It's TUESDAY! Personally this is one of my favorite chapters. Two more chapters until... dun dun duunnnnn.
Please review and tell me what you think of it.
Chapter 4: Important Secrets
Annabeth had finally dried off. She was sitting in Ole Daisy pushing back her curly golden ringlets. Her white cotton sundress billowing from the gentle breeze. Her dazzling grey eyes shimmered with happiness. The smell of sea salt clinging to her skin.
This afternoon had been magical.
She didn't want to forget a single second of it. Not even a moment. So she had taken out her leather bound journal and pen and had started from the minute she woke up, detailing everything down to what her breakfast had tasted like. Meanwhile Percy swam around the drifting rowboat, exploring the shallower region of coral, diving and chasing fish.
Annabeth was pretty sure Percy was part fish.
She tapped her chin with her pen thoughtfully while unsure how to phrase the next sentence. Her eyes scanned the area around her hungrily drinking in the details.
Ole Daisy had drifted rather close to the face of a rough plummeting cliff. Annabeth was caught almost between worlds. Above was the jungle looked like it was on a high rocky shelf and below was a coral dream crystal clear in the water.
Percy sputtered up beside her and clung to the edge of the boat effectively tipping it sideways.
Annabeth yelped as the rowboat rocked "Percy! stop it! you're gonna make it tip!"
"Oops, sorry." He let some of his weight back into the water while smiling sheepishly. "Hey if you lean to the left maybe I can try to get in on the right." He suggested.
Annabeth pursed her lips in thought.
"Well alright. But if you get my book wet I'm going to kill you." She replied, leaning to the left side of the boat so it tipped a little. Percy surged up and rolled in while the boat rocked back and forth. He let a few centimeters of the ocean in that pooled around her feet.
His skin glistened with droplets that were just as bright as the way his eyes were lit up.
Annabeth held her breath until the rocking dulled then she proceeded to give him a good slap upside the head.
"Ow! what was that for?" he asked rubbing above his ear while looking at her like he was a tongue lashed seal.
"For being an idiot" Annabeth answered.
Before he could protest Annabeth put her attention back on her journal. Intent on ignoring any protests he could come up with.
A few moments of silence eased the mood.
Percy cocked his head to the side "Whatcha doing?"
"I'm writing what happened today in my journal."
"Why?"
"Because I don't want to forget it."
Percy crossed his thin arms over his bear wet chest and shivered.
"Can I have my shirt back now?" he changed the subject.
Annabeth didn't hesitate to dig through the green bucket and pass him the white cotton tee.
"You know you're the first friend I've ever had?" he said a bit muffled while slipping the shirt over his head.
Annabeth lifted her face "Really? Didn't you have friends where you lived before?"
"Before?!"
"Ya before you came here" Annabeth looked at him with wide eyes.
"Well I was really little then, and I never met any other kids."
"Why not? didn't you go to school?"
Percy cringed "Not exactly." He started. He looked like he was about to say something when he changed his mind.
"Saw you collecting shells." He changed topics again.
Annabeth nodded "I know, I chased you after that. I know that now."
"No, even before that and before that and well... nearly all the times." Percy confessed.
Annabeth shook her head after letting the matter sink in a bit. "Percy Jackson, you are a stalker."
"I was too scared to talk to you." he defended "Anyways I thought you might want to add this to your collection" he finished while pulling a shell out of the pocket in his soaked swimming shorts that clung to his legs and holding it out to her. It was a common Scallop shell, or a 'Fan shell' as she used to call them. This one had a rich royal blue on the rough sandpapery back that slowly blotted into a lighter sparklier crystal blue near the edges. On the coved smooth undershell was a creamy color mixed with light pink and speckled around the edges with sprinkles of baby blue.
Annabeth gaped at him. "You found it!" She stated shocked.
"I found what?"
"the perfect shell!"
Daintily she dragged her finger over the surface and drew the outline out. Admiring the texture and cool feel. She loved the color, and the pattern and the way it fit so well in her palm.
"I love it!"
When Annabeth looked back up at Percy he was already gazing at her with his wild emerald gemmed eyes. Intense yet wonderingly like he was thinking deeply. Well, as deeply as a seven year old could think.
"Can I tell you a secret?" he asked seriously, his eyes never leaving hers. Annabeth held her breath and clutched the shell close.
"Only if I can tell you one in exchange" she replied.
Percy took a deep breath before spilling it. "I don't have any parents."
Annabeth let that hang in the air. The boat swayed to the rhythm of the waves and the bright blue water shivered in response.
"But you have to have some parents somewhere" Annabeth argued.
Percy shook his head solemnly "They died a long time ago."
"but then who takes care of you?"
"My trainer, Chiron."
"I don't understand" Annabeth confessed a bit baffled.
Percy rubbed the back of his neck "I have to be trained to be a really good fighter, My dad had said so. So Chiron took me here to train me where no one would know."
"why do you need to be a good fighter?" Annabeth inquired.
Percy shrugged "Maybe so I can be a special body guard for some important old guy, like the president."
Annabeth nodded in understanding before spilling her secret. "Someone's trying to kill my mom and me."
Percy's eyes widened "Why?"
Annabeth twiddled with the end of her white sundress "Mom said that they wanted something that she made, but she wouldn't give it so were hiding here until it passes over our heads."
1-2-3 seconds of silence plagued Annabeth.
Percy's eyes brightened "Hey, you suppose if I train really hard than I could become your bodyguard? You sound like you need protecting."
Annabeth lit up at the thought "That's a great idea!" then the seriousness returned to her face. "But first we need to solemnly swear that we will never tell each other's secrets"
"How?" Percy asked.
"Well these are very important secrets so we need to take the highest oath." Annabeth declared.
"Highest oath?"
"Ya, I'm pretty sure that's a vow."
"But how do vows work?"
"It's easy" Annabeth assured "I say what I'm going to never say and then you do and then we seal the vow" Annabeth scooted forward and locked eyes with Percy. "Just say what I say after but personalized. Okay?"
Percy nodded weakly still transfixed on Annabeth's soft grey eyes.
"I, Annabeth Chase vow that I will never tell Percy's secret even if the sky is to crush me."
Annabeth nudged Percy suggestively.
"Oh. I, Percy Jackson vow that I will never tell Annabeth's secret even if the sky is to crush me."
Annabeth nodded approvingly "Now we seal the vow."
"But how?"
"It's simple. We kiss." Annabeth instructed.
Percy's breathing shallowed "I thought that's only what adults do" he added nervously.
"How else are we going to seal the vow?" Annabeth sniffed
Percy shrugged "Well alright, if we have to."
Annabeth leaned forward and closed her eyes like she had seen done in all the movies. Percy was a little more hesitant but let their lips connect. They kissed. A sweet simple lasting kiss.
Annabeth broke away satisfied that the vow had been sealed.
"Percy why is you face red?" she observed her friend on the opposite side of the rowboat. Percy touched his face and looked bewildered.
"I don't know, but my stomach tickles and my heart's going really fast. I must be allergic to kisses." He diagnosed quickly.
"You can't be allergic to kisses." She remarked while retrieving her leather bound journal from the bucket. She flipped through the written pages to the last one she was on and uncapped her ball point pen.
"What are you doing now?" He questioned curiously dropping subjects again quickly.
Annabeth tapped her pen to her chin again "I'm trying to describe everything, but I can't seem to find the right words."
"What are you trying to describe? Maybe I can help?" Percy offered.
"Alright." Annabeth allowed "I don't know how to describe myself."
Percy looked Annabeth up and down making her feel like she was a bug under the microscope.
"Pretty." He summed up in one word.
Annabeth sighed exasperatedly "No you blockhead, several words. Words that describe something."
"Oh." Percy looked perplexed "I don't have any of those words."
"Of course you do." Annabeth chuckled lightly more amused than annoyed.
Percy's eyes combed the ocean. The sun was nearing the horizon, it would be sunset in a few hours. He grabbed the oars and started moving them away. Annabeth looked up at him as he rowed, her pen still motionless on the paper.
"Percy?"
"Hhhm?"
"We're going to be friends forever right?" She asked hopefully not letting the anxious look come across her face.
"Of course we are" he answered immediately not giving it a second thought.
She liked that. She liked the sense of security it gave her knowing that they were going to be always there.
As Percy rowed back to Annabeth's Island, Annabeth illustrated in her journal the entire day. Adding extra detail to the Whale shark bit of course.
Splashing down into the pushing waves Percy pulled Ole Daisy up on to the familiar beach and Annabeth hopped out holding her bucket.
"I have to hurry, Mom's going to be worried" Annabeth yelled as she ran.
"Annabeth wait!" Percy called while stooping into the rowboat "You forgot your shell!" He waved the blue beauty in the air and ran after her. Annabeth stopped and waited for him with a thankful smile adorning her lips. Before Percy got any closer he tripped over himself. Falling, he flailed his hands out to break his fall.
Jogging over Annabeth helped him up off the wet sand.
"Are you okay?" she asked concerned.
"Ya." He muttered. "But your shells not." He held up the two pieces of shell broken jaggedly up the middle. "Sorry." he murmured with guilt flitting about his eyes.
Annabeth took the pieces carefully and placed them perfectly back together so they looked like they had never been broken. She dropped them on the sand like they were indifferent to any other shell while a thick sigh built up in her throat.
"It's okay."
"I could glue it!"
"No it's fine" she answered quietly. "I have to go now, Mom will be worried." With that she jogged up the beach leaving Percy to gaze at the her back and her beautiful
hair.
This Chapters Trivia: In 'The Mark of Athena' the giant twins Ephialtes and Otis had their great performance going on. Before it started Otis finally wasn't wearing the same outfit as Ephiatles (who was dressed as a gladiator). But the outfit he was wearing was extraordinarily embarrassing anyways. What was the outfit Otis was wearing?
(hint: It was blue)
Last Chapters Trivia answer: Tantalus, the dude who was cursed to never taste food again.