This chapter is a rather short one...sorry =P but I felt like i needed to end it where I did. Sorry for the long wait for the update. ...I'm sorry to say there wil be another wait seeing as I have my Trig and Chem (Spanish too but it's Spanish) exams this week so yeah...
Well...enjoy my twist. ;)
PoetofApollo: well...at least it wasn't too long right? :) thank you!
G: Thank you!
Girlwithbrokenwings: 1. It's probably in the chapter some where. ;) 2. Sorry, try highlighting the words, it helps.
THE REASON I REPLY TO REVIEWS IN MY STORIES IS SO I CAN REPLY TO PEOPLE WHO REVIEW ANONYMOUSLY AND THEN I JUST REVIEW TO EVERYONE CAUSE I FEEL UNFAIR lol and the rules of the site said you could have author notes and the start and end of each chapter, just not in the middle. ;) I also so it because the first fanfic I read was before i knew about this site (yet it was on this site, lol) It was a Zutara fanfic and it was amazing. The author did this as well. The fanfic was called 'Dangerous Ground' Even though I have a lot more fave fics now, that one will always hold a place in my heart, it also got me into Zutara :)
3. chakrams are like...sharp, spiky disks of sort. sorry i didn't explain. Never heard of Gallagher Girls, though I love that name, it's Irish and means 'lover of foreigners', I used it for the last name of a character in a certain novel I'm writing. ;)
I don't have a beta reader...I only had one for one chapter...lol
4. SkylarPhoenix: PHOENIX! xD Anyways, I know right? :(
allidiane23: yes...wait...Percy instead of Annabeth? *confused* lol
_: Thankys no name! lol
Mattina: Thank you!
Alice daughter of Athena: Thank you!
WritersWand
Eternal Complications
Chapter 10
Thalia: Awkwardness and a little green monster
"She looks so calm and cute when she's sleeping," a familiar, feminine voice laughed, a voice I longed to hear for a long time.
"Yeah, it's normally the only time she looks at peace. She would now, if it weren't for her eyes darting around beneath her eyelids. She must be dreaming," a familiar masculine voice laughed as well.
"A half-blood dream?" the feminine voice pondered.
No verbal response came from the masculine voice.
"Though they've stopped…Annabeth?" the feminine voice asked.
A half smile crept on to my lips. I opened my eyes and saw the figures of Luke and Thaila sitting on the bed adjacent Percy's.
Luke looked normal, though, fresher and cleaner, he must have showered recently.
Thaila wore her normal dark, punk-like clothes-she was wearing a shirt with that bunny on it, I forgot what it's name was-her black hair was short, gelled, and her bangs covered her electric blue eyes. A large section of her bangs was dyed turquoise, a coon tail hung from the side of her head. She looked like she was going Scene.
"Surprised?" Thaila grinned.
I sat up and rubbed my eyes to make sure this was real. "When did you get in?" I asked.
"Just a couple hours ago, Luke immediately found me, somehow. We went to the Pavilion because I was starving and we've been talking since," she explained.
"Oh?" I asked.
Thaila shrugged. "Basically what happened after Luke left Kronos ranks, how you found him, how off-season was like until now, you know, everything, quite interesting,"
"Everything?" I almost choked.
Thaila raised an eyebrow. "Is something wrong?"
I eyed Luke for a mere second; he stared straight ahead, his face blank: emotionless. Thanks for all the help, I thought. I looked back at Thaila.
"What's going on here?" she asked.
"Nothing Thaila, it's fine, I'm just jumpy, that's all," I reassured her.
"Are you hungry? Percy had breakfast brought up but he's not awake yet…" she trailed, starting to reach for the tray on the nightstand but Luke beat her to it. He picked it up and set it down on the bed next to me before sitting where he just was.
Thaila raised an eyebrow and laughed. "If it was your calling to be a butler Luke you should have told me ahead of time! I could have made use of this!" She grinned, pushing back her bangs.
Luke and I glanced at each other through the corners of our eyes before I looked back at Thaila.
I attempted a nervous laugh. "Yeah, that was kind of funny,"
Thaila nodded. "So, Annabeth, what kind of trouble have you and Percy made while I was gone?"
Luke smiled a little and my jaw fell open. "What?"
Thaila laughed. "Gods Annabeth, today everything I say you're taking as awkward,"
I gave her an awkward smile.
She shrugged it off and we continued talking.
After a while Luke excused himself and left for some reason. I had finished eating and the empty tray was back on the nightstand.
"OK-So, Annabeth, tell me," Thaila said, her light, joking tone turning to a serious one.
"What?" I asked, just out of that previous awkward mood.
"Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about,"
I gave her a puzzled expression. "I really don't know what you're talking about!"
"I'm not stupid Annabeth,"
"I know you aren't-oh…" I trailed.
Thaila looked at me expectantly.
I shifted my feet uncomfortably. "I-uh…" I didn't know what to say.
Thaila immediately jumped to conclusions. "Did he hurt you? I know you see him as an older brother and don't want to see him in trouble, I understand, I feel the same way, but if he did, Annabeth, I swear-"
I cut her off. "No! I mean…nothing of the sort happened,"
Thaila pulled her lips together in a firm line before she spoke. Her eyebrows rose a little. "Well then, explain thyself," she said, eyes shining a little with her use of old English.
I nodded slowly. "I will…I just don't know where to start…or where to begin,"
"Just start from the beginning," Thaila said simply.
I nodded and the words began spilling out of my mouth to no end, in a jumble of anxiety and confusion, it felt kind of good to have someone else to talk to.
I told my "sister" of how I found Luke half-dead in the river in the forest. I explained how I nursed him back to health like I did for Percy, five summers ago. I told Thaila about Cami, the Capture the Flag game, and the kiss Luke and I shared. I told her about the quest and the last line of the prophecy. I actually forgot about that until now.
'The Owl must seek out the thieves' brother'
Maybe Thaila could help me figure that out and what the oracle had in mine between me and Luke.
Anyways, lastly I explained about yesterday, me, Luke, and Percy…When I finished I closed my mouth, the air of the room thick and hot, maybe it was just me.
No one spoke for a moment and an awkward silence infiltrated the room.
"…Well…in the beginning it seemed as if you were just caring for a guy you've always seen as an older brother, then shit happened. Those stupid teenage hormones kicked in and made you have…different thoughts," Thaila chuckled at her version of my long story.
I didn't laugh.
Thaila straightened up. "I know that you know that Luke is a number of years older than you and how he is like our brother…I see how this troubles you and how those two kisses must have confused the heck out of you. It wasn't right for Luke to play with your teenage emotions like that but I can see it. I've never really noticed it before but Luke is quite pretty, I didn't notice until I came to camp and saw him talking to an older girl-she looked about his age- I think she has the hots for him because she was, well, flirting with him. I wondered why Luke just smiled and listened, making no attempt to flirt back, she was a pretty girl…" Thaila finally trailed off, it was kind of hard to follow.
I immediately felt a twinge of jealously. "Who was this girl?" I asked.
Thaila shrugged. "Some ginger, kind of looked like a nerd,"
Thaila too? I guess Clarisse was right after all…
"Oh. You mean Natalia. She's that mortal I was telling you about earlier, she sees through the mist,"
Thaila nodded, understanding.
I opened my mouth to speak again but then closed it, unsure of what to say.
"So…ummm…I really have no idea what to say but I'm guessing you don't want me discussing this with anybody huh?" she asked, eyebrow raised.
I nodded. "Please,"
Thaila nodded back. "Of course…does anyone else know?"
I shook my head. "No…well, another girl I spoke of earlier. The Apollo Cabin girl, nosy, immature, imprudent, sweet-Cami-well…you know…" I trailed.
Thaila sighed, remembering what I told her. "You said she was just starting to get back to normal? From what you told me it seems she won't like Luke much—how do you think she'll react now?"
My eyes widened. "I really don't know…I should probably go find her and try to talk to her," I said, standing up. I walked a few paces, stopped, turned, and looked back at the sleeping form of Percy, who we had completely ignored this whole time.
"Annabeth, he's fine, he most likely won't wake for a while yet, but if he does I'll make sure you get here," Thaila reassured me.
I nodded, even though I really wanted to be the face Percy saw when he woke. But…I guess you can't always get what you want.
I nodded to Thaila. "Thanks," I said leaving the white tent of the infirmary.
I looked around. The sun was high in the sky; it was probably around lunchtime, more or less.
Camp was busy, people were bustling about, on a normal summer day people would be giving me dirty stares, whispering, or even coming to me not for a pleasant chat.
Now with it being the on-season AND preparation for the upcoming war my fellow campers were too busy to take heed for even me, maybe Luke too.
I caught a glimpse of Cami sitting at the crowded Apollo cabin in the Pavilion.
Lunch hadn't even crossed my mind, besides; I was still full from my late breakfast. I would catch her later in the day, when she was alone, to try to explain things to her, hopefully she won't jump to conclusions…like she always does.
I sighed and decided to walk around camp for a bit. I needed this, to get out, breathe some fresh air, not the air of the sick and the wounded, bloody and flemmy smell of the infirmary.
As I was walking I saw Luke through the corner of my eye. I turned to face him. He was standing by the Hermes Cabin, though no one was around that specific cabin.
…Natalia stood, leaning against a wall of the cabin as she spoke, holding a fistful of the white-blond hair attached to his head in her light grasp, smiling.
Luke listened, his lips curled into a small smile. I've seen that smile, I love that smile.
My eyes narrowed. That skank! She would flirt with a tree if it had a six pack on it! …Wait…that makes no sense…I think I got that wrong…yeah, the joke was meant for Grover…but not with a six pack…never mind. Plastering a fake smile on my face, I walked over to them.
I stood behind Luke, so he didn't see me at first, of course.
Natalie saw me though. Her hand dropped down to her side and with the hand that hadn't been holding his hair she was twirling a strand of HER reddish-brown hair around her index finger.
"Hey Annabeth!" she beamed.
Luke turned to face me. "Hi Annabeth, you talk to Thaila?" he smiled.
"Yup, and I see you've been enjoying yourself," I said, smiling my plaster smile back at him.
Who are you and what have you done with Annabeth Chase! I never act like this! Natalia's one of my friends! I only act like this with that Rachel girl! What's wrong with me today?
Luke shrugged.
I pushed my lips together into a smile again. Thaila and I talked about almost nothing but him and what do you think they talked about? Well, it was probably not—oh never mind, this is quite pathetic, I am ashamed of myself. Like Thaila said: It's just teenage hormones and Luke has no right playing with my confused emotionality-oh, I don't know.
I crossed my arms across my chest and leaned against the cabin about a foot from Natalia. "So," I said, trying to think of what to talk about. "Anything new?" I asked dully.
"Oh yeah, I heard the Ares campers talking about a capture the flag game tonight, they were talking alliances, strategy and crap, it didn't mean much to me but I thought you would be interested…Cami already knows, being obsessed with the game," Natalia laughed.
Luke's blue eyes lit up, but he remained silent. I suddenly remembered how much he enjoyed playing Capture the Flag. I wonder if he'll be allowed…?
"Really? Tonight? After everything?" I asked, not talking about preparing for the war because I know we need breaks and crap.
Natalia just shrugged.
"Oh, well, if Percy finds out we played without him he's going to be disappointed when he wakes," I said.
"Annabeth-" Luke began, but he was interrupted.
"Annabeth!" Thaila called from a ways away, not far from the infirmary.
I looked over at her.
"Percy's awake!" she cried.
My eyes widened. Speak of the Titan Lord.
I raced to the white tent. Before I entered Thaila grabbed my arm.
"You may not want to go in there just yet Anna-"she began.
"Of course I do! Percy's my best friend! He needs me!" I pulled out of her grasp and ran inside, to his bed.
He was sitting up in bed, orange camp tee wrinkled, black hair tousled. His green eyes were wide.
"Percy!" I cried, throwing myself on the bed and enveloping him in a bear hug.
Percy didn't hug me back, he didn't do anything.
I didn't-I couldn't-let go yet.
"Who are you?"