Chapter Eight

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Last time on: Heroes of the Thirteen Colonies.

"Alright we're done. Good job Annabeth." Will said coming into my view. "We're just going to camp here. We can't lug Annabeth the three miles it's too much strain and since she felt the need to kill those men, she's lengthened her recovery time. We might as well make our selves cozy." Will continued looking at the group. He turned to look back at me, a small smile on his face. "You're a brave girl Annabeth. I'm glad to have you here." He said and with that I went into a deep sleep.

~Percy~

I watched as Annabeth eyes fluttered closed and her whole body untensed. It amazed me to no end how young Annabeth looked when she slept. I realized I had been staring at her for a little too long when Jason coughed.

"Uh, I guess we should get our camp set up?" He suggested pulling me out of my daze. I shook my head like a dog and looked up clearing my throat.

"Right. I want everyone who is not Will, Jason, and Beck to go look for firewood. Go in pairs incase there are any other loyalists around. Then for the four of us, I want Will to watch over Annabeth and just make sure she's doing okay, and then Beck, Jason, and I will go search for water, a good place for lookout, and a place to put our sleeping quarters." I said reaching for Riptide in my pocket. Everyone nodded and went in their directions. Jason, Beck, and I went to the closest trees. We climbed to the top and searched. I was looking for the water, and found a small spring a few hundred meters away. "Guys there's a spring about three hundred meters North of here." I said pointing in the direction of the spring. They nodded and Jason gestured to a really tall tree just west of us.

"I found the look out post." He said and I nodded. It was perfect and you could easily see out for miles at the top. It looked comfortable enough and it had enough leaves to cover for us. It was big enough to notice on the ground too so it'll probably become our sleeping quarters as well. Beck made the suggestion and we all agreed then climbed down. We walked over to the group who was making a pile of fire wood in the tall grass

"Okay so we found a big American Beech tree that is going to be our lookout spot and where we will put camp. So let's move all our stuff over there, Beck can lead the way. We can put our fire near it. Let's move." I said making my way to Will. "We can move her over there can't we?" I questioned. I didn't want to move Annabeth and hurt her or something.

Will nodded, "Yeah we can move her, we'll just have to be gentle with her." He said transferring her into my arms and grabbing our bags. We slowly made our way to the tree, careful not to jostle Annabeth too much. Will went ahead of me to get Annabeth's little mat ready. The tree was about a quarter mile from the spot we were at in the field, but it felt so much longer. I watched where I was stepping, I didn't want to step in a hole or trip on the tall grass and drop Annabeth. I listened to Annabeth's steady wheezing, and immediately felt guilty. Had I not have gone up to listen with Jason, she wouldn't have been alone in the back and I could've saved her. Not that Annabeth needed saving, (until she got shot, but even that couldn't stop her) but I could've help her out.

I sighed and looked at Annabeth. She was pale, but it wasn't terrible and I knew the ambrosia and the hymn to Apollo was kicking in. She looked so calm and peaceful, like she couldn't beat you to a pulp in point ten seconds. Her hair was in terrible knots and her skin was caked in blood and dirt, but she still looked crazy pretty.

I got to the tree and searched for the mat set out for Annabeth. There were a lot of the crew in just one small spot and I couldn't see, so I just sat at the edge of the group, wait for it to clear out a bit. I was sitting on a tiny hill looking out into the valley. I had Annabeth cuddled in my lap and her head was on my chest. Her legs were draped across my lap, so they were laying just to the left of mine. Her arms were rapped loosely around my torso, my right arm was around her waist and my left arm was behind me, propping us up.

I didn't really see the harm in it since she was hurt, but other people didn't see it like that. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Selina glancing at us and getting a huge grin. Piper, Katie, and Thalia whispering and glancing at us (well Thalia just looked bored but she was standing near them). Not to mention Leo and Jason's evil smirks. I hoped they all knew I couldn't be in a relationship because of my rank as captain. Luke was sure to let me know that was a no go...even if he didn't follow that rule himself. After a few moments my right hand grabbed one of Annabeth's curls and started twirling it in my fingers. It was pretty relaxing and my eyes roamed the countryside, looking for Loyalist troops. Jason and Leo came over and sat by me, but I didn't notice them for a couple of minutes.

"Hey Perce! I have Annabeth's mat laid out!" Will called and I turned my head only to have my chin bump right into Leo's forehead. My chin started throbbing and my left hand went up to grip my chin, which was a huge mistake. I fell onto my back making my head hit the ground rather roughly.

"Aw come on Perce what did I do to you man?" Leo cried grasping his forehead. Jason was on my right cracking up, along with most of the crew. I gripped the back of my head with my left hand, which now hurt more than my chin.

"You're telling me Leo! Watch your forehead!" I said slowly rising up, I had completely forgotten about Annabeth sitting on my lap (of course I did). When I sat up she tumbled out of my lap and slightly down the hill, it wasn't steep by any means, but it was enough to make me worried about her.

"Annabeth!" I cried, running after her. She didn't get far at all, but she did wake up. She laid still for a moment as I continued running after her. She sat up slowly but was gasping for air and started hyperventilating. I reached her and proceeded to try and calm her down. "Hey, you're okay. You're okay." I said soothingly, putting my right hand on her back. Her breathing stopped being so harsh and shallow but you could tell she was still freaking out in her eyes. She put her left hand on my right shoulder and started squeezing it really tight.

I felt terrible because I knew this was my fault. Will came flying down the hill followed by Nico. They honestly were the cutest couple in the group (besides Beck and Selina).

Will glided over to Annabeth's right side and together we put her in our arms (my left arm around her back and legs and Will's arm around her back and legs but on the right side.). Her breathing continued to soften so it wasn't as harsh and sharp. We trudged up the hill and when we got to the top Annabeth was already asleep, heavy in our arms. We gently placed her on the mat and draped a blanket over her. Will checked her bullet wound, leg wound and nodded.

"She didn't do any damage, she's just tender around her injured spots and the roll probably just hit it wrong." Will explained. "Also she woke up and didn't know where she was and what was going on and probably forgot she was shot and she probably got scared. You did a good job keeping her calm though." Will finished patting my back. I nodded slowly, still feeling terrible. Maybe she won't remember this.

A/N: This was a fun chapter to write. I hope you guys are having a good start to the school year. I am doing pretty well. I'm on the cross country team and doing dance. They both take up the majority of my free time (so does homework), so thanks for being patient with me. If you want you can follow me on Instagram at lunch1380. I hope you have a good week!

-Lunch1380