A/N: Sorry it took so long for this chapter. Between exams and a death in the family, I was quite busy.
The Greatest Tragedy Chapter 2: A Bittersweet Reunion
Percy POV:
Frank, Hazel and I had just finished our quest in Alaska, had defeated Alyconeus and the lost ghost legion, brought back the imperial gold weaponry, and with the help of the Amazons beat Polybotes and his monster army. Afterwards most people celebrated, but I didn't. I sat on the banks of the New Tiber and prayed to my father, Neptune, for guidance on how to deal with so many good Romans who died because of me. How many Romans would have lived if I returned with the eagle standard sooner, if I beat Polybotes quicker, if I destroyed more monsters. I prayed to Pluto asking that he send any demigod who died at New Rome straight to the Elysian Fields. I failed, I failed them all. Gwen died, again, Hank the legionnaire died. Too many died. After my prayers I had a dream, if you could call it that. I dreamed that I led an army of demigods in orange t-shirts that I didn't recognize, the Hunters of Diana, CENTAURS, AND NICO D'ANGELO at the Empire State Building against an army of monsters. Why was Nico with a group of teenage demigods I didn't recognize. Well, the son of Pluto does have his secrets, I guess. I don't know what this dream is but it must have been important.
Hera POV:
Perseus Jackson may be an upstart demigod, but I am still sorry for what I have done and will be doing to him. I may still be weak from just getting captured by Porphyrion and his forces, and then getting released by Jason Grace, but I still have more than enough energy to restore young Perseus' memories. A/N: I know Percy is supposed to remember earlier but artistic choice. I restore his memories, all of them. From his abusive childhood with his horrendous stepfather, being attacked by a Fury, seemingly losing his mother to the Minotaur, going to my brothers' realm in the Underworld, defeating Ares, returning the master bolt, traversing the Sea of Monsters, Calypso and Ogygia, reviving that currish bastard child of my husband, saving Artemis, losing his hunter friend, navigating the labyrinth, the Battle of Camp Half-Blood, the death of Charles Beckendorf, the Battle of Manhattan, defeating Kronos, the celebration on Olympus, somewhere in this falling for that disrespectful child of Athena, and most importantly his guilt. His guilt from every demigod that died during this Second Titan War, for some reason feeling like he could have saved them, that every single death from the war with my father rests on his shoulders. I never particularly liked this demigod, he insulted me in the Labyrinth. But falling through his memories when restoring him, I know now he is the greatest hero Olympus has ever seen. Fates willing he's strong enough for the war that has just started.
Percy POV:
Oh gods, everything came back. Mom, Annabeth, Thalia, Chiron, Grover, Tyson, Calypso, Dad, Zoe, Artemis, Michael Yew, Lee Fletcher, Charlie, Bianca, everyone who suffered or died because of my prophecy. If I wasn't born, if I had done better, they'd all be alive. I couldn't do anything after receiving my lost memories. I just sat at the banks of the New Tiber and cried until there were no tears left in my eyes.
Time Break
Percy POV:
When I woke up this morning, I knew I needed to inform Reyna of everything I learned, after Iris messaging my wonderful girlfriend Annabeth, who is probably going to kill me as soon as she sees me. Oh well, there is nothing I'd rather see more than my Wise Girl's face in my final moments. "Oh Fleecy, do me a solid and show me Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena," I say after tossing a drachma into the rainbow I created with my powers over water.
Annabeth POV:
Leo, Piper, Jason, and I were flying to New Rome on the Argo II in order to reunite with Percy and begin the next Great Prophecy, man we don't get any breaks. I was just starting to wake up when I saw a misty opening…. And Percy's face. How I missed Percy, we were just starting to connect after the Battle of Manhattan, just starting to be a normal couple with no great prophecy or war planned, and then he just disappeared without a word. At first, I was angry, thinking he had left me. About two months in, I was scared that he was dead, so I prayed to Hades for guidance. Then I was angry when Hades revealed to me that Percy was not dead, nor had he died and chosen rebirth. I felt betrayed and lonely. After two more months, I had given up on Percy. There was a new camper, a Son of Zeus, Jason Grace, who caught my eye. He was always kind to me and to the younger campers; even though he was new he was a skilled fighter and leader, oftentimes training less skilled campers. And in these months, I started to fall for him, we even started dating two months before we left for New Rome. A/N: I gave a longer gap in between the switch and the reuniting because I wanted this to make sense. Annabeth wouldn't immediately jump to someone else. One of my pet peeves with the betrayed stories. In fact, before we left for New Rome, we decided to sleep with each other, because he knew I would be going back to Percy and accepted it.
So, when I saw Percy's face through the Iris Message I smiled on the outside, but on the inside I was worried. I was worried about how we could make our relationship work. I was worried that the others would follow their promises and not tell Percy about Jason and me. I was worried that he was seeing someone at New Rome. But, when we got there and he told me that my name was the only thing he remembered from his past life before his memories were restored, I cried. He didn't know anything about his past life and never betrayed the memory of my name that he held, but I betrayed him. Nothing mattered when I jumped into his arms and cried though. I thought everything would turn out just alright.
A/N: I decided to have Hera search his memories instead of him just get them back, because I do want Hera and Percy to have a positive relationship in this story. However, I didn't want to just go down the cliché "and she was totally ok with Percy after all his disrespect to her" line that a lot of other authors have gone down, so this is where she comes to respect and admire Percy. Also, I don't feel like writing about the eidolon and the fleeing of New Rome, so just know that the next chapter will begin with Percy and Annabeth falling into Tartarus. The journey across the Atlantic, Annabeth finding the Parthenos, and everything else will be the same, minus the obvious tension. The next chapter will be coming out next week as I'll be celebrating my birthday with some old friends for a few days.