The moon rose above Ogygia, casting blue shadows over the small cottage, and enveloping the garden in a dim sheet of light. There were so many stars here–more than Percy had ever seen. In New York, he'd be lucky to see even one, and usually it just ended up being an airplane. Percy sighed. He moved gently on the swing, watching the waves crash onto the shore below the hill.

There was always a choice, a decision to be made. And so often it rested on his shoulders. Finding the master bolt, fighting Luke, saving Grover, then Artemis…he still hadn't forgiven himself for what happened to Bianca. And then there were the demigods who joined Kronos. All the unclaimed children, whose parents were too ashamed to admit they were even theirs. Some of them were his friends, like Ethan Nakamura. Percy remembered seeing him in the labyrinth only a couple of weeks ago. He'd never seen him so angry.

Suddenly, a light appeared inside the cottage. Percy turned his head. The distant figure of Calypso stood in front of the door, holding a lantern. She spotted Percy on top of the hill and made her way towards him. She put the lantern on the grass and took a seat beside him.

"Couldn't sleep either?" Calypso asked.

"Nope," Percy shook his head.

There was a long silence.

"Would you like to join me for a walk?"

"Oh. Uh, yeah, sure. I mean, I've seen most of the island by now, but–"

"There's still one thing you haven't seen." Calypso said, dismounting the swing and offering him a hand.

Percy looked at her in the lantern light. She wore a flowing silk dress, and instead of her usual flowery headdress, her hair fell down to her waist. It almost made him feel embarrassed. Here he was, wearing the same t-shirt and shorts for the past ten days, probably looking like an absolute fool.

Percy noticed they were taking the path towards the east shore. It was hard to see anything in the moonlight.

"Are we going to the cove?"

"Be patient," Calypso chided.

The salty breeze filled his lungs. It reminded him of Montauk, and those distant memories of his dad. But now, just like those weekends with his mom, all he could think about was that he'd be leaving soon. It was like a boomerang that came back to smack the joy out of him when he was least expecting it.

"Here we are."

Percy looked up in awe. Thousands of lights clung to the ceiling, except when he looked closer, he realized they weren't lights–but tiny clumps of bioluminescence resting on the rocky walls. The ripples in the water reflected against the interior of the cove, like it was dancing in the starlight. The moon was right below the horizon, barely visible through the entrance.

"Whenever I can't sleep, I come here. The beauty of the island is immeasurable to me, even if I am confined here." Calypso closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"It's incredible," Percy said.

"Sometimes. The fuller the moon, the brighter the lights. I still don't quite understand it."

"It's the Bioluminescence," he said, "when the tide is stronger, they glow brighter. That's why you see it more during a full moon."

Calypso looked at him in surprise.

"I'm the son of the sea god. What'd you expect?"

She laughed. "I suppose I am still learning about Ogygia myself, even millennia later."

Her smile suddenly disappeared. She looked out at the tide, and then towards the floor, taking a deep breath. Percy's eyes narrowed.

"I think it is time to go now. We will need our rest to prepare for tomorrow. After all, you only have three days until you must return to your friends."

There it was again, the cold demeanor. Except this time, Percy knew exactly what she was feeling. In his head, he knew what he wanted to say–but he couldn't bring himself to say it. There was still a twinge of doubt in his mind.

"If I only have three days, why not enjoy it while I can?" he said. "All the more reason to do as much as possible."

Calypso's expression turned thoughtful.

"Yes, that is a good idea," her face lit up, "perhaps tomorrow, we can fix the guitar, and you can show me this 'Green Day' you speak of."

On their way back, Percy had to try and explain to her that he didn't know anything about music, aside from a couple of chords he learned from Grover. The last music Calypso had heard was an old recording of Beethoven. Unsurprisingly, he was a son of Apollo. The only surprise was that Calypso didn't know he had died centuries ago.

The next morning, it took them a long time to finish their daily tasks, mostly because Percy had taken it upon himself to mess with Calypso as much as possible. He splashed water on her, which resulted in an impromptu water battle. Somehow, she managed to evade most of his attacks, and Percy was left in disbelief at the fact that he had lost a water fight. If Poseidon was watching, he was definitely rolling in his throne. But at least now, for the first time, she actually looked happy.

That night, after a stew dinner, Percy looked up to see a wall of storm clouds. Calypso frowned. She said this almost never happened. The last time a storm visited Ogygia, it was when Perseus had done something to anger his father, Zeus. That, and when Hermes came to visit against the storm lord's wishes.

They were severely unprepared, but together they managed to board the windows and pin a blanket over the garden, just in time for the wind to whip it into a frenzy. Percy watched the rain, looking directly upwards at the thunderclouds. Zeus was watching him–he could feel it. And for some reason, he didn't want Percy to leave.

The calm aura of Ogygia faded away, but so long as he was near Calypso he could still feel a fraction of it. She assured him it would be over soon, in no more than an evening. That was how it usually went. Nonetheless, they no longer had the sun to rely on for warmth.

The storm continued throughout the night. There weren't enough blankets left for both of them, since they had used most of them to cover up the garden. Shivering, Percy brought his pillow and sleeping mat into the living room, and they huddled up together away from the windows. At first, he was a little embarrassed, but he quickly got over it. Calypso didn't seem to mind at all. Could titans even feel the cold? She soon fell asleep on his shoulder, and Percy quickly followed.

The next morning, he awoke to a stream of light creeping through the boarded windows. The pitter patter of rain was gone. Calypso was still asleep, her head resting on his chest. Percy didn't want to move. In fact, there wasn't anywhere else he'd rather be.

When Calypso had come to, they went outside to assess the damage. Thankfully, the cottage was unharmed, other than a few cuts here and there. They had managed to save most of the garden, but during the night, one of the blankets had flown off into the ocean, leaving the patch of tomatoes with no shelter. They spent the rest of the day cleaning up the island and replanting the dead tomatoes. A couple of trees had fallen over by the cove, where there wasn't any cover from the wind. The waves had come deeper inland, flooding the grass and taking some of the foliage with it. Surprisingly, the swings were left completely unharmed.

Calypso was saddened by the destruction around her, which Percy understood. Storms were pretty normal to him, but Ogygia just wasn't built for it. And to her, it was also her home.

That evening, he found her sitting by the shore. The sun set into a glorious orange and pink below the horizon. Percy sat next to her.

"Hey," he said.

She kept her eyes on the horizon.

"I know I cannot make you stay." Her voice was soft. "Every time, the same thing happens. I tell myself not to become attached, not to care. Yet here I am again. I have come to learn it is in my nature, and there is no stopping what I am."

Percy stayed silent.

"You are different from the other heroes, Percy. You are strong like them, but compassionate. The world needs you. I believe this is why you always find yourself caught up in the important things."

She wiped away a couple of tears.

"Well, I'm starting to get a little tired of it," Percy said, "my whole life, I've been moving. New schools, new friends–camp isn't much different. All my mom ever wanted for me was to be happy and safe. But every time I try to visit her in New York, all I do is put us both in danger."

Calypso looked at him with a confused expression. The hazel in her eyes looked more green than brown today.

"What do you mean?" Calypso asked.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is, I don't know if I want to leave."

Calypso looked at him misty-eyed.

"Are you certain?" There was hope in her voice.

"No," Percy admitted, "I-I don't know. I'm still thinking about it."

Calypso took a deep breath.

"Do what you think is right."

That night, they didn't talk much. Calypso was nowhere to be found. She had left him a bowl of fish soup by the kitchen, and a slice of cranberry pie for dessert. Percy's head spun with a million thoughts. He knew Grover would be fine without him, and Annabeth would definitely be fine. Though he wondered if she had really liked him, or if she'd only kissed him because she thought he might die.

He worried the most about his mom. She wouldn't know if he was ok, and they might never see each other again. But then he remembered fighting the Minotaur, and the way she had disappeared in a flash of golden light. They would never truly be able to live together. Monsters wouldn't come for Percy and his friends, and his mom could finally move on, living her life in the mortal world with Paul.

There was something about Calypso that Percy felt drawn to. Maybe it was just the magic of the island, but there was also something more. He could see himself staying here, growing old, building a new life…with her beside him. If he stayed at Camp Half-Blood, he might never live to see past thirty.

"It's easy to run away, but hard to stay and fight."

Thalia's words echoed in his mind. But the thing was, Percy knew he wasn't running. He was simply choosing a different fight. Besides, he knew fate all too well. It had an uncanny way of finding him, no matter what choice he made.

He slowly drifted to sleep, exhausted from the night before, ready to make an impossible decision.

On the morning of the last day, Calypso was nowhere to be found. He looked around the garden, by the shore, and on the other side of the hill. All he found was a bag of food by his swing, an assortment of seaweed and fish wraps. Percy smiled. He wouldn't need any food for this journey—unless he got hungry on his walk.

Then he saw it. Out on the water, Percy spotted something in the distance. A small wooden raft, barely large enough to fit a person. It drifted towards the shore. It moved quickly, despite the lack of wind in its small sail. He made his way towards the sand, the same place he'd washed up on. The raft was definitely magic—it came to an abrupt stop in the shallow part of the water, as if it had just dropped an anchor.

Percy took a long look at the vessel. This was his last chance to leave. He thought of his friends, his mom, and his dad. Percy waded into the ocean, not bothering to keep his clothes dry. He took a deep breath, then took hold of the raft with both hands, pushing it back into the water. Percy watched as it disappeared behind the horizon, until it was gone in a sea of fog. There was no going back now.

He turned towards Ogygia, and in that moment, he knew exactly where Calypso had gone.