How times had changed… Everything I once knew had changed. From the Big House to the Strawberry Fields… There was a hint of danger; a hint of uneasiness. A hint of something we had never had inside the camp borders before: fear. It lay everywhere I looked. In the eyes of tired children that once ran laughing and giggling through the grass. It was in the dust that layered the floor of my cabin as I set my bags down. It was the absence of Annabeth. The lake was empty, the grounds devoid of life. The one place that did seem to attract somewhat of a crowd was the sword fighting arena. Everyone was just sitting and waiting… waiting for something, anything.
And to think I had been looking forward to this day all year. Sure, it was still great and all, but this was not the camp I knew. Not the camp this really was. I plopped onto the mattress of my bed and let my eyelids close. This was going to change. That much I would guarantee. If I have any say in this war at all, I was going to fix this. For all the other demigods out there in the world. I swore it on the River Styx. But for now, sleep enveloped me and my mind wandered to one far from my own.
Thump! I fell out of bed and hit my head on the floor. For a moment, I lay there, smelling the floor, too tired to move. This had been a recent occurrence. Ever since my nightmares had been growing stronger and stronger, my body seemed to have found its way onto the carpet of my bedroom most mornings. I had hoped that camp would help this, but it hadn't. It could barely seem to help itself.
A little cough startled me from my reverie and my eyes shot open. There was someone in my room. No one entered another gods' cabin without permission so who could this be? Feeling my pockets slowly I realized that riptide was there and my heartbeat descended. The person hadn't made any more noise since their first giveaway and I was ready to surprise them. One quick move, that's all it took. Okay, Percy, you can do this. 1…2…3! Sitting up; I quickly hit my head on the bed and swore grasping my head in pain.
"Having trouble?" asked the confident, mocking voice. Unforgettable, stormy gray eyes drilled into mine as I looked up, grimace and all. A smirk stretched across her face as I shook my head with a smile. "Of course," I muttered to myself.
"Miss me, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth Chase asked scathingly, tossing her hair behind her head and extending her hand.
I grinned and took her hand as she pulled me up. "Just a little," I joked, pulling her into a giant, bear hug.
She squeezed back before we both let go awkwardly. I messed my hair for a second before we both just turned away. As she looked away, I secretly grinned and noticed that I was much, much taller than her now. She reached my ears; well maybe she was a little taller than that…but still. Annabeth seemed to have noticed as well and she squinted in playful anger. Sighing, she came to sit on the bed where I gladly joined her, stretching out my arms.
"I guess I'm going to have to get used to looking up from now on", she added grudgingly as she lay back on the covers. I almost lay down next to her, but something stopped me. Her shirt had ridden up around her left arm and a long jagged cut started at her elbow and extended into the confines of her shirt. Following my gaze, Annabeth's smile slid off her face and she quickly and defensively pulled down the sleeve.
Staring at her arm, I added, "I feel like there's going to be more than just height to get used too."
