A/N: No matter how long it takes, this story will be finished.

Without a Trace: Chapter 9

"I'm sorry," Percy said.

Grover stared at him as he leaned in his doorway.

Percy had decided to skip the card and flowers and had instead asked Nico for Grover's address. It wasn't that hard considering Nico had a major hangover, he was all but willing for Percy to get out of his sight.

Finding Grover's place was the difficult part. It was the first time Percy had made the effort to go outside and he had been scared out of his mind.

The breeze had blew gently as the ending of September rolled by. Strange smells and noises enveloped Percy like a hug. What surprised him the most was the rich culture and loudness of Brooklyn. Upbeat Latin music played and walls were covered with bright graffiti and paintings. Everything was displayed in the public to see and no one even gave each other a second look. For Percy, it was a refreshing sight. Back in Alaska, everything was measured and expected, but here - in the hurricane that was New York - everything was full of possibilities and hearten. Alaska ran in a exact even pace but New York preferred a faster and breathtaking approach.

With some help from a few friendly people, Percy was able to locate Grover's flat. Grover's flat was wedged between other flats, all of them identical with the same paint, stairs, and windows. The only difference between Grover's flat and the others was that Grover had placed a puppy sticker in one of his windows.

As Percy stood in the doorway of Grover's home, he noticed that the majority of the inside decoration was movie posters. Some were white and black, their edges torn and almost falling apart, while others were new and colorful, crisply pressed and smooth.

Grover opened the door enough for Percy to squeeze inside. Grover's eyes were narrowed, raking Percy's face for a slight tell that he was lying.

"Do you even know what you're apologizing for?" he asked.

"Uh for being a total asshole?" Percy winced.

Grover sighed, moving further inside. He didn't look back, already knowing Percy was following him. He took a seat in his stuffed armchair, relaxing as Percy cautiously sat down in the couch.

Minutes passed as Percy stared at Grover, who had his eyes closed and was intent on ignoring him.

"Nice place you have," Percy offered, fidgeting as the silence took over once again.

Grover slowly opened his eyes, taking in his open space and plants stashed under every window. Memories this place had created quickly flashed in his head as he looked around. He turned to Percy, noticing how Percy was staring at his blackboard easel.

Feeling his stare, Percy quickly looked at him and cleared his throat.

"You're not a asshole, you know. You're just an idiot," Grover started.

Percy started to open his mouth but quickly closed it when Grover threw him a look.

"Before all of this started, we were roleplayers. I used to roleplay a powerful cyclops and you were the poor satyr that was trying to escape my kingdom. Our characters were sworn enemies yet we ended up befriending each other. We were young and reckless, high in the smell of teen stupidity and just trying to fit in. At that time our biggest concern was trying to look good, especially in front of girls. It wasn't until the suicide of a fellow roleplayer that we got our heads off our asses. Her name was Drew Tanaka. She was bullied mercilessly at school just because she wore a headgear and never wore the right clothes. Her favorite character to roleplay was Eileithyia, Greek goddess of childbirth. I like to think that she helped birth this idea." Grover took a deep breath.

Percy stayed quiet, transfixed with the story.

"We already had a few random ideas," he continued, "Nothing too serious, or at least we thought. But motivated by her death, we set out to create something that would bring people together. That would make them forget about their lives, if only for a moment. We wanted her to not die in vain. We wanted something that would let people be themselves and remind them that they weren't alone. Camp Half-Blood was this refuge for people who have a bad time living in the real world. It was something we were so freaking passionate about. I remember we would hole up in separate rooms and spent days just researching myths and stories while blasting music. Your mom used to get really worried about us, thinking we were doing drugs instead of just reading about Zeus' countless children." Grover laughed slightly into his fist and grew serious suddenly.

He looked at Percy with faraway eyes. "I remember, and I think that's what makes it worse. I remember every single thing - painful or not- about it. Mostly I remember how excited we were, how this game turned out to be our entire lives. And I look at you now, and I just see how our game doesn't matter anymore. At least, not to you. How the only important thing that matters now is remembering Annabeth. And that's fine and all, hell it's understandable. But I want you to think about how many lives we surprisingly changed. How, yeah, it's a video game but it's a video game that's proudly saved lives," he finished.

Percy leaned forward, his hands in front of him. "I'm sorry, Grover," he repeated.

"Don't apologize to me, apologize to your former self," Grover replied, standing up.

"Well I'll apologize to him in my dreams," Percy muttered.

Grover snatched a candy bag from his counter and made his way back to his seat. Once seated, he turned on the TV and ripped the bag open, throwing a few pieces of candy into his mouth. Feeling Percy's stare, he turned to look at him.

"What?" Grover asked, his mouth full of colorful candy, "There's a new episode of Doctor Who, I don't want to miss it."

Percy sighed and rearranged himself to better look at the screen.

They watched as the Doctor and his companions set out into a new adventure, one with declarations and obstacles that threatened their lives. Even though the episode was really good, Percy couldn't stay focused. His mind kept drifting back on what Grover had told him. He was aware Grover was right; he knew he had to remember that there were other people in his life besides Annabeth. He hadn't realized Grover felt that way, and now he couldn't help but wonder if this was how his parents felt like or maybe even Nico. God, did his little brother feel like that?

It was a thought that depressed him but at the same time gave him a boost of energy. At that moment, he vowed to not forget about his family and friends. He was aware of the pain Annabeth had experienced while he was away, but he also realized that Annabeth wasn't the only one hurting. Annabeth may had lost a boyfriend, but someone had lost a son, a brother, and a friend. He was encouraged by the promise that he would make up for the time he lost. It was this that enabled him to throw candy at Grover when he was star-struck by one of the Doctor's female companions and helped him open up a bit to Grover.

"So when exactly is your appointment again?" Grover asked.

"On Friday, Dad had to make a few calls to move it up. Seems they can't wait for their son to become a guinea pig."

"Hey, there's nothing to worry about. It's not like they're going to experiment on you or anything. All you'll probably have to do is talk about your sad pathetic self," assured Grover.

"Gee, what would I ever do without your pep talks?" Percy muttered dryly.

Percy hoped Grover was right, as he shoved his nerves away. He didn't want to completely mess up the only silver lining his parents were holding on to.