"Are you still comfortable with our strategy?" Annabeth questioned. She sat against the ropes of the ring and took another drink of her water bottle. Frank was in the middle of downing his second bottle. The two of them had spent the first half of their day just sparring and working on their strategy for Frank's fight. It had been going well so far.
Frank took a moment to finish his water bottle, and he crushed it up. He tossed it in the recycling can near them before laying back on the mat. Frank nodded and spoke, "I am comfortable with it, and I know it's going to work. We just have to topple the giant."
"Topple the giant," Frank repeated in a soft voice. A small smile came to Annabeth's face. Before watching the videos, she didn't know anything about Micheal Kahale. Frank didn't seem to either. The two of them had watched videos of Kahale's fights and press conferences for almost the entire day Monday. They took a few breaks from watching to work on strategies, but the only bit of fighting they did were demonstrations in self-defense class.
While Annabeth and Frank spent that day studying, Hazel and Reyna left the room long only a few hours after starting. When Annabeth was taking breaks for water, she saw the two were already sparring. How they came up with a strategy so quick Annabeth didn't know. Part of her didn't think Reyna had a strategy. Unless it was something like throw punches and hope for the best.
Annabeth focused back on Michael Kahale. Just from the looks, Kahale was born to fight. He was taller than Frank and way more muscular. He was also one of the most handsome men that Annabeth had ever seen. The man looked like he could be a model. Instead, he made a living by getting punched in the face.
Michael Kahale was a giant, and the best way to take down a giant was to take out their legs. The plan was for Frank to target Kahale's legs and cripple his base. They would practice submissions leading up to the fight, but if Frank couldn't catch Kahale in a submission, he would just keep him on the ground.
If those two plans didn't work, it wouldn't matter as long as Frank focused on Kahale's legs. Injured legs meant that Kahale couldn't put his full power behind his punches. As long as Frank stayed focused and didn't get too confident, he could win this fight.
"Frank, you can do this. I believe in you," Annabeth encouraged. She wanted to say that everyone believes in him, but there was one person who clearly didn't. And that person couldn't apologize for their actions either. Annabeth wasn't going to let thoughts of Reyna ruin her day though.
"Thank you. It means a lot coming from you," Frank said gratefully. Annabeth felt a small blush come to her face. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a blur of movement. Hazel slid under the ropes and appeared next to them.
"Hey," Hazel greeted. "Jason's here, and I definitely got him covered in sweat by hugging him."
"I think that's my cue," Annabeth stated, smiling at them as she turned to leave. Frank returned one of his own, but then lost it. His eyes locked onto something else. Annabeth followed his gaze and saw Reyna walking across the gym. In fact, she was moving directly towards them.
A small frown came to Annabeth's face. Reyna had gone out of her way to not speak to Frank. She seemed to be doing her best to avoid looking at him. As she made it closer, she slowed down. Instead of saying something, she just looked down and continued walking.
Frank's eyes narrowed, and he stood. He left the ring and stalked away. Hazel shot Annabeth a concerned look, then quickly followed after Frank. Annabeth was left alone in the ring, thinking about this whole situation between Frank and Reyna. It wasn't going to be solved by outside interference. Frank and Reyna had to solve this themselves.
Annabeth sighed and rolled out of the ring. She walked towards the door on the opposite end of the gym and opened it. Instead of bringing her lunch that day, Jason was bringing food for them. He had the day off and wanted to spend it with Piper and Annabeth. Percy was tagging along as well. They were going to eat lunch in Piper's office.
Annabeth walked down the hall towards Piper's office and knocked on the door. When she stepped inside, she found everyone was already waiting for her. Piper was sitting behind her desk and scrolling through her phone. Jason was in the middle of putting down two extra chairs, and Percy passed around food.
"How's it going?" Jason greeted as he looked up. He sat in the chair that was next to Piper. Before Annabeth could sit, Piper was lowering her phone and kissing Jason.
"I don't get a hello kiss?" Percy complained.
"I can hug you," Annabeth offered. Percy looked at her, and his nose crinkled.
"You're covered in sweat," Percy noted with a jokingly disgusted tone.
"And your brain is full of seaweed," Piper commented. Percy looked at her and gave her a warning glare. Piper lifted a letter opener.
"I give," Percy said quickly. He lifted his hands. Percy grabbed his burger and leaned back in his seat. "How's the training going?"
"It's going pretty well," Annabeth answered. "After this event, I'll know who my challenger for the title is."
"Are you nervous?" Jason asked. Annabeth thought about it and shook her head. There weren't many fights that she got nervous for, and while she was too busy to check out her possible opponents, it didn't worry her. There would be plenty of time to scout them out. For now, she wanted to focus on helping Frank.
"Have you ever seen Annabeth nervous?" Percy retorted sarcastically. Jason nodded his agreement.
"When she has to speak to the media," Piper chimed in. Annabeth threw a fry at her. "Hey!"
"I heard about Lupa," Jason said before Piper and Annabeth could get into a mini food fight. "How is she holding up?"
"As well as can be expected," Piper answered. "I've walked by her office a few times when she's had her face buried in her hands. I told her to let me know if she needed anything, but I don't think she'll take me up on the offer."
"I wouldn't be offended by it. Lupa has always been a loner, and it takes time to get close to her. Reyna is probably the closest to her. Lupa and I were pretty tight until I stopped fighting," Jason stated.
"Lupa still loves you," Percy reassured. Jason shrugged but had a small smirk on his face. "Alright, Jason. You know the people here. We all have our impressions, but I still want to know your rundown."
"I don't really know Frank. He started after I left," Jason recalled. "Hazel is the sweetest person ever, which I'm sure you guys have realized already. And Reyna is complicated. Octavian is pretty nice once you get to know him, but I doubt he ever got that stick out of his ass."
"You have a stick up your ass at work," Piper quipped. Jason gave her an annoyed look. "Hey Annabeth, why were you and Reyna snooping around the receptionist's desk? Mellie realized it instantly."
Annabeth frowned at the memory. She thought that the receptionist didn't know about Reyna going through the computer. What should she tell her friends? Annabeth promised to not tell Lupa, but she never promised to not tell anyone else.
"Reyna said there was a woman here last week, and she thinks that woman is her mother," Annabeth answered. She looked down at her food. "I guess she wanted to go through the computer and try to find information about her."
"Her mother," Jason repeated. A small frown came to his face. "I know family is a sore spot for Reyna. She never talked about them when we were dating."
"You were dating?" Piper asked, almost sounding jealous. Percy started to choke on a fry and hit his chest to force it down. Annabeth stared at Jason in near shock then looked over to Piper.
"Oh. Did I not tell you?" Jason questioned. A small blush came to his face. "It was nothing, really. We only dated a few months."
"A few months," Piper repeated, a scowl intruding on her face. Annabeth nudged her best friend's knee. While Piper and Jason had been dating for some time now, Piper still didn't like to hear about Jason's past relationships. She would always compare herself to Jason's old girlfriends, and it never went well.
"Trust me. It was nothing. We went on a few dates, and it didn't work out," Jason explained quickly. "I think the only reason Reyna dated Thalia was to get back at me."
"It sounds more like you were getting back at Reyna for that," Percy joked. Annabeth elbowed his shoulder hard. "Ow! It was just a joke!"
"Thalia is very hot for your information," Annabeth informed. She looked over at Jason again. "Did Reyna really date Thalia just to get back at you?"
"I think so," Jason replied. "Thalia always told me how distant Reyna was. Why would Reyna be so distant if she cared about Thalia and their relationship?"
"If you two dated, did you also-"
Percy's next words were muffled by Annabeth's hand. Piper glared at him and elbowed him in the gut. Then, she turned on Jason and seemed to wait for an answer. Piper crossed her arms.
"No! We didn't sleep together!" Jason defended, and there was an embarrassed blush on his face. "We never got that far. Piper, you were my first."
"I was?" Piper asked.
"Oh really now," Percy teased, leaning forward. Annabeth lightly elbowed him again. "Hey. This is very important information."
"That is none of your business," Annabeth countered. Percy sighed dramatically and focused back on his fries. Annabeth ate her food quietly and allowed herself to become lost in thought. It seemed like Reyna was a cornerstone of this place, and if Annabeth was going to enjoy her time here, she needed to find some way to not have Reyna hate her.
That was a problem for another day. The problem that Annabeth was going to focus on now was contacting Thalia. She knew her old friend well enough to understand how important it was that Thalia didn't tell her about Reyna. When they were younger and even now, Thalia told Annabeth all about her flings and hookups.
There had been one exception to the rule. That was when Thalia was dating her first true love, Zoë Nightshade. Thalia had kept it a secret for almost a year. Annabeth never knew why Thalia didn't tell them. Was she embarrassed about her friends and worried they would ruin her relationship? Or would that be opening a part of her life to Zoë that she wasn't quite ready for?
Annabeth never got her answer, but it was telling that Thalia never told her about Reyna. Even if Reyna had used Thalia to get back at Jason, Thalia would have told Annabeth. And, Annabeth probably would have threatened to hurt Reyna.
No. The relationship between Thalia and Reyna had more than just petty motives involved. Thalia obviously cared deeply for the other woman, but if Reyna returned those feelings, Annabeth wasn't sure.
"If anyone needs to get laid, it's Annabeth," Piper joked. Annabeth almost choked on her food as she zoned back into the conversation. Her eyes moved up to Piper, who had a wicked grin on her face. "Just seeing if you were paying attention."
"She is right though," Percy agreed. Annabeth glared at both of them. "You just seem uptight."
"You have to get that stick out of your ass," Jason commented.
"And he invented that!" Percy added. They both high-fived each other while Annabeth contemplated just killing all three of them. Piper laughed and leaned back in her chair.
Jason smiled at Annabeth and glanced down at his phone. A small frown came to his face, and he stood. Jason spoke, "I have to get going. Work emergency."
"On your day off," Piper complained, but she was already standing. They all knew that even if Jason had a day off, he really didn't have a day off. "I'll walk you out?
"We still on for tonight?" Percy questioned.
"You know it," Jason confirmed. The two boys grinned and bumped fists.
"I'll see you, Jason. Don't let work stress you out too much," Annabeth said.
"I won't," Jason promised. Piper led him out, all while grumbling that he and Percy acted more like a couple than herself and Jason. A small smile graced Annabeth's face. Percy chuckled.
"Can I stick around? My schedule is clear until dinner," Percy said.
"I'm sure Lupa won't mind, and I think Frank will enjoy having you to spar with," Annabeth said. A smile lit up Percy's face, and he stood. Annabeth helped him clean up and throw away the bags of food.
"But who loves sparring with me more?" Percy wondered as he held open the door. "You or Frank?"
Annabeth looked at the door to see that Reyna and Lupa were walking by. Upon hearing their voice, Lupa stopped walking and turned towards them. A small smirk came to her face.
"Speaking of sparring, I wanted to talk to you," Lupa said. Her gaze focused on Annabeth. From behind Lupa, Reyna watched them closely. There was a small frown on her face. "I wanted to extend an offer. I seem to have an opening in my schedule every Wednesday. Would you like to spar?"
"Spar?" Annabeth asked, meeting Lupa's eyes. It took a few moments for the words to process. Then, her mouth went dry, and she couldn't speak. Lupa wanted to spar with her. This wasn't like sparring with the other Wolves or her friends. This was a living legend offering to spend her valuable time sparring with Annabeth.
Sparring wasn't just a test of skill. It would also be a chance for additional training. She knew that Lupa would use the time to train her and tell her what to work on. Annabeth swallowed and tried to get rid of her dry mouth. She finally nodded.
"Of course," Annabeth said quickly. "I would love to spar with you."
"Good. Every Wednesday ten minutes after training," Lupa said. "Reyna, do you-"
Lupa fell silent as she turned and saw that Reyna was gone. Annabeth heard a door down the hall slam shut. Lupa made a noise in the back of her throat and then made her way down the hall. Annabeth must have looked as confused as she felt.
"It looks like Reyna is jealous," Percy noted. Annabeth looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Did you see the look on Reyna's face when Lupa offered to spar with you? She stormed away as soon as you answered."
"Sounds about right," Annabeth muttered. She shook her head. "I don't know what I'm going to do about Reyna. I think she hates me."
"I don't think she hates you. She just sees a new fighter on her turf, and it worries her. Reyna knows how great you are, and she's worried you'll replace her as Lupa's new favorite," Percy said.
"I don't care about being a favorite. I care about learning from Lupa," Annabeth protested. "Why doesn't she understand that?"
"I think Reyna sees it a different way. Lupa isn't just some trainer or mentor to her. Lupa is probably the only parental figure that Reyna has in her life," Percy guessed. "Just give it time."
"Giving it time isn't going to work. I need to make a plan on how to handle this situation," Annabeth argued. Percy grabbed her arm and rubbed it.
"Why don't you give it a week or two? If you don't have some kind of breakthrough or realize that I am right, we'll make a plan," Percy suggested.
"You're never right," Annabeth said. Percy rolled his eyes. Annabeth smiled. "Fine. I'll give it some time."
"Everything will work out," Percy promised, and he grinned. Annabeth tried to smile, but she couldn't shake the feeling in her chest. Things between her and Reyna were going to get worse before it got better. If it ever got better.