Another chapter today, whoopee!
This one reveals an interesting theory...
Have fun reading this, and don't forget to type some words into that little box at the bottom of this page! ;)
Disclaimer's same as always
~thegirlwiththetrident
Chapter nine: Disturbing Realisations
After Leo had simply stared at Annabeth for a few moments, she had grabbed his arm again and marched him off, towards the forest.
Then, they'd started walking around the outside, dodging the occasional thorn-bush, and after she had made absolutely sure there was no one in sight, Annabeth turned to Leo and explained.
"Do you remember how it was when Jason arrived here?" she asked him, her grey eyes intent.
"Of course I do" Leo answered, perplexed. How could he ever forget the begin of his life as a demigod?
"Jason arrived out of nowhere, didn't he? Without his memory? And it was all part of Hera's plan?"
"U huh" Leo agreed, having no idea what Annabeth was getting at.
"Well, we've been blind, haven't we! We've experienced this situation before, and we didn't realise it was happening all over again!" she cried, looking outraged at her own stupidity.
"Wait" Leo said, carefully "Are you saying that Penelope was sent here by Hera?"
"Yes!" Annabeth's voice was still very loud. "And Leo, I think I know why."
"Why?" Leo demanded, but he thought a part of him already knew the answer.
"Hecate is the goddess of the moon, Leo."
Leo knew that, and he knew what it meant. He now understood what Annabeth wanted to say, and so he finished for her
"The light in heaven. Of course, it's the moon. So Penelope is..."
"...the lost one" Annabeth concluded, and their eyes met in perfect agreement.
Leo guessed that somewhere, deep down, he'd suspected this all along, but hadn't seen it clearly until this moment.
It was obvious to him now.
Penelope, like Jason, had appeared out of nowhere, very Hera-like.
She had no memory of her past, which also indicated the goddess's interference.
And with her mother being the goddess of the moon, that made her the child of the light in heaven.
But it also meant another thing.
"So, Penelope is going to come with us?" Leo asked, knowing the answer.
"Yes." Annabeth said, and her face assumed that serious expression again, and Leo knew why.
The quest they were going on wasn't an ordinary one. It was dangerous and they would be travelling far away from home, not knowing if they would ever come back.
How could they allow Penelope, who had barely had any training and was already facing problems like amnesia and insomnia, to accompany them?
For a minute, neither of them spoke, they simply stood there next to the dark green trees and listened to birds crying as they circled in the blue sky overhead.
The case seemed clear, yet Leo couldn't help but ask, his voice more desperate than he'd intended it to be "Are you sure she's the one the prophecy means, Annabeth?"
Annabeth looked him in the eye and said, with a trace of the same worry Leo was now experiencing, "Positive. And I think I know why Penelope hasn't been sleeping"
"Why?"
"Because" the blonde girl explained "because she hasn't been in the right place to sleep. You said she felt like that, and I think that might be Hera's way of showing us that she's definitely the one."
It was a good theory, but Leo spotted a hole in it.
"And where's this right place for her to sleep supposed to be?" he asked
"It's obvious, isn't it? The lost room, of course."
Annabeth's answer made sense, and for a moment they both stood there, unsure what to do.
"We have to tell her" Leo said finally "We have to test your theory. I really hope you're wrong though."
"I hope so, too." Annabeth muttered, but they both knew she was probably right.
And even though Leo felt horrified at the thought of letting Penelope join them on this dangerous quest, a tiny bit of him couldn't help but feel happy at the realisation that he wouldn't be leaving her alone, after all.