A Daughter’s Sorrow

Twelve

The groaning of wood woke d**k. He looked around the room and noticed the walls and ceilings were cracking and breaking apart. His bedroom door then swung open with a loud bang against the wall and the man was hit with a blast of cold wind. Then followed pleading voices, Perci. Perci. Perci.

Dick was now wide awake, "What? What's wrong with her?!"

This time the voices sound desperate, like they were going to cry, Nightmare. Nightmare. Nightmare.

The blue-eyed man threw off the covers and raced for Perci's room. The Aurai opened the door for him and d**k entered to see nine ladies standing over her. They whispering about how to wake her when d**k appeared next to the bed.

She was panting heavily, her face covered in sweat and tears.

"The Aurai told me something about nightmares. They begged me to come."

"Yes," One of the ladies murmured.

"First, they were every night and when we came to her, once or twice a week." One other muttered, tearfully.

"We were terrified for her, she screamed and destroyed the palace every time," One more whimpered.

"Now it's only once in a while, thank the Gods," Another whispered.

Dick watched Perci's face as she panted and cried out softly, trapped in her own mind. She was tossing and turning, clenching the bedsheets.

"Perci...hey come on wake-"

Out of nowhere, the sleeping demigoddess wrapped her hand tightly around d**k's wrist, breaking it and threw him across the room. Perci stood and growled wildly, before uncapping a glowing gold sword.

Dick's eyes widened and barely dodged every swing of the blade. Even asleep, she was an unstoppable Warrior. He misstepped and the man closed his eyes, preparing for pain.

But...he felt none. d**k opened his eyes to see the sword slice right through him. Behind her, he saw the nine ladies scatter to the other side of the room, then kneel and mutter a name several times, like a prayer.

Perci grabbed d**k's arm and twisted it painfully. He heard a loud snap which made him grunt.

Suddenly, a column of fire appeared in the centre of the room. When it dissipated, a worried woman apperead and gasped. She raced to the demigoddess then pressed a hand to her forehead. The ravenette collapsed into her arms, finally still and silent. The mansion stopped its groaning.

Hestia looked around, then waved her hand. The broken veins in the walls and ceiling vanished. His dislocated shoulder popped back into place and his wrist healed, painfully.

"Oh, Perci. You'll be okay. That's the first time in five weeks... you're doing better. It's okay."

The goddess picked the whimpering Perci up like she was nothing and put her back on the bed.

Dick watched it all, still sprawled across the floor in the corner.

The Lady of the Hearth then noticed him, "Richard Grayson. Nightwing, formerly known as Robin, Boy Wonder. Why are you on Perci's island?"

:3

Dick was sitting on the couch in the living room rubbing his mouth. Hestia was looking into the fire.

"So you're telling me, Perci has been in two wars?"

"Yes. But she was the leader in both and praetor of Camp Jupiter for a few days. The demigods all looked up to her and followed her orders. The first war was against the Titans and the Second against the Giants and Gaia. She has lost many friends. And gone through unimaginable torture and pain. Persephone has been to Hell and back. Literally."

"Why did she have to lead them?"

"Because it was prophesied that she would. Her fatal flaw is loyalty and no matter what, Persephone will always protect her friends and family. She will die for her family, and that scares me."

Dick sighed.

"She is called the Saviour of Olympus. The Heroine. The Warrior. She has done many deeds that prove she is worthy of being a goddess, but she refused when first offered. Persephone asked me to hide her away before the Olympians could ask her again."

"How old was she?"

"Seventeen. But it's been three years since, so she is now twenty. Her time here is almost over. I can feel it. Persephone will realise she needs to leave and help others. It's in her blood and she can't fight it."

The man nodded, understanding the need to help and protect others, "I didn't want to ask Perci this...but how do I get off the island?"

"I can take you from here."

Dick glanced up at Perci's door, then looked to the floor. He laughed inside his head.

Blown up by the Joker. Wake up on a strange beach.

Met a mysterious girl on an isolated island. Somehow fall in love with said girl.

Girl is a Warrior Demigoddess. Boy leaves.

He sighed.

Meeting Hestia's eyes, he nodded. The man couldn't say goodbye to Perci. Couldn't look her in the eye and tell her he was leaving her, "Time to go home."

:3

Hands caressed Perci's face when she opened her eyes, Morning. Morning. Morning.

The demigoddess smiled and sat up, "Good morning, girls. What's for breakfast?"

Euterpe burst into the room holding a breakfast tray and sang, "~Good morning!!~ How are you feeling sweetheart? I made you breakfast."

The Muse sat the tray and plate on her lap. On it was fried eggs, sausages and bacon. There was some baked beans and fried mushrooms too. All of it different shades of blue.

Perci smiled up at the minor goddess and thanked her, "I didn't really sleep that well. I had a nightmare."

"That's okay sweetheart," Euterpe sat on the bed next to her a stroked cheek. "It's the first nightmare in weeks. You're doing better."

The Muse kissed her forehead, "Eat up, child. You have singing lessons next."

:3

Perci slipped down the stairs and hummed, warming her vocal cords, "d**k? Hello? Where are you?"

He had sat in on every other lesson, enjoying himself as he watched the girl perform. The demigoddess looked around but couldn't find him.

"Girls?"

Yes? Yes? Yes?

"Do you know where d**k is? I can't find him."

Gone. Gone. Gone.

"Oh." Perci bit her lip, to keep tears at bay. She didn't know why she wanted to cry. But the ravenette closed her eyes and sighed.

The girl turned around and trudged back upstairs to the studio where Euterpe was waiting for her.

:3

Perci sat on a chair, in the centre of a lit room. The walls were mirrors and the demigoddess looked everywhere for a door. There was none.

Voices began to filter through her mind, "Everyone you have ever met is dead. All of them gone. You killed them."

The disembodied voice... Perci couldn't tell if whoever it was, was a girl or boy.

"No! I did not!!"

"You didn't hold the knife, Persephone. No. But you killed them because you knew them. You are the cause of all their death."

Tears and rage were filling the demigoddess's body. This time, she wouldn't cry, no, she let the anger consume her, "No!! I tried to save them!! They were my friends!!"

The girl stood and ran to one of the mirrors, searching for an exit. Right before she smashed it, Annabeth appeared in it.

Perci screamed and punched right through the wall. The shards of glass sliced her fingers. But she didn't feel the pain. The adrenaline from her anger was pumping through her veins.

The Saviour rushed to the next wall, trying to find a way out but there stood Sally's reflection. Tears were choking her, but Perci didn't care and again the mirror shattered.

Her bleeding fist smashed mirror after mirror, the people she'd lost in everyone. Pieces of the glass littered the floor. They cracked under her bare feet as she slowly walked to another wall.

The girl leant her head on the wood and choked back a sob.

A hand was suddenly placed on her shoulder.

With an inhuman roar and an uncapped Riptide, Perci turned, swinging her sword through whatever stood behind her.

It was Order.

He smirked and looked down like the sword slice through him like he was made of smoke. The white suited primordial then stared into her eyes, before leaning forward and whispering into Perci's ear, "You will be forever alone, my dear. You will try to protect all of them, but they will die anyway. Isolation is your fatal flaw, not your loyalty."