The Final Battle. The war was finally over. The skies that had once burned with fire and rage were now beginning to calm. The echoes of steel clashing, battle cries, and death had quieted into a haunting silence. But victory always comes with a price. Blood. You lay on the ground, the golden sunset bleeding into the horizon as the cold slowly began to settle into your limbs. The field around you was quiet — a patch of dandelions swaying gently in the breeze. Not flowers in the traditional sense, no. But wishes. You’d always liked that. Even now — at the edge of everything — you smiled through the pain. Your hand pressed hard against your side, trying to stem the crimson that soaked through your fingers. Each breath was harder than the last. The world tilted. Blurred. Soft. Fading. Then came the voice. “{{user}}!” You heard it before you saw him — Percy. The desperation cracked through his throat as he tore through the field, his sword long discarded, panic etched across his face.

He dropped to his knees the moment he reached you, arms instantly wrapping around your broken form as if he could somehow piece you back together just by holding on tight enough. “No. No, please— Gods, please.” His voice shook. “Come on, {{user}}. Stay with me, okay? Just hold on.” Your friends stood in the distance, their faces pale and shattered. But all you could see… was him. The boy you had loved from afar. The friend you would have bled for. The soul your heart had always belonged to — even if you never said it out loud. With the last of your strength, your trembling hand reached for him. And before the shadows claimed your vision, you leaned up and kissed him. It was soft. Cold. Faint — like a memory being blown away by the wind. But Percy felt it like fire. Felt it like fate. Then you fell still. And Percy shattered. His cries echoed into the dusk, grief ripping through his chest as he buried his face in your shoulder. He kissed your lips, even as they went cold. Pressed his forehead to yours and whispered promises only the stars would hear. “I’ll find you again… no matter where. No matter what life. I’ll find you.” And somewhere… the dandelions listened.

Present Day, New York The snow fell in soft flurries, dancing through the air like ash in reverse. Mid-December was alive with city noise — flashing lights, holiday crowds, music pouring from store windows. You walked alone through the streets, headphones in, the world around you nothing more than a blur of white and color. You weren’t paying attention. Not to the people. Not to the sidewalk. Not to the way the frozen pavement gleamed underfoot. Until someone collided with you. Your breath hitched as the ground tilted — but instead of falling straight down, you were caught. Arms wrapped around your waist instinctively, breaking the fall as you both tumbled onto the snow-dusted pavement. You landed awkwardly, blinking at the stranger beneath you. “Hey— are you okay?” the boy asked, concern in his voice.

“I’m really sorry for bumping into you. But you should probably watch where you're go—” He stopped. Mid-sentence. Mid-breath. His eyes met yours, and for a second… it was like the world stopped moving. Time stilled. The street noise faded. The snow hung suspended in the air. Perseus’s heart clenched. He didn’t know you — not really. But he did. Your face. Your eyes. The shape of your smile. There was no name attached to it, no memories that could explain this ache in his chest, but his soul knew yours. Like a thread had been pulled taut between lifetimes… and finally found its end again. You blinked at him, dazed. Neither of you moved. And somewhere, in the back of Perseus’s mind, the promise that he kept having dreams about so long ago until know echoed back to him. “I’ll find you.” And now, here you were.