𝐓𝐡𝐞 "𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭" 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐨

Jason

||~Piper~||
Its so silent you can hear a pin drop.

"What?" I say. Percy looks at me, and I nearly flinch from how dull his eyes seem. How emotionless and dark they are now, so much more different then the bright sea-green eyes we're all so used to seeing. "If it weren't for me turning down Apollo when he was human," He says more slowly, "Jason would be alive." He gets up, fiddling with his pen.
"It wasn't your fault, Percy. You couldn't have kno-" Annabeth begins.

"Bullshit!" Percy cuts her off, looking down at her. "I'm supposed to be 'The Hero of Olympus'. I'm supposed to be the one the Gods need!" He drags his hand into his hair, tugging at it. More blood dribbles down the side of his face as he continues speaking, "If I had been the hero I'm supposed to be, if I hadn't denied Apollo, Jason would be alive! It's my fault he's dead! Why don't you hate me!? I'm the reason he and so many others are dead!" Percy looks at all of us, his sea-green eyes becoming almost pitch black.

More blood leaks down his face, and it looks almost terrifying to see that look in his eyes. To see him so... unhinged right now.

Annabeth and I share a look of worry before I look at him. "Percy, calm down." I say, using my Charmspeak now. "You're just tired, okay? You just want to lie down on your bed and sleep."
Percy's eyes noticeably droop, but he shakes his head as he mumbles groggily. "No.. no nightmares." Annabeth's brows furrow, "Nightmares? H- He never told me about any nightmares."

"What kind of nightmares?" I ask gently. Percy looks at me, frowning. "Tartarus. Kronos. So many.." He fists his hair, tugging even harder. More blood. I feel bile in the back of my throat, threatening to come up.

Gods, I hate seeing blood.

 I pry his hand off of his head, "Percy, don't pull your hair again." He places his hand in his pockets, eyes casting downwards.

I sigh, "Percy, go sleep, okay? You need rest. You won't have nightmares because we're going to be here as well, alright?" Percy looks at me, his once black eyes now sea-green again. Annabeth holds his hand as she helps him to his bed, tucking him in. She sits beside him, allowing him to keep hold of her hand the entire time.

"Sleep, Percy. We'll be here when you wake up." I say. He gives us a small, weak smile before his eyes close and before we know it, he's asleep.

||~Annabeth~||
I keep holding his hand, afraid to let go. "He never told me about any nightmares. Why wouldn't he tell me?" I ask, looking at everybody else. Grover frowns, "He didn't tell me either."
Piper looks at me, "Annabeth.. Sometimes, its- its hard telling things to people you love, especially if the thing you want to tell makes you seem vulnerable." I look at Piper, "He shouldn't have to fear being vulnerable with me though. I'm his Wise Girl." My voice cracks a little at the nickname, and I use my free hand to wipe my tears.

"Shit, I'm- I'm sorry. I don't know what's up with me lately. I've been so emotional for no reason, and jumpy." Hazel hums softly, "Well.. you did fall into Tartarus not even a year ago, Annabeth. You're bound to experience changes to your physical, mental, and emotional health. Just like Percy." Will is rebandaging Percy's head as he sleeps, the cloth soaked with blood.
"What did you guys face there?" Leo asks.

Piper elbows him, "Dude!"

Leo looks at her, "What?" Frank rolls his eyes, "Leo, that was a little insensitive." Leo looks at me, "Sorry, I didn't think it was bad to say that."
I shake my head, "Its okay, Leo. You didn't know. But, uh, we faced a lot of monsters." I desperately want to forget one in particular. Will looks at me, "I heard Percy can control blood. Is that true?" He asks.

Everyone is looking at me now, waiting for an answer. Both Grover and I nod, "Yeah." I look at Percy. "He can control blood, since its a liquid. Anything liquid, he can control."

We're all silent for a while, until Frank speaks. "Ichor is a liquid too, right?" Grover winced through his teeth, "Earlier, Chiron set a meeting up with Percy, me, Annabeth, Ishmal, and Poseidon about the blood control thing. At the end of it, he ended up threatening Poseidon."

Piper's eyes grow as wide as saucers, "Are you serious? He threatened a God? Even more so, his father?"
"What did he say?" Leo asks. "'Ichor is still blood, you know'." I repeat his words. I still remember how angry he seemed at us. At all of us. "It wasn't like him, that's for sure." Piper looks at Percy, then at me. "Did anyone else notice his eyes changing color earlier? When he was tugging his hair, his eyes turned pitch black."

I look at Piper, "His eyes also changed color when he threatened Poseidon." Hazel frowns, "Do you think it has something to do with Tartarus? Or his new ability?" Nico shrugs, "Maybe."

I look down at Percy, watching him sleep soundly. He looks so serene. Peaceful. I haven't seen him this relaxed in a long time, it startles me how I never noticed how much he's been struggling. How bad he's been struggling. All alone.
I should have noticed. I'm his girlfriend. I'm supposed to notice the little things about him. What else has he been struggling with that I didn't notice? How many times has he made himself bleed without me knowing?

I'm a horrible girlfriend! Percy notices every little thing about me, every habit, every quirk, everything. But I can't notice him struggling so much? How bad of a girlfriend am I?

Percy squeezes my hand, and I look back down at him. His face contorts from peaceful sleep to a pained expression. The grip on my hand is almost painful now, "Percy?" I say as his breathing picks up. Piper looks at me. "Percy, wake up. You're dreaming."
The pipes beneath his cabin groan. "Percy!" I shake him a little, and he jolts awake. "Annabeth!?" He cries, his Adams apple bobbing slightly.

"Hey, hey, its okay." I hush him, making him look at me. "Its okay. I'm here." He pulls me into a hug, and I allow it. I hug him back.

"Its okay. I'm here." I repeat, kissing his head and looking at his beautiful sea-green eyes. The eyes I've always loved so very much. He calms down slowly, helped by Piper's Charmspeak and my gentle touches.
Now, he and I are laying down in his bed together. The others left a while ago, tired and in need of sleep.

"...Do you want to talk about your nightmare? Now that everyone else left?" I gently ask, my fingers running through his jet-black hair. I often marvel at how soft his hair is. How silky and perfect it is, just like every other inch of him. He lets out a soft sigh, looking up at me now. "It, uh, was about you. Falling in Tartarus." He murmurs. My hand stops its ministrations and I sit up. So does he.

"Percy.." I whisper, but he begins to ramble. "Its stupid, yeah I know. We're still alive and all that but I can't ever get that the fact you fell because of me out of my head. If I had cut that web sooner, if I had paid more attention, you wouldn't have fallen."
He continues to rant about how its his fault for six more minutes before I cover his mouth with my hand, realizing he wouldn't stop anytime soon. "Percy, if we hadn't fallen, we wouldn't have been able to close the Doors of Death. Think of it like that, okay? It wasn't your fault. It never was, Seaweed Brain."

His beautiful eyes close before they open again as he nods his head. I let go of his mouth. "No more blaming yourself, okay? None of it was your fault." He doesn't seem very convinced, but he nods again anyway.
"Okay.." His voice is uncertain, but he doesn't say more. I kiss his forehead. "I love you."

He cracks a small smile, "I love you more, Wise Girl." And I know he does.