I leaned against the tree, grabbing it with my hands. My cheek rested against the bark, probably making a pattern on my skin. Tears streamed down the tree like sap, soaking into the grooves of the trunk.

I backed away, and tried pulling myself back together. I wiped my eyes, and started breathing slowly. Then I stopped. The sun had gone down, but a beam of light illuminated through the forest.

"They wen't this way!" A deep voice called.

My skin tingled as I remembered the voice of the head Peacekeeper, Peacekeeper Richmond. He was even more fierce and strict than Thread was, and it used to terrify Percy and I when we first started hunting, but then we easily found ways to not get caught. Two dark figures raced past me, and one thought raced through my head.

I am a child of Athena. I am a demigod. A demigod's purpose is to protect others. And they need protected.

Without thinking, I pulled my bow off my back, put some of Percy's arrows in my quiver, and raced after the figures. I quickly caught up, and saw they were a boy and a girl.

"A-Annabeth?" The girl panted.

"Yes," I told her.

"What are you doing," She hissed. "You'll get in trouble!"

"I don't care," I assured her. "I just want to get you two to safety."

We twisted and turned through the winding forest, until I heard the hum of the electric fence. I smiled, as I ushered them up a tree. Once I touched the trunk, however, I was blinded. I felt a large hand on my shoulder, and I was turned around.

"'Was there another with you?" Richmond demanded.

"N-no," I stuttered, putting my hand in front of my face to try and block the flashlight.

"I swear that there were two," he scowled. "Where is the second?"

"You-you must be mistaken sir," I told him, my hands trembling. "I'm the only one!"

"You need to understand that just because you're a Victor doesn't mean you're able to go around breaking the law."

"I understand sir."

"And you must understand that you will be severely punished."

"I-I understa-stand." I muttered.

He grabbed my arm, and led me back to the district. I glanced at the trees, and hoped the boy and girl were okay. I hand to sprint to keep up with the head Peacemaker, but I managed.

He led me through the electric fence, and he started narrowing in on the Justice Building.

"Wait!"

We turned to see Katniss running up.

"I'm so sorry about Annabeth," she told Richmond. "She has some, uh, mental disorders after her time in the games."

I was shocked. I mean, sure, daughter of Athena alert, but how did she come up with that on the spot? Shaking this from my brain, I tried to act like I had a mental disorder.

"Yeah," I sighed in a dreamy way, making sure my eyes were unfocused. "The woods are pretty in the morning." Yeah, it was nighttime. Hence my reason.

"Fine," Richmond scowled. "I'll let her go just this once. But you better get a handle on her. Next time she's out in the woods, mentally disordered or not, she's dead."

He turned on his heel, and sprinted away. Katniss and I stood in silence for a minute. Her eyes darted around, making sure the way was clear, then she kneeled in front of me and put my face in her hands.

"What were you thinking?" She cried.

"I-I was just looking for Percy!"

"I told you that he was gone!" Katniss started choking up. "Annabeth, do you have an answer? Do you know what you were thinking?"

By now, my throat had closed up and tears streamed down my face. I shook my head, and Katniss took my hand.

"Annabeth, listen to me," She tried smiling. "Stay strong, okay? It's going to be alright."

I tried to belive it, I wanted to believe it. But I didn't. Percy could probably hold up a few days, but not long. I knew him for millenia. Katniss didn't. She didn't know what would happen if he was captured that long.

Katniss stood up, took my hand, and led me home like a small child. I didn't mind. Whenever a Peacekeeper-or anyone else really-saw us, I made an effort to look mentally disabled. I giggled every once in a while, or muttered nonsense words, only to crack myself up again.

It wasn't long before we made it back to Victors Village, and Freyna was waiting outside. She had a stern look on her face that made me wince. I only saw her use that face once, when Percy left the door open one night and our hunting supplies were in plain view. Thankfully no one wandered by the edge of The Seam much at night. Anyways, I knew that I was about to recieve a talking to, and tried to prepare myself.

"Young lady," Freyna began in a quiet, yet stern, tone. "What did I tell you?"

"Never to volunteer, leave the door open at night, or sign up for tessare?" I asked hopefully.

Freyna let out a sigh. "Just, don't do it again, alright?" I nodded, and she directed her attention to Katniss. "And you have visitors."

"They're here already?" Katniss asked, surprised.

"Who?" I asked, quizzically.

"Annabeth, dear," Freyna soothed, resting her hamd on my shoulder. "Let's get you to bed."

"But-"

"Come on, Annabeth," Freyna said in a more demanding tone.

Letting out a sigh, I let her lead me into the house. She led me away from the door to the dining room, which Katniss quickly slipped into. I wondered why Freyna was so determined to keep me out of there.

She tucked me in like I was five, and asked if I wanted to hear a story.

"Uh, no thanks," I responded. I understand that she and Katniss were trying to cheer me up, maybe get my mind off the situation all together, but this is overkill.

"Okay then, good night Annie," Freyna soothed before walking out the door.

She made the mistake of leaving it open a crack, and I saw that she slipped into the dining room herself. Now my mind was buzzing. Why did they want me out of that room so bad? I couldn't help it. I threw off the sheets, and tip-toed down the hallway. I pressed my ear to the dining room door.

"Any updates?" I heard Katniss ask in a hushed tone.

"Well," I didn't recognize the male voice. "We know that The Capitol was expecting a rescue attemp. Most of the team is dead, a few arrested. We still have no idea where Percy is being kept though."

"Finnick?" Freyna asked. "Anything else?"

"Unfortuatley not," another voice sighed. "But I did notice one thing."

"What?" I whispered under my breath.

I was about to hear the words I hoped never came out of someone's mouth when talking about Percy.

"While at the loading dock," Finnick began. "I spotted a few Peacemakers unloading a shipment of Trackerjackets."