A/N: Quick update! I know! I realize I've been updating at, like, 2 AM…heh. Now, PEOPLES CAN READS IT! Yes, that was horrendous grammar.
I do not own PJO. I don't own an iPhone. I don't own Avatar: the Last Airbender. Nor do I own Harry Potter. I don't own Sailor Moon, The Legend of Korra, Teen Titans, Disney World, Mickey and Minney—I OWN NOTHING WORTH LIVING FOR! I don't even own a chocolate bar right now. Le sigh…
But I DO own a nice strawberry banana smoothie I made!
Now that my pity party on several things I don't own is over, read on!
Chapter Seven
Of course, Annabeth and Percy sent word to Camp that they'd found Athena and Poseidon. After Jack's—Poseidon's?—and my mission, we'd head straight over there and recruit older campers to help infiltrate Olympus. Or, at least, that's what Percy wants. I have no idea why we made him leader.
Stepping into my gown, I sigh. My head hurts, as does the rest of my body. But I have to go to the ball tonight. Isn't that just great? I'd rather stay home and do nothing all day.
I sit on the bed, letting Athene do my hair however she likes. She's babbling on about how awesome it is to have a goddess sister of sorts, and how she'd like to brag to the other campers when we get there. "Lady Athena?" She asks.
"Are you…in love with Poseidon?" She's just curious, I can tell, but it gives me an uneasy feeling.
I hesitate. "No, Athene. I'm not."
"But you love Jack?" She questions.
"Yes. No. Well, it's complicated, Athene." I say.
"Why don't you love him?" She asks. "After all you've been through."
"Athene, for the longest time, I was putting the puzzle together that we were gods and Olympus was calling us in distress. I did fall in love with Jack." I stop.
Athene starts braiding my hair. "Okay?" She begs me to continue.
"Any girl would've. Even a virgin goddess," I tell her. "He was sweet. Nothing like Poseidon was to me. And for a while there, I didn't even know he was a god. I thoroughly believed we were demigods with an unusually strong scent. But when I could put it together…when it all hit me last night…I remembered why I didn't love Poseidon. He was annoying, rude, and disrespectful to me. You've heard the myth of him in my temple, yes? It happened, truly, it did. And the battle for Athens. He gave me the cold shoulder for weeks. After, when he'd finally let it go, or so he said, I could tell he was still mad at me. Though, I won fairly."
Athene laughs. "That's no reason to hate each other." She says. "I mean, sure, he was annoying and loud. I'm sure he was disrespectful and mean to you. But you have to look at the good in people sometimes. That's what Percy and Annabeth did to each other. If you think they have a perfect marriage, you're wrong, Athena. Oops, Lady Athena."
I smile. "Just call me Athena if you want."
"Alright, Athena. Anyway, my dad tends to act like a kid a lot. And he can be quite obnoxious. But Mom sees that he's funny, he can be smart if he wants, and that he's a hero. She gets irked by him a lot, but she never fails to see the good in him. And same goes for Percy. My mom has a habit of thinking she knows best for everything and everyone. She thinks she's the one who's right all the time."
I cut in. "Hubris," I say.
"Yes, exactly. It's her fatal flaw. And sometimes, she can get really angry at us. She gets peeved a lot. And it's not different when she's not pregnant, she rarely has mood swings. Or so I remember. But she gets irritated at the smallest things sometimes. But Dad doesn't care. He's the only one who can cool her down. And he sees that she's very wise. And smart. She's pretty, too. I can see how you two are related."
She's finished the down-the-back braid and is now twisting it. Wrapped in a nice bun, she has me turn around. I smile at her, then. "Just so you know, sucking up to gods gets you nowhere, unless it's Apollo or Aphrodite. If you do suck up to them when you meet them, they'll love you and shower you with gifts. However, if you do that to Artemis, she'll assume you want to join the hunt."
Athene shrugs. "I don't know. It may be fun helping her set up the huntresses again. Aunt Thalia and Uncle Nico could help! Well, maybe not Nico. She doesn't like Uncle Nico, he's the reason her lieutenant dropped out. Hey, stand up now. I don't want your pretty gown to get ruined."
I do as she says. I walk over to the mirror. It's very pretty indeed. My hair looks nice, much nicer than I thought it would. I like how she kept my side bangs out. It doesn't look fancy at all.
"I do hope you like your hair. I know you didn't like big up do's, so I just did it how Mom does my hair." She shrugs.
"I like it," I say. "It doesn't fit with the dress at all, but I don't care. It looks lovely."
She smiles and nods. "It does!" I glance at her stomach. "How's it going?"
"Hmm?" I hum. "Oh, the child. I believe fine. I feel slightly better. My head still aches, though."
"No alcohol tonight," She warns, putting a hand on my stomach.
Creasing my eyebrows, I smile at her and say, "Who made you the mother here?"
"I'm just concerned for my new auntie. Or uncle. Whoa, you're my grandma!" She says.
I slap a hand on her mouth. "Don't make me sound old. I may be eons old, but now I'm only nineteen. Hush."
Oh, the cliché night.
Dancing and laughing and more.
They are at a ball!
Apollo! Cut that out!
Aphrodite, don't be so rude, Apollo's just trying to help calm Athena.
Will you three shut up? I'm already nauseous waltzing around the dance floor! I don't need a bigger migraine!
Athy, darling, your hair's fallen out!
Well, great.
I take my left hand off of Jack's shoulder and my right hand out of his. Nodding my head, I walk off of the dance floor, signaling for him to follow. I sit at a small table nearby. My fingers dance through my braid, pulling it out and leaving me with long, back-length wavy locks. Jack takes a seat next to me. "So…Arielle."
I grin. "You're uncomfortable calling me that, aren't you?"
He nods. "A bit, since I've figured out who we really are."
I turn towards him, away from the crowd of teenagers and adults dancing and drinking. "Listen, I know that Athena and Poseidon aren't meant to get along. It's in their nature. But it's in our nature that we do. You're the only one I've ever fully trusted, Jack. I'm going to keep it that way. But when we return to Olympus, you know Zeus is going to disapprove. It's best we just stay acquaintances."
He takes my hand. "But what about the ba—Karol! Hello!"
Karol raises an eyebrow. She swings a chair around, plopping next to me. "So, what are you two talking about? Not keeping secrets from me, are you?"
I shake my head. "Nothing, really. Just discussing."
"Mm-hmm. So, what were you about to say, Jack? What about the…ba…bay? Bathroom? Basketball game? Baseball game? Baby? Balloon—oh my God. Baby. Baby, baby, baby!"
"Shhh!" Both Jack and I hushed her.
She put both of her hands over her mouth. "You're pregnant?" She whispered.
I nod quickly. "You can't tell anyone. Alright?"
Karol nods back. "Just…be careful. If that baby gets hurt, you will too. And I can't have a downtrodden agent on my hands."
She quickly walks away.
Jack scoffs. "How like her. Bitches like that only care about themselves and their plans."
I shrug, agreeing. Suddenly, the waltz stops, as does the music. Karol is up on stage, microphone in her hand. "If you'll all take a quick break from the wonderful ball, we have some great news! I would like to invite my guest of honor, Arielle Jackson, up!"
I glance at Jack. "She's going to tell everybody." I mutter. "Ass."
Jack rolls his eyes. "Arielle! Come up, darling!"
I muster the strength from my aching body to stand once more.
Don't do it, Athy!
Athena! You can seriously damage your position in this! You have to consider the outcomes! Tell her it's a secret!
Whatever. I'll be murdering her tomorrow night, anyway. No big deal then if the world knows a criminal is pregnant.
No big deal.
A/N: Short, I know. I hope you enjoyed!
~Suzie
