Leo groaned happily. "Pre- pre- pre- thanksgiving with my peeps! So good."

"It was just pizza. Why are you acting like it was the best meal ever?" Piper picked at him.

I smiled and kept writing. It was kind of nice having the background noise of all of the people.

The campers were taking turns tossing the duck toy for Batman (his name was a big source of amusement among them) and just generally relaxing. Enjoying what time they had away from camp.

Connor would make faces at me whenever I looked up from writing.

Jacob had disappeared to his room.

Nico was curled up next to Will.

The Seven were all huddled together, talking and joking.

Reyna was talking over an idea with Chiron and Malcolm, with Travis commenting now and then. Maybe going over optimal sites so I wouldn't have to.

I glanced up and saw Jason coming over, so I sat up a bit. "Hey."

"Hey," He responded, sitting across from me.

"How's your year going?"

He smiled. "Really well, Pipes and I have been going to school together. It's great."

"That's great."

He looked at me, hesitating momentarily, then took a deep breath. "How did you end up heading this project?"

"I'm not, not really. It's just such a collaborative project that someone needs to be the spokesperson for it. Which I kind of volunteered to be, since I'm the strongest link that Camp Half-Blood and New Rome have to Camp Northpoint. And it's been kind of therapeutic for me."

He nodded a bit. "Right."

"That wasn't what you really wanted to ask," I said, studying him quickly. "Seriously, Jason. You can ask me anything."

"I'm just… I'm wondering why you are the spokesperson for Camp Northpoint."

I waited, feeling like there was more to the question, but when he didn't say anything more and looked unsure of how to continue, I shrugged slightly. "Because I'm connected to the world that Camp Northpoint stands guard to. They carefully mingle the two, and I'm part of both. And I can keep a secret, which is needed for a place like that. They're a safe place for everyone. The cursed, the outcast, the ones that are far too young to be at either of the other camps." I set aside my notebook. "I value privacy, but I also know how to discretely convey information. How to communicate without endangering either party. It's kind of my specialty. Which you already know."

He gave a bit of a sheepish look, but it was guarded with so many people around.

I glanced past him at his friends, noting the worried glance Piper gave our way. "What's wrong, Jason?"

He pushed up his glasses. "I don't know how to talk to Piper about our future. Every time it comes up it's like we both change the subject."

"What do you want for your future?" I asked. Finally, the point of the conversation.

He shrugged. "I want to be with her."

"But what do you want to be beside Pontifex? Or is that your life's work?"

He gave a dry laugh. "I think I'll die of old age before I ever finish."

"Okay, what about college?"

He frowned a bit and shrugged. "I don't know. I don't even know what I would get a degree in."

I waved it away. "Half of the people in college don't know either. What is it you think she wants?"

"I know she wants us to be together," He responded, then shrugged to say that that was all.

I took a deep breath and huffed it out. "Piper, get over here. Now."

Everyone did that stupid thing that students do when one of their peers gets called to the principal's office.

Piper came over, actually looking kind of nervous. "Yes?"

"Jason needs to talk to you about your future, you need to talk to Jason about your future, specifically your future together, including but not limited to college, after college, alternatives to college, and so on. Okay?" I stood up and sat her in my spot, then gestured between them. "Talk." I walked away.

They were both blushing a bit.

I shook my head and dropped in the first empty seat I came across, which happened to be between Reyna and Annabeth. "Why is this my life?"

Reyna just started laughing.

Leo looked mischievous. "What are they in trouble for?"

"Not talking to each other about important stuff, but apparently consulting me is totally easy."

Chiron looked like he was laughing. "Last summer had the least amount of counseling I've done in centuries. So you must be doing something right."

I laughed a bit.

Chiron turned his attention to Travis. "I think you were right. She would be a good candidate."

Travis nodded.

I felt my guard go up.

Everyone had heard that statement.

"A good candidate for what?"

Chiron looked around at all the curious faces, resting on Annabeth and Percy finally. "I'm going to retire. I meant to do it before the giant war. It'll be another year or so, but Travis will be taking over initially with the help of one or two others and Ms. Dellaro is a prime candidate for one of the positions my retirement would create."

It was so quiet we could hear the ocean.

"You're retiring?" Annabeth's eyes were wide.

"I am old, and tired. You all have proved that you are more than capable of incredible things and I was only a small part of that. I'm ready to rest." His voice was gentle.

"Me?" I shook my head. "I'm not even like the rest of the demigods in this room. I've never struggled with monsters, I've never been on the streets, I'm not even that good of a fighter. Why would I even be a candidate for helping replace you?"

Chiron just smiled gently at me.

"Because you're already doing some of his work," Percy said, which was kind of surprising. He looked troubled, but he also looked focused and determined. "And you're already playing liaison between camps, you're doing a lot of what he does on a daily basis. You're organized, but you're also able to go with the chaos."

Annabeth nodded, looking dazed.

"And you wouldn't have to be a leader," Travis said, getting up. "That's going to be my job, apparently. You'd be a counselor. You'd be helping the campers, and dealing with the issues that occur between them. There's more to it, but it's nothing you can't handle. And you have time to prepare for it. It's going to take a while for the switch to be made. We're doing a sort of practice run this summer provided the council signs off on it. I didn't think we'd be talking about it with everyone so soon, though."

Chiron nodded a bit.

Connor was awfully quiet, keeping his gaze on the floor.

"You two were thinking of me for this job ever since my second week at camp," I said, looking between the brothers.

Connor winced, not even looking up or attempting to lie.

I remembered the way he had looked at me around that time. The conversation I had seen him and Travis having with Allison…

"Oh my God," I kept looking back and forth between them.

"Well, at least she isn't mad," Connor said in a nervous voice.

My head snapped toward him. "You wanna bet on that?"

"No."

"That's good." I went over and grabbed his arm. "You two. Outside. Now. We're gonna talk."

"Nico, tell our grandfather—"

"Now," I ordered, actually yelling a little more than I expected.

Travis hurried to catch up.

I led them outside and closed the door. "Why the hell would you do this? What could possible have made both of you think that this would be a good idea? I mean, you even told Allison that I might be part of the leadership of camp."

Travis looked surprised. "How did you—"

"You two were talking with her and Connor's poker face was off it's game this summer." I folded my arms.

"I don't think I've ever seen you mad." Connor looked nervous.

"You said no secrets." I was almost glaring at Travis.

He winced. "I know, I'm sorry."

"And you?"

"They made me swear on the River Styx." Connor looked apologetic.

I rubbed my temples then covered my face, struggling to stay calm.

Batman barked pitifully and scratched at the door.

Connor didn't bother asking, just let the dog out while tried to calm down.

Batman came and nudged my hand, then sat right next to me, pressing his body against my leg—his usually signal that I was about to have, or having an anxiety attack.

"Is this because you don't like surprises?" Connor ventured.

Travis whacked his head from behind, then placed both hands on my shoulders. "Look, Cass, I would have told you when it was time. You care about people. I'm going to need that. Chiron was already talking to me about possibly taking his job before Percy went missing, before Jason appeared and the whole Roman and Greek battling the earth deal. After it was over, we said that camp needed time to recover and I wanted to get my degree. When you came and you befriended Nico in a matter of…days? Yeah, Connor told me and we knew that you would be a good candidate for helping the campers in a sort of counselor capacity. Then you were deemed the Keeper of Secrets. You earned the respect of just about everyone in that camp without going on a big quest, or being a powerful fighter. So yeah, you are a prime candidate to help me. Our conversation with Allison was about what she thought of you in a position like that."

I remembered that she was able to see bits of the future, part of her curse, and wondered what her response was. But I was focusing on keeping my breathing normal.

"She said it would explain a few things about your future. Whatever that means," Connor said, frowning at the deck. "She said that you're a shelterer, a confidant, a mainstay, and…"

"An innovator," Travis finished. "Things have been changing for a while now, and you're looking to be a part of that change, to make changes for our kind. That's why you're a candidate. And I'm not going to apologize for it. I know it surprised you in there, and I'm sorry about that. I know you hate surprises. I would have talked with you before we started making serious changes. Frankly we weren't even supposed to tell all of them until after the council had approved the summer trial, which is on the docket for the winter solstice."

I covered my face again. "This is a bad idea."

"Maybe."

"I'm still mad."

"Okay."

Connor wrapped his arms around my head.

I sighed and leaned against him.

Travis caught hold of my hand and kissed it. "Come on. It's cold out here."

"How did you get caught up in this?" I asked Travis, slowly trying to extricate myself from Connor's grasp.

Travis looked out over the ocean. "I volunteered. I knew Chiron was planning to retire and I was looking at my future and…I didn't know that I wanted. Being a cabin leader had been the only thing that felt normal. I didn't feel like there was something else out there and there was so much damage still being repaired from the first war. It was all well and good for the main heroes. They didn't have to deal with the campers and their trauma. I was dealing with it. I had a purpose. I was serving that purpose. Even if I had to look like an idiot to do it."

"They're about to try listening in," Connor said after his gaze flitted toward the house.

"So we kill them?" I asked Travis.

"Yeah, we already started, right? I mean, you remembered to poison the pizza?"

"Baneberry, lethal in small doses."

"Perfect," Connor said with a grin. "Tell me their deaths will be entertaining?"

"We can make it even more entertaining. I mean, you can expect some interesting deaths as it is, but we could always spike the soda."

Connor rubbed his hands together. "Awesome, I didn't get to shove anyone into the lava this summer. Or lose them in the woods. Or accidentally maim them."

"The stronger ones might have less of a reaction, the girls too since they'll have consumed less."

"Cassie can take Reyna, she has no reason to suspect her. I'll handle Annabeth."

"No way, I'm not dealing with Piper. We'll probably have to tag team those three. Even poisoned they can kick our behinds." Connor folded his arms. "We'll keep Nico alive, and Will. So you better go give them an antidote."

"Right, you two get the weapons. Remember, we go in casually. Nothing is wrong." I told them. "Also, make sure the kitten doesn't get squished and the dog doesn't get hurt."

"Of course, can't have that happen." Connor ran a hand through his curly mess of hair. "Then I have a call date."

"Oh?" I bounced my eyebrows.

He grinned, and we went back in. "Yeah, not as good as in person, but still a real good thing."

"Who's the girl?" I asked.

"Or is it a girl?" Travis teased.

Connor rolled his eyes. "You know it is."

"Hey, it was a little rocky there for a couple years."

"Oh shut up." Connor shoved his brother. "You're the one who hasn't dated in forever."

"Right, which is why Sara and I were never an item."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa—hot Sara? From the Athena cabin?" Will asked, his head popping up. "Damn dude!"

"Excuse me? First off, isn't hot Sara a little offensive? Second, boyfriend." Nico pointed at himself, glaring at Will.

"No, she actually liked that she was called hot Sara instead of something dorky." Annabeth shrugged. "I didn't know you two dated."

"I know. She didn't want people to know. And then she died. So…we never really got going." Travis dropped into a chair.

Some of them were giving us wary looks.

"Hang on, were you the one she was dating when the war came?" Annabeth asked, suddenly looking extremely interested.

"Drop it," Travis suddenly said, getting a warning look.

She smirked and sat back in her seat.

Travis wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "When do you have to get back to camp?" He asked Chiron.

"We should get going." Chiron looked around at the campers.

They started gathering, still casting nervous looks at us.

I smiled at them. "Have fun, guys. Oh, and happy Thanksgiving."

They just looked concerned.

Malcolm came over and pulled me protectively from Travis and held me in his arms. Bold enough to actually kiss me twice before just hugging me. "This is going to be my first thanksgiving in a long time spent outside of camp."

"Yeah?"

"Hey," Travis got our attention. "We're watching you," He told Malcolm, smiling in a threatening manner.

Malcolm nodded slowly, glancing around the room and seeing Nico, Will, Connor, and Jacob were all nodding agreement with Travis. Reyna was examining her dagger, and she smiled at Malcolm.

We put a little space between us. For safety reasons.

I looked up at him. Maybe my doubts were just because we had been apart for a while. I mean, it was easy to make things work when we saw each other a lot. Now that he was getting ready for college and I was at my own school, it was only natural that our lives kept us from seeing each other as much. I wasn't expecting forever, that wouldn't be realistic. But I still wanted him in my life. At least for now.

He smiled at me. "Penny for your thoughts."

I bit my lip.

"And now you have that song stuck in your head."

I nodded.

He grinned and kissed my forehead. "Seriously, what's up?"

I shrugged a little. "Just, contemplating some stuff and I figured looking at you was better than accidentally staring at, like, Percy or something."

He chuckled and kissed my cheek. "How are you? Really?"

"Tired. Ready to withdraw and recharge. I'm coping, pretty well actually. My shrink thinks that I'm an abnormal case, or that I am suppressing my true reaction to events and that in the long run it will have adverse reactions in my life. It's great having someone analyze your thoughts, you know?"

He made a sympathetic face.

I studied him a moment. "Let's see it, then."

He pulled out the pocket planner and handed it over to me.

I looked over the dates, smiling a bit. "You're doing really well."

He nodded a little. "I am. Uh, it helps having people to kind of go to when I…can't feel. Or people I can call. Or look at a picture of."

I smiled, then went up on my tiptoes and kissed him.

He smiled at me. "You know you have a problem, right?"

"Do I?"

"Yeah, you're drawn to people who need healing. You're Will."

I laughed. "Hardly."

"You are! You see people hurting, and you want to help them in whatever way it is they need. He does mostly physical and you mostly do emotional and mental. Why aren't you going into that kind of field again?"

"Because I'd kill someone, probably myself. Out of boredom. Don't get me wrong, it's fascinating the way our brains work but professionally helping people in that capacity is just…boring. Sitting in a chair and making notes on people's health. I'd rather be planning a children's home."

We both stared at each other.

He started smiling, as he watched me think about that idea. "You're freaking philanthropist."

I winced a bit. "I know…"

"You're going to make a great philanthropist." He grinned at me, teasing only a little. Then he kissed me.

I smiled up at him after all. "I really want to plan a children's home now."

He laughed. "Come on, I'll help you start planning. Just promise you won't undertake until after you finish the safe house project."

"Promise." I curled in his chest. I was really ready for that alone time, but I knew how little time I would get to spend with him until Christmas.

AN: Hey y'all, what are your thoughts on an appearance from the Winchesters from Supernatural? I'm about five parts ahead, so it would be a while before you got it, but I would like to hear if you think it would be cool or if I should just leave it. Also, just thoughts in general. Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving.