Percy POV

"Um, shouldn't there be, like, a speech that gets everyone riled up?"

I frowned at Leo's words. He was right, we needed something. The Questers were standing around, shifting from foot to foot, waiting until it was time to go. I glanced at Annabeth to see her looking expectantly at me. I threw my hand out in a What? gesture. Then I realized Jason and Nico were looking at me the same. Scratch that, the whole group of demigods were looking at me, waiting for something.

"Uh," I said, shifting in the minimal amount of armor I had on, so as to not bear me down. "Isn't Annabeth the leader?"

She purses her lips, shaking her head. "No, not really. I'm the planner. You're the captain, Percy."

"Joy," I muttered sarcastically under my breath. Annabeth heard, however, and she flashed an amused smile at me, making my knees go weak. I remembered last night. I understood why she didn't want to start anything now, but I couldn't help wondering if this would've been our only chance. Then I chastise myself for thinking like that. I needed to be optimistic- but I was extremely nervous. To be honest, this was my first "big" battle. I was praying to the gods with everything I had that we would all make it out, and my anxiety grew by the minute. Now add having to make up an inspirational speech on the spot to my frayed nerves, and I was all a mess. But I tried to look confident and nonchalant.

I swallowed, standing up. Leo held up a hand, indicating me to wait, and then he ran and got a chair. He placed it at my feet, then knelt and bowed, sweeping his hand out in an elegant gesture.

"My lord, thy chair hath arrived," he said aristocratically. I scowled at him, resisting the urge to kick his bent head lightly as I stepped onto the chair. The Questers saw me stand up and they hushed, making the area silent. I swear they could hear my heart. It wasn't as loud as it had been last night with Annabeth, but it was still pretty loud.

I faced the Questers, my mouth turning dry. "Uh..." Oh, that's a great start, Percy, I said sardonically to myself. I glanced around, and met eyes with Annabeth. She gave me an encouraging smile, and that put a little strength back into me. I looked at the group again, licking my chapped lips. I couldn't think of anything, I was nervous.

Wait, why am I nervous? These people are the Questers. They're my family, my friends. They were going into battle with me. Fighting with me. Just like they always had. And hopefully always will.

"I know a lot of people are getting nervous," I said to them, trying to get rid of the tremor in my voice. "Me included. We've never really seen something this big before, and now we are fighting in one. Some of us think we aren't good enough... and others are fearful of the fact that some of us might not make it out of this. We all have people we don't want to see hurt. The ones we love." I hesitated on the word "love," and my gaze instinctively shifted to a certain blonde, grey-eyed girl. She frowned slightly when she saw me looking at her, and I hurried on. "But I know we can make it through this. Together. I have grown up with a lot of you," I nodded at Jason and Nico, who nodded back. "And some we have just accepted into our family." I sent a smile to Nyssa, Harley, and Silena.

"But even if I've known you for ten years or ten days, I know that we can work this together, like a true family." I paused, thinking. "I want you to know that I'm honored to fight with all of you. I wouldn't have it any other way. I would take you all over a god any day, because we're different. We care about each other. We will do everything to keep each other safe. Help your friend out, guard their back, and they'll guard yours. And that's how I know that everything will be okay in the end. Yes, we have to know that casualties happen. But we still have our other friends, and keep them safe. We can do this, but we'll have to help each other out.

"Luke and his men are going to come at us with their full force, but he won't be expecting this. As individuals, we are easy targets. But together, we're a deadly weapon. Let's get out there, and show Luke just what we can do. Let's show him he can't do all of that trouble in Greece and expect to get away with it. We can do this. So let's go do it. Let's give it all we got, and we'll have a big celebration in the end. With lots of food!" I raised a fist, punching it into the air as yells started rising from the throats of the Questers. Some of them were shouting and singing for the food jokingly (Connor and Travis, mostly, with Leo adding soprano), and the others were getting pumped up. Oh gods, that was terrifying. I sent a questioning look towards the daughter of Athena, asking her how I did. She grinned, nodding her head. I smiled back.

My eyes turned to the Questers. They already looked better, more fueled. Swords were waving in the air, and I resisted the urge to tell them to be careful, swords are sharp. They aren't kids. They are fighters, going into a war. They are capable. The hard thing is for me to accept it.

I step down from the chair, still looking around. We needed to get going. The hippocampi were all circling the small island, waiting for the Questers to get on and ride to Antikythera. Lacy's pegasus had flown back by itself, and she was joining the fight. So all in all, we had about twenty to thirty demigods who were ready to fight. I tried to shove down the worry, but I couldn't help it. Clenching my jaw, I turned away from all of them, motioning for Annabeth, Jason, and Leo to follow me. We waved as we started down towards the ocean.

I had already run through the plan once more with Nico and Hazel. They were pretty nervous, but determined. I knew they would guard each other's back, and Hazel would also guard Frank while Nico guarded Thalia, and Thalia Piper, and it just kept going, eventually covering everybody. We had to help each other out, and we would.

The four of us trudged down to the water. "You ready?" I asked them. Jason looked ready, Leo looked excited, and Annabeth swallowed nervously. I knew how much anxiety was burdening her because of the strategy she made. She felt responsible for every one of the Questers' lives. But she should know that I planned on all of us making it out of here.

We all stepped into the water, the three others' clothes and armor started getting wet. They dove down quickly into the cold water while I followed. I made a big sphere of air, letting them crawl into it. I went in after them, sealing the bubble and drying them all in turns. After, I propelled the bubble downwards, and we waited together. We didn't say anything, each one of us lost in our thoughts. I realized that even if we prayed to the gods, they couldn't hear us. Our communication was blocked. But I did anyways.

Fish swam past us, some peeking curiously at us. I normally would strike up a conversation with them, but I didn't feel like it right now. So I just watched them as they flipped in the water, darting away into the dark green and blue shimmer. Leo had started to make something out of things he pulled from his tool belt. Soon he put it on the ground, pressed a button, and removed his hands, letting us marvel at his work.

It was a tiny pegasus fashioned out of wires and gears. It reared, then took off into a lumpy gallop. It soon went into the air, flying around like a big bug. Annabeth smiled slightly, watching it flit around us. Leo smiled back at her, and I realized he was just trying to lighten everybody up. I nodded at him, glad Annabeth was smiling. He replied with a bob of his head, his curly brown hair bouncing up and down.

"There," Jason said, pointing out the bubble to an approaching figure. The shadowed person soon came into the lighter waters, a smile on his lips.

I greeted him with head nod, for sound is really muffled by the thick walls of the bubble we were currently in. He returned it.

The merman swept out a hand, beckoning us to follow him. We kept going through the darkness, trusting he was bringing us to where we needed to go. I knew where we were, but that was just because the ocean was my home. If I wasn't a son of Poseidon, I would have no clue where I was. You could see nothing, except for the occasional coral or fish that came into view. I could still sense the life scurrying around us. But you couldn't see farther than twenty feet out.

Adrian was swimming a couple yards ahead of us, and I said to the demigods, "I'll be right back." They nodded. I slipped out of the sphere, pushing myself through the water to come side by side with Adrian. He glanced at me, cheeks dimpling as he smiled.

"Hey, what's up?" He asked.

"Just wanted to say thanks," I replied sincerely. "For bringing us and all." Our voices were weird in the water, sounding like we were talking in a big, empty room, and we were just catching the ends of the echoes of our voices.

Adrian shrugged, the crossed swords on his back shifting in response to the movement. "No problem."

We just swam by each other in companionable silence for a while. I glanced back every once in a while to make sure the others were still behind us. Once when I did so, I met Annabeth's gaze. Her grey eyes were bright, peering right into me. Her lips turned upward, and I grinned back at her, unable to keep emotions off my face.

"You really love her, don't you?" Came Adrian's voice from beside me.

I didn't look at him, just kept watching Annabeth talk with Jason and Leo. "Yeah." I took a deep breath. "Yeah, I do."

When I turned my eyes to Adrian, I saw he was smiling. "So... Do I get to tease you for this?"

I gave him a look. "We're not together. I could've been talking about a brother and sister kind of love for all you know."

Adrian raised his eyebrow, replying slowly. "Ah, right. Definitely. Just a really close brother and sister. Really close. Really really close. Really really real-" I shoved him hard, and he let out a laugh. It was just like old times, where we would tease each other and then chase the other around the temple, ending up in a big sword fight where we would stop only when we got really hungry. Then we'd go steal some food just to spite the old, cranky cook.

"Shut up," I muttered to him as he kept laughing.

"Yes, Lord Percy," he said, bowing dramatically, knowing how much I hated it when people call me that. "Whatever you say, your majesty."

I sighed, rolling my eyes. But I enjoyed this little banter, it loosened the air up a little.

We soon reached a spot about a mike away from Luke's headquarters, and this was where things got a little bit trickier. We had to get close enough so we could see the island, but we didn't want any eyes seeing us in return. I helped a little by darkening the water around the bubble so it was a lot harder to see it and the people inside. Adrian would swim a little ways ahead, alerting us if he saw anybody. He had to be careful as well, however. He didn't look anything like Shar's men, so they would notice him. But Adrian was fast and agile, so he could sneak around pretty easily.

We inched nearer to Antikythera. As we got closer, there was less fish and signs of sea life. They had abandoned this place, and when I asked a lone, sleek fish why telepathically, it just mumbled something back about "bad fish guys being mean." I guess that was Shar's mermen. But I couldn't get anything else out of the fish, for it went away in a flash, streaking through the dark water.

"Here," Adrian whispered to me, gesturing to our surroundings. I could faintly see the black blob ahead of us that was the island. It just looked like a wall looming over us, going all the way to the ground, and all the other way to the surface. "The one entrance the mermen use is right to the left of that coral rock." I followed his directions, but I couldn't see anything. But I knew it was there. "We need to wait, maybe only fifteen minutes more. Stay out of eyesight." I nodded, then went back to relay the message to the three demigods in the bubble. They listened, then peered out the bubble into the water.

"I can't see anything," Leo said, baffled. They couldn't, but my eyesight was a little better underwater, so I could barely see the island. I could also see shapes moving around, which I assumed were the mermen.

"Well, it's there," I replied to the fire user. He rolled his eyes in a No, duh way. I sent a face at him, then turned to the two others. "Now we just have to wait. Though it won't be much longer."

Annabeth nodded, redoing her ponytail. Her golden curls fell for a second around her shoulders before she pulled them back up. I wanted to run my hands through the silky strands, hold her delicate, strong body close to mine once more, feel her completely safe, curled up against me. But I couldn't. I tore my gaze away, looking instead at the water outside running around us, unstoppable, completely unaware of the dangers going on inside of it's domain. Ignorance is bliss, they say. I just wish we could ignore this battle. It would be so much easier.

"Okay," Annabeth stated, pulling me out of my wistful thoughts. "Let's run through the plan once more."

Leo sighed exaggeratedly. "We've been through these plans, like, hundreds of times, woman! I could probably recite it from beginning to end."

Annabeth's eyebrow curved as she lifted it. "I doubt you were even listening. If you can tell me the plan from 'beginning to end,' we won't go through it again."

Leo stared at her. "Well, there's, uh... um..." Jason snorted, laughing at his friend. I joined in.

"Uh huh, like I thought." She smirked at him, then continued talking. She made us go through the whole plan again. Then plan B. Then plan C. Then plan D.

By the time we were at plan Q, Adrian rescued us.

"You guys ready? The mermen are just going in."

"No, no!" Leo said, making a shooing gesture. "We have to practice our alphabet! This is important!" Jason grabbed the son of Hephaestus' collar, muttering something about how best friends could be so annoying sometimes, and dragged him upright. Annabeth followed them. They went up to the edge of the bubble, looking intently out.

I could see the mermen, looking like bees swarming up to the hive. In less than a few minutes, every one of them had vanished into the island. I glanced around, but I couldn't see anything- or anybody. But that didn't mean nothing was out there. We still have to be cautious.

We all waited for only five minutes more, then we heard a huge BOOM! sound from the ground above us. They were starting.

I saw Annabeth bite her lip. "Hey, they'll be fine," I said reassuringly. "Hazel will be able to find more tunnels, and the bombs Leo made will hold off any monsters."

She nodded, but she still looked nervous. On the land, I could see the Questers holding off any attacks, throwing a bomb or two while Hazel searches for another tunnel they could use to get in. Another crash went off. Leo had made them extra loud at my request, for I wanted them to be heard by everybody. Including the mermen.

Sure enough, mermen started racing out of the cave they just went in. Many were carrying weapons, and they all headed up towards the surface. Just like they went in, they all came out. We had waited for them to go in, so we would know where they were. We hoped there were no more lurking about.

Just as quick as the came out, they disappeared towards the top of the ocean, going to fight off this new attack on land, and hopefully not notice the small group slipping in underwater.

Adrian said quietly, "Wait here." Then he pushed himself forward, his long hair hesitating in the water before jerking forwards, following like a shadow in sunlight. He slunk forward silently, constantly switching his eyes back and forth, looking for anything that might be considered hostile. Soon he was just a distant figure in the darkness, and the four of us waited with pounding hearts for him to return.

I let out a sigh of relief when I saw my friend reappearing. He swung a hand out and back, gesturing for us to follow him. I urged the bubble to go forward smoothly and swiftly. It was eerily quiet and dark, no colorful fish to light up the water. The weird sounds underwater bounced into our ears as the island slowly became clearer. It was rocky, sand bunched up in crevices and plants swaying in the tide, attached to the dirt. Adrian was looking forward, and we watched our backs and sides.

Our merman escort led us closer to the island, then took a abrupt turn south. I made the bubble drop until Adrian straightened out again, going forward. The island was so dark, it was hard to see anything. Consequently, when Adrian entered the cave, it seemed as if he had just walked right through the hard dirt and disappeared. I exchanged glances with the other three before making the sphere go forward once more.

When we entered the cave, things were still dark. I could barely see Adrian, so it was difficult to follow him. Another explosion sounded above us, muffled by the water. We kept traveling, nervousness urging us into a faster pace. In a few minutes, the cave started getting lighter. Not a bit later, we saw two Greek fire torches resting on the wall opposite of each other, casting a light on the walls. The cave wasn't huge, about as wide as two or so men's heights put together, and just as tall. Stalactites hung over us, sharpening points threatening to drop. I made the edge of the bubble thicker and tougher as the sight of one of those things coming down and hitting Annabeth or someone entered my mind.

More frequently, we encountered twin torches on the walls, lighting our way. But we didn't see any mermen. Along the trip, we had started going up instead of straight. It had started out as a slow ascent, then curved more steeply. Now we were almost vertical. But it didn't last long, for when I looked up, I could see the glimmering water above that showed the surface of the water. We were still in a cylindar cave, so it looked like we were heading to the mouth of a giant worm or something.

Adrian broke through the surface, sending a shiver of ripples through the still water top. We were next. The bubble popped once it hit the air, and that left the four of us to swim. I looked to the left and saw a hard-packed dirt ground rising up out of the water, making a shoreline. We all started swimming for it. I made it there first, and I made the water push me up. I turned around, putting my hand out for Annabeth.

She grabbed it, and I hauled her onto the ground, bringing her to stand close by me. For a second, we were really close to each other, both of us panting, her hand still in mine. If I just leaned in a few inches I could close that tiny space between her pink lips and mine.

I took an abrupt step back, holding her hand only long enough to dry her body, then I turned to do the same to Jason and Leo, switching my gaze to them. I felt Annabeth's eyes on my back as I leaned down to help them both up. The two demigods nodded their thanks as they felt the water leave their clothes. The liquid pooled up on the ground, then darted back to its domain with all the other water. I glanced back at Adrian, who's head was above the water, green eyes bright in the dim light, looking at us.

"Well," he said, shrugging. "Good luck."

I smiled. "You too. Now go give Luke and his men hell." Adrian grinned evilly, plans racing through his head. He sent one last wave, then slipped back underwater. I watched his receding figure, his tail kicking powerfully to send him straight down.

"Percy, let's go," Jason said from behind me, making me turn around. "We don't know how long the Questers will be able to hold the distraction."

I nodded, then made a gesture for us to continue forward. They didn't need to ask which way, for there was only one. We had drawn ourselves up onto a shore the size of an average room. The ceiling above us held more stalactites, these dripping water continuously, falling down to the ground or pool below. They looked like diamonds dropping down in the flickering Greek fire torchlight, of which were set on the walls all around the rectangular room.

We all trudged for the one exit: a big box-like opening that went for a little ways, then curved, permitting us no more sight of where it led to. This was uncharted grounds for us, and that caused our steps to be quieter, more cautious, as we entered the corridor.

Still, our footsteps echoed off the walls which held only brackets with torches. Jason took the front, Leo was right after him, then Annabeth and I took up the back. The tunnel was large enough to fit probably four people side by side, and I had an extra foot only above me before the ceiling.

A little ways in, Jason up ahead whispered a warning.

"Guys, someone's coming." The four of us paused, our ears straining for what had alerted Jason. Footsteps, at least a few pairs of them, were coming down the hall at a walk. I didn't know if they knew we were there or not- but we were, and they probably weren't on our side.

Instantly we were all on our guard, backing up to form a circle, so our backs were covered by one another. Our weapons had already been tight in our hands, but our grips shifted, getting ready for whatever was coming. Riptide flashed off the walls, three feet of deadly celestial bronze. The hard hilt clutched in my palm made me feel safer.

The torchlight flickered, and the small light provided us the first sight of what was approaching.

Demigods. Ones loyal to Luke. They were wearing a small amount of armor, similar to us, but their weapons were sheathed, unlike ours. For a second, they just looked like a normal group of ten or so adolescents, walking and laughing. But then the one in front saw us, and he stopped. His friends all looked at him, then at us. Silence for one second, then they started cursing, fumbling for their weapons. But Jason and Nico were practically on them by that time. Jason swung at one demigod's head, but the man ducked just in time.

Nico's victim wasn't as fortunate. The dark, stygian iron sword whistled through the air, the flat side connecting with the demigod's skull with a nauseating crack. One down, at least nine to go. Annabeth started up a fight with a demigod, and I did the same as her. But then five more demigods came from farther down the corridor, probably attracted by the commotion going on.

Fifteen against four? Well, if you just look at the numbers, it seems pretty hard. But if the four are super trained demigods who've been practicing their whole life- well, they'll do okay, even if the ones they are fighting are demigods as well. I could tell not many of the attackers had been doing swordplay for too long, because some of their moves were clumsy and not timed right.

A couple minutes into fighting, there were three unconcsious demigods on the ground, none of them being my friends. Two more were clutching wounds, but the others were still up and fighting. Jason and I were back to back, synchronizing our movements so we didn't hit each other. The small space was both a blessing and a nuisance. A blessing because not many demigods could attack you at one time, for it was too small; but a nuisance because it made swinging a long sword around not very easy.

"You and Annabeth keep going," my second-in-command said to me in between breaths. "Leo and I can take them." I grunted, then started pushing back the two demigods attacking me. I made my way over to Annabeth, knocking another demigod unconscious as I did so. We didn't want to kill them. Demigods were different than monsters, we wouldn't just kill them in cold-blood.

"Annabeth!" She glanced up, but only for a second, at my voice. She had three opponents, and each one of them was trying to get under her guard- but to no avail. She looked deadly and beautiful, swinging her dagger around and parrying and attacking like she was born to do it. Well, as a demigod, we kind of are. But Annabeth looked at ease, like her dagger was just an extra length of her arm. A surge of pride rose in me.

"Jason and Leo will take care of them, let's go." She nodded, and I helped her dispatch two attackers, and then Leo engaged the third in battle, leaving the tunnel open for us to keep moving on. Annabeth, with a glance over her shoulder, started heading farther into the island, and I followed her. I was reluctant to leave two of my friends back here, but I knew they could handle themselves. So I kept moving onwards, catching up to Annabeth. I took the back, my ears trained for any noise other than our ragged breaths we were trying to calm. Annabeth cautiously walked forward at a quick pace, her dagger held tight in her hand.

Both of our breath was heavy, and strands of hair stuck out of Annabeth's ponytail, which swished back and forth whenever she turned. Her grey eyes were stormy, flashing back and forth.

I was looking behind me when I heard a gasp. A lone demigod stood in the corridor, staring at us open-mouthed, shocked. But before he could draw his sword- or even yell- Annabeth swung her arm out, letting her grip release. I watched her dagger streak through the air, landing hilt-first in the demigod's stomach. He doubled over, wheezing, the breath knocked out of him. By the time he straightened up, I was already there, swinging Riptide's flat side into his skull. I winced at the crunch, glad I hadn't used my full strength, and he went down.

Annabeth camp up to me, retrieving her dagger from beside the unconscious demigod.

"Nice throw," I said, impressed. She gave me a small grin, then started walking again. We were more wary, now that we had encountered someone. I was sure that more would be on their way.

"How long is this?" I asked. Mentally, more questions filled my mind. And where does it lead to? How is the fight on the surface going? Has Luke turned his attention to them instead of us? Did I want his attention I be on them? The only answer I had was for the last question, which was a loud, resounding NO. No way in Hades did I want Luke putting his full focus on fighting my friends. That's the thing I didn't like about this plan: we didn't know how things were going up top. I hated that. I wanted to know they were safe. But it was the best plan we had, and I knew that the Questers could hold their own.

I was lost in my own mind for far too long, however. When I heard footsteps, a multitude of them, I jerked up, bringing Riptide with me.

Annabeth and I stood side by side, ready to meet them. More of Luke's men appeared, but these looked prepared. They had armor, sharp and glinting weapons, and weren't shocked at seeing us. They just kept up their running pace, slamming into us. Immediately, I took on two of them, Annabeth doing the same. We took advantage of the small space, Annabeth and I standing side by side, so only four could approach, and they barely had enough room to swing their blades efficiently.

But on the downside, these warriors were much better than the last ones we had fought. And there were about ten of them. How Luke had recruited all these demigods and well-trained mortals, I didn't know. But I had to stay concentrated. I couldn't slip on this battle. Or any battle, really.

Slowly, they had started to force me and Annabeth apart. They backed me up, leaving enough room for one of the others to slip in behind Annabeth. So when Annabeth tried to retreat and come back to me, she was met with another attacker.

I brought Riptide around, holding it up against a blade coming from my right. The smell of sweat and blood filled my nose while I yanked my blade back and attempted to get on the offensive side. But then another attacker's sword came out and towards me. I was stuck on the defense, I didn't have enough time to attack. I frowned, still trying to anyways.

Then I heard a cry- a cry that broke all my concentration. I pivoted, watching as Annabeth fell, a deep cut in her thigh gushing crimson liquid. The moment she was down, five opponents leaped on her.

"No!" I shouted desperately, trying to break free an run to her. But the next moment, I felt a hilt slam into my stomach, drawing my breath. I attempted to shove Riptide around and back at my opponent, but they dodged, and came back. I growled. I didn't have time for this! Annabeth was... Oh, gods. I needed to get over there! What if she's already-

No! Don't think like that, I scolded myself. But I really needed to help her. I kept trying to push off my attackers, making my feet go to Annabeth.

"Don't" I yelled despairingly as I parried another attack. "Stop! Don't hurt her!" My voice cracked in hopelessness as I screamed at the people who had taken down Annabeth.

"Oh, don't worry, Percy," a voice drawled from outside the fight.. I knew that voice That voice made my insides boil, and urged my hand to punch something. Preferably the owner of the voice's face.

But I thanked the voice for one second, because when it rang out in the corridor, everybody stopped. They pulled back, still keeping a cautious gaze on me. I glanced worriedly to where I had last seen Annabeth to find that the person who last spoke was true. The fighters had only grabbed Annabeth and pulled her upright, keeping a tight grip on her arms, which were kept back behind her. I saw her dagger laying a few feet away, wrenched from her hands by a demigod. She grimaced in pain as they shoved her forward, and my heart hitched. Blood was still oozing from the cut, and she didn't put much weight on it, but other than that, she looked okay. So that just left us with the other threat at our hands.

I turned to face the leader, the one everybody was looking at, the one who betrayed me, then made my life a living hell when he did that one unforgivable thing. I glared at the demigod standing before us with every ounce of hatred in my body. He swung a sword casually around, a sneer on his face, disfiguring the scar running across his cheek.

"Percy! And Annabeth, our little 'Siren.'" Luke said cheerfully, holding his arms out wide. "So nice to see you again. Welcome to my humble abode."

Oh, Luke. :) BTW: Just a reminder, please check out my story of elaborated headcanons and tell me what you think, it's called "Headcanons to Oneshots". Shanks, guys. :)

ALSO: A reviewer told me they almost cried while reading my story… I never really thought it was that sad… did anyone else cry? I'm kinda curious. Anywho, thanks!

Thanks to IIII Winter Wolf IIII, bmftas101, Aruniga, krazy. khik. noelle, CreativeWritingGirl, Percabeth12-7, awesoooooome, and Percabeth for reviewing!

Q&A and the talks

IIII Winter Wolf IIII: Sorry, no surprise make out session in this chapter. ;)

bmftas101: Well, I feel like I owe you readers big time. I mean, not updating for two months? Ugh. I'm horrible. Sorry 'bout that. :\

Aruniga: Aww, thanks! I liked reading your review, it made me happy! :)

krazy. khik. noelle: Yeah, I wanted to put more Percabeth in, but I felt I would play with ya'll's emotions a bit more. XD

CreativeWritingGirl: Hahaha well, you're reviews definitely made me write that last chapter faster! Thanks, again! Ily, too :)

Percabeth12-7: Ha, don't worry. The ending won't be too bad. ;)

awesoooooome: Dude, Percabeth is amazeballs. And so are you. You're amazeballs for reviewing. Thank ya kindly, my good fellow. :)

Percabeth: VIRTUAL COOKIES! And they're blue, my favorite! Gracias, uno de mi favorito señorita! ;)

So, thank you all for reading, and sticking with the story. I've realized that this story is, like, 220,000 words…. too long? Oh well, it's happened. Thanks for not giving up! Love you all! :)