that afternoon, there would be no chance of going out hunting again that night.
Once he arrived at the edge of the forest, he stopped and scanned the area for his friends. The rain was beginning to fall harder now, and the visibility was growing slimmer. It was difficult to see any more than thirty or forty feet ahead of him and he wondered whether he should wait a few more minutes before approaching the rest of the group. A flash of lightning lit up the sky and he instantly turned toward the direction it came from. To his surprise, he could clearly see that someone was standing not ten feet in front of him.
"Are you the girl?" he called, squinting against the harsh flashes of lightening.
A voice suddenly responded to his question. "Yes, I am…" she responded.
"Good," he continued, walking toward the figure as fast as he could. By the time he got to her, he realized it was indeed Annabeth, whom he had expected to see earlier.
"Hey Percy," she greeted him cheerfully, although she appeared nervous about something.
"What's up?" he asked as he reached her side.
Annabeth hesitated for just a moment. Then, in a surprisingly quick move, she moved forward and pressed her mouth against Percy's. After that, they stood there for several seconds without saying anything, neither moving. Finally, Annabeth broke the kiss and stepped back slightly away from Percy. Her face was flushed and she looked even paler than normal. Her eyes darted everywhere around them as if she were trying to find an escape route. When she finally spoke, she sounded like she was trying to control herself by focusing on keeping her voice steady.
"You know, I thought maybe I had imagined it but then I saw you come into the clearing, and I knew I hadn't," she said slowly. "I didn't mean… That wasn't supposed to happen," she continued, still sounding breathless.
"Yeah, well, we can sort it out when we get back home," he reassured her.
Annabeth gave him a look filled with disbelief but then smiled nonetheless and grabbed onto Percy's arm as if needing support.
"Let's go," she said softly.
As they started walking through the underbrush, the ground began to shake and rumble. Lightning flashed again and this time thunder seemed so loud it rattled his teeth. They had been running across the open field for nearly twenty minutes. There was no sign that their pursuers were anywhere nearby, but Percy kept expecting the sound of footsteps behind him, so close that it sent shivers down his spine. His heart was pounding in his chest and the hair on the back of his neck raised.
When they made it to the base of a large tree, Annabeth pulled him inside the shelter of its trunk. Percy took the opportunity to glance at her. She seemed to have calmed considerably, but she kept glancing over her shoulder every few steps as if she couldn't stop herself. She looked scared. As he studied her face, he found that he felt exactly the same way.
They sat down next to each other and stared at the ground without saying anything. For some reason they both felt like there was still too much left unsaid. Annabeth bit her lip and fidgeted with a piece of grass between her fingers and then finally she blurted it out.
"We should talk to the others about what happened," she announced abruptly. "About what's happening out there. You think they would have noticed anything unusual? Or heard or seen something weird?"
Percy nodded his head slowly. He knew that Annabeth was right, but he was having difficulty accepting the idea that they needed to inform the others. He wanted to hold on to this secret with everything he had, so how was he supposed to explain it to her?
"No, they wouldn't, because I've already told them the same thing I told you. We need to keep our heads down until this thing blows over. And don't worry, I won't tell anyone about us, I promise. You know how protective Luke is," Annabeth said quickly, interrupting Percy's thoughts. Then, without waiting for him to respond, she stood up. "And besides, everyone else will want to meet me." She paused, thinking. "Well, except Grover and Tyson. But I'm sure I can convince Grover. Anyway, let's start heading back. It's getting late."
Without waiting for Percy, Annabeth began to walk away. Percy scrambled to his feet and followed her. He was glad that she wasn't making any effort to hide her anxiety anymore. He hated knowing that she was afraid, especially since, according to all the stories he'd read, people always tried to appear fearless when dealing with monsters. But, looking at Annabeth now, he couldn't imagine her being able to hide anything for long. He had never understood why people were so eager to show off their bravery; after all, bravery didn't protect you from danger. But seeing Annabeth now, Percy knew that he didn't understand anything at all about bravery.
The two reached the campsite quickly and found Thalia, Jason, Luke, Frank, Hazel, Reyna, and Rachel waiting patiently for them. All of their faces brightened upon their arrival. Percy guessed that the girls were feeling anxious too, especially after witnessing their encounter with the creatures outside the camp.
Frank stepped aside, allowing Annabeth to approach their circle. He cleared his throat to catch their attention.
"So, what did you guys decide?" he asked.
Luke frowned.
"We're leaving immediately," she replied, glaring at Thalia for a second before turning to the group. "If anyone wants to come with, go ahead." She shot Percy a worried expression and then turned to Thalia and Rachel and began to ask about supplies, which led her to ignore Jason completely.
Rachel shook her head sadly and turned to face Percy.
"That doesn't matter. I've decided to stay here," she said quietly. "I'll make sure the hunters leave the valley."
Percy was stunned. He glanced down at Rachel and then back at his friends. "What? No," he protested