She was drowning.
She was submerged in water. Six feet deep and it was filling her lungs. It was hot but cold in her chest. It hurt, like hell.
She'd never understood her age-mates fear of the ocean and had formed a love for the waves almost immediately but now, she got it. She never wanted to touch a drop of the salty water ever again.
Her head hurt, not as much as her chest, but it still felt like agony, like what an egg must feel when it's split into two.
She could feel the blood being sticky on her head despite all the water surrounding it. There was quite a bit of blood too. She had hit a sharp end and that had clearly done some damage.
The most alarming thing wasn't the pain in her head, or chest rather, though. It was the lack of feeling in her limbs as she drowned. They were there but she couldn't do anything with them. Couldn't paddle, kick or even twitch anything underneath her head.
Purely external though, she very much could feel the pain in her chest.
She'd probably inhaled just as she got in. That was the only explanation to how quick this was going.
Her heartbeat stopped. Her eyes closed.
Boom! Through her eyelids (was she dead or not?) she saw white as the loudest sound she'd ever heard rang out.
She woke with start.
She took several long, deep breaths as she calmed down. Her nose felt stuffy, a stark reminder to her death by drowning a few seconds ago.
Her dream death, at least.
She looked around. She was in a hospital, the smell and the equipment lying around told her easily but there was nothing there to indicate which one.
Her eyes tracked to the slump form of Sally Jackson on her lap. She was dead asleep, sitting on a chair but her head on the bed.
By the mad amount of black rings around her eyes, she could tell her mother had fought to stay awake.
She tried to move her hands but she physically couldn't.
Her hands felt numb, empty.
A feeling shared with everything below her neck.
She tried to speak but her voice was so hoarse, she couldn't. Her mother still woke, maybe it's the mother sense she bragged about.
They made eye contact. She nodded her head as a form of greeting. Her mother nearly pounced for a hug but just before she could, she remembered her condition and slowed down to a very soft one.
Not that it mattered cause she didn't feel a thing as the hands wrapped around her. She opened her mouth, trying to indicate for some water so she could speak.
Her mother sense must have been on demon time because she got that message too.
She gulped down the water quickly, chasing the pressing question she had and not the actual water.
"Mom," she started, only pausing because her voice sounded weird, older.
"Persea," Sally replied.
"Why- why can't I feel my body?"
Her mother's face dropped.
"Naruto..." She started and Persea leaned in.
--
She slurped loudly. She waited for the coffee to hit her gut, then she smacked her lips and moaned. Similar content noises were made across the room along with the sounds of muffled chomps from biting into soft doughnuts.
She hated that she loved this. She hated that she loved this mortal invention but god damn it was amazing.
She kicked her feet childishly as the heat passed down her chest.
The door by the end creaked open and one of the guards stationed outside it, slipped in.
"My Lady" he said as he entered the room, "Phobos," he gave some obvious side eye at the general location, "-is at the door."
She lifted an eyebrow. "Phobos?" She pursed her lips. "Think he's got information?"
Two people spoke at once. The guard who reported his appearance and one next to her, sipping on some coffee.
"He certainly looks excited."
"Why else would he show his ugly mug here?"
She smiled at the titaness, who uninterested in the conversation, had turned back to her coffee.
Theia was her name and Gaea made sure to never forget it. She was the titan of vision and eyes and a great pleasure to be around.
"Fair," she relented.
She enjoyed their snarky banter and would have participated if it wasn't for the pending Ares kid at the door.
"Let him in," she said.
The guard nodded and did so.
The god walked in slowly. She also knew what domain he commanded but that wasn't out of love, he just made it hard to forget.
"Phobos, been a while. How are you?"
Seven years wasn't a while for her but she was really asking 'where the cherry tomato have you been?'
He twitched. For someone who was supposedly excited, he didn't really look like it. He was shaking but it clearly wasn't out of excitement or cold.
"Lighten up," she said, approaching.
He didn't and continued to quiver in his boots. As she said, he made it hard to forget.
She rolled her eyes. "I'm different to what I was seven years ago. I'm a good bad guy now. I promise I won't kill you if you do something wrong." She put her hand around his shoulders.
No response, especially the calming down she wanted him to do.
She sighed. "Fine, what's your info?"
That got him kicking. His slouch decreased and a proud glint entered his eyes. He didn't stop shaking but she could now see how he could be described as excited.
She smiled, forcing herself to not pat him in the back like a proud great-grandmother.
"Umm.. the target, miss. He's here."
She nearly fell on her face. "What!? As in, here-here. Where?" She looked around quickly to no sign.
Phobos looked confused at her response. "... Richmond." He said after a second.
She deflated. "Oh, that's what you meant." She waved off her guards who had perked up into fighting stances. Then she stopped, freezing up like a robot.
"...wait wait wait wait, that doesn't make it better." She frowned heavily. "I sent you seven years ago and all you could tell me is his location? What the Guacamole, man!?"
The proud great-grandma vibe completely vanished.
Phobos also frowned. "Wait, you knew that he was here?"
She nearly punched the guy.
"Why do you think I sent you seven year-" she breathed deeply, "I knew you Ares kids were dumb but holy salad, I didn't expect this."
Theia spoke up. "Maybe you should have sent someone else."
She twirled on the titaness. "You weren't here yet, Theia or I would have sent you."
Theia grumbled, "You could have sent me after."
"We were spread thin and I needed you elsewhere."
Theia finally gave up and turned to her doughnuts again. Gaea did the same with Phobos. "Now back to you," she growled.
She gripped his 'The Hercules Movie Isn't Accurate' t-shirt. "I hate the gods, hate them, and everything they've ever created so I will tear everything down and every single thing they're even closely connected to. Mortals, statues, mobile devices; everything!"
"I also hate when people are useless because that means my goal is farther and farther away then what I thought it was going to be when I assigned you that job."
She pulled him closer so his eyes were barely away from hers. "I really despise people that push my goal away from me. Got it?"
He nodded quickly. "Good," she said.
She let go of him and started back to her throne.
Theia smirked up at her. "I thought you were a 'good bad guy?'
No fear of death at all.
"Theia, get me some quality information." The titaness sprung up, shocked and excited.
"For real?"
She smiled a little. Probably not genuine-looking but she was a tad too upset to care.
Theia nearly leaped out of the base but before she did, she left with a bit of cheek. "You'll destroy everything? Including coffee and doughnuts?"
She smiled, this one was a bit more genuine and soft. "Except those," she said, "For you."
"A primordial after my heart." Theia said before disappearing.
She made it to her throne and slumped on it, letting out a heavy, still laced with traces of anger, and long sigh.
"You're still here?" She said to Phobos. She waved her hands at him. "Fuck off, do something useful for once in your life and if you're useless, I'll turn you into a doughnut."
He promptly, like she asked, 'fucked off'.
Before she could even get another sip at her coffee another person entered the room.
"Mortals," he said at once. She perked up, the aggravated shout coming out, dulling out (rap star over here). Her guards once again rose to attention.
"Mortals have stumbled in again," he elaborated.
She really needed to patch up that error. She really didn't need mortals randomly blipping into her pocket dimension.
"Do you want me to deal with them or..." The guard's voice dulled down as he saw the expression that had fleeted to her face.
Sick glee bubbled up in throat like venom does in a snake.
"I'll take care of them. I need to let out some anger anyways."
She smiled wickedly.
When she got back, covered head to toe in blood and various crushed organs, no one batted an eye.
--
There was a minute where no one moved. Naruto was stuck in the spot, gaping with an open mouth, while Annabeth glared at him.
"What? Is there something on my face?" she asked just as the stretch went from long and uncomfortable to downright thick.
Naruto's eyes glazed back to focused. He blinked at the girl before her bitter words sunk in and he widened his eyes.
"Oh, no no no... I'm uhh sorry." He lifted his hands up in surrender, shaking them and backing away while a little blush creeped up his neck.
Luke and Thalia looked at him weirdly as Annabeth's glare increased. She grunted and brushed past him.
Luke shot him another, 'what was that?' look before he went after the girl.
"Those eyes," he started, to answer Thalia's unasked question but she interrupted. Thankfully she was not accusing him of discrimination but grasping the situation, perhaps it was the recentness of the previous conversation.
"They're from your past?" He nodded, "As in you think she's—" Thalia looked madly back and forth between the two.
He nodded again and she grimaced. He would have been impressed by her deduction skills but 'what is going on?' was the only thing he really could think of.
He had to physically stop himself from following to check again and be a hundred percent sure but Naruto didn't want to be the guy who inspected people like that, too rude and Orochimaru-like for his tastes.
He still did want to go to her though; to apologize. He turned, intent on doing just that but he found Luke and Annabeth nowhere in sight. The alley wasn't long but he hadn't expected they'd leave.
He started to the mouth of the alley. Luckily he didn't have to go for a long goose chase because he heard the tiny voice of Annabeth.
Weirdly the sound was muffled, not 'far away' muffled, but 'talking with a pillow on the face,' muffled.
He walked in the general location, another alley (the decor was getting kind of boring now) and slipped in. This alley was different, it extended with it's own web of different alleys. Annabeth and Luke were near one of the farthest ones.
Thalia joined him, clearly having more questions but saving it for the moment. Once he got close enough, he could kind of make out the words she was saying.
She hiccuped as she silently sobbed into something, probably Luke's shoulder or chest. "It's always like this!" she complained, "Everyone's always so judgemental about my eyes. Making fun of them, ignoring me like I have a problem just because I have them."
Naruto's heart broke. The similarities to his own complaints back in Konoha, when he was truly seven, were plenty. It hurt that he was now the ignorant villager, he was on the other side. He increased his pace and made it to their surprisingly far location only seconds after.
Luke looked up from the girl in his hands and straight to them. Luke scanned his eyes, when he found no malice, he fell his gaze, a message to allow them to approach.
Annabeth had not taken notice of them yet, still snuggling into Luke's shoulder.
Idly, Naruto found it funny how well Luke fit into the 'mom' role. Instantly forming bonds with his soon to be adopted children and providing comfort and security on first interaction.
She opened her mouth to start another tangent but he chose that moment to interrupt. "I'm sorry," he said and her head shot up. "I'm really sorry for how I reacted it's just—" he gulped, "—there was someone who I knew who had those same eyes."
Her face twisted into curiousity, and Naruto found that fit her face more naturally.
"They're dead now and I thought that everyone who had those eyes were dead too but now, I don't know." He lifted his hands to rake through his hair. Old grief hit him like a scar twinging to remind you it's there.
Thalia didn't injunct to mention the prophecy and Naruto wasn't dying to either. It felt hypocritical to be keeping secrets from someone, like his mother did with him, all for the greater good, but Naruto couldn't bring that level of pressure onto a seven year old.
The situations were different anyways... yeah.
Annabeth got away from Luke and stood Infront of him. She didn't offer something like a hug or a handshake, they had just met after all, but what she did trumped both of them with sheer quality.
"Tell me more," she said, "about this friend of yours."
Naruto looked up at her. Nothing fake to make him feel happier just genuine curiosity. Full honesty. "Well, they were really two I knew," he started.
Naruto thought he was going to like Annabeth
--
Naruto's fault.
Her eyes tracked to the door as it opened. "Hi," a doctor sad lamely as he entered, waving his hands in greeting.
The only thing she could do was say back, "Hi." No hand waving for her.
The room was almost completely quiet. The man's footsteps didn't break the silence, no stomp as his sharp shoes landed on the floor. She would have thought she lost her hearing too if her heart monitor didn't beep loudly and obnoxiously next to her.
The grief was palpable in the air, the feeling was reminiscent of what funerals felt like, though she was the one to be outputting the energy now.
"I'm Asclepius. I'm one of your mother's old friends," he said before pausing, "Well friends is pushing it. I owed her one and she called the favor."
The honesty was weird so stayed unappreciated, which made the silence even closer to complete silence. Asclepius didn't show any signs of feeling awkward at all. He sat on his chair, opening his mouth to give what she assumed to be platitudes. She would rather die then hear that.
"Where is my mom?" She asked, interrupting.
He smiled softly. "She's getting some well deserved sleep. Her sleep schedule before you woke up. I was sure she'd become a zombie."
The joke fell flat. A well of guilt built up in Persea's throat. That was her fault.
Or was it really? Was it Naruto's? Her mother thought so, at least.
Naruto was the reason she couldn't move.
Her little trip gone wrong down the stairs had resulted in a pretty bad head injury. Which has resulted in paralysis. Neck down.
She was angry. She was upset. She was confused, really, really confused.
Her memories of the event were evilly sharp. Her eyes memorized the scene and played it back to her every time she shut her eyes.
His face when he sent her off. The moment when guarded turned to confusion.
The same feeling she was drowning in now.
"Persea?" Asclepius asked.
She zoned back in. She hadn't even realized she had zoned out.
"We'll need to do some tests, just to make sure that everything is perfect," he repeated nicely. "Obviously we'll wait for you mother to wake for her consent. I just wanted to warn you, for your sake."
She nodded in thanks.
She (he) died because of Naruto.
--
I literally rewrote the Gaea part like five times and the only things that remained were the coffee and doughnuts.
Sup. Been a while, hasn't it.
I'm alive and well and writing uhh yeah and I think that it.
No. Persea's alive!
Genuinely been torture keeping that in my back pocket as people tell me "killing Persea was the dumbest decision ever" like yeah. I know, that's why I didn't do it. but obviously I can't say that.
I know you're all extra confused but place a little faith in me. Everything will make sense at one point.
I know it's confusing. No chakra/Annabeth's byakugan.
Ninjas existing but chakra not being usable.
That last line on general (have you figured it out already. It's been foreshadowed since like the first chapter, I'm not even joking.)
Especially trust me with Persea. Some of y'all are thinking she's going to be stuck in the sidelines but trust me, I know what I'm doing, not really.
This is becoming the Quirksmith of Pjo and Naruto crossovers.
See Ya!