Okay, sorry it took so long, but I've been busy with my other stories, which you should go read... :) Anyways, here's chapter two.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Percy Jackson series.
I find it funny how his initials are P and J like Peanut Butter and Jelly.
Thalia Grace stared down Juniper as she made her next move.
Thalia's eyes never left Juniper, but Juniper didn't seem to notice, her happy-go-lucky smile never faltered. Thalia cleared her throat, in hopes of getting Juniper to look at her. Juniper glanced up once, but returned to her head down state, as if she wasn't the least bit bothered. Thalia was persistant thought, and she was going to win, even if she had to refuse blinking in order to make Juniper uncomfortable.
Then Juniper drew a circle in the top left, taking Thalia's only opening.
Thalia groaned as she drew a useless X in the center square, only blocking off one of two possible wins for Juniper. Juniper clapped like a child who had just be given a lifetime supply of sour gummy worms and Hershey's chocolate bars. She quickly marked down her winning O, and smiled.
"Three-in-a-row." Juniper giggled. "Tic-Tac-Toe!"
Thalia rolled her eyes, as she ripped off that sheet of paper, throwing it at waster basket so full of paper, in could've held four or five trees. Thalia had agreed to play Tic-Tac-Toe with Juniper out of boredom. She had gotten so tired of picking at the scab of the back of her elbow, and it was actually starting to hurt.
"Wanna play again?" Juniper slurred her words, already setting up another game, not even waiting for Thalia's answer.
"No thanks." Thalia said, as she stood.
"Oh come on, Thalia." Annabeth Chase piped up from across the room. She looked up slyly from her book, knowing that Thalia really didn't want too. But if Thalia didn't play, someone else would have to, and she knew for sure that Juniper wouldn't dare ask Katie while she was gardening. That was just a suicide mission. Or Reyna while she was battle training, and Piper was no where to be found. "Just play with her."
"Why don't you?" Thalia countered.
"Because you're better at it than I am." The real truth was that Annabeth was reading a fascinating book on architecture, and she had just reached the Victorian-Style Inspired Era. Annabeth had already finished her book ten times over, and could easily recite it from memory, but she just loved the Victorian Era.
Thalia thought about Annabeth's answer for a moment, taking in the faked compliment, "I am better than you aren't I?" She mumbled to herself, though she was purposely loud enough for both girls to hear her.
Annabeth surpressed the urge to roll her eyes, sinking lower in her plush grey reading chair in the corner, "You most certainly are!" Annabeth encouraged Thalia enthusiastically, as she turned the page into the history of the Rendered Triple Fronted Brick Veneer.
"All right then." Thalia sat back down, across from Juniper. "Get ready for the Tic-Tac-Toe game of your life Juni!"
Just as Thalia put a Bic ballpoint pen to the paper, the door burst open and three girls filled the room. Reyna was still in her battle armor, untying it as she went, leaving a trail. Piper had her hair tied up, no doubt because she didn't like it. Katie tossed her dirty gardening gloves onto Thalia's and Juniper's Tic-Tac-Toe paper, muttering an apology as she picked them up, and threw them farther over the paper.
"Hey Annie." Piper greeted, slipping in the chair next the Annabeth, squishing them both, but Annabeth didn't seem to notice. Annabeth raised a single finger, silencing the whole room for a moment, letting her finish her final paragraph.
When Annabeth placed her "Reading Is Magical!" bookmark into place, and closed her book, everyone went back to chatter. Reyna and Thalia talked about new spear techniques, while Katie and Juniper discussed shoveling techniques to get the best results when planting tomatoes. Piper shifted in the chair, involuntarily causing Annabeth to move as well.
"So Annie, how's it been going?" Piper asked, not specifying what 'it' was exactly, but that was okay because Annabeth knew what 'it' was.
"'It's' been going okay." Annabeth lied.
Piper eyed her suspiciously, as if she knew Annabeth was lying, but Piper didn't press and Annabeth was thankful for that.
"So, did you find a new amazingly hot guy?"
"No."
"Oh, come on, Annie." Piper sighed, dramatically, earning a chuckle from Annabeth. "When are you going to go fishing again? There are a million fish in the sea, and a great majority of them are male models..."
Annabeth laughed, "Like I could ever get a male model." She didn't say anything about not wanting one.
"Oh, come on, Annabeth, you are beautiful; drop dead gorgeous. I'm surprised no male models have broken down your door yet."
"Shut up." Annabeth playfully shoved Piper, causing her to fall out the chair, allowing Annabeth to stretch out again. Piper glared, jokingly, as her.
"Well then." Piper stood, hamming it up, as she brushed non-existant dirt off her jeans, and tossed back fly away hairs that weren't there. "I give you a compliment and you push me out of a chair. I, for one, am offended."
Annabeth merely laughed, until Piper joined her, but their joy was short lived when a servant came through the open door. He bowed deeply, in an apologetic way for interrupting them.
"My princesses, if I may, I am sorry for inconviencing you, but the Kings and Queens request your prescence in the dining hall." He bowed once more, and left.
Everyone looked to Annabeth, she simply shrugged and followed the servant to the dining hall, wondering what her parents could possibly want.
"Now, I supposed you're wondering why we gathered each of you to this castle, on this specific day." Queen Athena addressed each of the girls. Annabeth's heart lurched as she heard her mother's words, she hadn't been wondering until now. Annabeth didn't like wondering, she simply assumed it was because the girls hadn't seen each other in a while.
"This was unavoidable." King Frederick, smiled sympathectically at each girl individually, before tightenly his grip on Athena's hand. "It was going to happen some time, we've known since your births."
"I wish it didn't have to be this way, but it was the same for each of us." Queen Demeter wore a forced smile that she tried to make encouraging, but it came across as saddened, a very hard to reach state of depression where you were upset, but could smile with bright eye. Except the bright eyes were missing.
"What's going on?" Reyna asked, being the bravest of the group.
"Hush now, Reyna." Stern Queen Bellona ordered her daughter. "You'll learn soon enough." Reyna shrank beneath her mother's words. Her mother, in fact, is possibly the only person in existance that Reyna cares about and fears enough to take her words so deeply to heart.
"Girls." Queen Juno, Thalia's step-mother, stood from her chair, refusing to make eye contact with anyone. "You are getting married."
Time stopped. Just like that. Nothing else mattered in the world. Annabeth's breath caught in her throat, she didn't even realize she was still living, until Piper put a hand on her shoulder, using it to support her own self.
"What?" Reyna managed to squeak out.
"You are getting married." King Zeus looked to his daughter, Thalia, who glared at him like there was no tomorrow.
"I don't want to get married." Thalia appeared to be on the pathway to a mental breakdown. All her life, it had been just her. Just Thalia. Her mother and her brother were both dead, and Thalia didn't want anyone else in her life. Thalia wasn't even sure if she was ready for something like this, she was still very young, and wasn't prepared for marriage or even having children. Thalia nearly choked on her saliva. Children.
That was a social services diaster just waiting to happen.
"This is a profile on your future husband." Queen Aphrodite giggled, handing them each a manilla envelope. Every girl took one, giving it a nervous look.
"It's been decided." Queen Nymph, Juniper's mother, spoke. "There is no way out."
That was all Annabeth needed to hear. She gave one last glare to her mother, making it as guilt-filling as possible, but her mother's hardened stare didn't fail. Annabeth turned sharply on her heel, and stomped out of the room, Athena turning to her own husband with a blank look, but her eyes told a different story.
Annabeth slammed the door of her bedroom shut, in a furious rage.
She didn't know what to do. She could be logical, and convince her mother it wasn't the right choice for her. She could be a teenage girl, and chunk a vase at the wall before throwing herself onto her bed in self-pity. She could be the drama queen, and run away. Annabeth honestly didn't know what to do, she thought about opening the envelope, when her mind turned to Luke.
His blonde hair, and perfect teeth. He may have been a traitor, but he was her best friend before, brain-washed into believing Kronos' lies. She had always thought she loved Luke, and even assumed it was a solid fact when they started dating. But he left her for the evil side, and she had never gotten over it, even though it had been nearly a year, and he was dead. She could still hear his laugh, and feel his arms around her.
There was a sudden knock on the door, for a strange reason, Annabeth wished it were Luke. She had dreamed about it many times. He'd return, claiming he had never died, and was no longer evil. He'd tell her he loved her, as he wrapped his warm arms around her, never letting her go. The knock sounded again, bringing Annabeth out of her pleasant daydream.
"Come in!" Annabeth called.
A maid eased the door, unsurely, open. She smoothed out her apron, and bowed with a smile. "Do you need help packing, m'lady?"
Annabeth smiled sweetly, "No thank you, I think I can manage."
The maid laughed at Annabeth's small joke, "If you need anything, don't be afraid to ask any maid, we are always here to assist you."
"Thank you."
Then the maid left, and Annabeth's smiled vanished.
She looked down at the envelope in her hand. She fingered the crease, causing it to stick up a bit. She, warily, opened the envelope. She reached inside, and felt the papers, she frowned and let them go, yanking her hand out. She glared at it, tears coming to her eyes.
Then she stood up and threw it against the wall, the tears running freely.
Okay guys, just thought of something with the little thing I put in the disclaimer about Percy's initials, well guess what Rick Riordan's could be? RR?
READ AND REVIEW!
Ha! Oh, I'm so clever sometimes I scare myself.
My Randomness: Did you know that most laughter in the background of TV shows is prerecorded and just replayed? A large majority it is actually from early television shows from back in the 1930s-1950s... So you're basically listening to dead people laugh...
You guys are such Awesome Possums! :oD