Hiya readers! Before we begin, I'd like to tell you amazing lads and lasses about a recent development (again).

So, depending on when I publish this, the 'rubber band wedged between teeth' thing should be-or was-over. Again, depending on when I publish this. This will most likely result in me experiencing ANOTHER period where my teeth slowly revert back to their original positions after being wedged apart, and would likely be (less) painful. Therefore, I can't guarantee a stable updating schedule for the coming days. Plus, due to a rapidly deteriorating attention span (due to the pain) I can't really write, so…this chapter might seem like slop. Forgive me.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this new chapter on Persis and Drew bonding! (If you haven't guessed from the ending of the last chapter)

"Uh…how are you gonna sleep tonight?"

"Can we…share a bed?"

—

Same time

Persis POV

"Wh-what?" I spluttered, my face heating up. "S-sleep in the-the same b-bed? With-with me?"

I was definitely blushing hard.

"Y-yeah." Drew stuttered, her face equally red. Even her ears were gaining a reddish tint.

Gods, we probably resembled tomato head characters in those childish cartoons.

Now don't get me wrong. I wasn't gonna pass up a chance at sleeping with the gorgeous beauty that is Drew. But…aren't things going too fast? First, the small moment in the chariot, and next immediately sleeping in the same bed.

But at the same time, I couldn't deny my own feelings. Back at camp, I didn't really see Drew as someone I would get with. Sure, she was Knock-out gorgeous, but my feelings had always been with Anna-Annabeth. Yet, after saving her and seeing her in that tent, as well as spending that tad bit amount of time with her…something had lit in my heart.

Was I really going to put that fire out? Would I hurt her in the process? And would I also blindside myself?

Plus, Drew really didn't have a sleeping bag. Nor her mattress. And I couldn't just let my friend sleep on the ground, could I? Also, with her being a proud daughter of Aphrodite, I doubted that she was willing to pray to Lupa and get a temporary bed,

"Yes." I blurted out, before I covered my mouth in shock. I did not just do that.

Drew though…she looked at me with such gratitude and hope in her eyes I just couldn't go back on my decision. Before I knew it, she was hugging me, murmuring "Thank you, thank you" into my shoulder.

Since when did Drew get so emotional?

—

Drew POV

I really didn't expect her to say yes.

It wasn't my choice to cause my sleeping supplies to fly out of Artemis' chariot sometime during our flight.

It definitely wasn't my best moment when I asked to sleep with her on her bed.

And it definitely surprised the hell out of her when I hugged her, hence the lack of reaction.

Finally, after a few awkward seconds, she moved her hands behind my back and returned the feature.

"Thanks, Persi," I said, pulling away from the embrace. "You're a good friend."

"I know," she said with a small smile, before she walked over to the flap and zipped it shut.

"So," she said, "it's late. You wanna go to sleep now?"

—

3rd person POV

"Urgh…" Persi grumbled as she turned on her side again. She had been tossing and turning the whole night, and she still wasn't getting any sleep. As a matter of fact, Drew wasn't too.

"Can you stop moving…" Drew grumbled as she pulled on the blanket. "Hey! Stop stealing my blanket, I need to cuddle it to go to sleep!" Persi protested as she tugged on the blanket.

"No shot! You're stealing my blanket!" Drew said, clutching the blanket tightly.

"Drew, please," Persi pleaded, "I can't sleep without cuddling my blanket…"

"Then get over it. I need sleep too."

Persi sighed. "Unless you give me something to cuddle, neither of us are getting any sleep tonight."

"Fine…" Drew sighed, before releasing her tight grip on the blanket. "There, I'm giving you your blanket. Happy?"

"Thank you, Drew…" Persi sighed, and after moments snuggled up to her bunched-up blanket. Moments later, her breathing began to even out and her body stilled.

But Drew couldn't fall asleep. She was barely covered by the blanket, and she was beginning to feel cold. She shivered slightly, before she slowly tugged on the blanket so it at least covered herself, before she fell into an uneasy sleep.

Sleep didn't welcome her, however, and soon she gasped before bolting upright in bed, cold sweat matting her forehead. Her heart pounded as she looked around, before realizing her surroundings and slowly lowering herself back onto the bed.

Next to her, Persis rolled over, now facing Drew, before she snuggled closer. Drew froze. She wasn't sure if she should push Persis away, or let her sleep like this. After all, both of them had a tiring day, and she deserved sleep. Pushing her away and potentially waking her up didn't seem like a good option.

But before Drew could make up her mind, Persis snuggled up close and pulled Drew into a tight embrace as if she was a cuddly plushy. Drew's breath hitched as she was pulled towards Persis, facing her nose-to-nose. The other girl's breathing was even, and her face seemed so peaceful, so beautiful…Drew couldn't bring herself to push the other girl away.

Besides, she kind of liked the feeling of Persis' arms around her.

So, the daughter of love gave in, and embraced Persis as well, snuggling slower still to the sleeping girl. She smelled nice, like the smell of pines and mints in the breeze. And as Drew's breathing slowed and evened, and her eyes slid shut, her hands wandered down to Persis' waist and stayed there as both sleeping girls tangled their limbs in an embrace.

—

Time skip: hours later

3rd person POV

Birds chirped in the trees as Lupa's pack moved towards the wolf house. In front of the aging structure, a silver tent glinted in the sunlight, the tent flap zipped shut.

"Looks like a Hunter's tent," Lupa thought, as she walked up to the tent flap and transformed into her human form. Kneeling down, she slowly unzipped the zipper, before gingerly lifting up the flap and walking in-and then promptly stopping in her tracks, greeted by an unexpected sight.

Two girls slept on the bed right in front of her, their limbs entangled in each other. They faced each other, the tips of their noses almost touching.

One of Drew's leg was draped over Persis' legs, while Persis had her legs in between Drew's. Persis had her hands around Drew's neck, while Drew had hers around Persis' torso and waist. The blanket barely covered Drew, while it was scrunched up on Persis' side.

Lupa stood there in shock, taking in the sight, before she loudly cleared her throat. She watched as both girls woke up, before springing apart, faces burning.

"Well, at least that explains their protective behaviour yesterday." Lupa mused before opening her mouth.

—

Persis POV

My eyes slowly blinked open at a loud sound.

"Hmmm…" I hummed in content. My sleep was surprisingly comfortable, and-what the fuck was I doing with Drew?

In front of me was Drew, equally drowsy as she began to wake. But what set my brain off was how we were positioned. My hands were for some reason wrapped behind her neck, while I felt her hands on my waist. My legs were also crossed into hers, while we were literally nose-to-nose. I could smell the faint smell of lingering perfume, and I couldn't deny that she smelled great.

It was then I noticed her multicoloured eyes were wide open. And someone was standing in the doorway of the tent.

I immediately bolted up and leapt off the bed, and I heard Drew doing the same. My face was scalding hot, and I could already tell my face was tomato red. Sneaking a glance over to Drew, I could see that she was red in the face as well.

"Well, you two are late. Any explanations?" Lupa asked stoically, but her eyes held a glint of Humor. "We were busy-" "Sleeping." Drew cut me off, and I looked at her gratefully. In truth, I wasn't sure how I would have explained out awkward position to Lupa.

"Hope you had a great sleep then." Lupa said, and I couldn't detect if she was winding us up or simply stating facts. "Now, prepare for your training. I shall see you in 5 minutes."

She then promptly turned and stepped out of the tent.

Once Lupa was out of earshot, I turned to Drew. I was more curious than angry as i asked, "Why did you cuddle me last night?"

She looked shocked. "N-no, it's not me. You hugged me first and pulled me close-and-and, uh-uh-"

"Don't." I held up my hand. "I know that we have an attraction for each other." Her eyes widened at my words, but I continued.

"Drew, I know you have some feelings for me. I also have some for you…but I'm not ready to face them. I'm sorry-when I am, I'll let you know."

Drew stared at me for a bit, before she nodded. "Persi, I understand, your last relationship didn't exactly end well…I'll give you time and help you anytime. If you need any help….let me know."

"Thank you, Drew. You're a great friend." I smiled at her words, and she put an arm around my shoulder. "You too." She said, before leaning close. "Also, you smell quite nice."

Before I could respond, she giggled like a little girl, unzipped the tent flap and darted out, leaving me standing shocked in the tent. Shaking my head, I tried to clear my feelings and push them to the side. I still had training ahead of me.

—

Time skip: hours later

"So, you still wanna…you know, sleep on the same bed as me?" I asked, and Drew nodded.

"I still have nowhere to sleep…besides, last night felt-uh, felt great?" She stammered out, her face slowly gaining a light pink dusting.

"Uh-er, um, y-yeah?" I must be blushing so hard right now.

"Uh…okay. I'll-erm, I'll be back in just a sec. I need to…do something." Drew said, before she ran to her backpack, grabbed something and then ran off. I sighed, before settling into the bed. Sleep was definitely not gonna come easily, and as I lay there, bunching up my blanket to cuddle like usual, I contemplated what was going on between Drew and I.

We slept together. Not in the sexual sense, but that was already the closest thing we had done with each other since we met in that forest days ago. For her part, Drew seemed pretty strong, not having complained once about makeup, poor looks or even her scars.

I snickered slightly as I was reminded of how Drew hated training back at camp to focus on her beauty. Oh, how she used to loathe any instructor, how she always bitched around in classes, and sometimes even not attending them, preferring to stay in her cabin rather than going out to train. At the wolf house though, it seems like she has changed.

Today, though we started off late, she was more invested than I had ever seen her. Though she started off being terrible at fighting, she soon got a hang of it and could face me off and last a few seconds. She also didn't have any problems with being sweaty and grimy-seems like the weeks she spent running from camp had changed her.

I sighed as I clutched my blanket tighter. Drew was still not back, and I really, really wanted to sleep. The tent flap was unzipped, but Drew was still nowhere to be seen. Where was she?

I sighed as I walked over to the tent flap and poked my head out. "Where the hell is she?" I thought as I looked left and right, but Drew was nowhere in sight.

"Drew?" I timidly asked, but all that greeted me was the gentle rustling sounds of nearby foliage, and the distant sounds of animals that wandered around the wolf house.

"Drew, where are you?" I asked, feeling slightly scared. Pushing open the tent flap, I stepped out of the tent, taking in my surroundings. I could see no one near the tent, and some wolves rested within the aging structure our tent was perched in front of.

As I glanced left and right, studying the surroundings, I saw some movement in the thick foliage some distance away. That wasn't good. Willing my knives into existence, I slowly crept forwards towards the direction I saw movement.

Slowly brushing aside branches and leaves, I slowly closed on towards a grouping of trees. Ice reflected the moonlight off it's edge as I crept forwards ever so slowly.

Ten meters….five meters…two meters…and then a figure moved, it's back-no, her back resting Ng against a tree, her shoulders shuddering. I could see the figure had dark hair, and was holding a piece of badly wrinkled paper in her hand. But shadows covered the figure, and I couldn't see what she was wearing, nor could I see her face.

I decided to speak up.

"Drew?"

The figure froze, before a flash of bronze reflected the beams of moonlight penetrated the thick canopy. A familiar soft bronze glow emitted by Riptide illuminated her face, and in that moment, I saw the ever changing eyes of Drew Tanaka.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Drew hissed, her features contorted in rage…yet I saw pain and sadness in her eyes.

"Drew…I couldn't sleep." I said, willing my weapons back into rings. "Hmph." Drew said, before she plopped back down at the base of the tree, recapping Riptide. She then pulled out the wrinkled price of paper again, before she resumed looking at it. Now that I was closer, I could see it was a letter.

"Hey Drew, you wanna tell me what this is?" I asked, and Drew looked away. "A letter…a letter from father."

"Father?"

"Well…yeah. He-he's…" Drew began, but broke off halfway, her eyes beginning to water. The moonlight shimmered in the corners of her eyes as tears threatened to fall.

"Drew." I gently said, kneeling in front of her. "You can let it all out. I'm your friend."

Before I knew it, Drew had pounced onto me, wrapping me in a crushing embrace as she let her emotions out. She was just like a water balloon, having contained her emotions as much as she could until the weight in the balloon was too great for her to keep back, and she erupted. Her sobs wracked her body as her tears stained my shirt, while she poured her heart out on my shoulder whilst she choked her life experiences out between her sobs. I could do nothing except feel sorry for her while listening and rub her back soothingly while she cried and cried.

Her father had been a Japanese businessman from what I gleamed. She had been treated with love and care until six, but after she was seven her father began abusing her, yelling at her and treating her like garbage, just because he felt like her mother, Aphrodite, had been driven away by her birth and she was inferior to others, unable to replace the gaping void within his heart. Eventually though, her father came to terms with his actions, and apologized to Drew before attempting to rebuild their shattered relationship. For a while, this worked and they began to grow close, bonding together as father and daughter, but as Drew was sent away to America to a boarding school, tragedy struck. Her father died in Tokyo, after a drunk driving incident involving his group of business partners and a driver with a death wish. The letter she was gripping so tightly was his last letter to Drew.

"Drew…" I began, unsure of what to say to comfort the sobbing girl, but to my surprise she broke the embrace and looked at me, shaking her head slightly. "I-it's okay, I-I kn-know." She croaked out, her voice hoarse. "N-no more apologies." She then buried her face into the crook of my neck, letting her bottled up emotions flow freely out of her. I gently hugged her shaking body, hoping that I could provide a source of comfort for her as she poured her heart out between her sobs.

Her jealousy, her hatred, her sadness, her pain all flowed out of her. She had bottled up her emotions too long, hidden behind a bitchy and uncaring mask. Though I had it bad, no one should deserve the fate that had befallen Drew. She wasn't a child of the prophecy-she deserved nothing but happiness, friendship and recognition. Yet, her past hindered her, tripping her everywhere she went. Her heritage didn't help, as she was a mix of western and Asian genes.

Shunned by those who she hoped to befriend, laughed at by outsiders who knew no better, she learned that by standing up for herself and hiding behind an emotionless, apathetic husk, she could reduce the pain, the suffering that followed her everywhere she went. So, she hid her true emotions, becoming the rude and annoying whore that everyone knew, when in reality she deserved friendship, love and care.

She had none of those. Not until now, when she found a friend in me, and I found a friend in her.

And maybe, just maybe, we would go further than that.

Drew's sobs soon quieted down to whimpers, and soon her breathing evened out and her body went limp. She had fallen asleep, crying herself to exhaustion. Looking at the girl I was embracing, I drifted off into my own thoughts.

I knew Drew liked me. I knew I liked Drew.

Yet, none of us were willing to take that extra step to become more than friends, to be bonded with each other.

She was afraid of being shunned again after she removed the mask she had hidden behind for so long, being betrayed by the one she trusted for once in her life. She hoped by burying her feelings deep within her, she could perhaps escape any I'll fate that she was sure would befall her once she fell in love.

Meanwhile, I was afraid that I would be betrayed yet again by someone I loved and trusted. I was afraid that by showing loyalty and revealing my feelings to Drew, she would take it for granted and betray me even more painfully. I was afraid that by extending my loyalty, it would result in me having my family destroyed once again.

But as I gently rocked the sleeping Drew in my arms, I realized that today, Drew had dropped her mask, revealing her full, vundernable self to me because she trusted me, and was willing to take the risk of me hurting her even more.

So, why couldn't I take the leap of faith and place myself in Drew's hands too?

Leaning down to rest my head against hers, I made my decision. Even if Drew had the choice to hurt me badly, even if she could choose to betray me just like Annabitch, it wouldn't matter for me. At least I would have had a true friend, and someone that I could trust in my new family.

I lightly kissed Drew on her forehead.

Even though she was deep in Morpheus' realm, I could hear her sigh in content and snuggle up to me comfortably. I smiled slightly at the sleeping girl in my arms, before I gently stood, and carrying Drew bridal style, walked back towards my tent. Gently brushing aside the tent flap, I placed Drew on the bed, before crawling over her still body and snuggling up against her. Pulling the blanket over us both, I soon fell into a welcoming slumber.

I had taken the leap of faith. Now, it was her turn to place her faith in me.

—

A/N: Chapter 7 is done…finally!

As of the time of writing, the rubber bands in between my teeth have been removed. There is some pain as my jaw readjusts itself, but I should begin to maintain a stable upload schedule soon!

Anyway, I realized something-if I am to stick to the canon timeline, it should be around 3 days after Percy disappears before Jason, Piper and Leo arrive at camp. It would then be 1 day later before they set off on their quest. Since I'm stupid and thought it was 3 weeks and 1 week, I would wish to alter my timeline stated in previous chapters. (I can't be arsed to change previous content, shush)

First, Jason disappears. Just a week later, Persis disappears (leaves camp). Canon Timeline has 2 months before Jason arrives at camp. Now, since Persis lived in the wild for 2 weeks and was unconscious for 3 weeks, this checks up with canon time. (5 weeks, 2 months is around 6-8 weeks)

After Persis wakes and Jason arrives at camp, it takes one week for Drew to leave and another week for her to be discovered by Persis. They then train for half a month, in which Jason, Leo and Piper get acquainted with life in camp. (Current and next chapter)

In days, Jason, Piper and Leo set off to rescue Hera. Persis will then arrive in time, spend a few days there, and then after the war game (in which Gwen dies in canon) Rome will be informed that Hera is missing. Persis will then be summoned to fight at the wolf house.

That's it, no further spoilers, I'm still thinking how I can bridge this story over to SoN. But regardless, I'd like to give a big thank you for all those who have reviewed or favorited of followed. Your support means a lot to me.

Anyway, I hope to see you in the next chapter! Don't be shy to contact me via Reddit, Discord or PMs (FFN)

I'll edit my bio soon to include said links. For now, check older chapters for those.