You guessed it, I'm sorry again. No excuses - just really sorry. Longer chapter, hope it's up to expectations.

-Broder

XX

LEO

"What was that all about?" Leo asked, sitting down next to Percy on the sofa. They had moved out of the destroyed cabin and into one still intact, removed from the zones of the fighting that had ended about an hour ago.

Leo looked worriedly over at Percy. His face was crisscrossed with scratches and he held a hand to his chest. Will had given him some ambrosia but something about being swatted aside by huge hands meant the pain healed slowly.

Percy seemed exasperated more than anything, clenching his fist and an angry expression on his face. Below that, however, Leo could espy… guilt. Percy exhaled, breaking Leo's train of thought. "My wonderful girlfriend is too afraid to do what's needed when it's needed," Percy growled. "She apparently gets afraid of me."

Leo winced at Percy's tone. "Hey, I'm sure she's got a good reason for…"

"Would she rather I let her die?" Percy snapped. "Because it's not all just easy sparring out there. Hell, Leo – we went through Tartarus, she and I. She can't take a bit of violence?"

"Perce," Leo tried to comfort him. "I can understand where she's coming from." Percy's head whipped towards Leo, his eyes glaring and his jaw set. Leo gulped. "I mean – like – you can be pretty scary."

Percy stared at Leo with an intensity that could burn through Celestial Bronze. Leo held his gaze, though he was pretty sure he was about to piss his pants. Dang, he'd seen Tartarus, but the wolf-stare Percy was giving him was way scarier.

Percy sighed and dropped his head into his hands. Leo breathed out a sigh of relief. "You're right," Percy admitted. "I've scared her before. I just thought that she'd be used to it by now. It's gonna get worse from here on, Leo. Plus, she said she doesn't know what and for who she's fighting anymore."

Leo whistled in disbelief, though it petered off when he saw the expression on Percy's face. It was pained, and he could already see tears welling up in his eyes. Had he really scared Annabeth that much, so much so that she'd told him she had second doubts about fighting on?

"We're gonna be fighting humans, Leo," Percy said, his voice trembling. "How do you think that's gonna work out for us?" "I don't know, Perce," Leo admitted. "But we'll do it together," he said, placing a hand on Percy's shoulder. "We're all gonna be together."

Percy chuckled darkly. "Yeah, 'together';" he said sarcastically "shit's gonna be awkward between me and Annabeth." "Perce, that's where you're wrong," Leo chastised. Percy raised an eyebrow. "It's Annabeth and I," Leo said triumphantly. Percy groaned. "If I didn't need you right now for this war, I would have killed you for that," he said.

Leo chuckled nervously. Percy slapped his hands down on his knees in a gesture of finality and got up, groaning as he stood up straight. "Right," he said, turning towards Leo and placing his hands on his hips. "Let's meet with the rest and try and make head or tail of whatever the Hades is going on here."

Leo nodded and got up. "Good plan," he agreed. "Also, can we try and find a barbecue grill somewhere – I'm starving."

XXXXX

They found the barbecue grill. "Alright," Percy announced to the dozen or so demigods clustered around the table. "Thanks for coming." "It's not like we had anything better to do," Clarisse said, her feet on the table, twirling a dagger between her fingers. A few chuckles went up around the table before it went serious again.

"We're here to decide what's to be done," Percy went on, leaning forward and placing his hands on the table. "With this war… with everything." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. It refused to be tamed however, and fell back over his forehead. "Our godly parents, as you obviously know, are stubborn and will go through with this war. The army's declared war on us – but once this starts chances are the entire bloody country will be against us. This is America, so everyone has a gun, and will probably use it against us."

He sighed again. "And they'd have every right to – we're 'abominations'. We're a product of something they can't comprehend. We're going to be fighting against them, and they're gonna fight back. It may include people we know, family even."

The room was deathly silent. Everyone had a grim expression on their face, even Clarisse had stopped twirling her dagger. Of course, the tofu just had to begin sizzling right then. Leo grimaced as he scooped the slabs off the huge grill and ladled them into the pre-prepared taco shells. He reached into his tool-belt, pulling out a bottle of 'special sauce' and squirted dollops of it into each of the tacos, painfully aware that every eye in the room was on him.

"Tofu tacos anyone?" he asked, lifting one up. "What the hell," Clarisse said, holding a hand out. "I'll have one." "You like tofu?" Travis asked, raising an eyebrow. Clarisse raised the taco to her mouth, ignoring his question. She bit into it, her face contorting into an expression of utter bliss as she moaned in delight. She suddenly remembered her reputation. "You tell anyone about what just happened," she said to everyone in the room. "I'll shove my dagger so far up your ass that you'll feel metal between your teeth when you chew."

Leo made a mental note to tell everyone who wasn't here about what had just happened when Clarisse wasn't there.

He handed out the rest of the tofu tacos before taking one for himself and biting into it. "Continue, Supreme Leader," he said, gesturing towards Percy. Percy made an unimpressed face but went on nonetheless. "So what I'm really trying to say, is we're faced with a choice. We're torn between two worlds and now they're at war. We have to choose who we're with." He paused to take a bite of his taco, wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve. "Damn, these are good," he said, nodding in Leo's direction. Leo twirled his hand in an exaggerated flourish, bowing his head as he did.

Percy grinned at Leo's antics, but he went back to 'no-nonsense Percy' in the blink of an eye. His jaw was set as he finished his speech. "Me, I'm staying. That's no compulsion on any of you. I wish you the best of luck wherever you go." His shoulders slumped as he sat down, his taco untouched since the first bite he'd taken.

"I'm staying," Clarisse announced unceremoniously, wiping her hand across her mouth, the crumbs brushed to the floor. "Though, I'm gonna need one of you to go get my mom, she's staying here, where it's safe."

"Aw, Clarisse you big softie," Katie said jokingly. "My threat with the knife still stands," Clarisse growled. "And fine, I'll go get her myself." Percy nodded at her in thanks, moving on to who was sitting on her right. "We're in," Connor said, after sharing a look with his brother. "I'm in," Katie said.

"I'm in," Michael Kahale said, and was echoed by Dakota. "Guess I'm stuck with you losers," Reyna quipped, shrugging her shoulders. "We're in too," Frank said, looking at Hazel and then back at Percy. Hazel reached over and held the Canadian's hand, squeezing it reassuringly. "I'm in," Piper said, looking over at Jason. He was staring down at his folded hands, but looked up and with an expression of finality, echoed; "I'm in." "My girlfriend's a Titan," Leo shrugged. "So guess I'm on your guys' side too."

The tension in the air was thick as one person had still not answered. No-one dared ask, as Leo had quickly filled in the others on Percabeth's (Piper came up with the name) situation. Leo heard Percy swallow nervously, before looking up at her. "Annabeth?" he managed to croak out, his voice threatening to break any second.

There was no reply. The blond sat still in her chair, her posture upright as she stared down at the floor. Leo could literally hear the gears turning in her head. Everyone except Percy – who had hung his head – was staring intently at her.

"I'm in," she said finally, her head rising and her stormy-grey eyes defiant as she stared back at everyone. Leo could hear Percy's sigh of relief, and several others.

"Just keep in mind, we're also fighting the monsters at the same time, with the Titans and Giants back as well," he went on. "So if anyone wants to reconsider fighting two armies at once, I'm sure we can get you a ride to somewhere out of the way, where it's safe."

No-one spoke. If anything, their eyes steeled as they settled with the idea of the fight. "Great," Percy said after he'd given a long enough pause in between. "Well, uh…dismissed?"

"Dismissed," Reyna echoed in a much more authoritative tone and everyone got up from their chairs and filed out slowly. Percy walked over to Leo. "Where's Calypso?" he asked. "Back at the cabin," Leo answered. "Why?" "I was wondering if you'd like to take a walk with me," he offered. Leo offered him his arm and in his best British accent said, "Why, Mr Jackson." Percy made an unimpressed face and swatted Leo's arm away. Ok, maybe his accent needed a bit of work.

Leo followed Percy out of the door as he turned left, the opposite direction of where the others were going. Once they were out of earshot of the rest, Leo feigned a terrified voice. "D – Did you bring me here to kill me, Mr Jackson?"

"I'm afraid, Leo," Percy said simply. Leo's face turned serious as well, all humour forgotten. "Of what?" he asked. "This war… Kronos... my uncle," Percy said, his trembling voice almost a whisper. "But most of all I'm afraid of losing the people I love."

It was quiet, the only sound being Percy's shuddering breaths. Leo hesitated, but put a hand on Percy's shoulder. Below his palm, he could feel the older boy shivering – he could feel his fear. "When the Titan War ended, I found I'd lost so many people," Percy went on, tears welling up in his eyes again. "Charles, Silena, even enemies – Ethan, Luke. I blamed myself for all their deaths, for not being strong enough to protect them. Any of them. All the nature spirits and others that died."

"But it was over," he went on, his voice quavering. "The War was over. I had a girlfriend, and I was moving on. Then, f**king Mother Earth decides to have a fit and starts another war. I lost so many friends again, people I knew and loved. Bob, Damasen. Then that ended, and I thought I could move on again. Stupid, stupid," he chastised himself.

"Annabeth's afraid of me," he said, looking up and off into the distance. "As she should be. I'm a monster." "You're not a monster, Perce…" Leo tried to reassure him but Percy turned to him with his wolf stare. "Do you know what my name means, Leo?" he asked. Leo opened his mouth to answer, but realised he actually didn't know and shook his head instead. Percy looked away and off into the distance again. "The Destroyer," he said finally. "Perseus is Ancient Greek for Destroyer."

"That's…" Leo searched for the right word. "Actually pretty badass." Percy smirked, but it was soon replaced with a stony expression. "It's true though," he said. "I destroy things. I tell myself I'm doing it for the right reasons – for the right cause – but I just can't stop." He looked down at his shaking hands. "I'm unable to stop my rage. But you know what's scary?" he asked, turning to face Leo with eyes that betrayed his fear. "I don't want to stop it."

"That doesn't make you a bad person, Perce," Leo said. "It just shows that you're a good person who's been through a lot and cares deeply about people he loves being hurt."

"I scared Annabeth, Leo," he repeated. "What kind of good person scares the shit out of the person they love – and who loves them? I don't deserve her…"

"Hey!" Leo said, grabbing Percy by the chin and pulling his face to face him. "Don't you think like that! You are the most deserving guy I know. Yes, you have flaws – but so does she. No-one's perfect. If she actually loves you – and I'm willing to bet my beautiful Latino ass she does – she'll love you for everything you are. She'll see you were doing it all to protect her, and the other people you love. Now get up, and be a man."

"Sexist," Percy muttered under his breath. Leo slapped him on the head lightly. "Now we're gonna go back," he said, standing up and kicking his legs out to stretch them. "And you're gonna finish that tofu taco. You haven't eaten anything all day. And then – you're gonna talk to Annabeth."

"I don't really want to," Percy said, still looking forlorn. "I will physically carry you there if I have to," Leo threatened, though he had no idea how his scrawny frame would be able to support the big guy. Percy raised an eyebrow. "You're gonna carry me there?" Leo nodded hesitantly, wondering what he'd gotten himself into. Percy sighed resignedly. "Fine, for the sake of your poor back, I'll walk myself."

Leo breathed a sigh of relief. "But," Percy warned, raising a finger. "But; I'll see if I want to talk to Annabeth. You're not forcing me."

Leo spread his arms and palms acceptingly. "Hey, that's good enough for me." Percy groaned as he stretched and the two of them started making their way back to the center of the city.

XXXXX

"Go get 'em Tiger," Leo said, prodding Percy. Percy made a long-suffering expression but grunted in acceptance and began walking over to the cabin door. He raised his hand to knock, but before his knuckle could hit the door, Leo cried, "Stop!" Percy turned to him and raised his eyebrow questioningly. "Taco crumbs in your beard," Leo pointed out. Percy cringed and ran two fingers through his goatee before giving Leo a questioning look. Leo put two-thumbs up and grinned.

Percy smiled nervously before breathing in deeply and knocking on the door – rapping thrice with his knuckle. The door opened, but instead of Annabeth, Piper stood in the open doorway. "Hey, Percy," she said, smiling at him. "Is Annabeth in Pipes?" he asked, his hands in his pockets. He looked like a typical teenager about to ask his girlfriend out. Of course, the context was different. Much more… unnatural.

"Yeah," Piper said. "She's… yeah, she's in." She seemed like she'd been about to say something else, but stopped herself. "Can I speak to her?" Percy prodded. Piper looked away and inside the house before turning back to Percy and nodding.

Percy smiled gratefully at her, and with a last look of 'Well, here goes nothing', walked into the cabin. Piper walked out past him and shut the door.

"Hey, Leo," she said, walking over to him and linking her arm with his. "Beauty Queen," Leo acknowledged, looking at the doorway, expecting to see Percy come flying through it any second. No dice.

"Come on," Piper said, steering Leo away. "Let's give the two lovers some privacy." "Lots of trouble in Heaven," Leo said sarcastically. "Yeah," Piper agreed as they walked away from the house. Leo turned and gave one last look towards the house. Still no flying Percy.

XXXXX

Leo had been sitting arm in arm with Calypso on the sofa for an hour. No sign from either Percy or Annabeth. He was beginning to become nervous, his ADHD kicking in as he tapped his foot, or fiddled with some metal objects in his hand. "Calm down, Leo," Calypso said worriedly, looking at him.

"Sorry, Sunshine," Leo said, putting the screws and bolts back in his tool-belt. "I'm just worried for Percy," he admitted. "He'll be fine," Calypso said, leaning back into his chest. "He loves her, and she'll realise that."

Leo looked down at her. "You really loved him, didn't you?" he asked. "Yes," Calypso admitted without hesitating. "But not anymore. I found someone way better."

Leo leaned down to kiss her but was interrupted by a sudden commotion. "Nico!" he heard Jason shout from the other room. Leo's eyes narrowed in confusion. Come to think of it, he hadn't seen Nico at the meeting…

He got up and walked over to the other room, peering in through the archway. Nico was standing in the middle of the room, leaning on Jason for support, their backs facing him. "What's wrong?" Leo asked worriedly, seeing how Nico was relying on Jason to remain standing.

"Well, he looks traumatised," Jason said. "And he's blushing. Something's definitely wrong." "This isn't a blush," Nico protested. "Put me down and I'll tell you the news."

Jason walked over to the sofa and put Nico down on it. Piper, Frank, Hazel and Leo crowded around him. "Kay," Piper announced. "We're listening, speak." Nico took a deep breath. Now that he looked closely, Leo could definitely make out the blush.

"Am I right in assuming Percy and Annabeth had a fight?" Nico asked first, looking at all of them in turn. "Yeah," Leo said immediately. "It's… pretty bad."

Nico shook his head. "They made up," he said simply. "How do you know?" Hazel asked, raising an eyebrow. "I… uh," Nico stammered, looking anywhere but in their eyes. "I kinda walked in on them?" "Making up?" Frank asked. "More like making out," Nico smirked.

"What?!" Leo asked incredulously. "No way, she's really mad at him." "I know what I saw," Nico said, though there was no spite in his voice. "I thought Will was in the room – don't ask why I was looking for him – so when I opened the door there they were, up against the wall. I'd never seen them look so embarrassed and shocked. I shadow-travelled away as fast as I could so they couldn't catch me or anything."

"Nico, you snitch!" Leo heard a voice behind him. He whirled around to see Annabeth standing in the doorway, her fists clenched and a scowl on her face. Her hair was definitely mussed up and her face was flushed. Behind her, Percy burst through the door, his hair mussed up and his face flushed as well. "Did he tell?!" he asked.

Nico got up from the sofa uncertainly. "Percy!" he said, pretending to sound surprised. "Annabeth, fancy seeing you here."

Annabeth took a step forward.

Nico gulped. "Uh," he said eloquently. "I'm still recovering – no hitting."

Annabeth took another step forward.

Nico turned and ran, vaulting over the couch and out the backdoor.

Percy and Annabeth shared a look before grinning at each other and turning in opposite directions and running, Percy out the main door to cut him off and Annabeth straight behind Nico. Leo and the others shared a look. "Well," Piper said. "That was unexpected."