Disclaimer: I only own the plot and my OCs. Anything you recognize as not mine belongs to Rick Riordan, Greco-Roman mythology, and/or their otherwise respective owners.

Author's Notes: Hello, everyone! Hope you all are well. Once again, there's not much for me to say about this chapter today – in fact, all I really have to say about it is that I hope you all enjoy it and that the next chapter will be posted on Monday, as always. So, until then,

~TGWSI/Selene Borealis

~The Finding Home Saga~

~Finding Home~

~Chapter 28: I Talk Things Over With Chiron~

I woke up with a drinking straw in my mouth. I was sipping on something that tasted like liquid chocolate-chip cookies – like my mom's chocolate-chip cookies. Nectar.

I opened my eyes.

I was propped up in bed in the sickroom of the Big House, my torso bandaged up like I had almost been sliced in half or something like that. Argus stood guard in the corner. Katie sat next to me, holding my nectar glass and dabbing my forehead with a damp washcloth, all the while she sobbed big, fat, ugly tears, which was probably the most uncharacteristic thing that I had ever seen her do.

"Oh, Percy," Katie sobbed when she noticed that I was awake. "I – I'm so sorry. Lu – you were turning green and grey when we found you. If it wasn't for Chiron's healing..."

"Now, now," Chiron said. "Percy's constitution deserves some of the credit."

He was sitting near the foot of my bed in human form, which was why I hadn't noticed him until now. His lower half was magically compacted into the wheelchair once again, his upper half dressed in a coat and tie. He smiled, but his face looked weary and pale, like he had been up all night grading Latin papers back at Yancy Academy once again.

"How are you feeling?" he asked me.

I opened my mouth to answer him, but no sound came out – mostly because I didn't want to tell Chiron how I was feeling. I didn't want to tell him that my heart felt like it had been torn in half (just like my side) at the fact that I hadn't been able to save Luke from Kronos, meaning that it was all but certain that he was going to die once the gods found him. And I didn't want to tell him because I knew that, as soon as I did, the gods would go after Luke with a vengeance, and his blood – my boyfriend's blood– would be on my hands.

After a few minutes of silence, though, I realized that Chiron was not going to press onwards without me answering his question. So, with all of the lying abilities that I could muster, I told him, "I feel like my insides have been frozen, then microwaved."

Chiron nodded thoughtfully. "Apt, considering that the dagger that Luke used to stab you had been coated in pit scorpion venom, meaning that you were almost at Hades's door by the time that the naiads got you to us. But, enough about that. Please, Percy, if you can, please tell me exactly what happened to you. Any and all information that you can remember could be crucial."

Shakily, I nodded, before I told him and Katie the best story that I could come up with on the spot between sips of nectar. I told them that I had stopped by the sword-training arena to talk with Luke, in order to get some advice about whether or not I should stay at camp for the rest of the year or go back to my mom's. I told them that Luke had agreed to talk with me about it, but that he wanted to have the conversation in the woods, where we could just hang out and have a few Cokes without anyone else hearing us. I told them that Luke then gave me a pseudo-monologue about how I shouldn't stay at camp, because I needed to have experience in the "real world", but that I also couldn't stay at my mom's, either. I told them that he then revealed to me that he had been working for Kronos all along, and that he had been the one to steal Zeus's master lightning bolt and Hades's helm of darkness. I told them that he then gave me the option to either join Kronos like him, or to die, and that I had chosen death because I had secretly become Demeter's champion not long after my quest.

I told them all of these things, none of which were really true, partially because I knew that I couldn't protect Luke anymore, and also because a part of me didn't want to protect him anymore. Not after he had stabbed me and almost killed me, even if he had all but said he had believed he was doing it for my own good.

After I finished telling my story, the room was quiet for a long time.

"I can't believe that Luke would do that," Katie eventually said, all the while tears continued to pour down her face. "I...well, I know that he wasn't the same after his quest, but to do that to us, to do that to you..."

Her voice faltered.

"This must be reported to Olympus," Chiron murmured after she had spoken. "I will go at once. There is simply no time to waste."

"But what about Luke?" I asked desperately. "He's still out there. We have to find him. And what about the prophecy?"

Chiron shook his head. "No, Percy, we cannot go after Luke," he said gently. "It's too dangerous. The gods – "

"The gods won't even talk about Kronos," I interjected. "Zeus declared the matter closed!"

"Percy, I know that this is hard. But you must not rush out for vengeance. You aren't ready."

I didn't like it – especially because I wanted to scream that I didn't want to go after Luke out of vengeance, even if I was pissed off at him for almost killing me, but out of love – but I also knew that Chiron was right. After all, my side hurt almost as bad as my heart did, and I knew that even with nectar and ambrosia, that meant that I wasn't going to be sword fighting or even running anytime soon.

"As for the prophecy," Chiron continued, oblivious to the inner monologue that was going on inside of me, "am I correct in assuming that you viewed Luke as your mentor at this camp, that you trusted him more than you would if he was simply your friend?"

I blinked. He thought I was talking about that prophecy? I – well, not to insult Chiron or anything, but I had already figured out that prophecy – had figured out what it meant subconsciously when I had realized that Luke wasn't going to switch sides after all. I mean, he was the only person I had ever considered to be more than a friend, romantic interest or not, and I had failed to save him in the end, as much as that hurt for me to acknowledge.

No, the prophecy that I was worried about was the Great Prophecy, the prophecy that the Lady Styx had told me in the Underworld two months ago, the prophecy that said: "A halfblood of the eldest gods shall reach eighteen against all odds, and see the world in endless sleep, hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap. A final choice shall end his days, Olympus to preserve or raze."

That was the prophecy that I wanted to talk to him about, more than anything else. However, at the same time, I knew that Chiron didn't know I knew about the prophecy, and I also knew that it would be dangerous if he did. Plus, I had a feeling that...

"You've been ordered to not talk to me about Kronos, haven't you?" I couldn't help but ask.

Chiron glanced upwards nervously. "Remember, Percy, names have power," he said softly.

"So that's a 'yes', then."

"If you choose to look at it that way, yes," he replied with an incline of his head.

"We just can't sit back and do nothing, though!" I protested. "No matter what Zeus says – " here, there was a sickening clap of thunder from above, and both Chiron and Katie looked at me worriedly, although neither of them said anything " – Kronos is out there, and he's only getting stronger!"

"We will not sit back," Chiron promised me. "None of us will, Percy. Too much is at stake to do so. But, at the same time, you must be careful. Kronos wants you to come unraveled. He wants you to be mad at the gods, because he desperately wants you on his side."

"Even though I'm Demeter's champion?" I interjected.

Chiron gave me a grim smile. "Yes, even though you are her champion," he said. "Which, I must say, is surprising to me, especially considering that Demeter has not claimed you as her champion officially yet, but that is neither here nor there. Do not give Kronos what he wants, Percy. Train patiently. Your time will come."

"Assuming I live that long," I muttered under my breath.

Chiron looked at me strangely then, as if he suddenly knew that I knew about the Great Prophecy, but said nothing other than: "You'll have to trust me, Percy. The matter of Kronos will be dealt with in due time. But, for now, you must decide your path for the coming year. I cannot tell you the right choice in this matter..." he trailed off, giving me the feeling that he had a very definite opinion about what he wanted me to do, and was using all of his willpower not to tell me it. "But you must decide whether to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, or return to the mortal world for ninth grade and become a summer camper. Think on that. When I get back from Olympus, you must tell me your decision."

I wanted to protest. I wanted to ask him more questions, even if he couldn't tell me all that much and I wasn't all that willing to provide truthful answers to his own questions. But Chiron's expression told me there could be no more discussion, that he had said as much as he could.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Chiron promised me. "Argus will watch over you."

"And I will, too," Katie said quietly.

Chiron smiled at her. "Yes, Katie will too."

With that being said, Chiron rolled himself out of the room. I heard the wheels of his chair clunk carefully down the steps, two at a time.

As soon as the sound of his wheelchair hitting the stairs stopped, Katie turned to look at me again, with the most sorrowful expression I had ever seen on her face. "Percy..." she began softly, her voice weak from crying.

"No," I replied stiffly. "Don't."

"But Percy..."

"Please," I pleaded with her. "Don't. Just...just help me up. I want to go outside."

Katie shook her head. "Percy, that isn't a good idea."

"I don't care," I said as I slid my legs out of the bed.

Katie caught me before I could crumple to the floor. A wave of nausea rolled over me."

"I told you..." she hissed.

"I'm fine," I insisted, which was probably the biggest lie that I had told all summer – excluding all of the lies I had told Luke, of course, but I didn't want to think of him right now, or of the fact that he was gone, off to destroy the Western world, and there was nothing that I could do about it.

Thinking just simply hurt too much.

Shakily, I managed a step forward, then another and another, all the while I heavily leaned on Katie. Argus followed us outside, but he respectfully kept his distance, even though all of his eyes looked as watery as my own felt.

By the time that we reached the porch, my face was beaded with sweat and my stomach had twisted itself into knots. But I had managed to make it all of the way to the railing, which was as much of a victory as it was a lucky support for me to lean on while I had a look around camp.

It was dusk, I realized sadly. Twilight. The time of day when darkness descended like Death's cloak upon the earth. The camp looked completely deserted, the cabins dark and the volleyball pit silent. No canoes cut the surface of the lake. Beyond the woods, the beach, and the strawberry fields, the Long Island Sound glittered in the last light of the sun.

"What are you going to do?" Katie asked me.

"I don't know," I answered truthfully.

I then proceeded to tell her that I got the feeling that Chiron wanted me to stay year-round, just like her and the di Angelos, so that I could put in more individual training time with him. But, that being said...I wasn't sure that that was what I wanted. Demeter had implied to me that, if I stayed, I wouldn't get much training with my powers done as Katie got with hers, and I wanted to harness those as much as I could, so that I didn't pass out every single time that I used them like I had during our quest. Plus, I also missed my mom, and even if I didn't feel comfortable with telling her about that(that meaning my relationship with Luke, which I didn't refer to specifically out loud for fear that Argus was listening in so that he could report back to Hera or Mr. D), I wanted her support, still wanted her to tell me that everything was going to be alright, even when it really wasn't going to be.

However, that being said, I didn't want to leave Katie when it had originally been my plan to stay behind with her and Luke – even if I hadn't told her or anyone else about that plan. And I especially didn't want to leave her now, when some of the only people that she would have for company were Annabeth, Clarisse, Lee Fletcher, and the Stolls.

When I told her this, though, Katie only laughed and shook her head. "I'll be fine, Percy," she said. "Really. This isn't the first year I'll be spending at camp year-round, and it won't be the last one, what with my father not around anymore and all that."

"I'm sorry," I said automatically at the mention of her dad, even though I had already known that her father had died five years ago.

"Don't be," Katie replied. "It's not your fault. But, what will be your fault is you having a miserable time here because you chose to stay here with me, even though you want to be with your mom. So...go be with your mom. Go to school. Practice your powers. And, most of all, have fun...although not too much fun, considering our demigod luck and all. And when you and Silena get back next summer, the three of us will hunt down Luke, together. We'll ask for a quest, but if we don't get approval, we'll sneak off and do it anyway, so that we can either kill Luke or drag his sorry-ass back here, whichever you prefer. Agreed?"

I managed a smile, even though the very thought of killing Luke caused me more pain than the heartbreak I was already experiencing. "Agreed," I said.

Katie held out her hand. I shook it.

"I got to go," she said a moment later, her face apologetic. "Have to talk with the Stolls about which one of them wants to be the...well, which one of them wants to be the new counselor of Cabin Eleven. But...I'll see you later, right? Before your mom comes to pick you up?"

"Yeah," I agreed. "Before my mom comes to pick me up."

With that, I watched her walk down the steps of the Big House and off towards the cabins, looking brave, determined, and vulnerable all at once, all simultaneously. Vaguely, I wondered what the Stolls were doing right now, now that they were pretty much the only ones in Cabin Eleven. I wondered what they thought about Luke, what they thought about his betrayal and his allegiance to Kronos.

Knowing them, their thoughts on those matters couldn't be good, even with how happy and mischievous they usually were.

I didn't dwell on them for long, though. No. Instead, after a few moments, I began to dwell on how truly alone I felt. For the first time during my entire time at camp, I felt just like I had before I had found out I was a demigod: lonely, friendless, and ashamed of myself, ashamed of my worth. And thinking that, I couldn't help but look out at the Long Island Sound with watery eyes, my heart shattering to a million pieces inside my chest, even as it beat, pure and strong.

"I'll be back next summer," I said – although who I was talking to when I said that, I didn't know. "I will. I'll survive until then. And when I come back, I'll find Luke and I'll bring him home, somehow, someway."

As soon as I finished speaking, a gentle breeze blew by me. And although I would later deduce it as nothing more than a trick of the wind, in that moment I was almost certain I heard a voice say, "See that you do, Perseus Jackson."

Word Count: 2,860

Next Chapter Title: The Dog Days Are Over