-Percy-

"She is too dangerous to keep alive, Zeus," Ares muttered quickly.

"Says the one who suggested her curse in the first place," Poseidon countered. They all began to bicker again, and I finally had enough of it.

"Are you kidding me?"

But it wasn't me who yelled it, it was Annabeth. All of the gods looked at her, but she stood her ground. Gods, I loved that girl.

"She does not deserve this. If it is her time to die, then the fates will have it, but it should be on her choices, on her terms, not yours," Annabeth said gravelly. Some of the gods had the decency to look ashamed, as they should. Zeus looked at her, a spark in his gaze.

"Wise words, daughter of Athena. Let's find out. Atropos!" Zeus commanded.

A withered old woman appeared, and she looked at Zeus sternly. She had her arms crossed in front of her body, and her foot was tapping the marble floor impatiently. She looked familiar, and I realized I had seen her before. I turned towards Annabeth, and she had a look of surprise on her face.

"That is one of the fates, right?" I asked her.

"Yes. Atropos is the one who cuts the string, the Fate of Death," she whispered hurriedly back.

"What can I do for you, my Lord?" She asked, agitation and annoyance coloring her tone.

"Like you don't know," he muttered to himself more than anyone else. "I need to know about Euadne-"

"Do I have a pair of scissors in my hands!?" she snapped.

"No, but-" he started.

"Then there is your answer!"

Atropos vanished, leaving Zeus staring at where she was.

"Are we done here?" Athena asked him angrily. Zeus nodded, but you could tell his thoughts were elsewhere. Most of the gods vanished, while a few others stayed, watching what was going on.

Apollo got up, changed to normal, human size, and walked to where Addie laid. He knelt down next to her and picked her up in his arms. Athena met him at the center, along with Artemis and Hermes, who had all shrunk down to human size as well. They were talking to each other, muttering instructions, I guessed. Artemis and Hermes vanished, leaving Apollo and Athena with Addie. They had a hurried, whispered conversation for just a minute, and then, they started walking out of the throne room.

I finally looked at my dad, and after looking at his expression, some of my anger towards him faded. He was looking at Addie, and I could have sworn it was sorrow and worry that dominated his expression. Maybe he did actually care about his kids.

"Wait just a minute," Ares started up. He had gotten out of his chair, changed size, and was storming in their direction.

Apollo turned toward him, and you could tell his ire towards Ares was just as great as mine was. I stepped in front of him, my fists balled at my sides.

"Leave. Her. Alone."

The words were out of my mouth before I could even stop them. I could hear the amount of barely contained animosity in my voice. I had always hated Ares, and now, I had a reason to despise him.

"Excuse me, Jackson? This is none of your concern!"

"If it concerns my sister, I assure you, it is my concern," I spat back at him. Ares's eyes glowed with rage, the same rage I had seen in a dream.

"I promise you do not want to go down this road, boy," he threatened lowly. He made a move to step past me, but I blocked his way once again.

"I think I do, and I think you have done enough," I said. My vision was turning red, and it took all I could not to beat the crap out of him. Ares started to glow, and I almost jumped him when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned, to see my dad behind me, a blank look on his face.

"Ares, enough," he said sternly.

He hesitated. I think my dad was a lot more powerful than he was, and Ares was not about to blast me when he was a foot behind me. He gave me a hatred filled glare and vanished. Annabeth came beside me, and even she could tell how angry I was. Everyone had left the throne room, and now it was empty except for me, her, and my dad.

"Annabeth? Do you mind waiting outside for just a moment?" my dad suggested.

Annabeth nodded her head, but she gave my arm a quick squeeze before she left. I watched her go, and I wanted to follow.

"Percy," my dad began, sighing. "You know better than to anger Ares. He is a god, you need to remember that."

"Maybe I do, but he deserves it after what he did."

"What exactly do you think he did?"

It was obvious my dad did not know. I mean, if that was my child, I would have beaten the crap out of any man or god for even thinking about it. I made myself and Addie a promise though. If he did not know, then obviously, she did not want him to know.

"Just some things I figured out."

My dad looked at me like he was measuring me up. I looked at him, and even though it had gone down, I was still mad at him. I felt abandoned. I mean he could not even send a friendly seagull to check on me in the past year.

"I know you are angry with me, and you have every right to be."

I just looked at him, and I waited for him to continue.

"These past few months have been hard on us. I know you don't understand. I've spent a lot more time as Neptune than Poseidon, and I'll be honest-"

"Addie said you weren't very pleasant to deal with in that form."

He smiled, just a little, but it was quickly gone. I did not realize how tired my dad looked. I wondered if, like Athena, this flip-flopping was harder on him than some of the other gods.

"She's right. She's putting it nicely," he stated. "I need you to do me a favor, Percy."

I raised my eyebrows, wondering what he could possibly want from me.

"I cannot interfere with her, at all. I'm sure she was not able to mention me, and that is my fault, not hers. I am not to speak to her; in fact I get to talk to her once every hundred years if I am lucky. The last time I spoke to her was when Athena and I asked her if she would go after you and Annabeth."

"You asked her, too?"

Poseidon nodded his head. "She would have been furious if she could not have done anything. I don't know if you have noticed, but she has an especially kind and pure soul, one that is quite rare in this world."

Sadness crept into my dad's voice. I wondered where Addie was at. Fear bubbled in my stomach, and I became worried. How was she? Was Apollo able to heal her from the bite that Arachne gave her, or would he even be able to? Did he even know how?

"What is the favor you want?" I asked him.

"Will you let me know how she is? If she is doing well or not? And can you give her a message? I have to go back to my palace, to start preparing. The sea will have its part to play just like everyone else."

I nodded my head, and he handed me a small shell. He dismissed me and I started to head out of the throne room. I knew the conversation was done. As soon as my hand touched the door, however, my dad spoke to me again.

"Percy?"

I turned back towards him, the door now cracked open.

"I'm proud to call you my son, and if you think it is right, it probably is. Just remember your place. I cannot interfere again."

I turned away, and I saw the flash of light that let me know my dad was gone.

-Addie-

I thought I had felt pain before. I was quite wrong.

Imagine that you fell off a roller coaster at its highest point, fell to the ground, got hit by an eighteen-wheeler, and then bounced your way into a pool of lava.

That's pretty much how I felt before I blacked out.

All I could remember was Hyperion sending his pet chimera or whatever after me because he was mad I had dented his helmet and cut his arm. After that, everything was really a blur.

I remember stabbing it and thinking, Well…this is it. I'm dead.

I knew what to expect. I'd end up on Charon's ferry, and then I'd go to the underworld via the Styx. I would most likely get sent to the fields of punishment, and I would spend the rest of my existence doing something absolutely stupid. I could see them making me jump rope forever or maybe having to sit in cold pudding. They would come up with something ridiculously torturous.

But instead, I met great black oblivion. There was no pain or jump ropes, no anything. I found that okay because I felt peaceful. I could not tell you how long it lasted. It could have been years or hours, who knows?

I do remember coming up from the darkness, and although my surroundings were extremely comfortable, I was absolutely miserable. I was wrapped in something really soft, and something warm was messing with my arm. The fuzziness started to clear, and all my aches came back. My bones and muscles felt like jelly, and my head was pounding. Every breath I took felt like fire in my lungs. My body craved movement, some form of release, but every twitch caused more pain.

Where the hell was I at? I obviously was not dead if I was hurting this bad.

I shot up, reaching around for some kind of weapon, anything I could get my hands on. What if I was still down there? What if they had finally captured me? A strong set of hands grabbed my shoulders and tried to lay me back down. I fought, despair tearing through my heart. I was not strong enough; I could not escape the grip.

"Addie, stop! It's me; you are safe."

My eyes finally focused, and a hand came to my cheek. I relaxed, feeling the heat come through it. Apollo laid me back down in the bed. His hand never left me, and for some reason, I was glad. I felt like I was detached from reality, like a balloon whose string had come untied. He had grabbed my string before I floated away.

"Wha-"

"What happened?" he finished for me. He was working on my leg now, a soft golden-red glow on his hands. "We summoned you back; you killed a chimera, and then blacked out on the throne room floor. I have spent the last four hours trying to heal you."

I did not know what to say so I just looked around the room. I was back in Olympus, in my room, the Manhattan skyline in front of me. The sun was almost setting, and I reached up to rub my forehead.

"Four hours?" I whispered tiredly. I was still trying to wrap my head around what happened.

"You had four broken ribs, two stab wounds, a poisoned chimera bite, a concussion, broken ankle, broken wrist, and on top of that, Arachne's poison. So yes, four hours."

"Huh," I sighed. I did not realize I had that much on me broken. Adrenaline and nectar were beautiful things. He finished with my leg, and then looked at me. He helped me sit up just a little, pillows magically appearing behind me. His hand was soft on my back, and he supported my weight as he laid me back down.

"You almost died, Addie. What in the world happened?"

"I got in a fight with Hyperion and Krios," I muttered, rubbing my head. The pressure was awful. "Krios will not be bothering us for a while." He reached up, brushing his fingers against my forehead. The pain vanished, and I blushed. I smiled in thanks, and he grinned in response. It did not touch his eyes though, which for some reason, bothered me.

"And how do you know that?" he asked, reaching for something behind him.

"Because I stabbed him in the heart, and then pushed him into the Acheron." Apollo laughed, shaking his head.

"That's my girl," he said smiling. He handed me a glass, which smelled like my favorite cake. I sipped on the nectar, and I looked up at him. His eyes were still worried. I looked down at my arm, and I tried not to lose it.

Arachne's bite was still there, unhealed like I knew it would be. Granted, the black had gone way down, but it was still noticeably there. It felt inflamed and heated, and I knew it would feel feverish to the touch.

"What did Phoebe say?"

I explained what she told me, and I felt the despair grip me for just a moment. Who was a god of healing that knew me well enough to know my deepest and darkest fears? Without anyone telling them?

I leaned back against the pillows, and Apollo was just looking out at the city.

"That's what she said?"

"Yeah," I responded softly. I looked back at him, and his face was a blank mask he had slid on. I did not know what he was trying to hide, but if it was guilt over all of this, it was not his fault. I looked down at my hands. I felt myself get emotional, and I would not let anyone of them see me cry. I took a deep breath, and I felt my resolve strengthen. "It's okay, Apollo. At least I'm here and not there."

"We will figure out a way, Addie," he said fiercely, looking back at me.

I nodded my head. I did not want to argue with him. One, you don't argue with a god. Two, I did not feel like it. All of the fight had drained out of me. I looked out of my window, appreciating the view for a moment. The Manhattan skyline was quite beautiful. The lights were just starting to come on, and the sky was a blend of rosy pinks and purples. I found myself nostalgic. I missed Rome. I missed my home, where I had grown up. Apollo's hand grasped my chin, pulling my gaze back towards him.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

I did not want to lie to him, but I did not want to whine either.

"I want to," I said back to him.

"Trust me," he whispered back, concern the only thing in his gaze. I dipped my head, and I bit my lip, not wanting to say more. I wanted to trust him more than anything in the world. In the last thousand years, Apollo had been a very good friend. A part of me did trust him, but a part of me was also skeptical.

I had trusted the gods, once. And look at what happened.

He pulled the sheets closer around me, stroking my cheek for just a second. Was he just trying to make himself feel better? Was it really guilt that drove them, as Phoebe said?

"Get some sleep, okay?"

I closed my eyes, my body begging for the rest. I did need it, and until he suggested it, I did not realize how tired and spent I truly was. It only took a few seconds, and I was blissfully asleep.