𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐃𝐀𝐃𝐃𝐘 𝐈 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐇𝐈𝐌, luke castellan

𝐗𝐕.

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐗𝐕.
give me some tips to forget you

ᯓᡣ𐭩

𝐌𝐀𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐄 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐀. No matter the season, people fought, trained, preparing for anything the demigod life would throw at them.

Fighting was the perfect way to relieve her stress and forget about her problems, all the while getting better in combat.

This time, she wasn't fighting off her feelings alone. She was swordsfighting with Ronan, son of Apollo, which explained why he wasn't very good with a sword. Barely a few minutes in, and Maisie had her sword pointed at his throat. He threw his hands in the air, surrendering.

"Maybe you should stick to archery," Maisie told him, letting her sword fall to the ground of the arena.

"Yeah. Bet I could kill you from afar," Ronan said, promptly placing his own sword back to the wall with the rest of the weapons.

"You wish." He turned back to her, smiling brightly like he always did, never finding a reason to be upset, always a ray of sunshine.

Ronan Reed was as calm as the breeze on a warm summer day, as sweet as honey in your tea. But, Maisie's sweet tooth had started to rot.

"Beach?" he asked, draping his arm around her shoulders and looking down at her.

Maisie only nodded, gifting him a smile, not as big as his own, but enough not to make him ask her if something was wrong.

That seemed to be a habit. Ever since everything that had happened in the summer, Maisie hadn't been the happiest soul, and she was trying to fix that, or at least make peace with it.

She didn't go home that year. It felt too risky, and she was scared of running into Luke. Not that he'd harm her, of course. She just didn't trust, or believe herself anymore, and that terrified her. The girl she'd been wasn't entirely there anymore, and she didn't want to know how far this version of her would go.

That explained the constant bad mood, although she tried to mask it as best as she could. She'd had enough of people asking her what was wrong.

Ronan helped distract her from her own brain, providing her with a lot of activities for the both of them to do together, as well as a new set of lips for her to kiss. He was a great deal too good for her, she thought, as they made their way to the beach.

They found some rocks they could sit on, allowing their legs to dangle above the ocean. They didn't speak at first, simply enjoying the other's company and taking in the salty smell of the sea, one Maisie knew a little too well. The sand was covered with snow now, an odd sight if you weren't a year-rounder.

She rested her head on Ronan's shoulder, staring out into the cold sea. Some months ago, she'd be able to make out the Princess Andromeda from here. It was probably seas away now.

"I'll get you one day, you know," Ronan said, breaking the silence.

"Oh, sure you will, Reed. You and the power of friendship," she joked, clapping him on the back softly.

"Oh, come on," he responded, pushing her shoulder with his own. "Cut me some slack. We can't all be pretty and good fighters."

"Who said you were pretty?"

Ronan gasped dramatically. "You're so mean."

Maisie smiled, not forcing it this time. "Kidding."

Suddenly, the pair heard leaves rustling, causing them to whip their heads to the source of the sound, battle insticts kicking in. It was no monster that made its way to them, though. It was Percy Jackson.

"Oh, Percy, you scared me." Maisie let out a breath of relief.

"Sorry," the younger boy said as the couple got off the rocks and came back to the snowy sand.

"What are you doing here in the middle of winter? Is something wrong?" Maisie asked, a frown pulling at her features.

Percy took a shaky breath. "Our quest went wrong. Annabeth's missing."

Maisie's mouth dropped open, not quite believing what she was hearing. "What?"

Percy could only nod. Maisie wouldn't hold anything against him. She could see he was shaken up by this too. Annabeth was his best friend, after all. Soon to be more, Maisie thought.

Her palm found her forehead and she started pacing. "Oh my gods," she exhaled, then threw a curse in ancient Greek.

"What exactly happened, Percy?" Ronan asked, seeing as his girlfriend was unable to form a sentence at that moment.

"We went to this school to find two demigods. Turns out the vice principal was a monster. After some fighting, Annabeth climbed on him and he took her with him when he fell off a cliff," he summarized. "Oh, and we met the Hunters of Artemis."

"You met who?" Ronan asked, eyes wide.

"That's not the point," Maisie finally spoke. "Okay, so, the monster couldn't have died. He probably took her somewhere," she thought, letting her brain take over for once. Then, realization washed over her face. "Oh, gods. What if he works for Luke?"

Percy shifted at the mention of his former friend, whilst Ronan made a face at the mention of his girlfriend's ex.

"Maybe," Percy said. "We're gonna find out. We'll ask for a quest."

"Good," agreed Maisie, and they all made their way back to the cabins.

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

That night, Maisie dreamed of Annabeth again.

She was struggling up some hill, fog apparent everywhere.

"Thorn! Where are you?" she shouted.

As she made it up the hill, she gasped. Luke was there, in pain, something crashing his body.

"Annabeth! Help me!" he pleaded.

Annabeth ran forward with tears in her eyes. "What happened?" she asked.

"They left me here. Please. It's killing me."

Maisie couldn't see what was crashing him, but it seemed painful. She tried to reach out, but, of course, the dream didn't let her.

"Why should I trust you?" Annabeth asked, cautious.

"You shouldn't," Luke said. "I've been terrible to you. But I'll die if you don't help me."

The darkness above him suddenly began to crumble, ready to crash him, like a roof during an earthquake. Annabeth rushed to him, holding the ceiling as it dropped. She used all her strength to hold it and keep it from collapsing on her and Luke, who finally came out of there, free now.

"Thanks," he managed, catching his breath.

"Help me hold it," Annabeth struggled.

Luke rose. "I knew I could count on you," he said, walking away.

"Help me!" she yelled, as the darkness almost crashed her.

"Oh, don't worry," Luke said. "Your help is on the way. It's all part of the plan. In the meantime, try not to die."

Annabeth kept struggling, the ceiling threatening to fall on her.

Maisie woke abruptly, sitting up in her bed, eyes wide and teary.

She had to save her sister.

───────

dear reader!

it's september but still so hot I hate everything