Chapter 12 - I Find Something Permanent

When I woke up (from yet another nightmare, of course), I realized it was after lunch time, and I hadn't checked on Jason. I went straight to sick bay and found Frank sitting with him, talking softly.

"Hey, Jason. Sorry, I -"

"No worries. You just got back from Tartarus and have been trying to keep the ship running and keep me alive. You're going to need a nap every now and then."

I looked between them, trying to figure out if Hazel had said anything about our experiences on the deck. I decided she hadn't.

"Piper said I might be able to wear a shirt soon?" Jason asked hopefully.

I smiled at him. "Lower the blanket? I'll see how bad the bleeding is. I still want to be able to check your bandages without waking you."

Jason nodded and pulled down the blanket. Frank took a sharp breath. It may have been a gasp. I realized he might not have seen Jason's wound before. I looked it over and took Jason's vitals. No signs of infection. I smiled at him. "You're doing well. No signs of infection, your heartbeat and breathing are getting better. Ok. I'm cool with you wearing some clothes - if they are light and don't constrict you in any way."

Jason grinned at me and pointed to the cot I had slept on. Someone, probably Piper, had set out some pajamas for Jason. Frank and I helped him up and to change into the clean clothes. When Jason leaned back on his cot, he looked happier. I knew how he felt - clean clothes could make you feel way more alive.

I could tell that both Frank and Jason were hoping I'd leave them alone again. Jason was probably helping Frank get more comfortable as praetor. As soon as Jason finished a dose of nectar and some Tylenol, I headed off. I went to the mess hall to eat a quick lunch and checked on the others. Piper and Hazel were working on the sword skills, and I was still avoiding Hazel after this morning. Leo was on duty with Festus, keeping an eye out for monsters. That left Percy - exactly the person I wanted to see when I was still feeling shaky. I found him in his cabin, having just switched off with Leo for guarding the boat.

"Hey!" He grinned at me. "How are you -"

I walked straight into him, needing a hug right now. The memories from Hazel's Mist vision this morning were still fresh in my mind.

"What's wrong?"

I took a deep breath, not meeting his eyes. "It's… it's about Luke. But -" I caught my breath. "Hazel has this new power with the Mist, right?" I felt Percy nod his head against mine, still refusing to look at him. "She… she asked if she could try it on me, since I've seen the most magic…" Percy's arms tightened around me, giving me strength. "I asked her not to show me anything bad, you know? She… she said she'd make sure of it. Not Tartarus, or anything like that. She was trying to do something good. She said the power gave me what I most wanted in the world, at least for a moment. That was the idea, anyway. And it was…" I choked back a sob. "It was Luke, and Silena, and…. And everyone. Alive. Back at camp. This whole year was gone, a dream. You had never disappeared. We never got pulled into another stupid quest to save the world. We were happy, and safe, and -" I sobbed as Percy held me. It took several minutes until I was calmer. He sat on his bunk and pulled me into his lap.

"So much of this year I wish was a dream." He admitted to me. "I never would have left you -" He took a breath. This still hurt us both so much. "And Tartarus, and letting you leave in Rome, and…" His breathing got shaky and he pulled me snug against his chest.

"But there's also a lot I wouldn't want to forget, that I'd never want to be a dream." He explained softly. "The Roman camp? I never imagined a life where we could live without fear. But that's a possibility there. We wouldn't need to be the fighters - we could just live our lives. And Frank and Hazel? I wouldn't want to forget them."

I nodded and realized he was right. There was a lot I'd never want to forget about this year. Piper, Jason and Leo were worth remembering - they were my friends. Piper was one of my best friends in the world. Leo was annoying, but he was like my little brother. And Jason? For months I hadn't fully trusted him, but now I felt that little bit of doubt was gone. He was my friend, and I'd never want to forget him.

I looked at Percy. "You're right. There's a lot of good. But sometimes… sometimes the bad seems like too much."

He nodded. Percy knew. He had seen war, had been with me in Tartarus. He knew that sometimes it felt that the bad would overwhelm you. We sat together for a while longer. To my surprise, it was Percy that broke the silence.

"There's something I should tell you. Hazel told me last night, when I caught Leo glaring at me after dinner." I looked at him, puzzled.

"It's about Calypso." He said, looking at me cautiously. Percy and I had only talked about Calypso once - after the Titan War, when we were officially dating. He had given me the full story of his time on the island with Calypso then. It had stung to hear how close he had been to staying with her. Now, having experienced the curse she had placed on me…. Well, it hurt in a different way. I felt intense sympathy for Calypso. The curse she had placed on me had hurt, feeling like Percy had abandoned me…. I took a shaky breath and realized Percy was trying to talk to me.

"Sorry." I muttered and swiped the tears out of my eyes.

He looked at me sadly. "It brought you back there, didn't it? Feeling the curse again?"

I nodded and squeezed his hand, assuring myself that he was really there.

Percy kissed me on the nose, which tickled and I sneezed. He grinned at me, then turned serious. "While we were gone, there was a fight. Khione and the Boreads tried to get aboard the ship -"

I nodded. "And Piper somehow activated Festus with her voice, beat the snow gods, and won a great sword in the process."

He grinned at me. "Yeah. So Khione blasted Leo off the ship and somehow, he… he managed to land on Calypso's island."

Uh-oh. I knew Leo and girls. That would not have ended well. Percy smiled, clearly knowing what I was thinking.

"Apparently, the feelings were actually mutual. The raft showed up on the island, and that can only happen if Calypso has feelings too."

My eyes widened in shock. I wasn't surprised to hear that Leo had fallen for the Titaness - Leo fell for every girl he met. Well, except me, but I was pretty sure that was because when we met I was ready to kill anybody who stood between me and Percy and he was possibly one of those people. But for the most part? Leo tried to pick up every girl he met.

"He seems to have actual feelings this time." Percy said to me. "Hazel told me about it, so I'd know why he hated me so much now. He blames me for leaving her, and honestly?" I saw him take a deep breath. "I blame myself too. I should have made sure the gods kept their promises and freed her. They should have - they swore it on the River Styx. But I know gods, I should have…" I nodded and brushed his hair from his eyes.

"We did get kind of busy. We thought there'd be time, but…" But you got kidnapped by the psycho-goddess. We were used as pawns by the gods - again. But I felt for Calypso.

"So…" I asked him, shifting until I could sit next to him. "What's the plan?"

He grinned at me. "Isn't that your part of this?"

I laughed. "Well, is Leo planning to go get her? Maybe we can all go after Athens."

Percy smiled at me. "I'm not sure what the plan is, but Hazel's pretty sure there is one. You'd help?" He asked me, suspiciously.

"Yeah, I'll help, Seaweed Brain."

He grinned at me, "Because old Annabeth would've -" I kissed him rather than let him finish that statement. I knew what old Annabeth would've done. She would've been so insecure about everyone leaving her that she would have wanted to lock up Calypso and throw away the key - just to make sure Percy didn't find her and fall for her again. But something had changed. I really, truly believed that this time - I had found someone who was going to stay by me - no matter what.