Quiet Interludes: Chapter 13

Alone Together

Three days. It had been three days since Percy and Annabeth had crawled their way out of Tartarus. Half-dead, starving and beyond the limits of human capacity to feel fear, they had collapsed in a heap on the floor of the House of Hades. No one, not god or human had accomplished what they had done, survived the primordial being Tartarus as he actively tried to kill them. Even with the assistance of Bob and Damasen, they had achieved the impossible, and put themselves in the cross hairs of every deity who would consider their power a threat.

That concern, that they had marked themselves among the most powerful demigods weighed in the back of Percy's mind. He knew both he and Annabeth had many enemies, gods and monsters alike, and equally understood how precarious their position was among the world of those same gods and monsters. But at the present, he could not find the energy to concern himself with the secret godly meetings that may or may not be conducted on their behalf, wondering what to do with two upstart demigods so arrogant that they escaped the clutches of not only the Titans and giants of Tartarus, not only the primordial beings of Night and Akhlys, but of the master of the pit himself. There would be a reckoning.

But Percy could not bring himself to care of what may or may not happen, his mind was transfixed on the present, and he was bitterly tired of being of pawn of the Olympians, tired of risking his life and most of all, tired of fearing that through the gods machinations, he would again be separated from Annabeth.

These thoughts were what consumed his mind, perpetrated by the fear of what he witnessed while in Tartarus. He had heard it often, of soldiers who go off to war and suffer PTSD when they return. Percy wasn't sure if that was the name for what he suffered, but he knew that while he had physically escaped the pit, a part of him still lingered there, haunted by the endless nightmares would not let his mind rest.

Whenever he closed his eyes, the blood red air lingered within his vision, the sulfurous stench clung to him like second skin, not a stench that anyone could decipher, but one that he could not forget. In truth, over the last three days, he had pulled away from the rest of the crew of the Argo II, preferring his isolation, with the only exception being Annabeth. That's what had led him to sitting on the deck of the ship, his back against the railing as he had hoped the sounds of the ocean would bring him some solace.

But no comfort was given to him by the waters of his father's domain. The only reprieve from his shattered thoughts was Annabeth. Gods almighty, he never would have survived without her. If anything happened to her...he stopped that thought as he ran a shaky hand through his hair.

"Hey," Annabeth said simply, appearing as if summoned by his thoughts. She had a way showing up when he needed her most, and he turned his tired eyes toward the woman he loved more than life itself. "I brought you some food."

It was a common occurrence. Many of the other members of the seven chose to give Percy and Annabeth their space, and it fell to the two of them to take care of each other. Percy and Annabeth had theorized that the crew of the Argo II were scared of them, after all, what demigods could make their way out of Tartarus. So it was that Percy and Annabeth would come to the side of their lover and comfort them when they needed it most. Yesterday, it was Percy who felt Annabeth's despair, rushed to her side and held her in his arms as she wept over the unforgiving memories and terror.

Percy didn't respond directly to Annabeth, but stretched out his hand and took Annabeth's fingers between his thumb and forefinger, tugging lightly to indicate his desire for her to join him. Offering a small smile, Annabeth placed the plate on the deck before straddling Percy's legs and lowering herself to sit on his lap, her face inches from his as her eyes shimmered with the regret that she could not take away his pain.

He knew that look all too well, for he wore that same expression, knowing that he was powerless to take away those same nightmares that haunted her. Annabeth framed his face with her hands and pulled his head forward to rest against her chest as she lay her cheek against the top of his head. Instinctively Percy wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him, savoring the warmth of her body against his.

"Percy, you need to eat something, you need to keep up your strength," Annabeth pleaded, the only response was the tightening of Percy's arms and the shivering of his body as he fought back that tears that threatened to overtake him. Memories of Tartarus' form as he stood proudly, claiming he would slaughter the two demigods who dared walk through his domain, the curses they faced as they struck down the demons who barred their way, the same curses that had nearly burned Percy to ashes, the horrors of Night's mansion, the Cocytus River nearly sweeping Annabeth away in its current only for her to be the one to drag Percy from its depths. Each memory crashed upon him like a wave against the beach, eroding parts of him with every violent surge.

"Gods, if I ever lost you..." Percy whispered, his voice catching in the sob that ripped itself from his lips.

"I know," Annabeth said, her own words petering off in the desperation that they never face that possibility. "Gods Percy, I know. Six months, they took you from me for six months and now we're on this gods damned quest, Gaea wants our blood to resurrect herself and..." Annabeth's words failed her as the fear overtook her ability to speak. "I can't lose you again. I'm not strong enough to survive that..."

Time was irrelevant. It might have been minutes, or hours, or weeks that they held each other, purging their fear and desperation that they would survive this, but most of all they clung to their unchallenged need for each other. No, need wasn't quite the right word, it was dependence. It was this moment that solidified the realization that they simply could not survive without each other. Later, when they would revisit this memory, they would realize that this was the moment they began to heal, to move beyond the horrors they witnessed in the pit; but in the present, that reality was not privy to them.

After several moments of tears and confessions of their commitment to one another, they had gathered their emotions under control and simply held each other.

"Why are we even here?" Percy asked the question that had been bouncing around his mind since their escape from Tartarus. "I want to go home Annabeth. I don't care if it's New York, Camp Half-Blood or New Rome, I just want to leave...as long as you're with me, that's all I want. Let Nico and Reyna take our place among the seven, I just want to go home."

Annabeth lifted her head and pulled away from Percy to place a lingering kiss against his forehead before resting her own forehead against his and gazing desperately into his emerald eyes. "That's all I want too. But our friends need us."

The words deflated Percy slightly as he found himself drawn into Annabeth's eyes. He attempted a smile in response to her declaration, but could not find the energy to muster one. "I knew you would say something smart like that."

"Yeah..." Annabeth said, though she wasn't pleased with her answer. If she were brutally honest, she would abandon the quest, the world and the gods themselves to steal Percy away from this mission and keep the two of them safe. She hated herself for being so selfish, but after all she had given, after all Percy had given, weren't they entitled to be a little selfish? In response to her own unsettled nerves, Annabeth kissed Percy in a tender display of affection, a long, slow kiss that echoed all the sentiments they never spoke aloud.

"Percy, I uh..." she started, her eyes diverting from his. "I've been thinking about something, ever since we've returned. I haven't been able to sleep, every time I close my eyes, I just see that place."

"Yeah," Percy answered as he pulled Annabeth a little closer. "Same here."

"Do you remember when you and I fell asleep in the stables, did you have any nightmares?"

"No," Percy responded with the easy answer. "First time in a long time I could remember not having any"

"And the few times we fell asleep together in...well..."

She couldn't bring herself to say Tartartus...after all, names had power and that was a name she never wanted to utter again. But she didn't need to say it, Percy understood what she meant and again, he shook his head. "Same thing, I didn't have any nightmares, at least none of the times we fell asleep together. Wait...Annabeth, are you…"

"I want you to share my bed tonight." Normally a statement like that would have set Annabeth's cheeks aflame, but she stared fixedly at Percy, because her request was not sexual in nature, but born of simple emotional stability. "I only feel safe in your arms Percy, and besides, I'm...I'm terrified to wake up and find you missing again. I-I can't..."

"Okay, okay," Percy reassured her that he understood her request while pulling her closer to him, offering her a tender kiss of his own to ease not only her mind and fears, but the tension within his own body. Gods how he needed her. Because while she felt safer in his arms, he felt stronger in hers. She was the reason he did anything, and the reason he fought.

For the remainder of the day they sat in each others embrace, and when it came time for bed, Percy and Annabeth lay in her bed, sharing in their warmth of their bodies and the love that bound them together and gave them all the courage to face whatever this world threw at them. And when they dreamed that night, it was only of each other.

OC: Wow, it's been about a decade since I've actually written any fanfiction. Interestingly enough, I revisited the Percy Jackson series and just could not get over how well constructed their relationship is. Truthfully, this may be one of my favorite relationships in all of fiction, and for good reason, it's just that damn good. Anyway, as always if you're kind enough, please be kind enough to review. Thank you