A/N: Well, here is the second chapter, in Percy's POV as promised. Please R&R!

POV: Percy

Chapter 2: Start of the Summer

"Hey, Wise Girl, can you help me with this?" I was struggling to clean the cabin. Since Tyson had left with Ella the Harpy, I had to clean the Poseidon Cabin, and I wasn't exactly an organized, neat person like my girlfriend was.

"What is it Seaweed Brain?" She was currently outside, perfecting the little stems (or whatever they're called) on the magical coral that grew on the windowsills. She opened the door and looked into the cabin, which was still a mess despite my trying to clean it all day. Today was May 26, just before the start of the summer at Camp Half-Blood, and I wanted to have an organized room for this summer. It was my New Year's resolution.

"Seriously, Percy! How do you not know how to clean?" she asked, placing her hands on her hips in a very attractive way. I shook my head; I needed to focus on cleaning, not Annabeth's beauty.

"Uh…. have you seen my room in my mom's apartment in Manhattan?" I asked her, picking things up and sorting them into drawers around the cabinet. The little metal hippocampi that Tyson had made oh so many years ago were still hanging from the ceiling, and the coral on the windowsill proved that this cabinet had once been clean (due to him), but now it was an absolute mess.

"Yes," Annabeth sighed, then smiled. "Whatever. I suppose that with four hands instead of two we'll get done much quicker." She began to pick up the clothes that were strewn all over the floor.

Since we'd returned from Tartarus, Annabeth and I had been nearly inseparable. It was hard getting back to our "regular" lives, and sometimes we still experienced signs of PTSD, post traumatic stress disorder, from those dark, hopeless days. We still had nightmares - they were the worst, being so realistic. It had been countless times that Annabeth had come to my cabin in the middle of the night, crying, and we'd calm each other down while taking a walk on the beach. Now, we were nearly over it, though memories still haunted us. I began to help Annabeth clean up the mess in my room, trying not to let my mind stray to that dark place.

It was nearly noon when we finished cleaning up and left to go get some lunch. Piper and Jason were talking, sitting together in the mess hall (which wasn't allowed but this rule was often ignored now). "Hey guys," Annabeth greeted as we walked up to them, holding my hand. "Any sign of Leo yet?" she asked hopefully. Leo had been missing for at least a year now, and we all knew he was still alive due to Nico, but we didn't know where he was. We all missed him more than we wanted to admit.

"Nope," Piper sighed sadly. She and Jason missed him more than anyone else, as he'd been their friend since the Wilderness School. "You guys excited for the summer?" she asked, trying to infuse her voice with enthusiasm and failing slightly.

"Yeah. Let's just hope that no more evil gods older than the Earth itself want to awaken or attack us anymore." I said hopefully, teasing.

"You dream on, Percy," Piper grinned. I was glad that at least I could make her smile. Leo's absence had taken its toll on everyone.

"I agree with him, though," Annabeth pointed out, squeezing my hand. "I've had enough of evil gods trying to kill us to last way more than a lifetime." She leaned up and kissed me tenderly for a few seconds. I knew that I'd never let her go or leave her by herself. I'd always be there for her.

"So, what's for lunch?" I asked, trying to lighten the mood a bit more. "Blue waffles? Blue pancakes?"

"Seaweed Brain, those are breakfast foods. Not lunch," Annabeth rolled her eyes at me. "Plus, I doubt they've ever served blue food here."

"I sure do miss my mom's cooking," I remarked resentfully. "And who says that I can't eat pancakes drowned in syrup for lunch?"

Annabeth laughed at the memory of me saying that my pancakes technically couldn't drown because I was a son of Poseidon and I couldn't drown. "Whatever, Seaweed Brain. Let's just get some food into you."

"Yeah, man, you're all skin and bone," commented Jason, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips.

"Look who's talking," I muttered sarcastically. "I'm not that thin. I mean, I can't be as skinny as I was when we left Tartarus." I regretted the comment as soon as it left my mouth. It's effect was immediate. Annabeth was breathing in and out rapidly, and I knew that she was a victim of PTSD at the moment. I was too. My head filled with horrible memories of the dark, reddish cavern of Tartarus, the helplessness I'd felt when I saw the evil god. I began to mildly shake, but I tried to ignore my own head and soothe Annabeth by rocking her back and forth. Tears had sprung to her eyes and she was biting her lip.

"I'm so sorry, Wise Girl, I shouldn't have said that. It affects me too," I whispered in her ear while holding her in my arms and letting her cry. She hugged me tightly, sobbing quietly into my shirt. I let her cry until the memories were gone and she'd stopped shaking, then loosened my hold on her, but never let go. We'd already been through this uncountable other times - we knew the routine.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to her again, kissing the top of her head softly. The fragrance of lemon soap calmed me down, which helped to calm her down.

"It's not your fault. It affects you as much as it does me," Annabeth said, still clinging to my shirt.

Jason and Piper were used to this by now; they left us alone for a couple of minutes with the excuse of getting more food.

I held my Annabeth tightly, never letting go. "It's okay, Wise Girl. It's okay."

A/N: I hoped you liked my second chapter! I normally won't update this fast (I did today because it's testing week), but I'm going to try to update at least once a week. Please leave me a review!