Almost

Leo leaned on the railing of the Argo II, staring at the horizon. He refused to look down at the ocean. It just reminded him of Percy-another disaster that was his fault. He wondered how Percy and Annabeth were after being in Tartarus for two days now. He wondered if they had even survived the fall.

He shook his head, trying to clear it. If Percy and Annabeth were dead, they would know. Nico would know, he would be able to sense it if they were dead. Leo didn’t really know how Nico’s sixth sense worked, nor did he want to know. Things like that were better left unsaid, but he was grateful for it nonetheless.

Maybe Percy and Annabeth are still falling, and that’s why they aren’t dead. He remembered the words from his dreams last night, the sleepy voice of Gaea: The bottomless pit. A one way trip. A very hard fall. If the pit was bottomless, where would Percy and Annabeth end up? Would they just fall forever? Maybe they were already dead, and Nico just couldn’t tell because his death radar didn’t reach Tartarus. Maybe Nico didn’t have the heart to tell them they were dead. Maybe…Quit it Valdez, Leo scolded himself. They’re not dead. You have to keep fighting.

But fighting was hard. Leo was exhausted-his sleep was fitful, restless, interrupted by nightmares. Last night, he had simply given up. It was useless trying to sleep, and he was done seeing visions of Gaea and giants and that last night in the warehouse. He had joined Coach Hedge on the deck, but now he found himself alone at the rail as Hedge had become tired and went to sleep. He laid his head on his arms which were crossed on the railing, blocking out the light of the rising sun. Soon, his friends would wake up, and he would join them for breakfast and do his best to ignore the fact that two people were missing. He became lost in thought about the quest and Percy and Annabeth, and he didn’t notice the footsteps approaching behind him.

“Hey,” said a voice. Leo nearly fell over the side as he jumped in surprise. He lit his hand on fire as he turned to see who had spoken, fearing the worst. He blushed and extinguished his flaming hand when he saw it was Hazel, standing on the deck with a smile on her face and her hand’s held up in mock surrender.

“Uh-I-hey,” Leo stuttered.

“You’re up early,” Hazel smiled.

Leo shrugged. “Couldn’t sleep.” Hazel walked over and joined him at the railing, staring out at the sea.

“Nightmares?”

“Yeah.”

“Gaea?”

“Among other things.”

Hazel was quiet for a long while. When she finally spoke, she asked “Your mom?”

“Yeah,” Leo said softly. “Yours too?”

“Not just my mom. My past-everything I’ve forgotten is coming back. Some good, some bad.”

“Did-did you remember anything about Sammy?” Leo asked in a quiet voice.

Hazel’s voice grew distant. “Nothing important.” Not to you. She didn’t say that last part out loud, but he knew she was thinking it. He knew that some things were personal, so he didn’t press her for any more details. They were both silent for a while, staring out at the horizon and lost in thought about their horrible pasts.

“Hazel,” Leo said suddenly. “What would you say if I started calling you ‘my treacherous darling’?”

Hazel laughed. “I’m not so sure about that nickname…”

“How about ‘Miss Lamarr’?”

“Hmm…that could work.”

“Is that a yes?”