The look Reyna gave her was skull shattering. It was as if Annabeth was a whole different person, someone who could attack a mortal just to keep a person she cares about safe. After what happened, the Triumvirate has a lot of disciples, they have been there since the first war with the Titans and even before that, plotting and scheming. There could be others out there who want the Roman praetor gone. Julius was dead sure to follow his orders and kill Reyna and she just cannot let that happen. She did not want to see it as saving the praetor's life because Reyna could have held her own just fine but Annabeth did not want to risk it. Now, she just did the same. Empousa or not, that girl was a wayward disaster. If Reyna wants to condemn her for being rational then so be it.
Annabeth would rather die first than relent and say sorry for being cautious so she did as she was told. With a caffeinated energy drink in her hand, she stood outside in sullen. The night sky was not even visible with all the smog in the air, she should remember Zöe Nightshade first like she always does but at the moment the huntress came second. Looking at the darkness, she thought about crashing from the space down the ground. It was said that Becca has her own space station up there somewhere and Annabeth's mind was quick to wrap around things. Might it be possible that the survivors that would later be Clarke's kin will find refuge in the same space station or a relative one with Becca's help? Would Becca fail to destroy her active and conscious AI and instead help the people survive that way? Does that mean that they are bound to fail and die? Bound to be Clarke and Lexa?
She looked back inside the store's glass windows and Reyna appeared to be taking her time apologizing to the mortal. Annabeth sneered, the last time she wanted to punch a mortal girl's face was when she was fifteen and it was Rachel Dare. Well, right now she still wants to punch her friend's face for leading them on. If Rachel has seen them in their next lives, what is the point of trying to stop all these and actually surviving? Would not that defeat the essence of all her visions? But of course, Annabeth does want to survive. She cannot die in this radioactive crap, not yet. But, another part of her and not just a small part of her, does not want to do anything but let it all unfold and just die and be Clarke–and finally be with the one she is supposed to be with.
With Reyna, with Lexa.
"What is taking so long?" Annabeth was on her way back inside when she spotted a figure she would not need effort to look for even in the strangest of places.
He hurriedly crossed the street from his stepdad's Prius. The worried look on his face said that he knows everything, his sea green eyes already reaching out to her and Annabeth's self preservation won.
She ran and met her Percy who was just fast to drape his strong arms around her.
"She called you." Annabeth was a daughter of Athena. Did Reyna forget about that? "She called you that night."
That night when they first shared a kiss. Annabeth felt betrayed. Reyna called her boyfriend that night and arranged all these? Why? To push her away.
She was fuming and Percy can see it. "She told me about your quest, Annabeth. I am here to help. You should have told me the truth. You're trying to stop a nuclear war from happening!"
Quest? Is this how Reyna sees it?
"I'm sorry." Annabeth concealed everything. "You're right, I should have told you but you have–"
"No buts. Let's all deal with this together, I'm driving." Percy planted a kiss on her head. "Um, where are we heading by the way? And where is Reyna?"
The pent-up fury inside her was expunged and was replaced with desolation. Complete and utter emptiness washed her abhorrence for what Reyna did. Annabeth wished the door to the stock room was not left ajar for her to feel horribly and painfully hollow. She was back to that moment when she left the praetor on her couch that morning before Jason showed up, Reyna locked herself inside her bathroom and Annabeth had these mental images of Reyna backed up against the wall, her mouth all over the place and their bodies rubbing against each other.
All of which was horrid to admit that she wished she'd done because right now, someone else has made all her imaginary fantasies with Reyna real.
She knew the right thing to do to save herself from any more toxicity was to walk away from the door but Annabeth did not. She loved suffering; from trying to save Luke to falling into hell with Percy and now to a whole new level of self inflicted pain did she achieve.
Watching someone else touch Reyna.
The mortal had Reyna secured and pinned on the wall. "Tell me if you want me to stop." Somehow, she managed to get the praetor's clothes off her and accomplished to make the Roman lose her uptight and well-guarded self.
Reyna's eyes were lustfully shut as she murmured, "No, please. I need this."
Annabeth just stood and watched like some kind of voyeur, it was not even close to that. She felt nothing or at least, nothing registered to her but when Reyna cried and screamed–two sounds that she longed to cause–she finally was able to look away.
Just the way Reyna wanted and maybe intended.
"What the hell is wrong with you? You just can't kill everyone you don't trust."
"Yes I can."
The deceit was too well-known to Annabeth. She did not care about barging inside the commander's tent. Lexa just went behind her back and tried to have her friend killed. The commander was sitting on her high chair, she did not faze even if she was disrupted from putting on her war paint. Being the commander that she is, Lexa was stolid when she asked her sentinel to stand down.
Annabeth was thankful for the dark war paint that covered her eyes, she just cannot look in those same eyes that both discomfits and soothes her.
"You say having feelings makes me weak." Because right now she could not bring herself to understand as to why Lexa did it. "But you're weak from hiding from them."
It was a hard blow and she knew she should not have called the Commander of the 12 clans weak.
Because she is not.
But Annabeth–Clarke knows and feels that Lexa's armor is what makes her vulnerable at the same time.
"I may be a hypocrite Lexa but you're a liar."
The commander raised her head in a silent challenge but her body betrayed her as she drew backwards away from Annabeth.
"You felt something for Gustus, you're still haunted by Costia." They stared at each other, no one dared to blink. "You want everyone to think you're above it all," Annabeth did not retreat, not when Lexa was finally showing an honest reaction for the first time, until the commander bumped her back against a table and made her inhale sharply. "But I see right through you."
The air was charged around them, between them and inside them. Lexa gripped the table tight, her jaw clenched and the veins in her forehead showed.
"Get out." Was all the cold commander could say.
Typical Reyna.
"250 people died in that village, I know you felt for them but you let them burn."
"Not everyone," Lexa paused, breathed and blinked before continuing. "Not you."
Annabeth–Clarke stood still, looking into the commander's eyes, her knees felt soft for what the commander professed and she was not even aware of her heart abrupt stop until it pounded against her ears. Lexa was in the verge of tears, her armor turned to her own vulnerability but she did not say anything more than her eyes could speak.
"Well then if you care about me then," Annabeth could feel her own mouth saying the words out loud, "trust me."
Trust me.
She woke up in the backseat of the car. Percy was driving in front and the shotgun was empty.
Annabeth squirmed and quickly sat up, almost getting nauseous in doing so.
"I can't." Reyna whispered. Even in the dark, her eyes glinted in stubborn tears. "I can't do that."
For a second, another car in the opposite lane zipped by, the light hit Reyna's face and it was not hers that Annabeth caught sight of. The war paint looked like sad and messy tears, it was Lexa's.
"You passed out from exhaustion." Reyna said a little louder, breaking the uneasiness. "Probably from the flight."
The flight? Annabeth would have protested and pointed another word that starts with F but somehow everything has left her feeling dejected and hollow.
She felt bad when she transferred to the front seat with her boyfriend. As if he was her fallback now. Although it was never like that, Percy has always been her island, her escape, her anchor to this world, both the mortal and their world.
"I hope you're feeling better." He said without peeling his eyes off the road. "Because if Reyna was right about that information then we're almost at this scientist's estate."
"She's having a close social gathering for the successful commencement of her tech." Reyna spoke nonchalantly. "With her small circle of friends, colleagues and subordinates."
"I suppose you have some patron connection inside for us to get in." Annabeth replied.
"No."
"Then how do you want us to get in?"
"I have a–"
"Plan to distract the guards, I don't know with your Roman gallantry, while we sneak inside? That it? And then you could apologize to them after as well."
The both of them glowered at each other on the rearview mirror. Reyna acted all so upright and decided to ignore her.
"I do have associates." The praetor said. "That would he–"
"Of course you do."
"Hey." Finally Percy cut in. Annabeth tore away. "Is everything okay with you two?"
Annabeth gritted her teeth in a smile. "Everything is good, yeah."
Reyna briefly explained her half-baked plan with a smooth Roman defense that plans do not last long in battle. Percy parked a block away from the estate and they all walked through the grand neighborhood, Reyna led the way to a truck that says Neptune's Produce parked near the side entrance of the mansion.
Annabeth could hear faint posh classical music from inside as the two men that were unloading some crates stopped when they spotted their praetor in purple. They quickly handed the two of them uniforms and aprons, excluding Percy. Reyna did not hesitate, she changed in a moment's notice and so did Annabeth.
"I'm guessing I'm just your run away vehicle." Percy noted. "Fine, I'll be here. If you're not out by an hour, I'll jump in."
"We'll be counting on that." Reyna nodded.
"Praetor," One of the Neptune's Produce guy called and told Reyna something in earshot.
"What?" Reyna said in disbelief before charging at her.
Annabeth thought Reyna would attack her or maybe lunge at her and kiss her but instead she went straight to the back of the truck and opened it.
"What are you doing here?"
The figure in the same smelly clothes hopped down and adjusted his glasses.
"I told you, Reyna." Jason said. "I can't let you do this alone."