PJO/HOO One Shots

Letting You Go

A/N: Not Percabeth, but still something I wanted to write.
________________________________
The crisp autumn leaves crunched satisfyingly underneath Thalia's worn combat boots as she approached her destination. There was no one there, and yet her heart was still pounding and running at 100 miles per hour.

She'd gotten the address from Annabeth, and made plans to go when she got some time off from Lady Artemis. It was mid August, right around the anniversary, so it only seemed fitting that she'd go today.

Finally, Thalia arrived at the landmark Annabeth had told her about. It was a big oak tree, with branches that stretched out to the sky. Its leaves were varying shades of marigolds, rust oranges, and fiery reds. And underneath it, nestled underneath the warped bark, was a slab of gray stone.

Luke Castellan, it read. Beloved son, brother, and hero. It was simple, just the way he would've wanted it.

Thalia placed the bouquet of flowers she'd bought right in front. They were white daisies that reminded her of a distant memory.

"Luke!" squealed a younger Thalia, dashing away from her chaser. "I look terrible!"

"No you don't!" an equally young, scar-less Luke replied, giving chase after her. "You look beautiful!"

Thalia blushed as she caught a glimpse of her head, hair wreathed with a daisy crown Luke had made for her. As Luke caught up to her and hugged her from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder, Thalia looked at her reflection again. Maybe she didn't look so bad after all.

Snapping out of the memory, Thalia sat down on the grass in front of Luke's gravestone. Annabeth had picked this place, because Thalia was too busy pretending that she couldn't be bothered with matters involving her deceased former friend. And like always, Annabeth delivered. She was smart in picking a place that had no sentimental value to any of the three of them, but also in picking a place that was private and serene, honoring who he was before he turned.

There were several other trees around, but none as big and grand as the one Thalia sat in front of. To her right was a glistening lake that stretched on for miles, only limited by the hills that surrounded it. Simply put, it was beautiful, just like him. Thalia tilted her head and closed her eyes, letting the sunlight bask over her and breathing in the fresh forest air. Off in the distance, she could hear the lake lapping back and forth gently and birds chirping.

After that brief moment, Thalia turned her attention to her fingers, which sat idly in her lap. Picking at her nails (a nervous habit of hers), Thalia took a deep and shaky breath. She didn't even know how to start this.

"Hi Luke," she whispered finally. She cleared her throat, making her voice more firm. "It's Thalia. I'm sorry I didn't come sooner, but I just couldn't see you yet. It's been almost five years since you passed, and it still hasn't gotten easier."

It was weird, just talking aloud to someone who wasn't there and couldn't even hear you, but it was still therapeutic. Perhaps that's why people did it.

"I miss you," she said, her voice trembling. "I can't keep pretending I hate you when really, I still love you."

Thalia picked at the grass as she continued with her rambling. "I looked for you. I looked for you so hard, hoping that even in your next life, you'd somehow remember me." Her voice cracked then, and the tears began to fall. "I couldn't find you, and it hurt. It felt like I'd failed, or like you didn't want to see me ever again. But then again, you were always good at hide-and-go-seek."

"Luke, come on!" Thalia's voice was edging on desperate now. They'd been playing hide and go seek, and she'd already found Annabeth, but Luke had been missing for well over an hour by now.