ᴾʰᵒᵇᵒᵖʰᵒᵇⁱᵃ [ᴶᵃˢᵒⁿ ᴳʳᵃᶜᵉ]

αλ.

αλ. Philophobia - fear of falling in love

"I was so worried," Annabeth wrapped her arms around Aza as they leant against the wall beside Annabeth's bed, contently resting her head atop her best friend's. The daughter of Phobos coughed a few curly strands of hair out of her mouth, snuggling deeper into her best friend's embrace, "Now you know how I felt when that manticore took you," Aza mumbled, holding her friend just a bit tighter at the thought. Aza's world had crumbled when Annabeth was kidnapped by the monster.

"That's different," Annabeth argued, and Aza felt the girl tense up slightly, feeling her hair sway slightly from her quivering jaw. "You just... appeared on the table with a gigantic spear lodged in your abdomen. You could've been dead for all I knew."

"At least I'm not," Aza soothed, not wanting the conversation to continue much further, knowing it would only upset her curly-haired friend. "I'm right here."

"You're lucky to be," Annabeth's voice took on a harsher tone, "Jason, Piper and Leo told me all about Lycaon and Porphyrion." Aza suddenly felt like a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar, but she swallowed and tried to keep the air light, "Ah, it wasn't too bad. They're just dramatic."

"You know, Percy's said the exact same thing to me," Annabeth held Aza tighter, and she felt the daughter of Athena's chest freeze, and then heave lightly, like she was trying to hold back shaking. Aza began to rub Annabeth's back, just as the blonde girl admitted, "I miss Percy."

Aza's heart shattered, "I know," she held onto her friend, running her fingers through Annabeth's curly blonde hair. "We'll get him back soon."

"That's the worst part," Annabeth moaned, and she sat up, pulling away from Aza. "I know where he is, but I can't just... get him."

Aza nodded, "I know, it's awful," she gave Annabeth what she hoped was a reassuring smile and tried again, "At least we know he's safe."

Annabeth nodded, but her grey eyes were dark, and a frown pulled at her lips. "Do you think he's forgotten us?" Aza could detect the subtle worry that plagued her best friend - had Percy forgotten about her? Or even worse, had Hera manipulated his memories like she had Piper and Jason's?

"No," Aza shook her head, trying her best to sound confident. "Percy could never forget you, Annabeth. That boy loves you more than," she trailed off, unable to find the words to even express how much she knew the son of Poseidon loved her. "I've known this since I was younger. It will always be you and Percy. The two of you were made for each other, in a way that I don't think happens very often."

Annabeth made a soft choking noise, and she hugged the daughter of Phobos even closer, "It's so hard being away from him - it's like a piece of me is missing. And then when you left, it was like I didn't know who I was anymore. I was just going through the motions."

Aza frowned, and she gently trailed her fingernails up and down Annabeth's back in what she hoped was a soothing manner, which was confirmed by the blonde girl subconsciously leaning further into the taller girl. "Believe me," Aza remembered how horrible she felt in the beginning, when she felt displaced within the group, "I was miserable in the beginning - I didn't know where I fit, like I do when I'm with you and Percy. They didn't know me, in the same way you do. And then, I made a mistake. And Jason and Leo didn't react very well." 

"What happened?"

Aza frowned, "We encountered Medea. She enchanted Jason and Leo into wanting to hurt each other, and I used my powers on them to snap them out of it - I made them hallucinate their worst fears. Of course, they were angry at me."

Annabeth lifted her head and she frowned, shaking her head and causing her curls to bounce. "What you did was smart. That was the best thing to do, how could they blame you?"