I know it's been a while since I've updated, but do not fret, followers and readers. This chapter is a request from Kendrix D. Brandon. Without her requst for ThaLuke, I would not have written this and that I'm able to post this next chapter:) I hope all of you like it- pure ThaLuke fluffiness. This is what we think would happen if Luke decided not to work for Kronos anymore.

I do not own PJO.

Luke Castellan ran. His legs might've been hurting him, but he wouldn't allow himself to be caught in the icy hands of evil ever again. He wasn't ever going back to the titan and things were about to change. His breathing was shallow as he could hear the inhuman voice calling back to him, raging, threatening to come back or he would hurt the girl.

Luke gave out a scream, but kept urging forward. The darkness of the night around him warped into something that moved like honey. Time was slowing.

"NO!" Luke roared and he pushed through the time force the titan was forming around him. He broke free somehow, stumbling to catch his footing in the immediate change. He had to reach the camp. He had to. And if they didn't accept them…he didn't have to go to them; just her.

In fact, that was all he was hoping for. Luke didn't want anyone else. No one would understand them—not the way she would. He knew he had to make things right. The last time he'd seen her, she looked at him like he was an alien; something that she was disgusted by.

You're not Luke, she had said. Luke's insides were crumbling and it was more painful than dealing with Kronos. His eyes burned, but he kept running. He was almost there—so close to the barrier in which he could be safe inside. The voices kept reaching for him through the thick and humid air; the coils spreading out and grasping at his t-shirt. He could feel it tugging on him. The currents of the breaths kept irritating his legs that were pounding as his muscle cells began to ache. Luke yelped, his voice raw, as he tripped over the air in which the voices were still screaming at him. He slammed against the ground and could feel the voice crawling along his spine as if it were a snake. He clawed at the grass, the soil cramming itself into the small space in his nails. Cold sweat trickled down his temple and he wriggled, struggling against the strength of a titan.

"YOU WERE MY APPRENTICE!" Kronos' voice filled the air.

"NO! You tricked me! I will never work for an evil coward like you!"

"Coward?! HOW DARE YOU CALL ME THAT?!"

"You want a demi god to do your dirty work!" Luke reasoned. Kronos began to scream, sensing his failure. But Kronos was strong with vengeance and knew that even though Luke wasn't coming back, the half blood would regret it as he confessed to Hades. Luke could feel the energy inside of him draining out. But he was so close to the camp….he wouldn't give up. Not when he was right at the finish line. He looked up, and even through the dark night, he could see Thalia's tree. Her spot that showed that she wouldn't let her friends down even if it meant for a sacrifice.

Luke suddenly felt a strange power surge through him. He tugged at his own body. It was painful against eh opposite of the titan's power, but he was able to peel himself away. When Kronos had mentioned that he would be taking over Luke's body, he could imagine how much it would've hurt. Like another evil entity invading his skin and slowly entering his soul. He wouldn't do it. That was the end with Luke being the bad guy. He felt like this action would be how it could've felt if he had stuck to it, though. Finally, he was pulled free from the air that was still cursing at him.

But the curses were long gone as he sprinted to the tree. Finally, he reached it and stumbled against its trunk. His body was rigid and hung over and he felt like noodles had replaced his bones. Luke slipped down, but his abdomen somehow kept him up.

"FINE! GO DEAL WITH THOSE FOOLISH HALF BLOODS!" Kronos forced a wind of air that was so strong it would've come from a tornado. He pressed it against the traitor's back.

Luke's gasp was yanked from his throat as his knees bent backward and he flew straight through the air. Pressure squeezed his lungs shut and the air finally died down; he smacked face-down to the ground. Black spots danced his vision like racecars surrounding a track. His eyelids felt droopy and his breath was wheezing out of him. His whole body felt numb; it was like he wasn't really there. The only thing he could feel was the pounding in his head, thrumming through his temples and rushing into his veins.

But when he opened his eyes, he was grateful. He had passed the barrier, though it required pain.

Luke was home.

He gave a shaky laugh, his whole body rattling. Soon it turned into cries and hot tears were streaming down his face. He pushed himself from the ground, remembering the kind of demons that lurked for half bloods were out past the curfew. Luke's hands were shaking so bad that it affected the muscles that ran up his arms to twitch with vigor. He gritted his teeth at the pain and sweat and tears splattered and dampened the grass beneath him. He groaned but managed to slowly stand to his feet. On wobbly feet, he stumbled down the 12 cabins, counting each one and taking in the sights. He missed this place. He took a glance toward his own cabin. How he longed for his bed; but then he figured they burned it once they found that he was working for the enemy.

A weight placed itself on his heart and he trudged on. His own cabin wasn't where he was headed in the first place.

Eventually, without being caught, he stood in front of cabin number one; Zeus. His wrist was still shaking, but he still quietly knocked on the wooden door. His throat was dry and he thought about how Thalia would react. His chest felt hard, like he couldn't breathe and he waited somewhat patiently for her to answer the door. When she didn't, Luke was about to do so himself but finally…

The door creaked open. Thalia stood on the other side, rubbing her half-awake eyes. Her lips puckered, like how they used to when she was irritated. That's how he used to know he was fulfilling his taunting intentions when they were on the run together. "What do you—" Once her clouded blue eyes settled on him, they tried to readjust, as if she were hallucinating. But her eyelids snapped open nonetheless. Thalia looked him over, wondering what on earth he had just been through.

Luke could barely stand upright. He could feel his legs wavering beneath him but he didn't do anything to stop it as he kept his eyes on her.

"Luke—"

And then blackness overwhelmed him. He was sent forward, on top of her. Thalia gave a short yelp and caught him, her arms wrapping under his armpits and clutching his shoulder. His knees gave out from weakness and all of his weight was pressed onto her.

Thalia huffed, not believing that this was happening. He was too heavy for her—for the god's sakes, she was so short, her head barely reached the top of his chest! Slowly, before they woke anyone else up, she dragged him inside, his toes being pulled back from the lack of being able to raise them up.

"I'm sorry, Thals," he croaked, his eyes suddenly coming open again. He tried to make it easier for her and get back to his feet, but he couldn't find them. Luke's brain was hazy and he couldn't think properly. He wanted to puke as his vision swam in front of him. He didn't feel right; as if he'd just swallowed a cold and raw fish whole.

"It's okay. You're going to be fine," Thalia tried to soothe him. Finally, she set his upper torso onto the bottom bunk of her bed, where she slept at first. She ran back over to the door and silently closed it. It was dark and their only light was the moon that poured through the window. Thalia just wanted him to get some rest, knowing that he was feeling awful, but she needed to help him. Thalia lit a match and the flame was passed on to a lamp. The warm glow surrounded a circle around them, making his hair golden.

Thalia made her way toward him and propped the pillows up, helping him sit back and upright comfortably. She stopped when she saw how pale his face was; the dark ringlets under his eyes; his blue lips. Thalia touched his cheek with her fingertips as a hard lump formed in her throat.

Luke reached up and touched her hand. "Water," He croaked, "please."

Thalia nodded, her eyes growing wide, and she turned. She took her toothbrush out of the cup and ran cold water into it. Suddenly, her instincts kicked in. She wrapped his fingers around the cup, making sure he was able to hold it. She slowly helped him raise it to his lips and let him take careful sips. The blue color was slowly fading, but he was still sickly. She set the cup on the bedside table. "I'll be right back, okay?" She said. He nodded, and laid his head back.

Thalia slipped her black shoes on, not intending on tying it or slipping the hard back over her heel—letting it press sharply into the bottom of her heel—and she ran out the door, but did so quietly. The cold air hit her thighs and legs and arms, due to her sleep shorts and tank top, but she carefully flopped her shoes to run to the Athena cabin. Quietly she slipped inside and walked into the room directly to her left—Annabeth's. The doorknob turned slowly in her grasp and she held her breath. Thalia knew she had to be as still and quiet. Annabeth may not like spiders, but she was as attentive and quick like one. She thinly slipped into the room and set for Annabeth's already made pack that sat next to her desk. In case for an immediate emergency, Annabeth had advised her when she first awoke from the tree. Thalia didn't listen except for just a few seconds ago.

Thalia bent next to it, keeping Annabeth's sleeping lump under the sheets in her peripheral vision. Her lungs were rapid in breathing from both running and from the adrenaline from trying not to be seen. Thalia worked her fingers at untying the lace in the pack and opened the flap. She slowly took out a book, a map, and a compass tied together and slowly set it down next to her. She glanced at Annabeth, who hadn't moved except for her steady breathing. Thalia then released rope and an extra set of clothes. She sighed with relief knowing that shouldn't make much noise. Finally, at the bottom, was the first aid kit. She snapped one side of the kit, squeezing her eyes shut as if that would suppress the noise.

She looked up and Annabeth rolled onto her side, facing Thalia. Thalia bit the inside of her cheek, feeling the blood rush into her teeth as she then snapped open the other side. Annabeth's face twitched. The pace of Thalia's breath quickened. She rushed into thoughts, wondering how she would explain why she was sneaking into her emergency pack of all things. But Thalia knew that whatever happened, in the end, she was going to help Luke. Luke was deathly sick and she had to get at least the ambrosia.

She opened the plastic pack that was balancing on her palms and rustled through it, checking to see what it contained. In her head, she checked off her list: ambrosia, bandages, headache pills, and heat pads. Without closing it to prevent more noise, she set it next to the other contents. Thalia then replaced those. Eventually, she picked up the first aid and backed out the door, whispering to Annabeth that she had sweet dreams.

Thalia was back outside in the night and was jogging through the cabins again. Her chest heaving, and unnoticed by the harpies, she was back inside her cabin where Luke lay, his breaths rattling. She set the first aid kit next to the lamp, where she could see, and took out the ambrosia, a golden gummy. Thalia was about to feed it to him, but Luke scrambled up to take it. It had been a while since he'd touched anything that had been part of the gods.

Thalia thought he was going to throw it away, knowing why he'd turned. "You need to eat it; it'll make you feel better." She said.

Luke's blue eyes gazed at her as he slipped it into his mouth. It tingled against his tongue and he could feel his teeth get stronger as he chewed on it. When he swallowed it, it's strengthening power the surged through him and that cold feeling in his throat was replaced with a warm one. His heart was beating with health and his vision was also sharper. The ache in his muscles thrummed away. But he knew that any more of this, it could lead to something worse. A tiny voice in the back of his mind said bitterly that that was all that the gods could do: kill.

But Luke had changed. It was the opposite of the gods needing heroes; heroes also needed the gods.

"Better?" Thalia asked.

Luke nodded. Despite he had agreed, Thalia pressed the back of her hand to his forehead. It was scorching hot. A muscle in her jaw line twitched and without a word, she went back into the bathroom. She came back out with a cold washcloth which she placed against his forehead.

A shiver went through Luke's body. One that he welcomed. He wasn't sure if it was just from the sweet coldness of the cloth.

"Thank you," he said.

Thalia smirked. "It's a thing I do—I know when you lie."

Luke could feel the uncomfortable air that hung between them. It was because of his decision.

"Why are you here?" she asked.

"I've changed."

"How do I know you're not lying? How do I know that you're just not using me to spy on the camp and destroy it with Kronos?" She whispered, her eyes burning.

"You're not supposed to know." Luke said, "You're supposed to trust me."

Thalia hesitated. "I can't do that once I've seen your evil side."

"I'm not evil anymore, I promise." Luke said, sitting up a little straighter as if to get closer to her. He wanted her to know; he wanted her to forgive him.

But Thalia looked at him doubtfully. Luke explained what happened. Her expression slowly melted away as she studied him, searching for any signs of lies. She didn't; but she still wasn't sure if she could trust him.

"Luke…" she trailed off, not knowing what to say.

"Thalia," He took her hand. "You know me. Remember who I was. When it was just us together. And then when you left, I resented the gods. Only because they took my last hope—you. You were the only one who could understand me, except for this one time because I did it because of you. I thought Kronos could actually make them pay for what they did to you, but then I realized….that you were already saved. I would be lying if I said that I could like them now. But at least their children and their power could."

Thalia squeezed his hand. "It's….it's all right." She knew she was only assuring herself. "I—" a cry choked her. "I believe you."

"Really?"

Thalia nodded. "Really."

A smile spread across Luke's face and he said, "Thank you."

She looked down, not meeting his gaze. "You must've been through a lot." Truth was, she didn't want to here anymore and listen to his reasons—which was her. Thalia just wanted her old Luke back. Not the one filled with more tragic and painful nightmares.

"What's wrong?" He asked, trying to hold up her chin to look at her. Thalia jerked her head up, feeling antsy again.

"Nothing." She smiled. "I'm just glad your back. There's going to be a lot of explaining to Chiron about it and I guess you'll then be able to tell him where Kronos is so that we can—"

"I don't want to talk about it." Luke interrupted her. He shook his head, his icy blue eyes widening and gleaming under the lamp. The firelight also cast a shadow, pointing out his high cheekbones. A shiver went down Thalia's spine, goose bumps crawling up her forearms. "I want to forget about it; act like it never happened. I don't want the other campers asking me about it and….I just want to be who I was before." He gave her a pleading stare. "I want to act like I really am at home."

"I know you do but it's not going to be easy." She said with a sigh. Then she smiled at him. "But I'll be with you all the way."

Luke could see how tired her dark cerulean eyes were. He returned the smile. "Just like before?"

Thalia, who was sitting next to him on the bed, her hand resting on his other side as she leaned over him. She nodded. "Just like before."

There was a silence, but then Luke said, "You look tired."

"You should look in the mirror."

Luke cracked a smile as he rubbed her hand with his thumb. "Then we both need sleep."

Thalia turned and laid on her back next to him. They stared at the ceiling of the bottom bunk above them. Thalia then craned up and blew the light out of the lamp, the moon being their only source once again. Two pairs of blue eyes were fixed above, thinking about what happened before.

To them, it reminded them of when they were on the run, oblivious to those around them and fixed on the destination they knew barely anything about. All they knew was that it would be their home; their safe haven. Where they would be safe from the monsters that surrounded them physically and emotionally. To them, they could picture themselves lying under a tree in the park at night, being where they had nowhere else to sleep. Where the moon shined above them.

A chuckle leaped out of Thalia's throat. Luke remembered it too, not having to ask her why she had laughed. He smiled, his lips pressed and firm. He missed those days, those untroubling days. It might've seemed like a burden then, but that was better than how they were now; in the midst of a war against a vengeful titan.

Luke turned on his side toward Thalia. He hesitated, but then planted a butterfly kiss on Thalia's cheek. "Thank you, Thals."

Thalia was glad she had turned the light out, that way he couldn't tease her for blushing. She nodded. "Anything for a friend."

They didn't say it, but they could feel their insides cringe when she called them friends. Soon they fell asleep as though they were alone in the park again; as if they were at their own home.

Tell me what you think and enjoy the small remainder of the weekend unless you're my sister and next week is your spring break:)