And we're back for another instillation of The Prince, The Girl and The World. This next chapter is in Annabeth's POV and it will encompass Rayne and Ashton's wedding.

Like I guessed, a lot of you hated the cliffhanger in the last chapter. Good news, that was planned. Anyway, no cliffy here today, so you can thank me for that.

Last chapter I asked you guys about the Hunter's winning streak against Camp Half-Blood in Capture the Flag. I'm proud to say we have some winners. Congratulations to percyjason, HYpatheticallySPEAKING, ElmoDaHorse, LeahTymara, numbah435spiritsong, PrincessAnnastacia and AddieisCool. They all gave me the correct answer of 56 consecutive times.

Now onto the chapter. Enjoy Chapter Nine of The Prince, The Girl and The World.

Disclaimer: Rick Riordan, I am not. PSON I am.


Chapter Nine: Annabeth POV

Abby got me up extremely early. It wasn't even light outside yet, that's how early it was. The two of us picked up Rosalyn before sprinting over to Rayne's room. It was her wedding day after all.

The three of us knocked on Rayne's door loudly. Surprisingly, a response came almost immediately.

"It's open."

The three of us looked at each other before I reached for the door handle. Sure enough, it was unlocked.

I walked through first. Rayne was standing at her window, looking for the morning sunrise.

"Rayne!" I yelled. "Congrats, girl!" I wrapped her in a hug.

"Thanks Annabeth!" She replied, but her voice seemed tired somehow.

"Are you ok, Rayne? You seem off this morning."

"I'm tired," she replied with a tired smile. "I only got like two hours of sleep last night. I was too excited for today."

I smiled as Rayne gave Abby and Rosalyn each a hug.

"Don't worry Rayne," I told her. "You get in the shower and you'll be feeling refreshed in no time."

"Yeah, and it'll wake you up too," Rosalyn added.

"Ok, I'll step in. Can one of you fetch my mother? She'll want to be here for everything."

"No need," a voice said through the open doorway.

The four of us turned towards the voice as Lady Allyson stepped into the room and up to her daughter. They shared a hug.

"Congrats, sweetie. I can't believe this day has finally come."

"Neither can I mom, neither can I."

"No," I said, cutting in. "Don't start tearing up now. Or-or else I will and I'll be a wreck."

"Ok, fine, princess," Rayne said with a short laugh. She wiped away the tear that had started to form by her right eye. "Gods forbid you're a wreck."

That got a laugh out of everybody, if only a small one. I sent a small glare at my childhood friend.

"Just get your shower," I told her.

"Yes ma'am," Rayne replied with a salute. "Can't disobey a royal order now, can we?"

Another laugh went around the room. I was not included in this one.

"I hate you," I told her with a glare.

"And you're still my bridesmaid," she responded with her signature smile.

I made eye contact with Lady Allyson, who gave me her own smile.

"Do you ladies have your dresses here?" She asked me.

"No," I responded. "They're still in our rooms."

"Go get them now," she told us. "While everyone is still sleeping." I nodded and took a glance over at Rayne, who was smiling, before heading out of the room.

We were barely out of the room before we heard, "What do you think you're smiling at Rayne? Get your shower." A smile came to my face as us three bridesmaids walked down the hall.


I grabbed Grover's arm. The two of us were set to walk down the aisle next as Best Man and Maid of Honor. I was nervous, but Grover gave me a smile.

"Why are you nervous?" He asked me. "This isn't even your wedding."

"It's my best friend's," I told him. "It's no different in my mind."

He gave me another smile.

"That's a good answer. Are you ready to go?"

I looked down at my dress one last time before replying.

"Yeah, let's go."

"Don't worry about your appearance," Grover said. "You look beautiful. Percy is lucky to have a guy like you."

I blushed and muttered thanks. Truthfully I couldn't wait to see Percy again. It was something that had been constantly on my mind since he had left.

I composed myself one last time before nodding to Grover. I was ready to head out. It was my best friend's wedding. I wasn't going to be thinking about my problems until after the wedding. It was her time tonight.

Grover and I walked in-step down the long aisle. Almost everyone in the castle had turned out to watch this wedding. I smiled and waved to a few people I recognized in the crowd. Grover led me up the stairs and onto the stage. He kissed my hand and then the two of us separated, me to the left, Grover to the right, where I saw Ashton standing. I had sent him a smile as I walked in, which he gratefully returned.

Ashton was matching Rayne perfectly. While the groomsmen had on a black suit with a white undershirt and a green tie, Ashton had a plain white tie, signifying he was the groom. The three bridesmaids had on their solid green dresses and of course Rayne was wearing the white dress as the bride.

Speaking of Rayne, Here Comes the Bride started to play on the piano and everyone stood as the bride and her father made their way down the long aisle.

Rayne looked absolutely amazing. Her long curly brown hair was straightened, so it came down past her shoulders. Her hard brown eyes were as soft as I've ever seen them and her smile was as large as the crowd that had come to see her.

Rayne's dress was simple, just like she wanted, but still amazingly elegant. It wasn't a strapless dress. She had two sections going over her shoulders which were decorated with designs of what looked to be flowers. The dress clung to her torso before finally starting to spread out as you passed her hips. The flower design seemed to be falling like snow would on a winter day. It seemed to collect up near her neck like clouds before starting to peter out and then finally collecting in a layer at the bottom of the dress.

Rayne had been debating on whether or not to wear a necklace she had just gotten, but it looked like she went against it, because her neck was clear.

Her father led her up the steps to the stage. Lord Ares was dressed just as the groomsmen were, except he had a red tie instead of a green one.

He lifted the veil from Rayne's face and gave her a kiss on the cheek before sitting down.

Ashton had stepped up and he now took Rayne's hand in hers.

Rayne hadn't glanced at me, but I was fine with that. I knew how much she appreciated my help. There was no need to tell me.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the priest said. "If you could please take your seats we can get this wedding under way." He motioned to Rayne and Ashton as chairs could be heard shuffling. "If you two could please take a step closer to me that would be helpful."

I saw Rayne and Ashton each awkwardly move towards the priest and I had to smile. I lifted my hand up to my right eye to wipe away a tear. We had barely started and I had already started to tear up. There was no way I was going to make it through the entire ceremony.

I felt someone bump my arm and I looked to my right. Abby was holding out a tissue to me and I gratefully took it.

"Thanks," I whispered.

"You're welcome," she replied in the same tone. "You're going to need it more than me."

I cracked a smile before returning my gaze to the priest. I caught Ashton's eye and he gave me a wink. I saw him converse quickly with Rayne and she looked back in my direction.

I gave her a huge smile which she returned. She let go of one of Ashton's hands and gave me a small wave, which I happily returned. Rayne returned her gaze to the priest, so I followed suit.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are here today for a very special occasion," he announced. "We are gathered here today to celebrate the joining of two lives…and two families." He acknowledged both Rayne and Ashton's parents. "We are here to join this beautiful girl, Princess Rayne Mars Warstriker, to this loving, caring, handsome, strong young man here, Mr. Ashton Evan Herringshaw. Sorry for the many adjectives, but Ashton insisted I place a couple more in there to make up for the lack of title."

I looked at Ashton who had his head down, shaking his head and surely smiling. A laugh escaped the crowd. Rayne didn't seem to be that happy, so I went ahead and assumed that it wasn't planned.

"Now that the first joke is out of the way, let's get started," the priest said. He went on to say something about how significant these vows they were about to take were and what the meaning of marriage was. I wasn't really paying attention to that part.

Rayne and Ashton then exchanged their vows, each promising to love and care for the other for as long as they lived. I tried not to tear up as they exchanged their rings, but it was very difficult. I would have to remember to thank Abby later for the tissue. It was doing its job well.

"And now I believe we should wrap up this ceremony." The tension in the audience was evident. All that was left was the famous words. "Rayne and Ashton, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride."

As Ashton and Rayne leaned in for their first kiss as a married couple, the crowd let out a collective "Aww," before standing and clapping as the two of them headed back down the aisle.

I rejoined with Grover and the two of us followed the newlyweds.


Three hours later we were at the reception. The food was absolutely amazing and the music was terrific. After the food was cleared and dessert was served, the speeches started. Rosalyn was first, then Oliver, Abby and Adam. I was set to go next.

I stood up and made my way to the end of the table where the wedding party was situated. I cleared my throat, notes in hand and got ready to speak.

"Hey guys," I started. "For those of you who don't know me, I'm Annabeth." That got a short laugh from the crowd. "My dad's the King, and yes, I have a boyfriend." That last part was directed at one of the younger kids at one of the front tables. I saw him pout, but I gave him a smile.

"This is how my speech is going to go down. I'm going to say how I know Rayne, when I met Ashton, how perfect they are for each other, and then tell some embarrassing stories and wrap things up. Sound like a deal? Ok, let's get started." I shuffled my notes to the second page. "I first met Rayne when I was very young. My parents were over here talking about some stupid treaty, like always, so they decided to put me with young Rayne over here. We became friends almost immediately. It actually wasn't until a couple months ago that I found out that Rayne was three years older than me. We've always been best friends it seems, so when she asked me to be her Maid of Honor there was no way I could have refused." I paused. "I was there the night when Ashton proposed to her, as were probably many of you. I still remember the cuteness of the proposal and the collective 'aww' that came from the crowd."

I paused once more, shifting my notes to the next page.

"Onto Ashton," I said, giving Rayne's new husband a look. "I actually hadn't met Ashton until Rayne's twentieth birthday party a couple months ago. I remember my mom distinctly telling me that he possibly would propose on her birthday, so I was like, 'Man, I have got to meet this guy before he proposes to my best friend. I have to make sure he's not some diabolical killer who's out to get single girls with brown hair.'" I paused as a short laugh escaped the crowd. "Ok, not really. But I did want to meet him. And I'm glad I did. Ok, anyway, let's move on. I'm rambling too much." I checked my notes. "Oh, yes. How perfect they are for each other. Ok, let's combine the next two. How about an embarrassing story about how perfect they are for each other?"

I paused for a drink of water before continuing.

"Ok, so, Miss Rayne Warstriker, or should I say, Mrs. Rayne Herringshaw?" That got a cheer from the crowd. "Rayne is known for not really being a girly girl. That's more like her cousin Rosalyn." I gave the black-haired girl a look and she responded with a glare. "Anyway, so Rayne's not a girly girl and Ashton's not known for being a romantic guy, but I have a story that might make you think differently." Rayne looked like she was about to interrupt me, but I cut her off before she had the chance to. "I'm telling the story Rayne, whether you like it or not. You can embarrass me whenever I get married." I saw Rayne pout, but she kept her mouth shut.

"Ok, so one day I was here in the castle and I was trying to find Rayne, because we had to talk about wedding plans or something and I hadn't seen her all day, so I decided to head up to her room to see if she was there. So I'm walking around the corner to her bedroom and I'm saying something like, 'Hey Rayne, are you in here? We have to talk about-' and then I stopped. I had stopped suddenly and I was standing in her doorway to her room and what did I see? The two of them are sitting on her bed, inches apart, doing one of those eskimo kisses. You know the one where you brush your nose back and forth with the other person's? Yeah, really awkward." A short laugh came from the crowd. "You see though, that's not even the funny part. When Rayne finally noticed me, and it took her a good ten seconds or so, she jerked back in surprise and then she clashed heads with Ashton. I just about remember dying laughing when I saw that both of their noses were bleeding from the impact. I then got to laugh every time someone asked why either of their noses were bleeding and they couldn't lie about it because I was right there. Best day of my entire life right there."

I glanced over at the newlyweds as laughter came from the crowd. Ashton was too busy looking at the ground to notice me, but Rayne sent me a huge glare and of course I returned a smile.

"Ok, let's wrap this up," I said. "Rayne, Ashton, you know you're perfect for each other. Everyone else knows that now too." Another short chuckle. "I truly love both of you and I hope you guys have an amazing life together, but remember, I'm godmother to your first child or else." I walked over to the two of them as the crowd erupted in applause. I gave Rayne and Ashton each a hug before handing it off to Grover, the Best Man.

"Okay, okay, so it's going to be pretty hard to follow that speech, but I'll try my best." He paused for a second to get situated before continuing. "Now, as many of you know, Annabeth's boyfriend Percy was supposed to be the Best Man, but he was caught up in Germany so he couldn't make it. I'll be giving both my speech and something that he wanted said tonight. I'll start with my speech first since Percy's little blurb is much funnier." A short laugh came from the crowd. "Ok, let's get started. I first met Ashton through Percy around four years ago. He was seventeen and I was thirteen, but he still took me in under his wing. For that I was grateful to him." Grover nodded towards Ashton who returned the favor. "And then he left me three months later for some girl named Rayne." Laughter came in bundles from the crowd. "So, of course after being backstabbed by one of my best friends for some random girl who I didn't know, I figured I'd have to see whether it was actually worth his time to go after this girl rather than spend time with me. And let me tell you, it was not." I saw Ashton laughing hysterically, but Rayne didn't really seem to be enjoying herself. "Sorry Rayne," Grover apologized. "Let me continue. Truthfully, that's what I thought at first. But then I actually got to know her better and I realized just how wrong I was. Maybe it was me just being a stuck-up thirteen-year-old, but I truly came to think of Rayne as an older sister. And the more I thought about it these past couple weeks, I've realized how much Rayne and Ashton deserve to be with each other. They're a perfect match and I don't think I could see them with anyone else. So in conclusion, congrats you two. May your marriage live much longer than the friendship shared between me and Ashton."

Applause and laughter combined filled the room as Grover walked over and gave the bride a hug. Ashton clasped him in one of those bro-hugs and Grover returned back to center stage.

"May I remind you I still have Percy's little blurb to say, so without further ado, let's start." Grover ripped open an envelope and took out a piece of paper from inside. He unfolded it and began reading. "Mr. and Mrs. Ashton Herringshaw," he started. "Wow, Percy's gotten really formal since he's gone to Germany. Abby, you're not that formal, are you?"

Abby shook her head. "He's my brother," she said simply.

"Oh, right. This is Percy we're talking about here." A short chuckle escaped the crowd. Apparently a lot of them knew Percy. "Mr. and Mrs. Ashton Herringshaw," he repeated. "Congrats on the wedding. Hopefully it wasn't as boring as my sister thought. I'm sure Rayne looked absolutely amazing." I took a look to my right to Abby, whose mouth was open in shock as if she couldn't believe her brother had written something like that. I had to laugh at her expression.

Grover kept reading. "I would've said that Ashton probably looked like a complete doufus, but he's getting married to Rayne, so he probably looked alright." Ashton looked like he was going to complain, but Grover quickly read the next sentence. "Don't worry Rayne, I can say things like that. It's not like he can beat me up in a duel or anything." Even Grover couldn't handle himself. He started dying laughing on the corner of the table. I noticed Rayne letting out a giggle to my left. "But in all seriousness, you two are perfect for each other. Rayne's strong and determined and Ashton's weak and can't even hit the broad side of a barn. Together they can't fail." The rest of us lost it as well. I remember starting to tear up I was laughing so hard. After everyone finally got control of themselves, Grover managed to read the rest of the note. "I wish I could have been there for the wedding as well as the reception. One word of advice before I finish this letter: Don't get too drunk at the wedding reception. I expect both of you to be here at Worlds fit and healthy. I love you guys. Congrats again. Percy."

Applause came from every corner as Grover folded up the sheet and handed it to Rayne. Ashton stood up and made his way to the center of the stage, easily not impressed. This would be a fun speech.


A/N:

So, Annabeth and Grover have both given their speeches, with input from Percy. Tell me, what did you think? We finish up with Ashton's speech next chapter and then head on our merry way to Berlin for the World Championships. Hint, hint. Percabeth reunite next chapter!

First off, I will be posting a link of Rayne's dress onto my profile today, so check it out if you want to see how bad my description was.

In other news, chapter two of my new story, The Ten, was published earlier this morning, so check it out if you have the time.

I'm looking at updating each of my stories once a week, so check back next week for a new chapter. Follow my Twitter updates for the exact dates.

Also, the next chapter of Scars and Recognition will be up on Thursday, so if you've been following along be sure to check that out.

Now for the Question of the Chapter: In the Demigod Files, Percy, Thalia and Nico go on a quest to retrieve Hades' stolen sword. When they finally catch up with the thieves, Ethan Nakamura and the Titan Iapetus, Percy manages to drag the Titan into the river Lethe, wiping his memory. When the two of them come back out, the Titan asks, "Who am I?" and Percy responds with this common American name. The question: What does Percy tell Iapetus his name is?

As always, right answers get shout-outs.

Now, make sure you review!

Thanks!

-PSON