#firealder2005

[toasecretsanta]

[½] From @tvrknows (me haha) to @firealder2005

Apollo & Calypso post-ToA bonding over cursed romances

This Spider-Verse quote came to me the second I saw the promt ^^ also bonus points for calypso canonically having a notepad? 👀

I feel like some context is needed: I sadly suck at the drawing part of drawing therefore couldn’t give Apollo any canonic clothing fabric is scary lmao. Butttt I had this thought that he could totally have gloves post TOA because they give the feeling of comfort & protection to the most exposed and autonomically valuable part of the body. He’s also an archer! Match made in heaven.

Anyway that’d be the end to my yapping session, I hope you like it and have a great holiday!

[tsarinatorment]

okay so-

on the discord i was scrolling through past convos in a desperate search for a link that i've seen before, and i came across another one of your and fsinger's aus starring Michael👀

It was like a Kronos Wins/Time-Travels AU where Michael, Thalia, Bianca, Nico, and Hazel are the MCs and I was like !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and then when the first main plotpoint was basically Michael going "SAVE MY DAD" my FIRST thought was that one Puss In Boots: The Last Wish scene;

Michael, about Apollo: I will save you!

Every other god, suffering in Tartarus: Save us too!

Michael: ...if it's convenient!

like. gnawing on this au rn. i gnaw on all of your aus. this one and the Lee Lives/Apollo Becomes Mortal/BotL Au are officially my favs (Eclipse at this point is basically canon to me lol)

but yeah. I know this au has a BUNCH of beloved characters die, which would have admittedly upset me like, three years ago, but now?

now i merely eagerly rub my hands as my brain imagines how this scenario goes down eheheehhe

Ah yes, this AU! Not one I've thought about in a while, but still a fun one!

Fun fact, for you if you missed the origin of it, and also for anyone else who might be reading this and hearing about this AU for the first time - this is an AU spinoff of my AU fic Tears Will Not Wash Away Your Crimes, where defeated!Kronos from canon timetravels back to the start of TLT to take Michael out before he could become the threat that saves Olympus (see: my long rants on how by being the one to realise Williamsburg Bridge needed to break, Michael stopped Kronos winning on the first day of the siege). In that fic, he succeeds in making Luke kill Michael, and while the fic never goes on to state it, it does become an alternate timeline where Kronos does, in fact, win (due to various factors such as Luke's betrayal not being discovered because Percy wasn't there to survive being poisoned and reveal that he was the traitor, etc. and also Kronos knowing how the demigods/gods operated and basically having the cheat code of being able to squash anything they try before they try it).

But also I am a perpetual Michael!lives fan, so with the enabling of @fearlessinger, as you mentioned, another AU spawned off of this, whereby when Luke carelessly mentioned Apollo by name, he caught Apollo's attention and the god himself turned up to whisk Michael away to safety. In the end, though, it doesn't stop Kronos from winning, because no-one knows enough to trump what Kronos knows. Hence, Kronos wins!AU.

But then!

There are some key changes that go down because of Kronos' prior knowledge... Change #1: Thalia is not restored by the Golden Fleece. Kronos did this because he wanted her as his host, but he tried that last time and it failed - he won't try again. Change #2: The di Angelos do not leave the Lotus Casino. No Thalia in the running suggests that Hades may not have bothered to pull his own children back into the prophecy race - if he really wanted them to be feasible as prophecy children, he'd have brought them out when Percy was claimed, as that would make Bianca a similar age to Percy and therefore viable as an alternative. Bringing them out a year or two later makes his kids younger than both Thalia and Percy and doesn't actually make sense, unless it was a response to being the only Big Three god with no kids involved... Change #3: Daedalus doesn't die, because Nico isn't around Change #4: All our Greek Hero demigods (and the Hunters) are dead, barring the above, and Michael, who was kept safe on Delos the whole time.

And these changes all line up quite neatly into a ridiculously large plot, based on the following consequences:

Consequence #1: the gods are thrown down into Tartarus Consequence #2: the triumvirate's deal with Kronos for their support involved getting Apollo as their prize so Caligula can still claim the sun god spot and Commodus gets his revenge. Apollo is passed to them, instead of Tartarus Consequence #3: Michael is rather pissed off about all of this

What happens after that, well. Imagine Michael, no longer trapped on Delos because the twins aren't there, making his way to Delphi. Imagine Phoebe initially reclaiming Delphi, before Kronos realises she was never on her side and instead release Python to reclaim it; Michael has enough time to speak with his grandmother, but only very little before he's forced to flee into the Labyrinth to hide.

Imagine Daedalus trying to atone for all the deaths he's caused by keeping this one demigod still alive, hidden in the Labyrinth while Michael tries to work out how the fuck he's supposed to save the gods, but never even considering not doing it ("the gods", of course, meaning "Apollo, mostly").

Imagine Apollo weakened, but still able to make dream contact. Apollo not being able to dissuade Michael from trying to save him. Apollo with nothing left to lose except his one son he can't protect himself, so he gives Michael knowledge, things to help him stay alive.

Knowledge, like how the daughter of Zeus is a tree but isn't dead, can be healed by that golden fleece (Percy, Annabeth and Grover retrieved it still, but the tree was not sick and so it was never hung upon it). Knowledge, like how there are two more Big Three kids trapped in a place where time doesn't move.

(Imagine Apollo chained up and forced to be his own oracle as his divinity is drained away. Imagine a little girl with sickle-rings on her fingers being drawn to him anyway, this captive god of the Beast. Imagine the god that still wants to save a child, if only he had the chance)

Imagine Michael healing Thalia with the fleece, the pair of them fleeing from the remains of camp (the remains of Michael's home) as Kronos realises he's there. Imagine Michael and Thalia edging into a casino that's too bright, too jovial compared to their broken world, and pulling two younger demigods back into the timestream. Imagine lurking in the Labyrinth, in the Underworld and discovering a dead girl who still remembers when she shouldn't.

Imagine these demigods plotting, scheming, desperate, and the power of three children of the Underworld combined, pooling their powers together until they can go anywhere the shadows touch.

Imagine them rescuing a god, and the little girl coaxed along with them.

And when they've got one god back... it's only a matter of time before they get the rest.

(And when Kronos discovers it's Michael, again, that foiled him in the end... Well. Some Fates can't be denied)

[my-name-is-apollo]

just had someone pull a "i have a degree in greek mythology" on me and proceed to be so, so wrong about it.

to purify us of that, tell me your favorite thing about greek mythology 👀 gremlin out 👀 go wild 👀

Honestly? The broad answer would be the gods. The gods are what make the myths so interesting for me and I honestly love them.

BUT one of my favorite things about the gods is the way they interact with the mortals. How there are many different ways in which they seep into their lives. It can range from something subtle and sweet to something drastic and intense (positively or negatively). It's also wonderful how they react to the mortals. And I'm not talking about their pettiness or wrath but about how the gods look at mortals that are fated to be doomed, to die eventually and still genuinely help them anyway. It gives us so much to ponder and run our imagination wild with. How does the god feel doing that? Do they feel desperate, hopeless, or are they nonchalant upon the mortals death? Do they grieve upon the mortals death? How much would they grieve? In what ways would it affect their immortal lives, if it affects at all? Are there deaths that would follow them for eternity? Every god could have a unique combination of answers to these questions. And each god could have different answers for the same question depending on the mortal in question. There's like, so many possibilities really... Even more so if the immortal used to be a mortal yknow.

On a lighter note, I also love how many moments there are in the myths of the gods just goofing around with each other, being nice and friendly. Just living like a really big family. They have their differences, sometimes they hurt each other. But they've got an eternity to make up for it - that's actually such a comforting thought for me. They'll never run out of time.

Thank you so much for asking!! It's good to be reminded of why I love Greek myths.

[teatitty]

OOO I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT FAE/VAMPIRE AU 👀

if I may pick your brain what are Willabeth’s thoughts on the existence of fae and vampires, and also the fact that Jack and Barbossa are said supernatural beings? 👀 I’ll imagine Elizabeth had an even bigger heart attack on the Pearl while Will’s out here running around with Jack completely oblivious at first lol he’s lucky Jack’s not meaner

ALSO — Davy Jones. Jack’s deal with him. I dunno if there’s anything to pick apart there but asking anyway 👀

ALSO ALSO — is Jack being fae another reason why Beckett’s so unbelievably obsessed with him? What’s the story there? 👀 Jack alone drives him mad but add in fae and I KNOW it INFURIATES him lmao

I am but a humble nerd always interested in learning new things via my various favorite series 🫡 best way to learn fr

Davy Jones' deal with Jack is the same as ever - Jack is really only part fae, because of his father, his mother was mortal and Davy is something of a demi-god and the seas are a muuuuuch bigger domain than Jack's little boat. So yeah nothing's really changed there aside from Davy going "well I ain't had a fae in my locker for a while. You'll do :)"

Willzabeth would take it in stride at this point honestly. With the existence of cursed gold and walking skeletons and Davy himself and then Calypso on top of it all the reveal of Barbossa and Jack's own inhuman natures would probably just be like "yeah this explains a lot. Moving on" they much bigger things to focus on lolol and Will takes over as the new Davy Jones at the end of AWE so he's also on this inhuman train now + it's my HC that Elizabeth is part siren, hence why men seem to fall for her when she speaks to them and why whenever she kisses someone they end up dying at sea hehe

But yeah Will doesn't find out about Jack's fae heritage until he's locked up on the ship and Pintel and Ragetti are telling the whole mutiny story. They mention is offhandedly and that's that

Absolutely Jack's being fae is another reason for Beckett's obsessions. Part of fae folklore is that they're extremely attractive with enchanting voices and mortals have a habit of falling in love with them and then either being driven to obsession, dying of broken hearts bc they can't have them, or having a brief affair with the fae in question before discarding them once they grow bored [and suffering in the long term for it lolol]

So Beckett, like in the movies, really wants to own Jack, in whatever way he possibly can, and is completely utterly livid that Barbossa has part of Jack's soul and now Davy Jones has some grip on him too and Beckett is driving himself rabid up the wall about it. He had a brief thing with Jack back in the day but ultimately Jack's heart belonged with the sea and Beckett has never really been able to get over that. Fucking loser

[jessequinnfirstofhername]

i surprised myself with fanatically making propaganda for Cassian in my reblog. then i reblogged it again with more propaganda.

anyway i, of the asexuals, have already spoken.

here's the second propaganda from the lesbians;

they have spoken! ! ! ! !

Well, well, well. You know a man's a strong contender for 'hottest man' when both the asexuals and the lesbians are backing him.

(Also, I love all the propaganda. Keep it up!)

[lapseinrecs]

The Secrets That Bind Us

By FireAlder2005 @apollosgiftofprophecy

On Archive of Our Own (account required)

Status: Complete; Oneshot; 5,834 words; Part 3 of how to start a ✨REVOLUTION✨: a guide by the gods of olympus series

Summary: Artemis was aggressively pacing a hole into the floor, glaring at it as if it had offended her personally. She kept summoning and unsummoning her silver bow, and her quiver of arrows kept flickering in and out of sight. In contrast, Apollo quietly leaned against the wall, arms crossed as he absentmindedly studied the ceiling. Hermes frowned slightly as he spotted some singes in his dirt-stained white shirt.

My thoughts: Such a good exploration of Hermes and Apollo’s relationship! I’m a big fan of these dynamics.

[alollinglaughingcat]

@firealder2005 reblogged a bunch of tag games and i wanted to do all of them but i hate long reblogs in multitudes even if read more is an option so i combined them all into one post <3

@/gu1lty-as-sin's tag game

nickname: irl none really, online name is just Lolling

zodiac sign: Libra

height: i genuinely don't know but its probably somewhere around 5'6 since that's Alder's height lmao (i have height blindness and also cannot remember if i am taller or shorter or same height as you oopsies)

last thing i googled: uh technically i think it was me adding up the number of animals at the shelter i work at (the answer was 365 or somethin) though i never actually hit "enter" for it lol. otherwise it was "watcher grian ao3" (love me some ANGST)

amount of sleep: okay fun fact! i actually cannot perceive the amount of time i sleep. like if i go to bed at 11:00pm and wake up at 7:00am or if i go to bed at 9:00pm and wake up at 7:00am i think i've slept the same amount of time in my brain. i mean if i really push it to like 1:00am yeah i'll feel it in the morning but i can't do time math so it's all just the same numbers to me, so in my head i think i've always slept the healthy amount of hours. anyway probably 7-8

dream job: my current job is my dream job <3 i love working at an animal shelter. i'm currently going to school to be a vet tech, which I know I'll also enjoy doing since i've basically been a vet tech intern before, but I'll definitely miss getting to do everything i currently do as much as i do now, especially in regards to cleaning kennels, animal handling, and behavior assessments

movie/book that describes me the most: ??? fuck it i'll go random, The Coddling of the American Mind by Greg and Jon. that book is like how my brain works

favorite song: all of them and none of them they're all the same in the end

favorite instrument: minecraft noteblocks

favorite aesthetics: animalcore, cottagecore, vaporwave

favorite author: tui t sutherland!

random fun fact: i hope warrior cats never ends. i want a cat to go to space before it ends

not sure who started this tag game :)

favorite color: greens and pinks!

last song i listened to: damn i WAS gonna say "no clue" but i instinctively pulled up my yt playlist and started playing it RIGHt before i answered this tag game so now it's Flesh & Bone from ZOMBIES 2 (never watched it)

Last film I watched: 100% Wolf series and you can fight me over it its so endearingly mediocre

Currently reading: random fanfics. i guess the one I'm most dedicated to is the Echoes series for Watcher Grian content

Currently craving: nothing. wish i wanted to eat something tho but my appetite is empty

Currently watching: Guess That Build series w/ *takes breath* Impulse, Skizz, Grian, Gem, Jimmy, and Joel (currently halfway through Skizz's vid here)

Coffee or tea: i've never had either <3

Positivity Tag started by an Anon

Five Things I Like About Myself!

My writing skill, and specifically my ability to see things from a readers' perspective and predict the possible ways they will interpret my/others' writing.

My drawing skill, even though it is limited to just cartoon-ish, very stylized animals (mostly just cats tho). I enjoy drawing what I can draw.

My positivity. I've never been more grateful that I managed to somehow train myself into a more actively positive mindset. While I can get stressed, I feel like I can often manage it and remind myself that situational stress is temporary and happiness can always be found if you go looking for it.

My care and ability with animals. I enjoy handling difficult animals, be it spicy cats or reactive dogs, and I love seeing how animals' behaviors change over time with trust and patience. Even though I ironically don't really enjoy playing with animals that much, I enjoy surrounding myself with them and just co-existing with them, y'know?

My maturity. Took me a bit to really think of a something else to compliment myself on that wasn't just a reiteration of the above. But I've been told a lot that I'm always "so mature for my age" (not in a creepy way, but in a surprised, "wait you're X years old?!" way lol). I always thought it was a little silly, because isn't everyone "my age" mature? To my surprise, no. And those older than me aren't either. Which is okay because everyone's different! But it is frustrating sometimes lol

if anyone wants to do all or some of these tags, go ahead! open tag :)

[toasecretsanta]

[2/2] From @tvrknows (still me lol) to @firealder2005

Apollo and his seven immortal kids <3

The timeline of this story kinda makes zero sense, as some of the mortals who are supposed to be not dead here would have eledgedly died about 400 years before the mentioned event was *estimated* to have first taken place. But I will make this sacrifice for the sake of plot because I’m evil and mythological characters don’t really have “canonic” existence years.

Merriest time and platonic kisses!

Asclepius’ Day Off

Asclepius hasn’t left his Asklepieion in… a very long time. He couldn’t tell how much exactly: as far as he was concerned, it could’ve been anywhere between a few months to a few decades since he was resurrected - he spent most of his time underground anyway, therefore didn’t really get frequent looks at the sky.

His priests probably had a better idea, but he felt bitter to ask. He didn’t care for them too much other than for the sake of the job - they were all good hearted, intelligent people who wanted to help others, but they weren’t his friends. They had normal lives. They got to leave.

His daily routine was fulfilling, yet lonely: diagnose mortals, heal them, teach his priests to take after him. Then repeat, forever and ever without a break. He devoted all his time to making other people get better, but had nothing for himself.

All because he wanted to bring some light into the world. 

The devastating punishment almost made him resent saving lives - but just almost, because really, it was all he knew how to do and all he ever wanted. 

The healer god had a lot of mixed sentiments about his environment.

“My lord?” a voice approached him hesitantly. It was Epione.

Oh, Epione…

The sweet goddess always made Asclepius’ heart miss a beat. She was a kind, calm woman who shared much of his ideologies. When patients were too sick to be saved - something that hurt Asclepius to the core every time, making him wish so badly to be allowed to utilize his full knowledge and skills again like back in the day - nothing could bring them greater relief than Epione’s soothing voice, singing to them until they fell asleep peacefully; and her warm hands that embraced man and woman alike, comforting them like children as they go; hands that in Asclepius’ dreams caressed his cheeks and held him with love…

But he could not care for that. He had work to do.

He looked up to her from his medical journals.

“A new patient arrived,” said Epione. “The priests can’t make out anything from his description of the problem, they think there may be an underlying mental issue…”

Asclepius didn’t need to hear more than that. He needed to see more. So he didn’t wait for the lovely woman to finish explaining and was already on his way to the over-ground. Practical and devoted, that was the only right way for a person to be if they wanted to heal.

The man Epione took him to see had terribly worn clothes on a body that was clearly not fine on the most superficial level. He was dirty, covered in filth that made Asclepius freight from the thought of the tiny, yet dangerous biosphere he probably carried - the first step towards healing in his temple was sanitation for a reason. So many possible infections and viruses…

He forced himself to move on. The man’s eyes were suspiciously yellow with bold red stripes, framed by two phenomenal black circles. The yellow usually meant jaundice, but Asclepius never rushed into conclusions without hearing the patient and examining them properly.

“…it aches like harsh waves that attempt to drown me, and I’m barely holding onto a floating surface,” the man mumbled, his hoarse voice shaking. “I want to scream in pain every day, they are stripping me down from my dignity, stripping me down from my compassion - alas, shall I give in? Only the gods know. They are always watching, always watching…”

The man definitely sounded mental. His nonsensical paranoia talk was probably caused by hallucinations - Either that, or he had a very creative mind.

There was one way to find out. Asclepius looked further than the surface, expecting to witness the vitals of a sick man, but something was wrong. All he saw was a melancholic mist of doom.

Was it a sign from the fates? Was the man destined to die?

“What is your name?” he asked.

“I shall not reveal my name to the people, for they will crucify me on the Agora, where no one can help nor understand the pain. Maybe I’m better off dying than living on this hill - “

“Move on to the other patients,” Asclepius addressed Epione and his priests. “I will take care of him.”

So they did, and Asclepius was in the clear to tell the man, “The people are gone. Will you tell me your name and what has been bothering you?”

“Will you not strap me away from the sunlight?” asked the man, almost crying. “I cannot trust you. Or them. We must get away from them or they will put me up on a cross - “

“And crucify you, yes. You’ve mentioned that.” Asclepius sighed. “We can move away from them, but only if you promise to talk to me.”

The man nodded vigorously and walked-ran to the entrance of the temple. Asclepius was annoyed to be dragged outside - the garden was taunting him, feeding him a bite of what he cannot have. He did not want to scare the man with godly powers, but if he wouldn’t cooperate soon…

“Look at me closely, son of Coronis,” the man whispered as Asclepius made his last step outside of foreign ears. “Do you not recognize me?”

Asclepius did not want to encourage a crazy sick man, but he was curious about the weird glooming mist, so looking again was actually a great idea…

Wait.

Mist.

It has been a long time since he was around another god in disguise, but once exposed, it has faded - And Asclepius’ breath was taken away by the site of the striking eyes and aura that couldn’t have belonged to anyone else but his own blood.

“I am Ialemus, your brother,” said the god of the mourning dirge, his eyes glimmering. He must’ve enjoyed the little show he put up so much. “And I am here to steal you without leaving a trail.”

Asclepius was left speechless for a moment.

“Well, I - I can’t let you do that,” he stuttered. “Zeus has forbidden me from leaving this temple. He already killed me once, I will not recklessly defy him again! you shouldn’t even be here - “

“I am here under the command of our father,” said Ialemus quietly. “He is worried sick. Has been in trenches since you were killed. Today is the perfect time for you to see him without being noticed.”

Asclepius felt like his internal organs were all ripped apart. He missed his family so much, had he really chance to see his father again…

His first thought was to alert Epione about leaving so that she keeps an eye on the right people while he’s gone, but that would’ve really been like shooting himself in the leg. He hasn’t seen the outside world in so long. 

Today is the perfect time.

“Alright then,” he said, knowing that in his old mortal body he would’ve already been sweating and feeling his heart race anxiously. “Steal me.”

As they walked away from the temple, Asclepius overthought his dangerous decision. It was likely that no one in the Asklepieion will question his dissapperance, because no one ever questioned him, and he’d often get really fixated on a problem and seemingly disappear for hours, even whole days. But actually being away was a very, very different situation. What if a fire starts in the temple while he’s absent? what if he’s needed so badly that any possible corner would be searched, and dozens of priests and mortals would reach the undeniable conclusion that he was gone, and the rumor would somehow reach Zeus -

“Don’t look so worried,” said Ialemus in a somewhat guilty voice. He was no longer a deranged man, but now a young, well dressed teen with long hair and his normal astonishing green eyes. “Do you not trust me? I assure you everything will be fine as long as we lay low - there is enough time to worry every other day. This is a rare occusion.”

Asclepius nodded. His brother was right - it would be amazingly dumb of him to waste these precious moments that could be spent admiring the world for its beauty: the different species of flowers that weren’t available near his temple, the sound of only footsteps and birds instead of many busy humans treating agony, and his most pessimistic sibling making an effort to keep him away from bad thoughts.

It made him a little emotional, but he held it together.

“Where are we headed?” He asked, trying to find an objective to focus on rather than going on with this long mental whining session.

“Olympia.”

“By foot? isn’t it a bit far?”

Ialemus chuckled. “Not by foot, no.”

They walked on for a while more before reaching a civil made pathway. In the near horizon stood a horse wagon, in front of which idled a few silhouettes of people. Outside world people. Not patients, not priests seeking to learn the art of healing, but simply bypassers.

Oh, how wonderful the world was. Asclepius wanted to impulsively greet them with as much friendliness as his heart could contain.

His awe only became greater as he got closer and realized those were not, in fact, mortal bypassers, but a bunch of faces he knew.

His famous love god brother Hymenaeus, wingless for a change; the hard working polymath Aristaeus; the inseparable, lively and gifted Borysthenis, Apollonis and Cephisso; and (Asclepius could not believe what his eyes witnessed) their father, who did not look any different from the last time Asclepius saw him, so long ago, before so much has changed…

“Hello,” said Apollo hesitantly, his voice shaking as if he was afraid to get to each next word. “We are going to see the Olympic games. I’ve heard they’re quite crowded.”

There was a moment of silence.

Asclepius hugged him tightly, no longer capable of holding in the tears he had collected for the longest, darkest time. Was it real? Did he even deserve such a blessing from the faiths?

Apollo pulled away. He held Asclepius’ hands from their wrists, as if checking for a pulse, then wrapped them with both his hands and whispered, “my beautiful boy.”

“I too love Asclepius very much,” said Apollonis, curling a strand of her light hair mindlessly and sending her brother a light smile to affirm her intentions, “but the whole point in choosing this crowded day was to blend in with a crowd. We should get going as soon as possible.”

“Mese, please,” Apollo sighed, his eyes still fixed on his son. 

“It’s alright,” said Ascelpius in a calm tone and got on the wagon first to help his family wake up from the awkward shock of the meeting. “I never got to see the olympic games, but… uh… are women not strictly forbidden from watching?”

“We are going as men,” chuckled Borysthenis with her deep, melodic voice and climbed after him. “It will be fun, won’t it?”

To prove her point, she demonstrated her well thought out man form.

“How is your temple?” Apollo asked after he got on last, and nodded to Aristeus who sat in front leading the horses as a sign to leave. “Are you making friends?”

“The mortals are… well…” Asclepius sighed. “I did not realize how distant it can get. But there is one goddess who hangs around. She is nice.”

Hymenaeus turned his head so quickly that anatomy-oriented Asclepius expected his neck to snap. “How nice?”

That made Asclepius blush.

Cephisso raised her eyebrows. “Indeed, how nice? Some sibling of yours has been desperately playing matchmaker with their sisters for far too long. And I will help you out, it is not me.”

“It’s hymenaeus,” Ialemus disclosed.

“Mock him all you want, I am thankful for my wife,” said Aristeus. “She gives me a sense of direction, something you could all use.”

“That is why you are the one driving,” Cephisso turned to him to respond wittily. “I am content in the back seat, thank you very much.”

“How are your wife and children doing, really?” Asclepius asked. 

There was a moment of silence. And then Apollo said, “Actaeon died, my love.”

Asclepius’ heart could’ve very well just fallen on the floor and shattered into a million pieces.

“What?”

Everyone looked at him. He didn’t even know Actaeon that well, but it felt terrible to miss so much of his loved ones’ lives that he had to learn about their death in retrospect. It was incredibly isolating.

You could’ve cured him had you been there, said his mind. There was not even a hint of self blame in that thought, just bitterness - because the only thing Asclepius did to make Zeus forbid him from curing people too sick was curing people too sick. How fair and just.

“How… How did it happen?”

His sisters glanced at each other, and Ialemus gulped. “We don’t have to talk about this now…”

“No,” hissed Aristeus. “Why are you all chickening out? Artemis killed him - cursed his own dogs to devour him. All that was left were bones.”

Artemis? but she was always nice to Asclepius, he even resurrected Hippolytus of Athens for her -

Why the surprise? Do you not remember who else she killed? His desperate internal voice whispered. Your own mother.

And the shattered left-overs were stepped on, made into crumbs.

He looked over at Apollo, hoping that his father would give him something - an explanation, even just say it was a misunderstanding - but his hopes quickly died out. Apollo looked completely dissociated.

Asclepius laid his head on his father’s shoulder. “Dad,” he mumbled, “please.”

The god slowly began to stroke his child’s dark curls. “What?”

“That exactly.”

Apollo was clearly confused, but did not ask again. Instead he gestured at the view with his head. “Look.”

They have gotten closer and closer to civilization. Other people, animals and human architecture filled the surrounding areas. Olympia.

The city was way more impressive than Asclepius’ childhood hometown, where his temple was located - it was definitely far more sophisticated than Chiron’s ephemeral residence, where Asclepius actually grew up and the old centaur taught young demigods useful skills such as survival and medicine. 

These places were sticks and stones in comparison to Olympia. She was bustling with life, astonishing buildings that were tens of adult steps in size, and beautiful domestic gardens. Asclepius has never seen anything like that before.

“Wow,” he barely managed to croak.

“Wise words,” said Apollonis and disguised herself as a short pubescent boy with dark coal eyes without any mortals noticing. “Look at us, driving around Olympia in a normal human wagon, like a normal family.”

“Don’t be so cynical,” Hymenaeus complained. “We are here to have fun. Why don’t we all lay back a little and ignore bothersomeness for a while?”

Ialemus raised his hand. “I would like to second that. Rare occasion and all.”

“I was not being cynical, morons. Just commentering the scene.”

“Cynically.”

“I commentered joyfully,” Apollonis insisted. “You were just looking for an excuse to lecture us about lifting the spirits, and hopefully make this ride less depressing.”

“I did not say anything about the ride being depressing - “

“So Actaeon being dead is simply a normal conversation topic for you, I presume? Is it the same as the fucking weather?”

“Do not weaponize my son like that, Apollonis,” grumbled Aristeus, and the two fell silent immediately. “He is not an argument either.” he sighed. “I get it, alright? I ruined the morale. But you are fighting the wrong front, Hymen - She was trying to change the topic herself. So really, can we all be nice and not make Asclepius regret leaving with us?”

“Look at you, parenting your sibling,” said Apollo amusingly, his sudden glowing smile heavily contrasting the prior fatigued expression. “I swear it was only yesterday that I met your gorgeous mother. How have you all grown up so quickly?”

Asclepius did not feel like he grew up quickly at all, but rather the opposite - he felt like he was stranded in a pit of uncertainty for so long but didn’t get the chance to evolve in any way what-so-ever during that time. He had not even reached legal adulthood before dying - did that mean he was going to stay like this forever, stuck between the stages of a child and a man?The thought terrified him.

“We are almost there,” said Aristeus. “If any content ladies in the back still present as ladies, now would be the time to get it over with.”

Cephisso rolled her eyes. “We have fully manned up.”

“Alright then.”

They parked the wagon at a walking distance from the flat stadium on which the event was about to take place, and got off, successfully blending into the mobbed street. Asclepius was amazed to see so many people all headed to the same location. He could spot some of the athletes who have been preparing for this moment for months.

“Before participating, they must swear that they are free men and clean of legal accusations,” said Apollo. “Why do you think that is?”

“No one wants to crown a murderer,” Asclepius answered. His father pondered that idea for a moment, which was a little bizarre, then nodded in affirmation.

The games themselves were not at all underwhelming; Asclepius cheered in awe of the mortals who were able to push through the pain of being human and run so fast along the huge field. Some of them pushed too hard, though.

“He must have ruptured his Achilles tendon!” Asclepius pointed out as one racer fell crying on the ground. “Did you see how his leg twisted? He would not be able to even walk properly again, not given the local standard of medicine!”

“Poor thing!” Borysthenis intoned. “He looks quite fine. What a waste!”

Apollo rolled his eyes but looked positively entertained. “You both have yourself some great pairs of eyes, though for different purposes.”

Asclepius hugged his father again with no sensible context, just to cherish this moment better. Borysthenis side-eyed him and then moved over to share her boy-craze with her sisters.

“I’m sorry,” said Apollo, somewhat surprised, making even less sense.

Asclepius glanced at his cheering sibling, then his father. “I miss you,” he said in a fairly loud volume, yet got undermined by the environment. “I miss everyone so bad. And I hate what my life has become.”

It was almost easier to express his mourning out in the open due to the noise of competitive tension, which naturally involved screaming, chatter and excited exclamations. He couldn’t have said it if he had thought he would have his father’s full attention - he didn’t want to waste this valuable resource all on himself.

Apollo opened his mouth to reply, but hesitated. Then he gulped. “I wish I knew how to help you.”

“I don’t want to be ungrateful, you know?” said Asclepius, a little quieter. “I’m alive again, and a god this time - But still, I feel like everything was taken away from me.”

The eternally youthful yet older man looked back at the field. Someone has just won with great success, causing the people from his hometown to cheer even louder and even burst into tears.

“I don’t know if you’ve heard… After you died, I was sent to earth as a mortal slave.”

Asclepius nodded.

“It was supposed to be a punishment. I was stripped of my immortality, power and honor. But it ended up not being that bad, especially in comparison to the first time…” Apollo narrowed his eyes. “The technicality didn’t matter. I had the privilege of spending some of this time with someone I loved.”

“I love healing,” said Asclepius, almost laughing out of frustration.

“But that’s not enough. You need human contact,” said Apollo. “Being all alone, giving all you’ve got all of the time - it doesn’t do anyone good. If only I could do more than lecturing you…” He sighed. “You are a bright kid, Asclepius. Weave yourself a net of people, alright?”

Asclepius lowered his gaze. His hands were clean and in a healthy color, like always. “The games are almost over.”

“They don’t really have a variety of events yet, huh? The ride here was longer.”

“You are deflecting,” Asclepius pointed out. 

Apollo sighed. “Even now that you are immortal, my only wish is to have more time,” he admitted, his eyes glimmering. “Do you resent me, Asclepius?”

“Why - of course not, dad.”

Apollo nodded, a single tear rolling down his cheek. “Thank you.”

“Thank you,” said Asclepius. “You completely ignored the rules again, just to grant me temporal escapism. Which I must say, was a bit crazy of you.”

“Me? Crazy”

Apollo smiled mischievously, almost tricking Asclepius into thinking that he would be completely and utterly fine with not seeing his flesh and blood again for who-knows-how-long.

“I intend to go back to my temple alone,” Asclepius informed him. “It’s safer.”

“Your call. Say goodbye to your siblings, then?”

Asclepius was not looking forward to calling it a day. His brothers and sisters joined the crazy scheme just to see him and cheer him up - and the funny thing was, he was not really that close to them, as most of them were ancient beings with a crazed mind and he was just a dead kid. But they showed complete solidarity anyway, and made him happier than any loyal priest could.

He hugged each one of these wonderful, caring souls and told them how much he loved them, how much he was grateful.

He was determined not to lose all touch with this feeling the moment he’s back in the Asklepieion.

Things could change for the better.

Things would change for the better.

[squeeblub]

my family not having enough sustenance to survive the harsh winter:

the humble firealder2005:

[my-name-is-apollo]

Hello 👀

Do you have any thoughts on Phoebe and Koios? I love that side of Apollo's family and was wondering 👀

I have never thought much about them because well, there's barely anything about them in the myths but now I do have some thoughts!

So Koios means "query" apparently (according to theoi.com), and add it to the fact that Phoebe is very knowledgeable due to her prophetic powers. Imagine Koios having all sorts of fun and interesting questions for her and Phoebe loves nothing more than answering them and seeing satisfaction spread on Koios' face and that's how they fall in love. They both would be the nerdy couple of the Titans' generation lol. And if course Phoebe would definitely be heartbroken when Koios was banished to Tartarus. But there are versions where Zeus released some Titans, including Koios, so maybe it isn't that much of a tragic tale for them after all.

Theoi.com also says Koios possibly was the Titan of the north pillar of the world. There are no sources cited for this but hey, it can make way for some fun headcanons because you know what lays beyond the north? Hyperborea, which Apollo regularly visited! So did Artemis and Leto occasionally. The twins can have a little chit chat with their gramps before flying off to Hyperborea, as a treat <3 and Phoebe absolutely loves and dotes on her grandkids!! my hc is that Leto named her unborn children Phoebus and Phoebe after her mother (don't ask how she knew the gender-) it's very fitting especially if you consider the version where Phoebe gifts the oracle of Delphi to little Apollo 🥺

It's also very interesting that both the Titans are associated with knowledge, and all of that passed on to Apollo clearly. I had read in a paper a while back where the author wrote how Koios represented the knowledge of the sky while Phoebe represented the knowledge of the earth, and Apollo inherited the knowledge coming from both the sources. This may not have solid evidence in the myths, but I like to think that Apollo inherited qualities from both his grandparents. The prophetic ability from Phoebe and his inquisitive nature from Koios (hence why he is multi-talented, he always seeks to learn something new). Apollo would also be outwardly more affectionate towards his grandparents than Artemis haha they don't have a favorite twin but they definitely enjoy Apollo's company more because they have a lot in common with him.

[teatitty]

hiiiii me again :3

this week on Alder Has Too Many Thoughts Over Sparbossa: that fae!Jack x vampire!Barbossa au you have >:3

So I was scrolling through what the fae were all about because I’m not very proficient with knowledge on them and found a few things that made this au very funny/interesting and decided to ramble to you :3

there’s a rule to not “get romantic” (or sexual, I presume) with the fae. good job Barbossa truly doing outstanding work here lmaoooo 👏

“don’t reveal your “true” name” — I dunno what the “true” name means/what that entails but this made me remember Jack is the only one to call Barbossa by his first name…hrmmmm interesante 👀

and if we wanna get briefly dmtnt about it, “don’t mention you have kids.” a success! for quite a few years! until Carina barges into their lives that is and Barbossa can’t hide it any more eheheh (it’s OUR kid now *insert bugs bunny meme here*)

Barbossa I think you need to read a book on the fae Jack seems to be getting the upper hand here LMAO at least give yourself a fighting chance XD

anywho done yapping now ty for the au I enjoy the crumbs I find on your blog :3

Buddy I'm an expert on fae lore so lemme correct some stuff here - you can absolutely tell the fae you have kids, the problem is when you bargain with them using the kids as chips. IE "I'll do X thing if you give me your firstborn" bc the fae will ALWAYS COME TO COLLECT and there's nothing you can do to stop them. Yes you can pursue them romantically and sexually the problem is when you cheat on them or break up with them bc they hold grudges like nobody's fucking business, but given Jack's own proclivities this wouldn't be an issue for them

Barbossa's betrayal of him however would hit a lot harder bc the fae do NOT take that stuff lightly. Scorning a fae is one of the worst things you could do which is why Barbossa is lucky he's a vampire in this AU so he can actually fucking stand up against Jack and survive the fallout lol

As for Carina I don't use anything past AWE as canon to my stuff bc I hate those shitty sequels to death so she doesn't exist to me sorry. The crew are their kids though and they have the worst shared custody agreement possible. This is why they both accept the crew back with minimal fuss even when said crew starts picking sides [Pintel and Ragetti w Barbossa and Gibbs w Jack]

A true name is just the name most personal to you. When introducing yourself to a fae or vice versa you don't want to give you real name because then they hold power over you, so you give an alias or a nickname or something instead. The implication here is that Jack is the only one who has ever "possessed" Barbossa's real name [Hector] hence why nobody else uses it: they physically can't because Jack owns it :3

But this doesn't mean Barbossa doesn't rock Jack's shit too! See the fae are all about hospitality rules and paying back their debts. Mischevious though they might be they aren't all bad - like humans you have benevolent fae, malevolent fae and then neutrals. Jack is chaotic neutral: he's a law unto himself and while he doesn't possess any strong magicks he does have incredible charisma and charm which gets him through most things. Until Barbossa that is. The moment you invite a vampire into your abode, they take power from you

The Black Pearl was Jack's abode. His domain, his home, his very being. Barbossa wasn't just invited inside of it he was hired to stay. And the longer a vampire stays somewhere the more power and sway they accumulate, which is why the Pearl can be taken from Jack now and why Barbossa can be stuck in an eternal struggle with him. Vampire lore is ever changing depending on what folklore you're pulling from, but for Barbossa it's pretty simple: no sickness or aging, but he could die from mortal wounds. His monkey is his familiar [so it's bound to him] and while he does need blood to survive he can go for a long while without it if he's on the Pearl itself - wine, he's found, is a good substitute and he still enjoys regular human foods

Jack owns Barbossa's real name but Barbossa owns part of Jack's soul. In this AU that's why he was the only one who could track Jack in Davy's locker: Jack is bound to him and so Barbossa can forever track wherever he is no matter how far apart they are. The closer they get the warmer the feeling basically, like an in-built compass that only points to Jack lol. Vampires are also petty and hold grudges you don't really wanna fuck with either of them

[jessequinnfirstofhername]

my beloved dinluke 🫡

now I shall support the sister ship of hanleia 🫡

(fun fact, I’ve shipped dinluke for as long as I’ve been a Star Wars fan :3 watched the mandalorian after the og and prequels and fell immediately into the ship hehe I’m not as active in the fandom anymore but if I come across a fanfic that I’m interested in I’ll read it :3)

The good ship Dinluke has gone down, but its sister ship is still floating and will be glad of the reinforcements. 🫡

My first Star Wars OTP was Kylux. Even now, in my Anakin era, I still have a soft spot for those trash boys.

[toapril-official]

Can you believe it? ToApril is upon us again!

It's ToApril time! In case you need a refresher or are new to the event, here are the rules of ToApril!

Please keep it ToA-related! ToA-related means that it takes into account events from the ToA book series. This may include but not limited to: Emmie and Jo's relationship deep dive, Apollo and Meg shenanigans, Apollo and his kids, post canon Reyna figuring out her way in the Hunt and so forth.

No NSFW! This is an event for both adults and minors.

ToApril 2025 AO3 Collection

For our writers, the ToApril collection is up and running once more! Here's how you can add your fic to the collection.

Click on this to access the ToApril 2025 collection. To add a fic to the collection, simply go to the page and click 'Post to Collection' as shown below.

2. Make sure that under 'Associations', it is listed as toapril_2025.

3. Once you are done, simply post the fic as normal!

* Please note that the ToApril 2025 collection will not open until March 31st!!

If you want to post your creation on Tumblr, please do tag this blog or use #toapril and #toapril2025! We look forward to seeing everyone's creations this year :)!

Prompts for this year can be found below the cut:

{Transcript:

Day 1: Tumbling Love

Day 2: Heavy are the Resting Laurels

Day 3: Hope Breathed Alive

Day 4: Spiralling

Day 5: Through The Snake’s Lies

Day 6: In Friends We Trust

Day 7: Home, Hearth and Grief

Day 8: Echoes of Battle Cries

Day 9: Feast for the Gods

Day 10: Redemption of a Ghost

Day 11: Spring Rains

Day 12: Eyes that Glow Gold

Day 13: Rollback to Disco

Day 14: Pact from Our Youth

Day 15: Soul-Entwined But Forgotten

Day 16: Haunting Plagues

Day 17: Scapegoat / A Repeat of History

Day 18: A Single Drop

Day 19: Nurturing Seeds

Day 20: Untangling of A Secret

Day 21: The Gilded Cage

Day 22: Leap of Faith

Day 23: Failed Escape

Day 24: Gone Again

Day 25: Silence Before The Storm

Day 26: Something Wrong, Something Amiss

Day 27: Milkshakes and Confessions

Day 28: Under the Stars

Day 29: Reeled Back

Day 30: Sunset On The Horizon

/end Transcript}

Massive thank you's to @ferodactyl, @ego-sum-deus-fractus, @heresronnie21, @firealder2005, @femmefangirl, @plumblossom37, @xxzephyrbreezexx, @hukat7, @bubblegumsugarpop, @zurophina9 and linh_72689 on Discord for helping with the prompts!

[trialsofapollo-fanfiction]

The Hub

Why make this blog? To give us ToA fans easier access to fics that are strictly based on The Trials of Apollo!

The ToA Ao3 tag isn’t as bad as it once was, but it’s still incredibly frustrating to shuffle through fics that have nothing to do with our favorite books, so this is what this blog is for!

Who made this blog? Hi, I’m @firealder2005, though you may also know me as @apollosgiftofprophecy or Alder!

How are you doing this? With lots and lots of painstaking time. I work on this in my spare time between college, family, extracurriculars, and other hobbies of mine.

What will I find here? Anything ToA!

What qualifies as ToA? A few things;

Takes place during ToA/is directly influenced by ToA (ie, deals with aftermath of ToA)

Apollo-focused/plays a main part

Focuses on ToA-centric characters (ie, Meg or Lavinia)

Expands on past characters (ie, Reyna, Jason) and their lives due to ToA

What about minor ToA characters? They count too! Chiara, Damien, Valentina, Paolo, ect are all included, and more!

What does “anything” mean? Anything. Meaning, there may be ships you don’t like, but still qualify as ToA, so make sure your filter is on so you can enjoy your scroll! Everything is tagged appropriately.

What about fics that aren’t ToA-friendly? I will be skipping those. In my own personal perusal of the tag, I have come across some fics that are rather unflattering to our series, so I will not be adding them here.

What fics are those? This includes fics that make Apollo homophobic (wtf), ignores the characters’ development, has tags that is negative towards ToA, or denies ToA’s existence entirely. I am using my own judgment on this matter, so if you feel I have made a mistake, shoot me an ask!

What about crossovers? I have crossovers tagged accordingly!

How did you tag? I’ll have a guide below the cut!

Any Questions? Send them in!

Did I miss a fic? Send an ask and advocate for its addition to the masses! (Will not be taking any at the moment, since I’m still putting it all together)

Just come here to hate? Will not be entertaining.

Tags

Searching by Character

Type in a character’s name (ie, #leo valdez, #pjo ares)

Searching by (Relation)Ship

Type in ship name (ie, #pipabeth) OR a relationship tag (ie, #sunflower siblings, #triumvirate holdings)

Poly ships are tagged with #polyamory and #poly ship

If you have an idea for a ship/relationship tag, let me know and I will do my best to accommodate it!

Searching by Rating

Type in rating (ie, #gen, #teen, #mature, #explicit)

Searching by Book

Type in book name (ie, #the burning maze, #the tower of nero)

Crossovers

Type in #crossover to see the full selection.

Type in fandom-specific tag for a specific fandom (ie, #supernatural, #marvel)

Will update as needed. All fics are posted with their fic descriptions and ratings. Filter preferences accordingly.

[apollosgiftofprophecy]

Freypollo? Apricity?

Yes.

@lordofsummergodofrizz hi it's me, FireAlder, and here's that fic I made haha!

[sadlynojellybeans]

I am losing my mind trying to find the source of the "Zeus became Kronos' cubearer and then poisoned him to get his siblings back" myth. The closest I have gotten is Apollodorus' Bibliotheca, which reports that "when Zeus was full-grown, he took Metis, daughter of Ocean, to help him, and she gave Cronus a drug to swallow, which forced him to disgorge first the stone and then the children whom he had swallowed, and with their aid Zeus waged the war against Cronus and the Titans." But this passage does not mention Zeus being Kronos' cupbearer, and I cannot find anything else to support the claim.

Does anyone have any idea what the source of this myth could be?

@firealder2005 I hope you don't mind the tag, but you are one of the very few people I can think of that have looked at actual greek sources, so maybe you can help?