Nobody said it was easy, no one ever said it would be this hard [W7, Monday]

[hydrokinetics]

[The town is quiet and sullen, but time marches on. It's the afternoon by now when Percy finds himself in the kitchen staring at a boiling pot of water. He can't recall the last time he actually cooked something, but with so few of them left it seems he has to self-provide.

He's lost in thought as he stares at noodles boiling in water and suddenly hears footsteps. He looks up, a little alarmed but relaxing upon the sight of someone familiar.

(But then again...aren't they all familiar now?)]

You should join me for lunch. I had no idea how much I was supposed to add to the water.

Comments

[hydrokinetics]

Don't get too excited, dude. It's pretty much boiled noodles and...whatever else I can find in the cabinets. Maybe it's spaghetti, maybe it's mac and cheese. I don't know yet.

[It will probably be mac and cheese.] Figured somebody should figure out how to cook the basics around here now. I haven't done any cooking for...a really, really long time.

[elemancy]

Mac and cheese sounds pretty good.

[to be fair, noct can probably also do about that much, but instead... he's just kind of not helping here.

he's too tired and percy seems interested enough in doing it.]

It's getting easier to stick to cereal and Cup Noodles half the time at this point.

[hydrokinetics]

I finally ran out of pop-tarts if you really want to know. [He's busy poking the boiling noodles with a wooden spoon, frowning again as he watches them twirl in the bubbles.] Sometimes I think most of us are just eating to survive instead of actually being hungry. Is that sad?

[elemancy]

It's sad. But it's pretty true.

[and quietly, he admits:] I think a lot of us are more resigned than we want to admit.

[hydrokinetics]

[He nods. There's a lingering pause but:]

Noct? What do you want to do after this is over? [It may sound like a random question, but he's been thinking about it a lot lately.]

[elemancy]

[it's a random question, but it's not a big deal when percy asks it; they've talked about a lot of stuff over the last few weeks, after all.]

The things I need to do. There's a lot riding on it. [and he honestly doesn't even know the whole of it yet, but he knows there's a lot.] For my people.

[hydrokinetics]

Even if it might be bad...you're ready to go back to that? Even if we could go anywhere we wanted? [Poking at noodles some more, leave him be.] You're a prince, right? Your people are really counting on you that much?

[elemancy]

As ready as I'll ever be.

[he's probably more ready now than he was a few weeks ago.]

I... have a duty I can't ignore. For Dad, for Luna for my friends, and everyone in Lucis... I have to make sure I finish this.

[hydrokinetics]

I get it. Annabeth and I still have to save the world, too. This place has helped us get ready to take on Gaea but...I don't know. Did I ever tell you that Natalie told me we can choose to remember things here? I definitely want that, but I don't know if other people do. Everyone has different ideas...makes you wonder what the best outcome for this really is.

[elemancy]

Hard to say. I know... I don't want to forget it.

[which probably sounds weird.] So much about this place sucked, but. It wouldn't be fair to forget everything that happened.

[he can use that strength later, he thinks. this place has helped him shift his perspective in a bunch of ways.]

[hydrokinetics]

I want to remember the people. [That much he knows.] Even if the people did some bad things...

[By now he's taking the noodles off of the stove to drain the water.] What about if we could never see each other again?

[elemancy]

[he's watching carefully, but really... what's more curious to him is where percy's line of questioning is going.]

I... would have expected that more than just us seeing each other whenever. [if he's honest here.] Just makes keeping the memories that much more important.

[hydrokinetics]

I guess so. Sometimes I think some people might take that harder. Keeping memories of people they'll never see again? I don't know. Maybe I'm overthinking everything too much.

[To the fridge he goes for cheese.] Memories and I have a really weird and long history.

[elemancy]

Already got a lot of memories of people I'll never see again. Don't plan on losing those, losing these wouldn't be any better. There's a lot that sucked, but a lot that... is important, too.

[it's pretty simple to him. he doesn't know what kind of things percy i thinking though, so:]

...What about you?

[hydrokinetics]

[He's busy mixing cheese into the hot noodles mostly. It gives him an excuse not to look at Noctis.]

When I first woke up after being asleep for four months, I didn't remember anything or anyone but Annabeth. It was frustrating because I knew things about myself but I couldn't figure out what it meant. I know it'd be the same if I didn't remember this place. And...gotta save the world first and then Annabeth and I might take a vacation for a week. Something before school starts. But there's still a war to win. Our friends are counting on us and that's why I really, really need to get back.

[elemancy]

...You know that's not what I'm asking.

[hydrokinetics]

Then I don't know what you mean. [...sorry he's this way, Noct. He's busy spooning up mac and cheese for them both before handing him a bowl.]

[elemancy]

Then I'll spell it out for you.

[he'll take the bowl, but boy. percy being cagey gets under his skin.]

Your memories. What do you want to do with them when this is over?

[hydrokinetics]

[Sorry bro.]

I want to keep them. No doubt. I'm keeping them because they're mine, but it's just...a lot. It'll be a lot. That's all.

[elemancy]

[he nods, sighing quietly.]

...You're being weird.

[hydrokinetics]

How am I being weird? [There's a smirk.] And anyway, the fact that you're just now saying that seven weeks later means I've been doing a good job keeping that under wraps.

[elemancy]

Weird for you.

[ya punk.

don't think he didn't notice all that cagey behavior?]

If there's something else on your mind... out with it. It's too exhausting to try and play coy about it now.

[hydrokinetics]

I'm going to miss you. [It's blurted out and followed by an awkward silence...that he fills by shoving noodles into his mouth.] ...I was just thinking about that.

[elemancy]

[wow, this nerd.]

Yeah. It's... the same. It'll be weird not having you around anymore. [he gets it, though.]

[hydrokinetics]

That's how I feel about a lot of things lately, you know? We've gotten used to being together and now...we really have to think about the fact we're all leaving soon. I want to go home, and I know we all have stuff to get back to, but it's still weird. I don't even know how we can try to stay in touch, if at all.