Chapter 3: I find myself locked in a duel with my charge's cousin.

Sam

The blonde girl who was with Magnus looked at me with pure and unadulterated contempt, I tried to figure out what the source of her anger was. For a second I believed, as my father would, that it was because of what I was. Muslim, child of Loki, permanent outsider, terrorist, Samirah Al-Abbas child of many worlds, yet outsider in all. I fell upon her and we struggled. For a moment I realized that it could have been about my threatening Magnus. But the damage was done. The blonde girl held a knife to my throat.

"Are you a monster?"

"What?" I was truly angry then. The stupid jokes that come with being a child of Loki have always been in the top ten of things that irritate me. I pushed her hard. It was only then I noticed the knife in her hand. It was celestial bronze. A Greek.

Dear, Odin why, me.

Then there was Magnus' voice, "Stop fighting."

The girl was already on top of me. I pushed her off

"Who is SHE?" We both asked it at once. For a moment Magnus looked sheepish.

Then he stated, "Sam, this is Annabeth, she's my cousin. Annabeth, this is Sam, she's my Valkyrie."

"Valkyrie?" The girl looked at me, "As in Norse Mythology? How by all the gods is this possible?"

"You have a Greek demigod for a cousin?" I immediately wondered if Odin had chosen me as a result of some sick joke.

"What?"

"Greek, you idiot." I threw my hands up, "A demigod of Olympus. A thief, a bully. A wannabe-conqueror of the world."

"That's not true!" Annabeth said, "That's not true, we're not conquerors. We're heroes. And you know something else. In Norse Mythology, Valkyries are supposed to protect heroes. If you're Magnus's Valkyrie why did you threaten to kill him?"

"That's what we want to know." The Elf and the Dwarf were standing at the door. Suddenly we were on each other. All four of us. Struggling and pushing on the floor.

"Stop!" Magnus hollered, "Stop fighting! We need to talk this over. You know like adults."

Somehow we stopped.