Hi Hogwarts! I'm Dead!

Goodbye, For Now

Annabeth

I'm thinking about how I'm gonna break the news to Percy. I desperately wish he could come with me, but he's needed here as the new Activities Director, helping Chiron with being the Camp Director (Dionysius was let go after the war with Gaia for his help in defeating her, much to the relief of both him and the campers). And he's been helping organize the new cabins for the minor gods and goddesses, which is a lot of cabins.

I'm the only demigod from camp that's going. I'm glad Magnus is coming; it's reassuring to know that I'll have some family with me at the foreign school of magic, even if he's a total dork. I will still be taking school online, with a new magic laptop Leo gave me, so I can still go to college next year with Percy in New Rome.

Even so, saying goodbye to Percy is going to be difficult. We had a few weeks of us just hanging out, being a couple, and enjoying each other's company, when the gods decided to mess it all up. I understand that if the wizards accidentally figure out how to use some of the objects on the GSL (Godly Shopping List), they might accidentally blow up their school and themselves along with it. So, yes, I understood the importance of this mission, but that didn't mean I had to like it.

I walked into the Big House, looking for Percy. I find him sitting on the couch, looking at schedules and crossing things off a piece of paper looking frustrated. I smile and walk up to him, kissing the top of his head and nestling my chin in his dark windswept hair, as I looked down at the papers.

"Switch Malcolm's archery class to 3:00, so he's free to teach Arts and Crafts at 11:00," I say, as he turns around, giving me a soft kiss on the lips. They tasted salty like the sea, as they always did, and he pulled away smiling.

"Hey Wise Girl. There's a reason I call you that," he says, switching the times around. "How is Magnus?" I had told him earlier that I was going to see my cousin, but he was too busy for me to explain why.

"He was great. He and Alex seem really happy. Percy..." His sea-green eyes looked into mine, and he knew something was wrong.

"Annabeth, what is it?" He looked at me in concern, which almost made it worse. I swallowed hard, knowing he wasn't going to like the news.

"I have to go on a quest. With Magnus and his friends. It might take the whole year, I'm sorry," I said quietly, looking down, my eyes misty. I sat down next to him and told him the whole story. He was quiet, which surprised me, he's seriously never quiet. Then he reached out and tilted my face up toward his. He was smiling.

"Well someone's gotta save the world. It might as well be the smartest person alive," I smirked at that. He wasn't really kidding.

"True."

"You can still IM me right?"

"Yeah, I guess. But at night..." I didn't need to finish. We both had nightmares about our time in Tartarus, and sleeping next to each other was the only way to keep them at bay.

"It'll be fine. We'll talk every day, and you'll probably have other people, like Magnus, in or near your room who can help out if you do have them. And there must be holiday breaks, right?"

"Yeah..." I still wasn't sure, but his words made sense. They could still talk every day. And there were holiday breaks, I had checked. He leaned over and kissed me again, my worries fading until the only thing that mattered was his lips against mine.

Of course, someone had to ruin it. Also, of course, that someone was Leo. He coughed loudly until we looked over. He was leaning on the doorframe in his camp half-blood T-shirt, which, as usual, looked tie-dyed with grease and machine oil. His toolbelt was around his waist, and his hands were tinkering with a small machine (a remote?). He still had the same curly black hair, elfish features, and sly grin, but he had gained some muscle from the days at the forge, wielding hammers and whatnot.