Chapter 3: The Elisson Excursion

Naturally, when they spoke to Iris on Saturday, she didn't give them a straight answer. She didn't shoot them down, either, so that was something. Sure, they'd been assigned a seemingly impossible quest, but that was familiar territory. Annabeth was confident they could figure it out. So, as they left the bustling farmer's market, Percy unenthusiastically in possession of Iris's staff, Annabeth suggested, "Anyone up for lunch?"

Both boys agreed, but after only a block, Grover had to peel off. A squirrel scurried up to them, chittering frantically. Grover had a quick conversation with it, then said, "Sorry, guys, Ferdinand needs some help. I've got to go look into this."

"Do you want a hand?" Percy asked.

Grover waved him off. "I've got this. Besides, some nature spirits are more skittish around humans than others. I'll ask if any of them have heard of Elisson, though!"

"Thanks, G-man." Percy fist-bumped him.

"See you later," Annabeth told Grover, then added to Ferdinand, "Nice to meet you."

The squirrel chattered politely back, then all three of them looked at Percy, who had been moodily staring at the staff. When he noticed their expressions, he said, "Uh, what?"

Grover not-so-subtly tilted his head in Ferdinand's direction, and Annabeth widened her eyes, giving her boyfriend a look. After a moment, it must have clicked, because Percy said, "Oh, yeah, uh, good to see you, uh, Ferdinand."

The squirrel and Grover seemed satisfied. With a wave from Grover and a final chitter from Ferdinand, they set off in the direction of Central Park.

As Annabeth and Percy started walking again, he said, "That reminded me of the pink poodle. On our first quest, remember?"

"Gladiola," Annabeth said with a laugh. "Yeah, I remember."

"He saved our butts with those Amtrak tickets."

"He did." Annabeth took Percy's hand and leaned into his arm. "So it looks like it's just us for lunch."

"Works for me." Percy squeezed her hand. "Anything sound good?"

Annabeth shrugged. "Want to just get sandwiches and go sit by the river?"

Percy kissed her cheek. "You make the best plans."

They grabbed sandwiches, chips, and sodas at a nearby bodega, then hiked the couple of blocks over to the Hudson River, where there was a park. Even though they probably weren't supposed to, they walked down to sit on the large, flat stones lining the riverbank. It was peaceful beside the river. Annabeth always liked seeing the way Percy's shoulders dropped when he was near the water. Further upriver, she could just make out the form of the George Washington Bridge. It reminded her suddenly of the battle of Manhattan, when Percy had dispatched their troops to cover the various bridges and tunnels. A phantom pain throbbed in her shoulder where she'd been stabbed on the Williamsburg Bridge. Not her favorite moment of the battle, but given the other outcome if she hadn't taken the knife, she had no regrets about the injury.

They made a picnic on the rocks. They'd left their shoes on the grass behind them, along with Iris's staff. Percy sat with his toes just skimming the water, while Annabeth perched on the rock beside his, arms around her pulled up knees, her bare feet resting against his thigh. Percy tossed a small rock into the river. It skipped three times before sinking into the murky water. He rested a hand on Annabeth's ankle and gave her a relaxed smile, which she returned. It was nice to have a few moments to themselves.

When they'd returned from Greece in August, Percy had spent several days trying to make elaborate plans for how he could make it up to her for the time he'd spent missing. Finally, though, Annabeth had taken his hands and told him, very bluntly, that she didn't need any of that.

"I missed you, Seaweed Brain. I don't need any elaborate dates or fancy presents. I just want you to be here. Just, I don't know, talking about our days or school or our plans for next year. I don't need anything else. I just want you."

"Seriously?" Percy asked, a furrow appearing between his eyebrows. "That doesn't seem like enough."

"Percy…" Annabeth didn't know how to tell him that standing here, close enough for her to catch his ocean scent, his hands warm in hers, the wind tousling his hair, his green eyes glittering in the sun and totally focused on her, was everything she'd wanted for the months he'd been missing. The best she could do was squeeze his hands and say, "Trust me. It's enough."

He studied her face for several long moments. He must have seen something confirming her words, though, because he let go of her hands to pull her into a tight hug. As she wrapped her arms around him, Annabeth exhaled for what felt like the first time since December.

Now, she pressed her toes into his jean-clad thigh. "Hey."

"What's up?"

"Nothing. Just saying hi."

Percy chuckled. His hand slid from her ankle to the back of her calf as he leaned in and kissed her very lightly. "Hi."

Annabeth ran her hand up his arm. "This is nice."

"It is," Percy agreed. "Always a good day when we meet with a goddess and she doesn't incinerate us."

Annabeth laughed. "That does help." She studied Percy for a moment, then gave him a quick kiss. "It'll all be worth it when we're at college together."

"I know." He squeezed her leg gently. "Hopefully this is the last major hurdle."

"I think it will be. Have some faith, Seaweed Brain."

"I believe in us," he said. "Does that count?"

"Works for me." Annabeth repeated his words from earlier, then kissed him again, longer and slower this time, the sun warm on their backs, waves lapping at their feet, and gulls screeching overhead. For today, just being here together was enough.

On Monday afternoon, when Percy said they needed to go to Yonkers, Annabeth wanted to be surprised. But this was pretty much what she had come to expect when a quest was involved. They almost always led to the most random places. In this case, it led to a sewage tunnel in Yonkers with murky water that smelled bad and appeared to be scattered with shed snake skins. Not Annabeth's first choice of a place to spend the afternoon. But there was a clear sensation of the Mist at work the farther down the tunnel they moved. This was definitely the way they needed to go.

The bioluminescent moss was a fun surprise. When Percy traced AC PJ into it with his flashlight, Annabeth had to hide a smile. She couldn't hide the flutter in her chest from herself, though, as they continued to move down the tunnel, leaving their glowing initials behind.

Any happy feeling faded when they reached the end of the tunnel and revealed the cavern filled with snakes. Annabeth wasn't as scared of snakes as she was of spiders, but they weren't exactly her favorite, either. However, they were here to accomplish a task. There was nothing for it but to forge ahead. Drawing in a deep breath, she followed after Grover into the high grass of the field.

Afterwards, once they emerged from the tunnel, they headed to the nearest subway station, their damp shoes squishing with every step. Grover left them when they changed trains. He had to check on some nature spirits over in Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Instead of going straight back to her dorm, Annabeth rode with Percy to the Upper East Side. She was caught up on her homework, so she had some free time this evening. She also suspected, after what happened at the river, that Percy may need someone to talk to, whether or not he wanted to admit it.

On the plus side of it all, the staff was sparkling clean. So they should be able to deliver it to Iris and hopefully get some helpful information to lead them to Ganymede's chalice and secure Percy's first recommendation letter.

When they reached the Jackson-Blofis apartment, Percy offered to let Annabeth shower first. But she shook her head. "No offense, Seaweed Brain, but you probably need it more urgently than I do. You smell like snakes and something almost…burnt?"

Percy sniffed his arm, then grimaced. "Yeah, I think that's the rainbow."

Forty minutes later, they were both showered and wearing clean clothes. Annabeth had borrowed a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt from Percy while the rest of their clothes were in the laundry, hopefully getting the mud, snake skins, and reed residue washed out of them. Sally and Paul were at their weekly writing group, so Annabeth and Percy had the apartment to themselves for at least another hour, but, after the evening they'd just had, it wasn't quite as romantic as it might have been otherwise.

It was pleasant, though, sitting curled up together on the couch. After a few minutes, Annabeth lifted her head from Percy's shoulder to kiss his cheek. "Sorry I pushed you off a cliff earlier."

Percy's lips curved up in a way that did strange but pleasant things to Annabeth's stomach. "S'okay. You were just trying to help me complete the quest."

"Yeah." Annabeth ran her hand across his chest. "I didn't realize Elisson would be like that, though." She hesitated, then said, "I hated what he did to you."

Percy raised an eyebrow. "You seemed like buddies with him."

"Brute force isn't always the best strategy, Seaweed Brain." Annabeth recalled standing on the cliff, watching the water churn after Elisson declared that he wanted to drown the son of Poseidon. She kept expecting Percy to resurface, or at least take control of the water. When, after several long beats, he hadn't done that, she'd grasped the handle of her knife and started judging the distance between herself and Elisson, wondering if she could jump down to where the river god was and if holding a knife to his throat would force him to release Percy. But then, before she'd finished gauging the distance, the river exploded.

Annabeth had seen the results of Percy's more explosive powers several times. This was no less impressive. A massive waterspout shot into the air and she heard the reverberation through the water of her boyfriend screaming.

Annabeth's stomach plummeted as quickly as the water rose. She could tell that it was a scream more of rage than of pain, but it still hurt to hear. The water continued to rise, but just as it reached the edge of the cliff Annabeth was standing on, it began to recede, washing out into the cavern. It also washed Elisson onto the ledge beside her. The river god looked so shell-shocked, Annabeth couldn't find the resolve to stab him, even if she was angry. So she took a different tack.

She explained some of this to Percy now, staying close and keeping her hand on his chest.

He swallowed hard. In a low voice, he said, "The first thing I thought of, when I came around, was that I really hoped I hadn't accidentally washed you away, too. I'd never—" he shook his head and swallowed again, "I'd never forgive myself."

"Percy." Annabeth tilted her head so she could see his face. "That wouldn't have happened."

"It could have."

"It didn't. And I just…" She shrugged. "Maybe it's my hubris talking, but I just trust that you wouldn't hurt me. Even when you're not fully in control, I still believe that a part of you is running the show." When he opened his mouth, she cut him off, saying, "Percy, that water came up just exactly to the edge of the ledge I was standing on. It didn't even touch my feet. Give yourself a little credit, Seaweed Brain."

Percy frowned, then shook his head. "I'd like to believe that, but I felt pretty out of control. I just—I just got so angry. And then the river exploded."

"You had every right to be angry. He was trying to drown you," Annabeth pointed out.

"I guess." Percy took her hand that was resting on his chest and studied it for a moment, then laced their fingers together. "It just shook me that I could still lose control like that. It's been a long time. And I don't—I don't want to be a scary guy."

Annabeth hesitated, trying to decide how to respond. "Percy…scary doesn't always have to be a bad thing. When you're defending yourself or someone else, scary can be necessary and maybe even good. I mean, I don't think either of us was exactly friendly during the Battle of Manhattan." When his lips quirked up just a fraction, Annabeth pressed her advantage, adding, "Sometimes you have to be scary, Percy. It's part of being a demigod. But you," she poked him lightly in the side with her free hand, "are not a scary person. You're a kind and funny and really sweet person."

Percy swallowed hard, his eyes on their clasped hands. After a moment, he raised the back of her hand to his lips and kissed it gently. "Thanks, Annabeth. I—I needed to hear that. I know that the scary or powerful thing is part of this whole demigod gig. It's just hard sometimes because I don't like to hurt people. Even people, or gods or monsters or whatever, that just tried to hurt me."

"I know." Annabeth squeezed his hand. "That's what makes you one of the good guys."

"If you say so."

"I do." She kissed him lightly. "You can trust me."

A hint of a smirk crossed Percy's face. "Even though you pushed me off a cliff earlier?"

"Exactly. Because I knew you could handle it."

"What about the part where you told me I had to skip with the staff?"

"Okay, yeah, that was just for me. How far did you skip?"

"I'm not admitting that I skipped at all."

"I saw you start off skipping."

"It was dark in there. You don't know what you saw."

"Oh, I totally saw you skipping with that staff, Seaweed Brain."

"I plead the fifth. That's the thing about not incriminating yourself, right?"

Annabeth started laughing and a grin spread across Percy's face. He let go of her hand so he could half-tackle her into the couch cushions, and she let him, winding her arms around his neck when he kissed her.

After a few moments, she pulled back slightly and said, "Hey, by the way, I have a message for you."

"Oh yeah?" Percy's smile had reached his eyes, creating an expression that always made Annabeth melt inside. "What's the message, Wise Girl?"

"I love you," she told him.

"I love you, too." Percy kissed her again and Annabeth sank back into the couch, grateful that after such a crazy day, they could have this time together.

*Thanks for reading! Next chapter will be up in about a week (after I finish writing it lol). In other news, Wrath of the Triple Goddess is finally out! I read it this week and really enjoyed it. No spoilers, but it's a fun Halloween story with some good Grover moments and a nice dose of Percabeth.*