She's Immortal and He's Dead
Note: I'm going to completely ignore the fact that Luke had asked Annabeth if she had ever loved him. For the sake of this story, Luke have always been in love with Thalia.
Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson unfortunately...
Actually she thought about him a lot. More than a lot. And as much as she hate to admit it, she probably thinks about him more than Aphrodite does about her own reflection.
Thalia scoffed at her attempt at the funny joke. Please if anything she is positive that Aphrodite is probably messing with her head right now that fucking goddess of love- not that Thalia herself is in love.
She quickly sharpened her arrows and made her way to the camp's shooting range. The Second Titan war had just ended and Thalia was honestly just looking for an escape. To be honest, she was kind of pissed off at the Son of Poseidon for brushing off immortality as if it's not a big deal… but the Kelp Head's loyalty to Annabeth was something to be admired… something that she had failed to a certain "family".
She had given up immortality once for the stupid Luke Castellan and that had hurt her… real bad. She was blindly confused by the stupid emotional that was brought to reality by the giddly Aphrodite and allowed herself to be clouded from Luke's future corruption. She didn't trust Zoe's words about Luke's destiny. She believed that she belonged with him and he belonged with her. Thalia dug into her side to pull out a knife and threw it at the target. Stupid naive young Thalia.
Then Percy Jackson had to give up immortality for Annabeth. That made her question her own logic. Her last encounter with Luke Castellan before she had chosen the route of maidenhood.
"Luke… what happened to you?" Thalia Grace does not cry, but at the moment at the sight of her former best friend she couldn't help but hold back the threatening tears.
Luke took a step towards her as he uncovered their previous hatred of their fathers and Thalia couldn't help but back away.
"It'll be like old times," He continued. "The three of us together. Fighting for a better world." Thalia wanted nothing more than to believe this guy. The guy who used to be everything to her. Her family, her friend, and at times… the only person that she could trust.
"You aren't Luke." She said the pain obvious in her voice. "I don't know you anymore."
She had thought that he was gone. He was far from being saved. But at the same time she couldn't help but wonder… what if she had survived and made it to camp? Would she and Luke…? She shook the thought out of her head. She's a Hunter now and he's dead, nothing can hold her back anymore. Thalia Grace, the hardcore daughter of Zeus is still standing.
"He's a traitor! A traitor!" Thalia had insisted the tears were obvious now. She hated herself for crying and over a guy who's not even worth the tears.
Annabeth yelled something from the side but Thalia couldn't hear the younger girl's voice. Her main focus was on the boy.
"Is that what you want Thalia? To go back to Olympus in triumph? To please your dad?" Luke sneered. He had struck a cord and he knew it. But at the same time she still saw the noble guy beneath all the pain and misery. The guy who gave her his share of the bread while he starved himself for days. Also the same guy who had always been there for her… well up to the point where she turned into a tree.
Annabeth may call Percy the exact replica of Thalia but Thalia saw Percy as an exact replica of Luke.
They were both noble. They were both clueless as fuck. Hades, she was even willing to bet that if Annabeth haven't been there to ground the stupid Kelp Brain, he would've been as good as a pawn of Kronos as he is of the gods. Speaking of which… she silently wondered if Luke would've turned out so corrupted if she had survived- immediately she brushed that thought away. She's a fucking hunter.
She was jealous plainly speaking. Percy, Annabeth and Grover had been there while she was pinned under her stupid godly stepmother's statue. "Holy Cow Shit Hera." Thalia mumbled under her breath as the sound of thunder rumbled across the clear sky.
Shaking her head off the thought Thalia shot three arrows, each pinning it's mark precisely at the bulls-eye. 'If only life was that easy.'' Thalia thought with a frown as she remembered her own encounter with Hermes.
It was right after she woke up. The messenger god was the first person to visit the still frail daughter of Zeus.
"If you could just talk to him-" Hermes insisted.
But Thalia was stubborn. She has been out of commision for a few years and Luke Castellan! The nerve of that guy! He goes on a revenge rampage and decide to team up with the evil Titan Lord?!
"No! He made his choice pretty clear!"
"He listens to you and he-"
"Well maybe, if you had been more of an attentive father he wouldn't run away!" Thalia yelled at the messenger god who stood there awestruck at the nerve of a weak patient.
Hermes glared at her but at the same time the god could probably sense that Thalia wasn't changing her mind. She was a pain in the butt because of her stubborn nature.
"He did this because of you-" Hermes insisted placing the blame on her shoulders.
Blame game? Two can play the game Hermes.
"No! He did this because of you! Because he had hated you for so long! I may be the last straw that caused him to crack but everything is because of you!"
Thalia was mad… pissed even.
No actually she was hurt. She was hurt that he didn't even think of using the fleece to heal her, the correct term was that she was hurt. Luke had intentionally or unintentionally raised her back from her coma-like state. But it wasn't a friendly gesture, it was a slap in the face. Like 'hey Thalia, i'm with the evil Kronos now, so come and join me.'
That sly son of a thieving god.
Hate and love. Love and hate. Two things so different yet holds the same amount of passion. When Percy announced Luke's death, Thalia wasn't sure whether the pang from her heart came from an unfulfilled love or a disappointed 'I-didn't-get-to-kill-him' hate.
"You don't have to pretend Thalia." A voice called out.
She put down her bow and turned around already knowing who it was. She nodded her head in his direction and he trotted over.
"Grover Underwood, Lord of the Wild." She announced with a slight smile.
Same old Grover. He blushed at the comment as if he wasn't used to the sudden title. "You know… Luke really did sacrifice himself." Grover began. "He-"
Thalia snapped the arrow she was holding in half, "What makes you think I care? He's dead-"
"I'm not stupid Thalia." Grover said nervously. His fingers twitching towards his reeds that were hanging on his side. "I've been a third wheel for longer than you can imagine." He said with a laugh. "The most obvious one being with Percy and Annabeth but I could tell that there was something between you and Luke-"
That did it. Thalia stood up and shocked the satyr.
"Ouch!" Grover hands immediately went up to rub the sting. "Why'd you do that?"
Thalia scoffed, "You deserved it."
Grover mumbled a few unpleasant words under his breath before continuing. "Do you want to see him?"
"What?"
"He's asking if you want to see Luke Castellan." Another voice appeared from beside her. Thalia recognized the voice immediately as the voice of Nico Di Angelo.
She still wasn't sure what to think of this son of Hades. The kid was a mystery and half of the time she wonders if Nico Di Angelo was really on their side. Thalia scoffed… she should've asked Luke that question years ago.
The daughter of Zeus glared at the younger kid, "I know what he meant but what makes you guys think I need to see him!"
"Because he wants to see you obviously." The kid in black said with a slightly annoying tone.
"I didn't ask you Death Breath!" Okay so she didn't really mean to lash out at the kid but any mention of Luke just keeps her so irritated and impulsive.
"Well I didn't ask you either, Luke asked you." He stated nonchalantly.
Thalia gritted her teeth and aimed her next arrow at the tree right behind the son of Hades. The idiotic kid didn't even bother flinching.
Irritated Thalia took another arrow- "Hey hey hey! We came here to talk, not to fight. Thalia put your bow and arrow down for a second." Grover immediately intervene.
After a moment's decision Thalia slowly put down her weapon and turned to the satyr. "What?"
"Everyone's in there for his funeral-"
"Doesn't mean that I have to be in there." Thalia shot back.
"Same thing I said but Grover dragged me to you." Nico mumbled. "And your annoying dead boyfriend was sending me telepathic message to me about you. It's getting annoying."
"Well then tell him to shut the fuck up!" Thalia yelled at the son of Hades. "You hear that Luke! Shut the fuck up! I don't need to hear your stupid excuses!" She yelled at the ground.
"Gods... and people thought I was the crazy one." Nico mumbled. "I talk to ghost and she's pretty much talking to the ground."
She had enough of that little shit. "Now listen here you little shit-" Thalia took a threatening step towards Nico, who wasn't even fazed even a tiny bit.
Grover stepped in between the two cousins. "Thalia listen to me."
Thalia turned to face one of her oldest friend, "No you listen to me Grover. You tell that stupid idiot that I don't want to talk to him!"
"I think she wants to talk to him." The little shit answered.
"I don't think I asked for your opinion kid." Thalia glared at him.
"I wasn't talking to you to begin with. I was talking to Grover." He retorted back. "Plus, I'm way older than you kid." Nico mocked.
Thalia stomped her feet angrily, a habit that she (sadly) had taken from Annabeth. "You guys can crown him as some little hero but to me, he was simply just a coward who betrayed his friends." Thalia grumbled.
Nico sighed and pulled out a small Happy Meal serving and placed it on the floor. "Tell that to him yourself then Grace."
Thalia flinched at her last name as she stared at the son of Hades. "Look, maybe Luke didn't really make the right decision but he made the correct one at the end. I'm not defending your friend or anything but can you blame the guy? There's a reason why my dad allowed Luke to die as a hero."
The son of Hades poured some root beer over her tree. Thalia's tree.
"What the Hades are you doing?"
Nico smirked, "Hades stuff."
"That's not what I meant you little shit." Thalia grumbled. He's pouring root beer on her tree. Her fucking tree.
"I'm summoning Luke Castellan." He replied.
Thalia wasn't sure whether or not to be happy. Instead she stared at Grover the satyr who looked just as uncomfortable as she was. Sure she knew Nico had summoned the dead but she couldn't help but be scared of the kid. The thing is… Thalia Grace does not scare easily.
"I'm just as uncomfortable as you are." Grover shifted nervously as if he had read her thoughts..
Nico began chanting and Thalia could feel the air getting colder- or maybe that was just the breeze from the top of the hill. It was familiar too.
"Thalia."
She didn't want to look, but her mouth betrayed her. "What now Castellan? Are you ready to rise up from the dead and stir shit up again?"
"That's not the correct way to greet the hero of Olympus you know?"
She couldn't contain herself anymore. She turned around and was met with the familiar face of the once vessel of Kronos. The traitor demigod. The son of Hermes. The boy she had once loved. Her best friend.
Instead of talking to her old friend she turned to the son of Hades, "Unsummon him."
Nico shrugged and grabbed Grover's arm, "Sorry. He's going to be here for a while. I ordered like 10 Happy Meal to summon him."
"What the Hades-" Thalia began.
"Don't forget to treat me out to burgers later Thalia!" Nico called out before he sank into the shadow of the nearest tree.
"You know you don't have to ignore me Thals." The ghost began.
She didn't want to call him "Luke". The "Luke" she knew was long gone.
"Why would I have to ignore you? If I remember correctly, you were the one who ignored me." She shot back before she could remind herself that she was, in fact, ignoring the poor ghost boy.
"Hey, you're not ignoring me." The ghost smiled. It was eerily like the boy she used to know.
"Shut up Luke." She couldn't help it. It was like reflex to her. It didn't matter that she was a tree for a while or he was some fucking vessel for the crazy Lord of TIme.
Okay maybe she wasn't mad at him for like betraying the gods and totally almost destroying Western Civilization. Actually if anything she was more pissed that he pretty much told her "Hey join the dark side or I'll have to kill you." If anything she loved the dark side, she could literally be the embodiment of darkness if Nyx hadn't taken up that position eons ago.
"And we're back to you telling me to shut up." The fucking ghost said. "You know it's not easy to come talk to you, I had to beg my way to Hades since I'm pretty much the one who caused all those traffic in the Underworld."
"You trying to say something Castellan?" Thalia glared hard at the ground, promising herself to not look at him again.
"You can look at me you know? I don't bite I promise."
"Course you don't. Your bark is usually worse than your bite. I knew there was a reason you didn't follow through with world domination." She grumbled with an air of familiarity.
"And here I thought you were happy that I didn't go through with killing off Western Civilization." The ghost chuckled. "I knew there was some darkness in you Thals."
"Shut up, I'm not your friend. I hate you so much and-"
"You know... if I wasn't dead and you weren't a Hunter, I'd totally shut your mouth and kiss you right now." Luke interrupted her.
That caused her to stop mid-sentence and not surprisingly she turned and stared wide-eyed at the ghost who had that playful look on his face.
"LUKE CASTELLAN!" Thalia was fuming and for once it wasn't from anger.
"Hey! You turned around!" Luke grinned and Thalia couldn't help but wince. That damn Son of Hermes.
"That's not the point! I'm a Hunter now! You can't just-"
"I can't just what? Thalia, I am dead, I don't think the gods can't do anything but keep me dead."
Thalia covered her face, "Just shut up! You can't just go waltzing back into my life like that!" She secretly wishes that he was solid and alive so that she could beat the living Hades out of him.
"Sucks that you can't punch me huh?" The stupid ghost had the nerve to smirk in her face. Before she could help herself a smell of ozone came from the area that Luke was at. "And still the same anger." Luke decided as his form began to reform from her lash of anger.
"You don't know anything." Thalia grumbled. "Why did you even want to talk to me?" She sighed finally deciding that going full frontal attack on him isn't going to help.
"I wanted to talk to you.I wanted to apologize."
Thalia took a deep breath, knowing that she's going to rage at him. "You never talked to me when I came back. Was it even intentional to bring me back alive? If I hadn't accidentally pushed you off Mount Tam, would you have killed me?" Her voice was rising with every passing statement. "If given the chance, would you kill me?!"
"I would've." Luke replied honestly.
Thalia looked up, a bit surprised that he would admit such a thing. "What?" She could feel her anger rising up again.
"I wanted you to be on my side, Thalia. Even though I was wrong, I wanted you by my side." Luke said earnestly. "I wanted to have our family back so bad that I was blinded-"
"That doesn't justify what you did." Thalia said stubbornly. "I was alive again." Thalia continued staring at the ghost. "We could've started over with whatever it is that we had."
This was stupid. This whole conversation was stupid. She could almost feel the tears coming out from her eyes.
"Thali-" She felt the ghost of his hand brushed against her cheeks, but it quickly pulled back as if he remembered that he was a ghost.
"Have you ever once thought how I felt?" Thalia said her eyes watering up a tiny bit, but there was no way in Hades that she was going to cry. Thalia Grace does not cry. "I was your oldest friend, I trusted you with everything. There was a time where I thought that…" She trailed off remembering that one time in Hal's house where she kissed his cheek. She shook that thought out of her head, "I thought that perhaps trusting people wouldn't be that bad. I told you everything about me Luke. I told you about my brother and…" She hated Luke. "-and… you threw that all away for power and revenge."
"I'm sorry." Luke said again.
"Sorry doesn't cut it!" Thalia screamed at him. She wanted to punch him so bad. Just to let him feel a tenth of the pain she felt when she discovered he betrayed her. "You know what they told me when I first came back?!"
Luke stayed silent.
"They told me that my best friend had betrayed the very people that I worked hard to saved. You hurt Annabeth. You simply brought me back to life just to screw up the prophecy! The guy who I risked my life to save betrayed me! Have you ever stop to consider how I felt?!"
"Well when you just pushed me aside and ran off to risk your life, have you considered how I felt?! Standing back and watching you die! Did you know how much I killed myself over that!?"
Thalia stood shocked. Luke had never lost his cool. Especially to her.
"I never got to told you how much you meant to me. By the time I saw you at Mount Tam, I knew it was too late. I've already gone too far to turn back and my only hope was that you would join me. Even that hope was futile because I knew you had more sense than me." Luke said dejectedly. "How do you think I felt knowing that the person that I love will never look at me the same way?"
Once again he had managed to shock her.
"I admit it. I love you." Luke chuckled darkly. "It's a bit too late for that now huh? You're a hunter who's immortal and I'm the demigod that's dead."
"Stop."
"Maybe there'll always been that 'what if'. What if you didn't turn into a tree? What if I didn't join Kronos? What if you had love me back?" Luke said quietly. He paused for a second before continuing. "I'm going to try for rebirth."
"What?" Thalia stared at him. If he's going to try for rebirth… he's going to forget her. He's going to be a completely different person. She'll never see him again. The chances of encountering him when he's reborn is almost close to none.
"I wanted to give you a proper goodbye. Who knows? Maybe I'll find you? You're a hunter who's going to live forever, so there's a chance." Luke insisted. "Maybe in my next life I could make it up to you."
She didn't say anything. She's still trying to process everything he's telling her.
"I'm happy and I want you to be the same way. I love you Thalia Grace." With that last word, he disappeared into the air.
"Luke!" She cried out a second too late. That did it. She broke down. Thalia Grace was crying. She couldn't help it. It all came piling down to her at once.
"You're going to be fine Thalia." Luke put a reassuring arm over me as we continued to run. "I got you." His smile melted away.
She tried to wipe away her tears.
"You should fight back." Luke stared at Hal Green. There was a determination in his eye, something she has come to admire.
She fell to the ground; hoping and wishing he'd come back.
He was focusing, trying to open the lock. She knew if he failed, they'll both die. Click. "You're so good." She kissed him on the cheek and Luke gave her a smile. It didn't matter that they could be dying at sunset.
She shouldn't even be crying. She's a huntress.
"If you join me," Luke promised, "it can be like old times. The three of us together. Fighting for a better world. Please, Thalia, if you don't agree…"
She hated him. He betrayed her trust.
She lunged for him. Thalia didn't want to kill her old friend, but she doesn't want Luke to hurt anyone. She just wanted her old friend back. Slash after slash. Spear against swords. "Yield! You could never beat me, Luke!"
He kept pressing her. She could tell that he didn't want this anymore than she does… so why doesn't he stop?!
Thalia clenched her fist, refusing to wipe the tears that were falling down her face.
"Is that what you want, Thalia?" Luke sneered. "To go back to Olympus in triumph? To please your dad?"
No I just want our family back. She wanted to yell at him. Her hesitation was all that he needed. He made a grab for her spear and on instinct she pushed him away as he fell down to his 'death'.
Thalia was trembling. She hated Luke. She was doing fine hating him and he had to come back and-
"Thalia?"
She kept her head down. There was no way in Hades that she was going to let anyone see her cry like this.
"It's okay you know. You can cry." It was the stupid son of Hades again.
"Shut up."
"I cried plenty when Bianca died." Nico supplied.
"Cause you are a little kid."
"I'm fit to be your grandfather."
"Shut up." She said again trying to regain whatever dignity she had left after a kid had seen her cry.
The son of Hades shuffled his feet, "So did Luke-"
"Why did you even bring him back?!" Thalia screamed at him.
The kid backed away, a hint of fear in his face. "I-I just thought-"
"Well you thought wrong!"
"I know what it's like to not be able to say goodbye." Nico said solemnly. "My sister died before I even had a chance to say anything to her."
Thalia glared at the ground.
"I heard stories that you guys used to be close. Bianca and I used to be like that. She was all I had and I was all she had. We were there for each other you know? I heard that you and Luke were like that. I understand that he got misleaded-
"Corrupted, evil-"
The son of Hades shot her a look that made her shut up, "You guys were close. He was your best friend and you didn't get to say goodbye to him. Plus it didn't help that he was egging me to see you one last time before he gets reborned so I thought…"
"I didn't want to see him."
"You did." Nico affirmed. "I hated Bianca for leaving me, but there's so much unfinished things. Things I never got to tell my sister before she went to rebirth. I don't want the same thing to happen to you and Luke. So I did it. You can either choose to thank me or hate me. I don't care. It's not like I'm going to be seeing you anyways."
"Bummer. I wanted to see you everyday." She mumbled.
If Nico had understood her sarcasm, he didn't comment on it. "Luke said he left something for you. I had to take it before the Stolls could grab it." Nico threw her a book. She recognized it almost immediately. "Later." WIth that said the son of Hades melted into the shadow of the nearest tree.
She stared at the book. Or maybe diary is a more appropriate wording. "The Diary of Luke Castellan"
"You're not a monster!" He laughed as he put down his sword. "Oh man, your face. So what brings you out here?"
Thalia raised an eyebrow. He can see the monsters? So… is he like her? "Trying to survive obviously."
The boy with blue eyes grinned at her. "Luke Castellan." He was probably around her age, give or take a year. "I'm a runaway."
She hesitated, planning to give him her fake name, but quickly decided against it. "Thalia Grace. I'm a runaway too."
The boy- Luke- grinned. "We're practically best friends already."
Thalia just stared at the boy. She have seen so many people left her and she knew that he'll be the same, "We're not best friend. We're acquaintances. One day, you are going to leave and I'm just going to forget you."
Luke grabbed her spear and handed it to her, "I beg to differ. I'm kind of hard to forget."
She grabbed her spear. "What makes you say that?"
He grinned, "I can tell that we are going to get along well. Come on Thalia Grace. We runaways have to stick together. I have your back and you have mine."
Thalia hesitated. Was she really going to trust this lunatic?
He started walking but quickly turned around, a mischievous grin on his face, "I promise I won't ever leave you if you become my friend and I promise that you will never forget me."
Fine. She'll spend a couple days with him. Steal his food and go on from there.
She stared at the shroud of the Son of Hermes that was burning in the distance. She stayed by her tree just staring, wondering how many times he had sat at her tree after she had 'died'. The diary was still in her hand but she kept the closed.
She'll read it. Soon.
"You know what I want?" Luke asked Thalia as they laid down in the grass after fighting off a hellhound.
"What?" She asked him. It's been almost a year since they have been traveling together and true to his word, they became the closest of friends.
"To be remembered. My dad forgot about me. My mom's a lunatic." He let out a weak laugh. "I just want someone to remember me when I die. I don't want to be forgotten. I don't want to just die without ever being recognized as me."
He looked over at her as if he expected her to say something deep, but she was Thalia. "That's stupid. I would rather be alive forever."
"You mean immortal?"
She shrugged, "Yeah." She said after a while. "Something like that."
"What's the point of being immortal if no one remembers you?" Luke asked her.
"Does it matter?" She questioned him. "I'm alive. That's all it matters."
"Hmm." He sat up. "Maybe…" He trailed off. "But we're demigods, we're going to die. So I want to be remembered. Physically I will die, but at least I'll be alive. People will remember me." Luke said earnestly. "You'll remember me though right?"
"Yes. I promise that I'll always remember the annoying boy named Luke Castellan until the very day of my last breath." She grumbled. "Now can we please think of the next place to travel to? We're running short on food."
Thalia laughed quietly to herself. She's immortal and he's dead.
Maybe it's the alternative…
Maybe he's the one that's immortalized and she's the one that's truly dead.
She opened the diary.
My name is Luke.
So What do you guys think? Trying to get back with this thing. Tell me how you guys like this one?
I've always sorta felt like Thalia and Luke story was never complete so...
AAZ