((A/N Two chapters in an hour? I'd better get some serious love for this :) R&R... for serious :)))

Percy POV

"Have any of you seen Annabeth?" I ask, trying to ignore the dozens of gray eyes on me. Each child of Athena has the same stormy eyes as Annabeth, although hers somehow seem a hundred times more intimidating and beautiful.

"You're not supposed to leave your table during breakfast," one of the girls complains.

"He's Percy Jackson. He doesn't follow rules very often," the boy next to her snickers.

"Look!" I raise my voice, "I'll leave if someone tells me where Annabeth is."

Malcolm sighs, pulling his head out of his hands as if my presence gives him an immediate headache. "Percy, if Annabeth didn't tell you where she went, she probably doesn't want you there."

Anger swells inside me, and I grind my teeth together, "I just need to talk to her."

"That's going to be a problem, since she's not here." The sassy girl smirks. I clench my fists tighter.

"I swear to all the gods-"

"Yo, Percy!" Grover trots over to me, throwing an arm around my shoulders, "You aren't supposed to leave your table!"

"That's what I said!" the girl throws her hands in the air.

"Come on, dude." Grover spins around, bringing me with him. I feel the tension in my shoulders soothe a bit. "What were you doing, threatening the Athena kids? You don't have a death wish, do you?"

"I can't find Annabeth," I sigh, "I want to apologize."

I feel Grover tense beside me. He bleats nervously, "Yeah, er- that'd be a good idea."

"Grover, what do you know that I don't?" I pull back, studying his face.

"Ah…"

"Dude!" I exclaim.

"Annabeth went to Olympus," Grover gives up, his shoulders dropping.

"What? Why? Alone?" my mind spins.

"Not alone, necessarily…" he whimpers.

"Come on G," my breathing becomes uneven.

"She's with Alex."

I let myself simmer for a minute before taking a deep breath. "Why?"

"There… was a… um… meeting today." He stumbles.

"About?"

"Luke's rebirth."

I curse much louder than I anticipated, and all the campers turn to stare at me. I feel their eyes burning into me, so I spin on my heel and head for the door, eyes aflame.

"Percy, wait!" Grover follows close behind, "There's a reason she didn't tell you!"

I turn to face him, and he slinks backward, "Don't defend her, Grover! She knows how I feel about this! She knows I'm not okay with Luke, and she went anyway, not to mention hid it from me."

"She wanted to tell you, but you were being too stubborn!" Grover swallows, "She was torn up about it! You were hurting her, Percy, and she was scared because she knew you would react just like this!"

My anger thins, and I feel my eyebrows come together, "But… she wasn't supposed to be allowed to leave camp."

"It was official Olympus business. Besides, that rule hasn't been agreed upon yet, and..."

I hear Grover talking, but none of it processes. My mind is only on one thought, something Malcolm told me days ago. His voice rings in my ears. "Percy, did you know that Bia is after her again? And you. Since she escaped from Olympus, she's been tracking you two. The only safe place from Bia is here, at Camp."

I take off running.


I push my way through the sea of people erupting from the palace doors, each of them muttering something about Luke. I catch one person saying his rebirth has been denied, but I don't have time to celebrate or ask questions.

"Has anyone seen Annabeth Chase?" I call out to the people.

"She was in there," one elderly satyr points back over his shoulder. I thank him before plowing through more dryads and satyrs once more.

When I reach the courtroom doors, there isn't anyone else around them. It's silent, and I get an uneasy feeling. That feeling only worsens when I hear Annabeth's voice from inside.

"Alex, go!"

She sounds frantic, which makes my heart-rate speed up. I grab at the door handles, pulling with all my might, but they don't budge. I hear laughing and crying from inside, and then suddenly everything is quiet again, except for the sounds of my struggling against the door.

"Son?" my father's voice comes from behind me.

"Dad! Help! I think… Annabeth is in trouble," I grunt, pulling the slippery handle. Poseidon reaches over and flicks the door open without breaking a sweat.

Black smoke pours out of the room, hitting me in the face like a tidal wave. I cough, waving my hand in front of my face. Then the fog is gone, and the air turns clear.

"Annabeth!" I lurch forward, seeing her on the ground. She's face-down on the marble in the middle of the room, covered in black soot. A moan comes from her direction.

"What is this?" Poseidon exclaims, angrily.

"Annabeth," I reach her, gathering her into my arms, "It's alright."

She's somewhere between being unconscious and groggy. Her hands wrap around my neck limply, and she buries her face in my neck, but she never says anything and her eyes stay closed.

"Dad, what's going on?" I turn to face him. His eyes are bright green and furious.

"Bia came back. We took precautions. This shouldn't have happened. She shouldn't have been able to… Perseus, where is the boy?"

For a moment I'm not sure what he means. Then I look around and find us alone. "Alex?" I call out. No one replies.

"That's who she came for," Poseidon scratches his beard, "But why?"

I don't answer him, because I'm not sure myself. Instead I cradle Annabeth close. "Do you think she needs a medic?"

Poseidon sighs, "I don't think so. The smoke caused some suffocation, I'm guessing. She'll wake up soon."

I nod, "She's going to be pissed, Dad."

"As I recall, you were very angry with her yourself, not even an hour ago." Poseidon raises his thick eyebrow.

"I… I am angry. But she's more important than that right now."

"My, my. Have you been hanging around the Aphrodite cabin lately, son?"

"Haha," I laugh sarcastically, "Shouldn't you be running a security check or something?"

"I doubt Bia will have the strength or stupidity to return to Olympus any time soon, but I suppose you're correct, I should alert the other gods to her previous appearance." He disappears in a flash of light, leaving me and Annabeth alone.

I carry her to the garden, avoiding the Muses, and sit in the grass near the statue she planned. She groans every once in a while, but she doesn't wake up for nearly thirty minutes. That's alright, though. I've missed holding her for the past few days. She smells like strawberries and cinnamon.

"Unngh- hrrrpl." she grumbles, wriggling in my arms.

"You're not speaking English, sweetie," I chuckle, kissing her forehead. Her eyes flutter open, and when she sees me, she smirks.

"Perseus Jackson saves the day. Again," she grumbles, twisting out of my embrace and onto the grass beside me. Her hands grip at her head, pushing on her temples. "Ouch."

"How do you feel?" I ask quietly, my hand reaching for hers.

"Like a hellhound tap-danced on my chest," she coughs, "What happened?"

"Bia attacked you again," I bite my lip, knowing what's coming next.

Realization clicks into Annabeth's eyes, and she's on her feet in seconds. She swoons a bit, and I wrap an arm around her waist to steady her. "Where's Alex?"

I swallow the lump in my throat, "Bia took him."

Annabeth tears away from me, her eyes ablaze, her temper soaring. "WHAT? You let her take him? You should've saved him instead of me, Percy, you're always doing this!"

"Doing what?" I try to keep my voice low, "Trying to keep you alive? Bia had already left before I found you."

Confusion passes over her, "She didn't take me. Why would she take Alex and not me?"

"Humble much?"

"This is not a joke!" she punches my arm, stalking back and forth, "We need to find him, and soon."

"Well I'll leave that up to you, since I couldn't even find YOU this morning." I let the words tumble out without thinking. Thanks a lot, ADHD.

She meets my eye, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I was afraid-"

"You don't have to explain yourself. Grover already did that for you." I sigh, "I'm sorry we fought, Annabeth. I love you more than anything, and when we fight it totally sucks."

She narrows her eyes skeptically, "'Totally sucks'? Way to use your words, Seaweed Brain. But we can get over the whole Luke thing now, because-" her voice catches, and she covers her mouth with her hand.

"Wise Girl?" I ask quietly, holding my arms out. She accepts my hug, shaking against me.

"He doesn't get rebirth. I lost him all over again." She sobs quietly, clutching at my shirt. I stroke her hair until she's calmed down, afraid of what I'll say if I open my big mouth. "I'm sorry we fought, too," She finally says, "I missed you."

"I missed you, too." I smile gently. She lifts her head from my chest and kisses me softly, her lips gently moving against mine.

"I missed that, too," she pulls away, crossing her arms over her chest tightly, as if hugging herself.

"So did I," I admit. She smirks at me, her eyes red.

"Come on, Seaweed Brain. We've got a butt to kick."