A/N: In which Annabeth meets Bramblestar
Annabeth's POV
Annabeth opened her eyes with a groan and sat up. She was in a small cave. The scent of herbs hung heavy in the air. Natasha was sleeping in a nest near the back left wall, while Percy and Clint were sleeping in nests near the entryway. Two of the nests along the back right wall were empty. Conversation drifted in from outside, and shadows occasionally flitted across the entrance. She stood up and walked into the sunlight. A fallen tree split a large stone hollow in two. If she had to guess, it was an abandoned quarry. Bushes lined the walls, and to her right was a large rockpile. What surprised her the most was the cats. They were everywhere. A large, dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes padded up to her and nodded his head. "Welcome. I am Bramblestar, leader of ThunderClan. What is your name?"
"Annabeth."
"Come with me."
Bramblestar showed her around camp, pointing out the warriors den, the apprentices den, the elders den, and the nursery, along with Highledge and the medicine cat den, which was the cave she had come out of. They walked over to a grey tabby tom sunning himself outside the medicine cat den. "Jayfeather!"
The grey tom sat up, blinking clouded blue eyes. "Yes, Bramblestar?"
"I want you to look Annabeth over and tell me if you think she is healthy enough to sleep with the warriors."
Jayfeather sniffed her, nipped her spine in three different places, and ran his paws over her body. With one final sniff he stated "She's good."
"Good. Annabeth, follow me."
They walked back over to the warriors den. Bramblestar stepped inside, and placed a paw on a nest next to the entrance. "You can sleep here."
Annabeth nodded. "Thank you"
Bramblestar blinked. "My pleasure. Right now the Clan is sharing tounges. If you want, you may grab something from the freshkill pile and go eat by the other warriors. I'm sure your companions will be awake soon."
With that, he turned and walked out. Some cats were still sleeping in the den, so, as quietly as possible, she stepped outside. As she walked over to the freshkill pile, which was basically a big pile of prey for the whole clan, a young kitten stepped outside the nursery and exclaimed, "Hey, who are you? Are you a loner? Is Bramblestar letting you into the clan?"
His mother stepped outside, gave Annabeth a look, and herded the little one back inside. She continued walking over to the freshkill pile, grabbed a squirrel, and walked back over to the warriors den. She set it down outside the warriors den and began eating. She started thinking about her predicament. Loki, one of the "Asgardians" that Clint and Natasha had told them about, was obviously the culprit. But why would he be interested in her and Percy? To keep them away from something important? As for Clint and Natasha, he could just be taking revenge, but why would he not capture the other Avengers? He was insane, according to Natasha, but this was obviously a part of a larger plan. Who were his allies? Why was he doing this?
"Penny for your thoughts?"
"Hey Seaweed Brain. Want to share?" She gestured to the half-eaten squirrel.
"I think you've eaten most of it!", he teased, but he sat down beside her and tore a bite out of it. "So I've been thinking...", she started.
"Uh oh, here she goes", muttered Percy.
"Shut up, Seaweed Brain. Anyway, I was thinking that Loki was the mastermind behind this."
"Reindeer Games?"
"Sure, whatever floats your boat."
"Enjoy this squirrel, it's really good. Although I could go for some extra-lean nymph-prepared barbecue right now." He sighed. "I miss camp."
"So do I. I would kill for just one s'more."
"What really pisses me off though, is that after we go through freaking Tartarus, we get changed into cats and sent Hades knows where, just as we're about to go home, me for the first time in nine months!", spat Percy, lashing his tail.
"I think Natasha's pregnant."
"I think so, too"
They finished the squirrel in companionable silence, the only sounds were them eating. Annabeth swallowed and said "Do you want to check on them?"
"Sure, lets go"
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A/N: Is it going too slow?
Disclaimer: Once again, I own NOTHING!
