'Why am I not able to draw or at least create something?!' Was the thought of Annabeth, as she struggled with drawing up new designs. While she loved being the goddess of architecture, she hated the days where she couldn't do anything new. This is one of those days where her mind would just shut down and reflect on what transpired in the past few months.
Her breakup with her boyfriend... ex-boyfriend.
The guy was a good person. He was caring, loyal, and she really loved what they had. It was just that he wasn't over with his last partner, and decided to get back with the girl. Thus, Annabeth Chase was left behind by Frank Zhang, going back to Hazel Levesque. Now, Annabeth's mind revolved around the regrets she had with regards to a certain sea-spawn that was also her ex. 'Is this my retribution for what I did to Percy?' The goddess thought. 'Moping around here is clearly not helping my creativity get going. I should get out and touch some grass.'
The goddess being determined to go outside her palace, Annabeth flashed out of her palace and into Manhattan. Soon as she arrived in an alley, she changed her clothes to that of what she used to wear before she ascended. Wearing a hoodie and jeans, the goddess of architecture set off to relax her mind, and hopefully to get inspired.
Right now, the goddess has reached Times Square, and was looking at the absurd amounts of people that are in it. There was a significant amount of people compared to when she used to be a demigod. 'When Percy and I went here before, people were less.' Thought the now goddess as her mind was forced to think about her ex once more. 'I never heard about him after the banquet. What happened to Percy?' The now goddess thought as she continued walking. 'But then, I was busy with... godly affairs.' The goddess reasoned. She was about to go back to her palace as she felt that she relaxed herself quite fairly, but then, she saw the person she was thinking about moments prior. 'Percy?' Questioned Annabeth as she spotted the demigod in her line of sight. Looking at the demigod's right arm, she saw a girl clinging onto him. "I don't recognize that girl.' Thought the goddess of architecture as she tried to tail the pair.
"So, Percy, why have you decided to come and pick me up?" The girl beside him questioned. "Not that I don't want to, of course, I was just surprised." The girl spoke as she clung onto the demigod tighter.
"I just wanted to see you, that's all." The teen laughed.
"We were together this morning, right?" The girl giggled when the son of Poseidon averted his gaze. The two continued to stroll Times Square as the goddess that was trailing them followed, curious to know the identity of the girl beside her ex.
'I didn't even give Percy an explanation.' The blonde daughter of Athena thought as she trailed the two. When the pair in front of her turned right, she saw the face of the girl clinging to the demigod. 'Zoë?! Isn't she a hunter of Artemis? That means she can't be with Percy! Why is she clinging to him like that?' The girl pondered as she felt envious with the girl in front of her. 'Something must have happened. I need to know more about this before I inquire to Lady Artemis.' With the thirst to find out more information weighing heavier than her rational thought, the goddess continued following.
The couple then stopped in front of a cart that sold noodles.
To the gods, Ambrosia and Nectar were enough to be a source of nutrition, but the goddess watching the pair eat noodles was drooling. 'The way they eat makes me wanna eat as well.' Thought Annabeth as she was sure she heard her stomach grumble. Deciding to toughen it out, the goddess sighed in relief as the two finished eating.
"Thank you for treating me to noodles Percy! I enjoyed it." She heard Zoë say to the demigod.
"It's all good, Zoë, I knew you liked eating there."
'That should've been me... What am I thinking!?' The blonde goddess confusedly thought as she watched the two walk once more.
"Let's go home, Percy." She heard from the former hunter as she readied to follow the two once again.
The goddess actively followed the two until they arrived under the Brooklyn bridge, where she saw the two go inside the worn down warehouse. Her curiousity winning her over once again, she went ahead and tried to get inside. Touching the door handle like the demigod did, the goddess prepared herself to see what's inside.
Only for the door to not budge.
Blinking in confusion, Annabeth exerted more and more force. She might not be known for her strength, but she's still a goddess. 'Come on, open!' the girl thought as she pushed harder.
The door didn't move.
A few more tries later, and we find the disappointed goddess sitting beside the door, tired and exhausted. She exerted and expended more energy than usual, making her tired. 'I guess I should find Lady Artemis and tell her the situation, before dealing with what's happening here.' Annabeth thought as she stood up, determined to find the girl's patron.
Quickly flashing back to Olympus, the daughter of Athena walked towards her mother's palace. 'I think mother knows where Lady Artemis is currently.' Annabeth pondered as her footfalls lead her to her mother's abode.
Knocking on the door, the blonde goddess heard her mother grumble as she opened the door. "Hello daughter, what brings you here?"
"I'm sorry for bothering you Mother, but do you happen to know where Lady Artemis is?" Annabeth inquired to her mother, who narrowed her eyes as she stared questioningly at her daughter.
"I do not know where she is currently, Annabeth, she might be on her chariot, her hunt, or probably in her palace." Came the reply of the goddess of wisdom.
"I checked her palace earlier mother, but no one was answering." Came the reply of the blonde goddess. "And it's dusk, so her chariot is out of the question as it's still on the other side of the earth." She paused before speaking once again. "Lastly, I do not know the location of the hunt, so I cannot flash there. Please call Lady Artemis here, Mother. I know that she will come."
"Haven't you tried to Iris Message her?" Was the simple question of Athena, who looked at her daughter with a disappointing look.
"I haven't done that yet Mother. But that's because I knew she will come for you, that's why I went to you first." Not expecting her daughter's reply, Athena's lip quivered upwards as she didn't press any further.
"Very well." The blonde goddess of architecture sighed as she heard those words. "I'll call her for you." The wisdom goddess then closed her eyes and sent a pulse of power to where her fellow Olympian is.
Seconds after the pulse, the goddess of the hunt flashed in front of the two.
"Athena!" Came the enthusiastic greeting of the goddess. "Why have you summoned me? I was busy playing with..." Her words died down as she saw who was beside Athena. "Annabeth." Artemis' mood soured when she saw the blonde girl.
"Annabeth wants to talk to you." Said Athena as she left the two to themselves, walking back deeper into her palace.
Artemis' mood soured even more.
Giving the girl a glare, the goddess of the moon asked her a question. "What do you want to talk about, Annabeth?" Came the strained question. The goddess was doing her best not to snap at the girl.
"I want to talk about what I saw earlier today. It's about Zoë." At the mention of her friend, the goddess focused on the daughter of Athena.
"Go ahead."
"I was having a mental block with regards to my drawings, that's why I decided to unwind. I went to Manhattan, and walked around to take a look at the scenery. That's when I saw your lieutenant." The girl stopped as the moon goddess fired a question.
"And?"
"She was with Percy."
Doing her best not to inflict physical harm to the girl in front of him, Artemis decided to ask her a question once again. "What were they doing?"
Annabeth quickly answered her question. "They were acting like lovers." She said before continuing. "I saw them at Times Square, so I decided to follow them. Zoë was clinging to Percy as they walked around and talked about their day."
'Poor girl' Thought the goddess of the hunt as her anger lessened. "Why did you follow them?"
"I wanted to know the extent of what they were doing." The goddess of architecture replied. "So I trailed them and found their last location. They entered a warehouse under the Brooklyn bridge. When I tried to open the door, it didn't budge."
'She is really her mother's child.' Thought Artemis as she spoke. "I'll talk to Zoë about what you found out." She said as she turned around to walk but was stopped when the blonde goddess spoke once more.
"That's it? I thought you're going to be mad."
"Why should I?" The goddess of the moon questioned as she turned around to look at the blonde.
"Because she's your lieutenant!" Exclaimed Annabeth. "Didn't the hunt swear off the company of men?!"
"Right, but you should also ask Zoë in person. Her circumstance is different than what it used to."
"Then what about Percy?" Came another inquiry from the blonde goddess. "What are you going to do to him?"
"I'll also talk to him." Said the goddess as she flashed out, leaving Annabeth.
"What did Athena want?" Artemis heard from Hestia as she flashed back to his place.
"It was nothing." Assured the silver eyed goddess. "She needed my help about the habits of the game we usually hunt, so I shared to her what I knew."
"Feels like what Athena would do." Commented the queen of the gods as she continued pressing buttons. "Her thirst for knowledge is unrivaled."
"I advise you to be careful on your way tomorrow, Percy." The goddess of the hunt warned the son of Poseidon. "I heard from my hunters that there were monsters that lurk around alleys right here. Be on your guard."
"I will Artemis, I will." Came the reply of the teen who was busy playing with Hera and Zoë.
Artemis smiled at her lover before standing up and walking out. Once outside, she looked at the sky before hearing someone's voice.
"What really happened when Athena called you?"
It was Hestia.
"It was Annabeth." Came the answer of silver eyed goddess, causing the hearth goddess to become serious. "She said she saw Percy and Zoë together earlier."
"It's quite weird that it's been months and this is the first time she decided to check up on Percy." Hestia said as she looked at where the moon goddess was looking.
"It was a complete accident." Artemis said. "She explained to me that she was having a mental block, so she went outside her palace. With the way she told her story, I think that it was by chance that she saw Percy." The goddess explained her hypothesis. "I'm just worried that Annabeth might confront Percy, since she knows this is the last place she saw the two of them."
"Why didn't you tell any of this to Percy?" Was the hearth goddess' inquiry.
"I feel that it should be up to him." The moon goddess answered. "I think Percy needs this. Which is why I warned him to be on guard, I think that the Athena's spawn would try something tomorrow."
"You really love Percy, do you?" Hestia smiled as she heard the goddess' explanation.
"That goes without saying." Smiled Artemis as the two of them enjoyed the rising moon.
"I'll be going now, Hestia, Hera." The son of Poseidon bid farewell as he started his day.
"Wait up Percy!" The goddess of the hearth said as she ran towards the demigod. Once she caught up to the son of Poseidon, the goddess then gave him a kiss. "That's your good luck charm for today, go and do your best!" Percy smiled as he heard his lover cheer him on. Hestia watched as the demigod went out of his place, towards his work.
Worried? The deep, chaotic voice of the mother of creation startled the goddess.
"Lady Chaos!" The goddess of the hearth exclaimed. "Don't surprise me like that!" The goddess said as she summoned a glass of Nectar to calm herself down. After gulping a mouthful or two, the flustered goddess spoke once again. "Is your voice really that deep?"
Ehh... mostly. The primordial replied before clearing her throat up. "It's hard to modulate your voice especially when you haven't done it since creation." Chaos then walked up to the kitchen cupboard to grab her cookie jar. "You seem worried for Percy." The mother of creation commented as she started munching on her cookies.
"I'm worried for what he might do..." The goddess trailed off as she looked at the door once more. "Artemis told me that Annabeth might do something today."
"Annabeth?" Asked the primordial. "That was Percy's girlfriend before."
"Yes she was, Milady."
"I told you to drop the honorifics, Hestia." The mother of creation pointed out. "I already respect you based on what I've seen before." She smirked as the goddess' cheeks turned golden.
"Don't remind me of that, Chaos." The goddess answered. "Artemis told me that he needed to face her at some point, and the sooner he does it, the better. I just can't help but worry that he might do something regretful."
"He won't." Chaos reassured. "Percy's a good person, Hestia. He won't do any of the sort." The primordial then sat down the couch, beside the goddess who decided that it was better to play than worry about Percy. "Teach me about those video games you play with others."
Outside his place, Percy felt like a statue.
In front him was the last person he wanted to see. Unsure of what to do, the teen stood still as he could only utter her name. "Annabeth..."
A/N: Dun dun dun! Cliffhanger! Would Percy and Annabeth talk? Would we see Chaos become a chaotic rage filled gamer? And most importantly, where are new characters?! Find out more about them on the future chapters of His Place!
Sorry for the lack of updates, life has got the better of me and I can't pawn off the writing of this story, at least not anymore. But I hope this chapter is enough to quench your thirst for new chapter.
So, Do you want to redeem the blonde daughter of Athena? I have set up a poll in my profile, make sure to vote if she should be redeemed or not! We'll see what happens in the future chapters based on the votes this will get.
One of the reviews asked me why Artemis wore a latex suit that belonged on a BDSM rather than a goddess. Well, that's because I envision Artemis as the character Luna from Dota 2, just make her hair auburn like Mirana. You can google what she looks like and you'll kinda understand why I envision her as such.
Reading up the reviews, many of the readers seem to want Hera and Percy to happen. Don't worry, your boi got this. Hera will be wildin' with the demigod probably soon, or after a couple of chapters. (We haven't seen Artemis and Percy go at it, might as well do that before Hera.)
Remember to follow and fave if you liked it! Leave a review for your thoughts, and as always, thank you for reading!
-Jassserru fades out of existence.
