DA : Chapter 33: Goodbye I

"Wow, this area is nice," Andromeda commented as she looked around the heavily wooded mountains.

"Yeah," Jason agreed as he occasionally glanced at the scenery.

They were walking along a gravel and dirt road close to the apex of a mountain valley with large trees surrounding them. An odd deer or so passed by them time to time but otherwise it was very quiet, the afternoon sun already on its decent for the day.

While walking Andy kept glancing at the heir of the light beside her, a worried frown marring her face at times.

Ever since she'd brought Jason to the House of Night and everything that happened afterwards, she could feel the lingering pain in his heart.

It could only be described as sad and … empty even, as if he'd given up on the entire concept of love. She wondered if this was what her brother had felt in his betrayal but then she shook her head.

True, he'd suffered similar betrayals but each happened between periods of battle and then peace, with at least one thing holding him together. Annabeth cheated but he had his friends and concerned with the war.

Later it was the gods and the murder of their mom but Percy had Hestia's companionship for a time and then Nyx and Rhea.

Everything had simply fallen apart for Jason in one night and now, though he hid it a little too well, he was suffering as well with nowhere to vent those emotions.

Maybe he would confide in Percy or Nico but then again, Nico was odd with emotional stuff and Percy, while being Jason's 'bro', was still a klutz when it came to comforting people.

She should know, half the time when she cried for the first few years about everything she learned Percy would mess up what he was trying to say. Thank goodness she could be calmed with his hugs and cookies while Rhea handled the talking things out.

But who did Jason have for that? Reyna? Not likely and she was back at the camp anyways. His sister could be an option but they weren't even sure if she'd join them, Calypso too but then again, it went down to the lines being drawn for the war.

'Could … I help out?' she wondered as she glanced at him again, staring slightly at his sky blue eyes coursing with white electricity and glowing pupils.

'He really does look nice like this,' she noted before looking away and shaking those thoughts for the moment. 'Come on! Just think of some way to start… But how!? It's too soon but he'll just wallow in sadness otherwise. ARGH!'

She huffed in frustration which earned his attention making her bite back a curse. Still, might as well strike while the iron is hot anyways.

"Ah Jason," she started as she locked eyes with him.

"Yes."

"How are you feeling?" she asked tentatively but he gave her a confused eyebrow so she elaborated. "You know … about what happened in the camp."

At the mention of the camp his eyes immediately darkened with a flash of pain, almost making Andy flinch as she literally felt it pass through her as well. After some tense silence he answered curtly, "I'm … fine."

She nodded slowly, knowing that he wasn't in the mood to continue the conversation and now she was beating herself up for bringing it up.

They walked on, the atmosphere now awkward when all Andromeda had wanted to do was talk with him and get to know him. Now she was pretty sure she made a sloppy attempt at breaking the ice … and possibly added more to it.

Still, she was Andromeda Jackson, younger sister of the infamous Percy Jackson and that meant being stubborn was in the job description … just with a little more tact than her brother. So she took a breath as she looked at him before speaking softly.

"I know you don't want to talk about it," she started while Jason kept looking forward without giving any sign that he'd heard her. "But I just want to you to know … if you do ever want to talk, I'm just a shadow hop away."

He didn't answer her as they continued to walk, making her look at the floor dejectedly. She kicked around a twig or two as they moved, the silence feeling like a lead weight on her shoulders.

After a while she looked around again as they passed a ridge and she could see the lower end of the valley.

Evergreens and pines covered the mountain floor while a large lake marked the center and some of the highest peaks actually had snow on them even though the summer hadn't even ended yet.

She found it both beautiful and peaceful, much like some of the forests she used to explore whenever the Hunt located in a new area … until she left that is. That was probably the only thing she truly regretted about living in the House of Night.

Sure, the house was more like a palace and was structured beautifully along with the special courtyard Percy and Nyx formed together but was still Tartarus.

She couldn't wait for the day she could live on the surface again peacefully and just enjoy nature as she once had.

It was will thinking all this and taking in the view that she failed to notice Jason stepping up beside her before speaking softly. So soft in fact that she almost missed it.

"Thank you …"

She spun her head around in surprise but he was already moving again but from what she caught of his face before he was too far in front for her to see, she noted that he had a slightly embarrassed blush.

She smile at the tiny victory though, knowing it was hard for guys like her brother and Jason to admit feeling weak or down. They were the leaders, the ones everyone looked to in times of need.

They were tempered to not show any weakness or pain, to be those intimidating and unyielding warriors, the commanders that could take more and keep going.

So for Jason to even thank her for her offer made her feel giddy to the point she actually hopped a little.

She soon caught up to him though, a pleasant silence now surrounding them as she hummed softly to herself. She could even see how Jason looked more relaxed and had the faintest of smiles on his face. After some more walking she let her curiosity take over as she looked at Jason.

"So, why did Frank and Hazel come out here of all places?"

Jason glanced at her for a moment before answering. "Well, I guess they just wanted to get away from it all. I mean, can you really blame them? The war took a heavy toll on everyone, especially those that had to travel to the Old World.

Many of us had to face our demons one way or another so, once everything was said and done, trying to find peace made the most sense."

"Yeah but with the barrier Hecate set up, they could have lived just about anywhere so why out here in upper state Washington near the border to Canada?" she persisted.

"Frank's Canadian," Jason answered as if it explained everything before frowning. "And I thought we weren't supposed to name gods who are sided with the Olympians to not risk being found too early."

"Who said Hecate is with the Olympians," she said slyly while Jason looked at her incredulously.

"What? Percy's been busy these last few years and honestly, of the gods, Hecate owed Percy more than anything since he's the reason she was spared after the Titan War and her children were recognized. The minute he told her his plans and who he is, she was on board."

"Oh," was Jason's only reply before he asked, "Any other gods I should know about?"

"A few like Damasen," she answered with a shrug.

"The bane of the war god? But I thought he hated his father after his banishment to Tartarus," Jason said with a frown.

"Not Tartarus, Gaea," Andromeda corrected. "And for the record, he knew that it was his mother that was disappointed in him while Tartarus lost interest in any of the Giants after they were defeated thanks to their own arrogance."

"Cold," Jason muttered.

"True but many forget that Tartarus is also wise and expects as much from those he trains or rarely sires. The Giants were supposed to be a better solution to the Olympians after they showed their true colors after a few centuries of ruling but in the end, the Giants failed.

Tartarus can be fair and even lenient with one failure, but to fail so utterly and not even for a good reason was too much for him to even look at the Giants again without feeling shame for how they turned out.

As for Damasen, since it was Gaea's curse that kept him trapped within the Pit, Tartarus couldn't really do anything to help … not that he would have considering Damasen gave up pretty quick and accepted his punishment without much of a fight."

"And now?" Jason asked curiously.

"He still won't fight on the front lines if that's what you're asking," Andy answered as she absentmindedly kicked a small pebble. "However, Percy got Damasen to a compromise that would benefit both parties so there's that."

"Huh," Jason muttered as they finally spotted a house coming onto view resting on the end of a ridge below the shadow of a mountain.

Andromeda looked at it intently, subconsciously picking out any weak points of defense and what best ways to possibly defend or attack that house. It was two story, fashioned out of a stone base before transitioning into thick logs and slanted roof.

There was a large window stretching from floor to possibly the second floor letting Andy see into the living room and dining room beyond.

'That might be a serious safety issue,' she mused before returning to her observations. The gravel road led to a stoned driveway and large garage currently open letting Andy see a Jeep Wrangler, a pair of dirt bikes, and a Honda CRV all parked inside.

She also noted the pair of legs sticking out from under the jeep with several tools thrown around. Jason chuckled beside her as he walked on to the garage, suddenly whistling a happy tune as they got closer.

Soon enough the pair of legs went stiff for a moment before a lot of scrambling followed as whoever was under the car rushed to get out.

Andy was surprised a little as a woman looking 25 jumped up before them, wearing overalls, a long sleeve shirt caked in dust and car grime, course brown hair held back by a gold bandana, and a pair of warm amber-gold eyes looking at them.

The moment her eyes landed on Jason she grinned before giving him a flying hug while shouting, "Jason!" which he caught expertly.

This must have been a usual Andromeda thought with a small giggle before the woman looked in her direction.

"Hello there," she greeted kindly. "I'm Havel Zhang, and you are?"

"Andromeda Jackson," she replied without missing a beat and internally chuckling at Hazel's face at hearing her name. "I know. Supposed to be dead and all that plus I should be like 10 by your time but we'll get to that."

"O-okay," Hazel said unsurely before looking to Jason for explanation … although she paused as she narrowed her eyes and properly studied him before gasping. "What happened to you!? You look so … different!"

"Let's get Frank too before I explain anything," he said before a slight frown marred his face. "A lot of things have happened in the last few days so this will take a while."

"And Piper?" Hazel asked as she looked around for said daughter of Aphrodite. "I take it this is more than a casual stop on one of your trips to rescue demigods."

She missed Jason's grimace but he didn't let it show for long before sighing. "Let's just go inside first."

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Don't forget to throw some power Stones, to keep the story going.

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