The Legend of Elodie Grant (Percy Jackson Fanfiction)

Chapter Nineteen

"What the hell?!" 

I jolted awake, leaping out of Arsen's arms. Brooke was standing over us, her hands on her hips. I pulled the quilt tighter around my body, hiding anything that shouldn't be visible. Arsen, on the other hand, was completely shameless, sitting upright with his naked chest on view.

"We are literally on the eve of a war and you choose now to get frisky?! On a beach nonetheless?" Brooke scolded, narrowing her eyes at us. I blushed guiltily, but I could see Arsen grinning out of the corner of my eye. 

I leaned over top of him to grab my bra, quickly tossing it on. I pulled the rest of my clothes on, tossing Arsen's at him as he watched me rush around. I purposefully kicked him as I stood up, making sure he was aware of my frustration with him.

"I can't believe you two!" Brooke continued to yell, turning around as Arsen stood up to pull on his jeans, "You're lucky I was the one who found you!"

"Gods, Brooke, is it really so bad for a guy to show the girl he loves just how much he loves her?" Arsen grumbled, tossing on the shirt I had practically ripped off his body the night before.

Brooke whirled around, a giant grin on her face. She exclaimed, "Love?! Awe, I didn't know you two were in love, I just thought you were messing around!"

I blushed, but I couldn't keep the smile off my face at their conversation. I ran my hands through my hair, desperate to look a little less like a mess, but Arsen reached over and grabbed my hand in his, pulling it away from my head.

"You look beautiful." He told me.

"I look like I just had a night of rough sex." I retorted, smiling slightly.

"Sounds like you did just have a night of rough sex, Elodie." Brooke spoke up, laughing.

I blushed and quickly changed the subject, "What do you even need us for at this ungodly hour?"

It was like someone flipped a switch in Brooke, as her face grew stony and solemn. I tensed up, gripping Arsen's hand harder. 

"A young girl showed up today at the entrance of the wall. She says her name is Annabeth." Brooke explained, looking down at her hooves.

"Did she come from..?" I trailed off.

"Yes. She was one of the demigods with Grover. They're coming."

*****

I tugged on the breastplate, uncomfortable with how stiff it was. I gripped my extended staffs in my hand, and kicked off my shoes. I needed to have access to the most power I could if I were to make it through this battle. 

The Ares cabin was passing out weapons to everyone, while the Aphrodite kids rounded up the Pegasus. They had offered me one, but I needed to be connected for the earth for today. I glanced over to Arsen, unsure of where we stood after last night. He had promised to be by my side for the battle, but we had to split up since.

"I want to fight! You have to let me fight!"

I whirled around at the commotion, my eyes landing on little Annabeth, her hands gripping a dagger. I hurried over to her, kneeling down to her level. I placed my hands on her shoulders, causing her to fall silent in shock.

"Annabeth, right?" I asked, causing her to nod her head. "I'm Elodie. Daughter of Demeter. You have been very brave lately, you know that?"

"I did what I was asked of." 

"Sounds brave to me, I sure as hell couldn't do that." I said, causing her to giggle. "I need you to continue to be brave, okay?" 

She nodded, determination on her face. Guilt pierced me, knowing what I was about to do. I pressed my palm to the ground, pulling on my power to grow a small flower. I remembered it from Dad's old journals. With one sniff, it would knock her unconscious. She stared in awe at the flower, making me smile. I picked it, careful not to breathe in its scent, before handing it out to her.

"A pretty flower, for someone so brave." I murmured. 

I watched as she took it from me, immediately bringing it to her nose to sniff. I watched sadly as she fell unconscious, catching her before she hit the ground. I sighed, standing upright with her in my arms. I carried her over to Hally, where she stood next to the infirmary, waiting for the inevitable injuries.

She gave me a disapproving look when she saw the limp girl, knowing exactly what I had done. I shrugged, unapologetically. Hally opened the door wider so I could walk in.

"You would have murdered the entire camp if someone did that to you." She lectured, following behind me.

"Probably." I agreed, "But she has gone through enough. She will get over sitting out one battle. There is no need for her to grow up any faster than she is already forced to do."

"How long will she be out?" Hally asked, sighing deeply.

"I don't know."

"You don't know?!" She exclaimed, her eyes widening, "What do you mean you don't know?!"

"I've never seen the flower before, I just remember it from my dad's botany journals. I barely remember what it looked like, let alone how long it's effects lasted." I explained, setting the girl down on one of the cots.

Hally groaned loudly, tossing her hands up in the air, before storming over to a bookshelf, grumbling under her breath. I chuckled softly, making my way out of the infirmary.

I looked around the camp, amazed at the amount of determination in the air. I stood on the porch, looking over the children that grew up too fast. I was sure many of them realized a lot of us would not make it through the day, but we weren't going down without a fight.

For now, all we could do was wait.