For the rest of the night, the two teenagers sat together in silence, out on the porch. They looked at the stars, and simply sat with each other. And when the time came for Annabeth to leave, she found that it was easier to leave with the necklace, like a piece of Percy with hed. She bade him farewell, telling him she would see him in two days. And both fell asleep that night, and for that one night, were free of the nightmares that tortured them.
The next day, Percy and Annabeth were standing outside were standing outside a grand building. It had the grandeur of a castle, but smaller. The greens extended for miles around.
'And here we are, sitting outside the entrance, ready to be sweetened and fattened all for publicity.' Percy thought with vague disgust. He may not have the IQ of Annabeth's but even he could see that 'good will' was not this politician's main reason for the meeting.
"Well, here we are. Are we going to go in, or are we going to sit around all day and gaze at the grounds?" Annabeth said after a minute of them both just staring at the place, not quite ready to go inside.
"Mmh" Percy grunted, shifting in his stiff suit. "Got to get it over sometime, don't we?" Percy replied.
"Yep."
"Ok then. Lets go in."
"Ok." The decision made, they silently look at each other having some sort of staring contest.
"You go first." Percy said, not wanting to be the center of attention. He still wasn't used to the looks he got when his mom and him went out for mundane things like milk and cookies for a last-minute movie night. He had even refused to go out one night because he was so frustrated with the looks he getting.
"Fine. Don't be a baby." Annabeth said teasingly as she went up to the doors and reached out an arm to awkwardly open it. Before she could though, the door opened, seemingly by itself. Out stepped a woman, dressed in a formal skirt suit, with a clipboard in her hands.
"Annabeth Chase and Perseus Jackson?" She asked in a short clipped tone.
Percy wheeled up to them as Annabeth nodded and said, "That's us."
She looked around briefly. "Where are your parents?" She asked.
Annabeth took charge and said, "Since we are seventeen our parents decided we were mature enough to do this by ourselves. They will be waiting for us when we are done with the meeting."
The woman nodded. "Right this way. Please keep up." And started walking down a hallway that was right inside the doors. Annabeth and Percy looked at each other and hurried after the woman, both struggling slightly to keep up with her quick long strides. Annabeth was eternally gratefully that she was able to get walking boots yesterday and now only had to rely slightly on the crutches.
After a couple of minutes of sharp turns and grand rooms, they entered a room that looked much more modern than the rest of the building. It was painted a formal, drab grey, and had many desk and computers. Ahead of them was a hallway with a few doors.
"Right, here we are." She said before leading them down the hallway to the first door on the left. She knocked on the door and exchanged a few words with whoever was inside. Then, she usher ed them in, and as she closed the door, Percy could swear he heard a 'good luck' come from her lips.
He turned his attention to the man standing in front of him. He had bright blond hair, the kind that almost looked like the sun itself. He had a blinding smile and was obviously fit behind the suit he was wearing. He walked up to them and shook both of their hands before saying, "Hello. I am Elio, Elio Forbes."
"Hi, I'm Percy Jackson and this is Annabeth Chase. It's nice to meet you sir." Percy said politely. He didn't want to anger this man, who held so much power.
"Oh, its nice to meet you two! Do you know how much press you have gotten over the past month?" He said, with a smile on his face. Percy couldn't tell if it was fake or not.
"We are flattered Sir." Annabeth said, before sitting down in a chair.
"Now, let's get down to business. I have an offer for you two." Elio said, getting serious before sitting down at his desk. "I am willing to pay for all of both your medical bills, and for any future physical therapy you may have."
Percy struggled to keep his mouth from dropping to the floor. He had overheard his mom and dad talking. Those bills were upwards of 7,000$. Annabeth's bills were probably closer to 5,000$ or 6,000$. He was willing to pay 12,000 dollars. But for what? Percy began to get suspicious.
Annabeth must have had the same feeling because after a moment thought she said, "And what do we have to give you in return?"
Elio gave a sigh and said, "Why must you think I am manipulating you. All I ask in return is that you let me talk about my good deed. I don't want to have to hide it from the world.
Annabeth looked at him for a second before she said, "Is there a private place Percy and I can talk?"
"Right behind you, It's a small sitting room made for times like this. Also, you should know that I will only have these funds available for a few hours." Elio said with a wry grin and pointed behind them. Annabeth nodded and stood up before gesturing for Percy to follow her. They went into the room and Annabeth closed the door before sinking into one of the chairs.
After a second she turned to Percy. 'I don't know if we should take it or not." She had a small frown on her face.
"Why not?" Percy asked. "I was wary too at first, but that isn't such a bad deal."
"That's what he wants you to think." Annabeth said. 'He will use this to garner votes and get himself re-elected."
"Oh."
"Yea, so we need to decide whether or not to take the money." Annabeth rubbed her temples in mild irritation.
"What choice do we have? I mean, my family can't afford to pay for those bills. My parents were just talking about moving into a small apartment so that we could pay them. I say we take it. So what, we will be on the news more. he would have found a way even if we didn't agree to this." Percy finished his speech and felt proud of himself. He had just made himself seem smarter than Annabeth Chase.
Annabeth thought for a few seconds before muttering, "I guess you are right. Lets go make money Percy." She finished with a grin before standing up.
The pair made their way back into the main office. Elio looked up from what he was doing and said, "Have you come to a decision?"
"We have." Annabeth averred. "We will let you pay."
"Good. Now, I hope you two have a good day. Cassandra will show you out." He said before going back to his work. The teenagers looked at each other before the awkwardly made their way out of the Senators office.
Later in the day, Annabeth, Percy, Sally, and Fred sat in a cafe in downtown Albany eating a late lunch and discussing what had gone on in the meeting.
"You guys should have told us!" Fred said, looking part angry at the fact they had made the decision without consulting them, and part relieved at the fact they wouldn't have to pay all of the bills.
"We know, but we didn't have time, time was slipping away beneath us. If you had been there, you would have done the same thing!" Annabeth said, not liking that their parents didn't trust them to make mature decisions.
"We aren't going to punish you guys, we just want you to know that you decision was very rash, and that doesn't make us happy. You don't have the right to tell someone whether or not, we, your parents, will take their money. It's not your responsibility." Sally said, staying calmer than Fred, but there was still a touch of weariness in her voice as she spook.
Percy was getting madder as the conversation went on. What the parents were saying just wasn't making sense. They were mad they had accepted the money, but they would have done it to had they been there. They think Annabeth and he had been rash, but they were not punishing them.
Finally, his tempter erupted. "What do you guys think we are, 5? We made a decision that we know you would have made. We were pressured, but we did the right thing. Stop ratting us out! We are seventeen year olds who were kidnapped by a crazy person, and given injuries that will affect us for the rest of our lives. But we are not helpless. So just stop, I'M SICK OF IT!" Percy yelled at them, his face getting redder and redder and his voice getting louder and louder until he screamed the last part of his rant. Everyone in the cafe turned to stare at them, but he ignored both the stares and his mom, Fred, and Annabeth asking him to come back as he wheeled himself out of the cafe.
As he looked around, he saw a small sign advertising a park down the street. Percy wheeled himself down the street to the sign, before entering the park. He was pleasantly surprised to see the shore of the Hudson River, and benches sitting right on the bank of the river. The angry frown on his face grew smaller as he wheeled himself up next to one of the benches, and sat , looking out at the river. Even more to his liking, it was just him here, looking out at the glory of the Hudson river in winter.
The past few weeks had been hard on Percy. Ever since he woke up without the use of his legs, his world has changed. He didn't know when or if he would ever walk again. He would never be able to swim, or play basketball, one of his favorite activities to do in his spare time. He would have some difficulty getting dressed for the rest of his life. He would have to go see a doctor once a month to keep his legs healthy. For a brief night, Percy had let all sorts of traitorous thoughts like that run through his head, and spill out of his eyes and mouth. he would be forever grateful that his mom knew him well enough to not approach him that night. The next day, he had resolved to never let his new disability get in the way of things. It was a promise that had held this long, and with the looming challenge of school approaching, one he was determined not to lose.
That his parents were treating him like he was helpless was getting ever more frustrating. Yesterday morning his mom had tried to go into the bathroom while he was in the shower to, 'see if he needed help.' Percy had replied by throwing a bottle of body wash from the stool where he sat, before she went out. Today, he made sure to lock the door.
As he sat, watching the sun sparkle off the thick ice, and simply sitting, enjoying the scenery. After about a half hour, he headed back to the cafe, no longer mad at anyone. As he walked in, he saw Annabeth, her dad, and his mom sitting, and chatting quietly, the anger having left them too.
As he drew near the table, his mom stood up and walked quickly to him, before bending over and encompassing him between her arms. "I am so sorry Percy. I will never treat you like I have again." She said, sniffling slightly. He smiled into her hair and patted her back before wheeling himself back up to the table where he had exploded not 45 minutes before.
"Sorry about that guys. Just needed to blow off some steam." He said, feeling slightly embarrassed now.
"It's okay really." Frederick said. The four chatted at the table for another hour before deciding to head home. As Annabeth and Percy hugged goodbye, Annabeth whisper in his ear, "See you in school tomorrow."
First off, so sorry about the wait. I came back from the memorial to face the hell that is 8th grade. The homework is endless,and so is the make-up work. I have been flooded with work and only in the last couple days have I got a handle on it. I hope this is sufficient. It is personally my 2nd favorite chapter after the last one.
Okay, for those who don't know about the American government shutdown, let me enlighten you. Every spending year, Oct 1-Sept. 30, the two parts of congress (sorta like parliament) have to agree on a spending budget for the next year. Currently, there is a controversial healthcare law in place. Before we get any farther, let me tell you, that one political party is majority in one branch, while another has majority in the other branch. Now, one of these branches didn't want to pay for this law, and took it out of the spending bill, but the other branch didn't like that, and sent the bill back to the other branch with the money for the bill on there. This went back and forth all of yesterday, until Midnight. Then, the government had no more money to spend, and so went into a shutdown, They closed all "non-essential" federal services until a spending bill can be passed. Of course my first thought is, "OMG WILL MY HoH COPY STILL COME IN THE MAIl?!"
And then I realized it would, and my heart stopped racing and I could breathe again. Nerdy much? :P
Also, Elio Forbes s Apollo. Elio is a Spanish name for sun, while Forbes magazine has a quote of the day. Seemed fitting.