A/N (I recommend reading this): I'm going to MAKE THIS CLEAR. Just like I mention on my bio page about every other fanfiction I done: I DON'T OWN THE PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIAN SERIES OR IT'S CHARACTERS as the rights goes to Rick Rioran. Also I suggest you guys start paying attention to the Author notes and my warnings that I left on EVERY chapter of EVERY story.

Sorry if this chapter is too much like the book.

Due to the limited number of characters posted, I'm forced to post only the names of the characters telling their tales in this story. When I get to the House of Hades and Blood of Olympus, I'll list off the first four characters listed in the order they tell their tales. I'll post the pairings if the two of the four characters listed are a pair. Other than that, the Pairings stay the same for this story.

Jason x Piper
Percy x Annabeth
Frank x Hazel

If you haven't figured it out, each of the members of the Prophecy of Seven practically has a position. Keep in mind in the original series Juno started this when she told Percy he was the glue that holds the group together, so I thought to give the rest a title. But no matter what title they have they still depend on each other. Titles will be added for some as the series continue

Jason: Leader of the Group

Piper: Peacekeeper

Leo: Mechanic and Seventh Wheel (by Nemesis)

Percy: Glue that holds everyone together

Hazel: Youngest (Literally and figuratively as the title refers to the fact that even though she has proven herself as one of the seven, Hazel still has much to learn compared to the rest about what she is capable to do that can help the group. Keep in mind Hazel has not master shadow travel or Mist Manipulation yet).

Frank: Muscles

Annabeth: Battle Strategist and Consultant

Warning: Certain ancient Greeknames matches words use of foul language but no foul language was intentionally used. Also if you haven't read them yet read 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Early Adventures' 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief' 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters' 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Olympians: The Titan's Curse' 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Olympians: The Magical Labyrinth' 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Stolen Chariot' 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Sword of Hades', 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Bronze Dragon' 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Olympians: The Last Olympian' 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon & the Staff of Hermes' 'The Tales of the Heroes of Olympus: The Lost Hero' 'The Tales of the Heroes of Olympus: The Quest for Buford' and 'The Tales of the Heroes of Olympus: The Son of Neptune' before reading this story as stuff that happened in them will be mentioned. Lastly, any one who wants to do a Demigods and Olympian reads story using 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon' is allowed as long as you inform me about it.


Leo's POV Part III

"Who is Aunt Rosa?" Hazel asked.

I didn't want to talk to her. Nemesis' words were still buzzing in my ears. My tool belt seemed heavier since I'd put the cookie in there—which was impossible. Its pockets could carry anything without adding extra weight. Even the most fragile things would never break. Still, I imagine I could feel it in there, dragging me down, waiting to be cracked open.

"Long story," I said. "She abandoned me after my mom died, gave me to foster care."

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well…" I decided to change topics. "At least we learn something from Nemesis. We have a clue to find your brother."

"Yeah…" Hazel said. "I'm worried about what Nemesis said about sacrifices though. I mean, she had her son give up an eye just to make a difference."

"Yeah, but I doubt Ethan was made Cabin Counsellor of Cabin Sixteen through sympathy," I explained. "He must have made some kind of impact. I mean, he's not the only child of Nemesis in Camp. When we get back to the ship we will tell the others what we learn from Nemesis and maybe come up with a way to save your brother and Rome."

Hazel nodded. "I hope you're right. The thought of Nico having only six days to live—there has to be something I can do. Part of me even want to contact Bianca to see if she knows anything."

"If she did, she never told us," I said.

Hazel froze. "You met Bianca before?"

I felt like I should slap myself. Here Hazel been worried about Nico while never even knowing her sister, when I have met her.

"A few times—mostly during the quest to free Hera," I said.

"What is she like?" Hazel asked.

That was hard to answer. The only time I seen Bianca, she treated me like most Hunters treat any other boy—like we were worse than most monsters they hunted. But I'm not one of Bianca's long lost siblings, or had a sibling bond with, so I don't know what Bianca is like otherwise. But Hazel obviously wanted an answer.

"Well I can't tell you much more than your brother probably told you," I said. "Mostly because since she treats me no different from any boy."

Hazel nodded.

We climbed one of the largest boulders to get a better view. Along the way, I lost balance and Hazel caught my hand. She pulled me up and we found ourselves atop the rock, holding hands, face-to-face. For the first time I noticed Hazel's eyes was nothing like her sister's. Bianca's eyes were more dark, and in some situations had a look of a mad-genius. But Hazel's was a glittering gold color. Not so dark or scary looking.

She's Frank's girlfriend, I reminded myself.

Although I'm starting to understand why Frank didn't sound so convincing back on the ship. Whoever Sammy is, he obviously meant a lot to Hazel back in her previous life.

But I can't help but shake this feeling I know Hazel's name from somewhere, and the more I thought of it, a sneaking suspicion dawn over me that I knew the name Sammy from somewhere as well and the two names were connected.

And I realize we were still holding hands.

"Um thanks," I let go of er hand, but we were still close, I could feel the warmth of her breath. She definitely didn't seem like a dead person.

"When we were talking to Nemesis," Hazel said uneasily, "your hands… I saw flames."

"Yeah," I said. "It's a power of Hephaestus. Only Hephaestus doesn't give it to just anyone."

"So—it's a rare blessing, like my power over riches of the earth," Hazel said.

"Yeah," I said. "Most of the time I can keep it under control. But if I get too excited or upset or anything like that—well, you saw it yourself."

"Oh." She put one hand protectively on her denim shirt, like she was about to say the Pledge of Allegiance. I got the feeling she wanted to back away from me, but the boulder was too small.

Great, I thought. Another person who thinks I'm a scary freak.

I gazed across the inland. The opposite shore was only a few hundred yards away. Between here and there were dunes and clumps of boulders, but nothing that looked like a reflecting pool.

You will always be the outsider, Nemesis had told me, the seventh wheel. You will not find a place among your brethren.

She might as well have poured acid in my ears. I didn't need anybody to tell me I was the odd man out. After Beckendorf left Cabin Nine in my charge while he went to NYU for the school year, I'd spent months alone in Bunker 9 at Camp Half-Blood, working on my ship instead of joining my friends and siblings to capture the flag for fun and prizes. Even my two best friends, Piper and Jason, often treated me like an outsider. No matter if it was Mist memories or for real, ever since they started dating, their idea of "quality time" didn't include me. Sure they came to my aid when I got myself in a tight situation like almost blowing up Bunker 9, the Argo II, and most of the woods, but the next day things always went back to normal. My only other friend, Festus the dragon, had been reduced to a figurehead when his body and control disk was destroyed on our last adventure, and it wasn't until Beckendorf came back for the Summer that I had anyone else to talk too, and even with that, Beckendorf would spend most of the time with his girlfriend Silena Beauregard.

The seventh wheel. I had heard of a fifth wheel—an extra, useless piece of equipment. I figured a seventh wheel was worse.

I had hopes that I would have a fresh start in this quest. That all my hard work on the Argo II would finally pay off. I'd have six good friends who would admire and appreciate me, and we'd go sailing off into the sunrise to fight giants. Maybe, I had secretly hoped, I'd even find a girlfriend.

Do the math, I chided myself.

Nemesis was right. I might be part of a group of seven, but I was still isolated. Something may have possessed me to fire on the Romans, but I still brought trouble on my friends. You will not find a place among your brethren.

"Leo?" Hazel asked gently. "You can't take what Nemesis said to heart. She's the goddess of revenge. "Even if she's on our side in this war, she still exist to stir up resentment."

I wish I could dismiss my feelings that easy but I couldn't. Still, it wasn't Hazel's fault.

"We should keep going," I said. "I wonder wat Nemesis meant about finishing before dark."

Hazel glanced at the sun, which was just touching the horizon. "And who is the cursed boy she mentioned.

Below us, a voice said, "Cursed boy she mentioned."

At first, I saw no one. Then my eyes adjusted. I realized a young woman was standing only ten feet from the base of the boulder. Her dress was a Greek-style tunic the same color as the rocks. Her wispy hair was somewhere between brown and blond and gray, so it blended with the dry grass. She wasn't invisible, exactly, but she was almost perfectly camouflaged until she moved—sort of like the camouflage armor Hephaestus Cabin sometimes use for our game of Capture the flag. Still, I had trouble focusing on her. Her face was pretty but not memorable. In fact, every time I blinked, I couldn't remember what she looked like, and I had to concentrate to find her again.

"Hello," Hazel said. "Who are you?"

"Who are you?" The girl answered. Her voice sounded weary, like she was tired of answering that question.

Hazel and I exchange looks. With this demigod gig, you never knew what you'd run into. Nine times out of ten, it wasn't good. A ninja girl camouflaged in earth tones didn't strike me as something I wanted to deal with just then.

"Are you the cursed kid Nemesis mentioned?" Leo asked. "But you're a girl."

"You're a girl," said the girl.

"Excuse me?" I said.

"Excuse me," the girl said miserably.

"You're repeating…" I stopped. "Oh. Hold it. Hazel, wasn't there some myth about a girl who repeated everything—?"

"Echo," Hazel said.

"Echo," the girl agreed. She shifted, her dress changing with the landscape. Her eyes were the color of the salt water. I tried to home in on her features, but I couldn't.

"All I remember from the myth was that you were cursed to repeat the last thing you heard," I sad.

"You heard," Echo said.

"Poor thing," Hazel said. "If I remember right, a goddess did this?"

"A goddess did this," Echo confirmed.

I scratched my head. "But wasn't that thousands of years… oh. You're one of the mortals who came back through the Doors of Death. I really wish we stop running—" I stopped myself as I almost forgot that Hazel was one of the returnees. "—never mind."

"Never mind," Echo agreed as if knowing where I was going.

"We still need to find the reflecting pool," Hazel said.

"Reflecting pool." Echo pointed toward the far shore of the inland.

"You want to show us something?" Hazel asked as she climbed down the boulder. I wasn't so quick to follow..

"Hey wait! How do we know she's not working for Gaea?" I asked as I climbed down.

"Not working for Gaea," Echo said distastefully as if I hit a sore subject.

"Sorry," I apologize. "I just didn't want to take risk of being turned into a gold statue again."

Hazel frowned. "What?"

"King Midas, long story," I replied.

"Long story," Echo responded.

"Well, I don't she's working for Gaea," Hazel said. "Nico warned me this might happen."

"What?" I asked.

"My brother, Nico—he told me that with the Doors of Death open, there was a possibility that spirits will return on their own without making a deal with Gaea," Hazel said.

"Without making a deal with Gaea," Echo agreed.

I never even considered that as a possibility. Then again, until hours ago I never thought a returnee would be one of the seven greatest heroes of our generation whose fates turned out to be tied to this prophecy.

Now that I was closer to Echo, I noticed that she was more visible.

"So… you have to repeat everything?" I asked.

"Everything."

I couldn't help but smile as an idea came to me. After all, not every day you meet someone who can only repeat the last thing you say. "That could be fun."

"Fun," she said unhappily.

"Blue elephants."

"Blue elephant."

"Kiss me, you fool."

"You fool."

"Hey!"

"Hey!"

"Leo," Hazel pleaded, "don't tease her."

"Don't tease her," Echo agreed.

"Okay, okay," I said, though I had to resist the urge. "So if you're not working for Gaea, why are you here? What were you pointing at? Do you need our help?"

"Help," Echo agreed emphatically. She gestured for us to follow and sprinted down the slope. I could only follow her progress by the movement of the grass and the shimmer of her dress as it changed to match the rocks.

"We better hurry," Hazel said. "Or we'll lose."

We found the problem—if you can call a mob of good-looking girls a problem. Echo led us down into a grassy meadow shaped like a blast crater, with a small pond in the middle. Gathered at the water's edge were nymphs. Like the ones at Camp Half-Blood, these were gossamer dresses. Their feet were bare. They had elfish features and their skin color is mostly based off what they're Nymphs of. And it wasn't just one type of Nymph. Judging from some of their appearances there were a variety, which made me a little nervous.

Last winter, Jason Piper and I had to deal with Maenads—followers of Dionysus who loved to party and if you threaten them or call yourself Dionysus and they find out you're not, you'll be torn to shreds. The hardest part wasn't fighting them, it was figuring out how to fight them without destroying them or else suffer from Dionysus' punishment.

I doubt Maenads were among the group since there wasn't any partying going on, but these nymphs were obviously here for some reason. They were all crowded together in one spot, facing the pond and jostling for a better view. Many were bouncing up and down and giggling so excitedly that seemed familiar. Several held up phone cameras, trying to get a shot over the heads of the others. I didn't even know that Nymphs had phones.

"What are they looking at?" I wondered.

"Looking at," Echo sighed.

"One way to find out." Hazel marched forward and began nudging her way through the crowd. "Excuse us. Pardon me."

"Hey!" one nymph complained. "We were here first!"

"Yeah," another sniffed. "He won't be interested in you."

The second nymph had large red hearts painted on her cheeks. Over her dress, she ore a T-shirt that read: OMG I3N!

Oh, now I recognized this behavior. I remember one of Piper's half-sisters: Drew Tanaka being the same way to Piper about Jason before they started dating. Heck even Khione acted that way at first—in her cold hearted way.

I've grown use to it in my own way being friends with Jason, but it's still a reminder of everything I'm not. The only thing I got leaning toward me for hopes of a future girlfriend is my skills and sense of humor.

Still, I doubt it would help if I tell the Nymphs that Hazel already has a boyfriend and isn't interested in whoever they're oogling over.

"All right, move along, we're on demigod business here," I said. "Make room. Thanks."

The nymphs grumbled, but they parted to reveal a young man kneeling at the edge of the pond, gazing intently at the water.

Well, the guy definitely had the looks of someone who catches a lot of girl's attention. He had a chiseled face with lips and eyes that were somewhere between feminine beautiful and masculine handsome. Dark hair swept over his brow. He might've been seventeen or twenty, it was hard to say, but he was built like a dancer—with long graceful arms and muscular legs, perfect posture and an air of regal calm. He wore a simple white T-shirt and jeans, but with a bow and quiver strapped to his back. The weapons obviously hadn't been used in a while. The arrows were covered in dust. A spider had woven a web in the top of the bow.

As I edged closer, I realized the guy's face was unusually golden. In the sunset, the light was bouncing off a large flat sheet of Celestial bronze that lay at the bottom of the pond, washing Mr. Handsome's features in a warm glow.

The guy seemed fascinated with his reflection in the metal.

Hazel inhaled sharply. "He's gorgeous."

Around her, the nymphs squealed and clapped their hands in agreement.

"I am," the young man murmured dreamily, his gaze still fixed on the water. "I am so gorgeous."

One of the nymphs showed her iPhone screen. "His latest YouTube video got a million hits in like, an hour. I think I was half of those!"

The other nymphs giggled.

"You tube video?" I asked. "What does he do in the video, sing?"

"No, silly!" the nymph chided. "He used to be a prince and a wonderful hunter and stuff. But that doesn't matter. Now he just… well, look!" She showed me the video. It wasn't anything special, just what we were already watching—the guy staring at himself in the pond.

"He is sooooo hot!" said another girl. Her T-shirt read: MRS. NARCISSUS.

"Narcissus?" I asked

"Narcissus," Echo agreed sadly.

I forgot that Echo was there. Apparently none of the Nymphs noticed her either.

"Oh, not you again!" Mrs. Narcissus tried to push Echo away, but she misjudge where the camouflaged girl was and ended up shoving several other nymphs.

"You had your chance, Echo!" said the nymph with the iPhone. "He dumped you four thousand years ago! You are so not good enough for him."

"For him," Echo said bitterly.

"Wait." Hazel clearly had trouble tearing her eyes away from the handsome—which I decided not to tell Frank, but she managed. "What's going on here? Why did Echo bring us here?"

One of the Nymphs rolled her eyes. She was holding an autograph pen and a crumpled poster of Narcissus (I don't even want to know where she got that). "Echo was a nymph like us, a long time ago, but she was a total chatterbox! Gossiping, blah, blah, blah, all the time."

"I know!" another nymph shrieked. "Like, who can stand that? Just the other day Cleopeia was gossiping about that Cloud Nymph that use to be an Assistant of Aeolus—what was her name… Millie, Molly—"

It was a wide shot but when I heard Cloud Nymph and Assistant of Aeolus, I asked, "Mellie?"

"That's it, Mellie… Anyways Cleopeia was spreading gossip about how she got some assistant job with a famous mortal actor Tristan McLean—not as famous as handsome as Narcissus of course—and is dating a satyr that helped his daughter saved Tristan. Of course I didn't believe her, like a famous mortal actor would hired a cloud nymph, so I told Cleopeia: Stop gossiping or you'll end up like Echo."

I snorted as Hazel had a confused look.

"Totally!" said the nymph with the poster. "So anyway, as punishment for blabbing, Hera cursed Echo so she could only repeat things, which was fine with us. But then Echo fell in love with our gorgeous guy, Narcissus—as if he would ever notice her."

"As if!" said half a dozen others.

"Now she's got some weird idea he needs saving," said Mrs. Narcissus. "She should just go away."

"Go away," Echo growled back.

"I'm so glad Narcissus is alive again," said another nymph in a gray dress. She had the words NARCISSUS + LAIEA written up and down her arms in black marker. "He's like the best! And he's in my territory."

"Oh, stop it, Laiea," her friend said. "I'm the pond nymph. You're just the rock nymph."

"Well, I'm the grass nymph," Another protested.

"No, he obviously came here because he likes the wildflowers!" another said. "Those are mine!"

The whole mob began arguing while Narcissus stared at the lake, ignoring them. If you ask me, Narcissus came here to look at himself.

"Hold it!" I yelled. "Ladies, hold it! I need to ask Narcissus something."

Slowly the nymphs settled down and went back to taking pictures.

I knelt next to the handsome dude. "No, Narcissus. What's up?"

"Could you move?" Narcissus asked distractedly. "You're ruining the view."

I looked in the water. My own water reflection rippled next to Narcissus on the surface of the submerged bronze. I didn't have any desire to stare at myself. Compare to Narcissus, I looked more like an undergrown troll. But there was no doubt the metal was a sheet of hammered Celestial bronze, roughly circular, about five feet in diameter.

What it was doing in this pond, I wasn't sure. Celestial bronze fell to earth in odd places. I heard most pieces were cast off from my dad's various workshops. Hephaestus would lose his temper when projects didn't work out, and he'd toss his scraps into the mortal world. When Percy told me of the Junkyard of the gods, I thought they might of ended up there, but I guess even Hephaestus doesn't always pays attention to where he toss things sometimes. This piece looked like it might have been meant as a shield for a god, but it hadn't turned out properly. If I could get it back to the ship, it would be just enough bronze for my repairs.

"Right, great view," I said. "Happy to move, but if you're not using it, could I just take that sheet of bronze?"

"No," Narcissus said. "I love him. He's so gorgeous."

I looked at the nymphs were swooning and nodding in agreement. Hazel was the only one appalled. She wrinkled her nose as if she'd come to the conclusion that Narcissus smelled worse than he looked.

"Man," I told Narcissus. "You do realize that you're looking at yourself in the water, right?"

"I'm so great," Narcissus sighed. He stretched out a hand longingly to touch the water, but held back. "No, I can't make ripples. That ruins the image. Wow… I am so great."

"Yeah," I muttered. "But if I took the bronze, you could still see yourself in the water. Or here…" I reached in my tool belt and pulled out a simple mirror the size of a monocle. "I trade you."

Narcissus took the mirror, reluctantly, and admired himself. "Even you carry a picture of me? I don't blame you. I'm gorgeous. Thank you." He set the mirror down and returned his attention to the pond. "But I already have a much better image. The color flatters me, don't you think?"

"Oh, gods, yes!" a nymph screamed. "Marry me, Narcissus!"

"No, me!" another cried. "Would you sign my poster?"

"No, sign my shirt!"

"No, sign my forehead!"

"No, sign my—"

"Stop it!" Hazel snapped.

"Stop it!" Echo agreed.

I had lost sight of Echo again, but now I realized she was kneeling on the other side of Narcissus, waving her hand in front of his face as if trying to break his concentration. Narcissus didn't even blink.

The nymph fan club tried to shove Hazel out of the way, but she drew her cavalry sword and forced them back. "Snap out of it!" She yelled.

"He won't sign your sword," the poster nymph complained.

"He won't marry you," said the iPhone girl. "And you can't take his bronze mirror! That's what keeps him here!"

"You're all ridiculous," Hazel said. "He's so full of himself! How can you possibly like him?"

"Like him," Echo sighed, still waving her hand in front of his face.

The others sighed along with her.

"I am so hot," Narcissus said sympathetically.

"Narcissus, listen." Hazel kept her sword at ready. "Echo brought us here to help you. Didn't you, Echo?"

"Echo," said Echo.

"Who?" Narcissus said.

"The only girl who cares what happens to you, apparently," Hazel said. "Do you remember dying?"

Narcissus frowned. "I… no. That can't be right. I am much too important to die."

"You died staring at yourself," Hazel insisted. "I remember the story now. Nemesis was the goddess who cursed you, because you broke so many hearts. Your punishment was to fall in love with your own reflection."

"I love me so, so much," Narcissus agreed.

"You finally died," Hazel continued. "I don't know which version of the story is true. You either drowned yourself or turned into a flower hanging over the water or—Echo, which is it?"

"Which is it?" she said hopelessly.

I stood. "It doesn't matter. The point is your alive again, man. You have a second chance. You can get up, and get on with your life. Echo is trying to save you. Or you can stay here and stare at yourself until you die again."

"Stay here!" all the nymphs screamed.

"Marry me before you die!" another squeaked.

Narcissus shook his head. "You just want my reflection. I don't blame you, but you can't have it. I belong to me."

Hazel sighed in exasperation. She glanced at the sun, which was sinking fast. Then she gestured with her sword toward the edge of the crater. "Leo, could we talk for a minute?"

"Excuse us," I told Narcissus. "Echo, want to come with?"

"Come with," Echo confirmed.

The nymphs clustered around Narcissus again and began recording new videos and taking more photos.

Hazel led the way until we were out of earshot. "Nemesis was right," she said. "Some demigods can't change their nature. Narcissus is going to stay there until he dies again."

"No," I said.

"No," Echo agreed.

"We need that bronze," I said. "If we take it away, it might give Narcissus a reason to snap out of it. Echo could have a chance to save him."

"A chance to save him," Echo said gratefully.

Hazel stabbed her sword in the sand. "It could also make several dozen nymphs very angry with us," she said. "And Narcissus might still know how to shoot his bow."

I pondered that. The sun was just about down. Nemesis had mention Narcissus got agitated after dark, probably because he couldn't see his reflection anymore. I didn't want to stick around long enough to find out what the goddess meant by agitated. And because of the Maenads incident, I do not wish to deal with mobs of crazed nymphs.

"Hazel," I said, "your power with precious metal—Can you just detect it, or can you actually summon it to you?"

Hazel frowned. "Sometimes I can summon it. I've never tried with a piece of Celestial bronze that big before. I might be able to draw it to me through the earth, but I'd have to be fairly close. It would take a lot of concentration, and it wouldn't be fast."

"Be fast," Echo warned.

I muttered some incoherent words. I had hoped we could just go back to the ship, and Hazel could teleport the Celestial bronze from a safe distance.

"All right," I said. "We'll have to try something risky. Hazel, how about you try and summon the bronze from right here? Make it sink through the sand and tunnel over to you, then grab it and run for the ship."

"But Narcissus is looking at it all the time," she said.

"All the time," Echo echoed.

"That'll be my job," I said, hating my own plan already. "Echo and I will cause a distraction."

"Distraction?" Echo asked.

"I'll explain," I promised. "Are you willing?"

"Willing," Echo said.

"Great," I said. "Now, let's hope we don't die."