Disclaimer: I only own the idea of Piper going to Chaos...I think.

The first part of the ride to Earth was extremely awkward.

Being as they had to head all the way to Jupiter without one stop since Jupiter was their stopping point, they- Percy, Piper, and the team of the Peacemaker- were stuck on a little ship with only two separate rooms. Naturally, throughout the dayless, nightless...days, they had to switch off between who used it and controlled the ship. Percy wasn't allowed to touch the controls.

And, contributing to the awkwardness, was the way Percy would try and meet up with Piper who tried to ignore him and not see him. She knew he wanted to talk about the night before they left- she was having a hard time keeping track of how long they had been in the ship now- and he knew she didn't want to talk about. He wanted to apologize and she didn't want to hear him.

Confusing, right?

Well, the team, of course, had no idea what was happening and so whenever Piper would dart behind them once Percy left one of the rooms or came closer, they assumed this Percy guy wasn't all he was cracked up to be. He didn't make very many friends on the ship, except Naden was more friendly with him since she already knew he was nice, though, she was more wary. Piper, of course, didn't mean to do this to him, but she had to avoid that topic especially when she was dreaming more and more about Jason, Annabeth, Leo, and the other friends she once had. Whether it was the good times or the near deaths experiences- most of those involved Jason and they still freaked her out- she didn't like any of them. She didn't need to be reminded of it, since, you know, one of those people in the dreams was right next door to her.

They still had four "days" to go.

It really wasn't getting any better either. Most of the time, Piper would be in a room and then look out when someone would request to sleep- thank Chaos that Percy hasn't shown up to her room yet- and if Percy wasn't looking in her direction, she would hurry off into another spot. Percy, on the other hand, was very frustrated, annoyed, and...slightly hurt from her constant troubles to not even acknowledge him. He just wanted to apologize. For gods' sakes, he already feels like a dumb ass (or Seaweed Brain, he would think) for making her cry and then losing her again after gaining her. Well, not in that sense, she wasn't exactly thrilled to see him the other time. There was a lot of shock and then the video of his dad dieing when he's a god, and then she left...They had dinner though, and they were on good terms there. That had to count.

But then again, he had eaten that weird leaf thing; he still shudders at the reminder.

It was only when they had set off from Jupiter after their pit stop that the crew made, Piper following to not be alone with Percy, and were landing at Camp Jupiter that they talked. Everything just got more awkward, actually. It was late at night when they fell into the atmosphere of the planet, above the country of Kenya in Africa. Everyone was moving around to make sure they had everything, the crew checking and rechecking the status of the ship and even the two people who were trying to ignore each other, helped. Piper was giving commands and Percy was checking stock of their items. It would take another day before they were able to land in San Fransico, the home of Camp Jupiter, but they had no time to waste. Apparently, Bailey was already over Colorado in the USA, so they had little time when they would land to check everything.

The meeting between the two Greek heroes was when they were gaining on New York, or well, the east coast. Piper was sitting in the commanding chair, exhausted, scared, worried, nervous, scared, tired, nervous. It was practically the same emotions over and over in her stupid knotted stomach. It had been years since she's seen Jason and Reyna- the reason of her leaving- and they could very well be dead, but the little voice in the back of her head was telling her that if Percy was still alive then they would be, too. She wasn't sure if she was ready to face them. Those nightmares about the tapes had been coming back constantly and her pillow was wet from her tears in the morning. She wondered how he would react, Jason that is. Would he try and deny everything? Hell, would he even remember her?

"Hey Pipes," Percy called softly as she closed her eyes tightly at that thought. Of course he won't remember me, she thought bitterly with tears pricking her eyes.

She froze and slowly opened her eyes, looking up to see him standing in front of her with a small, nervous smile. "I-I, uh, have to go?" she squeaked, jumping up and attempting to run off towards a room.

He grabbed her arm with force, but not even to hurt her, just to keep her there. "Don't," he pleaded with desperation in his voice. "We have to talk."

"I can't right now," she replied shakily, not looking back at him. "I have stuff to do."

"Everything's checked," he tugged at her arm softly. "Please."

She weighed her options in her mind. Talking to him meant getting her story out of her and maybe even worse nightmares, but not talking meant that she would really be alone in Camp, facing Jason and Reyna without any help besides her team, but they didn't understand and Percy...Percy understood a little better, seeing as he was there with her throughout it all. She sighed and with regret, turned around and fell back in her chair, pulling her knees to her chest. "What?" she asked her knees as she looked at him, his relief on his face.

"Before we left," he started, her freezing in place, "I never got to say I'm sorry."

She blinked at him and he shuffled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "What?"

He nodded and cleared his throat. "For you know, making you cry. I didn't mean to, and we just, uh, met again and I should've given you time to tell me, and not-"

"Wait," she interrupted, her eyes wide. "You don't want to know what happened?"

"No, I do!" he replied quickly, his heart pounding. This was a lot harder than he thought. "But I should've given you the choice to tell me and not asked about it because I'm not sure if we're friends anymore and that's-"

"Of course we're friends," she said absentmindedly, still sharing at him with shocked eyes. "But you're not going to, like, pry the information out of me, I guess?"

"No!" He shook his head. "No, no, if you want to tell me then you'll tell me when you feel the, uh, need to do so, I guess."

"And...You're not asking again?" she asked in confusion, frowning a little bit. She didn't exactly think this was where it was going.

"No," he rubbed the back of his neck again awkwardly; she really needed to stop looking at him like that. "I, uh- no, I won't ask again."

"Why?"

He blinked at her in surprise. "What?"

"Why won't you ask me?" Her feet fell to the metal ground, a small thud echoing in the silence with the beeps from machines and shuffling of papers from the quiet Naden who was listening in on the whole thing. "I mean, I just left out of no where and you don't want to know what happened?"

"No, I do," he assured with a sigh as he ran a hand through his hair. "I really want to know, but I don't want to lose you as a friend again by asking about it."

"So, you're just going to go on?" she clarified with confusion in her voice.

"Well, yeah. I mean, I have to protect you and we've got World War IV in motion, but I know that it's hard for you and everything..." he trailed off lamely, his green eyes watching her.

"That's it, then? You're not asking again?"

"Well, uh, no, not unless you want me to ask again. It's up to you when you tell me...you know...why you left and everything..." Seaweed Brain, he thought bitterly as he realized how stupid he was sounding.

"You're not..." she tilted her head and considered the word before saying, "...mad at me, I guess, for not telling you?"

His eyes widened and he shook his head. "No, no, I mean, I want to know, but when you tell me." How many times had he said that so far? He needed another line.

"And you're okay with not knowing?" she asked, frowning in blown out confusion. If she was him and he left without notice- something flinched inside her at the thought- she would want to know what happened.

"Well," he rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh, not exactly. I want to know, but I don't want you to think I need to know." Though, I kind of do, he added as a thought. So I know what I'm protecting you from and why you decided to just leave like that without warning and why you didn't tell me or come to me...yeah, I kind of have to know.

"Oh," she played with the messy braid that was hanging on her shoulder. "That's it then?"

He seemed to hesitate for less than a minute before nodding. "Yeah, I guess it is."

"Until I want to tell to tell you," she added.

"Yeah," he nodded again. "Until then."

"Okay."

He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Yeah..."

She stood up and fixed her outfit nervously. "Right."

"For Chaos's sake just hug or something," Naden hissed under her breath, careful for them not to hear.

"Friends?" Percy asked, holding out his hand with a nervous smile and hopeful eyes.

Something in Piper awed at the look. "Friends," she repeated with a more confident smile and instead of shaking his hand, hugged him for the first time in...gods, years.

He blinked before blushing lightly and returning the hug a little awkwardly. He was definitely not expecting the hug or the warm feeling that she was giving him with being so close. Though, he did breathe a sigh of relief that she was still his friend and suddenly, the hug became more comfortable.

"Thanks for being there, Percy," she said into his chest, her voice a little muffled and a butterfly pavilion in her stomach.

He nodded with his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Yeah, uh, you're welcome, I guess."

She giggled and pulled away, a small smile on her face. "Still the same," she mused as she sat back down and he stayed where he was, his body suddenly a whole lot colder than it had been and his fingertips tingling.

He blushed lightly again and rubbed the back of his neck. "Thanks, I guess."

She laughed and Naden shared a smile with Carl. Maybe his guy wasn't so bad after all. Stupid, yeah, but not so bad...especially for their commander.

The next day, about noon with the amount of sun San Fransico was receiving, they arrived at their destination and Piper locked herself in the room. She wasn't ready. She didn't want to do this again. Jason was out there, Reyna too and no matter what she told herself, she couldn't be mad at them. It stressed her out and she had already burst into three rounds of tears with all the horrible thoughts that suddenly resurfaced. That one time in the Grand Canyon was one, Jason jumping over the edge, risking his life for her, floating, hugging her tightly, nose to nose...that one seemed to really haunt her. She didn't want to see him again. She wasn't sure if she was over him or if he just brought back happier times or the bad times. Chaos, she didn't know!

Her crew members had tried to soothe her out of the room, but the door didn't open and Piper held her breath whenever they came by as if not to make any noise and make them believe she wasn't there even though they all knew she was. Chaos had tried, sensing no word from their landing and success of finding their temporary home, contacting Piper, but her badge was stuffed under piles and piles of blankets so the hologram couldn't show. He started to forget about the problems and worry about the girl he had always thought of as his daughter. She really wasn't okay.

Percy had sat back and waited, frowning whenever they tried to get her to talk and tried to make a plan. His heart hurt and he wasn't sure why, but Percy was never good at helping and comforting people so he stayed behind, but the hours passed until late afternoon and his heart hurt more whenever they was a loud sound from her room. The team had lost hope and they all turned to him to do it. "You're the only one who knows her the best," Naden explained when he asked why he had to do it. So, he sighed and prepared himself to help out his old- and new- friend with her troubles.

He knocked softly on the door, Piper freezing with tears clear on her cheeks. "Pipes?" he called hesitantly and that one word broke her into pieces and she gave a loud choke before sobbing into the pillow she was clutching to her chest. "Piper?" he called, his eyes wide at the sound. "Piper, answer the door!"

"No!" she cried, her voice muffled by the fluffy thing in her arms. "Go away!"

Well, she's talking, Percy thought bitterly as he jiggled the door handle. "Come on, Piper, it's just me."

"Go away!"

"Piper," he repeated with frustration already. His heart was hurting for gods' sake and she was crying. He had to protect her and he was pretty sure that was under both mentally and physically. "Open the stupid door."

"No," she sniffled, watching with a blurred vision as the gold handle moved up and down. "I don't want to come out."

He tossed his hands softly in the air. "You don't have to come out, I want in."

"No."

He groaned in annoyance at the stupid door and leaned his forehead on it. "Piper," he called in a softer voice as she choked back another sob, everything overwhelming her. "I just want to help. We're friends, right?"

She nodded even if he couldn't see and hiccuped. "I don't want to go."

"You don't have to, well, at least not right now. Just..." he sighed and tried to think of something they did whenever she saw Reyna with Jason and he was suddenly more joking than he was with her. "Let's just point out stupid things, okay?"

She wiped her eyes and silence engulfed the whole ship for a few minutes before Piper stood up and stepped slowly over to the door, unlocking the door and opening it. Percy smiled weakly at her and stepped in, closing it behind him. His smiled faded into a full frown when he saw her red eyes and nose, water on her cheeks. "What's wrong?" he whispered as he wiped some of the tears away.

"I don't want to go," she whimpered, looking up at him with a dull blue as her eye color.

"Why not?" he asked softly as he wrapped his arms around her.

"It's all his fault," she choked into his chest, clutching his black shirt in her hands. "Everything's his fault."

He rubbed her back in what he hoped was a comforting manner and kissed her head. "Jason?" he clarified making her bob her head with new tears falling down. He sighed into her hair, tucking her head under his chin like he had down with Annabeth so many times. "Yeah, I thought so."

She swallowed past the lump in her throat. "H-He made me fall in love with him," she mumbled with heartbreak clear in her muffled voice. "In the fake memories and the real ones and he just threw everything away."

Something in Percy suddenly hated the praetor. He stayed silent though, just rubbing her back and holding her.

"H-He could've told me," she whimpered, her fists clenching the fabric more. "But he didn't and he cheated on me!" She choked back another sob, finally releasing everything to another person. "And I saw it! He looked at her with such love and longing and I-I was so stupid. They were partners, of course they would love each other."

"Reyna?" he sighed, holding her a little tighter. There was a certain dislike for her, too.

Piper's bottom lip quivered and it took her three seconds to nod her head before she burst into tears and Percy's heart wrenched with pain as he grabbed her to keep her standing right and rubbed her back, whispering fake nothings into her ear as she drenched the front of his shirt. If this was only one of the reasons, he was not ready to find out what would happen if she ever told him the whole story.

It was a while before she was able to calm down again and he still held her, his heart still crunched with pain and the dislike for both of the Romans only increasing. She hiccuped and sniffled in the aftermath, her cheeks stained and the seams of Percy's shirt ripping from where she was holding it in her deadly grip. She was exhausted, but there was a piece of her that was glad she had got everything out of her system. She never really told anyone about Jason and how he cheated on her, though there were mentions of who he was to Bailey. But now, she had actually told a piece of what happened between them to someone who she knew would hold her the whole way.

When it was all done and over with, she pulled away, wiping her face and said with a hoarse voice, "I ruined your shirt."

Percy cracked a smile and cupped her face in his hands, his thumbs wiping away any remaining tears. "It's cool, you'll buy me another one," he joked with a reassuring smile as he kissed her forehead.

She nodded with the corners of her lips turning up. "Yeah, I will."

"Are you ready to at least get cleaned up?" he whispered as he brushed a strand of her hair out of her face. "We don't have to go right now."

She bobbed her head and sniffled. "I'll get cleaned up and then we can go."

He kissed her forehead for comfort and let go of her. "Just come out when you're ready, okay?"

She smiled weakly. "Thanks, Percy."

"Don't mention it." He gave her another reassuring smile before slipping out of the room and down towards the open door where the rest of the crew was sitting on the ground around their ship, waiting for their leader and newest member. Naden shot up when she saw him and cast a worried glance towards the ship. "Is she okay?"

"Yeah," Percy ran a hand through his hair. "She'll be down in a few."

"We only have a half a mile to walk, maybe a mile," Carl said as they all relaxed some.

"We'll get there by dinner, maybe."

"That's okay," Naden smiled a little. "I brought my own food."

The crew shared a small laugh, but it wasn't the same without Piper and for some reason, Percy's heart was still hurting a little.

The walk was quiet and Piper and Percy walked in line, her face showing no sign of her crying and her uniform was on. The only way you would know about her emotional state was the slow changing of colors in her eyes and the way her hand was shaking. Before they entered the Camp at an unguarded area Chaos told them to be at, Percy slipped in his hand in hers and squeezed for comfort. She smiled weakly at him and took a shaky breath before they all stepped over the borders. Percy's free hand was at the ready for one of the awesome weapons Chaos gave them and the crew was surrounding Piper with their eyes alert. It was times like these that Piper was glad to have people with her.

It was after they crossed half way through the Pomerian Line of New Rome from the Berkeley Hills, following the aqueduct, that they met with people. Two soliders, about the age of sixteen stepped up with weapons in their hands, gold of course, and armor on their backs. One, on the left, was a boy with sandy blonde hair, tan skin and electrifying blue eyes, but he stood between the height of Piper and Percy, his sword looking familiar in the light. The girl on the right was holding a deadly looking spear with the same blue eyes and dark, glossy hair adorned in a single braid. Piper's crew got out their own weapons and Piper tilted her head in confusion. "Jason?" she asked, addressing the boy on the left, her heart twisting and stomach knotting in nerves.

"That's my father," the boy snapped with a hint of pride in his deep, hard voice. "Who are you?"

It took Piper a moment to register that. When she did, reality came crashing down hard. "Your mother's name is Reyna," she breathed out with wide, horrified eyes.

"That's right," the girl replied, her amazement clear as she looked at them. "We're the twins of Praetor Jason and Reyna Grace."

Oh, shit. How's Piper going to react? Percy? What about when they meet each other again? Cliffhangers, man, you have to hate them. Don't worry though, I'm determined to get another chapter out before the weekend and I'm going to start writing it directly after I'm finished posting this.

I'm sorry for the delay, guys. A lot of shit's happened since the last time I updated, but I appreciate all the reviews, favorites, and viewers who haven't lost trust in me yet. Summer's coming up and I'll be able to keep a more consist track of updates there, but school, man. I hate it.

The story's just about to get good and I have it in line and everything. As for Annabeth, well, you'll see when they get to Camp Half- Blood.

Tell me about mistakes, grammar, facts, otherwise. We're all friends here, right? Now,

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