Chapter Text
"I'm going to kill you and wear your skin." Abigial swore and Percy turned to look at her from where he had been packing his suitcase. A lovely sky blue colour with a big dark blue 'P' on it.
"What?" He squeaked and Abigial laughed at his disgusted expression.
"It is soooooooooo unfair that your dad has an entire underwater kingdom that you're allowed to visit for an entire two weeks of summer! Plus you're a lord there? A lord?" She sighed and collapsed onto his bed, blowing raspberries at his fish themed light cover.
"Aren't you 'interning' at your dad's Farm Manager thing to test your powers?" He asked, unimpressed, and she 'humphed'.
"It is not the same as an underwater kingdom. It's just a stupid farm right outside of New Rome and, sure, my mom said she'd be there to teach me and her other kids a few things but it's not like I'm getting to live with her for a whole two weeks!"
"Okay but consider this… my half brother." He cocked an eyebrow and this time Abigial offered him a little pity filled smile.
"Okay that does kinda suck, 'specially 'cause he's a god and all. I suppose I can be grateful that Lady Proserpina doesn't hate me and leaves us alone for the most part but still! Underwater kingdom! Freaking Atlantis!" She waved her arms around until they lightly smack a still packing Percy in the face. He retaliated with a sudden jump on the bed to bounce her off the bed and started laughing his head off as she hit the ground with a surprised 'oof'.
She immediately jumped up to stat wrestling him and the suitcase was abandoned as the kids rolled around Percy's room grabbing at hair and limps. Eventually, his mom came in and broke things up and Abigial had to go home and Percy had to finish packing. So there he was an hour after his bedtime stuffing almost his entire collection of underwear into his suitcase under his mom's watchful gaze.
"You'll have so much fun baby you won't even have time to think about me." His mom assured but Percy pushed back with a fierce shake of his head.
"I always think about you mom." He promised and she smiled fondly before kissing him on the head and tucking him securely into bed. She turned off the lights and cracked the door so only the tiniest bit of the hallway nightlight could creep in his room and remind him he wasn't alone. There was someone just down the hall that loved him very much.
That night he dreamt of talking fish.
That dream wasn't actually a huge surprise, the few fish he had met in koi ponds and other such places had discussed many things with him. It was actually why he no longer ate sushi and how he heard so much gossip. Fish have very strong morals and a deep love for spreading rumours. Conflicting things but hey, they're fish.
No, the surpsing thing about the dream was what the fish were wearing. Every single one of probably about fifty different species of fish was wearing a pair of his underwear but no one would address it. Every time he talked to one they would act all polite and confused as he inevitably asked why and where they had gotten a pair of his under garments. Soon enough he gave up and started asking them about Atlantis. A salmon had just started spinning a beautiful tale of this lush city with towering buildings that nearly reached the surface when an odd ringing interrupted the salmon.
Percy sat up with a gasp and smacked his clock to turn off his alarm. He settled back under his covers and mused about his dream before memories struck him like an anvil. Atlantis! He was going to Atlantis today!
Percy leapt from his bed, grabbed his suitcase sitting in the corner of his room, and ran straight out to the living room. His mom was sitting at the dining room table and shuffling through pieces of paper with a deep frown marring her face but when she heard his feet slapping against the carpet and the little wheels of his suit case rolling a smile lit up on her.
"You ready to go Percy?" He nodded, practically vibrating.
"You have all of your clothes, stuffed animals, summer reading and stuff." Another nod.
"You packed your toiletries from the bathroom?" He paused and his mom sighed. "Go get them." She waved her hand down the hallway and Percy turned around before racing to the bathroom. He grabbed for his toothbrush and toothpaste, a little baggie to put them in and then sprinted back to his mom. He stuffed them into his suitcase and dragged it and him right to the front door.
"Let's go, go, go!" He said, vibrating again. He thought if he stopped the nervousness bubbling under the surface might overwhelm him and he would chicken out. Not a good look for his divine father and step-mother.
"Shoes Percy." His mom reminded him in a soft sing-song voice. His face went red and he scrambled to tug on his trainers. Finally, they both made it out the door only for Mr. Martin to stop his mom in the hallway to 'catch up'. Like they hadn't literally just met up for coffee yesterday.
"Mom," he whispered and tugged in her sleeve but she was too busy laughing at something Mr. Martin had said.
"Mom," he tried again, nothing, "mom, Atlantis?" He added and that finally got her attention as she patted Percy on the head and sighed.
"Sorry Martin but I have to go. I'm dropping Percy off for his two weeks at…" She rotated her hands a few times in lew of words but Mr. Martin got the message.
"Ah yes, I remember you telling me about that. Sorry to stall you, have fun Percy!" The man smiled at Percy who smiled earnestly back but tugged on his mom to go. She smiled at him and allowed herself to be dragged along with his bags to the elevator. They got into the thing and it only threatened to stop twice before they were safely deposited on the floor. Neptune had only left his mom instructions to 'get him to the river' so they decided against a bus and dragged his backpack and suitcase across the city and up to the Pomeranian line.
"Not planning to move are we?" The god popped him and raised a stone eyebrow as he took in Percy's bag. His question was serious but his tone spoke of a soft humour he often reserved for the families of New Rome. He usually only gave the new demigods any real problems and he even looked for a new apprentice every century or so. Percy had already seen a flyers all around inviting small children to interview for the life long positions. It was practically only reserved for legacies though because you had to be under thirteen to apply and had to not be promised to the legion in service. So impossible for a demigod to apply unless they were so skilled that they were going into temple service or military medicine as service. Even then, that meant juggling being both a god's most important preist (basically) and serving New Rome.
"I'm visiting my father!" Percy claimed proudly and couldn't stop the grin slipping onto his face.
"Oh ho ho, going to that old god's underwater kingdom eh? Nice, a demigod hasn't been there since your step-sister-" Crackling thunder and the impossible sounding of a roaring ocean split through the sky and slammed down onto Lord Terminus. The god winced and wiggled his shoulders like his invisible arms were swatting at the air.
"Okay, okay, jeez. Still in bad taste I see. My apologies my Lord and Lady." He spoke solemnly to the air and the rumbling sounds quieted before finally, fully, disappearing.
Percy and his mom glanced at each other before silently looking to the god who was shuffling awkwardly and glancing off into the distance like he was concentrating on something far beyond them. He was a god so he probably was. Finally he made a clapping sound with his mouth and looked back to the two person family.
"Well, go on. See you later kid. Legionis mater." He nodded to Percy's mom and she bowed her head briefly back.
There was a rough cobblestone road leading out from New Rome, past Temple Hill and the legion camps all the way to a small beach at the river Tiber. It had moss and weeds sprouting and pushing up the uneven stones. The stones around the edges of the path had long since given up being even and organized and had decided to sprawl themselves in the grass growing around them. Percy had to tug on his suitcase several times to get it dislodged from rolled over or popped up stones. Thirty minutes later and he and his mom were standing right before a sandy strip of riverside.
A few people were relaxing in the summer heat at the riverside and so Percy and his mom elected to move along to a deserted area as to skip the whole 'a divine god appeared in the river and we all need to bow and pray' that usually came with anyone but the children of the speficic god when they appeared.
After wading through tall grass and weeds Percy finally found an easy enough bank to pull himself and his stuff down into the water. He did just that, slipped on some mud, and face planted right into the river as his mom yelped and scrambled down to help him. She fell too.
All of this happened exactly at the time that Lady Salacia arrived to pick him up and she appeared in all her divine glory to see her step son and her husband's lover laughing and picking themselves up with very muddy faces and clothes. His mom froze and he smiled before running forward and giving her a hug. His form of kneeling because she had insisted he not do it. The goddess smiled and squeezed him back before ushering him back to his frozen mom.
Percy's stomach dropped as he suddenly understood the situation but both women handled it with all of the grace the two of them had. Which was to say, a lot.
"It is a pleasure to meet you. Neptune spoke fondly of his time with you." Lady Salacia smiled warmly and his mom shakily gave one back.
"I don't mean to offend but I do hope he spared details." And just like that the queen of the ocean tipped her head back and laughed. Soon enough his mom was laughing as well and Percy was glancing between the two of them. What was so funny?
"No need to worry, we keep the details of our separate times to ourselves. It is merely a sign of respect between the two of us to inform one another when and who we have given our time too. I hold no ill will to you Sally and I hold love towards your son. He is in safe hands." She assured her and his mom's shoulders slumped. He hadn't even noticed how tense she had been this whole time. Guilt swirled around his gut and took it further in the current of the river. It only worsened as his mom stumbled from the irregular moving water but Salacia just touched a claw finger to the surface of the water and it stilled.
"Here Perseus, I will send your bags to your room." She snapped her claws together and the bags sunk deeper into the river before disappearing from it completely. He started as he could physically feel the loss of the bags in the water before shaking his head and cutting the phantom loss from his mind.
"Well," his mom stepped forward and pulled Percy into one last hug, "I suppose it's time I say goodbye. Just for a little while." She tugged Percy's head until she could settle her chin on it and then hugged him so tight the air in his lungs was harshly expelled in a couple of gruff coughs. She let go and held him at arms length, taking in every tiny detail she never forgot to appreciate on a day to day basis. Her son. Her only child and the only one she would ever have. Finally, she pulled Percy in and gave him a long and exaggerated kiss on his forehead. It went on so long he was bright red and had to forcefully pull himself from his grip whilst groaning and yelling.
"Mommmm!"
"Be good baby, see you in two weeks." She tapped his nose and he rolled his eyes at her even as he grinned ear to ear.
"I will. Bye!" He waved and then backed away until he was close enough to Salaica to where the goddess could place a delicate hand on his shoulder.
"It was lovely meeting you, Sally." The goddess promised softly and the mortal woman gave her a nod.
"Likewise Queen Salacia." She whispered.
And then Salacia was gone and so was Percy and Sally was standing in a river all by herself. She pulled herself from the water, sat on the bank and cried for twenty minutes. After she had pulled it together again she stood, went to dust off mud she finally noticed was suddenly gone and climbed back up the bank to return to the city: with two less bags and one less son.