Apocalyptic Love (Percy Jackson Fanfiction)

A Lonely Cycle

Word Count: 1100+

ANNABETH CHASE

She involuntarily takes a step back, causing herself to trip over a branch. She falls backwards and lands on her hands and backside.
Frank steps forwards to help her up but she scrambles backwards.
"GET BACK!" She screams at him.
Frank turns white and takes a step back, his hand swinging limply at his side.
Annabeth sees Percy rush over, and she notes how he makes a wide berth around Frank.

So the little bastard knew....

Percy reaches her and tries to help her up. But she pushes him away in anger.
The rest of the group steps forwards, arcing around Percy. Annabeth and Frank stand off to the side.
Annabeth grabs out her newly reloaded gun and holds it tightly.
"Annabeth..." Percy holds his hands out  in a gesture of surrender.
"..just put the gun down..."
"He's bitten." She spits out the phrase.
"Yes..I..we know."
"And you're letting him get infected with the virus?"
Percy opens his mouth in exasperation.
Annabeth points the gun at Percy, but her finger remains away from the trigger.
Percy takes a step backwards.

"Frank could have turned and caught me off guard! Did no one think that maybe, just maybe, he could be the reason that someone else in this group dies!?"
There was a collective gasp.

Annabeth screws her eyes shut, realising how insensitive she sounded.

"I'm sorry about Hazel. I truly am. But we are at war. And the more of us who turn...the less chance humans have of survival."
Annabeth takes a turn looking at all of them. Her eyes rest on Percy's.
His eyes burn with torment.
Annabeth knows how hard this is..having to kill one person to do what's best for the group.
She's had to do it so many times...put someone out of their misery.

Her hand loosens and the gun falls from her grasp. As the others all watch it fall, Annabeth turns and walks away.

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PERCY JACKSON

The others remained still. But he moved and picked up the gun Annabeth had dropped. He feels Frank's burning gaze as he puts the gun away.
He turns and watches Annabeth.
She had gotten her knife out and is twirling it in her hand again.
He watches as she turns left and disappears from his view.
His first instinct is to go to her and comfort her...but he knows that's not what she wants. She wants to be alone.

It seems she always wants to be alone....and he pretty much dragged her into this group.
He hangs his head in shame.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ANNABETH CHASE

She hated being alone. For so long, she thought that she loved it. That it was her being independent...and smart.
But really, she hated it. And she needed someone she could depend on.

She had missed the love and security other people brought her. And now that she had it again...she was holding on too tight.

She was stupid. So stupid, to just let Frank live. To let him walk around. He was a time-bomb and she knew that.
Soon, it would be like a switch is flicked and Frank would turn. And they would have to shoot him. But that meant one less person in her happy little group.
She was clinging to the naive belief that he would be alright. That maybe he would be immune.

She was going in circles.
Alone. Find a group. Someone gets infected. They turn. They turn someone else. They die. The group ends. Alone.

No matter what she did, she would always end up alone. She figured that one day it would probably get to her. And that she would suddenly get very friendly with the end of her gun.

But today was not that day.
She had to keep it together...and save the others. She had to break the cycle.

She didn't want to be alone anymore.

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PERCY JACKSON

His nerves were high. Annabeth hadn't come back and it had been at least an hour. They were supposed to move on. She had said herself that they had to get to the caves by nightfall...and yet she disappeared.
Percy stands up and grabs a couple guns.

"I'm sure she's fine man. She's the toughest out of all of us." Says Grover.
Percy looks over at him and smiles.
"If I'm not back in an hour...follow Thalia to the caves. I'll meet you there."
"And if you never get to the caves? What do we do then?"
"Stay alive."

~~

"Annabeth?" He whispered.
"Are you there?"
He hears something coming from behind a group of trees. The sound, for some reason, makes the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He grabs his gun and holds it up to the sky.

His steps are careful.

"Tell us where the others are you little bitch." A gruff voice says. The voice is vaguely familiar to Percy.
"They're all dead."
Percy stops in his tracks.

That was Annabeth.

There was a loud noise and a groan. Someone just got slapped.
"Don't lie!" Another voice says.
"I'm not lying. They were weak. One of them turned and the others didn't want to shoot him. So they all got bitten."
There was a small silence.
"And I shot them all." Annabeth finishes.
Percy starts forward again, purposely avoiding as many leaves and twigs he can.
"Luke won't be happy with us..because of what we are about to do....but what can I say? I hate you bitch."
There was another slapping sound.
Percy reached the clearing just early enough to see Annabeth bring her head back up and spit blood at the man's shoes.
"Fuck. You."
The man lifts his hand to hit her again, but instead he falls down dead.

With a bullet wound through his heart.

Percy quickly shoots the man standing behind Annabeth as well. The guy falls forward, and over Annabeth's legs.
She grunts at the weight.
"Took you long enough." She says tiredly, as Percy rushes towards her. He pushes the man off of her and pulls her up. His fingers quickly untie the rope around her wrists.
When the rope falls, Percy bends down and unties her legs as well.

Annabeth is rubbing her jaw when he stands up again. Already a bruise is forming.
"Geez that guy's got a menacing back-swing." She tries to joke.
Percy gives her a look and she falls silent.
"You shouldn't have walked off." He says.
Annabeth nods mutely.
Percy sighs and pulls her in for a hug.
"I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." He says to her.
His hand comes up and strokes her hair as she rests her forehead on his shoulder.
"We should get back to the others. There might be more of Luke's goons in the area." Annabeth says, her voice slightly muffled.
Percy makes no move to let her go.
"Percy..."
"Cuddle now. Move later." He says.
Annabeth chuckles and pushes him back.

"Move now." She says.
"Cuddle later?"

"If you're good." 

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