Heroes in an Hourglass

Chapter 3 - Who is this boy? - Annabeth

Annabeth POV

"Come on, wise girl, that's all you've got?" Those were Clarisse's last words before she fell to the ground.

When she had asked me to practice sword fighting with her, I hadn't expected for it to be friendly, nor a full duel. Now I am sitting in my cabin with a headache waiting for Luke to come back with some bandages and a full lecture on why I should've been more careful.

"Now those Hermes kids owe me 10 bucks" Quinn said as she walked victoriously through the room.

"You seem really happy for the fight to have ended in a tie".

"Well" she murmured "I had said that either you both die or it ends up in a tie, and fortunately you are still alive. So I win".

"Well, now you owe me 5 bucks, because you didn't bet on me" I said while giving her a friendly punch.

"Fair." she said while taking out some bandages from her pocket.

Otrera Quinn or as I like to call her "Quinn", has been my best friend since Luke and I had arrived at camp years ago. I think she had been here long before we had arrived but she doesn't like to talk about her past. I understand that because I feel the same way about mine. That's why I think we became great friends, because we both respect each other's boundaries. She also hasn't been claimed by her godly parent; which is something that I have always found weird, since she is the best sword fighter that I know, and clearly is someone to be proud of.

"Annabeth," I heard my name being called.

I could recognise that voice anywhere. Luke was standing in front of the door, looking at me with a half smile. I have had a crush on him since those days we were surviving on the streets. Sometimes I'll catch myself staring at him and blushing when he is nearby. Which if you ask me is kind of annoying.

"You should be more careful. If I hadn't stopped the fight someone would have been severely hurt. Save it for capture the flag. We can't let our captain be out of combat" he said while handing Qinn some bandages.

"Now take care of your injuries. There is someone I want to introduce you to"

After Luke left, Qinn helped me get ready. I was really curious about who this new person could be. But when I saw him I didn't expect a weird shiver to go down my back. Something was odd, something about this boy. I looked at his green eyes and dark hair. He seemed so familiar. A weird feeling started to grow on my chest.

"Hi, Annabeth!" Luke said as they both approached me. "Let me introduce you to Percy Jackson".

"Hi, Annabeth, nice to meet you," Percy said. That was the last thing I remember hearing before I fainted.

I woke up at the nursery with Qinn sitting right next to me. There was a weird expression on her face. I narrowed my eyes, it was a worried expression on her face. On Otrera Quinn's face. Quite a sight to see if you ask me.

She saw me looking at her and instantly changed her expression.

"There you are Bananabeth. How do you feel?" she said while handing me some ambrosia

I looked at her confused and asked, "What happened? How long have I been asleep?"

"Well basically you fainted after meeting the newcomer. What was his name? Oh, yeah, I remember Percy Jackson."

The way she said his name made me uncomfortable.

"Besides, I thought you were head over heels for Luke; but now, you fainted when meeting this new boy."