kronos and help him rise. I spared his life the second time, during the war, to see him turn his back on Kronos and die for that -for trying to help us -help me.
"No one of those who died deserved it. Neither friend, nor...'enemy'. Those who sided with Kronos were tricked, fooled, played like dispensable pawns.
"They did not deserve to die. No one deserved to die," Percy repeated and rubbed his forehead with his free hand. "Those were the bloodiest, most sorrowful three days I've ever witnessed," he confessed in a low voice. "And even if Hera tried to take them away, those memories were so deeply etched in my mind I had nightmares about them sometimes. I still do, though not so frequently, and I believe I have somehow finally began to accept them as an inseparable part of my past."
I have nightmares from the war, too, Reyna thought. What a stupid thing for an effing daughter of Mars to think, she scolded herself.
"We never heard anything about Greek gods or demigods or the battle at Manhattan," she said out loud softly, contemplatively.
"We never heard anything about you, either," Percy said.
She cocked her head. "Was the war why you bathed in the Styx?"
"I guess..."
"You guess?"
He shrugged. "I don't really remember everything. I mostly remember important events without the details. For example, I remember going in the Styx, but don't remember where my Achilles spot is.
"It's pretty weird how my memories come back. Usually, I simply let my instincts take over and things just sort of pop up in my head. Sometimes I get flashbacks and stuff, like déjà vu or something. I remember names pretty rarely and much more people's faces, places and details. When I concentrate on remembering something particular, though, my head gets foggy and it hurts like Hades."
Reyna clucked her tongue at that, not really having anything to say. Gwen, who Reyna knew to hate that habit of hers, turned to look at her with that disapproving look she'd always have for such circumstances. But the effect was not quite the same as other times as her eyes were blood-shot and puffy and tears had left tracks all the way down her cheeks. She had her legs now folded in her lap, her arms wrapped around them, clutching the folds of her long skirt, and her eyes staring blankly outside at the houses that passed by. The train must have taken off a while ago, but Reyna had not noticed.
"Hey, Reyna," she said tentatively, unfolding her legs in front of her and dropping her hands in her lap, "you have to learn something else, too."
"Alright..." she said, slightly alarmed by her friend's grave expression. "Shoot."
"Um, you know my little half-brothers, right? The twins."
Reyna rolled her eyes. "They're the ones that stay in the same cabin with you, right? Sons of Trivia, I think they are?"
Gwen pursed her lips in the most Gwen-ish way. "Whatever. Jace is Greek," she blurted out. "I think."
"What?" Reyna asked incredulously, thinking for a moment that something was going terribly wrong with her ears.
Gwen sighed and leaned to take off her boots. They were a wicked pair of boots, those ones -Reyna had to admit that. "Charlie's Roman but Jace is Greek."
Reyna's jaw dropped to the floor. "But they're, like, twins."
"Yeah, I know," Gwen said, stretching and lying comfortably on the train's maroon seats, "and, honestly, I'm not at all interested to find out how that happened. It's pretty weird."
"It's pretty gross," Reyna corrected her and also took off her boots. She decided to put off changing into regular clothes till later. Much later, she thought with a yawn.
As she curled up in her seat, she felt something nudging her side, and, reaching behind her, touched the pulsing coin-charm necklace. Stuffing it hastily in her pocket, her fingers brushed the carved shape of the tree and the strange woman's words echoed in her ears:
...if he tells you the truth...
Reyna glanced at Percy. He had not yet closed his eyes like Gwen, but kept them trained on the grey ceiling, fingering the bead necklace he was still clutching in one hand.
As her eyelids closed and she slowly drifted off to sleep, she couldn't stop from thinking: what if? What if he had been lying? What if nothing from what he had said was true? Could he have been acting all along?
Could he, really?

Chapter XXVI(26)

Percy looked at his reflection on the stained mirror above the small sink.
He looked different, he noticed. Older. He wondered if that was because he had not really taken a good look at himself for months.
His face was tanned and as cocky and impertinent as ever, but his eyes betrayed him. Those sea green, mischievous eyes mirrored his soul so perfectly, that he was slightly afraid to look at them. There was something haunted in them that only he seemed to notice. Melancholy, sorrow, grief.
He sighed and run a hand through his dark hair -immediately regretting doing it, though. His hair now stuck out at all places, making him look even more wild than he already did. He pressed his hand on them, trying to flatten them, and got out of the little bathroom.
The train's corridor was dark and narrow, a worn brown carpet stretching along it. It was pretty easy to get lost there, what with the hall being so dark and long and every compartment door looking exactly the same as the next. And Percy did get lost. He entered the wrong compartment.
It was equally dark in there as in the corridor, so he immediately understood his mistake. The dark curtains were drawn over the windows, leaving nothing but a sliver of sunlight enter. A girl around fourteen or fifteen was the only one there. She had headphones on, that got lost under her caramel-colored hair, braided artfully over one shoulder so that she reminded him of Calypso. But, apart from the hair, she was much different from the Calypso he knew. Her eyes, for one thing, were really dark, flecked with silver. Her clothes, for another, were way too forward for the nymph. The girl wore a dark red sleeveless dress -one of those casual gothic Lolita ones-, red Mary Janes with sensible heels, and lacy, black, corset-like fingerless gloves. Thin gold chains hung around her pale neck and a couple chain-bracelets wove around the hand in which she held a silver i-pod.
Just as Percy turned around to leave, she glanced up and smiled at him questioningly.
"Wrong compartment, sorry," he muttered, slightly startled with her eyes. Yes, they were really dark and much ordinary at that, but the silver flecks appeared to be twinkling. The compartment's faint illumination must have been doing that but it still was a mesmerizing sight and almost...otherworldly.
He fought the urge to keep staring at them, slid the door closed, and opened the next compartment's -which thankfully turned out to be the right one.
Bright, warm, early-afternoon sunlight poured in from the window, making Percy squint at its suddenness. Reyna and Gwen had already changed back into their own regular clothes from the costumes of St. Patricks' Drama class or whatever -Gwen still wore the boots, though, having tucked her dark jeans' legs inside- and were ready to get out when the train would reach St. Louis and finally stop for a three-hour lunch-break. It had been over a day since they had first come aboard and they were all looking forward to stepping on solid ground. Plus, the sandwiches Gwen had brought had been long since eaten and it was about lunch-time.
"...there's this Mexican restaurant close to the Arch," Gwen was telling Reyna as Percy plopped on a seat, "that makes great tacos. Seriously, I know you're not that into Mexican food, but you're gonna love this. And you can choose how hot you want your dish to be, too. It's great, and better than going to another fast-food joint. If I have one more cheeseburger or chicken sandwich, you'll be running off to get me a bag."
"Whatever," Reyna replied. "It's fine by me."
Gwen rolled her eyes at the crisp edge in Reyna's voice and looked at Percy. "Is Mexican okay with you, too, or do you maybe wanna go see the Arch first?"
He quickly shook his head. "I've seen the Arch -went all the way up, met Echidna and Chimera, and dived from sky-high in the river below- and, really, that was enough to keep me away for life. This Mexican restaurant may sound way less fun to you Romans now you've heard that -I know- but, really, it is just fine. Besides, Mexican food can be fun, too; I once took part in a burrito fight against a bunch of skeleton warriors. I think I know a satyr that likes enchiladas, too."
"Faun," Reyna corrected him. Out of habit or stubbornness, Percy was not in the mood to find out.
So, around three p.m. and as most of the other passengers spent the train's break to visit the Arch, they headed the other way.
Once, while walking, Percy spotted the girl from the train again, sitting serenely on a bench, her legs crossed at the ankles where the straps of her black pumps were tied in delicate bows, the ruffles of her white-and-hot-pink floral Lolita dress and her -now let down- hair waving at the soft breeze, and her dark eyes staring at him, as intense as ever even under the shade of her black, lacy parasol. She winked at him, and sat still as he followed Gwen when the latter turned at an alleyway.
It had been a bit of a long time since Gwen had last come in St. Louis, so she got the roads and alleyways pretty much mixed-up, resulting in her, Reyna and Percy finding themselves wondering around, passing gift shop after souvenir cart, without a Mexican restaurant in sight. But Gwen didn't give up. She kept on forward until she reached a small sign that bore the picture of tacos and a painted hand pointing at a narrow road twenty feet away. Gwen started towards it, rolling her eyes at Reyna's grumbling "Finally," when she stopped dead in her tracks. The humid air around them seemed to become denser, forming something like a flat, two-dimensional cloud right in front of Percy. The cloud flashed the colors of the rainbow once, before tuning in the image of a girl, as if it was some kind of TV-screen. This girl was around thirteen, with very short, very curly hair, ginger freckles, and huge, bright blue -almost green- eyes.
"Thank Jupiter," she screeched. "You guys are okay!"
Percy flinched at her raised thin voice, and remembered Gwen talking to him about this girl. She was Kathrin, the only mortal in the Fortress and sister of Stephanie, the Sibyl of Urbs. After their parents passed away in a fire -which both of them miraculously survived-, she had followed her there as her 'assistant', kind of. She was just responsible of taking care of Stephanie and acting like her nurse when the latter exhausted herself prophesying.
Gwen flashed Kathrin a confused smile. "Why wouldn't we be okay?"
"Well, um, the news on Mr. Hanagan's car having been found crashed outside Denver have gotten around. And when he reported that it was stolen when he had accidentally", she made exaggerated quotation marks with her hands, "left it out of the garage, we figured he must have given it to you, guys. He sounded kinda worried, too -and I'm positive that wasn't for his car going its final ride to the junkyard. He's got insurance for that, anyway. Oh," her eyes widened in wonder. "Two horns were found in the car, too! Bobby said they're none other's but the Minotaur's, but Dakota claimed he couldn't have reformed that quickly, so, Alex suggested to compare them to the pair Percy has in cabin three, but, when Hazel asked her mom at the police department to hand them over after explaining where they had come from, she said she couldn't 'cause there might be important clues like fingerprints on them -don't worry about the fingerprints, BTW. Mrs. Sommerfield reassured us that Mr. Hanagan justified any prints found by you three, so, you're off the hook!"
She said all these very quickly and Percy was certain Kathrin would have kept on blabbing had Reyna not interrupted her.
"Oh-kay. And yοu IMed us because...?"
"Oh, right." She bent low, away from sight, leaving the forest of Urbs and the shore of the small waterfall visible. A sleek black pegasus had just come from the woods and approached them. Percy inched closer to the Iris-Message, a memory nudging his head and bringing the usual pressure behind the eyes and headache. At that exact moment, though, Kathrin got back, holding a huge book dressed in purple silk and with the words 'Sibyllae Libri' embossed with gold on it's cover and spine. She turned thin yellowish old page after thin yellowish old page and started talking again in that quick way of hers.
"Stephanie wrote this thing...like a poem or something, here in the Sibylline Book, last night, and asked me to pass it on to you guys."
"A poem?" Reyna sounded slightly unnerved. Looks like she likes poems as much as skirts, Percy thought, the corners of his lips twitching.
"Yup. Dakota says it's some kind of two-verse Haiku, but, here! See for yourselves."
She turned the book to them, and, Gwen, leaning forward to get a better look, read out loud:

"Three is fine, but if it's doubled,
things won't be nice for any of sides,
that's my warning and do look out."


Her eyebrows shot straight up to her hairline in complete bewilderment. Percy wondered whether that was because she had a hard time figuring out the poem or because of its...poeticallity.
She went on:

"Gold charm that has come from the Bads,
thank Me, the angel of Night takes care of you three,
I'll get in huge trouble for this."

"This is supposed to be a Haiku poem?" Percy asked.
"A lame Haiku, if you ask me," Reyna stated.
"But why would Stephanie write a random Haiku? She has never striked me as the poetic type," Gwen pointed out.
Kathrin turned the book toward her and bit her lip. "Wait a min. I don't think this is completely random."
"Three. Double. Trouble. Charm. Angel. Night," Reyna counted on her fingers. "You're right, that's not random at all," she concluded, mockingly widening her eyes in awe.
Kathrin scowled at her."There is a signature. Duh. It is like an 'A' but the letter's weird. Kinda round with three vertical lines that meet the horizontal one. And there's more. It also says: '[i]for Awesome'. 'A for Awesome'."
That single adjective was enough for Percy to solve the puzzle. "It's Apollo," he said. "He's trying to get in contact with us, or warn us, or whatever."
Kathrin turned the book upside down and cocked her head on the side. "I suppose it could be. The 'A' is like a musical instrument. An harp or something."
"Probably a lyre," Percy noted.
"I don't think it's him," Reyna said. "The gods are supposed to be silent, after all."
"Who else would write 'thank Me', or sign 'A for Awesome', or use a lyre for the 'A'?" he pointed out. "And besides," he continued, "no one except Apollo could have ever written such a Haiku. He's probably up on Olympus right now, bowing to the rest of the gods and expecting them to clap and cheer for his...uh, interesting performance."
Kathrin stared at him. And then stared more. And some more. But -thank Apollo- she got distracted by something behind Percy.
"I've always wanted one of those dresses..." she said wistfully, her eyes taking a dreamy, faraway look.
Turning around, Percy, Gwen and Reyna saw the Lolita girl. She had just come from the alley that led to the restaurant they had been heading to, holding her black summer parasol over her head so that only her floral sundress and black pumps were visible to them. Percy recognized her immediately, Gwen simply knitted her eyebrows and Reyna rolled her eyes.
"Well, I gotta go," Kathrin said after the Fortress's bell sounded from somewhere behind her. "Lunch's being served. See ya around and, um, good luck!" She then closed the Sibylline Book with a loud thump, waved her hand through the mist and her image dissolved from Percy's eyes.
The three demigods didn't waste any more time by the river but headed to the Mexican restaurant.
At the alleyway, though, there was a surprise awaiting them. Recycle bins had been overturned, spilling their contents everywhere, and, half a dozen heaps of clay were strewn all around the road and slowly dissolved in the ground.
"Oh-kay, seems like someone got here before us and finished off...whatever there was to finish," Gwen said, and, apparently having seen too many weird things for this one to stand out, she walked off to the restaurant.

I LOVED IT!!! YAY! 3 in 1 day! WHOOO! I like how they found out that Percy was a Greek. But Pwen, or Gwency? See it doesn't even sound right! WHYYY??? OH, the HORROR. I am a big P&A fan, but it's your story, continue on!

That was awesome!!!!!:D Thanks for posting again!:D -Jessie0147(Daughter of Minerva)

i love it who is the person????
i think its Artemis. Is it?

awesome chapter and 3 in one day.AWESOME

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­HHH­H!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!

YOU POSTED!!!!!!! i know i said i was giving up on checking but i was bluffing. i wasn't really expecting anything today but i just checked and, voila, THREE chappies!!! thank u thank u thank u!!! i love ur writing so much!!!!!!! im SOOOOOOOOO glad u posted. and OMG!!!!!! Gwen kissed Percy!!!!! i was like WHAT!!!!!!! i mean i sorta like it but then i thought of Annabeth and i was like AWWWWWW. but it puts a twist on things, spices it up. and OMG!!!!! Reyna FINALLY found out about the greeks.i feel so srry for them. they're remembering the battle and u put so much emotion into ur writing:( :) and i dont get how they're could be twins but ones greek and ones roman. hmmm... interesting. guess we'll find out:) and i wonder who that girl is that winked at Percy;)shes so mysterious. oh and it is SOOO Apollo. no one else could've written a haiku( if thats how u spell it )like that and signed they're name with A for Ah-mazing. just one thing. instead of amazing i think u shoud've done Awesome cuz that's what he always says. that he's awesome. Anyways thx SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much for posting, LOVE LOVE LOVE ur writing! cant wait to see more!:D

oh and im sorry that u couldnt log on to ANYTHING!!!! i would DIE!!!!! Two weeks!!!!!AHHHHHHHH i wouldnt be able to live :((((

anyways again love ur work keep writing, ill keep checking!!!!!!!!:DDDDDDDDDD glad u posted, 'specially three chappies in one day. special treat for us since we've waited (not so patiently) LOL :D ok ill shut up now:DDDDDDDD

Awesome !!!!! 3 chappies in one day is the best and I get it about ur computer everyone has problem. Loved the chappies amazing ....….astonishing..… stupendous !!!! Can't wait for next chapter!!:)))))))))

I so think that little girl is ardimis 3 in 1 day After that not even I can ask when are you going to post next

WOOO you posted again!!!! LOVED it!!!
who is the angel of the night, the girl, but maybe se was someone else...

Cool

OH MY GODS YOU POSTED!!! im so glad your back!!!!! and sorry for spamming, i was worried..*gives sheepish look*
anyway, i LOVED your three chapters! three! they were so good! and you just really made my day, since its the first day of spring break, and i got to read your chapters :D
and who is the Lolita girl? hmmmmm...
but honestly, even though im a HUGE Percabeth fan, i think the Gwen/Percy thing is a good idea. cuz i mean just think about it, Aphrodite said it her self that she was going to make Percy's love life harder for him, in the Titans Curse, remember?
plus, whether we like it or not, its most likely going to happen in RR's real The Son of Neptune, Percy's life simply isnt that easy *shrugs sadly* Were just gunna have to wait and find out, then.
But i really dont have any form of critisicm/complaints about your chapters, they were perfect! and im just so happy you came back!:'D (sorry about your computer and the passwords thing though...i understand, not your fault. stupid 21st Century and all the evils of technology that come with it![although without it i couldnt be reading your story now, so i wont complain :P ])
wow this is a really long comment...

wow i loved those chapters soooo much!!! u never cease to amaze me calypso!! :O

I think it's Artemis because Artemis=moon=night (angel of night)

This was soo damn great! (;

That is awesome

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!Percy is with Annabeth now stupid Gwen it really makes me sad cuz Annabeth's goin crazy looking for him and he kissed another girl!UUKK!I know i like your writing and everything, but your breaking me and Annabeths heart here!Gods I'm so mad!



Well, I still love your writings though.Your work is awesome.You are a genius.Luv ur work!If i were rick rordian, I would totally steal your story!

@ percylover101
I think Calypso0 is just spicing it up a bit >.<
and besides Gwen kissed percy not him kissing her so it's all Good :D
@ Calypso0
I love the three chapters! good job ^o^

Well,ya i know,but Percy and Annabeth's relationship is rarely ever mentioned. Annabeth needs Percy, she loves him and always will.They're in LOVE!

I still love Calypso0's work though!

i like percy with her though......:)

With who?

Percabeth all the way! I hate PercyxOC relationships!!! Percabetb prevails! That's my catch phrase now!

Percabeth FOREVER

Totally percy and annabeth (percabeth) forever! Their relationship is untouchable. Forever they will be in love!

Hi guys thnx everyone 4 the comments! I'm sorry bt I can't elaborate much now, i'm kinda in a hurry. I'm leaving in a minute's time 4 my village 4 the weekend (and quite possibly the other week, 2) and I won't b able to post soon. Plus, I'm only halfway done with the next chapter and can't upload now, either. I'm srry i'm srry I'm so srry. I gotta go now. CU! and Happy Easter!

Hey....it's no problem ..can't rush a good writing.your innocent if you don't write for a while.(:

i just read ur fanfic and i really like it....whoo!

just made a poster for school that says
"PERCABETH FOREVRER"

Hey!!!!! I'm lost without your writing claypso0!Please post.

what is it this time??? *confused expresion*

this is annoyoing waiting for people to post [no offense] but ive gon to all the other storys and the good ones are all taking FOREVER to post!!! pleez post faster this story is interesting and i want to see the end SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO badly, have a nice mornin[ or night or afternoon, whatever!]

oh by the way, do u have tips for a new writer???

POST! POST! POST! POST!Please?

^^^^POST POST POST POST POST POST POST BCZ UR AWESOME

Ya,POST POST POST POST POST POST POST BCZ UR AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!

POST POST POST POST POST POST BCZ UR AWESOME

We need you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!!!­!!

Guys. did u not see her earlier post? she said she was going out of town. plz stop rushing her. she might not be able to get on a computer right now.everybody needs a break. anyways she's doing an amazing job. just wait a little longer. she'll post soon :)

I agree ^

Okay okay I'll stop rushin her, but wen do think is her next post?? Just out of curiosity :D

Whenever she can I guess.. she's trying her hardest to get on and make these Awsome chapters :). You can read that from her past comments.

KK just wanted to know

Hi everyone!
Thnx for waiting this long! I was visiting my dad's village for the easter and had to saty a bit longer 'cause he's running for mayor in the eparchy so yeah. I just came back and have four new chapters ready to upload!
But before I get to that, I'd like to comment on some things.
1.Everyone, thnx for not giving up on me and turning the cold shoulder to me! I really appreciate it! And I'm so happy u liked the last chapters!
2.Since there has been a lot of commenting around the Gwercy/Perwen/(Emily, you're so right, that so doesn't fit) issue, I'll confess that is gonna be a little mix-up and you'll get the surprise from where you were least expecting it(or so I think it will be).
4.Okay, next: the mysterious Lolita girl? Well, the only thing I'mma tell u 'bout that now, is that she's close to Nico di Angelo. And I mean really, really close.
5.Oh, and Nico, he's gonna make quite an entrance. And pretty soon! *wink*
6.Emily_is_C00L, I'm a big Percabeth fan as well, but, I assure you, things are going to get pretty messed up for the two of 'em.
7.Percabeth2136, I'm glad you didn't give up on me, that means a ton, really! Gwen kissing Percy is not gonna be the only twist, trust me on that one. Jace and Charlie are two of my most favorite characters and I'm looking so-not-patiently forward to when Percy'll go back to Urbs so I can write about them again. And last but not least, I hadn't really thought about it that way and amazing was the first wοrd that popped in my mind, but I edited it to awesome, so thank u for telling me!
8.sylviakitty348, that is a long comment, indeed, but I love them, so write on! I really wanna know what yοu all think about this fanfic -and I find it awesome yοu put so much detail into this one. Yοu don't have to apologise for spamming, btw -I don't really mind. On the other hand, it makes me smile, just to see you like this story so much that yοu even bother commenting! Moving on, yes, I do remember Aphrodite's special offer to Percy, and I'm SO counting on it. *evil laugh, here*
9.percylover101, please calm down. Percy didn't kiss Gwen, she kissed him. And besides! It was just on the cheek! Relax, ok? How are you gonna endure all that's coming up next? *evil laugh, here, TOO* Now, about RR, I think he is way too talented and a true genious and he wouldn't need even reading this fanfic (not that I would mind!!!) and he is gonna write the awesomest SoN, I'm positive -and it's probably gonna be totally different from this one. About the image: although I'm not a huge fan of the movies, this is an amazing picture and I absolutely <3 Logan -though he looks kinda nerdy here. I have a couple questions, too. Is the brunette (ugh!) Annabeth holding Aegis? And what's with the sword? She's supposed to fight with a knife. LUKE's knife. The prophesy's cursed blade! Oh, man. They're gonna ruin the story completely on screen...
*darkrai6543, I'm sorry for the wait. Now, about the advice you were asking...hmm, I guess it will be: keep a pen/pencil constantly with you 'cause you never know when inspiration will come knocking on your door (or, rather, come crashing it down)!
*Everyone thank you for commenting!



Chapter XXVII (27)

The next day came in a depressed, grey mood, with the scent of the damp from the night's spring drizzle ground wafting around the air and entering the train compartment through the opened-just-a-crack window.
Percy was lying awake on his back in silence broken only by the even breathing of the other two sleeping half-bloods. He found the faint sound of the soft inhaling and exhaling along with the faint scent of the earth oddly reassuring and calming. His own breath eventually slowed down until returning to normal and he opened his eyes.
He had seen the dream with the blond-haired and grey-eyed girl again, though this was not exactly the same one. There was no sea around, not even a drop of water, but, instead, dark red walls carved in rock rose all around, forming a high and wide sweating-hot cave. Of course, he couldn't remember where he was or at least if that place even existed in the real world. He stopped caring about that though as soon as he saw her.
She was crouched behind some bulky crates right beside him, looking at him urgently and worryingly. Her hair was a bit shorter than the other dream and pulled up in a blond ponytail that complimented her pretty face. She was saying something that seemed important from the look of her face, but he couldn't listen; the sound was in mute mode. Then she leaned abruptly forward, closer. Percy found himself expecting the kiss, wanting it as if the dream was real and he could actually feel it.
But just as she had closed her storm-grey eyes and her lips were about to touch his, the dream changed completely. The rocks around melted and vanished and the girl faded out, leaving Percy feeling empty and hollow yet full of longing.
In the new dream, he was like an observer, not being able to feel or do anything but watch. It looked like he peered from a hole in the darkness -from some sort of keyhole or something. He could see his own self standing a little ways from a river -and recognized it as the one in St. Patrick’s- and Gwen trying to get up, holding his arm for support. Her curls spilled on her shoulders and her back, and were so long that they reached as low as the bow on the back of the corset-like blouse she'd been wearing at the school. She turned to him, her long skirt slightly swishing -free now from that metallic torture device it previously had-, thanking him.
He watched as he -the dream he- blushed faintly, leaned backwards just a little and replied awkwardly -and lamely, as well: "There is nothing to thank me for."
"Oh, yes, there is," she said back and leaned in to kiss him -on the cheek, he knew. The scene was broken before she did, though.
Next thing he knew, he had woken up in moody darkness -not because the curtains were mostly drawn over the window, flapping in the air, but because the sky was completely obscured by dark, heavy storm clouds, letting not a single beam of sunlight through. Looking at the neon green numbers flashing at him from the digital watch fastened around Gwen's wrist that dangled over the edge of the seats opposite him, he was surprised to realize that it was way past noon.
Then he looked at Reyna. She had fallen asleep sitting next to the window, her head resting on its glass and her arms folded in her lap. Her sleeveless jacket didn't seem to keep much of the cold away.
Percy got up, took his jacket off and put it on her, careful not to wake her up. She looked very different while sleeping. Peaceful, unguarded, vulnerable, even. Her face was younger; her features softer; her lips were slightly parted; her eyelashes, he noticed, were long and thick, a couple shades darker than her hair that cascaded like dark blond rain over her shoulders.
Gwen, on the other hand, had her dark curls spilling around her face. She moved, mumbling something in her sleep, and a few ringlets fell in her closed eyes. She wrinkled her nose and knitted her eyebrows, as if they disturbed her, and pushed them away from her face with her hand. She had curled up in herself, her duster coat looking like the wings of a small bird -a bluejay maybe, since it was dark blue. But, as much sweet and tiny as she might look, Percy knew otherwise.
He sat back, opposite her and Reyna. How could two girls so different to one another be such good friends? the question struck him.
Gwen was always the one who thought things through -that read between the lines and was constantly a couple of steps ahead. She was strong and confident and smart and she showed that, she showed her true self.
Reyna -when she was awake- was fierce and thick-headed, but, as Percy looked at her, he couldn't help wondering if that was all just a mask -she was a daughter of Mars, after all. Such behavior as she had was only expected from her.
A memory suddenly surfaced in Percy's head. It was a girl that looked surprisingly a lot like Reyna, apart from her untamed hair and broad, buffed-up frame. She was in the back of an amphitheater of some kind, sitting with a boy that looked tired but happy to be there, nevertheless. They were holding hands, and the girl looked very content about it. And even if Percy could not remember anything else about her, he knew that the girl was a daughter of Mars. No, not Mars. Ares.
Percy looked back at his first memories of Reyna. She had been standing at the Fortress's gates that first day, clad in gold armor, her helmet held on one side and a sword on the other. She'd looked scary back then, not someone you'd want to mess with. But there had been a kind of sadness in them, like disappointment and Percy had now the unexplained urge to ask her who Jason was -decided to wait until she'd woken up, though. She must have been in serious need of some sleep. It had been over a day since the three-hour brake at St. Louis, after all. Percy, Reyna and Gwen had stayed up in their compartment till pretty late, talking about the mysterious Haiku poem Apollo had sent them. Gwen kept nudging the two others, keeping them awake and yelling at them. At some point, she exited the compartment without a word, found a café-like carriage and came back carrying half a dozen cups of black coffee and blue chocolate-chip cookies -she knew they were Percy's favorite. Reyna, on the contrary, sighed and grunted and only talked to persuade Gwen to "shut up already!", though her attempts were futile. Only when Gwen had analyzed every word and every line of the poem without reaching in any conclusions -which was around five or maybe six in the morning-, did she finally give up and let the other two sleep. Percy was certain, though, from the few words he understood as she mumbled in her sleep, that she was still unconsciously trying to figure it out.
He himself didn't care much. He was mostly concerned by his dream and found the second part of it quite...peculiar. It was a memory of the last morning, sure, but he was not in it. He rather watched himself from another point of view. And, contrary to the other, usual dream of the blond girl, he could not feel anything but he could hear very well. Plus, there had been no pinkish, lemon-and-rose scented breeze afterwards when he woke up. He missed that breeze, actually. It was a nice way to wake up.
Percy watched the clouds glide across the sky, and, as time passed by, tint with colors; sky-blue, soft violet, bright orange, blood-red, pale pink. The forest slowly thinned on either side of the train and the lights of New York twinkled faintly far away.
It was one of the prettiest twilights Percy had a solid memory of. His heart felt lighter at how close he was to his home, though he couldn't remember where that was apart from it being in Manhattan.
Gwen started to stir around that time, just as the sky prepared for the night. She opened her eyes and glanced at Percy who had been looking outside. Then she turned to Reyna and, seeing her still asleep nudged her leg with her foot.
"Wake up," she said with a yawn, "we're almost there."
"You gotta be kidding me," was Reyna's sleepy response. "What time is it?"
Percy turned to see Gwen sitting up, stretching. She looked at her watch. "Frisco, five fifty-three. NY, eight fifty-three. P.m., both. Ugh. Time zones are killing me."
Reyna opened her eyes halfway to glare at Gwen. "You were the one who wanted to stay up late," she told her and sighed, snuggling under Percy's jacket. Her eyes opened wide and she looked down. Upon seeing his jacket, she raised her eyebrows.
Percy shrugged. "You seemed to be cold."
Gwen smiled brilliantly at him. "That's so thoughtful of you, Percy. Reyna, what do we say?" she said, sounding annoyingly like a kindergarten teacher.
Reyna frowned at her, and turned to Percy, rolling her eyes. "Thank you, Percy," she said in a mockingly saccharine voice. "I think I'm gonna keep it a bit longer, if you don't mind, though."
Percy had no problem with that -he was not at all cold in his thermal long sleeved shirt- and, looking for a way to bring Jason in the conversation, he settled to say:
"Reyna, you know, there is another place for demigods, right?"
Reyna put on his jacket and zipped it up. The sleeves were a bit long for her but she didn't seem to mind. "Well, duh. Where would you and the other...Greeks train?"
Percy rubbed his hands, just so he had something to do. "Yeah, I was thinking, that, since I turned up in the Fortress, what if-" Percy broke off at the sudden change of expression on Reyna. Her whole body stiffened and a glimmer of hope lit her face.
"Of course," Gwen said thoughtfully. "Jason could be there."
"Don't be stupid," Reyna said, her voice turning sharp and cold -just like his face. "If he was there then we'd have already been in contact."
"But, he wouldn't remember anything, just like I did," Percy told her. "Hera stole my memories and sent me to the Fortress -she could have stolen his and sent him to that...other place, just as well."
"Juno-" she emphasized the word, "-is his patron god. She wouldn't do anything that might hurt him."
Gwen chose a thicket of woods close to the bus station from where tomorrow morning the bus would take them to New York. She reached in her bag and took out three dark lumps of folded cloth that turned out to be sleeping bags. Then she wiggled her fingers over a small hip of branches that Reyna and Percy had gathered, and bright flames blazed. Whenever Gwen touched them with her hand, they changed colors and danced merrily, forming shapes like trees and butterflies and she even made her own motion-flame play that weirdly reminded Percy of a mute puppet-show.
"She's not allowed to do that in Urbs," Reyna informed him, looking at her friend warmly, "for every fire there is sacred and manipulating it is considered blasphemy. Whatever. She is an expert on the element of fire and really likes playing with it." Then she looked at him, her hand fingering a gold chain around her neck, and, after a second or two, turned around and got into her sleeping bag. Gwen soon did the same, and so did Percy, who let his eyelids slide closed, hoping for a night of peaceful, dreamless sleep.
How wrong he was.
This dream was not of the past, he was certain. Neither was it of the future.
There they were all three -Gwen, Reyna and he- sound asleep around the fire which was relatively smaller than when he'd fallen asleep and cracked and danced, giving a faint, cozy light to the wood's clearing. In the shadows of the really early morning, something flickered. It was like the figure of a person -a girl most likely. But again, it was merely the shadows coiling and blending with each other and turning darker at places.
Then one wisp of darkness reached out of the trees, stretching so it looked awfully like a human hand, and wound around Reyna's neck.
Percy woke with a start to only see -now wide awake- his dream-shadow-hand-whatever around Reyna's neck. He instantly got out of his sleeping bag and jumped towards Reyna, hand outstretched to grab the dark arm. As if just having noticed him, the hand snapped back before he reached it, and from the shadows came the whispered word: "Merde!" which didn't sound really polite.
Percy walked over to the trees behind were the mysterious arm went and peered in the semi-darkness. He could see nothing there but shadows, standing still as if holding their breath like living creatures. Turning to Reyna, he saw her sleeping, peacefully unaware of what Percy had just witnessed. Looking closer, he couldn't tell what those shadows had been trying to do. Reyna's neck bore no signs of any attempts to strangle her.
Anyhow, he knew that they could no longer stay there, so he woke both girls up saying only that they had to go, and, after putting out the fire and gathering they're stuff, the three of them headed to the station and sat, waiting for the bus to Manhattan to arrive.