Heyo, PJO Fandom. It's been a while! Here's a little Percabeth oneshot to warm your heart. And yes, it's based on a Taylor Swift song.
Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson & the Olympians, nor do I own The Heroes of Olympus. Both belong to the author Rick Riordan. I also don't own State of Grace by Taylor Swift. The blond herself owns that.
Title: State of Grace.
Summary: "What's your Achilles heel?" Annabeth asked, cocking her head towards him. "I don't know." Percy lied. Truth be told, he knew all too well. His Achilles heel was sitting right next to him, her blond hair tickling his shoulders. [In which Percy realizes who his Achilles heel is and panics. AU. Oneshot. Percabeth.]
Songs Used: Basically the whole Red album by Taylor Swift, but it's heavily inspired by State of Grace.
WARNING: This fanfic is most definitely AU (Alternate Universe), so be prepared. Percy and the demigods are all normal, no superpowers.
state of grace.
by Everyone's a Mortal.
"This is a state of grace.
This is the worthwhile fight.
Love is a ruthless game, unless you play it good and right."
~Taylor Swift, State of Grace.
Percy Jackson was fed up.
His head hurt, his knuckles were red, and he could have sworn that the donuts he'd had for breakfast had just tried to crawl their way back up.
Needless to say, he hated karate.
So why was he in it? Well, the answer was fairly simple: Grover's parents and Percy's mom had decided the two needed some 'professional training' in the 'art of defending oneself'. Frankly, Percy thought it was dumb, but since Grover really did need help against the bullies, he'd complied. That's how sixteen-year-old Percy Jackson and his best friend, Grover Underwood, ended up at a small dojo with no air conditioning on a musty Manhatten evening.
Their teacher's name was Master Chiron, and the man was tougher than a 500 pound PE teacher who'd just gotten divorced. Chiron was a pretty nice guy after karate was over, but during their lesson he was a totally different person. His best black belt, Annabeth Chase, stood at his side at all times.
Annabeth Chase was a total knockout. If it wasn't for the fact that she had a black belt in karate, Tai Kwon Do, Jujitsu, and kung fu, Percy would probably have tried talking to her by now. It didn't surprise Percy when Connor Stoll, a mischievous but otherwise handsome fellow, had informed him that she was taken by Luke Castellan, who was away at college for his freshman year. With Annabeth's blond hair, curled like a princess', and long, lean legs, Percy couldn't help being slightly jealous.
All these thoughts evaporated, though, as soon as he was pushed -against his will, mind you- into the ring.
His opponent?
Annabeth Chase herself. As soon as Chiron yelled, "Fight!" She landed a backfist that hit him square in the face. If it hadn't been for the face shield protecting him, Percy's nose would have been history.
"Ouch." He mumbled, and tried to counter, clumsily moving around. Annabeth's eyes focussed on him, assessed her next target, and struck, quick as lightning. A sharp round house kick to the side of his face almost sent him to the ground, but he managed to keep his balance.
It was then that Percy noticed Annabeth's arrogant smirk. She looked around the room and winked at her friend Thalia, who had been visiting from her all-girls college. In that moment, Percy stepped up and punched Annabeth's ribs, hoping she wouldn't murder him too brutally. Annabeth recoiled and looked at him, surprised. The time ran out, and Chiron stopped the fight. "Good fight, Jackson." Annabeth said, looking at him peculiarly. He nodded and smiled, turning away to see half the school gaping at him.
"Nice," Charles Beckendorf commented as he walked passed.
The rest of the evening passed quietly, with no more shocking incidents. Annabeth and Grover (who apparently went to the same high school until Annabeth was transferred), were talking quietly when Thalia Grace strode up to Percy. "Hey," she said bluntly.
Thalia was Percy's cousin. It really was a small world, it seemed. The two, however, looked nothing alike. Percy was tall and lean, with a tan, while Thalia was short and pale. Their personality was their only similarity. "What's up?" Percy asked.
"You got Annabeth good, y'know."
"She got me better. I still have a long way to go."
Thalia popped her gum, "Didn't say you didn't, coz. You know, I think you two would be good friends."
Percy snorted, "Yeah, right. We'd probably spend the entire time arguing."
"Funny," Thalia responded, looking at him with a half-smile, "That's what she said."
Percy's mouth dropped slightly.
"Think about it, coz." Thalia said, detaching herself from the wall and holding out her hand for a first bump. When Percy obliged, she looked him in the eye. "She needs friends. So do you."
Thalia walked away.
...
"Thalia's right." Grover stated, bluntly. "You two would get along."
Percy groaned and flopped on his bed, listening to his mom cooking in the kitchen. Grover's family was visiting -his parents and his two foster siblings, Nico and Bianca di Angelo- so the sounds of the kitchen were especially noisy. "We'd argue a lot." He could hear Tyson, Percy's little brother, playing with Nico. It sounded like the Wii was on.
Grover shrugged. "Don't tell me you don't want to talk to the girl. It's not like she's ugly."
"Grover," Percy said, "she has a boyfriend."
Grover's mouth spread into a thin line. Percy knew that face. It was the face he made when he was hiding something. "What is it?" The green-eyes boy asked, "What do you know?"
"Annabeth said that she and Luke were fighting." Grover burst out, and then clasped a hand over his mouth quickly. His red curls spilled over his face and he looked embarrassed. "Don't tell her I told you."
"I won't." Percy promised. "Besides, it's not like I even have a chance with someone like her. It's not worthwhile."
"Maybe." Grover said. He looked like he was about to say something else, but instead shook his head. "Maybe."
Sally Jackson called them for dinner, and that night, six plates were set instead of two.
Percy liked those days.
...
He was on his way home from school when he heard her.
Grover had gone to work (he worked at Subway), and Percy had stopped by the library to see if he could find some books on the Greek gods. He was doing a report on Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. His father had been a fisherman, before he had died from pneumonia. He heard her all the way to the back where all the boring nonfiction books were kept, where no one ever bothered to look. As much as books killed Percy (he was dyslexic), he was forever grateful for that evening.
Her hair was a curled, tangled mess. The blond was strung everywhere, gray eyes darker than the Hudson river and so much stormier. When she looked up at him, she looked small and defeated, slumped against the corner of the library, clutching a book that read Achilles. Percy's own books were clutched to his chest. "Annabeth?" He asked, and walked over to her, collapsing next to her. "Are you okay? What's wrong?" The bigger part of him wanted to help her, because Percy could not stand to see anyone cry.
The other part wanted to run away.
Luckily, the caring part won out and he peered at her, hoping she wouldn't kill him. "Nothing," Annabeth muttered. "Go away."
"It doesn't seem like nothing."
"I said go away, you, you... Seaweed Brain!" She whispered harshly, and then sighed heavily, leaning against Percy's shoulder. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it. It's just... I read the cover of your book and... it was the first insult I could think of... please forgive me." Her voice was a sorrowful murmur. Percy chuckled, forgetting that he had just been insulted.
"It's okay, don't worry about it. It's not the first time I've been insulted, Annabeth."
"What do you mean?"
Percy let out a breath. "I wasn't always this good looking, y'know." He waited for a response, and when he felt a light punch, he smiled. "Plus, I have ADHD. And dyslexia. And my best friend is scrawny. My little brother has down syndrome. My dad's dead. My mom's a single mother who'd recently gotten out of an abusive relationship. There's a lot on me, Annabeth. I'm used to insults. I don't mind. Just don't make fun of my friends."
Annabeth was silent for a moment. "I'd never," she finally said. There was another moment of silence before she whispered, "My boyfriend and I broke up. He left me for sex. He left me because I wouldn't give him sex."
Percy felt his anger rising as Annabeth choked on her word. Here was a girl he barely knew, and he was getting angry at some guy he'd never met. The boy refrained from calling Annabeth's ex boyfriend some very unflattering names. Instead, he settled with, "He doesn't deserve you, then. If he had any brains, he'd know what he was missing. Sex is overrated, anyway."
Annabeth lifted her head off his chest, "You're saying you wouldn't have sex?" She asked, surprised.
Percy shook his head, brushing the hair out of his eyes. "I'm saying that if I were him, I'd know that you are absolutely worth the wait. Besides," he said, absentmindedly thumbing at his Greek mythology book, "Sex is better when you're in love."
Annabeth laughed a little, wiping away her tears. "You're smarter-"
"-Than I look?" Percy interrupted, "Yeah. I, um, get that a lot."
The blond looked up at the racks of books. "I know he doesn't deserve me, but it still hurts."
Percy hugged her briefly, a million thoughts running through his mind, including: since when are you so good at comfort? And, you don't even know her that well. Why haven't you started arguing yet?
"Well, yeah. You did love him." Percy said. He got up and helped Annabeth to her feet. "Now," Percy grinned, "Wanna check out Poseidon with me?"
Annabeth's nose wrinkled, but her eyes glowed slightly. "I prefer Athena, but okay."
"Athena? I don't like her."
Luke was forgotten for the rest of the evening, and a debate began about which god was better.
It was the first time in a long time the either one of them had felt at home.
...
The weeks turned into months and the months became almost a year. The fourth of July was coming up, and while Percy's mythology report had long been turned in (with Annabeth's help, he'd gotten an A minus), the Greek gods were still a big topic for Percy and Annabeth. When there was nothing else to talk about, they'd bring up the topic of how Zeus really had trouble keeping his pants on.
By now Percy was almost a black belt (he was two belts away), and he had another best friend. Often times, Annabeth, Grover and he hung out. When Thalia was around, it turned into a party of four. But most days than not, when Grover was busy and Thalia was off at her girls school, it was Annabeth and Percy.
He'd long decided he'd liked her. Even though they did often argue, the moments in which they agreed overpowered the other moments. And with the fourth of July coming up, Percy was trying to work up the courage to invite her to come watch the fireworks with him. At the moment, they were sitting on the roof of Annabeth's apartment building. Annabeth was reading Achilles' story out loud to him. They were sitting on a worn couch that they had long ago carried up there, with a stack of books on a little table. Annabeth's feet were perched on his knee and he reclined lazily, mindlessly trailing patterns on her bare ankle.
When the story ended, they stared out at the city in silence. The heat was stifling, but inside the apartments it was loud and obnoxious. Besides, they had a little fan up here too, and a cooler full of root beer. "What's your Achilles heel?" Annabeth asked, cocking her head at him.
Percy sighed, scratching his head. "I dunno."
Annabeth repositioned herself so that she was almost leaning on Percy. "Of course you do." Annabeth stated. "Think about it."
So he did. His mind went back to all the times he'd defend his little brother from bullies, or his mother from Gabe, her ex husband, or Grover from flocks of pigeons. But Percy did all that out of loyalty, out of the fact that if he were in trouble, he'd want help too. His mind kept on wandering, to times when he and his friend Rachel had gotten in trouble for spray painting his school's gym floor. But that had been for fun, not for Rachel.
More memories flooded his mind. The time that he'd seen Annabeth in a dress for the first time and his knees had gone weak. All those times she'd beat him up (he'd been starting to let her win. By now, he could beat her. But he loved her smile when she won, and couldn't bear to see it fade). When she talked to other boys, or when boys flirted with her, he remembered how jealous he'd get. Percy would do absolutely anything for her.
It was with startling realization that Percy realized his Achilles heel was sitting right next to him. He became acutely aware about the fact that he was trailing fingers around her thigh. His face burned red and he looked away. "I don't know." He repeated.
Annabeth's face turned stony, smile fading. "Oh. Okay." She said, and scooted away.
His heart sank.
The sun didn't seem as bright anymore.
...
Chiron was away at some senior black belt meeting, so he'd entrusted Annabeth with the key to the dojo. The last class had just ended and Percy, who had been helping Annabeth out with the classes, waved goodbye to Grover. He had promised Annabeth he'd stay and help her lock up. They were sweeping when a guy walked in. His sandy blond hair was cropped short, and a scar trailed along his face. A dull smile swept his face and his eyes seemed hidden. Crooked, almost. Percy recalled the tale of Kronos, Titan lord, and his nickname: the Crooked One.
Behind him, Annabeth dropped her broom. "Luke." She breathed out, and Percy's chest tightened at the realization. He turned to see Annabeth shrinking away slightly. It was rare to see Annabeth recoil, and Percy was immediately on guard. Anything for her, he thought. Whatever it takes for her.
"Hey, Annabeth!" Luke said solemnly. "Look, I know it's been a year and I really don't deserve you, but I want to ask for a second chance. I-"
"Get out." Annabeth said quietly.
Luke's forehead creased. "What?"
"I said get out. Don't come back, ever." The blond girl's voice cracked. "Please."
"Annabeth..." Luke stepped towards her as if to comfort her, but Percy's instincts took over. He stepped in front of the older boy.
"Leave." Percy said, his voice coming out harsher than he had intended. "Now."
Luke rolled his eyes. "Who are you?"
"Percy Jackson, I'm Annabeth's best friend." Percy gritted his teeth.
The blond boy stared at Percy intently. Finally, with an almost sorry shake of his head, he said, "You love her."
Percy's eyes closed. "Get out." He said when he opened them again. "Don't you dare come back. Don't touch her. Ever."
"Since when is this your business?" Luke hissed.
"Since you so obviously scared her!" Percy yelled, "All of New York knows that Annabeth is one of the most able women ever. The fact that your presence scares her makes it my business. Get. Out." Percy said. At that moment, he would have fought Luke Castellan.
However, the college boy got the idea. "Fine. Goodbye." He turned around. "Love you, Annabeth." Luke said.
He left.
When Percy turned around, Annabeth was standing there, limply looking at the area where Luke had stood. "Annabeth-"
"I loved him."
Percy stumbled backwards. His heart broke. "Oh." he said, "Okay."
Annabeth tilted her head at him. "You're so stupid." She sighed.
"What?" Percy looked up at her, his spiked emotions making him more offended than he should have been. "Excuse me? I just defended you,and you're insulting me?"
Annabeth's eyes blazed. "Oh my God, you're so thick headed, I hate it!" Her hands flew up to rub her temples.
"Yeah? Well then you don't have to deal with it! I'm tired of your crap, always insulting me and never, ever being satisfied with me or saying thank you. It's getting annoying!" Percy yelled.
Annabeth yelled right back, "Then leave, you idiots!" She picked up her broom and swept it towards him. Quick as lightning, Percy met her with his own broom. They met each other like that for a long while, their pent up emotions being let loose and hurling frustrated insults at each other. "It's no wonder you like Poseidon. Both your brains are full of water!"
Percy met her thrust hard, and Annabeth's broom flew out of her hand. "It's no wonder you're into Athena. You're both arrogant, short-tempered brats!" Annabeth screamed and round house kicked Percy's stomach. He swept it out of the way and grabbed her by the waist, spinned her around so that he was grabbing her from behind. His initial emotions were dying down, replaced by a dawning of realization: "I loved him." She had said.
Loved.
As in, past tense.
He was caught by surprise as she elbowed his stomach. Before Annabeth could get away, Percy caught her wrist and dragged her towards him, clutching her tight. "I'm sorry." He blurted out, and Annabeth raised a brow.
"What?"
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did." He leaned his forehead on hers. "It's just..." He sighed, and sat down, dragging her towards the ground with him. She collapsed on top of him, a tangle of limbs. "You're my Achilles heel." he said, and waited for a reaction.
Annabeth remembered their talk on her roof, a few weeks ago. "I am?" She asked.
Percy nodded. "You know, I'd do anything for you. I'd hold up the world for you if you asked."
Annabeth stared at him, cheeks slightly pink but daring as ever. She leaned forward. "I love you." She said, and kissed him.
When she pulled away, Percy smiled at her. "I'm in love with you." He responded, and leaned in to kiss her again.
The dojo was left just a little dusty that night.
...
The Fourth of July came, and Annabeth went with Percy. That was their first official date as a couple. They went with Grover and his girlfriend, Juniper. After the fireworks, the two couples went off on their own dates.
Annabeth and Percy settled for a quiet walk before going to a nearby Italian restaurant. "You're better." Annabeth said, breaking the silence. She was staring at their joined hands with a certain fascination, as if their hands together was magic. And maybe it was.
"What do you mean?" Percy asked, genuinely confused.
"I mean that you're better to me and my family than anyone I've ever dated. You're kind. You tell me what's wrong and never give up on anything you start. You're loyal, though I'll admit that sometimes you get in trouble for it. Sure, we argue, but that's okay. You're funny and you're just better. You're so much better than anything I could ask for."
During Annabeth's small speech, Percy had been staring at her. Now, she blushed at his attention. "Annabeth." He said in a slightly sing-song voice. "Look at me, Annabeth."
Begrudgingly, she did.
"I am in love with you, and I don't know how you could love a giant idiot like me, but you do, and I'm so happy because you're so beautiful and way out of my league. Thank you so much for loving me. Don't ever stop." He kissed her, "I'm sorry. I suck at declaring my love. I sound like an awkward platypus."
Annabeth let out a laugh, "Seaweed Brain." She said, and bumped her shoulder against his.
"Wise Girl." He said back.
They kept walking like that, with their joined hands and happy smiles. They kept loving each other, being each other's Achilles heel, and being good, and right. And real.
"There are the hands of fate.
You're my Achilles heel:
This is the golden age of something good, and right, and real."
~Taylor Swift, State of Grace.
Thanks for reading, everyone! Please leave reviews if you'd like more Percabeth.
God bless,
Joss.