Percy Jackson wasn't a demigod-not with the Ichor flowing through his veins. Born from the moonlit tide, Percy Jackson remained hidden from Olympus by a determined goddess until he was given to a mutual confidant, Sally Jackson. The God of time, loyalty and balance she could handle, but a docile Nemean Lion in her apartment? Sally supposed retirement could wait another few years with a family like this one.
Warnings: hints of violence and abuse, my unintentional swearing
Don't expect a definite main pairing, but know your ideas are always welcome. I'm open to just about anything.
NOTICE: This is my first work, so expect mistakes and slow updates. I hate myself enough as it is. Why am I even publishing this? I have so much homework to do.
Prologue
Artemis gazed at the twinkling starlight above, the snores of her hunters echoing throughout the night. The makeshift tents did little to soundproof their camp, but tonight she had little fear of attack. The moon was in perfect orbit, it's entirety shining down upon her children in all but blood. Should a creature dare attempt an ambush when her power was at it's prime, they would be disintegrated without a second thought.
Artemis adored her hunters, loved them as if they were children of her own. They were lost souls discarded by parents who didn't bat an eyelash at their existence. When night fell over, she could hear some of the nightmares that plagued their minds, and it angered her more than anything to think some man felt himself justified to harm such a pure spirit. She knew better than to say all men were like that, but deep down she harbored a bitter hatred towards them on behalf of her charges. Although disgusted, she wasn't the type to lay about and whine, so she made the choice to save lives in place of taking them.
When the flames rose a little higher than usual and her decision was finite, Artemis knew Hestia was there with her too, smiling happily over the bond of family that united them.
She never expected that bond to grow outside of her hunters, but one night it became too close of a call. Her lieutenant was on the receiving end of a side wound that could've cost her a life if it hadn't been for a medic's patch up work mixed with Apollo's bad timing. She secretly felt ashamed at her own weakness, about not being able to protect Zoë in time. It was later she decided the implementation of a guardian should be in order. The problem? She didn't know where to start. She wished desperately for a child with her inherited domains to fight alongside them as a failsafe, but her virgin oath was not something she wanted broken. It was almost as sacred to her as the lives of her hunters. She knew she lacked the innate desire to create life, but that had all changed the day she came across her Uncle crying against the cliffside.
She had never seen him cry before, or any other Olympian for that matter. They were rather prideful, not daring to admit their melancholy despite the repercussions that came along. She felt a strong urge to turn around and avoid him in favor of the safety of her home base, but her heart churned at the sight of mourning. His cries reminded her of the hunters she had come to raise-the ones lost to blades too deep, the ones unable to heal from the trauma of their past, and the ones she failed to save before it was too late. It physically ailed her to listen. Her morals had proved to be victorious when she saw little Melanie sitting where Poseidon was, her black haired stained with the sins of the father, wishing for a death given too soon. Thus, she sat beside him without another word, watching the waves crash against the beach below. Her vocal chords failed her in this moment, but weren't needed as everything had spilled out of Poseidon's mouth at once, desperate for someone, for anyone, to listen.
And listen she did.
He spoke of a fight with Amphitrite that left little more than unspoken tension between them. Any chance he had of resolving the conflict was shot down by her vitriol, so he swam offshore in the hopes of escaping the ensuing madness that came with running a kingdom. He had stopped by a cozy little candy shop in Manhattan, noticing a strange sort of Swedish candy in the window...one that he discovered wasn't actually made of fish as the name had suggested. There he had come to face to face with the angel Sally Jackson. She was everything he wished to be, daring, charming, and hopelessly kind. He reminisced over the time a man came charging into her shop with a tall order, arguing with Sally over the existence of blue candy. She returned a moment later with an entire bag of blue sweets just so she could see his face heat up in embarrassment. It was the first time Poseidon was able to properly laugh in ages.
She became his best friend that day, and he wouldn't have it any other way. They would walk for miles without speaking just to feel Gaea thrum beneath their feet. They would graze the wild fields together, Poseidon often seen with a newly acquired flower crown as Sally had found it terribly amusing. When they talked, it was as if their souls were reaching out to one another. He had done everything he could to make her smile, but later discovered his materialistic gifts did nothing to sate to her depression. Her dreams lied with the birth of a child she could never have once rendered infertile. The adoption agency had refused to cater to the needs of a struggling single woman, and Sally was left hopelessly looking for something she could raise and nurture.
Artemis had known the name Sally Jackson well, for she was once a huntress under her protection. She never took the deal of immortality like the others, but did crave to serve alongside them as a medic when she learned what they were forced to face everyday. She managed to get many supplies that they were in of and even kept Zöe's heart beating for just a little bit longer that fateful night. Artemis would be forever grateful. When Sally wished to retire in search of a family of her own, Artemis had bid her farewell knowing her happiness was above any form of chastity. The girls were sad to see her go, but knew as a free spirit, it was best to let her take flight.
In the ensuing silence, Artemis found her voice again. The circumstances were curious, for mortal bonds with Gods were never meant to be anything more than a springtime fling. He spoke of a friendship revered more than any faux romance, and while it was surprising to her, she found it rather endearing. She had to make sure it wasn't some orchestrated lie. It wasn't the first time she had been deceived by a God.
"You cry for a mortal woman. Why is this?" She asked, watching emotions flick across his face. She was relieved to find it was genuine, for she had figured his woes were needless and self-centered, but they turned out to be anything but. They were for the woman Artemis had come to see as the bravest of all, for she was a human that willingly walked into the danger of the hunt knowing the potential consequence.
"I love her as if she were my own sister. I want nothing more than to see her radiance return to her, but I don't know how. I'm already on shaky grounds with Zeus, and my interference may just push him over the edge. I know you've felt the rising tension in Olympus too, but as much I love her, the risk of war is too great," he explained, trailing off in thought. The Gods would be split into two sides based on their current allegiance, each eager to attain a victory over the other. The world would be plunged into chaos before a compromise could be made, and by then it would already be too late.
"I visited Hades not too long ago, and he was in equal distress. His relations with a mortal woman were not looked favorably upon by Zeus. The demigods he fathered were hidden away at a Lotus Casino after her death in the hopes he will not find them. With one oath already broken, I cannot afford to do the same."
Artemis glanced at the moon, her mind churning in uncertainty. How was she, a pledged virgin goddess, able to help when she knew naught what to do? She wanted to help, but it was not for the sake of her Uncle. Artemis did not take the debts she owed lightly, especially not to Sally Jackson.
It was then, all of a sudden, that a blip of sparkling light flashed in the corner of her eyes. Her vision trailed the source, only to find that the moon beams were expanding downwards towards the open sea. The alit water moved about in excitement, the fish beginning to swarm around the newly acquired warmth.
It was then Artemis realized what Selene had wished to show her.
...Could it be possible?
Could she really be considering something like this?
It was a bold, risky, and undeniably stupid way to avoid breaking their oaths.
...But they could do it.
She turned towards the elder God, a contemplative expression on her face. Oh, how she could hear Aphrodite's laughter ringing in her ears.
To save a life, she would have to create it.
"I offer you a solution that renders null after this meeting, but if you truly feel that strong for her, then I will help you in this endeavor," She spoke, watching his head snap to her calm expression. Artemis closed her eyes and breathed, feeling the cool wind brush up against her shoulders.
It was almost time.
"The moonlight is at it's peak tonight and with our help, Selene can bless the tides."
"What does that entail?" Poseidon asked uncertainly, not quite sure what Artemis was suggesting. She only rolled her eyes at him, he was still as clueless as ever.
"Selene is a mother titaness, and with her guidance we can birth new life from the tide. From you, we collect the body. From me, the mind, and from Selene the-"
"-the spirit," Poseidon finished, eyes widening in sudden realization.
"Are you really considering such a drastic thing? The child, for all intents and purposes, would be a God!," he exclaimed, the disbelief practically echoing in his voice. The cogwheels in his head had begun to spin at the possibility of fathering a potential Olympian.
"Perhaps, but their fate would not be without merit. I owe Sally Jackson for having sustained the life of my lieutenant while I was frozen on the battlefield. I, in all of my glory, couldn't do so much as watch her life fade before my eyes. It's only fitting I do this now, for the hunt needs a guardian with a soul parallel to her own."
Her hunt would be offended at the mere idea of a guardian, and while she knew they were more than capable of defending themselves, it would be a pleasant reassurance for the time they faced an enemy that would one day incapacitate her. If the guardian was to be male, however, she had a lot of work ahead of her to prepare the hunters for the upcoming intrusion—none of it very pleasant.
Oh how the Fates loved to spite her.
"I never would've guessed...it's strange how the life of one human can bring people closer together, isn't it? Is it so terrible of me to secretly wish to sire another child after my oath? One free of all the politics that my kingdom has to offer? I suppose despite all of that..." Poseidon trailed, a soft smile protruding from his lips. "I know that if they grow up to be anything like Sally, their only fatal flaw would be the loyalty they thrive on."
Eyes twinkling merrily at the thought, Artemis silently vowed to help the woman—no matter the cost. She grasped Poseidon's hand firmly. It was now or never.
"Do you, Poseidon, accept my proposal and promise to swear it to secrecy until the proper moment arises?," She asked, her words carrying such weight that it physically pierced his core. Her intense silver eyes had left him nodding off silently, for an ethereal aura had begun to glow around her figure, energy pulsating at the fingertips. "Do you swear to grant your eternal protection to Sally Jackson and her child? To watch over the result of our union and lead them away from the corruption that binds Olympus?"
With no hesitation, Poseidon finally met her gaze with blazing green orbs.
"I swear on River Styx."
Thunder boomed.
"So be it."
A blinding beam of light cascaded over the cliff. The two Olympians were forced to look away from the sheer intensity, but could feel the moment their stolen ichor united under the moonlit tide. Peaking open, Artemis vaguely saw the water take the form of a human child, but before long her eyelids were forced into closure. As soon as the light had appeared, it vanished, and the two Gods collapsed from the impact of the sudden drainage on their systems. They breathed in deeply, looking for any sign of success on their completed ritual.
Down below the waves had washed ashore a child in a white blanket, his hair as dark as the midnight sky. Small eyes blearily opened to reveal orbs of mismatched green and silver. Despite the evidence of their union, the child screamed Sally Jackson.
The baby looked up and cooed at the universe, watching his parents descend from the cliffside in pure astonishment. They held the wondrous bundle in their arms, content to watch their creation for the first time—and possibilty the last. His smile was heartbreaking, but they knew their moment with this child could not last, as life had to move forward. Reluctant to part, she and Poseidon argued over a suitable name for their champion. It was settled at Perseus, for they knew ahead of him was a journey resemblant to that of a hero.
The next morning in a cozy little apartment, Sally Jackson woke up and screamed.
The three Fates smiled. All is as it should be.