Heroes of Olympus: Thirteen Years Later

Chapter 8

Tyson's POV
The moment we surfaced, I saw my brother Percy. I ran towards him and hugged him. Percy enthusiastically clapped my back.

"Long time no see, little brother!" Percy greeted me, "How has Dad been lately?"

"He's generally okay, just the occasional temper once in a while." I replied.

"Uncle Tyson, can you play with me?" Anais asked.

"Okay, sure! What do you want to play?"

~●~●~●~

Nico's POV
I really thought that going on a trip with these people was not going to be very fun, but I guess this is okay. The amount of hassle wasn't as terrible as I expected.

The sun was setting, and the sky was a majestic shade of crimson. We were gathering around the campfire, eating and drinking and telling stories.

"I went to Grandpa's underwater palace with my sis!" Lukas exclaimed.

"We went on an adventure in the forest," Zoey stated, "Aunt Thalia was still there."

"Hanging out with Tyson was awesome! Wish Grover was here," Percy sighed, " I miss that goat. I'll go Iris- message him."

"Wait for me, Seaweed Brain. I haven't seen him in ages either."

"Mom, Dad, say hello to Uncle Grover for us, okay?"

"Sure!"

As they left to Iris- message, a pair of arms wrapped around my neck and hugged me. I thought it was Will, but it was actually Bianca.

"Dad! Teach me about stars again! Please?" She said, "that there is The Huntress, right?"

"Yes, Bianca, that is right. But tonight I think I'll tell you a different story. Do you know the story behind your name?" I started.

I proceeded to tell the story of my past and my sister. A couple of tears might've been shed in the process.

"So I have an aunt who I got my name from? "

"Yes, dear." Will came over and plopped down next to me.

By then it was about 8.30 p.m., so the children were all sleepy. We tucked them in and went back outside. Percy, Annabeth, Jason, and Piper were stargazing. Frank and Hazel were having a moment together. Leo and Calypso seemed to be rigging something up, but they flat-out refused to tell what.

And Reyna... she was sitting on the steps of the RV, staring kinda blankly. I walked over to her and comforted her.

"Hey, Reyna, you okay? You look blank." I said matter-of-factly.

"I'm fine, it's just... seeing all of you with your partners, your best friend who's always with you, I feel empty. I wonder if I should've joined the Hunters when I was younger..." Reyna confided.

See, since her almost-relationship with Jason was destroyed by the camp- switch amnesia nonsense that Hera planned (and Percy was taken already), Reyna swore to never get in another relationship. However, she didn't want to join the Hunters as she didn't want to leave the families she has from both camps.

"I think you've made the right choice, but you can still technically join since you're still a maiden." I suggested.

"But would Artemis accept a 30-year-old like me?"

"There isn't a known age limit," I told her, "or you could join your sister?"

"True....hmmm."

Reyna pondered intensely. I know she is fighting a mental battle. I don't really know what to tell her.

"I think I'll stay as is. I don't want to leave you, as my little brother, or Storm."

~●~●~●~

"Hey guys, it's already pretty late, let's sleep!" Will advised, as usual.

"Really?! I really don't wanna." Percy complained.

"Doctor's orders."

"Aw, alright, alright..."

We filed back in the RV. We also cleaned ourselves up, since we had so much sand on us.

"You know, I've never known how Leo felt all this time... until now. I'm such a third wheel. No, scratch that, I'm an eleventh wheel." Reyna muttered to me.

We all headed for our respective bedrooms and flopped on our beds. I saw Will fall asleep right away, but I had too much on my mind. I looked out the window at the moon, at the constellations in the sky, at the clouds. After a while, I finally felt sleepy. I dozed off next to Will.

I slept surprisingly well, considering what happened at dawn.