Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Percy stood in the doorway of his bedroom, blood pounding in his ears as he stared at the scene in front of him. There was a pain in his chest and a haze settling over his mind. He thought that if there was anyone who he could trust to never betray him, it would be Annabeth, given all that they went through together. They faced so many challenges together and had only survived because they relied on each other. She was his mortal point. He had turned down immortality for her. He had fallen into Tartarus for her. He thought she would be the one person he could always rely on other than his mother. However, as he stared at the naked figure of his girlfriend (or was it ex-girlfriend now?) in bed with another man, bodies pressed together, their bodies displaying evident marks of their activity, Percy was unsure. Despite the heavy thud of his bag hitting the floor, the two were still asleep, and Percy didn’t know whether to be thankful or mad.

So he settled for hurt.

He settled for that empty feeling. The hollowness when there is nothing left to lose. The gaping hole where his heart used to be. He settled for that feeling when you felt so much, that you felt nothing at all. Despite the blood rushing through his body, he felt cold. He thought tears should be appropriate, but his eyes were dry. He wondered if there was something wrong with him.

Percy sighed and knocked on the door frame, startling the two occupants. As Annabeth and her companion jerked awake, Percy distantly noted that he didn’t know who the other person was. He didn’t know if it was better or worse that he didn’t recognize the man. Was this just a one night stand? Could it be an accident or a mistake? Or was this some hidden secret Annabeth was keeping from him?

“P-Percy, you’re home early!” Annabeth exclaimed, trying to cover herself up. “This isn’t what it looks like!” As she moved out of the bed, dragging the covers with her and ignoring the startled exclamation of the still unknown man, Annabeth gave Percy a pleading look. The other man gave Percy a sheepish look as he covered himself with a pillow, one of Percy’s.

“Then tell me what it looks like to you, Wise Girl,” Percy demanded tiredly, “Because to me it looks like you're cheating on me.”

“Please, Percy,” Annabeth pleaded, neither confirming nor denying Percy’s accusation. But Percy shook his head, one of the few times he denied Annabeth something.

“The truth Annabeth, I think I deserve that much.”

Annabeth turned to the man who at this point had started slipping on his clothes, “Nate, can you see yourself out?”

The man, Nate, nodded and gave Percy a sympathetic look as he passed by. 

Annabeth sighed, the tears disappearing and her voice returned to its calm and event tone, “I’m tired, Percy. I’m tired. I’m tired of the demigod life. We were supposed to let it go, but you keep on insisting on putting yourself back. I’m tired of being reminded of everything we went through. I’m tired of seeing your face and being reminded of everything I’m trying to leave behind. I want a normal life, Percy. I can’t have that with you.”

Percy stared at Annabeth in disbelief, “Then why didn’t you tell me?” He paused, taking a deep breath to calm himself, “Why did you have to do this? We could have ended things peacefully!”

“Because I thought I could fix you! I thought that I could make you better, make us better! We’re a team. We’ve always been a pair since our first questing days. If we’re not together, then what are we?!” Annabeth shouted, breaking down into tears again. Once upon a time, Percy would have rushed to hold Annabeth at the first sign of tears. He would have rushed to comfort her and promise to protect her. But now, Percy couldn’t tell whether those tears were real or not.

Percy felt himself becoming tired, “People aren’t things to be fixed, Annabeth. I’m not one of your architecture projects you can plan out and fix if the draft is bad.”

“You don’t know that,” Annabeth screeched, a tinge of desperation in her voice as she slowly realized where this was going, “You don’t know that! Can’t you see, Percy, you have to let me fix you so we can be together!”

“Do you even want to be with me?!” Percy snapped back. “Or is it the idea of me that you want to be with? The Hero of Olympus?” Percy laughed, a hollow note in its echo, “The forbidden love? the boy who fell into Tartarus for you? The boy who will protect you from the world?” Percy finally sobbed, a broken ugly sound. But the heartbreaking thing was that Percy would have been willing to be all of those things for her. He accepted her, flaws and all. And although he coaxes her into realizing her mistakes or other such things, he wants her to change on her own time and make her own mistakes. But it seems to him all Annabeth sees is a project to be fixed so he would be “perfect” for her.

“We’re meant to be together!” Annabeth urged, “Aphrodite said so!” Her usual calm demeanor was long gone. Her hair was disheveled, her cheeks flushed, and her eyes wild. She was still wrapped in blankets, not bothering to put on her clothes. This wasn’t the Annabeth that Percy fell in love with. And Percy felt a sudden calm come over his mind.

Percy shook his head, and with a heavy voice, he told her, “No, Annabeth. She only said our love life will be interesting. And it has been, but-” Annabeth sobbed, interrupting Percy, but he steeled himself and continued, knowing if he didn’t end things here, it would only continue. And it would only hurt them both, “But I think it’s time to end things. You’re right, we only remind each other of all the bad things. We tried so hard to be each other’s everything that we never considered a life outside of each other.”

Annabeth shook her head, her hands coming up to her ears, like a child trying to hide away from the world. But Percy continued, “Think about it Annabeth, all our time dating and being together was when we were constantly under the threat of death. You told me about it once, remember?” The more Percy spoke, the more he realized the truth in his own words. They had spent so much time just moving that they never really stopped and thought about what they really wanted and whether or not what they felt was romantic love. 

“The suspension bridge effect,” a small voice answered, calmer this time.

“Yeah, that’s it. Our life was like a suspension bridge, never knowing when it was going to snap. This is us after the adrenaline has passed.”

“Is it over?” Annabeth asked.

Percy looked at Annabeth, an indiscernible look on his face, “I think you already know the answer to that Wise Girl. You really, really hurt me.”

Annabeth remained quiet, so Percy continued to speak. “I’d look like a jackass if I kicked you out right now and since the apartment is under my name,” he tried to joke, “I’ll give you a week to find a new place and move your stuff, but I can’t bear to look at you right now.” In truth, Percy wanted her out right at this moment, but he knew that doing so would only leave a sour taste in his mouth. Giving her any longer would also just drag on the inevitable.

Again, there was silence, so Percy exited the room and made his way to their spare bedroom, not trusting himself to look presentable enough to step outside. As he sat on the bed, he felt the weight of the past few minutes (and checking the time, Percy realized that it hadn’t even been an hour)  come crashing down on him. He grabbed a pillow to muffle his sobs, even as he body heaved with the force of them. It was like the floodgates had opened, and once he started, he couldn’t stop. Soon the day’s exhaustion got the better of him and Percy fell asleep, rocked to Hypno’s realm by his sobs.

Annabeth was gone the next day, already moved into her new apartment. Percy would have been impressed at the speed if he didn’t find out that she had moved into Nate’s apartment and that she had already half moved in, even before their argument. Percy wondered if he was that oblivious to not notice that half of his girlfriend’s things were no longer at the apartment. And apparently hadn’t been for a while.

Athena always has a plan indeed.

At this point, Percy was too exhausted to feel anything and instead turned his attention to more pressing matters, like completing his transfer papers and finding a new place to live in New York. He would also need to tell Chiron that he would be able to stay longer for the summers at camp, and help out more. There were dozens of ideas that he had to help the Greek camp become a safe haven similar to the Roman camp.

Meanwhile, while Annabeth may have planned for many things, she seemed to have forgotten a few, whether it was due to ignorance or due to hubris, it didn’t matter. The first thing she forgot was that people tend to gossip. And seeing a man, that’s not Percy, leaving from his apartment when he was supposed to be gone but his girlfriend was one? That’s hot gossip. And like any hot piece of gossip, it spread like wildfire. The second thing she forgot? While she may have been a part of the Seven, the Romans had more loyalty to Percy, a former praetor and savior of New Rome, than they did to her.

Her life was significantly harder after that. Not to the point of outright ostracization, but Percy could see that the Romans weren’t as welcoming to her as before. But while Percy felt some lingering concern, he realized that he needed Annabeth to face the consequences of her own mistake. He couldn’t protect her forever.

They hadn’t even made it a full year into college life before it all fell apart.

A little over two years later, Percy found himself reading an acceptance letter to Cornell Medical School. He would be graduating from NYU with a dual degree in Biology and Psychology, and a minor in Classical Languages, hoping to focus his career on helping others. And most importantly, a life of peace after so much death and destruction.

It was a wonder what proper accommodations could achieve.

It was hard at first. When transferring from New Rome to NYU, the school had been skeptical of his previous track record. But after reviewing his transcript from New Rome and the interviews, he had been accepted and after the first semester, had qualified for scholarships. 

As Percy was reading the acceptance letter, Sally came up from behind him and pressed a kiss to his brow, placing a plate of freshly baked cookies in front of him. “I’m so proud of you, sweetie. You’ve worked really hard for this, I’m so glad it’s paid off.”

Percy smiled, grabbing a cookie off the tray, “Thanks mom, I couldn’t have done it without you. You’re the best, you know that?”

Sally pulled his cheek, “Who taught my baby how to sweet talk?”

The two shared a laugh as they enjoyed the quiet summer afternoon. However, their quiet afternoon was interrupted when Percy’s phone, a joint creation effort between the Hephaestus, Hecate, and the Iris cabins, rang. The phone abruptly stopped ringing before it rang again a few seconds later, the pattern repeated once more, indicating that the call was urgent.

Sally gave her son an understanding look as he picked up the phone, “Rowan, what’s wrong?”

As part of an effort to ensure that more demigods are safely escorted to camp and if need be, taken away from abusive homes, Percy and the older demigods at camp, alongside Camp Jupiter, organized a network of dozens of older demigods and legacies. They, along with nature spirits and satyrs, spread out across North America, and infiltrated dozens of social offices and other such similar jobs. When a demigod child was found, they would immediately be put on surveillance and escorted to camp at the soonest opportunity. In some cases, if the child was in an abusive situation, the demigod or legacy employed as a social worker in the area would try to remove the child from the home. If that wasn’t possible, they would have “special arrangements” to ensure that the child could be taken out of the home. And in some cases, where severe intervention was necessary, the nearest demigods would be called upon to help in the situation.

Rowan, a legacy, was one of several people assigned to keep track of potential demigod children. She was one of the few primarily responsible for tracking down any demigod children in foster care or adoption centers and either keeping track of them, ensuring they went to families who knew how to handle demigod children, or getting them out of the system. She sounded frantic as she rushed to explain the situation, “Percy, it’s really bad. We found a foster home with almost a dozen demigod children or legacies. It’s really bad, we think it’s a monster running the operation.”

Percy cursed, “Alright. Send me the details and the names of the closest available demigods in the area.”

“That’s the problem,” the legacy wailed, “No one is close enough or proficient enough to deal with something like this!”

“Okay. Stay calm. We can handle this,” Percy gently soothed the panicking girl, “Send me the location of the children and I’ll make my way there. I think Thalia said she and the Hunters were going to be somewhere nearby. Can you send an IM to her and explain the situation?” As he was talking, Percy was grabbing his gear. Sally was similarly rummaging through the apartment and handing Percy items which he packed into his pack.

A few minutes later, Percy was packed and ready to go. He gave one last kiss to his mother’s cheek before he headed out. He walked to a nearby and secluded park before whistling sharply. A few minutes later, Blackjack swooped in.

Hey Boss, the pegasus called out, who are we going to trample?

“Hey buddy,” Percy stroked the mane of his trusted companion, “We’re going to go help a bunch of kids who’ve gotten themselves stuck with a monster.”

Just you? Blackjack whinnied in concern, is there anybody else coming or we need to pick up?

Percy shook his head, “Hopefully they’ll meet us there or will come soon.” The pegasus gave Percy one last concerned look before allowing him onto his back and taking off.

When Percy finally arrived at the location, he grimaced at the sight of an abnormally pleasant looking house. It was brightly painted and had blooming flowers planted along its edges. The grass was a vibrant green and there was a tire swing tied to the tree. Any mortal walking past the house would be envious of it, but any clear-sighted mortal, demigod, or nature spirits and the like would tell you that there was pure dark magic leaking from every crevice of the house.

Percy glanced at his watch and grimaced. There had been no word from Thalia or anyone else that might be on their way, and Percy did not like the idea of leaving any untrained children with a monster for longer than necessary, if at all. Silently cursing himself for what he was about to do, Percy slipped his pen into one hand and a handful of seashells into the other. He then walked as close to the house as he could while still remaining hidden and closed his eyes. Percy concentrated as he tried to feel how many bodies were in the house. He counted eleven children. As he tried to determine what creature was keeping the children, Percy felt his heart drop into his stomach as he felt the presence of a Giant.

Knowing he couldn’t kill a Giant on his own, Percy whispered out a prayer to any deity who was listening to come to his aid.

Percy knew that the smart thing to do was to wait for someone to arrive, however, the terrified scream of a child took his choice away from him. The next thing Percy knew, he was bursting through the door, Riptide in hand.

Thoon, bane of the Fates, stood over ten of the children, the eleventh child hanging by his ankles in the Giant’s grip.

Percy acted on instinct. He threw two of the shells on the floor and forced salt water to sprout from them. Using one of the sprouts, he slashed at Thoon’s arm, slicing it off, and used the other to grab the falling child. In that time, Percy made his way between the Giant and the children before handing the child in his arms to one of the older children in the group. He gripped Riptide, taking a protective stance. Thoon, having recovered and regrown his hand, approached the group.

“Perseus Jackson, finally,” the Giant crooned, “We’ve been waiting for you.”

“What do you want?” Percy gritted out, hand tightening on his sword as he grasped the remaining shells in his hand. “How are you out of Tartarus?”

The Giant laughed, “Do you honestly think that you’ve seen the last of us? Our Mother may be gone, but we, her children still exist. We still hunger for revenge. And what better start than getting rid of the person who is at the center of every prophecy?”

Percy remained silent, sending out prayer after prayer. But the gods remained silent, and Percy felt a wave of anger and despair. Before he could sink even deeper, Thoon lunged forward with his cleaver, startling Percy who instinctively slashed Riptide. The Giant roared in anger and pain. Thoon raised his cleaver again, but this time, he aimed for the children behind Percy. But the Giant found himself unable to move. Percy had thrown a few more of the shells on the ground, creating tendrils of water to root the Giant in place. However, it was evident that the strain was getting to the son of Poseidon as his entire body was soaked through with sweat. Clenching his teeth against the strain, Percy called out to the children to escape. But the children could only shake their heads, “We can’t! We can’t move!”

It was at this point Percy realized that there were thousands of thin strands of string tying the children together and to the ground. Percy cursed his luck and sent out another prayer. Knowing that he couldn’t protect the children and fight Thoon, Percy threw out two more shells and called forth another wave of water, this time freezing the Giant in place. Knowing that ice wouldn’t hold the Giant for long, Percy turned around and slashed at the strings. As he destroyed the strings, Percy was distantly aware of a cracking noise, but attributed it to Thoon beginning to escape. When the last of the strings were cut, Percy hurriedly told the children to run to a safe location but stay nearby so he could find them. 

As the last of the children ran out, Thoon finally managed to free himself. Upon seeing that his leveraging chips were gone, Thoon turned his rage to Percy, who had grown increasingly more exhausted by this point. Percy desperately reached out his senses, hoping to sense any allies. But found none.

Thoon swung his cleaver and knocked Riptide from Percy’s hand before knocking the son of Poseidon to the ground. The Giant raised his weapon, intent on cleaving the hero in two, but as he swung the cleaver down, Thoon found himself unable to move. Percy, still on the ground, held himself up with one arm and had the other raised up. His eyes seemed to glow a poisonous green as he controlled the ichor in Thoon’s body. The cracking sound seemed to grow louder, but Percy was too focused on keeping Thoon still to acknowledge it. Percy slowly picked himself up, and reached into his pocket, waiting for Riptide to appear. But Percy was exhausted and Thoon was a Giant. Soon, the Giant was able to tear himself from Percy’s control. Percy dropped the last shell in hand, hoping to create at least a few minutes for the children to escape. Just as he was about to call out for the children to run, he noticed that Thoon was once again stopped in place.

Strands of yarn that were a  glittering green with golden flecks wrapped around the Giant’s arms, legs, torso, and neck.

The Fates had appeared.

But Percy had no time to feel relieved.

“Well, Perseus Jackson, aren’t you going to finish the job?” Clotho called out.

Percy didn’t waste another second.

Reaching into his pocket and uncapping Riptide once more, Percy swung his sword. Beheading the Giant.

And severing the yarn.

The three Fates had triumphant smiles on their faces.

Percy had a split second to register the sound of shattering glass and agonized screaming before everything went dark.

When Percy woke up, the first thing he felt, despite the odd weightlessness, was pain, as if everything was too much. It was a strange sensation. Feeling nothing and everything at once.

The second thing he felt was a large, warm hand on his forehead. It was warmer than what a human’s body temperature should be, but oddly enough, it was very comforting. Apollo stared down at Percy, his sky blue eyes were ringed with gold and his skin seemed to glow. Upon seeing that Percy was awake, Apollo’s solemn face broke out into a smile, “You’re awake!” There was some relief in Apollo’s voice, but there was also a hint of something else.

Percy groaned, “I kind of wish I wasn’t. What happened? Where am I? Where are the kids?” At his last question, Percy jerked up, but hissed in pain as he felt a sharp tug on his chest. But he powered through the pain and gripped Apollo’s wrist, “The kids, where are they?! Are they okay?”

“Calm down,” Apollo ordered, his voice stern with a healer’s concern. “They’re fine. My sister’s Hunters were able to bring them to camp.”

Percy sighed in relief, but furrowed his brow at the odd tone in Apollo’s voice. “There’s something you’re not telling me, isn’t there?”

But the sun god only shook his head, “Not now. You’re still healing, get some rest.” Everything faded into blissed darkness.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, but the next time Percy woke, the pain had lessened significantly and his head was a lot more clear. Apollo was still at his side. The sun god peered into Percy’s eyes as if searching for something, then nodded, “Good. You seemed to have healed up nicely.” He then continued to examine the rest of Percy’s body, despite having told Percy that he had been healed.

Percy let the examination continue, but it wasn’t long before he broke the slightly tense silence with his question, “Can you tell me what happened?” But Apollo remained silent and continued his examination. Percy mentally shrugged, trying to stomp down on the uncomfortable feeling of anxiety rising up.

A few more minutes passed and Percy grew increasingly more concerned, “Seriously, Apollo? Please tell me what’s going on, you’re starting to freak me out.” Apollo avoided Percy’s questioning and instead told Percy to rest for a few more days.

“You were pretty badly hurt and strained yourself a lot, rest for a few more days.”

“I’m kind of sick of staying in bed. It’s probably been a couple days right?” And if he wasn’t looking for a hint of something, Percy probably wouldn’t have caught it, but because his eyes were trained on Apollo’s face, Percy caught a slight twitch. “Apollo…how long has it been? A few weeks? A few months?” Percy grew more alarmed at Apollo’s continued silence. The sun god seemed to be avoiding Percy’s gaze.

“Apollo…what’s going on?”

But instead of answering his question, Apollo snapped away his equipment and repeated his previous statement of getting some more rest. The sun god then flashed away without warning, giving Percy no time to close his eyes.

Percy groaned in annoyance before he simply fell back into bed. 

Ten seconds.

It took ten seconds for Percy to realize that he hadn’t closed his eyes when Apolo flashed away, and that he hadn’t been vaporized. Percy felt a chill run down his spine.

A shattering sensation.

That’s the last thing he remembered other than the pain.

The memories of Tartarus threatened to drown him.

Percy brought his trembling hands up close to his face, as if trying to spot any differences.

Obviously there were none, but Percy couldn’t help but think that it wasn’t blood that ran through his veins anymore.

Three years

He’s been asleep for three years.

Percy sat numbly as his father sat across from him, a look on his face that was equal parts regretful and hopeful. Percy knew his father was ecstatic at the news of his ascension. But Percy also knew that his father was regretful that the choice was taken from him.

“I’m sorry, my son. So many choices have been taken from you already, and I had hoped that this would have been one that you were able to keep. But I would be lying to myself if I didn’t say I was happy.” Poseidon spoke gently, his hand a comforting weight. Percy remained silent, but tears trailed down his cheeks as he realized that he would be left all alone. His family and friends would grow old and die, but he would remain at the age of twenty, forever. 

As if sensing his thoughts, Poseidon drew his son into a hug, gathering his all too small figure into his arms, “Your mortal family may be gone, but they are not the only family that you have. Mortals will grow old and die, and some may come back with a new form, with new memories. But we, your immortal family, will always be here.” Poseidon pulled back to look his son in the eyes, “Perseus, do not let your grief for the past stop you from moving towards the future.”

Percy finally broke, ugly sobs clawing their way out of his throat. And through it all, Poseidon held his son tightly, whispering that it would be okay, “I will be here. I will always be here.”

“I had my whole life ahead of me! I finally found something I wanted to do, found something I was good at!” Percy choked out his grievances, pouring out everything he had been holding in. “I wanted to help people! I wanted to help the kids at camp…” Poseidon stroked his son’s hair, murmuring words of comfort and apologies. As he held his son, Poseidon calmed the storms that formed due to his son’s emotions. Percy continued to cry for several more minutes, mourning the loss of a life he never got to live. Eventually his sobs died down to quiet whimpers. And soon, those whimpers died down to complete silence. But it was a comforting silence. Like the stillness after a storm, when the wind and rain has passed. Percy breathed in the comforting scent of the sea.

“Okay…okay, what’s next?”

A small pop in the room announced the presence of a visitor, and it was only Poseidon’s relaxed grip that kept Percy from reaching for his sword.

“Well, I think I can answer that!” Herme announced his visit with a much too forced cheerful smile. While his smile was wide and toothy, and a little (a lot) mischievous, his eyes were lined with worry and stress. “Now that Sleeping Beauty has awakened, Zeus has called a Council Meeting.”

Percy cursed.

Hermes looked apologetically at the young god, “Sorry, kiddo! Boss man’s orders.” George and Martha hissed in agreement. With a few more apologies and well wishes, Hermes disappeared in a gust of wind.

Around an hour later, Percy stood in front of the Council, once again waiting for them to decide his fate. As always, the council was mixed in their reactions and as much as Zeus wanted to zap him with his bolt, he found his hands tied. With an irked expression on his face, Zeus finally announced the appearance of a new god, the first one in quite a while. “Well, as we all know, the upstart has gone and ascended, which means that he is now a god and will have to figure out his domains,” the King of Olympus forced out the words between clenched teeth. Poseidon immediately perked up, wanting to bring Percy to Atlantis. But he was ruthlessly denied.

“Absolutely not! I will not have your spawn roaming free without controlling his powers. I know you sea gods! You live for chaos.”

Poseidon clicked his tongue in disgust, “Well who else will teach my son how to get used to being a god? He is my child, so it would make sense for me to teach him.”

Zeus glared at his brother, “And give you a bigger advantage against me?”

“For fuck’s sake, how long are you going to hold that against me?! I’m not interested in your throne, little brother.”

“That’s what you all say…”

And as the two descended into bickering, with the other gods egging them on, Percy found himself awkwardly moving to the side. He waited a few more minutes before shrugging his shoulders and making himself comfortable. A minute later, Percy felt another presence sit down next to him, “Hey Percy, how have you been?” Apollo glanced at Percy with concern, “Sorry that my old man called out here just after you woke up. I tried to get him to push it back a little more, but you know how he is.”

Percy nodded in understanding.

The two continued their conversation and let the bickering act as comfortable background noise to them, they only stopped when Zeus, noticing their lack of attention grew annoyed, “If the two of you have anything to share with the rest of the Council, you are welcome to do so.”

Both Percy and Apollo gave Zeus mischievous grins and shook their heads. Zeus sighed before letting a sly smile form on his lips, “Well then, if you are so set on spending time with Percy, I guess I should thank you for volunteering to be his guide as he settles into godhood.”

Spending time with Apollo wasn’t the worst thing in the world, and if Percy were being honest with himself, then he would admit that he was enjoying their time together. Apollo was scarily charismatic and charming. In their time together, Percy realized why Apollo was thought to be the epitome of manly beauty. Surprisingly, despite the playboy and youthful persona he portrays most of the time, Apollo was a good teacher. He was patient and understanding with Percy’s frustrations and awkward transition into godhood, especially given Apollo’s own time as a mortal.

The more time they spent together, the more Percy’s powers grew. It was like he reached a different level of understanding with his powers. And at times, it scarily reminded him of his time in Tartarus. While he knew that there were differences between a mortal and a god, more specifically a  demigod and a god, Percy still found it disconcerting at times when he realized the sheer difference between the two.

As Percy formed a shower  of water on his palm, as the water pooled and dropped down, Apollo casually leaned against him, “I guess that’s another one of your domains? What is it?”

Percy thought for a moment, concentrating on the source of the whirlpool’s power, “Something to do with destruction and renewal, I think? Like the storm that sweeps across lands so new things can grow?”

“That’s another pretty strong one,” Apollo whistled,  “My old man’s not gonna be too happy, especially since you usurped Herakles' role as the god of heroes.” By this point, Apollo had swung an arm around Percy’s shoulders, pressing against the new god’s side. Percy rolled his eyes, but the slight upward turn of his lips gave away his amusement. He cut off the flow of energy and watched as the mini-storm dissipated.

Apollo hummed in thought, “So, for your domains, we have heroes, riptides and changing tides, and destruction/renewal. Are we missing anything else? Do you feel like we missed anything else?” 

Percy furrowed his brows in thought as he concentrated on his core, no longer seeming to be made of glass but rather something like diamond. He could feel the pulsating cores of energy, “I think there’s one more…but I can’t really tell what it is. It’s kinda all jumbled up. Sorry.”

Apollo waved away the apology, “Don’t worry about it. That’s why I’m here, to help you figure things out.” Straightening out from his slouched posture, Apollo jumped up before pulling Percy to his feet, “Well, I’m bored, let’s go ahead and have some fun?”

“What do you have in mind?”

A few minutes later, Percy and Apollo were waiting in line at an amusement park, “Disney World? Seriously?”

Apollo shrugged, “It’s a classic!”

A few hours later, most of which were spent in line, Percy and Apollo stopped for some food. Percy eyed the overpriced menu and wrinkled his nose, “Aren’t we gods? Don’t we not need to eat?” Apollo turned to look at Percy in mock pity.

“Percy, Percy, Percy. My naïve little friend, just because we don’t need to, doesn’t mean we don’t want to.”

“Okay, but aren’t all these things super overpriced and mediocre at best?”

Apollo flicked a credit between his fingers, “One of the good things about being a god is that you have a lot of money.” The card was sleek and black. The credit limit was obviously super high and Percy wondered just how much “money” was on that tiny piece of plastic. Apollo grinned, “My treat.”

Percy would never say no to free food, but as he eyed the towering mound in front of him, he wondered if gods could get food sick. Percy paused in his attempt at eating half his body weight when he heard giggling behind him. There were a few girls, who looked to be in their late teens or early twenties, huddled together. When they noticed Percy was looking at them, they quickly turned around and scurried away. “Look at you, already getting the mortal’s attention! Should we expect a few kids in the next couple years?” Apollo teased as he slid into the seat in front of Percy. In response, Percy threw a piece of caramel popcorn at Apollo who annoyingly caught it in his mouth.

“Don’t joke about that. I think romance is off the table for me for a little bit. Fuck, did I piss off Eros or something?” Percy groaned. Apollo looked at him in sympathy and understanding.

“I get you,” Apollo raised his drink in a toast, “Here’s to being unlucky in love.”

By the time they were finished exploring the park, it was almost time for the sun to start setting. Apollo swung his arm around Percy’s shoulders, “How about you join me?”

Percy side-eyed the sun chariot, currently disguised as a convertible, “Uhhh…are you sure Zeus won’t try and blast me out of the sky?” Apollo waived away his concerns.

“Don’t worry about it, you’re a god now! Besides, you’ll be with me and the sun is my domain!” Apollo didn’t give Percy a chance to respond. The taller god grabbed the son of Poseidon and fastened him into the passenger seat and before Percy knew it, they were tearing across the sky.

As Percy tried desperately not to scream in terror, Apollo fiddled with the radio. As the music began, Percy made the mistake of looking over at Apollo. Wind was rushing through Apollo’s hair, causing the golden curls to be swept back. Apollo’s sunglasses were covering his eyes, but Percy could make out the sky blue color between the gaps. The god was currently singing along to the music, sounding perfectly in sync. Noticing the stare, Apollo turned to look at Percy, locking eyes with the son of Poseidon.

And as Apollo grinned, all Percy could think was Shit  as his heart skipped a beat.

Apollo has been stupidly in love with the son of Poseidon for a while. To be more specific, he had been in love with Percy for quite a while but only recently realized that he was in love a short while ago. 

It all started when he had almost lost Percy. When he and all the other Olympians heard Percy’s prayer for help against Thoon, he had wanted so desperately to go to his aid. He didn’t think much of it then. It was only logical afterall, Percy was his friend and someone he respected. He knew that there were several other gods who were ready to jump in. Poseidon had been almost foaming at the mouth with anxiety. But no matter how much he wanted to go to Percy’s side, the Fates themselves had forbidden, stating that something major was going to happen. Apollo wanted to curl up and cry, he wanted to raze cities to the ground and unleash plagues upon plagues as he heard Percy’s desperate pleas. It didn’t occur to him that such thoughts went beyond friendship.

They all felt it when Percy ascended.

But not all felt his agony.

Artemis, who had previously been on her way to the location after Thalia had received an SOS message from a legacy, was first on the scene. As such, she ordered her Hunters to escort the children to Camp and to ensure that the mortals remained unaware. Thalia had wanted to join Artemis in bringing Percy to Olympus, but as Artemis’s lieutenant, she needed to lead the other Hunters. Apollo didn’t need Artemis to call out to him as she reached Olympus, he was already waiting for her, ready to take Percy to get treated.

As Apollo leaned over Percy’s unconscious body, wiping him down with a cool towel, he had an epiphany.

Oh , he thought as he stared at Percy, That’s what it is…I think I’m in love with you.

Chapter Text

In a large room, Aphrodite sat in front of an ornate mirror. Golden waves and pearls surrounded the image of two gods. The surface of the mirror played like a tv screen, showing the goddess real time image of the two oblivious fools. Aphrodite muffled her screams as she watched Apollo and Percy dance around each other, or more specifically, as both were blind to the other’s feelings. Clenching her silk scarf in her hands, Aphrodite bit into the pink fabric, nearly tearing it in two with the sheer force she tugged at the scarf. Ares, who had just walked in, decided to turn and walk away when he saw his lover’s state. 

He did not want to get in the middle of one of her moods.

But the god of war was not so lucky.

Aphrodite, sensing her lover was near, turned her head quickly and caught sight of him trying to leave. “Hold it right there!” She screamed, violence in her eyes, “Don’t you dare take another step.”

Ares could have done a number of things, but he decided to do the smart thing.

He stopped.

“Yes, dear?” Ares asked, a bead of sweat trailing down his temple.

Aphrodite’s eyes glowed a poisonous pink, “Those two idiots are killing me with how much they’re dancing around each other. It’s time for me to take action .”

“Do you want me to call Eros for you?” 

“No,” Aphrodite answered as she stood up, her movements predatory. “In fact, I want you to tell him that if he tries to interfere, I will punish him,” Aphrodite stated, knowing that the threat of a punishment from her would deter Eros from acting.

“Alright, was that all?” Ares asked hopefully as he edged towards the door. The god of war stopped when Aphrodite placed a hand on his shoulder. The deceptively delicate looking hand barely had any force, but Ares held still, eyes locked on the sharp nails he had once seen gouge a mortal’s eye out.

“Oh, my love, that’s far from all.” Aphrodite danced around the room, heading towards her closet. She stopped in front of a simple looking mannequin, placed behind a sheet of glass. The mannequin was wearing a glittering golden belt. Ares paled when he noticed his lover standing in front of the mannequin.

“No”

The goddess grinned.

It was not kind.

She took the belt off the mannequin and willed it to turn into a simple looking watch. “Do you think this style suits our dear little Percy?”

“Babe, maybe you should rethink this?” 

“Why?” Aphrodite tilted her head, genuinely confused.

“Half of Olympus is already in love with the punk, not to mention the demigods. If you go through with this, then this will be like Troy, only a hundred times worse.”

Ares realized his mistake as soon as he finished speaking.

A truly beautiful smile formed on the goddess’s face.

Percy sighed as he watched the whales swim above him, their songs peacefully echoed through the waters. Noticing his melancholy mood, Triton, who was lying next to him, turned to face him. “What wrong little brother?”

“Apollo-” Percy began, only to be cut off as Triton sat up, green eyes glowing in rage.

“What did that no good son of Zeus do?!”

“Nothing!” Percy hastily denied, unaware that it made it look more suspicious.

Triton narrowed his eyes at Percy but said nothing, waiting for Percy to continue speaking. He didn’t have to wait long. “Is Apollo mad at me?”

“Why would he be mad at you?” Triton asked, moving closer to his younger brother. Percy shrugged, not knowing how to answer. “Perseus,” Percy winced at the use of his full name, “Why do you think Apollo is mad at you?”

“I feel like he’s been avoiding me and when we do have to spend time together, he tries to leave as soon as possible.” Percy hugged his knees, drawing his leg - sorry, his tail, close to his chest. “I thought we were getting along, but he’s started to act weird after our trip to Disney World.”

“You went on a date with Apollo?!” Triton shrieked, his ear fins flaring in distress.

“What? No!” Percy yelled. “It wasn’t a date! We were just hanging out as friends!” But Triton wasn’t listening, already speeding back towards Atlantis. Percy cursed and rushed to swim after him, Triton, wait!”

Artemis felt a twitch in her eye as she stared at her brother.

The brother that was moping in the middle of her campgrounds.

The brother that had been moping for the past three hours.

“What should I do, Arty?” Apollo asked, voice despondent as he strummed his lyre. “He’s so beautiful and kind and loving and-” Artemis held her hand up, stopping Apollo from continuing, Any more and she would be tempted to hunt down Percy Jackson, if only to stop Apollo from waxing poetry about the former demigod.

The moon goddess pinched the bridge of her nose, regretting, not for the first time, sending her huntresses away.  “Yes, yes, you’ve said it all before.”

“But Arty!” Apollo protested sitting up, his eyes shining, “You don’t understand! How could anyone be so perfect!” The sun god proceeded to wax poetry about the son of Poseidon, his voice full of passion.

Artemis threw an acorn at her brother. “Apollo, was there a reason for this visit or were you just going to keep complimenting Percy Jackson?”

Apollo, as if remembering how sad he was flopped back down, “I don’t know what to do Arty. How can I continue to be around him when all I think about is kissing him?! I feel like I could die!”

“Then perish.”

“Artemis!”

Aphrodite giggled as she skipped towards Percy’s palace on Olympus. Passersby were entranced by her beauty and stared with dazed gazes. However, there were a few denizens who recognized the look on her face and paled, running back towards their own abodes, hoping to stay clear from the blast radius they knew would surely follow.

***

“Oh Perseus ~” the goddess sang, gliding into his courtyard, “I have a gift for you!” Percy immediately narrowed his eyes, but Aphrodite waved away his suspicious attitude, “Oh, don’t be like that darling, you’ll ruin your beautiful face.”

“Aphrodite…what do you want?”

“Just to give you a gift.” And faster than he thought possible for the goddess, Aphrodite grabbed his wrist and slapped a golden watch on it.

“What is this?” Percy asked, staring at the watch and hesitantly poking it.

“It’s a gift for you!”

“You said that already.” Percy sighed, moving to take off the watch so he could inspect it more. But to his horror, the watch wouldn’t come off. “Aphrodite!” He yelled, a mixture of anger and panic, “What did you do?!”

“Just what I had to do,” Aphrodite leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on his cheek, “You’ll outshine Helen, my dear.”

And with that ominous statement, she vanished in a puff of rose petals.