Chapter Text
Another Ambush, Annabeth thought getting frustrated. This was the third time this week that they were met with a random monster on the Argo 2. They were sailing to Greece as the day of Gaea awakening got closer and closer. It was almost midnight and she was out of her cabin and in the deck, waves lazily swaying to the current. It was almost peaceful. She stared into the sky and a lump formed on her throat. Stars. Bob, the titan who’d helped her and Percy escape from Tartarus had always wanted to say hello to the stars. But he didn’t make it. He sacrificed himself so that she and Percy could get out safely.
She was so lost in thought that she didn’t notice someone wrapping their arms around her.
“Hey wise girl.” A voice spoke close to her ear. “Couldn’t sleep, huh?” Annabeth could recognize that voice from miles away. She turned around pressing a kiss on Percy’s lips.
“Mmyeahh.” She ruffled his hair. “You?”
Percy had a faraway-melancholic look in his eyes, they’d never been the same since Tartarus but atleast they had eachother. “I’m worried Annabeth, Gaea’s awakening and we’re underpowered, and there’s another thing…” he said
“What?”
“So I iris messaged my mom and…” he paused for suspense. “Aaandddd… IM GONNA BE A BIG BROTHER!!”
“Really?!”. Her eyes sparkled. “Oh my gods Percy!! You’re going be an awesome big brother.” She closed the distance between them and kissed him again. Gods she loved him so much, even after being best friends for years and dating for the last couple of months, she always feels like she’s going to combust in a million particles. In a good way. What a loser, having a big fat crush on your own boyfriend.
Since sleep felt like a distant luxury, they ended up retreating to Annabeth’s cabin. She rummaged through her desk, emerging with a handful of colorful markers and two sheets of paper. They sat cross-legged on her bed, the small space feeling like a fort against the chaos of the world outside.
“We’re doing a Three Marker Challenge,” Annabeth announced, her eyes sparking playfully.
Percy sat up straight, squaring his shoulders as if he were preparing for another please don’t kill me meeting with Zeus. “Bring it on. You go first.”
Annabeth closed her eyes and plucked three markers from the pile at random: orange, green, and black. Percy followed her lead, coming up with a bizarre combination of gray, purple, and magenta. They pulled their paper into their laps and began to doodle in concentrated silence.
~15 minutes later~
Annabeth held up her paper first. It was a caricature, labeled in bold, shaky letters: The World’s Greatest Seaweed Brain.
Percy burst out laughing, the sound catching in his chest. “That is absolutely not me.”
“It’s totally you,” she insisted, biting back a grin.
“Nuh-uh.” He leaned in, pointing to the lopsided doodle of his face. “You didn’t even get the nose right. I’m way more handsome than this.”
“It’s accurate,” she teased, reaching out to playfully pinch his nose.
Percy took the bait, grabbing her hand before she could pull away. Then, it was his turn. He held up his paper, revealing a very purple, very gray, and slightly magenta version of Blackjack.
Annabeth tilted her head, trying to make sense of the chaotic shapes. “You know, Blackjack is going to be incredibly offended when he sees this.”
Percy waved his arms around, feigning offense. “It’s abstract art, Annabeth! You’re the architect here.”
“Architecture and Blackjacks terribly drawn wings are not the same.”
“It is.” He prompted
“Yeah, yeah, sure,” she laughed, the amusement softening her expression until it melted into something quieter and more tired.
She leaned into him, her head coming to rest on his shoulder. The laughter faded, replaced by the low, steady dum-dum of the Argo II cutting through the waves. The cabin felt suddenly still, a small bubble of peace in a world that was constantly trying to tear them apart.
Percy let his markers fall into a heap on the floor and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her flush against him. It had become their unspoken ritual—a survival instinct that had followed them out of the pit. They needed the constant reminder that they were both still here, still solid, still breathing.
Annabeth sighed, a long, shaky sound, and tucked her face into the crook of his neck. Her hand gripped his shirt, her knuckles white for a second before she finally relaxed.
"Big brother," she whispered against his skin, her voice barely audible.
"Yeah," Percy murmured, his eyelids feeling heavy as the exhaustion finally caught up to him. "I think I'm gonna be a good one, Wise Girl."
"You already are," she breathed.
Percy didn't have the energy to argue. He just tightened his hold on her, feeling the steady, rhythmic beat of her heart against his own. The war, the prophecies, and the monsters waiting outside the door all seemed to fade away. Safe in the quiet of the cabin, the tension finally snapped, and within minutes, they both drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep, anchored to each other as the only real things in the world.