No freedom for Percy just yet- it'll be a good few chapters before she makes it back to camp I'm afraid but she will make it back eventually. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter- once again, poor poor Percy. But hey, she does show a bit of spirit at the start.
Triggers: Once again, Alabaster is abusive, and very very creepy. Non consensual kissing. Also, kinda suicidal thoughts- Percy asks Alabaster to kill her because she's having a bit of a breakdown.
Just as Drew had said, Alabaster visited that evening.
Percy was in bed when he arrived. She didn't exactly have much to entertain herself with so she spent a lot of time in bed.
She sat up quickly when she heard the tell tale click of the lock and the door swung open.
"Have you settled down now." Alabaster stepped into the room, "Because-" he froze, his eyes focusing on Percy, "What the- What the fuck did you do?"
"I cut my hair." Percy smiled at him- showing all of her teeth, "Do you like it Bas?" she fluttered her eyelashes, her voice going all sweet as Alabaster's mouth dropped open.
"You- I liked your hair-"
"Oh? You did?" Percy asked as innocently as she could. "I didn't realize that- you always get it all knotted and tangled when you use it to throw me around, I figured you must hate it-"
"You're trying to piss me off aren't you?"
"Not everything's about you Bas." Percy shot back, "Or haven't you realized that already?"
"Percy-"
"What? What are you going to do to me that you haven't already done?" Percy's voice wasn't even angry- she wasn't yelling. It was flat and even. Because there wasn't any point in yelling was there? It never changed anything.
"You should have asked-"
"What? I should ask you what I can do with my own body?" Percy demanded, "I am not your pet or your toy Alabaster. No matter what you think. If I want to
cut my hair I will cut my hair and nothing you say or do will stop me-"
"You-" Alabaster gritted his teeth, taking a moment before he forced himself to relax before he walked over to the bed and perched on the edge of it. "We're not fighting right now. I won't allow it-"
"And suddenly I feel the urge to punch you in the face-"
"Do you have to be such a pain in the ass?" Alabaster yelled the words, "Seriously Percy I am trying to talk to you right now-"
"Uh huh, and I don't feel like chatting to a creep who abuses and assaults me on a daily basis and is keeping me as his own personal prisoner."
"I do not abuse you-"
"I'm sorry- are you the guy who dragged me around the room by my hair earlier?" Percy asked harshly, "Why yes I think you are-"
"You were trying to hit me-"
"Like you even feel it!" Percy almost shrieked the words "You got pissed off because I wasn't enjoying the way you were shoving your tongue down my throat and you decided to handle it by dragging me around and throwing me into the wall to hurt me because you know I can't fight back well right now."
"You can't fight back at all." Alabaster lashed out, grabbing Percy's ankle and yanking her down the bed towards him even as she let out a shriek and tried to kick out at him, losing her balance and falling backwards so she was led flat on the bed.
"Let me go!"
"No." Alabaster's voice was as sharp as any blade as he moved quickly suddenly hovering over her, his hands planted either side of her head, pinning her down and caging her in beneath him. "I don't have to do anything you say Percy. You're mine, not the other way around-"
"I'm not a piece of meat!" Percy hissed at him, glaring up at him- she considered bringing her knee up between his legs but- well she'd done it before and it did nothing more than annoy him. "I am not some toy for you to play with. I have thoughts and feelings and I belong to no one and the fact that you can't understand is one of the many, many reasons why you and I will never be together."
Alabaster's right hand moved suddenly gripping Percy's chin tightly.
"We will be Percy. In the end it'll be you and me. It's always been you and me." his voice was soft as his thumb brushed over the smooth skin of her cheek. "Gods you're so beautiful- I don't like the short hair but it doesn't change the fact that you're the most beautiful being I've ever seen."
"Alabaster-" Percy tried to push at his chest but it did no good, and he swooped down, pressing his lips against hers again, still gripping her chin to keep her face still, stopping her from being able to turn her head away to try and avoid the kiss.
Percy closed her eyes tightly, screwing her eyes shut as she felt his lips sliding against hers, his teeth scraping against her bottom lip, trying to coax her into kissing back.
When she didn't his hand slid down to her neck, fingers curling around it slightly- not squeezing, loose, but there was that inherent threat- and when after a few more moments she didn't respond Alabaster did squeeze and Percy felt her eyes prickling with tears beneath closed eyelids as she reluctantly parted her lips and kissed back- she didn't want to. She wanted to lash out and break every bone in his body for daring to touch her like that.
But she knew Alabaster, if she kept refusing he'd just choke her out until she had no other choice. It was better to give in now than fight and just hurt herself even more than she already was.
A moment later Alabaster was pulling back, and when Percy slowly opened her eyes they met emerald green eyes that were incredibly smug as the hand on her neck moved and he stroked it over her cheek gently. "So very beautiful." he breathed the words. "See Percy. Was that so hard?"
"I want to die." Percy could feel the tears trickling down her cheeks, "Please. Please just end it now. I can't do it any more Alabaster please."
"What?" Alabaster looked surprised, "But I was gentle- I was kind Percy I didn't hurt you. It was perfect- you must have felt it-"
"You had your hand around my throat and you would have strangled me if I didn't kiss you back. How is that perfect Alabaster?" Percy's voice was quiet and bitter. "I was just so willing. I loved feeling like you'd just tighten your grip and choke me out if I tried to tell you I didn't want you to kiss me. Gods why- you know I don't love you you know I don't want you. Why can't you just give up and accept that." she shook her head, "and the worst thing is that I know you never will. You're so obsessed that you can't see what you've done to me."
"What I've done-"
"You're killing me." Percy told him, "You're killing me bit by bit every day you keep me here Alabaster."
"You had your chances Percy." Alabaster shook his head, "Next time I see you things will be very different." his thumb was still brushing over her cheek gently. "You may regret not giving me a chance." he shook his head, "But in the end I guess it doesn't change anything. In just over a year we will tear down Olympus and then we'll rebuild. And when it's done you and I will be the new King and Queen. We'll take down the divine mafia and replace it with something so much better- the extent to which you have any power is up to you."
"King and Queen?" Percy's eyes narrowed and she snorted, "No way-"
"Yes." Alabaster pulled back, watching her with a slight smile on his lips, "See Perce, your sixteenth birthday is going to be our wedding day- and I don't care if you want it or not Princess. It's happening, so you might as well get used to the idea."
"No-" Percy's eyes widened, No- no you- you can't-" she scrambled off the bed as Alabaster got to his feet, catching his arm, "Alabaster please no." she felt terror flooding through her. Sure it was over a year away but- Percy could see very little chance of escape, not unless someone showed up to save her, and no one knew where she was. She had no power here. She was helpless. And now she was being told that he was going to marry her? That was too much.
"Percy-" Alabaster's gaze flicked from her desperate expression to her hands clutching at his arm, "Is it really that horrible of a thought? Being married to me-"
"I don't want to get married! I'm fourteen! I'm too young to even think about that. Alabaster this- you can't do this to me-"
"You don't get it do you?" Alabaster's smile was nasty. "I can do whatever I want to you Percy. You're a prisoner. This is a war, it's not meant to be nice Princess. I've been far kinder to you than I needed to be. When I come back things will change. You won't disrespect me ever again Percy. I promise you that much." he shook his head, "Now let go of my arm before I have to force you to let go- and believe me it will hurt you a lot more than you could ever hurt me."
"B-Bas please-" Percy's voice cracked, and she blinked back tears as she let go with one hand, the other hand sliding down his arm until she was gripping his wrist- their eyes meeting as she gripped his wrist- and she could remember that moment on the cliff, gripping his wrist as she was now.
Except in that moment she'd been content, not happy exactly but she'd been comfortable with her fate.
Now? Now she'd never felt more terrified in her entire life.
"Why should I show you mercy now?" Alabaster whispered the words, a darkness in his eyes, "Why should I show you mercy after everything that's happened? What mercy did you show me when you threw me off a cliff." he lifted his left hand, gesturing to the scarring of his face. "Why should I show you any kindness?"
"Please." Percy whispered the word, desperately trying to draw out something- some kind of leftover kindness, some remnant of the love he'd felt for her- it might have been twisted but he had loved her once. If there was any true fondness left then maybe she could get through to him.
She shifted her grip, rubbing her thumb over his pulse point. "Please if you ever loved me-"
And the back of his hand hit her face and she cried out, grip on his wrist loosening automatically as he head snapped to the side and she stumbled, backwards, hitting the wall.
"How dare you?" his voice was a snarl, "How dare you try to manipulate me-" her cheek throbbed from the force of the blow. "How fucking dare you act as if you care how I feel." he was advancing on her and Percy pressed herself back against the wall, choking down a sob of fear as he drew closer to her.
"I-I'm sorry- I'm sorry I'm so sorry- I didn't mean to-"
"No, no you never do, do you." he gripped her chin tightly, "You don't get to try and play the victim princess." his nails were digging into her cheeks so hard that she felt sure that he was drawing blood.
"Sorry. I'm sorry I'm sorry."
"You will be." Alabaster grabbed her wrist, a nasty smirk on his lips as he slipped one hand into his pocket- and a moment later he was snapping a thin silvery band around her wrist, and even as her gaze snapped down to look at it the band was shifting slightly, the thin joints where it had snapped into place almost melting into one until it was almost seamless.
"What- what's tha-"
"You'll find out princess." and Alabaster was pressing his lips to hers again, biting her bottom lip hard before he pulled out, his lips painted red with her blood even as Percy let out a pained whimper. "I'll see you when I get back." he yanked her forward slightly, "And remember, behave for Drew. She's under orders, if you try anything stupid she has my permission to punish you." then he was shoving her back and she collided with the wall again, painfully, and he was turning around and stalking towards the door, letting himself out and slamming the door behind him.
And when Percy heard the click of the lock she slowly let her legs give out, sliding down the wall until she was sat, her knees pulled to her chest protectively as she tugged at the band around her wrist- but it was fairly snug against her skin, there was no way she'd be able to slide it off. Whatever it was for, she wasn't going to get it off.
Then she let out a frustrated noise, head dropping back against the cool stone of the wall.
She was so, so sick of being trapped. She wasn't sure how much longer she would be able to last.
She could feel herself losing hope. Feel herself breaking.