The Reluctant Hero

Flowers.

He stared at them.

Grey stone, newly engraved.

With freshly dug earth lying in their shadows.

He stared at them.

Rows upon rows.

Dozens.

Lined up, like the soldiers they were; uniformed and smart.

He stared at them.

Bittersweet memories of good times flooding my mind.

Remembering them.

He stared at them.

Seeing his friends.

His family.

He blinked.

And he saw the gravestones.

Memorials to the fallen.

His soldiers.

His family.

His friends.

(A/n: The poem above is all done by me so no theft and whatnot, please. :) )

He'd come here every day since then. To talk, or to stare and think. He'd tell them about his day.  About what they'd've found funny or interesting.

It was the three month anniversary. Three months since they'd left.  Three months without them. Three months alone. He brought flowers. A different colour for each of them.

Leo got orange Dragonlillies. Like the flames and forges he loved. He was always so happy, hyper-active even for a demigod. His dream had been to find Calypso again. He planned to go after the war. Fly off into the sunset with Festus to find her. Now he never would. He'd never go to Calypso. Percy had made sure she was released, but she'd never be reunited with Leo.

Frank had a purple flower. Praetor, and loyal to it 'til the end. He worked hard for the legion and he looked after his friends, unlike some people.....he never thought enough of himself, Percy looked up to him though. Frank had all the odds stacked against him yet he still stood strong. He wished he'd told him that before the end.

And Frank's girlfriend, the amazing Hazel. Girl returned from the dead. She got a gold flower. Shinning like her hope, never to diminish and yet mirroring her curse: the gold and precious gems that followed her.  She'd died, was convinced she would be left out and ignored (never thought enough of herself, just like Frank) yet she still stood strong, despite knowing almost nothing of the world she was thrust into. Standing up to any enemy and any challenge, she was never one to back down when people needed her.

Piper earned herself bronze. She never was the stereotypical Aphrodite girl. Positively screamed at Percy when he told her he'd thought her favourite colour was pink. Making sure that the pink bruises he got from punching himself (charm speak could be horrible) hadn't faded for over a week. She was not a woman to mess with. She took over and changed her cabin (for the better) in a matter of days and was looking forward to her future with Jason, her Roman.

Jason. He shared a colour with Piper, bronze like his love and the lightning he commanded. Always fighting the expectations of the son of Jupiter, literally born to lead. He hated it though, he would always be a worker but would never enjoy the pressure. His determination was something to be reckoned with though, when he set his mind on something, nothing would change it, just like nothing would stop him being with Piper, his natural beauty. Not even death had.

Thalia. She got silver. Percy's cousin but sister, a hunter until the end, independent and determined, just like her brother. She'd been through so much, was as stubborn as any tree (good old Pine-cone Face) and was not one to be messed with, would electrocute you before you could say 'holy Hera' and Percy don't even want to think about what happened to boys who tried to flirt with her....she would've had a long future with her sisters as Artemis' lieutenant, saved many lives and lived happily. Now she never would.

Grover had emerald green, like healthy leaves. He didn't have a grave, yet his stone stood tall next to the others, his reincarnation as an ash planted in the forest next to where Juniper's bush used to be, finally he'd have peace and be near his love. The mighty Lord of the Wild.

Nico. Percy's little goth cousin. He got black. In his life where almost nothing was ever absolute, black was solid and unquestionable, the darkness was always there. So misunderstood, yet possibly the bravest of them all. Coming back from so much and still fighting strong.

And Will, the only other constant in Nico's life. He got amber like the ambrosia he fed people and camp fires he sang at. The happy healer who healed Nico and brought his smile back to him. He was a constant at camp as well, through both wars and always strong. He saved so many lives. He and Nico would've been so happy.

Clarrisse had red. The daughter of war, fighting for what was important to her, taking no nonsense from anyone or anything. Fierce and obstinate 'til the end. Fighting through the wars and still for her family. Hard yet soft and never one to give up.

Katie got warm, soil brown. Like the earth that nurtured the plants she cared so much about, a true daughter of Demeter. A cruel twist of irony, that she'd been killed by the earth that had supported her. The solid, practical, caring girl who fell for the devilish prankster who never stopped having fun.

Travis Stoll, who along with his brother, had a light, wood brown flower. The colour of their cosy cabin, the pranksters would never take things seriously unless it was Travis with Katie. The boys even wanted to raid a shop in the middle of a war. True sons of Hermes. With such love and potential, they were staples at camp too.

Rachel got white, as white as the canvases she printed her mark on. Such talent cut short. She wasn't even a demigod, she'd only been there to help. The clear sighted oracle as fierce as the furies, taking on titans with a hair brush. Killed because she wanted to help us.

And Annabeth. Annabeth Chase. Percy's true love. 

She had grey, the stormy grey of her perfect eyes; always analysing everything for strengths and weaknesses; pros and cons. Her blond princess curls hid a brain of pure intellect and soul of perfect silver. She was the best person in the world, fighting everyone and everything. Studying, tucking a stray curl of blond hair behind her ear and fiddling with her beloved knife, deep in thought. Percy's world; his other half. She was his everything and he didn't know how he was going to live without her.

His salt water tear reflected a rainbow as it hit the petal of her flower.

[edited]