Maybe Rioting for Blueberries Isn't the Best Way to Live in an Apocalypse

Chapter 2

"Come home with us and see if Chiron's heard anything."

He followed it like a command, like she was in charge of what was left in the world. He didn't have answers and he had no more leads to follow, so he instead followed them back to their home first thing in the morning.

The trip was long and grueling, was full of panic and anxiety. For the first six hours of walking, all Percy could think about was his mother, where she was, if this was the right choice to make. If whoever Chiron was would be able to find her. If she was still alive.

When the sun hit the midway point in the sky, they found themselves in an area with more tree ruins than building ruins. Annabeth gestured to one of the old mobiles tilted on its side, her hair sticking to her forehead and her eyes shining in the light.

"Let's rest under that," she said. "It'll help shade us."

Grover got down from Percy's back and trotted over to the area. He had been knawing at a tin can for the past hour, making no dents but somehow finding it entertaining. "What do we have for lunch?"

Annabeth set her bag beside them but didn't sit. "We have some nuts in there. Don't eat them all, we won't get there by nightfall."

Percy made himself comfortable as Grover pulled out the containers. "Are you sure we can't? My mom..."

"I'm sorry, Percy..." Annabeth gave him an apologetic smile. "But we'll find her, okay? Grover and I, we're going to help you."

Grover nodded through a mouthful of food. "Yeah."

"But if we're too late..."

Annabeth crouched beside them. "Look, Percy...I have no idea what happened to her, so I can't promise anything. But I know what it's like for a parent to go missing."

Percy held out the container to her. "How long has it been?"

Annabeth grabbed a nut and picked at it. "12 years. My mom disappeared when I was born."

"Oh..." Percy frowned. "Did she leave any trace?"

Annabeth shook her head. "Nothing. I wasn't able to investigate at the time, obviously, and by the time I was able to...well, nothing. And I couldn't really just ask my dad. We never got along, not after he got with his new wife."

"I'll talk to him," Percy insisted. "It could give me something about mom."

"Oh, uh..." Grover started chewing on the can again. "Annabeth's dad doesn't live in our society."

"I ran away when I was seven, ended up at Camp Peconic," Annabeth explained. "Haven't talked to him since."

"Oh."

It was silent for a few beats before Percy spoke again. His baseball bat laid in his lap in case of monster attack.

"Do you like Camp Peconic, though?"

"Yeah, camp's pretty cool. It's a bunch of kids and teenagers who ended up away from their parents for whatever reason. It used to have more adults but...you know, the disappearances. Chiron and Mr. D are the only adults there."

"If you count Mr. D as an adult," Grover laughed. "All he does is drink and play cards."

"Cards?" Percy asked.

"I'll show you when we get there," Annabeth said. She looked up at the sky, looked at the position of the sun. "We should get going if we want to cover most of the journey by nightfall."

Grover sat back with a sigh. "Already?"

"You aren't even walking. Percy's carrying you."

"Yeah, well, we just started stretching."