ᴾʰᵒᵇᵒᵖʰᵒᵇⁱᵃ [ᴶᵃˢᵒⁿ ᴳʳᵃᶜᵉ]

β.

β. Autophobia - the fear of being alone or of oneself
Not Alone - Darren Criss, from Starkid

-rewritten 1/4/22-

AZA-EVERETT Malin attached two glimmering Celestial Bronze spears to the left wall of the chariot, towards the open back, relishing in the way the sunlight warmed her spine. She strained her eyes to peer in her peripheral vision; Aza's best friend, a curly-haired blonde named Annabeth Chase, physically shook with nerves. Her body vibrated ever-so-slightly, too subtle for most to see and easy for most to overlook, but Aza spent years memorizing her friend's tell-tale signs. The blonde, a daughter of Athena, oftentimes hid her weaknesses; it was natural for her to do so: Annabeth knew that weakness was the key to an early death.

But Aza, much to her pleasure, had become far more accustomed to Annabeth's signs of nerves – after all, it was always visible, however hidden. And so, as Aza caught sight of the barely-quaking girl she raised a brow and looked closer, subtly tilting her head to get a better look. Annabeth's curly hair bounced up and down her collarbones, like waves kidding the sea shore again and again. The blonde stared at a screw: she untightened and tightened it several times before moving to the next screw and repeating the process.

Aza began to sharpen the tip of one of the spears, keeping an eye on the blonde; she kept quiet as Annabeth checked that every nut and bolt was tight and secure, and that every nook and cranny of the golden chariot was just as it had been moments before. It began to make Aza nervous: this was the most Aza had ever seen her, and Aza had to witness a ten-year-old Annabeth tell her cabin counselor that she had lost its favorite book; the blonde hadn't even looked this worried when she fought in a war, nor on any of the adventures the two had been on.

Of course, Aza knew why, it was due to one person: Perseus Jackson, the (former) resident son of Poseidon. On almost every quest, challenge and adventure Annabeth had been through, Percy had been right by her side – with Aza closely behind and their satyr best friend, Grover Underwood. The three (or four, before Grover had begun his search) stuck together like glue: though recently Aza had taken to spending more time in her cabin and less time with her best friends: they needed alone time, sometimes, and Aza would rather have gouged out her eyes than witness them make-out again. Regardless, through all of Annabeth's challenges, Percy and Aza had been superglued to her side through thick and thin: and now, Aza lost half of her safety net.

Aza wasn't fooled: Annabeth in no way needed a protector or a hero; she didn't need some knight in shining armor to save her (which was lucky, since oftentimes she was Percy's knight) and typically it was Annabeth saving Aza or Percy, who tended to run wild. The daughter of Athena was plenty fierce: Aza had no doubt she could battle twelve manticores at once and come out unscathed; Annabeth Chase could hold the weight of the sky on her shoulders, and to Aza there was nothing more heroic.

And yet, Aza-Everett Malin knew fear like the back of her hand, and she knew that Annabeth was petrified. She tried not to pry, but with powers with her it was difficult not to; she could sense Annabeth's fear – almost like a scent no one else acknowledged – and knew the blonde was scared her boyfriend was lost, hurt, confused or worse.

Aza approached her best friend and patted the blonde's shoulder sympathetically; she forced the most comforting smile she could manage and squeezed Annabeth's shoulder before turning to face Will Solace, a blonde boy with tanned surfer skin and brilliant blue eyes like his father, who watched the girls like a hawk as they readied the chariot.

Will shook his finger in the air, "There'd better not be a scratch on this chariot," with his free hand, he rubbed the golden chariot as though it were his child, his eyes filled with more affection than Pygmalion. "Not a scratch, you hear me?"