Disclaimer: I literally own nothing. I'm just a broke high school student who has a passion for manipulating the brilliant characters created by equally brilliant minds (in this case, everything belongs to Rick Riordan).
One shot
Prompt: Cemetery/Grave
Warnings: Character Death, Depression, Brief Mentions of Dangerous Monsters and Unacceptable Circumstances which Piss Percy Jackson Off.
To Honor Thalia:
He couldn't believe that it'd come to this. After all their group had been through. How had this happened? How had she been taken down by a simple monster? A magically mutated, over-sized, demonic scorpion of all things? How had that taken her down?
It wasn't fair, but nothing ever was. Not for them. Not ever. Why would things start being fair now? After they'd fought a war, two wars actually? Why would the Gods bother being merciful at this point? They'd all fulfilled their purpose. Hell, they'd already lived longer than expected. Most of them were in their late twenties at this point. He wasn't okay with the situation. It was unacceptable. This had to be wrong.
It wasn't fair.
All it took was one swipe of its tail; her immortality didn't matter. Artemis' blessing didn't mean anything when it came to battle wounds. Her Hunters were only safe from aging and mortal illnesses. They weren't safe from the poisonous tails of abnormally large scorpions.
The headstone said that she was a brave woman beloved by many. He didn't agree with that. She wasn't just brave; she was exceptional. There should've been more adjectives on that headstone. There should've been a better description of the girl they'd all come to love.
Should have mentioned the anxiety they all fought as the wars finished? Should it have mentioned how proud her friends were that she was the one who held it together as ends were tied up? Should it have mentioned how exceptional a fighter she was? Maybe, but it didn't.
It didn't tell anything about her. Not really. It gave the cold, hard facts. It gave her first and last name. It gave her birth date and... death date. It gave that little tidbit about her being brave and loved.
How he wished it said more than that. How he wished it had her Godly parent on it. He knew that she didn't always approve of her father, but eventually he had tried. How he wished it honored her the way she should be honored. But it didn't. It never could. How could a slab of marble honor one of the brightest lights this world had? A light that was now extinguished? It couldn't.
Annabeth squeezed his hand. Percy blinked back tears. Thalia wouldn't want tears. Right now, he would give anything for her to punch him and call him a sissy. Right now, he would give anything for Thalia to tell him that he was being overly emotional and that she wasn't worth it (because he knew she would). Right now, he would give anything to just have Thalia.
It was time for them to leave. Time to return to Camp Half-Blood and teach a new generation of eleven year olds that would be faced with saving the world. Time to mentor the next generation and provide them the guidance they needed to survive this dark place. Time to honor the memories their friends left behind.
It was time to honor Thalia.
It was time to make her proud.