Chapter 35

Frank stared at her for a moment, not saying anything. Hazel couldn't help but worry that he was going to say no. Or not believe her. Or tell someone else what they were planning. That last one wasn't likely, she doubted he'd want to get her or the others in trouble. It was just a matter of if he wanted to risk himself to get Leo out.

"What are you going to do with the horses? Obviously Jason can bring his back, but what about Leo? Is he just going to steal the horse?"

The question surprised Hazel, though she wasn't sure why. It made sense. Frank cared about the animals, of course he didn't want one to just vanish. "Jason will bring both of them back in the morning, claiming he found them on his way back to the castle."

Slowly Frank nodded, staying silent for another moment before speaking "And why are we helping Leo? Word is he was arrested for stealing from the crown."

"He didn't steal anything," Hazel shook her head at that, before continuing "He's a druid, that's why he was arrested, and why there is no way they are going to let him go. He hasn't done anything wrong, which is why we have to do something."

"Valdez is a druid?" Frank asked with surprise as he looked over at her. She couldn't blame him. It wasn't something you found out everyday "You're alright though? They didn't mess with you at all?"

"No," Hazel assured, the concern she saw surprising her a bit too, but it was also nice to see "They were really only interested in Leo. They didn't even really look at me."

"Good," Frank nodded. Then he took a deep breath and let it out "Alright. But if either of the horses get hurt I will track down Leo and kill him myself."

Hazel decided not to mention that Jason would also be to blame. That wasn't the point. The point was that he didn't want any harm to come to the horses, and she couldn't blame him for that. Hazel didn't want anything to happen to them either, she just had more faith that it wouldn't.

"Thank you," Hazel smiled as she looked up at him for a moment "I'm not sure they would be able to get away fast enough on foot."

"I just have another question," Frank looked at her, face still serious "If I'm staying late, and two horses go missing, aren't they going to know I had something to do with it?"

"No," Hazel shook her head "We just need you to prepare the horses, then leave them in their stalls. Then you leave, make sure the guards notice you. Ask for the time so they know exactly when they saw you. It should be at least half an hour before Leo and Jason actually ride out. Everyone will most likely think that whoever helped him escape slipped into the stable and readied the horses before hand. Either way there will be no proof you had anything to do with it."

There was a pause, before Frank nodded again "Alright, I can do that. Night after tomorrow?"

"Night after tomorrow," Hazel agreed, smiling as she looked up at him "Thank you. Seriously, I know you don't exactly like Leo."

"That doesn't mean I want him to be killed," Frank replied, shrugging a bit "Besides, what's happening to him isn't fair. Someone should do something about it."

Hazel nodded a bit in agreement, and for a moment just smiled up at him, and despite how serious Frank had been throughout the entire conversation, she found him smiling down at her as well.

"You want me to do what?" Grover looked at Annabeth with a mix of confusion and disbelief. It was late, Annabeth had managed to slip into the store just as Grover was locking up for the night. He had assumed that she just needed some last minute thing for her step-mother, but as soon as she was in and had his attention she had instead started filling him in on everything that had been happening at the castle, ending with two requests.

"Make a sleep drought," Annabeth replied simply, looking over at him "I'm sure you can do it. You've made them for my step-mother often enough. Just do that, but make it stronger so it'll works faster."

"Right," Grover nodded, looking over at her for a moment before adding "And you will be using this drought to break someone out of the dungeons?"

"Someone who hasn't done anything wrong," Annabeth added, but nodded a bit in agreement. After a moment she sighed a bit and added "If you don't want to help I understand- but yes, that is what I'm asking you to do."

For a moment, Grover just looked at her, trying to figure out what to do or say. What if he messed up? It wouldn't be the first time he had gotten something wrong, and than his friends would be in really bad position. But on the other hand, if he didn't do it, they would have two wide awake guards to deal with. He couldn't let them down.

Finally, he nodded "Yeah, I should be able to handle that. It probably won't be ready till morning after next, but I can do it."

A look of relief passed over Annabeth's face, even though Grover knew she had been trying to make it seem like this wasn't a big deal, wanting to give him the choice without the pressure of how much she needed him. "Thank you Grover. Seriously. And… the second part?"

"Oh yeah, that part's easy," Grover assured, smiling at her and accepting the note she passed him "I don't see why it should cause any problems."

"Right, good," Annabeth smiled at him again.

For a moment, Grover just looked over at her, before he finally asked "Why are you doing this?"

"What do you mean?" The confusion was clear on Annabeth's face, and to be completely honest, Grover wasn't sure what he was asking either.

"I mean- it's not like you know the guy, so why are you risking all of this for him?" Maybe it was a dumb question, but Grover got the impression the answer was more than just 'It's the right thing to do.'

"Why are you?" Annabeth replied evenly, raising an eyebrow as she looked at him, and Grover got the impression she already knew what his answer was going to be, something that tended to happen a lot with her.

"Because you're asking me too," Grover replied honestly "And I know how determined you are. I don't want to let you or Percy down."

He couldn't let his friends down, not again. So, even though he was worried, there was no way he could say no when he knew they needed him.

"Exactly, I don't want to let them down," Annabeth replied, but Grover could tell she wasn't telling the whole truth. He was good at reading her, and Percy too for that matter, even though both of them were good at hiding what they were feeling a lot of the time. He figured it just had to do with how long they had all known each, since he wasn't particularly good at reading other people, just them.

"It's more than that for you," Grover countered, shaking his head before looking at her again, waiting for her to reply.

"Something happened last week. Percy was put in a really bad position, and he couldn't do anything but watch as people died. It's making him rethink this whole thing. He needs this to show him that being a prince can allow him to help people, before he backs down from the whole thing."

"You don't want him to?" Grover asked, with slight surprise as he looked over at her "You want him to actually go through with being king?"

"I do," Annabeth agreed, her eyes stormier than usual "He'll be a good king, or if nothing else he is a good man. And despite his protests being a prince suits him. He wants to help people, and the best way for him to do that is to be the prince."

"Is he really going to be happy doing it though?" Grover asked, hesitating as he looked over at her "If he backs out he could get his whole life back."

"He would live to regret it," Annabeth replied with a certainty that Grover didn't question. If anyone knew Percy better than him it was Annabeth. If she was that certain about it she was probably right. After a moment she added "And it was nice to have them all relying and trusting me."

Grover nodded. 'It's the right thing' wasn't a bad reason, and it was enough of a reason for Annabeth to do something, but the other reasons helped with why she would be risking so much for it. Annabeth had spent a lot of her life mostly feeling completely ignored, especially by her father, and as a result, having people that were looking to her in this way had to be appealing. Not to mention that, of course, she wanted Percy to be happy. After everything he'd been through the guy deserved it.

"You should go," Grover said after a moment "Before anyone notices and questions what's taking so long."

He doubted anyone really would. They were friends, so even if someone did notice they would just think they were talking about something. Still, better safe than sorry, right?

Annabeth apparently agreed, because she nodded, giving him a small smile "You're right. Thank you again, Grover."