Nick Fury

"You're telling me we're inviting two seventeen year old strangers onto our team?" Steve asks as he flips through the file. "You have considered that they may not want in, right?"

"Not to mention that they're demigods. I have the feeling that we're getting ourselves into a situation we have no idea how to deal with." Tony's eyebrows go up when he sees the boy's history. "Kicked out of six schools? Damn, that's better than I did."

"Stark, last I checked, you were the one initiating most idiotic situations, and if we handled those, we can deal with anything," I say, referencing Ultron. "If Percy doesn't agree to get his ass on this team, his dad will make him. And where he goes, his girlfriend goes, so we don't have to worry about that, Rogers."

"Speaking of his girlfriend, she's who concerns me the most. A daughter of Athena? She seems most likely to hatch an evil plan to spy on us or something." Thor warns. "I've had bad experiences with goddesses of intelligence in the past."

I sigh, rubbing my forehead. "From what I could tell when I spoke to them, Zeus and Poseidon are very anxious to get Percy and Annabeth into our care as soon as possible, and—"

"HOLD ON. You've talked to Zeus and Poseidon?" Tony's eyes widen.

I give him an exasperated look. "Yes, and if you don't shut up and listen, I'll call them up—"

"Wait, shouldn't it be down? Like, call them down...since they're above us..."

"Goddammit, Tony, I just told you to shut up! As I was saying, they want us to take the two kids in because they think the kids can help us, and that we can help them. Apparently, there was somehow this whole other war that was going on against f*cking Mother Earth without us knowing, and most of Percy and Annabeth's friends died hideous deaths in the war. The gods think that we can give them a new purpose, and new friends." I eye each of the Avengers in front of me. "So I expect you guys not to weird them out on the first day."

Suddenly, there's an ear-splitting BOOM, and two men are standing on top of the table we're sitting around. One is dressed in khaki shorts and a shirt that reads "I'll Beat You In A Water Gun Fight", and the other wears a white tunic with gold trim. The Avengers stare, speechless.

Natasha finds her voice first. "Who are you?"

I clear my throat and say, "Avengers, meet Zeus and Poseidon," gesturing first toward the man in the tunic, then toward the one in khaki.

"Nice to meet you all. Thank you, Nick." Poseidon smiles at all of the Avengers, then leaps off the table and onto the floor. Zeus follows suit.

"We are here to discuss the matter of Percy and Annabeth," Zeus begins, ignoring the shell-shocked looks of the Avengers. "It seems that my brother's upstart son—"

"Zeus, can't you hold just one conversation without insulting Percy? His refusal was completely justified, and you certainly did not present our request very well."

Zeus looks livid at Poseidon's words, but continues, "Percy has refused to accept the 'we-need-you-to-get-the-Avengers-under-control' mission. And of course, since Percy has refused, so has Annabeth. Basically, we need a plan B to get the two onto your team."

"Why have they refused?" I ask. After reading Percy's records, I expected him to be immediately willing to do anything heroic.

Zeus hesitates, looking slightly put off.

"In a nutshell, he's tired," Poseidon sighs. "And he has every right to, because we've sent him on mission after mission throughout the past five years, and he has lost so much along the way. But, I'll admit, even I did not expect him to reject our request."

"So we need another plan, one that will certainly succeed. Percy won't agree to speak directly with us, so asking him again is not an option." Zeus says, frustrated.

Silence settles over the room as we all contemplate how to reason (or not) with two headstrong teenagers.

"I have an idea," Natasha says at last. "Actually, no; I have no idea, so I've thought of something probably extremely stupid that you should only use when luring an enemy."

"Well, let's hear it," Zeus practically growls.

"It's a very old trick in the book. Who does Percy care about the most in his life?"

Annabeth

I wake up covered in cold sweat. Slowly, I open my eyes and realize that the sweat isn't mine; it's Percy's. I rotate my body so that I'm facing him, and I'm immediately taken aback. His face is covered in both dried and fresh tears. Worried, I shake him awake.

"Nico," he gasps, his arms tightening around me.

"It's okay, Percy. The war is over." I say in as calming of a voice as I can manage, although I know that nothing is okay, because nearly all of our friends are dead.

Percy's breathing slows, and his grip on me slowly loosens. As he opens his eyes, I notice something different in his face—his eyes, they seem a duller green than before, and there are rough edges in his expression that I've never seen before. He sits up and runs a hand through his hair, which is sticking to his head with sweat. My feet hit the cold tile as I stand up, and I grab the extra change of clothes I always keep in the Poseidon cabin. I head into the curtained-off area meant for another child of Poseidon and slip into a white T-shirt and jean shorts, stuffing my messy curls into my Yankees cap. When I reemerge, Percy is already waiting at the door, rubbing the grogginess out of his eyes.

"I should probably let my mom know that we're coming by this afternoon," Percy says as he opens the door.

Together, we head toward the dining hall. The tables are eerily empty; there is only Chiron, sitting in his usual spot at the head of the middle table. When he sees us, his face brightens, if only microscopically.

"Come, sit down," he gestures toward the vacant benches around him, "it's awfully lonely."

Percy sits to the centaur's right, and I to his left.

"We're going to visit Sally today," Percy says through a mouthful of toast.

Chiron nods his approval, and then leans back from the table, folding his hands over his stomach. "Zeus and Poseidon have asked me to try to talk you into the mission they mentioned yesterday on Olympus."

Percy's eyes flash, but he continues eating.

"Don't worry, Percy. I've agreed to talk to you, but I won't try to persuade you to do something you don't want to." Chiron pauses, then asks, "Percy, why did you refuse? I know what you told the gods yesterday, but I have the feeling there's something more behind it."

"There's nothing behind it, Chiron. I just need some time to mourn my friends, as does everyone else." Percy stares at his plate angrily. "And it's not fair, Chiron. It's really not fair that every time the gods need something dealt with, we're the ones who are assigned to it, whether we like it or not—"

"Now, Percy, you know you've always had a choice..." Chiron begins, but falls silent at the look Percy gives him.

"And every single time, we're the ones who lose everything." Percy sits still for second, then suddenly stands up and stomps off.

Sighing, Chiron unfolds his hands begins to wheel off. "Please make sure he doesn't do anything stupid, Annabeth," he says over his shoulder. "I'd rather not lose another demigod."

Nodding, I get up and follow Percy, who is already halfway to his cabin.

Once inside the Poseidon cabin, he silently packs a backpack with some extra clothes and other everyday necessities. He pats his pocket to make sure Riptide is inside, then fidgets at the door while I gather my sparse belongings.

As we exit the cabin and head toward Thalia's tree, I slip my hand into Percy's. It feels warm and safe and familiar. I tilt my head to glance at his face. The harsh noon sun emphasizes the dark circles under his eyes and makes him look sharp and angular, his cheekbones like cliffs shaped by crashing waves.

"Do you remember that period of time when Leo and Frank avoided each other?" Percy suddenly asks.

"Yeah, I do," I answer hesitantly. "It was because Frank was afraid of Leo's fire, right?"

"And Frank always swore Leo would kill him someday. Isn't it weird that Leo died before Frank in the end, even though Frank did die by fire?"

"Percy..." my head begins to hurt as I relive the scene, again and again and again.

Frank's eyes desperately search the crowd of monsters for a friend. "ANNABETH! HELP!" he's screaming as soon as he sees me.

I'm already struggling toward him, my knife flashing bronze where it's not soaked with blood. He's squirming in the grip of a monster I've never even seen in books before; it's colossal and resembles a cross between a dragon and a bear.

"Oh, no," I mutter as I watch the monster reach its scaly claws into a concealed pocket in Frank's jacket. The fireproof bag Leo made for him is sliding out, into those hideous claws.

I fight harder, the muscles in my arms pulsing and burning.

But the firewood has already been removed from its bag, ignited and burning faster than I can move. I can only watch hopelessly as Frank's body blackens and smokes. The air is filled with the sickening smell of burning human flesh.

I take deep breaths. In. Out. In. Out.

10.

"ANNABETH!"

9.

"HELP!"

8.

"ANNABETH!"

7.

"ANNABETH! HELP!"

6.

"HELP!"

5.

"HELP!"

4.

"ANNABETH!"

3.

2.

1.

When I open my eyes, Percy's arms are tight around me, his nose buried in my hair with his lips against my forehead.

"I'm sorry," he says softly. "I just...I can't stop thinking about them."

"Me neither."

We continue toward the bustling road. Using his height to his advantage, Percy easily hails a taxi.

"Hi! The name's Buddy. I accept 'most all credit cards!" the driver immediately greets us. Everything about him is upbeat and cheerful. The cab seats have covers with bright yellow smiley faces and it smells like cherries inside the car.

Percy and I share an amused look before sliding in.

"Where to?" Buddy asks.

Percy rattles off his mother's apartment address as I settle in, leaning my head back against the seat.

The hour long ride is filled with mindless, light conversation between Percy and Buddy. Eventually, it becomes background noise, a fuzzy sort of sound that lulls me to sleep.

Percy

"Annabeth," I whisper, gently nudging her shoulder. "We've arrived." She shifts in her seat, slowly opening her eyes, sticky with sleep.

After swiping a card designated for my mortal encounters, my feet splash onto a wet, sludge-covered road. The gray and dirty ground contrasts sharply with the bright blue sky. With Annabeth by my side, we enter the apartment elevator. I see a few familiar faces, but many former residents have moved out; I haven't been here in over two years. However, the carpeted floors are the same, the horrid wallpaper has not changed, and the incredibly rickety elevator is still the same. There is a ding, and the elevator doors slide open. We walk down the familiar halls and arrive at Mom's apartment...

To discover the door hanging wide open.

I stop so suddenly that Annabeth bumps into me.

"Percy?" she sidesteps me and looks in.

"Mom...she would never do this. Leaving the door open and the lights on—she used to call it a recipe for being robbed."

"Maybe she's in there, and she just left the door open for us?" Annabeth sounds doubtful of her own words.

"No..." Cautiously, I make my way into the apartment, careful to wipe my shoes on the entrance mat first. It is eerily quiet, though the lights are on and a sandwich is left half-eaten on the kitchen counter, Mom's laptop still open next to it. 

"Percy, she's probably just out getting something. Nothing is broken, and nothing seems to have been taken." 

I shake my head. "I'm going to call her, okay? If she doesn't answer a call from me..." I don't dare to finish the sentence.

I enter my room, very much the same as it was when I left it. My desk drawer creaks open, an old flip phone gathering dust inside. The flip phone is a relic of the past; a past in which I didn't worry about which friend would be killed next. Mom is the only contact, her profile photo smiling widely at me. 

The rings seem loud and unnecessary, yet each silence between successive tones is unsettling and tense. After six rings, I've nearly given up hope.

"Hello?" A male voice answers.

-------------------

A/N: Hi guys. I know, I know; I haven't updated in forever. Life just got in the way. However, I'll try to update more frequently now—perhaps once a week (who am I kidding, it's most likely going to be more like once every two weeks to a month). 

Thank you all so much for the colossal amount of reads, comments, and votes. I never would've expected so much; in fact, this story would probably already be taken down if not for all the comments encouraging me to update. 

Also, I feel like I should introduce myself to you guys a bit better, just so you know a bit about the person behind these words. My name is Megan. I'm thirteen and attend Longfellow Middle School. I'm in eighth grade. I hope to attend Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology next year; it is a very selective school with stellar facilities, teachers, and students. I love to read, write, and draw in my free time. However, I am also on Longfellow's Science Olympiad team, known as the best team in the state, and it is a huge time commitment. 

If any of you want to introduce yourselves, feel free to do so in the comments!

P.S. Yes, the title of this chapter is a play on the name of a certain episode of a certain show.