Let me tell you about Will Solace.
Will Solace is calm, he is competent, and he is genuinely one of the nicest people at camp.
Until you end up in his infirmary.
Then he is something else entirely.
"— and I would love to know," Will was saying, moving between beds with the energy of someone who had given up on calm twenty minutes ago, "what exactly goes through the minds of four — FOUR — demigods who decide that a training session is the appropriate place to —"
"It wasn't supposed to —" Percy started.
"I AM TALKING." Not loudly. Somehow worse. "Burns." Pointing at Percy. "Burns." Pointing at Clarisse. He turned to me. "Split lip. Two cuts — one back of knee, one near the armpit. Bruising across seventy percent of your upper body." He turned to Thalia. "Shield arm. Swollen. Ligament stress. No movement for three days minimum."
"Two days," Thalia said.
Will looked at her.
She looked back.
He said nothing.
Thalia looked away first.
"Three days," she said. Into the middle distance.
Will turned back to the rest of us.
"How," he said. "How does a training session result in — this —"
"It's a long story," I said.
"I have time."
I looked at Percy. At Clarisse. At Thalia's sling. At the ceiling.
"It started fifteen days ago," I said. "With smores."
Will stared at me.
"Smores."
"Smores," I confirmed. "Also a sparring idea. And Percy."
"Why am I separate from the sparring idea," Percy said.
"Because you made it worse," I said.
"HOW —"
"Gentlemen," Will said.
We stopped.
"From the beginning," he said.
I settled back against the pillow.
"Right," I said. "So. Day one —"
DAY ONE
Thalia was not happy to be awake at seven in the morning.
She arrived at the arena with her spear and her shield and said nothing to anyone.
Clarisse was already there. Spear out. Ready.
They looked at each other.
Two proud, stubborn, extremely competitive daughters of an emotionally constipated war god and a professionally disappointed sky god of lightning respectively, standing in a ring at seven in the morning.
This, I thought, is going to be interesting.
"Ring?" Clarisse said. To me.
"Ring," I said.
Thalia looked at the ring. At Clarisse. At me.
"Fine," she said.
THE FIRST SPAR
The session lasted three seconds before they took each other out.
Or — they tried to.
Clarisse went left. Thalia went left. They nearly collided.
"Right," Clarisse said.
"You didn't say right —"
"I was going right —"
"You went LEFT —"
"I ADJUSTED —"
I swung at Clarisse.
CRACK. Flat of the blade across her shoulder. She stumbled. Back three feet.
"HEY —" Clarisse said.
"You were busy," I said.
Thalia came in from the actual right this time — spear driving at my side — I stepped into it, caught the shaft on my forearm, redirected, brought the pommel around —
She ducked.
Fast. Very fast.
The pommel hit nothing. My momentum carried me past her.
She drove the spear at my back.
CLANG. Hit the Kavach. Charge running through — small, sharp.
I pivoted. Both of them in front now. Sword up.
They looked at each other.
"Don't go left when I go left," Clarisse said.
"Then say which side —"
"I was obviously going —"
"You were obviously going nowhere —"
"I AM RIGHT HERE," I said.
"We know," both of them said. Then looked at each other like they hadn't expected to say the same thing at the same time.
Clarisse moved right. Thalia moved left.
At the same time.
Opposite sides. Finally.
I went forward.
Clarisse I could read. She was aggression in one direction — forward — her spear work brutal and fast but it committed and committed meant I could time it. I stepped inside her thrust, let it scrape the Kavach, brought the sword around horizontal —
BOOM.
She went back six feet. Still standing. Came back up grinning.
Why is she grinning, said my brain.
Don't question it, I answered.
Thalia I couldn't read as easily. She was faster than Clarisse and her attacks didn't commit the same way — she'd drive in, find no opening, pull back instantly, reset. Smart. Patient.
The problem was they kept getting in each other's way.
Clarisse would drive forward and Thalia would be going for the same angle. Thalia would pull back and Clarisse would be right behind her. Zero spatial awareness of each other — not because they were bad fighters, because they'd never fought together before and neither of them had any intention of adjusting their natural style for the other one.
Round two: Clarisse charged. Thalia charged from the same side simultaneously. They actually bumped into each other.
"WATCH IT —"
"YOU watch it —"
"I was going THERE —"
"So was I —"
"THEN GO SOMEWHERE ELSE —"
"YOU GO SOMEWHERE ELSE —"
I sat down on the ground cross-legged while they argued.
Both of them stopped. Looked at me.
"What are you doing," Thalia said.
"Waiting," I said.
"Get up —"
"I'll get up when you decide which side you're each taking," I said. "I have time. Dragon heart. Very patient."
Clarisse looked at Thalia. Thalia looked at Clarisse.
"I take left," Clarisse said.
"I take left," Thalia said simultaneously.
"LEFT IS MINE —"
"LEFT IS BETTER —"
"Left is where I ALWAYS —"
I lay down flat on the ground.
"ADITYA —"
"Still waiting," I said. To the sky. Pleasantly.
They sorted it out eventually.
Clarisse took right. Thalia took left. For approximately four minutes it worked — hitting from opposite sides, I was actually moving between them, the session looked like what it was supposed to look like.
Then Clarisse saw an opening on the left and took it.
Thalia was already there.
They collided again.
I hit Clarisse across the ribs while she was off balance. Hit Thalia's shield while she was recovering. Stepped back. They were both on the ground.
"CLARISSE —"
"THE OPENING WAS THERE —"
"THAT WAS MY SIDE —"
"IT WAS A GOOD OPENING —"
"IT WAS MY GOOD OPENING —"
"Good session," I said pleasantly.
They both looked at me.
"Breakfast?" I said.
Clarisse looked at her ribs. At Thalia. At the ground.
"Fine," she said.
Thalia looked at her shield arm. At Clarisse. At me.
"Fine," she said.
I walked ahead. Satisfied. Three steps in front. The morning felt genuinely good — the bruising already fading, the session catalogued, the sun coming up over the cabins at exactly the right angle.
Behind me, quiet enough that I didn't catch it:
"Left hand tap means I'm going right," Clarisse said.
"Spear vertical means I'm pulling back," Thalia said.
"Horizontal means you're going in."
"Yes."
A pause.
"Tomorrow," Clarisse said.
"Tomorrow," Thalia agreed.
DAY TWO
Day two they used the signals.
It was worse.
Not for them — for me. The left hand tap and the spear positions actually worked and suddenly they were hitting from the right directions at the right times and I took four hits in the first ten minutes which was four more than day one.
I still won. But it was closer.
Day three I didn't win.
Not cleanly anyway. We called it a draw at the end because nobody was going to admit the other outcome out loud. Clarisse had a bruise across her collarbone and Thalia's ankle was sore and I had a ringing in my left shoulder that the dragon heart was working through and none of us mentioned any of it at breakfast.
Day four: I walked into the arena slightly less certain than I had been on day one.
Percy was there.
DAY FOUR
Nobody had invited him.
He had appeared at the arena entrance at seven in the morning with Riptide in hand and the expression of someone who had heard about the sessions through the Stoll brothers and decided he was owed an invitation.
"No," I said.
"I didn't say anything —"
"You have the face —"
"No —"
"PERCY CAN JOIN," Thalia called from the ring.
Percy grinned.
Oh no, I thought. Oh no oh no oh —
Clarisse looked at Percy. "Don't get in my way."
"Same," Percy said pleasantly.
Oh no oh no oh no —
I thought I was fast.
I thought I was quick to react — the weapon mastery boon, days of accelerated training, the dragon heart keeping everything sharp. I was faster than I'd been a month ago. Faster than most people at camp.
Percy made me feel slow.
Not because he was bigger or stronger. He wasn't. He was Percy — same height, same build, Riptide in hand looking like he'd just wandered in from breakfast.
The problem was he was never where I was looking.
I went for him first. Same as always — take the unpredictable one down early, establish range with the sword, use the reach advantage.
I swung.
He wasn't there.
He'd stepped — not jumped, not rolled, just stepped — and the sword hit nothing and Clarisse was already at my right side, spear driving hard, and Thalia was already left —
Left hand tap on the shield.
Thalia went right.
Oh, said my brain. They have signals now.
CLANG. Clarisse's spear hit the shoulder joint. CLANG. Thalia's spear hit the ankle.
Two simultaneous contacts. Charge running through from both directions.
Oh no.
I turned. Percy was behind me somehow.
HOW —
Riptide at my left — I got the sword across it — clash ringing — and Percy looked at the block for half a second.
"Huh," he said. "That actually worked."
He was already moving.
I chased him.
That was the mistake. The moment I committed to Percy — turned, adjusted, brought the sword around — Thalia was there. Spear at the knee joint. Clarisse at the back, shaft CRACK across my shoulders.
I stumbled. Caught myself.
Turned back to Percy.
He wasn't there again.
"Wrong way," he said. From my left.
I went left.
Clarisse was left. Spear driving at my ribs — I blocked, sword knocking it wide — Thalia coming in low from the right, spear at the ankle —
Spear vertical.
She was pulling back.
Which meant —
Percy came up the middle.
Riptide scraped across the chest plate. Already gone.
"...Huh," Percy said. Somewhere behind me now. "Okay that one I didn't plan."
"STOP NARRATING —" I said.
"I'm not narrating," Percy said pleasantly. "I'm just noting."
CRACK. Clarisse from behind.
I went down on one knee. Both hands on the hilt. Dragon heart pushing through the accumulated charge — three seconds, four —
Back up.
All three of them already repositioned.
I stood there breathing hard for the first time since day one.
Right, said my brain. Percy is the problem. Percy is always going to be the problem. The only counter is bigger reach and relentless assault — commit fully, use the leverage, don't let him reset —
I advanced on Percy. Full commitment. Sword coming overhead — big, devastating, the kind of swing that ended things —
Thalia hit me from the left. Ankle joint.
CHARGE.
Leg buckled. One second. Dragon heart fighting it.
Percy wasn't there when the sword came down.
"Oh. That's interesting," he said. Looking at where he'd been standing. Genuinely curious about his own survival.
Clarisse laughed.
Actually laughed — short, sharp, unplanned.
Thalia made a sound that was not quite a laugh but was close enough.
I looked at all three of them.
"This," I said, "is not funny."
"It's a little funny," Percy said.
"It is not —"
"The face you made when the sword hit the ground —"
"PERCY —"
Clarisse, pulling herself back together: "Again."
"Again," Thalia agreed.
Percy looked at me. Tilted his head. The unbothered expression of someone who had just figured out he was considerably harder to hit than he thought and was still being surprised about it.
"Again?" he said.
"AGAIN," I said.
We went again.
We went four more rounds.
I landed one hit the entire session. Round five — I stopped chasing Percy entirely, let him come to me, waited for the commit — and when Riptide came forward I sidestepped and brought the flat blade around at his ribs.
He went back three steps. Winced. Looked at his ribs.
"...Huh," he said. "Okay. Fair."
"THERE," Clarisse said. From across the ring.
"Don't cheer for him," Thalia said.
"I'm not cheering for him," Clarisse said. "I'm cheering for the hit. There's a difference."
"That is the same thing —"
"It is not —"
Percy, still checking his ribs: "Are you two arguing about whether it counts if the enemy lands a good hit?"
"Yes," both of them said. Looked at each other. Looked away.
I stood there bruised and the argument was the best part of the morning.
After: Percy examining his ribs with genuine grievance.
"You hit hard," he said.
"I told you not to join," I said.
"I thought you were joking —"
"I was not joking —"
"How are you not more bruised —"
"Dragon heart. Three times the healing rate. Still hurts during the session."
"It does?"
"Obviously."
He looked at the bruising on my forearm. Slightly less aggrieved. "That's marginally fairer."
"You're welcome."
Clarisse walked past. Looked at my forearm. Looked at Thalia.
"There's a gap. Left forearm," she said.
"Found it session four," Thalia said.
"Consistent?"
"Every time he overextends left."
"Add it to the rotation."
"Already have."
"I AM STANDING RIGHT HERE —" I said.
"We know," Clarisse said.
Thalia: "Breakfast."
We went to breakfast.
Days five through eight were not better.
I won some. Lost some. Came to the arena every morning with new bruises and left every evening knowing they'd come back tighter the next day. The dragon heart kept up — three times the rate meant I showed up fresh every morning even when the previous session had been brutal.
But during the sessions the accumulated hits were adding up. The lightning in the joints. Percy appearing from angles that should not have been possible. Eight days of being the primary target.
Day nine I walked into the arena and looked at all three of them.
"Battle royale," I said.
Percy looked at Clarisse. Clarisse looked at Thalia. Thalia looked at me.
"...Free for all," Percy said.
"Free for all."
"All four of us."
"All four of us."
The three of them exchanged the look of people generously considering a request from someone who clearly hadn't thought it through.
"Fine," Clarisse said. With the magnanimous energy of someone doing a favour.
"If you insist," Thalia said.
"Sure," Percy said pleasantly. "Your funeral."
My funeral, I thought.
Right.
THE BATTLE ROYALE
Here is what they forgot.
Coordinated, the three of them were a nightmare — signals, timing, Percy from nowhere, Thalia stacking charges, Clarisse driving hard while the other two flanked.
In a free for all there were no signals. No coordination. No agreed targets.
There was just four people in a ring all trying to hit each other simultaneously.
And in that situation, the person with full body armour, a greatsword with four feet of reach, and a fighting style designed to keep multiple opponents at bay was at a significant advantage.
Clarisse went for Percy first because Clarisse had opinions about Percy that predated this session.
Percy sidestepped and Clarisse went into Thalia.
Thalia shoved her off.
Clarisse turned on Thalia.
I hit Clarisse across the shoulders while she was occupied.
She stumbled. Turned on me. Full Ares fury. The spear drove hard — I stepped inside it, let it scrape the Kavach, brought the flat blade around at her ribs —
Percy hit me from behind.
CLANG. Riptide on the back plate.
I turned. Percy was already gone. Thalia coming in from the left —
I swung wide. Full horizontal arc. Not aimed at anyone — just clearing space, the greatsword's reach forcing all three of them back.
They backed up.
That's the advantage. In a coordinated three-on-one they could time the gaps between swings. In a free for all they had to deal with each other and the swings and there was no agreed moment to move in together.
Clarisse and Percy went for each other again. I didn't intervene. Kept moving, kept the sword between me and anyone getting close, let the Kavach take the hits that got through.
The ring was chaos.
Clarisse took a flat blade from Percy across the hip — stumbled — came back up snarling — Thalia's spear caught her across the shoulder while she was off balance —
"THALIA —"
"Free for all," Thalia said. Unapologetically.
"WE WERE ON THE SAME —"
"We're not on the same anything," Thalia said. "Those are the rules."
Clarisse looked at her. At Percy. At me. At Riptide still hovering two feet from her face.
"FINE," she said. And sat down. Furious. Already composing her grievances for later.
"Out," Percy said pleasantly.
Two left.
Thalia and I looked at each other.
"No powers," she said.
"No fire," I agreed. "No lightning."
"Shield and spear versus greatsword."
"Yes."
She came in smart. Not fast — smart. Probing. Looking for the left forearm gap, any opening the sword's weight created.
I kept the blade moving. Short arcs. Denied the gaps. Forced her to reach further than comfortable every time she drove the spear in.
Third exchange — she thrust high, I deflected with the flat of the blade, the spear sliding off right — and I stepped in close.
Too close for the spear.
My fist came around at the edge of her shield. Not her body — the shield edge. The force travelling through the grip into both arms.
CRACK.
The guard buckled. Both her hands went to the shield involuntarily —
The spear hit the ground.
She looked at it. Looked at me.
"Good move," she said. Flat. Honest.
"Thank you," I said.
She sat down.
Percy and I looked at each other.
Riptide up. Still moving. The session long, no water nearby, and I could see it in the set of his shoulders.
I brought the sword up.
Percy looked at the sword.
Looked at me.
Looked at the sword again.
"I yield," he said.
I stared at him.
"...WHAT —"
"I yield," Percy said. Pleasantly. Already lowering Riptide. "Good session everyone."
"YOU CAN'T JUST —"
"I just did."
"THAT'S NOT — THIS ISN'T — I WANTED TO ACTUALLY —"
"Win?" Percy said. "You won. Congratulations."
"That is NOT the —"
"This isn't fair," I said.
Clarisse looked up from the ground. "Not fair."
"Portable fire," Thalia said.
Percy looked at me. The full Percy grin.
"Canoe lake," he said.
I stared at him.
He stared back. Completely unbothered.
I closed my mouth.
"...I take it back," I said.
Percy grinned. Sat down.
I sat down across from him.
Thalia sat. Clarisse sat. All four of us on the arena floor. Too tired to stand.
"Good session," Percy said.
"Good session," I agreed.
Nobody moved for a while.
Nobody moved for a while.
Then Clarisse: "Same time tomorrow."
"Same time tomorrow," Percy agreed.
"Same time tomorrow," Thalia said.
I looked at all three of them.
"...Same time tomorrow," I said.
Days ten through fourteen. Morning. Arena. Four people hitting each other. Breakfast. Repeat.
I won some. Lost some. Showed up every morning.
Day fifteen started like the others.
Second battle royale. Nobody planned it.
The no powers rule held for approximately eight minutes.
Then Percy started losing 1v1 against me — I had his measure now, stopped chasing, started waiting — and the flat blade caught him across the forearm hard enough to make him back up three steps.
He looked at the drum of water sitting at the edge of the training ground.
Looked at me.
"Percy," I said.
"I'm not doing anything," Percy said.
The water moved.
"PERCY —"
It came fast — a whip of water at my feet —
I jumped.
And as I came down my brain said water and my body said fire and neither of them asked me first —
The fire came out of the Kavach's seams at full blaze.
The water hit it.
HISSSSSSSSS.
Steam.
Everywhere.
Not a little. A LOT. The entire arena disappeared in a white wall of it — visibility zero, temperature spiking, ground slick —
Turn the fire off, said my brain.
The dragon heart said: no.
The fire stayed on.
Which meant in a ring full of steam I was the only glowing thing.
Oh, said my brain. Oh that was very bad.
A shadow in the mist. Left side. Coming fast.
I swung.
CLANG.
Shadow went back.
Another shadow. Right side.
I swung right.
CRACK.
Something hit me from behind. Back of the knee — the cut opened —
I stumbled —
Something hit me from the left — armpit gap — sharp —
I spun. Swung wide. Heard someone hit the ground.
The steam thinned. Slowly. The fire in the Kavach dimming as the rational part of my brain finally won the argument.
The ring came back into view.
Percy on the ground holding his shoulder.
Clarisse on the ground holding her ribs.
Thalia standing. Shield arm hanging wrong.
Me standing. Cut behind the knee bleeding. Cut near the armpit. Bruising everywhere.
We looked at each other.
"Who hit who," Percy said.
"I hit you," I said. "Shadow on the left."
"I hit Clarisse," Thalia said.
"I hit Aditya," Clarisse said. "Twice."
"That was you," I said.
"That was me," she confirmed.
"Percy hit me first," I said.
"The water was a reflex," Percy said.
"THE WATER WAS A REFLEX —"
"I was getting pushed back —"
"WE HAD A NO POWERS RULE —"
"YOU USED FIRE —"
"BECAUSE YOU USED WATER —"
"I USED WATER BECAUSE YOU WERE HITTING ME —"
"THAT IS THE POINT OF A BATTLE ROYALE —"
"Enough."
Chiron had somehow appeared and was now standing at the arena entrance.
Looking at the steam still rising from the ground. At the four of us. At the empty drum.
He looked at all of it.
Not surprised. Just — Chiron.
"Infirmary," he said.
"It was Percy's fault," Clarisse said immediately.
"Infirmary."
"She hit me twice," I said.
"Infirmary."
"The water was a reflex," Percy said.
Chiron looked at him.
Percy went to the infirmary.
We all went to the infirmary.
"...and that's how we ended up here," I said.
Will looked at me. At Percy. At Clarisse. At Thalia in her sling.
"The burns," he said. To Percy and Clarisse.
"He didn't switch the fire off," Percy said.
"In my defence —" I started.
"There is no defence," Will said.
"The arm." To Thalia.
"Someone hit my shield very hard," she said. "Then I hit someone else. The arm disagreed."
"The cuts." To me.
"They found the gaps in the steam," I said. "Couldn't see them coming."
"Because you didn't switch the fire off," Will said.
"I was —"
"Get some sleep," he said. And left.
Percy looked at the ceiling. "This was probably our Last session— right."
"Most Definately," I confirmed.
Clarisse said nothing. She was looking at her burns.
Thalia was looking at the sling.
We sat there in the infirmary quiet.
THE WEEK AFTER
Dragon heart cleared my bruising by day two. Percy's burns faded by day three. Clarisse's took until day four. Thalia wore the sling for the full three days and then quietly took it off on day four morning when Will wasn't looking and nobody said anything about it.
The camp emptied.
The Stolls left Wednesday. Travis with a final prank involving the Ares cabin flagpole that nobody was willing to publicly call impressive. Connor with the guitar, calling back he'd see everyone next summer.
Beckendorf stayed. A few Hephaestus kids. Katie Gardner from Demeter, back to her greenhouse.
Clarisse left Thursday. No ceremony.
On day five I was back at my sleeping tree.
Eastern slope. Perfect angle. Perfect ground.
I was asleep in four minutes.
Footsteps.
No, I thought, without opening my eyes. Absolutely not.
"You're here again," Thalia said.
"I am never here. I don't know what you're talking about."
"You're snoring —"
"I am breathing. Deeply."
She sat down. Back against the tree above my head.
I opened one eye.
She was looking at the valley. The camp spread out below — cabins, training ground, the lake catching afternoon light.
"How did you find me ?" I said.
"I followed the snoring."
"I do not snore —"
"You absolutely snore —"
"That is slander —"
"I have witnesses."
"WHO —"
"Percy."
"Percy SNORES —"
"Percy snores and you snore," she said. "Different pitches. Yours is lower."
"You have catalogued my snoring."
"It carries."
I lay back down. "Go away."
She didn't go away.
"You have grass in your hair," she said.
"I am sleeping —"
"Just noting."
"GO AWAY —"
"I'm comfortable," she said. "This is a good tree."
"It is my tree —"
"Trees don't belong to people."
"This one does. I found it. I have been sleeping here. It is mine —"
"Percy knows about this tree now."
I sat up. "What."
"I told him. He said he might come by sometime."
"You told Percy about my TREE —"
"He asked where you went in the afternoons —"
"You could have said anywhere —"
"I told him the truth," she said. Completely unbothered. "This tree specifically."
I stared at her.
She looked at the valley.
"...You did that on purpose," I said.
"Obviously," she said.
I lay back down. Pulled my jacket over my face.
"Go away," I said. Muffled.
She didn't go away.
She stayed for an hour. Lay back on the grass at some point. We didn't talk much. The afternoon light moved across the valley. When I woke from the second nap she was gone — no announcement, no goodbye.
She did this. Showed up. Stayed. Left.
THE LAST DAY
Percy and Thalia and Annabeth left on a Tuesday.
Percy found me at breakfast.
He sat down at the Big House table — not his table, nowhere near his table — and looked at my plate.
"What is that," he said.
"Parathas," I said.
He picked one up. Took a bite before I could stop him.
Chewed.
Looked at the paratha.
Looked at his plate across the pavilion— got up went and grabed his plate and sat again opposite to me.
Looked at the paratha again.
"I want more of this," he said.
"That's my breakfast —"
"Can it be blue."
"Percy —"
"Can it —"
I looked at him. Looked at his plate. Looked at the ceiling.
"...Try thinking blue paratha," I said.
He thought blue paratha.
His plate produced a blue paratha.
Percy picked it up. Ate the whole thing in four bites. Looked at his plate. It produced another one.
He was on his third blue paratha when he looked up.
"My mom would make these," he said. "She makes everything. She'd make them blue if I asked."
"Percy —"
"I'm just saying," he said. "New York. Sometime. Come try her food."
I looked at him.
He was already on his fourth blue paratha.
"Fine," I said.
"Yeah?"
"Don't make it weird."
"It's going to be a little weird."
"I know," I said. "Fine."
He stole a regular paratha off my plate.
I let him.
Thalia was at the boundary with Annabeth when I got there.
Annabeth had said her goodbyes — Percy was getting a full hug, arms properly around him. She looked at me over his shoulder and gave me the nod. We're fine. The Zoe thing is noted. Moving on.
I nodded back.
Then Thalia.
She stopped in front of me. Looked up.
"Hey," she said.
"Hey," I said.
"This month," she said. "After the campfire. The Luke thing. You didn't push."
"...What," I said.
"Annabeth was careful the whole time. Choosing words. Checking in. Percy was being nice — which no offence to Percy —"
"Some taken," Percy said from five feet away.
"— was exhausting," Thalia continued. "And Chiron was Chiron. You know what Chiron is."
"Whetstone," I said.
"Exactly." She held my gaze. "You dragged me to the arena at seven. You fell asleep under a tree and made me find you. You argued about portable fire for twenty minutes." A pause. "You just treated me like Thalia. Not Luke's closest friend. Not a daughter of Zeus. Not someone who needed handling. Just Thalia."
My brain processed this.
Processed it again.
"...The sparring idea," she said. "That was the right call."
Heat crawled up my neck. Up my face.
No. Absolutely not. NOT RIGHT NOW —
Thalia's eyes tracked it.
Her expression changed.
Oh no.
OH NO —
She smiled. Sharp and delighted.
"...Sunshine," she said.
"Don't —"
"Are you blushing —"
"I am not —"
"YOU ARE —"
"It's cold —"
"It's September —"
"Autumn is cold —"
"YOUR FACE IS RED —"
"That's — it's the — THALIA —"
She was laughing. The bright uncontrolled one that made the static crackle in her hair.
"The boy who fought a Titan," she said. "Blushing —"
"I did not blush at the Titan —"
"Because the Titan didn't say anything nice to you —"
"This is harassment —"
"This is karma —"
"FOR WHAT —"
"For hitting me," she said. With enormous satisfaction.
I opened my mouth.
Closed it.
She had a point.
Still grinning when she picked up her bag. Still grinning when she took three steps toward the boundary.
Then she stopped. Turned.
The grin softened.
"See you after the winters, sunshine," she said.
And walked through the boundary.
I stood there.
Percy appeared beside me. "You're still red."
"Percy —"
"Just noting —"
"GO AWAY —"
He went away laughing. Through the boundary. Gone.
Annabeth already gone.
The boundary was empty.
I stood there looking at the road they'd taken.
Alright, I thought. Let's review.
Got reborn. Landed naked. Trained. Went on a quest. Got chased by a dragon. Killed that dragon. Fought hordes of monsters. Saved another dragon. Fought a Titan. Nearly died. Got a dragon heart transplant.
A pause.
Defeated by a blush.
I looked at the sky.
Dignity, I thought. I used to have dignity.
The sky offered no comment.
END CHAPTER