Summary: Against All Odds - a one-shot of Percabeth through the years.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything.
He was twelve. And it was just the beginning.
Percy fluttered his eyes open and was surprised to see someone standing next to his bed. She had golden hair curled like that of a princess', knowing grey eyes and a gritty expression on her face.
She was unusual.
She was annoying.
No, she was exasperating.
She was Annabeth Chase.
And she was beautiful.
He was fourteen. And dam, he thought it was the end!
She looked awful after their encounter with Atlas. There they were, safe in the hall of Mount Olympus. He knew Lady Artemis would ask her to be part of the Hunters. He couldn't have given a single dam about it.
Yet he did. And he inwardly smiled.
As he realized there was no way he was going to lose her that night, he knew then that it was one of the best nights he'd had in days.
For he was with her.
She was dancing with him.
And she was beautiful.
He was sixteen. And she was not getting away from him. Not ever.
The battle with Kronos was over and all he could think of was his fingers perfectly interlocked with hers as he enjoyed the freedom, the safety and the early morning summer breeze. He couldn't remember ever being this carefree, having a great time without a Titan to worry about.
For the battle had been won.
He was prepared for the dawn of the new era.
He would start it with her.
And he wouldn't look back.
She ran down Half-Blood Hill.
And he ran after her.
And she was beautiful.
He was almost seventeen. And it was over.
Percy coughed, squinting his eyes to see through the haze. He realized he was still lying on his back and eventually made several attempts to stand up but his body failed to cooperate. He collapsed again and again, grunting every time his cuts and welts made contact with the cold stone floor.
After a few seconds, Percy finally gave up and remained sprawled on the ground, gasping ravenously for air. He was beyond exhausted. His whole body throbbed painfully with his every move. He wanted to rest. He wanted all the pain to stop. Every fiber of his being wanted to close his eyes, stay in that spread-eagled position and sleep for the rest of his lifetime.
"Percy."
At the sound of her voice, Percy realized that he couldn't. He wouldn't. He couldn't quit now that Gaea had finally been defeated and he most certainly couldn't give up for that one girl he cared for the most.
Percy's eyes shifted from the blood red sky to the direction of the voice. At once, the haze cleared off. Yet Percy wished it hadn't. Friends and foes lay lifeless on the stone floor of Mount Olympus. The surroundings were a landscape of red and gold from the sea of dead bodies and monster dusts covering the ground. Everywhere was a sign of victory and loss.
And there, just an arm's reach away from him, was Annabeth. She was extending one arm towards Percy, pain evident in her cloudy eyes. Her hair was in disarray and her clothes were torn and bloodstained.
"Annabeth!" Percy cried out.
Despite his body's objections, Percy rolled until he was lying on his stomach and started crawling towards his girlfriend. He stretched out a hand until his fingers brushed Annabeth's. Percy moved closer until he was right beside her.
"Oh, Annabeth," his voice started to crack when he caught full sight of the dark red fluid gushing from her chest. Without realizing it, he was suddenly sitting up next to her and his hands were automatically reaching for his pockets. "You're gonna be okay. Don't move. I'll handle this, m'kay?"
Percy could feel his voice getting more panicky in every word. He started fishing out the remaining flasks of ambrosia but a weak hand stopped him. Sea green eyes locked on grey ones.
Annabeth was staring at him and shaking her head slowly with a painful smile plastered on her face. "My fate has been decided."
Her voice was soft, like a whisper, yet loud enough for Percy to hear. "I'm sorry. I-I can't do anything about it. I feel it, Percy. I feel… death coming," her voice was breaking now. Tears started to flow out of her eyes. "I'm afraid."
"Shh, stop it," he said firmly, hugging her affectionately like a fragile glass about to shatter in pieces. "No one's going to die anymore. The war is over. We've won. You are going to live, do you understand me?" Percy pulled away and looked at Annabeth intently. "You cannot go."
"I don't want to," Annabeth declared in a muffled tone but her eyes were hard as they remained fixed on the green orbs before her. "But I knew the risks when I signed up on this quest, and I don't regret what I have done."
"Please, please," Percy's pleading voice echoed into the silence. "You're not going anywhere."
"I just wish I am given more time," the whisper of Athena's daughter was barely audible. The corners of her lips raised into a warm smile. "Just imagine the things we could have done together. Going to college, growing old. But it is all too brief."
There was a long pause until the heartbreaking sobs of the broken son of Poseidon echoed in the tranquil atmosphere.
Annabeth took a deep breath. She touched Percy's face with her left hand and lifted her face. Percy, knowing what she meant to do, closed in. Her lips were the softest thing he had ever encountered and Percy wished they could stay that way forever.
As they pulled away, Percy stared at the girl in his arms longingly. He examined her features – the way her golden, curly hair hang down her shoulders, her grey eyes sparkle in the sunset, her lips form the warmest of smiles he had ever seen.
Annabeth's eyes became cloudier and it took every bit of her strength to speak.
"It is… all… too… brief."
And she said no more.
And even as the light gradually faded from her eyes, he still knew in his heart that she was beautiful.
He was eighty-seven. And it was the beginning of beginnings, and the end of ends.
The Fates were probably the vilest thing Percy could imagine. More than seventy years ago, the Fates let him take a look at his future – surviving the war, growing old and defying early death.
He couldn't have known. He couldn't have known that he would spend the future without her. Annabeth. He couldn't have known that there would be a barrier between them – a barrier between the world of the living and the dead.
And there he was, sitting by the beach as the early August breeze caressed his cheeks.
He could feel it. The feeling of death. Yet he was not afraid. As he closed his eyes, Percy smiled in contentment for he was prepared to welcome death as a friend.
It was dark. Pitch-black. It seemed like the world had fallen into darkness. It was unpleasantly cold. Then the freezing sensation faded. His body went numb. He couldn't feel anything. He was nothing.
This must be what dying feels like,he thought.
However, the numbness didn't last long and it was replaced by something comfortably warm.
Percy opened his sea green eyes and they scanned the murky surroundings of the Underworld. Memories flowed in his mind as he passed the three-headed dog, the three judges, and the gates of Elysium.
As he moved past the Elysian field, he noticed a stream nearby. He moved towards the flowing water and gazed at his reflection. Signs of old age vanished on his physical features. He could see his sixteen year-old self staring back at him with jet-black hair, sea green eyes, tanned skin and a lanky physique.
It seemed as though it was taunting him for at this age, he experienced the best and the worst.
And he shared them with her.
He wished he could erase his memories when his life was erased on the face of the physical world above.
"Percy."
And at the sound of her voice, Percy realized that he couldn't. He wouldn't. For a girl with golden princess curls and grey eyes was standing behind him as he stared at his reflection.
Did the water represent one's own desires? Or was it just a dream, a part of his collective unconscious that stayed behind his very soul?
He couldn't believe it. He didn't want to believe it.
Slowly, he turned around.
And there she was. Annabeth Chase, the daughter of Athena. She was smiling at him like she used to whenever they spent time alone with each other or played war games or fight the dark side. It was the kind of smile that could make Percy feel good even in the darkest of times.
"Hey, Seaweed Brain. What took you so long?"
And in that moment, he could have sworn that she was the most beautiful girl in the world.
And as his lips touched hers, he could see fireworks exploding between their eyelids.
And he knew then that she was not getting away from him. Never again.
AN: Thank you for reading my very first fanfiction story. Kindly comment and review. Have a great day, demigods!