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Chapter Text

'A Family Built on The Weary' A PJO fanfic series written by dustshatterslikeglass. It is one of my favorite PJO fics{right up there with broken pantheons and seer Percy fics}, and I have wanted a reading/reaction fic for a while, seeing as all of the current ones are canon react as well. So! I have decided to bite the bullet and just write one!

Please read the OG fanfic series before you read mine! It's an Amazing read, Promise!

Greek Demigods, Chiron, Grover, and the gods are from the end of Chapter 6 of ‘The Constriction in Breathing Air’.

Thalia Grace is from the end of Chapter 8 of ‘Kindred’.

Rachel is from Chapter 9 of ‘The Weight of Family’.

Romans, Piper, and Leo are from just before Jason goes MIA.

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Fic

Readers:

Hestia

Hades

Persephone

Demeter

Poseidon

Amphitrite

Triton

Benthesikyme

Rhode

Kymopoleia

Hera

Zeus

Athena

Ares

Hepheastus

Aphrodite

Artemis

Hermes

Dionysus

Apollo

Chiron

Grover

Luke

Chris

Travis

Connor

Katie

Clarisse

Beckendorf

Silena

Pollux

Castor

Annabeth

Will

Percy

Thalia

Nico

Bianca

Rachel

Piper

Leo

Reyna

Hazel

Jason

Frank

Gwen

Dakota

Chapter Text

Percy grimaced, a hand pressed to his side as it throbbed. Damn.

He stepped back in the water and—

Annabeth gasped.

The gathered campers were looking at him or, more accurately, what was above his head.

He looked up, blinked. It was a large hologram of green light, demanding to be looked at, daring anyone to ignore it. A three-tipped spear: a trident.

“Your father,” Annabeth murmured. “This is really not good.”

“It is determined,” Chiron announced.

All around, the campers started kneeling. Even Clarisse, looking none too happy about it, got down.

“Poseidon,” said Chiron, looking like he’d aged more in that single moment than he had in his thousands of years. “Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God.”

And before anything else could happen, a white light shone behind his eyes, and Percy knew no more.

I wake up slowly, unable to see properly as I blink stars from my eyes, but I could hear chaos surrounding me.

My vision finally cleared up enough that I was able to see a man, no, a god standing protectively over me, looking around with hard eyes. Not just any god–

“μπαμπά(Papa)?” I murmur, as I finally start feeling my body letting out a low groan of pain. My head was pounding like someone was trying to perform a craniotomy with no anesthesia and my limbs felt like unsolidified jello. I try to sit up.

My father’s eyes snap to me, softening as he looks at me even as he gently stops me from getting up. “It’s alright, μικρός πρίγκιπας(little prince), worry not.”

Any response that I could’ve given was interrupted by the sounds of yelling and multiple people crying, the amount of different scents and people was almost overwhelming.

“You are safe, my son.”

I nod, “Of course… Where are we? What happened?”

My father scowls, looking around. “We are unsure, you are among the last to awaken. A good many gods and godlings have been brought here. As well as a few others.” He shakes his head, “Are you well? Does your head hurt you still?”

“No, I’m fine…” I blink when I see just exactly who is hovering near my fathers shoulder. 

The first goddess, closest to my father, had long billowing black hair that became water at some point, and her eyes glowed green. Her long dress of green silk shimmered. She had long, fin-like ears, and her hands were webbed and clawed like my own.

Most eye-catching, though, was the crown on her head. It was beautiful, a wreath of celestial bronze, lined with pearls, with coral, aquamarine, and other gems he didn’t recognise forming waves. Another chain of the same bronze colour wrapped around her head, a bright blue gem centered on her forehead.

She smelled like green rock candy and seals, sweet and like the ocean. This was Amphitrite.

Next to her was a tall goddess built like a swimmer with dark skin and dark grey-green eyes with no pupil, almost like rushing water. Her hair was a dark brown and extremely curly, though kept in a yellow-tinted silk hair scarf. She had a few pink highlights on her bangs.

She wore a long white off-the-shoulder dress with a beautiful green and yellow geometric pattern shawl over it. Gold jewellery in the form of bracelets, rings, earrings, and a single necklace with a round coin at the end caused her to glitter in the light.

She smelled like coffee, salt, and leather, and she smiled at me in mischievous delight. It reminded me of Poseidon, well, me. Benthesikyme, I think her name was.

The goddess on Amphitrite’s other side was shorter than all the other members of the family that I’d seen so far, and she was lithe. She had long and wavy blonde hair, fair skin, and clear blue eyes, like the water at crystal beaches. The edges of her eyes grew darker, resembling a blue more like the sea that I was familiar with.

She wore a long soft blue chiton with a deep orange himation, a white embroidered three-wave pattern at the bottom, over one shoulder, belted by a delicate golden chain. She had a headpiece of a simple gold chain with a sun with wavy rays of light sitting on her forehead. On her finger was a single ring of sunstone. The sun etched onto it was different from Apollo’s, with its interchanging pattern of straight rays with wavy ones. These ones were waves all around. Helios, I believe.

She smelled of roses, salt, and olive oil. Her face was gentle as she looked over at me. Distant, but gentle. Rhode.

Standing just behind them, clearly not happy to be here was a god, his skin was completely green, with shimmering golden-edged scales going up his arms and sides. His legs looked wrong, like he wasn’t supposed to have them. Wicked looking yellow spines followed along his back. An intricate conch horn hung from a gold chain around his waist.

Black hair was pulled up in a ponytail, his head framed by a three-pronged gold crown, though only embellished with one aquamarine in the center. He had a proud and arrogant look to him; in the light dancing in the room, his image flickered between the god in front of me, a merman, and a large crab-clawed creature that could only barely lay claim to the title ‘man.’

He smelled heavily of salt and sulfur, like a group of salt licks. Even in the salt water of the room, it stood out. Triton.

And finally, close enough to see but far enough to be removed from the others was a goddess in a flowing green dress, cinched at the waist with a belt of abalone shells. Her skin was as luminous white as the fields of algae. Her hair swayed and glowed like jellyfish tendrils.

Her face was beautiful but unearthly—her eyes too bright, her features too delicate, her smile too cold, as if she’d been studying human smiles and hadn’t quite mastered the art. Kymopoleia.

“If you’re sure…” He huffs.

“Who else is here?” I try to look around but my siblings effectively block my view, purposefully or not.

My father sighs, reluctantly speaking. “It would seem like the entire olympian council is here, alongside Hestia, Hades, and his wife. Chiron, that satyr you seem to be friends with, and a mortal girl. Some children from camp and…” He huffs, “Romans.”

I blink, “Roman… demigods?”

“Yes, Roman demigods. And it seems as though the daughter of Zeus has somehow come from her tree, and my elder brother seems to have pulled three children out of nowhere.” He grumbles.

I was finally able to sit up and look around, deciding to categorize the room we were in before I focused on the people. We were in a large atriumesque room with bean bags and sofas scattered around us on a black carpeted floor.

Engaged greek marble columns detailed the white walls that interspersed with transparent full height windows, revealing a view of a garden. In the front wall were huge, marble, double doors that must have led to whatever was outside. Pushed into the left wall stood six regular white doors that led to other parts of the building. One labeled τουαλέτα/lavatio(toilet), one labeled Υπνοδωμάτια/cubiculum(Bedrooms), one labeled Κουζίνες/Culina(Kitchens), one labled καντίνα/tricliniaria (Canteen), and two labeled Αναψυχή/Recreatio(Recreation).

Finally I looked at the people in the room, the romans were different, that’s for sure. I can see the gods spread across the room, each of them hovering protectively over their charges. Two of the girls standing with who I believe to be Hestia instead of their parent, clearly not the children of an Olympian then.

I stand slowly, curious as everyone finally stops arguing or explaining or whatever they were doing. They’d all slowly grown quiet. A goddess, obviously Athena, was hovering near who was obviously Zeus. Annabeth hugging a girl, Thalia, as Thalia holds tight to a boy who I could just tell was roman.

Before anyone could continue talking or demand an explanation from each other, a letter suddenly fell into my line of vision, and I snatched it out of the air before my mind had even caught up with my body. I look at it curiously, where had it come from?

“Little pearl?” My father looks at the letter. “Do you know what it is?”

“No. It just fell into my hands.”

I looked up to see the gaze of pretty much everyone in the room directed at me. I made a very concerted effort to not hunch my shoulders at all of the attention. My father kept close to my back, which helped me relax a bit.

The thing is, when I said everyone, I meant everyone. And Zeus looked half a second from ripping the letter out of my hands to read it himself.

“Well, child? What are you waiting for? Open it!” he ordered sternly, yet his soft grip on his daughter's shoulder never falters.

I slowly opened the letter, breathing a sigh of relief when I realized that it was in Greek.

“Gods, Godlings, Mortal, Satyr, and Centaur,” I begin, “We, the Fates–”

The gods all startle at this, pulling their children closer.

I let a small smile spread across my face, and warmth settled in my chest as my father basically hugged me from behind. It soothed a part of me that had been aching since my mother was taken.

“Are unhappy with how the tapestry of life is turning out. We wish to change it,”

There are murmurs as everyone wonders what that could mean.

“So we have brought you here in order to prevent a tragedy, many tragedies, really,”

I felt my heart stop and my veins grow cold as I read ahead, stunned into silence.

Everyone would be hearing my thoughts. Every single person in this room would find out about my whole life. Everything I’d went through, everything I’d once said, thought, everything I would do, go through, say, think–

I could feel the stares of everyone drilling holes in my head, but I didn't move an inch to acknowledge it.

“We have agreed that it would be safest for knowledge of what has been, and what will be, to be shown to those who will have and have had influence on a hero's life. You all shall participate in a telling of the past, present, and future, from the point of view of our selected hero, Perseus Jackson. Worry not, time will not be passing outside of this place, we have made it so. Though something went wrong when we brought you here,” I hear the whispers fade. “This amount of power being used means that a price must be paid, the pain that is felt in the books shall be felt in real time. With all of the changes that shall be made, not all of these injuries will come to be and unfortunately pain is the price so as to avoid the wounds.”

Just my luck.

“We hasten to add that some of you probably were unaware of each other's existence until this very meeting, so please make sure to introduce yourselves. Some of you are from different times, the daughter of Zeus is from the end of your next summer. The young mortal is from two years into the future. The rest are from three years into the future. Only the group that came with the gods are from the same time. We hope that you find the rooms comfortable, as we did our best to make the experience as comfortable as possible, even with the circumstances. And as our final, and only, warning to those in this room. No one, not a single person in this room, is to be harmed, any injury will result in swift punishment. May this reading help you with your coming tasks, our little hero, and our apologies that we are unable to stop this completely, The Fates.”

Silence filled the room. They were slowly letting go of their children, knowing that they could not fight fate.

The silence was getting heavier by the second, apprehension making its way through the room, and I decided to just end it already. I may not be the oldest demigod, or the most experienced, but I hated awkward silence.

“So… does anyone have any idea how this thing with the memories and future is going to work? Or should I be prepared to go insane?” I try to joke, even if it was met mostly with unimpressed stares.

However, as if on clue, a stack of books dropped right in the middle of the room, landing with a heavy thud on the soft carpet not even a moment later.

For a second, everyone just stared at the large pile, as if still processing what had just happened. Well, it did answer my question that I was truly regretting asking now.

Luke was the first one to shake himself out of it, and he let out a low whistle. “I guess you got your answer, Percy. Those books there, are how we’re gonna see into the past and future.”

“Oh brilliant, giving a series– actually, scratch that, like fifteen books to a group of ADHD and dyslexic teenagers seems to be just the way to do it, I'm sure,” I mutter softly, but apparently not low enough because my father squeezed my shoulder softly, and everyone close enough snickered a little. I felt my cheeks warm a bit with embarrassment, but it did help dispel at least a little of the tension.

I huff, “I don’t wanna do this…”

“Well, godling, none of us do. Hurry up with this, time may have stopped but none of us want to be here for that long.”

I sigh, the god did have a point, pretty sure he’s Ares. I still pouted scowled at him though. I swear my father is so exasperated.

“Okay, okay. Let’s just get this thing over with already. We introduce ourselves and then we can start reading, I guess? How about we do name, godly parent, and I guess we can group up based off of when we came from. All of you can go last” Luke points at the Romans, “You two,” The two that I hadn’t really noticed, “can go before them, you.” He points at a red haired girl, “Can go after our group and the rest of us can figure it out.”

“If you would go first, my lords, my ladies.” He says.

There was a bit of a glaring contest before–

“My name is Hestia, or Vesta, for the Romans.” I smile at her.

With a sigh, Hades speaks. “Hades, or Pluto.”

“Persephone, or Proserpina.”

“Demeter or Ceres.”

I smile at my father, “Poseidon, or Neptune.” He’s glaring at the Romans. Oh, wonderful… that’s going to be a problem.

“Amphitrite, or Salacia.” Her voice is cold when she looks at the Romans.

“Triton in both forms.” He glares at the Romans as well.

“Benthesikyme, and I am not known in Rome…”

“Rhode, and I am not known in Rome either.” She sneers.

“Kymopoleia, and Rome has not welcomed me either.” She growls. Okay… clearly the sea deities and the Romans have a problem. I can practically feel the romans cringe.

“Athena, and I refuse to speak my… roman name.” She’s practically spitting fire. Yup, this is going to be a problem.

“Hera or Juno.”

“Zeus… or Jupiter.”

Ares snorts, “Ares, or Mars.”

“I am Hephaestus, or Vulcan.”

“Aphrodite, or Venus if you prefer.”

“Artemis or Diana.”

“Hermes or Mercury!”

“Dionysus or Bacchus I suppose.” He sounds done with life.

“Apollo, Greek and Roman!”

“I am Chiron, trainer of Greek heroes.”

“Grover, I’m a satyr protector.” He murmurs, glancing at me and then Thalia. He looks like he honestly can’t believe that she’s here.

The rest of us look at each other before glancing at Luke, who just sighs.

“Luke Castellan, son of Hermes.” Hermes smiles at his son, eyes softening.

“Travis and,”

“Connor Stoll!”

Chris sighs, “And I’m Chris Rodriguez, we’re all sons of Hermes.”

Hermes absolutely beams at having four of his sons there with him.

“Katie Gardner, daughter of Demeter.”

Demeter smiles at her daughter, clearly pleased.

“Clarisse La Rue, daughter of Ares!”

Ares grins at her, clearly sizing her up and liking what he sees.

“Charles Beckendorf, Son of Hephaestus. Most call me Beckendorf.”

Hephaestus looks up from whatever he was fiddling with, giving a faint smile at his son.

“Silena Beauraguard, daughter of Aphrodite.”

Aphrodite’s eyes light up as she looks at her daughter, it’s rare for her children to get involved in the big stuff after all.

“Pollux and Castor,” Pollux says.

“Twin sons of Dionysus.” Castor finishes.

Dionysus looks pleased to see his sons if nothing else.

“Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena.”

Athena seems smug as she looks over her child, practically preening in her pride.

“And I’m Will Solace, I’m a son of Apollo!” Will grins at his father and I can see how happy Apollo is to be here with his son.

I step forward, “Percy Jackson. Son of Poseidon.” My father didn't hesitate to grab my shoulder when he saw the look that both Zeus and Hades were giving him.

Before either of them could say anything though, Thalia steps forward.

“Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus.” She stares openly at me, and I stare at her.

I can see the relief in Zeus’ eyes, to go along with his confusion. She was a tree in our time after all.

I see the girl that felt familiar hesitate, but before I can say anything to her, the boy by her side bounces forward. “I’m Nico Di Angelo, and this is my sister Bianca! We’re apparently children of Hades and we only just found out that we’re demigods and we found out that we’re from outside of time and–”

Bianca cuts him off, “And that’s enough, Nico. Don’t ramble.”

Nico just nods, still seeming over excited and like he was close to bouncing off the walls, turning to look at Thalia and I, as Bianca does the same. We know each other, I know we do.

“And I’m Rachel, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, and I'm only a clear sighted moral, really.” I tilt my head at her, cool. She seems cool, I hope we become friends.

I turned to the two that seemed out of place with all of the groups. Maybe they wouldn’t mind being friends, despite the current age gap.

The girl steps forward. “Piper McLean… I guess I’m a demigod? I dunno who my mother is though…”

Aphrodite lights up. “Oh! You’re one of mine darling, you’ll get a proper claiming at camp, I promise.”

Piper blinks as Silena grabs her hand, “Nice to meet you little sis, come on, I’ll explain things in a better way when I can.” She drags Piper closer to her.

“Uhhh, Leo Valdez, and I’m in the same camp as her. Didn’t know I was a… demigod, until now.”

“You’re mine.” Hephaestus said, giving Leo the same look he’d given Beckendorf.

Leo just nods as he’s grabbed by Beckendorf to talk.

And it looks like it’s the Romans turn… Fun.

“Jason Grace, Son of Jupiter–”

The looks being thrown at Zeus right now are absolutely lethal.

“And co-Praetor of New Rome.” Jason nods.

Thalia hugs him tighter and I can tell we’ll be close with him as well.

“Really Zeus?”

Hades interrupts, “Not only do you break the oath. But you do it twice? And with the same woman!”

Before Zeus could reply, Hera speaks. “Continue, I’d rather not sit here and argue, brother.” She sighs.

“Gwen, legacy of Venus.” Aphrodite smiled at Gwen, who returned it, and her Greek ‘siblings’ waved at her.

“Reyna, daughter of Bellona, co-Praetor of New Rome.” Athena glared at her with a huff, I smiled up at her anyway.

“Dakota, son of Bacchus.” Dionysus winked at him while Pollux and Castor grinned at their new brother.

“Hazel Levesque, daughter of Pluto.” She stares just as the others had, I loved her already. Loved all of them, really.

An explosion of chatter— for the gods know what time that day.

Not even my fathers warning noise was enough to stop him, and Zeus gave Hades a look.

“Didn’t break the oath, you said?” His voice was as dark as his eyes, now a cobalt blue. Hades straightened like he'd been struck, the shadows around him turning three shades darker.

“Hazel, died in 1942. I don’t know how she will be alive in the future. My daughter died before we made the oath, Zeus, before the prophecy was even made,” he hissed, voice cold as ice. Zeus stared at him for a moment, shocked, and all the demigods froze, turning to look at the girl in surprise.

Hazel seemed to hunch herself in at all of the sudden attention, fidgeting nervously as everyone looked at her. She was so clearly uncomfortable, that, when Travis opened his mouth looking like he was about to say something incredibly insensitive, I knew that I had to step in.

“You’re my sister.” I tell her, “No take backs.” The head of every single mortal and god in the room snapped towards me in confusion.

“She’s… what?” My father blinked down at me and I grin, slipping out of his hold to all but skip forward to grab Hazel Nico, and Bianca. Dragging them over to Thalia and Jason.

“They’re my siblings now,” I nod.

Thalia chirps, “My siblings.”

Nico grins, “Yeah, yeah, yeah! My siblings!”

Bianca giggles, “Mine.”

Jason sighs, “Mhmm, my siblings.”

Hazel smiles, leaning into Bianca's touch, “Yeah.”

Uncle Hades' face does something funny even as my father looks like he’s about to start laughing.

“That’s not quite how this works,” Zeus scoffed. He looked like he couldn’t decide on a frown or a scowl. I wonder if the god ever smiles.

I nodded, acting like I didn’t hear him. “Great, glad we agreed. They’re mine, I’m never letting them go.”

A chorus of agreement.

My fathers eyes met mine. He gave me a pointed, but amused, look.

“A new sibling!” Hermes exclaimed, playing into our bit. “How delightful!”

Zeus looks absolutely done, but I smile slightly as I see Hazel relax from the corner of my eye, no longer in the spotlight alone.

“Umm… anyway, I’m Frank Zhang… unclaimed—”

“Not anymore, Zhang. You’re mine.” Ares interrupted, but there was a grin tugging at his lips. When Frank hesitated slightly before trying to smile at him, though, Ares’ face twisted into one of confusion.

“That's all, isn't it?” a young voice said, and I turned to see Aunt Hestia already taking a seat on a bean bag in the center of the room. “If you all could settle down, I think we may be ready to start.”

Us demigods didn't need to be told twice. I quickly grabbed the book on the top of the pile and looked around for a moment, wondering where I should sit. While I was standing, Chiron trotted over to where Hestia was sitting with a smile.

I saw each god take a small couch, most kids sitting with their godly parents and others sitting in various bean bag chairs around the room. I grin when I see that Thalia had piled some beanbags together to make a huge nest-like thing. Thalia, Jason, Annabeth, and Luke already comfortable together. I follow the rest of my siblings to sit with them.

It was chaotic choosing where to sit, but eventually everyone finally had a place and I wasted no time.

I look around and realize no one had grabbed the book, I dart forward and grab it. Just as I opened the book it floated up and read itself out. “The Constriction in Breathing Air.” Weird name, this is gonna be fun.

I smiled at the floating book, we wouldn’t have to read it ourselves it seemed. The lights of the room quickly dimmed. Even the sun seemed to get weaker, and the room looked straight out of a fantasy book, clearly we would get some visuals along with the book's words. Turns out the Fates did have a better idea than to give a bunch of books to dyslexic teenagers. I grin as the book continues.

The Beginning of the Spool

And just like that, the first chapter started.