Annabeth's day was going great. No monster attacks, no cabin rivalries, everything was peaceful.

Too peaceful.

"Annabeth! Annabeth!" There it is. The moment of chaos that was a part of everyday life at camp. "It's Percy!"

And of course Percy had to be part of it.

"What do you mean?" Annabeth asked the panicking young camper. "What's wrong with Percy?"

The camper was maybe ten years old and she was close to tears. She was a little bruised and beat. Annabeth recognized her as the young daughter of Demeter, Sidney, who Percy had taken under his wing because she was having a rough time fitting in. Annabeth loved watching them together because it made her think of her future with him. It showed her how he could be with their own kids.

"He's gone!" Sidney exclaimed desperately. Now the tears fell freely down the dark skinned girl's cheeks. She moved her hands in a way that showed she didn't know what to do with them, she was shifting from one foot to the other restlessly.

Annabeth felt the blood rush from her face. Not again, she thought. She grabbed Sidney by her shoulders, barely restraining herself from shaking the poor girl. "Sidney, this better not be a joke," she said seriously at the same time, hoping it was. It's just something Percy and Sidney would do, she thought to herself.

Violently, Sidney shook her head, her curls going everywhere. "No, I promise, he was showing me some moves in the forest when he just disappeared!" Her voice went up several octaves in that one sentence.

"Okay, calm down, calm down," Annabeth said soothingly more for herself than for Sidney. She can't go through this again. The last time this happened, she barely held herself together. "Let's go find Chiron. He can help."

Chiron couldn't help.

He took one look at Annabeth's and Sidney's distressed faces and he looked as thought he'd aged ten decades. He had Sidney show them where Percy disappeared.

Sidney tearfully led them to the clearing where she last saw her friend. Before they could enter the clearing, however, she stopped them.

"Wait!" She shouted, panicking again, holding out her hands to stop them. "Watch." Bending down to grab a rock off the forest floor, Sidney then tossed it into the clearing. It made it only two feet when it disappeared in a flash of bright light before it even hit the ground.

The three of them stared at the spot where the rock disappeared in silence.

"What now?" Annabeth asked, her voice wavering. She knew for sure this wasn't Hera this time.

Chiron took a while to answer and when he did with a heavy sigh, "We notify Lord Poseidon, Tyson, Mrs. Jackson-Blofis as well as Mr. Blofis," he rubbed his hands across his face. "I'm afraid all we can do is the same thing as last time."

"No," Annabeth said quietly. Then, louder, "No. Chiron, I can't. Not again. Percy can't be gone again."

"I am sorry, my dear," Chiron embraced Annabeth with all the comfort and love a father could and would give at this time.

Later that night, as Annabeth sat on Percy's bed, staring at nothing, she got a visit from her boyfriend's father.

"Annabeth, I don't expect you to go thought this again," Poseidon started, sitting next to her on Percy's bed.

"What do you expect me to do?" Annabeth demanded a little heatedly. "Sit here and wait? I can't do that! Not again."

Poseidon held up his hand to stall her from saying anymore. "I know you're not going to want to stay here and do nothing," he continued. "You're going after him."

It wasn't a question. He knew Annabeth had already made her decision.

"Are you going to stop me?" She asked calmly.

"I'm suppose to," Poseidon said casually as he stood up. "As it is, however, emotional stress causes people to do some crazy things."

Annabeth looked up, hope shinning in her eyes. She watched as the lord of the seas took down a shield from the wall. The shield Annabeth knew Tyson made or Percy.

"Take this with you, you'll need it where ever you're going," he handed the shield to Annabeth with sad eyes. "Bring him home, Miss Chase."

The moment Poseidon disappeared in a refreshing sea breeze, Annabeth started packing. She took the liberty of taking some of Percy's sweaters and his hidden stash of blue candy and coke. Then, she snuck over to her cabin and got her always ready bag for quests. It never hurt to be prepared. Strapping her drakon sword and a knife to her waist, she mentally did a double check of her things.

Walking out of her cabin and in the direction fo the forest, Annabeth had a feeling that she would not be seeing her home for a very long time. She stopped to look back one last time, watching as the lights flickered off in the Big House and Artemis' cabin glowed brilliantly in the moonlight.

Suddenly, she had misgivings about going after her boyfriend. Aside from Percy, she was one of the main leaders of the Greek camp. The camp would fall apart without their leaders. She can't just leave them without any warning.

"Agh," she shook her head, shaking away those thoughts. She can't afford them now. "They'll be fine. I left a note." She kept walking, going deeper into the woods. "Besides, the rest of the Seven is here, they can take care of anything."

So it was, that Annabeth Chase entered the clearing where Percy vanished without a second thought.

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Sneakers sloshing in the wet earth, Annabeth made it into a small town she'd landed nearby. The gates had yet to close and the man watching them pointed her in the direction of the nearest inn.

The Prancing Pony. A cheerful name for a not so cheerful place. The second she entered, Annabeth knew she would be standing out more than she wished. The style and set up indicated that the technology here hadn't quite caught up with her world's. Lanterns lit the small tavern as well as the fire place to the side. Everyone's wardrobe was styled for the medieval times; cloaks, tunics and steel weapons strapped to their waists.

Reluctantly, Annabeth walked up to the man behind the counter amidst the not so subtle stares around the tavern.

"Good afternoon, sir," Annabeth greeted the man. "I have no money but could I wash dishes  and serve for a plate of food and a room?"

The man smiled, as if to a child and replied, "Of course, miss, do you have the proper attire?"

Annabeth refrained from growling and rolling her eyes. "No, I-"

"No matter, I'm sure my wife can find something for you, what's your name, miss?" He interrupted swiftly.

"Annabeth," she answered simply, eyeing the man at the closest table warily. He was looking too interested for her comfort.

"I am Butterbur. Come with me into the kitchen and meet my wife, Agatha," he said warmly.

Twenty minutes later, Annabeth was in a full length skirt and apron and serving ale and stew for lunch. The dress Agatha found for he as a tad big so she just threw it over her camp shirt and jeans, not bothering to change all the way.

Washing dishes wasn't any worse than washing dishes at camp. It was the serving that bothered her. She had a feeling women weren't treated the same way back home.

Several of the men dinning in indulged in a few catcalls when she was within earshot. Others just leered at her. Annabeth managed to keep from sticking a knife into the hands that reached out to grab her. Instead, she easily evaded their feeble attempts and rolled her eyes.

Sometime in the early evening, a man arrived, causing the people in the room to fall silent. The men bothering her, sent a nervous look her way once they saw who it was.

"Who is that?" Annabeth asked the innkeeper.

"He's Strider, one of them Rangers," Butterbur answered. "Very dangerous, never want to get on the wrong side of one of them."

Strider? That name sounded familiar. Was there a camper named that? Did she read it in a book somewhere? Then again, the name of the village sounded familiar as well. Bree.

"Miss Annabeth! A refill!" Annabeth sighed and got back to work. She could figure this mystery out later.

Later ended up being in the late evening. She figured it out when four very short people walked in and asked for Gandalf. Hobbits.

Annabeth inwardly groaned and kicked herself. How did she not see it? It was so obvious.

The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings books were very ambitious books to read. Especially if one was dyslexic. Yet, Annabeth had done it and they were some of her favorite books to read. The only question was; is this the movie or book version? She's experienced both and while she could tell that the book had some good scenes and people that were not in the movie, she preferred the movie because it doesn't give her a headache.

Now, judging by the fact that there were four hobbits in the inn, Annabeth assumed this was the start of Frodo Baggin's journey. Then that would mean the other three were Merry, Pippin and Sam. And Strider was...Aragorn.

Then a thought struck her. After this, they were heading to Rivendell. Maybe Lord Elrond or Gandalf would be able to help her find Percy.

She was almost too late in realizing this, Strider had already taken Frodo to the other room. Annabeth started panicking before realizing that they don't leave Bree yet. So she calmed down and waited patiently for the inn to close for the night.

It was late and from what she could tell form the darkness of the hall and from under the door, the Hobbits were asleep and Strider was keeping watch. She was ready to go, having returned the dress to Agatha and strapped the sword from her giant friend.

Lightly tapping on the door before opening it, she entered in time to hear on of the hobbits ask, "What are they?"

"They are Nazgul," Annabeth answered for Strider. She couldn't resist. "Neither living nor dead. Drawn to the power of the one ring." She eyed the started hobbits and emotionless ranger. "They will never stop hunting you. So long as you hold that thing in your pocket."

"Who are you?" Strider demanded in a low voice.

"How do you know about the-" Sam started but was cut off by Annabeth.

She dashed across the room and but per hand over the hobbit's lips. "Do not speak of it here," she said firmly, "words have power." Turning to Strider, she put a hand on her drakon sword, seeing he was prepared to draw his sword as well. "My name is Annabeth. I was the girl serving downstairs and I am coming with you to Rivendell. You cannot wait here any longer." She finished, staring Strider down, daring him to argue.

"How do you know so much?" Stider asked now. He was a smart man, the look Annabeth was giving normally made Leo wet himself.

Annabeth hesitated. He would hardly believe her if she told the truth. "I know more than you think," she said truthfully. She was a die hard fan of Tolkien and even learned the elvish tongue and runes. "Let's go, we should wait no more than we have already."

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The walking was no worse than her trip with Percy through Tartarus. At least there was not any poison in the air or the constant fear of monsters finding them. No. Instead, the Black Riders were following them. Bringing a fear Annabeth felt was the closest to a dementor she would ever get.

She could tell Strider was impressed with her ability to keep up with him while carrying both Pippin and Merry at regular intervals. She had a feeling she was going to be constantly underestimated during her stay here in Middle Earth.

"So, Annabeth," Pippin started. "Where are you from?"

"You idiot! We were just at Bree and she worked at the tavern," Merry said. If Pippin were within his reach, Annabeth felt sure he would have whacked him in the head. "Where do you think she's from?"

"I am actually not from Bree," Annabeth laughed. "I came from a different realm."

"Why are you here?" Sam asked as Pippin gloated to his best friend.

"I came here looking for my boyfriend. He disappeared and when I followed, I ended up here," she answered. "I need to find him, he can't do much with out me."

Strider looked back. "I'm sure he's doing alright without you," he said curtly.

"I don't think so," Annabeth replied, ignoring the implication that Percy didn't need her. "I can't leave him for two minutes before he gets in trouble. Last time I did, he got kidnapped. The time before that, he took a swim in a river in the Underworld."

The hobbits and Strider stared at her in shock, making her chuckle. They left the conversation at that, unanimously agreeing that Annabeth's boyfriend had problems.

They reached the ruins where she remembered Frodo almost dying a few days after leaving Bree. Annabeth followed Strider and the four hobbits hesitantly, trying to remember how the Black Riders found them so soon and cornered them.

This is not good, she thought as she tried remembering. Why can't I remember?

She sat in their camp, staring out at the horizon, feeling the familiar sense of dread overwhelm her. She was so lost in thought that she almost didn't hear Frodo yelling at his friends to put something out.

Her head snapped around when she recognized the smell of smoke. "Styx, now I remember," she shot up from her spot on the rocks, gathering their supplies and herding her new friends to higher ground. "You hobbits always think with your stomach," she muttered as she unsheathed the drakon sword at her waist.

They stood in the middle of the ruins back to back, waiting for the ghostly beings to arrive. Annabeth stood on the balls of her feet, ready to attack at a moments notice. The hobbits, to their credit, raised the weapons they were given from Strider before he went to have a look around.

As the first of the Nazguls came over the edge of the cliffs, Annabeth raised her sword and eyed them. She wasn't much of a hack and bash sort of fighter like Percy and several of the Ares kids. She thought through her attack.

The Nazgul were terrifying. The description in the books and their depictions in the movies don't do them justice. The fear she felt was close to how she felt when she was facing Arachne.

Then, without warning, she swung her sword, slashing at the exposed arm of the Nazgul. Annabeth did her best to keep the wraiths' attention off of Frodo and on herself but she knew she made no difference in the way things turned out by the scream that sounded a lot like Frodo that ripped through the night air. She stopped slashing and looked for the poor hobbit but she could only see a flaming wraith, Strider fighting with a torch and three hobbits doing all the damage they could do with their small size and toothpicks.

With a start, Annabeth realized Frodo had the ring on and the wraith with the sword out was the one stabbing the Baggins.

Not long after, the wraiths were gone and Strider was carrying Frodo as he led the way hurriedly through the forest to Rivendell. They made it as far as the stone trolls from Bilbo's adventure before they had to stop for rest.

While Annabeth wasn't so worried because she knew Frodo would make it, the hobbits were beside themselves with worry for their friend. Annabeth was more concerned over the fact that Strider hadn't even heard of someone in the land who caused trouble. Besides Gandalf. She was certain Percy was here in Middle Earth, she could feel it. However, the fact that word about Percy did not spread like wild fire concerned her. Was he...dead already? She knew he was hopeless without her but this would be ridiculous. It's only been a few days.

"She's an elf," Sam's awestruck statement snapped Annabeth out of her thoughts.

"Arwen," she breathed. Finally.

It was only a matter of time before she met Gandalf, Lord Elrond and Bilbo Baggins.