The Ambassador of Athena

Right after the goddess left I sat down on the bed again, but I had no time to think about what had just happened. Someone nocked at the door.
“Yes?” I asked and the door opened.A woman entered the room, her brown hair with a few grey strays, but her blue eyes still full of life.
“Oh, great, you are awake my dear” she said “You were out for almost a day.” I rose and smiled. “Well, thank you for hosting me, Mrs…?”
“Oh, just call me Sally, Sally Jackson” she said and gave me her hand. “I am Percy’s mother, and hopefully Annabeths mother-in-law soon, I have no idea why Percy hasn’t supposed to her yet…” She kept on gossiping and led me to her living room. In the about 20 meters I learned a lot about the relationship of Percy and Annabeth.
“… and I hope they will not marry in a crazy place like the bottom of the ocean; that would totally be Percy’s father’s style.” she finished and urged me to sit down on the sofa.
“Percy and Annabeth will be here soon, I will bring you tea and cookies.” Sally said and rushed through a door. She nearly bumped into a guy with salt-and-pepper hair and a charismatic smile. “Excuse my wife,” he said and shook my hand “Paul Blowfis, by the way. She is a little bit… crazy about her son dating the same girl for years now and not proposing to her.” I laughed.
“I can understand her. I would be worrying too”
Paul now laughed too. “Tell me about it. Ah, and in case you are wondering why you are here, Chiron thought it would be the best if we take care of you, you know, more than enough supernatural stuff for a day.”
At that moment Sally came back with a tray with tea and cookies, which were by some reasons blue. I thanked her and sipped at my tea. While Sally continued to talk about how gorgeous Annabeth was I examined the room. The walls were packed with pictures of a boy with black hair and green eyes in all stages of life; from a toddler in a bathtub to a young man in a suit arm in arm with a girl I recognised as Annabeth. On other pictures I could spot Leo too, together with Percy, Annabeth and four other teenagers in front of that other ship, the Argo II. The cookies were delicious, and the tea was excellent too. After a while the doorbell rang and Sally answered it. Annabeth came into a room, wearing almost the same outfit she did the last time I saw her, only completed with a brown leather jacket. Behind her a young man entered, wearing jeans, a purple shirt with SPQR on it and a denim jacket above it.
“Hey, I am Percy” he greeted me
“Nice to meet you, I am Florian” I said when I shook his hand.
“Well, Chiron was rare with information about you.” Percy said with a smile, but it seemed more suspicious than real. All I know is that my father thinks you are important enough to send 3 of the most powerful demigods across the ocean into the ancient lands to pick up a suspicious person that appears to be you.”
Sally boxed him in the shoulder.
“Percy!” she said accusing “Be nice to him. Try to remember how you felt when you were thrown into all that, how confused you were. Don’t doubt him, he will be what the gods assigned him for, they rarely make mistakes with that matters.”
Percy’s expression softened. “Yeah, you are right mom. Sorry I doubted you before even knowing who you are” Annabeth laughed. “Oh, I think he is ok, I have talked to him during the journey, and he seems nice.” Her smile just cracked a little before she continued. “And my mother was with him when we picked him up, that must mean something too.” Percy raised an eyebrow. “Well, that’s also a first-time that my dad and your mom work together” Sally smiled and said:
“It seems that your relationship also affects the relationship between your parents.” Percy twisted his eyes. “Mom, come on. Aren’t we in a hurry? We should leave.” Sally sighed. “Well, if that’s the case, you should leave, but take some cookies with you.”
I have followed the discussion with a smile; it reminded me a lot of my relationship with my mother.

I followed Annabeth and Percy to the door, Sally handing each of as a bag with cookies. “… and drive carefully!” she called after us when we entered the elevator and the door closed. Percy made a face that I can simply describe as if he had just eaten a whole lemon farm. Annabeth burst out laughing and I joined in. “I don’t know you yet, Percy, “I said, “but you definitely should visit your mother more often. Mine was exactly the same when I stopped visiting her.” Percy glared at me, but Annabeth agreed with me “He is right; you should visit your mom more often. You left her worrying for over a year when we did our last expedition, and now you avoid her.”
I was not that good with people, but even I could see the fight that was coming here. I thought a second about saying something, but my mouth was already moving:
“Well, I would avoid my mother too if she would ask me every time I see her when I planned to marry my girlfriend…”
Both Annabeth and Percy stared at me, and I stared at the door, suddenly uncomfortable. Percy opened his mouth to say something, but thankfully the elevator doors opened just in time. We left the building, and after my eyes readjusted to the light I just had to say it, although it was obvious: “We are in Manhattan!”
“Of course we are.” Annabeth said “And don’t change the subject. Your mom wants us to marry?” I felt even more uncomfortable when we walked down the sidewalk, but Percy looked even more uncomfortable. “Look…” he said and clenched his hands “I… I really have no idea what to say right now, ok?” Annabeth looked at him, but she just said: “Now you look exactly the same you did when we first kissed. I tell you the same I did all those years ago: Don’t worry, I just want you. Don’t let your mom telling you what to do.” She smiled at him, and Percy looked greatly relieved. “Thank you, Wise Girl” he answered and kissed her gently. We have stopped and I turned away, suddenly thinking about Johanna again…
Oh, fu… I have totally suppressed the memory of here being there where we were off to go now. The old sickness returned I sadly got used to in the months after the brake-up. That time was the worst in my life, and I will definitely not tell you about it. It is hard to describe your thoughts and your life after your heart got broken. And now all these thoughts pressed to the surface again. Thankfully Percy and Annabeth stopped making out and turned towards me, both a little bit red in the face.
“Well, eh…” Percy started and tried a smile. I forced a smile too.
“It’s ok.” I said “So, where is your car?”
Now Percy grinned broadly and pulled out a car key with a trident key fob.
“Right over there” he said and pressed the key. The lights of a dark blue luxury car flashed and my yaw dropped. “You drive a Maserati?” I whispered.
Percy laughed “Told you he would like it. Every European loves cars.” He said and opened the door for Annabeth. She smiled at him and sat into the front seat. “It was a birthday present for his 21st birthday from his father; Poseidon thinks it is funny that the logo of the car has a trident in it.” I stared at him and opened my mouth to say something, but I just said: “Well, nice car” and shrugged my shoulders. “Annabeth burst into laughter.
“Oh, that’s not just a stereotype; everyone in Europe is crazy about cars, mostly because we have that many good ones.” I said when I squeezed in the back of the car. There was not that much space, but I didn’t care, I was totally fine with just riding that car.
The car made a sound like a cat purring. “Tell me, Florian, how is it growing up in the ancient lands?” Annabeth asked me when Percy drove us through the downtown Manhattan traffic. “It must be amazing to live so close to everything, like, how long does it take you to get to Rome?”
I laughed. That was the number one question I’ve got asked when I were in America the last time. “It takes me 5 hours by car, 4 and a half by train and about 2 if you take the plane, not including driving to the airport. And before you ask, where I live I could drive two hours and cross 4 countries.”
“No way!”
The whole drive to the Camp we talked about Europe and my life there. Annabeth found the best thing I told them that I studied Ancient History and already had a PhD at an age of 23; Percy found the best that my PhD-Work was about insulting Athena. Annabeth said she didn’t found it that great, but she supressed a smile when she said it.
“We will arrive at camp in a few minutes; we will first take you to Rachel.” Percy said
“Who is Rachel?” I asked.
“Oh, Rachel is the new Oracle of Delphi” Annabeth answered.
“What else” I mumbled and leaned back in the seat.
Percy must have heard her, because he explained me that Rachel became the Oracle a few years ago, she now lived in a cave with Wi-Fi and something with a blue plastic hair brush of death that I didn’t quite understood. He started talking about the Titan Kronos, a story I had the 15 minute summary at the journey to America, and now I learned more about it, how he travelled across America just to save Annabeth from the Titan Atlas and carried the sky for a few minutes. He just started to talk about a guy called Luke when he pulled over right next to a big hill. “Here we are, Camp Half Blood” Annabeth announced. I looked out of the window, but beside the beautiful nature of Long Island in the late afternoon sun I saw nothing that looked like a Camp for teenagers wielding swords.
Before I could ask Annabeth pulled a remote out of the glove compartment and pointed it at the hill. To my astonishment a part of it just lowered itself into the ground, revealing a tunnel lit by torches at the wall, big enough to let even a SUV pass. Percy drove the Maserati into the tunnel which led to an underground parking lot for 10 cars. 3 of them were already taken by trucks that read Delphi Strawberry Service. Percy parked the car next to a door and we all left the car. We climbed the stairs to the basement of a house that was stuffed with what looked like the memorabilia of Heracles himself: Talons, feathers, skins of mysterious animals and other indescribable stuff were piled in shelves along the walls.
“What the heck?” I said and examined a long claw with something that looked suspiciously like dried blood on the tip. The tag attached to it read: “Manticore Spike, Bar Harbour, Maine”
“You will have enough time to look through our collection later, first you have to meet Chiron, Mr. D and Rachel.” Annabeth told me “Come on.”

The sun outside the house was warm, a typical day in June. On the porch a table was set with a card game, 4 persons sitting around it. I could spot Chiron, this time his horse part was inside a wheelchair that looked way too small for it, but I stopped wondering right after I saw a car-sized boar eating a full tent without even blinking. Next to him a girl with red hair and freckles sat, wearing the obviously really fashionable orange shirt and hot pants, her bare foot tapping excited on the wooden planks. Facing her on the opposite site of the table sat a satyr, his horns pointing out of his curly brown hair. He wore cargo pants that stopped at his knees and showed his hooves, his shirt read “Kiss the Satyr”. The last guy at the table was the worst looking too: His orange and blue Hawaii-pattern shirt was stained with brown stains, his eyes bloodshot and his expression as if he had bitten into a lemon.
“Oh, come on, you can do better than that, Ramona!” he said when we stepped by. “Rachel” the girl said absent and put down some cards. That must have been a good move, because the guy in the Hawaii shirt now looked shocked. “What, you… what?” he stammered. Chiron and the Satyr laughed, and then they noticed us.
“Ah, Florian, you are back.” Chiron said and rolled over to me. “I want you to meet Rachel Virginia Dare, our Oracle-“ the girl smiled at me and nodded “Grover Underwood, the Lord of the Wild-“ the Satyr nodded too “And Dionysus, the god of wine and parties” The man in the Hawaii shirt mustered me and simply said. “Well, this one doesn’t look like that much trouble than the last one.”
Percy looked offended. “Does he mean me?” he whispered to Annabeth.
Chiron looked at them now.
“Percy, Annabeth, what if you could join Mr. D and Grover here so Rachel, Florian and I can go inside and have a talk?” Percy wanted to say something, but Annabeth kicked him and he just said: “Yeah, sure, we can do that.” Chiron smiled at me.
“Great. Now, let’s go, or roll in my case”

Notes

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