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It’s been a year.
It feels like longer, but the calendar says it’s been a year so Percy guesses it must be right. He rests his head against the window of the train, watching as the scenery speeds by. Annabeth is pressed up against his side, asleep with her cheek on his shoulder.
Percy could use the sleep too, really. He and Annabeth had gotten up early that morning, trying to pretend it was just a normal day for as long as they could. Over the summer they’d moved into an apartment together. It was a shoebox of a place, but it was theirs. Besides, it wasn’t like Percy minded being close to Annabeth all the time. They’d figured out that being apart too much wasn’t good for them. Panic attacks and stuff. Left over from their days in Tartarus and constant fear that someone was going to come seeking revenge on Gaia’s behalf.
They’d stayed at Camp Half-Blood to finish out the summer last year, helping to establish the new rules and regulations of working with the Romans. When school had started, they’d moved in with his mom. They couldn’t afford to live on their own and Percy had missed her too much to keep staying away. Annabeth had slept in the spare bedroom (their rooms separated by his mom) and they’d gone back to finish school. Annabeth had picked up everything again pretty quickly, acing her math classes without even trying, whereas Percy had struggled a bit more. Grades didn’t really matter, though. They were going to college in New Rome and while the admissions program was intense, it had been made very clear to both of them that they were welcome no matter their GPA. Which was some of the best news they’d gotten in years as far as Percy was concerned.
While they were in school, they hadn’t had much time to spend at Camp Half-Blood and really, Percy was almost grateful for the time away. He loved Camp Half-Blood, he really did. He made it a point to make it to the camp whenever he got word that Jason would be there, but that was it. There were too many painful memories there now. After everything, after. After Leo, Percy forces himself to think the name… It was just a bit too much to be there all the time. Percy didn’t know how Piper did it and she’d been much closer to Leo than he had.
The train pulls into one of the stations, the conductor reminding passengers to watch their step as they got off. Only two more stops until the one closest to Camp Half-Blood.
“We can send a chariot for you,” Piper had written to offer, “or… something. I’m pretty sure Nico’s ghost chauffeur would love to be put to use for something other than driving him and Will to and from their dates.”
Annabeth had written back to say no, they were fine with the train. In truth, they both hated the train. They felt too trapped and boxed in by people or potential monsters, but it was better than a chariot ride. At least today.
As they get closer to the camp, Percy thinks back to the rest of that August. Gaia defeated and the Romans returned to Camp Jupiter, Camp Half-Blood had settled back into some semblance of routine. It was quieter, though, with Ella, Tyson, and Rachel gone. Percy had barely had time to say hello and goodbye to them before Reyna was moving them out with the rest of the troops. Percy knew that they were hard at work reconstructing the Sibylline Books in New Rome, but still. He’d saved the world again. Didn’t he deserve a few minutes of peace with the people he loved?
The Stoll brothers had taken it upon themselves to be the new noisemakers of the camp, blasting trumpets at sunrise and harassing the wood nymphs in the forest. Setting up impromptu games of capture the flag to get everyone back into the fighting spirit without, well. Reminding them of what happened the last time they were in the fighting spirit. Percy was glad they had stepped up because he was too tired to do it himself. Even before the Romans had left, he’d let Annabeth, Reyna, and Piper finagle the camps back into line. He was just so tired. Being a hero could be exhausting.
There is a part of Percy that misses it. That misses going off on quests with Annabeth and Grover and the others. Misses trying to decipher a prophecy while dodging a sword and escape from some giants. He knows that’s stupid. He finally isn’t in danger of dying every five minutes, he should be happy. And he is. He has Annabeth and they’re not in Tartarus and those are two of Percy’s favorite things in the world. It just feels like something is missing sometimes.
Percy can tell that Annabeth feels it too. He’ll sometimes catch her staring off into space when she’s supposed to be doing work or when she’s drawing designs that popped into her head for some new building and he knows what she’s thinking about. They don’t talk about it. They talk about everything else, but never that and sometimes Percy just wants to say, “Hey, so I know we almost died like a million times and we literally went through Tartarus and back, but I kind of want to go fight some more monsters.” He doesn’t say any of that, though, because he knows that if one of them says it out loud, the other one will too, and then they’ll have to make a choice. They were both so excited to go back to school, to get back to a semblance of normal. Percy doesn’t want to risk giving that up because he’s sick of using pens that are just pens sometimes.
It helps that there haven’t been any quests. They haven’t quite cracked the Sibylline Books over in New Rome and Delphi is still closed for business, despite the fact that Apollo is back in Zeus’ good graces (“Restoring the Oracle takes time,” Apollo kept saying. “I’ll get around to it.”) so at least there aren’t any quests for Percy and Annabeth to decide to spontaneously join. Percy thinks that helps. Because he can’t promise he didn’t think about making up a quest for himself to go on when it was time to take finals.
Besides Annabeth, Jason is the one in the group that Percy keeps in touch with the most. They send letters back and forth when they can, sometimes talk on the phone if Jason is in between camps. He doesn’t know how Jason can stand to be so far away from Piper sometimes and Jason just laughs when he tells him that.
“Well, dude, we didn’t go through hell together,” Jason says, “so it’s probably a little easier for us.”
Percy laces his fingers carefully through Annabeth’s as she snorts a bit in her sleep. He cranes his neck so that he can look at her, the way her blonde hair is falling in her face. After they’d left camp last summer, she’d cut her hair into this short pixie bob thing. She’d still been beautiful, but Percy knew that wasn’t why she’d done it. She’d needed a change. He did, too, but he didn’t have any hair to cut and Sally had always told him what would happen if he came home with tattoos. The SPQR tattoo on his arm would be hard enough to explain, he didn’t need to also explain why he’d tattooed a giant half-horse half-fish figure onto his back.
The train pulls into their station and Percy rouses Annabeth.
“What do you want, Seaweed Brain?” she demands to his collarbone, not moving from where she has her head tucked up against his neck now.
“It’s our stop,” he tells her.
She sighs heavily and sits up. She glares at him when he laughs at the t-shirt marks on her cheeks and her sleepy expression.
“You didn’t have a nightmare,” Percy points out.
“I don’t think I was asleep long enough to have one,” Annabeth says in return. They stand and collect their backpacks before exiting the train.
They step out onto the platform and make their way down the stairs. It isn’t hard to spot Nico waiting for them by the car Piper arranged. She had accepted them turning down a ride all the way from Manhattan, but she had refused to let them walk all the way from the train station to camp, despite the fact that they’d all walked further distances with less rest. She hadn’t heard a word of it.
Nico has managed to find the only shady spot in the whole parking lot. He’s leaning up against the car casually, a leather jacket hanging off his slim frame. Thinking about how much Nico has changed from last summer makes Percy want to laugh. He’s a totally different kid. He still wears his shirts with skulls on them and still spends plenty of time brooding in his cabin, but he also eats dinner with Will or Piper or Jason (if he’s around) every night. He sits around the fire with everyone and, according to Piper, is a favorite among the new campers, though they are too scared to tell him that of course. He smiles a lot more now too, which definitely helps.
“Hello, Nico,” Annabeth greets him as they approach.
“Hi, Annabeth. Hi, Percy,” Nico says. Normally he greets them with a smile, but today is not a normal day. He opens the door for them, letting Percy and Annabeth slide into the back of the car. He slides in after them and closes the door.
“Hello Jules-Albert,” Percy greets Nico’s zombie driver. “No funny business this time. It isn’t a race.”
“Stop doing that,” Nico scolds, “you know he can’t talk back.”
Percy grins at him and Nico rolls his eyes in tandem with Annabeth. Percy slouches down in his seat, feeling a bit more settled with the two of them back in sync with being exasperated with him.
It had been a bit awkward after Nico had told Percy that he had had a crush on him; that Percy wasn’t his type and he was over it. Mostly because Percy was everyone’s type. Will asking Nico on a date had helped to ease the tension between Percy and Nico. They’d been friends by the time Percy and Annabeth had left camp and Percy was glad to see that nothing had changed.
“Where’s Will?” Annabeth asks. “Didn’t feel like making the trip?”
“He’s training some of the new kids today. He was in the middle of a session, so I just left him to it.”
Percy tunes them out the closer they get to camp. His hands start shaking a little bit in his lap and he scolds himself. Get it together, Seaweed Brain.
Almost as if she senses the nickname being used, Annabeth reaches over and takes his hand without breaking her conversation with Nico about how the new campers were progressing.
Percy tunes back in when he hears Annabeth ask, “And the others?”
“Jason came in yesterday evening. Frank and Hazel got here this afternoon. Reyna should be there by the time we get back. I think she’s taking Blackjack.”
“Traitor horse,” Percy mutters. Annabeth digs her nails into the back of his hand.
Jules-Albert drops them off just outside of camp. They all thank him and start towards the head cabin. Will Solace is leaning against the door with his arms crossed and he doesn’t look happy.
“Welcome back to camp, di Angelo,” he says. “Thanks for leaving without me.”
“You were working with the campers, I didn’t want to interrupt,” Nico protests.
Will rolls his eyes. “You’re the worst boyfriend ever. You’re supposed to interrupt.”
“My bad,” Nico says. He’s smiling as he stands in front of Will and links their hands together. Percy can practically hear Annabeth cooing on the inside. Nico isn’t usually one for public displays of affection, but Will always beams when he does it. Whenever Nico is in his line of sight, he lights up like the child of the sun god he is.
Percy feels Annabeth’s hand on his lower back, guiding him past Will and Nico and into the cabin itself. Chiron had given them an all access pass to it for the day, moving into smaller quarters farther down the hill to give them their privacy.
Everyone else is already gathered inside when Percy and Annabeth come in. Before Percy can even put his bag down he’s got an armful of Jason and Hazel. Out of the corner of his eye he can see Annabeth being swallowed up in one of Frank’s hugs.
“Do yourself a favor and don’t make the bear hug joke again, Jackson,” Frank says as he and Jason and Hazel swap hug victims.
Percy laughs and hugs Frank back. “How have you been, dude?”
“Good,” Frank answers. Jason comes over to stand with them while Piper and Reyna join Annabeth and Hazel. “Being a praetor is pretty cool. And Reyna’s great. The legion is in really good shape. How’s going back to school been?”
“Tough,” Percy admits. “Though not so tough for her. But it’s good. I’m happy. We’re both really happy.” As happy as we can be, Percy amends in his head. He doesn’t say it out loud but he knows he doesn’t have to.
“Don’t worry,” Jason says, throwing an arm around Percy’s shoulders and grinning. “I make sure to keep an eye on all of you when I’m going back and forth.”
“How many god huts do you have left to build?” Percy asks.
“Shrines,” Jason corrects, just like every other time they have this discussion, “and well. Some of the Olympus gods weren’t too happy about having to hand over a list of their children who have been forgotten, but I managed to convince them. I did help to save the world from the Earth Mother rising and all that.”
“Oh, was that you?” Annabeth teases. “Sorry, thought maybe you spent the whole time unconscious just like all our other battles.”
Jason points at her accusingly. “You’ve been spending too much time with Percy. He’s turned you against me.”
Everyone laughs. They get Nico and Will from the porch and they settle in around the table where the planning for quests usually happens with food that had been brought up earlier from the kitchens. It’s only just past lunchtime which means they have another hour or so before it’s time.
Lunch is a relatively happy affair. Percy spends his time catching up with everyone who has been in New Rome. Reyna tells them stories about Frank’s first few days on the job and how he couldn’t figure out where the bathroom was in his new residence. Hazel laughs the loudest, but she kisses Frank on the cheek to make up for it. Reyna also gives them updates about Hylla and Thalia. Both the Hunters and the Amazons have become better friends with Romans and Greeks since Gaia. Hylla and her Amazons stop through New Rome every couple of months now to train with the legion and so Hylla can see Reyna. Thalia shows up whenever Jason’s around. She’s like the Percy of New Rome, really.
Eventually, lunch dwindles down and Percy knows they have to start making their way outside. The mood in the room has grown somber and as they all stack their dishes in the middle to be dealt with later, no one speaks.
“I guess we should.” Piper stops. Jason pulls her closer to him. She gives him a small smile and finishes. “I guess we should head out to the memorial.”
Silently, they all nod and head for the door, Frank and Hazel leading the way. Reyna, Nico, and Will hang back a bit.
“You’re all more than welcome to join us,” Annabeth says when her and Percy are the only two left in the cabin with them.
“No, you guys go ahead,” Nico tells her. “We miss him too, but this is something I think the six of you have to do alone.”
Annabeth nods before taking Percy’s hand. They walk out and follow the others across the field to where the memorial from August 1st of last year is.
It’s a stone with an Imperial Gold plaque with a list of names of all who died in the battle, Greek and Roman, welded onto it. Next to it is another stone with another Imperial Gold plaque. This one reads Leo Valdez, builder of dragons and hero to all. Killed in the battle against Mother Earth, August 1st with Hephaestus’ symbol underneath. At the base of the stone is a candle that’s been designed to stay lit through anything. The only person that can snuff out the candle is Leo himself, so the candle stays lit.
The six of them form a semicircle around the stone. Percy on one end, Piper on the other. Percy watches as Jason takes Piper’s hand in his. In his other hand, he takes Hazel’s, who takes Frank’s, who takes Annabeth’s. Annabeth squeezes the hand of Percy’s that she’s already got in her own.
“We should say something,” Hazel says.
“I don’t really know what to say,” Frank says in response.
They all stand silently for a few moments and then Piper clears her throat.
“Hey, Leo,” she says and Percy can tell she’s trying not to cry. He’s trying not to cry, too. He’s lost a lot of comrades in arms, but for some reason he can’t shake off Leo’s death. He doesn’t want to shake off Leo’s death. Maybe it’s something left over in him from his time in Tartarus, the way death affects him now. It feels so much worse to lose someone, so much worse to be as aware of mortality as he has become.
“Hey, Leo,” Piper says. “If you could see us, you’d probably think we were being dumb. All holding hands and talking to a rock, but if this rock were any of us, I’m pretty sure you’d be trying to talk to it, too.” Everyone huffs out a laugh and it seems to bolster Piper. “I just wanted to say that I miss you. What you did was very brave, but I wish everyday that you hadn’t had to do it. Thank you for saving us and thank you for being our friend.”
“You’re right,” a voice says behind them and they all whirl around, hands falling to their sides. “I would think it’s dumb.”
“Leo?” Jason asks. None of them have moved, almost like they’re afraid if they do, this vision of Leo will disappear. He looks just like Leo did a year ago, albeit a bit tanner and his hair a bit longer. He’s nothing like the charcoaled version of himself that Percy sees in his nightmares sometimes.
“What’s up, dude?” Leo beams at them. “Sorry it took so long to get back to you. Did you know that escaping from Ogygia a second time is just as hard as finding it? Because it is. That place messes with your GPS like you wouldn’t believe.” He stops and frowns at all of them. “Don’t I get a welcome home hug or something?”
“He’s not a ghost,” Hazel says. “He’s not dead.”
“No, I’m not,” Leo says, sounding exasperated. “I fiddled around with Festus before the battle and designed him to inject me with the physician’s cure as we flew away from the explosion. I recalibrated the Archimedes’ sphere to take me back to Ogygia so I could pick up Calypso and we’ve been trying to get back here ever since. Now can someone please hug me?”
As if they’re all one, the six stumble forward and surround Leo. They hug for a few long moments until finally Leo says, “Alright, guys, calm down. I’m alive, remember? You’ll have the rest of my life to give me hugs.”
Piper returns his comment with a smack to his arm. “Don’t you ever do that to us again, Leo Valdez.”
Leo does actually look sheepish when he says, “Sorry. I really didn’t mean to keep you waiting that long.”
“It’s alright,” Jason says, putting his arm firmly around Leo’s shoulders like he’s both trying to prove to himself that Leo is really there and make sure that Leo stays. “You’re back and that’s what matters. Now, let’s meet this girlfriend of yours. And I think there are a few other people who are going to be happy to see you.”
Leo smiles and says, “Sure thing, dude. I think you’re going to really like Calypso. She’s the best. But before we go…” Leo pushes past them to crouch down in front of his own memorial. From this angle, Percy can see the corners of Leo’s mouth quirk up. Leo snuffs out the candle at the base of the stone. “There.”
As they all start back towards the head cabin, Leo firmly in all six of their lines of sight, Percy lets out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. The prophesied seven back together again.
Percy feels like he’s found that something he was missing. For the first time in over a year, he’s truly happy.
Even without a quest to go on.