the great wave | percy jackson

𝑣𝑖𝑖 - asphodel

Ash couldn't sleep that night. She was bone tired, sure, exhausted from her effort with the eidolons earlier. But anxious thoughts kept whirlpooling in her mind, keeping her up. She groaned from the middle of the very comfy bed she wasn't getting to properly take advantage of.

Although she was pissed that her eyes were open to look around, she had to admit that Leo had really outdone himself on their sleeping quarters. The mattresses and pillows were stuffed with no-cruelty pegasus down, making them just about the softest thing she'd ever laid on. The thermostat adjusted automatically to whatever temperature you were most comfortable with. She had a window with a box of poppies underneath it, a little reminder of the Thanatos cabin back at camp, which she really appreciated. He'd also somehow managed to snag their black silk sheets and black spiced candles; Ash chose not to question when and how he'd done that. LED string lights with picture clips lined the wall above her desk, where she also kept her daggers, books, and plant collection that extended to most of the flat surfaces and corners in her room. A few sketches and paintings from Rachel and Nico hung on the walls. Dangling from the Celestial bronze support beams above her was a pinhole lamp that shone at whatever level she wanted, throwing constellations across the room. Zoë the Huntress danced against her closet door.

Ash sighed, thumping her legs against the mattress childishly, trying to find patterns in the whorls of the wooden ceiling. She wished Coach had let Percy stay, but it was like the satyr had super-chaperone powers or something because at ten on the dot tonight and last night he'd barged in to drag Percy out of her room, materializing out of nowhere everytime he tried to come back in. And for extra measure, he spent a good hour afterwards clip-clopping up and down the hall, reading loudly from his playbook of self-made rules. She'd had to get used to sleeping without Percy in those long six months they'd been apart, but now that she knew he was just across the hall, it was like her body physically wouldn't let her be without him. Plus, they hadn't had any time to themselves at all, really, since he'd come back, and it was kind of killing her. Just a tad.

Ash sat up. You know what, who says she had to do this anymore? Besides Coach, that is. Taking a listen at her door, hearing no little snorts or goat's hooves, she grinned and stepped forwards into the shadows, reemerging in Percy's room. The boy was knocked out, sprawled like a starfish and snoring lightly, covers all tangled up by his legs. She couldn't tell whether she loved or hated the way she could feel her entire being soften as she carefully took a seat on the mattress by his side. He was sleeping on his stomach, face turned towards her with one cheek smushed, drooling profusely. She smiled slightly as she brushed some hair out of his eyes, remembering the first time she'd seen him like this, the morning after she'd brought him past the borders of Camp Half-Blood. He'd been half-dead at the time, but even then she still thought it was adorable.

She didn't intend to in the slightest, but her touch woke him up, lids fluttering slowly to reveal sleepily breathtaking blue eyes. "Wha–what's going on?" His voice was low, rough. "We there?"

"No," she said quietly, smiling a little as she wiped a bit of drool off his chin, making his nose scrunch up cutely. "It's like 1 am."

Percy propped himself up on an elbow, yawning and stretching the other arm above his head. He blinked as if just realizing she was really there and then flushed crimson. "You mean... you snuck into my cabin? In the middle of the night?"

Ash rolled her eyes. "You are eighteen years old, Percy. If you're seriously still worried about getting in trouble, I'll protect you from Gleeson, I promise."

"Uh, have you seen his baseball bat? You're like, perfect punting size, Citi Fields."

Ash huffed a laugh and draped her arms around his neck, leaning in close, making him gulp. "Take a walk with me, Barnacle Boy. I miss you. Come on, I can show you my favorite place on the ship."