SANITY; heroes of olympus

05.3

"Andy, I'm going to tell you this with the best intentions, and as your best friend." Annabeth took a step towards her, her hands splayed out in front of her. "But that is possibly one of the stupidest things you could have done. You and Percy...the both of you are better together, not apart."

Andy knew this. She had reminded herself about it time and time again, and every time she just wanted to silence herself, to clap a hand over her mouth and scream, SHUT UP! But she couldn't. The time had passed, and with it, a piece of her and Percy's connection. It felt as though a part of her heart had been chipped away when he pulled back, when he flinched away as though she had slapped him straight across the face.

She whispered, "I know."

"Then talk to him," Annabeth practically pleaded.

"I can't." Andy looked up at her best friend and felt like crying, like screaming at the world, at the gods, you did this to me! You threw me into a war that you started! But she couldn't. She could hardly speak and breathe and make it through the day without remembering the red skies and claws and all of the faces that haunted her every waking moment and screamed at her every sleeping one. It felt as if she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders again, but this time she was alone completely. No goddess to save her, and no son of Poseidon at her side. She couldn't have anyone with her during...this. But maybe she could lift that weight from her shoulder, maybe Annabeth could help her, even if only from afar, even if there was nothing that could stop it in the end. "Annie..." the redhead's voice died out like wind sailing through trees, "I need to tell you something. And you have to promise not to speak a word of it to anyone. Just you and me."

Annabeth nodded without an ounce of hesitance. If only she knew what she was signing onto. "Of course. Just you and me."

—💫—

Andy and Annabeth climbed up the steps leading to where the rest of their friends were, seeing as Piper and Frank had just returned from their poison hunt. The entire crew gathered for a hurried meeting on the foredeck—mostly because Percy was keeping an eye on a giant red sea serpent swimming off the port side.

"That thing is really red," Percy muttered. "I wonder if it's cherry-flavoured."

"Why don't you swim over and find out?" Annabeth asked.

Usually Andy would be the one to make a comment about his words, about whatever sarcastic thing he had said, but today was not that day. Instead she wrapped her arms around herself and leaned into Annabeth.

"How about no."

"Anyway," Frank said, "according to my Pylos cousins, the chained god we're looking for in Sparta is my dad...uh, I mean Ares, not Mars. Apparently the Spartans kept a statue of him chained up in their city so the spirit of war would never leave them."

"Oo-kay," Leo said. "The Spartans were freaks. Of course, we've got Victory tied up downstairs, so I guess we can't talk."

Jason leaned against the forward ballista. "On to Sparta, then. But how does a chained god's heartbeat help us find a cure for dying?"