Act II Chapter II: "That's a terrible plan"

"Are you seriously going to chew with your mouth open?" Annabeth complained as she glared at Clarisse. They were having what should have been a nice dinner; instead, someone was eating like a caveman. The other one was looking down at a phone. Wait. "When did you get a phone?"

"About five seconds ago when that woman left it at the table," Reyna replied bluntly.

"You stole someone's phone?!" Annabeth demanded. They hadn't even been in Seattle for an hour now, and Annabeth already had a headache. It should have been easier traveling with two others that were her age. Or at least near her age in Clarisse's case. And how could Clarisse be "the adult" if she was eating with her mouth open and throwing peanuts on the floor?

"Shut up and eat your burger," Clarisse ordered in a deaf tone. Annabeth's face scrunched up as some of Clarisse's food spilled out of her mouth and onto the table. She grabbed her plate and carefully pulled it closer.

"Oh my gods," Annabeth groaned as she watched Reyna open the ketchup bottle and pour it right onto the table. She started to write in it. "What are you doing?!"

"Writing down the address for the Amazon base," Reyna responded. She tossed the woman's phone back onto the table. "We can get a cab to take us there."

Annabeth closed her eyes and took a deep breath; she was with actual children. It would have been better to have Luke here. He wouldn't steal a random woman's phone, and she was pretty sure that Percy would eat with his mouth closed. Sometimes, at least.

"Good thinking," Clarisse commended with a nod, and she went back to attacking her steak. Annabeth ate her burger and tried to pretend that she wasn't at the table with these savages.

"Why do you have to throw peanuts on the ground?" Annabeth asked again.

"Everyone else is doing it," Clarisse grunted. Annabeth knew that was true. It was the first thing she noticed when they walked into the restaurant. People just opened peanuts, ate them, and then threw the shell on the ground. This was a terrible place.

"I wish they weren't," Annabeth muttered.

"Why are you so uptight, Princess? Didn't your parents ever take you out to eat?" Clarisse balked.

"None of your business," Annabeth replied harshly with a scowl.

"I never went out to a place like this with my father and sister," Reyna commented. She looked down at her untouched place of food. "I can barely remember the place we used to go to. It was old and stuffy. We only went once or twice."

"Both of you had crappy childhoods," Clarisse commented. Annabeth glared at her again, but Reyna nodded her agreement. Annabeth looked away from them. She didn't have a crappy childhood. Just disagreements with her parents. Her father would also say she was still a child.

Annabeth hadn't been a child since she ran away from home.

"Are you sure that the Amazon base is at that address?" Clarisse questioned. Reyna nodded her confirmation. "So, we just walk in?"

"Pretty much."

"That's a terrible plan," Annabeth chimed in. "No offense, Reyna. We don't know if the Amazons actually have Iris or not."

"We didn't know if the bust was at Alcatraz, but you thought it was," Reyna pointed out. She leaned forward to whisper to the others. "Look, the coin and the belt are connected. I know it in my gut. The Amazons have always been this powerful group, but imagine how much more powerful they are if they control Iris messages."

"Chiron did say you could send a message to almost anyone from just about anywhere," Clarisse supplied. "As long as you have a rainbow. Whatever the Hades that means."

"Clarisse," Annabeth chided as her eyes widened. "You can't just say his name!"

"Why not?" Clarisse challenged. Annabeth sighed in annoyance. Clarisse thought she was untouchable.

Reyna cleared her throat, "Look, I'm pretty sure that Iris is with the Amazons."

"If you're wrong, we can still get allies," Clarisse interrupted. She finished off the last of her steak. "Or enemies."

"And the Amazon's main base is in Seattle," Reyna continued as she looked back at her food. "My sister will be there."

"Assuming your sister will actually talk to you, do you think she can convince her leader?" Clarisse questioned.

"My sister is the leader," Reyna affirmed. She chewed on her bottom lip. "I'm not sure for how long, but I know she is their leader: their queen."

"Queen?" Annabeth repeated. "Are they the Amazons from the Greek myths, then? The ones who had Queen Hippolyta give her belt to Heracles for one of his labors? Does that mean that's not just a belt that the Oracle showed us but the actual girdle?"

"That's my theory," Reyna said, and she shrugged. "I don't know if it's symbolic or is actually blessed with powers."

"What's your sister like?" Annabeth asked. Reyna had grabbed a fry and had it halfway to her mouth. She paused for a moment before putting it back down.

"My sister is what you think a Roman is like," Reyna replied as she looked at Annabeth.

"A monster," Clarisse answered for the blonde. Annabeth shot her another glare. "That's the nice way of putting it, Princess."

"Guess you could call my sister the head monster," Reyna suggested. "When we set foot in America, we parted ways. My sister wanted us to go to the Amazons, but I was having dreams from Lupa. I told my sister that I wasn't going with her."

A humorless smile came to Reyna's face as she continued, "Hylla said that I was dead to her. And she never wants to see me again, so that's great."

Reyna looked away and stared down at her food. Then, she stood and shoved her hands into her jacket pocket as she walked away. Annabeth watched her go. While she didn't have the best relationship with her step brothers, she could never act like that to them. How could Reyna's flesh and blood do that?

"We should be careful," Clarisse spoke up. Annabeth looked at her. "If Reyna thinks her sister is bad..."

"She's probably worse than she's letting on," Annabeth agreed. "We need to make a plan."

Clarisse snorted and chugged her glass of soda in one go. Annabeth made a disgusted face, "What's so funny to you?"

"Why make a plan if we don't know anything?"

"So that we don't walk in blind."

"We're already walking in blind, Annabeth. We don't know anything about the Amazons other than that Reyna's sister is in the group. And that they keep slaves. There is no making a plan; we just have to go with the flow."

"That is a terrible plan."

"That's why it's not a plan," Clarisse stated, and Annabeth just rolled her eyes. It was quiet as Annabeth focused on finishing her burger. And also trying to tune out Clarisse still eating those stupid peanuts. Minutes passed before Reyna made it back to the table. Instead of eating, she just played with her food.

Annabeth glanced up at Reyna. Nervousness wasn't a look that she normally saw on Reyna. Not like this at least. And that worried Annabeth. Reyna knew her sister best, and if she was this nervous before they even saw her, how bad was it going to be?

"Eat," Clarisse ordered, and Reyna's gaze shot up at the demigod of war. "Eat your food before it gets cold. I'm not wasting twelve dollars on it."

Reyna nodded and looked back at her food, hesitantly eating a few fries. Clarisse watched her closely before relaxing. Annabeth studied both of them and then closed her eyes. Gods, she hoped this would go well.