#also he technically found the golden fleece that brought her back so... technically he completed his mission ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[purpleshadow-star]

Grover was really out here finding and collecting Big Three kids like they were Pokémon. He really said, "gotta catch em all," and he did.

[arigatouiris]

daughter of artemis // p.p — [08]

c h a p t e r  e i g h t

Pairing: Peter Parker x Demigod! Reader [Female pronouns]

Warnings: swearing; angst [a lot of it]; greek mythology rewritten [completely my interpretation of it, oops]; slightly based off the games god of war and assassin’s creed odyssey; hurt/comfort; cliche; fluff [on later chapters sometimes]; mentions of sex and gore; slight alternate universe

Follows events after Endgame, but Tony, Natasha, Steve, Loki are alive in this universe.

Author’s Note: So I watched FFH and since the whole movie revolved around a certain character’s death, I’ve decided I won’t be following the FFH timeline in this story! So for those of you who haven’t watched FFH, no spoilers will come from my story! Let me know what you guys think of this chapter~ 

Word count: 6674 (Oooh quite the long chapter oops)

08 // zεύς zeus

❅

(y/n) hated nightmares. They were always something that no matter how many times you’ve had them, no matter how you think you might one day get used to them, they will always sting as if they were new. They clutch and claw at your insecurities and make you wish for another lagging fear that can keep you up, for nightmares always targeted the extreme ones. That night, four nights after a failed attempt at killing the Hyena henchman, (y/n) had a nightmare, which she believed might have been real.

Zeus was not an old man like most mythologies pictured. He looked to be in his early 50s, grey hair, almost too silver. Piercing blue eyes, bluer than the oceans Poseidon controlled. He had a five o’ clock shadow, which was also stark white, which added to his regal appearance. When he went around to woo mortal women, Zeus would wear a suit without a tie and use his Godly powers to obtain famous influences, and sleep with women who would never look back at him for a life.

Things were easier at modern times, he believed, since women were more open to the idea of just sleeping together and leaving it at that. This way, he didn’t have to worry about making any more demigods, or any other commitments.

That night, Zeus appeared in his granddaughter’s dream.

(y/n) stood in a while room, white walls, white ceiling, no windows—however, she didn’t feel claustrophobic at the sight. Looking around, she found no one, but her appearance had changed. She was still close to 18 years old, but she was wearing a ceremonial gown; an outfit she used to wear as a child back in Olympus. A moment later, she looked ahead and saw the King of the Gods, facing her.

    “Grandfather.” It was a statement. Times had changed, all doubt had left her system.

Zeus merely smirked. He didn’t move, didn’t gesture her to come closer, nothing. However, the room shrunk in size and she was now only a few feet away from him. Zeus was wearing his usual Godly clothes, white robes with golden fleece.

    “You’ve managed to have both of Hera’s henchmen killed,” He said, his voice echoing due to the lack of things in the makeshift room they were in. “You’ve decided on following through the prophecy.”

    “If you didn’t want me to follow it through, you wouldn’t have sent anyone to kill me.”

    “Technically, I didn’t send them. My wife did.”

    “But, you knew.”

Zeus shrugged, “Yes, I knew. Didn’t think you’d live to actually commit to this preposterous prophecy.”

    “My mother wanted to tell you herself that Olympus has to—”

    “You think I give a damn about any mortal’s life?” Zeus snapped. “I was raised from nothing, you piece of filth! I was born to rule Olympus! I wouldn’t have listened to that idiot daughter of mine, even if she had come to me instead of Hera!”

(y/n) tightened her jaw. This is just a nightmare, she told herself, earning a chuckle from Zeus. He reached out and grabbed her jaw, not too tightly, and observed her face.

    “You look so much like her,” He commented, “But you have mortal eyes.”

She blinked away any tears that threatened to fall. She was not going to cry in front of him. She would not reveal any weakness.

    “So tell me,” Zeus whispered, “Are you going to kill me?”

There was no need to answer him. This was a nightmare, she would wake up soon and she could get on with whatever it was that was waiting for her that day. She would kill the Hyena and she would end things, she could start spinning the wheel of fate that lay before her; she would make sure Zeus felt threatened.

Not answering him caused Zeus to grab her by her throat and choke her. (y/n) shut her eyes at the impact, her hands clutching Zeus’ hand at her neck. She coughing and felt breathless, but she knew this had to be a nightmare.

    “Are you sure about that?” Zeus mocked, tightening his hold at her neck.

Her eyes widened and she gasped, noticing that the feeling in her hands was waning. She struggled to maintain her breath, but her lungs felt weak. A second later, (y/n) gasped and bolted up in her bed, screaming.

Her heart was beating rapidly, and it felt as if her ears were bleeding. Tears fell down her eyes and her throat was dry. Her hand automatically went to her neck, though she felt nothing there, no mark or any signs of choking. It was a dream, she told herself but she knew otherwise. It was a warning.

She wore a black hoodie to school the next morning, wanting to ignore any person who might even look at her and grab her attention. The hoodie made her feel invisible, even if she was not, it was a sign that she didn’t want anyone to come at her and speak to her or even speak about her loud enough for her to hear. Sitting at her desk, she was in no mind to read a book; (y/n) just lay her head down at the table and kept quiet, waiting for school to end. Her uncle would come to teach later in the third period, but until then she would try as much as she could to remain quiet.

What she didn’t notice was a certain high schooler watching her every movement. MJ always found (y/n) strange; staying back alone for lunch, reading and not mingling with anyone. If she was here all through the blip then it made no sense that she didn’t have even a single person she spoke to—even though MJ herself was a loner. As a matter of fact, not only was (y/n) a pro loner, the kids around her who had always stayed during the blip, knew nothing about her. It was as if she wasn’t there on most days, a ghost attending classes. The teachers knew nothing about her, or her parents, and they left her alone.

MJ’s natural instinct was curiosity, and the fact that (y/n) had turned down Peter’s attempt at a friendship made her feel more curious. It didn’t seem like (y/n) found Peter and Ned annoying, it was as if there was something there that she didn’t want revealed.

When MJ noticed (y/n) stay back after school that day, she knew there was something weird. The other day, when Peter and Ned and herself had caught her trying to speak to the janitor, and once she was noticed, (y/n) made an awkward run for it. MJ was gifted with observational skills most people around her didn’t have, and combined with her curiosity, she had the perfect nose for mystery. And here, MJ smelt something out of the ordinary.

She watched as (y/n) stood up and walked out of the class, just as everyone else was leaving. Not wanting to be caught, MJ spied from the corner of the classroom entrance and peeped at what the girl was intending on doing. Scrunching her eyebrows, MJ watched as (y/n) made her way to the janitor closet, looking around for anyone watching.

When (y/n) opened the janitor closet, the Hyena henchman was not there. Almost everyone had already left the school, (y/n) was unaware that she was being watched, but that didn’t matter. Taking her dagger out and holding it in her right hand, (y/n) slowly walked forward, ahead in the corridors, alert.

    “What is that dagger?” Came a voice from far behind her, causing her to stiffen.

Turning around, (y/n) spotted a tan skinned girl with curly haired tied in a bun behind her head. Her gaze was inquisitive, and there was a deadpan on her face that made (y/n) more wary of her. Her name was Michelle, or that’s what (y/n) remembered from the attendance.

    “Nothing.” (y/n) brought her dagger down to her side, and narrowed her eyes.

    “Who are you? Clearly, something fishy’s going on here.” MJ said, crossing her hands in front of her chest.

(y/n) sighed, “Please, leave. This doesn’t concern you.”

    “You might be a living hazard to our school. I don’t know who you are and you’ve been carrying a freaking dagger around. I can report you.”

    “I don’t need this right now, please. Please, leave—”

A moment later, she felt it. The smell. Her eyes widened and (y/n) turned to her right and spotted the Hyena henchman, his eyes fixed at the dagger (y/n) was holding. A second later, he dropped his mop and ran to (y/n) pushing her to the ground. (y/n) used both her legs to press her feet at his chest and push him back with a kick; turning around to MJ, whose gaze was shock and was frozen with fear, she grabbed the girl’s hand and pushed her into an empty classroom, closing the door behind her.

She turned to the janitor who was still on the ground and ran ahead toward him, completely ready to pierce the dagger into the nape of his neck, but stopped midway. His skin suddenly turned darker, his hair grew out and he fell backwards; he was not the henchman. He was another janitor.

Her eyes widened as everything around her turned dark. As if a shadow had managed to swallow the entire school. (y/n) was standing on darkness and there was no classroom doors left, no corridor. Everywhere she saw, it was black. In front of her, she saw the Hyena, and ran forward to attack him. He fought back, but she was faster. She landed a kick to his side, using her knee and brought him to the ground. She grabbed him by the neck and turned him around, her left hand clutching to his side as her right hand held the dagger.

However, once again, it was the very same janitor, who had fallen in front of her. He was using a decoy. Coward, (y/n) thought angrily, before running ahead into the dark.

As she ran, she heard the menacing laughter of a Hyena echo through the walls. Anger filled her veins, but there was nothing she could do until she found him. There were no doors and it felt as if (y/n) was running on the spot and was moving to no place. The entire corridor was rigged as a dark illusion, and she knew the Hyena had her on the palm of his hands. Letting out a guttural scream, she felt frustrated at the lack of control.

    “Show yourself!” She screamed, tears now filling her eyes. Her grip on the dagger tightened, and her body was now shaking with ire.

All she heard was laughter. Suddenly, doors showed themselves, and (y/n) started to open each one. One after one, she opened several doors she could see and found nothing inside. At that second, she felt like her entire life was a conspiracy against her, (y/n)’s breathing was ragged and she felt tired; she knew she had more stamina than that, but her tiredness came from the frustration that found no release.

Pressing her lips together, she stood in the middle of darkness and breathed. A moment later, she heard a scream coming from behind her—a scream she knew belonged to the girl who was watching her; Michelle. Turning on her heel, (y/n) continued to run after where she had pushed Michelle into, but stopped. She could suddenly hear her own breathing, loudly in her ear. Her eyes were wide and she could feel everything—the sweat trickling down her temple, a stinging pain on her knee from having kicked the fake janitor from before, her toes were ringing from all the running, and her hair stuck to her head because of the sweat.

Michelle is screaming, she thought in her mind, but narrowed her eyes as she continued, But is she, really? All of this is an illusion that the Hyena has created, none of this is real. This darkness is on the spot, I am not moving, I just think I am.

She could hear her mother’s voice loud and clear, a random memory, which she thought would never assist her after that one hunt that they were on. Sometimes, when you breathe, you see better.

(y/n) shut her eyes and did exactly that. She breathed, slowly, feeling the tightness on her shoulders release. When she exhaled, she heard how ragged her own breath was, she felt her tiredness leave her body. As she breathed back in, she felt how sharp her breath was and as she released her breath she felt herself calming.

She could hear her own heartbeat, she could hear her breathing and absolute silence from around her. It was clear what the Hyena was trying to do, the darkness was merely a distraction away from the henchman so that he can approach her and attack her when she’s most vulnerable. She almost gave in, but she was stronger than that now; she had grown, she had learned as well as unlearned. Just like in a hunt, the daughter of Artemis knew she had to wait and listen to approach her prey. And if she was the one being hunted, then patience was the key to turn everything around. Patience, just before snapping out of it and going in for the kill.

As soon as she opened her eyes, (y/n) ran ahead at full speed. She knew the corridors she was in; she had studied here for years, she knew every door and every room in the corridor in the right order; and no amount of darkness was going to take her knowledge away from her. She had learned the details to heart, and she was going to use this against what was hunting her.

As the daughter of the hunt, she was going to show the henchman how a hunt is truly done.

Taking a quick right, she stood in front of darkness and realized this was where the Chemistry Lab 2 was supposed to be. She knew because she had attended classes here, she had been inside this space and she could picture it to its last detail. Reaching a hand out to the darkness, she felt the knob of the door. Even though she couldn’t see it, she knew she was right. Turning it to the right, she walked inside, and paused.

She could still hear her own ragged breathing, but that didn’t distract her. With the amount of concentration that she had at the moment, (y/n) knew there was nothing that could take her attention away from this hunt. She was right now a lone wolf, marking its prey. Clutching the dagger in her right hand, she turned around and quickly stabbed at something in front of her, turning the dagger sideways and plunging it deep to what felt like a hardened sponge. All of a sudden, the darkness broke like the glass in the mirror, and there she was; in Chemistry Lab 2, and the dagger plunged into the neck of the Hyena.

Pulling the dagger out of his neck, she felt her heartbeat escalate as she felt a presence behind her. Chemistry Lab 2 was also the room she had shoved Michelle into, and the curly haired girl had witnessed everything that (y/n) had to do.

The Hyena turned into hot, red mud and trickled in front of her, before eroding away. A stench filled the chemistry laboratory, a stench neither Michelle nor (y/n) had ever smelt before. Still holding on to the dagger, (y/n) wiped it with the back of her sleeve, and placed it back inside her hoodie pocket. She turned to Michelle with angry eyes and approached the girl, grabbing her by her arms and shaking her.

    “What is wrong with you?!” She screamed, suddenly feeling scared. She hadn’t felt this kind of fear in a long time, and (y/n) mistook it as a feeling she had never felt before. “You could have died! You could have died, you idiot! Why did you have to follow me?! Why did you have to be here?!”

She suddenly thought of her own uncle having freaked out in a similar manner, five years ago, while he begged her to live her own life. Michelle watched her, confused and scared herself, but for some reason, (y/n)’s own agitated calmed her. She had seen it—she had seen how the whole school turned dark, and how (y/n) had literally stabbed the janitor in the neck and how he turned into some kind of muddy residue. Nothing made sense to her, but (y/n) looked distressed. And in that distress, she was crying and screaming, making a scene in a school devoid of students, because MJ was at a place that could have gotten her hurt or killed.

MJ knew the girl didn’t particularly care for her, but her life was still something (y/n) didn’t want lost. If anything had happened to her, it would have been in (y/n)’s hands, and there was no way the mysterious girl could have that. Placing a calm hand on (y/n)’s own hand, which was on her arm, MJ brought the girl to a stop.

    “Hey.” Was all MJ said, and (y/n) fell to her knees crying.

She had seen it in that one instant that (y/n) had been alone through it all. Everyone in class left her alone, including the teachers, because she was ‘intimidating’ or ‘mysterious’ or ‘unapproachable’, all the things MJ was herself, and she saw in (y/n) a deep vulnerability, far deeper than her own, crying out for help. And with MJ having disappeared in the blip, (y/n) had not.

Crouching down, MJ placed a hand on the girl’s shoulder and waited. Sometimes, she knew, crying helped more than words.

    “Where do you live? Let’s go there, and you can explain to me what the hell just happened.”

Helping the girl up, MJ dragged her outside, carrying both their bags, gripping her arm like a mother would to a disobedient child. This was not care, no; this was what a human would do to another, when in distress. And being a demigod all her life, this was the first time someone had treated her like a human and not a different creature.

As soon as they reached (y/n)’s house, MJ sat her on the couch, as the girl stared at the dagger with a blank expression. Sighing, MJ grabbed her own bag and headed to the door.

    “I’ll ask for an explanation some other time. You just—”

    “My grandfather sent that creature after me.”

MJ stopped in her tracks and stared at the door. This somehow didn’t shock her. In a universe where Thor was an Avenger, and aliens had poured out of the sky, and being dust for five years, a mud monster didn’t shock MJ. But, a grandfather after his own family? That was the shocking bit. She turns to the girl and stood there. Waiting.

    “I’m sure you’re surprised—”

    “I was dust for five years. The only bit that’s crazy here is your granddad’s an asshole.”

(y/n) chuckled, and looked up to meet MJ’s deadpan. The curly haired girl then sat down against the armrest of the couch, and waited.

    “I’m not entirely human.” (y/n) spoke, answering the question MJ had for a while.

    “I figured. With the whole ‘leave me alone’ vibe for years. Or apparently for years. What the fuck is this aesthetic anyway?” MJ said, scoffing.

(y/n) didn’t know why she was suddenly talking, but her mind was moving on its own and her lips blurted out words without a second thought. “Trust me, I know this isn’t any of my business, but I could have died and you did save me from whatever the hell that was. But, do you have anyone at all you can talk to about this?”

MJ’s question was met with silence and the answer followed with it. She understood now how deeply alone the girl was, how there was not a single person who she had let inside and spoken to about whatever this situation was.

    “Five years and no one?”

    “I have an uncle, who sort of… Well,” (y/n) scratched the back of her head. “My granddad’s his father—”

    “He doesn’t count.” MJ said, shaking her head.

(y/n) remained quiet. “Is (y/n) even your name?”

(y/n) nodded. “You didn’t blip for sure, right?”

    “I wish I did.” (y/n) answered, with a dry laugh.

It was then MJ knew what she had to do. She didn’t know why she had to do this or why she knew she had to do it, but she just did. Like an instinct when you see a puppy or a kitten at the side of the road, alone and by itself, and you rush over there to help it. Not because you’ve known the animal all your life, but because you care. Because human beings care.

    “You can tell me whatever it is. I won’t call you weird. And hey, if you’re a serial killer, I might like you more.” MJ’s words brought a smile on (y/n)’s face.

It was after that did (y/n) found herself telling her about being a demigod. Uttering these words as an explanation to someone else felt strange; telling this girl she had never spoken to before about everything she had kept hidden for the past five years, everything she had wished she could tell someone about, she told MJ. MJ sat there, listening to this demigod, alone in the world, and found herself now sitting beside her on the couch, and not on the armrest. However, even in this explanation remained secrets she knew she couldn’t tell MJ—like the true identity of Spiderman, or about whoever this Pepper person was.

    “So your mother is the goddess of the hunt?” MJ asked, wide eyed.

(y/n) nodded, “And my uncle is—”

    “Literally the sun.”

(y/n) smiled, and so did MJ.

    “So, yeah that’s it then.” (y/n) said, shrugging.

    “Two more of those mud monsters, right?”

    “Two more and my granddad himself.”

    “Wow, you are weird.”

(y/n) laughed heartily for the first time in years.

❅

When Peter Parker saw MJ and (y/n) exchange smiles the next morning, he was shocked in all honesty. He was certain the girl didn’t like (y/n) just a day ago, and now they looked like they were friends. Had he missed something? There was an emergency as Spiderman and that was why he couldn’t stay and hang out with MJ, but just a few hours and now she was chummy with the girl literally no one in school got along with?

It didn’t make sense to him.

That evening, while he was on his usual rounds, he noticed (y/n) wasn’t training. She was sitting by the edge of the roof, eating something. As he neared her, he noticed it was a homemade sandwich, her feet were barefoot as usual, and she was staring into space.

    “Hey, there.” Spiderman said, unable to mask the curiosity in his voice.

(y/n) didn’t turn to him, but smiled. For some reason, she looked chirpier. He recalled how broken she looked the last time he had seen her on that roof, as if something dreadful had gone wrong. Dried tears, and open frustration. Now, it seemed as if all of that steam was out of her system, it seemed as if there was nothing left for her to fret about but only looked ahead.

    “I know who you are.” Came her voice, bringing him out of his reverie.

Peter’s whole body chilled. Wanting to laugh it off, and wondering what those words meant at the same time, Peter let out a nervous chuckle; wanting this to be a lie, and by disapproving it before he could even ask her what she meant, it would become a lie. Peter almost didn’t want to ask her what she meant, it was difficult to even wrap his mind around.

But, he knew he had to.

    “What… Um, what do you mean? Of course you know who I am! I’m Spider—”

    “I know your real name, Spidey. I know who you are.”

(y/n) was still not looking at him, and was focusing primarily on her sandwich. Random thoughts ran around inside his head, he wondered if the girl liked the sandwich, he wondered if he could get out of this scenario, he wondered so many things but came at no proper conclusion.

    “I won’t say anything if you don’t want me to.” (y/n) whispered a second later, turning her head towards him, but keeping her gaze low.

Peter’s heart was beating loudly against his chest. He didn’t want her to figure it out; now she knew he would speak to her as Spiderman and that was why he tried to speak to her as Peter Parker. He wanted to believe she had gotten it wrong, but judging from how calm she was, how she wasn’t trying to assert any of her belief on to him, he knew she was right on point. He didn’t know how she knew, but he knew she did. So he did the one thing that Peter knew would not be healthy; he just up and left.

(y/n) sighed as she finished her sandwich in utter silence. She wondered if she would ever see Peter’s brown eyes gaze back at her.

❅

Some days, Tony’s hand stung him. He had to take painkillers to keep it numb, and they magically worked. But, the painkillers made him jittery and he couldn’t stay calm if something stressed him out. It could be small things like not being able to put Morgan to sleep, or being slightly hungry after having eaten lunch. Small things freaked Tony out more than normal, but now, knowing he had a daughter other than Morgan, freaked him out the most.

He was shivering as he sat on his bed, thinking and rethinking of the night he spent with Aria in Greece. He remembered how he had approached her, speaking to her in a charming way, and how she had turned him down each time. Tony believed she was simply playing hard to get, but that wasn’t the case at all.

It was at a party, after the gala, when he had approached her and spoke to her, heart to heart. Aria looked beautiful, as she always did, a green dress that reached her knees, her hair let loose, and her eyes glimmering. She looked like a goddess, her brother was equally charming. She had told him his efforts were futile, and went off to speak to Pepper, and was more interested in speaking to her than speaking to him.

However, it was when Tony was least expecting it did she come to him.

    “You’re very lonely on the inside, Mr. Stark, all these distractions will stop one day.” Tony glared at her for even trying to look inside him, but she somehow managed to charm him still.

    “You try so hard to put up these defences, but you’re a good man. And a good woman will make you see it.”

Tony scoffed, “And you’re that woman? What happened to playing hard to get—”

Aria stepped forward and their faces were inches apart, “Oh, not me. I’m not that woman, I’ll never be,” Tony was in awe at how beautiful she was. “And I’m not playing hard to get, I am hard to get.”

A couple of hours later, Tony was strangely not drunk. It was perhaps the first night at a party where Tony had far too little to drink and was thinking about his parents. For some reason, ever since having spoken to Aria, he wanted to introspect. It was as if he had come face to face with redemption, unaware that this happens when you meet a goddess.

He spotted Aria alone, outside the hall. Pepper had already gone back into her room for the night, and Tony knew this was his last chance. Just as he approached her, wanting to give her an earful for ruining his night, Aria turned around and grinned at him.

    “You might think I’m beautiful, Mr. Stark,” Tony paused, not even feeling like himself. “But you love someone else.”

He didn’t love anyone. Tony couldn’t love. Love was strange and a different kind of complicated that he couldn’t handle.

    “That you don’t want to handle.” Aria said, smirking.

    “What? You can read minds now?”

    “Only those of mortal men.”

    “And mortal men think the same?”

Aria shook her head, “Not you. You’re one of a kind.”

When Tony kissed her, she didn’t stop him. She kissed back, and it felt as if she wanted more from him as he gave it to her. Tony led her to his room, kissing her, holding her, feeling her, but it felt strange. Unlike any one night stand, Aria didn’t just let him do things to her, she fought back; it felt as if they were doing something sacred. And in his heart, Tony knew, that this was perhaps his last and final one night stand.

He thought it was love for a second before he told him off. Aria laughed before placing her hand on his cheek, “You do not love me, Mr. Stark.”

    “It is Pepper. It has always been her,” Aria’s voice was merely a whisper.

    “What do you mean? She’s my secretary—”

    “When you dream, it will be her. It’ll always be her.” Aria said, looking into his eyes.

And that was that. It was as if Aria was telling him to be with Pepper, and ever since she had said those words, Tony himself knew that he had looked at Pepper differently. No, he had always thought of Pepper differently, but it was her words that made him realize it.

Natasha walked inside Tony’s room, where he currently was, and sat by his bed quietly. She knew she didn’t have to say anything to him, she knew he was thinking of what she wanted to discuss already. She looked over at him and waited, expecting an answer out of him soon.

    “How sure are you?”

    “The stories match, Tony.”

    “She can be lying. So as to target me—”

    “I told you, I saw one of those weird henchmen creeps at your tower the other day. Same symbol. I have an odd feeling that it’s after me for murdering its brethren or something.” Natasha was strangely on point.

Tony remained quiet. Natasha had filled him in on the missing details: her name, how they met and how Nat trained her, about those monsters and all that she knew and could deduce from the limited information. Learning from the members at the shelter, (y/n) had moved out from there five years ago, with the help of her uncle. Maybe they patched things up, Nat thought before continuing with her deduction.

    “Tony, there’s also this. She was quite strong for a 13-year old girl. There was this strange thing about her, this weird feeling. Her uncle literally shot that weird creature through the neck using an arrow.” Nat said, eagerly.

    “Why should I care about finding her now, Natasha? I don’t understand how any of this makes sense! I don’t even know about her until 18 years of her existence, I don’t think I can be sure about her even now; there’s no solid proof that she’s my daughter, so why should I care?” Tony’s voice was slightly shaking; the medicine was acting up.

Natasha sighed. She put her head in her hands and breathed softly. She needed to wrap her head around this as much as Tony had to.

    “I have a daughter, Natasha. Her name is Morgan. End of story.”

Silence followed Tony Stark’s statement. Natasha understood his displeasure with the news; even without Morgan in his life, Tony would have been hesitant with this sudden news of having an illegitimate daughter out there, looking for him after several years. But now, with a family, with Pepper and Morgan, Tony’s life was set. Anything new was foreign and unwelcome. She understood very well what he was feeling, but that doesn’t make it right.

    “She’s a child, Tony. She was looking for you.” Nat tried to reason with her friend.

    “Her mother never told me or contacted me about her birth. Clearly, Aria wanted to keep things secret, we clearly weren’t in love because she denied—”

    “This isn’t about you or her mother, Stark! It’s not (y/n)’s fault that she was born!”

    “And it’s not mine that I never knew about her, Natasha. I still don't understand why we’re talking about this. I need a break, don’t you understand? I need a goddamn break, I can’t seem to relax for a moment and then there’s Thanos and now there are mud monsters after some illegitimate daughter of mine! Give me some breathing space, Natasha!” Tony was shivering now, the medicines were reacting quite horrendously, forcing Natasha to stop talking immediately.

Pepper came inside after hearing the yelling. She didn’t believe it at first that Tony might have had an illegitimate child with someone; but considering his frivolous days, she wasn’t too surprised. What she was surprised about was the child coming to look for him years later, especially with the blip and everything, things were still unclear. Pepper only thought from the child’s perspective, not having had anyone those five years, and left alone at the age of 13. Looking over at Tony, Pepper pressed her lips together.

    “I think you should at least meet her, Tony.” Pepper said, her voice low.

    “And you know what I think? Let’s hear what I think, I think we should ignore this whole nonsense and I get on with my life; I remain a father to Morgan and a husband to Pep, and I live my goddamn life when the earth is finally close to peaceful.” Tony’s words were sharp, but not with the intent to hurt.

    “She’s all alone. If she came looking for you, then even if she isn’t your daughter, shouldn’t you meet her?” Pepper’s voice was calming. Tony knew she was right and didn’t like it.

However, his hesitance irked Natasha. Clicking her teeth together, the woman turned around and began to leave. Pepper sighed before following after her, calling her name, knowing Tony had messed up something. He didn’t want to be part of this, and even though Natasha knew there was nothing wrong with his analogy, Tony had to face what might have been something he was responsible for.

    “Nat!” Pepper called after the red haired woman as she reached her car.

Natasha turned around and groaned, “Pepper, I really don’t—”

    “I’ll meet her,” Natasha’s eyes widened. “Can you find her for me?”

Natasha paused. There was only one reason she figured out that (y/n) might be Tony’s daughter. Looking intently at Pepper, Natasha knew the reason.

    “She was actually asking for you,” Nat’s answer came, stunning Pepper Potts in return. “Apparently, her mother talked about a ‘Pepper’, without going into too much detail and (y/n) thought that her father must be Pepper. I linked those two things together and arrived at this conclusion.”

    “For me? But, why would she be looking for me?”

Natasha shrugged, “That’s what I can’t figure out. Not unless we find her and ask her.”

Pepper nodded. “Then find her. I’ll talk to her. Tony will ease around to it, you know him.”

Natasha smiled, nodded, and went on her way.

❅

    “What’s with the sudden friendship?” Peter asked MJ the next day at school.

MJ looked at him like he was an idiot, and although this is how she looks at most people, Peter stepped back and waited for an answer, folding his arms in front of his chest. Ned was behind him, not as curious.

    “What’s it to you, dork?”

MJ had clearly understood that Peter was talking about (y/n), and although she didn’t appreciate being questioned on her intentions, she knew why Peter was curious. But, it wasn’t her duty to answer him regarding anything. She knew a secret and she was good at keeping them.

    “She clearly didn’t want to be friends with me.” Peter grumbled, but MJ heard it nonetheless.

    “For someone as kind as you, you sure can be really dumb.” MJ retorted, rolling her eyes and preparing to walk away.

    “What do you mean?”

    “It means that if someone’s been alone for a long time, especially during something like the blip, it can take a miracle for them to open up.” MJ fast walked away, not wanting to give away more.

What Peter felt right then was similar to a girl turning him down. He had walked away thinking (y/n) was arrogant, but clearly, this was her own way of coping. Even when he had met her all those years ago, before the blip, Peter knew she was alone. And surviving the blip on her own and living a life by herself with no one to talk to? Peter groaned when he realized that perhaps, by not wanting to treat her like his classmates did, Peter did exactly that.

❅

(y/n) had informed her uncle right on the day she killed the Hyena that the deed was done. Even though she had two more henchmen to kill, she had felt drained of motive and energy, almost as if the path toward fulfilling her prophecy was going to be more tasking than she thought. She stood beside her uncle that moonless night, and said not a word. She stared ahead into the horizon, which consisted of more buildings, and listened to the breathing of the man beside her.

    “It was hard,” She admitted, “Harder than I thought. The illusions and everything. I wasn’t ready.”

    “But, you did complete it.” Apollo said, his voice soft.

    “With great difficulty.” (y/n) didn’t tell him about MJ.

Leaning back, the girl sighed before shutting her eyes. She felt tears at the corner of her eyes and opened them again, feeling incredibly drained.

    “Do you think my mother would be proud of me?”

    “Artemis would always be proud of you.”

    “I guess that was a stupid question.” (y/n) laughed bitterly.

Apollo watched as she pulled back and walked downstairs, muttering a soft ‘good night’ and heading on her way. His heart sank and he felt a strange wistful sorrow, a sorrow he felt at learning of the death of his sister. It broke his heart to see his niece so alone, as he understood her decisiveness. She was the only demigod in the world who was still alive or still a demigod. And there was not a soul in the world who understood what she was going through.

    “I’m lost here without you, Artemis,” Apollo whispered to the air. “I wanted her to remain human, as did you. I wanted her to stay here and live a normal life. Maybe, if she had found Stark, then it would have been easier for her to—”

    “So, I assume it’s this Stark person that is her father?” Came a sharp voice from behind him, and Apollo knew right away who it was.

His eyes widened and he froze, a chill went down his spine as he instinctively turned around to face his new threat. There stood Zeus, his father, folding his arms and staring at his son.

    “Father, I—”

In a quick instant, Zeus’ famous thunderbolt impaled Apollo’s chest, going through him like he was a slice of cake. Zeus’ smirk was the last thing Apollo saw before collapsing to the ground.

❅

series taglist:

Those I could not tag, I’ve added your urls here!

@maddie-laufeyson​, @mscoloneldanvers​, @https://dancing-flame.tumblr.com, @daughter-of-stark​, @spider-mendes​, @nerdyandproudofitsstuff​, @someonekeepstakingmyusernames​, @alina-margaret​, @yourwonderbelle​, @viarogers​​, @https://huangsushii.tumblr.com, @eridanuswave​ @oliviaisnotlistening​ @mizpotatobiscuits​ @editsbyjenny​ @abbieroseb​ @justtrynagetthroughlife​ @secretlittlewonders​​ @missmulti​ @shallowshawnshallowshawn.tumblr.com  @eunoiametonia​ @adistiany​ @justletmesleeptillidie​ @ppunderoos​ @myheartonthemove​ @heir2chaos​ @honeybutterparker @truthdaze @mvmakki @-thatgirloverthere-  @growingthornz @freddies-fried-chicken @jinxedleohttps://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/wrongyuckie@gogoca @kewl-r​ @death-by-viola​ @losersunitetonight​ @hungoverhellhound @ro2424 @https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/blackkookiebunn @absmiles123 @fxckingfat @ludwigvonbaethoven @xbabykookiix @madds-lolo @uwukinawa