The Cruelty of the Fates: The Lightning Thief - DeadWritersSociety - Percy Jackson and the Olympians (2024)

Chapter 1: The Discussion

Chapter Text

“No.“

The word rang trough the throne room like a gunshot.

Hermes’ fingers, which had previously danced over the screen of his caduceus halted and he raised an eyebrow as he looked up at Poseidon.

The Lord of the Sea held his head high, regally, unrelenting. His eyes were as dark as the waters surrounding Charybdis and his glance bored into each and every one of them, while his hands rested on his trident.

A silent threat.

“No?”, Disbelief transformed Zeus’ expression into a deep scowl. “What do you mean, “No”?”

“The meaning is quite obvious, don’t you think?”

Hermes exchanged a look with Apollo, who drew his eyebrows together. Slowly, he took his headphones off and sat up straighter in his throne.

This was supposed to be an obvious decision. Quickly finished, making a debate unnecessary.

Poseidon was the last one to vote, and no one had expected him to disagree and cause any delay to the end of the meeting at this point.

Dionysus had already opened a new can of diet co*ke; Hephaistos’ consciousness was halfway back at one of his workshops and Ares had been busy sharpening his knifes with a bored expression, but now, their heads snapped up once again, eyes bright and alert.

Even Hades leaned forward and silently watched his brothers, his face a façade of serenity, but his strained hands, which tightened around his throne almost unnoticeably betrayed his discomfort.

It had started with a dream.

Gods rarely got them, and when they did, they were in full control. But this time was different.

This time, it was a message from the Fates without the usual vagueness they liked to hide their meanings in. They couldn’t have been more specific if they had tried.

“To achieve a better future, one must look at the past,” the whispery voices of the Fates still rang in Hermes’ ears, so clearly, as if they’d sit right behind him. If he didn’t know any better, he would say their usual neutral tone was twisted by impatience.

Their yarn had been almost luminous and changed it’s colour from an electric blue, to an orange, a purple and a blinding gold, in an eternal cycle. He had seen their threads hundreds of times before, but for a reason Hermes was unaware of, that specific yarn had been almost hypnotic. He couldn’t tear his eyes away. “An ancient spell, a window to the past, the insight of the demigods, who shed blood in the last two wars. Thoughts and feelings completely revealed will enlighten the necessary path.”

“Thought and feelings completely revealed.”

If that meant what Hermes thought it would mean, then it became rather obvious why Poseidon was so vehemently against it.

Normally he wouldn’t care for the possible damage their actions might cause, the mental issues, that came with listening into someone else’s head, but this most certainly would involve Percy Jackson.

His favourite son.

“We don’t even know if your son is going to have a major part in this yet,” Zeus said, his voice shaking with barely restrained anger. “This could be about any of the half-bloods.”

“Please”, Poseidon scoffed. “If we’re going to watch and hear about the last five years, who else but Percy is it going to be about? If you forgot, he was the one who defended Olympus from father.”

Fond pride was underneath the determination in his tone, the same one they always heard when he talked about Percy, and which had been the subject of several heated discussions between the Olympians. Especially the eldest brothers.

Zeus’ eye twitched. “How could I forget, when you remind us of that at every possible opportunity?”

“But he’s right,” Artemis noted. She had been watching the two of them like a hawk, silently, and observing, but she could tolerate needless arguing even less than the rest of them during a council meeting. Especially a meeting as important as this one. “To think any story about the wars would leave him out would be foolish.”

“It would be more foolish to ignore the Fates. That we’re discussing this in the first place is laughable” Athena’s voice was hard as steel. “A demigod’s privacy is nothing compared to the fates wishes.”

Poseidon’s hands tightened around his trident. “If you think I will let you put my son trough this, after everything that happened to him already...”

“The Fates demand it!”

“Percy walked trough Tartarus to defeat Gaia,” cold fury filled Poseidon’s voice and Hermes couldn’t help but flinch. “Do you honestly think I’m going to make him relive that?”

Silence snuffed the discussion out, like candlelight.

Tartarus. Right.

Hermes still had a hard time coming to terms with that.

Few had ever ventured into its depth, and on the rare occasion that one of the elder gods talked about it, they kept their stories as short as possible. How two demigods, three with Nico di Angelo, managed to survive and remain sane was still clouded in mystery.

The thought of Percy being down there… Hermes had to admit, he felt his throat tighten at that image. He swallowed.

Zeus had paled and leaned back in his throne, the same defensive stance he always took when the subject of the pit came up, while Athena froze, her eyes darting from one of them to the other, processing a million thoughts all at once. She was, without a doubt thinking about her own daughter.

Hades’ face remained neutral, but now he clutched the edges of his throne so tightly his knuckles became white, and the expressions of the other gods were twisted with discomfort.

Tartarus had become something of a forbidden subject to them.

Bad enough that the demigods had fought their war for them for a second time in two years, but that two of them had travelled trough Tartarus to achieve Victory, and succeeded at that, was more than an embarrassment. It was close to an outrage.

Especially since those demigods had been Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase.

Again.

Zeus cleared his throat and when he spoke, it sounded like he forced himself to stay calm. “I’ll agree with you that some of those half bloods have already been trough a lot. Nevertheless,” he eyed Poseidon,” as Athena has already said, we do not get to ignore the Fates based on the negative impact it might have on mere mortals.” His expression became cold. “And if you have forgotten, brother, Percy Jackson is currently nothing more than that.”

Poseidon rose from his throne. “Zeus,” he rumbled warningly, and Hermes clutched his caduceus tighter, his shoulders tense.

From the corners of his eyes, he could see Apollo slowly reaching for his bow, and Demeter’s posture becoming stiff, her lips pinched together into a thin line.

He half expected Poseidon to attack, so intensely was he staring at his brother, but before anything more could happen, a new, soft voice started to speak.

“It might help him.”

Hermes’s eyebrows drew together.

Poseidon shifted his glare to his oldest sister. “How, in the name of the Fates, would it help him?”

Hestia hesitated. She sat in front of all the thrones on the floor and looked into her fireplace, the dancing flames reflecting in her sad eyes. No one interrupted. It was rare for her to be present during a council meeting, much less to speak up, but when she did, her siblings usually listened.

“He doesn’t sleep. At night he sits at the beach and stares up at the stars, sometimes for hours”, she sounded hollow, and frustration flickered over Poseidon’s face. He clenched his jaw. “The next day, he pretends that nothing is wrong and deflects when his friends try to approach the subject.”

She looked up at them, her expression transformed by worry.

“We have no idea what happened to him, Nico and Annabeth while they were down there. Or what they went trough over the last four years. Fates, it would surprise me if anyone besides them really knows.”

An uncomfortable knot formed in Hermes’ stomach, which felt dangerously close to concern. He did his best to ignore it.

“Annabeth talks to Thalia when she’s around, or to Grover,” Hestia continued, and every new word felt like a needle in his skin. “Nico talks to Will or Reyna. Percy…,” she stopped and bit her lips, seemingly searching for the right words. “Percy retreats. He pretends that he is okay, but by Fate, he is not. However intrusive, this might be the only way to get him to open up.”

“Involuntarily,” Hermes found himself disagreeing with her.

The attention of the other Olympians shifted to him, and he did his best to look as casual as possible as he looked back at them, an eyebrow raised defensively.

“I voted in favor,” he reminded Zeus, Hera and Athena, before they could even start to argue with him. “I’m simply saying, that we should not delude ourselves. Forcing Percy to reveal his most private thoughts and to relive his worst experiences, will without a doubt, leave scars. Never mind, his physical health. You do remember Hekate’s warning about the spell, don’t you?”

Hestia recoiled and guilt flickered across her face, while Poseidon’s gaze hardened.

The goddess of Magic, together with other minor gods like Iris, Hebe and Ariadne, had received the same dream they had, together with the knowledge of the spell necessary for such an endeavor.

Hekate had stood before them, dressed in her dark robes, the light of her twin torches flickering, as if a wind was blowing trough the room, and explained the possible side effects, that the mixing of past and present might bring with it. One of those, the risk, that previous injuries could resurface once again.

His mouth tasted bitter, and he had to swallow down the wave of protest at the idea.

“And what does that matter to you?” Hera’s voice was cold, and her mouth a hard line. She studied him with scrutiny.

Hermes’ hands tightened around his caduceus. He had to force his voice to remain neutral when he spoke. “Is it wrong of me to worry about a friend?”

“A friend,” her eyes narrowed. “He’s simply a demigod. Friendships with mortals hardly matter here.”

His jaw clenched. “I’m aware of that, Hera,” he managed to press out, and sent the queen of the goddess a glare. “Which is why I voted in favor.”

“Is he just a friend though?” Aphrodite, who had previously been busy checking her nails, interrupted them and sent him a sweet smile, a dangerous glint twinkling in her eyes. “Forgive me my curiosity, Hermes dear, but it sounds to me like you’re starting to see him more as a cousin than a simple friend. I can’t remember the last time you spoke out for a demigod like that. At least, one who wasn’t your own child.”

Typical.

A discussion about the fate of the future left her cold, but as soon as the conversation focused on something like this, she became alerted.

Zeus scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Oh, am I?,” she wrapped a long, raven black curl around one of her fingers. “What do you think, Hermes? Does the thought not lure you?” Her appearance changed into a figure with the familiar blond hair and lively eyes of May Castellan and Hermes was wondering if it was coincidental or if she did it solely to get a reaction out of him.

His fingers twitched.

Acknowledgement.

Heavy weight lied behind that word.

Gods didn’t have DNA. Differently to humans, they technically had no familiar relation to demigods who weren’t their own.

They had little contact even to their own children, so it was rare that any of them spent enough time with another half-blood to form any kind of relation, much less see them as part of their family.

But somehow, because of some stupid, incredulous reason he really didn’t want to explore, Hermes almost hesitated.

“You can change,” Percy’s voice echoed trough his head like so many times before.

They had stood in the wreckage of Olympus, after Kronos’ defeat. The setting sun had dipped below the horizon, dyeing the sky brilliant hues of orange and coloring the eternal city in a golden light.

His jet-black hair had been disheveled, and his orange camp t-shirt ripped, and despite a lack of scars or wounds, the demigod had still looked different from only a few days prior. Tired, but somehow older, and more powerful.

It was easy to confuse him with a minor god nowadays.

“After three thousand years, you think the gods can change their nature?” Hermes remembered himself asking.

Percy’s sea green eyes had looked sharp, and so determined, Hermes had wanted to believe him, despite the millennia of knowing his and his family’s nature. “Yeah, I do.”

He blinked and forced himself out of his thoughts with a light shake of his head.

“Percy and I do get along rather well, don’t we?” He said, trying his best to sound nonchalant when he met the goddess’ gaze again. “But I can assure you Aphrodite, I do not plan on doing such a thing. I’m not that foolish. Besides,” he rolled his eyes. “As much as it flatters me to be the subject of a council meeting, aren’t there more important things to discuss?”

“Again, it shouldn’t even be a subject of discussion,” Athena pressed her lips together into a thin line. “Our own wishes matter hardly anything in comparison.”

The discussion started again around him, and Hermes allowed himself to relax again. He leaned his head against his throne and looked at the ceiling.

Millions of stars blinked in the night and reminded him of his first meeting with the young hero, at the beach of Camp half blood.

Percy had rested his head on his knee and looked out at the ocean. His hair had been ruffled by the salty sea breeze and his brows had been furrowed in thought. Back then, Hermes couldn’t have imagined him as the future Saviour of Olympus and hero, who would one day fight against gods, titans and giants alike.

“Acknowledgement”. He would be lying to himself if he said the idea had never crossed his mind before.

There was no denying that he enjoyed the demigod’s presence on the rare occasion that he spoke to him, but their interactions were too few and far between to make such a possibility reality.

Should he ever get to know him more though… Hermes wished he could deny it, but he knew, that his opinion of Percy would only improve. Dangerously so.

And if they go trough with the Fates plan, - and despite Poseidon’s current disagreement they would have no choice but to do it - … it looked like that would be the case sooner rather than later.

The discussion was going in circles from that point on. With Athena and Zeus insisting they had no choice but do what the Fates wanted, and Poseidon stubborn refusal to agree. But deep down, despite how much he hated the idea, Poseidon knew as well any other god in the throne room, that ignoring the fates would lead to even worse consequences.

In the end, he had no choice but to agree, even if his face darkened even more and the storm, that brewed in his eyes, escalated into wild hurricanes, promising a destruction that left nothing in its wake.

Most gods left the throne room quickly after that.

Hermes lingered a few seconds longer, checking new messages on his caduceus and trying to push all thoughts relating to Percy Jackson in his subconscious.

When he looked up again, he was surprised to find that not everyone had left yet.

Poseidon, and Aphrodite stood next to Hestia in the middle of the room, deep in conversation.

He should have left right then and there, but curiosity and suspicion got the better out of him. There was only one reason he could think of why the goddess of love might want to talk to Poseidon after that mess.

“Others might get to know him as well,” Aphrodite smiled innocently as he joined them. “Amphitrite, Rhode and Triton received the same dream, didn’t they?”

Poseidon’s face hardened. “Do not think me delusional.”

“There is nothing delusional about what you wish, Poseidon.”

“Don’t try to fool me, Aphrodite,” Poseidon’s mouth transformed into a snarl. “I am well aware of Triton’s dislike towards Percy as well as Amphitrite’s and Rhode’s disinterest in him. And I also know about Percy’s wish to remain mortal. No one knows better than me how futile my aim is. For now, and the nearest future at least, it will remain impossible.”

“Impossible,” the goddess of love shuddered, seemingly not bothered by Poseidon’s anger. Her eyes glinted dangerously like she enjoyed whatever game it was; she was playing. “I do hate that word. Too many stories have ended too early because someone believed this lie. They might require sacrifices too grand to do or courage that someone lacks, but nothing is impossible when it comes to love, my old friend. Familial or otherwise.” She winked. “I should know.”

A sense of unease began to grow in Hermes’ stomach.

Poseidon glared at her. “Do I need to remind you, that Triton refuses to even entertain the idea to think of Percy as his brother?”

“Perhaps currently,” she shrugged nonchalantly, as if she wasn’t playing with fire. In some ways, Hermes begrudgingly admired her for that. In others, he wanted to strangle her.

“So suddenly you can see the future,” Poseidon raised an eyebrow. “Do you desire to take the gift of prophecy from Apollo?”

She laughed. “Fates forbid. Seeing the future would ruin all my fun. I do not see conclusions, Poseidon. What I see, are possibilities. No matter how slim they are.”

That made him hesitate.

It took everything Hermes had not to slap his forehead with the palm of his hand.

Zeus would explode, should he hear about this.

Poseidon’s affection for his only demigod child was already bad enough, they didn’t need anyone fueling his resistant hope that Percy would ever accept immortality.

He made it quite clear that he was happy with his life as it currently was.

“You think there is a possibility?” The question was short, voice forcibly calm.

Aphrodite’s smile became sharp. “I see it as clearly as the night sky. As clearly as I saw the love of Justinian to Theodora. Of Achilles to Patroclus. Of Gilgamesh to Enkidu, of Catherine to Potemkin and of Alexander to Hephaestion.”

She sighed wistfully and winked at Hermes. “And I do enjoy a good story about family.”

He wasn’t sure if that last bit was aimed at Poseidon or at him.

Chapter 2: The Temple of Hestia

Chapter Text

The weirdest experience in Percy ‘s life began when he and Grover got an Iris message at the Acadia National Park in Maine. And it wasn’t because of the Hydra.

Chiron’s figure glimmered over a river. Deep shadows were under his thousand-year-old eyes and a worried frown was plastered over his face as he watched their battle in silence.

Percy gritted his teeth, and swung his sword, trying to keep the monster’s attention on him, instead of the dryads and satyrs, who hid behind woods and stones and away from Grover, who sneaked up on it from behind.

Nine pairs of glowing yellow eyes watched his every move, and green saliva dropped from its long, knife-like teeth.

“Grover, you’ve got the bomb?”

His friend held up a small black device, with a big red 6 and nodded confidently. “Just waiting for the right moment. Whenever you’re ready, Perce.”

Percy took a deep breath, adjusted his grip around riptide, and attacked.

The monster spewed a splatch of poison at him, but with a swift roll to the side, Percy managed to dodge.

Two of its heads surged forward. He let the dull side of his sword smash down on one of it, knocking it down, then he ducked and avoided becoming a snack for the other.

The hydra was fast, but Percy was faster. It attacked and he dodged in a seemingly endless dance, until Grover was only a few metres away from the beast.

He felt the familiar tug in his stomach and a moment later, the river erupted.

A wall of cold water crushed against the monster’s side, forcing it to lose its balance and fall to the floor with an angry screech and a loud thump.

Quickly, he rushed forward and with a few swings, he separated it’s heads from its body, as easily as cutting trough butter, then rolled to the side and shouted,” Now!”

Grover understood. The monster’s necks were already smoking and growing back, when, with one well-aimed throw, the black bomb landed on its torso.

For a moment, nothing happened, and Percy let out a curse.

Leo had warned him, that the bombs he had created were just prototypes for now and he had to fix a few quirks before they could consider them reliable.

Percy vividly remembered the incident, which involved the first of those bombs, a monster from the forest surrounding camp and weirdly a bunch of eggs, which ended in a rather big explosion at the dining pavilion and kitchen duty for him and Leo for a week.

He took a step back, and let the river pressure grow, his shoulders tense, prepared to strike again, right as the bomb, and the monster with it, erupted into a flower of blinding green flames.

Hot smoke, comparable to the heat of molten lava, blew in his face and blurred his vision in an instant.

Drops of sweat pearled down his forehead and he had to stumble a few steps back, hands raised to protect his eyes.

The fire burned for a minute like a firework on New Years eve, then the heat lessened, the light dimmed, and the fire left nothing behind, but a few charred remains.

He and Grover exchanged a look.

“Nice throw.”

His friend smiled. “Great distraction. I think we can tell Leo his bombs work.”

“Totally,” he washed the sweat from his forehead, and sent an apologetic smile to the nature spirits, who covered together a few feet away from them, noses twitching and eyes wide. “Sorry for that, guys.”

Then he turned towards the iris projection. “You were saying, Chiron?”

The centaur smiled at them, even though it looked strained. “I apologize for interrupting. I know how important this here is for you.”

“No problem,” Grover waved him off.” Percy, and I already finished up anyway. The hydra was just a minor complication and a bit of a jumps care.”

They had been at the national park for the last two days. Grover, in his mission to mobilise the nature spirits, had asked him if he could accompany him from time to time and talk to naiads or certain river gods.

At first Percy had been reluctant. While he desperately wanted to spend more time with his best friend, he had been too busy with school, and too wary of talking again to anything mythological for the foreseeable future to agree right away.

But Grover had continued to ask, and once he had a bit of free time, he couldn’t find a good enough reason not to go and they had visited their first national park.

It surprised Percy how much he enjoyed those days.

Sure, they were often attacked by various monsters, but the nights he spent camping with Grover and occasionally Annabeth under a clear sky, eating marshmallows and chips and cookies and simply talking about whatever came up, were some of the best times of his life.

Most satyrs, naiads, and other nature spirits were surprisingly open and promised Grover their support. Even the few river gods Percy had talked to were in agreement that they wanted their rivers to become cleaner and were interested in what they had to say.

It had become something Percy looked forward to every month.

He threw Chiron a questioning glance. “But you didn’t call because you wanted a status report, did you?”

“I’m afraid not,” Chiron looked pained. “The gods requested a number of demigods to Olympus for reasons unknown to me. You have to return to New York asap.”

A sense of doom overcame Percy. His good mood vanished in an instant.

Chiron let out a long sigh. “The Olympians await you at the Temple of Hestia.”

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Thanks Chiron, that wasn’t ominous at all.

After trying unsuccessfully to get more information out of their teacher and only receiving the further notion, that a servant of Hestia would lead them to her temple once they would arrive at Olympus, they reluctantly made their way back to New York.

Exhausted, annoyed and sleep deprived, they arrived at the Empire State building after only eleven hours of travel, which Percy thought was probably a new record for them.

The guard didn’t even bother to talk to them anymore and simply handed out the card to Olympus without looking up. He was flipping trough the pages of his book, as the elevator doors closed, and they started to go up.

Simple music played quietly in the background, and Percy stared at the monochrome walls, his arms folded in front of his chest and a frown on his face.

‘You okay?’ Grover asked and fiddled with the sleeves of his jacket. His friend had been nearly freaking out ever since they had talked to Chiron.

Not like Percy could blame him.

Going up to the city of the gods was as inviting to him as jumping into an active volcano.

‘Nope,’ he tapped repeatedly with his foot against the floor. ‘You’ve got any idea why we’re actually here?’

‘No clue,’ Grover looked nervous. ‘But it has to be something important, right?’

‘Hopefully not,’ Percy sighed and leaned his head against the cooling elevator walls. ‘I can live without anything important happening for the next couple years.’

Grover bit his lips. ‘Chiron looked worried; don’t you think?’

‘Chiron always looks worried,” Percy said.

“More than normally, I mean.”

Percy hummed. “Maybe. He was even more vague, which I didn’t think was possible. You think the gods finally decided to kill me?’ he asked, only half joking.

‘Not as long as your father has anything to say about it,’ Grover noted. ‘Not all of the gods want you dead.’

‘Lot of them do,’ he countered. ‘Ares, Zeus, Hades, Fates, maybe Aphrodite now as well.”

“Do you really think she wants to kill you simply because you and Annabeth broke up.” Grover arched an eyebrow. “I know she favored you, but that’s a bit extreme, don’t you think?”

Percy shrugged. ‘Gods want to kill me for less. Not like it’s anyone else’s business.”

Their break-up hadn’t even been bad.

It had been a calm night, the only thing he had heard was the calming sound of waves crashing against the sand and a soft breeze blowing trough camp, but he hadn’t been able to sleep.

After the pit he rarely did.

He had sat on the beach; eyes closed, and his fingers interlinked with Annabeth’s, while both of them tried to concentrate on their breathing.

Her golden blond hair had been loose and had framed her face like a curtain, but tear tracks had still been visible, even in the weak light of the moon and stars.

It had become something of a tradition. When either of them couldn’t sleep or woke up from nightmares, they met at this very spot, no matter what the other one was doing, just to be together.

After a while, she had rested her head on his shoulders, and laid a hand on his chest, right above his heart. The steady beating a silent reassurance that miraculously both of them were still alive. That they had made it out.

Her hair had faintly smelled like lemons.

Percy didn’t know how long they had sat there like that. It could have been minutes, it could have been hours, when Annabeth had spoken up.

‘Thank you,’ she had whispered. “For being here.”

“You too.” ‘Thank you’, felt like a very weak word to describe his gratitude for Annabeth being a part of his life, but it was a start.

‘Percy,’ her voice had been calm and steady and, in a way, he had already known what she wanted to say. This conversation had hung over them for the last couple weeks like an annoyingly persistent shadow. “What are we doing?”

She had looked up at his face, storm grey eyes full of emotion.

He had smiled a little sad. “I think it’s called trying to recover. Your psychology book recommended we give it a try, remember?”

Annabeth had chuckled. “You know what I’m talking about. With us.”

“With us?”, Percy had asked and let out a long sigh. “Honestly, I don’t know. I love you, I couldn’t imagine a world where I didn’t love you, but…”

He had looked at the waves, searching for the right words, but nothing had seemed to be good enough.

Annabeth had squeezed his hand. “Not in the way you used to. Not in a I-want-to-kiss-and-touch-you-kind of way, right?”

A numb feeling had begun growing in his chest and he had swallowed. “I don’t know. I should want to, because, well, because you’re Annabeth. Because you are brilliant, and funny, and brave, and kind, and gods of Olympus, because you’re beautiful. Because I wanted to kiss you since I was like fourteen, but,” he sighed. “I don’t know.”

Falling in love with Annabeth had been so incredibly easy, and being in love with her had been even simpler, almost like it was an irrevocable fact of life. The sky was blue, snow was cold and Percy Jackson was in love with Annabeth Chase.

It seemed cruel that something so essential to who he was had simply seized to exist.

If Percy was being honest with himself, sometimes he felt like the wars and Tartarus had inadvertently broken some part deep inside of him. The part of him that had dreamed of marriage and kids, of a picture book, picket fence ending for him and Annabeth.

He was terrified he’d never regain it.

A single tear had run down Annabeth’s cheek, but she had wiped it away. “I love you too” she had said. “More than I ever imagined I could love anyone. I had a crush on you since I was 12 years old and I know, I couldn’t bare losing you, but” her voice broke of, and she had to take a shuddered breath. “I need my best friend, right now. Not my boyfriend.”

He had turned to look at her, and had nodded slowly, squeezing her hand.

“Are you right now breaking up with me, Wise girl?”

More tears had flown. Annabeth had leaned forward, so that their foreheads were touching, and he felt her warm breath against his skin. Neither of them had felt the need to move in for a kiss.

“I’m pretty sure this break up is mutual, Seaweed brain.”

The ding of the elevator tore him out of his thoughts. He blinked and shook his head, before stepping out, into a warm evening.

Olympus was as beautiful as he remembered.

Blinding white and intricate gold buildings decorated the elegant streets, with the greenest of gardens and most colourful of flowers in between as if they had just stepped into a renaissance painting.

Most temples were standing on what he believed to be Corinthian columns, Annabeth’s favourite.

Percy couldn’t count the times he had seen her sketch one of these at the athena cabin in camp or at his mom’s kitchen table, her honey blonde locks falling in her face, and her eyes narrowed in concentration, while she forgot the rest of the world around her.

The air was sweet and smelled like a thousand different exotic plants and faintly, he heard the lively sound of lyre music.

He and Grover looked at each other. His friends nose twitched.

“So, you’ve got an idea, where exactly lady Hestia’s temple is?”

“No clue, whatsoever.”

Fantastic.

Percy felt a headache coming his way and let his eyes wander from the walls of a nearby amphitheatre, to the throne room of the Olympians that shimmered in the distance.

Olympus was beautiful, but sadly it didn’t come with a map.

“Shouldn’t someone be here to help,” Grover looked around. “Chiron mentioned that, right?”

As if waiting for him to say that the wind around them picked up, seemingly out of nowhere, ruffling their hairs and clothes, before twirling around itself into a tiny tornado.

The air shimmered, and the tornado transformed into a tall, beautiful woman with flowing blond hair, and an elven like face. When Percy didn’t concentrate on her, she seemed almost transparent, and he could see the gardens behind her.

‘Percy, Grover,’ the arae smiled. ‘I welcome you on Olympus. I’m Penelope. A servant of lady Hestia. She requested me to guide you to her temple. Few demigods know where it is on Olympus. And you didn’t arrive with the rest.”

They bowed respectfully.

‘The rest?’ Grover asked.

‘Yes,’ she nodded. ‘The Fates requested the presence of 15 other demigods, accompanied by the current oracle. They’ve arrived half an hour ago.”

Percy cleared his throat. “I’m sorry, Chiron didn’t exactly tell us why we’re here. Do you happen to know what is going on?”

While Hestia’s temple sounded far better than the Olympian throne room, this whole situation struck him as extremely odd, and he couldn’t help but feel reprehensive.

‘I don’t know any details,” Penelope admitted smoothly, keeping her tone neutral, while starting to walk away from the main street, which led to the throne room and away from the Gates. ‘But lady Hestia told me, that the Fates reached out to them. To all the Olympians and some of the other gods. I only know it has something to do with the last two wars.”

‘You were a rather significant part of those wars,’ she explained kindly at their baffled expressions. ‘You two and the demigods who have already arrived. I suppose your insights especially are valuable for them.’

The music got louder, the further they got from the gates. Him and Grover had their brows furrowed, processing what Penelope had said.

“The second Titan war ended almost a year ago,” Percy said after a while. “Why now?”

They walked past a big park with a pavilion, the origin of the lyre music, played by some young women in white ropes, whom Percy recognized as the muses. When they passed, half of the listeners whispered to each other and pointed at them, while others nodded respectfully, and some even waved, which Percy thought was a bit weird.

‘In all honesty I don’t really know what’s going to happen either’ Penelope continued on and ignored them, though she held her head a bit higher. “I only received the instruction to guide you.”

They rounded a corner around a big, silver temple and walked a narrow path peppered with chaste trees, towards a building, which was so obviously linked to Hestia, it was nearly impossible to miss.

It was simple, despite its big size. No fancy carvings or big statues like on most of the other constructions on Olympus decorated the white temple.

Playful, ever-changing shadows danced across the halls, as if it was surrounded by hundreds of small campfires. Percy could see a woman holding an apple triumphantly, a couple kissing at a wedding, and a woman holding a baby close to her chest.

Two donkeys grazed in a little barn next to it and lazily looked up when they approached. Their ears twitched.

The warm air was filled with the smell of cardamom and roasted marshmallows and Percy felt his tense shoulder slowly start to relax.

Still, he hesitated, when the door swung open as soon as they approached.

Grover nudged his shoulder encouragingly, as Penelope entered, and he had halted. “Let’s try to see it positively. At least it’s not a new great prophecy.”

“Funny,” Percy grimaced. “I still have a bad feeling about this.”

He shrugged. “Not like we have a choice.”

“Guess so,” Percy admitted reluctantly. Then, he and Grover slowly followed Penelope into the temple.

What followed might have been the strangest image Percy had ever seen in his life. And coming from someone, who had once travelled trough Tartarus’ armpits, that was quite an achievement.

The entire Olympian council sat on thrones on the right side of a wide room, illuminated by candlelight.

Zeus was in the middle with Hera and Athena next to him and tapped impatiently with his fingers against his armrest.

He wore a black suit today, and narrowed his electric blue eyes when they approached.

Hermes was talking to Apollo and Artemis, and sent him and Grover a friendly grin, while gods like Dionysus, and Ares didn’t bother looking at them.

Further down, near the very end of the room, sat his father, with his usual Hawaiian shirt and his trident leaning against his throne. He smiled at him, but like Chiron, it looked unnaturally strained and did nothing to calm Percy’s nerves the way it usually did when he encountered the gods like this.

On the throne next to him was a woman with flowing black hair, a long green gown and calculating eyes, as blue as the mediterranean sea, whom Percy recognized as Amphitrite, queen of the ocean and his father’s wife. Her expression was neutral, albeit cold, and when their eyes accidentally met, both of them diverted them almost immediately.

Triton, who had his arms crossed in front of his chest, didn’t spare them a glance, while the young woman next to him, with deep blue hair, and the same green eyes as his father had, tilted her head in curiosity.

Rhode, his mind supplied.

After he had told Annabeth about his encounters in Atlantis and with Kymopoleia, she had made sure he’d at least recognize his fathers’ godly children.

Besides his father’s immortal family, there were also a few other minor gods present.

Iris sat closest to the door. Her long, black hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and she was holding a conversation with a deathly pale goddess with dark eyes, and robes.

Hecate, Percy guessed, if Hazel’s description was to be believed.

Next to some other goddess, Percy didn’t recognize, sat Ariadne, a woman with brown locks and a kind smile, who was laughing softly at something Mr. D. had said and next to Hades was his wife, Persephone.

Penelope was bowing on the ground before them.

Across from the gods, in total contrast, sat a bunch of their friends in what looked like cinema seats, only a whole lot more comfortable.

Fluffy pillows and blankets covered cushy couches and armchairs, with bottles of water and snacks In between on little wooden tables.

Some, like Thalia, or Nico sat cross-legged and relaxed against their cushions, while others, like Jason, Chris and Katie looked like they did their best to sit as uncomfortably and stiff as they possibly could. He would have mistaken Reyna for a statue if she wouldn’t have blinked.

Percy’s eyes met Annabeth, who sat next to Thalia on a large couch in the middle of the group. Her gaze wandered from his torn college jacket, over his dirty backpack and lingered on a slit on his left cheek.

She raised an eyebrow and he shrugged, right as Hestia mentioned Penelope to stand up.

“Thank you, dear,” her voice was full of warmth, but her tone more forced than Percy remembered it to be. “That would be all.”

The arae bowed her head one last time, sent him and Grover a small smile, and then disappeared, leaving behind nothing but a soft summer breeze.

At this point, confusion couldn’t begin to describe what Percy was feeling.

He had expected a new quest, a prophecy, or even another Olympian discussion if they should execute him, but not… whatever this was supposed to be.

Hestia gestured to the cinema seats. “Please, Percy, Grover, sit down.”

Bewildered, but happy to move on from their awkward place in front of everyone, they plopped down on the empty couch next to Annabeth, who leaned closer to them.

‘Took you long enough,” she said quietly.

‘Sorry,’ Percy whispered back. ‘We got attacked a few times on the way back to New York.’

‘By what?’

‘Hellhounds, a hydra, Canadians,’ he shrugged. ‘You know the likes. Do you have any idea why we’re here?”

“No,” her forehead creased in thought. “They refused to say anything before everyone was present.”

“Were we the last two to arrive?” Grover asked.

“I think so.”

As if on cue, Zeus nodded at Athena, who then cleared her throat.

“Demigods,” she let her gaze wander over them, eyes hard and cold as steel. “You must be surprised to find yourself here.”

Surprise might be quite and understatement, Percy thought. Freaked out, and thinking he had accidentally taken a mixture of various drugs matched his feelings much better.

“The fates have directly talked to us for the first time,” she said, and destroyed every hope he had that this might not end that badly. Every time the Fates were involved, his life took a turn for the worse.

“We were tasked with reevaluating the past,” Athena’s voice was clear and loud, as if discussing a battle strategy. “Rethinking the actions, we took against Kronos and Gaia. For that purpose, they left Hecate and Iris with the Instructions of a forgotten spell. A window to the past. With that, we’ll be able to watch the events of the last two wars, the second titan war and the war with Gaia.

Silence.

Percy blinked at the goddess.

“Watch?”, Thalia furrowed her eyebrows, sounding as confused as Percy felt. “Like what? Some kind of movie?”

“Close, but not completely accurate,” Iris commented. “Perhaps a demonstration will suffice better than any explanation.”

The goddess’s eyes started to glow, and she and Hekate raised their arms in unison, before anyone could say another word.

Threads of reality seemed at once to unravel, like an old yarn, only for them to connect them again, building a structure as precise as a spider web, every bit of it thrumming with magic and power.

The arms on Percy’s arms stood up and a shiver went down his spine, as the image of the temple disappeared, the whites and browns, becoming different shades of green.

His mouth became dry as his surroundings transformed into a forest.

Trees grew from the floor and formed a green canopy over their heads. Rays of golden sunlight broke only trough in tiny specks, that formed an intricate pattern on the earthly ground.

They were surrounded by the sound of birds chirping, and the rustling of leaves in the wind and in the middle, in the space between the thrones and the couches, a group of deers browsed peacefully.

From the corners of his eyes, he could see Leo hesitantly lean forward to touch a tree, that was planted next to him, only for his hand to go trough. The illusion of the tree wavered like a surface of water before Leo pulled his hand back, his eyes widening by the second.

Percy felt his jaw clench.

Waking up in cold sweat, with his heart pounding so fast he was sure it would explode, in the middle of the night was bad enough, but watching the wars as if they were some sort of entertainment, like the next Hollywood blockbuster made him want to punch something. Preferably, the Fates.

The demigods had fallen silent, some blanched, other leaned back in their seat, while again others seemed frozen.

Reyna was the one who spoke up in the end. “Lady Athena,” she let her narrowed eyes slowly wander over their surroundings. “We’re not going to see the wars this realistically, are we?”

“We are,” Athena said. “It’s the most effective way of finding out the truth.”

Percy’s hear started to pound faster; blood rushed to his head. “So, our battles, at Camp Half blood, at Manhattan,” Percy glanced at Jason and Renya, his voice becoming more quiet, more controlled. “At Mount Tamalpais and Camp Jupiter, all that will be shown this realistically? The injuries, the deaths, all of it?”

Hestia studied him, the sadness of a thousand years filling her eyes. “We will take breaks,” she said, which was answer enough.

Hot anger started to form in his stomach, like lava.

Silena Beauregard’s poisoned face flashed trough his mind. He saw Ethan falling down from Olympus, Luke stabbing himself with Annabeth’s dagger and Michael Yew disappearing at the Manhattan bridge. He saw Castor dying at the battle of Camp Half-Blood, Zoe’s body diffusing into Starlight and Bianca di Angelo running towards a bronze giant.

He stared at the gods, anger swirling in his sea green eyes. “You want us to sit in this room and watch all our friends die again?”

His friends flinched back, and some of the gods winced.

“That isn’t the intention,” Athena said coldly.

“But it’s part of it, isn’t it?”, Percy glared at her. “That we sit here and watch the wars. That we lean back and watch how Silena Beauregard died,” Clarisse, a few seats left and one step lower than him, flinched back. Aphrodite froze in her movements.

“Watch Charles Beckendorf die,” he continued, and ignored the way his voice started to shake. Hephaestus expression hardened.

“Castor, Justin, Ethan, Michael, Zoe, Bian…” his voice broke off, his face turned ashen, and his eyes flickered to Nico, who sat on the couch above him, next to Will.

The room was deathly quiet. You could have heard a pin drop.

“Bianca,” Nico whispered the name, as if it was prayer, his face as white as a piece of chalk and twisted by horror. “I could see Bianca’s death?”

He shook his head slowly, then stared at the gods, sudden anger burning in his dark eyes. “I’m not going to watch my sister die here. Definitely not. You can forget it.”

“Do you know what would happen, when we don’t follow their advice?” Hera sounded annoyed, even condescending, which threw away the last bit of self preservation Percy had.

“Do you?” Percy arched an eyebrow. “I thought this is the first time that ever happened.”

If looks could kill, he would be dead.

Several times.

“The Fates didn’t even try to warn us when Kronos came back,” she spit out. “Not when Gaia tried to come back. So, it is safe to assume, that whatever it is they try to avoid here will be worse. Do you want to be part of a third great prophecy in, let’s say, a year, Perseus Jackson?”

They held eye contact; Percy didn’t back down.

“Why do we have to be here for that?” he asked.

“To give us insights to your side of the war,” Athena said. “That was also something the Fates demanded.”

“We can give you insights without watching the events unfold like this,” his voice sounded cold, even to his own ears, but Percy didn’t care. “I can assure you, none of us have forgotten anything about them.”

“Percy,” Poseidon’s voice was calm, gentle. “This isn’t our choice. A potential war like that could be a war against Fate itself. The end, not only of the Western civilization, but of the entire world.”

He looked at his father, determined to argue, to say that they couldn’t just sit here and eat snacks, and drink co*ke, while watching the worst times of their lives.

Times, which caused most campers to develop cases of ptsd so bad, they didn’t want to sleep in the same cabin as their younger half-siblings anymore. So bad, most campers had nightmares almost every week and saw the dead faces of their family each time they closed their eyes.

But something in his father’s expression stopped him.

His neutral expression was strained, his hands clenched the edges of his throne so hard, his knuckled became white, and a dark storm was brewing in his eyes.

Percy halted in his movements. Poseidon didn't like the plan any more than he did.

This discovery didn’t calm him down, not one bit, but in a strange way, it was reassuring. He took a deep breath.

“Is there a way to know what we’ll watch? Or to skip scenes?”

“No,” Hecate answered him. “Me and Iris, we simply allow the scenes to play. The fates control what gets shown.”

“This experience will without a doubt make you remember some incredibly traumatic situations.” Was it just him or did Hestia’s eyes flicker over to him when she said that? “We will do our best to make this as easy as possible for you, so please, if you need a break, take it. There are rooms already prepared for you.”

She gestured to a window where the night sky was already visible. “For today, it’s only going to be one scene, okay? Just to give you an idea, what this experience entails. You can go to sleep after that. If a scene comes up, which affects some of you more than others, you can sit it out. But we can’t risk not doing it.”

“Your schools won’t notice your absence either,” Athena noted. “We’ll also not watch the entire day. You’ll have breaks, in which you can do schoolwork.”

Hestia nodded, then she looked at Percy again. “So, what are you saying?”

The gods and his friends' eyes were focused on him.

Percy wanted to shout. Wanted to bang his head against the nearest wall, till he became unconscious, and stubbornly refuse to be here for one second longer, but he hesitated.

He wondered if he had the right to make this decision. If the gods were right, and ignoring the Fates would lead to another war, could he risk having blood like that on his hands?

But did he have the right to agree to this?

He looked at Annabeth and Thalia, who would be, again, confronted with everything that Luke had done, at Clarisse, who would have to see Silena die again, at Will who had lost more than half of his cabin in the wars, at Chris, who had to be confronted with his betrayal and madness, at Hazel, who had killed herself and her mother to stop Gaia, at Reyna, who had been captured by Blackbeard, and at every single one of the halfbloods who sat around him.

His gaze lingered on Nico.

Nico, who had lived in the Lotus casino for fifty years. Nico, who had lost his sister when he was only ten years old and had run away from camp. Nico, who never had a real home in his life. Nico, who he himself hadn’t trusted completely for a long time. Nico, who had been alone in Tartarus. Nico, who had been captured by the giants, and slowly suffocated inside of a small jar.

He felt his throat tighten and forced himself to swallow down his anger and calm down. He leaned closer to his cousin.

“Neeks,” he said softly, when Nico arched an eyebrow. “What do you think?”

They held eye contact for about five seconds. Percy wasn’t sure what Nico saw in his expression, he had never been good at knowing what the son of Hades thought, but he nodded, and then looked at the gods. His voice was remarkably calm when he spoke.

“I can sit Bianca’s death out?”

“Of course,” Hades said, softer than Percy had ever heard him before. He hadn’t looked away from Nico since the reveal.

Nico looked at Percy and Thalia, his eyebrows drawing together warily. “And you’ll tell me should her death come up? Even if you’re not sure, if it is the moment?”

“Immediately,” Thalia said and nodded.

“Without hesitation,” Percy agreed quickly.

He sighed, and ran a hand trough his pitch-black hair, suddenly looking exhausted. Far more exhausted than a fifteen-year-old should ever look like. “Then, it’s better than another war, isn’t it?” His voice was bitter. “At least this way, we only see the deaths of people who are already dead. No one new has to die.”

No one had an argument against that. Will gently squeezed Nico’s hand, and Percy did the same to Annabeth.

“Okay,” Hestia said softly. “You are all alright with that?”

Most of them were still pale, and stared at the gods, but they nodded, slowly, but determined. No one could bare losing another friend.

"Finally," Zeus cleared his throat, and looked at both Hecate and Iris. “Let’s begin.”

With a swish of Iris’ hand, the forest vanished.

“You, okay?” Percy asked Annabeth quietly. “We’re probably going to see Luke again. And Tartarus…”

She sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder. “As long as you, Thalia and Grover are here too, I’ll be fine. How about you?”

“I feel the same,” he leaned against the sofa and looked at the projection, which formed an entirely new scene. He let out a long breath. “As long as we’re together.”

Chapter 3: Vaporizing the Pre-Algebra Teacher

Chapter Text

Where there was a dense forest, with green everywhere, around 30 kids in a yellow school bus appeared in the middle of the room. They screamed and pushed each other around.

A scene which struck Percy as weirdly familiar, though he couldn’t quite place the feeling.

Zeus narrowed his eyes in irritation.

‘What is this?’, he demanded, and the projection stopped right as a boy with curly brown hair and a scar on his left cheek, started to play cards with his friends.

‘Only what the Fates want us to watch, my lord,’ Iris answered, but her brows were furrowed, and she exchanged a short glance with Hecate, that betrayed her confusion.

‘Are you sure’, Athena looked slightly taken aback and let her eyes wander over the students. ‘I find it hard to belief a mortal middle school class has importance for us.’

‘So do I,’ Annabeth murmured next to him. Her head was softly tilted to the right and her hands played with her dad’s college ring, the way they always did when she tried to figure something out.

‘Yeah,’ Percy said and shoved down the weird feeling of DeJa’Vu with a shake of his head. ‘Hadn’t really expected to see a school bus of all things.’

‘It is pretty weird,’ he could almost hear the gears in her head starting to turn.

‘The Fates do work in mysterious ways,’ Apollo pointed out. ‘If they deem this important, it probably is.’

‘Perhaps,’ Athena didn’t seem satisfied, but before she could theorize any further, Zeus scowled and urged Iris impatiently to continue the projection.

Quickly, the different students came more into focus.

One boy, with round glasses talked to another one with a bandana, two African American girls were giggling in the back, a girl with flaming red hair and orange freckles glared at two not recognizable boys in the seats in front of her and a group of -wait.

Percy’s head snapped back to the orange haired girl, who was taking a peanut butter- and-ketchup-sandwich out of her brand new scooby doo backpack.

He heard Grover hitch his breath and all air left his lungs.

Nancy.

Nancy Bobofit. And if she was on this bus…

As if on cue, the projection changed perspective and they were now looking at younger versions of him and Grover, roughly 12 years of age.

Percy’s mouth fell open.

He felt like his blood turned into ice as the attention of the room shifted to them, confusion and disbelief decorating most expressions on their side, while the gods looked more resigned than anything else.

‘What is this supposed to mean’, Zeus glared at Percy, as if this was somehow his fault.

Naturally.

‘No idea,’ His skin tingled uncomfortably, and he shook his head. “I thought this would be about the wars?”

He looked at Grover, who stared flabbergasted at himself on the projection, his eyes practically bulging and face ashen.

‘You have no idea, why this scene could be of importance?’, Artemis studied them. ‘Did nothing ever happen at one of your trips?’

‘Not really,’ Percy said. ‘At this point I didn’t even know, about, well, all of this,’ he gestured vaguely to the inside of the temple.

‘Mrs. Dodds happened. ‘Grover’s voice shook when he spoke.

Percy’s brows drew together. ‘I guess, but, I mean, that wasn’t exactly important, was it?’

‘No,’ Grover admitted. ‘I mean, it was important for us, but for the Fates? I honestly doubt it.”

“I do not think it is up to us to decide, what is important and what is not”, Hecate said. “It’s the Fates decision. Whatever they choose for us to watch, we have no choice but to obey.”

Percy and Grover exchanged a confused look but didn’t disagree and Iris continued the projection.

Immediately a young voice started to speak, much to Percy’s horror.

Look I didn’t want to be a half-blood.

Percy felt as if he’d just been electrocuted. His lips were dry.

‘That was your voice, wasn’t it? But your mouth didn’t move,’ Annabeth said slowly, in disbelief. ‘Were those your thoughts?’

He stared at the projection, his heart beating so loudly against his chest taht he was sure it would burst.

‘I guess, I mean, I didn’t say anything, so, they must be, right? But at this point I didn’t know I was a half-blood,” his hands started to tremble. ‘What is this?’

‘Are you sure, you didn’t know?’, Iris asked, surprise transforming her face. ‘This could be after you found out, after all.’

‘Grover and Nancy are there; this has to be our school trip to the Metropolitan. I found out a few months later, at the beginning of summer,’ he spoke faster the more frustrated he became, trying to connect his thoughts. ‘And why would my thoughts be audible anyway?’

‘It is possible that we are supposed to hear them,” Iris said carefully. “Like we said, the spell we used is ancient and we haven’t used it before. If the Fates deem them important, we have no choice but hearing them.’

He blinked at her. Slowly. ‘If the Fates deem the thoughts of 12-year-old me important?’

‘They must have their reason. Even if we can’t see it yet.’

“For how long?” his voice was cold.

“Until you’re no longer the person, who’s point of view we are following," she cleared her thoat. "For all we know now, it might be over after this scene.”

‘Oh,’ numbness overcame his limbs and threatened to drown any other emotion. Like waves in the middle of a storm.

He noticed the pale and panicked faces of his friends, the looks of sympathy that some of the gods, like Hermes and Hestia, were sending him and even noticed the deep scowl that formed on his father’s face and the glares he sent the other Olympians and Iris, but everything seemed far away.

It was as if his mind simply refused to process Iris’ words.

Bile rose in his throat, but when he looked up at Hecate and Iris again, his eyes were clear and alert.“You knew this would happen, didn’t you?”

“We knew the possibility existed,” Hecate admitted calmly. "Hearing your thoughts is a much more detailed insights to your side of the wars. It would make for Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos to choose this possibility."

Percy scoffed. “Of course." A thousand reasons to get up and leave whirled around in his mind, but no words passed his lips, and no limb moved. He swallowed down any bitter remark, and instead furrowed his eyebrows. "And you are sure that it could cause another war should we not watch this?”

“Potentially.”

He clenched his jaw, but before he could say anything else, Annabeth gently grabbed his hand.

‘It will be fine,’ she whispered, even though she didn’t sound completely convinced. “We shouldn’t come too fast to conclusions.”

He nodded, if only to play along. Cause really, if they would hear his thoughts out loud, things are not “fine”. They were the farthest possible thing away from “fine”.

‘You’re right’, he smoothed out the frown that had started to grow on his forehead, let out a sigh and started to rub circles in the palm of her hand. “And it’s not like we have a choice, right?’

‘Right,’ she said, and leaned against his shoulder. ‘Right.’

Hecate raised her hand again and Percy braised himself.

The voice, his 12-year-old voice, continued to speak, sealing his fate.

If you’re reading this because you think … close this book right now… and try to lead a normal life.

‘That is so strange,’ Annabeth murmured to him. ‘It’s like you’re trying to warn other demigods, like the first page of a guide.’

‘Yeah, first chapter of Percy Jackson’s Guide on being a demigod.’ Percy sounded bitter. She sighed.

“We’ll get trough this,” Annabeth said softly. “We always do.”

Being a half-blood is dangerous. It’s scary.

Most of the time it gets you killed in painful, nasty ways.

A lump grew in Percy’s throat, and he couldn’t help looking around the room.

His gaze wandered from Hazel, who leaned against Frank’s muscular arm, and took deep breaths, over Thalia who had crossed her arms over her chest, her lips turned into a thin line and lingered at Clarisse, who was staring at the ground, a scowl on her face.

She was tightly grabbing her red string bracelet and Percy felt his chest tighten.

The bracelet was the last present Silena had ever given her and the only piece of jewellery Clarisse ever wore, besides the camp necklace.

He still remembered the way Silena had nervously played with one of her long chocolate brown locks and how he and Beckendorf had to reassure her countless times that Clarisse would like the present, on the day she had given it to her.

It was as if someone had punched him in the gut.

If you’re a normal kid… Read on…But if you recognize… stop reading immediately… Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

My name is Percy Jackson.

‘It’s literally as if you’re addressing us,’ Grover muttered and bit his lips. ‘That’s so weird.’

‘This whole thing is weird,’ Percy agreed and threw a look at 12-year-old him, who was still staring out of the bus window, hands balled in frustration as Nancy picked her sandwich apart. ‘Especially watching us like this.’

Grover grimaced. ‘Yeah.’

I’m twelve years old.

Until a few months ago…Am I a troubled kid?

Yeah. You could say that.

A weak, reluctant smile flashed over Thalia’s face, but it was too weak to last.

I could start at any point in my short miserable life to prove it, but things really started going bad … field trip to Manhattan – twenty-eight mental-case kids… ,heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to look at ancient Greek and Roman stuff.

‘The metropolitan sounds fascinating,’ Annabeth said with fake enthusiasm and looked around the entrance of the museum. ‘I would have loved going on a fieldtrip there.’

Percy knew she simply tried to distract him and Gods, he loved her for that. And like always, she was right. No matter how much he hated everything about this, he could hardly change what was happening.

He even managed a small grin when he heard the next line.

I know - it sounds like torture. Most Yancy field trips were.

‘Really?’, Annabeth’s lips twitched up and she fondly shook her head.

‘You know I’m not usually a fan of museums.’

She raised an eyebrow. ‘You didn’t seem to have had any problem when we visited the Museum of Modern Art last month.’

‘Because I didn’t go there with my 6^th grade class or Nancy Bobofit, but with you and Rachel. And because I wasn’t twelve.’

She smiled. ‘Fair enough.’

But Mr. Brunner, our Latin teacher… middle aged guy in a motorized wheelchair…thinning hair and a scruffy beard… You wouldn’t think he’d be cool… play games in class… only teacher whose class didn’t put me to sleep.

The projection widened and in the front row of the seats, Chiron became visible, who was busy reading a book.

‘Chiron came to your school?’, Leo looked surprised.

‘I asked him to,’ Grover bleated nervously, and his eyes flickered for a split second to Thalia, an expression of guilt crossing over his face. ‘I informed him about Percy, and he agreed to watch him with me. We …we wanted to make sure something like what happened to Thalia wouldn’t happen again.’

Thalia gave him a pointed look.

‘You know it wasn’t your fault back then, right?’, She leaned over Annabeth and Percy to nudge his side. ‘You did the best you could.’

He managed to crack her a weak smile. ‘I’m trying to come to terms with that. I know, you’ll probably electrocute me if I continue to blame myself.’

‘Yeah, I will,’ she grinned and squeezed his shoulder. ‘I have no regrets about what happened that day, Grover.’

He nodded. ‘I know.’

I hoped the trip would be okay… I hoped for once I wouldn’t get in trouble.

Rachel snorted quietly and nudged his head gently with her foot. ‘I’m pretty sure you can get in trouble, while shopping for groceries,” she teased quietly.

He turned around to look up at her.

With a few blobs of paint decorating her chin, her wild, red hair, that was pulled back into a loose bun and her relaxed posture, she looked as if she was actually in a movie theatre, waiting for the next marvel blockbuster to start playing.

Percy smiled.

Rachel always accepted the craziest things, without questioning them too much.

Almost getting killed by a random guy with a sword? She had given him her number the next time they had met.

Navigating them trough a thousand-year-old, magical labyrinth? She had thrown her blue hairbrush at ancient Lord of the Titans and used the experience as an inspiration for her art.

Watching a part of his life in some weird illusion thing? She used the opportunity to make fun of him.

It was situations like this, where Percy couldn’t help but admire her and be grateful for Rachel’s presence. It was a nice distraction to fall back into their casual banter.

‘I wish I could disagree.”

Boy was I wrong.

“Of course.” Will sighed quietly and shook his head, despite the severity of the situation.

The day Percy Jackson didn’t get in trouble was the day Tartarus would win the title of the greatest tourist destination.

See, bad things happen to me on field trips…I wasn’t aiming for the school bus, but of course I was expelled anyway.

Surprised chuckles filled the room, even some of the demigods, who were quiet so far let out laughter, only to hold their hands over their mouths and glance nervously at the gods right after, who didn’t react.

Most haven’t talked to one God in their lifetime, much less the entire Olympian council.

‘Why were you aiming at your school bus?’, Thalia, who didn’t have that kind of reservation, especially since joining Artemis, asked him with a grin.

‘I didn’t know it was loaded,’ Percy replied, and felt his face heating up. ‘I was just, you know, curious.’

‘Your head is full of kelp,’ she said, right as the narration continued.

And before that, at my fourth-grade school … and our class took an unplanned swim.

Another round of quiet laughter broke out. Thalia, and Annabeth let out snorts, Hermes and Apollo’s lips quirked up, and for a second, even Poseidon forgot to glare at Zeus, an expression of amusem*nt growing on his face.

Hazel felt herself slowly relax against her seat.

If she was being honest, it was a big relief, that they did not start in the middle of a battle, or a war, surrounded by screams of pain, blood, and the screeches of monsters, but instead on a kid going on a field trip.

And Percy had always been able to diffuse tension. Even if it was not intentional.

His face had become a deep shade of red. ‘Why would the fates want us to hear about that?’

‘No clue,’ Apollo grinned, but didn’t look like he was sorry at all. ‘Why did you pull the wrong lever?’

‘I didn’t mean to,’ Percy complained. ‘I thought another tour guide told me to, but apparently-‘ he stopped and groaned. ‘It was probably one of the sharks.”

‘What?’ Katie stared at him, as if he’d grown a second head.

He ran a hand trough his hair. ‘I didn’t know back then that I can talk to fish. But I can. And we fell into the shark tank. If one of the sharks told me to pull the lever, I would have probably thought it was one of the attendings.”

Percy leaned back in his seat and gestured at the projection. “This sucks. On a whole different level than I thought it would suck.”

And the time before that… Well, you get the idea.

‘You have to tell us more stories from before Camp,’ Rachel whispered. ‘Seems like we’re missing out.’

‘Forget it,’ Percy said,’ You’re already finding out way too much. You don’t need to know my entire life story.’

She shrugged. ‘Worth a try.’

This trip I was determined to be good.

‘The last time that ever happened,’ Thalia said.

All the way into the city … with chunks of peanut butter-and-ketchup sandwich.

Katie wrinkled her nose. ‘That’s disgusting.’

Annabeth glared at Nancy. ‘And completely unnecessary.’

Grover was an easy target.

Clarisse snorted, while Grover’s head shot up. ‘Hey!’

He was scrawny. He cried when he got frustrated.

‘Dude!’

He must have been held back… On top of all that, he was crippled.

Grover gaped at him. ‘Seriously?’

By now, many people had to stifle their laughter and especially Thalia and Annabeth were busy faking coughs.

‘Sorry, man,’ Percy said, though he sounded amused. ‘I don’t think you’re scrawny anymore, if it helps.’

‘Gee,’ Grover facepalmed. ‘Thanks, Percy.’

He had a note excusing him from PE … You should’ve seen him run when it was enchilada day in the cafeteria.

‘Really?’ Annabeth raised her eyebrow fondly. ‘For Enchiladas? Way to blow your cover.’

Grover’s ears turned red. “They were worth it,” he defended himself quietly.

Anyway, Nancy Bobofit was throwing wads of sandwich…if anything bad, embarrassing, or even mildly entertaining happened on this trip.

‘Geez,’ Chris shook his head. ‘Talking about a school, that sucks.’

‘I’m going to kill her,’ I mumbled... ‘It’s okay. I like peanut butter.’

Grover winced and nudged Percy.

‘How do you deal with hearing your 12-year-old voice the whole time? That’s like one of my worst nightmares come true.’

Percy sighed. ‘I’ll let you know when I find out.”

He dodged another piece of Nancy’s lunch…’You know who’ll get blamed if anything happens.’

Will chuckled quietly to himself despite the weird situation. Not even one minute into the scene and the first thing those two do is trying to protect each other. He rolled his eyes fondly, while Clarisse snorted from the front row.

‘Good luck trying to hold Prissy back.’ Chris had placed one of his arms around her muscular shoulders and she leaned into him, while a single blanket covered both of their bodies.

It’s been a while since Percy had seen either of them so serene, and a small smile formed on his lips at the display.

‘He was on probation,’ Grover said and glared half-heartedly at him. ‘I didn’t think he’d risk it for someone like Nancy Bobofit.’

Percy shrugged. ‘She was bullying you.’

‘You’re impossible, Perce.’

‘Love you too, man.’

Locking back on it, I wish I’d decked Nancy Bobofit…nothing compared to the mess I was about to get myself into.

‘Mess is an understatement,’ Hermes muttered and let his gaze wander over the demigods.

All in all, they had taken this thing remarkably well so far, but maybe that was to be expected.

After fighting against Kronos and Gaia, a projection like this probably seemed minor in comparison. And Percy being the one narrating definitely helped.

When they had started to watch, he had expected to see tears, hear arguments and feel grief at the inevitable deaths of some of his demigod children.

The last thing he had expected was to laugh.

His eyes lingered for a second on his sons, who had small grins on their faces, and watched the projection with growing curiosity, instead of the wariness from only a few minutes prior, before they moved on to where Percy was sitting.

By now, he had slightly relaxed, though the tension hadn’t yet left his shoulders.

Hermes let out a sigh. It was only a matter of time before Percy would find out the entire truth about the projection, and his probably rather big role within it.

Mr. Brunner led the museum tour…that this stuff had survived for two thousand , three thousand years.

Apollo shrugged, right as the projection changed into the museum.

‘Give or take one, or two thousand years. I think they have some stuff from the Bronze age. And that was like, 5000 years ago, I think. I never keep up with how humans divide the past.’

He gathered us around a thirteen-foot-tall stone column…I told them to shut up, the other teacher chaperone, Mrs. Dodds, would give me the evil eye.

Annabeth chuckled and poked him gently against the ribs.

‘Seeing you like this is kind of nice,’ she gestured towards younger Percy, who tried intently to listen to Chiron. ‘I didn’t know you used to pay attention to your classes back then.’

‘It was pretty interesting,’ Percy said and rolled his eyes, when Annabeth arched an eyebrow. ‘At least before half of what Chiron was talking about tried to kill us.’

‘Fair,’ she snuggled closer to him,’ it’s still cute though.’

Mrs. Dodds was this little math teacher from Georgia … and I knew I was going to get after-school detention for a month.

‘A month?’, Travis said with a disgusted shudder, so quietly, only the demigods could hear him. ‘Talk about overkill.’

One time she’d made me erase answers out of old math workbooks until midnight…”You’re absolutely right.”

A slap could be heard trough the room as Grover’s hand hit his forehead. ‘I can’t believe I actually said that.’

‘You were young, and Percy was your best friend,’ Thalia sounded amused. ‘And how much time did you spend with him? A whole schoolyear? Slip-ups happen.’

Finally, Nancy Bobofit snickered something…It came out louder than I meant to.

‘That sucks,’ Piper wrinkled her nose and shifted in her seat, before leaning closer to Jason.

“You think this could happen to all of us? Hearing our thoughts out loud, I mean?”

Jason grimaced. “Gods, I hope not. I have no clue how Percy is not completely freaking out right now.”

The whole group laughed… I said, „No, sir.”…“Perhaps you’ll tell us what this picture represents?”

‘Kronos,’ Zeus grumbled,’ Of course.’

‘It just had to be this story,’ Demeter agreed with her brother and sighed.

‘I looked at the carvings, and felt a flush of relief…”That’s Kronos eating his kids, right?...into barfing up his brothers and sisters-“ “Eeew!” said one of the girls behind me.

‘”Eeew!” would be an understatement,’ Hera said with a shudder, a taint of green in her face as she looked at the stele.

‘Indeed’, Hestia said. She looked paler than usual and laid a soothing hand on her sister’s arm. ‘That wasn’t the most pleasant of experiences.’

Percy couldn’t blame them for their reactions. Not even Hera.

Getting swallowed right after birth by your father wasn’t really on his to do list either. Especially if said father was someone like Kronos.

Grimacing he looked back at the projection.

“-and so there was this big fight between the gods and the Titans,” I continued,” and the gods won.”

‘That sums it up rather well,’ Dionysus sipped on his diet co*ke and rolled his eyes when Zeus glared at him.

‘You weren’t even there.’

‘Thank the Fates I wasn’t,’ he shrugged lazily. ‘But I had to hear the story more than enough times and it would have been a lot less dreadful, if it would have been cut short to “and the gods won” every time.’

‘He isn’t wrong’, Apollo muttered and even some of the other gods, like Rhode and Persephone looked like they agreed with the statement, right as the projection continued.

Some snickers from the group…to paraphrase Miss Bobofit’s excellent question does this matter in real life?’

‘Busted,” Grover muttered… and shrugged. “I don’t know, sir.”

‘Good old times,’ Chris mouth tasted bitter. At night, he could still hear Kronos’ voice in his dreams. Deep, and smug, saying words, he knew were wrong deep down, but couldn’t help but listen to.

After years of living unrecognized in his own father’s cabin, there had finally been someone who had listened to his anger, even validated it.

The feeling had been more than gratifying, it had been addicting, and with every new dream Kronos had pulled him closer, like a spider trapping a fly in its net.

He felt his breath become shallower, but before he could think further about the titan lord, a warm hand found its way into his and squeezed gently.

Clarisse wasn’t looking at him, and her expression hadn’t changed, but he felt warmth spread trough his body, and slowly ground him.

“Thanks,” he whispered, and she nodded shortly.

“I see.” Mr. Brunner looked disappointed…Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine…On that happy note it’s time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?’

‘Happy note?’ Demeter raised an eyebrow.

‘Chiron probably meant your victory, mother,’ Persephone pointed out.

‘And that Kronos became a pile of grated cheese,’ Percy added, which earned him a few odd looks from gods and demigods alike.

‘Grated cheese?’, Jason asked him exasperated.

Percy shrugged. ‘Am I wrong?”

He sighed.

The class drifted off… …intense brown eyes that could’ve been a thousand years old and had seen everything.

‘Spot on,’ Annabeth acknowledged and grinned. “Not bad, Seaweed brain.”

“Just an observation.”

“You must learn the answer to my question…I will only accept the best from you, Percy Jackson.’

Annabeth noticed how Percy’s face fell at Chiron’s words. She frowned and squeezed his hand right as Hazel shook her head in disbelief.

‘Well, Chiron didn’t have to worry about that,’ she grinned and looked at him with bright eyes, as if the alternative was nothing less but laughable.

Annabeth couldn’t help but smile.

Percy’s and Hazel’s relationship has always been sweet. With Hazel gushing over his abilities with his sword, and him being in awe of Hazel’s magic and rambling about her abilities to Annabeth on more than one occasion, they could talk about the other for hours, if needed.

‘Thanks, Hazel.’

Percy sent her a grateful smile, which might be able to fool most of the other people in the room, but not Annabeth. It was a bit too bright and didn’t lit up his face the way his smiles usually did.

She gently rubbed his hand with her thumb.

‘Hazel’s right,’ she said so quietly he was the only one able to hear her, while the others were busy watching Past-Chiron. ‘We only receive the best from you, Percy.’

‘Annabeth…,’ a flicker of doubt crossed his expression and something in her broke when she saw it.

She knew they were both thinking about the same moment.

In Tartarus with Aklys. Percy’s sea green eyes purple from controlling the poison, skin deathly white and his face twisted by a cruel smile.

Annabeth could almost hear the goddess choking in the back of her mind and her own desperate screams, trying to get Percy to listen, but she forced herself to take a deep breath and focus on Percy’s warm hand in hers instead.

Determined she looked up at him. In the green eyes, that reminded her of the sea, of emeralds and Basil and home, not the purple ones.

‘Percy,’ she said in the most earnest way she could,’ you are amazing. I need you to realize that, okay? I love you and nothing can ever change that.’

‘Annabeth’, his throat seemed to tighten.

Her expression softened. ‘I’m here for you, seaweed brain. No matter what happens.’

He studied her face, brows furrowed, before his lips quirked up in what was not fully a grin, but close to one. Genuine this time. ‘The same goes for me, wise girl.’

She leaned her head on his shoulder, a warm feeling blossoming in her chest as she focused again on the projection. ‘I know.’

I wanted to get angry, this guy pushed me so hard.

‘Only to prepare you,’ Annabeth whispered.

‘I know,’ Percy murmured. ‘Just didn’t make much sense back then.’

‘I suppose,’ she said sadly.

I mean, sure, it was kind of cool on tournament days… But Mr. Brunner expected me to be as good…And I just couldn’t learn all those names and facts, much less spell them correctly.

‘Which wasn’t your fault,’ Grover said. ‘Dyslexia and ADHS just suck in school. And yours are far worse than most. Doesn’t make you less smart than anyone else.’

He smiled at him. ‘Thanks.’

I mumbled something about trying harder…like he’d been at the girl’s funeral.

‘He probably was,’ Hestia said sadly and took a closer look at the girl. ‘It’s difficult to recognize someone from a stele, but I believe she was one of your daughters Ares, wasn’t she?’

‘Alcmene,’ he said shortly. His eyes were focused on the girl, and if Percy didn’t know any better, he would say, Ares looked the tiniest bit pained. ‘Died 910 BCE. Hellhound Attack.’

He shook his head and glared at Iris, who quickly raised her hand again.

The class gathered on the front steps…the weather all across New York had been weird since Christmas… I wouldn’t have been surprised if this was a hurricane blowing in.

‘Right’, Artemis said and pinched the bridge of her nose. ‘So, this is after the bolt got stolen. That was a mess.’

‘Understatement of the century,’ a goddess Percy had never seen before, said with a worried glance at Zeus and his dad.

She looked around his age, with long, flowing blond hair, a white, sleeveless dress and a flower crown adorning her head.

‘Hebe, ’he heard Grover say. ‘Goddess of youth. She’s the wife of Hercules.’

Percy grimaced.

‘My deepest condolences to her then,’ he said quietly, while Jason looked stunned at Leo and Piper.

‘The bolt got stolen?’, he mouthed, and they shrugged.

‘No idea,’ Piper whispered back.

Nobody else seemed to notice…and, of course, Mrs. Dodds wasn’t seeing a thing.

‘Poor Pigeons,’ Rachel murmured.

‘Sloppy technique,’ Connor shook his head.

Grover and I sat on the edge of the fountain away from the others…loser-freaks who couldn’t make it elsewhere.

Annabeth grimaced but didn’t say anything. Percy always had problems with how he viewed himself. She hoped that seeing himself and seeing his feats from an outside perspective would at least help him with that.

Because if this projection was really about the last two wars, she was sure this wouldn’t be the only scene Percy would be a major part of.

No matter how much she wished for his sake that he wouldn’t be.

“Detention?” Grover asked…I mean I’m not a genius.”

Thalia frowned and nudged his side. ‘You know you’re not a loser-freak, or stupid, or anything like that right? Just a bit annoying.’

‘Careful there, pinecone-face,’ Percy teased,’ that sounded almost like a compliment.’

He didn’t answer her question. Thalia noted, but she also met Annabeth’s eyes and knew it was better not to push. Not when it was Percy.

Instead, she rolled her eyes. ‘Dream of it, Kelp head.’

Grover didn’t say anything for a while. Then,…”Can I have your apple?”

A flush crept over Grover’s face, while some snickers echoed trough the room.

I didn’t have much of an appetite…to jump into a taxi and head home.

‘I would too. Sally’s great,’ Nico said from behind and Percy sent him a grin.

‘Yeah, you should come visit again by the way. Mom’s been asking about you.’

He blushed. ‘She has?’

‘It’s not everyday a pale, skinny Italian kid shows up at my birthday,’ he teased. ‘You’re memorable.’

Nico let out a snort. It sounded quiet and rough, like he wasn’t used to doing it, but Percy was happy to have heard it more often over the last couple weeks. Especially when Will was around.

‘I guess I can come around.’

Percy’s face lit up, much to Nico’s surprise.

That Percy genuinely liked to spent time with him after everything that had happened between them was nothing less but a miracle to him.

And while he no longer had a crush on him, thank the Fates, Nico couldn’t help the small smile that crept on his face at the thought.

She’d hug me and be glad…I wouldn’t be able to stand that sad look she’d give me.

Percy winced. Disappointing his mom because of school seemed worlds away from the worry he had put her trough over the last couple of years.

Especially after what happened with Gaia. Thank Styx she didn’t know about Tartarus.

She didn’t say anything, but Percy would be a fool if he would believe her when she said it was fine and that she understood why he did what he did.

He saw her worry at the strain in her smile whenever he packed for camp, at the relief in her eyes even when he simply returned from school and in the hugs, that lasted oftentimes a bit too long.

He leaned back in his seat and sighed.

Mr. Brunner parked his wheelchair…when Nancy Bobofit appeared in front of me…and dumped her half-eaten lunch in Grover’s lap.

‘Seriously, what’s her problem?’, Piper rolled her eyes. ‘That’s just disgusting.’

“Oops.” She grinned at me…spray-painted her face with liquid Cheetos.

‘Liquid Cheetos?’, Rachel raised an eyebrow amused.

Percy shrugged. ‘I was twelve and didn’t necessary like Nancy back then. No wonder her description isn’t the nicest.

He gestured to her projection. ‘Her freckles weren’t that bad, I’ll admit it.’

’Still, vivid. Sally would be proud,’ Rachel gave him a thumbs up.

He snorted. ‘Thanks Rachel.’

I tried to stay cool…A wave roared in my ears.

‘Foreshadowing much?’, Will muttered quietly to Nico, who rolled his eyes.

I don’t remember touching her…All I knew was that I was in trouble again.

The old campers face palmed and looked over at Grover, who held up his hands in defense.

‘You didn’t figure out who Percy’s father is after that incident with Clarisse either, so don’t you dare judge me.’

‘Fair,’ Travis grumbled, while Clarisse sent Grover a glare at the mention of her name.

Chris half-heartedly patted her arm. ‘Even though it was so obvious.’

‘Especially after the kayak thing,’ Conner sighed.

‘It’s kind of embarrassing it took us so long.’ Katie agreed.

‘You really didn’t figure it out?’ Rhode, who was sitting next to Triton, spoke up. ‘I didn’t expect that to have been much of a challenge. Father’s demigod children aren’t normally the most subtle of halfbloods.’

Her long, deep blue hair was plaited in a complicated braid, decorated with pearls and gold and her sea green eyes, the same colour as his, were filled with gentle curiosity. She looked at them with a raised eyebrow, but no sign of animosity.

Something he hadn’t expected from one of Poseidon’s godly children if Percy was being honest and if Triton’s and Kymopoleia’s reactions to him had been anything to go by.

‘Looking back, it was lady Rhode,’ Annabeth said with a respectful nod,’ but because of everything that was going on, with the prophecy and the lightning bolt, we really didn’t want to consider the possibility.’

Rhode grimaced as if she was remembering something she’d rather forget, and her eyes flickered over to him for a split second. ‘I suppose that makes sense,’ she sighed and looked slightly dejected back at the projection.

As soon as Mrs. Dodds was sure…as if I’d done something she’d been waiting for all semester.

Grover groaned quietly. ‘Even she figured it out back then.’

‘She already suspected who dad is,’ Percy patted his arm. ‘That was just the final proof she needed. And like Annabeth said, you really didn’t want me to be who I am.’

‘I guess so,’ Grover said. ‘Still, nowadays it’s weird to think we ever suspected you were anyone else’s kid.’

Percy laughed. ‘Tell me about it.’

“Now, honey… That wasn’t the right thing to say.

‘Of course, not’, Connor looked disappointed. ‘You never guess your punishment. That’s the number one rule, man.’

‘I know;’ Percy said. ‘But believe me, those things didn’t work on Mrs. Dodds.’

‘Some things work on any teacher,’ Travis disagreed.

‘On any human teacher,’ Nico noted and looked at Percy slightly impressed. ‘I can’t believe she was your first monster. No wonder she hates you.’

‘You can tell her that the feeling is incredibly mutual’ Percy replied drily.

“Come with me.” Mrs. Dodds said. “Wait…She glared at him so hard his whiskery chin trembled.

‘Thanks for the try, dude.’

‘It’s not like it did anything,’ Grover muttered quietly and clenched the edges of his pillow. He was supposed to be the protector, and still, Percy, 12-year old Percy, who had no clue about their world, had to fight against the Fury alone.

He sighed.

Percy frowned and nudged him gently against the side, without anyone else noticing.

‘You good?’

Grover shook his head. ‘I should have helped you more. But I just waited outside, while Chiron went after you.’

‘Man, you did your best,’ he laid an arm around him and squeezed his shoulder. ‘And you saved me a bunch of times on the quest later on.’

Grover smiled weakly and leaned into him. ‘I was pretty great at some points, wasn’t I?’

Percy grinned. ‘The best flying goat boy there ever was.’

“I don’t think so, Mr. Underwood…Percy told him. “Thanks for trying.”

‘You thought I was just trying to protect you from detention, didn’t you?’

‘And I was really grateful for that.’

“Honey,” Mrs. Dodds barked at me…I’ll kill you later stare.

Leo snorted.

He still vividly remembered Percy’s face the first time he had met him at the board of the Argo II. Back then, his stare had reminded him of Jason’s thunder or a wild beast, so seeing 12-year-old him trying to glare was rather funny.

Not like he’d ever tell him that.

Then I turned to face Mrs. Dodds…How’d she get there so fast?

‘So, your first monster?” Reyna asked and leaned slightly forward, curiosity transforming her expression.

Percy nodded. ‘Jepp.”

I have moments like this a lot…my brain misinterpreting things. I wasn’t so sure.

‘Your instincts seem to be rather accurate so far,’ Artemis noted with approval. ‘You should trust them more.’

‘Thanks,’ Percy said, while the other gods threw her confused looks. Especially Apollo, who didn’t even try to hide his surprise and openly gaped at her.

She, however, refused to look at any of them, and focused her attention again on the projection.

Artemis was well aware that her high opinion of Perseus Jackson, a male demigod, was more than unusual, but it would be foolish to not acknowledge him, after everything that had happened.

Even Zoe, brave, deeply hurt Zoe, who had hated male heroes with a passion, almost unmatched in the hunt, had come to appreciate him as a friend and she herself had come to respect him when he had helped rescue her and Annabeth Chase from mount Tamalpais.

Halfway up the steps, I glanced back…but Mr. Brunner was absorbed in his novel.

‘Chiron did notice you, right?’, his dad’s brows were furrowed, and his voice almost imperceptibly colder than normally.

‘Yeah, I think so,’ Percy said and looked at Grover, who nodded hastily.

‘Chiron didn’t want to attack her, while the other students were still at risk, but he went after Percy shortly after.’

I looked back up… But apparently that wasn’t the plan.

‘Of course not,’ Hazel groaned.

‘That would be way too easy,’ Rachel agreed with a sigh.

I followed her deeper…Except for us the gallery was empty.

‘Fantastic,’ Frank murmured and threw Percy a worried look. ‘So, this was your first monster, you didn’t know a thing, and you faced her alone?’

‘Pretty much, yeah.’

Frank shook his head exasperated. ‘Great.’

Mrs. Dodds stood with her arms crossed…like growling.

Percy was pretty sure by now, that it had been, indeed, a growl.

Even without the noise I would have been nervous.

It was a simple admission. Nothing out of the ordinary, but Leo was still surprised.

Yes, Percy was 12 years old in the projection, yes, he had no clue what was happening, and yes, he knew, that Percy Jackson logically had to feel afraid when he faced monsters.

But with how camp half-blood talked about him and with how he behaved during their quest, it was hard to imagine him ever feeling nervous. Especially for something as trivial as talking to a teacher.

It was a relief if Leo was being honest.

The whole thing sucked for Percy and the Fates knew he’d rather catapult himself down from Olympus than have the same thing happen to him, but after only a few minutes of sitting here, he could relate more to Percy than during the entirety of their quest.

It was somehow… nice.

It’s weird being along with a teacher… giving us problems, honey,” she said.

‘And he hasn’t stopped since,’ Nico said amused, causing Will and Thalia to snort quietly.

I did the safe thing. I said,” Yes, ma’am.”

‘‘’The safe thing”?’ Hazel blurted out; all previous hesitation in front of the gods momentarily forgotten.

‘Yeah,’ Percy said and looked at her exasperated. ‘Something wrong with that?’

‘Nothing just…’, she trailed off with a nervous smile.

‘-it’s weird seeing you taking precautions,’ Reyna finished and sent him an amused look. ‘As far as I can tell, it is a pretty rare occurrence nowadays.’

Percy rolled his eyes.

‘Not that rare,’ he stated and ignored the way Annabeth had to fight back an amused smile.

She tugged on the cuffs of her leather jacket…I said,” I’ll-I’ll try harder ma’am.”

He groaned. ‘Gods, that was probably one of the worst things I could have replied with.’

‘Without a doubt,’ Hades agreed, while he studied the screen intently, hidden curiosity flickering over his otherwise neutral expression.

‘You know which monster she is?’, Amphitrite guessed and looked at him with an unreadable look in her eyes.

‘Of course,’ he said resigned and leaned forward. ‘I was the one who send her, after all.’

His dad’s stare turned into a glare, but before he could say anything, Hades continued.

‘With good reasons, mind you. And he’s still alive, although,’ his eyes narrowed. ‘I’m not quite sure how.’

And to be fair, neither was Percy.

‘I bet it wasn’t that good of a reason,’ Thalia murmured quietly.

‘It never is,’ Annabeth agreed.

“We are not fools, Percy Jackson… I didn’t know what she was talking about. All I could think of was…I’d been selling out of my dorm room.

‘Nice one,’ Hermes’ mouth twitched, and he gave him a thumbs up.

Or maybe they realized I got my essay on Tom Sawyer…Or worse, they were going to make me read the book.

‘Really?’ Annabeth asked exasperated. ‘It’s a classic. You really haven’t read it?’

‘You know I’m not the biggest book fan,’ Percy said and grinned when she deflated. ‘We can watch the movie together if you want to.’

Her face brightened. ‘Sounds like a plan.’

“Well?” she demanded…and a mouth full of yellow fangs, and she was about to slice me to ribbons.

There were fast intakes of breath as Mrs. Dodds transformed.

‘A Fury?!’, Thalia sat up straighter and she stared at him. ‘That was your first monster?’

‘We do have similar luck, Thals’

‘Holy Hera,’ Piper had gone pale, and her eyes became wide as saucers as Mrs. Dodds started to fly over their heads. ‘How did you manage to survive that?’

‘Maybe Chiron?’ Will said, but didn’t sound convinced, while Nico shook his head.

‘I doubt it. For Alecto to hate him this much, he had to defeat her himself.’

‘A fury!?’ If looks could kill a god, Hades would be six feet under.

With a grimace he looked at Poseidon.

‘I thought the boy stole my helmet. Yes, I’m sending Alecto for that.’

‘He was twelve!’

‘And made it out alive, if you haven’t noticed, brother.’

‘Thanks to himself and Chiron, I assume, and not to you,’ Poseidon’s eyes glowed and he grabbed the edges of his throne so tight, it cracked. ‘Not even regarding the fact, that Percy never stole your precious helmet.’

The air between them seemed to pulsate, but before they could continue, Hestia cleared her throat and looked at them reproachfully.

‘Brothers,’ her voice was calm and collected, like she had done the same a million times before,’ do you really need to argue about this now? Yes, Hades’ actions were extreme,’ she continued when Poseidon opened his mouth to argue,’ but as we already know, the attack had no lasting effects on Percy. Isn’t that, right?’

Hestia looked at him with a somehow pleading look, as if to say, “Help me here, or they’ll argue for the next few millennia.”’

Percy was first too busy staring at his father to answer.

This reaction was … new.

As sad as it was, compared to his friends, he knew he had a remarkably good relationship with his father, but Percy was still pretty sure he didn’t care much if he lived or died.

Sure, he was to some extent proud of what Percy had accomplished so far, but the gods had thousands of children throughout history. He didn't live in the delusion that he was anything special, or that his father would even remember his name in one hundred or two hundred years,

A few seconds, of tense silence passed.

Then, he met Hestia’s eyes and shrugged slowly, confused.

After Kronos, after Gaia and after Tartarus, he really hadn’t thought about Mrs. Dodds in a long time.

‘I’m okay?” it sounded more like a question than a reassurance, even to his own ears, but surprisingly, it worked.

Poseidon let his eyes wander from his brother to him, and some of the tension left his shoulders.

Then, his father sighed and removed his hands from his throne, which immediately started to rebuild itself.

‘Very well then.’

Hestia let out a relieved breath and send him a grateful smile, as the projection sprung back to life.

Then things got even stranger.

‘In a someone-steps-in-and-saves-me sort of way?’ Hazel looked hopeful.

Will shook his head. ‘Not with Percy’s luck.’

Mr. Brunner, who’d been out…and tossed the pen trough the air.

Mrs. Dodds lunged at me.

A few gasps were heard throughout the room and Annabeth’s hand around his tightened, her eyes glued to the projection of the fury.

‘Gods,’ Rachel said, while clutching a pillow. ‘Like I know you’re going to be fine, but this is still pretty terrifying.’

‘Totally,’ Frank shuddered.

With a yelp, I dodged…bronze sword, which he always used on tournament days.

Annabeth let out a breath. “At least you have a weapon now” she said.

Mrs. Dodds spun towards me…so bad I almost dropped the sword…she snarled…flew straight at me.

‘You still fought it yourself? Even with Chiron there?’ Hazel asked with wide eyes and clutched Frank’s arm. “How?”

Absolute terror ran trough my body…I swung the sword.

‘” The only thing that came naturally?”’ Katie couldn’t decide whether to stare at twelve-year-old Percy currently raising his sword or at normal Percy who had gotten red under the attention. ‘What about running away?’

‘Or screaming?’ Rachel suggested.

‘Or dying?’ Leo asked.

Percy shrugged uncomfortably. ‘Just felt like the right thing to do.’

The metal blade hit her shoulder…as if those two glowing red eyes were still watching me.

Silence enveloped the room.

Most of the demigods gaped at the projection, where past-Percy was still standing in the gallery staring at the empty space in front of him, arms, and legs trembling.

Katie felt her jaw go slack.

She had heard of Percy’s feats, and even fought alongside him in the battle at camp half-blood and in Manhattan. She knew he was incredible in a fight, but seeing a twelve-year-old, without any training take out a fury in one swing?

Seeing how his expression changed from terrified to determined in a matter of seconds and how his previous shaky stance suddenly became steady and how he, with trembling arms, but without hesitation, swung the sword in one perfect, deadly strike, was a whole different experience.

She glanced at Percy, who stared at the ground, face flushed. Then, she looked at the gods.

Most were still looking at the projection, similar to the halfbloods, though they hid their surprise much better than their children.

Some gods, like Hermes, Artemis and Hestia wore smile on their lips, while others simply widened their eyes. Dionysus was lazily rolling his eyes, while Ares eye twitched in annoyance.

Poseidon, in comparison, had a proud glint in his eyes and leaned forward, a grin growing on his face.

Katie couldn’t help but feel a ping of jealousy. Then immediately she schooled her expression again.

This was Percy Jackson they were watching, the saviour of Olympus. Every god would be proud of their children if they were like him.

But still…

She glanced cautiously at her own mother, who looked at the projection with a raised eyebrow and an acknowledging nod.

Against her wishes, her jealousy grew.

She wondered if Demeter would ever openly compliment her, or her siblings should they watch the battle in Manhattan.

Katie doubted it. Her mother hadn’t spared her one glance since they had arrived in Hestia’s temple. Not even once.

‘One hit?’ Hades turned his glare to Percy and teared Katie out of her thoughts. ‘One hit?’

‘Any reason you sound disappointed, brother?’ Poseidon sounded smug.

‘That one of the torturers of the underworld got defeated by a 12-year-old boy who never held a sword in his hands, with one swing? Yes, you could say I have my reasons for being surprised.’

Percy didn’t look bothered. “I got lucky.”

“Lucky?”, Frank repeated and gaped at him. “How was that luck?”

“I just blindly swung the sword. I had no clue how to wield it or what Mrs. Dodds was or if it would even work on her. Plus, I caught her by surprise,” Percy shrugged. “Otherwise, she would have turned me into shashlik. So, lucky.”

Katie sighed and messaged her temples.

It was really hard to be jealous of Percy when he went around saying stuff like that.

I was alone…Had I imagined the whole thing?

“You are alone,” Chris stated and furrowed his eyebrows as he looked around the empty room. “Wasn’t Chiron just there?”

“Yeah, he was prepared to shoot Mrs. Dodds, if I wouldn’t have managed to vaporise her,” Percy said. “But he didn’t want me seeing him there.”

“Why not?” Chris looked confused.

“Because he didn’t want me to find out about this world back then.”

‘What do you mean?’ Reyna raised an eyebrow. ‘You just fought against a Fury.’

‘It just took a while.’ Percy said and shared a glance with Grover, who sighed.

He had hated lying to his best friend for so long. Especially on the nights, Percy had woken up in cold sweat, his wet hair stuck flat on his pale forehead, and heavy breaths shaking his body.

‘We thought it was the best decision back then,’ he explained dejected.

‘I know,’ Percy patted his back. ‘You did what you thought was best.’

What decision?’, Athena asked irritated.

Grover didn’t meet her eyes. ‘Chiron and I pretended that nothing happened.’

‘What?’ Surprisingly it was Triton, who asked and let his eyes wander over them with narrowed eyes.

‘You pretended nothing happened? That the Fury didn’t attack?’ Rhode asked. ‘For how long?’

Grover bit his lips nervously. ‘Like the rest of the schoolyear, around two months.’

‘Why?’

‘Chiron wanted to wait for a while. He thought it would be for the best.’

‘He thought it would be for the best to keep Percy in the dark and make him think he imagined his teacher turning into a Fury and attacking him?’, Thalia shook with barely restrained anger. ‘Is he insane? Why in the name of Styx would he want to wait?’

Grover shrugged uncomfortably. ‘I don’t know. He told me to wait. Maybe I should have pushed further, but with how he behaved after the solstice, I figured Chiron had his reasons. And with the lightning bolt story…’

‘No reason could possibly be good enough,’ Poseidon cut him off and glowered at the projection. ‘He took a great risk, not sending Percy to camp immediately.’

‘Without a doubt,’ Hestia looked at him worried. ‘I imagine that cost quite a lot of trouble for you.’

Percy grimaced. The last weeks at Yancy wasn’t a time he liked to think about.

‘It was fine for the most part,’ he said.

‘I don’t know,’ Grover played with the sleeves of his jacket. ‘If we would have explained everything back then and brought you to camp you probably wouldn’t have fought against you-know-what and wouldn’t have met them.’

Percy shook his head. “They wanted me to see them. They would have shown up, no matter what.”

‘” Them? “‘Athena raised an eyebrow. ‘Who’s them?’

‘And what did you have to fight against?’, Poseidon added.

‘It makes no sense for them to explain, when we’re going to watch it anyway,” Hades said before Percy could even open his mouth. ‘If you’re patient, you’ll find out.’

‘If we continue to watch my point of view that is,’ Percy said with furrowed eyebrows and looked at the gods. ‘I mean, this projection will probably move on from me and Grover pretty soon, right? It kind of has to.”

Iris and Hekate exchanged a knowing glance, and a sense of doom started to overcome him.

‘Right?’

It was Apollo, who answered him.

‘Probably not.’

He ran a hand trough his blond hair and looked up with newfound interest. ‘The only point I see in watching you two right now, in a scene which seems so trivial, is that the Fates want us to watch your quests leading up to the titan war.’

‘What?’

‘The Fates did say, they’d show us the way to a better future,’ Artemis added. “And taking a closer look at the past. Unfortunately for you, Percy, you were a great part in it. I think Apollo is right. This will follow you and your quests.’

Percy felt like the floor, or rather Olympus, had disappeared underneath him.

‘We might watch our quests,’ he repeated. ‘All of our quests?’

Hekate nodded. ‘Only the Fates know what exactly we’re going to see and in how much detail, but yes, I’m almost certain, you’re going to play a rather major role here.’

Percy felt frozen to his seat.

‘Dude, are you okay?’, Grover asked with concern, but Percy barely heard him.

Thousands of images flickered at once trough his head, as if someone played a video at 10 times speed.

He saw his mom dissolving into a rain of golden light at Half-Blood Hill, Grover trapped in Polyphemus cave, the explosion of St. Helens, Luke waking up from his grave, once blue eyes turned into liquid gold, campers he had never talked to before lying dead on the ground. He saw himself and Annabeth dangling over the edge of a black pit and remembered a feeling of burning hatred and-“

‘Percy?’ Grovers brows were furrowed, and he gently shook him to snap him out of his thought.

He didn’t answer him, but simply stared at the gods.

“So, to summarize it,” his voice was slow and quiet, the only way he currently trusted himself to speak. “We’re probably going to watch our quests starting from the time the lightning bolt got stolen until what? The fight against Gaia?”

“Probably.”

“And I’m going to be the, for a lack of a better word, narrator for until when? Manhattan?” His hand twitched. “Tartarus?”

Athena cleared her throat. “I would assume, since you are the only one who was involved with the first Great Prophecy, you will be until the victory against Kronos. After that, well, there were seven demigods the prophecy was about. My theory is, that there will be seven different point of views.”

“And our thoughts are going to be audible for the entirety of it,” it wasn’t a question. “Fantastic,” he muttered bitterly.

“Are you okay?”

“No, no I’m not,” he crossed his arms in front of his chest. “But that doesn’t matter right? We’ve already established that the alternative could be another war. So, let’s just get this thing over with.”

Annabeth looked pale and stared at the projection in disgust. ‘That’s going to suck.’

‘Couldn’t have said it better,’ Percy murmured, and squeezed her hand again. To reassure her or himself, he wasn’t quite sure.

I went back outside…”I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt.”

‘Who?’ Leo looked confused.

I said, „Who?”

Leo blushed, and Piper lips quirked up lightly. Though she couldn’t bring herself to fully grin.

The atmosphere, which had started to become more lighthearted the more they had heard Percy’s thoughts had vaporized.

If this thing would at some point reach the second great prophecy, did that seriously mean they would also hear her thoughts out loud?

Piper felt sick.

“Our teacher. Duh!”…rolled her eyes and turned away.

Hecate raised an eyebrow. ‘He even manipulated the mist, just to keep Percy from finding out the truth?’

‘Apparently,’ Hebe sighed. ‘That definitely was one of Chiron’s more questionable decisions.’

I asked Grover…so I thought he was messing with me.

‘Gods, Percy, I’m sorry,’ Grover said and stared at himself annoyed.

‘It’s okay, man,’ Percy squeezed his shoulder, feeling exhausted all of a sudden. “You thought it was for the best.”

“Not funny man”, I told him…your own writing utensils in the future, Mr. Jackson.”

Annabeth messaged her temples.

She loved Chiron deeply, and understood that he wanted to protect Percy from Zeus, but lying, almost gaslighting him into believing the fury had been an illusion took it a bit too far and would only succeed in making Percy doubt himself.

I handed Mr. Brunner his pen…He stared at me blankly. “Who?”

’That’s enough to make one question his own sanity’, Jason looked at him with sympathy.

That reminded him way too much of when he woke up in the bus with Piper and Leo, shorty after Hera had stolen his memories. No one had reacted as if he didn’t belong, and he seriously questioned if he had lost his mind.

‘It really sucks,’ Hazel agreed with a grimace.

“The other chaperone…never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy. Are you feeling alright?”

‘Geez, Chiron,’ Will shook his head. ‘That’s kind of messed up.’

‘Kind of? That was totally nuts.’ Thalia crossed her arms over her chest as the projection died down. Then she looked at the gods. “You said this is the only thing we watch today, right?"

“Yes,” Hestia said hesitantly. “This is a lot to digest, so I’d recommend you trying to get some sleep. It's already late. Like I've already said, there are rooms prepared for you at this temple. I hope they are to your liking."”

Chapter 4: Break 1: Evening Walks & Late Night Talks

Chapter Text

The only sound that surrounded them was the serene melody of a far away concert and the soft rustling of the wind. Aside from that, their walk around Olympus was silent.

They had left shortly after the projection had faded into nothing.

While the gods had gone to their throne room to privately discuss what they had watched, and the other demigods had immediately gone to their designated rooms within the temple, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover had decided to take a walk to clear their heads. Or, more accurately, to talk.

Though none of them were particularly inclined to do so.

They had been walking aimlessly for an hour now, past gardens, and temples, and amphitheatres, without exchanging a word, everyone lost in their own train of thoughts.

Normally, Annabeth would ramble about different architectural fun facts, or gush about various kinds of columns, or doors, or structures, but so far, she had remained quiet, and only glanced worriedly at him from time to time or shared knowing looks with Grover.

Percy did his best to ignore them, hands hidden in the pockets of his jacket and eyebrows squished together.

His mind was still racing, a jumbled mess of incoherent thoughts about everything and nothing.

In movies he had often heard that your entire life flashes in front of your eyes when you die. That had to be a pretty similar feeling.

Every embarrassing, every weird or questionable thought he ever had, about the gods, Arachne, Aklys, Gabe, his friends, or his father came back at once as if someone had rewound his entire brain. His throat felt dry, and he couldn’t help the slowly creeping numbness that threatened to drown him again.

Annabeth meanwhile let her eyes wander over various decorations: statues of animals, intricately woven frescoes, and mosaic floors, until she finally spoke up and broke the quietness that had laid over them like a spell.

“You can say what you want about the gods, but Olympus is beautiful.”

Grover nodded and managed to crack her a grin. “They had a great architect.”

“Not this part,” she disagreed. “They finished the city during the war with Gaia. When Olympus was closed off. I had no influence over this.”

Percy shrugged. “Their loss.”

They stopped at one of the many gardens near a fountain. Engravements of naiads and hippocampi decorated the marble stones, and the clear water splashed peacefully. A few feet ahead stood a golden railing, full of small metal roses.

Below it, the eternal city was illuminated by the orange light of hundreds of torches and loads of minor gods populated the wide streets.

It was almost unnerving how good everyone looked, Percy thought, as he laid his arms on the metal and leaned against the railing.

He was used to the different faces of New York with crocked, not completely white teeth, unclean skins, and terrible hairstyles. Here, everyone looked like they had stepped out of a classical painting or perhaps a model magazine.

Annabeth bit her lips. “Do you want to talk?” she asked hesitantly.

“About what exactly?” Stubbornly, he kept his eyes on a big temple, with a golden roof, and rays of the sun carved into the walls, undoubtedly belonging to Apollo.

She leaned next to him. From the corners of his eyes, he saw worry transforming her expression into a frown. “Any of it. This whole thing. Percy, it’s pretty messed up.”

“It sucked even for me, and I was only present for like a little bit,” Grover chimed in from his other side.” Dude, we find out every thought you had back then. You can’t possibly be okay with any of it.”

“I’m not,” he admitted and shifted his gaze from the temple to the marketplace. Percy could see Ariadne and Dionysus walking together along the main road, their arms closely interlinked and happy smiles grazing both of their faces.

The council meeting must have ended by now.

He shrugged. “I think, I’m still coming to terms with it. It sucks, but there’s nothing we can do about it, is there? I don’t want to be responsible for another war, just because I feel uncomfortable.”

Annabeth’s voice became even softer. “You know that would be a valid reason, right? It’s a pretty big invasion into your privacy.”

“I’ll be fine,” he said. “It’s just….” He trailed off and started to fidget with Riptide.

“Just what?” Grover wrinkled his brows.

He kicked a pebble. “My thoughts can be weird,” he started and felt a grimace growing on his face. “Like really weird. I know that’s normal for kids, but especially when I got older and in situations like Tartarus… I don’t know. I guess I don’t want you, or the others, to feel any differently towards me.

“Percy…”

“I’m aware that that’s kind of impossible after everything you’re going to hear. You have no control over that. So, it’s stupid,” he sighed. “Just forget about it, I guess.”

Annabeth hesitated. Then, she gently took his face between her hands and forced him to look at her.

Her skin was warm, her breath smelled of peppermint and there was a determined sparkle in her storm grey eyes. The one he normally only saw when she was figuring out a new strategy for capture the flag or when she was working on a new project.

“Perseus Jackson,” she said quietly, but firm. “I hope you’re aware that there is not a power in this world strong enough to stop me from loving you. No god, or titan or primordial and definitely not some strange thoughts you had when you were 12 or some… other thoughts you might have had at any point in time.” She smiled a little sad. “You are my best friend. My person. That means you’re stuck with me. No matter what happens. I’d gladly jump again into Tartarus if that would mean keeping you in my life.”

“Same goes for me,” Grover said and laid an arm around his shoulder, squeezing it. “You’re not going to be able to get rid of us. Ever. No matter how hard you may try.”

For a second, he did nothing but stare at them.

His chest swelled with such an intense warmth it was almost painful and his eyes began to sting.

Then, Percy blinked and cleared his throat, shifting his gaze from Annabeth’s face, again, to Olympus. “What about you,” he asked and ignored the way he sounded croakier than before. “Maybe they won’t hear your thoughts, but there will probably be a few things revealed, and reexperienced. Luke, Pan, the battles. Are you going to be, okay?”

Annabeth sighed. She leaned her head against his shoulder and interlinked their hands. “Let’s worry about that when it comes up. I don’t have the energy to deal with all of it right now.”

“One step at a time,” Grover nodded. “That’s how we got trough the last few years. It’s how we’ll get trough this.”

“I guess so,” Percy’s other hand found Grover’s and for a few moments they simply stood there, next to each other, finding solace in each other’s presence.

The night was warm, though Percy wasn’t quite sure if it was ever not warm up here, and he wished they could remain like this. Peaceful, and happy.

Then Annabeth let out yawn. “We should probably head back soon.”

“Yeah,” Percy agreed, albeit reluctantly. “The others will probably want to talk about this as well. I think I owe them that.”

Their temporary living space was the very end of Hestia’s temple complex. The hall, where they watched the projection in, was in the middle, while their rooms were at the very back. Thankfully it had a back entry, so they didn’t have to navigate trough the entire building.

The doors sprang open almost automatically when they arrived, and immediately they were met with the savory scent of chilli con carne, and the grinning face of Leo Valdez.

“Hello, my friends,” he was standing behind an electric hearth with two big pots. “You’re lucky enough to taste the five-star food made by your very own Chef Leo Valdez this evening.”

A few of the other demigods already sat around a large round table in the middle of what looked like a common room with a full functioning kitchen, dozens of comfortable looking armchairs and two bathrooms at the end of it.

All of them looked up when they entered, and their voices immediately died down. Percy grimaced.

It didn’t take a detective to figure out what they had talked about.

“I’d take some of it in your place,” Will said awkwardly into the silence and gestured towards his own plate. “Leo seriously knows how to cook.”

Leo bowed, seemingly not bothered. “I do have many hidden talents.”

“Not tonight,” Percy said as he sat down on the kitchen counter next to him. “But thanks anyway, man.”

“Your loss,” he shrugged and turned around to stir in his pots again.

Percy let his eyes wander from his friends, most of whom avoided looking at him. Chris tugged nervously on his collar.

He sighed. “If you want to ask me something, just ask.”

Annabeth and Grover sat down besides Clarisse and Travis, as Hazel carefully cleared her throat and sent him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, we shouldn’t talk about you when you’re not there, but… we’re worried. I guess we just want to know… how are you feeling, Percy?”

“Fine, I guess,” he said and fished riptide again, out of his pockets.

He wanted to steer the conversation towards a topic that was more lighthearted, something away from the wars or betrayal, they would reexperience. So, he said: “I’m just, I mean, sooner or later I’m going to find out who dad is and if my thoughts are revealed about him, then…”.

The group cringed.

“Yeah,” Katie shuddered. “I hadn’t thought of that. That’s literally a nightmare.”

“Better you than me though, right?” Chris said in the half-hearted attempt of a joke. “At least you never wanted to help Kronos overthrow him.”

“Speaking of which… That will probably be shown too, right?” Connor asked.

“I guess so,” Chris hand twitched. “I’ll be okay for that first summer, but after that… He met Percy’s eyes. “This will be most likely from your perspective. When do you think I’ll come up?”

He hesitated and ran a hand trough his hair.

“From what I remember, we’ve heard your voice on the princess Andromeda,” Percy said slowly, and Chris winced. “On our way to the golden Fleece. The summer after the first quest.”

“So soon, huh?”, he muttered. “Fantastic. Can’t wait to see dad’s reaction.”

“I doubt it will be that bad,” Percy said. “As far as I know, Hermes is already aware what happened to you. And, in comparison to the other gods, at least, he’s relatively chill.”

“Yeah,” Katie pointed at him with her spoon. “You’re the one who has to worry about the rest. Do you have any idea how bad it is actually going to get?”

Percy grimaced. “Most gods want to kill me, based solely on what I’m saying. I’m pretty sure I’ll get vaporized as soon as I meet any god in the projection.”

“The first one will be Mr. D., right?” Travis asked.

Percy hit his head against the counter. The pots and plates clanked. “I’m dead.”

The corners of Will’s mouth quirked up in amusem*nt, but he sent him a sympathetic smile. “I’m pretty sure the gods know what awaits them when it comes to your thoughts. And I doubt your father will let anyone here hurt you.”

“I guess so,” Percy bit the inside of his cheek, and his forehead creased into a frown.

His father’s reaction was just one of the hundred things that were currently occupying his mind, but it was definitely strange.

Frustrated, he shook his head. “You know what? I’m done thinking about all that stuff for today and being confused. I’ll try to get some stuff done for school and then get at least a bit of sleep.”

“School?” Clarisse scoffed. “Really? You’re on Olympus and you want to do homework?”

“Oh, gee, apologies, Clarisse,” he stretched his arms. „You know, some of us still have to catch up with school from the time they were kidnapped and put in a magical coma for months, to be able to graduate.”

His friends winced.

Clarisse shrugged and took another bite of her food. “Uh, fair enough, I guess.”

With a half-hearted wave, he stood up. “Good night, guys.”

A long corridor led him to their assigned rooms. They were separated like they were at camp, after their godly parents with two extra rooms for Rachel and Grover.

Obviously, that meant, he slept alone and, today, Percy couldn’t be more grateful for it.

A fluorescent green trident glimmered over one of the doors, which opened as he approached, like an elevator.

As soon as he had entered, he was met with a wall of pleasant cool air, and welcoming silence, that cut off his friends’ chatter.

He looked around.

The room was undoubtedly beautiful.

Arctic blue, smooth walls and a white roof made it look like he was entering an underwater ice cave and diamond like stalagmites changed colors from a lavender purple to a cobalt blue and a turquoise green.

He let his fingers trace over the cold wall, that was enriched with intricate engravements, that covered the entire place and culminated in what he recognized to be the palace of Atlantis, with it’s huge columns, stone statues, beautiful mosaic and pearl decorations at the ceiling.

A small waterfall fell from one of the walls into a pond, which took over half of the room and was so deep Percy couldn’t see it’s ground.

Exhaustion had already settled into his bones, and he wanted nothing more than to lie down on the soft matrice, which was twice as big as his bed back home, but he already lagged behind on his English and history homework.

With a sigh, he sat down at the grey stone desk. A window offered him a wide view over the gardens and temples of Olympus, with the Olympians throne room shimmering in the distance like a lighthouse.

Thankfully, he had put his books in his backpack, to study on his and Grover’s trip to the National Park. He pulled them out, lit up a small lamp, formed like a seashell, and flipped trough the pages.

Soon, the black ink started to dance in front of his eyes, but Percy couldn’t concentrate anyway. No matter how hard he tried.

He read the same sentence over and over again, mulling over a thousand other questions in his mind. But he always circled back to one subject. One person, he had sworn to never think about again, but who had invaded his subconscious the second the projection had started.

Gabe Ugliano.

His blood turned into ice, he clenched his jaw and he had to close his eyes to concentrate on his breathing.

Logically, he knew that the idea was absurd, abstract really.

Gabe had nothing to do with the wars or his quests. He had been a problem of past-Percy. Mortal Percy. The Percy, who had no idea who his father was and who couldn’t have imagined ever fighting in a war. The Percy, that didn’t matter here on Olympus.

But a small, treacherous voice in the back of his mind, stubbornly refused to shut up and kept on asking various what ifs.

What if Gabe would appear? What if his thoughts would reveal his relationship and feelings towards that man? What if… what if his friends would find out about Gabe’s abuse?

Percy halted, practically froze in his seat. Riptide fell on the desk with a clank. No. He refused to even entertain the idea.

Gabe wasn’t important.

The mantra repeated again, and again in his head, like a broken radio. Even, after he had closed his books, changed into his pajamas, shut down all the lights and laid down on the bed.

“Gabe Ugliano is not important,” he said, even as his eyelids grew heavier with each passing second.

Neither did Mrs. Dodds,” the voice whispered.

“Shut up,” he muttered and turned the other side, pressing his pillow closer to his chest. It took another hour, until he finally fell asleep.

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His sister arrived at their room half an hour after Jason did.

He had laid in one of the two king-sized beds staring into the darkness, feeling numb, when the bronze door had opened and flooded the room with light.

Blinking, he had looked up.

Thalia had lost her black leather jacket and was now wearing dark sweatpants and a loose silver t-shirt with a single white crescent moon decorating her left shoulder. She let her eyes wander from one side of the room to the other, inspecting the marble desks, white columns and the two eagles that were carved into the large wardrobe.

“This place is a bit more comfortable than the Zeus cabin,” he noted and gestured to the dozen of soft pillows next to him.

“A freakin’ casket would be more comfortable than the Zeus cabin,” Thalia quickly crossed the room, plopped down on her bed and folded her arms behind her head. “At least there no statue in here. How are you holding up, Jace?”

“I don’t know,” Jason admitted and stared at the ceiling, where thunder danced across a dark sky, like a dancer at the ballet. His head was reeling. “This whole thing is just weird. I wonder if our side of the titan war will be shown.”

Thalia hummed. “You’d probably be the point of view person in that case, right?”

“Or Reyna,” He grimaced, and his hands tightened around his blanket. “Gods I hope not. I have no idea how Percy is dealing with any of it.”

“He’s always been resilient.” Thalia shrugged. “It’s going to suck, there’s no doubt about it. But… I think it’s important to not focus solely on the bad stuff right now.”

“Is there a good side to any of this?” Doubt crept into his voice.

“It’s nice to be around everyone again. Nowadays I talk to them far less than I would like to. And I would lie if I were to say that I’m not interested in what Percy, Annabeth and Grover got up to before I woke up. And Luke…” she cleared her throat. “I need to know what else he did.”

“That’s a weirdly positive take,” Jason muttered.

“If you’ve ever died, got turned into a tree, and then came back alive, you kinda have to see the good side of things.”

“Right…” he furrowed his eyebrows. “You’ll still have to tell me how that whole thing happened.”

“I suppose you’ll see,” Thalia contemplated nonchalantly. “Percy was there when I woke up.”

Jason hesitated. He kept his eyes away from his sister. “I’d like to hear it from you, actually, if that’s alright.”

A few seconds of silence passed. He wetted his lips.

After they had returned from their Quest, Thalia and the other huntresses had been busy hunting down the various monsters that had popped up after Gaia’s almost awakening. So, they hadn’t spent much time together.

As much as he hated it, he and Thalia were pretty much still strangers at this point.

“Of course,” finally he looked at Thalia. It was hard to see her features with only the light of lightning from above, but he believed to see a warm smile forming on her lips. “You’ll have to tell me more about the time you spent at camp Jupiter as well. I bet you’ve been part of some crazy quests.”

Warmth spread trough his body. Hope started to flicker inside of his chest, like the soft flutter of butterfly wings.

“It’s a deal.”

Jason began to wonder if after everything that had happened between him and Thalia, his kidnapping trough Hera, the separation of Greek and roman demigods and the two wars, there was a future in which they could actually get to know each other. To actually be real siblings.

“There’s also another reason why this experience isn’t all bad,” Thalia grinned at him. Jason decided he really liked making his sister grin. “I think this is the first time since you were four that we share a room. So, for the first time in forever: Good night, Jason.”

He smiled. “Good night, Thalia.”

Chapter 5: Three Old Ladies & The Socks of Death

Chapter Text

Nico was still hidden under a bunch of blankets when Hazel re-entered their room the next morning.

The red curtains were open, and warm sunlight flooded the place, making the gold and silver furniture glint. Blinking jewels covered the walls and formed dozens of intricate pictures with emeralds, rubies and sapphires, like the most expensive mosaic on the planet.

Throne rooms, and Palaces, temples, and towers, one more grand than the last, plastered the dark obsidian walls, but in between there were also other motives, more to Hazel’s taste: A green meadow at sunset, a frozen lake with snowflakes made out of diamonds, and Hazel’s favourite, a picture of horses racing freely across a green field.

Hestia had even provided them with a curtain that separated their beds from one another, much to Hazel’s delight, and refrained from adding any decorations that were directly connected to the underworld.

She wondered if the goddess had done that, so that Hazel didn’t have to remember the time she had been dead.

“You missed breakfast,” she noted, and leaned against the doorway with her hands folded behind her back, shuffling awkwardly from one foot to the other.

“I’m not hungry,” came the muffled reply.

“We only have around 15 minutes until we’re supposed to be back in that hall. The others are waiting for us to join them.”

Nico hummed and Hazel let out a sigh.

Her brother had been silent throughout the last few hours, even more so than usual. They had barely exchanged a word before going to sleep.

“Will asked about you,” she crossed the room and carefully sat down on the very edge of his bed. “He’s worried.”

No answer. From in between the pillows she could see Nico’s face. He bit the insides of his cheek and averted his eyes.

“I’m worried too, Nico,” she said. “Are you really okay with all of this? I know you gave your okay, but still…?”

“I’m not going to be present in the projection for a while,” he muttered.

“That’s not an answer,” she said softly.

He let out a deep sigh and forced himself to sit up. His black hair was ruffled from sleep and looked like a bird nests, and dark shadows were under his eyes.

They were not as bad as when they had first rescued him in rome. Fates forbid she’d ever have to see her brother looking like that again, but worse than how he had started to look the last couple weeks.

Nico leaned against the wall, hands hidden in his pockets.

“I don’t know,” he said finally. “When I appear, I mean, when we appear, I’m honestly not sure how I’ll handle it. Especially when Bianca,…” his voice broke off. He swallowed. “But I mean what I said. it’s better than having anyone else die.”

Hazel hesitated. Then, she gently put her hand over his and squeezed it. “It’s no shame that you feel apprehensive. Fates, it’d be weird if you didn’t.”

He tilted his head and studied her. In the same intense way that used to make her feel like she was under a telescope, but had now become as familiar to her, as the hot chocolate at Camp Jupiter. “How about you?”

“Me?” She blinked at him, surprise transforming her expression.

She would probably have time before her younger self would appear, so Hazel had pushed every worry about herself to the very back of her mind. “I’m not going to be present for the first titan war, even if the roman side is shown. I was still dead, if you remember?”

“I know that” Nico rolled his eyes, but he looked more fond than annoyed. Then, his face fell again. “I mean about Bianca. She’s your sister too.”

Hazel was taken aback. Her stomach tightened, and she averted her gaze to stare at the floor, a million-emotion twirling inside her, like leaves in the wind.

She had been wondering if she could even allow herself to feel grief for a person she had never met before. If it was fair towards Nico, that she grieved for Bianca or felt sad for her death, when his pain was so immeasurably worse than hers.

“It’d be a lie if I said I hadn’t thought about it,” she admitted and wetted her lips nervously. “I do want to find out what Bianca was like. How she laughed, what her interest were, what her voice sounded like, if she liked the same food I do,” a weak smile flashed over her face. “If she crunched her eyes the same way you do whenever you’re thinking about something or if she liked horses or to draw like me. Her death… “, she swallowed. Her throat tightened. “Obviously, I don’t want to see that.”

Silence enveloped them.

Then, Hazel cleared her throat and sent him a warm smile. “But no matter what happens, I know I’m going to love her.”

Nico scrunched his eyebrows. “Really?”

“You do,” she shrugged. “Any person you can love this much has to be awesome. And if she’s even remotely similar to you… well, there’s not a doubt in my mind, that I’m going to feel similar towards Bianca.”

Nico swallowed. His eyes were red and darted across her face as if expecting to detect a lie.

“She’d have loved you too, you know,” his voice was hoarse when he spoke again. “Everything about you. I’m sure you two would have been the best of friends.”

A single tear fell down his cheek and he washed it away, with the sleeve of his pajama. He sighed and shook his head. “sh*t, this is a really bad time for a conversation like this, isn’t it? I’m sorry. You’re right, we should join the others,” he said and stood up. “We really shouldn’t let them wait.”

“Probably,” she chuckled.

“And Hazel,” his face was soft when she looked at him again. “Thanks for checking up on me.”

A few minutes later, Nico had changed into an orange camp half blood t-shirt and dark jeans and they joined the others in the main hall.

Nico sat, like yesterday, next to Will, whose brows were drawn together in worry, but who knew Nico well enough to not ask when he didn’t want to talk, and Hazel plopped down next to Frank again.

Shortly after, Zeus urged Hekate and Iris to start the projection again.

The rainbow again swirled together and this time, turned the insides of the temple into a classroom.

Percy was sitting at the very back next to Grover and two other boys, who did their best to keep their eyes open.

He tapped impatiently against his table and looked unusually annoyed out of the window, where a bunch of pitch-black clouds covered the sky.

Percy sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. That was the final nail in his coffin and crushed the rest of the treacherous hope that had stubbornly remained in the back of his mind.

Apollo seemed to have been right. This thing seemed to follow him and Grover for a bit longer than his fight against Mrs. Dodds.

I was used to the occasional weird experience…This twenty-four/ seven hallucination was more than I could handle…playing some kind of trick on me.

Thalia huffed angrily. “Yeah, I think that’s normal for someone who’s been gaslit.”

Katie winced. “Don’t you think gaslighting is a bit extreme? Chiron’s only objective was to protect Percy after all.”

“Do his motives matter?”, she asked. “He did gaslight him. Even if he thought it was in Percy’s best interest, Chiron had no right to make him think he had lost his mind.”

The students acted as if they were completely…Mrs. Kerr…had been our pre-algebra teacher since Christmas.

“Who was she anyway,” Percy turned his head to Grover. ‘She couldn’t have been a random mortal woman, right?’

“Daughter of Lord Hephaestus,” he replied. “Chiron explained the situation to her, and luckily, she was just looking for a new job. As far as I know, she’s actually still at Yancy’s.

“Good for her”, he said and suppressed a yawn.

Every so often I would spring a Mrs. Dodds reference…stare at me like I was psycho.

Thalia gritted her teeth but chose not to say anything more on the matter anymore. Instead, she leaned back in her seat, and folded her arms across her chest.

It got so I almost believed them…Mrs. Dodds had never existed. Almost. But Grover couldn’t fool me…But I knew he was lying.

Grover grimaced. “I seriously sucked at keeping stuff from you.”

“You got better,” Percy reassured him. “And we spent like every day together. It’s only natural, that you slipped up from time to time.”

Something was going on…at night, visions of Mrs. Dodds…would wake me up in cold sweat.

Annabeth leaned her head on his shoulder “The first monsters are often some of the hardest to forget,” her voice was soft. “I still have nightmares from the cyclops.”

He glanced back at her. She had pulled her hair into a high ponytail that morning, so that a scar on the left side of her forehead was visible. The one she had gotten after the fight with Polyphemus.

In his mind, Annabeth had always been like an anchor. The one symbol of safety in a storm. Whenever a situation seemed to be hopeless, he could rely on her to remain calm and have a plan to get them out. He often had trouble imagining her as a 7-year-old child who stood alone against a grown cyclops, probably scared out of her mind.

The image alone sent a shiver down his spine.

Percy squeezed her hand.

The freak weather continued…a thunderstorm blew out the windows in my dorm room.

A new, barren room appeared, with 5 beds, 2 desks and a few big drawers. Percy recognized their old dorm room. The five of them were deeply asleep, but while Grover, Tyler, Michael and Eric slept peacefully, Percy turned from one side to the other.

Sudden flashes of lightning illuminated his pale skin and the drops of sweat on his forehead, and the wild roaring wind shook the one window they had.

Then, with a loud CRACK, the window broke and all of them shot up from their sleep, eyes wide with shook as they stared first at their broken window, the rain, which poured in from the storm and then at each other.

“I was so sure, they wanted to blame you for the broken window,” Grover muttered quietly.

“Right?”, Percy said. “I was lucky you and the others were there to vouch for what really happened. Otherwise, they might have found a way to pin it on me.”

“Probably,” Grover grimaced.

A few days later, the biggest tornado…I started feeling cranky and irritable most of the time.

“Your feelings were in tune with the ocean, weren’t they?”, Rhode didn’t look at him and was focused on the projection, her face an expression of neutrality.

“Uh, maybe?”, Percy scrunched his brows. “Honestly I have no clue what was wrong with me back then.”

“It happens sometimes to father’s half blood children when they begin to truly unlock their abilities,” she began to explain hesitantly, her eyes shifting to her mother and father. “His moods can influence yours if you have a strong connection to the sea. And, as you very well know, that time was especially eventful.”

She leaned back against her throne, looking uncomfortable. “Normally, the other half-bloods tell new campers about that. Obviously, that was not possible in your case. I just thought you should know about it.”

That actually made sense and for the millionth time Percy wondered how it would have been like to have older half-siblings at camp, who could have explained his powers to him, the way Katie or Will did for their younger cabin mates.

That Rhode made the effort to explain was oddly thoughtful for a goddess.

He nodded slowly. “Thank you, um, lady Rhode.”

For a split second, their eyes met, and the hint of a smile formed on Rhode’s lips. Then, she averted her gaze again and Percy wasn’t sure if he had just imagined it.

“Of course.”

The projection changed again, back to the classroom.

My grades slipped from Ds to Fs…I was sent out into the hallway almost every class.

Percy leaned back and felt his forehead creasing into a frown. Showing how he messed up the last part of that school year wasn’t really something he would consider having “Great importance for the future”.

Maybe the Fates were becoming senile after their 3000, 4000 years of existence.

That would explain a lot of things.

Finally, when our English teacher…I called him an old sot…but it sounded good.

“Seriously?”, Annabeth asked with a mixture of exasperation and fond amusem*nt, while Grover let out a snort.

Percy shrugged. “To be fair, he totally deserved it.”

Leo couldn’t help but cackle. “Man, I would have loved going to the same school as you. You’d have been my hero.”

“Would have been cool,” Percy smiled. “Specially to have a kid, who’s as much adhd as I am.”

“Amen to that,” Leo said and grinned.

The headmaster sent my mom a letter…I was homesick.

“Jerk,” Rachel sent a glare to his old headmaster, before turning to Percy. “I would have been homesick too, especially with Sally.”

“Yeah,” he said. “Thank Styx, I go to public school now.”

She scrunched her nose. “Yeah, boarding schools are the worst.”

Percy winced. He leaned across his chair’s backside to lie a hand on her arm. “Are you really okay? You know, with the Academy?”

“It’s okay,” she grimaced. “Could be worse, I suppose. Some of the people are alright and so far, I haven’t spewed out any prophecy during my classes.”

“That’s something,” he said. “But if you’ve got any problem, you can always send an iris message. You know that, right?”

She smiled. “Of course, I do.”

I wanted to be with my mom…and his stupid poker parties.

Percy’s head recoiled from the projection as if it had burned him. His breath got stuck in his throat.

Nico furrowed his eyebrows. “Obnoxious? But I thought you liked –“?”

“That was before Paul,” he managed to press out, his eyes glued to the projection as if to stop his younger self from thinking with sheer power of will, as the room started to spin. He clenched and unclenched his hands.

“That guy, Gabe…,” he hated the way his voice shook when he said his name and swallowed. “He was just some guy we used to live with. He doesn’t matter. Just ignore it.”

And yet…there were things I’d miss at Yancy…even if he was a little strange.

Against his will, Grover started to smile.

He still remembered the first time he had met Percy.

It had been a day into Yancy, the morning sun had shone warmly and covered the forest in a golden light as he stood under a large tree in the yard and enjoyed the quiet.

That was the one thing he had been glad about when he had been sent to Yancy. The woods made him feel like he was back at Camp Half-Blood, with its campfires and strawberry fields and everlasting sun. It helped with the homesickness.

Sometimes when he had closed his eyes and inhaled the air, which had smelled like flowers, and moss, berries, and grass after a rainy day, he had been even able to pretend he was in Pan’s presence. That his disappearance had been nothing but a 3000-year-old nightmare for all satyrs.

Of course, that illusion had vanished as soon as he had smelled them.

He hadn’t known a thing about the demigod he had discovered at Yancy, except for the fact that he had never met a scent even remotely similar to theirs.

Grover had sniffed the air.

The bracing breeze of salt had filled his nose, and he had almost been able to feel the salty wind ruffling his locks and hear the crashing of waves against a beach when he smelled it.

It was a weird experience to open his eyes, and see the forest, and the school, instead of the sea.

With a sigh, he had sat down at the cool grass, closed his eyes and leaned his head against the bunk of a large tree.

Nowadays, he had no clue how he had managed to convince himself that Percy might be the son of a minor god when he was in the same room.

He remembered praying that the strength of the scent didn’t mean anything, that there was no way in Hades he had managed to find two children of the big three. He remembered thinking about Thalia.

The way her electric blue eyes had lit up, whenever she had been angry, her loud, free laugh, that made you believe, that anything was possible and that she would survive even the depts of Hades and her determined expression at Half-Blood Hill.

His eyes had begun to sting, and tears had threatened to spill, when Nancy Bobofit and her friends had shown up and sat down only a few feet away from him.

They had started to throw pebbles at him and snicker, whenever he had looked over.

He hadn’t been allowed to really fight back, no violence against mortals unless absolutely necessary. Like mortal danger necessary. It was one of the oldest rules for Protectors.

So, he had remained seated, doing his best to ignore the pebbles, and the dirt, the crumbs of bread, and the scent of salt, which had slowly gotten stronger, and closed his eyes, thinking about different ways this rescue mission could go wrong, when Nancy’s yell had interrupted his train of thoughts.

She had been cursing, when he had opened his eyes and had been glaring at a rather small boy with jet black hair, who had his back to Grover.

He had worn a run-down blue backpack over his shoulder and yelled back at her, before turning away and walking, surprisingly, towards him.

The other kids normally avoided him, since Nancy had taken one look at his supposed crippled legs and picked him out as her number one victim. Grover had gotten used to being and to remain alone for the rest of the year.

Nancy’s group had sneered at them, before running down a nearby hill.

The boy had simply ignored them and stopped when he stood next to him.

“Is it okay if I sit down?”

Grover could only nod and stare at him. The scent had been almost overwhelming and there had been not one doubt in his mind that this kid had been the demigod he had been searching for.

The boy had sat down and fiddled with the sleeves of his jacket, before looking up at him. His eyes had been deeply green, the colour of leaves in a rainforest with lighter specks in them, as if the sun broke trough the trees, or like an ocean in the middle of the day, when rays danced across green water and made it sparkle like a sea of emeralds.

“Are you okay?”, the demigod had asked. His eyebrows had drawn together, and his eyes had flickered over the bread crumps on his jeans.

Grover had shaken his head. “This is nothing. Thanks. How did you get them to stop?”

“I threw her backpack down the hill,” he had shrugged. “Pretty sure they are getting it now.”

“Oh,” he had smiled. The first real smile since he had left camp. “Thanks. I’m Grover, by the way. Grover Underwood.”

The boy had sent him a lopsided grin. “Percy Jackson.”

Grover teared himself away from the memories with a fond shake of his head and looked at Percy, only to frown.

His friend still glared at the projection, his face a stone mask, but he could see the anger burning in his eyes like a wildfire.

Grover furrowed his eyebrows. He knew that Percy hated Gabe Ugliano, and that every mention of that man would make him undoubtedly angry, but this reaction was a bit more extreme than he had anticipated.

Concern started to grow inside of him like weed.

Sure, that guy had been a real jerk from everything he’d heard about him. With his poker parties and his beer, the way Percy had described him and his behavior on their first quest had told him enough about him.

And Percy had been twelve the last time he saw him.

So, a reaction like that was probably to be expected, but still, a nagging voice at the back of his mind started to wonder, if there was more to Gabe, than Percy had always led him to believe.

I was worried how he’d survive next year without me.

“To be fair, I doubt any of us would have survived that year without you,” Will said with a shrug.

Chris nodded. “Yeah, World War 3 and all that,”

“World war 3?”, Piper almost choked on her sprite. “What do you mean, World War 3?”

“Our first quest,” Annabeth sighed and gestured at the projection. “Don’t worry, if this thing really follows us, you’re going to find out all about that pretty soon.”

“And won’t that be fun,” Percy muttered bitterly.

I’d miss Latin class, too-Mr. Brunner…faith that I could do well.

Jason frowned, his eyebrows squishing together.

That sounded like someone having faith in him was an anomaly. That it was something so special to him, that Percy was sure he wouldn’t find it again at another school.

He let his gaze wander over the greek demigods. Some had pinched expressions, as if they’d remembered something they’d rather forget, others had planted their gazes firmly on the ground and pressed their lips together, but most weren’t even fazed.

Piper and Leo had talked to him plenty about their school experiences, and, sure, adhd, and dyslexia had to make school life far more complicated than it should be, but he hadn’t thought it was that bad. Especially for kids as young as twelve.

He let out a sigh.

As exam week got closer, Latin was the only test I studied for…but I’d started to believe him.

“Thank the Gods you did,” Annabeth said. “Every bit of background knowledge can be useful.”

“Yeah,” he laid an arm around her shoulder, trying to distract himself from thinking about Gabe. “But I think I’m more the learn-by-doing-kind of guy. And if push comes to shove, I have you.”

“Guess that’s true.” She chuckled and looked up at him amused. “But, you know, reading one or two myths wouldn’t hurt.”

He shrugged. “Eh, probably not.”

The dorm room appeared again. This time Percy was alone and sat at one of the desks. His eyebrows were furrowed, and his eyes clenched as he tried to read what looked like the Cambridge Guide to Greek Mythology.

‘You’re actually trying to learn?’ Thalia looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

‘Well,’ he rubbed his neck, right as younger him frustrated threw the book across the room and groaned, hiding his head in his arms.

‘Emphasis on trying, I guess.’

The evening before my final, I got so frustrated… across my dorm room….Words had started swimming off the page…as if they were riding skateboards…There was no way I was going to remember…or Polydictes and Polydeuces.

“I’m getting a headache just watching you learn,” Leo grumbled and hit his head repeatedly against the back of his seat. “I think I’d rather fight a fury.”

Piper sent him an amused look. “No, you wouldn’t.

He grinned. “No, I wouldn’t.”

And conjugating those Latin verbs…I will only accept the best from you, Percy Jackson.

Annabeth sighed and gently squeezed his hand.

She wondered how many times those exact words had run trough Percy’s head over the last few years, or how many times he had doubted he was good enough to meet Chiron’s expectations.

I took a deep breath. I picked up the mythology book…with him thinking I hadn’t tried.

Katie smiled. “He wouldn’t ever think so. But that’s really sweet.”

I walked downstairs to the faculty offices…” …worried about Percy, sir.”

Grover leaned his head against the cushion and sighed.

“I still can’t believe you heard the entire conversation. I thought we were being pretty careful.”

Percy shrugged. “It’s not like you could have predicted I would take Latin of all things so serious that I would ask Chiron for help.”

“That’s true,” Grover agreed.

I froze. I’m not usually an eavesdropper…to an adult.

Percy grimaced. Guilt dripped down his back like burning acid.

Annabeth frowned. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just, I tend to eavesdrop a lot. Especially when I shouldn’t.”

His eyes wandered over to where Clarisse and Chris were sitting. He slumped. “Like, really shouldn’t.”

I inched closer…We need the boy to mature more.”

“Yes, he needs to mature more before we can send him to the only place, he is safe in. Let’s wait for another monster to attack him first. That’s a great idea.” Thalia scoffed.

“To be fair, it’s not like camp was particularly safe for Percy,” Annabeth pointed out. “I told you about our first quest, remember?”

Thalia’s face darkened. “Right,” she sounded bitter. “But still, Chiron knew that Hades himself was after Percy. I would have thought he’d learned from my death.”

But he may not have time…Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can.”

“How would the deadline have been resolved without Percy?” Katie questioned. “I honestly doubt anyone else could have done his quest.”

“The conflict might not have escalated if he hadn’t shown up,” Demeter explained with a sigh. “We, that is, me, Hera, and Hestia, might have been able to calm those two down. That was obviously impossible after Percy got claimed.”

“But Lord Hades already knew about his existence?” Reyna pointed out.

“And Kronos would have found a way to provoke a war anyway,” Athena said. “As much as I would like to deny it, it seems that Perseus’ involvement was essential to stopping an escalation.”

“Sir, he saw her…voice was choked with emotion. “You know what that would mean.”

Annabeth scowled at him. “You never failed, Grover. The only reason me and Luke made it to camp in one piece was because you found us. If we would have continued trying to survive on our own, none of us would be alive right now.”

Grover bit his lips. “But-“

“No, but” she cut him off. “Do you even realize how many times, you saved us at one of our quests? Thalia, Percy and me would have long been dead if it weren’t for you. So, you have to stop blaming yourself.”

“She’s right, you know,” Thalia nudged him. “You’re the bravest satyr I’ve ever met, Mr. Finder-of-Pan. We owe you our life.”

Grover’s mouth quivered, but he stayed silent and simply nodded.

“You haven’t failed, Grover…keeping Percy alive until next fall-“

‘Gods, that must have freaked you out,” Katie sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “So much to ignorance.”

The mythology book dropped out of my hand…Mr. Brunner went silent.

“Dude,” Connor shook his head in disappointment. “Lame.”

My heart hammering…a shadow slid across the lighted glass…holding something that looked suspiciously like an archer’s bow.

Athena narrowed her eyes at the shadow, which appeared in the projection. “He wasn’t even disguised?”

“Chiron didn’t want to risk anything after Mrs. Dodds,” Grover explained. “The mist would have hidden his appearance should another teacher or a student see him, but the wheelchair hindered his movements. He didn’t want to risk anything after the museum.”

I opened the nearest door and slipped inside…A large, dark shape paused in front of the glass…” My nerves haven’t been right since the winter solstice.”

“Percy was right outside,” Will said. “Neither of you smelled him?”

“Percy’s scent was all over the school,” Grover said. “It was impossible to determine his exact position.”

“Mine, neither,” Grover said…” Don’t remind me.”

Grover groaned. “I don’t know how many exams I had to do in my life. Without a doubt, one of the worst parts of being a protector.”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. “Worse than the monsters?”

“I’d probably take a monster over most exams,” Percy nodded and laid an arm around his friend’s shoulder. “We all appreciate the sacrifice.”

Grover cracked a smile. “Thanks.”

The lights went out in Mr. Brunner’s office…”You’re going to be ready for the test?”

Thalia nudged him with a small smile. “You act better than you lie, goat boy.”

Grover facepalmed. “Thanks, Thalia.”

I didn’t answer…and started getting ready for bed.

Annabeth leaned her head against his shoulder. “That would have scared me too,” she said softly.

“I think hearing something like this would have freaked all of us out,” Frank agreed. “Especially at twelve.”

I didn’t understand what I’d heard downstairs…They thought I was in some kind of dang.…Mr. Brunner called me back inside.

Travis wrinkled his nose.

“Three hours,” he shuddered. “That sucks, man.”

For a moment, I was worried he’d found out…”Don’t be discouraged about leaving Yancy. It’s …it’s for the best.”

“For the best,” Connor repeated with a frown. “Ouch.”

His tone was kind, but his words still embarrassed me…“I mean…”Mr. Brunner wheeled his chair back and forth…It was only a matter of time.”

“Gods,” Rachel leaned back in her seat, a grimace transforming her face. “Hello, therapy and self-esteem issues.”

My eyes stung…I was destined to get kicked out.

Will ran a hand across his face.

“I can’t believe he just said all of that “, Annoyance slipped into his tone and his right hand clenched. Different emotions swirled inside his chest like a tornado.

For one, he felt sick listening into thoughts and seeing memories that were so very private. A blush had already crept onto Percy’s cheek, and he kept his gaze decidedly on the ground. There was a tightness around his lips, that told Will, he was probably clenching his jaw.

This whole experience had to be hell on earth for him.

Hearing Percy think like this, literally hearing about his insecurities made him want to gag and give him a hug at the same time.

Nico squeezed his hand. “At least it can’t really get worse, right?”

“Right”, I said, trembling…you’re not normal, Percy. That’s nothing to be-“…“Thanks,” I blurted. “Thanks a lot, sir, for reminding me.”

Percy’s voice cracked and he rushed out of the classroom.

“And it just got worse.”

By now, Will felt like somebody had punched him in the gut, carved out the inside of his chest and left him completely empty.

“Percy-“But I was already gone.

Percy cleared his throat nervously. “Man, remind me to never ask Chiron for a pep talk again.”

“He never sugar-coats,” Annabeth said sadly. “Most of the time, he just tells you the blunt truth. His decision to not tell you about our world just complicates things.”

“I know,” Percy squeezed her hand.

On the last day of term, I shoved my clothes into my suitcase…I was a nobody from a family of nobodies.

Hermes lips quirked up amused.

“Family of nobodies, huh,” Apollo leaned closer to him with a grin. “You think you and Poseidon should feel insulted?”

“I’d say we wait for Medusa’s head before we do that,” he said back, and Apollo chuckled.

“Fates I forget about that part. We’re probably going to see him send it to us, won’t we?”

“Probably.”

Apollo let out a laugh. “Fantastic, haven’t been that amused at a council meeting in a long time. You’re cousin’s pretty funny.”

“Yeah, I-“, he stopped himself, and his ichor turned into ice. Hermes threw Apollo a pointed look and lowered his voice even further to make sure Zeus or, Fates forbid, Hera could not hear him.

“He’s not my cousin,” he hissed.

Apollo shook his head. “But you’re thinking about it. And don’t even try to deny it.” He tipped his forehead. “God of knowledge, remember?”

He rolled his eyes. “Yeah, somehow I doubt that that particular subject is a part of your domain.”

“It’s in my domain as your best friend,” Apollo countered. “Or are you really still in denial?”

Hermes opened, and then closed his mouth again. Then, he shook his head. “I’m so not talking to you about this. Not a shot. Especially not here.”

They asked me what I’d be doing this summer…worrying about where I’d go to school in the fall.

‘Summer job?’ Rachel looked at him confused. ‘But weren’t you twelve?’

‘Yeah,’ he forced himself to grin, despite the panic, that began forming in his chest.

That was the second time something related to Gabe had been mentioned and he’d rather stab himself with Riptide than tell anyone about his stupid poker parties. “I, uh, I wanted this new skateboard back then, but it was really expensive. That was the only way I could get it.”

Rachel made an “oh” movement with her mouth and turned back, and Percy’s shoulders sacked in relief.

“Oh,” one of the guys said…as if I’d never existed.

“Rude,” Piper muttered and glared at the group.

Percy shrugged. “To be fair, we never interacted much. Neither of us really knew, how to talk to the other.”

The only person I dreaded saying good-bye to was Grover…together again, heading into the city.

Conner snorted. “Yeah, big coincidence.”

During the whole bus ride, Grover kept glancing nervously down the aisle…But there was nobody to tease him on the Greyhound.

“Dude, you’re acting totally suspicious,” Travis groaned, but Grover barely reacted.

His eyes were dilated, his nose twitched.

He shared a glance with Percy.

“You’re aware, that the Fates are going to show up pretty soon, right?”, he whispered, and watched Percy’s frown deepen.

“I’m afraid so,”, Percy let out a deep sigh. “This sucks.”

Finally I couldn’t sand it anymore…” Looking for Kindly Ones?”

Travis let out a snort and Grover blushed.

In a way, Travis was happy that it was Percy of all people, who narrated the story, even if he felt bad for his friend.

For one, he couldn’t deny the curiosity, that grew in him like weed. Percy, Annabeth and Grover were always tight-lipped about their adventures, so must of what they knew, they’ve got from rumours and second-hand reports.

Most campers would probably kill for the opportunity of finding out what really happened.

Even more importantly, Travis was fairly sure, that even in the worst parts of the wars, Percy would find a way to make them laugh.

He always did, a quality which he and his brother had learned to appreciate a long time ago.

If they really had to listen to, and see the wars again, Travis considered himself lucky that it was Percy Jackson of all people who narrated it.

Grover nearly jumped out of his seat…”How much did you hear?”

“Oh…not much. What’s the summer solstice deadline?”

“Not much”, Grover repeated and shook his head exasperated. ‘Just, you know, the whole dam conversation.’

He winced. “Look, Percy…”Grover, you’re a really, really bad liar.”

Grover sighed. “Yeah, that’s becoming quite obvious.”

His ears turned pink…I’d never considered that his family might be as rich as the others at Yancy.

Rachel snorted. “Percy, your dislike for rich kids is showing.”

“I guess so,” his lips quirked up in amusem*nt. “Nothing personal, Piper, Rachel.”

“Better not,” Piper smiled.

“Okay,” I said glumly. …”Why would I need you?”

Percy winced. He opened his mouth to apologize, but Grover already waved him of. “Don’t even start. You had other stuff to think about. And it is a strange question.”

“Still, that was uncalled for,” Percy said. “I’m sorry.”

It came out harsher than I meant to.

Grover blushed right down to his Adam’s apple…I’d lost sleep worrying that he’d get beaten up…like he was the one who defended me.

Grover spluttered. ‘You lost sleep?’

“Kind of?” he rubbed his neck. “I was just worried about you. And I felt pretty down, because I thought I wouldn’t see you again.”

His face softened. “That would have sucked,” Grover said with a smile. “But just so you know, you’re never getting rid of me, dude.”

Percy snorted. “I better not.”

“Grover,” I said,” what exactly are you protecting me from?”

Thalia snorted. “You want the list alphabetically or chronologically?”

“Or categorically,” Leo added.

Frank squinted at him. “Categorically?”

“Yeah, you know,” he grinned,” humans, demigods, monsters, titans, giants, gods, primordials.” For every new word he said, he raised another finger.

“You’re exaggerating,” Percy said and rolled his eyes. “I can’t think of any human or half blood, who wants to kill me. Aside from Clarisse, of course.”

“But you can think of at least one monster, god, titan, giant and primordial, who does?”, Hebe asked him with an arched eyebrow.

Percy shrugged. “Well, Kronos and Gaia are already a titan and a primordial, Polybotes kind of goes without saying, and in regard to gods,” his eyes wandered from Hebe to Ares, who smirked, a red fire burning in his eyes. “I’m pretty sure, I could name a few.’”

From the corners of his eyes, he could see his father tightening his grip around his throne and he winced.

He thought about Hyperion standing on a river, his blinding light reflected in the water, of Atlas, holding the weight of the sky, of Aklys hateful glare, of the presence of Nyx and the booming voice of Tartarus.

Probably a good thing he didn’t mention that, even without considering Gaia and Kronos, there were a few other titans and primordials he could mention, who’d happily hunt him down.

There was a huge grinding noise under our feet…Grover and I filed outside with everybody else.

“I suppose it’s not random that your bus broke down,” Rachel guessed.

“You’d be correct.”

We were on a stretch of country road…was an old-fashioned fruit stand…just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs…biggest pair of socks I’d ever seen.

The Fates still weren’t visible in the projection, but some of the Gods narrowed their eyes in suspicion, while Annabeth tilted her head.

“You never mentioned another monster you fought against on your way to camp, did you?”

He winced. “No,” he said. “They weren’t exactly monsters. Just promise me not to freak out, okay?”

I mean these socks were the size of sweaters….bony arms sticking out of bleached cotton dresses.

A sudden coldness crept over Percy’s skin and send a shiver down his spine, as the Fates appeared in the projection and a sharp inhale could be heard throughout the room.

Annabeth’s hand squeezed his almost too tight, her nails digging into his skin.

Her face was becoming paler by the second and her widened eyes were glued to the, now frozen, projection.

“Beth?”, he asked softly, his voice echoing trough the silent room.

She looked at him, blank fear reflecting in her storm grey eyes.

“What was that?”, she demanded quietly, the faintest of shakes in her voice and her head snapped from him to Grover.

“What was that?”, she repeated more urgently, when they didn’t answer.

“The Fates,” Percy said, trying to sound as calm as possible. “You don’t have to worry about that, okay?”

“Don’t worry….”, her eyes darted from the Fates to him again. “What do you mean ‘don’t worry’…”

“Just trust me on this,” he sent her a grin, he hoped, was reassuring. “I’m fine.”

The weirdest thing was, they seemed to be looking right at me.

The Fates raised their heads and stared at Past-Percy.

Hazel held her breathe. If felt like a frozen hand had grabbed her heart and stopped the blood from circulating. Franks hand in hers had gone slack.

I looked over at Grover to say something…”Tell me they’re not looking at you. They are, aren’t they?”

“Of course, they are,’ his real version muttered. “Geez, seeing it from your point of view is even worse.”

“Grover, I’m okay,” he slung an arm over his shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’ll explain everything as soon as it happens.”

“Yeah, Weird, huh? …”Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all.”

“Seriously not funny,” Reyna said, her hands clutching the edge of her seat.

Percy was obviously still alive, which meant the Fates wouldn’t do anything drastic, but a visit, especially with the background of the first great prophecy, seemed to be a rather cruel omen and forced her shoulders to grow tense.

The old lady in the middle took out a huge pair of scissors….I heard Grover catch his breath.

Katie, Connor, and Travis did the same, while Reyna held her hand in front of her mouth.

“We’re getting on the bus,”…and climbed inside, but I stayed back.

“Percy!” Thalia hissed, panic slipping into her voice.

Across the road, the old ladies were still watching me…I could hear that snip across four lanes of traffic.

The snip seemed to echo trough all of Olympus.

One,

Two,

Three,

Four seconds of silence passed, so deafening you could have heard a pin drop. Apollo slowly leaned away from the projection, his mouth going slightly slack.

That …. that was undoubtedly a death sentence.

How long was that ago? He had never heard of someone surviving as long as five years after their string got cut. Percy couldn’t have had more than a couple months left. If that.

Apollo let his eyes wander trough the room.

Hermes had gone pale, his hands, which could normally never sit still had frozen in time and his eyes seemed to be glued to the cut string.

He opened and closed his mouth again, before swallowing.

Percy, in comparison, didn’t look much bothered. He had crossed his arms in front of his chest and stared at the projection with a grimace, but no sign of the tenseness that he would have expected at such a reminder.

Then, as if someone had hit play in a movie, all Hades broke out.

“What?!”

“Don’t worry, my ass.”

“By the gods.”

“How in Hades are you still alive?”

A mess of voices talked over each other, some confused, some angry, but most panicked, and merged into one single incoherent noise. Normally, Zeus wouldn’t tolerate such a commodity, not from demigods at least, but even he was staring at the projection in something close to disbelief.

As did most of the other gods.

Few actually cared if Percy Jackson lived or died, some actively wanted to kill him, but seeing that his death seemed to be close to imminent was still a weirdly strange realization.

“Percy…”, when Poseidon spoke up, his voice was low, dangerously calm, and filled the entire room, like a wave that crashed onto the beach.

The demigods fell almost immediately into silence. Not like he could blame them.

The god’s face was emotionless, similar to one of his cold marble statues, but when he looked up, his eyes were stormy and dark, like the ocean during a storm. Despite that, he was more controlled that Apollo had anticipated. Poseidon always showed a remarkable sense of restraint when his demigod son was around.

“It wasn’t mine,” Percy said calmly, causing him to raise an eyebrow.

“Percy, if you’ve seen them…”, Apollo didn’t finish the sentence and just looked at him with something that resembled sympathy.

“I know, but it wasn’t my string,” he said when Poseidon’s eyes narrowed. “It was related to the prophecy. It was important for me to see it. But it wasn’t connected to my…I mean the string didn’t represent my life.”

Hermes finally looked up. “Why else would the Fates appear before you? Whose string would be so important that…”, the gods’ voice broke off as realization started to dawn on him. The light left his eyes. “Luke’s”, he said, almost inaudible.

Percy met his eyes and nodded silently. A hollow expression replaced Hermes’ confusion, as Thalia slung an arm over Annabeth’s shoulder.

“Luke?”, Jason furrowed his eyebrow when he looked at his sister. “As in the guy in your picture?”

Thalia eyes had darkened. “Luke was… well, he… We used to know him, before…”

She clenched her jaw, her lips pressing together into a thin line.

“Before…?”

“Luke used to be the cabin counsellor of the Hermes cabin,” Percy said listlessly, in Thalia’s place. She nodded at him, her shoulders slacking. “He… changed sides during the war and was, let’s say, pretty essential for Kronos’ side.”

He gestured at the still frozen projection. “Don’t worry, you’ll probably see the rest. And believe me, that’s going to be rough enough for… a few people here.”

Jason followed Percy’s gaze to his sister, who had leaned her head on Annabeth’s. His forehead was creased in concern, but he nodded slowly, in acceptance.

Apollo glanced at Hermes.

His friend stared blankly at the projection, a thousand different emotions flickering in his brown eyes.

He winced. Seeing Luke Castellan for the entirety of the War would open some wounds that had only recently started to heal.

Apollo wished he could offer his friend some kind of support, but no words of solace left his mouth.

Instead, he cleared his throat. The least he could do was make sure he didn’t have to dwell on it for too long. “Now that that’s cleared up, we should probably just continue, right? Or is there anything important we need to discuss?”

“No,” Zeus agreed with him and looked at Hekate and Iris. “Continue.”

Her two friends balled up the electric-blue socks…Sasquatch or Godzilla.

“So not the time, Percy,” Katie groaned, her face as pale as a piece of chalk.

At the rear of the bus, the driver wrenched a big chunk…” Everybody back on board!”

‘Of course,’ Frank murmured.

Apollo shrugged his shoulders, his eyes locked on Percy. “Wouldn’t have mattered either way. They wanted you to see this. Especially if it had something to do with the prophecy.”

“I know,” he nodded. “Looking back on it, I think it was good that I saw them when I did.”

Once we got going, I started feeling feverish….Grover didn’t look much better…”What are you not telling me?”

‘Pretty much everything,” Reyna sighed and leaned defeated against her cushion. She felt terrible for Grover.

Reyna couldn’t imagine having to lie to her best friend for almost an entire year, even having to go so far to make him doubt his own mind, only for the Fates to cut their chord and not being able to do anything about it anyway.

On top of that, a best friend she was tasked with to protect.

She was already amazed by the difference between Grover and the fauns back at Camp Jupiter and couldn’t wait to find out more.

He dabbed his forehead with his shirt sleeve…They’re not like … Mrs. Dodds, are they?”

Rhode’s lips pressed together into a slight grimace.

She never held much affection for her father’s other children, the monsters, and demigods of this world, foolish enough to think their lives were anything more but insignificant. They barely stuck around long enough for her to even bother remembering their names.

Still, she couldn’t help the tension that started to overcome her body, like clouds a blue sky.

Rhode would never see Percy Jackson as her brother, no matter how much her father wanted her to, but she owed him her gratitude for saving Olympus, and Atlantis with it, and no matter how little she cared for most demigods, she always hated seeing children suffer.

And the question, so painful in its naivety, served as just another reminder how young and ignorant of their world the hero had been back then.

His expression was hard to read…”The middle one took out her scissors, and she cut the yarn.”

“Don’t say it like this,” Annabeth groaned and hid her head in the croak of his neck.

“Sorry,” he whispered and gently patted her back. “But I promise you, I’m fine.”

He closed his eyes and made a gesture with his fingers…It was something else, something almost – older.

“You’re really perceptive when you want to be, do you know that?”, Grover said and sent him a shaken smile. “Sometimes it’s really annoying.”

He said,” You saw her snip the cord.” Yeah. So?”

‘” Yeah, so…”’, Katie felt sick, and she closed her eyes. At camp Percy had been the topic of conversation after they had learned that he had fought the minotaur for weeks. She didn’t know how they would have reacted if they’d known he had already defeated a fury and met the Fates, even before that.

But even as I said it…I don’t want this to be like last time.”

Thalia grimaced. “Grover you’re sounding completely psycho.”

‘I know,’ he sighed. “I just, I don’t know…” He looked dejected at the floor.

“Hey,” her face softened. “You were what, 12, 13 in human years? The demigod you’re protecting, who was also your best friend, just told you, that the Fates snapped, supposedly, his thread. Everyone would have freaked out. Cut yourself some slack, will you?”

He sent her a weak smile. “Thanks, Thalia.”

She grinned. “Anytime, goat boy.”

“What last time…They never get past sixth grade.”

Grover slumped in his seat. “Doesn’t change the fact, that I sound like I lost my mind.”

She shrugged. “No, but, hey, Percy survived. So, no lasting harm done.”

“Grover,” I said, because he was really starting to scare me…walk you home from the bus station. Promise me.”

Percy winced. “Sorry about that.”

Grover shook his head. “I probably would have ditched me too, at this point.”

This seemed like a strange request … Does that mean somebody is going to die?”

Nico’s eyes darkened.

He wondered, when Percy had truly found out, that it wasn’t his own string that had been cut and on how many quests he had gone to with the shadow of that encounter looming over him.

Had he expected to die since the beginning, his death as assured to him as to prisoners on death row?

The thought forced bile to start forming in his throat, and he averted his eyes.

He looked at me mournfully, like he was already picking the kind of flowers I’d like best on my coffin.

The projection stopped.

‘Well,” Leo chuckled nervously into the silence, just to lose the tension. “Sorry to disappoint you, Percy. But you wouldn’t get a coffin. Just a plain old shroud.’

Percy chuckled and returned the smile, as the projection died down again. ‘As long as the Ares cabin doesn’t make it, I’m fine with it.”

Clarisse smirked at him. “I liked that shroud.”

“Me too,” he held up his hands, as the next scene formed. “Was really fun to burn.”

Chapter 6: Grover Unexpectedly Loses His Pants

Chapter Text

The rainbow painted the picture of a yellow taxi in an ocean of black, grey and white ones. Percy was playing nervously with the sleeves of his jacket, while staring almost catatonically out of the window.

Percy’s breath hitched.

Oh no.

No.

No. No. No. No. No. No.

He recognized that taxi, he recognized that middle aged driver, the street they drove on, the run-down shops they passed.

The whole neighbourhood that had once been as familiar to him as the strawberry fields and the forest back at camp.

This was the way to their apartment. To Gabe’s apartment.

His chest felt so tight, it became hard to breathe, as if the gravity had increased inside of his lungs.

From far away, he heard some voices talking. Hazel, and Grover, he believed, but he couldn’t make out their words. All sound was strangely distorted, as if they were coming trough a very old radio.

Why? The question repeated in his mind as if on an unending loop.

Why would they see this? What was important about this? What could the Fates possibly find significant about his homelife back then?

It took all of his restrain to not stand up and rush out of the room. Instead, he clenched his jaw, and crossed his arms in front of his chest, his hands clutching his skin so tightly it started to hurt.

Confession time: I ditched Grover as soon as we got to the bus terminal. I know, I know. It was rude…”Why does it always have to be sixth grade?”

“I would have done the same,” Annabeth said and sent Grover an apologetic look. “Sorry, Grover.”

He waved it off with his hand. “Don’t be. I probably would have freaked myself out.”

Whenever he got upset, Grover’s bladder acted up…”East One-hundred-and-fourth and First,” I told the driver.”

Conner’s mouth transformed into a smirk. “East One-hundred-and-fourth and First, huh?”

“Yeah, not anymore, man,” Percy shook his head to tear himself out of his trance. There was still the slim possibility open that Gabe wouldn’t play a major role, and he clung to it like it was a lifeline. “We moved. But you can find our new address at the big house.”

Travis’ head shot up. “We can?”

Katie scrunched her nose. “Why would you want those two knuckleheads to know where you live?”

“Mom decided to turn the apartment into a safe house,” he explained, grateful to focus on something else. “If anyone’s on a quest, or running from some monsters, you can go there. To eat, or sleep or tend to your injuries.” Percy shrugged. “Whatever you need. I even stored some ambrosia and nectar in my room, if its needed. I wanted to bring it up at the next campfire.”

“And Paul’s okay with that?” Nico raised an eyebrow.

Percy almost managed a snort. “Paul once saw Mrs. O’Leary manifest in our living room, got me a place at Goode high school, despite the fact that I blew up the music room, and killed some monsters in Manhattan, even though he wasn’t able to properly see them.”

He looked up at him. “At this point, that man is okay with anything.”

Nico nodded. “Fair enough.”

A word about my mother, before you meet her.

“Probably the greatest woman I’ve ever met,” Annabeth said and smiled softly.

One of the reasons she hadn’t completely freaked out after Percy’s disappearance, together with the support from Grover, Thalia, Clarisse and her other friends at camp, had undoubtedly been the many evenings she had spent at the Jackson household.

She had often sat alone in Percy’s bedroom and hugged his sweatshirts and his blanket tightly to her chest, inhaling the faint scent of salt that still clung to the clothes, while tears streamed down her face.

It had been one of the few places she had allowed herself to cry.

Sally and Paul had let her be, offering either solitude, comfort or encouragement if she needed it, only interrupting her to bring her some hot chocolate or some of the thousands of cookies Sally had baked. Annabeth figured it had been her way to keep herself busy, to not go mad from worry.

Their apartment had become her safe heaven, and that feeling had only grown stronger since Percy came back.

Her name is Sally Jackson and she’s the best person in the world…no money, no family, and no diploma.

Annabeth looked at him surprised. “I didn’t know that. You never told me, did you?”

“Mom doesn’t like people to know. She doesn’t want pity,” he explained. “She’s proud of what she accomplished, but she doesn’t like to think about her past like that.”

She shook her head with a smile. “Do you know that Sally gets cooler every time you talk about her?”

“I know,” he said warmly. “Mom’s awesome.”

The only good break she ever got was meeting my dad….Lost at dead, my mom told me. Not dead. Lost at sea.

“Smart,” Artemis arched an eyebrow. “Probably the best explanation she could offer you while remaining truthful.”

A soft smile crossed Percy’s lip. “Mom never lied to me. Never really.”

He bit his lips, and grimaced. Except when it came to her marriage to Gabe, that is. She had always pretended that everything was fine, even that she liked living with him.

He sighed.

Even today, he had just superficial knowledge of what Gabe had done to her while he was away, and he wasn’t sure how he’d react once he would find out everything that had happened.

They always danced around the subject like two actors in a musical, both of them wanting to support each other, but simultaneously afraid to know the truth.

She worked odd jobs, took night classes to get her high school diploma…But I knew I wasn’t an easy kid.

Grover frowned and nudged his side.

“Don’t sell yourself short. You were a really good kid.”

Percy’s lips twitched uncomfortably. “Reading my emotions again, are you?”

“Not necessary. It’s written all over your face,” Grover said. “And stop deflecting. You were a good kid. Getting thrown out of schools wasn’t your fault and you did the best you could. Sally always knew that.”

“I know, I know,” Percy’s face fell. That didn’t change the fact that her life would have been significantly easier without him present, he wanted to say, but kept his mouth shut.

“Stop,” Grover’s tone was decisive, and a grimace slowly formed on his face. “Whatever it is you’re thinking to yourself, stop it, okay? I can feel your guilt without even trying.”

Percy hesitated. “Mom’s life would have been easier.”

“And less happy,” Grover said instantly. “Same goes for all of us.”

Percy averted his eyes.

It wouldn’t be, he wanted to say.

Because if his mom hadn’t been pregnant with him, she wouldn’t have had to marry Gabe. She could have started writing her novels far earlier, and lived in her own home, which would have been filled with books, and cookies, and which, most importantly, would have been safe.

Maybe, she would have even met someone like Paul far earlier and started a family. A normal, happy, picture book family where her children wouldn’t have to change schools every year and didn’t disappear because some goddess kidnapped them and erased their memories of her.

Grover squeezed his shoulder.

“Percy, maybe I can’t speak for the others, but please know that my life at least would have been a lot worse without you in it. Not mentioning the fact that it would have been significantly shorter as well or that I would now be married to Polyphemus.”

A weak smile flashed across Percy’s face. “You were a pretty bride. It was a shame really.”

“Hey!”, Grover hit his shoulder playfully. Then his face softened. “Dude, you’re my best friend. Don’t be so hard on yourself, okay?”

“Thanks,” Percy said. “And, just so you know, I’m really happy you’re not married.”

Grover smiled. “Me too.”

Finally, she married Gabe Ugliano….true colors as a world-class jerk.

Immediately, Percy’s smile melted from his face and got replaced by a deep scowl as he glared at the projection.

Annabeth frowned. “That guy was such an ass on the news back then. I can’t believe you and Sally lived with him. That must have seriously sucked.”

“It was fine,” he muttered, almost automatically. “We… we were fine.”

When I was young, I nicknamed him Smelly Gabe…moldy garlic pizza wrapped in gym shorts.

Chris wrinkled his nose. “You don’t have to be that descriptive, you know?”

“I didn’t really write that down,” Percy reminded him, disgust transforming his expression,” but I have to admit, 12-year-old me is pretty accurate.”

He grimaced and looked at Hecate and Iris. “Is there any possible way we could skip this? I can assure you it has no relevance to Kronos or Gaia or really anyone besides me and my mom. I can swear on the Styx If you need me to.”

“No relevance as in you fighting a fury and meeting the Fates, or really no relevance?” Athena asked.

“Was my first fight with a monster really important enough for you to watch in the first place?”

“Touche,” Hermes said with a sigh. “I’d be a lie to say the Fates intention doesn’t allude us. The scenes so far don’t make that much sense in the greater scheme of things.”

“And nothing as in nothing,” Percy said. “There’s only me, my mum, and Gabe Ugliano in that apartment. The next time I’ve encountered anything close to this world was shortly before I arrived at camp. When me and Grover met again. There’s nothing to see there. Absolutely nothing.”

“Well, you’re not lying,” Apollo said, after a while of looking at him. “Any particular reason why you don’t want this scene to play out? Besides, it not being important. I mean?”

“It’s…”. A time he really didn’t want to remember. Stupid. Humiliating. A reminder how much he had failed his mom, all seemed like pretty good answers.

“It’s private,” in the end he had hesitated a second too long. Annabeth’s, Thalia’s and Grover’s brows furrowed. “I mean, more private than the stuff from before and really no one else’s business. But,” he felt bitter,” I guess that’s up to the Fates, isn’t it?”

“I’m afraid so,” Hestia studied him intently, tilting her head. “Are you sure there isn’t more to it?”

His mouth formed into a thin line. “No, nothing” he shook his head.

He wouldn’t give them more information that what they would already get. If the projection wouldn’t show them who Gabe really was, there was no way in Hades they would find out from him.

Between the two of us, we made my mom’s life pretty hard…when I came home is a good example.

The taxi stopped and Projection-Percy quickly opened a door and slid outside. He gave the middle-aged, bearded driver a twenty dollar note, threw his backpack over his shoulder, and entered an apartment building.

While walking up a few staircases, he took a deep breath and turned his expression blank.

Reyna frowned. “What do you mean with “the way he treated her”?”

“Nothing,” he bit the inside of his cheek, panic growing in his chest like weed. “Gabe was just… let’s just say we didn’t necessarily get along. That didn’t make things easy for mom.”

I walked into our little apartment…Chips and bear cans were strewn all over the carpet.

Various concerned glances were thrown in his direction when the apartment formed around them.

Reyna’s eyes had narrowed, and travelled quickly around the room, as if she couldn’t decide which detail disgusted her most, Thalia paled, frozen in her seat like a marble statue, Annabeth and Grover exchanged a confused look and Leo had even flinched back, but Percy did his best to ignore all of them, too focused on his old living room.

Everything looked as disgusting as he remembered.

He could almost smell the stale beer, the cigarettes and worst of all Gabe’s stench, and he closed his eyes for a moment.

A pile of dread built in his stomach, and he felt like he’d throw up any minute.

He took a deep breath.

It’s not like he was actually back. Gabe was right now nothing more than a stone statue in some stupid museum and he would never have to see his face again.

“What is this?” Repulsion was obvious in Annabeth’s tone, and she leaned away from the projection.

“It’s nothing,” Percy muttered. “Told you the guy sucks.”

He replayed the scene to the best of his memories over and over again in his head. Grasping at every detail, every word that had been said.

Nothing had happened, he tried to convince him. At that point, Gabe hadn’t… They had simply talked.

It would be fine. It had to be fine.

Hardly looking up, he said around his cigar,” So, you’re home.”

Gabe also sounded the same.

Oily, a sound that reminded him of slime, that slowly rolled down a garbage can.

A heavy tension crept into his shoulders, and he clenched his jaw, which only made him mad at himself.

It didn’t make sense that Gabe could still do that to him, he thought angrily.

He had fought in two wars, he killed literal monsters regularly, he had fallen into Tartarus for the sake of Styx, and, still, he couldn’t keep his hands from shaking at hearing this stupid voice.

It was… embarrassing really.

Aphrodite wrinkled her nose and let her eyes wander over Gabe’s ugly figure and the dirty apartment. “This might be one of the most revolting men I’ve ever laid eyes upon.”

“I agree”, Artemis said coldly, before she looked at Percy and her eyebrows drew together. “You lived with him?”

Percy nodded, his throat tight. “Guess so.”

“Where’s my mom?”…”You got any cash?”

Will blinked, as if he thought he had misheard. His voice was quiet when he spoke, unsure. “Cash?”

“Yeah,” Percy grimaced. An uncomfortable knot had formed in his stomach. “Cash.”

That was it. No welcome back. Good to see you….he expected me to provide his gambling funds.

Percy’s eye twitched, every muscle in his body growing rigid. The knot became tighter and felt as heavy as a bowling ball.

He hadn’t spared his own mind a single thought. Didn’t even consider what his 12-year-old self would reveal.

“Provide his gambling funds?”, Thalia narrowed her eyes. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“You know, cash,” Percy cleared his throat, and forced himself to shrug as casually as possible. “He wanted me to give him cash from time to time. No big deal.”

“No big deal? You were twelve years old,” Frank said slowly. “Where would you get money from in the first place.”?”

“I worked,” Percy wetted his lips nervously, but kept his eyes stubbornly on the projection.

“But..” Rachel trailed off, eyes widening. “The summer jobs you talked about… Were, were they because of this?”

“Uh, partly,” His hands clenched. “I mean, there were multiple reasons why I worked. I suppose Gabe was one of them.”

“You sure?” Thalia’s voice was cold. “I mean, him forcing you to give you many in the first place is completely messed up. What kind of douchebag would demand that from a 12 year old?”

“Thals, it was fine” Percy forced himself to crack her a grin, but there was a tenseness in his posture, an almost pleading look in his eyes, that made her hesitate.

Thalia stared at him. Then back at the man in the projecting, to the room, which looked painfully similar to Beryl Grace’s apartment, to 12-year-old Percy, who was more tense than she had seen him around most monsters, then back at the real Percy.

Every alarm clock in her head was ringing, banging against her head as if to force her to take action.

Her voice was dangerously low. “If you didn’t give him money, would he.. would he do something to you? Like hurt you?”

Percy felt as if an electroshock had just run trough his body. His throat felt dry.

“What?” he tried to press as much disbelief as possible into his voice. They would not find out from him. He refused to even entertain the idea. “No, no, that would be…. no. Gabe didn’t do stuff like that. He was a jerk, but not that much of a jerk.”

He called that our guy secret.

A wave of coldness crashed over him, as if he was doused with ice water. Suddenly, he was wide awake. He shot up in his seat. “Wait-“

Meaning, if I told my mom, he would punch my lights out.

He froze. Completely, and utterly froze as if he had just stared into Medusa’s eyes, and turned into a statue of stone.

Sounds, colours, scents, demigods, and gods all seemingly disappeared into a white nothingness and left behind only him, the projection, and a loud buzz in his ears that drowned out every other sound.

His mouth was dry, his mind spinning to a screeching halt, while his heart seemed to slam against his rib cage in slow motion, but as loud as a beating drum.

One heartbeat passed.

The temperature of the room must have drastically fallen, because his breath came only out in tiny white clouds, but he didn’t feel the coldness. He didn’t feel anything.

Two heartbeats.

The projection had stopped, freezing the picture of 12-year-old him glaring at the four men playing poker. Their postures were eery similar to the stone statue that his mum had sold to that art museum. From the other side of the room he could see Iris’ eyes widening, Hecate halting in her movements.

Three heartbeats.

Annabeth’s hand in his had gone slack and from the corners of his eyes, he could see her face becoming as pale as a piece of chalk, and her mouth opening and them closing again.

Four Heartbeats.

Sounds found its way into his ears again and he could hear sharp intakes of breath coming from his friends. From whom exactly, he couldn’t tell. The numbness slowly vanished, like snow that was melting in the summer sun.

Five, Six, Seven, eight heartbeats.

Out of a sudden, almost too sudden, everything came rushing back.

The colours were too bright, the sounds too loud, the room too cold, and his heart, previously too slow, beat against his chest as if it wanted to escape his body. Blood rushed to his head, and anger, hot, untameable anger, boiled in his stomach.

This didn’t happen. He didn’t just say here himself say that. It wasn’t possible. He didn’t just say that. Why would he say that? Why, in the name of Styx, would the Fates show this?

“Why?” he asked into the silence, that had followed the revelation, his voice shaking. “Why in the name of Styx, would that be shown?”

No one answered him. Not even the gods.

Most of them looked taken aback, Hermes, Aphrodite, Artemis, Rhode, and a few others had paled, even Zeus had frozen for a moment, and his friends were silenced by shock.

Then, out of a sudden, Thalia exploded. “What?” She shot up in her seat, her voice as loud as an avalanche in his ears. “You said he didn’t…. The f*ck, Percy?”

He grimaced, folding his arms in front of his chest. “Yeah, I guess that happened,” his gaze was kept firmly on the projection. “I didn’t think I would… I mean, that it would get revealed, whatever?”

“He punched you?” Hazel’s voice was quiet, disbelieving. “Gabe, he actually…”

“So what?” he snapped.

“So what?” Annabeth finally found her voice again. She was grabbing the edges of her couch so hard her knuckles turned white, and looked like she’d throw up any minute. “That’s not, you never said, that man…”

She pressed her lips tightly together, looking downright murderous.

“Where is he?”

“Underworld,” Percy said. “I would guess fields of punishment; not that it matters. Why is the projection frozen?”

“How… why..” Grover held his hands in front of his mouth.

“Listen, that was like 5 years ago,” Percy said. “I’ve moved on. Just forget about it, okay? It doesn’t matter.”

“But” he bit his lips and eyed him, tears swelling in his eyes. “Gabe, he…” he couldn’t even form the words. “Gods Percy, I had no idea.”

“I really didn’t want anyone to know,. It’s been years, okay. ” he trailed off, and grimaced. He understood where they were coming from. Of course, he did.

He had no idea how he would react if he would find out if anyone had hurt them, but he wouldn’t talk about Gabe. He couldn’t. Especially not here, with the gods and everyone present.

Fates, he hated this. He just wanted to move on, forget this ever happened. If Hekate or Iris could just….

“Percy’s right.” His father’s arctic voice cut trough the silence like a newly edged sword. The room got silent. Almost unnaturally so. Some of his friends started to shiver in the, now, freezing air.

Poseidon wasn’t looking at him, but was, instead, fixated on Gabe. His jaw was clenched and a centuries old fury was raging in his eyes, as if he wanted to turn him into an ice statue and shatter him into a million pieces, or drag him into the depths of the ocean, to slowly drown him.

Iris actually flinched back, when he shifted the glare from Gabe to her and Hecate. “Why’s the projection still frozen?”

It wasn’t a question; it wasn’t even a request. It was a threat, with no attempt to veil its intention.

Frost was building on the edges of their thrones. Hecate tensed. The other gods eyed Poseidon warily, some reaching instinctively for their weapons.

“Yes, yes,” Iris shook her head slowly to shake herself out of her haze. “Of course. I,” she hesitated, then looked at Percy. Her voice became softer, regretful. “I’m sorry. Truly.”

Without another word, she raised her trembling hand to continue the projection.

Relief flushed trough Percy, cutting the tension in his body like the strings of a puppet. He slummed in his seat.

He knew that his dad didn’t save him from having to talk about it rather sooner than later, but he gave him a break. A moment pf clarity, a moment to breathe and gather his thoughts.

Annabeth let out a shuddered breath next to him, and guilt formed in his stomach like acid.

He had wanted to tell them, her and Grover, time and time again, but no time seemed to be right. Of course, they had found out in the worst possible way. He felt bile rising in his throat. They deserved better. All his friends deserved better.

He squeezed her hand. “Beth, I’m sorry. If you want to, we can…”

“Don’t”, she leaned her head against his shoulder. “Percy, I don’t want to pressure you, but, just, gods, I’m so sorry.”

“I know,” he said. “Me too. I never thought you’d find out like this. I wanted to tell you, but I can’t just…,” his throat tightened up.

“I know I didn’t mean… I’m sorry. I…”,She stopped and took a deep breath. Then she looked at him with sadness, determination, love, and a thousand other emotions.

“Listen,” she said, her voice steadfast. “Yes, it is a shock for me, for us, it’s I don’t even know to begin to describe… What I’m trying to say is don’t worry about me. Or us. If you want to talk about it, I’m here, and if you don’t… that’s completely fine. This is about you. You don’t owe us an explanation, or anything else. But if, and only if you need to talk, we’re here for you. All of us. Always.”

Gods of Olympus, how did he deserve his friends?

He laid an arm around her shoulder, and side-hugged her. “I… thank you.”

“I don’t have any cash,” I told him…” Come on, Gabe,” he said. “The kid just got here.” …The other two guys passed gas in harmony.

Hermes’ ears pounded, and his expression had turned dark.

Fates, he didn’t want to feel as angry as he did. He was not supposed to be as angry as he was, but he couldn’t help the hot fury that started to overcome him.

Aphrodite sent him a knowing look, but right now, he didn’t care.

No wonder Percy didn’t want this to play out.

Fates knew, how Poseidon had reacted as calmly as he did.

Pure Fury radiated off the god of the sea in waves, slowly freezing the room and forcing every other god to remain tense, as if they had to jump into a battle any second. Even his brothers looked uncomfortable.

Hermes’ domain didn’t need to include the weather for him to know that storms were raging across the ocean, falling into the rage Poseidon didn’t allow himself to express in here.

It was honestly impressive he had reacted so calmly in front of Percy and the other halfbloods.

But it was clear why he did it.

The demigods had never seen his fury. More importantly, Percy had never seen his fury. The one that was worse than every storm and had caused Odysseus his ten agonizing years lost on sea.

And it was obvious by the way the god clenched his jaw, by the fury that didn’t escape his eyes that he intended on keeping it that way.

Not like Hermes could blame him for that.

A god’s anger was one of the most destructive forces of nature. Overwhelming for mortals. Even mortals like Percy Jackson.

“Fine,” I said. I dug a wad of dollars out of my pocket…”I wouldn’t act so snooty!”

Annabeth flinched as if she’s just been hit.” Percy, I didn’t know…if you have any problem with…?”

“It’s fine,” he said quickly and rubbed his thumb over her hand. “I love your nickname for me, wise girl.”

“Are you sure?” She looked at him as if expecting a lie.

“Pretty sure,” he gently took her face between his hands. “I promise. They are nothing like what Gabe used to call me, okay?”

“Okay,” she took a deep breath. “Okay. Sorry, I just… okay.”

I slummed the door to my room, which really wasn’t my room…the place smell like his nasty cologne and cigars and stale beer.

“Gods,” Katie felt like all air had been sucked out of her lung. Her chest felt tight.

Travis and Connor next to her, hadn’t spoken a word, since that man had appeared and just stared at the projection with their eyes wide open, as frozen as two statues.

Percy rarely talked about his life before camp, and when he did, he always talked about his mother, with sparkling eyes and a bright smile on his face.

So, she had always assumed his life had been pretty great, at least by demigod standards, even felt jealous, but this…

He might as well could have slapped her.

I dropped the suitcase on the bed. Home sweet home.

Leo sighed exhausted and ran a hand trough his hair.

When the apartment had first appeared, with it’s bear bottles, and half-eaten pizza boxes, and cigarette smoke so thick it could have been mistaken for mist, he had thought the projection had suddenly changed perspective, and the Fates had decided to show his childhood instead.

He’d been prepared to run to the nearest exit, before Percy had entered the room, eyes narrowed, and expression forcefully calm.

The relationship between Percy and that man had been painfully obvious to him, even before the first word that had been spoken.

“He would punch my lights out.”

Th admission had forced heavy stones to form in his stomach, and every new thought Percy had made them heavier, as if his body was filled with stones.

His eyes flickered to the beer cans, and dirt in Percy’s room.

Great, he thought bitterly. That wasn’t really what he had in mind, when he had searched for a way to relate to him.

If he were in Percy’s shoes, he was pretty sure he would have jumped down from Olympus already.

Screw the Fates.

Gabe’s smell was almost worse than the nightmares about Mrs. Dodds…maybe pounding its way up the stairs, growing long, horrible talons. Then I heard my mom’s voice. “Percy?”

Percy closed his eyes and let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding. His mother’s voice sometimes had an almost magic quality to it. It allowed him to relax, like the first gap of air, after almost drowning.

She opened the bedroom door and my fears melted.

Hera’s eyes softened up for the first time when Sally Jackson entered the room and she nodded at her almost imperceptibly.

My mother can make me feel good just by walking into the room…I’ve never heard her raise her voice or say an unkind word to anyone, not even Gabe.

Grover’s eyes almost bulged. “She married him to protect you,” his voice was barely above a whisper. “Gods, he hit her too, didn’t he?”

Percy clenched his jaw. “Yeah, he did.”

His hand moved in front of his gaping mouth. “I am so sorry., Percy, I…”

“It’s fine,” he said, and gently squeezed his friend’s shoulder. “I told you I’m over it. Me and mom both. We’ve moved on.”

“Oh, Percy.” She hugged me tight. “I can’t believe it. You’ve grown since Christmas.”

Percy sighed and glanced over to where Clarisse and Chris were sitting. He arched at eyebrow. “No mocking remarks. Really? Going soft on me, la rue?”

Clarisse sent him a half-hearted glare, but the words got stuck in her throat. Her hands were balled into fists.

Chris sent her a knowing look. “Percy said he’s already dead. Sadly, we can’t beat him up.”

“Who said I would want to,” she crossed her arms over her chest. “Prissy can deal with his own problems.”

Which didn’t mean she wouldn’t want to break that man’s jaw, but no one had to know about that.

Her red-white-and-blue Sweet on America uniform smelled like the best thing in the world…but secretly, I was really, really glad to see her.

Frank had glared at the projection since Gabe appeared, but now, he blinked, and his eyes were beginning to sting.

Hazel didn’t tear her widened eyes away from the projection, but she squeezed his arm. “You, okay?” she whispered.

“Yeah,” he swallowed. “Mrs. Jackson just… she reminds me a bit of my mum. It’s nothing, not compared to what Percy is going trough with…”,he trailed off.

She leaned her head against his shoulder. “Emily would have been really proud of you, you know. I know she would. You have every right to grieve her, even now.”

He nodded; throat tight. “Thanks.”

From the other room, Gabe yelled, “Hey, Sally- how about some bean dip, huh?”

Will gritted his teeth so hard they started to hurt. Throughout the time, he had known Percy, he had never shown one sign of what happened to him in his childhood.

Most of the time, a warm smile was plastered on his lips, an easy laugh coming from where he was sitting.

He was the kind of guy anyone at camp could go to if they had trouble, like everyone’s older brother. Finding out he’d been abused… Will felt sick.

I gritted my teeth…not some jerk like Gabe.

Annabeth stroke his hand with her thumb. “She’s happily married now,” she whispered.

“Yeah,” Percy smiled. “Paul’s great.”

“Even though he’s an English teacher?”, she looked up at him with a faint smile.

He wrinkled his nose. “Nobody’s perfect, I guess.”

For her sake, I tried to sound upbeat about my last days at Yancy Academy…Even Nancy Bobofit suddenly didn’t seem so bad.”

Grover had been silent since the revelation, but now he almost managed to snort. “How did you manage that?” he asked.

Percy shrugged. “I didn’t really mention Nancy much. Mostly, I talked about you and Chiron.”

“Oh,” he leaned his head against Percy’s shoulder. “Thanks.”

Until that trip to the museum…but I thought it would sound stupid.

“Yeah, it really doesn’t make sense from your point of view,” Frank said and sighed. “I probably wouldn’t have mentioned anything either.”

Not to mention that Chiron had done his best to make Percy think, he had imagined the whole story, he thought sadly.

She pursed her lips. She knew I was holding something back, but she didn’t push me…”My eyes widened. “Montauk?”

Percy smiled sadly at the memory, while Annabeth shuddered.

“I’m definitely never going there,” she whispered, and he nodded.

“Yeah, there are way too many spiders for you. We can go somewhere else if you want to. I’d say we deserve a break.”

“I’d say Greece, but… maybe we wait a few years.”

“Yeah,” he agreed,” I’m right now not the biggest fan of that place. Maybe Egypt though. You always say you want to see the Pyramids and temples.”

“Yeah,” her face lit up for the first time since Gabe had entered the projection. Architecture had always been her escape when she didn’t know how to deal with reality. Getting lost in her books for a time allowed her to forget everything around her and remain in blissful ignorance. “We could plan a visit with Sadie and Carter.”

“Zia and Walt too,” he grinned. “Who could be a better guide than the literal pharaoh?”

She slapped his shoulder playfully. “Will you finally stop teasing him about that? You know he feels awkward about having that title.”

“Maybe,” he shrugged. “But it’s hard to resist sometimes.”

Annabeth smiled faintly, then she leaned her head against his shoulder. “How can you be the one to cheer me up right now? That should be my job.”

“I guess I had more time processing the fact that I lived together with a douchebag like Gabe. You just found out.”

“Three nights – same cabin…because Gabe said there wasn’t enough money.

Nico’s eyes were so dark, they resembled onyxes, not unlike his father and his mouth transformed into a scowl.

He thought about the first time he had met Mrs. Jackson on Percy’s 15^th birthday. Her welcoming smile, the scent of freshly baked cake that had surrounded them like a cloud, and the warmth that had spread throughout his entire body. It was the first time he had felt warm in months.

Percy’s grin that evening flashed trough his mind, hairs ruffled as if by a strong breeze, and sea green eyes sparkling.

That both of them ever had to live together with a guy like this…

“That guy makes me sick,” he said coldly.

Will nodded his head, while digging his fingers into their couch. For a medic, he looked like the Hippocratic oath meant pretty little to him right now.

Gabe appeared in the doorway and growled…Then we would get out of here.

Jason felt like he’d just been punched. For all of Percy’s obvious anger and resentment at the man, there was a tenseness in his body, fear in his eyes.

He wondered what Gabe had all done to him, to create a reaction like this.

“I was on my way, honey…”I knew it”, I muttered. “He won’t let us go.”

“Gods, he better does,” Rachel said, and scowled at the projection.

She felt like an absolute jerk.

How often had she complained to Percy about her own parents? Sure, they were absent, and cold, and fake, but at least she didn’t have to live with this piece of rotting human garbage.

“Of course, he will,” my mom said evenly….it comes out of your clothes budget, right?”

“Clothes budget? “Aphrodite wrinkled her nose. “Us, I can’t wait for him to die.”

“You should get your priorities in check, “Artemis said coldly. “He did far worse things to her than restricting her clothes.”

“To both of them,” Hermes said darkly.

Aphrodite’s expression hardened. “Someone betraying their spouse by abuse is against my very being, my very core.. Don’t think that alone isn’t a reason I would want him dead.”

“Yes, honey,” my mother said…And make you sing soprano for a week.

“I would love to do way more than kick him,” Piper muttered and sent a glare at the projection.

“You’re not the only one,” Jason said.

But my mom’s eyes warned me not to make him mad…I’m really sorry I interrupted your incredibly important poker game. Please go back to it right now.”

Under different circ*mstances, Reyna might have laughed.

Currently, she had a hard time maintaining even a neutral expression with her lips tightly pressed together into a thin line.

Gabe’s eyes narrowed…He went back to his game.

“Wow,” Leo raised an eyebrow and looked at Percy. “That guy is pretty stupid, isn’t he?”

Percy shook his head. “You have no idea. I’m impressed he managed to survive for so long. Pretty sure his IQ is, like, below fifty or something like that.”

“Thank you, Percy”, my mom said…whatever you forgot to tell me, okay.”

“Yeah, no way you manage to keep something that big from Sally. She’s way too perceptive for things like that,” Annabeth said.

“So, he got that from Sally, huh?”, Thalia leaned closer to her with a faint smile. “Figures.”

For a moment, I thought I saw anxiety in her eyes…She ruffled my hair and went to make Gabe his seven-layer dip.

Grover sighed. “That was like the perfect opportunity to tell her,” he muttered.

“And how do you imagine me starting this conversation?” Percy asked and raised an eyebrow at his friend. “Hi, mom, my year was pretty normal, except for that one time my math teacher turned into a demon and attacked me on our last fieldtrip. But don’t worry I managed to kill her with a pen my latin teacher gave me.”

“That’s fair”, Frank nodded. “It sounds crazy when you don’t know anything about this world.”

“I guess”, Grover sighed. “But it would have made things way easier for us.”

“Probably,” Percy rubbed his arm. “I shouldn’t have left you, Grover.”

“It’s fine. I did kind of act like a psycho.”

A smile started to play around his lips. “Kind of...?”

“Shut up.”

An hour later we were ready to leave…”Not one little scratch.”

“As if that would be your fault, „Travis’ forehead creased in annoyance.

“Don’t question Gabe’s logic, if you can even call it that” Percy shrugged. “It will only give you headaches. Trust me.”

Like I’d be the one driving. I was twelve…he’d find a way to blame me.

Leo winced.

They always did. One of the first rules he had learned the first time he arrived at one of the bad foster homes. No matter how wrong they were, don’t disagree, simply apologize or shut your mouth altogether.

Sadly, Leo wasn’t particularly good at either and, he assumed, neither was Percy.

Watching him lumber back toward the apartment building…flying up the staircase as if he’d been shot from a cannon.

Hazel managed to crack a smile. “Good one, Percy. I didn’t know you once used magic like this.”

“That was magic?” he asked.

“A form of nature magic,” Hekate explained. “Every demigod is able to perform it to a certain degree, but few have the ability or desire to cultivate it, like my children, or like Hazel did. But I have to admit, It’s impressive that you did it unintentionally, even if anger is often helpful in creating such reactions.”

Maybe it was the wind…told my mom to step on it.

“That’s at least something,” Ares said.

“Careful there,” a teasing smile tugged on Apollo’s lips. “Sounds almost like you’re agreeing with Percy Jackson.”

Ares face shifted into a glare.

Our rental cabin was on the south shore, way out at the tip of Long island…the sea was too cold to swim in.

“Too cold?”, Frank stared at him. “What do you mean too cold? You swam in Alaska.”

“Oh, I didn’t swim at Montauk. Mom told me it was too cold. At that point, I haven’t really swum anywhere. Except that one time at the shark pool.”

“You haven’t?”

Percy shrugged. “Mom made sure I wouldn’t go near water. I mean, I guess it would have been a pretty weird swimming lesson, if one of the kids could suddenly breathe underwater. And swimming lessons are kind of expensive.”

I loved the place.

We’ve been going there since I was a baby…Her eyes turned the color of the sea.

Annabeth smiled. “Your eyes change color too, you know.”

“What?”

“Whenever you control water, your eyes become the color of whatever it is you’re controlling.”

“Really?” Percy looked stunned.

She grinned up at him. “It’s actually pretty cool. They’re greener in the ocean, brownish in the Hudson and other rivers, and kind of turquoise when you control your blue co*ke. They were violet when-“her face became ashen. She averted her eyes. “When, you know…”

It felt like an icy hand grabbed his heart and stopped all circulation. He swallowed. “I’m sorry.”

With a shuddered breath she leaned her head against his shoulder.

“Don’t be,” she grabbed his hand again. “Most of the times, your eyes are beautiful. I shouldn’t have mentioned Tar-,” her voice broke. “The pit.”

We got there at sunset, opened all the cabin’s windows…I guess I should explain the blue food.

“I did wonder about that,” Piper admitted. “It’s a pretty weird habit to have.”

See, Gabe had once told my mom there was no such thing…. she wasn’t totally suckered by Gabe.

“Okay,” a smile tugged on the corners of Will’s lips. “That’s a pretty awesome origin story. I approve.”

She did have a rebellious streak like me.

“Rebellious streak?” Frank asked with a raised eyebrow. “To say you have a rebellious streak is like saying Hazel is okay at magic. “You’re like rebellious incarnate.”

When it got dark, we made a fire…she wanted to write someday, when she had enough money to quit the candy shop.

Percy smiled softly and leaned back against the cushion. He probably would never forget the first time his mom had seen her book in her favourite bookstore.

It had a gleaming, beautiful hardcover, wine red with golden flower ornaments, all around.

Her blue eyes had sparkled, and a deep blush had crept onto her face. The picture he had made that day, of her holding it, was still framed on his desk in his room.

His mom hadn’t lost her smile for the rest of the day.

“Mission achieved,” he whispered proudly.

Eventually, I got up the nerve to ask about what was always on my mind whenever we came to Montauk – my father.

Percy almost choked on his co*ke. Dread formed in his stomach, as he stared at him and his mom.

“Oh, oh gods, no. Why?”

Will winced and laid a hand on his shoulder in silent support, while Annabeth squeezed his hand.

Mom’s eyes went all misty….”I wish he could see you, Percy. He would be so proud…What was so great about me…kicked out of school for the sixth time in six years.

“Hey,” Annabeth squeezed his hand. “There’s plenty to be proud of about you. Even before camp.”

He grimaced. “Six school in six years, and never above a D+,” he repeated. “Don’t kid yourself. I was every parent’s nightmare.”

Annabeth frowned and Rachel shrugged. “Eh, could have been worse. At least you didn’t torture animals, or something like that. That would have been a real nightmare for Sally.”

“You’re right”, Percy facepalmed. “I’m a total screw up, but at least I didn’t become a serial killer. Thanks Rachel.”

“Not a total screw-up,” Grover noted pointedly.

“How old was I?” I asked. “I mean… when he left…something about my father. A warm glow. A smile.

Zeus furrowed his eyebrows, as Percy’s face heated up. “You visited him?”

“You want to tell me you never visited your children?” Poseidon asked. “It was just once.”

I had always assumed he knew me as a baby…and now we were stuck with Smelly Gabe.

Percy slapped his forehead with his hand. “Maybe we’re just here for my suffering,” he muttered. “Maybe the Fates just hate me. Like on a personal level. There’s probably no point to this at all.”

A smile tugged on Grover’s lips, and he gave him a side-hug. “Don’t worry. Soon, we’ll be on our quest, and we just have to watch us almost die.”

“It’s sad, but that does sound better than everything that happened over the last couple minutes,” Percy muttered.

At least the projection didn’t stop. Hecate seemed to have at least some pity on him. He’d have to offer her a sacrifice at the next dinner. Or Iris. Or both.

If he didn’t die from embarrassment before that, that is.

Are you going to send me away again?” I asked her….I think we’ll have to do something.”

”Because you don’t want me around.”

“Percy,” Nico hissed.

“I know, I know,” Percy sighed. “Mom doesn’t deserve me saying stuff like that.”

“But it is understandable you thought that way,” Reyna said. “You didn’t know you were in danger. In your eyes, your mom went to extraordinary lengths just to send you away every year, while choosing to stay with that… man.”

She wrinkled her nose at the word “man” and Percy was pretty sure she wanted to call him something else.

“Still, I shouldn’t have said anything,” Percy insisted. “Mom had it hard enough as it was.”

I regretted the words as soon as they were out. My mom’s eyes welled with tears…” Because I’m not normal,” I said.

Annabeth gently lied her hand over his shoulder and gave him a side-hug. “None of us here are normal, Percy,” she whispered. “That’s not a bad thing.”

“You sound like mum.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

He shook his head and sent her a warm smile. “It’s the biggest compliment I can give. Thank you.”

“Well,” she leaned her head on his shoulder. “It’s the truth. You’re not normal in the best possible way, Seaweed brain.”

“You say that as if it’s a bad thing, Percy…”Safe from what?”

“We can still create the list if you want to,” Leo said innocently.

“Don’t bother,” Percy replied drily. “Sooner or later, you’ll see every monster that ever tried to kill me. I don’t think an extra list is necessary.”

She met my eyes, and a bunch of memories came back to me…During third grade, a man in a black trench coat had stalked me on the playground…one eye, right in the middle of his head.

“You sent a cyclops to watch him?” Amphitrite arched an eyebrow and looked at her husband.

His eyes were focused on his son, and next to the rage he had felt, there was a sadness that she rarely saw in him otherwise.

She slightly tilted her head and studied him.

Her husbands love for Perseus Jackson remained a mystery to her. The boy was special, that much was obvious, and she herself felt gratitude for his role in the wars, but it was rare that Poseidon felt that way towards one of his children, especially his mortal children.

Perhaps this experience would make clear what he saw in his son.

“From time to time,” he said slowly. “I had to make sure they don’t notice his existence. They were just there to observe him, nothing else.”

Before that – a really early memory. I was in preschool…playing with a limp, scaly rope I’d somehow managed to strangle to death with my meaty toddler hands.

Leo whistled impressed. “You really just pulled a Hercules, huh?”

Percy wrinkled his noise. “I’m simply going to ignore you just said that.”

In every single school, something creepy had happened, something unsafe, and I was forced to move.

“Since first class?” Piper asked softly with an arched eyebrow.

It was still strange to her that some demigods had to struggle with monsters since the ages of 6 or 7, when the first time she and Leo had encountered one was at the Grand Canyon.

“Every year,” Percy said. “You really didn’t until you met Jason?”

“Nope,” Leo chimed in. “The only mythological being I ever met was Hera and Mrs. Mud-face until Jason got dropped on us. From the age of 12 to 16 there was nothing. Guess it was the same for you pipes?”

She nodded.

“Weird,” Percy said. “Though I guess, I do prefer Mrs. Dodds to Gaia.”

“And to Hera,” Annabeth muttered, causing his mouth to twitch.

I knew I should tell my mom about the old ladies at the fruit stand…I had a strange feeling the news would end our trip to Montauk, and I didn’t want that.

Grover groaned into his blanket. “I know this isn’t really your fault, but this is torture. Just plain torture. You and Sally are killing me, man.”

“I’ve tried to keep you as close to me as I could,”… “Not a school,” she said softly. “A summer camp.”…And if it was so important, why hadn’t she ever mentioned it before.

“Yeah,” Chris said with a sigh. “It makes absolutely zero sense, if you’re only familiar with the mortal world.”

“I’m sorry, Percy”, she said…It might mean saying goodbye to you for good.”

“For good?” Frank looked confused.

“Sally knew who Percy was,” Annabeth explained. “Most of the time, monsters find children of the big three very easily and it’s too dangerous for them to be out in the real world.” She sighed. “Normally, at least.”

“Of course, those three never really cared about that,” Will sighed fondly and gestured at Percy, Nico and Thalia. “None of them stay at camp year long.”

“I might”, Nico said. “I have over the last couple months and it’s not like I have another place to stay.”

“And I’m a huntress,” Thalia said. “My place is with the hunt. The only person that description still matches is Percy.”

“Sorry I have a life outside of killing monsters,” he said drily. “Besides, there weren’t that many attacks recently. Maybe once every two weeks. I can deal with that.”

For good? But if it’s only a summer camp…if I asked her any more questions she would start to cry.

Rachel smiled.

If Percy paid attention, he could be pretty sensitive to the emotions of others, even if he could be clumsy with his words.

She didn’t know how many times he had cheered her up after an argument with her father, or how often he had made her laugh on one of her bad days. To her, Percy often seemed like the one fresh splatch of color in an otherwise grey painting.

That night I had a vivid dream.

The projection transformed the temple into a storming beach.

Hazel’s eyebrows furrowed. “What’s this?”

“A dream,” Percy said slowly, and looked around the room.“So, those are shown as well, huh?”

“Apparently,” Intrigued, Hebe leaned forward. “Hypnos would love to see this. He always had a fascination for demigod dreams. I’m going to have to tell him about this.”

Percy sighed. “Great.”

It was storming on a beach, and two beautiful animals, a white horse and a golden eagle, were trying to kill each other…. A monstrous voice chuckled somewhere beneath the earth, goading the animals to fight harder.

Kronos laugh flooded the room, forcing most people to pale. Zeus eye twitched, his father’s grip around his throne tightened, and Demeter lips were pressed into a thin line.

Only Hades’ face remained neutral, probably because he was the only one who had met Kronos during the second titan war.

His siblings probably hadn’t heard his voice since the first Titanomachy and this might be the first time the other gods did.

Jason’s eyes went wide. “Whas that…?”

“Father”, Hera’s voice shook slightly. “The Titan lord.”

Poseidon’s eyebrows drew together, and he looked at Percy. “You had dreams of him even before you got to camp?”

“Yeah,” Percy said. “But it took a while for me to realize that it was him.” He winced and looked at Hades. “Maybe this is a good time to mention that I thought it was you for a while. I’m sorry for that.”

“Since the alternative was father, I suppose I can’t blame you for that,” Hades said, though he looked annoyed.

I ran towards them, knowing I had to stop them…I heard a distant bellow, an angry, tortured sound that made my hair stand on end.

The bellowing was as loud as thunder and forced most demigods to flinch.

“What was that?” Piper asked.

“Gods, ”Chris’ eyes widened, and he looked at Percy. “It’s him, isn’t it?”

Percy nodded with a slight grimace. “It’s definitely him.”

“Oh, I was actually looking forward to this,” Travis face lit up.

Jason furrowed his eyebrows. “You want to fill us in to what exactly it is?”

“You’ll see”, Katie grinned. “It used to be one of the biggest mysteries in camp how Percy managed to defeat it. At least, before we all actually saw him in action, of course. I can’t believe we#ll finally find out what happens.”

“It really wasn’t that impressive,” Percy muttered. “I got lucky.”

Then a much closer noise, like mallets in the sand…But he wasn’t… he wasn’t exactly Grover.

“Grover,” Thalia half laughed, half scolded, as projection-Percy gaped at his exposed legs. “Poor Percy.”

” There were other things to worry about!” he defended himself. “I didn’t think it was that big of a deal. At least, in comparison.”

“Searching all night”, he gasped….”Oh Zeu kai alloi theoi!” he yelled. “It’s right behind me! Didn’t you tell her?”

“Right behind you?”, Connor looked at them and his brows drew together. “But you did fight him right in front of camp, right? How did you manage to evade him until then?”

Percy shrugged. “Mom broke probably every speed limit between Montauk and Camp. No idea how she managed to get us there without causing an accident, if I’m being honest.”

“Especially with that rain,” Grover noted.

I was too shocked to register that he’d just cursed in Ancient Greek…and my mom stared at me, her face deathly pale in the flashes of lightning.

Percy winced.

Back then he had been too confused to think much about what his mom had been going trough, but this had been one of her worst nightmares come true.

She grabbed her purse, tossed me my rain jacket…where his feet should be, there were no feet. There were cloven hooves.

The projection vanished.

But instead of creating immediately a new one, Iris and Hecate hesitated, and then completely lowered their hands when Hestia spoke up.

“Percy, are you sure you don’t want a break,” her voice was soft. “That was… a lot. I’m sure things were revealed, you never wanted to be revealed. It would be completely understandable, if…”

“No, I’m fine,” Percy said with certainty. “I just want to get this whole thing over with as quickly as possible, if I’m being honest.”

“No,” Thalia suddenly stood up and pointed at him. “We need to talk. The two of us. Right now.”

“Thalia, I don’t think-“

“Just for five minutes,” she cut him off. “You won’t have to talk. But there are a couple of things I need to tell you.”

“Can’t that wait?”

She raised an eyebrow challengingly. “We can do it outside, where it’s just the two of us, or I can talk about it here. Your decision.”

She looked At Hestia. “That would be alright, correct?”

“Of course,” the goddess nodded.

She crossed her arms stubbornly, not budging and looked at him.

He rolled his eyes. “Sometimes I really hate you, do you know that?”

Nevertheless, he followed her outside, when she left the room.

Thalia kept walking away from the main hall, along a wide corridor without speaking one word. Her steps were quick, and decisive, her posture tense, and sparks of anger were flashing through her blue eyes like lightning during a storm.

Then, finally, when she was sure no one could hear them, she stopped, leaned against the wall and looked at him. The shadow of a man playing the lute flickered over the stone wall next to her for a second, before disappearing.

She took a deep breath, as if to brace herself.

“Beryl Grace sucked,” she finally said.

Okay, those were the last words he had ever thought he would hear. What the hades was he supposed to say to that? He furrowed his eyebrows. “I’m sorry?”

She sighed and played absentmindedly with the sleeves of her black leather jacket. “After Zeus left her for the first time, she tried everything to get his attention again. She dressed up in more expensive clothes, wore more make-up, even tried to make him jealous,” she grimaced. “But she also started to resent him, and me by default too.”

“Thalia, you don’t have to tell me-”

She held up a hand to shut him up. “Unlike what Gabe did to you, she never physically hurt me. So, I can’t pretend to know what that is like. But she said certain… stuff to me. Stuff no child should ever here. Not from their parent. But I was young, she was the only adult around and I started to believe her for was while.”

His stomach churned, and he clenched his hands, but remained silent. Thalia hated talking about Baryl Grace, and now, the words fell quickly from her lips, like raindrops during a storm, as if she wanted to get them out as quickly as possible, and was afraid she wouldn’t be able, should he interrupt her.

“Then, she got pregnant with Jason. He was this little, annoying bundle, who always either cried or laughed and kept us awake all night. He was perfect, but it didn’t take long for Baryl to hate him in the same way she hated me.”

Her expression grew darker. “I didn’t understand that. Jason wasn’t even a year old, and so completely innocent, full of joy and wonder. Nothing was wrong with him; I could see that. I was sure of it. So, I realized, that there had to be something wrong with het instead.”

She looked up at him, her gaze firm. “You didn’t have a Jason. You had Sally, but… you didn’t have a Jason. I know it’s not the same, but you know that nothing he ever said to you was true, right?”

“The guy is full of crap, I’m aware of that.”

“I’m not sure you are,” she folded her arms in front of her chest and studied him. “You’re not stupid, you know. Not one bit. Or a waste of space and time, or whatever else he ever said to you. He would have said the same stuff to me, or Grover, or Annabeth, or any of the others. And you definitely did not deserve to be hit or work for him like this.”

“No kid deserves that,” Percy said. “I wasn’t around him for much. Only on the holidays. I know it sounds bad, but I lived, and I’m over it.”

“I don’t think it’s that easy to get over it,” Thalia said, then shrugged. “But it’s not my place to force you to talk about it. I just need you to realize that I understand parts of what you went trough. That’s all.”

They stood there in silence for a while, Percy still unsure of what to say, hundreds of thoughts swirled in his mind, which was still busy with processing what Thalia had said.

“Grover, and Annabeth were as surprised as I was,” she finally noted. “ Maybe even more. You never mentioned it?”

“I didn’t tell anyone,” Percy said.

“Any particular reason?”

“Never found the right opportunity. And before that , it was part of the deal I had with Gabe. I thought if I didn’t, he wouldn’t hurt…”, he stopped and exhaled. “It’s not like it matters anymore. And he’s dead anyway.”

“That was pretty selfless,” Thalia noted.

“It was stupid,” Percy crossed his arms. “I mean, I was only there at the holidays. There was no reason to think he wouldn’t…Whatever,” he shook his head.

Then, after a few seconds had passed, he glanced at her. “You would have really said all of that in front of everyone if I wouldn’t have gone outside.”

She scoffed. “Of course not. There was no way in hades you would have wanted to talk in there.”

A smile tugged on the corners of his mouth. “Fair enough. Thanks Thalia.”

“Don’t mention it,” she sighed. “Now that that’s done, we should probably head back. You were right. The sooner this thing is done, the better.”

The next scene started as soon as they returned.

Chapter 7: My Mother Teaches Me Bullfighting

Chapter Text

No one questioned Percy as he sat down again between Annabeth and Grover, few even glanced at him.

There seemed to have been a silent understanding between his friends to not bring up what had happened with Gabe any further.

He felt like a heavy weight was lifted off his chest, and his tense muscles started to relax again.

The next picture formed.

We tore trough the night…but she kept her foot on the gas.

“You weren’t kidding when you said your mom broke the speed limit,” Chris said and squinted trough the rain, that was pouring from pitch black clouds on the ceiling. “Gods, how was she even able to see anything trough all of this?”

“I doubt she did,” Reyna said. “Mrs. Jackson probably ran on pure adrenaline.”

Every time there was a flash of lightning…wearing some kind of shag-carpet pants.

Travis snorted. “Shag-carpet pants. I have to remember that one.”

“Shut up, Travis,” Grover grumbled, ears red.

But, no, the smell was one I remembered…The smell of a wet barnyard animal.

Grover’s mouth fell open. “Barnyard animal? Really?”

Percy did his best to hold back his laugh. “I’m really sorry.”

His friend folded his arms over his chest. “You know, despite the fact we’re best friends, you have nothing but insulted me in your descriptions.”

“Only when it comes to your appearance,” Thalia pointed out innocently. “He hasn’t said anything bad about your personality.”

Grover huffed and glared at her.

All I could think to say was, “So you and my mom… know each other?”

Percy turned his head to look at Grover. “How long had she known about you at that point?”

“I informed her at the same time as I contacted Chiron. Around three weeks after we met,” Grover said, and grimaced. “Sally was actually pretty conflicted about it. She was obviously happy that we watched over you and that you wouldn’t be alone, should a monster attack, but she also knew that that meant you’d go to camp rather sooner than later. She was terrified of what would happen once you did.”

He sighed. “Not like I can blame her for that.”

Grover’s eyes flitted to the rear-view mirror…”Watching me?”

Travis winced. “Man, that’s a weird way of phrasing it, Grover. Sounds really creepy.”

“Totally stalker-like,” his brother agreed.

“Keeping tabs on you. Making sure you were okay…”I am your friend.”

“I never doubted that”, Percy said and squeezed the satyr’s shoulder. A smile started to tug on his lips. “Even when I found out you stalked me.”

Grover hit his head with a pillow, and Conner let out a snort.

“Um…what are you exactly…From the waist down, my best friend is a donkey-“

Katie grimaced. “Bad move, Percy.”

She vividly remembered one time, when Alex, one of her half-siblings, who has always been a little too loud, and often talked without thinking, had once teased a pair of satyrs by calling them the names of various animals over the course of a week.

They had told them time and time again to stop, that it was highly disrespectful, but Alex had been young, and never been particularly good at shutting up.

One night, when push came to shove, the satyrs had acquired the help of various dryads and the entire Demeter cabin had been overwhelmed by hundreds of beetles, spiders, and butterflies.

Needless to say, the next day Alex had profoundly apologized, and made an oath to never repeat their behaviour.

“Grover let out a sharp, throaty “Blaa-ha-ha!”-I’m a goat from the waist down.”

“Well, it was pretty dark,” Rachel pointed out. “And Percy was completely overwhelmed. You can’t really blame him for that.”

“Still,” Grover folded his arms in front of his chest,” why a donkey of all things?”

Thalia seized him up with an amused smirk. “I can see it.”

“Ha-ha.”

“You just said it didn’t matter.”

“Blaa-ha-ha! There are satyrs who would trample you underhoof for such an insult!”

“Hedge, for example,” Clarisse said with a grin. “You’d already be six feet under if he would hear this.”

“You’re going to tell him, aren’t you?”

She smirked. “Probably.”

“Whoa. Wait. Satyrs…Was Mrs. Dodds a myth?”

“You’re dumping a lot of stuff on him, you know,” Hazel murmured softly and sent projection-Percy a sympathetic look. “This is hardly the right place.”

“Yeah,” Grover sighed. “But I was in a panic, and we owed him at least a few answers.”

“It was fine,” Percy said with a wave of his hand. “You and mom had by far more important stuff to worry about.”

“So you admit there was a Mrs. Dodds!”

“It must have been a relief to finally get closure on that,” Piper said. “To know that you weren’t going crazy, I mean.”

Percy sighed. “In the moment, yeah. Though for a while, I think I would have preferred going crazy over everything that happened.”

“Of course.” “Then why…But it was no good. You started to realize who you are.”

Percy snorted. “For the record, I did not realize who I was.”

“You kind of did,” Grover said.

“There is a big step between my math teacher turning into a demon, and me thinking, that I’m a demigod. My first thought was that I belong into a rubber cell.”

“We couldn’t take any risks,” Grover shook his head. “And you were already attacked by a fury. The fact that you were even alive at 12 is kind of a miracle.”

“Thanks to mom,” Percy said.

“Thanks to Sally,” Grover agreed.

“Who I – wait a minute, what do you mean.”

“Valid reaction, Percy,” Chris said and winced. Compared to how Percy got to camp, his own journey had been a piece of cake.

He hadn’t even encountered any monster, and the strangest thing he had seen was Ash, the satyr, who had found him.

If Luke wouldn’t have taken him into the woods on his first few days and shown him one of the monsters who lived there, a small dragon-like creature with scales the color of rubies, he probably wouldn’t have believed that they really existed.

Accepting the reality of satyrs, centaurs and even Gods was one thing, but the thought that there were actual monsters out there, who wanted nothing more than to rip him to shreds, had been something else entirely and had sent shivers down his spine for weeks.

He sighed. Though there was no question that his ignorance had been a blessing in comparison to what Percy had apparently been going trough.

The weird bellowing noise rose up again-“Safety from what? Who’s after me?”

Artemis drew her eyebrows together. She lowered her gaze and tried to listen more intently. The roar rose up again, and her eyes widened.

“Oh,” she said softly.

Apollo, who sat next to her, sent her a glance. “You know which monster it is?”, he guessed.

“Of course, I do,” she leaned forward in curiosity and her silver-grey eyes flickered over to where Poseidon was sitting. The god’s face was twisted by a mixture of worry and anger. If the beast was what she thought it was, she couldn’t blame him for that reaction. “At the very least, this ought to be an interesting encounter. Especially since they both survived.”

“Oh, nobody much,” Grover said…a few of his blood-thirstiest minions.”

Grover groaned and leaned his head against the cushion. “Why didn’t I just keep my mouth shut?”

“You were panicking,” Percy said and shook his head fondly. “We were being chased, it’s only natural to freak out. Relax.”

“Grover!” “Sorry, Mrs. Jackson…I could never dream up something this weird.

Percy facepalmed.

“Yeah, right,” he said. “I can’t remember the last time I actually had a normal dream. It’s either demigod dreams or nightmares.”

“Technically, you don’t dream those up,” Hebe said and tilted her head in thought. “Demigod dreams are quite different then normal dreams. They are not a fraction of your imagination, no fantasy your brains stitches together. It depends on every dream, but they are mostly some kind of vision of what is actually happening.”

Rhode arched an eyebrow. “Since when are you interested in dreams?”

She shrugged. “It’s unavoidable if you spent any time with Hypnos.”

My mom made a hard left…”Where are we going?” I asked.

“Home,” Annabeth smiled and leaned her head against Percy’s shoulder.

“Home,” he agreed softly.

“The summer camp I told you about…This is hard enough. Try to understand. You’re in danger.”

Sally’s face was ashen. When she looked at Percy, her eyes were blown open wide, and when she spoke, her voice shook.

Percy grimaced.

Back then, he had been too confused and scared to notice, but looking at his mom now, her lips quivering, her face pale and her hands clutching the wheel so tightly her knuckles had become white, it became more than obvious how terrified she had truly been.

He had never really seen her afraid before that. Normally she always kept a warm smile on her face, a façade of bravery, even around Gabe. Especially around Gabe.

His hand twitched.

Even today he wondered how he had managed to delude himself into believing Gabe had been only to him physical abusive. It had probably just been wishful thinking, but he cursed himself for not noticing earlier.

“Because some old ladies cut yarn…They only do that when you’re about to… when someone’s about to die.”

Travis winced. “Dude, you just dropped the D-word.”

“And totally implied that Percy will die,” Grover finished and ran a hand over his face. “I should have handled all of that way better.”

Annabeth sighed and leaned over Percy to nudge his side. “It was an extreme situation. I doubt anyone else would have done a better job under these circ*mstances. Not at this age, at least.”

“Whoa. You said ‘you.’”…a dark fluttering shape now lost behind us in the storm.

Hazel’s eyes widened. “Whatever it is, that thing is huge.”

“Too huge,” Frank said and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “What do you think it is?”

“Could be a hundred different things,” Hazel said, a worried frown forming on her face. “And every option is worse than the last.”

“What was that?” I asked…” Another mile. Please. Please. Please.”

Percy sighed. “She had to have been terrified.”

“For you,” Annabeth murmured. “Gods, I know she prepared for this, but I still don’t know how she remained so collected with him chasing you.”

I didn’t know where there was, but I found myself leaning forward in the car…She really hadn’t been human. She’d meant to kill me.

Annabeth rubbed his hand. “The realization always seems unreal. I still remember when I overheard Dad and Catherine talk about me.”

It wasn’t a memory she liked to think about.

No star had illuminated the night sky, and only the pale shine of the moon had served as a light source and painted quickly moving shadows on her bedroom wall.

Behind every rustling of leaves she had heard the crawling of spiders, behind every breeze of wind, the growling of nearby monsters.

A shudder still went down her spine when she thought about all the nights spent alone in that room.

She had pressed her stuffed owl closer to her chest, and tightly shut her eyes, desperately clinging to the hope that if she just ignored the spiders, they’d go away.

When the first one, a black-haired animal, bigger than her hand, had entered her bedroom, she had squeaked, sneaked out of her bed, and slowly descended their stairs, carefully evading the creaks in the wooden floor.

She had fiddled with the sleeves of her pajama, conflicted if it was okay to seek out her father’s help or not.

Frederick Chase had more patience than his wife when it had come to her nightly spider attacks, but even back then she had noticed the confused frown, whenever he had gone to her room and every spider had disappeared, or the exhaustion, that swirled in his eyes whenever he had looked at her.

Annabeth had hesitated. She hadn’t wanted to annoy her father again.

Then, before she had been able to decide what to do, her dad had suddenly spoken up in the kitchen. “I do not want to sent her to that camp!”

She had frozen in her steps, breath hitching.

“What else should we do with her?” Catherine had asked. “I mean, what was that thing today at the playground?”

Curiosity had won over shook and Annabeth had inched closer to the door.

Her father had sounded tired. “I don’t know. I mean, Athena warned that this might happen, but I didn’t think while she was still so young.”

Annabeth had imagined, that he had run a hand over his hair, the way he always did when he didn’t know what to do.

“What about Mathhew and Bobby? What If they get hurt?” Catherine had sounded agitated.

I don’t know,” her father had sighed defeated.

“You don’t know?” Catherine had repeated. “What if they get injured when Annabeth gets attacked? What if Annabeth gets killed during an attack. What then?”

“What do you expect me to do?” their voices had risen, not quite shouting, but too loud to count as a calm conversation.

There had been a short silence. “That place, that camp, if there are other children like her, it might be better suited for her. It might keep her alive, all three of them.”

“You want me to send my 7-year-old daughter away to live with people I don’t even know?”

“What other choice is there?”

A tear had run down Annabeth’s cheek, and she had pressed a hand in front of her mouth to stop any sound from coming out.

Her dad would send her away. The sentence had repeated over and over again in her head and she had stepped away from the door as if it was made of fire.

Annabeth had run up the stairs again, not caring anymore if she made a sound or not, and locked herself in the bedroom, head hidden in her arms, and sobs shaking her tiny body.

That had been the first time she had seriously considered running away.

Percy laid his arm around her shoulder, and teared her out of the memories. “But at least we’ve got each other now, right?”

He sent her a lopsided grin and she couldn’t help but smile, warmth filling her body. “Yeah, at least we’ve got each other.”

Then I thought about Mr. Brunner…and the sword he had thrown at me….a blinding flash, a jaw-rattling boom!, and our car exploded.

Percy had to close his eyes when the lightning struck and illuminated the room in a short, white light.

The burning heat, he had felt back then, filled the room once again and he held his hand up to protect his face.

Weird.

“Lightning?”, he heard Demeter ask reproachfully. “Did you even know who Percy was at this point?”

“Hades sent a fury after him,” Zeus answered. “I had my suspicions.”

“Lightning?” Poseidon spat out and glared at Zeus and Hades. “Have either of you ever noticed that I never tried to kill any of your children without reason?”

“Without reason?” Zeus glared back. “If your trident would have been stolen, and suddenly one of my children would have shown up, you would have wanted them dead the same as I did. Don’t even try to deny it.”

“But then you would have complained about direct involvement,” Poseidon’s voice was cold. “Correct me if I’m wrong, brother, but I am quite sure that throwing a lightning bolt at a demigod does count as direct involvement.”

I remember feeling weightless…the back of the driver seat and said, ”Ow.”

“Ow,” a blinding pain burst trough his head, and Percy’s hand shot up from Annabeth shoulder to his head.

“Are you okay?”, Annabeth’s brows drew together, and her eyes wandered over his face, looking for any kind of injury. Without success.

As soon as the pain had appeared, it had vanished again.

“I guess?”, he lowered his arm again. “It was nothing. I haven’t slept much recently, was probably just a headache.”

“Percy!” my mom shouted…Lightning. That was the only explanation.

Thalia crossed her arms over her chest, her lips transformed into a thin line.

It was plain to see that her father didn’t like Percy and Annabeth had told her about the whole mess with the lightning bolt, but she had never mentioned the fact, that her father had directly tried to kill him, even before he had arrived of camp.

Perhaps Annabeth hadn’t even known.

Her stomach churned.

Percy was only a few feet away from where she had died. Chased by a monster like she had been.

Had her death meant so little to her father, that he had no remorse doing almost the exact same thing to Percy what Hades had done to her? Or was he simply so blinded by rage that he hadn’t even seen the comparison?

She bit the inside of her cheek, as a wave of bitter disappointment climbed up her throat.

Next to me in the backseat was a big motionless lump…Even if you are half barnyard animal, you’re my best friend and I don’t want you to die.

Grover looked resigned. “You’re not going to let go of the whole barnyard animal thing, are you?”

Then he groaned “Food”, and I knew there was hope.

Against her will, Annabeth let out a snort, then, she held her hand in front of her mouth, while a blush crept onto Grover’s face.

He groaned. “Some of those details do make you question the Fates, don’t they?”

“The whole thing makes me question the Fates,” Percy said drily. “As long as the goal here is not “annoy-and-embarrass-Percy-Jackson-until-he-can’t-take-it-anymore”, I don’t think we’ve seen anything of value so far.”

“Percy,” my mother said,” we have to…” her voice faltered…His upraised hands made it look like he had horns.

Hermes grimaced and his and Artemis’ eyes met. No emotion twisted her expression, but she nodded almost unnoticeably at him.

Rhode exchanged a disbelieving look with Triton. “It’s the minotaur, isn’t it.”

He studied the projection intently, eyebrows furrowed. “No doubt about it.”

I swallowed hard. “Who is-“…It might’ve been an exit, but the edges were sizzling and smoking.

“Awesome,” Frank winced. “So, everything that could have gone wrong, did go wrong?”

“Pretty much,” Grover sighed and leaned back in his seat. Now, that he saw the whole scene like this, from an outsider’s perspective, and fully conscious, it became plain to see that it had been close to a miracle that they had made it.

Frank shook his head. “How in the name of the Fates did you survive this?”

Grover gestured at his friend with a shaky smile. “Percy, of course.”

“Climb out the passenger’s side!” my mom told me…a huge, White House Christmas tree-sized pine at the crest of the nearest hill.

“Not a bad first description, kelp head,” Thalia managed to crack a grin. “Especially compared to Grover.”

“Funny,” Grover facepalmed.

“That’s the property line,” my mom said…”Mom, you’re coming too.”

“Sally didn’t think you’d ever leave her behind, did she?” Rachel asked and furrowed her eyebrows.

“Her son was in danger,” Hestia said softly, with a sad smile. “Percy’s safety had to have been the only thing she thought about back then.”

Her face was pale…No!” I shouted. “You are coming with me. Help me carry Grover.”

Annabeth smiled. “But Percy’s Percy.”

“Yes” Athena pursed her lips. “Personal loyalty.”

She said “personal loyalty” as if she talked about a spider she had found in her drink, and Percy had to hold himself back from rolling his eyes.

Rhode leaned to her brother’s side. “Loyalty is not exactly the kind of flaw, which makes for the heroes of the past, is it?” she murmured.

Triton shot her an unamused look.

“You start to sound like father”, he said quietly and raised his chin. “Just because his fatal flaw is unusual doesn’t mean he is.”

Rhode risked another glance at Perseus, who had one arm slung over the shoulder of the daughter of Athena, and the other over the satyr.

Then, she studied his younger version in the projection.

His unyielding determination to save both his mother and the satyr that burnt as brightly in his eyes as her late husband’s sun wagon, even while his face was pale, and his voice shaking.

“I’m afraid I’m starting to doubt that” she said so quietly Triton couldn’t hear it anymore.

“Food!” Grover moaned, a little louder.

Grover’s face became a shade darker, and he leaned his head against the cushion of his seat. “I’m really starting to hate this.”

“Welcome to my world,” Percy murmured, but patted his arm in support. “But don’t worry. If we watch our first quest, there will be a lot of cool moments from you on that projection too.”

“You think?” Grover sounded doubtful.

Percy’s lips twitched up. “Remember the fight against Medusa? You’re the red baron, remember? And you totally saved our lives at the water park.”

Grover cracked a grin. “Still can’t believe you two just jumped out of there like that, while getting broadcasted to Olympus.”

“Gods, don’t remind me,” Percy said with groan.

The man with the blanket over his head kept coming towards us…And the point that looked like horns…

“Oh gods,” Reyna’s eyes widened. “Are you serious? Him?”

“He doesn’t want us,” my mother told me. “He wants you….I got mad then….like, like a bull.

“Excuse me?”, Leo’s eyes bulged. “The second monster you ever met was the minotaur? Like, the minotaur. The labyrinth-Theseus-Crete-minotaur?”

“Yeah,” Percy grimaced. “I hate that thing.”

“And you managed to defeat it?” Piper asked incredulously.

Percy shrugged. “I guess I got lucky.”

I climbed across Grover and pushed the door open into the rain…”Mom! I’m not leaving you. Help me with Grover.”

Grover smiled and leaned his head against Percy’s shoulder. “I’ve never really thanked you for that, have I?”

“You really don’t need to,” Percy said. “I’m just glad both of us survived.”

I didn’t wait for her answer…stumbling uphill trough wet waist-high grass.

“Is it still that high?”, Demeter asked, with disdain and worry in her voice.

“Most of the grass got trampled within the last couple years, mother,” Katie said nervously and bit her lips. “It didn’t have the chance to grow back after everything that has happened.”

The goddess’ frown deepened, but she nodded at Katie, who slumped in relief.

“But we definitely have to cut it, should it grow back,” Annabeth muttered.

Percy nodded. “As long as that’s our only worry from now on, that’s fine with me.”

Glancing back, I got my first clear look at the monster…enormous black-and-white horns with points you just couldn’t get from an electric sharpener.

A pool of dread formed in Katie’s stomach as the seriousness of the situation finally dawned down on her.

She and the others who had attended camp back then, Travis, Connor, Chris, and even Clarisse, had looked forward to seeing this fight, which had quickly become a legend at camp and, knowing the result, they had treated it more like a movie scene than real life.

Percy had survived, with only a few scars and bruises serving as a reminder of that fight. There hadn’t been anything at stake. At least, they thought there hadn’t been.

Her intestines churned. Katie hadn’t had known his mother had been with him. Sally Jackson hadn’t arrived at camp, and by the way the scene was going, she had little hope, she could make it out of the fight in one piece.

Swallowing, she looked up at the Minotaur.

The beast loomed several feet over Percy’s small figure, muscular, with hate filled eyes, and horns sharper than knifes.

It was obvious to see why he was one of the most feared creatures in Greek mythology.

Gods. Her breath hitched. How did Percy manage to defeat it?

I recognized the monster, all right….But he couldn’t be real.

Grover smiled faintly. “At least you knew who he was.”

“Everyone knows who the minotaur is,” Percy said and rolled his eyes. “That’s like common knowledge.”

“I wouldn’t have been surprised if you didn’t back then,” Annabeth teased.

“I wasn’t that bad!”

She raised an eyebrow. “Golden fleece?”

“Bad,” he admitted, “but not that bad. At least, if you don’t compare me to you guys back then. And you grew up around all that stuff.”

“Fair,” she said, and tilted her head sheepishly. “I probably knew a bit more than the average 12-year-old, didn’t I?”

Grover snorted. “A bit? Even back then you were like a walking textbook. I was sure you had memorized the entire Iliad by the time you were nine.”

I blinked the rain out of my eyes…”Pasiphae’s son,” my mother said. “I wish I’d known how badly they wanted to kill you.”

“Gods, Sally,” Will sounded exhausted. “You have no idea.”

“Good thing she doesn’t”, Percy muttered. “Bad enough she knows as much as she does about my quests. I’m not exactly keen on giving her a list of every being, who wants me dead.”

“But he’s the min-…”Names have powers.”

Grover glared half-heartedly at his best friend. “How many times have you heard that by now?”

Percy shrugged. “A couple, I guess. What about it?”

“You…”, Grover sighed and shook his head. “You know what. Forget about it. You broke me. I officially give up.”

The pine tree was still too far…”He goes by smell. But he’ll figure out where we are soon enough.”

“She is quite well informed,” Athena said, slightly impressed.

“Yeah,” Percy said and smiled wistfully. “Mom prepared for all kinds of monster attacks back then.” His face fell. “She had to.”

“It makes me wonder, why she didn’t prepare you better, “Piper murmured. Percy raised an eyebrow, and she held up her hands.

“It’s no criticism, it’s just… My father always told me Cherokee stories growing up. Like the legend of the Cherokee rose, or the story of the two wolves. I bet, if he knew, he would have told me stories of Greek mythology to help me navigate in this world. Your mum knew who you were, so I was just wondering why she didn’t try to teach you.”

Percy rubbed his neck uncomfortably. “It’s not like mum had a lot of time for that.”

“What do you mean?” Piper furrowed her eyebrows.

“Mum worked I-don’t-even-know-how-many jobs. And I only saw her during the holidays. She didn’t really have time to tell me bedtime stories.”

“So, most of your holidays you spent alone with Gabe?”, Jason wrinkled his nose in disgust.

“No,” Percy’s eye twitched. “Most of the time I hang around in New York.”

“Working” was left unsaid, but Jason understood, nonetheless.

His face hardened, as he looked back at the projection, and he had to take a deep breath to remain calm.

“Of course,” he muttered.

As if on cue, the bull-man bellowed in rage-Not a scratch, I remembered Gabe saying. Oops.

A smile tugged on the corners of Thalia’s lips. “At least the car got toasted.”

“Percy,” my mom said. “When he sees us, he’ll charge…I should have expected this. I was selfish, keeping you near me.”

“She’s not wrong,” Dionysus muttered and folded his arms in front of his chest.

“Dionysus,” Ariadne warned softly. She laid a soothing hand on his shoulder and gave him a knowing look. “His mother only did what she thought was best.”

“Which lead Perry to be attacked by a fury and a minotaur, and to remain completely untrained, until he was almost 13 years old, while being the child of one of the most important prophecies any of us have ever lived trough. And to live together with … that guy.”

Percy’s eyebrows drew together, and he felt his pulse speeding up.

“Mom married Gabe to protect me.”

Dionysus lazily glanced at him. “I am very much aware why she married Gabe Ugliano, Pascal. It’s not hard to decipher after your description. But your living situation can hardly be considered “safe”. Certainly not safer than you would have been at your little camp.”

“Maybe mom thought that staying with Gabe would be safer, because you would have killed me the second you would have found out who my father is,” Percy said coldly and met his gaze. “Similarly, to how you wanted to vaporize me after I got claimed. And similarly, to how all of you discussed at the winter solstice a few years back.”

Dionysus eyes narrowed dangerously, sparks of a purple fire contrasting against the indigo in his iris, but Percy found it difficult in himself to care.

He remembered Bacchus sitting highly in that stupid colosseum in Rome, looking bored down as he and Jason had fought the giants. The image only fuelled his resentment.

Without braking eye contact with him, Percy continued. “Remember the winter solstice, Thals?”

The other demigods paled, and their eyes darted from him to the gods, but Thalia, in comparison, sounded amused. “Kind of hard to forget, isn’t it?”

Athena didn’t look fazed. “You think your mother was aware of that?”

“She knew that I wasn’t supposed to exist,” he said, matter of factly. Hermes and Rhode winced. “The thought wasn’t that far off. And it’s not like she was wrong.”

“No,” Athena studied the woman intently, the hint of respect flickering in her eyes. “She was quite right. It wasn’t a perfect solution, but the wisest decision she could have made.”

Dionysus scoffed but didn’t dignify the discussion with another word.

“Keeping me near you? But-“…His black eyes glowed with hate. He reeked like rotten meat.

“Yeah, the minotaur despises father’s half-blood children,” Triton said. “Ever since Theseus and the labyrinth.”

His lips curled when he said that name, and from the corners of his eyes, Percy saw Dionysus’ face harden even further.

Ariadne simply sighed and squeezed her husband’s hand.

“Yeah,” Percy said slowly. “I don’t think I helped with that state of mind.”

“Good,” Triton nodded with something that might have resembled approval. “It’s not exactly a creature you want to earn the respect from.”

He lowered his head and charged; those razor-sharp horns aimed straight at my chest.

“Gods,” Piper stared at the minotaur. “You were twelve.”

“And untrained,” Jason felt queasy. “Gods, I have no idea how you managed to get out of there.”

The fear in my stomach made me want to bolt…at the last moment, I jumped to the side.

Annabeth clenched her blanket to her stomach, her lips tightly pressed together.

Percy slung an arm around her shoulders. “Does it help that you know I’m still alive?”

She managed a strained smile. “A bit, maybe.”

The bull-man stormed past like a freight train…toward my mother, who was setting Grover down in the grass.

Percy’s jaw tensed up and he leaned back into his seat, away from the projection.

Grover sent him a concerned glance. “You think you’ll be alright?”

He nodded slowly. “Yeah, I think so. Mum wasn’t even hurt and now, I know she didn’t die there. So, I should be okay.”

We’d reached the crest of the hill…We’d never make it.

Travis gulped, every word dying in his throat, and he could do nothing but continue to silently watch.

The bull-man grunted, pawing the ground…trying to lead the monster away from Grover.

“Brave woman,” Artemis noted with approval. “A shame I’ve never met her. She would have made a great huntress.”

“Yes,” Thalia lowered her voice and leaned over Annabeth to poke Percy’s side with a grin. “A shame indeed.”

“Shut up, Thalia.”

“Run, Percy!” she told me. “I can’t go any farther. Run!”…He lifted her as she struggled, kicking and pummeling the air.

“What?”, Leo gaped at the projection, eyes blown wide. “But I thought your mum is fine?”

Percy didn’t take his eyes of his mom and swallowed heavily. “She is, currently,” he said. “She didn’t die there. The situation was,” he bit his lips and his eyes hardened as they flickered to Hades for the split of a second. “Let’s say, it was complicated.”

“Mom!” She caught my eyes…the monster closed his fist towards my mother’s neck, and she dissolved before my eyes…as if she were a holographic projection.

Percy clenched his eyes shut, the muscles in his face twitching.

“Gods,” Frank’s face was almost white, and he let his gaze flicker between projection-Percy, who stared in horror and disbelief at his mothers disappearing form, and at present Percy, who was as still as a marble statue.

“I had no idea, that…”, his voice gave out and he looked at the floor. He didn’t know that Percy had once lost his mother as well. However temporary that might have been.

And that at twelve.

Bile rose in his throat.

A blinding flash, and she was simply…gone. “No!”

His cry was heart-clenching, the kind, which shook you to the very core and Leo felt frozen to his seat, as if Chione had turned him into a statue of ice.

Leo didn’t dare to breathe.

Fine fissures began to crack the surface of the picture he had painted of Percy inside his head.

An image he had flicked together with every story, every rumour he had ever heard about the guy.

Stories about his mother, about Annabeth, his popularity at camp, his quests, his power. Then later, after he had first met him, his anger, and later, his relationship to Calypso had formed the picture of a perfect hero, of a perfect life.

Leo had felt an immediate resentment.

Projection-Percy sunk to the floor, tears glinting in wide eyes. Heavy breath’s shook his body.

The picture cracked, pieces shattering into millions of pieces as they fell to the ground.

Leo had always clung to first impressions when meeting new people. His gut feeling had kept him safe on the streets and in foster homes, protecting him from malice hiding behind facades of fake-politeness.

He had never been this wrong before, he had never not known what to make of a person.

Instead of a picture, he was now staring at a mirror and blinked at the kid on the other side, who had the same bruises as him, the same alert eyes, the same pain.

Leo didn’t like this feeling; he didn’t like it at all.

He swallowed heavily and drove a hand absentmindedly through his hair, playing nervously with a brown lock, while his stomach rebelled.

If he was being honest, he wanted, no, he needed their similarities to end now.

Anger replaced my fear…The same rush of energy I’d gotten when Mrs. Dodds grew talons.

Tears still ran down his cheeks, but suddenly, Percy stood up. His mouth turned into a snarl and his sea green eyes almost seemed to glow through the rain, as he glared at the minotaur.

“And the thing’s dead,” Will noted hollowly, his eyes fixated on Percy, with an empty feeling in his stomach.

Katie held her hands in front of her gaping mouth, and from the pale and ashen faces of Chris, Travis, and Connor, Will was sure that only a few people at camp had even known what had happened to Sally Jackson that day, and few had treated Percy accordingly.

Nico nodded, even paler than usual, eyes blown wide. “Super dead.”

The bull-man wore down on Grover…as if he were about to lift Grover up and make him dissolve too.

Grover felt like he was about to throw up.

He had always roughly known what had happened after he had blacked out. Chiron had told him immediately after he had woken up, about Sally’s death, and Percy’s victory over the minotaur, but it had always seemed somehow unreal.

Seeing the fight, and Sally’s supposed death felt like his blood had turned into ice.

For all Percy had known, his mom had just died in front of his eyes, and Grover had been uselessly passed out on the floor, while he had to fight against one of the most infamous monsters in all of Greek mythology.

He had no idea how Percy had managed to save them.

I couldn’t allow that.

He let out a shuddered breath. “Thank the gods you were there, Percy.”

I stripped off my red jacket…”Hey stupid! Ground beef!”

Will shook his head, his fingers digging into her skin. “Reckless, reckless, reckless,” he repeated over and over again, like a mantra.

Nico gently squeezed his shoulder.

“Raaaarrrrr!”The monster turned towards me, shaking his meaty fists…a stupid idea, but better than no ideas at all.

Will groaned, and let his head fall down on a little desk in front of him. “Please, gods no.”

“You don’t have to sound that pessimistic, you know?” Percy noted.

“You know exactly what Will means”, Annabeth sent him a pointed look. “Your plans work most of the time, I’ll give you that. But they always involve reckless self-sacrificing.”

“Like with Atlas”, Thalia said and nodded.

“St. Helens”, Annabeth continued.

“Hyperion” Grover remembered.

“The thing with the Gorgon Blood” Frank shook his head. “Seriously, self-sacrifice is too timid a word for what you did back then.”

“I have to agree with Frank,” Hazel said. “That was straight up suicidal.”

He shrugged. “It worked, didn’t it? We can’t exactly allow ourselves to be careful with the quests we’re on.”

I put my back to the big pine tree and waved my red jacket…But it didn’t happen like that.

“Of course, it didn’t,” Jason sighed, and ran a hand trough his hair. It had gotten a bit longer than when Percy had first seen him, and a few blond strains fell into his blue eyes.

He sent him a supportive smile, even it did look a bit strained. “It was a good strategy though, considering the circ*mstances.”

What happened next was so fast, if anyone had blinked, they would have missed it.

The bull-man charged too fast….turning in midair, and landing on its neck.

“Huh?!” Frank’s head shot up and he stared at 12-year-old Percy, who was now sitting on top of the monster “What was… I mean how did you… What?”

Percy shrugged. “Honestly, no clue.”

“No clue?”, Travis looked at him incredulously. “Dude, you just jumped like 7 feet in the air.”

“On top of the minotaur,” Will added, slowly shaking his head in disbelief. “That was pretty awesome.”

“I don’t know, I just did it. The rain helped.”

“The rain?”

“Yeah,” Percy rubbed his neck. “Like in an energy-boost-kind-of-way, you know?”

“Energy boost?”, Hermes asked and sent Poseidon a questioning look. “Doesn’t that only happen near the ocean for your demigod kids?”

“Normally,” his dad’s eyes were focused on the projection, but a proud smile started to play on his lips. “But it does happen from time to time. The more powerful my children are, the more water sources they have control of.”

“Hear that, kelp head,” Thalia said and slapped his shoulder. “You must be pretty powerful.”

“But we already knew that” Annabeth said proudly and grinned at him.

He blushed.

How did I do that? I didn’t have time to figure it out.

Leo snorted. “Great explanation.”

A millisecond later, the monster’s head slammed into tree…I was starting to realize that this thing had only one gear: forward.

“Good to know,” Hazel said. “Maybe we should make a list on all the monsters Percy encounters and how he defeats them.”

Frank nodded. “Good idea. He probably met quite a few. Could be useful as a reference.”

“I don’t think so,” Reyna shook her head with a small smile. “Percy’s fighting style is unorthodox, even for the Greeks. Not even mentioning his natural talent. I doubt anyone back at Camp Jupiter could reenact the way he defeats monsters.”

Hazel pondered at that. “I suppose that’s true. But making a few notes, might still end up being helpful. We might discover weaknesses; we weren’t aware of before. It could save quite a few lives.”

Meanwhile, Grover started groaning in the grass… “Food!” Grover moaned.

“Gods, Percy, I’m so sorry,” Grover slumped in his seat. “I was completely useless.”

“Grover,” Percy looked him in the eyes. “We got hit by lightning. It was out of your control. Stop apologizing. You would have done the same, if I would have been the one who got knocked out.”

Grover glanced at him. “You’re aware I wouldn’t have been able to defeat the minotaur, right?”

“But you would have done everything in your power to get me to camp,” he countered. “So, stop apologizing.”

The bull-man wheeled toward him, pawed the ground again…and rage filled me like high-octane fuel.

Finally, Rachel allowed herself to slowly relax against the cushion.

The first time she had ever really seen Percy fight had been in the arena against Antaeus. Back then, he had already been confident in his fighting abilities, his reflexes sharpened by previous quests.

She wasn’t used to Percy being … like this.

Unsure, frightened and confused. Seeing him as the kid who had just tapped the surface of the mythological world made her feel lost, as if the floor, she had always taken for granted, had disappeared right underneath her feet and she was suddenly freefalling.

But the way he was currently glaring at the minotaur, the way he gritted his teeth and the way his body tensed, offered up the smallest glimpse of who he would become. It was like seeing the first line of land after being lost on sea.

I got both hands around one horn and I pulled backside with all my might.

Ares smirked. “Not in a million –“

The monster tensed, gave a surprised grunt, then-snap!

Silence.

Ares face fell.

He looked at Percy, with an expression which resembled more annoyed acceptance than real surprise.

“You’re a punk.”

The demigods gaped at him.

“You seriously jumped on top of the minotaur and ripped off one of his horns?” Travis’ mouth fell open. “Dude!”

“You knew I had the horn. It was my spoil of war,” Percy pointed out.

“We thought the minotaur got stuck somewhere or something,” Chris said. “Not that you ripped it off. With your bare hands. That’s so meta.”

“That’s one hell of an energy boost,” Nico muttered and raised an eyebrow. “You used his own horn as a weapon, didn’t you?”

“Didn’t have anything else,” Percy shrugged.

“Wicked,” Leo grinned, and leaned forward.

The bull-man screamed and flung me trough the air…My head smacked against a rock.

Percy’s head started to throb with pain, and he winced. “Damn.”

His hands flew up. Annabeth frowned and laid a hand on his arm.

“Is really everything alright? You’ve been acting weird since the beginning of this scene.”

“I’m not sure,” he muttered. The throbbing only got worse, and he had to close his eyes for a second. “Like I said, it’s probably just a headache.”

“But you were alright a few moments ago,” Will said, his forehead creased in thought. “Doesn’t really look like a headache.”

Confused, he looked at the gods.

Will could see a storm brewing in Poseidon’s eyes and he glared at the other Olympians with an intensity that made him flinch. The other gods were looking at Hecate.

“It probably isn’t,” the goddess of magic said slowly, and raised her hand to freeze the projection, right as projection-Percy tried to stand up again.

“We figured it could be a side-effect, but that it would become this strong so fast…”, she sighed. “The spell is stronger than we anticipated.”

“What kind of side effects?”, Annabeth asked, eyes narrowing. “What is going on with Percy?”

“It looks like he might go trough past experiences,” Hekate continued in a neutral tone. “Like when he got injured in the past…”

“He will get injured in the present?”, Thalia finished, and her face turned ashen. “Are you serious?”

“You mean,” Percy’s expression remained blank, but disbelieve was swirling in his sea green eyes, “everything that has happened to me over the course of our quests, the poisons, the Styx, the explosions, St. Helens, I will experience all of that again?” He had to keep his voice from shaking, when he stared at Hekate. “Is that really what you’re saying?”

Will felt cold. He thought about all of the stories he had heard about Percy’s quests. His journey to the underworld, the labyrinth, the battle at camp half blood, his fight against Hyperion, and the entirety of the war.

Then, suddenly Percy did something Will never expected him to do.

He started to chuckle.

It wasn’t full-blown laughter, but quiet and maybe a little bit hysterical and the more Percy tried to stop, the worse it got.

He exchanged a short glance with Annabeth, who had furrowed her eyebrows in concern, before she laid her head on his shoulder. “Percy…”

“Sorry”, he said and held a hand over his mouth. “Sorry, it’s just… “, he took a deep breath, before continuing. “Am I going to feel everything we experienced in Tartarus, should it come up?”

Annabeth flinched back and Will heard Nico hitch his breathe. Quickly, he laid his hand on Nico’s own and squeezed it, while Hekate nodded solemnly.

For the first time, something like sympathy crossed her face. She lowered her gaze to the floor. “I’m sorry.”

Percy stared at her for a few seconds, before closing his eyes. “Okay. Okay, that’s fine,” he said quietly to himself. “That’s fine. Everything’s fine. It will be fine. Good to know I guess.”

“Percy…,” Will started, but Percy just sent him a grin, that was so obviously fake, he had to wince.

“Don’t look at me, like that,” he shook his head. “It’s possible that you will experience that too, you know? Maybe, I am lucky and get the easy parts, where the only thing I had to worry about was a fury or the minotaur. Maybe you guys get the part about Kronos, and Gaia, and stuff like that.”

He knew as well as them that the possibility of anyone else being the narrator for the second titan war was incredibly slim, but Percy didn’t let it show on his face.

Will shook his head sadly but didn’t know what else to say. So, he remained silent.

Hekate let the projection continue.

When I sat up, my vision was blurry…The monster charged.

Will’s eyebrows drew together worriedly. “It looks like you had a concussion.”

“Definitely feels like it,” Percy muttered, with his eyes closed and a hand on his temple, as the headache returned.

Will winced. “Yeah, we could give you a bit ambrosia, I have always something with me for emergencies, if you want to…?”

“I doubt it will work,” Apollo said. “If the pain really comes from the projection, then Percy isn’t actually injured right now. So, ambrosia or nectar will be of little help to him.”

“Great,” Percy sighed. “Just great.”

Without thinking, I rolled to one side and came up kneeling…right under his furry rib cage.

“Awesome,” Connor blurted out, despite the situation and immediately felt bad, but he couldn’t help it. No theory they had come up with at campo had done this fight justice.

He sent Percy an apologetic look, but the son of Poseidon just waved it off with a flick of his hand and smiled weakly at him.

“Thanks, Connor.”

The bull-man roared in agony…The monster was gone.

“Man, Percy,” Chris shook his head in disbelief. “That was incredible.”

“Especially without any training,” Annabeth said proudly and leaned her head against his shoulder. “I mean, do you have any idea, how few times that guy actually got defeated?”

“And that by heroes who had quite a lot of training years of training,” Reyna pointed out. “I mean how old was Theseus? 16, 17?”

Percy sighed. “Theseus had to fight the guy in the labyrinth. And from personal experience, I can say that he probably didn’t have enough room to dodge his attacks. We were lucky we encountered him in an open space.”

“Still,” Thalia grinned. “Slayer of the Minotaur at 12 has a nice ring around it, don’t you think?”

“Please shut up,” Percy groaned.

“I have to agree with Thalia,” Rachel sent him a teasing smirk. “I’d boast about it all the time, if it were me.”

“Wasn’t really worth boasting about,” he said miserably, which earned him a playful slap from his cousin.

“Accept the compliment, kelp head. That was pretty cool.”

“Pretty cool?”, Jason beamed at Percy. “That was absolutely brilliant.”

The rain had stopped. The storm still rumbled, but only in the distance…I was crying, calling for my mother, but I held on to Grover-I wasn’t going to let him go.

Grover leaned his head against Percy’s shoulder. “I owe you; you know that.”

Percy snorted. “Sure, until when you save my life later on.”

The last thing I remember is collapsing on a wooden porch….and the stern faces of a familiar looking bearded man and a pretty girl, her blond hair curled like a princess’s.

Heat rushed to Percy’s head and a small smile played on Annabeth’s lips. “Pretty, huh?”

“No need to sound so surprised,” he muttered.

They both looked down on me and the girl said,” He’s the one. He must be.”

Piper cracked a grin. “The one, huh?”

“Oh, shut it,” Annabeth blushed.

“Silence, Annabeth,” the man said. “He’s still conscious. Bring him inside.”

The projection faded, together with Percy’s headache.

“Oh, thank Styx,” he relaxed again.

“You sure, you don’t want to take any ambrosia, or something like that?” Will looked worried. “Just to try it out?”

Percy shrugged. “Even if it would work, I’d save it for when the Telkhines throw lava at me.”

Will spluttered, as a new scene formed. “For when who does what?”

Chapter 8: I Play Pinochle With A Horse

Chapter Text

In the next scene, Percy was lying in a comforting looking bad with soft pillows and a glass of ambrosia on a table next to him.

Sunlight shone trough a tall window and coloured the room in a golden light, while his chest rose and sank peacefully.

A twelve-year-old Annabeth Chase sat next to him and tapped impatiently with her food against the floor. Her curly blonde hair was pulled into a high ponytail, and a few stains loosened as she smirked and scraped what looked like scraps of pudding, from his chin.

I had weird dreams full of barnyard animals… The rest wanted food. I must have woken up several times…The girl with curly blond hair… scraped drips off my chin with the spoon.

Rachel raised an eyebrow. “I thought only the Apollo cabin treats injured campers?”

“Only when the camper is seriously injured,” Will explained. “Chiron already treated Percy’s injuries from what I know, so they just had to observe him to see if there might be any complication. Anyone from camp can do that.” His lips quirked up. “And I’ve heard from Justin that Annabeth wanted the job pretty badly back then.”

“I just wanted information,” Annabeth defended herself, although a light blush had crept onto her cheek. “I thought Percy might know something.”

Katie chuckled. “Plus, you were curious about the kid, who defeated the minotaur. Not like I can blame you.” She shrugged. “We all were.”

Annabeth’s face became a shade darker. “That too, I suppose,” she mumbled.

Slowly, he woke up.

Confusion swirled in his green eyes as he carefully shook his head and blinked a few times at her.

Annabeth immediately lowered the spoon.

When she saw my eyes opened, she asked, “What will happen at the summer solstice?”

Thalia looked amused. “You’re aware that Percy just woke up, right.”

Annabeth winced. “I know. I was a bit… overexcited back then.”

“A bit?”

“Shut up, Percy.”

I managed to croak, “What?”…We’ve only got a few weeks.”

“Jeez,” Will shook his head. “Annabeth, slow down. He was barely conscious.”

“I know,” Annabeth looked at Percy. “I never apologized for how I treated you back then, did I?”

He waved it off. “You really don’t need to. We were 12. Both of us were idiots from time to time.”

“Still”, she sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry,” I mumbled, “I don’t…filled my mouth with pudding.

“Rude,” Percy huffed at her, and she chuckled.

“I panicked, okay?”

The next time I woke up, the girl was gone…he had blue eyes…his forehead, the backs of his hands.

“Argus?”, Jason asked. “Couldn’t you have chosen someone a little, well, more ordinary looking to keep watch?”

Grover shrugged. “We wanted to, but Argus is rather protective of new campers. There was little we could do to keep him away.”

“And we figured it wouldn’t be the weirdest thing Percy had seen that day,” Chris added.

The colours mixed and a new scene appeared.

Percy was sitting in a deck chair on a huge porch, gazing across a meadow of green hills in the distance and a gentle breeze pushed trough his hair.

Behind him, Grover was leaning against the porch railing, looking like he hadn’t slept in a week. Under one arm, he cradled a shoe books. He hid his goat legs under a pair of blue jeans and looked at Percy with sad, brown eyes.

Percy smiled and relaxed into the cushion as camp half blood appeared around them. He could almost smell the faint scent of the strawberry’s and hear the strange sounds coming from the forest in the summer heat.

Annabeth leaned her head on his shoulder. “Okay,” she admitted. “Despite everything else, this is actually pretty cool.”

When I finally came around for good, there was nothing weird about my surroundings…I was sitting on a deck chair on a huge porch…My tongue was dry and nasty, and every one of my teeth hurt.

He winced and suppressed the impulse to move his hand to his mouth.

Annabeth gave him a questioning glance, but he shook his head. He couldn’t really complain every time he started to feel an injury. Especially for something as minor as hurting teeth.

On the table next to me was a tall drink…”Careful,” a familiar voice said… Just plain old Grover. Not the goat boy.

“Thanks for that,” Percy said. “I might have thought, I’d completely lost it, if you wouldn’t have looked human.”

Grover sighed. “I didn’t really stay that way for long.”

So maybe I’d had a nightmare. Maybe my mom was okay.

Leo grimaced.

He didn’t know how many times he had woken up similarly in one of his foster homes, still halfway delirious from sleep, deluding himself into thinking he’d walk down the stairs into their small kitchen any minute, which had always been filled with the sharp scent of burnt food and see his mom smile at him.

With her curly, brown hair, bound back into a loose bun and jeans overall, already speckled with strains of motor oil.

We were still on vacation…I went back to the hill. I thought you might want this.”

Piper smiled at him. “That was pretty nice of you.”

“Maybe,” Grover didn’t sound convinced. “But I think I should have waited. There were way too many things for Percy to process.”

Percy shrugged. “Yeah, but at least you gave me something physical I could hold onto. The horn definitely helped grounding me.”

Reverently he placed the shoe box in my lap…the tip splattered with dried blood.

“Awesome first spoil of war,” Clarisse admitted reluctantly and glared at the horn in the projection. “No wonder I wanted to beat you up.”

“I can’t believe you actually managed to keep it,” Will said and gestured at the Stolls. “Especially since you lived with those two for a few days.”

“We didn’t really want to steal from him in the first days after he arrived at camp,” Travis defended himself. “That would have been a bit cruel.”

“Probably would have come across as bullying,” Chris agreed.

“Besides, even if we wanted to, Percy was pretty observant for a 12-year-old,” Conner added. “And he held onto that horn for dear life, while he lived with us.”

“Not like I can blame him now,” Travis said quietly and grimaced.

If they would have known that this 12-year-old kid, who had looked so lost when he had arrived at their cabin, had just seen his mother die… He groaned and hid his head in his arms. “Looking back, we were total jerks to him.”

“We didn’t know,” Katie whispered, but her heart wasn’t in it. She shook her head with a sigh. “Let’s just continue to watch for now and talk to him later.”

It hadn’t been a nightmare.

“The Minotaur,” I said…”The Minotaur. Half man, half bull.”

“I don’t think you ever followed that names have powers rule, “Grover sounded tired.

Percy shrugged. “I doubt it would make that much of a difference. You told me that my scent has become a lot stronger since Tartarus, right? I’m probably on most monster’s radar even without saying their names. So, why bother?”

Grover sighed. “Maybe to not give me a heart attack every once in a while,” he said.

Grover shifted uncomfortably… “My mom. Is she really…My mother was gone. The whole world should be black and cold. Nothing should look beautiful.

Percy stared across the meadow and slumped in his seat. His normally sea green eyes became clouded, and his shoulders dragged.

Annabeth leaned her head against Percy’s shoulder and sighed.

Grover had told her and Chiron what had happened to Sally immediately after he had woken up, his words disconnected by the shock and guilt that had still been settled into his bones.

From everyone in camp, she had known best what it was like to lose a part of your family on the way to camp, to recognize the feeling of self-hatred and helplessness that had to have threatened to drown Percy those first few days, but instead of trying to help him, she had let her pride and her wish to impress her mother cloud her judgement and had been solely focused on his fight with the minotaur.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“It’s fine,” Percy managed a sad smile. “That was a long time ago and Mom was alright in the end.”

“I’m sorry,” Grover sniffled…the worst satyr in the world.”

Thalia groaned in annoyance. “Would you stop with that?”

“It’s not like I’m the one saying it currently,” Grover held up his hands. “Well, not my present self at least.”

“And it’s not like you still think that, right?” Annabeth said. “Because that would be ridiculous.”

“Absolutely,” Percy agreed, and nudged his side. “Because, we all know, you’re pretty awesome. The best satyr in the world, I dare say.”

Grover’s ears turned red, but he couldn’t help the smile that was growing on his face. “You three are idiots.”

He moaned, stomping his foot so hard it came off…Well, that settles it. Grover was a satyr…my mom really had been squeezed into nothingness. I would have to live with… Smelly Gabe?

“Never,” the amusem*nt vanished from Thalia’s eyes as quickly as the blue sky during a storm. She balled her hands into fists.

Percy scrunched his nose. “Yeah, I’d rather have been homeless than living with him. No way I would have ever returned.”

No. That would never happen… join the army. I’d do something.

Katie managed a weak smile. “I hate to break it to you, Percy, but they’d never accepted you into the army back then.”

“Yeah, you barely passed as a 12-year-old,” Clarisse commented.

Grover was still sniffling… I said, “It wasn’t your fault.”

Annabeth smiled.

Back then she hadn’t appreciated it, but Percy has always been a kind person. Even in arguably one of the worst moments of his life, he still thought about Grover’s feelings and tried to build him up.

She leaned her head on his shoulder. “You’re pretty great, do you know that?”

He turned his head to glance at her. “Where’s that coming from?”

“Just felt like saying it,” she said with a grin.

“Yes, it was. I was supposed to protect you.”

“Did my mother ask you…I’m a keeper. At least… I was.”

“Now you’re a Keeper of the Wild,” Annabeth said with a proud smile.

“Yeah,” Percy grinned. “Don’t forget that I saw you interact with the nature spirits at the national park. You’ve totally won their respect with everything you’re doing.”

Grover sent him a half-hearted glare. “Says you.”

Sometimes he wondered how a person as perceptive as Percy could be so oblivious from time to time.

He knew that most nature spirits, dryads, other satyrs, wind spirits and the likes, held a certain amount of respect for him when they worked together to protect the wild, but he also saw how they reacted around Percy.

He heard the hushed whispers, saw the curious glances, that had followed Percy wherever he went.

His best friend didn’t know it, but ever since he had declined immortality, many parts of the mythological world had started putting him almost on a pedestal, a way of thinking often fuelled by the stories and gossip of naiads he had talked to.

Grover felt a bit bad, but that was one of the main reasons he had asked Percy to help him mobilize the nature spirits at the Acadia national park.

Aside being able to hang out more with his best friend, it was quite effective having the Savior of Olympus present when he tried to convince others to join his cause.

“Did my mother ask you…I recoiled at the taste, because I was expecting apple juice…It wasn’t that at all…my mom homemade blue chocolate-chip cookies, buttery and hot, with the chips still melting.

Thalia groaned and sent him a pointed look. “Do you have to be this descriptive? I’m seriously starting to become hungry.”

“There are snacks all around us,” Annabeth reminded her with a fond shake of her head.

“So?”, she rubbed her stomach. “I can always eat some of Mrs. Jackson’s cookies.”

Drinking it, my whole body felt warm…and told me everything was going to be okay.

“Aww,” Rachel’s face softened.

She still liked to think about all the days she had spent at the Jackson household. Playing monopoly, or charade, while drinking hot chocolate and eating whatever Sally had baked that day.

Sometimes, when she stayed longer and Sally and Paul had already gone to bed, she and Percy sat at their kitchen table and talked about whatever problems they currently had. A habit they had developed the year before the battle of Manhattan.

Their topics ranged from family to prophecies and monsters, to school and friends and even stuff as unimportant as her newest artworks, or videogames they both enjoyed.

She had never before been so vulnerable with another person, but no matter what Rachel told him, Percy never made fun of her or looked like he didn’t care and while he could be clumsy in his advice, somehow, he always found the right words.

It was almost the exact opposite of her own home life.

A big reason why she once had a crush on him, she figured.

Percy Jackson, as a person, was the complete opposite of everything her parents stood for.

Where they wanted orderly and presentable, he was chaotic and wild. They masked their coldness and indifference behind a façade of politeness, while Percy was nothing but authentic.

His laughter was free, infectious and unrestrained, and always made her feel like there was no evil in the world, and she could talk to him as if they’d known each other their entire life.

Rachel risked a glance at Percy and snorted.

Having a crush on a guy, who had literally saved the world multiple times, was a demigod, and looked like, well, Percy did, was so cliché she had to laugh at her old self.

Before I knew it, I’d drained the glass…”Sorry,” I said. “I should’ve let you taste.”

Grover poked his side. “And you say I apologize to much.”

“You apologized for getting knocked unconscious by a lightning bolt,” Percy noted.

“And you’re currently apologizing for not letting me drink out of your glass.”

Annabeth shook her head with an exasperated smile. “Let’s just agree that both of you apologize too much.”

His eyes got wide…”Like I could throw Nancy Bobofit a hundred yards.”

“I wouldn’t mind if you did,” Piper muttered.

“Neither would I”, Annabeth agreed.

“Give her a break, would you?” Jason said fondly. “She was an idiot, but that was like almost 5 years ago. She was only 12 years old.”

“I don’t like bullies,” Piper shrugged. “I don’t really care how old.”

“That’s good,” he said… as if it were dynamite, and set it back on the table. “Come on. Chiron and Mr. D are waiting.”

“You are starting to explain stuff to Percy eventually, right?” Leo asked and looked at Grover.

The satyr winced. “I figured Chiron would do a better job. Maybe not my brightest idea,” he conceded.

The porch wrapped all the way around the farmhouse…We must have been on the north shore of Long island…the landscape was dotted with buildings that looked like ancient Greek architecture…down at the porch, two men sat across from each other at a card table.

Slowly, an amused grin spread over Hermes’ face, and he leaned forward.

“Now this is a conversation I actually look forward to,” he said and smirked at Dionysus, “I don’t imagine your first meeting went very well.”

Dionysus huffed. “You’d be correct. His insolence seems to have always been a part of Pascal.”

The demigods winced, while Percy shrugged.

“To be fair, I didn’t know who,” he paused himself as if what he next said physically hurt him, “Lord Dionysus was at first back then.”

“Emphasis on ‘at first’”, Grover said and gave him a reproachful look. “You found out pretty soon.”

“I was in denial?”

The blond-haired girl who’d spoon-fed me popcorn-flavoured pudding was leaning on the porch rail next to them.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. “The blond-haired girl, huh?”

Percy’s lips quirked up. “Not my fault a certain someone chose to interrogate me the first time we ever talked and didn’t even bother to tell me her name.”

A blush appeared on her cheek, and she let out a snort. “Okay, fair.”

“Besides, ‘blonde-haired girl’ is way better than barnyard animal,” Grover grumbled, causing Percy and Annabeth to laugh.

The man facing me was small, but porky….He looked like a cherub who’d turned middle-aged in a trailer park.

Dionysus scowled at Percy, but before he could say anything, Aphrodite let out a laugh. “My, my. That was spot on. I’ve been telling you for years, you should try out a new appearance.”

“What’s the point of caring about my appearance if I’m stuck in that camp all day long?” Dionysus asked.

He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt…this guy could’ve out gambled even my stepfather.

Grover grimaced.

Back then, he had thought Percy’s bluntness towards Dionysus was just based on past experiences with teachers and because of his mother’s loss, but now, knowing what he did about Gabe, it was no wonder he had such a negative reaction to the god of wine.

It was just Percy’s luck that the first god he had ever met was the one who resembled his first stepfather the most, at least appearance wise, and whose domain included alcohol.

“That’s Mr. D,” Grover murmured to me. “He’s the camp director. Be polite.”

“Yeah Percy”, Rachel grinned and nudged his head with her foot. “Be polite.”

The girl, that’s Annabeth Chase…Mr. Brunner!” I cried.

“Really?” Clarisse gave him a pointed look. “Grover just introduced him as Chiron.”

Nico shrugged. “Chiron’s the lucky one. He still calls Alecto Mrs. Dodds. Which she absolutely despises.”

“She does?” Percy asked, his lips transforming into a grin.

Nico nodded.

“Good,” he crossed his arms. “That is deserved for all the math homework she put me trough.”

“Not for trying to kill you?” Jason asked.

“Multiple times,” Grover added.

“No,” Percy shook his head. “A lot of monsters tried to kill me. Mrs Dodds is the only one, who ever gave me homework.”

The Latin teacher turned and smiled at me… “Now we have four for pinochle.”

“That’s the first thing he said?”, Artemis raised an eyebrow. “Pinochle?”

Dionysus shrugged. “I believe Chiron first wanted to make Peter comfortable, before trying to explain our world to him.”

“And look how that turned out,” Grover winced.

He offered me a chair to the right…Now don’t expect me to be glad to see you.”

“And here we go,” Will sighed and leaned his head against his seat.

He couldn’t lie. It was quite interesting to be able to see the beginning of Percy’s and Dionysus’ almost legendary animosity towards one another, which had become something of a running gag at camp.

One of the first things they said to new campers nowadays was that no matter what happened, they should never talk to Dionysus the same way Percy Jackson did.

Though, to be fair, the same could probably be said about any of the gods and Percy.

“Uh, thanks.” I scooted a little farther away from him… how to tell when an adult has been hitting the happy juice.

Dionysus’ hand twitched.

Next to him, Ariane studied the projection intently, her forehead creased in thought. “As a god of alcohol your presence probably triggered some kind of defense response in him.”

“I suppose.”

She sent him a small smile. “You always had a rather extreme view of Perseus Jackson, even if it lessened during the last three years. But could it be that your perception as a whole is rather inaccurate?”

He gave her a pointed look. “One misconception doesn’t erase the rest. He is not as bad as some other heroes, I’ll give you that, but you won’t find me vouching for his character any time soon. In the end he is just a demigod.”

If Mr. D was a stranger to alcohol, I was a satyr…We’ll be putting him in cabin eleven for now.”

“Oh joy,” Chris muttered. “The reject cabin.”

“Thanks man. I’m feeling the love.” Percy said drily, causing Chris to roll his eyes.

“You know what I mean.”

Annabeth said, “Sure, Chiron…with her deep tan and her curly blond hair…a stereotypical California girl would look like. Except her eyes ruined the image.

“Hey!”

They were startling grey, like storm clouds… the best way to take me down in a fight.

She blushed. “And I was afraid, I’d get another weird description.”

“I had a crush on you since I was like fourteen,” Percy pointed out. “I don’t think you of all people have to worry about that.”

Annabeth’s face became a shade darker, but she sent him a teasing grin. “Good to know. So, I can expect a lot of compliments in future quests then?”

He let out a groan. “Probably.”

She glanced at the minotaur horn in my hand…” You drool when you sleep.”

Thalia snorted.

Then she sprinted down the lawn…” Not Mr. Brunner,” the ex-Mr. Brunner said.

Will shook his head fondly. “Ex-Mr. Brunner. Really?”

Percy sent him a grin. “I was adjusting.”

“I’m afraid that was a pseudonym…Mr. D… does that stand for something?”

“‘Does that stand for something’”, Apollo couldn’t help but chuckle. “Oh, I’m loving this already.”

Mr. D. stopped shuffling the cards…You don’t just go around using them for no reason.”

Grover gave him a pointed look, which Percy ignored.

“Oh. Right. Sorry”…I’d hate to think I’ve wasted my time.”

“Wow,” Conner facepalmed.

“Thanks for that Chiron,” Percy muttered drily.

“House call?”…I convinced the other Latin teacher to… ah, take a leave of absence.”

“Uh, what did Chiron do?” Frank asked warily.

“Send him on a year long paid cruise in the Caribbean,” Grover explained. “The guy didn’t even question it.”

“Would you?”, Percy asked. “Can Chiron convince me to take a leave of absence? I need a vacation.”

Grover snorted. “I doubt it.”

I tried to remember the beginning of the school year…” Honestly, I wasn’t sure about you at first.”

“None of us were,” Katie said and leaned back in her seat. Then, she winced. “Uh, sorry Percy,” she said sheepishly. “It’s just, we were curious after we heard what had happened with the Minotaur.”

He waved it of. “Don’t worry. I get it.”

“We contacted your mother…Nevertheless, you made it here alive, and that’s always the first test.”

Hazel winced. “Isn’t Chiron being a bit too casual right now? Especially towards someone who just went trough what Percy went trough?”

Will sighed. “Definitely. Which is why we normally show new campers immediately the orientation film. Or let the camp counselors explain stuff to them. Chiron tends to forget that the immediate threat of death is not something normal children go trough.”

“Teaching only demigods for millennia will do that to someone,” Hestia agreed with a worried frown. “That seems to cause you some unnecessary trouble.”

“Most of the time, the camp counselors take over the introduction, lady Hestia,” Annabeth explained. “Since all of us have been trough that ourselves, it makes it a lot easier for new campers. Chiron does it rarely. Percy’s luck is just rotten.”

“Grover,” Mr. D said impatiently, “are you playing or not.”you do know how to play pinochle?” Mr. D eyed me suspiciously.

“He only just arrived at camp,” Athena looked annoyed. “Aren’t there more important things to discuss?”

Dionysus shrugged. “Chiron could start talking to him whenever he liked. It wasn’t my problem to deal with.”

“I’m afraid not…I was liking the camp director less and less.

“Believe me, the feeling was very much mutual,” Dionysus muttered drily.

“Well”, he told me,” it is, along with gladiator fighting and pac-man…”I’m sure the boy can learn,” Chiron said.

“I’m sure the boy needs some answers right about now,” Leo muttered and fidgeted with his tool belt. His fingers itched to work further on some of his projects and Percy’s first introduction to camp made him dizzy.

He found a new kind of gratitude that Will had been the one who had explained all of that stuff to him and that he hadn’t done so in the presence of a god. He’d probably would have gotten smitten to dust one minute into the conversation.

“Please,” I said,” what is this place… Mr. D snorted. “I asked the same questions.”… Percy,” he said. “Did your mother tell you nothing?”

“Nothing whatsoever,” Percy said and sighed.

“She tried to,” Annabeth leaned her head against her seat. “And I’m sure she would have done a great job.”

“Definitely,” A small grin spread across Percy’s face. “But she was probably pretty relieved that she didn’t have to in the end.”

Annabeth laughed. “Probably. I would have no idea how to start a conversation like that.”

“She said …” I remembered her sad eyes, looking out over the sea…She wanted to keep me close to her.”

Dionysus scoffed but didn’t say anything and simply leaned back in his throne.

“Typical,” Mr. D said. “That’s how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?”

“Dionysus,” even Zeus looked exasperated now, “this was hardly the right time.”

The god raised an eyebrow. “Chiron was the one who wanted to tell him. Bad enough that I have to stay at that camp for another fifty years. I’m not going to explain our existence to every new camper that shows up.”

“I suppose that is understandable,” Athena admitted, albeit reluctantly. “Besides, talking to a god might seem overwhelming for new campers.”

Apollo’s mouth twitched. “Yes, Percy looks very overwhelmed by D’s presence.”

Athena pursed her lips. “Perseus is obviously an exception.”

“What?” I asked…how you bid in pinochle, and so, I did.

Nico shook his head in disbelief. “You’re seriously just playing a round of cards. I thought Chiron was joking.”

“It’s pretty bizarre,” Rachel agreed and nudged Percy. “But still better than getting run trough with a sword.”

“You’re never letting that one go, are you?”

She grinned. “Nope, can’t wait to watch my debut on here.”

“I’m afraid there’s too much to tell.. orientation film won’t be sufficient.”

“Is it ever?”, Will asked.

Nico shrugged. “I thought it was alright.”

Will raised an eyebrow. “Because you watched it when you were like 10 years old. You don’t count. And you had Travis explain stuff to you on your camp tour afterwards. The orientation film is not a good explanation on its own.”

“It’s entertaining,” Nico countered, a smile tugging on the corners of his lips. “Maybe you should give it another go.”

“Not even if I’d get paid for it.”

“Orientation film?” I asked…You know your friend Grover is a satyr…the forces you call the Greek gods – are very much alive.”

Screen-Percy stared at Chiron incredulously.

Katie sighed. “Yeah, that’s a pretty hard pill to swallow at first.”

For several days, she had been pretty sure the whole half-blood thing had been an elaborate joke, until Mahika, one of her sisters, had shown her how to control plants.

Pretty hard to stay in denial, when the only other explanation had been that she had ended up in an x-men comic.

I stared at the others around the table… Grover bit a huge shard out of the aluminum can and chewed it mournfully.

Travis winced. “That’s a pretty weird scene if you’re new to all of this.”

“Even today, it’s a weird scene,” Conner pointed out.

“Wait,” I told Chiron. “You’re telling me there’s such a thing as God.”

Chris raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t believe in any god before that?”

“I was an Atheist up until that point,” Percy shrugged. “The existence of any god was always really weird to me. I guess I got lucky. I can imagine that it’s a whole lot more difficult if you’re religious when you arrive at camp.”

“Probably,” Anabeth shrugged. “But some also simply continue to be part of another religion, like Samirah is.”

“Yeah,” Percy shook his head. “Not my thing though. Our life’s weird enough for me.”

“Well, now,” Chiron said. “God-capital G…the immortal gods of Olympus. That’s a smaller matter…. They’re what people believed before there was science.”

The gods scoffed.

“God, science, you’re hitting all the points, Percy,” Apollo muttered. “Just listening gives me a headache.”

“Science!” Mr.D scoffed. “And tell me, Perseus Jackson”- I flinched when he said my real name, which I never told anybody-“

A deep scowl appeared on Zeus’ face. “Perseus,” he almost spit the name out. “Why in the name of the Fates did you chose that name?”

Poseidon met his brother’s glare and raised an eyebrow. “As amusing as it would be, I wasn’t the one, who named Percy. That would be his mother.”

Zeus turned his stare towards Percy. His eye twitched. “Why would she do that?”

Percy shrugged. “Perseus is one of the only heroes who didn’t die a slow, agonizing death. Mom thought it might bring me luck.”

Will let out a sigh. “Well, that worked out spectacularly.”

“At least, I have not died a slow, agonizing death yet,” Percy said drily. “I guess I’ll come back to it.”

“What will people think of your science two thousand years from now… And have they, Chiron? Look at this boy and tell me.”

“That’s a bit … harsh,” Ariadne spoke up softly and looked sadly at her husband. “You sensed who Perseus was, didn’t you?”

He took another sip diet co*ke and nodded to Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades. “It’s hard to miss one of their children, isn’t it? Of course, I noticed.”

“My love, you didn’t treat Percy like that just because of Theseus, are you?”

Their eyes met and Dionysus face hardened.

Ariadne sighed. It was true that she didn’t have the best relationship to Poseidon’s demigod children and that she avoided interacting with them, if possible, but that didn’t mean she wanted any harm to come to a 12-year-old kid.

She loved her husband for feeling this much anger on her behalf, but Perseus hadn’t done anything to deserve it.

At least as far as she knew.

She eyed the demigod.

It was almost unnerving how much he looked like the king of Athens had.

They had the same windswept hair, the same almost regal facial features, and the same anger had glinted in their eyes when they had faced the minotaur.

But still, there was something different about Perseus.

Ariadne couldn’t quite put her finger on what exactly it was, maybe his slightly crooked smile, maybe the way he talked to his friends, or maybe his stubborn refusal to leave his mother and Grover behind, but there was definitely something different.

I wasn’t liking Mr. D much, but there was something… It was enough to put a lump in my throat… and keeping his mouth shut.

Frank snorted. “Weird to think you ever felt that way when you talked to a god.”

“Believe me,” Grover sounded tired. “It didn’t last for long. In fact, I’m sure this kind of self preservation died in this very conversation.”

“Fantastic,” Frank grimaced. “So, I might get a heart attack every time Percy interacts with a god or a goddess from now on?”

Grover nodded. “Very much so. Did you expect something different?”

Frank sighed. “I thought maybe I had a few quests before he started to be like that.”

“I wish.”

“Percy,” Chiron said,” you may choose to believe or not… Existing just as you are, for all time?”

“That question came out of the blue,” Katie noted.

Chris shook his head. “And will only succeed in confusing Percy further. I wish Chiron would just cut to the chase.”

I was about to answer… pretty good deal, but the tone of Chiron’s voice made me hesitate.“You mean, whether people believed in you or not,” I said.

Athena raised an eyebrow. She hadn’t expected the boy to take this into consideration.

For a twelve-year-old, the question was rather thoughtful. Especially for one of Poseidon’s children.

“Exactly,” Chiron agreed… just created to explain how little boys can get over losing their mothers?”

“Chiron!” Surprisingly, it was Hera, who admonished the centaur.

Cold indignation flared in her narrowed eyes when she stared at the centaur in the projection. “That was completely uncalled for.”

My heart pounded… But I don’t believe in gods.”

“And you just had to say that to Mr. D’s face,” Grover said with a sigh.

“You could have started by telling me who Mr. D. is,” Percy pointed out.

“Oh, you’d better,” Mr. D murmured. “Before one of them incinerates you.”

Frank winced. “10 minutes awake at Camp and you’re already receiving threats for the first time. Great.”

Grover said,” P-please, sir. He’s just lost his mother… working with boys who don’t even believe.”

“Are you still complaining about that?”, Zeus sounded annoyed.

“Apologies that I’m upset that I got separated from my domain and forced to work at Camp half blood for over a hundred years, just because of one single nymph,” Dionysus said coldly.

Zeus expression hardened. “It wasn’t because of the nymph, it was because you disobeyed my direct order, if you remember.”

“I’ll follow your orders if they’re worth following,” Dionysus countered. “I’ll follow them if they involve important matters. Not simple woodnymphs.”

“You’re supposed to follow my orders, no matter what,” Zeus said, his eyes darkening. “You should consider yourself lucky that your punishment is going to take only fifty more years.”

He waved his hand and a goblet appeared on the table… The goblet filled itself with red wine.

My jaw dropped, but Chiron hardly looked up… “Old habits! Sorry!”

“As if,” Hermes shook his head with an almost sad smile. “But I can understand why you do it. I can’t imagine being separated from my domain like that.”

More thunder. Mr. D waved his hand again… a wood nymph who had been declared off-limits.”

Hera’s expression hardened, twisted by centuries old bitterness and she folded her arms in front of her chest.

“A wood nymph,” I repeated, still staring at the Diet co*ke can like it was from outer space.

“You’re overwhelming the poor boy,” Aphrodite rubbed her temples. “I understand why you don’t want to be the one explaining our world to Perseus, but do you have to make matters worse for him?”

“He got it in the end, didn’t he?”, Dionysus asked sharply, still stiff from his debate with Zeus. “If you consider this matter so important, feel free to take my place any time.”

“Yes,” Mr. D confessed. “Father loves to punish me…’Work with youths rather than tearing them down.’ Ha! Absolutely unfair.”

Athena looked at him unimpressed. “Dionysus, I understand your predicament, but please do not vent your problems to our children. Especially to those, who have just been introduced to our world.”

Dionysus rolled his eyes, while Annabeth’s hand started to twitch.

She clenched her jaw and stubbornly avoided looking at her mother, while hot anger started to boil in her stomach.

Images of the old bones of centuries old Athena demigods flashed trough her mind and phantom spider bites made her skin itch.

Hypocrite, she thought.

Athena herself had done far worse to her children than Dionysus had, and Annabeth had the scars to prove it.

Mr. D sounded about six years old, like a pouting little kid.

“He’s not wrong,” Zeus muttered annoyed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Whether because of Dionysus, or because he had agreed with him, Percy had no idea.

Dionysus face transformed into a scowl.

“And…” I stammered. “Your father is… I ran trough d names in Greek mythology… “You’re Dionysus,” I said. “The god of wine.”

“At least he did recognize you,” Hermes said, trying to lift the atmosphere. “Some of us are not that lucky.”

Percy furrowed his eyebrows. “I recognized you too.”

Hermes shrugged amused. “It took you a while. Took you almost insultingly long, when I really think about it.”

“You wore a jogging suit,” Percy protested. “Your caduceus was a phone. What was I supposed to think?”

“You want me to walk around in Greek robes, my winged sandals and my caduceus?”

“I mean, if you want to be recognized.”

Mr. D rolled his eyes… Did you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?”

“Not while you choose this appearance,” Aphrodite said and wrinkled her nose,” and definitely not while wearing that shirt.”

Dionysus rolled his eyes.

“You’re a god…. “A god. You.”

“Hard to believe sometimes, isn’t it,” Apollo snickered, earning himself a half-hearted glare from Dionysus.

He turned to look at me straight on… He would plant a disease in my brain that would leave me wearing a straitjacket in a rubber room for the rest of my life.

“Dionysus,” Poseidon warned coldly.

“Please,” he scoffed. “I barely showed him anything. Thought that it might teach him to keep his mouth shut.” He looked at Percy. “Obviously, that didn’t work.”

“Would you like to test me, child….”No. No, sir.”

“Probably the last time a threat like that worked on you,” Annabeth said.

“I’ve been threated with things like this like a million time,” Percy rolled his eyes. “After a while they lose their effect.”

“Lose their effect?” Grover stared at him. “You do realise those are still death threats, right?”

“Course I do,” Percy replied, his gaze flickering over to where Ares sat. “But it becomes rather dull if you hear it for like the hundredth time.”

The fire died a little… used to being beaten by the Latin teacher.

“Pretty much so,” Ariadne said with a fond smile.

This friendship between Chiron and Dionysus was a pretty new development. Most of their lives, they had avoided one another, their very different opinion on heroes clashing too much to allow for a peaceful coexistence, but personally, she had always liked the centaur.

Since he spent his life training demigods, he was more used to interacting with mortals than most other gods were. At the beginning of her immortal life his help and guidance had been invaluable to Ariadne.

So, if there was one thing she enjoyed out of her husband’s punishment, it was his closer relationship to Chiron.

He got up and Grover rose, too… Grover’s face beaded with sweat… And mind your manners.”

“Yes, Percy,” Connor nodded with a fake seriousness. “Mind your manners. We wouldn’t want you being rude in our dear cabin.”

“Yeah,” his brother continued,” we can’t have you stirring up any trouble.”

“Of course,” Percy grinned. “I wouldn’t dare.”

He swept into the farmhouse… “Will Grover be okay?” I asked Chiron.

A smile crept onto Grovers face, and he leaned closer to Percy. “Thanks for asking.”

Chiron nodded, though he looked a bit troubled… before he’s allowed to go back to Olympus.” “Mount Olympus,” I said. “You’re telling me there really is a palace there?”

“Long time ago,” Hebe whispered wistfully and smiled. “I do miss that old mountain.”

“Well now, there’s Mount Olympus in Greece… the palace moves, Percy, just as the gods do....“Well, certainly. The gods move with the heart of the West… A collective consciousness that has burned bright for thousands of years… The fire started in Greece… but the same forces, the same gods.”

Annabeth groaned. “And that’s why we leave the introduction to the cabin counselors. Chiron explains everything way too overcomplicated.”

“And focuses on the wrong stuff,” Thalia noted. “He still hasn’t told Percy that the camp is for demigods.”

“And then they died.”

Apollo nodded solemnly and laid his hand over his heart. “And then we died,” he agreed.

“Yeah,” Percy felt his face heating up and sighed. “Styx that was a really stupid question.”

“Pretty much,’ Grover agreed. “But you were still in denial. No one can blame you for that.”

“Died? No. Did the West die?... They spent several centuries in England… Look at your symbol, the eagle of Zeus… America is now the heart of the flame… Olympus is here. And we are here.”

Annabeth sighed and rubbed her temples. “Remind me to make Chiron promise me, to never make the introduction again.”

It was all too much… as if I were part of some club.

“Sounds honestly more like a cult,” Rachel commented with a shrug.

“Who are you, Chiron….”Who are you?” he mused. “Well, that’s the question we all want answered, isn’t it?”

“Back then, definitely,” Demeter said. “After we found out who you were at least.”

Apollo’s lips quirked up. “And you definitely left a lasting first impression.”

Percy looked confused and a smile started to tug on the corners of Hermes’ lips. “You have to remember Percy, the first glimpse we got of you was when you, well, used my service for the first time at a certain garden gnome emporium.”

Percy blanched. “Oh Styx, I forgot about that part.”

“You forgot?” Artemis raised an eyebrow. “That was one of the most suicidal things I have ever seen a demigod do, and you forgot?”

“A lot of stuff happened,” Percy said and let out a groan. “That’s going to get shown as well, isn’t it?”

“Probably,” Apollo didn’t look bothered. “Haven’t laughed that much at a council meeting before.”

Percy sighed. “Great.”

But for now, we should get you a bank in cabin eleven… And then he did rise from his wheelchair… it was the front of an animal… a huge white stallion… the upper body of my Latin teacher, smoothly grafted to the horse’s trunk.

“A warning would have been nice,” Leo noted.

“What a relief,” the centaur said… Now, come, Percy Jackson. Let’s meet the other campers.”

The projection died down.

Chapter 9: I Become Supreme Lord of the Bathroom

Chapter Text

The projection formed once again around them.

Percy and Chiron, this time without the wheelchair, walked through the strawberry fields at camp half-blood.

Once I got over the fact that my Latin teacher was a horse… the way I trusted his front.

Travis let out a snort and Percy felt his face heating up as the others also started to snicker.

“Oh Styx,” he smacked his forehead with the palm of his hand and sent the Stolls a glare. “Don’t you dare tell him that. I’ll have kitchen duty for the next 10 years.”

We passed the volleyball pit… Another said, “That’s him.”

Percy quickly avoided eye contact with them and shifted his weight nervously from one side to the other.

Connor winced.

He still remembered when he had found out about Percy and the minotaur.

It hadn’t been until the morning after the fight.

The soft light of the morning sun had dunked their cabin into a warm light and he and Travis had discussed a new trap for the next capture the flag game. A map of the forest had laid on his mattress, and his brother had drawn little blue and red dots on either sides, his tongue sticking out in concentration and strains of brown hair falling into his face.

They had one hour before breakfast, so the cabin had been relatively empty. Most campers took every chance they got to flee the forced proximity by taking a walk, relaxing at the beach, visiting the Pegasi or sparring with one another.

Besides them the only other people present had been Samirah and Marcus, who had been playing a round of cards, Charlie, who had still been deeply asleep, and, of course, Luke.

Their half-brother had rarely done any not necessary activity at that time and spent almost all of his time either brooding in the cabin or training in the arena.

He had been sharpening one of his knifes and stared at the floor with a distant look on his face, the same one that had often adorned his face ever since his quest, and they had learned not to question.

Conner had been scribbling down possible places of attack, when Mia, a 14-year-old, undetermined camper, had pushed open the door with a loud thump.

Everyone had looked up, even Luke.

Her platin blond hair, which was usually bound into a ponytail had become loose and had framed her face like a curtain, her cheeks had been flushed and her dark eyes had gleamed.

“New camper,” she had managed to wheeze out between gasps of air. “Fought the minotaur, at Thalia’s tree. Won.”

She had to support her weight by leaning with one hand against the doorframe. “Unconscious in the infirmary.”

Silence had followed, only interrupted by her heavy breathing.

With a cling, Luke’s knife had fallen to the floor, but Connor had barely registered it. The words hadn’t fully sunken in.

Then, his eyes had widened, and he had exchanged a disbelieving look with Travis, whose mouth had fallen open.

At first, they had been convinced that it had been simply a joke. A really lame and stupid prank.

No new camper could possibly defeat a beast like the minotaur, and even their veterans, like Clarisse, or Beckendorf would have serious issues in a fight.

It wasn’t until they had rushed outside and heard the same story from other campers, Kelly, Amir and even Silena, that they had started to believe it.

Theories had spread through camp like a wildfire, and there wasn’t a demigod who hadn’t talked about this new mystery kid. Even the satyrs and nymphs had joined the gossip.

Back then, he hadn’t wasted a thought on how Percy might have felt. Connor doubted anyone really had.

But looking back, being the talk of camp at his very first day, only shortly after fighting the minotaur and seeing his mom supposedly died… Connor had no idea how he’d react with all of that thrown unto him at once.

Much less at 12.

Most of the campers were older than me… they were expecting me to do a flip or something.

Jason felt a wave of sympathy crash over him.

He was used to living in the spotlight. In Camp Jupiter, the attention had been as natural to him as the air he was breathing.

While they never had a prophecy surrounding a child of the big three, he had still been the only known son of Jupiter in over sixty years and one of the youngest kids to ever arrive at camp.

He could never allow himself to make a mistake, never walk even one step out of the line. But he had learned to live with it, hadn’t really known another way of life.

There were a thousand different reasons why he sometimes felt jealous of Percy, like his relationship with his mother, or his shot at a relatively normal childhood, but having something like that so suddenly on your shoulders, the expectations that come with being more powerful than others, must have been overwhelming for a twelve-year-old kid, who previously had no clue about their world.

He found himself grimacing.

That attention would only get worse once everyone would find out who Percy’s father is.

I looked back at the farmhouse…. I got the distinct impression I was being watched.

Travis shivered. “Did she actually move?”, he sounded mildly disgusted.

“She probably sensed that the child of the prophecy had arrived at camp,” Apollo suggested in a strained voice. The usual amusem*nt in his tone had vanished. “The oracle had never been in a such a …” his golden eyes narrowed,”… predicament before, but it’s highly possible that she was still able to react to people who were as heavily involved in prophecies as Percy had been.”

Thalia leaned closer to Percy. “Probably the same reason she moved back when Annabeth and Lady Artemis were missing,” she speculated. “All of us, me, you, Bianca, Grover and Zoe, were at the same place at the same time. Our fight might have been enough to wake her up.”

“Lucky us,” Percy grimaced. “But if you don’t mind, I can live my life without creepy, old mummies walking around.”

“That makes two of us,” she muttered.

“What’s up there,” I asked Chiron… “Not a single living thing.”

Piper furrowed her brows. “Was there any good reason why he didn’t answer you?”

“I guess it freaked Chiron out that one of the first questions Percy asked, had something to do with the oracle,” Will said. “He probably already had a suspicion who he was.”

I got the feeling he was being truthful… “Lots to see.” We walked through the strawberry fields… “It pays our expenses,” he explained… but Mr. D was restricted from growing those, so they grew strawberries instead.

Dionysus eye twitched, but he kept his lips tightly pressed together in a thin line, knowing that no matter how much he wanted to, it’d change nothing if he further argued with his father.

I watched the satyr playing his pipe… I wondered if Grover could work that kind of magic.

“Not back then,” Grover said. “I used to be terrible at nature magic. Another reason the council didn’t deem me as qualified enough to get my licence.”

“Really?” Percy raised an eyebrow.

“It was what we used to believe,” Grover shrugged. “The satyr with the best control over nature magic is favored by Lord Pan. Made sense to all of us. We thought magical control was some kind of gift from him.”

He shook his head. “In the end, the assumption was wrong, of course. There are satyrs with far better control than I have and probably ever will have.”

“Grover won’t get in too much trouble, will he,”… he was a good Protector. Really.”

Grover smiled fondly and leaned his head on Percy’s shoulder.

Chiron sighed…. “But he did that!”

“Thanks,” he said.

“You did,” Percy insisted, but doubt started to fester in Grover’s mind, like mold. He bit his lips.

If he was being honest with himself, the council had a point back then.

He hadn’t really achieved anything. Sure, the mission had gotten more complicated because Percy had ditched him, but that had been partly his fault as well and searchers had to be able to adapt to every situation. No matter what.

Especially after watching it again here in the temple, it had become clear as day to him that he hadn’t been ready.

The council had been wrong on many occasions, but had he received his searcher’s licence back then and had begun his search, instead of accompanying Percy on his quest, there was no doubt in his mind that he would have died, like so many satyrs before him.

Maybe because of Polyphemus, maybe even before he could have gotten that far.

The other satyrs often talked about him being chosen by Pan, but that wasn’t true. He wasn’t. The circ*mstances of his life, the quests he had been on along with Percy, and Annabeth and Thalia, and Tyson, had shaped him into someone whom Pan could recognize as worthy enough.

Back then he would have had no shot at finding him.

“There’s a difference between being a good friend and a good protector Percy,” he muttered. “And I had a lot to learn back then.”

His friend studied him for a second. “We both did,” he finally said. “I guess we both would have died back then without the other, huh?”

Grover smiled. “And Annabeth.”

“Of course,” Percy chuckled. “We would have been long gone if it wasn’t for her.”

“I might agree with you,” Chiron said… whether this shows any courage on Grover’s part.”

“Excuse me?”, Thalia glared at the projection. “A fury and the Minotaur attacked Percy. And Grover got knocked out by lightning. I’d like to see members of the council show bravery in a situation like that.”

“The council seriously sucked,” Annabeth agreed.

Grover’s lips quirked up. “Thanks guys.”

I wanted to protest…he might not have gotten in trouble.

Grover sent him a pointed look. “You blamed yourself for that?”

“If I wouldn’t have ditched you, the minotaur might not have caught up to us,” Percy shrugged “I should have waited for you.”

“Dude”, Grover shook his head. “You couldn’t have known. Plus, you saved my life only hours prior. That was absolutely not your fault.”

“It wasn’t yours either, you know,” he said and looked at him. “The minotaur, mom, the fates…None of it was your fault. Even the fact that you went to Montauk, while knowing I was being chased was pretty brave.”

Grover cracked a smile. “So, you’re saying we should stop apologizing to each other?”

“Could probably become a bit annoying after a while.”

“He’ll get a second chance, won’t he? „Chiron winced… I advised him to wait longer before trying again. He’s still so small for his age…”

“Something the two of you had in common,” Annabeth teased, receiving two half-hearted glares, and a friendly push against the shoulder from Percy.

She let out a laugh.

Her friends focused their attention back on the projection, but she couldn’t help but glance at the two of them again.

If she was being honest with herself, it was kind of scary how those two turned out in the end.

Annabeth sometimes still saw Grover as the scared, nervous, metal-eating young satyr, with horns that were small enough to hide in his dark locks, who dreamed about enchiladas and always clumsily tried to make her feel better, even if he didn’t know how.

Seeing him now, with his tall figure, the aura of confidence that surrounded him since the labyrinth, and his long, shining horns, she couldn’t help but feel proud.

And then, of course, there was Percy.

Her gaze shifted to him.

If anyone would have told her back then that this scrawny, stubborn, sarcastic kid, who didn’t even fit in his armor would someday be the Savior of Olympus, or jump into the depths of Tartarus for her…

She shook her head with a fond smile.

“How old is he?” “Oh, twenty-eight.”…”That’s horrible.”

“Tell me about it,” Grover said and shook his head in disgust. “Gods, I really hated going to all of these different schools year after year.”

Percy nudged his shoulder with a grin. “At least that’s over now. You never have to study again.”

“I know,” Grover smiled teasingly. “Now, I can actually make fun of you two whenever you have to go to college.”

“Quite,” Chiron agreed… “What happened the first time? Was it really so bad?”

“Could have been worse,” Thalia pointed out. “Far worse.”

“Was plenty bad,” Annabeth disagreed and glared at her. “I still can’t believe you decided to fight against them alone.”

“There wasn’t exactly another choice,” Thalia’s face softened, and she slung an arm over Annabeth’s shoulder. “I’m just gad you and Grover made it out in one piece.”

Chiron looked away quickly. “Let’s move along, shall we?”

Annabeth let out a deep sigh and studied the centaur sadly.

Chiron had been there for her every step of the way after Thalia had died. For every fit, scream and breakdown.

She didn’t know how many nights he had sat with her in the big house with a steaming cup of hot chocolate in front of her, her throat raw from crying and tears still rolling down her face.

Every single time, when her cabin mates, or even Luke, couldn’t help her calm down, Chiron had come, even hugged her on the nights that were especially bad.

Her mental state, plus the blame Zeus had undoubtedly placed upon the centaur had to have made that time not only rough for her, Luke and Grover, but also for him.

Chiron had probably hated every reminder of the day Thalia had died. Similarly, to them.

But I wasn’t quite ready to let the subject drop…. The beginning of an idea – a tiny, hopeful fire- started forming in my mind.

Various glances were thrown in his direction, some with pity, others with exasperation, and again others with annoyance.

Grover let out a sigh, running his hand through his hair.” Already? I thought it would at least take you one or three days.”

“Chiron,” I said. “If the gods and Olympus and all that are real…. Does that mean the Underworld is real too.”

Nico grimaced. “So, your first reaction to discovering that Greek mythology is real, was to think about going to the underworld?”

Percy shrugged. “I got lucky. It overlapped with our quest anyway.”

“But that wouldn’t have mattered for you,” Hades noted, voice cold. “You would have gone sooner or later, even if your quest wouldn’t have led you to my domain.”

“Yeah,” Percy admitted. “I would have. No doubt about it.”

“And gotten killed,” Grover muttered, and sent him a pointed look.

“If I would have gone alone? Definitely.”

Chiron’s expression darkened… until we know more… I would urge you to put that out of your mind.”

“Yeah,” Frank let out a defeated sigh. “That’s not going to happen. Made you probably only more curious.”

“What do you mean, ‘until we know more’? “Come, Percy. Let’s see the woods.”

Reyna messaged her temples. “I have to admit, this lack of any sound explanation is really starting to get on my nerves.”

As we got closer, I realized how huge the forest was… “You’ll see. Capture the flag is Friday night. Do you have your own sword and shield?”

Hazel squished her eyebrows together. “A sword or shield?”

“Chiron seems to be a bit frazzled,” Chris said and looked at Percy. “Your arrival really had one of the worst timings possible with the whole war thing going on.”

“I know,” Percy sighed. “I guess I can’t say I blame Chiron for being distracted.”

“My own-?” “No, „Chiron said… We saw the archery range, the canoeing lake, the stables… “Not lethal. Usually. Oh, yes, and there’s the mess hall.”

“He’s really rushing through it”, Leo looked almost impressed. “It’s like a camp speed-run.”

Chiron pointed to an outdoor pavilion framed in white Grecian columns… “We still have to eat, don’t we?” I decided to drop the subject.

Will facepalmed.

He understood why Chiron would have been uncomfortable at the time, but he could have just let one of the counselors give Percy the tour instead. Like Silena, or Beckendorf.

Finally, he showed me the cabins… they were without a doubt the most bizarre collection of buildings I’d ever seen.

The camper smiled.

“I like our system more, but the stylisation is pretty awesome,” Hazel admitted. Then an amused grin started to tug on her lips. “Although I think I would have designed the Hades cabin a bit differently.”

Nico blushed and folded his arms in front of his chest. “Not my fault that they allowed a 12-year-old to design an entire cabin. Especially with the mindset I had back then.”

Will snickered. “Can you be a bit more specific, count Dracula? Are you talking about the obsidian walls with no windows, the skeleton above the door, or the coffin beds?”

“Shut up, Solace,” Nico’s face became a shade darker.

Except for the fact that each had a large brass number above the door…A girl about nine years old was tending the flames, poking the coals with a stick.

The Greek campers’ eyes widened in recognition and darted from the projection to the goddess. “You were at camp, lady Hestia?” Katie finally asked. “How did we never notice?”

The goddess smiled gently. “Few do,” she explained, her gaze not leaving the picture. “It’s mostly my intention to remain unseen. I can assure you that Percy and Nico are the exceptions rather than the rule.”

Hestia remembered that moment as clear as water. The small boy, who had tentatively smiled at her, before nervously averting his eyes again, hands playing with the minotaur horn, and a violet bruise on his left cheek.

It had barely been a second of eye contact, but she had known. Of course, she had known.

She would always recognize her brother’s eyes. The emerald, green shade he had gotten from their mother, and shared with all of his demigod children.

Hestia had sighed back then and focused her attention back on the campfire. It had flickered as if a strong wind had blown through it, like the fire had known what Percy’s arrival at camp had meant.

Like it was bracing itself for a coming storm.

The pairs of cabins at the head of the field, numbers one and two… big white marble boxes with heavy columns in front.

Thalia wrinkled her nose as she let her eyes wander over the massive columns, white marble, and bronze door of the Zeus cabin.

She remembered her first night at camp as clearly as if it happened just yesterday.

The walls had kept out any sound from the outside world, and the deafening silence had started to ring in her ears, after hours and hours of lying wide awake and staring at the ceiling. She had been careful to avoid looking at the Zeus statue, that had seemed to have been glaring daggers at her.

The whole place had reminded her more of a mausoleum than a cabin.

After spending almost every night under the sky, together with Luke and Annabeth, telling stories or sharing jokes around a warm campfire, the cabin had almost been painfully lonely.

She glanced at Jason.

Her brother’s lips were pressed into a thin line and apprehension grew in his eyes, the longer he looked at the cabin, no doubt having gone through a similar experience.

Thalia tilted her head in thought. She wondered if she’d feel the same if she’d ever shared the Zeus cabin with her brother. Or anyone else, for that matter.

Cabin one was the biggest and bulkiest of the 12…Twelve cabins for the twelve Olympians. But why would some be empty?

“Dude, get a grip,” Percy groaned and ran a hand over his face. “No wonder you were so annoyed at me.”

Annabeth shook her head softly. “It’s a lot to digest. Especially for a 12-year-old. Honestly, I would be more worried if you’d just accepted everything right out of the gate. It’s normal that it took you a while.”

I stopped in front of the first cabin on the left, cabin three.

Rachel arched an eyebrow. “Is there like a radar in all of your heads regarding what cabin you belong to or is Percy just weird.”

“There’s sea stone engulfed in the foundation and walls of the cabin,” Annabeth pointed out. “It’s possible that Percy somehow felt drawn to it.” She shrugged. “But honestly, I don’t know. I never really understood how your powers work.”

It wasn’t high and mighty like cabin one… Chiron said, “Oh, I wouldn’t do that.”

“Another thing you did that freaked Chiron out,” Katie noted. “If he already had a suspicion, you pretty much just validated it.”

“I’m starting to understand why Chiron was like that that day,” Chris said. “Imagine already having a suspicion who Percy is, then he defeats the minotaur, the oracle moves the first time he walks through camp and then he stops at cabin three. That would have made anyone uncomfortable.”

Before he could pull me back, I caught the salty scent of the interior…I was glad when Chiron put his hand on my shoulder and said,” Come along, Percy.”

Rachel suppressed a snort. “Yeah, Chiron’s not a fan of Percy being near that cabin.”

Most of the other cabins were crowded with campers… The roof was lined with barb wire… Inside I could see a bunch of mean-looking kids… arguing with each other while rock music blared.

Chris had to suppress a snort when he heard the description, and saw the apprehension grow in past-Percy’s eyes.

No matter how much he and the Ares campers, especially Clarisse pretended they didn’t tolerate each other, Chris had no idea how many times he had to wait for his girlfriend in front of her cabin, while she and Percy were involved in an arm-wrestling match, or they listened to the same rock music.

He rolled his eyes.

Chris had long given up on making sense out of Percy’s and Clarisse’s friendship, and had simply decided to roll along with it.

The loudest was a girl maybe thirteen or fourteen… was much bigger and tougher looking, and her hair was long and stringy, and brown instead of red.

Clarisse crossed her arms over her chest. “Course I’m tougher than that girl.” Then she smirked. “But at least I’m not compared to a zoo animal.”

Grover sent her a glare, while the other demigods snickered.

I kept walking, trying to stay clear of Chiron’s hooves…My kinsmen are a wild and barbaric folk… But you won’t see any here.”

“I do miss the party ponies,” Travis grinned. “I wish they could come to camp from time to time.”

Connor snorted. “Chiron would get a heart attack.”

“You said your name was Chiron. Are you really… “But shouldn’t you be dead?”

Hermes had to suppress a snort, while Will facepalmed. “Very sensitive, Percy.”

Chiron paused, as if the answer intrigued him… eons ago the gods granted my wish… But I’m still here, so I can only assume I’m still needed.”

“Of course, he is,” Annabeth said immediately. “There is no way Chiron will ever not be needed. I can’t imagine camp without him.”

I thought about being a teacher for three thousand years. I wouldn’t have made my Top Ten Things to Wish For list.

“You are a pretty good teacher though,” Katie pointed out. “At least when it comes to sword fighting.”

After the battle at camp half-blood, whenever he was at camp, Percy had taken on the responsibility of being the main sword fighting instructor. Kind of filling in Quintus’ old role.

At first, Katie hadn’t been completely convinced.

Obviously, she had known about his abilities with riptide; there wasn’t a demigod at camp, who could deny his talent, especially after the havoc he had wreaked against their enemies at Zeus’ fist but she had also been aware that Percy was a natural.

Travis had told her all about their first sword lesson with the son of Poseidon, and she had worried that he wouldn’t know how to teach half bloods who were less gifted than him.

But Percy had surprised her.

He was gentil, patient, even when he had to correct someone’s stance over and over again, he never complained, but was still strict and tough when he thought somebody was slacking of.

Especially the younger campers had grown to adore him.

Besides following the usual training plan, he also came up with new ideas and concepts to help them get better. From talking to the head counselors of every cabin about the weaknesses and strengths of the other campers, to devising training plans, where he didn’t separate them based on their parents, but based on their age and skill level.

Katie didn’t know how many times, she had seen him, deeply in thought sitting at the beach, in the dining pavilion or his cabin, scribbling on some of his new ideas, his eyebrows furrowed, and his hands playing absentmindedly with his pen.

At the end of that summer, she had finally gathered up the courage to ask him about it.

They had sat together at the beach, the wind ruffling their clothes and hairs, and a bowl of strawberries on the sand between them.

She still remembered the way his smile had fallen of his face when she had asked.

“I didn’t know their names,” he had said, a distant look in his eyes.

She had blinked. “What?”

“Castor, Amir, Charlie, Nala, Mary,” his voice had seemed close to giving out. He had taken a deep breath before continuing. “They died, at the battle and I didn’t know their names. I barely talked to most of them while living at camp.”

Katie’s mouth had suddenly tasted bitter. She kept her gaze on the floor and gulped down the feeling of guilt at the mention of one of her half-sisters. “None of us knew all of them,” she had said. “We didn’t… it’s not like we talk to every single person living here.”

“We are fighting alongside one another,” Percy had said.” Next year, if the prophecy really comes true, there will be another fight. Even worse than this one, and if there is any chance, I can help someone survive it…” he had trailed of with a dark look in his eyes, his face transforming into a grimace. “If I can help anyone survive the whole thing with Kronos, I just want to do whatever I can.”

“We’ll be fine,” Katie had said, and nudged him gently against the shoulder. “The camp is strong. As long as we fight together, we’ll be fine. We have to be. An when it comes to the prophecy, I trust you. 100%. We’ll be fine.”

“I guess so,” a small smile had formed on his lips, when he had looked up at her. “Thanks Katie.”

Travis next to her grimaced and sent Percy a pointed look, tearing her out of her thoughts. “I personally don’t like you as a teacher, Perce. I’m still aching from the last session.”

Percy rolled his eyes. “If the training is hard, it’s working, Travis.”

“Plus, you got better,” Katie said with a teasing grin. “Even I noticed that.”

“On whose side are you on?” he gaped at her.

“On the side of the guy, who’s in charge of our training schedule. Sorry Travis.”

“Doesn’t it ever get boring?... “Why depressing?”

A dark shadow fell over Percy’s face. “Stupid question,” he muttered.

Hestia sighed and let her eyes wander between the 12-year-old demigod in the projection, and the seventeen-year-old one, sitting only a couple of feet away from her.

He was already burdened by his mother’s death, and the revelation of their world on this first day at camp half-blood, but there was still an innocence to his worldview, a naivety to his questions, a light in his eyes.

Everything that had happened over the last few years, the wars, Kronos, Gaia, Tartarus, had taken their toll on the young demigod, trying to get that light snuffed out like the flicker of a candle.

They hadn’t managed to, not completely. But they had left their obvious marks.

To Percy, to all of the demigods present.

“Hope survives best at the hearth.”

The answer echoed from time to time in the back of her mind, ever since she had met Percy on Olympus that day on his 16^th birthday, when he had entrusted her with Elpis, the spirit of hope.

The certainty and determination in his tone, the wisdom in the decision, the honesty in his eyes made that moment harder to forget than most.

Hestia softly shook her head with a sigh. She understood all too well nowadays what her brother saw in Perseus Jackson.

Chiron seemed to turn hard of hearing again… like she was still thinking about how much I drooled.

Annabeth let out a surprised laugh. “More like how in the fates name you managed to defeat the minotaur, but close enough I guess.”

I tried to see what she was reading… “I have masters’ archery class at noon. Would you take Percy from here?”

Chris winced and exchanged a knowing glance with Travis and Connor.

As amazing as Annabeth had always been, intelligent, headstrong, and determined, she hadn’t exactly been the most friendly or patient kid at camp. Not the person he personally would have picked to give Percy the tour.

“Yes, sir.” “Cabin eleven,” Chiron told me… like a regular old summer cabin, with the emphasis on old.

“Percy’s right,” Travis sighed. “We really have to renovate our cabin now that it isn’t overfilled anymore.”

“You already had plans for that directly after Manhattan, right?” Katie asked.

“We did, but none of us were really keen on working after that war,” Chris sighed. “And then there was the whole story with the giants. We really should start soon though, maybe with the help of the Hephaistos and Athena cabin.”

The threshold was worn down, the brown paint peeling… What did they call it? A caduceus?

Rachel raised an eyebrow. “It’s actually quite impressive how much you knew, considering the circ*mstances. I definitely had no clue what a caduceus was when I was twelve.”

Chiron taught me for pretty much a year,” Percy shrugged. “I guess, he made sure I knew the basics.”

Inside, it was packed with people… It looked like a gym where the Red cross had set up an evacuation center.

Chris let his eyes wander over the packed cabin, the peeling wallpaper and the dozens of sleeping bags that covered the floor and winced.

Percy’s description was almost painfully accurate. Fates he had almost forgotten how bad it had been.

Chiron didn’t go in. The door was too low for him… They were staring at me, sizing me up. I knew this routine. I’d gone through it at enough schools.

Connor winced.

Camp half-blood was supposed to be their safe heaven. The place they finally belonged, without having to prove themselves to anyone. It was supposed to be the opposite of school.

But the general bitterness in the Hermes cabin back then, plus the rumors that had swirled around Percy obviously had made the experience much harder than what was usually common.

“Well?”, Annabeth prompted. “Go on.”…There were some snickers from the campers, but none of them said anything.

“Well, that was awkward,” Travis said quietly and exchanged an uncomfortable glance with his brother.

Sure, they had been bitter, but all of them had gone through the same thing at one point. And Percy had been 12, while most of them had been around 14 or 15 years old back then.

Annabeth announced, “Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven.” … “Undetermined.” Everybody groaned.

Chris shifted in his seat; his lips pursed into a frown at the reminder of what their cabin used to be.

The kids had been separated into two fronts. The actual children of Hermes and the unrecognized campers. There hadn’t been any open animosity, but a certain coldness that had infested the cabin like poison.

Hermes’ children had been angry that they had to be the one who shared their cabin, while the unclaimed were jealous of everyone who had gotten recognized.

No one had said anything, deep down they had known that it had been stupid to be mad at each other, but they hadn’t been able to shake off their feelings, no matter how much they had wanted to.

A guy who was a little older than the rest came forward.

Annabeth’s stomach dropped to the floor as if the gravity had suddenly seized to exist and her breath hitched.

Luke looked exactly the way she remembered him. The same honey-blonde hair, that messily fell into his face, the same scar, the same blue eyes. Blue, the color of the sky on a summer day, or of Laüis Lazuli. Not golden. Blue.

Her lips pressed together into a thin line, and she grabbed Percy’s hand so tightly her knuckles became white.

“Now, now, campers. That’s what we’re here for. Welcome Percy… a thick white scar that ran from just beneath his right eye to his jaw, like an old knife slash… I glanced over and could have sworn she was blushing.

Piper raised an eyebrow and looked confused at Annabeth. This was the Luke they had mentioned before?

The name had come up from time to time, when the other campers had told her, Jason and Leo stories about the last war, but always with dark expressions and never with a good explanation who that guy actually was.

But Annabeth didn’t look at Piper. Her eyes were glued to the projection.

The voice felt suffocating, as if the first words had sucked the entire air from the room and threatened to suffocate her in a storm of memories.

She saw the very first time they had met each other when she was seven, their faces dirty, their clothes torn, and their bodies thin.

She saw the three of them sitting around a campfire, laughing, and sharing stories, Luke training her with the knife, a proud glint in his eyes, she saw Luke treating some of her wounds, a kind smile on his lips.

With another shuddered breath, she leaned her head on Percy’s shoulder and closed her eyes, while Thalia silently slung an arm around her shoulder.

She saw me looking and her expression hardened again… Hermes, our patron, is the god of travelers.”

“Patron,” Hermes repeated. He felt a bit number, a bit emptier as he studied his son. The anger that glinted in his eyes, the bitterness that distorted his face way more than his scar did.

Apollo leaned his head closer and squeezed his shoulder. “You alright?”

“I’m great,” he sighed. “Just fantastic.”

I looked at the tiny section of floor they’d given me… as if they were waiting for a chance to pick my pockets.

“I’ll take the description,” Conner forced himself to grin. “Better than Grover’s.”

“Or Mr. D’s,” Travis managed to press out, though he couldn’t tear his eyes away from his half-brother. His chest felt tight.

He had tried his best not to think of Luke and what he had done, had always turned the other way on the rare occasion that the subject had come up the last few years.

Deep down he knew taht no matter how much he wanted to feel glad that Luke was dead and the wars over, his betrayal and death hurt more than Travis would like to admit.

They had grown up together at camp and he and Conner had always looked up to him. To one of the only people at camp who had gotten a quest in the last 40 years, to the best swordsman in the last 300 and the guy who had managed to survive living together with a daughter of Zeus for a year on the streets before arriving at camp.

He had been their hero, their role model, everything Travis had aspired to become.

When he had simply disappeared without another word, only leaving behind a halfdead Percy, it had been like his world had shattered. As if a piece had suddenly gone missing.

Connor laid a warm hand on his shoulder and squeezed.

Travis looked up at his brother. His other arm had reached forward and was doing the same thing to Chris, who could have very well turned into a stone statue, his hands balled into fists.

He sighed, then managed to send him a small smile and mouthed,” Thanks.”

“How long will I be here,” I asked… The campers all laughed. “Come on,” Annabeth told me… I could hear the kids of cabin eleven laughing behind me.

Chris scowl deepened, his fingers digging into his skin. He was pretty sure he had been one of the people laughing.

When we were a few feet away, Annabeth said, “Jackson, you have to do better than that… “I can’t believe I thought you were the one.”

“Sorry,” Annabeth whispered, though she didn’t look at him. She simply stared at the floor, her expression empty.

Percy squeezed her hand, but no word passed his lips, as he was still glaring at the spot Luke had been only seconds prior.

“What’s your problem,” I was getting angry now… You know how many kids at this camp wish they’d had your chance?”

“Chance?” Thalia got thrown out of her thoughts, grief and anger shortly turned into surprise.

Annabeth grimaced. She looked at the floor and fiddled with her dad’s old college ring. “You were gone,” she started to say. “Luke was different ever since that damned quest. I missed our time together. I thought that if I just fought against monsters again, I’d somehow feel closer to you again.”

“Annie…” Thalia’s face fell.

She shook her head. “It was stupid, especially to project my feelings to the other campers, but I just… I missed you.”

Thalia gave her a tight side-hug “I’m sorry.”

Annabeth sighed. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“To get killed?”

“To fight the minotaur! What do you think we train for?”

Annabeth groaned and hid her face in Thalia’s shoulder. “Stupid, idiotic, 12-year-old me.”

I shook my head. “Look, if the thing I fought really was the Minotaur… They can be killed. But they don’t die.”

Katie sighed. “And that’s why it was also a mistake to let Annabeth give Percy the tour. You used to be a lot like Chiron back then.”

“Normally I wasn’t that bad,” Annabeth protested, though much lighter than usually. “Percy was a special case because of what had happened with the minotaur. It was my job as the counselor of the Athena cabin.”

“Oh thanks. That clears it up… Chiron calls them archetypes. Eventually, they re-form.”

Annabeth paused, and then sighed, running a hand through her hair. “Okay, yeah, I get it. That was a crap explanation.”

“If it helps, the one you gave me was better,” Piper said encouragingly.

“Please,” Annabeth sent her a small smile,” I was a mess when you arrived at camp.”

“Yeah,” Piper admitted, the corners of her lips twitching,” but still, I was glad it was you of all people who explained all that stuff to me. Even if you were a mess.”

I thought about Mrs. Dodds. “You mean if I killed one, accidentally with a sword-“

“Accidentally?” Rachel raised an eyebrow.

Percy shrugged and forced himself to grin. “To be fair, I had not really a clue what I was doing, so technically it was at least a bit accidentally.”

“The Fur… I mean, your math teacher… “You talk in your sleep.”

“What did I even say?”, Percy murmured to Annabeth. “

“Most of the time you mumbled stuff about Grover and your mom, and barnyard animals. But a few times you mentioned Nancy or Mrs. Dodds,” she shrugged sheepishly. “I asked Chiron if he knew what that meant, and he explained it to me. At least, parts of it.”

“You almost called her something. A Fury? They’re Hades ‘torturers, right?”

“I have to agree with what Rachel said earlier,” Frank looked surprised. “Compared to other 12-year-olds, who didn’t grow up at any camp, you know surprisingly much about Greek myths.”

Percy shrugged. “Like I said, Chiron taught me.”

Annabeth glanced nervously at the ground, as if she expected it to open up… You don’t choose your cabin, Percy. It depends on who your parents are. Or … your parent.”

She stared at me, waiting for me to get it.

“That’s going to take way longer,” Percy muttered and ran a hand across his face. “Styx, I forgot how slow I was back then.”

“You were in denial,” Grover said and sent him a glance. “I can’t really blame you for that after everything that had happened to you. You went through a lot.”

“My mom is Sally Jackson,”… Because I know you. You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t one of us.” “You don’t know anything about me.”… “Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD, too.”

Annabeth smacked her forehead against Percy’s shoulder and groaned. “I sound like an obsessive member of some creepy, hidden cult.”

Percy couldn’t help but snort. He patted her back. “It was fine. Relax. You were 12.”

I tried to swallow my emberassment… Most of them are monsters. They don’t want you seeing them for what they are.”

“Not all of them are monsters,” Grover noted. “Most teachers simply don’t know.”

It didn’t happen enough times, but during his time as a protector, he had met teachers who genuinely tried to help their students, when they recognized signs of Adhd or dyslexia. They were rarer than what he would like, but they existed.

Most of them simply lived in a different world than their students, which obviously made it often impossible for them to completely understand demigods.

“You sound like… you went through the same thing?... Face it. You’re a halfblood.”

Piper wrinkled her nose in annoyance.

“Relax, beauty queen,” Leo cracked her a grin. “We all know the term is outdated. We’ve heard your and Percy’s lecture. Half-blood is out, and demigod is in. But we can’t change that the people at camp used the term before that, so we just have to bear if for the next couple of days.”

“I know,” she sighed and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

A half-blood… Then a husky voice yelled, ”Well! A newbie!”

Clarisse grimaced.

“You were young. And dealing with the stuff with your mom,” Chris reassured her with a knowing look. “It was stupid, and immature, but we know that’s not you anymore.”

I looked over. The big girl from the ugly cabin… ‘Go to the crows!’ though I had a feeling it was a worse curse than it sounded. “You don’t stand a chance.”

“Please,” Clarisse scoffed, and folded her arms in front of her chest.

“We’ll pulverize you,” Clarisse said… she wasn’t sure she could follow through on the threat.

“Of course, we could have. In an open battle, we defeat the Athena cabin almost every time.”

“Then why should we meet you in an open battle?” Annabeth countered and her lips quirked up, glad for the distraction from Luke. “Plus, I can defeat most of your cabin mates in a one on one.”

“Most,” Clarisse smirked. “You’ve got no shot against me, princess.”

Annabeth raised her chin. “We’ll see about that, la rue.”

She turned towards me… Annabeth said, “meet Clarisse, Daughter of Ares.”

Percy groaned. “You even told me Clarisse is his daughter.”

“And Luke told you Hermes is his patron,” Annabeth pointed out. “I can see why you were confused.”

I blinked. “Like… the war god?”… “We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy.”

Jason found himself grimacing. If Clarisse had been anything like the bullies back at camp Jupiter, he had an idea what she might mean with this ‘initiation ceremony.’

They had tried to stop it, he and Reyna, especially after they had become praetors, but there had been almost a system of bullying, initiated by Octavius.

Mostly, targeted attacks against demigods or legacies he didn’t deem deserving enough of the honor to serve in the roman army.

His scowl deepened at the reminder.

“Percy.” “Whatever. Come on. I’ll show you…a cinder-block building I knew immediately was the bathroom.

Piper raised an eyebrow unimpressed. “Really?”

“It was stupid,” Clarisse admitted. “Like Annabeth I had a bad case of cabin fever and hearing that some newbie had fought against the minotaur pissed me off.”

I was kicking and punching… Clarissa had hands like iron.

Clarisse’ lips curled up. “Of course, you’d think that. You were a wimp.”

Percy snorted. “You really think this is a moment you can boast, Clarisse?”, he asked teasingly. “With everything that’s going to happen the next few minutes?”

She scowled at him.

She dragged me into the girls’ bathroom…if this place belonged to the gods, , they should’ve been able to afford classier johns.

“Should have mentioned the bathroom when you made the gods swear the oath,” Grover whispered amused.

Thalia snorted, while Percy rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure if I did, I would have gotten disintegrated on the spot, no matter what happened against Kronos.”

“Probably,” Annabeth snickered.

Clarisse’s friends were all laughing… Minotaur probably fell over laughing, he was so stupid looking.”

“Oh yeah,” Rachel rolled her eyes drily. “He practically oozed of amusem*nt when Percy killed him.”

Her friends snickered. Annabeth stood in the corner watching through fingers.

“Thanks for that,” Percy said. “I wouldn’t have wanted you to fight my battles for me. At least not on my first day.”

“It was like 4 against 1,” Annabeth shifted in her seat. “I should have tried to help. You would have if our roles had been reversed.”

“And you would have hated me for it,” Percy said.

“Probably,” she admitted.

Clarisse bent me over on my knees and started pushing my head toward the toilet bowl… I heard the plumbing rumble, the pipes shudder… I was sprawled on the bathroom tiles with Clarisse screaming behind me.

“Deserved,” Piper muttered. Sorry, but I really don’t like younger you.”

“Me neither,” Clarisse said. Then, after a pause. “Prissy still would have deserved it though.”

I turned just as water blasted out of the toilet again… like the spray from a fire hose, pushing her backwards into a shower stall.

Clarisse grimaced. Looking back, she had deserved it, no doubt.

Still, she remembered how much she had trained day and night to receive respect at camp. She had won dozens of games of capture the flag, had sparred anyone who had had the guts to challenge her and prayed everyday to her father for a quest.

Only for this 12-year-old punk who had just arrived to kill the minotaur and defeat her that easily.

That had been the main reason, she had wanted to destroy Percy so badly at capture the flag. Redemption.

She struggled, gasping, and her friends started coming toward her… spinning them around like pieces of garbage being washed away.

Leo whistles and sent him a thumbs up. “Not bad. Would have saved me a lot of disgusting incidents and showers if I could have done that at 12.”

As soon as they were out the door… She was standing In exactly the same place, staring at me in shock.

“I was really confused,” Annabeth admitted and leaned back against her cushion, her arms crossed. “And I tried to convince myself that there was another explanation for what Percy had done except for…you know… the obvious.”

I looked down and realize I was sitting in the only dry spot in the whole room… Annabeth said, “How did you…” “I don’t know.”

“Let me get this straight,” Reyna said and raised an eyebrow at the old campers. “You saw Percy control the water, like literally control actual water, and still questioned who his father could be?”

“We didn’t really see it,” Katie said with a sigh. “Mary, the girls with Clarisse, told us what happened, but we hadn’t seen it. Plus, we were pretty much in denial.”

“Deep, deep denial,” Chris nodded in agreement.

We walked to the door, Outside, Clarisse and her friends… “you are dead, new boy. You are totally dead.”

“That still counts,” Clarisse smirked. “For the next capture the flag.”

A challenging grin spread across Percy’s face. “Bring it on, la Rue. How’s your spear?”

“Ready to turn you into kebab anytime, pretty boy.”

I probably should have let it go… Clarisse? Close your mouth.”

Grover sighed. “And we didn’t have a calm day at camp ever since.”

Her friends had to hold her back… whether she was just grossed out or angry at me for dousing her.

“A bit of both,” Annabeth admitted. “But I was mostly in shock. It’s not everyday a new camper manages or dares to shoot toilet water at Clarisse.”

“What?” I demanded… “that I want you on my team for capture the flag.”

“Right, capture the flag,” Percy sent Annabeth a teasing grin. “Thanks for that, by the way.”

Her face became red, and she groaned. “Yeah, yeah, I’m really sorry for that one.”

The projection vanished.

Chapter 10: My Dinner Goes Up in Smoke

Chapter Text

The new scene formed.

Annabeth and Percy were walking trough camp. Annabeth was drenched, her clothes, and hair all wet as if she’d just taken a swim in the lake and a scowl was fixtured on her face. Percy glanced at her from time to time, and opened his mouth as if to say something, before deciding differently and closing it again.

Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately… murmured something about toilet water… Annabeth, who was pretty much dripping wet.

Katie shook her head fondly. “Of course, we also talked about the bathroom incident, most campers don’t manage to fight off Clarisse, but the main reason was still because of the minotaur.”

“Oh,” A blush crept onto Percy’s cheeks. “Yeah, I guess, I didn’t think of that.”

She showed me a few more places… and clashed together if you didn’t get to the top fast enough.

Will couldn’t help but grimace. Besides, capture the flag, that wall was the main reason for campers to end up in the infirmary.

He didn’t know how many broken bones and burn wounds he had already patched up over the last three years. The smell of burnt flesh had become as familiar to him as the scent of their strawberry fields or the smoke from their campfires.

Will really didn’t like that wall, no matter how much ‘important practical experience’ it provided, to quote Chiron.

Finally, we returned to the canoeing lake… “Whatever.” “It wasn’t my fault.”

Percy sent her a sheepish smile. “Okay, I take it back. Was totally my fault. Sorry.”

“You had no idea, that you were even able to do that,” Annabeth disagreed with a shake of her head. “I mean, I admit, I was pretty mad at you after I had to walk around drenched like that, but you only defended yourself. I shouldn’t have blamed you for that, especially after not even trying to help you against Clarisse and the others.”

She looked at me sceptically … I had become one with the plumbing.

Connor couldn’t suppress a snort. “One with the plumbing, really?”, he snickered. “Man, Percy, I know this sucks on so many levels for you, but I hope you know that your thoughts are really funny sometimes.”

“I’m glad at least one of us is enjoying this,” Percy said drily, and sent him a look. “Please forgive my personal lack of enthusiasm though.”

“You need to talk to the oracle,” … “Not who. What. The Oracle. I’ll ask Chiron.”

Thalia wrinkled her nose. “I think you’re spending too much time with Chiron. You sound as cryptic as he does.”

“I know,” Annabeth let out a deep sigh, and folded her arms in front of her chest. “Not exactly ideal for giving someone a tour of the camp. I guess I was a really crappy guide for him back then.”

Percy shrugged. “At least you didn’t try to stick my head into a toilet.”

I stared into the lake, wishing somebody would give me a straight answer for once. I wasn’t expecting anybody to be looking back at me… They smiled and waved as if I were a long-lost friend.

“Something like that,” Rhode had to suppress a smile. As a son of her father, Perseus was less like a friend and more like nobility to them. Of course, the naiads had recognized him at first glance.

She looked at the two girls in the water. Their blue eyes sparkled with excitement, and they exchanged playful grins, that betrayed their giddiness. Percy had been the first demigod child of the sea in a long time and his ocean-green eyes and black hair made him easily discernible as a son of Poseidon.

Though, the way he thought was quite different from what she had been expecting.

Most children of her father accepted this role with a smug smile, and a growing sense of superiority towards naiads and other subjects of the ocean. Especially if they were demigods.

‘Long-lost friend’ was a nice change, if Rhode was being honest.

I didn’t know what else to do. I waved back.

A hint of warmth broke trough Amphitrite’s otherwise neutral mask.

She obviously knew of the fondness many naiads and nereids held for Perseus Jackson; it was impossible to live in Atlantis without practically stumbling over it. Be it whispers in court, tales told in the city, or enthusiastic retellings of the last two wars.

While she herself never held much interest for her husband’s other children, Amphitrite couldn’t help but feel intrigued by how Perseus had managed to have such a high standing amongst their subjects.

“Don’t encourage them,” Annabeth warned. “Naiads are terrible flirts.”

Percy shook his head, an amused grin playing on his lips. “You sounded way too serious. Most of the time the naiads at camp simply want to have some fun. Especially, Arethusa, and Nicaea. It’s not like they mean any real harm.”

“Yeah, of course, they’re nice towards you,” Katie said with a sigh. “They actually like you, but not all of us are that lucky. Malcom once woke up in the middle of the lake.”

Percy sent her a look. “Malcom accidentally sent some fireworks from the Hephaestus cabin into the lake. The naiads simply returned the favour.”

“Naiads,” I repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed… “You mean, mentally disturbed kids?”

Leo’s face split into a grin. “Well, I guess, technically, you’re not that wrong. Goes hand in hand, really.”

“I mean not human. Not totally human… “God,” I said. “Half-god.”

Piper suppressed a wince. The fact, that she wasn’t completely human, was still weird for her to accept, even after everything that had happened with Gaia.

Sometimes, at night, she laid wide awake and stared at the ceiling, thinking about how ridiculous her life had truly become.

Before camp, she and her dad had often made fun of the plots and actions scenes of the movies he had participated in, laughing at the fight choreographies, the backstories or twists the writers had invented.

Now, not even one year later, she had to begrudgingly admit that her life seemed even more outlandish than anything Hollywood could come up with.

She let out a sigh. The only difference nowadays was that she could no longer talk with her dad about it.

“Annabeth nodded. “Your father isn’t dead, Percy… I remembered Chiron’s warning that in two thousand years, I might be considered a myth.

Hermes pondered at that. By how things had gone, it was pretty safe to say that the name Perseus Jackson would be well remembered into the far future.

Of course, there were many demigods in this decade, who would by all means become famous in their cycles. The names of the seven demigods of the great prophecy, of the heroes of the battle of Manhattan and the second giant war, would probably remain in the memories of the demigods, both Greek and Roman, for decades to come, but Percy had left a more permanent mark on Olympus itself.

The remembrance of the mortal world was often times flickering, names got lost all too often in the annals of history, but their world, the immortal world, did not forget.

Hermes doubted any of them would be able to erase Percy from their memory, even decades probably even centuries after his death.

“But if all the kids here are half-gods-“… “Then who’s your dad… I got the feeling I’d just trespassed on a sensitive subject.

Annabeth smiled sadly. “Like Grover said, you really do discover people’s sore spots rather easily, even without trying.”

“I guess it’s a talent,” he said, then sighed. “But I’m sorry, that I brought that up.”

She shook her head. “You couldn’t have known, and I was used to the question from new campers. It wasn’t your fault.”

“My dad is a professor at West Point… “How sexist is that?”

Rachel couldn’t help but snort. “Sexist, really? Percy? You were just searching for reasons to hate him at that point, weren’t you?”

“Totally,” Annabeth admitted and ran a hand frustrated trough her hair. “I was already annoyed, so, whatever Percy would have said, I would have snapped back. And talking about my dad always managed to put me on edge.”

“Who’s your mom, then?” “Cabin six.”

Annabeth leaned her head against Percy’s shoulder and groaned. “Gods, I don’t remember being such an ass to you back then.”

“You got better,” Percy said with a playful smile, and squeezed her hand. “I’m pretty sure we were both jerks to each other from time to time. But, you know, at the important times, we were pretty good together.”

She grinned. “Absolutely awesome, I dare say.”

“Meaning? Annabeth straightened… Okay, I thought. Why not? “And my dad?” … Annabeth gave me a cautious look. She didn’t want to burst my bubble… your father has to send you a sign claiming you as his son. Sometimes it happens.”

Jason’s eyebrows drew together. “Sometimes?”

“A lot has changed since then, Jason,” Annabeth said. Then she halted and stared at him and Reyna. “Didn’t that also happen at Camp Jupiter?”

“No, of course not,” Reyna said, confusion lacing her tone. “Most campers are legacies anyway, but the few demigods, who live at camp always got claimed at the latest at their 16^th birthday.”

Percy’s eyebrows shot up. “What?”

Demeter sighed. “We have far fewer roman children, “she started to explain. “And when we’re roman, we’re, I suppose you could say, more disciplined and a great respect for tradition is ingrained in our very core. Getting claimed at 16 has been an important tradition for our roman children ever since the Punic wars. Our roman sides have almost no choice but to honor it.”

“You mean sometimes it doesn’t. „Annabeth ran her palm along the rail… Well, sometimes they don’t care about us. They ignore us. I though about some of the kids I’d seen in the Hermes cabin…waiting for a call that would never come.

Chris unconsciously tightened his fingers around his blanket.

His dad’s eyes flickered over to him for the split of a second, but Chris kept his gaze decidedly planted on the floor.

It had been ironic, really. He had waited for months, done his best at every game of capture the flag, trained often for hours at a time, prayed at every dinner sacrifice to his father to finally claim him. He had desperately longed to finally leave the proximity of the Hermes cabin, only to have a bright caduceus appear above his head.

It had happened only one week after Luke had disappeared.

He had been alone, training in the arena against some straw puppets.

Chris didn’t know how long he had stood there, frozen, eyes wide and glued to the place the sign had appeared, even long after it had disappeared.

That night had been the first time he had dreamed of Kronos.

Three months later, he had joined Luke on the Princess Andromeda.

I’d known kids like that at Yancy Academy… That’s it? For the rest of my life?”

“Kind of a nice thought, isn’t it?”, Percy asked Annabeth quietly. “Just living at camp. No monsters, or quests, or titans or giants. Just, you know, living.”

“Sounds peaceful,” Annabeth agreed. “But I hate to admit, I can’t really imagine our lives working out like that.”

“Rest is for Elysium,” Leo said with a lighthearted shrug.

Percy grimaced. Only if you actually got to go to Elysium and judging by the whole choking-a-goddess-with-her-own-spit-thing, he honestly doubted his chances with the judges.

Then again, he wasn’t exactly sure what characteristics qualified a good or deserving person in the opinion of the Greek underworld. Maybe he’d still end up getting lucky.

“It depends,” Annabeth said „Some campers only stay the summer. If you’re a child of Aphrodite or Demeter, you’re probably not a real powerful force… and live in the mortal world the rest of the year.

Katie raised an eyebrow sceptically. “Really? Not a powerful force?”

Annabeth winced. “Sorry, terrible choice of words. Maybe, less flashy? I simply meant that your scent is less obvious for monsters to detect.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Katie admitted, although reluctantly. “But that doesn’t mean anything. My cabin can definitely hold their own in a fight against all of yours.”

But for some of us, it’s too dangerous to leave.

“And yet, that was the first year you left after the summer had ended,” Travis noted.

“What can I say,” Annabeth grinned. “Percy’s a bad influence.”

We’re year rounders. In the mortal world, we attract monsters… about ten or eleven years old, but after that, most demigods either make their way here, or they get killed off.

“Wait,” Piper furrowed her brows. “Ten or eleven? But you ran away when you were 7, right? And Percy got attacked by this snake when he was like what? 3, or 4?”

Annabeth shrugged. “Like I said, most of the time. There are obviously exceptions. Dad told me who my mother was as soon as I was old enough to understand what that meant. He didn’t know that me knowing that much would make me an easier target for monsters. Percy, well, children of the big three are far easier to detect than other demigods. So, it’s no wonder that he got attacked far earlier. Even if 3 is a bit unusual.”

She narrowed her eyes and studied him, before shrugging. “Then again, we’re talking about Percy. No surprises there.”

A few manage to survive in the outside world and become famous… Not unless they’re intentionally stocked in the woods or specially summoned by somebody on the inside.”

“That happens?” Hazel’s eyes were blown wide.

“Happened,” Chris didn’t elaborate and only stared darkly ahead at the projection.

Hazel and Frank exchanged a confused look with Reyna, and Katie sighed.

“It used to happen from time to time that some campers brought monsters into camp to play pranks on their friends or at rival cabins,” she started to explain. “Only weak ones, of course, and it was always hardly punished. It was undoubtedly stupid, but no one had ever meant any real harm, until” she bit her lips, her caramel-coloured eyes flickering to Percy with an expression of concern forming on her face. “There was an incident at one of our games. After that, no one tried something like that ever again.”

“Why would anyone want to summon a monster… Practical jokes?”

“Never again,” Conner muttered.

None of the pranks involving monsters had ever led to any serious injury, mostly just a broken bone, or a little flesh wound. When the hellhound had attacked Percy, it had been a very clear wake-up call for the rest of them.

“The point is, the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out… “So… you’re a year-rounder?” Annabeth nodded…. Except Annabeth’s also had a big gold ring strung on it, like a college ring.

Annabeth let her fingers gently trace across her ring, a distant look on her face.

While she was happy that she and her dad had somehow reconnected, there was a part of her that couldn’t completely forgive him for how he and Catherine had treated her when she was younger. Especially after meeting Sally.

Sure, whenever her dad got actually interested in her work as an architect nowadays and took a look at her designs, pride glinting in his eyes and his face forming into a bright smile, she was endlessly grateful that she had decided to try to repair their relationship, but her resentment was like a scar she couldn’t get rid of.

And while she had learned to love her younger brothers and even had some pleasant talks with her stepmom from time to time, Annabeth doubted that resentment would ever completely fade. No matter how much she wanted it to.

“I’ve been here since I was seven… I’ve been here longer than most of the counselors, and they’re all in college.”“Why did you come so young?”… “Oh.” I stood there for a minute in uncomfortable silence.

Piper tilted her head and studied projection-Percy and Annabeth with furrowed eyebrows.

The idea that those two ever felt awkward around the other felt ridiculous to her. Like she was staring into an alternate reality.

She had seen how Annabeth had been suffering under Percy’s absence when they had first met each other, had seen the shadows under her eyes that got darker and darker the more time had passed.

Then, they had reunited in Camp Jupiter.

Piper had thought before that she had seen Annabeth happy, or at least, happyish, but the smile she had worn that day had easily made her realize how wrong she had been and burned itself into her memory. She had realized that when Annabeth was truly happy, her smile was similar to the first ray of the sun after a storm and lit up her entire face.

And even after her and Percy had broken up, they had fallen into a comfortable rhythm without being awkward around the other. It would be easy to believe the two of them had never actually dated and always simply been best friends.

It was a relationship, Piper had to admit, she often felt jealous of. Seeing how rocky their beginning had been, that it hadn’t been perfect from the start, was weirdly reassuring.

“So… I could just walk out of here right now if I wanted to?... “You were granted a quest. But that hardly ever happens.

Percy snorted. “Yeah, right. I wish.”

Annabeth sent him an amused smile. “I mean, technically seen, we weren’t exactly granted the second quest to the sea of monsters.”

“And technically, you weren’t really supposed to be on the quest to save lady Artemis and Annabeth,” Grover continued on.

“And if you wanted to, technically, you could have refused to come on the quest to the labyrinth, Annabeth said.

“Right,” Percy said drily. “I should have just stayed safely back at camp. I’ll keep that in mind next time one of you gets kidnapped. Thanks for the tip.”

“The last time…I could tell from her tone that the last time hadn’t gone well.

Annabeth’s smile melted from her face like snow in the summer.

Every day after Luke had left for his quest, had been excruciating.

She hadn’t been able to concentrate on anything, not even architecture, and had thrown herself in her training, exercising from the morning, when the first rays of the sun had touched the strawberry fields to the evening when the stars had hung high in the sky, simply to stop herself from worrying about him.

When Luke had finally come back after three weeks, she remembered throwing herself into his arms, and him promising to her that they would never again be apart like that again. That no matter what happened, they’d always stay together.

Annabeth sighed deeply and leaned against Thalia’s arm. Without a word, her friend laid an arm gently around her and squeezed her shoulder.

“Back in the sick room,” I said,” when you were feeding me that stuff… Annabeth shoulders tensed. “So you do know something?”

Grover facepalmed. “You told her? Seriously?”

Percy shrugged. “I was just glad that there was at least one other person who was as curious about all of that as I was.”

“Well… no. Back at my old school, I overheard Grover and Chiron talking about it… we didn’t have much time because of the deadline. What did that mean?”… Something is wrong in Olympus, something pretty major.

Hebe sighed. That time had been nerve-wreaking.

Everyone on Olympus had been tense and had waited with bated breath ever since her father’s lightning bolt had been stolen. No one had wanted a war.

When she had learned that there was a 12-year-old son of Poseidon at Camp half-blood, who had received a quest to find the bolt and was now their only chance for peace, she had feared the worst.

Details of what happened that summer were still cloudy. Rumours had been flying around like the winds Aeolus commanded, and it had been impossible to differentiate between reality and fiction. The only thing Hebe knew of that summer for certain is that Perseus Jackson and his friends had succeeded.

Safe to say, she was pretty intrigued to watch how they had managed to do so.

Last time I was there, everything seemed so normal.” You’ve been to Olympus?”

Reyna forehead creased into a frown. It was still hard to believe that the Greek campers had always been allowed to visit Olympus, while the romans had scarcely ever interacted with any Olympian god.

Artemis must have caught her expression. “As roman gods, we’re stricter,” she started to explain. “And Olympus in its core is Greek, so most of the time, we are as well. Having roman demigods here regularly, might cause unnecessary conflict or force us to switch between ourselves and our roman aspects like we did during the war with Gaia. And should a Greek and a roman demigod accidentally cross paths… well, as you know, there was a reason for us to keep you apart for the last 250 years.”

“Some of us year-rounders – Luke and Clarisse and I and a few others… “How did you get there?”… She looked at me like she was sure I must know this already. “You are a New Yorker, right?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Frank asked, eyebrows squished together.

“It’s in the orientation film,” Annabeth explained. “And it’s a part of the camp tour. I thought Chiron had already told Percy about all the basics.”

She looked at him. “I thought you simply hadn’t been paying attention to Chiron and that totally annoyed me. Percy, I’m really sorry.”

Percy raised an eyebrow., “Are you really going to apologize for every time you’re being slightly rude to me? You do realize that if I do the same, this projection is going to stretch quite a lot, right?”

“I’ll apologize whenever there is something to apologize for,” she said stubbornly. “Like when I’m being an insensitive, impatient idiot.”

Percy couldn’t help but snort. “Fine, can’t wait to watch us be insensitive, impatient idiots towards each other for like 4 years and apologize for each stupid moment. Sounds like fun.”

“Oh, sure.” As far as I knew there were only a hundred and two floors in the Empire State Building, but I decided not to point that out.

“Good call,” Grover commented. “If you would have asked, Annabeth might have been tempted to stab you.”

“Right after we visited,” Annabeth continued. “The weather got weird… And if it isn’t returned by summer solstice, there’s going to be trouble.”

“You got all that by talking to the satyrs?” Frank asked.

“I might have cornered a few of them,” Annabeth said, and shrugged. “I can be pretty persistent when I want to be.”

“Understatement of the century,” Will said with a fond shake of his head.

“When you came, I was hoping, I mean- Athena can get along with just about anybody… of course she’s got the rivalry with Poseidon… I though we could work together. I thought you might know something.”

Percy had to suppress his laughter. “I don’t know Annabeth, us two working together, I don’t think that’s going to work out. Sounds strange.”

Her lips twitched up. “I guess you’re right. Don’t know what I was thinking. A rather foolish idea. Sorry for that.”

I shook my head. I wished I could help her, but I felt too hungry and tired and mentally overloaded to ask any more questions.

Thalia forced herself to suppress a wince.

The way Percy looked right now, small and skinny, a tired look in his green eyes and with the way, he hid his hands in the pockets of his jeans, he looked far younger than she had ever seen him. It was hard to believe that this was the same kid who had killed the minotaur only hours prior.

Not like she would ever tell Percy that. She’d rather stab herself in the eye.

“I’ve got to get a quest,” Annabeth muttered to herself. “I’m not too young. If they would just tell me the problem…”

“That’s your pride talking,” Thalia said quietly. “If you had gotten a solo quest, like Luke had, you would have gotten yourself killed. Even he barely made it out of that garden alive.”

Annabeth sighed. “I know. If I’d been alone on our quest, I’d have been long dead. No doubt about it.”

Percy interlinked their fingers again “And if you hadn’t been on that quest at all, me and Grover would have been dead. That’s why we’re a team.”

She smiled at him. “The best team,” she agreed.

I could smell barbecue smoke coming from somewhere… tracing her finger across the rails as if drawing a battle plan.

“I was. For the game,” Annabeth sent him a light grin. “Good catch.”

Back at cabin eleven, everybody was talking and horsing around… Thankfully, nobody paid much attention to me as I walked over to my spot on the floor and plopped down with my minotaur horn.

The counselor, Luke, came over.

The smile slid off Annabeth’s face. Percy’s lips pressed together into a thin line and his grip around riptide tightened.

He had the Hermes family resemblance, too… “Found you a sleeping bag,” he said. “And here, I stole you some toiletries from the camp store.”

Connor cursed. “We should have found that already suspicious.”

“Uh”, Leo tilted his head. “Why are toiletries suspicious?”

“At that time, Luke didn’t speak much to us, and didn’t really make an effort to talk to new campers,” Chris sounded bitter as he started to speak. “He had been anxious and didn’t sleep much, so we simply thought he was going trough a rough time and left him mostly alone.”

“You think he already knew about Percy?” Will asked, brows squishing together in worry.

“Of course, he did,” Clarisse spat out. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest, and she glared at the Luke projection. “Kronos knew he could blame Prissy for the bolt, so he had to have informed Castellan about his parentage. Especially after he had heard of what happened to the minotaur and what had happened at the bathrooms, the prick had to have known for sure.”

“And as soon as you arrived, he did his best to get close to you,” Travis said with a dark look in his eyes.

He didn’t really remember how Luke and Percy had gotten along that summer, his memory consisted of nothing but short glimmers of their everyday life, but if he would have managed to convince Percy to change sides… Travis had to suppress a shudder. The war would have been over a lot quicker, if Percy hadn’t fought alongside them.

I couldn’t tell if he was kidding about the stealing part… Luke sat next to me , pushed his back against the wall. “Tough first day?”

A cold shudder went down Annabeth’s spine.

If Luke had already known who Percy’s father was, he had already been planning in that moment to blame Percy for stealing the lightning bolt.

He really looked into Percy’s eyes, the eyes of a 12-year-old child, who had just arrived at camp and, like the two of them, had lost a part of his family, and planned on killing him with no remorse whatsoever.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

“I don’t belong here,” I said… “Once you start believing in them? It doesn’t get any easier.”

“Yeah,” Percy sighed quietly and leant closer to Grover. “That’s when the quests and the wars start. I’d rather take Mrs. Dodds math class again than doing any of that again.”

His friend nudged his shoulder. “That’s a lot, coming from you.”

The bitterness in his voice surprised me, because Luke seemed like a pretty easygoing guy. He looked like he could handle just about anything.

Connor gaze was firmly planted on the ground and his jaw was clenched.

That had been the impression everyone had of Luke. The cool guy, that anyone could go to if they had trouble. The older brother who’d protect you, no matter what. His betrayal had left a wound, the camp, and the Hermes cabin especially, hadn’t completely been able to recover from.

He stole a glance at Percy, whose face was as expressionless as a marble statue, but whose hands held so tightly onto his pen, Connor was sure it would snap any moment.

With a hollow feeling in his stomach, he wondered how he would feel if Luke had tried to poison him instead back then.

“So your dad is Hermes?” I asked… “The wing-footed messenger guy.”

Hermes had looked defeated, his face pale ever since Luke had shown up, but now, he looked up and furrowed his eyebrows. “`wing-footed messenger guy?” he repeated slowly.

“Better than D’s description,” Apollo snickered.

Dionysus sent him a glare, but Hermes ignored them both and simply raised an eyebrow at Percy.

“Wing-footed messenger guy?”

Percy shrugged. “It was the first thing that came to mind.”

“That’s him. Messengers. Medicine… I figured Luke didn’t mean to call me a nobody. He just had a lot on his mind.

“Yeah, right,” Thalia scoffed, her face forming into a scowl. If Luke had known who Percy was, he had probably tried from the very beginning to tear down his self esteem to make it easier for Kronos to evade his mind and control his thoughts.

She gritted her teeth. Sometimes she wished, she could push Luke off that cliff one more time.

“Once.”

Luke’s face darkened.

Hermes face fell again.

I waited, thinking that if he wanted to tell me, he’d tell me… Luke looked up and managed a smile…After all, we’re extended family, right? We take care of each other.”

Annabeth felt as if every last bit of oxygen had gotten sucked out of her lungs. “Family,” her voice was barely above a whisper. “Did he really just say…” she broke off.

Thalia’s face softened, and she gently rubbed her shoulder. “You, okay?”

“I’m fine,” Annabeth’s voice was thick, and she put her arms around herself as if she was cold. “I’m fine. It’s just…. It’s Luke.”

“I know,” Thalia said, and side-hugged her. “I know. But me, Percy and Grover are here with you. You’re not alone, Annie.”

He seemed to understand how lost I felt, and I was grateful for that… But Luke had welcomed me into the cabin. He’d even stolen me some toiletries, which was the nicest thing anybody had done for me all day.

Annabeth buried her face in Thalia’s shoulder, while Percy clenched his jaw. His fingers were digging so deep into his own skin, he expected it to bleed, but he kept his eyes stubbornly on the projection and his face a mask of neutrality.

I decided to ask him my last big question, the one that had been bothering me all afternoon.

Thalia furrowed her eyebrows and let her eyes flicker over to her cousin. She hadn’t known that Percy and Luke had any kind of interaction, before Luke had left camp and they had become enemies.

Percy had never really mentioned him to her, never acted like they had once been on friendly terms and she and Annabeth had barely talked about Luke after she had woken up.

She ran a hand trough her short black hair. If Luke had betrayed Percy on a more personal level… Well, she might have to ask Nico for a favor and pay the Underworld a second visit.

“Clarisse, from Ares, was joking about me being `Big Three ‘material… “what was that all about?”

Katie groaned. “You really chose the best source of information there, Percy.”

Annabeth leaned against him. “Percy, I’m sorry. If I hadn’t been so rude, you might have asked me instead of Luke, and wouldn’t have… I’m sorry.”

“What Luke did wasn’t your fault,” Percy said, and squeezed her hand as gently as he could. “You couldn’t have known. With the time I spent at the Hermes cabin I would have started to trust him either way.”

She nodded, albeit half-heartedly. He sighed and gave her a tight hug.

Luke folded his knife. “I hate prophecies.” “What do you mean?”… ever since my trip to the Garden of Hesperides went south, chiron hasn’t allowed any more quests… he said Annabeth wasn’t destined to go on a quest yet. She had to wait until… somebody special came to camp.”

“And the first person who gave you a straight answer was Luke as well,” Travis muttered hollowly.

Luke really did his best to gain Percy’s trust and judging by the way he was looking up at him, a small smile on his lips, and by the way projection-Percy was slowly starting to relax, Luke was doing a rather good job.

“Somebody special?” “don’t worry about it, kid… a horn blew in the distance. Somehow, I knew it was a conch shell, even though I’d never heard one before.

Rachel looked around the room, a deep frown plastered across her face. There was a heaviness among them, the presence of Luke castellan had evaporated any previous light-heartedness and you could cut the tension with a knife.

She hesitated. Then, Rachel arched an eyebrow and turned to Percy, trying to lift the atmosphere as casually as she could. “That’s a weirdly specific thing to know, isn’t it?”

Annabeth blinked up at her, nodding, grateful for the distraction. “It’s his fun-fact-ocean-knowledge power. It’s actually pretty cool. Percy knows everything to do with the ocean.”

“Dude,” Leo stared at him. “When we go to college and you study marine biology or something like that, I will kill you.”

“Says the math prodigy,” Percy said and rolled his eyes. “Relax, I’m not going to study marine biology. So, I’m actually going to need to study like everyone else.”

Annabeth furrowed her eyebrows and looked up at him. “I thought, you told me that’s what you wanted to study, didn’t you?”

“I thought I did, but, to be honest, it was only my choice, because it felt natural to study marine biology for me, but I found something better,” Percy sent her a small grin. “Let’s talk about it at the next break, okay.”

“Sure,” she nodded and suppressed a yawn. “Sounds good.”

Luke yelled. “Eleven, fall in!”… and cabin eight, which had looked normal in daytime, but was now starting to glow silver as the sun went down.

Thalia’s dark expression lightened up the tiniest bit. She had only spent a few nights at camp half-blood after becoming a huntress, but between the Artemis and the Zeus cabin, there was no contest for her where she’d rather spent the night.

We marched up the hill to the mess hall pavilion. Satyrs joined us from the meadow… In all, there were maybe a hundred campers, a few dozen satyrs, and a dozen assorted wood nymphs and naiads.

Reyna blinked.

Her face slowly turned ashen as her eyes darted between the different cabins that were beginning to fill into the dining pavilion.

Only a hundred?

That was less than half of the active members of camp Jupiter, much less their entire population. That couldn’t be true. There had to be more. There was no way they had fought against Saturn with only a hundred of them.

Reyna had assumed they there had been so few members left in camp half-blood, because they had lost so many in that war, but this…

She turned her head to the older camp half-blood campers to ask, but the words got stuck in her throat almost immediately.

Their eyes were glued to the projection, as if they wanted to drink in the image of every camper. Expressions of shock, and disbelief decorated their faces.

“There’s Silena,” Clarisse felt hollow as she stared at the Aphrodite table, where a bunch of boys and girls were laughing with one another. Silena was currently drinking from her goblet, probably filled with strawberry milkshake, her favourite, and was talking to Drew and Safira. Her dark locks were bound back into an elegant braid, and she wore her rose-gold earrings, shaped like pearls. An ode to her mother.

Piper followed her glance eagerly, only to halt when she spotted Drew.

Her half-sister had to have been around 13 years old back then. Her raven-black hair was loose and framed her face like a silky curtain and for the first time since Piper had known her, no make-up adorned her face. She was leaning forward on the table towards Silena and hung on every word the older girl said.

She had never seen Drew nearly this happy before. She didn’t even know Drew could smile as brightly as she currently did.

“Beckendorf,” Percy said quietly, voice shaking slightly. The son of Hephaestus was eagerly scribbling down a new idea in the notebook he always carried with him with his eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

Leo’s head snapped up and stared at his half-brother with widened eyes. For once, at a loss for words.

“And there’s Lee and Michael,” Will managed to press out. Nico carefully held his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

At the pavilion, torches blazed around the marble columns… but cabin eleven’s was way too overcrowded.

Connor’s throat felt tight.

Most campers who had switched sides had come from the Hermes campers and while most of them had remained unclaimed, he had still lived together with them as if they were his siblings.

Ethan was there, sitting next to Travis together with Himari and Naomi, while JJ, Felix, and Derek were holding an agitated conversation. Only 14-year-old Tara, who was quietly eating her dinner and playing with one of her blue strains, had made it out alive of the Titan war.

I had to squeeze on to the edge of the bench… a few satyrs, and a couple of plump blond boys who looked just like Mr. D.

Castor appeared in the projection. He was laughing at a joke his twin brother had made, wiping tears from his eyes while taking a sip from his goblet. Dionysus face twitched, and before he knew it, a warm hand slipped into his. When he looked at Ariadne, she gave him a gentle smile.

Connor looked at Percy. He didn’t quite manage a smile, but the corners of his lips quirked up weakly. “You want me to tell Pollux that you think he looks like a cherub, that grew up in a trailer park?”

“I’m never living that one down, will I?” Percy asked but didn’t avert his eyes from the dead campers.

“Not a shot.”

Chiron stood on the one side…a bunch of serious-looking athletic kids, all with grey eyes and honey blonde hair.

Annabeth leaned against Percy’s side.

She saw her old self talking to Ramona, a back then 14-year-old girl who had gotten killed in the battle at camp half-blood. Ramona had wanted to work in a library, and she had been one of her half-siblings she had gotten along best with. They had bonded over their mutual love of reading and complained often together that most books weren’t available in ancient Greek.

Hugo sat next to Malcom, looking sullen. He had been especially good at archery, almost rivaling some Apollo campers, and had switched sides 2 years later. In Manhattan, they had found his body after the battle.

Percy gentry wrapped an arm around her, and she leaned closer to him, throat tightening.

Clarisse sat at behind me at the Ares cabin… laughing and belching alongside her friends.

Clarisse stare alternated numbly between Silena and her own half-siblings.

Most of them had survived, but Mathilda, who 15-year-old her was currently arm-wrestling with, had lost a leg to a hellhound and Gabriella, whom she had given extra lessons in spear-fighting hadn’t shown up at camp after that summer. To this day they didn’t know, if she had gotten killed or if she had joined Kronos’ army. Or both.

Finally, Chiron pounded his hoof against the marble floor of the pavilion… My glass was empty, but Luke said,” Speak to it. Whatever you want – non-alcoholic, of course.”

“That’s a stupid rule,” Katie forced herself to tear her gaze away from the Demeter table and tried to lift the atmosphere. “I’d like a beer from time to time.”

Travis managed to crack a grin. Albeit a strained one. “Kates, I’m insulted. You know, you can just ask us, whenever you want something from outside of camp.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Even alcohol.”

“Alcohol is our specialty,” Connor chimed in, glad for the distraction. “For the right price, of course.”

I said,” Cherry co*ke… the soda turned a violent shade of cobalt.

Grover shook his head, a small, fond smile playing on his lips. “Of course, you did.”

I took a cautious sip… She’s in the Underworld. And if that’s a real place, then someday..

Hades threw a long look into Percy’s direction. “I don’t know what I find more annoying,” he muttered. “The fact that he already thought about breaking into my domain, before receiving his quest, or that the entire ordeal worked out for him.”

An amused smile formed around Persephone’s lips. “I’d dare to say the whole ordeal worked out for the both of you,” she said. “You shouldn’t forget that the boy also returned your helm to you.”

“It’s the reason I wasn’t that tempted to kill him after that summer,” Hades said drily.

“Here you go, Percy,” Luke said, handing me a platter of smoked briskets…but I couldn’t help wondering why an immortal, all-powerful being would like the smell of burning food.

“Thank the Fates for those sacrifices,” Annabeth muttered.

Yeah,” Percy cracked her a small grin. “And thank the Fates for whoever burnt those slices of pizza that night. Would have been sad if we’d only have gotten like a salad or something.”

The corners of her lips quirked up. “Imagine the horror.”

Luke approached the fire, bowed his head, and tossed in a cluster of fat red grapes… I wish I knew what god’s name to say.

Chris winced and threw Percy a look of sympathy.

The longer this projection thing was going on, the more he was playing with the thought that solving issues of the past might mean showing the gods how they, the demigods, really felt and everything they had gone trough over the last five years.

While that was definitely important and might bring important changes with it, it sucked that it had to be trough Percy’s eyes.

If he imagined that Hermes would hear his thoughts about him… his face shifted into a grimace. At least Percy never betrayed his father the way Chris had done.

Though that was probably a very small consolation for his friend.

Finally, I made a silent plea… When I caught a whiff of the smoke, I didn’t gag… When everybody had returned to their seats and finished eating their meal, Chiron pounded his hoof again for our attention… Also, I should tell you that we have a new camper today. Peter Johnson.”

“That’s weirdly nostalgic,” Percy noted.

“Yeah,” Annabeth smiled weakly. “I think that was the first time he ever called you by a false name.”

Chiron murmured something. “Er, Percy Jackson,” Mr. D corrected… I didn’t feel like anyone was staring at me anymore. I felt that I was home.

Will’s forehead creased into a frown, and his eyes flickered over to where Percy was sitting.

Yes, the camp was of course a second or even first home for all of them, but this had only been Percy’s very first day. With Chiron’ secrecy, Clarisse’s bullying, Annabeth’s rudeness and the bitterness of the Hermes cabin, everyone had treated him badly, except for Luke.

His lips pressed together into a thin line. To feel at home so soon, said a lot about Percy’s previous living arrangements.

Later in the evening, when the sparks from the campfire were curling into the starry sky… That was my first day at Camp Half-Blood. I wish I’d known how briefly I would get to enjoy my new home.

“That was weirdly ominous,” Grover commented and drew his eyebrows together.

Annabeth tilted her head and studied the fading projection. “ I’m assuming you didn’t think that back then, did you?”

“Obviously not,” Percy said.

“The way your narration is working, is more like a retelling,” she narrowed her eyes. “That’s even more strange.”

“I really stopped caring about how this works,” He shrugged. “Either way, it’s weird.”

Chapter 11: We Capture A Flag

Chapter Text

The next few days I settled into a routine… I was getting lessons from satyrs, nymphs and a centaur.

A montage of Percy trying out various camp activities flickered trough the room. They saw him racing against a nymph with flowing green hair, and a confident smile, him visiting the armory and the forge, and trying out the climbing wall for the very first time.

“The first few days at camp are always the weirdest,” Travis agreed.

“Yeah,” Connor snickered. “The first time, we saw a nymph in the forest, I thought Travis would pass out.”

Travis blushed and glared at him. “Dude, that was a secret.”

Each morning I took Ancient Greek from Annabeth….I could stumble trough a few lines of Homer without too much headache.

“A few lines?” Frank looked confused. “I thought you can automatically read and speak ancient Greek?”

“Yeah,” Percy shrugged. “But I’m not the biggest fan of just sitting still for one or two hours. I couldn’t really concentrate on the book. And Homer is not exactly the easiest read.”

The rest of the day, I’d rotate trough outdoor activities, looking for something I was good at… (Chiron) didn’t complain, even when he had to desnag a stray arrow out of his tail.

Reyna knitted her eyebrows. “His tail?”

Percy rubbed his neck, a light flush appearing on his cheeks. “I’m probably the worst archer ever. Like, I’m pretty sure, I’m so bad, it’s actually insulting.”

“I doubt it’s that bad,” Frank said, but Percy simply gestured at the projection, where he was currently clumsily drawing a bow, a doubtful expression plastered on his face.

His hands shook when he let go of the string, directing the flying arrow far too wide to the left, where it completely missed the target and hit Chiron instead.

Percy stared at him in horror and let the bow fall to the ground, face pale, and eyes widening, while the Apollo campers next to him broke out into laughter. Justin gave him an amused thumbs up, before wishing tears from his eyes.

Frank winced. “I mean, okay yeah, that was pretty horrible, but if it’s only your first try…”

“It didn’t get better,” Percy said.

“Not at all?”

“Nope,” he shrugged. “I gave up after my second summer. I couldn’t bare the guilt of forcing the Apollo kids to continue watching me practice.”

“Food racing? No good either… it was a little humiliating to be slower than a tree.

“Never thought about it that way,” Connor crunched his face. “That is humiliating.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes. “You already said yourself that it’s because they had millennia of training. You have a remarkable talent for talking yourself bad, are you aware of that?”

“So, you don’t think the thought is humiliating?”

A pause.

“Maybe a bit.”

And wrestling? Forget it. Every time I got on the mat, Clarisse would pulverize me. “There’s more where that came from, punk,” she’d mumble in my ear.

“That was way too easy,” Clarisse said, almost disgusted. “You weren’t even fun, back then.”

“Well, that has changed,” Chris muttered.

Sometimes when Clarisse and Percy got on the mat together nowadays, lips curled back into snarls, a wild look in their eyes, and muscles strained, they had to repeatedly reassure the younger campers, that the two of them didn’t actually try to rip each other’s heads off.

Though it became harder and harder to tell.

Especially since those fights often ended in the infirmary, with at least one broken arm, or leg, much to Will’s annoyance.

The only thing I really excelled at was canoeing… trying to decide who my dad was, but they weren’t having an easy time of it.

“I remember that” Katie leaned forward with a small grin. “Me and the other cabin counselors always had a bet going on, whenever a kid wasn’t obvious and, of course, Percy had been especially tricky.”

They had sat around their ping pong table, the only three absent had been Luke, who had had a sword fighting class, Annabeth, who had archery and Clarisse, who had simply scowled, when the name Percy Jackson had come up and left with a “I don’t care, I just feel bad for whatever god the punk is the son of.”

She and Lee had eaten a few crackers with cheese dip, while the rest of them had debated the possibilities.

Most of them, Katie herself, Beckendorf and Castor had betted on Hermes, while Lee had been hung up on what had happened at the bathroom and decided to vote for Nereus, which had earned him a few odd looks from the rest of them. None of them had ever heard of a demigod child of Nereus before.

Silena had said that if she didn’t know his father was a god, she would have guessed he was one of her half-siblings. Chiron had told them he had carried Grover half-conscious to camp after defeating the minotaur and she had described it as a great act of love, worthy of Aphrodite. She had even speculated that he might have some control over water, since her mom was born out of sea foam.

In the end, she had betted on Eros, her mother’s godly son, and had even become excited at the prospect of Percy living in her cabin.

None of them had even entertained the idea of him being a son of Poseidon. For rather obvious reasons.

I wasn’t as strong as the Ares kids ..

“Thank Styx,” Percy muttered, at the same time as Ares said disgusted,” Of course not. If you would have been, I’d have killed you a long time ago.”

“You wouldn’t have needed to bother,” Percy scoffed. “I would have thrown myself of some bridge long before that.”

They glared at each other.

Athena leaned closer to Artemis. “Right,” she lowered her voice. “I can’t even imagine how insufferable Ares would have been if a son of his would have defeated the minotaur like that.”

“You’re one to talk,” Artemis glanced at her sceptically. “All of you would have been ecstatic in Poseidon’s place. Even you.”

Or as good at archery as the Apollo kids… Luke told me I might be a child of Hermes…. But I got the feeling he was just trying to make me feel better. He really didn’t know what to make of me either.

“Right…”, Thalia’s expression darkened, and she pressed her lips together into a thin line as she watched Luke in the projection. “No idea, whatsoever.”

Despite all that, I liked camp. I got used to the morning fog over the beach… but I kept wondering: if gods and monsters were real, is all this magical stuff was possible, surely there was some way to save her, to bring her back…

Nico’s frowned and let his eyes flicker over to where Percy was sitting.

His cousin had only been two years older than he had been when Bianca had died, and like her, Sally had been his sole support system for almost his entire life. His only family.

Was his mom’s supposed death the reason he had been so understanding when they had met in the labyrinth? Because he had understood his wish to bring Bianca back?

His frown grew deeper.

I started to understand Luke’s bitterness and how he seemed to resent his father, Hermes… Why couldn’t my dad, whoever he was, make a phone appear?

Percy grimaced. “I am really starting to hate the Fates,” he muttered. “They really don’t have to include every single one of my thoughts.”

Thursday afternoon, three days after I’d arrived at Camp Half-Blood, I had my first sword fighting lesson.

Jason’s face lit up and he leaned forward in his seat. “I’m not going to lie; I’ve been kind of looking forward to this one.”

Everybody from cabin eleven gathered in the big circular arena…I guess I did okay. At least I understood what I was supposed to do, and my reflexes were good.

“Yeah,” Conner snorted, while watching Percy train. “’Okay’.”

He shook his head fondly. If you looked at Projection-Percy, you would never in a million years think, that this was his very first sword-fighting lesson.

Sure, his technique was a little sloppy, and the way he held his sword was more awkward than it had to be, but his reflexes made up for it. It was hard to differentiate between him and most of the other Hermes campers, who already had weeks, months, or even years at camp behind them.

The problem was, I couldn’t find a blade that felt right in my hands… none of the practice blades seemed to work for me.

Jason frowned, his eyebrows drawing together, as he watched Projection-Percy struggle with a variety of different blades. “None of them? Really?”

“Yeah,” Percy shrugged. “I don’t know why, but Riptide is the only weapon that’s working for me.”

“Sounds really annoying.”

“I think it was actually for the better. I may have never gotten riptide had I been able to use a different weapon.” Percy smiled sadly and stroke gently over the pen. “I wouldn’t change this sword for the world.”

Artemis turned her head to glance at him with a thoughtful expression. “It’s a good weapon,” she said. “It deserves to be honored.”

“I am honoring it,” Percy said, and met her eyes. “And with it, the person who created it.”

Her face softened almost imperceptibly. “Good.”

We moved on to dueling in pairs. Luke announced he would be my partner… “Maybe he’ll go easy on me,” I said. The camper snorted.

“Yeah, going easy on someone wasn’t exactly a part of Luke’s vocabular,” Chris said, but Percy barely heard him.

A 14-year-old boy with black hair, and dark eyes had walked closer to him, so that he could see the features of his face. A pointy chin, a straight nose, and a sullen expression, that was not yet distorted by the loss of an eye.

“Ethan,” Percy said quietly, a mixture of feelings swirling inside of his chest like raindrops in a storm. He nudged Annabeth’s shoulder. “There’s Ethan Nakamura.”

“I know,” she sighed sadly. “He was already at dinner in the last projection. You didn’t see him?”

Numbly, he shook his head. He had been too focused on Beckendorf, and Silena, and Michael and had barely glanced at any other table.

He slumped back in his seat, suddenly feeling defeated.

Recently, the thought of Ethan had slipped quite often into his mind, and the promise he had made to Luke with him. The Nemesis cabin had been one of the very first they had added after the war had ended and was now home to two of Ethan’s half-siblings. A boy, Damien, and a girl, Kiara.

By the gods, he wished Ethan could have lived to see it.

Luke showed me thrusts and parries and shield blocks the hard way.

Travis winced and stole a look at Percy. “Luke used to hit pretty hard during training. You good?”

Percy shrugged. “I’m fine,” he said. “If I’m going to complain about every training hit, I’ve ever received, we’re going to be sitting here for a while.”

With every swipe, I got a little more battered and bruised… which looked like such a good idea, I did the same.

“Dude, you totally cheated,” Conner sounded amused.

“And I’m pretty happy I did,” Percy said. “I hadn’t exactly looked forward to having you all see me get beaten up.”

He shrugged. “We all went trough it at one point or another.”

Instantly, I felt better. Strength surged back into my arms… Great, I thought. Let’s all watch Percy get pounded.

Connor couldn’t help but grin. He would probably forever remember Luke’s face; the second Percy had managed to disarm him.

The Hermes guys gathered around. They were suppressing smiles.

“It was kind of like a tradition at our cabin,” Travis said. “Getting humbled by Luke in the first session. He always said it helped us to never become too proud or feel too safe. Don’t develop hubris, you know.” He grimaced. “Though with you, he probably had a different agenda.”

“Like tear down your self-esteem to make you an easier target for Kronos,” Chris muttered darkly.

From what he had found out from the other demigods, who had deserted from camp, the titan lord had always chosen their lowest moment to first contact them. Like when they had gotten claimed, similar to him, or when a loved one had died, or the thousandth time they had prayed to their godly parent with no answer.

Demigods had by far enough of those moments in their lives, even without a third party trying to make you easier accessible to manipulation.

Luke had probably done the best he could, to make Percy feel as awful and vulnerable as possible, while he was at camp.

Chris let out a bitter sigh. And it’s not like they had done anything to counteract him.

I figured they’d been in my shoes before… No laughing at Percy now. Most swordsmen have to work years to master this technique.”

“Yeah, right. Years,” Travis rolled his eyes. “Man, Luke totally hypes you up right now, even if it is accidental.”

He demonstrated the move on me in slow motion… “We keep sparring until one of us pulls it off. Ready, Percy? I nodded, and Luke came after me… I saw a change in his face. His eyes narrowed, and he started to press me with more force.

Reyna’s eyes widened the longer the fight went on. “And this was really your first ever sword fight?”

“Luke,” Jason had tilted his head and studied them intently. “He seems extremely talented.”

“Used to be the best swordfighter in the last 300 years at camp,” Katie said. “Before Percy arrived, that is.”

Percy grimaced. “I’m not sure about that. The last time I really fought against Luke, he practically only played with me. After that, well, I’m pretty sure in a one on one, without any powers, Luke would still beat me.”

“Please,” Thalia scoffed. “Luke was amazing, I know that probably better than most, but Percy, you are better. Not a doubt about it.”

“The last time you fought him directly, you hadn’t trained in a year, you were thirteen, and he was twenty,” Annabeth reminded him. “Now, even without your power, you could definitely beat him in a one on one.”

The sword grew heavy in my hand. The balance wasn’t right… , so I figured. What the heck?

Rachel snorted. “Why do I have the feeling that’s your train of thought in most situations?”

“I have no idea what you are talking about, Rachel.”

I tried the disarming maneuver… Luke’s sword rattled against the stones. The tip of my blade was an inch away from his undefended chest. The other campers were silent.

“Dammit,” The fire in Ares’ eyes burned brighter, more uncontrolled, the longer the fight had gone on, and a deep scowl was now fixtured on his face.

Apollo’s face lit up in amusem*nt, as he sent him a mocking grin. “What’s up? Angry that the demigod you despise is good with a sword?”

“Good is a ridiculous understatement,” Athena said reluctantly.

The boy’s technique had been clumsy at best, but he had reacted faster than she had anticipated, almost as if he had already known, how Hermes’ son would strike. He had relied almost completely on his instincts, but still had the wit, to see his chance to disarm his opponent and take it.

Luke Castellan was right.

The technique was advanced and took time and patience to master. It was plain to see that Perseus Jackson was a prodigy with the sword, gifted like few others she had seen before.

To a degree, she shared Ares’ frustration. As gods of war, they couldn’t help but respect a soldier’s skill in battle, no matter who that soldier was.

But while her appreciation for wisdom and strategies was higher, Ares respected strength above all else. Strength, bravery, and ruthlessness.

If they wouldn’t have any prior history, had never interacted with one another before, Perseus would have undoubtedly been a mortal Ares would have favoured.

For him, who had a far deeper and more personal hatred of the demigod than she did, the thought had to be close to unbearable.

Athena couldn’t help but steal a glance at Poseidon.

A soft smile had formed on the god’s lips as he watched the projection of his son. Pride glinted in his eyes, together with another emotion, impossible for her to discern.

As if sensing her attention, he looked up. Their eyes met, the emotion disappeared, and his smile became smug.

Athena pinched her lips together into a hard line, then, immediately, schooled her expression, and held his gaze firmly.

My daughter retrieved my Parthenos, she thought. Your son is not the only demigod worth praising.

The Lord of the Sea raised an eyebrow in mocking, as if deliberately doubting her thoughts, and Athena clenched her jaw.

There was no doubt in her mind, that Poseidon would brag about Perseus for years to come. Probably even centuries.

I lowered my sword. “Um, sorry.”

“Sorry?”, Jason stared at him in disbelief. “Dude, that was awesome. I had to train for days to get this one right.”

“But you simultaneously also trained with a spear though, right?” Percy asked.

“I mean, yeah, but I never learned a new technique that easily. No matter if it was with a sword, or spear,” his face split into a grin. “That was seriously brilliant.”

For a moment, Luke was too stunned to speak. “Sorry?” His scarred face broke into a grin.

Annabeth’s hands around her pillow tightened. This looked like one of Luke’s more genuine smiles.

The one he used to wear when they had first met. Before Thalia’s death. Before his quest to the garden of the Hesperides.

A part deep inside her wondered hopefully, if the rush of doing something he loved managed to overrule his conviction to Kronos for a split second, but the other part of her, the logical part, wondered instead if he was happy because that would make Percy a powerful pawn for them to use against the gods.

She took a deep breath, and forced herself to calm down, before focusing again on the scene.

“By the gods, Percy, why are you sorry? Show me that again!”… Luke hit my hilt and sent my weapon skidding across the floor.

“That was so confusing,” Travis said. “The difference between the first and second fight was like day and night. None of us had any clue what had happened to you.”

After a long pause, somebody in the audience said,” Beginner’s luck?”… “Maybe,” he said. “But I wonder what Percy could do with a balanced sword…”

Katie couldn’t help but let out a bitter snort. “Well, he found out pretty soon after.”

Friday afternoon, I was sitting with Grover at the lake… the lava had almost gotten me. My shirt had smoking holes in it. The hairs had been singed off my forearms.

“I miss it, when you sucked at climbing,” Grover grinned at him affectionately. “That used to be one of my favourite pastimes at camp.”

“Only because you could make fun of me the entire time.”

“A bit, maybe.”

We sat on the pier, watching the naiads do underwater basket-weaving… I had no idea what a searcher’s licence was, but it didn’t seem like the right time to ask.…” and that you needed credit for completing a keeper’s assignment… If you go on a quest and I went along to protect you, and we both come back alive, then maybe he’d consider the job complete.”

Hazel frowned. “But aren’t quests at your camp also incredibly rare?”

“There hadn’t been any since Luke’s two years prior,” Grover said. “I thought the chance of Percy ever getting a quest was… well, close to nothing. Obviously, I was wrong about that.”

Ariadne threw Dionysus a questioning glance. “You knew the boy would take Grover with him on his inevitable quest, didn’t you?” she asked quietly.

“Those two are practically glued to one another,” he said. “Have been ever since they’ve been twelve. It didn’t take much to guess he would. It was still a longshot that they would succeed, but I figured it was better than nothing.”

My spirits lifted. “Well, that’s not so bad, right?”… The chances of you getting a quest…

Percy facepalmed. “Why does it feel like you just jinxed me?”

“Hey,” Grover held up his hands. “Don’t blame me for your bad luck. That’s all on you, dude.”

And even if you did, why would you want me along?”

“Of course, I’d want you along.”

“Always, man,” Percy bumped his shoulder with a grin. “Don’t know anyone I’d rather go on a quest with.”

“Thanks”, Grover smiled, although it looked a bit strained. “But please try to not go on any quest in the near future. Let’s just have a peaceful couple of years, okay?”

“Hey, I’m not planning on any more quests, believe me,” Percy said, then grimaced. “Then again, I hadn’t exactly planned on ending up in Camp Jupiter with amnesia. So, no promises, I guess.”

Rachel shrugged. “At least I haven’t spewed out any new great prophecy. You should be okay for now. I promise you’d be the first one I’d call.”

Grover stared glumly into the water. “Basket-weaving… Must be nice to have a useful skill. „I tried to reassure him that he had lots of talents, but that just made him look more miserable.

“Yeah, telling me I had better grades than you, didn’t really work,” Grover said. “But thanks for the try.”

“Well, you were really awesome in our Latin classes.”

“Gee”, he said drily. “I wonder why.”

We talked about canoeing and swordplay for a while… Finally, I asked him about the four empty cabins… She vowed to be a maiden forever. So, of course, no kids. The cabin is, you know, honorary. If she didn’t have one, she’d be mad.”

“My cabin is hardly honorary,” Artemis said. “My huntresses use it regularly.”

“Yeah, maybe once every hundred years,” Apollo reminded her. “Besides, even if they wouldn’t, you’d still expect to have a cabin,” he shrugged. “Not like I can blame you.”

“Yeah, okay. But the other three, the ones at the end. Are those the big Three….”Right. You know. After the great battle with the Titans, they took over the world from their dad and drew lots to decide who got what… “But Hades doesn’t have a cabin here.”

Percy’s eyebrows were furrowed in confusion, and he threw another look at the twelve cabins, as if to check again.

A scowl formed on Nico’s face, and he leaned back in his seat. “Thanks for at least questioning it,” he muttered.

“No. He doesn’t have a throne on Olympus either… If he did have a cabin here…” Grover shuddered. “Well, it wouldn’t be pleasant. Let’s leave it at that.”

The scowl on Nico’s face deepened, and Will’s eyebrows shot up.

Grover flinched. “Sorry, Nico, I didn’t mean… I mean… “He spoke quickly, almost stumbling over his words. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t know you back then, or Bianca. I was extremely biased. What I said back then is obviously complete garbage.”

Nico nodded curtly but didn’t lose his frown.

Will gently interlinked their hands as the projection started to play again. “If it makes you feel any better, I find the presence of the Hades cabin at camp very pleasant,” he said quietly. “Especially the presence of its inhabitant.”

Nico’s face softened when he looked at his boyfriend, the hint of a smile hushing over his face. “Your presence’s not so bad either, solace.” He carefully leaned his head against Will’s shoulder and squeezed his hand. “Thanks.”

“But Zeus and Poseidon- they both had like, a bazillion kids in the myths. Why are their cabins empty?...Their children were just too powerful… The winning side, Zeus and Poseidon, made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River Styx.”

Hades scoffed. “I’d like again to note, that I am the only one of us, who actually didn’t break the oath you two made me swear.”

Zeus rolled his eyes but didn’t dignify the statement with any more of a reaction. Neither did Poseidon.

Thunder boomed. I said,” That’s the most serious oath you can make… And the brothers kept their word- no kid?”

“Of course they didn’t,” Hera pursed her lips and leaned further away from the projection, eyes cold. “Not even the possible end of Olympus seems to be reason enough for them to remain faithful.”

Percy winced, his eyes flickering over to where Amphitrite was sitting. He had no idea how much the goddess probably hated having to sit here and find out all about him and his mom.

If she was even half as vengeful as Hera, he might wake up one day transformed into a bit of seaweed floating around, once this whole projection thing was over.

Grover’s face darkened. “Seventeen years ago, Zeus fell off the wagon… but he brought a terrible fate on his daughter.”

Thalia folded her arms over her chest when the members of camp Jupiter and the newer camp half blood campers sent her curious looks, her face shifting into a grimace.

“But that isn’t fair. It wasn’t the little girl’s fault.”

“Little girl,” Thalia gaped at him. “I was the same age as you were back then, when I got turned into a tree.”

“Well, I didn’t know that. I expected like some 9-year-old to get out of that tree, and then instead, we were suddenly stuck with you.”

“Stuck with me, is it now?”

“Yes,” he grinned at her. “Stuck.”

Grover hesitated. “Percy, children of the Big Three have power greater than other half-bloods.”

Athena’s eyes hardened and she let her gaze wander over the group of demigods.

It would be foolish to deny that even the children of the other gods present were anything less but exceptional.

Clarisse La Rue, who killed a Drakon pretty much singlehandedly, Piper McLean, probably the strongest charm-speaker Aphrodite ever had as a child, Leonidas Valdez, the first fire user since the fires of London, Frank Zhang, who carried the blood of the shape shifters, Reyna Ramirez-Arellano, praetor of the twelve legions of new Rome and, of course, Annabeth.

Her gaze lingered on her daughter for a while.

The architect of Olympus. The survivor of Tartarus, the one who liberated her parthenon from Arachne’s clutch. The most accomplished of any of her children.

But even between all of them, the children of her father and uncles were practically brimming with power.

Thalia Grace, immortal lieutenant of Artemis, Jason Grace, previous praetor and soldier Romes since he was two years old, Hazel Levesque, the most talented magic user in the last millennium, Nico di Angelo, survivor of Tartarus, and, of course, Perseus Jackson.

Graced with the title ‘Savior of Olympus’.

She narrowed her eyes.

The boy had always been powerful, but ever since escaping Tartarus, his presence resembled the one of a minor god.

If nothing else, this experience might prove them too dangerous to be kept alive in the end. Maybe this was the Fate’s intention after all.

“They have a strong aura, a scent that attracts monsters… Hades let the worst monsters out of Tartarus to torment Thalia.

Zeus sent him a glare, which Hades reciprocated with a cold expression.

“The fact that she’s your daughter wasn’t the main reason. You know that.”

“You know who never tried to kill either of your children in the last fifty years?” Poseidon said. “Me. Yet you continue to find new reasons to want to kill Percy.”

Zeus expression hardened. “I had my reasons for going after your son.”

“I’m sorry to disappoint you brother, but your paranoia is hardly a good reason.”

Nico nudged Percy’s head and leaned closer to him. “Any idea how your father will react to what happened before, and after you bathed in the Styx?” he whispered.

Percy groaned. “Neeks, why would you remind me of that? I really don’t want to think about any of that.”

A satyr was assigned to be her keeper when she was twelve, but there was nothing he could do… All three Kindly Ones were after them, along with a hoard of hellhounds.

The projection changed. Grover and Percy vanished, and got replaced by three demigods and a satyr, running towards half-blood hill.

Rain poured from a dark sky, the wind ruffled the trees around them, and the halfbloods were bloody and covered in dirt.

Annabeth’s breath got stuck in her throat. All blood left her face. Thalia flinched back from the projection, as if it had just electrocuted her, while Grover recoiled, disbelief and horror transforming his expression.

Percy’s mouth became dry as sand. “That’s not…?” The rest of the words refused to make it past his lips as Grover’s voice continued his narration.

They were about to be overrun when Thalia told her satyr to take the other two half-bloods to safety while she held off the monsters.

Thalia turned around, her shield and spear held high. She looked over her shoulder and shouted at Grover, Luke and Annabeth to run.

The others froze. Grover widened eyes darted from Thalia to the monsters following them and then to half blood hill, his forehead covered in sweat.

Annabeth tried to run to her side, but Luke held her back with his arms, his gaze finding Thalia’s. He had a bandage over his left leg. She gave him a determined smile, her electric blue eyes almost glowing. He took a hobbling step towards her, but Thalia shook her head and gestured to Annabeth.

Luke’s face became ashen, and he looked at the seven-year-old. Annabeth was clenching his arm, tears dropping over her cheeks. Determination, and regret replaced the fear in Luke’s expression. He glared desperately at the monsters, gritted his teeth, and then nodded back at Thalia.

He grabbed Annabeth’s and Grover’s arms tightly and ran towards camp.

The demigods had paled in horror and were frozen to their seats.

“Oh gods,” Katie’s shaking voice was barely above a whisper, and she raised her hands in front of her mouth.

Jason’s eyes almost bulged out of his head. His hands stated to shake, but he couldn’t tear his gaze away from the projection of his sister.

Thalia wrapped an arm tightly around Annabeth’s shoulders and clenched her jaw.

She was wounded and tired, and she didn’t want to live like a hunted animal… So, Thalia made her final stand alone, at the top of that hill.

The monsters reached her. Thalia slashed and cut. Her shield was raised high and sudden flashes of electricity lightened up her surroundings.

Most demigods clenched her eyes shut and Annabeth hid her face in Thalia’s shoulder as the monsters got to her.

Thalia herself simply continued to stare. She could almost feel the teeth clawing deeply at her flesh, tearing her skin to bits, her blood, hot, and thick, running down her stomach, and her hands becoming wet.

She heard the growling and sad*stic chuckling of the monsters every night, saw there glowing eyes in the darkness whenever she was alone.

Thalia felt her breath quicken, her heart beating louder and louder inside of his chest.

Suddenly, a warm hand was placed onto her left shoulder.

It grounded her, gave her the grip to reality, she so desperately needed, and she clung to it, as if she was drowning.

Percy’s face looked ashen, when she looked up at him.

“I have to give it to you this time, Thalia,” his voice was low, like it took him all of his restraint to control it. “That might have the bravest thing I’ve ever seen. Are you okay.”

“Yeah, I’m good,” she took a deep breath, and even managed to crack him small grin. “Reckless self-sacrifice seems to run in the family, doesn’t it.”

She then turned to her brother.

Jason face was as white as a sheet of paper, eyes widened in horror.

Her face softened, and she leaned over their couch to gently touch his right hand. “Jason, I’m fine. I got saved.”

“But you….” His voice shook. “I mean, I knew that you almost died, but like this… I…”the words got stuck in his throat.

“I’m fine,” she reassured him. “It barely hurt. I promise.”

Annabeth was shivering against her, when she turned her attention back on the projection, and she hugged her tighter. “I’m fine, Annie. I’m just glad you made it out alive.”

As she died, Zeus took pity on her… That’s why the hill is called Half-Blood Hill.”

The projection returned to Grover and Percy, whose faces had both turned ashen.

Silence flooded the room. The romans, and the demigods who had never heard the story before, were staring at Thalia with a mixture of awe and pity.

Thalia took a deep breath, and then looked up at her father.

His face was so expressionless he could have very well been made out of stone, but his eyes were glued to the Pinetree, which began to grow in the projection.

Zeus had never been dad of the year, to put it mildly, but this final act of mercy at least proved, that he had been watching over her journey to camp and that he had, at least to a certain extent, acknowledged and approved of her actions.

After she had woken up, she had long pondered if it would have been kinder to simply let her die. To allow her to enter Elysium, so she could exist away from the battles, the prophecies, the wars and endless stream of monsters, but in the end, she couldn’t be more grateful for getting this second shot at life.

If she had died back then, she would have never seen Annabeth and Grover again, she would have never reunited with her brother, would have never gotten to know Percy, would have never befriended Zoe and never become a huntress.

Her gaze wandered from her father to Artemis. Pride glinted in the goddess’s eyes and when their eyes met, she gave her a respectful nod.

Thalia smiled.

When she had first decided to join the hunt, she had done so out of desperation, as a way to escape the burden of the prophecy. She hadn’t expected she’d ever manage to enjoy her new life.

As lieutenant of the hunters, she had a role, a purpose. She no longer felt lost in time because the hunt existed outside of it.

To a degree, her father had made this possible, even if her waking up hadn’t been a part of his plan.

So, Thalia turned to Zeus. “Thank you, father,” she said.

Their eyes met, and he nodded. “It was an honorable death. You deserved to receive respect for your deeds.”

“Pretty sure that counts as direct involvement,” Poseidon noted drily. “You’re acting quite hypocritical there.”

Zeus glared at him. “My daughter was dying.”

“Saving a life sounds very much like direct involvement,” Hera chimed in coldly.

“I’m not going to discuss Thalia’s fate with you,” Zeus snapped at her. “My daughter died a hero; she deserves to be honored.”

I stared at the pine tree in the distance. The story made me feel hollow and guilty too.

Thalia’s neutral expression got replaced with a scowl, and she slapped his arm. “Don’t you dare even think like that, kelp head.”

A girl my age had sacrificed herself to save her friends… my victory over the minotaur didn’t seem like much.

“I swear on the Styx if you think what I think you’re thinking….”

I wondered if I’d acted differently, could I have saved my mother?

“Those were completely different situations,” Thalia glared at him.

Percy shrugged. “You could have killed the minotaur way earlier than I did.”

“Yes,” she said, matter of factly. “But I had been on the run for like a year at that point, possessed a spear and trained together with Luke. The only fight you had before that, was against the fury. You had neither training, nor a weapon, nor control or even knowledge about your abilities.”

Thalia poked sharply against his chest. “So, considering your circ*mstances, you couldn’t really have done anything more than what you did, okay? I couldn’t have either with the little experience you had.”

“No hero would have,” Reyna agreed with her. “That you were able to defeat the minotaur under these circ*mstances is a miraculous feat in of itself.”

“Grover,” I said,” have heroes really gone on quests to the Underworld. And have they ever returned somebody from the dead?”

Hades’ mouth transformed into a thin line.

He couldn’t claim that a reaction like that was not to be expected. Since ancient times demigods, and even legacies had tried to get loved ones back from the darkness of the underworld and it had become obvious how much Perseus cared for his mother.

But nonetheless, he despised every talk of breaking into his realm, especially by a child of his brother.

“No. Never. Orpheus came close… Percy you’re not seriously thinking-“ “No,” I lied. I was just wondering. So… a satyr is always assigned to guard a demigod?”

Chris facepalmed. “That was almost as bad as Chiron’s topic changes.”

“I was twelve,” Percy defended himself. “I had an excuse. Chiron had trained demigods for millenia. He should be better at this.”

“Fair point,” he acknowledged.

Grover studied me warily. I hadn’t persuaded him that I’d really dropped the Underworld idea.

“Not one bit,” Grover said with a sigh. He had been able to feel Percy’s grief every time the subject of the underworld had come up.

His best friend had always been good at concealing his deeper emotions, even back then. No doubt, having learned it while living with Gabe, and even as a satyr he sometimes had trouble interpreting how he felt.

They had swirled around inside of him like a storm, and only when one was especially prevalent, like what he had felt for Sally, had Grover been able to fully detect it.

Even with the bond they now had, it was still difficult on some days. Especially since Tartarus. It was like Percy had decided to hide every emotion regarding that incident behind an inner vault, closed off like Fort Knox.

“Not always. We go undercover to a lot of schools. We try to sniff out the halfbloods who have the makings of great heroes.

Reyna co*cked her head and studied Grover intently. “Is that what all satyrs do at camp Half-blood?”

“Only those who wanted a searcher’s licence,” Grover said. “Of course, most satyrs wanted one, but not all of us. Some just lived at camp and helped coordinate other satyrs and tried to make sense of the few information we had gathered. Others were practicing nature magic or served the council. Nowadays, of course, that changed. Now, most of us try to preserve the wild where it still exists on the planet.”

She slowly nodded. “Could you visit camp Jupiter?” Reyna asked. “I think talking to you, might have a good influence on the fauns, who live with us.”

“Sure,” Grover said. “Percy already told me a bit about the fauns, and I planned on asking your permission to visit anyway. It sounded … bad.”

Reyna grimaced. “It is. Probably worse than you currently imagine.”

Yeah,” Grover ran a hand over his face, but managed to send her a tired grin. “Well, it’s worth a try, isn’t it?”

She smiled. “I was hoping you’d say that. I can make arrangements as soon as we get back.”

If we find one with a strong aura, like a child of the Big three, we alert Chiron… And you found me. Chiron said you thought I might be something special.

“He’s got you there,” Travis pointed out. “Should have already been a clue for us that Chiron personally went to watch you.”

“Why didn’t you find it strange when you found out?” Frank asked. “From what I understand, it’s pretty rare for him to leave camp.”

Travis winced. “Because we, well….” He glanced warily to where Grover was sitting.

The satyr sighed. “Because you figured it was because I was the satyr stationed at Yancy, and Chiron didn’t want me to be responsible for another dead camper.”

An expression of guilt had grown on Travi’s face. “Yeah. Sorry, Grover.”

He shrugged. “I can’t blame you for thinking like that. It’s not like it was a secret how badly my last mission had gone.”

Grover looked as if I’d just led him into a trap.

“Definitely felt like it,” Grover muttered.

“I didn’t… Oh, listen, don’t think like that… You’re probably a child of Hermes. Or maybe even one of the minor gods, like Nemesis, the god of revenge. Don’t worry, okay?”

Iris tilted her head. “Nemesis is a goddess.”

Grover’s ears became red. “I know Lady Iris, I was frazzled. Lady Nemesis is just the first name that popped into my head. I apologized to her profoundly during the dinner sacrifice later that day.”

Amphitrite glanced amused at her husband. He had slightly narrowed his eyes, and his hand clenched around his throne.

She had to physically refrain from rolling her eyes.

Poseidon had always been rather… protective of whomever he cared about. It was plain to see for her, that the satyr discussing other gods potentially being Perseus’ father, annoyed him, even if he wasn’t obvious about it.

She leaned closer to him. “It won’t take much longer until you claim him, will it?”

“No,” he said. “It should happen within the next few scenes.”

I got the idea he was reassuring himself more than me.

Grover grimaced. “Totally.”

That night after dinner, there was a lot more excitement than usual. At last, it was time for capture the flag.

The demigods relaxed again against their coaches and seats, looking relieved.

Capture the flag was something simple, something easy to concentrate on. A good distraction, especially after what had happened to Thalia.

When the plated were cleared, the conch horn sounded, and we all stood at our tables… “Ares and Athena always lead the teams?”

Two almost identical smirks appeared on Clarisse’s and Annabeth’s face. “Most of the time,” Annabeth said, pride lacing her tone.

“We also capture the flag often,” Chris protested, “And the Apollo cabin does as well.”

“Not as often as we do,” Clarisse said with a grin. “The Ares cabin has always been on top at capture the flag.”

“What about you guys,” Rachel turned around to ask Katie.

“Well, the Demeter cabin is simply better at defense,” Katie said with a shrug. “Same with the Hephaestus cabin. Most of the Aphrodite kids never cared much for capture the flag, and there were only two campers in the Dionysus cabin. The more kids in a cabin, the more possible it obviously is that one of them gets the flag.”

She had to suppress a smile and gestured at Percy. “Of course, since that summer, there suddenly was another contender for getting the flag, who managed to do so quite often. Caused the rest of us quite a lot of headaches.”

“Not always,” he said. “But often.”… “Whose side are on?” He gave me a sly look, as if he knew something I didn’t. The scar on his face made him look almost evil in the torchlight.

Chris furrowed his eyebrows and blinked again up at Luke. He looked normal to him. Maybe it had been Percy’s intuition. Or Chris had simply gotten used to Luke looking like that over the last couple months he had been at camp.

“We’ve made a temporary alliance with Athena. Tonight, we get the flag from Ares. And you are going to help.”

“You told him, didn’t you?” Percy asked. “Of your plan, I mean?”

“Luke, Lee and I were the counselors of the cabins,” Annabeth said. “Of course, I had to inform them of my plan.”

Though she hadn’t told Justin of Percy’s part in it. She had told Luke. She had always told Luke, soaked up his compliments like a sponge water.

He had ruffled her hair, and cracked her a proud grin, saying there was no way they’d lose with a strategy as good as hers. Luke had said Percy would probably be alright and told her not to worry too much about him.

In the end, he had probably just used her to make Percy feel even further like an outsider, she thought with a flinch.

The teams were announced. Athena had made an alliance with Apollo and Hermes, the biggest cabins... Ares had allied themselves with everybody else: Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite and Hephaestus.

Clarisse face split into a grin.

For a long time, the Ares and Athena cabins had never been allowed to fight on the same team, since they were the two most competent at warfare with a natural affinity for battle, even stronger than most other demigods possessed.

That had changed when Percy had showed up.

Suddenly, there was another cabin present at the games, good enough to allow the Ares and Athena cabin to work together, which allowed for a variety of different strategies and new team constellations.

Though Clarisse would rather stab herself with Maimer than ever say that out loud to Percy.

From what I’d seen, Dionysus kids were actually good athletes, but there were only two of them.

Dionysus sighed and took another sip from his drink, while Ariadne interlinked their hands in silent support.

Demeter’s kids had the edge with nature skills and outdoor stuff, but they weren’t very aggressive.

“You sure about that,” Katie sent him a grin.

“Okay, I hadn’t met you at that point,” Percy held up his hands, an amused smile playing on his lips. “I take it back. You and your plants are plenty aggressive.”

Aphrodite’s sons and daughters I wasn’t too worried about. They mostly sat out every activity and checked their reflections in the lake and did their hair and gossiped.

Piper groaned exasperated. “Of course, they did.”

“Don’t judge them too harshly, Piper,” Percy said, a wistful expression plastered on his face as he watched the campers prepare. “It’s true that they didn’t care much about capture the flag, or other training games like that, but that was just because they were exactly that. Games. As soon as we’d realized that there was a real war coming, especially after the first battle at Camp Half-blood, they changed. I don’t think another cabin had a change of heart as extreme as the Aphrodite campers did.”

Clarisse nodded. “And they didn’t just fool around before that. They trained as fierce as any of the other cabins do. It was just less noticeable, especially if you were new at camp, like Percy had been, because they didn’t flaunt their combat abilities like the rest of us did. Partly because they didn’t want to focus their entire life on fighting. Silena always used to say that we’re so focused on surviving, we sometimes forget to live. But I promise you, as soon as people she loved were in danger… let’s just say, she was probably the bravest person in Manhattan. All of the Aphrodite kids were.”

Hephaestus kids weren’t pretty, but they were big and burly from working in the metal shop all day. They might be a problem.

“Gods, I had no idea,” Percy shook his head with a sad smile. “Beckendorf was one of the most fun opponents at capture the flag, or later, the chariot races.”

“Really?” Barely hidden curiosity slipped into Leo’s tone, as he soaked in the image of his half-sibling.

He didn’t share any physical similarities with Charles Beckendorf. He had already noticed that at the dinner sequence, but now, that the guy was standing, it became even more obvious. Probably could have thrown Leo like a football without breaking much of a sweat. No one would ever think the two of them were related.

“I don’t know how many times I’ve gotten caught in one of his traps. And he always fought with this massive battle axe. Fighting against Beckendorf was always fun,” Percy hesitantly glanced at Leo. “You’re the closest to that actually, at least when it comes to your inventions. I think you two would have made a pretty good team.”

Leo froze. His head snapped to Percy. “You think? Seriously?”

He sent him a small grin. “I know, I would have hated going against the two of you during a chariot race.”

That of course, left the Ares cabin: a dozen of the biggest, ugliest, meanest kids on Long island, or anywhere else on the planet.

“Anywhere else on the planet? Really?” Annabeth raised an eyebrow.

“I might have been the tiniest bit biased,” Percy admitted.

“You think?” Will looked amused. “Have you even talked to another Ares camper besides Clarisse at that point?”

“Well, Jake and Zola were with Clarisse when we first met. And that capture the flag game didn’t exactly leave the best impression behind.”

Chiron hammered his hoof on the marble… No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battle medic. Arm yourselves!”

“One battle medic,” Reyna arched an eyebrow. “Is that really enough?”

“Normally no one is in danger of getting injured more than a few broken bones, and those weren’t exactly emergent,” Travis said. “That anyone was dangerously injured was more the exception than the rule and in worst case scenarios, the apollo campers were always around.”

“Besides, now we have two battle medics,” Nico gestured at Will. “Will sits most games out together with Chiron. Best medic the Apollo cabin has seen in decades.”

Percy nodded. “We’d have been screwed in Manhattan if it hadn’t been for him.”

A blush crept onto Will’s cheeks, but he smiled. “Well, I had enough practice flicking you guys back together. Anyone who is at camp with you easily becomes a pro in no time.”

“Glad to be of service,” Percy said with a grin.

“That wasn’t a compliment!”

He spread his hands, and the tables were suddenly covered with equipment… Here- Chiron thought these would fit. You’ll be on order patrol.”

“They did not fit,” Annabeth’s lips twitched. “We rarely had a new camper as scrawny as you used to be.”

Percy sighed. “You’re not going to let me live that one down, are you?”

She grinned affectionately. “Not for as long as you look like this. So, not for the next two quests. I might have to stop once Thalia wakes up.”

My shield was the size of an NBA backboard, with a big caduceus in the middle… I managed to catch up with Annabeth without tripping over my equipment. “Hey.”

Leo snickered. “I never thought you ever looked this lost wearing armor.”

She kept marching.

Thalia let out a snort.

“So, what’s the plan… Her hand drifted toward her pocket, as if she were afraid I’d stolen something.

“I thought you might be a son of Hermes,” Annabeth explained. “And the Fates know, they have tried to steal my cap too many times at that point.”

Travis shrugged. “It’s an invisibility cap. What do you expect us to do?”

“Not to steal the only gift I’d ever gotten from my mother,” she scowled at him. “Or would you like me to try to steal your flying shoes?”

“You can certainly try,” he sent her a challenging grin.

“Just watch Clarisse’s spear,” she said. “You don’t want that thing touching you…Leave the rest to me. Athena always has a plan.” She pushed ahead, leaving me in the dust. “Okay,” I mumbled. “Glad you wanted me on your team.”

Annabeth frowned and let her eyes trail over her younger self. She had always known she was prideful, and stubborn, but gods, she never realized how awful she had truly been at times.

At the next break, she definitely needed to properly apologize to Percy.

It was a warm, sticky night. The woods were dark, with fireflies popping in and out of view… with my blue-feathered helmet and my huge shield, I felt like an idiot.

“If it makes you feel any better, you also kind of look like an idiot,” Thalia said.

“Least I don’t look like a pinecone,” Percy said back drily.

The bronze sword, like all the swords I tried so far seemed balanced wrong. The leather grip pulled on my hand like a bowling ball.

Clarisse grimaced.

It was embarrassing enough that he had managed to defeat half of their cabin on his first week at camp. Even worse that he had done it with an unbalanced sword.

There was no way anybody would actually attack me, would they? I mean, Olympus had to have liability issues, right?

Annabeth raised an eyebrow at him. “Where was that concern when you gave Malcolm a concussion last month?”

He shrugged. “Don’t hate the player, hate the game.”

Far away, the conch horn blew. I heard whoops and yells in the woods, the clanking of metal, kids fighting… Great I thought. I’ll miss all the fun, as usual.

Will facepalmed “Weren’t you just worried about getting attacked?”

Percy shrugged. “Once it started, it sounded like fun. And it was a bit awkward to just stand around in that armor with nothing to do.”

Then I heard a sound that sent a chill up my spine, a low canine growl, somewhere close by.

Some demigods flinched at the sudden noise.

Annabeth’s eyebrows shot up. “Already?”

“Yeah,” Percy face creased into a grimace. “That’s probably going to hurt, isn’t it?”

Persephone looked at the two of them. “How would a hellhound get into your camp?”

Percy shrugged. “A welcome present from Kronos. He had to make sure, I would have no other choice, but to leave for a quest.”

I raised my shield instinctively; I had the feeling something was stalking me… Five Ares warriors came yelling and screaming out of the dark.

“Five?” Jason turned to Clarisse in disbelief. “Five members of your cabin performed a targeted attack against one new, inexperienced, 12-year-old camper?”

“He wounded our pride,” Clarisse defended her cabin, and folded her arms in front of her chest. “Pride and Anger are the two most common fatal flaws of me and my half-siblings. We didn’t care if it was unfair, we wanted to make Prissy pay and restore our cabin’s reputation. I know that that was stupid,” she said, as Jason opened his mouth again. “Stupid, cowardly and immature, you don’t need to lecture me. I was 13 and hadn’t left camp for the previous 4 years. I obviously know better now.”

Percy snorted. “Careful, la rue, that sounded almost like an apology.”

“In your dreams, Jackson.”

“Cream the punk!” Clarisse screamed… I could run. Or I could defend myself against half the Ares cabin.

“Let me guess,” Frank said. “You didn’t run?”

Percy shrugged. “With the helmet and the armour, I wouldn’t have gotten far anyway. It was better to at least try to fight back.”

I manage to sidestep the first kid’s swing, but these guys were not as stupid as the minotaur… My shield arm went numb, and the air burned. Electricity. Her stupid spear was electric. I fell back.

Percy’s arm started to burn and prickle as if he’d just grabbed into an electric outlet. He rubbed his skin. “Thanks Clarisse,” he muttered.

Another Ares guy slammed me in the chest with the butt of his sword and I hit the dirt… Oh, wow,” Clarisse said. I’m scared of this guy. Really scared.”

His lips quirked up. “The five of you can always ask for a rematch.”

Clarisse scoffed. “I can take you in a one-on-one any day, especially if you’re not near water.”

“I don’t need water for you,” Percy said.

She raised an eyebrow. “When did you become delusional.”

“Funny, I was about to ask you the same question.”

Clarisse folded her arms over her chest and let out a snort. “You’re so dead at the next capture the flag. You should already prepare your funeral shroud.”

“The flag is that way,” I told her. I wanted to sound angry, but I was afraid it didn’t come out that way.

“At least you pointed in the wrong direction,” Annabeth said.

“Wouldn’t have wanted to come between you and your perfectly thought-out strategy,” he teased. “Might have been more dangerous than annoying the entire Ares cabin.”

She leaned her head against his shoulder and let out a deep sigh. “With how awful I behaved towards you back then, I’m pretty sure I would have even gotten mad at you for that.”

“Yeah,” one of her siblings said. “But we don’t care about the flag. We care about the guy who made our cabin look stupid.” “You do that without my help,” I told them. It probably wasn’t the smartest thing to say.

Grover let out an exasperated sigh. “I don’t think I’ve ever met a person with as little self preservation as you.”

Two of them came at me. I backed up towards the creek, tried to raise my shield, but Clarisse was too fast… If I hadn’t been wearing an armored breastplate, I would’ve been shish-ke-babbed.

“I’ll have to admit, your technique is remarkable,” Reyna admitted reluctantly and studied the projection of Clarisse.

She was sure the daughter of Ares had been at Camp half-blood during the roman siege. If this was how she had fought when she was only thirteen, she would have been a real challenge for Camp Jupiter.

With herself gone, Reyna wasn’t sure if there was any soldier, who would have been able to defeat her. Her eyes narrowed. She wasn’t even sure, if she would have been able to if she was being honest.

As it was, the electric point just shocked my teeth out… One of her cabinmates slashed his sword across my arm, leaving a good-size cut.

A burning sensation started to throb in Percy’s arm, as if he had dipped it into the Phlegethon.

He leaned back with gritted teeth, determined to not focus on it, but Annabeth turned to stare at him, eyebrows squished together in confusion.

“What?” he asked.

She didn’t respond, her eyes glued to his arm.

With a frown, he followed her gaze. A few drops of deep red blood were running down his arm, falling on his pillow and as he looked at his shoulder, there gaped an exact replica of his projection-self’s wound.

A cold shiver went down his spine.

“The hell is this?” His eyes darted between his arm and the projection, then to the gods. “I thought I would only feel the pain, not receive the wounds?”

They didn’t look less surprised than him. Hekate leaned forward, studying his arm as if she wanted to personally dissect it. “It’s what we thought. Interesting. The spell seems to be evolving.”

At this point, he didn’t have it in him to be shocked anymore. Now, Percy was simply annoyed. He arched an eyebrow. “Can I heal that wound with ambrosia, or do I have to wait, until my wound gets healed in the projection?”

“You can certainly try,” Apollo said, and tilted his head in thought. “But I doubt it would work. Your injury seems to be entirely connected to the projection. My guess would be that you heal once your past self heals.”

“Fantastic”, Percy grimaced and folded his arms in front of his chest. “This just gets better and better. Let just get this over with.”

Seeing my own blood made me dizzy… Oops” the guy said. “Guess I lost my dessert privileges.”

“Dessert privileges?” Frank looked appalled. “That’s your punishment for maiming?”

“We didn’t think anyone would actually try to maim someone on purpose,” Katie explained and sent projection-Clarisse a stern look. “When somebody got maimed, it was because it was accidental most of the time.”

He pushed me into the creek, and I landed with a splash. They all laughed… But then something happened. The water seemed to wake up my senses, as if I’d just had a bag of my mom’s double espresso jellybeans.

Intrigue replaced the shock in Annabeth’s expression as she leaned forward in her seat.

She had always been interested in other people’s supernatural abilities, and Percy’s were obviously on a different level than most others.

Clarisse and her cabinmates came into the creek to get me, but I stood up to meet them I knew what to do… I hit him so hard I could see his eyes vibrating as he crumpled into the water.

Travis raised an eyebrow. “That’s a serious level up. I didn’t know water gives you better skill with weapons as well.”

“It doesn’t,” Triton said, a deep frown plastered on his face as he seized projection Percy up and down. “The water only gives you energy and it sharpens your senses. Not give you abilities you normally don’t have.”

Annabeth shrugged. “Percy’s always been a natural.”

“I had the element of surprise on my side,” Percy countered. “I doubt anyone expected me to stand up again.”

“Of course, we didn’t,” Clarisse grumbled and glared at the projection. “We shouldn’t have pushed you into that damn creek.”

Ugly number Two and Ugly Number Three came at me… but Clarisse kept coming… As soon as she thrust, I caught the shaft between the edge of my shield and my sword, and I snapped it like a twig.

Clarisse’s hands twitched and she glared at the floor.

The spear had been a gift from her father. Losing it had felt like losing a part of herself. She knew she couldn’t blame Percy for this, she had been the one to attack him after all, but she remembered wanting to rip his head off with her bare hands after that game had ended.

“Ah,” she screamed. “You idiot! You corpse-breath worm!”… I smacked her between the eyes with my sword-butt and sent her stumbling backward out of the creek.

Chris’ eyebrows shot up.

Clarisse was one of their best warriors and had been even before Percy’s first summer at camp, training day and night, to become the strongest Ares camper and to receive a quest from her father someday. She had been the only camper able to rival Annabeth in her ambition.

That a new, younger camper managed to defeat her, on top of four other Ares campers must have been a serious blow for his girlfriend.

No wonder she had hated Percy as much as she used to.

Then, I heard yelling, elated screams and I saw Luke racing towards the boundary line… Our side exploded into cheers. The red banner shimmered and turned to silver. The boar and spear were replaced with a huge caduceus, the symbol of cabin eleven.

A coldness washed over Percy and the wound on his arm began to close.

He turned his arm over, inspecting the, now, immaculate skin. “At least it’s really healing,” he muttered. “That’s something, I guess.”

Everybody on the blue team picked up Luke and started carrying him around on their shoulders… I was about to join the celebrations when Annabeth’s voice, right next to me in the creek said,” Not bad, hero.”

Rachel arched an eyebrow. “Did you just stand there the whole time and watch Percy get attacked?”

“Of course not,” Annabeth said with a shake of her head. “I arrived when the fight was pretty much over. Had I been there earlier, I would have definitely stepped in.”

I looked, but she wasn’t there. “Where the heck did you learn to fight like that…. Holding a yankees baseball cap as if she’d just taken it off her head.

Piper looked at her questioningly. “You never really used that cap during our quest, did you?”

“Athena gave me the invisibility cap,” she explained, eye twitching. “It didn’t work during our quest to Greece.”

She didn’t elaborate any further and looked back at the projection, her face a mask of forced neutrality.

I felt myself getting angry. I wasn’t even fazed by the fact that she’d been invisible.. “You put me here because you knew Clarisse would come after me, while you sent Luke around the flank. You had it all figured out.” Annabeth shrugged. “I told you. Athena always, always has a plan.”

“That was your plan?” Will stared at her incredulously. “Use Percy as bait?”

“I know,” Annabeth groaned and ran a hand trough her hair. “Gods, I can’t believe I actually did this.”

“It worked though,” Piper shrugged. “And Percy was okay in the end.”

“Only because of how talented he already was when it came to sword fighting and because he fell into the creek. If he would have been anyone else, he could have received some serious injuries,” Annabeth disagreed. “Besides, plans are about more than simple victory. It’s important to be able to make sacrifices, but not, if there are other options available, which would also lead to the same result. I shouldn’t have taken advantage of Percy’s inexperience and exposed him to such a risk, just to win a stupid game. Especially since he was just starting to find his place at camp. I was too self-absorbed to understand that back then.”

“And for your plans to work, the other soldiers need to be able to trust you,” Ares commented drily. “Doesn’t work if you use them like pieces of chess.”

“That too, of course,” Annabeth winced, and let out a frustrated sigh.

“A plan to get me pulverized.” “I came as fast as I could. I was about to jump in, but… She shrugged. “You didn’t need help.”

Annabeth remembered that incident as if it had just happened yesterday.

She had rushed back trough the forest, avoiding running into rocks and branches, with painted breath and a few cuts on her arms and legs.

She had been held back by two Hephaestus campers and had cursed herself for being so late. Thoughts of doubt and regret had swirled in her mind, as she had wondered how far Clarisse would go. She had almost expected to see Percy on the ground, bloody and unconscious, once she’d reach his post.

Instead, what she had stumbled into, was the exact moment Percy had broken Clarisse’s spear and hit her against the eyes.

He hadn’t looked lost, or frightened, or annoying, like the previous days. Percy had looked… cool. Mature. In Control. Like a hero.

For a split second, as he had stood in that creek, surrounded by water, his green eyes narrowed in anger, he had reminded her of Thalia.

She had been frozen on the spot, unable to move even an inch for a few agonizingly long seconds, before she had gotten a hold of herself again.

That had been the first time she had seen a glimpse of who he would become, of the hero he currently was.

The she noticed my wounded arm. “How did you do that?”… Where the huge cut had been, there was a long white stretch, and even that was fading. As I watched, it turned into a small scar, and disappeared.

“That’s seriously so useful,” Jason said impressed. “Especially at that pace.”

“Saved my life plenty of times,” Percy agreed. Then, he scowled. “And apparently, it’ll save my life plenty of times again. “

“I- I don’t get it,” I said… She looked down at my feet, then at Clarisse’s broken spear and said,” Step out of the water, Percy.”

Anxiety was audible in Annabeth’s voice, and her hands shook.

“Of course, you were the first one to figure it out,” Percy said with a fond smile.

“Took me way too long, considering everything you had done.”

“Still, no one else thought of it before you. Except Chiron.”

“What-“ “Just do it,”… My adrenaline rush left me. I almost fell over, but Annabeth steadied me.

“That bad?” Leo asked.

“The second, or well, counting the minotaur, the third time it ever happened to me,” Percy shrugged. “It got better after that.”

“Oh styx,” she cursed. “This is not good. I didn’t want… I heard that canine growl again, but much closer than before. A howl rippled trough the forest.

Will winced, searched for a few seconds in his backpack, and then handed Percy a small flask. “It’s nectar,” he said. “I mean, it’s worth a try. I’m assuming you’re not getting out of this unscathed”

“Your assumption’s right,” Percy nodded and sent him a smile. “Thanks, Will.”

The camper’s cheering died instantly…just above us was a black hound, the size of a rhino, with lava-red eyes and fangs like daggers. It was looking straight at me. Nobody moved except Annabeth , who yelled,” Percy, run!” She tried to step in front of me, but the hound was too fast.

“Thanks,” Percy whispered.

Annabeth grimaced. “Next time I’ll be fast enough.”

I leaped over her- an enormous shadow with teeth… and felt razor-sharp clawsripping trough my armor… From the hound’s neck sprouted a cluster of arrows. The monster fell dead at my feet.

“Crap,” Percy baled his hands into fists as the pain sank in. He felt his chest getting wet, the blood soaking up his shirt.

Quickly he took a sip from the flask, and tasted his mom’s chocolate cookies, but nothing else happened. His chest started to burn, as if someone had set it on fire.

“Yeah,” he said, pressing his back against the couch with a wince. “That doesn’t work. Awesome.”

By some miracle, I was still alive… Another second, and the monster would’ve turned me into a hundred pounds delicatessen meat.

“That sounds about right,” Percy pressed out trough his teeth.

Chiron trotted up next to us, a bow in his hands, his face grim… “Someone summoned it,” Chiron said. “Someone inside camp.”

Katie scoffed. “Yeah, a real mystery who that could have been.”

Clarisse yelled,” It’s all Percy’s fault! Percy summoned it!”

“Are you serious?” Thalia couldn’t help but glare at Clarisse.

She grimaced. “My pride was hurt, and I was stupid,” she admitted. “After that fight I would have taken any opportunity to hurt prissy. Plus, he was the newest addition to camp. Easy to blame.”

“Be quiet, Child,” Chiron told her… “You’re wounded,” Annabeth told me. “Quick, Percy, get in the water.” “I’m okay.”

“No, you’re not, you absolute moron,” Will said, a mixture of exasperation and worry in his tone.

“Yeah,” Percy admitted. “I guess I’m not.”

“No, you’re not,” she said. “Chiron, watch this.”… Instantly I felt better. I could feel the cuts on my chest closing up. Some of the campers gasped.

The trident appeared over Percy’s head and coloured the room in a green light.

Percy let out a breath of relief. His wounds were closing quickly, and pretty soon, the only thing left of his wound was his blood-soaked t-shirt.

Of course, his clothes had to be light today.

He grimaced as he looked down. “Well, this shirt’s ruined.”

Grover let out a shuddered breath. “As long as that is your only worry currently. Gods, this projection thing gets worse every time a new scene is happening.”

“Look, I-I don’t know why,” I said, trying to apologize. “I’m sorry.”

That was the second time he had apologized for something he had no control over, Will noted and threw Percy a worried look.

His forehead creased into a deep frown. He had to keep an eye on that.

But they weren’t watching my wounds heal. They were staring at something above my head…I could still make out the hologram of green light, spinning and gleaming. A three-tipped spear: a trident.

Percy’s eyes widened as he stared at the trident above him in disbelief.

“Your father,” Annabeth murmured. “This is really not good.”

Annabeth banged her head against her pillow with a grimace. “That was such a stupid thing to say to you,” she muttered. “So not what you needed to hear back then.”

“It is determined,” Chiron announced. All around me, campers started kneeling, even the Ares cabin, though they didn’t look happy about it.

“Of course, we weren’t,” Clarisse grumbled. “Gods, that was humiliating.”

“My father”, I asked, completely bewildered.

Rhode tilted her head in thought and studied him. 12-year-old Percy looked frazzled and confused. His eyes were blown wide open in shock and disbelief as he stared at the kneeling campers.

There was no sign of pride anywhere. On the contrary, he looked more uncomfortable than anything else.

She looked at Triton, who had furrowed his eyebrows.

The reaction was… unexpected, to say the least. For both of them.

“Poseidon,” said Chiron. “Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God.”

There it was, Amphitrite thought and looked at Poseidon. He wore a satisfied smile on his face, the fluorescent light of the trident in the projection reflected in his eyes, and every ounce of annoyance wiped off his expression.

“I’m not going to lie,” Leo said, as the projection formed a new scene. “I’ve just gotten chills. I wish my claiming would have been this dramatic.”

Chapter 12: I Am Offered A Quest

Chapter Text

The next scene appeared.

Percy was lying in his bed in cabin three, staring blankly at the ceiling. His bag was unopened, and the minotaur horn was placed on top of a little shelf.

The next morning Chiron moved me to cabin three… pick all my own activities, call lights out whenever I felt like it, and not listen to anybody else.

“That sounds pretty good, actually,” Travis said longingly.

While he loved the Hermes cabin and enjoyed spending time with his half siblings, there was no denying that he missed the privacy of his own room during the summer.

Especially since he shared his cabin with ten-year-olds.

He adored Penelope and Kamal, with their mischievous grins, contagious enthusiasm, and loud laughs with all his heart, but lights out at 9 pm was quite annoying when you were eighteen.

And I was absolutely miserable.

Percy grimaced and averted his gaze from his friends.

Connor frowned. “But, I mean, especially with how crowded our cabin was…?”

“I liked living there,” Percy admitted. “Sure, there wasn’t a lot of room, but it was fun to be around you guys. Plus, you know, the whole ‘not-being-supposed-to-exist-thing’ was kind of a downer.”

He sent him a lopsided grin. “But yeah, now I pretty much enjoy living in my cabin.”

Just when I’d started to feel accepted… I’d been separated out as if I had some rare disease.

Percy sat at the Poseidon table at the dining pavilion and poked his food listlessly. The other campers murmured and sent him glances from time to time. Whenever he met their eyes, they quickly looked away again.

He sighed and plopped his head down on his hand.

“Oh,” Chris felt sick as the realization began to sink in and he moved his hand in front of his mouth. “Oh Gods.”

Nobody mentioned the hellhound, but I got the feeling they were all talking about it behind my back.

“We were,” Katie admitted, nervously wetting her lips. “Mostly we talked about the oath and what your presence meant for the future of the camp. The hellhound was obviously a big part of that discussion.”

She winced, her voice becoming quieter with each new word. “We really didn’t know what to make of you after all that. The minotaur, the hellhound, your fight against Clarisse, the oath…It was a bit too much all at once.”

The attack had scared everybody. It sent two messages… They could even invade a camp that had always been considered safe.

“Yeah, that was the general assumption.”

If it was too much for them to comprehend, the situation had to have been overwhelming for Percy, who on top of that also had to deal with being part of a whole new reality, losing his mom, and finding out his existence in itself was forbidden, she thought with a wince.

The other campers steered clear of me as much as possible.

Percy was walking alone through camp. Some Hermes campers noticed him and started to walk into the opposite direction.

A deep frown formed on Thalia’s face, and she pressed her lips together into a hard line as she watched the reaction of the campers.

Would her life have been similar had she survived the journey to camp half blood?

Sure, she would have had Annabeth, Luke and Grover by her side, but would the other campers have looked at her with the same amount of apprehension and wariness they were now looking at Percy at?

When she had been reanimated and separated from the pine tree, the others had often stared at her in curiosity and whispers had followed her wherever she had gone, but no one had directly avoided interacting with her.

Was that because they had already gotten used to Percy?

A bitter feeling formed in her stomach as she remembered how much her cousin had tried to talk to her that first summer, they had both been at camp.

It had been awkward and uncomfortable.

With Luke, their fathers, Kronos and the prophecy, there had simply been to much baggage between the two of them, for it to be anything else, and, if she was being honest with herself, at the beginning he had annoyed her to no ends.

Now, she was wondering if Percy had been so insistent on interacting with her because he had known how lonely it could be to be a child of one of the big three.

Thalia remembered the first time; they had really talked to one another. The two of them had hung out with Annabeth at the lake, who had quickly left to get one of her sketchbooks.

Seconds of uncomfortable silence had excruciatingly slowly turned into minutes, and both of them had avoided looking at one another.

“So, what’s this prophecy about?” Thalia had finally asked after what had felt like an eternity, while absentmindedly plugging some grass from the ground. “Sounds pretty important the way you all talk about it.”

“No clue really,” Percy had said with a shrug. “They don’t talk much about it to… us now, I suppose. It has something to do with my,” he had halted. “Your sixteenth birthday.”

She had scowled. “That’s annoying.”

“Tell me about it.” Percy had cleared his throat. “Listen, I know this is a weird situation, but I just, I wanted you to know that I’m on your side.”

She had scoffed. “You don’t even know me.”

“Annabeth knows you,” he had countered. “And so does Grover. As long as you don’t give any indication that you’re not trustworthy…” He had bit his lips, a dark expression flickering over his face. “Look, I was in your shoes. Being the center of a great prophecy totally sucks. So, since I’m like the only person in the world to know what you’re going through, at least, in that regard, I just wanted you to know that I’m in your corner.”

“Don’t bother,” she had said and finally looked at him. He had met her eyes straight on. “I don’t think I like you all that much.”

Percy had snorted. “I said I’m in your corner. That doesn’t necessarily make us friends. I’m not yet sure I like you all that much either.”

Thalia folded her arms over her chest with a grimace as the projection changed once again.

Cabin eleven was too nervous to have sword classes with me… my lessons with Luke became one-on-one.

Short scenes of Percy and Luke together in the arena flashed through the room. Them fighting, lips curled back into snarls and eyes narrowed in concentration. Then the scene vanished and got replaced with Luke gently helping Percy adjust his grip on his sword.

Conner’s mouth became dry as a desert as the projection changed again into what looked like a short break in between training.

Percy was drinking out of a blue water bottle, while Luke talked agitated, hands in constant movement and a warm grin plastered on his lips.

He said something, which made Percy lower the bottle and start to laugh. His sea green eyes sparkled with admiration, and a light blush appeared on his face as Luke shorty ruffled his hair, before standing up again. Luke grabbed his sword and got back into position with a confident ease.

His stomach churned.

It was true that they had been nervous at the thought of training with Percy again. Marcus, one of the Ares campers who had attacked him in the forest, had still been in the infirmary with a pretty bad concussion and a black eye, that had slowly turned into a light shade of green. Rumours about Percy had circulated all throughout camp.

When the trident had appeared above his head, dominant and glowing so powerful it had illuminated the entire creek, it had seemed like a warning sign not to mess with this kid.

Connor had been too busy staring at, and then quickly bowing on the ground to notice how Percy’s eyes had widened in confusion or the way he had stared at them, with obvious discomfort in his expression.

Now, he could slap himself for it. Simply because they had felt wary of this 12-year-old kid, Luke had gotten the perfect opportunity to build an impenetrable wall of trust between them.

It was a cruel irony that the very person who had treated Percy the best at camp was the one who would try to kill him only a few days later.

He pushed me harder than ever… “Now let’s try that viper beheading strike again. Fifty more repetitions.”

“That’s effective training,” Jason’s eyebrows were furrowed. “If he wanted you dead, why did he train you that intensely?”

“If I were to make it out alive of that summer, there was a plan b for me,” Percy said with a grimace. “Kronos tried for a while to get me to join his side. I wouldn’t have been useful to him without good previous training, I guess. Especially regarding his… later plans.”

Percy wrinkled his nose in disgust. That wasn’t a possibility he liked to think about.

The projection changed again.

The morning sun shone through a wide window into a wide room and made Percy’s eyes sparkle like freshly thawed grass as he flipped through the pages of an old, worn-out book. From time to time, a frown started to form on his face, and he looked up at Annabeth, who sat across from him, playing with her dad’s college ring, forehead wrinkled in thought.

He opened his mouth for a question, only to close it again, when she didn’t meet his eyes. Percy sighed and looked back down on the book.

Annabeth still taught me Greek in the mornings, but she seemed distracted… she would walk away muttering to herself: „Quest…Poseidon?... Dirty rotten…Got to make a plan….”

Annabeth’s face became a shade darker, and she ran her hand across her hair. “I didn’t really help matters, did I?”

“You had waited for a quest for almost five years at that point,” Percy pointed out quietly. “That’s like an eternity for a twelve-year-old girl. And you had spent almost your entire life wanting to impress your mum. Given their rivalry, it’s understandable you were disappointed who my father is.”

Her expression shifted into a worried frown as she studied him.

“I shouldn’t have let my frustration out on you though,” she insisted. “It wasn’t your fault. Percy, I’m really sorry.”

A gently grin grazed his lips, when he looked back at her. “I thought we were done with apologizing?”

“Sometimes it’s really hard not to,” Annabeth said. “Especially with how insensitive I’m being towards you.”

She hesitated, before carefully interlinking their hands again. “Percy, I think we should talk about it. Like actually talk about it. Maybe in private during the next break?”

“You know, there’s really nothing to apologize for.”

“I think there is.”

They held eye contact for a few seconds, storm grey against sea green, until Percy let out a fond sigh. “You’re not going to relent here, are you?”

A small smile tugged on the corners of her lips, and she squeezed his hand. “Not a shot.”

Even Clarisse kept her distance… I wished she would just yell or punch me or something. I’d rather get into fights every day than get ignored.

“Chiron told me to stay clear of you after what had happened at the game” Clarisse said. “Given the chance I would have still beaten you to a pulp.”

I knew somebody at camp resented me, … a copy of the New York Daily News, opened to the Metro page.

Grover tilted his head. “The New York Daily News?”, he repeated, his eyebrows squishing together. “You never mentioned that to me, did you?”

Percy sighed. “It didn’t matter. It was stupid.”

The article took me almost an hour to read… Ms. Jackson’s husband, Gabe Ugliano, claims that his stepson, Percy Jackson is a troubled child who has been kicked out of numerous bording schools and has expressed violent tendencies in the past.

The more Percy read, the deeper the scowl, that had formed on his face, got. His hands were shaking in anger.

“Excuse me?” Leo’s mouth had gone slack. “Is he seriously implying you were the one who hurt your mom?”

“Violent tendencies,” Rachel curled her lips. “Is he for real? Can the Daily News even print something like that without evidence? That’s pretty sh*tty research.”

Percy shrugged. “I have been in lots of fights in my schools, even had to do some anger management lessons. I guess it’s in my file. Researching my past school experiences would be enough evidence to back up his claim. I’m simply happy they never interviewed any of my old teachers.” He grimaced. “That would have been a mess.”

“What an ass,” Thalia glared at the newspaper. “I’m assuming Luke was the one who gave you the paper?”

“Probably.”

Her expression darkened. “Figures.”

Police would not say whether son Percy is a suspect in his mother’s disappearance… Police urges anyone with information to call the following toll-free crime-stopper hotline.

“Holy,” Piper’s eyes widened, and her fingers moved to touch her parted lips. “I think me, and my dad watched a video about you on YouTube. Some true crime podcasts. You’ve been all over the news for at least a week. I can’t believe that was you.”

Percy sighed. “Yeah. I’m sure there are around three to four stories about me on various true crime or mystery channels. It’s weird.”

She furrowed her eyebrows in thought. “But didn’t that turn out to be a kidnapping case in the end?”

“That’s how law enforcement assessed the situation in the end,” Annabeth shrugged. “You know how most mortals twist reality to suit their own points of view.”

The phone number was circled in black marker… “Lights out,” I told myself miserably.

The projection died down for a moment.

Katie clasped her hands so tightly together, that her knuckles became white.

“Gods, Percy…”, she began so quietly, only Connor and Travis could hear her. “I know he is saying that it wasn’t that big a deal, but… I mean, what is wrong with us?”

“We were complete jerks,” Connor said with a grimace. “We should probably join Annabeth later when she talks to him.”

“Definitely,” Travis agreed.

That night, I had my worst dream yet.

“’Yet’”, Percy sighed and leaned back against his cushions.

The picture of a beach formed, waves were hitting violently against the shore, and lightning cut through the pitch-black sky like a sword through flesh.

I was running along the beach in a storm… every time they connected, lightning flashed, the sky grew darker, and the wind rose. I had to stop them. I didn’t know why… The ground shook. Laughter came from somewhere under the earth, and a voice so deep and evil it turned my blood to ice.

“Kronos again?”, Iris raised an eyebrow. “Already?”

“Yeah,” Percy muttered. “Lucky me.”

Come down, little hero, the voice crooned. Come down!... My feet slipped and darkness swallowed me.

A shiver ran down Percy’s spine.

He wondered if bringing him down to Tartarus had been Luke’s, or rather, Kronos’ plan since the beginning. With or without the lightning bolt.

Would the Titan Lord have killed him immediately or tried to recruit him first? And more importantly, would he have given in?

Percy would like to think he wouldn’t have, that there was no possible reality in which he’d ever join Kronos’ side, but doubts started to nag in his mind like thousands of tiny rodents.

He remembered the waves of hot anger, of hopelessness that had threatened to drown him. The uncontrollable hate that had led his every move when he had faced Achlys. If Annabeth hadn’t been down there with him, to ground him, to anchor him to the world above the pit, he was still afraid to think what he would have become.

It would have been the perfect environment for Kronos to manipulate his emotions, mold him into the weapon he had wanted him to be since the beginning.

Percy clenched his jaw.

The storm was again replaced by the Poseidon cabin. Percy shot up from his bed, pearls of sweat ran down his forehead and his body shook with heavy panting.

I woke up, sure I was falling. I was still in bed in cabin three… “Mr. D wants to see you.” “Why?” “He wants to kill… I mean, I’d better let him tell you.”

“Really?” Rachel looked at him unimpressed.

Grover’s face became red. “I ramble when I’m nervous. Especially about stuff I shouldn’t ramble about.”

Nervously, I got dressed and followed, sure that I was in huge trouble… I figured it was a crime for me to just be alive.

Katie winced.

She had obviously known about it, but the idea that Percy could have just been killed off that day, simply for being alive, while the rest of them were busy playing volleyball or practicing archery made her skin crawl.

The other gods had probably been debating the best to punish me for existing, and now Mr. D was ready to deliver the verdict.

Percy tilted his head to the side and furrowed his eyebrows. “You would have killed me, wouldn’t you?” he asked. “If the whole lightning bolt thing hadn’t happened, I mean.”

“It would have certainly been a debate,” Artemis said. “Possible quite similar to the one after mount Tamalpais. Though I suspect that the result would have been vastly different since you hadn’t achieved anything of significance at that point.”

A bitter smile crossed his lips. “So, you probably would have killed me.”

“Probably,” she agreed. “If not immediately, we would have tested you in some way. I doubt Poseidon would have allowed that we killed you without a good cause.”

“Of course I wouldn’t have,” his father glared at her.

“Which is why we would have tested him,” Artemis repeated. “But there is no way we would have done nothing under these circ*mstances.”

Over long island sound, the sky looked like ink soup coming to boil… He glanced uneasily at the sky. “It’ll pass around us. Bad weather always does.”… But this storm… this one was huge.

A tired look flickered over Hebe’s expression. It had been decades since she had last seen her father as angry as he had been that day.

The very air on Olympus had been tense and thunderstorms had raged across the mortal world like a pack wild beasts, all the while a deep scowl had been a permanent fixture on Zeus’s face.

At the volleyball pit, the kids from Apollo’s cabin were playing a morning game…but they looked tense. They kept their eyes on the storm.

“The storm didn’t exactly help matters regarding you,” Travis said with a defeated sigh. “Some of us speculated that the whole camp would have been blasted to dust just to kill you.”

“I figured,” Percy said. “Can’t say I blame you for not wanting anything to do with me after that.”

“You should blame us,” he disagreed with a dark look in his eyes. “It was stupid and cruel to avoid you simply because we found out who your father is. You didn’t deserve that.”

Grover and I walked up to the front porch of the Big House…. “Well, well,” Mr. D said without looking up. “Our little celebrity.”

Percy rolled his eyes.

“’Little celebrity’”, Artemis repeated and turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow. “Now you’re simply being petty.”

“Not like it’s inaccurate,” Hermes shrugged. “Remember that Percy was one of the main topics on Olympus for the following weeks.”

Percy physically cringed. “I was?”

“Of course, you were,” Apollo said nonchalantly. “For all we knew, you were prophesied to raze Olympus to the ground once you’d reach 16.”

“Plus, your episode on Hephaistos Tv later a few days later was pretty popular,” Aphrodite added, an amused smile playing on her lips. “As unexpected as it was.”

“One of the most watched in years,” Hephaistos agreed.

“Right,” Percy groaned, while Annabeth face shifted into a grimace. “That happened.”

I waited. “Come closer,” Mr. D said. “And don’t expect me to knowtow to you, mortal… Thunder shook the windows of the house. “Blah, blah, blah,” Dionysus said.

Hermes snorted. “Did you see Percy’s face when the rest of the camp bowed before him? If you would have done the same, he’d have probably dropped dead from shock.”

Chiron feigned interest in his pinochle cards… “I would cause your molecules to erupt into flames. We’d sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble.”

Jason wrinkled his nose.

At Camp Jupiter everyone had always held him in high esteems because of his father, often even placed him on a pedestal.

Despite the oath, he had expected Percy to at least receive a bit of respect after the reveal of his parentage, and after his feats at the capture the flag game.

But not only did the campers avoid speaking to him, but he also had to deal with the Olympians themselves wanting him dead, even openly threatening him.

He was not for the first time glad, the oath never applied to the romans.

But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this cursed camp… “Spontaneous combustion is a form of harm, Mr D,” Chiron put in.

“At least it would be fast,” Percy said drily.

“Nonsense,” Dionysus said. “Boy wouldn’t feel a thing…“Mr. D-“ Chiron warned. “Oh, all right,” Dionysus relented… Perseus Jackson, if you’re at all smart you’ll see that’s a much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do.”

“Did you want a war to start,” Athena asked him, her lips pursed. “You knew as well as we did that the boy was the only possibility to prevent one.”

Dionysus scoffed. “Please. You want to tell me you actually thought he’d be able to do it?”

“Not at first,” she conceded. “But one of my children was with him. The possibility that they succeeded was slim, but it existed.”

Dionysus picked up a playing card, twisted it, and it became a plastic rectangle… Chiron smiled at me, but he looked tired and strained.

He probably thought he was sending another hero to certain death, Hestia thought sadly.

Few had believed that Percy would be able to return the bolt. Even the Olympians hadn’t known who had stolen it, and to think that children as young as Annabeth, Grover, and Percy, would succeed in what they had failed to do had seemed naïve at best. War had seemed inevitable.

Chiron must have lied awake with guilt every night of that quest, especially since Annabeth, a girl he had practically raised since she was seven years old, had accompanied Percy.

Hestia sighed. Even though their half-brother loved his life as a teacher of heroes, it was undoubtedly burdened with as much tragedy as it was filled with joy.

“Sit, Percy, please. And Grover.” We did…What did you make of the hellhound?”… It scared me,” I said. “If you hadn’t shot me, I’d be dead.”

The hint of a smile flickered over Artemis face. Immediately, she schooled her expression again, but her brother had already picked up on it.

“You don’t despise him,” Apollo’s voice echoed in her head like bats in the dark. He didn’t even attempt to hide his surprise as he leant closer to her with furrowed eyebrows.

“Perseus is rather refreshing for a male demigod,” she carefully selected her words as she answered back the same way. “He doesn’t suffer from overwhelming pride or hubris. He is good friends with my lieutenant, he was friends with Zoe.” Her voice broke off as she mentioned her old friend, and she pressed her lips together before continuing. “I’m simply giving him a chance.”

He studied her, eyes darting across her face, searching for something she didn’t know. Then, his face split into a mischievous grin. “Do you perhaps want to make a bet?”

Artemis arched an eyebrow. “You, Hermes, and Dionysus are obsessed with betting, are you aware of that?”

“It’s an often-needed elevation from events, that could be considered rather dull otherwise,” he leaned his head on his arm that was propped up on the leans of his golden throne, an amused glint lighting up his eyes. “I bet Perseus Jackson will do something that will make him lose your favor.”

To her own surprise, Artemis barely hesitated. She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “That’s fine with me.”

Apollo’s eyebrows shot up. “It is?”

“Is that so shocking to you?” she asked, a small smile tugging on her lips.

He tilted his head, his eyes now narrowing. Doubt now slipped into his voice as he spoke. “You really think he could be the one male demigod you respect?”

“I am certain that if any male demigod is worthy of my respect, it will be Perseus Jackson,” Artemis replied. “So yes, I am quite certain. What are we betting on?”

“Does there have to be something?” he asked.

Silence.

“Delos,” Apollo said slowly, and tilted his head to the side as he continued to watch her. “Sole occupation for a decade.”

Finally, Artemis fully turned to look at him. Her brother’s love for their birthplace was only matched by her own.

The island was his creative solace, the place he entered when his mind was filled with poetry and melodies, when Apollo felt the overwhelming, and exhilarating desire to create.

The place he showed to only his most important lovers.

He had spent times with Hyacinthus there. Those had been some of her brother’s most happiest days, filled with Music, gentle kisses and words of love, he still recounted to her 3000 years after his lover’s death.

“What makes you so sure that Perseus will do, or rather has done something that will make me hate him?” she asked.

“A male hero breathes so much in the wrong direction, and you start to dislike him,” Apollo said amused. “I’m simply curious how long it will take you this time.”

Artemis thought back to how the demigod had looked when asking her to give him the sky, determination in his eyes, with no regard for his own life. The sadness in his face on Zoe’s death. Her certainness in calling him a friend.

She raised her chin. “I suppose we’ll see. Prepare to lose, brother.”

“You’ll meet worse, Percy. Far worse, before you’re done … Your quest, of course. Will you accept it?”

“He hasn’t even said what the quest is about,” Travis facepalmed.

Nico shrugged. “To be fair, the decision was between the quest and becoming a dolphin.”

“I probably would have chosen the dolphin.”

I glanced at Grover, who was crossing his fingers.

A blush crept onto Grover’s cheeks.

“You really wanted that searcher’s licence,” Hazel said, surprise slipping into her tone. “Even after hearing all of that?”

“I dreamed of getting a searcher’s licence my entire life. I thought this would be my only shot, “he smiled, a little wistfully. “I was also a bit naïve. I didn’t exactly think about what this quest would entail.”

“Um, sir,” I said,” You haven’t told me what it is yet.”

“Details, details,” Leo waved a hand in front of his face. “Who needs that?”

Chiron grimaced. “Well, that’s the hard part, the details… They’re fighting about something valuable… something that was stolen, aren’t they?”

Thalia leaned back in her seat and rested her arm across the cushion behind her and Annabeth. “Not bad, kelp head.”

“My dreams were pretty obvious,” Percy pointed out. “Besides, Annabeth mentioned a theft.”

She shrugged. “But you also figured out who was fighting. Your dreams didn’t directly tell you that.”

Percy facepalmed. “A horse and an eagle. I might have been bad at mythology compared to all of you, but I wasn’t a complete idiot.”

Chiron and Grover exchanged looks… Then I’d talked to Annabeth, and she’d overheard something about a theft. And… I’ve been having dreams.”

“Both of those dreams had been instigated by Kronos,” Hecate remarked and studied him intently. “It must be quite unsettling for you that his manipulation has started, even prior to your arrival at camp half-blood.”

Percy shrugged. “Those dreams were at least useful. The ones he sent me later lost that quality rather quickly and just became creepy.”

Rhode frowned. “Later…? How many times did he manipulate your dreams in total?”

“A few more times during that quest,” Percy tilted his head in thought. “And a few times after that summer. He stopped after Thalia got awakened though.”

A bitter smile crossed his lips. “Didn’t need me to join his side anymore after that.”

Thalia scoffed, sounding not any less cynical than him. “Yeah, suddenly he had a whole new chess piece to play with. And after I became a huntress, I’m pretty sure he had already given up on turning Percy to his side.”

“I knew it,” Grover said… They are fighting over something valuable that was stolen. To be precise: a lightning bolt.”

“Excuse me,” Jason straightened up, his eyes almost bulged out of his head. “The lightning bolt?”

Zeus expression darkened, and his hand twitched as if he longed to hold his weapon, while Hera scrunched her nose.

“A Quest way too important for three children to handle,” she said disdainfully.

“Yes,” Poseidon drawled out sarcastically. “No way Percy would ever succeed. Zeus’s lightning bolt is lost forever.”

Hera sent him a glare, while Jason sat back, trying to swallow down the sharp wave of disappointment.

Shouldn’t he have been the one to search for his father’s lightning bolt?

If Zeus had lost it, so had Jupiter. Sure, Percy bringing it back was a peace offering and Poseidon’s best option, but what about his father? Wouldn’t it have made more sense for him to send his own son on a mission to retrieve it? Had Jupiter even considered the possibility? Or was the risk of involving him as a roman demigod too big?

He sighed, and crossed his arms in front of his chest as the projection continued.

I laughed nervously. “A what?” “Do not take this lightly…the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers.”

Leo let out a whistle. “So, no pressure, you know.”

“And it’s missing?” “Stolen,” Chiron said… “By you.” My mouth fell open.

Frank did a double take, his jaw going slack. “What?

“Yeah,” Percy shrugged. “That was a thing.”

“How did that happen?” Hazel asked, eyes wide.

“Solely based on my brother’s paranoia,” Poseidon looked coldly at Zeus. “And based on the fact that Percy is my son, completely ignoring the fact that he didn’t know about our existence when your bolt got stolen and that on that very day it went missing there was a group of other half-bloods present on Olympus.”

Zeus glared back. “For all I knew, you could have informed him about us.”

“How would he have even gone up to Olympus?” Poseidon asked. “And don’t tell me you believed that I helped him get in.”

“He is your son,” Zeus said back, glossing over the question. “That alone is incriminating enough.”

“Not when it is the only evidence you had against him.”

“He also lived in New York,” Hera lips curled back. “Practically lived right next to us.”

“Together with 8.8 million other people,” Percy pointed out, earning himself a glare from the goddess.

“At least” – Chiron held up a hand- “that’s what Zeus thinks….is now secretly having the cyclops build an arsenal of illegal copies, which might be used to topple Zeus from his throne.

Poseidon rolled his eyes. “The only time I tried to overthrow you was more than 3000 years ago. Would you at least try to get over your paranoia?”

“Get over it?”, Zeus looked at him coldly. “You attempted a coup!”

“3000 years ago,” Apollo repeated in a bored tone. “And we never attempted anything similar since. This argument flares up every few hundred years. Doesn’t it get exhausting to you after all that time?”

“Not to mention that this is hardly the right place for a discussion like this, “Athena said and pinched the bridge of her nose, before anyone else could chime in. “We’re already wasting time, hearing about seemingly unnecessary events. We shouldn’t waste even more discussing unrelated matters.”

The only thing Zeus wasn’t sure about was which hero Poseidon used… “But I’ve never been to Olympus. Zeus is crazy!”

The demigods froze. Some leaned away from the projection, their gazes alternating between Percy, the projection and Zeus. Grover and Annabeth exchanged a look.

The air pressure slowly increased and made Percy’s ears ring as Zeus turned to glare at him.

He didn’t look away. “Well, I didn’t do it,” he said stubbornly.

“Brother, he’s gotten introduced to our world only a few days before that.” Hestia said firmly, before Zeus could open his mouth. “You can’t blame his reaction to getting blamed for something as tremendous as this.”

“Not to mention, that he’s right,” Poseidon added coldly. “Or do you want to argue about this, too?”

A few moments of silence passed, before Zeus leaned back in his front with a scowl and motioned for Iris to continue the projection.

Chiron and Grover glanced nervously at the sky… “Then again, Poseidon has tried to unseat Zeus before. I believe that was question thirty-eight on your final exam… I couldn’t even steal a slice of pizza from Gabe’s poker party without getting busted.

Thalia furrowed her eyebrows, apprehension growing in her eyes. “Why would you feel the need to steal pizza from him?” she asked him so quietly, only he, Annabeth and Grover could hear it.

Percy shrugged. “Because I like Pizza?”

“Percy…” Annabeth started, before biting her lips to shut herself up.

“Okay,” he ran a hand over his face.” I guess sometimes Gabe liked to clear out our fridge and didn’t bother to fill it up again. But that only happened like once or twice during the holidays.”

Grover furrowed his eyebrows. “But Sally…”

“Mum was working,” Percy said with a shrug. “It really wasn’t that big a deal.”

He locked eyes with his friends.

“And just so we’re in the clear, if we’re really going to start talking about my crappy childhood, I can assure you, we’re also going to talk about your crappy childhoods, should they come up.,” he said. “You sure you want to have this discussion?”

They stayed quiet. Annabeth squeezed his hand gently.

“Yeah,” he leaned back in his seat. “That’s what I thought.”

Chiron was waiting for an answer… “Correct,” Chiron said. “And Zeus has never trusted Poseidon since.”

Poseidon sighed but didn’t otherwise acknowledge Chiron’s words.

Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the master bolt… Chiron sighed. “Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon’s style. But the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that.”

“Chiron is right,” Demeter massaged her temples. “Are you aware how many conflicts we could avoid if either of you could swallow their pride for even once?”

Zeus scoffed. “What if someone would have stolen your scythe?”

She scowled. “I’d like to believe I wouldn’t have blamed someone without any evidence beside their parentage.”

Her glare wandered from Zeus to Poseidon. “And I’d also like to believe that if I were blamed for a theft, I’d try to prevent a war no matter wha,t instead of adding fuel to the fire.”

“Yes,” Hades rolled his eyes. “Because you of all gods are known for your cool headedness and humble nature.”

Her scowl deepened. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“You mean without mentioning mortals like Erysichthon?” He raised an eyebrow. “You almost starved every human on the planet to death after Persephone disappeared. What do you think I mean”?

“And whose fault was that?” She almost spat the words out, tone poisonous.

“Not this again,” Anger glinted in Persephone’s eyes as her glance alternated between her husband and her mother. “You argue about that almost every time you see each other. Do you really have to during the time here as well? Because I’m certain there are far more pressing matters to attend to. You have the rest of eternity to talk about this.”

Zeus has demanded that Poseidon return the bolt by the summer solstice… But your arrival has inflamed Zeus’s temper.

Hestia let out a long sigh.

Deathly silence had enveloped the throne room that day.

“You have a son,” Zeus’s voice, barely above a whisper, had shaken in anger and echoed through the hall.

“You had a daughter,” Poseidon had answered, a neutral mask hiding every possible emotion in his face, but his hands had rested on his trident.

“You have a son,” her brother had repeated, this time louder. He had looked up and glared at Poseidon with an intensity that filled the air with ozone. “And my bolt is missing.”

“I don’t know how one matter relates to the other,” Poseidon had said coldly.

“You don’t?”

“Percy didn’t do this!” His grip around his trident had tightened. “I didn’t do this. I couldn’t care less about your bolt, Zeus.”

She had expected a fight to break out then and there. That every second one of them would throw the first punch. That the light of lightning would illuminate the hall, or that the stone beneath their feet would crack.

Hestia leaned back against her seat. They should thank the fates the situation hadn’t escalated in that moment.

Now neither god will back down… And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like Percy?” “Bad?” I guessed.

“That’s certainly one way to describe it,” Hebe said. “Or simply catastrophically, and world-ending.”

“Imagine the world in chaos. Nature at war with itself… it will make the trojan war look like a water balloon fight.”

The demigods’ faces became paler by the second, Reyna and Jason especially looked ashen. They exchanged a look.

“How have we not known about this?” Reyna whispered; her eyebrows drawn together. “A possible war between the gods is as much a roman issue as it is a Greek one.”

Jason looked uncomfortable. “Maybe we would have been informed once the war would have broken out? If the war would have been as terrible as Chiron described, a conflict between the two camps doesn’t seem as important anymore.”

“I guess,” Reyna didn’t look convinced. She leaned back in her seat and let out a sigh. “But it makes one wonder what else we don’t know about.”

“Bad,” I repeated.

An amused smile tugged on the corners of Hermes’ lips. “That’s definitely one way to sum it up.”

“And you, Percy Jackson, would be the first to feel Zeus’s wrath…. Zeus was punishing the whole camp because of me. I was furious.

“Furious…”, Will gaped at him. “How in the name of the Fates is that your reaction?”

“I hate being blamed for something I didn’t do,” Percy folded his arms in front of his chest, frustration transforming his face into a scowl. “Sue me.”

“You just heard Lord Zeus wants to kill you,” Frank felt dizzy. “And that you were blamed for stealing one of the most powerful weapons in the entire universe.”

“Which I didn’t do,” Percy countered. “Hence, getting angry.”

Frank stared at him. “I, I mean…”, he shook his head exasperated. “I honestly don’t even know what to say to you at this point.”

“So I have to find the stupid bolt,” I said. “And return it to Zeus… “If Poseidon doesn’t have it, where is the thing?”

Percy had narrowed his eyes the more Chiron said, and now wore a resigned expression on his face.

“Where is the thing?” Grover repeated quietly and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“I believe I know.” Chiron’s expression was grim… You must seek the counsel of the oracle.”

“Fun,” Percy commented drily, while Reyna couldn’t help but lean forward in her seat.

Obviously, she had met Rachel, but she had never seen a prophecy made by the revered Oracle of Delphi. The same oracle Lycurgus, Jason, Oedipus and countless other heroes had consulted in during their lifetimes.

Octavian would have killed for such an opportunity, she thought humourlessly.

“Why can’t you tell me where the bolt is beforehand… you would be too afraid to accept the challenge.”

“It’s not like I had a choice,” Percy muttered. “Would have gotten killed on the day of the solstice anyway.”

“Possibly,” Triton said.

Percy furrowed his eyebrows and looked at the god, whose expression remained a blank mask. “Possibly?” he repeated.

“Zeus would have definitely wanted to kill you,” Triton continued. “But father might have managed to bring you to Atlantis before he would have gotten the opportunity.”

“Atlantis?” he asked confused.

“It would have been the only way to keep you save from Zeus’ wrath,” Poseidon said. “And sooner or later every demigod would have probably been forced to fight in the war. If only for their own survival.”

“I was twelve,” Doubt slipped into Percy’s voice. “I wouldn’t have been useful at all in a war like that.”

“Not at first,” Triton agreed slowly and studied Percy, a weird emotion flickering in his narrowed eyes. Then, he shrugged. “Well, not like it matters anymore.”

I swallowed. “Good reason.”… Easy for him. I was the one Zeus wanted to kill.

Grover winced. “Yeah, I barely paid attention to that at first. I was only thinking about Lord Pan,” he looked at him sheepishly. “Sorry.”

“Dude, that was your dream,” Percy nudged his shoulder. “Can’t blame you for being happy that you were finally able to pursue it.”

“All right,” I said. “It’s better than being turned into a dolphin… When you come back down, assuming you’re still sane, we will talk more.”

“Sane?” Leo tilted his head.

Percy grimaced. “The oracle was a bit… let’s say intense.”

Percy went up the stairs to the attic of the big house, fumbling nervously with the rim of his orange camp t-shirt.

Four flights up, the stairs ended up under a green trapdoor… By the window, sitting on a wooden tripod stool, was the most gruesome momento of all: a mummy.

Hazel shrunk back from the projection. “What is that?”, she sounded disgusted and let her eyes wander over the skeleton, from the moth-eaten clothes, over the frizzles of black her to her empty eye sockets.

“Meet Mary,” Annabeth sighed and gestured towards the projection. “The old host of the oracle of Delphi.”

Not the wrapped in cloth kind, but a human female body shriveled to a husk… she’d been dead a long, long time.

“But I thought the host of the oracle always has to be a young girl,” Reyna stared at the decaying corpse. “What in the Fates name happened to her?”

“That’s what I would like to know,” Anger transformed Apollo’s expression into a deep scowl and he glared at Hades. “I know that you cursed her, I just simply don’t know why. My oracle never did anything against you. She is not at fault for the prophecies she receives.”

Hades reciprocated the glare, his eyes narrowing. “I will not get into that with you, Apollo. Not here, and not now.”

Percy winced, his eyes flickering over to the god of the underworld, whose expression had hardened, and then to Nico, who kept his gaze stubbornly on the floor.

He wondered if either of them was aware, that he also found out what had happened the day Maria di Angelo had died and seen the moment the old oracle had gotten cursed, which might make that moment a part of this projection.

Frustrated, he ran a hand through his hair. Another thing he had to warn Nico about.

Looking at her sent chills up my back… I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus apollo… I wanted to say, No thanks, wrong door, just looking for the bathroom. But I forced myself to take a deep breath.

Leo couldn’t help but snicker.

The mummy wasn’t alive. She was some kind of gruesome receptacle for something else… it’s presence didn’t feel evil… it felt more like the Fates… ancient, powerful and definitely not human. But not particular interested in killing me either.

Interesting deduction. Artemis studied Percy.

He seemed to have an aptitude for distinguishing different immortal beings from one another. Not unheard of in demigods, but rare enough to be note-worthy.

I got up the courage to ask, “What is my destiny?”

Thalia let out a snort. “Bit dramatic don’t you think?”

“Those guys literally bowed when I got claimed,” Percy shook his head and gestured at the old camp half blood campers. “I thought being dramatic was part of camp. And it was the first time I asked for a prophecy. I didn’t want to risk making it angry.”

Rachel pouted. “You’re never careful about not pissing me of.”

“You’re not a creepy, dead mummy.”

She shrugged. “Fair enough.”

The mist swirled more quickly, collecting right in front of me… Their faces became clearer. It was Smelly Gabe and his buddies.

Annabeth scowled. “Why them of all people?”

“Probably to get Percy’s attention,” Apollo guessed, his voice still strained. “The oracle’s sole duty is to transfer my prophecies to mortals. So, when it conveys them, it demands the complete attention of whoever stands before it.”

“I think the whole green smoke thing would have done it for me,” Percy muttered drily.

My fist clenched though I knew this poker party couldn’t be real… You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.

“West?” Nico mouthed and arched an eyebrow in apprehension. He nudged Percy’s head with his foot and leaned down closer to him. “Please don’t tell me you thought dad was responsible for stealing the bolt,” he said quietly.

Percy shrugged. “It made sense at the time.”

“No wonder he doesn’t like you,” Nico said with a sigh. “Especially if you’ve actually managed to break into the underworld.”

“Yeah,” Peryc rubbed the back of his neck. “Just wait until I actually meet him.”

“The first time you met dad…”His face shifted into a grimace. “Anything particular I have to look forward to?”

“It was at least better than when we met him before the battle of Manhattan?”

Nico facepalmed. “You’re aware that doesn’t mean much, right? That’s not a particularly high bar to cross. Dad imprisoned you in his dungeons and planned to leave you there to rot.”

A light smile tugged on the corners of Percy’s lips. “Relax Nico. I survived. It wasn’t as bad as it sounds, all things considered.”

His buddy on the right looked up… You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.

“One who calls you a friend?” Thalia repeated slowly, a sour expression growing on her face. “You really thought of Luke as a friend, didn’t you?”

Percy’s grin slid off his face in an instant. “Yeah.”

His hand around riptide tightened.

Thoughts of Luke hunted him even long after his death, like an overly persistent shadow and his voice echoed in his head whenever he raised his sword for a duel.

He let out a frustrated sigh. Reliving his first meeting with Luke after all this time, did definitely not help with his mixed feelings about the guy.

Finally, Eddie, our building super, delivered the worst line of all: And you shall fail to save what matters most in the end.

“Fail?”, Katie asked. Her eyes went wide. “You were prophesied to fail?”

“Kinda,” he winced and looked at Grover and Annabeth. “Looking back, I probably should have told you about that.”

Annabeth shook her head decisively. “I also withheld information when we went into the labyrinth. Vital Information that could have very well been about you. I get why you did it. Besides, I would have gone anyway,” a playful smile formed on her lips. “My cabin fewer was stronger than my self-preservation.”

“And like I said, it was the only shot for me to ever get my searcher’s licence,” Grover grinned. “No way I would have missed out on that.”

Percy had to suppress a snort. He leaned back and arched an eyebrow. “And you say I’m acting recklessly.”

“I guess, we’re all a bit crazy,” Annabeth winked at him and Grover. “Takes one to know one.”

The figures began to dissolve… “Wait! What do you mean? What friend? What will I fail to save?” The tail of the mist snake disappeared in to the mummy’s mouth… My audience with the Oracle was over.

“That’s it?” Reyna frowned. “I thought the oracle would be a bit more…”, she trailed off, and Percy sent her a lopsided grin.

“Helpful?” he asked. “Yeah, it was about as helpful as Octavian. Only really helped in confusing everyone. You didn’t really miss out on much in Camp Jupiter in that regard.”

“Well?” Chiron asked me…. Chiron didn’t look satisfied. “Anything else?” I didn’t want to tell him.

What friend would betray me? I didn’t have that many.

Grover swallowed.

He risked a glance at Percy, wondering if his friend had ever considered the possibility of him being the one to betray him.

After all, for all Percy had known at this point in time, Grover could have only been friends with him because of his task at a protector.

He wet his lips nervously. He wasn’t sure if he could stomach to hear Percy doubt him, even if it was only inside his own head.

And that last line- I would fail to save what matters most. What kind of Oracle would send me on a quest and tell me, Oh, by the way, you’ll fail.

“Yeah,” Frank winced. “Not exactly a confidence booster.”

How could I confess that? “No,” I said. “That’s about it.”

He studied my face… The truth is not always clear until events come to pass.”

“I should have followed that advice,” Percy said. “I’m pretty sick of mulling over prophecies all the time. If I should ever get involved in another one, I might just ignore it and get on with my life.”

I got the feeling he knew I was holding back… “If Zeus and Poseidon weaken each other in a war, who stands to gain?”

“So, it was Chiron’s proposition,” Hades said with an arched eyebrow. “It wasn’t yours?”

“I wouldn’t have had any idea what to do if Chiron wouldn’t have told me,” Percy shrugged. “I didn’t even know the underworld was in the US.”

“Right,” Hades leaned back with a sigh. “You were utterly clueless.”

Percy nodded. “Completely.”

“Somebody else who wants to take over?” I guessed… whose kingdom would grow powerful with the death of millions.

“Do you know how much paperwork that would take?” Hades curled his lips back in disgust. “I can already see the waiting lines before the gates. The furies would need to work twice as hard to capture all the souls trying to escape their punishment, and the judges would need to discuss at least four times the amount of people they normally do.”

He shook his head. “No thank you, I’d appreciate as little war as possible, especially between us.”

Someone who hates his brothers for forcing him into an oath… I thought about my dream, the evil voice that had spoken from the ground. “Hades.” Chiron nodded. “The Lord of the Dead is the only possibility.

Annabeth sighed and put her chin on Percy’s shoulder. “Sadly, not the only one,” she whispered.

A scrab of aluminum drippled out of Grover’s mouth… “Yes, but – but Hades hates all heroes.” Grover protested.

An amused smile started to play around Persephone’s lips as she glanced at her husband. “Well, the satyr is not wrong there. You do have a remarkable strong dislike for demigods.”

“I tolerate most of them,” Hades said and held eye contact with her. “I only hate those who enter my domain. And especially after what Theseus tried to do, can you really blame me for that, dearest? Or would you perhaps have me reconsider Pirithous’ punishment?”

“Not at all,” Persephone said with a lighthearted shrug. “I never said I disagree with your judgement. Especially towards men like them. I simply agreed with the satyrs assessment.”

“Especially if he has found out that Percy is a son of Poseidon… “A hellhound got into the forest,” Chiron continued.

Nico hummed in thought. “I guess the reasoning does make sense from your point of view,” he admitted. “Especially if you take Alecto’s appearance, the minotaur and hellhound attacks, and Kronos voice reaching out from the underworld into account.”

“They can only be summoned from the Fields of punishment… “Great,” I muttered. That’s two major gods who want to kill me.”

“Good times,” Percy muttered.

“Good?”, Frank arched an eyebrow.

“In comparison,” he shrugged. “I mean, Hades and Zeus still want me dead. Just nowadays there are a few more being who share that wish. So, in comparison to now, it was a relatively good time.”

“I don’t want you dead,” Hades said. “I dread the day you’re going to enter my domain and I’m going to have to deal with you.”

Percy furrowed his eyebrows when he looked at him. “Deal with me? I mean, I’m simply going to those judges and that’s it, right? You won’t even have to see me.”

“At this point I am quite certain that you will somehow mess up my system,” he said drily. “Maybe even collapse it. Make it somehow necessary for me to intervene.”

He held up his hands. “Well, I’m not planning to. I don’t want anymore trouble after I’m dead. One ordinary afterlife for me, please.”

“But a quest to..” Grover swallowed… Maine’s very nice this time of year.”

“Rotten luck,” Grover shuddered. “Anything would have been better than the Underworld.”

Nico tilted his head in thought. “It’s an unnatural place for satyrs to be, I suppose. Even in death your kind avoids the Underworld.”

Grover nodded. “I definitely prefer being reborn as a flower, to spending eternity cramped in that place.”

“Hades sent a minion to steal the master bolt,” Chiron insisted… Percy must go to the underworld, find the master bolt and reveal the truth.

“That’s honestly an insane first quest,” Jason shook his head in disbelief. “I mean, only looking at the stakes…”

“Especially since both Lord Zeus and Lord Hades were after you,” Frank felt dizzy. “It’s a miracle you actually made it.”

“Believe me, I have no clue how we actually managed to survive that,” Grover said with a shudder. “And I’m so not looking forward to see all of that again.”

A strange fire burned in my stomach. The weirdest thing was: it wasn’t fear. It was anticipation.

Will hit his forehead against his pillow in exasperation. “What is wrong with you?”

Percy shrugged. “Like I said I was angry. The self-preservation I have gets flung out the window, once I get mad.”

The desire for revenge… I was ready to take him on. Besides, if my mother was in the underworld…

“Your mother is still alive,” Hazel noted and looked at him. “You actually got her back from the underworld?”

“Not in the way you probably think,” Percy said. “Plus, mum wasn’t dead. She was taken,” His expression darkened. “Bargaining chip.”

Whoa, boy, said the small part of my brain that was still sane. You’re a kid. Hades is a god.

Nico suppressed a snort with a hand in front of his mouth.

He looked at his father, who’s posture had gone stiff, and whose eyes had darkened remarkably. He kept his gaze stubbornly away from Percy, who was suspiciously playing with the sleeves of his jacket, a light blush apparent on his cheeks.

The picture of Percy standing on a black field across from his father’s army flashed through Nico’s mind. His expression had been grim, his sea green eyes had glowed in the dark, and he had grabbed his sword with such an intensity, Nico had been sure it would snap.

He shook his head. To say Nico was curious about how everyone here would react to their fight, would be a ridiculous understatement. And if he was being honest, he actually looked forward to see it again.

Grover was trembling. He’d started eating pinochle cards like potato chips… how could I ask him to do this quest, especially when the oracle said I was destined to fail? This was suicide.

A warm feeling grew in Grover’s chest.

He had for the last few minutes waited with bated breath, preparing himself to hear the suspicion out loud, but the only thought Percy had about him, was when he worried about Grover’s safety.

A smile formed on his face when he looked at his best friend. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, I hope you know that.”

Percy grinned back. “Same goes for me, G-man.”

“Look, if we know it’s Hades,” I told Chiro,” why can’t you tell the other gods?... Heros on the other hand, have certain privileges. They can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as they’re bold enough and strong enough to do it.

“And what a privilege that is,” Hazel said drily. “I love going around, and challenging people for no good reason.”

“My favourite type of pastime,” Piper agreed with a roll of her eyes.

No god can be held responsible for a hero’s action… “You’re saying I’m being used.”

“It’s not like it’s untrue,” Rhode said quietly, and sighed.

Her father’s hands on his throne tightened, his face twisted by frustration, and she exchanged a look with her mother.

Rhode wished for her father’s sake that things would have been different, but the war had undoubtedly been the main reason why Poseidon had claimed Perseus when he did. In a way, it was impossible to argue that he had used him.

Her father knew that as much as she did, even if he didn’t like to think about it.

That must have been a hard realization for child, she found herself thinking and glanced at Perseus, who watched the projection with a seemingly forced neutral expression.

“I’m saying it’s no accident Poseidon has claimed you now… Poseidon had ignored me for twelve years. Now suddenly he needed me.

Percy had expected that his thoughts regarding his dad would be revealed. After Gabe, he had no delusion that he could keep anything a secret, but he still winced when he heard his voice speak.

Annabeth gently squeezed his hand in support, all the while he avoided looking at Poseidon and kept his eyes stubbornly glued to the projection.

I looked at Chiron. “You’ve known I was Poseidon’s son all along, haven’t you?”

“It’s hard not to notice,” Dionysus noted in a bored tone.

“I had my suspicions… “And get it back to Olympus before the summer solstice, in ten days.” “That’s about right.”

“Ten days isn’t that bad, at least when it comes to quests,” Jason tried to sound upbeat, but Annabeth winced.

“Yeah, we didn’t exactly have ten days in the end.”

Percy couldn’t help but glance at Nico.

He would have to talk to him before they arrived at the lotus casino. His memories of the place were flurry at best, and he couldn’t be sure that they had ever run into him and Bianca at some point or the other.

It’d be cruel not to warn him, even if the possibility was slim. He owed it to Nico to give him at least the opportunity to brace himself before seeing his sister projected only a few feet away from him. Or relieve his time in the casino.

Percy grimaced. This projection would be far worse for Nico, than most others once he and Bianca would become a part of it.

I looked at Grover, who gulped down the ace of hearts… “You don’t have to go,” I told him. “I can’t ask that of you.”

Grover bumped his shoulder playfully. “Hey, we come as a set, okay? Where you go, I go. Even if it is to the land of the dead.”

“Oh…” he shifted his hooves… You saved my life, Percy. If… if you’re serious about wanting me along, I won’t let you down.”

“I’d always want you along,” Percy said. “And I honestly lost count of the times you have saved my life. I’d say we’re quit.”

I felt so relieved I wanted to cry… I wasn’t sure what good a satyr could do against the forces of the dead, but I felt better knowing he’d be with me.

Grover smiled against his will.

Having his thoughts spoken out loud was without a doubt terrible, especially for someone like Percy, but Grover would lie if he said it didn’t feel weirdly reassuring to know how good his best friend had thought of him.

“All the way, G-man.” I turned to Chiron. “So where do we go?... Chiron looked surprised. I thought that would be obvious enough. The entrance to the Underworld is in Los Angeles.”

Will facepalmed. “Did Chiron forgot he didn’t show Percy the orientation film?”

“He was pretty distracted,” Nico shrugged. “He barely paid attention to what he told him.”

“Oh,” I said. “Naturally. So we just get on a plane… Percy what are you thinking? Have you ever been on a plane in your life?”… You would be in Zeus’s domain. You would never come down again alive.”

Thalia’s face shifted into a grimace, and she leaned closer to Percy. “That’s actually pretty sh*tty for you, Nico and Hazel and kind of unfair. I mean, we’re still allowed to board a ship or even swim in the ocean without fearing to be drowned.”

“You can’t really enter dad’s domain though,” Percy pointed out. “Even if you’re on board of a ship or swim at the shore, you just touch the surface. You’re physically not able to enter the ocean, and survive.” He furrowed his eyebrows. “I mean, I guess you might be able to in a submarine, but… it’s not the same. I promise you, a lousy flight on a plane is nothing against swimming in the ocean. I personally don’t really mind it.”

Overhead, lightning crackled. Thunder boomed… The other has already volunteered. If you will accept her help.”

A fond smile started to play around Katie’s lips. “Oh yes, very difficult to guess, who that person could be.”

“Gee,” I said, feigning surprise,” Who else would be stupid enough to volunteer for a quest like this?”… “Athena is no fan of Poseidon, but if you’re going to safe the world, I’m the best person to keep you from messing up.”

Percy let out a snort. “Nice phrasing,” he commented with a fond roll of his eyes. “How do you think you are you faring so far?”

“You mess up far less than I had expected back than,” Annabeth admitted with a smile. “And it would be a lie to say you never covered for me. I’d say we’re doing a pretty good job keeping each other from screwing up.”

“If you do say so yourself,” I said. “I suppose you have a plan, wise girl?” Her cheeks colored.

“Already?” Thalia teased with a small smirk, causing Annabeth to blush and glare at her.

“Obviously not,” she defended herself. “I just wasn’t used to someone teasing me back like that. I was simply annoyed.”

She smiled affectionately. “Sure, Annie.”

“Do you want my help or not?”… “A trio,” I said. “That’ll work.”

“It definitely is working,” Grover grinned at him and Annabeth “We’re a rather good team, aren’t we?”

“Awesome,” Annabeth agreed.

Percy’s lips transformed into a smile. “The best. No doubt about it.”

“Excellent,” Chiro said. “This afternoon we can take you as far as the bus terminal in Manhatten… I think you should all get packing.

“This seems like the right time to stop again, doesn’t it?” Demeter asked as the projection died down. “Then we can watch more or less the entirety of the actual quest tomorrow.”

Athena nodded. “A reasonable proposition. I’d agree with that.”

Chapter 13: Break 2: Bets & Promises

Chapter Text

Perseus was treading behind the rest of the demigods.

His hands were hidden in the pockets of his jeans and his walk was slowed, as if he was dreading entering their living quarters, trying to avoid talking about whatever it was his friends had seemed so keen to discuss with him only a few minutes prior.

Amphitrite cleared her throat.

“Perseus,” her voice echoed loud and clear trough the large hallway, making him stop dead in his tracks. “A word?”

He turned around, head tilted in confusion and eyes narrowed. Warily, he nodded at her. “Lady Amphitrite.”

It seemed to be far easier for him to address her with her proper title, in comparison to the other gods, she noted. Still, there was a stiffness in his posture whenever he talked to her, a quick aversion of his gaze whenever their eyes had met in the main hall.

“I don’t plan on holding you off for too long,” she said. “Zeus and Hera do not wish for us to interact much with any of you more than what is necessary.”

“Of course, they don’t,” he muttered, frustration slipping into his voice. Then, he looked at her again. “But I didn’t know that there is something important you would want to talk to me about.”

“I am simply here, because I want to clear up any kind of misunderstanding that might have formed between us,” Amphitrite clasped her hands together. “Zeus might not really deem it necessary if he were to know, but since we are stuck here, it would seem disadvantageous to not use the opportunity.”

Perseus furrowed his eyebrows. “Misunderstanding?”

“Poseidon has told me of your existence shortly after you were born,” she said. “I am not Hera. Neither am I Persephone. I am thoroughly confident in my husbands love for me and I am secure in my position. I do not care for whatever affaires he might have. I never did. So, do not hold any kind of resentment towards you, Perseus.”

Perseus slowly blinked. “You don’t?”

He studied her face, eyebrows tightly drawn together, searching for the hint of proof she was telling a lie. She remained silent, and after a few moments his apprehension carefully started to recede.

Still, he hesitated, when he spoke again. “I’m sorry that you have to be a part of this… thing though. Seeing this much of me and mom probably sucks.”

“I can’t fault either of you for that,” she simply said. “I’m certain that this projection is much more unpleasant for you than it is for me, and I can hardly judge Sally Jackson for being a good mother or for… whatever relationship she might have once had with Poseidon.”

“Yeah, but…”

She arched an eyebrow. “Do you really want to talk to me more about my thoughts regarding your father’s affaires?”

He physically cringed. “No,” he said immediately. “Nope, definitely not. Thank you. I’m good.”

A small, amused smile tugged on the corners of her lips. “Besides, even if I were resentful, I have been far too busy with the reparations to focus much on anything else. The Fates know where Hera takes the time to go after Zeus’ children.”

“Yeah right,” Perseus said, and his face shifted into a grimace. “I’m sorry about what happened to Atlantis.”

“You have no reason to be,” Amphitrite said. “We Atlanteans are resilient. A city can easily be rebuilt. It was the right call to focus our attack on Typhon instead,” she nodded at him. “I’ve heard we owe you our thanks for that one.”

“Hardly,” he said with a shrug. “I’m just glad everything turned out the way it did.”

“As am I,” she said. “Aside from that, I am convinced that this projection will also be much worse for your father than for me.”

“It will?”

“I’m certain of it.” She said and threw him another glance. “You don’t have the easiest feelings regarding him, do you?”

A hundred different emotions flickered over his face at once, and his hands clenched together. “It’s… complicated.”

She shouldn’t ask. Amphitrite knew there was no good reason for her to ask, but curiosity pulled on her mind, like an impatient current. “Might I ask why?”

Seconds of silence stretched into minutes until Amphitrite was convinced, he wouldn’t answer.

“I haven’t talked to dad since I woke up near New Rome,” Perseus finally said, a dark shadow falling over his face. “Not since Tartarus. Not really at least.”

Amphitrite nodded in understanding.

During the course of the centuries, she had become quite remarkable at listening, at making people comfortable enough to pour out their thoughts and feelings to her. An indescribably valuable talent at court, both on Olympus and under the sea.

But she had also learned to recognize when someone’s defenses were up. When someone kept their thoughts so close to their chest, they could very well be hidden behind a guarded vault. Feelings so closely hidden, not even a siren’s song could unlock their secrets.

“I know that I have talked to dad more times than what is usual, and that I have been luckier than most back at camp in that regard,” he continued. “But after the war with Kronos, with everything that happened with Gaia and the giants, especially the close down of Olympus and Atlantis….,” there was a tightness around his eyes, and he pressed his lips together into a hard line. “Like I said, it’s complicated.”

Exhaustion was speaking. She had no doubt about that.

“The decisions made during the giant war were unjust, I’m not going to deny that.” Amphitrite let her face remain a façade of neutrality. “Though I have to admit, I know little of the demigod side during those events.”

“Well, you’ll see all about it in the next few days,” he sounded bitter, and ran a hand through pitch black hair. “Or maybe even weeks.”

Now, that she was standing so close to him, she could see deep shadows under eyes, which made the sea green of his eyes even more prominent.

A shade he shared with Rhode, Triton, Benthesykmene, Kymopoleia and her husband, Amphitrite noted. With the few small scars that were already ingrained onto his face, the tension in his posture and the hunted expression as a constant companion, he looked much older than most seventeen year old mortals.

“Regarding your father…”she hesitated, carefully selecting her words. “After the fight between the two camps broke out, most of us had trouble with our roman sides. Neptune and Poseidon especially are not always… on the same page, I suppose you could say. It would have been difficult for him to help during that time.”

Amphitrite let out a sigh. “Anyway, that is not a conversation you and I should have. You should try to get some sleep while you still can,” her voice had become imperceptibly softer. “It would do no one a favor if you fell asleep during tomorrow’s session. Given the fact it’s mostly going to handle your quest and your special case regarding injuries, it should be draining enough without added sleep deprivation.”

He hesitated, then nodded again. “I will. Thank you for telling me, especially if it was against what Zeus has said.”

With those final words they departed, but before Perseus opened the door to the demigod’s residence, he turned around once more; his eyebrows tightly knitted together. “You’re not going to tell dad what I’ve said, are you?”

A faint smile started to play around her lips. “I’ll remain silent on the matter. It’s hardly my place to tell.”

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An uncomfortable silence stretched across the common room only a few minutes after Percy had talked to Amphitrite.

Most of the others had long returned to their rooms, so that the old camp half blood campers were the only ones who remained.

Travis and Katie were exchanging awkward glances, Connor was focused fiddling with his cup of hot chocolate and even Annabeth and Grover looked like they couldn’t quite decide how to start the conversation.

“Soo,” Chris finally cleared his throat. “All of us like totally owe you an apology, Percy.”

Percy grimaced. “You really don’t.”

“We do,” Katie insisted, and leaned forward in her seat, determination flickering in her eyes. “I mean, especially with what happened to your mother-”

“You didn’t know about mom,” he cut her off.

“I did,” Annabeth crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Chiron had told me what the minotaur had done, and I was still an absolute ass towards you.”

“And even if the rest of us didn’t, there is no excuse for how we’ve treated you after we found out who your dad was,” Connor chimed in and ran a hand through his hair. “I mean, gods, Percy, that was seriously messed up.”

“Are you really not bothered by it?” Katie asked.

“Not really, I mean,” Percy hesitated for a while, searching for the right words. “Look, obviously, that wasn’t exactly the best time of my life, and yeah, I guess looking back you were acting a bit cold towards me, but, I mean, in comparison to everything that happened after… I just, I can’t bring myself to care about it. Especially not here. Not now,” he sighed. “Listen I appreciate you saying this now, I really do, but like I said before that was almost 5 years ago. I barely thought about it since. It’s really not worth getting worked up about.”

“You sounded pretty upset about it in the projection,” Travis pointed out quietly.

“Yeah, when I was twelve,” Percy said. “And when it actually happened to me. Now, I have by far other things to worry about. “He looked around in the group. “And especially with the battle at camp and the one in Manhattan, we all do. Not to mention the war with Gaia.”

“Yeah obviously, that’s going to suck,” Connor agreed. “But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t apologize for the little things in between. So, for what it’s worth, and think I can speak for everyone here, I am still sorry.”

The rest of them nodded in agreement, even Clarisse, though she glared at him when their eyes met.

Percy sighed. “Thank you.“

Then, he stood up. “If it’s alright with all of you, I’m going to go to my room.” He threw a glance out of one of the windows, which offered the view of a brilliantly clear night sky. “It’s already pretty late, and nothing against you, but I really need to be alone for a while.”

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Leo couldn’t concentrate on his project.

He barely glanced at the unfinished wires and gear wheels that he was somehow supposed to transform into his very own web shooters, an idea Will and Percy had given him a few weeks back during one of their campfires.

It had been a joke, nothing more than a silly comment, but somehow it had stayed with him, sunken its claws stubbornly into his subconsciousness until he had finally decided to start working on a prototype.

The clumsy sketches he had created laid scattered all around him, some had even fluttered to the floor, or had been crumpled into balls and thrown randomly across the room.

Jason and Piper were absentmindedly playing with two of them, while they were sitting cross-legged behind him on his bed and leaned against the orange wall. Piper’s umber brown hair had been pulled back into a high ponytail and she quickly fanned air to herself and Jason with her right hand.

Leo’s room was warmer than the rest of the temple. A, for him, comforting temperature that reminded him of the forge back at camp half-blood. He could almost hear the clanking of hammers, or the cursing from some project gone wrong whenever he worked in this room.

When he really concentrated, it also smelled slightly like his mom’s old workplace. The motor oil and boxes of take-out Chinese from the restaurant down the street, mixing together to create an achingly familiar scent.

Safe to say, Leo didn’t like to concentrate too much in here.

Quiet mumbled words fell from their lips like leaves in an autumn storm, but Leo barely followed their conversation.

He tapped anxiously with his fingers against his workbench, as that scene played once again in his head, like an annoyingly persistent echo.

Leo still saw the tightness around Percy’s jaw, the too attentive eyes and the mixture of fear and barely hidden disgust swirling inside of them as he had glared at his stepfather. The too familiar face he used to see in his reflection every time he had passed a mirror in the Simmons house.

Long buried memories of drunken shouts, sharp words, hands balled into fists and a heavy, black belt tried to resurface, to drown him once again in too dark waters. The skin on his back and arms started to itch.

His fingers moved even faster.

He could do the same thing Thalia had done.

The thought flashed through his mind before he could do anything to stop it.

Percy’s room was just down the hallway. It would take maybe three steps and a knock against his door. Barely ten minutes worth of talking.

A piece for a piece. A memory for a memory.

It would only be fair. The closest possible thing Percy would get to fairness in this place at least.

But Leo was a coward.

He shook his head, trying to erase the scene, which seemed to be permanently burned inside of his brain.

They weren’t particularly close in the first place, his mind argued. The whole situation with Calypso had made matters way more awkward than they already had been, so Percy probably didn’t even want to talk to him of all people about it.

And there were just some secrets no one should know about you, little pieces too private to ever reveal.

Though from Percy, they had been ripped away, and he lay bare, open for all to see, like a character from a comic book.

Leo’s face shifted into a grimace.

He got sick only thinking about it, only allowing the slim possibility that the same thing might happen to him once they’d get to his, Piper’s and Jason’s quest to save Hera to take root inside of his mind.

The ugly, selfish, cowardly part deep inside side of him desperately hoped, almost prayed it would revolve around Jason or Piper instead of him. Anyone instead of him.

Leo nervously ran a hand once again through his hair, creating an unruly mess of frizzy, coffee-brown curls, before returning it to the desk, tapping even harder against the metal surface and creating a fast, uneven rhythm.

It wouldn’t make sense if it wouldn’t be Jason, he tried to convince himself. Jason, son of Jupiter, and praetor of new Rome, who had fought against the titan army on mount Tamalpais and according to camp Jupiter had personally defeated the titan Krios.

Surely, the fates would consider him to be the equivalent of Percy on their quest.

Someone carefully placed a warm hand on his shoulder, creating a comfortable weight, that gently pulled him back into the present. “Are you okay?”

He didn’t have to see Jason’s face to know that he looked worried.

Leo cleared his throat and hid his numb hands in the pockets of his sweatpants. “Yeah, I’m awesome. Couldn’t be better, really.”

“You sure?”

Now, he did look up. Really up. It was annoying to realize once again how tall Jason really was when they stood so close to one another. Leo’s curls barely reached the bridge of his nose.

His friend studied him intently, with his eyebrows drawn together. His eyes were almost too blue, Leo thought. Like the sky on a perfect summer day, without a cloud in sight, or sapphires, that glinted brilliantly in the light of the sun.

It could be pretty unnerving whenever Jason looked at him like that. As if he could see right through him and figure out every secret that had never made it past Leo’s lips.

Leo forced a grin on his face. “Really, I’m good. I’m just frustrated with this one,” he gestured to his project. “I owe Peter Parker and Miles Morales more respect than I initially thought.”

“Okay,” A pearl of sweat ran down Jason’s face, as doubt slipped into his voice. From his forehead to his cheekbone, over the small white scar on his upper lip, then down to his chin.

He didn’t press any further. He never did, when Leo didn’t want to talk. Neither did Piper, which made him feel even more guilty.

“I just said we should probably go to bed by now,” Piper had stood up without him noticing. “Tomorrow seems like it’s going to be a long day.”

She poked his chest. “And, by the way, if anything is up, you can always talk to us, you know that right? That’s what friends are for.”

“Sure, I do,” he said and shrugged his shoulders forcefully casual. “But as long as you don’t know details about the process of multi-polymerization to help emulate spider-silk, I’m afraid you really can’t help me here.”

Piper rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean, dummy.” Then, she waved her hand and stepped out into the hallway. “You both better get a good few hours of sleep. Night guys.”

Jason hesitated in following her outside. He turned around and met Leo’s eyes once again. “You know, this projection thing sucks for all of us, right? “he asked softly. “You wouldn’t be the only one uncomfortable with it. There’s no shame in feeling that way.”

Leo had to suppress the urge to wince. It wasn’t the same thing, he wanted to say. Because Jason, selfless, stupidly brave Jason would never wish that Leo or Piper would have their thoughts revealed, to save himself.

Because if Jason related to Percy in the same way, could offer him this one piece of information to make him feel better understood in this literal nightmare come to life, he certainly wouldn’t hesitate.

Instead, Leo just nodded, and waved a hand in front of his face. “I know, I know. We’re all in this sh*t together or whatever.”

“Exactly,” Jason didn’t quite manage a smile, but the corners of his lips did quirk up in a failed attempt. “Good night, Leo.”

“Night, Jason.”

Leo watched both of them disappear into their rooms. Jason’s with the marble furniture, storming ceiling and dark satin, and Piper with her warm fairy lights, and fluffy carpeted floor.

Against his will, his eyes wandered over to where Percy’s room had been built at the very end of the hallway. A massive door made from sea-stone, engraved with a large trident.

Three steps.

One knock.

Leo turned his back to the hallway, slipped back into his room and closed the door behind him.

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“You know what I want from you.”

Poseidon’s voice cut trough the air like a sword trough flesh. Cold, sharp and directly to the point, with no time for flowery language or veiled intentions.

His face was distorted by a deep scowl, and he sat tall, arms crossed, and chin raised, opposite of Hades in the middle of a newly constructed temple. The first one he had on Olympus, built out of pure obsidian and richly decorated with gold and precious jewels.

Hades took his time answering, taking a long sip of burgundy red wine out of a golden goblet. “Gabe Ugliano,” he intentionally drawled out the name, intently studying his brother’s reaction. His jaw was set, his hand twitching as if longing to hold his trident. “You want to know what’s happening to him, I presume?”

That reveal had been an unexpected development, to say the least.

Even to Hades.

He remembered the boy back when he had first met him. Righteous anger and loyalty battling naïve uncertainty inside of him. Still overwhelmed by a world, he got violently and without warning thrown in the very midst of.

“I don’t care how much you’re torturing him,” Poseidon said. “It is not even remotely enough.”

“We have special punishments for abusers. Especially abusers of children. I can assure you; he is suffering a great deal.”

“Not enough,” he repeated. “He didn’t abuse any random mortal child. He abused Percy.” There was a sharp edge to his voice when it came to his son’s name, an ancient fury he was barely able to contain.

“Who was a child when the abuse occurred, which qualifies Gabe Ugliano for that punishment,” Hades said, then arched an eyebrow. “I thought you used to visit him. You never suspected it?”

Poseidon’s expression lacked any warmth. “Do you really think he would have lived as long as he did, if I had?”

No, no he wouldn’t have.

Gabe Ugliano would have agonizingly drowned the second his brother would have found out, his corpse rotting away at the bottom of the ocean, never to be seen again.

“I stopped after he got attacked by that snake,” A dark shadow fell over Poseidon’s face. “His first attack and he was barely even two years old. I’d tried to have as little contact as possible to him afterwards.”

“It is a strangely young age to get noticed by monsters,” Hades agreed, while subtly focusing on his brother’s reaction.

Normally, Poseidon wouldn’t miss the opportunity to boast about Percy. This time, he seemed to barely register it.

“Or did the attack perhaps have anything to do with your presence there?” he continued.

“I can veil my presence well enough,” Poseidon said. “It was solely because of him. You know the consequences of our children receiving too much attention from this world all too well even without our influence.”

Hades pressed his lips together into a thin line.

He remembered dark locks twirling in the summer heat, coffee brown eyes, full of fierce love and proud stubbornness, carelessly snuffed out by his brother’s paranoia. A cowardly act that had condemned Nico and Bianca to only remember their mother as the shadow of a laugh and the ghost of an embrace.

The wine tasted bitter in his mouth, and he averted his eyes from his brother, instead shifting his attention to the marble halls and amphitheatres of Olympus, admittedly a much more pleasant view than the souls of the dead.

“Maria was her name, wasn’t it? “Poseidon finally asked into the silence.

“Yes,” Hades said reluctantly. “Maria.” The name felt strange on his tongue nowadays. Like a slowly fading echo, or the last flicker of a flame. He wondered how long it would take this time for it to sound completely foreign to his ears, to simply become a name like any other.

Poseidon let out a deep sigh.

“Listen,” he began. “I know that we normally avoid talking to each other and I can’t remember the last time we have asked each other for any favors, but just this once, I need you to worsen his torture.”

Hades didn’t look at him, and simply regarded the goblet in his hand. “You agreed with Zeus about me being banned from Olympus,” his voice became several degrees colder. “Or, at the very least, you never disagreed. “

Silence stretched between them. Poseidon’s hand twitched again.

Hades was tempted to refuse his request. To add another little resentment to the crack that continued to grow between them with each passing year. Perhaps purely out of spite.

But his son’s words that had swirled around in his mind ever since the war against their father, too wise, too glaringly true for a twelve-year-old to have to voice, resurfaced once again.

Go ahead. Show them that they were right about you!

He let out a deep sigh.

There was already enough unnecessary conflict between him and his brothers. If nothing else the past five years had done a remarkable job of showing them the consequences of their carelessness.

“I won’t do it simply because you’ve asked me too,” he finally said and met his brothers’ eyes straight on. “If this would be about Bellerophon or especially Theseus, I wouldn’t lift a finger, I can promise you that.”

Poseidon drew his eyebrows together, in surprise or doubt, Hades couldn’t tell. “However?”

“However,” his hand tightened around his goblet. “While I don’t particularly like Perseus Jackson, I don’t despise him either. He is more… I suppose you could say, tolerable than your other children. It’s partly because of him that Nico, and any other child I might have in the future, have a home at camp half blood.” He took another sip. “I’ll inform Alecto to make the necessary arrangements.”

Poseidon hadn’t expected this answer.

He stared at him for a few moments, studying his face, searching for traces of lies in the truth. Hades didn’t blink.

“Thank you,” he finally said. Those rare words, full of sincerity and stupid in their simplicity, always held a weight when it came from one of them. It didn’t take a goddess like Athena to figure out why this matter held this much importance for his brother.

“But making that man suffer won’t change anything, “Hades said, a low warning in his voice. “If I may give you a piece of advice, you should brace yourself for his death.”

Poseidon’s expression immediately shifted from relief to defensiveness, as if someone had flipped a switch. Sudden, like a storm on the ocean. “That is none of your business.”

“Is it not?” Hades asked, eyebrow raised. “How many casualties do you think I can expect when you unleash your grief on the mortal world once he dies? Thousands? Perhaps Millions?”, he leaned slightly forward. “Poseidon, you need to brace yourself.”

“Do you think I don’t know that?” his fingers curled around the edge of the table and bitter frustration filled his voice. “Why do you think I’m currently talking to you and not to him?”

“Because our little brother told us not to?” he suggested drily.

Poseidon scoffed, and Hades narrowed his eyes.

This frustration was expected, the anger an almost guaranteed occurrence when talking to him, but these were just superficial emotions, masking a dangerous grief, which had already manifested in him like mold.

“You could always force him to become immortal,” the suggestion came quietly, carefully, and if he was being honest, against his better judgement. “Percy would without a doubt despise it, but it would be your only way to avoid losing him. Once, he is truly dead, neither you nor I nor anyone else can do anything to change his fate.”

It would be the usual choice to make for Poseidon. If he wanted something to happen, he always made sure it would, no matter the consequences. That was his brother’s true nature. Ruthless, even in comparison to most of the other gods. Rather cruel, if he wanted to be.

But when he looked at him now, he could see none of that in his expression. Instead, he saw conflict, grief, and a stubborn, resolute decisiveness.

“I would,” Poseidon said after a while, a faraway look in his eyes. “If I would love him any less, I would have done so a million times already.” He looked at him. “Do you know how many of my children would have killed, simply for the opportunity to become a god?”

“And yet you’re stuck caring for the one who refuses to,” Hades said and took another sip. “It’s quite ironic, don’t you think?”

“What about you?”

“Me?” he furrowed his eyebrows.

“You also care a great deal about your children. You make it quite obvious,” Poseidon said. “You always have.”

Hades sighed. “They won’t be completely dead to me. Not in the same way your children will be for you. They’ll reside within my domain after all. Moreover, there is not a doubt in my mind that Nico and Hazel are going to spend their afterlife in Elysium. I couldn’t ask for a better fate for them.”

“As will Perseus Jackson, if that makes matters any better,” he added.

“Obviously he will,” Poseidon said, and Hades suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. “And it doesn’t. Not really. But thanks again, brother. Truly.”

He moved to leave, but before he reached the exit, he turned around one last time. “It might not matter much anymore, but I am glad you finally received your temple,” he said. “It was long overdue.”

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“So, how long do you all think it’s going to take Poseidon to snap?”

The question had come up the second Rhode’s father, Zeus and the other elder gods had left the hall. Rhode wasn’t surprised that it had come from Apollo.

He had swung his legs over the side of his throne and clasped his hands behind his head, one earphone plugged in his right ear, the other dangling carelessly from his neck.

“Atlas,” Artemis said absentmindedly, while shouldering her quiver, and counting her arrows.

“You greatly underestimate how much father cares for Perseus,” Rhode said. “He is resolute to not turn him, as long as he continues to refuse it.”

“And you greatly underestimate in how much trouble Percy gets,” Hermes countered. “He’s barely entered our world, and he already got attacked by a fury, a hellhound, and the minotaur. I fear the stakes are highly stacked against Poseidon here.”

“Very much so,” Amusem*nt danced in Apollo’s azure blue eyes. “It’s really only a matter of time at this point. Is anyone up for a bet?”

Artemis arched an eyebrow exasperated and looked at her brother. “Again? Really? It’s moments like these that make me wish that there was a god of therapy for you, brother.”

“Just having a bit of harmless fun, sister. You obviously don’t have to join in if you don’t want to,” Apollo’s lips formed into a grin. “I’m saying he’ll turn him when he meets Kronos for the first time. Face to face.”

Hermes fingers tightened around his phone. “Tartarus,” he said. “At the very latest. There is no way Poseidon won’t do it.”

“Let’s say the battle of Manhattan,” Hebe suggested.

“Atlas,” Artemis repeated, and pointedly ignored her brother’s smug expression.

“What in Fates name happened with Atlas?” Hermes turned his head to look at her and raised an eyebrow. “You keep referring to it, I don’t think you have ever told us the whole story of what happened down there.”

She shrugged. “You’ll see soon enough, I suppose. But I can assure you if Poseidon doesn’t turn him then, he’ll come dangerously close to doing so.”

“I’ve heard he met Polybotes,” Triton chimed in listlessly next to her.

Rhode sent him a look.

“Just because I don’t want father to do it, doesn’t mean I don’t think he will,” he said, and folded his arms in front of his chest. “I am preparing myself for the worst.”

“Calling it the worst-case scenario seems a bit harsh, doesn’t it,” Hebe disagreed. “His presence is certainly entertaining enough. She shrugged with a grin. “Though, obviously, as a minor god I’m certainly a bit biased here.”

“Oh, you have seen nothing so far.” An almost fond smile tugged on Hermes’ lips. “Just wait for the actual start of Percy’s quest.”

“I think in a way I’m starting to look forward to it,” Hebe said. “He and his deeds are mostly still clouded in mystery and It might finally become interesting here on Olympus again if Poseidon actually turns him. I certainly wouldn’t mind.”

Rhode suppressed the need to mention that Perseus would hardly reside on Olympus should he become a god.

“Well, perhaps Poseidon won’t be the one to do it at the end of it all,” Aphrodite mused and sent Hermes a playful smile. “It would certainly be an interesting twist if that role were to fall to someone else.”

The amusem*nt in his face vanished in an instant. “Now you’ve completely lost your mind, haven’t you?”

Triton drew his eyebrows together. “What are you talking about?”

“Nothing,” Hermes grabbed his caduceus and sent Aphrodite a glare. “I have to leave as well. This whole retelling puts me way past my deadlines, and my job, other than the one of certain others in this room, involves more than meddling in things they have no place in or indulging in delusions.”

“Everything to do with love is my place, dear,” the goddess called after him. “Eros is not the only type I’m interested in.”

“Love?” the word suddenly started to sound foreign to Rhode’s ears as she slowly repeated it.

“Certainly not quiet yet,” Aphrodite admitted with a shrug. “But Philia and Storge can be the two most beautiful and tragic kinds of love if allowed to prosper. “She shifted her attention to her and her brother. “Do the two of you have any thoughts about that?” Her eyes were filled with a glint far too knowing, and far too amused for Rhode’s liking.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Triton face immediately got distorted by a scowl, and he stood up. “I think it’s time for us to leave as well. Come on, Rhode.”

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Triton had always been a god whose loyalty belonged completely to the ocean.

He wore his pride to his home like his armour. Impossible to overlook, like a general in the midst of a battlefield. Triton was much like their mother in that regard and barely spared the golden buildings and marble halls of Olympus a glance.

Rhode herself however could appreciate the beauty of the surface world. She had often visited Helios’ golden temple on Olympus before he had faded, and often walked on her island disguised as a mortal, basking in the sunlight, and strolling through the populated streets.

Absentmindedly, she let her eyes wander over the eternal city. Golden fires illuminated the wide, pristine streets and she could see the amphitheatre she used to visit with Euphrosyne, and Kalliope, glinting in the distance.

“You like him, don’t you?” Triton suddenly asked into the silence.

“I think he’s interesting,” Rhode was careful in selecting her words. “This is a great chance, to get to know him. Find out who Perseus really is.” She glanced at him. His posture was unnaturally stiff, and his eyebrows had drawn together. “You can’t tell me you’re not at least a bit curious.”

“I don’t know why you would want to bother,” Triton’s voice was resigned, as if he had expected her answer, but was still annoyed at her foolishness. “Probably as unsufferable as the rest of them.”

He had avoided replying to her question, Rhode noted.

“He didn’t seem so unsufferable to me,” she said. “Do you really hold onto that opinion after everything we’ve seen of him?”

“Seeing him for roughly a day hardly proves anything,” Triton said.

“We saw a bit more of him in one day that what you would under normal circ*mstances,” Rhode countered.

“A lot can change from the time he was twelve.”

A small, winning smile formed on her lips. “So, you agree that 12-year-old him didn’t seem so bad?”

Triton let out a long, exasperated sigh.

“I don’t think anyone can say anything against him so far,” he admitted, albeit reluctantly. “But even if we assume he isn’t, what’s the point? If he’s lucky enough not to get killed by a monster, he’s going to die in around 70 years anyway. That’s hardly anything. It’s not worth getting to know him, Rhode.”

Rhode could find no solid reason to disagree.

Triton looked at her. “Are you coming back to Atlantis, or will you return to Rhodos for the night?”

“I’ll actually stay here,” she said. “Catch up with some old friends. I’m way too rarely on Olympus nowadays. Not since Helios….” Rhode trailed off.

Even after all those years, her husband’s death was like a gaping wound. A dark emptiness, that threatened to consume her if she thought about him for too long.

Perhaps that was why she was so tempted to finding out more about their half-brother, she thought. Because she was so desperate to find new ways to distract herself.

Rhode wished there was any way to persuade Triton, make him feel the same wave of curiosity that she was experiencing, whenever Perseus showed the fierce love he held for his mother, and his friend, or when they saw the refreshing naivety with which he had met their world.

All things that won’t really matter to Triton. He had closed himself off of such matters after Pallas.

Rhode wondered if he had even noticed their similarities, or if he had subconsciously shielded himself from seeing them.

“Triton… he defeated the minotaur,” she said at last.

“And a fury” he added reluctantly. “He hadn’t had any training so far. A prodigy in battle….”

There was a little spark in her brother’s eyes. Triton was the one training their father’s troops, spending every possible moment in Atlantis honing his skills with his trident. At the very least, Perseus’ talent with the sword intrigued him, even if he didn’t want to acknowledge it.

He shook his head decisively, snuffing it out. “Well, if father really convinces him to become a god, at least he will be useful in the protection of Atlantis, I suppose.”

With those final words Triton disappeared in a golden light, leaving behind only the salty scent of the sea.

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Annabeth’s room had a domed ceiling. That was one of the first things she had noticed, when she had first entered the day before. Hemispherical and built high above the large enignum bed in the middle of the room.

She was staring up at it now, wide awake, letting her eyes wander over the green, grey, blue and brown pieces of glass, which mixed together into a beautiful mosaic painting, depicting an owl sitting on top of an olive tree, and letting them linger on the saltwater source in the background.

Her throat was scratchy and dry when she swallowed.

The water bottle, that stood on a nightstand next to her, had already been emptied and she had given up on sleep hours ago. Millions of different thoughts swirled around her head, keeping her conscious against her will.

With a sigh, she stood up.

Her room was large, two stories connected by a marble spiral staircase and filled with dozens and dozens of bookcases.

There had to be thousands of books stacked in between them, their topics ranging from architecture to history, fantasy, and science fiction, their date of origin from scrolls dating back to Greece’s classical period to new editions, freshly published with shining new covers. It would probably take decades to read every single one of them.

Idly, Annabeth wondered how much Ella would love this room, as she threw a blue cardigan over her black pajama, slipped into her pair of sneakers and stepped out into the hallway.

It was mostly dark, most of the others had already fallen asleep, but warm, buttery light flooded from under Percy’s door and drew soft shadows against the wall. He was probably still working on the history essay that was due next week and refused to go to bed.

Again.

Annabeth sighed quietly as she walked past.

Surprisingly, the kitchen wasn’t empty, when she entered it.

A little warm lamp lit up a small part of the room and a lone figure sat at the very edge of the kitchen table. Reyna wore an emerald green pajama and her dark hair hung loosely around her face, framing it like a curtain. A cup of steaming hot chocolate stood in front of her and the sweet scent lingered in the air like a cloud.

She seemed to be deeply lost in thoughts, her head was propped up against the surface and she stirred her drink absentmindedly with a silver spoon.

Annabeth halted.

Normally, she saw Reyna only in her camp Jupiter uniform, with her hair bound back and her posture straight and proud. Annabeth didn’t think she’d ever seen her as casually as this.

It felt wrong, strangely intimate in a way. As if someone had ripped a woman out of a renaissance painting and carelessly thrown her into the 21^st. century.

“Hey,” she said, and met her dark eyes as Reyna looked up. “I didn’t think anyone else was awake at this time."

“Neither did I.” Reyna gestured to the chair opposite of her, as Annabeth filled a glass from one of the shelves with tap water. “You’re welcome to have a seat. Company doesn’t sound too bad right now.”

Annabeth nodded and plopped down, emptying half of the glass in one gulp.

Reyna studied her intently, letting her dark gaze wander from the shadows under her eyes to her lips that were tightly pressed together. “Trouble sleeping?”, she asked.

“A bit. It’s…” Annabeth gestured listlessly at nothing in particular,” a lot.”

“To say the least,” Reyna agreed and threw a glance at the light emanating from the hallway. “I doubt Percy is getting much sleep either.”

Annabeth sighed and let a hand run through her hair, freeing some locks from her loose braid. “Would you?”

“There is no way to tell what I would do in his shoes.”

“That makes two of us.” Annabeth was pretty sure that water wasn’t supposed to taste this bitter.

Reyna shifted her attention back to her. “How are you holding up? Generally speaking, I mean.”

“I’m fine, I think. I just… I never realized how awful I used to be to him,” Annabeth absentmindedly curled one lock around her finger. “There was so much going on all the time, so we never really talked about it. I barely even remembered our first days together at camp before today. It just surprised me, I guess.”

“It would be a lie to say that I wasn’t surprised too,” Reyna admitted. “But you were young. It’s obvious that you have grown a lot since then.”

“That’s not an excuse,” Annabeth said.

“No,” Reyna agreed. “But an explanation.”

“I guess,” she lifted her shoulder, only half convinced. Guilt still ran down her back like acid.

“Percy doesn’t seem to blame you,” Reyna noted and took a sip from her cup.

“No, he doesn’t,” Annabeth sighed. “He should, but… that’s who Percy is. Who he’s always been really.”

“And you have a problem with it?”

Annabeth hesitated. “That’s not exactly it. I’m afraid he doesn’t mind it for the wrong reasons. It did hurt him. There is no denying there. I mean, you’ve seen him,” she winced. “Gods, we’ve heard him, but he glazes over it because in his opinion he had to deal with bigger things. That’s not exactly the healthiest mindset.”

“And then there’s the whole story with his stepfather,” A dark shadow fell over her face, and her hands tightened around her glass.

“Yeah, that guy,” Reyna’s face noticeably darkened. “You really didn’t know about what that man did to him?”

“I knew that Gabe Ugliano wasn’t a good person. I knew that Percy hated him, but I never suspected that he abused…,” the words got stuck in her throat and she had to take a deep breath before continuing. “I mean, I never thought he had gone this far. Percy never mentioned it.” Her voice broke off.

It probably shouldn’t hurt as much as it did that Percy kept something this big a secret from her.

“People process trauma differently,” Reyna said as if reading her mind. “Percy seems like the kind of guy to repress most of the bad things that happened to him. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t trust you.” A bitter smile crossed her lips. “It’s a rather common defense mechanism.”

“I know. I know, it’s just...I’m afraid it’ll only get worse,” Annabeth wetted her lips. “Looking back, Percy never really talked about how he felt during any of it. I think we’re all in for a pretty rough awakening. Not to mention how much the whole situation sucks for him in the first place. I‘m just not sure how to act here,” she said reluctantly.

It was a pretty hard admission for her, but if anyone could understand her frustration, she guessed it would be Reyna.

Both of them were used to being in control, steering the ship on a set course across the ocean. This whole situation felt more as if they were on a raft in the middle of the storm, getting played with by random waves.

“There isn’t exactly a handbook on how to react to seeing your past and hearing your friend’s thoughts out loud,” Reyna agreed slowly. “There isn’t a wrong or right answer. I suppose the only thing we really can do is to be there for one another. But I’m not too worried there,” the hint of a tired smile formed on her lips. “If nothing else, the past couple years have shown me, that we have become pretty good at that.”

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Amphitrite was flipping through the pages of an old, worn-out book when her husband returned to the palace of Atlantis.

His expression was marked by the day. A scowl, and tightly drawn together eyebrows, that smoothed out when he spotted her.

“It hasn’t escaped my notice, that there is no new storm wreaking havoc upon the mortal world,” she said. “So, I assume your meeting was successful?”

“Hades agreed faster than I expected him too,” he sat down next to her, and eyed her questioningly. “How about yours?”

Her interest in speaking to his son had come as unexpected to him as it had come to Perseus himself, so his curiosity came as no surprise.

“You don’t have to worry, “Idly, she turned a page. “I simply assured him that I wish him no harm. You probably didn’t notice, because you were too focused on the projections, but the boy looked at me, like he expected me to vaporize him any moment. That he’s the product of infidelity seems to trouble him to a certain extent.” Amphitrite sent him a pointed look. “Quite a nice change, if you ask me.”

Poseidon barely reacted to the jib. Both of them had played this game for far too long, for it to be anything else than mild taunting. “So, you don’t despise him?” he asked instead.

“One day is far too early for me to judge,” she said. “However, I can’t deny that my first impression of him is more positive than I would have imagined.”

A small smile played around her lips when she finally looked up at him. “We also talked about you.”

“Me?” his eyebrows drew together. “What could you possibly have talked about there?”

“Oh, various things. Though I couldn’t possibly reveal them,” she said, and glanced at him over the edge of her book. “You haven’t talked to him since Tartarus?”

“My resolve to respect his decision crumbles with every new scene I see of him. Actually talking to Percy might end up…. counterproductive. I am going to allow myself to turn him. It’s the least I can do after everything he’s been through.”

“We’ve barely seen anything so far,” she pointed out. “It is going to get a lot worse.”

“I’m very much aware of that.” Her husband sounded bitter.

She couldn’t help the hints of amusem*nt that slipped into her voice as she hummed.

Poseidon arched an eyebrow. “What is it?”

“It’s a rarity to see you not give in to your selfish side,” she said as she turned her attention back to her book with a small smile playing on her lips. “I dare to say that I could very well get used to it.”

Chapter 14: I Ruin a Perfectly Good Bus

Chapter Text

The air was filled with the smell of freshly made bacon and toast as Percy entered the common room the next morning.

It was relatively late, around 9 am, half an hour before the projection would begin again, and there were only a few demigods left sitting around the breakfast table.

Will was trying to read a comic book over a pancake and an apple juice. Nico’s head was propped up against the table as he watched him, the hint of an amused smile playing on his lips and a bowl of dry cornflakes in front of him.

Annabeth and Grover were sitting across from each other, sharing three pieces of toast and two steaming cups of coffee.

They all looked up when he approached.

“Morning,” Grover said and let his gaze wander over his face. His forehead creased into a worried frown. “Did you get any sleep this time?”

“A bit maybe,” he rubbed his neck and yawned as he plopped down next to him. “I managed to finish my essay at least. And I don’t want to hear a thing more about the independence war from this moment on.”

Nico handed him a plate with fried eggs and bacon.

“Thanks.”

Quickly, he filled his plate with whatever was within arms reach, sausages, bacon, eggs and toast, while the others sunk back into their conversations. The topics were casual, ranging from the plot of movies, to plans for capture the flag and school, and staying noticeably away from anything mythological.

He had just inhaled an egg, when Annabeth turned her head towards him. “Can I ask you something?”

Percy couldn’t help the grimace that formed on his face as he swallowed.

“It has nothing to do with the projection,” Annabeth added quickly. “If you don’t want to talk about it, I obviously won’t force you to.”

“Be my guest then.”

“That new job you’re planning on… What is it?” she asked and spread a bit of strawberry jam on her slice of bread. “You mentioned it yesterday, but we didn’t get a chance to really talk about it. If we’re going to help each other study, it would probably be helpful to know what for.”

“Oh, yeah. Sorry, I almost forgot about that one,” he absentmindedly played with his fork. “I want to become a social worker. Help people, and specifically kids in sh*tty situations,” Percy said at last. “I plan on getting a BA in social work at New Rome’s university.”

Annabeth blinked, and a few drops of jam dropped onto her plate.

A small smile tugged on the corners of Percy’s lips. Normally, she liked to be in control of most situations, so it was fun to surprise her from time to time. Even if it was with something as trivial as college.

“Social work, huh?” She tilted her head, cloud grey eyes scanning his face. “That suits you.”

“You sound surprised,” he noted.

“It’s quite a big change,” Annabeth said, a half-hearted tease in her voice. “The last time we talked about this, you wanted to study surfing or marine biology, if I remember correctly.”

Percy snorted. “We had fallen for what do I know how many days into the deepest pit of the underworld and were swimming in the river of desperation. Forgive me for not having a thought-out answer.”

“Fair enough,” a smile played around her lips, and she leaned slightly forward in her seat. “But social work really suits you. I mean it.”

“You think?” he asked.

“Totally,” Will chimed in and nodded enthusiastically. The comic book lay closed and discarded at the edge of the table. “You have a talent for interacting with people and making them trust you. And this way, you could help find new demigods and send them immediately to Camp Half-Blood or Jupiter. Sort of like a searcher. We’re far more frequent in dysfunctional households after all.”

“That’s the plan,” Percy said, and found himself grinning. “Thanks, Will.”

He looked around the rest of the group. “What about you guys? Any specific plans that the rest of us don’t already know about?”

“Well, I won’t really need a job in the typical sense of the word,” Grover said with a shrug. “Protector of the Wild is a full-time occupation. If I need any money, I can just ask at camp.” He gestured to Will and Annabeth. “And I doubt we have to ask either of you,”

“Yeah,” Will fondly rolled his eyes. “Annabeth can’t for the life of her shut up about architecture, so no surprises there.”

“Says you,” Annabeth said. “You’ve been studying medicine ever since you’ve first arrived at camp. Did you decide on a specialty by now?”

“Probably emergency medicine,” Will said. “I’m kind of already used to that one. The New York Medical College has a pretty good residency program. I plan on making it in someday.” He gently nudged Nico’s shoulder. “How about you?”

“I don’t know,” Nico admitted. “I played with a few ideas, but nothing really sticks out. I figured I could become a pretty good homicide detective, since I can actually talk to deceased victims, but law enforcement…” Nico wrinkled his nose. “It doesn’t really sound appealing to me.”

“Yeah, I think having a bad relationship with the police always comes with being a demigod,” Percy noted.

“Also comes with growing up in Italy in the 1940s,” Nico pointed out drily.

Percy winced, “Yeah, that too, of course.” He grimaced. “Speaking of things that suck, there is actually something else I need to discuss with you, before we’re going back in there.”

He hesitated when his eyes fell on Will. “It’s a bit private though, I guess. So, I’m not sure if-“

“Whatever you have to tell me, you can tell Will too,” Nico decisively cut him off.

Will did his best to keep a neutral expression, but he couldn’t hide the small smile that hushed over his face as he took another sip from his apple juice.

Percy studied Nico for a few moments, before letting out a sigh. It was probably better to just rip off the bandage as quickly as possible and get it over with.

“We’re going to visit the Lotus Casino during this quest,” he said at last.

Nico immediately halted in his movements. Slowly, he lowered his spoon, a thousand different emotions flickering over his face, as their eyes met. “What?”

“It’s going to take a while, but judging by the speed we’re going through everything, it could happen today,” Percy continued. “So, you should probably prepare yourself for the possibility of seeing Bianca again.”

“sh*t,” Nico closed his eyes, a deep frown forming on his face as he concentrated. “I don’t remember…. Do you know if we met?”

“I don’t think so, but… Like I said, just in case.”

“If it helps, I don’t remember seeing you,” Grover said quickly.

“Neither do I,” Annabeth added.

“The Lotus Casino…,” Will repeated, and squished his eyebrows together as he looked at Nico. “That was the hotel you and Bianca stayed in, right? Before you arrived at that school in Maine, I mean.”

Nico nodded, his thoughts seemingly a million miles away. “Dad made sure we were safe there, after mom….” He trailed off.

Will hesitated for a moment, then he looked at Percy, Annabeth and Grover. “How about you leave before us? Just to give us a couple of minutes,” he asked.

“Sure,” Percy nodded. He downed the last bit of his juice, then stood up. Grover and Annabeth followed suit. “We’ll see you guys back inside.”

As soon as the door had closed behind them, Annabeth turned to him, her forehead creasing into a worried frown. “You really think we could see Bianca at the casino, “she asked.

“I really hope not,” Percy said let out a deep sigh. “I’m just really worried how this whole thing will affect Nico.” His eyes darkened. “Especially with a projection of Bianca.”

He could almost see her in his mind. The dark skin, the long, mocha brown hair and shy grin, that had become more confident the longer she had lived as a huntress. Percy remembered Bianca’s laughter and her bravery on their quest and had to hold back a wince.

Once, they’d reach their third quest things will go downhill really fast.

“I think, first we should worry about ourselves,” Grover pointed out and broke him out of his thoughts. “I really don’t look forward to watching this quest.”

“We’re a lost cause anyway,” Percy said with a shrug. “Doesn’t mean the others have to be as well.”

When they entered the hall, they quickly joined Thalia on her couch.

“Hadn’t expected you to make it in time,” she teased quietly.

“Believe me,” Percy said. “If I had the choice, I wouldn’t be here at all.”

Will and Nico slipped into the hall only seconds before Hecate and Iris conjured up a new projection and quietly plopped down next to Hazel and Frank, as it began to play once again.

Percy was again inside the Poseidon cabin, with an open, brown backpack lying on his bed.

It didn’t take me long to pack… The camp store loaned me one hundred dollars in mortal money and twenty golden drachmas… a Ziploc bag full of ambrosia squares, to be used only in emergencies, if we were seriously hurt.

“Which are only helpful when we actually eat them,” Annabeth said and sent him a pointed look.

Percy shrugged. “Water heals me. If I were to eat ambrosia it’d only be a waste of recourses.”

“Water isn’t always around,” Grover said.

“But there’s always a high chance, we’ll encounter a water source in the next hour or that it’s going to rain,” he countered. “So, as long as the injury is not life threatening, it would objectively be a waste of resources.”

Grover decisively shook his head. “Nort when you’re in pain.”

“We don’t always have the luxury of caring about pain.”

It was god food, Chiron reminded us… to read when she got bored, and a long bronze knife, hidden in her shirt sleeve.

Piper’s eyebrows drew together. “When you get bored? On a quest?”

“I always carried various books around before I arrived at camp,” Annabeth said. “I thought a quest wouldn’t be much different than my time spent with Luke and Thalia. I actually got to read a bit one the train a few days later. Plus, it was something familiar to take with me,” she shrugged. “I have always felt safer and more assured when I had a book I know with me. It helped with the nervousness.”

I was sure the knife would get us busted the first time we went trough a metal detector.

“They really didn’t explain anything more to you, did they?” Reyna asked. “I figured we simply didn’t see further explanations, but it seems like you were still quite clueless when you left for your quest.”

“I mostly focused on my sword fighting lessons those first few days,” Percy said. “Chiron probably thought that having knowledge about details like that wouldn’t matter much, if I’d get sliced into pieces before getting a chance to use it.”

“At least, Annabeth and I knew all about that stuff,” Grover added. “In the worst-case scenario, having someone who can hold his own in a battle was more important. The situation certainly wasn’t ideal but given the situation and with the little time Percy had spent at camp, it was the best solution we could come up with.”

Grover wore his fake feet and his pants to pass as human… Mozart’s Piano Concerto no. 12 and Hilary Duff’s “So Yesterday,” both of which sounded pretty bad on reed pipes.

“Yeah, music wasn’t exactly my strong suit,” Grover admitted. “Practicing that was a pain.”

“You’re pretty good now though,” Percy said. “Even if reed pipes aren’t exactly my style.”

“Nature magic sadly doesn’t work on the electric guitar,” Grover said drily.

We waved good-bye to the other campers… Chiron was waiting for us in his wheelchair….”He will drive you into the city, and, er, keep an eye on things.”

Hermes sighed. “You’d think he would have developed better jokes over the last four thousand years.”

“Chiron’s a lost cause in that regard,” Apollo said with a shrug. “He was when I raised him, and he probably will be for the next four thousand years. I’ve officially given up years ago. I advice you to do the same.”

I heard footsteps behind us. Luke came running up the hill… Annabeth blushed, the way she always did when Luke was around.

Annabeth pressed her lips together into a thin line.

She wondered if Luke had had any qualms at all about her accompanying Percy on his quest.

He must have known that if his plan had worked and Percy had gotten dragged down into Tartarus or if he had gotten killed by Zeus, she and Grover also would have had very little chance of survival.

Her hands tightened around her pillow. Or had he perhaps counted on that? That the failure of their quest and Percy’s death would fuel an obsessive hatred of the gods similar to his and would make her and Grover easier to manipulate?

Had her live been truly this meaningless to him by that point?

She averted her gaze and swallowed.

“Just wanted to say good luck,” Luke told me…He handed me the sneaker, which looked pretty normal… The shoes flapped around on the ground until the wings folded up and disappeared.

Connor furrowed his eyebrows as his gaze followed the shoes, that flapped playfully through the air around them. Every fibre, every little piece of scarlet red cloth was painfully familiar to him, from the white soles to the grey laces.

Luke had only used them sparingly, but every time he had, none of his half-siblings had been able to successfully veil their jealousy. A present from your godly parent had been rare, almost more fantasy than reality. Back then, when he and Travis had first entered camp, Luke, Annabeth and Clarisse had been the only campers with such possessions.

That had changed, of course.

Connor, and the entire Hermes cabin had received their own pairs almost immediately after the battle of Manhattan had taken place. But still…

He turned to look at Percy. “Why would Luke give them to you,” Connor asked. “Doesn’t really match the whole trying-to-frame-and-kill-you-thing, does it?”

“That’s a long story,” Percy said with a grimace. “Just… wait for it, I guess. It will become obvious once we reach the underworld.”

“Awesome!” Grover said. Luke smiled… I don’t use them much these days…” His expression turned sad. I didn’t know what to say. It was cool enough that Luke had come to say good-bye… It made me blush almost as much as Annabeth.

Thalia almost choked on the co*ke she’d been drinking.

She looked quickly from Percy, who did his best not to look at anyone, to Luke and his younger version in the projection.

A light flush had crept onto Projection-Percy’s face as he grinned up at Luke, green eyes full of naïve gratitude.

Her stomach dropped.

“You had a crush on Luke?” the words fell from her lips before she had the time to really think about them.

Percy flinched.

“Say it even louder, why don’t you?” he hissed, as several heads snapped towards them in curiosity.

Annabeth froze. “What,” she stared at Percy eyes widened in disbelief. “Really?”

He let out a deep sigh and ran a hand through his hair, cursing the projection once again inwardly.

“I wouldn’t call it a crush,” he lowered his voice even more, so that only Thalia, Annabeth and Grover were able to hear him. “I guess it was more like admiration or something similar. Plus, I wasn’t exactly used to someone like Luke being nice to me.”

“You guess?” Grover asked.

“Well, considering the guy tried to kill me a week later, it’s kind of hard to judge my earlier feelings towards Luke objectively,” he said. “Does it matter?”

“No, no, of course not,” Thalia said and shook her head. “Sorry. It just surprised me, I guess. I never knew that there was ever a time where you didn’t hate his guts.”

“Well, it won’t take long for that to happen,” he muttered.

He crossed his arms in front of him chest as they focused back on the projection and drew his eyebrows together as he watched projection-Luke.

Percy couldn’t deny that the guy had looked good with his sand blond hair, blue eyes, and friendly, slightly crooked grin. And, obviously, Luke had been nice to him. Nicer than most people had been at that point in time, at least.

Not to mention, that they had spent a lot of time together. Probably more that he had spent with anyone else, aside from maybe Grover, those first few days. Even outside the sword lessons.

They had sat together at every lunch, while he had still been part of the Hermes cabin and even after, Luke had shown him a lot around camp, shown him the forest, the lake and the stalls for the Pegasi.

He remembered warmth creeping into his face, butterflies carefully flapping inside of his stomach.

Though he’d rather stab himself with riptide than ever admit that to Thalia or Annabeth, or any of the others.

“Hey, man,” I said. “Thanks… then gave a good-bye hug to Annabeth, who looked like she might pass out.

Annabeth grimaced.

Looking back, it had been difficult for her to differentiate what kind of feelings she had for Luke. Why she had ever thought she might be in love with him, despite their past and age difference, she couldn’t tell anymore.

Perhaps it had been because she had closed herself of from the rest of camp after Thalia had died, even from her halfsiblings. Luke had been her one friend, aside from Grover for close to five years.

Annabeth folded her arms in front of her chest, her forehead creasing into a deep frown. She did not look forward to reexperience that whole mess.

After Luke was gone, I told her,” You’re hyperventilating…”Oh… why do I want to go anywhere with you, Percy?”

“It’s still so weird to me, that there was a time, where you two didn’t like each other,” Piper said.

“Just wait until you see how long it took those two to actually get together,” Katie said with a small, nostalgic smile. “They, plus the whole situation with Silena and Beckendorf drove camp, and especially the Aphrodite cabin, almost insane.”

She stomped down the other side of the hill… I looked at Chiron. “I won’t be able to use these, will I?”

Grover shuddered.

He had only managed to get ride of those shoes because they were never meant for a satyr. They had always been too wide, too lose around his hooves to be completely comfortable for wearing.

That would not have been the case if Percy had worn them.

In his mind, he saw his friends looking up at him, panic filling his sea green eyes, arms scratching the rough surface of the underworld, trying desperately to stop, all the while getting dragged into the eternal darkness of Tartarus.

Grover shook his head. He’d have rather died in the underworld than live with that image in his head.

He shook his head. “Luke meant well, Percy…. “Hey, Grover. You want a magic item?”

Percy grimaced. “I’m sorry.”

“You couldn’t have known,” Grover said quietly. “Besides, you can’t deny that they were helpful for a while.”

“I guess,” a faint smile tugged on Percy’s lips as he looked at him. “You did save me and Annabeth from becoming pancakes at the waterpark and annoyed the sh*t out of Medusa.”

Grover bowed his head with a slight grin. “Always glad to be of service.”

“His eyes lit up. “Me?”… Grover went flying sideways down the hill like a possessed lawn mower, heading towards the van.

Clarisse snorted and Grover facepalmed. “You reserve the best compliments for me, don’t you?”

“Of course,” Percy smiled and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Always.”

Before I could follow, Chiron caught my arm. “I should have trained you better, Percy,” he said. “If only I had more time. Hercules, Jason-they all got more training.”

“An understatement if I’ve ever heard one,” Ariadne said.

Herakles, Theseus, Achilles and all the other heroes whose names had been woven into the minds of the ancient world had at the very least been young men when they went on to carve their stories into myths and legends and had years of training behind them, often received at the court of kings and queens.

Dionysus leaned his head closer to her. “How do you think Theseus would react if he knew that one of his greatest accomplishments got repeated by a 12-year-old?” he asked quietly. “Especially by one without proper training.”

Ariadne’s lips twitched. “Now, that’s a reaction I’d actually pay to see.”

“That’s okay. I just wish-“ … something as good as Luke’s flying shoes or Annabeth’s invisible cap.

“It doesn’t sound whiny. Not at all,” Annabeth said softly. “There is a reason why Clarisse is that attached to Maimer,” her expression turned bitter. “Or why I always valued Athena’s cap.”

Percy gently squeezed her hand. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she muttered and leaned her head on his shoulder. “I just hope that we can leave Olympus without that topic ever coming up.”

“What am I thinking,” Chiron cried, “I can’t let you get away without this… It was the first weapon that actually felt balanced in my hand.

“Wait,” Frank squashed his eyebrows together. “Were you going to leave without a weapon?”

“I guess so,” Percy said and rubbed the back of his neck. “I was nervous and not exactly used to just go out with a sword attached to me. I guess I kind of forgot.”

“And you guys didn’t feel the need to ask him about it?” Jason asked and turned his head towards Grover and Annabeth with an arched eyebrow.

“I was scared out of my mind worrying about the underworld if I’m being honest,” Grover admitted sheepishly.

“And I was too busy making plans for the quest to notice,” Annabeth said, then shrugged. “We got lucky that Chiron was there.”

“The sword has a long and tragic history that we need not go into,” Chiron told me.

Percy tried to ignore the numb feeling that started to grow inside of his chest like weed as he watched riptide in the projection.

When Zoe told him that he wasn’t like Hercules, it had been one of the best compliments, he had ever received. Back then, on the day of the winter solstice, he had sworn to himself to become a hero worthy of wielding her sword.

His face shifted into a grimace.

He wondered what she would think of everything he had done in Tartarus. If Zoe would still call him a friend after all of that.

“Its name is Anaklusmos…No hero should harm mortals unless absolutely necessary, of course, but this sword wouldn’t hurt them in any case.”

“Yes, Percy,” Rachel said and nudged his head with her shoe. “No hero should use his sword against the innocent mortals.”

“Okay, Chiron was almost asking for this comment,” Percy said with a sigh and leaned back so he could look at her. “You’ll become pretty annoying once we reach the hoover dam, won’t you?”

Rachel cracked him a grin. “I have to. It’s kind of my duty as your friend. I’d expect you to do the same if our roles were reversed.”

I looked at the wickedly sharp blade. “What do you mean it wouldn’t harm mortals… They simply are not important enough for the blade to kill.”

“Wow,” Rachel facepalmed. “Thanks.”

Percy let out a snort. “I guess you were just not important enough for me to be able to kill,” he repeated.

She threw a small pillow at his head. “I just decided that I don’t like you.”

And I should warn you: as a demigod, you can be killed by either celestial or mortal weapons… “Lose the pen,” he said. “It is enchanted. It will always reappear in your pocket. Try it.”

“That is literally the most practical thing ever,” Katie said. “I really wish my sword would be able to do that.”

“Saved my life a bunch of times,” Percy agreed. “I’m way too used to riptide now. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t survive long with a regular sword.”

I was wary, but I threw the pen as far as I could down the hill… Chiron smiled. “Mist is a powerful thing, Percy.” “Mist?”

“You didn’t even know about mist, “Hazel winced.

Percy shrugged. “Like I said, I’ve been at camp only for a couple of days. Mist wasn’t the most important thing to focus on.”

“Yes. Read The Iliad. It’s full of references for the stuff…Chiron said cell phones were traceable by monsters; if we used one, it would be worse than sending up a flare.)

“That is so annoying,” Travis complained. “Like, why cell phones of all things?”

“I wonder if my cabin could develop something against it,” Leo said and tilted his head in thought.“Maybe by working together with the Hecate cabin or something. I know that Nissa has played with the idea for a while.”

“Leo, I swear if you or any other Hephaestus camper somehow manage to find a solution, I owe you big time,” Travis said.

I had no weapon stronger than a sword to fight off monsters and reach the Land of the Dead.

An amused smile played on Katie’s lips. “Normally I’d agree that that’s pretty terrifying,” she said quietly to Connor. “But there is a pretty big difference between a simple sword and a sword in the hands of Percy Jackson.”

“I would be lying if I said I’m not looking forward to seeing more of Percy’s fights,” he agreed with a grin. “He’s certainly a one-man army, if he wants to be.”

“But maybe not at 12,” Will next to them pointed out and gestured to projection-Percy, whose face had fallen and who stared for a few seconds silently at the pen in his hands.

Percy swallowed.

“Chiron…” I said. “When you say the gods are immortal – I mean, there was a time before them, right .” “Four ages before them, actually… “So, what was it like… before the gods?”

Apollo chuckled and leaned closer to Hermes. “A very dangerous thing for a child of the big three to ask during such a time. Chiron had to have become nervous by this point.”

Chiron pursed his lips. “Even I am not old enough to remember that, child… Of course, eventually the gods warmed to humans, and Western civilization was born.”

A dark shadow had fallen over Zeus’ face at the mention of Prometheus’ name.

“You can’t really blame him for that one anymore,” Demeter said to him. “Certainly, for a lot of other things, but not for humanity.” She sent him a pointed. “Especially you, of all gods.”

“But the gods can’t die now, right?... even if I failed, nothing could happen so bad it would mess up everything, right?”

Rhode blinked.

“Oh.”

She had been wondering where this conversation was leading up to. Zeus had already started to look skeptical, and even some of the other gods had drawn their eyebrows together when Percy had started talking about the time the titans had reigned, but now she felt a strange feeling growing heavily inside her stomach.

Percy’s usually tan skin had gone pale in the projection, and an unsure look filled his eyes, so very foreign to someone titled the Savior of Olympus as he looked up at Chiron.

He looked impossibly young, she thought.

“Oh Percy,” Annabeth said softly.

“A bit ironic now, isn’t it?” he asked.

Thalia grimaced. “You’re not exactly being an optimist.”

“The biggest responsibility I had before that point was getting through my English exams,” Percy said. “Which I had failed. Repeatedly. So, yeah, there wasn’t exactly much room for optimism.”

Chiron gave me a melancholy smile. “No one knows how long the Age of the West will last, Percy… “Keep a clear head. And remember, you may be about to prevent the biggest war in human history.”

Percy considerably paled.

“Well, if that’s all there is to it,” Reyna said drily. “No pressure or anything.”

“Chiron really has to work on how to reassure people,” Will agreed. “This is seriously getting ridiculous.”

“Relax,” I said. “I’m very relaxed.”

“Yes,” Rachel carefully eyed projection Percy. His posture had gone stiff and his hands had tightened around riptide. “Relaxed.”

She held back a wince. Obviously, she had always known that Percy had a lot of pressure on his shoulders since they had become friends. But she had never known that it had started all the way back since he was 12 years old.

Even without the burden of the great prophecy.

When I got to the bottom of the hill, I looked back… Argus drove us out of the countryside and into western Long Island… After two weeks at Camp half-Blood, the real world seemed like a fantasy.

“It had been five years for me,” Annabeth said. “The real world was basically wonderland.”

“Tell me about it,” Thalia muttered.

“Yeah,” Nico exchanged a short glance with his sister, whose face had shifted into a slight grimace. “Tell us about it.”

On some days it was still strange for him to wake up in world so very different from he one he grew up in. He still felt as if he had been ripped out of his own time and was now lost, aimless in the wrong century, like a sailor who has gotten lost at sea and had been stranded on foreign land, or like a ghost waiting in Charon’s lobby.

One of the many reasons he had spent his time in the underworld and the labyrinth after he had left camp half-blood two and a half years ago, he thought.

Though obviously, it had been even worse for Hazel to get used to the modern world.

At least, through the lotus casino, he and Bianca had gotten relatively familiar with modern technology and later, had lived at a school for a few months to learn enough about the 21^st. century to be able to not make complete fools of themselves.

Hazel had been completely unprepared when he had led her out of the underworld; computers, and the internet as foreign to her as the civil rights movement.

And frankly, a 14-year-old boy, who grew up in fascist Italy, and spoke more to the dead than the living had been hardly the right person to explain it to her.

Frank had helped a lot with Hazel feeling more comfortable once she’d arrived at camp Jupiter, Nico thought and found himself smiling as he threw a look at the couch the two of them were sitting on.

They were never ones for huge public displays of affection, but they were holding hands, and smiled at each other from time to time, a light blush creeping onto Frank’s face whenever they did.

Her finding a friend at Camp Jupiter so quickly had probably helped more than Frank could possibly ever imagine. Especially someone who was as kind, patient and understanding as he was.

I found myself staring at every McDonald’s… “Ten miles and not a single monster.”

Grover sighed defeated. “That was a total jinx.”

She gave me an irritated look…”I don’t hate you.” “Could’ve fooled me.”

Annabeth sighed. “Yeah, I made no real attempt to hide it. But obviously I didn’t actually hate you,” she quickly said to Percy. “I just thought I was supposed to. Which, again, was a really stupid way to think.”

She folded her cap of invisibility. “Look… we’re just not supposed to get along, okay? Our parents are rivals.”

Percy’s lips twitched up. “Yeah, he said amused and nudged her shoulder. “There is no way we could ever get along. You’re absolutely right. A lost cause since the beginning I’m afraid.”

Annabeth’s cheeks reddened. “Shut up.”

“Why?”

Katie furrowed her eyebrows. “Okay, I get that you didn’t know much about Greek mythology when you arrived at camp, but I’m fairly certain, Chiron would have told you at least about Athens and all that stuff while he was your Latin teacher.”

Percy shrugged. “I thought it would be about something, you know, more recent.”

“No,” Artemis looked annoyed. “The very same arguments for the last 3000 years. If it’s not Athens, it’s Odysseus,” she looked at them coldly. “I’m certain we would accomplish much more in our council sessions if you all would finally manage to get over all your petty arguments.”

Apollo raised an eyebrow. “You have an ongoing beef with every male person ever for over 3000 years.”

“Men haven’t stopped doing awful things for over 3000 years,” she countered drily.

She sighed. “How many reasons do you want?... They must really like olives.” “Oh, forget it.” “Now, if she’d invented pizza- that I could understand.” “I said, forget it.”

Thalia let out a snort. “Okay, now it’s like you’re actively trying to annoy her. Annie must have been close to snapping.”

In the front seat, Argus smiled… Tapes to a mailbox was a soggy flyer with my picture on it: HAVE YOU SEEN THIS BOY?

Clarisse scowled. “They already treat you like a criminal. What happened to innocent until proven guilty?”

“I suppose the circ*mstances were suspicious,” Chris admitted reluctantly. “Though I do wonder why no one thought that the two of you had gotten kidnapped or killed together, instead of painting Percy as the one responsible.”

“Because violent juvenile with anger issues combined with the mysterious disappearance of his mother is a much more eye-catching headline for the news in this situation,” Piper said with a disgusted roll of her eyes. “I tell you, they’re vultures, all of them.”

She couldn’t count how many times random reporters had tried to ruin her dad’s reputation by using whatever she had stolen or done wrong that week.

Maybe that had been a part of why she had done it, Piper thought. Out of pure spite. To show that she didn’t care what people like that thought or wrote of her.

I ripped it down before Annabeth and Grover could notice.

“You could have told us about it,” Grover said softly. “I only noticed this manhunt after we left Medusa’s place.”

“It didn’t matter,” Percy said. “We had other things to worry about. The police was really the least of our problems.”

Argus unloaded our bags , made sure we got our bus tickets, then drove away… Smelly Gabe was probably up there right now, playing poker, not even missing her.

Projection Percy’s expression hardened as he stared up at the apartments.

Percy scowled, then immediately tried to school his expression again.

He would just blend the moments Gabe was mentioned out and ignore they existed; he decided. The guy wasn’t worth the thoughts he wasted on him.

Grover shouldered his backpack… You want to know why she married him, Percy?”… You were thinking about your mom and stepdad, right?” I nodded, wondering what else Grover might’ve forgotten to tell me.

“Sorry,” Grover winced. “That came probably across as pretty cryptic.”

“Not as cryptic as finding out about the empathy link in a dream while you were wearing a wedding dress,” Percy noted, half-teasingly.

“Fair enough,” Grover acknowledged, his lips twitching. “I probably should have just told you about my satyr abilities from the beginning, before creating an eternal connection between our souls.”

“Your mom married Gabe for you,” Grover told me…I can smell traces of him on you, and you haven’t been near him for a week.”

Disgust transformed Percy’s expression, both in the projection and in real life. “Not the best phrasing there, Grover,” he muttered.

“Thanks,” I said. “Where’s the nearest shower?”

An amused smile tugged on the corners of Jason’s lips. “Good to know that you never lost your humour. Even as far back as five years ago. Some things never change, I suppose.”

“You should be grateful, Percy.

Grover flinched back. “Dude, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean….”he spoke so quickly, that he clumsily stumbled over his words. “You obviously shouldn’t be grateful. I mean …”

“Grover, you didn’t know,” Percy stopped him, and patted his shoulder reassuringly. “It’s not a big deal. Really. I’m fine. Just forget about it.”

“Your stepfather smells so repulsively human he could mask the presence of any demigod… She must’ve loved you a lot to put up with that guy- if that makes you feel better.

A dark shadow fell over Percy’s face, and his resolve crumbled like wet sand.

He had always thought that his mum had lived together with Gabe in spite of him, not because, even searched up in school computers why people stayed together with sh*tty partners, checked every website from Psychology Today, to Wiki how. The first few years after their wedding, he had even considered asking his more tolerable school counselors for help.

If he had known that he had been the sole reason his mom had endured Gabe’s abuse…

He let out a deep sigh.

Percy desperately wished she wouldn’t have. That she had simply sent him off to camp instead and lived her own life as happily as possible.

It would have been worth it if his mom could have lived a life without Gabe.

If he was being completely honest to himself, it would have been worth it if he could have lived a life without Gabe too. Though with the prophecy, sending him to camp might have been as damning as a death sentence.

Grover gently wrapped an arm around his shoulder. When he spoke, his voice was impossibly soft. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Percy said, and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Couldn’t be better. Thanks”

It didn’t, but I forced myself not to show it… I hadn’t told them the real reason I’d said yes to this crazy quest.

“I figured,” Grover said quietly. “You wouldn’t be you, if saving your loved ones wasn’t your top priority.”

The truth was, I didn’t care about retrieving Zeus’s lightning bolt… All I cared about was my mum. Hades had taken her, and Hades was going to give her back.

A small, approving smile tugged on the corners of Hera’s lips.

Her husband’s eyes had hardened, and Poseidon had immediately shifted his attention from the projection to Percy, once his thoughts had been spoken aloud.

The boy had winced when, but now continued to keep his eyes stubbornly on the projection, although his posture had become stiffer.

“I have to admit, that’s quite a refreshing motivation,” Amphitrite next to her said quietly. “Reminds me of the other Perseus.” She glanced at her. “You should be all in favor.”

“I suppose his motivation is more… admirable than the one other half-bloods had,” she admitted, albeit reluctantly. “If nothing else his loyalty and love to his mother is commendable.”

Demeter smiled slightly amused. “Never thought I’d ever hear you compliment Perseus Jackson, sister,” she noted.

“You shouldn’t get used to it,” Hera said, her voice becoming several degrees colder. “My dislike for him will not change because of one quest, I can assure you of that.”

You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, the Oracle whispered… Shut up, I told it.

“Did you ever tell me to shut up in your head like that?” Rachel asked.

“Not you you. But I might have bashed the oracle’s imaginary head against the nearest wall during our quest on the Argo II. on a few occasions,” Percy admitted.

She shrugged. “Fair enough.”

The rain kept coming down. We got restless waiting for the bus… Grover blushed. He tried to apologize, but Annabeth and I were too busy cracking up.

A small, sad smile tugged on the corners of Ariadne’s lips. It was one of the rare moments so far, the demigods seemed as carefree as other children.

It reminded her a bit of her childhood in Crete and the many siblings she once had.

Phaedra with her wild grin and big phantasies, Catreus with his gentle smile, who had first taught her to dance, Acalle who had spent most of her youth with her nose stuck in her scrolls, Deucalion, Androgeus, Glaucus or Xenodice.

She remembered playing and laughing with them in the gardens of their places, embraced by the sunlight. Rare, little moments of peace in the darkness of their royal prison.

Ariadne sighed deeply and averted her gaze. Even after all those years she still missed them. More than she could possibly ever put into words.

Finally the bus came… “What is it?” I asked. “I don’t know,” he said tensely. “Maybe it’s nothing.”

Grover groaned.

He used to be incredibly insecure every time he managed to smell a monster, questioning his every perception after Thalia had died. His indecisiveness probably caused a lot of unnecessary issues on this quest.

Annabeth leaned over Percy to carefully nudge his shoulder, “That’s all in the past,” she said as if reading his mind. “You’ve grown a lot since that first quest. We all trust you blindly.”

He managed a smile. “Thanks.”

But I could tell it wasn’t nothing…. Found seats together in the back of the bus. We stowed our backpacks.

Annabeth smacked her forehead with her right hand. “I can’t believe we did something so stupid,” she complained. “I should have known better. Luke always told me to keep my backpack on me at all times. It was one of the first things you two ever taught me.”

“Stupid beginners mistakes,” Percy said with a grimace. “A bit painful looking back now, isn’t it?”

“It was your first quest,” Thalia pointed out, then turned to Annabeth. “And it had been five years for you since we were on the run. It’s normal that you forgot a few details, when you spent the entire time in between perfectly save at camp.”

Annabeth kept slapping her Yankees cap nervously against her thigh… It was Mrs. Dodds. Older, more withered, but definitely the same evil face.

Mrs. Dodds appeared at the edge of the projection, stepping into the bus.

Thalia shot up in her seat as if electrocuted. “Again? So soon?”

“You never told us about this!” Travis said and leaned forward, eyes wide. “We’re not even five minutes into your quest. “He looked at them. “That’s exactly why we don’t trust your retellings and rely on information from dryads and other nature spirits instead. You never tell us the whole story.”

“Why do you care so much for the whole story?” Percy asked.

“Because this was the first quest since Luke’s. Of course, we’re curious,” Katie said. “You can’t really blame us for that. You were saving the freakin’ world.”

I scrunched down in my seat. Behind her came two more old ladies… Triplet demon grandmothers.

“They weren’t there to kill them,” Hades said pointedly, before Poseidon could even open his mouth. “I simply sent them to return my helm.”

They sat in the front row, right behind the driver… “I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime.” “I said if you’re lucky,” Annabeth said. “You’re obviously not.”

“One of the first times I ever came in contact with your rotten luck,” Annabeth said with a sigh. “Didn’t get any better after this. Gave me immediate flashbacks to travelling together with Thalia.”

“All three of them,” Grover whimpered… We’ll just slip out the windows.” “They don’t open,” Grover moaned.

“sh*t,” Piper grimaced.

“So, you’ll fight them then? The three furies? Like, right now?” Connor leaned forward in his seat.

“Glad you’re looking forward to it,” Percy said drily.

“I know the three of you will be fine,” he countered. “Mostly, at least.”

“That’s fair enough, I guess,” Grover admitted. “I guess I would be also pretty curious if I didn’t know what happened.”

“A back exit?” she suggested. There wasn’t one.

“That sucks,” Leo looked slightly insulted as he let his eyes wander over the vehicle. “The bus is surprisingly badly designed. Like I don’t think that’s even legally okay. I’m pretty sure that every bus is required to have at least one rear emergency exit.”

Even if there had been, it wouldn’t have helped… They’ll see three old ladies killing us, won’t they?”

Percy sighed. “As if,” he muttered.

Grover managed a half-smile. “It’s kind of cute how naïve and trusting you used to be towards the mist.”

“At this point the mist hadn’t completely screwed me over,” Percy said. “I had no reason to believe it wouldn’t work in our favor.”

She thought about it. “Hard to say… With a flat voice, as if she’d rehearsed it, she announced to the whole bus: ”I need to use the restroom.”

Thalia felt herself scowl.

She wrapped an arm around Annabeth’s shoulder, and narrowed her eyes as she studied the furies in the projection.

“Getting worried?” Annabeth teased, with a half-smile.

“Shut up.”

“So do I,” said the second sister… They all started coming down the aisle.

Travis shuddered and leaned back in his seat. “Okay, that’s less ancient Greek monster scary, and more horror-movie-conjuring-style-scary. It really gives me the creeps when monsters act like this.”

“I’ve got it,” Annabeth said. “Percy, take my hat.” “What?”… You’re a son of the big Three. Your smell might be overpowering.” “I can’t just leave you.”

A small smile broke trough Ariadne’s face. “Well, how about that,” she said quietly. “Not bad.”

“Don’t worry about us,” Grover said. “Go!”… Mrs. Dodds stopped, sniffing, and looked straight at me…She and her sisters kept going… Their faces were still the same- I guess those couldn’t get any uglier-

Leo let out a surprised snort.

But their bodies had shriveled into leathery brown hag bodies… The furies surrounded Grover and Annabeth, lashing their whips, hissing: “Where is it? Where?”

“It,” Annabeth repeated, frustration slipping into her voice. “We should have questioned that phrasing way more than we did.”

“To be fair, “it” probably isn’t the worst thing monsters have referred to Prissy as,” Clarisse said, with a shrug.

“Definitely not. Just wait until Polybotes shows up,” Percy said drily. “That’s going to be a whole lot of fun. I can’t wait to hear from him again.”

The other people on the bus were screaming, cowering in their seats… What I did next was so impulsive and dangerous I should’ve been named ADHD poster child of the year.

“Oh no,” Will muttered.

Grover sent him a pointed look. “I’m really happy you’re aware of how insane that was. Almost gave me a heart attack.”

The bus driver was distracted, trying to see what was going on in his rearview mirror. Still invisible, I grabbed the wheel from him, and jerked it to the left.

“Oh gods,” Frank visibly paled.

Everybody howled as they were thrown to the right, and I heard what I hoped was the sound of three furies smashing against the windows.

“Yeah,” Grover poked him against the side as his projection self quickly got back on his feet, while holding his head. “Three furies, me and Annabeth.”

Percy winced. “Sorry?”

“It did save us. Alecto was about to use her whip when you threw her against the window,” Annabeth cracked him a grin as she gestured to the furies. “And I doubt I’ll ever forget their faces.”

“Yeah, I would think few people ever threw the torturers of the underworld against a bus window,” Piper said. “Must have left quite an impression on them.”

“Hey,” the driver yelled. “Hey-whoa!” We wrestled for the wheel… We careened out of the Lincoln Tunnels and back into the rainstorm… Another great idea: I hit the emergency brake.

“Oh gods.” Hazel shut her eyes, as the bus spiraled into the trees. “That probably left some bruises.”

“Good thinking though,” Jason remarked.

Percy grimaced as he watched the other passengers. Parents panicked and hugged their children, an elderly couple clasped each others’ hands and two teenagers clung to the poles. “But I put a lot of innocent bystanders at risk.”

“You really didn’t have a lot of other options though,” Travis pointed out. “It was between hitting the brake or Annabeth and Grover getting sliced open like pinatas.”

“Thanks for the trust, Travis,” Annabeth said drily, before she turned to Percy. “But he’s right. It was undoubtedly a risk, but it was the only way I can think of how you could have saved us back then. It was definitely worth taking.” She smiled. “Thanks for that.”

The bus wailed, spun a full circle on the wet asphalt, and crashed into the trees… I couldn’t leave my friends. I took off the invisible cap. “Hey!”

Annabeth grinned at him. “Friends, huh? As in plural?”

“I didn’t have an issue with your mom,” Percy said. “Back then, at least.”

A deep shadow fell over her face. “You don’t even fully know what happened with Athena.”

“I see your reaction to her,” Percy said, and met her eyes. “I know that she hurt you. That’s more than enough for me to have my own reservations.”

Annabeth leaned her head against his shoulder with a fond sigh. “I love you, do you know that?”

His lips twitched up. “We broke up only like a month ago. You’re already regretting it?”

“In your dreams, seaweed brain,” she smiled. “Can’t I love a friend?”

“I guess you can,” Percy returned the grin. “I love you too, wise girl.”

The furies turned, baring their yellow fangs at him… and crawled towards me like huge nasty lizards.

Nico arched an eyebrow. “That’s weirdly accurate. I doubt they’d like that description though.”

“Believe me or not, but I wasn’t exactly trying to please them,” Percy said drily.

“Perseus Jackson,” Mrs. Dodds said… “You have offended the gods. You shall die.”

“What else is new,” Percy said.

“Kind of a pessimistic world view, isn’t it?” Hermes asked. “You know that there are ways to succeed on a quest without offending us?”

Percy met his eyes. “I have offended you by existing.”

“Fair enough.”

“I liked you better as a math teacher,” I told her.

Thalia and Clarisse snorted.

Frank shook his head. “You seriously have no sense of self preservation whatsoever; do you know that?”

“I thought they already wanted to kill me. It’s not like I could do any more harm,” Percy said with a shrug. “Why bother?”

She growled. Annabeth and Grover moved up behind the Furies cautiously, looking for an opening… The furies hesitated. Mrs. Dodds had felt Riptide’s blade before. She obviously didn’t like seeing it again.

Annabeth had to suppress a proud smile.

Nowadays there were many monsters who hesitated whenever Percy drew riptide.

Even in the depts of Tartarus she had seen their eyes flicker over to the blade as if it was magnetic at their first encounter. It had rightfully become quite infamous in their circles over the last five years.

Though, obviously, not quite as infamous as its owner.

She sneaked a glance at Percy.

Right now, he didn’t look particularly dangerous, with his hair still a bed ridden mess and his posture relaxed. He had always been slender, not as buff as Frank or even Jason were, and perhaps not quite as imposing at first glance, when he didn’t want to be.

The glare reserved for either monsters, or titans, was veiled by his slightly crooked, trouble-maker grin and his easy personality, as they joked around with one another, to distract themselves from the projection.

If she didn’t know him, she guessed it would be pretty difficult to believe his reputation in here.

“Submit now,” she hissed. “and you will not suffer eternal torment… Mrs. Dodds lashed her whip around my sword hand… My hand felt like it was wrapped in molten lead, but I managed not to drop Riptide.

Percy winced. Fire licked on his fingertips and palms, and when he looked at them, his skin was red, with white lines forming where he had made direct contact with the whip.

“Are you alright?” Frank asked, eyebrows furrowed and voice full of worry.

He nodded and hid his hands in the pockets of his sweatshirt. “It’s fine. These injuries didn’t last for that long anyway.”

“How did you even manage to hold on,” Grover asked and eyed the projection with a tilted head and narrowed eyes. “I remember the heat. It was pretty much almost unbearable.”

“Heat resistance, I guess,” Percy said. “I’m not really sure.”

“You’re heat resistant?” Leo asked.

Percy shrugged. “A bit, I think.”

I stuck the Fury on the left with its hilt… and sliced the Fury on the right. As soon as the blade connected with her neck, she screamed and exploded into dust.

“As if they were just common dracanae,” Connor shook his head in disbelief. “Seriously, you make it look almost too easy.”

Annabeth got Mrs. Dodds in a wrestler’s hold and yanked her backwards, while Grover ripped the whip out of her hands.

“Nice one,” Jason sent Annabeth a grin.

She was intently studying the fight, her eyebrows tightly drawn together and didn’t seem to have heard him. “I should have just stabbed her,” Annabeth muttered quietly. “She had her back to me. It was a stupid impulse decision to just grab her.”

“Should I be worried that your first instinct was to wrestle a fury?” Thalia asked.

Annabeth facepalmed. “Pretty sure I learned that kind of thinking from you and Luke.”

“Ow,” he yelled. “Ow! Hot! Hot!”

“I, on the other hand, am definitely not heat resistant in any way whatsoever,” Grover noted.

The Fury I’d hilt-slammed came at me again, talons ready, but I swung Riptide and she broke open like a pinata.

The frown, that had formed on Hades’ face deepened.

“Seems pretty easy to defeat your torturers,” Poseidon teased.

“They tried to get my helm back,” he scowled. “They didn’t even attempt to kill them there. If they would have been serious the three of them would be long dead.”

Mrs. Dodds was trying to get Annabeth off her back… but Annabeth held on, while Grover got Mrs. Dodds’s legs tied up in her own whip.

“Not bad,” Piper said with a grin.

“We do make a pretty good team, if I do say so myself,” Grover said and sent Annabeth a smile.

“One of the best,” Annabeth agreed, and fist bumped him.

Finally, they both shoved her backwards into the aisle… “Zeus will destroy you!” she promised. “Hades will have your soul!” “Braccas meas viscimi ni,” I yelled.

Silence descended on the room.

The projection halted as Hecate’s focus wavered. She exchanged glance with Iris. Even the rest of the gods looked confused.

“That was Latin, wasn’t it?” Rachel asked slowly, after a few seconds had passed. “What did Percy just say?”

“Eat my pants,” Jason and Percy answered simultaneously. They looked at each other.

Jason furrowed his eyebrows. “Okay, it makes sense that I understand Latin. How did you know that?”

“Honestly, no clue,” Percy said with a shrug. “It just popped into my head and sounded right. I totally forgot I said that.”

“You did have Latin as a school subject, didn’t you?” Piper asked. “Maybe something just, I don’t know…stuck?”

“Yeah, Latin on the level of six-graders,” Grover said, doubt filling his voice. “We didn’t learn much more than what ‘Julia puella est’ or ‘Julia et Cornelia puellae sunt’ means. We certainly didn’t learn to speak it.” He squinted when he looked at Percy. “How did I not hear you speak Latin out of a sudden?”

“Because we were busy fighting math-teaching hell lizards,” Percy suggested.

“Doesn’t that simply happen sometimes?” Hazel asked. “I mean, Greek demigods speaking a bit Latin, or roman demigods speaking ancient Greek? We’re not that different after all.”

“Not really,” Hecate narrowed her eyes and studied Percy. “There is a very clear distinction between roman and Greek demigods. It’s strange.”

“But certainly, it is not something that will explain itself, while we’re sitting here,” Athena said. “If we’re going to stop and discuss topics as irrelevant as him speaking a different language, we’re going to spend more time on this, than any of us can spare.”

The projection continued.

I wasn’t sure where the Latin came from… Thunder shook the bus. The hair rose on the back of my neck.

Poseidon’s eyes immediately grew cold. “Don’t tell me…”

“Get out,” Annabeth yelled at me. “Now!”… An Hawaiian-shirted tourist with a camera snapped my photograph before I could recap my sword.

“Crap,” Piper grimaced. “I think I remember that picture. Didn’t help your reputation with the police or general public, did it?”

“Nope.”

“Our bags!” Grover realized. “We left our-“… Lightning shredded a huge crater in the roof, but a wail from inside told me Mrs. Dodds was not yet dead.”

“Zeus!” Poseidon bellowed.

“He was on a quest to return your bolt to you!” Artemis said. “Couldn’t you have at least waited the three days, until the deadline was up?”

“Do you want me to drown every child of yours who dares to go on a ship or swim in a lake?” Poseidon asked. “Because I certainly will if you continue to try killing Percy like this.”

“I thought he had stolen my bolt,” Zeus glared at them. “I have not tried to directly kill him since that got cleared up.”

“Oh, how gracious of you,” Poseidon said with a scoff. “That would have been a really good consolation, had you caused a war.”

“Run!” Annabeth said. “She’s calling for reinforcement!... the bus in flames behind us, and nothing but darkness ahead.

The projection seized.

Jason winced. “You just lost all of your stuff, didn’t you?”

“Yeah. That was such a crap start,” Annabeth said. “I honestly have no clue how we managed to finish this quest.”

“I have no idea how we managed to finish any of our quests,” Percy said.

“Looking back, it all feels like a fever dream,” Grover agreed as a new projection formed. “I’m so not looking forward to see all of that again.”