Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A widely acknowledged fact: Percy and Dionysus were no morning people or morning enthusiasts.

Everyone knew it, except … except perhaps they themselves.

A particularly great notable example of this is the incident that occurred one September morning … no, it wasn’t a random morning. It was this morning.

Percy had this morning ventured into The Big House in search of anything good to drink that could quench the terrible intense thirst he had been feeling at that moment.

His hair was still a mess from sleep, and it almost seemed like it was defying the earth’s gravity. His sea-green eyes were still heavy with sleep and if you looked any closer you could also spot the traces of saltwater all around his messy black hair.

He yawned while attempting to rub the sleep from his eyes. Before stretching his arms above his head, revealing the well-defined muscles that come from a life of battling monsters and navigating the challenges of being a demigod.

However, to his annoyance, his royal morning stretch was abruptly interrupted by the noise of bottles clinking to each other. Percy froze, halting his mighty stretch, and tilted his head a bit to be able to pinpoint the source of this rude interruption.

His eyes quickly spotted Dionysus in the middle of the room, frenetically walking around like crazy with numerous wine bottles in his arms, rearranging them with the other bottles scattered all around the huge room.

Based on Percy’s brief 2-sec private investigation, he guessed that Dionysus was, at long last, finally doing what Chiron had been persistently asking him for years: to tidy up all the bottles that he had placed all around the house like some sort of decorations.

In Percy’s opinion, Dionysus was not doing a great job. From what he could observe, all Dionysus did was rearrange the order of the bottles. Which wasn’t solving the problem at all or addressing the underlying issue – the overwhelming presence of wine bottles itself. Solving the problem would be to actually get rid of all the wine bottles, because if Percy was honest, it looked horrendous!

Every time he took it upon himself to show the new campers around the camp (He was actually pretty frequently tasked with guiding the new campers through the camp), he dreaded the part of the tour where he had to show them around The Big House, because how could he keep them optimistic about the place (Practically their new home) and their new lives, when the house of the camp director looked like it belonged to an alcoholic.

But instead of commenting, Percy decided to just ignore him, which was a wise decision and it might have possibly been the only good decision he had made that day.

Instead, he opened the refrigerator and poured himself some grape juice. He wasn't the greatest fan of grape juice, he preferred apple or orange juice, but the refrigerator only had grape juice and Diet Coke. Which to begin with was not a very great variety to choose from. But Coke in his opinion was not very fitted as a morning drink, so he opted for the grape juice.

He returned the grape juice bottle to the refrigerator, before he sat down on the couch closest to him and strategically at the greatest distance from the crazy god, who had now moved over to rearrange the bottles on the ping pong table. Percy didn’t really understand what Dionysus thought he was accomplishing by rearranging the bottles in his chaotic bottle collection, but at the same time, he seriously couldn’t bring himself to care.

Percy sipped on the juice before unintendedly clearing his throat, probably just adjusting his throat since it felt a bit weird after his recent slumber. But Dionysus mistook the action as it being Percy’s attempt at starting a conversation, of course, Dionysus being Dionysus, couldn’t be bothered to face the demigod.

“Yes, Peter?” Dionysus inquired, with his back turned.

Percy just smirked, calmly taking a sip of his purple juice before responding to the god. “Oh, it’s nothing.”

He could practically feel Dionysus rolling his eyes, before returning to his task which he actually looked pretty concentrated on finishing.

The demigod on the other hand seemed to sink even deeper into the couch, not in a very rush to start his day any time soon. Instead, he lounged on the couch, and out of immense boredom started to swirl his glass in small circles like it was a glass of wine. “Hmmm…” He mumbled to himself, but it wasn’t unheard by the wine god.

This time, Dionysus fully turned to look at the boy, looking annoyed, but that was his default expression, so there wasn’t much to go off of.

“Yes, Pablo?” Dionysus asked again, in his hands still holding two bottles that he hadn’t had the time to put down yet.

Percy frowned. “Pablo?”

Dionysus just blinked in response, however, Percy was much less interested in the conversation, so he just continued looking at the god unimpressed and once again took a sip of the juice.

The god of wine narrowed his eyes looking even more annoyed at the demigod. “What? What is it you want, Perry?”

Percy smirked victoriously before stretching his legs, Perry was at least closer than Pablo. “No, again, it’s nothing.” He yawned completely uninterested. “Don’t mind me.”

“I don’t mind you!” The god hissed, almost sounding insulted. “I prefer to mind you all just once when I need to do the paperwork when you first get here, and then don’t mind you until your meaningless deaths, when I again need to do the paperwork. But after that, I will never mind you ever again.”

Percy just rubbed his eyes too tired to be dealing with this god at this hour “Good to know.” was his only simple dry response.

“Well, then state the question that you have on your mind, so I can go back to not minding you!” The god groaned.

Percy thought for a second, before shrugging. “I don’t have anything on my mind.” In Percy’s mind, this conversation had already lasted too long, and he seriously wanted to return to his personal relaxation time on the couch. Furthermore, in his opinion, the repetitive use of the word ‘mind’ in the conversation was enough to give him a headache, which was an even better reason for the god to stop talking to him.

Dionysus seemed to be a bit surprised by Percy’s reply, but he didn’t let much of the other feelings then annoyance show on his face. “Normally, I wouldn’t disagree with you on that, because you are right, your mind is pretty empty usually. But right now, you have been sitting here like a guinea pig making all sorts of noises, so spit it out! What is it?”

Percy frowned confused, what was he talking about? What noises? Guinea pig? Not again…

He looked at Dionysus totally unfaced into his purple – at the moment calm eyes, before returning to look at the glass in his hand, he swirled it around a bit, watching the content in it moving fluently around. Without skipping a beat, he raised an eyebrow and asked. “Is wine really that good?”

Dionysus froze for a second, straightening up a bit momentarily, not offended at the moment, but just genuinely confused. “What?” was all the god managed to stammer out of himself. He appeared totally taken aback.

Percy just shrugged unbothered. “I mean it doesn’t even taste any good…” It was almost as if he had forgotten that he was talking to the literal god of wine.

Dionysus seemed to be returning from his previous confusion. “What did you just say?” He yelped.

“Yeah,” Percy nodded, not really listening at all, he continued his ramble. “And isn’t alcohol, just bad for your health?”

^^ This was 1 minute ago, and it marked the beginning of the fight between Percy and Dionysus. Now let’s fast forwards to the present ↓

Percy’s P.O.V:

“You piece of shit!” Dionysus’s enraged scream echoed through the room as he threw a bottle directly at me. In a stroke of luck, I managed to dodge it at the last second before it could hit me right in the face. The bottle missed my head by just a couple of inches and flew past it, before smashing against the wall behind me. The glass was scattered in small pieces all across the floor.

Shocked, I looked behind me, unable to fathom his audacity to throw a bottle at me, how dare he?

“It’s a disgusting drink, I mean it!” I retorted shouting back at him, the anger I was feeling nearly causing me to lose my grip on the glass of juice I held.

Dionysus’s eyes fell on the drink in my hands, he raised his eyebrows and his expression evolved into a mixture of rage and disbelief. “Are you drinking grape juice?”

“What?” I frowned, momentarily taken aback by the sudden shift in our conversation.

“You dare drink grapes juice and then insult me?” The god bellowed, escalating the conflict by hurling another bottle at me and before I could react, the purple drink in my hand exploded, staining my white T-shirt and my favorite ocean blue Finding Dory pajama pants.

Outraged, I stared at my destroyed sleepwear, vowing vengeance How dare he! He will so pay for this!

Dionysus had finally crossed a line beyond my tolerance. First, he disrupted my relaxation time on the couch, then he shouted at me, and now he destroyed my favorite very cherished pajamas and let’s not forget that he too had now also ruined my pleasant morning drink.

“You sick bastard!” I yelled, my anger boiling over as I charged straight toward the god, determined to hit him straight in his smug face.

However, Dionysus just casually waved his hand, and a force smacked against my side, sending me flying towards the window. I crashed through the glass, landing hard on the ground outside of the house. The shards of shattered glass surrounded me as I gasped in the pain.

“Ouch, you shit!” I yelled, hearing Dionysus’s footsteps still inside the house. “Are you trying to kill me? You are supposed to be the camp director, you asshole!!”

The footstep paused for a second, before Dionysus materialized right in front of me. “If I was trying to kill you, you would have been dead the moment you stepped your foot inside the house.” He spat.

I hurried to get up to my feet, but all of a sudden wine vines unexpectedly shot out from the grass and curled and tightened around my neck. I fell to the ground, choking and gasping for air, my eyes widening in pure panic as my vision quickly blurred.

Dionysus just stood over me with a sinister grin, watching me as my fingers clawed at the vines, desperately searching for a weak point.

“You think you can challenge me, Peter?” Dionysus taunted, his voice dripping with malice. “You are pathetic.”

Luckily, the moment I was about to pass out, because of the lack of oxygen, the vines lossened around my neck.

“You sick bastard.” I rasped out with my now sore throat.

“You,” Dionysus spat, pointing at me. “you are so lucky I am not allowed to kill you!”

“Fuck you!” I screamed, tearing the clinging vines away from my neck, finally feeling the air rush back to my lungs.

Quickly I rolled to the side, catching Dionysus off guard and swinging my foot at his ankles with a surprising strength. The unexpected attack caused Dionysus to lose his balance and to stumble backward.

Now fueled by adrenaline coursing through my veins, I pushed myself up from the ground, staggering to my feet, before I sprang forward and without hesitation pounced on Dionysus, sending us both again crashing to the ground once again.

Wasting no more time, I lunged forward, straddling Dionysus amids the shards of shattered glass to keep him down before raining down furious blows upon his face. The sound of flesh meeting flesh echoed through the whole yard.

Ichor started running from Dionysus’s nose, but lost in the heat of the moment, I didn’t realize the corrosive liquid splattering onto my hands until the searing pain brought me to a sudden halt.

Momentarily stunned, I recoiled, clutching my burning hands. Dionysus of course seized this opportunity, and flung me into a nearby bush.

I sat up, pushing the branches away from my face, watching Dionysus to my dismay rise to his feet, wiping ichor from his face, and with a flick of his fingers he summoned a purple flame. He sent the purple flame straight at me, but I managed to jump out of the way just in time, before the bush erupted into fire.

To protect myself from the second flame throw I without thinking, instinctively, forced all the water nearby to form a protective shield in front of me. It was a surprising amount of water, and the flame was immediately extinguished upon impact.

The god cursed loudly, when I flung all the water as a giant wave straight at him. “Stupid Poseidon pup.” He roared, about to teleport himself away, however, in a sudden turn of events, the wave just stopped midair, and with a sudden flash of light, Poseidon himself appeared beside us.

The moment Poseidon gazed at the wave disapprovingly, it immediately collapsed on itself as if the wave had lost all its power. He turned to look at us with his trident loosely held up by his left hand.

He furrowed his brow and pursed his lips. “What is going on here?” He growled, clearly trying to control his anger.

Dionysus and I stared at Poseidon in disbelieve, and unfortunately, the wine god was the first to recover from the shock. “Your brat insulted me!” Dionysus yelled, pointing at me, his hand shaking in anger. “He insulted my drink! My precious wine! He dared to claim that it wasn’t good!”

Dad's eyes widened a bit as he looked over at me, and they widened even more when he noticed that his son was soaked in grape juice.

His mouth opened and closed a couple of times as he tried to decide on how to formulate himself. “Is this what I’m hearing the truth, Perseus?” He finally asked, looking almost like he was desperately praying that this was some kind of misunderstanding.

I swallowed audibly, not really enjoying that all the eyes were now weighing down on me, but I raised my head nonetheless, not giving up. “Yeah,” I responded, shrugging. “It’s true, and I was only being honest; Wine tastes disgusting! Soda is so much better and far superior. Fermented grapes just sound disgusting and unappetizing, not gonna lie.”

Dionysus looked like he was about to punch me, but Poseidon intervened, holding up his hand, and the god of wine stopped dead in his tracks. I smirked a bit; happy that Dionysus was at least afraid of Dad, it will be so great to have a stronger god on my side to punch the smugness out of that annoying drunk face.

“Percy, just why?” Poseidon deadpans, closing his eyes as if his son’s stupidity was cousing him physical pain. “Why must you always find stupid ways to get in trouble?”

My smirk disappeared from my face. “I didn’t-, don’t –” I began to protest, but Dad quickly cut me off, showing little to no interest in hearing what I had to say.

“You should know better than to insult a god.” He scolded, his grip around the trident tightening slightly.

I stared at him, offended. I should have known better? Who does he think I am? Did my dad at all know anything about me? I wondered.

“Dad, you can’t be serious?!” I yelped. “I always insult gods; it’s kind of like my hobby.”

Dad blinked, deepening his frown. “Is that supposed to be an excuse? Because if it is an attempt at an excuse, that’s a very terrible excuse. It doesn’t make what you have done any less unacceptable and reckless. At your age as a demigod, you should know better than to provoke unnecessary conflicts.”

“What?” I yelled. “How can you be on Dionysus’ side? That’s unfair! I was just expressing my opinion, you know, exercising my freedom of speech or whatever!”

“It’s not fair, it’s justice.” Dad scolded me.

“What in Hades is that supposed to mean?” I whined. “What are you now? His lawyer?”

Dad just rolled his eyes. “Excuse yourself for your foolish actions and ask Dionysus for forgiveness.”

I stared at him, exasperated for a moment, I couldn’t comprehend what my dad was asking of me to do.

“I will not! I refuse! No way in Hades am I doing that!” I hissed. “You are taking this too far. No fucking way. No!”

“Perseus, watch your mouth!” Poseidon struck the end of the trident against the ground, and the earth shook, almost nocking me down.

My eyes widened in fear, but I wasn’t letting this go. “I’m not going to ask for forgiveness from him! He tried to kill me!” I shouted and pointed at Dionysus, who was smirking, clearly loving what was happening.

Poseidon just folded his arms. “Yes, that’s why you shouldn’t insult a god, Percy! They can kill you!”

“You can’t be serious –” I began.

“Yes, yes, I can, son! You have no right to insult a god.” Dad said firmly.

“I have no right?” I gasped. “Why should I care about right? He was being an asshole!”

Dad took a slow breath, attemting to keep his anger under control and avoid doing something he would regret later just because of hearing how his son was addressing a god.

“Percy, don’t ever call any god that!” he said, dangerously calm.

“Don’t call him what? An asshole? That’s what he is!” Percy exclaimed angered. “You know what? You are acting like an asshole you too!”

Poseidon’s eyes turned dangerously dark green. He couldn’t believe that his own son had just called him a mortal’s butt.

“That’s no way to speak to your father, boy!” Poseidon’s voice boomed, and Percy immediately backed away.

Seeing fear in his son’s eyes, Poseidon decided to back away also, but Dionysus spoke up again. “He should be punished!” He insisted.

Dad’s eyes wandered over to Dionysus as if considering his words.

“What if he had insulted some god that wasn’t as forgiving and nice as me?” Dionysus added.

Percy rolled his eyes, Dionysus was sweet-talking, almost like he cared at all about my well-being. “You are not nice, you dick! You are cruel and evil –” I spat.

“Percy!! Silence!” Poseidon growled, still contemplating. “I don’t want to hear more talking from you!”

Dionysus snickered. “Yes, brat, you heard what your daddy said? Shut up!”

I couldn’t take it anymore, I had to make sure that Dionysus paid for that. I summoned the water to return and directed it straight at the wine god, this time with even greater speed; to ensure he couldn’t teleport away.

Unfortunately, Dad almost instantly knew what I was up to, and he immediately reacted by raising a hand, but this time instead of stopping the water, he simply redirected all the water I had summoned straight at me.

I was knocked to the ground with the hard impact, and I yelped loudly in pain when the air was knocked out of my lungs.

I tried to sit up, but to my horror, I was met by three prongs pointing directly at my throat. Looking up, I saw my father standing over me with his trident aimed at me.

Dad moved the trident even closer to my throat upon meeting my eyes. I gulped, not expecting this to happen even in my wildest dreams.

“If you are going to use your – my powers – like this, you don’t deserve to have them until you learn some respect!” Dad said angrily, and when he was done speaking I felt a strange feeling, like being pulled towards the now glowing trident, I tried to fight it, but the trident just glowed even brighter, and I became super dizzy and sleepy for some reason.

“Dad –” I whispered, trying to put a hand on the trident to pull it away from me, but even before I could touch it, my eyes closed, and I fainted.

Chapter Text

A low groan escaped my mouth as I gradually woke up, slowly blinking my eyes open, and then wincing at the immense headache welcoming me upon my awakening.

Where in Hades am I?

My eyes fluttered open, but the world was a blurred confusing mess of shapes and shades. The only thing I could make out from my surroundings was that I was in some kind of poorly lit room, which to me seemed to be spinning slightly.

The bed I was lying on felt foreign and stiff and the only light in the room was the dim light filtering through the thin curtains on the other side of the room.

I tried to recall the events leading up to this, but my memory for some reason at the moment felt like a blurred chaotic mental puzzle obscured by a dense fog.

“Where am I?” I mumbled, my voice coming out almost as a hoarse whisper and my words barely audible. I attempted to sit up, but the room swayed, and I immediately flopped back onto the pillows – or what I thought was supposed to be the pillows, except I instead hit my head on the armrest of a ... a couch. Why on earth am I on a couch?

Damn, my head is killing me. I whimpered, massaging my head slowly, trying to massage away the persistent throbbing pain in my head, so that I could stand up or at least gain a moment to find out what was going on and make sense of my situation.

But I didn’t have to trouble myself that much, because a gust of wind swept through the room, carrying with it the unmistakable smell of stale alcohol, grapes, and wine. Immediately, clarity surged to my brain and my memory rushed back; Morning, Dionysus, juice, wine, fight, Dad, my powers… and now I’m on the couch in The Big House…

Another groan escaped me, I pressed my hand against my forehead, why must life suck this much? And why was I feeling like Dionysus had been punching my face instead of I his?

A couple of minutes of complete ambient silence passed by, before a subtle creaking sound reached my ears, all my thoughts came to an immediate halt, and I froze, not daring to even draw a proper breath in, I cautiously opened my eyes just a fraction to be able to observe someone entering the room, silhouetted against the bright light coming from the now opened door leading to the outside.

I closed my eyes, now instead straining my ears to listen. The footsteps slowly moved over to the kitchen. I heard the distinct sound of the sink being turned on and a glass clinked against the sink. From what I could make out from the sound only, the person was probably filling up a glass of water.

Then I could hear the person walking up to me, before crouching down beside my head, I could feel the presence of the person hovering over me. I resisted the urge to peek, remaining motionless and stopped breathing altogether, my heartbeat quivering as I focused fully on listening to what the person was doing, ready to defend myself at any moment.

A hand gently brushed against my shoulder, sending shivers down my spine, before two fingers pressed beside my throat, checking for my pulse. I gulped, and the hand carefully and delicately traveled to my forehead, resting there for a couple of seconds before the person rose. Sending the scent of strong old wine into the air, I twitched my nose, feeling the smell tickle my nose right before I was about to sneeze. But suddenly freezing cold water crashed onto my face and torso, I gasped startled.

“Great, you’re awake! I almost thought Poseidon had actually killed you.” A voice exclaimed, and in an instant, I recognized who the voice belonged to; Dionysus.

I jolted upright, momentarily forgetting about the pain, before almost instantly screaming out in agony.

The pain I felt was from no injury or wound, I would know, no it felt deeper, like something inside me was wrong, like something was missing. I didn’t feel whole, like someone had stolen or violently ripped out a part of me.

I need to get away from here.

I blinked rapidly, staring at the blurred figure of Dionysus standing over me. And despite the pain, I jumped to my wobbly feet, attempting to stand up, but my unsteady legs like made out of jelly and rubber betrayed me and I stumbled as a wave of dizziness washed over me.

Luckily – or I will never thank Dionysus for it, but just before I was on the brink of collapse, a strong arm wrapped around me, preventing me from falling disastrously.

And now comes the reason I will never thank him for saving me from the fall; he first backed me up to the couch gently, letting me get the feeling of safety and gain my balance back, before he kicked my feet from under me, as an act of revenge and I found myself hurling backward, as he threw me back onto the firm leather couch.

Crashing onto the couch, a stifled whimper escaped my lips as pain shot through my body, through every nerve like a surge of electricity.

“What the hell?” I groaned, although not surprised, I still felt a bit betrayed.

“Oh, I’m so sorry.” Dionysus smirked, sitting down on the sofa chair.

“I hate you.” I whispered, with my eyes tightly closed against the lingering pain.

“Well, bless your heart, because I love myself –” he laughed, probably intensely slurping on his diet coke loudly, so I could hear.

Intrigued, I blinked and opened one eye to cast a confused glance in his direction.

He put down his coke on the armrest, satisfied. “– And is your hate really supposed to bother me, godling? Should it matter to me? Do you even think you have the mental capacity to hate a god? To hate me!? Oh please! Let me tell you: You don’t.”

I thought for a second to be able to formulate a good enough response, before I eventually shrugged. “Well, if you are such an almighty god,” I began, locking eyes with Dionysus’s piercing purple gaze. “I’d expect you to have thicker skin –”

Dionysus's eyes flared up as he frowned, staring at me intensely like a cat fixated on its prey, maybe that’s why the leopard was his sacred animal?

Unfazed, I smirked. “ – But hey, if my little weak human emotions bother you, maybe you’re not as powerful as you think, you dumb coke addict?”

The moment I said that, an image of a bloody head on a stick appeared in my mind. I groaned, rubbing my temple, that certainly didn’t help the headache.

“Careful, Jackson, your daddy isn’t here to protect you.” Dionysus snarled, his eyes now burning with a furious purple flame.

I rolled my eyes. “I don’t think even if you tried you could make me feel any worse than I’m feeling right now.” I said bitterly, sitting up a tiny bit, supported by a pillow.

“Believe me, I could.” Dionysus hissed, leaning back in the chair, and bringing his drink to his lips before pausing and adding; “Much worse.”

I ignored him, focusing instead on the water dripping down my face, but as the silence between us prolonged I finally asked, pleading for an answer with my eyes. “What’s wrong with me?” I whispered, resting a hand against my chest. “I feel so empty –”

“That’s because Poseidon took away your powers.” Dionysus explained.

A voice echoed through my head: You don’t deserve to have them.

I bit my lip, remembering Dad’s words.

“What happened?” I asked, my lip quivered as the weight of the words sank in.

“Not much.” Dionysus shrugged. “He stripped you of your powers, and you, like a sleeping princess, fainted, which actually scared us – or I didn’t care – but you scared your father at least. I guess you weren’t supposed to do that, or it’s just hard for him to accept that you, his son, are weak.”

Dionysus paused and took a moment to swallow a mouthful of coke before continuing. “I, of course, insisted that he should remove your powers for at least a couple of decades –“

“Of course, you did…” I mumbled, with a lack of surprise very evident in my voice.

“– However, he told me … to tell you … that he wanted you to know … that he will return your powers if you behave.”

“If I behave? What is that supposed to mean?” I frowned, a sense of unease settling in.

Dionysus leaned back in his chair, a sly grin playing on his lips. He didn’t answer, remaining silent, but his eyes lit up again, calmly this time luckily, not the earlier rage.

“There was also something else…” he mumbled, scratching his head as if trying to recall. “Oh, yeah! You are not to leave the camp and you must stay within the camp’s borders.”

“What? No!” I protested, slowly standing up, using the couch for support. “I promised Mom to be home tomorrow; I have important plans! Stripping me of my powers and confining me to this camp, it’s ridiculous. He can’t seriously mean it! How does he expect me to follow his rules if they are this stupid?!”

“I don’t know, and I don’t care, but you are staying at camp. No mommy time.” Dionysus laughed, opening another can of Diet Coke.

“What about school? I can’t skip any more classes! What am I supposed to tell them? ‘Sorry, can’t make it to class, because my dad is being a dick and has grounded me to a camp for demigods’?”

“Your dad is right; you are terrible at excuses.” Dionysus winced. “I’m sure you can come up with a more creative excuse. And again I don’t care! The only thing that matters is that you are staying at camp, and that’s it. Just accept it already!”

“But why camp?” I groaned, wobbling a bit on my feet. “Now that I don’t have my powers, doesn’t it then technically mean I’m no longer an actual demigod? Shouldn’t I then be on home arrest or something like that?”

Dionysus looked at me like I was stupid. “You do realize that your powers are the least important part of what makes you a demigod? You still a son of Poseidon, there is still ichor currently running through your veins …”

“I don’t care!” I yelled annoyed. “I can’t stay cooped up in this damn camp, utterly powerless, forever! I don’t understand why I can’t visit mom?”

“Why are you asking me? I don’t know! Go ask your daddy!” Dionysus whined. “My best guess is that he thinks you are too weak without your powers to go running around in the free unprotected.”

I scoffed offended. “That’s so unfair! I can take care of myself.” The injustice was clawing at me.

Dionysus simply rolled his eyes. “If you’re that desperate for your mommy, you can just try behaving for once in your life, and I’m sure your daddy will swiftly return your powers, and you’ll be on your Mary way to mamma.”

“You’re not helpful.” I hissed, stumbling towards door leading to the outside, I need fresh air.

“Your father also mentioned something about …” Dionysus began as I was about to reach the door, I paused for a moment to listen.

He laughed. “He mentioned something about you having to say sorry to me…”

“Fuck you!” I yelled, storming off in frustration.

“Great start” Dionysus yelled after me. “If you continue like this, maybe you’ll have your powers back by the end of this century.”

Chapter Text

I spent the day wandering around the camp like crazy, trying to find something that could ease my mind.

I felt terrible, the awful headache had disappeared, but the horrendous feeling of missing something – a part of me – didn’t go away, no matter what I tried; I had tried nectar, taking a nap, going for a run… but no the feeling was stubborn and persistent and had no intention of leaving.

I was sweating like crazy for no reason at all, and every time there was a swift of wind, it would feel like the cold air just passed through my body, which was not very pleasant.

Annabeth hadn’t come to camp this weekend, since she had exams to prepare for. Which meant that I didn’t have her to help me, but at the same time I was not really in the mood to listen to her tell me how stupid I was for starting a fight with Dionysus.

As the sun started to move downwards, I wandered into the woods. I didn’t have a good reason to go there, it was mostly unintentional, but I was glad for the silence and that there was nobody else there other than me and the nymphs.

All day I had been passing by people, and I don’t know if it was me that was just paranoid, but they were staring at me more than usual, so to get a break from people was nice, to say the least.

The fading sunlight was casting long shadows between the trees, and there was already an occasional chirping of crickets added to the background.

As I ventured deeper into the woods, I could hear the distant laughter of the other campers echoing through the trees, and I could see the soft glow of the newly started campfire flickering in the distance.

I sighed. I wished I could forget everything and join them, but the hollow feeling was still tearing me into pieces with each step I took as I continued walking deeper into the forest.

I wandered so deep into the forest that the trees gradually started to thin out and I finally reached the downward hill, where I knew that the camp borders lay at the bottom.

I moved towards the downward slope, watching the magical protective barrier shimmer faintly in the fading daylight, marking the limit of the camp.

I wondered if Dionysus knew where I was – he probably knew – but I couldn’t sense his presence anywhere near me, so I guessed that he wasn’t watching me, but I knew he was ready to appear to kick my ass back if I crossed the line.

I grinned to myself, I will show that ass, I thought as I slowly started descending the downhill.

However, as I was walking down the hill, a bit lost in my thoughts, I failed to notice something in front of me and suddenly, my foot collided with an unseen object, and I stumbled forward, desperately reaching out to steady myself.

But my efforts to regain my balance proved to me in vain, since I with an abrupt jolt, all the sudden found myself tumbling down the hill.

As I rolled downward, my hands instinctively shot out to break the fall and the rough terrain scraped against my palms, sending sharp pain all through my arms.

For me, the descent felt endless, and my every attempt at stopping myself from further rolling down the hill, only resulted in more abrasions.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, I came to a halt at the bottom of the hill – just inches from the border. I took a quick breath, backing away from the barrier, determined to put some distance between me and the border, so the wine god wouldn’t appear. I was feeling a bit shaken and disoriented from the fall.

My palms throbbed with pain, and I nervously inspected the scratches on my hands. I winched at the sight of dirt and small pebbles embedded in the wounds.

The jeans I had changed to from the grape juice-soaked pajama pants were now ripped at the knees. And my right knee was bleeding like I had fallen on asphalt.

I cursed under my breath because of my less-than-graceful descent. Cursing even more, when I pushed myself up, and soreness was already ready to greet me.

“Well, that’s one way to make it down the hill.” I muttered to myself, I was grateful that nobody had witnessed my very beautiful descent, but at the same time, I still felt that my ego was slightly bruised.

Glancing around, I noticed the small stream of water trickling down the hill nearby. I frowned; how had I not sensed the water so close to me? How had I not noticed?

I slowly approached the water, trying to rub the dirt off my hands before almost out of instinct, and without much thought, I submerged my hands in the stream, expecting the familiar healing feeling to work its magic the second I touched the water.

The water was cool and refreshing, but even though I gasped staring at my hands a couple of seconds later, there was no relief when they touched the water, and not even the tiniest scratch did heal on my palms.

The terrible truth washed over me. Not only had Dad taken away my ability to control the water, but I was now no longer able to heal in water.

I withdrew my hands slowly, bringing them to my chest, for some reason I felt them shake against my chest. The bruises on the palms there still, like nothing had happened.

The realization that I could no longer heal with water struck for some reason quite deep, creating a horrendous pain in my chest. A profound sense of vulnerability washed over me. The ability to mend my wounds was just such a big part of me, a comforting reassurance I always had when facing of monsters… but now it’s gone.

I walked up the hill again, and when I reached almost the top of the hill, I finally saw what I had stumbled over that had caused my fall.

It was a wheel, partially concealed by a thick brown-green blanket and some branches and leaves.

I grabbed the blanket and pulled it gently off the rest of the object. I gasped in shock when my eyes fell on a gleaming red motorcycle.

I immediately recognized the bike, it belonged to one of the oldest demigod at camp – one of the older Ares children, he was almost twenty or when I think about it, maybe probably older, he at least looked old. Had a beard and tattoos all over his right shoulder.

I remembered that Dionysus had not long ago turned the guy into a rabbit, because the dude had been driving around inside the camp like a maniac, almost driving over his secret grape plants in the field.

Dionysus had deemed that the bike was too dangerous and that Ares should think better before gifting such dumb birthday gifts. He demanded, to their dismay, that the Ares cabin had to get rid of the bike before he incinerated it. That had actually surprised me, that he cared about the camps safety, but then the next mouth a child of Ares brought a rocket launcher into camp, and I understood that he probably just banned the motorcycle because it was so noisy and disturbed his beauty sleep. I guess this is where they hide it.

But what shocked me even more were the many bottles of alcoholic drinks all around the bike. The only thing hiding the alcohol was that they had thrown some leaves onto the bottles. Wow, Ares kids are bad at hiding stuff.

I leaned down and brushed away the leaves to get a clearer view. There were not a lot of bottles, but a good viarity. From a simple beer to other stronger drinks.

No, Dionysus would not be happy if he found this.

But just thinking of Dionysus rushed my rage towards him back into my mind. I bit my lip.

If you behave your father …

Behave?

Behave? They seriously wanted me to behave when they acted like that?

Fuck them. I cursed, and before I knew what came over me, I grabbed a beer and sat down beside the motorcycle, leaning my back on the back wheel.

I pulled out Riptide, glad that Dad hadn’t taken away my sword at least, I don’t know what I would do without both my sword and powers. I would be helpless.

I positioned the beer bottle cap against the edge of the blade, and in one swift and fluid motion, I brought the beer bottle down onto the sharp edge of the sword. Riptide effortlessly pierced through the metal cap, sending it spinning through the air before it fell somewhere in the grass.

I drank in silence, wincing at every mouthful of the malty drink. I never understood how people could drink this out in pleasure, it was disgusting and bitter. However, the bad taste felt good combating the empty feeling inside of me at the moment.

Soon after the second bottle, I decided to drown myself in some of the stronger looking drinks.

With not much effort I opened a bottle and drank, I drank like a mad man, not bothered to breath. The burning feeling of the drink going down my throat was amazing, and feeling the warmth spread through my limbs made the empty cold feeling fade from inside me.

What felt to be too soon, I was done with the bottle, and another, and another after that… It didn’t take long until I started to feel dizzy and light-headed, but it wasn’t a bad feeling, it felt nice.

The sun would be down in a couple of hours I noted, grimacing at its brightness.

The wind whispered through the blades of grass as I grabbed for another bottle, I felt a cold and glassy object against my fingers, it was a bigger bottle… Good… With a clumsy grasp, I eagerly brought it closer to me so I would be able to  insect it, I squinted through my bleary eyes.

My drunken senses slowly registered the distinct shape of the bottle and the label. The recognition dawned on me, it was not the strong, fiery spirit I had hoped for, instead, it was a wine bottle.

How did they have the guts to bring in wine to camp, with the literal wine god walking around. All other alcohol I could understand, but wine … wine was stupid…

“Fuck wine…” I mumbled, but decided to open it anyway.

Once again drawing my sword from my pocket with an unsteady hand.

I fumbled to pry the cork from the bottle’s neck. The metallic clink of Riptide against the glass resonated in the quiet hillside, a bit to loud for my comfort, but there was not a part of me that cared anymore.

The aroma of wine wafted through the air, and I lifted the bottle to my lips slowly.

However, in some strange moment of clarity, I paused, a mischievous glint sparkling in my eyes as a rebellious idea quickly formed in my mind.

And without much further thought, I abruptly flipped the bottle upside down, letting the rich, red liquid trickle down the neck and onto the open grass. Before it cascaded down the hill. Over my shoes, soaking them once again purple.

Take that, Dionysus, I thought as I watched with a smile on my face as the wine weaved its way through the blades of grass, leaving behind a red-purple trail. I didn’t know why I had done it, or what had come over me, but it felt good, it felt right.

The wine, ran down the slope, like a rebellious river, carring away my frustrations, replacing them with a very tipsy sense of victory.

Now that I think about it, it was perhaps it was the small act of revenge against that smug faced ass that had encouraged me, but I didn’t know.

As the last drops escaped the confines of the bottle, I laughed and turned the bottle the right way again. I raised the empty bottle, and clicked it against the staring wheel of the bike.

“Cheers to you.” I chuckled, giving the back wheel a little kick so that it would spin, mainly just for entertainment, but then I was hit with an amazing idea.

Maybe I should take it for a ride?

I wasn’t sure if the alcohol was to blame for the idea, but at the time, the idea seemed super cool, I had to try, it would be so fun.

Dionysus had domed this bike for a terribly boring fate.

Fuck fate.

Chapter Text

I stood up, kicking the branches of the bike and pulled the bike up the small hill.

“What do you say, beauty, shall I take you on a ride?” I whispered, running my hand over the seat to brush away the dirt. It was like the red machine was daring me to mount it.

With a clumsy swagger, I hoisted myself onto the seat. Paul had been teaching me how to drive for months now. There couldn’t be such a difference between a car and a bike, right?

I started the motor, but winched the moment it turned on. Why so loud? The forest immediately echoed with the revving engine.

I grinned like some mischievous child as I let my finger slowly grip the handlebars.

In the dim last sunlight beams, I twisted the throttle, slowly driving the bike out of the woods.

To be honest, it was a bit difficult staying on while driving on the uneven ground of the forest. The bike jolted and bounced because of the many roots sticking out of the ground.

I gritted my teeth and clenched the handlebars, my grip so tight that my knuckles were turning white, trying to maintain control and balance, while the wheels bounced over the obstacles. I was practically wrestling the red motorcycle through the woods.

But not long time after, I was out of the woods, and picking up speed. The engine roared through the camp, and laughter escaped my lips when the thrill of the ride surged through my veins.

This is sooo fun.

I leaned into the turns as the wind rushed past me quickly, clearing my drunk mind. I laughed even more, how had I never tried this before? This is so fun.

I could feel the warm sensation of the alcohol and adrenaline from the bike ride, almost fill the hole inside of me. I was whole again.

Once I reached the cabins, people came rushing out to see what the noise was all about. People were of course shocked, when they saw a red motorcycle zooming towards them.

The crowd was already gathered when I reached the campers. People were gasping in shock while others were cheering.

Normally, I wouldn’t enjoy making such a commotion, but now, for some reason, it felt good, I didn’t care about anything.

Some of the kids from the Ares cabin tried to throw their spears at me while yelling something along the lines of; “Get off my bike, Percy!”

But I just ingored him and speed away.

Soon I was driving past The Big House. Chiron and Dionysus were sitting on the porch, playing the last game of Picklo.

Dionysus immediately stood up. “I said to get rid of the bike.” He shouted annoyed.

“Get off, Jackson! I will beat your ass away!” Dionysus shouted even louder, once he noticed that it was me that was driving the red bike.

“Fuck you!” I shouted, dodging the can of Coke he threw at me just as I passed him.

Looking back, I saw wine vines try to catch me, but they weren’t fast enough and I was way beyond the camp borders before they could even come close.

A grass field stretched before me as I drove, and the soft hum of the engine calmed me in my intoxicated state.

As I approached the edge of the field on my left side, my bleary vision caught a glimpse of a hidden path beyond the grass and bushes. I always knew that there was a road there, but it hadn’t come to mind, before now.

I grinned, determinedly turning the bike, and steering it off the grass field and into the wilderness of bushes.

The resistance of the undergrowth of the forest was immediate.

The motorcycle roared as it fought against the vegetation, and I wrestled with the handlebars, pushing through the greenery.

I continued driving the bike deeper through the tangle of bushes and tall grass and the red motorcycle tore through the underbrush.

The bike’s wheels plowed through the tall grass and the twigs snapped loudly beneath the wheels.

The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and my vision blurred as I fought against the bike, that threatened to stop.

I bit my lip as the bushes clawed at my arms, and the tall grass slapped against my legs. Luckily, the engine’s growl drowned out the rustling of the greenery I drove past and over.

I pushed through the unruly terrain, the motorcycle once again bouncing and protesting, yet the promise of the thrill and excitement of getting away from camp, spurred me forward.

I clung to the handlebars even harder, my body swaying with each unpredictable dip and rise.

After what seemed too long, I finally drove the bike out of the bushes, the bike practically burst into the open, with a mighty roar that echoed in the now dim moonlight.

I steadied the machine and drove it onto an empty road. The wheels met the smooth surface of the open stretch of asphalt with a triumphant hum.

I leaned back on the bike, finally finding the seat comfortable and without much hesitation, I opened the throttle, and the bike accelerated smoothly, it almost felt like I was gliding on the road.

The motorcycle purred beneath me, as we cruised along the deserted highway. The wind whispered in my ears, a gentle counterpoint to the steady purr of the machine.

I loosened my grip on the handlebars, feeling the freedom wash over me. The intoxicating mix of speed and solitude enveloped my senses, momentarily clearing the fog in my mind.

Headlights pierced the darkness as I navigated the twists and turns of the road, almost becoming one with the red machine.

But as the time went on, I started to feel the cold creep into my limbs. It wasn’t the effect of the drinks that was fading but the fact that I wasn’t wearing anything more than the camp T-shirt and in the biting wind because I was driving so fast (most likely over the speed limit), I started to feel my hands go numb.

I wasn’t sure where I was.

Now I was lost.

I was driving on some random narrow road that was suspended between a cliff on one side and a dense forest on the other side.

I felt a growing fatigue settling into my bones and my eyelids slowly becoming heavier and heavier, resisting my constant attempt at keeping them open.

On my left, the vast expanse of the sea sparkled under the moonlight, a sheer drop from the edge of the cliff scared the hell out of me. To my right, the forest was almost a shadow with dancing swaying branches, which created a somewhat weird contrast to the moonlit waters.

The scent of salt and pine intermingled, creating a unique smell.

My head drooped slightly. The cold seemed to seep into my very core as I struggled to stay awake.

The hum of the engine became somewhat distant and dull.

I fought against the encroaching fatigue, shaking my head and blinking rapidly.

The road ahead blurred, and the yellow lines looked almost hypnotic.

I felt so tired, my eyes were slowly closing, but I fought against them, and kept them open.

I just need to stay awake until I reach a city or something familiar.

Suddenly a blinding light pierced through the darkness, there was a light ahead of me, I opened my eyes, shit, I OPENED my eyes, when had I closed them?

A truck was heading straight at me, the driver wasn’t even looking at the road. How had the truck ended on the wrong side of the road?

I turned the motorcycle to the side, to what I thought would be the safety of the opposite lane.

My heart pounded as I wrenched the handlebars, but I immediately knew my mistake. It wasn’t the truck that was driving on the wrong side of the road, it had been me, I was the one on the wrong lane, it must have happened while I had closed my eyes.

And because I had thought that it had been the truck that was on the wrong side and not me, I had now turned to the left, and since what I thought wasn’t the case, I was now heading down the cliff.

A moment of sheer horror gripped me as realization hit me – I had turned the wrong way.

The motorcycle responded too late to my desperate attempt to correct the course.

The time seemed to slow down as the tires left the safety of the road. The bike immediately took a somersault down the hill, and I fell off the bike.

Alongside the motorcycle, I tumbled down the side of the hill until we smashed into the water.

It was like the waves were welcoming me and I welcomed it, desperately in need of the healing touch of the sea.

Sinking to the sea, a disconcerting realization gripped my heart. The relief of being in water quickly morphed into panic as I tried to draw a breath, only to be met with the suffocating resistance of the water in my lungs.

I can’t breath!

Confusion clouded my mind, and I desperately struggled for air.

I tried to swim up, but the bike that had too landed in the water, fell right onto me.

I gasped out in pain and panic when I hit the bottom of the sea, and the weight of the motorcycle plunged right onto me, pinning me down below the surface.

Frantically, I thrashed against the bike, limbs flailing in an unsuccessful attempt to free myself.

I need to breathe.

I need to get it off of me. I thought, but each attempt to free myself started to feel more and more like an impossible task. My limbs felt now heavy and unresponsive.

I could feel my consciousness slip away.

I need to …

I need …

I …

Help

Chapter Text

I need to …

I need …

I …

Help

Just as the edges of unconsciousness threatened to consume me, a sudden force disrupted the watery stillness.

I turned my head, to see a blurry figure materialize right in front of me. The stranger swam with incredible grace towards me and reached me with a remarkable speed, he’s movements both confident and precise in the dark water.

With surprising strength, the man effortlessly grasped the bike and, in a fluid motion, lifted it off me. I felt a surge of relief, when the weight was gone from my chest.

The man without hesitation seized my unresponsive body, his strong arms grabbing around my waist, before he with a swift motion, propelled us upward, cutting through the water quickly, moving effortlessly.

I was barely conscious when we broke through the water’s surface. I didn’t gasp for air, I just laid on the stranger's arms, he swam with godlike grace towards the shore.

The moonlit waves crashed onto us, and my vision blurred, and I faintly acknowledged the god who had saved me.

It was my Dad.

Poseidon, still a towering presence, pulled me from the water onto the shore. He laid me gently on the sandy beach.

“Breathe,” He shouted as he knelt beside me, sounding too much like he was demanding for my liking.

I could see the concern etching his divine features, his sea-colored eyes narrowing in worry as he observed my stillness and lack of breath.

“Percy – Perseus, breath! You have to breathe!” He hissed, shaking me by the shoulders. “You dumb boy, breathe!”

Why? I wondered, slowly closing my eyes. Why should I breathe?

I feel so good, so calm –

The only thing I have been doing today was doing the opposite of what I was told to do, why should I stop now?

But I didn’t get to choose whether I wanted to breathe or not, because dad with a swift, placed his hand over my chest and the water was rushed out of my lungs. I wouldn’t say it was a very pleasant experience.

I gasped for air as life surged back into my body.

“Good, breathe!” Dad praised, clapping me on the shoulder before I in a hurry rolled onto my side as my body convulsed, expelling water through my mouth and nose in ragged bursts.

I continued throwing up even more water for some time. The taste of salt now lingered on my lips.

“Well done, boy.” Poseidon chuckled nervously, brushing my wet hair out of my face.

Boy?

I rested my head against my arm, tiredly.

Was that what I was for him now?

Merely a boy?

Not a son anymore? I guess no powers meant more than simply no powers.

I bit my lip, feeling a tear slip down my chin.

Dad came closer, laying his hand on my shoulder. “What’s wrong, child?”

“Leave …” I whispered.

Dad frowned, his gaze grew stern and I could see anger flicker in his eyes. “What?”

“Leave me alo –” I hissed, but then a wave crashed onto the shore, hitting both me and dad, submerging us in water, before quickly retreating.

I flinched away from the water, No way in Hades, am I going under again!

“Percy, it’s okay –” Poseidon tried to calm me, so that I would remain on the ground and take it easy. But no, sorry, but no. I need to get away from the water.

“No-no!” I yelled, pushing dad’s hands away from myself.

I stood up, only to fall down again, hitting my head on a random stone, I could feel my head start to bleed.

Dad was on my side immediately, trying to help, but I only pushed him away again and stumbled to my feet.

“Piss off, Dad!” I screamed out of pure rage.

I was not sure why I was so angry, but him leaving me alone with no power at camp had probably something to do with it.

“Piss off.” I repeated.

I could see Dad becoming angry, but he tried to control it. “Watch your mouth, Perseus!” He said through gritted teeth.

“Watch my mouth? Seriously Dad?” I laughed, almost sounding insane. “I don’t think so! Fuck you!”

Poseidon took a sharp intake of air – air he didn’t really need. “What has come over you?”

“You fucking left me all alone at camp with no powers!” I yelled.