Chapter 14: Home Is Where The Heart Is

(Author's Note)

Hey everyone! Here's another chapter of COO! So sorry again about the delay, but I had a good excuse this time, I swear, I was working on later stuff for this story and a super secret new project that I just can't wait to officially announce. But for now you'll have to wait for a little bit, I'm only a few days into planning and ideas, so it's not ready to be revealed yet.

I'm trying my best to wrap this story up but there's just so much I want to do at one time and that's getting in the way. Man, it feels like we're almost done with COO but I checked and we still have 9, yes 9, chapters after this, well, 8 chapters and one short epilogue to wrap everything up. You guys ready for this to all be over? I'm honestly not, I love this story so much. It's been my favorite by far to write. Big thanks to all of you, who are the reason this story exists and is as great as it is! You are the best!

I know you guys are probably expecting Percy to be tracking down or even finding Leonidas this chapter, but SURPRISE, we get another Leonidas focused chapter. We'll see him and Eos together throughout. I heard that many of you weren't emotionally invested in her since we got so close to Mary and quickly fell in love with her, and that Emily/Eos just sort of appeared, but remember that a little over a year passed since Mary died and he met Eos/Emily and four years have passed now since Mary died. So I decided to use this chapter to build up their love, hopefully you like it. I didn't use any flashbacks or anything, only showing their current relationship. Which I personally think is a nice change of pace, since we already saw how their 'relationship' started and now we get to see it at its peak. It's gone from them refusing to love each other to them being willing to go to the lengths they are to protect one another. Their love story is one of the greatest I've ever written once fully read, at least in my opinion. I may be biased since it's fresh in my mind, though, I rather like my fluffy HTTYD and BatFamily one-shots. Give them a shot if you're interested. Hint hint wink wink.

Btw, my 3 year anniversary on FF is coming up this October, any ideas for what I should do to celebrate it? Maybe a one-shot or short story? This story will(hopefully) be long over by then. Let me know.

Anyway, let's keep this brief, shall we? Leave a Review, Follow/Favorite. Vote for the Poll on my FF profile and go over to my Twitter and follow me on there. I just had a Poll wrap up that you guys will actually be able to vote on at the end of this chapter in the AN, so make sure to do that.

Have a good one, I'll see ya guys at the bottom!


Chapter 14: Home Is Where The Heart Is

[Recap: After returning from Olympus with critical news from the gods, in which Percy learned that the Promised Day will claim the lives of nearly a dozen gods and that Zeus fears that the Titans will unite against Olympus, Percy set out after Leonidas. With the assistance of Thalia and the hunters Medeia, Alexandria and Cleo, Percy hopes to track down the son of Heracles to quench the desire to find the man that he feels in his soul. But once he finds the son of Heracles will he be able to convince him to join their side to protect Olympus or will Percy be forced to kill Leonidas in order to protect Olympus? Will Percy, Thalia and the hunters be able to track Leonidas down? Will he be willing to talk or will he attack them outright?

But those questions will have to wait until next time, as we now follow a figure flying North-East.]

(Unknown Date - Unknown Location)

Tumbling wind, blowing air and the trembling sky.

*rumble* *rumble*

All the figure could hear, see, feel and sense around it was rushing air as it fell, down, ever down towards the ground where the earth met the sea.

*rumble* *rumble* *rumble*

The figure shivered as creeping ice crawled up its skin and formed on its arms and legs, its lungs protesting the strain screamed at it to stop, to cease, to rest, but the figure dared not to let another second pass away. It could not fail her this time. She would not make it if it did. Its muscles shook from the pain and its bones cracked from its affliction but it increased its speed regardless with a muffled cry through gritted teeth.

*rumble*

But it ignored the screaming in its body as it flew ever down. Forever towards the familiar sight of a small wood and grass roof it saw every night even through its darkest and most horrid dreams. It fought through its injuries, powered past its shaking vision and muddled mind, it promised to do anything to save her, so it would endure any pain to ensure it kept its promise.

*rumble* … *Rumble!* … *RUMBLE!*

The very heavens around it thundered as it fell, battering the figure with freezing, stinging rain as it descended from the darkened skies through the clouds. The deafening, rumbling drum of the sky was all that the figure could hear and comprehend as the reverberating echoes shook its very bones.

crrBOOOOOMMM!

The earth itself quaked, the onyx-hued heavens trembled and the sea leaped into the sky as the large figure made contact with the ground like the earth was struck by a small meteor. All the animals of the forest fled from the sound and the ancient trees rocked from the impact.

Slowly, a trembling hand reached the brim of the crater, struggling against and fighting through the now all too familiar pain it had been forced to endure every day of its life as it hauled its broken and shattered body from the earthen bowl. The gargantuan, shaking figure spat foul, crimson liquid from its mouth but nevertheless forced itself to continue as it half-dragged itself along the ground towards the enchantingly beautiful white stone and wood cabin.

Ever the while its other hand clamping tightly onto a shimmering golden fabric that radiated energy, determined to not let it fall through his misshapen and limp fingers. Energy that could no doubt heal him and end his eternal suffering and bone-snapping pain, but he refused to use it on himself… for her life mattered more than his.

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(AN: Remember to leave a Review)

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(6/3/2011 - West Quoddy Head, Maine)

~Yesterday, An hour and a half after fleeing camp~

Leonidas stumbled through the white stone and wooden cabin on the brink of death, roughly collapsing on the coarse, wooden floor and causing the ground beneath him to moan from his immense weight.

An elegant though severely weakened figure quickly leapt from the large couch and rushed to his side. She was adorned in hand-knitted pink lounge pants and matching crop top long sleeve shirt with fluffy pink socks. Her long strawberry-pink hair whipped back and forth as she rushed to him.

"Leonidas! My love! Are you alright? What happened to you?" She asked frantically as she rolled him off of his face and onto his broad back. "Are you-"

"I… got it," He announced weakly, forcing a small smile to touch his lips. An effort that no doubt required a good bit of his extremely limited energy. He silently held the shimmering golden item out to her, the color slowly returning to his eyes. "...I got the Golden Fleece… my love." He told her before dumping more crimson liquid on the soft throw rug. After letting her wipe his lips with her hand he looked up to her with a face full of hope. "Tell me… *cough* tell me I wasn't *cough* too late?" He begged softly.

The Titaness slowly shook her head, her long hair swaying from the motion as she pulled his face into her chest and placed a big kiss on his hair. "N-no, my love, you-you made it just in time…" She moved his head up so that their eyes met, her own orbs wet with no signs of stopping. "Thank Chaos above… now she and I will no longer be at risk. I… I had feared that we would not make it through the night…" She moved her hand to stroke his cheek softly, bringing her lips in to ghost over his. "I do not think that we could have lived past today, you saved both of us." She paused slightly to press her lips on his, letting them linger for a few seconds and reveling in the remembrance of his lips on hers after being apart for so long. Finally she broke apart and opened her eyes, whispering softly. "But I never once lost faith in you, my love. Never."

He let his face soften at the news, a small smile gracing his lips as he pulled her close, feeling his strength return to him as the scent of her hair filled his nostrils. "T-that's good. I… I feared that I wouldn't make it in time." He told her honestly. "When you spoke to me and told me how you two were dying… I…I couldn't…" He let it hang, biting his lip, he didn't know how to finish that sentence.

"Shh shh love, it's all fine now." She reassured him, increasing her embrace on him. "You saved her and I, as I knew you would. With the Golden Fleece we can finally restore our bodies and delay our deaths long enough to take Immortality for ourselves. As long as our life forces are intertwined, if you are immortal, then so am I." Her magenta eyes shimmered like a twinkling star as she smiled a sweet smile. "Then the three of us will finally be able to ascend into the sky past the edges of Oceanus and live in my realm among the stars for the rest of eternity. Just like we always talked about. None of this would've been possible without you, Leonidas."

"Yes, but we are far from done, my love." He told her softly, using his sore and stiff muscles to lift himself into a sitting position. "I must still wait seventeen and a half days to travel to New York, infiltrate Olympus that will no doubt be guarded by Perseus and the campers, make my way up to Olympus and destroy the Thrones, thus killing the gods and steal the few Golden Apples of Immortality there. These will truly be the most difficult two and a half weeks of our lives."

"But difficulty you and I can fight through, my love." She reassured him. "You are the single greatest mortal to ever live… if any man can change Olympus and the world for the better… then it is you." She smiled to him before gesturing towards the Golden Fleece in his hand. "Now, let's get you all healed up so you quit bleeding all over my once lovely carpet." She joked.

"No," he told her in a tired yet definitive voice. "I can wait, I've lived with the pain since I was a child, I can endure it for a few more hours." He let his brief smile fade before looking deep into her eyes. "Take it to her, heal her then yourself." He ordered kindly. "Then once you two are healed, you can think about healing me."

Her eyes widened slightly, taken back. "B-but my love," she rushed out, looking over his broken, bruised and bloody body with worry. "Your injuries-"

"No, my injuries-I, don't matter right now! Only she does! Use it to save her!" He ordered softly, his eyes boring right into hers. He took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I can endure the pain and survive through the night, while you two can't. Please," he begged softly, his words just slightly above a whisper. "Heal yourselves first, then worry about me."

She watched him for a brief minute with a worried expression before finally letting out a slight breath. "Alright," she relented, gently taking the Golden Fleece from his broken hand. "I'll heal her first, but then you, understand?"

He nodded as much as he could without hurting his head too much. "Alright, just get started, she doesn't have much time. I'll clean myself off." With a nod and a brief kiss Eos left him sitting on the carpet heading through a soft pink, wooden door at the back of the room and disappearing through it. After a few seconds Leonidas forced himself to get up through the pain and made his way to their bathroom. All the way having to use the tables and furniture to help keep his balance as he dragged his numb leg behind him.

Upon entering the small bathroom he grabbed the worn medical bag from the counter and put it at the edge of the sink as he leaned on the smooth, natural stone fixture. Slowly, with a trembling hand and cold, numb fingers, Leonidas tugged at the hem of his shirt after slowly shrugging the Nemean Lion Skin off his shoulders. His sole functioning arm struggled to pull his slack arm through the sleeve, all the time wincing as his rotator cuff grinded and caught on the bone as he moved his arm, creating a sickening clicking sound that reverberated loudly in the small room.

Unable to lift the black, blood-stained fabric anymore, he settled on slowly clawing the shirt off, gripping large handfuls of it and tearing it from his sweat and blood soaked skin. After throwing the shredded shirt to his feet, he looked at himself in the large, stone perimetered mirror. He winced and let out a low curse in ancient Greek when he finally saw the sorry state he was in, sure, he felt the terrible state he was in, but seeing it was something else entirely.

Due to the connection between him and his love, Eos, they were both slowly dying and would have been on the brink of death if he hadn't retrieved the Golden Fleece to heal them. It was as he feared, his unrivaled healing factor was slowly reversing all the damage it had healed over the years as he crept ever closer to death. In short, all of his old, faded and new wounds were visible on his skin at once, all hurting as if they were fresh as well. A large, hacking, ripping streak, like serrated steak knives, slashed down his chest, a token from the Nemean Lion. Old buckshot holes peppered his chest, neck and face like freckles from his encounter with the Baker brothers that killed the Johnsons. Black and purple, swollen, puss-filled bruises littered his skin like a paint-blotched canvas. Thick, gunky crimson liquid leaked freely from his body from various wounds. His left pectoral was blackened and charred from a severe burn he had sustained many years ago, his dead, black skin flaking off and falling like snow as he moved to grab the large vial of Nectar from the bag.

His large, numb and blood-slick fingers fumbled with the glass bottle, the vial sliding away from him as he tried in vain to grip it. He finally managed to grab the bottle after a few seconds when he pinned it against the bag and wiped his dripping, red-stained hand on his tattered pants. Raising the bottle of his open wounds, Leonidas grit his teeth in pain and the Nectar stung like fire ants had burrowed into his skin and were attempting to eat him from within.

He then moved to the open slits in his right pectoral, grunting in pain as he tried to use his large, oversized fingers to work Thalia's arrowheads from his chest. After not being able to pull the metal from his body with his large fingers, he took a pair of tweezers from the bag and went to work trying to- as gently as possible- pull them out of his chest. The first arrowhead came out relatively easy, dropping into the wooden-bowl-like sink with a hollow 'thud'. The remaining two arrowheads weren't as willing to leave him, however, but he needed to remove them so his regenerative abilities could repair the damage.

After bracing himself on the counter and positioning his chest over the raised, bowl-like sink, he flexed his right pectoral until he could feel them emerging from his skin aided by his self healing abilities.

'Thud' Thud'

The last two arrowheads finally fell from his chest after a minute or two of forcing them out. It felt as if he got shot once again, but he could already feel the subtle, minuscule healing as his fresh wounds started to slowly close. His regenerative abilities were still active, albeit extremely slowed down and not even a fraction of what they once were, but they were still there. After pouring more Nectar onto the wound, he wiped most of the blood off with a towel and applied a fresh bandage to it. Or at least he tried to, only being able to use one numb, throbbing and grinding arm to tear the bandages and patch himself up wasn't as easy as it looked. After messing up the third or fourth bandage he was about to give up entirely on it and drag himself to their bed to fall asleep when Eos wordlessly entered the room and began to work on him.

He could see the wheels turning in her head as she used a wet cloth to lightly wipe the blood from his flesh, she wanted him to quit fighting to ensure that he survived but knew that he couldn't. They would die if he did. So he would have to endure it and she the sight of him until he stole Immortality for them. It was the only way, she knew that.

He was painfully shaken from his thoughts as she ripped a small, red-stained tree branch from his side, a side effect of being blasted through a tree from Percy's trident. She looked up to his eyes with a look of guilt after hearing him wince. "I'm sorry, my love." She apologized softly, being extra careful now as she wrapped fresh gauze around his stomach. "I didn't mean to-"

"It's okay," he cut her off kindly, hoping to reassure her. "It didn't really hurt," he lied. "I was just lost in thought, it surprised me." She let out a soft 'hmm' in response and he knew she caught his lie. "Did you give her the Fleece?" He asked, changing the subject.

She nodded slightly as she worked, now pulling a needle and thread from the bag and starting to stitch his shredded skin back together. "Of course, love." She assured him, pausing slightly to close a rather nasty gash on his back. "It pains me to see you like this, you know. I certainly won't miss this when we're Immortal." She mumbled under her breath just loud enough for him to hear before finishing what she was saying earlier. "She's asleep now, it took some time to calm her after her last fit, the shakes are- or were, becoming more frequent. But now thankfully she won't have to worry about that with the Golden Fleece. She hasn't had much rest these past few weeks. I draped it over her, the Fleece should finish healing her by morning, so you and I can use it to heal ourselves then."

He let out a breath, lightly shaking his head. "I'm sorry for not being here for you two," he mumbled softly, avoiding his eyes from her like he was ashamed. "I should've been here to help-"

"You stop that nonsense right now, Leonidas." She ordered strictly, stopping her work to glare at him, his eyes moving to hers without permission. "We talked about this, in order for you to be able to gain knowledge from the demigods and destroy the gods' thrones you'd have to be gone for awhile. I know that you hate it, but compared to the literal eternity we will spend together after this is all over, the past two months is nothing more than a blink of an eye."

He let out a sigh. "I know, Eos, but you have always had a different perception of time as a Titaness, to me it feels like a lifetime has passed-" he paused abruptly to grit his teeth when the needle hit a particularly sensitive purple bruise on his back. "I just feel like I'm missing out, you know? These are important times for her and I don't want to miss out on them."

She paused her work to hold his cheek, smiling to him reassuringly. "I understand, love, I do, but in order for her- for us, to live, we have to do this. I know you'd rather be here, Chaos knows I'd too, but in order for-"

"But in order for us to be able to gain Immortality and live freely we have to make sacrifices," he cut her off softly, finishing her thought. "I know, but I don't have to like it."

After Eos finished patching him up the best she could, they retreated to the large, comfortable and worn couch and collapsed onto it, the piece of furniture sagging under his immense weight. Eos instantly cuddled up to him and molded herself onto his less wounded side, lifting his heavy arm over her shoulders and wrapping it around her.

"I've missed this," She said, letting out a content sigh after a few minutes of silently listening to the old record player she kept on the shelf- Mozart's Piano Concerto No.21 if he wasn't mistaken-, and the most recent piece of technology she owned. It's great to have you back home, my love."

He wanted to return the notion and just enjoy being back home and being in her presence once again, but something was… gnawing at him that had been on his mind since he fled camp. Something that he needed to get off his chest and his Eos was the best- and only- person he could talk to about it.

"...I had to… fight the demigods in order to flee and steal the Golden Fleece." He told her suddenly, averting his eyes from her in order to not see the look of disappointment he knew would be there. "I tried to leave when you spoke to me… but they forced me to fight… I'm sorry."

He felt her stiffen slightly next to him, he could practically sense her thinking. "...What happened?" She softly asked after a few seconds.

"I- I'm not entirely sure…" He replied honestly, rubbing his face with his good hand. "After you spoke to me and told me that you were dying, I… I sort of lost it." He admitted, his bad hand clenched so much his nails were starting to draw blood. "I remember most of it, I didn't black out like when I lose myself to my father's curse," he explained slowly, trying to remember it all and convey it to her. "But once I started fighting and my blood started pumping… I lost myself to instinct and before I knew it I… I… I killed one of the campers." He finally forced out the last bit, ashamed of himself for it.

Due to his closed eyes he didn't know Eos was moving until he felt her turn slightly to press up against him, so that she was facing him. After a few seconds her reluctantly opened his eyes when she asked him to look at her. "It wasn't the plan, Leonidas, I know that. We had hoped to be able to steal it without them knowing at first… but I also know that you wouldn't have done it if your mind was clear. It's not your fault."

He nodded. "I… My mind just went blank after I heard what you said, you two were dying and I had to get to you and they were in my way…" He let out a long, defeated sigh. "I didn't realize until it was too late that I killed one of them…"

It was silent between them for a minute as they half paid attention to the music. Finally, Eos asked, "How many? How many died?"

Another long sigh. "...Two." He mumbled. "The first was Damien, son of Nemesis and the second was Clovis, son of Hypnos. I regret both their deaths… but I regret Clovis' the most."

"Why?" She asked softly.

"...Because he and the daughter of Hecate are-weretogether…" He let out a long breath through his nose as he slightly shook his head. From next to him he heard her let out a soft 'oh, the poor dears'. "Yeah," he continued. "Just add them to the long list of couples separated too soon." He spat out harshly to himself.

"Leonidas, you didn't-"

"But I'll make it right, I swear it." He cut her off, slightly shaking his head as he clenched his fist. "I swear it on the Styx that I'll make it right. I'll just add them to the list of souls I'm going to liberate when I break into Hades," he mumbled the next words under his breath. "Along with the rest of the people I lost too soon. I'll free them, I swear it."

"Don't be too hard on yourself, love." She told him, taking his good hand in hers. "You're only a man, all you can do now is pray to the Fates to grant them Elysium until you free them."

He let out another breath through his nose. "I know, babe," he admitted. "But I still hate that I have to do it in the first place. They shouldn't have died at all. It's not a mortals'- or immortals'- place to decide such things. That right solely belongs to the Fate Sisters."

"Did you leave payment for their entrance to the Underworld?" She asked with genuine interest. "Did you have time in your haste to leave?"

"Of course I did," He told her. "After I realized that I killed them I made sure not to gravely injure another one of them in my escape. I pray that they find the Drachma and give them a proper burial, any demigod deserves as much. Let alone those that died in the service of their comrades. Let them rest in Elysium until the day I free them."

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(Before dawn the next morning)

"Let me do it for you, my love." Leonidas said as he sat beside Eos in their bed, who was trying to sit up despite the immense pain she was in.

"I appreciate your concern, darling, but I can handle it- OW!" She let out a cry before falling back against the pillows. She grit her teeth as the pain in her side- which was Leonidas' pain, but since they intertwined their life forces they shared their pain and injuries- sent a sharp pulse into her nerves.

Leonidas silently reached to the bedside table, taking a small vial of Nectar from it and offering it to her which she begrudgingly accepted it. "Let me do it for you, Eos, please."

She let out a sigh after taking a quick sip of the liquid and laying back down. "Alright… you can do it for me." She didn't miss how his eyes lit up slightly, he always enjoyed performing her duty. "But you cannot keep doing it for me, the gods will surely be on the lookout for me now that they know about us, we must be careful."

He slowly rose from the bed, silently fighting through the pain in his side. They were going to wait until after sunrise to use the Golden Fleece on themselves, so their injuries still remained. But thankfully his healing abilities kicked into overdrive last night as he slept, he doesn't know if he could have been up to moving around this morning if it hadn't. "I'll be careful, love, don't you worry." He reassured her as he dressed. "But if they were going to notice you or I opening the Gates of Heaven to allow Apollo's chariot to pull the sun across the sky then they would have noticed it in the past thousand or so years you have done it after you supposedly Faded. If they didn't notice you opening the Heavens in the past thousand years then they won't notice me doing it now." After he finished dressing he moved to her side of the bed and placed a goodbye kiss on her forehead. "I'll be back soon, love. Then I'll collect the water and tend the garden while you rest." He stressed the words.

"Not until after you are healed by the Golden Fleece." She replied after returning the kiss. "You can tend to our chores later."

"Alright." He relented with a soft smile, enjoying the sight of her and the knowledge of being back home after so long. "Anything else before I go?"

"...Could we maybe ride around the park this morning after sunrise?" She asked, relaxing back into her large, fluffy pillows. "We haven't done so in ages and I always love doing it."

He smiled as he kissed her on the lips this time. He enjoyed simply riding around the forest that has been his home for the past few years as well. "Of course, love. But only if you're feeling better." To prove that she was feeling better she pulled him into a kiss that quickly turned into the 'wandering hands' game.

After a few minutes she begrudgingly pulled away and looked out their large, natural-shaped window, letting out a sigh. "I'd love to continue this, Leonidas, but you should be off, we must not be late opening the Gates, lest the mortals and gods notice."

He smirked as he pulled back. "Alright, but we're continuing this later."

With that he left the small fairytale cottage, attached the team of divine horses to Eos' chariot, grabbed the Torch that opened the Gates of Heaven and promptly flew off into the still black and starry sky.

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(AN: I hope you're all havin' a nice day. Pagebreak time)

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(A few short hours later)

After Leonidas opened the Gates of Heaven beyond the ocean at the edge of the sky, ushering in the new day, he returned home where he and Eos had some fun before healing themselves with the Golden Fleece. With Eos still slowly dying and with the sorry condition he was in, the Golden Fleece did not fully heal him at once. Which didn't really surprise Leonidas much, but still slightly irritated him. He'll have to regularly use the Fleece to heal him, most likely daily, until he gains Immortality.

Leonidas was stepping out of the shower as Eos silently left the pink-doored room, informing him that she was still asleep and that they would be safe to leave, if only for a short time.

Leonidas once again headed to the small stable that shimmered into view as he approached, once camouflaged as a wall of ferns, wildflowers and young trees and saddled their divine horses, Firebright and Daybright, as Eos spoiled them with a few sugarcubes.

After another minute or so they were off on their short, leisurely ride around the foot trails of the Quoddy Head State Park. All the while Eos used her Domain over Dew to coat the flowers and grass along the trails. It was still too early to have a lot of visitors, but since it was famous for its sunrises- the first sunrises in the continental United States in fact- it still receives a fair amount of visitors that travel their explicitly to watch the breathtaking, world famous sunrises.

If there was going to be one thing he missed when they became Immortal and flew off the live in the sky among the stars, it would be the sunrises that greeted him through their large bedroom window every morning.

They rode in silence for about half an hour until they came across the first person that seemed to notice them, a familiar park ranger that worked in the forest. One that only noticed them thanks to Eos allowing him to.

"Ah, g'morning, Mrs. Aurora." The older man tipped his wide-brimmed hat in greeting, not noticing Leonidas and his horse next to her one bit. "Lovely sunrise this mornin', I trust you saw it?" He asked the woman who he saw and knew as a kind, eighty year old widowed woman that came by the park every morning to watch the sunrise. Or at least that's what Eos let his mind believe. But she made sure to use her Titaness powers to make sure he never noticed that she seemingly never aged over the past decade or so that they've talked here. Before she met Leonidas, Eos never had much human interaction, so she often walked or rode about the park and talked to the rangers or hikers, all the while maintaining her appearance of an old woman.

The Titaness smiled in greeting but also because the sunrise always reflected her current mood at the time of it rising, and she had been in a rather good mood this morning as it rose. "Good morning to you too, Larry." She returned the greeting with a slight wave, stopping Firebright gently. "And how many times have I told you to stop it with the 'Mrs. Aurora' nonsense?" She chided jokingly, enjoying the same greeting they've shared nearly every morning for the past decade, it never seemed to get old. "Just call me Aurora."

"More times then I can recall, Mrs. Aurora." He replied back with a kind smile. "How are you faring this lovely morning?" The man of about fifty or so asked. "You seem to be getting better, your color is returning."

"I'm feeling much better this morning, thank you for asking." She paused to take a deep breath, taking in all the smells of the forest. She just loved the smell of the forest in the early morning when the flowers started to take in the early morning sun. "I feel a dozen years younger," she joked with a slight chuckle, Larry following suit. "I finally have the energy to ride the trails again. Lord knows I missed it as I was sick in bed."

"Yes yes, it was rather lonely out here without your pleasant company. Glad to have you back." The older man smiled before looking down to her horse, only seemingly now noticing it. "I wasn't aware horses were allowed on the paths…" He mumbled more to himself than to her, as if he were thinking. Eos recognized this as the time to go before he remembered that horses weren't allowed on the paths and asked her about it. She hated to do it, since she liked keeping their conversations as natural and genuine as possible, but she reluctantly gave a short nod and used her powers over the Mist to make his mind momentarily fuzzy so he would forget what he was thinking about.

"Well, I must be off now, Larry." She told him, bringing him back to their earlier conversation, his thoughts about the horse completely gone now. "Places to go, people to see, you know how it is."

"Oh, yes yes, quite right, Mrs. Aurora." He smiled, tipping his hat to her again. "You have a lovely day and until next time."

"Until next time." She said in the form of a goodbye and soon they were headed their separate ways. As soon as Larry was far enough away she faced Leonidas. "I will truly miss that man once we leave the mortal world behind." She told him, looking off into the sky and thinking about the day ahead now that her Leonidas was back home with her. "They just don't make mortal like that anymore…"

"He does seem rather kind, if not a little too friendly."

She rolled her eyes as she gave a soft snort. "Oh, don't tell me that the great Leonidas is jealous of a fifty year old retired fishing guide." She let out a light, melodic chuckle at his slightly miffed expression.

"I'm not-"

"Yeah yeah, you just keep telling yourself that." She waved him off kindly. Leading them down a path that lead to their hidden cottage. She wished more than anything to be able to ride around the park longer with her love, but they had already been away from home long enough and had to be there when she woke up, lest she be frightened. Eos only listened with half an ear as Leonidas told her of his plans for today, mostly tending to their cottage and the grounds around it. Since she hadn't been in the best health since he was gone, nor having the time, she hadn't done many chores around their home. The floors needed to be swept, firewood needed to be cut and the garden needed to be tended to. A small smile formed on her lips, it always amused her seeing someone like her husband wearing gardening gloves and an hand-stitched gardening apron tending to the tomatoes or sweeping their floors. It never felt so… much like home without him.

Oh Chaos did she miss him while he was with the demigods. She was so lost without her Leonidas. She secretly prayed that she would be able to live long enough to see their dreams of an, albeit unusual, peaceful life in the sky among the stars come true.


(Author's Note)

Thanks for reading, I know it was shorter than I typically aim for, but it ended on a really good point and I couldn't think how to add anymore without forcing it. And since I wouldn't do that, I decided to leave it as it was. Hope you liked it, I tried my best to add some genuine affection to their relationship that was previously missing since we never really spent much time with them. Let me know what you thought about it. How were Leonidas and Eos this chapter? Learn more about them? Like her more?

Once again please leave a Review, Follow/Favorite and vote on the poll on my FF profile. Please also Follow me on Twitter if you have one, I post updates, questions and polls on there. For instance one that just ended that you guys will be able to vote on below. It's for later on in this story so please vote for your favorite among the top three.

Have a good one and until next time,

Hephestus

Fun Fact: Eos, not surprisingly at all, loves the color pink and any shade of it or purple. But her all-time favorite is 'sunrise pink' as she calls it. If she could she would paint the entire sky that particular shade of pink, but alas she only has control over the Dawn.

Question of the day: Any American Football, Wrestlers or Lacrosse players out there? I need some help with a future project I'm starting up. I'm creating a female character that plays girl's lacrosse but is also on the boy's football and wrestling team and I'm trying to figure out the best position for her to play in football and lacrosse. I was a band geek in HS so I've never done these sports so I don't know what position she should play. Any ideas? Let me know. I know that when girls play football in fiction they are usually the Quarterback, but her personality, size and skills better lend themselves to a defensive position in my mind. But here's some background: she's very tall, 6'1+" and about 160lbs and very muscular and fit. I was thinking of having her be a linemen in football due to her height, weight, build and strength but didn't know which position would suit her best, let me know. I was getting a sort of Larry Allen Sr vibe when coming up with ideas for how she plays if you know who that is. Feel free to Review or PM me and I'll give you some more info on her, or at least as much as I can without telling you what story she's a part of and the plot. Thanks for any help on this, and yes, we'll see her in a future story but I can't say what it is yet. Man am I excited for it.

Bonus Question of the day: So remember when I asked you guys to vote on random names for an unspecified reason with absolutely no context? Well, I'm having a hard time deciding the tied winner(as well as I added another), so let me know which one you like better(it was originally between Astra and Stella, but I'm rather partial to Astraea because of the sound of it and because of the relation to Greek myth):

~Astra - from astro and astronomy, but comes from Astraeus, the Greek Titan of the Stars and Dusk

~ Astraea - from Astraeus, her father. Means 'star-maiden'. Virgin Goddess of Justice, Innocence, Purity and Precision

~Stella - Latin, Greek and Italian origin meaning 'star'. A feminine name

Next Time: 'When in Rome…'