Oh my gods, 701 reviews! THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE! You're fantastic readers and I couldn't ask for a lovelier bunch of people, even if you do threaten to kill me on a near-daily basis. If it wasn't for you lot, I wouldn't feel up to writing as much as I do and I seriously cannot thank you all enough :D

They had managed to restrain Alvie, replacing the blindfold and carting him back to the Big House. He fought every step of the way, his father and Max holding onto his arms tightly. Despite the fierce resistance, he didn't utter a noise, completely silent.

Chiron ushered Percy and Max upstairs, ordering to put Alvie on one of the beds. Alvie still battled them and Chiron had to hastily apply a sleeping remedy. Alvie was out like a light in less than a minute.

"Max, are you alright?" Percy asked, resting his hand on his son's shoulder. Max nodded, sinking onto the next bed. He put his head in his hands. "What happened?" Max remained quiet for a while before he recounted everything.

Max had a training session and had decided to take Alvie with him. This hadn't turned out well as Alvie's class had been running with their secondary teacher alongside Max's smaller class, something new to Max. Clarisse's son had noticed the two brothers enter and sensed a chance to stir chaos.

He shoved Alvie quite harshly, publically bringing up Alvie's horrifying change in character and the monstrous psychic demeanour. Present, there were twin children of Ares of similar age and apparently, they were all 'buddy-buddy' as they joined in with the spitefulness.

Alvie didn't react at all during the minute of their bullying. Max was trying to restrain himself; curious as to if and how his brother would respond.

But the bullies got bored and turned to him. Max's temper had reached that point now and he had more sense than Alvie beside a higher violent streak. He drew an axe and would have sliced the three offenders to pieces if it weren't for the sun.

Sunlight glinted from the celestial bronze surface as he raised it, the reflection shimmering across Alvie's placid features. Max bought the axe down, but Alvie raised his hand and Max suddenly couldn't move. He managed to glance sidelong at Alvie and saw that his younger brother's eyes were that demonic crimson, fiery like the pits of hell.

Alvie glanced at Clarisse's son, the Ares' twins scampering to a safer distance. Mobility returned to Max as Ares' legacy started screaming. He dropped to the ground, crumpled, curling into a ball and shrieking with that animalistic cry of sheer trepidation. Max had tried to get Alvie to stop… whatever he was doing, but those scarlet orbs turned on him. Searing pain blinded Max, but he still grabbed his younger brother in his arms, trying to get this all to stop. All he could hear was a girl screaming in panic, the tones high-pitched and scared. Screeches followed, car brakes hastily applied and then the thud that bought the deafening and heavy silence.

The accusations just started when Percy and Chiron arrived.

Max skimmed over his one main nightmare, simply saying he felt hopeless. Chiron asked if he had hurt at any point in Alvie's 'attack'.

"Just a headache." Max said quietly. A headache strong enough to feel like his skull was breaking in two and that deep down feeling of regret, grief and despair. He was struggling to breathe evenly and his chest felt like somebody was rolling over it in a bulldozer. His father must have noticed he was evading a panic attack as he sat next to him and carefully placed an arm about his shoulders. There was a calm gleam amongst the sea green, something considerate and understanding. Did Percy know Max was still terrified of that crash? That accident haunted Max day and night and had done ever since it happened. Try as he might, he could not shift the dread.

Chiron left to check on his other patient- Alvie's 'victim'- and Annabeth ran in minutes later with Sage and Lilly at her heels. None of them looked happy and that did not bode well for anyone who got in their way.

"What happened? Are you OK, Max, you look peaky?" She hurried forward, holding Max's face in her hands and inspecting him worriedly while her two daughters checked Alvie over.

Percy repeated everything Max had told him and Chiron. Annabeth absorbed every detail; as she would considering her parentage. When her husband fell silent, she shot Max a knowing look and he knew his mother had sussed his plaguing nightmare.

"Mom, you've got that look." Sage commented. "What are you thinking?" Annabeth glanced at her, but did not offer a reply, her frown deepening in thought.

"I'm going to go and talk to Chiron." She declared. "You two stay here." Lilly and Sage's slim shoulders slouched in defeat and Sage's feature twisted slightly in annoyance.

Annabeth left. Lilly made straight for Max, clumsily heaving herself up and onto his knee.

"You OK?" She asked, fixing her sea green eyes on his stormy grey ones.

"I'll be fine." He assured, noticing his voice was thick and strained. Lilly nodded and rested her head against his shoulder. His panic had settled slightly, but it still hurt to breathe.

"Dad, what's going on?" Sage demanded, wearing a thoughtful look that matched her mother's. Percy sighed.

"Loco."

Sage tried to eavesdrop on her parents' conversation about an hour later. Alvie was still asleep and Max was keeping an eye on him and Lilly, who had also fallen asleep, using Max's shoulder as a pillow.

Percy and Annabeth spoke quietly and she really had to strain her hearing. Even then, however, she didn't hear very much, something that annoyed her to no end. They didn't tell her anything when they returned to Alvie's bedside, other than to leave with Max to round up the rest of the Jackson children.

"Do you know what's going on?" Sage asked Max once they were out of earshot of their parents. He was quiet for fifteen odd paces, massaging his chest and grimacing as if it caused him trouble.

"No." He answered eventually. "Loco." Sage sighed. Of course 'loco'. Everything in her life- their life- was 'loco'.

Max watched her for a few seconds. "Sorry."

"No, it's not your fault. I wish Mom and Dad would tell us more about what's going on, don't you?" He looked away. "Max?"

"No. I don't think I do."

"Why?" He didn't reply and was saved from doing so by Tobias appearing out of nowhere and scooping Sage up, hanging her over his shoulder and laughing triumphantly.

"Sup?" He grinned as Sage hit him repeatedly in the back.

"Where are Theo and Call- Oh, there…" Theo and Callum ran up to them, roaring and pretending to be 'scary monsters'.

"Where Lilly?" Theo asked.

"She's with Dad, don't worry." Max smiled kindly and then looked at his older brother. "Sage is going to kill you if you don't put her down." Sage noticed a hint of amusement in Max's tone. He was right though- if Tobias didn't put her down now, he would stop breathing.

"No, she wouldn't do that." Tobias waved it off. "She loves me too much."

"Are you sure about that?" Sage challenged.

"Uh, yeah, pretty sure. Because if you kill me, Max is your oldest brother and he's not as awesome as me."

"You're such a fathead."

"And you're such a sweetie."

"Hey, I've found a pen in your pocket." Tobias hastily set her down then, prying Ice from her fingers. He waved the pen in her face, tutting and shaking his head.

"This is a no-no, Sage." She folded her arms and glared at him in sheer defiance. Tobias merely laughed, slipping Ice back into his pocket. He ruffled her hair and grinned, "You're just like Mom. Come on, let's go and cause trouble elsewhere."

"You're such a great role model." Max smiled, sitting Theo on his shoulders.

"I am!" Tobias agreed. "Compared to you, anyway. You're all dark and grrr…" Tobias pulled a face, baring his teeth and raising his hands as if they were claws. Max shook his head, mimicking his brother's actions.

Alvie was awake when they returned, sitting up with his feet on the floor. Percy was talking to him in slow, soft tones while Annabeth watched from the far corner.

Percy waved at them as they walked in, not pausing in speaking to Alvie. "And then you threw it in the fire, remember? You hated that thing, but it did help a bit and you finished your quest." Percy went on to explain further, but Max left, not wanting to listen. Nobody could blame him.

OK, that's all I've got. I'm sorry it's not much, but I'm hopefully working my way up towards my idea… I think…

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