Ummm... Hi I guess. Foremost, this is my first published piece so I encourage you to critique it, but try not to be too harsh. For gods' sakes I'm only in high school. I'm not even your typical writer. By this I mean: ENGLISH IS NOT MY BEST CLASS. By far. Get ready for a world of grammatical errors and such. Math on the other hand… And I'm getting off topic. I wouldn't blame you if you stopped reading this now. BTW most of my author's notes are gonna be like this. GET OVER IT. People who read my pieces tend to say my voice comes out a lot. Even it they aren't fictional. The pieces I mean. Not the people. That would be weird. First of all you need to know that I am about as nerdy as you can get without being completely stereotypical. If you want to know why then leave a review asking, but otherwise I'm gonna guess that you don't want to hear about me or my problems. I'm guessing you're just reading this author's note because you either feel obligated to or you're laughing your ass off and think this is utterly ridiculous and I'm making a fool of myself. Well. Might as well get this over with. Here it is. The story that will probably make you shut off your computer and throw it out into a puddle.
Oh. One more thing. Please don't think the topic is creepy at first. I have absolutely no experience in the stalker department.
Oh. Yeah. And another thing- Disclaimer: I do not own PJO or HoO sadly enough, although the rest of the plot is mine including the main character so...
~The Stalker~
Stalker POV
I had been watching him for years, silent yet vigilant. I had known before he did. I had known before most of them did. I was sure he had seen me once or twice in his younger years, but quickly dismissed me just as soon as he would a shadow or an illusion. The older he got, the more careful I had to be.
Was he really worth all of this trouble? Was he really worth all this sneaking around?
Yes. Yes he was. For he was savior of Olympus. That much I had foreseen. Staring at him then, walking along the beach, I thought of all the anxiety he had caused in my life.
"You can't do this!" Poseidon exclaimed. "You'll just draw attention to them. Zeus is sure to discover what I've done with you following their every move."
"I have no choice!" I yelled back, poking him in the chest with my finger to emphasize my point. "I have to clean up your mistake! Now that it has happened there is nothing in this world to undo it! We can only hope that someday he will side with us and not our enemies."
Poseidon slumped, defeated and at a loss for words. It was not entirely his fault, but all we could do was hide his blunder and hope that when at last it was discovered, Zeus wouldn't be too rash. Like I told Poseidon, I had no choice but to follow them for their own protection.
This risk I was putting myself at could not be ignored either. If the boy and I were discovered before he was ready then we would both be doomed. Silently I looked down at an innocent baby. The autumn cold snap brought a rosy color to his cheeks, but not enough to draw attention away from the wisps of raven black hair growing from his head.
"You're very important you know," I whispered softly. "One day you'll grow big and strong. One day you'll save us all."
I was speaking to the sleeping form of Perseus Jackson.
Snapping back to reality, I noticed a girl with blond princess curls jog up to Percy and make him smile. Laughter could be heard in the distance from the direction of the growing campfire flames, at the time a bright cherry red, and Annabeth tugged at Percy's arm while he followed her to the amphitheater. A few seconds later I stood up from where I was leaning against a tree at the edge of the forest and began to follow too.
Peering around the corner of the seating I could see that Percy and Annabeth had joined their friends in singing songs while marshmallows were toasted by the blaze. I could've sworn he held my gaze for the slightest moment and the smile was lost before I shrunk back into the shadows.
From the moment he arrived at camp I had involved myself in the camp activities to make it seem as though I was one of them, all happy and unknowing of the truth. Obviously I'm not. I had hoped that Percy would never know who I was. The gods of course knew by then that he's the son of Poseidon, but they had no idea of my involvement. I had no choice but to keep this from them. The only ones that actually knew the true me were Poseidon and Chiron, who swore on the River Styx not to reveal me.
The chatter in the stands slowly came to a halt and I heard a familiar voice that sent shivers down my spine call out to the campers. It was Luke. He acted so nonchalant telling everyone about this year's bead, but every time I saw him I noticed a tinge of darkness surrounded his arua. 'Ignore it,' I told myself. 'It's nothing'
Boy was I wrong.
The next day I was sitting on Half-Blood Hill watching demigods leave for another school year as a normal kid. Personally I can't say I know the feeling. That's when I heard it. Shouting followed by a conch shell. I jumped to my feet and ran in the general direction of the woods where, in the distance, Percy stumbled and fell. 'Seriously?!' I thought. 'I managed to protect you for the entire summer and on the last day, the moment I leave your side, this happens.'
Of all things it had to be pit scorpions. This had Luke written all over it. Flashy yet deadly.
Hours later I stood silently outside the infirmary.
"Chiron," I asked, "He'll be alright won't he?"
"Of course," the old centaur answered, "within a few days he'll back back to his normal self."
"Not just after this," I mumbled, "when..."
I paused.
"You mean if the prophecy comes true?" His expression darkened. "That waits to be seen. If he does survive until his sixteenth birthday then a difficult path lays ahead of him."
My feet shuffled around and I tucked my hair behind my ears, nodding in agreement. I knew better than anyone what was to come. After all, it was my fault.
"Any news on Luke?" Chiron questioned.
"None. He's disappeared into oblivion. Nowhere to be seen. Beyond the mortal eye. Whatever you want to call it, Luke's gone."
On that disappointing note I glanced back inside to the club-armed figure of Percy as he was just waking up. That was when I hopped down the porch stairs and, for once, temporarily walked away from my responsibilities.
It was a few days later that I followed Percy into the woods. I couldn't have a repeat of last time. He stopped by the river. It took me a moment to realize that this was the spot where he was stung. A pained expression filled his eyes. I leaned forward, wanting to comfort him.
*snap*
Damn. I rushed behind a pine tree and away from the small twig that had almost given me away. Peeking through the sparse branches Percy could be seen awkwardly gripping Riptide (his celestial bronze sword) in his left hand since his right one was still so tightly wrapped in Ace bandages.
Still wary, Percy turned back and continued on a nonexistent path through the woods until he disappeared out of my sight. That wasn't good either. I had to find a happy medium where he didn't see me yet I could see him. Dashing through the brush I leaped over the river and landed softly on the opposite side. I continued to walk in the direction I hoped Percy was headed before I heard something rustle behind me.
I spun around, a sword in hand to see none other than Percy, surprise and disbelief spread across his confused face.
Despite this he managed to demand from me with Riptide at my throat, "Who are you and why are you stalking me?"
So I hope you didn't think it was too terrible, but please review or follow or whatever it is you do. As you may have figured out, it's currently taking place at the end of The Lightning Thief, but will speed through the books over the next few chapters. As for updates, I'm hoping to try to get one every two or so weeks since my summer vacation just started, but no promises since I travel a lot and have many prior commitments. Expecting more babbling? I guess you'll just have to keep checking for an update. ;p
Okay, this is just an experiment. Can anyone guess what creature the first narrator is? (i.e. demigod, nymph, monster, etc.) This is already decided but I want to see if you can guess it. Chances are it will be revealed in chapter 3 or 4. Or later. Mwah ha ha...