Chapter Text
Percy's body has started shaking. The sweat that has darkened his hair is now coating his face and limbs, and Annabeth leans over him, eyes widening. Oh, no- "Percy!" She calls, her voice breaking. "Will, he's - something's happening,"
Little Will rushes over, his eyes big. He seems a little lost. He is young, a couple years older than she was when she got to Camp, but still. This is a lot. He puts his hand to Percy's forehead and says "okay, he's really hot." His voice hitches a little bit, and Annabeth stares. Will flushes. "I mean - I think he's got a fever. We need, like... something to cool him down."
"Oh!" Her face clears a little. "Water, the water - it helps him heal too." She whirls around but Tyson is already coming over, hauling a bucket of water that Clarisse had brought. Annabeth smiles at him. "Thanks, Tyson."
"You're welcome, Annabeth." His smile at her is sweet, and then he's looking at Percy as he makes a thrashing movement, arching his back and throwing his head to one side. Instantly Tyson is concerned. "Oh no, what do we do?"
"Here," Annabeth grabs a cloth and dunks it into the water, reaching out as globes of drops splatter the shield-cot as well as her face and hair. She puts the cloth down on Percy's face, leaning forward and brushing it over his cheek. He jerks and a molten whip of agony extends from her pierced shoulder. She squeezes her eyes shut, letting out a cry.
"Annabeth!"
She hears Percy screaming for her, suddenly; it's through the sensation of mind-numbing pain, and cold, and then his voice is breaking on her name as she hears it again, hears him telling her to hold on. She blinks and it's not his voice, but Tyson's, and Grover's. "Hold onto him," she gasps. She looks up at Grover and says to Tyson "keep him as still as you can, I have to do this."
"Okay," Tyson says. And Grover nods. He now stands on Percy's other side and wraps his hands around his arm. Tyson puts his hands on Percy's shoulders, and Annabeth breathes.
She inhales and her nostrils flare as she wipes the cloth over Percy's face, his forehead and cheeks, and then she nearly jumps as Will from beside her says "I needta get this arrow out now," he is standing at her shoulder. "I'm gonna do it while you're focused on him."
"Okay," Annabeth grits her teeth. She takes back the cloth and dunks it in the water again. Nodding, breathing shallow, she glances at Will. "Go ahead."
She is focused on Percy, but she feels an explosion of pain, nevertheless, when Will frees the arrow from her shoulder. He packs the wound immediately, though, and wraps a bandage tighter than it had been when the shaft remained in her shoulder. "I hate her," she spits out. Grover nods in sympathy as Tyson continues to keep Percy still.
"I can't blame you," replies Grover "because honestly, same. And I didn't even interact with her all that much when she was here."
"Who?" Asks Will, and Grover and Annabeth look at each other.
As a daughter of Apollo, Alison is technically Will's older sister, even though he's never met her. And Annabeth doesn't want to talk about sibling betrayal, not when she's so close to Thalia, who will wake up and ask about Luke, she knows; and she sees something in Grover's eyes that shows he understands. He clears his throat. "She hates the girl who shot her," is what the satyr says.
"Oh." Will nods. "That makes sense. My mom always says 'hate is a strong word that's not light to use'."
"Not right?" Grover asks.
"Nah, not light. It's a heavy word, is what she tells me." Turning from Annabeth to put a blanket on Katie, who's now resting after being stitched with the help of some serious numbing cream, Will adds "I get that though," glancing at Annabeth, he adds "-you know at the chariot race, with those Stymphalian birds?"
"Yes," Annabeth says, still bathing Percy's face as he thrashes, Tyson continuing to hold him.
"Some of those were what got me needin' to come here. I was with Mama on tour when those things came down, going crazy. Stabbing into the speakers and roof and everything." Will looks serious now. There is something like anger in his eyes. Maybe hate. "I couldn't believe they would cause danger to all those people, and then they were comin' at me... They were there FOR me." He shakes his head. "I hated 'em for that. So when you just - went and got music," he looks at Annabeth with his eyes big, hate no longer visible. "And Percy stood up over everyone to hold that boombox and make 'em go away, that was love," Will says, as if it's simple. "He took the power of music because he cared. You both care so much about camp an' about everybody here," his eyes are practically shining now. "It showed me, proved there's a way to lift up the heavy words, because there's always people who do good an' who'll help."
"Heroes," Tyson says with his single eye wide as well, voice hushed in awe.
Will nods, smiling up at him. "Exactly right, heroes. That's what you are, all of you. Mister Percy is too." Will speaks so surely, in manner so certain, that Annabeth doesn't immediately have anything to say. Her face feels warm and she ducks her head.
And then she notices
Percy isn't thrashing anymore. He seems to have relaxed somehow; his chest rises and falls with deeper breaths. Annabeth is able to wash his face and neck and forearms as Tyson and Grover both release their holds. Grover wipes his eyes and Tyson beams.
"Thanks, Will," Annabeth manages to say at last. She puts the waterlogged cloth over the bucket edge and Will pulls a blanket over Percy, tucking it in.
"You're super most welcome," he says, this sweet son of Apollo with his incredible skills and earnest way about him. Annabeth can't stop herself from smiling, even as bone-tired as she is, aching from her wound and worry.
"You know you're a hero too, because you can do this," Grover says, gesturing around the makeshift infirmary. Katie is resting peacefully and Will goes over to check on Thalia now. "Seriously, like, this is all you, and you're...how old?"
"I'm ten," Will tells him. "But I've been taught a lot by Mister Chiron, and know some'a this healin' stuff is from my dad too. I have people who help me," he tells them.
"So do we," a blunt voice emanates from the tent's edge. Clarisse had come back with a bigger tub of water, and the Stoll brothers follow with more pillows and what looks like bandages. The sun's last rays color the sky on their right pale blue and orange and purple, and Clarisse adds "How do you think I got back here? We took everyone else to the cabin area," she adds. "I'm bringing anyone who's mostly fresh to guard you out here. And Mr. D said he's gotten the word to reinstate Chiron, so he should be back by the morning." With a sharp jerk of her chin, steamrolling through all of her words "That's everything. Either come back now to the cabins or stay here with Grace and Jackson. And Katie." Clarisse's gaze seems to soften as she looks over at the daughter of Demeter. "I don't think she's gonna grow you any dinner, so you need food."
"Definitely not," Travis Stoll pipes. "Plus the food would suck if she did, so-"
"...screw you, Travis," Katie mumbles, her eyes still closed. Travis yelps, and then masks it as a cheer.
"Oh wow, the zombie lives! You had us-"
"Worried," to the surprise of everyone conscious, Clarisse is moving over to Katie, kneeling by her bed. "I should've stabbed Rodriguez where he stood," she says darkly. "I'm sorry, Katie."
Katie shakes her head. "Clarisse, you didn't know. None of us did. Not even his siblings, right?" She glares at Travis, who looks at Connor. Both of them have lost their grins for the moment, and both shake their heads. Travis's jaw gets tight. Connor stares angrily at the ground.
"Both he and Luke are giving our cabin a bad rep. We may be thieves, but it's like -"
"We're cat burglars. They're just going all the way to attempted murder."
Murder. That word hangs in silence.
"What are we gonna do about all that?" Grover mumbles, breaking it. "It's a good thing Chiron is coming back."
Annabeth bites her lip with a nod, even as she has to suppress a shudder at the mention of Luke. He saved me, she wants to say, but feels sick as she sees Percy falling to the ground, sees Luke sending his fist time after time into Percy's face... sees his sword shine as it drops, and-
Tyson had been there. She hadn't. She sees the way Percy had run to her when she was hit, the worry in his eyes. She told him she was okay automatically, because she recalled the way he swore to her he would burn everything down if something happened to her.
She looks over at Percy now, and sees his closer hand with fingers extended. On impulse, she curls her fingers around his hand, squeezing it. Her body blocks that sight from everyone but Grover, but she doesn't catch him as he shoots Tyson a tiny smile.
It's decided that food will be delivered out here, how doesn't seem to be known as the Stolls and Katie are bickering before Clarisse stands up, grabs both of them, and basically drags the boys away. "Idiots," she snaps. "I'll handle it."
"Remember, I'm a vegetarian!" Grover practically yelps as the three disappear once more into the trees.