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431Chapter 2

Note- This is my first attempt at a multi-chapter fan-fiction. I intend to update as often as I am able but I don't know how often that will be. But I can promise at least two chapters a week. Hopefully I will be able to update faster than that but I don't want to promise something I can't deliver on.

Important thing to note... This will be yaio (boy-boy) eventually. Don't like? You do not have to read.

Disclaimer- I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or the Heroes Of Olympus series. (One can dream though) All rights go to the proper parties.

Percy POV

"Percy?"

I jumped and looked around. Jason and Nico stood beside me, blending in with the evening shadows. Wait... Evening? I looked at the sky and sure enough, I could see the stars. I had been standing here all day.

"Percy," Jason called again bringing my attention back to him, "Its dinner time."

I realized that I hadn't eaten all day. But the thought of food made my stomach turn. "I'm not hungry." I forced myself to turn from the last place I had seen her and walk away, intending to go hide in my cabin. By now the whole camp would know that Annabeth was gone. Even thinking her name caused me a flash of pain. I could not deal with all the whispers and stares that would be sure to follow me.

I felt a hand on my elbow and turned around, prepared to tell Jason that I was fine, just tired. The words however, died on my lips when I saw that the arm belonged to the son of Hades.

I had never known Nico to willingly initiate contact with anyone before, especially me. Now that my brain was sort of functioning again I was actually surprised Nico had approached me at all. He usually avoided me like the plague. I looked from his hand to his face. Dark brown eyes locked with my own. He quickly broke eye contact and pulled his hand away as he stepped back.

Looking at the ground the entire time, Nico spoke. "You haven't eaten since yesterday," My brain randomly wondered as to how he knew that before he continued. "I know you don't want food but you need to eat something."

Annabeth was gone and it felt as though she had taken everything good in my whole world with her; food was not of any interest to me. If it had been anyone else I would have snapped at them. However it was Nico.

I really wanted to get to know him better. I spent endless amounts of time trying to talk to the kid only to have him continually push me away. Like Calypso, I felt like I had been a very poor friend to Nico. Yet I never seemed to be able to do right by him. I would be talking to him and it would seem as though we would be getting along and then suddenly he would be mad without any explanation. He said that he no longer blamed me for Bianca's death but I still blamed myself. I had failed to protect his sister the way I had promised I would.

He had saved me on multiple occasions, more than anyone except maybe Annabeth. Most days I thought he hated me. Then he would do something that proved he did consider me his friend, like worry about it if I tried to skip out on dinner.

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. I really did not want to go to the dining pavilion but if it would make Nico happy then I would do it. "Fine, let's go."

ΩΩΩ

Nico's POV

It was worse than I had predicted. As soon as we walked into the hall, all noise stopped. I tried to ignore the eyes that automatically turned to us. The entire camp was buzzing with the news. Everyone kept stealing glances at Percy, trying to see how he was handling Annabeth's absence.

In the life of a demigod few things are unchanging. Annabeth and Percy's relationship was considered one of the most stable things in camp. When I had first heard about her leaving, I didn't believe it. When she left without him, the whole camp had been turned upside-down.

We grabbed our food and waited in line for the chance to burn some to the gods.

As we waited I looked at Percy. He was doing his best to hide his emotions but he was always one to wear his heart on his sleeve. The fire and determination that always burned in his beautiful sea-green eyes had gone out. His black hair was even messier than usual. He looked like hell. I felt my heart contract at the sight. He had always been so steady, but Annabeth's absence had definitely taken its toll.

I had watched him for most of the day, standing on the hill at the edge of camp. He didn't move an inch. Not when she walked away, not when she was out of sight, I believe he would have stood there till the harpies came if it wasn't for Jason pulling me with him insisting that we needed to bring Percy to dinner. Not that I resisted much. I had been quite worried about him.

Percy usually ate enough to feed a small family so to see him miss breakfast and lunch was unnerving. The fact that he was intending on skipping dinner made me even more nervous for the son of the sea god.

Percy stepped up to the brazier, "To Hermes, please keep her safe on her travels."

I was surprised by that. Usually we simply burnt food to our immortal parent. But I understood. Annabeth was traveling, and Hermes is the god of travelers.

Percy walked away to sit at the Poseidon table. As the only living half-blood child of Poseidon he sat alone. I desperately wished that we were allowed to sit at different tables. Percy looked like he could use the company. I scraped food into the fire for my father and walked over to the Hades table.

Throughout dinner I kept stealing glances at Percy. He didn't eat. He was just pushing the food around on his plate. Eventually he looked up and I made sure to catch his eye. I glared pointedly at his untouched meal and he looked down. I could practically hear his sigh from across the room and he raised a fork-full to his mouth.

By the end of supper he had eaten about half of his small plate of dinner. He skipped out on the campfire and headed straight for his cabin. Having no interest in either singing or socializing, I chose to do the same. I didn't like that he was so uninterested in food but I did understand. Olympus knows, I know how heartbreak makes it difficult to eat sometimes.

I blushed slightly at the though. Percy needed me, and so I would do my best to be there for him as I always had been. I would be the friend that he needed me to be right now.

No one knew the whole story. But everyone knew that Annabeth had left, and only an absolute imbecile wouldn't be able to see that Percy was heartbroken. I hated to see him in pain, hated to see what Annabeth had done to him. Percy was too good, too noble; to deserve the pain he was clearly enduring.

But I couldn't stop the little voice at the back of my head from whispering, maybe now you have a chance.

Yes Percy may have technically been single, but he was heartbroken. Besides, Percy never gives up on people. It's one of the things that I love the most about him, which means that I knew Percy would not forget her and move on. Besides, heartbroken and fiercely loyal were not my biggest obstacles. One thing I knew without a doubt, Percy was strait as an arrow.

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