(So close to the end, but that just means a beginning is near.)

All I could think of as I waited outside the entrance to the Labyrinth was that I missed Annabeth. I knew she wasn't coming out back from here, but it had been a week. She should return in the next couple of days.

I waited on the edge of camp during the day, and when I wasn't at meals, three days passed like that as I waited, until I could see her walking back into camp, all alone.

"Annie!" I called, jumping up and running over to her, Annabeth seemingly not hearing me.

"Annie..." I spoke, touching her shoulder and watching her slowly turn to look at me, tears in her eyes.

"Annabeth, wha-?" I didn't get to finish, Annabeth falling into my arms and sobbing...

"Shh, it's okay. You're okay." I mumbled, waiting for her to stop crying, and I wiped the wetness from her cheeks. She'd never forgive me if I let the others see she'd been crying.

"Come on. We can talk about it with Chiron." I told her softly, and the last few days of anger and pride felt washed away, replaced with guilt. I'd talked to my friends like they were below me. Like I was someone better than them.

I put my arm around her shoulder, her arm over mine as I helped her to the big house. There were eyes on us and whispering about what could have happened, but no one dared say anything. Not yet, at least.

"Annabeth? What is the matter? Where are the others?" Chiron asked, looking at her dirty, tear streaked face.

"You'd best come in and tell me. Alex, would you get the other councilors?" He asked, helping Annabeth while I went cabin to cabin, letting them know to tell their cabin councilors that they were needed for a meeting.

I went as the acting representative of Poseidon cabin, feeling awkward as I looked at the people I'd belittled days before.

"So... um, my memory is fuzzy on the details, but Percy, Grover, and Tyson went with you, right?" I asked, and immediately I got yelled at for being insensitive by Katie and Silena.

"What? It's not like they're dead." I argued, putting my hands up in confusion.

"Oh right, because you know know everything. Forgive us for questioning your judgment." Lee shot back, and it took everything in me not to say something stupid.

"Piss off. Are you guys still mad about the other night? Fine, I'm sorry I threatened you if you were against me and Luke. Now, can we focus our anger on the problem at hand, or at we as useless as the gods?" I asked, thunder rumbling outside of camp. It seemed that I pushed the big guy a little too far. Maybe that'd get him to do what I needed him to.

"That, and the remark about Annabeth." Clarisse growled, and I tensed as Annabeth herself looked at me, seemingly putting down the excitement that Luke might be a good guy again and pulling my ear, which still hurt. I wondered if it was because she was my lifeline.

"Alexander, what did you say?" She asked because if Clarisse was mad, it was definitely bad.

"I, uh, Malcolm was pissing me off, even though he was right, and I kinda, maybe, sort of-" Annabeth grew tired of me skirting around what I'd said, twisting my ear.

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Stop twisting so hard! Ow!" I whined, Annabeth stopping her twisting for now, but she still has a firm grasp on my ear.

"I implied we fucked to piss off your broth-" I didn't get to finish my sentence, her fist already hitting me square in the jaw, knocking me out of me seat, and I noticed that her punch hurt. Like, a lot.

"That was totally fair and deserved, I shouldn't have ever used your name for something so awful. You deserve to have your name spoken like the goddesses, in a dreamy, love sick way, and I'm sorry." I told her, watching her as her eyes shifted to me and the door, finally settling on me again as she offered her hand, helping me up halfway before punching me again, my nose cracking this time.

"Serves you right." She told me, her anger turning to curiosity as I felt my bleeding nose, wincing in pain as I stood, drops of gold inchor falling to the floor.

"What the actual fuck is that?" Castor asked, and I had to admit, I'd never seen my blood be that color before.

"My head feels weird." I managed to get out, my eye twitching a little before the drops turned crimson again, and I felt better. Maybe even better than I had in a while, minus my broken nose.

"So, I guess it's time for the full truth, huh?" I asked, taking a seat, Annabeth moving her chair as far from me as she could.

"Thalia, would you tell them the basics so I don't defy the gods?" I asked, Thalia thinking about how to answer.

"He's not some legacy, he's from the future, one where the war happens, and Luke is killed in combat before Kronos can ascend to his true form while using his body as a vessel, the two of them turning to ash. Kronos and Luke souls merged in the afterlife, and when Luke eventually chose rebirth, out popped Alex from me." She explained, giving me enough that I'm not technically breaking the rules.

"Yay? I don't really know if I'm happy about being born, but it is what it is, you know?" And everyone kind of muttered their agreement. No one chose to be related to the gods.

"I'm not really cursed, although I don't know why that scythe I gave to the gods sent me here. It's my symbol of power as a living deity, but I should be totally mortal now that I gave that up. Uh, let's see, oh, that's why I know so much about the future and how I've been able to save so many people. But the golden blood thing, that's concerning. I'm supposed to be mortal. I gave up immortality for my loved ones." My mind starts to wonder as I think about it. Maybe Zeus has gone back on his word, and I'll know the future soon enough.

"Oh, and because of all I've done, I can not predict what will happen anymore. I also can't just outright tell anyone the future I remember because it could still come to pass, although it's unlikely." I finally speak, looking up to find I'd interrupt a conversation they'd been having

"What? What did I dissociate from?" I ask, looking at their eyes and knowing that whatever it was, it wasn't something I wanted to miss.

"We're discussing whether or not you should be at camp. For all we know, you're a traitor, and you've invited Luke to conquer us from the inside. The vans may have literally been a Trojan Horse." Clarisse spoke, and I thought I heard some conflicting feelings. It didn't matter. I felt betrayed. I'd been out of line with everything I did the other night and my outburst last week, but a traitor? Me? After all I'd done.

"Whose side are you all on then?" I asked, watching them look uncomfortable. I'd zoned out so hard, and they were debating if I deserved the safety of camp.

"Well, you did promise to save everyone you could, and you brought back Luke. You have my vote of confidence." Annabeth told me, not meeting my eye, but I could relax. If she trusted me, that was all i needed, even though I had to push a little.

"I'm sensing a but," I started, and she glared at me, my words failing me as I swallowed back my fear.

"And I'm sensing you better shut up. I'm still so angry with you." She told me, and I nodded, unable to speak, and unwilling. She was terrifying when she was angry.

In the end, Annabeth, Beckendorf, Travis, Silena, Katie, Lee, Nico, and Thalia voted that we should stay, leaving Conner, Castor, Clarisse, to vote against me.

"So only the people with the letter "C" in their name voted against me. Fun little coincidence..." I joked, trying to make light of the situation and getting nothing but crickets.

"Yeah, not good timing, sorry. Uh, I completely understand why you did vote against me, and I hold no grudges against you." I told them, getting up to stretch before Annabeth spoke.

"Sit down and listen. I voted you should stay, but that should come with stipulations. Number one, you go to therapy at least twice a week. Number two, you surrender your weapons while at camp until we deem otherwise. Number three, you have to actually apologize to everyone you've hurt the last couple of weeks." She told me, looking at the others who thought, and voted unanimously for those stipulations.

"I'm so glad I'm able to bring you all together." I grumbled, throwing Riptide and my shield on the table, the pen and bracelet making a click clack sound as the meeting came to a close, Annabeth pulling me by the ear out of the newly fixed screen door and out to where we could talk more privately. At this point, I was starting to wonder if they could reattach ears because my right one was sore as Hades.

"I'm doing my very best to stay calm and collected. You will not interrupt me while I'm talking." She told me, and I began the worst civil conversation of my life.