The Next Great Prophecy

ANNABETH XXVII

            Annabeth stared at her boyfriend’s face, wishing they had another option.

            He fell asleep easily, and it was a while before anything happened. His face was peaceful, and Annabeth was thankful he got at least a few moments of peaceful rest. But, as usual, it didn’t last.

            The first sign that anything was wrong was on his shoulder. She screamed at the sudden spurt of blood as it soaked his sleeve, and saw him grimace in pain. The others came rushing in, and Annabeth stood up to watch over her boyfriend. Piper grabbed a towel from the bathroom and held it to his shoulder, and Hazel and Frank went to grab supplies from the infirmary.

            Suddenly, his shoulder was forgotten as the breath was knocked out him again and again. When there was a pause, he coughed, and blood flew from between his lips. Annabeth held a hand to her mouth, trying not to cry. It was all she could do to keep her promise and let him sleep. Suddenly, he started choking again, and the others could barely see the impression of a hand around his throat.

            “Percy!” Annabeth yelled, rushing to him. Unsure of what to do, she grabbed his hand, wondering if he could feel it in the dream. She looked at the others. “Morpheus is going to kill him!”

            Jason was the only one to respond. “He’ll be fine, Annabeth. He’ll make it out of this just fine, I promise.”

            “But what if he doesn’t?” she asked, watching as the hand—thank the gods—released her boyfriend’s neck. She watched as he coughed again, coughing up more blood, before he began to breathe fairly normally.

            “He will,” responded Piper, gripping Annabeth’s shoulder.

            The room grew quiet, filled only with the sound of Percy’s labored breathing. Annabeth brushed his sweaty hair from his eyes, wishing they would open.

            It was hours before anything happened. They bandaged up his shoulder, as well as the small wound that appeared on his side. The worst was definitely his shoulder, as the knife had managed to break the bone. He also had several broken ribs, and his throat was bruised in the shape of a hand. He was incredibly pale and clammy.

            Finally, just when Annabeth was beginning to wonder if he was ever going to wake up, his eyes opened. He squinted at the sunlight pouring in from the window, and slowly found Annabeth sitting in a chair next to his bed. “Hey, Wise Girl.”

            Annabeth’s face broke into a huge grin. “Seaweed Brain!” She flung her arms around him, but quickly released him when she felt him grimace. “Sorry.”

            “It was worth it,” he said, coughing.

            “Come on, let’s get you to the infirmary for some ambrosia. Then you can tell us what happened.” She helped him stand, supporting much of his weight. The two hobbled to the infirmary, where they found a huge mess. Piper was flinging supplies all over, seemingly searching for something. She turned around when the two entered, looking distressed. “Our ambrosia and nectar. It’s gone.”

Dun, dun, dun! *dramatic music in the background*

See ya soon, guys! -T