Oh you guys are so screwed when I'm posting the Last Olympian because I have genuinely made myself cry again writing it so look forward to that, seriously, there's a few chapters that are just painful- I was crying ugly tears well past midnight last night when I was writing- and I wrote like five chapters I was on such a roll- haven't fixed em up yet but they're written. Anyways, please do read and review as I really do love the reviews- and I feel like I need 'em right now, y'know, for moral support. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Percy forced herself to focus at that, and she quickly noticed the sound of roaring water and she spotted something ahead of them- about fifteen metres ahead, a dark river churned through a gorge of volcanic rock.

For a moment she wondered if it was the Styx- last time she'd been down here she hadn't really looked around- she'd been taken straight to that horrible pit- she hadn't needed to cross the Styx, and on the way out Hades had just opened up a doorway to the world up above.

She'd been thinking more about the Styx than she liked to admit lately- she hadn't talked with anyone other than Drew about it but she was fairly confident that Alabaster had swam in the Styx- and while Percy hadn't even told Drew what she was considering... well, she was beginning to think that just maybe she should do the same.

Percy wasn't sure what to do- what to think about it- and now really wasn't the time to think about it- but she couldn't help it as she stared at the river. It was narrow and fast. The water was black as ink. Even the foam churned black. The far bank was only ten metres across, but that was too far to jump, and there was no bridge.

"Is that-" Percy swallowed hard, she couldn't get any paler than she already was- but if she could she would have.

"It's the Lethe" Nico's face was pale too, and he cursed under his breath in Ancient Greek, "We'll never make it across."

"Isn't that the one that makes you forget?" Bianca asked hesitantly, "I have enough memories issues as it is."

"You too?" Nico frowned- and Percy understood that. He couldn't remember anything from before being plucked out of the Casino, it didn't bother him too much, he was settled at home, sure he wondered at time what had come before his life with the Jacksons but he was happy enough, he had his family.

Bianca looked like she had more questions than Nico did as she stared at the river- and Percy realized she was probably wondering if the river had anything to do with her memory issues.

In any case Percy's gaze flicked down to the flower- which was pointing to the other side, towards a gloomy mountain and a path leading up to the cave. Beyond the mountain the walls of the Underworld loomed like a dark granite sky.

"There has to be some way across." at least it wasn't the Styx- Percy could do without worrying about that, at least for a little while.

"We can't touch the water-" Nico shook his head, "It would wipe your mind clean like a newborn baby."

"I could shoot an arrow across." Bianca offered after a moment of hesitation. "Maybe anchor a line to one of those rocks." she was looking at the river like the water was about to rear up and attack her.

"You want to trust your weight to a line that isn't tied off?" Nico raised an eyebrow and Thalia snorted.

"There might be some stuff that I wish I could forget but I'd rather not be like a baby again. These days the good in my life outweighs the bad, thank you very much." Thalia pulled a face.

"What about summoning some dead people to help?" Bianca suggested after a moment of thought. "I could maybe summon up a skeleton or two. Not as many as you-" that was directed at Nico, "But a couple maybe."

"I could summon some but only on this side of the river and they can't cross running water." Nico grimaced. "I don't know what to suggest. I would say I'd shadow travel you guys over but- I used a fair bit of power earlier and I need to be able to fight whatever else our enemies throw at us."

"I'm not good at shadow travel really or I'd say I'd do it." Bianca spoke up. "I'm sorry guys."

"Not your fault- I guess you don't need to use your powers that much with the hunters." Thalia remarked.

And Percy stared at the water- and it was water, very weird disturbing water but it was water- and she could control all water couldn't she? Sea water came easiest but she'd never found any water yet which she couldn't control- even the water inside of someone's body was controllable so why should this river be any different.

She staggered forward as Bianca, Thalia and Nico spoke, trying to come up with some kind of plan. Could she actually do this? The river was magical, and it was in the Underworld too. The water would be different.

But it was water. Percy focused on that thought. "Everyone stand back." she hated how shaky her voice sounded.

"What?" Thalia's voice was worried, "What do you mean- what are you doing Percy?"

"It's water-"

"Percy you can barely stand." Nico was frowning when she glanced back at him. "You should sit down."

"Percy he's right. What'd you even do? Part the water?" Bianca's voice was incredulous, "Can you even do that it's a lot of water-"

"Well it's worth a try isn't it." there was a determined look on Percy's face. "I blew up Mount St Helens. I can control one simple river and hold the water back." she focused, concentrating on the current, the raging black water rushing past.

She imagined that it was a part of her, of her own body, that she could control the flow and make it respond to her sheer willpower.

The water churned and bubbled more violently, as if it was fighting back- it could sense her trying to control it and it didn't like it.

She couldn't just stop the river entirely she decided, the water would back up and flood the whole valley and it would explode all over them as soon as she let it go, so instead she raised her hands slowly, almost as if she was lifting something up and over her head- and she felt like she was, something unbearably heavy- and gods but the pain in her shoulder felt like she'd dipped it in lava- and the fact that she knew what that felt like was incredibly disturbing in and of itself.

The river rose. It surged out of its banks, flowing up and then down again in a great arc – a raging black rainbow of water six metres high. The riverbed in front of them turned to drying mud, a tunnel under the river just wide enough for three people to walk side by side.

"What the fuck." Thalia breathed the words, staring at Percy with wide eyes, her expression almost awed- and Nico swallowed hard, a very worried look on his face.

Bianca was just gaping in shock, and Percy forced herself to take a ragged breath. "Go. I can't hold this for long."

Already her vision was blurring and her shoulder was almost painful enough to make her scream, though she was gritting her teeth to force back the noises.

She wouldn't crack now. No way.

And much to her relief Thalia was grabbing Bianca and Nico's arms and yanking them down into the river bed, the trio scrambling across the sticky mud as the river fought Percy. It didn't want to be controlled by some upstart daughter of Poseidon. No. It wanted to crash down on the three demigods, wipe their minds clean and drown them but Percy held it- it took all of her willpower but she held it.

Then Thalia was climbing up the opposite bank, dragging Bianca up with her, Nico barely a step behind them as the oldest member of the group called out, "Percy! You have to cross now. Walk!"

And gods but Percy was shaking, it was a full body thing, her arms trembled as she took a step forward and almost fell. The water arc quivered.

"I can't make it!" Percy's voice was hoarse, "I can't make it Thal's."

"Yes you can! We need you Percy."

"C'mon!" Nico's voice was almost shaking, "You're the strongest person I've ever met Percy! Please!"

And somehow, spurred on by her friend and her little brothers words she managed to climb down into the riverbed, one step and then another, painstakingly slow as the water surged above her. Her books squished in the mud.

Halfway across she stumbled, foot slipping in the mud- and she heard the three other demigods screaming, as her concentration broke and she heard the roar and felt herself losing control over the water, which instantly came crashing around her- and the last thing she saw before she was surrounded by the darkness was Nico trying to leap forward, Thalia and Bianca grabbing him and hauling him backwards as his screams echoed in her ears and the last thing she thought before the blackness swallowed her was one last desperate thought as she closed her eyes and braced herself.

Dry.

And after a long moment she opened her eyes, blinking slowly- she was surrounded by darkness but- she was dry- she'd done it a thousand times before- often she had to actually will herself to get wet it was such a natural thing for her to do. But this time it felt almost too much, she was sure that she'd be done for after this.

But she forced herself to move, struggling to her feet and moving forward through the black current that so desperately wanted to keep her down, blind and doubled over with pain by the time she was surging up and out of the river, clawing her way up onto the bank out of the river, shocking the trio- who were a short distance away- Bianca shrieked and leapt back a good two metres- and Thalia and Nico- who were on their knees, Nico's expression one of pure horror and Thalia's one of grief, both jumped and fell backwards.

And then it all went dark as she slumped forward on the dry bank of the river.

When she came around it was to the taste of nectar, and to voices, distant and faint. At least her shoulder didn't feel as bad as it had- though there was an uncomfortable buzz in her ears and her eyes felt hot- like that time when she was little and she'd gotten a fever- she could remember Luke and her mom taking it in turns to stay up with her, remember her big brother tucking her into his side, clinging to her as she'd shivered and whimpered.

"We can't risk any more nectar." that was Thalia's voice, "She'll burn up. I don't know what to do-"

"She looks really bad-" and that was Bianca wasn't it.

"Percy?" that- yeah that was Nico- and she opened her eyes very slowly, groaning as she did, "Can you hear me?"

"Yeah." her voice was hoarse, "Sorry if I scared you-"

"Scared us?" Nico looked like he was close to tears, "Percy- you could have-" he shook his head, voice catching, "I could have lost you. Dumbass."

"Love you too Zombie boy." she muttered the words as she slowly sat up- Nico's jacket was on the ground beside her she noticed- and there were fresh bandages on her shoulder- she must have made them dirty or bled through them. That made sense.

"We're close." Nico swallowed hard, "I don't know what to do. We're close but you look bad you should be resting-"

"You might need me again." Percy muttered the words, "I'm hurt, not dead."

"Do you think you can walk?"

"Yeah, I can handle that." she took a deep breath, looking forward- the mountain was looming above them, a dusty trail snaked up a hundred metres or so to the mouth of a cave- the path was lined with human bones and Percy snorted. "Looks like this should be fun."

"I'll help you walk." Thalia slid an arm under Percy's arms and helped her to her feet, Nico draping his jacket over Percy's shoulders a moment later to stop her from getting too cold "And don't argue with me Jackson- I've dealt with your brothers stubbornness. And the gods only know what he'd do if you got too badly hurt."

"Eh, I'll be okay. Fresh scars just make me look more badass-"

"It's reaching the stage where there's not much of you that isn't scarred." Bianca pointed out, eyeing Percy wearily- and it was true- Percy did have a lot of scars.

"What can I say, my girlfriends like it."

"I'm sure Annabeth does." Thalia snorted- an amused look on her face- and Nico nearly choked.

"Yeah. Too much information." he gave Percy a knowing look and Percy flushed slightly before he looked away and he and Bianca started leaving the way towards the cave, Bianca cradling the carnation, which was pointing towards the cave. The flower only had two petals left which looked oddly like sad bunny ears.

She mumbled that aloud and Thalia snickered.

"Well, let's follow the sad bunny flower into the evil ghost cave then. This should be fun."