Percy was pretty sure they were going to die. Soon. Hopefully quickly and painlessly, but he highly doubted it.

He tried to focus on only the sound of Annabeth behind him, panting and dragging her bad foot, and the sight of flat ground below him. It wasn't easy, considering how distracting it was to hear the screeching from above. He assumed the monster, whatever kind it was, was getting closer to them by the minute; its battle cry began to reverberate in his chest. Ignore it, he thought. We've just got to get off this cliff. Much easier said than done, especially when the ledge was slowly but surely shrinking in size. Percy could barely fit his whole foot on it anymore. They had been shuffling down, down, down for hours. The end was finally in sight, but not close enough. The monster was probably only 200 yards above them. What was even his plan when they did get off this gods-forsaken cliff? Fight? Run? Probably a combination of both.

"Annabeth," he started, wanting to ask her if she could see a good place to hide, but he startled her as he turned around. Just as she was putting weight on her bad ankle, too. It all happened in slow motion: rock slipped out from under foot; she let out a yelp of pain; he lunged to grab her; more rock slipped; they lost their balance. Fatigue and injury caught up to them, and Percy could do nothing but hold onto Annabeth for all he was worth as they tumbled down the side of the treacherous mountain. Only one thought skittered across his mind as they fell, hand in hand. Isn't this funny. But there was no water at the bottom this time. Percy couldn't cushion their fall. The monster wasn't going to kill them, after all. They'd just go splat on the ground of Tartarus instead.

Something sharp dug into Percy's shoulder, and suddenly he wasn't rolling anymore. Annabeth was ripped from his embrace as they were lifted into the air. He must have smacked his head on something during the tumble, with the way his brain felt so scrambled, but he was fairly confident that he was flying.

"Dinosaur?" was the only word he managed to Annabeth, who was gripped in a talon a couple of feet away from him. That must be what was cutting into his skin, too. She provided only a confused expression in return. "I guess monsters have wings in Tartarus, then." The bird-like creature that carried them along was huge - like, ginormous huge. Percy didn't think it was at all unreasonable to call it a dinosaur. It looked like on of those pointy-nose guys from a movie he used to watch as a kid. What was it called...

"Pterodactyl," Annabeth supplied, like she read his mind.

"Yeah, yeah, that's the one, Wise Girl."

Percy knew they should have a bit more urgency to their conversation, but it was hard to care. The situation seemed hopeless. Their sad, miserable lives seemed hopeless. The blank expression Annabeth wore told him she felt the same way. There was no fear, no pain. Just an empty, hollow look on his girlfriend's beautiful face. He hated it. The creature squawked from right above them, the shrill noise almost deafening. It was a victory cry. A bird who already caught its prey.

"What's the plan?" His voice was weak. He wasn't sure she even heard him over all the wind rushing past them. Yet sure enough, Annabeth held out her hand. She winced as the motion caused a talon to cut deep into her shoulder. Percy had to look away as blood bubbled up from under her shirt. But she didn't lower her arm.

"Sword."

"Huh?"

"Riptide. Let me have it."

Sheer luck allowed him easy access to his jeans pocket. He managed to get the pen to Annabeth's outstretched hand without too much trouble. He didn't bother to ask her what she intended to do with it. They flew for a few minutes more. The pterodactyl-monster soared over a cluster of trees. Just when a grove of softer-looking trees appeared below them, Annabeth uncapped his sword. Percy understood seconds before she acted. He braced himself for what was to come.

Annabeth drove Riptide up into the vulnerable underbelly of the monster. The strike wasn't nearly deep or powerful enough to kill it, but it did the trick. The creature screeched like never before and opened its talons. Again, Percy and Annabeth fell.

*******

The last thing Percy remembered was crashing into a few branches. Now, he was laying next to the River Phlegethon. His throat burned, but other than that, he felt remarkably okay. He sat up instantly, heart clenched with fear, but a hand landed on his back. Gray eyes met his. Air reentered his lungs.

"I'm right here," Annabeth whispered.

"Your shoulder—"

"Fine. I'm fine, Percy. They fire water is almost as good as ambrosia." Well, that was an overstatement, but he was willing to let it go.

"What happened? You know... after the bird let us go? That was genius, by the way."

Annabeth turned her face away from him, gazing out over the terrain behind them. He tried to do the same, but he couldn't tear his gaze from her. He could tell something was wrong. Her mouth was downturned and she sat hunched over, like she was curling into herself. "I'm not exactly sure. Obviously, we fell through the trees. I think I might have blacked out a little, too. When I came to, I was stuck about 10 feet up in some limbs. You were laying on the ground below me. I climbed down and tried to wake you, but... Well, I don't know Percy, I think you must have hit your head pretty hard and I got scared and dragged you here. It must have worked, though." She ran her fingers over his head gently. He leaned into her touch.

"It worked great, Wise Girl. I feel fine, too." Percy wanted to lean in more, to hug her or kiss her, but Annabeth's body language was very closed off. Her legs were tucked under her, her feet behind her. She kept avoiding eye contact. He tried to follow her line of sight, but there wasn't much out there. Some rocks, some hazardous waste. Nothing out of the ordinary for Tartarus.

"So what's wrong?" It came about a bit more firmly than he intended, and Annabeth withdrew from him completely.

"Nothing."

"Something."

She rolled her eyes. "We're in gods-damned Tartarus, Percy, does anything else have to be wrong?" Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke. She shifted uncomfortably, and he knew the look on her face was pure pain. It hit him.

"How's your ankle?" he asked softly. Annabeth's facade broke, and the tears fell freely.

"I — I don't want to be any more of a burden, Percy, I just don't."

"Stop that. Stop that right now, Annabeth. Now let me see." He tried to reach behind her to help pull her legs around without moving her foot too much, but she stopped him with a hand on his chest.

"I think I rebroke it," she said carefully. "And... and I didn't think to reset it before I started drinking from the river."

Oh, gods. He had a pretty good idea why she was hiding her foot from him, and he didn't like it. But he couldn't let Annabeth know that.

"Okay." Percy's voice remained surprisingly calm. "Okay, I understand. Let me see."

Reluctantly, Annabeth pulled her legs in front of her and Percy had to take a few seconds to let his vertigo pass. Her foot was twisted completely the wrong way, the bones sticking out in all the wrong places. He so badly wanted to throw up all of the fire water he just consumed, but Annabeth really was starting to gag, so he had to be strong for both of them. Attempting to ignore her backwards extremity, he stood and scooped up Annabeth in his arms.

"Where are we going?" she choked.

"Somewhere safer. Then, we'll get you all healed up."

Her eyes rolled back in her head and she slumped against his chest just as a familiar screech cut through the air. The bird was back — and still hungry. Percy took off running, clutching Annabeth tight, and trying not to think about what he was going to have to do next.

********

Annabeth woke up to the scent of sweat, blood, and an ocean breeze. She breathed deeply, savoring the moment of bliss before her other senses began processing her surroundings.

"Keep your eyes closed," Percy's voice told her. Gladly, she thought. "I see a cave up here. We'll go there, okay?"

"Mhm."

He mumbled something back that she couldn't make out, but she didn't care. She felt the rough material of his filthy t-shirt beneath her fingertips. She heard the beating of his heart as her ear rested against his chest. She felt his labored breath brush the top of her head, and his sweat that slicked against her own skin. The gentle sway of his arms as he carried her was soothing. She didn't need to open her eyes. She didn't need to pay attention to her own body. All she needed to focus on was Percy.

But soon enough, everything else came pouring in. Sulfuric air scratched at her lungs and burned her skin. Nausea twisted itself around in her stomach. Her ankle was sending prickling pain up her leg. Percy should feel fortunate if her vomit didn't add to the stains on his shirt before this day was over.

"I'm going to set you down, okay?" Percy said, slowing his pace. "You should probably open your eyes now. But try not to look at it, yeah?"

The dim, orange light of Tartarus was almost blinding after her nice recluse from reality. But Annabeth had to admit that Percy found a good spot; it was pretty well hidden by scraggly weeds and boulders. The unassuming gray cave didn't rise tall enough to be super noticeable, but had a big enough opening for them to squeeze through. If the inside was safe, they could defend themselves well with the natural barriers. Maybe we can just stay here a while, she thought to herself. But of course, she knew that wouldn't be possible. They had to keep moving to find the doors. She wouldn't make it very far in this condition, though, and there was no way Percy could carry her for much longer. Oh gods, her ankle hurt so bad —

"I said," Percy interrupted her train of thought, "don't look at it, baby."

Baby. The pet name almost made her smile. He hardly ever called her that. And sure enough, it was a good distraction to keep her from staring at her destroyed ankle.

"I need to check the inside." He eased her down onto the ground outside the cave. "You keep watch out here. I'll be right back." Percy kissed the top of her head and pressed something into the palm of her hand.

"No," she croaked, grabbing his arm as he started to walk away. "No, you need this." She tried to hand him back Riptide in pen form, but he shook his head.

"I'm not leaving you out here defenseless—"

"You can't go in there without a weapon, Percy! Besides, I can hardly use this." She gestured to her place on the ground for emphasis. "I can't even get up. It's no good." She handed Riptide over again, and he reluctantly took it it from her. "I'll yell if I need you. I promise."

"Fine." He took one last scan around before ducking into the cave. Annabeth counted the seconds he was gone. When seconds turned into minutes, she started to worry. She strained her ears for any sign of fight or trouble in the cave, but it was silent. Just when she was about to crawl over to the entrance and go in after him, Percy appeared again. Riptide hung loosely in his hand, giving off a faint glow. "All clear." She breathed a sigh of relief. "It's a bit deeper than I thought, and kind of wet, but it'll work."

Nodding, she started dragging herself into the cave. Percy didn't let her get very far before picking her up again, throwing her over his shoulder, and kneeling down to enter the black mouth. Annabeth protested a little, grumbling something about how she could do it herself, but he pretended not to hear. If the sloshing of Percy's feet on the ground didn't clue her into the dampness of the cave, the air certainly did. It felt refreshing, actually — the dry acid dessert environment turned into a muggy sauna. It might get miserable, after a while, but at the moment Annabeth relished in it. She also hoped that Percy would thrive here, even if the wetness wasn't really water.

"How did you get us to the Phlegethon?" he asked out of no where.

"I told you, it wasn't that far from the trees. I dragged you there."

"Yeah, but how? With your ankle, I mean."

"Oh." Annabeth hadn't really thought about it. "I guess I just... didn't notice the pain when I was so worried about you. It did take a lot of effort though, don't worry." She gave his shoulder a light squeeze. He didn't say anything, but did quickly nuzzle her hipbone.

"There's a dryer patch up here," Percy promised as they stumbled farther into the cave. The ground must have become uneven, because he handed her an uncapped Riptide for light and then used his free hand (that wasn't gripping her thigh in a way that felt like a little more than just security) to brace himself against the wall. She tried to shine the sword along the path, but it was rather futile. The cave's darkness seemed to swallow up Riptide's glow. Annabeth sighed through her nose, trying to ignore the throbbing pain.

Soon, Percy was setting her down again. Sure enough, it was a high and dry area. She could sit up just fine, but Percy, who was on his knees in front her, had to duck his head.

"Alright," he whispered gravelly, taking Riptide from her and setting in on the ground next to them. It lit up both of their silhouettes, but not much else. "This isn't going to be fun. But we have to do it sooner rather than later."

A fresh wave of nausea washed through Annabeth, but she nodded all the same. She knew what Percy planned to do, and while it scared her to death, she knew he was probably even more sick about it. "Yeah," she agreed. She loved him for not even hesitating about it, as long as it helped her. "And I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

He nodded almost imperceptibly, and helped her lay down. Now on her back with her bad leg in Percy's lap, she tried to focus on the cave ceiling and breathing through her nose. Percy began massaging and kneading the muscles in her calf, which were terribly sore, but it didn't help the tightness. Willing her body to relax, she found rocks in the earth below her to squeeze if needed. She wanted to hold Percy's hand, but knew that he needed both to reset her ankle.

"Will you count down?" she asked, hating how whiny and weak her voice sounded.

"Of course." His hands shook slightly against her leg. She couldn't stop a few tears from leaking out of the corner of her eyes. "Wait," Percy said. His hands left her, gently placing her leg back down. She picked her head up in confusion when she heard the sounds of metal clinking and leather sliding.

"What — what are you doing?" She gaped as Percy seemed to be stripping before her. Once his belt was off, he tore off his shirt.

"For a wrap," he responded smoothly, holding up his tattered shirt before tearing it into strips. "And this," he folded his belt up a few times and brought it to her lips, "to bite." He slid the thick leather into her mouth as she let her head drop back. The taste was horrible, but she was thankful for the distraction. Taking her destroyed ankle in his hands, Percy prepared to twist. The contact alone made Annabeth whimper and bite down slightly. "Ready?" he asked.

"Mhm."

"Five—"

She braced herself.

"Four—"

She took a deep breath.

"Three—"

CRACK.

The sound registered before the pain. That bastard, she thought right before white hot flames licked up her entire limb. She's pretty sure she screamed, the noise muffled by the belt. The world swam in and out of focus.

'Two, one," Percy continued.

CRACK.

It was even worse the second time. It felt like every bone in her foot and ankle turned to dust beneath Percy's hand. The last thing she remembered before blacking out was a soft whisper: "I'm so sorry, baby."

********

As soon as the task was finished, Annabeth's foot facing the right direction and her ankle wrapped up as tightly as he could manage, Percy stumbled a few feet away from his unconscious girlfriend. He couldn't hold back the bile in his throat any longer. He lost track of how many times he threw up, but enough to completely empty whatever little was left in his stomach. Something in the back of his mind told him it was a good thing she passed out. He couldn't even imagine how badly it hurt to twist around a partially-healed ankle. He glanced down at his hands — the hands that had done the twisting in question — and retched again.

********

The next time she woke, Annabeth noticed the cool dirt beneath her cheek. It was nice, even if it was paired with searing pain in her leg. The ache extended all the way up into her pelvis, and trying to move anything in that limb only resulted in more pain. She raised her head as much as she dared. Her vision was a bit blurry, but she could see that her foot — now turned the way it should be — was wrapped in Percy's shirt and elevated on top of a mossy rock. The sight didn't make her any more queasy, so that certainly seemed like progress. She sat up tentatively.

"Percy," she called softly. Only deafening silence answered her. "Percy?" Nothing. Where was he? The irrational part of her brain whispered her biggest fear: he left her behind. She was slowing him down, she was too much to take care of, she—

"Coming!" his voice answered from the front of the cave. A sob slipped past her lips.

He appeared seconds later, a leaf full of fire water clutched in his hands. Annabeth reached for him, almost knocking the goods he'd obviously left to go get out of his hands in her attempt to embrace him.

"Sorry, I didn't think you'd wake up so soon." Percy ran a hand along her back as she buried her face in his bare shoulder. "But you need to drink this. You're going to heal, for real this time. No more walking on broken ankles."

Annabeth pried herself away from him and took the leaf. She gulped down the fire water, managed to keep it down, and laid back again to rest. "We'll see about that."

Percy scoffed. "Uh, yeah, I guess we will. You're not walking again until you're better. I'll carry you everywhere if I have to," he threatened. That didn't sound like such a bad life to Annabeth, but she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing that. Even if he did just mend her ankle like he did it everyday.

"Percy?"

"Hm?"

"Thank you." She meant it. She hoped he could hear all the emotions she tried to pour into that little phrase.

He waved a hand, saying, "Don't mention it. And hey, now I have proof of what a total badass my girlfriend is." She could barely see his face in the dim cave, but she was sure he was smirking.

"And that is..." Percy took her hand in his and laid it against his hipbone. She was confused until she felt the belt underneath, situated back in his jeans loops. "Feels like you're going to need a new belt when we get out of here," she said, referring to the teeth marks etched in the leather. Her teethmarks. But the hope in her sentence, the way she just made a post-Tartarus plan for the two of them, made the muggy air feel lighter.

It must have filled Percy with confidence, too, because he said, "No way. I like having something you've bitten."

She'd like to blame her flush on the fire water, not on her boyfriend's bold statement. "Would you like to bite something of mine?" she teased back. Percy choked a little, and a small giggle escaped her. Only her Seaweed Brain could make her laugh the middle of Tartarus with a shattered ankle. She fell even more in love with him in that moment, and was a bit too eager when he leaned down to nip her neck.

"Now we're even," he whispered in her ear.

"For now," she responded softly. "You should get some rest." She pushed him away from her face, guiding his head down onto her chest. "I'll stay up and take watch."

"Wake me if there's anything at all," he said, and fell asleep instantly.

Annabeth didn't dare take the moments of relative peace for granted. The cave walls offered great shelter and Percy slept fitfully in her embrace. Sure, her ankle may have been screaming in pain and they still had to trek through the rest of this hellhole, but for the time being, they were okay. They were alive, and seemed like they would stay that way for at least a little bit longer.