Chapter Text
The first thing that Perseus noticed arriving at Camp Half Blood was Thalia's Tree, backlit by the mid-morning sun. At least, he assumed it was Thalia's Tree as it was the largest pine tree he had ever seen. Luke and Perseus walked up to the tree line up the hill in silence. On the way to camp, they had seen so many things for the first time in many years. It was incredible. Perseus finally got to use an Iris Message when the pair informed Chiron that Perseus would be coming to camp.
"Chiron, this is Percy," Luke said, using the diminutive name because of the power inherent in names, "I found him and he's clearly a demigod. He was in a… rough situation. I'm bringing him to camp."
"H-hi, I'm Percy." Perseus put on large, doe eyes, filled with faux innocence and naivete. It seemed to work on the old horse. After the call, Perseus kept fake simpering and whining to make fun of how easily Chiron fell for their trickery.
"You are blessed by the Poisonous One, and we're both given heightened lying abilities." Luke pointed out. Perseus pouted as they kept on walking.
They stepped up to the tree, and Perseus copied Luke when the older boy placed his hand on the tree in greeting. Luke looked pensive to the younger boy. "Luke, are you ready for me to be at camp?" No one had asked Luke how he felt about Perseus being at camp. Honestly, Perseus thought that some part of Luke never wanted his two worlds to ever collide. Sometimes, the boy questioned whether Luke actually cared about him at all.
Luke blinked at Perseus' tone, and said, "Of course I am. The better question would be, is camp ready for you?" The younger boy smiled.
Then they walked into camp.
It was mid-May, so camp was slowly filling with kids from the states where school ended earlier, and Perseus saw people running every which way. There were people playing volleyball, until someone let the ball drop after they caught sight of Luke.
"Luke! Luke! Guys, Luke is back!" A voice cried, ringing out across the green.
Suddenly, there were kids surrounding the two boys from Tartarus, though no one knew where they had been. Voices overlapped around Perseus, some of them asking who he was. Of course, he hadn't been around so many people at the same time in a number of years. So, it was only rational that he push away from the crowd (Later, "but, Luke, I didn't use my powers or attack any of them! They're lucky I didn't do anything more than extract myself from the situation.").
Luke spoke up, picking up on Perseus' discomfort, "Okay, guys! I found a new guy and need to go see Chiron and Mr. D. I'll see you guys later, okay?" Luke waved at the young demigods, and pulled Perseus in a new direction.
Perseus was stricken by just how accurate his dreams were. Obviously, he knew he had a gift. But he had never gotten to experience exactly what he'd Seen before. The cabins were where he had dreamt them at, and Perseus knew that the Big House would look just like it had in his dreams.
Eventually, they came to a stop at an old house, with a patio overlooking the camp. And sitting on that patio was a god, a centaur, and a young blonde girl with gray eyes. Perseus looked at Luke for confirmation that this was Annabeth.
"Hey, 'beth! Long time no see," Luke spoke with an audible smile to the girl Perseus' age. "this is Perse- uh, yeah, Percy Jackson." Luke almost stumbled over the nickname, not having actually said it in several years. Perseus smiled as politely as possible up at people on the patio.
"Annabeth Chase!" Perseus put on an over-excited act, "I've heard so much about you, Luke thinks very highly of you." Perseus knew so much more about Annabeth than she could possibly think he did, having collected years worth of knowledge and familiarity. Annabeth's face did something funny as Perseus said that, but he couldn't tell what. And then she ran off.
Perseus turned to Luke with wide eyes, confused. Luke moved on.
"Luke, my boy," a warm voice rang out, "I trust your outing went well? I, again, cannot thank you enough for handling in-person meetings with our business associates." Chiron, the old centaur, addressed Luke and Perseus. "And young Percy, you are most welcome to camp. What all has Luke filled you in on? You smell quite strongly…" The centaur trailed off, causing Perseus to want to scramble. Luckily, he was trained better than to recklessly put together a plan without a moment to breathe.
Perseus took a moment to collect his thoughts, "Well, he told me that I'm a d-demigod," he still feigned some overwhelm, "and that this camp is for kids like me. And we'll learn to fight stuff here. He couldn't tell me who my dad is, though. We did some light practice on our trip here, and I'm pretty okay with a sword." Perseus kept his eyes wide and his voice soft.
Suddenly, there was a clapping noise coming from the other man on the patio, or rather a god. "Congratulations, kid. Welcome to camp. There. The official welcoming. Don't expect anything else." This must have been Mr. D. Dionysus, the demigod turned divine. He'd heard a lot about the god. He wasn't a fan. Although, Mr. D was an amazing accidental ally in convincing demigods that their parents did not care about them.
Perseus would continue his clueless act, "Mr…D? Luke, that's who you were talking about, right?" Perseus fully turned to Luke, hoping to irritate the god.
Luke nodded.
"Chiron," Luke turned to the centaur, "I trust you have director-ly things to do with Percy?"
Chiron snuffled in surprise and said, "Well, he has the run down from you, yes? Then I see no issue with you simply giving him the tour." The two boys were dismissed.
"Well, I didn't think he would be that dismissive. Damn, he really thinks this is a good way to run camp?" Luke was quietly talking to Perseus as they walked around camp. "Well, I guess I'll show you around." Luke began to smile, "I'm really glad that I get to show you around this place, Perseus, let's go!"
They began at the volleyball court, we're they met a couple of demigods. Perseus didn't quite care about who they were, and he was overwhelmed with all the new people he had to meet. He hadn't been around new people in a long time. But, it was no matter. He had larger aspirations and a destiny to fulfill.
Once they had moved on from the volleyball court, they passed quickly by the arts and crafts pavilion. Luke explained that Perseus would have to step foot in there as part of camp activities. Perseus maintained that he absolutely would not be doing that. Luke just laughed.
Next, they spent some time by the lake. Perseus hadn't been around real, natural water in several years. Luckily, Luke was too weak to tell Perseus he couldn't get in the water, because, "please, Luke, please! I've been you-know-where for so long and I miss the water so much. I can't wait, can I please go swim? I'll dry right off!"
The water felt amazing, Perseus could feel the presence of the nymphs and the comforting wrap of real water. Perseus had to maintain a semblance of his act, but he figured he was allowed to splash around and enjoy the water; though, no one but Luke would know just how much it meant to the young boy. Perseus left the water an hour later, when the sun had almost reached the high point of the day. And true to his word, after a surreptitious look around, he dried himself and Luke off.
After they left the lake, the boys went to the amphitheater, where Luke explained that, "we meet here for sing-along nights." A sigh. "Don't scoff, Perseus. Our lord may not have taught this to you well, but troop morale is important. You can't get anything done if everyone is too miserable to do it." Perseus raised an eyebrow and they moved on, though Luke's brow stayed a bit furrowed.
The next sight they came up to was the climbing wall. Which had lava. Naturally, Perseus was in love.
"How did they even think of something so reminiscent of the Pit? It's awesome!" the young boy couldn't wait until he could climb that wall.
"It's a long story," Luke said as he slowly dragged Perseus away from the wall, "which I can tell you later. But right now, we're going to go to the beach." Perseus immediately moved on from the climbing wall and focused on the possibility of the beach.
The visit to the beach was similar to the lake, but so much better. Forget the lake, actually. Perseus would never leave the sea if it meant he could keep feeling the insane rush of energy he felt. It was like the ocean was calling to him, welcoming him in with all-encompassing arms. He felt muscles relax that he didn't even know were tight. The young boy sank into the waves, feeling them envelope him in his entirety. He wanted to just lay there and maybe drift away and fall into the depths of the water.
He stayed there until he felt Luke come into the water with him and sit down next to where Perseus was floating. Then, Luke started softly talking to Perseus, "How long has it been since you've gotten to be the sea? It must have been before I to- saved you from those monsters, right? I'm glad you're enjoying it." Luke turned and smiled softly at the boy.
Perseus popped his head up from beneath the waves, "yeah. I missed it. More than I realized." He paused. "We can move on now. I'll be coming back here though."
Luke chuckled, "I don't doubt it, kid." He stood up and ruffled Perseus' hair, for which he got a stream of water to the face for it, and burst out laughing.
The two boys continued on their tour of camp, and on their way, Luke said, "We're about to come up to the mess hall. No powers, no references, okay?" Perseus nodded, understanding what Luke was saying.
At the mess hall, there were approached by a boy wearing glasses over striking gray eyes. An owl-spawn.
Luke spoke first, "Malcolm, hi! I'm just showing Percy around camp. I rescued him from monsters attacking him while I was on one of my trips." Perseus looked at Luke, confused as to why he was revealing so much to one person so quickly, until Malcolm waved at Percy and said, "My satyr rescued me from monsters, too! Glad that you're at camp, Percy." Then he turned back to Luke, "Um, I think that Annabeth thinks that you're trying to replace her. Since you haven't gone to see her specifically yet." Malcolm trailed off a bit at the end, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else.
Luke looked away, "Oh, yeah. Can you let her know that I'll be over as soon as I finish showing Percy around?" Perseus moped at his impending abandonment, not that it was anything new for Luke to leave Perseus for weeks at a time. It was still annoying. But, whatever. Malcolm nodded and walked away.
Facing Perseus again, Luke explained that the dining hall was based off of cabins, and that they were expected to sacrifice food to the gods. Perseus made a face that he quickly tamped down, so as to not raise suspicion. "Fine, I'll give someone something. Can I sacrifice to any immortal being?" Luke nodded in realization. "Okay, then."
They walked over into the woods, "we're cutting through the woods so I can show you some stuff where we play our games." Luke explained, smiling.
Perseus and Luke walked through the tall pines, the dappled cedars, and the spotted oak trees, winding their way through the woods. After a few minutes, Luke said, "So, you ever wonder what it's like to hunt monsters in the wild? We stock the woods, so it'll be pretty fun." Perseus' eyes lit up.
"I would love to!" And so, off they went. There weren't very many things that presented a challenge, especially once Perseus started throwing water spikes at the monsters. There were a couple of giant ant-things, and a giant scorpion. 'Nothing too sentient that would attack camp on purpose' is what Luke said.
Then, Luke brought them to a stop. "What I'm about to show you, I haven't even revealed to Annabeth. I found this in my first year here, when I kept searching for a place to escape to when I was in a bad spot. We can't really go in, but I'm trusting you with this, Perseus." Luke walked up to a rock formation, "This is Zeus' Fist. It's not what I'm showing you. What I'm showing you," he moved to a gap in the boulders, "is this. An entrance to the Labyrinth. Daedalus' labyrinth."
"Wow. An entrance. In camp." Realization dawned on the boy, "Luke, do you know what this means? We could invade camp from the inside. Surpass the borders entirely." Perseus walked forward, about to go in and explore until Luke grabbed his arm and yanked him backwards.
Luke nodded, "But, we don't have any way to navigate it. I've been talking to Kronos about it. We haven't found a solution. If we can't figure it out, we'll start sending scouts or something. But you don't need to worry about it. You focus on being a little chaos-monger, okay?"
Perseus rolled his eyes, but he still smirked at his given role. Though, he was meant to be more than just an actor in their subtle war. According to Kronos himself, Perseus was supposed to be the deciding figure of their great conquest over the gods. They just needed to wait for their time to strike.
Luke ruffled the younger boy's hair and began walking back towards the main camp.
Eventually, they came up to the stables. Luke led Perseus inside, "I bet that she's here somewhere," he muttered before he spoke at his normal voice. "Ah, Silena! I thought you'd be here, I'm showing Percy here around camp. He's new, I found him while away for camp business stuff."
A girl with long raven hair stood up from a pegasus stall, she looked to be somewhere between Luke and Perseus age-wise. Her smile was stunningly bright, and she seemed really warm and welcoming. "Hi, Percy! I'm Silena, the head of the Aphrodite cabin. It's so lovely to meet you! When did you get here? Are you liking camp?" she asked the boy.
Perseus was slightly taken aback by her warmth, and responded, "Um, I'm really enjoying camp so far, especially the lake and beach. I just got here today."
And then, something Perseus didn't expect happened: he heard several voices in his head that said "Oh, our little prince! Lord, Lord! Welcome! Glad you are here!"
"What the fuck?!" Perseus exclaimed.
Two pairs of eyes flew to him in alarm and confusion.
"Sorry- wait- no- can neither of you hear those voices?" Perseus questioned. He got twin shakes to the negative. "Who is talking in my head?"
"Us, my lord! The pegasi! Your father had a part in the creation of equine creatures, so we can talk to you!"
Perseus paused, until he finally said, "It's the pegasi. The pegasi can talk to me. Great. Love that."
Luke and Silena's jaws dropped, neither of them expecting something like that.
"H-have horses ever spoken to you before, Percy?" Silena asked, taking the news remarkably well.
Perseus could only shake his head, "no, I've never even really been around horses. Ever."
Luke nodded his head, "Okay, well, new ability, I guess?" A pause, "I think we keep that one on the quieter side, it's not a super useful skill anyways. You'll just get a bit more out of pegasus riding and training."
At the words, Perseus immediately honed in on him getting more, new training. Maybe coming to the camp had its virtues.
The trio continued to talk about camp, and Silena said she hoped he would enjoy the strawberry fields.
"Oh, that's where we're going tomorrow," Luke said, "I'm going to show Percy around the fields and more later, we've already gotten through a lot today. We need to head back to the cabin before dinner." Then he said to Silena, as if a joke between the two of them, "I'm not looking forward to what the Stoll's have done."
Silena shook her head ruefully, and said, "Alright, you two, go on. I still need to finish up here, if you run into any of mine." Luke nodded and walked out of the stables. Perseus followed.
Perseus and Luke walked up to the open horseshoe of cabins. Of course, Luke had vented ad nauseam about the cabins system during previous visits, so Perseus was mostly familiar with the set-up. His eyes scanned the cabins, pin-pointing each cabin's patron. Zeus, Hera, Demeter, Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite, Dionysus, Hermes, Hephaestus, Apollo, Ares, and finally, Poseidon.
Perseus' reaction was strange. Almost immediately, he felt a calling to go to the ocean themed cabin, to go to the cabin of the Oceanid. And yet, he was repulsed by all he knew to be true about his father and his callousness. He took a step forward. Then, a step backward.
"Perseus," Luke whispered, "you okay?"
Perseus faintly responded, "Yeah, I'm good. Let's go to your cabin."
And so they did.
Walking up to the cabin door, they could here many people talking and laughing. Through the curtains, there were shadows of beds and of people jumping inside of the run-down cabin. Perseus had heard the spiel multiple times.
"I just can't even deal with them, Perseus! I ask for maintenance or a little bit of repairs to be done. And what? We get nothing." Luke was pacing the floor, agitated, "Not a bit of help down here. Omnipotent, my ass!"
Opening the door, Perseus was immediately overwhelmed by all of the people. He knew there would be beds and lots of people, especially people who had the same glint in their eyes as Luke when he wanted something he shouldn't have. The floor was covered in belongings. And a little spot for him in the middle of it all.
"Home, sweet home, Percy. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood."