⚠️
this chapter contains a detailed mention of an injury which can be classified as slightly graphic. the description starts at the first '♛' and ends at the second.
⚠️
edited: april 2, 2021; sept 21, 2023
✺✺✺
"Hydra!" Annabeth yells, and (Y/N) pulls Percy and Grover away.
The four run to the columns at their left, and (Y/N) warns, "Guys, watch out, the middle one spews fire!" Her hair whips around her face as she slides behind a column, the heat kissing her skin as the flames narrowly miss her.
It wasn't as hot as she thought it would be.
Percy's jacket sleeve catches on fire, and he exclaims in fear, letting go of the pearl as he pulls his arm back. (Y/N) watches from around the corner of her pillar as the pearl rolls along the smooth tiles, stopping when it reaches the small grate on the floor. Hearing a screech from her right, she whips her head around, leaning backwards just in time to avoid having her arm ripped out.
Taking a millisecond to prepare her attack, she thrusts her blade forward, and it meets its mark right in front of the hinge of the monster's jaw. It roars in pain and draws its head back immediately, giving (Y/N) a window of opportunity. Seeing her friends taking care of their own situations (Annabeth has opted for a similar stabbing attack, Percy is shielding himself while trying to get a hit with Riptide, and Grover is throwing candy from his pockets into the monster's mouth), she uses the column for momentum, gripping the edge and pushing herself forward. She sprints across the freshly-cleaned tiles, skidding to a stop behind the Hydra with a loud squeak.
Its attention diverts to (Y/N). Percy uses the distraction to his advantage, backing up for a running start. His winged shoes carry him up into the air, and he dodges the fire from the center head as he starts attacking. One of the heads moves towards him, and Percy swings his left arm, the shield knocking the head to the side, giving Percy a clear shot at its neck.
With horror, (Y/N) watches as he takes it.
She and Annabeth continue to shout protests as he expertly slices off the monster's heads, dodging its mouths and maneuvering easily. The beast releases screeches of pain until Percy slices through its final neck. Its body falls, limp, to the floor, the five heads dropping with soft thuds and dissolving with hisses of smoke.
Percy lands, holding his arms out in victory. "How flippin' awesome was that?" Grover lets out a whoop, and Percy continues, "I just killed that thing!"
(Y/N) frantically drops her blades and steps towards the body, sending thick vines out from the center of her palms and commanding them to wrap around and restrain the monster as best she can.
"Killed it?" Annabeth asks, furious. "You only made it worse."
"What are you talking about?" Percy breathes, confused. Behind him, more smoke emits from the beast, and its necks begin to lift off the tiles.
"Percy, when you cut off one Hydra head . . ." Annabeth starts, watching with wide eyes as (Y/N) starts slipping, being pulled towards the monster. The girl grits her teeth, widening her stance and pivoting her back foot as she grunts, pulling her arms back with force to tighten the vines wrapped around the Hydra's body.
"—Two more grow back."
Percy turns around, watching as (Y/N)'s vines slowly burn to ash as the Hydra's skin sizzles with heat. The necks flail around, narrowly avoiding columns as the body begins to push itself upward. With a yelp of surprise, (Y/N) is lifted off the floor and thrown to the side, the vines disconnecting from her palms as she flies through the air. She lets out a cry of pain as she lands on her injured arm, skidding to a stop near the group. Grover runs over to her. She hisses as she props herself up with her arm, the bandage loosening. She uses Grover for support while pulling herself up, brushing off his effort to help her keep her balance.
"Well," she says, her tone bland, "that was fun." She keeps her eyes transfixed on the now-ten-headed monster in front of them.
"Get back!" Grover yells as two heads spout their fire at the teens, and he pulls (Y/N) with him to a column, shielding her body with his.
"Thanks," she breathes out, and the satyr pats her uninjured shoulder.
"No problem."
Percy turns to Annabeth. "Distract that thing!" he calls over the Hydra's echoing roars. "I'll get the pearl!"
Annabeth nods. She casts a worried glance to where Grover and (Y/N) shield themselves from the fire before diving for her backpack. Hurriedly, she withdraws a collapsible bow and its collection of arrows. She adjusts herself carefully, calculating her angle before drawing the first arrow. It lands in the neck of the left center head, and she aims again, hitting the same head's eye with her next release.
That was enough of a distraction for Percy.
The Hydra shrieks, turning towards Annabeth for revenge, and she shoots a final arrow before running behind the columns again. Percy runs to the grate where the pearl lies, catching the attention of one of the Hydra heads. The monster whirls around, chasing after Percy just as he reaches the pearl. The twin heads in the center open their mouths to spit their fire at him, and Percy raises his shield while squeezing his eyes shut, not knowing what else to do.
The burning heat fails to arrive.
Percy opens his eyes, nearly blinded by the conflict of fire before him. Deep orange clashes with lighter yellow, and (Y/N)'s silhouette stands before the darker spouts of flame. Percy grabs the pearl, hiding behind Athena's statue.
(Y/N)'s hair blows behind her as she bends her front leg more, strengthening her position. The orange-red flames from her palms meet in the middle with the Hydra's bright yellow-orange. Her fire is weaker, yet steady, dividing the Hydra's so it flows around her form. The monster's flames burn the skin on her injured arm with a consistent river of fire, filling it with immeasurable pain.
Gritting her teeth and trembling with exertion, she bends her arms towards her, slowly pushing out as the heat and width of her fire increase. Annabeth and Grover duck for cover as both flames burn with a fiercer intensity, their creators each sliding back on the smooth tiles before pushing forward again. With a roar, (Y/N) focuses her energy, and her flames brighten in color, turning to an almost-white yellow before darkening to azure.
Blue fights against orange, extinguishing the weaker adversary and shooting forward with a swirling ferocity. (Y/N) lets her flames die out when the Hydra screeches in pain, and she takes action.
She pushes her injured arm from her mind as she runs towards the Hydra. Leaping into the air, she lets a single vine—black, thick, and speckled with large thorns—emerge from her hand and wrap around one of its ten necks. She uses her momentum to swing her up behind the many heads of the beast, landing on its back and letting more vines like the first sprout from her hands and restrain the Hydra.
Thorns pierce the skin on its necks, the pain weakening its resistance to (Y/N)'s control. Letting the restraints separate from her hands, she keeps them under her command in the air, and she steadies herself on the monster's back. She reigns in the monster, simultaneously controlling ten vines with a single pull. It stumbles backwards, away from the large statue, and (Y/N) bends her knees to keep her balance on the creature. Its tail whips around, smashing into columns before slamming into her side. The air escapes her lungs as she goes flying through the air once more. As soon as she loses her hold on the monster, it lets out an ear-piercing shriek, shaking free of the vines.
Before (Y/N) can crash into the floor, she holds her hands out, releasing two controlled jets of fire from her palms. She hovers a foot in the air before dropping onto the tiles. Annabeth and Grover run over to her as she coughs, trying to catch her breath while she slips in and out of consciousness.
The Hydra turns back to the statue, moving forward to search for its target—the son of Poseidon.
Percy looks around the platform to see the monster heading his way, and he ducks back, narrowly avoiding the fire blown in his direction. He looks up as clawed feet wrap around the stone, and Percy backs away, the water fountains across from him catching his attention. Remembering that even he has his own abilities, he extends his arm. He closes his eyes, focusing as he keeps his attention on the fountains, soon feeling the rush of water flowing through the pipes.
He opens his eyes, being brought face-to-face with one of the monster's heads opening its mouth, fire sparking just as the water fountains explode. A piece of metal hits the head, and the Hydra turns to the fountain in surprise. Water floods out, rushing across the floor and catching the monster off-balance.
Percy guides it with his hand, creating a wall to block the monster's fire as he runs behind the columns, seeing Annabeth helping (Y/N) stand up.
He sprints towards them, motioning frantically to the doors. "Let's go!"
The campers rush to the exit, and the Hydra turns around when it notices their attempt to escape. Annabeth and Percy yank at the door handles. (Y/N) turns to face the monster, ready to defend again if necessary, despite her weakened state. "The door won't open!" Percy yells to the others, and Grover thinks quickly.
He runs forward, reaching into his bag as Annabeth shouts his name in protest and worry. Pulling out Medusa's severed head, Grover steps in front of (Y/N), holding the head in front of him and closing his eyes.
The Hydra sends two twin bursts of fire at the group of teenagers, and Grover lifts the sunglasses up to uncover Medusa's eyes.
(Y/N) watches as the flames stop their approach, the snakes on Medusa's head hissing as the fire dies out. Grover covers up the eyes again, his head turned away before he realizes the silence.
The teenagers' breaths are heavy as they stare, wide-eyed, at the monster in front of them. Its movements slow to a halt as skin is replaced by stone, its formerly shiny appearance now a dull, matte grey.
(Y/N) laughs in disbelief as Grover lets out a triumphant, "Whoo!" He plants a kiss on Medusa's cheek, immediately drawing back. "Ugh! That's nasty."
Slowly, a burning starts deep within (Y/N)'s upper arm, and she gasps in pain.
"(Y/N)!" Percy calls out in concern, running forward and steadying her as she stumbles backwards. White spots cloud her vision, and she whimpers, falling to her knees and leaning back against Percy. He holds her on the way down, adjusting his grip on her waist as they hit the floor, and the three teenagers look at her arm. Finally noticing the extent of her injury, Annabeth gasps, and she and Grover both turn away from the sight, their stomachs churning.
♛
The exposed skin on her forearm arm is scorched black, the bandage that previously wrapped her bicep either melted away or stuck onto her already-serious wound. The injured area is a mixture of burnt, terribly exposed, and completely raw.
Parts of her visible flesh have actually melted, but the heat from the Hydra repeatedly cauterized the blood before the process repeated. Chimera claw marks are barely indistinguishable in the horrific mass of the injury.
♛
Percy moves to kneel in front of her and looks into her eyes. "You're going to a hospital."
"No."
His eyebrows shoot up at her tone, firm and decisive despite her glazed eyes. "(Y/N), this can't be fixed easily. You need medical attention."
She coughs, screwing her eyes shut while answering, "Percy, if I go to a hospital, I'll be put under extensive care. I won't be able to go with you guys, and as I told you before, you need me."
"(Y/N)—"
"You can see the bandage, right?"
Percy blinks. He shakes his head. "What?"
"That bandage, can you see all of it?"
"I- yeah, but what does that—?"
"Annabeth, Grover, in my backpack, there's a first aid kit. It's red, you can't miss it. Go get that and bring it here," she commands, her voice trembling at the agony shooting through her arm, and the two go to look for the small pack of supplies.
Percy tries to protest again. "(Y/N), this can't be fixed like that. You need to heal properly."
She looks at him, and he can see that although her eyes are tired and weak, her mind is thinking clearly. "Percy, all we need to do is get rid of that bandage on my arm. Then you can use all that water there to heal me. Simple."
Percy bites his lip, looking at her arm and then the pool of water on the floor behind the petrified Hydra. "All right, but we're gonna have to act quick before that gets hard to remove," he eventually says, making (Y/N) flash him a weak smile.
Annabeth and Grover run over, the small red bag in their possession as they keep their eyes away from (Y/N)'s arm.
"There's a scalpel in there," (Y/N) says, gesturing weakly to the bag. "You can use it to cut off the wrapping."
"Why do you have a scalpel in your pack?" Grover asks, but Percy shushes him.
"Not now, Grover."
He rummages through the kit, finding the tool with a plastic case covering the blade. He grabs it, removing the case and angling himself to better inspect (Y/N)'s arm. "Are you sure about this?" he asks, "Do you have anything to numb—?"
"We don't have time for that, Percy. I've literally died before, this is nothing."
Annabeth and Grover flinch at the mention of her death, and Percy sighs. "Okay. It's gonna hurt."
She scoffs. "No shit, Sherlock."
"You're Sherlock, though," Grover says. (Y/N) lets out a soft chuckle, appreciating his attempt to make light of the situation.
Percy finds the edge of the wrapping near the base of her shoulder, and he tugs at the loose corner of it to get some space. Gently sliding the scalpel underneath the bandaging, he saws underneath, pulling up some of the wrap from her skin. (Y/N) bites her tongue to distract herself from Percy pulling melted cotton and rubber off of her arm.
With multiple curses muttered under her breath in both Greek and English, along with even more apologies from Percy, the first layer of her bandage is unraveled, revealing the more pressing cause for worry. This layer, having also fallen victim to the heat, has melted into the gauze and pressed it into the Chimera's claw wound.
Her profanities are much, much louder now, her voice drowning in agony. When Percy gets to the middle of her upper arm, where the cuts are the most serious, he pauses. (Y/N) tilts her head back, breaths heavy as she looks to the ceiling of the Parthenon. Percy pulls away the section of the bandage in one fluid motion, earning a shout of pain from (Y/N). She squeezes her eyes shut, letting out shaky breaths as her chest rises and falls erratically. Trying to contain her tears, she leans her head forward, resting it on Percy's shoulder as he rubs her back, whispering comforting and apologetic words into her ear.
Annabeth turns to Grover, burying her head into his chest, the sound of her best friend's pain bringing tears to her own eyes. Grover hugs her, looking at (Y/N) in sadness before comforting Annabeth. (Y/N) trembles against Percy. Her breaths come sporadically, soft whimpers escaping her throat. Percy holds her closer, doing his best to help comfort her as she regains her composure. She pulls away and nods at Percy, letting him know to continue. He keeps unraveling the bandage, pulling the cotton from the gauze out of the deep gashes in her arm. When he finishes, (Y/N) lets out a single tear of relief, too weak to wipe it away.
Percy does it for her.
His hand lingers on her cheek, tilting her head up to face him. "Hey," he whispers, and (Y/N)'s eyes flutter open, the anguish hidden in them making his throat close up. "It's done now. I'm so sorry it hurts, but it's gonna stop, okay?"
She nods, her breaths heavy as her eyelids continue to droop. Percy raises his arm, commanding a stream of water to lift up from the floor and make its way over to them. Percy gently takes her hand in his, letting the water touch his skin so he can direct it to (Y/N)'s.
Getting rid of the searing pain little by little, the cool water first soothes the burns as it makes its way up her forearm, and (Y/N)'s vision grows clearer. She turns her head, watching as the destroyed area heals, char and ash softening to smooth skin while the raw flesh and blood fixes to leave barely any trace of injury.
The water continues to move up her arm, washing away small bits of cotton before the four gashes stitch themselves together, her injured muscles renewed to be stronger than ever. Thin, curved ridges remain on her bicep, forever marking the path of the Chimera's claw.
Percy's stomach twists with guilt, but (Y/N) bears no reaction.
Surprising the teenagers, the water still follows its path, moving up her shoulder and the side of her neck to reach her temple. It lowers in temperature, and the freezing sensation clears (Y/N)'s mind of any fogginess, returning her to complete awareness.
Percy watches her glazed eyes clear up after a few blinks, her focus sharpening as her energy returns. She looks at her arm, turning it to see her injuries completely healed. Percy stands, holding his hands out to her. She takes them, pulling herself upward and stepping towards Percy. She wraps her arms around his waist, hugging him close to her as she buries her face into his neck. He returns the embrace, running his fingers through her hair as she lifts her head, her breath brushing against his skin as she whispers, "Thanks."
Percy smiles, squeezing her before letting go of the hug. "I'm just glad you're okay."
Annabeth and Grover make their way over to them, one frantic, the other relieved. (Y/N)'s arm is immediately grabbed by the daughter of Athena. She looks over it, twisting it in her hands as she examines the skin for any injuries.
After ensuring that she's fine, Annabeth yanks (Y/N) into a hug. "You absolute idiot," she grumbles.
(Y/N) chuckles. "That's me."
The two pull away, and Grover punches (Y/N)'s shoulder, earning a glare and a "Hey!"
The satyr narrows his eyes at her, his protective brother instinct now showing. "You need to stop hurting yourself."
"I can't help it!"
"Well, you'd better." His voice grows soft, and he looks down to the floor. "I was worried."
(Y/N) steps forward, pulling him into a hug, as well. "I'm sorry."
"It hurts to see you like that," Grover admits, squeezing her tighter before letting go. He turns to Percy, clapping his shoulder. "Thank you."
He shrugs it off. "I don't want her hurt, either."
"It means a lot, Perce."
"Okay, I'm not injured anymore, so can we please try to find a way out of here?" (Y/N)'s embarrassed voice pipes up, and her friends turn to glare at her. She holds up her hands in surrender, seeing the three pairs of eyes with annoyance, worry, and relief swirling through each. "I mean, thank you for being concerned. I appreciate it," she corrects herself, sincerity clear in her words.
Annabeth smiles, slinging an arm around (Y/N)'s shoulders, and Percy heads over to where her backpack is with Grover by his side. Percy picks up her jacket while Grover gets the bag, keeping the zipper opened. They walk back to the Athena statue—(Y/N) and Annabeth have begun play fighting with (Y/N)'s sword and dagger, further assuring the boys of her recovery. Grover holds out the backpack. (Y/N) and Annabeth sheathing the blades before putting them inside.
Annabeth walks over to where the first aid kit lies on the floor near the Parthenon's entrance, and (Y/N) turns to Percy, who holds her leather jacket out to her. She slips it on, thanking him, as Annabeth returns with the red bag. After zipping up her backpack and putting it on, (Y/N) looks up to the large sculpture of Athena, cringing at the ash that coats it.
"The new maintenance workers are gonna have a rough time with that," she says. Percy walks up to her side, squinting up at the statue. He nods before turning around and gesturing to the stone Hydra.
"Not to mention that," he points out, making her chuckle.
"Very true."
The four walk up to the locked doors of the Parthenon, pausing as they look up at them.
Annabeth sighs. "We're idiots."
"Mm-hmm," (Y/N) agrees. She fishes a bobby pin from her hair, holding it out to Annabeth.
Harrumphing, the daughter of Athena drops her backpack. "I'm blaming Percy."
"Hey!"
✺✺✺
i am not a medical professional!