Beyond the Shining Lights (Percy Jackson Barbie's Mariposa AU)

Chapter 20

"Hey... You took down some of the decorations..." Hazel said when she walked into Annabeth's room the next day.

"I'm sorry. They were just... Making everything so cluttered." Annabeth apologized.

"It's fine." Hazel said, laughing a bit. "I guess Frank and I did go a bit overboard with the decorations..."

"So, what's on the agenda today?"

"The Crystal Ball is this evening and King Jupiter has invited you and Prince Perseus to it." Hazel said, laying down a blue, purple, and grey dress down on Annabeth's bed.

"Really?" Annabeth asked. "Do you know where he is so I can thank him?"

"He's in the throne room."

"Thank you Hazel."

"No problem." Hazel said as Annabeth flew down the hallway to the throne room where Percy was already talking with King Jupiter.

"Did you sleep well?" Percy asked, walking over and hugging Annabeth.

"Yeah. You?"

"You bet!" Percy said happily.

"So what are you doing here?" King Jupiter asked as he set up guard stations on a small map.

"Well, Annabeth and I wanted to thank you for inviting us. I was thinking that maybe I could address the people at the Crystal Ball since I bring good wishes from my father."

"We'll see." King Jupiter said, not looking over at the pair.

Annabeth studied the table, slowly walking over. "King Jupiter?"

"Yes, Ms. Chase?"

"If you need help planting watch guards, I have some suggestions." Annabeth said, walking over and grabbing one of the figures.

"I don't need help from you." King Jupiter said, snatching the figure out of Annabeth's hand.

"I was only going to suggest that if you placed a team here-"

"I said that I don't need your help!" King Poseidon yelled, causing Annabeth to jump as her wing bumped into the table and knocked down a model of the city. "Now look what you've done, you clumsy idiot!"

"King Jupiter, that is uncalled for." Percy said angrily. "Annabeth was just trying to help and you scared her."

"But she knocked down my model."

"Because you scared her and caused her to jump." Reyna said, closing her book as she walked towards King Jupiter. "It was an accident, your highness. Just like the crown incident yesterday."

"It seems that wherever she goes, accidents seem to follow. Can't you... Do something about those things?"

"Do something about them?" Annabeth asked, looking at her wings, confusion growing as she folded them around her like a skirt. "I could do this..."

"Keep them that way."

"Keep them this way!?" Annabeth said, her wings flipping out.

"King Jupiter, you're being unreasonable. These are all just-"

"It's fine Percy." Annabeth said passive aggressively. "I know when I'm not wanted somewhere."

As Annabeth started walking out, she turned around. "Place one man by the castle, two by the waterfall entrance, two by the mountains, and then three in the main city. Your city will be well looked after that way."

Once Annabeth was gone, King Jupiter looked at where Annabeth had told him to place his men, and eyebrow raising. "Well I'll be, she was actually right about something for once."

"Annabeth is usually always right." Percy said, his voice seething in anger as Reyna and her pegasus walked out of the throne room. "She's read more books than anyone I've ever met, myself included. She's easily the smartest person I've ever met and I'm sure that my father would like to hear about how you treated his Royal Historian with the respect she deserves instead of the mistreatment you have been showing her."

"I'm not going to listen to a child who doesn't know how to run a kingdom."

"Maybe not, but maybe you should listen to the person who's been in more dangerous situations than you." Percy said, storming out of the throne room to look for Annabeth.

Eventually, he found her inside Leo's workshop in the basement.

"Oh, hey!" Leo said happily. "Did you know that Annabeth knows basic mechanics?"

"I'm not surprised." Percy said, looking up as he saw Annabeth straddling what looked like the back of some creature, fiddling around inside of it. "What exactly are you making here?"

"Well, unlike you two, I don't have a way to fly, so I'm making my own transportation." Leo said as Annabeth slid down the side of the dragon.

"Are you okay Annabeth?" Percy asked gently.

"I'm fine." Annabeth said exhaustedly.

"You know that I know that you're lying, right?"

"I know." Annabeth said, sighing heavily.

"Come here." Percy said, holding out his arms.

Annabeth came in for a hug, crying into Percy's shoulder. "I just don't understand what I did wrong!"

"You didn't do anything wrong." Percy said. "If he doesn't start treating you fairly, you know that my father is gonna hear about this."

"I can fight my own battles Percy."

"Doesn't mean you can't have a little assistance every once in a while."

Annabeth broke from the hug, wiping her eyes. "I'm gonna head back to my room and try to calm myself down before tonight."

"I'll come check up on you later."

"Trust me, Annabeth, I know how you feel." Leo said, setting down his tools. "King Jupiter has hated me from the moment he first met me just because I'm a butterfly fairy like you guys."

"Yeah, well that's gonna change or else." Percy said angrily.

"Percy..."

"Okay, okay. I'm calming down." Percy said exhaustedly. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Okay." Annabeth said, feeling slightly more crummy than she has in the past couple years, trying to practice on folding down her wings despite how much it physically hurt her to do so.