Percy XIX

Final Chapter

Percy lay in his bed staring at the clock which read 12:04. He'd been laying there for hours unable to fall asleep. He was exhausted, but he just couldn't shut his mind off. He thought about the journey to camp and how he had really gotten to know Reyna, Dakota, Hazel, and Bobby. He wondered who would be taking the trip to Greece and how things would play out with the giants. He recalled what Hera had said about the alliance between the two camps and how he and Jason were used to bridge the gap.

Percy finally decided he wasn't going to fall asleep with his mind racing like it was, so he got out of bed, grabbed his blanket, and walked outside. He stood on the newly built front porch of his cabin. Tyson had gotten excited when the new construction was going on at camp, and when Tyson came to camp for a few days in the fall he added a sweet front porch to their cabin. This was the first time Percy had actually seen it, and he was impressed. It was built from weathered wood that fit right in with the ocean theme, and it was complete with a ceiling fan, porch swing, and small bronze fire pit.

Percy wrapped the blanket around him tightly and sat down on the swing. He breathed in the cool December air and tried to clear his mind. He looked up at the sky; the moon was full and bright, but he could still make out a few constellations. There was one in particular he was looking for and then he saw it, the girl running across the sky with her bow. The Huntress, Zoë Nightshade. The bickering between Reyna, Phoebe, and Thalia earlier made Percy think of Zoë. He remembered her story about Hercules betraying her and breaking her heart. Percy swore an oath to himself that he would never do anything like that to Annabeth.

Percy was looking across the courtyard when he caught a glimpse of something moving out of the corner of his eye. He looked toward the movement and noticed it was a silhouette, a shadow on the courtyard grass making its way toward him. The shadow, which was being cast by seemingly nothing, was almost to his front porch.

"Hey, Annabeth," Percy said.

She shimmered into existence, and the moonlight did a little dance in her stormy gray eyes. Percy's heart fluttered in his chest. She held her Yankees cap in her hand and stepped onto the porch.

"My shadow give me away?" she asked.

Percy nodded and motioned her to come sit beside him. He adjusted his blanket so she could wrap up in it, too. She sat next to him, and he wrapped the blanket and his arm around her.

"You couldn't sleep either?" Percy guessed.

"No, I've got too much on my mind."

"I know what you mean," Percy empathized.

"I'm glad you're home, Percy."

"Me too."

"Speaking of home, did you call your mom?" she asked.

"Yeah, I sent her an Iris message," he answered.

"I bet she was relieved to hear from you."

"To say the least," Percy nodded. "But she was disappointed that I wouldn't be home for Christmas."

"That's right. Christmas is just a few days away. The solstice is tomorrow," Annabeth remembered. "Why don't you go home?"

"No, I can't leave camp with everything that's going on."

"Just go for the day," she suggested.

Percy thought about it and asked, "Will you come with me?"

A smile lit Annabeth's face. "Yeah, I'll come with you."

It was quite between them for a moment. Percy tucked a stray strand of Annabeth's hair behind her ear revealing her swollen eye.

"That eye is going to be black tomorrow," he chuckled.

"I know. The crazy thing is I don't even know who hit me," she laughed.

Percy shook his head. "There is no telling."

"And look at you, not a scratch. I guess you still have the curse of Achilles."

"Seems so, and it's a good thing, too because I would've died twice on the trip."

"What happened?" she asked.

"I fell fifty feet off a cliff and had golden ichor spill all over me when I was fighting Polybotes."

"You know, it's a wonder you ever survived without it," Annabeth joked.

Percy laughed, but it was the truth. He'd had many close calls over the years.

"Anything else exciting happen?" she asked.

"Well, I fought a Roman emperor in a gladiator arena in Vegas, we were in a car chase with a storm spirit who wrecked us…oh, and I learned how to snowboard."

Annabeth smiled, "It sounds like you had fun."

"To be honest with you, I was terrified. It was like being on my first quest. I felt like I was just a regular guy who got thrown into this insane world of gods and monsters. It was a little overwhelming."

Annabeth frowned. "Hera should've just come to us and explained the situation. We could've forged the alliance without all the smoke and mirrors."

"You know the gods. They don't like to make anything easy. Speaking of the gods, have you talked to your mom at all?" Percy asked.

"No, not since the gods went silent."

"Yeah, my dad hasn't contacted me either."

"The Council of the Gods is tomorrow, so maybe we'll hear something after that." Annabeth said, though she didn't sound very optimistic.

Percy shrugged. "Maybe"

"Are you worried?" she asked.

"About the gods? No, but I am worried about everything that's about to happen: the Romans coming to Camp Half-Blood, building the Argo II, the giant war in Greece. Annabeth, how are we supposed to prepare for battle when we don't even know who is going?"

"Well, I hate to speculate, but I would imagine you and Jason will definitely be going and probably Leo, too since the Argo II is his destiny."

"If you're right, that leaves four more," he said.

"I don't know who the rest will be. The best strategy would be to prepare everyone."

"I'm not even sure what we'll be up against," Percy admitted.

"I've been doing some research into the first giant war, and apparently the gods and demigods battled the giants at a place called Phlegra in Greece."

"Phlegra?"

"It means the burning lands. It was the place where the giants were born. The Fates guided the gods and demigods in their battle against the giants. When the giants were defeated, the Fates cast them into Tartarus," she explained.

"Do you think the Fates will guide us, too?" he asked.

"We can only hope."

"Ugh, I feel as clueless now as I have for the past few days."

"So, Hera put a false life in your memories?" she asked.

"Yeah, I thought I was a normal, mortal guy with a normal, mortal life."

"Normal…that sounds nice," she smiled. "Do you still remember any of it?"

"Yeah, some of it, but it's fading."

"Was I in that life?" she asked.

He smiled and tightened his arm around her. "You were."

"Tell me," she said as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"You and I met four years ago at a museum. I literally ran into you and knocked your notebook and pencil out of your hands. You called me something sweet like idiot or jerk. I sat down beside you on the museum steps while you were eating lunch and tried to get your number, but I had to settle for your email address. We became really good friends over the years, and last year we decided we wanted to be more than just friends."

"So, we were together for a year?" she asked.

Percy nodded.

"What did we do together?"

"We would go to the movies, the zoo, and museums. You loved to go to the top of the Empire State Building to look across the skyline. And now that I think about it, that has to be Hera's version of a sick joke."

Annabeth laughed.

"I take it our first kiss wasn't in a volcano," she guessed.

"Close…Times Square. It was New Year's at the stroke of midnight."

She looked at Percy. "Was it anything like the real one?"

He gave his girlfriend a sly smile. "Not even close." Then he kissed her.

Percy was grateful and proud that Annabeth was his girl. He didn't know how he got so lucky or why it took so long for them to become a couple, but one thing he was sure of—he wouldn't trade her for anything.

Annabeth rested her head back on Percy's shoulder and said, "Promise you won't disappear on me again."

"You know I can't make that promise."

"I know," she sighed.

They had been through so much together over the years, and Percy knew how she must have felt when he was missing. He had gone through the same thing with her exactly two years ago. Percy once thought he and Annabeth would have plenty of time together, but now, with this war upon them, he wasn't so sure anymore. If he was called to go on this quest, he didn't know whether he would want Annabeth to be called, too. Of course he wanted her with him, but he also wanted her safe, and he couldn't guarantee her safety if she went.

Percy looked at Annabeth; she had fallen asleep. He thought about carrying her back to her cabin, but she looked so peaceful. He didn't want to risk waking her or maybe he just didn't want to let the moment go.

He kissed her forehead and whispered, "Sweet dreams."

AN: Thanks for taking the time to read and review The First Legion Series Book 1: The First Legion. TFLS Book 2: The Argonauts and TFLS Book 3: The Gigantomachy are published and complete, as is Heroes and Legacies—the six-book sequel to The First Legion Series. –dmac

Disclaimer: I do not own PJO.