Well I almost had to murder Wattpad cause it wouldn't take me to my stories page to update the chapter but-

Hope you enjoy the chapter! It's another longer one, the escape from Kirke took longer than planned.

The final chapter will be another Q&A and bonus scene, so if you have any questions you want me to answer, send them in! And also feel free to make a request on what the bonus scene should be :) I have a few ideas but I've not decided yet.

Come yell at me on my tumblr: Percabeth4Life
Come chat with me on discord: https://discord.gg/3tGNJhu

OO OO OO OO

"Are you okay?" A familiar voice asked from behind me.

Annabeth's arms tightened around me as I stiffened, and she lifted her head to look at the person.

"What do you want?"

"We-" I tried to get a look at who was speaking but the world was spinning and my head was hurting and I buried my head against Annabeth again with a hiss. "-we saw what Lady Kirke was doing and- you didn't deserve that. We want to help-"

"You didn't expect the woman known in the myths for turning men to pigs to try and harm a boy?"

"She's also known for helping Jason and Medea!" one said fiercely. "And she attacked you as well, it's not- you didn't deserve that. We don't want you to get hurt more..."

"She offered aid to Jason as required by divine law, hospitality rights are important. But that doesn't change the other things she's done, like turn a bunch of men to pigs."

"Explains Carl's comment," I muttered.

Annabeth huffed softly, rubbing my back.

"Why are you talking to us?" She asked them.

"You won't make it off the island," one said. "Lady Kirke has decreed that you are to be brought to her, dead or alive."

I frowned, "When did she say that?"

"I didn't hear anything," Annabeth agreed.

"She sent the decree out by magic," one of the girls explained. "All the workers on the island know now, and you won't escape... not without help."

I took a deep breath and pushed away from Annabeth, her hands steadying me as I swayed despite being on my knees. I blinked the spots out of my vision and turned, relying on Annabeth to stay steady.

"Are you offering that help?" I asked slowly.

"Why should we trust you to help us?" Annabeth added.

She pushed to her feet, her legs a steady presence against my back.

"We..." the girls shared a look.

Their hair was hidden in elegant soft yellow veils, and they wore elegant khitons in soft green. Bronze threads and pins held it in place, along with their hair. Their brown skin shone in the light of the hallway.

"We don't think you deserve this, we don't want to help you get hurt... and you also don't really have a choice, not right now."

Annabeth crossed her arms, "I'm more than capable of defending us. Why do we need you?"

"You are fierce indeed," said the older one. "But against all the guards of the island? Against all of Lady Kirke's students? You wouldn't survive. They've trained far longer than you."

Annabeth hesitated, her legs pressing against my back. I shrugged, tilting my head up to look at her.

She chewed her lip, studying me for a moment, and then nodded.

"Fine," she said. "We'll let you help... but if you betray us, I'll stab you. Repeatedly."

Her fingers touched her knife as she spoke, and the girls nodded quickly in response.

"We understand," the younger said.

"We can lead you to the boats," the other said. I thought she was the one to welcome us to the island. Hi-something. "You can use them to get off the island."

Annabeth offered me a hand, pulling me up as I took it. I stumbled and she tugged me close to her, slipping an arm around me to steady me.

"You okay?" she whispered as I swayed.

The world spun around me, light splashed across my vision. Dark spots danced across my eyes.

"Ow," I muttered. "Can't see well-"

The girls khitons swayed, I could see the pretty way the light reflected off the metal holding their outfit and hair in place.

"I'll handle things," Annabeth assured me, a worried frown on her face. I didn't like that, she shouldn't look so worried. "Trust me."

"I always trust you," I muttered.

She flushed, her gaze softening, "Well, hold on then."

"Ready?" the girls asked.

Annabeth nodded, stepping forward and helping me follow.

"Then let's go," Hi-something said.

"What are your names?" I blurted.

"That's Hylla," Annabeth reminded me, motioning to the older one.

Hylla, I knew it started with an H.

"I'm Reyna," the younger one said. She still looked older than me and Annabeth. "It's nice to meet you."

I was supposed to say something back. What was it- manners- ugh brain to tired for this... oh yeah!

"Maie em maiv houp opu," I mumbled, dropping my head on Annabeth's arm. Why was she so tall? Entirely unfair.

Annabeth snorted, "It's nice to meet you."

Hylla led the way down the hall, glittering tiles depicted images of sunrise, of battle, of ladies dancing, of fields of flowers, of stars glittering, decorating the walls, the ceiling, the floor.

I idly wondered if I could put stars on my ceiling at home, that would be pretty.

Annabeth helped me walk as best she could, but I was struggling. Her support was the only reason I could move down the hall. I was relieved she was there, I would've been dead without her.

"In here," Hylla hissed, tugging us into a room.

A waterfall decorated one side, a deep pool beneath it. Chairs were scattered around, and a set of large fabric squares were hung along one wall.

"Hmm," Hylla said, studying them.

"Why are we in here?" Annabeth hissed, helping me sit in one of the soft chairs. I eyed the water.

"I caught a glimpse of one of the magicals of the island," Hylla explained, still studying the cloths. "We don't want to face them, Lady Kirke trained them herself and they're very skilled."

"The vitamins I took should prevent us from being affected," Annabeth pointed out.

"Not all the magicals use the same kinds of magic," Reyna warned. "They may use a kind not protected against, as there is no full proof shield. And well..."

"Even if they can't harm you directly," I piped up. "They might do something to the floor, or break the walls, or bring down the ceiling, or turn something else into a tiger to attack you."

Reyna waved to me, "That."

"Here," Hylla said. "Put this on."

Both of us blinked as she shoved a large cloth into Annabeth's arms, and dropped another on me.

I blinked, too tired for words... this was confusing. "Eaye?"

"Oh!" Reyna grinned. "That's smart."

"Disguises," Annabeth mused. "But Percy's hair-"

Hylla held up a deep blue cloth with green vines decorating it. "You can cover yourselves, you'll just look like you want your privacy. Plenty of visitors do so."

Annabeth relaxed, "Himations are good for that... alright..."

"Himations are used for privacy?"

What was a himation?

Annabeth smiled at me as she gathered the khiton handed to her (soft blue, elegant red flowers coiling over the edges).

"Himations were used a lot in ancient times to grant women privacy in public, same with veils really. Himations were commonly used to veil as well- it allowed a woman to express themselves."

I wondered how that worked, sounded nice.

"Are we going to wear the same thing?"

Hylla hummed, "You can, there are various styles to wear the fabrics in. You could wear a peplos, or a khiton."

"You'll have a himation regardless," Hylla said. "That should definitely help hide your form."

"Dress quickly," Reyna added. "We need to move before they lock down the docks.

Annabeth moved somewhere behind me, rustling fabric audible.

"Do you need help with the khiton?" Reyna asked. "I can aid you if you need it."

I held it up with a frown, "I've never worn one before."

"I'll help," Reyna said. "You'll need to stand and remove your over clothes."

She turned away while I removed my clothes, and handed me the large cloth without looking at me when I was ready.

"Fold it around your body in a narrow tube, and fold down the top," Reyna explained. "I'll help you pin it in place when you do."

I hesitantly did so, swaying as I wrapped it. I stumbled on the fabric when shifting and yelped, Reyna catching me before I could fall.

"Here, I'll help you finish wrapping it."

She wound it tighter around me and pulled out silver pins to pin it in place at my shoulders. She left for a moment before returning with several silver rope-like pieces.

"It's considered stylish to wear them as belts," she explained, helping wrap them around me. "This style I'm doing is meant to help with ease of movement when doing activities or work for women. It wouldn't be as common here, but if you need to move freely this is better."

She crossed the belt across my chest, pinning it neatly.

Then she grabbed a himation, the deep blue one.

"You can simply drape this over your head-" she carefully did so, tucking it around my hair "-and let me grab a few pins in case you need them..."

She helped tuck it against my hair and checked the beaded weights along the edges of it.

"They help keep it in place," she explained. "This style is considered more modest, for privacy. It should work fine and hides the belts nicely. It's a bit warm for a himation, but this is a thin fabric so..."

I slumped back in the seat the moment she declared me ready and closed my eyes.

I was so tired. But the fabric was really soft.

"Percy," Annabeth called. "Are you ready?"

"Mm, yeahhhh," I mumbled.

I felt her hand on my shoulder as she leaned over me.

"You look very stylish," she said lightly. "Maybe we should grab a few fabrics for later."

I blinked at her.

She giggled, "Kitten eyes."

She grinned when I wrinkled my nose at her.

"One minute, let me ask."

The waterfall in front of me looked nice, and it sounded nice... Maybe I could just get in for a second-

"Percy?"

I blinked up at Annabeth again, this time with fabric folded neatly in her arms.

"Ready?"

I nodded, letting her tug me up and carefully tie the fabric against me, to keep it safe in case she needed to fight.

She looked very nice in her khiton, a soft blue that was folded a lot more intricately than mine.

"Mine's an Ionic khiton," she said. "You're wearing a more Doric style, it's simpler but works well."

I hummed, leaning against her as she started out the door, a himation in soft grey with bright blue birds decorating it.

I did my best to seem alert as we walked down the hall, led by Reyna and Hylla as if we were normal guests. I was very grateful for the himation, which hid part of my face from view (especially when I ducked my head).

Annabeth's support was literally a life saver, I was exhausted and my body too heavy for me to have been able to make it without her. I really wished we'd brought Martha, or that I'd gotten more rest.

The world spun with every step, but her hold was firm and she went only as fast as I was able. I was thankful, even though I wished I could just sleep.

"Maybe we should've kept you as a cat until we left," Annabeth mused. "I mean you act like one regardless-"

"I'm a kraken," I grumbled. "Triton said so."

"A baby kraken," Annabeth teased. "Who has kitten eyes and wrinkles your nose like a little cat-"

I wrinkled my nose and she laughed.

"I'm fierce and dead-" I yawned "-deadly."

"Very obviously so," she giggled. "Tell me, do you prefer tuna or salmon?"

"Tuna-" I scowled as she cackled. "I'm a mer! I like fish!"

"Mkay, cat boy."

"Owl head," I grumbled.

"Your fur was softer than your hair," she added. "But it looked like your hair, soft with lots of color."

I flushed, tugging at my himation.

"I'm a kraken, not a kitten."

She poked me lightly, "A very deadly kitty kraken."

"I'm calling you owl head forever."

"Okay kitty kraken."

The girls in front of us sent an amused look back. I pouted.

"We're nearly out," Reyna said. "Just this way-"

She ran right into two women coming around the corner.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said bowed quickly to them. "I was just leading these guests back to the docks."

The woman studied us carefully, I kept my eyes down.

"All guests are to wait until the count is done before leaving, for the survey."

Reyna swallowed.

"Well, they were in a rush, I've already noted them down-"

"Have you?"

"Yes, χορηγός," Reyna said.

Khoregos, fun word. Leading, lead, to lead, to uh- I didn't know what it meant.

I guessed leader.

The woman, and the one next to her, both looked very skeptical.

"What are your names?" She asked Annabeth and I.

"Alicia," Annabeth said quickly. "And this is- um- Fiona."

I bowed my head and kept silent.

"Alicia," the woman said slowly, flipping through the papers on the clipboard she'd pulled out of nowhere. "I'm afraid you aren't on our guest list."

Hylla shifted, "We-"

"You wouldn't happen to have just met Lady K, would you?"

"Just one moment," Annabeth said politely, the women raising their hands and clearly ready to attack.

She helped me to the wall and let me sit down.

"Let me handle this," she said softly. "You just rest."

I blinked up at her, a frown on my face.

"Be careful."

"Of course," she said, pulling off her himation and handing it to me. "Hold my himation?"

"I've got it," I assured her as she straightened and moved over to them.

"Let us pass, or I'll make you."

"You?" the woman laughed. "Little girl, I have trained under Lady Kirke for many years. You stand no chance. Surrender and we will take you without harm."

"Making it is," Annabeth declared.

She shifted her weight, then lunged, knife drawn in an instant. Light flashed out from the first woman, but it splashed uselessly against Annabeth. She ducked under a blast of fire one summoned, and flipped her knife neatly as she blocked a strike from the woman in front of her. With the hilt in hand she slipped right past something sharp that flashed out, shattering against the wall, and slammed the pommel against the woman's head.

Hylla tackled the other woman, punching her in the face clumsily as Reyna hurried to help. The woman shrieked hands glowing.

"Traitors," she snarled, a blast sending both Hylla and Reyna flying through a door that slammed shut and lit up gold.

Annabeth slammed into her before she could stand once more, her knife burying in her raised arm.

The woman sent tiles spinning into the air, flying at Annabeth on top of her, but Annabeth rolled off, yanking her knife out as she did.

Blood splashed the floor and tiles shattered, showering both girls in shards. Annabeth was back on her feet before the woman, blood dripping down the woman's face. With a quick movement Annabeth sent her over her shoulder in a judo throw, then dropped on top of her and pressed against her throat.

"Surrender," she hissed.

"Never!" she tried to raise a hand, the floor glowing, but Annabeth punched her in the face again.

She pressed harder, putting more pressure on the woman's throat as she did. A few moments later the woman went silent, her hand dropping.

Annabeth stood, uninjured except a few scratches from the tile shards.

"Are you okay?" she asked me, hurrying back.

"That was so cool," I whispered.

She flushed, "Thanks. Come on, I've got you."

She helped me up, iron tinging the air and her clothes. I leaned against the wall as she wrapped her himation around her once more, then let her support me as we stumbled to the door Reyna and Hylla had been sent through.

Despite the woman being knocked out, the door was still sealed and glowing gold.

"You need to go on without us!"

Annabeth scoffed, and I couldn't help but agree.

"We're not leaving you behind!"

"You must," Reyna said. "You'll be killed if you're found, we'll just be punished. Leave us, get to safety."

"We can't just-" I started.

"Please," Hylla said. "Don't make our actions to save you be in vain."

Annabeth tried to jab her knife into the door frame, but the gold rebuffed it.

"Leave," Reyna commanded. "The exit is just ahead, take a boat and get away quickly."

If I had the energy I could've tried to force the door open... but I had nothing left to use. Annabeth tried again, then once more, but the gold guarded all the door and prevented her knife from even scratching it.

"You need to go," Hylla said once more. "Respect our choice and leave."

Annabeth glared, knife clutched in one hand while the other supported me. "If you don't survive I'll drag you out of Haides myself."

I heard a soft huff on the other side, "If we don't survive then may our souls find peace in Scotus. Now leave, and live."

Annabeth swallowed, but turned away with me. Her grip on me tightened as she helped me down the hall.

"You need to live too," she said, though I was uncertain if it was meant for their ears or not.

I didn't like leaving, and neither did Annabeth, but her safety was more important. We didn't have the time nor the means to open the door.

Hopefully we'd see them again another day. I wouldn't forget what they'd done for us.

We continued down the hall, only hiding once to allow some guards to pass.

There were no alarms, but I knew that the unconscious figures had to have been found. If they could make the decrees they had so far without our knowledge, it was likely they had done so again.

Annabeth walked smoothly around another corner and paused.

In front of us was the entrance, a spiraling hippocampus in the fountain. The docks were just ahead, and the boats bobbing in the water.

Annabeth took a deep breath.

"We're nearly out," she said. "Just hang on."

She helped me through the final hall, and down the ramp beside the steps. It was slow going, and it took all I had to not look behind me, to not look suspicious, but we finally made it to the docks.

We'd barely gotten three steps forward before a familiar hissing reached my ears.

Martha twined over my arm, curling over my shoulder. Her tongue flicked at my cheek, "I left you for ten minutessss."

"More like an hour," Annabeth said.

Martha hissed sharply.

"Sorry," I muttered. "This is apparently Kirke's island."

"And she's angry with us," Annabeth added.

Martha coiled for a moment, then let out a snake-y sigh and leapt from my shoulder. By the time she hit the ground she'd grown many times in size.

"Climb on, I will get usss to the boat."

"Go to pirate ship," I said, yawning as Annabeth helped me sit on Martha's scaly back. "I negotiated for it."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow, "Before or after you got turned into a cat."

"A cat?"

"Before."

"There!" A voice cried from behind us.

Annabeth dropped on Martha's back quickly, "We might wanna hurry."

"Where are the bags?" I asked, then squeaked as Martha shot off.

Her body weaved back and forth, muscles contracting and expanded rapidly. I clung to her as the docks whizzed past, ocean waves crashing, guards charging, spots dancing across my vision as the world spun with her.

She twined quickly over the docks and reached the pirate ship in record time, curling over the ropes, with Annabeth keeping me on as she wrapped around them and reached the dock.

"I have the bagssss, do not worry."

I relaxed, sliding off of her back onto the damp ship.

The deck was a mess of barnacles and various salt water puddles. I squinted at some of the suspicious spots.

"How are we driving this?" Annabeth asked, the guards behind us yelling and pointing at us.

I didn't want to know what they would try to do to the boat to stop us.

"I can-" I started, pushing up and ignoring the world spinning, the heaviness of my body, the need to rest.

"No," Annabeth said fiercely, not even waiting for me to finish. "You're about to pass out, I'm not letting you..."

Something flashed on her face as Martha tugged me into her coils to sit and she rushed over to me, tugging the folded fabrics off and digging through them.

"Aha!" she held up the thermos triumphantly.

"Destroy the boat," A voice commanded. Annabeth rushed to side, knife in hand.

There was hacking, Annabeth shouted something I couldn't quite make out but I imagined was insulting, and then with a roar the boat surged away from the dock.

I could hear the boat cracking, the screams of the people behind us, but the boat surged away, water and people crashing, and Martha tightened around me.

"Ressst," she hissed, allowing me to slump as the boat switched directions.

I trusted them to watch over me until I woke.

I let my eyes slide shut and darkness take me.

OO OO OO OO

I woke once more to sun in my eyes. It was just like the day before.

Or at least I hoped it was the day before. I was still far too tired despite the sleep I'd gotten. I'd really need to improve a lot in my skills, this quest had really shown me how quickly I could be exhausted.

I shifted and relaxed against the scales beneath me, a soft fabric covering me. It must've been one of the cloths for clothing from Kirke's island. It was very comfy.

"Good morning," hissed Martha.

I groaned, pulling the fabric over my head.

I was really tired of waking up like this. Far too tired, wanted more sleep.

"Hey, Percy," Annabeth said.

I peaked up, squinting at her.

She had changed, putting on pants once more. But she still had a short khiton on as a shirt.

"It's comfortable," she said with a flush as I blinked at it.

"It looks nice," I assured quickly, yawning and stretching.

"How are you feeling?" She asked, moving over to me.

"Tired."

"Makes sense," she said. "You've done a lot lately, and I can't imagine it was easy fighting Kirke."

I groaned, "She's a really good curser."

"Sssshe hasss much experiencccce."

I grumbled, reluctantly sitting up. "I know."

"How did you fight her?" Annabeth asked. "She's... well..."

"Defending from being cursed is much easier than cursing, or even curse breaking. You just have to poke a hole in the curse before it can tighten."

Annabeth blinked, "How does that work?"

"Like..." I tugged at the fabric covering me. "You gotta jab your power out- the same way I thread it through water and stuff. But instead stabbing it out in more raw form."

"I've never used power like that before," Annabeth said. "I didn't really realize it was possible."

"Takes lessons," I said. "I was reading on how it works when we arrived at the island."

"Oh... is it something I could learn?"

I shrugged, "Maybe? Probably? We can try to teach you later?"

Martha nudged me, her head bigger than mine, "Sssshe can learn yesss. But for now, you are needed. Discusssss magic later"

"We're out of wind," Annabeth agreed reluctantly. "Do you know how to direct the ship?"

I frowned, staring at the ship.

"I uh... don't... I was just gonna move the water around it."

Annabeth looked unamused. I flushed.

"We'll have to wait for you to recover more first," Annabeth said. "I definitely don't want to arrive at the island with you ready to pass out."

I nodded reluctantly, letting Annabeth check me over for injuries.

"How did you get the khiton short?" I asked. "We didn't have smaller fabrics, did we?"

"Martha changed the size," she explained. "Do you want her to do that for your too?"

I tugged at the khiton then nodded. It was too long for me to be comfortable.

Twenty minutes later Annabeth was helping me pin the khiton over my shoulder and arranging the folds nicely.

I was also wearing pants beneath it.

"This is actually kinda easy to do," I muttered, trying to copy her example.

"Well, it was done for hundreds of years," she pointed out with a grin. "If you wanted you could wear a Khlamys too."

I thought of Eros in a khlamys.

"I'm good," I squeaked.

She snickered.

The change of clothes did feel nice though. And so did the food from Annabeth's lunch box (so glad we had the magic lunch box).

We relaxed on the ship, Martha having cleaned a section to be good for us to sit on. I wished I could work on the ship, but they'd ordered me to save my energy.

It was nice to just... drift and rest. We ate the food, drank water, and rested.

And talked of course. We didn't have much else to do.

OO OO OO OO

"We're going to pass the Siren's," Annabeth said hesitantly. "Or at least we should... I would like to hear their song."

"Please don't," I said. "They tend to eat people."

"You could tie me up!"

"You could get free."

"It would be fine!"

"They're deadly. If you really want to hear a Siren's Song, then I'll bring you to meet Fetu. He's great at it, and not cursed and up to eating you."

Annabeth grumbled but accepted the deal.

OO OO OO OO

"So your step-mom didn't get any better?"

"No," she said with a wince. "I'm not going back there. Not only was it horrible, but they're also planning on moving soon. To California."

"California?"

"The bay area, and Mount Tam is there. If it was bad in Virginia, it will be so much worse there."

"Why?"

She blinked at me, "Sometimes I forget you don't know much about land myth stuff. You know so much about the sea."

I shuffled, "Sorry."

"It's fine," she waved her hand. "Just takes me off guard sometimes. But uh- yeah Mount Tam is also Mount Othrys... sorta. It's not literally Mount Othrys, in the same way Mount Olympus over the Empire State Building isn't literally Mount Olympus. But it's like- it's the base of power of the older rule."

"Wait- but there is a Mountain over the Empire State Building."

"Ehhh, sorta," she wrinkled her nose. "It's not a literal Mountain, it's more... symbolic? It's the form they choose for Olympus. Sometimes it changes. One time it was a huge plateau."

"Wow."

"It can ssshift to many thingsss," Martha agreed. "It issss what the Godssss desssire it to be."

"Cool," I muttered. "But you were saying?"

"Oh, yeah. So, Mount Tam is kinda known for being a monster hot spot cause of the older energy there. Or at least that's what I've heard. We're encouraged to avoid it by the Gods, most say their parents guide them away from California as a whole unless they have to be there."

"How interesting," I muttered. "Is that true?"

I looked at Martha, and Annabeth turned as well in interest.

Martha hissed, "There are many threatssss there. Monsssstersss are not the only one. It isss besssst to avoid that area."

"Good to know," I said.

"Definitely not going back," Annabeth agreed.

OO OO OO OO

"I really am sorry," Annabeth said softly as the sun set. "I shouldn't have put such an expectation on you to heal Thalia's tree."

"I should've said no," I said. "I knew I wasn't good at healing."

"I insisted," she reminded me. "It wasn't fair of me."

"You were scared," I said. "Triton said people don't think right when they're scared."

"Triton is very wise," she said, with a small smile.

"You just say that cause he raised your Mom."

"Well, my mom is the wisest... but really... thank you... I know what I said was-"

"It hurt."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay," I assured her. "I mean- it hurt but... you were hurt... I forgive you."

"You're too nice," she said with a sigh.

"You're just vicious," I teased. "I mean wow, that woman at Kirke's is gonna have a ruined nose from that punch-"

She threw a barnacle at me as I laughed.

OO OO OO OO

"So, what was it like? Traveling along with Luke and Thalia I mean."

"It was... it was fun. We went all over and saw so many things..."

She sighed, staring at the stars above.

"Thalia would dye streaks into her hair sometimes, she liked electric blue but it required too much upkeep. Luke always got so exasperated. She did my hair one time, it was a bright pink."

"Really?"

She nodded, smiling, "It faded really quick, pink is always the quickest to fade... I cried for ages I think, Luke didn't let Thalia dye my hair again after that."

"My friend made some special dye," I said hesitantly. "It's really long lasting... it's what I dye my hair with."

Annabeth looked at me wide eyed.

"You could dye your hair if you wanted."

She swallowed, turning back to study the stars.

"... I... I would like that."

"What was Thalia like?"

"Headstrong," she said immediately. "She was stubborn to a fault. Kept starting fights, but... she was amazing with Luke and I. One time she got in a fight with the Lieutenant of the Hunters of Artemis-"

"Hunters? I feel like that's been mentioned before..."

"Oh yeah, they're the ones working with Lady Artemis. They used to be just the sixty Okeanids, but She's diversified a lot. There are several factions too- the actual Hunters and then the Pack of Artemis and the Maidens of Artemis. They all have different purposes and different rules."

"Wow," I said. "Artemis is worshiped a lot in the sea, but I didn't know about that stuff."

"It's very interesting," Annabeth agreed. "We met them one time and they tried to recruit Thalia and offered me a place with the Pack."

"What would that be like?"

She hummed, "The Pack is... they're loyal to Lady Artemis, dedicated to Her. But they're not sworn to Her like the Maidens or the Hunt. They run foster cares, orphanages, women's centers, and those kinds of things. They care for the people left behind and stuff."

"Huh, that sounds cool. What about the other one you mentioned, the Maidens?"

"Oh uh, they're sworn to Lady Artemis as well, but are more... uh... defenders? The Pack protects people, and offer aid, and the Maidens get people out of the situations in the first place. I don't know much about how they work, they're for adults only. I do know part of their vow is to not marry."

I hummed, studying the stars with Annabeth in silence for a long while.

"So, what happened with Thalia and the hunt?"

"Oh yeah," Annabeth laughed. "Thalia tried to stab the Lieutenant when she mentioned us going to different places, especially when she stated Luke was not allowed as all those of Artemis' sworn groups are women, or at least not men. Thalia is not allowed to talk to the hunt now."

I snorted, "She's very protective."

"She lost a family member before," Annabeth said softly. "She never told me the details but mentioned him once. I think she was scared of losing us too."

I winced, reaching out a hand to Annabeth.

"Sorry," she said. "Didn't mean to bring the mood down."

"It's fine," I assured her. "It sucks that so many demigods have to deal with losing people close to them."

"It does," she agreed. "I wish... I wish things could be different."

I didn't know what to say to that. I'd never really lost those close to me. The one closest to me was immortal, and though I'd lost my mom I got her back.

Annabeth wouldn't get Thalia back, and Luke had betrayed her. Her own dad didn't seem to care for her and her step-mom ostracized her. Her Mom looked out for her, but could only do so much.

She'd suffered a lot more than me in the family side of things.

"Maybe we can improve things," I offered. "Don't people always say the world is what you make of it?"

Annabeth let out a breath, "Maybe... I want to make my mark on the world. I want to do something that will stand for thousands of years... Maybe it can be something that prevents this sort of suffering from happening to others."

I squeezed her hand, unsure what to say in the face of that.

OO OO OO OO

Acantha POV

I groaned as they finally rested, rubbing her tail.

"That last sea serpent was not happy to see us."

"Yes," Antonio-fu'oro muttered. "It's troublesome for sure. We don't know this area's safe spots. Traveling above the water seems to be allowed, but under requires you to know what paths to take."

"We should skim the surface," Kai said. "It will take more energy but will hopefully have less... Messes."

I grumbled, Klara joining me. Skimming the surface took a lot more energy. You had to deal with the surface waves and their pull while swimming, it was much easier to swim deeper.

"Well, we should only be a day out from Percy-aia," Antonio-fu'oro said. "Assuming we keep up a speed roughly like this we should catch him... within two days, assuming he moves again."

I perked up, "Then we're really close!"

"And then we can ensure his safety," Kai said, relief in his voice. "He's still been moving, so he must be alright."

"And we can check on Tyson," Klara added. "I'm worried for him still."

Antonio-fu'oro folded up the map he'd been studying.

"Indeed. We have much to do, so twenty more minutes to rest and then we'll get moving again."

OO OO OO OO

Okeanus POV

I studied the map of Camp Half-Blood's beach. It would be a pain for any ship to reach it, not that it mattered too much in this case. But he thought it would be easier to dock further away and send smaller vessels ashore.

But what did he know, he wasn't a shipping God. Just one of the literal embodiments of the ocean.

"Aril-ari, the Sea Serpents have been contacted. They will be ready when the time comes."

I smiled, "And early, thank you."

The messenger twisted her fingers in a motion of respect before swimming out.

I sighed, "So much to do still, but things are finally falling into place."

OO OO OO OO

Fanart done of Cat Percy!

(By: AO3Lurker55 on Deviantart: https://www.deviantart.com/ao3lurker55/art/Fanart-Attempt-1-901522877)

(By: Me)

OO OO OO OO

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to leave a review, they feed my soul.

You may notice I've put a chapter count finally, hopefully it's accurate and I'm not miscalculating.

The final chapter will be another Q&A and bonus scene, so if you have any questions you want me to answer, send them in! And also feel free to make a request on what the bonus scene should be :) I have a few ideas but I've not decided yet.

What did you think of their escape from the island? Their discussions while on the boat? What is Okeanus up to?

Halmaheran
Maie em maiv houp opu=It's nice to meet you
Eaye=What
Aril=King

Suffixes
fu'oro=master teacher
aia=prince
ari=previous king

Terminology
Please note that hospitality rights (mentioned briefly by Annabeth) are actually hugely important in Greek custom. Even in the modern day there are expectations, but in Ancient times there's practically a code for it. Zeus was the one who was basically the "enforcer" of it.
Peplos=a style of Greek dress, It is a simple sleeveless outer garment worn primarily by women. It is an older style and fell out of popularity in the 540 BCE.
Khiton=phonetic spelling of Chiton. This is the most commonly seen type of Greek style, used by men and women both (though in different forms usually). It is a square of fabric (as most styles) folded and pinned into place, in a variety of manners.
Doric style Khiton=it can also be considered a peplos by some, but primarily known as a khiton. It is a less intricate style of stress, with a simple fold and could have additional folds added with the help of belts.
Ionic style Khiton=a more complex style of khiton using 8-10 pins to pin the fabric over the arms, and numerous folds. Belts were utilized for the folds and to decorate.
Himation=a large square of fabric used in a similar manner to a shawl, it could be used to cover the head, pinned over the shoulder, or wrapped around the wearer. It was most commonly used by women in the later days, men favoring the khlamys.
χορηγός=(Khoregos) a word meaning roughly 'to lead'. It was a term used in Athens for wealthy citizens given public duty related to financing amongst other things. It is being used here as a title for the woman in charge of the matters of organizing the people, but whom is not a proper commander. They are a high ranking, but still low positioned worker of Kirke.
Haides=used as both the name of Hades and as the name of the underworld
Scotus=used both as the name of the entrance to the underworld, the underworld itself, and as the name of the primordial. Roman name of Erebus.
Hunters of Artemis=A set of maidens sworn to chastity. They hunt along side Artemis and are spoken of in the mythos. Originally they were formed of 60 Okeanids, picked by Artemis, along with 20 river nymphs helping the hunt.
Maidens of Artemis=a group I have created for the purpose of my story, partially inspired by IzzyMRDB's ideas as well. Ideas were traded between us as we discussed this subject at length.
Pack of Artemis=a group I have created for the purpose of my story, partially inspired by IzzyMRDB's ideas as well. Ideas were traded between us as we discussed this subject at length.
Artemis' Groups=each of her people have their own vow unique to the group (Hunt, Maidens, Pack). Each has their own purpose.

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