I currently have no 'd' button on my laptop! The only way I can make the letter d is to copy and past it! So, finishing this chapter has been fun. Look for future chapters to have d in the inappropriate caps...I'll have to sort something out... :-/

In other news, thank yous to ., shoshana79, OriginalityNeeded, and Newbiegod35 for your reviews! Shoshana in particular, I'm happy to hear from you, you're one of the readers who's reviews I've grown to look for I was worried that I'd lost along the way!

I hope you all enjoy! Questions, comments, opinions, or if you just feel like talking, feel free to review/PM me at your leisure!

As my Grandparents would say on this fine March 17th

Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig oraibh!

(Blessings of St Patrick Upon You)
Miette

**disclaimer** I do not own PJO, that would be Rick Riordan**

"So, what do you think?" Percy and Annabeth were walking hand in hand along the beach, the Argo II visible behind them, moving with the waves.

Annabeth didn't even have to ask what Percy was talking about; both of them were still mentally turning over the meeting in the woods they'd left about an hour ago. "I don't know. I feel like we're missing a huge piece that's right in front of us."

"Like needing Rachel to guide us through the Labyrinth and not realizing we already had the answer?"

"I suppose. The whole thing about Bia and the war? That's for them to sort out. I like her, though I don't really know her well enough to dislike her, but I think she's a good person and things just got…crazy," Annabeth shrugged, "I don't know how I would feel if I were one of the Romans, but it does sort of remind me of Silena. That's not our headache, though. There is so much else going on, this is just one more thing. Whatever happens with Bia, Hera seems insistent that Bia is a part of this. Almost, too insistent. What is Gaea up to? What is going on with the missing Hunters? There are so many things we are still blind about."

Percy dropped Annabeth's hand and put an arm around her shoulders pulling her close. "We'll sort it out, Wise Girl. We always do."

"Yes, but how close will we cut it this time?"

"Probably, very."

Bia glanced around, sluggishly, trying to figure out why she'd been sleeping in the front room of the Nidus and not her bed. A glance outside told Bia it was the middle of the night and she was very confused. Stiffly, Bia rose to her feet, she remembered Gwen, Kota, and Rey coming by, remembered breaking down to her sister sobbing out the whole story of how, when and why she made the decision to follow Andy to the Titans. Lou had made her a cup of tea and…Bia picked up the now empty mug and sniffed it. Poppy, passion flower, chamomile, and any number of other things to encourage sleep, had been mixed into Bia's green tea. Each of the sleep aids had most likely been somehow enhanced by Alouette's friend Amie daughter of Ceres, or Demeter, her mind now automatically supplied the Greek name she had learned. She couldn't imagine how she hadn't noticed at the time, but her own baby sister had dosed her, causing her to sleep what was left of the day away.

Now that she was awake, however, Bia would not be returning to sleep anytime soon. She silently made her way to the kitchen, not wanting to wake her sister and put water on for a fresh cup of tea. At first she didn't notice the glass sitting on the counter. It was as she made her way to the room she shared with Lou to change into pajamas while the water brewed that she noticed the makeshift vase holding a bouquet of wildflowers. Next to the flowers sat a note, saying 'For Bia' in Mica's precise, carefully formed letters. Along with Mica's 'Love Mica' was Drew's hasty, slopy scrawl and Kiki's 'autograph'. Kiki liked to practice how she would sign her name when she was a famous singer. Bia smiled at the flowers, leave it to those three. Not that she'd done a very good job of hiding the fact that something was wrong, Bia still thought that those three had a better idea of what was going on across the Schola at any given time than many other people. She left the flowers and, mindful of Lou sound asleep in her bed, Bia changed into pajama shorts and a cami, pulling her oversized zip up sweater over the whole thing.

After gathering her tea, Bia found herself back on the rock where she'd sat that morning. She laid back, her eyes on the stars visible above her. Though she wasn't happy that Lou had dosed her, she did feel far more relaxed and in control then she likely would have otherwise. She still wasn't happy. The afternoon of sleep didn't change what was going on or the poor way in which she'd handled the girls today, but somehow sorted her inner turmoil into place. The past could not be changed, but there were important things to be concerned about right now, including the fate of the world as it was known.

Sitting up to take a sip of her tea, Bia hesitated. She lowered her cup and reached up into her hair for a weapon she didn't wear. Cursing her foolishness in not carrying some sort of weapon just in case, she turned to the woods and the out of place sound she was almost positive she'd just heard. Straining her ears and eyes hampered by the dark, she listened to hear again the sound of a heavy foot against the underbrush. She heard nothing. She raised her cup back to her lips. Bia knew the sounds of the woods here at night. The footstep she'd thought she heard was too heavy to be that of an animal native to the woods. It could have been some sort of creature or monster, the woods here were kept stocked just as at Camp Halfblood, but Bia felt that that was not the case.

Bia stood, her tea clutched tightly in her hand. "Who's there?" She watched the woods from her spot, standing on her boulder for any sign of whomever or whatever had caused the sound. With a sigh, she finally had to admit to herself that it was likely nothing. Her imagination, or nerves, or just something that made its home in the woods was to blame for the noise that had disturbed her.

She turned her back to the woods and surveyed what she could she could see of the Schola from where she stood behind the Nidus. Everything was washed in moonlight, peaceful and quiet. This time, with her mind somewhere else, she didn't hear the foot falls coming toward her from the woods. She did, however feel the strong arm that wrapped around her waist from behind in an iron, vice like grip and the hand that came against her mouth and nose holding a cloth which successfully muffled any noise she voiced while struggling and with some sort of concoction on the material knocked her out.

Her last conscious thought before succumbing to the strong potion she was being forced to inhale was one of two fold irritation. The first part of her irritation was for the fact that she couldn't even imagine what everyone would think if she disappeared again now. They could only possibly be suspicious. The second part of her irritation was against herself for being so dumb as to be caught unawares and without a weapon. She couldn't shake the feeling that she had just become the damsel in distress, and she did not like it one bit. With that, her futile struggles against her anonymous captor ceased and her mug fell from her hand, shattering on the rock beneath her feet.

A/N Sry this is a bit short everyone, I've been nearly posting it for the last few nights. Well, short or not, here it is! I anticipate the next chapter by the end of Monday at the latest. I appreciate anything you have to say! Thanks for reading!

Miette