Artemis PoV
I woke up warm, in Percy's arms. He was kind to me, and for that I was thankful. I was thankful for him saving me from drowning in the Alaskan waters. I was thankful he had brought me to the cabin instead of just leaving me to die on the glacier. I was thankful he had sworn not to take advantage of me. I was thankful he had made sure I didn't get hypothermia. I was thankful that he had saved me from Orion. I was thankful he didn't do anything afterwards. I was thankful he had shown me that not all men are bad. I was thankful for all of these things, and a lot more, but there was one thing I wasn't thankful for. He was so damn kind and selfless that I had started to have feelings for him. I sighed. Percy realized I was awake and sat up, his arms still around me. I tried denying to myself that I enjoyed it. He spoke in a soft tone. "Artemis, are you alright?" I nodded. Truth was, I was terrified of what the bastard Orion was going to do. I tried standing up, and immediately fell back down. Percy had the smallest of smiles on his face when he asked, "Are you sure about that Arty?"I stuck my bottom lip out at him and he chuckled. Trying to change the subject, I said, "Um, what's with the 'Arty'?"
Percy stuttered, "U-u-um, it-it's a-a nickname. I'll stop calling you that."
I smirked and said, "Nah, I like it. Besides, it permits me to give you a nickname. I'm thinking seaweed head, because your eyes are the colour of seaweed. Or maybe I'll just call you aqua boy." My hands flew to my mouth as colour rose to my cheeks, I hadn't intended to say that. Percy gave me a smirk that made my heart skip a beat. changing the subject again, I said, "So, what am I supposed to do if I can't walk?" Percy's smirk grew. He picked me up bridal style and I yelped. I stuttered. "I-I guess that works." He carried me to the couch, setting me on the bit where I could extend my legs, which Percy did because I couldn't feel mine.
He looked at me and said, "I'm only doing this to see what's wrong with your legs, so we can figure out how to heal them, okay?" I nodded. I wasn't sure what he wanted to do, but I was fairly certain I could trust him. He rolled my jeans up to my knees and put his hands on the back of my calves. "They're really tense, as though the muscles are really knotted up." I nodded again, wondering how he knew that. He smiled apologetically and started massaging my calves. It felt really good, but I wasn't sure how to feel about Percy touching me like that. He finished and told me to try and move my legs. It didn't work. His brow furrowed and he said, "May I massage further up?" In the most 'I'm not going to try anything funny, I swear' way possible. I nodded, almost immediately regretting it, as that's how long it took for a very feminine sound to build up in the back of my throat. Percy had picked me up, leaning me against him as he massaged the back of my lower thighs.
When I couldn't take it any longer, I let out a soft whimper that, thankfully, Percy didn't notice. He stopped and dropped his hands, so I was just laying on top of him. I tried kicking my legs up, and only managed to shift my torso. He moved his hands back to where they were on my thighs and started massaging them again. Ever so slowly, his hands crept further up and inwards. I wished Apollo were here, then he could just snap his fingers and heal my legs. Though, if Apollo were here right now, he'd be trying to kill Percy because his hands were on my upper inner thighs. He kept creeping upwards, until I felt his hands brushing the line where my underwear was. Before I even tensed up, Percy moved his hands back down and looked at me with a 'sorry, didn't mean to do that' face. Then he shifted, so I was sitting in his lap, facing him. Subconsciously, I wrapped my legs around his waist and leaned closer into him. He stood up, hands on my thighs, and I wrapped my arms around his neck. I hugged him tighter, bringing my mouth to his ear. "Thank you, Percy," I whispered. He blushed lightly and hugged me back.
"No problem, Arty," He said. "I'd hate to see you so upset. After all, I doubt you could last very long not doing anything." I smiled and let go. Then, of course, I tripped. Percy quickly grabbed me, but also tripped. He twisted so he was beneath me when we fell. I landed, my face less than an inch from his. I felt his warm breath on my face. He wrapped me in a hug and stood up, holding me.
When he let go, I cleared my throat and said, "Um, well, thanks, aqua boy. So, uh, I hear that you're one of the worst archers in the world. I could help you with being a decent archer."
Percy had a fearful look on his face, "Uh, sure, but I get to teach you sword fighting, or, uh, improve it." I smirked and grabbed his hand, dragging him to the combat room. He helped me set up some targets, and we picked out a bow. It was deep blue, with a silver crescent moon on it. He took a stance, and I shook my head, knowing this would take a while. I corrected his stance, shifted his elbow, and he released. Somehow, the arrow split in two, flying backwards. One part hit me in the shoulder. while the other hit me in the thigh. "Oh, gods, I'm so, so, so, sorry Artemis," He repeated. I just nodded, wincing at the arrow bits. He picked me up, careful of my shoulder and thigh.
