The Path Of Glory (Annabeth Chase x Male Reader)

46. Half-Bloods VS Hunters

That night after dinner, Y/N was readier than ever to beat the Hunters at Capture the Flag. It was going to be a small game: only thirteen Hunters, including Bianca di Angelo, and about the same number of campers.

Zoë Nightshade looked pretty upset. She kept glancing resentfully at Chiron, like she couldn't believe he was making her do this. The other Hunters didn't look too happy, either. Unlike last night, they weren't laughing or joking around. They just huddled together in the dining pavilion, whispering nervously to each other as they strapped on their armor. Some of them even looked like they had been crying. Zoë must have told them about her nightmare. As long as it broke their concentration.

On the half-blood team, they had Beckendorf and two other Hephaestus guys, a few from the Ares cabin (Clarisse was conspicuous by her absence, gone in some quest), the Stoll brothers and Nico from Hermes cabin, and a few Aphrodite kids. It was weird that the Aphrodite cabin wanted to play. Usually they sat on the sidelines, chatted, and checked their reflections in the river and stuff, but when they heard they were fighting the Hunters, they were raring to go.

"I'll show them 'love is worthless,'" Silena Beauregard grumbled as she strapped on her armor. "I'll pulverize them!"

That left Y/N, Percy . . . and Thalia.

"I'll take the offense," Thalia told Percy. "You take defense."

"Oh." Plainly Percy had been about to suggest the same thing, but reversed. "Don't you think with your shield and all, you'd be better defense?"

Thalia already had Aegis on her arm, and even their own teammates were giving her a wide berth, trying not to cower before the bronze head of Medusa.

"Well, I was thinking it would make better offense," Thalia said. "Besides, you've had more practice at defense."

Seeing that, Y/N was more than happy to have refused that co-captaining thing. He had a feeling Percy wasn't going to have the best time of his life this night.

He put on his breastplate and waved his hand. Luckily, his ring seemed in a good mood today. The curved sword appeared right away. Maybe it didn't like the Hunters, either.

"Yeah," Percy said slowly, no problem.

"Cool." Thalia turned to help some of the Aphrodite kids, who were having trouble suiting up their armor without breaking their nails.

Percy groaned.

"So, captain, how is it going so far?" Y/N asked, not even hiding his wry smile.

"It's . . . okay, I guess," Percy said.

"You know, you can tell me. I can't stand Miss-daughter-of-Zeus, either."

Nico di Angelo ran up to them with a big grin on his face.

"Y/N, this is awesome!" His blue-feathered bronze helmet was falling in his eyes, and his breastplate was about six sizes too big.

To think that I must have looked that ridiculous when I arrived, Y/N thought.

Strangely, that thought brought an affectionate smile to his face.

Nico lifted his sword with effort. "Do we get to kill the other team?"

"Well . . . no," Percy said.

"But the Hunters are immortal, right?"

Y/N's affectionate smile faded into a larger, carnivorous one.

"That's only if they don't fall in battle," Percy told Nico. "Besides—"

"It would be awesome if we just, like, resurrected as soon as we were killed," Nico went on. "So we could keep fighting, and—"