I don't own PJO, only my OCs.

Summary: Maliah hates Tyler, and she has her own quest to save two children that she feels this strong connection to. She's all too eager for the excuse to leave the son of the sea alone and get to work, even after his sister goes missing. But when Tyler disappears, too, she really needs to reevaluate her emotions and put her hatred to the side before it's too late. Can she put her feelings to the side to save the boy she used to know or will it be too late?

The Ghost of a Girl

TYLER

It was November now. I remember leaving camp the night of the summer solstice like it was yesterday. I still thought about the adventure I'd gone on to save my now friend's life. I remember the battles I'd faced to succeed, much like the ones I endeared now. I started to wonder if I would ever go a minute without having to rescue someone.

The dreams I had of my older brother, Percy Jackson, told me no. I still had to find him and his friends before it was too late, before this war that Maliah leads starts.

Maliah.

I think about the strong, powerful daughter of Zeus I'd left behind. I didn't let myself think about her a lot anymore these days. Sometimes the thoughts overwhelmed me so much, I lost control. I remember I flooded out an aquarium last month after thinking about how much she hated being on the ocean.

I was screwed, I knew that, but it wouldn't have been as bad if I didn't walk away from her without a proper goodbye just minutes after she kissed me. I was sure she was angry at me, but I felt like I could fix it when I finally found my sister and was able to make things right.

I had been travelling a lot during the weekends, trying my best to find my sister and balance school. Let me tell you, I was not doing a great job at all. I was always tired, hurt, moody. The only person who kept me sort of sane was my mom. She was there reminding me that I was doing a great job and that if anyone could pull it off, it was me. That's just who she was, though. She wouldn't let me sink in my own negative thoughts.

The twins hadn't returned to school for this term, so I hadn't seen them since I left, either. I didn't know why. I guess they'd just decided to stay at camp and train. Knowing everything we were coming up against, I couldn't say I blamed them. I sigh, placing my hands in my hair. It was shorter now, not as long as it was this past summer. I'd also grown a few inches, and my birthday had passed in September. I even felt different now, I felt older than I was. I guess it was all of my responsibilities weighing down on me.

Today was Saturday so I was able to spend all day looking for my sister. I had used River, my stubborn Pegasus and the only living thing allowed to leave camp with me, to travel throughout New York, looking for my sister. I was close to camp now, and knowing that made my heart fall into my stomach. I could go say hey, I could check in. But would they hate me any less? No, I had to focus and end it all as soon as possible. That was the only way.

I'm snapped out my thoughts when I notice a giant, his fist swinging down and barely avoiding the body of a young girl with light reddish-blonde hair. Maliah? I think, but no, she couldn't be here. She was busy training. This had to be a coincidence. She was a little taller and her hair was shorter than Maliah's had been, only to the middle of her back. I couldn't see her face, either, but I just knew it couldn't be her. I ran to the monster, calling out, "Hey, look out!"

The girl dodged the monster. I unleash Dynami, my sword made of Stygian Iron, and cleanly slice through the monster. The golden dust settles around me, and I turn to say something to the girl but she was gone. I allow my sword to go back into necklace form and I'm still thinking of the girl. It couldn't have been her, right? But what if it was? What if Maliah was here and I just lost her again? I begin to run after her but I hear the flutter of wings and hooves hitting the pavement.

River.

"You okay, Ty? You don't look so good. You look like you've seen a ghost," he says.

"Yeah, River. I just thought I saw her. I thought I saw Maliah. It brought up bad memories, but I'm okay. I'm sure it was just my imagination." I respond.

It had to be. She wouldn't have run away from me like that, would she?

River huffs next to me. Since I'd left camp, River had become my best, and I'm sure only, friend. He was there for me through every new experience I'd had so far. He watched me fall apart about Maliah, worry myself to death over Sophia, and just feel so weighed down and guilty about leaving the rest of my friends behind. He had experienced my breaking points with me, watching me fall apart. He also watched me put myself back together. In the beginning, he hated me. I think it was because there was a lack of respect on both of our ends, but he had loved Maliah from the start. She was even the one who named him. Now he didn't love me as much as he did her, but we definitely got along a lot better now.

"Hey, I think we have company," he says.

I sigh. I really couldn't catch a break, "Not again."

As I turn around, I catch the blue eyes of a blonde girl. She's tall, almost as tall as me, and tanned. Her mouth was gaping open and she wore a mask of confusion. She looked at the winged horse next to me, her eyes widening in shock.

"What is that thing? What was the thing you just killed that was attacking that girl? Who are you? Oh my God, am I going insane?" she asks, all in one breath.

I don't respond at first, not understanding how she could have seen through everything, seeing through the mist that shielded mortal eyes. As I contemplate the possibility of her being a demigod, she stares at me expectantly. She wanted her answers.

"I'm Tyler Wright. This is my Pegasus, a winged horse, River. He's very sensitive so please don't call him a horse or a thing," I say, earning a huff of agreement from River, "and I just killed a giant. You are?"

"River?" she says, looking at him with wide eyes, "River the winged horse, er, Pegasus?"

He nods, but I don't miss his eye roll, "Yeah. River the Pegasus. Uh, I should really take you to my camp. Just so they can meet you and evaluate you. You shouldn't be out here alone if you can see these things. That means they'll come for you."

"They? What they?" she asks.

"They as in things like the giant I just killed and much, much worse."

"There's worse?"

She looks at me, almost pleading with me to tell her that there's nothing worse out there than what she'd just seen, but I can't lie to her. I just nod my head and offer her my hand, "We really should get going."

I mount River and hold out my hand to the scared girl. She's no older than I am and her entire world was changing in front of her. I remember how scared I had been last year, but I was just praying that her first year in the life of a demigod went a lot smoother than mine. With a lot less violence, too. I hoped she'd just end up one of those demigods that never had to leave camp, and maybe just maybe she'd somehow sneak her way out of the war.

Something told me that was wishful thinking.

"I'm Alison Wilson, by the way," she says, finally.

She looked from my hand to River and took a deep breath. She grabbed my hand and I helped pull her up. Once she was settled, she wrapped her arms around me and I'm pretty sure she held her breath as we ascended into the sky. She was terrified, I could tell. Even I had been frightened the first time I rode River.

"Should I do a flip?" River asks.

I ignore him.

MALIAH

That was him. It was Tyler. Something inside me wanted to be happy that I'd seen him, but it was the smallest part of me. The rest of me was still angry. I remember what it felt like when I kissed him the night of the summer solstice. I had wanted to kiss him since the night we talked at the hotel, when it was just us at the pool. I worked up all of my courage to put myself out there, and he reciprocated it. He felt the same. Then he left me.

He saw me crying, breaking down and he heard me begging him to stay. He left anyway. He left me with an empty promise that he would make it up to me, but he would never get the chance to. I just had to avoid him until I left for Olympus after this summer. I just had to do that. I could do that.

Truth be told, I didn't want to see him again anyway. I already had the bitter memories of him leaving me in the dust, but now he'd also killed one of my test monsters, setting me back one. I hadn't realized I'd been squeezing the hilt of Dunamas, my sword, until my knuckles felt numb around it. I willed it to return to its resting state, a silver sterling chained necklace with a solitaire diamond, and turned on my heels.

I couldn't believe he had the nerve to be this close to camp now. He wasn't coming back, was he? Not now? I at least had until this summer before I had to see him, right? I chose to do online schooling and stay at camp, I couldn't risk seeing him before I was ready. I was supposed to have months.

I had been so lost in my thoughts that I slam into someone's chest and look up. I'm looking into the familiar serpent green eyes of my favorite son of Hermes, Jason Wyatt. He places his hands on my shoulders, steadying me.

"Are you okay?" he asks.

"Yeah. I'm just angry, and I need something to kill. Can you believe that Tyler was right there? That he's been here this entire time and nothing? Nothing." I snap.

His face flashes me with pity before darkening again, "I was hoping you hadn't seen him. I knew it would just make you feel worse."

"Nothing killing a monster can't solve."

He sighs, "Maliah, you can't just go around killing monsters to make yourself feel better."

"But I can do it for the gods?" I ask.

"That's different."

"If I can kill monsters for the gods, I can kill them for myself. Just watch me."

I pushed past him and walk out of the alley, leaving him behind. Jase meant well, I know he did, but there were just things that I couldn't talk to him about. I couldn't talk to him about how I felt because it wasn't fair to him. He was Tyler's best friend. I took away what time they had left before Tyler disappeared. I was the girl who ruined their last summer together, and yet he didn't blame me the way he should have.

The least I could do is pretend I wasn't as hurt so that he would know he was hurting more than me, and he had every right to be.

When Tyler left us, Jase took his place. At first, it was just him checking up on me when I wouldn't leave my cabin, or when I hadn't eaten. He would come by the cabin after Brandon went home to his family, and sleep in one of the spare beds because he knew I hated being alone. We avoided talking about Tyler, but I honestly think that losing him is what bonded us the most. After Jase found me outside of the arena, he learned what Tyler did. He punched the arena wall over and over again until the bones in his knuckles shattered.

Apollo had been there, thankfully, and he healed him up good as new. Apollo pleaded with us to not be angry, but gods it was hard. Normal, human teenagers struggled enough with anger, but we're demigods. It was just boiling inside of us, fueling us.

Looking back on it now, I can't even see myself as the weak, pathetic little girl who cried all of the time. I had changed. I knew that when I did see Tyler again one day, I would be someone he couldn't even recognize and I told myself that it made me feel better. I told myself that when he realizes I'm not the fragile girl he has to protect anymore, he won't bother me with apologies and he'll let me continue hating him.

I told myself that would make me feel better. And I knew it would.

Eventually, I had found another giant. I'm sure it was the first giant's brother, and I wasn't even in the mood to play with him. I had activated the bow Apollo had given me, Axios, and shot one of my magical arrows at him. I had killed him quickly, collecting my four hundred and seventeenth victory since my challenge began.

After a while of walking, I came across the tree house that I had discovered during my depressed state this summer. I used it a lot to hideout in, even still did. I climbed up and inside, dragging my palm across the etchings on the walls. I was only alone for a few minutes before my favorite daughter of Aphrodite and her boyfriend, son of Hades, found me.

Katelynn Michaels was my best friend and we had both risked our lives to save Tony Staton's. They were the other two people who comforted me the night Tyler left me. After that, we were all just kind of inseparable. Before we had found Tony, his father threatened my life and I made a promise to bring his son home to him. When I made good on my promise, Tony returning to the Underworld for a few days after the dance, Hades had sent me a gift and the closest thing to a thank you card I'd ever received.

You didn't fail me, Maliah.

Pleasantly surprised,

Hades.

He had sent me a whistle, one I wore around my neck at all times. When I blew into it, humans, gods and demigods heard nothing. But a creature, my own hell hound, would come in moments. Elysium, named after one of the places in the Underworld, had come in handy many times. Tony even told me I was his dad's favorite niece. Hades had been present, and he didn't confirm that but he did say he didn't care much for Poseidon or his, er, spawns. I took what I could get.

"I'm going to cut to the chase," Katelynn says in true fashion, "what was it like seeing him again?"

"Jase told you?" I ask.

"Yeah," she says, looking away.

"I didn't feel anything. We didn't talk. That was the end. It's over."

She rolls her eyes, "You don't mean that. You, like, loved him."

"No," I say, shaking my head and choosing my words carefully, "I didn't. I could have. But he didn't give me the chance, so I didn't. I don't. And I never will, so it's over."

Tony stared at me with sadness in his eyes. He and Jake were the only ones who would even still mention Tyler. Brandon was gone but I'm sure he wasn't even as angry with Tyler. Brandon understood because he did the same thing for me, dropping everything to rescue me, but I just couldn't see it from that perspective. I met Tony's eyes and I felt bad for being as blunt as I was, but I couldn't help it.

Tyler Wright had made his bed and he could lay in it, too.