Silver Water (Percy Jackson and Red Queen crossover)

Lessons, YAY! *Note the sarcasm*

A/N:

Well, I celebrated my 16th birthday yesterday (and Tuesday) at home in quarantine, which is not how I planned to celebrate my sweet 16 (my mom did get me an Evangeline Samos t-shirt from Etsy though). But, anyways, this is my birthday gift to you guys. 

This chapter is dedicated to Potterjacksonhead

Annabeth's POV:

"How dare you, you little bitch!" I hear Istvan's voice shout. Groaning, I turn the corner to see what Istvan is upset about this time. This better not be about something stupid like him over hearing one of the servants call him an 'arrogant snob.' Half way down the hall, a small group of nobles have started to form around Istvan and the victim of his temper tantrum.

"One." The crack of a whip echoed through the hall. "Two."

Based on the looks on everyone's faces, this has probably happened before. As I push my way to the center of the circle, I hear Evangeline mutter "At this point, he should just get a new servant."

"Three." Crack. "Four." Crack. "Five." Crack.

Once I get to the center, I can see Istvan standing over a young red servant who I recognize as my younger half-sister Sterling Luna. Her uniform is ripped from Istvan's whip and the blood from the cuts on her back drips onto the marble floor, staining it a deep scarlet color. She makes an attempt to stand as Istvan brings down the whip for another strike. "Six."

"Istvan," I say, taking a step forward. "Stop, you're acting like a petulant child."

"She was being disrespectful," he growled in response.

"What exactly did she do that was so disrespectful? Did she call you an 'asshole'?"

"That among other things," Istvan mumbled beneath his breath. A silver blush blossoms across his cheeks.

"Well, I call you that all the time and you don't whip me, so why is this any different?"

"Well-I-er-you're-"

"It's not, so drop the whip, swallow your pride, and walk away."

Istvan hesitates, seeming to have a mental debate over whether or not he should listen to me. "Fine," he says, throwing the whip to the ground and storming off.

I walk over to Ster, helping her up. "As you were," I say, addressing the still lingering crowd.

~~~time skip a few hours~~~

Percy's POV:

My next instructor waits for me in a room cluttered from floor to ceiling with more books than I've ever seen, more than I ever thought existed, though it's nowhere near the number of scrolls in the Athena cabin. The books look old and completely priceless. Despite my aversion to school and books of any kind, I feel a pull to them. But the titles and the words written on the pages are a jumble of symbols that I could never hope to decipher.

Just as intriguing as the books are the maps along the wall, of the kingdom and other lands, old and new. Framed against the far wall, behind a pane of glass, is a vast, colorful map pieced together from separate sheets of paper. It's twice as tall as me and dominates the room. Faded and ripped, it's a tangled knot of red lines and blue coasts, green forests and yellow cities. This is the old world, the before world, with old names and old borders that mortals no longer have any use for.

"It's strange to look at the world as it once was," the instructor says, appearing out of the book stacks. His yellow robes, stained and faded by age, make him look like a human piece of paper. "Can you find where we are?"