𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄, PJ2

𝟎𝟎𝟒.4

Leo had designed the mess hall's walls to show real-time scenes from Camp Half-Blood. At first he had thought that was a pretty awesome idea. Now, sitting infront of Augustus he wasn't so sure.

The scenes from back home – the campfire sing-alongs, dinners at the pavilion, volleyball games outside the Big House – just seemed to make his friends sad. The further they got from Long Island, the worse it got. The time zones kept changing, making Leo feel the distance every time he looked at the walls. Here in Italy the sun had just come up. Back at Camp Half-Blood it was the middle of the night. Torches sputtered at the cabin doorways. Moonlight glittered on the waves of Long Island Sound. The beach was covered in footprints, as if a big crowd had just left.

With a start, Leo realized that yesterday – last night, whatever – had been the Fourth of July. They'd missed Camp Half-Blood's annual party at the beach with awesome fireworks prepared by Leo's siblings in Cabin Nine.

He decided not to mention that to the crew, but he hoped their buddies back home had had a good celebration. They needed something to keep their spirits up, too.

"Juliet's birthday," The only thing Augustus had said in the morning as he stepped out of his room looking like a walking corpse.

It was Juliet's birthday, Percy was still locked inside his room, and Augustus had been the only one to step out. And Leo was lowkey glad that he didn't see Percy on this day, because from the sounds of it, he was already raging in the room.

"So," Jason said, "now that we're here ..."

He sat at the head of the table, kind of by default. Since they'd lost Annabeth and Juliet, and considering Percy and Augustus were indisposed, Jason had done his best to act as the group's leader.

Having been praetor back at Camp Jupiter, he was probably used to that, but Leo could tell his friend was stressed. His eyes were more sunken than usual. His blond hair was uncharacteristically messy, like he'd forgotten to comb it.

Leo glanced at the others around the table. Hazel was bleary-eyed, too, but of course she'd been up all night guiding the ship through the mountains. Her curly cinnamon-coloured hair was tied back in a bandanna, which gave her a commando look that Leo found kind of hot – and then immediately felt guilty about.

Next to her sat her boyfriend Frank Zhang, dressed in black workout pants and a Roman tourist T-shirt that said CIAO! (was that even a word?). Frank's old centurion badge was pinned to his shirt, despite the fact that the demigods of the Argo II were now Public Enemies Numbers 1 through 7 back at Camp Jupiter. His grim expression just reinforced his unfortunate resemblance to a sumo wrestler.

Then there was Hazel's half-brother, Nico di Angelo. Dang, that kid gave Leo the freaky-deakies. He sat back in his leather aviator jacket, his black T-shirt and jeans, that wicked silver skull ring on his finger and the Stygian sword at his side. His tufts of black hair stuck up in curls like baby bat wings. His eyes were sad and kind of empty, as if he'd stared into the depths of Tartarus – which he had.

Daphne was beside Jason, holding his hand in concern, her own self wasn't any better, hair nearly like a rat nest. But Augustus sitting beside her, Leo didn't even know how to describe how he looked except like a ghost.

The only absent demigod (minus Percy) was Piper, who was taking her turn at the helm with Coach Hedge, their satyr chaperone.

Leo had zoned out so totally he didn't realize Jason was still talking.

"– the House of Hades," he was saying. "Nico?"

Nico sat forward. "I communed with the dead last night."