Joyful Reunions [Sequal to Painful Goodbyes] [Completed]

Chapter One: Saying Goodbye

Annabeth's P.O.V.
I sat in the camp van while Chiron, Thalia, and Hazel work the Mist on every mortal present, holding him in my lap. I don't feel anything but pain. I don't hear anything but his voice, his last words to me, and his scream as he fell to the ground. I don't see anything but his empty eyes staring at me, the blood staining his shirt red. Nothing matters anymore. Because he is gone. Because Percy Jackson is dead.

Thalia's P.O.V.
Chiron, Hazel, and I stand outside the camp van and work the Mist on the mortals present, making them believe we're cops and here to take care of this. Everyone else is already in the van. Clarrise had run back inside the building and beat the shit out of Gabe after she saw that... that he was dead. No one had tried to stop her. She came back a few minutes ago, tears running down her face. Her boyfriend Chris, who had driven the van here after getting an IM from Chiron had rushed forward to meet her, wrapping her in a hug and letting tears of his own from down his face. Now, they were both in the van with everyone else.

Done working the mist, I climbed into the back and sat down next to Annabeth, glaring at Grover who immediately moved out of my way. I placed a hand on her shoulder and the other one on his hand. I suppressed a shudder. It was already cold. It had only happened about ten minutes ago. About eleven minutes ago, he had still been here. He had still been alive. But he had just learned that his stepfather was the reason his mother was dead, the reason he was crippled and blind. And he probably still believed all the things that basterd had told him. I made myself stop thinking about it. I stared at his face instead, keeping my thoughts blank and my face as clear of emotion as possible. Though, I couldn't stop the tears from falling endlessly down my cheeks.

Deciding to look around, I saw that there wasn't one person who didn't have tears in their eyes and slipping down their cheeks. Nico's eyes were red and puffy, tears still falling from his dark eyes. Will was a mess, sniffling and trying not to sob. Leo sat in a corner, holding his head in his hands as he shook with the force of his tears. Piper sat next to him, her arms wrapped around his shoulders and her head hung low, tears staining her cheeks and more continued to flow. Hazel sobbed into Frank's chest, sitting on his lap as he held her tight, his face buried in her hair as he cried as well. Reyna sat alone in a corner, trying not to show her emotions to everyone else, but she was crying. Rachel sat across from Annabeth and I, sobbing as well. Clarrise sat on Annabeth's other side, her arm also wrapped around Annabeth's shoulders, the other one wrapped around Chris who sat next to her. They both had tears slipping down their faces, leaning into each other. Grover sat next to me, his head in his hands as tears fell down his face in little rivers, seemingly never ending. Jason sat closer to the front by himself, a few tears slid down his face. I resisted the urge to snarl. He was so heartless. But at least he was shedding a few tears for him. Maybe now Jason understands that he is wrong.

Wait, someone is missing. I inhaled sharply, looking for Poseidon, Amphitrite, and Triton as the van finally started moving. I couldn't spot them. I jumped up and ran to the front, pounding on the divider between the cab and back here. It slid open and Chiron's sad, tear-streaked face looked at me. "Yes, Thalia?" He said sadly, obviously as affected by his death as the rest of us.

"Where are Poseidon, Amphitrite, and Triton? They're not back here." I said, hating how broken and choked my voice sounded. I couldn't afford to be weak! Annabeth and pretty much everyone needs me to be strong so they don't have to. I was broken out of my thoughts by Chiron sighing and talking to me.

"They probably flashed home or to the camp to wait for us. Maybe to Olympus to call a meeting and tell all the other gods what happened." He said. "It's okay to be weak, Thalia. It is perfectly fine for you to brake down and sob. You don't have to be strong, you don't have to hold it all in. Thalia, you don't have to take his place as leader." I nodded, not really letting the words sink in. Chiron sighed again and closed the divider. I stifled another sob and headed back to my seat next to Annabeth.