The night before camp ends, they go down to the beach. It's surprisingly lukewarm for August, and there's a thick bunch of greyish clouds overhead. The stars peeking through them are bright, though, and Percy can easily pick out the Huntress on the horizon. He's curled around Annabeth, chest-to-back, because she forgot to bring her jacket and there's a brisk wind picking up from somewhere off the ocean- or that's the excuse, anyways. But since the Battle of Manhattan, Percy has been touching Annabeth as much as possible, a reminder of what he did it all for and that she's here, she's fine, she saved me, she's here.
"Virgo," Annabeth murmurs. Her hand is resting on Percy's thigh and he can feel it, burning, through his jeans.
"What?"
"It's a constellation, Seaweed Brain." The hand is tracing a pattern now. "The second biggest one. Your birthday constellation."
"Like the zodiac, right? Isn't that, like, Chinese?" Percy asks.
Annabeth huffs. "Not the point, Percy." She's holding an adjustable star map in one hand and a red-light flashlight is tucked behind her ear. "It's supposed to be in the north tonight, but I can't find it. The clouds must be covering Spica."
"What's it represent?"
"What?" Annabeth replies, adjusting the star map.
"Every constellation has a story, so what's this one's?" Percy can smell the mint in Annabeth's shampoo every time the wind pushes her curls into his face, and its intoxicating. He's sleepy and content after the food and energy at the end-of-camp-slash-we-saved-the-world party, and would like nothing more than to go sleep in the Poseidon cabin for the last time of the summer- but when Annabeth asked him to go stargazing with her, because she's going back to the city and you can't see these in the city, Percy, he agreed.
"It's Demeter, or at least according to her it is. But there's a story that it's actually this girl, Erigone, who killed herself after her dad Icarius was murdered by these drunken shepards. Mr. d liked her and her dad enough that he put them up in the stars."
In response, Percy yawns in her ear. Annabeth slaps his leg. "Gods, Percy, at least cover your mouth or something. That's gross."
"You fight disgusting Greek monsters, like, every summer and you're calling this gross?" Percy laughs, then yawns again. He tries, at least, to cover it by burying his face in Annabeth's camp shirt.
Annabeth is quiet, and Percy can feel the faraway voices of the campers and the rush of the ocean and the beating of their own two hearts wash over his ears like a lullaby. A wave licks his toe.
"When I die, I want to be a constellation," she says suddenly.
"...Don't say stuff like that," Percy mutters. His arms clench around her subtly. He can feel the cold wind through his camp jacket now, and the flashlight putters behind Annabeth's ear before shining brightly again.
"What's the point of Elysium, anyways?" Annabeth's voice is filled with passion and the star map lies beside her on the sand. "An eternal party sounds nice for a while, but then what? Besides, no one gets into Elysium. You just end up stuck in the Fields of Asphodel for forever. No judgement for a constellation, really- a god just has to like you. Keep on the side of the gods and you get to be up in the sky, something beautiful forever. Elysium is just..." She trails off. "It's impossible."
"Beckendorf got into Elysium," Percy remembers. "Nico told me. He said he was waiting for someone." His heart sinks as he thinks of a silver axe and blue eyes.
"Beckendorf deserved Elysium." Annabeth fists her hand in the loose denim of Percy's pants, and they fall into quiet again.
After five minutes, Percy, half-drifting off, mumbles something into Annabeth's hair.
"What did you say?" Annabeth asks quietly. When he grumbles again, she pinches the inside of his calf.
"Ow."
"You've got an invincible body, you can handle it. What did you say?"
He sighs into her shoulder, and then yawns out, "I said, 'I'd like to see you there.'" Embarrassed by her silence at his admission, he blabbers on, "It's not like you're gonna end up in like, the Fields of Asphodel or anything- at least not after we've just been through."
Annabeth shifts and stands, and Percy thinks she's mad and she's leaving and that he was so comfortable, ugh- but Annabeth just turns around and sits down again so she's facing him. She loosely wraps her legs around his waist, and Percy feels her bare calf brush his mortal spot and thinks 'oh'. Automatically, he curls his legs in so she's cupped by his body. The flashlight falls into the sand next to them, sending a red glow across the slowly encroaching waves.
Then, she kisses him. She tastes like diet coke and that lip balm with SP 15 in it they sell at the camp store. It's a short, meaningful kiss, and afterwards she holds his face between her callused palms and tells him solemnly, "You're such a doofus, Seaweed Brain", and he grins sleepily at her and agrees.
A jogger finds them the next day curled around each other. Annabeth's hair is a crazy mess and her shorts have sand encrusted on them. Still, she looks peaceful. Percy's holding her to his chest, his jacket tangled around her legs for warmth. The high tide that night left black-beige rivulets in the sand around their bodies, but they are completely dry. A faded blue star map is pressed between them.
The jogger stops for a minute and smiles at them. Se thinks, snaps, and the couple is covered with a bright orange Camp Half-Blood blanket commemorating the summer chariot races of 1994. He looks a bit more, sighs deeply, wistfully, and continues his way down the beach. over the buzz of the man's cell and the rush of the ocean waves, an owl hoots in the distance.
AAAHAHAA um okAY. Well I have multiple, extreme feelings about this work and the PJATO series in general (on MoA right now, yeaaa). I actually really like this story and read it multiple times- Riordan, why can't you give us cute, quiet Percabeth stories in those guide books you're always releasing? Yes, yes, anyways all astronomical knowledge is either me BS'ing, my personal, limited experience, and Wikipedia, that saving grace. I'm pretty sure I wrote this after finishing the first series, hence the post-TLO setting.
A few more notes: the song for this fic is Sweater Weather by the Neighborhood. I wrote Beckendorf's name as Bergendorf in earlier versions of the story. It seems like Percy and Annabeth had sex and fell asleep on the beach (sex hair!), but they didn't- if anything, they just made out a bit until Annabeth realized Percy was asleep and was like, "?/?". Dedicated to all those lovely artists in this fandom (viria! burdge!) who make people really sad and also really happy. Thanks to everyone reading, following, etc., and if it "floats your boat" (puns are a requirement in relation to this series) please review/like! Okay, this is like longer than the story now so bye. C: