A/N: Hmmm…I wonder what that picture of Percy means?? Read to find out!!
---
Goodbye, my almost lover
Goodbye, my hopeless dream
I'm trying not to think about you
Can't you just let me be?
So long, my luckless romance
My back is turned on you
Should've known you'd bring me heartache
Almost lovers always do
I cannot go to the ocean
I cannot drive the streets at night
I cannot wake up in the morning
Without you on my mind
So you're gone and I'm haunted…
Almost Lover ~ A Fine Frenzy
---
FLASHBACK
"Follow me," Percy said. "Hurry!"
"Ok…Where are we going?" Annabeth inquired.
"You'll see."
Percy then proceeded to jog down the streets of New York, with Riptide clenched in his hand in sword form. All around them, the once immaculate and pristine avenues of New York were aflame, causing Annabeth's eyes to sting and water from the billowy smoke. Blinking, with her arm covering her mouth, Annabeth followed him through the streets of New York.
They travelled several blocks until Percy halted in front of a hotel, located in the Upper East Side. Clearly, the hotel had recently caught on fire, as there were numerous charred walls.
"What on earth is this?" Annabeth grimaced.
Percy walked around the side of the sad building until he reached a section of the hotel that was a little less burned. On one wall, there was a gaping hole which Percy entered, gesturing for Annabeth to follow him.
Annabeth entered through the hole and blinked as her eyes adjusted to the dimmer light. This was the lobby of the hotel; a once fancy hotel at that.
"I found this hotel and it is obviously abandoned and not fit to live in, with one exception - the basement."
"Okay…" Annabeth said, "but why did you bring me here?"
"To protect you, obviously." Percy ignored Annabeth's annoyed face as she narrowed her eyes. He continued, "The titans are on the hunt Annabeth. They won't stop until they find and kill all of the surviving demigods. This is a safe haven. I want you to find everyone who is left and bring them here. Will you do that?"
"Why are you talking like this!?" Annabeth exclaimed.
"What do you mean?"
"You're talking as if …as if you know that you won't be coming back!"
Percy grimaced. "You know full well that the titans are hunting for me as we speak."
"Then we'll fight them together! Side by side!" Annabeth shouted, determined.
"I can't make you any promises…" Percy turned and went back though the hole, leaving Annabeth dumfounded, standing in the ruins of something that once used to be whole…
END FLASHBACK
---
Annabeth could not believe what she was seeing. Rachel's picture was definitely of Percy, but it was not easy to divulge where he was. In the picture, he was standing with his back against a stone wall. Percy's eyes were wide open, either in fear or shock. If he was afraid, then what was he afraid of? He was very grimy and exhausted looking. Annabeth sat at the table, carefully tracing his face with her index finger. She had to find him, and save him; maybe there was hope after all. If they had Percy back on their side, then maybe, just maybe, they could overcome the Titans.
Annabeth snapped to attention when she heard Rachel cough. "Ah, sorry," Annabeth muttered.
"It's okay."
"What made you draw this picture of Percy, Rachel?"
"Honestly…I don't really know." Annabeth's face fell. "I mean, I remember waking up really early. I felt was overcome by one of my visions, and I felt the urge to draw what I was seeing, and then, suddenly, you were standing by me and I snapped out of it…I'm sorry"
"No, no, it's fine," Annabeth said hurriedly, "I just wanted to ask you to see if I could piece together the meaning of this. Do you really think that…that he's alive?"
"I certainly hope so." Rachel blushed.
Annabeth looked away. Suddenly, she remembered that she wasn't the only one that harbored romantic feelings for Percy. Fortunately, Thalia and Clarisse entered the room, relieving the awkward silence.
"What's going on?" Thalia queried. She could sense the tension between Annabeth and Rachel.
"Rachel had a vision this morning," Annabeth explained, handing Thalia the drawing.
"Oh gods!" Thalia exclaimed with a little jump when she realized what she was looking at.
"What? What is it!?" Clarisse said, taking the paper from Thalia. Her mouth dropped open in shock as Nico and Connor walked in from their room.
Clarisse handed them the sketchbook. No one knew what to say.
---
"I think that Percy is alive!" Connor shouted.
The half bloods and Rachel were congregated in the main room, discussing what to do next.
"Maybe…but how on earth do we know where he is?" Thalia questioned. She had a point. Rachel's drawing did not really give anyone any hints as to the whereabouts of Percy.
No one said anything.
"Well…" Clarisse began, "We can't make any decisions without Grover and Chris. They should be back soon, right?"
"Yes, definitely," Nico answered.
Grover and Chris had gone on a scouting mission to see if they could locate any demigods or new recruits. They had been gone for almost a week now.
"Okay then, we will have this discussion later!" Thalia asserted.
With that, everyone dispersed. Nico, Clarisse, and Connor began to play spoons, a card game. However, there was an odd aura in the room; tension and, maybe, hope.
Annabeth chose not to partake in the game. Instead, she sat Indian style on the lumpy, ugly couch, contemplating Rachel's drawing, which was clutched in her hand.
"Stone walls…" she thought. They had a lot of those in Central Park, but that didn't seem to fit. Besides, the park was now a very dangerous place for them to be these days. It was full of gruesome monsters and spies. Since the mist had been lifted, there was a new social order as well. Monsters were the highest rank, especially the ones working for the Titans. People, satyrs, and various nymphs, et cetera, were basically scum and were viewed as inferior.
Nymphs. That reminded Annabeth of Juniper, who was a dryad. Her heart sank. In the days after the fall of Olympus, Camp Half-Blood was burned to the ground, along with the forest surrounding the camp, which once used to be their sanctuary. But it was nothing but ashes and cinders now. So much had happened in the last three years.
---
A/N: Thanks for the reviews ohsnapness, Athenas Daughter42898, Legolas Thranduilion, and CherubGurl96! Keep it up! Please review! ~
