The Arena Once More: Sequel to The Demigod Games

The Eighth Hour

ANNABETH

"Why is the Fifth Ring so cold?" Percy wonders.

"I don't know. But what I do know is that I want my Camp Half-Blood hoodie," I say, rubbing my hands together.

"They sell Camp Half-Blood hoodies? Since when?"

"About five months before we retrieved you from Camp Jupiter. They're really soft on the inside," I exclaim, sitting down. I run my hands up and down my legs, warming them.

"Can we get on topic now?" Piper says, rolling her eyes.

"When was there even a topic in the first place?" Percy asks, kneeling down to wrap his arms around me.

"I think the topic was Why is this ring freezing?," says Piper.

I think a minute, and the answer comes to me. "Easy. The Gamemakers are going to freeze us to death. Simple as that. Percy, hug me tighter. I'm not warm enough," I demand.

He hugs me harder, and wonders,"How can they freeze one section without freezing the whole arena?"

"You seal off the section. There's a probably a forcefield blocking us out from the world," I decide. I pat the ground next me, and Percy lets go of me and sits crisscrossed applesauce next to me. He kisses my cheek, and puts an arm around me.

"How are you two so perky? We're trapped in a freezer. It's like being trapped at Boreas' palace again," Piper exclaims. "I'll just walk around some." Piper starts walking away, and Percy and I exchange glances.

"Piper seems bitter all of a sudden," Percy stupidly points out.

"She lost her boyfriend, remember?" I tell him, pulling him closer for warmth. "We're the last couple standing."

"It's The Couple Games," Percy says, grinning.

"You bet it is," I reply. I crawl in front of Percy, grab his shirt collar, and pull forward. Soon, our lips are touching, and even though we'll possibly freeze to death, I'm happier than ever. Percy has his eyes closed, but my eyes are all but that. I focus on every detail. The small trail of stubble lining Percy's cheeks and chin, the freckles sprinkling his nose, his dark eyebrows, his sea-green eyes. He's beautiful in the way only a male can be. "I love you, Seaweed Brain" I whisper in his ear.

"I love you, too, Wise Girl," he whispers back. "I know its cold in here, but you are one hot girl." He starts leaving a trail of kisses from my cheekbones to collarbone.

"You, Perseus Jackson, are amazing," I mumble, planting pecks on jawline. I climb on top of him, and hold his face in my hands. I run my fingers through his soft, black mop of hair. In turn, he runs his fingers through my hair. Our lips touch again. Our mouths open and close together, our eyes both closed, taking in the moment. We press our faces harder together, and start rolling around on the floor. No clothes come off. Only our lips and hands make contact. Even with the limitations, I've never felt better.

When the make out fest finally ends, we just cuddle. It's colder than ever in the arena. "Percy, make me warm again," I demand. He scoots closer to me, rubs his hands together, and puts them on my face, thus warming it.

"I wonder where Piper is," Percy states, resting my head on his shoulder. That's when we hear the scream, the cannon following. We both stand up immediately. "That was Piper's scream!" We start running, and skid to a stop when we see Piper's head laying a few feet away from her actual body. We look up, and find a large boy stand next to the body swinging an axe.

I take out the two knives I used earlier, and fling them at the boy. One finds his bellybutton, and the other receives a home in his left breast. His cannon immediately booms after. He collapses to the ground, and just like that, there are only 48 Tributes left. 2/3 of the Tributes gone.

Suddenly, two other boys, come out from the shadows holding spears. Boy 1 throws his spear at Percy, but he catches it, and throws it back. The spear enters the boy's heart, and BOOM!, dead. Boy 2 aims his spear at me, but I duck and roll. I hop up, then kick him in the gut. He stumbles backwards, and I spin around, and land another kick to his crotch. Boy 2 doubles over. Percy finishes the job by picking up the spear off the ground and plunging it into Boy 2's heart. BOOM! goes the cannon.