HOO Fanfiction The Final Battle

Chapter 3

Hey guys, so I've actually got quite a lot of reads now! YAY! I hope that means you're enjoying it?

ALL RIGHTS GO TO RICK RIORDAN, I OWN NOTHING! ALL CHARACTERS AND IDEAS ARE HIS!

Percy-

My head felt like someone had smashed a sledge-hammer over it, and it was still pounding with every heartbeat. It was as if someone was poking my brain through my ears with a white hot spear, and every time I moved my eyes it stung. Somwhere in the background, I could still feel the aching of my bones that half-dragging Annabeth through Tartarus had caused.

Opening my eyes, I saw Anabeth leaning over me. Her expression changed from expectant to relieved when I looked into sharp grey eyes. And there was something else there too... Determination.

"How're you feeling, Percy?" She asked, and I was immediately distracted by the pain her voice caused; it was so LOUD.

I groaned in response, shutting my eyes and  laying my cold fingers on my forehead. But the cold just didn't burrow deep enough and was soon swallowed up by my burning temperature.

"Terrible." I whispered in response. I took a deep breath through my nose, trying to ignore the constant pulsing in my head. It's only pain, I reminded myself, It's there to tell you something's wrong. And you damn well know it's wrong. So just ignore it.

Slowly, I dragged myself into a sitting position, my stomach muscles stiff, and groaning in response. After the headrush passed, I opened my eyes and saw the pile of dust on the floor. Dead. That's good.

My eyes painfully flicked to Annabeth, like someone thought it would be fun to jab a knife in each eye. My brain felt numb and dizzy.

"Could we just... Stay here for a while?" I quietly murmured.

Annabeth had a pained expression on her face. "I wish we could, Seaweed Brain, but we have to get there in time... Gaeia's waking. We can both feel it." Thankfully, she whispered this time.

I knew she was right. But the part of me that listened to the pain begged me to stop and sleep. Sighing, I shoved that little voice away and leaned forward onto my knees. I slowly pushed myself up, so I could avoid the headrush. Once upright, the pounding intensified tenfold, and I had to hold back a groan. I shut my eyes and counted silently to ten with my other hand pressed to my forehead. Then I reached down to Annabeth.

She put her hand in mine, and I suddenly got a flash of hanging desperately off the edge of the cliff, clutching Annabeth's fingers in my sweaty grip. Blinking it away, I tugged on her hand and bent down simultaneously, scooping her shoulder over mine. We had this routine perfected by now, but it was surprisingly difficult this time, because I got a dizzy flash as I ducked down and almost fell over myself.

"Percy, are you okay?" Annabeth asked worriedly.

"I'll live." I replied.

At first, it was unbelievably hard to just walk on the -thankfully- flat ground, but I eventually adjusted, and the adrenaline pushed the shrieking pain in my head away. As usual, the walking became a rythm and I stopped thinking ---

Until I came to a river. I say river, but it looked like it was made of lightning. Long, thin streaks of light swam down it like fish. Following it down stream, I saw a rocky patch leading up to... The Doors.

They sat proudly on a hill, stubbornly wide open. They weren't as grand as I'd imagined, but they were definitley The Doors. Annabeth had gone still beside me, and we both just stared for a few seconds.

Annabeth broke the silence, "How are we going to go through this river and up those rocks?" She said, irritated. Like she wanted to personally punish whatever it was that put them there.

"LOOOOOO?" I heard an echo.

"HEEEELLOOOOOOOO?" It came again. Leo!

"Leo! Over here!" I shouted, over-joyed and weak with relief.

"Shut up, Percy!" Annabeth whispered harshly, "Anything could be over there!"

I gave her my confused-baby-seal-eyes and she groaned. Then someone walked through the doors. I couldn't see who it was because the light (Yes! Light!) blocked him or her into shadow. Annabeth tensed beside me, her breath quickening.

The person scrabbled down the rocks in a very not-likely-to-be-a-monster way, and then looked at us. From here, I could see who it was.

"Leo! It is you!" I exclaimed.

"Oh, thank Gods you're alive, man. We were all worried you'd all be psycho or, like, just a torso or something... And you're both here! Piper was, like, terrified that one of you would lose your other half. But don't worry, man," He said, turning to me, "I'd look after your Wise Girl." He winked at Annabeth.

"Hey!" I said, half amused, half angry.

"Shut up." Annabeth said simultaniously. But her voice sounded funny; it didn't have the usual sarky don't-mess-with-me tone that came with an Annabeth threat. I looked at her quizzically, but she didn't notice me. Her eyes were fixed on the Doors.

"So where's everyone else?" I asked, suddenly worried.

"Oh, well Piper, Nico and Frank were asleep, and Jason and Hazel are checking out the area - we dno't know where the Roman Demigods are."

I breathed a sigh of relief - no one was dead.

"Well... Could you go and get Jason or something... Because, like, Annabeth's ankle has only gotten worse and-"

"Oh, sure man! Be right back."

He climbed back up the steep rocks, and I turned to Annabeth. She looked like she was scared, and she gripped my hands in both of hers. They were cold. I was fleetingly tempted to press them to my forehead, when she spoke.

"I love you, Seaweed Brain. Never forget that. Never doubt that. And promise me - right now - promise me that if I had died, you'd have gone on to find a wife and have kids of your own, okay?" Her lower lip trembled.

I was so confused. I put it down to the fact that she must be going through shock - the way people do after a car accident, except it hadn't happened yet because we'd both been in survival mode since I'd left her in Rome.

"I promise I would have, Wise Girl. I love you too." I said. I figured that was the answer that was most likely to calm her down.

Suddenly, Annabeth launched herself into my arms, twined her fingers around my hair and pressed her lips to mine. I reached around her waist and tugged her into me, smoothing my splayed hands up and down her spine as I gently sucked her bottom lip. She suddenly started shaking in my arms, and I pulled away to see she was crying.

"Annabeth?" I asked, shocked and deeply worried.

"I love you, Perseus Jackson." She said it fiercly into my ear, playing with the hair at the bottom of my head. I shivered at the feeling and pressed my lips to her neck.

"I love you too."

Get ready for a feels trip in the next chapter, guys! It's the BIG one!! *Cackles maniacally* Hope you enjoyed it. As usual, leave a comment telling me how you think I could improve if you have the time, and a vote would be fantabulous :)

Thanks for reading!

ALL RIGHTS GO TO RICK RIORDAN!