Percy's POV

Thoughts ran through my head before I settled on one. Smirking down at her, I replied with a simple, expected answer. "Something stupid."

Annabeth stared at me for a moment before grinning. "Percy, I thought the curse had changed you. I thought I lost you forever. But for once, I was wrong."

I smiled at her. "I never though I'd hear the day when you said you're wrong."

We smiled at each other for a moment before Annabeth wanted to discuss the plan. When I was through explaining my thought process behind the idea, she shook her head at me in amusement. "You're right; that is a stupid idea. You know it probably won't work out the way you plan, right?"

I shrugged. "As long as you get out of here safe, then it'll work out the way I plan."

Annabeth opened her mouth, probably to tell me that my plan sucked or I was too cheesy to be practical, but the growling from the countless surrounding werewolves increased in volume.

"Hurry up, Perseus!" Lycaon demanded with an edge to his voice. "We're not going to wait all day!"

I looked at Annabeth pleadingly as I growled back, "I'm almost done! Just give me a moment!" Quieter, so only Annabeth could hear, I said, "Annabeth, you have to trust me. My only goal is that you and Grover get out safely. Please, just follow the plan."

Annabeth stared at me before nodding slowly. "Ok, Percy. I trust you."

Relieved, I turned around and began to walk out of the cave into the larger cavern. As my feet padded against the cool ground, I saw Annabeth slump onto the ground, trying her best to appear unconscious.

Howls greeted me when I walked out into the artificial lighting of the cavern. Lycaon smirked at me as I walked towards him. "So, Perseus, did you leave anything for us?"

The next words I said disgusted me, but I had to say them to protect my friends.

"Unfortunately, Lycaon, the daughter of Athena almost couldn't take it. At the moment, she is unconscious on the ground. Perhaps it would do to give her a moment to regain
consciousness?" The werewolf king didn't look sold, so I added, "It's always more fun when they can react."

Lycaon threw his head back with sudden laughter. "Right you are, Perseus, right you are!"

Trying to appear smug and cocky, I crossed my arms, letting my smirk roll across the room. When my eyes reached Grover, who was staring at me in awe, I pretended to be disgusted.

"Wait a moment, are you going to keep that satyr in here until we eat him?"

Frowning, Lycaon said, "Why wouldn't we?"

"He's a creature of nature," I scoffed. "Which means he's healthiest outside. If you keep him hidden away in here, I can guarantee that he won't be anywhere near as tasty when it's time to feast."

The werewolf king studied me for a moment, as if weighing my motives in his head. After a tense moment of me holding my breath but trying to appear casual, he waved his hand flippantly at his minions. "Take the satyr outside."

"I suggest you have all of them go, Lycaon," I said. "The satyr will remain the healthiest if he is able to feel the earth and wander a bit, and I don't want him to escape before we all get a chance to eat."

Lycaon gazed at me again before giving another wave. "Go."

In a moment, all the other werewolves had filed out of the cavern and into the sunshine of the Glass Mountain, leaving only Lycaon and I there alone with Annabeth "unconscious" in the other room. I gazed at the werewolf king for a moment before starting on the more stupid part of my plan.

"I must admit, Lycaon, I did have an ulterior motive in having all the others watch the satyr," I said, causing the king to look at me sharply.

"And what would that be?" he asked, cautiously. I didn't miss the claws that were appearing out of his paws.

"I wanted to make sure you would have the first turn with the daughter of Athena." The claws retracted as Lycaon smiled at me.

"Much appreciated, Perseus."

"...And," I added, "I wanted to ask for a favor."

He stared at me with polite interest. "What do you desire?"

I examined the cave walls, trying to appear aloof and indifferent. "As you no doubt know, there is a way to reverse this blessing you and your followers have bestowed upon me."

"I am aware of it," I heard.

"I know what ingredients are needed for such a medicine."

Lycaon's voice took on a nervous tone. "Do you?"

"A tooth and blood," I stated unceremoniously, still examining the walls.

Lycaon didn't speak for a moment. Then he said, "What are you getting at, Perseus?"

I turned around and stared at the werewolf king. "I request a single tooth from you."

"Why?" he whispered, then repeated himself in a louder, more stable voice.

"In case you haven't heard, I have a thing about challenging the odds. It fascinates me to be so close to something, but to never succumb to it. As if I were holding a cigarette between my teeth, never lighting it and giving it the chance to kill me. I would like one of your teeth (I'm not picky about which) so I might be able to admire it and remark about what could've been if only I were a weaker being."

The werewolf king didn't speak for a moment, then suddenly he said, "You're a strange being, Perseus Jackson."

I smiled without warmth. "So I'm told."

I waited for another moment for the werewolf king to grant me my request or deny it. Finally, he spoke again. "Perseus, you're exactly the being we need to finally conquer our ancient enemy, Lupa. With your help, we will be able to take back the Wolf House and claim what is rightfully ours." He smirked at me. "I knew you wouldn't be able to resist the charm of the pack life. Perseus Jackson, I shall grant you the one thing I've never granted anyone else before. I shall give you one of my teeth."

Smiling, I thanked him, waiting to accept the one thing I really wanted from him. I didn't want to join the pack, he was too arrogant to realize that.

The werewolf king, oblivious to my internal hatred, reached a hand into his mouth. As I watched, disgusted, he yanked out a tooth relatively close to the back. It was thick and pointed, a rancid yellow color that would make my dentist faint. Handing it over to me with a grin on his face, as if he had done me a huge favor, Lycaon pressed the repulsive thing into my palm.

Taking a deep breath to steady my resolve, I tried to genuinely say, "Thank you, Lycaon. This means a lot to me." I have a feeling it came out less sincere than I had hoped, but Lycaon either didn't notice or didn't care.

"You're most welcome, Perseus. I hope that you might be able to join my ranks as my second in command."

Eyes widening, I knew I had to end this soon before the bastard proposed and things got ugly. I pretended that I saw something outside the cavern and immediately swiveled my head towards it. As I had hoped, Lycaon's head made a similar movement. "Did you see that?" I asked.

Thankfully, he didn't look over at me, too busy looking at the entrance of the cave. "No, what was it?"

Silently, I took the silver dagger Annabeth had given me and unsheathed it. "This," I said, before swinging the dagger at his neck and decapitating him. Immediately, his head and body dissolved into gold dust before being blown away by some invisible fan.

I made sure the king of the werewolves was actually dead before calling out to Annabeth. "He's dead."

I heard her get up and emerge from the dark cave before she appeared next to me. "Are we still good for the rest of the plan?"

I nodded. "Time to massacre an army of werewolves." Looking at her out of the corner of my eye, I added, "But you and Grover are going to be on your way to Camp Half-Blood." The tone of voice I used left no room for argument.

Deflating slightly, I heard her mutter, "I hoped you forgot," before she nodded her head.

"You're going to join us at Camp Half-Blood though before taking the antidote, right?"

"If I can manage it, yes."

The most beautiful girl in the world nodded before sighing. "Do we really have to leave you?"

"Yes."

"You'll come back to me?"

"Always."

She looked up at me and I caught sight of a tear shining un-shed in her eye. "I love you, Seaweed Brain."

I desperately wanted to kiss her, but she couldn't have wanted to kiss such a monster as I was. Still, I managed out, "I love you too, Wise Girl."

Knowing the next part of the plan, she stood by the entrance, ready to emerge and bolt to freedom with Grover. I walked towards the entrance, ready to play my part and act as best I could. "Time to kick some ass," I muttered as I strolled out into the sunshine.

Notes