I'm back! Today is a good Friday… haha, get it? Good Friday? Yeah, I know. Cheesy. Thanks for sticking with me, here. If you have any questions what-so-ever about what the heck I've been doing that has kept me from writing, feel free to PM or Review. I'll get back to you on that.

~GoGreen43

Stranded

Chapter 13- Feel Again

-Thalia POV-

I pretty much came to an ultimatum. All guys are complete idiots, and by no means deserve the love of a woman. I don't know why we reel ourselves into relationships and hurt when we can see the outcome.

Right now, I can pretty much see one of the worst outcomes- physical pain. Physical pain always starts form emotional pain, no matter how small. If you never felt any emotional pain, there would be no way possible to feel physical pain.

You wouldn't be able to conceive the fact that you are hurt.

Unfortunately, Annabeth felt both. I could see it in her eyes when Juniper and I left with Percy to go see the claw marks. She was jealous, and that meant she was in emotional pain.

She let herself get close enough to Percy to like him in more just a friendly manner, and he basically did the same. So why the hurt? Well, I will admit that I have some fault in that. I flirted with Percy to see if she really did like him, because we all know that Percy is way more easier to read than Annabeth. I've known he liked her since the first time I saw them together.

I wasn't so sure Annabeth liked him back, though. Until that night by the campfire, I wasn't so sure that she shared the feelings that Percy had. And, feeling like a close friend of Percy's, I took it upon myself to see if she really felt that way about him, so I flirted. And boy did she react.

I mean, come on, I took a course about reacting to others emotions. It was as clear as a crystal the way that she acted jealous. Yet, unfortunately for her, Percy is about as oblivious as any other guy in this universe, and had no idea about her feelings.

So, he went along with it.

And Annabeth was in even more emotional pain. I've felt that way before… seeing someone that I thought I knew, act the same way with someone else. Suddenly, I didn't feel so special. I think she felt that way too.

I guess because of how she was in that much emotional pain, it lead to her being reckless, and not realizing that she was in danger till too late. So, in reality, the reason why she was lying in front of me with deadly wounds… was my fault.

Not Percy's. Not anyone else's. Just mine.

The worst part of it all, though, was how I felt about Annabeth. She's one of my friends now, and I let her down. A few tears slipped past my eyelids, as I was tending to her wounds.

I failed her, and now she has to pay for what I did. I don't understand why the best people always get hurt. Just like how I don't understand why I acted like I did. It just happened.

"Thalia… are you okay?"

I looked up to see Juniper, sitting there, looking at me worriedly. I guess she thought this was the part that I burst out into sobs, crying about how worried I was for our friend.

She was partly wrong about that.

I took a deep breath and wiped the tears from my eyes, and tried to smile at her, even though it probably looked more like a grimace. "Juniper, I'm fine. Don't worry about me, okay?"

Her eyes narrowed as she took my stature in, but she let it go. "Okay, I guess. I just wanted to let you know that the guys should be coming back soon with fresh water… you'll probably be here for a hour cleaning her up with that. Why don't you clean up while I watch her for a while?"

I furrowed my eyebrows in concentration. Was she trying to get me away from Annabeth? Did she see that it was my fault, too?

Instead of interrogating her, I just nodded and walked off to the break. The sun was starting to go down, and the waves seemed unnaturally calm. I just shrugged my behavior off, and took my shirt and pants off, leaving me in nothing but my underwear. I walked into calmness of the waves, and started rinsing the dried blood off. I knew I should probably be worried about sharks, but to be honest, I didn't really care.

I was numb.

I made one friend almost die, and I made another friend probably become emotionally unstable, making him believe it was his fault.

None of them deserved that… if anyone did, it would be me.

Okay, now you're just having suicidal thoughts.

I shook my head as I walked out of the surf, and threw my clothes back on me. I knew that if I wanted to prove to myself that I'm needed here, I was going to have to make myself useful. And I knew that included helping Annabeth.

I walked back the hut that we built, and slid inside to see Juniper talking to Annabeth and holding her had.

"…that's when I knew that I wanted to be someone that would help save trees. All because of how I fell off of one when I was in kindergarten and broke my arm… seems kind of ironic, huh?"

Juniper looked up at me, and blushed when she saw I was there. "Oh, uh, I was just talking to her… I heard somewhere that it was good to talk to people who are in a deep sleep to get them to wake up. And, you know, so they can feel normal if it's like a TV show where they can actually hear us."

I laughed a little bit and took a seat on the other side of Annabeth, taking her other hand. "I think it's a great idea, Juniper. So… I guess I should explain why I became a woman's rights activist."

I smiled at Juniper, who smiled back at me, her eyes bright. A step closer to forgiving myself. "Well, when I was younger, my mother was a drunk. Not really a fairytale or anything, but my mom would bring these guys home that weren't really the greatest. They would beat her, and I would have to take my younger brother and hide the two of us in a closet or bathroom… I hated the men for what they did to her, but I guess I also hated her for what they let them do to her. She thought she deserved it, I guess. So ever since then, I pretty much knew what I had to do."

Juniper looked at me with wide eyes. I just smiled at her and shrugged. "Deep, I know. But I know that even if that didn't happen, something else probably would have, and making me end up doing what I do today. But to be honest, if it weren't for my brother and Chiron, I wouldn't trust men at all, today."

Juniper gave me a small smile, and I could tell that she knew what I meant by that fact. I was starting to catch on to how we all felt about our old mentor, and I know that we all thought of him as a second father. Somehow, I knew that if you had Chiron Brunner for a mentor, it would be impossible to not think of him as a father figure.

"So, Annabeth, I think you should wake up so you can tell us about why you became a world-famous architect? Besides, I'm dying to find out why your so close with Percy all of the sudden… maybe some late-night make out sessions that Juniper and I need to be aware about?"

All of the sudden, I felt something twitch in my hand.

Then I realized that I felt Annabeth's hand twitch.

Then I realized that Annabeth heard me, and responded to me.

Damn, if I knew that would wake her up, then I would've made fun of her sooner.

"Annabeth, can you hear me?" I asked, hoping that it wasn't some kind of one-time thing. That would suck.

Juniper looked at me weirdly, but I shrugged it off. We waited in silence for a few moments before our thoughts were cut off with a groan.

Annabeth.

Juniper looked at me, shocked, as I took my other hand and stroked Annabeth's hair. Her eyes tightened up, and her face moved into a grimace, so that only answered my worst fear.

She could feel it all. I hoped that she would be one of those people where your body would numb it up before you could feel it, but I guess she wasn't that lucky.

She groaned again, straying me from my thoughts. I went into action-mode. "Juniper, go see if the guys are back, yet. We are going to need that fresh water, pronto."

Juniper, who still looked like a deer in headlights, nodded hesitantly, and left the hut. Annabeth's eyes still haven't opened, and I don't really want to see the look in them when they do.

Not being able to imagine the kind of pain she is in, I just tried my best to comfort her. "Annabeth, it's going to be okay, you're going to be okay... just hold on for us, okay?"

Annabeth moaned again, and I felt her squeeze my hand. I could only imagine what that meant, so I just made myself think about the positive things she would probably say.

But I knew that if we were going to get anywhere with helping her, she was going to have to open her eyes. Then, at least I would know if she hurt her head, or if she's going into shock. But right now, her eyes are tightly shut and her face is in a grimace. I could tell she was trying not to let anything escape her mouth.

I stifled my laughter at the thought of her screaming curses.

That would be a show.

"Annabeth, I need you to open your eyes for me, okay? Don't hold anything back… it'll give you a head ache if you do," I mumbled, giving her hand a squeeze.

And that's when she started screaming in pain.

Now I know why I made Juniper leave.

-Percy POV-

I knew how close the day was coming to a close. After taking a drink of water, to test it out of course, and filling up our little bottles and baskets, the guys and I headed for the camp. We knew that we had to move quick, not just because of the sun going down, but because of Annabeth.

It hurt to think about her, laying there and in pain. I couldn't shake the image of Annabeth laying there with the claw marks on her body. I've never seen someone so helpless before, even on the countless times I've been face to face with death before.

At least I know that I have incredible luck.

"Percy, I don't like this," Nico said from his position behind me. I knew what he meant. Not just by the darkness that was creeping its way into the forest as the sun went down, but by what had happened to Annabeth earlier. We all knew that every step we took was dangerous.

The same thought was going through all of our heads. What if that thing comes back for us? Every time that thought ran through my head, my pace quickened… so by now my pace was close to a run. The others were having a hard time keeping up with the bottles and baskets, but I knew they were happy I was going fast.

As I was running, I immediately thought back to Annabeth. What were her thoughts as she saw what hurt her? Was she even scared? Did she even have time to be scared?

My breath quickened as I saw the familiar look of blood on my hands, and I had to keep myself from looking down. But every time I tried to avoid seeing the blood, I would see her lying there. I couldn't get it out of my head, no matter what.

I had to catch myself as I stumbled from my foot hitting a rock on the forest floor. That's when I figured that I was just being foolish, and stopped. I had to tell them… this was eating me alive.

"Guys, this is my fault."

Grover and Nico stopped behind me, and as I turned around, I could see looks of imminent shock on their faces. Grover tried to speak up and say something, but I cut him off. "No, just please let me speak. I was the one who made her be so reckless in the first place… it's my entire fault. She shouldn't be hurt… not her, not anyone…"

I pretty much expected them to agree with me and get a move on, and not what they were doing. They shook their heads, and started to laugh. "Percy, I think you have it all wrong. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Hell, if I went the way she did, it would be me there lying on the beach with those wounds. It could have been any one of us," Grover said.

I shook my head at him, disagreeing with him. I knew it was my fault, and I knew that it wouldn't change... no one could change the fact that Annabeth was hurt. Maybe, if I took her with me to show her the claw marks, it would never have happened.

"Percy, stop thinking about it. It's done. It happened. Get over it," Nico snapped, his eyes narrowing. "I don't think you understand half of the story, anyways. I think you should talk to Annabeth before you start to blame yourself."

I knew that they would never be able to understand what was going through my mind. To be honest, sometimes I don't understand it myself. But they can't say that it wasn't my fault. They didn't see what I did to her. I was stupid, and I made her reckless.

That's why she wasn't on guard.

Instead of fighting with the others, I just silently turned around, and started for shore, at a faster pace. Just knowing that Annabeth was on the beach made me move faster than I was before. I knew that I had to make this right, and I had every intention of helping her.

It all starts with the water.

We were edging close to the opening to the beach, when I nearly avoided running into Juniper. She had a frantic look on her face as she was running towards us. My heart almost stopped when I realized some of the reasons why she would be trying to get us.

Annabeth…

"Juniper, what's wrong?" I heard Grover ask.

"She-she, she's awake!"

With that, I broke out into a sprint towards the hut, only to stop when I heard for the second time one of the worst sounds in the history of the world.

Annabeth's scream.

I moved in slow motion, setting down the bottles and basket carrying the water I brought back here, and walked wordlessly to the hut, cringing every time I heard Annabeth scream or moan.

All my fault.

I slid into the hut, and caught my breath when I saw Annabeth squeezing Thalia's hand, as she was looking in Annabeth's eyes. Feeling protective of her, I quickly moved over to where Annabeth lay, and started to move back some hair from her face, and try to comfort her while Thalia did her work.

Over a moan, I could hear Thalia say, "Her pupils are dilated. That could just be from the pain… where's the water?"

"Right here," Juniper's voice said. I could hear a scuffle as Thalia took the water from Juniper, but my focus was on Annabeth. I was mumbling sweet nothing to her, telling her it was going to be alright, and that I was there for her.

I was never going to leave her.

When she met my eyes, I saw her smile a bit, and she squeezed the hand that I was holding. All of the sudden, her eyes widened, and she started to scream. I looked up to Thalia for help when I saw that she was washing out Annabeth's wounds with water and the scraps of the tee shirt.

I felt Annabeth's death grip on my hand, and even though she was grinding it to dust, I didn't care and I just continued to try to calm her down, stroking her hair, and just trying to make her comfortable. I didn't know what else to do.

Soon, Annabeth's screams turned to moans, and her moans turned to nothing. She was sleeping in my arms, and I was holding her close, but careful of her wounds. She was never getting away from me again.

I saw the look Thalia threw me when she slipped out of the hut, and I smiled.

Of course everyone knew I was falling head over heels.

How did you like it? Don't forget to REVIEW or PM me… if you have anything to say, of course

~GoGreen43