"Percy!" Chiron screamed, "Percy, you need to save the campers! Go back, don't worry about me!"
"No!" The word tore from Percy's throat, "Why did we lower the age for campers, theses kids are too young to be in this danger! I can't leave you and I can't leave them! I'll save you all!"
"You can't save us all. Pick, Percy. You must pick."
Looking back at the babies, at least twenty, crying, wearing CHB onesies, Percy's mind shrieked. Every bone in his body told him to save the babies. Small, half-blood children that, for some reason, had been sent to camp way too early. But then, Chiron was his mentor, his rock, a constant. How could he leave him alone. Plus, wasn't Gaea supposed to be gone? What was this mysterious threat that was forcing him to pick? He had never been good at choosing, he always wanted to save everyone, to save his friends. He was tired of making difficult decisions. Why couldn't the gods leave him alone? He thought he was in the clear, but here he was, making life or death choices again, and time was running out. He would save the babies, and then try to get Chiron after. It was decided.
Letting loose a yell, he lunged forward, or rather, her tried to. His feet jerked out from under him. He was wearing the winged shoes Luke had given him. How? Percy thought they were at the bottom of Tartarus. Now they were attached to his feet and pulling him quickly away from the battle, to gods know where. He didn't care if he died, not really, but he couldn't die not knowing if his loved ones were safe. Was Annabeth ok? Would those babies be ok? Chiron? How could he leave without knowing?
Percy's eyes flew open, his muscles locked. This happened often. He had horrible nightmares, ones that didn't even make sense, but scare the crap out of him, then when he awoke, he was paralyzed. He wouldn't scream, wouldn't move. No, he would barely blink until his heart rate returned to normal and his joints unhinged. Annabeth was different. She was loud. She woke screaming, tears running down her face. Although, she didn't have control over her limbs either. Unlike Percy though, her arms flailed, her legs kicked, and she thrashed about hopelessly until she realized that she was home and safe. The pit had not been kind to the couple's minds, but they were slowly healing.
In an attempt to overcome the anxiety leftover from the dream, Percy focused on Annabeth's breathing. It was steady. She was safe. That's all that mattered.
One breath in.
One breath out.
One breath in.
One breath out.
Annabeth was alive and safe, excited about organizing her office tomorrow. That was all that mattered. There was nothing else. Listen to her calm breathing. It's real. The dream was not.
Slowly, he regained control of his body. Groaning, he sat up and swung his legs off the edge of the bed. His feet settled on the cool floor and he stood, ignoring the protests of his left knee, the one that always acted up when it got cold. He padded his way into the kitchen, watching carefully for boxes left over in the floor. Then, he looked at the clock, which blinked 4:17. Sighing, he clicked a K-cup into its slot and watched as warm coffee spurted into a waiting mug. Then, he sat quietly on the couch, as he did almost every morning around this time. Most days he worked out after his cup of coffee, but this morning, exhausted from the last week of moving in, he was just still. He took the time to think about his future. For once, he could have dreams and a hope of a future. Annabeth had gotten into the architecture program at Columbia, which had postponed the New Rome plans for the immediate future. Percy was studying at NYU, political science, and was surprised that he actually enjoyed it, though he had to admit that some days he didn't take it too seriously. A leopard can't completely change its spots. He worked out often, he found respite from old memories in the burn and adrenaline of competition and fitness. He lifted, swam, and ran on the streets early in the morning. Of course, he attracted the occasional monster, which was sometimes nice. It seems weird, but every once in awhile you need to disintegrate something with your sword, you know? Percy sighed. Annabeth would kill him if she knew he went looking for fights. She would call him stupid and impulsive. Two things that he was, but he didn't want her to worry. She was already so stressed about her upcoming midterms. Her first class today was at 10:30, and she was up studying until 2 am. She would wake up around 9:45, shove some food in her mouth, her princess curls into a bun, and run to class. How strange was it that they were living two totally different lives. Her, going to bed two hours before he woke. Him, slipping back into bed just before he knew her alarm went off, so she wouldn't have to worry about why he wasn't sleeping. Jason told him that he needed to tell her soon, that he was having trouble, but she was so worried about school. He would wait. Yes, he decided, he would wait for a better time. And, upon reaching the bottom of his cup, he decided too that he needed some more coffee.