Indigo Eyes

Chapter 30

Cressida was the second person to hug Tyson. After Percy had run down to do so, she limped with the help of Clarisse to wrap her arms around him. He'd just finished explaining how Rainbow - who'd been following them since Long Island Sound waiting for Tyson to play with him - had found him sinking beneath the wreckage of the CSS Birmingham and pulled him to safety. The two of them had been searching the Sea of Monsters ever since trying to find them until Tyson caught the scent of sheep and yummy grapes and followed it.

"You're ok!" she exclaimed.

"Pretty Girl said to come back. Tyson came back," he said and her heart all but melted as she pulled his head down to kiss his cheek and his face went red as she stumbled back.

"Lynn, you good?" Clarisse asked as she caught her.

"My ankle's still dislocated - or broken. Got any ambrosia left?" she asked.

"No. That was the last of it," Clarisse said as she held up the empty bag.

"What is ambrosia?" Tyson wondered.

"Food of the gods. Good for demigods," Cressida answered the pain in her ankle, actually in all of her body, was rather bad as Clarisse helped her sit on the ground.

"Is this it?" Tyson asked as he pulled the last Ziploc bag out of his jacket pocket and held it up. "Rainbow said it not good to eat for us."

"Yes!" Percy exclaimed as he grabbed the bag and began to open it as he knelt by Cressida who shook her head.

"No. Annabeth," Cressida reminded them as they turned to where Grover was resting her head in his lap. The gash on her forehead was worse than anyone realized. Her hairline was sticky with blood. Her skin was pale and clammy.

"Make sure she eats this. All of it," Percy said to Clarisse as he broke off some of the godly food but Cressida instantly started fighting back.

"I'm not an invalid! And what about Annabeth?"

"Tyson, the Fleece. Can you get it for me?"

"Which one?" Tyson asked as he looked around at the hundreds of sheep.

"In the tree. The gold one!" Percy said.

"Oh. Pretty. Yes."

"Some manners wouldn't kill you, Jackass," Cressida reprimanded as she smacked Clarisse's hands away from her face as snatched the ambrosia from it.

"And what would you know about manners, Grape Girl?" Percy retorted as Tyson lumbered over to the Fleece, careful not to step on the sheep that cuddled up to him, thinking he was their master.

"More than you. I'm a damn delight," she fired back as she ripped the corner of the square off with her teeth.

"Yeah, well..." Percy cut himself off as he watched Tyson lift the Fleece off its branch and immediately the leaves on the oak tree turned yellow as he began trying to get back to them. "No time! Throw it!"

The gold ram skin sailed through the air like a glittering shag frisbee. Percy caught it with a grunt, the Fleece being heavier than he expected. He then spread it over Annabeth, covering everything but her face as they all stood there, still and waiting, praying to every god and goddess they could think of.

The colour returned to her face. Her eyelids fluttered open. The cut on her forehead began to close. She saw Grover and said weakly, "You're not ... married?"

Grover grinned. "No. My friends talked me out of it."

"Annabeth, just lay still," Percy advised but she sat up anyway, the cut on her face fully healed, actually her entire body looked a lot better.