Percy was drowning. Not literally, but figuratively. The kind that sucked you into pain and would not let you out until you sucked all of the water in. It keeps you on edge until you accept it, or swim back up to the surface.
But sometimes, you can't swim back to the surface. You cannot move your arms in the circular motions to make everything better, sometimes you let yourself fall deeper into the depths in the ocean.
Sometimes your eyes sting from the unbarring salty waters. Human eyes are not made to be able to handle the seemingly chemically induced liquid. The human body is not made to handle pressure so deep. It suffocates you—it keeps you captivated. Like some sort of claustrophobia in a vast liquid with salty specimens.
Annabeth was drowning too, but she was refusing to show the pain of the salty and pressure.
As much as Percy wanted to get to know her, it's crazy how someone can show themselves through when they are in pain.
Her eyes were now hooded, and instead of being a beautiful grey, they were now a darker silver. Her once beautiful curls were now tatted and tangled. But Percy did not care, he never let go of her embrace.
Even as the guards took them in the middle of the night, he never let go of Annabeth's hand.
Although Percy did not know where they were being taken, Percy used his fighting senses to the advantage. He smelt of the sea, and blood. He could only pray that those people were not his friends, but he, deep down, knew people had died.
They then walked on a wooden structure. It was long, and the smell of the sea was getting stronger. Percy hoped the salty smells would bring a comfort, but this sea was different from Corinth. Corinth seemed like a lifetime ago, when he was seeing his mother daily.
His heart hurt for his mother. She was probably dead now, killed along with his father.
As he thought of his parents, he felt the guards latch heavy metal chains to their ankles. Annabeth looked at Percy. He looked back at her. He wished the Romans had not been evident. He could go on with his life, making Annabeth his wife. He could spend all day fantasizing about what everything could have been. But Percy would not have all day anymore.
The guards double locked the chains, and threw them into the water.
Before they even completely submerged, the two latched together.
The heavy cabins connected to metal boxes took them down. Percy let out bubbles of air. The water was icy and cold. Annabeth was shaking. He wrapped his arms tighter around her.
Percy forced his eyes open to see Annabeth squinting back at him. He smiled the best he could through the pain. She smiled back weakly.
But the smiles were not small, they were not meaningless little smiled that you have to someone you barely knew. They were smiles of someone who kept fighting.
Although nobody seemed to put up much of a fight, in reality the fight was lethal. Fighting wasn't just swords and daggers. It's also means staying alive when you are pressured to be the best kind of person you can be. It's being kind despite the world telling you that you need to be terrible.
In the end, everyone didn't die, they just moved on to let someone else take the battle from their hands.
Percy let the water come in, abolishing his battle.
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Not Your Choice
Fanfiction"But he, and everyone else, remained emotionless. So that was the purpose of this meeting? To show how much control their parents have over them? Percy was grateful that he and his future would get to choose, but he barely knew these people. He had...
