The Apprentice of Thanatos

Chapter 13: Into The Woods

{This chapter picks up right after the previous one.

We do not own Danny Phantom or Percy Jackson, only this story and our original characters.}

      After Thanatos left, Danny trudged back to the Big House, gripping his duffel tightly in his hand. Chiron and Annabeth were waiting for him on the front porch. Annabeth held Danny's textbook in her hands; he must've forgotten it on the porch earlier.

      Danny stopped at the base of the stairs, a moody gloom filling the air around him. "So, what's next?" He muttered.

      Chiron regarded Danny with kind eyes. "Well, normally you would go to the Hermes' cabin, but Mr. D has only agreed to let you stay for the week if you stay in the Big House where he can... keep an eye on you."

      "Great." Danny grumbled. "So he can murder me in my sleep or something..."

      Chiron didn't say anything to refute Danny's comment. "It's activity time right now, so all of the campers are doing activities such as arts and crafts, archery, and canoeing." Chiron turned to Annabeth. "Annabeth, could you take Danny with you to your next class, if he so wishes?"

      "Actually, can you just show me where I'll be staying?" Danny interrupted, jostling his duffel. "This is kinda getting in the way."

      "Of course." Chiron looked at Annabeth again. "Could you show Danny to one of the guest rooms on the fourth floor? I would do so myself, but..." He gestured to his lower body.

      "Oh, yeah! You're a..." Danny trailed off; his brain was not functioning at the moment.

      "A centaur, yes." Chiron smiled jokingly. "Most newcomers are quicker on the uptake."

      "Yeah, I'm pretty stupid, I know..." Danny mumbled under his breath.

      Chiron frowned, but Annabeth spoke up before he could respond. "Let's go upstairs, okay? Then we could go grab some food from the gift shop if you want."

      "I'm not hungry." Danny replied, but he gestured for her to lead the way inside.

      They headed into the Big House. Mr. D was nowhere to be seen, for which Danny was grateful. Annabeth led Danny up the stairs.

      The second floor looked very different from the first; there were several guest rooms stocked with what looked like medical supplies. Annabeth explained that they used the second floor as an overflow infirmary of sorts for injured campers. The third floor had more guest rooms and a common area with a large table covered in clutter; Annabeth told him that the floor was being used mostly for storage.

      Finally, they reached the fourth floor. It was like the third, with a small common area and several bedrooms. It was very dusty, like it hadn't been cleaned in a while. There was a green trapdoor—likely an attic entrance—on the ceiling right above where the stairs ended. When they got close to it, Danny involuntarily shivered as cold tingled at the back of his throat; whatever was up there sort of felt like a ghost, but... not quite.

      "We're not going up there, are we?" Danny asked apprehensively.

      "No one goes up there unless they're going on a quest." Annabeth replied.

      "A quest?"

      Annabeth ignored Danny's question as she glanced over at him. "You look pretty worn out."

      "You can say that again." Danny said tiredly as he looked around at the bedrooms. "So why am I staying all the way up here?"

      "I don't honestly know," Annabeth began. "It doesn't seem like such a good idea to have a new camper so close to the... attic."