Annabeth hated having two crushes. Just when she thought she'd gotten her feelings sorted out, they had to go and jump on her again. Here she was, standing at the top of some mountain that she didn't want to bother thinking of the name at the moment, watching the boy she loved die.
Luke was holding up the sky, even though no regular mortal should be able to do that. Even though Luke was working for the titan lord, she still cared about him. She couldn't help it. When you spend 8 months of your life battling monsters with a guy, then 5 more years training to fight monsters with him, you can't just stamp out your connection with him. She'd tried, and she thought it had worked, but now her heart was being ripped out as she watched him struggling under the weight of the sky. What he said was true, he would die if she didn't help him.
So she took the sky. She basically gave her life to save his, but when he recovered, he betrayed her. He walked away, leaving Annabeth to hold the sky on her own. Not only that, but he'd left her with seven words of pure guilt: I knew I could count on you. She was all part of his plan.
The sky would have killed Luke, but now it was killing Annabeth. It was crushing her, pounding her into the earth. Fire burned through her veins and coursed up to her heart. Unbearable pain swarmed through her body. She would never be able to make it, this was the end.
She remembered when she first met Luke. She'd been only seven, but he'd welcomed her into their group. Thalia had too of course, but she'd always remembered it as Luke. Luke was the one who gave her the knife and asked her name.
She remembered the time when they'd fought the hydra. Thalia had realized what it was and kept the hydra off long enough for Annabeth to get a piece of burning wood, but when Thalia had collapsed from breathing the toxic air, she and Luke had been the one to kill the hydra. They'd worked side by side, Luke swiping the heads off, then Annabeth dodging and burning the necks.
Oh, she remembered the name of the mountain now, Mount Tam.
She remembered when Thalia had turned into a pine tree. Luke had been the only one she had left. She'd been in the same cabin with him at that time, and they'd only had each other for comfort.
Thalia. Luke had poisoned Thalia. Luke, of all people, had poisoned THALIA just to raise Kronos! If Percy and- sorry, CLARISSE hadn't shown up with the Golden Fleece, Thalia would have died, and it would have been Luke's fault.
Percy.
That seaweed brain had basically exploded into her life and made it complicated. If she'd just have to get over the shock of losing Luke to the enemy, it would have been easier, but when someone else who you're supposed to hate starts stirring up your feelings, you can't concentrate on demolishing your attachment with the other guy.
Why didn't she hate him though? She was Athena's daughter, he was Poseidon's son. They weren't supposed to get along. She'd spent half her life knowing Luke, but she'd only known Percy for about two years now. Why was Luke the one that had to betray her? Why couldn't it have been Percy?
Percy's not like Luke though. Percy didn't trick her into holding the sky. Percy didn't betray Thalia. Percy would never betray Thalia or her, ever.
But that's always what she thought about Luke. She'd thought he would never betray them, even under torture, but as it turns out, he up and joined the titans. Why? Didn't he care about her? Didn't he understand?
It was a battle, a battle between Percy and Luke, but it wasn't just in the real world, it was in Annabeth's mind.
Memories flooded her head. It was as if her whole life was flashing before her. She remembered when her dad had remarried. She remembered when she'd killed her first monster. She remembered when they'd met Luke's mom. She remembered when she was kicked out of her third school. The memories kept coming. She was probably dying, she had read books where the people closest to death saw their lives flash before them.
Annabeth lifted her head. She couldn't hold it much longer. Whatever help Luke had promised had better be here quick or she might not be able to make it. She couldn't see, no matter how many times she blinked. Her vision was fuzzy, everything was a blur. The tears streaming down her face might've had something to do with it, but she didn't think it had anything to do with the black spots dancing in front of her.
Someone was coming toward her. Help had finally come.
"Help me," she croaked desperately. No answer.
The Someone stopped. Annabeth trembled with the weight of the sky. Suddenly, her vision cleared. She had no idea why, but it just did. The weight hadn't changed, her feelings hadn't changed, she hadn't changed positions, but suddenly she could see who it was. It was Luke.
Hope flooded her, but it was replaced by anger. Luke had betrayed her, why would he help her now? Luke looked at her for a moment. He didn't make any move to help her, but he finally whispered
"I can't."
Um, how wrong was that? How easy would it be to just walk over and take the burden with her? Well, not that easy, but still. He had a choice, he could leave her to die, or he could assist in saving the world. Not much rivalry there. Not for Annabeth at least. Not for Thalia, Grover, Percy, Zoe, the gods, Connor and Travis, Katie Gardener, Charles Beckendorf, Silena Beauregard, Castor and Pollux, Chiron, and even Clarisse! How could he not help her?
Suddenly she knew. The battle was over. Luke had lost. She didn't care if she loved him or not, she was never going to help him again. This wasn't the Luke she'd known. Whatever she thought he was, he wasn't anymore. However much she loved him, she knew she loved Thalia and Grover and Percy more.
She straightened with renewed strength. She would hold the sky as long as she needed to. Kronos had not won. Luke had not beaten her. She would never give up, never never never. Percy would come. Percy would rescue her. She knew it.
Her vision went fuzzy again as someone appeared beside her. They said something Annabeth couldn't comprehend, but a minute later, Annabeth felt the weight of the sky being lifted from her shoulders. Percy had come. She didn't even need to see now, she just knew Percy had come to help her. She would help him too. She bravely bore her half of the sky, ready to hold it for eternity, but suddenly her legs gave way, and she plummeted into darkness.
Author's Notes: So hey guys! I got a request for a Percabeth, and I've been wanting to do this for a while. It's not a very fluffy or romantic scenario yet, but hey! Stories get boring when everything's perfect. Well, I have the next chapter written, but I'm going to wait a few days to post it. That way I'll be able to update on a continual basis.
Review everyone! How did you like it? What do you think could make it better? Did you even like it at all? Should I have posted all the chapters at once? Do I really have to ask these questions to make you review?
Oh well, see you all next chapter! And may I say it again? REVIEW!
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