I do not own Percy Jackson. That honour belongs to Rick Riordan.
Not 100% with this, but what can you do?
So Damn Forgiving
They'd never fought before.
Alright, that was a lie. As far as couples went, Annabeth and Percy argued just as much as they made out. They were never serious arguments; missed IM's and clingy girls, spars and Capture the Flag outcomes and nothing more. Not until today.
It had started out innocently enough. The Argo II had just survived an attack from some airborne monster or another as they made their way to Mount Olympus from Camp half-Blood and everyone was tired and injured and a little on edge. Jason had suffered a minor blow to the head and was lying unconscious in the med bay with a worried Piper by his side, nursing a cut on her arm. Frank had tired himself out changing into a griffin to battle the monster from air, and was fast asleep, muttering something indiscernible under his breath. Hazel was flitting between looking after Nico who had sustained not only a concussion but a broken wrist and trying to calm down Coach Hedge who was Hades-bent on trying to attract any nearby monster with shouts and insults, banging his baseball bat against the wall to prove his point. Leo had resolutely ignored the damage to his leg, 'It's just a sprain, I'm fine,' and had headed down to the engine room to check damages. While Annabeth and Percy were both injured, they had forgone resting like everyone else. They were busy in the far corner of the med bay, downing Nectar and Ambrosia while having a heated argument under their breath. It had started that way at least. After their adventure through Tartarus they had become extremely protective of each other. Annabeth could not- would not let Percy out of her sight for more than half an hour, and Percy hated it when Annabeth did anything remotely dangerous; he had attained the habit of resolutely keeping her out of harm's way no matter the cost. It wasn't ideal given their situation- no-one knew why Percy was hovering around her like that, knowing how capable she was in a fight. The pair had not divulged what had happened; no-one had asked, but everyone could see Annabeth was getting slightly annoyed. Their current argument proved it.
During one of her strategic plans, Annabeth had climbed the mast as it groaned and creaked from the large crack reaching up the side, and had leapt off onto the monster in question. There was a blind moment of panic on board the Argo II as the rest of the crew realised what she had done. Jason and Frank had immediately flown towards her but one of the monsters claws swiped at them, knocking them both to the deck. Jason had suffered his head injury; Frank had crashed into Nico and both remained in a small pile on the opposite side of the ship. Annabeth stabbed the monster at the nape of its neck before she got thrown overboard. Percy had jumped in immediately after her as Piper and Hazel finished off the monster. There was an agonizing ten minutes where Percy and Annabeth were missing, and Frank, despite his weariness had changed into a giant eagle and had flown over the side to retrieve them. Frank finally flew back over the railings, Percy on his back, clutching an unconscious Annabeth in his arms. Leo had landed the Argo in the ocean, set the sensors on high alert just in case and they had all headed down into the lower levels to rest and recuperate.
Piper sat diligently by Jason's side as he slept off his head injury; it wasn't too bad. He seemed to have an affinity to getting whacked on the head; it had happened several times during their quest already and he seemed to have a quicker recovery time after each incident. She was worried of course, but not as worried about the storm occurring on the other side of the room. Piper wouldn't say she was like any other child of Aphrodite; she hated fashion and skirts and frills and pink unlike her sisters, and she did her damn best to keep her hair as uneven and messy as possible to keep people from noticing her looks. She wasn't the most romantic person in the world, but she had a very particular sense about love that she couldn't seem to shake. It was like her 'spider sense.' She knew love; could see it just by looking at a couple and her heart seemed to melt when she saw the depth that others did not. There was no question in her mind that Percy and Annabeth loved each other unequivocally. Just being in the same room as them gave her an unbelievable sense of raw, pure love she almost couldn't stand it. It was this sense that was making her eavesdrop- or rather try to eavesdrop- on their current argument.
'For the last time Percy I'm fine.' Annabeth was stubbornly sitting on the edge of one of the beds, fighting Percy's attempt to get her to lie down. Percy was standing next to her, Ambrosia half eaten in his hand. He had a frown on his face, eyes a mix of anger, exasperation and concern. When he spoke, his voice was shaking.
'You fell over 1000ft Annabeth,' he said. 'You're lucky I caught you before you hit the water.'
'Well I had to do something,' hissed Annabeth. 'No-one else was having any luck defeating that monster. I did what I had to do.'
'You didn't have to do anything,' countered Percy, turning his body to face her. From her position, Piper didn't have a clear view of either but she could see the stiffness in Percy;s shoulder; she caught the defiant look in Annabeths eye and she averted her own as their whispers got slightly louder. The door opened and Hazel came through, looking thoroughly exhausted. She glanced at Percy and Annabeth who did not stop their fight, and sat next to Piper, shifting the bandages she had on her arm.
'Is he alright?' she asked quietly, and Piper only nodded, casting her gaze back onto the eldest in the group. Hazel sighed. 'They're still fighting?'
'What are you talking about?' Percy suddenly asked loudly, his voice tinted in anger.
'I'm talking about this constant bubble you seem to have placed around me,' Annabeth replied, not as loud but just as angrily. 'I'm not a doll Percy I'm not going to break.'
'I've seen you broken Annabeth, I'm not going to let it happen again.'
'Well if it does you can't stop it. Gods Percy this is a war we're going into. You can't hover around me every step anymore. I've barely been able to lift a finger since we got out of…you know. I can handle myself fine, so just stop it.'
'Hover around you? Say's the person who won't let me out of her sight.'
'That is completely different and you know it. I do that for reassurance-'
'And you don't think that's why I'm so concerned for your safety?'
Piper could see Frank stirring from the bunk next to Jason's. She couldn't hear Coach Hedge banging around above deck anymore; even the clangs and bashes from Leo in the engine room had seemed to still.
'This isn't about your reassurance Percy. 'Your being over-protective of my well-being and it was sweet at first but I'm not a helpless little child. You need to see past your hero-complex and just let me do what I need to do to-'
'You think I have a hero complex?' Percy sounded dangerous when he spoke those words. Piper felt a little chill run down her spine but Annabeth seemed unaffected.
'You'd risk the world to save a friend,' she said, her eyes dark and cold. 'You do everything you can to make sure that you save everyone you care about and that's not the logical thing to do in times like this. You can't be selfish in what you do; you have to let whatever happens happen and move on. You can't keep wasting your time-'
The whole room jumped as Percy's fist collided with the bed frame. 'I care Annabeth,' he said, his voice low. 'I'm not cold like you.'
Piper cursed under her breath at that comment. She knew- probably better than anyone except Percy- how much Annabeth hated being referred to as 'cold.' She still remembered what Annabeth had done to the poor Ares kid who had called her that during the time Percy was missing. He still walked with a limp.
If Annabeth was angry before, she was livid now. Her eyes went like steel and she tensed her entire body, poised for attack. 'You think I'm cold?' she asked.
'You can be.'
There was another tense silence before Annabeth slipped off the bed and pushed past Percy, wobbling slightly as she righted herself. 'Think twice before protecting me again or I'll stab you myself,' she said as she walked towards the door.
'I will if you can stop checking up on me,' Percy called after her as the door slammed shut. There was a pause as Percy sighed angrily, and he glanced at the remaining occupants in the room. Piper didn't bother averting her gaze like everyone else. Percy wasn't stupid; he knew they were listening. 'Don't bother,' he said as Piper opened her mouth to speak. She watched him walk out, the door closing silently this time, before glancing warily at Hazel. This was going to be a long trip.
It was late. Or early if you wanted to be politically correct. Annabeth and Percy had managed to spend the rest of the day avoiding each other, both in a foul mood with anyone who dared speak to them. It was two in the morning, and Annabeth was curled up on the bed in her room, trembling from the nightmare she had just had. The small night light was doing nothing to ease her mind and even though there was heating through the ship, she felt cold. She closed her eyes, and tried to keep her breathing steady as the last dregs of mind-numbing claustrophobia eased out of her body, leaving her with a heart-clenching fear and in desperate need for comfort. She couldn't sleep now; even as her breathing evened out she could still see the images that plagued her dreams that night and as a flash of red crossed her vision she shook back tears and flicked the main light on in the room. It did nothing to ease her mind; she needed Percy.
Removing the blanket tangled around her legs she slipped off of her bed and made her way slowly to the door. The automatic lights in the hallway flickered on as her door opened and she wrapped her arms around her body as she walked the ten metres to Percy's bedroom door. Voices and screams seemed to follow her as she stood outside his door, her hand on the door handle. She steeled herself and opened the door, cringing as it creaked slightly. She could see the dim glow in the corner of Percy's room, dolphins and starfish dancing in a small circle on his wall from his own –rather childish- nightlight. He was asleep against the wall, blanket around his legs, and one arm over his eyes. Seeing him lying there, at peace, made her heart clench tightly and she found herself moving forward on her own accord until she was standing next to the bed. The voices wouldn't leave her alone, and her body seemed to ache for his touch. She didn't want to wake him; she knew that if he hadn't woken from a bad dream before now that he would sleep through until dawn. It was rare for either of them to get more than five hours continuous rest a night and she wouldn't deprive him. But they were nearly in Greece and Annabeth needed all the rest she could get, and there was only one way she would be able to get back to sleep tonight. Going slowly, she peeled back the blanket from the bed and eased herself onto the mattress. She slid her legs under the cold material and curled herself as close to the edge of the bed she could get, pulling the material over her shoulders. It was awkward to say the least, considering the massive argument they had had earlier, but despite that she could feel herself relaxing by just being near him.
She jumped as something skimmed her hip; she recognised it quickly as Percy's hand and let out a shaky breath as it curled protectively around her waist. He pulled her closer, shifting so his body was flush against hers. He tangled their legs together, his arm tightening around her waist as he nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck.
'Hey,' he mumbled sleepily, the fingers on her waist tickling her skin lightly.
'Hey,' she replied softly. Percy hummed, pressing himself even closer to her trembling form. Annabeth felt like crying; not because of the nightmares, no. Because of Percy and his damn ability to make her feel safe. She took a deep breath to hold back the tears and moved one of hands to rest over his. 'I'm sorry,' she whispered. 'I didn't mean to-'
'No.' Percy shook his head against her neck, his lips grazing the skin beneath her ear. Annabeth closed her eyes as a pleasant shiver ran down her spine. She knew Percy had felt it because he chuckled slightly and pressed a kiss against the same spot. 'No apologies,' he continued. 'That's in the past, we're not thinking about it anymore.'
He confused her sometimes. She could never understand how he could be so forgiving. 'Why?'
'Because I love you.'
