"Going to the Mare Nostrum may be the test he needs to earn his stripes back," Blaine said to Stacy.

Cesare stood at perfect attention with his uniform in place. He didn't speak out of turn or even make funny faces behind Stacy's back. The two Praetors sat at their table debating the issue back and forth. Stacy was –predictably—against it. She felt like it was just another example of Cesare breaking a rule -a law really—and one he could be banished for. His parents and godparents had spoken up, touting the importance of giving demi-gods a chance to prove themselves in the real world and sighting how little experience Cesare had outside the camp.

"It's forbidden," Stacy said, crossing her arms. Despite her small stature she could be an immovable object when she stood her ground.

"Then what is your plan?" asked Blaine. "You've removed his stripes and the only other way for him to gain them back is the war games. Even then he can only get one at a time. Maybe you like the idea of him having to earn them back slowly but we both know that Cesare excels at the war games. You can't bar him from them forever."

Stacy's face was stony as she looked at her boyfriend. Her arms were still crossed and her jaw clenched so hard it looked like she could crunch through solid granite.

"Yes, I know how much you admire his talents, but what plan do you have?" She didn't mean anything by it, Cesare knew, but hearing her admit that her boyfriend admired him, and knowing what he knew, made a blush rise up his cheeks.

"I'm saying to earn back his stripes and his honor he needs a task greater than a war game." Blaine leaned forward in his seat and looked at his girlfriend intensely.

"And this is it?" she asked incredulously. "How is breaking one of our most sacred laws to go on vacation, a great task?"

"If he can prove himself-"

"Prove himself how? Even if we allow it we have no way to monitor him. He could defeat an army of gorgons or he could lay in a hotel room all day ordering room service and we'd never know!"

"He could bring back proof, Stacy," Blaine said exasperated.

"No," said Stacy. She took a breath and looked at her boyfriend gravely. "Do you take this position seriously at all?"

"Of course I do," Blaine answered, sounding angry for the first time.

"Then stop this," Stacy implored gently, breaking away from the stern expression she normally wore. "Stop playing favorites with him. I understand you two have known each other for a long time. You went through Lupa's training together. I get that, I really do, but you are a Praetor and you have to treat him like any other soldier."

Cesare could see Blaine's determination dropping and his heart plummeted along with it.

"We can't sanction this based on the possibility of him overcoming some great obstacle he may or may not face."

And with that she hammered the final nail in and he knew from the look on Blaine's face that his cause was lost.

"Cesare Jackson," Blaine said in his formal, authoritative voice. "You do not have the blessing of the Legion to travel to the Mare Nostrum. Doing so would break our laws and result in your immediate banishment."

He ran down the road to New Rome. He was supposed to go back to his barracks and wait for his shift on guard duty but he just couldn't stand it for one more minute. It took everything in him not to rip the ground open and summon dark shades or send the Lares into another panic. For a second he contemplated flooding the lake and making the Little Tiber overflow its banks.

People in the market stared as he streaked by in his armor but he kept running because of the anger knotted in his stomach and he was sure that if he let it out he would do something seriously stupid. Instead he ran faster and fed his anger to his burning lungs and leg muscles. He was so upset he didn't stop think about the Imperial gold sword strapped to his hip. An angry voice startled him so much that he nearly stumbled.

"Cesare Jackson!" He skidded to a halt just as the statue of Terminus appeared in front of him, blocking the entrance to New Rome. He practically had to skid to avoid slamming into the giant block of marble.

"Terminus, what do you want?" he asked furiously.

"I'll have no lip from you, boy! You know very well that weapons are not allowed beyond the Pomerian line!" The god of boundaries glared pointedly at the sword in his belt.

"Fine! Here, take it!" Cesare growled in frustration as he undid the belt of the sheath. "Gods! All these stupid rules!"

"Stupid rules?" Terminus sounded aghast. "These stupid rules are how we keep order, solider! And order is what separates us from the savages and allows us to win military campaigns for the glory of Rome!"

"Just take the sword!" Cesare spat.

"You can hand it over to Christine. Where is that girl?" Terminus looked around for his assistant as Cesare ground his teeth.

"Christine? Bring the tray!"

A little girl in jeans and a Frozen t-shirt came running out of the entrance with a tray. Christine was only eight but her family had been providing assistants to Terminus for decades.

"Now just give the sword to Christine and you can be on your way," Terminus said in a much calmer voice –happy to see a rule being observed. "Though I have no idea why you are in full armor. Nowhere near time for evening muster. And I see that hair cut is still not to regulation…"

Terminus continued to grumble as Christine bounced up to him and smiled as she held out the tray. As mad as he was he couldn't help but smile at her dimpled cheeks. He usually had a treat to sneak to her when Terminus wasn't looking but he could only pat her head today. He ran right past the armless statue, leaving him mid-sentence.

When he got home he was out of breath and covered in sweat. The door was unlocked and he just walked in and started stripping his armor off in the foyer. Percy came around the corner with a confused look on his face and Cesare stopped him before he could ask.

"They said no." He finally got down to his SPQR shirt and dumped his armor in a heap by the door and went to his room without a backward glance.

His room was fairly neat for a 16-year-old boy. In the barracks they had to keep it as clean as possible for inspections, so honestly, he never knew if he was a messy person or not. He had memories of toys all over the floor when he was younger but he went to live at Camp Jupiter when he turned twelve and had to live under the thumb of the legion. Everything at camp came with rules attached and he could never actually be himself. Now Blaine wanted him to become Praetor and not only help enforce those rules but become a shining example of them. Even if he wanted to be with Blaine he wouldn't accept being Praetor.

He looked around. There was a Fall Out Boy poster that Percy got for him, a small bookcase with a few books in ancient Greek and Latin, and a desk. That was it. He wiped his hand down his face and fell face first onto his bed with its basic blue comforter. He couldn't sleep, he had to get back for guard duty and evening muster at some point, but he just needed a break from everything.

"Cesare?" Nico's voice was laced with concern but he didn't even look up from where he had his face buried in the pillows.

"Cesare, come on piccolo eroe we need to talk to you," said Nico trying to lift him up.

"No," he mumbled into his bed. "You and Dad should go on the vacation, I'll be fine. Just gonna lie here forever and wish I could dump the whole camp into the Underworld."

Nico chuckled at that. "You know if your Dad could trigger an earthquake as you and I split open a chasm in the middle of the camp it could work."

"Really?" Cesare mumbled hopefully.

"No, not really, son," answered Nico fondly. "Come on. Get up."

He groaned as he got up from the bed and followed Nico down the hall to the living room. Percy was finishing up a phone call as they entered. There was luggage piled in the middle of the floor and he sighed at the sight of it. Maybe he could talk them into going without him, but the idea of staying in camp without them close by wasn't a fun one. Plus, he'd always wanted to see Venice. Nico was born there and he'd taught Cesare Italian when he was little. It suddenly occurred to him that he might not even get to go to Venice until his ten years of service to the legion were up.

"Reyna says she can handle most of the preparations while we're gone," Percy said hanging up the cordless phone. Despite the latest technological advancements, landlines were the only safe way for demi-gods to make phone calls. "I'll call my mom next and ask her if we can stay in my old room until we find a place."

"Good, I'll start packing. We need separate out stuff for the trip and what's going into storage," said Nico.

"Can you call Hazel and Frank too?" he asked Percy as he headed for the luggage.

"Yeah I got it," Percy said, starting to dial again. Cesare looked between his Dads in confusion.

"What are you guys doing?" he asked.

"We told you we could move back to the East coast if we needed to," said Nico.

"Wait. What? We're moving?" he asked in shock.

"Yes," they said in unison.

"No, stop," he said. "You can't just pick up and move because I can't go on a trip."

"It's not just that," Percy said looking at him sadly. He turned the phone off and faced his son. "We raised you here so you could be around other kids like you and not have to deal with monsters attacking every five minutes. But you're obviously not happy here and we understand."

"It's better here in New Rome but we felt uncomfortable in Camp Jupiter too when we were young," said Nico. "We're Greek demi-gods not Roman, and maybe you need to get to know your Greek roots."

"You still shouldn't leave the protection of New Rome," Cesare said feeling guilty. "I can go to Camp Half-Blood without you guys moving."

"We went through the most dangerous times in our lives without living here," Percy said smiling. "We'll be fine in New York. We're more at home there anyway, people don't stop and point at us."

"We're either the heroes who helped stop a war or the bad luck couple," Nico said grudgingly.

"Sometimes both," Percy interjected. "A Lare walked right up to me like a week ago and said that back in his day sons of Neptune were only good for cleaning the stables."

"Do you remember his name?" Nico asked looking pissed.

"No, you're not going to banish him to the Underworld," Percy said affectionately.

Nico's eyes narrowed even as he let the issue drop. "We're going to pack and once we've got everything in storage, we're going on our trip. We'll just deal with the rest when we get back," Nico said.

Over the next two days he packed his room and helped his Dads with the rest of the house. They still hadn't decided whether or not they would sell the Villa or keep it in case Nico and Percy wanted to retire in New Rome when they hit their golden years. He handed in his resignation from the legion to Stacy who actually looked sorry about it. Blaine wasn't in the office at the time and he was glad. He was shocked when Stacy saluted him and even restored his tattoo so he could remember his time as a legionnaire. He said good-bye to his cohort and promised to stay for one last dinner with them.

"So, you're going to live with the Greeks, huh?" asked Maribel that night in the mess hall. She smiled at him with big brown eyes that dominated her face.

The entire second cohort gathered in one spot lounging on benches and couches, dining as they did in ancient Rome. Word had gotten around that he was leaving and a few other campers came over to say good-bye. Don the faun had latched onto him the minute he set foot in the building and cried all over him. When he finally let go he asked Cesare if he had anymore cupcakes he didn't want.

"Yeah, well technically I'm one of them," he said forcing a grin.

"Nah, you're one of us," said Aiden. "We converted you to Roman and once you get over and see how lame it is, you'll be back."

"I heard the girls there are really hot though." He looked over at Quinn, the buzz cut redhead covered in freckles and Centurion of the second cohort. He had a dreamy smile on his face as if he were imagining a harem of Greek beauties.

"I hope you don't think you'd have better luck with them?" asked Susan looking at him with distaste.

"They might appreciate a man in uniform," said Quinn smiling smugly.

"Not one whose idea of a romantic date is taking them to gym to watch him work out," said Maribel.

They all laughed and Cesare glanced across the room and saw Blaine staring at him. His laughter died in his mouth and he tried to pretend like he didn't see, but he could feel the other boy's eyes on him now. He had to force himself to laugh through the rest of dinner and not turn to see if Blaine was still looking. But he knew he couldn't put it off any longer. Outside the sun had just set and he took his time hugging and getting hard slaps on the back from his cohort. Eventually they had to part ways so his friends could go to their barracks and he could go home. He started walking back to New Rome and heard footsteps behind him on the hard, cobbled street.

"Cesare."

"Hey," he said calmly, turning around to face his friend. Blaine wasn't in his Praetor uniform for once. He was wearing plain jeans and a purple SPQR t-shirt.

"Were you even going to tell me?" he asked. Cesare looked down at his feet for a second, too guilty to keep eye contact.

"I didn't know how, Blaine," he said honestly.

"Tell me it's just your Dads," Blaine said walking forward to look him in the eye. "Tell me it's just them wanting to go back to the Greeks and you, you'll beg, you'll fight to stay here. Your aunt and uncle are here, you could live with them," he said desperately.

"No," he said gently. "It's not just my Dads. I want to go."

"Why? Because of the trip? Because of your demotion?" It was so hard to look at him, to watch him trying to make sense of it.

"Because of all of it. I'm just not happy here, Blaine. It's all rules and the expectations! I feel like I can't breathe!"

"That's only because you haven't found your place yet. Cesare, if you become Praetor, I know you'd be happy. You wouldn't have to do any of the grunt work and we could spend more time together."

A couple of Lares walked by and they fell silent until they were alone again. When the Lares disappeared down the street Blaine took his hand and looked at him.

"Please stay. I'll break up with Stacy right now if you want me to, just stay."

"I can't," he said sadly. "I can't stay and you shouldn't break up with Stacy. She's good for you. I wouldn't be. You love Camp Jupiter, you love being Praetor and being with me would just make all of that hard for you. We would never work, Blaine, you gotta let it go." He pulled his hand away.

Blaine stared at him with glassy eyes and all he could think was that he was the worst person in the world. Why didn't want this? Why couldn't he make himself want this?

"I guess that's it then," Blaine said as his breath shuddered and he turned away. Cesare watched him walk off, wondering if he should call after him or if it was better this way. A breeze blew gently by and he smelled something rosy and sweet.

"I always knew you'd be a heartbreaker."

Standing right beside him, as if she'd been there all along, was a tall blonde woman in a white and gold gown with a plunging neckline. Cesare yelped and jumped away. His hand went for his sword before he remembered that he'd turned it in to the armory. The woman smiled, obviously amused at his distress.

"Who are you?" he finally asked.

"Aw," she said pouting prettily. "I thought you'd be able to recognize me on sight, Cesare. You were born in my arms after all." He stared at her stupidly before it registered.

"You're Aphrodite?"

"You must have gotten that adorable obliviousness from Percy. Anyway, I told your fathers I would check up on you as you grew."

She looked him over like she was appraising a piece of art. "You're so handsome," she said proudly. "I just knew those two boys would make wonderful children. I have half a mind to offer them a shot at giving you a little brother or sister."

Before he could voice his thoughts on that, she threw her arm around his shoulder.

"And already rejecting suitors!" Aphrodite gave him a little squeeze and began walking him in the direction of New Rome.

"That was a nasty one," she said with only the barest touch of sympathy. "That young man will have a hard time getting over you."

"He will?" he asked looking at her.

"I'm afraid so," she said as they walked. Her stride was relaxed even though he was sure it shouldn't be so easy to walk on cobblestones in heels. There were guards and other legionnaires about, heading to their posts or going to their barracks but no one seemed to see her. Even the Lares walked right past them without noticing.

"You opened his eyes to things he never knew about himself," she continued. "He can't stop associating that part of who he is with you. You were the first boy he ever liked. It gave him his first secret. During the day he worked hard to avoid or spurn you, but at night he pulled his secret close and cherished it. He longed for you and just when he thought you were within his reach, you pushed him away. Isn't it beautiful?"

"You, uh, you certainly make it sound very poetic, Lady Aphrodite." His guilt was a stone around his neck but he tried not to show just how awful he really found it. His Dads always told him that Aphrodite was fond of breaking hearts with unrequited love and he didn't want to make her mad.

"Oh, it's the stuff of Shakespearean tragedies!" she crowed. "But don't feel too bad," she said giving him another squeeze. "Tell your fathers I said hello."

She disappeared, leaving him alone and looking around in confusion.

"Bye, Aunt Hazel." His aunt hugged him so hard he thought he'd choke. He just went with it, burying his face in her mane sweet smelling curls.

As soon she let go his Uncle Frank bear hugged him –thankfully—without turning into an actual bear. Hazel seized Nico and Percy was hovering a few feet away trying to avoid his turn.

"Cesare!" His little cousin tugged on his shirt until he dropped to one knee in front of her. Her hair was curly like Hazel's but her coloring was lighter, like warm caramel. She had Frank's almond shaped eyes and right now they looked at him fiercely.

"Remember," she said with a seriousness that was just funny on a nine-year-old child. "The pack cannot survive if one is weak."

"Sophie just got back from the Wolf House. It'll wear off…hopefully," Frank laughed. Cesare didn't laugh. He looked back at her just as seriously.

"I remember." Then they gave each other their best wolf glares until Sophie nodded in approval and launched herself at him. He caught in her a hug and patted her back. She could join the legion in a few years and unlike him, she seemed cut out for it.

"We'll visit you soon at Camp Half-Blood," Hazel said.

"Yeah, just let us know when you get back Italy. I'd sure like to go back," Frank said wistfully.

"And be careful!" Hazel said, fixing his Dads with the same fierce look as her daughter had given to Cesare.

"We'll be fine, Hazel," Percy said but he got too close and was pulled into hug.

Hazel, Frank, and Sophie stood back as the three of them held hands in the middle of their now empty living room. Cesare was between them, holding both of their hands like he used to do when he was little. They were all loaded down with duffle bags and backpacks, which were easier to shadow travel with since whatever they took had to be strapped to them.

"Hey, give your Dad a boost," Percy said to him. "He's been shadow traveling all our junk to New York for the last two days."

Hazel and Frank waved good-bye as they disappeared into the shadows. Cesare felt a little tug behind his belly button and knew it was Nico tapping into their Underworld connection. One second they were moving through nothingness and the next they were standing a narrow alley in Venice, Italy.