𝐦𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫. ── 𝐣𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐞

𝐢𝐢. 𝐢 [𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭] 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬

A SEA OF HASTILY ASSEMBLED demigods parted for the demigods as they walked through the forum. Some looked tense, some nervous. Some were bandaged from their recent battle with the giants, but no one was armed. No one attacked.

Inside, all she wanted to do was drag everybody back to the Argo II, and have a nice little movie night, complete with cuddles and popcorn, without the fear of, you know, getting mauled by homicidal teenagers. But they were in too deep to do that now. 

Entire families had gathered to see the newcomers. Andy saw couples with babies, toddlers clinging to their parents' legs, even some elderly folks in a combination of Roman robes and modern clothes. Were all of them demigods? Andy suspected so, though she'd never seen a place like this. At Camp Half-Blood, most demigods were teens. If they survived long enough to graduate from high school, they either stayed on as counselors or left to start lives as best they could in the mortal world, at the risk of dying, of course. Here, it was an entire multigenerational community, from Nick Jr to the Golden Girls.

At the far end of the crowd, Andy spotted Tyson the Cyclops and Percy's hellhound, Mrs. O'Leary—who had been the first scouting party from Camp Half-Blood to reach Camp Jupiter. They looked to be in good spirits. Tyson waved and grinned. He was wearing an SPQR banner like a giant bib.

Some part of Andy's mind registered how beautiful the city was—the smells from the bakeries, the gurgling fountains, the flowers blooming in the gardens. And the architecture...gods, the architecture—gilded marble columns, dazzling mosaics, monumental arches, and terraced villas.

In front of her, the demigods made way for a girl in full Roman armor and a purple cape. Dark hair tumbled across her shoulders. Her eyes were as black as obsidian.

Reyna. Jason had described her well. Even without that, Andy would have singled her out as the leader. Medals decorated her armor. She carried herself with such confidence the other demigods backed away and averted their gaze. Andy recognized something else in her face, too—in the hard set of her mouth and the deliberate way she raised her chin like she was ready to accept any challenge—an expression she knew all too well. Reyna was forcing a look of courage, while holding back a mixture of hopefulness and worry and fear that she couldn't show in public. She was... beautiful to say the least. She had rippling muscles, (which Andy was quite jealous of), and a stoic look on her face. Instinctively, she held Jason's hand. He smiled at her, and gave it a quick squeeze.

Andy could see Annabeth and Reyna sizing each other up. The two girls considered each other. Annabeth's friends fanned out on either side. The Romans murmured Jason's name, (Andy caught mutters of that girl), staring at him in awe.

[ ok, it's a crime to alter anything about this part, so it's in Annabeth's pov ]

Then someone else appeared from the crowd, and Annabeth's vision tunneled.

Percy smiled at her—that sarcastic, troublemaker smile that had annoyed her for years but eventually had become endearing. His sea-green eyes were as gorgeous as she remembered. His dark hair was swept to one side, like he'd just come from a walk on the beach. He looked even better than he had six months ago—tanner and taller, leaner and more muscular.

Annabeth was too stunned to move. She felt that if she got any closer to him, all the molecules in her body might combust. She'd secretly had a crush on him since they were twelve years old. Last summer, she'd fallen for him hard. They'd been a happy couple for four months—and then he'd disappeared.

During their separation, something had happened to Annabeth's feelings. They'd grown painfully intense—like she'd been forced to withdraw from a life-saving medication. Now she wasn't sure which was more excruciating—living with that horrible absence, or being with him again.