Chapter 48 - Oh Come on Percy! This is MY Story!

I helped guide Annabeth to our table and sat next to her. Reyna, Frank, Hazel, Piper, Leo, Jason and Octavian all joined us. I could tell Annabeth was getting more and more uneasy. I leaned over to whisper to her, "I want to show you around New Rome. Just me and you. This place is incredible!"

I saw a small smile flicker on and off her lips, and I could tell she was too nervous to think about that right now. She looked… troubled. I wasn't sure why. But I knew her well enough to guess that she was thinking about how important this meeting was and how many ways it could go wrong. I guessed she probably had plans and backup plans labeled A-ZZ on the ship, ready for literally anything that could happen. See, I like to just jump in and figure things out as they happen. Annabeth likes to plan for literally every detail. Typically, we meet in the middle somewhere and things work out.

I felt Annabeth's eyes on my new tattoo, branding me the newest member of the Roman legion. I could tell it worried her. Did she think I would stay, like, forever? Without her? I'd need to find time to tell her that that wasn't the case. I'd go with Annabeth anywhere. If she didn't want to be here, fine, we'd figure something else out. I just hoped she'd give it a chance.

"Ok. Sure." She said, sounding scared, worried. I wanted to scoop her up, have one of our long talks where we figured out what was going on and what to do next, but, well, we were in front of everyone again.

"I've been thinking…. I had this idea -" I began quietly to her.

"A toast." Reyna announced. "To new friends and old."

Jason explained their quest to rescue Hera from her cage at the Wolf House. Annabeth stayed silent throughout most of it. She didn't talk about all the stuff she'd done to search for me - I didn't learn about all that until a lot later. But I could tell she felt uncomfortable being here. She was ready to run at a moment's notice. It reminded me of the vision I'd seen once, of tiny Annabeth scared of the world, running from monsters on the streets.

"Impossible!" Octavian cried incredulously, interrupting my thoughts. "That's our most sacred place! If the Giants had imprisoned a goddess there -"

"They would have destroyed her." Piper broke in, calmly. "And blamed it on the Greeks. And started a war between the camps. Now, just be quiet and let Jason finish." I didn't know her, but anyone who can step in to stop Octavian has my approval. Octavian opened his mouth but no sound came out. I looked between Piper and Annabeth, astonished, and Annabeth gave me a small smile. This must've been some kind of superpower but I didn't know what.

Jason explained, "So, that's how we found out about the earth goddess, Gaea. She's still half asleep, but she's the one freeing the monsters from Tartarus and raising the Giants. Polyphreon, the big leader dude we fought in the Wolf House, he said he was retreating to the Ancient Lands - Greece. He plans on awakening Gaea and destroying the gods by - what did he call it? - pulling up their roots."

I nodded. "Gaea's been busy over here too. We had our own encounter with Queen Dirtface." I glanced at Annabeth, who was smiling at my nickname for the goddess. That gave me enough courage to explain everything that had happened on my side - starting with waking up outside the Wolf House remembering nothing but my name and Annabeth's. Her face, her voice, her laugh, and kissing me when I'd been stupid.

I saw her hands shake as she tried to control herself. I realized she had thought I'd have totally forgotten everything, even her, and we'd be starting over. My heart squeezed and I wanted desperately to hug her and apologize a thousand times for everything that had happened. Instead, I gently reached out to take one of her hands and gave it a little squeeze. I saw Piper doing the same for her other hand and looked at the new demigods in confusion. Piper gave me a teary smile and Jason looked relieved, even Leo grinned. I realized that all of them had been worried, even though I didn't know them, that I would remember nothing, maybe fight them about going on the quest, maybe hurt Annabeth more. They all cared about her, as a friend and not just a commander. That made me happy - she hadn't been entirely without support while I'd been gone.

Still, I could tell Annabeth was ready to break down. I kept talking, telling the Greeks about our quest to Alaska to free Thanatos and get the eagle. The whole time I kept one of Annabeth's hands in mine. Thankfully, no one seemed to mind. After all these months, I wasn't ready to let her go and I could tell she felt the same.

Jason whistled when I finished. "No wonder they made you praetor!"

Octavian snorted and I could tell he was going to bring all kinds of annoying. "Which means we now have three praetors! The rules clearly state that we can only have two!"

"Oh the bright side," I joked, "both Jason and I outrank you, Octavian, so we can both tell you to shut up."

I grinned as Octavian turned purple and Jason gave me a fist bump.

"We'll have to figure out the extra praetor problem later." Reyna decided.

"I'll step aside for Jason." I announced. "It's no biggie."

I could feel Annabeth relax a little beside me. So that was one of the things she was worried about.

"No biggie?" Octavian said in horror. "The praetorship of Rome is no biggie?"

I ignored him and looked at Jason. "You're Thalia Grace's brother, huh? Wow, you guys look nothing alike."

"Yeah, I noticed." Jason agreed. "Anyway, thanks for helping my camp while I was gone. You did an awesome job."

"Back at you." I told him. Annabeth kicked my shin. I grinned at her, still grateful to see that she felt comfortable enough to tease me. After this long apart, well, I was worried that something would have changed and I was glad to see it hadn't.

"We should talk about the Great Prophecy." Annabeth explained, not looking at me. "It sounds like the Romans are aware of it too?"

"We call it the Prophecy of the Seven." Reyna explained. "Octavian, you have it committed to memory?"

"Of course!" He said with a huff. "But, Reyna -"

"Recite it, please." Was her response. "In English, not Latin."

He sighed dramatically, like reciting was that big of an ask. "Seven half-bloods shall answer the call. To storm or fire the world must fall -"

"An oath to keep with a final breath. And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death." Annabeth finished. I wasn't sure why she'd interrupted.

"Is it true?" Frank asked her, looking at her like she was an alien. "You're a child of Min- I mean, Athena?"

"Yes." Annabeth said, shifting uncomfortably. "Why is that such a surprise?"

Octavian laughed in a mocking way, which made me tense. "If you're truly a child of the wisdom goddess -"

"Enough." Reyna snapped. "Annabeth is what she says. She's here in peace." I was surprised she was coming to Annabeth's defense. Maybe the enemy of my enemy is my friend? "Besides..." Reyna continued. "Percy has spoken highly of you."

I looked at my burger, thinking of Reyna's request that we perhaps be more than colleagues. I felt Annabeth squeeze my hand and wondered how much she'd guessed.

"Uh, thanks." Annabeth said. "At any rate, some of the prophecy is becoming clear. Foes bearing arms to the Doors of Death - that means Romans and Greeks. We have to combine forces to find those doors."

"My brother, Nico, went looking for the doors." Hazel said shyly. I could tell she was uncomfortable around this many new people.

"Wait -" Annabeth said, looking confused. "Nico diAngelo? He's your brother?"

Hazel nodded and I could tell Annabeth was still processing all of that knowledge. I still wanted to find him and punch him for not telling me who I was. "Ok. You were saying?" Annabeth asked Hazel.

"He disappeared. I'm afraid -" She moistened her lips, trying to get herself under control. "I'm not sure but I think something's happened to him."

"We'll look for him." I promised. It was also a bit of a threat for Nico. "We have to find the Doors of Death anyway. Thanatos told us we'd find both answers in Rome. Like, the original Rome. That's on the way to Greece, right?"

"Thanatos told you this?" Annabeth said, looking confused. "The death god?"

I realized my burger was getting cold and grabbed it up. "Now that death's free, monsters will disintegrate and return to Tartarus again, like they used to. But as long as the Doors of Death are open they'll just keep coming back."

"Like leaking through a dam." Piper commented, fiddling with her hair.

"Yeah." I agreed with a smile. "We've got a dam hole." I realized that there was no one present that understood that joke, with Thalia and Grover not here and Zoe Nightshade gone, so I shut up.

"What?" Piper asked, looking confused.

"Nothing. It's an inside joke. The point is we'll have to find the Doors, and close them before we head to Greece. It's the only way we'll have a chance of defeating the Giants and making sure they stay defeated."

Reyna studied an apple in her hand like it had the answers to her problems. "You propose an expedition to Rome - to Greece - in your warship? You do realize that the Ancient Lands - the Mare Nostrum - are dangerous?"

"Mary who?" Leo asked. I didn't realize he was actually paying any attention, he kept playing with a pinwheel he'd made out of taco foils.

"Mare Nostrum." Jason explained. "Our sea. That's what the ancient Romans called the Mediterranean."

Reyna nodded, looking troubled. "The territory that was once the Roman Empire is not only the birthplace of the gods, it's also the ancestral home of the monsters, Titans, Giants, and worse things. As dangerous as travel is for demigods here in America, there it would be ten times worse."

"You said Alaska would be bad. We survived that." I reminded her.

She shook her head at me. "Percy, traveling in the Mediterranean is a different level of danger altogether. It's been off-limits to demigods for centuries. No hero in their right mind would go there."

"Then we're good!" Leo decided. "Because we're all crazy, right? Besides, the Argo II is a top-of-the-line war ship. She'll get us through."

"We have to hurry." Jason jumped in. "I don't know exactly what the Giants are planning, but Gaea's growing more conscious all the time. She's appearing in dreams, showing up in weird places, summoning more and more powerful monsters. We have to stop the Giants before they can wake her up fully."

Annabeth shuddered next to me and I felt an overwhelming desire to protect her. "Seven half-bloods must answer the call." She reminded us. "It needs to be a mix from both camps. Jason, Piper, Leo and me, that's four."

"And me." I said, smiling at her. "Along with Hazel and Frank. That's seven."

"What?" Octavian said, shooting to his feet. "We're just supposed to accept that? Without a vote in the Senate? Without a proper debate? Without -"

Tyson and Ella came over. Tyson looked nervous. "Percy! Ella is scared."

"N-n-no more boats." Ella complained. "Titanic. Lusitania. Pax…. boats are not for harpies."

Leo looked suspiciously at Ella. "Did that chicken-girl just compare my ship to the Titanic?" he asked Hazel.

"She's not a chicken. Ella's a harpy. She's just a little high-strung." Hazel said, not meeting Leo's eyes.

"Ella is pretty." Tyson announced. "And scared. We need to take her away, but she will not go on the ship."

"No ships." Ella insisted. Then she looked directly at Annabeth and recited. "Bad luck. There she is. Wisdom's daughter walks alone."

I wanted to grab Ella and run. She couldn't recite prophecies here, not in front of Octavian, and especially not about my girlfriend!

"Ella!" Frank tried to interrupt. "Maybe it's not the best time -"

"The Mark of Athena burns through Rome," Ella continued, pressing her wings against her ears. "Twins snuff out the angel's breath, Who holds the key to endless death. Giants' bane stands gold and pale, Won through pain from a woven jail!"

Silence fell across the group, as everyone stared at Ella. I could tell Annabeth had gone as stiff as a board and I wanted to talk to her about the prophecy, but not here. Not in front of Octavian. I stood and grabbed Tyson's arm and forced myself to say, "I know! How about you take Ella to get some fresh air? You and Mrs. O'Leary -"

"Hold on." Octavian commanded, gripping one of his teddy bears by the throat, and I wanted to bite my tongue in frustration. "What was that she said? It sounded like -"

"Ella reads a lot." Frank blurted out. "We found her in a library."

"Yes!" Hazel put in. "Probably just something she read in a book."

"Books!" Ella agreed. "Ella likes books!"

Annabeth looked at me, clearly wanting to know what was going on, but I couldn't talk to her. I hoped my message was clear - do something! Get us out of this mess!

"That was a prophecy," Octavian insisted, glancing around for support. "It sounded like a prophecy."

Annabeth turned to the others, that look of confidence I loved on her face. She laughed. "Really, Octavian? Maybe harpies are different here, on the Roman side. Ours have just enough intelligence to clean cabins and cook lunches. Do yours usually foretell the future? Do you consult them for your auguries?"

I wanted to wrap my arms around her in a hug for figuring out a way to fix this so fast. The others looked between Octavian and Ella and suppressed giggles, clearly finding Annabeth's words amusing.

"I, uh -" Octavian looked around and saw no support. He dropped his bear. "No, but -"

"She's just spouting lines from some book." Annabeth said calmly. "Like Hazel suggested. Besides, we already have a real prophecy to worry about." She turned to Tyson. "Percy's right. Why don't you take Ella and Mrs. O'Leary and shadow-travel somewhere for a while. Is Ella okay with that?"

"Large dogs are good." Ella announced. "Old Yeller, 1957, screenplay by Fred Gipson and William Tunberg."

I relaxed. "Great! We'll Iris-message you guys when we're done and catch up with you later."

We all looked to Reyna for permission and she was studying Ella. Then Octavian. Then Annabeth. Finally, she announced "Fine. Go."

"Yay!" Tyson cried. Then he went one by one to hug each person, including Octavian who looked upset about being hugged by a Cyclops.

"Well." Reyna said, commanding all attention. "Octavian is right about one thing. We must gain the Senate's approval before we let any of our Legionnaires go on a quest, especially one as dangerous as you're suggesting."

"This whole thing smells of treachery." Octavian decided. "That trimerie is not a ship of peace."

"Come aboard, man!" Leo said with a grin. "I'll give you a tour. You can steer the boat. And if you're really good, I'll give you a paper captain's hat to wear."

"How dare you-"

"It's a good idea." Reyna decided. "Octavian, go with him. See the ship. We'll convene a Senate meeting in one hour."

"Oh, but -"

Reyna raised a single eyebrow, silencing him immediately.

"Fine." Octavian shut up and walked towards Leo. Leo got up, turning to Annabeth. "Be back soon. This is gonna be epic!"

I could tell that made Annabeth nervous, but I wasn't sure why. Was Leo a Hermes kid who might try a prank? No, Jason had said he was a child of Hephaestus. I wasn't sure what was going on. He sure looked like that Sammy guy that Hazel knew in New Orleans, but did that mean he was a child taken out of time as well? Like Nico and Bianca and Thalia?

"Uh, Reyna." Jason said before I could figure out what was going on. "If you don't mind, I'd like to show Piper around before the Senate meeting. She's never seen New Rome."

Reyna glared at them but said, "Of course."

I saw my chance and took it. "Yeah! Me too. I'd like to show Annabeth -"

"No." Reyna said and my heart plummeted.

"Sorry?"

"I'd like a few words with Annabeth." She explained, watching Annabeth's face. "Alone. If you don't mind, my fellow praetor." I could tell that this was NOT a request. I wished there was some way to let Annabeth know about our past with Reyna, that we'd accidentally hurt her and her sister and that Annabeth might need to apologize, but there wasn't a good way to say that in front of the others.

"Come, daughter of Athena. Walk with me." Reyna said, getting up. Annabeth looked at me, confused and a little alarmed, but then her mask settled back into place.

I hugged her, whispering "Reyna's ok, I think."

She nodded, gave me a quick peck on the cheek, and left to walk with Reyna.