I turned the knob, and warm water spilled out of the bathtub faucet. Percy lay I the tub, blood coating his torso. I locked every door and window in the house. I had propped up the front door, and moved the couch in front of it to hold it in place. The monsters could still get in, but it would hold them back.
Percy groaned, and grabbed his side. Not wasting anytime, I ripped his shirt off and examined the wound. It ran along the right side of his torso, and was cut deep. Blood kept coming out of it, and wouldn't stop. The water in the tub turned pink, and Percy looked at me pleadingly.
"It's going to be alright." I said, kneeling down next to him. I grabbed his ripped shirt, and used it to apply pressure to the wound. Being in water should help him heal even faster. I could already tell the bleeding was slowing, and Percy seemed to be hurting less.
I held the shirt down onto the wound, and said a prayer to Athena. Please Mom, help us. My hands and shirt were coated in blood, some from Percy, and some from myself. My head was pounding from hitting the wall, and I felt gross, hot, and sticky. But, my wounds could wait; Percy's was worse, and he needed attention.
The bleeding had lessened by about ten times, and I continued to put pressure on it. Percy's face twisted with pain, but I could tell it wasn't as bad as before. The water was definitely helping.
CRASH! BANG!
I jumped, and kept one hand on Percy as I grabbed the hilt of my sword. I stared at the door, listening for any other sounds. I remained staring at the door for a second, before returning my attention back to Percy. I still gripped the sword hilt, ready to defend Percy and I against any dracaena who go to us.
Percy started to sit up more in the tub, and I heard another bang. I ignored it, and helped Percy sit up. His wound had stopped bleeding, and was slowly healing. If I could hold of the monsters for long enough, he could be healed almost completely. He could be healed well enough to help fight their way through the dracaenae in the house.
I put the shredded shirt on the floor next to me, and looked at Percy. "Stay here, in the water, so you heal. I'll fight off the dracaenae." I stood at faced the door. It was on the left of the tub, and I raised the sword.
I couldn't let them get in the bathroom. Percy was in here healing, and it wouldn't be safe. The best way to keep them away, would be leaving the room and fighting them off. I slowly crept towards the door, and held my sword in a battle stance.
"Where are you going?" Percy asked, concerned.
"We can't risk the dracaenae getting in here, your still injured. I'll keep them away from the door." I said, still staring at the door. I reached my hand out and grabbed the brass doorknob, twisting it slowly.
"Annabeth! It's too dangerous!" Percy said, and he started to stand up. I let go of the knob and faced him. He clutched his side where the wound was. It was still bad, but it had healed some.
"Percy sit down! You know this is the smartest thing to do." I responded, and Percy looked down, thinking.
He nodded slowly. "Yeah, I guess you're right." He leaned forward and kissed me, before returning to the tub. Part of his torso, and his legs were soaked from the tub. "But be careful. I just married you, I can't lose you."
"I swear I will." I said, turning back to the door.
BANG!
I heard slithering. Lots of it. How many dracaenae were out there? I grabbed the door knob, turned it, and opened the door. Before a dracaenae could try and get inside, I jumped into the hallway, and shut it behind me.
I was in the tiny hallway. The living room was to my left, and the kitchen and dining area was to my right. In front of me was the door to the laundry room. I saw the couch had been pushed out from against the doorframe, and the door leaned against it. I raised my sword.
The were too many dracaenae to count. At least four were in the living room, but I couldn't see behind the wall, and heard slithering from that direction. I guessed maybe one or two would be there. In the kitchen and dining room though, I could only see three. But I couldn't see much into the rooms, and I was sure there was more dracaenae in there. I heard slithering all around me, and then the dracaenae attacked.
I blocked a sword on my left, and ducked from another attack from the right. The attack from the right ended up hitting the dracaenae on my left, and it toppled back, knocking two others down with it. I swung into the living room, and in one clean stroke, killed the first dracaenae.
As I jumped to kill the next on the floor, a shield hit me from the side, and I fell to the ground. I was up in an instant, and blocked another attack. The dracaenae on the ground had both stood up. Five dracaenae were in the living room with me, and more were coming in from the right. I had to get to the bathroom door! If one went in...
I jumped through the crowd of monsters, and killed one standing in the hallway. I took up a position in front of the door, and blocked more attacks. I swung more sword, killing another dracaenae. More came in through the doors. How many were there?
I continued to dodge attacks, and slash at the monsters. A few times I lost my position in front of the door, but I fought my way back before any could go in. I had new scratches and cuts all over my body, and my arms ached from the sword. I was dripping with sweat, and everything seemed to hurt. How long would Percy need to heal?
As I blocked an attack from the right, a dracaenae from the left swung its sword at me. I tried to move, but was too slow. The blade cut into my leg, and I jumped back before it could do any more harm. I dropped down and screamed, blood rushing down my ankle. But, I persisted. Every part of me hurt, I could handle another cut in the leg.
More dracaenae piled in through the doors. For every one I killed, it seemed two more came in. It was like every monster in the world was attacking me at once. I couldn't fight any longer, but had nowhere to go. Should I check on Percy?
I ducked as a blade was swung at my head, and decided that I should. My hand grabbed the door knob, and I opened the door a crack. I slipped in quick as I could, and slammed it shut behind me. I turned the lock in an instant, took a step back and collapsed to the floor.
My head was spinning, and my vision blurred. Everything seemed to be spinning and fading. My body burned like fire, and the cut on my leg hurt the worst. So this is how we were going to die. At least we got to get married. I would die Mrs. Seaweed Brain. I hoped I would see Chiron in the underworld. I saw movement, and a blur, that must have been Percy.
The monster banging on the bathroom door was the last thing I heard before I passed out.
. . .
I woke up to water.
I blinked. The bathroom light seemed to glow brighter than the sun. Water rushed around me on the floor, and strong hands lifted me off the ground. I tried to stand but my knees wobbled and I collapsed again.
Everything was blurry, and I seemed to fade in and out of conscious. I squinted at the harsh light.
Percy was holding me in his arms, and water swirled around us. I heard dracaenae screaming as the wave burst into them and they were washed out of the house.
The water was coming from the sink, toilet, and faucet. Percy had been healed. I passed back out.
The next time I started to regain conscious, Percy was carrying me down the streets of Rome. Everything hurts, and my headache was worse than ever. People gawked at us, but Percy kept going. Were the dracaenae still following us? I passed out again, for the last time.
When I regained consciousness for good, I was laying on a bench. It was hard wood, and I ached.
My eyes slowly adjusted to the light, and I examined my surroundings. I was in some sort of changing stall, like at a store. A mirror was against one wall, and Percy sat at the end of the bench.
"You're awake!" he smiled, and I sat up. He was wearing new, fresh clothes. shirt was a deep blue, that accented his eyes. A pair of jeans and a shirt sat were hung up on the wall.
"W- what happened?" I asked, rubbing my eyes. My injuries still hurt, but not as bad. I touched my head, and felt that the blood had been washed off. My hair hair hung loose around my shoulders, and I pushed a strand out of my eyes.
"You passed out. But, I had healed enough to fight back. I knocked the dracaenae out of the house with a wave, and then quickly wiped off your wounds." Percy said, holding my hand. "Then I ran to this clothing store, and changed."
I looked down. "Do you think the dracaenae are going to come here?" My head still pounded.
"Probably, which is why we need to leave soon. There are some clothes," Percy said, gesturing to the pants and shirt hanging up. "Change quick, before any more come."
I slipped out of my dirty clothes, and put on the fresh ones. The shirt was a deep purple, and the jeans were a light, faded blue. My hair was a rat's nest. It was all tangled and knotted from the battles. I shrugged, and turned to Percy.
"Let's go." I said.