Annabeth's Point of View

The Lightning Thief - The One

The roar of the minotuar shook me to the core, making me tense up and dig in my pocket for my dagger. Of course, I didn't realise it was a minotuar at the time, so all I knew was I was about to fight a monster - finally.

Chiron, who was in a wheelchair so he could fit in the wooden cabin, wheeled around, his expression alert.

"What was that?" I demanded, racing towards the door and yanking it open. But when I looked around the camp, I didn't see any monster.

"Annabeth," Chiron was right behind me in seconds, but he wasn't looking around the camp.

I followed his gaze up to Thalia's tree, where I saw a disoriented shape limping it's way down  the hill. The grip on my dagger tightened.

"Percy," Chiron said, half to himself.

"You know it?" I asked, trying to remember a monster named Percy.

"He's my student," Chiron said, watching the shape nervously.

I looked back at the Percy and found out quick why the shape was so disoriented. Percy was holding a satyr, a satyr I knew very well.

"He's the one you went to watch over," I said, excited as the shape drew nearer. "The one Grover found!"

Chiron didn't answer because, at that moment, Percy collapsed on the wooden porch, eyelids half closed and looking both physically and emotionally drained. Grover was limp beside him, mumbling about food.

"He's the one," I said. "He must be."

"Silence, Annabeth," Chiron said. "He's still conscious. Bring him inside."

I reached down and wrapped my arms around his waist, not even caring that he was soaking wet and would dirty my clothes with the mud. If he was the one, then it would all be worth it.

Dragging him inside the cabin was so difficult, I almost forgot about Grover, who was slowly regaining consciousness anyway.

"Food?" Grover said, his eyes fluttering open.

"Grover," I said, my voice strained from dragging Percy. "Are you okay?"

Grover looked confused at his surroundings for a moment, glancing around the porch, but then his eyes landed on Percy and they widened in horror.

"Oh no," Grover said in dispair. "Oh no, oh no!"

"A little help?" I suggested, not sure how I was supposed to get him on the armchair.

Grover got clumsily to his feet, his whole body shaking so much raindrops flew in all directions.

"I failed," Grover whimpered as he helped me put Percy in an armchair. "I failed. I'm never going to get my searchers lisence."

"Now is not the time, satyr," Chiron said, wheeling his way over to Percy and searching him for any injuries - whih weren't much but a large knot in the back of his head and a couple of scratches. "Annabeth, go get help, we need to get him some nectar and ambrosia."

I nodded and, with one more glance at Percy, ran out of the cabin as fast as I could . If Percy woke up without me there, then Chiron would tell him not to tell anyone about the solstice - but I had to find out. This was my quest, too. I know it was.

I got Argus, the man with a thousand eyes, to help us get Percy to rest in the infermary. He had picked him up so easily and, next to the huge muscles, I couldn't help but notice how small Pery looked in Argus' arms.

"Watch over him, Annabeth," Chiron told me sternly. "But don't ask him any questions."

"Okay," I said, though I wasn't agreeing to the second part.

Chiron gave me one more stern look before wheeling out of the room, leaving only me and Percy in.

Percy had been dried and changed into comfortable clothes now, so I had a good look at him. Before, he had been so caked in mud that I didn't even realise he had pale skin.

He didn't look like anything special. He wasn't muscular in any way, he didn't even have a tan, and he was so short. The Ares cabin would have a good laugh at the sight of him.

He woke up a few times, mumbling about his mother. Most would feel uncomfortable, listening to someone while they slept, but the Athena children all knew that if no one would tell you information willingly, then you might as well eavesdrop.

The days past and Chiron kept telling me that I could go on with my training, but I wasn't going to. Each time Percy woke up, he would tell new information - like how his teacher was a scaly winged creature (I soon got it down that it was a Fury), and how the minotuar killed his mother, making her disappear in a shower of golden ash. If Percy said anything about the solstice deadline, then I wanted to be there to hear it.

Chiron knew what I was doing, of course, but he didn't say anything about it - which I was grateful for.

One time, while I was feeding him ambrosia, he actually did wake up to say a few words.

I had been scooping up the drips off his chin and pooling it to his mouth. Though he looked really stupid, I couldn't help but think he was kind of cute - when he wasn't drooling.

He opened his eyes, and a mere second later, they were focused on me. His eyes were attractive, the best eyes I've ever seen. They were sea green, and the dark lashes that bordered it made the color even more enduring.

I stopped feeding him and said, "what will happen at the summer solstice?"

He looked as though my words didn't make much sense to him - maybe the bump on his head caused more damage then I first thought. "What?" he croaked, his voice rough and loud.

I glanced around nervously. Chiron had sharp ears and he would most likely kick me out if he found out what I was doing.

"What's going on? What was stolen?" I looked at him desperatly. "We've only got a few weeks!"

My panick was lost on him. His eyes were shutting slowly. "I'm sorry. I don't..."

What he didn't know I never found out, because there was a knock on the door and I did the only thing I could think of that would shut him up - I filled his mouth with ambrosia.

"Still unconscious, I see," Michael Yew said.

Michael Yew was a kid from the Apollo's cabin, and we both shared shifts on taking care of Percy. But, unlike me, Michael wasn't doing it for information but was doing it because - being the son of the god of medicine - it was his duty to take care of the sick.

Michael wasn't my favorite person from Apollo, but he knew how to nurse people to health, so I didn't complain when we had to split our shifts.

Michael looked down at Percy, who had started to drool again, and scowled. "He better wake up quick. I don't think I can do this much longer."

"Just do your job," I told him. "And tell me when he wakes up."

"I'll tell Chiron when he wakes up," Michael sent me a look. "Don't think I don't know what you're doing, Annabeth, and I'm not going to be part of it."

"I never said you were," I said. "And I don't know what you're talking about."

Michael grimaced at me, his already scruntched up features becoming even more unattractive. "Whatever."

I rolled my eyes and, with one more glance at Percy, I left the room.