Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or HOO

Epilogue

Ayla was 14 years old and one of the smartest girls you would ever meet. Her mother was one of the most gorgeous girls you would ever meet and her father was one of the smartest.

Ayla herself had dark black hair. Luscious and long. She had what people called an 'English rose complexion' and although people told her she was cute and pretty she didn't look anything like her parents. She was smart, and was in an advanced reading group in her class and everyone said she was funny. She had a few close friends at school but no siblings. She wasn't spoiled but she was always curious, with the hunger to learn more. People said she got that from her grandmother.

Her mother was taller than the average girl but still shorter than her dad. She was blonde, with long curly hair, tan, flawless skin, and had piercing green eyes that her father said was what attracted him to her in the first place.

Her father could always be found in a suit. He had brown hair, paler skin but still tan, and was well-muscled. He could always find some humor in any situation and knew how to cheer everyone up.

People said that Ayla's mom and dad were made for each other. Her friends each told her that they wished their parents could act just as in love as those two did. That her parents were the most in love couple they had ever seen.

Ayla disagreed with all of them.

Ayla's grandparents, her mother's mom and dad, had been the most in love people Ayla had ever seen. They beat the fairytale couples from the five thousand books she had read and the teen couples from the romance movies. They beat the celebrity couples from magazines and the elderly married couples Ayla saw when she went to visit her grandma in the home.

But then, about 5 years ago, grandpa had died from a heart attack. Grandma had gone into a depression and her alzheimers had gotten worse. Ayla hardly remembered going to visit her grandma once a week to check how she was the months after but she did remember the funeral itself.

Her mother had cried. The worst, most heart twisting sobs Ayla had ever heard. From the moment she had stepped up to see her grandpa with her parents Ayla's mother had cried and her father had refused to let her go for even a second.

In that moment Ayla hadn't thought her mother was beautiful at all. Just sad.

Her father had been stony faced but Ayla had seen how much his father-in-law's death had saddened him. He had grown close to Grandpa Percy and Ayla knew from stories that grandpa had given him advice about mom when they were younger.

There had been at least 200 people at that funeral. No kids apart from her but there was plenty of adults. But Ayla had heard that not even all of her grandpa's friends had made it.

That day it rained. The sky was gray and cloudy, there were no winds, and the air was cold but not freezing. Ayla had been looking around at everyone who had been there and she remembered seeing an old, old man with long gray hair and a staff. He was hunched over and from the moment Ayla set eyes on him she knew that he was her great-grandfather. The only thing that had looked young about him were his eyes. The same of those of Ayla's mother and grandfather, but much more worn. Much sadder, and weary and beaten. Like he had known this day would be coming but was unable to believe it was happening.

Ayla had tugged on her fathers sleeve and pointed to the man. "Daddy who's that?"

Her father had torn his gaze from the minister who was talking over the coffin and followed his daughters gaze. When he saw the man his eyes darkened breifly and he had tapped his wife on the shoulder. He jerked his head towards the man and Ayla's mom had glanced at Ayla as soon as she saw who he was gesturing to.

"What's he doing here?" Ayla's father whispered to his mother.

She had shrugged, never taking her eyes from the man. "I'm not sure, from what dad told me he shouldn't be allowed to come. There are rules against it."

"But look who's beside him," her father replied. "They're all here, just spread throughout the crowd. Maybe an exception was made."

Ayla had turned her head again to look at the old man and this time she saw 2 other men standing on either side, both in a protective stance like they were ready to support the man if he required.

One of the men wore a gray pinstrip suit. He had dark hair and a dark beard and kept glancing at the cloudy sky like he was checking to make sure the bad weather was still there. He kept staring at the coffin and then glancing at the man beside him with a worried expression but he never said anything. He looked rich and sophisticated but his eyes also had a hint of sorrow in them. Ayla remembered thinking that he was trying not to let anyone see him mourning.

The other person beside the old man was pale. His eyes were pitch black, but not a warm black. An emotionless black. He looked ageless and wore all black, like everyone else at the funeral, but he seemed almost... at home. It was a strange thing to think about someone at a funeral but the man looked the most expressionless and relaxed. Like he was used to death.

Ayla knew she was good at reading people (a quality she inherited from her mother) and she knew automatically that the 3 men were family although there was a wide age dfference between each one of them.

Ayla looked back to her parents. Her mother was back to staring at the minister but her father's eyes were glancing at random people in the crowd. Some were a woman and a man and Ayla guessed from their body language that they were brother and sister. The woman wore shimmering black, the color of the night sky around the moon. The man wore a black dress shirt and dark pants. He had shocking blond hair, flawlessly smooth skin and when he whispered something to his sister he smiled with shockingly bright teeth when she hit him lightly.

Another was a sobbing woman. She was one of the prettiest women that Ayla had ever seen. She was crying and yet she looked graceful. She kept glancing at Ayla's grandmother and every time she did she would erupt into a fresh wave of tears.

Ayla met her fathers eyes with her own confused ones. "Daddy who are all those people?"

Her father hesitated, choosing his words carefully before answering. "Ayla those are people who owe your grandfather a very large debt. One that will never be repayed. They're some of his old friends parents."

"Are they bad people?" she asked him.

Again her father hesitated before answering. "Your grandpa fought very hard to keep them safe. Obviously he didn't think they were bad people."

Only later that night would Ayla realized tha her dad didn't directly answer her.

The only person (apart from the mysterious strangers) who didn't shed a tear was Ayla's grandma. Her real name was Annabeth Jackson and from the pictures Ayla had seen she used to be very beautiful. Now she was 78 and in a nursing home, slowly succumbing to her alzheimers disease. She was slightly hunched over but she never used a cane, or a walker, or anything Ayla's friends grandparents needed to help them walk. She was surprisingly strong and Ayla knew that, despite her alzhemiers, she was very quick to pick things up.

At the funeral she had stood quietly to the side of the coffin and never, not once, taken her eyes from the coffin. She had talked to people when they came up to her to give condolences but she hadn't ever moved farther than 10 feet from that coffin.

The only time she had looked at someone else was when a dark haired lady that Ayla didn't recognize walked up to her. When the woman had turned away her eyes had searched the crowd of people and she had met Ayla's eyes.

Even now she could remember those eyes. They were the same eyes that her Uncle Frank (her mothers brother) had. The same eyes that Ayla's grandmother had. Piercing gray, giving you the impression of extreme wisdom and fierceness. The woman had smiled slightly at Ayla and then when Ayla blinked she was gone.

"Ayla, time to go!" her mother called up the stairs.

Ayla slammed her journal shut and shoved it under her pillow. She hurriedly looked in the mirror and once satisfied with her hair, rushed downstairs. "Already?"

Her mom was waiting by the door, car keys in hand. Once her daughter came in sight she smiled. "Yes, now hurry and say goodbye to your father, I'll be in the car."

The younger headed to the kitchen and saw her father sitting there drinking coffee and eating a blueberry muffin. "Dad we're going now."

He looked at her and nodded. "Tell me how she is when you get back okay?"

"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Ayla asked him.

Her father met her eyes. "Not this time. Maybe next week okay?"

Ayla nodded and kissed his head. "Alright then, bye daddy."

She ran out the door and jumped into the passenger seat of the car. "Have you talked to the doctors today?" she asked her mom.

Her mother frowned, "No, but I will when we get there. Why? Do you think today will be a bad day?"

Her daughter shrugged. "Not necessarily I was just wondering."

The older woman smiled wearily. "I'm sure she'll be happy to see you."

"If she remembers me." Ayla replied.

Her mom's grip on the wheel tightened, the skin on her knuckles going white, "Ayla I know this is hard. Believe me it kills me to know my mother doesn't recognize me at times. If you don't want to do this anymore I can come alone."

Ayla hurriedly shook her head. "I'm sorry, that's not what I meant. I want to come. For as long as I can. Besides I like her stories."

Her mom glanced at her wearily. "Honey, you know I don't like when she tells you those."

The teenager sighed. "Mom, they're just stories. You know she just adds grandpa into them."

"Still, they can be dangerous. Maybe when you're older she should tell them to you but not now. You're only 14."

"14 isn't that young!" Ayla defended herself and her grandmother. "Besides in the stories grandma was only 7. And grandpa was 12."

"You're grandparents were... different." her mom said.

"Why?"

She sighed. "Ayla please. Not now."

Ayla sighed, "Fine," she grumbled, "grandma will just tell me anyways."

"What was that?" her mother asked.

"Nothing." Ayla said.

For the rest of the ride she stared out the window. When they pulled into the lot Ayla jumped out and raced to the building. Her mother called something to her but it was lost in the wind. She nodded to Bobby at the counter and speed walked to the folk's home waiting area.

She was there. Just like she always was. Sitting in the chair by the window, staring at the ocean waves slowly breaking onto the sand.

Ayla smiled and walked towards her. She hardly noticed the grandparents in wheelchairs, the people being handed medication or the 2 old men sitting at the table playing checkers like they always were. She saw the soft yellow paint on the walls was peeling and felt the green carpet beneath her feet. There were 2 nurses there today and each nodded to Ayla. By now all of the workers in the home knew who she was.

Ayla crouched down beside her grandma and placed a hand on top of her pale, wrinkly one. "Hey grandma." she said.

The older woman tore her gaze from the window and looked down at her grandaughter. "Melanie?"

Ayla sighed. It had been like this for the past year or so. "No gran. It's me Ayla remember? I'm your granddaughter not your daughter."

Annabeth's eyes grew suddenly clear, and for a moment it seemed she remembered exactly who Ayla was. "Oh that's right. I'm sorry dear how could I forget?"

Ayla smiled sadly, "It's alright. How are you feeling today?"

The older woman scoffed and waved a hand dismissively. "I am old my dear, I feel old. Walter checks me out every morning and I sit here and wallow in loneliness. I wish... I wish I could see Camp again. I haven't been there in so long." Her eyes grew hazy from memories and Ayla leaned forward slightly.

"When was the last time you were there?" she asked eagerly.

"Oh. Oh gods, it must have been about 50 years ago. My, was it really that long? Just after your uncle was born. Percy was so happy..." She grew quiet, trailing off and Ayla knew what she would say next. They had this routine now.

"Ayla would you like to hear a story about your grandpa?" the older woman asked.

Ayla smiled and sat in the chair next to her grandma. "As a matter of fact I would love to."

Annabeth leaned backwards. "Hmm which one should I tell you. There were quite a few you know."

"I wanna hear the one where Percy, Grover, Thalia and the hunters team up to save you and the goddess of the hunt, Artemis."

Annabeth frowned, "Have I told it to you before?"

In fact Annabeth had told that story to Ayla. Many, many times. But it was one of Ayla's favourites, and it wasn't like grandma would remember telling it to her. "I really would like to hear it." she replied skirting around the question.

The old woman didn't notice. "Well it all started with the satyr, his name... oh what was his name?"

"Grover?" Ayla suggested.

Annabeth nodded in approval, "Yes that was it! How could I forget Grover? Well it all started when he found 2 new demigods, Nico and Bianca Di'angelo. Have you met them yet?"

"I've met Nico. Only once, I saw him here visiting you do you remember? It was just after grandpa's funeral."

The woman frowned, "Are you sure about that dear? I can't recall..."

"Yes grandma, I was there I remember. He was telling you about one of your old friends. His name was Jason?" Ayla said.

Annabeth shook her head, "I hope you never grow old dear, it's a terrible experience not being able to remember things. Very confusing."

Ayla laughed although there was a sadness in it. "Hurry and tell the story gran, or else mom will be here soon and won't let you."

"Oh yes, where is my daughter?"

"She's talking to the doctors. Can you please tell me the story now?" Ayla begged.

"Of course dear where was I? Oh yes, it all started when Grover found the 2 new demigods..."

oooOOOooo

"Well after the battle between Atlas and your grandpa and Zoe's death we were brought to Olympus. The gods were deciding whether to kill Percy or not." The old woman shook her head.

"But grandma, if the gods wanted to kill grandad why did he fight for them?" Ayla asked her.

Annabeth sighed, "I'm not 100% sure Ayla. He was brave and loyal and despite everything he saw the best in people. Those qualities made him a great leader you know."

Ayla nodded but she was still unsure about something. "What about you and Luke?"

Sadness filled Annabeth's eyes. "Honey, Luke was my best friend before Percy. There was once a time where I thought I loved him, and I did. Just not in the way he wanted me to. He was my brother and his betrayal hurt to the core but if it had been Percy... well then I would have been shattered. Do you see the difference?"

Ayla met her gray eyes. "I think so."

Annabeth nodded. "Good. Now let me finish the story. So the council had a vote and decided to let Percy and Bessie live although Bessie had to be kept on Olympus."

"Did Zeus want grandpa to die?"

Annabeth paused. "I'm not sure about that. Percy was definitely a great risk to the gods but I think Zeus was afraid of the wrath Poseidon would unleash upon the rest of the gods and Olympus if one of them killed his son. In fact I think all of the gods were afraid of that."

"But I thought gods weren't allowed to be involved in their children's lives. Why would Poseidon care so much?" Ayla asked.

"Percy and his father had one of the strongest demigod/god relationships in history. Even in Percy's old age he and his father talked to one another. Besides Poseidon and his children were never one for following rules. Poseidon cared greatly for Percy. There is no doubt in mine or anyone elses mind that he would unleash a storm unknown to history on the world if one of his brethren killed your grandfather."

"Percy was that important?" Ayla asked incredulously.

Annabeth nodded. "Some say he is the greatest hero to have ever lived."

Ayla thought back to the hours she used to spend with her grandpa. They were hazy but she did remember he was always able to cheer her up. He wasn't stuck up or prideful or cocky. He was caring and loving and he had been one of Ayla's favourite people in the world. He was always warm.

"Do you miss him grandma?" Ayla dared to ask.

Annabeth turned her head so that her gray eyes met those of her granddaughters. "More than I can express in words."

Suddenly Ayla felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned and saw her mom.

"Melanie!" Grandma cried, "Oh my dear look how much you've grown. Such a beauty, Aphrodite must have blessed you."

Ayla's mother glanced at Ayla warily before laughing, "Mom it's great to see you, but I don't think I've changed that much in a week."

Annabeth frowned. "Has it only been a week? It feels like years! How's that husband of yours?"

Mom smiled, "He's great thanks mom. How have you been?"

"Fine, just fine. I was just telling Ayla here about your dad's third quest."

"You know I don't like it when you tell her those stories."

"Stories?" grandma said incredulously, "my dear you know better than anyone they aren't just stories. When this youngster goes to Camp she'll hear all about her granddad and his 'stories'."

Ayla looked up, "I'm going to a camp?"

Annabeth looked at her in surprise and then her mother. "Melanie what have you been hiding from this girl?"

"A lot," Ayla muttered, but no one heard her.

"Mother, I can't send her to Camp. She's not even a half-blood, she doesn't need to go. Monsters don't attack her. She probably wouldn't get through the barrier."

Annabeth waved a hand, scoffing as she did so. "You and I both know that's not true. Of course she would get through the barrier! And yes, she does need to go to Camp because she needs to learn about her heritage. When she's older don't you think she'll want to boast about it? Won't she be proud to be related to Percy Jackson?"

Ayla looked at her mom. "Mom, is she having an episode again?"

Her mother met her eyes and they were so full of sadness Ayla wanted to hug her. "No honey, I'll explain later okay?"

"But that's what you said last time." Ayla complained.

Suddenly Annabeth reached out and grabbed her daughters hand. With surprising strength she brought the woman down to face her. Her eyes were suddenly sharp and focused. "Listen to me Melanie. You tell this child who her grandparents really are. Soon. I'm fading honey, even now I can't remember things. I forgot who Grover was today! Soon I won't be able to tell Ayla all of this and you have to. She has got to go to Camp and learn. She needs to know. About everything. I'm slipping and soon I won't be here to help her. You went to Camp those summers ago, you know she needs to go."

Melanie's eyes were sad. "Mom don't talk that way. You'll be fine."

Annabeth shook her head with surprising urgency. "No. I don't remember you sometimes. I don't recognize you or Ayla. Soon I won't even remember Percy. Honey when that happens you know it won't be long before Thanatos takes me."

Ayla's mother closed her eyes. "Mom you won't forget dad. Ever."

Annabeth released her daughter and sat back, turning to look out of the window again as she did so. "Darling I already did once. Who's to say it won't happen again."

Melanie stood up shakily and adjusted her purse strap. "Ayla say goodbye to grandma, we have to go."

She stooped down and kissed her mothers forehead. "We'll be back next week mom, you'll be okay won't you?"

Annabeth sighed. "I've held on this long haven't I?"

Ayla's mother nodded and then turned to her daughter. "5 minutes," was all she said before hurrying outside to her car.

Ayla looked at her grandma. "Why is mom acting funny?"

"Because she knows I'm right." Annabeth said.

Ayla sighed. Suddenly she felt a rush of courage. She dared to ask the question that she had always wondered about, but never asked. "Grandma why is it the only thing you never forget is Grandpa?"

Annabeth never took her gaze from the window but Ayla suddenly felt she was seeing more than the ocean view. "Ayla you're grandfather was taken from me once. His memory was wiped and he didn't know anything about who he was or how he grew up. He remembered one thing apart from his name and do you want to know what that was?"

Ayla nodded.

"Me. He remembered me. Out of everything, when he could have remembered his mother or best friends, he remembered me. Then, one day, a while later, I had an accident. I lost my memory and remembered nothing about Percy or anyone else from when I was 12." Annabeth shook her head. "He was so sad. When I finally did remember I vowed, I swore on the Styx that never again would I do that to him. Never again would I hurt him like that or myself. I would always remember what we had and who he was to me."

Finally the old woman met her granddaughters eyes. "He never forgot me. Now it's my turn to return the favor."

Ayla stood up slowly. "Grandma-"

"Go to your mother dear. I think your 5 minutes is up." The old woman smiled but Ayla could see the sadness in her eyes. She was trying to be strong, and if Ayla knew anything it was that her grandmother hated to show weakness to anyone.

Ayla hesitated but then nodded. She kissed her grandmothers forehead, said farewell, and walked to the door. But when she got there she stopped and looked back one more time.

Her grandmother was staring out the window but she was holding something in her hands, twisting it around and around. When Ayla looked closer she saw it was the silver ring that was always on her grandma's ring finger. It wasn't her wedding ring, nor her engagement ring. It was silver, with a diamond in the middle and and emerald on either side of it. Ayla had always wondered where the ring had come from but she had never bothered to ask. Was it from a former boyfriend? A symbol of love perhaps? Was it something grandpa had given to her?

Ayla wasn't sure and when she saw a droplet of water fall onto the ring she turned and walked out of the door, once again unable to stand the suffering she knew her grandmother was going through.

That night she thought over every little thing that had been said and she decided that tomorrow, even if it was crazy, she was going to go look for Camp Half-Blood and see if it was real. If her mother finally explained everything to her so be it, but she needed to know. And someone was going to have to tell her.

She rolled over and smiled to herself. Tomorrow she would find out why her grandparents were so good together. Why even now, against all odds, Annabeth remembered only her husband.

Tomorrow Ayla was going to learn all of the unspoken memories. And she was going to make sure she never forgot them.

oooOOOooo

And this story is finished! I had so much fun writing it and I can't believe it's over. :( I hope you guys all enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. Thanks to everyone who followed this story, I love you. To everyone who reviewed I appreciate you and to everyone who favourited I adore you. Don't worry I'm working on lots of new stories and I hope you check them out!

Love you all! Thanks for sticking with me through this!

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