REUNIONS (REVISED EDITION) - Chapter 2

Author's Note: I was able to finish this chapter a bit quicker than expected, as I had more spare time this week, but just as a notice, I cannot guarantee the same pace of releasing chapters due to my heavy schedule. Thanks and enjoy!

EDIT 03/01/2017 – So this was the chapter that needed the most changing (not quality/quantity-wise, but concept-wise), because when I first wrote this chapter back in 2014, it was before the Blood of Olympus was released, so I had no idea the author, Rick Riordan, was actually going to reunite Leo and Calypso. My original inspiration for this fanfic, I still remember from three years back, was the shipping of Leo and Calpyso, so because this fanfic takes place AFTER the war ends, it also takes place AFTER the events of the Blood of Olympus. Hence, to clarify, the original chapter was based on Leo's and Calypso's first reunion, whereas this REVISED CHAPTER will take into account that they have already been reunited once. This is where things get messy. I intend to make this story half AU and half dependable on canon material, so I'm still not sure as to where this fits in according to the timeline, especially with the Trials of Apollo series in writing. At best certainty, it probably takes place between Blood of Olympus and Trials of Apollo. I will try to take some material from Trials of Apollo that is relevant to the themes of this particular fanfic into consideration, but as to where I am in life now, I don't intend on reading the actual books themselves. As I said in the previous chapter, I've outgrown them. Anyways, this is the second, revised chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter 2: Timeless Love (REVISED)

"Leo. Oh Leo, where are you?" A young girl whispered to herself.

Calypso was pacing the shores of Ogygia. Time usually didn't matter towards her, but in this special case, she was indeed counting. Counting days. Weeks. Months. Maybe it had already been a year. Two? A decade? She didn't know, at least not of the human world. All she knew was ever since Leo had dropped her back on Ogygia, she'd been counting. On Ogygia, approximately a year, five months and twenty-nine days had passed. Now she remembered. His promise, after the war with Gaea. He actually made it back, despite her insistence that no man visits Ogygia twice, and he promised her, he would return, within a year-and-a-half of the enchanted island's time after he had cleared things up with the gods. At that special moment, she was crying tears of happiness, joy filling her heart that someone ─ someone in the world truly loves me. Since then, it had only gotten worse, each day a painful routine of repetition: Waking up, eating breakfast, tending to her garden, counting the hours, eating lunch, playing in the shallow waters, counting more hours, eating dinner, then eventually, it came to crying tears of desolate isolation until she fell asleep. She cried no more though. Ready to give up hope, this was the last day she was determined to wait. If the son of Hephaestus broke his promise, I think I might mentally break too, she thought. Calypso even considered voluntarily taking her father's punishment to achieve a state of self-torment, but if it got that far, she wouldn't care any less.

The sun was just starting to rise, and the early birds, beginning to awaken, chirping from their comfortable nests of security. A rabbit scampered across the grass and the grass quivered in its wake. The waterfall behind Calypso's cave was a distant chatter of peacefulness, and as a regular mortal would view this island, utter serenity. The morning dew was evident on the young patches of grass scattered along the beach which also had a light wetness about it, allowing one's foot to somewhat sink into the soft, moisturized sand.

Calypso was dressed in a simple silk top, nothing underneath, and her breasts were naked save the already translucent attire covering it. She was wearing a clear light blue mini-skirt, with, once again, nothing to beneath to act as an undergarment. The cool wind was somewhat chilly to her smooth, light-caramel skin, but also usually relaxed her. However, today, she was tense and the modest waves that washed over her bare feet barely evoked a reaction. Everything was still quiet except for a low whirring sound coming from beyond the horizon.

Wait. A low whirring sound?! Calypso looked around with a small tinge of excitement. Left, right, left, right, she gazed towards every corner of the azure atmosphere. Where did that sound COME from? A small figure flittered at the side of her vision and she whirled around, only to realize it was simply, the first bird among the forest beside the beach, to take flight. When it was obvious nothing was travelling in the bright morning sky, at least nothing of any significance, she crouched down, lay her head upon her arms, and began to cry the final tears of desperate misery.

Approximately 12 hours prior . . .

Leo was hurriedly trying to scratch away the frost forming on Festus's bronze plating. More accurately, the frost forming on the bronze dragon's control disk. The disk was making a rather irritating whirring sound, and could be heard a mile off. Leo, who was ADHD like most demigods, was driven crazy by the noise.

"Shut up!" he shouted over the wind. Festus cranked his head sideways and gave his own whirring chorus.

"No, not you, Festus. I meant the control disk." He replied, exasperated. It was supposedly the newest, most durable commodity, with quicker response time, and most importantly, 'burn, disintegration, and freeze-proof,' as he read from the package. And yet, here he was now, attempting to keep the control disk free of ice. Festus suddenly whirred loudly.

"Oh my gods, Festus! Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Leo nearly screamed. The bronze dragon had reminded him of his ability to manipulate fire. He was so fatigued over the journey that he completely forgot. Leo took a deep breath.

"I hope the 'burn-proof' part is true."

He lit his hand with a miniature flame and slowly heated the control disk, closing his eyes and praying to the gods for it to work. When he opened his eyes after counting to five, he found the control disk perfectly undamaged, even showing signs of defrost.

"Phew," was the only word Leo could manage before he fell into a deep slumber.

Back in the present . . .

As Leo awoke, he found the powerful winds had subsided and the sea was a calm aqua green. The sun was beginning to rise into my buttless sky, and even though he had seen a sunrise before from his apartment window, the view from his dragon's back was spectacular.

"Wow."

He saw a speck of land in the distance, and gasped as Festus flew closer. It was Ogygia, but unlike before, the forest beside the beach had grown and the water beneath him began to swirl with a reef system teeming with fish. He could see tiny flocks of birds gliding from tree to tree. Has it been this long? Leo thought. Then there was a girl. Or the girl. She was crouched down and seemed to be silently weeping into her arms.

Is that Calypso?!

Festus made a surprisingly soft landing; all that could be heard was a short thump. Calypso twitched slightly but otherwise lay unmoving. Leo walked noiselessly over the grains of damp sand and without a single word, crouched beside her.

"Ca-lyp-so," he whispered her name with its individual syllables. As if just awoken from a century of dormancy, the girl raised her head slowly, and a mixed expression of anger, loneliness, desperation, and, irrevocable love formed. Her sobbing grew heavier, but now, the tears washed away her stress in a pounding river of emotion, and the hot steam was finally released from its bars of captivity. Leo was speechless.

"Calypso, I─" he began. The girl suddenly leaped at him and pulled him into an embrace as Leo finally recovered from the momentary shock, raising his arms to return the embrace. He patted her back.

"I told you, I promised you, I would come back for you." Leo said in an impossibly soft voice. He felt Calypso's tears on his shoulders and leaned closer to her ear.

"I've been meaning to tell you this for a long time," he continued in his delicate tone. "I love you."

"Leo─" Calypso finally replied, then took a few rapid breaths.

"It's ok. I'm here, and I'll never leave you again." Leo comforted her as he would a young child.

"I can't─I can't─" Calypso tried to say, but the words stuck to her throat. Leo gave a hushing sound from his lips.

"Shh, just breathe, and close your eyes." After a minute or so, Calypso opened her almond-shaped eyes. They sparkled with a royal jubilance as she smiled with infinite delight.

"I always believed. Maybe time just passes quicker in your world." She tried laughing, as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I love you," Leo repeated with even greater passion, and did something he never knew he would first do. He kissed her.

Calypso was overwhelmed with elation as she firmly held the back of his head in a never-ending grip. Their tongues fought for control, as Leo explored her mouth and she pushed back, challenging him. Leo lost his balance and fell backwards, Calypso following suit, but they continued, tied together in an eternal sync of devotion and desire. The son of Hephaestus hugged her, connecting his arms behind her back, prompting her to move with him, in which he grunted as her hips landed on his manhood. He began feeling her, tasting her.

Loving her.

For what she was, for what she is and for what she will become.

For suffering, for sacrificing, and for surrendering.

And—for letting him express his absolute, undying love.

But most importantly, for accepting his love and returning it.

. . .

Coach Hedge was hungry. The demigods had told him the quality noodles took a while to make, though regardless, he was mother─fucking─hungry. Heck, his stomach was not even growling, it was ROARING with defiance. Nope, this was it, he decided, Uncle goat, ain't gonna wait any longer. He stood up and slammed the table. The demigods jumped from their seats.

"Where is the flippin' food?!" Coach Hedge nearly roared as loud as his stomach. The demigods widened their eyes and looked around in alarm, but surprisingly, nobody had noticed. Jason nudged Percy and whispered.

"Hey Percy,"

"Yeah," Percy nodded. "I know, nobody heard Coach. Weird huh."

The girls nodded in unison.

"Are you ignoring me, you insolent children?" Coach Hedge stood up, glaring at everyone.

Suddenly, a voice echoed around the restaurant and seemed to resonate towards their table.

"That would be my doing,"

The group reacted faster than ever. Percy leaped from the table and drew Riptide while Jason whipped out his Gladius. Annabeth brandished her daggers as Piper and Hazel each drew their respective weapons. Nico and Reyna stood up but kept their hands tightly together instead of drawing their weapons. Instead of seeing an enemy though, they discovered a young man, in his 20s, walking casually towards them. He wore a Greek chiton and sandals, and his brown hair swept the side of his face.

"No need for such force. I only wanted to start a conversation," The man's lips moved regularly but his voice bounced off the walls and seemed powerful enough to knock the boys back. However, customers once again, were oblivious. Percy slowly lowered his sword and the other half-bloods followed suit.

"See? No harm done." The man smiled. Jason shivered.

"Can you stop speaking like that? It's giving us all headaches."

"Ahh, this? I'm sorry, I often forget to speak normally in the human world." He cleared his throat a couple times, shook his head and brightened up.

"Oh yeah, I'm back. That feels good. I'm Gabriel." His voice changed to a sweet, joyous tone, as if almost singing. "Legacy of Apollo. Welcome to my mother's restaurant."

Gabriel pointed to the counter and there sat a woman seemingly in her late forties. She dipped her head towards them and smiled.

"What do you want?" Jason remained somewhat hostile. Gabriel shrugged.

"Like I said, just wanted to talk. Actually, not even a conversation. Just a notice."

"Ok, then say what you want." The son of Zeus said curtly.

Gabriel sighed. "I'm also the manager of this restaurant, so if you can, chillax. As I said earlier, I'm a son of Apollo. That's why I can change the volume and directional concentration of my voice at will. I'm also able to create powerful sound barriers that can stop bullets and projectiles, much less, voices in a restaurant. Your friend there, the satyr─" he waved his hand towards Coach Hedge and trailed off.

"Gleeson Hedge," the satyr growled.

"Yes, Hedge. You were not heard because I anticipated the─how should I put it─loudness of your personality and placed a sound barrier around your table."

Jason seemed about to interject but Piper quickly spoke up.

"Oh, in that case, thank you very much, we are extremely grateful."

Jason grumbled slightly and Piper elbowed him in the ribs, shooting him a death glare.

"We just want to make a request." Piper continued in Jason's place.

Gabriel waved his hand once more, gesturing for Piper to proceed.

"My friend here, the stayr─"

"It's Gleeson! Gleeson Hedge!"

"─Coach Hedge is getting a bit hungry and we wondered if you could please, er, speed up the process?"

Gabriel laughed. "Of course! It's actually coming out right now."

The group turned around and dropped their jaws. Two waiters sauntered in their direction and in their hands were trays full of hot, steamy noodles with impressive ingredients atop.

"My beef brisket─" exclaimed Jason and Percy in unison.

"Super vegan─combo" came Coach Hedge.

"That's the Chicken Deluxe?!" Frank said excitedly.

"Oh my gods─the Double Garlic-Tomato," Piper practically squeaked.

Hazel shook her head. "Oh gods, don't think we can finish that, even with the three of us."

Annabeth just stood there with disbelief on her face. Reyna whispered to Nico.

"And that's our Roman Classic." The female praetor kissed his lips as Nico widened his eyes, unsure of how to return the kiss.

"Just enjoy it, as long as we're sharing it, I'm happy."

"Wow, there's some chemistry going on around you two. Come on now, enjoy the food!" Gabriel chuckled. Nico blushed harder, but Reyna pulled him down onto the seat.

"Just ignore him and let's start."

The other demigods also began to settle and started their own meals. The taste was indescribably good, and the demigods finally relaxed, revisiting the stories of their experiences in the war with the Giants, sharing mishaps and difficulties, and overall, having a great time.

1 hour later . . .

"Oh man, I'm done and filled to the brim," Coach Hedge proclaimed, patting his stomach. Jason and Percy nodded, equally full.

"Not gonna be able to move for a while . . ." Annabeth groaned. Nico and Reyna sat together silently and stared at their finished dish. As if intended to wake them up, a large explosion sounded from outside the restaurant. The demigods seemingly digested their entire meal on the spot.

"What was that?" shouted Frank over the screams of the people running about.

"I don't know but ─ HOOOOOLY SHIT!" Percy pointed out the window. A colossal, prehistoric figure stepped into view. The monster was taller than apartment building next to it and let loose a cry the shook the very foundations of the Earth.

"Gigantus Hyrda." Annabeth exhaled. "One of the Lernean Hydra's eldest brothers. They are giants, even in the world of mythical giants."

"How do we fight that thing?" breathed Piper.

"I'll beat its head down before it can come close! Hi-Yah!"

A smashing sound was heard and Coach Hedge was off. Frank shook his head in disapproval.

"Did Coach just jump out the window with his bat?"

"You know there's a door right . . .?" grumbled Gabriel. The demigods sighed and then rushed after the satyr.

"Oh great. I understand my true voice is beautiful but why must my conversations constantly become interrupted by some monster attack," said Gabriel sullenly. "Ma! I gotta go for a walk, be right back," he shouted into the kitchen.

Coach had ran towards the leg of the Hydra and started hitting it with his metal bat. Fortunately, the Hydra was currently stationary, using its lengthy heads to sabotage its surroundings. The demigods caught up to him and already began panting.

"That is one angry Hydra," Percy paced around, rubbing his hands together. He looked towards Annabeth questioningly.

"So Wise Girl, how do we kill the Hydra?"

Annabeth's eyebrows were scrunched together in deep thought. She ended up giving him a frown. "As far as I remember, nobody has ever even come close to hurting it, much less killing it. This monster is almost as powerful as Typhon But—I don't understand. Because of its size, it's not usually attracted to densely populated areas."

"Well there's always a first."

Gabriel walked in his casual manner with only a lyre in his hand. The others looked at him in confusion.

"What do you plan to do with that?" inquired Jason. "Put it to sleep?"

"The bigger the monster, the bigger it's weakness," said Gabriel with great enthusiasm. "Watch closely."

He began strumming the lyre and immediately, the tune he played rippled across the entire area. Every glass window gave a satisfying woosh and shattered. As he continued, the music amplified and the Giant Hydra's uproar was muffled. Suddenly, Gabriel stopped playing and opened his mouth, shooting visible rings of inhuman sound waves, paralyzing the enormous beast. He leaped an impossible height and shot upwards until he was a few meters above the Hydra and strummed once, towards the beast's head. Immediately, its frozen state ceased and the monster fell forward, its body gradually disintegrating into nothingness. Gabriel floated back down, and a smirk formed on his face.

"How was that for a show?"

Right! How was that for a chapter? It's a little longer than my usual chapter length and so far I'm still brain storming what is to happen next, but if you readers want to suggest something, I'm an open book. Review, Favorite, and Follow!

EDIT 03/01/2017 – LMAO, excuse my cringe-worthy comments from three years back, and hope you look forward to the next revised chapter! Adios!

~Nightrous