Addie's POV

"You are going down," I whispered menacingly into my mike. I clicked the controller furiously, taking out the guy that was shooting me from across the map. I made it around the corner, only to get killed once again.

"I mitéra sou myrízei ópos ta psária!" I yelled back at the guy laughing in my ear. Only belatedly did I realize I was yelling at him in Greek, which he probably could not understand. I had been stuck in bed four whole days, a fact I was not very happy about.

"Your mother smells like fish?" a questioning voice asked from beside me. I turned around, a huge smile on my face.

I guess being in bed for four days was not bad when I got to spend time with Apollo. I turned back towards the screen, killing three more and earning a kill streak.

"Where did you get the Xbox?" he asked, sitting beside me. I was sitting cross-legged in the middle of my bed. I thought it was around nine in the morning; I had been up since midnight playing.

"Urban," I said as I killed two more. Over the past day, I had become addicted to Call of Duty, thanks to him. I got really good really fast; I guess it was thanks to the quick reflexes and ADHD. The game ended, and Apollo looked appreciatively at the screen.

"Thirty-nine and four? Not bad," he admitted.

I cut the Xbox off and slid the microphone off my head.

"Not bad?" I questioned, a small smile on my face. He did not respond. Instead, he just took my face in his hands and kissed me. It was the first time he had kissed me since the arena. Well, it was the first time we had been alone, and I was awake since the arena, too. I still could not believe it. I guess I was still in shock over the whole thing.

"How are you feeling?" he asked me as he pulled back to look at me.

"Really good," I said back. I fell back against the bed and stretched out on my side. After sleeping non-stop for almost thirty hours and drinking more potions than I could count, I had started to feel like myself again. I had drunk enough nectar the past few days that my skin had actually started to glow a little. It became a bet with Apollo and Artemis. I had not gotten close to burning to a crisp yet, which they thought was interesting. Normally, I could not tolerate so much. "Good enough to leave my bedroom," I added suggestively.

Apollo had been in an out a lot. The immortals were starting to prepare for this showdown in the next week or so with Gaia. I hated being cooped up, and now that I felt better, I was ready to do something. I was thankful for the peace, but after going non-stop for so long, it felt weird. I wanted to help.

"That so?" he said, tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear. He leaned over me, pressing me into the bed.

All this with him was so new and wonderful. I felt happy for the first time in a very long time. I still did not understand why me, but I did not want to question it. I did not want to question anything. For once, I simply wanted to live in the moment, to do what I wanted. I did not want to know about Gaia, about why she was teasing my thoughts. I'm sure she was just trying to trick me, nothing more. The question she kept repeating in my head was not even tempting me. I had another dream since the first one, but it was mostly the same. The only thing different was the male voice I could not pin down. He had not made a reappearance in the dream.

Apollo gently kissed my neck, his arms wrapping protectively around me. He treated me like I was breakable, and to him, I was. He was changing my perception of immortals. He told me he wanted to prove that I could trust him, and every action reflected that. It had been four days, and the careful wall I had put up was slowly starting to come down around him.

He shifted us so that he was on his back, and I curled up against him on my side. His arm wrapped around me, holding me to him.

"They were asking if you were well enough to come back," he said.

"They?"

"Most of the council. Everyone is a little overwhelmed, honestly," he added, running his hand through his sandy blonde hair.

"I should help," I said. I sat up, but Apollo grabbed my arm. He pulled me back down beside him, crushing my body to his. My heart started hammering in my chest. His face was just inches from mine, and his hands were on my neck and back. Every wonderfully toned inch of him was against me, and my breathing just stopped. I may have been almost two thousand years old, but my body was that of an eighteen year old. And that eighteen year old part of me was screaming in joy.

"No, you should take it easy," he said seriously.

"But-"

"But nothing," he breathed. His eyes bore into mine, making me feel like a puddle. "I don't want you getting hurt because you pushed yourself."

"Then give me something small to do," I reasoned with him. It took all I could to talk coherently around him. "If I cannot handle it, then I promise I will rest."

"Hmm" was his only response.

He put his hand to my face, silently asking for permission. I leaned the last two inches, touching my lips to his.

His hand gripped into me, but not painfully. He sighed, and the sound was full of contentment. His hand went into my hair, holding me to him. My arms were against his chest, and my hands wound their way around to his back. I trailed my fingers down, feeling every cord of his muscle. It got a little more heated, but I did not care. I had not had these kinds of feelings in so long. Something heavy had left me, a burden I did not know I carried, and I could finally breathe again. His hand grazed the skin where my shirt had rode up, his fingers sliding just underneath the edge of my top.

"Euadne?"

Apollo swore in Greek. He sat up suddenly, and a chair appeared beside my bed. He plopped into it, straightening his shirt with a wicked grin. I narrowed my eyes at him teasingly, but he just winked at me.

No one could know about me and Apollo, whatever was going on between us. He was worried that I would get hurt if they knew, and he was probably right. The council would see it as improper.

Hermes walked in, looking tired. I sat up in my bed, pushing my long, dark waves out of my face. I always liked Hermes. He had grown to be nice to me over time. He trusted me more than most of them and gave me a longer leash, so to speak. He smiled, and it had the same mischievous quality to it that Des had.

"Euadne, how are you feeling?"

I was feeling hot and flustered. My heart was still racing, and I knew my cheeks were flushed. I could still feel the lines of heat where Apollo's hands had been.

"I'm feeling a lot better, Lord Hermes," I said quietly back to him. My voice sounded controlled, good.

"Do you think you would be up for a quick delivery?" he said to me. He did not notice Apollo's fists clenching, but I did. I nodded my head, but my stomach clenched in anticipation. I wanted to get out, but I did not want to get overwhelmed.

"I need a package taken to Chiron at Camp, and Dionysus needs something picked up from there."

"Of course, my Lord," I replied.

He nodded his head and handed me a small box.

"Chiron has the thing that Dionysus needs, bring it to the throne room when you get back."

I nodded my head, and Hermes nodded at his half-brother then left my room.

I swung out of the bed, my feet hitting the cool marble floor. I stood, and my legs held. I looked up, a grin on my face. Apollo rose, placing his hands on my shoulders.

"I don't like this," he muttered to me.

"You know I have to go."

"I know. Still, I don't have to like it."

I stepped around him, looking for my shoes. I had put on blue jean shorts and a plain turquoise v-neck top earlier. I grabbed my shoes from the floor and slid my feet into them.

Apollo turned to me, my bangles in his hands. He fastened each one around my wrist, his fingers lingered on my skin.

"Be careful," he ordered.

"I will be," I said softly. He placed his lips on my cheek, and my heart skipped at the contact.

"I'll see you tonight," he whispered, and he left.

I took a deep breath, feeling for the magic. The familiar tug hit me, and I smiled.

I was just going to Camp; nothing could go wrong, right?

Percy's POV

"Two drachmas Jason beats Frank."

"You're on," I said, slapping Leo's hand.

We were in the arena, taking one last day before we went back to the Argo II. We had come here after the games because none of us could stand to be in Olympus any longer. I stayed just long enough to check on Addie, but she was asleep when I had stopped by. Hermes had come by and told me that we would be sent back to the ship in a few days, that it would give us some time to rest before the real fight began.

Speaking of fights, I'm proud to say we stopped the camps from annihilating each other. We had managed not to get into a civil war with the Romans, thanks to some smooth talking between them and myself, Jason, Frank, and Hazel. Of course, Octavian was yelling and screaming that all Greeks were traitors, but the rest of Camp Jupiter seemed to believe our story. They agreed not to attack them camp, and then Jason formally turned over his praetorship to Frank. We offered, very graciously I might add, for them to stay in the cabins with us, but they declined, electing to camp out by the strawberry fields.

Even so, that made camp extremely crowded, which made it even harder to relax.

Frank and Jason were practicing sword fighting in the arena while Leo and I watched. Piper had shouted something about a "girl's day," to which we happily left them to. Nico was also there, sitting a few rows over and down. I offered for him to sit with us, but he just shook his head, muttering under his breath.

"Jason's got him, I mean, just because Frank's Mr. Buff Stuff now, doesn't mean he has the skill," Leo added. He kept flicking his fingers, causing flames to dance along them. Frank swiped his sword at Jason, who blocked it, but had a little trouble doing so. They went at it for a few more minutes, and Frank finally succeeded at knocking Jason's sword from his hands.

"Pay up," I said, holding my hand out to Leo. He grumbled something under his breath, and handed me two drachmas out of his utility bag. We both got up and walked over to Jason and Frank. It had been a good fight, and Frank had only just beat Jason.

I clapped Frank on the shoulder, still marveling at how tall he was now.

"Nice job!"

He smiled at me, wiping the sweat from his forehead. Jason walked over to Nico and was talking to him quietly. My stomach grumbled, and I looked up. The sun was directly overhead.

"Lunch, anyone?" I called.

"Thank gods, I'm starving," Jason groaned. Nico was behind him, but Jason put an arm around his shoulder, pulling him along with us.

We walked towards the dining pavilion. We passed the big house, and Chiron was walking in, followed by someone very familiar.

"You guys go ahead, I'll meet you there," I said off handedly. They all nodded, but Nico glanced back at the big house, a dark look on his face.

I ran into the house, stopping just inside the doorway.

"Addie?" I questioned.

She looked up, and relief flooded my system. She looked better, even healthier than the first time I saw her.

"Hi," she said with a tentative smile. She walked up to me, carrying a box in her arms.

"Addie, you know your way around here," Chiron added as he walked out the front door.

"I thought they had sent you guys back already," she said to me. She waved her hand and the box vanished.

"We're going back in the morning," I explained. She nodded her head, looking a little distant.

"Why don't you stay for lunch?"

"I shouldn't," she said quietly back.

"We haven't had a chance to talk since the games, and I know Annabeth wants to see you," I said in an attempt to sway her. She narrowed her eyes at me, crossing her arms across her chest.

"There is pizza, and everyone wants to meet you." It was shameless. I had heard through Urban that my half-sister loved pizza just as much as I did. I knew it would get her to stay.

"Pizza?"

I nodded my head. "Extra cheese and pepperoni!"

She sighed dramatically.

"Okay, I'll stay. But only for the pizza," she added playfully.

I pulled Addie to the table with me. We were the only two there. Tyson had gone back to the forges two days ago to help dad with preparing more weapons. Addie bit her lip. I could tell she was nervous for some reason.

"What's wrong?" I asked taking a bite of my pizza.

"Just still trying to get over the poison," she said. I knew she was lying, but I did not want to push her. "How has everything gone for you?"

I told her everything that had happened to us since the games, which wasn't much. Addie's eyes glanced up, and I felt a presence behind me. Annabeth sat beside me, grabbing my hand underneath the table where no one could see. Annabeth asked her how she was feeling, and she told us that she felt a lot better, that Apollo had her back up to speed. Her cheeks took on an uncharacteristic blush. Maybe Apollo had taken my advice.

"How are you feeling?" she questioned us.

"Fine," we responded quickly.

"I know you two are lying. You both look tired."

"Well, we've been having these dreams lately," Annabeth started. We had both realized we had been having the same nightmares. Gaia was speaking to both of us, showing us images in our dreams. It was hard to remember the words and pictures. When I woke up, all I could think about was how much trouble we were in and how scared I was.

"Hmm. Doesn't Morpheus and Hypnos have cabins here now?"

I nodded my head, and she looked thoughtful.

"I know of a potion that eradicates nightmares, but I would think about it first. Sometimes, dreams like that give clues as to what she's up to, what her motives are. I can make it though, if you wish. I'd just need some dreamshade, and either cabin should have that or know where to find some."

"That would be great! If I could just get one full night of sleep, then maybe-" I stopped because Annabeth nudged my shoulder.

Rachel walked in, rubbing her head. She looked up, her eyes glazing over mine to settle on Addie. She walked over and sat beside my half-sister.

"Hello, Rachel," she said apprehensively.

"You've met?" I asked, shocked. Addie nodded her head.

"Apollo has sent me to check on her before," Addie explained.

Rachel just continued to stare at Addie, and her eyes were a little glazed.

"I saw you in a dream," she explained solemnly. Addie's color drained just a little, and she looked at Rachel. Their eyes met, and Rachel's flashed green.

"Rachel, are you okay?" Annabeth asked her.

"Everything will be set right," Rachel muttered. "It will be as it should have been."

"Excuse me?" Addie asked.

"Go on the boat. You have to meet Death for the seven to succeed."

"What boat?" Addie asked desperately.

"The path you travelled before, it must be taken again," Rachel cried, her eyes flashing green.

Addie flinched back away from her, her hand gripping into the table. The whole dining pavilion had gone quiet. Even Chiron had stood up. Rachel shook her head, and she came out of her daze.

"Did I just have a spell?" Rachel looked around, confused.

Addie looked like she was in shock. She got up and without another word, left the dining pavilion.

A/N: Hi All! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm sorry it took so long, but I couldn't get it to where I wanted it to be! To kinda explain a little, we are getting into where I picture Blood of Olympus starting, so the next few chapters are what I love to call "building chapters." Some fluff and angsty stuff is coming, and the action will start picking up again soon!

Thank you to all the new followers and the reviews! I love hearing your opinions on everything, good or bad! You guys are amazing, and ya'll are making me into a better writer!

So quick question on something I want your opinions on: I rated this T because I wanted to depict the gods in a more mature environment. The legends have them doing some really messed up things, and I wanted to address that to an older audience. Now, we are all young adults/adults here *hopefully*, so how would you all feel about some aspects getting a little darker/more graphic/slightly smuttier? I probably would no go full smut/lemony unless that is something you all wanted. I considered keeping it PG-13 on here, and maybe posting a side story that's a little more... ;)

So please give opinions! Do you like the tone I've been using, want it darker? Please let me know!

At least one more update today? :D