Demonology (a Percabeth AU)

A Thesis Topic

Annabeth has waited for this moment for years. Ever since she had decided to major in English (as well as Architecture), she had been excited for her thesis. This was her moment to prove herself. Perhaps her thesis could even be published in a literary journal. Then, maybe her mother and father would take notice of her.
Annabeth's mother, Athena Smith, was a political science professor at Harvard and always too busy with her scholarly work to visit. Annabeth's father, Frederick Chase, was a history professor and too preoccupied with work and Annabeth's twin brothers, Matthew and Bobby, to pay attention to his only daughter.

There was only one other person before Annabeth now. She waited while Drew Tanaka discussed appearances in The Great Gatsby with Dr. Chiron. When she finished, Annabeth beamed.

"I want to write my thesis on the devil," Annabeth said breathlessly. "We've read many books with him as a character in it and he's portrayed differently in each of them. I'd like to compare John Milton's portrayal of Satan to the Book of Job's portrayal of the Adversary."

Dr. Chiron laughed gently as he typed onto his laptop. "Your mind is as sharp as ever," he said. "Miss Chase, your idea sounds good. Would you like to do some research and then meet with me later to refine it?"

"Of course!" Annabeth said.

"I'll see you in class next week, then," Dr. Chiron told her, his brown eyes twinkling as he smiled.

Annabeth left the classroom and the smell of pencil shavings and coffee behind. She had many great professors, but Dr. Chiron was her favorite. He never talked down to her like she was a dumb blonde and his criticism was always constructive.

Annabeth returned to her dorm room before going to the school library. As a senior, it was highly unusual for her to be living on campus, but her scholarship covered room and board. The winter air was crisp and snow crunches beneath her boots as she trudged to the library. It was January — the beginning of her last semester of college.

Annabeth climbed up the steps to the library and pulled open the heavy front door. The warm air inside was a relief. She made her way to a quiet area and sat down on a squishy armchair. She could do this in her own dorm room, but she preferred the focus she had here and besides, she could easily grab any book she needed.

Annabeth pulled out her laptop and searched the library catalog. She needed to check out a copy of both the The Book of Job and Paradise Lost. She looked up the titles and went to find them. As she was walking towards the checkout counter, she bumped into someone and dropped her books.

    He was a tall, dark-haired man with sea-green eyes. He picked up her books and handed them to her with a smile. "Big books," he commented. "What are they for?"

     "A thesis," Annabeth said. "It's on the differing portrayal of the devil in the two works."

     "That's really interesting," the guy said. "I'm Percy, by the way. I'm studying abroad here this semester."

     "That's awesome," Annabeth said. "Maybe we'll bump into each other again."

     Percy laughed. "Yes, I imagine so."