Percy Jackson & Annabeth Chase: Parental Approval [Completed]

11: Chosen

Percy couldn't move. The clock was ticking, who? Annabeth or the home agent... Annabeth could handle herself. Unless Athena wanted him to think that, and something would happen to Annabeth once the time started. He should save the agent-- mortals had to be protected under all costs. Maybe that's what Athena wanted him to think? Or was this a test to see how much Percy cared for Annabeth? Gah! He couldn't decide.

Time is ticking, Percy. There are 30 seconds left.

What if Percy got Annabeth to distract the agent while he killed the demon... he could then protect both. 

You must choose one. You cannot request the one you save to do anything. Percy didn't want to argue that she couldn't just randomly change the rules. It was set. Done.

With his fatal flaw being excessive personal loyalty, Percy would kill the monster and protect both. There was no way anyone was dying on his watch-- besides the monster, obviously.

"I choose the agent," Percy declared. He hoped he made the right choice. Annabeth could handle herself.

Really? All right. Athena's voiced conveyed no emotion whatsoever. It didn't show calmness, nor worry. It made Percy feel even more weird.

The demon pounced immediately. "Annabeth, distract the agent!" Percy screamed. He hoped she listened and the agent didn't take it weirdly while he clicked the pen in his hand. Riptide slid out of the cap and sliced into the air. Percy aimed it at the monster.

The creature was a tentacled thing, with a dark, muddy brown colored body and white tentacles. It sort of looked like an octopus, besides the fact that it had legs to walk on and clearly didn't need water to survive.

Before the demon could attack, Percy cut off a tentacle. He dodged the rest of the arms but ended up getting pushed back to a position he didn't want to be in. He was near the corner of the corridor, and turning right would cause the agent to see the monster.

Percy heard Annabeth and the agent talking while he swung his sword in arcs around the enemy.

"Can I see the master bedroom?" Percy heard his girlfriend say. As Percy swiped at the monster, he looked to his left and saw the bedroom. The agent and Annabeth were coming here! Annabeth hadn't heard him!

No Percy. Remember what I said? You can't ask Annabeth do to anything. You are on your own.

"But first, I'd like to show you the view," the agent said. The two were walking to a balcony away from Percy and the demon. That's right! Percy had chosen to save the agent, so the agent-- he assumed-- would want to avoid trouble unknowingly.

Percy thought how he could move the demon away from the eyes of the agent, just in case the man turned around and saw. He pushed the demon back and turned into another doorway. He was stuck in a small bathroom with the demon practically pressed up to him. Percy had to admit, though, it was a reasonably sized bathroom. Percy briefly thought that he liked the apartment, besides the demon that came with it.

He was about to stab Riptide through the body of the monster, expecting the demon to turn into dust, when one of the many tentacles hit him across the face. He fell down and almost hit his head against the sink counter, when he managed to stab the monster from under. Percy moved out of the way when the monster turned to dust.

"Percy?" Annabeth asked. He could practically hear her outside the bathroom door.

"Yeah?" Percy replied. He looked around the bathroom, turned off the sink faucet (in the heat of the battle, one of the monster's tentacles turned on the water) and started nodding his head, as if he was observing the tile works. Annabeth appeared in the doorway with the agent. "Just checking out the bathroom," Percy said to Annabeth, noting her cocked eyebrow and inquisitive look.

"I like this place, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said to him, ignoring Percy's fascination with the toilet. Percy walked towards her and wrapped his arm around her waist, both of them facing the agent.

"Me too, Wise Girl. Let's think about it, yeah?" Percy asked.

"Sure," Annabeth replied. They both shook hands with the agent.

"Hopefully I'll see you both soon. I just need to lock up behind you, so you can go if you need to," the agent told Annabeth and Percy.

Percy took Annabeth's hand in his own and they walked out of the apartment and complex to their car. Once they were both seated in the vehicle, Annabeth spoke, "Wow, I can't believe there wasn't a trial there. That would be a total Athena move... Percy?" Annabeth looked at him and he raised his eyebrows at her.

"You didn't know?" Percy turned his blinker on and went on to the road. They were driving back to Camp Half Blood. "There was a test," he said as he switched into the second lane. "There was demon that I had to kill."

"Well, at least you did it," Annabeth said with full confidence to Percy. She didn't bat an eyelash at the news of the demon. 

"Yep." Percy decided he wouldn't tell her about having to choose or anything like that. He thought about it-- more than he thought about most things-- and decided that by not telling her he would avoid getting her mad (at him, at herself for not helping, or at Athena), she could know that Percy had her back at all times, but mostly because Percy was worrying the trials were getting harder. The demon took much more time to destroy than in the original trial.

"What did you think of the apartment?" Annabeth asked Percy.

"It was amazing. What did you think? Oh, and that bathroom was huge!"

"Yes, I noticed. I didn't know bathrooms were a huge deal for you..." Annabeth shot him a weird look. "I really liked the kitchen. But the apartment is kind of expensive. Do you think it's worth it? I think you do," Annabeth rambled, "because of the bathroom. Right?"

"The more bathrooms the better!" Percy said, laughing with Annabeth. He grabbed her hand between their seats while he kept one hand on the wheel. He sneaked glances at her while she placed her forehead on car window watching the scenery move.

He turned on the radio and let the car fill up with the lyrics of the hit-music. Percy tapped his fingers against Annabeth's hand. She tapped her fingers along with him.