A/N: All the characters, ideas, and plot lines belong to Rick Riordan and associates. This is another look at Thalia's homecoming and her relationship with Luke. Please review.

Annabeth had been skittish all night and I could understood why. She had dropped me off at my cabin and then skittered away with a timid "goodnight."

I wasn't sure what I would have expected. I had just come back from the dead. Well, not exactly dead, but I wasn't supposed to be living in any sense.

I cautiously moved into the cabin. Everything was large and alien. It smelled of him. Most of the furniture was white and the walls were granite. I hated every last detail. A statue of him stood near the door.

I moved into the first doorway and found a bedroom. The white bed and white sheets had small golden circles on them. Sitting on top of the bed was a small packet of stuff. A clean pair of flowered pajamas was folded nicely together with a zip lock bag with a toothbrush, toothpaste, and hair brush sat on top.

I turned on my heels to find myself in a mirror. I wasn't sure I recognized the girl staring back. Her face was paler than pale could be. The curls of her hair perfectly placed, but seemed fake. A black laced tank top hugged her curves and a pair of ratty dark jeans made her seem to blend into the night itself. The only thing that made her seem alive was the blinking electric blue eyes.

"Uh—Thalia?"

My name was spoken as if it was forbidden to say.

I turned to the doorway to find Grover standing in it. My eyes met his and for a moment he didn't speak.

"I thought you might want this back…we put it in the relic room after…" he didn't finish his thought. He carefully stuck out his hand with dirty Adidas book bag.

"You grew your horns," I remarked as a thank you. He blushed slightly only making his dark cheeks more opaque.

"Yeah, the spring of last year after I went to the Underworld with Percy."

I gave him a ghost of a smile.

I was happy for him. When we were traveling to the esteemed Camp Half Blood, that he had been all he talked about, getting his license and getting his horns.

He fidgeted with his shirt and I could tell he didn't know what to say. I left the silence to grow. "Well, I'll let you rest…uh if you need anything just—"

"Did you speak to him, Grover?"

Grover looked startled. I watched him for another moment. "Did he say anything? Before he…"

"I—uh—I…"

"Grover, it's a simple question."

"Look, Thalia, I don't know really what to—"

"Grover."

"He really didn't talk much. It took him years to finally come out of his cabin after you…your…death…and when he did he really didn't talk to me. After a little, he finally seemed to reconnect, he really wasn't the same. Something was different, he was here, but he wasn't really here, you know. He seemed to be doing better, but he was never the same. A few months ago, something seemed to break, he became more secluded again, spent more time with your pine and then he broke. He joined the Titans and declared war on Olympus. I'm sorry, Thalia, I should have recognized that something was wrong. I should have done something…"

I shook my head and my curls bounced up and down. "I don't want to know what Chiron and the others have already told me. I want to know if he said anything. Anything that seemed out of place to you…anything that you didn't understand?"

He seemed to sputter. "Just one thing. I overheard him muttering to himself and he said "Θα συναντηθούν και πάλι στον ουρανό, αγάπη μου."

I turned away my face away from him so he could not see my expression.

"Thank you, Grover."

"Thalia—I…"

"Goodnight, Grover."

He recognized the dismissal and moved towards the door. "G'Night Thalia, I'm…I'm really glad you're back."

Only when he was far enough away, did I manage to sit myself down on the edge of the bed. He had left thinking I was dead and it was all his fault. I reached mildly towards my bad on the floor. I ignored the spare set of clothes and the wad of emergency cash and other necessary items. I reached into the farthest pocket at the bottom of the bag.

There was a moment before I found what I was looking for. I drew the chain and found the ring still attached. The gold was real, curling around and around like a winding snake and sitting in the center was a beautiful clear ruby. I never asked how he found it or if he stole it, but the token spoke for itself.

"Forever and always, Alia," he used to whisper after a particularly hard day or when the nightmares became too much for me to bear.

I brought it close to my heart and let myself a few moments to mourn. Tears streamed down my face and I couldn't breathe.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

Five.

And then it was over.

I shut down. No more emotions, no more tears were allowed. I shut it all down.

But I had also made my decision. I would fight this "war" as Chiron had called it, my own way. I was not going to take a side, I was going to get my loved ones out of the way and pray for a shred of my past life to come back.

I tried in vain to calm my breathing and my erratic heartbeat. This was my life. I wasn't going to be a pawn. I wasn't going to be controlled by Zeus or any other.

I had to move.

Sometimes the ADHD was too much.

I jumped up from my spot on the bed and ripped the comforter off the bed. Easily flipping up onto a few shelves on the empty bookshelf, I flung the bed sheets over the statue of my father and moved back down to the floor.

There was a small balcony to the west side. I could see the sun just peaking over the mountaintops. I set my old book bag down and accessed my supplies.

I would have to toss all the food. After three years, none of it was good anyway. I would need enough to sustain me until I found Luke. Water was a need too. I would need that even more than nourishment.

I still had all my books on berries and medical wildlife. Those had always been useful. 2,000 dollars in cash for emergencies was saved for emergencies like I've run out of food and I begin to starve, intense need for clothing, stuff like that.

Some rope and clips for climbing, medicine, and pen and paper. Chalk set in a small bag for marking trees. There were a few spare sets of clothes. I pulled those out and grabbed a set.

I need to get cleaned up.

The shower couldn't be hot enough. I jumped in and jumped right back out. I felt strange as if I was being watched all the time now.

Though, I'm unsure if the feeling was because I had just come from being a tree or if it was because I was alone now. More alone than ever before.

I sat back down on the ground and found a comfortable position on the floor. The bed was too soft to sleep on. After living on the run and in small safe houses for years, I couldn't bring myself to lay on something so soft.

I watched the sun rise above the mountains and sat there, quietly, holding onto my ring now securely around my neck. The silence was screaming and I only felt closed in.

I had to get out of here soon.