Thanks so much for not minding if I take a day off. Thank you so so much guys! It means a lot. Thanks for all the reviews too! And to everyone that's voted on the poll. I'm thinking first update of January, of 2015, we end the poll. So far, percy is going to end up alone. One more Artemis vote and its tied. Two more Artemis, and then this becomes a Pertemis fic. Keep voting! Thanks! I own nothing and enjoy the chapter!

Percy's POV (not a dream)

I gasped awake as something warm touched my arm. My dreams left me so lost and startled that even a butterfly would've given me a heartattack.

I sat up and looked in the direction of the thing that touched me, only to find my cousin Thalia, my hand around her neck as I threatened to shove her off this high tree branch. Immediately, I let go.

"Sorry Thals. Stupid reflexes," I grumbled, upset by the fact that I almost killed her.

Rubbing her throat, Thalia replied, "it's alright. I'm fine."

Liar. I hurt her and she and I both know it. If she was t hurt, then why was she holding her neck and rubbing it where I had grabbed it?

Neither of us said anything, until Thalia decided to break the awkward silence we were enveloped in.

"Are you all right percy?" She asked, concern making her nose wrinkle. It was actually kind of cute. I can see what Nico Likes about her.

"I'm fine," I respond quicker than I should've, making it sound rushed. "I mean- yeah, yeah I'm fine."

Thalia looked me in the eyes. I found it in incredibly hard to look into her electric blue ones.

"You're not okay," she decided. "Now tell me, what's wrong? Is it still Annabeth and/or Nico? Because I'll-"

"No, no it isn't them. Just nightmares," I say. I want to tell her more, but how do you tell someone that you might be a murderer, and end up murdering them? Just say "hey, I saw myself kill you viciously in a dream as a sacrifice to our enemy. Wanna go have some lunch now?" Definitely not how you reach the subject.

"Wanna talk about them?" proposed the daughter of Zeus that's starting to annoy me.

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"But Percy," she whined, "it always helps me feel better after nightmares. Let me help you!"

"You can't."

Storm clouds filled Thalia's eyes. "Oh I see how it is. Mr Big-Shot savior of Olympus just gets back from a private convedsation that lasted over six days with Artemis, maiden goddess. He doesn't need help from a puny daughter of Zeus that's saved his life more than a few times and-"

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I WAS SAYING! This problem, you just can't fix destiny. There's no cutting through and no second chances. There's no changing your fate," I admit defeated.

"So, this is the guy that got a prophecy saying he would be a great hero, just to die. What happened huh? He's still here, because he changed his fate!" Thalia barked at me.

I flinched, remembering how scared I felt. I was scared of death, but I don't think i am now. "That hero was scared of death, of the future. I'm not. He wanted to live, because he had someone that really loved him."

"I love you..."

"Not like that. Like boyfriend-girlfriend love. And the only girl I ever knew loved me broke up with me." All because an enemy named Moctezumal told her to do it. Supposedly.

"Percy, you could have any girl. They're crazy for you," Thalia reminded me.

"I know. But do they really love me? No. They love my body or my power or my father. They don't love me for me. That's what I want." I sighed. I'll never find someone that loves me for me.

"What about Annab-" I cut her off before she could finish.

"I'm still not over her. Please don't say her name." I paused. "And Annabeth never really loved me. She was using me the whole time. I'm such a loser."

Thalia scoffed. "The winner of three wars, champion and savior of Olympus, says he's a loser. Sorry to give you this news flash, but there's a million people out there thag say you're a winner, not a loser."

"You don't get it!" I cry, upset. "No one gets it! I'm a loser, I'll end up letting those million people down!" I flip my legs over the tree branch and drop the hundred-fifth feet to the ground, curling into a roll at the bottom of the tree to break my fall. I started to walk off in the other direction, fuming at the thought if my failures.

I could hear Thalia climb down the tree instead of jumping like I did, and then sprint to catch up with me. I considered running, but decided that if I wanted to, I could always get away.

Eventually, Thalia caught up to me, slightly panting. I didn't even feel my hear grate increasing. Correction: my headrests increasing due to physical activity. It was rising with my anger and blood pressure.

"Percy, please slow down. I want to keep up with you, but we can't keep running like this," panted Thalia to me left, a little ways behind me. I look down and realize I am jogging quickly, like I'm running. Abruptly, I completely stop moving. Thalia, not expecting that, ran by me, only to backtrack to face me from only a few feet away.

"Please Percy, listen to me. Let me help you. Tell me what your dreams were about. I can help. Please."

I didn't look at her. I stared straight ahead, and since I'm taller than her, she wasn't in my line of sight. For a while, I didnt move. Thalia started to turn away when I spoke. "I killed you."

"What?"

"I killed you, Annabeth, Nico, and Artemis with Riptide. I saw you on the ground, next to Nico, drained of your blood. A pale lifeless corpse. I was being cheered on to do it too."

"Why?"

"I don't know. I put you on an altar and, and, ripped your hearts out."

"Oh Percy, you didn't mean to. I'm still here, alive. I'm fine," Thalia soothed. She stretched her hand out to me, but I turned away.

"What if you weren't fine? What if I'm the reason you won't be fine? You'll end up like Beckendorf, left behind by me because I was a coward. Or like Selina, sacra icing yourself because I couldn't do what I had to do. Or like Zoe, trying to save someone you cared about while I stood on the sidelines."

"You were holding the sky up, you couldn't have-"

"But I could've! If I was better, faster, she would be here right now instead of me! It should've been me! I'm the fool, the idiot, the Seaweed Brain that always messes things up for the people he cares about! And I am (beep) tired of it!" I scream and run off to the junk yard. Thalia runs after me for a while, yelling, but eventually she falls back. I run alone until I reach the fence, then Find the tallest pile and sit on top, trying to bid myself. I need to be alone now.