A/N: Hello, my loyal readers. I would've updated a few days ago but I'm suffering from writer's block. Seriously, I think this is the worst one I've experienced yet. I wasn't in any mood to write for a few days. I just spent most of my time watching, or listening to music. Luckily, with Glee's version of Let Me Love You (which is featured in this chapter) it went away. I just hope this chapter is worth the wait, even when it isn't much.

MysticWishes: Thank you. I like it when I at least take some of you by surprise. :D

Bananas and Fandoms: Hey, why did you change your username? Anyways, yeah, I remember you guessing that from last chapter. I guess I can't really take you by surprise, can I? :D I'm glad you noticed one of the biggest mysteries of that chapter. I guess most readers were too absorbed with the action that they failed to notice what happened between Lester and Percy. And okay, I'll ask that. And thank you for that. :D

Emchmi999: Yes. OH MY GOS OF ETERNAL OLYMPUS.

Percabeth4eva: Thank you for that. Means a lot to me. :D

CimFan: Congratulations for guessing correctly. And you ARE a helpful reader. :D

In love with Niall Horan: HOLY PICKLE SNACKS!

Elena Amare: Yay! Another one noticed the blood-thingy. :D

Guest: (I hope you know this is for you. Next time, leave a name.) Thank you. I appreciate having people actually read my story. It's self-fulfilling. :D

QUESTION: This one's from Bananas and Fandoms: Do you think the children of Greek and Roman gods can date? Like a child of Ares and a child of Mars? Is it incest? Please answer. :D

The question gave me an idea. If you guys have anything to ask me, go ahead and ask. I'll answer them. :D

Anyway, I dedicate this chapter to my self-proclaimed number one fan, Percabeth4eva, and to my ever-loyal readers Bananas and Fandoms and CimFan. As Percy said, KEEP BEING AWESOME. :D

DON'T JUST READ, LEAVE A REVIEW!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

"Why does it feel like night today?
Something in here's not right today.
Why am I so uptight today?
Paranoia's all I got left
I don't know what stressed me first
Or how the pressure was fed
But I know just what it feels like
To have a voice in the back of my head
Like a face that I hold inside
A face that awakes when I close my eyes
A face that watches every time I lie
A face that laughs every time I fall"

-(Papercut by Linkin Park)

WISE GIRL'S SEAWEED BRAIN 2.0:

DARKNESS ARISING
Chapter 13: A PLACE FOR MY HEAD

ANNABETH

I sat there, facing Skylar Gray and Lester Fleming, as they refused to look at each other. Lester looked a little hurt while Skylar obviously didn't know what to say.

We were at the Big House and Chiron had given us some privacy to talk about what happened this night. He knew that there was something going on, something we weren't ready to share. Personally, I had no problem in telling Chiron everything, but there seemed to be something that Percy and Lester were keeping from us. They kept on looking at each other and Lester would raise his eyebrows while Percy would shake his head sharply.

"Skylar," I said. "Why didn't you tell us you know Lester?"

She took a deep breath before looking up. She gazed at Lester who tore his eyes away from him. Even without having them tell me, I could say that there was something between those two, something that went deeper than being friends, but not as deep as being a couple. "I didn't know what to do," she said. "I first spotted him a few weeks after school started. At the beginning I didn't know what to think. He was obviously a demigod and he was surrounded by magic so powerful that none of my magic works whenever I'm within a few meters away from him. I was scared. I didn't know who he is, or what he can do. I-I was scared, Annabeth, which was why I stayed quiet."

"Scared of what?" Lester asked, stopping me from saying what I was about to voice out. "Or better yet, scared of whom?"

"Lester . . ."

"You're scared of me, Skye?" Lester asked in a quiet voice. He looked down. "I- you know I will never hurt you."

Skylar looked like she was ashamed. "I know," she said. "I didn't know you back then, Lester. I'm sorry for even thinking that you would do such thing."

Lester didn't answer. He just kept on looking down. I couldn't begin to imagine how overwhelming everything was for him. I felt sympathy for the kid. He was too young to be handling things like this. I reached out and took his hand. He looked up at me questioningly. "Its okay, Lester," I said softly. I saw Skylar eyeing our hands and took mine back. "We're all part of a family here, and we protect each other." I settled back on the seat and looked at him. "Now tell me what happened and why you were missing for almost a month."

"A month?" Lester and Skylar asked together, clearly shocked. Then Lester added, "What date is it today?"

"March 12th," I said.

Lester shook his head, eyes wide. "No, it can't be," he murmured. "It's February 15th." He looked up at me, his eyes pleading. I instantly got what he meant. He was asking me to deny everything, to tell him that all of these were just parts of an elaborate prank. He still wanted to believe that none of this was happening. "That's impossible."

I took his hand in mine again and heard Percy clearing his throat loudly. I looked up and glared at him. He looked back, telling me that he was serious. I sighed and pouted my lips. He gave me a small smile. I turned back to Lester. "Look, I know this is too much for you to take in one night, but you have to," I said in a soft voice. "Everyone went through the same thing that you are going through right now. We know how hard it is, but know that we are here to help you cope."

He looked at me gratefully. Staring at his eyes, only did I get my first good look of him. Lester had the kind of face that could be called boyish. He might be fourteen, but his face didn't look a day older than eleven. His nose was a sculptor's masterpiece, while his lips were thin. For a while, I wondered how such pink color exists. His eyes, however seemed out of place on his young face – they had depth; they were soft but quick, his eyelashes longer than mine. His inner personality was pushing against his in-born beauty and seemed to make a mockery out of it.

While our eyes were locked, I got a good reading of who he was. He was the kind of person who could love so hard and endure so much, hide away all his pain behind a smile and listen to everyone's less significant problems with a kind ear. I couldn't help but think that he didn't deserve the kind of life he had been living. Chiron informed us about how he was being treated by his father.

I was brought back from my reverie when Percy cleared his throat again. "If you guys want us to leave . . ." he said, unsure of himself.

I took a breath of exasperation. "Seaweed Brain . . ." I scolded him. He looked at me, uncertain of himself. "Don't be unreasonable. You know why I'm doing this."

He nodded slowly, a slight blush blossoming on his cheeks. "Sorry," he said.

I sighed and looked back at Lester, who looked like something dawned on him. "What is it, Lester?" I asked.

"Zephyr," he said quietly.

"Who's that?" Percy asked.

"The Greek god of the West wind. He can also be called Zephyrus. He is known as the fructifying wind, the messenger of spring, and is the gentlest of the anemoi," I answered him. "Have you had any encounter with him?"

Lester nodded slowly. "Last February 15th," he said quietly. "S-something happened and I found myself in my room and – and Skylar was there." He looked at Skylar, his eyes uncertain.

Skylar on the other hand was nodding. "I remember," she said. "You suddenly appeared in front of me out of nowhere and – "

"And then the door was blasted and you were hit," Lester said, cutting her off. Skylar looked hurt and I thought Lester was being rude. He seemed to realize what he had just done. He looked down and muttered, "Sorry." He took a deep breath before proceeding. "You-you were knocked out and was pinned under the door – that's when he came in. He identified himself as Zephyr. W-we had a little fight and then he told me that my parents were taken and I was hit by a brilliant white light. That was the last thing I remember. When I woke up, you guys were there," he said, looking at me and Percy. His eyes were afraid as he opened his mouth to continue, realization slowly dawning on them. I knew where he was going. "Zephyr has the ability to stop time, right?" he asked me. "I-I mean I believe I read it somewhere."

I nodded, confirming him. "That's what happened. Zephyrus must've stopped the time for the two of you."

"But why?" Skylar wondered.

"That's the million dollar question," Percy muttered.

"No, Seaweed Brain," I said. "It isn't." I gazed around the room to the three demigods gathered around me. "It is pretty evident that Zephyr was following orders from someone, and that someone wanted the two of you out of commission for a while." I took in a shaky breath as some pieces fell into their respective places while more fell out of the picture I had managed to create. None made sense much. It was like for every one piece I put into place, two more fell out of it. "Why take you two and then let us find you – now that's the million dollar question."

We all fell silent. Nobody offered any reasonable answer. I mean, yes, we understood that they wanted Lester, which was why they took him, but why let him go and let us find him and rescue him? That was stupid. Zephyr knew that when found, Lester would be taken to Camp Half-Blood, to safety – and he's here now, so why did he – and whoever he was working with – let all of those happen? There was an itching at the back of my mind, something that screamed TREACHERY but I couldn't piece the information together.

"Well, it's pretty obvious that Zephyr wanted us to find you," Percy said to Lester. "We got away pretty easily and – "

"Got away pretty easily?" Lester asked, flabbergasted. "You call being shot at, being dragged and gagged and loaded into a van with rifles pointed at my head from all directions, having the van you're into blown, picked up by a crazed giant eagle, and having to bear your weight while flying – you call that getting away pretty easily? God, I'd hate to see what's difficult for you guys."

I placed a hand on his shoulder. "Lester, what Percy meant was that, aside from the Caucasian Eagle, no other monster attacked. For someone like you who's really powerful, you're bound to be discovered by them. I'm actually surprised that you survived on your own out there for fourteen years without any protection."

"Monsters?" he asked, eyes wide. "What kind of monsters?"

"You'll find out soon enough," I said. "The thing we need to understand tonight is, as we were discussing a while ago, why did Zephyr let you two go?"

Lester shrugged. "I don't know."

I turned to Skylar. She shook her head. "I don't remember anything," she said. "I can recall seeing Lester back in his room, and then there was a strong blow at the back of my head. After that, I blacked out." She scowled. "I didn't know I was unconscious for almost a month. I can't remember anything."

I was about to say something when Skylar's eyes widened as she looked at Lester. He looked at her questioningly. "What is it?" I asked.

Skylar looked like she was having trouble breathing when she said, "While I was out, I-I heard a voice saying that . . . that," she trailed off, her eyes focused solely on Lester. Right then, I wondered how Lester could stay mad at her. It was pretty obvious how much she cared about him. "The voice said that you will be used as a sacrifice."

I expected Lester to cringe in horror, or to be shocked, but he simply nodded. "Yes," he said, his voice surprisingly calm. "The guys who took me received a call, too. One of them said the same thing – me being used in a sacrifice." Then I saw fear creeping into his eyes and I thought that he was normal, getting scared of the things that he should be terrified of. "Will they hurt my parents to get me?" he asked. "I-I mean, you guys said that they won't be able to come inside this place and if they need me and they have my parents, do you think they will use them to lure me?"

Skylar placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry; we'll find them. I promise."

Lester took a deep breath and nodded, but I could see in his eyes how worried he really was. It was breaking through the brave mask he had put onto himself. "Please do," he said. "I can take it of something happens to me, but not to them. Especially my Mom." His voice quivered when he mentioned his mother and I saw something glistening at the corner of his eye. I expected the tear to fall, but judging from the clenching on his jaw, Lester was forcing them back.

I knew it wasn't the right time to ask, but we needed to narrow down the guesses on who his godly parent was. "Lester, I know this is bad timing, but who is your adoptive parent?" I asked. Chiron didn't say much when it came to him, saying that he was protecting Lester, but he revealed to me that Lester had both mother and father, and that he needed to know who his biological parent was to confirm if his suspicions of who Lester was correct.

Lester looked shocked at first that I knew one of them was an adoptive parent. Then he sighed. "My Mom," he said. "But I met my biological mother last February 15th," he revealed. He looked at Skylar. "Remember?" he asked her. I was under the impression that he wasn't really asking for confirmation but for support. "You were there."

Skylar nodded.

Percy and I exchanged a look. We both turned to the daughter of Hecate. "Did you recognize her?" Percy inquired.

"Did you get a good reading on her?" I asked.

Skylar shook her head. "Sadly, no," she admitted. "There was some sort of ancient magic surrounding her. I wasn't able to get around it." She sighed. "And in case you're wondering about her facial features, just look at Lester. Except for the nose, he's a carbon copy of his mother."

"If I'm to guess," I said, "I'd say it's Aphrodite, but Aphrodite's children can't do half the things you did tonight. So who . . .?" I let the question hang in the air, letting the three of them know how crucial it was for us to know.

There was a knock on the door and Clarisse came in. "Prissy, Chiron wants to talk to you," she said carelessly. "You, too, daughter of Hecate."

"Why?" they both asked at the same time.

"I don't know," said Clarisse, irritated. "Do I look like Chiron?" She scoffed and went out.

Skylar stood up and walked to where Percy was standing. He looked at me, as if asking for permission. I nodded at him. He sighed and exited the Big House, Skylar following closely to him.

I looked back at Lester. He seemed to be having an inner argument among himself. I couldn't help but thing think that in more ways than one, we were alike. From what I heard, Lester has trouble welcoming people into his life, and if he does, it takes time for him to stop being suspicious of them.

He looked up, meeting my eyes with his own. I felt myself getting lost inside his brilliant blue ones. "I can trust you, can't I?" he suddenly asked.

His question caught me off guard. It took me some time to answer. "Of course you can. Why?"

Lester took a deep breath and stood up. He looked around and when he was satisfied that we were alone, tugged at the edge of his shirt, pulling it over his head, saying, "I have something to show you." I tried not to feel awkward about that. It wasn't like I was attracted to Lester the same way with Percy. His torso was as pale as the rest of his body, if not paler. Then my eyes caught a reddish-black area of raised skin on his lower abdomen, above the waistband of his pants, and my breath got caught in my throat.

I recognized it.

"How did you get that?" I asked in a small voice.

He shrugged. "The first night your mentor – um Chiron, right? – came to me with Clarisse and Nico, I dreamt about our conversation, but it happened differently in my dream. When I made it clear that I wasn't coming with them, they all turned different. I didn't mean physically, but their eyes took on a dangerous and evil kind of light. Then Chiron branded me. I woke up after that, breathing like crazy. When I stood up, I felt it. The brand was there and I didn't know how I got it."

I was staring at him. Lester was in more danger than any of us assumed. Not only because of the monsters, or the ones who wanted him, but because of the campers, as well.

Lester saw my reaction. "You know what this means, don't you?" he asked, pulling his shirt back down. He then grabbed my hand tightly and said, "Please, Annabeth, if you do, tell me. I have to know."

I shook my head. "Not yet," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "Has anybody seen it?" I asked.

"Only Skylar," he answered.

I stared at him in the eyes. "Promise me one thing, Lester. Promise me not to show this to anyone."

His eyes took on a guarded expression. "Why? What's going on? What does this brand mean?" I shook my head. "Please, Annabeth."

"No," I said firmly. "I just need you to trust me on this one, Lester. I'm doing this to protect you. Never, under any circumstances, show this to anyone, unless you're sure the person is trustworthy."'

He scoffed. "Is there anyone here who is?"

I leaned back, surprised by his harsh tone. "You said you trust me."

His eyes softened. "I do. I-I don't know. There's something about you I can't help but trust. It's weird, right? One second I wanted to burn you, then the next I'm trusting you with my life."

I grabbed his hand again, figuring that he needed to feel not alone. "You can. I promise we will protect you in here, but we can't do that until you promise me not to show this to anybody." I wanted to tell him that there was a mole in the midst of the demigods inside Camp, but the kid had had enough for one night so I kept it quiet and waited for his response. Finally he nodded. I took a deep breath of relief. "And to answer your question," I said, "you can trust Percy, but I'm guessing you already know that."

Lester took in a deep breath and nodded.

The door opened and in came were Lester, Skylar and Chiron.

Chiron smiled at Lester. "I'm glad to see you, my boy."

Lester didn't answer.

Chiron sighed. "It's too late to place you in the Hermes Cabin; they have already settled in. For the meantime, I'm going to place you here. You're spending the night here." He looked at Percy. "Show him."

Percy nodded and gestured for Lester to follow him. "Come on," he said to Lester. "Let's get you settled for the night. You have a long day tomorrow."

Lester looked at me. I nodded at him. He sighed and stood up, following Percy.

Skylar sighed in resignation and sat down. "I just want to help him," she murmured.

I nodded and sat beside her. "And we will. Don't worry, okay? You're not alone in this. We will all help him." Chiron sat back on his wheelchair, eyeing us both but not saying anything.

"Lester is the kind of person who doesn't get angry," said Skylar. He just absorbs everything he feels, negative or positive, but how much pain can he handle? How much anger can he withhold before he takes everything he's feeling inside and turns it into himself?" Skylar took in a deep breath and a tear fell from her eyes. "I'm scared that if our enemy doesn't destroy him, Lester will end up destroying himself."

Her words hang in the air. Chiron and I looked at each other, unsure what to say. Then Chiron wheeled himself to where we were and said, "Why don't you stay the night with Lester here?"

I looked at him in shock. Skylar, too. "Chiron, I – but that's against the rules."

Chiron smiled in a fatherly way. "I believe I've said before that even we have to bend our rules sometimes."

LESTER

"You're safe here," Percy said as he handed me a backpack he said filled with necessities. He had led me into a room inside what they called the Big House. "Everyone here is family. We protect each other."

"Thanks," I said as I took the bag from him. Percy was staring at me. "What?" I asked.

"What happened when our bloods touched – how was that possible?" he wondered. "I mean, if you told us that your father was your godly parent, I would've guessed that your father is Apollo, but it was your Mom. But then again, no child of Apollo can heal using his blood."

I shrugged. "I have no idea," I admitted. He was still looking at me. I exhaled in exasperation. "Look, I trust Annabeth and she told me that I can trust you, too, and if there's something I know, I swear I'm going to tell you." And I believed it was true. Or at least, I wanted to.

"Don't tell anybody about it, okay?" he said. "I kept it to myself because if they find out what happened, they might get suspicious of you and they may target you. Understand that I'm trying to protect you."

"Why?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I guess it's because I can see myself in you, in a way." Percy then took a deep breath, like he was deciding about something.

"Can I tell Annabeth about it?" I asked. "I-I showed her something while we were alone and she told me that apart from her, I can also trust you."

"What is it?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Maybe some other time."

"Why do you trust my girlfriend so suddenly?" he suddenly asked.

I'm also a guy and I know how territorial we can be when it comes to our properties and the people we care about. I detected jealousy in his voice. I shook my head in disbelief. Was he really doing this? It was kind of funny that one second eh was telling me that he was protecting me and the next he was being the jealous boyfriend."Look, I'm not making a move on her. Annabeth's like an older sister to me. I can't really explain it but there's a voice in the back of my head that says I can trust her. Don't ask me why, but I believe it." I looked at him. "I trust you, too, man, I guess," I added.

Percy sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to be so insensitive – it's just the way I am."

I shrugged. "Not a big deal."

He sighed again and held out his hand, smiling, "Glad to meet you."

I scoffed, but still took his hand, shaking it. "Same here," I said.

He nodded. "All right, I'll leave you." Percy went out and closed the door behind him.

I sat down on the bed and opened the backpack. Inside were a pair of jeans, an orange shirt with the words CAMP HALF-BLOOD printed across the chest, clean underwear and some weird fruitcake-like food, together with a bottle of something that looked like honey. If I remembered correctly, they were ambrosia and nectar, food and drink of the Greek gods.

I felt my eyes getting warm at the sight of the packed goodies, remembering that Mom was the last one who had done such thing for me. Where could she be now? Was Dad with her? As much as Dad hated me, I still won't abandon him like that. I loved him as much as I loved my Mom. I won't stop at anything to save them. I would've started that night, except my muscles were already asleep and I was bone tired.

I removed my filthy and torn clothes. I picked up the water bottle from the bag, wet my soiled shirt and used it to wipe my face and torso, removing the grime and dirt. When done, I put on the clothes from the backpack and was about to settle on the bed when the door opened and Skylar came in.

"Hey," she said.

"Hi," I answered.

I sat down on the bed and felt Skylar sitting beside me. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I-I didn't mean to keep who I really am from you, or who you are, but I was terrified, Lester. I didn't know what to do."

I shrugged and lay down on the bed, my back facing her. I didn't know what I was feeling, only that I didn't want to talk about it that moment. I wanted to sleep, to rest, and to momentarily forget what was going on with my life. "It's okay," I said, my voice flat.

"No, it's not," Skylar said. "Please, Lester. Don't shut me out. Let me in."

"I did," I said, sleep slowly taking over my mind. "And you kept the truth from me."

"I know," she said. "And I'm really, really sorry." I didn't answer but pulled the blanket over me. I felt Skylar shifting on the mattress. I felt her lift my head and placed it on her lap. I sighed, breathing in her scent. "Chiron doesn't let this kind of thing happen, you know," she said. "He doesn't let two campers of the opposite sex be alone together, but he said he knew you need me here." I felt a hand on my cheek. "Do you?"

"Yes," I whispered. "Please stay."

Skylar smiled down at me. "Want me to sing you a lullaby?" she asked smiling

I scoffed. "I'm not a kid anymore, Skye."

"I know," she said. "But that doesn't mean you can't be one from time to time."

I didn't bother to reply; I just closed my eyes. I knew Skylar knew what my answer was. Soon enough, I heard her singing in a soft and sweet voice.

Much as you blame yourself, you can't be blamed for the way you feel
Had no example of a love, that was even remotely real
How can you understand something that you never had
Ooh baby if you let me, I can help you out with all of that

I knew what the song was. Ne-Yo's Let Me Love You. Understanding what the song meant, and hearing it being sung by Skylar, gave me a sense of peace and contentment, even for that one moment.

Let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Let me love you
And all your trouble
Don't be afraid, oh let me help
Let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Let me love you
A heart of numbness, gets brought to life
I'll take you there

Let me love you
Let me love you baby, oh
Let me love you
Let me love you, baby
Let me love you
Let me love you, let me love you, oh

Skylar's voice was singing my body and mind to a sleep. It was pulling me under a blanket of comfort and warmth, promising me that tomorrow will be better than this cruel night I just went through. I sighed and let my troubles go for a while, letting myself experience blissful emptiness.

I can see the pain behind your eyes
It's been there for quite a while
I just wanna be the one to remind what it is to smile
I would like to show you what true love can really do

Let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Let me love you
And all your trouble
Don't be afraid, oh let me help
Let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Let me love you
A heart of numbness, gets brought to life
I'll take you there

By this point, I was almost asleep. Through the cloud of sleep, I felt Skylar's lips touched my closed eyelids, then the tip of my nose. "Do you mean it?" I asked, my voice thick with sleep.

"Mean what?" she asked.

"The song," I answered simply. "Do you mean it?"

"Every word of it," she said. "Will you let me, Lester?" Skylar asked.

I felt myself nod. "Of course," I said, a small smile touching my lips. Even when I was feeling happy, I could feel fear in my heart. It was there and I guess will always be, as a reminder how easy it is for me to get hurt.

Skylar leaned down and I felt her lips touch mine. That moment, I let go of everything and let myself feel her. I let myself be loved and be protected. Even for a second, everything felt right.

Until reality set in.

[Next - Chapter 14: THE MARK OF THE DAMNED]