Spring, 2002

Analise pulled up to the soccer field promptly at 3:59 PM. "Okay, Annabeth, I'll see you in two hours."

Annabeth stared out the car window. Girls were already milling about the field, grouping together with their friends. They were chatting and laughing, and even though they looked identical to Annabeth with their messy ponytails and baggy uniform, Annabeth didn't feel like they were the same as her. At all.

She hated going to soccer.

"Analise, do I have to go?" Annabeth asked.

"Yes," Analise replied firmly. "I already paid for this season and for the shin guards and cleats, so you have to. You can't tell if you like a sport just by going to one practice, Annabeth. Don't be a quitter." Annabeth forced the car door open, heaved herself out, and watched with dread as Analise drove away.

She took a deep breath, braced herself, and jogged towards the field. She didn't know where to go. Talking to one of those girls was as impossible as keeping the Bauldaire orphans away from Count Olaf. So Annabeth went to go stand by the bleachers. She fidgeted with her shorts, her jersey, her hair, anything, just to find something to do. She practiced saying the alphabet backwards. Four times. Practiced her multiplication tables. She got up to twelve times five before the Coach Diana finally called the team together to start drills.

As they were standing there listening to instructions, another girl, who also had blonde hair, ran across the field from the parking lot to join them. She stood by Annabeth.

"What are we doing right now?" she whispered Annabeth.

"Coach Diana is about to tell us how to do a practice drill," Annabeth replied.

"Oh, okay."

They were practicing passes today with a partner.

"Want to be my partner?" the blonde girl who came in late asked.

"Okay." Annabeth tried not to let her relief show too much.

"My name is Silena. What's yours?"

"Annabeth."

"Are you new to the team too?"

"Yes."

"We just moved here, so I've never played on this team before, and I had to skip the last practice because my family was on vacation."

"Oh, well, this is only my second time playing soccer."

"You're pretty good for someone who only played soccer twice."

"Thanks."

"What school do you go to?"

"Yancey Elementary School."

"Me too! What grade are you in?"

"Third."

"Me too!"

By the time practice was over, Annabeth had found out that Silena's favorite color was pink, that she had a country house in Utah where she had a pony named Venus, and was invited to a playdate at her house Friday after school. Analise was thrilled.

A/N: Guys, I have some bad news. I'm going to have to stop writing this fic for a while. I'm so, so, SOOOOO sorry. I promise that it WILL get finished. I just have a lot on my plate right now, and real life is really getting to me.

I'll be posting some new chapters now and then, but it's going to be very sporadically updated until this semester is over (and then I can go back to my normal once-a-week updates). BUT IT WILL BE FINISHED. One day. (I have an outline of the entire story as proof.) You guys have been so awesome! Thank you so much for every review, favorite, and follow.

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