Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It wasn’t every day your child went to college.

This, surprisingly, applied to both mortal and immortals. Mortals because this system of higher education was no easy feat, and immortals because their kids didn’t tend to live long enough - or lived too long to see the value in such a thing. Poseidon shouldn’t be surprised that if any of his children could do it, it would be Perseus.

He had been precisely what Poseidon feared he would be. A perfect blend of him and Sally. He had the sarcasm that Poseidon had worried over. The snark, the disobedience, the ridiculously strong will, the very staunch moral compass – everything that a demigod shouldn’t have. And yet, here he was. Alive, intact, and victor of almost every battle thrown his way.

Poseidon knew he was way more fond of him than he should be.

“Dad?”

To the point it drove him to do ridiculously foolish things.

“Percy!” He smiled and looked around the dorm room. Technically, this was Percy’s second year, but Poseidon had enough restraint to stay away during the first. It didn’t hold out. “Don’t look so worried. I have no quests for you,” he said and watched as relief flickered over his son’s face. The look alone made Poseidon want to find every god on Olympus and throttle them for having ever asking his son to do anything.

“Sure,” Percy said and dropped his bag on the ground. “Then… what are you doing here?"

“I can visit, can’t I?”

Percy raised an eyebrow.

“I was under the impression that, legally, you could not.”

Ah. Well. That was maybe a little true. Poseidon felt his grin widened. The door had opened again, revealing two familiar figures.

“Technically, but I’ve never been adept a rule-following,” he said solemnly. Sally froze – eyes widening a bit in alarm at the sight of him. “Just ask your mother. She’s the same way.”

Percy frowned, looking between them warily as Paul took one look at Poseidon and sighed. Perhaps that should upset him, but he found it too funny to be offended. Sally was more of his focus, anyway. Her expression shifted – eyes flaring to life at Poseidon’s bait.

“Bold words for someone who couldn’t steer a boat.”

Poseidon’s grin disappeared.

“You were steering the boat.”

“That isn’t how I remember it,” Sally said easily and kissed Percy’s cheek as she passed, ignoring his bewildered look as she did so. Paul just rubbed his temple as he gave Poseidon a very courtesy nod and clapped Percy on the shoulder.

“Um, what?” Percy asked with a slight frown. “What boat?”

“The one we stole,” Poseidon said with a wave of his hand, curiously looking around the room. His son was expected to stay... in this? It was like a white prison. His uncertainty over the situation was cut off by a choking sound. He turned to find Percy staring at him with wide eyes before turning to his mother.

“The one you... stole?” He repeated. Poseidon tilted his head at him. He was going to ask how that confused him when he noticed Sally looking everywhere but at her son. Oh no. Oh... no. Poseidon felt a jolt of unbridled delight as the realization spread through him.

“You haven’t heard that story,” he said. Sally’s eyes snapped up at him - rage boiling underneath her normally tranquil demeanor. Poseidon grinned. He was a little pleased he could still annoy her so easily. He turned back to Percy. “How do you think your mother and I met?” He asked. Paul was looking between the three of them - clearly torn between intervening and his own curiosity. It looked as if Sally hadn’t mentioned this to him either. Amazing.

“On the beach? She just said you spent the summer together,” he said. “I mean, I figured some of it had to be a lie-“

“Why would you think that?” Sally interrupted, looking genuinely offended Percy hadn’t bought into her half-truths. Percy raised an eyebrow.

“Mom, I was born in August,” he pointed out. Sally’s mouth opened. Then closed again. Her eyes drifted to Poseidon, who smirked at her. “I mean, I know some demigods are born differently than mortals, but you kept saying Estelle came earlier than I did, so that theory is now gone.”

An awkward pause followed. Poseidon cleared his throat, looking at her with teasing expectation. And then: 

“I wasn’t about to tell my son I almost got his father killed, okay?!” Sally said, throwing up her hands. Percy blinked. “How would you have framed it? We all made bad decisions! I didn’t ask to be dragged into an illegal oath! I wasn’t even pregnant!”

“This is... growing very concerning,” Paul commented and leaned against Percy’s desk before gesturing between Poseidon and Sally. “Are you not his mother?” He asked. Poseidon figured this was the part he should intervene in. Poor Perseus looked as if someone had just punched him.

“No, she is,” Poseidon said when Sally’s eyes widened. “She meant we hadn’t broken any oaths while we were on the run,” he said. Percy was mouthing the words ‘on the run’ to himself as Poseidon gave his mother an apologetic shrug. Sally leaned against the wall and sighed, staring at him thoughtfully for a few seconds. Her expression softened before grabbing one of Percy’s boxes and opening the top.

“Why were you on the run?” Percy finally asked, looking between them. “From who? How? You made her steal a boat?” He asked Poseidon, a note of accusation hidden underneath the confusion. “I thought you guys at least liked one another,” he said. Poseidon frowned.

“We do,” he assured him. “Or, well, I at least like her,” he said. Paul narrowed his eyes a little at that. Wow. Sensitive. Sally, on the other hand, paused in unpacking one of the boxes to regard him warily.

“I liked you... you know, up until my son went missing for months, and you didn’t do anything about it.”

Ouch.

“If I wasn’t being torn into two different personas, then maybe I could have.”

“Look at that. Two versions of you, and both are equally as unhelpful.”

“I - mom?” Percy said, eyes wide. “Mom, you... you can’t... I don’t think you’re allowed to say that. I mean-” he looked back at Poseidon. Then to Paul, as if he might have an answer. “I don’t understand,” he went with. Sally’s expression shifted immediately into horror.

Poseidon felt a little guilty, too. It was easy to fall back into old habits. He wasn’t sure how it must look to his son, who apparently had very little context to their relationship. He wondered if that should upset him. He understood Sally not saying anything when he was younger. Poseidon had just assumed after he found out he was a demigod...

Sally sighed.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” she said and let her hands fall away from the box she had unpacked. “We should have talked about this a while ago, but... well, you had stopped asking, and I wasn’t entirely sure how you felt about Poseidon,” she admitted.

Wait. Him? Why was he the scapegoat?

“It’s been a mixed bag,” Percy admitted. Poseidon frowned.

Why was he the scapegoat?

“Okay, well, I...” Sally began and then gave an apologetic look towards Paul. “We met on the beach… technically,” she said, and Poseidon rolled his eyes. “And we did spend the summer together. It just wasn’t as straightforward as I made it out to be.”

“What do you mean?”

“I was with someone else when we first met. Not romantically!” She added quickly when Percy jerked back. “A friend of mine. She made things, um, complicated. Then Eros got involved, and things got more... complicated.”

Poseidon wasn’t a specialist in human body language, but Paul’s subtle scratch to the neck screamed passive-aggressive.

“You know,” Percy said and shook his head. “If this is going to be a case of mistaken identity or threesomes, then I... don’t really need to know-“

“No!” Sally laughed and then looked at Poseidon. “No, of course not. You know what? Your father will explain it all,” she said. Poseidon blinked. He would what now? “I mean, you visited to see your son, right?” She asked and gently pushed Percy towards him. “There you go. Father-son time. I’m going to grab more boxes.”

Traitor. He should have known she would throw him under the bus. Percy looked so incredibly uncomfortable by the development that Poseidon considered just making a pact with him to say they discussed it and then go fishing.

It wasn’t like anything horrible had happened, though. He only pushed his mother off of a cliff once. It had been a life or death situation! She forgave him. Sort of. Maybe. Well...

His plan was ruined by Paul also sitting down. Poseidon, Sally, and Percy turned to him in unison.

“...what? It’s a story of a god meeting a mortal! I’m an English teacher. What do you want from me?” He asked. Sally rolled her eyes but didn’t argue as a fond smile hinted at her lips. Without another word, she slipped outside of the dorm room. Poseidon could have sworn she stuck her tongue at him as she went.

Poseidon wondered if Perseus had any idea how evil his mother secretly was. Sure, she had changed tremendously from that first meeting on the beach, but... he still saw whispers of the same temper there.

He turned to find two sets of eyes on him.

Oh, whatever.

“Very well,” he said and leaned back against the wall. “I suppose your mother would try to slander my name if she told it anyway,” he said. Percy looked unconvinced. “Well, to start with, it wasn’t my fault-”

Poseidon should preface this by stating it wasn’t his fault. Not at all. Not really. Sort of. Look, the Fates had clearly planned this with their strings of bad decisions and temptations.

As it was, Poseidon hadn’t even planned on visiting Montauk. That in itself was because the beach was… not up to standard. Poseidon grimaced at the state of it – feeling a smidge of annoyance at how careless these mortals were with his domain. He missed being an actively worshipped god. Back in Greece and Rome, no one would dare dirty up even a puddle under his protection for fear of his wrath.

In theory, he could still punish these mortals for their lack of respect… but it hardly had the same effect when he knew they would chalk it up to chance or accident before continuing with the same behavior. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Maybe he should listen to Zeus the next time he suggested starting from scratch. Perhaps wiping the world clean was what they needed at this point. He knelt to touch the sand when a laugh caught his attention - dancing through the wind. Oh no. He risked a glance up. 

“Hi!” A woman called, waving brightly at him. Oh no. This wasn’t promising. The woman came closer, dragging another girl with her as Poseidon braced himself. He had made a pact. An oath. An oath which he would honor. No mortals – even very pretty ones who both had bags of trash and were clearly working to take care of his domain.

“Hello,” he said cautiously and stood as the woman let go of her friend and placed a hand on her hips, looking him up and down for a moment. Whatever she was looking for was apparently found because she gave an approving nod and took a step closer.

“Sorry to bother you, but do you mind helping us with something? We’re trying to grab some plastic bags from the water but can’t reach-“

“We can always try going in the water,” came the surly retort from her friend. “That is an option instead of asking random men who can chop us up and feed us to the sharks.”

“Yes, because going into the water with lots of trash in it is completely safe,” the woman sighed and gave Poseidon a small smile – almost like they were both in on some kind of joke. The sort ‘can you believe her?’ type of look. Poseidon found himself returning it – inwardly panicking at how easily it came.

No. No, pretty mortals. He had promised. He was a god of honor… kind of.

It seemed like such a simple request, though… and they were cleaning the beach. Really, it was his duty to look after this area. One could argue it was his job to help these women – or the one who wanted his help, at least.

“I can’t promise I won’t chop you up and feed you to the sharks, but I will help with the bags,” he said. The woman laughed as her friend narrowed her eyes slightly. “Is asking your name too bold?” He asked. The first woman grinned, eyes sparkling as she gave a flirty little shrug that set off alarm bells as she grabbed her friend’s hand. 

“I’m afraid I don’t give my name out to strange men on the beach,” she said, and then gave her friend a wicked grin. “That’s Stella,” she told him, ignoring Stella’s gasp of betrayal. “Sorry, she’s a bit moody. Asking for help is forbidden by her kind,” Mystery Mortal said in a playful whisper. Stella gave a small huff.

“Oh? And what is her kind?”

“I’m a prophet,” Stella said solemnly, lips thinning as Mystery Mortal led them farther down the beach. “I see the secrets of the universe. I also know you’re going to die in three months.”

“You think so?” Poseidon mused. “I don’t know. Rumor has it that I’m awfully hard to kill.”

“My prophetic power is hardly ever wrong.”

“Be nice,” Mystery Mortal cut in, looking back at her with a hint of exasperation. “Sorry, it’s right over here. That space between the dock and water,” she said, pointing to where there were indeed clumps of plastic bags floating between the cracks of the dock. Poseidon nodded and knelt on the damp wood to look closer. It was pretty far down… he willed the water to rise so he could pluck it with ease.

“You make it look too easy,” Mystery Mortal said with a shake of her head, accepting the bags. “Sorry for bothering you.”

“It’s my pleasure,” Poseidon said, picking up the trident he had laid next to him. “I’m glad someone cares about what a mess this place is.”

“Really?” Stella asked, arching a brow. “I don’t see you picking anything up.”

Poseidon looked at her. He was beginning to think that this one didn’t like him. He lifted his hand to show the plastic bags still in his hands.

“What about these?”

“I could have gotten those,” she muttered with a nasty look at Mystery Mortal. Mystery Mortal returned it with a baffled look of her own before turning to smile at Poseidon.

“On that note, we should probably get back to it,” she said dryly and lightly hit Stella’s arm. “Thank you - um, sorry, I didn’t catch your name,” she said. Poseidon smiled.

“I don’t really give my name out to strange women on beaches,” he said. Mystery Mortal’s smile widened as Stella made a face of disgust. “But I suppose for you, I will make an exception,” he said and held out a hand. “I’m Poseidon.”

“Poseidon?” Mystery Mortal asked, accepting his hand. Her touch was calloused for someone who looked so dainty. “Right, Poseidon. I should have known. It suits you,” Mystery Mortal quickly rectified. Stella scoffed. Poseidon looked at her. Usually, mortals never treated him like this. Even in his mortal form, they had been known to sense there was something about him that should be respected.

“You know what?” He asked slowly, and the girls simultaneously turned to him. “Why don’t I help you? Since you so kindly pointed out that I haven’t been doing my share of work,” he said. Mystery Mortal closed her eyes, looking a bit embarrassed by the whole thing.

“That’s okay. We wouldn’t want to impose on the god of the seas himself,” Stella said. Mystery Mortal threw her hands up.

“What is with you today?” She whispered. “Is this about Rich?” She asked but was ignored as Stella continued glaring at Poseidon. He returned it. Who did this random mortal think she was? “If you would like to help, we have extra bags,” Mystery Mortal added to Poseidon, reaching into a straw handbag to hand him one. Poseidon took it pointedly.

“Need me to open it for you?” Stella asked snidely.

…Poseidon had never been more confident he could keep an oath in his life.

Three hours later and the beach was… better. Not clean, but still not as much of a sin as it was. Mystery Mortal made the work much more manageable by singing songs and overall being lovely. Stella made the job harder by… being herself.

“Thanks for the help!” Mystery Mortal told him when they finally got everything to the dumpster. “Want to get a drink?” She asked. Poseidon smiled. Normally, he would be worried that this might lead somewhere, but he was fairly positive that Stella would serve as perfectly capable birth control. Sure enough, she rolled her eyes at the mention of drinks.

“Sure. I’ll pay.”

“See? He’s paying,” Mystery Mortal told her. Stella crossed her arms over her chest.

“Serial killers always do,” she said darkly. “Drug me, and I’ll cut your tongue out,” she warned.

“Killing you would be more work than it’s worth at this point,” he told her.

“Ooh, real witty,” she threw back. Poseidon looked at her. Maybe he could just… throw her off a cliff and wipe Mystery Mortal’s memory. If anyone could get away with murder, it was him. He had gotten away with murder. What was one less mouthy mortal?

“Christ,” Mystery Mortal said, still leading them to some bar a few yards away. It looked a bit rundown, but he suspected the food was good by mortal standards. “We should also come clean about something,” she said and looked pointedly at Stella, who shook her head. “Come on. Not everyone is out to get you.”

“My blood will be on your hands, Ruth,” Stella said darkly. Poseidon brightened. He had a name. “Go ahead and order. I promise to be very nice,” she added. Ruth shook her head before turning to pat a hand on Poseidon’s arm with a sweet smile.

“Sorry. It’s like I said - meeting strange men on the beach can be dangerous. You never want to give out your actual name. I’m Ruth,” she said and gestured to the bar. “I’ll be right back with the drinks,” she said, and disappeared before Poseidon could object. Actual name? She hadn’t given out a name at all. Unless... He turned back to Stella.

“What’s your name then?” He asked. She glowered. “Or don’t tell me. I don’t care.”

“Don’t play innocent,” she said and looked over towards where Ruth was leaning over the bar before pointing a finger at him. “I see your weird fork even if she can’t for some reason. I don’t know what you are, but if you touch my friend, I swear on my dead parents’ graves-“

“You can see my trident?” He asked. Ah. That explained it… sort of. The girl blinked.

“Yes… you’re admitting it’s a fork?”

“No, because it’s not a fork. It’s a trident.”

“Same thing.”

“No. No, it isn’t.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know I was talking to a fork expert,” she said, throwing up her hands. Poseidon bristled. “Why do you have that? Why can’t other people see it?” She asked. Poseidon considered. He could try manipulating the mist… but based on how she didn’t even try to convince her friend that Poseidon was carrying around a trident, she was used to seeing these things. Clear-sighted mortal, perhaps? He hummed.

“I don’t know if I should tell you. You’re pretty rude.”

“And you’re a creepy guy carrying around an invisible fork.”

“It isn’t invisible,” Poseidon said, waving when Ruth started heading back towards them. “She can see it. She just thinks it’s a surfboard.”

Not-Stella shook her head in disbelief. Was that a challenge? Poseidon smirked at her, shifting the trident slightly with an apologetic look as Ruth approached.

“Sorry,” he said, gesturing to the trident. “I would leave it outside, but it was kind of expensive…”

“Oh, no problem. Do you surf often?” She asked. Poseidon relished the look on not-Stella’s face. Ha. Foolish mortal.

The rest of the night went similarly. Not-Stella being aggressive, Poseidon easily annoying her, and Ruth playing bewildered peacemaker.

“We better get back. Sally actually has a cabin around here-“

“In an undisclosed location,” Not-Stella said fiercely. Poseidon held up his hands mockingly. “Thank you for the drinks,” she added, voice dripping with false sweetness. Poseidon scowled right back.

“You’re welcome, Sally,” he threw back, pleased he had finally caught her real name. Sally blinked – seemingly just realizing this before her brows scrunched together in outrage. Ruth sighed and rubbed her arm with an apologetic look towards Poseidon. He only waved.

She was lucky he was in a good mood. Any other day and he might have smited her on principle alone. As it was, he figured he owed her thanks. Who knows what trouble he might have gotten into with Ruth if her obnoxious, clear-sighted self hadn’t gotten in the way? No pretty mortals. That was the rule.

With that thought on the forefront of his mind, he disappeared into the depths of Atlantis.

Chapter Text

Percy was staring as if Poseidon had told him the sky was not only falling but also in flames and that Hades was doing the hula somewhere in the next room.

“I... you...” he began and then leaned back into his seat. “I see,” he finally said and then clicked his tongue. “I see,” he repeated and stood up. “This isn’t so bad. She was clear-sighted and didn’t trust you. Understandable,” he said with a nod. Poseidon pursed his lips. “But you moved past that and had a nice summer together, right?” He asked. Poseidon grimaced. He needed a distraction.

“Food?” He suggested and flicked his hand, so a bunch of pancakes appeared. Percy blinked. Then looked back up at him suspiciously. “...you looked hungry,” he said, ignoring Sally coming back into the room with another box. Her eyes flicked between Poseidon to Percy to finally the pancakes. She set the box down.

“There are forks and knives through there,” she told him. Percy opened his mouth a few times before shaking his head and standing up.

“Sure,” he muttered. “Let’s pretend like you aren’t avoiding my question,” he said and slipped through the door. Paul watched him go from where he was still sitting with his eyes moving between them. It did not appear as if he was okay with leaving in the same way Percy was. That probably made sense. Poseidon offered the man a weak smile.

“Have you gotten to the part where you wrongfully blamed me for the dolphin telling on us?” She asked. Poseidon bit back a grin.

“I didn’t blame you for that dolphin,” he objected with little conviction. Sally laughed. It sounded... well, it sounded like her laugh. Whatever that meant. He wasn’t sure words were invented to describe Sally Jackson’s laugh adequately. “But, while we’re here...I have a list of things I do blame you for,” Poseidon said casually. He watched as Sally bit her lip, clearly trying hard not to give in. Instead, she turned to face him with her arms crossed over her chest. “For example, when your son was twelve, he sent the gods Medusa’s head in a box,” he said and held out his hands in a sort ‘what was what about?’ sort of gesture. Sally’s lips twitched.

“Perhaps he wanted to show his father his accomplishments. Whoever that is.”

“Did I mention the illegal quest when he was thirteen?”

“That was in the ocean, wasn’t it? Too bad there wasn’t a god of the ocean to stop him.”

“Held up the sky at fourteen because he was chasing a girl.”

“Well, at least one of you is a romantic.”

“Blew up a mountain when he was fifteen.”

“Oh, yeah,” Sally said and raised an eyebrow. “That’s my fault. I forgot he got his mountain-blowing up abilities from me.”

“Should I be offended by this?” A voice said. Poseidon glanced up to see the son in question watching from the doorway with a fork, looking suitably bewildered for the conversation he was witnessing. Sally jumped at his voice. “For the record, the Medusa thing was a display of impertinence.”

“Aha!” Poseidon said, and Percy gave him a startled look. He turned to Sally. “I knew it was you.”

“…was it?” Percy asked, raising an eyebrow. Sally glared at Poseidon. He shrugged. Whatever. Maybe she was a patient, well-mannered, calm angel now, but he knew her well before that. “I mean, you sounded kind of moody, but that makes sense. You didn’t know what was happening, and a random god just appeared,” he said reasonably. Sally sighed.

“We don’t have to worry about who was what during when,” she said, and both of Percy’s brows shot up. Paul turned to him.

“You sent the Medusa’s head to the gods?” He asked. Percy shrugged. “Why...? Nevermind, I don’t want to know,” he muttered. He stood up. “Are we going to get more of the story? Or should we go we get your class schedule?” He asked. Everyone turned to Poseidon. Oh, how typical. Before he could answer, Sally spoke again.

“I guess that depends on how long Lord Poseidon is staying,” she said. “I know he has a very busy schedule,” she added. Poseidon rolled his eyes. Whatever.

“I can stay,” he said, and then grinned. “I can even help. You know, since you’ve so kindly pointed out that I haven’t been doing my share of work,” he said. Sally scowled. 

“That was eighteen years ago!” She said and threw up her hands. “Where’s that fork of yours? I’ll steal it again-”

“Again?”

“Percy, sweetheart, go grab a box,” she said and turned to Poseidon. “You forgot one,” she said. Poseidon tilted his head. “In listing all the things you blame me for.”

Oh. Yeah. Poseidon gestured for her to continue.

“What’s that?”

“He won a war at sixteen,” she said a pointed a finger at his chest. “I’ll take credit for that one.” 

Poseidon opened his mouth, but then closed it with a grin.

“Fair enough,” he agreed, ignoring Percy still staring at them, mouthing a silent ‘what the Hades’ to himself before slowly turning to get a box like Sally had asked. Paul, on the other hand, was firmly planted in his seat again with a slight scowl. Poseidon tried not to be amused by his obstinacy. “Do... you want to hear the rest?” He asked. Paul gave him a look that read as ‘duh’. Hm. He looked the man up and down. He hadn’t spent much time with Paul Blofis. Sally’s life outside of him was no longer his concern. Still, he was... curious. When Percy returned, he figured he could humor him.

“Alright,” Percy said as he walked back in and slid a box towards him. “You can help unpack while you talk then. Paul, you too.” He added and shoved a box towards him. Paul humphed under his breath before standing up, ruffling Percy’s hair as he did so. Poseidon didn’t react to that.

“So, what happened now that mom hated your guts? You didn’t actually spend much time with Ruth, did you?” He asked. Poseidon shook his head.

“Not on your mom’s watch.”

“Good for her,” Percy muttered. Tyrant. Poseidon sighed and snapped his fingers, so the box in front of him automatically unpacked itself. Percy stared. Then nodded. “Thank you. Can you do that for those three?”

And people had the audacity to say Percy was like him. There was a reason that when Percy first met him that Poseidon had said he took some of the blame for his insolence. Honestly. He took a long breath and settled in.

"What happened next was more or less completely your mother's fault-"

"You know," Sally said suddenly - eyes bright with mirth. "I just realized that you sound exactly like Percy when he's telling me about his quests," she said, and then turned to her son. "Which is probably how I know you didn't really dye that gray streak in your hair as a fun camp activity," she told him. Percy pouted a little at that. "Or that-"

"I thought we were talking about you guys," Percy said quickly. Sally laughed. "So, yeah. It was completely mom's fault. Go on."

Poseidon made a note to hear what Percy's versions of his quests were and carried on.

The ‘no pretty mortals’ rule was easier said than done.

He knew this already, of course. This oath wasn’t new. It had been a struggle for around fifty years now. He had even reached the point where he had no reason to check on the mortal realm simply because he had no more children there. It was… well, it was fine. He never admitted it, but he did actually like his demigods. Some gods didn’t. They saw them as annoying byproducts of whatever mortal they were drooling over, but Poseidon genuinely enjoyed his children. He liked seeing what parts of him they had and what their mortal parent brought to the table. He liked to see them grow and make decisions and have various personalities. He kind of missed it, honestly.

Maybe that was why he found himself on more and more beaches – surrounded by humans he couldn’t have. Usually, he caught himself in time. One might smile or laugh or have his attention a hint too long, and Poseidon had to fiercely remind himself to keep it together.

In the end, he decided Montauk was the best bet. If anything, he knew of a pair of mortals who were safe to be with.

“You again.”

“Hello, Sally. I didn’t expect to find you here,” he drawled. That was a lie. He had easily found them and walked right in front with feigned innocence. “Is this your top-secret beach house?”

“Legally, I could shoot you if you trespass on my property,” she said. From the front porch, Ruth caught sight of him and gave a huge wave. Poseidon beamed at her in return. Then refocused on the angry disaster in front of him.

“Do you even own a gun?”

“I would buy one especially for you,” she told him and flicked her hair over her shoulder. “Maybe you can block the bullets with that fork of yours.”

He hated her. He absolutely hated her.

“It’s a trident.”

“I’m onto you,” she whispered. Poseidon scowled back. “You and your big fork aren’t fooling me. Stay away from my friend,” she said. Poseidon glanced at where Ruth was now dashing across the sand towards them, eyes blown wide with excitement. He sighed a little. He had to remember that Sally was the only reason he could trust himself to be around mortals at all. As surly and temperamental as she may be... he knew there would be no oath-breaking with her at the helm.

Still, he didn’t have to like her.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, lowering his voice so only she could hear. “I happen to only have a surfboard with me,” he told her. Sally’s eyes narrowed. “You shouldn’t talk like that. People might think you’re crazy.”

Her jaw dropped.

“You little-“

“Poseidon!” Ruth interrupted as she raced over. Poseidon gave her a dazzling grin as he accepted her hug. At least someone around at this beach was nice to him. “Fancy seeing you here-“

“Maybe he’s stalking us. We should go to the police.”

“Sally, please,” Ruth sighed with a shake of her head. Poseidon gave her a smug grin before noticing Ruth’s outfit.

 “You’re in the military?” He asked. Ruth blinked before looking down at her uniform and laughing.

“Yeah, coast guard. Don’t make fun of me for it. We’re important too, you know,” she said with a slight grin. Poseidon returned it warmly. “I’m stationed at the base in Montauk, actually. It’s why I’m here for the summer. I’m just visiting Sally a bit more than I should,” she added with a small nudge. Poseidon turned to her.

“You live here?”

“No,” Sally said flatly. He waited for more. It did not look like he was going to get more. Tragic. “I’ll see you later, right?” She asked as Ruth buttoned her uniform a bit. She nodded with reassurances that the second she was off duty, she would stop by. Poseidon inwardly sighed. Ah. So, she was off working then. That left him with… this one.

Maybe he should return to Atlantis.

“Are you just going to stand there?”

“Are you always this unpleasant?” He couldn’t help but ask. Sally’s brows went up as she tucked a notebook under her arm. “I mean, honestly. What have I done?”

“You have a weird fork that my friend thinks is a surfboard,” Sally shot back. “I see things sometimes—weird things. People tell me I’m crazy, and maybe that’s true, whatever, fine. But if you see them, that means I’m not completely around the bend. It also means you are dangerous.”

“Says who?”

“Says the fact I saw an evil lady with bat wings and a mean flying pig! Nothing I ever see is nice. That is going to have to include you, fork-man. And I am not letting you lure my friend into your evil ways. I already have too many dead people in my life. I’ll take that fork and stab you with it.”

Poseidon scowled.

“It’s a trident.”

Sally scowled right back.

“I don’t like you.”

“Well, I don’t like you either.”

“Then go away,” she growled and sat on the sand beneath her before opening her notebook with a slam. Poseidon didn’t move. She couldn’t tell him what to do. He watched as she pulled out a ballpoint pen and started writing something. He sat down. “Now, you’re trying to annoy me.”

“Yes, actually,” he said and spread out on the sand. “If you want to be left alone, you should leave.”

“This is my cabin.”

“This is my beach.”

Sally looked up at him. Her eyes narrowed. Whoops. It was technically his beach, though. They were all his beaches. There was a long pause before she shook her head.

“No, it isn’t.”

“It is, actually,” he said and dug his feet into the sand. His eyes flicked to her notebook. “What are you writing about?” He asked, watching her tap the ballpoint pen to the paper a few times as she continued glaring at him. She pursed her lips.

“Nothing. Everything. I don’t know,” she muttered. Poseidon felt his interest rise a bit at that. He wanted to ask more but knew he would get his head bit off if he did. Then he might kill her, and Ruth would be upset. How did they even know one another? Such different personalities.

Well, maybe. Sally seemed determined to hate him. He had no idea what she was like around someone she did like. Clearly, she was a loyal friend. Poseidon supposed he could respect that. Just as he was considering being nice and leaving her be, a loud bang echoed somewhere farther down the beach. Sally’s head jerked up.

…oh no.

“Do you see that?” She asked, letting her notebook fall to the ground as she sat up. Poseidon grimaced as he followed suit. He did, actually. A small figure was running down the beach, covered in blood and sand, while racing away from what looked to be a hellhound. How typical. “Why is nobody helping him?” Sally asked, horrified.

“They just think he’s playing with a dog,” Poseidon answered, watching the demigod weaving and dodging. He was young. Way too young, actually. It looked like he could barely run – usually demigods that young were still with their mortal parents. Where…?

“LUKE!” A woman screamed. Ah. There she was. Poseidon grimaced. He shouldn’t be here. Sally stood up, eyes narrowing. Poseidon watched as she looked around, eyes flicking to the unused lifeguard stand to where the boy was still trying to escape.

“Give me your fork.”

“What?”

“Fine, your trident. Whatever. I’m going to use it to stab that thing,” Sally said with a bewildering amount of certainty. Poseidon blinked. He absolutely was not giving her his trident, but the idea this mortal wanted to be involved in this nonsense was confusing. Poseidon wasn’t allowed to intervene on principle. Zeus hated them interfering in mortal affairs. Still, he couldn’t tell Sally that.

“You can’t fight that thing.”

“That boy is a baby,” she said, throwing up a hand. Her body twitched – almost like she was trying not to immediately dive in after him. Impulsive, Poseidon thought offhandedly. However, she seemed to restrain herself well. “He’s like five or six. We can’t just leave him when we can see what’s happening!”

“I’m afraid we have to,” Poseidon said, assuming that would be the end of it.

It was not. Sally spared him one last look before sprinting off in the boy's direction. He blinked. Oh. Okay, then. He stared, unsure of his next move. He really couldn’t intervene, but he was also curious at what this random mortal girl thought she could do. This was answered by her scooping up the boy and tossing him towards her cabin with a yell. The boy stumbled and scrambled off as Sally stood back up, kicking sand directly in the hellhound’s eyes.

The hellhound paused – momentarily shocked before yowling a bit. Poseidon didn’t blame it. How did monsters react to stray mortals intervening? He didn’t think it would be good. Sure enough, it swiped at her in retaliation. Sally dove to the ground, rolling around as she picked up random things to throw at it. Poseidon bit his lip. She wouldn’t win this fight. It was honestly making him a little uncomfortable to just… watch.

From farther down the beach, the mother was getting closer. Her hair was wild and eyes slightly crazed. The hellhound snarled, snapping its jaws as Sally tried to deter it with a plank of wood.

 “FIRE!” The woman shouted. “IT JUST NEEDS FIRE!”

Fire? Poseidon frowned. What did that mean? Hellhounds weren’t scared of fire. Maybe she didn’t know that. He tilted his head only to realize what she was trying to say. The hellhound’s coat gleamed, sparkling in the sun with droplets dripping off into the sand. At some point, this woman had found a way to douse this hellhound in gasoline.

…that was concerning. Still, some credit to her for trying to fight this thing without a proper weapon. Sally appeared to be in the same boat. She seemed to realize this too because her eyes widened as she stumbled back. Poseidon twitched again. From the front of Sally’s cabin, the boy was hiding, watching with wide eyes.

“Don’t,” he muttered. The fire wouldn’t kill it. They would just have an even more dangerous monster. Sally was already doing a fine job pissing it off. Poseidon looked away. Technically, he would be keeping the peace if he killed it, right? Zeus couldn’t be mad about that. The mist could only do so much, right?

Sally raced inside the cabin, yanking the boy with her. The hellhound went to go after them, but Sally was back within seconds, holding a lighter.

…damnit.

She lit the damn dog on fire. Poseidon was distressed. This was distressing. A wild hellhound was on fire on his beach, and because there was a demigod here, he couldn’t do anything.

“Um,” Sally said and stepped back, pushing the boy behind her. “It’s still alive!”

The hellhound made a truly terrifying snarl before launching forward. Sally dove to the side (kid still in tow). Unfortunately, this only lit her front porch on fire. Son of… Sally raced back towards him and shoved the kid towards his mother.

“Run. Run,” she shouted and pointed a finger at Poseidon. “Are you just going to stand there?!” She yelled at him. Poseidon was about to answer when she yanked the trident out of his hand and promptly exploded the cabin.

…ah. That might be his fault. In his defense, he would normally guard his possessions better, but he was distracted by the demigod trying to get back to his mom. At least the hellhound was dead. Most of the immediate surrounding people were unconscious as Sally dropped the weapon, looking shell-shocked. It was at this moment he remembered he should be angry.

“Are you insane?” He shouted at her. Sally walked over, arm bleeding freely as she fell into the sand with heavy breaths. She popped her head up to look at him.

“Yes, but not because I helped a child!” She said and then fell back down. “What was that? Why were you just standing there?” She demanded, yelling more to the sky than to him. Poseidon marched over to look down at her. “You said you could see this shit too! Why wouldn’t you help? That boy probably can’t even read yet!”

“He’s a half-blood. He and his mother should make it to camp, probably,” he said, looking at where both the child and mortal were unconscious, not too far from them.

“A what? Is that a racist thing?” She demanded and sat up. “I should have known.”

“It’s not – okay, just let me heal you,” he muttered and knelt down. Sally slapped his hand away. “You are an incredibly frustrating creature!”

“Me? What are you going to do? Heal me with your fairy powers?” She asked. Poseidon glowered and reached over to grab her arm, ignoring her muttered protests. They went silent when the blood disappeared. He placed a hand over the wound. There.

Nothing in the rules about not aiding random bystanders… technically.

When he looked up, Sally was watching him with impossibly large eyes.

“Now would be the time to thank me and my fairy powers,” he said and pointed a finger at her. “Do not touch my trident again,” he warned darkly and let go to check on the other two. The demigod honestly looked fine. He wouldn’t be allowed to heal him anyway. The mother, on the other hand…

Something was off with her. He frowned, placing a hand on her forehead. This was something even he couldn’t heal. It wasn’t because of the hellhound either. He had heard whispers of one of Hermes’ lovers… could it be…?

Something shifted next to him, and Poseidon felt his entire body tense.

He was distracted, sure, but he also knew when the most important and powerful he owned had been touched by a hand that was not his own... again. Most sea deities were wildly possessive of their sacred items. He was not excluded from this. Immediately, his anger spiked as he slowly looked down to find his trident once again gone from where he placed it next to him. The world rumbled as he turned.

Sure enough, Sally Jackson stood there with the tip pointed directly at this throat.

“Put… that down. You’ve already done enough damage.”

“Not a fan of someone else holding your toy?” She asked and pressed the tip forward. Poseidon took a long breath. Technically, this was incredibly dangerous. Sally was holding a weapon of mass destruction. His trident was actually one of the few items in the universe that could permanently cause a god harm. He wasn’t too worried, though. He could kill her before she even took a second breath. Right now, he was just… irritated.

“You have no idea what you’re holding. Put it down before I show you how dangerous I really am.”

“What are you?”

“I said put that down-“

“And I ask you what the Hell you are!” She said, raising her voice and jamming the trident, so it touched the base of his throat. Poseidon felt his skin glow. This didn’t even seem to faze her, but at this point, he was pretty sure this mortal was just… wildly foolish.

Not wanting to entertain this any more than he already had, he yanked his trident back. It slid out of her grip easily, jerking her to the ground. Poseidon opened his mouth to say something else intimidating, but the words caught in his throat when she didn’t get up right away. He waited.

“Are… are you still hurt?” He asked and knelt. When she lifted her gaze, it was surprisingly… broken. Sirens wailed in the distance. Right. Even mortal police wouldn’t ignore an explosion.

“What’s wrong with me?” She asked, voice so quiet that he was certain a human wouldn’t be able to hear. Poseidon sighed. He bit his lip. Then let his gaze flick back to where the other mortal was beginning to stir on the ground, reaching for her son. It seemed cruel to bring Sally into this world where mortals always seemed to get the raw end of the deal.

And yet… silence seemed crueler for this one. Ignoring the influx of mortals making their way over, he shifted the mist and pointed his trident at the cabin. Within seconds it righted itself to how it was before. Sally stared.

“I’ll tell you,” he said and held out a hand. “You might not like what I have to say,” he warned. Slowly, she reached out and took it. Her eyes fell on the little boy.

“Will he be okay?”

“Right now? Yes. In the future? His kind don’t live very long,” he admitted. Sally’s brows furrowed as she got up, dusting sand off of her. “We aren’t allowed to interfere. My brother would be furious – not to mention he’ll be suspicious on why I’m here,” he said. Sally watched as people approached them, checking over the mother and son while ignoring Poseidon and Sally completely.

“They can’t see us,” she said calmly. Poseidon shrugged.

“I’m keeping them from seeing us.”

“Like with your fork?”

Ugh. Poseidon rolled his eyes.

“Trident, but yes. It’s similar to that,” he said and turned to face her fully. “I wasn’t named after the Greek god, Sally. I am the first of my name,” he hinted. Sally tore her gaze away to stare at him. He could see as the pieces clicked. Shock, disbelief, anger – all were flickering across her face in rapid succession. Then it went completely blank.

“The dog?” She finally asked.

“Hellhound. You would have sent it to Tartarus. Maybe. My trident can sometimes eradicate monsters, so they can’t regenerate,” he mused. Sally nodded again. Poseidon waited for more of a reaction. “Some mortals can see the world as it really is. You appear to be one of them. You aren’t crazy. You just… aren’t privy to the magic we use to protect the minds of your kind,” he said, trying to be gentle.

Sally went quiet.

“Poseidon, huh?” She finally asked. He nodded. There was another beat of silence. He wondered if she might fall to her knees right then and there. Learning one was a god tended to have that effect. Sally didn’t do that, though. He wasn’t sure why he thought she had even a shred of self-preservation in her. “I remember reading the Odyssey in high school,” she said slowly. Poseidon narrowed his eyes. “Wouldn’t being a dick to a random mortal break that rule to not interfere you just mentioned?”

He sighed. This girl…

“Times were different in ancient Greece.”

“Thank you for telling me,” she said, completely ignoring his answer. “I’m assuming this means all Greek gods are real?” She asked, voice rising. Interesting. This wasn’t going how he thought. Poseidon went to answer, but Sally was already speaking again. “So, was it Zeus that blasted my parents out of the sky? Apollo, who let my uncle die from cancer? Ares, who could eventually get Ruth killed?”

“Watch yourself with the names-“

“And your special little magic is to keep people from seeing the truth? I bet it’s just to cover your asses so people don’t call you out on watching little kids get mauled by monsters. Because trust me, people could handle the truth. They would just be angry at how shitty the world maintenance is!”

Okay, seriously? Poseidon had been operating that her disrespect would evaporate upon realizing who he was. Apparently not. He didn’t really know what to do, honestly. He could definitely be temperamental, yes. Poseidon wasn’t as easily offended as some others (ahem, Zeus), though. He could understand the range of emotions she was going through. He just couldn’t decide where the line was – and if she already crossed it.

Not that he had a chance. Sally had already stormed away back into the cabin and slammed the door.

Poseidon spent three more days in Atlantis. He meant to remain there. After all, he wasn’t sure what Sally would tell Ruth, and it was already a risk being around any mortals at all.

Still… he did just drop such a massive bomb on her. Maybe he should check on her. Just her. No Ruth. Ruth was too tempting. This wasn’t an excuse to see her. This was merely him ensuring the welfare of a mortal who was technically his responsibility. You know, since she was in his domain and whatnot.

So there he was on the damn beach on Montauk once again.

“Sally?” He called and then pounded on the door. “Sally, open up. I-” he started and was a little taken aback when she did open the door. “Hi,” he said and moved to step inside. He paused when Sally blocked him.

“Don’t you need permission to enter or something?” She asked. Poseidon closed his eyes.

“I’m a god. Not a vampire.”

“Sure,” she said… and then slammed the door in his face. Poseidon gritted his teeth. He would not blast this door down. He wouldn’t. He wouldn’t, he wouldn’t, he wouldn’t-

“You need to cut her some slack,” a voice said. He turned. Ruth. She was there in a yellow bathing suit, looking unfairly beautiful as she tilted her head at him. “She’s had a rough go of it. Learning gods are a thing would send anyone spiraling,” she said. Poseidon stared.

“You… know?” He asked. Ruth grinned.

“Believe it or not, you’re not the first god I’ve come across,” she said cryptically and jerked her head. “Come on,” she said. “Let’s take a walk.”

Bad idea. Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad idea-

“Okay,” he agreed… because he was a moron. Ruth’s eyes glimmered as she tossed dark hair over her shoulder, letting it cascade down her back. Poseidon swallowed and promised himself to be a model god. Ruth must have sensed his discomfort because she laughed.

“That oath really sucks, doesn’t it?” She asked. Poseidon stared. “What? I told you I met a god before. I asked questions,” she shrugged and gazed out towards the ocean for a moment. “Sally doesn’t mean to be disrespectful, really,” she said. Poseidon scoffed. “No, she’s… had a hard time lately. Her parents died when she was young, and she had to drop out of school to take care of her dying uncle. Plus, she saw craziness for most of her life. It wears you down. Usually, she’s the kindest person you’ll ever meet. You just… make her go a little feral. Can you blame her?” She asked.

Poseidon considered. Perhaps not.

“You didn’t tell her the truth?”

“I only found out myself a few years ago. I’ve known Sally for a while but never put it together that she could see through the mist. I can’t so...” she said with a small ‘eh’ shrug as she kept walking down the beach, occasionally scooping up wayward trash.

“That must have been difficult,” Poseidon said slowly and sighed. “I should… I don’t know. Help.”

Ruth gave him a curious look.

“You… don’t have to. I can take care of her. Rumor has it you should probably stay away from mortals,” she said. Poseidon pursed his lips. She was right… he sincerely wished to know who told her all of this, but was right nevertheless. Still, he looked back towards the cabin. No. Poseidon owed this mortal. Even if he didn’t like her. He turned back to the cabin. “Poseidon,” Ruth called. He looked over his shoulder at her. “If you’re not careful, you won’t just break that oath with her.”

Poseidon scoffed. What did that mean? That he would… what? Fall in love with her?

“I think I can handle it,” he said and snapped his fingers. When he opened his eyes, he was inside Sally’s cabin. It was very… plain. Decorated the same way you might find any cabin on the beach for renters or family summer homes.

“I wish you were a vampire.”

Ah. There she was. Poseidon turned to see one of the doors opened, with Sally leaning against the doorframe. She looked exhausted. Poseidon felt his guilty conscience throb. He didn’t like her, but he hadn’t meant to distress her to this point.

“I would have knocked,” he said, and then gestured to her. “But you might not have answered.”

“The point of knocking is to give someone to option of saying no to your presence.”

“The point of knocking is to let someone know you’re coming in.”

“Jesus Christ,” she muttered and retreated into the room behind her. “Poseidon, I’m having an existential crisis right now. I need you to let me wallow in self-pity with no obnoxious side-comments,” she said. Poseidon followed her, curiously taking in this new room they had entered. Her room. It was different from the hallway of the cabin. This one was plastered with photos and handmade decorations. And notebook – so many notebooks. There were mounds of them against the walls and on bookshelves. They were mixed in with novels and textbooks and movies strewn about as well.

“Look, I… want to make things right with you. I sprung a lot on you during an intense time. I feel bad,” he admitted. Sally collapsed on a bed and turned to look at him.

“You want to make things right with me so you can seduce my friend…who knew about gods when I told her… Oh my god. What happens if you get her pregnant? Ruth already has a baby. She can’t have a god-baby!” She asked and put the heels of her hands into her eyes. “What the fuck?”

“Actually, I can’t seduce her-“

“Oh, shut up,” Sally snapped. “With your obnoxious good looks and weirdly attractive voice and-“

“You think I’m attractive?”

“You’re a god!” She shouted, bolting up. “This is not news to you!”

This was true. Still, he felt oddly satisfied with her admitting it.

“Hm,” he said, and sat down at the edge of the bed. “If I could offer a word of advice?” He asked. Sally waited. “Telling gods to shut up isn’t… the best practice,” he said. Sally blinked slowly at him. Then swallowed. Then pressed a finger to her temple before speaking again.

“Sir Poseidon, please… close… your mouth…my lord.”

Poseidon stared.

“I hated that.”

“I hated that too.”

“Maybe you just shouldn’t talk to any other gods,” he reasoned. Sally held out her arms in a sort of ‘I’m trying’ gesture. Poseidon ignored her. “And I can’t seduce Ruth because it is illegal for me to at the moment,” he said. Sally raised an eyebrow. “I took an oath.”

Sally looked at him for a few seconds before shrugging.

“Alright, I’ll bite,” she said. “Tell me about this oath,” she requested as she sprawled out on the bed. Poseidon tried not to stare at her. He had known she was pretty too. It was a little hard to miss that. It’s just… he had been so preoccupied with not liking her that he hadn’t noticed. She reminded him a bit of Aphrodite, actually. The way everything about her seemed to shift and change, like water beating restlessly on the shore. Logically, he knew that was impossible. She was very much a mortal, not a goddess. Still, he couldn’t decide the exact shade of blue her eyes were or how her hair fell. She turned her head, and Poseidon almost jumped when their gazes met. Ruth’s words snapped to the front of his mind, and he shook his head. Fool. He worked hard to keep his eyes on anything but her.

“It’s a pretty simple one. No children with mortals.”

“Really?” She asked and rolled over, so she was on her stomach. “Why not?”

“A few reasons,” he sighed and watched as she flipped her notebook (or one of them) open, taking out her pen and flicking off the cap. “The oath only applies to my brothers and myself. Our children are too powerful. They cause too much destruction when they fight,” he said and absently pulled the water back and forth outside. “Then there was… the prophecy. A child of ours will either win or lose a war for us. It could be the end of the world as we know it. It was best just to prolong the whole thing altogether,” he said. Sally pursed her lips.

“But… I mean, how long can you delay a prophecy?”

Poseidon gave a tight smile.

“I guess we’ll see. So far about… forty years?” He said. Sally let out a low whistle. Yeah. That felt about right to him. “At this point, all my children are immortal or dead,” he said a little offhandedly. Sally opened her mouth a few times before shutting it again. She wanted to ask something blasphemous, didn’t she? He gave a weary sigh. “Go ahead.”

There was a pause.

“Just... how many children have you even had? Altogether, I mean,” she said. Poseidon looked at her. “That bad, huh? And you want more?”

“I don’t know if that’s the right word,” he said and shrugged. “Demigods are... it is a cruel duality. They are wonderful but normally live short and painful lives. It would be cruel of me to bring one into the world. Especially now. Still, I...” he trailed off, all too aware of her eyes focused on him. Typically, they didn’t feel clear-sightedness, but there was something about her gaze that... it just let him know she could see. Clearly. “Here,” he said without thinking and brought out a handful of photos from seemingly nowhere. Sally looked at him warily before cautiously leaning over. The photos were old and lacking any real color. Either black and white or sepia. Cautiously, she grabbed the first one of a young girl with black hair and blacker eyes. She wasn’t smiling at the camera, but something about her seemed amused nevertheless. Amused and vaguely dangerous. “Yvette,” he said. “One of my last children before they were banned.”

“She doesn’t look much like you.”

“Hm,” Poseidon said and tapped his knee absently. “Different children of mine get different parts of me. You never know for sure how a demigod might turn out. If they’ll take the good or bad parts of your power,” he said, then paused. “Yvette was sweet. In the beginning, at least. She lost herself towards the end,” he said and looked down at his daughter with a small sigh. “Her fatal flaw was... well, her downfall.”

“Fatal flaw?”

“Yes, all heroes have them. It’s an attribute of theirs that goes to the point it gets them killed. Many tend to be grouped into similar categories. Yvette’s was possessiveness. All sea deities are known to be possessive over their weapons and sacred symbols. It wasn’t much of a surprise,” he mused. “For her...she wouldn’t surrender her fleet. She might have survived if she had, but the thought of handing those boats over...” he pursed his lips. Sally stared. “This is James,” he said, quickly moving to the next photo. Unlike his sister, he stared back stoically in the photo. Not a hint of emotion on his face.

“He looks young.”

“He would have been... fifteen? Yes, fifteen,” Poseidon nodded. Sally’s brows pressed together.

“None of them would have been allowed to fight in any wars at that age.”

“That’s the irony, isn’t it? Humans put all those age restrictions on it. Not that even their own kind followed it. But in the end, it was our children who fought behind the scenes. I think the oldest might have been in their twenties,” he said and shook his head. “Unless you believe those foolish lies my brother likes to spread.”

“Which one?”

“The younger,” he said, not risking saying Zeus’ name out loud. “He enjoyed spreading blasphemy against our brother particularly. Said Hitler was a demigod of his. It isn’t true, but to this day, many believe it,” he said with a shake of his head. “Only humans can - oh, that’s Karine,” he added when Sally picked up another photo. “She was a favorite of mine. Incredibly impatient. Drove everyone around her mad,” he grinned. “She was powerful enough to pull it off, though. Well, for a while,” he corrected himself. No amount of power prepared her for Zeus tossing her into Tartarus. She never came back out. Sally must have sensed his distress because her hand twitched - almost as if wanting to comfort him.

“Do you remember all of them?” She asked. Poseidon nodded. He remembered everything - if he wanted to. And he always wanted to remember his children. He had a strange loyalty to them. Personal loyalty, anyway. He tried to think back to the last child of his that had that unfortunate quality of his. It was probably someone in his Neptune form.

“I - what is that?” He interrupted himself, noticing three particular books of interest on her bedside table. Sally’s eyes flicked over to the pile and shrugged.

“Books on Greek mythology. Now that I know it’s real, I thought I should learn my history,” she said. Poseidon snapped his mouth closed. That was... very fair. Incredible foresight for someone who was clearly very shaken by this whole experience. Sally sat up and pulled one of the books open, bringing out her ballpoint pen to scribble something within the margins. Poseidon couldn’t help but smile. “What?”

“Nothing,” he said and sat up straighter with a nod towards the book. “Just... thinking of how much that would upset my niece.”

“Your niece?” She repeated and wrinkled her nose. “Okay, so... either Artemis or Athe-“

“Be careful with names,” Poseidon cut her off. Sally frowned. “They have power. Saying them means that they’re aware of your presence, and you rarely want that,” he said. Sally raised an eyebrow.

“Then why did you introduce yourself with your actual name?”

“Well,” Poseidon said and held out his arms. “You already had my attention. I don’t think there is too much to prevent that now,” he said. Sally scoffed at that, tucking a wayward strand of hair behind her ear as she went back to the book.

“Aren’t we lucky then?” She murmured and then pointed at a passage about Athens on the next page. “But am I right to assume you meant her?” She asked. Poseidon shrugged. Athena wasn’t a particularly hard goddess to guess. People liked her for whatever reason. “Is this real, then?” She asked. Poseidon raised an eyebrow. “The whole competition you two had over the city?”

Oh. Poseidon made a face.

“Unfortunately. The gemini did not have very good taste.”

“I see,” Sally said, voice oddly controlled. Too controlled. Poseidon narrowed his eyes. She was trying not to laugh. “So, you made a spring that they couldn’t drink from, and Athe- your rival,” she corrected herself. “Made olives.”

“…yes.”

“Hm,” she said and flipped a page in her book. “They must have really liked olives.”

“You’re making fun of me,” Poseidon said. He wasn’t sure how exactly, but he knew she definitely was. Sally tapped the end of her nose. That should probably get her killed. Humans didn’t just... jest about their failures like that. Not without consequences. For whatever reason, Poseidon only found himself mildly annoyed. “And what would you have given as a gift, oh, mighty goddess of notebooks?” He said with a vague gesture towards their surroundings. Sally went bright red.

“Something useful,” she quipped back quickly. Poseidon raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t you invent an animal at one point? Cattle? Dogs?”

“Horses.”

“Horses!” She said and snapped her fingers. “Why didn’t you give them horses? Everyone loves horses,” she said and shook her head. “I would have definitely given them horses.”

“Unfortunately, I had not yet created horses,” he said. Sally’s face fell. He almost wanted to take it back for some weird reason.

“Hm... well, maybe give them all fishing lessons,” she said. Poseidon stared. “You know... because of the whole ‘give a man a fish’ thing?” She asked. Poseidon blinked. “He eats for a day, but if you teach a man to fish...? No. Alright, nevermind,” she said. Poseidon only shrugged. Alright. Whatever. He already knew she was a strange one. Before he could tease her more, a sharp rapping sound came from the door. Huh. Wouldn’t Ruth have a key?

Sally glanced out the window. Oh... no. Poseidon grimaced as he realized who it was. Without waiting for the second knock, Sally fled to the front door and practically hurled it off its hinges. Poseidon continued grimacing behind her. Sure enough. The mother and son from earlier were outside the door.

“Oh, you’re both okay!” Sally said, clearly relieved. She looked down at the little boy and bit her lip. “I’m sorry I threw you earlier. Are you alright?” She asked him. He was clinging to his mother’s leg, eyes large and blue. He gave the smallest of nods. Sally’s expression switched, melting completely as she knelt, so she was eye level with him. “Thank you for coming back. I wanted to tell you that I like your shirt. Blue is my favorite color,” she said. The boy smiled a little at that. “I’m Sally. What’s your name?”

“Luke.”

“Hi, Luke. Do you and your mom want to come in?” She asked. Luke looked up at his mother with a slight frown. Sally followed his gaze. “You’re not hurt from that thing, are you?” She asked, standing up. The woman didn’t respond. She was too busy staring at Sally blankly. “Ma’am?”

“Yes!” The woman said loudly, making them both jump. The boy flinched. “Sorry, sweetheart,” she added to the boy and put a hand on his head. Poseidon pursed his lips. This wasn’t a good idea. The boy could lure more monsters. Maybe he was being selfish. He could at least direct them to the right place to go. Though... if this was who he thought it was... wouldn’t she know? “Yes, we would like to come in,” the woman said and held out a hand. “I’m... I’m May,” she said. Sally reached out and shook it.

“Nice to meet you, May. Luke, would you like some pancakes?” She asked. Luke shuffled inside. “I have food dye. We can make them in different colors if you want. Maybe green or purple?” She asked, stepping aside so both could come. Luke rubbed his arm shyly.

“Red?”

“Ooh, red is a good pick,” Sally told him. Poseidon vaguely wondered if this mortal had two different people stuffed into one body. Where was this woman when Poseidon tried to talk to her? Sure enough, when she turned and saw him, she scowled. “Follow me,” she muttered as she brushed by. Poseidon shook his head. Demon. Demon mortal.

“I think she’s in shock,” Sally whispered with a slight nod towards May. “Can... I know you said you’re not allowed to interfere, but she can’t take care of her son like that. You healed me, right?” She said as she grabbed a few things from the pantry. Poseidon inwardly groaned. Oh, this would not go well.

“I can’t heal what she has,” he said lowly, keeping in mind that Luke was only a few feet away. Sally tilted her head. From the front of the cabin, the door open again. Immediately, Luke gasped, dropping the whisk he had gotten and rushing under the table. Sally froze - watching with horrified eyes as she looked to where Ruth had entered with a bewildered look on her face.

“I didn’t know we were having a party,” she said and waved down at where Luke was crouching under the table. May hummed to herself - eyes fixed on the ceiling.

“Luke?” Sally said and bent over. “Hi, it’s me.”

“Sorry.”

“Sorry for what? You found the best hiding spot!” Sally told him and held out her hand. “You want to come out and help me with the pancakes?” She asked. Luke looked over at Ruth. “That’s my friend. She is the best pancake maker I know.”

“It’s true,” Ruth agreed. “I once won a pancake competition... because they have those,” she said with a slight shrug. Luke must have bought it because he crawled out from under the table. May slammed her hands on the table. Luke flinched again.

“We wanted to thank you for helping us,” she said, turning to Ruth. “We’re from Connecticut, actually. Wanted to come here because... because...” she frowned and looked around. “Darling, why are we here? Luke? Luke, where are you?” She said sharply. Luke walked over, grabbing her hand. “Oh, there you are. We wanted to thank you for helping us,” she repeated, turning to Sally this time. “Are you clear-sighted?”

“I... I guess I am,” Sally said slowly. “It’s all a bit new to me. I found out about the gods recently.”

“The gods!” May laughed. Luke let go of her hand as his mother began to ramble. Ruth seemed to realize he needed a distraction because she ushered him over to the counter to start the pancakes. Sally turned to Poseidon.

“How do we help her?”

“It’s like I said. What she has... cannot be healed. Not by any god,” Poseidon informed her sullenly. Sally’s lips pursed. “I don’t know the details, but I think she tried to become the host for Oracle of Delphi. It did not accept her,” he said. Sally blinked a few times before biting her lip.

“Nobody is taking care of her? What about her son?”

Poseidon grimaced.

“There is a place the boy could go... it would be safer for him, but... it is the place his mother would have lost his sanity,” he explained quietly. Sally looked between the pair. Then she took a deep breath and marched over to May, grabbing her hand with a warm smile.

“Are you thirsty? Can I get you some water?” She asked. May cooed, calling her someone named Candace. Sally didn’t correct her. That was how the next few hours went. Poseidon was apparently a second-class guest. He wasn’t too upset by it, though. It was interesting to watch the change in these mortals. Ruth was still as sweet as ever - patiently helping Luke with the pancakes. But... honestly, it was really Sally that fascinated him. You would have never guessed she had learned the gods existed only a few hours prior. There was no sign of her tears or distress anywhere on her face. Only this bewildering sweet temperament that came from freaking nowhere. Her voice was softer, eyes warm, and smile inviting. Poseidon was reminded of his own mother, actually. They had the same level of patience and warmth.

Sally Jackson wasn’t an immortal... but she might make a good one considering she kept reminding him of them.

“May,” Sally said conversationally. “I heard there was somewhere you could... bring Luke. Somewhere he could be safe?” She asked after serving the pancakes. May tilted her head, tangled hair falling a bit to the side. “Um, it... where is it?” She asked, turning to Poseidon.

“A... camp in Long Island.”

“Long Island? That’s only an hour and a half away!” Sally said, lifting a hand. “I can drive you! Or, well, I can borrow a car and drive you,” she flushed. Ruth smiled at her. A strange expression touched her face but disappeared a moment later.

“You can use mine,” she said softly. Sally awkwardly shifted, looking oddly embarrassed for some reason. Ruth leaned in. “Her car got repossessed. You can either pay for a car or cancer treatment, as it turns out. Both are tricky.”

Poseidon nodded. He was a little offended on Sally’s behalf with how freely Ruth seemed to hand out information like that. He wasn’t an expert on human manners by any stretch of the imagination, but... if Sally didn’t say it, then maybe it shouldn’t be known? He filed that away for later. Ruth was still a shining star within this bewildering week. Gods, had it only been a week? Less than that, perhaps.

“Long Island,” May repeated. “I... Long Island...” She said and shook her head. “I don’t like Long Island.”

“Oh,” Sally said. “Well... maybe I can take Luke,” she said. “And you can stay with me for a while-“

“No,” May said sharply. Everyone froze. There was a sudden shift in the room. It made even Poseidon a little nervous. “No, you can’t take - you can’t take him!” She said and pointed a finger at Sally. “You stay away from him! His future is wrong - it’s wrong! You don’t know what you’re talking about. You think just because you can see means you know the future? You know nothing. He isn’t like that. My baby isn’t like that!” She shouted, standing up so quickly that the plates all fell to the floor with a crash. Poseidon tensed. He went to grab his trident, but Sally’s hand on his arm stopped him.

“I don’t know the future,” she said calmly. “I just know that Poseidon said he would be safe there. I... believe him,” she added dryly, looking at him for a second with very clear distaste. May kept shaking her head. “That hellhound almost got him today. You... I don’t know if you can keep-“

“No! You can’t take him! Luke, come on,” she said, shoving the table away. Luke jumped at the change. “We’re leaving.”

Sally’s fists clenched.

“You’re scaring him.”

“You’re not taking him!”

“It’s okay,” Luke said quickly. “Mama, it’s okay. I’ll stay,” he reassured her. Sally swallowed, looking away. “It’s okay.”

“May,” Sally said, quickly regaining her composure. “Nobody is taking him. I just think-“

Whatever she was about to say was cut off by May grabbing Luke’s arm and jerking him towards the door. Sally swore under her breath before shoving a chair out of the way to follow. Ruth got up.

“Sally-“

“I’m not leaving that boy with her,” she said. Poseidon got up too. He wasn’t sure what the best call here was. Honestly, could Sally just... take this child? He wasn’t hers, but was more in the state of mind to care for him. Clear-sighted, too. Hermes wouldn’t be too pleased, though. Poseidon felt a swell of concern. If she wasn’t careful, she might just get blasted.

“Sally, don’t,” Poseidon decided and followed her off the front door. May and Luke were already marching across the beach with Sally racing after. Poseidon swore and snapped his fingers, appearing behind her to hook his arm around her waist and pull her back. “Sally-“

“Let me go!” She hissed and elbowed his chest. “Let me go! I can reason with her. I can - stop!”

“There’s nothing you can do. Hermes-“

“Fuck Hermes!”

Not good. Poseidon put a hand over her mouth.

“Names have power. Be careful with them,” he warned...again. Sally responded by biting him. He barely felt it, but was a little indignant at the attempt. “Sally, there is more happening than you know. Would you be okay with this? With someone else deciding what is best for your child?” He asked. Sally’s fight paused. Then started off again.

“It isn’t the same! She’s not... she can’t-“ Sally tried and then went limp. “He was scared of her. We can’t leave him.”

Poseidon considered. He could snap his fingers and bring them all back together. Maybe wipe the mother’s memory and give Luke to Sally. But then what? What were the consequences of meddling in mortal affairs that weren’t even his own? Besides, even if he wasn’t punished, the other gods might question why he was even with Ruth and Sally. They might be identified and potential love interests and killed on the spot. He didn’t want that. It was perhaps a little selfish, but greed had always been one of his downfalls.

“I’m sorry,” he said instead. Sally swore some more.

“Why isn’t he helping?!” She shouted, shoving herself away from him. Poseidon warily let go now that May and Luke were out of sight. “The father. Herm- whatever,” she growled when Poseidon opened his mouth. “He should help! That’s his son! What is wrong with you people?!” She said and kicked the sand. “I-“ she began and turned as if to go after them again. Then paused.

“Sally,” Ruth’s voice came. “Maybe... maybe we can call the police? Is that okay?” She asked, looking at Poseidon.

“They won’t know to take him to Camp Half-Blood. He’s honestly safer with her than with them.”

“Why aren’t all of you banned from having children?” Sally was asking hysterically. Ruth swallowed before turning back to the cabin with a promise to return with something to calm her down. Poseidon hoped she hurried. He wasn’t sure how to deal with this sort of rage on someone so fragile. “If you let that happen? What’s wrong with you?!”

“Sally-”

“Do you agree? Is that how you treated your kids? Your... your half-bloods,” she spat out. Poseidon raised his hands.

“No. This isn’t typical. Many mortal parents are able to take care of their kids,” he said, even though it was kind of a lie. Many of them ended up dead - or not wanting the kid after all. “Sally, please calm down,” he said. Why was he even here? Why was he dealing with this? He could leave. He could be back in Atlantis and - fuck, she was crying. Damnit. His previous thoughts crumbled.

“He was so little,” she said, distraught. “I... I wouldn’t want my kid taken either, but... but there has to be...” she mumbled. Poseidon nodded. Then, not knowing what else to do, he hugged her. He was a little convinced he might get bit again, but Sally only cried harder. “I’m sorry. I’m sure you’re a great dad,” she muttered. Poseidon almost laughed.

“You think? Really?” He asked, pushing her back so he could put his hands on her shoulders. “You don’t give those compliments too freely, so I want to be sure you mean them.”

Sally sniffed.

“I don’t really know you that well...”

“And you had just gotten my hopes up,” he said lightly. Sally laughed, though it sounded strained. Poseidon went to say something else, but a glint of red caught his eye. Oh... oh no. His heart sank. Please, no. Please, no. “I should leave,” he said. Sally frowned.

“What? Why? I-“

“Hello, my lord,” a voice called – like a symphony of music. “I had hoped I wouldn’t find you with such a lovely guest,” it continued, and Poseidon closed his eyes. Eros materialized in front of him, blood-red eyes flicking between Sally and him. “Tsk, tsk. Zeus won’t like this-“

“It isn’t what you think, Eros-“

“You don’t think I can smell it on you?” He asked sharply. Poseidon’s expression hardened, and he felt a stab of satisfaction when the god shrank back. To think that he would dare to use that tone with him, of all people. “I apologize, my lord, but I cannot lie to the king of the gods about what I’ve seen.”

“And what have you seen? You can surely tell she isn’t with child-“

“Excuse me?” Sally asked, and Poseidon threw her an apologetic look. Eros didn’t look convinced.

“You’re powerful, my lord. Perhaps you are shielding her somehow?” He suggested and shrugged. “Either way, it would be best for Lady Artemis or Queen Hera to be the decider of that.”

Poseidon stared. He would not let Sally be put in front of Hera. Absolutely not. Even if she wasn’t pregnant, this was still damning. They would try to kill her to keep her from ever being a risk. It was too late, though. Eros was already gone.

“SALLY!” Ruth called, appearing her arms full or something. “Here, I have your- what happened?” She asked, stopping in front to look between them in bewilderment. In fairness, Sally looked only slightly less confused. Poseidon stared at them both. He had a decision to make. Let Sally Jackson - and potentially Ruth - die? Or make an attempt to help? He really should have just left when he had the chance.

“You said you work for the Coast Guard, right?” He asked, turning to Ruth. She nodded. Good. He sighed. “Tell me what boats they have.”

“Um, why?”

“Because,” Poseidon said, a little miserably. “We’re going to have to steal one.”

Chapter Text

“Wait, wait, wait,” Percy said, holding up both hands. Poseidon waited. “So... okay,” he said and took a long breath. “Eros saw you both arguing on the beach, assumed you already got my mom pregnant and immediately went to snitch to Zeus?” He asked. Poseidon wasn’t entirely sure if the word ‘snitch’ was being used correctly here, but nodded anyway. Percy put a hand over his mouth. “I see,” he finally said.

Paul raised his hand.

“Yes, um, so, Lord Poseidon,” he said with a respectful nod. “I’m just a little confused on the boat stealing part,” he said. Poseidon tilted his head. “Could you not just... shadow travel somewhere?”

“Paul, we’ve been over this,” Percy said warily. “I can’t shadow travel. That’s a Hades thing. Not a Poseidon thing.”

“It’s the only explanation for how you sneak out of your room so easily.”

“You have no proof I’ve ever done that.”

“Yet.”

“I couldn’t use my powers as often as I normally would,” Poseidon jumped in before whatever that was could escalate. “My powers are great, but I’m not the king of the gods. Nor can I match the power of eleven other Olympians. If they wished to hunt me down, then my powers would be the easiest way to do it. I needed to find somewhere safe to get Sally and Ruth and hide them before trying to reason with my brother,” he explained. Percy shifted.

“You really think that was Luke Castellan?” He asked. Poseidon nodded. He was sure of that now. “And mom wanted to take him? Help him?” He asked. Poseidon nodded again, sensing his distress rise. “Why didn’t you tell someone? Afterward, I mean. You didn’t say anything-“

“Sally, we-“ he began and then winced when he realized what he had said. Damnit. Percy’s mouth dropped. “I mean, Perseus...”

“Wow.”

“It was an honest mistake,” Poseidon told him, raising both hands. Percy only shook his head. “We should get back to the story,” he decided. “The boat. We had to steal a boat, and I was operating on limited powers. Ruth luckily had access to plenty of boats through her job, so it was relatively easy to get through some of the security...”

The boat wasn’t particularly large, but it would do. It would fit all three of them comfortably and was only moderately ugly with the orange rims and steel reinforcements. Poseidon appreciated all boats, but he missed the craftsmanship of using wood. They tended to be much more beautiful... and easier to sink. Not that he was actively looking for boats to sink. He was-

“I don’t understand,” Sally whispered as Poseidon silently willed them to float silently and carefully out of the station. “Can’t they just... you know,” she said and wiggled her fingers. Poseidon stared at her. “I mean, if they don’t want me to be pregnant, they could just poof the baby out of me, right? Why are we hiding from them? There isn’t even a baby to poof out!” She said, only going silent when Ruth shushed her.

Ruth. Amazing Ruth, who had just... agreed to this. No questions asked. No complaints. She was Poseidon’s favorite mortal by far.

“Just go steer the boat,” Poseidon whispered back, sticking his hand in the water to sense if they were being watched. Nothing. Good. Sally muttered something under her breath and walked over to where the wheel was, and stared down at the buttons beside. She lifted a hand to press one. Poseidon cleared his throat. “Do you know what you’re doing?” He asked. Sally frowned.

“You asked me to steer the boat!”

“Well, I thought you knew how.”

“Why would I know how? Besides, I turn the wheel. How hard is that?”

“Is it hydraulic or mechanical?’

“Is it what?”

“The steering system! Is it hydraulic or mechanical?” He asked. Sally blinked a few times. Alright, that was his cue. He got up to figure it out himself when Ruth walked over and flicked a few switches before turning the wheel and spinning them out of the harbor. Sally stumbled at the sudden jolt, almost running into Poseidon. He reached out to steady her as Ruth turned to them and glared.

“Are you two done?” She asked. Sally opened her mouth, but Poseidon was already talking loudly to explain he had nothing to do with this tomfoolery, and he was already being incredibly kind-hearted in saving their lives and - “Because they’re going to realize the boat is missing. They’re going to realize very quickly, and we’re going to figure out how not to be caught.”

“I can disable the tracker,” Poseidon volunteered. Sally threw her hands up.

“I thought you weren’t allowed to use your bippity boppity!”

“First of all, we are not calling it that. Second of all, if we have no other choice then-“

“I will disable the tracker,” Ruth interrupted flatly. Both turned to her. “What? I’m the mechanic around here. I just need you both to keep it together while I do it, alright?” She asked. Wordlessly, Poseidon nodded and stepped up to the wheel. Sally made a face at him. Tyrant. Absolute tyrant. “Great. Please, don’t... just don’t,” she muttered and brushed past them. Poseidon watched her go.

“She’s the mechanic?” He asked, a little beguiled as he watched her slip away towards the other end of the boat. He had assumed she was a petty officer of some sort. Sally made a noise of disgust. “What? That is impressive. Boats are no easy machines to manage,” he said, ignoring as Sally rolled her eyes. “You didn’t even know how to steer the boat.”

“Um, neither did you.”

“I did! You didn’t give me the right information-“

“Didn’t look like you knew.”

“I am the literal god of the seas-“

“Which makes it even more sad,” Sally said and crossed her arms with a huff, looking out into the sea. Poseidon took a long breath. Why... just... why? Why her? What did Eros even mean, he could smell it on him? As if there was any sort of attraction there! He probably just smelled Poseidon’s utter indignance at this mortal’s existence. He moved the boat forward, easily moving them out further into the ocean. He didn’t mind doing it the mortal way. There was something nice about going through the numbing actions and leaving himself with his thoughts. He only had a few moments, though. Sally’s soft gasp cut off his thoughts.

Poseidon glanced over to see a dolphin peering at them. He grinned and switched a few gears over before walking over to kneel by the side of the boat. At the very least, he could ask his subjects to aid them. Sally inched over, eyes wide as she looked down at the dolphin while Poseidon explained the situation. The dolphin - Odessa - gave a sharp chirp in return.

“What’s he saying?” Sally asked, gently placing her legs over the side of the boat. Poseidon watched as she looked at the dolphin with unrestrained fascination. He chuckled.

“She. She’s telling me what an honor it is to meet me.”

Sally leaned in.

“It isn’t really,” she whispered. The dolphin reared back. Poseidon raised an eyebrow. “Sorry, I guess that’s a little rude if he’s your king,” she amused as the dolphin gave a string of responses that were probably best not translated. “I’m sorry. He’s... very kind to be helping us,” she said and then glared. “Even if it’s his fault.”

Poseidon glanced down at Odessa.

“She doesn’t like you.”

“Aw, really?” Sally pouted and leaned against the railing. “That’s too bad. She’s so pretty.”

A pause. Odessa gave another chirp.

“She’s changed her mind,” Poseidon told her, and Sally brightened a bit that. He shook his head, watching as Sally held out her hand nervously. Odessa hesitantly swam over to her, letting her hand slide on her fin. Sally laughed.

“She’s so soft!” She said, clearly besotted. “I wish I had fish to give you,” she said and then jumped when a bucket appeared by her side. “I thought you said no powers?” She asked. Poseidon shrugged.

“Maybe just this once,” he told her. Sally’s smile somehow widened as she reached in, plucking a fish off the top to give to Odessa. Poseidon watched as she continued to coo over her. This strange mortal girl really had a soft spot for certain creatures, didn’t she? The demigod. Ruth. That mortal mother. Now Odessa. Poseidon tried not to stare. It was a little hard, though. She kept trying to blow a strand of hair from her eyes since her hands were covered in fish. After the third attempt, he reached over and pushed it back.

“Thanks,” she flushed and then gave Odessa another fish. “Can you talk to all sea creatures?” She asked. Poseidon nodded. “What sort of things do they say?” She asked. Poseidon considered, letting his hand brush against the water.

“Food, mostly. Living situations. Pollution is a big topic now. Judicial proceedings.”

“There’s a trial system for the sea?”

“Sea turtles are notorious crooks,” Poseidon said solemnly. Sally laughed. “I wasn’t joking,” he told her, and her mouth popped open. He could already see a million questions brimming in her eyes but was cut off by Ruth’s yell followed by wailing sirens.

“REMEMBER WHEN I SAID THEY WERE GOING TO COME AFTER US?!” She shouted. Sally jumped, slipping a bit as she went to get up. Poseidon followed suit as he raced to the front of the boat again. He could see a small fleet of boats racing towards them. Normally, this wouldn’t be an issue. Only... yeah. He literally just used his powers. Stupid. What was he even thinking? That was so ridiculously stupid. Odessa wasn’t even hungry. There were plenty of fish right below him. Why would he-

“Go, go, go, go!” Sally said, reminding him exactly why he made such bad decisions. Pretty mortals. They were the worst for his decision-making.

“I’m going!”

“So are they,” Sally said and held a hand to her eyes to block the sun. “A lot faster than we are.”

“Alright, hold on,” he said. Ruth grabbed Sally’s arm, dragging her to the empty seats as Poseidon thrust them forward. The motor growled to life as they went over a few waves - sending them a bit into the air. He glanced around. One, two, three, four, five... nineteen. There were nineteen damn boats. Poseidon rolled his eyes. Mortals. He took a hard right, sending both Ruth and Sally out of their chairs.

So... here’s the thing about an ocean speed base. In cars or what have you, there were buildings, roads, and other traffic stops that allowed you to weave through and lose whoever was following you.

The ocean? Not so much. However, even while operating on limited powers, Poseidon was... well, Poseidon. He wasn’t about to let these mortals get the best of him. He was the ocean, after all.

Sally didn’t seem to understand that.

“What are you doing?” She asked when Poseidon spun the boat around. “What are you doing?!” She repeated in a yell, knuckles white from where she was gripping the armrests of her seat.

“Trust me.”

“I don’t think I do,” Sally shouted from over the roar of the boats and spray of the sea. Poseidon turned to face the other boats coming after him and then pushed the motor back to full speed. “Do not-“ she began, but was cut off when Poseidon zipped past them and went off towards a sandbar. By the time those boats turned around, he would lower the tide just slightly to make it so they couldn’t cross after them.

There. He relaxed. The chase was over. Everything was fine.

“Um, Poseidon?” Ruth’s voice called. He glanced over to see her pointing up high somewhere in the distance. “What are we going to do about that?” She asked. He frowned and glanced up to see - oh, well. That was unfortunate. Helicopters existed, didn’t they? He felt a bit foolish for not taking them into consideration sooner. He felt his chest roll. The only way to resolve that was to use his powers. Great. Maybe he could figure something out... something small? If he changed the winds or -

A rumble interrupted his thoughts, followed by a loud blast that shook the earth. Waves towered high around them at the movement but didn’t touch the boat as Ruth and Sally hit the floor hard. When Poseidon looked back, the helicopter was gone... and so were the boats. That was good, certainly, but it also left a hollow feeling in his stomach. Sighing, he placed his forehead against the wheel of the boat. He hated this feeling. Like something weak and powerless being backed into a corner... which he was right now.

And he got the feeling he was about to get even weaker.

“What did you do?!” Sally shrieked as she sat back up, looking in horror at where they were utterly alone with the coastline fading farther and farther away. “You killed them?” She asked, voice growing even higher. Poseidon sighed.

“No,” he said bitterly. “I did not.”

“That was me,” someone else said. He didn’t even react. Sally and Ruth both jumped at the voice, spinning around to see a woman wearing a simple blue dress sitting on the side of the boat. Ruth made a noise of alarm, pulling Sally back as the goddess tilted her head. Her hair was loose - long black hair flowing in the wind like a flag on a mast. “Hello, girls,” she greeted and turned dark eyes onto him. “Husband.”

“Amphitrite,” he greeted warily. Sally blinked a few times before whispering something to Ruth, who nodded. “I thank you for your aid, but I can assure you that I have it under control.”

“Yes, I can see that,” Amphitrite said and stood up. “Odessa came and got me,” she added with a nod towards where the dolphin was peeking out of the water. Poseidon turned his eyes to it, and the creature promptly shrank away. “Oh, don’t be that way. She was worried for you since you weren’t using your powers apparently,” Amphitrite snapped. “Or, trying not to. I sensed you have not fully committed yourself to that - and speaking of your lack of commitment,” she said dryly and turned to Ruth and Sally. “Which one?”

“Neither.”

“Oh, come now. I’m not going to kill her. Which - oh, gods, Poseidon. Both?”

“I am not deceiving you!” He snapped. “Check for yourself if you wish.”

Sally made a choking noise.

“Um, not really sure what ‘checking’ entails, but that sounds like something we should be consulted on,” she said with narrowed eyes and pointed at Poseidon. “But I can assure you that I don’t have his baby in me. I have no baby in me. There will be no baby in me for the foreseeable future,” she said. Amphitrite blinked at her. “Also, I don’t even like him, so...” she held up both hands in a sort of ‘there you go’ manner. Poseidon pressed his fingers to his temple.

“Alright...” Amphitrite said slowly and tilted her head. “Would someone care to explain then?”

“Eros,” Poseidon said and shook his head. “He misunderstood an altercation and now believes Sally is carrying my child.”

“I’m not,” Sally chimed in (once again). Amphitrite pursed her lips.

“And you were spending time with these mortals because...?” She said. Poseidon grimaced. He didn’t particularly feel like telling his wife that he very much liked the one and put up with the other. Also, if he said he just enjoyed their company, Sally would surely point out she didn’t enjoy his company, which wouldn’t please Amphitrite either. So instead, he just looked at her stonily, refusing to answer. “I don’t know what I was expecting,” Amphitrite muttered and turned to kneel in front of where Ruth was still on the ground. “Rise. I must see if either of you are injured.”

“You’re not angry?” Ruth asked her. Amphitrite shrugged.

“You committed no crime - and even if you had, then I can hardly blame you for a god’s lustful ways. Mortals very rarely can resist,” she said. Sally snorted. She immediately winced when Amphitrite turned to her.

“Sorry!” She squeaked and put her hands behind her. “Um, just... I mean, you... your husband seems great,” she said weakly. Amphitrite looked at her for a solid ten seconds before responding.

“It depends on the day,” she said. Poseidon frowned. Well, then. “I’m guessing you’re trying to minimize your godly presence, so others don’t find you?” Amphitrite asked him over her shoulder as she went about checking Ruth over. Once she was satisfied, she moved to Sally.

“Eros would have probably gone to my brother,” he admitted. “I must find a place to hide them until I can speak to him and explain that they are of no threat,” he said. Amphitrite glanced over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow. “They are not a threat,” he reiterated. “I keep my sacred oaths.”

“Oaths are rarely in your nature, husband. You assume your loyalty passes for discipline and honor. I’m afraid they are not one of the same,” she said. Poseidon wanted to object to that, but was distracted by Sally smirking at the ground. She was enjoying this. Her eyes flicked up at him, and he glared. “I could keep them in Atlantis while you appeal, but I’m not sure what good it would do,” she said and let go of Sally. “Athena does not take risks lightly. She will ensure they are both executed.”

“No,” Ruth said, voice rising a little at that. “I’m... I can’t - I can’t die. I have someone to take care of,” she said sharply. Poseidon swallowed. Right, Sally had said she had a baby, didn’t she? Guilt nibbled at his chest. “I thought you said you could take care of this,” she added to Poseidon. He nodded.

“I can.”

“How?” Amphitrite asked him, crossing her arms over his chest. “We could perhaps save this one,” she said with a nod towards Ruth. “She was not directly accused. We could hide her until she is forgotten. Especially if this one was taken care of,” she said with a nod towards Sally. “Do you have anyone to take care of?” She asked. Sally’s eyes lowered for a moment.

“Um, no,” she answered quietly. “Not anymore.”

“Well, I need her,” Ruth frowned, grabbed Sally’s hand. “And she still has a life to live. It isn’t time for her to die yet,” she said fiercely. Sally gave her a weak smile. “What can we do to convince them we aren’t a threat?” She asked. Poseidon considered. In all honesty? Nothing. No Olympian would be comfortable with this. Apollo might argue that prophecy was bound to come true eventually. Aphrodite could maybe be bought over if they claimed it was a tale of passion. The rest? No. Amphitrite pursed her lips.

“I could maybe think of... one solution,” she said slowly and tilted her head at Poseidon. “But it would be difficult,” she said. Poseidon’s brows came together. What was she even-?

“Mnemosyne,” he said and grimaced. “Would she help us?”

“I cannot be certain, but if you wish for these two mortals to live... you would have to convince her,” Amphitrite said with a shrug. “She is the only one who would be able to fade this mishap from their memories,” she said. Poseidon bit his lip. Mnemosyne was a powerful Titaness - one of the most powerful, quite frankly. After the births of the muses, Zeus often avoided her at all costs. Perhaps for good reason. He probably saw the true extent of her power. “But to reach her...” 

Ugh.  

“They’ll realize,” Poseidon said bitterly. It would be one thing if he could simply teleport them all there with a snap of his fingers. However, if Zeus was searching for him... blocking Mnemosyne would be the first thing he did. He would need to continue restraining his godly powers... or bind it. Or, well, what he suspected Amphitrite truly wanted. His trident appeared in his hand. “I won’t become mortal.” 

“Nonsense, husband. I couldn’t turn you mortal even if I wanted to,” Amphitrite said and tossed her hair off her shoulder. “I simply suggest you transfer over your powers to me for the time being. I doubt you can be trusted with them, and they always return to you anyhow. As all returns to the sea,” she said with her face impassive and blank. Poseidon grimaced. That was true. Even if he did hand over his powers, they would naturally come back, even if Amphitrite didn’t want to return them. Like a tide dragging itself back home. Still, it would leave him vulnerable and weak. Not mortal, but close enough that it would cause him intense discomfort. 

Were these two worth all of that? 

Maybe. Maybe not. The truth was that this was his fault, though. He owed it to them to try.  

“Very well,” he said bitterly, and held out his trident. Amphitrite smiled as she accepted it with a bow of her head. “I trust you to run things - and to aid us from time to time,” he said. Amphitrite couldn’t stop the others from hunting them, but as long as they were in the ocean, she could guide them. She hummed and held out her hand. Poseidon took a long breath before taking it, watching as a thin gold line wrap around their wrists - intertwining them together. Poseidon felt himself draining away. He tried to remember that he wouldn’t be able to help himself otherwise. He wasn’t even able to resist the simplest uses of his powers. 

...but that’s what made this so much worse. 

“Of course, my lord,” Amphitrite told him meekly and twirled the trident in her grasp. A look of genuine concern touched her face as she studied him over. “If they catch you, then I’ll give them back immediately. There’s no reason for me to have them once the gig is up,” she said. Poseidon nodded. Fair enough. Amphitrite turned and looked between them all. “You should all have weapons,” she decided and looked over at Poseidon. 

“Yes...” he agreed slowly, though he wasn’t entirely for sure how he felt about that. Sally might try to kill him when his back was turned. “Perhaps something not too, um, well, something they can return,” he went with to avoid offending anyone. Amphitrite rolled her eyes and gave a quick flick of her wrist. The water churned around them until a small pool of water was swirling in her hand.  

“Go on,” she told them with a nod. “Reach inside. The ocean will decide the best match for you.”  

Nobody moved. Poseidon decided he would have to be the example and reached into the water. Unsurprisingly, another version of his trident came out. He sighed. It was a lesser form of his actual trident - this was more of something a demigod would use - but it would do while Amphitrite wielded the real thing. Ruth cautiously approached next and reached inside. When she pulled her hand back, a shotgun came out.  

“Oh,” she said, eyes brightening. “I can use this. Good,” she mused, checking the inside. Celestial bronze bullets were already loaded inside. Poseidon guessed it was automatically filled on its own. Sally grimaced. 

“Lucky you with your fancy military training,” she muttered and inched forward towards the water. She wrung her hands together. “Um, I’m... I’m more of a pacifist...” 

Poseidon and Ruth turned to her in unison.  

“...you stole my trident and blew up a hellhound - and your cabin,” Poseidon told her. Sally sniffed and crossed her arms over her chest. 

“That was an accident! Sort of. I just meant to stab the hellhound...” she said and then paused, possibly hearing the irony in her words. “Okay,” she sighed and put her hand in the water. She reached around for a bit before pulling out a bronze sword with a leather handle. Poseidon blinked. Huh. Sally stared down at the blade for a few seconds before looking up again. “I have absolutely no idea how to use this,” she declared. 

“Well,” Amphitrite said and closed her fist, so the water evaporated. “My husband has lived for thousands of years and collected a variety of skills. He could make a decent teacher,” she said, and then fixed Poseidon with a warning look. As if he didn’t understand the gravity of the situation they were already in. He gave her one in return. “You should be honored, mortal. That sword has passed through many heroes’ hands. The fact the ocean has chosen you to wield it...” she suddenly trailed off with a strange look crossing her face.  

“What?” Sally asked, gripping the sword a little closer. “What does that mean?”  

Amphitrite pursed her lips.  

“It must... sense something in you,” she said slowly and watched as Sally clumsily tried to figure out where to put it. “It has the ability to transform,” she said dryly. “Is there an object you carry with you?” She asked. Sally frowned, reaching into her bag to reveal (surprise) more notebooks and a ballpoint pen alongside some snacks and sunscreen. Amphitrite glanced down and plucked up the pen, uncapping it with no prelude and combining it with the sword. Sally watched, distraught. 

“Can I still write with it?” She asked. Ruth hit her arm. “I mean, thank you... my lady,” she said miserably. Amphitrite nodded. 

“Yes, you can still write with it. Put the cap on the back of the pen - and you’re welcome,” she told her. Then dusted herself off. “I must go. You have a long way to go in you hope to reach Mnemosyne soon. You should-“ she began, but was cut off by the air rippling around them. Poseidon felt his anger spike. It was him—the traitor.  

“I am so sorry you had to find out like this, my lady,” came a sing-songy voice. Poseidon rolled his eyes. “Love is so unpredictable,” Eros smiled coldly and looked around the boat. “I am so lucky I thought to find you, Lady Amphitrite. I wanted to lead Lord Zeus to your husband, but he just... became so hard to find,” he frowned and wagged a finger at Ruth and Sally. “You two are a bad influence.” 

Sally’s eyes narrowed. 

“I’m not pregnant!” She snapped at him. “And neither is she. We have no interest in raising demigods, so leave us out of your family drama!” She said. Ruth shifted awkwardly. “I’m on my period too, so that proves it,” she added. Ruth groaned, hiding her face behind her hand as she muttered something to Sally who was still glaring. Eros, Amphitrite, and Poseidon all paused at once.

“Your what?” 

“My... wait, what?” She frowned and looked at where all three of them were staring at her. Then to Ruth, who shrugged. “You know how when you’re not pregnant, and your body is like ‘oh, there’s no baby in here, so might as well get rid of all that extra stuff I had in case I had a baby,’? That thing?” She asked. Poseidon turned to Amphitrite. She carried children herself to know what this was. Only Amphitrite looked just as alarmed. 

“Mortal and godly bodies must work differently... what is it getting rid of?” 

Sally narrowed her eyes - scrunching up her nose as if suspicious they were lying. 

“...blood?” 

“By Rhea, are you okay?” 

“You’re bleeding? Where?” 

“Where?” Sally repeated. “Oh my God, you guys just walk around not knowing about human bodily functions. Didn’t you have a bunch of demigod kids?” She asked him. Poseidon shrugged. So? It sounded like this horrific ordeal happened when you weren’t pregnant. Poseidon rarely spent too much time with mortals and not have them - well, nevermind that. “Okay, we actually don’t need to have this conversation-“ 

“This might be ideal,” Eros piped in. “If she’s bleeding to death, then the problem resolves itself.” 

“I’m not bleeding to death!” Sally said, and then Ruth kicked her. “I mean... oh... yes... my days are limited... please have mercy on my soul...” She said as Ruth pinched the bridge of her nose. Eros looked baffled as he crossed his arms, examining her for a good two minutes before shaking his head. 

“Her life force is strong,” he decided. “I don’t know where this bleeding comes into play-“ 

“Dude, you’re a thousand years old. How do you not know basic biology?” 

“You have a bold tongue, little mortal. To dare insult and-“ 

Poseidon raised a hand, silencing everyone. 

“Enough,” He said and looked around at each of them before continuing. “Eros. I have committed no crime. My wife may vouch for me. Is this really what will allow us to become enemies? Is my ire worth that?” He asked quietly. Eros went still. Poseidon’s ire wasn’t one to fool around with. The ancient Greek myths were renowned on their own, but over the years where his wrath hadn’t been credited to him... people often missed how dangerous he truly could be. 

“My lord,” he said solemnly, mocking tone completely gone. “You know I do not wish to make a foe of you. Never.” 

“Then fix this and leave us be.” 

“And who is to blame if one of you breaks your oath? I will be the easiest to hold accountable. Nobody would dare accuse my mother of such an act for fear of offending her. I am the one who will be punished. We all know there is no true punishment for you three. Me? I do not wish the ire of any one of you,” he said and took a long breath. “Your brothers and the other Olympians would be harsh if I did not tell them what I saw.” 

“No,” Sally cut in and raised her hands. “No, you misunderstood. I was upset about something else, and Poseidon was just comforting me. Nothing romantic. Not at all,” she said. Eros stared at her. Then looked at Poseidon. His stomach sank. He didn’t believe them.  

“Just give me the mortals. This doesn’t need to be an ordeal,” Eros said and stood up. He took a step towards Sally. She blanched, giving an uncertain whack with the sword. Eros easily hit it from her hands, so it clattered to the ground.  

“They’re under my protection,” Poseidon said evenly. “I cannot let you bring them to their deaths.”

Eros closed his eyes.

“They may be allowed to live!” He said with a lazy wave of his hand. “Perhaps Zeus will pair them with some other gods so you will not be so tempted in the future,” he reasoned. Ruth made a choking noise while Sally reached down to pick up the sword again. Eros stepped on the blade so she couldn’t lift it. Frustration bubbled underneath her features as she looked up at the god with a concerning amount of ire.

“Eros,” Amphitrite spoke up from where she had been watching by the helm of the ship. “If you will not be reasoned with, then we may be forced to subdue you. I think we all know it wouldn’t take much given your standing compared to ours,” she said, spinning the trident pointedly. Eros blanched.

“You forget who my father is. Would you face his anger?”

Poseidon was about to answer yes. Yes, he absolutely would face Ares in a heartbeat when a bang cut them off, and Poseidon watched in alarm as Eros suddenly exploded into a nasty gush of ichor, falling back over the side of the boat and into the water. Slowly, everyone watched as he sank away. Well... that would take him a few days to recuperate from. He turned to see Sally frozen with the shotgun Amphitrite had given Ruth in hand. Silence followed.

“Um,” she said and then nodded. “I think I like this one better. Do you want to trade?” she asked Ruth. In response, Ruth wordlessly took the gun from her before gaping down at the water where Eros was sinking. Sally turned to Amphitrite. “Will he tell the other gods to leave us alone now?” She asked hopefully. Amphitrite shook her head.

“You may have only angered him.”

“Well,” Poseidon said, amused. “At least my brother will think you are impertinent,” he told her. Sally threw her hair back and picked up her disregarded sword.

“I am impertinent.”

“You shot a god in the face,” Ruth whispered. Poseidon glanced down at where Eros had sunk. Eh. He would be fine. It was better than Poseidon blasting him with his trident, honestly. Of the two, he would only recover from one of those injuries.

“I think now I will take my leave,” Amphitrite said and looked them all over one last time. “I wish you each the best of luck... and hope you make wise decisions,” she added. When the next wave hit the side of the boat to spray them all with water, she was gone. Silence came over them.

“Where is this Nem-mosey?” Sally finally asked. Poseidon would scold her on the power of name thing, but she had butchered it so badly that it wasn’t even a real threat. “Because we don’t have a whole lot of food, clothes, water - any of that. We might last a week or two, but if you don’t have your magic, then we’ll need to find land eventually,” she said. Poseidon pursed his lips. Damn. She was right.

“I can get us there - only for a bit, though. One of my aunt’s libraries is on the coastline, but it’s far,” he said with a grimace. If we stay on the ocean, we should reach it... eventually," he added under his breath. Sally and Ruth looked at one another. Then nodded in unison. Sally didn’t look nearly as enthusiastic as Ruth did.

Well, maybe enthusiastic was the wrong word. Determined was probably better. Ruth walked over and started moving ropes around, inspecting the boat to ensure nothing was harmed in their short little boat chase. Poseidon watched her with a slight smile before moving to do something useful himself.

“So,” he asked when Sally disappeared to do... something. “Who is it?”

Ruth glanced at him.

“Who is who?”

“The parent of your demigod.”

Ruth froze. Slowly, she turned to him, eyes flicking him up and down before her hand drifted to her shotgun. Poseidon scoffed. She wouldn’t shoot him. She wasn’t Sally. Ruth’s eyes narrowed.

“Who said I have a demigod?”

“You know about the gods and have a child,” Poseidon said with a shrug. “Few can make that claim without the said child being a demigod. Besides, you seemed interested when we spoke of Camp Half-Blood. Did your godly contact not tell you such a place existed?” He asked. Ruth opened her mouth before looking out towards the waves. “Why haven’t you told-“

“Because I want to protect my child,” Ruth cut him off. The usual sweetness in her voice had disappeared, hardening as she took a long breath and stared up at the sky. “And because I... I love Sally to death, but...” she glanced over her shoulder. “I know her. She can be... she puts what’s best for other people above herself - which sounds like I’m complimenting her, but I don’t mean it that way,” she said. “Sally doesn’t know how to live her life for herself. If she found out the truth, then all her focus would be put on us. Making sure we’re safe,” she said and shook her head. “I don’t want that for her. I meant what I said before. She has a life to live. It’s going to be a good one if she can figure it out - or even survive this,” she told him. Poseidon looked down. More guilt was blooming in his chest.

“I won’t let anything happen to either of you. I promise that,” he said. Ruth pinned dark eyes on him before nodding. “And the god?”

“Nice try. I can promise it wasn’t you or your brothers, so leave me alone,” she snorted, and Poseidon held up a hand.

“One last question,” he said. Ruth turned back to him and crossed her arms over her chest. “If you knew about the gods... then you knew who I was when we first met. Why did you stay near me?” He asked. At this, a hint of amusement crossed Ruth’s face before she kicked the boat lightly.

“It was probably a bad call on my part, huh?” She asked and then bit her lip. “I knew about your oath, and I had thought... maybe you could help me,” she said with a shrug. “It was illegal for you to have a child with me, but I thought if I played my cards right...” she shrugged. “It wouldn’t be too bad for my kid to have a powerful god on his side,” she said. Poseidon nodded.

“You aimed to manipulate me.”

“I didn’t mean to offend,” she said quietly. “I only want to protect my child. Surely you can understand that,” she said. Poseidon grimaced. Unfortunately, he could. He gave Ruth a long look before nodding.

“You have my word that your child will have my protection.”

Ruth smiled a little at that.

“Thank you, my lord,” she said, then grinned over her shoulder. “Tell me... what is this Camp Half-Blood like?” She asked. “It has to be huge - can it really be hidden by just the mist?” She asked. Poseidon considered.

“It isn’t as big as you might think. It has a training course, the Big House, twelve cabins, volleyball pit, fore-“

“Twelve cabins?” Ruth interrupted, pausing in where she was rummaging with some rope. “Is that enough?”

“One for each god. Depending on how many kids a god has, I suppose it can be crowded, but only Hermes complains. He takes all the unclaimed children,” he explained. Ruth’s frown deepened. “Does this displease you?” He asked, a little bewildered by how she could be when they just started this conversation.

“Just... there are more than twelve gods, aren’t they?” She asked. “What do they do if their parent doesn’t have a cabin?” She asked. Poseidon paused. He... hadn’t thought of that. It never occurred to him. Most minor gods that concerned him were ocean-related, meaning their kids didn’t go to Camp Half-Blood at all. Triton, Doris, Proteus - they all had cabins at their camp. Well. You know, not that Poseidon’s own children were welcomed there, but now wasn’t the time to get into that.

“I suppose they might stay in the Hermes cabin for good then. Is... your child’s parent a-?”

“I never said that,” Ruth interrupted him quickly. “It just seems like a bad way to run things. Those kids just seem like they’re owed a bit more. Their parents too,” she shrugged. From somewhere in the cabin behind them, there was a crash and a string of Sally cursing. Ruth’s previous look of concern melted into a small smile. Poseidon shook his head.

“How in the name of my father did you two become friends?” He asked. Ruth didn’t seem to need an explanation as she went back to whatever she was working on at the front of the boat. She hummed - black hair coming loose in the hastily made ponytail she had made. Her t-shirt was soaked, showing part of her bathing suit underneath and shorts stained with grease. Poseidon could see how a god might fall in love with her.

“We met in high school,” Ruth said with a shrug. “Senior year. Well, technically. I met her just as she dropped out to take care of Rich,” she explained and then paused. “Her uncle,” she said and wiped her brow on the back of her arm before grabbing more sunscreen. “I... remember hearing the teachers talking about her. They said it was such a shame since she was so damn smart,” she said. “Then they talked about her parents and this and that - so I went to the hospital her uncle was at and just kind of helped out. I showed her what we were learning in school and took notes for her, and recorded lessons. It sucked because she definitely could have passed, but since she always had to work during school hours, they wouldn’t cough up a degree,” Ruth said, looking irritated on Sally’s behalf. “But she didn’t seem to care as much. She was just grateful to have learned it. I eventually went to a trade school and enlisted, and Rich eventually died, and now we’re here,” she said. Poseidon nodded.

“That was very kind of you.”

“Honestly? No,” Ruth said with a shake of her head. “I helped her because I thought her and I were the same. “The reason we get along so well is because we had such similar stories. My parents came to America right before I was born. Gave me the most American name they could think of,” she laughed fondly. “Ruth. It makes me sound like an old white lady,” she said and then looked down at her hand. “And then they died when I was nine. Car accident,” she said quietly. “I spent the next ten years just... so angry,” she frowned. “It felt like... I was being punished for something I didn’t do. It wasn’t fair, you know? And I couldn’t figure out who to blame. Sally was never like that, though. If anything, I hated her in the beginning. I wanted her to be as angry as I was, but she just... wasn’t. Defensive, maybe, but not angry. Then I met...” her voice trailed off, and she shook her head again. “Well, let’s just say I figured some stuff out. Sally just doesn’t have a lot of resentment. She’s just focused on trying to do better. On other people being better. The fact she believes that kind of stuff is possible amazes me,” she said. 

Poseidon nodded slowly. Interesting.

“Speak of the devil,” she added under her breath as Sally practically fell out of the cabin area of the boat in an effort to rush over to her friend. She whispered something to Ruth that made her grimace before patting her shoulder in sympathy. Sally pouted in return before dramatically dragging her feet to where Poseidon was.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” She asked sullenly. Poseidon fixed her with an amused stare.

“Do you normally have this much of a back and forth of emotions?” he asked. Sally stiffened. “I only ask because I’ve been known to be the same,” he said simply. At that, Sally relaxed slightly.

“Oh. Well, not normally, no. It’s... understandably been a long week,” she sighed, running her hand through her hair. Then looked at him for a long couple of minutes. “Thank you,” she said suddenly. Poseidon glanced at her. “I... I know I’m not acting like it, but... I know you’re,” she looked down and then glared at her shoes. “I know you’re being decent,” she finally managed and then risked a look up at him through her lashes. “And I’ve been giving you a hard time. Honestly, I don’t like myself much at the moment either,” she sighed. Poseidon’s brows came together at that. “It’s just that over the years, I’ve had to be... on guard. My parents died early on and the rest of my life,” she trailed off and gave a weak smile. “I always try to be kind, but it just keeps coming back to get me. I do want to be nice,” she said and rubbed the side of her arm. “I just sometimes can’t tell when to be on the defense. I’m sorry.”

Poseidon stared.

“I like you.”

Sally blinked.

“What?”

“Of course I like you,” he said. Sally raised an eyebrow. “I mean, you definitely can annoy me. You don’t exactly follow the textbook version of godly and mortal relations,” he told her. A small smile hinted at her lips. “But I can see it,” he told her. “Your kindness. I see it with Ruth and with Luke. Even with me sometimes,” he shrugged. “You’re a good person, Sally... and I’m sorry that you’ve had to live in such a way that you can’t see that.”

It made him a little sad to see how shocked she was by only a few kind words.

“Oh,” she said, voice going a little high. “Thank you,” she said and then bit her lip. “Well... since you’re being so nice, maybe you could show me how to use this?” She asked, holding up the sword. Poseidon glanced down at it and then back at her.

“Very well.”

Sword fighting was not supposed to be romantic, damnit!

Not that there was any romance going on. No. No, not at all. Poseidon was a professional and a god of his word and - why did she have to keep falling so that he had to catch her?

“Sorry,” she said as she stumbled again, almost impaling the ground with the sword. “Sea legs, I guess,” she said. It was their second week at sea. Poseidon was beginning to think that maybe - just maybe - there might be a slight problem. Sally was not exactly a stunning swordsman, but that stopped her very little from trying to learn. She usually brought it out to practice a couple of hours a day and bothered Poseidon into helping her.

He tried not to develop any attachment as he did so, but... things were getting tough.

“Okay,” Sally said breathlessly as she wiped some sweat from her brow. “One more question.”

“You said that about eight questions ago.”

“This is really the last one,” she grinned at him. Poseidon highly doubted that, but nodded for her to go ahead. “So, if you are the ocean - how literal is that? Is this your body we’re floating in? Your soul? If you died, would this place just disappear?” She asked and tried to feint. Poseidon easily caught the grip between the spokes of his trident and disarmed her. Sally merely picked it up to try again.

“Imagine if you scooped up a bucket of water and used a good amount of godly power to turn it into what looked to be a human. That is the best equivalent to what I am,” he said. Sally spun the sword thoughtfully. He could sense her getting tired, but doubted she would admit it.

“How much godly power?”

“Take the power of the sun and multiply it by a million,” he said. Sally whistled and struck again. He deflected and sent the sword tumbling to the ground again. “I am technically all the seawater and none of it. The specifics can be... very metaphysical and confusing,” he told her.

“I’m following along just fine,” Sally said and picked up the sword. “One more question.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Amelia Earhart. She disappeared forever ago, and nobody knows what happened or where her plane is. Do you know if it’s in the ocean?” She asked. Poseidon smiled a little at the ground.

“I do know that - would you be surprised to know she was a demigod?”

Sally dropped the sword herself this time.

“Seriously?!” She asked, eyes widening. Poseidon nodded. “Does that mean monsters could have got her then? I will take back every mean thing I thought about you if you tell me everything-“

“Hm,” Poseidon said, and leaned a bit on his trident. “I think not.”

Sally’s mouth dropped.

“You-you’re not going to tell me?” She asked, sounding genuinely hurt. Poseidon almost (almost) wanted to take it back. He was considering maybe relenting and telling her whatever she wanted to know when Sally raised the sword again and went to disarm him. This time when Poseidon parried, she didn’t bother with the sword and just shoved him with all her might.

Now, to be clear, if he had been at full strength, he absolutely would not have budged. However, Amphitrite was harboring most of his essence and powers at the moment, so he may be let himself stumble a little... back... off of the boat... into the water. It wasn’t terribly taxing, given he preferred to be in the water anyway, but it was the principle of the matter as Sally poked her head out and looked down at him.

“One more question-“

“I’m not answering it,” he snapped at her and splashed some water. Sally dodged with a delighted laugh before peering out again.

“So,” she asked, putting her arms on the railing to lean over and keep talking. “Death is a thing. The Underworld is real, right? What’s that like?” She asked. Poseidon rolled his eyes and climbed back into the boat.

“I don’t know. My brother never invites me into his realm,” he said. Sally frowned. “I went once a very long time ago for Hades and Persephone’s wedding,” he relented. “It was actually very nice. I don’t think all of it was like that, though. There are many different areas for different souls,” he explained. Sally’s eyes lit up. It was then he realized why she was probably asking. “Heroes and souls with exceptional lives go to the Elysium, and bad souls go to the Fields of Punishment. Most, however, go to the Fields of Asphodel,” he said carefully. “Where there’s no pain. No reward or anything, but no pain either,” he reassured her.

This apparently wasn’t as comforting as he thought it was.

“... there’s...nothing?” She asked. Poseidon tried to figure out the right way to describe it. “But that’s unfair. We get to live a life and then stand around doing nothing if we don’t make it?”

“This bothers you?”

“Well,” Sally said and crossed her legs under her with the sword across her lap. She gave a small huff. “It just... I mean, not everyone has enough time to live a spectacular life. Growing up and growing old is hard,” she said with a shake of her head. “We always have to decide what stuff is more important, and that sometimes means putting ambitions on hold or... maybe we aren’t ready for those things, but...” she wrung her hands together. “It’s stressful to think that maybe we have something that can good or important, but what if you die before you figure out what it is or how you’re supposed to use it? I mean, maybe if my parents lived, they could have cured cancer, and my uncle would have lived longer, and he could have - I don’t know - ended poverty, and then I would have been able to go to school and do something important too,” she said.

“Can you not do something important now?”

“Poseidon, no offense, but your relatives are out to kill me over something I didn’t even do,” she said dryly. “All I get to focus on right now is surviving. And if I don’t, then I guess I can just follow my loved ones into an endless field of nothing,” she said. Poseidon pursed his lips. He hadn’t expected for the conversation to go like this at all. He watched her carefully - feeling a little discouraged at how resigned she looked.

“I’m not letting you die,” Poseidon said - echoing the words he said to Ruth earlier. She smiled bitterly. “I’m not. I swear it. Sally,” he said and grabbed her hand. “I’m not letting you die.”

She stared at him for a long time. He wondered if this was how fish felt when they looked at him. Just... lost. Like everything was normal one minute, and the next, all he could register was that something important was in front of him. Absently, he brushed a strand of hair from her eyes. Her expression was hard to read - it was somewhere between uncertain and a little hopeful.

“Can this titan of yours really erase their memory of me?” She asked quietly. Poseidon lowered his hand.

“Not erase, exactly. They are gods,” he reminded her softly. “But she can repress it until you’ve lived your life. And you will. You have time to figure out your questions,” he promised. Sally nodded slowly.

“I just want to be better than I am,” she said and offered a weak smile. “Do gods care about that sort of thing?”

Poseidon laughed.

“I can’t say they do,” he said. “Usually, someone has to make us,” he told her. Half of him expected her to get annoyed by that response - perhaps think back to Luke and his mother. She only smiled, though—shoulders relaxing as she studied him over with the barest hint of acceptance. Poseidon was so caught up in looking at her, he didn’t notice how close they had come to land until the entire boat shuddered as they bumped into the dock beside them.

“SORRY!” Ruth yelled from somewhere on the other end of the ship. Then raced up to the pair of them with her face flushed and slightly out of breath. “You guys tie the boat up while I make sure nobody calls the police on us for having a stolen military boat,” she said. Poseidon gave a nod. “Then we are totally getting some sort of pasta because I need carbohydrates,” she decided and jumped onto the dock. Sally laughed.

“Fettuccine Alfredo sounds amazing,” she mused and capped the end of her sword before putting it in her pocket. “Where are we?” She asked as she looked around.

Poseidon didn’t answer. For the first time since this whole disaster started, his mind betrayed him completely. What would a child between him and Sally look like? It seemed impossible to imagine. He had never spent so much time with a mortal like her. Someone who wanted so badly to… to be better. For others to be better. A demigod could never survive in their world with that sort of thought process. Not to mention his own temper and lack of ability to follow the rules – or gods, Sally’s sarcasm. No, they could never. Even outside of the prophecy, Olympus wouldn’t be prepared for whatever creation would come out of Sally and Poseidon’s union.

“Hello?” Sally asked as she finished roping the boat to the dock. “Oh no, what are you thinking about now?” She grinned. Poseidon shrugged.

“I just thought that if - gods forbid - we did have a child together, what it would be like. I was wondering if it would destroy or save the world.”

“Destroy,” Sally said wisely. “Because I would raise him to go after you specifically?”

“Him?”

“Just a feeling,” Sally said. “I would take my demigod child and tell him it is his destiny to go forth and kill the great god of the seas so that he may rule as a benevolent dictator. Then, I would finally have someone to tell me if Amelia Earhart’s plane is at the bottom of that ocean,” she told him with a nod. Poseidon snorted. “I would also give him a name you would hate. Maybe Hercules.”

“You wouldn’t have liked Hercules,” Poseidon told her wisely and stepped off the boat to help her off. “The movies are not accurate in the least. Can you think of nobody else from those books you read?” He asked lightly. Sally scowled at him. Then raised a hand.

“I got it. I would name him... Athens. After the greatest city and the greatest goddess.”

Poseidon’s previous amusement vanished. Scowling, he turned away to find Ruth. You know, the mortal he liked.

“Come on, Poseidon! You wouldn’t love our fake child named Athens?” Sally called. Whatever. Ruth was paying the fee upfront, laughing at something the woman taking her money said. He slid up next to her.

“Your friend will one day end up in the Fields of Punishment - I swear it,” he said and reconsidered. “Or maybe my brother will get her to torture me for eternity - oh, hello,” he added to the other woman. She flushed a deep red when he smiled at her before quickly giving them their change. Ruth bit her lip and looked away from the girl. Poseidon cleared his throat.

“What?” She asked and then looked over at Sally. “Oh, is she annoying you again?” She asked. Poseidon went to respond, only to notice she was blushing too. Why? She hadn’t been so easily flustered by his attention before and - wait a minute. His eyes flicked to where the woman was walking to the other end of the dock, giving them both curious looks over her shoulder.

“Were you flirting with her?”

“Sally!” Ruth said loudly and threw Poseidon a nasty look. “What have you done to annoy Poseidon?” She asked, flicking her hair over her shoulder and linking arms with her friend. Poseidon shook his head at her. Mortals. They always surprised you. He glanced up at the sky. It seemed clear... for now. He wasn’t sure how long they could stay before moving out again. A couple of hours should be fine, right? Right.

“Perseus is a good name,” Sally was saying as an answer to Ruth’s question. “He’s a wonderful hero and got a happy ending in my book,” she said. Poseidon made a face.

“My brother’s child? Really? You would name our son after my brother’s child?” He asked. Ruth’s eyes widened. “Hypothetical son,” he added to her before the concern could grow. Ruth didn’t look too relieved by that. Sally’s smile widened.

“And it annoys you! We’ve done it! Our non-existent child’s name is chosen,” she said sweetly. Poseidon rolled his eyes. Whatever. “He’s going to be a total mama’s boy too. I’m thinking... he can have your eyes and hair, but that’s all I’m giving you,” she reasoned. They had gotten off the dock, walking onto the small island Poseidon had led them with the wanderers all looking either at the setting sun or somewhere to eat. “He will take after me in heart.”

“Meaning that he will have none?” Poseidon asked dryly. Sally’s eyes narrowed. “If we’re lucky, he’ll get my sense of humor too - or else he won’t have that either,” he threw back. Ruth sighed - untangling herself from Sally before she could respond.

“Would you guys mind finding someplace to eat?” She asked. “Maybe just grab takeout or something, and I’ll get some groceries. I have to call my mom and see how my real child is doing,” Ruth said, eyes dancing to the phone booth. “I’ll meet you guys back on the boat, okay?”

“Go ahead!” Sally said immediately. “We have this under control. Tell them both I said hi!” She added with a wave. Ruth gave them both stern glances before heading back towards the phone booth. Sally turned to him. “Do you eat?”

“I can.”

“But do you have to?” Sally asked. “Because we’re on a budget here.”

Poseidon crossed his arms over his chest.

“That is fine. Mortal food is unappealing to me anyway,” he said, a bit indignantly. Sally rolled her eyes before taking his hand to drag them around the island. Apparently, mortal food could be a precarious matter. Either that or Sally was just picky.

“I would just cook it myself if I could,” she said after the third restaurant did not meet her approval. “And to charge that much? For a salad? I know they are trying to make a living, but I would just leave a tip.”

“You did leave a tip,” Poseidon told her, a little amused she had done so without having purchased anything. “You left a tip at the place before that, too. I’m not sure we have enough to get anything else,” he told her. Part of him just wanted to summon her something. It would be easier and fun to see if his divine creation met her apparent food critic ways. Still, as he went to reach for his powers, he felt a pull reminding him that they weren’t quite at his disposal. He sighed.

“...oh,” Sally said and bit her lip. “Um, that’s okay. I’ve been poor for a long time. I know how to do this,” she said and spun around back towards the shop they had just exited. “It isn’t the best, but it’ll have to do,” she said. Poseidon was about to ask if she planned on retracting the tip money when she turned to put her hand on his elbow and smiled with absolute adoration.

Poseidon paused. Um. Well. She hadn’t looked at him quite like that before.

“What... are you doing?”

“Take my hand between yours and get down on one knee,” she whispered. Poseidon’s brows shot up. “Trust me! They always give free food away for this stuff. Plus, they saw me put money in earlier, so they won’t think twice about it,” she promised. Shaking his head, Poseidon just decided to humor her. In fact, he would do more than humor her. Smirking, he put on his most charming expression and knelt, still holding her hand. A few people around them stopped as Sally put her other hand over her face in feigned shock.

“Sally,” Poseidon began as dramatically as possible. Her lips twitched. “It feels like I’ve only known you for a couple of weeks, and yet you have somehow captured my heart,” he said. Sally closed her eyes - clearly trying not to laugh. Which was ridiculous because he hadn’t even gotten into the theatrics yet. “I know we haven’t always gotten along. In many ways, it feels as though we’ve been running from Cupid,”

“Oh, not the dorky wordplay,” she said under her breath. Poseidon winked in retaliation, feeling a stab of victory when she turned the barest hint of red. Aha. He knew she wasn’t completely immune to his charm.

“But you... surprise me in many ways. I can’t say I haven’t meant anyone like you. In my line of work, you meet everyone a thousand times a day. However, I... must admit that... I’m realizing that there is perhaps a difference in meeting and knowing if that makes sense. Knowing you makes me wonder if I’ve ever been brave enough to know anyone at all,” he said, and for a second, her hand tightened a little in his. “I want to continue knowing you. For the rest of my time on the planet. Forever...And, of course, our future child with a reasonable name like Orion-“

“Perseus,” Sally whispered.

“Maybe we can go with something more modern. Grant?”

“Odysseus it is.”

“We can come back to that,” Poseidon told her. She laughed. “I guess my question is, Sally Jackson, will you do me the honor of marrying me?” He asked. Sally looked down at him and smiled.

“I suppose I can marry you,” she said. The small crowd that had gathered around them burst into applause as Poseidon stood back up, scooping her into a hug to spin her around. “Stellar performance,” Sally said in his ear. “I look forward to seeing you at the Oscars.”

“Can you believe I didn’t get the job for the god of theater?” He asked and put her down. “Well, in truth, my brother should have gotten it, but I am clearly very qualified as well,” he told her. Sally laughed, absently reaching up to put a hand on his shoulder. She must have caught herself because she froze - eyes widening just as a man came over to whisper something in her ear. “Oh?” She said and instead slid the hand onto Poseidon’s arm. “Darling, the restaurant offered to pay for our meal!” She said and then leaned in. “Hey, there’s also that ice cream shop across the island. If we hurry, nobody there will recognize us.”

“You think you can handle a second proposal from me?”

“You think you can handle another acceptance?” She asked. Poseidon scoffed. Challenge accepted then. After gathering their food and accepting numerous congratulations, they ended up sprinting towards the small ice cream parlor (where Sally had also left a tip earlier just because... well, she just seemed to tip everyone. Honestly, if she didn’t, then probably would have enough money to buy a meal) to do a repeat performance.

“Ruth isn’t back on the boat,” Sally said when they dropped the food off as she licked her ice cream cone. “Should we go check on her?” She asked. Poseidon scanned the island. Then put his hand in the water.

“She’s still in the store,” he reassured her. Sally shot him a look. “It’s just a tiny bit of power. Didn’t even break into anything Amphitrite took,” he assured her. “Come on,” he said and grabbed her hand. “Let’s go up there while we wait,” he said with a nod towards the cliff. Sally glanced up. “I can promise the view is good. I have an extra sense for these things,” he told her. Sally tilted her head up, raising a hand to shield the sun from her eyes as she looked at the cliff beside the docking station. It only looked to be around forty feet, but it seemed to be empty at least.

“Let’s do it,” Sally said, and gave him a very serious look. “If you can keep up, of course,” she told him and skipped back off the boat. Poseidon considered materializing next to her - but...yep. That was exactly why Amphitrite took his power. He sighed and hopped over the side to follow her. At the very least, he caught up to her quickly. Just to annoy her, he stole the ice cream cone. The rest of the climb consisted of Sally taking it back only for Poseidon to steal it again until it slowly disappeared.

“So,” Poseidon said as they reached the top, still eating the ice cream. “How was my second proposal?”

“Uninspired,” Sally told him with a light laugh. “And cheesy. The first one was too, but I liked it better,” she told him.

“I will have you know that came from the heart!” Poseidon said, watching as she climbed over a rock, trying to balance her ice cream cone in one hand. “And how would you propose?” He asked. Sally licked her lips before looking down at him and then getting down on one knee. Poseidon rolled his eyes.

“Your entire family thinks you knocked me up. Want to prove them right?” She asked, holding out an invisible ring towards him.

“That’s a pickup line. Not a proposal,” he said, slapping her hand away. “And be careful with that joke. Eros might pop up and try to use it as evidence,” he said as he glanced up the final hill towards the top of the cliff. Sally brightened at the sight of it.

“I thought the jurors already decided we were guilty?” She said, racing ahead. “Oh, this is pretty!” She said with a small gasp. Poseidon followed her the last few steps before glancing over to see it for himself. She was right. It was. The entire area was covered in grass and wildflowers that disappeared closer to the drop. An empty picnic table was a few feet away with the ocean sprawled out underneath - waves calm as they crashed below. Sally walked over towards the edge, glancing out towards the horizon where the sky and sea met.

Poseidon walked up beside her. They stood there for a moment, taking it all in.

“You did a good job,” Sally suddenly said. Poseidon turned to her. “With the ocean, I mean,” she said and smiled a little. “My dad was a marine biologist, you know,” she said, voice softening. “He always used to take me with him on expeditions. He would go scuba diving to get footage or whatever, and I would just wait at the top trying to imagine whatever he was seeing down there,” she said. The wind blew, almost as if it was listening too. “Sometimes he brought animals back up, and I would name them all before letting them back in the water,” she smiled softly. “I wanted so badly to be a mermaid,” she laughed and then brightened. “Do mermaids exist? They must, right?” She asked, turning to him. The sun bathed her in an orange glow. Poseidon couldn’t stop staring.

“Yes,” he said. “They don’t look how you might expect them to. Their skin is green and blue, and their eyes glow brightly with sharpened teeth,” he said. He expected Sally to recoil at the description, but her eyes only widened as her breath caught - as if this little secret at the bottom of the ocean was the most amazing thing she had ever heard. “Most of them live in Atlantis,” he said slowly.

“Oh, yeah? And what’s that like?” She asked, voice going a little dreamy. “Pearls and coral reefs with jewels?” She asked. Poseidon smiled.

“More or less,” he said and then tilted his head. “Would you like to live there?” He asked.

In retrospect, it was a foolish thing to ask. Perhaps it could have been a solution. Turn Sally immortal and let her live in his realm for eternity. Maybe it would work if Ruth wasn’t involved. Still, maybe... maybe part of him.... hoped...

“What?” She asked, turning to him. Poseidon felt his voice catch in his throat. It could still work - he could maybe keep Ruth and her child with him too. Something. He could figure out something. It was just that he was struck by the fact - very suddenly - that even if they lived through this... if she survived today and tomorrow and the week after that... well, she had a point earlier, didn’t she? Eventually, she would die. It sent a bit of a chill down his spine. The idea of that light being crushed into nothing but a soul in the depths of the Underworld. What if she was taken too soon? What if she didn’t get to do everything she wanted to?

“Atlantis,” he found himself saying in spite of himself. “Immortality. Do you want it?”

Sally looked as if she had just been thrown off a ledge. He couldn’t read her expression - there was a chance she didn’t know what to think about such a proposal being sprung on her. She looked as if she was about to answer when the sky gave a burst of thunder, making them both jump. Poseidon felt his ichor run cold. Damnit. He hadn’t been watching the sky. Looking up, he saw the setting sun was now obscured by gray clouds, a flash of lightning striking in the distance.

“My brother,” Poseidon said suddenly as he stiffened. His eyes fell to Sally. Damnit. “You need to go-“

“Wait,” Sally said and looked out towards where the lightning had hit. “Maybe we can reason with him-“

“That is a very sweet idea. It will not work,” Poseidon informed her dryly. He looked around the cliff. For as beautiful as it was, it had no good hiding places. He groaned. “I don’t see where you could go that he would not find you,” he grimaced and then remembered where they were. “Unless...” he said slowly, an idea starting to form.

Sally looked at Poseidon. Her eyes flicked between him and then the sea down below. He could feel the second the understanding clicked his place.

“Oh, absolutely not-“

“It’ll be fine! It isn’t that high!”

“Poseidon, I am not jumping off of this cliff! I am not doing it. I won’t, you can’t make me, this is very high, I am not going to-“

“If my brother sees you here, he’s going to assume that you’re carrying my child.”

“Ridiculous. I have much higher standards.”

“I know. I also have higher standards, but he isn’t going to listen to us,” Poseidon reasoned. The wind blew a bit harder, and Poseidon felt the sea rise with his anxiety. “I would call my powers back to hide you, but he’ll sense that I’ve used them. You’ll be fine,” he tried, and Sally gave something of a skeptical laugh.

“Not happening.”

The lightning grew closer. For the love of-

“Alright, in that case… I’m really sorry,” he said. Sally tilted her head at him suspiciously.

“Why are you-“ she began but was cut off by Poseidon shoving her off the cliff’s edge. He could hear her screams getting smaller and smaller before a splash followed. Just in time, too. The next round of lightning brought a familiar figure in front of him.

“Brother.”

Poseidon turned to find electric blue eyes watching him. Honestly, he should have known they could never outrun him. Poseidon put his hands in his pockets and gave an amiable smile.

“Hello, Zeus.”

Chapter Text

Silence.

Poseidon watched as his son sat completely still as he stared at the ground. Finally, he cleared his throat and turned to look at where Sally was sitting cross-legged on top of his freshly made bed.

“So,” he began. “Whenever I came home and told you I completed a quest... were you just... listening unimpressed? Like, were you just thinking to yourself, ‘oh, that’s nice, hon, but all of that pales in comparison to when I shot a god in the face’?” He demanded. Percy looked as if he had been the one who was shot as he digested the news. Sally paused in picking out blue jellybeans from a bag as she looked over at her son and gave a bashful shrug.

“Mostly, I just kept thinking ‘my poor baby’ and ‘he’s absolutely lying to me about how that happened, but I did consider trying to find you a shotgun as a backup,” she said and then gave a wicked grin. “Besides, you didn’t think the Titan War was the first time I shot someone, do you?” She asked. Percy gaped at her. He turned to Paul.

“What do you have to say about this?” He asked. Paul looked at Percy and then at Sally.

“I don’t know. That it sounds like she had good aim?” He shrugged. Percy spluttered. “Also, I admire the fact you went through with the name Perseus,” he added. Poseidon rolled his eyes. He hadn’t been surprised to learn his son’s name, but he had been a smidge exasperated when he first heard it. Sally beamed. “Also, I’m glad I met you after him because it sounds like I would have been too terrified to speak to you back then,” he added thoughtfully. Percy took a long breath.

“Right...” he muttered and glanced up at Poseidon with narrowed eyes. “You aren’t messing with me, are you?” He asked. Poseidon looked back at him innocently. “This all really happened?” He asked. He nodded. “But - Zeus? Zeus was involved?” Thunder rolled in warning in the background. “Sorry,” Percy said instinctively. Poseidon glowered out the window, daring his brother to even think about upsetting anyone in this room.

“Yes, this happened. Does it really sound so outlandish?” Poseidon asked him. “From the child who fell in love with a daughter of Athena?” He asked. Percy flushed.

“I - okay, fine,” he said and stood up to put more clothes in his dresser. “What happened next? Well, wait, actually,” he said and shut a drawer before turning to fix him with a wary look. “Just so we’re clear, please remember who your audience is. I’m glad this is so detailed now, but later on, I think we can gloss over some things,” he said dryly. Poseidon blinked.

“I don’t understand.”

“He knows it’s about to get romantic and doesn’t want to hear about us kissing,” Sally translated. Oh. Percy made a noise of disgust to solidify this theory.

“I’m just saying! I’m sure it would make Paul uncomfortable,” he added with a gesture towards his stepfather. Paul shrugged.

“Not really,” he said. “It isn’t like I haven’t gotten to kiss your mom. We had a kid together too, you know.”

“I -Paul,” Percy said and held out his hands. “Why?”

“Sorry.”

“No, you’re not,” he grumbled and walked over to sit next to Sally. “I can’t believe I’m finding this out now. Why haven’t I ever met Ruth?” He added as an afterthought. Sally stiffened. “Are you guys not friends anymore?” He asked. Poseidon felt a guilty tug at that. He looked away, eyes lingering a bit on Percy’s armor thrown in the corner. When he looked back up, Sally kissed the side of Percy’s head.

“Don’t worry about that right now,” she told him. That alone probably hinted as to what happened. Poseidon cleared his throat before the dire mood could settle over them.

“Well, let’s see... yes, I had just pushed Sally off a cliff, and my brother was there to have a lovely conversation...”

“Poseidon,” Zeus greeted. He looked around the cliff - eyes dancing over the various crevices before turning back to him. “There are rumors amok. I was hoping you could clarify some things to me,” he said and then raised an eyebrow. “And perhaps explain why you are so... weakened,” he added with a vague gesture up and down Poseidon’s form. 

“I was hoping you would stop by,” Poseidon said, deciding to go with indignant. “These rumors from your grandson have gained me a very unhappy wife, brother. Is this some sort of punishment you wish to throw upon me? I cannot imagine what I have done to incur your wrath in such a deceitful way,” he said and crossed his arms over his chest. Zeus jutted out his chin.

“Amphitrite did this?”

“Amphitrite was angry I had apparently bedded some mortal woman,” he said and shook his head. “She demanded to take over ruling so that I may spend time with this mystery mortal since I was so inclined,” he said with a sarcastic huff. “I decided it wasn’t worth it to argue and just gave it to her so that I may instead wait for you to give me an explanation as to what’s happening,” he said with a glare. Zeus nodded slowly. He didn’t look convinced, but Poseidon saw him at least hesitate.

“I suppose angry wives is something I can empathize with,” he murmured. Poseidon smiled wryly. Oh, yes. He would know a thing or two about that, wouldn’t he? “Eros claims he saw you with a mortal,” Zeus said suspiciously. “He thinks you may have vacated our sacred oath, or at least intended to do so,” he said. Poseidon laughed. Zeus remained silent.

From down below, there was a screech.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!” Sally’s voice yelled. Poseidon saw Zeus’ eyes flick to the bottom, but spoke up before he could get distracted.

“Oh, are you serious? You think I broke our oath?” He asked. “Zeus, I spoke to a mortal, yes, but since when does that mean anything? I don’t know if you’re aware, but there was a slight altercation on one of my beaches a few weeks prior involving a certain demigod of Hermes,” he said threw a hand up. “I didn’t intervene - as I knew you would be irritable as you always are - but did you expect me not to help right my own domain?” He asked. “Humans destroy it enough on their own. I thought I would alleviate the burden where I could,” he said. 

And because Poseidon knew Zeus very well - he could see a glimmer of something in him relent. A bit unusual for his brother, but Poseidon deeply suspected there was a reason for it. Even if he did think Poseidon broke the oath... there was part of him that seemed... Poseidon felt a spark light up suddenly. Oh, he had the perfect card to play, didn’t he?

“Besides, if we dragged every mortal we’ve interacted with since the oath to court, we’d never leave Olympus. I couldn’t even tell you who I had spoken to. Probably some pretty girl who reminded me of Alope,” he shrugged. “Didn’t you even speak to that one television actress? Graves? Grace? Something like that,” Poseidon said casually. “Aphrodite thought she was just such a heartthrob,” he said with a roll of his eyes. “It would be such a waste to drag her up to Olympus when we all know you would never think to break such a sacred covenant,” he said. Zeus twitched. Ah.

Maybe Poseidon wasn’t the only criminal among them - not that Poseidon had even done anything wrong! That may be more than his brother could say by the looks of it.

“This is true,” Zeus said slowly. “Still, Eros said he saw you with two-“

“Two? Now there are two mortals I’ve bedded? Please tell me Amphitrite didn’t hear of the second,” he groaned. “Zeus, be honest. Is this your doing? Are you angry I did not take your side during the last council meeting?” He asked and ran a hand through his hair. “You realize the point of council meetings is to get different opinions. It defeats the purpose if we cater to your every whim,” he told him. Zeus raised a hand.

“Poseidon.”

“Yes?”

“I...” he began and gave him another once over. “Would like to believe you,” he said. Poseidon raised an eyebrow. “However, this is a matter of security - of our existence,” he pointed out and then shook his head. “I only wish Eros was here to speak more on his part. He has not returned to me. Have you seen him?” He asked. Poseidon shook his head, trying to figure out exactly how long it would take him to recover from Sally’s shot to the face. Probably any day now. Zeus pursed his lips. “Perhaps he realized he made a mistake and hid...”

“He is very much like his father in that regard,” Poseidon said. Zeus glowered.

“Do not seek to use my son as a joke. Ares is the god of courage-“

“You’ve had braver sons than Ares,” Poseidon told him. Zeus’ eyes narrowed. “You merely favor this one because he came out of Hera’s womb,” he dismissed. Lightning crackled. “Come now. You know I am always honest with you, brother. Don’t get upset with me over it now.”

“I’ve never liked that about you.”

“And yet?” Poseidon asked. Zeus sighed. “I swear to you. I have not broken our oath. I take it as seriously as you do.”

“I doubt that,” Zeus muttered. Oh, the hypocrite. If Poseidon found out he really did have a child with that Grace girl, he would lose his mind at the irony of it all. “I do sometimes miss the ways of mortals,” he admitted with a slight shake of his head. Poseidon didn’t respond. Zeus had never been a huge fan of humans. His main form of appreciation came in sleeping with them. “It is hard to rule while avoiding your subjects.”

“If anyone could pull off such a feat, it would be you,” Poseidon told him, trying not to sound sarcastic as he said it. A strange look crossed Zeus’ face. For a moment, Poseidon felt his previous condescension freeze. Despite it all, Poseidon did have the smallest of soft spots for his brothers. He hardly ever got along with either, but...

“What is upsetting you, Zeus?” He asked, putting a hand out on his shoulder. “Have you come to ask something else of me?”

Zeus turned. Poseidon almost felt bad for lying - especially if he bought the lie.

“Who do you think the prophecy child will be?” He asked suddenly. Poseidon reared back. “And... afterward, after this child decides our fate... Assuming we all survive, do you think it would ever be wise to lift this oath?” He asked. Poseidon grimaced.

“We didn’t just ban them because of this oath. They are dangerous,” he said slowly. “But I am no prophet. Perhaps we may have that freedom again. Well, as much as we are allowed without backlash,” he said dryly, thinking of Hera. “As for as who it will be? I cannot say. Would you be offended if I said I think it would be a child of yours?” He asked. Zeus scowled. “You have never chaste, Zeus. Besides, it is almost always your children,” he added.

Zeus sighed.

“That may be true,” he admitted. “May we help her if it is,” he added. Poseidon nodded. Her. Well, that was that then. It seemed as if their prophecy child had already been born. A daughter of Zeus would decide their fate. There was a jolt of fear at that - the idea their end could be looming over them within the next sixteen years. Of course, there was always the chance she could die before reaching sixteen. Either option felt painful.

“I only hope to know a few years of peace before any war is fought,” Poseidon said easily. Zeus snorted.

“Is that your idea of a dismissal?”

“Did I make discreet enough?”

“Discretion has never been your forte, Poseidon,” Zeus said dryly. “If it were, then you would have found another place to bring your date other than my daughter’s temple all those years ago.”

“Your daughter is not my favorite person.”

“Trust me, I know,” Zeus said and patted his arm. “Very well. I will leave you be - for now. I will also send word to Amphitrite that her ire is unfounded. Perhaps you may have some reprieve,” he said. Poseidon offered a weak smile in return. The sky rumbled again, clouds parting as if opening a door for Zeus to disappear in. Electric blue eyes fell on him. “Poseidon,” he said suddenly. He tilted his head. “If I find out you’ve lied to me...” he said and puffed out his chest. “I will kill the mortal and every mortal you’ve ever known.”

Poseidon kept his face blank.

“You act as if I particularly care for any mortal at this moment. Kill them all. I have committed no crime to attach myself to even a name.”

Zeus nodded.

“I hope so,” Zeus said. “I know how you are about your children. I would hate for you to have to watch one turn to ash,” he said. Poseidon felt a spike of irritation flood through him, but before he could respond, there was a bright flash of lightning. Zeus was gone. Poseidon stood still - completely alone on top of the cliff as the sky cleared once more.

Well... that could have gone worse. He at least bought some time. Though, if Poseidon was honest, he wasn’t thrilled with the possibility they may not make it to Mnemosyne in time.

The good news is they at least had time - or he thought so for a good twenty minutes. The hope was squashed when he walked onto the boat to find both Sally and Ruth in less than ideal conditions.

“What happened to you two?” He asked. Which, in retrospect, was a reasonable question for Ruth... maybe not so much Sally.

“What happened?” She asked, shivering from underneath her pile of emergency blankets. Her hair was still dripping wet and her clothes drenched. “You pushed me off of a cliff is what happened!” She shouted. Ruth groaned. “Sorry,” she whispered and instantly softened as she sat back down and pressed a hand to her cheek. “You’re kind of warm, Ruth,” she frowned.

“She’s sick?” Poseidon asked and knelt next to where Ruth was lying. “I don’t understand. She was fine earlier.”

“I don’t know either,” Sally said. “When I got here, she was eating the food we dropped off. I started telling her how you - you know - pushed me off of a cliff, and she just... got like this,” she frowned and bit her lip. “I think we need a doctor. I don’t know anything that would come down that fast,” Sally said. Poseidon opened his mouth to respond when a sudden thought washed over him. He turned to where the open boxes of food were.

“Have you eaten anything yet?” He asked. Sally shook her head. Poseidon got up to check the boxes. He held his hand over and - damnit. Who? The ocean momentarily roared to life - even with Poseidon’s measly confined powers - shaking the boat. Sally quickly grabbed Ruth, keeping her in place as she gave Poseidon a nasty look.

“What are you-“

“They poisoned it,” he said, and tossed the food to the side. Sally went quiet. “They poisoned her,” he said with a shake of his head. “Someone did - my brother was with me. Eros wouldn’t have recuperated yet,” he frowned with a shake of his head. Who else would even know to find them? Could it be a sea deity? No. Never. His mind almost flipped to Amphitrite, but deep down, he knew she didn’t have the cruelty to do such a thing. Besides, if his wife were to kill someone, it would be with a pointed weapon than a discrete one. He took a long breath.

“Well, then heal her,” Sally said. Poseidon pursed his lips. “If there is a time to use your powers, this is it, Poseidon. What are you waiting for?” Sally asked.

“This is a powerful poison - outside of my brothers and me, perhaps only a handful of immortals could heal something like this. We aren’t close enough to Mnemosyne yet for me to tap into that sort of power. If anyone questions why I’m healing a random mortal-“

“She’ll die before we get the chance!” Sally whispered. She was covering Ruth’s ears, he realized. He had no idea if that did anything or not, but he hoped it did. He didn’t like the idea of Ruth hearing them debate the logistics of her life.

“I’m not letting her die!” He shot back. “I’m just saying we need to find a discrete way to do it.”

“I don’t want to take chances with something like that.”

“Well, it isn’t up to you-“

“She’s my friend. If that doesn’t get me a say, then I’m not sure what would,” Sally told him. Poseidon inwardly groaned. “Don’t you even dare-“ she started, but went quiet when something glimmered on the table between them. What in the...? He leaned forward to find a bag of what looked to be... Valerian? Among other things. Dragon eyes, rosewood, pine needles, a bottle of water from the River Styx, and - oh.

Oh. Poseidon snatched the bag from the table.

“Can you get us there quickly?” He asked - hoping Amphitrite could hear him. The wind blew sharply. Good. Good. Nobody would think to look for his wife’s powers. Not yet, anyway. Sally fixed him with a warning look that told him he better explain what was going on. “I know a place where we could heal her. Amphitrite will get us there-“

“She can do that?” Sally interrupted. “Why couldn’t she just get us to Mnemosyne’s place?” She asked and then shook her head. “Nevermind, I don’t care. Whatever reason you have is fine. Just get her healed,” she muttered. Ruth stirred slightly, eyes fluttering open and closed. Right. If he ever found out who did this... he would personally ensure they experienced his full wrath the second he was at full power.

Quickly, he took the rope off of the dock and pushed them out. The current was strong enough to pull them away, sending them deep into the open ocean. Or what appeared to be open ocean at least. They were picking up speed faster than an average boat could move, drifting in and out of the mist. He prayed it wouldn’t take too long. To who? He wasn’t sure. Amphitrite, perhaps? Poseidon wasn’t in the habit of praying to really know.

The boat shuddered against a rocky shore.

“That was only like ten minutes,” Sally said, but that didn’t stop her from working on getting Ruth up. Poseidon went to the other side to help lift her. “How?”

“Because Scylla and Charybdis would never dare to attack me,” he said darkly. Sally mouthed the names for a moment before giving him a suspicious look. “It is one of two entrances to the Sea of Monsters,” he explained. “Time can work differently here. Those ten minutes were probably a few days by mortal standards,” he said. By his guesstimate, their ‘boat’ was probably still within sight of the dock.

“And what in the Sea of Monsters could possibly help-“ she began, lifting Ruth over the side of the boat when a flash of understanding caught her eyes. Poseidon waited. Had she really figured it out so quickly? Perhaps she read more in those books of her than he thought. “How...?” She said and gave a disbelieving laugh. “Won’t she turn us in?!” She hissed. “Are you insane? You say you won’t heal Ruth and then bring her to someone who is known to trick people for her own gain!” She growled. Poseidon held up a hand.

“She wouldn’t dare-“

“Oh, nobody dares with you!” Sally snapped back. “Which is why we’re running from the gods, right?” She asked. Poseidon reared back. That felt a little unnecessary, but sure. Sally didn’t give him a chance to respond before going back into that soft mode reserved for everyone else but him. “Ruth? Hey, it’s me. We’re close to getting you someplace to help you feel better. Can you lean on me?” She asked. Ruth murmured something but did as she was told. “You got it,” Sally told her and glanced up at the building towering before them. It was too dark to see more than the outline, but lights were on inside alongside soft piano music.

“It’s going to be fine,” Poseidon told her. “This is the better option. She can heal Ruth, and then we’ll leave with no one realizing we were ever here,” he promised. Sally pursed her lips but gave a curt nod.

“I trust you,” she said quietly and took a long breath. “Lead the way.”

Poseidon gave her a weak smile before looking Ruth over.

“It would be easier if I carried her,” he said. Sally opened her mouth - perhaps to object - but the trust thing must have been at the front of her mind because she closed it with a snap and gave a curt nod. Poseidon scooped Ruth up, increasing the pace until they were in front of a wall of huge windows with sliding doors. A receptionist was waiting upfront, not looking at all surprised to see a dying mortal, a god, and... well, Sally strolling up in the middle of the night. Instead, she smiled brightly as if they had booked an appointment.

“Hello!” The receptionist greeted. “Welcome to C.C.’s Spa and Resort! Can I get anywhere here a mint?”

Poseidon and Circe had an... okay relationship. There was some overlap, to be sure, but ultimately they were very different. There was a strangeness between them in which neither really knew how to regard one another. Poseidon did know one thing for certain, though - she was powerful.

“She’ll be okay?” Sally asked for probably the ninth time within the span of five minutes. Circe gave her a warm smile, eyes glittering as she walked up and put a hand on either side of Sally’s shoulders. “I should be with her-“

“Breathe, sweetheart,” Circe said. Sally didn’t look reassured. “I promise your friend will be absolutely fine. Let’s worry about you, okay? You look so cold,” she said. It was then that Poseidon remembered she was still in wet clothes and shivering. Sally had been so focused on Ruth that he hadn’t even noticed she ditched the blankets. “What happened?” Circe asked. Sally threw a side look at Poseidon.

“...I fell off a cliff,” she said dryly. Poseidon offered her a weak smile in return.

“Oh, you poor thing,” Circe told her, putting a finger to her chin to pull Sally’s gaze back on her. “Why don’t we get you in some warm clothes, hm? Maybe get a hot bath? The sauna? A massage?” She asked. Sally blinked a few times.

“I... I don’t know-“

“You look exhausted. Rest is important on quests like these,” she said, and tapped the end of her nose. “I know just the thing to pep you up too!” She said brightly and wrote something on a piece of paper. “And don’t even worry about the costs. I’m sure your friend here will take care of everything,” she said with a small smirk towards Poseidon. He didn’t respond. Sally frowned.

“You aren’t going to turn him into a pig, are you?”

“Oh, look at that! My lord, you found yourself a girl who has done some reading!” She laughed and patted Sally’s cheek as she gestured one of her assistants into the room. “Don’t worry. I’m not enough of a fool to try such a thing with a powerful god like that,” she chuckled. Sally swallowed. She looked so tired. Poseidon tried not to be too outwardly concerned. After all, he didn’t need Circe buying into any of that nonsense like Eros did.

“I didn’t... I’m innocent,” Sally murmured when the assistant came with a robe in one arm and water in the other. “We didn’t do anything. I promise.”

“Of course not,” Circe assured her. “You are perfectly safe here. Don’t worry about a thing. Now go on. Have fun!” She said. Sally glanced at Poseidon - worry still underneath all of her worn features. He gave her a small nod.

“She hasn’t eaten either,” Poseidon said, suddenly remembering they had to get rid of their food. They still had the groceries Ruth got, but... gods, could they even use those now? Or were they poisoned too? He would have to check before they used anything. Circe nodded.

“We’ll get everything squared away,” she promised as the assistant led Sally from the room like you would shepherd a frightened mare. Circe kept encouraging her until the door clicked closed. Immediately the customer service face dropped. “I never thought I would be dissatisfied with the presence of such a god in my resort, but alas,” she said and turned to face Poseidon. “The rumors appear to be true, my lord. Not only are you a wild card even among gods, but you seek to drag me into it.”

“I know what it looks like. It isn’t that,” he said. Circe didn’t react. She was probably trying to avoid offending him. “Eros simply made incorrect assumptions, and now those two may pay with their lives. I cannot let that happen.”

“Out of the goodness of your heart, my lord?” Circe asked innocently. She gave a slight shake of her head. “Those girls certainly are innocent. That does not mean you are,” she said darkly. Poseidon leveled her with a cold look. “I do not mean to offend, your majesty. Only to speak truths. If you truly mean them well, then leave them with me,” she said with a wave of her hand. “Perhaps they can learn some sorcery and make something of themselves.”

“You would have to take that up with them,” Poseidon said evenly. “I doubt they would accept such an offer. Ruth has a child. Sally is... well, I have no idea how she’s going to act around you,” he admitted. If Circe proved to gain her trust, then it would be curious to see how Sally reacted to a second offer to be involved in their world. “She may not want to either,” he said. Circe hummed.

“You won her heart so quickly?”

“I definitely wouldn’t say that,” he said and put the sack Amphitrite had sent them with on the table between them. “For your troubles.”

Circe glanced at him before undoing the sack and peeking inside.

“Oh, look at these,” she said, picking through a few of the ingredients. “This will do nicely in exchange for saving the girl’s life and for giving the other some much-needed pampering,” she said and then put her hands on her hips. “However, I must admit... I don’t quite know I feel about harboring fugitives. Do you think Zeus will be pleased with this arrangement?” She asked.

“We’re not fugitives. There has been no crime,” Poseidon said sternly. “And I understand your fear of my brother’s wrath - but you should also fear mine.”

“Typical. Men and their ultimatums,” she said. Poseidon cleared his throat. “I mean no disrespect,” she said, raising her hands. “I just don’t wish to be collateral damage for matters that do not concern me,” she said simply. “Were we not both adversaries of Odysseus?” She asked. “And yet you put me in this predicament.”

“Perhaps in the beginning, but I believe only one of us bedded him,” Poseidon told her wryly. Circe humphed at that. “Help me, and you will be rewarded. Go against me, and I promise I will be your enemy until one of us fades,” he said. Circe shifted back. “And given how your precious resort is in my ocean, I would think carefully over your answer. I would also remind you of the consequences if you choose me and go behind my back,” he added. Her eyes widened slightly. Poseidon didn’t need to voice a threat. There were too many to choose from that would do the trick.

“And you’re doing this for a mortal?” She clarified. “With all due respect, King Poseidon, even if neither of those girls was carrying your child, even if all three of you hated one another, even if there wasn’t a sliver of hope you to fall for either of them... you would still be breaking the law by interfering in matters that should have been out of your hands from the second Eros decided you were guilty-“

“But we are not!”

“Well, the council was never able to decide that, were they? Nevertheless, too many lines have been crossed here. I do not want your ire, but I also want to be clear on my reward,” she said and crossed her arms over her chest, stepping up to him. “I will keep myself quiet about your presence here and shield you from the gods until you can travel again,” she said. “But in exchange, I have your protection if the others find out and a promise,” she said. Poseidon raised an eyebrow.

“What sort of promise?”

“If you end up having a child with one of them, and it’s a girl,” Circe said, ignoring Poseidon already growing irritated by the lack of belief. “I get it.”

“You want my potential daughter?”

“You have powerful children, my lord. I’m always seeking demigods to work for me. If she is the prophecy child, then her loyalty would only be an added bonus,” she said. Poseidon inwardly rolled his eyes.

“Yes. Fine. Very well,” he agreed - because he wouldn’t be having a child with either of them. Not that anyone seemed to believe him. Circe smiled. “I expect you to hold up your end of the deal,” he told her. Circe nodded.

“I will do you one better, my lord. I will use my own magic to get you to the destination just as soon as your girl recovers,” she said. Poseidon narrowed his eyes. “Does this surprise you? I’m powerful. My magic would cover up your... limited powers,” she said and picked up the sack. “You did bring me some excellent choices,” she asked and then paused. “Why didn’t you just ask your wife to bring you these?” She added as an afterthought. Poseidon frowned.

“What?” He asked. “She did. They appeared in the boat, and she led us here,” he said. Circe pursed her lips. Her fingers went to the fabric of the bag, tips glowing slightly as she inspected it. Who else would have given them something helpful? Poseidon felt his skin prick uncertainly. He wasn’t sure he liked this. A mystery figure was both poisoning them and helping them? It made no sense.

“This did not come from Atlantis,” Circe finally said. “I cannot trace it,” she added and flicked her wrist, so it disappeared into a puff of smoke. “Perhaps when this adventure of yours is finished, and your powers intact, you can come back and tell me where it came from,” she said. Poseidon only nodded, mind flicking through the possibilities. It made him uneasy. He didn’t like the shadows watching them like this. “Until then, maybe spend some time on one of our beaches. I’m sure you would appreciate them like no other.”

And just like that. She was gone.

Poseidon sighed, turning out of the waiting area to instead drift off outside. He tried not to overthink the situation, but overthinking was a bit of a habit of his when he was alone and without duties. At least he had the water to keep him company. The beach was empty - save for the moon looming above. It left a white beam on the waves. He felt a stab of homesickness rush through him. It was like being outside the fence of your front yard but unable to enter. He sighed. They were getting closer. That was something.

“Poseidon?”

He turned - sensing Sally’s presence but not seeing her right away. How long had he been sitting here? A few minutes? A few hours? Her voice was somewhere to his right, near the foliage around the building. His eyes froze when he caught sight of her.

...this wasn’t good.

“You’re back,” he said, standing up as he did his best to remain calm. Circe was to blame for this, surely. “When they said clean clothes, I didn’t realize they planned on sending you to a ball,” he added. Sally sighed.

“I know. I just want to go to bed, but now I’m like this,” she said, gesturing to the dress that was blowing softly in the breeze. It was light enough that it seemed to flow, and a soft blue with golden trim that continued around the sleeves and was braided into her hair. “I don’t know if this a good ‘running for my life’ outfit,” she said and then looked down. “But I wouldn’t mind keeping it.”

Poseidon laughed.

“It looks nice,” he agreed. “I’m guessing they already told you about Ruth?” He asked, and Sally nodded, a bashful smile spreading over her face.

“I’m sorry I got upset earlier. You know what you’re doing,” she said, looking down for a moment. “I just... worry. You probably have figured this out by now,” she added. Poseidon scoffed.

“It is something I’ve noticed once or twice.”

“Hm. So where’s your makeover?” She asked, stepping back. “Or were you told that you were perfect as is?” She asked. Poseidon pretended to glance down in surprise.

“Oh? This is what they gave me. Apparently, torn khaki shorts are all the rage,” he said knowledgeably. Sally laughed. “That and I was said to be too pretty for all their dresses.”

“Obviously.”

“It is a burden that I bear,” he sighed. Sally rolled her eyes, but there was some fondness underneath. He looked for something else to say, but Sally beat him there.

“Hey, if you get the chance, could you look over the boat before we go? I know they said Ruth needs some time to recover, but I don’t want her to be any more stressed than she has to be when she’s better,” Sally explained. Poseidon frowned. Why would she be stressed? Perhaps the question showed on his face because Sally wrung her newly manicured hands together. “She gets a little... iffy on boats.”

“What do you mean? She’s a mechanic for the Coast Guard,” he laughed. Sally sighed.

“Well, yeah, but... it’s a complex thing. After her parents’ boating accident-“

“Boating accident?” Poseidon repeated. “She told me her parents died in a car accident,” he said slowly. Sally frowned.

“Oh. Well, maybe she didn’t want to make things awkward,” she said. Hm. That made sense. “I’m pretty sure it was a boating accident, at least. That’s why she joined the coast guard. It’s why she became a mechanic. Ruth likes to even things out. That’s how her parents died, so she has to make sure nobody else dies like that,” she explained. Poseidon tilted his head. “I guess the boat her parents were in broke down during a storm, and so they were stuck in the middle of the ocean. Then eventually... well, they managed to radio in for help, but the water was too dangerous to go out after them. By the time the storm had calmed down, it was too late,” she explained. Poseidon nodded. Yes, that would be a bit awkward considering that very much could be pinned on him. He opened his mouth to reassure her that after Circe’s offer, they wouldn’t need the boat, but... still... something she said didn’t sit right with him. He couldn’t pin exactly what it was, but it felt... off. He thought again to the poison and mystery help. Ruth didn’t smell like a demigod, but maybe he hadn’t been paying enough attention? No. That felt impossible. Who would she even be the child of? And she said her parents were dead.

“Hello?” Sally said and absently brushed his cheek. “Be careful. Thinking can be dangerous if you haven’t practiced,” she warned. Poseidon scoffed.

“Personal experience?”

“Hilarious.”

“You started it,” he said, and Sally rolled her eyes. The wind blew again, and Poseidon’s eyes fell on the dress. It really was stunning.

“I can get you some new clothes,” he said. It would be so much easier to snap his fingers and magic her new ones, but... yeah. Not an option at the moment. He would have to bother Circe again. “What do you want? Jeans? T-shirt?” He asked. Sally shrugged.

“That works. Also, a hair tie?” she said, gesturing to her hair, which was braided with all sorts of golden string and flowers. Poseidon bit back a laugh. Sally was not fooled. “Okay, but it’s hard to do anything with long hair-“

“I know. I had long hair once,” he told her. Sally paused, then leaned back, studying him intently.

“...of course, you did,” she said with a shake of her head. “Hey, I have another question-“

“Big surprise.”

“Shh,” she said. Her eyes flicked over to the water behind them. The waves crashing against the shore. The ripples farther out. A few animals were peeking out before disappearing under the surface. When she turned back to Poseidon, it was with an unreadable look.

“I’m sorry,” he told her before she could say anything. Sally tilted her head.

“You... are?”

“For dragging you into this? Of course,” he said with a slight shake of his head. “I’m not heartless.”

“No,” she agreed. “I don’t think you are,” the words were said softly. In the same tone she spoke to Luke or May or Ruth. There was a stab of excitement to hear it directed at him - even if that was a little ridiculous to think so. “But... do you... feel things like we do? Humans?” She asked. Poseidon hummed. That was a good question.

“Not... exactly,” he admitted. Sally’s face was unreadable. He turned away from the water and kept cursing Aphrodite and Artemis and whoever else was responsible for making her look like that in the moonlight right now. “It’s different, but I don’t think it is any less important,” he said slowly. “And it certainly isn’t less intense.”

A beat of silence passed, and Sally nodded. Then turned away.

“We should get back inside. I bet the beds here are excellent-“

Without thinking, he reached out and grabbed her arm. They both froze. When she looked back, her eyes fell first to his hand and then to meet his gaze. Hesitantly, he pulled her closer. His senses were dulled at the moment, but he could still hear the beat of her heart picking up pace as she looked at his lips and then back at him. The waves seemed to crash against the sand beside them at the same pace.

“Yes?” He asked. Sally must have known what he was asking because she leaned in for a moment - and then stopped. Slowly, she shook her head.

“It isn’t a good idea,” she told him softly and then frowned. “I mean, we made it this far without - wait a second,” she interrupted herself and narrowed her eyes. Oh. That wasn’t good. Poseidon quickly let go. “Oh, no. Oh, Hell no,” Sally said and shook her head fiercely. “I will not be Cinderella. I know I look fantastic, but you don’t get to kiss me after I get a makeover of all things. No. If you kiss me, then it is when I’m covered in something disgusting or when I haven’t slept in three days. Those are the only acceptable options.”

Poseidon stared.

“You are... so strange,” he decided. Sally shrugged. “I’ll keep that in mind,” he said and took another step back. “But - for the sake of knowing - is that something on the table?” He asked. Sally paused. She looked annoyed. Though he couldn’t tell if it was at him, herself, or both.

“It’s against your godly laws.”

“No, it’s against my godly laws to have a child,” he pointed out as if they weren’t on the run for so much less than that. “Technically, I mean. Besides, I don’t see why we couldn’t do the very thing they accused us of doing - without the child part, of course,” he added quickly when Sally’s mouth dropped. “If that is something you would want.”

Sally looked back out towards the ocean and then ran her hand through her hair, ruining whatever style Circe had done for her.

“No. No, it would escalate,” she said, but her tone was uncertain. “I mean... what even... what would this be?” She asked him, turning to look him over. “You’re a god, and I’m a mortal. It isn’t like it could last more than a month,” she told and turned away, pacing in the sand. Poseidon watched her.

“You don’t have to be a mortal,” he said quietly. Sally paused. “You never answered me about Atlantis,” he said. Sally opened her mouth a few times and then looked away. She looked genuinely torn between whatever was going on in her mind.

“I - I don’t know,” she said and ran her hand through her hair again. “I don’t know!” She said. Poseidon waited as she seemed to struggle through her thoughts. “And what if I don’t?” Sally asked, throwing out a hand. “Am I supposed to be one of those mortals who sit there for the rest of their lives saying that we were star-crossed lovers and - and you were the love of my life? That if I could, I would spend my life with you? I give up myself just to be with you?” She asked. Poseidon jerked back. “I won’t say that!”

“No! I don’t want to say that!” He said and shook his head. “And what do you want me to say? That I’m a thousand-year-old god who was foolish enough to actually fall in love with you? That even though I’ve been mortal before that you’re the only thing in this universe that actually made me feel human? Is that what you want?”

“No!” Sally said with a fierce shake of her head. “No, I don’t want you to say that!”

“Fine, then I won’t!”

“I won’t either!”

“Good!”

“Great!”

They both stood frozen, staring at one another. Neither had directly answered any question asked of them, but he had the strangest feeling they somehow found a way to tell each other all the same.

“I have an idea,” Poseidon said suddenly and grabbed her hand, dragging her away from the shore and towards the foliage near the resort. He ducked under a branch, leading them into a small garden illuminated by floating balls of light. Sally gaped in wonder - fingers reaching out to brush one. She turned back to him and shook her head.

“If you were looking for a less romantic spot, then you failed.”

“Worry not,” Poseidon said, and reached down to touch the ground near one of the plants. The dirt instantly turned to mud at his touch. Without waiting for her to ask what he was doing, he turned back and threw some at her. Sally froze. “Also, I can fix the dress later,” he remarked casually and then threw more mud on her.

“What are you - Poseidon!” She gasped and tried to dodge the next chunk of mud with a shriek of laughter. She immediately pushed him to the side to try and grab a handful of her own and throw it back at him. Naturally, this became a mud fight.

“You weren’t supposed to retaliate!” He complained as he unsuccessfully tried to avoid more mud hitting his shoulder.

“And why not?” Sally asked, now thoroughly covered in dirt. “You expect me just to let you bully me? What possessed you even to start throwing mud at me?” She asked, grabbing another handful herself. Poseidon grinned at her, but reached over to grab her wrist and prevent her from making the final throw.

“Well, now you’re covered in something disgusting,” he pointed out and then kissed her.

For a second, Poseidon thought she might pull away - which would have been horribly awkward - but instead, she reached up to put a muddied hand on the side of his face and kiss back. As far as kissing went, it wasn’t anything new. Well, maybe the being covered in mud part was new, but outside of that. Still, perhaps it was the fact he hadn’t kissed a mortal in over fifty years or the fact it was Sally, but... he was pretty sure it might have been worth the month or so on the run.

“Um,” he said when they finally broke apart. “I think it goes without saying that we have no plans to have a child,” he said. Sally nodded. “But you should know... I did tell Circe if I were to have a daughter with you or Ruth that she could have it.”

Silence. And then:

“You what?”

Circe kept her end of the bargain. Over the next week, they stayed at her resort and no gods came looking for them.

Ruth wasn’t fully recovered, but good enough to move around and also say hi a few times. Poseidon would admit that when the time came for them to leave, he... was a little disappointed. It had been a pleasant week - well, after Sally was done being pissed about the potential ‘selling our pretend daughter to a witch’ thing. After that, they had a lovely week and been very good about not going too far on the potential prophecy-baby-that-would-destroy-or-save-the-world thing. Not that they didn’t do an excellent job finding ways around it.

“Just so we’re clear,” Sally said as she packed the bag of goodies Circe had graciously packed for them. “We’re still going to Mnemosyne, right? This hasn’t changed anything?” She asked him. Poseidon nodded.

“Circe says she has a direct transportation spell to get us there, so we should be there tonight. No boats even required,” he told her. Sally brightened at the news as she turned to him, raising her right hand.

“Nice,” she said. “We did it! It’s been like two months and no illegal baby in sight,” she said. Poseidon chuckled, agreeing to her high-five. He could see her expression soften slightly. He watched as she bent down to grab her bag.

“Sally,” he said suddenly and touched her arm. Her eyes flicked up. “I… there are other ways,” he said. She blinked. “That you can stay. You can stay with me. In the ocean. I can protect you there. I know you said you didn’t know about Atlantis, but... I can…” he trailed off, voice suddenly faltering. It felt very mortal. Sally smiled. “You don’t want to.”

Absently, she reached up and touched his cheek.

“Of course, I want to,” she said quietly and pressed her head forward against his. “But…”

“But?”

“I’m not the person I want to be yet. Not the person I should be,” she said and swallowed. “I… I have so much in me. I just know it. I can… I am going to find it. Whatever it is that I’m meant to do. And I don’t know exactly what it is, but I know I won’t find it at the bottom of the ocean,” she said. Poseidon nodded. He had guessed that. He knew it was true too. “If my life is going to mean anything, I have to live it myself.”

And honestly… how dare Poseidon even think for a moment that he knew how to live better than Sally Jackson?

“You’re already making this sound like goodbye.”

“Oh, no. You’ll know when I’m saying goodbye to you,” Sally said solemnly, and Poseidon couldn’t decide if he was amused or exasperated by the way she made that sound like a threat. “Come on. Let’s go get Ruth,” she told him. Poseidon rolled his eyes and followed her.

Circe was waiting for them in the lounge. Ruth stood off to the side, wearing clean shorts and a simple shirt that told Poseidon she had either fought being put into a dress or she had already bargained for more reasonable clothes. Absently, he wondered if Sally got to keep hers. She said she liked it. He would make sure she got it later.

“Hey,” Sally said, dropping her bag to rush over and hug her friend. “Are you feeling better? You look great,” she added, letting her hands slip down to her arms. Ruth laughed.

“I feel pretty great,” she admitted, and accepted her bag from one of Circe’s assistants with a light blush. Poseidon thought back to the woman at the dock and shook his head. Of course. He should have seen this sooner. He gave a teasing grin as he walked over to greet her. “Lord Poseidon,” she added when Sally stepped away.

“I’m starting to get the feeling you were never in danger of falling for me,” he told her dryly as he watched Circe’s assistant retreat. Ruth flushed. “And to think - I was so certain your child’s godly parent was Ares or Hephaestus. Should I have been thinking more along the lines of Demeter or Aphrodite?”

“Shh!” Ruth said, turning a darker shade of red. “Shut up. You know nothing!”

“As long as it isn’t that owl fanatic, I won’t judge you,” he whispered back and laughed when she hit his shoulder. She looked as if she was going to say something else but paused when she noticed Sally talking to Circe - eyes flicking back towards them every so often with a small smile. “You didn’t,” she said suddenly.

“What?”

“You and Sally. Please tell me you didn’t,” Ruth said, and Poseidon felt a stab of guilt - even though he shouldn’t. They had done nothing wrong! No illegal baby. It was fine. Ruth’s eyes told him she wasn’t on the same page. “What is wrong with you?” She asked him and then raised both of her hands. “Sorry. Just - why?”

“We’re not doing anything wrong if we don’t have a kid.”

“Poseidon,” Ruth said, almost sounding disappointed in him... which was ridiculous. “I’ve known gods to be selfish, but even this surprises me,” she told him and gave a shake of her head. “What about her? You’re just going to ruin her life like that?” She asked. Poseidon paused. Ruin... her life? He had no intention of doing such a thing. Ruth pursed her lips. “You don’t see it, do you? I warned you in the beginning. You wouldn’t just break your oath with her,” she said and stepped away. “And now she has to spend the rest of her life looking at the ocean and thinking of you and what she could have had or would have had or whatever,” she said.

Did she somehow know he had offered her immortality? How?

Then a new thought occurred to him.

“Are you in love with her?” He asked, a little surprised the thought hadn’t crossed his mind earlier. Ruth sighed. For a moment, her ire wavered - flicking between the sweet girl he had first met at the beach and someone whose anger... honestly made him hesitate a little. Not because it was threatening, but it just seemed... deep. Deep enough that he wondered how he hadn’t noticed it sooner. 

“No,” she told him. “You forget, I have a son of my own with a god. I know firsthand what it’s like to fall in love with someone and spend the rest of your life trying to keep them there,” she said and glanced over to where Circe and Sally were still speaking. 

Poseidon’s brows came together.

“Ruth... who is it?” He asked. “Which goddess?

Ruth’s eyes glittered. Poseidon couldn’t decide what he saw in them.

“If you really cared about her - you would just fix this and let her live her life. Maybe even wipe her memory of you when all of this is done,” she said. Poseidon almost jerked back at the suggestion.

He wanted to respond, but Circe had started speaking to all of them.

“I have a transportation spell for almost everywhere,” she told them and frowned, fingers dancing across invisible strings of magic. “The one for Mnemosyne’s library should be -“ she began and then paused. “Hm. Well, the one you were heading to appears to be missing,” she said slowly and then plucked something else out of the air. “I have this one, but you won’t like it,” she said, shaking a bottle of purple liquid.

“Why?” Ruth asked. “Where does it go?”

“Another library of Mnemosyne, but it’s in the middle of a desert in Arizona,” she told them. Poseidon pursed his lips. Not good. The reason he wanted to stay near the coast was in case he needed to take his powers back from Amphitrite. How could he do that if they weren’t near the sea? He glanced at where Sally was watching with her lip caught under her teeth. “It would get you there instantly, but... well,” Circe shrugged. “It could pose a problem given that Lord Poseidon isn’t operating at full strength,” she said. Ruth shrugged.

“So? If our goal is just to get us there, then he doesn’t need to be at full strength, right?” She asked and put the strap of the shotgun Amphitrite had given her over her shoulder so that it sat on her back. Circe pressed a finger to bed lips.

“This is true, but if another god were to come across you, then you would be at a severe disadvantage.”

“Would they even expect us to go there?” Ruth asked. Poseidon nodded. That was a good point. If anyone was following along, they would assume he would try to enter the library on the coast rather than a random one in the desert. His eyes turned to Sally.

He thought again to Ruth’s words. He didn’t want to be selfish with her. Maybe he had been - okay, he definitely had been - but perhaps now was the time to right that.

“She’s right,” he said. Ruth smiled in return. “Once we’re inside, then we’re safe anyway. Let’s just go and make sure to be quick about it,” he said, taking the bottle from Circe’s hand.

“If you insist,” she said and watched him take the first sip. A tingle raced down his body as he passed it to Sally. “Remember our deal, Poseidon,” she added. Sally glared.

“We aren’t having a baby,” she muttered and took a sip of the purple liquid. “And if we were, you don’t get my daughter.”

“Then you better hope your son never finds this place,” Circe told her as Ruth took the bottle next. “I’m sure he would make a lovely guinea pig.”

Poseidon didn’t get the chance to see how well that would have gone over because the world had already faded away, leaving him feeling as if he was floating for a moment before reforming with a blast of heat. Another second passed and hit the ground. Hard.

He couldn’t wait to get his powers back to full strength.

Groaning, he forced himself up and looked around. Circe was right. This place was in the middle of nowhere. Only a handful of buildings stood on either side of him while the rest was full of a dusty orange with little to no plants around them. Really, the only thing that comforted him about this place was the water tower that stood about a hundred feet away.

A yelp followed, and Poseidon turned just in time to see Sally tumble down into a cloud of orange dust. He grimaced before walking over to help her up. Sally looked down at the dirt covering her and sighed, dusting it off as she stood up.

“Well, at least I was clean for over ten minutes this time,” she mused.

“Does that mean I get to kiss you again?” He asked without thinking. Sally glanced up at him with a wicked grin. “I mean, isn’t it almost a tradition at this point?” He asked and felt a stab of guilt when Ruth’s word echoed around the back of his head.

“Sorry. I’ve upgraded my standards. Now I have to be covered in blood,” she told him. Poseidon scoffed as she looked around. “This is it?” She asked skeptically. Poseidon nodded and pointed to the building directly in front of them. It was an old one, by the looks of it. The windows were boarded up, and the ‘O’ in the open sign was flickering on and off.

“It is well disguised to prevent mortals from coming across it,” he said as a small thump came from behind them. Ruth hit the ground next, groaning as she stood up and looked around.

“Fun,” she greeted and stood up to also dust herself off. Her hands danced to her gun. Then looked around. “How are you feeling?” She asked Poseidon. He grimaced. In truth, he wished he had just taken his powers back before coming here. He hated how empty he felt.

“It’s fine. We’re already here,” he told her, and Ruth grimaced. Then raised the shotgun.

“Sort of,” she agreed. Poseidon froze. “But I’m afraid I can’t actually let you walk through that door,” she said, and Sally made a choking noise. “Stand behind me,” she added to her. “This isn’t your fault. I never thought you would be so involved in this,” she added apologetically. Sally stood still - eyes wide in alarm.

Poseidon, on the other hand, was a little annoyed.

Yes, he was weakened - now more than ever - but did she think shooting him with that thing would somehow benefit anyone? At most, he would recuperate in a day or so. He didn’t even need as long as Eros in this form. It would just leave time for the gods to get to them, and Poseidon would definitely kill her for it. What came was she playing at? Ruth didn’t even look scared as she leveled the gun directly at her chest.

No... No, she must have someone on her side. Someone who must have been helping her. Whoever her son’s mother was. What goddess would someone like Ruth attract?

A slow clap came. Then another. And another. Poseidon felt his blood spike a bit as a woman stepped out from the shadows. Her form flickered - shifting so quickly that Poseidon was sure it was Aphrodite. However, he caught sight of short black hair and golden eyes until she shifted into someone looking more like Laomedon from back in ancient Greece.

“Oh, this is beautiful,” she said and then gestured to Poseidon. “Look at you! Weakened and torn down,” she clicked her tongue. “I was worried about pulling this off, but...” she tilted her head and smiled. “This worked out well. We even got a new friend!” She added with a gesture to Sally. “Welcome, Ms. Jackson. Ruth has been saying wonderful things about you.”

“How are you here...” Sally breathed out. Poseidon shook his head.

“That isn’t who you think it is,” Poseidon told her. Sally glanced at him. “This is Nemesis. She takes the form based on whoever you want revenge on,” he explained. Sally pursed her lips. Her eyes were fixed on Nemesis with an air of wariness. “You better explain what this is before I blast you into Tartarus,” he said with gritted teeth. Nemesis chuckled.

“That is very true - except for the fact we worked very hard to get you as far from the ocean as possible. It’s a little hard to reach your wife now, isn’t it?” She asked. “As for an explanation, well, I don’t want to monologue too much,” she shrugged. “Let’s just say that Thalia Grace is six years old and not having a good time with her mother right now,” she said and smiled a little. “I don’t think she’s going to choose the Olympian’s side of the war, unfortunately,” she said. Poseidon closed his eyes. Of course. Zeus had broken the oath. And he left with a potential prophecy child with an unstable mother? As if she wasn’t their future? Fool.

“So you’re choosing the Titans?”

“I have my reasons,” Nemesis told him. “But nevermind that. Let’s talk about you. If we can pick off some of the bigger gods now, it will make it so much easier for little Thalia to trap the rest when she’s older,” she said and then glanced at where Sally stood frozen. “I hear your parents died in a plane crash. Want to help me take down Zeus next?” She asked. “Two mortal lives might not be worth the king of the gods, but let’s be real - those are far from the only lives he’s taken.”

Sally shook her head.

“I - I don’t understand,” she said and looked at where Ruth still had the shotgun raised. “You... you’re helping her?” She asked. Nemesis chuckled.

“Oh, right, I’m so sorry. She deserves a round of applause, doesn’t she? Please, put your hands together for our leading lady... Ruth Nakamura!”

Chapter Text

“Mom?” Percy asked, voice growing concerned as he sat up to place a hand on her leg. “Is this too much for you? We can stop,” he said worriedly. “Are you okay? I-”

Sally grabbed Percy’s hand and squeezed it before turning to give Poseidon an outraged look. 

“You didn’t think I was a good kisser?!”

Percy let go.

“Okay, then,” he muttered. “Just so we’re clear, this is what I meant when I said to remember your audience-”

“I didn’t say bad!” Poseidon objected as Sally seethed. “I did not say-”

“No, you said ‘it wasn’t anything new’. That’s how you described it. Wow.” She said and crossed her arms over her chest. Poseidon nodded. Alright, he could see where he went wrong. To his defense, it had been a while since he needed to be super charming. Maybe he was out of practice.

“I just meant... you know, I have spent thousands of years practicing whereas you were fairly new in comparison,” he said reasonably. Sally narrowed her eyes.

“And what makes you think I thought you were a good kisser?!”

“Paul?” Percy asked, nudging his stepfather. “You’re still cool with this? You want this conversation to continue?” He tried. Paul was too busy putting the tips of his fingers to his chin to really focus on Percy, though.

“Ruth,” he whispered. “How could it be Ruth?! The entire time? It doesn’t make sense!”

“All three of you are killing me here,” Percy groaned. Poseidon held up a hand.

“One moment, Perseus,” he said and refocused on Sally. “Did you not think I was a good kisser?” He asked reasonably. Sally glared. “There you go. Your lack of answer speaks for itself.”

“I am an excellent kisser. Tell him, Paul.”

“Don’t do it, Paul,” Percy chimed in. “Don’t you dare do it.”

“I can’t believe I never saw it coming,” Paul said. “It’s a classic misdirect situation. I just don’t understand the logistics - did she poison herself?”

“WE ALL SAW IT COMING! MOVE ON!” Someone yelled, and Percy jumped. He looked around.

“Wha-? Who are you?!” He yelled and hit the cylinder wall. There was a tap back in response.

“Hi!” Another voice answered. “We’re your neighbors! Ignore Eric. He’s annoying. We didn’t mean to listen, but Lord Poseidon started talking and we got caught up in it. I hope we haven’t offended you, sir,” came an anxious note towards the end. Poseidon shrugged.

“No, you’re welcome to listen,” he said. Percy spluttered.

“I don’t know you!”

“YES, YOU DO! WE JUST MET! I’M ERIC! THE OTHER PERSON TALKING IS JORDAN!”

“Aw, look. You’re making friends,” Sally told Percy lightly and gave him a wicked grin as she nudged him with her foot. Percy shook his head at the wall before pushing her foot away. Sally stuck her tongue at him, and his face immediately softened. “HEY! WHAT KIND OF COOKIES DO YOU TWO LIKE?!”

“REALLY?!?” The first boy’s voice shrieked. “Holy - did you hear that? She’s going to get us cookies! Can we have snickerdoodles?”

“Sure thing, hon,” Sally said, and there was a soft gasp. “Jordan, do you want the same?”

“Mom.”

“Shh, I’m trying to get your friends cookies.”

“I don’t know these people.”

“Can I have chocolate chip?” Jordan asked. Percy pinched the bridge of his nose. Sally laughed.

“I can do that for you,” she said, and there was cheering from the other side of the wall.

“Thank you, miss! I’m sure you’re a great kisser!”

“I can’t believe I lived through two wars only for this to kill me,” Percy muttered. Paul clapped his hand on his shoulder. “You’re useless,” Percy added to him.

“That’s the price of having a beautiful mom.”

“Stop talking to me,” Percy snorted, shoving Paul’s hand off of him. “Okay, can we please find out how you two got away with this?” She asked. Paul laughed and gave Sally a warm smile. Sally returned it with sparkling eyes. Poseidon knew he shouldn’t be bothered by that - but there was maybe a tiny part of him that felt the action was unnecessary. Maybe it was Percy’s casualness with his stepfather or Sally’s clear adoration for the man, but for the first time in possibly hundreds of years... he kind of wished...

Nevermind. He firmly locked the feeling away and lifted a casual hand.

“If we’re done with the kissing discussion…”

“Yes, I was great at it, and you were okay,” Sally said. Poseidon shook his head.

“Fine, we can go with that,” he said. Percy rolled his eyes. “It’s untrue, but sure,” he added under his breath. Sally spluttered. “Anyway, where was I? Ah, yes. The betrayal. Ruth. I believe you are familiar with her son?” He asked, and the previous mood of the room dropped. Percy solemnly looked down for a moment before nodding.

“I thought you said you would protect her son,” Percy said with yet another note of accusation in his eyes. “Ethan could have used that.”

Poseidon considered. Ethan Nakamura had been a... interesting problem for him. He hadn’t completely abandoned the boy. Ethan may not have known it, but Poseidon had led him to camp safely. He had protected him during the Battle of Labyrinth as much as he could, hoping he might switch sides. And in the end, Percy and Ethan had their own relationship filled with getting even and leaving Poseidon to wonder if they could have ever been as good friends as their mothers had once been. In truth, though... there was only so much they could do and...

“I did what I could in the beginning,” Poseidon told him honestly. “But at some point, he became too great of a risk to you, and if I was forced to choose...” he said. Percy’s lips thinned at that, but he didn’t object. “It wasn’t as though I could approach him in person. He would ask too many questions of why and I couldn’t risk anyone remembering your mother,” he added. At that, Percy sighed.

“That makes sense...” he said, though he sounded bitter about it. “Alright, so what happened next?”

“Sally didn’t let me kill them is what happened,” he grumbled. Sally gave him a thumbs up. “Life might have been easier if Nemesis was destroyed into nothing, but no, that was too mean for the girl who shot Eros in the face...”

Years down the road, when Poseidon inevitably told this story to some random demigod or perhaps another mortal who had caught his fancy, he would have to address the following:

‘But Poseidon! Nemesis still exists and is not a pile of ash in Tartarus with the fear of every goddamn awful thing in this universe instilled in her! You clearly have your powers back now! How did you resist the urge not to tear her spine out and snap it in two? How do you resist the urge now?’

The answer was simple, dear future audience: Sally Jackson said please.

And, look, if you had been there and heard the way she had said please, then you would have let Nemesis go too. More on that later, though. 

Currently, he was trying to piece together exactly what was happening.

Nemesis was smiling coyly at them as Sally stood completely still. She turned to where Ruth was still leveling her gun at Poseidon. The ground shook slightly, but Nemesis easily waved it away with a small chuckle. Poseidon’s fingers itched - wanting to yank back his power, but he couldn’t grasp it this far from the water.

“No,” Sally finally said. “No, Ruth - no!” She said and shook her head. Ruth’s expression flickered. It was hard to tell exactly what she was thinking, but Poseidon could sense the guilt before it was shoved back down. “Why would you do this?” Sally asked, still sounding defiant as she stepped out in front of Poseidon between him and the gun. He tensed at the action but firmly reminded himself that the celestial bronze bullets would just go through her anyway.

“Ethan is a demigod, Sally. Her demigod,” Ruth explained with a nod towards Nemesis. “I’m doing this for him. His future. I didn’t think you would get involved,” she explained. “I mean, you were so suspicious of him in the beginning... I was trying to get you two to get along so that Eros would catch him with me, but you two just kept moving towards one another, and I had just to make it work,” she said. Poseidon gritted his teeth.

“You called Eros?” he asked. Ruth shrugged.

“Nemesis did,” she said with a nod towards where the goddess was watching with golden eyes. “She also poisoned me so she could lead you to Circe - and then I took the potion that would have taken us to the other library,” she explained. Poseidon tried to remain impassive as he listened. Stupid. So stupid. A child could have seen through it. He had just been so caught up in thinking he was both the hero and victim in all of this... So caught up in Sally...

“She poisoned you?” Sally asked and shook her head. “How can you side with her after that?”

“I knew she was going to,” Ruth said defensively. “These kinds of things require sacrifice, Sally. You of all people should understand that - even if none of your sacrifices have ever paid off,” she added. Sally flinched away at that. “Come on. Just... stand to the side, okay? We can do the same thing with Zeus. Avenge your parents. Think about Ethan,” she told her softly. “I don’t want him to grow up with these gods. Not when there are better ones-”

“If you think they’re better then Nemesis had lied to you,” Poseidon interrupted softly. Nemesis raised an eyebrow. “And why have you decided to go against us, Nemesis? You and I have never quarreled. Yet you choose me to bring down?”

“I didn’t choose you. I asked Ruth what god she would like to see gone first. The answer was you,” Nemesis shrugged. “Oceanus is considered the most peaceful titan after all. Zeus will simply replace you with him while demigods are sent to look for you. It will be easy enough to catch them and have them join our cause. One by one, we can pick you off,” she said and stepped forward. “And why shouldn’t anyone believe me? I am justice after all.”

“Themis is Justice. You are revenge.”

“Revenge and justice are the same things. One is vilified, and the other isn’t,” Nemesis said sharply. “If you are wronged, then the world should balance that. The gods should balance that. None of you ever do,” she said and shook her head. “You take and you take with no thought to consequences. Even now. How can you claim your innocence when we are standing right next to one more thing you have taken without thought of its true repercussions?” She asked. Poseidon followed her gaze to where Sally was watching with her pen in hand.

“We didn’t-“

“Have a child,” Nemesis finished. “Is that the only thing you care about? As if you did nothing else wrong?” She asked and took a step closer. “It’s easy to trap gods like this,” she said coldly. “You think you’re entitled to so much,” she said and let her whip unravel next to her. “Nevermind that. Let’s make this quick. Before Zeus thinks to look for you,” she said and flicked her whip around. The action was interrupted when a flash of bronze zipped through the air, followed by gold and a burst of light as her hand was sliced off. 

Nemesis froze. Poseidon didn’t blame her for being shocked. A mortal had just be-handed her. Slowly, she turned to where Sally was standing with her sword out.

Nemesis raised her arm and reformed the hand. 

“Ah,” Sally said with a nod. “You, um, seem to recover quickly. That’s good to know,” she said as she stepped back. “Eros... Eros didn’t recover that quickly,” she muttered and bit her lip as she looked with consideration at Nemesis’ face.

“Touch me with that again, and I’ll send an explosion so great that your skin will melt off of your bones,” she whispered. Sally’s eyes widened before narrowing again with fierce determination. Before she could raise the sword once more, Ruth stepped forward and hooked her leg around her ankles, sending Sally sprawling to the ground. Poseidon jerked forward to help her, but paused when Ruth placed her gun defensively in front of Sally.

“She doesn’t know any better,” she said sharply to Nemesis. “We should focus on Poseidon.”

Right. He was going to destroy them both. A little-known fact about Poseidon, he was also the god of droughts. When angered, he would withhold water and watch as civilization slowly dwindled to nothing. There was a certain irony in all of this that the tables had turned, and water was now being kept from him.

It wouldn’t last.

“The moment either of you raises a hand, I will kill you,” he warned. Sally made a noise of objection. It was silenced by Ruth reaching down to grab her elbow and trying to pull her away.

“I - let go of me!” She hissed and kicked at Ruth. “Traitor! This isn’t you!” She said with determination. Poseidon stepped forward to help her but was cut off by Nemesis snapping her whip in front of him. He paused.

“Don’t worry. We’ll keep her safe,” Nemesis said, and from behind her, Sally tried to squirm her way out of Ruth’s grip as they argued. Unfortunately, between the two of them, Ruth had more experience fighting and easily sent her back to the ground. “Well, we’ll try,” Nemesis said dryly. “If you want her back... maybe try to take her,” she said with a wry grin. Poseidon’s eyes flash.

“You must be confident you can win this fight... I will show you no kindness when you lose,” he warned and brought out his trident. Nemesis grinned.

“Kindness isn’t my thing, anyway.”

Poseidon narrowed his eyes and struck. From behind them, Sally and Ruth were still fighting in the background. It... well, it mainly looked to be Ruth trying with varying degrees of success to get Sally to stop moving. Great. He turned his attention back to where Nemesis struck again - sending a blast of energy towards him. He quickly dove away with a small huff of irritation. From behind him, a building shot into flames.

Poseidon tried to pull his powers again, but a stubborn wall sat between them. He inwardly growled before opting to use the powers he still had and threw his hand out, sending a sharp gust of wind towards her. Nemesis jumped in the air, letting it blow her back before landing on the roof of another building. She raised her hand just as a sharp scream caught their attention.

“Ruth?” Nemesis asked sharply, but it was Sally who had cried out, holding her side as Ruth froze - dropping her gun.

“Sally? What happened? Are you-” she began, kneeling next to her only to yelp when Sally whirled around and hit her with a blue water bottle on the ground. Ruth jerked back, gripping a now bleeding nose, only to collapse when Sally took the moment of hesitation to throw a solid punch. Poseidon was honestly a little proud when Ruth crumbled to the ground, unconscious.

“I’m so sorry,” Sally whispered and patted her head. “Your girlfriend is just a massive bitch. We can make up later, okay?” She said and stumbled up. Nemesis’ nostrils flared as she raised her whip. Poseidon pointed his trident at Ruth. Nemesis paused. Her eyes widened slightly, and before Poseidon could use Ruth’s new state to end her, Nemesis threw her hand out. A subtle glow came over Ruth - shielding her. Poseidon gritted her teeth.

“You hurt her, and I’ll ensure your trip to Tartarus is as painful as it could possibly be,” Nemesis hissed with her eyes burning so brightly that he was surprised they didn’t all burst. At least she proved to care about something. “This is between you and me.”

“Fine,” he said and held up his trident. “You don’t hurt Sally, and I won’t hurt Ruth.”

“Fair enough. Like I said, your girlfriend can help me take down Zeus next. She may not be the vengeful type, but I’m pretty sure I can convince her,” she said with a snarky grin.

The ground shook. Poseidon felt a swell of frustration. He could feel his powers trying to come back to him, but there was a strain he couldn’t quite seem to push past. He twirled his trident again, waiting for Nemesis to snap her damned whip once more. When she tried to strike again, he twisted it and yanked so it tangled. Nemesis’ eyes flared as her form flickered again - looking like a thousand years’ worth of enemies before he cracked the ground in half. Nemesis easily jumped to the side like some sort of cat. From behind him, Sally was somewhere doing... something.

“Careful, my lord,” Nemesis said through gritted teeth. “If you don’t keep an eye on your pet, then she could get hurt.”

“As if you’re one to talk,” he snapped back and swung around to try and impale her. She was fast. Fast enough that she was able to dodge and try to tie up his ankles with her whip. He easily stabbed his trident down on the base of it and twisted, tangling it once more so he could step out of her knots. He pulled it hard, yanking the whip out of her hand before raising it to stab her when he suddenly realized Sally had completely disappeared from view.

He paid for the distraction. A blast from Nemesis sent him on the ground and the entire world around them shaking.

“Don’t worry,” Nemesis called. “I’m sure you’ll adjust to Tartarus better than the others!”

Poseidon stood up and clenched his hand, sending another crack in the ground. Nemesis avoided it easily.

“If you talked to me, we could resolve this!” He shouted. “What has persuaded you to join my father’s side of this war?” He asked. Nemesis narrowed her eyes and sent another blast towards him. He dodged, watching as one building behind him exploded into a pile of fire and ruin. “Does revenge mean anything if the person doesn’t know why you seek revenge?” He asked loudly. That got her to pause. For a second, her eyes looked at him with consideration.

“Are you really so blind?” She asked. Poseidon frowned. Blind to what? He thought back to Ruth’s comment on the boat. Was this somehow about the cabins? They could build her a cabin - or was this something bigger? He opened his mouth to ask, but a sharp clinking sound interrupted him. Sally was back - sword out as she flicked the blade around to... disarm her? Poseidon didn’t understand. She had already lost her weapon. Maybe Nemesis had summoned it back? No, all it did was turn Nemesis slightly before Sally quickly moved forward and thrust the sword into her side. Nemesis hissed.

“You little-“ she began, light brightly burning as another blast started readying itself. Poseidon launched himself forward, grabbing Sally before Nemesis’ following explosion could go off. He could feel her hold him tightly in return with a surprising grip. Mortals usually felt fragile. Maybe not always physically, but there was a… something to them that made gods aware of how easy it would be to break them. Strangely enough, Sally didn’t quite feel that way. She felt like holding air. Not fragile, but simply incomprehensible. She leaned forward, touching their foreheads and breathing slowly, eyes closed. It was then that he suddenly realized why she had turned Nemesis as he shielded her from the explosion that shot into the air.

From behind them, the water tower groaned, metal splintering before collapsing altogether, releasing all the water inside.

And all at once, his powers snapped back into place.

The sky whirled as a hurricane circled them, with winds rising and falling precariously as it flew debris around. There was a light as he slammed his hands down. There was a screech as the town flattened, par Mnemosyne’s library, which shuddered but didn’t fall. Nemesis hissed and hit the ground as she tried to stand up. Poseidon glared. 

“Stay,” he told her through gritted and teeth and turned to make sure Sally was alright. She groaned, moving on the ground next to where her water bottle had conveniently landed. She got up and looked around.

“I lost the sword,” she announced and pulled the bottle closer to her. “But I did the twirling thing you taught me with it,” she announced with an insane amount of casualness given recent events... or shock. That could definitely be shock. “Is the sword - hey!” She said as her eyes widened slightly beyond Poseidon. He turned to see Nemesis rising among the debris.

Before Poseidon could decide how he wanted to destroy her, there was a flash of blue and a small splutter as Nemesis jerked back at a sudden collision. The water bottle clattered to the floor as Sally sat up from the ground. Poseidon didn’t waste any time and used his (real) trident to summon the rest of his powers. Nemesis hissed, but it was easy enough to silence her with a wave of his hand. She collapsed to the ground next to Ruth. Sally got back up with a few heavy breaths.

Silence enveloped them. Poseidon slowly turned to look at her with consideration.

“You hit the goddess of revenge in the nose with a water bottle.”

“It was either that or throwing myself at her,” Sally shrugged and looked him over. “What now?” She asked, glancing down at Ruth and Nemesis. “Do we... we can’t just leave them here,” she said slowly. Poseidon’s anger spiked again at the reminder as he turned burning eyes to the pair.

“No. It would be best to prevent such an event from happening again,” he said darkly and raised his trident. There was a soft gasp as Sally suddenly touched his arm - flinging herself in front of him. 

“Don’t hurt them!” She said and put herself directly in front of the trident. Poseidon pursed his lips. “You can’t even kill her,” she added while pointing a finger towards where Nemesis was still trapped under Poseidon’s power on the ground. He clenched his fist, sending her unconscious - or as unconscious as a goddess could be. Sally swallowed.

“I can’t,” he agreed. “But I can burn her essence until she wishes she could die,” he decided. Which, in retrospect, wasn’t a good idea to say in front of someone like Sally. She grabbed the tip of his trident and shoved it down. “Why must you be so brazen?” He muttered with an icy glare towards Nemesis. “And her girlfriend can definitely die,” he added, and let his eyes slip to Ruth. This seemed to be the final straw for Sally.

“NO!” she yelled and grabbed Ruth’s arm, yanking her from the ruins surrounding them. Poseidon raised his hands to where they stood in front of the library - sending the falling debris frozen in the air. “Poseidon... Poseidon, please,” she managed, gripping Ruth tightly. “Don’t... don’t... please... don’t...”

Mortals begged to gods. Poseidon had heard it many times. He had seen women and children and dying men fall to their knees to pray and beg. Sometimes he listened. Other times he didn’t bother. Occasionally, he might listen and still choose to do nothing. There had always been a cold aspect to him. Cruel. He had a streak of pride and felt ready to take Nemesis’ words of justice and revenge to heart.

And yet... Sally had said please. He was pretty sure he had never heard her say it before. Not to him, at least. Not like this. He felt his anger waver.

“You saw what just happened!” He said sharply. “What they-“

“Ethan still needs them,” Sally said. “I... Ruth isn’t bad. She’s confused and maybe wrong, but she’s... she’s not bad. Please.”

Poseidon’s eyes fell to her. Inwardly, he sighed.

“Ruth... perhaps, but Nemesis-“

“Have Mnemosyne wipe her memory too. Please. Please-“

“Stop saying that!” 

“Not if you won’t listen to me!” She told him, and Poseidon had to look away to avoid seeing pleading eyes.  

“She disrespects my brothers and me! Her actions are treason, and you expect me to allow her to roam? To not tell them that our father already plots our destruction even when he hasn’t yet stirred in Tartarus?” He demanded. Sally didn’t move. “Sally, this is an easy out for us. Not only will she be properly punished, but we can say this entire thing between us was her work. We can say nothing ever happened between us and move on-”

“You want us to lie and pin it on her?” Sally asked. Poseidon sighed. “I won’t do that. I - please,” she said when Poseidon moved again. She held up a hand to keep him from moving in on Nemesis. “You can’t really be that harsh, can you?” She asked. Poseidon stared. It felt like such a naïve question. Poseidon could be very harsh. Cruel, even. He had demanded human sacrifices, crushed disrespectful humans, flooded civilizations - Hell, he helped Zeus kill almost all the humans one time. All the gods were known to have a streak of vindictive pride and ruthlessness... he wasn’t exempt from it. In some ways, he was worse than most.  

Sally knew enough... she must understand that on some level, right? 

“She cannot be allowed to help my father rise to power once more.” 

“How do you know she will? If Mnemosyne wiped her memory like I said- Poseidon!” She said quickly when he moved again. “You’ve offered me so many things since we’ve met... all I’m asking for is this. If you are to give me only one thing in this life, please let it be this. Don’t hurt them. I don’t have much left in terms of family, but Ruth... Ruth is one of them. And if Ruth cares about Nemesis, then I can’t let you hurt her either. I know I can’t understand the gravity of what they’ve done, but... please.” 

“Stop begging,” he muttered. He hated it. It felt unnatural and made him feel like.... well, a little like a god. Sally hadn’t treated him like a god before. He decided he didn’t like it. Let others bow down at his feet. Not her. “...fine,” he said distastefully. “You have my word I won’t kill Ruth... or harm Nemesis,” he said bitterly. “But her memory must be repressed. She cannot know she chose the titans side in this rising war.” 

It would be a problem. Poseidon couldn’t say he was certain why Nemesis turned against him. Not completely. She gave hints, but Poseidon wasn’t entirely sure, and it wasn’t like he could warn anyone... He shook his head as Sally relaxed, lowering her hand as she turned to look down at Ruth. She knelt to press a hand gently to her forehead before heaving her up. Poseidon flicked his wrist so Nemesis floated up towards them. He looked around. His powers probably alerted most of Olympus where he was. They would need to hurry. 

Trying not to acknowledge the rising trepidation, he helped Sally hold up Ruth and walked towards the one remaining structure left in this little area of the desert.

Inside the old building was, in fact, a grand library. Sally gave a small gasp at the sight of it. It had golden columns on either side, with bookshelves disappearing high into the ceiling and paper cranes fluttering about. In the center was a small pool of water with images fluttering over it like a movie reel. A woman sat in the middle of if it, fingers lightly skimming the surface.

“I was wondering if perhaps you decided not to come after all,” she said and looked up at them. Black curls were piled up on the back of her head, making her look slightly taller as she stood up with her eyes flicking between a warm brown to pure white. “You should do better to remember appointments in the future, nephew,” she told him and stepped out of the pool.

“Mnemosyne,” he greeted politely. “I should not be surprised you expected us. Am I right to assume you know why we are here?” He asked and gently placed Ruth down on a plush couch to their right. Mnemosyne hummed. She studied him for a moment before turning to look at Sally and took a step closer. Sally tensed but didn’t react. “I was hoping for your help. You must know we’re innocent.”

“Is that the right word to use with all the chaos you’ve caused?” She asked simply. Poseidon inwardly sighed. Yeah. That seemed to be a common response to that claim. Mnemosyne looked down at Sally and put a hand on her shoulder. “So,” she said and looked at her another few seconds before continuing. “You’re the mortal all the fuss has been about.”

Sally jutted out her chin.

“You’re the titan who is supposed to help us.”

Mnemosyne’s eyes narrowed.

“I’m not supposed to do anything, little mortal. I can help. I might help. Perhaps concern yourself with what I will do,” she said loftily. Sally took a long breath. Poseidon could feel her agitation rise almost instantly. “And why should I help you?” Mnemosyne asked as she spun and turned back to walk down the corridor of books. From above them, the ceiling was changing channels like a television screen - memories of strangers whirling sharply over it. “You blew up a beach, intervened in a demigod’s fight, ran from the gods, let yourself be tricked and played like a fool, and did the one thing you knew better than to do.”

Poseidon swallowed.

“I know I have-”

“I was not talking to you, Poseidon,” Mnemosyne told him and turned to grab a book from the shelf. She blew some dust off of it and came back to hold it out to Sally. “The world of Greek mythology may be new to you, mortal, but your own life should have guided you better than this... or have you forgotten?” She asked and let go of the book. It didn’t fall. It simply floated in front of them, flicking open to the first page. Sally cringed away. “Humans are often fifty-fifty when it comes to learning from their mistakes,” Mnemosyne continued and flipped another page. “Did you somehow forget your life until this moment?” She asked. Poseidon scowled.

“Does she run from gods often?” He asked sarcastically. Mnemosyne ignored him. “You can’t blame her. She-“

“Try not to forget yourself,” came the terse interruption. “I appreciate good memory, little mortal. It is a shame you don’t seem to have it,” she told her. Sally stiffened. Poseidon couldn’t quite see the book from his place next to her - he got the feeling that only Sally herself could really access whatever memories were in there - but his guess was that Mnemosyne hadn’t picked the volume of hot chocolate and sleepovers.

Slowly, Sally raised her eyes back up.

“I have great memory,” she said simply, and reached over to calmly close the book. “And I don’t need you to tell me that sometimes I make decisions that cause me pain. I will continue to make them. As long as they remain the right thing to do.”

Mnemosyne raised an eyebrow.

“Tell me, mortal, was this little quest of yours the right thing to do?”

“Sally.”

“Excuse me?”

“My name is Sally Jackson,” she told him and jutted out her chin. “I trust you can remember that.”

...well, that was done. It was a reasonable effort. A shame they came all this way only for Mnemosyne to refuse them, but Poseidon might just hide Sally at the bottom of the ocean instead. He waited for his aunt to try and maybe turn her into a toad or something, but Mnemosyne only studied her before flicking her hand. The book disappeared in a puff of smoke.

“If I were to agree to your request,” she said and crossed her arms over her chest. “I wouldn’t just stop at the gods,” she said. Poseidon frowned. Who else? Sally herself? Mnemosyne turned back to her pool behind her and touched the water, so it flickered with color. “I cannot completely erase it all. Merely repress it. They may remember given the right trigger - the trigger being you, of course,” she said. “If any god were to see your face, then the memories may come to the surface,” she explained. Okay. Fair enough. Poseidon felt fairly positive they could avoid that until at least Sally’s life had passed. “And your... friend,” she added with a nod towards Ruth. “Her too.”

Ah. 

“Her too?” Sally repeated. “What do you mean? She can’t forget this. Her son is a demigod. She can’t just forget that-“

“Not what I meant, Sally Jackson,” Mnemosyne interrupted. “She will remember her son. She will not remember you.” 

Poseidon grimaced. He should have seen that coming. 

“You... you mean, she won’t remember this trip? Or that she turned against the gods?”

“No. I mean, she won’t remember you,” Mnemosyne told her. “If that’s what you choose, of course,” she said. Poseidon cleared his throat. Mnemosyne glanced at him. “You may spoil her, my lord, but I will not,” she said simply. “Choices like these stay in our memories. I would not be doing my job if I made this easy,” she said and circled back around her pool to stand in front of Sally once more. “So let’s see if you continue your pattern of past decisions,” she told her calmly. “Ruth Nakamura cannot be allowed to remember both you and Nemesis. It risks too much. The balance of things is... important with a war on the horizon,” she said with a quick glance at Poseidon. “So, she may remember Nemesis and her demigod son... or she can remember you.”

“Sally,” Poseidon said suddenly. “Don’t let her scare you. I can take the child directly to Camp Half-Blood. His life will not be endangered because of these games,” he said with a withering look at his aunt. Sally didn’t answer. “And how would you ensure they do not team up again?” He added to Mnemosyne. 

Mnemosyne walked to Nemesis and calmly pressed a finger to her forehead.

“I can alter a bit... only a bit... Nemesis is a child of Nyx. Do not mistake her for something weak and easily controlled,” Mnemosyne warned. “For now, I can convince her she is on your side. However, she may still choose to stand against the Olympians in the future. Maybe she will even bring her son with her,” she said and stood up. Nemesis rippled for a moment - and then disappeared. “Have you thought over your decision, Sally Jackson?” She asked, saying the name almost as a taunt.

“I...” Sally began and shrunk a bit, hunching her shoulders. “But... I... I don’t have anyone else,” Sally whispered. Poseidon wanted to object. He wanted to insist she had him, and he had no intention of going anywhere, but it would be a vicious lie at best. He couldn’t be there. Not with her. Not after this. Not if he wanted to keep her alive. Nobody spoke. “Fine,” she said bitterly. Mnemosyne tilted her head. “Let her remember them.”

“Sally-”

“Ethan doesn’t have anyone else either,” Sally interrupted. “And I’m sure that camp of yours is great, but... he needs his mom. At least one of them,” she sighed. “I can make my own way. I’ll be okay,” she smiled weakly. Mnemosyne silently went over and touched Ruth’s head without any theatrics. Poseidon wanted to snap her finger off at the sight of it. “Does this mean you’re helping us?” she asked, turning back to Mnemosyne. She didn’t seem alarmed when Ruth also rippled out of existence. Poseidon figured she knew her friend would be delivered back home. The mist would work to do the rest.

Poseidon watched as his aunt stood up once more. She hadn’t decided yet. He wasn’t sure how he knew, but he could feel her indecision hanging in the air as she watched them with cautious eyes. There was something she was thinking that Poseidon felt he was missing. From outside, there was a burst of thunder. Zeus. Poseidon felt his anxiety rise slightly at the sound of it. Mnemosyne’s eyes flickered towards the door.

“Very well,” she said, and Poseidon felt a surge of relief wash over him. Then Mnemosyne raised her hands. “On one condition.”

Oh no.

“Yes?” He asked, narrowing his eyes. Mnemosyne offered a wry smile.

“There will be one god who will remember this event outside of the two of you,” she said. Poseidon frowned.

“Who? Eros?” He asked. It seemed a bit moot if Eros remembered. They would just have to go through this whole thing again. Mnemosyne shrugged.

“Perhaps. Or perhaps it will be Zeus or someone else. I will let the fates decide,” she said and crossed her arms. “That way, I am sure that if you two are destined to be punished for this... you will be,” she said simply. “Perhaps they will allow someone docile to remember. Maybe Hermes will live the reminder you tried to help his son,” she said with a nod towards Sally. Poseidon paused. He knew that other gods were probably listening - hearing rumors of their misdeeds, but he hadn’t been paying much mind to them to consider it. 

“It’s risky,” Poseidon said slowly. “Let us choose who remembers if this is your price.”

“I must let the fates decide,” Mnemosyne argued. “Or what is the point of letting anyone remember at all?”

“Then don’t let anyone remember-”

“I’ll take that deal,” Sally interrupted. “Let one of them remember. I can leave a bit of this to fate,” he said and turned to Poseidon. “Can we do it that way? Please?”

Please. Her and that word again. It was driving him insane.

“If... that’s what you want,” he said and tried not to show his concern too much. “Are you sure?” he asked her. Sally’s answer was a smile before giving Mnemosyne a nod. Poseidon swallowed. He didn’t like this at all, but it was Sally’s life on the line. He supposed she should be the one to decide what risks to take with it. A small part of him whispered that this might be his least favorite part in knowing Sally Jackson. Ultimately, she was someone who made her own decisions and did not wish for anyone to intervene. There was no greater Hell for a god than to be told not to intervene when they wanted.

“It is done.”

“What?” Sally asked, spinning around. “You... you did it already? Just like that?” She asked. Mnemosyne ignored her. “Um, miss? Are you sure you did it right?” She asked and turned back to Poseidon. “Did she really do it?” She whispered. Poseidon smiled. His aunt’s power was great - but she had never been one for the drama that some others were.

“I believe she did,” he told her and watched as Mnemosyne retreated to her pool, skimming her fingers over the water once more. “We should go. No sense in upsetting her when we just got our way,” he said and reached down to grab Sally’s hand and lead her out of the library. Sally followed, looking a little dazed as they stepped back out through the doors into the blistering heat. Poseidon glanced up at the sky. Silence. Not a storm cloud in sight. Sally cleared her throat.

“I suppose I should give this back,” she said and knelt to pick up her sword from the ground and hand it to him. “You can keep the pen,” she smiled warmly. “As a parting gift.”

“I’m honored,” Poseidon told her and accepted the sword. “Though I think you will probably see it again,” he mused. Sally raised an eyebrow. “Anaklusmos is named after the riptide of the sea. It is said always to come back to whoever wields it,” he said, regarding the sword thoughtfully. “Usually, for a demigod, it might just appear back in one’s pocket, but for you... who knows?” he shrugged and capped the sword. “I should give it to Chiron. Maybe he’ll find someone with worthy spirit to guide it.”

“Chiron...” Sally repeated and shook her head. “I want to ask about him too. I guess I’m out of time,” she said with a sad smile. Poseidon’s smile flickered. He looked back at the library and then swallowed. “What?”

“I... have one last gift to offer you,” he said slowly and forced himself to be the god he was. Sally blinked. “Mnemosyne is the only one powerful enough to repress a god’s memory - or daresay many gods - but I have the power to do the same to mortals,” he explained. Sally’s lips parted. “It is only fair,” he said quickly. “I would not be offended if you wish to forget me or all you’ve seen. You could live your life without this knowledge. It would be simpler and safer for you. In fact, I encourage it,” he said with a nod. Then waited.

“I... think you misunderstood me,” Sally finally said. Poseidon tilted his head. “When I turned you down with Atlantis.”

“I understood,” he said. “You must live your life. Living at the bottom of the ocean would hinder that.” 

Sally smiled.

“Exactly,” she agreed and put her hand on his arm. “But these past couple months? I’ve probably got to do more living than I have in a while. Just because I’m not finished yet doesn’t mean I want to forget any of it... or you,” she said and looked away. “I don’t want to forget you.”

Poseidon didn’t want to forget her either... and as cruel as the fates were... he knew he wouldn’t. He would remember her long after she was gone and until the sun swallowed the planet whole.

“Then you won’t,” he said and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “You know,” he told her, gesturing to the scrapes scattering his arms and torn clothes. “You’re covered in blood. Pretty sure that means I’m allowed to kiss you again,” he informed her solemnly. Sally looked down and then laughed. Before he could join her, she moved forward to kiss him first. 

...he knew that ‘no pretty mortals’ rule was absolute nonsense.

Trying not to feel a thing, he kissed her back, using a little of his power to heal her before she noticed. Not that she would object (probably... she truly was an odd one), but it would make the next part easier if she was distracted.

When he opened his eyes, she was gone. Back in her apartment. Back in Manhattan. He stood there for a moment.

It felt... strange. Over too quickly. Then again, for a god, most things were. He looked over at the desecrated town and waved his hand, righting everything to how it was before. Then, without a second glance, he snapped his fingers and went back to Atlantis.

There was probably a good ten seconds of silence before anyone responded.

“Wait. That’s it?” Percy asked. “... but how was I born? You know, since you two did such an outstanding job not breaking that oath,” Percy said, looking mildly unimpressed and simultaneously baffled. Poseidon looked at him. “Sorry,” he added. Paul gasped.

“Oh my god,” he said. “You were a magic baby conceived out of true love!” he yelled and hit the table. Percy stared.

“No, I wasn’t,” he spluttered. “What kind of logic is that?”

“Um, he’s a god. That’s a very reasonable-“

“True love?” Percy argued. “Why would you even want that to be the answer? You married my mom!” He argued. Paul shrugged.

“You can have two true loves.”

“What fairy tale did you get that from?” Percy asked in disgust. “Fine. Maybe you can have two true loves, but you don’t get a baby from one! That isn’t how true love works.”

“Sorry, I didn’t realize being Annabeth Chase’s boyfriend made you an expert on true love,” Paul shot back. Percy went bright red for a moment before fixing him with a fierce glare and pointing a finger at him.

“I just think for an English teacher you should be more knowledgeable-”

“Are you seriously questioning my teaching credentials right now?”

“I’m just saying I’m not a true love baby! That’s total - wait, was I?” he interrupted himself when Sally snorted. She looked at Poseidon. Simultaneously, they answered:

“Yes.”

Percy’s eyes widened - momentarily stunned until Sally’s laughter filled the room.

“Mom!” he complained. “Come on, let me know what happened - well, reasonably what happened,” he amended and then glared at Paul. “True love baby... stupid,” he muttered and dodged his stepfather lightly aiming a kick at his leg. Poseidon considered. He supposed he should reveal how they actually broke the law - now that it was well-established, they hadn’t. Sally raised her hand.

“I can tell this part!” She said. Percy looked at her suspiciously. “I will keep it very PG,” she promised, and Percy gave an approving nod. Her eyes moved to Poseidon, brow raising slightly as she waited. He grinned at her, giving a slight gesture for her to go ahead.

“You won’t tell it as well as me.”

“You’re an unreliable narrator,” she shot back and then started talking before Poseidon could object to that. “So, we last saw one another at the beginning of August. I avoided the beach for a while after that. I thought it was safer that way. You know, let things blow over and digest what happened. Then September came and went, and I started getting a little antsy. October wasn’t much better...”

It was sometime in mid-November when it happened.

Sally thought she was doing a fine job adjusting to her life being flipped inside and out and thrown into a blender of Greek mythology. It was fine. Everything was fine. Overwhelming, yes, but not the ‘on-the-run-from-the-gods’ kind of overwhelming.

And, look, Sally had gotten her life together these past few months. She got a job as a waitress in that fancy place downtown. She was making friends... hopefully, friends that no connections to any gods. She was writing again! Maybe this time, she could finish a decent idea and turn it into a book. All good stuff. Perhaps if she kept this up, she could go back to school. It was all good. Normal. It was what she wanted.

Which was... why it was a little confusing that she found herself back in Montauk.

Actually, no. No, it wasn’t. She could still go to the beach! What? Was she supposed to spend the rest of her life avoiding the ocean because of one little misunderstanding that changed her entire worldview? That would be ridiculous. She could go back to her cabin and... you know. Exist.

And so what if she looked out towards the ocean? She was just noticing how beautiful it was - well, you know, the... the ocean as a... as a sort of non-anthropomorphic entity. Not as - you know what? Nevermind. She could sit and enjoy the smell of the sea. The weather was cooling rapidly, but she could still maybe pretend it was summer. Lay out in the sand and try not to notice the water nipping at her feet.

“Ma’am?”

Sally’s eyes flicked open to find a man standing beside her with an apologetic smile. She sat up, offering a smile of her own as she looked around the beach. The day was overcast, with little to no people taking up the usually crowded beach.

“Sorry,” the man told her. It was then she noticed the red lifeguard shirt. “I just wanted to let you know we’re closing down the beach for today. There was a shark sighting.”

“Really? In November?” She asked, trying to remember where sharks tended to be in November. Probably somewhere with warmer water. Sally didn’t blame them. She wouldn’t mind heading down to Florida for a few months. The man shrugged. “Oh, well, thanks for telling me. I’m right over there, so I can just head inside,” she told him. The man smiled warmly at her, offering her a hand up. “Oh, thanks,” she laughed.

“No problem. Is this your normal residence or just somewhere you stay when you’re bored?” He asked, looking admiringly. Sally laughed.

“The latter, but don’t think that means you can come by and rob me. I’m still broke,” she told him, reaching down to grab her bag. “I should probably sell it. It would make my rent easier,” she admitted as she glanced back at the cabin with a sigh.

“Sentimental value?”

“It was my grandmother’s cabin,” she admitted, rubbing the back of her neck. “She gave it to my father, and then when he died, my uncle got it, and when he died, I got it,” she explained. “I always figured if I had any kids, I might give it to them, but...” she bit her lip. Kids didn’t particularly seem reasonable for someone who could barely afford to pay her electricity bill. She flushed, realizing she had just massively overshared. “I am so sorry-” she began, turning to the man. He waved her off.

“No! I’ve always wondered - um, I mean, I’ve seen you here a lot,” he told her with a bashful shrug and pointed to the empty lifeguard stand. “Because of my job! Obviously, not... not in a creepy way,” he flushed. Sally grinned at him. “I’m Jake.”

“Sally,” she said and held up a hand. “I thought lifeguarding was a seasonal job?”

“It is,” Jake admitted. “They usually just call us in every so often for things like shark sightings to get people off the beaches while the coast guard handles the important stuff,” he said. Sally’s stomach twisted - thinking of Ruth. “Normally, I work at-” he started, but paused when he glanced behind Sally. She turned to see what looked to be a couple of teenagers dragging fireworks out. “Oh, God. I need to take care of that,” he said and placed a light hand on her arm. “We should talk again if you’re still around,” he smiled at her. Sally nodded.

Sure. Why not? He was nice and seemed fairly intelligent and-

“He was cute.”

Damnit.

Sally turned. Jake had been cute. However, he didn’t have soft green eyes and messy black hair, and - well, he didn’t look like the man standing in front of her. There was a beat of silence as she looked at him.

“Hi,” she said, and the wind picked up slightly, sending her hair flying every which way. “I… you’re here,” she decided. Poseidon swallowed. He was. He shouldn’t be… but he was. She didn’t want to say that, though. A selfish voice whispered that if she said that, he might leave again.

“I’m here.”

“You’re here,” she agreed, almost breathlessly. Then jumped to her senses. “Why are you here?”

“Why are you here?”

“My cabin. Your turn.”

“My beach.”

“I’m no expert,” Sally said, crossing her arms over her chest. “But I believe you have other beaches.”

Poseidon smiled. There was something about it that she couldn’t quite read.

“Very true,” he agreed and turned away. Sally opened her mouth - wanting to object. That had been too harsh.... right? No. They needed to stay away. Was she insane? That was what had gotten her into this mess. Why would she want to go through the whole thing again? Before she could sort through any of this, he was gone. Almost as if he had never been there to begin with.

“Okay,” she said to the empty beach. “That... good,” she said and spun back towards her cabin. Good. Great. Fine. Maybe she should just go back to the city. It was safer.

She didn’t, though. She stayed another day. Hell, she even called her boss to give her shift up. Why? Because she was an idiot. Part of her argued that she just wanted some time to herself to write, but... that didn’t stop her from thinking Poseidon’s name when she tried talking to Jake again.

“I don’t understand,” he said, making her jump. He sounded annoyed. She turned to find him behind her, leaning on his trident with a casualness no god should have. His eyes were fixed on the lifeguard stand. “Have you taken to summoning me here for your amusement?” He asked. Sally blinked - a little caught off-guard by his sudden appearance, but also taken aback by the words.

“Summon you? I haven’t summoned you,” she objected. Poseidon raised an eyebrow. She felt a stab of annoyance at how... well... godly he was, which wasn’t fair. Not really. He was a god. How could she be irritated by something he just was? That wasn’t fair. “Did I summon you?” She asked.

“You called my name. On a beach.”

Oh.

“I just happened to think your name because I am on a beach.”

“I’ve killed people for bothering me over much less,” he said dryly and sighed, eyes flicking out to the sea. Sally felt a stab of irritation herself.

“I didn’t know I was bothering you,” she shot back and snapped her towel up from the sand. “But if you want to kill me over it, then at least wait until Jake is off duty,” she told him, already feeling a smidge of guilt at the idea of bringing some innocent mortal into this Greek nonsense. Despite her years at Montauk, he might be the only friend she had here.

“Oh, I wouldn’t want to inconvenience your mortal friend,” he said, and Sally threw up her hands.

“What’s that supposed to - stop doing that!” She shouted when he disappeared again. “Oh, you - you!” She yelled at the water and gave a small scream of frustration before marching back to the cabin. She turned to glower back at the waves. “I thought immortals were supposed to be mature!” She shouted, which was a really dumb thing to yell, considering she wasn’t supposed to know about immortals.

Muttering to herself, she kicked the door closed. Why did he make her so crazy?

And guess what? She stayed a third day.

Perhaps it was time she should start being honest with herself.

“I’m sorry,” she said, dipping her feet into the water from where she had ventured out to the end of the dock. “I shouldn’t have lost my temper. I’ll stop bothering you. I just need to pack my stuff. I’ve been thinking it’s time for me to maybe sell the cabin, anyway. I need the money. Maybe I could move away from New York. Start somewhere new and... landlocked,” she sighed. “I get the feeling if I stay that I’ll just keep getting drawn back here. I shouldn’t be surprised gods have that ability to just... reel you in,” she said with a light laugh.

The wind blew, and she already knew he was next to her.

“You should be careful. Other gods might overhear you.”

Sally smiled and pulled her feet from the water.

“Yeah, I know,” she said and turned to face him. “I just wanted to say goodbye.”

It was hard to read his expressions. They always seemed to shift and move, but she tried her best. He might have been accepting or distraught by the information. Probably accepting. After all, she was just a mortal. Whatever she made in her life... it would always pale compared to whatever greatness divine forces were made of.

“If that’s what you want,” he finally said and offered a sad smile. “Any last questions?”

“A couple,” she laughed and leaned back on her elbows to soak up what little sun had peeked out through the clouds. “This isn’t meant to imply anything,” she added. Poseidon tilted his head. “It just crossed my mind the other day, and I got genuinely curious,” she told him. “You said before that birth control doesn’t work on gods because of godly mojo or whatever,” she said. Poseidon nodded.

“Those rules don’t really apply to us. Hermes and Apollo slept with the same woman on the same day, and she ended up boring both their children,” he said... which was horrifying on a few different levels, but Sally couldn’t find the nerve to ask for details on why and how that had happened.

“But can’t like... Aphrodite or Hera make godly birth control?” She asked. “I mean, you must have something otherwise there would be way more gods, right?” She asked. It seemed hard to believe no new gods came into existence between ancient Greece and now. Poseidon snorted.

“Aphrodite can affect fertility, so to an extent... yes. She does so with gods, often to avoid painful deaths,” he said. Sally frowned. “Gods fade if they are not worshipped or remembered. Any recent children born wouldn’t be remembered; therefore, their lifespan would be incredibly short unless they did something spectacular in the mortals’ eyes,” he explained. Oh. That was horrible. “But she doesn’t dare use it very often on mortals unless they anger her. She’s trying her best to avoid Hera’s wrath... as we all are,” he mused.

That made sense. Hera probably wouldn’t want to give Zeus license to go about and have sex with mortals without consequences.

“I guess,” she frowned. “It just... doesn’t seem reasonable. You guys could avoid that whole prophecy if you worked that out.”

“We really can be a petty bunch,” he said wisely. Sally chuckled. Then inwardly sighed. Part of her wondered if she should have let Poseidon erase her memory. Maybe she could ask now. She turned to look at him - maybe to ask specifically that - but when she opened her mouth, she said:

“Stay.”

Poseidon didn’t even hesitate.

“For how long?”

Sally reached over and absently let her hand fall to his face.

“For however long now lasts.”

And for the first time in her life... She wasn’t sure she minded being a criminal.

Sally didn’t see Poseidon for another year after that... which might have been considered a success if... well... you know.

“I thought you might drop by,” she yawned, waking up to the smell of the sea... which was unusual for a tiny little apartment in Manhattan. She smiled a little into her pillow and sat up, letting her hair fall from where it had been thrown up in a loose ponytail. From beside her, a bundle stirred. “I’m assuming you’re here to meet your son?”

“I fear to learn what you’ve named him.”

Sally laughed and blinked the sleep away to find Poseidon at the foot of the bed - glowing faintly. It was hard to describe a god accurately. There were never quite the right words, much to her frustration, though her quest to find them seemed never-ending. Poseidon offered her a small smile of greeting before letting his eyes fall to where the bundle shifted again, babbling.

“I told you what I’d name him. Perseus,” she shrugged and scooped up her son, looking down with adoration. “I wouldn’t worry too much, though. In about twenty years, nobody will even remember your brother’s Perseus,” she told him. Percy blinked large eyes at her - giving a big yawn as he looked around.

“Ah. A true dream of mine,” Poseidon said, and when she opened her eyes, he was next to her, peering down at Percy cautiously. Percy froze at the sight of him. They stared at one another for a moment, both looking skeptical of the other. Finally, Percy reached a tiny hand out and touched his face. Poseidon’s expression softened. “Mortal babies are very strange,” he said with a note of amusement.

“Want to hold him?” She asked and then handed him off before Poseidon could answer.

“I will get my smell on him,” Poseidon warned. Sally ignored him. She had it covered. Somehow. Someway. She would figure something out, for that became more of a problem. Percy fidgeted a bit, turning his head slightly to make sure Sally was still there before accepting the fact this stranger was holding him. Then he started babbling about whatever he talked about in baby-talk.

“He has strong opinions,” Sally told Poseidon as Percy kept on going.

“You don’t need to convince me he is your child,” Poseidon said solemnly. Sally rolled her eyes. “He seems... healthy,” he added after a couple of moments. Sally almost laughed. Well, that was true, she supposed. She held out her arms, and Poseidon handed him back. A few more minutes of silence passed as Poseidon watched her rock him back and forth until Percy had quieted down enough for her to look back up.

“What?”

“I am so sorry,” he said suddenly. Sally frowned. “My wrongdoing has hindered your life. I should have never-”

“Excuse me?” Sally cut him off. Poseidon fell silent. “Your what?” She asked him. Poseidon sighed.

“Is there nothing I can say that will not enrage you?” He asked, though there was a touch of fondness underneath the exasperation. Sally spluttered.

“You just called my son a wrongdoing. Forgive me for taking offense,” she said and shook her head.

“We broke the law. What would you call him?”

“I told you. I call him my son,” she said coldly and shook her head. “I expect you to do the same,” she added and went back to Percy. “He didn’t mean it,” she cooed to the baby. “Sometimes gods forget themselves,” she whispered. Percy giggled, and Sally couldn’t help but laugh back before redirecting her attention back to Poseidon. “Look, I hadn’t planned on a demigod child in the beginning, but we both knew what would happen if you stayed with me on that beach. I can still live my life perfectly fine. Maybe even better,” she admitted. Poseidon brushed a hand over her cheek.

“Better?”

“I... it might be selfish,” she admitted quietly. “But I wanted to keep some piece of you,” she sighed and then narrowed her eyes. “Don’t let that go to your head. Besides, after Ruth... it’s just nice to have somebody. I’m going to do right by him,” she said. Poseidon pursed his lips.

“Demigods rarely get happy endings.”

“Mine will,” she said firmly. “Perseus in the stories got a happy ending. This one will too,” she said. Percy gave a bright coo of agreement. “I can do this.”

“I believe that,” Poseidon said and stared down at Percy with thoughtful eyes. “Perhaps if Thalia Grace is the prophecy child, then he will live a quiet life... for a demigod,” he mused. Sally doubted that, but the thought was so nice that she didn’t dispute it.

“Thank you,” she said quietly. “For giving him to me.”

“I think you did more work in that regard,” he said. Sally grinned. That was definitely true. “I don’t regret it,” he added quietly. “Any of it.”

Sally looked up at him with consideration.

“I don’t either,” she said and bit her lip. “You’re not going to be able to come back, are you?” she asked and then laughed. “For real this time?”

He offered a sad smile before nodding, leaning over to kiss the side of her head.

“You’re a queen among women, Sally Jackson,” he said quietly. “I thought I had met every kind of mortal there was... I thought I had met one like you before. The truth is, I don’t think I’ve met a mortal like you in over a thousand years.”

It was flattering, sure. Sally still wished it didn’t have to be their parting words.

“You can tell him that when you meet again,” she said with a nod towards where Percy had settled into sleep once again. “Not the wrongdoing part.”

He chuckled before giving a slight nod and looking down at Percy.

“He will be the best of us.”

Sally wouldn’t argue with that. She felt the bed beside her shift and immediately reached out before he could vanish into thin air again. Poseidon froze - eyes trailing over her as he waited. The words caught in her throat for a moment, an unexpected wave of emotion trampling her before she could speak.

“I...guess we did end up star-crossed lovers, huh?” She asked, voice coming out quiet and almost a little defeated. “And I know I said I wouldn’t say it, but... At least for now, you’re the love of my life. And if I could, I would spend my life with you.”

For a second, she wondered if he would offer Atlantis again, but dismissed it as his eyes softened. He understood what she really meant. It was never an issue of opportunity with them. Not really. Only of how she wanted to live her life versus the only life Poseidon could give her.

“Well,” he said and leaned over to kiss her before pulling away. “We must have broken both of our promises because I’m a thousand-year-old god who was foolish enough to actually fall in love with you. And even though I’ve been mortal before that, you’re the only thing in this universe that actually made me feel human.”

Sally’s heart fluttered. When she looked up again, he was gone, taking the smell of the sea with him. Left on the bed was blue and gold dress. The one from Circe’s island. Sally laughed at the sight of it. It softened the blow of being left once again.

This time, though... She didn’t feel nearly as alone. 

“And that was the last time I saw him,” Sally told the room. “Well, until your birthday, of course,” she added to Percy, shaking her head a little. That had caught her off-guard. Seeing Poseidon so suddenly after all that time had been... a little... well, look. It wasn’t just seeing a random god pop up, but also the feeling of your past suddenly slamming in your face. It made you a little shaken.

A beat of silence followed.

“I met Sally at a writing seminar,” Paul finally said. “No oath or law-breaking, but we did sneak extra desserts from the cafeteria.”

“Goode’s cafeteria?” Percy asked. Paul nodded. “With Mrs. Stein?” He nodded again. “...of the two ways to meet someone, that might have been more dangerous,” he told the room stoically. Sally laughed. “Wow... that... I did not realize it went like that,” he said, running his hand through his hair. “Just... casually on the run from the gods.”

“Yeah,” someone said. “That was amazing.”

Percy paused, turning to the doorway to see a random boy standing with his bag.

“Um, hi? Are you Eric or Jordan?” He asked. The boy flushed.

“Right. Um, No. I’m Norman. Your roommate. You’re Percy Jackson, right?” He asked, looking a little nervous as he scrutinized Percy. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“None of it is true,” Percy said with a small wave. “Sorry, let me move some of my stuff out of the way-”

“No! No, it’s fine!” Norman squeaked, and it was then that Sally realized Percy probably wasn’t the main reason he was so stressed. His eyes kept flicking to where Poseidon was still regally sitting in Percy’s desk chair - glowing slightly with godly power. “Um, Lord Neptune, sir-”

“Poseidon at the moment,” he corrected. Norman stuttered out more apologies. “I sensed you were outside the whole time. Did you enjoy the story as well?”

Now he was just being mean.

“I didn’t want to intrude!”

“Nonsense,” Poseidon said, eyes sparkling. “I hoped we entertained you and the others,” he said, and Sally frowned. Percy blinked.

“Others?” He repeated, echoing Sally’s thoughts, and walked towards the doorway. There was a pause. “Who are you people?” He demanded and there was the sound of a scattering crowd outside. “Were you all out here the entire- nevermind,” he decided and marched back inside. “You knew they were there?”

“I’m a god. It attracts people,” Poseidon answered. Percy blinked a few times - looking all the world like he wanted to respond to that before instead just turning to his roommate.

“Do you need help unpacking?”

“Oh, I couldn’t impose,” Norman laughed. Poor thing was white as a sheet. Percy glanced over at where Poseidon was still sitting and gave him a pointed look. Poseidon only smiled back... Probably enjoying this poor child’s suffering. 

Sally watched Poseidon and Percy stare at one another, clearly having some sort of silent conversation. She couldn’t make out Poseidon’s expression, but Percy’s looked somewhere between annoyed and downright vengeful. Poseidon narrowed his eyes.

“Well,” he finally said. “That is the story-”

“He called me a wrongdoing to my face the first time we met,” Percy said. Sally paused. Norman choked. “Do you want to check out the dining pavilion real quick? They’ll be gone soon, and then you can unpack in peace,” he added to Norman. Poseidon glowed slightly.

“Perseus-”

“When he was twelve?” Sally interrupted. Poseidon closed his eyes. The glowing paused. “The first time you met him was when he was twelve, right? You told him that when he was twelve?” She asked, feeling a swell of irritation. “Why would you tell him that?” She asked and then sat up. “After he completed his quest?!”

“There was... perhaps a lapse of judgment, but technically-”

“It hurt my feelings,” Percy said solemnly. Poseidon turned to glare at him. As if he had the right to be annoyed in this circumstance. Percy merely gave a polite smile before turning back to Norman, leading him towards the door. He stopped and looked back to where Sally was sitting. “Thank you for telling me all this, mom,” he added. Sally smiled back weakly.

“I should have told you sooner,” she said, ignoring Poseidon looking vaguely affronted between the pair. Paul snorted.

“Thank you for the story as well, Lord Poseidon,” he said. Poseidon shook his head.

“You’re welcome,” he said with a pointed look at Sally and Percy. Percy looked like he might just walk away for a moment, but Sally saw his face soften a smidge when he looked around the room.

“Thanks, Dad,” he said and then paused. “And thanks for going through all that effort to save mom,” he added. Sally frowned a little. “Even if it was a little your fault that you had to save her… and she also kind of saved you,” he said. Yes. There. That. Sally nodded her approval as Percy grinned at her. “I also appreciate you telling me how you shot a god in the face. I was initially very stressed by the information, but I’m over that now.”

“THAT WAS MY FAVORITE PART!” Someone else from the hallway called. Percy threw up a hand.

“Who even are you?” He yelled, pulling Norman out with him into the hallway. Sally smiled, standing up to stretch and look at Percy’s mostly unpacked dorm. She had moderate trust in him to do the rest himself... at some point.

“We should go soon. Estelle is probably torturing the babysitter again,” she mused. Poseidon hummed.

“You know, I could always give her my blessing. It would make her easier to soothe.”

“We couldn’t possibly-” Sally began only to be cut off by Paul clearing his throat. She turned to find her husband holding up both his hands.

“You can do that?” He asked. Poseidon nodded. Paul turned to Sally with raised eyebrows. “How do you not want to do that?” He whispered and then glanced warily at Poseidon. “It won’t attract monsters to her or anything, right? No curses or anything?”

“No,” Poseidon said, lips straining not to quirk up into a smile. “She would just stay asleep longer and fuss less so that Sally could write more and you... could... teach?” he asked, looking a little uncertain. “I do not familiarize myself with mortal schooling now. Is it much like Plato’s classes?” He asked. Paul opened his mouth before giving a slight nod.

“...yeah, pretty much.”

“How do you know I still write?” Sally jumped in. Poseidon raised an eyebrow at him.

“You wrote a book. I assume you plan to write a second.”

Sally blinked.

“You... know about my book?”

“I read your book.”

“You read my book?” She repeated, flushing a little. Huh. She hadn’t anticipate that. Poseidon looked at her - somehow equally baffled by the development.

“Should... I not have?” He asked. Sally crossed her arms.

“I mean, I just didn’t expect you to,” she admitted and tilted her head. She tried to imagine Poseidon lounging on some beach in a Hawaiian shirt with her book in hand. The thought made her want to laugh. “Well... I hope you liked it.”

He held out both his hands.

“I did! That’s why I’m trying to help you write another,” he said. “But you won’t let me bless your daughter.”

For the love of God. She shook her head. In truth, she wouldn’t trust any god to bless her child... except for maybe Poseidon. She bit her lip before looking at Paul - poor, exhausted Paul who had been a real winner in dealing with his first baby - who was fixing her with a pleading look. Oh, whatever.

“One blessing,” she agreed. “Then no more favors.”

“We’ll see,” he said, and Sally scowled at him as she leaned down to grab her purse. At the opposite end of the room, Paul stood up with a thoughtful look in his eyes as he glanced between them.

“Hey,” he said, grabbing Sally’s coat. “Did you two ever figure out who the one god was that remembered?” He asked. Sally paused. No. No, she hadn’t. Based on Poseidon’s expression... he hadn’t either. Though, Sally wondered if he suspected anyone. She definitely had over the years. There were only a handful of people who would have left the matter alone as it was.

“I cannot say,” Poseidon said simply and looked at Sally for a moment before offering her a warm smile. “It was… a fun story to tell,” he told her. “Thank you for helping me tell it.”

Sally smiled in return before he vanished in that way he did with such suddenness that it left her reeling. Still, Paul’s question sat at the back of her mind.

“Was it you?” She asked a few days later by the shore of the beach. Paul and Estelle were back in the hotel room - readying for their trip back to New York - while Sally had ventured to the nearest beach in order to put one final matter to rest. Now that Paul asked the question out loud... she found herself unable to stand not having the answer.

“I heard Mnemosyne that day,” a voice answered casually, and Sally turned to find herself no longer alone on the beach. A woman in a green dress was beside her, black hair braided down her back and looking so incredibly beautiful that Sally was left wondering how Poseidon ever dared looked away from her. “So I knew then that I would be the only one left to remember... and that I alone was left to decide whether to intervene with what happened next,” Amphitrite told her. Sally had to force herself not to cower away.

“You knew that... well, you know he would come back and see me. And that I....” she trailed quietly and shook her head. “But you let us. Why?”

Amphitrite pulled her gaze away from the sea to look at her. There was something soft in her eyes. Soft and sad.

“Because I knew one of them would break that oath. I knew a child would fulfill that prophecy, ” she said, and then looked out back into the waves. “Sure, it could have Thalia Grace, but demigods die too easily that it very well might not have been. And I asked myself... what child would I want the fate of the world to rest in? A child whose existence was fought against tooth and nail? Who knows their parents lived a life of nothing but pain and regret? Or a child who came to be because of the opposite,” she said and shrugged. “I couldn’t control a lot in that prophecy, but I thought... If I could choose a mother to raise a hero... It would be you,” she said and turned to face her fully. “And look at that. I was right.”

“I never apologized to you. I should have,” Sally said. “I wronged you, and you never sought vengeance or tried to hurt my son. After you were kind enough to help me in the beginning-”

“It is as you said. If I truly didn’t wish for those events to pass, all I had to do was say something,” she cut her off. “I cannot pretend I was thrilled with how things turned out, but... for the cost of winning a war... it is a small sacrifice,” she said. “I would be lying if I said I regretted it.”

Sally nodded. She didn’t really know how else to respond.

“But,” Amphitrite said, and Sally inwardly crumbled. Ah. There was always a ‘but’ wasn’t there? “I do have one request to make of you.”

“I won’t do it again, I swear. I have a husband of my own now, and I would never-“

“Calm yourself,” Amphitrite cut her off. “That isn’t what I wanted to say. Simply that... I knew Perseus existed before any other god did. I could watch at a distance. I know what you went through for your son. What you gave up and...” she trailed off, pursing her lips. Sally looked at the sand beneath them. “Parents of demigods rarely have happy endings. They end up dead or turned into plants. Drunks or with mad-ridden minds,” she shook her head. “I was glad to see you were an exception.”

“Thank you, my lady,” she said, a little taken aback by the genuine words. Amphitrite offered a wry smile.

“But I hope you understand you aren’t done yet. Your son may be almost grown and your daughter fresh into the world, but I expect your life to keep moving forward. The fates often punish those who idle. Taking time to finish is never a shame, but the fear to begin will lead to your downfall. You may think your dreams have all been realized, but I expect you to find new ones so that they don’t catch you.”

“I don’t know how much more I can possibly want,” Sally admitted. Amphitrite fixed her with such a look that she almost scrambled to take the words back.

“Greed isn’t always a sin to those with virtues. Figure out how to want more. Your son’s work for the gods is almost done. Afterward, he’ll need someone to show him how to live properly. It is a harder feat than most realize,” she said. Sally nodded. For Percy, she could definitely do that. She opened her mouth to agree and thank her again, but when Sally looked over, she was already gone… Gods. They just loved to vanish like that, didn’t they?

The wind blew again, and Sally took a long breath before turning away back towards the parking lot behind her.