Chapter 22 - We've Got a Hot Date

It was well past dark by the time we had made sure that the ship wouldn't sink while we slept. Hazel offered to take the first watch since the rest of us had battled the storm. I headed down to sick bay to take stock of the damage. Thankfully, since Piper and I had taken the time to lock everything down before going topside, nothing was too badly out of place. I resettled all the bottles and jars in the medicine cabinet as well as everything in the supply closet when I heard someone knock on the door behind me. I turned. Jason, still grinning, was standing in the doorway.

"I'm not spending another minute in sick bay that I don't have to. Just want the official ok to sleep in my own bed tonight, Doc." He lifted his shirt and allowed me to double-check that the wound was really, truly gone.

"I think you're good to go, Jason. Final prescription is a good night's sleep and time in the actual air."

He grinned at that. Then he turned serious, but the smile still played across his face. "I hope you know how much you saved me. Even more than the medical care, you kept me hopeful. You were working so hard, I never felt like I could give up and disappoint you."

"Well, if that's all it takes, Jason, I would be very disappointed in you if you died."

He laughed at that. "But seriously, thanks for everything."

I went to give him a hug. "Let's hope I never see you in sick bay the rest of the trip, ok?" I went to the cabinet and pulled the legal pad of letters I had helped him write. "Should I burn these?"

He looked serious and thought for a moment. "Nah. Hold onto them for now. We never know if…"

I nodded. It made sense, but was still hard to think about. "I'll keep them locked in my cabin for now, then, so no one finds them here in sick bay."

He nodded, looking grateful.

"Well, go on, get out of here! You've got a girlfriend who hasn't been able to properly hug you in days!"

He grinned and left me there. I was settling the rest of the supplies after the attack when I heard a faint knock at the door. I turned to see Percy leaning against the frame, looking sea sick. I didn't think a son of Poseidon could get sea sick.

"Hey, Doc." He joked, weakly.

I ran to him and helped him lay down on one of the cots.

"I think that poison's still affecting me." He explained.

"Probably." I agreed. I fetched some nectar and let a little bit go into his mouth. "Just small sips at a time until I'm sure you can keep it down." I told him.

He laid there as I checked his vitals. Then, after a few moments of silence, he patted the bed, indicating that I should lie next to him.

I laid there, with my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat until we fell asleep.

The next morning we all got up bright and early to get started on fixing the ship. Festus tried to get us sailing, but we could only move at a snail's pace. I hid the notepad with Jason's letters in the same nook I kept my teddy bear under my bed, then Leo and I spent all day down in the engine room trying to repair the damage. He'd take breaks occasionally to go give the others instructions on what to fix and how to do it. Then he'd come by to inform me of what kind of terrible monster the others had fended off. I felt bad - I should be up there fighting - but I was one of the only ones trained in how to help fix the engine. Leo and I took our meals in the engine room, discussing what needed to be done as we ate. I took a couple of bathroom breaks but my only real time away from that room was when I heard Percy had fended off a bunch of sea serpents single-handedly and had gotten his hand scorched in the process. I found him in sick bay, holding a hand that looked more like a lump of meat than a hand.

"It's flat out unfair that sea serpents breathe fire." He complained as I pulled out the nectar. I shook my head at him and poured the nectar over his hand. His body tensed with the pain, but the swelling went down almost immediately. It was definitely red, swollen, and bumpy, but at least his hand looked like a hand now.

"Any chance you can take a break and rest?" I asked him.

He shook his head at me. "We can't get airborne and the ship is going so slow we can't outrun anything. They need me on deck to fight, I'm the only one that knows about some of these sea creatures."

I nodded. "And your stomach?"

He blushed. "Not great - I'm not sure who's spent more time in the bathroom today, me or Hazel."

I gave him a sad smile.

"Any chance you can take a break?" He asked me. "You look just as ragged as me."

I shook my head. "The only chance we have to make it by the deadline is if Leo and I can fix the ship. I'm the only other one that knows about engineering."

We smiled at each other sadly. He reached out his uninjured hand and pushed one of my curls behind my ear. "I miss you."

"I miss you too." I told him honestly. When he stood up I pulled him into a hug for a few seconds. Then we parted ways - him to do battle with a bunch of evil snakes, me to do battle with a bunch of wires, pipes, and Leo.

I won't bore you with the details of fixing the ship, but finally, on July 30th, we managed to make port in Mykonos. Leo and I had spent almost the entire time in the hull, trying to fix the engine, then the oars, then the stabilizers. The engine was still wheezing, but at least it was running. We were trying to figure out what to do next when I heard someone knock on the door behind me. I turned. Percy.

"Hey!" He said with a smile. "Want to go on an awesome date as the scouting party to Mykonos? Death and monsters await!"

"Sounds heavenly!" I said, and I meant it. I was so ready to get out of that room.

He laughed.

"Oh, sure, leave Leo here alone." Leo muttered behind me.

Percy looked troubled. "Anything I can do to help -"

"No thanks, Water Boy. I still haven't finished fixing the plumbing. Just go have a great time with your girlfriend." Leo muttered, turning back to his machine.

My heart went out to him. He had been stuck down here just as long as I had. He didn't have Calypso here to take him on walks twice a day around the ship like Percy always did for me.

"Leo -" I began.

He turned to me with a smile. "Seriously, Annabeth, it's fine. You might want to wash up before you go, though. I don't think grease oil is a hair style in Mykonos."

I gave him a small smile and ruffled his hair. Then I turned and grabbed Percy's hand. He towed me up to the cabins.

"Get cleaned up and ready, I'll get the laundry from everyone." He told me.

I grinned and ran to my cabin. A day out with Percy, after the events of the last week, felt so good. I showered and pulled on a nice tank top rather than my usual camp shirt. I brushed out my hair but left it loose so it could dry in the hot Greece air. I went upstairs to find Percy hanging out with Buford the wonder table.

"Buford is going to help us take the laundry ashore." He gave me a kiss. "Ready for our hot date?"

Hot was an understatement. It was burning. My hair was dry before I knew it. We found a cafe and grabbed some breakfast, then went to eat at the laundromat while the crew's clothes washed. A giant pelican wandered in the laundromat, but no one seemed to care. Pelicans were everywhere here and no one seemed to pay them any attention. Percy and I had tried to decide if they were monsters, but after yelling all kinds of insults at one of them, it still hadn't tried to kill us, so we were pretty certain they were just normal pelicans.

Percy and I chatted while we ate. I got him caught up on everything that was happening at Camp while he was gone. I could tell he was upset to miss so much, but he tried to shrug it off.

"We'll just have to make sure the Camp is still there when we get back." He muttered.

I nodded, sadly. We both sat in silence, thinking of all we had been through and all that was yet to come.

Percy took a breath. "Ok - I looked it up, there's apparently a Little Venice area with AMAZING architecture -" He started to laugh as he saw my eyes light up. "As soon as the laundry is done, let's go find it. We can bring lunch back for the others."

I grinned and took our breakfast remains to the trash, then helped him bag up the clothes. We attached the bags to Buford and sent him on his way back to the Argo II. Then we went in search of Little Venice.

To say it was amazing was an understatement. The buildings wrapped around the port, allowing for gorgeous views from every angle. I happily walked around analyzing each building, while I towed Percy along with one hand. I don't think he found it as amazing as I did, but he seemed to like seeing how excited I got. The day was beautiful, crystal clear skies. We got to a beach and Percy twirled me around. We were both giddy - the air tasted wonderful, the sound of the ocean hitting the beach with each wave, the sight of a real, true sky above us…. Everything felt extra sharp, extra real. I wanted to stay - just Percy and I, living out our lives as regular mortals in Mykonos for the rest of our lives. Maybe Percy would become a fisherman or we'd buy a boat and become tour guides for the island. We'd talk about the gods and the myths of the island as if they were only myths. It was a lovely dream, but it was just that - a dream.

After an hour, we went back up to Little Venice to find food for the crew. We were walking along the harbor when Percy grabbed me by the waist and swung me around. My body tensed at first, automatically thinking it was an attack. But by the time he set me down I was laughing. He grinned at me.

"I wish it could be like this forever." I murmured, leaning my head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed my head.

"I know. But I think my mom would worry."

I nodded against his chest. "We should probably find food before the crew thinks we've been attacked."

"Yeah. Ok." Reluctantly, we pulled away from each other. We held hands as we found a good looking Italian restaurant and ordered for the crew. We got to-go bags for everyone, plus gelatos for the whole crew. I wanted to get back before the gelato melted, so Percy took us straight across the waves to the ship. I started to unpack everything while Percy went to gather the others on deck for a picnic.

Everyone looked happy to sit on deck and eat ice cream - which we all agreed we should eat before our food, since it would melt otherwise. It felt so good to just sit around and chat with my friends. After a minute, we decided we should start the war meeting, though.

"We saw these pelicans walking around town. Like, just going through the shops, stopping at the bars." Percy explained.

"Monsters in disguise?" Hazel asked, worried.

I laughed, thinking of the one Percy and I had insulted and tried to get to attack us. "No - just regular, old pelicans. They're the town's mascots or something. And there's a Little Italy section of town. That's why the gelato's so good." I stuck my last spoonful into my mouth and savored it. Stuff still didn't taste quite right after Tartarus, like my tastebuds had been dimmed by all the fire water, but they were starting to come back.

"Europe is messed up." Leo said, disapprovingly. "First we go to Rome for Spanish Steps, then we go to Greece for Italian ice cream?" While he sounded miffed, he happily ate the ice cream. I think the stress of the last few days was getting to him.

I looked around at everyone. I wanted to freeze this moment, right now, right here. Everyone I loved was alive, and happy. I knew enough about Great Prophecies to know it was unlikely we would all get out of this alive. I had been there for last summer's war. This one promised to be even bigger. No one mentioned it - we all seemed determined to have right now, right here.

"So, the island of Delos is right across the harbor." Piper said, interrupting my thoughts. "Artemis and Apollo's home turf. Who's going?"

"Me!" Leo announced. I was a little surprised, but then thought about this morning. Leo needed a trip away from the ship as much as anyone.

"What? I'm diplomatic and stuff. Frank and Hazel agreed to back me up." Leo announced.

This was clearly news to both Frank and Hazel.

"We did?" Frank asked, lowering his apple. Poor guy was lactose-intolerant so he hadn't gotten any of the ice cream. "I mean, sure we did."

"Leo, did you have a dream about this or something?" Hazel asked.

"Yes! Well, no. Not exactly." I could tell he wanted to get off the ship. I wished there was some way to explain to the others that we needed to trust him, let him take a break. If he wanted to go to Delos, we needed to let him. He was under so much pressure, I was worried he'd break.

"But you gotta trust me on this guys. I've got to talk to Apollo and Artemis. I've got an idea I want to bounce off of them." Leo said.

That troubled me. Leo hadn't mentioned any plans to me. He hadn't bounced any ideas off ME. Why Apollo and Artemis? Leo and I had bounced ideas off each other the entire time we built the Argo II. What hadn't he wanted to tell me?

Before I could say anything, Jason did. "If Leo has an idea, we need to trust him."

I watched Leo carefully. He flinched, almost seeming to look guilty about Jason backing him up.

"Thanks man!" Leo told Jason, giving him a very forced smile.

Percy shrugged next to me. I wasn't sure if the others could hear it but Percy's stomach was doing some serious grumbling next to me. The poison was still working its way out of his body and he was having a hard time eating things. Sounded like he had eaten too much too soon and would need to get to the bathroom fast.

Percy glanced at me, but spoke to Leo. "Ok, but a word of advice - when you see Apollo, don't mention haiku."

Hazel looked confused. "Why not? Isn't he the god of poetry?"

"Just trust me." Percy assured her as his belly grumbled. He rested a hand on his stomach, looking like it hurt.

"Got it!" Leo assured us, getting up. "And guys, if they have a souvenir shop in Delos, I'm totally bringing you back some Apollo and Artemis bobble-heads!"

I grimaced, thinking about how Jason had promised to make bobble-heads for the minor gods to stop the storm. We disbanded - Hazel, Frank and Leo to get ready and go to Delos, Percy to find the bathroom, Jason to guard the ship. That left Piper and I.

"Can we talk?" I asked her, hopefully.

She nodded and gave me a smile. "Definitely." We went to my cabin and sat on my bed. After a minute, I felt ready.

"Ok… so next part of the scary stuff in Tartarus. Arai. The curses. So…. imagine like…. Evil bird ladies. When you kill one, you get a curse. You don't know what it'll be - it seems random or something. But the curse is something a monster places on you as they die. Or an enemy places on you. Or…." I thought about Calypso. "Or someone who's been hurt, really bad."

Piper was silent, but wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I hadn't noticed but I had already begun to shake. "So one got me. It was a curse from Polyphemus… I don't remember, did I tell you that story? It's a long one. Basics are I tricked a giant cyclops and blinded him again to rescue the Golden Fleece. Oh, and he thought he was going to marry Grover, then Clarisse. Neither of those details are relevant, I just still laugh when I think about it." I explained quickly. I could tell Piper was grinning at the thought - she knew Clarisse well.

"Anyway, I guess he had cursed me to be blind as he was. It was so scary, Piper. I couldn't see, I couldn't fight. Percy tried to help me, guide me where to go. He killed some of them and got curses. He…. he got stabbed through the middle, the way he killed Geryon a few years ago." I placed a hand on the spot on my side so Piper could tell what I meant. "And these other curses. Each one he took to try and protect me when I was so blind. Then I got another one. It was…. Calypso's curse."

Piper stiffened. She knew as well as the rest of the crew what had happened with Leo and Calypso.

My voice softened. "She cursed me without even knowing me. She just knew I was who Percy was leaving her for. So she cursed me, that'd I'd feel -" I swallowed, tears coursing down my face at the memory. "That I'd feel like Percy abandoned me. I was lost, alone in Tartarus. I couldn't find him. No matter how hard I tried. I was all alone and about to die. And I had all these thoughts crash through my head. Like, do you even go to the Underworld if you die in Tartarus? Can Hades even get us down there? And how long would it take to starve to death, or could I even starve, after drinking from the Phalgaton? Would I just wander in the dark, alone -"

I let out a small sob and Piper pulled me to her. "Like I did when I was little, before Thalia and Luke found me. I….. I've had people leave me, Piper. A lot of people. And I thought Percy would never, not willingly, but that Curse -" I buried my head in my hands, sobs racking my body. "I thought I'd be alone forever. The arai would never let me die. They'd just…. Let me live, wandering, desperate and alone and -"

My crying intensified, but I tried to keep it quiet. I didn't want the others to know. I didn't want to worry them. I wanted to pretend that I was still their brave leader, the one with the plan, the one who would get them home safely.

"Piper, that feeling, of being alone, facing whatever would come when I was blind…. That level of helplessness…." The emotions crashed over me again, the same as in the Temple of Ares, the same as when it had happened in Tartarus. Piper pulled me tighter into a hug.

"It'll be ok, Annabeth. You're not alone, ok? I'm here, you're safe." She tried to hold me as I cried. I heard the door open and someone walk in. I could tell from the footsteps it was Percy.

"She was telling me about the arai." Piper explained in a whisper.

Percy gently sat behind me and wrapped his arms around me.

"I get it." He whispered. "We'll be here as long as you need, ok, Wise Girl?"