A Royal Secret (Percabeth AU)

Castle Tour

(Annabeth's POV)

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Thalia."

"Aw, don't be so formal! Come on, I'll show you around."

I look at my dad, who nods. "Okay, let's go!"

She smiles and drags me out the door, running down the halls. "This is my room," she says, owning the door and pointing inside.

"And that," she says, pointing to a blonde boy with the same startling blue eyes as her, "is my dorky brother, Jason. He's your age!"

"Hey! Wait, who's this?" He asks, and I blush a little.

"This is Annabeth, the new neighbor. Also, in your face! I finally got a girl neighbor, despite the fact that no one thought it would happen! You can suck it!" She says, sticking out her tongue. He rolls his eyes.

"Nice to meet you, Annabeth."

"Likewise," I reply.

"Come on!" Thalia rushes me, dragging me down the hallway.

As we walk by the rooms, she points to each and tells me about who lives there.

"That is the Dare's room, and they have a daughter our age, Rachel. She's one of the Queen's best artists!"

"Ooh, that's the Di Angelo's. They've got two kids- one your age-ish and one younger. Nico and Bianca."

"This is where Chiron lives. He's one of the king's advisors, but also has a natural bond with horses- much like the king."

"There's Katie Gardner and her family, who, ironically, are the castle's gardeners. They maintain the entire great lawn. The castle requires constant maintenance!"

"The Zhang's live here, with a son born to the dad, named Frank that is our age. The wife has a daughter named Clarisse La Rue. They haven't actually had any kids together, but Mars is like, the head of our army!

"Here are the Stolls, which are the royal messengers. Hermes has two kids, Travis and Connor. Travis is older by about a year. Oh, and watch out- they are extreme pranksters!"

"This is the McLean's room, and Piper is about your age. Aphrodite, her mom is responsible for all the fashion and styles in the kingdom, and her dad is the kingdom renowned actor, Tristan!"

"Here's Miss Levesque, local fortune teller. Her daughter, Hazel, is a little younger than you and much less creepy and more friendly than her mom."

"Oh, and here is Calypso's room. She lives alone, and she's probably about my age. She is one of the many cooks here in the castle."

"Ah, and we can't forget about Reyna! She lives here with her parents, and her older sister, Hylla. She's awesome."

"Here we have Hephaestus and Leo Valdez. They are the castle blacksmiths, forging the majority of our tools and weapons."

"Wow, there are a ton of people here! I say, as she continues to list off a zillion more names.

We reach the end of the hall, and she turns to me. "Well, that's pretty much the whole western tower residence! Wanna see the kitchen?"

I look around at the big archways. "What about the eastern tower? Can we go there?"

Her face drops. "Heck no! The eastern tower is strictly off limits- or else. No one goes up there except for the Queen's head maid, Molly. The King doesn't even go up there!" Thalia exclaims.

"Why?"

She shrugs. "No one knows, it's majorly top secret. But, whatever the reason is, it's extremely important and very, very inaccessible. Let's go see the kitchens!"

I follow her reluctantly as she runs along to the kitchens. We run into a large dining room, and into a little door along the back wall.

The door opens to reveal a huge kitchen, stocked with all kinds of cooking supplies. My jaw drops. I swear, they could make anything and everything your heart desires here!

"Close your mouth, you might catch a fly," Thalia jokes, and I shut my mouth.

"I don't think I've ever seen so much food!" I exclaim.

"Well, I guess you should probably keep settling in, I'll show you back to your room," Thalia says, grabbing my wrist and dragging me yet again.

Once we reach my room, I open the door and wave to Thalia. "Thanks, it is was fun!"

She smiles. "We're gonna be good friends, I can tell! Bye, Annie!"

"Don't call me Annie!"

"Whatever you say, Annie!" She says with a smirk.

I roll my eyes and close the door.

"Mom? Dad? This place is amazing, you've got to explore!"