Ivy Pittaluga had always made a solemn vow to keep her distance from Percy Jackson, determined to keep her world separate from the camp hero.
However, she realizes that fate has a mischievous plan in store for her. Suddenly thrown together as unlik...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
It wasn't until the Atlanta skyline was a hazy smidge in the distance when Percy, Frank, and Hedge started to recover. I helped Percy to his feet. I mouthed to him if he was okay. He gave my hand a weak squeeze and pecked my temple. I looked at him worriedly as he started to pace.
"Charleston." Percy said, hobbling around the deck like an old man. He still sounded pretty shaken up. "Set course for Charleston."
"Charleston?" Jason said the name as if it brought back bad memories. "What exactly did you find in Atlanta?"
"Some peach preserves." Frank unzipped his a backpack and started bringing out souvenirs. "A couple of t-shirts. A snow globe. And, um, these not-really- Chinese handcuffs."
"How about," Annabeth was forcing herself to stay calm, "you start from the top- of the story, not the backpack."
We gathered on the quarterdeck so Leo could hear the conversation as he navigated. Percy and Frank took turns relating what had happened at the Georgia Aquarium, with Coach Hedge interjecting from time to time: "That was awesome!" or "Then I kicked her in the head!"
It looked like Coach seemed to have forgotten about Percy and I falling asleep in the stable the night before. But judging from Percy's story, I had worse problems to worry about than being grounded. When Percy explained about the captive sea creatures in the aquarium, I now understood why he seemed so upset.
"That's awful." I frowned. "There has to be a way for us to help them. We need to."
"We will." Percy promised. "In time. But I have to figure out how. I wish..." He shook his head. "Never mind. We have to deal with this bounty on our heads."
Coach Hedge lost interest in the conversation- probably because it was no longer about him- and wandered toward the bow of the ship, practicing his roundhouse kicks and complimenting himself on his technique.
"A bounty on our heads..." Annabeth gripped the hilt of her dagger. "As if we didn't attract enough monsters already."
"Do we get WANTED posters?" Leo asked. "And do they have our bounties, like, broken down on a price list?"
"What are you talking about out?" Hazel wrinkled her nose.
"Just curious how much I'm going for these days." Leo said. "I mean, I can understand not being pricey as Percy or Jason, maybe...but am I worth, like, two Franks, or three Franks?"
"Hey!" Frank complained.
I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. These two weren't going to stop anytime soon.
"Knock it off." Annabeth ordered. "At least we know our next step to go to Charleston, to find this map."
I glanced at Annabeth. She was holding back a scowl. Annabeth hadn't had the chance to explain her interaction with Athena to Percy yet. She'll probably have to after this.
