The Fate of Olympus | Reynabeth [✓]

20. Flowers for Annabeth

Hundreds of hours of reading vanished from her memory. She could remember the late nights studying, her neck aches, her tired eyes, but she couldn't remember the books she had read. She couldn't remember the ideas. She couldn't remember the authors' names or the book titles.

She tried desperately to hold on to something, anything, the tiniest scrap of knowledge, but she couldn't. It was like how Olympia...the thought faded before she could complete it. Wait, was Olympia the name of a person or a place? Then she couldn't remember the name.

She remembered how it felt to be the most knowledgeable person in the room, but her knowledge was vanishing. It was disappearing like....a west wind. That was a thing, wasn't it? Annabeth couldn't remember.

So much of her self-worth had been tied up in her knowledge. It had been the reason she thought she could go on this quest...

In desperation, she tried to bargain with her loss. She could figure out what she had forgotten and re-learn it. The only problem was that she'd also lost the capacity to know what had been lost.

She looked up at Reyna's concerned face.

Her mind was speeding at a million miles per hour, but the space that had once been filled with stories was empty.

I get to keep what I take. And as a bonus, he doesn't have to get his hands dirty either.

Tears pricked her eyes. It wasn't fair. She couldn't lead a quest if she didn't know anything. She didn't want to become a liability for Reyna.

"Are you okay?"

"Bad news bears," said Annabeth, shivering and soaking wet. "I don't remember mythology."

Annabeth was tasked with re-learning mythology. All the thousands of years of myths that she had picked up in a decade would have to be re-learned in only nine days, in time for her midterm. She had learned it once; she could learn it again.

Ah yes, at least she knew she had a midterm at camp. She couldn't even remember the name of the camp. It must have had something to do with mythology if she didn't know it.

The slow realization that it was pointless gripped her.

No one could learn that fast, not even Annabeth. It was pointless to try.

Annabeth had a broken hand and a broken brain. Her hubris had brought her here, to a place where she couldn't remember the basics of mythology. She was pointless. Knowledge had been her most important strength, but it had also been a survival mechanism. She felt small and vulnerable. The pain in her right hand flared up again.

She might have laid there forever, but Reyna's strong arms found their way around her waist. Annabeth uncurled herself as soon as she caught her breath. Annabeth threw her arms around Reyna's shoulders.

"Wait. What?" said Reyna. "Is this a joke?"

"No, Reyna. I'm serious."

Reyna was in denial. She studied Annabeth's face, looking for any sign of deception.

"He said he was going to take something that's more important to me than my friends. He took away everything I ever learned about mythology."

Reyna didn't seem to believe Annabeth at first. Something in Reyna's expression changed, but Reyna was still as stoic as ever. Reyna wrapped a towel around Annabeth's shoulders and helped her dry off a little.

"It's okay," said Reyna.

"Yeah, Jason and Percy's curse was worse," said Annabeth. "They didn't remember anything. Well, Percy remembered me, at least."