Hey guys. Guess what? Time jump! Please review!
One month later
Jason
Jason's world had seemed to crash in itself, nothing necessarily making sense. Things had been going so well. They killed the giants. The Gods came. They were fighting Gaea at Camp Half Blood. He and Leo and Piper were in the sky, seeming to win the fight. Piper, oh beautiful Piper, was charm-speaking Gaea back to sleep as Leo was hurting her with fireballs. Then, everything seemed to stop.
In one moment in time, they were frozen in the sky. Leo was smiling at them. He told them he loved them. And in that moment, Leo Valdez had said his last words, smiled his last smile. In that moment, Leo was alive. Then, Festus's claws that held them in the sky opened in he and Piper fell. Jason plummeted through the sky as he saw the world light up in a bright fiery ball. Leo Valdez was dead.
Jason found himself returning to that moment often. He pictured Leo's face nearly every minute. His crooked smirk turned sincere smile. The plan that he had been hatching for weeks, finally succeeded. He had managed to keep that secret from everyone for so long. That fact hurt Jason nearly as much as his death did. That Leo spent the last few weeks of his life hiding from his friends, suffering.
After a month of searching, Chiron had officially declared Leo dead. They planned his funeral. Athena cabin made his shroud. And here Jason was, sitting in the audience, not listening to the many people standing to talk to him. Jason was in line to speak, but he didn't know what to say. Piper was next.
"Leo Valdez was my brother." She gave a tearful breath. "Maybe not biologically, but he told me that morning that I was his sister. If that isn't family, I don't know what is. I know everyone is expecting me to talk about how funny he was and how much he made me laugh, and he did, but he was so much more too. He always felt like an outsider to the group, any group. I just hope in some Greek Mythology-y way, he can see this place and how many people truly cared about him. And I hope he can hear me when I say I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Leo." She broke off and started crying. She ran back into her seat next to Jason.
He was staring straight ahead and didn't say a world as she sat next to him. He lifted his arm and put it around her shoulders, but he barely comprehended completing the motion. He was numb. No thoughts really seemed to pass in his head. Leo, his best friend in the entire world, was now dead. And it seemed to be his fault. To storm or fire the world must fall. Leo made it fire. Fire died instead of storm. Jason could have changed the outcome. He could have died instead of Leo.
Frank was standing in front of everyone, speaking. "He did something for me. He knew a secret about me that not many other people know, and instead of sympathizing, he solved my problem. That's who he was. A problem solver. He didn't just accept things as they came. He made them work. He's the reason we're all here today. Thank you Leo. And I'm sorry." He went and sat down, overcome with emotion. Hazel stood up.
Jason sat, ears buzzing with the sound of Hazel's voice. He missed half her speech before Piper sniffed loudly and brought him back to earth.
"I turned to him for comfort in a friend, and he helped me figure out something that I had been confused about for a long time. He always said that he was more comfortable with machines than people, but he really was a good friend. It's kind of hard not to love someone when you're sprinting through an imaginary death trap maze together." she gave a light chuckle. "So, I love you Leo. I hope you can hear me and know how much we all love you."
It was Jason's turn to speak. He sat there, mind blank. Piper pushed lightly into his shoulder, as if reminding him that it was his turn. He stood up, head buzzing. He faced the crowd and saw everyone's eyes on him. He cleared his throat.
"I've been through a lot with Leo. He is my best friend in the entire world." His words felt empty. He felt as if he was speaking with no meaning. There were not enough words to express what he felt about Leo. Also, he noticed with a pain in his chest, he used present tense.
"When I met him, I had no idea who I was. He helped me figure out who I was. That first quest, we became really close. As everyone else said, he's a really good friend. And he would do anything for you. Obviously. We all love you Leo. I hope you found peace." Jason's mouth was increasingly dry. He sat down and felt his speech was insignificant. He had one chance to tell everyone who Leo was, and he failed.
Suddenly, Annabeth stood up and stood in front. Jason looked up curiously. After the explosion and all the monsters were killed, she had gone to her cabin and only emerged at nights. She had not said a single word since returning from Europe, and after hearing what had happened to Percy, no body really tried to talk to her. Chiron had pulled her aside early on in their stay, but what their conversation consisted of, nobody had any clue.
Annabeth's eyes were bloodshot and she stood staring not at the crowd, but at Leo's shroud, made by her siblings. She stared at it for an uncomfortably long amount of time. A whisper began to arise over the audience.
"Leo." She finally spoke, silencing everyone. "You are a martyr. I owe you my life. I'm sorry it had to be you." And she sat.
"If anyone else has anything to say, please come forward." Chiron said. Silence met the statement. He then began to burn Leo's shroud, accompanied by Leo's siblings. Piper was sitting, crying. Hazel and Frank were hugging each other, sobbing into each other's shoulders. Jason wasn't watching the shroud burn. He was watching Annabeth.
The flames danced in her tearful eyes and she watched with a stoney expression. Suddenly, things began to click in Jason's head. Leo and Annabeth's fast friendship. Annabeth confiding in him. Them leaving the night before. Something Leo had said. It was as if someone had turned the light on in a dark room and suddenly everything made sense.
"Annabeth and I... she knows something about me that no one else does. And she understands it. That's why she trusts me." Leo had said so many nights ago. She knew. She knew. She knew. She knew. She knew. She knew.
She knew he was going to kill himself and did nothing. She just sat by and let him hatch this plan that got him killed. Heck, she might have helped him with the plan. She lead him to slaughter and didn't even care. Jason's heart was pounding so loudly he could hear it in his ears and was surprised the others couldn't hear it as well.
The funeral was over and people began leaving the amphitheater. Annabeth stood slowly and started walking across the lawn. Piper tried to take his arm, but Jason jerked it away and started after Annabeth. Piper said something, but he couldn't hear her over the blood rushing in his brain.
He reached Annabeth and shoved her roughly to the ground. She fell on her hands and several people rushed forward, saying things in outrage. They were protective over Annabeth. They had known her for a long time. But Jason didn't care.
"Jason." Annabeth stood up and stared at him.
"You knew." His voice was dangerously calm, but his insides were anything but. Annabeth's face fell.
"You freaking knew." He pushed her again. Piper ran up and stopped short.
"Jason stop." Annabeth didn't fall that time.
"No. You don't get to say that. You knew." His voice was filled with pain and betrayal. "You knew and you let him do it anyway. You didn't even tell us. You didn't even let me know it was goodbye." Jason's chest was filling with some hot liquid that was soon going to burst. Annabeth opened her mouth, then closed it.
"How could you. He was your friend too. How could you kill him like that. You know what? You're right. You are a curse." Jason felt hot tears fall out of his eyes. Annabeth's face fell again and he chest rose and fell in a stuttering breath.
"You killed him. And you killed Percy. And you killed Luke. They are all dead because of you." Poison dripped off Jason's lips. Piper shoved herself in front of him.
"Jason stop." Piper said this time.
"How can you be on her side?" Jason yelled. "She killed Leo. She knew what he was going to do and let him do it anyway. She didn't tell us. We could have come up with another solution. I could have come up with another solution."
"Jason." Piper's voice was barely a whisper.
"Piper get away from her. Everyone close to her dies. I don't want to lose another friend." Jason grabbed Piper's shoulder and pushed her away from Annabeth. He stuck his finger in Annabeth's twisted face.
"And you. You think your life is better than his? You think you deserved to live more than he did? Is that why you let him walk away? No. He was worth so much more than you will ever be. Because he wasn't a coward. Stop hiding behind people to die for you and you fall on the sword next time." Jason hated the way she was crying in front of him. He hated the way she looked broken. He hated the way every word he said cut her like glass.
Chiron came up to him and started pushing him away from Annabeth.
"You hear me Annabeth? You die next time. Stop letting people die for you and you die. His death is on your hands. All of theirs are." He screamed over Chiron's shoulder. He couldn't see Annabeth's face as he was shoved into his cabin. He breathed heavily into the closed doors, then his breath hitched once, and everything was over. He was sobbing, crumpled in front of his room.
He sobbed for Leo, and for his best friend who had to die. He sobbed for Annabeth, and for the things he said to her. And he sobbed for himself, and the person he had become.
The next morning, he went to seek Annabeth out. He had no idea what he was going to say to her, or if it would be another fight, or if it would be an apology. However, when he arrived at her cabin, he saw all of her things gone. Every single shirt she owned, pants, shoes, nick nacks, all gone. The only thing left was her Camp Half Blood necklace, sitting on her bunk.
Jason picked it up and looked at all the beads, the college ring, and the shell. He placed it back on the bed and began to cry again because that shell triggered a memory in his mind. A memory of someone telling him something. Yesterday, the day of the funeral, the day Jason had screamed those horrific things at her, had been Percy Jackson's birthday.
Jason left the cabin and started towards the Big House, preparing himself to tell Chiron that Annabeth Chase was gone and was not coming back.
Sorry it's so long and sad, but this is my favorite chapter :)
