Percy Jackson was leaving camp. He hastily threw all his clothes into a single suitcase, capped riptide and put it in his pocket, considered bringing his minotaur horn but decided against it, and was about to leave when he realized it was bright daylight outside. He sighed. He'd wait till midnight.
His life had started to go downhill the day Jay came to camp, bringing with him Grover and a hellhound. He had scrambled in the border, narrowly missing a paw swipe. A few more experienced demigods had run over to help, quickly killing the hellhound and helping Grover and Jay up and over to the Big House. Typical demigod arrival, you know? But it didn't end there. Jay was obnoxious and arrogant from the start, and when Zeus claimed him not five minutes into the campfire, Jay basically assumed he should run the camp. It wasn't going to happen, and Percy'd told him that. He could barely lift a sword on his own. Jay immediately took a disliking to Percy.
For the last few weeks, Jay had been slowly undermining his position at camp. He would do things like cutting the buds off the Demeter cabin's roses, or sabotaging a Hermes cabin prank, and then blame it on Percy. Only his best friends stayed close to him. Once he saw that, though, he brought it up a notch- stealing, actually cutting Piper's hair in her sleep, really mean stuff. And, of course, blame it on poor Percy.
Soon, only Nico, Annabeth and Thalia didn't believe Jay's lies. But then, came the final straw- Annabeth's betrayal.
Percy was about to meet Annabeth on the beach. He had decided to come early, to set up a picnic for them to eat together. He smiled, imagining the adorable look of surprise on her face when she would find out. As he came closer, though, picnic basket in hand, he heard voices. Two blond-hair people were sitting on the beach. Percy squinted. A girl and a boy. Who, though? Percy crouched down, and then crept forward until her was hidden behind a large bush.
"Oh, Jay, I'll love you till the day I die, you know it," said a familiar voice which Percy immediately recognized. No, it couldn't be-
"Say it again, Annabeth," begged Jay.
"I'll love you forever," said Annabeth, and crashed her lips into Jay's, knocking him to the ground. She laid down on top of him, and he put his arms around her, deepening the kiss.
Percy stood up and stepped out from behind the bush.
Annabeth sat up quickly. "It's not what it looks like..."
"Yes it is, and you know it." Percy threw the basket at his feet in disgust. A little blue velvet box tumbled out and fell open, revealing a sparkle inside. "Whatever. I guess you never even cared."
It was only when he was too far away to see that Annabeth realized what she had done.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Percy sat down hard on his bunk, trying not to cry. He would put it behind him. And at 12:00 tonight, he would leave.
He started to hum.
Heigh, ho, nobody home
Meat nor drink nor money have I none,
yet I will be merry...
