The Lightning Thief - Something's been Stolen

THE PLUMBING FIGHTS BACK

Chapter three :) Sorry it took so long!

This is all wrong! I thought. The measurements on this image are inaccurate. The carving of this column is a centimetre too wide, and the column itself isn’t parallel to the others! What use is a column with an acute angle of 89˚? I should call the publisher. This work is terrible!

I was interrupted in my raging, as I heard footsteps from nearby. I looked up and saw Drew Tanaka, from the Aphrodite cabin, walk toward me. I sighed and stood up, ready. Drew Tanaka was always looking for latest gossip to spread, and since Chiron told me a lot, she always pesters me for information.

Drew is a Charm speaker. Meaning she can charm anyone into doing what she wants, a gift she often exploits. I’m not very fond of Drew, because she isn’t very kind, but she attracts plenty of boys, with her dark ringlets, her brown eyes, and her tall figure. I was told she came from an Asian background.

“Hey, Annabeth” Drew smiled sweetly. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. You don’t want to get on the bad side of Drew.

“Hey Drew, what’s up?” I greeted. Drew’s eyes were bright, wondering what kind of information she could get out of me. I wondered what she was going to ask.

“Is it true that the new camper... Percy Jackson, defeated a Minotaur on the hill with his bare hands?” She asked dreamily. I tensed. I knew what she was doing, and, although Percy isn’t exactly my friend, I wouldn’t let her do it.

“Yeah…” I said cautiously. Grover had probably been bragging about his friend.

“That’s amazing!” She clasped her hands together, her bracelets jingling. “Do you think he could be the one? You know, a child of the Big Three?”

How did she know I was looking for a child of the Big Three?

As if reading my mind, she said, “Oh, I have my ways. But do you think he could be?”

“Maybe… I thought he could be Zeus’.” Again, something nagged me about that answer. My heart briefly ached, thinking about another child of Zeus I once knew.

“Oh! That’s wonderful! I heard he is about my age, hmm? Hopefully good-looking?”

This was going too far. I knew where she was going with this. See, all children of Aphrodite have this tradition. It’s called ‘Aphrodite’s Rite of Passage’. To be a true child of love, you have to exploit someone else’s. Basically you have to make someone fall in love with you, and then break their heart. In my opinion, it’s a very unwise thing to do to your fellow campers.

I stared at Drew incredulously. “Drew! He’s a new camper! I don’t know what happened to him on the hill, but it was something bad. I won’t let you do that to him” I didn’t know why I was getting protective about a boy I barely knew, but I was. “And he has a girlfriend.” I lied.

Drew mocked disappointment, which annoyed me even more. “Oh, what a pity. He would have been an easy one” Then she took off, leaving me with a bad mood.

I shook my head and sat down again. Hopefully the book would calm me down again.

It wasn’t long before I was interrupted again.

I saw Percy and Chiron walking in my direction. When they arrived, I realised that Percy was still wearing his old clothes. His clothes from about five days ago. The clothes he drooled in. Now, I’m no Aphrodite child – but that’s gross.

He glanced at my book, and I wasn’t surprised to see him confused. Of course he would be, it’s in Greek, and you don’t see that around often.