You're an Idiot
"Gods, you're stupid, Percie," Archimedes muttered, disinfecting her wounds like she was a mortal.
She winced when he pressed down too hard on a cut. He sighed and gave her a stern look. "That was one of the stupidest things that you've done for a month."
"No it isn't; you're forgetting that I tried to verse the Stolls in a rigged hot chilli eating contest a couple of weeks ago."
He rolled his eyes and went back to dabbing the cuts with a cotton ball soaked in disinfectant. Percie cried out when he got to one of the larger gashes on her arm and he paused.
"I'll get you some nectar," and Archimedes stood up and left, only to return half a minute later with nectar.
Percie smiled at him and took it from him carefully, sipping the drink that had the sweet taste of blue chocolate chip cookies.
"Thanks, Archimedes," she murmured and offered him a tiny smile.
He smiled back before he returned to the task of tending to her wounds.
Percie hadn't expected Archimedes to be the one to tend to her. He was on the opposite team of Capture the Flag, so when he'd run over to where Willa had propped her unconscious body up after the Red Team (Archimedes' team) had just about mutilated her when she'd run off to capture the flag; she'd been surprised. He'd spent a full ten minutes interrogating Willa about her condition and even after that he'd insisted that he'd carry her to the infirmary (when she'd woken up and heard him insist had made her neck flush). To say while he was carrying her that she blushed would be an understatement. She hid her face as much as possible during the entire twelve minutes of him carrying her.
As she took another sip, he carefully picked up her arm and looked at the large cut that marred her flesh. He winced and she knew that it was bad.
"This needs stitches."
"Can't I just stand in water for a couple of minutes?"
Archimedes chewed at his bottom lip. "I don't know if that'll work, it's mainly poison and minor wounds that it works on; you're legitimately maimed right now."
She lifted her other arm, which throbbed as she touched her face out of habit. He shook his head at her. "You only have a couple of scratches on your face."
Percie sighed in relief and felt her anxiety fall; she didn't need to look like she was thrown in a giant paper shredder in front of the extremely good-looking son of Athena (even though she'd probably looked worse in front of him before; she was a freaking guinea pig once for gods' sake).
"Do you know how to stitch up someone?"
He gave her a look and she shut up, muttering an apology. Of course he knew how to; he was Archimedes don't-know-his-middle-name Chase. While he busied himself with finding what he needed, Percie found a glass of water by her bedside and smirked. Pouring some onto her arm, she winced at first until the water felt like a cool, relaxing sensation as it healed to a smaller, shallower cut that by no means needed stitching.
Archimedes sat down beside her again and took her arm before freezing. "I shouldn't have left water by your bedside should I?"
"You know for someone who is wise by birthright; you aren't always very wise."
"This was supposed to be teaching you a lesson, Seaweed Brain," he muttered.
She crossed her arms and winced. "If you wanted me to heal painfully slow like a mortal you wouldn't give me nectar or water."
He ran a hand over his face. "What am I going to do with you?"
"Well… you can get me to shut up and keep patching me up," Percie offered.
Smiling, Archimedes nodded. "Sure… you know that means that you have to shut up right?"
"Well… that's not going to happen, but I can try."
He laughed and went back to dabbing her wounds with a cotton ball. She went back to biting her lip and every time that she flinched, he'd be gentler with the next cut. He didn't let it on, but he was a softie. When they'd left Cerberus alone on that first quest he'd been heartbroken and it always killed him when he had to leave someone behind- not as much as Percie but still more than he'd like to admit. Percie smiled and as he carefully lifted her leg onto his lap, he said something that made her grin grow further.
"You're lucky that you're my favourite idiot."
She cocked her head. "Favourite?"
"Yep."
"Idiot?"
"Well… you act like an idiot, but you're actually pretty smart."
"I'm not smart."
Archimedes rolled his eyes. "You're smart in a different kind of way. You have amazing intuition and you think fast when it counts."
She took that in and smiled. "Okay… but I'm still stupid in the average way."
"Oh yeah, no doubt about it."
"Oi!" Percie reached forward and hit his arm only to freeze as she felt her stomach sting painfully.
He helped her lie down and looked at the scratches in her t-shirt. Archimedes frowned and looked up at her.
"You got scratched in the stomach?"
"Apparently," Percie muttered.
As he was about to lift the hem of her shirt up to check the damage, she swatted his hand away.
"Percie!" he scolded, "I need to check it!"
"I can handle it myself!"
Now it wasn't that she didn't want him to help her, she just didn't want him to see her stomach. Sure she wasn't flabby or anything, but Percie was still a girl and still as self-conscious as the average fifteen year-old. And she had a long scar on her hip that she didn't particularly want him to see either.
"Percie just let me take a look!"
"No!" she was thrashing away from his touch and he had to literally sit on her and grab hold of her wrists to stop her, even then she kept kicking about, until she'd exhausted herself.
He was breathing heavily and so was she, all her cuts stinging and her bruises throbbing. Slowly he got off of her, still holding her wrists. "Will you let me have a look at it or are you going to make me go grab Willa or one of the other medics?"
"But I have scars-"
"Everyone has scars. You've seen the ones on my chest-"
"-the ones that you got protecting me," she muttered bitterly, remembering that look of pain on his face as he took the blow for her.
Archimedes smiled. "I don't regret it either. Now will you let me assess the damage?"
Slowly, she nodded. It was the least she could do. He'd done so much for her and all he was asking for was her to let him help her.
The hem of her shirt lifted and he pulled it up until it rested half way up her ribcage.
"Crap."
She propped herself up on her elbows and looked down at the mess that was her stomach. There were large bruises everywhere and three large gashes overcrossing each other. If it wasn't for the dried blood that hadn't flaked off when she'd been thrashing around, she would've been bleeding.
"Oh…"
Her 'nurse' was fuming. His fists were clenched tightly and if his curly bangs weren't covering his eyes, she knew that she would've seen him glowering. Archimedes had been so gentle so little ago, that she almost couldn't believe it.
"Archimedes…"his fists clenched tighter, "what's wrong?"
"Someone on my team did this…" he ground out darkly, "they overstepped the boundaries of one of the main rules and they freaking know…"
She frowned. "Know what?"
"Nothing."
Percie flinched at the harshness in his voice; it was like a slap to the face. She closed her eyes and the sharp voice started twirling around in her mind. It ate at her in the few seconds that it had to morph and spiral into a monster worse than anything that dwelled in the depths of Tartarus.
She barely noticed the bed shifting as arms encircled her and pulled her into a hard chest, a hand pulling her shirt down to cover the vicious bruising. He pulled her further into his lap and buried his face into her hair. Her breath hitched in surprise. Archimedes was never this affectionate. Ever.
"I'm sorry," his muffled voice came from near her neck.
"It's okay," Percie mumbled, "you were just being worried."
Archimedes removed his face from her hair. "I shouldn't have snapped at you."
She turned around in his lap, ignoring her muscles protesting and smiled up (yes, he was a good three or four inches taller than her) at him. Not saying a word she wrapped her arms around him and practically collapsed into him.
He was warm and even though heat doesn't heal, it felt like his did and Percie liked that. She -honest to god- loved this feeling. It was warm and gentle and so –almost unbearably- sweet that she didn't want it to ever stop.
Hand stroking her hair softly, he asked. "Who did that to your stomach?"
She chuckled and shook her head into his chest. "I don't know."
"You do."
"Yeah, but you'll kill them."
He laughed. "Probably."
"Now mind to tell me why you hulked out so much?"
Archimedes froze like he had earlier and when she pulled away from his chest; his cheeks were the most lovable shade of pink. Damn he was adorable as… (well she was told not to use that word unless in dire circumstances {Sally was brutal when it came to swearing}, so she substituted it with 'fork') He was adorable as fork.
Giggling softly, she leant over him and grabbed a cotton ball frowning at it.
"You know, I don't know why you didn't just use salt water to clean my cuts; you'd be disinfecting my cuts and I'd be healing at the same time."
The colour in his cheeks lessened. "But then you wouldn't be learning a lesson would you?"
"Well I'm not learning one anyway."
"And why's that?" the adorable curiosity in his eyes forced her impulsiveness to take over.
"Because I have a cute boy looking after me."
His ears went slightly pink and she felt her own face burn up as her brain processed what she just said. Idiot, she scolded herself, you're a freaking idiot. Turning her face away from him, she slid out of his lap, only leaving her left leg there. Percie tried to calm her blush.
"Could you finish disinfecting my leg?"
"Sure."
They were silent as he cleaned up her leg, his hands careful and soft against her skin. Some of the smaller cuts were already healing from the nectar and when he was done with her leg, he smiled at her and started to bandage up the worst of her gashes.
He looked up and grinned in that dreadfully handsome way.
"I need to clean your face, Seaweed Brain."
"Okay," she muttered.
Out of the corner of her eye she saw him grab a fresh cotton ball and pour some disinfectant on it before turning to her and cupping her face with his other hand. She glanced up and he smiled a tiny smile, gently caressing her cheeks with the white ball. Percie's cheeks must've been red, but she wasn't sure anymore; it had happened so many times in the past half hour that she couldn't tell. Casting her gaze to the floor, she knew that she would do something stupid with the close proximity of their faces.
Something soft and the slightest bit chapped brushed against her cheek the moment that the cotton ball was removed and she felt her eyes widen as she looked up to see Archimedes grinning softly at her, his face practically glowing (and no; it wasn't just his gorgeous Californian tan). And of course being the shit that he was, he looked like something threw a liquefied mix of everything cute on his face and used it as moisturiser. He was being that cute.
"I'll go get Willa so she can check out your stomach."
Percie felt him lightly bring her bottom jaw to her top with his fingertips and he moved away, brushing the curtain aside.
She struggled out of the sickbed and grabbed his wrist.
"What did you mean by 'you're my favourite idiot'?"
He frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"Y-you mean something else by it. I don't know what it is, but you mean something else and I want to know what."
Archimedes sighed softly. "Why can't you be a complete idiot?"
Shrugging at him, she grinned as he lowered his gaze to hers again and took a deep breath. "When I'm calling you an idiot, I'm not joking; you're an idiot…
"But… for some reason I'm okay with that and… you're one of my top priorities."
Percie's brow furrowed
"What do you me-?"
"I mean," he said gently -so, so gently, "that you always come first."
The words took a while to sink into her brain and when they did, she smiled to herself. Archimedes could be an uptight jackass sometimes, but when he was vulnerable like this she couldn't help but feel lucky. He was letting her see this more tender side and she wasn't going to exploit it. She just couldn't.
"Thanks."
"For what?"
"Putting me on the top of your priority list."
Shaking his head, he said, "Like it was my choice; you just butt into my life like it's nothing."
"My job is to make your life difficult," she said, "and I pride myself in doing it well."
"Putting on your fancy-talk aren't you?"
Percie smirked. "Damn straight I am! And gods is it tiring! How do you do this every day?"
He chuckled with a little shrug and she felt her smirk turn back into a genuine smile. Percy may not have known what all these weird feelings and thoughts meant but when she said, "When I get out of here we are going to have a proper talk okay?" she'd meant it. (Even though she didn't know what that would entail).
Archimedes had this weird look in his eyes when he nodded.
"Bye then, Seaweed Brain," he smiled again.
She reached up and ruffled his curls (those sweet loose curls that were soft as silk), ignoring the pain that shot up her side and into her arm. "Bye, Wise Boy."
He must've seen the flash of pain in her eyes, because he muttered so quietly that she barely heard him. "Don't push yourself, Percie; I just made it abundantly clear that I don't like seeing you hurt."
Percie froze for a long moment and looked at him properly. He was tall, athletic, curly haired and strong, but there was this weakness in his frame. One that she swore that she was the only one who got to see it.
And that weakness was for her.
Smiling she nodded. "I won't."
He left with only one more small smile in her direction, the curtain thrown open seconds later for Willa to walk in with a clipboard and a knowing smile. She felt her ears go pink at the idea of how many people might how overheard their conversation.
"How much did you hear?"
"All of it."
Percie groaned and turned to let herself fall stomach first on the sickbed. And of course with her bruising it hurt like hell. She cried out and turned onto her back, Willa rushing forward and propping her up against the bed head.
"I can see what he means; you are stupid."
She scowled at her. "Don't call me stupid."
"Oh so he can and I can't? Okay, I get it; it's a couple thing."
"We're not a couple!"
Willa laughed as she lifted up Percie's shirt and inspected the bruising. "You wish you were."
"Shut up!"
Stupid medic was enjoying every moment of this.
They sat in silence for a while as the medic hurried around trying to find some sort of ointment for her bruise. When she found it, she placed it on the bedside and grinned mischievously. "You need to apply this twice a day on your stomach, try and avoid getting it in any cuts that haven't closed yet; it'll hurt like hell."
"Thanks."
"Do you want me to apply it or are you okay with doing it?"
"I'll do it," Percie muttered, opening the jar and dipping her fingers in the cool ointment, slowly applying it to her skin only to get some in a cut and hiss like a hydra.
Willa rolled her eyes and started doing it for her. "I'll do it if you're so incapable of doing such a simple task. Maybe I should mention this to Archimedes… he'd do it properly."
"Shut up."
"At least he'd be careful," she muttered.
Percie was really starting to dislike the -usually likeable- child of Apollo.
"By the way I've been strictly ordered to keep you in here for a week."
"WHAT?!"
Willa covered her mouth. "We have people sleeping in here you know!"
Percie's scowl deepened. Whoever thought that they could keep her looked up in an infirmary for a week was sorely mistaken. Like hell, she'd stay in there that long!
"Who ordered you?"
She laughed nervously and rested a hand on the side of her neck. "Archimedes…"
"That little sh-"
A hand that was starting to become uncomfortably familiar with her mouth was covering her trap again. "Watch your tongue!"
"Fine."
"You would've been in here for a few days anyway, but he was insistent that you stayed longer."
"And why would that be?" she snarled.
With a sigh, the medic rubbed between her brows. "How does he deal with you?"
"Answer the question!" Percie demanded.
"Because he cares," she said firmly, before gently helping her lie down. "Now sleep; you need some."
She yawned. "I don't want to go to sleep."
"Go to sleep."
"But I don't wanna-"
"I'll grab Archimedes."
That shut her up and she glared at Willa before closing her eyes and sighing.
As she tried to fall asleep, she heard the optimistic blonde rustling about, putting things away. Percie opened her eyes again and stared at the table beside her. There was the glass still partially filled with water and the empty milkshake glass that had held her nectar. She turned onto her other side and ignored the ache that it caused.
"Hey Willa?"
She stopped potting and stilled. "Yes?"
"Is it boring in the infirmary?"
"I don't know; not for me, but I'm a medic and I'm always busy with something. Why'd you ask?"
With the driest tone that she could muster, Percie replied, "I'm in here for a week."
"If it helps, I'm pretty sure that Archimedes will bring you breakfast tomorrow morning." There was something sly in her voice that she tried her best to ignore.
"Oh…"
"Don't get too excited. But… I'm pretty sure he will. You have no idea how much he flipped out when he found out that you were injured."
She felt herself go quiet as Willa gently said, "If you guys knew how much you cared about each other, your lives would be so much easier."
"He doesn't care that mu-"
"Percie?"
"Yes?"
"Shut up, go to sleep and get out of your denial," she said, "doctor's orders."
Archimedes didn't care that much did he? Sure he had his protective moments, but surely, Percy thought, he didn't care that much. He couldn't. She was positive that he didn't.
'I'm not in denial-"
"Shut up and sleep."
She sighed and got comfortable. "Can I request something?"
"Sure. What is it?"
"Can you make sure not to tell anyone about the conversation I had with him?"
Willa smiled. "I think I can do that. Now sleep, before I have to tell him to come in here and make you."
"Okay."
This time when Percie closed her eyes they didn't open for another thirteen hours.
And when she woke up -just as Willa had foretold- Archimedes sat by her bedside with a fresh glass full of nectar, blue chocolate chip pancakes and held a Greek copy of Odyssey. Percy smiled and attempted to sit up only to squeak in response to the pain that shot through her stomach. At the speed of light, he put down his book and his hands were carefully lifting her into a sitting position.
"You're an idiot."
She chuckled even though it hurt. "'Morning."
"And you're a lost cause."
Percie shrugged. "You still try anyway."
He smiled and passed her the milkshake glass full of nectar. She tried –barely- to not scull it down, but as it was, she was thirsty after her long sleep. Archimedes was rolling his eyes as she drank the last few drops and stared at the now empty glass.
"Thirsty?"
"Not anymore. Though…" she looked at the blue pancakes that sat two feet away, "I wouldn't mind some pancakes…"
Archimedes placed the plate in her lap and gave her a fork and knife with a firm look. "No eating them taco-style."
"Why not?'
"Because that just proves how stupid you are."
She scowled at him and sawed off a large chunk of pancake, shovelling it into her mouth. And it tasted amazing.
"This is delicious!" Her tastebuds tingled. "Did you get these from the mess hall?"
Archimedes rubbed his neck. "I could've gotten them from there if I asked… but I made them myself."
"Did you wake up early to make me breakfast?" Her heart warmed as did the smile that was on her face.
"I guess you can say that…" Archimedes muttered.
She blushed and looked down at her plate. Stupidly sweet, spawn of Athena. When she picked up her fork again, Percie took her time savouring the food with a dopey smile on her face.
When Percie was done, he had this look on his face. One that made him look younger and some of the acute stress lines on his face to disappear.
"You know…" she started, expression hardening, "a little bird told me that you demanded that I stay here twice as long as I need to."
His eyes widened before he yelled, "WILLA!"
"I'M SORRY, BUT SHE'S SCARY!"
She stood up from her bed and he got to his feet too. "And all I can say is; I'm pissed off now."
It didn't matter that she had injuries or that he just had her best interest in mind, she just lunged at him. He quickly avoided her and the skittered around the sickbed, Percie lagging behind, but making up for it every time that she punched or kicked him.
And after Percie had bashed him up to the extent that she was happy with, she demanded that he taught her how to make blue chocolate chip pancakes.
Two hours and thirteen minutes later Archimedes laughing at the bin that was now full of failed pancake batches. And when she finally made a successful batch, she tackled him in a hug and would've kissed him (on the cheek) if the harpies didn't run in and chase them out of the kitchen (dumb harpies), the two of them barely managing to save the pancakes as they ran out in a hurry.
They were laughing like idiots and probably looked stupid both of them covered in flour as they sprinted through camp holding a plate of blue pancakes drowned in maple syrup.
Everything was aching and throbbing but she ignored it, until they found a spot under an oak tree on the edge of the forest. The two of them sat down and he suddenly hit himself in the forehead.
"What's wrong?"
"You were supposed to be having some bedrest today!"
She took a pancake and started to eat it taco-style. "I don't see what's wrong with this."
"You aren't resting!" he said, exasperatedly.
Percie smiled and finished her pancake taco. "Fine, I'll make a deal with you; if you can eat more pancake tacos than me in a minute, I'll have a nap."
"No."
"Killjoy… fine, let me eat two more pancakes and then I'll rest."
He sighed, but nodded and took a pancake himself.
Apparently he was terrible at eating pancake tacos, so she laughed and demonstrated for him. He got better of course, but it was a mess and she was surprised that he didn't get any syrup on his denim khaki shorts. She licked the syrup off her fingers and quietly asked him if he was going to eat anymore. He frowned and shook his head.
"Could you take me back to the infirmary then?"
"Tired?" she nodded and yawned, stretching her arms above her head.
His lean arms slipped underneath her knees and her back. "What are you doing?"
"You need to rest so I'll carry you."
She made a noise of objection and pushed at his chest as he stood up. "I have dignity!"
"No you don't."
Of course he saw through that. Percie sighed. "But you do."
"And?"
"And put me the Hades down!"
Archimedes shook his head and started walking.
"What about the plate?!"
"It'll get back to the kitchen by itself."
"It doesn't have fricking legs!"
He rolled his eyes. "It's like your sword, Seaweed Brain."
"Oh."
Percie went back to trying to struggle out of his arms. He sighed and stood still, staring down at her firmly. Not a glare, but this firm protective way that he'd seemed to have mastered over the last twenty four hours. She refused to wither under his gaze and kept fighting against him. Grip tightening, he brought her closer to his chest, taking the full impact of her flaying limbs.
"Why aren't you letting me take you there?"
"Because you are forgetting your stupid principles!"
He held her more firmly. "What are you talking about?"
"Why isn't your stupid pride kicking in?!"
"What's your problem? I didn't see anything belittling in carrying my friend because she's hurt and tired."
She stopped thrashing and buried her face in his shirt. "I don't know okay? I just-"
"You're tired, sore and need some rest," Archimedes murmured, shifting his arms so that he almost cradled her, "just try to get some sleep okay?"
Percie sighed softly and curled into him, hands gripping his shirt gently as he started walking again. "Okay…"
As she closed her eyes she asked quietly. "Am I too heavy?"
"No."
"Are you comfortable too?"
He lifted her slightly, leaning down at the same time and she felt his bangs nod against her shoulder.
"When we get to the infirmary could you get Willa to but some ointment on my stomach?"
Nodding into her shoulder again, she felt him stand upright again.
Archimedes curved his arms around her more securely as he keep walking and she settled into him, one hand still gripped his shirt, the other resting on his chest. And underneath that other hand, she felt the drum of his heartbeat beneath her fingertips. The beat was strong and steady, possibly slightly faster than it was supposed to be, but she figured in her half-asleep daze that it was her imagination.
Warmth radiated off of him and seeped into her frame as she fell into darkness. And that warmth of his guided her into the welcoming arms of sleep, a light kiss to the top of her head pushing her forward those last few steps.
The sweet nothingness of sleep overwhelmed her, warmth seeping into the blackness and holding her tight, keeping her safe from monsters that lurked in the dark.
It kept her safe from herself.
A/N If any one is wandering why this story is being posted all in one day, its because I've had this sitting in my fanfiction folder for a month and I've finally found the time and the effort to post this. And I hope you guys enjoyed the fluffy bits in this chapter!
-Blue
