Of Spars and Vacant Cabins

Rated T

In which Percy Jackson doesn't receive the entirety of his memories back and when it's finally time for the Roman demigods to regard the Greeks with a peace treaty that will enable them to work against Gaea cohesively, Annabeth Chase finds herself developing a new relationship with Percy Jackson - one that glorifies brutality and roughness.

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Part Seven:

"Vacant Cabins."

Relearning intimacy was not something Percy anticipated being so incredibly. . .invigorating.

Hearing Annabeth moan and whimper in ways that piqued Percy's sudden fascination in the female body distracted him from the fact that, to his own working memory, this was the first time he had ever pleasured someone. Whether it was implicit memory or secretly listening in to the crude talks the male legionnaires would have, Percy figured whatever he was doing was satisfying enough to make Annabeth feel gratified. Watching her smile dazedly and bite her lip whenever he suckled on a certain part of her neck? Amazing. Feeling her rub against against him while she tugged on his hair? Mind-shattering. And, most importantly, hearing her whimper his name when he was doing literally anything right? Reassuring.

Consumed with the yearning and unadulterated longing that was continually building up between them after every kiss, touch, and word that was shared, Percy didn't have a lot of time to ponder whether or not this was a wise decision. From the beginning of waking up at the Wolf House with Lupa, Percy gradually began to identify that he succumbed to his own free-will more often than not. Without any explicit memories to assist him in his journey to Camp Jupiter, Percy relied more on his own judgment more than anything else. The thing is, free-will did not allow him to recognize that kissing Annabeth could be a potentially unwise decision; however, if Percy, himself, did not feel like it was wrong then he would not treat the situation in that way. He decided he would leave that type of thinking for a particular daughter of Athena who seemed too entirely wrapped up in the moment to care or was simply ignoring it just as he was. In this moment, his bitter feelings toward that vengeful goddess had magnified because how unfair was it that she denied him access to experiencing Annabeth in a way that reaffirmed his almost apprehensive attraction for her?

However, as the saying goes: all good things must come to end.

Percy's hands rested comfortably underneath Annabeth's shirt, rubbing her smooth skin unconsciously as his mind prioritized kissing her. It wasn't until his hands tugged on her shirt and began to slide it off did Annabeth seem to come out of the reverie that could be described as teenaged sexual bliss.

"Mm," Annabeth moaned as she dreadfully broke the kiss, pushing against Percy's chest to sit up and stop his eager hands. "Wait, I-I don't-"

"Sorry," Percy swallowed, having a hard time keeping his eyes from wandering away from Annabeth's swollen lips. "Guess I got a little carried away."

Annabeth chuckled, rubbing his forearm as she leaned against his headboard looking at him with an almost imperceptible, amazed look. "You guess, huh? I just think maybe we should talk before any clothes come off, especially since we agreed to be friends not only the day before today. Kind of defeats the purpose."

Percy sighed in slight exasperation because all they had done the previous day and, not even twenty minutes before, was have emotional discussions that made his brain throb with exhaustion. "Can we talk after we, I dunno, finish making out? Then, we can go back to being just friends."

Annabeth breathed out an air of subtle annoyance and rolled her eyes, assessing him with what seemed like newfound interest or maybe it was wistfulness? "Could you be anymore of a teenaged boy? You know, when we were actually just friends we weren't kissing on each other like this and you weren't always this forward."

Percy insensibly muttered, "Pretty sure we were when you thought I was going to die and I got blown out of a volcano."

Annabeth paused and stared at him with a deep frown as she regarded him seriously.

Percy paused and stared at Annabeth with a deep frown because, well, why was she looking at him like that?

Then, they both registered Percy's words and blinked as Percy processed the memory that was now replaying through his mind.

The heat of lava kissing his skin as they discovered a hidden forge under Mount Saint Helens. Telekhines scurrying about as they created weapons of mass destruction. Annabeth's worried face as she worked up the nerve to leave him. The fear that pooled in his gut as he realized the severity of the situation. And finally, the confusion but also warming comfort that came from feeling Annabeth's lip on his for the time.

He remembered it as though it happened yesterday.

"Are you remembering what happened?" Annabeth whispered gently, as if the volume of her voice would distract from the memory fully forming. She looked at Percy with concern as he rubbed his head as he found himself lost in thought.

"Um, yeah," Percy responded, feeling his jaw tighten as this familiar sensation of frustration caught up to him. "It's weird because I said it before I fully even processed the memory."

"Hm, maybe we should make out more if it's helping you regain some of your memories," Annabeth half-joked, sending him a small smile as she assessed him an inquisitive gaze.

"Well, if you hadn't stopped maybe I would have all my memories by now," Percy quipped with mock irritation, smirking as Annabeth looked at him with an affronted expression.

Annabeth looked like she was in thinking mode because she removed herself from their tangled limbs (which caused Percy to sigh loudly) and began to pace as she rubbed her hands together.

"Okay, so it's actually pretty interesting," Annabeth said, though not directly to Percy. "It seems like you have most forms of your memory except your episodic memories. I mean, you would need your procedural memory in order to fight with Riptide, so she wasn't going for full-blown amnesia - otherwise, you'd be useless."

"Thanks," Percy drawled dryly, turning to sit on his bed comfortably as he watched Annabeth refine her thoughts.

"And she didn't want you to have to relearn English, so you're implicit memories seem to be pretty strong. From what I've seen, only certain things that hold sentimental values may trigger a slight episodic memory," Annabeth assumed, gnawing on her lower lip in a way Percy couldn't tell whether it was painful or not. "But it's weird and inconsistent. When you kissed me, you remembered my nickname. When you saw Rainbow, you remembered our first underwater kiss. And, then, right now, when we were kissing you remembered our first kiss. I'm not seeing a significant link, however, do you feel like there's any pattern to how you're receiving your memories?"

Percy shook his head. "Honestly, Annabeth, I think it's more random than what I can keep up with. Cause what does Rainbow have anything to do with us kissing? I mean, from what I remember, he wasn't there right?"

Annabeth slumped her shoulders in disappointment. "No, he wasn't there. Also, you never did tell me how you remembered I was the Architect of Olympus. Maybe that might help."

"It was more like how I just remembered the volcano kiss. I said it before even fully processing the memory while we were walking to my cabin."

Annabeth sighed deeply, appearing to be insanely frustrated. "It just doesn't make sense and my brain hurts trying to make sense of it! Maybe there really isn't any link or pattern, maybe this is your brains way of slowly regaining your memory. Or maybe her magic is wearing off, who fucking knows? It's really starting to bother me that I can't do anything to fix this. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what memory comes next."

Percy stood up and grabbed both of Annabeth's hands into his own, smiling at her glowering face. "Watching you be more stressed out than me about my memories is strangely comforting because for so long I felt alone with my emotions. But, look, I want my memories back just as much as you do and since I've been at Camp Half-Blood, I remembered more than I ever had while being at Camp Jupiter. Being here at camp and with you has been helping a lot. That has to count for something, right?"

Annabeth smiled a small smile that couldn't quite reach her eyes, removing her hands from Percy's. "It does, trust me, it does. I'm sorry but I'm just impatient and I've been feeling extremely needy. And. . .you still feel far away from me."

Percy frowned at Annabeth's words, giving her a suspicious look. "I mean, you were just underneath me. Against me. In my bed. That doesn't seem very far to me."

Annabeth's face was warmed with a red hue that displayed her discomfort. "That's not what I mean, Percy, and you know that."

"Is there where you tell me that I'm not who I'm used to be and it's just not the same?" Percy drawled with an edge of flatness lacing his words, looking unimpressed as Annabeth gave him a pleading look. "Cause if that's the case-"

"Percy," Annabeth said shortly, knitting her eyebrows in confusion. "I'm not trying to argue with you anymore. I just want to be honest with you. Whether or not your memories are there, it's still really obvious that we are physically attracted to each other. My attraction for you is very real, otherwise I wouldn't feel comfortable allowing things to get this far. All I'm saying is that without your memories, the things that allow us to be emotionally connected, I find you to be a little unfamiliar. You feel far away from me because it's harder for me to know what you're thinking or what you're feeling. I can only imagine this has been traumatic for you but it's becoming evident that you're not going to be the same, exact person that you were before - whether I like that or not - and that's completely fine. However, restoring your memories is kind of my way of being selfish about hoping things would return to the way they were before you disappeared."

Percy's shoulders sagged in defeat. It didn't feel good to have someone tell that you didn't meet their expectations when you weren't even aware what it is was you needed to exceed. If Percy knew anything about the relationship they previously shared, he knew that how he currently carried himself was not enough for Annabeth. He could vaguely understand where Annabeth was coming from once she fully explained herself but that didn't alleviate the feelings of inadequacy he was beginning to feel around her in that moment. Of course he wanted his memories back and to be the person she fell in love with, he at least felt that much, but he didn't want to be that person if he had to force himself to be. There was this indistinct emotion that enveloped him discreetly whenever he found himself around Annabeth that made him yearn to be whoever the hell it is she wanted him to be. Percy was beginning to muse that since he couldn't entirely initialize the emotions he felt for Annabeth, the way that felt most natural to him and allowed him to feel a semblance of attachment to her was intensely intimate.

If they weren't connecting enough emotionally, maybe the physicality would reignite the emotions?

Or, maybe, it was just his novel and suppressed sex drive navigating such thoughts.

He didn't know, he was just tired of things being extremely complicated.

Percy walked over to his disorderly bed and laid down on it with one of his legs hanging off the side. He threw one of his arms over his his eyes, as if to shield himself from the expression he wasn't sure Annabeth would make when he asked her this question: "If I never get my memories back will I ever be enough for you?"

Percy could hear Annabeth's breath hitch as he could sense her slowly processing his words.

Though, the question that Annabeth asked next made him sit up with internal retrospection leading his sentiments of uncertainty.

"How do you even know that I'm enough for you, Percy?"

Percy remained silent, locking his jaw as he internalized Annabeth's words.

"I mean, like I said, we're still physically attracted to each other but how do you know if I'm someone you genuinely want to be with?" Annabeth asked, despair adorning her words with a conviction that completely sobered up Percy's once elated mood.

"I don't know," Percy muttered bitterly, feeling himself grow angry at the truth.

"I got lucky," Annabeth said sadly. "I really am lucky that you at least still have an interest in me because that would make things so much more harder but maybe you just feel drawn to me because you want to understand why were so connected for yourself. What happens when you find out and you feel like you can't return those feelings because they don't seem familiar to you?"

Percy sighed, kind of tired of hearing the reality of an insensible situation. "Can you at least answer my question? I'm not that dumb to not notice when someone is deflecting."

"I don't know how to answer that, Percy," Annabeth admitted, shielding her eyes from him. "You shouldn't base your worth about how I feel about you, anyway. You are more than enough, I just think we need some time re-getting to know each other. It's no one's fault but I'm just starting to think we should really take things slow. Adding intimacy to undeveloped feelings could really complicate things."

Percy scoffed, smirking in a way that felt unneeded for a conversation as serious as the one they were having. "Annabeth, I think you're complicating things. Every time we've kissed, I've gotten a memory back. So, maybe, we shouldn't stop the one thing that's been consistent in this whole memory ordeal."

Percy was fully aware that Annabeth was being completely justified and logical. It made sense and that much he could acknowledge. Percy could see himself developing genuine feelings toward Annabeth, he felt them beneath a surface of emotions that he had but adding intimacy would cloud him from really identifying if his feelings of lust could be translated into feelings of admiration. Right now, he was incredibly intrigued and felt innately drawn to her - physically and emotionally. He didn't want to admit this to Annabeth, but he thought the reason why he wanted to kiss and hold her so bad stemmed from most of his memories, the intense ones, revolving around them kissing. He really enjoyed it and didn't want it to go away so soon, so, yeah, sue him if wanted to toy around with her before she finalized the ever changing dynamic of their unestablished relationship. He wished he received more memories of them interacting normally or being on a quest so he could understand why a son of Poseidon and a daughter of Athena were able to get into a relationship together.

Annabeth scowled, appearing to be immensely conflicted as she set her jaw. "No. There has to be another way."

Percy shrugged, inspecting his nails. "Mhm, just let me know when you figure that out. And you should probably stay away from me, wouldn't want to kiss you and trigger a memory."

Annabeth regarded him apprehensively. "If I find out you remember everything already and are just messing with me, I will hurt you. Badly."

This made Percy straighten up. He wasn't that skilled to pull something off like that. "Why would you say that? I don't think I would be that great of an actor."

"You're just really confusing me right now. You had the tendency to be sarcastic and witty like that. I don't know, it's throwing me off," Annabeth said, looking uncomfortable. "Maybe you're just warming up to me now."

That much was true. Percy couldn't find himself feeling as guarded and unsure after having Annabeth in his arms like that.

"Or maybe I'm really not as different as you think," Percy pointed out.

"Maybe," Annabeth repeated with a frown on her face, pulling on her invisibility cap to signify the end of the conversation.

He watched as an invisible Annabeth opened and closed the door of his cabin, leaving him in the company of silence.

Percy decided he was too tired to process the complicated thoughts that infiltrated his mind and allowed his mind to drift into a slumber that was motivated by wishful thinking.

Percy figured he was used to a lot of disruptive things but hearing someone bang on his door amidst a peaceful slumber ignited a different rage inside of him. It was way too early for him to comprehend things like noise.

"What?" Percy growled tiredly as he swung open the door to his cabin and immediately squinted his eyes due to how bright the sun was.

Reyna was at the door lowering her hand from aggressively knocking on his door only moments before. She looked at his disheveled state distastefully and crossed her arms in a way that made Percy feel like he was about to get lectured. He was honestly tired of their dynamic and the conversation he had with Annabeth didn't do anything to help with the lack of patience he had. He didn't like the feeling of being constantly told what he was doing was wrong and being told how he should act.

"Rey-"

"Do you know what time it is?" Reyna cut him off, glowering.

"I don't know, like, 9 am?" Percy guessed tiredly, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

"It's 12:15pm and we had a meeting scheduled for 12pm. Not only are you tardy, you were caught in the early morning breaking curfew rules. You're doing such an amazing job as a Praetor," Reyna said irritably, her guard dog Aurum grunting in agreement.

Percy sighed deeply. "I'm sorry, I really am but if you haven't noticed I don't want to be Praetor anymore. I don't know how many times I have to tell you until you understand I'm just not cut out for the position. Need help fighting some monsters? I'm there. But resolving disputes between fauns and legionnaires about boundaries is not my style. I don't like waking up early. I don't like having to tell Octavian to shut up every five seconds. And I especially don't like wearing a toga. If you won't talk to Jason, I will."

Reyna stood there with the most off-put expression on her face that Percy almost regretted being honest with her. "Percy," Reyna said pleadingly, her eyebrows furrowing with defeat outlining the contours of her face. "Please. I just came here to talk about our meeting, not about you resigning. Must we continue to do this."

"Let me shower first and we can talk more about this," Percy suggested, sighing deeply when Reyna's apprehensive look failed to fade away.

"Fine," Reyna crossing her arms, not making any movements to move away from outside his door.

Percy raised an eyebrow and uncomfortably left his door cracked, feeling unnerved by Reyna's change in demeanor.

After purposefully taking extra time in the shower to collect his thoughts and rethink his words, Percy was freshly showered and feeling even more inspired to give up his Praetorship. When Percy finally got around to reopening his door, Reyna was still there with her guard dogs, however, she looked uncomfortable as she was standing next to Jason and Piper - engaging in a discourse that seemed unsatisfactory.

"Um, hi," Percy said unsurely, confused as to why the couple was outside his door.

"Oh, hi, Percy," Piper said loudly with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "We were just coming over to check on you."

Jason rubbed his neck glancing between Piper and Reyna quickly before nodding at Percy. "Yeah, we missed you at sword fighting, so we were concerned and wanted to check on you."

Percy narrowed his eyes. "Or Annabeth missed me at sword fighting and she's too stubborn to come see me herself."

Jason and Piper looked at each other with a look that said, "Woah, wasn't expecting that response."

"Sure," Piper chuckled uncomfortably. "But now that we see you're okay, we'll just head out."

"Actually, I wanted to speak to Jason," Percy cut in quickly, ignoring how his skin tingled in discomfort at the scathing look Reyna gave him. "Or, well, Reyna and I did."

Percy figured that since Jason was standing right here, this would be the perfect opportunity for them all to discuss Jason regaining his status as praetor. All Reyna needed was a little push to begin the conversation. She couldn't evade this situation forever.

"Oh," Jason said hoarsely before clearing his throat and glancing at Piper, "Um, sure. About what?"

Percy looked at Reyna to respond, as a way to prompt her but his expression quickly changed once he saw the look of deep betrayal that settled over her face. She simply shook her head with an uncontainable fury that was evident and stomped away with her guard dogs following her hot on her trail. Percy instantly felt guilty because it had occurred to him that he was acting so selfishly, especially since he was aware of Reyna and Jason's strained history. He was feeling overwhelmed in nearly all areas of his life and he so desperately wanted to rid himself from the one area he could possibly fix.

Percy sighed shakily and told Jason, "I'm sorry. I guess we'll have to talk another time, man."

Jason nodded, still staring at Reyna's retreating figure with knitted eyebrows and then looked at Piper, who also wore a worried expression on her face. "It's all good. Just come find me at any time. I'm pretty sure I know what you want to talk about."

Percy awkwardly smiled and then ran to catch up with Reyna, who was approaching the outskirts of the Southern Woods at an alarming rate.

"Reyna, please, wait up!" Percy shouted in an apologetic tone. "I'm sorry!"

Reyna had expertly made her way through throngs of trees and bushes, evading the interested looks of the nymphs that decorated the woods. Reyna's guard dogs would turn and snap at Percy every couple of seconds but made no advancements due to the lack of direction from their own. Percy's shouts were left unheard and slowly shifted into worried statements as he approached her at a manageable pace.

"Reyna," Percy pleaded in a firm voice, frustrated and no longer willing to pursue the angered praetor.

Abruptly, Reyna whipped around and drew her spear-sword out so fast, Percy couldn't even process that the pressure that rested against his neck was none other than the deadly end of her weapon.

"I should have killed you the moment you stepped foot into Camp Jupiter," Reyna confessed harshly, revealing the unshed tears that had gathered in her eyes on their way into the woods.

"So, why didn't you?" Percy retorted tiredly, not making any movements to deflect the blade that rested so comfortably against his neck. This was like the tenth time Percy had heard her say that but she would never offer an answer.

"Despite everything that your actions put me through, I knew that Camp Jupiter needed you and, as a praetor, I swallowed my desire for vengeance in replacement for my desire to carry out my duty," Reyna told him miserably, frowning at Percy's solemn look.

"All my life, all I've known is duty. Whether it was to Circe, my sister, Camp Jupiter - my devotion is what distracts me from allowing to recognize how terribly unlucky I am," Reyna admitted as she bowed her head in shame, lowering her blade as she approached Zeus' Fist. "As much as I fake it, I have never felt truly in control. My control was lessened when you destroyed my home. My control was weakened when my sister pursued life with the Amazons. My control was absolutely obliterated when Jason went missing."

"Reyna-" Percy started but was cut off when Reyna held up a hand.

"So, you'll have to excuse me for not wanting to work with someone who does nothing for my control. Jason lost his memories and even when he got them back, I was not enough for him. Piper is what makes him feel satisfied. I am not ready to fully accept that," Reyna said breathlessly, chuckling in what seemed like despair.

"We weren't dating but I'd like to think that we could have. We worked so well together," Reyna said, smiling wryly as she recalled distant memories. "It pains me to see them together but, ultimately, I feel so relieved that he is happy and, more importantly, safe. Even if it's not with me. Please allow me some time to heal before ambushing me into accepting something I'm not ready for."

"Reyna, I really am sorry for doing that. That wasn't cool, at all," Percy apologized, feeling a lump of emotion settle in his throat at Reyna's words. "I've been so caught up in my own emotions, wants, and needs that I really didn't care to remember the history that you two share. I know that it has taken you a lot to accept me and it makes me feel worried to remember what I did to hurt you. Sometimes I find myself wanting to remember everything and then there's the shitty part of me that is glad I can't remember all the horrible things I've done. I know I wasn't perfect. I want to support you, Reyna, I really do and I will in any way possible but at the end of the day, I am Greek. As someone who barely remembers who they are, there are some things that feel right and some things that feel wrong. As honored as I am to be praetor in a sea of Greek-hating Romans, it just doesn't feel right."

Reyna nodded, conflicting adorning her face. "I can understand that but can you please just acknowledge my request? I need time. This won't be forever."

Time at my expense, Percy thought glumly, his need to appease others battling his need to free himself from his misery.

Percy truly did feel sorrow for Reyna. The guy she spent so much time worrying about up and went found himself another girl, even with his memories fully recovered. Percy wasn't aware of how much of Jason's feelings were reciprocated toward Reyna but it clearly wasn't enough for him to leave Piper alone. Amidst Reyna's unexpected display of emotion, all Percy could think about was the concept of being enough. Percy and Jason shared similar situations. The only difference was that faint memories of a girl Percy didn't know was what kept him from developing or even pursuing romantic advances that had come his way (which were little to none). All Percy had to hold on to was relapsing memories of Annabeth's smile and he was incredibly lucky she didn't give up on him. He could only imagine having random memories of him kissing Annabeth appear while she was off dating some other guy.

Percy felt deeply conflicted. He had been acknowledging Reyna's request for over a month now. He knew he was someone who was loyal and always felt an incredible urge to help others, however, being praetor only furthered the dark cloud of emotions that seemed to follow him nowadays. How was he supposed to lead an entirely different culture he barely knew of when he could barely remember his own? Sure, he could fight with them but lead them? That would require respect and he knew that the only people who truly supported him derived from Cohort 5. Percy knew he was being selfish and he felt bad about it but self-preservation was consuming his thoughts.

"Reyna," Percy said, shaking his head. "Like I said, I really am sorry you are experiencing this but we're gonna have to consider other options if Jason isn't to your liking. I only ever think about other people and for the first time, I think this is what I need. I want to focus more on recovering my memories and getting to know my past life before I'm swept off into another quest I don't even know if I'll come back from. Can we at least compromise?"

Reyna's tense shoulders dropped and she shrugged. "I'll consider it. But-" Reyna quickly swung her fist at an unprepared Percy's face. "That's for making me cry-" Percy recoiled in shock as he held his bloody nose.

"Ouch! Was that really necess-" Percy didn't get to finish as his vision was consumed in darkness, the pain of Reyna's spear-sword's hilt hitting the side of his head enveloping him as he dropped to the floor.

"And that's for destroying my home," Reyna finished for him, groveling in satisfaction at seeing him unconscious on the floor.

Reyna discreetly looked around and saw tree nymphs leaving their trees to look on in shock as they peered at the son of Poseidon. Reyna knew it was reckless and the rage she had hadn't quite left her but she knew no one could know of this.

"And if any of you were tell anyone else about this, you'll be next," Reyna promised, whistling for Aurum and Argentum to follow along.

i've had this chapter half-finished for months, so sorry it took forever. :( i'm super busy but i will finish the story, just know it might take a while but it will be finished.

who did you agree with more this chapter? Reyna or Percy.

-theblacksiren