A/N: I am back from an very good and nice summer (Except the trip back as that was the travel from hell)
First things first...Thank you all for the wonderful and loving and amazing and so many more great reviews. I did not expect so many people to like the last chapter, which made me even more happy. Some of your reviews nearly made me cry. I wanted all of you to know that I appreciate each and everyone as they make me work even harder in order not to disappoint you all.
Dee3: I wanted to thank you for your reviews, they made me really happy. You actually made me want to post this even sooner, so I do apologize if this was so late. I really hope it was worth the very long wait.
I enjoyed my summer a lot, and I am glad to be home (The downside is I have to get back to work on Monday and I know, I have a lot to do.)
Guest (25-07-2013) I wanted to thank you for the tip, I will try to include it in the following chapters. I enjoyed your rant and I have to say I agree full heartily. I also wanted to thank you for pointing some facts about Piper that I forget about, I promise I will include them in the story so I hope you will stick with me for a little longer.
IamKatieG-DaughterofDemeter; I am glad you liked the chapter and I hope you like Jason's thoughts in the second part of the chapter.
Storm29. KittyHawk09. Wereguardian and Whatwouldyoudo; Glad you all liked the chapter and I hope you will enjoy this chapter as well.
Sky. Celeste and Ranawe217; I also wanted to thank all three of you for the kind reviews, I hope you will all stick with the story and continue to enjoy it.
I also wanted to send my thanks to everyone who had read, followed and favorited this fic, I am really glad so many people enjoy and like it.
So without further ado, here is the next chapter and a very emotional one (Well for me it was, wasn't easy typing it down)
I apologize for any Grammar mistakes I am sure we will find a few, But I tried to keep it to a minimum.
When Jason had told him that he broken up with Piper, Leo had been happy. It was an awful way to feel when you knew, that your friends were hurting.
But Leo had been happy.
From the day his two best friends had started dating, they had treated him as an outsider. Their idea of quality time, didn't include him.
They maybe didn't mean to exclude him and make him feel like that, but they also did nothing to make him feel welcome.
Even when he had spend all his time in Bunker 9 building the Argo II, the two of them had rarely visited him.
He had spend all his time alone with his only company being Festus who had been reduced a figure head, he had missed hundreds of campfires and had missed the trainings with everyone else.
While everyone had been enjoying themselves, Leo had been working his ass off. There had been days that Leo had just wanted to give up and sleep, there had been days that he had been tempted to just join everyone and have some fun.
But he didn't and he knew he couldn't.
They were all counting on him to finish the battleship, they needed the Argo to be completed by June or the world would have been doomed, so he had bitten through and had done what everyone expected of him.
He had thought and hoped that the Quest to save the world from the Earth Goddess would have been his chance to proof himself, that everyone would appreciate all the work he had put in the ship.
He had hoped that he would part of a group that would have been equals, a group of friends who would and could respect him.
He had hoped that he wouldn't be the odd man out, but that had been an empty hope. He had been one of seven yes, but he didn't belong.
Nemesis told him that he would be the seventh wheel. They were a group of Demigods yes, but the rest were also part of a relationship.
And he had been the only single one of the bunch, that wouldn't have been such a bad thing. If he hadn't felt like he was isolated.
Like if he wasn't part of a relationship he wouldn't be cool enough to hang out with them. So, yes Nemesis was right, he had been quite literary the seventh wheel of the Quest.
So maybe, he had been very happy to hear that his best friends had broken up. Maybe this time around he wouldn't feel like the outsider with his own friends.
And he had been right.
It had taken a while for the awkwardness between Jason and Piper to disappear, but when it finally did everything seemed to be more clear and a lot more comfortable.
Yes, Piper was still very much in love with Jason and still hoped that Son of Jupiter would come to his senses and realize they belonged together.
Her words not his.
He hated seeing Piper get hurt and that was what she was doing, she was hurting herself and just preparing herself for more heartbreak.
Jason had broken up with her for various of reason, Leo had known that the Roman praetor had been his biggest one.
But it had also been because Jason had seen what the relationship was doing with them, how it had made them act and treat their friend.
He only wished that Piper would just see that. That she would move on and find love someplace else. Someone that could and would love her fully.
She deserved it, she deserved a relationship that wasn't based on an illusion nor one that was influenced by the favor of a Goddess.
But sadly Piper was hell bend on making her none existence -Romantic- relationship with Jason work, she as a Daughter of love saw the possibilities.
What she saw was a future with Jason, a future where they were still very much in love and very happy.
A future that seemed to be even less likely today than it was yesterday.
Leo sighed crossing his legs his gaze fixed on the blond male seated on the window sill, they had all agreed to give him some space and allow him to cope with the news on his own.
He could not begin to imagine how Jason must be feeling right now, as if it wasn't enough that he had suffered through her death and the guilt. Now Jason had to find out that she had been alive all this time and had lost her memories about Camp Jupiter.
All her memories about him.
Leo shifted his gaze towards Piper finding the Daughter of Aphrodite sitting on the couch with her arms wrapped her legs, her gaze also fixed on the blond sitting on the window ledge.
He could see the fear reflected in her eyes. A fear that had nothing to do with Jason's well being but more with the one girl Piper had been willing to hate before she had even met her.
A fear she had hoped to never experience again. The fear to lose Jason to his past...To lose him to Reyna.
A fear that was now very real.
...
...
Leo jumped out of his chair, the sudden movement drawing the attention of everyone but Jason. He sighed running a hand through his short hair. "I will update camp about the changes and that we are still alive and well."
"Good idea. You still have enough drachma's?" Percy asked already pulling some coins out of his jeans pocket. "I have a few right here."
"Nah...I have just enough for one call." He shifted his gaze towards Piper. "Why won't you come with me?"
Piper's kaleidoscopic eyes met his brown ones before they shifted towards Jason, a soft sigh escaping when she noticed that Jason had not reacted to Leo's question. "Alright...Let's go than." She stood up her eyes filling hurt when she realized that he was still not responding.
"Right." Leo said making his way out the living room and towards the front door, closely followed by the brunette. "Hey? You alright?" Leo asked when he closed the front door behind them. "How are you holding up?"
Piper shrugged her ever changing eyes reflecting her fear and pain, she bit her lip her eyes darting towards the fountain decorating the middle of the plaza. "She will always have a hold over him won't she?"
"Who?" Leo asked despite knowing who she was talking about, his brown eyes faced the brunette walking next to him. "Reyna?'
"Who else. And who can blame him. She is after all the oh so great Reyna...The beautiful and powerful Roman." Piper said her voice sounding broken and bitter. "No wonder he likes her so much."
He really didn't think Jason liked Reyna because she was powerful or beautiful, but he decided against mentioning that fact. "Look Beauty Queen, he cares about you and that will never change. You know that right?"
He sighed realizing that she was done talking and that she wouldn't be answering his question anytime soon.
He raised the coin over his head and took a deep breath, before he said. "Oh Iris, goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering." Throwing the drachma in the rainbow, the coin disappeared in a gold shimmer. "Half-Blood Hill."
At first nothing happened but Leo knew it would take a few seconds, before the familiar strawberry fields and the rest of the camp would be seen through the mist.
Slowly the camp and the battle currently going on was revealed and Leo could hardly recognize their home, there where monsters and campers everywhere. "Malcolm!" Leo called hoping that he could be heard over the chaos of the battle.
The blond Son of Athena turned around when he heard his name, gray eyes widened when he recognized them. "Leo? Piper?" He made his way towards them his eyes darting between the battle and the two Demigods on the other side of the mist. "Where are you?"
"Amazon Campus...We have already spoken with their Queen and she will give her definitive answer later this evening or tomorrow morning."
"What? We don't have till tomorrow morning. With the rate things are going we don't even have till this evening." Malcolm said his eyes darting back towards the raging battle before they rested on the Leo. "Couldn't she give her answer right away? This is just wasting time. You manage to get there in one piece right?"
"Yes...We are doing fine...Better since we got here." Leo replied his eyes shifting their gaze from Malcolm when he spotted a Amazon standing a few feet away and watching them. "Their Campus is one of the most secure places I have seen. They haven't suffered any attacks yet, so we are safe for now."
"So why did she delay her answer?" Malcolm asked drawing Leo's attention back to the blond on the other side of the mist.
"Annabeth said because sending her warriors out east will not only endanger those she sends out but it will also affect those she leaves behind, she is risking the security of her home or something like that."
"Makes sense. Annabeth would have probably done the same...I know I would." Malcolm said sighing his eyes darted to his left when something crashed in to the ground a few feet away. "Look...I can't see Chiron anywhere. Is there something I need to rely to him?"
"No...Nothing...As of yet." Leo said his eyes cutting to Piper when she wanted to open her mouth. "We will contact you all in a few hours, if we have something new or otherwise early tomorrow morning."
"Alright, be careful and tell Annabeth not to push herself to much." He smiled when Leo said he would and asked to stay alive, he gave one final wave before he moved his hand through the mist and ending the iris message.
"Why didn't you let me tell them?" Piper asked her eyes narrowing and filling with disapproval. "They had the right to know, who had the fate of our camp in their hands."
"One, we don't know if she will agree." Leo said placing his hands on her shoulders and steering her back towards the lodge they were staying in. "And two, it is not really important. If she wasn't who she was, we would not think of mentioning her identity."
"But-"
"And we should be glad it is Reyna...I am sure that she will give us a fair chance, I am certain that she will agree to help us." Leo said ignoring the pointed look his friend send him. "Because if she is anything like the girl I met all those years ago, she will do what is right and that is lend a helping hand to those that ask."
"You also a fan of her?" Piper asked a frown appearing on her face. "Of course you are, why wouldn't you be."
"What does that supposed to mean?" Leo asked his eyes narrowing when she didn't reply and made her way back towards their temporary residence. "Piper? You are being unfair."
"Unfair?" Piper asked her eyes flashing with anger as she twirled around to face the black haired Latino. "No, you know what is unfair? A Goddess ruining my life and toying with Jason's relationship with me. Who gave her the right to do something like that."
"You do know that your mother started this? That Bellona only told Jason about what happened?" Leo asked wondering if she realized that she was acting like some of her half sisters. "That your mother toyed with your memories and made you believe that you loved Jason?"
"I love Jason...My mother did not make me believe anything. She only showed me what I could have." Was Piper irrational reply. "But Bellona? No, she just came and messed Jason all up...Just so that she can see us suffer."
Leo wondered if telling her that Jason was already messed up when they met him would make her see reason. Bellona didn't mess Jason up. He knew that because it was the only thing Jason had shared with him.
She had removed the mist surrounding his mind and had speeded the process of him regaining all his memories, because even when he was back in Camp Jupiter Jason had been missing some key elements in his memories.
Elements that Bellona forced him to recall.
It wasn't like she had cared about him. She had done it just to make him suffer by finding about Reyna's death and possessing all his memories.
Well, no one could deny that Bellona was truly the Goddess of devastation and destruction. She both devastated and destroyed Jason mentally.
Something she had probably enjoyed.
Something she was probably still enjoying.
Bellona had known her daughter had survived but she had chosen to withhold that fact. She had chosen to make Jason suffer through her supposed death and the guilt that came with him abandoning her.
She had chosen to make him suffer through finding out that she was alive and that she did not even remember him.
It was ironic.
Their roles were reversed, now it was Jason who had believed she was dead. And unlike Reyna he had to live with that thought for three years and not only eight months.
Now it was Reyna who did not remember him, now it was Reyna who had a live outside of Jason. A Good live if he had to go by the fact that she had yet again managed to get a leadership position.
He knew Jason...He knew him well enough, to know that he believed that he deserved this pain and suffering.
He wanted to ask her if it was okay for Reyna to be the one to suffer. But he didn't know how to bring it up without further angering or upsetting the brunette.
Why couldn't he be more like Annabeth who had the guts to say whatever was on her mind? Or more like Percy who was always brave enough to call people on their shit.
No he had promised himself he would stop being so insecure. That he would stop comparing himself to his friends like that.
That he would not feel inferior to them.
"Let's go. They are probably wondering why it is taking so long." Leo said leading Piper back towards the lodge, all the while carefully avoiding the subject Reyna and Jason. "And are wondering how camp is holding up."
Electric blue eyes gazed out the window and spotted the two Demigod's making their way back to the lodge they were staying in.
Jason sighed closing his eyes wondering when it would be enough, when the Gods would be satisfied and just leave him alone to try to live his life.
As if it wasn't enough that one kidnapped him from his home and dropped him on the other side of the country with no memories of who or what he was.
They decided it was funny to make him believe that he had a girlfriend, one that had various memories about them together.
It wouldn't have been so bad if it didn't mess his relationship with someone else up, Jason could remember that the first time his memories returned and he started to recall his friends, that the name of one person in particular had been enough to make him doubt his feelings for Piper and made him wonder if he was doing the right thing.
But as the weeks started to turn into months, the soft voice in the back of his head became nonexistent. And his memories about Reyna started to deteriorate until certain facts and details changed becoming something else.
There had always been a part of him that believed that he was missing something, but he had trusted that Juno would have kept her word and had returned all his memories.
And it wasn't until Bellona decided to pay him a visit that he found out that his Patron had lied to him, that she had withheld some crucial parts of his memories.
Which brought him to the second Olympian who thought that it was funny to toy with his life. Bellona had went out of her way, to seek them out on their Journey to destroy Gaea and decided to inform him of her daughter's fate.
Something she did right after she had touched his head and forcefully removed the remaining mist surrounding his mind, unlocking the memories that Juno had sealed away.
The memories he had been missing, the ones detailing his relationship with Reyna. Bellona had returned every memory big or small that contained her daughter. Something she did, not because she cared about him.
No, she returned all his memories, because she had wanted to see him suffer.
She had wanted to punish him and at that time Jason had believed that he had to live with the guilt. With the knowledge he broke every promise he ever made her, betrayed her trust and proven to her that Circe was right about men.
That he destroyed their friendship, a friendship that took almost four years of building. That he betrayed his feelings for her and that he had to live with the fact that she died hating him. Knowing that he had been willing to leave her behind for someone he just met.
But it seemed that Bellona was even crueler than that.
She had known...She had been aware of the fact that her daughter had survived, but she had absented sharing that fact.
Jason opened his eyes his gaze fixed on the fountain gracing the middle of the plaza. His mind conjuring the words the Roman war Goddess spoke all those years ago.
"To make you suffer." The Goddess said her lips forming a dangerous smirk. "To make you go through the same things, my daughter went through and enjoy seeing you being consumed by guilt."
Now, those words made sense. Make him go through the same things her daughter went through?
It explained why Bellona had went out of her way, and only said that the girl he once knew had died and that she would never return.
The Reyna he knew died three years ago.
The one who was currently the Amazon Queen was someone else, Reyna with none of her memories and Jason knew first hand that memories made a person...Themselves.
"This is a fitting punishment, don't you think?"
Jason sighed leaning his head against the cool glass, a fitting punishment. His lips twisted in a bitter smile. "I agree...I deserve this." He whispered softly making sure that his friends didn't hear him making them feel compel to argue with that fact.
Closing his eyes, Jason's mind went back to earlier this afternoon. After Annabeth had shared her earth shattering news, the Daughter of Athena shared with them one more thing...One small thing that made meeting a amnesic Reyna even harder.
It wasn't hard recalling those words...Those few sentences managed to plunge him in even deeper depression and fill him with nothing but fear, loss and anxiety.
"There is only one rule...Something we must follow at all costs." Annabeth informed them, her gray eyes fixed on the blond son of Jupiter. "We are not allowed to indicate that we know her personally nor are we allowed to mention anything from her past, anything from Camp Jupiter or the war is off limits."
Not allowed to indicate we know her...How in the world was he supposed to do that? How could he prevent himself from asking her if she recalled something? How could he prevent himself from saying or doing something that would indicate that he knew her better than anyone around here?
How could he hide the fact that seeing her didn't hurt? Didn't make him deliriously happy? Heartbreaking sad?
How could he prevent the onslaught of feelings, he would get by looking in her eyes? Prevent himself from reaching out and pulling her against him?
Jason closed his eyes all the while asking himself when the pain would stop. When the Gods would think enough is enough, he suffered enough?
...
...
The soft brush of metal against his arm, pulled Jason out of his depressing thoughts. Blue eyes shifted their gaze falling on the Golden Automaton. "Hey...I guess we just have bite through, right? If she could see us now, what do you think she would have said?"
Aurum released a soft growl pushing against his legs trying to get him of the window sill. His ruby colored eyes pleaded for him to move and stop being so sad.
A wistful smile appeared on his face, his blue eyes softening. "I guess, you're right...Although she would add. 'Grace, I don't have the time nor the energy to deal with your drama. Get a tissue or some ice cream and start moving. We're burning daylight."
The Golden Automaton barked again moving away allowing the blond some space to stand. Tilting his head sideways waiting for Jason to finally stand up.
"She would be very proud to see, that you are as stingy as ever." Jason said sighing as he moved from his position on the window sill, his blue eyes shifting towards his friends. "Hey?" He managed to produce a soft smile when he caught their worry filled glances. "I'm not fine...I'm no were near fine, but I'll deal."
Percy frowned his expression indicating that he didn't really like Jason's answer. "Jason? You know that if you want to talk, we're here right? You know that you don't have to pretend? That you can just say it, when you can't take something?"
Jason closed his eyes a soft sigh escaping him. "I know...I know, and I'm grateful. I really am." Jason said opening his eyes and shifting their blue gaze to the ceiling. "I missed her...I still miss her. She was...Reyna is my best friend and the one person I could tell everything. I lived for three years with the fact, that she died hating me."
"She did not hate you." Annabeth said drawing Jason's electric gaze on her person. "Reyna did not hate you, Jason. She felt many things...But hate was not one of them."
His lips lifted in a bitter smile, his blue eyes filling with self loathing. "She should...I know I do. I hated myself...I hate myself for everything I did. Yes, I can blame Juno but it was partly me...I could...I should...I don't know what I should have done, it shouldn't have been what I chosen to do."
"And that was? Choosing to save the world? Trying to stop Gaea? Preventing everything we know and love from being destroyed?"
"Leaving her behind to deal with the chaos we created. Letting her solve our mistakes. Force her in a position she had no desire being in." Jason snapped his anger getting the better hand. "Expecting her to convince the Romans to stop? Betray everything she stood for? Ask her to trust us, while we had no idea what we were doing?"
Feeling the air around him sizzle with static energy, Jason forced himself to calm down. He closed his eyes forcing all the self loathing, the anger and the pain back. "Look...I am sorry...I didn't mean to snap at you Annabeth."
"It is alright. You just needed to vent." The blond woman said her grey eyes sweeping over his person. "Feel better?"
"No...But it helped." Jason replied placing himself on the ground next to the two metal dogs. "She is alive and honestly that is more than enough, I am glad to hear that she is alive and well."
"So?" Leo asked his brown eyes catching Jason's bright blue ones. "You will be able to face her? You will be able to pretend you don't know her?" Leo asked his voice filled with concern for his friend.
"I can try and no, Percy I am not staying behind." Jason said shifting his gaze towards the Son of Poseidon, who had been in the process of suggesting exactly that. "There is no way, I am staying here."
"Are you sure? Because..." Percy started trailing at the firm shake of his cousin's head, the dark haired Greek sighed. "Okay I will drop the subject."
"Thanks, I really appreciate the concern." Jason said facing Percy who was seated on the couch. "But what if she decides to say no? What if she has changed so much, that she refuses to aide someone in need? I will very much miss the only chance, I have in finally seeing her."
"You think she changed?" Percy asked softly making sure to breach the subject Reyna carefully. "You think, she will say no?"
"No...I don't think so." Jason replied his hand patting the silver Greyhound, drawing a soft wine from the Automaton. "She is fair...That is something she had always been, from the first day I met her. Reyna had always been honest and she had never let personal feelings cloud her judgment."
He couldn't stop the wistful smile from developing. "Despite her intense dislike...Hate for the male specie, Reyna was very reasonable." Jason said looking up to face the four Demigods seated on the other side of the living room. "I remember this one time, when two members of her Cohort had an argument. It escalated so far it became, a boy VS girl thing."
Jason could feel his smile widen as he recalled the small incident that had made him admire her so much. "I don't really remember what it was about, what I do know was. That she had been the only one who had been willing to admit that the boy had been right, and the girl was at fault."
Because this was the first time he willingly shared anything concerning the Daughter of Bellona, Three of the four Demigods made sure not to move or remind him that they were still here. It seemed like he had forgotten that they were still in the room and that he was recalling this for himself.
"I can honestly say, it shocked the entire camp. Reyna was known for her dislike of men in general and everyone and that includes me, had expected her to side with the girls." Jason his blue eyes had a faraway look in them. "She looked past her own upbringing...She looked past her own dislike and pushed that all aside and gave her honest and fair opinion. If she can still recall Circe's Island...If everything up until Blackbeard is still there...Than I know, she won't refuse aiding us."
Jason blinked realizing just how much he shared with them, he sighed running a hand through his blond hair. "She was doing fine right? She looked fine?" He asked facing Annabeth. "How did she look?"
"Healthy and well." Annabeth said her expression softening at the relieved sigh her friend released. "She looked good."
"I'm glad." Jason said lifting his head the opening and the closing of the front door, he frowned trying to place the voices approaching them.
...
...
"Ah...So you are the infamous guests." The blond woman asked leaning against the door post, her bright blue eyes sweeping over them. "It is nice to meet ya'll. I'm Katherine Jones and one of the executive Amazons."
"Nice to meet you?" Leo said pulling Katherine's attention on himself, he blushed when she send him a cheerful grin. "Leo...I am Leo."
"Pleasure meeting you, Leo." She shifted her gaze towards the others before they rested on Annabeth. "I will be your escort for today and I will be leading you to our Queen, she is ready to see you."
Jason could feel his muscles tense in anticipation. This was it...The time to finally meet her again, was finally here.
He took a deep breath before he pulled himself up from the ground, closing his eyes Jason carefully reconstructed the mental walls, he had build in order to deal with her death and made sure that his no one would not notice how lost and afraid he actually was.
Could he walk in a room and actually pretend not to know her? Could he really suppress his feelings and do what the second commander had asked them to do?
No...It wasn't about if he could do it or not...He had to do it. This was something he had to do, Camp Half-Blood was depending on this...He could not risk everyone's lives.
He had to remind himself of one crucial fact...Reyna had been forced to push all her own feelings aside...She to ignore her own pain...Had work past that and make the right decisions.
If Reyna was capable of sacrificing so much for the whole world, Jason who had been the cause of all her problems should be able to handle this and at least not complain about the situation.
No matter how he looked at it, he had it easier than Reyna, unlike her he didn't have the lives of an entire city in his hands...Unlike Reyna he had others who carried the responsibility of the camp, with him.
Unlike Reyna he was not solely responsible for every decision that had to be made, so yes he could at least take this as a man and do what was expected from him.
It was the least he could do.
Taking another deep breath, Jason followed his friends out of the lodge they had been occupying and made their way towards the strongest Amazon...Their Queen.
Reyna.
Jason looked up facing the Amazon office building his eyes sweeping over the glass windows, wondering behind which one she was waiting. "Three years...After three years, I am finally seeing you again."
A/N: And that wraps the sixth chapter up...A chapter I had to cut right here because it was becoming impossibly long...Even my own eyes started to hurt and that was something I could not do to you all.
That is why I will edit the next chapter and post it sometime next week? Depends how busy I am getting with getting back to work and working through all those annoying Emails (which I love because they are all loving and well paying clients, who allow me to pay for my food and clothes)
That aside...I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and that it was worth the long wait...I really pushed the end of August mark didn't I?
Not my fault I swear...My plane got delayed with almost nine hours, so we were stuck at the Airport and I was done for when my batteries died on me, so instead of Yesterday (29-08-2013) you get it today the thirstiest.
So as I was saying do tell me what you think of the chapter and if you have any tips in how to make it better, like always me is open for Feedback.
Do apologize for any Grammar/Spelling and any Oocness of anyone...I think that is all right? Do review as they always make me smile and I will see you all in the next chapter.
PS. I hope everyone summer was good and that you all enjoyed ice cream and the sun and the beach and the BBQ and everything else so cliché summer.