Okay, I'd like to thank PercabethAndZebrasFTW for the very helpful and thoughtful review! I have revised the chapter and I think I caught all of the mistakes. I also changed it up a bit because I felt like something was missing. So if you have time, please re-read and once again, REVIEW! Thanks for all of your support
"Right there! No! Right over there, 30 feet from each column, is it that too hard to comprehend!" I yelled in frustration. I had been overseeing the reconstruction of Olympus ever since camp ended and it was proving to be quite a frustrating job. Especially, for a perfectionist of epic proportions (me). I'd been at it all day and was just about to pull her hair out, when suddenly I felt a pair of arms wrap around me and felt someone lean down to kiss the top of my head.
"Ugh, Percy. I can't take it anymore!" I complained as I closed my eyes and leaned back against him. His arms tightened around me.
"Come on, take a break then," he insisted. "You work yourself too much."
"Well, the re-building of Olympus is no joke. It's a lot of pressure. What, with all the gods, expecting me to have a millions statues of each. I just want it to be perfect," I explained
"And it will be, because you're perfect and one of the smartest people I've met. You're good at doing what you love. So, stop stressing and relax," he insisted.
"I do need to relax, don't I?"
"Yes, yes you do. Come on, I'd like to show you something, that I've been working on," he said. Curiosity taking the best of me I abandoned my post and asked one of the lead Cyclops to supervise for the rest of the evening.
"Where are we going?" I asked
"Just walk," he said, leading me down a winding path through the city of the gods. All around me I saw satyrs, Cyclops, and minor gods hard at work, busying themselves with the construction of the plans that I had drafted. I smiled with appreciation and pride. I guess I was a little hard on them –and myself sometimes. Percy squeezed my hand gently.
"It looks amazing, Annabeth," he smiled at me.
"Thanks," I replied as I nudged his shoulder. "Look over there." I pointed to a white dome-like building with a curved golden roof. "Apollo's going to get his own museum, now he can't complain that there aren't enough statues of him."
"Apollo's a bit vain isn't he?" asked Percy
"Aren't they all?" I sighed, thinking about how much pride the Olympian gods had.
"Well, they ARE the 'Olympian Gods,'" Percy responded
"He also wants all of his poetry to be archived there so the public can appreciate it," I added; amused at Percy's pained expression.
"Remind me, to never ever go in there," Percy requested
"Sure thing. I was also thinking of making a proper bridge to connect Olympus to the mortal world. Well, the elevator to the mortal world at least," I explained. "Something, strong but sleek, and modern but futuristic at the same time."
From there, I launched into a whole explanation of suspensions, and truss designs, and the detailed planning it would all take while, Percy smiled at me, amused. After a few minutes of this, I paused.
"You aren't really listening to me are you?" I accused
"Annabeth, I love y-ahem," he cleared his throat, clearly flustered.
"Were you just going t-," I started to ask
"No I-, I couldn't listen because firstly I have no idea what you're saying….and secondly, we are …here." He had succeeded in distracting me as he led me a little way further and stopped, putting his hands over my eyes.
"Percy!" I complained, not being able to see anything made me feel off balance and I hated that feeling.
"Shhh," he urged. "Don't you trust me? It's allright," he assured me. I sighed and let him walk me forward.
"Okay just a couple more steps...and stop." He still didn't remove his hands from my eyes however. I tried to guess where I was. I smelled...flowers? Yes, lots and lots of flowers. I smelt the scent of roses in full bloom, cherry blossoms, primroses, jasmines, hyacinths, and was that…a whiff of lily?
"Percy, where are we?" I asked in wonder as he removed his hands from my eyes. I opened them to see the most magnificent garden that I had seen in my entire life. Olympus was known for its literally magical orchards and gardens but I had been so busy with the construction of the actual buildings, I hadn't even gotten a chance to start thinking about the gardens.
"Percy, how? When-when did you do all of this?" I asked in awe. Turning to face him.
"I had a little help, from Grover, you know him being the 'Lord of the Wild' and all. He has a whole load of satyrs at his disposal," he explained. "Come on, there's more."
He led me down a winding path through the garden as I tried to take everything in. There were little waterfalls around every other corner, seeming like the mirages of another mystical world. I spotted the lilies, gently floating on the surface of an exquisite pond, surrounded by some more beautiful arrangements of flowers.
Neat little hedges created alcoves in the midst of the garden and I was overwhelmed with the enormity of it. We reached a little arch bridge crossing over a stream. I admired the architecture. It was made to look effortlessly timeless and had vines encircling it. I was so engrossed in appreciating the natural beauty of the bridge that I didn't notice what was waiting on the other side.
"Annabeth, look," Percy whispered in my ear. I looked up expectantly and gasped. There was a fountain in the middle of the orchard. Cherry blossom trees lined the surrounding in a ring of beauty. The fountain was…me. Well, 8 year old me, 12 year old Thalia, and 14 year old Luke. The statue seemed to be made out of gold and depicted a time, when we had all found each other, and were, family.
Behind the fountain, was a large golden plaque, with several names engraved on it.
"τον κήπο των ηρώων" I read as my fingers traced over the names of the people, my friends, who had sacrificed their lives to save Olympus and preserve humanity.
"The Garden of the Heroes," Percy translated. "Hey, come here," He said as he noticed a silent tear trailing down my cheek. He hugged me close and then gently wiped away the tear with his thumb.
"Thank you." I whispered and rested my head on his chest. I couldn't believe that someone would ever do so much for me. " Percy…"
"hmm…?"
"You know what you were going to say earlier…" I started to say.
" Oh that, that was just umm…" He ran his hand through his dark tousled hair and struggled to explain, blushing. "I just, I don't know what-" I placed a finger on his lips, silencing him. I stared into his eyes, mesmerized by the startling green as always.
"I love you." I said
