PAUL

A loud banging came from the door at around 11 o'clock on a Thursday night. I exchanged a look with Sally, who was partially passed out on the couch. She shrugged. I glanced nervously at the door once before getting up with a loud sigh to go answer it.

"Who is it?" I called out as I walked down the hallway.

"Uh, it's Piper McLean. I'm a friend of Percy's." My heart pounded faster and faster with each step I took.

Percy. Not my real son, but it sure felt like it this year when the thought of him getting hurt sent pangs of worry through my body. I opened the door. A dark skinned girl, with short chocolate brown hair leaned against the door, with her arms crossed impatiently across her chest. She quickly stood up when she saw me and offered her hand.

"You must be Mr. Blowfis. Percy has talked about you a lot," Piper said, her short, uneven braids swaying as she talked.

"How is Percy? Is he, you know?"

"Percy and Annabeth are both fine, well as fine as they can be considering," she trailed off.

"Tartarus," I finished. "Chiron IM'ed us to let us know a little while ago. Where is Percy? I'm sure Sally needs to see him."

"That's why I am here actually. Could you get Sally for me?"

"Sure," I said, turning around to go get her. Just as I started walking, Sally turned the corner.

"Paul," she asked. "Who's here?"

"It's Piper. She's a friend of Percy's." I took Sally's hand and held it tight. All the color seemed to drain from her face.

"Oh my, Percy's okay though, right?"

Piper nodded. "Percy and Annabeth are both asleep in the ship. Although they got out, it wasn't without a price. They are both pretty beat up, both physically and emotionally so we didn't want to drag them into another battle. There's a war going on at Camp," she quickly explained. "I just wanted to warn you before we brought them up that the nightmares are pretty rough, and they don't look to hot."

"Yes, of course," Sally whispered. Her eyes were so full of joy and hope for the first time in months.

Piper nodded, biting her lip. She looked like she wanted to say more but just left with a quick, "Be right back."

Percy and Annabeth stumbled in, half asleep five minutes later. They leaned heavily on the shoulders of six other kids including Piper, who were all presumably demigods. He was so skinny I could see his ribs even through his clean clothes that hung off his body. His hair was matted and his body was covered in scars and cuts. Annabeth looked no better.

Still, the moment he walked into his home he seemed to perk up. He hid his limp as he stumbled into Sally's arms. Even though he towered a good six inches above her, he still looked small in her arms. Sally started to sob, gripping the back of Percy's head.

She held him for a few minutes, before pulling back and grabbing both sides of his face, so she could look him in the eye. "Don't you ever do that again, okay?" She pulled him into one last tight hug.

She looked over Annabeth's cuts and bruises and fussed over her. "Oh, thank the gods you're both okay."

The other demigods stood off the side. I noticed Nico among them and gave him a nod and a smile. "Look, Mrs. Jackson," said a tall blonde boy in a purple shirt. "Percy and Annabeth really need their rest right now if they are going to recover. They can fill you in on everything in the morning."

Sally looked at Percy, who didn't seem to have heard a word anyone said. He was holding Annabeth tightly in his arms and whispering in her ear quietly. I caught the words Camp Half- Blood and Camp Jupiter. The too names in the same sentence put an uneasy feeling in my stomach.

"Percy," Sally said quietly, "Why don't you and Annabeth go to your room? You can sleep in there together tonight, and I'll make up the couch for Annabeth tomorrow."

Percy hugged Annabeth to his side tighter. They were never the clingy couple, but they seemed attached at the hip tonight. Percy nodded, and Annabeth seemed relieved that they were staying together. Sally watched her little boy walk out of her sight once again and I saw a tear roll down her face. I quickly wiped it away, unsure of what to say. Even though Percy was just down the hall, I knew she hated having him out of her sight.

"He'll be okay, Mrs. Jackson," said Piper. "He has Annabeth with him, and it's already past eleven. You'll see him soon."

"You're right. I'm just being a mother bird I guess." Sally laughed. It was so nice to hear her laugh again. "I have lots of food in the kitchen, and it isn't going to eat itself, so why don't you guys all come in and sit down for a little while."

The six demigods all hesitated by the door. "Sally, we have a war to fight, we should be going."

Sally's eyes widened. "Nico!" she exclaimed. "I didn't even see you there." She gave him a huge hug. "Have you been eating enough? You're as thin as a rail! I have blue cookies in the kitchen, sit down, have a couple, and you can all crash in the living room and the guest room. You'll be no use to Camp Half-Blood if you're tired and hungry."

A short girl with wild, dark curls exchanged a glance with the other demigods. "She did say blue cookies, right?"

Hope you enjoyed! Next chapter will be up sometime this week :)