Chapter 54
"Excuse me your highness, but Prince Perseus is here and would like to speak with you."
Piper had looked up from her book when she heard the door open, and at the end of the statement she set it aside to push herself up "Of course, please let him in."
While the guard turned back to the door, Piper merely smoothed down her skirt and stayed near the couch where she had been sitting. She assumed that her and Percy would end up there anyway, so it seemed rather pointless to walk over to greet him. A moment later Percy was entering the room and Piper was smiling at him "Percy, it's nice to see you. To what do I owe the visit?"
Percy glanced over his shoulder, making sure the door was closed, and causing Piper to raise an eyebrow. What could he be planning to say that required making sure the door was firmly closed? Was it some news about Leo that is father had just shared with him?
"I need to talk to you about something," Percy replied when he looked back at her, and Piper realized that he was nervous. More nervous than Piper had seen him since that first afternoon in the throne room.
"I figured as much," Piper kept her voice neutral, though she was still looking at him curiously "Is this a quick standing up conversation, or should we sit down?"
"Sitting would probably be best," Percy agreed, giving her a small smile, before moving over to the sitting area. He hesitated for a moment, debating where to sit, before moving to the couch. He sat near one of the edges, and turned his body slightly so he could face the other.
"What is it Percy?" Piper asked gently, moving to take her original seat on the couch, near the end where Percy wasn't sitting, but turning a bit as well so that she was facing him better. It was clear that he was still nervous, his eyes focused on his hands rather than looking up at her.
For a long moment Percy still didn't answer, and Piper was just starting to wonder if she should prompt him again when he finally looked up at her, meeting her eyes just long enough to say "I can't marry you."
Piper blinked in surprise. Of course, she knew the whole point of her being there was because her and Percy were supposed to be getting to know, and hopefully falling in love with, each other. That regardless of if they did or not, eventually they were supposed to get married. But with everything else that had been going on around them, it had been easy to ignore that point. To let it slip to the back of her brain and only come up when Poseidon was trying to push them together.
"You can't," Piper repeated, looking at him with slight surprise. Not because she thought they were in love or anything like that. Their relationship was firmly friendship, and if it wasn't for their parents it was likely that the idea of marriage wouldn't have crossed either of their minds. The way he said it was what surprised her, with such finality in the decision. Not that he didn't want to, but that he couldn't.
"I can't," Percy sighed, but seeming a little more relaxed now that he had gotten the initial comment out pressed on. "I"m sorry, but I can't. I've been thinking about a lot of things recently, especially the decision I made to become the prince. I jumped into it without fully thinking. Now that I have thought it through, I've realized that I do still want to be a prince, but there are things I want more. And while I like spending time with you, and hope that our friendship continues, I can not continue to court you."
Piper just looked him over, taking in the change that had seemed to come over him. Her face and voice softened. "Annabeth."
There wasn't any anger, or hurt, or jealousy. To Piper's slight surprise she didn't feel any of those things. She liked Percy and thought they could be happy together, but they weren't in love. And she had seen the way Percy and Annabeth looked at each other and interacted. Heard the way they talked with and about each other. It was obvious how much they each cared for the other, in a way Piper doubted she and Percy ever would.
"Yes," Percy admitted after a moment of hesitation "I mean, there's more to it than just that, but yes she is a large part of it. I'm going to start courting her instead. I'm sorry."
"It's alright Percy," Piper assured, still giving him a small smile to try and assure him it really was "I understand, and I'm not upset. I won't lie, you are the best suiter I've met so far, but it's not as if I've fallen desperately in love with you."
"Obviously I need to work on my charm," Percy teased, and even if it was half-hearted it made Piper smile a bit more. Then he looked up to give her a small, but true, smile. "Thank you Piper, I know your parents will likely be upset, but I promise I will do everything in my power to ensure they are compensated for the arrangement being called off."
Piper looked over at him for a long moment. There was something different about him, about the way he spoke. She realized after a moment that he was no longer trying to force his mouth to use the formal accent of nobles. Silently she wondered if it was just because he was finally comfortable enough with her to let it go, or something else.
"They will be disappointed, but if I'm being honest it was always rather odd that your father wanted this arrangement to begin with. Our kingdom is small, it was more likely I would end up marrying a high ranking lord then a prince. In retrospect it was likely that he made the arrangement under the assumption that when me and my parents discovered who your mother is we wouldn't pull out," Piper felt a little bad about saying the last part, but it was true. The fact that he was a bastard would likely scare off families from many of the larger kingdoms. Her parents would be disappointed with this news, especially her mother, but they would live "But Percy, I hate to say it, but your father will never agree to call it off in order to let you court Annabeth instead-"
"He won't like the idea, but he'll just have to decide if he wants an heir that is actually related to him or if he'd rather just pick one of his lords to pass the crown on to," Percy replied, and Piper could see the determination on his face. He had made a decision, and no one would talk him out of it "Either way, I'm going to be with Annabeth."
Slowly, Piper nodded, looking over at him for a moment and giving him a small smile "Then I wish you the best of luck, and for what it's worth I hope you can convince your father."
