Annabeth I
"Annabeth, it's been a week, maybe we should abandon the search..." Chiron's voice was gentle.
"No!" She was screaming, at her mentor no less. "He's out there somewhere. We could find him, of we just tried harder..." Her voice broke with a sudden sob, and she took a deep breath to steady herself. Something inside her snapped. Even as her eyes glistened, her voice rose, and she threw all of her absolutely illogical reasons at her teacher to let the search go on, she knew, in her heart of hearts, that it was hopeless. He was gone. She was being completely stupid and unreasonable, for a daughter of Athena. Athena always has a plan, she thought, well, not this time.
The search was off anyway; the campers were tired, and Annabeth needed to break away. She found herself at the beach, looking at her reflection in the sea green waves. Sea green. The colour of his eyes. She swallowed a lump in her throat. A ripple cut across her image and scattered it. She stared at herself. There was something about the way her jaw was set too firmly, her eyes seemed too fierce with a forced light and her fists clenched too tightly at her sides that made her feel utterly broken. Perseus Jackson, she thought angrily. Stupid Seaweed Brain. How had a daughter of Athena fallen in love with a freaking Son of Poseidon? Maybe her mom was right, Percy would only hurt her. She regretted thinking that immediately.
Percy.
Stupid, selfless, loyal Percy. She knew he would never hurt her. At least not intentionally. But he was gone. She had woken up and went to his cabin one day, and he had simply disappeared. She closed her eyes, and turned away from the crashing of the waves. Her feet commanded her to walk, so she did. Where to, she was not sure, until she stopped in front of a cabin with grey walls that glittered with sea shells and a large number 3 on the front door. Poseidon's cabin. She hesitated, before going up the steps and placing her hand on the doorknob. She wasn't sure what she expected to find in there. That his bed had been slept in? That a new shirt of his had magically wound up in the laundry? She didn't know; she wasn't thinking straight. Even wisdom's daughter has to bow to feelings, she smiles sadly, and opens the door. Everything was the way he had left it; a messy, unmade bed, dirty clothes in piles on the floor, the saltwater fountain bubbling merrily in a corner. She took in all of this, and suddenly, threw back her head and laughed, a sort of hysterical, melancholy chortle. Oh gods, she thought, I've gone crazy. But the laughter soon turned into tears, and she sank down on the floor with her face in her hands. The door swung shut behind her as water welled up in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks to the front of her shirt. And then she climbed into Percy's bed, and hugged and cried into his pillow. Annabeth Chase had finally broken.
