The next morning, Annabeth was the first one on deck. She'd paused at Percy's door on the way back from brushing her teeth, debating whether to knock, but she heard movement behind the door and didn't want to either bother him or fluster him if he was getting ready. So instead, she headed up to the deck.

The morning was beautiful. The sky was clear, fog hung in wispy clouds over the fields, and the day was already warming up, chasing away the dawn chill. Annabeth took a deep breath as she stood at the railing. Maybe their problems were behind them. A slight weight in her pocket caught her attention, and she reached down to find the coin from Athena in her pocket. She had absolutely, one hundred percent left it on her desk this morning, not wanting to drag it along all day. But apparently the coin wasn't that easy to get rid of. Annabeth frowned. Okay, maybe some of their problems were ahead of them. But at least none seemed to be in Kansas right now. She thought she felt the faintest laughing brush of her psychotic snowman, but she waved it away. Not today. Everything was fine. Maybe if she thought that hard enough, she could make it true.

"Hey," a familiar voice said, and Annabeth's heart did a somersault. She spun to see Percy standing about a foot away, a goofy, happy grin on his face.

"Hi," she said, a little breathlessly. He moved to lean against the railing next to her. She couldn't help but notice that he was wearing a Camp Half-Blood t-shirt. The orange highlighted his tan skin and dark hair more than the purple shirt yesterday had. But she might be biased. Giving herself a mental shake, she asked, "How'd you sleep?"

"Surprisingly good, considering everything." He straightened up and turned to face her. "How about you?"

"Really well," Annabeth admitted. "The pegasus-down pillows are ridiculously comfortable. No pegasi were harmed to make them, though, of course."

"Of course," Percy agreed. Then he closed the distance between them and kissed her. Every cell in Annabeth's body lit up. Gods, she had missed him. So much.

There was a faint cough behind them and they broke apart. Leo was standing at the top of the stairs, looking a little red-faced. "So, I'm just gonna—" he pointed at the helm, then hurried across the deck toward it, clearly avoiding their eyes.

Annabeth rolled hers, but Percy just grinned. He put his arm around her shoulders as they went back to watching the view. "Great morning, right?"

"Mmhm." Annabeth leaned her head on his shoulder and couldn't help but think that was true. It was a great morning.

Of course, the afternoon was slightly less good, when Piper returned with two injured boys on Blackjack's back. Annabeth's heart stopped when she saw Percy's limp form, but once she confirmed that he was breathing, it started up again. She didn't fully relax, though, until he opened his eyes in sickbay, saw her sitting perched on the edge of his bed, and said, "This feels familiar."

"You're an idiot," she murmured, but leaned down to gently kiss his forehead. "How do you feel?"

"Like I got kicked in the head by a pegasus. So, you know, I've been better."

"Been worse, too."

"Good point." He reached over to take her hand and managed a small smile. "So what did I miss?"

Piper filled the boys in on what had happened after they'd been possessed. The entire thing made Annabeth's knees shake. Not only because it had been a close call but because it was so creepy. The idea of these spirits possessing her friends freaked her out more than almost anything else she'd dealt with. She really hated the idea that one had taken over Percy. It reminded her too much of…no. She pushed the thought away, tuning back into the conversation just in time to hear Jason apologize for almost killing Percy, and Percy responding with, "Or I could have killed you."

"If there'd been an ocean in Kansas maybe."

"I don't need an ocean—"

He didn't, but Annabeth didn't see the point of letting this discussion go on any further. "Boys. I'm sure you both would've been wonderful at killing each other. But right now, you need some rest."

"Food first. Please?" Percy gave her a pleading look. "And we really need to talk. Bacchus said some things that don't—"

"Bacchus?" What did the Roman version of the wine god have to do with anything? Annabeth held up a hand. "Okay, fine. We need to talk. Mess hall. Ten minutes. I'll tell the others." Another thought occurred to her as she caught a whiff of singed fabric, with just a hint of pegasus. "And please, Percy…change your clothes. You smell like you've been run over by an electric horse."

He made a face at her, then gingerly lifted his t-shirt to his nose. "Ugh. Yeah, will do. See you in ten minutes."

The evening did not go according to plan. Because Annabeth had never planned for eidolons. She was amazed by how calm Piper and Hazel stayed throughout the whole thing, keeping the spirits in check. She herself was all but useless. From the moment Percy's eyes turned gold, all she could think was, No, please. Not again. Not Percy, too.

She still felt shaky afterwards, even though she tried to hide it as she and Percy worked with Hazel and Frank to clean up the dinner dishes. The plates magically provided food. Unfortunately, they didn't magically clean themselves. However, it was nice to get to know the two Romans a little better, especially since they clearly liked Percy, and they were obviously important to him. After the past day and a half, Annabeth was starting to see why. Hazel and Frank were just genuinely good people. And she admired the way they'd both handled the various crises that had happened over the last forty-eight hours. So she was disappointed when Coach Hedge interrupted the four of them hanging out by sticking his head into the room and barking, "Curfew, cupcakes!"

Annabeth didn't go to sleep, though. Her mind wouldn't shut down. Instead, she sat at her desk, one leg pulled up to her chest, surfing through Daedalus's laptop. She wasn't really looking for anything specific, although she kept trying to find details on the mark of Athena. Since Daedalus was also a child of Athena, she'd hoped he might have some helpful notes on the quest.

He didn't.

There were some files on eidolons, though. She went on a tangent for a while reading through those. Apparently Daedalus had experimented with using eidolons to animate statues, but it hadn't gone well. He'd ended up deciding that automatons were much more reliable. The thought of eidolons controlling statues like they'd controlled the boys made Annabeth shudder. She was pretty sure the spirits had shot up the list to become her least favorite monsters. She couldn't quite get the image of Percy with golden eyes out of her mind.

To distract herself from that disturbing thought, she made herself think back to the fight with the tar monsters yesterday. She'd experienced a moment of terror when the monster had gone for his back, its talons pointed, unknowingly, right at his Achilles spot. But she didn't want to think about that either. Instead, she redirected her thoughts to a happier moment: when Percy had said, "Duck" and she'd reacted instinctively, following his direction as his sword whistled over her head, fending off one of the monsters. Her heart had leapt, grateful that they were still a good team. She'd had the same feeling when he'd taken the tar bucket from her as they ran away. True, she could take care of herself, and she totally could have managed with the bucket, but it was nice to have him watching her back and helping her out again.

And suddenly, she just really wanted to see him. After losing him for months, yesterday's craziness, and today's mess, she just wanted a few quiet, hopefully uninterrupted, moments alone with her boyfriend.

Nervous butterflies fluttered in her stomach as Annabeth quickly brushed her teeth, washed her face, and checked her hair to make sure it wasn't too much of a mess. It looked fine. She quickly changed into a clean long-sleeved t-shirt that mostly matched her pajama pants, then slipped out the door.

The hallway was quiet. The only sounds were the thrumming of the engine and the faint whoosh of the aerial oars. Annabeth padded down the hall to Percy's room as quietly as she could and opened his door, hoping it wouldn't creak. Luckily, the hinges were brand new and opened smoothly.

She'd almost wondered if he'd be awake, but Percy was fast asleep, sprawled on his back under the covers. Not drooling, actually, but his mouth was open. It reminded her fondly of their quest in the Labyrinth, the night they'd stayed at the Triple G ranch. She'd gone downstairs to get a glass of water in the middle of the night. Grover and Percy were sprawled on the couches in the living room, fast asleep. A nature documentary was playing on low volume on the TV. She'd paused for a moment, just watching Percy sleep, wondering if she should tell him some of the things she was feeling. It always seemed easy late at night. Everything was harder in the daylight. In the end, she'd said nothing, just taken her water back upstairs. She'd regretted not waking him up and talking to him that night after he blew up Mt. St. Helens the next day and she'd thought he was gone. Now, not knowing what was coming in the next few days, she didn't want to regret missing a chance to spend time with him again.

So she moved closer and gently shook his shoulder, whispering his name. She had to shake him a couple times before he finally woke up, blinking at her. For a moment, she thought he was going to ask if she was real again, like he had in that dream. But he didn't. Instead, looking a little drowsy and dazed, he asked, "Wh—what's going on? Are we there?"

"No." She tried to keep her voice low, but a spark of excitement was lighting up her chest. "It's the middle of the night."

"You mean…" She watched him slowly process her words as he started to wake up. His eyes widened slightly. "You sneaked into my cabin?"

Seriously? "Percy, you'll be seventeen in two months. You can't seriously be worried about getting into trouble with Coach Hedge."

"Uh, have you seen his baseball bat?" Percy asked as he sat up, running a hand through his messy hair.

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes again. "Besides, Seaweed Brain, I just thought we could take a walk." She hesitated, then added, "We haven't had any time to be together alone. I want to show you something—my favorite place aboard the ship." At first, when she'd left her room, she hadn't been sure exactly what her plan was, but the idea had come to her as she'd crossed the quiet hallway.

Percy was watching her with a look on his face that she couldn't quite read. Something about it made her heart beat faster, though. "Can I, you know, brush my teeth first?"

She smiled. "You'd better. Because I'm not kissing you until you do." She moved towards the door to keep watch, or give him privacy in case he wanted to change his shirt or something, adding over her shoulder, "And brush your hair while you're at it."

Five minutes later, he was ready to go. She led the way down the hall, then reached back to take his hand, feeling a tiny thrill as his fingers wrapped around hers. As they made their way through the lower level of the ship, she gave him the truncated tour. Most of her focus, though, was on her destination.

The stables.

She'd discovered them on the flight west to California. When she couldn't sleep one night, she'd come down here and watched the lights of the country pass by below. And she'd thought about Percy. The stable reminded her vaguely of the zoo truck they'd rode in from Denver to Las Vegas on their very first quest. Back when they'd barely known each other. It felt like a lifetime ago.

When she opened the door, she took a deep breath in of the comforting scent of hay. It reminded her of the stables at camp, too, and helping Silena with the pegasi last summer. She allowed herself a moment of sadness, then refocused on her plan for this evening. She picked up a blanket hanging over one of the stalls and spread it on the ground, covering part of the doors as Percy asked, "A glass-bottomed boat?"

She nodded, then sat down, patting the blanket next to her. "Sit with me."

"Okay." Percy sat down beside her, leaning back on his hands and stretching out his legs. Annabeth scooted until she was right beside him, her knee resting on his thigh. Percy laid a hand on the small of her back. They sat there for a couple minutes, just soaking in the quiet and watching the pattern of lights pass by far below.

"Leo built the stables so pegasi could come and go easily," Annabeth said finally, mostly just because she wanted to talk to him. "Only he didn't realize that pegasi prefer to roam free, so the stables are always empty."

Percy nodded slowly, his eyes traveling around the room, then he frowned. "What do you mean come and go easily? Wouldn't a pegasus have to make it down two flights of stairs?" When she told him the glass was bay doors, he turned a little pale. "You mean we're sitting on doors? What if they opened?"

"I suppose we'd fall to our deaths. But they won't open." She smiled sweetly at him. "Most likely."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Great."

Annabeth laughed, resisting the urge to kiss him. She seriously wanted to (that was definitely one of the reasons she'd brought him down here), but it was also nice just to talk and adjust to being together again. Now, wondering if he would guess right, she said, "You know why I like it here? It's not just the view. What does this place remind you of?"

His gaze traveled around the room again before settling back on her. The bronze light from the lantern cast a soft glow over his face, and the way he was looking at her made her heart pick up its pace. To her delight, his answer was the right one. "That zoo truck. The one we took to Las Vegas." When she smiled, he started to, but there was still a small furrow between his brows. He reached up to play with a section of her hair that had fallen over her shoulder, then he brushed it back. He was always so fidgety, but she understood how that felt. "That was so long ago. We were in bad shape, struggling to get across the country to find that stupid lightning bolt, trapped in a truck with a bunch of mistreated animals. How can you be nostalgic for that?"

A reasonable question. But she had her answer. It was what she'd thought of the first night she came down here, unable to sleep, terrified of what she might find at the Roman camp, and going back over her memories in case she needed to help Percy remember their history. "Because, Seaweed Brain," she caught the slight smirk that told her he actually didn't mind the nickname, "it's the first time we really talked, you and me. I told you about my family, and…" she realized she was fiddling with the string of her camp necklace. The beads were hidden under her shirt, so she pulled the necklace out. Mostly she wanted to see the red coral pendant that Percy had given her when they'd first started dating. He'd brought it from his father's palace and given it to her on the beach one of their last days at camp last summer. Now, his eyes flicked to it and a small smile tugged on his lips before he looked back at her face. She again resisted the urge to kiss him—she really wanted to finish what she was telling him first. "And it reminds me how long we've known each other. We were twelve, Percy. Can you believe that?"

"No." He leaned closer and his smile turned teasing. "So…you knew you liked me from that moment?"

She smirked, even as a shiver ran down her arms and her fingertips started to tingle. "I hated you at first. You annoyed me. Then I tolerated you for a few years. Then—" She tilted her head slightly, keeping her eyes on his.

"Okay, fine," Percy said, but he didn't sound mad and he hadn't moved away. His eyes flicked to her lips, and Annabeth's restraint shattered. She leaned forward, closing the remaining distance between them, and kissed him.

Gods. She couldn't help the tiny, happy sigh that escaped. It just felt so good to kiss him like this, with privacy, with almost no chance of interruption, with just the two of them alone together in this warm, quiet room. She raised her hand to his neck, letting her fingers just brush the edge of his hairline. His arm tightened around her waist and his other hand came up to cup her cheek. He deepened the kiss and Annabeth pressed closer, savoring the feeling of being with him again. Especially with no rush or hurry at the moment. They could take their time.

Eventually she drew back and said quietly, "I missed you, Percy."

He swallowed hard, his gaze roaming over her face like he was trying to memorize it. His thumb lightly brushed across her cheek before he lowered his hand to take hers. "Annabeth…in New Rome, demigods can live their whole lives in peace."

She bit her lip, feeling her eyebrows draw together. Where was he going with this? "Reyna explained it to me. But, Percy, you belong at Camp Half-Blood. That other life—"

"I know," he said hurriedly, his thumb rubbing across the back of her hand. She didn't think he even realized he was doing it. He took a deep breath, then said, "But while I was there, I saw so many demigods living without fear: kids going to college, couples getting married and raising families. There's nothing like that at Camp Half-Blood. I kept thinking about you and me…and maybe someday when this war with the giants is over…"

Suddenly, it was hard to breathe as the impact of his words rushed over her. Kids going to college…couples getting married and raising families…I kept thinking about you and me. Was he saying what she thought he was saying? Fear and resentment related to Camp Jupiter and the months he'd been missing battled with a trembling sprig of hope that she hadn't even known existed in her heart until just now. All she could say was, "Oh."

Percy seemed to be waiting for her to say more, but when she didn't a guarded expression came over his face. "I'm sorry. I just…I had to think of that to keep going. To give me hope." When he said that, she almost threw her arms around him, but the fear that his plan was impossible kept her from doing it. "Forget I mentioned—"

"No!" The absolute last thing she wanted to do was forget what he'd said and the way he'd looked when he said it, tentative and hopeful. She loved that he wanted to share that with her, but there were just so many obstacles in the way. Still, she didn't want him to be sorry for telling her. "No, Percy. Gods, that's so sweet." She laced her fingers through his, gripping his hand tightly. "It's just…we may have burned that bridge. If we can't repair things with the Romans—well, the two sets of demigods have never gotten along. That's why the gods kept us separate." She bit her lip, then voiced her fear: "I don't know if we could ever belong there."

Percy nodded once, but his jaw was set, and she recognized the look of stubborn resolve on his face. That was fine. Most of her thought his dream was probably impossible, especially given their current situation. But that tiny sprout of hope inside made her want him to convince her. Over the past year, she'd never looked too much to the future. First it was the war with Kronos and she'd thought her best friend was going to get his soul reaped. Then he'd survived and they'd gotten together…and then he'd been taken for months. Her entire focus had narrowed to simply getting Percy back. She hadn't allowed herself to think past that. But apparently he had. And that both thrilled and terrified her.

Percy moved his hand from her back to the floor, shifting his weight. He kept holding her other hand, though. She adjusted her position, too, both knees now resting against his leg as she sat sideways. Tonight, especially after the drama with the eidolons, she needed the close proximity. Percy glanced down, as if thinking, then said, "I was having a nightmare when you woke me up."

Annabeth was a little surprised at the change of subject, but it was fine. "What was it about?"

As he described what he'd seen—the twin giants, their plans for destroying Rome, Nico in his jar—her stomach clenched and a flash of anger sparked in her chest. Her mind started whirring, trying to piece it all together. Nico was the bait, being held somewhere in Rome. Gods, poor Nico. The kid didn't deserve that. They would have to get to him. Five days…the Kalends of July. At least Nemesis's deadline made more sense.

"What's a Kalends?" Percy asked, and the familiarity of him asking her a question that she had to answer about Greek mythology-ness made her smile. Okay, smirk, but whatever. She was just happy they were back to their usual routine. She'd been afraid of what they might lose in their months apart. Of course, they'd been apart before for school over the years, and always fallen back into their usual routines, so maybe she shouldn't be so surprised. They had a solid foundation to keep building on.

"It's just the Roman term for the first of the month. That's where we get the word calendar." The smile faded as her thoughts returned to Nico, trapped in an airless jar. "But how can Nico survive that long? We should talk to Hazel."

"Now?"

Annabeth paused, trying to decide. But there was nothing Hazel could do about it tonight—she would just worry. And, selfishly, Annabeth didn't want to give up her time with Percy. "No," she decided. "It can wait until morning. I don't want to hit her with this news in the middle of the night."

Percy nodded slightly. "The giants mentioned a statue. And something about a talented friend who was guarding it. Whoever this friend was, she scared Otis. Anyone who can scare a giant…" His voice trailed off.

Annabeth looked away, tracing the bright lines of the roads passing below them. A statue…a talented friend…her nightmares…the tiny amount of research she'd been able to do on the Mark of Athena…she didn't like how it was starting to come together. She desperately wanted to be wrong. Her fight with her mother and Athena's nasty words ran through her mind again. Misery settled over her shoulders. Hesitantly, she asked, "Percy, have you seen Poseidon lately? Or had any kind of sign from him?" Part of her hoped his father had also come to him, torn between his Greek and Roman aspects, spouting crazy, angry, hurtful comments. At least then she would know it wasn't just her godly parent who was losing it.

But Percy shook his head. "Not since…Wow. I guess I haven't thought about it. Not since the end of the Titan War. I saw him at Camp Half-Blood, but that was last August." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw his brow furrow when he looked at her. "Why? Have you seen Athena?"

Annabeth kept her eyes on the dark world below. Her hand in his suddenly felt clammy, but she didn't want to draw it away as she admitted she'd seen her mother a few weeks ago and, "It…it wasn't good. She didn't seem like herself." That was putting it lightly. "Maybe it's the Greek/Roman schizophrenia that Nemesis described. I'm not sure. She said some hurtful things." The next part was hard to get out. "She said I had failed her."

"Failed her?" Percy sounded incredulous. "How could you ever—?"

"I don't know." Annabeth's shoulders slumped. She suddenly felt exhausted by all of it, including the continuous repetition of her spider nightmares. "On top of that, I've been having nightmares of my own. They don't make as much sense as yours."

She could feel him watching her, but her throat felt choked. She didn't want to talk about the nightmares. She didn't want to talk about the night she'd left home. She didn't want to talk about her fear of what might await her at the end of this quest. She only had a handful of the puzzle pieces so far, but she already hated the picture they made. And she didn't see how she could avoid any of it. Fear bubbled in her stomach and she took a deep breath, trying to force it away.

Percy let go of her hand to instead lay his hand on her knee, which was resting against his leg. His thumb ran back and forth across the fabric of her pajama pants, raising the good kind of goosebumps on her skin. She appreciated the simple reassurance of having him here next to her. As nice as it was to talk through problems with him again, though, that wasn't why she'd wanted to come down here tonight. She dredged up a small smile. "Some romantic evening, huh?" When he returned the faint smile, she said, "No more bad things until the morning." When there would be plenty of issues to hash out. Pushing that thought away, she leaned closer and kissed him again. The familiar salty tang of his lips brought her back to the present moment. "We'll figure everything out. I've got you back. For now, that's all that matters."

"Right. No more talk about Gaea rising, Nico being held hostage, the world ending, the giants—"

She cut him off with a hand over his mouth. "Shut up, Seaweed Brain. Just hold me for a while."

When she drew her hand away, he was smiling. "That, I can do." He held out his arms, and Annabeth tucked herself against him. When his arms wrapped around her, she felt the tension melt away. She drew in a deep breath and slid her arms around him. With her head nestled against his shoulder, she could just hear his heartbeat.

Percy pressed his lips to her forehead. "Thanks for waking me up," he murmured.

She tilted her head up, smiling. "You're very welcome."

He smirked, then dipped his head to kiss her lips again. Heat rushed through Annabeth and she pressed closer to him.

The kissing slowly turned into languidly making out, until they were both laying on top of the bay doors. Percy surfaced long enough to say, "So is this why you really brought me down here?"

"Six months," Annabeth muttered, then pulled him back down again.

Eventually, they found themselves curled up, starting to be drowsy, but still talking some. Annabeth's head was resting on Percy's chest, her hand over his heart. One of his hands was on top of hers, while his other arm was wrapped around her shoulders, that hand occasionally running up and down her arm, sending shivers along her nerves.

"I kept wishing you were with me in Alaska," Percy said quietly. "Like at breakfast one morning, Frank and Hazel were being all cute and flirty, and I was happy for them, but I remember thinking, Dang, I wish Annabeth was here. Then one night, we were sitting at this picnic table, under all these stars…gods, Annabeth, I've never seen stars like that. And I just wanted to hold your hand while we looked at them together."

Annabeth had to fight hard not to cry. Instead, she pressed her lips against his neck. "That sounds nice. Maybe we can go back one day."

"Yeah. Yeah, that would be cool. It's an amazing place. You'd like it." He exhaled, fingers still trailing up and down her arm. "At least we're together now, though."

"Mmhm." Annabeth's eyes drifted closed briefly. "Maybe try not to get yourself kicked in the head by your own pegasus again."

"Extenuating circumstances."

"Aren't they always?"

Percy chuckled, then kissed the top of her head. "Always." After another minute or two of quiet, he asked, "Should we go back upstairs?"

She shook her head. "Not yet. Let's just…stay here a little longer."

"Okay."

Slowly, the soft hum of the engine, the gentle rocking of the boat, and the warm feeling of being cuddled up with Percy lulled Annabeth to sleep.

She woke up a couple hours later, briefly feeling that disoriented, late-night, half-awake feeling. Then she realized she was still curled up in the stables, using Percy as a pillow. His breathing was deep and even. His hand was still holding hers. Annabeth couldn't recall the last time she'd felt this warm, comfortable, and safe. The thought flitted across her mind that they should go back upstairs to their own beds, but she didn't really want to move. Instead, she snuggled closer to Percy and fell back asleep.

Can you tell that I just had fun with this one? I like to think that Rick just very nicely cut away from the end of the scene, since this is a middle-grade book. But that's where we can have some fun in fanfiction and the kissing can continue lol