Fragile Heart [Completed]

6

Leo walked into the infirmary and Rory sat up. "Hey, Annabeth said you wanted to talk to me?" he asked. Rory smiled weakly and looked uncomfortable. She shifted slightly so she could see him properly.

"Yeah. Do you remember anything? Before you saw me collapsed." Leo looked deep in thought.

"Well, I remember going up there, and then it's kinda blurry and then I saw you. Why? Do you think you know what happend?" he asked, almost hopefully. Rory sighed.

"Don't worry about it. I thought you might've seen something or heard something," she lied. Leo smiled sympathetically begore waving and leaving the infirmary.

Unfortunately, her talk with Leo had only confirmed what she had seen to be true. She wanted to talk to Annabeth but she knew that she would only worry, and Rory didn't want to put that pressure on her friend.

*   *   *

The next day Rory was released from the infirmary but was told to take it easy and not over-exhert herself. She was still plagued by nightmares. Most were her reliving seeing her mother in pain and being tortured by the shadow creatures. Others were of camp and Annabeth being attacked by the same creatures whilst Rory was helpless to do anything. She would wake up shaking and sweating in the early hours of the morning.

She had taken to staying up until well past midnight in an attempt to ward off the horrific dreams. A few times Leo or one of the other campers had expressed concern for her, but she had brushed them off saying that she wasn't tired. It was Annabeth who persisted, constantly asking if she was ok, and that she wasn't working too much. Rory found it annoyingly charming. The way she cared and the way her eyes would shine when she was worried. And yes, she knew how that sounded, but she couldn't do anything about it. Annabeth was only just out of a long relationship, so she would just have to get over it.

*   *   *

Annabeth was getting more and more worried about Rory. She seemed tired, her mind elsewhere. She knew that Rory was able to take care of herself, she had said as much, but Annabeth needed to know that she was ok.

After dinner, for the third time, Rory disappeared and headed straight to the armoury. Every other day, Annabeth noticed, she would do that. The other nights she would stay and they would talk. But then the next day she would just get up and leave.

"What does she do up there?" Annabeth finally asked Leo. He shrugged in response.

"No-one knows. She just gets up and leaves, doesn't talk to anyone. Sneaks in early. Like, just before dawn, kinda early." Annabeth's stomach twisted. Getting little to no sleep was bad, especially after the incident she was still recovering from. "Just talk to her. She won't listen, but she needs to know that someone cares," he continued, his tone serious. Annabeth nodded and followed Rory quietly to the armoury.

Annabeth had no idea how she would confront her. Would she play it casual, slowly leading it up to why she was there? Or would she simply tell her? It turned out she didn't have a choice, because no sooner than she had started to mull it over, had she walked straight into Rory, making her fall down onto her backside.

Rory's face held no emotion as she studied Anmabeth. Her eyes were lifeless, the spark gone. She looked, to Annabeth, like she was trying to cover something up.

"It's not like you, as far as I'm aware, to walk into someone without realising it," Rory stated in a monotone voice. Annabeth swallowed the lump that begun to form in her throat.

"I'm sorry. I was just...I wanted to see if you're ok." Her voice was quiet, almost a whisper. She refused to meet Rory's gaze, and instead stared at her feet. Rory's stance shifted slightly, and she extended her hand down for Annabeth. Grateful, she grasped it firmly and stood up. "You keep disappearing every other night. Leo and I, we're worried," she continued. Rory looked thoughtful for a moment before letting out a sigh.

"You're right, I'm sorry." Annabeth was taken aback by the apology. "I just don't want to sleep. I know, I know, not sleeping is bad. That's why I only do it every other night, like an escape," Rory explained. Annabeth thought back to the night of Rory's nightmare. Was that what she was escaping from? Constant nightmares?

Shifted her weight from one foot to the other, clearly uncomfortable with the long silence. Without saying anything, Annabeth wrapped her arms around Rory's neck. Then she broke.

Rory collapsed, her knees buckling from underneath her. Strangled cries and sobs escaped from her throat. She felt like a hundred years worth of grief was finally comming out. Her arms were wrapped tightly around Annabeth's waist, her head laying on her shoulder. Annabeth rubbed her back and rocked her gently.

She cried until her eyes were dry and her throat was raw. Her lungs were burning for air, and the back of her head throbbed as it usually did when she cried. In that moment nothing else existed; only them. It was as if the whole world had gone quiet. Rory felt sleep tug at her, the edges if her vision fading. She didn't have the energy to fight it. So she lay wrapped in Annabeth's embrace until, slowly, she fell into an uneasy sleep.

*   *   *

The dream was like all the others. She was running through the camp, the sky a blood red. She could hear Annabeth calling her name from a no more than a shirt sprint away. From behind her, Rory saw the same shadowy creature that had tortured and killed her mother. The only weapon she had was a bow.

Annabeth was picked up by her leg. A similar creature had her in a firm grasp, but before Rory could take the shot, she woke up.

*   *   *

After Rory had fallen asleep, Annaneth had carried her to the Hepheastus cabin where Leo had let her stay for the night to make sure Rory was ok. Annabeth had tried to place Rory in her bed, but she had refused to let go of her neck. Eventually Annabeth had given in and climbed into bed with her.

She was just starting to doze off when Rory started groaning and hyperventilating.

Annabeth was shaking Rory hard. Her eyes shot open and she looked around as though she was searching for something or someone. When her eyes landed on Annabeth she visibly relaxed and buried her head into the crook of Annabeth's neck. She felt hit tears fall onto her skin and hugged Rory tighter.

"Hey, you're ok now. You're safe," Annabeth tried to reassure her. She kept saying it over and over again in an attempt to calm Rory down.

When she did, Annabeth worked up the nerve to ask her; "What was it about?" It didn't seem like a big question, but she knew how personal Demi-God dreams could be, and she wanted to know if there was any way that she could help. When Rory remained silent Annabeth worried that she had crossed a line. Then she spoke;
slowly, as though she were choosing her words carefully.

"It was about camp. Everything was on fire. The sky was red and I kept inhaling smoke. And..." her voice broke slightly. "There were these...creatures made of shadows." Her voice was wobbly and her bottom lip trembled.

"It was the same ones that...they killed my mum." It came out mumbled and rushed. Annabeth was shocked into silence. She didn't expect Rory to be so open. But she wasn't finished.

"I was running from one of them. You were, too. One of them picked you up and no one else could get to you and I couldn't do anything." The last sentence came out sounding almost like a choked sob. Rory pressed her forehead deeper into Annabeth's neck as though she was trying to hide from the monsters in her nightmares. Annabeth so badly wanted to tell her that she had had the same dream, but she didn't want to make Rory feel any worse.

"Thank you."