Copy and paste the disclaimer here.

CHAPTER FIVE.

"Help me."

—Are the last words that escape my mouth before I drift away . . . at least, that's what I remember. Memories swarm my mind as my brain slowly shuts down. I suddenly remember the last time I lay down on the beach near camp, the feel of the wet sand against my skin; the way I loved how the water would flow over me, tickle my face, and let my tongue taste the salt in the water, before pulling back once more to the sea.

My fingers twitch a bit as I feel those sensations return to me. I slowly sit back up and feel a wave break against me, showering me with water.

"Hades," I breathe. My left hand flies up to my neck and caresses it, surprised that I could speak without pain accompanying my words. "I thought I was dead." I whisper once more, my hand dropping back down to dig the wet sand underneath.

"You never know, anything's possible. Especially since demigods have that bad habit of dreaming way too much. But . . . I thought you were used to it?" I hear a voice grow closer from behind me.

I whip my head around and my smile is wiped from my face just as another wave breaks against me. I lick the saltwater off my lips before speaking.

"Percy," I say. "What're you doing here?"

"I should be asking that same question," he chuckles lightly. "This is my dream you're in."

"I'm what—" I exclaim. I stand up and look around frantically. I feel and hear the water ripple as I swish my feet around, and the sand pull back from my skin because of my movements.

I look back at Percy and smirk. "You dream about beaches?"

Percy shrugs. "To each his own, I guess."

I take a step back. "What am I doing here? I thought I made it to Arizona."

"You did . . . just barely in one piece," says another voice from behind. This time, I don't turn around. I see the form of Rachel Elizabeth Dare move closer to us from the corner of my eye, until she's right beside the space in between Percy and me.

"Now you're in my dream too?" Percy laughs and gestures jokingly at Rachel. "This has got to be an invasion of some kind of privacy."

"Don't blame me—I don't know why I'm here." I look at Percy accusingly. "Do you know?" I turn to Rachel.

She shrugs. And that ticks me off.

"Gods, here we go! I bet this bitch knows everything, but she won't explain anything until the very end, when we've already figured out like half of it!" I shout as I flail my arms around wildly.

Why am I getting so furious?

"Nico, calm down—" Percy says nervously, but I cut him off.

"What do you fucking mean when you say I made it but 'barely in one piece'." I say mockingly, imitating her voice at the near end of the sentence.

"Exactly that," she replies nonchalantly. "You made it, but we can't be too sure about your physical condition. Before you passed out, you could barely breathe, and your whole body grew numb from all the pain. I think shadow traveling such a long distance was a lot more than you could handle, but you still forced yourself."

"But I've shadow traveled farther distances before, and this never happened to me."

"Then maybe something went wrong."

What's happening? Damn it. Damn it all.

"Okay, since you're already at it, tell me—why am I here, in Percy's dream?"

"Well," Rachel begins. "Demigod dreams all mean something else—they all have underlying meanings and can't really be taken literally. And, one way or another, demigods are connected to each other. I'm guessing . . . Percy will have to help you somewhere down the road. And as for me." She smiles. "Well, I just know stuff."

I turn back to Percy. His face is flabbergasted.

"Me—help—NO WAY," he says with matching hand gestures. He points to me. "You already crossed the line still going to Arizona. Now you have to suffer for it." He mumbles something incoherent. "I'm waking up." He lies down on the shore and shuts his eyes closed. He puffs his cheeks up.

I chuckle. No way that's gonna work.

I feel the ground shake, and the water sinking down to the ground.

I purse my lips. Well . . . what do you know.

"Percy no—" I hear Rachel shout before I'm jolted awake.

"Help!" I shout as my thoughts return to reality. My eyes are still blurry and I slowly sit back down. As I slowly shut my eyes once again, I see the faint shape of Thalia's face looking at me with a concerned yet grim expression.

Gods. What have I gotten myself into?

Another memory consumes me as my consciousness leaves me yet again. I take a deep breath as a green mist surrounds me, and then darkness. My mind chanting, "Arizona. Arizona. Arizona," over and over as I flutter in and out of consciousness, and in and out of darkness.

Thoughts fly in and out of my mind, most of them completely unrelated to Arizona. I remember places I've shadow traveled to before—the Louvre sounds like a pretty interesting place to be in right now. Then I remember Arizona again.

I only become focused once more as I feel my feet touch the ground. I'm surrounded by trees, and I'm perched on top of elevated ground, desperately waving my arms around to keep my balance as I walk.

Then it happens.

I feel my feet slip on the ground, and my right ankle get caught on a crevice in the wall, then slip off as my whole body tips over and crashes to the ground. I feel my throat tighten as I try to scream, but nothing comes out. All I get from that attempt was a pain so intense it's numbing. Hades, I never want to feel that ever again.

I try to get up, but my attempt is futile. My injured ankle gives up on me and I fall back on the ground, this time, sliding on the mud a nearby creek, or something, created. After this, I lose track of what happens.

"Nico."

The sound of my voice in my ears sounds foreign to me. How long have I been out?

"Hrm . . . " I manage to mumble out, still relieved that the pain I get from talking is finally gone.

"Are you finally awake now?" Thalia, at least I think it's her, asks impatiently.

"Um, I think so? Why?" I groan.

"You've been in and out of consciousness for the past . . . " she pauses to think. I see the blur of her face thinking in contemplation. "Three days?"

"I've been out that long?" I raise my voice slightly in surprise.

"Yup," Thalia replies. She sighs. "What in Zeus' name did you get yourself into?" she exclaims.

I close my eyes and rub them. I open them again, and finally, I can see clearly.

"Deep shit," I reply. I chuckle weakly.

She shakes her head, but I see her lips curl into a small smile.

"Where am I?" I ask, just like the near-death-experience escapee I am.

"In a forest, near the spot where the Hunters set up camp. I set up a tent here."

My eyes grow bigger, and I arch my eyebrows. "But I thought I saw a desert in my dream, not a forest."

"We're kind of near. This forest is in the land between the mountainside and the desert you remember. It's about a one to two hour walk from here to that spot, maybe thirty minutes if you sprint."

"Yeah, no sprinting for me," I joke weakly.

She looks at me with the stone face.

You'd think that someone would have the courtesy to laugh at the jokes of someone severely injured, especially if they mean something to you. Thalia completely defies my expectations, and it drives me nuts. Why can't we have a normal relationship even for just . . . I don't know, one day?

Oh right. We're demigods. But wait. We're not just ordinary demigods. We're the children of the 'Big Three'.

Yipee! More things to go with the 'anti-normalcy' campaign my life is totally supporting right now!

She smiles awkwardly then signals me to open my mouth. She drops in one cube of ambrosia into my mouth. I chew on it excitedly. The euphoric flavor of hot fudge explodes in my mouth, and I feel the blood rush into my cheeks as I savor it. I slowly feel the numbness leave my limbs, and the ache in my back fade away.

I feel a bit sadder as I swallow the rest of the ambrosia, tasting the last of the hot fudge in my mouth, and sensing the last of my initial pain leave me.

"Did the ambrosia work?" Thalia asks.

"Yeah, it worked wonders. Why didn't you feed it to me earlier?"

She shrugs. "You haven't really stayed conscious long enough for you to swallow it until now. I mean, I can't just force it down your throat."

"That sounds like something you would do," I joke.

"Ha-ha, very funny." She sticks her tongue out. "Oh, and, you're welcome for saving your life, too."

I sit up then hug her. I nuzzle my head on her shoulder, scrunching my nose as her hair tickles it.

"Thank you." My voice is muffled as I hug her tighter.

I feel her body loosen as she slowly hugs me back.

I keep her closer to me, feeling the warmth of her body against mine. I feel her heart beating against my chest.

If only we could stay this way forever. I love the feeling of having Thalia in my arms. It makes me feel like anything's possible. It's like the whole world's at my fingertips. It's really hard to explain, but that's just how it is. I have no idea why.

Thalia's body stiffens once again as the sounds of leaves cracking comes from outside the tent. She pulls away immediately.

Well, it was nice while it lasted.

Thalia stands up and sits down farther away from me. I cross my legs into an Indian sit and lean my forearms on my thighs, slouching my back as I do so.

I see the silhouette of a small girl from outside the tent, slowly bending down to open the tent's zipper. I gulp. As the tent slowly opens, I feel myself back away from the entrance and closer to one of the corners.

"Thalia?" the girl says as she slowly enters the tent. The first thing I see pop out of the hole that is the entrance of the tent is a head of auburn hair, yellow light—because the tent is yellow—bouncing off her head angelically. A pair of mesmerizing silvery eyes scan the whole tent before she enters.

"My lady." Thalia bows down courteously.

"How is that deathly looking boy—" she stops short when her eyes find me once again, staring directly into mine. I think my heart skips a beat right there. "Oh, there he is." She stands up straighter, still looking straight at me. My eyes are transfixed on her.

Artemis' skin was flawless—practically glowing. The way she carried herself was amazing, her movements were so graceful yet so powerful. Every time she spoke I felt the sudden urge to bow down and kiss her feet. I had to conjure up all of my self-control, and dignity, to stop myself.

"Um, hello, Lady Artemis, ma'am," I croak. There goes my voice again!

"Hello," she replies, trying to force a heartwarming smile. "Nico di Angelo, is it? Son of Hades?"

"Yes, ma'am." I grin awkwardly.

"Thalia requested special permission for you to stay with us until you are well enough to travel back to camp," she says, her voice is so commanding and compelling, I find myself taking in every single word. "I agreed, but we must establish some ground rules, understand?"

I nod.

"You are not to go anywhere alone with any of my Hunters. You are not allowed to leave this tent without permission. If you try to show any kind of affection to my Hunters, I will turn you into a jackalope," she says, her face dead serious. "Once you are well enough, you must leave immediately. You are not allowed to talk to any of the other Hunters aside from Thalia, who requested special permission on the account that you two are old friends, without permission," she continues. "And don't even try to cross me, Nico di Angelo. I know things you could only dream about knowing. I know how to make your life a living hell, no help from your father necessary. Understand?" she raises her voice slightly at the end of her sentence, indicating the question very clearly.

I nod frantically.

"Good." She nods, acknowledging our agreement. "I will trust your word, Nico di Angelo, break it and you will suffer." She smiles at Thalia before exiting the tent.

After a moments silence, I take a deep breath and look at Thalia.

"She scares me," I say.

She laughs. "She's only that way to boys."

"I wish I wasn't a boy right now."

"She's actually treating you pretty nicely, surprisingly. She barely gives a boy in trouble a second look. Rabbits are more important to her than men, I think," she jokes.

"That's . . . insane," I say, nervously looking around the tent, just in case Artemis bugged it.

"Don't be such a wuss," Thalia says, reaching out to punch my shoulder. "She's not going to get you."

"How do you know?" I exclaim. "She's like the boogeyman, I swear. You never know when she'll pop up and eat me—or turn me into a jackalope."

"You're an idiot." Thalia slaps her forehead and shakes her head, chuckling a bit as she does so.

"You love it." I stick my tongue out.

"In your dreams, di Angelo."

"Didn't we have this conversation before? In my dreams?" I joke.

"Shut up." She glares at me. She stands up and pats the dirt off her clothes. "Well I'm gonna grab a bite to eat. You hungry, Ghost Boy?"

I look down at my stomach and rub it. "A lil' bit."

"Fine, I'll be back. Just get some rest." She steps out of the tent. She stays there for a bit before speeding back inside and kissing my cheek and running back outside, rapidly zipping the tent closed.

I sigh, and smile.

I'll never understand her.

REVIEW!

Merry Christmas everyone! I spent my Christmas with my little cousins, building volcanoes and playing Beyblade with them (I beat them). Hahaha! How did you spend yours? I hope you guys got what you wanted! :)

Happy New Year! Can you believe 2011 is just around the corner? Time passes by so quickly! Have you guys made your new year's resolutions yet? I have squat for mine. Hahaha.

Anyway, here's chaaapter five! I promised I would make it longer, and a lot nicer than chapter four (I owe you guys), so I hope I was able to keep my promise! I can say that quite a bit happens in this chapter, and a lot of characters appear here too. I hope it doesn't get too confusing in the middle bit, during Nico's memories and stuff. I hope you could still tell the difference between reality and his memories, and Percy's dream. Hahaha!

Please tell me what you think! Ideas are always welcome, and reviews always make my day :)

Still yours on 2011 - Schoe! [:

PS. I apologize for any typos! I've reread it and edited already, but I still might've missed some!