Percy

My depression decided to act up a few days later and I was alone in the house and I took Riptide to my wrists and legs and stomach. Steal some of Lee's alcohol being he was of age and popped since pain killers before a wave of black over powered me.

I woke up in a hospital.

Grover

So they shipped Percy to camp again because he couldn't be at school for the rest of term due to him being a dumbass when his depression acted up.

He tried killing himself. He had high alcohol levels, blood loss and an overdose on advil by crushing all the pills and mixing it with juice, knowing water would cure him.

The thing is, we didn't know until Beckendorf, Lee, Michael, and Castor barged into camp with him like that and half dead. It was almost time for breakfast when they arrived. In the middle of a council meeting.

Will was sort of pulled out of the meeting and Apollo from activities.

Percy's depression stayed away from most of camp. Just the council and well when he shows up like that, you can imagine camp would know. And it spread like wildfire.

The thing is:

They didn't it like they treated Nico. They treated it like they felt bad for him, that they wished he would've spoken up about it, praying he'd be fine.

That was a major difference to when Nico walked around here.

Which wasn't right at all.

The one person word managed to stay away from was William. When he walked by everyone shut up.

Until he got hurt in Capture the Flag that night and he had to go to the infirmary.

Pollux didn't even know Castor was here until dinner. Which was hell.

So Pollux decided to sit with us today because why not. He does here and there. Beckendorf did, too. So did Lee, so did Michael.

Here came person #4, sitting down across from his brother, not even realizing he did so, being mid conversation with Lee.

"My gods, Austin can really kick when he wants to." Michael remarked.

"He can punch, too." Lee added on. "My fucking gods. It still hurts. They won't tell us who the new dude is, though."

"What did Pollux do to you?" Michael asked the demigod.

"I don't know yet, I haven't seen him yet. Assuming he's alive. People die all the time here I'm pretty sure. Or maybe college. Maybe he's happy and married or something. I don't know. IM's never worked very well in the UK, otherwise I probably would know."

Pollux just left the table and went to his cabin.

"Who was that?" They all asked.

"Pollux."

The guilt on Castor's face was immense.

"I'll be back. Hopefully."

Castor

I chased down my twin brother to our cabin, which hasn't changed too much aside the fact that my stuff was gone. Or it seemed that way.

Until I entered his room.

And holy shit, let me tell you, I didn't even recognize him. I would've known his voice, but he didn't talk at the table at all.

Pollux had been the neater of the two of us, with out a doubt.

That changed.

Shit was everywhere on his floor and on his bed, nothing seemed very organized and I walked in just in time to see him throw a framed photo of us across the room, smack the wall, and fall to the ground, shattering the glass as his fists were called and he breathed heavily. Mad. At me. I knew that much.

But then again, I deserved it. I'm the one who never called and said I was alive. I tried. But eventually you have to give up on it. Once a week I tried until last summer. We all stopped.

"Pollux —" I said and he heard that.

"Get out."

"Please, Pollux, just—"

"I said get out!" He wouldn't even look at me. "Leave. Get out of my life and stay out of it."

Pollux bad absolutely no problem saying it. It was like it came naturally.

So I went back to dinner.

"What'd he say?" Beckendorf asked me.

"Nothing." I answered, now pissed off myself. "Absolutely fucking nothing."

Percy

I got out of the infirmary after a night, William was there for a small injury and was a little upset I hadn't called When it happened but I explained I blacked out pretty quick so I didn't exactly have time. Which calmed him down, and we talked for like 3 hours before both falling asleep.

Apollo shoved our beds together. Because I know Will would never do that. But Apollo does all the time when couples or two people crushing on the other are both there at the same time.

But it was nice. Waking up next to William again.

Apollo handed me a glass of nectar when I woke up, William still fast asleep and we talked for a bit. Not about depression or anything. Just life.

"How are Will and Nico doing?" I asked the former God.

"They're not." Apollo told me. "They broke up a few weeks ago. Will couldn't handle Nico with depression, apparently. Broke the kids heart. He's been hanging out with Grover and them lately. I do every once in a while. Nico's a good dude, I wish he wouldn't have to go through this and if I could, I'd just get rid of the depression. I'm not a god anymore, though. Which is fine. But just certain little things I wish I could do. Because I doubt I'm getting my throne back now."

"Why not?" I question.

"Because I had conditions and terms that I'd I had my throne back, theyd need to be met." Apollo answer my question, " which included actually being a parent and a handful of other things. But they didn't like that idea. A few of them did, I don't remember who. But whatever."

"You're just saying whatever about not getting your spot on Olympus back?"

"I've learned to stop caring about it, after hearing people and what they say about us and just... Kind of made me realize a few things."

The former God was called to aid with his son and I awaited for William to wake up as he kept himself latched around my waist.

I was able to leave for breakfast and so I did, hungry. William still asleep, it wasn't very easy to escape from that but I managed.

So I was alone at breakfast. The table rule only applying to this meal. And I noticed that they treated Nico like shit because of his Depression, but when it came to mine they were the most supportive people in the world.

And I mean, even Will. At lunch, he had the nerve to trip Nico. And before anyone could react, I did.

"You wanna do that again?" Yeah, it fucking pissed me off, I don't care if I scared Will or the rest of camp, I was fucking pissed. "You wanna run that by me just one more time?"

"Or what?" Will had gotten cocky while I was gone. "Little depressed baby, are you going to cry?"

I didn't cry. No. But I grabbed him and shoved him against the table. Which seemed to surprise him and everyone else.

"No, but I'll put you in your place." I told the son of Apollo. "Maybe you should consider something for once. Not everyone is so talented that they'll become famous. Okay. Not everyone is happy with their lives. And that's okay. Its absolutely nothing to be ashamed and I set that as a horrible example but really, it isn't. Because the sooner you start treating people like people. And I mean all people, then maybe that's step one of recovery. I wouldn't know. But it seemed to work with Nico last time, so. Because one person opened up to him. Because you did, Will. So what happened?"

William

I woke up not long after lunch, Apollo just checked me over one more time and let me go.

Grover brought another demigod. Again, a dude our age.

From Goode.

The dude that had a big enough crush on Percy that he tried to ask him out while we had been dating. Now, we weren't ever very open about it as of like school. We could've passed as best friends in school. And Percy rejected him, told him he was sweet but he was already in a relationship.

So.

He was also kind of devastated when Percy went missing. I mean, most of the school was but.

How he got him here: Goode went on a field trip here.

Chiron, in his wheelchair, was to tour them around camp. Taking down border momentarily.

I wasn't aware of this, but Percy and I were walking around camp. Yes, his parents knew he was back here. Don't worry. He called them and told them.

But suddenly we thought we saw his step-dad.

"What on... Was that Paul?" Percy asks and points at a man looking a lot like his step father.

"It looks like it." I agreed and we overhear Chrion.

"Don't worry as of the children's safety, Mr. Blofis." Chiron assured the English Teacher," this is one of the safest places for children in America."

For demigods, anyways.

"Shit." Percy realized. "Paul doesn't know where camp is. He doesn't know this is camp."

Well whatever, we let it go and went to sword training and Percy taught me this amazing trick to unarmed the enemy. Like you twist their hilt or whatever and it makes them drop it.

I guess like older demigods were showing around some students, Chiron showing around the staff members with them.

Chiron brings them in as we were practicing. Percy was without a doubt a lot better than I was but he typically went pretty easy on me, so.

"So what's this?" I heard Ms. Langrie ask as they walked in.

"Our practice and duel field as of the art of blades." Chiron told them. "And look, we have two of them practicing right now."

"Is swordsmanship a big thing here?" It was Paul's voice.

"Yes, both that and archery. Our students here know full well how to defend themselves, that is ensured."

"Who are the two kids practicing right now?"

"Um, let me see." Chiron said and looked over in our direction as I tried to unarm Percy and he did become unarmed.

"Good, keep it up." He told me. "That's how you do that."

"We have two of our students." The centaur tells the two teachers," one of our longer campers, Percy Jackson, who is teaching a few things to one of our newer campers, William Patterson."

"William Patterson?"

"I thought Percy died... Two years ago now?"

"Many of us believed Perseus died," Chiron informed Ms. Langrie," but he always seems to surprise us."

Percy

Swordfighting went well and William went to his arts and crafts class as I was going to go to my cabin and overheard something from Beckendorf cabin. Cabin 9, but for some reason I ignored it, got ready and went to dinner. The remaining of the Seven, minus Hazel and Frank, so really just Jason and Leo, me and Grover, and then Nico and William all sat together. Apparently students would be until tomorrow at least. Staff were to stay in my cabin with William and I being William was still undetermined.

"I'm starting to think this claiming thing isn't going to happen." William remarked.

"I was never claimed." Nico told my boyfriend," not like Leo or Percy was. I mean, I found out because of my powers and my dad connected with me through like dreams and what not."

"Yeah, not everyone is claimed." Grover remarked. "Half of the Hermes cabin are undetermined demigods, they've been waiting for 10 years some of them. I mean, Percy was only claimed  because an old campers tried to have a hellhound kill him."

"So your dad claimed you because you killed a hellhound?" Jason asked me. "I don't know, man. Sounds pretty badass to me."

"No." I assured. "We were finishing Capture The Flag when it attacked me and Chiron shot at it and killed it. I'd be dead if he wasn't there. My dad claimed me because water was healing me and it was scaring everyone. Trust me, nobody liked me after I was claimed. They all kind of stayed away. Aside a couple demigods, but. Even Annabeth was distant. It was a bad few weeks."

"Then you went on a quest and they loved you for like a week."

"Pretty much. Yeah."

"Who hates you?" Nico and Leo both didn't see this.

"Well I didn't know the twins enough for them to hate me." I said. "I mean, Clarisse did for a long time. Annabeth wanted to hate me. Mr. D. Pretty sure the Stoll's still want my head on a stick with the rest of their cabin, most of the Ares Cabin, basically anyone who isn't new to their cabin, so on a so forth."

Well Leo, Hazel, and Nico were issued a quest that night. Allegedly the Master Bolt was once again stolen and Zeus was quick to blame Hades knowing I wasn't in Manhattan for Christmas and neither was Tyson apparently.

So I trained and practiced and did whatever, returned a month later.

May. I wouldn't be here for summer, I had other plans for another things.

Leo came up to me after breakfast.

"Hey, I know it's still early." Leo told me, "but could you help me out with a few things as of swordfighting? I just don't want to bother Jason right now, you didn't seem busy and I know you're really good."

"Yeah, no problem." I tell him and head over with him, taking out Riptide.

He told me what he was having troubles with and I explained it to him a lot like Luke had to me all those years ago.

"Well." The son of Hephaestus remarked afterwards in the silence. "Summer campers come tomorrow. "

"Yeah." I agreed on that. "That they do."

He sighed.

"I just hope Nico and Hazel can figure themselves out before he has to leave." Leo told me, looking down for a moment. "I don't think Hazel realizes just how much of an impact she is to him. Before all of this started, before his depression came back, when he was with Will. He smiled, if I remember right he laughed, and he ate his food and he was happy and now it seems like he'll never be like that again. Like he's gone."

"Why do you think I gave up trying to help him?" I ask the younger demigod. "Leo, I tried. I tried so hard to help him for years after his sister died and he fought me and fought me and when Hazel showed up I laid off a little and when I was our of Tartarus we didn't really talk at all and he found happiness, you're right. I was just really hoping it'd stick. He doesn't deserve it. Nobody deserves to go through this."

"You're going through it." Leo reminded me.

"I was raised to be that, though." I explained to him," my step-dad, not Paul, a different dude. He was an asshole and he ruined my life and he put me in my spot and that spot was depression. That was me being in the St. Louis Arch and knowing if I jumped on the river I died and being okay with that. That impulsive anger and sudden mood change. That's how I grew up. But Nico didn't. He got his depression completely on his own vs I was raised around it. I gave up after Tartarus with him. If he doesn't want help, then I'm not wasting my energy and time to help him out when I need the help myself."

"I suppose." Leo agreed. "I could understand that."

And I decided to ask as we came down to the beach. Where Hermes had first helped us before we set out for the Sea of Monsters.

"Do you miss it?" I questioned the son of Hephaestus, " being on a quest?"

"If by that you mean miss almost dying every moment ever and having anxiety when you're asleep?" The younger demigod re-worded my question. "Are you insane?"

I looked back over at him.

"I miss it, yeah." He admitted. "We're here for so long, you start to forget what it's like outside. And even when you're out there on a quest, its not the same. You're now with this whole different world, it feels like black market. What about you? Do you miss it?"

"Sometimes, yeah." I agreed with him on that standpoint. "I do. But when I went on them it'd be like you'd get back, you get your Laurel Wreaths and after that it's okay. You're done, rides over. Have a nice life. So I figured I will. It might not be here. But I will."

"You make it sound like you're leaving."

I looked over at the son of Hephaestus in almost a pity. I knew his spot. I was there once. Too. I had this conversation with Luke years ago. But I wouldn't pull out a scorpion on him.

"Today's my last day, yeah." I confirmed his suspicions," after so many years, I can't be here anymore. I need to fix some things and worry about myself more than I am right now and find a life I want. Not one I am forced into. I've let people walk on me and pawn with me and toy me my whole life, and I can't let that happen anymore. And if that isn't happening anymore, this isn't happening. Camp won't be a thing for me anymore."

He asked how they'll even manage there. Their leader to he gone. Not to come back.

"I think..." I tell the son of Hephaestus. "I think if they managed once before they can do it again."