Sea of Monsters [Book Two]

Enemies.

Annabeth learned fairly quickly what Reagan was terrified of. The daughter of Ares was huddled in the middle of the lifeboat, knees tucked into her chest as they drifted along the ocean. They had successfully past through the barrier and was now in the Sea of Monsters. Every time there was a ripple in the water near the boat, Reagan would flinch and twist the ring on her middle finger anxiously, waiting for some lizard monster to rise from the murky ocean. Annabeth summed up that Reagan was either scared of fish, or just water in general.

"How many other half-bloods are on that ship?" Annabeth asked eventually as she remembered hearing Chris Rodriguez's voice in the halls of The Princess Andromeda.

Reagan shrugged her shoulders absently, not looking away from the water. "A lot. You know Ethan Nakamura?"

She thought for a while. "Barely. Wasn't he in the Hermes cabin?"

Her lips curled into a sneer, and Reagan nodded her head slowly. "Yeah. Because his mom isn't important enough to get her own cabin."

"Who's his mom?"

"Nemesis, the goddess of revenge," Reagan answered quietly.

Before an argument could start, they saw Percy drifting face down in the water. As he drifted closer, Annabeth and Reagan reached over and pulled him closer, slowly pulling him into the boat with any belongings he had. Reagan began to pull on her sleeves, attempting to tear the long sleeves off because she was frying underneath the sun and the sweater was too hot for her. Annabeth spent her time taking care of Percy now that he was found, giving him small sips of Dr. Pepper since he was probably dehydrated. At the sound of the tearing, Annabeth looked up and examined Reagan's arms without meaning to. The fourteen year old didn't have any muscles, certainly not like Clarisse or any of her male siblings, but there was toned muscle there nonetheless from all the years of training Reagan did back at camp.

"Why did you guys take me from the ship?"

Annabeth hastily averted her gaze so that Reagan wouldn't notice her staring. "I- We just thought that getting you away from there was the right thing to do."

Reagan scowled again. "Why? Do you guys not understand that we're enemies now?" she demanded.

Annabeth scoffed as she capped the soda and set it down under the slim shade of the Confederate shirt they used as a sail. "Enemies?! How could you just leave camp like that? You just left without a warning!"

"Because I trust Luke!"

They both flinched because that name was like taboo now. Annabeth played with the chipped wood of their boat before slowly speaking again. "Are you doing it because you believe it or because it's Luke?"

Reagan stood up so quick that the boat almost capsized. "The gods deserve what's coming to them, Annabeth!" she spat angrily. "The Hermes cabin was so cramped that I barely had any space of my own! Now that I'm in the Ares cabin, there's too much space for me and I miss my old cabin."

"And you think taking down the gods will fix that? You think Kronos will be any better?"

"Not if we don't cooperate! Anyone who isn't on his side will be obliterated, and good riddance. If Kronos rules, who cares about their godly parent? We'd all be on equal grounds."

"That's because the gods will be dead," Annabeth muttered bitterly.

Reagan settled back down, but this time she made her seat on the far end as far as possible from Annabeth and the unconscious Percy Jackson.

"Do you think you're really that special whenever or if ever your mom says she loves you?" Reagan asked after a while. "She's got dozens of other kids that she says that she loves too, or say that they're her favorite just like she might say to you. Or that she truly loved your dad? Please, I'm sure that she's said that to all of her kids too."

Before Annabeth could say something, or pull out her dagger and attack Reagan because she wanted to do that too, Percy stirred from his sleep, ending their argument completely. Annabeth wasn't even sure why they took Reagan with them now that she thought about it. Technically they are enemies, no matter how much she might wish that it was not so.