o7 ♆ video (house of hades spoilers)

[kelpful]

[Unsurprisingly, Percy and Annabeth are together - it’s likely no one’s seen them apart from each other for the last month or so. He has his arm curled around her waist, holding her tightly to him.

They look absolutely shattered. If exhaustion had a definition, this would be it. But there’s something settled about the, especially Percy. He no longer looks like he’s going to rip somebody’s head off, even if he does seem like he’s on the verge of falling asleep]

We made it. [His voice is hoarse, like he’s been yelling, or crying, or maybe both.] Both of us, we made it through, the whole freaking way. It was - it wasn’t - we’re okay. That’s the main part.

[Though Annabeth’s slumped into and against him, the way she’s holding him, too, is just as tight and supporting. She laughs a little after he speaks, but the sound is just as hoarse, her voice the same way.] Probably worth mentioning we shut the Doors, too. [A beat.] With Hazel, but - you know, on our side. [Something dark flashes in her face, but it’s gone, replaced once more by a relieved sort of exhaustion.] And don’t raise the alarm if we’re gone for a week.

A week and three days, for some of us. [That same darkness shades his expression, but it disappears as he smiles down at Annabeth] This is gonna make like, no sense to most of them.

[She glances up, with a bit of a look.] I really don’t care at this point.

[And then she reaches out to turn off the feed, cutting right into and silencing the sounds of Percy’s tired laughter.]

Comments

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[truesight]

-- Sorry, what?

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[kelpful]

[He can't help but snort a little at her reaction. There's so much pressing in his mind, so much awfulness that they just watched themselves live through, but - he can laugh again.]

Went through Tartarus. Came out the other side. Shut the doors. On the Argo II now. All pieces present and accounted for.

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[truesight]

Oh. Oh.

[ they'd told her about falling in, of course, she knew about most of the major stuff that had happened between her last memory and theirs, but she didn't realize they- remembered more. it seemed like such an impossible thing, but there they were. ]

So you're okay. You're both okay! [ because yes maybe she was afraid the fall had killed them and they just didn't know it, or wouldn't tell her. but they're not dead! so. so they're okay. ] Remind me to ask you more about this once you've had a nap. In the meantime, I'm just... really, really glad to hear you're alright.

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[sophos]

Okay enough. [She says it without really thinking, which is a real testament to how tired she is. How tired they both are. She slumps a little further against Percy, if only because it's Rachel she's talking to and she doesn't need to pretend anything.]

Less of a nap, more of a coma, probably. [Though she's not sure how much they'll be able to actually talk about, catching up on sleep or otherwise.] We're pretty glad, too, just in case that wasn't clear.

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[fatedchaos]

Good.

[Yeah. That's all she has to say. They're her friends, she likes that they're you know. Not dead. Mostly in good shape.]

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[kelpful]

[Vanessa gets a small, honest smile from Percy] You have no idea.

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[sophos]

[Where Percy smiles, Annabeth cracks the smallest of laughs. She'd told Vanessa about the fall in the first place; it's nice to share better news now, too.] Good is pretty applicable, yeah.

[Right now, at least.]

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[fatedchaos]

[She holds her thumb and forefinger maybe a centimeter apart.] Just a little bit, to be honest.

[But she smiles now because hey, if they're going to.] What are you even still doing up? I've seen corpses in better shape.

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[ciderandstew]

[Still learning how to use this stupid device... Just have Calypso staring at them, wide eyed. How do you respond to something like this when you didn't know they were here in the first place?

And... they were in Tartarus, something she failed to realize. That...

Oh that was going to be interesting. When she realizes that she's just been staring into the feed for several minutes, however, she quickly cuts it off.]

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[kelpful]

[Percy's still smiling down at Annabeth, not even looking at the screen when she shows up. It's only when he realises that no one's said anything that he glances over, looks back to Annabeth, and then double takes.

It's all on his face. He doesn't have the energy to hide any of it not now. Pure shock gives way to confusion at first, but it doesn't stop there. He cycles through to hurt, before ultimately landing on something that Calypso has probably never seen from him before. At least, not directed at her.

Anger.

His hold on Annabeth shifts, tightens protectively. Almost like he's concerned about what Calypso might do to her. But even though it's the anger that has settled on his face, it's the hurt that seeps through when he speaks. Just one word] Calypso.

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[sophos]

[Annabeth watches the way his expression changes with the double take, her own gaze shifting between the face on the screen and Percy beside her. If she wasn't so tired, maybe she would have figured it out before he actually said the name.]

[But it's not until she hears it - Calypso - that she realizes why it is he starts holding her so tightly. So that's her, the famous Calypso. And then she can't help the way the image flashes in her mind, blind and lost in Tartarus and confident the curses would finally do them both in. That darkness of the moment flashes in her eyes until she manages to push the pictures aside.]

[She doesn't really know what to say, even with the anger and hurt in Percy's own posture and voice. Her own emotions don't quite match his, but maybe there's something akin to worry in her gut - worry directed at Percy himself.]

[There's nothing remotely close to jealousy in her face, though; if anything she just looks too worn down and tired and sad, maybe a little cautious, and her arm shifts more closely (and gently) around Percy not to shove it in Calypso's face so much as to keep him grounded. She's a little mad herself, too (how could she not be, not with what Calypso's curse had done and almost done, among the others), but there's a mix of things that don't let it be as clear on her end.]

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[ciderandstew]

[This is the last thing Calypso wants to deal with here. Leo doesn't even know who she is, a reality that's hurting her more than she really would like to admit. And now Percy-- There's no doubt, with that anger in his eyes directed at her, knows exactly what she had done in her own fit of anger and resentment.

It's not like it hadn't been done to Penelope or any of the others as well, but that wasn't what mattered right now. Right now it mattered that she had wished terrible things on the blonde at all.

But she had to deal with it, as much as she would rather not. Her gaze only flickered briefly to Annabeth before returning to Percy. There was no malice, no anger or hatred or even betrayel. Just hurt.]

I'm pleased to see you are well...

[.... Perhaps not the best word choice. Still, there was no resentment in her tone.]

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[iguanasolution]

[Frank writes 'Can I come over' in Latin. He knows Percy had a harder time with it than Greek but he hopes he will get it.

He'd have directly knocked on their door but for all he knows they want to be left alone.]

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[kelpful]

[Percy keeps it in video for them right now, too tired to try writing.]

Uh. [He looks over at Annabeth] Maybe later? I'm pretty sure the only thing keeping us up right now is the fact that we're sort of stacked against each other.

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[sophos]

[Once they're - better, she thinks, she'll have an easier time trying to help Frank out with the mute issue. But for now she can barely think about anything except keeping upright.]

[She looks over at Percy just as he does, sighing a bit. It's not quite apologetically, because there are no regrets about soon-to-be crawling into bed.] I'm not sure sleeping for a week isn't going to be literal.

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[iguanasolution]

That's ok you guys really don't look your best. Sleep, we'll talk later.

But I do want to see you when you wake up.

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[wintershepherd]

I'm glad you two are okay.

[ He doesn't know what's going on any more than the rest, but that is the important part. ]

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[kelpful]

[Jack gets a tired smile] Yeah. We're - [and glancing at Annabeth now] Okay's a good word for it.

[The implication is that they're not good or anywhere near it, but it's been so long since Percy was so much as okay, that he's going to take it] Lookin' pretty good yourself, Mr. Winter.

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[sophos]

[She glances at him practically in sync as he does. It does feel nice to say they're 'okay.' It's a start, a better start, a more hopeful start.]

The weather's right up your alley, huh? [Because you know, suddenly cold!!] But thanks.

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[everylittlegirl]

[Hayley stares at them. She's torn between genuine confusion and a gnawing bitterness about them being safe and together when she has been murdered and alone. When she speaks, it's flippant.]

If you're both demigods, doesn't that make you siblings? Shouldn't you like, not be all.. [She lifts her hands and pointedly interlaces her fingers.]

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[kelpful]

[Of all the questions he'd expected to face, that definitely hadn't been one of them. Percy sways for a second, before leaning a little more heavily on Annabeth as he stares]

What? [That's it that's his intelligent response]

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[sophos]

[Wow nope. Tired as she is, she can tell Hayley's mostly trying to get a rise out of them - why, she has no idea, but fortunately for the other girl it works a little bit. Just not necessarily because of the question so much as Annabeth doesn't have the patience to deal with it from her right now, not after what they've just gone through.]

No, it doesn't. Our godly parent isn't the same. [And she'll just tighten her arm around him after that, too.]

[video / 70% encrypted to the three of them] ONE MONTH LATER...

[angermanaging]

[It makes enough sense to Bruce that while he doesn't know all the details, he does know the important part. They were safe. They were going to be safe. If whatever is going on here ends up with the two of them going home somehow, they won't end up like him and Betty, eternally separated by fate.

The relief is clear across his face. He's happy for them without a hint of jealousy. Some things Bruce doesn't even think are possible for him anymore, but for Annabeth and Percy, he wants them to still be possible.]

News like that deserves at least two weeks, [he says quietly, thinking that if he had the chance to hole up somewhere with Betty, he probably wouldn't come back for at least that long.]

[video / 70% encrypted to the three of them] IDK WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT

[kelpful]

[For Bruce, Percy will manage a smile even if some of the conversations he's been having haven't been great]

Annabeth starts getting antsy if she doesn't have things to do for too long. I could definitely manage two weeks, but I like not being smacked in the shoulder every two seconds.

[video / 70% encrypted to the three of them]

[sophos]

[If she had the energy, she'd follow that up with a smack, but as it stands she just sort of rolls her eyes and halfheartedly elbows him in the side. The effort from that has her slumping a little more against him.]

Excuse me for liking to keep busy. [But she'll take the simple relief in Bruce's face and tone at face value, because it's much better than some other stuff.] Though I'm not opposed to a small extension, just for the record.