Hey, guys! Thank you, my followers, and if you have enough time I'd really appreciate it if you left a review! Anyways, here's the second chapter. Enjoy :D!
. . .
Annabeth's POV (3rd person)
After a flurry of waving arms, a bunch of explaining, and a few boring minutes later, Annabeth found herself with the gang in a corner near the Gryffindor house table. "I'm really pissed. I mean, how could somebody just magically transport us here when we have a war to win?" Clarisse complained, and Annabeth felt herself nodding in agreement. "Percy, maybe this is all a setup of some sort." She turned to Percy and tried to ignore the way her heart was pumping out of her chest. "You need to be careful." Staring into those green-blue eyes of his, Annabeth found herself thinking of the time she and her dad were walking down the beach, when she was about five, hand-in-hand.
The sand was warm and fluffy on her feet, and the ocean resembled the color of Percy's eyes. It was the first time she had ever asked her dad about her mother. Their conversation went something like this:
Little Annabeth: Daddy?
Mr. Chase: Yes, Annie?
Little Annabeth, swallowing: Daddy, what was Mommy like?
Mr. Chase, staring at his daughter like she was some kind of alien: Sweetie… I really don't want to talk about her right now.
Little Annabeth, doing puppy eyes: PLEASE, DADDY?!
Mr. Chase, wincing: Fine, fine. Well, you look exactly like her. The same beautiful gray eyes. She was fierce, and unbelievably smart. I thought she was the most beautiful woman on earth, but sadly she had to go away.
Little Annabeth, squinting: Where?
It was an awkward conversation, but Annabeth was glad she got something out of her father. "Annabeth, really, who'd try to attack me?" Percy asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm, and she flinched. "Lots of people. Just… just make sure you and Delaney have your reflexes up to order." She immediately stopped talking when a trio suddenly came up to the group. One had vibrant red hair and freckles all over his pale face. The person next to him was a girl, with curly brown hair and glinting brown eyes. She looked vaguely familiar, and Annabeth suddenly remembered the girl who had questioned about Delaney's father, Poseidon.
The last was a slender boy, who looked a little like Percy, Annabeth realized with a jolt. He was thin, so thin Annabeth saw his rib bones, and he was a tad smaller than Percy by at least two inches, even though he must've been 14 or 15. He had round silvery glasses, and an oddly shaped lightning bolt cut on his forehead. "Hello," The girl began with a smile, and Annabeth raised her eyebrows, but responded with a small smile. "Hi. I'm Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena. And you are?" The red-haired boy had raised his eyebrows at the obvious pride in her voice, but she paid him no mind as she stared at the girl.
"My name is Hermione Granger, and these are my two best friends, Ron Weasley-" She gestured to the scowling red-haired boy- "And Harry Potter." Annabeth's eyes flicked to the slender boy, who had his gaze locked with Delaney and Percy's. "Oh, hello!" He looked flustered as he shook her hand, and she couldn't help but grin at his shyness.
"Are you really the daughter of the Greek goddess of wisdom?" Hermione leaned in eagerly, and Annabeth felt herself blushing with pride and pleasant surprise. "Yes, actually, I am." She locked eyes with Hermione's honey-brown eyes, her own steely gray eyes flashing. "Wow, that's… amazing! I love books, and-" Annabeth felt herself smile even more, and she stepped a bit closer towards the three. "That's spectacular. Delaney is the only one out of all of us who can stand reading, and even she thinks that murdering monsters is more fun than reading a good old Greek book about Odysseus."
"Um, because it is, Annabeth. Look, you think reading books are fun, so great! That's awesome! I like books, Annabeth, but I think you forgotten that all of us are dyslexic or ADHD and even though we can read Greek it burns our minds." Delaney shot back, and Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Okay, Delaney. I get the point. You can read Greek and access amazing stories about the old Greek myths but instead you almost die fighting a Hydra."
Between the banter, Annabeth didn't notice the trio watching the banter in interest, like this would be a great tennis match. But her head snapped back, and she tried for a smile. "Sorry," She muttered, but the red-haired boy leaned in. "You fight Hydras?" He gaped, and Annabeth sighed. "And Furies, and Hellhounds, and Drakons, and Cyclopes- except for Tyson, of course-" She hastily added when she saw the look on Percy's face- "And Manticores, and Stymphalian Birds, and Telekhines, and- well, you get the point. I'd need a hundred arms to count every monster on my fingers."
The black-haired boy, Harry, looked interested and a tad grossed out, while the red-haired boy, Ron's, eyes were huge. Hermione looked fascinated and a bit curious, and she leaned in so close that Annabeth felt her breath on her cheeks. "Come on, we'll talk in the library." Annabeth's hand flew down to her shoe to make sure her bronze knife was intact, but then she felt a pang. How could she not trust a person so much like herself?
Don't answer that, me, she thought dryly as Hermione led her out of the hall. They walked with their two head close together, their hair almost tangling up with each other as Annabeth told her all about the monsters she had to face in her lifetime.
"In the Sea of Monsters, Percy actually summoned a giant sea serpent. The Sirens were horrible- I guess they made me stronger, but I would've drowned if Percy hadn't been there." Annabeth heard herself explaining, but Hermione screeched to a stop at a large double-door, and pushed it open. Annabeth heard herself gasp. There was so many books, so many beautiful, wonderful books! It was a huge, quiet space with a bunch of bookshelves labeled neatly. One read Muggle fairy tales, and she thought she catched a glimpse of Cinderella on the spine. "Do you fancy Percy?" She heard Hermione asking, and she whipped around to see Hermione peering at her, like she was some sort of interesting creature.
Annabeth felt her cheeks flame as red as Ron's hair. "No! Of course I don't!" She protested, but Hermione smiled wryly. "I can assure you I'll keep your secret safe. I have the same problem as you, actually." Annabeth followed her to a table, where they flopped down on wooden chairs. "A Cyclops actually kidnapped your satyr, Grover? How did he survive?" She heard Hermione asking curiously, and she slowly turned around in her chair. "He disguised himself as a lady Cyclops in disguise." She laughed, still remembering his tattered wedding dress.
Hermione gave a little laugh. "But didn't the Cyclops detect Grover by its smell? Cyclopes may be dumb, but they have a very sharp sense of smell." Annabeth sighed, and began to explain the whole thing. "Let me start at the beginning." She began, and then launched into the tale. She explained how they had hitched a ride on Luke, her former-friend-but-now-the-hosting-body-of-the-tita n-Kronos's ship, and how she, Delaney, Percy, and Tyson, Percy's half-brother who was a Cyclops, had started their forbidden quest to find the fleece to save their dying camp and to save Grover as soon as they fled the ship.
When she was done with her tale, Hermione sat there, gazing at her with an unfathomable expression. "That must've been… horrible," She smiled sympathetically, and Annabeth nodded, still shivering. "It's exciting, but you've been through so much, Annabeth. You know, you and I are quite similar." Hermione placed her hand gently on top of Annabeth's, and she smiled at her new friend.
. . .
DELANEY'S POV (3RD PERSON)
Meanwhile, back at the Dining Hall, Delaney was admiring her blade, Oceanic, as it glinted in the candlelight, while the seven others were awkwardly making small talk with the two other boys- except for Clarisse, who had scooted closer to her as she filed her fingernails with the edge of her spear. "Ugh- they're making it So. Freaking. Uncomfortable!" She hissed to Delaney, who instantly nodded in agreement as she stuck her tongue out at Percy's back. "Okay, I'm going in." She finally muttered to Clarisse, who whisper-shouted, "No! That's suicide!"
"Clarisse, you'd do well to be the daughter of the god of drama," Delaney complained. "Besides, I'm going to ease the tension. Water can be calm and cool when it wants to be," She mumbled that last part under her breath and hesitantly took a few steps towards the group. "Yeah, when it isn't crashing against the shore in wild waves," Clarisse muttered as she stared after Delaney.
"Hello!" She smiled brightly at the two boys. Harry gave her a small smile, but his eyes- bright green- took in her appearance with deep depth. "My name is Delaney Jackson, daughter of Poseidon, hero of Olympus. It's very nice to meet you- I bet one of the Hecate kids would be squealing if they were here," She joked, but the boys stared at her blankly. Two red-haired boys silently crept up behind Ron. "Boo!" They both yelled, and Ron nearly jumped out of his skin as he turned around.
"Think that's funny, do you?" He muttered angrily before storming off, and Harry gave her an apologetic smile as he walked after him. "Hello," The red-haired boys chorused, and the Stoll brothers stepped forward quickly, with sly grins on their faces.
"My name is Fred," One said gleefully, "And I'm George," The other grinned. "Pleasure to meet you!" They said in unison, still smiling. Connor and Travis shared a look before turning back to the twins. "I'm Connor," Said Connor, his eyes glinting, "And I'm Travis," Travis's voice was filled with mirth, "And we're the Stolls!" They both finished, and Connor quickly took something out of his pocket and pressed on the top, and confetti flew everywhere.
The four studied each other, and Delaney couldn't help giving out a little laugh. They were so similar, it was amazing they weren't cousins of some sort. Silena laughed quietly as she saw the four staring at each other and scooted closer to her two best friends, who were standing in the corner, admiring their weapons.
"Hey, girls!" Delaney glanced up and grinned at her friend. "Hey, Sil." Clarisse and her both chorused at the same time. "Do you think they're cute?" Delaney suddenly blurted out, and Silena flushed. "O-Of course not, Del! Why-Why'd you think that?" She stuttered, her cheeks now the color of the Weasleys' hair. "I don't know, Sil. You and Fred would make a pretty cute couple…" Delaney smiled lightly as Silena glared at her.
The four had instantly perked up and looked in their direction. Fred gave Silena a little wave and a teasing grin, while George was wiggling his eyebrows. Travis crossed his eyes at her, and Connor mouthed at her, You feel the love?
Silena glared at them and instantly pounced, punching the Stolls' hard on their arms. "Ow!" They yelled in exaggerated shouts, and Delaney just smiled and let her eyes drift around. The four huge tables had way different people seated across from each other. The one on the left was covered with scowling, pale students who had green robes on that read in fancy, small script: Slytherin. A boy suddenly made eye contact with her, and she blushed. He was very, very, very attractive, with his pale skin and glinting pale blonde hair and sparkly gray eyes, and he smirked when he saw her blush.
The one next to that table were much different- cheerful smiles and loud laughs escaped from that table, and they were wearing rich reddish golden robes that, in loopy, large letters, read: Gryffindor. She felt her gut tugging at that one- she instantly thought of Camp, and when at dinnertime bustling sounds of laughter and taunts had escaped around the dining pavilion.
The one next to the Gryffindor's table were a bunch of pale people with their noses ducked in their books. The majority had thick books with them, and the ones that weren't were scribbling furiously down on paper with quills. They were dressed in silvery robes that read in a fast, quick scrawl: Ravenclaw.
The last one on the right was filled with smiling people, their faces glinting ruddy colors in the candlelight, and they were all laughing as they bantered with each other. They had bright yellow robes on that read in a large print: Hufflepuff.
Delaney's eyes suddenly locked with the black-haired, large-nosed man at the center table, and he scowled at her. There was almost a trace of vulnerability on his cold features, though, as he stared into her deep green abyss of eyes.
But then he scowled at her again, and she stuck her tongue out at him childishly. "Del, is that guy giving you any trouble? I swear, if he lays on hand on-" "I think I'm going to find Annabeth, alright?" Delaney said, her eyes trained on the door, her hand tightening her grip on Oceanic. "I'll come with," Percy jerked his head up from where he was talking with Harry, and Delaney let her eyes drift onto his face. He was actually beautiful, and he looked so vulnerable she wanted to throw her arms around him. He blushed as his eyes met hers, but she left her gaze drift lower and onto his lips, which were quite lovely, in her opinion.
"Okay." Delaney responded in a monotone and linked her arms with Percy's, her face expressionless. But as soon as they got out of earshot from the Great Hall she began to cry, slumping down near a wall. "Shh, shh, calm down," He crouched down and sat criss-cross against her, crushing her towards his chest lightly as he rubbed circles on her back soothingly.
"I- I want to go home!" She blubbered, and Percy pulled her tighter against him. "We'll go home soon, Del. Just calm down- shh, shh," Her shoulders were shaking with weeps. He calmly waited until she was done and then gave her a half-smile. "It's okay, Delaney. We'll be home soon and then we'll see Mom and-" "Oh my gods- Mom's going to kill us!" She squealed, and before he knew it she had created a stream of water that suspended in the air, and flashed a drachma in the air. It vanished, and instantly showed them their mother, crying her eyes out at a table while Paul, her "friend", was comforting her and rubbing her back.
Her tears instantly dried as soon as she saw the shimmering faces of her children, and she quickly jumped up from the table. "Um, Paul, can you get me another tissue?" She squeaked, and he nodded and quickly went to get her tissue box, but not before leaving a quick kiss on the cheek. Delaney raised her eyes at her mom's flushing cheeks, and her blood started to boil. Who does he think he is? She thought angrily as she clenched her fists, and giving a side-glance at Percy she could tell he felt the same way.
"Hi, Mom," Delaney's voice was sour and angry, and her mother, Sally, winced. "Where have you been!? Do you realize how worried I was? I tried calling the police but Chiron stopped by and said it was a waste of time because you're in England." Sally exploded, her face hot with fury.
"Missed you too, Mom." Delaney mumbled as she studied her mom's face. She was as pretty as always- same bright brown eyes, same long brown hair, but bags were formed under her bloodshot eyes, and tear trails streaked her cheeks. "Of course I missed you!" Sally shouted, her eyes filling with tears, "I was so worried- I thought for sure that maybe you'd died or-"
She was interrupted because of the flood of Hogwarts students that came, chattering away, down the hall- but stopped when they saw the Iris Message. "Got to go, Mom, love you- and please don't worry any more about us; we'll be fine as long as we keep our blades- and minds- intact," Delaney assured her mom and quickly waved her arm over the mist, and it smashed like a thousand glass pieces. A hand suddenly laid on her shoulder- and she spun around, her blade at the person's throat.
She quickly stepped back, though, when she saw that the person was just the black-haired, large-nosed man she had made eye contact with in the Great Hall. He scowled at her. "I would prefer you try not to behead me when I make mere contact with you," He said in a low, dangerous voice, and she snorted. "You sound like Ares- or worse, Dionysus- when you're mad. You punks are going down," she imitated in a low, scruffy voice, and Percy snorted with laughter- but instantly stopped when he saw the look on the greasy-haired man's face.
"The headmaster would like a word with you and your little friends," He muttered, and then whipped away, down the hall, leaving Delaney and Percy no choice except to follow him.
Okay, that kind of sucked even more then the last chapter. If you can, please review, and with that, I'm out! (P.S., RAVENCLAW FOREVER, BITCHES!)
Love, hugs, and all that jazz,
Lyricalyrics
