{1} Princess - P. Jackson 🔱

"I'm no good at goodbyes."

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August turned so hot the strawberries started baking in the fields. Finally, the last day of camp arrived. The standard form letter appeared on my bed after breakfast, warning me that the cleaning harpies would devour me if I stayed past noon.

It was ten o'clock and I was standing beside Annabeth on the top of Half-Blood Hill, staring at Percy. He was waiting for the van that would take them into the city. "So you're not going right now?" Percy asked me.

"I still need to finish getting my stuff, I'll go on the next van..." I said, trying to sound reassuring.

Thing is, this was my last day at camp. My last day at the place I have been living for years now. I wanted to have more time to enjoy, so I would take the last van going to Manhattan. Annabeth was helping me box my things. I had told her about what happened between me and my father and she was heartbroken.

I have told everyone that was near me, my siblings cried this morning and things were going painfully hard. I haven't said anything to Percy yet, but he kept questioning why Annabeth's eyes were red.

We talked a little bit more, Annabeth explained how she was going to stay at camp a little longer. She would tend to Chiron until his leg was fully recovered, and keep studying Daedalus's laptop, which had engrossed her for the last two months. Then she would head back to her father's place in San Francisco.

"There's a private school out there that I'll be going to," she said. "I'll probably hate it, but..." She shrugged. I tightened the grip on her hand, feeling her caress her thumb on my hand.

"We'll keep in touch, okay?" I said, trying to reassure her. She nodded her head and breathed shaky.

"Yeah, we'll be here doing lots of nothing around Manhattan, call us whenever you want." Percy said. I felt a lump forming in my throat, how I wish to be doing lots of nothing around Manhattan.

"Even though I'm sure Gabriel won't let you feel bored," I tried to joke.

She gave a small smile, "Well, I'll keep my eyes open for..."  There it was again. Luke. She couldn't even say his name without opening up a huge box of hurt and worry and anger.

"Annabeth," Percy said. "What was the rest of the prophecy?"

She fixed her eyes on the woods in the distance, but she didn't say anything.

I was also curious about the prophecy. Annabeth hasn't said anything about it since she received it, giving only 'I don't remember' as an answer.

"You shall delve in the darkness of the endless maze," Percy remembered. "The dead, the traitor, and the lost one raise. We raised a lot of the dead."

"We saved Ethan Nakamura, who turned out to be a traitor. We raised the spirit of Pan, the lost one." I said. Annabeth shook her head like she wanted us to stop.

"You shall rise or fall by the ghost king's hand," Percy pressed on. "That wasn't Minos, like I'd thought. It was Nico. By choosing to be on our side, he saved us."

"And the child of Athena's final stand—that was Daedalus." I said, "Thank the gods but I apologize at the same time," I mumbled.

"Guys—"

"Destroy with a hero's final breath. That makes sense now. Daedalus died to destroy the Labyrinth. But what was the last—" Percy kept going.

"And lose a love to worse than death." Annabeth had tears in her eyes, holding my hand tight. "That was the last line. Are you happy now?"

The sun seemed colder than it had a moment ago. We stayed silent. It was like each one of us was lost in thoughts. Lose a love to worse than death... what could that mean?