3 months ago:
Piper
I felt happy and optimistic as I stepped out onto the deck. The wind ruffled my hair, blowing it into my face.
"Hey, Piper," a smooth voice said. I spun around, meeting Jason's face.
"Oh, uh, hi. Didn't see you there," I said with a smile. He smiled back and walked to the rail, right next to me. I sighed happily, knowing that he was there next to me.
"So, what do you think will happen when we go to the House of Hades?" he asked me, rubbing his hand on my cold arm. A rush of warmth crept in me.
"Well, to be honest, I'm kinda scared. I mean, we don't know what will happen, but I have faith that Nico that he'll lead us there. Safely." I added. Jason laughed.
"Don't worry Pipes, I always be there for you. Promise." I felt my heart beat faster. The same fears that I shared with promises between Jason and me came creeping in. The prophecy pounded in my head.
An oath to keep with final breath.
What if Jason dies, keeping one of his promises?
No, that won't happen. I reassured myself.
"Pipes, you okay? You kind of dazed off on me here." Jason said.
"Oh, I'm fine. Just a little drowsy. I'm going to my dorm to take a nap," I told him.
"Okay," Jason replied, letting go of my arm. I headed to my dorm and bumped into Hazel.
"Sorry, Hazel." I apologized.
"No, it's okay. Just, can I talk to you for a second?" she asked.
"Sure, just what is it?" Hazel stepped into my dorm and plopped on my bed. I sat besides her.
"I'm worried about Nico. Ever since he came from Tatarus, he seemed so, broken. And I can't do anything about it. I want to help him but he seems so distant. I really want to assist him with leading us to the House of Hades, but-" Her voice broke, and she averted her gaze from mine.
"But what?" I questioned. Hazel fanned herself with her hand and looked at me again.
"Well, I really don't believe about the whole House of Hades thing. I've never heard of it and I'm not sure if it's real." I looked at her in shock.
"But-but why? You're a daughter of Ha- I mean Pluto. How can you not believe in it?" I stammered.
"I'm sure I'll know it's real after I learn more about it from Nico. I'm sure I can alternate to it since I'm 70 years behind you guys," she said sheepishly.
"But, I also worried about the other Romans. Not Frank, I'm certain that he'll believe in it ,too. But when we have to go through it, we'll probably have to tell it to Reyna, and what if she doesn't believe in us? What about Octavian?" I looked at her. She was right. Hazel and Frank can easily believe that there's a House of Hades, but what about the Romans? What if they totally not believe us?
"I'll think about it. Maybe you should talk to Nico about the House of Hades and then talk to Frank, too. I'll talk to Jason about this ,too. And maybe even Leo. Thanks for telling me this, Hazel." I said. She nodded and headed out the door to Nico. I sat on my bed, in thought. What if this plan goes wrong, completely? How could we bear arms together if we don't believe what each other believes? Many fears and doubts clouded my mind and made me even more uncertain of this trip that we were making,