Hey all, guess what? I'm still alive!
Hah, I'm sure you're all plenty upset with me for the hiatus, and I am so sorry! I was having a hard time writing the episode from Percy's POV and I realized why that was—because I needed one more chapter in between before I got to Percy's side of the story. So I am sorry for breaking my earlier promise to you, but this chapter will not be in Percy's POV, but rather Calypso's. Hers and Percy's confrontation will have to be pushed back another chapter. I think that I would have skipped a little too much story development, because it was impossible to fit all this stuff in from Percy's POV, so I compromised. I'll have to re-write that whole chapter because it was simply not working out how I needed it to. Anyways, please enjoy!
"Are you absolutely sure about this?" Calypso looked down at Leo one more time, fidgeting with his pillow and fussing over him in general.
Leo rolled his eyes good naturedly, "Calypso. Sunshine. This pillow is made of, like, Pegasus feathers or something. There is nothing you can do to make it more comfortable."
She huffed, "You know I'm not talking about the pillow." She snuck a glance to the other end of the cabin, where the other demigods were talking amongst themselves and giving the two a moment of privacy. "Look," she said again, her voice muted, "you don't have to do this if you don't want to. There is nothing wrong with you, we could leave this place and never come back."
"Weren't you the one encouraging me the other day and telling me that nothing will change if I get my memories back?" he grinned, "Calypso, I want to do this. I want to be a whole person."
"You are a whole person!" she pouted.
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and cupped the back of her head gently, "Sunshine," he mumbled as he pulled her close, "what is this really about?"
Calypso tried to shy away, but Leo's hold was steady. She sighed in defeat and looked down in embarrassment. "I just…I liked being the only one okay?" she mumbled weakly.
He chuckled, "What do you mean? Of course you're the only one! I mean, I know I'm attractive and all, but I'm a one gal type of man, you know?"
She groaned, and tried once more to pull away—with no success. "That's not what I mean. It's just—it was nice, for once, just…being the only one that you loved. I've never had that before, okay? Someone who cared only for me, and no one else. And now I'm gonna have to share you with your friends. And I don't know if I can deal with that." She looked upwards to brace herself for what she was about to say, "I'm jealous of your friends."
Leo did not release her, but instead brought his other hand behind her head and tucked her into his chest. She heard his heart beating steadily beneath her and felt his entire body shift with his intake of breath. "Look Calypso," he murmured into her ear, "I don't know what exactly is going to happen after I recover my memories, but I do know one thing: I love you. Calypso I love you so much that I was willing to die for the mere chance that I would get to see you one more time. And even though I don't have clear memories from that time, I know that I would do it all again in a heartbeat. For you. No matter who, or what I remember, I know that this is one thing that will never change. So maybe I'll have some more people to interact with, but so will you. I know this is all new to you, but that doesn't mean it's a bad thing. You and I, Sunshine, that's forever. That's, like, epic."
She laughed weakly into his chest, willing the tears to go away, knowing that they had an audience and this was not the time to make a scene. Once she had a hold over her emotions, she wiggled out from Leo's hold and looked down at him, "Leo Valdez, when did you get so wise?"
"I was always wise, you just hadn't realized it yet," he grinned.
She smiled back as she gave him a swift kiss, "I love you, you hot-headed, self-centered, egotistical, poor excuse for a mechanic."
He laughed heartily, which got the attention of the demigods across the room.
"You ready to go, flame-boy?" Jason spoke as he approached the bed Leo was laying on.
"I guess so, but no funny business while I'm out. I want all these goods intact when I wake up."
Piper, much calmer now than she had been when Calypso first met her, rolled her eyes, "Yeah, okay, don't worry about any of that happening."
Leo snuck a glance at Calypso and winked. She giggled, and felt more than one demigods' eyes swivel to her in surprise. 'I guess they still don't know what to make of me yet,' she thought dryly.
"Well then, Clovis, do your thing!" Hazel said eagerly. Her request, however, went unanswered. She turned and cast her gaze about, "Um, Clovis?"
Nico, the dark headed boy with the pale skin, sighed and roughly poked the boy in question, "Wake up! You've got work to do!"
Clovis half-snored, half-snorted as he shook himself out of a seemingly deep sleep. "What, is it dinner time yet?"
Calypso had to take a deep breath so as to not snap at the poor boy, it wasn't his fault that his father was the god of sleep.
"No, Snorlax, it's time to put me to sleep, remember? Memory recovery and all that?" Leo gestured dramatically to his head.
"Oh, hmm, right, of course…" Clovis said sleepily, his eyes drooping once more.
"Clovis! Wake up!" spoke Piper, her voice clearly laced with some charmspeak for an extra pep.
This time, Clovis sprang up, "I'm up, I'm up!" he looked around wildly, until his eyes settled on Leo, "Right, deep sleep. Memory recovery. Correct?"
Frank sighed in exasperation, "Yes, Clovis. Please."
Clovis nodded as he approached Leo's bed, "Well if you're ready—"
"Wait!" Leo held his palm up, then dramatically swung the Golden Fleece around his shoulders and laid back down again. "I am in full burrito mode. You may now commence your spellweaving."
Some of the boys chuckled, but Clovis merely nodded drowsily as he laid his hand on Leo's forehead. "Just close your eyes and relax. What is your favorite place in the world?" he spoke slowly.
Leo's eyes drifted closed, "Ogygia," he murmured, "the shoreline, where we watched the stars…"
Calypso felt nearly everyone's eyes swing to her once more, and she had to willingly stop herself from flushing. And yet, a part of her could not hold back a small smile, thinking back to that night they slept under the stars. That was her favorite place too.
"The shoreline, good. Now just think of the waves, how they sounded, the smell of the sea in the air, the grains of sand under you…" Clovis spoke softly and dreamily, Calypso nearly found herself drifting off along with Leo, so clearly could she picture the scene.
Leo sighed sleepily, his body relaxing entirely. In no time at all his breathing steadied and his body stilled. He was fully and completely asleep.
Clovis yawned heartily; his task now done, he seemed ready to drift off himself. "Right, he'll be under for a while. Can I sleep now?" even as he spoke, Clovis was shuffling over to the main room of the cabin and settling into his bed.
"Thank you, Clovis," Calypso spoke, but the only response she got from Clovis was a deep sigh as his figure settled into the bed and moved no more.
"So…what now?" Jason spoke after an awkward pause.
"Now we wait," Percy said, his eyes immediately dropping to the floor when they accidentally made contact with Calypso.
Annabeth looked around the room, her eyes resting on Calypso perhaps a bit longer than necessary, "Well, I suppose there's not much we can do at this point," she glanced at Leo and sighed, "it's all on him now."
"Annabeth is right," Calypso said softly, wanting now, more than ever, to just be alone with Leo. "You should all go get some sleep, you have war games tomorrow. There's nothing left for you to do. I'll stay the night here and look over him."
Nico nodded immediately, seeming to understand Calypso's true motives, "Of course, you should be the one to look after him. I need to help Will at the infirmary anyways. Goodnight." He seemed to melt into the shadows as he exited the room.
Annabeth and Percy followed after him. And after Hazel laid a quick peck on Leo's forehead, Hazel and Frank left too.
Piper and Jason seemed to linger in the room, as if debating whether or not they wanted to demand to stay. However, after what Calypso presumed was some kind of couple-mind-meld/telepathy communication, the two of them seemed to agree to leave Calypso alone with Leo.
"Let us know if you need anything." Jason said as he stepped a bit closer to Leo's bedside and looked down at him, "Just hang in there, Leo. I'll see you tomorrow, old friend." He half-smiled and stepped away.
Piper, like Hazel, kissed Leo in the forehead and whispered well wishes to him, "You'll be okay Leo. You'll be just fine." She glanced up at Calypso, "Let us know if anything changes, please?"
Calypso smiled at the girl, touched by her genuine concern for Leo. "Of course, you'll be the first to know."
Piper smiled weakly and grasped Jason's hand as he led her out of the cabin, "Goodnight!" she called weakly as she exited the cabin.
Calypso waved at the couple and sighed once the door swung shut behind them. She glanced over at Leo and sighed deeply. This would be a long night.
She pulled up a chair and sat as close to his bed as possible, one hand gripping his hand tightly while the other swept away the stray curls on his forehead. She wasn't sure how long she sat there, merely watching his chest rise and fall, but she must have dozed off at some point, because all of a sudden she was jerked awake when Leo's entire body seemed to go into a wild seizure.
Startled, Calypso sprang up quickly and pinned Leo's flailing arms to the bed. "Leo?! Are you okay?" she tried getting a good look at his face, but it must still be night time because the room was pitch-black. His lack of a response, however, suggested that he was still very much asleep. Frantically, she attempted to pin down all his limbs to stop him from hurting himself in his sleep.
As she was in the middle of her struggle, Calypso heard the door creak open at the end of the room. There, carrying a small lamp, stood a half-asleep Piper. Once her eyes landed on Calypso though, her eyes widened and she hastened over to the bed and pinned down Leo's legs as he thrashed wildly. The two of them struggled quietly for a few minutes as they attempted to hold down Leo's limbs, but just as suddenly as the fit had begun, it ended. Panting slightly, the both of them locked gazes before they nodded and gently let go of Leo's arms and legs.
Pulling up a chair next to Calypso's Piper sank into her chair with a big sigh. "Well that's one way to wake up," she turned to Calypso, "has he been like that all night?"
Still trying to catch her breath, Calypso shook her head slightly, "No, it had just started before you walked in. I must have fallen asleep, what time is it?"
"About 2, maybe 3 in the morning." She turned her gaze back to Leo, "I couldn't sleep."
Calypso peered closely at Piper, taking note of the clear signs of worry and concern on the girl's face, "You really care about him, don't you?"
Piper's eyes locked on Calypso's with a ferocity that Calypso did not expect from her, "Yes, I do. He's one of my best friends. He saved my life; he saved everyone's lives."
Calypso stared into the girl's face once more, keeping her gaze even with her. "He talked about you, you know. When he first landed in Ogygia. He told me he felt like you didn't need him around. He felt cast out: yours and Jason's third wheel. He felt that you didn't want him on your quest."
Piper's face crumbled under Calypso's close scrutiny, "He really said all that? I never—I mean we never-…it wasn't like that…" she looked down at her hands as she wringed them tightly in her lap, "May—maybe we weren't quite as close as we used to be, you know? Me and Jason were just getting to know each other again, and I guess we wanted a little bit more quality time than we used to, but…we never meant for him to feel that way. Of course we wanted him around, he was the one that held everyone together."
"I'm sure you didn't realize that until he was gone, didn't you?" Calypso said sharply.
Piper could only stare at her hands, her head still bowed.
"You all made him feel like an outcast, and you were all too busy 'getting to know' each other and locking lips to even realize he was all alone on that quest! He cared so much about you all, and you dismissed him, made him feel like he was nothing more than a bad joke!"
Calypso's words hung in the air, stagnant and lingering. But after taking a deep breath, Piper looked up slowly and held her gaze steady with hers. "He's everything to you, isn't he? You really would do anything for him. You would die for him."
"He and I have both made great sacrifices to be together."
Piper's face scrunched up as she thought that over, "He died in order to be with you…what could you have done that is equal to that?"
But Calypso merely stayed silent as she held the girl's gaze.
"…You're not a goddess anymore, are you? I wasn't sure before, but…you don't feel like a goddess. Don't get me wrong, I have no doubt of your powers, but…they aren't quite goddess-level powers, are they? You gave it up…your powers, your godliness…just to be with him?"
"Yes." Calypso's voice was muted.
Piper sat there quietly, her face agape in astonishment. And then, quite suddenly she smiled and leapt at Calypso, enveloping her in a tight hug. "Thank you," Piper whispered, "thank you so much for saving him, for bringing him home."
Calypso sat there awkwardly for a while, not quite sure what to make of the girl's sudden display of affection, she never did do well with Aphrodite's children. But just as she was considering throwing the girl off of her, Piper seemed to gather her wits about her and released Calypso form her uncomfortable hold.
She sniffed as she wiped her eyes, though her face was fully composed when she spoke again, "I'm sorry, it's just—I'm really glad Leo found someone that cares for him so much. He deserves that." She looked at Leo fondly, "I know Jason and I probably made him feel uncomfortable, but I hope he'll realize that was never our intention. We were so worried about our future; we didn't even know if we would make it through the summer. And Jason and I were just starting to fall in love, you know? I guess we should have each spent more time with him. But I promise you, he was always our best friend and we always cared about him. Of course we wanted him there, he was the only one that could cheer us up and make us laugh even when everything looked so bleak…he was—is—a great friend. I hope he'll remember that, once he wakes up."
"Yes," Calypso nodded, "I hope he will." She had heard all that she needed to hear, so she took a deep breath before she smiled kindly at the girl, "Look, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be so gruff with you. He was so very hurt, when I first met him, you have to understand that I was just concerned for him."
Piper nodded, "Of course."
"It's hard, you know, living for so long and yet never being alive. I lived for millennia on that island, I watched kingdoms rise and fall. I watched heroes come and go. But I could never take part of anything, I could never really change anything. And I think some part of me had accepted that, that I would never be part of the world ever again. But then when Leo came…he changed everything. He made me alive again…I will never repay him for that."
Piper smiled fondly, "I'm glad you two found each other."
Calypso smiled back, "You know, it's no secret that I'm not your mother's biggest fan, but you're not bad, for a daughter of Aphrodite."
Piper laughed, "Yeah, you'd be surprised about how often I hear that. I guess everyone expects the self-obsessed beauty queen when they hear 'daughter of Aphrodite,' huh?"
"Yes, well, it's not like your dear mother has tried to discourage the stereotype, has she?"
"I guess not," Piper chuckled.
"I suppose now that your mother had such a hand in helping me and Leo get out of Ogygia I'll have to re-evaluate my opinion on some things."
"I guess that's what happens when you've been away for a while, huh?"
Calypso laughed, but as she opened her mouth to speak, Leo suddenly started thrashing once more, "Quick, hold down his legs!"
Piper responded quickly, and they both struggled to hold down the flailing Leo. This time, a pained groan escaped from his mouth, followed by some intelligible muttering that for the life of her Calypso could make no sense of.
The two girls struggled with Leo's limbs for a bit longer this time around, and when his flailing stopped once more, Calypso noted that he was flushed and sweating at the end of it.
"Get me a rag and some cold water." She ordered Piper as she worried over Leo's state. Piper promptly provided the items requested and the two girls sat quietly as Calypso wiped his face and placed the cool cloth over his forehead.
"Is he running a fever?" Piper spoke quietly.
Calypso sighed, "Yes, and I'm afraid he's only going to get worse as the night goes on. This process is not a kind one to the body."
Piper nodded, "Don't worry, I'll stay with you. You shouldn't have to deal with this alone."
Calypso nodded at the girl and half-smiled, "You're a good friend, Piper McLean. Leo is lucky to have you."
"You know," Piper spoke slowly, "we can be friends too, if you want."
"Friends?" Calypso mused quietly, "I don't think I've made a new friend in a very long time….Yes, we can be friends."
Piper smiled widely, looking to all the world like she'd never made a new friend in her entire life, "Good because I'm sure Leo has done a piss-poor job at catching you up with the real world! I mean have you even watched Mean Girls yet? Or The Notebook?"
Calypso frowned, "What notebook? And why would I want to look at rude girls?"
Piper groaned, "Like, the movies? He hasn't taken you to the movies yet?"
"I suppose we were a little busy, you know, adjusting to the real world and trying to survive while finding our way over here."
"Yeah, yeah," Piper rolled her eyes good naturedly, "but he could have spared, like, three hours to take you to a movie at least!"
Calypso chuckled, she had a basic understanding of what a movie was, but she'd never quite gotten around to actually seeing one. "So tell me about the movies you mentioned, what are they about?"
And so Piper launched into a way-too-detailed description of the movies, most of the things she said were so detailed that Calypso could make absolutely no sense of it, but she just nodded along and let the girl speak on. Eventually though, Leo had another seizure, and so both girls stayed silent as they held him down for what must have been 30 full minutes.
Exhausted now, Piper sank into her chair, panting and sweating from the effort. Instead, Calypso picked up the now warmed cloth from the ground, re-moistened it and placed it back on Leo's forehead. As she smoothed over his curls and tried to smooth out the frown on his forehead, she thought back to that first day the two of them had connected, to the first time she had sang to him.
Without her knowing, Calypso had begun to hum silently to him. It wasn't until Piper sleepily muttered a, "That's so pretty…" that she even realized she'd been doing it out loud. Nonetheless, Calypso continued humming, and Leo's frown seemed to lessen. Once the song was done, Calypso turned back to speak to Piper, only to notice that the girl had fallen asleep in her chair.
"Don't worry," she murmured quietly to Leo, "everything's going to be okay. I promise."
A/N: Woot I'm back! I'm not quite sure when the next chapter will be up, but this time, it really will be in Percy's POV. I know that there's not a lot of action in this chapter, but I think that the story really needed this chapter to be fully rounded out. I didn't want to skip steps and make Calypso seem too one-dimensional. She needs friends of her own too, you know what I mean? This chapter was a lot of character development for her, as will the next one. Hopefully after that we can get to some of these war games and get some action happening!
Anyways, I apologize once again for my long hiatus, but I've honestly had a hard time getting inspired for this story. I am re-thinking of how I want this story to end, I felt that it was headed in a very predicable direction and want to make sure that everything happens as it needs to in order to make a good plot. I am currently still thinking that over, but we shall see what happens!
As always, thanks for reading and please be sure to drop me a line and let me know your thoughts.
Love you all!