In which, Adira Lancaster falls in love with her rival, Percy Jackson
OR
he falls in love with her first, unknowingly.
She only seemed to think about a rivalry. Nothing else. Zilch. Nada. Zip.
-disclaimer- I do not own the Percy Jackson Books, or an...
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When Percy got out of the car, I was there to greet him. I told Grover to get me a taco, walked over, and as soon as it reached the five-minute-mark, Percy got out of the car and I walked over.
"You're lucky, punk." Ares pushed Percy away from the limo, into me. "Be grateful."
"For what?"
"That we're being so nice. If it was up to me—"
"So why haven't you killed me?" Percy shot back. It was a stupid thing to say to the god of war, but being around him always made anyone feel angry and reckless.
Ares nodded, like Percy'd finally said something intelligent.
"I'd love to kill you, seriously," he said. "But see, I got a situation. Word on Olympus is that you might start the biggest war in history. I can't risk messing that up. Besides, Aphrodite thinks you're some kinda soap-opera star or something. I kill you, that makes me look bad with her. But don't worry. I haven't forgotten my promise. Some day soon, kid—real soon— you're going to raise your sword to fight, and you're going to remember the wrath of Ares."
I balled my fists. "Why wait? He beat you once. How's that ankle healing up?"
He grinned crookedly. "Not bad, my niece. But you got nothing on the master of taunts. I'll start the fight when I'm good and ready. Until then... Get lost."
He snapped his fingers and the world did a three-sixty, spinning in a cloud of red dust. I fell to the ground.
When I stood up again, the limousine was gone. The road, the taco restaurant, the whole town of Gila Claw was gone. My friends and I were standing in the middle of the junkyard, mountains of scrap metal stretched out in every direction.
🏹
"What did she want with you?" I asked, once Percy had told us about Aphrodite.
"Oh, uh, not sure," he said. "She said to be careful in her husband's junkyard. She said not to pick anything up."
Zoe narrowed her eyes. "The goddess of love would not make a special trip to tell thee that. Be careful, Percy. Aphrodite has led many heroes astray."
"For once I agree with Zoe," Thalia said. "You can't trust Aphrodite."
I nodded. "The story goes that there was this woman who became a Hunter, who used to be for Aphrodite, but transferred to Artemis. Aphrodite got angry, and made the girl fall in love. Once Artemis found out, she took it the wrong way. She turned the girl into... oh, I forget, but she was turned into an animal. There's the longtime rivalry. Virginity and Maidenhood VS. Love and Marriage. One of the oldest backfires in the books," I explained, crossing my arms.
"So," Percy said, seeming anxious to change the subject, "how do we get out of here?"
