Queen of Atlantis - Rewritten Entirely

Chapter 4

After four long days of travelling by carriage, they arrived in Athens in the early afternoon. There was no parade or fanfare when they arrived which Percy appreciated, but they still drew plenty of attention.

Annabeth had tried to convince him that bringing more than a handful of soldiers into the city was a bad idea. She had even convinced Jason to advise against it as well. Unfortunately for both of them, Percy had not been swayed.

While Percy had agreed to leave the majority of soldiers on the outskirts of the city, he had insisted on bringing no less than a dozen high ranking officers with them. Despite having taken Annabeth's side earlier that morning, Jason was among those selected to accompany them.

At the time, bringing fewer guards had seemed like a horrible idea. The carriage was sure to draw attention and if they were attacked before they reached the palace, Percy wanted to be certain the problem would be handled. Unfortunately, a dozen guards surrounding the carriage only drew more attention.

"I told you it was a bad idea," Annabeth murmured, peering through the curtain and out the window. "People are gathering in the streets."

"Being well protected could scare them off," Percy suggested. Annabeth raised a doubtful eyebrow. "I would never attack someone with a dozen guards."

"Not as a single man, perhaps," Annabeth agreed. She leaned back in her seat, letting the curtain fall back over the carriage window. "If you had your own army though?"

Percy scowled and Annabeth's lips twitched.

"The palace will be well protected," she assured him, reaching for his hand. "Athena is nothing if not wise. She knows how to protect her palace without encouraging an attack."

Annabeth had mentioned once that the presence of so many guards was often seen as a dare. It was what she had said in order to convince him to allow the soldiers to break away from them during their travels. It was not something he wanted to be reminded of at the moment, however. 

"Even so," Percy grumbled, pulling her back when she tried to look through the curtain again. "Jason will be with you at all times."

He was lucky Annabeth hadn't argued with him about that. She'd certainly informed him that she didn't think it was necessary, but when he asked her again, she had agreed. It was luck that Jason hadn't argued as well.

"We'll have much more fun than you," Annabeth teased. She'd already told Percy she planned on visiting her old friends.

"You'll be on the strategy committee too, you know," Percy said, narrowing his eyes at her. "You don't get to skip those."

"I don't plan on it." There was a twinkle in her eye that told him otherwise. "I will make sure all of your attacks are fully formed before having my fun."

Percy decided not to ask what all she was planning to do.

When they arrived at the palace, Percy was surprised to see Queen Athena waiting for them.

While Jason opened their carriage door and helped Annabeth down (a formality that Annabeth was sure Athena would appreciate), Queen Athena stood at the top of the stairs. Even from afar, Percy got the feeling that she was disappointed in him already. He couldn't be sure, but he thought she was watching him through narrowed eyes.

Walking up stairs had never been more terrifying.

"Breath, Percy," Annabeth whispered, squeezing his arm encouragingly. "You're just as powerful as her."

"I certainly don't feel like it," Percy whispered back.

Later, he would tell her how the Queen's stare made him feel like a beetle about to be squashed and she would laugh. Now, though, he would focus on putting one foot in front of the other.

There was something surreal about meeting Queen Athena after so many years at war. Before the war, he hadn't cared much about her. He knew that he had met her, had played in her palace, but he didn't have any concrete memories of ever interacting with her. 

Percy silently congratulated himself when he didn't pass out at the top of the stairs. During the few seconds where he bowed politely to the queen, he was worried she would critique his posture. It was a relief when he looked back up and she was just as expressionless as before.

"Thank you for having us, Your Highness."

His voice didn't crack and he didn't stumble over his words, two more things that Percy felt deserved a silent congratulations.

"It was time to end the war," Queen Athena told him. Her eyes flickered to Annabeth but she didn't say anything to her. "I am sorry it took so long, though."

"And I'm sorry we didn't seek an alternative sooner."

God, was he possessed by the god of composure? How was he not tripping over his words yet?

"Athens and Atlantis were allies long before your birth," Athena told him. "It was a shame to lose that. I'm looking forward to seeing you fix it."

Although her voice was not unkind, Percy had the feeling she would be holding him responsible for any relationship Athens and Atlantis would have in the future. If he wasn't so worried about not ruining his first interaction with her, he might have been more concerned about the weight of what that responsibility would be.

"A room has been prepared for you both," Queen Athena said abruptly. "I've arranged for Malcolm—" a blond-haired servant stepped forward, "—to show you the way."

Without further acknowledgement to either him or Annabeth, Queen Athena turned and retreated into her palace, leaving them with the man she had called Malcolm.

"It's an honour to have you both." Malcolm bowed his head and smiled warmly. Turning to Annabeth, his grin widened and he said, "It's good to have you back."

In one swift motion, Annabeth let go of Percy and threw herself at Malcolm. Although Malcolm was clearly a little surprised by the sudden change of formality, he didn't hesitate to hug Annabeth in return.

"Percy, Jason," Annabeth said, pulling away from Malcolm, "this is Malcolm. Officially, he is the one who takes care of everyone and everything in the palace."

"And unofficially?" Percy asked, raising an eyebrow at her playfully.

Annabeth rolled her eyes at him, still holding onto Malcolm's arm happily.

"Unofficially, he's my brother in all but blood," she answered. She moved away from Malcolm's side and laced her fingers with Percy's. "We'll be in good hands if he's been assigned to help us."

"It's my honour, really," Malcolm promised, smiling at Percy. "I made arrangements for a handful of your guards to stay in the barracks with the rest of our army." Nodding towards Jason, he added, "Your quarters have a side room for your personal guard, should you wish."

Percy turned to Jason. "Jason?"

Jason nodded and glanced at Malcolm. "Thank you. That will certainly help ease some of our concerns."

"If there's anything else I can do," Malcolm offered, "I'd be more than willing to arrange it."

With Annabeth grinning widely, Percy couldn't think of anything else they could need. Although he didn't say so in as many words, Malcolm nodded in understanding.

"Let me show you to your quarters, then."