You know, I was just thinking back to when I started this story back in October of 2022! It seems so long ago, but really, it's not. Huh... Anyways, here's chapter 21, and I hope you enjoy it! (Also, pretty Aphrodite please review!) Today's shoutout goes to Vixingsx7. Thanks for reviewing my last chapter. Ok, enough chitchat. Let's do this. Disclaimer: I do NOT own Percy Jackson or Heroes of Olympus, much to my dismay.)

Jason's POV

Jason was appreciative that more and more people at Camp Jupiter were recognizing him as a standing praetor, and not a retired one. But unfortunately, many still shared Octavian's twisted views. What did the guy have against him, anyway? Sure, Jason had been a part of the Greeks for a few months, but that wasn't his fault! Besides, he was born and raised a Roman. No one could deny that, not even Octavian. But then again, the augur had always wanted power, so what could one expect?

Jason was ecstatic to be back at Camp Jupiter, though, he did miss the demigod training facility back at Long Island, New York. It was a lot more laid back and chill if you considered laid back and chill a climbing wall that spews lava and a monster-infested wood... Nevertheless, Camp Half-Blood was a lot less uptight than Camp Jupiter and definitely less orderly (Though, Camp Jupiter doesn't have a climbing wall that spews lava.)

But most importantly, Jason was glad to see his friends. He had deeply missed his old training buddies and all his other comrades and acquaintances. There were also a lot of new campers that had arrived while he was away, which shouldn't have surprised Jason, but it did.

What most felt different, if not off, was the relationship between Reyna and him. The praetor had tried to make a move on him right before he had suddenly disappeared. So, the... betrayal... must've still been fresh in her mind. It didn't really help things that when he showed up again, he had a girl holding his hand, and fawning over him. Reyna must've felt like she had been punched in the face. Several times. Jason still felt super bad about it.

He had explained to Piper how he had sort of been leading Reyna on for a couple of years. The daughter of Aphrodite immediately scolded him on the feelings of girls and how the poor thing must've felt terrible when he showed up dating Piper. No one but Jason's own girlfriend would feel bad for a girl who had a crush on her boyfriend for so many years. Although, Piper had sort of avoided Reyna since he told her because she didn't want to make it awkward between them. Jason couldn't blame Piper, though. That's exactly what he had been doing since the Argo ll had landed.

At any rate, it felt odd that Reyna would choose to sit by him of all people during breakfast earlier. Probably because it was the only available seat at the table they were sitting at. That was the only logical explanation. But it still made him feel good that maybe Reyna wasn't completely trying to avoid him after all. They had been practically rubbing shoulder to shoulder, and it was a little disconcerting to be that close. Luckily, Piper didn't notice. Or she didn't seem to notice. It was best that she didn't get any ideas in her head of Jason and Reyna being an item.

What Jason did notice during breakfast were Percy and Reyna. They kept glancing at each other. Especially Percy. It's as if they were trying to resolve something, but didn't want to talk about it out loud. They kept seemingly having conversations with their gazes. What were those conversations about, anyway? Reyna seemed a little flustered, and Percy... Jason couldn't tell what Percy was feeling. Not only that, but the son of Poseidon kept blowing off his girlfriend, Annabeth. This was an odd and pretty uncommon occurrence with him.

Maybe all the tension at the table had been caused by the levels of recent stress throughout the praetors, and the whole camp in general. For one, the captured demigods, and the latest quest. Not to mention the fact that the crew of the Argo ll was leaving in just a couple of short weeks. And who could forget Octavian's relentless pestering? All of that combined would be enough to give anyone stress, and possibly a small migraine.

Jason's thoughts kept racing as he ate his breakfast, which was now cold. Piper picked at her quinoa bowl, which was vegan of course. Percy was chatting with Annabeth across the table in hushed voices, and Leo kept getting refills of his apple juice from the venti. Hazel and Frank were quiet for the most part, the son of Mars's arm around Hazel's comparably small shoulder.

Jason turned to Piper. "Do you think I should go talk to her?"

Piper looked up from her bowl. "What?"

"Should I go talk to Reyna? Just to make sure we're on good terms," Jason clarified.

Piper's kaleidoscope eyes shifted from hazel to a soft green. It mesmerized Jason. "Go for it. She seemed tense at breakfast today."

Percy looked up and seemed to cringe as if that was his fault.

"I probably should've said something to her earlier," Jason said admittedly.

"Better late than never," Piper said softly. "Do you want me to come with you?" A venti came and picked up their half-finished food, assuming they were done eating for the time being.

"No," Jason shook his head. "I'd better do this alone."

"That would be best," Piper said, shooting him an encouraging smile.

Jason stood. "Thanks for understanding. But just to be sure, you're not jealous of Reyna or anything, right?"

"I won't get jealous as long as you stay loyal," Piper teased, winking. Jason rolled his eyes as Piper punched his arm playfully. "Go get em' tiger!"

"Thanks," Jason leaned down and kissed his girlfriend's forehead. It was time to have a long overdue chat with Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano, and he was sure he knew where to find her.

Reyna's POV

Reyna's imperial gold gladius shimmered in the sun. She would've been alone if it weren't for two demigods dueling about twenty-five yards away. When she had first shown up, they had been kissing, but when they saw her, the lovebirds fumbled with their weapons at started to fight. They most likely didn't want Reyna to reprimand them for not training, and wasting valuable time.

Seeing the couple made Reyna frown, and she instantly thought about Percy. She sighed. Too bad she would never get another one of his perfect kisses. Not on her watch. Not as long as she stayed a true child of Bellona.

Reyna slashed and jabbed, practicing both Greek and Roman moves. But soon, practicing the Geek moves brought unwanted memories of Percy. Reyna wanted to yank out all of her hair. This guy was everywhere, and would not get out of her head.

Eventually, Reyna just started to work on Roman tactics, as fighting the Greek style brought undesirable reminiscence.

Reyna held her sword in an ice-pick stance, then flipped the weapon and charged at the dummy, slashing across its chest. Stuffing flew out, and Reyna was satisfied.

Suddenly, footsteps were heard behind her. Reyna prayed to the gods that it wasn't Percy or Octavian. She turned hesitantly and found the figure walking towards her to be someone who was only slightly better than the two latter options.

Jason Grace strode towards her, seeming just as nervous as she soon became. He waved a small gesture, which was quite unlike the son of Jupiter. It was quite unlike anyone associated with Jupiter, really. The king of the gods was known for being, well, expressive.

"Hey, I wanted to talk to you," Jason said quickly, once the two were within speaking distance. "And before you ask, no, Piper didn't send me."

Reyna hadn't been planning on asking that. In fact, it had never crossed her mind, but either way, it was good to know. Reyna nodded curtly.

"I just want to make sure that there's no... tension... between us," Jason breathed as he fiddled with one of his medals strapped to his praetor clothing.

"Jason-," Reyna began, but he cut her off.

"I know you're going to say that, of course, we're fine, but I need you to be honest," Jason stated. "What I did was wrong, and I'm sorry that I led you on for so long."

"Jason, I'm not mad at you, if that's what you're asking me," Reyna said, turning her gladius back into a ring, and sliding it onto her finger.

"Well, that's good, but are you still... hurt?" Jason asked. He said the word "hurt" as if it had several different meanings, and he couldn't decide on which to focus on.

"Jason, I felt upset, and I still do. I thought we shared something and...," Reyna sighed. "I thought you liked me, and... maybe even loved me."

"Reyna, as I said, It was wrong to lead you on as I did. I thought we could've had something as well. I really did. I was just deciding whether I considered you as a friend, or something more. When you kissed me, it caught me by surprise, and I wasn't ready."

The two sat in silence, and Reyna pondered his words. Did he really believe they could've had something? She wanted to believe that, but she couldn't bring herself to. It just brought underwhelming thoughts of what she could've had.

"I know it looks bad that I went off and found a girlfriend after my sudden disappearance, but you have to understand," Jason said. He took a small step closer to her.

"Yes, I understand," Reyna said, a little too harshly. "You realized that you didn't actually love me, but you did love her." She tried not to sound bitter, but she couldn't hide the disdain in her words.

Jason had a very guilty look on his face, which made Reyna feel bad. "You've made your point," Reyna said sternly. Maybe too sternly. "I forgive you if that's what you want." She turned her back, her emotions kicking in again and making her feel upset. Upset that her feelings for Jason weren't mutual. Upset that he had chosen Piper and forgotten about her.

"Reyna, I can tell you're still mad," Jason said, awkwardly.

"I'm not mad, I just-," she paused, choosing her next words carefully. "I'm glad you came to talk to me. And, I don't hate Piper, just in case you were wondering."

Jason sat for a moment longer, then took Reyna's standing comment as an invitation to leave, thankfully. Reyna needed to be alone again. She realized unfortunately that through all Jason had said, she still had remaining feelings for him, which made her even angrier. Reyna thought that after they had cleared things between them, no attraction would linger. Oh, how wrong she was. The feeling wasn't as strong, but it was still there, itching at her from the back of her mind, and bringing thoughts of missed opportunities. She exhaled and her gladius returned to her hand, her ring disappearing. Reyna charged the dummy.

()()()()

Same POV

Reyna sat in the Principia reading a petition from the Fourth Cohort about more meal time. Reyna instantly vetoed the petition. The demigods had plenty of time to eat as it was, and not nearly enough time in between meals, in her opinion. Reyna exhaled slowly and set the document down on her lap, slouching lower in her "throne". She was still confused over Jason's sudden explanation. Was it even an explanation or an apology? Perhaps it was a mixture of both? His words did explain a lot, but she still felt a little hurt. Jason thought they could've had something, and then he rejected her. That was the one thing that didn't make any sense to Reyna. How could he feel that way, then go and start dating a girl he had only known for what, a couple of months? It wasn't fair, but then again, when was love ever fair?

Reyna's thoughts shifted toward the three demigods who had left early that morning. She wondered where they were now, and how many monsters they had faced already. If they hadn't faced any yet, it wasn't an if but a when. Three inexperienced, and quite unsuspecting demigods made perfect bait for any foul creatures in the area looking for a snack.

Reyna shoved aside all her negative thoughts, (which were more than plentiful.) She stood and decided to take a walk around camp and inspect how things were going. She wanted to make sure everyone was doing their necessary chores and training, despite the recent traumatic events. Keeping the camp running was vital, no matter the recent circumstances.

Reyna trudged outside and jogged over near the barracks and mess hall. Some venti remained in the hall, still tidying up from breakfast, and preparing for lunch. She nodded at them as she passed. Once she was past the barracks, she looked out over the camp, and into the distance past the Field of Mars. Staring at the mostly deserted training area gave Reyna an idea. The camp had not had any War Games in a while, and maybe it was time for another match-up. After all, it would take the legion's mind off of the missing demigods, and the still-absent god of boundaries, Terminus.

Reyna thought that this would be a good idea, but of course, she had to discuss it with the other praetors. Both of whom she did not want to see right then. But it had to be done in order to get all their input on this. She couldn't very well go hosting huge events without the other praetor's consent. She just had to find them, first of all.

She continued to stroll and thought she would check by the practice arena. Just as she had predicted, there were the two praetors. Well, all seven demigods of the prophecy were there, practicing together. Reyna gathered up her courage and walked over to them.

"Hey, Percy, Jason, can I steal you guys for a second?" Reyna asked.

Percy looked confused and slightly panicked as if he was about to be scolded or yelled at, possibly for his relentless flirting. Jason on the other hand looked normal, probably assuming that this was just praetor business, which it was.

Once Reyna had pulled them a few yards away from the rest of the group, she started to speak. "I've been thinking of a good way to lift the mood of the camp. Perhaps we could hold some War Games?"

Jason nodded his agreement. "I think that's a good idea. Besides, I haven't attended any War Games since I disappeared. This could be fun." His eyes shone with anticipation.

"Wait, you mean the event where the Fifth Cohort dominated the First and Second? That was awesome!" Percy exclaimed.

"Wait, the Fifth beat the First and Second?" Jason asked, shocked. "I wish I could've seen the look on Octavian's face."

"It was priceless," Percy laughed. "Wish you could've been there, man."

Reyna didn't want to interrupt the budding bromance between these two, but they had other things to discuss. "So, you agree?"

"Yeah, it'll be fun," Jason said.

"Agreed. I can't wait to win again," Percy said.

"Uh, Percy, praetors can't participate in the War Games. Our job is to keep the game in order," Reyna pointed out.

"Aww, man," Percy sighed. "It'll be fun to watch, though. My friends will crush Octavian."

"When should we announce them, and when should they take place?"

"I would say announce it at lunch, hold it tomorrow afternoon," Jason said.

"Yeah, that's a good idea," Percy said, nodding.

"Ok, sounds like a plan," Reyna said.

Jason started to walk back to the group and looked back at Percy to see if he was coming, too. Percy gestured to Jason that he would join them soon and grabbed Reyna's wrist. She flinched. "Sorry for my, well, awkward stares at breakfast."

"Uh, it's alright. Though, I'm not sure your girlfriend appreciated your diverted attention," Reyna said, snarkily. She peeked around Percy to look at Annabeth, but luckily, the blond was dueling Hazel.

"I know, and I feel bad. I just couldn't stop..." Percy trailed off.

"Couldn't stop what?" Reyna pushed.

"Nothing. Forget I said anything," Percy shrugged, and let go of Reyna's wrist. She let it drop to her side, but still felt the warmth of his hand remaining. What in the world did that guy mean? He couldn't stop what? Oh well, it's not like Reyna could linger on such small things. She had to prepare for the War Games.

Hope you liked this chapter! I was writing this and thought that I would put the War Games into the next chapter, just for a change of pace. I hope you guys are excited about the next chapter! I know it's going to be fun to write Anyway, sorry this took a little bit to come out, and I will try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible, so don't worry. Also, we've had a little change with the poll, Preyna, Percabeth, and Pertemis are all tied for first! Make sure to cast your vote, before the poll goes down! Oh, and review of course. Thanks for reading! (Also, I think this is the my record for most words in a chapter: 3,046!)