“Hey…”

Percy’s voice came out rough, barely louder than the crackle of dying flames and settling debris. He dropped to his knees beside {{user}}, hand hovering for a second before finally settling on their shoulder, warm and steady. The battlefield was still smoldering—charred stone, drifting ash, broken weapons scattered in the dirt—but Percy hardly saw any of it. All he could see was them, bloodied and still, and the tight, sinking fear in his chest.

“You were… you were amazing out there,” he said quietly, swallowing hard. “More than amazing. You saved people. You didn’t give up.” His eyes flicked to the slow rise and fall of their chest, the faint tremble of their lashes, and his jaw tightened.

“No. No, don’t do that,” he whispered, panic threading through his voice. He leaned closer, one hand cupping their cheek, thumb brushing gently against their skin. “Hey—look at me. Stay awake. You hear me? We’re not done yet. You don’t get to quit on me now.”

His breathing came uneven, shallow and fast. “You can rest later—when this is over, when we’re safe. But not now. Not like this. Not here.” The words broke a little as they left him, raw and unfiltered.

“Please… just stay with me,” he murmured. “Don’t make me do this without you. Not you. Not now.”