Demigods at Hogwarts | the rescue mission ✔

42| The Other Side

This chapter is going to be written in Annabeth's POV. I'm so excited to write this down XD Hopefully you guys will enjoy it!!!

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Annabeth's POV

A few hours earlier...

"What do you want with me?" I choked as I tried to stop the tears from welling up in my eyes. No, Annabeth, you are not going to cry. Crying meant weakness, and I wasn't about to let her break me.

I felt the dagger pierce my flesh again and I screamed, closing my eyes so I wouldn't have to look. I could feel the blade dig deep into my skin as I struggled to break free from the rope that kept me from moving even the slightest bit. Whimpering, I leaned against the cold stone wall behind me. I hadn't gotten any sleep in days--the pain insisted on keeping me awake--and I was completely drained. I was dizzy from the loss of blood, and the nausea was almost too much to bear.

"Aren't you going to open your eyes?"

I bit my lip, keeping my eyes screwed shut. Hide your weaknesses from your enemies. Play down your strengths. The last thing I was going to do was obey her. And I didn't care if it was gonna hurt.

"Open your eyes, little warrior, or do I have to open them for you?" I could feel her warm breath against my cheeks, her sickly sweet perfume filling the air around me. My eyes flew open as all my remaining hope slipped away. I knew that if I didn't open my eyes now, I might not have any eyes left at all.

So much for not listening.

She was standing in front of me, her green eyes narrowed menacingly. Blood dripped from the dagger in her hand--fresh blood. I instinctively looked down at my throbbing arm, which was wet and sticky with blood. Looking up, I saw her smoothening her straight blonde hair, a smirk on her face. She was a demigod, and I knew it. She radiated the sort of power only a half-blood would, and there was no way a human could be so...stunning. She was beautiful in a way, like Khione, maybe. An icy kind of beauty that was as monstrous as it was bewitching.

The sort of beauty only Aphrodite could pull off.

How long had I been here? Could be weeks, could be months, could be years. My captor only fed me when I looked like I was starving, and that was once a week, maybe less. There was no way of telling the time. I took a few deep breaths, attempting to calm myself down. When she had first dragged me here I believed that I would find a way to escape, like I always did. Then I clung on to the hope that Percy and the other demigods of the Argo II, maybe even Thalia and Nico, would rescue me. But now I wasn't sure if anyone would ever come. I could feel my life force trickling away by the minute. Even a demigod couldn't survive in a place like this without ambrosia. But I had a feeling that she wanted to keep me alive for a purpose. And I didn't like the sound of that at all.

Suddenly she turned around sharply, her eyes blazing with anger. I braced myself for her to draw out the dagger again, or maybe the stick she held in her other hand that seemed to be able to do magic, but she didn't look like she wanted to hurt me.

"We need to go. Now," she growled. I could hear the strain in her voice, the same strain I recognized in my voice when I was trying not to panic. I looked up, hope rising in my chest. Maybe it was Percy. Maybe he had come to save me.

"It's your stupid boyfriend," she said scathingly, as if reading my mind. "He knows where you are, which is why you're going somewhere else." I watched as she pulled out her stick, reaching for my hand. "Hold my hand." she snapped. "We're Apparating."

For once, I had no idea what that meant. But I knew that I was going to be here when Percy came for me. I scooted backwards, struggling to break free from my bonds. The rope finally snapped and I rose to my feet. I was suffering from insomnia, severe malnutrition and my body was definitely not okay right now. But I was going to fight. And I wasn't going to let this girl be the boss of me anymore.

Scrambling sideways, I started scaling the wall as she darted towards me. I had seen her do it countless times before, and I knew exactly where to put my hands and feet. Thankfully, the wall was just steady for me to climb. My head pounding, I tried to focus on what was ahead of me. Left, right, up. Left, right, up. Left, right-

I managed to look down just in time to see that there was no brick for me to step on. I lost my balance and fell, landing on the floor with a hard thud. My ankle, which had never been the same since my encounter with Arachne, was twisted in an awkward position as I struggled to catch my breath. I managed to sum up enough energy to look up.

The girl was laughing, her green eyes sparkling with amusement. I realized that she hadn't even climbed after me. "You really thought you could escape." she chuckled, shaking her head. "You're coming with me." she hissed, thrusting her face into mine.

The last thing I remembered was a hand grasping my shoulder, pulling me in, and the feeling of being whisked away.