Disclaimer: I don't own PJO characters
Chapter Eight
Exhaustion weighed Annabeth down all the way from the museum fire to the hospital. The doctors did their endless tests, half of them she slept through, before she ended up in an overnight private room for which her father had somehow gotten the money to pay for. Annabeth didn't ask from where but she knew he had been slowly collecting their family savings since Athena was already paying for so many other amenities.
At some point along the way, Annabeth was left alone. It was nearing nine in the night when the nurse left her room with a promise of test results in the next morning.
Annabeth picked up Percy's blue genie lamp from the bedside table. She wiggled her legs to adjust the light blanket draped over her, and rubbed the side of the blue lamp.
Percy appeared in a flash of sparkles again. His hair was wet, shining in the bright lighting of the room, and his body scrubbed free of the dirt in the genie trap. He was biting his lip when he came out. Percy folded his legs and floated in midair where they could make eye contact.
"Why don't you stand?"
Percy shrugged. "I like floating, sweetheart. Is that a problem?"
"It's weird to talk to someone who is floating." Annabeth patted her legs. "I… still can't walk."
Percy's expression went sombre and the atmosphere in the room dropped. "Have the human doctors not figured out what's wrong?"
"They did some tests but the results aren't back yet. Weird thing is, I can move my legs and feel it if something is itchy. But when I try to stand up straight, I crumble."
Percy tilted his head. He leaned forward and put one hand awkwardly on her left knee. Annabeth lay still as he closed his eyes, wondering if he was doing his genie magic to figure out what was wrong. A second later, he opened his eyes. "I'm sorry, I never took biology at school and therefore never learned how to bend magic to heal anything past the basic cuts and bruises."
"Oh." She swallowed. "Are we going to talk about what happened?"
Percy shrugged. "You walked into a trap because of Luke. He didn't turn up but some other genie who I'm supposed know turned up. The other genie taunted me. Said other genie tried to kill you. We escaped. Done."
"Your memories, Percy. I don't care about Luke anymore. I don't even care that Luke isn't the only genie walking around. Don't you want to get out of your lamp? If we can figure out how these genies got out via your memories, we can get you out."
A ball in Percy's throat bobbed. "And how do you suppose I get my memories back, Annabeth? I know the gist of how things felt back then. I remember some really important people in my life but I'm never going to remember anything more than that."
"Then why are we even trying to get you out of your lamp? I could've died in there, Percy, but I still went because I wanted to set you free."
"Well I wasn't the one telling you to go into the trap. I'm telling you that chasing my memories is a dead end. Why can't you just leave it at that?"
A knock on the door made Annabeth jump, startled. She sent Percy a glare and he disappeared into his lamp. The door swung open to the same nurse who had been tending to Annabeth all day. Helen pushed her way from behind the nurse.
"How're you feeling, Annabeth?" Helen asked her. The nurse walked around the hospital bed to tap on some monitors Annabeth was hooked onto.
"Fine," Annabeth said. "I can go to school tomorrow kind of fine. There's nothing wrong."
"You had minor burns here and there," the nurse said. "I strongly disagree that you are okay to go to school tomorrow. If you're insistent, we can put you in a wheelchair tomorrow but it's better if you stay here."
Annabeth wrinkled her nose. She imaged her wheelchair bouncing down the stairs in the halls and everyone watching as she tumbled flight after flight. Then there was Leo who wouldn't let the opportunity to push her down a ramp and jump on for the ride slide to the side. "I'm okay here."
The nurse smiled. "You're upbeat. Most victims of a fire that come in aren't in the mood."
"Oh, I'm still terrified. But I'm relieved as well. I thought something terrible was going to happen and I didn't think I'd make it out."
"It was a beautiful miracle indeed." The nurse left the room to leave Helen and Annabeth alone.
Helen gave Annabeth a stern look. "I was rattled before but now that we're both feeling better, I want a proper explanation. What happened and why were you there? You were supposed to be home."
Annabeth wrapped her arms around her torso and launched into her well-thought out bluff about a report on Romanesque architecture: the kind of design the old museum was based on. As she spoke, Helen dug out something golden from her bag and set it on a nearby stool. It was her genie lamp that looked like a water jug. Annabeth raised her eyebrows. Helen barely ever brought it out of the house.
"I thought I'd bring my genie for support," Helen admitted at Annabeth's expression. "You gave us a real scare, Annabeth. When the fire department called, we thought you were burnt to crisp."
"Oh."
"Go to sleep, Annabeth," Helen sighed. "It's been a long day today and we need energy for your test results coming tomorrow morning."
aoaoaoaoaoaoao
The test results were completely normal. The doctors were left scratching their heads in confusion because if everything in Annabeth's body was fine, why couldn't she still walk? They recommended physical therapy and tried to wrestle her into a wheelchair but Annabeth refused to sit on one. Eventually, they offered her a pair of crutches and out the door Annabeth went, hobbling on her legs that felt like twigs.
"Please," Helen said once they had settled in the car after Annabeth's discharge the next afternoon. She pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Please take the wheelchair."
"No."
"Annabeth."
"Helen."
Helen gave up. She started the car and they went cruising down the road. Annabeth borrowed Helen's phone to ring up Leo who answered the call enthusiastically. She grinned to herself hearing Leo chastise her. Despite the situation they were in, Annabeth was more than grateful to have the family and best friend that she did. Even Percy had tried his best to help her.
"You coming to school tomorrow?" Leo asked Annabeth as the car pulled onto her familiar driveway. "Rachel is still around but the teachers have taken complete control over her so you won't have to worry about that redhead anymore."
"Yeah. I can't imagine missing another day of school."
"Dammit. Nerd-a-beth is back."
"Nerd-a-beth?"
"Yeah. Annie's new nickname."
"I doubt getting a forty on a biology test makes me a nerd."
"I completely forgot about that. Ha. What a not-nerd."
"You're hopeless, Leo." Annabeth put the phone down after exchanging the usual farewells with him. She slipped Helen's phone onto the backseat and slung her arms over her crutches. Helen had to come all the way around the car to the passenger side in order to help Annabeth out. Frederick came out of the front door, arms open to grab Annabeth and Helen's things.
"You're going to go crazy with those crutches," Frederick pointed out.
Annabeth sighed, wiggling to adjust her armpits on the rubber. "I know."
Helen carried in Percy's genie lamp all the way up to Annabeth's room. Annabeth herself collapsed on her bed the second she entered, curling up into the soft blankets.
She hadn't had a chance to lay and think without any distractions anywhere. She was curious about what happened in the trap despite her promise to stay out of whatever genie mess the world had. Annabeth was going to stay out of it for sure but that didn't mean she wouldn't keep her eye out for something else interesting. Luke was a genie. That terrifying man who took away her legs was a genie. Percy kept warning her that she shouldn't underestimate genie magic. What exactly is a genie capable of then? To destroy the world?
Why hadn't the free genies done that yet then?
aoaoaoaoaoaoao
Three weeks.
Three weeks since she lost the function of her legs, two and a half weeks since she started going back to school. Piper and Leo were the ones helping Annabeth around the building the most. Leo would carry her up several flights of stairs while Piper held Annabeth's bag. Annabeth's legs were getting better; that was an upside. Percy had long given up trying to figure out how to help Annabeth but even he thought that she'd be fully recovered within the next couple months.
"Slow process," Percy had said. "But hey, it'll get there eventually. Now about those Hershey's kisses… they taste better if I'm stealing them from you rather than snapping my fingers to make them appear so please do buy some more for me to take."
"Wow. Real helpful, Percy."
Annabeth and Percy hadn't talked about getting Percy out of the lamp since the museum incident. Somehow, Percy was blaming himself for what happened there even though Annabeth knew it was her fault completely. It didn't help that Luke hadn't shown up for school since the day she saw him walk into the museum.
Now as Piper helped Annabeth hobble up the stairs to their biology lesson on a random Wednesday morning, Annabeth wondered whether Piper had her own genie lamp on her somewhere. While she was aware Piper's genie was named Nico, Annabeth had no clue what Nico's lamp looked like because of how secretive Piper was about it.
"Annabeth," Piper yelped.
Annabeth stumbled backwards. The only thing keeping her from falling was the railing her arm was wrapped around. She straightened up and glared at the remaining stairs. "I hate this."
Piper's expression softened. "I know, Annie. I'm sorry. You'll get your legs back but for now, we're going to be late if we don't hurry. And let's be honest: neither of us can risk pissing the teacher off with our already suffering biology grades."
Annabeth never told Piper about her wish to change her biology grades. Piper hadn't made a single wish. Annabeth, on the other hand, had already wasted two wishes on dumb things that could have easily been avoided.
Piper wrapped an arm around Annabeth's waist and hoisted her up the last few remaining steps. They were both breathing hard by the time they hit the landing. Annabeth took her backpack from Piper and gave her a small hug in gratitude.
"Hey, have you thought about the Christmas Ball at all?"
Annabeth shrugged. "I'm going with Leo. We both made a pact that if we ended up single for it, then we'd go with each other."
"That's so sweet. All my friends have got dates but I'm still not sure who I'm going with."
"If you want, I can ask Leo if you can come with us. We're going dress shopping next week and since it's just as friends, I'm sure you can join. We'll be three peas in a pod."
Piper smiled. "That's really kind of you, Annie. I don't want to intrude into your time, though. I know Leo is really looking forward to your movie night. He's quite protective about your friendship."
"Leo won't mind for you to join. He really looks up to you."
They entered the biology class and to their relief, the teacher wasn't there yet. Annabeth waved to her friends scattered around the area and sat herself down next to Piper. Rachel was sitting behind them where Silena was helping her fold some pieces of paper into shapes. Silena was good with Rachel, Annabeth noted. While Annabeth had been impatient and somewhat ignorant towards Rachel, Silena was giving her full attention to the redhead.
Annabeth let her backpack drop to floor as she scanned the room. She saw Frank Zhang sitting with his back completely straight and instantly a wave of bitterness washed over her. She tried so hard to beat Frank but somehow, she always failed. Frank was stroking his genie lamp in front of him, absentmindedly staring out into the distance. He never brought his lamp to school but then again, Annabeth heard Frank was moving houses so maybe he brought the lamp to school to keep it safe.
"Hey," Katie leaned over to Piper. "I'm getting my genie today at three."
Annabeth didn't really know Katie well but listened in on her conversation with Piper anyway.
Just as Piper had reacted when Annabeth was getting her genie, she squealed and hugged Katie. "Oh, that's so exciting! Trust me, your genie is going to be your best friend. Literally. I was a little miffed when I met my genie 'cause he was all dark and looked like a kid but he turned out to be great."
"Same here," Annabeth piped up. "I hated my genie with a passion when he first came around. I thought he was the typical asshole you find at school. He turned out to be kinda cool and now he's my second best friend."
"Who's your first? Me?"
"Uh… you're tied with Leo, Pipes."
"I better be."
Katie sighed. "Apparently this girl, Crystal, in our school used up all her wishes on the first day and then ended up getting robbed the next day. I don't want to make the same mistake of making all my wishes too early."
Oh. Leo had told Annabeth that story a while ago.
"I wonder what my genie's name is," Katie went on. "I've always imagined their name to be something like Callum."
Piper snorted. "My genie is named Nico Di Angelo. He looks Italian with olive skin but obviously he's actually from genie land. Or wherever genies are from."
"Is he happy in his lamp?" The words spilled out of Annabeth's mouth before she could stop them and she cursed herself seeing both Piper and Katie's confused expressions.
"Why wouldn't he be happy? It's every genie's dream to grant you wishes. You know, I did accidentally ask him a question once and he looked at me all funny for the next hour but otherwise, there shouldn't be any reason that he isn't happy in his lamp."
"It was a dumb thing to say, sorry."
Katie asked, "What's your genie's name, Annabeth?"
"Percy Jackson."
"Sounds British?"
Annabeth chuckled. "Clearly he isn't British."
"Percy Jackson," Katie tried the name on her tongue. "I kind of like that. What does he look like?"
"Black hair that always looks like a mess. He's got these sea-green eyes too that I've never seen on anyone. He likes floating instead of walking and has a thing about stealing Hershey's kisses."
Frank Zhang cried out and the entire class swung around to look at him. He lunged over his desk and his foot went flying behind him, slamming into Annabeth's desk with a clang. "My genie lamp!" Frank's lamp was zooming down the line of table and sent several people running as it passed. The lamp launched itself off the tables and did an astounding flip in the air before landing in front of Piper. She screeched, kicking her chair back and stumbling backwards. The lamp went spinning and jumping in place like a chicken clucking its head.
Annabeth's heart stopped. "My genie," she found herself saying, "is named Percy Jackson."
Frank's genie lamp started sliding down Piper's table and towards Annabeth's voice.
"He's blue when he glows in the dark."
The lamp shuddered in excitement.
"Percy has a mom. A little sister who he misses a lot but can't seem to remember."
Before the lamp could react, Frank grabbed it. Annabeth's shoulders slumped and she watched in amazement as Frank hugged his lamp to keep it from escaping his arms.
"I don't know what that was," Frank stuttered at the stunned classroom. The lamp in his arms jiggled. "I'm sorry."
The door swung open and their petite biology teacher swiftly made her way across the room. She adjusted her glasses, quirking her eyebrow at how many students were out of their seats and still staring at the path Frank's genie lamp took around the room. "Sit down."
"Excuse me," Frank said. "Can I leave my genie lamp in my locker? My genie is a little overexcited."
The biology teacher waved Frank away and he skittered away in a hurry. He was talking shrilly to his genie the second he stepped into the hallway. "Just shut up already," Frank was saying, "and please spare me whatever social life I have."
Annabeth would've laughed if Frank's next few lines hadn't been condescending. He treated his genie like trash. If Annabeth talked to Percy like that, he'd probably use his magic to drive her crazy day in day out. In fact, he wouldn't have saved her from the genie trap. Annabeth wouldn't have learned genies were chained. She wouldn't know who Blackjack nor would they bicker every minute they're together. She secretly loved their dumb arguments.
"What was that?" Piper murmured as their teacher started the lesson. "Creepy."
Annabeth stood up straighter. She knew exactly what it was. Percy reacted the same way when he heard Luke's voice. Now Frank's genie was going crazy at hearing Percy's name.
Whoever Frank's genie was knew Percy. Annabeth wasn't going to let this opportunity go to figure out who Frank's genie was - after all, if she's already broken the rules with Percy, what's stopping her from breaking the rules with other genies?
aoaoaoaoaoaoaoao
"Okay, where's Frank Zhang now?"
Leo flipped his watch and adjusted his sunglasses before replying in a robotic voice. "Basketball practice, Agent Chase."
"Copy that, Agent Valdez," Annabeth declared. "Now pick me up and take me to his locker because my legs don't work."
Leo grabbed Annabeth bridal style and she squeaked in surprise as he spun around with her in his arms. She threw her arms around his neck as he went on in an automated voice as if he was some secret agent. Annabeth laughed in the background, trying and failing to muffle her snorts. Thankfully the hallways were deserted.
"Zhang's locker." Leo's support from underneath Annabeth's legs fell and she straightened, leaning heavily on him. Leo kept one arm around her waist for which she was more than grateful for. They ditched her crutches a while back and now Leo was all keeping her upright. He peered down at her curiously. "Are you sure about this?"
Annabeth nodded. Earlier today she saw Frank's lamp go crazy at Percy's name so it only made sense for her to look into why. It took a while to convince Leo to help her but eventually he hesitantly agreed. Leo had completely given up on subduing her curiosity with genies. So here they were, hiding their identities from security cameras with sunglasses and oversized hoodies, stealing Frank Zhang's genie lamp.
"I'm not sure about this," Leo muttered. "Annie, you're putting a lot on the line. This is going against more than just one rule in the book. You can't ask your genies questions. You can't see a genie that isn't yours. When are you going to stop? I know you're curious but if you get caught, we don't know how cruel the punishments are."
"It's the perfect day," Annabeth argued. "I heard Zhang was off on the basketball trip for a whole week from today. He'll probably think he left the lamp in his locker and by the time he gets back, I'll return it."
Annabeth slipped the two bobby pins she brought into Frank's lock. She worked quickly and the locker opened in seconds. Frank's genie lamp was sitting directly in front.
Leo whistled. "It's blue. Just like your lamp."
"Mine is a darker blue though. This one is quite a light blue." Annabeth took the lamp and quickly hid it underneath her hoodie. They weren't doing this right. They could be easily caught if someone took a closer look at the security camera. Leo slung his arm around her again. He lifted her off the ground slightly to make an impression that she walking on her own but it must have looked wonky.
"They'll know it's us, Annabeth," Leo muttered. "There's no one else in this school that can't walk."
"Yeah, so we rushed into it," Annabeth admitted. "But as I said, Frank won't even know his genie lamp is gone until much later. And it'll be back before then. As long as he doesn't complain, there's no reason to check security footage."
"I hope you're right."
They crossed the garden to where Annabeth's crutches and their backpacks lay on the ground. Annabeth transferred the genie lamp into her bag. Leo grabbed it for her as she balanced on her crutches again. Leo's car was waiting for them in the parking lot and before long, Annabeth was standing by her front door and waving goodbye to her best friend.
She entered her home and with Helen's help, made her way up to her room.
Then finally, finally, she was left alone. Annabeth locked the door and perched on her bed, taking out Frank's genie lamp from her bag. Honestly, she thought Frank's lamp was ugly blue compared to her lamp.
She rubbed Percy's lamp first and he came out in dramatic smoke.
"How was that entrance," Percy asked her lazily. "I'm getting bored of the usual sparkles."
Annabeth crossed her arms over her chest. "Terrible." She couldn't keep a smile off her face.
"And you're happy beacuse you finally beat that Frank Brank kid in Calculus?"
"Nope."
"Athena died and you have all her money."
"I wish."
"You had a wet dream about me."
Annabeth did a spit take. "No, you arrogant prick. What the hell?"
Percy shrugged. "Thought I might try that one."
"Well, no. That will never happen."
"Yeah, but my sexiness can penetrate the most impenetrable people on this planet."
"Percy, shut up. I have a surprise for you." She lifted Frank's genie lamp in the air. "I think I found a genie who knows you from your life before getting stuck in the lamp."
Percy's mouth dropped open. "Who?"
"I don't know. I guess we'll find out together. Do you want to rub the lamp?"
Percy took the lamp from her hesitantly. His bowed head was close enough so some of his dark strands tickled her forehead. He met her eyes. His green eyes were wide and Annabeth saw traces of blue in them. She grabbed his hand and gave him an encouraging smile.
Slowly, Percy rubbed the side of the genie lamp in his hands.
So ik I said the next update would be on Friday but I've been feeling really down lately and when I'm sad, I write. Sooo I finished the chapter early and here's an early update!
If you're new to this story, welcome! I always update on Fridays (although I do miss some Fridays once in a while) so check in then to see the next chapter
Happy life. hope it goes well.