A/N: Sorry this took so long! I meant to have this up over the weekend, but I ended up with some pretty bad writer's block :P.

ANyways . . . this chapter is dedicated to Tmayhew , who seems very into this story! I'm SO glad you like it so much!

Here's something of an ego boost . . . So I'm working on a story to maybe get published someday, and I had the first draft done (around 61,000 words) and the Expository Writing class I'm in found out, and say I'm a genius. So . . . if you've ever written a story, according to block 3 Expository Writing, you are a genius. I have to say, that felt really good hearing that. So YAY TO A CITE FULL OF GENII (plural for genius . . .)!

Okay, I'm done now . . . I hope you enjoy the chapter sorry if it's a bit slow. . . . R&R! :)

Piper POV

Jason finally being awake was . . . an unspeakable relief to Piper. Once he had finished eating, he had leaned back in his chair, looking tired. They all seemed very tired. Their sleep patterns had all been messed up these last few days, and it would take a while to get back to their semblance of normal. Annabeth seemed to share Piper's joy, but it was tempered by worry. Percy, after all, was still in the infirmary. Panacea had gone back to her river, and Leo was making the Argo II ready to fly. Nico was restless too, Piper could tell. He had started spending time in the crow's nest again, looking down at Leo's progress at the helm as he finished fine-tuning the damaged controls that had been neglected as they rushed to save Percy and Jason.

Piper took the now empty plate from in front of Jason, placing it into the sink in the small kitchen. Leo came down then, rubbing his eyes with a tight fist. He, too, looked exhausted. Spending the last few days on very few hours of sleep hadn't done him much good. Hadn't done any of them much good.

"How ya feeling Jase?" He asked blearily.

"Better than you seem to be," Jason said. "I'm starting to feel like I'm the only one awake enough now to do anything but lay down." Piper was happy to see Leo smile slightly. Leo had been way too serious lately.

"Yeah, well, you and Coach Hedge," Leo said. "And the dog. She refuses to do anything but sit on the deck and whine."

"She's waiting for Percy," Annabeth said. "She's really very attached to him. Her first owner . . . died a few years ago, and gave her to Percy. I get the feeling that Mrs. O'Leary is afraid that she's not going to see Percy again." It sounded like there was a story there, with the Hell-hound's first owner, but Piper decided it probably wasn't really too important. They needed to decide where they were going. The Old country, obviously, Greece. Probably Athens.

"Leo, how far are we from Athens?"

"Far enough," Leo said. "A few days, at least. The wind's against us right now, which is a little worrying. I really don't want to meet up with a bunch of Venti again, though at least Jason's awake this time." Piper noticed Jason wince slightly.

"Sorry 'bout that," he said, and Leo rushed to assure him that 'oh no, it wasn't your fault, obviously,' "You guys did pretty well without me though," Jason said. He looked over at Hazel. "Those weapons from Hecate. The ones made partially out of mist. Did she give you a reason for them? Or are they just to fight with?"

"I think they're for more than fighting," Hazel said slowly. "Why?" Jason shrugged.

"Why would she give them to us? The gods always have a second motive, don't they?" This was what their world had come to. Piper and her friends suspicious of any type of help, especially from their parents. But they had to be. If they weren't careful, they wouldn't survive for long. Annabeth buried her head in her hands.

"Why can't we catch a break? Just once?" she asked. Piper understood the sentiment. Everything seemed against them. For Hades' sake, Gaia, the whole EARTH was against them. Then again, the sea and air and underworld were with them. If not the gods themselves, then their insanely powerful children were more than substitute. Sometimes, Piper thought that Percy, Jason, Nico, and Hazel were more god-like than their parents. Nicer, in any case; not that that was very difficult.

"Because we're demigods," Frank said, voicing everyone's opinions. "And life is never going to be easy for us."

"We can't be thinking like this right now," Hazel said. "We . . . we need to finish this quest alive and get back to camp and hope that our camps don't destroy each other and . . . and . . ." the dark skinned girl trailed off, plucking at her sleeve. "We're all pretty tired right now. I think we should sleep on all these questions. We'll get nowhere if we keep going on like this."

Jason nodded and stood. "You especially, Leo," He said, looking pointedly at his best friend. "I'll take the watch tonight, I'm probably the least tired of all of you."

"I'll join you," Piper said. She hadn't had any alone time with Jason in weeks, and she would stay awake for longer than a few days and nights if it meant time alone with her boyfriend. Something she had not had, something she had been afraid she might never have again.

The others made noises of agreement and left. Annabeth toward the infirmary, the others toward their respective rooms. Annabeth hadn't slept a night in her room since before . . . before she'd fallen. And she wouldn't until Percy was out of the infirmary. In fact, Piper would be surprised if Annabeth and Percy didn't sleep in the same room, even once Percy was better. They'd been alone in Tartarus for a while with no-one but each other.

Piper leaned against the cold railing of the Argo II, peering into the cloudless sky. She jumped a bit when Jason hugged her from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder. She pressed back a bit into his warmth, savoring the feeling of his heart beating strongly somewhere behind her own. "You okay?" Jason asked quietly, pressing a quick kiss to her neck.

"Yeah," she breathed. Jason was alive. Jason was right behind her, warm and solid and steady. Jason was holding her again. Jason was so very alive. And she had been so very scared he was not. "Yeah, I'm great."

Jason hummed. "It's so peaceful out here."

"The calm before the storm," Piper agreed, watching bats swooping overhead. The chirping of insects filled the air, and she could hear the steady rush of Panacea's river not far off. The goddess had been such a great help, and Piper found herself wondering if maybe she had judged the gods too harshly. There had to be more out there like the healer. Panacea had refused to leave her home and her people behind, and been left by the Romans; consequently, she was only one person. One personality. Not the same in Roman and Greek . . . just . . . Greek. Perhaps a little more chaotic than her Roman counterpart would have been, and more likely to give her help freely because of it.

"But how bad will the storm be?"