Hello, my lovely readers!

Thanks for the condolences. My great-grandpa really was a wonderful man and I'm glad I got to know him.

Here's chapter 17! Yay!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except for the plot and Anni.

3rd person P.O.V

For the past few moments, it had been absolutely silent around the table. Everyone was staring in absolute awe at the screen, where Abuela still stood tall and glaring after Rosa, who had a red handprint on her cheek. Then Piper giggled.

"Whoa. Rosa got bitch-slapped!" she said, and set everyone laughing. Leo pretended to pout.

"Dammit. That was a perfect opportunity! How could I miss that!" he laughed.

They were all still grinning as the next memory began.

Leo was stomping around a small bedroom, grumbling angrily. Anni was sitting cross legged on the floor, watching him.

"…just want to go somewhere else, you know? I mean, what exactly is there for me to enjoy here?' Leo asked. He heaved a huge sigh and flopped on his bed, one hand flinging out to land on top of Anni's head. She shoved it off, squeezing his arm in understanding.

"I know how you feel." She said gently, leaning her head back against the bed. They sat there in complete silence for a while, before Anni's eyes suddenly lit up. She appeared to ponder something for a second, lifting her hand to her mouth and biting on her knuckle. Her eyes flicked up to Leo before a wide grin spread across her face and she jumped to her feet, going over to a closet near the bed. Leo turned to watch her, brow furrowed.

"And you are doing what, exactly?" he asked, still clearly in a funk. Anni shot him a conspiratal grin and pulled, from the depths of the closet, a certain worn black backpack.

Leo's eyes widened and he sat straight up. "Run away? Again?"

Anni nodded eagerly. "You would be free of your aunt!" Leo shook his head.

"You know how much I hate Aunt Rosa, Anni, but no. Nonono. No. Where exactly would I go? I'm not going back to the gang." His scarred hand clenched.

Anni looked a little hurt. "Why would you think I would take you back there, stupid?" She rolled her eyes. "Unbelievable."

Leo rolled his eyes right back. "Alright then, Oh Genius One. Where would we go?"

Anni looked up at the ceiling and shook her head, muttering under her breath.

Subtitles appeared beneath the image. Dei Romae, me confirmat.

(I'm not gonna do a translation, hahahahaha! Anni's speaking Latin again, hahahahaha! I'm so evil!)

"California." Anni said matter-of-factly.

Leo quirked an eyebrow. "Why California?"

Anni shrugged. "Why not California? It's sunny, it's warm, and it's far away from here… whats not to like?"

Leo gave her a hard stare. Anni sighed and elaborated.

"I have friends… that is, Aunt Macy had friends… that would help me and, by extension, help you. All we have to do is get ourselves to California. Come on. Whaddya say?"

Leo looked at her for a second, than shrugged.

"Eh, why not? It gets me away from Aunt Rosa and Raphael."

Anni grinned and gave him a quick, hard hug before heading back to the closet and grabbing clothes, shoving them into the bag, speaking over her shoulder. 'I'll pack tonight. We can leave tomorrow… though I'm not entirely sure where we would sleep."

Hearing this, Leo grinned.

"Don't worry. I think I know a place."

Frank's P.O.V

Well, that doesn't leave us hanging at all. Frank thought sarcastically. He narrowed his eyes at Anni's grinning face. He was getting a bad feeling about her. No ten-year-old knew Latin that well unless they were a super-genius with good schooling. He eyed her again. If she ended up hurting Leo somehow…

He gritted his teeth as the next memory started.

Anni and Leo were walking down a familiar street, backpacks slung over their shoulders. Leo was scanning the houses. Anni was looking around nervously. One hand was clenched into a small fist. The other kept twitching towards Leo's arm every time she saw something that spooked her.

"We're here!" came Leo's elated whisper. Anni jumped at the sudden sound, her hand jumping over to close around Leo's wrist. Her cheeks turned cherry red when she realized what had happened and she quickly let go, avoiding Leo's startled eyes.

"Where?" she asked, moving the offending hand up to smooth loose wisps of blonde hair out of her face. Leo looked a little crimson too, but gestured toward a very familiar house. A light was on in the family room.

"There."

They quickly headed up the front walk to the front door, where Leo, with a grin Anni's way, reached up to ring the doorbell.

A bleary-eyed Abuela opened the door, long gray hair braided over one shoulder, dressed in a soft pink nightgown and wearing a fluffy baby-blue robe. She blinked in surprise at the two ragtag kids on her porch.

"Leo?" she asked. "What's happening? Who is this? I'm glad to see you, mijo, but what are you doing here?"

"Hola, Abuela." Said Leo softly, smiling. "Can we please come inside, I'll explain everything. Promise."

The old woman looked skeptical, but stepped to the side to let him in.

"Gracias." Anni said sweetly, giving Abuela a toothy grin as she scuttled inside after Leo. Abuela raised an eyebrow after the girl, but closed the door after glancing up and down her street.

Leo and Anni were sitting side-by-side on a worn brown sofa, backpacks at their feet. It appeared they had just finished explaining to Abuela what was going on. She was leaning back in an armchair opposite the sofa, eyes closed. Leo and Anni shot each other nervous looks. Then Abuela opened her eyes and sat forward.

She leveled her gaze at first Leo, than Anni. A faint smile spread across her face.

"Well, this is more excitement then a sick old woman could ever hope to enjoy in the course of one night. Which rooms would you two like? And before you leave, I insist that you take Esperanza and Rosa's old sleeping bags, from when bisabuelo Sammy would take them camping, back when he still could. You will need them if you're going to California."

She smiled at the two children, both of whom were beaming. Leo launched himself off of the sofa into Abuela's lap, hugging her tightly.

"Muchas gracias, Abuela!" he said happily. Anni sat there, looking a little uncertain, until Abuela looked up from Leo and smiled, extending her arm to the girl.

"Come here, carina."

Anni's eyes lit up and she came over, letting Abuela give her a good hug. Afterwards, Abuela gently smoothed her hand over Anni's hair.

"Bet you haven't gotten a lot of good hugs in your lifetime, huh?" Abuela murmured, staring into Anni's eyes. Anni blinked, then ducked her head, but not quickly enough to hide the way her bottom lip had begun to tremble and the way her green eyes had suddenly filmed over with tears. Abuela gently drew her close again, murmuring into the space between Leo's curls and Anni's ponytail.

"Poor children, so young and already carrying the world on your shoulders." She gently smoothed Anni's hair as she began to cry in earnest. 'It's alright child. Let it out. Abuela's here."

(And there's some angsty fluff for you guys, there. More is on its way.)

"Leo, your grandmother is seriously awesome." Hazel informed him from where she was leaning against Frank.

"Awww…" Annabeth murmured, still watching the memory.

Jason frowned at his friend. "Leo, are you okay?"

Leo was staring at the table. Tears were sliding silently down his chin and nose, dripping onto the table and his tightly clasped hands. His voice was slightly husky with tears.

"Watch."

It appeared to have been a few months since the last memory. Anni and Leo looked homeless yet again. Leo was walking with his hands in his pockets and eyes fixed on the ground. Anni, walking beside him, was giving him worried looks.

They were walking beside a tall red brick wall with iron railings on top. They reached a gate with a small bronze plaque beside it. Anni gently touched Leo's shoulder and he stopped, not even looking up.

"Saint Mary's Cemetery." Anni read. "This is the place."

Together they ducked through the gate.

(Saint Mary's Cemetery is not a real place, though it is based on one.)

The cemetery was a wide green lawn filled with trees and headstones, varying in size. A few marble mausoleums stood to one side of the gravel path. Anni and Leo walked through until a large group of people came into view. Anni grabbed Leo's arm and drew him into a copse of trees nearby, close enough to hear what was being said but far enough to avoid detection.

At the gravesite, a large group of mourners in black stood in a cluster, listening to a woman standing up front, dressed in a black dress of a rather unflattering cut.

"…and although Mama and I had our rough times, there was never a time when I did not care for her, and there was never a time when she did not love me…" Rosa claimed very loudly, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue, though her mascara was suspiciously perfect. Judging from some of the other mourner's faces, this had been going on for a while. Raphael, his rotund body garbed in a stuffy black suit, was flat out asleep, head lolling and mouth hanging open, his finger not up his nose for once. The old man next to him, probably a neighbor of Abuela's, was shooting him reproachful looks.

"…and finally, I direct a few words to my mama." Said Rosa theatrically, turning to the grave. Her speech this time was surprisingly short and simple. "I'm gonna miss you, Mama. I love you." She turned away with a dramatic sniff, touching her tissue once to each eye, and went to sit beside Raphael, hugging him close to her. In the copse of trees, Anni rolled her eyes before glancing over at Leo, whose eyes were fixed with laser-like intensity on the space where the headstone would be. She put out a hand to place it on his shoulder, before blinking uncertainly, her hand hovering, and letting it drop slowly back to her side.

The mourners got into their cars, sent off by a loud, tearful goodbye from Rosa, who was one of the first to leave with Raphael in tow. Some came up to place flowers on the stone and murmur a few words before leaving. Once the gravesite was empty and the last car had faded into dust, Leo reached back for Anni, taking her arm.

His voice was hoarse with held-back tears. "Let's go."

They picked their way over to the headstone.

It was a simple stone square set into the ground. There was a quote across the top of the stone, before the name and dates of birth and death.

Psalm 116:15. Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.

Sofia Valdez

June 16th – May 19th

Beloved Mother, Grandmother, and Friend.

Leo knelt, reaching out a shaking hand to lay it on the gravestone. Anni stood behind him, looking very unsure of what to do.

Leo started to speak, then his face crumpled and his head dropped, tears rolling silently down his cheeks and falling from his nose to splash on the gravestone. Anni knelt beside him, tears falling from her eyes as well, and wrapped her arm around Leo's shoulders.

The two knelt there for a while before Anni, in a soft voice, began to sing.

"Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me." She sang. Leo gave her a strange look but began to sing with her. "I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see."

They sang for a while longer, still kneeling by the grave.

And there is an extra dose of sadness for you all. Sorry, I'm in a depressing mood. And I shall say this again. .. I AM AWARE THERE ARE MISTAKES WITH THE SPANISH!

Love you guys!