Chapter 8 is up peeps! No particular notes or feedback. Wait! Cassie's full character should be revealed within a few chapters, so keep watching for updates. Otherwise nothing. I guess this is making up for the super long author's note last time.

Disclaimer- PJO belongs to Rick Riordan, and so on.

Percy POV

Days had passed since Beckendorf's death but the mood of the camp was still dreary. This war had taken a serious toll on us, me especially. All the battle strategies being created were for an actual war instead of capture the flag. Annabeth and I were going over one now in the dining pavilion.

I looked up at the camp from the table. I couldn't let anything happen to it. This place was my home. The strawberry fields. The soft green grass everywhere. The sand dunes of the beach. And then I spotted someone I sort of recognized next to someone I practically only knew from the shadows. She looked a bit different, a little older, but there was no doubt that it was her. Cassie was back at camp. I had last seen her about two years ago. The question was, why hadn't she come to see me? And why was she laughing? And why-? You know what? There was more than one question.

"-and then we strike hard and fast. Any questions?" Annabeth finished.

I hadn't actually been paying attention to the last half of her plan. To be honest I didn't have any intention of finding out right now.

"Yeah," I said, "Who's that guy?"

I pointed down towards the lake where Cassie was now using droplets of water to create rainbows in the air. Annabeth scowled, not understanding why I asked.

"That boy is Max, son of Hephaestus. Makes some of the best swords at camp, and not bad at using them either. Got to camp about two years before you did. Sixteen years old now I think. And next to him-" she stopped.

Annabeth's jaw dropped. She was completely silent for a few moments. That's new.

"Is that-?" she started.

I nodded.

"And she's-?" Annabeth continued.

I nodded again.

The daughter of Athena took off at a sprint. She knocked over a ton of papers covered with diagrams and plans, some of which took off in the wind. I didn't stop to collect them though.

"Hey wait up!" I shouted as I began to run after her.

I drew to a halt next to Annabeth who was standing just yards away from the odd pair that hadn't noticed us yet.

Cassie looked different than the last time I saw her. No dark clothes, not even her cloak. Just a camp t-shirt and shorts. And her combat boots. I guess she couldn't leave those.

Cassie gave a small laugh at something Mike or what-ever-his-name-was said. Her small hands were fiddling with the silver charm bracelet on her left wrist. The charms included a lightning bolt, a trident, a bow and arrow, a hammer, and a heart.

"Cassie?" Annabeth asked.

It took less than 2 seconds before Cassie was standing up with and arrow aimed at Annabeth. Where had that bow even come from?

"Shit," Cassie whispered.

She lowered the bow and slung it over her shoulder where it promptly disappeared. Very strange. Cassie sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.

That's when Matt or whatever his name was, stood up. He raised a hand in a hello.

"Hi," he said, completely calm, though a bit warily. "I'm Max."

That was it! Max!

"Percy," I said.

"I know," Max said.

Of course he knew.

"Am I allowed to ask what's going on?" Annabeth questioned.

She moved her finger, point at Cassie and Max, back and forth. Annabeth's eyes were full of skepticism.

Cassie was the shortest one in the group, but the most intimidating by far. From a distance she just looked a bit older than the last time I saw her, but looking at her up close I saw a new sparkle in her eyes. To quote Beauty and the Beast, which Annabeth forced me to watch, 'there must be something there that wasn't there before.'

Of course the sparkle was kind of dimmed by this unexpected meet up. And the sparkle didn't change the fact that she held herself with confidence and authority.

"No," Cassie answered in a hard voice.

"Cassie," Max said in a condescending tone.

Cassie's hard expression softened just a bit.

"Fine," she huffed, "but I need to get something first."

Cassie turned towards the lake and walked out on it, continuing towards the far side. When I say she walked on water, I mean like from the bible, she literally walked across the water. The walk sped up into a run until she disappeared.

"Don't mind her," Max said, "She's just had some hard times."

"Unlike the rest of us?" I asked sarcastically.

"Worse than the rest of us. Combined," he said.

Annabeth glanced to where Cassie disappeared, then turned to Max.

"Do you know what she is?" Annabeth asked in a rushed tone. "I mean obviously she's not mortal, and I don't think she's a monster. She's powerful too."

Max gave us a knowing grin.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said.

Clearly he was lying, and he knew that we could tell but he didn't care. Annabeth looked like she was getting frustrated.

"Look," Max said, "even if I could tell you, which I can't, that's part of her story and it's not mine to tell."

"So you do know-" Annabeth said.

"But you can't tell us," I finished.

"What I can tell you is that you're both lucky and unlucky if she's watching over you," Max said, "Lucky because she's strong and can protect you when the Fates allow it. Unlucky because it usually means you're a big part of history and have a hard path ahead of you."

Annabeth and I shared a nervous glance. Cassie watched me like a hawk for twelve years, and even after that checked in on me.

Max continued, "Once you really get to know Cassie, you find out just how incredible she is. The things she can do… It's no wonder she never fit in one place. She belongs everywhere."

Then Annabeth chose to speak, "From what I observed, she's pretty cold and distant. I mean, she knew what would happen to Thalia, but she didn't stop it."

"Look at Thalia now though. She's happily with the Hunters. Cassie must have seen that too. And her burden isn't a light one. She sees everything, yet there's only so much she can do," Max said.

I spoke for the first time in a while.

"What's going on with you and Cassie? I mean how- That is to say when- Well- You get the idea."

Max chuckled. He too seemed a bit cold and distant, but then again who wasn't after what had been going on lately. Max's smile slowly shrank and it was like he had faded into the past.

"Cassie brought me to camp. I was ten years old. My mom had sent me off to camp because I was attracting so many monsters. Chiron sent a satyr but the satyr wouldn't have reached me in time. I was armed with just a dagger and lost in windy streets of Chicago- about halfway through my journey.

That's when she found me. Huddled in an alleyway. I don't know why she chose me of all demigods to save, but I'm glad she did. She took me as far as the other side Half-Blood Hill."

"I remember the rest of that," Annabeth said. "You came into camp with these crazy tales of the blond girl who had saved you."

"As you can see though, they weren't crazy," Max replied.

"Well I can see that now," Annabeth said.

A piercing bird call rang out through the valley. Max just gave a tiny smile. The thing was, there was no natural animal that could make a sound that loud. Annabeth seemed just as on guard as I was. We were all silent for a few seconds.

Then a bird actually flew towards us from the direction of Thalia's tree. It looked like a falcon or something. The ball of feathers landed calmly on Max's shoulder.

I reached out my hand and the bird nipped at me. Max however, began stroking the bird like this was a regular occurrence. Then the bird transformed.

In the bird's place was Cassie balancing precariously on Max's shoulder. Cassie's arms were spread out as if some of the bird had been carried through the transformation.

"That's not physically possible," Annabeth murmured.

I just nodded in agreement.

Cassie meanwhile, jumped lightly to the ground, landing perfectly on her tiptoes.

"I'm not physically possible, sweetheart," Cassie said.

Aaaaaand that's the end of chapter eight. You like? If so please tell me. I enjoy hearing that people like what I write. Don't hold your breath waiting for the next chapter though. As the beginning of the school gets closer, the farther apart the updates will be. Sorry. Any questions or suggestions for the story?

Follow, favorite, and review! plz & thx