Percy (yay)
Percy woke, but his eyes remained closed. His entire body radiated of pain, including his mind. The pain made his thoughts muddled, he was unsure what was real or not. Brief images of Thalia crossed his mind, but was that something that had happened, or was he daydreaming, imagining a friend to get him through Tartarus.
He forced his eyes open. The dim light of the moon increased his pain, but he refused to close his eyes. His surroundings were unfamiliar. This was an issue. In Tartarus, when he woke up in an unfamiliar place, it usually meant he was near someone or something that was not good for him. He remembered too vividly the last time something like this had happened. He had barely gotten away with his life.
He tried to focus his eyes, but the images were blurry. Anything that wasn't the four walls of Dameson's old hut was dangerous. Dangerous in Tartarus was a death sentence. He struggled to sit up, trying desperately to remember what had happened.
He remembered being ambushed. That was a for sure, definite memory. He remembered so much pain. He remembered being hurt and hearing someone laughing.
"You deserve this Percy Jackson. After everything you have done to us, you deserve this." The person had said. More laughter. They had enjoyed torturing him. Percy struggled to remember what had happened next. He heard whispers. They were leaving Tartarus soon. They were going to kill him before entering the mortal world again. And after that?
Again, images of Thalia flashed before his mind. Was that real? He often thought of his friends to get him through the torture, but he didn't know why it was coming up so presently now. That must mean that it was real.
Percy gasped as he tried to sit up again. His surroundings were coming in more focus. It looked as if he was in a tent. He hadn't seen it before. No. He had. When had he seen this before? It looked so familiar and so unfamiliar at the same time. Suddenly he heard footsteps.
The debate about whether to pretend to still be asleep or not rushed through his mind, but he ultimately didn't have the chance to decide, because in walked Thalia Grace, one of his best friends.
Percy sat in shock as a lump of emotion raised in his throat. This couldn't be real. She couldn't be real.
"Hey Perce." She gave him a small smile and sat on the end of his bed. He continued to stare at her like she was a ghost, even though he was probably the one who looked dead.
"Here." She placed a pillow behind his back. "Lay back. Don't kill yourself again." She studied him, her blue eyes on his green.
"Thalia." He croaked out. His memories, they were real then. He actually escaped.
"I'm here, Percy. You're safe. You're out. Here," she raised a spoon to his lips. "Eat this." He sipped the nectar on the spoon, and never in his life had he tasted anything as good before. His mothers blue chocolate chip cookies filled his stomach, and with it, tears in his eyes.
"Thalia." He managed to say again. She looked at him. She was crying as well. She grabbed his hand and held it.
"A year, Percy. How did you survive a year?" She looked so sad for him.
"A year?" His voice sounded broken.
"How did you get out?" She asked quietly. Percy's face showed confusion.
"I don't actually remember. I think... a monster was being taken out of Tartarus, put back into the mortal world... and I went with him." Percy said slowly. He tried desperately to piece his broken memories together.
"I missed you Percy. We all did." Thalia's voice was thick with emotion.
"Annabeth?" Percy said quickly. "Is she okay? Did she survive the war?"
Thalia had an odd look on her face. "She... she survived the war, yes."
"Where is she? Is she at camp? Are we going to camp?" Percy's breathing was ragged. After all this time, after all the daydreaming, he might actually see her again. He had pictured her face so many times, at night to make him feel safe so he could sleep, or during torture to remind himself why he needed to live. She became more of a symbol than a person. And to think that he might actually see her again, and soon. It didn't seem to actually click in his brain.
"She's not at camp." Thalia was quiet. "We're actually not sure where she is." Noticing Percy's urgent expression, Thalia quickly explained what happened.
"Oh." Percy was quiet for a while. His brain was having a hard time keeping up with the conversation.
"Do- do you need to go back to sleep? You're... not well. Here, go back to sleep. Don't strain yourself." Thalia seemed almost afraid to touch him at all. Percy looked up in her eyes and realized how freaked out she must be. He just showed up, half dead after a year of everyone thinking he had been killed. Now, he was still near death and needing to be filled in on an entire years worth of information.
"Hey, I'm okay. Thank you." Percy tried to comfort her, but suddenly his voice broke. It was the first time in a year he had to comfort someone else, or got comforted himself. As quickly as if he sped into a brick wall, it hit him. He was safe. After all this time, he was safe.
"Percy." There were tears on her face as well. "I'm really glad you're alive."
"I'll bet you are, Pinecone Face." He smiled for the first time in a year. It felt odd which made him tear up again. She hugged him and gently laid him back down on his bed.
"I'll let you sleep." She finally stood up.
"Wait, Thals?" He called after her, his voice barely able to raise above a whisper. She turned around.
"Do the others know?" He asked.
"We can't contact them at all. We'll head back to camp when you're better. We'll tell them then I guess." She said.
"And we'll find Annabeth, right?" He asked urgently.
"Yeah. Her too. Goodnight Percy." She left the tent leaving Percy alone to cry. As he laid in that bed, he cried tears of joy for his newfound safety, but he also cried tears of sadness, mourning for the part of him that really did die in Tartarus.
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