Sorry guys, I WOULD answer all your reviews, but when you have nearly four pages of reviews for just ONE chapter, you get kinda reluctant, y'know?

And I'm not showing favoritism, so don't even try that 'but-I'm-your-favorite-reviwer-aren't-I-?' crap, kay?

No hard feelings, except for the fact that I epically fail at updating, as I have frequently reminded you ('you' being 'all you steamin' mad readers') and will continue to do so unless neccessary.

ENJOY!

"Helloooo Mount St. Helens. You hungry, Wise Girl?"

"No. Are you?"

"Nah, not really."

"Me neither," I mumbled, trying to ignore the feeling that spread through me at Percy's touch. His thumb rubbed my knuckles as we held hands and I sighed, all tension in my posture gone.

He has that effect on me.

Ever since the hotel, or motel, whatever. Ever since the hotel/motel thing, I've been feeling both easily annoyed and cuddly.

Well...Percy did remind me of a teddy bear...

I hugged him around the waist suddenly, pressing my body against his. Inhaling his intoxicating scent, I smiled. Oh yeah, now that's more like it...

Percy, instead of asking, just nudged me back so I was upright again and put his arm around my waist. Whoa, my teddy bear hugs back.

...

Whoo hoo!

"So Percy. How did you know that I would have liked to go to Mount St. Helens?"

He smiled sheepishly, "Well I kind of looked up the National Monuments of the United States and I found this so I just thought that you'd like to see a National Monument."

"You crack me up with your shocking observing skills."

"One of the reasons why you love me." I just rolled my eyes and looked away; he had no idea as to how right he was.

"Whatever you say, Seaweed Brain. Whatever you say."

"Well, I say that we go over there. There's this weird little metal spider contraption that's scuttling into that thicket," he said with surprising intelligence, pointing at the shiny glint of silver.

Trying to ignore the metal 'bug,' as it will be called from now on, I stared at him. He met my gaze, "What? What!"

"You've been using that dictionary I bought you for your birthday, haven't you?"

"It's a possibility."

"I thought so."

"Are we going to follow it or what?" He gestured to it; it was already disappearing.

"Is 'or what' an option?"

"Nope. Let's go," he decided, pulling me along like a ragdoll.

As we ran through the woods following the 'bug,' slapping away branches but still getting scratched, I told him accusingly, "You know, you of all people should know that I really hate spiders, Seaweed Brain. Or they hate me is more like it."

"I do know. I'm the one who was forced to go into the bathroom while you were inside wearing only a towel two and a half weeks ago at Mt. Rainer."

"Hey! That spider tried to kill me," I said, slowing down slightly before catching up again.

He snorted, "Just like the giant teddy bear tried to suffocate you."

I blushed crimson, "You remember that?"

"How could I forget? We escaped when we were ten and went to that fair. I won a game, got you the giant blue teddy bear you liked, and you fell asleep—"

"—in your arms on the bench. You were hugging me, I was hugging the teddy bear...I slipped down into your lap in my sleep and woke up with the teddy bear on top of me. Percy, I had a nightmare because of that thing, you can't blame me for—"

"—rushing to conclusions that it was still a part of your dream?" He finished with a charming grin that only he could manage while getting slapped by poison ivy. Ouch.

I gave him a weird look, panting now, "Okay, the way we said that together makes me feel like we're a creepy old married couple. Next thing you know, we'll be buying prune juice together from the—"

"—'Ye Old Granny Super Market'?" He said with a breathless laugh.

I scowled at him, "Stop that."

He smirked, but kept his gaze on the 'bug.'

With a shudder running down my spine, I reluctantly did the same.

"Whoa, hey...where'd they go? One moment they're talking about prune juice, and the next...they're just...gone?" Apollo leaned forward in his seat, squinting at the spot the two teens just were.

Artemis was reading the comics from a New York Times newspaper, smirking at some, looking like she wanted to throw up at the others.

Poseidon looked up from polishing his trident, "What?"

"Yeah, they just disa—"

But Poseidon ran right past Apollo, grabbing the newspaper from Artemis and shouting, "Shamoo's son died? But...But how?"

Apollo glared and huffed, settling for Official Olympian Lookout for Recklessly Adorable Demigod Couples. ("'Recklessly adorable'?" You ask yourselves, bewildered by Apollo's awesome wording. I answer smugly as I drink my morning coffee, "But of course, my dear readers. This is Percabeth we're talking about. Enough said.")

Athena was figuring out some theory on Global Warming, muttering to herself with her usually tidy hair all messy with exhaustion.

Aphrodite temporarily looked away from her twenty foot tall statue of a certain black haired hero and screamed in pure horror.

Everyone looked up and yelled various exclaims of which had nothing to do with what was on Aphrodite's one-track beauty-alert mind. "What is it?" "Where's the fire?" "Did I miss Oprah?" "Is the world ending?" "Did you find my sock?" "Do you see Annabeth or Percy?" "My laundry isn't that smelly, is it?"

"WHAT IS IT? IS THERE A SPIDER?" Athena shouted, way louder than the others and searching the throne room frantically, practically hyperventilating.

Aphrodite took a deep breath to calm herself and started checking her make up in her portable, dare I say it, pink and fluffy-feather-covered mirror, "Omg, don't get so worked up. I just realized how disgusting your hair looks, Athena. Want a makeover?"

Athena paled, "Oh, uh...Wow, did you hear that? I think I'd better...so I can...and you can't...Gotta go." She was gone.

Aphrodite pouted, "My makeovers aren't that bad, right, Ares?"

He rubbed his neck awkwardly, "Well, uh...um...Hey now—"

"RIGHT GUYS?"

Frightened, everyone quickly agreed, laughing nervously. She glared, "Fine. I see how it is. I'll just go do a makeover on Annabeth to impress Percy...Oh, wait a second...where'd they go?"

"WHO DARE TAKE MY SON?" Poseidon bellowed, marching over to search for his demigod child. Apollo childishly stuck out his bottom lip and took out a sheet of paper, clearing his throat.

"Do you want a make over, Uncle Poseidon?" Aphrodite asked innocently, skipping over to him with a brilliant smile that made even Apollo cringe at the sight.

Ares commented calmly, putting on dark sunglasses so as to protect his literally flaming eyes, "Dude that is one bright smile."

"I'm not even your uncle."

"Well...sure, but...Do you?"

"Oh, uh..."

"APOLLO STOP THAT RACKET RIGHT THIS INSTANT, YOU NINCOMPOOP!" Artemis shrieked as Apollo starting 'singing,' stomping over to him and kicking him in the groin.

"Oooo!" Everyone winced, cringing away from the two.

And no one even notice the empty throne belonging to the god of fire and forges.

"Okay, Wise Girl. What's the plan? After all, we just charged in here at Hephaestus' orders, and don't try denying it; I heard you mumbling to yourself and literally drawing words in the air on the way over," Percy told me.

I muttered some more to myself, trying to refrain from drawing words in the air again. Eventually, I groaned, "I don't know! How do we get them out of here? There's too many!"

"You just love pointing out the obvious, don't you," he grumbled, obviously in a bad mood seeing as we were supposed to have an incredibly awesome day together. I knew just how he felt...

"And besides, we don't even have any weapons!" I hissed, trying to keep quiet from our hiding place.

"Well...obviously, fire doesn't affect them, so...freezing them would be a nice option...if we had a way to do so."

"Yeah, if. I don't have the patience for time-wasting ifs."

"I may be a son of Poseidon, but I doubt I can call upon enough water from who-knows-where to an extinct volcano or freeze these...these...ugh, I don't know, but they sure are ugly."

I rolled my eyes, "They're called telkhines, dumbo; they're sea demons and smiths. Let's just think of a plan, Seaweed Brain." I watched them as they created something, a scythe by the looks of it. "Wow, I wonder what that's for, huh, Percy...Percy?" I looked to see nothing but air next to me.

Oh Shizzle Mcnizzle.

I looked around frantically, even checking under a pebble, but then I stopped when I realized how stupid that was. Percy couldn't fit under a freakin' pebble.

...

I checked again.

I gave up after a few minutes of pebble-checking and continued to watch the telkhines work, when Percy appeared, saying, "Annabeth, we have to go right now."

"Right now?" I complained, wondering what he'd done this time.

"Yes right now! Hurry we have to—" A whole bunch of younger telkhines came out of this cave thingamajiger, stumbling over each other and eyeing us hungrily as though mentally screaming 'MEAT. MEAT. I HUNGRY. NEED FOOD. MMM, DEMIGODS! MEAT! MEAT!'

I groaned, "Percy, how—"

"Annabeth, get out of here. Now."

I stared at him, shocked by the firmness in his voice, "Wha—Percy, not without you!"

He grabbed me by the arm and pushed me roughly towards the exit, "Get out of here! I have a plan!" I stepped back, in a daze, as he glared at me with a crazed, panicked look in his eyes.

Right then, I knew he had no plan.

"Percy," I protested weakly.

"I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE!" He shouted, kicking away several telkhines who'd managed to race ahead of the rest. "We don't have a choice!"

I knew he was right. I had to go tell Hephaestus, get help. But there was a very slim chance he'd make it out alive, let alone make it out at all.

Then there was a sudden desire to kiss him, just to make it clear how much he meant to me. I started to get closer when he pushed me through the exit just before a boulder fell, blocking the exit.

"NO! PERCY!"

Percy's POV

I could here her shouting my name, but I just concentrated on the telkhines. One of the larger ones laughed cruelly and threw a handful of lava at me. When it landed on my leg, it didn't hurt at all. Just warm.

Then it started burning.

"AAAHHHHHH!"

As more lava landed on my body, I felt this weird sensation, like my gut clenching, or a pull, or maybe even both. I dunno. I was a little too busy getting burnt to death to care.

Next thing I know, and soaring through the air so high I can't even breathe right, and then everything goes black.

Okay, first of all, I'd like to apologize for taking so long, readers, but I seriously had NO inspiration (spelling?) and couls't think of what to do. Finally, I forced myself to do this, and I know I skipped a lot of parts, but let's face it, i'm super lazy.

Sorry guys, next chappie will be up on Saturday or Sunday.