A Tale of Romans and Slaves | PJO/HOO

Chapter 12: Annabeth

I swore that my arms were going to fall off if I had to wash any more clothes.

After Lord Dionysus had stormed onto the courtyard, I had taken off to the laundry room. that had been hours ago, and yet it was all I could think about.

Luke has always been the best sword fighter in the ludus. It was an accepted fact know by every slave. So when a newbie who had only been here for a week showed up and beat him, it was huge. Everyone was talking about it.

But I hadn't been amazed at the fact Percy won. I had been amazed at how he won. The way he held that sword, as if he had been born with it in his hand. The determination he had, the stamina, the skill. Most importantly, how attractive he looked while doing it.

In my three years as a slave, I had seen hundreds of sword fights. But this was definitely the best.

"Annie?" Katie asked as she washed a shirt in front of me. "You there?"

"Yeah," I said. "Just thinking."

"You're always thinking," She mumbled.

"Oh, no," Silena mumbled next to me. "Here we go again."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Katie asked. I could tell this was about to get ugly, so I stepped in.

"Both of you. Shut up," I commanded. They both glared at me, but neither of them said a word.

"There we go," I said as I plunged a blood-stained shirt into the water tub.

We worked in silence after that. A few hours later, it was time for dinner.

After I got my food, I sat at the back of the room with Clarisse, Katie, and Silena. I couldn't wait till I talked to Percy.

"Clarisse, what happened to your face?"

I hadn't noticed it when I sat down, but now I definitely did. Clarisse had a black eye.

"I got in a fight," She said, as if it was no big deal.

"With who?" Silena asked.

"A gladiator," She said. "Trust me, he got out of it worse than I did."

"Which one?" I asked, making a mental tally to inspect all the gladiator's faces when I gave them dinner.

"Chris," She said.

"How did it start?" I asked.

"He accidently tripped me, I kicked him, and then it turned into a brawl," Clarisse shrugged. "It's not that big of a deal. Can we talk about something else?"

"Like what?" Katie asked. "How hot the gladiators are?"

"That sounds fun, actually," Silena said happily. "Let's rank them!"

I tuned out of the conversation after that.

After I finished eating, I rushed over to the gladiator cells and started handing out dinner.

"I can't believe I lost," Luke mumbled as I gave him his dinner. "To a newbie, none the less."

"A newbie with skills," I whispered, witch earned me a glare.

Eventually, I got to Percy.

"Hey," He said as I gave him his food.

"Hey," He replied.

"How are you?" I asked.

"Still exhausted," He replied. "And the most popular person in the ludus, apparently."

"Well, yeah," I said, rolling my eyes. "Luke is practically worshipped for his sword fighting skills here. And you beat him."

"Barely," He sighed.

"How'd you do it?" I asked. "I mean, you were both evenly beating each other, but then all of a sudden Luke was on the ground. How'd you do that?"

Percy opened and closed his mouth, as if he didn't know what to say. "I saw you," He murmured, cheeks red.

My eyes widened. "What?"

"I saw you," He said. "Out of the corner of my eye. And then Luke was on the ground."

Now I was the one who didn't know what to say. He beat Luke because he saw me? What the hell did that mean?

"This conversation is over, isn't it?" Percy asked.

"Yup," I replied, standing up. "It was nice talking to you, Percy."

"Nice talking to you too, Annabeth," He replied with a little wave. "See you tomorrow."

"Bye," I said. Then I walked over to the next cell, handing the boy inside his dinner. But I kept hearing Percy's words. I mean, I've known the guy for a week. It's not like he's in love with me or anything like that.

He probably just happened to see me at the right moment. Yes, that was it. It was just good timing. A coincidence.

I mean, what else could it be?