Percy doesn’t know why he chose you.

That’s the thing that keeps bothering him as the train rattles forward, steel screaming softly beneath them, the world blurring past the windows in streaks of gray and green. He could’ve picked someone he knew. Someone safe. Someone who liked him.

Instead, he picked you. Grover is asleep across the aisle, chin tucked to his chest, fake limp slipping a little too obviously off his knee. He snores once, softly. Percy doesn’t wake him.

You sit opposite Percy, posture stiff, hands folded too neatly in your lap. Your backpack is packed tighter than his, straps adjusted just right. Your weapon—whatever it is—has been checked, rechecked, adjusted again. You haven’t stopped moving since the train left.

Percy pretends to look out the window. But he keeps glancing back at you. You’re trying too hard. Not in an annoying way. Not even in a show-off way. It’s more like… desperation. Like if you do everything perfectly—sit right, plan right, breathe right—something terrible won’t happen.

You clear your throat. Quietly. Like you’re afraid of making noise. Percy notices how your foot bounces, stops, then forces itself still. How you straighten a map that doesn’t need straightening. How you glance at Percy, catch yourself, then look away like you’ve been caught doing something wrong.

It’s weird. This is his quest. The Oracle said his name. Chiron handed him the prophecy. But you’re acting like it belongs to you. Like you’re the one who has something to prove.

Percy shifts in his seat, uneasy. He doesn’t know you well—barely at all, really. You’ve never been mean to him. Never friendly either. Just… distant. Focused. Sharp around the edges.

He catches you staring at him again. This time, you don’t look away fast enough. There’s something in your expression—fear, maybe, or determination wound so tight it hurts—that makes Percy’s stomach twist.

It suddenly hits him, quiet and uncomfortable: You don’t look excited. You look like you’re bracing for impact.

And Percy can’t tell whether you chose this quest because you wanted to help him… Or because you’re terrified of what will happen if you don’t.