My eyes fluttered open. Percy sat in a seat beside me. He held one of my hands as he rested his head on my stomach. Soft snores escaped from him. I glanced at my thigh to see it wrapped up. It was achy, but the pain wasn't as great as it was earlier. I held back the urge to run my hand through his hair. I know he needed to rest.

"How are you feeling?" Annabeth walked into the infirmary with Seth.

"Better. Thanks." I gave an appreciative nod to Seth.

"It'll heal. You'll just have to keep weight off of it." Seth told me. He held up a pair of crutches. "You'll need to use these for a while."

"Fine by me." I cracked a small smile. My eyes drifted to a sleeping Percy. "How long has he been here?"

"He hasn't left your side." Annabeth informed me.

"Of course he hasn't." I muttered, a small smile tugging at my lips. A frown quickly grew as I thought about the battle. I looked at Annabeth and Seth with worry. "How's everyone else? Is Gaea truly defeated?"

"The satyrs and nymphs are currently having a convocation of the Cloven Elders. Grover is there right now." Annabeth stated. Grief was evident on her face. "There's still no sign of Leo. The Hephaestus cabin scoured the valley. All they found was bits and pieces of the Argo II's broken hull. Not even a sign of Festus."

"Oh." My heart ached at the loss of a friend.

"There were casualties for both the Roman and Greek. We're holding the burial tomorrow morning." Seth said. "Why don't you get some more rest. It's been a crazy couple of months."

"You'll wake me up for the burial, right?" I asked.

"Of course." Annabeth gave a small nod while Seth went to go check on someone else.

"Also...can I ask you for a favor?"

Annabeth nodded and I quickly asked her my question. A smile grew on her face and she gave me a nod. I sent her a thankful smile as they walked backed out. I laid in my bed as I thought over the battle. Leo was gone. I wonder who else lost their lives today fighting against Gaea and her monsters. I stopped my thoughts from wandering too far and forced myself to sleep. I'll need the energy for tomorrow.

🍇

Percy helped me adjust the crutches to my height. The both of us joined the others around the camp fire. The victory celebration at camp was muted, due to grief- not just for Leo, but also for the many others who died in battle. Octavian was also one of those who lost his lives. He was remembered for saving Rome by hurling himself into the sky in a fiery ball of death. But it was Leo who made the real sacrifice. Shrouded demigods, both Greek and Roman, were burned at the campfire.

Chiron asked Nico to oversee the burial rites. Nico had agreed immediately. After the burial, it was just us seven with Nico and Seth on the porch of the Big House. Tears weld in my eyes as I leaned against Percy. The both of us were sharing a seat. My crutches leaned against the wall. Jason hung his head, even his glasses lost in the shadow.

"We should have been there at the end." Jason spoke. "We could've helped Leo."

"It's not right." Piper agreed, wiping away her tears. "All that work getting the physician's cure, for nothing."

"Piper," Hazel broke down crying, "where's the cure? Bring it out."

Bewildered, Piper reached into her belt pouch. She produced the chamois cloth package, but when she I founded the cloth, it was empty. My brows furrowed as my mind raced. We all turned to face Hazel. Did Leo somehow steal it from Piper?

"How?" Annabeth asked.

"In Delos, Leo pulled the two of us aside." Frank put his arm around Hazel. "He pleaded with us to help him."

Through her tears, Hazel explained how she had switched the physician's cure for an illusion- a trick of the Mist- so that Leo could keep the real vial. Frank told us about Leo's plan to destroy a weakened Gaea with one massive fiery explosion. After talking with Nike and Apollo, Leo had been certain that such an explosion would kill any mortal within a quarter mile, so he knew he would have to get far away from everyone.

"He wanted to do it alone." Frank said. "He thought there would be a slime chance that he, a son of Hephaestus, could survive the fire, but if anyone was with him...He said that Hazel and I, being Roman, would understand about sacrifice. But he knew the rest of you would never allow it."

"He's right." I breathed out a sob, wiping my face of tears. "I would have throttled him for not telling us."

"If he were here right now, I would kill him." Piper let out a sound somewhere between a sob and a laugh. "How was he planning to take the cure? He was alone!"

"Maybe he found a way." Percy said, rubbing my arm. He pulled me closer to his chest. I wrapped my arms around him. "This is Leo we're talking about. He might come back any minute. Then we can take turns strangling him."

🍇

The next day, the second since the battle, Romans and Greeks worked side by side to clean up the war zone and tend the wounded. I had tried to help out, but all I received was yelling to sit down and rest. I huffed and sat on the porch as I watched everyone else help out. I saw Guido following after Reyna, deciding to adopt her as his human. It warmed my heart to know she had a friend to take back with her.

I noticed Nico frowning every time he saw Will running around camp to fetch more medical supplies or make a house call on some wounded demigod. I raised a brow at the sight. Since when were those two friends? Nico must've noticed someone was staring at him. He turned to see me looking. I gave him a warm smile and a wave. He breathed out a laugh and waved back. My heart warmed knowing I was able to help change the frown into a smile.

The Romans bivouacked next to the strawberry fields, where they insisted on building their standard field camps the Greeks pitched in to help them raise the dirt walls and dig the trenches. Dakota walked over with a cup of Kool-Aid. A grin grew on my lips as I quickly looked around to make sure Percy wasn't around.

"Don't worry, he's helping out somewhere else." Dakota grinned as he handed me the drink. "Three sugar packets."

"He's so going to know." I took a sip from the drink and felt the sugar kick in immediately. A drunken grin grew on my lips. "This is great."

"I told you!" Dakota laughed as he sat in the chair beside me. "Imagine this great concoction at parties?"

"With music blasting through the speakers? Oooh! A DJ for sure!" I slapped Dakota's arm in excitement.

"We have to have at least one party with the Greeks and Romans. Imagine the turn out?" Dakota stated.

"Oh gods, please tell me you didn't." Percy walked toward us with a grimace. He eyed our cups warily. Dakota and I exchanged a giddy look. We took a gulp from our cups, our lips stained red from the Kool-Aid. Percy sighed. "This is going to be a long day."

"Want some?" I fluttered my eyelashes and extended my cup to him. "It's good."

"What I think you need is water." Percy grabbed my cup and took a sip. He pulled a face. "That's waaaay too sugary."

"I know, isn't it the best?" Dakota beamed.

"Uh, sure." Percy grimaced, keeping the cup away from me.

"So...can I have that back?" I pointed to the cup.

"Yeah, no." Percy snorted. "You're on crutches and don't need the extra energy. Plus, I thought you swore off of Kool-Aid?"

"I may have had some when you were gone." I gave a sheepish smile. Percy blinked as he came to terms with what I was saying. He then narrowed his eyes at me. I let out a giggle, the Kool-Aid starting to kick in. "In my defense, coffee wasn't working and I needed the extra energy to do things."

"Yeah, no." Percy shook his head. He made his way toward me and grabbed my crutches. "You're definitely not getting this back. Come on, let's go get you water."

"Percy." I laughed as he helped me to my feet and handed me my crutches.

"I'm sure if Seth or Will found out you were drinking this instead of water while you're on crutches, they would have a heart attack." Percy ranted.

I playfully rolled my eyes and glanced over my shoulder to see Dakota laughing. He waved at us as we walked away. Percy led us to one of the drinking stations set up around camp as demigods worked. He grabbed two water bottles and handed me one.

"Thanks." I chuckled out, grabbing it.

We heard Connor chatting with the Hermes and Mercury children about their stories of stealing things. One of them was bragging about stealing from a child of Nike not too long ago. Reyna, Annabeth, and Piper were walking around the camp to check on the repair progress. The three of them had been the ones to mostly scold me for trying to help. Reyna raised a brow and was about to make a comment before I raised my water bottle to show I wasn't helping out. She gave a satisfied nod. The girls waved at us. Chiron was escorted by Frank and Hazel as he inspected the Roman troops and praised them for their bravery.

By evening, the general mood of the camp had improved somewhat. The dining pavilion had never been so crowded. The Romans were welcomed like old friends. Coach Hedge roamed among the demigods, beaming and holding his baby boy.

"Hey, you want to meet Chuck? This is my boy, Chuck!"

The Aphrodite and Athena girls cooed over the feisty satyr baby. Chuck bleated, waving his pudgy fists and kicked his tiny hooves. He was an absolute cutie.

"He's already taking on his father's qualities." Percy whispered besides me. "Look at that scowl. He might as well have a baby club in his hands at this point."

"Maybe we should give him a whistle while we're at it." I suggested.

"Gods, no." Percy shuddered.

"All right, all right." Clarisse, who had been named the baby's godmother, trailed behind the coach like a bodyguard. "Give the kid some space."

At announcement time, Chiron stepped forward and raised his goblet. Everyone quieted down. The crew from the Argo II plus Seth sat with us. I looked around for Nico to see if he wanted to sit by us. He was standing in a shadow on the outskirts of of the crowd. I frowned. When he noticed me, he gave me a reassuring smile and a thumbs up.

"Out of every tragedy comes new strength. Today, we thank the gods for this victory. To the gods!" Chiron said. The demigods all joined the toast, but their enthusiasm seemed muted. Percy and I exchanged a look. We saved the gods again, and now we're supposed to thank them? "And to new friends!"

"TO NEW FRIENDS!"

Hundreds of demigod voices echoed across the hills. After we ate our dinner, we migrated to the campfire. Everyone kept looking at the stars, expecting Leo to come back in a dramatic, last minute surprise. Everyone hoped he would swoop in on Festus's back cracking corny jokes. It didn't happen.

After a few songs, Reyna and Frank were called to the front. They got a thunderous round of applause from both Greeks and Romans. Up on Half-Blood Hill, the Athena Parthenos glowed more brightly in the moonlight.

"Tomorrow," Reyna said, "we Romans must return home. We appreciate your hospitality, especially since we almost killed you-"

"You almost got killed." Annabeth corrected.

"Whatever, Chase."

Ooooooh! The crowd said as one. Then everybody started laughing and pushing each other around. Even Nico smiled from the dark corner he was trying to hide in. I grinned and waved at him, glad he didn't run off. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he waved back.

"Anyway," Frank took over, "Reyna and I agree this marks a new era of friendship between the camps."

"That's right." Reyna clapped him on the back. "For hundred of years, the gods tried to separate us to keep us from fighting. But there's a better kind of peace- cooperation."

"Are you sure your mom is a war goddess?" Piper stood up from the audience.

"Yes, McLean." Reyna said. "I still intend to fight a lot of battles. But from now on, we fight together!"

Everyone cheered. Frank raised his hand to quiet the crowed. A smile grew on my face. He was handling praetorship well.

"You're all welcome at Camp Jupiter. We've come to an agreement with Chiron: a form of exchange between the camps- weekend visits, training programs, and of course, emergency aid in times of need-"

"And parties?" Dakota asked, glancing at me with a grin.

"It's a yes." I beamed, giving Reyna a look to challenge me. She smirked. "What's a better way to bond than party?"

"Hear, hear!" Connor cheered.

"That goes without saying." Reyna spread her arms. "Romans invented parties."

"We'll see about that." I grinned.

Oooooh!

"So thank you." Reyna concluded. "All of you. We could've chosen hatred and war. Instead we found acceptance and friendship."

Then she did something I didn't expect. She walked over to Nico. Reyna grabbed his hand and pulled him gently into the firelight. My smile grew more.

"We had one home." Reyna said. "Now we have two."

She gave Nico a big hug and the crowd roared. Of course, I'm pretty sure Hazel and I were the loudest along with Jason. Nico buried his face in Reyna's shoulder. My cheeks hurt from how big I was smiling. It's about time he realized people actually cared about him.

Nico's character development this book warms my heart