Euterpe

a.n. Percy's missing, and Annabeth's doing all she can to stay afloat. Set right before the events of The Lost Hero.

ONE—WHERE ARE YOU NOW?

'. . . Where are you now? Atlantis

Under the sea, under the sea . . .'

~Faded, by Alan Walker

The Beach, Camp Half-Blood

The sea was too tranquil.

Things had gone from bad to worse and Annabeth's nerves were shot and her emotions were on the edge of spiraling out of control and the sea was far too calm to be comforting.

It shouldn't be this calm when Annabeth felt as though she had lost her anchor and was being swept away by the strangling currents. It shouldn't be this calm when the only person who could possibly save her was lost.

Her heart ached, pounding to the beat of the crashing waves on the sand because she couldn't accept the fact that he was gone, couldn't accept the fact that he had disappeared and left her behind.

Not after everything they'd been through.

She wished she could deny the logic. She wished she could deny the facts that were so blatantly obvious. She wished she could deny the idea that the Fates could dream up something so cruel but she couldn't because she knew just how cruel the Fates could be.

And according to the Fates, Annabeth hadn't seen enough cruelty in her life. Being chased into the demigod world at seven years old wasn't cruel enough. Going on quests every year and forgetting the possibility of a relaxing summer wasn't cruel enough. Blindly leading her friends through a maze and holding a burden of fear about losing a love to something worse than death wasn't cruel enough. Fighting a war meant for gods and taking a poisoned knife for an invincible so-much-more-than-friend who was destined to die anyway wasn't cruel enough.

And, evidently, having only one thing that remained a constant in her life wasn't cruel enough. No, the Fates had to rip that away from her as well, leaving her to drown in a sea of unpredictability.

Feeling the sand beneath her fingertips, a heartbroken smile on her face, she thought back to a time—only a few months ago—when the two of them sat on a picnic bench and shared a blue cupcake.

So little time had passed since then, yet so much had changed for the better that Annabeth felt like an idiot for believing it would last.

She stared out at the tranquil sea, and it was as though he was staring back, the greens and blues swirling in his eyes. The thought brought her some peace amidst the storm within her. And even though the waves of emotion continued to crash and churn, the sea remained tranquil.

The sea shouldn't be this calm but it was and Annabeth latched on to it, onto the ocean's steady heartbeat that quickly became her last sense of permanency. It wasn't an anchor but it kept her afloat for the time being.

She was floating but she was lost in a riptide of emotions and overwhelming troubles and she no longer saw land.

He was the one missing.

But she was the one lost.

thought i'd try something new - all of these stories will be inspired by some of the lyrics of a song, not the actual meaning of a song. also, these are separate stories. this one will have nothing to do with the next one I post.

sorry this one was a little short. the next one will be longer, promise!

-eira-

side note: the title 'Euterpe' came from the name of the Muse of Lyric Poetry/Song.