Once Upon A Time

Chapter 15 - In your dreams Percy!

AN

Just fixing some errors don't mind me :)

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The sun in the sky, the breeze in the air, the warmth that enveloped us- they all made a particularly welcoming environment, a place in which I could truly be carefree. The only sounds that surrounded me were the quiet whispers of life around the woods, the galloping of our horses and a smiling Seaweed Brain. 

We had been riding for about 45 minutes, being loud and definitely disrupting the peace of the evergreen forest, our laughs echoing without a care in the world. However no one seemed to care, and my tension-filled self was beginning to loosen up.

Riding Gipsy after so long was such a great activity for me and my girl. I had forgotten her graceful hop, beautiful mane and the bond we share. I should definitely thank Percy, which is what I think about when I look up at him in his horse. Surprisingly, I found his green eyes on me, somewhat focused but at the same time far away.

Which was exactly why in a second, a tree branch slapped him across his dreamlike face. I burst out laughing while Percy just shook his head, failing to remove a leaf that was stuck into his unruly hair. That just made me laugh even more.

"You're a meanie." He pouted.

"And you are so funny." I cried out laughing at him.

"I know! I'm awesome." He said modestly while flipping his imaginary long hair.

"Yes Mr. Awesome but you just so happen to have a leaf stuck into your black mop of hair." I pointed out.

After that he attempted - key word here being "attempted" - to remove the leaf.

"Ah never mind." He exclaimed getting annoyed. "I look hot nonetheless."

"Sure you do." I shook my head. Classic Percy. "Let me help you, you big baby."

We got off our horses and I approached to remove the leaf. But it just so happened that at that very exact moment, my dear deranged Gipsy pushed me and made me stumble into Percy.

"Woah easy there Annabeth." He smiled while keeping his arms on my shoulders to steady me. 

"Shut up." At that he smirked, which made me reach up and pull the little twig with a leaf from his hair, pulling on his hair a little bit.

"Ouch easy there." He said while rubbing his head. "I mean hair pulling is great but not so rough next time Wise Girl." 

At that he gave me a wink, which just made me frown on the outside but made my tummy flip on the inside. Settle down!

"Shut up." I retorted oh-so-smartly. Yes, envy me you mere mortals. My comebacks are out of this world - in the sense that they belong in the underworld with all other dead or useless things.

My retort just made him smile, but that smile disappeared in an instant as he kept looking back and forth between our horses. After a bit his cheeks turned a bit red and he coughed awkwardly.

"Shut up!" He exclaimed out of the blue, which took me by surprise.

"Umm..." I hesitated. Did Percy finally snap and go crazy? "I didn't say anything..."

At that he refocused on me, his blush deepening, which made him look even cuter. I wanted to pinch his cheeks right about now.

"Sorry Annabeth." He scratched the back of his head. "I didn't mean that for you."

"But I'm the only one here." I offered, trying to make sense.

"Yeah you are the only person here."  Percy offered. "However there are two horses that don't have a filter."

"What?" I was so surprised, completely forgetting about his gift. "What are they saying?"

"Umm I don't think you would like to know." He said in a breath. Wow how much more could he get embarrassed. It was so funny.

"Cmon Percy tell me." I pleaded.

His eyes went as big as saucers as  he gulped. What's with these weird looks today?

"Trust me. You don't wanna know." He urged.

"TELL ME!" I was being a brat, but people withholding information from me, that had the promise of being funny, blackmail material or embarrassing, really brought out this side of me. And by the look of Percy's face, this seemed to check all the characteristics from the fore-mentioned list.

"No!" He countered.

"Percy!" I scolded.

"Annabeth!" He warned. Oh he would not win this one.

"Tell me or I swear I will hop on this horse and go right back at the palace." I warned.

That certainly got his attention, as I could see his mental battle, weighing the pros and the cons. Finally it seemed like he reached a conclusion as he nodded to himself and fixed his stare on me.

"You won't like this at all." He warned. "It will be awkward I swear."

At that I wavered a bit but decided to listen to him nonetheless. What would be the big deal anyway? They're just horses.

"Tell me." I stated.

"Well besides them singing 'Highway to hell' all the way throughout the forest - " I laughed at that while Gipsy whined. "She says it's a great song."

I smiled and turned to pet Gipsy, my eyes still fixed on Percy. 

"Go on." I urged.

"Gipsy pushed you intentionally towards me." I frowned at them. "And then they proceeded to call me a 'pantsy' who should get the courage to kiss you. And I am using the PG-13 version of their nickname for me."

At that I blushed furiously and couldn't help my mouth hitting the floor. Percy held back a laugh at my comical expression, literally lifting my jaw and closing my mouth. I swallowed hard, unable to repress the redness of my cheeks.

"You said you wanted to know." He held back a laugh. "Now you know. How was that information for you, princess?"

I narrowed my eyes at him, turned back and climbed on Gipsy, who let out a whine.

"Oh shut up!" I exclaimed towards her, which made Percy burst out laughing as we galloped through the forest.

After five minutes, I decide to break the silence.

"You still haven't told me where we're going."

"You really need to be more patient." He smiled.

"And you need to tell me where we're going." I retorted.

"Sometimes too much information can be harmful Wise Girl." He smirked referencing the previous conversation.

"Bite me Seaweed Brain." I said as I charged forwards, which led to a impromptu race. It's funny how he thinks he has a chance in winning this. Hah, in your dreams Percy!