The next morning, just before dawn, a cold wind was blowing and the sun hadn't even broken the horizon yet. Melody shook him awake, and Jason noted distantly that she was already packed, and her bow and arrows were slung across her back. The hilt of a short sword and knife stuck out, partially concealed, at her waist.

"Look. Its going to be hard as Hades to get you to camp if you don't cooperate and your feet are bound. So I need you to swear on the Styx that you will not run, and you'll follow me to Camp Half-Blood." She said softly.

Jason knew he had no choice, so he swore. Thunder rumbled in the distance as his oath took hold.

Melody undid his binds, and yanked him to his feet.

She handed him the short sword at her waist.

At his questioning look, she rolls her eyes.

"I'd be suicide if your not armed. Now hurry up! I want to go while we still have some darkness as cover."

Jason had to sprint to keep.up with her swift and nimble pace.

"The suns about to rise." He felt compelled to point out.

She shook his her head, amused.

"Nah. We have a good fifteen minutes before.it breaks horizon. Dad's always a little lazy during the cold months, that's why the days are shorter. Can't say I blame him. I'd be lazy too, if I wasn't worried about getting attacked by something twenty-four seven." Melody said, leaping up to catch hold of one of the middle branches of an oak before swinging and releasing, doing a flip midair as she landed lightly on her feet ten metres away.

Jason stopped to stare.

Then he shook his head.

"Show off." He muttered, cracking the beginnings of what might have been a smile.

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Around dusk, when the rays of dying light cast hues of gold and red and pink across the clouds, Jason was exhausted.

It had been months since he ate actual food, and he hadn't done anything besides run from the Legion's eagles and the Hunter 's wolf's that involved this much physical exertion.

Melody, on the other hand, didn't seem bothered by the fact they had been sprinting all day.

Then she looked back and saw Jason was almost fifteen yards behind her, and she slowed to a stop.

"There's a clearing about forty yards ahead. Why don't we camp there for the night?" She offered.

A breathless Jason nodded, since he was unable to speak.

So Melody walked back to where he was now limping towards her and she draped one of his arms around her shoulders, helping support his weight, which wasn't much.

They walked together to the clearing, and when they were there Melody helped Jason sit down against a tree. She cleared brush out from the center of the small clearing.

Then she dragged rocks to form a circle and propped logs under a teepee made of sticks and dry brush.

Jason was watching her curiously.

"Well, since apparently you Miss Acrobatic Nature Girl now I assume your going to start a fire with flint and steel?" Jason asked.

Melody smiled and took a medium sized stick from the teepee. Then she dug in the olive-colored pack for something.

"Not quite." She said, pulling out a flip-top lighter and lighting the end of the stick. She placed it back on the teepee and a fire blazed.

Jason raised his eyebrow. Melody shrugged.

"Good ol America and their refillable lighters." She said simply.

Jason laughed, and he felt himself shocked.

He hadn't laughed since... since...

Since Piper died.

It felt good to laugh. It felt like something inside of him finally started to heal.