Author's Note: It is I, another dark Percy edgelord. Perhaps you've heard of me.
Word count: 2,710

PROLOGUE

It was obvious that Tartarus had changed them. From the moment the elevator door opened, Jason could see it in their eyes.

He, along with the other four, wanted to help them. Piper would constantly bring Tartarus up in conversation, in vain attempts for Annabeth to start talking about her experience, but her eyes would water and she'd turn her head away like she didn't want anyone to see her vulnerable.

Percy, on the other hand, would drift away. When Tartarus was mentioned, his eyes would lose lifeness. In some ways, it was like looking at a corpse. The body was still there, but the eyes held nothing at all.

Jason had always been under the impression that Tartarus had taken a heavier toll on Percy. Ever since Jason met him, he felt like Percy was a caged animal ready to be released, and when the cage was unlocked, the starving animal would kill anything in his path to satiate his hunger. As seen in recent monster fights, Tartarus had unleashed the animal sleeping under Percy's skin.

That animal ended up taking his girlfriend down in his rampage.

The sight of Annabeth on the ground, bleeding out because of Percy's hand, was something the seven would never forget. Every time Jason closed his eyes, he saw Percy, traumatized, sobbing as he held a wounded Annabeth in his arms. He heard the other four scrambling for ambrosia, because they knew nothing else could save Annabeth's life. He remembered himself, standing there like a log, too in shock to do anything. So when Piper, Leo, Hazel, and Frank sprinted back to the ship for all the ambrosia they had, Jason was the only one who saw Percy gently lay the unconscious Annabeth down, mutter something in her ear, and take off in the opposite direction of the ship.

In less than five minutes, their two strongest team members had, respectively, run away and died.

Two months later

The ambrosia had saved Annabeth, but Percy was still missing.

When Annabeth was healing, the six couldn't give a flying fuck whether Percy was dead or alive. He was the one who hurt Annabeth close to the point of death. He was unpredictable and dangerous.

During the first few days after the incident, Annabeth was in and out of consciousness. Much to the surprise of the others, every time she was awake, she asked for Percy. The five didn't want to talk about him, didn't even want to mention the name of the boy who nearly killed her, but still Annabeth screamed for him, cried for him. Piper had thought Annabeth was just in shock – because why on Earth would she sob for the boy who sliced her open – but when she had healed, when Annabeth was Annabeth, she would still ask for him.

Coach Hedge and the kids were having breakfast on a chilly November morning. They were all chatting about stupid, useless crap. Talking bullshit like that made everyone feel better, made them forget about all the threats breathing down their neck.

"...Yeah," Jason heard Annabeth say to Piper. "I get what you mean. But step-parents aren't all bad. I mean, Percy basically has the best step-dad ever. His name is Paul, and Sally..."

Percy's name was like a chill that spread through the room, silencing them all. Annabeth had suddenly become aware that everyone was staring at her. "What?" She challenged them, looking to everyone at the table.

Piper cleared her throat. "Um, Annabeth... I think it's time we started believing that he's dead."

Annabeth's challenge remained written on her face. Her arched eyebrows, pursed lips, and cold stare would have scared Jason stiff if her gaze was aimed at him. "Excuse me?"

Leo, to Jason's left, accepted her challenge. "Piper's right, Annabeth. We haven't heard a single thing from him in two months. He's basically the strongest demigod in the world – if he was alive, don't you think we would know something?"

Annabeth pushed her chair back and stood up so quickly that Jason didn't see it happen. With her palms planted on the table, her challenge was replaced with fury. "Are you seriously telling me to believe he's dead?"

"He nearly killed you, Annabeth!" Piper fought.

She bit down on her lip, like she was preventing herself from cursing Piper out. Annabeth said, a ball of anger, "How many times do I have to tell all of you that it wasn't him? The fact that you think Percy would want to hurt me makes me want to puke."

With that, Annabeth kicked her chair farther away and stomped out of the room.

Approximately ten days later, a storm was raging on the Argo II.

Storms never lasted long on the water, so Jason endured the torrential rain as he tried to control the wind and sail. Piper wanted to help him, but charmspeak wouldn't work any wonders on the weather. The others were all downstairs, crowded by a fire from Leo's hands.

Ten minutes into it, Jason began to think that it wasn't a normal storm.

The ship began to rock from vibrations. The Argo II was sailing a few kilometers away from the North Carolina coastline, where the trees were shaking, being pushed toward the water. The strange sounds that Jason thought were the ship fighting a storm turned out to be a Titan, screaming as he fell into the ocean and sank like a rock.

Jason kept his hand on his weapon. He couldn't be too cautious – after all, from his experience, Titans tended to stick together like preteen girls.

But on the coastline, standing within the area of collapsed trees, was a demigod with a sword.

Jason, trying to focus on keeping the ship above water, tried to think of a way to call out to this demigod (Who else could have drowned a Titan?) to ask him for help, or shelter from the storm.

Then he saw the sword shrink and the demigod stuff it in his pocket.

It was Percy.

The storm that Percy had – presumably – started died down about an hour later. When the others were sure it was over, Piper came above deck to stand next to Jason.

He wasn't sure if he should tell her. Piper and Annabeth were close friends, and Piper said a hundred times that if Percy ever came back, she would hurt him the way he hurt Annabeth.

But Percy was Jason's friend, and Annabeth was always defending him...

He began gently, "Hey, Pipes."

Almost blissfully she said, "Yes?"

"That storm..."

"Yeah, it was rough, wasn't it? We could all feel the ship shaking."

"Yeah, I – I don't think it was natural," Jason said quietly, like he didn't want to wake another storm. "I think it was man-made."

"What do you mean?" Piper asked, eyebrows furrowed. "Gaea?"

He didn't want to say it. Not only was the storm on the ocean stirring beneath the surface, there was a storm brewing inside Jason. He felt it gaining strength, threatening to hit and destroy everything.

"I saw Percy," he said before he could stop himself.

"WHAT?" Piper screamed, dozens of emotions crossing her face. Her grip on Jason's arm was so tight it was as if Percy was in front of them, holding a gun. "Where? Jason, tell me everything right now–"

"Relax, Piper," he whispered sternly. Piper's eyes were pools of fear and concern. Jason took a deep breath. "Just listen. I saw a Titan fall into the ocean and sink. I was ready to fight, thinking there'd be another, but then I saw a demigod on the coastline."

"That doesn't automatically mean it's Percy–"

"I saw his sword shrink and fit into his pocket. It was Percy."

Jason and Piper were silent for a while after that. Jason wanted to find Percy and talk to him, but most of the Argo II were opposed to having Percy back on their team. He understood where they were coming from – Annabeth nearly bled out because of his hands, and they'd seen him control the water inside monsters' bodies. He was a threat to them all – but the friend in Jason wanted to help Percy. They were his family.

"I want to meet with him," Jason proclaimed. He readied himself for criticism and screaming.

Piper breathed heavily. "You can't make that decision yourself. We all have to talk."

He wanted to argue, because he knew what the others would say. Good gods, Leo wouldn't agree if his life was on the line.

"Fine," he sighed, giving in. It would be wrong to go without discussing it first. "But I'm going to fight for this."

"I know."

Piper was deep in thought – he could tell from the distance in her eyes. He wasn't sure if she supported him or not, but even if he was alone in this argument, Jason would protect his family no matter what.

That night, everyone was gathered in the common room below deck. It was raining – leftovers from Percy's storm – and when Jason said he was around and wanted to meet him, the arguments drowned out the sound of the rain.

"We can't risk having him on board–"

"He's dangerous!"

"We can't trust him anymore–"

Jason was looking only at Annabeth.

He expected her to have mixed emotions. He never liked how the other four always told her how to feel about Percy – it was her choice as to whether she felt betrayed or not. Annabeth's eyes were trained on the floor, her fingers laced, hair falling in front of her face.

"ENOUGH!" Frank, uncharacteristically, quieted the group. "Percy is our friend. Our family. If we know where he is, we can't leave him behind."

Leo scoffed. "Yes we can!" He argued. "He's unbelievably dangerous. He can control you from the inside out. We can't have a threat like that with us."

"A threat to what, exactly?" Annabeth spoke, very quietly. Calm before the storm, Jason thought.

"Our safety!" Leo exclaimed. "Do any of you feel comfortable letting him back with us?"

"Okay, Leo, all I asked for was to go talk to him–" Jason started to protest, but Annabeth interrupted.

"Of course I do," she answered Leo. "He would never hurt us."

There was a moment of silence. Then both Piper and Leo began to laugh. Annabeth fixed Piper with a glare so cold Jason was surprised she didn't turn to stone.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Leo said in between laughs. "I cannot believe those words just came from your mouth. 'He would never hurt us'? The guy who would've killed you had it not been for us?" There was an almost maniacal look in Leo's eyes.

Jason started, "Okay, look, I just think–"

"Annabeth, think about this clearly," Piper said, a look written on her face that Jason couldn't read. "You have history with him, yeah, but think about what he did! You're letting the past cloud the present."

"I. Am. Not–"

Frank said, "Why can't you all just–"

Leo spoke, "He can't be trusted–"

Annabeth slammed her fists onto the table. "I am calling senior vote," she said, her voiced raised with finality laced into every syllable. Jason, Piper, Leo, Hazel, Frank, and Coach Hedge all looked at her. "I am the oldest here. I'm making the decision. Jason, we're going."

"Um," Jason said, "you're not coming with me."

"That's because I am, right?" Leo spoke, with an almost threatening glance.

But Leo didn't scare Jason. "No," he said firmly. "I am going alone."

"Jason!" Piper cried. "Half of us don't want you to go in the first place, so there's no fucking way you're going alone!"

Annabeth huffed, "He's my best friend, so I'm going with you."

"No!" Jason repeated, his voice unwavering. "I have to send him word that I'm coming before he's too far away, so I need to go. And no one is coming with me!"

He thought he sounded final, but as he walked out of the room, he heard all the others arguing their point.

Honestly, Jason would've liked having a partner with him, but Leo was definitely out of the question. They wouldn't be able to talk to the man if Leo was calling him untrustworthy and monster-like. This was something Jason had to do himself... Besides, Percy was Jason's friend. He cared about him. He would do whatever it took to get him back on the Argo II.

He closed his bedroom door, wishing it had a lock. He tore a piece of paper from the notebook on his desk – the notebook that the Seven had for "planning" but only had one page filled – and wrote his letter, not stopping himself nor thinking too hard about it.

Percy,
I saw you on the North Carolina coast fighting a Titan. I know it was you because I saw Riptide. You can't hide now, so I'm asking you to come to the clearing a few kilometers southwest of where the Titan fell into the ocean. I want to talk to you. Please meet me at the clearing tomorrow evening.
Jason

Jason walked up to the deck, glad no one was around. He commanded the wind to take the paper and deliver it to Percy... He could only hope he got it, and would meet him at the set rendezvous point.

The next evening, Jason's bag was packed with water, granola bars, and deodorant. He figured there wouldn't be a ton of walking, seeming as Jason could command the wind, but he was prepared for a few days just in case. He didn't pack ambrosia in hope that he wouldn't need it.

Piper and Annabeth were there to send him off.

"Keep the ship anchored," he instructed them, slinging the backpack over his shoulder. "Don't move it until I come back, which might not be until the morning. I may camp out at the clearing, I'm not sure yet. If I need help, I'll send a message over the wind... but hopefully it won't come to that."

They both nodded, but Annabeth was biting her bottom lip. Jason had seen that look written across her features every time she was lost in thought. He could almost see the pencil between her teeth.

She pulled him to the side before he could say a word.

"Jason..." she whispered, quiet enough so Piper wouldn't hear them. "I know what you all think of him. I know what you all want to do to him..."

She paused.

It took him a moment to process what he was seeing. He knew she was human and had emotions, but Annabeth usually hid her feelings. Jason knew her well, and considered her a close friend, but Annabeth was Annabeth. She was held back; it took Jason by surprise to see Annabeth's hand over her mouth, tears leaking from her eyes.

"I know..." she tried, "he hurt–"

Her voice gave out. She couldn't do it. She used her free hand to quiet her sobs, but Jason knew Piper was watching. He put a hand on Annabeth's shoulder to comfort her.

"I love him," she said like it was the easiest thing in the world. She had regained her composure some, but tears still stained her cheeks. "He did what he did, and everyone has their own feelings about him, but I love him. He is everything to me. So please, Jason," – she sobbed – "please do not hurt him."

"I won't," Jason swore, his eyes unwavering. He squeezed her shoulder. "I promise I won't hurt him."

Annabeth muttered a thank-you as Piper approached. She kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear, "Be careful."

He nodded. Sparing one last look at Annabeth, he took off.