I am still alive! And for those who have read the final installment of the PJO series, this is for you. And for me, because Uncle Rick, I believe, could have delved a bit more into this beautiful scenario.

Finally a great thing happened in the PJO fandom, and it was called The Blood of Olympus. Significantly less painful than the rest of the books.

Coming Home

I hear Festus's limbs grind, metal on metal, as we descend onto the grassy plain of Half-Blood Hill. I let go of the harness I strapped to his back and look over my shoulder to the most beautiful woman around. Calypso smiles at me, tucking her hair behind her ear before she jumps right off of Festus and to the ground solidly. I smirk, standing up to surf down Festus's scales.

"Show-off," she mumbles as I walk toward her, feet now on the grass. I clap my hands together.

"You wouldn't like me if I wasn't," I simply state. She rolls her eyes.

Dying had a bit of a delayed impact on me. I was still healing from it, sure, but at the same time I wasn't the same person I was. Well, unless you take into account all the small projects my belt could produce the parts for, or the occasional joke. I am healing, slowly, but every day is a reminder that I am still miraculously alive. Calypso knows that this has been hard on me—this being the time I've been apart from my friends. My team mates.

My family.

I take a deep breath of the fresh breeze blowing from the lakefront. Calypso stands next to me, grabbing my hand. I feel warm. I look down to see if I happened to catch fire. Safe. I sigh in relief.

Maybe I really haven't changed all that much.

Festus whimpers, bringing me back to the present.

"What is it, buddy?" I ask him, placing a hand on the side of his front leg. He stares at the tree line intently. I follow his gaze to see none other than Nico Di Angelo, standing frozen as if he has seen a ghost.

Seriously? I mean, he's an underworld kid, for goodness sake—a son of Hades. Ghosts shouldn't scare him. Apparently I did. I've gotta mark that off my second bucket list.

He begins making his way over to where we stand, his pale skin still glows in the sunlight in stark contrast to his dark clothing style.

"Hey," I say, not knowing where to begin. But he doesn't even skip a beat.

"I had my doubts," he says as he stops in front of me, hands in his pockets as if he is trying to warm them up in this eighty degree weather. Is that a small smile on his face? Taken aback, I smile in return. "Welcome back, Leo. A year has been too long" is all he says, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Thanks, Nico," I say, returning the gesture, trying not to let my shock show. I had only left Ogygia a week ago. Calypso reminded me of the time difference that happens between the real world and Ogygia, but even that didn't prepare me for that sudden info-bomb.

One year. I have been gone for one year. A lot can happen in that time. For just a few examples: building a Greek trireme, sailing and flying across the world, defeating the earth mother, and so on and so forth. I come back to reality fairly quickly though, surprised that the news doesn't shake me more than it did. "So where is everybody?"

"They're at the pavilion eating dinner. I was just heading over there myself," He says as he starts making his way down the hill. "Want to join? I'm sure you'd be welcome too, miss," his voice trails off. He tilts his head to the side, examining Calypso. It almost sends a flare of jealousy through me. Almost.

"Oh, it's Calypso." She says it coolly as we begin to follow. I smirk. Nico's eyebrows raise high on his forehead.

"What a surprise," he says, "how in the world did you get off of Ogygia?"

"A stroke of luck meeting this dense genius," she points her thumb at me. I shrug, gripping the hammer that hangs from my belt. Nico laughs. The sound catches me off guard. I didn't think the kid knew how to even smile, but even that was disproved only minutes prior. Then again, that was also during the time of Leo: The Original Recipe. This is Leo: 2.0, the Return of Valdez.

I might need to make a t-shirt.

Once we crossed the threshold into the pavilion, I am so glad that Festus managed to get the physician's cure to work. I see familiar faces, warm and inviting. I see my cabin mates working on projects during dinner. Aphrodite campers huddle around their table—probably talking about the latest gossip. There is one at the table who doesn't huddle and gossip. I watch as her eyes meet mine, her jaw drops, and she stands from the table. The camper sitting next to her looks up in question. Then she sees me and has a strikingly similar expression to Piper's. Soon enough, like a slow ripple on water, everyone is looking at me, Calypso, and Nico at the entrance to the pavilion. I take a step back in shock, but Calypso presses a hand to my back.

"Come on, Leo," she whispers, "your old friends are probably waning to see you," she pushes me forward a bit as Piper stands from her table, walking over to us.

She says nothing. No words are needed. She presses her hand to my cheek. As soon as her skin makes contact with mine, she pulls me in for a tight embrace. I hesitantly wrap my arms around her.

"Leo," is all she says. I feel a tear fall down the back of my neck.

"Hey, Pipes," I laugh. "Long time no see," I pull back and drop my arms to my sides. "How is Sparky?" Piper looks over my shoulder, smiling.

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" I turn around to see Jason standing behind me, frozen in place.

"I thought that was you, Valdez," he pulls me in for a hug. Apparently you get a lot of those when you have been 'dead' for a 'year'. "I couldn't miss that head of hair anywhere." I look at his glasses and see that he has taped them in the middle.

"Want me to fix those glasses, buddy?"

"Only if you're going to add something completely unnecessary like a dart gun or identity lenses?"

"What are identity lenses?" I ask raising a brow.

"Heck if I know, but I know you would be able to create them," he laughs. "Come on, I'd bet you are hungry," he slings an arm around my shoulders, leading me to a table at the edge of the cafeteria. Piper, Nico, and Calypso all sit down around the table. I follow suit.

"So where are Hazel and Frank? And Percy and Annabeth?"

"They all went back to Camp Jupiter," Nico then explained what happened after my 'death'. That both camps have made a friendship, making programs to meet up with the Romans whether it's for an exchange program or for a good old fashioned Greeks versus Romans round of capture the flag. Apparently those days I need to look forward to since they already recruited me as a strategist. Because, you know, my plan against Gaia really impressed everyone.

Maybe I'll leave out the bit of me being burned alive…I shudder.

They all fill me in. Frank is taking on a lot of responsibilities as praetor, and Hazel is officially a part of the fifth Cohort. Percy and Annabeth just left this past week for Camp Jupiter to study their college courses there. Apparently they are also engaged. I would have to get my five bucks from Jason once this little catch up session is over. I was sad that I missed all of them, but at the same time the pathways are open to visit.

"Enough about us and the camps," Jason cuts the conversation. "How did you survive? And who is this you brought with you?"

Now it was my turn. How I got the idea to jump in and blow Gaia out of the sky—our epic battle between goddess and demigod. I left out the dying bit, seeing as people still had food on their plates. Also how I found my way to Ogygia and Calypso.

Everyone looked impressed. I turned back to my food and ate a bit of pizza like it was an average thing for me to come back from the dead.

"You were planning all this stuff, rebuilding Festus, and executing it perfectly without us even knowing. Well," Jason reconsiders, "besides Hazel and Frank, that is."

"Yeah, sorry about that. Don't hold it against them," I hastily added. They laughed.

"Are you kidding, Valdez?" Jason blanched. "Of course we didn't. We still don't, and never will. We're just glad you're alive, buddy." Jason claps his hand onto my shoulder. "So, Calypso," he turns nervously to my woman, not sure how to talk to her. "Have you spoken with Chiron yet? I'm sure he has a guest bunk in the big house."

"I haven't yet, but I think I will go see him now," She moves to stand as I finish my last bite of Pizza, standing with her.

"Yeah," I say, taking my plate, "I'll be going with her."

"Heads up, Leo," Piper calls behind us, "there's a campfire tonight."

"Also," Jason says, "I want to ask you something, but it can wait until later." I laugh. My lungs still feel like dried jerky as I take deep breaths from when I was a crispy critter.

"Man, I just get back and you're already asking for favors," Jason rolls his eyes and sits back down next to Piper, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

We step over the threshold to see that the sun is already beginning to set over Long Island Sound. Summer is coming to a close, a crisp breeze blows from the water's surface, and Calypso moves closer to me for warmth as we walk over to the big house. The steps creak in a way only weathered wood can as we make our way to the door. I open it to find Chiron sitting in the main room, in his wheelchair, watching Wheel of Fortune. He turns his attention to us and he freezes.

"Hey, Chiron," I say walking over to him. He simply examines me in disbelief. "So we were just wondering—oof."

He pulled me into a death grip before I could finish my question.

"Leo, my boy, how did you survive? I thought the worst." Chiron lets me go and smiles, like a proud father. I laugh quietly.

"Well, let me tell you, that physicians cure really does wonders."

Chiron hums in ascent, then turns his attention to Calypso. His shock returns.

"Well, Leo Valdez, you are certainly full of surprises. Welcome, Calypso, to Camp Half-Blood."

"Thank you," she says, bowing slightly. "I was wondering if I could inquire with you for a bed?"

"Of course," Chiron says, extending his arm to a back door in the room. Calypso and I walk through it as Chiron follows suit.

"The guest rooms are just down the hallway to the right. Pick any room you like. Let me know if you need anything in particular."

"Thank you, Chiron," she says as he rolls away. Calypso turns to me and grabs my hand, pulling me behind her as she walks down the hallway. She opens the door to room number three and walks in. I shut the door behind us.

It is a simple room. A dresser, chair, desk, and a twin sized bed make up all the furniture. The window overlooks the lake, and there is a door on the opposite wall that leads to a bathroom.

"How are you doing, Leo?" she turns to me as she sits on the edge of the bed. I pull the chair out from the desk and sit on it, leaning into the back and resting my head on the tall wooden frame.

"Oddly, fine," I surprise even myself. "I can't believe it's been a year, though. To us it has only been one week. I feel like I missed a chunk of their lives—I did miss a chunk of their lives. One year, to be exact. I feel like I let them down. What—"

My next thought is cut off by Calypso straddling my legs to sit on my lap. She grips my chin with her thumb, forcing me to look at her.

"Leo, no one blames you," she simply states. "Not a single one. I could see that clearly tonight. And trust me when I say that your friends are not angry with you. They are simply overjoyed that you made it out alive. That you," she brings her forehead to mine, "came back home." She presses her lips to mine. I wrap my arms around her back to pull her closer.

I am so glad I managed to pull off that plan, I think as she runs her hands through my hair. Half of the reason I did it is to try and account for my promise to keep to her. But it worked, and I wouldn't be here otherwise, with Calypso, you know, making out with her.

And gods, can she kiss.

"Hey, Leo! Buddy! Just in time," Jason calls out from the bonfire and walks over to us. "I wanted to ask you something," he leads me to a bench and we all step over it to sit down. "So, you know how I promised to jump between the two camps to make sure all the gods and goddesses get full recognition?"

"Ah," I say, flipping my hand, "so that wasn't a joke," he jambs his elbow into my side.

"Of course not, dummy," he laughs. I lift my hands in surrender, urging him to continue. "Nico and I are planning on leaving for Camp Jupiter in a couple days. Would you like to tag along and see the others?"

Jason must have seen how big my smile had gotten because he starts laughing.

"I'll take that as a yes," he says, pulling something out of his pocket. "And since you'll be coming with we can fly on Festus rather than shadow travel. Nico offered, but I didn't want him to use it. He's still not up to full strength yet."

"It's been a year," I say in disbelief. "It really wiped him out that badly?"

"You have no idea," Jason shook his head while unfolding a piece of paper. It looked like an itinerary of sorts. "The poor kid has been through so much," his voice trailed off. He smiled, changing topic. "So, will you and Calypso be ready to leave tomorrow night? It'll be easier to travel under cover of darkness on a flying dragon." I laugh.

"A lot easier. I'll work on Festus tonight to get him ready for the trip." I look to the fire and relax. I'm back. I don't have to worry about some prophecy saying that I'm going to die. My friends are all around me as we sit in front of a campfire.

Everything feels, dare I say it, normal.

We make our descent as the sun rises at our backs, lighting everything in its path ahead of us. Calypso, Jason, and Nico hang on behind me like the toy monkeys in a barrel. As we come level with the tree line, I take in the Roman camp ahead of me.

I've been here before, and am still blown away by its massive size.

Large buildings tower over training grounds, the residential area has made an addition or two, Romans run left and right among the grounds, and some look up to take in the sight of a massive metal dragon flying in above their heads.

"You'll want to land over there," Jason yells over the wind, pointing to our right where there is a clearing. Following his lead, I land Festus in the clearing. One by one, everyone jumps off to the ground.

"Well, Nico and I came to do some work, but we're going to the guest housing if you would like to come with? Maybe catch up on some sleep."

"Not a bad idea," Calypso mumbles. I had no idea goddesses could mumble.

"What about Festus?" I say, pointing my thumb over my shoulder. He whirrs his gears in question as well.

"I can take care of that," a new voice comes into the conversation, deep and authoritative. I almost didn't recognize my friend Frank Zhang standing near us, arms folded, and smirking like an Apollo kid making away with freshly stolen goods.

"Wow, getting the royal treatment, I see. I'm almost wondering who I might have escorted here."

"It also might have something to do with the fact that you are alive," Frank claps a hand to my shoulder. "Welcome back to the side of the living, buddy," he pulls me in for a big bear hug. Then remember that he could give me a literal bear hug. "Go get some rest. We'll catch up later. Come on, Festus," he whistles and Festus follows him off to a large set of stables in the distance. Jason urges us forward, with a lack of energy due to our all night long flying adventure.

I hardly pay attention as we walk up to the doors of the guest housing and step over the threshold. Jason points to a room for me and I walk over to it as fast as my energy deprived body can move. Next thing I know I am falling on the bed and am out like a light.

Next thing I know, someone is shaking my arm. I open an eye to squint against the sun's rays and see who on earth would disturb my slumber. Moaning, I lift my head to see Calypso, containing a bout of laughter.

"What?" I ask, rolling over and rubbing my eyes.

"Sorry, I just can't sleep. Can I join you?" She pleads.

"Come on in," I say, lifting the sheets as she crawls under them, wrapping an arm around my waist.

Yeah, I could get used to this,

"Why can't you sleep?" I ask, yawning.

"I keep dreaming of Ogygia, thinking I'm still trapped there. Every time I see you, it helps me remember that I'm not—that I finally escaped that place. You keep me grounded, Leo Valdez" she moves closer to me, resting her head on my shoulder.

"Glad I could be of service, Claypso." I kiss her forehead before laying my head back down to my pillow—right into the sun's rays. Man, having a nocturnal schedule is the worst.

"We'll probably have to get up soon," I hear Calypso say quietly. I nod.

"Probably," I agree.

"But for now," she moves to plant a kiss underneath my jaw, "we can enjoy some much needed rest."

And enjoy we do.

"So, wait, Festus was the one who delivered the physicians cure to you?" Annabeth stares in amazement. Percy looked impressed.

"Yep. And once Gaia was defeated, my Archimedes sphere that I activated navigated Festus to Ogygia. It worked seamlessly. Even I am still in disbelief about that," I say, scratching the back of my head.

"Well," hazel sets her drink down on the table we sit around, "we're glad you're back, Leo."

"Yeah man," Percy said, giving me a thumbs up, "way to scare us like that. Next time you die I simply won't believe it."

"Percy," Annabeth slaps his side. He rubs it tenderly. "No complaining. You deserved that."

"Whatever you say, Wise Girl."

Annabeth rolls her eyes. I forgot how close they got after Tartarus.

"So, how long are you staying?" Reyna asks, sipping on her coffee.

"Jason and I have some business here that will take about two weeks," Nico says. "After that I'm heading back to Camp Half-Blood."

"And I'm heading to Canada to scout the terrain there for gods and goddesses. Piper will be coming with me, don't worry," he lifted his hands in defense against Annabeth's overprotective glance.

"Good," Percy says, "you going alone on that kind of mission wouldn't do. You need someone to keep you accountable, Grace."

Thus began the manliest slap-fight that this world has ever seen. No one bothers to stop it.

"Leo and Calypso, you are welcome to stay or leave as you please," Reyna says. "Since the two camps are on good terms again, I think it is safe to say we will be seeing a lot of each other, no matter where you end up staying."

"Thank you," I say, looking at a smiling Calypso. In this moment, surrounded by all my friends, it doesn't matter where we end up. We will always see each other at some point, and no trouble will be looming in the near future that threatens the end of the world.

Things are looking up.