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PIPER FELT WARM. Not physically. Like the heat was coming from her insides. It was nice. Pleasant. And she suspected it to be her friends doing. She wanted to tell them how much they meant to her. They'd sacrificed everything, maybe even their quest, to help her. She couldn't replay them, couldn't even put her gratitude into words. But her friends' expressions told her they understood.

Then, right next to Jason, the air began to shimmer. At first, Charlie thought it was heat off the tarmac, or maybe gas fumes from the helicopter, but she'd seen something like this before. It was an iris message. An image appeared in the air — a dark-haired girl in silver winter camouflage, holding a bow.

Jason stumbled back in surprise. ''Thalia!''

''Move, Supes!'' Charlie pushed him away, palm on his face as she lunged for Thalia. She wrapped her arms around the girls form, hands hovering in mid-air in a pretend hug.

''Uhm. Charlie, you know you're not actually hugging me, right?''

''It's the thought that counts.''

Thalia chuckled ever so slightly, patting Charlie's head, her fingers going through the girls head slightly. ''Thank the gods I found you,'' Thalia mumbled as Charlie stepped away. The scene behind her was hard to make out, but they could hear yelling, metal clashing on metal, and explosions.

''We've found her,'' Thalia said, seriousness returning. ''Where are you?''

''Oakland,'' he said. ''Where are you?''

''The Wolf House! Oakland is good; you're not too far. We're holding off the giant's minions, but we can't hold them forever. Get here before sunset, or it's all over.''

''Then it's not too late?'' Piper cried. Hope surged through her, but Thalia's expression quickly supressed it.

''Not yet,'' Thalia said. ''But — it's worse than I realised. Porphyrion is rising. Hurry.''

''But where is the Wolf House?'' he pleaded.

''Our last trip,'' Thalia said, her image starting to flicker. 'The park. Jack London. Remember?''

This made no sense to Charlie, but before she could lecture Thalia on straight answers, her image faded away. She turned around. Jason looked like he had just been shot. He tottered, his face pale.

''Bro, you alright?'' Leo asked. ''You know where she is?''

''Yes,'' Jason said. ''Sonoma Valley. Nor far. Not by air.''

Piper turned to the ranger pilot, who'd been watching all this with an increasingly puzzled expression.

''Ma'am,'' Piper said with her best smile. ''You don't mind helping us one more time, do you?''

''I don't mind,'' the pilot agreed.

Charlie gripped Piper's upper arm lightly, facing the opposite way to her, lowering her voice to a whisper. ''We can't take a civvy into battle. It's too dangerous.''

Leo chuckled darkly. ''When did we stop being the civilians?''

Jason hummed, turning to him. ''You think you can fly this thing?''

''Um...'' Leo's expression didn't exactly reassure any of them. But then he put his hand on the side of the helicopter, concentrating hard, as if listening to the machine. ''Bell 412HP utility helicopter,'' Leo said. ''Composite four-blade main rotor, cruising speed twenty-two knots, service ceiling twenty-thousand feet. The tank is near full. Sure. I can fly it.''

Charlie stared in awe.

Piper smiled at the ranger again. ''You don't have a problem with an underaged unlicensed kid borrowing your coptor, do you? We'll return it.''

''I—'' The pilot nearly chocked on the words, but she got them out. ''I don't have a problem with that.''

Leo grinned. ''Hop in kids. Uncle Leo's gonna take you for a ride.''

''Shotgun!'' Charlie yelled hand whipping straight into the air.

''Are you serious right now?'' Jason said, looking offended and slightly bummed out. ''You cannot call shotgun on a helicopter!''

''Sure you can, I just did! Come on, Leo. I'll co-pilot.''

The remaining three shared a look, but Charlie didn't seem to care, hopping into the correct seat. Leo calmed himself down slightly. Maybe he could prevent her from touching anything.

The sun was going down as they flew north over the Richmond Bridge, and Leo couldn't believe the day had gone so quickly. Once again, nothing like ADHD and a good fight to the death to make time fly.

Piloting the chopper, he went back and forth between confidence and panic. If he didn't think about it, he found himself automatically flipping the switches, checking the altimeter, easing back on the stick, and flying straight. If he allowed himself to consider what he was doing, he started freaking out. He imagined his Aunt Rosa yelling at him in Spanish, telling him he was a delinquent lunatic who was going to crash and burn. Part of him suspected she was right.

But every time his thoughts were intruded, Charlie would take control over the stick with her left arm, leaning over so her right one could hold them steady, keeping them afloat.

''Breathe,'' she whispered softly, focused on the horizon.

Leo retracted his arms from the controls, resting them on his thighs, rubbing the sweat off him. ''Okay,'' he would whisper back when he was ready and Charlie wouldn't even hesitate, moving back to her side as soon as his fingers touched the controls again.

Leo glanced to his left, looking at her. ''So, uhm,'' he cleared his throat, glancing at the mirror to see Jason and Piper softly conversing among themselves, not paying attention to the two of them. ''How'd you learn?''

''Learn?''

''You know. Flying.''

''Oh,'' Charlie hummed, gaze tearing off him and back to the side window. ''My mum taught me.''

''How'd your mum know?'' Leo figured he was being nosey, which was how all this started in the first place. But then again, he wanted to know as much about her as she could. You never know when some guy from a TV show might pop up and quiz him on his best friend. He needed to be prepared for this delusional fantasy he was using as an excuse for talking to her.

Charlie took her time answering. ''For a heist.''

The chopper steered to the right as Leo snapped his head to her. ''A heist?''

Swiftly, she leaned over again, straightening them up. ''That's what I said.''

''For what? Like, a robbery?''

''Yeah. We had a string of them. Most hit the news pretty quickly. Most the time, the police didn't figure they were connected because she sent different people in.''

''No masks?''

''Yeah, Curls, we had masks. But different people meant different shoe sizes, different footprints, different heights and weights on the security cameras. She's smart like that. Always has been.''

''That what got you into Wilderness School?''

She laughed, remembering his frustration towards not knowing. ''No, that file was made up. I can't actually remember what was on it.'' She hummed again, drumming her fingers on her knee. Leo wanted to reach over and steady them as they begun to shake. ''Mum was arrested when I was about nine? The, uh, court took me away from her. I suppose they had every right to, but, I didn't like it.''

''And I suppose Coach found you in a shoe shop, huh?''

She laughed. ''How'd you know?'' He shrugged, risking taking his hand away from the control panel to tap the side of his nose comedically. ''Yeah. When I was eleven. Pretty sure I got him banned. He was bitching about it the whole way to Camp.''

Leo laughed, imagining it. 

''And your mum?''

Charlie shrugged. ''Still in prison. One of the most guarded ones, actually. I haven't seen her since.''

''No visiting hours?''

''No. There is.''

Leo glanced over at her. She was staring at her lap, knees jolting and fingers playing with each other's, she twisted two of her left hand fingers around her right ring finger, causing a red mark.

He wasn't entirely sure when everything had snapped into place like this, but he could read every expression, every micro-expression and every action well. As if she was an extension of himself. He could see her thoughts.

He risked it.

Removing his left hand from the stick, he moved it over to hers, resting in between the two as he stopped the movement, weaving his fingers between whichever ones of hers he could, awkwardly holding her two hands as he kept looking at where he was going, nervous.

Charlie smiled, watching. Her fingers twitched at first, fighting against the pressure that was keeping them still, but she fought it off. Delicately, she raised her thumb, planting it on the side of Leo's hand, at the angle created from the bottom of his thumb, where it became his wrist, brushing against it as she couldn't reach any other area. Leo smiled.

''We can visit her. After. If you want — together.'' Charlie's movement's halted. Leo squeezed her hands again. ''Only if you want.''

''I think...'' She smiled sadly, continuing her affection against his hand. ''I think I'm not ready yet.''

''Well, whenever you are,'' he turned to look at her, waiting for eye-contact before he continued, ''Just say the word.''

Seven, going on eight years, without a trip to her mother. She was there, she was available. Leo's wasn't. And yet no judgement radiated from him. Just warmth — he meant it.

''Thank you.''

''Don't mention it,'' He stopped speaking, not translating all of his thoughts, though they continued without his permission, I'd do anything for you.

''What about you?''

''What about me?''

Charlie shrugged, cheek pressing against her shoulder before she turned away from him. Leo was tempted to turn her back to face him. She sighed. ''I dunno. Anything from the ol' bucket list you wanna do with me?''

Leo would do it all with her. But he didn't have a bucket list. He was almost upset, saddened at the thought that his answer would let her down. ''I don't have one.''

''Seriously?'' She turned to him. He nodded. She shrugged again. ''Ah well, we'll make one together. Combine mine with some of your ideas.''

Leo was grinning super widely, fighting against the temptation to release the controls and turn to her. Because of it, he couldn't see the same expression mirrored on Charlie's face as she stared out the window, hiding it.

Jason popped his head between the two seats. ''You guys aware that that's what old couples do?''

Piper was frantically giggling into her hand as the two jolted, Charlie nearly went out her window and Leo nearly sent them all into a tree. Raccoon Leo grabbed Charlie's shirt, pulling her up, (she actually sat up on her own, but he didn't know that), and wiped his brow with the back of his hand. ''Whew.''

''Jesus Christ, Jason,'' Charlie put her hand over her heart, feeling it beat rapidly.

Jason made a buzzer noise. ''Wrong religion, demigod. Would you like to try again?''

''Oh, you're so annoying,'' Charlie laughed, moving her hand to his face as she pushed him back, allowing Piper to peer between the two seats too. 

''We going okay?'' She sounded more mischievous than nervous, and Leo rolled his eyes. Friends can plot a bucket list together. It's not like they were planning to elope or anything. He retracted his hand.

''Aces,'' he said. ''So, what is the Wolf House?'' He glanced at Jason. ''I've been going in the direction you told me to, but I'm not too sure on what to look out for.''

Jason knelt between their seats, settling into a more comfortable position. Raccoon Leo saw the opportunity and took it, curling up on Jason's left leg, folded in half and providing just enough room to lay on. ''An abandoned mansion in Sonoma Valley.'' Absentmindedly, he petted the, well, I guess he was officially their pet. ''A demigod built it — Jack London.''

Leo couldn't place the name. ''He an actor?''

''Writer,'' Piper answered. ''Adventure stuff, right? Call of the Wind? White Fang?''

''Yeah,'' Jason said. ''He was a son of Mercury. I mean, Hermes—''

''Sweet. Me too.''

''—He was an adventurer, travelled the world. He was even a hobo for a while. Then he made a fortune writing. He brought a big ranch in the country and decided to build this huge mansion — the white house.''

''Names that 'cause he wrote about wolves?'' Leo guessed.

''Partially,'' Jason nodded. ''But the site, and the reason he wrote about wolves — he was dropping hints about his personal experience. There're a lot of holes in his life story — how he was born, who his dad was, why he wandered around so much — stuff you can only explain if you know he was a demigod.''

The bay slipped behind them, and the helicopter continued north. Ahead of them, yellow hills rolled out as far as Leo could see.

''So, Jack London went to Camp Half-Blood?'' Leo guessed again.

''No,'' Jason said, ''No he didn't.''

''Dude, you're like, totally freaking me out with the mystery talk. Are you remembering your past or not?''

''Pieces,'' Jason muttered. ''Only pieces. None of it good. The Wolf House is on sacred ground. It's where London started his journey as a child — where he found out he was a demigod. That's why he returned there. He thought he could live there, claim that land, but it wasn't for him. The Wolf House was cursed. It burned in a fire a week before he and his wife were supposed to move in. A few years later, London died. His ashes were buried on the site.''

''Wow... Trivia teams must love you in bars.''

''So,'' Piper said, ''How do you know all this?''

A shadow crossed Jason's face. Probably just a cloud, but Charlie could've sworn it was shaped exactly like an eagle.

''I started my journey there too,'' Jason said. ''It's a powerful place for demigods. A dangerous place. If Gaea can claim it, use its power to entomb Hera on the solstice and raise Porphyrion — that might be enough to waken the goddess fully.''

Leo kept his hand on the joystick, guiding the chopper at full speed — racing toward the north. He could see some weather ahead — a spot of darkness like a cloudbank or a storm, right were they were heading.

''Thirty minutes out,'' he told his friends, though he wasn't sure how he knew. ''If you want to get some rest, now's a good time.''

Jason strapped himself to the back of the helicopter and passed out almost immediately. Piper didn't go so easily, tossing and turning as she fought against her seatbelt aggressively.

After a few moments of listening to her wrestle, Leo spoke up. ''Your dad'll be fine, you know. Nobody's gonna mess with him with that crazy goat around.''

Piper glanced over, and Leo was struck by how much she'd changed. Not just physically. Her presence was stronger. She seemed more... here. At Wilderness School she'd spent the semester trying not to be seen, hiding out in the back row of the classroom, the back of the bus, the corner of the lunchroom as far as possible from the loud kids. Now she was impossible to miss. It didn't matter what she was wearing, Aphrodite magic or not; you'd have to look at her.

''My dad,'' she said thoughtfully. ''Yeah, I know. I was thinking about Jason. I'm worried about him.''

Charlie nodded, trying to find the words. The closer they got to the bank of dark clouds, the more Leo grew worried too. He spoke up before Charlie could. ''He's starting to remember. That's got to make him a little edgy.''

''But what if... what if he's a different person?''

Leo had been having the same thoughts. If the mist could affect their memories, could Jason's whole personality be an illusion too? If their friend wasn't heir friend, and they were heading into a cursed mansion — a dangerous place for demigods — what would happen if Jason's full memory came back in the middle of battle?''

Charlie smiled casually, not at all plagued with the same thoughts. ''Youse ever heard of nature versus nurture?''

''Well, sure.''

''It doesn't matter who Jason was before, different or not. Biologically, he's a demigod. We're all a little on edge and repellent at times. But, we've been with Jason the entire time. He's grown comfortable with us, and we've learnt to trust each other. That's hard to come by.'' She glanced at the two of them, doing her best to reassure them. ''After all we've been through? I can't see it. We're a team. Jason can handle it. And if not? We'll share the burden out between us.''

Piper smoothed her jeans, a few burn patches in places from their fight on Mount Diablo. ''I hope you're right. I need him—'' she cleared her throat. ''I mean, I need to trust him.''

''I know,'' Leo said.

After seeing her dad break down, the two understood Piper couldn't afford to lose Jason as well. She'd just watched Tristan McLean, her cool suave movie star dad, reduced to near insanity.

''Hey, don't worry,'' Leo said. ''Piper, you're the strongest, most powerful beauty queen I've ever met. You can trust yourself. For what it's worth, you can trust us too.''

The helicopter dipped in a wind shear, Charlie grabbed the controls, Leo helping her once his soul as returned to his body, panicking as he helped her steer and right the chopper.

''Trust you, huh?''

''Ah, shut up already.''

Piper fell asleep much easily after that.

''Gods, does she snore,'' Charlie whispered, laughing quietly as Leo joined in.

''Don't know how you're allowed to complain, Miss Sleep-Talker.''

Charlie gasped, hand to her mouth. ''No! Say you're kidding right now.'' He shook his head and Charlie dramatically flopped into her backseat, covering her face in humiliation.

Leo laughed. '''The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell', right in my ear at, like, two AM!'' Charlie made more protesting noises, hiding her reddening face as Leo laughed at her unfortune. ''What was you even dreaming of to come up with that?''

''I don't even know,'' she mumbled.

''I wasn't even aware you went to school.''

Charlie laughed, whacking his upper arm lightly.

Leo's laugh dimmed down and he glanced at her again, before looking over his shoulder to make sure Jason and Piper were asleep this time, Raccoon Leo nestled between them, drooling all over Jason's arm. He looked at her again, contemplating something, and glanced at the windscreen.

''Ice cream,'' he said.

Charlie lolled her head to look at him, head leaving the backrest ever so slightly. ''Ice cream?''

''On the bucket list.'' He said, smiling sheepishly at her. ''I want us to get ice cream together.''

''Is that all?''

''Yeah.''

She smiled, closing her eyes and resuming her position. ''Okay.''

''Okay?'' He said, the confirmation not being enough.

She laughed, shoulders shaking, but she didn't open her eyes again. ''Okay! We'll get ice cream together, Leo.'' Her nickname for him might send his heart racing a hundred miles per hour, but when his actual name came from her mouth, it calmed him down, made him feel at ease.

''Seriously?''

''Oh, my gods, Leo! Yes!'' She said, doing her best to suppress the loud laugh that bubbled away at her throat. ''It's just ice cream, man! What's it gonna take for you to believe me?''

Right. Just ice cream. Leo calmed down slightly. Just ice cream with Charlie, his best friend... He couldn't wait. ''Okay, okay! I believe you. I just, wasn't expecting it, to be honest.''

''Leo, you could ask me for the sun and I'd find a way to give it to you.''

He glanced at her, heart beat rising once again. Her eyes were closed, completely and utterly relaxed against her seat, head tilted towards him, chin resting on her shoulder. She looked peaceful, like she could be