Thank you for the overwhelming support for the first chapter! I hope you all find 20 dollars on the ground today. Oh, I also don't know what the point of the italicized bits at the beginning are, but they're fun so I'm going to keep doing them. I will try to put some foreshadowing or flashbacks in each one. Enjoy.
Oh my, I forgot to do a disclaimer in the first chapter. I have no sort of legal claim on anything Greek or Mythological.
Annabeth tried to concentrate on the sound of the gravel crunching under her feet, and keeping her balance so her heel wouldn't snap on the uneven road, which was already hard enough without a damaged knee. She had nothing to say to Percy anymore. The shock of the evening had worn off, and now she could feel the bitterness seeping into her veins. Her heart ached. It was the same type of angry, broken heartache she had experienced ten years ago, when she sat in that busy airport waiting for him, but he never came.
Annabeth stood there in shock, completely stunned and unable to form sentences. Percy Jackson, the boy that had been her best friend, the boy she had put her life on the line for, the boy who had once cared for her more than anyone and who she had been head over heels for, was standing in front of her, asking her to leave her best friend's party and run off with him to some unknown location.
"Percy," Annabeth opened her mouth to say something else, but nothing came out. His name rolled off her tongue with a familiar ease that gave her the smallest amount of pleasure. She hadn't realized how much she'd missed such a small thing as saying his name. She opened her mouth to speak again, but again nothing came out. She inspected him as he stood in front of her. Somehow he hadn't change. Sure, physically he was older, you could see the maturity in his features, but he still wore his hair the same and his green eyes still had that ocean sparkle in them.
"I need your help," He grabbed her wrist and tried to guide her in the direction he had come, down the hall and probably to an exit, the opposite direction of Lucy's party.
"Wait," She twisted out of his grip. "No. This, is, confusing." She didn't know how better to put it. "I can't go anywhere with you." She knew she had to stay at Lucy's party. She was already off to a bad start being maid of honor, which was possibly the most important thing she would ever do for a friend, so she was not going to fail. She turned away from Percy, trying to leave and go back to the party, but something about the way he was watching her was enticing. When she met his eyes she couldn't break the connection. There was a certain intensity in his gaze.
"Annabeth," they way he said her name sent a chill down her spine. Mixed emotions and memories flooded her head in a split second. "I know this is crazy," he started. Yes, it was crazy. "But I was your best friend once, we trusted each other more than anything and we owe each other our lives. And now, as a final favor I'm asking you to trust me."
She revisited the theory that she had hit her head when she fell. That had to be it, because this couldn't really be happening. Percy Jackson couldn't be here, wanting her to come with him to God knows where for God knows what. But he had grabbed her hand. His touch had most definitely been real, she was sure of it, because her skin had tingled at the spot. She looked nervously in the direction of the party. Lucy might not notice her absence, she had four hundred other people, and she might just assume Annabeth was lost in the crowd. Ryan would notice, but she could shoot him a text explaining that she had felt sick and needed some air, only to end up returning to her apartment. He would understand, he might even try to come see her after this was all over and bring her soup or something that would make her feel better, she would like that.
At that moment she knew she would go with him. She also knew she would regret it, and part of her was still bitter towards Percy, it had taken a long time for her to get over him. Her gut instinct was telling her to go, if only to get an explanation. It had been ten years, she was more than deserving of answers. A smaller, less dominant part of her brain was telling her to go because it was Percy; he would always hold a special place in her heart no matter what.
She took a deep breath before opening her mouth, checking one last time to make sure she was making the right decision. "Okay, Percy. I'll go with you, but you better not be kidnapping me or something."
His face lit up with those words. "Deal," he agreed, taking her wrist and beginning to run down the hallway. He led her out a back door and into an alleyway. She wasn't sure where they were going, but her mind went blank when she saw something giant moving in the back of the alley. Immediately, her mind flashed to all the monsters she had fought as a kid, and she really hoped Percy hadn't sought her out to help him fight some giant threat to New York. She couldn't do it even if she wanted to, it had been too long and she knew it. She hoped Percy realized that too. She panicked when Percy started to walk towards it, almost calling out for him to stop, but she restrained herself so she could observe what he was doing.
To Annabeth's relief it was not a monster at all. Well it definitely wasn't a part of the normal world, but it wasn't harmful. It was a Pegasus. The winged creature stood majestically waiting for its master, who appeared to be Percy.
That's right, Annabeth Remembered, Percy can talk to horses.
He hopped on and started scratching its head before turning to Annabeth and offering his hand. "Hop on," he said so casually it startled her.
She was gapping. "Are you kidding me? I am not getting on any sort of flying horse," She said matter-of-factly. Short dress, pumps, Pegasus, doesn't really sounds like a good combination.
"Oh come on Annabeth. You used to ride these things all the time," his hand was still extended for her, because this was nothing out of the ordinary.
"Maybe I did when I was sixteen, but I'm twenty six now, and I haven't had anything to do with these things in ten years. This is insane!"
Percy paused, as if he was considering this for the first time. "That is a valid point, but look, Annabeth, this all might be a little foreign right now, but you're a Half Blood, a Greek, a Demigod, whatever you want to call it, this stuff is in your blood. Now come on, I know you can do it." She felt his persuasiveness affecting her thoughts. Something about riding a Pegasus again was intriguing.
She took Percy's hand and he hoisted her up onto the Pegasus. She squealed as she heard the tare of fabric. Percy looked amused as she searched frantically for the tare. Eventually she found where the dress had torn at the side, but luckily it wasn't that horrible, maybe she could get it sewn and it would be fine. She loved this dress, but she was rapidly losing sequins. She heard Percy laugh, probably at the distress that was so plainly displayed on her face.
"You've changed," He commented.
"I grew up," She responded. "And I see you've stayed the same?" She said somewhat snippy tone to her voice.
"You'd be surprised," He said. She didn't get a chance to respond. Suddenly the Pegasus took off with a burst of speed. She screamed and grabbed on to Percy, burying her face in his back. She had no idea how she had ever done this with such confidence before; she could barely ride a moped.
Once she got used to the sensation of flying she got the nerve to open her eyes. She didn't dare look down, only straight ahead. She set her head down on Percy's shoulder. "How did you find me?" She asked, honestly curious.
"How could I not? You're famous. It doesn't take much to track down a famous person if you're determined enough."
She felt like blushing, and she might have is she wasn't still scared stiff. "I'm not famous, not even close."
"You are famous. You have a firm here and in Los Angeles, and everyone knows that. I see your face every time I go into the city, because you have that giant billboard near the Lincoln Tunnel. Everybody knows who you are. If you want your dream home built you go to Annabeth Chase." Her mind flashed to the billboard that she had reluctantly agreed to do. Chase Design Co. it read; the name of Annabeth's architectural firm. Percy was correct. She hated looking at it though, but would have to face it every time she went through the tunnel. She looked intimidating and cold, not at all like her personality, but the people in charge of the shoot kept saying it symbolized being strong and stable like one of her buildings. She just did what they said, what use was arguing?
"Thank you, I appreciate the flattery. But I meant how did you find me at Lucy's party tonight?"
"I may or may not have stolen your phone earlier," He admitted sheepishly. She believed him because she was not the type of person to leave her blackberry lying around, that thing was her lifeline. The possibility that a crazy, half god, ex boyfriend stole it was far more likely than her simply losing it somewhere.
"I knew I didn't misplace my phone!" Her momentary smugness turned to anger. "Percy Jackson!" She yelled at him, "Do you have any idea how much stress that caused me?!"
"Sorry," Annabeth thought she could detect a slight trace of guilt in his voice. "But hey, you got it back didn't you? I returned it to where I found it."
"Yeah, I got it back," she decided to change the subject. "Where are we going anyway?"
He turned his torso to look at her. His hair whipped around in the wind, still shaggy as ever. He shot a grin in her direction. "Camp Half Blood!" He said with enthusiasm.
The expression on Annabeth's face sent his smirk into a full blown smile. She didn't want to go back there. She had left for a reason. No she had run away. She had run away and she was ashamed of her actions, and had no intentions of ever going back.
"Percy, I want off the Pegasus." She was being serious and tried to keep a straight face, but he just laughed. This infuriated her. What about this situation was funny to him?
"It's too late now!" The Pegasus dove swiftly, and Annabeth screamed while holding on for dear life. She buried her face into Percy's shoulder again and didn't move until they hit the ground. The impact sent a jolt through both of them. Even when she could feel they had stopped moving Annabeth still had her eyes shut tight, not wanting to open them in fear that they might take off into the sky again. Eventually after what seemed like an eternity she opened them and saw Percy standing there with his hand extended ready to help her off the horse. Well, she had demanded to be let off, so she took his hand and made her way down to the ground. She tried to make her dismount as ladylike as possible and the new slit in her dress made getting off a little easier than getting on. That she was grateful for.
Once she was safely on the ground and the Pegasus had flown away she took in the scenery for the first time. They were standing in the middle of a large dirt road that led down into a large grassy valley. Strawberry fields surrounded on every side. In the center of the valley she recognized Camp Half Blood. She knew they were going to have to walk, but the road ahead looked full of bumps and rocks that would be easy to trip and fall on. "It couldn't drop us off a little closer to the camp?" She wondered out loud.
"It's not our Pegasus, I kind of borrowed it, so I'm thankful it even dropped us off this close." He shrugged, and then added, "It's only about half a mile walk, maybe three quarters at most."
Annabeth looked down at her feet. "These are Donna Karan shoes…" she whined.
Percy just looked at her incredulously; Annabeth had had enough for one night. "What are you looking at me like that for?" She snapped, instantly regretting it. Percy hadn't done anything awful to her tonight. For all she knew he was in serious trouble and here she was being horribly rude. "Sorry," she added quietly.
"It's nothing, just… It's just that I'm wondering if I grabbed the right Annabeth Chase." His green eyes were smoldering. She opened her mouth to respond that of course she was the right Annabeth Chase. She was the same person he knew from camp all those years ago. But then she remembered the photo that sat in her office. She was not the same girl in that photo. That girl would have frowned upon her life now. With the exception of her architectural firm her life had gone in the exact opposite of what that young hopeful had wanted. It was a sad thought, and for a second she almost let it get to her. But it was also reality, and Annabeth was a realistic person. She liked her life now. She had changed. She had grown up.
"We should start walking," she turned and Percy followed, and they walked down the road in silence.
Annabeth looked up. The stars spread across the sky in dazzling patterns. Sparkling and dancing as if they didn't have a care in the world. She had forgotten it never rained at camp, it was always perfect.
Percy was the first to break the silence. "You look good," he said after a minute. She got the impression he was not talking about her physical features, or her Neiman Marcus dress, and that made her blush. "You've done well for yourself. I'm proud." His eyes locked with hers. The way he was looking at her was intense but had a sense of familiarity. He was searching for something in her. Possibly he was looking for a trace of that young girl he knew. Or maybe he was looking for whatever had driven him to seek her out.
Annabeth was suddenly stricken with anger. She should have found Percy's recent affection sweet, or flattering, or anything other than condescending. She felt betrayed. Where were these feelings ten years ago, when she had called up his mother in desperation, only to be told, "he doesn't want to talk to you, Annabeth"? If he cared about her now, he surely didn't back then.
Annabeth then closed herself off to Percy. She was now blocking out every emotion that was stirring inside her, remembering the pain she had been through before. She had loved him so much, but he surprised her and turned out to be a completely different person than she thought he was.
"I was just shocked about how different you are now," he continued.
"Well I'm not exactly the same person you knew," she said coldly gesturing toward her body.
"Yeah, I guess not. How did that happen by the way, if I may ask?" He seemed honestly curious, so she decided to give him an answer.
"Well, once I ended up in California permanently, I found myself living a surprisingly normal life. I don't know why or how, but I was slowly being effected less and less by monsters or anything having to do with the mythological world. And once I didn't have to worry about that anymore, I found I was able to care for myself a little bit more. I started putting on makeup, not having to worry about sweating it off in the training arena, and I found that I enjoyed putting a little effort into my appearance. Also, the career I went into requires a certain degree of professionalism, as any career does, and I need to look my best. And then thanks to my career, I started surrounding myself with people similar to who I am now. They're my friends and I value them dearly. I don't know, it just gradually happened I guess." She shrugged after the long explanation as if it was nothing.
"Huh," Percy said, and they walked the rest of the way in silence.
Their arrival at camp caused quite a stir. When they reached the border Annabeth took a minute to observe her surroundings. Nothing had changed. The Golden Fleece still hung from Thalia's tree. Campers and magical creatures still littered the grounds, playing games and pretending to fight monsters. They were probably coming back from their camp fire. It brought back a plethora of memories for Annabeth.
The chaos started once the campers realized that there were two foreign demigods standing at their border. She only had time to wonder if Percy had sent word of their arrival in advance, or even if he was even still welcomed at the place. They were suddenly surrounded by bodies, and most of them had weapons. The campers were wearing expressions ranging from fierceness to anxiety. The ones with traces of fierceness on their faces were most likely the older, more experienced campers. It was the beginning of summer after all, so most of the looks of anxiety probably came from first years. They were all talking at once, which made it difficult to respond to the questions they were throwing out.
A familiar figure broke up the mob scene.
"Everyone, calm down!" He started pushing his way through the mass of people. "Jessica, put down the Greek fire!" He reprimanded a small blonde girl holding a jar of the stuff. Everyone parted to let the centaur through.
"Chiron!" Percy grinned.
"Well Percy, I wasn't expecting you until next week," Chiron said making it obvious this wasn't the first time they had seen each other recently. Chiron then turned to look at Annabeth, obviously expecting someone familiar, but stopped dead in his tracks when he realized it was her. "Annabeth Chase?" He exclaimed.
"We needed four," Percy broke in, "Knowledge lost ten years past, who else could that be?"
"Knowledge lost ten years past?" Annabeth inquired.
"You two should come to Big House," Chiron said slowly. He was obviously not over the shock of seeing Annabeth yet, especially this side of Annabeth. He turned to a camper standing to his right. "Go find Phillip and Faith, tell them I need them in the Big House," he said to the boy. The camper ran off and the trio started for the meeting place.
Murmurs came from the crowd that was now starting to disperse in different directions. She knew enough about camp to know rumors were already spreading. Child of Poseidon tows in a Child of Aphrodite girlfriend, who looks like she'd been through hell and back. Yeah, it was probably something like that.
"What is going on?"She whispered to Percy as they walked.
Percy sighed. "Chiron will explain more in the Big House, but we think we might be in the beginning stages of the next Great Prophecy."
Well, I promised and update on Wednesday, and I think I did pretty good getting it out on Thursday. My family is coming into town for all of next week so I'm not sure how much writing time I'll have, but I'll try to update by next Thursday.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! R&R as always. You all are so great! Thank you!
(PS I didn't proof read because I'm a lazy twit, so don't get too mad at me for any typos!)
