The blue student 💙 (pjo x teenwolf)

14. Misery

Lydia's POV:

Voices whispered in my ears, in my head. Messing with my thoughts, then they screamed, but it was muffled. Like it wasn't close, but it was coming.

I stared at my lunch tray uselessly, squeezing my eyes shut as I tried to sort through my thoughts.

Trying to find which ones were mine. Sometimes, I wasn't sure if I was thinking at all, and I had to search for my voice.

"Lydia?" I opened my eyes, Percy was seating in the seat next to me.

"Yeah?" I smiled faintly.

Percy replied, "you alright? You were just sitting there with your eyes shut. Like you had a headache."

"I do have a headache. But just a small one, it'll pass."

Percy nodded, turning his focus to Annebeth across from him. She was staring at her hand in Percy's, her eyes glazed over. When she knoticed us looking at her she looked up, first at Percy then at me.

I took one look at her cloudy eyes and was dragged out of time, into a new body, a new world.

It was in that red cavern again, but there was a new person. Her limbs were like sticks, skin on bone, no fat. She had swollen knees and knobbly elbows, rags for clothes and chipped finger and toe nails. Dust was caked on her skin, piled on her shoulders like she'd taken a shower at the bottom of an hour glass.

Her face was utter desolation. Her eyes were sunken and rheumy, pouring out tears. Her nose was a waterfall of dripping snot and her stringy hair was matted to her head in tuffs. Her cheeks were raked and bloody like she'd been clawing herself.

Infront of her a boy—Percy, was on one knee in the middle of a dusty island no bigger then a small circular window. The surrounding ground was covered in green smoking goo, the acid smoke filling Percy's mouth and nose, choking him.

The body I was in was shouting words, words that were blurred out from my hearing.

"You will feed the internal darkness," The ragged creature said, "you will die in the arms of Night!"

I watched as Percy stopped struggling, focusing on the flowing river of poison around him. And the river stopped, flowing in the opposite direction to the creature in waves and rivulets, the acid air flowing away from his head.

The creature shrieked, "What is this?"

"Poison," Percy said. "That's your speciality right?"

The flood of venom rolled towards her, the poisoness air making her cough and claw at her throat. Her own tears filling her mouth and nose.

The body I was in moved back, watching as Percy seemed to ... grin. He was injoying this, delighted in the power he controlled. His eyes were a bright, disgusting green, like a green poison apple colour, but it was wrong.

He looked wrong.

Malicious and merciless, almost laughing at what he was doing.

The creature gagged, the flood of poison reaching her feet, bubbling and hissing at her cracked toes, sizzling like droplets on hot iron. She wailed and stepped back.

My mouth opened, calling out, "Percy!"

He didn't stop, looking desperately at the poison like he wanted to see how much misery, Misery could take.

But who was Misery?

Akhlys.

The word popped into my head, twirling in with the other voices of chaos.

"Stop..."  The voice pleaded,  my voice hoarse. It came from me.

Percy didn't, just staring at me confused  until realisation seemed to hit him.

"Percy, please..." The voice came anguished.

Percy turned back to the creature, the river receding leaving an open path for her.

"Leave!" He bellowed.

The word echoed in my ears, for once the only voice I heard in my head, the others silenced.

I fell back into my own body, blinking hard as I came back to my senses.

Percy was gripping my arm now, a look of worry on his face, "Lydia?"

I opened my mouth and closed it, not sure what to say. I glanced at the others who were still in their own conversations, so I mustn't have been gone for long.

But what was that? Was it a memory, or a nightmare? All I knew was that it was Annebeths. I'm sure of it, I was looking through her eyes when I saw it.

I looked to Annebeth, but not in the eye, "Sorry, I just ... zoned out. Excuse me."

I pushed to my feet, my legs wobbly as I made my way out of the cafeteria. Hearing the words of Annebeth pleading and Percy bellowing over and over and over, in a constant train of words rushed over each other.

Stiles, having noticed me leave, came up behind me and slipped his hand into mine, giving a small squeeze.