Empress (a Percy Jackson AU)

Seaweed Brain

      The next day, Annabeth and Percy woke up early to help Jason and Piper patch up their hut. The two of them had spent the night together as if they were husband and wife — a lie that went deeper than their disguise. "Wake up, Sparky!" Percy said as he stuck his head into the hut.

     Jason yawned and sat up. Piper was already tightening the straps of her sandals. Her dark brown hair was neatly braided and tied back with a piece of cloth. Annabeth wondered how she found the time to do it. Since her father's death, she hadn't had the time or the energy to untangle her own hair most days — let alone style it.

"This place will be downright cozy once we have some furniture and everything patched up," Jason said.

Percy nodded. "The roof seems to be the biggest issue. Other then that, we really just need to patch a few holes in the walls."

"And then we'll be living like royalty," Jason said.

Percy laughed, but Annabeth frowned. They soon got to work. It was early, so the midday sun wasn't beating down upon them, but it was still hot and humid. An inconstant wind sporadically blew, bringing with it the salty tang of the sea.

       Percy went to the shore to collect driftwood and Jason looked for fallen branches closer to the hut. They designated a shady spot next to a flat stone as the place to store what they collected. Piper and Annabeth worked as a team, stuffing the holes in the side of the hut with leaves. When they finished, they plastered the holes with a wet clay mixture that would harden and seal it up.

        Percy and Jason returned to add to the growing pile of branches next to the hut. "I wish we had a house made of clay," Jason remarked when he squatted down to add more branches to the pile.

      "Well, at least it's not made of bricks," Piper said, smiling.

    The two shared a glance that seemed to convey an entire epic. Annabeth wondered just how much had happened between them on their journey. She looked to Percy, but he shrugged, apparently as clueless as she was about this inside joke.

     "Well, let's go raise this roof!" Percy said, raising his hands in the air and doing a silly dance.

      "They already have a roof," Annabeth said, "so we're technically only fixing the roof, Seaweed Brain."

     "Alright, Wise Girl," Percy said. "We shall all heed your wisdom and we as straightforward as possible at all times."

     Annabeth frowned. Piper leaned over to whisper something into Jason's ear. The two looked a lot happier than Annabeth felt. Why was it her luck to be stuck with Percy in Greece? Why did he have to be so insufferably annoying? Why did she think about these small things during the day when her dreams were filled with resurrected memories — a nightly replaying of the night where it all went down?

     Jason and Piper picked up a branch and carried it over to the hut before lifting it over their heads and placing it on the roof. Percy and Annabeth did the same. They fell into a rhythm and she noticed that they worked well together — like a horse and a chariot. For a few moments, Annabeth felt like Luke was alive again. Then reality hit her, and the pain of it all felt anew.