Chapter 1: Farewells and Greetings
The Argo II seemed quiet as they pulled over the newfound Camp Jupiter. Annabeth was quietly anxiously waiting to be reunited with Percy, Leo was busy manning the boat, Jason was busy flipping his coin/spear over in his palm and Piper gazed down at the camp below, dreading the moment Jason would lay eyes on Reyna a second time.
It wasn't real, Piper told herself, He never really loved me, it was all my imagination, and he really should've stayed with Reyna the whole time. Deep inside though confused, upset emotions burned inside her. She blinked another tear out of her eye; she didn't want Jason to see her looking weak even if they weren't together.
She gazed over the edge with a sense of yearning. She wanted to run as far away from Jason as possible, yet she wanted his strong warm arms to hold her close, like she thought she could remember. She dared to turn her head back to Jason. She watched how his strong delicate hands threw and caught his coin with lightning reflexes, how he'd catch it and then run a hand absentmindedly through his golden hair leaving it ruffled to perfection. She watched how his mouth would open slightly when he fumbled a catch slightly and how his thin eyebrows would jump up at the same time.
Piper caught herself and dragged her eyes off Jason. It had to be real. We were something, were the words that kept running through her mind. The few other selected campers that had been chosen to help man the Argo II were all leaning over the edges of the boat, waving at the people below who looked like peculiar doorknobs from afar off. Piper managed to smile at the thought; she had no real other reason to smile. She was about to go on some crazy voyage that put the world in the hands of herself and six others, she was arriving at Camp Jupiter where their create alliance mission could go wrong and kill the campers who accompanied her, Piper's boyfriend wasn't real and had a completely different girl; no reason for smiling.
The Argo II lurched forward, making everyone on board fall forwards with the boat.
"My mom could drive better than you Valdez!" Clarisse yelled.
"Sorry guys," Leo called down, "I haven't quite passed the landing procedure."
"You what?" Travis Stoll asked clearly freaked out by the words. Worried whispers were exchanged as a girl from the Demeter cabin started screaming. Then Leo couldn't hold it in any longer.
"You guys are so gullible!" he laughed, "You think I'm that stupid to not pass the landing test? I might die!"
"I hate you Valdez," a camper mumbled.
The boat finally slowed to a halt. Jason leaped off the side of the boat and ran, he ran to be reunited with Reyna. Piper felt her heart sink, he really didn't want her. She watched as Annabeth hurriedly descended and then Leo who was followed by a crowd of eager campers. What did they want to see? They weren't being reunited with old friends; they weren't being reunited with a love they feared would forget them; Percy couldn't have been friends with every camper! Soon enough there were only five people on the Argo II. Piper walked over to the rope ladder that was rough and itchy on her bare hands. She slowly carefully descended the ladder treasuring each last moment that Reyna wasn't in her life.
Piper set her feet on solid ground again. She trundled over the grass slowly. Jason had run for Reyna, there was no hope he would ever rejoin Piper. She bit back her lower lip and blinked away a tear. No hope. With a heavy feeling in her stomach she hoisted her head up. She let out a shaky breath before removing her eyes from the grass.
"PERCY!" Annabeth's delighted relieved shriek ran through the air, as Piper placed her feet heavily on solid ground once more. Piper raised her head an inch and watched Annabeth attack a boy who must've been Percy with, a strangling hug, a quick emotional kiss and a firm slap across the face. The boy froze for a minute and blinked thrice, wondering why his girlfriend had slapped him.
"Huh?" he said intelligently.
"Don't you 'huh' me Jackson!" Annabeth scolded, "You vanished for months! MONTHS! You've been with these, these, Romans who would usually want to kill anyone from our camp and-"
"Chill!" Leo intervened, "What happened to 'love of my life, can't wait to be with him again'?" But he was talking to himself.
"You left me so worried Jackson!" Annabeth continued, "You could've been dead for all I knew!"
"The Annabeth I know would never give up hope," Percy told her, lacing his fingers between hers. Annabeth smiled and tried to hug Percy again, but something had caught his eye.
Percy turned his head for what he'd wanted to be an instant, but Piper caught his eyes and Percy caught hers. Something connected in that moment. When those deep sea green eyes met those indecipherable eyes, something sparked, something worked, something fell into place, something was just so right. Piper wanted to know everything she could about Percy now, she knew there was something there, something meant for her. Something.
Hope extinguished inside Piper.
No, she told herself, Percy belongs with Annabeth. Don't even think about it. She really was turning into a Drew. Taking a guy away from a girl, who both loved each other dearly and then Piper would probably break Percy's heart. But Piper couldn't bring her eyes away from Percy's. His gaze was so, intoxicating, so addictive, Piper just couldn't leave it.
The exhilarating moment ended when Annabeth put together that Piper and Percy were staring at each other.
"Percy!" Annabeth scolded loudly, making both Percy and Piper jump out of their trance.
"Yeah," Percy said, averting his eyes from Piper's. Annabeth leaned in towards Percy's face.
"Were you just staring at Piper?" she spat in a whisper.
"Uh," Percy started; Piper felt her cheeks grow warm.
"Di immortales!" Annabeth cursed, "You're so, you're so... Why are you so annoying Jackson?" Annabeth asked her face red with rage.
"I was just wondering who she was," Percy lied, and he knew all too well Annabeth knew he was lying.
"Well Percy, this is Piper daughter of Aphrodite." Annabeth gave Piper a scowl that clearly stated "If you go near him you're dead" before smiling back at Percy.
"Hey," Piper greeted waving her hand slightly.
"Hi," Percy replied, trying not to get absorbed into her kaleidoscopic eyes once more.
"And this is Leo," Annabeth gestured towards Leo.
"Yo!" Leo said.
"Hi," Percy repeated giving a welcoming smile to Leo, before flashing a split-second version to Piper.
"When are we getting the VIP tour of this place?" Leo asked clapping his hands together, "Commander Leo deserves nothing less than the best."
"You wish repair boy," Piper said.
Annabeth pulled Percy's head down viciously.
"Percy you don't like her do you?" she asked urgently, "She's a normal girl and you're with me. Remember?" She didn't give Percy time to answer. "You know I love you Seaweed Brain." She gave Percy's forehead a light kiss before she put a good meter between them. Percy turned back to Piper and Leo.
"I guess you guys want to know something about this place," he said, "I'll give you a VIP tour. Right this way." Percy led his new friends towards the city.
Piper gave a final glance over her shoulder, but regretted it greatly. She screwed up her face to hold back a downpour of tears. She saw Jason standing with a girl who was obviously Reyna, who wore a toga of all things. They were smiling, lost in each other's eyes, their hands intertwined between them. Piper felt like she was back at the start of wilderness school again.
Lost... Alone... Out of place...
Piper forced her head around and tried to ram a newfound hatred towards Reyna out of her skull. She didn't want to hate Reyna, yet she didn't want Reyna to have Jason.
With a gaping hole in her heart, she dragged herself along behind Percy.