Dear reviewer by the name Anonymous; thank you. I had given up completely on this story, thinking I could get away with pretending that chapter nine was the last one…but I realize that was wrong. I reread the fic and saw every mistake I made, every OOC moment, every failure to do the characters just right and hated myself for writing it. But you faithful reviewers helped me come around. This story is dedicated to you, all of you who saw me through this and helped me come to reason. Please join me in welcoming the last chapter of Just A Glimpse—my most favorite mistake.
The awkward silence became steadily more pronounced as the campers watched Katie Stoll expectantly. In fact, awkward seemed to fit the entire theme of the day—and no amount of awkward turtles expertly crafted by the Stolls' could portray it effectively enough. Shuffled feet echoed off the walls like the sound of a cannon going off.
"I think the scrapbook can go… Unless you want to see wedding pictures?" Katie peeked up at everyone through her thick, brown lashes. She wanted nothing more than to go home and forget the whole day, but Katie was very aware of the inevitability of the interrogation to come. Best to hurry it up.
Katie's entreaty was met with silence and shifting glances. Breathing an infinitesimal sigh of relief, the brown-haired woman slid the scrapbook under her chair.
"I guess this is it," Silena said meekly. "Isn't it?" Her large brown eyes filled with unshed grief. "I need to come clean?" Piteous looks barreled their way toward the visibly broken girl. Beckendorf grabbed her small hand in his large, callused one—a generous and undeserved gesture of comfort. He smiled at her, a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. Silena refused to let that injure her, for he should be scared…scared of her. Silena never thought she could ever give anyone a reason to be scared of her, yet here she was—about to play the role of her boyfriend's executioner. She could make or break him.
"It's okay," Beckendorf whispered. "Just tell us what you can." Silena nodded, and suddenly, there was no one else in the room. She spoke directly to Charlie.
"It was never supposed to end with you…dying.," she spat out the word like it was poisonous. "Luke promised if I told him where we planned to attack, less people would be killed."
"Gods," Thalia swore. "Did he lie to everyone?" All heads were bowed; they had all believed his lies. Every last one of them. "Keep going."
"Right, um. Well, when Percy started doing little things to infiltrate Luke's army, I told him everything. I thought I was saving lives. I thought he would move and our campers wouldn't have to die in a battle." Silena's head sunk into her hands. "I am so stupid." Her pause was met with silence. "Well don't everyone disagree at once," she laughed wetly, sniffling. A sad chuckle drifted from the campers.
"Anyway, I've told him everything that's been happening for two months. I've worn that awful bracelet for two whole months." Silena laughed darkly at herself. "I always was a sucker for shiny things." Her gaze met Beckendorf. "You're lucky you work with shiny metal." A small chuckle resounded deeply from his thick, broad chest.
"Yeah, I know." He hugged her tightly.
Silena stared at the older campers. "Does this change anything? Anything at all?" Beseeching brown eyes bored into the souls of every person in the room. "Please," she whispered, but it was directed at no one. An empty plead.
"We'll have to wait," Clarisse Rodriguez said softly, shocking the whole room. "There's no telling until we get back home."
"But, you need to know, your deaths have been preordained by the Fates," Chris said. "You may not die the way you did in our memories, but in all likelihood…you will die before the Battle of Manhattan." Silena let out a defeated wail and threw herself at Beckendorf.
"Not like this," she sobbed. "Please, not like this." Suddenly furious, a flurry of vicious thoughts flooded her mind. Why should everyone else get their happy endings but me? I'm the only one who really wants it. We all saw Annabeth—she doesn't want any of it. Why should she get what I have always dreamed of? The tears became hot, filled with anger. Anger at the world. At Luke. At herself. Anger to top the misery climbing in her chest, filling her lungs and drowning her. It seemed to never peak, growing more and more with each breath. It burned her skin and stung her eyes and slashed at her heart with the force of a drakon. Her nerves burned, body on fire. Just when she felt like the gods would burn her alive from the inside and destroy her right there—
She felt a hand on the back of her neck. A cool, calming hand. It was rough and should have grated against the anger like sandpaper, but it soothed—brushing aside her hair and stroking her back. Cool waves lapped at the fire inside her. Silena had never felt so self-destructive in her existence, but Charlie was a healing salve. Slowly, the outwardly unnoticeable anger abated and Silena could breathe.
"Gods, I'm not ready to give you up, either," Charlie whispered. "I wish I could make this better. I'm sorry."
"If you say you're sorry, I'll kill you," she mumbled into his chest. "This is all my fault and if you take an ounce of blame, you're dead. Don't you dare contradict me, either." Beckendorf laughed sadly.
"You're being too harsh on yourself, baby. Besides, an eternity with you in Elysium doesn't really sound too bad."
"You're an idiot."
"Not that this isn't incredibly moving," Travis started, "but we really need to be going. We can't risk staying here much longer." Travis stood up with his wife who had fetched her scrapbook. "Oh, and if you die, go out Hunger Games style—it's very romantic."
"What's Hunger Gam—," Silena began.
"Space. Time. Continuum!" Katie punctuated each word with a slap on Travis's head from the thick scrapbook.
"Ow!" Travis hollered. "Quit it, Katie! A book it not going to ruin the world."
"How do you know that? We could all be dead right now!" Travis poked Katie's arm.
"You are not dead. Can we go now?" Figuring an eye roll meant yes, Travis threw a powder-blue drachma at the wall and muttered in Ancient Greek. A portal opened, emitting swirls of blue, green, and purple. "I guess I'll see you around, handsome," Travis said to his younger self. "You ready, babe?"
Katie nodded. "You first." Travis walked through the portal. As Katie was about to step in, Travis's brown head popped out of the oval. "Oh, my gods! Talking about The Hunger Games changed the future! We live underwater now!" Katie stared at him in horror.
"The babies can't swim!" she shrieked, sprinting past him into the portal. Travis threw his head back and laughed until tears fell from his eyes.
"The future isn't underwater, is it," young Katie deadpanned.
"Nope!" Travis began to laugh harder and suddenly his eyes widened and his shirt tightened around the neck. Someone was angrily dragging him backward. He disappeared without another word.
"Little brother's in a world of hurt, right now," Connor said, shaking his head as he walked through the portal. Teenage Travis looked at Katie speculatively.
"Are you always that spazzy?"
"Another word and you die, Stoll." Next, Chris stood up, taking his wife's hand and walking to the portal.
"Good luck, punks," Clarisse warned. "You're gonna need it." Chris nodded and with that, they were gone. One by one, the visitors left until it was just Percy, Annabeth, and Emma.
"Are you ready to go, Emmie?" Percy asked his daughter. Her big green eyes met his as she opened her mouth to speak.
"Can I say bye to Other Mommy and Daddy?" Who was Percy to resist that face?
"Of course, baby."
"I'll be right back!" Emma dashed off down the hall, her sneakers squeaking on the hardwood floors. Creeping around the corner, Emma saw her Other Parents still asleep on the couch. Smiling, she tiptoed forward.
"Bye, Daddy," she kissed his forehead. "Bye, Mommy." A kiss to the cheek. "I love you." Emma turned to see her older parents watching her. She took Annabeth's outstretched hand and walked back to the portal, her Daddy's hand in her empty one. Percy caught his wife's worried stare and smiled gently. Everything would be okay, wouldn't it?
A great many thanks are to be given to all who have stuck by this story. A great many debts are owed that I cannot pay. However, this is dedicated to my fans. (Never thought I would get to say that!) I love you so very much.
I do apologize for the short ending, but it needed to be done. Until, next time, my sweets!
-GreekCowgirl