hydrokinetics | Don't think you're more than this, or above all this [W6, Monday Afternoon]

...when I was in Tartarus with Annabeth. [A pause.] I told you about the Arai, right? I don't know if I ever explained what they are. Curse demons, pretty much. You kill one, they inflict a curse someone put upon you. I've...killed a lot of monsters, Natalie. I just never thought about the fact that they probably felt something, too, not until I was bleeding everywhere and dying from gorgon poisoning. I still fought them all to get them away from Annabeth. I'm going to fight here, too, to make sure all of us get out of here alive. But I don't have to do it the way I did back there. Maybe I'll tell everyone else. Maybe I won't. It might...not be a bad idea? Especially since Hal confirmed I'll never be a Bandit this way. I'm going to ask why.

[He knows she's right, but he lowers his gaze again.] I know it's not. And I'll figure something out, I'm just...tired. That night off was kind of nice. [It's a joke. It's a shitty, shitty joke about how he took time for himself right after Annabeth's trial.]

Sorry, anyway. [Brushing that aside.] So now you know, and now you know why I'm going to talk to Hal and see what other information I can get from him before Thursday. Do you think we should tell the others about Dr. Lecter yet or wait to see what else we can find out?

[She nods.]

Whether you tell everyone else is up to you. That's your decision. But... I'm glad that you trusted me enough to tell me.

You could even take another night off if you wanted. Shocking, I know. [And then she sighs, thinking.] ...I think we should wait. I'm worried about Jason doing something stupid if he knows. I think he's going to be pretty likely to agree with us that we shouldn't wait for Damian to kill him, so...

[She's gotta do something stupid before Percy or Jason have the chance??]

It didn't seem fair not to tell you when you trusted me with your role and everything else, too. [That's all. Simply put. But he shakes his head.]

I'm going back to my room for a while when I get to the hotel. Hal sent me to kill Okabe really early this morning and then I talked to Will and wrote a letter to Annabeth. I haven't slept since Saturday. [So. There's that.] I think we should wait, too. Jason's impulsive and reckless just like the rest of us but on a worse scale. If we're doing this, we're doing stuff together and we're going in with a solid plan.

[So no, Natalie??? Don't do this by yourself???]

...Jesus, dude. Yeah, please take a nap, holy shit.

[She nods.]

You think if we all ganged up on them we could take them?

[It's not funny, but there's a half smile on her lips regardless.]

Yeah, I am. After I talk to Hal.

[But there's a noise of amusement, even if he's uneasy by that.]

It's a thought. But we should be careful. We still don't know just how much Dr. Lecter knows about us. If we know about him, he could easily know about us, too. Hal's told me plenty because of my job. Chances are if Dr. Lecter knows the questions to ask he might know, too.

[Everything is Hal's fault.]

[She purses her lips.]

If he knows about us, if he knows about Damian, we have to be really careful, yeah. I could see Will hurting Damian if anything happened to Hannibal.

[He makes a face.]

I don't know about Will. I think Will might be a lesser problem when it comes to Damian? If anything...you saw how he went after Eliot. He might go after whoever goes after Dr. Lecter, and we know that isn't Damian.

That's true. So I guess we just have to make sure we can subdue him somehow, right? Make sure he doesn't hurt anyone who hurts Hannibal or anyone who gets in his way.

Yeah. That's what I think, too. If we keep an eye on Will's behavior and plot out what to do about Dr. Lecter we might be safe and get out of here without hurting any of us.

And then if we get rid of Ash... We might actually have a group where nobody is willing to kill anybody else. It could be over in a few weeks.

Yeah. [He finally looks at her like he's finally connecting the pieces. His expression's still fairly hollow and dull, but there's a slight spark in his eyes again.] Yeah. There are a few people I want to ask Hal about, see what I can find out, but…if we did, it could be the end we want.

[Gods. That could be it.] Are you still going to talk to Dr. Lecter anyway?

[She nods, and there's a slight smile on her face, too.]

Who are you going to ask him about? [And then she shakes her head.] No, I don't think so. Now that we know, it's just an unnecessary risk.

[A nod. Please don't risk, Natalie. He finally, finally relaxes again, sagging back into himself and less ready to put up a fight. He's back to himself.]

Good call. And…the people we don't have any information on. Noctis I think is taking care of Ash, but I'm going to ask him about Okabe and Rin. Rin's a wildcard right now.

[A nod of realization.]

Right, I keep forgetting about Rin... I don't think I've ever talked to her. You said wildcard, but does she seem suspicious to you at all?

I kind of get the feeling Ash is going to have to go no matter what, though.

The fact that she's survived this long without us really remembering she's here says enough, Natalie. [A pause.] Did you know that Russell kept a diary? I read it. He wrote about how Annabeth died. He talked about how no one suspected a thing. That medicine he talked about taking to sleep…it wasn't from the clinic. It was a reward for killing my girlfriend.

[A beat.] We missed him for weeks because we weren't suspicious of the quiet ones enough. I'm not letting something like that happen again.

…but yeah, Ash should go, too. He's not after the same goal. He's made that clear.

Maybe she's just like Will and doesn't care about the rest of us succeeding, but... If that's the case, we should be wary of her either way, yeah. [That detail makes her wince, though.] Fucking asshole. I knew there was something off about him.

Other than that, it's just Papika, Barnham, and our group, right? The only one of us I'd really be worried about is Shinnosuke, given the right incentive, but... Everyone else should be fine.

Even if she doesn't care right now, I don't think it's a good idea to ignore her. Not caring isn't the end goal and we don't know what she'll do if she feels like she suddenly cares. [He's not thrilled with Russell either, it's fine.] He felt guilty later, maybe. Hard to say. His diary's in my room, I don't know.

Other than that? That's it. [A pause.] Xion, too. I wouldn't worry about Shinnosuke. Trust me…we've talked. He has goals to get back to, too. He'll work with us.

Yeah. If I see her around this week, I'll strike up a conversation. See what I can find out from her.

[A sigh.]

That's what I am worried about, though. What if he decides getting home is more important than the rest of us? He's - I don't know, he doesn't seem like the type to trust other people easily.

See what you can find out. I'll see what I can get from Hal. I have more than enough merit to blow.

[But he shakes his head.] He doesn't. Trust easily, I mean. But it's like I've been telling him…he doesn't have to keep coming to the meetings. He doesn't have to keep spending time with me. I could turn around and kill him immediately since I have the advantage of sight. He could do the same since he knows how to use a sword and he could leave me abandoned somewhere. But that hasn't happened because he's come to trust us whether he realizes it or not. He wants to believe in us. So…I believe he's going to trust us to stick together so all of us can win and go home.

…even if you don't believe in him, believe in me to keep us together. I think…maybe that's my other job.

[There's a light frown on her face, but in the end, it comes down to this:]

...Okay. I do trust you, so - I'll trust him, too, if you do. Fingers crossed he doesn't prove us both wrong.

If he proves both of us wrong, I'll take the fall for it. [A little grin.] Annabeth usually gets on my case for being too trusting, but I don't know if I'm that far off this time. You, me, the rest of our group? I trust.

[The hotel's close now, at least.] What're you going to do now?

[A nod, and then a small smile and shrug.]

Overthink everything you just told me for hours, probably. That's kind of my thing. You?

See if I can stomach something besides water and fruit, attempt to take a nap, try to figure out a plan, give up, have a couple of nightmares...[An echoing shrug.] The usual.

[But he stops walking for a moment, looking at her before a fit of spontaneity hits him and he moves to trap her in a hug. It's very brief, but also fairly tight because...well. Nobody knows the other half of what he's doing. Natalie does now, and she doesn't hate him for it. It's more of a relief than he can imagine. He's also not expecting her to return the gesture and that's completely fine with him.]

Thank you. For...well. You know. I'd say "don't overthink too much" but that's a pretty big thing to ask at this point.

[She didn't see it coming, and she freezes in place for a moment in surprise and hesitation as his arms wrap around her.

It's another long moment before she reaches up with her remaining arm and wraps it around him in turn, but... She does.]

...Nothing to thank me for. You would've done the same.

[Yeah, it's unfortunate that he's come to like her so much. Percy tends to be a little tactile with his closer friends. The fact that she responds helps, too.]

Would I? [It's more of a joke because they both know he would.] Given the fact that the only other person who knows is Will, it's definitely worth a thanks. [With that, he lingers for only a few beats longer before he pulls back.]

We'll figure everything out before Thursday. And if not, then we'll figure it out with everyone else. I can believe that much. Catch up with you later?

Don't think you're more than this, or above all this [W6, Monday Afternoon]

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