Hi! Chapter Seven…the sacred number of Artemis and Apollo. The one-month anniversary of this! Not that it matters. Eh…anyway, onto review responses.
Soulmate: The term for two people drawn by 'Destiny' to fall in love and be together.
Soulmating: The science of soulmates, and the 'act' of soulmates.
Soulbond: The bond of two soulmates, encompassing the mental and physical parts.
Soullink: The physical link and/or bond of the two soulmates.
Soulshard: The spiritual or mental link and/or bond of the two soulmates.
Soulbreak: The term for the bond of two soulmates being severed or broken.
Daughter of Sally Jackson: Um…well, yeah, I'd say so. I'd also discourage it…but thanks! (That's a good thing.) Thanks! Again!
SunBear: Don't make me take out the screenshot…hehehe *will bask in the fact that she got SunBear to admit it once
Hmm…IDK. That didn't occur to me. …I didn't even have anything to write here, so I just put the monologue there instead. :/ Oh well.
Yes, the glorification. Annabeth dislikes the fact that they think soulmates are the dream, and that the bad stories are always overlooked. And, you know. The fact that most think their soulmates are like the only person. …that sounds like an interesting novel.
Yes, yes it does. Well, to be fair, Luke and Thalia were homeless…were they teens? Yeah, I think so. Homeless teens…that were also taking care of a seven year old girl and had terrible experiences with soulmates. (You did read it wrong. Sorry.) She didn't want a soulmate…and she didn't want to check…eh, it's a mess.
P.S. I know it was you…it sounds like you…this is a creepy postscript…goodbye.
Joshannis12345: Um, yes. I have two cats right now and had another in the past. Thanks.
Azure Bluet: Well, I hope that happens, otherwise their living situation will be sort of sad. And yeah, Annabeth's being sorta mean. :/
Mango is back. Yays.
Hmm, so, it basically means she attempted to destroy her bond with her soulmate, but, she, uh, didn't succeed and became comatose.
You would, Sadie. ;-; *as I look at the CJWG chat and your 'death' conversations*
I have to agree with Annabeth too. Soulmating does sound stupid. (I wonder why I'm writing this soulmate story…maybe it wasn't the best idea. Eh. Can't stop now.) People like to believe that sort of thing?
Piper is a bit pushy. At least she can't…IDEA! Thank you very very much Sadie!
Yes, Jason hasn't appeared. If and when he does, that would be awkward. Yeah…
The elephant in the…story. Percabeth. They are being mean to each other. But yes, Annabeth's fatal flaw is pride.
Yes. Annabeth hath unleased ze sob story.
Thanks for the review, goodbye!
Nothing you could do: Ah, yes. :/ Dang it, when I wrote it, it had italics. And now there's…no italics, copy and paste is mean. Cats are good. I love cats. I actually tried to convince my parents the other day to get another cat, but they said no…I'll try again in three years. :D Interesting. Your mother has good taste in pets. Good for your friends who didn't go with dogs. Anyway…I don't know why your head hurts. That's sad. Hopefully by the time you see this it doesn't hurt. Thanks, bye!
Annabeth's POV:
Following Annabeth's impromptu speech about soulmates that she had unleashed on Piper, the two of them had sipped tea in the kitchen and living room respectively, and nothing more had been said about the topic. Little had been said that was not about the topic, either- basically, very little had been said between the two of them about anything- a few pleasantries, but a disconnection, almost.
One week later, the two of them were having tea in the kitchen or living room by themselves again, except this time, it wasn't hibiscus lemon, but English breakfast with lemon juice and mint leaves and sugar the way Piper and Annabeth both liked it, and nothing more was being said. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, but Annabeth didn't like it. Their routine hadn't been disrupted, but there was a heaviness that hung in the air, an uncomfortable one, and Annabeth had never been all that good with uncomfortable situations.
In the mornings, Annabeth went to work with a halfhearted wave goodbye, and Piper would be home an hour after she was, after job-hunting- Annabeth wasn't quite sure what Piper was looking for, as she was studying to become a musician through online classes, and was a therapist, but she hadn't found anything quite yet, unless she'd kept it to herself. Their paths crossed, but not as easily as before.
Annabeth had regretted her words immediately after saying them, however she didn't have chronokinesis, or, in other words, a way to manipulate time, so she had no ability to magically take away her rant about soulmates, and undo everything else that had happened since then- which was basically all the uncomfortableness. Piper had accepted it, something she was grateful for, but it changed a lot when you dumped a load of bitterness onto your semi new roommate and possible friend who you'd known for less than a month, when she hadn't really asked for it and didn't really want it.
Annabeth wasn't sure what to do now- she couldn't take back her words, and she wasn't sure if she needed to apologize or something, and opening up to Piper, while it had probably been a good decision, didn't feel like a good decision now that she was stuck with it, because you could change your imminent future, but you couldn't change your past. And if she could, Annabeth would probably have changed it a long time ago…to what, she wasn't sure, she didn't really know. But she wouldn't be surprised if she'd scared Piper with her long, cold monologue and that her roommate wanted to leave.
So when Annabeth looked up from when she'd been trying and somehow failing to make toast, and noticed Piper holding a suitcase, she jumped to the extreme, abandoning her very burnt toast and walking toward the doorway. "So." She stated, leaning against the wall slightly, and waiting, arms loosely crossed.
Piper looked at her. "So?" she sounded sort of sad. Annabeth wasn't quite sure what was going on. Was Piper just…moving out without telling her? In what universe was that going to work out? Well, there was that flashback Friends episode, but that wasn't real life, and it wasn't really the point either.
"So, a little warning would've been nice," Annabeth said, "I mean, it's not like I would try to do anything, but it would still be nice to know beforehand." Piper looked confused. Annabeth gestured to the suitcase. "In most cases, when one is moving out, it's good to tell their roommate, but that's fine. Yeah." Annabeth knew she was acting odd, though it seemed Piper had just forgotten to tell her she was moving out. But that was fine…right? Annabeth didn't need Piper to tell her everything. It was fine. Annabeth wasn't Piper's keeper.
"Oh-" Piper said, before cutting herself off and pausing for a moment. "I'm not moving out. But my friend Leo is moving, and, I promised him months ago that I'd bring him some stuff to help him, and he…has overlooked suitcases." Annabeth raised her eyebrows. Piper hastened to explain. "He's ADHD. He flits from topic to topic really easily. But, uh, anyway, I'm leaving- to help him- and I should be back in a few days."
That made her slightly happier, as she didn't really want Piper to move out, even if she'd sort of acted like it, the only thing Annabeth could find a comment on was, "In this situation, you often still tell your roommate." The words were dry, but she smiled a little. She'd be gone for a few days, yes, but that wasn't the end of the world. It wasn't like Piper was going to run away and disappear off the face of the planet, and why had Annabeth been so worried anyway? It wasn't like she needed Piper. She liked Piper, yes, and with more time perhaps they would become good friends, but she didn't need her. She'd done just fine on her own before, after Rachel left. She had her cat roommate anyway. She'd asked Piper to live with her because she'd needed a place and she'd seemed nice. She wasn't lonely. Pets could fulfill a lot of one's personal interaction needs.
Piper laughed. "I'll see you soon." She walked out the door, closing it behind her. After a few moments, Annabeth turned to lock it, and a few minutes later, a text lit up on her phone, making its characteristic bunch of beeps she had set herself and getting Annabeth to pick it up.
Piper (the Queen) McLean: I may have left Mango out… :/
Annabeth scowled at it. Piper had set her contact on Annabeth's phone, adding 'the Queen' to her name, and Annabeth wasn't going to bother changing it even though it irked her the slightest bit.
Annabeth didn't dignify Piper's text with a response and poked her head out the door in search of Mango. Unwilling to encounter Mr. Percy Jackson another time, she headed downstairs instead of upstairs and looked around for her troublesome cat, who had been acting out lately despite the influx of attention.
She passed a large black mastiff that looked like it had come straight from hell, and a tortoiseshell cat that probably needed to go to the nearest shelter, but no Mango. Annabeth avoided the dog and considered the cat for a second before she went back upstairs, where Mango was sitting on Piper's bed.
"Traitor Cat," Annabeth commented. "Piper's not your mom, I am." Mango looked at her lazily and stretched, the toe pads on her paws a combination of black and pink, as if to say: 'Do you really think I care, Lady?' Annabeth looked down at her. "And you're supposed to sleep on my bed." Mango blinked and closed her eyes, and then she sighed- a sad sound as if to show Annabeth the pain she was going through as a plump cat with warm beds to sleep in and good quality pet food. Annabeth was just glad she didn't keep her up all night crying like cats she'd had in the past. Annabeth texted Piper a picture, raising her eyebrows at the emoji she had sent her a few minutes earlier- the blue and yellow face with the big eyes, one Annabeth was unwilling to decipher.
Piper (the Queen) McLean: or not
You: ...really, I didn't notice
Piper (the Queen) McLean: ha ha ha, is sarcasm your first language?
You: No, is forgetfulness yours?
Piper (the Queen) McLean: Huh?
You: Just nothing.
Piper (the Queen) McLean: if you say so
You: tell your Leo friend I say hi.
Piper (the Queen) McLean: Course I'll tell my Leo friend my grumpy roommate says hi! Got to run, I can't let Leo drive O-O
Piper didn't answer Annabeth's other text messages, but that wasn't out of the ordinary, Annabeth had learned in the short amount of time she had known her. She was probably driving, after all, and texting while driving was not a good idea, as it could potentially result in a car accident and Annabeth doubted Piper would want to get in one of those because she was texting Annabeth.
She was probably also telling 'Leo' that her grumpy roommate said hi, because that was the way Piper was. Annabeth didn't really care. She'd probably never meet this Leo character anyways. She looked back at the burned, buttered toast sitting on her counter, before dropping it into her compost bin, but not trying again. She wasn't all that hungry anyways. And then she frowned.
Upstairs, someone was blasting this…country music. Horrendous country music, in fact- even though Annabeth hated all country music. She turned on her own stereo, turning to SiriusXM- and then to The Bridge, however, the Rolling Stones did little to turn out whatever it was that someone was playing. Turning up the music, she frowned as it seemed to change nothing, resolving to go ask them to be quieter. The answer hit her as if it had been obvious. Percy Jackson, her obnoxious upstairs neighbor, was the one playing this…country music…after turning off her stereo as she wouldn't want him to have anymore to point about about her music, Annabeth slammed the door shut and marched upstairs, knocking furiously, reminding herself of her angry knock when she first met him. Percy Jackson, that was. Of course, she'd left even angrier than she had been when she first knocked, looking for Mr. Harrell.
There was no answer. Unwilling to wait around for Mister Percy Jackson to answer the door whenever she pleased, Annabeth took a walk, firmly resolving to clear her head with the pretty scenery.
Percy's POV:
Percy knocked on the door of the room below him, frowning when whoever was blasting that obnoxious rock music didn't answer. It had been turned off, he noticed, and he wondered if Piper and Annabeth Chase liked rock music. Probably, since they were playing it after all. Piper seemed like the sort of person to like classic rock…but he wasn't sure about Annabeth- a mystery he had yet to figure out. Despite the fact that he'd probably destroyed his chance with her (if he'd had one in the first place) Percy still liked her. He just hoped her personality was nicer when not met with him. He'd turn that around, however. Well. Hopefully. He wasn't sure how he would do that, but maybe he would ask her out sometime and go from there…it worked in movies, right? Life wasn't a movie, obviously, but it was close enough at times.
Trudging back to his apartment, Percy noticed that it was sort of drafty. He'd thought, perhaps, that it was just the way these apartments were, but now he wasn't sure if it was drafty or just with a lack of humanity and personality in the room. He should probably ask some of his friends if they were interested in moving to a tiny town in both Oregon and California and living with him.
He briefly considered his cousin Nico di Angelo, and his friend Frank Zhang, but Nico was a little wrapped up in graduate school, and Frank was busy with his girlfriend. Plus, neither of them needed a quiet escape from reality…well.
There was someone else, though. And there was no harm in trying, right?
Percy went through his contacts until he found the right person and pressed call, expecting it to go to voicemail and being pleasantly surprised as they picked up. "Hello?" Percy smiled slightly at his friend's annoyed tone- as if he'd just woken up. It was 11:00 AM. If this went like Percy hoped it would, he would be waking up earlier… "Percy, why are you calling me at 4:00 AM? I'm on a business trip, remember? I don't have time for another talk about your feelings." Percy sighed. His cousin was so melodramatic.
"Hello and a warm welcome to you too, Jason. I was wondering if you'd be up for an escape from the world as you know it? And it comes with a roommate."