-Argo II-

Piper sat on the deck of the ship, staring pointedly away from the knife in her hand. She didn't want to look and see some horrible death of one of her friends or something equally horrible. Yet she wanted to take a peek, just a small one. She knew that she wasn't the only one that felt like they were flying blind on this quest and Katoptris might be the only chance to gleam some information.

Groaning, she tilted her head up. The quest. She didn't particularly like thinking about their trip to Greece. Every time she did think about it, Piper couldn't help but think of the worst case scenarios. Once upon a time, the daughter of Aphrodite hadn't been so pessimistic but the last year changed everything- the fake memories changed her.

A chunk of her life was a lie, and more importantly, her relationship with Jason never happened. That tore at Piper's heart. Maybe it was because she had goddess of love as a mother, but Piper knew love when she saw it and she knew she loved Jason. Yet Jason was from Rome and had a whole life that first he had forgotten, and now refused to tell her about it.

If that wasn't bad enough, Piper felt useless. Everyone, even Percy, was helping the quest along. They could all fight or make ships or were super smart and then there was Piper. She could convince a monster to give her a car. Oh yeah, like that's helpful.

Katoptris seemed to call Piper towards her again. Succumbing to temptation, she looked into the blade. At first there was only her reflection, perhaps she should brush her hair today, and then the surface of the blade rippled.

Romans were gathered in a crowd while the skinny bastard yelled something while waving his fist around. Piper could easily tell that they were getting ready for war. Reyna stood off to the side, not with a happy look on her face. Piper wanted to hate the girl, the daughter of Bellona was a possible love interest of Jason, yet Reyna had been nothing but nice and professional.

The blade changed scenes.

Solid gold eyes blinked in the blade, three old ladies cutting a piece of blue yarn at a fruit stand, Jason fighting alongside with Annabeth and Leo, two giants in matching yellow togas, a large bronze vase, Jason and herself drowning in water as Percy looked on, frozen in fear.

All those images flashed through the blade's surface so fast she barely saw each of them. She wanted to look away, she was terrified of the future Katoptris was showing her. Piper wasn't ignorant but could anyone blame her for hoping that Gaea wouldn't kill everyone?

Focusing once more, Piper saw the blade fog up before slowly clearing. A small green millage marker on the side of a road read 'Topeka 32'. Off to the side was a slightly plump man wearing a purple Camp Jupiter shirt and a hat covered in leafy vines. There was a silver goblet in his outstretched hand, as if he was waiting for her to take it. That was a gift, she knew it instantly just as she knew that they had to go and meet the waiting god.

"Hey," she jumped slightly to see Jason slightly limping towards her. He smiled as he sat down next to her, "See anything good?"

Piper shook her head, "Not really. Just gloom and doom."

Her boyfriend nodded in understanding, "Just the usual then." They both smiled slightly and Piper leaned over so her head rested on his shoulder.

"Do you ever imagine a life without monsters?" She asked softly and wanted to take the question back as soon as it passed through her lips. Gods, she sounded like such a coward.

Jason thought over the question, seriously considering an answer before replying, "I used to when I was younger, but now I'm kind of happy about the monsters? Okay, maybe not happy… um grateful?"

The daughter of Aphrodite stifled a giggle before turning her head to look at his face. The small scar on his lip always made her smile. What kind of kid sticks a stapler in his mouth? "You're grateful there are monsters?"

He shrugged, "I never would've met you without them."

All doubts that had plagued her mind since their trip to Rome flew from her mind along with all intelligent thought. Yep. She knew there was a reason she loved the son of Jupiter, fake memories be damned, they were meant to be together. Piper was about to kiss him when they heard the shuffling of people climbing the ladder.

"I'm never riding that horse again!" Annabeth's voice came from the ground sounding extremely angry.

"I'm sorry!" Hazel's squeaked in reply, sounding a bit guilty.

Frank got to the deck first and looked exasperated, "I wasn't even on the horse on the way back!" He hadn't thought about it on the way there, which made him feel utterly stupid, but he could've just changed into a bird instead of forcing three people onto Arion.

"I don't care. He wants to kill me, I swear," Annabeth definitely wasn't happy.

Hazel reached the deck next and smiled at the couple sitting there before turning back to the ladder, "He just hasn't warmed up to you, that's all."

Annabeth climbed aboard and was about to reply when she saw Jason and Piper. Her smile held a bitter sadness that Piper didn't miss, "Are Percy and Leo back yet?"

Jason shook his head, "Should we go looking for them?"

"Why don't we give them a chance?" Hazel interrupted the other's thinking. The daughter of Pluto had spent a lot of time contemplating the enigma that was Percy Jackson since Frank mentioned the River Styx. While she didn't know much about the guy, she knew a couple of things: he and Annabeth are in love, he killed demigods and got sent to Tartarus, he was possibly forced into that action, he knew and wanted to save Nico, and he was the first to give Leo a chance after a possible possession. All in all, the son of Neptune hadn't done anything to make her not trust him since she met him.

The others didn't look quite pleased at the idea but they relented and Piper asked if they had found everything. The conversation continued on from there without a single mention of the two missing demigods. That topic was off limits.

Piper was listening to Frank explain how he could change shape (which she wasn't sure she believed or not) when she heard something that sounded like yelling off in the distance. She shushed the others and they all listened carefully.

"Start the engine!" Leo's frantic voice cut through the air as everyone rushed to the side of the ship to see what was going on.

Leo and Percy were carrying a large sheet of Celestial Bronze awkwardly between them while running as fast as they could. "Start the ship!" Percy yelled as he looked back at the mob of angry Nymphs following right behind them.

A handsome guy who kind of looked like a girl, led the mob while screaming, "Give me back!"

The entire scene was hilarious. Jason was the first to react and went to the control station and tried to figure out how to start the ship. It was times like these that he really wished Leo wasn't so ADD that he made flying a ship a physical activity while also playing video games. Giving up on the ship, Jason summoned a gust wind to carry the sheet of bronze to the deck, leaving Percy and Leo to sprint towards the ladder.

The moment Leo's feet touch the deck he was running towards the controls and attempting to take off. Percy swung aboard soon after and pulled up the ladder behind him. The whole ship began rocking while the angry nymphs called obscenities that made Hazel blush crimson.

"What the Hades did you guys do?" Annabeth yelled, she had never seen nymphs act like this before, especially not with Percy! They usually were all over him.

The ship jerked into a fast take off as it lifted into the air. Without the ground under them, Leo and Percy looked visibly relieved. "We ran into Narcissus," Percy said while he leaned over to catch his breath. Gods he hadn't ran like that in years.

"The pretty guy that died because he loved his reflection?" Frank asked confused. Why would meeting him cause them to be chased by a mob?

Leo nodded, "Yeah, that asshole. He wouldn't give up the Celestial Bronze because he could see himself in it so we kind of just took it."

"Wait, didn't he die hundreds of years ago?" Jason held up his hands to slow the conversation down.

Percy gave him a look that was the equivalent of "no duh" before saying "Lots of people are coming back to life since the Doors of Death are open." Hazel's uneasy shift beside Frank did not go unnoticed by the son of Poseidon. The Doors of Death remaining open had been a big deal back when he was in Tartarus so he understood the magnitude of the situation a bit better than the others.

"So you stole from him," Piper wasn't judging since she had been sent to wilderness school for a reason.

Leo laughed, "You should've seen the tidal wave Percy sent at them! It was hilarious."

Annabeth shook her head with a small smile playing along her lips. That sounded just like something Percy would do, he never did have the patience for annoying people. "Where to next?"

"Kansas," Piper and Percy spoke at the same time. Their gazes caught and the others looked between the two.

"Why do you say Kansas?" Piper asked first, the uneasy feeling that came with Percy knowing something before he should came back.

He shrugged, "I have my sources."

Jason narrowed his eyes, "Sources? As in monster sources?"

"Yeah, let me just call up my favorite drakon, Phil, he loves to gossip," Percy rolled his eyes sarcastically. "How'd you know?" He asked Piper, ignoring Jason again.

She pulled out Katoptris, "It shows me images, not many but some of them are important." Piper felt uncomfortable with the sudden attention on her and dreaded them asking about all the times she saw people dying in the blade.

Percy didn't say anything about it and instead headed over to the control panel that Leo was standing at, the thing made no sense at all, "Do you know where in Kansas?" He called to Piper.

"You don't?" At shake of his head, Piper continued, "Topeka mile marker 32. There was some guy there waiting for us."

Finally something Annabeth could talk about, "What did he look like?"

"He was in a purple camp Jupiter shirt and had a hat with vines on it, oh, and he was holding a silver goblet," Piper knew that wasn't much to go on but it wasn't like she could show them the vision.

"Bacchus," Jason spoke confidently, remembering the quest he had when younger where he helped the god out.

"Mr. D?" Percy blanched, that was one person he did not miss at all. The guy was the biggest pain in the ass ever.

Frank's eyebrows scrunched together as he thought out loud, "I thought the gods were ordered to cease contact with all mortals?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes in response, "The gods never follow orders about anything unless it's to their advantage. If Bacchus wants to meet us, I think we should go."

"Do you really think he could help at all? I don't even think Mr. D knows how to fight," Percy was frowning at the thought of his old camp director. He had been ecstatic when he found out the god wasn't allowed to contact them. Lady Hestia had broken that order so she could talk to him in Colorado and he wished his dad would too, but the rest of the gods could keep their distance.

"Bacchus is a good guy, he'll help us out," Jason reassured Percy who still highly doubted that the wine god was good for anything but getting drunk at a party.

"Okay! I've never been to Kansas," Hazel interrupted and actually was excited about going to a new state.

Leo set the coordinates, "To Kansas we go, Dorhty," he gave a dramatic bow to Hazel, causing Frank to give him a hard glare. With nothing else to discuss everyone parted to go eat or sleep.

Piper saw Annabeth head towards Percy who was leaning on the railing alone before shaking her head and walked to the Mess Hall for dinner. Those two were so obviously in love that it was almost painful to watch them struggle through all their problems. Piper had a feeling that Percy was hiding more than he let on, not about the quest but about how Tartarus changed him. There were times he tried too hard to appear normal and nobody could be normal after years of torture. Maybe Annabeth could get him to open up. She could even heal him.

Percy heard the daughter of Athena tread carefully towards him. They hadn't really talked since their argument in the morning. Percy had avoided thinking about Annabeth, he didn't want to remember his nightmares of her hating him and leaving him, even killing him. He was afraid of losing her and had no idea how to keep her close. He never wanted them to be separated like that again.

Annabeth stepped up to the rail so she stood maybe a foot away from Percy. She looked at him from the corner of her eye to find him with the expressionless mask that he wore too often. His black hair that was a little longer than usual blew around in the wind. His arms were crossed on the railing and his eyes were trained on the sunset behind them.

"I'm sorry," she whispered finally. After hours of contemplation she knew that she had to step back and leave him his secrets. Percy, as much as he was the same, had obviously been changed- anyone would've been, yet she forgot that sometimes. He seemed so much like the old Percy at times that she forgets the horrors he's seen and experienced. Here she was getting all upset over secrets he can't tell her when she should be at his side. Both of their lives had been hard enough without excess, pointless fighting. Demigods lives were too short for regrets. If she didn't want to lose him again, she was going to have give what she wanted to receive. Love for Love.

The son of Poseidon gave her a strange look, "Why are you apologizing?"

She thought for a moment on what to say before replying, "I didn't trust you, I should since I always trusted you in the past, yet I didn't. I'm sorry."

Percy quietly stared at her, his eyes trailing over every inch of her face with an intensity that made her blush, "Don't worry about it." His eyes moved back to the pink and yellow sunset, "I've been free for almost a year and I still can't get over how pretty the sky is."

Annabeth nodded in agreement, "It's gorgeous," She gave him a careful look, "What was it like?"

He didn't reply right away, Percy did that a lot Annabeth realized. He never was this careful with his words before. "It was horrible," His voice was so soft she barely heard what he was saying. "I- I can't go back."

That small truth that he granted her made her close the distance and lean into his side. Percy was startled at first before wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her closer. He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on the crown of her head. "I missed you Wise Girl."

"I missed you too Seaweed Brain."

A/N: Okay, I got fluffy. I can only live with Annabeth and Percy at odds for so long, and I like jasper. They're cute with their awkwardness.

I'm so excited to write the next chapter, I really hope I can put my idea on paper, which is why this chapter is a bit shorter than the last couple. But I figured I should post this before going on and writing more.

Thank you all for the reviews! I'm so happy that chapter made sense. I should be updating more often these next couple of weeks so hopefully this story will move along well. Let me know what you think! Thanks again for reading this!