Yes, I changed my name from Alice O'Hare to Mia Cortez, because it sounds better, and I have some of those letters in my actual name. Well let's get started, shall we? Let me just begin by saying the first few bits doesn't mean I'm sick-minded, okay? As soon as you get into middle school, you immediately have to know all the dirty phrases in the world to understand what everyone else is saying. And when you have to watch The Video in seventh? Ugh, holy tap dancing Cheesus. (Don't ask, inside joke.)

20/

Tony's POV

"Ow! Annabeth, that's too tight!"

"Stop complaining, you idiot, it's not that tight. I put it on the third hole, just how you do it."

"Yeah, but I do it right." Silence, then, "OW! What was that for?"

"Being a Seaweed Brain. Now here, stick it in."

"You're not gonna squeeze it again, are you?"

"No, I'm not gonna squeeze it again. Now just put it in."

"It's not going in."

"I can see that. Push harder."

"It's not going any deeper."

"It has to. Harder."

"Seriously? I'm pushing as hard as I can!"

I was standing outside Cabin Three, head cocked, an unintentional smirk on my face as I listened to my best friends' conversation. Needless to say I wrongly interpreted it in every way.

In my defense, I'm not that dirty-minded. But when you live in a one-room, one-bathroom cabin with four other teenage alcoholics who love to party, you learn every nasty phrase in the book. And my sister Alison actually has a book. No joke, it's 200 pages long and hidden in the floor under her bed.

Anyway, I was grinning. "What are you guys up to in there?" I chortled through the door. "I would come in, but I don't think I wanna see what's going on."

For a few seconds, I could see her throwing an irritated glare towards the door, him shrugging as if to say, Not my fault.

The door flung open, revealing none other than my buddy's knocked-up, hormone-crazed girlfriend Annabeth, a frown tugging at her mouth. "Something you wanna say to my face, Staphili?"

I had the good sense to look over her shoulder, which turned out to be a safe move; Percy was shaking his head furiously in the background. So I bowed to Annabeth, grinning. "Apologies, Your Majesty. Would it please Your Royal Highness to have this humble, yet extremely awesome servant into Your Grace's lovely home?"

She rolled her eyes and didn't say anything, just walked away. She left the door open though, so I took the opportunity to go in, kicking it closed behind me. I put my hands in my pockets. "What's really goin' on?"

"Gearing up," Percy said casually. He was standing in the middle of the cabin, his bronze armor half on. Annabeth walked up behind him, grabbed a leather strap, and yanked hard.

He pulled a face. "I hate armor."

"Well, you should be grateful for it," Annabeth remarked. "It's saved your life more than once."

"It's a pain."

"Why?" I interrupted.

"Because it's freakin' heavy and—"

"No," I cut in again, "why're you putting it on?"

"Oh," he said. "Because some of the Hermes scouts might've seen a trace of an attack, and I wanna be prepared. Just in case."

"Just in case," Annabeth murmured. Her voice startled me. Her face even more. It was…sad, worried. An expression I'd never seen on her face in all the years I'd known her. If Annabeth Chase felt any kind of intense emotion (besides anger), she never showed it, no matter how bad the feeling was. I guess that's what being pregnant does to a girl.

"Okay," I said, breaking the silence. "You want me suited up and out there with you?"

"I'd feel better if you were," he replied. "With Nico and Thalia and that Maria girl gone, our defenses are pretty weak."

I shrugged in agreement. "'Kay. What about you?" The last question was directed to Annabeth.

"No." And the answer didn't come from her. We both looked at Percy.

"What?" Annabeth's one word was highly dangerous.

He looked her straight in the eye; a pretty ballsy move. "You're not going."

Sensing a serious blowout, I started backing up. I knew when I should leave. Unfortunately, I didn't get to because Annabeth exploded. "What are you talking about?" she almost yelled.

"You're a target!" he almost-yelled back. "She'll be after you!"

"So? I can watch my back and yours and still be fine!" Her hands clenched into fists at her side.

"No you can't!" he argued. "You're not that perfect, Annabeth!"

She bristled at his words. "What? Of course I can do it!" she snapped. "Are you doubting me?"

"No!" he shouted. "I'm worried about you!"

"Well you don't have to worry about me because I'M GOING OUT THERE!"

"No you're NOT, Annabeth! And that's FINAL!"

Annabeth swelled with anger on the last two words—something I thought I'd never hear out of Percy ever. Because he was crazy, but not that crazy. I honestly thought she would punch him in the face. Her hand twitched—a sure sign she was thinking about going for her knife.

Instead she stormed past me, ramming me into the doorframe in the process. The door slammed. I turned to look at Percy, but I found the bathroom door banging shut rather than my friend.

"Well then," I muttered. "See you." I went quietly out the door Annabeth'd almost torn off the hinges, closing it softly behind me.

Most people leave their armor in the arena, or the armor shed. People like Annabeth, me, Percy and such, we're pretty paranoid of kids like the Stoll brothers, who stole anything worth ten bucks. So we put our stuff in our cabins, usually in secret hiding places.

Well, when I walked into Cabin Twelve to get mine, I saw it in total chaos.

Liz, our new sister, had her butt sticking out of a giant hole in the floor while she screamed into it for some reason. Tyler was nowhere to be seen. Alison was using grapevines to help her stay on the ceiling. Cadmus was somehow asleep. Gus was…reading a book.

Yes, yes, I know. Gus Mackenzie is Cabin Twelve's personal abomination. He studies, he reads, he learns. He even drinks alcohol less than we do. Of course, we love Gus, we just make fun of him for being our very own fish out of water like 24/7.

"What's going on?" I demanded.

Gus looked up from his book. "Well," he began calmly, "Tyler's in the Vineyards, Liz is giving him instructions to the good wine, and Alison's…I have no idea what Alison's doing."

"I'm hugging the ceiling!" she yelled. "It looked sad!"

"What was she drinking?" I asked.

Liz looked up from the hole in the floor. "Screwdriver."

"Vodka?" Gus looked mildly interested. "That's what she put in her orange juice?"

Liz rolled her eyes. "Yes, Gus, that's what a Screwdriver is."

Tyler's head popped up from the hole, causing Liz to shriek. "DUDES! I found it!" he yelled triumphantly.

"No way!" Liz jumped up and down.

"What?" Alison asked from the ceiling.

"The Scotch!" he shouted. "Beau James's Scotch! '35!"

"No way!" I yelled. "Who's Beau James again?"

Gus looked up again. "James Walker. New York Mayor of the '20s."

"His scotch is legendary!" Tyler crowed. "Dad left it in the Vineyards!"

If you're wondering what the Vineyards are, it's the secret underground grapevine plantation buried like a hundred feet under the Dionysus Cabin. If you lift up the floor on a certain spot, you can go down the stairs and check out miles and miles of grapevine hedges (or whatever you call them), plus an awesome room full of priceless wines and whiskeys and scotches. I had no idea why Tyler and Liz were using it now, though.

"Where's my armor?" I asked Gus.

"Huh? Oh, I think Alison gave it to Penelope or something. Said she needed room for her duck." Gus shrugged in an "I have no idea" motion.

I sighed, but I walked out the door and headed reluctantly to Cabin Four, already feeling the wariness that went along with any trip to see Demeter's kids. You're probably wondering why a good old son of Dionysus like me would be afraid of a bunch of farmers like them. Well one, I am not afraid of them, and two, Demeter's kids don't take kindly to us Dionysus ones, just because we have less power over plants than they do, and we fool around a lot more.

Lucky for me, none of them were in there. Huh? Oh, right, almost forgot about number three: Penny wouldn't be there.

See, I was still waiting for her to say something about my apology to her a couple days ago. I didn't want to press her, so I kept my distance and she kept hers. I definitely didn't want her to find me in her cabin, because then she'd think I was there to worm an answer out of her like a desperate idiot out of choosable options. Which, of course, was true, but I didn't want her to know that.

It was easy to get into their cabin. The little vines binding the lock on their door gave way to my commands nicely enough, and the grassy floor masked my footsteps soundlessly.

I went under Penny's bunk and pulled up the carpet-like moss, revealing a wood floor most campers never knew Cabin Four had. The wood slid out of my way easily, revealing a small cache—Penny's secret hiding place.

Baby blankets, photo album, some books, a couple of stay diapers (unused, thank the gods). And there it sat, in a heavy pile of metal next to Penny's watering can: my armor.

Grinning in an I'm-so-awesome way, I worked out from under the hammock, turned, and found her right in front of me, watching me with a pained expression on her pretty face. I almost dropped my armor. "Penny," I stuttered, stumbling back. "I—uh, sorry. I…I'll leave." I made a beeline for the door, but her soft hand on my chest stopped me.

She wordlessly took the bundle out of my hands and put it on her bunk. The weight of the metal made the hammock sway slightly. She picked up the first piece and started strapping it to my arm.

She did it in silence, and I didn't dare speak. I wanted her to make the first stab at conversation. And she did.

"I do."

Those two quiet little words had my heart thumping out a bad, ragged beat. "I do what?"

"I do," she repeated softly. "I do accept your apology. I understand it's hard to let things go. I understand she was the hardest. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry," I said, catching her hand as she reached for a leather strap trying to escape my shoulder guard. I brushed her hair behind her ear. "It's my fault. I was so focused on holding onto her that I was letting you slip away. Now I'll be holding onto you."

"I love you," she said quietly. "Do you believe that?"

"Yes," I answered honestly.

A mischievous glint appeared in her brown eyes, something I almost never saw in her. "Well, maybe I should show it." Then her hands were on me, at the back of my neck, gripping my shirt, pulling my face to hers and securing it there. Her kiss was long, strong, and sweet, and when she pulled back, I wished she hadn't.

"Go get 'em, tiger," she whispered, releasing her hold on my shirt. Her fingers lingered on my face for a few seconds before dropping.

I stole a last kiss, scooped up my sword, and headed for the door. It was only when I was halfway onto the porch when her voice called me back, "Tony, promise me one thing."

I turned slightly. "Only one?"

"Come back. Promise me that."

Pause. "I will. Even if I have to fight Hades for it."

I left Penny wiping a tear from her eyes, still holding a stray piece of my armor.

Percy's POV

I stormed down to the basement in anger, muttering in Greek to myself. Annabeth was being so stubborn; didn't she care about her own safety? Our baby's? She was ready to put the both of them in extreme danger without even thinking about it.

By the time she'd rammed her way out the door, I was ready to explode. Now I wasn't feeling much better, on my way to the basement to discuss battle plans with the counselors. No doubt Annabeth would be there, along with most of the other campers that couldn't fight.

As predicted, when I walked through the door, the basement was seriously overcrowded. The council didn't even get the table; we were stuck sitting in a circle near the door.

"Great job with the seating arrangements, Clarisse," Katie Gardner said, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah," Travis Stoll agreed with her instantly (no surprise there). "Super roomy."

Clarisse scowled. "Whatever, wimps. Are we here to talk battle strategy or what? I got better things to do with my time if—"

"We are," Annabeth piped up. "Travis, Connor, what exactly did you see last night?"

The Stoll twins exchanged looks. "Well…" Travis began.

"We saw…Luke," Connor finished. The air in the noisy room instantly stilled.

"And Silena," Travis said quietly. No one else but the council heard the words, but the room got colder anyway. There was a beat of uncomfortable, guilty silence. Clarissa rubbed her eyes angrily, trying to hide the couple of tears attempting to escape.

Annabeth cleared her throat. "Where did you see them?"

"The south border," they answered in unison.

"Then that's where our strongest defenses will be," Annabeth said. "Clarisse, can you organize groups for the four borders?"

Clarisse pursed her lips, all hints of crying gone from her face. "Guess so. Separate 'em as patrol and cavalry?"

"Yeah, that would be good. You might want some archers on pegasi too."

"Fine," Clarisse said in her usual blunt attitude. "Send me on of your brainiacs ASAP." Annabeth nodded. Clarisse got up and left the room, with tiny little Ashley Richmond padding behind her.

"Okay," Drew Chen said in a bored voice. "What now?" Drew was the new counselor for Cabin Ten, after James Bentley couldn't take the grief for his sister and stepped down. She was super annoying; the living stereotype of Aphrodite girls.

"Now we talk protection," I said. "Who's going to stay here with the ones who can't fight?"

"Penelope can," Katie said. "She already volunteered."

"Good," Tony looked more relaxed at that. "So, I got a question: how do we kill the zombies?"

There was another pause. "They're specially designed to become your worst regrets on sight," Irina Romanov said in her thickly accented English. "As soon as they sense you. The only way to banish them is to kill them."

"Great," I said sarcastically. "Okay, all of you report to the borders ASAP, got it? Be prepared for a fight. What's left of the Order is waiting for us."

"Go," Connor voiced.

As everyone got up simultaneously and moved towards the stairs, I got a crazy idea. It was so insane I was pretty sure it would work, but I wasn't sure I would make it out alive. I waited until Annabeth was the last counselor in the room, then jumped in her way before she could leave.

Her gray eyes flashed, letting me know she was still pissed at me. "What?" she asked coldly.

I dared to smile at her. "I just wanted to apologize."

Her face went suspicious immediately, exactly what I expected. "Why?"

"Because…I made you mad?" I ducked my head so I was looking up at her, even though I was taller than her. "Look, I really am sorry. I know you can take care of yourself. I was just worried." I wrapped an arm around her waist. "Can you forgive me?"

She eyed me. "Alright. I guess you didn't know your own idiocy."

I grinned. "That's me." I pulled her close and kissed her. Her arms wrapped around my neck, and she was so busy she didn't even notice me slipping her knife out of the back of her jeans and hiding it in my sleeve.

I smiled when I pulled back. "Are we good now?"

"Sure, Percy. We're good now."

I stepped back, so we were standing with the threshold between us. "Good, 'cause I really hope you won't kill me after this." Without waiting to see her expression, I shut the door in her face and twisted the key in the lock just as the doorknob started rattling.

Her fist banged on the wood. "PERSEUS NEROH JACKSON! Get back here or I'll rip your head off!" she shouted in Greek.

I braced myself against the door. "Probably better off if you just—"

"HAH!" A sword ripped from the wood, an inch or two from my face. Where did she get a sword?

"—stay out of it," I finished lamely. "It's for your own safety!"

"You're in for a world of hurt, Jackson!" her voice promised.

"Okay!" I called. I added the key to my necklace, then headed for the border.

Annabeth's POV

I growled wordlessly at Shawn Spencer's sword shivering in the door. You're going to die, I promised silently. Once I get out.

"Annabeth, calm down. It's not so bad down here." The quiet voice was soothing and familiar. Penelope Miller stood behind me, holding the baby Cadmus in her arms. Behind her was Shawn Spencer with a healing shoulder, Eric Lawson with a broken ankle, and a couple Hunters with minor injuries. There were more, but I couldn't see their faces in the darker parts of the room.

"I can't believe he locked me down here," I muttered.

Penelope looked at me sympathetically. "I can. We can. Percy loves you so much, Annabeth. It's hardly a surprise he wants to keep you safe. Especially with the baby on the way."

Her mention of that made me frown. The cravings had started. Already this morning I'd gone through all the Cheez-Whiz in the Big House kitchen, plus the crackers and Lays. The morning sickness hadn't had the good judgment to leave, so I was fighting that too. And last, but very worst, the hormones were starting to take over. That was probably why I tried to stab Percy through the door with Shawn's sword.

My emotions took control too easily. Still, I adored the idea of a little Percy crawling around, squirming in my arms, spitting food. Then again, I hated all the side effects of being pregnant. Actually, I hated being locked in the godsdamn basement even more.

"I'm getting out of here," I told Penelope bluntly. I reached for my knife at the back of my jeans, but…it was gone. Percy. I growled. "Anybody got a blade?"

One of the Hunters gave hers up reluctantly. I started searching the walls, running my hand over the wood hurriedly.

Penelope looked at me like I was crazy. "Annabeth, what are you doing?"

"I grew up here, remember?" I said, inspecting a speck on the wall. "I know the Big House like the back of my hand."

"So?" she said.

"So, if I remember right, there should be a door right..." I stabbed the Hunter's knife into a crack. "Here." The wall slide aside, revealing a small window about two feet big.

Penelope pursed her lips skeptically. "Annabeth, there's no way you can fit through that."

"Watch me." I levered the glass out with the knife, and hoisted my legs through it. "Barricade this after it closes. If I know about this, only the gods know who else does." I slid through the window, turning back to make sure the wall slid back into place. Penelope's concerned face was the last thing I saw before it did.

I was crouching outside the porch of the Big House. Luckily no one was in sight. I put on my hat; best if no one knew I got out. I headed for the south border, where I guessed the worst part of the battle would be—where Percy would be.

Naturally, I was right. The fighting there was a combination of demigods, zombies, and even some immortals. I caught sight of a man in a black cloak, a woman in blood-red, and a beautiful lady in an evening dress with a slit down the side, wreaking havoc on the campers. My eyes zeroed in on Pete instantly, fighting a vicious-looking Eliana Monterrey.

I don't exactly remember what happened. Like I said, my emotions took control of me a lot. Whatever the case, I found myself knocking out the nearest person, stealing their bow, and aiming straight for Eliana.

My arrow struck her in the heart, going straight though her chest. She gasped sharply, stumbling back from her fight with Percy. She looked down at the arrow in her chest. Then she performed the last thing I'd expect from an impaled girl. She laughed.

"Death is only the beginning!" she called. Her eyes fixed on where I was standing exactly, as if she could see me. "I'll be back!" With the ghost of her last laugh still on her face, Eliana fell backwards, dissolving into black mist.

Percy looked so infuriatingly confused I couldn't take it; I sent my borrowed knife at him. Of course, it only bounced off, but it startled him.

"Did you really think I wouldn't get out?" I demanded, running up and grabbing his shirt.

His hand found my hat and ripped it off easily. "What are you doing here?" he said, eyes flashing. "I told you to stay!"

I flipped up the knife with my foot and sent it into the chest of the enemy behind him. "I couldn't! You know I—"

"Can't resist the temptation?" He stabbed under my arm as I whirled to slash, ending up back-to-back.

"That's not it!" I protested. I kicked an empousa in the chest, then swiped at a couple hellhounds.

"Oh yeah? Then what?" he demanded.

"Ugh!" I stabbed another hellhound in the muzzle, grabbing Percy's arm and spinning him around so our faces ended up an inch apart. "You say you were worried about me? I was worried about you! I couldn't stand to be on the sidelines while you were out here risking your life! If you're going to be here, so am I!"

"Gods, you're so stupid!" he swore, spinning us back around so our backs were touching again, our arms intertwined. I donkey-kicked a dracaena, and pushing myself in a flip over his back, landing on the shoulders of Johnny Nickels. For a minute or two it was like a game of chicken, except Johnny was trying to throw me off and fight Percy at the same time.

"Is it so stupid to want you safe?" I yelled, trying to choke and hold onto Johnny simultaneously.

"Yeah, it is!" Percy yelled back. "I'm invincible!"

"Are you really having this fight right now?" Johnny shouted.

"Shut up!" Percy and I bellowed, smacking him. "Hecate's after you!" Percy yelled. "You're putting yourself and Ariadne in danger!"

"Nathaniel!" I shouted. "He's a BOY!" I grabbed Johnny's head and twisted it sharply with a loud crack, then dropped to the ground. "Nathaniel is a—"

Unfortunately, I didn't get to win my argument. There was a shout of foreign words, an explosion, and a final, searing pain in my right side. I had the strangest sensation that I was flying. I felt something wet and rough hit my head, throwing me into instant unconsciousness, leaving only one question left to float in my mind.

Was I dead?

Yes, Annabeth, are you dead? The question really is: Can I kill her? Of course I can. I hope you know I'm capable of doing that, because if you don't, something crazy might happen to your favorite characters such as Miss Chase, Mr. Jackson, Mini Jackson, and Mr. di Angelo.

Next chapter will feature more Percabeth, some Mariangelo (if that makes sense, I literally just made that up), some Thalia-ish jealousy (if that's even possible), and definitely more action...

Oh, and death.

Muahahahahaha!

~ Mia ~