Once upon a time in a far away land there was a beautiful princess. She lived in a castle in the middle of the woods, locked up into the highest tower and guarded by a giant man-killing dragon. Her parents, the king and the queen of a land close by named Athens, had locked her up in this godforsaken tower and informed the damsel that she would be left there to be saved only by the most brave warrior that there was in the kingdom. So here Princess Annabeth stayed for four long, tiring years. Her only companion being her books and her imagination. As she watched from her small window, the knights and princes came streaming in, all trying to defeat the dragon and all trying to win the hand of the young princess. She thought and thought about which man would slay the dragon and save her from her own personal doom. Would it be the humble looking apprentice, desperately trying to prove himself as a knight? Or the princely man riding upon a large white horse?

As she stared at her rounded walls that were shaded a light pink, she dared to think that perhaps it would be none of these warriors. Maybe she would never be saved. Hopelessness was slowly approaching, like a large storm cloud on the horizon. The princess tried desperately to keep the hope that she had so willingly started out with. But she found herself not even caring anymore when the most handsome fellow went ambling through the narrow path that led to her castle.

One morning, seemingly the same as yesterday and the day before and probably tomorrow, she had been sitting on the small padded seat beside the window that looked out over the hills near her castle. A sparkle in the distance caught her attention, and she looked intently that way as it slowly grew larger. Not a sparkle, but a horseback rider donned in a full suit of armor sitting upon a horse that was blacker than midnight. She stood up and moved towards her reading chair, then picking up one of her favorite books to hopefully drown out the noises of a mans screeching wails as he fell dead due to the claws or the teeth of the massive dragon that guarded her prison. Sure enough, she soon heard a sound of woe, but it was not one of a human. Rather, a desperately whinnying horse. And then, the roar of the dragon. But it was different than how Annabeth had ever heard it before. More… scared than before. Then, the noise suddenly died down. It was instead replaced with the sound of a person coming up the stairs. And, honestly, the princess was surprised that she remembered the sound of that at all for how long she had been stuck in the same room, never leaving.

She rushed to pack up a bag of clothes and other essentials as if in a daze. How could this be happening to her? This day had seemed so unimportant. But, sure enough, a knock sounded at the door just as the princess had gotten the rest of what she would need and tossed it into the bag that had never before been touched.

"Come in!" she sounded nervously. What if the man decided that he wouldn't marry her after all? What if he thought that she wasn't good enough?

He walked in, and she could see not even an inch of his skin due to the large suit of armor adorning his body.

A sound came echoing out of the helmet, "Let's go. I don't want to take any chances of that dragon deciding to not be dead."

The stranger started walking without saying a single other word, not even waiting for Annabeth. She quickly caught up with her simple satchel placed high upon her shoulder. They remained silent for the time it took to get out of the castle. Annabeth, being the respectful princess she was, didn't say a word, determined to wait until the strange man had spoken first. Seemingly three hours later and still not a word had been spoken. Her attitude upon this silence went from impassive and slightly curious, to confused, to positively miffed at his stoic behavior.

Finally, once she couldn't stand it even one more second longer, she spoke. "So, what's your name?"

A grunt was given in response.

"Where are you from?"

Another noncommittal sound.

"Why did you come to my castle and rescue me?"

At this point, the man was just ignoring her.

"Fine, be like that. It's not like we'll be getting married or anything," Annabeth fumed, annoyed at his lack of manners. The man that she was to marry was supposed to be perfect. With a warm, welcoming atmosphere, ruggedly handsome looks, and a brain to allow intelligent conversation. It's not like she wanted much, just perfect.

She decided it was better to just be silent from then on, sulkily following the person who had rescued her. As the light began to fade, the two found a cave and the man started to build a fire while Annabeth opened her bag and looked through the contents. She had two dresses that were good for traveling, one that was evening wear, one to sleep in, some undergarments, a couple leather bags filled with food, and a warm blanket large enough for two.

The princess looked up to notice the fire had been started, and a makeshift mattress had been made out of pine needles and a ripped open canvas sack. "Thanks," she muttered.

"You're welcome," a high, clear voice rang out in response. By the light of the fire, Annabeth could make out the figure of her savior. He was taking off his helmet, when something unexpected happened. Long, brown hair flew out around the shoulders of the armor that put Annabeth's golden locks to shame. Beautiful kaleidoscope eyes framed with too-long eyelashes blinked up at her. And as her savior slowly rid themself of the rest of the armor, a dress fell down around their ankles.

An arrogant look found it's way onto the face of the beautiful girl standing in front of her. "What? Thought I'd look a little more… princely?"

"But y-you're a… girl?! I can't marry you!" Annabeth's words stumbled over themselves as she looked at the person before her in shock.

"Yes, I'm a girl. Although I prefer to be called Piper, rather than just 'girl'. And I never planned on taking your hand in marriage. Why should I? A girl should be allowed to find the man of her dreams on her own, not by being locked up in some stuffy castle," the girl, Piper, explained. A look of pride adorned her face.

"So then why did you come and save me?" Annabeth asked indignantly, finally finding her voice enough to be her normal self.

"I thought of myself, would I want to be locked up in a tower forever? No. So I came and saved you. I'll be taking you back to my kingdom first, since it is on the way to Athens. That is where you live, correct?" The strong-willed girl had not been phased in the slightest by anything Annabeth had said or done.

"Yes, it was," the princess spoke, cautious about the subject of her old land, as she had not lived there for so long.

"Hm, okay. What's your name anyway, princess?" Piper asked.

"Princess Annabeth, to you." She responded, head held high.

"Oh, that's a mouthful. I'll call you Annie, then," Piper decided.

How disrespectful! Annabeth had thought, but she hadn't dared to say it aloud, for she didn't want to start another fight with this stubborn mule of a girl. Why did this have to happen to her?

She ate some food before grabbing her blanket and laying down upon the makeshift bed. Sleep didn't catch up with her for a while, since her thoughts were running so wild.

Soooo, continue or no? Also, sorry if Annabeth is too OC, I plan on changing that soon. Reviews are what keep me going, guys!