READ BEFORE STORY:

Hey guys! Acerola Orion here, and if you can guess where my name comes from, then you get brownie points.

So this is something I've been toying with a while, and I've decided to upload it onto fanfiction. I'm drawing elements from a lot of different stories I've read before and adding them into one, but I'm relying really heavily upon the concept of a story that I'd read a few years ago. English isn't my first language, so I hope that it's not too bad, and it's also my first attempt at writing a legitimate story.

I wish I could add more people. I intend to use each character as fully as possible, so it's a shame to label just Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, and Piper as the sole main characters. I'd like to say that everyone will play a role in the story, and if you're a fan of Percy x Zoe or Percy x Reyna, there's no need to worry at all since I like those two ships as well and I'll allow everyone an equal chance at getting with our favorite demigod.

This is an AU where everyone's a mortal, but there are some otherworldly things being involved here. I got some inspiration from Pandora's Jar and the Seven Deadly Sins as well. The categories list it as Romance and Adventure, which I guess it is, but I'd also list it as Drama, Mystery, Horror, Supernatural/Fantasy (I think?), Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, and maybe even Tragedy (kidding).

Rated M just for blood and cussing, so no lemons or anything of that sort. The summary is a modified bit of the story.

With those explanations out of the way, please enjoy!

AU. For some reason, Percy knew her name before she even said anything. "I am Annabeth Chase," she declared, "and this is the 746th time I've tried to stop this loop without success. So, for a change of pace, I'm declaring war with you, Percy Jackson." The struggle begins! What secrets about his life and the people around him will Percy discover when his ordinary life is destroyed?

All of a sudden, I heard it.

[Do you know what a jar is, Percy?]

I was drowning in a sea of despair. Deep and alone in the murky water, I saw the figure of someone before me.

Beautiful yet terrible, a vague shade of a human merged into the dark with tendrils and endless curls. I saw a face without features that looked like every man and woman in the world and nothing all at once, and I watched in mortification as a wide, gleaming smile flashed into existence.

In a voice that blended young and old, male and female, it spoke to me.

[A jar is something that will grant any wish that you have.]

[It is something of infinite power.]

[The only limit to its power is your own imagination.]

"What? What are you talking about?" I screamed into nothingness.

[So, what do you think?]

[Would you like a jar?]

Darkness crept upon the edges of my vision. Somewhere above me, a faint, minuscule light glowed. All amongst the shadows, a single ray of light emerged. And I knew—I knew that no matter how dim or how bleak things seemed, there was always hope.

The being looked at me, the same, unnerving smile still splitting its face in two. It was waiting. Expecting. Excited for what I was about to say.

And so, with a small, unassuming grin of my own, I gave it my answer.

"Destiny has two ways of crushing us – by refusing our wishes and by fulfilling them."

—Henri Frederic Amiel

1st Iteration

"Alright campers, this is the official beginning of Camp Half-blood!" a kindly-looking man announced, earning the claps and cheers from everyone in the pavilion. I clapped my hands along with everyone else. "Now, let's have our introductions!"

A beautiful blonde girl rose and smiled. "Hi, my name is Annabeth Chase. Nice to meet all of you!"

Her face was bright, almost glowing. The broad, shining smile on her face was unforgettable.

46th Iteration

With an obviously strained smile, the girl introduced herself. "My name is Annabeth."

Promptly, she sat back down without another word.

113th Iteration

"Annabeth," the girl muttered emotionlessly. I could tell that she was bored beyond belief.

746th Iteration

Somehow, I knew Annabeth Chase's name before she even spoke.

Standing up from her table, the blonde girl with grey eyes stretched her neck and cleared her throat. Everyone's eyes were on her, waiting for her to introduce herself, and an aching sense of familiarity washed over me. I instinctively knew this stranger who stood before me.

"I am Annabeth Chase," she declared, "and this is the 746th time I've tried to stop this loop without success. So, for a change of pace, I'm declaring war with you…"

Her eyes never left mine. Those stormy eyes stared straight through me.

"Percy Jackson."

I sat there, stunned.

"So please," she continued, walking up to me, "remember."

Jar of Sins

by Acerola Orion

156th Iteration

Blood.

All I could see was crimson.

I tried to yell for help, but nothing would come out of my mouth. I could only stand there and do nothing, burning that image into my head for the rest of my life.

I'm sure that, no matter what happened, I could never forget this sight.

4th Iteration

I cut up a slice of pancake and stuffed it into my mouth.

"I'm not saying that Zoe isn't hot, guys," Leo attempted to defend himself, "but my argument is, doesn't she seem like she'd rip your balls off if you tried to make a move on her?"

Jason smirked. "As if that's going to stop you from trying."

"True, true," the Latino boy sighed, staring off into the distance. Following his gaze, I found that he was staring at the group of girls sitting next to us. "Man, this camp is full of hot girls."

Right. I was at camp—Camp Half-blood, to be more specific. For some stupid reason, Mom decided to send me here for a week.

"Go make friends. Maybe find a girlfriend or something. If you do, introduce her to me! Have fun, Percy-pie!"

Sorry, Mom. That would be far too difficult. Plus, having a girlfriend would upset the delicate daily life that I had worked hard to cultivate. I liked the way things were shaping up right now—good grades, a tight group of friends, and captain of the Varsity swimming team. Although I'm not going to deny that I, of course, would like a girlfriend in the future, I'd like things to remain the same for a while. It felt better to be in control of things.

"Ooh, Percy," Leo perked up, "who are you staring at?"

The boy had said this obnoxiously loud, loud enough to be heard by the girls sitting at the table next to us.

"Bianca," I answered smoothly, "but only because I know it'd make Nico mad at me."

A small fist smacked against my ribs. "That's my sister, dude."

Next to me sat a fourteen-year-old boy with dark hair and pale skin. Though he was thin, the punch packed a bit of strength behind it. Seeing as he was the youngest kid in the entire camp, I picked him to be bunkmates just so I can either take him under my wing or tease him ruthlessly.

Patting him on the head, I told him, "Good. Now I see that you care about her."

"Shut up," he grumbled, swiping my hand off, "I don't."

"Aw, the kid's in denial," Leo jumped in, leaning forward. Casting a glance at the other table, Leo grinned. "I don't blame Percy for staring, though. She's cute."

Nico buried his face into his hands. "I hate all of you."

"Hey, Jason," I brought up, "Do you sympathize with Nico at all? Seeing how you've got Thalia and all."

The blond next to Leo shook his head. "Not really, Percy. I'm more scared for the boy than for her. Thalia can handle herself."

A grape flew through the air and smacked Jason in the face. "You bet your ass I can!" I heard Thalia shout.

"Percy," a voice called out. Turning around, I looked up at the lovely face of Piper McLean. "Can I sit?"

"Don't see why not," I answered noncommittally. She sat on the other side of me, sandwiching me. I caught Jason's narrowed eyes briefly.

"Nice ponytail," I said casually. Piper just flashed an exaggerated smile. "Whatcha doing here?"

"Just wanted to ask a question, that's all." She ran a hand through her brown hair, allowing a few uneven strands to fall with a thoughtful expression before continuing. "Do you guys feel extremely familiar with everyone even though most have us have never met before?"

I frowned.

Now that it had been put into words, I couldn't help shake off this intense sense of déjà vu. Normally, it wasn't easy for me to remember strangers' names, but I was effortlessly able to conjure up the names to all of the faces in this camp.

"Yeah, I get what you mean," Jason shrugged, casting a glance at Leo. "Though I wish I wasn't that familiar with this one."

"That hurts," the other boy whined. "It's not my fault our moms decided to send us to the same school for three years."

Nico inserted his opinion. "Everyone's nice enough." Then his eyes narrowed into a glare directed at me. "Percy being the lone exception. Actually, Octavian seems pretty crabby."

I couldn't help but nod in agreement. Having heard everyone's opinions, Piper's face turned towards me. I leaned away slightly to avoid any awkward situations, but I couldn't bring myself to look away from her eyes. Under the bright glint of the morning sun, I could not tell what color they were. They shifted between green, blue, brown, and a unique shade of violet.

Her real eye color was brown. I didn't know where that little fact came from.

"How about you, Percy?"

"… dunno," I said honestly. "It's like a weird déjà vu feeling. I feel like I've already been through this week before."

Somehow, I couldn't shake off the sudden, vague feeling of unease that fell upon me. Piper, satisfied with my answer, got up and left.

"Yo," Jason whispered to me after she was gone, "do you like her?"

"Nope," I answered honestly. "I don't think I will, either. She's a nice person, but I don't really think she's my type."

He let lose a sigh of relief and sent me a smile. "Good."

34th Iteration

So, due to unfortunate circumstances, I'm stuck on a sailboat with Thalia Grace, Zoe Nightshade, and Clarisse LaRue in the middle of a lake.

I'm a good enough swimmer to make it back to the shore if I jumped out right now, but I was held hostage. Even if I wanted to ditch, I couldn't. Thalia had my arms locked completely, and the thin girl was a lot stronger than she let on. Actually, now that I think about it, these three girls on the boat were all physically stronger than me.

"I know that I'm not quite welcome here," I tried, "so how about you let me go and I'll just swim back to shore?"

"If I could, I would throw you overboard," Zoe assured, "but sadly, you are the only one capable of operating this boat. It was either you or the annoyance, so the choice was obvious."

"You mean Leo, right?"

"Like I said, the annoyance."

"Aw, don't let Leo get to you with his womanizer ways," Thalia cheerfully interjected. "He's always been like that ever since Jason introduced him to me. I'm pretty sure he acts like that just to cover up for his insecurities with girls, though."

I couldn't help but be impressed. "That was surprisingly insightful."

"Eh, people are too easy to read, sometimes," she shrugged. From her position behind me, she spoke, and I felt her breath against the back of my neck. "Say, Percy, I've got a question."

"I've got an answer, probably."

She tightened her lock on my arms. "What are your thoughts on Annabeth?"

I was almost caught off guard. "… why are you asking?"

"For some odd reason, she's completely obsessed with you," Thalia told me simply. "I bunk with her, right? Late at night, when she thinks everyone is asleep, she's jotting something down in a notebook of hers while muttering your name."

She let me go and turned me around, intensely studying my face. "Well, I guess you're cute and all, but I don't see why she's so obsessed." Her hands reached up and squeezed my cheeks.

"Could you not?"

"Deal with it," she dismissed, slowly moving her thumbs in circles. I'm not going to lie, it felt pretty nice, but I'd die before I let her know that. "The thing is, I can't figure out whether or not she's in love with you or if she hates you."

Ignoring what she said, I finally gave Thalia an answer. "I think Annabeth is kind and very pretty. We haven't had a lot of opportunities to talk, though."

"She's a Cali babe, isn't she?" the girl laughed, smiling widely. "Very pretty is an understatement, Percy. She's gorgeous but a bit underdeveloped in the lady parts, yeah?"

I failed to see any lies in Thalia's statement, so I didn't disagree with her. Keeping my mouth shut, I let her play with my cheeks to her heart's content.

"Isn't it strange, though?" she continued.

"What?"

"She's a total ice queen," Thalia explained, "It's kind of a juxtaposition with her looks. Ice cold personality, fiery hot looks."

I raised an eyebrow. "You're praising her a lot. Are you sure you're straight—ow!"

For my comment, Thalia pinched my cheeks roughly. Her blue eyes narrowed and she frowned. "Do you want me to prove that I'm not a lesbian?"

Sensing the danger in her voice, I quickly cleared, "No, I was kidding. You're straight, alri—"

Making sure she didn't break eye contact at all, she pressed her pink lips to mine. In no time, she closed the small distance between our faces. My eyes widened and I tried to push off of her, but she pressed me into the side of the small boat and held my head in place with her hands.

With an almost victorious look in her eye, she forcefully entered her tongue into my mouth before finally releasing me.

"There, I proved it," she said, acting like she hadn't just ruined a young teenage boy's innocence. She still hadn't broken eye contact with me.

I gasped for air. Zoe sat there with a disapproving look on her face. "Well, that was a strange display."

"The fact that you're wearing actual clothes instead of a bikini right now is a strange display, my friend," Thalia shot back. True enough, Zoe was clad in jeans and a parka even though it was time for lakeside activities. Even then, the silver parka and black jeans looked befitting of the princess-like aura that surrounded Zoe.

Clarisse looked up, bored, and finally spoke the first words since getting on the boat. "Yo, can we start heading back now? Beckendork and Silena might be done sucking face about now."

I tentatively spoke up. "I agree—"

"Didn't ask for your opinion, Prissy," the girl snapped, leaning backwards.

"I feel attacked right now and I am not okay with this."

"Man up," Clarisse growled, leaning her cheek on a closed fist. "You didn't even properly return that kiss. What a shameful display."

Thalia nodded in agreement. Her lips thinned into a smirk. "For a first kiss, that wasn't that bad, was it?"

That wasn't my first kiss.

I'd almost said that out loud. How strange. In my memory, I'd never kissed a girl before, but I knew that that wasn't my first kiss.

Where were all of these random thoughts coming from?

Taking a deep breath, I stilled my rapidly beating heart. I was caught off guard, yes, I felt somewhat violated, yes, but I didn't want to let that information leak through to Thalia. If it did, I'm sure that that would have counted as a victory for her.

"That doesn't count," I tried saying impassively. If anything, I tried to keep control from shifting over to Thalia's side. "But, if you'd like to, we could try again. Fair warning, you'd probably have to take me out to dinner first."

"Oh? Weren't you just panicking a moment ago?"

"Maybe I was," I retorted, "but then I realized that you weren't that bad looking and you were just trying to prove something, right? So it should've meant nothing. Plus, doing things just to get a reaction isn't that nice, Thalia."

A shocked expression leaked through before it was hid underneath an amused smile. "Ah, my bad. I thought it might have made it easier to read you."

Thalia Grace never means to do anything. She just does things on a whim. I should've been slightly offended that she was just trying to play with me, but I was okay with that.

I began to direct the boat back to the docks. Zoe stared at me with an unfathomable look while Clarisse just muttered, "About time."

When we finally arrived at shore, Clarisse hopped out without saying another word. She ran off towards Silena, probably about to tease her about Charles Beckendorf or something. Though Clarisse was harsh towards me, she was kind to Silena for some reason.

"It was an interesting trip," Zoe said in a tone that was neither an insult or a compliment, so I just nodded at her.

As I was securing the boat to the dock, I felt someone tap me on my shoulder. Turning around, I saw that it was just Thalia, so I asked her something that'd been on my mind for the trip back. "Do you like dominating other people?"

"No, that would be too easy," she answered easily. "I like to play with them. I'm too lazy to do anything else. But…"

Her electric eyes found mine, searching for something. Since I was reminded of the incident earlier, I found myself getting a little bit embarrassed, but I managed to quell that feeling.

"But you're a bit different," Thalia finished. "A bit harder to read than others."

"Thank you for the compliment."

She smiled, revealing a little bit of teeth. It was different from her toothless grin. "I can sorta see why Annabeth's so obsessed with you now."

Before I could ask her how, Thalia kicked me into the water.

52nd Iteration

"And Percy wins," Reyna announced, crossing her arms. "Again. You guys should really stop trying. He's like a fish."

I shrugged, lying down on the shore. "Should I take that as a compliment?"

Travis and Beckendorf stood in the shallow part of the lake, holding themselves up by using their knees for support. Will Solace was still swimming in large, awkward movements, propelling himself forward using only his arms.

Reyna smirked. "Maybe." Her arms remained crossed over her purple bikini top.

"Dude," Travis panted, sloshing up to land, "how are you so fast?"

"I swim for my school," I answered simply. The sun bathed me in its gentle warmth, filling me with a lethargic feeling. During this time, I allowed my eyes to travel around the lake. "It's nice that we get a free day off like this."

"It is," came Beckendorf's deep voice. Having just risen out of the water, little droplets of moisture ran down the curve of his muscles. It wouldn't be too out of place to see him as a linebacker on a football field with his massive height and size, and the only other camper that came remotely close to rivaling his size was Frank. "I suppose we should thank Chiron for suspending activities."

"Beckendorf, what a kind and considerate man you are," Travis muttered, plopping down next to me.

"The opposite of you," Reyna said sharply. She turned her gaze towards the water. Will was still slowly making his way towards the shore. "Should we help him?"

"Naw," Travis decided. He took a bathing towel and dried himself off with it before spreading it over the sand and lying down on it. His curly brown hair was a mess.

Beckendorf noticed something and frowned. "Isn't that Will's towel?"

"Yeah," the kid answered, smirking, "I know." He shifted his attention to Reyna. "Do you know where all the other girls are?"

She shrugged and shook her head. "Probably still back at the cabins getting ready." The braid that held her glossy black hair shook hypnotically with that motion.

"Hm. Looks like I'll have to make do with you, then." Reyna scowled at him, kicking up some sand into Travis's face. Beckendorf checked his watch and stood up.

"Where are you going?" I asked, flicking some sand onto Travis's face with my toes. "You're leaving your towel behind." He stared at me with wide, owlish eyes as if I'd just caught him doing something that he wasn't supposed to do.

"G-Give Will my towel." With those words, Beckendorf sped away with an uncharacteristic nervousness. My question had been completely ignored.

Charles, you sly dog you. I looked up into the sky and chuckled. I don't remember who told me or when I heard this, but apparently, Beckendorf had developed a thing for another girl roughly his age named Silena Bea-something. I hadn't talked to her much, but she seemed nice and sweet. I mentally applauded for him.

"He's definitely rushing off to see Silena in a bikini." Travis affirmed my thoughts. With a small smile and glazed look in his eyes, he added, "Not that I blame him, though. She's so hooot~"

"I'm sure Katie would love to hear that you said that," Reyna mentioned offhandedly, causing Travis to freeze up. "I'm surprised you're not following Beckendorf, though. Katie bunks with Silena, right? So if Silena's coming out for a swim, then wouldn't that mean—"

Travis hopped to his two feet and sprinted off, kicking up a trail of sand and dust in his wake. His pure determination to see Katie in her bathing suit was astounding, and not a second had passed before he was gone. Travis Stoll truly proved his worth as a track star just then.

"Nice lure," I finally said after the sand he kicked up had fallen down.

Reyna feigned a look of innocence. "Oh? What could you possibly mean?"

"Silena bunks with Clarisse."

Her hand tapped herself on the head, and Reyna stuck out a tongue playfully. "Whoops. Honest mistake."

Ah, Reyna. I'd learned quickly that everything she said had to be taken with a grain of salt. I'd never seen a person able to deceive and tell lies with such a straight face, and I had the sneaking suspicion that she would make an excellent politician. Her daily debates with Octavian were incredibly entertaining to watch.

Now we were alone—just me in my swim trunks and Reyna in her bikini. Her completely natural two-piece purple bikini that showed off her toned stomach and tanned olive skin. Finally uncrossing her arms, she allowed her hands to fall to the sand behind her, exposing her bikini-clad chest. Yeah. I gulped unnaturally.

A thought came to my mind, and I felt my cheeks heat up. Did she lure away Travis on purpose? Too late I realized that I accidentally voiced that question out loud.

She smiled. "That's up to you to decide. Your face is getting a bit red, though." I could hear the laugh in her voice.

"…sunburn," I responded quietly. It sounded like I'd completely lost my voice.

"I see. I have some sunscreen." She motioned towards the little bag she brought with her. That smile was still on her face. "Want me to apply some to your face? While I'm at it, I can also get your arms, your chest, your legs, maybe even…"

"Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arellano—"

She interrupted. "I'm surprised you pronounced it correctly."

"—you shouldn't say things like that. I might get the wrong idea, you know?" I finished lamely, face still flushed.

Keeping the smile, she replied in a low tone. "Maybe I want you to get the wrong idea."

I gulped. Even though I tried to block it out, I imagined Reyna's hands slowly rubbing against me. Then I imagined the scenario flipped, where I would be the one applying sunscreen, rubbing it into her arms, her neck, her legs—slow it down, Percy. I sat up and brought my knees to my chest to suppress some of the blood going towards a certain southern region.

"That's a curious reaction," Reyna noted. Her black eyes zeroed in on my own, and the smile faded from her face.

"Reynaaa," I drawled, curling up into a ball, "why are you doing this to me?"

She didn't relent. "What exactly am I doing to you?" That smile, which I now realized was a predatory smirk, returned.

"Nevermind."

While watching me squirm under her words, her face had turned slightly red.

It was then that I had the theory that Reyna was slightly sadistic and a bit of a dominatrix. Worst of all, she had tools at her disposal to aid her. To be able to effortlessly tell little lies, deceive, and feign ignorance, those skills were all in her repertoire. I would not have reacted like that to normal provocation like if someone like Thalia teased me, but Reyna somehow managed to throw away all my defenses.

The master of playing people like a piano, Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arellano.

At that moment, Will Solace stumbled out of the lake and collapsed in the sand with a groan. His blonde hair still had excess water stuck to it, and Reyna threw over Beckendorf's towel so that it landed right on Will's tan back.

"Dude," I stated honestly, jumping at an opportunity to change the subject, "you suck at swimming."

76th Iteration

"Hazelll," I sang, dragging out the sound, "come to me!"

"Don't act so creepy," the girl next to me admonished, frowning. Her olive-skinned face peeked out from under her black bangs and cap. With a heavy coat on and a red scarf wrapped a few times around her neck, she looked like a dressed up little doll especially when combined with her diminutive figure.

"Shush Bianca, I'm not being creepy," I tried to defend myself, ducking under a branch. She nearly walked into it, so I grabbed the end of her scarf and gently tugged her down to avoid smacking into it.

She pulled the scarf up to cover her nose. The only spot I could see clearly on her entire face were her black eyes. "Thanks."

"Gentleman's duty," I murmured, continuing the trek. It was getting pretty dark in the forest, so I had to end this game of hide-and-seek fast. The only person that had managed to elude my grasp was Hazel, and according to the time, I only had a few minutes left to find her.

I stopped suddenly, causing Bianca to bump into me from behind. I reached backwards and grabbed a fistful of her jacket to stop her, and I put a finger to my lips to tell her to stay silent.

"What?" she whispered, waiting for my reply.

Looking around, I told her, "I heard something fall." I felt her inch closer to me.

Scanning the dim forest floor around us, I saw a lack of footsteps in the leaves around us, which was odd considering the fact that there should've been at least some sort of indication that Hazel had been through this area.

"Ah, of course." There was a shoe lying in the foliage, and I picked it up. "This must've been what caused the sound. Might as well come down now, Hazel."

"No fair," a soft voice came from above me, "you'd never have found me if my shoe didn't fall off." A small girl hopped down from the branch high above me and landed effortlessly on the ground with a small crunch of leaves. Bianca let out an adorable little eep! and backpedaled, almost smacking into a tree.

"Come on, let's get back to camp," I ushered, patting both of them on the back. "Chiron's gonna be pissed at us if we're still in the forest after six."

"It's your fault we're still out here," Bianca frowned, following my footsteps. Hazel hummed a light tune and danced in front of us.

Without much to talk about, we made our way through the forest. As we passed a small clearing with three stone rocks piled in a triangular formation, I felt an odd sense of déjà vu hit me, but I ignored it and kept on walking.

"So, how are you guys enjoying camp?" I finally asked, breaking the silence. It was only our first day here, and these two were the youngest kids besides Nico. Don't blame me for making sure that they were doing okay.

"It's alright," Bianca said, bumping into me. She stumbled a bit, and I caught her by steadying my arm around her waist.

Hazel paused for a moment, and a small scowl appeared on her face before it was promptly replaced by a smile. "I'm having fun!" Clasping her hands behind her back, she bent forward and asked, "How about you, Percy?"

Resting my arm on Bianca's head, I shrugged. "I'm enjoying myself."

"Oh, I bet you are with all the attention you're getting," she teased playfully. "I bunk with Katie and Reyna, and for some reason Reyna's pretty much in love with you."

"She's not," I denied, shaking my head, "all she likes to do is to tease people, that's all. And I don't get that attention you're talking about."

Bianca spoke from the side of me. "Hazel, you don't even have it bad. I have to bunk with Thalia, Piper, and Annabeth. I don't know why, but you're always the topic of conversation."

"Oh Bianca, you know why," Hazel winked, causing the other girl to blush a small cry, she leapt forward and chased after Hazel, who could barely contain her giggles.

It took a while, but eventually we all made it out the forest. Having made it barely before six, I escaped Chiron's wrath, but I didn't make it by Leo's sharp eyes.

"Coming out of the forest with two young girls? Percy, you animal."

I punched him in the gut. The feeling was cathartic.

§

"I do not believe that we should have alcohol if we are underage—"

"Octaviaaaan," Travis interrupted, handing him a red solo cup, "stop being a chode and drink up! Who wants to play a game of never have I ever?"

"Not me," the pale boy sighed, "but I have a feeling that you will make us anyways."

Ten boys, including me, were all gathered around a small fire. I don't know how or why, but Travis had acquired a shipment of various types of beer and decided to have a little guy's night deep in the forest. Sneaking out after curfew was one thing, but to drink as well… if Chiron found us, we'd all be dead.

I saw Travis hand out a cup to Nico, but I slapped it out of the boy's hand and replaced it with a cup of Coke. The older kid shook his head and said, "Percy, you gotta let the kid live a little."

I sipped a little from my cup full of water and shrugged. "He's just fourteen. At least let him grow a few more pounds so he doesn't get wasted after one sip."

"Right, right, so morally upstanding," Travis sighed, taking a seat in the ring of people. Snapping loudly, he began. "Alright, you know the rules. Say something that you've never done before, and if someone else has done it, they'd have to drink. Yeah?"

Everyone nodded in agreement. Will Solace spoke up. "Can I go first?"

"Sure, sure."

With a malicious smirk, he stared straight at Beckendorf, and we all felt scared for the big guy. "Never have I ever hooked up with a girl on a boat in the middle of a lake in plain sight of six other kids."

He tried to make it as discreet as possible, but Beckendorf still took a small gulp from his cup. I couldn't help but laugh at his embarrassed expression. Next up in the circle, it was me, so I tried to come up with something in my mind. "Am I allowed to target people?"

"Of course," Travis laughed, "in fact, I'm encouraging you to do it."

To be honest, I didn't know enough about everyone to dig up something embarrassing, and even if I did, I wasn't particularly inclined to call them out on it. But under the gaze of these people that I felt I'd spent eons with, I felt compelled to say something.

The words slipped out of my mouth. "Well, Frank, never have I ever had a crush on Hazel."

The big kid groaned, taking a small sip from his Sprite. "Am I really that obvious?" He ran a hand agitatedly through his short, black hair.

"No, not really," Beckendorf assured him. He looked at me. "How did you know?"

That was a good question. I, for one, didn't quite understand where that came from. "… lucky guess, that's all. Jason, you're up," I tried, changing the subject to a more comfortable one.

"I never had a crush on Annabeth before," Jason smirked. He already had prepared his strike beforehand, and this time it was Luke who took the shot, drinking a little bit from his cup with a narrowed glare as if he was watching for anyone else to take a sip.

"Right then, asshat," Luke coughed, staring down Jason, "never have I ever been in love with Piper before."

Jason took a big gulp of his cup, and I watched as he titled his head back and drained the entire thing. "I'll drink to that one," he murmured, opening another can of beer to pour into his cup.

"Wait a minute," Luke piped up, elbowing Jason in the side to get his attention, "what's this?"

His eyes flashed towards Leo, who was drinking out of his cup. The silence that followed was profoundly awkward, and the two friends stared each other down. Leo had an uncharacteristic seriousness on his face, while Jason looked like he'd just been betrayed.

"G-Guys," Nico butted in bravely, "chill out. Tell them to relax, Per—" His eyes widened, and Nico nearly dropped his cup.

Ah.

The cup was at my lips, and a cool mouthful of Sprite was en route towards my stomach. I'm not too sure why, but I'd just taken a massive sip out of my drink.

The other guys in the circle turned to look at me, and I felt like I was a deer caught in headlights. Slowly, I lowered the cup and set it on the ground. It wouldn't have been a stretch to say that I was just as surprised as they were.

My body had moved completely on its own accord. But… something struck me at that moment. Why did I take a sip from that cup? Was it because—no, I knew why I took a sip out of that cup.

I was in love with Piper McLean.

Somehow, somewhere, I'd fallen in love with her.

156th Iteration

Blood.

All I could see was crimson.

In front of me on the ground, was a ******.

I tried to yell for help, but nothing would come out of my mouth. I could only stand there and do nothing, burning that image of a co**** with a missing leg and its brai*** scattered on the ground into my head.

CoR***. Corps*. CORPSE!

The sight of Jason's corpse on the ground.

Ah, now my brain had finally figured it out. When I registered the sight before me, I couldn't help but vomit. Due to the flowing rain, whatever I'd thrown up was promptly washed away into the mud.

It happened too fast. I couldn't even save him. That regret would lurk in the pit of my soul for the rest of my life.

I collapsed onto the street, coughing and spluttering, and I'm sure that, no matter what happened, I could never forget this sight.

At that instant, I felt something very uncomfortable, as if the world was folding in half. A bright, white light pierced through the clouds and enveloped everything in its brightness until there was nothing left.

Nothing left, except for me and Jason's dead body splattered all over the ground.

157th Iteration

Everything was hazy after the sudden blast of light. Through my ringing ears, I could barely make out the muffled voice of someone I knew.

"Alright campers, this is the official beginning of Camp Half-blood!" a kindly-looking man announced, earning the claps and cheers from everyone in the pavilion. I sat there, stunned, as he spoke his next words. "Now, let's have our introductions—"

"WHAT THE FUCK!?" I yelled, standing up. Instantly, I was aware of where I was and what I was doing: I was sitting at the pavilion on the first day of camp, July 9th. But that shouldn't be possible because I'd already finished a week of camp before.

My eyes darted around. Everyone looked surprised. But none of them were as surprised as I was when I saw Jason with his right leg attached to his body and his head completely intact. My heart pounded in my chest like I'd just ran a marathon.

"You," I croaked weakly, pointing at him. "… you're supposed to be dead."

What was happening? What the hell was going on? Did I travel back in time? What the hell was going on?

"Dude," Nico said from beside me, "what's wrong with you?"

A dirty feeling wormed its way into my chest. "No, what's wrong with you guys? Are none of you aware that we've literally just jumped back in time?"

The silence that followed was stifling. A bead of sweat made its way down the side of my head as I waited for an answer. "Guys," my voice cracked.

"You're crazy," the younger boy condemned, and those simple words hit with the force of a massive hammer pounding away at my chest. I looked around at the other campers, but all of their faces were pretty much the same—either a look of complete confusion or pity for a seemingly crazy man.

So I did the only thing that I could've done at that point: I ran.

I ran away from it all.

Down from the pavilion, over the hill with the massive, lone pine tree and towards the road. Along that road, I followed it until found the spot where everything had happened. Sliding with my knees on gravel to a blistering stop, I kneeled in the location where Jason had been run over by a car.

However, there was nothing there. Jason was killed on July 15th, a Friday upon which camp had ended, but now, for some weird reason, it was the 9th again—the day that camp started.

Had I looped back in time?

I sat on my butt, pulling out my phone. Trembling, my hands slowly went to the calendar app and confirmed the date: July 9, 20XX.

Unable to believe it, I fell onto my back and stared up at the sky. Stared up at the sky, stared up at the sky…

What does a person do in this situation? There wasn't a chance in hell that Jason's death had only occurred in a dream, but the reality of looping backwards was much less plausible than me having a weird hallucination. I started to see why the others thought that I might've been slightly crazy.

The odds of Jason having been run over by a car was low, but the chances of me looping through time was even lower.

My knees were red and and sliced up from sliding on the road earlier. I wrapped my arms around them and rolled off the road, leaning against the side of a tree. I tried to take a few deep breaths in order to calm myself down.

I had no idea what was going on. Did I hallucinate Jason's death or did I loop back in time? Which one was it?

"What the fuck is going on?" I screamed, tugging at the ends of my hair. My heart felt like it was going to burst out of my throat, and no matter what happened I couldn't get myself to calm down. "What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck…"

All the memories that I'd made with everyone that week—were they gone? Or did that never happen in the first place?

I shut my eyes and tried breathing rhythmically. Four seconds in, four seconds hold, four seconds exhale.

One, two, three, four.

One, two, three, four.

One, two, three, four.

No matter how dim or how bleak things seemed, there was always hope. No matter how strange an event or situation, it will always be cured with time. Even the deepest of loses can be healed with the monotonous yet excitement of everyday life.

With that consolation, I was able to calm down a little bit. Slowly, my heart rate lowered and my breathing grew less forced.

Now, time for a plan of action. Since I've made a fool of myself, I'm definitely not heading back to Camp Half-blood. Jason's death was probably just a hallucination, and there wasn't any possible way that I'd time looped or whatever. All I have to do is open my eyes and call Mom—

"Hello, Percy Jackson."

The sudden voice made me jump to my feet, widening my eyes to the size of dinner plates.

In front of me stood Annabeth Chase.

Her blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail, allowing full view of her smooth, tan neck. A pair of piercing grey eyes bored into my face, and with the unrelenting nature of her stare, I couldn't help but drop my head and stare at the ground. Her flat expression didn't falter a bit as she sat down in the middle of the road right across from me.

I didn't say anything. I was too scared to say anything.

"You said some interesting things during introductions," she said blandly. "Care to elaborate?"

I finally spoke, but I didn't respond to her. Instead, I allowed a question that's been weighing down upon me ever since Annabeth showed up to take precedence: "How do you know my name?"

She'd called me by my full name just then even though I hadn't introduced myself yet. What that implied terrified me to no end.

"Because, Percy," Annabeth explained nonchalantly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, "we've been repeating this week over and over for years by now."

I could only stare down at her from my standing position, mouth gaping like a fish out of water. My legs gave out underneath me and I joined Annabeth on the ground.

Since I didn't say anything, she continued. "I'm assuming that you saw Jason die here?"

I nodded numbly. Her face didn't falter. "Hm. I see. And then you reappeared at the pavilion, correct?"

"How do you know all of this?" I got out weakly, staring at her in—yes, fear. Fear of this all-knowing girl in front of me.

She didn't answer. Instead, she callously spoke to me about something else. "Did it feel awful having to watch Jason die?"

What? I nearly shouted at her, but I kept cool at her deliberate provocation. "Yeah, it did," I snapped, though it lacked a bit of the stinging power that I was looking for. It was obvious in her tone that she wasn't trying to soothe me.

"Alright." She got up and reached an arm out. "Hand it over, then."

"Hand what over?"

"The jar."

A chill went down my back and I blinked. "I have no idea what you are talking about."

"Feigning ignorance isn't going to work, Percy," she reprimanded, maintaining that icy glare of hers. "End this useless cycle. We've been stuck here for over three years. I'm sure you're getting bored of it—just as bored as I'm getting."

"I have no idea what you are talking about," I repeated, scooting away from the girl. She took a step towards me and closed the distance by a little bit. "I don't even know what a jar is."

"Don't lie to me. I can always tell when you're lying." She retracted her stretched out hand and rested it on her hip. "I've spent a long time with you, Percy Jackson, so by now you're pretty much an open book to me."

Her words unnerved me, but I was determined to not let that show through. "I'm not lying."

She stepped back. As if she were reciting something from memory, she said, "A jar is something that will grant any wish that you have. It is something of infinite power. The only limit to its power is your own imagination."

I froze at the spot I was sitting. My muscles were completely tense as if I were in the middle of a fight, and I felt a bead of sweat fall down the side of my face.

Those words she said… they're not in any memory of mine. But I've heard them from somewhere before.

"Someone with a jar wished to repeat this week," Annabeth said, "and that someone is you."

"I don't have a jar," I said quietly, praying that she'd be able to understand. I hadn't been speaking to her for too long, but already I was on-edge and terrified.

"That's what you say every time," Annabeth informed me. "Or, at least, this exact conversation pattern has happened in a couple of iterations. We time loop, you flip out over a dead body and run away, I find you and ask you for a jar, and you deny any knowledge of it."

"This…" I said slowly, "has happened before?"

"Of course," the blonde nodded. "Every iteration someone is killed right at this spot on July 15th—on the day camp ends."

"I-I," I gulped, attempting to process what she'd just said, "refuse to—"

"Believe what I'm saying, yeah," she cut in, finishing what I was about to say. "No matter what I say, you're unable to believe me. For some reason, you're incredibly obstinate on the idea that time looping and jars are impossible. Instead, you're readily able to believe that you were just hallucinating, just to get back to your everyday life."

"Ugh," I groaned, covering my face. She really did have a somewhat deep level of understanding on my thought process, I'll give her that.

"I'm giving you an opportunity to change this cycle, though," Annabeth offered. "All it takes is for you to surrender your jar—the Jar of Greed."

"I can't give you what I don't have," I retorted, getting annoyed with her constant insistence. "I don't understand why you think that it's me out of everyone else. Hasn't it ever crossed your mind that someone else might have have this jar of yours?"

"It has," she said simply. "In fact, I've thoroughly investigated everyone in this camp. This is the 157th iteration after all. I've had more than enough time to watch everyone, but in the end, the conclusion is that it has to be you."

My voice came out a lot sharper than it should have. "Why me?"

Annabeth's face remained impassive. "Two things. First off, non jar-users have their memory wiped in the time between each iteration. You are the only one, on multiple occasions such as this one, to have remembered the events of a pervious iteration. Secondly, you're the only person that has changed."

"Changed?"

"Changed, yes. Every iteration, each and every person has the same exact personality. Because of that, I'm able to read them all fairly well. I know who all of them like and who all of them are interested in," she explained. "However, all of a sudden, something happened to you that didn't happen in the earliest iterations."

Keeping her tone even, Annabeth put forth her best piece of evidence. "You fell in love with Piper McLean."

I opened my mouth and shut it without saying anything. I couldn't deny what Annabeth had said because I'm completely in love with Piper McLean and I had no idea where it came from. The second that I saw her during introductions on the pavilion, I fell in love at first sight.

"And think about it like this," she continued. "Imagine if you saw someone die in front of your eyes. However, this normally irreversible act could be reversed through making a simple wish with a jar—to go back in time and prevent this event from happening. Would you do that, Percy Jackson?"

If I could, would I reverse time to save a person's life? There was no question there. "… if you know me well enough, then you'd know the answer."

Without missing a beat, Annabeth said, "Yes. You wouldn't even hesitate. That's the type of person you are. I can understand that part of you easily because I would do the same thing. As much as I hate to admit it, you and I are not so different in that aspect."

"Okay, fine," I conceded, "I'll admit that I do seem quite suspicious. But here's the big thing: where is your proof of this time loop and of this so-called jar?"

Her eyes narrowed.

"I'm almost one-hundred percent sure that I saw Jason die, right here," I said, pointing at the spot on the road. "But, I'm even more sure that I just saw Jason alive and well moments ago. I was about to pass it off as something I'd imagined when you arrived here."

The blonde clucked her tongue in apparent frustration. "There you go again. I knew this was going to happen."

"Then prove me wrong."

Prove to me that there existed something outside of a normal, everyday life.

Her brow scrunched up, and it looked like she was mentally debating something. I noted that I'd finally gotten her to break her composure, so I counted that as a mental victory.

Finally, she moved. Without saying a word, she grabbed my hand and put it against her chest. There was a soft sensation under my hands, and I could feel her even, rhythmic heartbeat through my palm.

My face instantly heated up. Her gaze was unrelenting.

"W-What are you—"

"I'm showing you," Annabeth murmured, looking up at me with through her eyelashes. "I'm showing you my jar—the Jar of Hope."

§

I was in a classroom.

Every single seat was filled by a person. They seemed to be having fun, talking and chatting about seemingly random things, but there was something different about the picture—no one in the room seemed to be the same age. Adults, teens, and kids all meddled around in this glowing room without a single care in the world.

It was like a paradise. I could feel warmth course through my body and wash away all my worries about inconsequential things. This was the ideal, ordinary life that I longed for. There were no big things to have anxiety about, and each day could be spent living life to the fullest. Everyone was able to take the time to enjoy the little things in life.

At that moment, my everyday life had been destroyed with the single realization that jars do exist.

It was an undeniable understanding within me that acknowledged the truth behind Annabeth's words. I didn't know how to explain it—it was more like an epiphany of sorts than anything. I touched the desks and the floor to assure myself that I wasn't hallucinating. They were solid underneath my fingertips. Although the inhabitants of this perfect little world didn't notice me when I touched them, their skin held an amount of warmth that an actual person would have.

When I walked outside, the heat from the sun was real. The soft, gentle breeze that blew through my hair was real. The cold dew coating the grass underneath me was very, undoubtedly real. Everywhere I looked, there was laughter and joy. People of all different genders and beliefs and ages and varieties interacted one another without any hostilities, all able to unite under the single banner of enjoying life.

Unable to deny the truth anymore, I returned to the classroom. As perfect as this little world was, it seemed incredibly fragile. It seemed that I could crush it with my fist if I tried to do so. And in this tiny world, I saw a flaw that burned itself into my mind.

In the center of the classroom, there was a little girl who was alone.

§

She removed my hand from her chest. "Do you believe in the existence of jars now?"

I couldn't deny it. "Yeah. There's no other way to describe what just happened than a wish come true."

"The Jar of Hope reflects the hopes of the person looking within it," Annabeth said quietly. "It's a bit like that mirror from Harry Potter."

I could imagine Annabeth reading books in her free time. The image of her coiled under a tree with a book instead of running around and playing seemed completely plausible to me.

But still, one thing bothered me about that entire image. In a classroom full of friendly people talking to each other…

Why was that little girl alone? Why did it seem so fragile?

Shaking off those thoughts, I decided to tell her the absolute truth. "I believe that these jars exist. I guess that also means that I believe that we've been looping through this week over and over again. But I have nothing like that within me. That's the honest truth."

She scrutinized me with those grey eyes of hers, but this time I didn't feel uncomfortable under her gaze. "Is that why you remember everything?" I asked when she didn't say anything. "Since you have a jar and all."

"… yes," she answered after a pause, finally relaxing her gaze. "Due to the fact that I am a jar-user I am able to retain my memories every time we loop."

"If you're a jar-user," I said tentatively, "then what did you wish for?"

"That information isn't necessary," Annabeth replied tersely.

I nodded, understanding her unwillingness to tell me that. "Well then, now that everything is cleared up, is there any way that I could help you?"

She looked at me incredulously.

"I mean," I squirmed slightly, "I'd bet going through all those loops must be boring as hell. So, if you want—"

Something very strange and unexpected happened.

Annabeth laughed. Her throat sounded scratchy, as if it was something she hadn't done in a very long time. It was rough and uncontrolled, and she had to sit herself down and arch her back, laughing into the sky. It was the first real burst of emotion I'd seen from her.

When she stopped, I saw her wipe a tear from her eye.

"Um, Annabeth, what was that?"

"Oh, nothing," she grinned, lying down in the middle of the road. "It's just that I've spent three years here and finally something different is happening. You don't know how refreshing it is to hear those words come out of your mouth."

"You're right, I don't."

She didn't respond, opting to lie there in silence with a mindless grin. Suddenly, she hopped up and grabbed my wrist. "Come with me."

I pulled backwards in order to stop her from dragging me around. "Only if you tell me where I'm going."

"A few minutes walk away from here is a small gas station, and every time there's an unlocked bike there." Annabeth tugged, and I began to follow her. "We can ride that bike into the town nearby, rest someplace nice since we're not going back to camp for sure. I've done this enough times to know that it'll work."

She went from walking to a light jog. Keeping pace with her, I asked, "Why are you bringing me into the town?"

"Because you offered your help. Keep in mind that you're still not completely clear of suspicion," she warned, taking a quick glance back at me. "But I'm not so foolish a person to ignore this golden opportunity to try something different. It's the first time that you believed that I was telling the truth."

"I'm not sure how much help I can be," I told her.

Annabeth didn't relent. "A change is help enough. I'm sure you have a lot of questions—don't worry, because I'll answer every single one that you have." She looked back at me, and I saw something visibly different.

Her eyes, which were cold before, now contained a fiery passion that I'd never seen before.

"The story is finally moving along."

And that's it for today! What a jar is and can do will be explained in further detail in the next chapter. I'm not too sure when that'll be out, but stay posted. If you have any questions or comments, please leave it in a review. I'm trying to grow as a writer, so let me know what you liked about it or thought I could've done better.

Any confusion will probably be explained in a later chapter. But anywho, thanks for reading! I hope it wasn't that bad.

Here's a list of all the campers:

Boys: Percy, Jason, Leo, Nico, Luke, Frank, Will, Beckendorf, Octavian, Travis

Girls: Annabeth, Thalia, Piper, Bianca, Zoe, Clarisse, Silena, Katie, Reyna, Hazel

—Acerola Orion