I'm back! Sorry it took a couple of weeks. I had a parade I was performing in, and some other stuff going on. I'm sorry! Anyway, I really liked writing the last chapter, but it was more slow and reminiscent, so I'm planning on making more action-packed. I've kinda been having writers'-block recently, so I hope this doesn't tunr out to be super boring and bland. Good things to come, I promise!

Reviews:

AlmightyChaos:Thank you! I will!

IsItReallyTho: Aww, that was such a great review! I didn't know my writing was so addicting, haha! Thanks so much for your support! And to be honest, that was my first time getting grounded and it was the worst!

Alright, disclaimer: All rights to Uncle Rick and his amazing talent.

WARNING: This chapter has contents of puss and gore. If this makes you uncomfortable, do not read! :)

Percy's POV

Hands in his pockets, Percy trudged towards the infirmary. He knew the healers would be there. In fact, he was half-convinced that some of them slept there.

When he and Reyna had been getting cuddly last night, she had bumped the area on his back where Terminus had body-slammed into him. After that, his bruise had hurt the rest of the night. He'd logged in a total of 2 hours of sleep because he couldn't find a comfortable position in which his back wouldn't ache.

Of course, Percy didn't blame Reyna for his pain. It was an accident. However, he was still mad at Terminus. Eidolon or not, it hurt.

Percy walked in, looking for any evidence of the healers. Sure enough, he spotted Lucas digging through a first-aid pouch and muttering to himself.

Percy cleared his throat, and Lucas raised his head, turning his attention away from his bag. "Praetor! Is something wrong?"

"Yeah, my… back has been acting up," Percy explained. As if right on cue, a sharp throb struck his back. He forced himself to hold in his wince.

Lucas took Percy into a secluded room and lifted his shirt. "Uh…" Lucas mumbled.

Percy furrowed his eyebrows. "How bad is it? Lay it on me."

Percy hadn't checked his back in the mirror this morning, but he probably should have…

"Well, there's gold… puss…?" Lucas said. Percy could hear his grimace.

"Wait, what?" He asked. Gold puss? Why would a bruise have puss?

"Here," stammered Lucas, stepping aside. "I'll run some tests on this and see what's going on. In the meantime…" He collected a vile from a nearby counter and scooped some of the gold fluid into it.

The healer opened his pouch and pulled out some gauze, wrapping it around Percy's abdomen. Ow…

"Come back in a couple hours and we will see what is going on."

Percy nodded, pulling down his T-shirt. What was going on?

"Wait," Lucas said, again, rummaging in his pouch. He pulled out some ambrosia and broke off a square, handing it to Percy. "Take this."

Percy did so and left the infirmary, his brow furrowed. The throbbing in his back had stopped thanks to the godly food, but that didn't cease Percy's worries. Last time he checked, bruises, at least normal ones, didn't have puss.

But then again, was this a normal bruise?

Who knew a statue could ensue so much damage?

Percy headed to the dining hall, adjusting his bandages so they wouldn't chafe. He could hear chatter even before he saw the building. What he could see, however, were legionnaires posted at certain stations around the border of the valley. More so than usual. Just another reminder of why he was still here.

When Percy arrived, eyes immediately went to him and the lump under his shirt. Annabeth eyed him suspiciously.

He sat at his usual table with his friends and was bombarded with questions. "What's wrong?" "Is it your back?" "Why is there a bandage?"

Percy answered all the questions thrown at him, but couldn't avoid Reyna's piercing gaze from the officers' table. She didn't look mad… just concerned. His stomach clenched and he looked down.

"Lucas said there was… gold puss," Percy explained.

He wasn't surprised to see almost every eyebrow around him raise in question. Annabeth laced her hand into his.

"I don't think that's normal," Leo said, clearing his throat. "Maybe for you... But not for me."

Percy shrugged, "It's never happened before. And why would Terminus cause all this?"

Percy was fairly certain that his table was the only silent table in the mess hall.

It was Hazel who finally spoke up. "Well, on the bright side, I overheard Dakota saying that some of the veterans from New Rome are going to help us defend the valley in the event of an attack. That should give us some help in a battle."

Frank muttered a response, but Percy didn't hear it. Of course, he was glad for the added help, but he was still anxious.

He inconspicuously glanced at Reyna through his peripheral. She wasn't looking at him, but he could see the worry lines on her forehead. His heart warmed to see her concern.

Percy made small talk with Annabeth until he was done with his omelet. He decided that he would stop by for a brownie at the bakery before he had to return to the infirmary and Annabeth insisted she come win him.

As they walked towards New Rome, he tried to enjoy the fresh air. Of course, he was outside most of the time, but it was nice to appreciate nature. Even if nature was just Gaea, the very source of all his problems at the moment.

He tried to focus on Annabeth's lemony shampoo scent, and her grip on his hand. Firm, but not too protective. Light, but not so light that her hand would drop from his if she stopped concentrating.

That was one of the things he liked about Annabeth. How perfect her hand-holding was.

Perch was conflicted. Whenever he thought of Reyna, he felt guilty for Annabeth, and whenever he thought of Annabeth, he felt guilty for Reyna. What was going on?

Annabeth ordered for them. Percy smelled in the aroma of baked goods. It was never a bad time for a brownie.

When they got their food, they sat down, munching quietly.

Annabeth fidgeted with her napkin, setting her brownie down. "Percy, something's up."

Percy's stomach clenched in panic. I knew she wouldn't believe me when I told her Reyna was nothing to worry about!

"Usually when you get injured, you just shrug it off. But… you're acting different"

Percy wanted to say, "Yeah, because who wouldn't act panicked if their bruises turned golden and let out puss?"

Instead, he said, "I don't know, I'm just… nervous. And scared."

Annabeth grabbed his hand again. "I know, Seaweed Brain. And I'm sorry. But still. This isn't like you."

"A lot of things have changed since we came to Camp Jupiter," Percy said flatly.

Annabeth's brow creased, her eyes dropping down to the tattoo on his forearm. She ate the rest of her brownie in silence.

Percy was shocked to find so much truth in his words about a lot changing. Some things changed in bad ways, and some in good. After all, he never would've seen Reyna as his type when he had seen her as a serving maid for Circe. But now… Yeah. A lot had changed.

Annabeth and Percy threw away their napkins, and just like that, it was time to head back.

Same POV

Percy and Annabeth walked to the main part of the camp. Not much was said in the walk, but Annabeth's arm was draped around Percy protectively. The act of affection surprised Percy. Usually, it was him doing something like that for Annabeth, not the other way around.

When they walked inside the infirmary, Annabeth dropped her hand from his back and instead grabbed his hand.

The sound of the door opening startled them. They turned around to see Reyna standing there. Percy tried very hard not to smile. Annabeth didn't try too hard to shield her disappointment.

"Fancy seeing you here," Reyna said, her eyes momentarily dropping to the couples' joined hands. It's not like she hadn't seen them hold hands before. She brought her eyes back.

"I just wanted to see what was going on," she explained. Percy was grateful for her presence.

"We were too," Percy said.

They turned around to find Lucas, but sure enough, he was standing there. He always seemed to be in the right place at the right time. However, there was a grim expression on his face. Percy's heart dropped. Oh no.

"Hey, Percy! And Reyna, and Annabeth. Um… I'm glad you're here. I, uh, happen to have a diagnosis. Follow me."

The healer gestured the three of them into a secluded room like before. Percy's heart plummeted further. Bad news.

Lucas rung out his hands, frowning. "You see, the gold stuff... It just so happens to be the very thing that killed Ezra."

Percy's heart stopped. What? Was he going to die? What about Reyna? And Annabeth, too, of course…

"Wait. I thought you didn't know what killed Ezra," Annabeth said, clearly stunned.

"We… We don't. But the results match up. It's the same," Lucas clarified.

Everyone fell into a solemn silence. Percy had the strong urge to grab Reyna's hand, but gods' knew that wouldn't end well.

"So, what does this mean?" It was Annabeth who finally spoke up.

"Well, the good news, it's not lethal, especially if it's exiting his body," said Lucas. "However, we still need to watch him closely."

"Okay, that's all fine and good, but why Terminus, and why a bruise?" Percy asked, aghast.

Lucas only shrugged and shook his head. "We're still confused about that. And why the puss didn't show up earlier."

Silence.

"We'll see what else we can find," Lucas said, clasping his hands together. "And in the meantime, Percy, can you come to the infirmary every morning? Just so we can keep tabs on this."

Percy nodded.

"And, of course, nectar and Ambrosia," Lucas finished.

"Oh. And I'd better switch your bandages."

Percy nodded and sat on the bed as Lucas took off his shirt. He watched as Annabeth and Reyna practically ogled him. He was only slightly uncomfortable. Secretly? He loved the attention.

Lucas swiftly changed the bandaids and gave Percy his shirt back. Percy made sure he put the shirt in slowly, giving the girls a good view.

When it was time to leave, he told Annabeth he had some stuff to work on since he had been occupied that morning. She kissed him goodbye and went off to do some chores.

Of course, no actual work would get done. He needed to be with Reyna.

Reyna's POV

"I'm guessing that was a lie," Reyna said, eyeing Percy.

"What was?"

Reyna rolled her eyes. "When you told Annabeth that you were getting work done. I'm guessing that's a lie."

"Oh, yeah. I'm geting surprisingly good at lying," Percy said proudly.

Reyna raised her brow, not sure how to answer that.

"So… is your back as painful as it looks?" Reyna asked, glancing at Percy's back.

"Probably," he replied. "No harsh make-out sessions until further notice." He winked.

Reyna blushed and then realized that they were standing straight in front of the infirmary still. She blushed harder.

"That color looks good on you," Percy said, glancing quickly at Reyna.

She raised her eyebrows questioningly and stared down at her outfit. What was different about it? What color suited her?

"No, silly, I mean the color of your cheeks when you blush," Percy said, smiling.

Reyna looked up again, no doubt beet red. He was getting good at flirting.

"Uh, we should go," Reyna said, pointing in the other direction. Who knew who could be watching?

Percy nodded in understanding. They quickly ran to the Principia, needing to be alone.

When Percy shut the door, he gently pessed Reyna against it, kissing her neck. Reyna closed her eyes. The sensation reminded her of a vampire. The comparison wasn't completley far fetched. He sucked her self control and dignity away, just like a vampire would suck blood.

Before Reyna could think too much about the vampire analogy, Percy was now kissing her lips. Reyna lightly bit his lip in return, feeling less restricted. If Percy wanted to play this game, she would, too.

She'd never seen this desperate and wild side of Percy before. Where had it come from?

Reyna stopped thinking about thought, and started to focus on her breathing. She was barely inhaling and exhaling.

Percy grunted and bit her lip, too. His tongue entering her mouth.

Reyna tensed. She hadn't expected him to go that far. Her heart started to beat even quicker than it already had been. She started to panic. What was going on with Percy? She'd never thought the sarcastic, funny, chill Percy was capable of showing such passion.

She prepared to pull away from him, nervous, but Percy must've sensed her stress, and he grabbed her wrist, restricting any movement that Reyna would've performed.

She and Percy quickly pulled away to take a deep breath. In that small pause, she saw the fire in his green eyes. He looked into her eyes before pressing his lips to hers once more. Her heart fluttered sporadically. She could barely recall the moment she and Percy had spent at the Little Tiber when she had pushed him away. How could she resist such lips?

Finally, Reyna gained enough courage to push him off. He looked at her confused, but Reyna held up a hand, signaling him that she needed a break.

Percy seemed to understand. He looked at her softly. "Sorry. Was that too much...?"

Reyna shook her head, breathing heavily. "No, I'm- I'm fine. I just- wow."

"At a loss for words, huh?" Percy asked, smirking.

Reyna was mid- eye roll, her mouth open to speak when a horn sounded. A war horn.

Reyna recognized the sound from the time she and Percy were dueling in the arena and the Greeks had arrived.

"They're here."

Guys, I'm incredibly sorry for a lacking on publishing more chapters lately. I've been feeling really bad about it, but I pinky promise to up my game! Anyways, I was really excited to add that little twist about Percy's back, especially since I've been neglecting that bit. Also, sorry for the little vampire analogy. I'm currently reading Twilight, and I'm kinda obsessed, so I wanted to put something for that in. Anyways, review, review, and REVIEW!! :)