Rick Riordan

" You saved the world," annabeth said."We saved the world.""And Rachel is the new Oracle, which means she won't be dating anybody.""You don't sound disappointed," I noticed.Annabeth shrugged. "Oh, I don't care.""Uh-huh."She raised an eyebrow. "You got something to say to me, Seaweed Brain?""You'd probably kick my butt.""You know I'd kick your butt."I brushed the cake off my hands. "When I was at the River Styx, turning invulnerable . . . Nico said I had to concentrate on one thing that kept me anchored to the world, that made me want to stay mortal."Annabeth kept her eyes on the horizon. "Yeah?""Then up on Olympus," I said, "when they wanted to make me a god and stuff, I kept thinking—""Oh, you so wanted to.""Well, maybe a little. But I didn't, because I thought—I didn't want things to stay the same for eternity, becausethings could always get better. And I was thinking . . ." My throat felt really dry."Anyone in particular?" Annabeth asked, her voice soft.I looked over and saw that she was trying not to smile."You're laughing at me," I complained."I am not!""You are so not making this easy."Then she laughed for real, and she put her hands around my neck. "I am never, ever going to make things easy foryou, Seaweed Brain. Get used to it."When she kissed me, I had the feeling my brain was melting right through my body. I could've stayed that way forever, except a voice behind us growled, "Well, it's about time!"Suddenly the pavilion was filled with torchlight and campers. Clarisse led the way as the eavesdroppers charged and hoisted us both onto their shoulders."Oh, come on!" I complained. "Is there no privacy?""The lovebirds need to cool off!" Clarisse said with glee."The canoe lake!" Connor Stoll shouted. and they dumped us in the water. "

related quotes

" I just came from Bunker Hill,’ I told Sam. ‘Hel offered me a reunion with my mother.’I managed to tell her the story.Samirah reached out as if to touch my arm, then apparently changed her mind. ‘I’m so sorry, Magnus. But Hel lies. You can’t trust her. She’s just like my father, only colder. You made the right choice.’‘Yeah … still. You ever do the right thing, and you know it’s the right thing, but it leaves you feeling horrible?’‘You’ve just described most days of my life.’ Sam pulled up her hood. ‘When I became a Valkyrie … I’m still not sure why I fought that frost giant. The kids at Malcolm X were terrible to me. The usual garbage: they asked me if I was a terrorist. They yanked off my hijab. They slipped disgusting notes and pictures into my locker. When that giant attacked … I could’ve pretended to be just another mortal and got myself to safety. But I didn’t even think about running away. Why did I risk my life for those kids?’I smiled.‘What?’ she demanded.‘Somebody once told me that a hero’s bravery has to be unplanned – a genuine response to a crisis. It has to come from the heart, without any thought of reward.’Sam huffed. ‘That somebody sounds pretty smug.’‘Maybe you didn’t need to come here,’ I decided. ‘Maybe I did. To understand why we’re a good team. "