[ annabeth doesn't know the specifics of what happened last time. she doesn't know what she was thinking, or how she reacted, or why. the idea that she would go home and leave percy after what happened doesn't sit well with her, but she can't figure out a way around it. she already doesn't like saying sorry, especially when she doesn't know why she did it at all, but she saw the look in percy's face when he told her. saw that fear.
a part of her hates herself, thinking that she could make percy look like that. but the bigger part is too busy trying to figure out how to fix it to let that hatred grow. percy would do anything for his friends, anything for anyone, anything for her - and she's prepared to return the favor. a hundred times over, if she has to.
and then there's nico - who is an entirely different beast. one that she's forced herself to look at from a different angle, in a different light. she catches how he tenses when she brings up her last stay, and she can only imagine what he was going through during all that.
the mention of will brings up a whole different set of questions she has - not that he's here, or anything of that nature. but- well. no. not for now. one set of problems at a time. and while annabeth's first response is to open her mouth about that comment on camp, on people accepting him, she holds her tongue.
a few years ago, there would have been no way to keep her from holding back those thoughts. but the thought of what all has changed since then hangs somewhere in the air between them. a tension of how much they've grown.
he mentions percy's name, and for half a second she goes tense. a thin sheen of ice down her spine. but the half second passes, and she forces another breath, pushing away that tension before it could stick around on its own. this is what she's here to talk about, isn't it? ]
Yeah...he has that way of making things feel easier.
[ her voice sounds a little distant when she says it, despite the instinctual smile that creeps into her tone. she can't not smile when she talks about percy, which is a habit she has found to be more annoying than anything.
and percy's here.
there are a few moments here where annabeth lets the silence hang. a few moments where thoughts scroll through too fast for her to keep up. they walk almost ten steps before she finally continues, her voice only slightly different in tone than the sentence before. where there had been fondness, now is an unassuming, calm, straightforward tone. ]
He told me what happened.
[ one beat, then she looks over to gauge nico's reaction. to see how he looks after the statement. part of her wonders if she shouldn't have continued to ease into it. shouldn't have continued the conversation further. not that it mattered anymore. ]
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a part of her hates herself, thinking that she could make percy look like that. but the bigger part is too busy trying to figure out how to fix it to let that hatred grow. percy would do anything for his friends, anything for anyone, anything for her - and she's prepared to return the favor. a hundred times over, if she has to.
and then there's nico - who is an entirely different beast. one that she's forced herself to look at from a different angle, in a different light. she catches how he tenses when she brings up her last stay, and she can only imagine what he was going through during all that.
the mention of will brings up a whole different set of questions she has - not that he's here, or anything of that nature. but- well. no. not for now. one set of problems at a time. and while annabeth's first response is to open her mouth about that comment on camp, on people accepting him, she holds her tongue.
a few years ago, there would have been no way to keep her from holding back those thoughts. but the thought of what all has changed since then hangs somewhere in the air between them. a tension of how much they've grown.
he mentions percy's name, and for half a second she goes tense. a thin sheen of ice down her spine. but the half second passes, and she forces another breath, pushing away that tension before it could stick around on its own. this is what she's here to talk about, isn't it? ]
Yeah...he has that way of making things feel easier.
[ her voice sounds a little distant when she says it, despite the instinctual smile that creeps into her tone. she can't not smile when she talks about percy, which is a habit she has found to be more annoying than anything.
and percy's here.
there are a few moments here where annabeth lets the silence hang. a few moments where thoughts scroll through too fast for her to keep up. they walk almost ten steps before she finally continues, her voice only slightly different in tone than the sentence before. where there had been fondness, now is an unassuming, calm, straightforward tone. ]
He told me what happened.
[ one beat, then she looks over to gauge nico's reaction. to see how he looks after the statement. part of her wonders if she shouldn't have continued to ease into it. shouldn't have continued the conversation further. not that it mattered anymore. ]