XXV: Rey

Citizens of the World

We meet Antoine at the edge of Manhattan, next to an ocean that stinks of pollution and toxins. I elbow Leo in the stomach as he fidgets nervously with the bow Moros had bestowed upon him; I'm in a noose-like tie and about to see the guy that I have a major crush on, and you don't see me floundering around like a preteen girl (even though Leo is finally catching Nico's eye for the first time since we met up).

We all look fabulous; despite a proclaimed hatred for anything that makes her look attention seeking, Piper definitely looks the most glamorous in a long, strapless pink dress that she keeps adjusting and muttering under her breath about. Next to her, Hazel looks plain, though on her own she's pretty in a simple way; her dress is similar to Urania's, but she doesn't have the cosmos leggings to compliment it. Gods know why, but Reyna's in a suit; every so often Frank, in the exact same outfit (all of the guys have similar clothes), will nudge her and she'll snort under her breath.

And Meg. Gods, Meg looks gorgeous, with crystal earrings that she works not to fidget with and a short purple dress with puffy sleeves. It's unfittingly girly but appropriate, somehow, and she looks comfortable in it. The Jack Skellington backpack looped over her shoulders is a little out of place, but none of us have questioned it. The look in her eyes warns us against it.

Meg and I have our fingers intertwined. Nobody questions that, either. (Not even us.)

My first instinct when we see Antoine is to sprint over and tackle him into a hug, and I can tell it's Meg's, too, by the way her hand tightens against mine, but Leo's hand on my shoulder stops me and we all come to a halt. A woman is strutting along next to Antoine, one arm loosely wrapped around his shoulder and the other high in the air as she flashes us a peace sign. Leo goes pale.

"You okay?" I whisper under my breath, nudging him with my shoulder, but he just shakes his head. Later, I figure. Now's not the time.

We wait until the pair are exactly 100 yards away from us before anyone says anything. "Di immortales," Piper demands under her breath, "what the Hades are they wearing?"

I try to hold in my laughter now that I look at them; while all of we men had been dressed in fashionable black suits and ties (except Leo, who had been given suspenders, a bow tie, and a fedora), Antoine's suit is bright yellow on the edges and beneath the overcoat, gleaming almost mockingly beneath the sun. The woman is dressed in what looks like a belly dancer's clothes – also yellow – which shows off the tattoo on her side and don't seem to hinder the angel's wings on her back.

The woman leans over and whispers something in Antoine's ear, waggling her blonde eyebrows; he snorts, eyes crinkling. Something in me twists.

They come to a stop within walking distance and for a moment the two groups stare at each other breathlessly, like a face-off of respect. Antoine – being Antoine – doesn't notice it, and – also being Antoine – breaks the silence without even thinking. "This is so unfair," he complains lightly, picking at the fabric on his shoulder. "Why am I the only one who looks like a walking duck?"

"I'll say," Meg volunteers; her hand is squeezing mine so tightly it almost cuts off the blood circulation, but that's okay because mine is doing the same. "You almost blinded me on the way over here."

He grins crookedly. "I blind you with my beauty no matter what I'm wearing, doll."

Her hand relaxes in mine. We swing them back and forth together, slowly. At the moment, the goddess – and it's definitely a goddess next to Antoine, if the whiteness of Leo's face is anything to judge by – and the other demigods don't exist; it's a mortal and a demititaness and a child of gods know what god, and we are complete. Our swinging arms bring his gaze to our interlocked hands, though, and his face darkens. We both retreat as if burned.

That breaks the spell. "Nike," Jason says, stepping forward and bowing, expression awed. Everyone follows suit except me and Meg, who exchange grimaces and shrugs. "It's an honor."

"Flattery doesn't buy you anything," Nike says, though she looks a mixture between amused and flattered. "Go ahead and rise. Man, I haven't gotten that much respect in ages. You're alright, dude."

If Jason had been shocked before, he looks like he's about to faint when she gives him a high five. He begins to stammer his way through something that will probably be inarticulate at best when Leo shoves him aside with no regard to the way Piper glowers at the blonde. "He's Roman," the Latino man offers helpfully.

"I'm aware," Nike reassures, eyes twinkling. Antoine winks at me and Meg, apparent anger at our 'relationship' gone. I still badly want to hug him, but it can wait. After the wedding. Speaking of which – "Do you all know where the church is? Because I have no fucking clue."

The only person who looks surprised at a goddess cursing is Jason, who continues to babble quietly to himself; Hazel steps up, giving her ex-praetor a wry look. "It's about five minutes' walk from here, milady," she says, and for the first time since I've met her she looks…confident, and extremely comfortable with herself. For the first time, I wonder just how many people know Perseus Jackson and Annabeth Chase.

"Sweet." Nike grins and bows out of the way like a butler. "Lead the way!"

It's like we've been given permission to scream at each other; suddenly everyone is talking and walking and jostling and laughing, and I only barely manage to grab Antoine by the arm while Meg and I link hands again. "Hey, man," I greet, smiling a little; it feels odd on my face. "Walk with us?"

He watches us uneasily, eyes going from our faces to our hands. "I don't want to intrude," he protests.

My face burns. I can't look at Meg if I try. "It's not like that," I mumble, keeping my eyes carefully diverted from both of them.

"Still just friends," Meg adds over the top of my head; she sounds just as embarrassed as me, though her hand isn't shaking nearly as much as mine.

Regardless, Antoine relaxes and we fall back a few feet behind everyone. It's the first time we've all three been together in a few days, and the first time we've just gotten to hang out and act goofy ever.

The walk goes by way too fast, between Meg's dry wit and Antoine's quick jokes and me laughing so hard my sides start to hurt. We're all holding hands, just like we did ages ago at Piper's dorm in Kansas. We reach the church – a small, run down place with eighteen million cars lining down the street in front of it – and my smile fades as our arms stop swinging and the talk goes from idle to nonexistent.

"This is it," I mumble. Antoine and Meg squeeze my hands at the same time. I wait a moment and then let go, and all of our hands drop. Piper and Hazel quietly obsess over each other's appearance, Reyna and Frank argue over something stupid and try to keep themselves from just giving up, Jason nervously asks Nico to redo his tie because somehow it came undone – and Nike and Leo both head over.

Nike makes it first; she adjusts Antoine's bow some and then taps him on the nose. He wrinkles up his face and she snorts, making a face at him. "They're seeing me for the first time in a long time," she mumbles just loud enough for me to hear, breath fanning outwards as she adjusts the golden cuffs on his sleeves. "We'll be the sign of a new era. We're in the front. Better be prepared, little leader. Up to the challenge?"

"I can do it," he confirms, smiling crookedly at her.

She grins. "That's the spirit!" I don't notice Leo until both of his hands are on my shoulders, and I look up to find him only a step away.

"Hey," he mumbles, smiling tentatively at me. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be." I watch him curiously. It occurs to me suddenly that the camp that hates him is probably in there – he's probably risking his life to go in and help us out with this. I'm strangely touched. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to, you know."

He shakes his head, fedora almost falling off his untamed curls; after adjusting it, he tells me what's on his mind. "If there's one thing I've learned, it's that sacrifice and duty are the two most important things in the world." If I'm not mistaken, he glances at the still fake-arguing Reyna and Frank. "A good friend taught me that."

I study him for a moment. The weariness in his eyes doesn't fit his smile or his stance or his anything. If you just look at his eyes, you'd think he himself is a god – powerful, deadly, but endlessly tortured by the demons of his past.

I throw my arms around his neck and pull him into the tightest hug I've ever given; he stumbles but manages to keep standing. After a moment, he hesitantly circles his arm around my waist. "Thanks, hermano," I say under my breath without thinking.

He tenses and I mentally curse myself. Hermano. I called Iolaus that – it's a special name, one that I keep reserved for someone as special as he is, and more so than anyone else.

It takes me a moment to realize what I'm afraid. It's not that Leo isn't one of the most unique people I've ever met, because I know that. It isn't that I don't know if he's important enough to me, because I'm certain of that, too. What I'm afraid is that he doesn't think of me as the family I think of him to be.

Slowly, his grip on me relaxes, and he whispers in my ear, "Anytime, mijo."

Mijo, short for mi hijo. Spanish for my son.

I try my best not to cry.

We pull apart and find everyone gathering in pairs; Meg and Nico have their heads bent together and are discussing some serious business while Antoine grins sheepishly at me from the front, Nike winking over his shoulder. Leo and I hurry to take our places as the second pair, exchanging weak grimaces that don't actually regret anything, as far as I can see.

I take a moment to mentally overview the heroes, and I realize that we're actually nothing really special. Antoine's no Hercules. Leo's no Archimedes. Despite everything, Meg's no Megara and Jason's no Jason – and I'm definitely no Iolaus.

But we're together. We're not The Heroes, but we are heroes, and we're going to save the world without it wants us to or not.

Slowly, Antoine opens the church door.

+x+

i am not an Athenian or a Greek, but a citizen of the World.

- Diogenes

+x+

author's note

YUP IM ACTUALLY ENDING HERE

you don't even get a prophecy

BUT GUYS I JUST WROTE 52000+ WORDS OF PJO FANFICTION SCREEEEEEEEAMS

ill probably come back to this at some point in the future, maybe in a few months. for now, though, its marked as complete