Chapter Text
Anna Elizabeth Wayne at the tender age of 7 left through the secret passageway in the walls while her father was on patrol and she left.
-10 years later-
Annabeth was finally done. Done with the 2nd great prophecy, Percy with her as she was studying some blueprints. “The archs would look good but what if instead of the greek style which i’ve already done, what if I did a more south asian style, their archs are amazing, its so… colorful and Iris is the goddess of Rainbows” she says which to Percy was nodding along playing with her hair while she worked. She knew he was probably thinking about his mom, Mrs.Jacks- Sally, she told her to call her Sally. She doesn’t know why, isn’t she scared of the repercussions of dealing with not one but 2 demigods. It was a rarity but then again isn’t most things in her life. Percy is going back to high school to finish up his senior year, then they both go to college together. A straightforward plan, simple, easy and direct. Her fingers were tapping against the cold surface of her laptop, her mind straying. Everything was going well. Percy, Camp, School, hell even her mom. Disregarding the disowning part that happened a couple of months ago. She’s alive. Even then in the jumbled mess that is her brain, she wanders down to the one thing that she for some reason always thinks about. What’s happening in Gotham? Her brain kept tugging that thought in her mind. She kept basic information, anything really, newspapers and such. She always never found it enough.
The first 4 years of her life were good, a little shaky but good. Bruce might have been busy with being a CEO and a vigilante but he never once truly got angry at her, and whatever he was inept at Alfred knew. Then Richar- Dick Grayson came into their lives. She remembers faded memories of sneaked cookies and secret gymnastic lessons. Bedtime stories or fun little games. That's how it was for some time. It came to an end though, almost like everything in her life. Those experiences dwindled as the fights with Bruce increased. All about the same thing. With that underlying tone I worry, I just don’t know how to express it. Later after all those fights, Dick left. He said he’d come back for her. That never happened.
During the interval between being alone and Jason coming, that's when the spiders began. They were real. Annabeth wasn’t stupid and she hated being treated like she was. Whenever she told her father nothing happened. She persisted. He said it was all a nightmare. She couldn’t keep repeating the cycle. So she shut up about them. By that time Jason arrived at the manor. She kept her distance but somehow Jason weaseled his way in. He helped her learn how to read since that skill was lacking due to her dyslexia. Made pasta with him. So many good memories. The night before he left for Ethiopia, she dreamed of him in that warehouse. She pleaded with him not to go. He said the same thing Dick did ”I’ll be back, don’t worry Annie”. He didn’t come back, the same as Dick.
Bruce became more antagonistic after that. Shutting himself in his office or the batcave. Alfred was trying, but it wasn’t enough. The entire thing capped off when she woke up from a dream screaming, the spiders were crawling all over her again, bites and webs. Bruce rushed down, it took 5 minutes, yet somehow in those 5 minutes, the spiders receded, the bites disappearing, the webs somehow gone. Bruce asked “Were you dreaming about Jason?” Annabeth simply shook her head “It was th-the spiders”, Bruce simply looked at her, his eyes conveying worry and the classic parental emotion of ‘how do i fix this’ he just said “Anna the spiders aren’t real, it was probably part of the dream” he said it like he was explaining to a little kid. Which back then she was, but no 7 year old wants to be treated like that so she kept insisting “No, dad, it was real and the dreams-” Bruce tried again “Anna those were dreams”. More denial. More of her persisting, trying to get her own father to believe her. Then it all blew up, an argument, well as much as an argument between a 7 year old kid and an adult could be (So more like her pleading and it falling onto deaf ears).
He got mad at her, said some things that shouldn't have been said, blaming her for his death “If you were more grounded in the real world, maybe-”. Annabeth came back to the present, Percy was trying to get her attention “Wise girl?” he says. “Yeah?” Annabeth answered, “What's wrong?” “Nothing, just thinking” she says before going back to her work “Hey do you think I could stay with you and Sally for the first week before school?” to that Percy immediately said “Yeah, Mom would love to have you over” he said. Annabeth knew Percy was telling the truth, Sally was always welcoming, sometimes she felt a little jealous Percy had an amazing parent while she was stuck with anger issues emo bat father as a dad for a while.
Leo knocked on Percy’s cabin door saying “Are you both decent in there?” Annabeth rolled her eyes “What is it Valdez?” “Chiron is asking for you” Annabeth started thinking, what could Chiron be asking for? “Okay I’m coming” she says getting off the bed leaving the cabin seeing Leo outside. Her and Leo are pretty good friends with each other, shared interests with engineering and all. “Do you know what Chiron wants to ask me?” “No not really, hey after this though you want to help me with something I’m building?” Annabeth smiled, it was Leo’s way of saying ‘want to talk about it after?’ and to that she gladly said “Yes.” They both got to the main house where Annabeth entered going straight to Chiron’s office.