distance is just a state of mind
summary: With Percy gone, everything feels different for Annabeth. Can she be the role model the Greeks need while she's breaking? The untold story of Annabeth after Percy's disappearance. (takes place all throughout his absence)
"come back into the good life
lose these hazy love lies
i've been chasing my mind
lonely in the cold nights
'cause i'm kicking up stones without you
can't pick up the phone without you
i'm a little bit lost without you"
~oh wonder, without you~
"Seaweed Brain," Annabeth murmured, looking at Percy from under her lashes as she dropped her head onto his lap. He smiled at her, ruffling her hair.
"Yeah, Wise Girl?"
"I love you."
He smirked. "I love you too. What else?"
Annabeth pouted. "Who says there's something else?"
"There always is with you."
She got up and lightly punched him on the arm. "Percy!"
"Look, are you going to tell me or not?"
"I—I just have a bad feeling."
His smirk softened into a smile. "No more of those, remember? The war's over."
"It's just—" before she could continue, the distress horn sounded in the distance, breaking the two out of their little bubble.
"Great," Percy got up, dusting off his pants. The log they were sitting on was dusty, burned, bruised—they always came back to this log when they wanted some alone time. It had survived the Battle of the Labyrinth, lived through the fire and carnage.
(but not entirely; half of it is burned from the fire)
Annabeth sighed. "I bet you anything that Travis and Connor pranked Katie again."
"A kiss?" the smirk climbed back onto Percy's face as the couple started to walk back into Camp. Annabeth rolled her eyes at him.
"I'll give you one of those for free."
"Okay, then."
After a quick kiss they were back on their path to Camp.
(maybe it wasn't very quick, but oh well)
As they neared the campfire, Percy stepped on a twig, hearing it crunch under his feet.
"I'm hungry," he complained.
"You always say that," Annabeth reminded him, laughing. "Percy, we just ate!"
"I do not always say that!" he huffed, pretending to pout.
"Do too," she laughed.
"Do not!"
"You're a Seaweed Brain!"
"Wise Girl!"
Travis walked up behind her. "Who are you talking to, Annabeth?" he squinted, staring at the empty space next to her. Annabeth felt her cheeks go hot.
"No one," she muttered. "Just—don't tell Chiron, okay?"
Travis nodded and walked away, trying to pretend that their encounter had never happened, that he hadn't seen Annabeth Chase talk to someone that wasn't really there.
Annabeth walked back to her cabin, a depressed look settling—and staying—on her face. Her fantasy was gone; Percy was gone. Of course, he'd never been there in the first place . . . but she could dream.
She would dream.
She had been dreaming.
Annabeth didn't know when the hallucinations had started. Only Malcolm knew about them, and only because he had caught her talking to no-one in her bed once. She'd pleaded him to keep his mouth shut, and he had. He'd even tried to help her figure out what was happening to her mind.
He had told her that they were most probably because of her insomnia.
She had told him that it wasn't that.
Malcolm was logical; he had looked for a practical situation, one that his books could tell him. Annabeth knew that that was the wrong approach to her situation.
She missed Percy.
A lot.
It made sense. He'd always been there for her to talk to—whether through Iris Message or physical communication. Just—knowing that she couldn't talk to him any hour of the day hurt.
It had gotten better since she had learned that he was alive. Annabeth Chase was not a fan of Jason Grace, but the guy had tossed her worst fears out of the window. Percy was alive.
That meant that she could find him again.
That mattered.
Clarisse sidled up to Annabeth, poking her in the stomach. She didn't receive any reaction.
"Look, Princess, you okay?"
Annabeth didn't reply. Clarisse sighed and poked her again. Nothing.
(just like Silena)
"It'll be alright, you know? He's alive."
That seemed to be a catalyst for Annabeth. Before Clarisse could say anything, the daughter of Athena erupted, crying giant, wet, runny tears. "That's . . . that's the problem!"
Clarisse awkwardly patted her back. She and Annabeth were hesitant friends—not very close, but they understood each other. "Why?" she asked.
"What if—what if he doesn't remember me?" Annabeth sobbed.
Annabeth rarely cried. She didn't understand why people felt the need to sob oceans of tears. But without the Camp staring at her, without being in charge . . .
She was breaking.
Clarisse patted her back again as she let the tears flow.
Annabeth looked at Chiron's board and grinned.
There were so many pictures there, so many memories—she pulled one off and let a sad smile envelop her face. Thalia and Luke and herself smiled back at her. Luke had one hand in her hair and another was draped across Thalia.
She put that one back and grabbed the next one. Her smile dropped.
It was of her, Percy, and Grover—right after the Titan War. Rachel's red hair was a slight blur in the distance, and Blackjack's wings were clear to see in the sky.
Percy had his hand wrapped around her (much like Luke had around Thalia), and their teeth were blindingly white as they toothily smiled.
She put the picture down and turned away.
"Percy?" she asked the boy in front of her.
"Yeah, Annabeth?"
"You're not real," she stated, a clear fact.
"No," he—or rather, his apparition—said, "but I still love you."
"I love you too."
She leaned in to kiss him, but before their lips could touch he faded away into the air, leaving Annabeth with nothing but memories.
She cried.
AN (WiseGirlGeek)-
There isn't much to say. So, um, if you haven't realized, this is fic about Annabeth while Percy was asleep and with the Romans. We added our own little twist with the hallucinations. Go with it, please. And the summary might change if we hit a bout of inspiration.
This is also a collab between me and lunarchroniclesandcockatiels. Er, yeah. Review!
-WiseGirlGeek (Dee)