This story takes place right after The Blood of Olympus; after Percy and Annabeth graduate high school. They're now freshmen in college.
Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians, the Heroes of Olympus, or any of its characters.
I picked up a pencil and sharpened it once. Twice. Watched as my arm moved on its own, dragging the lead across the length of a crisp sheet of paper. I sighed, willing a formula, any formula, to come to mind. I'd been sitting at the small wooden desk in my cozy little dorm for what felt like days. Well, cozy most of the time- sometimes it was a bit suffocating, and I found myself just the teensiest bit claustrophobic. Those were the days that I had to get out of the building to clear my head, Percy holding my hand and making stupid jokes by my side.
"Are you okay? You've been sighing every two minutes." I turned my head towards the voice and saw a curious, slightly amused Percy. His black hair was messy, as always, and his eyes were bright green. Like seaweed, or emeralds. The tiniest smirk played on his lips, and I could tell he was trying not to burst out laughing.
"I'm fine, I know how to do this," I said with as much confidence I could muster. I shifted in my seat uncomfortably; I hated struggling. Especially when it came to academics. I was the daughter of Athena, for Gods' sake. Knowing a lot is my thing, just how water is Percy's thing and flying is Jason's thing. Demigods all have their things, and I was terrified that my 'thing' was slowly fading away. Was I somehow incompetent? Was ADHD finally catching up to me after all these years? Maybe… dyslexia? It was a possibility; a possibility I didn't want to ponder. I didn't like it. At all.
"You've been sitting at that desk for hours, Wise Girl. Come sit by me." He sat up on my bed, holding an arm out for me. I hesitated for a split second, then shook my head.
"The 'wise' in Wise Girl will disappear if I can't get this concept. And I don't think I'll particularly like being called 'girl', but thanks anyway," I tried to tease back lightly, but my voice broke. Anxiety washed over me like a wave of dark seawater, and I found myself spluttering and gasping for air. Begging for oxygen, so desperate to simply understand how to do this assignment.
"You'll always be my Wise Girl." With that, he walked right over to my desk. He sat down on the floor next to the spinny chair I was in and grabbed my hand, kissing my knuckles. I let out an exasperated sigh and sat down next to him, leaning on him.
"It's just so… Infuriating. How humans can get this stuff, but I can't. I'm a demigod, firstly. Secondly, I'm the daughter of Athena. If she were to see me now, I'm sure she'd be disappointed in me." Embarrassment and shame flooded my cheeks, but it felt good to let it all out; to have some kind of release.
"Annabeth, you haven't been to a regular school in years." I averted my gaze, but he tilted my chin up towards him, green eyes burning into mine. "Look, I know it's frustrating, but you have to give yourself a break. You've kind of spent the last few years saving the world."
"I just… I keep thinking that maybe if I try harder, I'll be able to catch up," I said softly, wanting the words so badly to be true. Or come true, at least. He wrapped his arms around me, nuzzling his head into the crook of my neck. Percy was always warm, and I found myself leaning back and relaxing into his embrace. His arms were strong and lean with muscle, and he was just so familiar.
"You will, I promise. Just… take it at your own pace, okay? Slowly. Don't overwork yourself." I nodded and shut my eyes, but didn't say anything; knowing that my voice would crack and wobble in my response. Hot tears leaked out of the corners of my eyes as I took a deep breath in, and shuddered as I let the air out.
I felt Percy wipe my tears away, then hand me a soft tissue. I offered him a tiny smile, despite the flood of water running down my face. I was grateful for the kind gesture, for his embrace, for him.
He held me tighter, and we sat there on the floor. Just the two of us, exactly how I liked it. Through the corner of my eye, I stared at the now crumpled assignment on the desk above me, taunting me. But instead of letting it bother me, instead of letting it grab onto my heart and squeeze until there was nothing left, I shifted on Percy's lap so that it would be out of my peripheral vision. Out of sight, out of mind.
I woke up in the middle of the night in Percy's arms; he must've carried me to my bed. Ever so quietly, I snuck out of my dorm and into the dimly lit hallway. It was completely silent; not the type of silence where you can hear white noise, but the type of silence where it's almost uncannily quiet. It felt as if not a single soul in the world was awake- except for me, of course.
Leaning against a wall, I slid down to the ground. The carpet was rough, probably from all of the stains and spills over the years. I was spending an awful lot of time on the ground these days, and I wasn't quite sure how I felt about that.
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying not to think about anything else. Trying so very hard not to imagine Athena shaking her head, too ashamed to even look at me. I doubled over in agony at the thought. My insides twisted and untwisted, like a series of endless spasms; each one more agonizing than the previous one.
But then everything stopped, and my eyes popped open.
When was the last time I had talked to Athena? Scratch that- when was the last time Percy or I had had any contact with any Greek god or goddess? Brow furrowed, I leapt to my feet, dizzy as the blood rushed to my head.
"I know it sounds absurd, but just think about it," I pleaded in what I hoped was a persuasive tone. Percy squinted at the ground, trying to process what I'd just said. I knew he didn't want to believe me. Gods, even I didn't want to believe me. But his facial features slowly relaxed as he began to absorb my words.
"Yeah, it does sound absurd…" He started, then paused.
"But..?" I asked tentatively.
"But," he continued. "You may be onto something." I nodded once, then collapsed onto the bed in relief. I might be losing my 'wisdom', but at least I wouldn't be sent to a mental institution.
"I haven't spoken or had any contact with anyone in Olympus in the past few months." I turned to look into his green eyes, but they were covered in a cloudy, almost glassy film as he stared at the wall. I crumpled, hating seeing him like this. So defeated. So lost.
I retied my blonde curls, away from my face, and grabbed his hand, gently squeezing once. He whipped around to face me, startling me for a moment. As soon as he saw me, his tense countenance melted away. He smiled that beautiful smile of his, and I scooted closer to him.
"We'll get in touch with the rest of the seven, as well as Nico and Reyna, of course," I gave him a wobbly smile and brushed his unruly hair back from his forehead. It seemed to work. He took in a deep breath, let it out, then nodded. He kept nodding, as if trying to fix all of our problems.
We'd do that tomorrow. I dreaded the next day; I dreaded the worry, the confusion, and the knots in my stomach. But for now, I held his hand, comforting him just as he had comforted me.
Whatever happened tomorrow, we were here today. Plus, we'd be reunited with our friends; something good had to come out from that, didn't it?
Author's Note:
Welcome to my new PJO/HOO story! I'm so glad that you took the time to read this!
A brief plan for how I'd like this story to turn out: there will be altering perspectives (all characters, not only Percabeth), there'll be a HUGE, super exciting adventure, there will be lots of banter and sarcasm, there'll be around ten-ish chapters (if not more!), and we'll all have a grand time.
The reason why I wanted to start this story was because the last one was something I'd written nearly two years ago, I think (as you can obviously tell, math is not my strongest suit). I just didn't feel comfortable with jumping right in with something so old, and I just felt that my previous PJO/HOO story was waaaaay too drawn out.
This first chapter was just an introduction chapter; mainly Percabeth with a few introductory details for the plot and such. Sorry if it was boring, but I had to; I needed an anchor so that my boat wouldn't just sail away (I don't know if you got that, but what I meant was I don't want to write and write and write nonstop. I want to create meaningful, good content).
Thank you for reading, and please review! :)
BookishQueen, out.
Leo: LeoKing, in.
Annabeth: Can we just have one chapter? Not even two, just one?
Percy: *sighs, but doesn't bother trying to argue*
Leo: No way! Plus, who wants to read a boring old chapter about the two of you in college. I mean, it's sweet and all, but it's still not Leo Valdez, if yanno what I mean.
Annabeth: I know what you mean, but I'm not amused.
Leo: You sure? 'Cause I don't think so. I'm about to show you what being Leo really means.
Percy: *groans* Not this again- he's been practicing this for the past- what? Three months?
Leo: Two! And here we go! *clears throat* Yo, it's Leo, your man! Cooler and fresher than your rich neighbor's garbage can! You can't stop me, no one can stop me at all; I'm the bestest in the world and super spiffy at ball!
Annabeth: Bestest isn't a-
Percy: *interrupts* Yeah, I think he knows that, Wise Girl.
Leo: Lively Leo! Back at it again with the cool rhymes!
Annabeth: How about Less-Rhyming Leo?
Percy: *bursts out laughing*