Ocean Blues [Percabeth] #COMPLETED

They Really Blend Together

Surprisingly, nothing terrifying haunted my dreams that night. I usually half-expected some ominous conversation in a dark cave or something to take place in my mind, but my dreams turned out empty, like a blank sheet of paper. Not a whisper nor a soul. Not even a monster. I just fell into a deep sleep, and when I woke up the next day, I felt refreshed. No dark prophecies, no somber prisoner who needs saving, nope. 

Which could be both unsettling or good.

The temperature that seeped into my cabin overnight was still cool, and I was grateful that I lived in a Poseidon Cabin, because it's probably the only breeze retaining one compared to the others, especially the Ares cabin. I've been inside there once, just a peek, but I could still feel the blast of heat wave radiating from the kids inside.

I quickly cleared my head and got changed into my usual Camp Half Blood shirt, which was very orange. Should have made it pink to match the whole strawberry field concept, but I digress. I swiftly joined the other demigods at the pavilion, and I held back Grover as I noticed he was also just in time as I was, "Hey, Grover! I've got a quick question to ask."

"Sure, Percy. What is it?"

"I need a gift for Annabeth. A good one. Any ideas?" I stole a glance at her as I said to my satyr friend. He blinked for a while, a confused smile making its way to his face, "Shouldn't you be getting advice for that from the Aphrodite kids?"

I made an exaggerated motion of slicing my throat at him, "Yes, but their ideas are too good, man. I can't even decide which or what!" Grover frowned, his sharp goatee parting, "Hmm...If I were you, I'll give her a stash of tin can!"

"What's she gonna do with..tin cans?"

Grover shrugged and eyed his girlfriend, Juniper who was beckoning at him towards the pavilion. "Uh...catch you later, Percy," he flashed a distracted grin at me before trotting off into the distance. I sighed and rubbed my arm for self-consolation, "Man, all the ideas given make me sound like Daedalus. Yet I can't decide..."

I was about to reach the pavilion when the infamous Stoll brothers exchanged mischievous smiles as they beamed at me, showing off their pearly whites. Travis spoke up first, locking arms with his equally notorious twin, "Hey, Percy...." He paused for possibly dramatic evil effect before continuing, "We heard that you're looking for a gift!"

"The perfect gift!" Connor Stoll corrected.

"And we, got some fantastic suggestions for you!"

I didn't like where this was going.

"A prank!" They shouted at my face in perfect unison. Perhaps they rehearsed this? Or who knows. Great minds think alike I assume, and they were twins. "We can totally help you to set up  the best surprise in her life!" Travis bragged, putting an arm around me, "It'll totally shock the daylights out of her!"

"Wait, hold on...first of all, who even told you about my search for a gift?" I asked.

The twins glanced at each other and announced in sync yet again, "The Aphrodite cabin did! We're big gossipers, so we go together...hand in hand."

I closed my eyes. I should have known. One reason for almost everything in this camp: Gossip. 

"So, this is a pretty swell offer we are giving you! What do you say?" Connor said eagerly. He looked so excited, there was a manic gleam in his eyes. They absolutely loved pulling people's legs, even their own cabins'. Nevertheless, I shook my head, "Well, I don't know. A prank sounds exactly like something Athena kids would hate. Especially Annabeth."

"Oh...well," Connor blinked, "Never mind! You know, if you change your mind last minute or something, don't hesitate to ask us again! Goodbye, Percy!" The twins giggled crazily and took off the speed of a passing wind. I guessed they were Hermes-like like that.

I sighed and finally sat down in the pavilion. Half a day and the Aphrodite kids are exchanging information about me already. I really hope Annabeth wouldn't confront me about it. She would be mad all day if she found out I asked others for help instead of her. And that would ruin the surprise, and not the prank type.

X

As I practiced my sword skills all day by the hay bales, thrusting Riptide in and out of a scarecrow dummy, whirling around as I sliced off their straw heads before delivering the final blow by a swift kick accompanied by a single impale through its chest. The sword training constantly reminded me of Luke, who sacrificed himself in the second Titan War. My breath hitched as that memory replayed in my mind again.

I caught myself off guard as I plunged my sword into another dummy, and decided it was time for a water break. Water.....a gift from my father. Could it be used as a gift for Annabeth too? I'm sure it could be, but I just needed it to be in a form that was acceptable. I couldn't wrap my idea around it. I sat down on a stack of hay, taking a swig from my bottle and instantly felt energized. It reminded me of those Red Bull commercials on TV, except for me, it heals too.

On my feet again, I grasped the hilt of my blade, feeling its balance perfectly in coordinate with my weight to throw around. "Hey, Prissy, wanna spar with me?" A loud, rash voice I knew all too well suddenly erupted behind me. There stood Clarisse, (in all of her nasty glory) daughter of Ares, brandishing the tip of her javelin at me, glaring into my eyes with a twisted smile on her face. 

Of course she would pick me to spar.

Why not?

"Well, I'm honored," I replied with a lazy grin, "To fight with you....again."

"Flush your sarcasm, Prissy."

"Like the way you tried to flush my head into the toilet bowl the during my first time here?" I intended that to be rhetorical or a joke even, but maybe the tone in my voice just didn't cut it, because I found Clarisse flashing me a provoked smile before charging towards me, her spear rotated so the point faced me. Needless to say we were both exhausted after the spar, since Clarisse, being stubborn as ever, denied rest from the fight. And considering the way she stared at me with her seething scowl after that, I wasn't sure what to make of her.

Undoubtedly the child of Ares, I concluded, though I knew Clarisse was a better person on the inside, and she too, lost someone in the Titan War. It wasn't an alter ego that made her accept Silena perhaps, but she wasn't cold hearted to not care at all. It occurred to me it had always been a hidden part of her. She's not bad, I mean.

As I moved on to take a break from stabbing inanimate hay bales and clashing against a demigoddess of war, I decided to scale the walls of the rock-climbing practice. As I made my way towards the obstacle, I saw the field of strawberries blooming under the care of some Demeter kids, an Apollo boy chasing after the Stoll brothers with a half-broken guitar, a bunch of Athena cabin mates gathering around as they took a break from archery lessons. 

Slowly, I started clambering up the dangerous walls with a steady pace, foot after foot, hand after hand at the gaps, while narrowly avoiding the lava cascading along side it. Once I hoisted myself onto the top, the view was breathtaking as usual. The green, rolling hills spanning far out like the humps of camels and the skies blending into cirrus of red and specks of Camp Half Blood shirt's orange. The curving lake sitting calmly as it distanced the camp and the hills altogether.

And suddenly, the gift's idea sparked into existence in my mind.

Now I just need to make it work.