Chapter 25

"When did she get here" he asked himself "but for now I don't want to see her..." he thought to himself as he recalled the look she had in her eyes moments ago when he went to give back 'Maimer' to Clarisse "...after all I'm just a killer, to think that I thought she knew me more than that" he bitterly added before getting back to what Aer told him but it was without counting on our dear friend Chaos' come back,

"And how in the hundred hells is she suppose to know or think more about you when she doesn't even know who you are?" the voice sighs and add "Give the little princess a break, you're the secretive one here"

"Well, look who is back here" Percy sarcastically told him "I don't want you too to lecture me, one immortal was enough for me" he added.

"You should mind your manners boy, it's not because I appreciate your show that I wouldn't mind your tone" he sharply said to him. Percy tensed for an instant but after that calmed himself and said:

"I'm sorry" he paused for a moment before adding "I don't think that I can do it till camp Jupiter, trust them and later meet with the others without thinking of killing them or what they did to me" he rose his head weary of everything "instead of uniting them..I will divide them because I can't just forget nor forgive them, and more importantly, I'm not ready to meet them" he said the last words with shame as if he was too big to fight them."

There was a long pause from Chaos side before saying "You also thought that you weren't ready for your first quest and if I remember correctly either did our butt horse master...Chiton"

Percy laughed for a moment and said: "it was Chiron and not Chiton you dimwit" he was sure that Chaos did it on purpose to lighten his mood and it worked for a moment, the thought of his old master brought a smile on Percy's lips but it quickly vanished "to tell them what...no more like who you really are and there will be no way in hell to avoid it" "you'll have to face her" but to him it was more like you'll have to face them ALL. He also sometimes felt bad for keeping the truth about his identity from Piper, but telling her the truth would lead to some immortals visiting and he wanted naught to do with the lot of them.

As there was no answer or reply from "The Voice" he turned his thoughts to what Aer just told him choosing to ignore the presence of Piper few meters behind him. He let himself wander in each sentences, each words and he could only see that she was worrying about him, that she care but above everything else that she was right but he wouldn't just admit it before her. But he was also worried about Piper, about what she thinks of him and it scared him that he cared so much about her "You have to stick the plan" but deep inside him he could tell that the plan wasn't any longer followed since these last months he had been traveling with her and now he had to make difficult choices had he could feel that the voice found it particularly funny his struggle with himself, he suddenly thought about his dear mother "To live in peace and have the luck your mother predestined you to have in your life..." yes she wanted her dear son to lead an happy life so that his death wouldn't be hard on her. She wanted him to grow old and if it wasn't the case that he could at least grow to have a family even if she knew that heroes lifespan wasn't long especially those of the big three that's why most of time they were parents when still teenagers but some kind of twist of fate she died before him, the fates clearly have crazy sense of humor. If someone told Sally Jackson or Perseus himself that after all the kidnappings, monsters, threats and the TW II that she would die before her son, that person would've been seen foolish but it wasn't the case.

Percy turned around himself to see that Piper was still behind him, she stopped herself from getting closer to him and sat on a rock not too far from him so that she would not trouble him when lost in his thoughts but would still remain in enough voice range to call after him before he would move because she was sure that he would try to avoid her so she waited for him, and right there she was still waiting for him to acknowledge her presence after almost half an hour. Her waiting for him for so long didn't look too good for Percy as he could only meant many words and sentences, even if she was a interesting girl to talk with, she wasn't the type to talk nonstop as some of her siblings neither did she gossip. So to him her presence meant that either she had more questions to which he would have to think a lot to answer without giving too much details about himself, or she must have heard their conversation which he wasn't sure but he guessed that she was here to talk about what happened this evening and he didn't want to talk about it. The two of them were up and facing each other for gods know how much time, there was some kind of tension and an awkward silence between them saved for the insects that were flying.

Piper took the initiative as she thought that she was the one who should apologize first but as she came forward him, he averted his eyes from hers and made an attempt to go on his right but a powerful voice stopped him.

"Stop" Piper commanded him using her charm-speak to her highest level as she knew that Hunter was most of times immune to it or was able to break from it faster than anyone she had charmspoken.

Percy looked at her dreaming look as he obeyed to her before shaking himself out of it "You dare to charm-speak me when I want to be left alone?" he angrily ask her with a disbelieving look in his eyes for what she did.

"Damn I knew he wouldn't like it" she sigh in her mind, "gods why boys were made so dense" she wondered "and why only what she attracted by the ones that were more dense than anybody when it came to girls" she asked herself before saying: our face

"I'm sorry for charm-speaking you but we had to talk." she paused as she looked at him in the eyes "And I knew that you would've left if I didn't stop you. Isn't it true?" she asked him as she averted her eyes from his to look on the ground before her.

"Maybe it's because there is nothing to talk about or because I just don't want to talk" he replied to her and there was finality in his voice as much in his eyes. She was hurt by his tone but decided to not show it to him "You knew that it wouldn't be simple Pipes, it's now or never" she said to herself to cheer up" He walked past her and once again she stopped him.

I said I wanted to talk to you. If you don't want to talk fine, but I will and you'll listen to what I have to say" she told him with authority in her voice and little bit of anger in it. "What the heck, who do he think he is. It's not because he has good looks that I will let him step on me" she said to herself "he doesn't impress me (Lies) now I'm the boss" she kept on saying to herself. "Look, it's not easy for me to force you to stand here before me thanks to my charm-speak but I have...we have to talk. Can you please turn around so that I can see your face when I'm talking to you" she said in a normal voice except the last part that was an order imbued with her charm-speak. She patiently waited for him to turn around so they could see each other's eyes.

"Turn around young man and fight your girlfriend" the voice mentally told Percy as he was struggling not to turn around, he was fighting her charm-speak order and it was getting harder for him to fight it or to just resist to it these last few weeks, even if the "training" he had been giving her made her power stronger, there was an unknown reason to him that made it far so effective on him and these...

"Turn around and face her you stupid boy. Do you think that Sally would've been so proud of you if she knew your making this girl's life an hell for the sin another one made? It's obvious that she likes you, if you don't want to respond to her feelings, have at least the decency to look at her when she talks to young man" the voice rebuked him for his lack of manners which only made him smile as for once he thought that the voice was right "NO. I'm ALWAYS right" the voice seriously replied to his thoughts.

"Hell no, you're not and this is only THE exception that confirms the rule. Besides you're always talking about perverted things or stupid ones when you're not stalking" he said, but before the voice could talk back at him he added "I'm grateful that you was there to light my ways" then he turn around to look at Piper who was waiting for him and he could tell by her look that she was angry and annoyed to have been waiting for him to turn around even if her facial expression was slightly showing it. He couldn't stop himself to find her cute.

"I'm sorry for the way I reacted; it was rude for me to ignore you when you only wanted to talk. I'm really sorry" he said before she could say any word.

"Yes good boy" the voice smirked at him but the way he said those words, Percy was sure that the voice thought of another word instead of boy which annoyed him but he didn't let it be shown fearing that Piper would misunderstood it, and thought really less of his apologizes.

At first Piper was angry that he talked just before she could do so, but hearing him apologizing was quite a shock to her as she never heard him apologize to anyone even to Hera and it made her feel special and happy to know that he apologized to her even if she would have preferred if he apologized for ignoring her few days ago but she could see that it was enough for a beginning and now it seemed easier for her to apologize to him for her reaction when he only tried to give back Maimer to its owner Don't feel too much sorry for him Pipes, he might just be tempting you be aware of him she thought to herself but she was ready to give him a chance.

"I too I'm sorry..."she began but Percy cut her

"No you don't have to be it's nothing" he said trying to persuade her but she wouldn't just let him shrugged it off as if it was a useless question that was asked to him.

"No, I'm really sorry that I doubted you and thought that you wanted to kill them...even if you didn't really hold your hand back against Thalia" she trailed the last part. At the mention of Thalia's name she saw Percy tensed but let it go as she didn't want another argument between them. For a moment there was no sign of life from Percy as he didn't breath neither move then he said

"You're forgiven if you forgive me" he said with a small smile appearing of his lips.

"Done" Piper said without even thinking about it, only then she registered that there was tears on Percy's cheeks even if most of them disappeared, few remained and only then she understood why he was so silent moments ago. Unconsciously to her, her hand rose and reached his cheek to wipe the line left by his tears and then caress it.