#pj!poseidon

[themisplaceddemigod]

Can you do one with Poseidon before the big three made the pact to have no more kids. And he meets her on the beach and one thing lead to another and had a son that would end up being the reason why the pact happened and why in the future Zeus is so paranoid about Percy. 

ooooh this sounds fun! sorry for the late reply, i've been busy with work, university and Ramadan!

when power meets passion

PJ!Poseidon x F!Reader

summary - the ask :)

warnings - not proof read, fluff at the start, devolves into angst at the end

Humans were never meant to mingle with the gods. They were meant to be worshippers, dedicating their lives to these divine beings. There was no such thing as falling in love with one of them, or at least that's what you believed before you actually met one of them.

You were a marine biologist, the ocean's wonderful and mysterious animals the objects of your fascination and awe. You also loved the water, and could spend hours just swimming with the fish in their enclosures at the rescue center you worked at.

One of your particular endeavours, the one that actually caught the sea god's attention in the first place, was rescuing a baby tiger shark that was about to be eaten by fully grown bull sharks. You'd brought it to the center, nursed it back to health, and practically raised it until it was ready to be released.

You didn't ever think that would lead you to meeting a handsome stranger on the beach who had seemingly come out of nowhere, nor did you think that you'd manage to start and maintain a relationship with this man.

He was so kind, so gentle and he shared the same passion as you about marine life. You never suspected anything about who he really was, not until he took you aside the night after you both found out that you were pregnant.

"Look, uh...I know this isn't going to be easy for you," he started, a little nervously, "But there's something you need to know. Somethung big, actually, and I'm sorry I've kept it to myself for so long. But this time with you...it's been the best I've had in a long while. And I didn't want to ruin it."

You started getting nervous, wondering where this was going, "What do you mean?"

He took a deep breath, taking your hands into his larger and warmer ones, "It's okay if you don't believe me right away, but you'll see when our baby is born. They're going to be special, in a lot of ways you won't expect. Because I'm not just any ordinary human...I'm Poseidon."

Your jaw dropped, before you laughed nervously, "That's a joke, right? Cause of how much I love Greek mythology? It's really sweet that you're trying to make me laugh right now, but-"

"I mean it," he stated firmly, squeezing your hands. "I am the Greek god of the sea." To prove his point, the waves crashing against the shoreline outside the cabin died down, as if by command. "I didn't want you to know, because I was enjoying your company so much as an ordinary person. But now that you're having my child...he or she will be a demigod." He placed his hand on your stomach, and warmth spread throughout your body, relaxing your tense limbs. "I can't promise to be involved in the baby's life, but I will watch over you two."

You frowned at that, "Are you leaving? Before the baby is even born?"

He sighed, as if he'd been asked this many times before, "It's not the best idea to raise the child around me. They need to be sheltered, especially because of their attractiveness to monsters, and I will only get them killed."

That was his excuse, he didn't want to tell you that it was normal for a god to fall for a human, have a child and leave. He genuinely loved you, and didn't want to hurt you like that.

You tried your best to understand, you really did. You still felt hurt, not understanding fully why he couldn't be with you if you loved each other so much. But you had to move on, because he was doing the same, and you weren't going to let him think that you were weak, especially since he was a god.

You gave birth on your due date, a healthy baby boy who barely even screamed as he was birthed. He came out quiet and calm, much like a certain god who fathered him. As you held him in your arms for the first time, you understood what Poseidon had meant about him being different. He radiated a different kind of energy, and to you he seemed, and looked, very much like the sea god. He was different, he was special, but you would love him no matter what. He was your greatest gift.

And, as you would soon learn, your doom.

Because years later, when he turned twelve, the first monster attacked. He dealt with it okay enough, coming out with only a few bruises and one deep gash, but the ocean water healed that. Another sign he was different, the ocean was his safety, the source of his power and healing. He could control it, command it, and bend it to his will. He could use it to fight, to heal himself, and to do whatever he pleased.

This power went straight to his head, and left you wondering where in all the years you had gone wrong in raising him.

Your son was everything that Luke Castellan would become (decades later), multiplied by ten. Angry, vengeful, scornful of the gods because they weren't around. Because they abandoned their mortal lovers and children, choosing to keep to themselves and stay up in their palace.

The city was flooded. Buildings were crumbling. Cars were crashing. It was all happening too fast, too much all at once. You didn't know where to look, where to go. Your cabin had been flooded first, so you fled into the city hoping the tsunami wouldn't reach it.

But it did.

A tsunami worse than anything your city had ever seen before was approaching, looming over you all like a monster straight out of Tartarus. Every fire hydrant on every street had burst, soaking people, cars and stores alike as water just poured in from all sides. It was the worst sea storm in history, one that was brought forth and controlled by none other than your son.

The boy you had raised, was now destroying a whole city in his rage. Blinded by anger and scorn, by hate for the deity that brought him life, he took other lives. It was unlike anything the gods had ever seen, one of the worst acts of rebellion ever committed by a demigod.

You had tried to speak to him, tried to reason with him, but he was beyond saving. His frustration and resentment had built up too much and caused him to explode, in the most horrifying way imaginable. This was not your son, not the sweet little boy who used to giggle at stingrays and grab baby sharks with his bare hands. Not the sweet boy who used to wake up early on Mother's Day to make you breakfast and remind you that you're the best part of his life. Not the sweet boy who understood why his father wasn't around, before all the quests.

Quest after quest, he suffered. Mentally, emotionally, and it changed him. He got angry that the gods refused to help, even when he was put in extremely dangerous and life-threatening situations. Furious that his father would ignore him when he called on him for help.

You didn't want to, but you witnessed the heartbreaking encounter between your distressed son and his father, who finally appeared to him after all these years.

"Where were you?!" You could hear (son's name) scream, atop a massive wave of water. "Where were you all those times I needed you???" He kept on going when Poseidon couldn't find the words, "Not once did you visit me, NOT ONCE! You just left me, and mom! All those times I called for help, all those times we were having it rough, and you couldn't help in ANY way!" His voice was so agonised, you felt tears pool in your eyes.

Your poor boy...

"Son, if you stop this now-"

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" Your son roared, the wave getting higher and more imposing, "I WAS NEVER YOUR SON! YOU NEVER ACTED LIKE IT!"

Still, Poseidon tried to reason with the boy. But when that failed, and the sea god met your eyes, you knew exactly what had to be done. You shut your eyes in pain, an overwhelming ache growing in your chest.

And when you opened your eyes again, Poseidon was in front of you, his face the saddest you'd ever seen it. Sadder than the day he'd left.

"You know what they're going to decide about his fate," that deep voice you missed so much boomed, trying to speak gently, "You know what's going to happen, and I...I can't stop it. I wish I could."

"I know," was all you could choke out, before his strong arms wrapped around you comfortingly, and you were sobbing into his chest.

And when your eyes ran dry and all you could do was sit at home and stare out the window, he had to go. He promised he'd try to come see you, try to make things right, but you didn't think that was possible anymore.

You just had to live with it.

And beyond the halls of the Olympian palace, you heard their decree. You heard the decision that would inevitably be broken decades later...

"Each of us, Poseidon, Hades and myself, Zeus, shall swear an oath here and now to never bear children again."

A/N: I hope this was what you had in mind, or at least similar! Ended up being sadder than I thought, broke my own heart writing this but I still hope it was good enough!

[idksmtms]

You Are Not One of Us (Poseidon x Norse Goddess!reader) - Part 8

Full Request

Part 7 << PART8 >> Part 9

AN: These are just getting longer and longer… Enjoy! I’m gonna try and end this at 10 parts so only two more to go! 

Summary: Everything in Percy’s life is turning upside down. First he finds out he’s a demigod and ends up at a camp for people like him. But one thing always stays the same: bullies.

Word count: 11,466

Trigger Warnings: she/her pronouns, AFAB reader, profanity, innuendo, age gap (even tho they are both thousands of years old), personal insecurity, insecurity about one’s parenting, absentee parents technically, abandonment issues, angst, supposed major character death (but it’s acc not), Percy believing there is something wrong with him, negative view of one’s own ADHD and dyslexia, way too heavy use of dramatic irony, any warnings associated with Percy’s adventures, (please let me know if I missed any) 

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians characters. I do not claim to own any of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians characters. I do not own any pictures used nor do I claim to do so. (I do use some scenes from the show verbatim but I did not write the dialogue for those scenes, only the descriptions attached.) 

Always appreciate comments, likes, and reblogs :)

Though Percy wasn’t often excited by anything related to school, he had been looking forward to the Museum trip. It was a change of scenery from the drab halls of Yancy, and it was a chance to have fun with Grover. He didn’t even mind the learning part. This mythology unit they were currently in was his favourite of anything he had learned thus far. It was interesting, exciting, and weirdly comforting, like he was connected to it somehow but not in any way that made sense yet. 

As Mr. Brunner took them around and explained some of the stories behind the statues, his mind began to wander (along with his gaze). The circular hall was a hodgepodge of statues from a variety of cultures depicting all sorts of mythological heroes, gods, and monsters. Mr. Brunner was currently parked in front of a statue of Apollo and Artemis, telling the story of how they were born, but Percy was looking to the right of it, a smaller statue carved out of wood. It was only a third of the size of the marble depiction of the twin deities, but it was just as beautiful, some argued even more so simply due to its rarity. 

The plaque boasted that it was the only statue made during the Viking period that survived the mass burning post-Christianisation. A woman was laying down in a bed of flowers, each petal around her head and body painstakingly chipped into the wood. Her dress was long and airy, flowing into the wood at the bottom of the carving. Her eyes were closed and a sword was resting on her stomach, the hilt pulled up close to her chest and gripped tightly with both her hands. The sword itself was pitch-black from the hilt to the tip and the plaque explained that the statue was once coloured. Natural paints made of fruit and vegetable pastes had most likely been used and washed or faded away over time, but the sword had been made using burnt wood so it retained its colour. Her hair was loose and billowing around her head and there were faded black stains in different places. Her hair had most likely been coloured with some type of blue paint, the restorers speculated, some paste made with a blue mineral and crushed blueberries. Though all of this was only a guess supported by stories of the goddess’s appearance. 

Percy remembered the statue from his trip to the museum with Aunt Sally when he was seven. She had stood in front of the statue for some time with a wistful smile on her face. He had tugged at her hand, asked her to tell him the story of this one, and she had ruffled his hair before bending down to press a kiss to his cheek. 

“This is the goddess of love and war, from the Vikings.” He had stuck out his tongue at that, frowning and tilting his head. 

“How is she the goddess of love and war? That doesn’t make any sense.” But Aunt Sally just smiled and shook her head. 

“I know it doesn’t seem like it, but you’d be surprised how similar love and war are, how much they intertwine with each other,” she answered simply, looking between him and the statue as if she could see something he couldn’t. “The stories say she was a heroine for the Vikings, their protector from the creatures they couldn’t see. At their height, they often claimed she was on the battlefield with them, that she was in each of their victories.” Percy was looking up at Sally with big, intrigued eyes, lips slightly parted as he breathed slowly. “I think she tended to lean on the love side of her duties more though,” Sally added, holding Percy’s hand a little tighter. She spoke as if she knew the goddess personally, and back then Percy honestly believed it. Aunt Sally was his entire world, she was amazing. It wouldn’t surprise him if she managed to befriend a goddess too. 

“What else?” Percy asked quietly, pressing himself to Aunt Sally’s legs and gazing up at the carving. 

“Well, she had blue hair, bright blue like the ocean.” And Percy smiled at that, whispering ‘that’s my favourite colour’ almost dazedly, enraptured with the statue and its story. “I know, I think you’d like her,” Sally whispered, closing her eyes for a moment as if she was in pain, and Percy saw her trying to wipe at them discreetly. 

“Tell me more,” he demanded, and Sally only nodded before staying silent for a moment. When she spoke again, her voice sounded a little clogged and she didn’t look down at Percy. 

“She was kind, and sweet, a good friend,” Sally cleared her throat, pushing some hair off her face and finally smiling down at Percy again, “at least that’s what the stories say!”

 And then she was walking again, taking him to the next statue, and the one after, reading him what the plaques said. It was on the third statue that she paused again, gently placing a hand on Percy’s back as she pointed out the name for him. 

“Perseus. That’s me,” and he smiled the innocent smile of a child, and Sally nodded enthusiastically. 

“Mhm, that’s who you were named after.” 

“Am I named after him because he’s a hero?” He asked innocently, and Sally only smirked. 

“What makes you think he was a hero?” 

“Because he killed monsters?” He scrunched up his nose as if it was obvious, but Sally only raised an eyebrow.

“What makes you think she was a monster?” 

“Aunt Sally,” he whined, pulling on her hand a little, and she just smiled, squeezing his hand in return and calling off the teasing. 

“Not everyone who looks like a hero is a hero, and not everyone who looks like a monster is a monster. You were named after him because, against all odds, he found his way to a happy ending.” She gripped both of his cheeks and pressed a long kiss to his forehead. Percy just giggled, pushing her away before grabbing her hand and moving onto the next statue. 

Percy hadn’t thought about that trip in a long time. It had been such a fun day, with blue ice cream and no homework. But he could still remember how wistful Aunt Sally seemed, as if it wasn’t the Met but a museum of her life that she was being forced to walk through. 

“...Now, on your worksheets, I want you to choose one of the subjects you see here, and describe it. Not just how it looks, but how it makes you feel. Okay? Come on.” And Mr. Brunner clapped his hands to get them all moving. 

Percy stared down at the clipboard, at the letters jumping around and shuffling themselves, and looked away almost instantly, heading to stand directly in front of the statue of Perseus profering Medusa’s head. 

“Move, nerd,” Nancy spat out as she shoved past him. Percy gripped his clipboard tightly as he almost fell back before raising his hands in the air in shock. Nancy simply jerked her head at him and he scoffed. 

“Mr. Jackson, you will learn to control yourself, do you understand me?” Percy felt his eyebrows leave his forehead. 

“Me?” He asked in surprise, pointing at his own chest as if he couldn’t quite believe Mrs. Dodds was speaking to him. 

“Do you understand me?” Her face didn’t move when she spoke, just that same stoic look of loathing that was probably there while she slept. 

“He can’t help it, Mrs. Dodds. Percy’s special,” Nancy chimed in, emphasising ‘special’ with her lips in a way that made Percy want to walk over and shove her back. 

“That’s enough.” Mr. Brunner interjected harshly, frowning as he rolled his wheelchair to Percy. “Pay them no mind. When you’re ready to hear what the gods have in store for you, they’ll tell you. I believe in you.” And he said it with such conviction, in that weird cryptic but sincere way that Aunt Sally always said that there was a bigger world out there for him. “And I believe you’ll be needing this,” he added, pulling a pen out of his coat pocket and profering it to him with a little ‘hm?’. Percy hadn’t even realised he had broken the tip of his pencil when Nancy shoved past, and he gave Mr. Brunner a pursed-lip smile as he took it from him. “Hang on to that,” Mr. Brunner gestured to the pen, “‘tis a mighty instrument.” And with a knowing and kind smile, he wheeled himself away. 

Percy looked back up to the statue of Perseus and sighed. 

A couple hours later, he sat down next to Grover by the fountain with a despondent sigh as they simultaneously unwrapped their sandwiches and switched fillings. Grover was trying to make him feel better, pointing out that there were many reasons as to why someone chose to bully someone else, but Percy just frowned and shook his head. 

“I get that Nancy probably has a mountain of unresolved issues hiding in that hair of hers, I’m just tired of her taking it out on me.” Percy sighed, putting the top piece of bread back onto the sandwich and bringing it close to his mouth. “I feel like… maybe it’s time to do something about it,” he shrugged. 

“You could make an appointment to talk to Mr. Kane! He’s really good at talking-”

“I was thinking more like shoving Nancy into a dumpster,” Percy interjected, a small mischievous smile on his face. 

“Oh.” Grover stared at him. Then he began shaking his head vigorously, “No, no, no. If there’s one thing I know about bullies, it’s that you never stand up to them.” Percy frowned. 

“That doesn’t sound right…” 

“Look, we’re not gonna be here forever. I know this place is hard for us right now, but there are better places out there.” Grover’s sincerity, his bright little smile of hope and positivity, was infectious. Percy nodded, a smile appearing involuntarily. And then a slice of cheese came flying into the side of Grover’s face, and Nancy stood there smiling, letting out a little ‘oops’. 

Percy couldn’t take it anymore. His chest was tight and the back of his throat felt like it was full of fire and he stood up, marching over to Nancy with his arms out, ready to push her into the fountain in his rage. He didn’t even touch her, not even a graze of her shoulder, and she went flying into the fountain. Like something had pulled her body from behind and dropped her into the water. 

Percy stopped short. He stared at the space in front of him that Nancy had occupied up until about a second before. His hands were tingling and something had pulled deep inside his gut, but it was gone now. He could hear Nancy spluttering and squealing like a stuck pig. And then she began to scream “Percy pushed me! He pushed me!” 

Someone asked if Nancy was ok, another person took up the cry that Percy had pushed her, and all he could do was stand there and stare between the fountain and his hands, and the feeling that somehow the water had listened to his urge and acted on his behalf. That something in the world had shifted all of a sudden, like a puzzle piece clicking into place. 

The pen Mr. Brunner had given him was vibrating in his back pocket, shaking like crazy, and he pulled it out, staring at it as it seemed to flicker in and out of focus in his palm. 

“There you are.” It felt like the voice was inside his skull, and it sounded just like Mrs. Dodds. Percy looked up, and through a gap in the crowd he could see her slowly walking toward him. She was too far away for it to have been her who spoke to him in that low tone, but the voice came again. “We’re not fools, Percy Jackson.” Percy watched her come closer, one step at a time and an almost smug tinge to that never-changing face of hers. 

“Uh, Mrs. Dodds? You ok?” He asked, brows pulled together in a frown. 

“It was only a matter of time before we found you.” Her lips weren’t moving but he could hear her so clearly, and he gulped, a hot and slimy fear snaking down his spine. Then one side of her coat began to lift up and over her head before it peeled back and unfolded into a grey-black wing. The other followed, morphing as it moved and unfolding to reveal a monstrous creature covered in leathery spikes and folds, hints of red in the crevices and over her slowly disappearing face. Her shoes had morphed into talons like bird feet, and she kept walking toward him. 

Percy felt like he couldn’t breathe, blinking over and over again, hoping whatever episode this was would end quickly. But she kept coming. One of her wings pushed a person but they simply fell forward, looking back but not seeing anything noteworthy. Percy stared at them then back to Mrs. Dodds. 

“Where is it, Half-Blood?” Her voice slithered in his mind. He began backing away, that fear coiling tighter and tighter around his spine. But the creature only walked onto the top of the water feature before spreading its wings and flying straight for him. In his rush to back away he fell flat onto the floor, hitting his head so hard it began to ring. He clutched the pen in his hand so tight he could no longer feel his fingers.The creature fell over him, crawling up so their faces were level and all he could smell was sulphur. “Where is it?” She raised one of her claws to his face and he simply clenched his eyes shut. 

But the touch never came. A golden-orange light peaked at the crease of his eyelids and something was crumbling around his hands. He creaked one eye open, then the other. Mrs. Dodds was staring down at the space between them, at the sharp, bright, line of orange that seemed to emanate from the weapon in his hands, a glowing bronze sword. Her body was crumbling into dust, and when she looked back up at him her face contorted into rage. She reared back, as if she was about to come back down for the kill, but her face disappeared into a crush of dust that floated away into the wind. The ringing in Percy’s head turned into a white light in his eyes and everything- stopped. 

As Percy walked through the hallway from the elevator to the adjoining hallway that would lead to the apartment door, he thought about the last words he had said to Mr. Brunner. “I don’t need any more stories about how special I don’t realise I am.” And he meant it. All that those stories had done was lead him to getting expelled from another school, getting betrayed by someone who he thought was his closest friend, and disappointing Aunt Sally all over again. Mr. Brunner had looked so downcast when he had said it, like Percy had personally hurt his feelings, but Percy was tired. 

He was sick of this talk of potential waiting to happen, because the truth was there wasn’t any potential. He had nothing else to give. He tried and tried and the world never seemed to try back. Even if things were alright for a while, he always ended up back here, tail between his legs wondering why he simply wasn’t good enough for anything. 

He could hear Gabe yelling already, and he tightened his grip on his bag. Eddie the handyman closed the door behind him and stood still for a second on the welcome mat. Percy could see the deep breath he took, could feel the exasperation and worn-thin patience that he experienced every minute he spent in Ugly Gabe’s presence. When Eddie turned around, he smiled sadly. 

“Oh! Hello Percy.” Eddie always smiled when he saw Percy but this time it was only a tight pursed-lip one. 

“Hey Eddie,” Percy sighed, “I’m sorry about that,” and Percy gestured to the door. Eddie looked at it then shook his head. 

“I’m walking out, you’re walking in. I should be apologising to you,” and Eddie squinted in sympathy before walking off down the hallway. 

When Percy entered the house, he was hit with the comforting smell of Aunt Sally’s many ocean-scented candles and air-fresheners, and the less comforting stink of body odour, cheap beer, and hair oil that Gabe seemed to drag into any room with him. 

Speaking of Gabe, the man was sitting in his easy-chair directly in front of the tv, legs up and laptop resting on his thighs as he cracked another beer open right as Percy entered the house. 

“Welcome home, genius!” He called, sneering at Percy as he stood in the hallway looking down at the train-wreck of a man. 

“Is Aunt Sally home from work?” Percy asked tiredly, not interested in engaging in a conversation with the greaseball. 

“Oh, is that all you got to say to me? Huh?” Gabe asked angrily, nodding his head as if Percy was proving whatever point he had concocted in his head. Percy could almost see the invisible high horse Gabe believed he sat on. “After failing out of school?” 

“I didn’t fail out of school.” Percy scrunched up his face, shaking his head a little at the stupidity. 

“Your principal called, and that’s what he said. He said you got kicked out.” Gabe moved back and forth a little as he spoke, and Percy watched the chair move rather than look at the man’s ratty little face. Then he paused for a moment, frowning as he took in the words Gabe said. 

“They called Aunt Sally’s cell. You answer Aunt Sally’s cell?” He asked angrily, turning from his place in the hallway to look at Gabe, ready to argue. 

“I answer whatever’s ringing,” Gabe argued back, shaking his head as if it was no big deal. “So what did you get kicked out for, hm?” He asked, taking a sip of his beer and looking at Percy with wide curious eyes. Percy could see the man was getting a kick out of it. 

“He said I attacked a kid on a field trip,” Percy mumbled, looking at the carpet as he scuffed at it with his shoe. Gabe raised his eyebrows and seemed to nod in surprise. He almost looked like he respected Percy in that moment, and it made Percy’s frown deepen. 

“Ok. Alright, if… but still, if you’re gonna live under my roof, you gotta live by my rules,” and Percy’s face scrunched up, turning to Gabe and shaking his head as if none of what he said made sense. 

“Your roof? Aunt Sally is the only one employed here.” 

“Excuse me?” Gabe was offended, eyebrows raising. “I have a job. What does it look like I’m doing right now?” Gabe gestured to the tv and laptop but Percy’s expression didn’t change. 

“Losing at imaginary poker,” he answered simply, gesturing at the laptop as well. 

“You would think that because you’re a child, and you don’t understand things like-”

“Where’s Aunt Sally?” He interrupted, looking down the hall. He was already tired, he didn’t need interactions with Gabe today. 

“I don’t know. I don’t know where your aunt is. I’m not Nostradamus. What are we doing Percy? Every time!” But Percy just walked away, listening to Gabe’s distant and exasperated ‘wow! Wow!’. 

As Percy walked farther into the apartment, he could hear the rain and realised the window in the other small den area was open. He could see Aunt Sally sitting on the fire escape, soaking in the rain. Her hair was damp and curling slightly, and her cardigan was becoming wet. Music was playing loudly from the corner and everything suddenly felt like it was crashing down on him all over again. His lip began to quiver and he wanted to cry. 

“Aunt Sally…” he whimpered, screwing his eyes shut as she turned back and realised he was standing there. She quickly clambered in from the window but Percy was already speaking again. “I’m really sorry. I tried this time. You know how hard I’ve been trying. But this time it really wasn’t my fault. It really wasn’t my fault.” His words trailed off as she wrapped her arms around him and pressed her cheek to his head. Her hair dripped all over him and her damp shirt stuck to his face but it felt so good to be hugged, so he let her just embrace him. “I’m all wet,” he mumbled against her shoulder. 

She pulled back but kept her hands on his shoulders, tilting her head so she could properly look at his face. She cupped his face in one hand and stroked his cheek as she smiled lovingly down at him. 

“I’m sorry. I’m just really glad to see you.” She grabbed the towel on the ironing table to her right and began scrunching the ends of her hair as she spoke. “I found Gabe on the phone with the headmaster and he told me what he thinks happened with Nancy Bobofit. I told him I believed my kid, it was a real short call.” She shrugged simply, pursing her lips and clutching the towel in her hands as she looked at Percy. He was staring at the floor, head downcast, and he only offered her a small smile in response. “Hey, all that matters is that you’re here, ok?” She asked, hoping to lift his mood a little, “and that I had time to get your welcome home gift,” she sang, reaching into a tote bag on one of the chairs and pulling out a little plastic pouch of blue jelly beans. He smiled a little more this time, watching her shake it just in front of him before grabbing it and putting it into his coat pocket. 

Then Sally smiled sympathetically, crossing her arms over her stomach and waiting for Percy to look back up again before speaking. “Mr. Brunner called me too. He told me about Grover.” Percy began blinking again, feeling the tears burn the backs of his eyes and his mouth scrunched up a little. “Do you wanna talk about it?” His blinking slowed down again but he stared at the carpet a little harder, letting out a long breath. Sally straightened up a little. “Is there something else you wanna talk about?” She asked, concern dropping her voice a little lower. Percy looked up and met her eyes for a second before dropping his gaze back down. He took a deep breath in and began toying with the hem of his coat. 

“Something happened to me. Something has been happening to me. More than just my mind wandering, and it got worse, and…” he trailed off. They both listened to the rain as she waited for him to speak and he gathered his words. “I’m scared.” He looked up finally, staring straight into her eyes as he said the words. They just looked at each other for a moment, Sally’s lower lip pulled slightly into her mouth. Then she simply looked past Percy and yelled, 

“Gabe!” 

“Aunt Sally?” Percy asked, staring at her, suddenly worried she was going to tell Gabe everything he had just said, but she simply waited for Gabe to appear in the hallway. He grumbled as he got up and came down the hallway, adjusting his pants higher onto his hips and pointed back to the living room as he spoke. 

“I don’t know how anyone expects me to get any work done-” 

“Percy and I are leaving for Montauk.” 

Percy didn’t realise he had fallen asleep in the car until after he woke up from the bone-chilling nightmare. After witnessing Aunt Sally put Gabe in his place and hurriedly packing a bag for the weekend, he had simply fallen into the passenger seat and passed out when they hit the road outside the city. 

He looked to the left slowly, shifting a little further up in his seat, watching Aunt Sally hurriedly wipe tears off her cheeks when she realised he was still awake. She smiled at him, mumbling out a ‘we’re here’ as she watched him fully sit up straight. 

“On three?” He asked quietly, and she smiled, nodding as she looked ahead and began counting. On two he bolted out of the door, smiling widely as she squealed and struggled out of her seat. 

After they had settled everything into their rooms and Sally started the fire in the living room, he went to the bathroom to change his clothes and have a quick wash up before dinner. He washed his hands and splashed his face, then stood in front of the sink staring at the mirror. He couldn’t keep pushing it off anymore. He had to tell Aunt Sally about what happened and how something needed to change because nothing was right anymore. 

By the time he came back out, Aunt Sally was standing at one of the kitchen counters with a pack of marshmallows. The table hadn’t been cleared from dinner but more candles had been lit and placed around the cabin, only one or two lamps flicked on here and there. He tapped her on the opposite shoulder and smiled when she looked there then back to the other side where he stood. 

“I found the good marshmallows, the ones that don’t burn so easy.” She sounded so proud and happy, but Percy could only nod. 

“I don’t think it was ever the marshmallow’s fault that I wasn’t paying attention,” he sighed, and she paused. She put down the marshmallow she had been holding and turned to look at Percy. The serious look on his face made her fully turn and lean her hip against the counter. She waited for him to say whatever he clearly wanted to say, crossing her arms loosely.

“Aunt Sally… I need to talk to you about something.” She simply watched him for a moment, then nodded, standing up fully again and telling him to head to the couch and get cosy by the fire. They would talk there. 

Sally curled up on one end of the couch and Percy sat down on the other. He leaned his elbows on his knees and stared into the fire. “I’m used to feeling weird. I’m used to the world feeling weird to me. Like a puzzle with half the wrong pieces. I try to pay attention, I really try,” and he looked at her as he said this, his face so earnest, “but then I’m daydreaming. I can’t help it. But lately it hasn’t felt like daydreaming. It’s felt…” he paused, looking back down at his hands. “I don’t know. More real, maybe?” He took a deep breath in, and Sally averted her eyes to her lap. “And then we were at the museum, and…” 

“You saw something,” she said quietly, knowingly. He nodded, stilted and slow, but a nod nonetheless. “Something that felt real to you, but no one else could see?” Again, he nodded, lips pursed. She tilted her head down a little to look at his face, then put her hand on his back and rubbed it softly. “What did she say to you?” Sally asked apprehensively. Percy’s head snapped up to look at her, and he frowned in confusion. 

“She? How did you know it was a she?” 

Sally paused, and he could see the millions of thoughts running around behind her eyes. She leaned her head back and looked at the ceiling before clenching her eyes shut tightly, as if fighting with her lips. She pushed her lips out and shook her head, like the fight was raging and she was in pain. Then, with her eyes still closed, she asked, 

“Do you know why we come to this cabin every year?” Her head came back down but now she was the one looking into the fire and avoiding his gaze. 

“Because it’s near the septic tanks so it’s cheap,” Percy answered quickly, still bewildered and shaking his head a little as he spoke. “Aunt Sally, how do you know about the thing I saw?” 

“We come to this place every year, because this is the place I met your parents,” she spoke quickly, only turning to look at him with her face set firmly as the last words left her lips. He stared at her. 

“My parents? What do my parents have to do with this? And what do you mean ‘met them’?” 

She smiled a little, a sad little thing that said ‘there’s so much you don’t know’ then gently cupped the side of his head, pushing some of his curls back. 

“A long time ago, I met a woman, here, on the beach. She was kind, and brave, and sweet, and… noble. And she introduced me to her husband, and he was just like her. He was wise, and caring, and they loved each other like no love I had ever witnessed before. And…  ugh, look Percy, I can’t tell you about your mom, but your father? He was a god.” Sally paused, gulping then letting out a whooshing breath. She looked at Percy and he was just staring at her like her head had popped off. 

“God? Like Jesus? Like you met some woman who said she married Jesus and you believe her?” He asked, one eyebrow curling up slightly with his sceptical tone. 

“Not God, Percy,” she sighed, “a god.” She turned to sit facing him and gently held his hands in hers. “Look, Percy, the stories that I have told you, about Greek gods and monsters? About Norse mythology? They are real.” Percy began shaking his head. 

“Aunt Sally-” 

“In those stories, I have told you about how gods fight, and get married, and sometimes they have children with mortals…” 

“Aunt Sally, please, stop.” 

“How they can have demigod children…” 

“Aunt Sally!” 

“And sometimes they are known as half-bloods.” Percy paused, slowly turning his head to look at his Aunt Sally, at the desperate look on her face as if she needed him to believe her. 

“That’s what the monster called me. Aunt Sally, what’s happening?” 

“You are a half-blood.” She breathed out, eyes roaming over his face for any sign of belief. “And half-bloods are not safe in the world. Once they reach a certain age and they begin… to understand what they are, terrible forces are drawn to them, driven to harm them before they can become strong enough to fight back. That is what you have been feeling.” She gripped his shoulder tightly, shaking him just a little as if it would make him believe it any more. “It has always been a part of who you are, it was always coming,” her words were beginning to become frantic, “I just-” 

“Why are you telling me this?” He asked angrily, shaking his head and staring at her as she moved even closer to him. 

“Percy, I know this is hard to understand, but you have to believe me that this is real,” she pressed. 

“No, this is crazy, ok? I am not a god. There is something wrong with my brain.” She clenched her eyes shut, tears leaking down her cheeks and sweat collecting on her upper lip as she leaned back to look at his face, slowly shaking her head like she was flexing her neck. “I understand that I’m weird, believe me, I get it,” and she smiled in pain at that, her face saying that it hurt her that he believed that, that it simply wasn’t true, tilting her head to the side and huffing out a breath as he continued. “But I’m afraid something may be really broken now!”

“Oh, honey, no-”

“And-and now you’re telling me stories, like it’s gonna make it ok?” She pursed her lips and looked down. “Well I’m not a baby! I know there’s no such thing as monsters, I know there’s no such things as gods, and I know for certain that there is no such thing as demi-gods.” His words were final, and he only got to stare into her eyes for a moment before there was suddenly a knock at the door, and Grover was calling out for Aunt Sally. 

And it was only moments later that Grover was standing in the hallway with goat legs. 

When Grover pulled his beanie off as they drove down the highway, Percy felt for the first time that Aunt Sally had been telling the truth. The little horns poking through his curls were so… real. And then the explanation for Grover’s betrayal was so crazy that he was angry again, and this concept of ‘the Mist’ was so confusing that he felt lost all over again. 

“The sooner we get you to camp, the better of you’re…” Percy snapped his head back to look at Grover. He paused, mouth open, staring at Percy then turning to look at the back of Sally’s head. “You told him about camp, right?” 

“Not yet, no,” she answered, exasperated, and Percy just sat back in his seat and looked at her. She glanced at him, just a moment, and he frowned. 

“Camp is a sanctuary for half-bloods. A safe space where you can learn who you are and what the world is like on the other side of the Mist.” Grover leaned back a little and looked out the windshield before tapping on the shoulder of Sally’s seat. “Uh, it’s not far, actually, just a little ways past the bend up there,” and he pointed to somewhere in the rain in front of the car. But Percy didn’t look, he kept staring at his Aunt Sally and frowning. 

“Aunt Sally, what else haven’t we talked about? What else haven’t you told me?” He paused for a second, settling further into his seat. “Why can’t you tell me about my mom? What’s so dangerous that you can’t tell me about her?” 

Just as Sally opened her mouth to respond, to say anything about all the secrets that had suddenly opened up between them, the road under them shuddered, and something roared in the distance behind the car. There was a flash of light, and Percy watched as the silhouette of something huge dropped down onto the road. 

“Is that the Minotaur?!” 

In the yellow glow of the totaled car’s headlights, Percy watched as the only parent he had ever known was crushed in the hands of a monster. He watched his mother disappear in a flash, watched the woman who had tried to fill the role of a father disappear into dust. His chest filled with rage like a gallon of water being poured into a shot glass. His mind suddenly quieted, only the rush of his blood pounding in his ears. Aunt Sally’s face flashed before his eyes, glowing in the yellow lights, dripping with rain. Her hands gripping his face as she tried not to cry, biting at her lips as she pressed out the words. “You… are not not broken. You are singular. You’re a miracle. And you are my kid. Hold fast. Brave the storm.” She stroked his cheeks with her thumbs and smiled, sad yet hopeful, sweet yet resigned. “I love you.” Her watery voice. He saw her reaching for him before the crush. He uncapped the pen and watched it grow into a sword in his hands. And then he charged. 

Percy was hoping he had dreamed everything from the conversation with Aunt Sally to the creepy girl standing over his bed. But when he woke up and the first thing he saw was Grover with his little horns poking out of his head, he knew he had really killed the Minotaur, and that Aunt Sally was gone… 

Grover tried to talk to him about it, desperately wanted to talk to him about it, but he wasn’t ready. His mind was already playing everything on loop for him and he didn’t want to talk about it too. 

“Your job is done,” he told Grover, and it hurt. Because it had all been a job. Every laugh, every moment of their friendship had been a cover. And he didn’t want to talk about that either. 

As he headed for the door, Grover asked where he was going. Percy clenched his jaw and turned back to look at him, his mind set on one thing and one thing only. “It was so important I get here ‘cause my father is a god. So I’m gonna go find him.” The words were so simple but he spoke so gravely. 

“It’s not that…” Percy was already out the door, “simple.”

As Percy stepped out and onto a porch, he couldn’t help but look around in wonder. The house had been built on the banks of a beautiful lake with turquoise green water and a pebble beach. Orange kayaks and rowing boats were sitting near the treeline with people in equally orange shirts milling about around them. On his other side, a type of orangery was jutting from the house, made of pristine white-painted wood and huge panes of painted glass windows. 

Inside the orangery, a man was sitting reclined in a chair, sunglasses over his eyes and face tipped up to the ceiling. Even from the distance he was stood at, Percy could see the man was wearing an absolutely abominable Hawaiian shirt and had quite a long salt-and-pepper beard. Percy walked closer, pausing in the doorway to observe the scene. A wheelchair with a blanket draped over the seat was placed next to the man and both seats were placed around a pink marble table. The doors on each of the walls had all been thrown open and the natural light of the sun painted the window patterns on the hardwood floor. A small candle chandelier hung from the ceiling and there were even huge candelabras on the floor, flanking even bigger ornate white pots of flowers and small trees. 

“Excuse me?” Percy began quietly, “I’m Percy Jackson, I’m new here.” The man didn’t budge from his seat. He simply took a long breath in, twisted his head slightly to the left and yelled, 

“Peter Johnson is here!” 

“‘Kay. That isn’t… really my name,” Percy responded awkwardly, holding up one of his hands, “I guess I’m looking for the office? Or whoever’s in charge, so…” The man began sitting up a little and removed his sunglasses to look at Percy. A faint ‘wait, wait, wait, wait’ reached Percy’s ears and Grover came running into the room, stopping just beside Percy and quickly touching him on the arm. 

“Um, Percy,” then he gestured to the man at the table, “Mr. D, Camp Director.” Then he gestured back to Percy while looking at the man, “Mr. D, this is, uh, Percy Jackson.” 

“Yeah, Grover, I heard him the first time,” the man responded breezily, frowning at the satyr as he threw his sunglasses onto the table. 

“Yeah. But did you?” Percy added, tilting his head as he looked at Mr. D. 

“Ok,” Grover breathed out, pulling on Percy’s shoulder and turning him back so he could lean in closer. “You really don’t wanna start with this guy.”

“He’s starting with me,” Percy argued back, gesturing to Mr. D with his arm. 

“Percy, the D is for Dionysus. That’s Dionysus.” Grover urged, glancing to Mr. D then back to Percy who was squinting at him. 

“What do you mean, Dionysus? The- like the god, Dionysus?” He asked, staring at Grover. 

“Yes.” 

“No way.”

“Yes.” 

Percy looked around then simply gave Grover a little nod before they both turned back to face Mr. D who was looking up at them with a bored face. 

“Excuse me, Your Highness?” And Mr. D grimaced, shaking his head and letting out a little ’oh’ that was part exasperation, part annoyance, and part disappointment, but Percy simply continued. “I think my dad may be around here somewhere. I don’t know how to ask for him,” and Percy looked around because he didn’t have a single clue about who he was looking for or how to find him, and it all sounded kind of delusional and crazy when the thoughts became words that came out of his mouth. “I don’t-I don’t even know his name. But I think I should see him. I just…” Percy sighed, “I think I really need that right now. Can you help me?” 

Mr. D slowly sat up with a dignified smile on his face, depositing his drink on the table as he nodded. 

“Actually… I think I can.” He spoke slowly, and Percy’s eyes began to fill with hope. “Son.” He stared at Mr. D. The man was smiling in a self-satisfied way and simply watching Percy. 

“Dad?” He questioned. 

“Yes, Peter,” Mr. D answered, folding his hands in his lap. 

“It’s Percy,” he mumbled, not being able to tear his eyes away from Dionysus’s face. 

“Exactly,” the man brushed off. “Now, before we get to know each other, there’s something very important I want you to do for me, okay?” Mr. D gestured with his hands as he spoke, a grave look falling onto his face. Percy only nodded in reply, hesitant shakes of the head. Mr. D smiled and leaned back a little in his chair. 

“In the galley,” he pointed out one of the doors, “there is a bottle of 1985 Chateau Haut-Brion.” He spoke with such reverence, gesturing with pinched fingers in front of his face as a giddy look crossed his face. “Will you go fetch that for me?” Percy stood still for a moment. 

“Is that really all you have to say to me?” He asked, everything inside him suddenly agitated. 

“Hey, um, Mr. D, even if Percy was-” 

“Uh, uh, uh, bup!” Mr. D made a pinching motion in the direction of Grover’s mouth. “Grover, quiet, please. This is a nice moment, don’t ruin it. The galley is right down that path,” he pointed out the door to his right again, “grab that bottle and I’ll talk to you about whatever you want. You know, uh…” he moved his head around as he tried to come up with something, “you, uh… me, who cares?” He batted his hand around in the air and frowned. 

Just as Percy stepped toward the door, he stopped again and stared at Mr. Brunner as he came walking up the dirt path to the orangery. With a horse attached to his body. Or… the body of a horse attached to his… body. The centaur walked up to the entrance of the orangery and stood in front of Percy. Everyone was silent for a moment. 

“Percy.”

“Mr. Brunner?” He asked, staring up from the horse legs to the old-man cardigan and grey blazer. 

“Uh, Mr. Brunner’s real name is Chiron. Camp activities director, immortal trainer of heroes, he is-” 

“Grover, thank you. I’ll take it from here,” he politely interrupted, smiling at the excitable satyr who simply pursed his lips and nodded, swinging his arms back and forth. “Oh, Percy, this must be a lot for you to process,” he said kindly. 

“Oh, no. It’s-it’s fine. I mean, you’re a horse,” he gestured to Mr. Brunner’s lower body, “my father won’t talk to me unless I get him a drink.” He pointed at Mr. D who simply gulped from his can then brought it down again when he noticed they were all looking at him. Chiron looked between Mr. D and Percy, a look of surprise slowly widening his face. “Well, this all seems totally normal and reasonable.” 

“Oh, no, no, no. No,” Mr. Brunner began shaking his head, “Mr. D is not your father.” Percy and Grover simultaneously turned to look at Mr. D. He simply shrugged and held out his hand as he looked at Chiron. 

“I could be.” 

“Yes, but are you?” Chiron asked, hands holding the lapels of his blazer. 

“Why must you ruin everything?” Mr. D answered petulantly, but Chiron ignored him and turned back to Percy. 

“Mr. D knows that Zeus has forbidden him from consuming alcohol. And that demigods are able to do things for gods that gods are forbidden to do themselves,” and Mr. D sighed in the background, reaching for his can and bringing it to his lips again. “Mr. D was taking advantage of that, hm?” Percy turned to look at Mr. D with a frown and the man simply let out an ‘eh’ and shrugged. “Percy?” He turned back to Mr. Brunner - uh, Chiron - and the man smiled comfortingly down at him. “Walk with me and we’ll start again, hm?” He only shot one last look at Mr. D before walking out of the room. Grover went to follow but Chiron held up a finger. “Uh, Grover, please give us a moment.” And with an approving smile, he followed after Percy. 

Grover stumbled backward into the room then walked to the other door to watch Chiron and Percy walk along the path down to the lake. 

“This doesn’t feel right,” he murmured. 

“What, success?” Mr. D answered from behind him. “You got the boy to camp alive. Don’t overthink it.” Grover nodded a little and turned back to look at Mr. D. 

“Yeah, but it’s…” Mr. D shot him a look, head tilted forward and eyes saying, ‘really?’. Grover turned back to the door and watched the centaur and the boy walk farther and farther away. 

Percy stood in front of the rolled up sleeping bag and his backpack set on the floor of the Hermes cabin. He stared at it for a moment before getting onto his knees and opening the flap of his bag. Right at the top was the little plastic pouch of blue jelly beans Aunt Sally had given him before all the craziness had occurred and he held it gently in his hand, tears burning at the backs of his eyes all over again. He could see the happy little smile she had given him as she shook the bag in front of his face, the damp hug she had pulled him into. 

A little group of campers was gathered to his right and he could see one of them begin to approach. He sighed, a sense of despair filling his limbs with exhaustion. He couldn’t do this today. 

“Look, if you want to give me a hard time, just do it tomorrow. I can’t do anymore today,” he sighed as he got back onto his feet, looking at the boy in front of him. He had a scar on his face running down his cheek from under his eye and he simply brushed off Percy’s words. 

“Heard what happened to you on the hill. And I just… wanted to say I’m really sorry.” Percy nodded, looking away from the boy’s face. “I know what you’re going through. Believe me. Losing your mom is…” The boy gave a rueful little smile but Percy just began shaking his head. 

“Oh, she wasn’t… she wasn’t my mom.” It felt wrong to say that though, because Sally had been Percy’s mom all these years. She was the one that did everything mothers do while his real one was gods know where. “She was my aunt, Aunt Sally,” he told the kid, pursing his lips. 

“Oh,” the kid reared back a little in surprise, tilting his head in question but not choosing to ask anything further. He simply nodded then held out his hand. “I’m Luke.” Percy reached out and shook his hand. 

When Percy jumped awake, Luke was already standing near the end of his make-shift bed. He smiled at him in commiseration. 

“Intense, recurring nightmares. That’s normal here.” Percy stood up and stretched his back a little, feeling the stiffness and soreness in his muscles slowly began to dissipate. “And the daydreams, and the ADHD, and dyslexia. Demigods just process reality differently than humans do.” Then Luke smiled and gestured to the cabin. “For the first time in your life, you’re just like everyone else.” Percy squinted at Luke in question. 

“So are you also… Do you not know who your-” 

“Am I unclaimed? No. Hermes is my father.” For a moment Luke’s face was stormy but the look was gone so quickly Percy didn’t question it. “That doesn’t matter,” Luke shook off, “we’re all on the same team here.” But Percy couldn’t let it go. He frowned at Luke as petulance brewed in his expression. 

“Why is that ok? Why do they get to bring us here to just ignore some of us?” 

“Spend too much time trying to figure out why the gods do whatever it is they do, you’ll drive yourself crazy,” and the way Luke said it made Percy think he was speaking from experience. “Sooner you stop worrying about that, the sooner you can enjoy what this place actually does offer,” Luke smiled. 

“And what’s that?” 

“Glory.” 

As Luke went about explaining what exactly glory was and why in the world it was so important at Camp, Percy listened intently. He liked the way Luke spoke, the way he was so comforting and treated him like he was his little brother who he wanted to teach things to, to spend time with. 

Percy had always thought it was great with just him and Aunt Sally. They didn’t need anyone else. Even when Gabe came to live with them it didn’t feel like he was actually joining the family, just hanging around. But it felt nice to have someone treat him like a sibling would. He wouldn’t have minded having a brother if it was Luke. 

Just as they followed the curve of the path around a little grass nole in the middle of the circle of cabins, someone shoved past him, sending him into Luke’s side. He turned to look at them, a loud ‘hey!’ leaving his lips as he frowned at the girl standing just there. She only stepped forward and shoved him in the chest so hard he went straight into the dirt onto his back. She was glaring down at him, a look of annoyance and superiority on her face as Luke came to stand between them. 

“Hey. Know it off, Clarisse. It’s like his first day, come on.” Luke glanced at Percy to make sure he was alright as one of the other Hermes kids helped him up, before turning back to stare at Clarisse with a hard look in his eyes. She only smiled, a cruel smile as she gestured to Percy. 

“Wait, so this is the kid who killed the Minotaur. Is that right?” She turned to look at Percy properly and he only frowned, looking at her warily like she would shove him again. 

“Yeah?” 

“I’ll bet.” But she didn’t look impressed with what she saw. “Look, you want attention around here, dummy? You better be ready for when it comes.” Then she pressed forward like she was going to attack him and he stumbled back, but she was already walking away with a gleeful smile, the people following her laughing together as they glanced at him in all his scrawny glory. 

Percy stood there for a moment, watching her walk away. 

“Well, she seems nice,” he said sarcastically. 

“Ares kids.” Luke said it like it was all the explanation he needed but Percy just looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He shrugged, “they come by it honestly.” 

“Why don’t they mess with you?” 

“They know better,” Luke answered with a smirk, hands on his hips. 

“Luke’s the strongest swordsman at camp,” Chris chimed in. Percy looked up at him and began connecting dots in his head. 

“So, they leave you alone because ‘glory’?” Luke just nodded. “So if I get glory, Clarisse wouldn’t mess with me either?” 

“Exactly,” Luke nodded again, clapping him on the back, and Percy finally felt like he was beginning to understand how things worked around this place. 

“And people think I’m a big deal?” 

“Well, sorta, but-” Luke tilted his head to the side, a very simple gesture that said ‘I wouldn’t choose those words yet’. 

“And my dad’s got no choice but to claim me,” Percy added, finally feeling like he had a solution, but Luke just frowned a little bit. 

“You can’t force the gods to do anything.” 

“Well, yeah, but… it would make it harder for him to pretend I don’t exist, right?” It all sounded so simple when he said it like that. 

“Maybe,” Luke answered quietly, nodding in thought. 

“Well, great! Where do we start?” And Percy smiled properly for the first time since he had arrived at Camp. 

As Percy sat down at the pavilion table with Chris and Luke after a dismal afternoon, he let out a long sigh.

“Is there a Greek god of disappointment?” He asked, raising his eyebrows in exasperation, “maybe someone should ask him if he’s missing a kid.” Luke looked up in thought, squinting and tilting his head. 

“Oizys… but she’s a goddess. And her whole thing isn’t really disappointment, it’s more like failure.” Chris answered, fiddling with his fork. Percy sighed and gestured at himself. 

“Well, that works too. Maybe she’s my mom,” he shrugged, looking down at his plate. 

“We’re gonna find the thing that you’re good at. I know it.” Luke leaned forward so Percy was forced to look at him and he smiled in that soft, brotherly, way. They were quiet for a moment and Percy continued picking at his food when Luke brought his elbows to rest on the table and folded his hands under his chin. “So you don’t know either of your parents?” He asked, frowning at Percy. 

“No, my Aunt Sally raised me. At least, that’s what I’ve called her my entire life. She’s the one who told me about my dad, that he’s a god…” Percy paused, staring at the table. “She didn’t tell me anything about my mom though. I was asking her about it before… everything.” Luke nodded in understanding but Percy didn’t look up from his plate until a gong sounded throughout the pavilion and Luke sighed. 

“Our turn,” he told Percy, smirking in exasperation before grabbing his plate and standing up. 

“Our turn for what?” 

“Burnt offerings,” Luke and Chris answered simultaneously. “The gods like the smell, so it gets their attention before you say a prayer,” Luke added. Percy just stared up at them in confusion. 

“They like the smell of burnt mac & cheese?” He asked. 

“They like the smell of begging,” Chris answered, smirking sarcastically. Luke just chuckled quietly as Chris walked off with his plate. 

“You burn what you’ll miss the most. Then they know you really mean what you’re about to say, so they listen.” And Luke walked away with a shake of his head. 

But an idea was brewing in Percy’s mind and he needed his jelly beans for it. 

Percy went as deep in the woods as he wanted to risk, and built a fire in an old can he had found in the trash. Aunt Sally had taught him how to build fires on a camping trip a couple years ago and the dry sticks and leaves on the floor were perfect kindling. He stared into the little pot of flames and held tightly onto the pouch of blue jelly beans. Slowly, he picked one out of the pouch and dropped it into the flames. It began to melt and he could hear the sugar sizzling at the bottom of the can. 

“Hi, Aunt Sally. I don’t know if I’m doing this right. I hope you can hear me.” He paused, gathering his words. “I think you used to hate this. When the phone would ring the night after you left me at a new school. I’d tell you that the people are awful. That I wanted to come home.” His voice felt so heavy, and he cleared his throat but the feeling didn’t go away. “Well… the good news is… this isn’t that call.” He smiled a little. “I hope you’re sitting down, but… I think I’ve made some friends here. Like, real friends.” He stared into the fire like soon the flames would form her face. “I think they might really like me. Imagine that.” A huff-laugh left his lips and he looked away from the fire. “He isn’t here. My father, he just… didn’t show. I mean, ignoring me is one thing, but he doesn’t get to ignore you.” He clenched his jaw, face twitching in anger. “I’m gonna make him come down here. I’m gonna make him see me. I’m gonna make him see us both.” 

Percy flexed his jaw and closed his eyes. He was angry, and scared, and disappointed, and hopeful, and determined. He was going to do it. Whatever it took. And then, slowly, he picked another jelly bean out of the pouch and dropped it into the fire. He thought of someone he didn’t know, someone who could look like anyone, sound like anyone, be like anyone. 

“Hey, uh, mom?” The word felt so awkward coming out of his mouth. “Long time, no speak,” he chuckled awkwardly and winced at himself, pressing his face into his knees and rubbing his hair aggressively. “Uh, sorry. Look, I don’t really know who you are, or what you look like, or anything, so, sorry about that I guess. I mean, it’s not really my fault, ya know? 

“Anyway, I don’t even know why I’m talking to you right now. It’s not like you’ve ever been around either. But I guess with everything changing, now’s the time to try and talk to you.” Suddenly tears collected in his eyes and his hands began to shake and he turned to stare into the fire as pain filled his chest and a lump grew in his throat. 

“Where are you? Why haven’t you been here? Aunt Sally once said she thinks you’re the one sending all those birthday gifts, and-” he took a shuddering breath in, lips quivering as he tried to control the urge to sob. “Why aren’t you here to explain them all to me? Why aren’t you here to explain this entire world and tell me what I should do? Why aren’t you here to tell me who my father is, and why in the world you loved him?” Percy paused, wiping haphazardly at his nose. “Why don’t you love me?” He breathed out.

Far away, a woman sat dazed on one of the roots of Yggdrasil. You were staring into a pool of water that had collected between the roots of the tree of life, willing it to show you something, anything other than your own reflection, willing it to listen to the power you had that no longer seemed to work. Your knees hurt from pressing on the unforgiving branch but you didn’t move. The edges of your white dress were turning grey and brown with the grime and water, and your bare arms and shoulders were beginning to get cold. 

Then, as if by the very magic that was threaded into the air of Asgard, the smell of burning sugar reached your nose. It was soft, barely a hint at first, and it mixed with the smell of food colouring and gelatin being burned as well. You frowned, closing your eyes and sniffing the air. And slowly, like someone was moving one side of a pair of headphones closer then farther away from your ear, a voice began to reach you. You tried to follow it with your head, to find it and bring it closer, but it faded in and out. 

The voice was full of pain, and you felt that pain within yourself, now. It filled up your throat and made your fingertips hurt. Your eyes began to burn behind your eyelids and tears slipped past the cracks. You could hear some of the words now, “where are you…” a child’s voice, desperate. “Why aren’t you here…” through shuddering breaths and a cracking voice. A voice you would know like a song from your childhood. You smiled through the pain, the tears streaming down your face like unstoppable rivers now, dripping into the puddle before you. And suddenly the voice was clearer, coming from right in front of you, and you opened your eyes hurriedly, breathing in big gulps of air as you saw your son’s face right in front of you.

His eyes were red, big and blue just like his father’s. And you couldn’t help the little laugh that left you, a watery, relieved, sound that mingled pain and joy so perfectly. His hair was curly and blond and unkempt and you reached out, hoping you could brush your fingers through it, but your fingertips only met water and rippled the image of his face. His cheeks were wet with tears and he was almost glaring into the fire. 

“Why don’t you love me?” He whispered, and you shook your head, entire body shaking as you sobbed out, ‘no, no, that’s not true.’ Your voice crackled and your face was scrunched up as if someone was stabbing you in the chest and twisting the knife. Your very organs were in turmoil. 

“Perseus,” you whispered, reaching out to the puddle again. He looked up and then around himself, as if someone had spoken behind him, and this time when your fingers touched the water, the image dissolved with the ripples. You cried out, your hand fully immersed in the water and sat there, shaking with sobs. Then a frenzy overtook you. 

You had to find him. You had to get to your son. Something had happened, you were sure of it. If he knew how to make a sacrifice now, he had entered your world. And if he had entered your world, then something had happened. And if something had happened… He needed you now. You stood up and clambered your way back to the feast hall. No one else was there yet and you hurried past the head table where you would be expected to take your place in the evening. If everything worked out, you wouldn’t be there to hear the questions about where you had gone. 

Just as you got to the centre of the table, a raven flapped down onto the back of Odin’s throne. You paused, where you stood opposite it, watching another raven circle down then hop onto the opposite end. Another raven squawked from somewhere behind you and you turned to look for it, dread creeping up your spine. When you turned back around to look at the two ravens on the throne, you gasped and jumped back. 

Odin was sitting on his throne and watching you with pursed lips. His eyes were pained when they met yours and you stepped closer to the feast table, wanting to reach out to your father and soothe whatever ache was ailing him. 

“Where are you going?” He asked simply, watching you clench both your hands in the skirts of your dress. 

“My son, he… Father, he needs me,” your lower lip wobbled as the tears returned with your force. 

“You know you cannot go to him. For his sake, and your own,” his voice was low, a tone you had not heard before. “You would be risking his life.” “It is already at risk!” You exclaimed, throwing your hands up in the air. “Something has happened, and he is aware of the world he comes from. He has always needed me but I was too much of a coward to stay with him and risk the fight. I reasoned that he needed to be hidden,” you clenched your eyes shut at the pain of the years missed, the time lost. “But now… he has entered a world that he knows nothing about. He still doesn’t know even the extent of himself. And-and… he needs his mother.” You were resolute, clenching your hands into fists and staring at your father. 

Odin stayed silent. He watched you straighten your back and press your fists into the sides of your legs. He could feel the power you exuded, could see the little waves of sparkling particles that emanated from your skin, the raw magic only he was capable of seeing. He sighed, rubbing his forehead for a moment. Your own face seemed to draw downward as you saw the look on his face, a bone-deep sadness, a raw despair that added lines and wrinkles before your eyes. Then he looked up and directly into your eyes. Into your soul. 

“I have been protecting you from yourself, for so long,” he sighed, and you watched him slowly peel his eyepatch off and set it on his knee. His eye socket was a gaping black hole, the red scarred flesh at the edges had healed long ago and was just threads of red blood vessels under thin skin. “You have always been my favourite child,” he told you with a soft smile, and you returned it, suddenly feeling like you had only just been a little child the day before and Odin had been leading you around the halls of Asgard. “And I only do what I do, what I have already done, out of love.” You frowned, mouth parting to speak. “You would understand, I hope, the inherent need of a parent to protect their child.” 

“Father, what are you-” 

You glanced back into the socket of his eye and suddenly your limbs could no longer move. Images assaulted your mind, flashing one after the other as the sound of ravens screeching and squawking and calling hit your ears. You tried to bring your hands up to cover them but you couldn’t. Every muscle felt like it was stuck in syrup and you couldn’t even lift your fingers up let alone try and swim out of it. And then the images, your little Percy’s eyes flashing in front of your eyes. Every moment you had missed, every little word he said and every movement he made. 

You watched him wail in Sally’s arms as she desperately tried to soothe whatever was bothering him, walking around in the living room of a small apartment at one in the morning. You saw him carefully pull himself up onto his chubby toddler legs and begin precariously waddling his way to Sally as she clapped and teared up, reaching out for him and pressing kisses to his cheeks. You watched him on his first day of school, hands shaking and eyes tearing up as he tried to read what was on the paper and couldn’t get the letters to stay still. You saw his downcast face as the principal told Sally the school couldn’t support his needs. You saw him run up the dank stairwell of a school building, desperate to get to the roof and see the Pegasus before it left. You watched him lay in bed at night and whisper goodnight to a mother and father who weren’t there. And you watched him grow, and grow, and become a sassy teenage boy who was kind and loyal, even to a fault. You saw him smile happily when Grover found him and struck up a game of mythomagic cards. You smiled and laughed and cried without moving a single muscle. 

And then you saw the minotaur chase the car. You saw Sally push Percy away in the rain and begin screaming at the monster to come for her. You saw the creature pick her up, the flash of her disappearance, and a soundless scream parted your lips slightly. But nothing else moved. Not an eyelash. A constant stream of Percy’s life played before you until it disappeared in a flash. You stared at Odin, unmoving as a tear slipped from the corner of your eye and slowly tracked down your cheek. He watched its trajectory until it dripped off your jaw. You wanted to open your mouth, to scream at him to let you go. You wanted to ask why, why did he hide everything, why would he do this? You wanted to go to your son. But he just looked at you with that never-ending pain in his eyes and whispered, 

“I’m sorry.” 

A flock of ravens descended on you. Pitch black wings hit you and flapped in your face until you were lost in the flurry and didn’t know if you were awake anymore…

Taglist: @thicficbich1, @pasta-warlord, @turtleshavesoulmates, @wolfgirl294, @stanswifties, @mrsinclaire, @homanoid, @bellamysnatblida, @mooncleaver 

[fluffywings13]

So to the lovely anon who asked about poseidon and percy t fic....perhaps.....

But imagine a world where Poseidon and the Seafam play an active role in little baby Percy growing up. Despite Zues's asinine rules and laws and bullshit.

Posiedon is there. Amphitrite is there. Triton is there. Sally is there.

Takes a village to raise a child right?

Heres a small sneak peek!

Poseidon would not think to be accused of the same mistreatment of his only land born child in this century. “Come, my Prince, you can down it. Strong as your táta. Come to me my most precious of pearls.” The royal family lived by their own Laws, heeding none other, Zeus would never be so brazen enough to strike down the Sea God and his Immortal Family so near to his domain. Though calmed with age and time, Poseidon was still considered one of those among them not to temp, his unpredictable nature made him ever more dangerous then the Council combined. “A few more steps, just a few more, I await to hold you with an eagerness untold of.”

Their place of meeting was the beaches of Montauk, the Land Born child of the Sea living peacefully in the safe walls of the cabin only a few steps from the waves that reside in his blood lapping at the sandy ground underfoot. Furnished to the liking of one ever Spirited Sally Jackson with mixed artfully with the tones of the boy’s Divine Sea Ruling Family.

Percy Jackson knew not of a moment in his short but exuberant life of pain or as though part was missing, no stories of a missing father who supposedly held adoration for him despite his otherwise radio silence, no striking hand of an abusive step father. 

Giggling adorably is the nine month of Sea Prince, the breeze from the open expanse of waters behind the royals gathered just in the rolling surf ruffles through the boy’s squid ink black hairs, eyes that change hues based on emotion maintain a glow of the same shine of his dearest táta awaiting his arrival with hardly concealed excitement. Witnessing one’s babe take their first steps was a celebratory occasion transcending mortality. Poseidon hadn’t been there to witness his youngest Prince's true first cruising but he nor his wife and elder son had wasted even a thought of a moment when the prayer of their mortal counterpart reached their ears in the depths of the child reaching this momentous milestone. 

Amphitrite maintains the ability not to laugh at her dearest husband’s excitement, especially so when the same hands though smaller in size are seen reaching from her other side, father and son share only a moment of a glance, a challenge to see whom the babe will come to first initiated in their shared glance of silence. 

And Triton had claimed no fondness for the babe.

Giggling with her baby, Sally holds both tiny hands tight and secure as she simply assists her treasure in his stumbly pundy legged amble to those who await him at the waters edge, Percy pauses for only a moment to glance between his papa and big brother both of whom beckoning him forward.

Let it be known on the record that Poseidon, Lord of the Seas, is a dirt rotten cheater. His wife laughing openly at his side as their son reaches around her to smack his Father’s arm with the accusation being spoken into existence as the demi-god ambles into the Sea Lord’s waiting embrace. She takes a moment to observe her husband, simply take him in for a moment of observation, as he crows in elation to the sight of his youngest son’s first steps. The way his eyes glow in a manner she hasn’t seen in…Since his first of his many halfing children…his deep rumbling laughter in tune with the infants youthful pitched squeals as he lifts him from the gentle waves among the the shore up above his head.

[wonderlandsakura]

The gods won't make the same mistake twice

There's one hero Percy Jackson is similar to, someone the gods broke, and they regretted it

Someone kind, that they made ruthless

Someone loving, that they made brutal:

Odysseus

[escaping-reality-with-ficton]

i know the shoes are cursed…. but CAN SOMEONE TELL ME WHY THEY DONT JUST SAY MAIA (PLEASE TELL ME)

[afirewiel]

Why did the Percy Jackson & The Olympians show have to cast one of my favorite actors as Poseidon, give him only two scenes in the first season, the first of which has him coming mere moments after Sally calls and the second has him surrendering to Zeus to save Percy, not only making him the best of the gods imo, but also making me want more of not just him but him and Sally and him and Percy, knowing that this is going to break my heart because he already has his own immortal wife and Sally's going to end up married to Paul Blofis? Like, seriously? How could you do this to me?

[lands-of-fantasy]

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 1

Representations of Poseidon, Hermes, Hephaestus, Hades, Athena, Zeus, and Ares seen in the end credits.

[ep2nd]

MYCT PJ AU

The Big Three Children

Zeus. Poseidon. Hades.

Foolish- Golden boy. Summons lightning easily. Sparks fly when he's mad. Uses a Trident to spite his dad- pun intended. Youngest of the Little Four. Out here living his best Amnesia life. Puffy saw poor boy, took poor boy, now they sailing on the Seas avoiding death. Yes Foolish was born and Zeus broke his oath- only the second time. Came to camp after the 2nd Titan War.

Joel- Foolish’s older Half-brother. Everyone hates Zeus so he dated the daughter of Poseidon. Sword lover. Uses the winds more than lightning. Takes pottery lessons. 2nd oldest of the Little Four. But also kinda the oldest? Saved Grian and Jimmy- got turned into a Tree. (Like the Mezalea one but also Thalia) Chilling with his GF at college. Becoming an architect. Short L.

Lizzie- The chosen one. Literally. (Aka Percy but girl boss). Trident Supreme Threatener. Amazingly strong and powerful do not approach. Adopted Jimmy because yes. Can beat Pearl- sometimes. Visits Poseidon's palace monthly. Great with sea creatures. Almost died on the way to camp HAH imagine. Barely survived. Moms dead. Started hearing voices from the Mother tree so went on a quest so she could help the tree. Got a boyfriend in return, great deal. Hanging with no longer tree Joel at college. Rejected the Hunters.

Joe- Creepy Supreme. Best friends with Cleo and Kristin. Pops up randomly. Out here spitting poetry like he's Apollo. Yes he's met Apollo- gave him the idea to start on his Haiku phase- DARN IT JOE. Chills with the dead. Weirdly happy. Don't cross him, he will remember. Has a book- will hit you with book. No one really knows when he showed up, nor will anyone ask. Mysterious. Somehow alive. Actually great relationship with his dad.

[pagesandposeidon]

Percabeth jumping up +19 places in Tumblr ships of the year…ahdjfjf

[aduck8myshoes]

i cannot wait for the percy jackson fandom to be inundated with flint controls the weather memes when toby shows up

[mask131]

I want to briefly adress another BIG misconception about Greek gods that has (quite recently) been going on around the Internet. And it is again part due to the Percy Jackson TV show. I insist on the "TV show", because as we now know, the TV show made some changes to the book's original plotline when it came to the gods interacting with their children (like Athena's move with Echidna *cough cough*), and as a result here is what I have been hearing here and there.

"Yeah, well the Greek gods were all assholes, right, but what PJ REALLY got right was that they were especially assholes to their own children and the worst abusive parents ever".

... No?

In fact this is almost a counter-interpretation of Greek mythology, because in Greek myths and legends, the whole point was that, when a god was being an "asshole" as you say, they were an asshole to everybody... except their children. One of the reasons the Greek gods can look "bad" by modern standards is precisely because they had an habit of favorizing their own children, and taking care about them more than about other beings.

The most famous of these myths is of course Demeter's immense love and hyper-protection of Persephone - just look at the trials she went through to find her back after she disappeared.

Another famous example is how Poseidon turned on Odysseus and plagued him with curses and monsters for blinding his son - Polyphemus the cyclop (and the whole point here is that Poseidon favorized his son, despite his son being the actual criminal and monster in the case)

Ares, who was not one of the best gods, still went on an avenging mode every time his children were attacked, from the dragon slain by Cadmos to the rape of Alcippe.

There's how Apollo went berserk after the death of Asclepios. There's how Herakles had planned to be favorized by Fate since his birth thanks to Zeus, and how the entire reason Zeus inflicted on his wife the atrocious torture of hanging chained up by the sky was because he had enough of her constantly tormenting Herakles in the worst ways possible. Even Athena ended up taking care of Erichthonius as her own child despite her not being his true mother - showing that even the virgin, sexless, childless goddess has a mothering side to her.

It all goes back to Gaia, and how she keeps turning against Zeus for each time vanquishing her children - from the Titans, to the Giants, to Typhon - despite these children being again, bad news and even hurting Gaia herself. Another example of "primordial motherhood": Nyx shelters Hypnos from Zeus' wrath in the Iliad, and not even Zeus would dare anger such an elderly mother-goddess. And if we push beyond the boundaries of Greek mythology and into the very late Roman literature, we see this trend continues with Aphrodite's smothering-mothering of Eros during the Psyche legend.

A good lot of conflicts and feuds and problems in Greek mythology was precisely due to how much the gods loved their children, and how protective they were of them - with the problem that the god had the tendency to be blind to whether their children were good or evil, victims or criminals.

This is why, for example, Zeus and Hera's relationships to their children were especially important and unique in Greek myths, in the light of this god's tendency to favorize and spoil and protect their own children.

On Hera's case, her action of, for example, throwing Hephaistos into the sea at birth just because he is "ugly" is meant to come off as massively shocking. Remember that in a good bunch of Greek myths, Hera had a negative, evil, dangerous side to her, that popped up in various ways - from her jealous, vain, angry personality to how in some versions she literaly gave birth to Typhon... Unlike Zeus, who was the "ultimate father", Hera wasn't (in myths, I insist) seen as a postive mother, and was more of a mother-of-monsters avatar (after all, she did command a lot of Greek monsters), or an anti-mother (she was the one who prevented Leto from giving birth, a powerful symbol).

On the other side, Zeus was also seen regularly punishing or being very harsh to his children, but there was the secret to his character: Zeus had to act both as a father, and as a king. He embodied the all loving ancestor and the all powerful father, but he also had to act as the embodiment of law and of justice, and those two aspects of his personality clashed a lot. We see him punish his divine children regularly, but almost always because his role as the enforcer of the law primed over his role as a father - for example when he wanted to throw Apollo into Tartarus because he had caused a Cyclop genocide out of anger. But he still had this same "over-parenting" side as the other gods. Again, Herakles was one of his favorite children and he tried to arrange everything so that he could have the greatest life ever - but his official side as the "political" and "civilization" god caught up to him when Hera tricked him into swearing away the gifts he had intended for Herakles. Despite Zeus' immense love for his son, his oath and the law he embodies took over and prevented him from sheltering Herakles from Hera's hatred. The most revealing case of this "father vs king" aspect of Zeus' personality comes from the Iliad: it is the death of Saperdon.

When Zeus looks upon the Trojan War and sees that his son will soon die, he is very heavily tempted from interfering. He explicitely wishes to save him, and to change the scales of fate to avoid his impending death (because remember in the Iliad Zeus was still the god of fate who literaly weighed humans' destinities in his scale). That's his "father" side showing up. But then Hera, who is by his side, who is his queen and thus his "political" side, reminds him of his duty as a king and of his role as ultimate judge of the world and ruler of the gods. She points out he would break the very own law he imposed of not interfering with the mortal conflict. She reminds him that, as the setter of examples, if he saved Sarpedon, he would create a precedent and other gods could also start saving their own children from the war. She reminds him that he has a role as the god of law and fate, and that he can't allow his personal feelings to interfere in the matter, else he would be unfair and unjust. And thus, Zeus resignates himself to let his son die before his eyes - but he still shows his immense love for him by both sending a shower of blood as a sign of his grief, and then ordering Apollo, Hypnos and Thanatos in person to carry Sarpedon's corpse away (predating future legends about great kings and heroes taken into the afterlife by supernatural figures, like Arthur collected by Morgan and the ladies of Avalon).

In conclusion: having the gods act as if they were all bad, abusive, absent parents not getting involved in their children's life or not caring about them is actually going against what the mythology originally said in terms of characterization. The untold rule of Greek mythology was that, if gods were bad parents, it would be because they were too loving, too protective, too smothering, too spoiling, interfering too much. Not the other way around - unless you were Hera, of course. Meanwhile, having the gods act as "assholes" and bullies towards OTHER GODS' children, now that would be accurate to Greek mythology (this is the very basis of Hera's cycle of legends as a persecuting goddess). But the gods usually stuck by the side of their own children - a bit like how in a school's football or soccer game the parents end up fighting each other because of what their children did or did not do in the game.

[gogobootz1]

At War

Luke Castellan x Reader [fem!daughter of Apollo]

Summary: There's nothing like some friendly competition, but when planning rival parties, you and Luke are a little less than friendly.

Word count: 2k

Every year, there came a time for the retreats- a chance for children of the gods to bond and have some special fun. One big retreat seemed pointless, so camp faculty allowed two. The two retreats accidentally split the boys and girls, and naturally, they turned into an (unofficial) competition. As one of the oldest and most experienced campers- you’d been volunteering to champion a retreat for years. Traditionally, you’ve hosted a slumber party equipped with PJs, dancing, games, movies, braid trains, nail polish, and basically anything anyone could want. You also, of course, have the best food. Each year, it’s been a hit, and it’s only gotten better with time. 

The only problem is that you have tough competition. The day after the retreats, you always hear about what happened at the other one. Paintball, camping, fishing, mad romps through the wood, scary stories- barbecue. Everyone loved it. And every year, you’ve had to quietly conceal your anger and jealousy. It pains you to admit that Luke sure can throw a party (maybe even better than you can). But this year, you are more determined than ever to outdo him. 

The two of you have long been in competition, and things have only escalated. As hilarious as Mr. D found both your antics last year, Chiron was extremely unhappy about the fact the two of you had exceeded the budget by miles. He’d told you both to reign it in this year or no more retreats. When he felt that didn’t sufficiently move you, he threatened to let other people plan them. You both caved and vowed to stick to the budget this year. 

You’re always a little frantic the day of, and today is no different. To your chagrin, Luke is cool as a cucumber. It pisses you off to no end. 

“Nervous?” A smug voice voice asks from behind your back. You drop the spoon you were using to push mashed potatoes around your plate. 

You turn slowly on the bench, “Why should I be?"

“Usually, you’re pulling out your hair before the retreats,” he says skeptically, “perfectionism taking its toll.”

“Yeah? Well, my perfectionism makes my parties perfect,” you flaunt. The few sisters that can stand to be around you when you’re stressed roll their eyes. It’s clear to them this is escalating. 

“What about when Susie vomited in your bouncy house last year?” He taunts, and you glare at him. That girl should not have been jumping after four bags of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos and two Redbulls- it was hardly your fault. 

“How about when Aidan got a concussion after falling off the mechanical bull?” You snap back. 

You don’t notice Luke’s shadow until he pipes in, “Are these people okay?” 

“They signed waivers!” You say at the same time, and the new Poseidon kid takes a defensive step back. You send Luke a glare when you realize you spoke in sync. He huffs before smirking at you. 

“Good luck with your sleepover,” he mocks, “You’re gonna need it.” Before you can reply, he marches away, protégée in tow. 

“Eat shit!” You call out after him. 

“That was weak, girl,” one of your sisters says.  

“Shut up, I know,” you shake your head at her, “now come help me set up.” You drag her up by her elbow to make your sacrifices, then get to work. 

Five hours later, the main hall looks great. Your disco ball is glimmering, the mini photo booth is equipped with feather boas and pink cowboy hats, the food is all laid out, and the stage you bribed some Hephaestus kids to build looks great. 

“Perfect,” you whisper, pleased at your surroundings. 

“Fucking finally!” Your sister throws her hands up and walks away. You’ve very likely driven most of your half-siblings insane today. 

“Thanks for your help!” You call after her, and as she goes, you spot some prying eyes through the window. Percy, you think his name is, looks afraid now that you’ve caught him peering in through the window. In a few swift moves, you leave the room and block his exit from the patio. 

“Can I help you?” You ask suspiciously. 

“Just admiring your excellent disco theme,” he says, putting an ultra-sweet smile on his face. As charming as the boy is, you take your retreat very seriously and feel a deep-seated urge to protect it from potential sabotage. 

“Mhmmm,” you nod, “and you wouldn’t happen to be reporting back to anyone about what you’ve seen?” 

“Whaaaaaat?” Percy asks, awkwardly chuckling. 

Your shoulders drop, of course, Luke would stoop to employing spies. You dig into your pocket and pull out a ten-dollar bill, “I’ll give you this if you act as a double agent.” 

He eyes your money suspiciously, “Do you really think I can be bought?” 

You roll your eyes and pull out another bill, “How’s twenty?” 

“Pleasure doing business with you,” he grabs both bills from your hand and shakes it. Percy happily walks past you, shoving his new earnings into his pocket. 

You grin, “Make sure he hears all about how awesome my party is!”

“I’m on it, boss,” he calls over his shoulder. After a short walk, he’s back to the boathouse lounge where Luke has been waiting for his report. 

“Well?” The older boy asks him, jumping up from his spot on the couch. 

Percy shakes his head solemnly, “Bad news, boss.” 

“What?!” He asks, eyes wide. “Don’t tell me she went over budget. She didn't get another mariachi band, did she?” Percy shakes his head and files this new information away. With what he’s been hearing about the last few retreats, he’s almost sad to have missed them. 

“No, but it does look super cool,” he nods, and it really wasn’t a lie- he saw a chocolate fountain on that snack table. 

“Damn,” Luke’s face twitches in annoyance. 

“But your party will be great too, I’m sure,” he smiles, nodding reassuringly. 

“Of course, it will,” he says defensively, “make sure you check back in over there from time to time. I want to know how it’s progressing.” 

“Sure,” Percy nods, but his concern at the competitiveness underlying this event grows. He wonders just how bad this will get tonight. But check back in he does, and he won’t deny he enjoys himself at the sleepover. Every time he visits, you give him a new sparkly mocktail, and the Aphrodite girls give him a new feather boa. At one point, he’s wearing heart-shaped sunglasses and eating some cake. He was very impressed when M&Ms fell out of the middle as you cut it. Apparently, it’s also one of your newest sisters’ birthdays- he’s heard whisperings of some big special present for her yet to come. 

Each time Percy returns to the other retreat, he can see Luke get a little more tense. The fact that he’s exaggerating doesn’t help either. When he tells the older boy that you have an ice sculpture spitting Dr. Pepper, he thinks he sees steam pour from Luke’s ears. It’s not like people aren’t enjoying his party, but Percy can that Luke wants to one-up you and feels like he’s falling short. 

“And I’ve heard she has a special surprise in store for Sophie since it’s her birthday. Apparently, she’s the newest addition to their cabin, so she wants to do something special,” Percy nods at him, eating a taco he had brought back from your party. Luke cuts him off by grabbing the taco from his hand just as he’s about to take another bite. “Hey!” He protests when Luke puts it right in the trash. 

“When is this surprise?” He asks the twelve-year-old. 

“The Aphrodite girls told me I should be back in like twenty minutes so I wouldn’t miss it,” Percy tells him. 

“And when was that?” 

“Like twenty minutes ago,” he shrugs, and Luke just stares at him. “Ohhhhh,” he says when he realizes how long it’s been. 

“Come on,” Luke shakes his head and starts out the door, Percy in tow. They can hear the surprise before they see it, an ABBA song blasting out of the building. Only, they don’t realize who's performing it until they walk in. Along with two of your musically-inclined Apollo sisters, you’re dressed in bell bottoms and sleeves. And you look like you’re having the time of your life- until you spot them, that is. 

“Look, look, look, look,” you pull the microphone away to mutter to Tanya. Her shock is visible, but you both keep performing anyway. The crowd goes wild at the end, and Sophie runs up on stage to give you a big hug. You let Tanya take over host duties and make your way through the crowd to the party crasher. 

“That was,” Luke starts, but you are not keen to hear whatever he has to say about your outfit, or your performance, or your party. 

“What the hell are you doing here?” 

His expression instantly sours, “I wanted some Dr. Pepper from your ice sculpture, where is it?” 

“What are you talking about?” You’re highly confused until Percy gives you the cut-it-out motion from behind Luke’s back. “We put it back in the freezer,” you say, and Percy gives you the thumbs up. No matter what you think of him, Luke’s not an idiot. He turns around in time to spot Percy’s gestures. 

“Wait a second, are you two colluding?” He looks between the two of you in shock. 

“You were colluding with him first,” you shrug, crossing your arms. “You really earned that twenty dollars, by the way,” you compliment the kid, and he gives you a pleased nod. 

“Dude,” Luke turns toward Percy, betrayed. 

“She outbid you,” he shrugs. “Hey, what if you guys just went to each other’s parties?” 

You both eye the boy suspiciously, “Why would we do that?” You ask him, and Luke nods in agreement.

“Well, you’re both so desperate to know about the other’s party, so why don’t you just experience it for yourselves?” Percy asks, and when he feels you aren’t sufficiently moved by it, he tries again. “If you attend both parties, you can decide who wins.” 

“Good enough for me,” Luke wanders off into your party.

“Yeah, okay,” you head for the door. 

“Hopeless,” Percy mumbles, shaking his head. 

An hour later, you and Luke meet in the middle of your respective parties. You stare at each other for a minute before you admit in sync, “I had fun.” 

“We have to stop doing that,” you shake your head. 

“Agreed.” 

You’re both silent again for a minute. “The slip and slide was a good idea,” you say reluctantly, soap still in your hair, “low budget but lots of fun. Tubing was good too. And the campfire.” You had changed out of the disco attire and into shorts and a T-shirt over your swimsuit. 

“Did you try-“

“Chris can really grill,” you nod. After some hesitance, you finally choke out a confession, “I am very displeased to call you the winner.”

“No way,” he shakes his head. 

“What?”

“You totally won,” he shrugs, “the disco was killer.” You only now realize he changed into pajamas. 

“You actually embraced the sleepover?” 

He flicks some grass off your shoulder, “You gave my party a fair shot.” That’s true, and you nod, looking away for a second. “The chocolate fountain was a nice touch.”

“Thank you.”

“And I was trying to tell you earlier, but your performance was really cool,” he admits. 

“Yeah?” A genuine grin grows on your face at this. Most everyone in the Apollo cabin loves music, but some of your half-siblings are more keen to perform than you. Hearing this, and from him especially, means a lot. 

“Yeah,” he nods, smiling now too. “You’re the winner here.” 

“Let’s call it a draw?” You offer, and he nods. 

“What if we just worked together and planned one party next year?” He asked, and you pretend to consider it for a moment. 

“That could be cool,” you nod, “imagine what we could do with the combined budget.” 

He grins and scrunches his nose, “How about we enjoy this year’s party until then?”

“We could do that,” you nod, “where to?”

He swiftly wraps an arm over your shoulder and starts guiding you back to your party, “Let’s boogie.” You laugh, and he thinks it’s a sound he could get used to. 

-----------------------------------------

I've been awake for too long so idk if this is coherent but I had fun <3

[themisplaceddemigod]

i'm immortal, i can wait

PJ!Apollo x F!Reader

summary - Apollo has loved you since he first saw you, but he's had to wait several years before he could make such a confession. Especially since you're the child of his scariest uncle, Poseidon.

warnings - Apollo is his own warning. that and his haikus, also i am KEEPING JASON ALIVE in the Trials of Apollo part of this (curse you Rick)

He met you in person when you were fourteen.

Westover Hall, you had been summoned to collect two demigod kids with your brother Percy and friends Annabeth and Thalia. The mission turned sour, Annabeth was kidnapped, and Artemis saved the day before calling him to give you all a lift back to camp.

Both of you could remember how red your face turned when you'd seen him, and he wouldn't tell you but he'd heard you talking about how hot he was with Thalia. It boosted his ego (which quite frankly does not need any more boosting), and he was smug the whole ride.

"Percy, you never told me you had a sister!" He spoke so loudly the whole bus could hear him.

"Um, because we've never met in person?" You brother suggested, a little nervously. Apollo was pretty chill, but that made him even scarier.

The god of the sun just laughed, before turning to look at you. The way his eyes roamed your figure felt less-than-innocent, and your face flushed as you yet again turned a bright shade of red. You couldn't believe the Apollo, the hottest Olympian, was actually staring at you with interest. Like he found you pretty enough to be stared at.

"What's your name, sweetheart?" He smiled flirtatiously, earning some aggressive threats from the Hunters behind you, which he ignored. "Just kidding, I know it already. (Name), right? Pretty name."

You felt as if you might explode. From embarrassment, from being flustered, you didn't know. Maybe he was toying with you, as gods tended to do, but then he looked at you again and genuine interest and attraction glimmered in his stunning blue eyes.

"Thank you, Lord Apollo," you stammered out, unsure of what else to say.

"So shy," he teased, grinning, "Cute. I like you."

Of course, he had to restrain himself from charming you entirely, since you were still a minor. Poseidon would have his head if he touched you at this age, so he decided it was best to wait a few years.

Those few years were full of struggle and pain for you, losing so many friends in the battles with Kronos and then Gaea. Apollo almost intervened just to comfort you several times, but was stopped by his sister convincing him to give you a few more years - and also reminding him that the Olympians could not intervene.

But you grew into such a beautiful, smart, brave woman - and extremely sexy, but he would have to keep that to himself - and Apollo felt lucky to have watched this growth. It made his attraction to you all the more prominent, and he began to feel something he hasn't felt in centuries - genuine. true love.

And it scared him.

His past lovers that he had really, truly loved had both been killed in gruesome ways. He was afraid of what being with him would mean for you, but ultimately decided on getting Poseidon's permission first.

The god of the sea said no.

Then came his trials.

The first demigods he went to were you and Percy, of course. Since he was stuck with an infuriating little girl, he hoped that you might tag along on his perilous journey to make it a little better.

To his delight, you agreed.

"What's so funny?" He demanded when he caught you snickering during a break from all the running.

"You," you laughed, "Never thought the god Apollo would be reduced to an average teenage boy with acne." You laughed even more at that, and he pouted, but enjoyed hearing you laugh nonetheless.

His first sign that you might have a crush on him too came when he mentioned he'd turned some gossipers into ravens just for telling on his previous cheating girlfriend. The mere mention of his ex-girlfriend seemed to irritate you, and Apollo was amused.

Though his turn for jealousy came when he noticed how close you were to Jason Grace. He couldn't do anything, though, so he watched miserably as you got along with the son of Jupiter so well that any outsider would think you were dating.

"What's with the pout, then?" You had asked him when you noticed how upset he looked.

"I am not pouting!"

"Yes you are."

You stepped closer, and your intoxicating scent filled his nostrils. He felt like a schoolboy with a massive crush, just you being that close scrambling his thoughts and making it difficult for him to answer.

"Alright, keep your secrets," you laughed, then walked away, and Apollo was left disappointed.

He was not even going to talk about the whole thing with Reyna. You had suddenly gotten so angry with him after that, you hadn't spoken to him for two days - unless absolutely necessary. It hurt, but he knew you must have been even more hurt by what had been implied.

The end of the trials eventually came and relieved all of you, the defeat of the Triumvirate taking a great weight off the world's - and yours - shoulders. Apollo disappeared after he went to fight Python, and for two weeks you heard no word from him or Olympus.

Then suddenly he was in the middle of camp, spouting the worst haikus you had ever heard in your life. And that was saying something, since all his haikus were pretty terrible.

"Like captured water

You hold me in your cupped hands

I flow on your palm."

Your jaw dropped. That was even worse than you assumed it would be, especially since he chose to center it around the fact that you're a daughter of Poseidon.

"Lord Apollo-"

"See what I did there?" He winked, coming up to you with a cheerful grin. "Did you like it?"

"Well-"

"Fear not! I have another one prepared that is sure to woo you."

Your face flushed, "Please don't say "woo", your kids are listening!"

He was already reciting his next haiku.

"You shatter my sleep

All milk-need and petal lips

You smile and I melt."

You frowned in confusion, "What does that even mean?"

"Aha! See I knew that was the one!"

"I didn't-what?"

He ignored your puzzlement in favour of coming so close to you his overwhelming godly power almost made you pass out.

"I'm sorry I haven't been around for two weeks," he apologised sincerely. "I was in a coma. I swear on the River Styx that it's the truth. But I came here as soon as I woke up, for you." He grinned like that was the best confession he could muster.

"Are you serious?" You breathed out, unable to believe what you were hearing.

"Technically I wanted you when you were fourteen, but that would have come across as creepy apparently," he informed you, "So I had to wait a few years until you turned the right age. That was okay with me, I'm immortal, I can wait."

Your jaw dropped further, "Are you, um-is this-?"

"A love confession? Yes!" He gleefully exclaimed, as if it were perfectly normal for an Olympian to invade camp and profess his love for a demigod.

The entire camp was silent, except for the Aphrodite girls who seemed to be glaring holes into you while trying to curse you - fortunately only the Apollo kids (ironically) had the power to curse a person to speak in rhymes.

"And what did...what did my dad think of this?" You cleared your throat, slightly nervous.

"Oh he was against it at first," Apollo admitted, "BUT he came around. It seems the trials proved a lot more than I thought."

"Well, uh, that's great," you half-smiled, not sure why you felt a sense of dread. This should be the happiest moment of your life.

Apollo's smile faltered, "Do you not-"

"No I do!" You quickly cut him off, sparing him the embarrassment of being rejected in front of a few dozen kids MUCH younger than him. "It's just...you're a god..."

He sighed, "Let's go take a walk."

A few minutes later you were away from prying eyes, sitting by the lake since it always calmed you down. Water soothed you, as cliche as that is for a Poseidon kid.

"I'm just worried," you started after a few minutes of silence, "You know, about all your mortal affairs and having demigod children and all that." You sighed. "I know it's silly. But I just don't think I can go through with it knowing that."

He frowned, but understood, "I can always stop-"

You laughed bitterly, "All the gods promised a woman what. Zeus promised Hera, but there's Jason and Thalia. Poseidon promised Amphitrite, but here Percy, Tyson and I are. It's in your nature, you can't help it."

He felt offended by that, "Yes well, none of them had the displeasure of being turned into mortal for a few months. It changes a god, you know."

You turned to look at him, "Are you really sure about this? That this is what you want? I'm what you want?"

"I've waited for you since you were fourteen," he reminded you, "Of course I'm sure." Despite your reluctance, he took your hand. "Please, just give me a chance."

You thought it over for a moment, before smiling softly, "Fine. You have your chance. But the first mortal affair you have-"

"I won't need them," he smiled, moving closer, "You can have all my children."

Your jaw dropped at his blatant suggestion, a deep blush forming on your cheeks, "Are you crazy?! I can't-"

"You can," he leaned in even closer, "Once I make you immortal."

You started stuttering and stammering just then, uttering some kind of incomprehensible nonsense that the god of the sun just laughed at. He pressed a gentle kiss to your forehead, before finally leaning in and claiming your lips.

He had waited long enough, now he was going to kiss you every chance he got.

[afirewiel]

I think the main reason the gods tend to ignore their mortal children is precisely because they are mortal and the gods are not. Imagine being immortal with a mortal child, knowing that at worst that child will be killed by a monster or at best will die of old age. Parents are not meant to outlive their children yet it does happen and it happens to the gods all the time. It's got to be heartbreaking. So it's easier for the gods to just not get attached or to at least try not to. Sometimes it's impossible not to care.

So I can only imagine the rollercoaster of emotions Poseidon went through when, in the books, Zeus offered Percy the chance to become a god, freeing him from ever dying, only for Percy to turn it down. For a brief moment there, Poseidon probably allowed himself to hope. To imagine Percy as young and immortal forever. He probably imagined all the things he and Percy could now do together as father and son if Percy were a god. To never have to worry about Percy ever again. Only for those hopes to be dashed a moment later, when Percy says "no thanks." And even though, I think deep down Poseidon understands Percy's reasons, that Percy turned it down precisely because he couldn't stand the idea of being immortal while everyone he cares about is mortal and dies around him, Poseidon is still bitterly disappointed. Not at Percy, necessarily, but at the situation. That he ever got his hopes up in the first place. That Zeus had ever put that on the table. Because he now, he knows what he always thought of as inevitable (Percy's eventual death) could have been avoided if things had been different. So yeah. I think Poseidon would feel hurt by this situation.

I really hope the show addresses this. We've only gotten two scenes of Poseidon so far, but they both did an excellent job of showing that Poseidon truly does care about Percy (and Sally). I need to see the look on Poseidon's face when Zeus makes Percy the offer and when Percy turns it down. I need Percy to realize, either on his own or because someone (either Annabeth or possibly Athena points it out) how Poseidon must be feeling about this. I need Percy and Poseidon to talk it about it. Not just ignore it.

[lands-of-fantasy]

Percy Jackson and the Olympians

Season 1 End Credits

[11queensupreme11]

i really want to read now Cú Chulainn in PJ

from Lightning Thief to Gaia and the college

Poor Luke he will die and not be called a hero by brainless demigods who forgot who started the war and how he and his group killed demigods.

im just thinking about this au and fuck will percy even actually be able to DO anything with cu around killing everyone who tries to hurt her???? 😭

actually wait lmao i can just imagine the fates constantly trying to find ways to separate them because cu's not supposed to be there and he's getting in the way of percy's "hero journey" or whatever 😂

poor dude's gonna be stressed af and jealous too

lightning thief: she picks anthonius and grover to go with her in the quest and he gets pissed af (and probs jelly cuz of anthonius) like "you are TWELVE with ZERO EXPERIENCE and you wanna stop world war 3 from happening with another dumb 12 year old and a useless goat when you could've picked ME?????????" (he's fed up lol)

sea of monsters: gets pissed when she wants to rescue grover like "wtf forget that stupid goat 🙄" and then is flabbergasted when he wakes up the next morning and realizes that stupid bitch actually snuck out of camp with a CYCLOPS and FUCKING ANTHONIUS

titan's curse: EXTREMELY PISSED if she tries to sneak out again to save anthonius and then there's the whole carrying the skies thing 💀 at this point, he's probably gonna move into the poseidon cabin to watch over her after this cuz she keeps fucking SNEAKING OUT

battle of the labyrinth: jelly and pissed during the beginning when she and anthonius fall into the labyrinth for a few minutes but for everyone else they've been gone for hours. he probably thinks they went to fuck or something 😭 and imagine his reaction when anthonius chooses percy to join ANOTHER stupidly deadly quest 💀 imagine he actually sneaks in to join them and it's another situation where he's stuck in a group with the ppl who're crushing on her (rachel, anthonius, ethan, and him lol)

last olympian: at this point, he's probably actively trying to find a way to send them to the ror verse because he does NOT want her to turn sixteen in this universe since that means the war starts. the fates are working overtime to stop him

and don't even get me started on when she turns up MISSING after the war and the whole mess with gaea and tartarus with ANTHONIUS 💀💀💀💀💀

honestly the pjo verse is probs gonna stress him the fuck out 😂 yes he can easily beat up everyone in that universe and is op af, but imagine having to babysit (and falling in love with) the MAIN FUCKING CHARACTER WHO IS CONSTANTLY IN DANGER 24/7 😭

he's probably gonna cry in relief once he finally drags her to ror verse with him 💀