Hi! I'm sooo sorry about the wait. I'm so loaded down with assignments and studying for tests that I completely forgot about FF! And I don't even have my own computer, so I just have to snag my mum's laptop when she's not using it.
Oh, wow. Chapter 6. Time flies when you're having fun!
In response to reviews:
Autumnal Equinox- I don't think my plot is cliché. Perhaps a bit weird, but we'll see. Glad you like my writing!
ShimmeringDaisyFace- Hehe, everyone just LOVES a good cliffy, don't they? And as for Beck dying, well, we'll just have to wait and see!
Salivator- That is, by far, the funniest review Ihave ever was just a figure of speech when I said she was on fire. It's another way of saying that she feels like she's burning up, or her clothes are on fire. Sorry about the confusion.
Bilboardcrabs- Maybe, hopefully, you'll leave a review that isn't this weird. If you find out what happens, then will you leave a proper review? Pleeaase :)
So, enjoy, my friends. Don't expect another update till the middle, maybe even next weekend. Sorry. School is prioritised first, after all (sighs).
Chapter 6:
Free
Riding on the back of the guy Travis's horse, Thalia felt more alive and free than she ever had before. The wind in her hair, the cold, dry air in her face- it felt amazing. She relished in breathing the scent of pine trees and eucalyptus.
Annabeth loves the eucalyptus scent. Thalia suddenly felt guilty. Here she was, riding on the back of a horse, free, when Annabeth was trapped in a tower with no means of escape. Her lungs filling with toxic fumes. Slowly dying- Stop it. Thalia commanded herself. Worrying about it won't help matters. Just find the damn place, first.
"Single file!" Beckendorf suddenly called in his strange, mismatched accent, his voice gruff and deep, resonating in Thalia's ear drums. She grasped her head. How long had it been since she had heard a voice like that…
Just then, she was jolted from behind when the black stallion behind them got his head up Travis's horse's a- hole.
Thalia was tempted to turn around and yell at the rider of the horse, "You've got reigns and spurs. Use them."
Some guy at the back of the pack yelled something indecipherable to Thalia's raw ears, overloaded with so many new and interesting sounds and voices.
Beckendorf said quietly (as quiet as he can get when the very timbre of his voice rocks the earth), "I- I think_" He stopped shortly, then carried on with, "I'm pretty sure I heard something."
There was silence except for the crunching of pebbles as the horses set a cautious but urgent pace.
"We must be getting close, then," the guy on the black stallion behind us said. Was his name Pocky? Or was it Pooch? She knew it started with a 'P'.
Thalia suddenly noticed a piece of blue tattered cloth lying on the side of the road.
A shred of Rhoda's blue shawl. Thank the gods for Rhoda's clumsiness and carelessness and forgetfulness and- Thalia stopped herself before this got off topic.
She grinned. "It's only a little further." If you counted 'a little further' to be a few little kilometres.
The horses set a steady pace, following the wide dirt road. As the group trod on, the air became thick with smoke.
After what seemed like about half an hour, a large shadow loomed out of the gloom. The tower.
"That's it. That's the building." she whispered in Travis's ear. He nodded slightly.
"Hey Beck, the girl says that this is the place. Stop?"
As Beckendorf (she'd have to learn his real name soon- that couldn't be a name on its own) and everyone else, including Thalia and Travis, dismounted, Thalia became aware of a choking, gasping sound. Retching. Keening. Wailing. Call it what you want. To her, it meant only one thing: Annabeth was still alive.
One of the men- she recalled his name to be Robstick, or was it Rodrick? She really was terrible with names- pulled Thalia into the group huddle. "Right, team. How do we proceed from here?" Beckendorf asked.
Silence. Thalia felt so out of place, so insignificant and small compared to all these men. Even the smallest, that Perry guy, even he could have been twice her width. But, then again, she was abnormally skinny.
Thalia pushed her way into the centre of the group. The boys spread out to get a better view of her. Thalia felt self conscious. She shrugged it off.
"Anyone got a bow?" Thalia asked in a loud voice.
"Yeah." Someone said gruffly. When Thalia turned to see who had spoken, she immediately didn't like the guy. She noticed that he spent too much time looking at places on her that were not her face. Thalia's cheeks flushed. That perve.
"Perfect. We just need to attach my rope to an arrow, shoot it up to the sill, and I can climb up. Somebody can stand down the bottom to catch me if I fall. Sounds like a plan?"
Nobody protested, so Thalia took charge.
"Who's the best shot here?" Everybody looked to P—ierre? (Thalia honestly couldn't recall his name for the life of her.)
"Alright, um, okay, um," Thalia stumbled. "I don't think we've, um, been introduced?" she stuttered. This hadn't gone as smoothly as she'd originally wanted.
The guy grinned. Thalia liked him straight away. He stuck his hand out. "Percy. Pleasure."
Thalia returned the shake and his friendly squeeze of her hand.
"Okay, Percy. Tie the end of this rope," Thalia unwrapped the rope from around her waist, "to an arrow. Aim for the window sill. Don't worry, it's good sturdy brick. Use a steel tipped arrow."
As Percy was lining up for the shot, one of the men sidled up to Thalia and said, "Why would your mate be in the old rotting thing, anyway?"
"Astronomy experiments. Good view of the sky," Thalia lied smoothly.
"I'd love to learn about the constellations, and star maps. How to draw a connect- the- dots with something so huge…"
A thud sounded throughout the valley. "Done," Percy said proudly. Thalia assessed the shot with a critical eye.
"It'll do," she said. Rule number one of compliments: never over do the praise. The truth was, Percy had hit exactly the right spot, and apparently with ease. The guy had a natural talent. Thalia wondered what his swordsmanship was like. If it was anything like his archery…
Thalia clapped Percy on the back, silent praise. Then she saluted the group and started to ascend the rope.
It wasn't as easy as it had looked prior to actually climbing. In fact, if Thalia hadn't been so desperate to reach Annabeth, she might have just given up and said it was impossible.
But, she had gotten down somehow. She could get back up. She would get back up.
By the time she reached the high window sill, she was drenched with sweat and her lungs were burning from the sulphuric odour of the smoke.
Thalia looked down and gulped. How high was she? About ten meters? Twenty? She wasn't a good judge when it came to heights- she had a tendency to be irrational. See, this tough- looking, tough sounding girl had an immense fear of heights, one that she wouldn't admit to. But she couldn't let the men see how scared she was, sitting up there on the sill. She unclenched one hand from the sill and waved bravely.
Then she slipped inside the window and braced herself for the worst.
She had been expecting a dead, black body, or perhaps nothing. Just ash. But there was Annabeth, huddled in a ball next to the window. Her breathing was shallow. Ash and soot was smudged across her pretty, hollowed out face. She looked like a member of the Living Dead.
Thalia knelt and touched Annabeth's forehead. "Annabeth? Are you alright? I've brought help. An escape team. Get up."
Annabeth lifted her head slowly, her burned hair giving off an acrid smell. A little strand floating next to her face was smouldering slightly. Thalia reached forward, rubbed it between her fingers, and extinguished it.
"Annabeth?"
Annabeth stared at Thalia. Then tears started running down her cheeks. "You left me. You escaped without me. You left me to die alone."
"No! No, Annabeth, no, no, no! You don't understand! You passed out, and I had to get help. I pulled together a team of men-"
"Men?" Annabeth asked, curling up against herself even more. "No. I refuse to be rescued by a bunch of men. To travel with them. I blithely refuse." Annabeth raised her chin defiantly.
Thalia mentally face palmed. "Don't be stupid, Annabeth. They're not going to harm you. And if you stay in this room, you'll die"
"I'd rather die than travel with a filthy herd of slobbering, grimy pigs who like nothing better than-"
"Um, am I interrupting something?" Both women whipped their heads towards where Percy was standing awkwardly at the window.
"You!" Thalia said, frowning. "Why are you here?! This is a private matter! Get lost!"
Ignoring the proposed question, Percy turned to Annabeth. "So you're the mysterious dying friend. You don't look very dead. Come on, we'll take you back to the village to be washed, fed, then you'll go to the castle and-"
"No!" Annabeth suddenly flinched. Her voice started trembling. Her fingers were shaking. "Not the castle. I'll stay in the village. Work for a living. No castles. Dresses. Maids. Prisoners."
Percy looked at Thalia inquisitively. He obviously thought Annabeth was a bit loony. Well, once he heard her depressing life story, he would be a bit more understanding, Thalia reasoned.
Thalia put her hands on her hips and glared Annabeth down. "Annabeth. I won't allow you to stay in this poisonous room, gradually wasting away until you die. You're coming with us." Annabeth didn't cast her eyes down like any sane person would when confronted by a certain vicious black haired, blue eyed woman.
"Who are you to tell me what to do?" Annabeth screamed, standing so suddenly that her under used muscles tensed painfully. She cried out and fell to her knees, her fists clenched on the floor. Tears spilled again. "I promised myself I wouldn't go back there..."
Percy and Thalia looked at each other, Percy silently asking a question. Thalia nodded.
Percy strode over, grabbed Annabeth's hand, slipped his own hand under her thighs, and suddenly she wasn't on her feet anymore, but in his arms, bridal style.
Annabeth suddenly felt hot, and dirty. She had never understood her hatred for men. Only her mother could have explained it, and she was gone a long time ago…
Annabeth squirmed. Percy's hand, though probably unintentional, was a bit too close to Annabeth's bottom for comfort.
Annabeth tried to stop her hyperventilating. She couldn't let them know that she was having issues. She would just deal with it. Besides, Percy seemed like a nice guy. He wouldn't try anything wrong, would he?...
"Put me down!" she yelled, fury lacing her words. "You have no right to just pick me up and-"
"And save you from an otherwise certain death?" Percy asked, raising his eyebrows. They both knew that Annabeth was being irrational and unpractical. But still, Annabeth struggled until Percy finally huffed and dropped her. She rolled, then stood up again, cautiously. Percy advanced towards her, hands forward in a position that was initially used for people who are surrendering. Annabeth backed away, as much as she could, until her back was pressed up against the ivy covered wall.
"No," she breathed. He stopped and rested his hands on top of his thighs.
"So, are you going to be helpful, or not?"
Annabeth looked up, her eyes skimming over everything in the room but him. Then their eyes met. Her eyes... Grey, stormy, intimidating… He gulped.
Something was starting to resurface in his mind… an old legend. The Grey- Eyed One. The Tower. Six Long Years.
"Annabeth…" Percy started cautiously. He regarded her elegant, rich- looking but faded clothes. The black and blue colour scheme. The eagle insignia on the hem…
It clicked. The story of the Forgotten One. The defiant daughter of Lord Frederick who refused to marry a noble of Othrys origin.
"It's you!" Percy exclaimed, his voice box finally working. "Lady Annabeth."
Annabeth flinched. "I am not a Lady. I refused to marry Luke Castellan of Othrys. A war started, and I was imprisoned in isolation, and have been here ever since. My father disowned me."
Percy stared at the blond. She spoke with such… deadness in her voice. But also a hint of… was that… a waver in her voice? Percy shivered. She was so emotionally unstable. One minute screaming, the next crying. Like she could snap at any time.
"Look… Percy, is it?" Percy nodded suspiciously. "Look, just give me time, okay? Don't refer to me as a Lady, or relate me in any way to Lord Frederick. I will go back to the village with you, and then we will never see each other again, yes? None of the men will know about me, and I will put this horrific experience behind me, never to resurface in my mind."
Annabeth clenched her fists and tried to melt into the wall. She had become even more impossible for Percy. Was she always this melodramatic? Percy wondered. He turned away from the trembling blond and made for the open window, where the rope was gently swaying in the wind.
"Alright," he sighed, twisting to face her one last time. "Just trying to be helpful." Thalia had been watching the scene with a scrutinizing stare, observing the way Annabeth was trying to hide hyperventilating, her slight trembling, her sudden paleness.
Something was up. And Thalia would find out. Percy disappeared over the window sill. The rope was taught, then sprung up a couple of minutes later when he reached the ground.
"So, my dear Lady. What was that all about?" Now, Annabeth was contrite, her eyes downcast. Thalia knew that tears were welling up, and Annabeth didn't want anybody to see that.
"Hey, it's alright. We'll all leave you alone now. I'm going down, and if I don't see you within the next ten minutes, I'm going to send a big rough man up to mess with you." Annabeth gave an audible gasp, and her chest convulsed. Thalia knew that she was being mean now, but Annabeth was being unreasonable.
"So, see you down there?" Thalia sat on the sill, not looking at the ground. She grasped the rough rope in her hand.
Annabeth nodded, still looking at the ground.
Thalia swung herself over the sill, and was glad to find that coming down the rope was much easier than going up.
Her feet touched the ground, and she didn't even have to look to know that Annabeth would be right behind her.
Her pride could never hold against the curiosity, the need to see the outside world for the first time in six long years.
Thalia let go of the rope and grinned at Percy. Mission accomplished. She mouthed.
Suckish ending, I know. Sorry.
In the next couple of chapters, I'll be revealing why Annabeth hates men so much (be prepared, those of you with soft stomachs. It's pretty nasty.) Also, somebody said that my plot might turn out to be really cliched. I've tried to be different in all aspects, so I certainly hope it's not cliched!