PLEASE REVIEW! I slaved over this for daaaayyyyssss, correcting this and deleting that, and proofreading it over and over to make it perfect for y'all! The whole reason I keep asking you guys to review is because I want to hear your thoughts! It would be much appreciated! :D btw its really long sorry!

And again I don't own Dear X but I sure as heck wish I did! Listen to it sometime its an amazing song!

Leo's POV

I took a couple of deep breaths to collect myself before I walked next door to Cabin Seven. I wouldn't be late. I was wearing clean clothes, including the shirt Aphrodite had given me back on the quest, which I'd managed to dig out of the laundry (don't look at me like that, it was clean!). I didn't have anything smeared across my face this time, and my gift for Anne was safe inside the chest pocket of my jacket.

I let myself walk over one cabin until I was standing in front of the door. I sucked in a breath of cool evening air before I knocked on the door.

Three rapid heartbeats passed before the gold door swung open. Anne smiled at me from the doorway.

Whoa.

If I'd thought she was pretty in pajamas and casual everyday clothes, she was beyond that now. Everyday Anne had nothing on date-ready Anne. Her blond hair fell over her shoulders in soft, long waves. She was wearing a dress the sharp blue of ice that was snug on her slender frame. On her feet were silver high heels, and on her face was makeup, something I doubted she would ever wear willingly. But she looked incredible.

Stop staring! I said to myself. I met her eyes, framed well by the makeup, and tried to think of something to say.

"Hey," I managed at last. "Sorry I'm late."

"You're not late," she replied, smiling at me. Her eyes seemed to do more of the smiling than her mouth.

"You look amazing," I said to her, admiring her eyes again.

She blushed. "Thank Ashley. She and her sisters gave me a makeover," she said as I noticed the girl standing behind her.

The Aphrodite girl smiled as she handed Anne her bag. "We work for tips, you know. But I'll be nice to you. Just have fun tonight and this one's on the house."

I grinned as Anne thanked her and Ashley walked back to her cabin.

"So…" Anne said, hefting her bag onto her shoulder.

"So…" I repeated, taking hold of her hand. "Are you ready?"

"Are you?"

"I was born ready." I squeezed her hand. "Let's go."

"Where are we going?"

I smiled at her. "Oh, I've got an idea. Just trust me."

She smiled back and let me pull her gently forward. Together we walked past the rest of the cabins, in the direction of the ocean.

"So Aphrodite's kids got hold of you, huh?" I said, grinning at her. "I knew I shouldn't have left you alone. They're predators in designer clothes."

"That bad?" she said, wincing. "I thought I could wash the makeup off when I left but I didn't have time—"

"No, no, no," I said. "I did not mean it like that. You look incredible."

She lowered her eyes shyly. "Thanks. But doesn't this dress make me look cold? Like an ice cube or something?" She laughed.

"More like an ice sculpture," I corrected her.

She raised one eyebrow and I realized that one was a little over the top.

"C'mon, you don't look a tenth as cold as Khione," I said, backtracking.

"Who?"

Oh, right. I guess she hadn't heard as much about the quest as I'd assumed. But then again, I hadn't told her much.

"Long story," I said.

"We've got all night," she replied.

"True," I said. "Why don't we get where we're going first?"

"Where are we going?" she asked, her blue eyes surveying the area.

"You'll see."

She gave me an amused look. "We're walking toward the beach…so let me guess. We're going to…um…the strawberry fields?"

I grinned at her. "That's it. We're going to watch the strawberry plants grow."

"Sounds romantic," she said as we reached the sand. She slipped her hand out of mine and bent over to take off her shoes. "I can't walk in these things on flat ground," she laughed. "I'd be facedown in two seconds if I tried to walk in sand."

I waited for her, smiling at the way she brushed a strand of her hair out of her face. She straightened up and shook the shoes to get the sand out of them before she tossed them in her bag. "Let's go," she said, taking my hand again.

"D'you want to sit down, or go for a walk, or what?" I asked her. "I'm cool with whatever."

Anne smiled as her dark blue eyes gazed out at the beach. The sun was beginning to set, turning the sky brilliant shades of red and orange.

"Why don't we sit," she said. "That way you can tell me more about your quest."

"Sure," I agreed, walking with her to the edge of the sand, where the tide couldn't come in and reach us anytime soon. "Sorry I didn't bring a towel to sit on or anything."

"No prob; we can use my sweatshirt," she said, pulling a dark gray hoodie out of her bag and spreading it on an incline of sand. She sat down and leaned against it, setting her bag beside her. I joined her, leaning back against the cloth-covered sand pillow and slightly against her.

"Man, I wish I brought a camera," she said, waving one hand at the horizon. "I mean, I'm not a real fan of sunsets, I like sunrises better, but this one's just spectacular."

"Maybe it's your dad," I said, remembering what I'd heard about Apollo driving a sun car across the sky every day. "Maybe he's making it nice just for us."

"Maybe," she mused.

I grinned. "And how can you like sunrises better than sunsets? What's the difference?"

"I don't know," she replied, turning her head to look at me. "I guess because sunrises are more hopeful, like it's a new day and everything. Sunsets make me sad. It's like the day is ending, and if it wasn't a good day, then it makes me even sadder, like now I can't turn the day around because it's over. Does that make any sense?"

I took her hand and squeezed it. "I guess it does. Was this day a good day for you?"

I could see a flicker of some emotion in her eyes as she replied, "To be honest, not completely. When I was with you in the bunker…and then when I ran to the woods after you left and totally cried my eyes out." She bit her lip.

I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, my heart aching with regret. "I'm so sorry I left you. That was stupid of me. I should've made sure you were okay before I just took off." I felt so bad that I'd left her, but I also admired that she hadn't minded telling me that she hadn't had the best day, and not in that I-had-a-totally-horrible-day-so-comfort-me way. She hadn't lied to me and said that it was fine when it wasn't, and I liked her all the more for that.

She waved her hand dismissively. "I told you, it's okay."

"It's not," I corrected her. "I'm so sorry."

"Stop apologizing," she said. "In a way, it's better that you left. I kind of needed some time to just figure myself out."

I blinked. "I didn't really think of it like that. But I'm still sorry."

Anne just shook her head and smiled at me like she still didn't agree but didn't want to waste her breath telling me that for the tenth time.

"But the sun hasn't set yet," I said, gesturing at the horizon. "There's still time to turn the day around, isn't there?"

"I guess," she said. "What did you have in mind?"

"Well, I guess for starters, what did you want to know about the quest?" I asked, leaning back against the sand bank.

"Well, who's Khione?"

I grimaced. "The goddess of snow. We ran into her when we visited Boreas's palace in Quebec."

Anne noticed my expression. "Let me guess, she wasn't the best person to meet?"

"Well, at first she seemed really nice." I smiled to remember Khione's porcelain-white skin, raven black hair, and eyes the color of coffee.

Anne noticed my smile. "Let me guess, she was totally hot?"

I laughed. "As hot as the goddess of snow can be." Then I remembered who I was talking to. "Oh, wait—I didn't mean—"

Anne just laughed. "It's fine. I'm not Aphrodite, and I don't wish I was."

"You could pass as her," I said, nudging her arm.

She grinned and kissed my cheek. "Thanks; that's sweet. But this—" she gestured to her face and her clothes—"really isn't me. I mean, I appreciate the girls' help and all, I really do, but I don't like wearing dresses. I don't like wearing makeup. I don't like fussing over my hair in the morning."

"I'm glad you don't," I said with a grin. "Because if you did every guy in Camp Half-Blood would be after you."

She laughed loudly. "I don't know about that."

"It could happen!" I laughed, only half-serious. "I can't compete with everyone!"

"Yes you can," she replied, meeting my eyes. "In my book, you win, place, and show."

I know I was supposed to be focused on the romantic moment, but my curiosity won out. "Is that a horse thing or something?"

"Actually, yeah. In horse racing, first place is a win, second place is place, and third place is show."

"Oh, then thanks!"

Anne laughed and leaned back against the sand bank. "You're welcome."

"Wait, does that mean it's possible that I could come in first, second, and third, or that nobody can compete with me?" I asked, confused.

She snorted. "Leo, honestly. What do you think?"

"Oh. Right," I said, nodding. "Thanks!"

She shook her head. "You're hopeless," she laughed, tossing one arm over my shoulder. "But I think that's one of the things I like about you."

I tilted my head. "Um, thanks?"

Anne laughed. "You're welcome. Now, tell me more about the quest."

"Sure," I said. "Well, there was this one time…" I launched into the story of when Jason, Piper, Coach Hedge, and I stumbled upon King Midas and his palace.

"…And then Jason fought Lit and won, I guess, but I don't know the details. I was kind of…missing in action at the moment."

"Oh my gods, don't tell me Midas turned you to gold."

"Yeah." I grimaced. "I was trying to summon my fire, but it was out for some reason, and Midas surprised me. But then Jason summoned lightning, and with it came rain, and so that reversed it. It didn't really work for Piper, though. We had to dunk her in a river to change her back, and then she got hypothermia."

Anne winced. "That sucks."

I laughed. "We escaped, though."

She smiled. "I'm glad you did. Quests sound so tricky. It's like, just think of all the demigods who haven't come home throughout the years."

"You haven't been on a quest?"

She shook her head.

"Would you like to someday?"

She shook her head. "To be honest, no. I did fight in the Titan War though, but I spent most of my time firing arrows from a long range and helping the wounded. Truth be told, I was terrified. I mean, basic monsters like hellhounds and dracaenae aren't a big deal, but those Titans…" she looked up and I saw a glimmer of fear in her eyes. "They were unbelievably powerful. And Percy Jackson took them on almost single-handed. I had no idea how he found the courage."

She took a breath before continuing, "I never wanted to be a big hero. Or heroine, whatever the case is. But I really admire those who are." Her eyes met mine. "Especially you. Chiron's told me the story of Achilles. In the end, it really wasn't his wounded heel, his mortal spot, that killed him. It was really his own arrogance and pride. And that's another thing I really like about you. You didn't come back all like, 'Hey look at me, I killed a whole bunch of monsters and giants and lived to tell the tale!' You can be confident, yeah, but not arrogant."

I smiled, trying to hide the pleased and slightly embarrassed blush that I felt burning on my face. "Really?"

"Really."

"Thanks," I said, smiling at her. "That means a lot."

"You're welcome," she said, leaning over to rest her head onto my shoulder. I slid my arm around her waist and leaned my cheek against her head.

"What do you want to talk about now?" I said softly into her hair.

"Tell me about your life," she said, tilting her head back to look at me. "I know nothing about you before you came to camp."

I cringed inwardly. How could I do that without bringing up my mom? But I realized that I'd already told the story to Jason and Piper.

"Well, I lived with my mom when I was a kid," I began. "She was a mechanic, and she hadn't had the greatest life. But she was the best mom a kid could ever ask for. She taught me Morse code, and we used to tap messages onto the walls at night." I smiled at the memory. "She would take me to work with her and let me play with some of the tools. But then Tía Callida came into the picture…"

Anne listened, wide-eyed, as I told her about the rattlesnake, the time she'd made me chop jalapeño peppers, and when she'd put me down for a nap in the fireplace.

"And you didn't even realize you were lying in fire?" Anne breathed, her blue eyes huge. "You weren't hurt?"

"Nope," I said. "I didn't even realize anything was wrong until my mom came home and screamed."

Anne shuddered. "Jeez. That's crazy."

"I know. Then Mom kicked Tía Callida out and I didn't see her again until the quest."

"So your psycho babysitter was Hera, right? I heard that from someone."

I nodded.

"Wait, what happened to your mom when you left? Does she know where you are and everything?"

I flinched a little and bit my lip, unsure of what to say next.

Anne saw my face. "Oh, she…? Oh, Leo, I'm so sorry."

I bent my head. "Don't worry about it. It's okay. I mean, it's not okay, but I guess I've gotten used to it."

I felt Anne's arm slip comfortingly around my back. "I wish I would have known her. She sounds like a great mom."

"The best," I said quietly.

Anne bit her lip and searched my face with her blue eyes. "Do you want to talk about…what happened?"

"I don't want to wreck our date," I said. "The sun's going down, isn't it? We're running out of time."

Anne tilted her head. "I don't care about the sun. I care about what would make you feel better. If you want to tell me, that's fine. If not, that's fine too."

I chewed on the inside of my cheek. When I'd told Jason and Piper about the night my mom died, I'd left out that it had been my fault. My inexperience with my fire powers had made me lose what little control I'd had. But maybe it was time that I didn't keep that bottled up anymore.

"I'll tell you," I decided, keeping my eyes on my legs, stretched out in the sand, on the horizon and the setting sun, anywhere but Anne's face. I was afraid that if I looked at her I would start to cry.

When I stopped talking, Anne wrapped her arms around me and buried her face in my shoulder. "Oh my gods, Leo, I am so, so sorry," she mumbled against my jacket. "That's what you were talking about the night of Capture the Flag, right?"

I nodded.

"And Gaea was the one who made you lose control?" she asked. "Now you have even more reason to kick her butt."

In spite of myself, I couldn't help cracking a smile. "Yeah," I said.

Anne eyed me. "So, do you like, totally hate her now?"

I clenched my jaw. "Pretty much. She threatened my friends and killed my mom, and I'm not going to let her get the better of me."

"Thatta boy," she laughed.

I grinned back at her, but her smile faded. Her eyes drifted to the side like she was thinking about something.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Would you say that you're angry at, say, Khione, or any of the monsters that threatened you and your friends?"

"Random question," I laughed. "But yeah, Khione for sure. She knocked us out of the sky somewhere, I can't remember exactly, by freezing some wires in Festus' head. Why do you ask?"

"That's so funny," she said, pulling away from me and digging around in her bag. "There's this song I really love, and I realized earlier that it reminds me of you. But it relates to you in more ways than I thought." She turned around with a bright blue iPod in her hands. "Here, listen."

"What's it called?" I asked, picking up one of the ear buds and waiting while she scrolled through to find the song.

"It's called Dear X. Here it is," she said, pressing a button and putting one of the ear buds in her own ear. "Hope you like it."

Dear pain,

Oh it's been a long time

Remember when

You were holding me tight

I would stay awake with you all night…

Dear shame,

I was safe in your arms

You were there

When it all fell apart

I would get so lost in your beautiful lies

I let you go…

But you're still chasing!

Go ahead, you're never gonna take me

You can bend, but you're never gonna break me

I was yours, I'm not yours anymore

Oh, you don't own me!

Dear hate,

I know you're not far

You would wait

At the door of my heart

I was amazed at the passion in your cries…

Dear anger,

You made me so high

You were faithful

To show up on time

Such a flame that was burning in your eyes

I let you go…

But you're still chasing!

Go ahead, you're never gonna take me

You can bend, but you're never gonna break me

I was yours, I'm not yours anymore

Oh, you don't own me!

Go ahead, put a target on my forehead

You can fire, but you've got no bullet

I was yours, I'm not yours anymore

Oh, you don't own me!

You tempted me to look back…

But everything that we had together was a lie!

Go ahead, you're never gonna take me!

You can bend, but you're never gonna break me!

I was yours, I'm not yours anymore!

Oh, you don't own me!

Go ahead, put a target on my forehead!

You can fire, but you've got no bullet!

I was yours, I'm not yours anymore!

Oh, you don't own me!

Go ahead, put a target on my forehead!

You can fire, but you've got no bullet!

I was yours, I'm not yours anymore!

Oh, you don't own me!

My eyes opened as the song finished. I hadn't even realized I'd closed them.

"Well?" Anne asked, pressing pause as the next song started. "What did you think?"

My mind went through the lyrics again. Dear pain, well that obviously was my mom. Dear shame would be the knowledge that I'd been the cause of her death, or my feelings that I wasn't as good as Jason and Piper. Dear hate: Gaea. No contest. And Anne had helped me find the last thing; dear anger would be Khione.

Go ahead, you're never gonna take me, I thought to myself. You can bend, but you're never gonna break me. I'm not yours anymore. You don't own me.

I smiled. That was a great song.

"Like it was written for you, right?" Anne said, noticing my smile. "That's freaky how it all works."

"Your dad's work?" I asked. "God of music and all?"

"Maybe," Anne said, switching her iPod off and tossing it back into her bag. "But I wouldn't care either way. That's one of my favorite songs."

"I really like that one," I said. "That should be, like, our song or something."

She smiled. "More like your song," she corrected. "But I showed it to you, so I guess that counts."

"I guess it does."

"Wanna hear it again?"

"Of course," I replied, waiting while she dug her iPod back out of the bag and handed me an ear bud. The violin music started flowing, and then the lyrics rolled forward in a perfect rhythm, and we both leaned back against the sand bank covered by Anne's sweatshirt. And with the setting sun in front of us, and our song playing, when she pulled me into a kiss, I was only half surprised.