Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or Heroes of Olympus

Hello again everyone! Today is the last day of Spring Break for my school so we're back on the 8 hour drive home. I'm planning on writing this chapter and the epilogue, but the epilogue will only be released if you guys want it, so let me know.

Also, I have an idea for my next story, and I need a name for my alter-ego, so please give some suggestions of a good name.

No more, I'll update you guys on what's going on for me in the author's notes, but for now, the story! My laptop, my imagination, and my rap for inspiration and a way to stay entertained on this drive, let's go!

Chapter 17 Branch 2!

Percy's POV

School was finally out!

Today was the last day of my senior year of high school at Goode, and I hadn't been so happy to be finished with a school year for a long time.

The school year had been about the same as every other school year as a whole. Harder classes because it was my last year, a couple of monsters had found me on the way home from school a few times, but nothing too different. The biggest problem from the year was that my depression came back several times. One specific time that it happened was really bad. I'd had a really bad week, all of my hardest classes had been piling homework on us, and if I wanted to pass the classes, I needed to finish all of it with respectable grades, so I was under huge amounts of pressure to finish it all in only a few days. Second of all, I hadn't been able to talk to anyone about all the pressure I had been under, because Nico hadn't visited for a few weeks for some reason or another. My mom told me that she and Paul were there for me, but they couldn't really understand what I was going through. I was home alone one day, because Paul had to stay late at work to grade some research papers, and my mom was gone to pick up some groceries. I was just sitting alone at the in the kitchen drawing out random sketches of war scenarios because they were all I could draw and I felt useless. It got bad and I took a knife and had it to my wrist before I stopped myself. I'd promised my friends and mom that I wouldn't hurt myself again, so I forced the knife down back onto the counter where it was and walked back into my room to lay on the bed where I wouldn't be able to hurt myself.

After that, my depression had gotten much better. I never felt that bad again, although I still got depressed some of the time.

The day to go back to camp had finally come, and I couldn't wait to get back to my favorite place.

During the school year I'd tried to convince Nico to come back to camp with me when the summer came, and by some miracle I'd convinced him to. He told me that he wouldn't stay, but I would work on that when we got to camp. I hoped he would stay, he was still my only friend. Even though I'd nearly recovered from my depression over the year, I doubted people would treat me the same for a long time. Now I was the unstable kid who no one wanted to be around, even by demigod standards.

Today was Thursday so there would be a game of capture the flag tomorrows, and I knew that it would be intense. The first game of the year was always one of the most intense matches of the year, nearly as intense as when we played against the Hunters. Maybe if I was on the winning team and helped to something big in the game it would win me some respect again. It wasn't a very good hope, but it was all I could hope for.

I told my mom goodbye and gave her a hug before walking out the door onto into the flow of people that was Manhattan. I made my way down the streets, pushing through the crowds towards the alley where Blackjack had dropped me off last fall. It was a bit of a walk, but it was the most inconspicuous place around that I could meet Blackjack at to take me back to camp.

After about forty minutes of shoving, dodging, and moving through the crowds, I reached the entrance to the alley where Blackjack was going to get me. I looked around and saw no one, pegasus or otherwise. I knew Blackjack wouldn't be waiting here, Mist or not, a flying horse was out of the ordinary.

I gave my best taxi whistle and waited, looking at the sky for any sign of him. After waiting for half a minute I saw a black silhouette coming out of the sky towards me. I stood where I was, waiting for him to land to get me. Once he landed I walked up to him.

Hey Boss! Do you have any sugar cubes?

"Sugar still isn't good for you Blackjack."

Yeah he waited.

I sighed, knowing he wouldn't give up until he got some. I put my hand in my pocket and pulled out a small handful of sugar cubes. He ate them out of my hand, and once he had swallowed them, he shook his head like he was having a mini seizure.

I quickly climbed on his back and looked around the alley to see if anyone was around. I saw no one, so I figured we were ok.

We took off and flew into the clouds and started to make our way to Camp.

The flight lasted for a little while, but I didn't mind, even though I was the son of the sea god, I'd always loved flying on a pegasus. Maybe it was the fact that my dad had created the horse.

As I watched Camp come into view and we got closer to it, I couldn't help but smile. I'd been through so much here. During all my time here, I'd learned more here than at any school, and all of my friends were here.

We landed at the pegasus stables and I jumped off of Blackjack's back and walked inside. I came back out with a brush and quickly brushed him.

Once I'd finished brushing Blackjack, I put away the brush and walked towards the bulk of the camp to see Nico had kept his promise to come to camp.

I wandered around everywhere looking for him. I checked his cabin, walked to the pavilion to see if he was there, I went to the arena to see if he was practicing there, but I couldn't find him. I asked a couple of people who were walking around if they had seen him, but nobody had. I looked around a little more, then decided to go into the forest to check if he was there. I looked all over wherever I thought he would be, but I couldn't find him anywhere. I decided to take a break, so I made my way to the ocean. I hadn't seen the ocean in a while, so I planned on going for a swim to enjoy the feeling of being back in the water and being back at camp, but when I reached the beach I saw Nico sitting alone on the beach, staring out at the ocean. I wasn't sure why he was there, but I walked over to him.

"What a strange place for someone who isn't a son of Poseidon to be sitting alone." I said as I sat down beside him.

He didn't reply immediately as he watched another wave crash onto the sand a little ways below us. "How've you been Percy?"

"Absolutely nothing, although I'm lucky that I've been able to cling to my sanity through school."

A small smile appeared on his face, but it didn't stay very long.

"What about you?" I asked him.

He stayed silent for a few seconds. "Just… Nothing, just being alone. After the going through the Giant War, especially Tartarus, it just doesn't feel the same to be alone. Before the war, being alone used to mean peace, time for me to think or avoid my problems, now whenever I'm alone I don't feel right. I wish that I was with Hazel or Bianca, or someone. The War changed me Percy, and I don't know what to do about it."

"You need to stop being so serious Nico, we're still just teenagers. Lighten up and have some fun once in a while. Besides, you're never alone up here, there's too many of us for that."

He just kept staring out at the sea and gave a small nod.

"Come on, I need to unpack my stuff in my cabin and dinner will be sometime soon."

He nodded again and stood up, walking beside me back towards the camp.

Unpacking went really quickly, because I hadn't brought very much with me to camp, we didn't need to, and we went to dinner with the rest of the camp. Like every year, Chiron welcomed everyone to camp for another year of training, introducing some of the new campers who had been found during the winter or were here for the first time, and told us about everything that would happen his year. He then announced the game of capture-the-flag for tomorrow night, which immediately filled the pavilion with cheers.

After everyone finished dinner, we went to the campfire, and I even managed to get Nico to come, even though he was silent for the whole thing. Everyone was joking around, singing to the sing-alongs that the Apollo cabin did for everyone, and everyone had a great time.

Eventually it ended and everyone started to go to their cabins. I knew the other cabins would get there quickly because they would need to get to their bunks before everyone else and the new kids would be stuck with the bunks close to the front of the cabin. I was alone in mine, so I didn't have that problem. I told Nico that I would see him tomorrow and headed back to my cabin.

Ever since the incident where I nearly cut myself during the winter, I'd made it a habit to read the entries in my journal from my friends. There were times when I read it once a week, but there were also times that I read it once or twice a day. I'd left it in my backpack until now so no one who came in would see it. I didn't have many secrets, but this journal was personal for just me.

I read all of the entries in the journal to the light of the moon and the small amount of light coming from the fluorescent saltwater fountain in the corner of the cabin. Once I'd finished reading, I put the journal in the drawer in my nightstand.

I changed out of my clothes from the day and laid down onto the familiar bed that I'd used for so many years. I couldn't help smiling at being back at camp as I drifted off to sleep.

I woke up the next morning to light pouring in the windows of my cabin. Apparently Apollo was under the assumption that making the first day of camp extra bright was a blessing, but could he at least wait for another two hours for it?

I groaned and got out of bed. I went to shower and get ready for the day. I was on my regular schedule again, so I would have to make sure I made it to my activities on time. I heard the horn signaling breakfast. I checked to make sure I had Riptide in my pocket and stepped outside.

I saw everyone else streaming out of their cabins to go to breakfast, so I followed them to the pavilion. Once we all got there, we said the customary "To the Gods!" and sacrificed a portion of our meals.

I went back to my table and sat down alone. Nico was eating at the Hades table again this year, so I would be eating alone again.

The meal went by quickly, even though it was boring, and everyone separated to go to their activities. I was starting in the arena with the Hades cabin (so Nico) and the Athena cabin.

I made my way for the arena, and found Nico on the way there. We started talking about what had happened over the summer, since his visits were usually short and I didn't really know. He told me he had been all over the US, to a couple countries in Europe, and one accidental trip to Alaska.

I told Nico about the school year I'd had, even though most of it was boring. Nico was a good listener, so he put up with it and didn't interrupt the whole time.

We finally reached the arena and found that the Athena cabin was already practicing. I saw Annabeth watching and helping with the cabin's practice. She was occasionally giving tips and corrections to the newer kids, a few of which had probably never held a blade bigger than a butter knife. One of them nearly gave Malcolm a piercing with a move he was just shown.

She looked over at us and I gave her a small smile. I didn't hold anything against her anymore, and I missed her company. After the first few months, I realized I would never care for her like I used to, but I still missed having her for a friend. She smiled back and continues with her training.

Nico and I went to the edge of the arena where we usually sparred and drew our weapons.

Neither of us had been able to train for a while, so being the ADHD demigods that we were, we had a lot of pent up energy to get out now. Once we started, we both fought viciously against each other, hacking, slashing, blocking, countering, and stabbing. Neither of us landed a blow, but we got very close a couple times.

The arena went much faster than I would have hoped, and ended too soon. We clean ourselves up and I went to pegasus riding while Nico went to archery practice.

After the arena, training had gone by really slowly. Everyone in the camp was excited for capture-the-flag and were visibly bouncing with excitement sometimes while we worked, wishing for training for the day to be over sooner.

When the time finally came to get ready for capture-the-flag, everyone could hardly wait. People were nearly running to their cabins to get their gear. I went to my cabin to get ready. I put on my armor, put Tyson's watch-shield on my wrist, and made checked Riptide. After I was ready, I walked to the edge of the woods where everyone met for the start of the game.

Once I got there, I looked around to see what the teams had divided into.

Blue was going to be led by Athena (as usual), and consisted of Poseidon, Hades, Hermes, Hephaestus, Nemesis, and Iris. Red was led by Ares (also per usual), and had Aphrodite, Apollo, Demeter, Dionysus, Hecate, and Morpheus. (I'm sorry if I left out any gods)

The teams quickly split and went into the woods. Blue team went to the half of the woods with Zeus's Fist and we put our flag on top.

Everyone gathered around the base of the Fist to get their orders from Annabeth.

"Alright everyone! This is the first game of the year, so let's start off the year with a victory to give Ares some humility! Defense will be half of the Athena cabin, along with Hephaestus, half of Hermes, and Iris. Offense will be Poseidon, Hades, the other half of Hermes, Nemesis, and the other half of Athena"

Everyone muttered their consent to the plan and went to their stations. I found Nico and we went to the edge of the creek to wait for the horn to sound the beginning of the game along with the three Nemesis campers.

When the horn sounded we jumped out from behind our cover in the foliage and ran into their side of the woods and immediately met four Ares kids. Nico and I each took on an Area camper, and the three Nemesis campers took the other two Ares campers.

We fought back and forth with them for a few seconds before I manage hit him with the flat of my blade in his leg and kick him onto his back. I looked over and saw Nico put the boy he was fighting on his face in the creek behind us. The Nemesis campers had also finished their fight and we started running farther into the enemy side of the creek.

We dodge several arrows that were being shot at us from somewhere in the trees, probably from the Apollo kids who were supposed to keep people away from the flag.

We encountered several more kids from the Ares cabin and a large group of the Aphrodite kids, but we dodged past them instead of fighting them to get as quickly as we could. We could hear yelling and clashing of metal on metal around us as the game went on through the whole forest.

I hit an Ares kid in the helmet and ran past him as we kept moving. Suddenly, I saw a flash of red in the forest. I looked back and saw the flag in the center of a clearing with Dionysus's son guarding it. He wasn't a bad guy, but he was still on the other team. We ran up and he quickly dropped his sword and backed off when he saw that it was five against one. The oldest boy from the Nemesis cabin grabbed the flag and ran back towards the creek, followed closely by his younger brother and sister. Nico and I stayed a ways behind, keeping everyone away from chasing him as much as we could. We fought off a couple Apollo kids and two more Ares campers before we ran after them. We were about a hundred feet from the creek when we heard the horn signaling our victory. I stopped running and Nico stopped a few feet ahead of me. I leaned on my knees to try to catch my breath.

I stood up and was about to say something to Nico when he turned around and got wide eyes. He yelled "Percy!" and then I felt something pierce my side. I dropped to my knees, then to the ground. Nico kneeled by me and put his hands on the wound, trying to staunch the flow of blood, but I blacked out while looking up at his face with a tear running down his cheek.

I slowly regained consciousness. I couldn't open my eyes, but I knew I wasn't dead. I tried to get my senses back in order. I noticed the feeling of sheets on me, and I realized I must be in the infirmary. Then I noticed the feeling of pressure on my hand, as if something or someone was holding onto it. I slowly opened my eyes and got my eyes adjusted to the light. I looked over to my side and saw Nico sitting in a chair, although I couldn't tell if he was even awake. His eyes were slightly open, but he didn't look like he was focused on anything and he had dark bags under his eyes like he hadn't slept.

I looked at his arm and followed it down to his hand that had mine grasped in it.

I tried to move anything but I couldn't yet. I stayed there, slowly waking up and gaining control of myself again. I could finally move and Nico must've felt it because he immediately opened his eyes completely. They were bloodshot, and I wondered how long I'd been unconscious.

"Percy?" He asked.

"I'm awake." I said, although my voice was raspy.

"You stupid kelp head! You've been unconscious for 3 days and I haven't slept yet!"

He seemed angry, but I could see in his eyes that he was relieved.

"What happened to me?" I asked him.

"One of the Ares kids stabbed you in the back. He says he didn't mean it, but I think he would've been glad if you hadn't woken up. Chiron gave him dishwashing for the summer and a severe lecture from the look in his eyes when he left the Big House."

"Well, I'm sorry for worrying everyone."

"You're sorry? How does that cut it?!" He almost yelled.

I glanced down at his hand again, and he must've noticed. He went to pull his hand away quickly, but I held onto it.

He looked up at me, and I could see he was confused.

"Nico… I've been thinking a lot over the school year, and I realized I couldn't care about Annabeth like I used to ever again. I haven't been able to figure out what I thought, and I've thought about what you told me. I didn't realize it until now, but when I woke up and saw that you'd been sleepless for three days, and how much you care about me…" I stuttered.

"What?" He asked, but I could see a flicker of hope in his eyes.

"I… I think I have the same feelings for you." I said but I was still looking down at our hands.

He was silent for a few seconds, and I thought he assumed I was lying to him, but then I felt him move forward quickly and pull me into a hug against him really tightly.

His face was to side of my head, but I heard him say "Thank you Percy."

I felt a small smile at the corners of my mouth.

I pulled him closer to me and put my lips by his ear and said "I'm sorry for putting you through so much Nico."

He just nodded, and stayed where we were until it was time for dinner and he went and got dinner and came back, and he didn't leave again for a long time.

The End!

I'm sorry about the awkward poorly written ending, I wasn't really sure how to go about it. I hope you guys enjoyed this! Please review and let me know 1) if you want an epilogue 2) how you liked the story and 3) name ideas for my alter-ego in the next story.

Thank all of you for sticking with me through this whole story, and I hope to see all of you again very soon!