Solitude
Summary*
In a time of darkness, when he has lost his closest friend Leo the war, belonging to neither camp, losing his praetorship, Jason doesn't have too many people to bank on. This one-shot follows what I think would be the emotions of said demigod, his grief from the events of his past, for though he is surrounded by many, he is still alone, and in solitude. SENATUS POPULUSQUE ROMANUS!
Alone. That was all he ever was. His mother had left him alone at the Wolf House when he was but an innocent child. Innocent to the cruelty of the world, the cruelty of fate, and the cruelty of the gods. She had promised to come back to him, only to abandon him forever. His sister, who had cried for him that day, and run away soon after was now oathbound to a goddess who had sworn off anything to do with men. He hadn't even been aware of her existence before the Giant War, and though they still held each other dear, it was not often that they met each other, or drew solace from the other's presence. His father was a god. Yet, he couldn't look to the heavens for guidance either. The one time he had met his father, he had gone a step too far, forsaking everything to spare his divine half-brother from undue punishment. Then there was Rome. He had lived and bled for her. Yet,he'd always known that though he lived for Rome, she would not hesitate to turn her back on him. He still remembered the day he had come back on the Argo II. His cape may have marked him as praetor, but that did not win him an honourable welcome to the one place he knew as home. In the ensuing chaos, his fellow legionares hadn't even blinked an eye or hesitated before the attacked him like they attacked any other Greek. He had stood to defend Piper and tried to explain to the Romans as he bled that he was still one of them, but nothing had stopped them from disregarding him like he was nothing.
When they had left on their quest, things had finally started to look better for Jason. He had Piper,and though things weren't as smooth with them as it was with Annabeth and Percy, he couldn't have asked for more. Though the competition for dominance between Annabeth, Percy,and him often showed up, it had not affected the rapport between Argo's crew. During a short span of time, they had all become family. That was one of the reasons the aftermath of the war had almost left him broken. Not only had everyone parted ways, but Leo had died and he was all but powerless to prevent such misfortune from befalling them. In fact, he and Piper had been unconscious when Leo had died. They hadn't even gotten one last glimpse of him. With Dylan hitting on Piper, or Piper speaking to Annabeth and having her own problems in her cabin to deal with, Leo was the only one who had been Jason's constant companion. He had taken Leo's presence for granted, spending most of the time aboard the Argo with Piper, while Leo kept working on the controls and upgrades. He would never again get a chance to get to know his best friend and the girl he had promised to return too. "Why couldn't it have been me? " he often wondered. It had been him who'd made so many promises to Piper. Leo had made only one,and yet, it'd cost him his life. At least, Annabeth had made peace with Luke before his death. Jason hadn't gotten that privilege either. The seven was, and would always be incomplete without their 'Repair Boy'. Things at camp were reasonably okay, but he never knew when it was all going to end. He had started making good on his promise to Kymopolia, and his project was progressing well, but that was about it.
Finally, there was Piper. A while after the War, quite some time before news reached them that Apollo had really become a mortal, Piper's dad had fallen into great misfortune. His previous secretary, Jane, had aided the ones who had masterminded his downfall from nationwide fame and glory. From then on, matters continued to go downhill. Piper had ended their relationship. She had to discover herself, she said. Our relatioanship started of as a lie,and I still need time to figure it out, she said. If Leo's death hadn't left him a shell of his previous self, this certainly did. He was alone again. In order to let go of the bittersweet memories he joined a boys' school with little to no access to anyone else,spare an occasional monster or two, which he dispatched with ease. It was around this time that he and Piper ventured into the Burning Maze. It had only served to make things worse. He had been handed a prophecy that spoke of death in every sense. He knew staying out of the maze was not an option. It was only a matter of time before Apollo sought them out for their help. They may not be together anymore,but that didn't mean that they'd stopped loving each other. He would still give his life to save hers.
It wasn't long before Apollo met Piper and then visited Jason at his school. He knew time was running out. Moreover, as a former god Apollo's life was not expendable. He had one chance to make his life count, and he took it. Apollo may not have seen Jason as his brother, and Jason certainly found it hard to think of Apollo that way, but for the first, and perhaps last time, he gripped Apollo's shoulders as a brother would. "Promise me" he said. "Promise me you'll remember what it is to be a mortal." He would give his life to save Piper's and Apollo's. Apollo would lose the brother he'd just met,and Piper would lose a part of herself with him,but it was for the greater good. He had said all that he had to say, done all that was to be done. His mind was made. He would walk into the Burning Maze one last time, never to return. He would never see Leo, despite knowing that his friend had come back alive. While his friend was out saving the place that had once been his home, he would leave the world forever, leaving Leo and Thalia to suffer just the way he had all these months. Thalia. Even as he was struck by arrows, he wanted to teach out to her one last time. Even Hazel, Frank and Reyna if he could. His sister had once lost a brother in Luke. In fact, Jason himself had been long lost to her. She would lose him once more, only this time, it would be all too real. There would be no reunion. She was a huntress, nearly immortal. They would meet once more neither in this world nor the next. There would be no goodbyes. Only regretful thoughts of the family they could have been. It was selfish in a way,but it had to be done. He fought with all that he had as a demigod, a son of Jupiter no less. He fought for all the times he had felt joy, so that others could feel them too. He fought for the pain and anger too, so that no one else would have to feel them. He had promised himself that the others would make it out alive that day, and he was a Roman who kept his promises. As the spear pierced him through the back, he knew it had all ended. He felt pain he had felt only once before when the Imperial gold blade had nearly claimed his life force. This time, however, Piper wouldn't have his back, to draw him back to the world of the living. He was beyond saving. He would die a mortal death with a great legacy, but what was it worth when he died as he had been in life- with glory, but also in solitude?