The Best Of The Worst

CHAPTER 3

PIPER

Her thoughts were muddled. I thought I dealt with the Eidolons, though! I thought they were supposed to leave us alone! 

"Tell me why you hurt Annabeth." Piper said, putting all her charm-speak into her words.

"A gift. To Percy. An anniversary gift from Athena." Nico, no, not Nico, the Eidolon said. 

"What, exactly, did Athena ask for?" Piper asked, shocked. 

"To hurt Percy without touching him. She never specified how."

Piper took a step back. Athena would be horrified to find out just how it happened, and may just put an end to the Eidolon's life. But for now, all she had to worry about was helping her best friend. 

"Does Athena know what you did?" she asked, trying to keep up her charm-speak. It was hard, though, since she was so shocked.

"Not yet. And by the time she finds out, I'll have already moved on to a different body. Maybe yours. Maybe one of her other... friends."

He said friends like they had betrayed her, almost hissing it. 

Piper said a silent prayer: 'Oh goddess Athena, your daughter Annabeth is hurt! We need your help! The Eidolon you set against Percy has been hurting her!' 

Meanwhile, though, Percy was staring into the abyss, a look of disbelief spayed across his face. He didn't understand why Athena wanted him hurt. But Piper did. 

Back in well ancient times, when Athens was actually called Erechtheion (pronounced EH-WRECK-THEE-ON), both Athena (Annabeth's mum) and Poseidon (Percy's dad) wanted to be its patron. Not a good start. Because they asked around the same time (and because the people of the land don't want floods or draughts from Poseidon, and... Well, let's just say that, as the goddess of Warfare, Athena wasn't the best person to get on the bad side of) they decided to make it a challenge. They both make a gift for the king, who would choose the god/goddess to be the patron of the city by fair judgement of which gift was better. Athena made a big, beautiful olive tree. Haha. Beautiful. It was actually really ugly, but she said the if they chose her to be the patron goddess, she would make it grow lots of olives. Those olives could then be used to make olive oil, they could be used as food (which goes quite nicely with cheese and crackers) and they could make amazing sigil (at least, she thought so, since she made it hers). Poseidon made ponies out of sea-foam with-out even thinking much further than the fact that they looked cool. That's right, people. Poseidon was the first ever brony. Bronyseidon. 

Athena won this contest, and ever since, Poseidon hated her. But Athena hated Poseidon for a different reason.

Athena is very confusing. She's a maiden-goddess that's repelled by sex, but she's had so many demigod children, such as Daedalus or Annabeth. But she never had sex. Turns out she actually conjures up children using pure thought... Let's not go into that too much, though. This information is only relevant because she was disgusted by how much Poseidon had sex with mortals. The amount of women that were pregnant with little half-sea-god babies revolted her. But it was especially repulsive when he was having sex in a shrine that was... Here it comes... Sacred to a certain wisdom goddess. Spoilers: the mortal he was making love with was called Medusa. I think we all know what happened to her; she got a free trip to Vegas! Woohoo! Okay, so maybe she actually got turned into the first gorgon ever and turned people to stone... But I reckon Vegas is better. 

Around 6 months later, she gave birth to two kids. One was a demigod boy. The other was the world's first pegasus: Pegasus. That was literally its name. Imagine when your parents named you they decided to call you "Human". Great naming, Medusa!

Anyway, ever since, they really hated each-other. A lot.

If any of that was gross, like the pegasus-being-born-to-a-human part, feel free to yell EW. But now we need to get back to the story.

Piper knew that Athena wouldn't stand her daughter being in a relationship with a son of Poseidon for another year. She wouldn't want to be related to the bastard (disclaimers note: Rhea and Kronos, Poseidon's parents, were actually married when Poseidon was conceived) Poseidon. And so she wanted to stop them being together for one more year... By hurting the relationship on the anniversary. Smart, sure, but not really wise. Even Athena has her off days. 

Pipes couldn't think of what to do. Then she had the sudden impulse to scream out "CLOSE YOUR EYES!"

Everyone in the room obeyed, and right on time, too. I piercing light nearly burned through her eyelids, but she knew exactly what it was; Athena punishing the Eidolon. When the light faded away, she opened her eyes. The goddess stood there, looking significant, as Nico lay down, looking weak, like a major source of strength had just been sapped out of him. It probably had; the Eidolon gives your body more strength than what's natural. 

Percy started fuming. "Athena, what in the name of Hades did you want to happen to me?"

Athena looked stunned. She hadn't thought that Percy would figure it out. "P-Percy, I-"

"You wanted me scarred, didn't you? You wanted me to kill myself? Feel such strong emotional pain that it almost hurts physically? So much that it does hurst physically?" 

"It's not what it seems like, Percy! Honest! I swear it on the River-"

"I don't care what fucking river you swear it on, you hate me all the same." Percy spat, then stalked out of the room. Piper followed him, but she looked back to see Athena fade away and Will help his boyfriend to stand.

Percy went back to Annabeth. He was crying over her when Piper came over. 

"I hope she wakes up soon." she said. Then Athena came up behind Percy. She seemed sad, wistful and mournful. She looked Piper in the eye and put her finger to her lips. Then she breathed out a small, silvery light. A thought came into Piper's mind, lie a telepathic message: "A gift from Apollo."

Annabeth's eyes fluttered open, and Percy grinned sadly.

"Happy anniversary, Seaweed Brain" she croaked faintly.