The Night that the Council of Cards was Built

by Mobius Legacy

At the end of each Winter Solstice, the most influential Olympians gather to play a high stakes game for a night. Percy Jackson unknowingly finds himself in a predicament he never thought was possible. Too bad he has a bad Poker Face. Post Titan's Curse, no HoO characters. Percabeth and Hephaesite. *Part Three to come in April! Sorry for delay- Job Searching Sucks!* (3/6/17)

1. The Night Part 1

Author's Note: This one-shot takes place at the end of the third book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, The Titan's Curse. Bear with me on this one, the intro is full of detail but not a lot of dialog. All events in the first three books occur up until the council meeting at the very end of the quest. This One-Shot is to ensure readers that I will get to my AC5 fanfic The Unsung Story, again after my life settles down- college graduation and adulting sucks. This one-shot was inspired by a similar Naruto fanfic- draconis, and everyone else, Enjoy!

'Thoughts'

Similes

*SOUND EFFECT*

*[#] Author's note.

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The Night that the Council of Cards was Built

Percy couldn't help but wonder how he ended up in this mess. Standing at the entryway of the council chambers, he was in his orange Half Blood Hill sweater and a pair of jeans. Fortunately, there was enough time to make a quick trip to the Poseidon cabin, prior to the council meeting with Annabeth and Thalia.

Just prior to Percy's arrival on Olympus, it was rather quiet in the Pantheon of the gods. The council room was enormous from the perspective of a mortal. For a god, it was just cozy. Around the council chambers were ornate ionic, marble columns supporting the roof of the chamber. Each column was smoothed to perfection. In the middle of the chamber was an enormous hearth. Embers and flames danced around oak logs in a gentle, soothing display. The hearth radiated heat to the surrounding room; the nature of the heat was pure delight; the heat kept the gods warm from the snowstorm outside Olympus. The great hearth was encapsulated around a large circular collection of marble bricks, sculpted with the Greek Key in an endless pattern. Like the Mobius band, the Key wrapped around the circumference of the hearth without crossing once. If one looked close enough into the hearth, a little auburn girl in the flames would be visible to them. The '12-year-old girl' was tending to the heath, the embers and the flames cackling with life from her touch. Lady Hestia, the 'girl' in the flames, was never one to ease drop on these important council meetings. As she was not an Olympian, her presence was not required at these meetings apart from the winter solstice. The Fates however, felt that as a former Olympian, her voice was of value in these matters. Why else would her home be in the middle of the council room, if she was not an Olympian herself? Hestia, while kind and selfless, never felt a sense of belonging as an Olympian. The throne room was not her 'Home Sweet Home'. She felt like an outcast, a fly on the wall that never should have been present. This emptiness at times was a burden, even though she was the one who provided hope to Olympus at the direst of times. Because of this emptiness, the Fates were concerned for their plan to tackle the great prophecy. For their vision to prevent Kronos from rising again, Hestia needed to feel at home in the Council room.

Directly behind the hearth from the entryway was a massive ornate marble throne. It sat in the center of the small semicircle of thrones around the room, analogous to a keystone in an arch. This throne of pure white marble was in the shape of a stiff, square chair. At the base of the throne was the Greek Key, in a continuous pattern roughly 10 feet tall. The Key wrapped around the throne in a manner that matched the hearth. Just above the base of the throne were massive sculptures of major historical events; these sculptures built into the throne were in exquisite detail. The sculptures depicted events across known time: from the creation of the universe from Lord Chaos, to the heroic deeds of the Trojan war, and including the relatively recent founding of the United States. The gods had only been in New York City for the past 200 years; they moved from London in the American Revolutionary War. As more historical events came to pass, as foretold by the Sibylline Books and the Oracle of Delphi; the throne grew to accommodate new sculptures. The size of the sculpture depicted the magnitude which the event affected Olympus. The largest sculptures on the throne were of the story of creation, the overthrow of the Titans, and the Trojan War. Upon the timeless marble was a surprisingly comfortable throne. The King of the Gods had his lightning bolt insignia on the back of the throne, apart from that the throne was very plain. Lord Zeus felt he had to set an example of a 'Spartan' existence; an 'attitude' of selflessness he tried to instill on the other Olympians. However, that did not stop the other gods from taking personal comforts with their thrones. As the centuries past, mortals grew more and more advanced, thus triggering the changes in thrones of the other gods. Only Lord Zeus' throne remained constant, in terms of original design.

Sitting on this throne was Lord Zeus. After hours in the council room, he was beginning to get exhausted. As the leader of the council, he wore his signature solid royal blue suit with a silver tie in a unique thunderbolt pattern. His blazer was unbuttoned as he was sitting with interest on Lady Artemis' tale. Thank the Fates she had escaped the ordeal, but that same damn sea-spawn demigod is giving him a twist in his toga. He would have much rather Thalia been the demigod of prophecy; but the little chance for that evaporated once she takes the oath of maidenhood. 'If that is what Thalia intends to do, I will not stop her' he thought. 'The more I think about it, the better off Olympus would be; now that I consider the alternatives'. Truthfully, Zeus was concerned as he watched the quest unfold. There were several points in time where he saw a glazed-over look in Thalia's eyes as she was confronted with her Fatal Flaw. He did not like what he saw in her expressions. If push came to shove, he was unsure what decisions his demigod daughter would make.

Zeus began to zone out as Artemis answered the questioning of the other gods. Winter Solstices were not his favorite; he had to put a good face on for his elder brother, for both of their sakes. Hades never forgave him for so many atrocities Zeus had committed, and Zeus felt similarly about Hades. The two never got along ever since they split the domains of their father Kronos. Zeus was paranoid of Hades, even though he never overtly rebelled. Hades felt as if he was ostracized by Zeus due to his paranoia. It was a toxic situation that never seemed to resolve itself out. If there was only one way to resolve this issue of his older brother without involving Mommy Rhea, Zeus would have gladly taken it.

Thrones in the council room were arranged in a semicircle. In ordinary times, there would be twelve thrones for the Twelve Olympians: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Artemis, Apollo, Ares, Hephaestus, Aphrodite, Athena, Demeter, Dionysus, and Hermes. Instead at the winter solstice, there were thirteen. This was done so that Lord Hades had a seat in the most important council meeting in the year. Hestia would have also been provided a chair, however she preferred to watch quietly from the flames of the hearth.

To the immediate right of Zeus was a throne that could have only been described as the fisherman's dream chair. From the back of a deep-sea tuna charter boat was a large black chair. With a Bass Pro Shops logo inscribed on the back, the chair emitted a sense of gentle waves and a refreshing seaside breeze. In one armrest, there was a modified cup holder turned trident holder. Just to the right of the other armrest was a bait and tacklebox littered with scrolls and decrees from past councils of years passed. Before Athena assumed responsibility of record-keeping, Lord Poseidon was record-keeper of the Olympian councils. Shortly after the Trojan war however, that responsibility was grossly neglected by Poseidon in his timeless chase of one King Odyssius of Ithica. Zeus, fed up with his brother's wild goose chase at the time, delegated the role to Lady Athena. Ever sense then, she has uncannily kept up with over the millennia.

Little of the passed mattered now to Lord Poseidon, as he eagerly sat on his throne. His facial expression was beaming with fatherly pride hearing Artemis' tale. His appearance was much more casual than his younger brothers, deciding to attend the council in khakis and a Hawaiian button shirt. He totally had the best demigod son ever; screw Herc the Jerk! Not many male demigods could so easily befriend the huntresses, and Poseidon had an inkling feeling that this was just the beginning of a growing legend. Poseidon turned his head to the left and noticed a strange faint glowing coming from Zeus's throne.

For the first time since the American Revolution, Zeus's throne began to make room for a new sculpture. In it clearly depicted a young male demigod holding the weight of the sky with Artemis and Atlas' battle serving as the background of the clash. As it was the newest sculpture, the image was tiny compared to the others on the throne. Poseidon blinked at the image; then suddenly grinned as if Christmas had come early. Feeling content, Poseidon allowed himself to relax. Once the moment had passed, Poseidon began to think about the predicament Olympus was in now. With Thalia turning sixteen in a few hours' time, Poseidon was not worried. Listening to his gut, he felt that the more pressing issue was to prevent the retaliation of other gods' wrath on his son. 'I can't really fault Percy, his nature is so unruly. To go against the roll of the waves is against the nature of the oceans' he mused. 'But the challenge will be to convincing the rest of the council of Percy's loyalties. For a Fatal Flaw, I'm not sure which one is the larger risk; power or loyalty? And if that wasn't enough, there's the Ophiotaurus'.

On the other side of Zeus was another marble chair that complimented Zeus' throne. This throne was smaller in size and had the Greek Key wrapping around the base of the throne. Above the Greek Key base, the throne was supported by peacock sculptures made to perfection. The birds themselves had crossed their wings in a way that made a supportive webbing of marble. The sculptures themselves were all uniform in color as the rest of the throne was, however the light that came off from it emphasized the curves of the sculptures nicely. The throne had a hint of lavender to compliment the white marble. The throne itself also emitted feminine grace and maternal protection. As the reigning Queen of the Gods, Hera made sure her throne was pristine, comforting, and yet stocked full of her favorite mid-council snacks. It was a recipe for success if you asked the marriage goddess.

Lady Hera was beginning to zone out from Artemis' tale. Her mind was more on the pragmatic aspect of the future. She knew instinctively Thalia was not the prophesied demigod. The fact that nothing imminent to Olympus was occurring reassured her somewhat. Hera turned from Artemis and thought about the said demigod daughter of Zeus. Personal jealousy aside, Hera was more annoyed she even existed at all. Hera knew that it was not Thalia's fault, it was her parent's faults. Hera has tried on multiple occasions to locate and curse the said mortal. However, she just didn't have the heart do to so as said mortal was happily married with a mortal family of her own. When Hera tried to confront the lady in question, she was shocked to see the memory of the mortal's mind was wiped. This of course, left her with no alternative but to get angry at her two-timing Husband. Deciding to assert her feelings on the matter, Hera simply turned her head and gave the trademarked WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO ZEUS!? stare. The results were almost instantaneous. Zeus' expression morphed from blissfully daydreaming of sexy moral women such as Natalie Dormer; to a shaking, quivering mess fearing righteous feminine fury. Feeling better, Hera turned back into the hearth in a thinking pose. What could she do to ensure that Zeus would stay loyal like he fucking vowed to millennia ago? How could she be the goddess of marriage if her own marriage was so unhappy at times?

Speaking of vows that never were kept, their current situation in the world was the result of that. 'Seriously, how hard is it to keep it in your pants?' she thought 'Pact to never have demigod children of the big three- HA! Sigh, thankfully there were only two of them to worry about. It's funny too- the only one who kept his vow was Hades himself.' She chuckled at the thought. What would life had been like had she been married to Hades instead of her pitiful excuse of a Husband? Recognizing where her thoughts were going, she proceeded to grab a bowl of French vanilla ice cream from her throne to calm down. 'What would Jane Eyre do here?´ she fondly thought. She also grabbed a copy of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë from the throne as well.

To the right of Poseidon was a silver throne in the shape of a crescent moon. At the base of the throne was a bow and arrow pattern wrapping around the throne. On the back of the crescent moon were murals of the most notable hunts undergone by the goddess herself. Each mural shimmered with silver light. The craftsmanship of the murals was simply astonishing. A mortal viewing the throne could believe the figurines were alive, just frozen in time. On the right armrest of the crescent shaped moon throne was a small inscription. The inscription was a list of those brave huntresses whom had since made the ultimate sacrifice for their lady. Although the calligraphy of the names was of mediocre quality, Lady Artemis was the one who would inscribe the names there. Next to each huntress' name was the date they perished. On those days, Artemis would do something special with her surviving huntresses to honor the memory of the fallen. For her, losing a huntress was painful. Over time and several bowls of chocolate ice cream, Artemis would come to accept what came to pass. That was just her grieving process. However, this was not just a huntress who perished.

Artemis felt that it was only right to place the inscription of her most famous lieutenant on her throne, closest to her heart. It was the closest she could now have Zoë by her side, without a trip to the underworld which would have been fruitless. As one of the maiden goddesses, Artemis pledged to remain a 'virgin' for all eternity. However, the goddess of the hunt was not immune to the effects of a pink monstrosity throne in the room. It took thousands of years for the two to confess to each other, and the two were very happy once they did. For the billionth time this council, Artemis cursed Lady Aphrodite with all her being. As she recounted her tale, it was hard enough for her not to break down then. Her posture said otherwise, but inside was an emotional hurricane. Her lover would have still been here had it not been for that damn prophecy. And of course, Zoë knew what was to come. Why else would Zoë have accepted the quest if it meant saving Artemis from the Titans.

As Artemis concluded her tale; she felt solemn, empty, and exhausted. There were no tears, as she had already emptied them all on her way to tonight's council. In time, there may be another who could fill this emptiness. Zoë and her had already discussed what was to occur should Zoë pass on, or gods forbid, Artemis was to fade. They both knew that it was for the best for the surviving individual to move on. It was for their best interest. And as close as they were in private, they never had the chance to inform the rest of the hunt of their recent status. No one knew apart from Apollo what happened between the two. And Apollo wasn't about to spill the beans on this secret; Artemis made sure of that. It was just bad luck that Apollo spotted them from the sun-chariot half a century ago.

It was with a heavy heart that Artemis called for revenge against the one who was responsible for all this grief that has come to Olympus. She proposed a vote on several items that were to occur, and was pleased that all of them were passed to her standard. Kronos and Luke would pay, even if it meant Artemis' downfall. Tired, all Artemis wanted to do at this point was inform the young demigods of the plan and celebrate with her family tonight.

To the left of Hera's throne, there was a throne that could only be described as a pink monstrosity. Lady Aphrodite wished her throne to be the softest and most comfortable chair in the universe; It was as if you were sitting on air. The throne formed itself from this emotion, and took the form as a large pink cloud. Aphrodite's throne was nicknamed 'cloud nine'. Legend has it that this was where Aphrodite took on nine lovers at one time. Rumors were never confirmed however, and Aphrodite would never discuss the events of that night. However, the nickname stuck. The interesting thing about this throne as to those who could find their 'soulmate' in the world were rewarded by spiritually sitting on Aphrodite's throne. These phenomena would occur when soulmates were asleep in one-another's arms, as their souls would travel to Olympus for the night. It was this positive experience for mortals that encouraged them to go find their soulmates. Ultimately this furthered the positive influence of love; Aphrodite grew more powerful with each passing day. Additionally, Aphrodite's throne in the past 200 years had grown substantially. The clouds themselves were more solid, reflecting this change. It was tuned to the positive emotions of love, and the effects it had on mortals and gods alike. Love came in many forms, and with the advance of LGBT rights in the past decades, her throne and domain grew even further.

For Aphrodite's own use, the cloud itself was constantly changing and compatible with most electronics curtesy of Hephaestus' tinkering. Her husband was useful in that regard. Should anything break, it only took a simple batting of her eyelashes and puppy-dog eyes to break any resistance Hephaestus held. Aphrodite may not have seemed to be the most intelligent of the Olympians, however she had a cognitive process that could rival Athena. The goddess was not nearly as spiritually strong as any of the big three, but she rivaled the power of Athena, Ares, and even Hera. She wisely just didn't show it.

There was one nagging mystery Aphrodite could never solve however. She turned her head to face Artemis, who had finished pushing her final vote through. In the preceding silence, Aphrodite began to think about that mystery. Whenever Artemis and her huntresses came to Olympus for some reason, her throne would react in a violently pleasant manner. Aphrodite was pleasantly surprised last summer solstice; Artemis and her huntresses visited and the entire population of Haiti received heart-shaped cookies and strawberry milk that evening. Even a year ago, Aphrodite had the strange urge to threesome with Ares and Hephaestus as her throne was oozing from feelings of suppressed love in the room. On that occasion Artemis was there with her huntresses, but so was Hephaestus. She was sure that emotion came from him last year. Usually the latter never would happen, or even occur to her as the Ares-Hephaestus rivalry had grown steadily worse as the years passed. Admittedly, Aphrodite was worried that a war would break out between the two of them. The last thing she needed to do was to start another world war in the name of love… for the hand of love ironically. Memories of the Trojan War and the taunts she still gets for it are more than just uncomfortable to deal with. Thousands of years later, Olympians still blame her for that pairing. What was she supposed to do? Deny Paris and Helen's affections for one another- the original ultimate Greek tragedy dying romance?

Sighing, Aphrodite turned her thoughts to current times. There was only one relationship in the world that she was inspired by. 'Bethcy sounds wrong somehow. Jackabeth is even worse! Hmm… Chacy? Nope, try again.' Aphrodite was mulling over pairing names for her project. She always likes to combine the names of the individuals included for simplicity sake. It also allowed her to easily remember each pairing. Thinking more about her current romance 'project' of tragedy turned happy ending, Athena can be stubborn sometimes. Aphrodite grinned, knowing that the wisdom goddess for once was digging a hole she couldn't get out of. When she met with Percy a few days prior, she wasn't lying when she told him she was making his love life interesting. What she didn't tell him was she had only threatened and teased the poor demigod directly. Amusingly, her idea of laissez faire romance turned out better than she could even hope. Who knew Athena protecting her daughter's heart had the reverse effect? Even now, Aphrodite could sense the overwhelming love radiating from Annabeth, while said demigod arrived at the base of the Empire State Building. Admittedly, the only reason why Annabeth was not jumping Percy now was for the simple fear of scaring him away from her. Ironically, that one detail made Annabeth wiser than Athena in the romance department. Knowing that Annabeth's feelings were mutually returned, Aphrodite was not worried about the demigoddess. However, Annabeth unfortunately had no reason to believe that yet, hence the timid soap opera full of gut-wrenching moments.

After Aphrodite visited the questers, Lady Athena knew she had to do the same. At the Hoover Dam, Athena made the boy ignorant to the feelings in his heart. It frustrated Aphrodite that Athena could impair these cognitive processes; yet this only did irreparable harm to her daughter she tries to protect. Aphrodite watched Annabeth in private these past few days, as tears would often stream down during these times. 'The poor girl is so afraid of rejection. It's heartbreaking to not do anything.' Aphrodite mused, 'Hopefully I can do something to fix that ignorant boys mind. Of course, he is not to blame'. There was a very good reason why Aphrodite did not approve of breaking individual's hearts; she knew how irrationally mortals who are heartbroken could react. It tended to make them dangerous and unstable individuals. If anything, love was a safety measure to ensure that these unstable individuals don't happen in the first place. Hmm, now if there was only a way to remove this barrier and get front row seats to Athena's reaction tonight.

To the right of Artemis, was a large golden throne. The throne was made up of an enormous pile of musical instruments, stethoscopes, and bows. These pieces were polished until they shone a pearly gleam as light struck the pieces just right. To the casual observer, this throne was a large pile of junk. How could one sit so comfortably, so contently, and botch the lyrics of Don't Stop Believin so horribly? Why, Lord Apollo would take you up on that bet, smile those pearly whites, and sing a haiku that he composed on the spot to whomever doubted him. "Hold onto that feeling…," Apollo hummed out, playing his miniature air guitar as the beat continued. His throne also had a red velvet cover that came up in a humanoid shape to support his body in place. The instruments composing his throne were all nailed, welded, and glued together. Surprisingly, it was structurally sound and able to support Apollo's weight with little difficulty. Said god was sitting in his chair, sipping on a Red Bull in casual slacks. As the god of bachelors, he always had a soft spot for the male demigods like Percy. That is why tonight, he just had that feeling he was going to need to make sure that kid was safe. Giggling like a little schoolboy reading Playboy for the first time, Apollo continued to watch as events played off around him.

To the left of Aphrodite was a large throne with a boar's head slapped on the back of an ivory chair. As the sacred animal of Lord Ares, the boar's tusks shaped the structure of his throne. The throne itself did not have much artistry, rather just jutted tusks out at odd angles in the general shape of a chair. The throne itself was an analogous nod to the infamous iron throne depicted by one of Ares sons, George RR Martin. Seriously, ambush your enemies at their own wedding? Who else would think of a strategy that bold and reckless other than a child of Ares, or Ares himself? Over the years, Ares surprisingly had the throne that morphed the most. The typical shape it would always have is made from ivory and some type of boar on it. Apart from that, the chair would take shape of the most iconic military shape of current events, whether if it was fictional or reality.

Sitting on the ivory throne was Lord Ares; dressed in a crimson toga with a scull pattern and sash. Ares was paying little attention to the council itself; instead, he was daydreaming of Aphrodite. 'I just love when I get behind her and grab her long crimson locks as a handle fo- *SMACK*. Unfortunately, Ares was pulled out of his pleasant thoughts by a flying sandal. He turned his throbbing skull forehead to glare at the offender from his right, only to make eye contact with the WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DREAMING OF ARES?! trademarked stare from his mother. Feeling like a little kid caught with his hand in the proverbial cookie jar, Ares begin to shrink and bashfully look away. *SMACK* The force of Hera's second sandal was almost enough to knock Ares out of his throne and onto the floor. Wincing, Ares rubbed the back of his head where the second sandal made a small cut on impact. Feeling golden ichor in his hands, Ares simply waved his hand for a towel to appear and began to let the wound clot and heal. 'Ok, ok, no sex for a while with my brother's wife' he whimpered. Ares sighed, feeling the wound beginning to clot and looked down. If there was one thing he could have in this world, it would be the goddess to his right. It was ironic that his throne is between Aphrodite and Hephaestus. It was no secret to the other Olympians what was going on. However, the issue has been causing unrest between Hera, Hephaestus, and himself. Hera is infuriated at his butting-in of a marriage she personally arranged. Hephaestus was enraged that it was his wife he was adulting; even though Aphrodite was the one who initially charmspeaked Ares into sex. At first it was not his fault. When he no longer refused the charmspeaking, Ares ran out of excuses. The rationale for this was quite simple really; Ares was now substantially weaker than Aphrodite due to her recent growth in strength. 'Honestly, how is this my fault she came to me?' he muttered. Then it was his own pride. He refused to believe Aphrodite was stronger than he was. He was the war god dammit! Not the boy-toy of the love goddess. Sadly, that was exactly what he was. Soo strong was Aphrodite's charmspeaking that the god of war's wish was a permanent mental wellness issue. Why Aphrodite initially approached him, no one ever knew.

To the right of Apollo was a leafy green chair. The plants composing of the chair were angled just right to absorb sunlight coming off Apollo's throne. There in the shade of the chair sat Lady Demeter; she wore a simple green dress with her auburn hair up in a bun. As it was winter, she just came back from the underworld for the Solstice with her estranged son-in-law. Spending time with her daughter gave her peace and comfort to the motherly goddess, even if it meant waking up to a skeleton maid every morning. You grow out of those fears once you've been exposed to it for eons. Unlike most of the Olympians, Demeter supported action against Kronos. Artemis' thrilling tale was just the icing on the cake. Unfortunately, she knew how stubborn her brother Zeus could be. Sooner or later Zeus' decision making would fuck over Olympus. It always had been that case, and she was always worried when it would happen. Plucking a banana from her throne, Demeter began to eat in silent contemplation.

To the left of Ares was a large plush lazy-boy recliner throne. The recliner was in golden brown with a hammer inscribed on the back. Lord Hephaestus was causally reclining in his work overalls and plaid shirt, frowning not for the first time on what was to his right. The Fates firmly believe those with the best personalities always had the shittiest luck. One would not need to hear much more than Hephaestus' story to see that point. Tossed off from Olympus by his own mother, cheated on by his wife, and now seemingly responsible for the death of Artemis' newest hunter. Hephaestus could only think of how he was responsible. His awkwardness around the other Olympians while he thought of these unwelcome thoughts was painful to watch.

Over time, little did he know that Hera began to warm up to the young deity. She set him up with Aphrodite thousands of years ago. Hera knew that of the Olympians that were eligible to marry at the time, none was more so fitting than Hephaestus. The ingenuity and cleverness of his devices would keep the effects of love in check, without resorting to lethal force. Additionally, with his Automations; Aphrodite would not have been able to manipulate Hephaestus' minions for their lack of feelings and other emotions. He was essentially the perfect being to reign Aphrodite in under Zeus and Hera. However, that plan fell through the wave side when Aphrodite met him. Because of Hera's rash decision to throw Hephaestus off Olympus, Aphrodite wasn't initially attracted to him. What a stupid reason, and the worst part of it was Hephaestus genuinely cared about the goddess. It pained him to setup these elaborate traps for Ares and her, but it was out of a sense of duty instilled in his marriage vows. Unfortunately, for the thousands of years this conflict has been evolving, Hephaestus and Hera never suspected the original culprit to be Aphrodite. Hindsight is 20/20 after all.

To the right of Demeter, the scholar among scholars sat in a throne of marble. Her throne was built from sculptures of Owls, wings spread wide creating a crisscrossing base of support for her marble chair. In the talons of the Owl sculptures, there were olive branches, symbolizing the gift she gave to Athens all those centuries ago. Lady Athena had a scowl on her face as she saw Percy and Annabeth standing side by side in her imagination. It was funny a little over a year ago, but ever since that blasted 'love goddess' gave the two those predatory glances… let's say Athena knows her red flags when she sees them. Granted, it has only been three days since she saw the first 'red flag'; but she was unsure of how to contain it without outright killing the insolent boy. It's becoming clearer day by day that this boy could be the child of prophecy, but Athena still held on hope that it would be her half-sister Thalia. As powerful as Percy is, she knew how disastrous the consequences could be if he was to turn traitor. Trouble just seems to find him out if the Ophiotaurus was any indication of that fact. Rubbing her brilliant grey eyes, Athena pinched her nose in disgust as she began to plan on how to fix the issue. The last thing the child of prophecy needs is to make an ill-informed decision when his/her head was literally 'on cloud nine'.

To the left of Hephaestus was a simple wooden chair. This chair was made from a light wood; a strong simple white birch. The chair also had a branded logo on the back of grapes on a vine. As Lord Dionysus was on probation, one of the conditions of his punishment was the temporary removal of his plush throne, complete with flowing wine fountains, and fruit vines coating the armrests. Currently Dionysus was passed out- giving little indication that he cared about the matters of this council. However, he was glad to have saved the young demigods in their moment of impending death. Now it was just a matter for the other Olympians to do their political thing and move forward. The thought of which put Dionysus in his sleepy state.

To the right of Athena there was a simple plane throne. It was bear of many comforts as it was not so regularly used, as its owner tended to be absent for long periods of time. Lord Hermes, even during the council meeting, was listening to a phone conversation from one of his UPS venders. Deliveries were always a constant headache for Hermes, and today was no exception. Hanging up the call, Hermes seemed to slump into his chair, waiting for something interesting to occur. He had enough stress to deal with as of late.

Finally, to the left of Dionysus was another simple wooden chair. Not technically a throne, this chair had a peculiar symbol inscribed on the back of the chair- a large black helm with plume and all. Lord Hades currently sat in the 'guest chair', as this was the only time it ever was in use. Thus, the chair would promptly vanish after the winter solstice, and reappear next year as if nothing happened. However, Lord Hades was bored of the council. No matter the details within Artemis' time among the Titans, he was still bound to lock up the Underworld from crafty escape attempts. Curse his rotten luck! All he wanted to do was lead the charge against Kronos himself, if it meant he could stop seeing young demigods showing up on the doorstep of the Underworld. If only his luck had held out millennia ago. Lord Hades was not stupid, the fact that Kronos' original domains were split the way that they where was for the best. There was no way he could negotiate with the merman on a way Poseidon does, nor could he safely guide the winds over the whole earth. He was exceptionally skilled with centuries of practice in reminding mortals of their lot in the world. He could not see the logic in arguing with the Fates over domains, as time has passed too far on for a change at this point in the Age. If only there was some way to embarrass Zeus, Hades would have gladly jumped onto it. As it was, it was the anniversary of that famed poker game. Five Card Draw was not his preferred poker game anyway. He could hedge his bad luck in poker by paying Texas Hold'em. It was a different format than traditional Five Card Draw, as it allowed Hades to see a part of his opponent's hand. So far, it was a foolproof way to play the game. He inwardly chucked. Either way, he just had a feeling he was in for a little revenge against brother dearest.

'Those recent trips to Las Vegas will play out in spades; HA SPADES!' Hades smiled at the thought, 'I crack myself up! Ah, speak of the demigod whom I want to manipulate the most…' the sound of footsteps interrupted the thoughts of the Lord of the Dead. Echoing from the hallway, footsteps gave way to the low voices. At the entryway of the chamber, the young demigods walked in. Their brief conversation muted, Percy, Annabeth, and Thalia stepped down the few steps leading to the base of the council room. Stopping at the hearth, the Demigods turned to one another. Percy stood in the middle of the trio, with his usual wavy-hair and sea-green eyes. He was wearing a neon orange sweater with the words Half Blood Hill on it and black pants. To his left, Annabeth stood. Annabeth was wearing jeans and T-shirt with a grey winter jacket unzipped. Her blond curls were a little frizzy due to the fast shower she took prior to the meeting. To her right on the other side of Percy was Thalia. Thalia was wearing her signature black pants, Green Day American Idiot concert tour shirt, and a black denim jacket with studs and skull charms on it. Her azure eyes sparkled with lightning and her black hair was cut at her neck in a punk-style look. However, her attitude was solemn- a far departure from her spunky self. As the demigods came to a stop at the base of the hearth, the three bowed towards Lord Zeus and waited for the silence to be broken.

"My Daughter, what troubles you so?" Zeus looked concerned, his frown was evidence of that as he looked at his oldest living demigod.

Thalia didn't immediately respond. She turned her head to the left to look at Artemis. Said goddess gave her a sad smile and nodded slightly. With the support of Artemis, Thalia turned back to her father and answered. "I will not be the child of prophecy."

Gasps were heard from a few in the council room. Everyone knew Thalia was mere hours from turning 16- a fact that concerned some. There were some who knew she was going to say just that.

"Explain" Zeus simply replied. His concern ebbed away, and a blank look took its place.

"My fatal flaw is power. Time and time again, I have been exposed to these things ever since the Fleece saved me last summer. Honestly, when the ophiotaurus showed itself- I was severely tempted. It was only the presence and well-being of my friends that I was able to make the right choice."

"That does not explain how you plan on avoiding your birthday, Daughter" Zeus kindly interjected.

At this point, Thalia sighed. 'I can't believe I am about to do this,' She lamented. Steeling her nerves, she walked left and came to a stop in front of Artemis. Kneeling, she whispered "My lady, I wish to join the Hunt".

The reaction was immediate. Zeus and Artemis both smiled, Poseidon suddenly got chills, and Athena and Aphrodite both glared at Percy. Well, more like Athena glared, while Aphrodite coyly winked. Percy began to feel hot under the collar of his half-blood hill sweater. Percy was saved from the goddesses by Artemis' response to Thalia's request. As attention shifted to the daughter of Zeus, Percy sighed.

Artemis began to shrink down to normal size and walked in front of Thalia; adjusting her ceremonial robes as she approached. Her bright azure eyes met nervous ones, then gestured for Thalia to remain kneeling.

"Repeat after me Thalia; I Thalia Grace pledge myself to the goddess Artemis," Artemis began.

"I Thalia Grace pledge myself to the goddess Artemis." Thalia replied

"I turn my back upon the company of men, and ask to join my sisters in all but blood forevermore. To serve and protect Olympus unto my dying day. As Lieutenant of the Hunt, I swear on the River Styx to solemnly obey this vow; and understand my immortality shall be forfeit should I ever fall in love with men." Artemis finished. At the mention of the phrase love with men, Aphrodite turned to look at Artemis strangely. Her gaze was felt by the goddess in question, who was trying her hardest to remain solemn. The last thing Artemis needed was to have Aphrodite questioning a blushing and shy goddess. 'Dammit Zoë!'

"ah-I tu-urn my back upon the company of men, and ask to jo-iin my sisters in all but blood forevermore. To serve and protect Olympus unto my dying day. As Lieutenant of the Hunt, I swear on the River Styx to solemnly obey this vow; and understand my immortality shall be forfeit should I ever fall in love with men." Thalia shakily finished.

Upon completion of the oath, Artemis laid her hand on Thalia's left shoulder, silver energy pulsing down her arm and into Thalia just above her heart. Thalia's appearance shimmered, then reformed. Gone was the black, punk rocker look; in its place was a circlet of silver with a sapphire in the middle of her forehead around Thalia's unruly hair. Her clothes were replaced with a silver coat with a white camouflage pattern. On her back was Aegis and a Spear, and around her waist was a utility belt containing several silver throwing knives stamped with the symbol of Artemis.

With Thalia's new appearance, it seemed that an important detail just occurred to Percy. Looking like he found out Santa Claus was not real, Percy stood in disbelief as the fact that he was next demigod in line for the Great Prophecy. He thought of the other living child of the big three that he knew, little Nico DiAngelo. Percy may not have known Nico for more than a week; however, he would be damned if he put Nico through any more torment. He had enough anyway with his sister's recent passing.

"Ahem" spoke a deep voice from the middle of the semicircle of gods.

With all eyes facing him, Zeus sought to regain everyone's attention. The demigods had to be brought up to speed after-all. He paused, then began to recap.

"Prior to your arrival demigods, Artemis informed the council of the state of the world" Zeus began. He turned to dust off his armrest before facing back to the three demigods. "We know of the battle with Atlas, as well as the rise of Mount Orthys. We were also informed of the threat of the ship, Princess Andromeda. With these facts in mind, the following actions have been voted on and approved by this council. I would ask for you to kindly inform Chiron of the developments upon return to Half-Blood Hill." He paused, gaging our reactions.

"With unanimous support, the Princess Andromeda is to be sunk. Poseidon has been permitted to unleash the ocean's full wrath on board" Poseidon frowned at his brother's words. It sounded easy, but was far from possible with the current support the ship enjoyed from Oceanus and the minor gods.

"With a majority support, the demigods and hunters who have successfully rescued Artemis are to be rewarded for their efforts. Additionally, there will be a personal 'escort' who will be monitoring Perseus Jackson as he comes of age, effective immediately" Zeus happily finished. He had a rather large grin on his face seeing the reactions around the room. Although he wanted to outright throw the demigod in Tartarus because of the threat he represented, his daughter made him think otherwise. A personal escort would be good for the boy. However, he didn't like the fact that his daughter willingly volunteered for the position, as there were other responsibilities she needed to overlook. Aphrodite was grimacing, but hopeful as there was a loophole as Zeus didn't mention who this escort would be. Athena on the other hand, looked like Christmas had come early. Poseidon's frown grew, looking at his son in concern. He understood it was for the best, but he couldn't help but think there were ulterior motives about- Athena's and Aphrodite's reactions alone were justification of that.

"WHAT?!" Surprisingly, there was more than one voice shouting their displeasure. Blushing, both Annabeth and Percy turned to see who agreed with them. Their eyes met, and suddenly a bright light emitted behind them. Each of them felt a hand briefly contact the back of their heads, softly pushing them towards one another. Percy could have sworn he heard a whispered, "Now kiss!" from his left.

*SMACK!*

"OW! Oh, for gods' sake!" whimpered a bruised feminine voice.

"STAY AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER APHRODITE!" Athena roared. Grabbing the goddess of love by her locks, Athena dragged Aphrodite to her throne and promptly threw her in it. "AND SIT DOWN!" She finished.

Wincing, Aphrodite rubbed a welt swelling on her cheek as she glared at Athena. Huffing, Athena strode back to her throne and promptly sat down. She turned to nurse her red hand which was starting to swell.

The rest of the gods were speechless. Poseidon looked between Athena and Aphrodite slowly, a puzzled expression was on his face. A second later, the puzzlement vanished an in its place was a very sly grin. 'Ah, the beauty of the sea claims another mortal lady' Poseidon proudly thought, 'If only she wasn't a daughter of Athena… oh well. You have an interesting taste in women son.' Unfortunately for Percy, he could mentally hear Poseidon's thoughts, as the god made sure to give his son his approval. Frowning, Poseidon noticed that Percy didn't react at outwardly at all at his statement. It was as if he didn't know how to react. Worried, Poseidon probed his son's mind from his throne. He saw the barrier over his son's heart… and was far from amused. Glaring, he turned to look at Athena as she nursed her hand.

The other gods were having different reactions as well. Zeus and Hades were struggling to suppress their mirth. Even after clamping a hand over their respective mouths, their azure/black eyes displayed said amusement. Apollo simply smiled after the initial shock passed over. He shook his head and went to check on both Athena and Aphrodite to reassure them that no, their injuries were not permanent/maiming. Dionysus was still asleep, he missed the interaction entirely. Demeter, Ares, Hermes, and Artemis were all smiles at the exchange. Hestia and Hera made eye contact, subtly nodded, and tried to nudge the proceedings along. Hera gave the WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO ZEUS trademark stare after tapping on her husband's shoulder to get his attention.

Zeus went from gleeful to horrified in less than a second. Hera internally pouted, as that reaction speed was slower than his last reaction to her displeasure. Shaking her head, she moved on from such thoughts.

"I believe Percy deserves an explanation for this decision, husband" she simply stated.

"Oh…um…right. That" Zeus stuttered. "Ahem, with my daughters' decision today" suddenly Zeus felt as if there was a snake wrapping around his windpipe as he mentioned the words. Turning, he saw Hera's jaw clench in response. Shivering, Zeus turned back to the demigods and shook off the ominous feeling. He continued, "That by default makes Perseus as the oldest demigod between my brothers and myself. It is of the opinion of the council that Perseus is to be protected. An escort would be able to do this, as well as monitor him so that when the time comes to pass; if he is the child of the Great Prophecy, that he would be able to make the most-informed decision possible for preserving Olympus".

"Oh! Um… so I'm essentially having a personal chaperone?" Percy thought out loud. Somehow, the idea of a chaperone just didn't seem right to him. Even if the chaperone was respectful of his privacy. Somehow, he had the feeling that that would not be the case.

Annabeth, who was still tomato-red from Aphrodite's stunt; was also dismayed at the thought of a personal chaperone for Percy. 'This only makes it harder for me to jump- NO! I mean Strip- NO! NO! Bad thoughts' she blushed, 'Sigh, it must be Lady Aphrodite's throne'. Her heart was beating erratically; it was replaying the moment where Percy's lips were inches from her own. 'If it had only been a few more seconds, I would have known how he felt...' Gaining a happy grin at those thoughts, she began to imagine kissing, then stripping, then de-gowning…. Realizing where she was going with these thoughts, Annabeth knocked her noggin. Calming down, she turned to Zeus who was about to speak.

"Yes. You would be chaperoned to prevent Kronos, or other enemies of Olympus from tempting you the wrong way" Athena chirped. She had to pat herself on the back for the suggestion- as it would essentially allow her to put a comfortable 5-mile minimum distance between her daughter and the troublemaker. All it took was to make it seem like Percy was a threat; which was a skeptical thought at best, for her Dad to give 'Daddy's little girl' her request. She was such a wise bitch like that sometimes. What she failed to mention however, was that the identity of the chaperone had not been decided. 'Sigh, well the chaperone should be easy enough to assign. If it is not Annabeth herself, I should be fine with Operation Chasity' Athena pondered 'If it is, then I simply put the same mind-heart block on her. Which is an easy fix'. The idea of manipulating her daughter was not a fond one for Athena, but if it allowed her plan to function, she would make sure it was carried out to the best of her abilities.

The Fates, who were watching the council meeting from who knows were, sighed and shook their heads. It seemed like some goddesses on Olympus were to learn how fruitless it would be to resist the Lady Fates themselves.

"Alright, if that is settled, let the Feast begin!" shouted Zeus. And on que the epic party began.

LINE BREAK

As it was the demigods' first Olympus-party, they knew that it was going to at least be enjoyable as the campfires at Camp Half-Blood were. They didn't realize the pandemonium that would ensure though. As the muses played, the minor gods and other immortal denizens of Olympus brought out food, nectar, and ambrosia. Someone cleared space for a dance floor to form just outside the council chambers of the Olympic Parthenon. Naiads, nymphs, and minor gods were all getting their funk on. Some were hearing the EDM of Daft Punk, Calvin Harris, and more electronic/house artists and were moshing to the beat. Others in their corner of the floor, were simply ballroom dancing to the classical music they heard. Hestia and Demeter were among those waltzing to the soothing melody. And then there were those who were singing along to old country, dancing to the tune that felt just right to them. Surprisingly, the third group was mostly wearing the silver camouflage of Artemis's Huntresses. Who knew they enjoyed Carrie Underwood?

Percy stood around the perimeter of the dance floor, however tonight was not the night to showcase the trademarked water whip dance routine. Percy came up with the dance routine one night at the camp sing along. Tonight, he was worried about accidentally hitting an Olympian denizen with the literal whip of water that accompanies the dance. Surprisingly, Percy remembered catching Annabeth fascinated with the water whip when she first saw it a day later. When he asked her about it, he was surprised at how fast her face went red. Percy, being the seaweed brained individual he was, asked her about it at dinner the following night. Both were red-faced when everyone else fell off their chairs in hysterics. The betting pool for when the two would hook-up was made by the Hermes Cabin that night as legend goes.

Shaking his head off strange dance routines, Percy frowned. As tempting as it was to go join the country crowd, Percy didn't want to risk his already fragile standing with the Huntresses. He smiled though, as he saw Thalia screaming American Idiot lyrics from the small group of Green Day rockers in the front of the floor. She just seemed so content with female minor gods that it seemed right. 'She made a good decision,' he thought, 'Even if it did potentially set me up for a date with Destiny'. Smiling, he turned to see Annabeth sitting in one of the tables with a few other Olympian denizens. She was amicably chatting away, when she felt his eyes on her. Turning to Percy, she smiled and waved him off.

Percy gave her a thumb up, and proceeded to walk around the party. He noticed to his right of the large recreation room was another room. It was dimly lit and something within Percy seemed to compel him to go forward and explore what was inside. The music from the room was much lower, however loud, deep voices from an argument came from the room. 'That sounds like Lords Zeus and Hades. What in Tartarus?' Percy frowned at the thought. Making his decision to keep the peace, Percy walked to the entryway of the side room. Dionysus was there to greet him, looking miserable and in a desperate need of a drink. He seemed to have some smaller green and white objects at a table with him, as well as a large chest full of Drachmas. The entryway to the room was roped off with decorative rope one would see at a Red-Carpet event in Hollywood.

"Mr. D- what is going on back there?"

Dionysus looked up, noticing Percy approaching the table. He slapped himself for a second, then stiffly answered. "There is nothing here to see Peter, now go away!"

"Dionysus! Let my- HIC, let my S-son come join us!" The source of the voice was one bleary and red-eyed Poseidon. His Hawaiian shirt had a few red wine stains on it, but that did not stop him from ordering another glass of Pinot Merot from the waiting Nymph.

"Dad- what the Hades?" Percy couldn't help himself. He was shocked seeing his dad in such a disheveled state.

"STOP USING MY NAME IN VAIN, DEMIGOD!" Hades thundered. He had heard Percy's comment and was thoroughly annoyed at the tradition.

"I mean no disrespect Lord Hades, my apolo-" Percy was interrupted by Dionysus.

"Porkins, are you going to buy in? It's 1000 Drachma" asked Mr. D. Resigning himself to letting his least favorite demigod crash the yearly poker night.

"1000 Drachma? How the hell am I-" Percy was interrupted again. This time by a soft, alluring feminine voice.

"I can cover him Dionysus; just send him in with his chips!" Aphrodite smiled at Percy. She smelled blood in the water and like a shark, was going to take advantage of this golden opportunity.

At that announcement, the argument between Hades and Zeus over the last hand stopped as Apollo pushed the chips in the pot to Zeus. "D, let him in- we got room for one more! Quickly, we don't have all night after all!"

Grumbling, Dionysus shoved a small stack of green chips and a slightly larger stack of white chips into Percy's hands. Percy was fortunate not to drop a chip in the rough exchange. After words, Percy walked in as Aphrodite got up to cover the Drachma for Percy's buy in. As she came back to the table to sit down, she flashed a smile. "I will be getting those Drachma back, right?"

Gulping, Percy nodded his head feverishly as he had sat next to the empty chair next to his father. He was only here after all to make sure his father was alright.

"Relax s-son! Have yo-ou ever played cards before?" Poseidon stumbled out. Percy hesitantly nodded his head, not understanding where his dad was going with this. Wrapping his right arm around Percy, he tried to reassure him that this was great Father-Son bonding time. Unfortunately, if Sally ever heard of this- Poseidon would be cowering in fear. Sally's wrath was just as bad as Amphitrite's. It said a lot about Sally's influence if she could reign in an Olympian. Shaking morbid thoughts off, Poseidon began to explain the rules of Texas Hold'em as fast as he could.

Now one may wonder at why the gods were gambling in the first place. To put it simply, they get bored at council meetings. Gambling served as a way for the Olympians to relax, as well as it was a 'friendly' time they looked forward to after a dull all day long solstice meeting. Funnily enough, not all the Olympians were here. Hera never was a fan of the pastime, as gambling was a large problem married couples faced. She often pinched her nose in disgust of such thoughts, as gambling sometimes lead to divorces. That word alone was taboo in Hera's mind. As for Lady Demeter, she tried but always ended up losing for some reason. She would prefer to be waltzing with her sister Hestia anyway. Apollo was the permanent dealer. As he was the god of truth, he had an unfair advantage in a game of luck, lying, and strategy. Unfortunately, the one solstice they let Apollo play, he promptly won almost all the Drachma at stake that night and then some. Legend had it that was how Apollo got control of a weird domain, as Aphrodite had nothing else to wager that night. Apollo found the domain of sexual frustration to be very interesting indeed.

Speaking of the domain of sexual frustration, it was a little-known sub-domain of love. Lord Apollo found he could simply manipulate feelings of lust much like Eros could create feelings of love. The one caveat to this domain was he could only do his will when the feelings were already there. He was not Eros; he could not create erotica. Unfortunately, as the self-proclaimed God of Bachelors, Apollo manipulated these feelings of many single mortal men on the planet before comprehending the power he was given. This of course led to terminology such as friend-zone, bone-zone, and cock-blocked. Once he realized his mistake of cursing mortal men rather than gifting them, he tried to give the domain away the following winter solstice but it was not to be. Shaking his head at the mistake he made to his bros, Apollo started to deal out the next hand.

Additionally, every solstice, the gods rotated who was the 'sober and money' bank for the event. It just so happened that Dionysus' turn was tonight. Unfortunately, this was the one night where Dionysus was permitted to drink wine to his pleasure during his punishment. Which was why, Dionysus, while Zeus was not looking, went to sneak sips of wine.

As Percy shook his daydreams off, he set his small stack in front of himself and settled down. Apollo finished dealing out the hand and collecting the blinds and antes. Once Apollo was finished, Percy looked at his hole cards as he was first to act. A Seven of Diamonds and a Duce of Clubs. Percy called the big blind, not knowing any better. Following Percy's call; Poseidon, Artemis, Aphrodite, Hades, Hermes, and Athena all folded. Ares called the big blind, who was Hephaestus. Zeus also called, and Hephaestus checked.

Apollo, seeing that action was done, collected the blinds and antes. Setting the pot aside, he burned the first card in the deck face down and flipped the Two of Hearts, Queen of Clubs, and the Jack of Diamonds. Zeus was first to act, in which he checked. Hephaestus put a raise of 15 Drachma, and Percy found himself in a pickle.

'What is even good in this game?' he wondered. He understood he needed to relate his cards to one another, but beyond a pair or a flush, he was a little clueless. His inner thoughts must have betrayed him when another voice in his head made itself known.

'Bro, a 7-duce off suit is the worst starting hand in this game. Folding would be your best bet.' Apollo wisely answered in his head. For the purposes of this game, the gods and goddesses participating in poker night swore on the Styx to not communicate in this manner for the integrity of the game. Apollo was the exception, as he was the god of foresight after all. Percy however, had a gut feeling. Between the god of womanizing and his gut, Percy called Hephaestus' bet. Apollo frowned, wondering why his favorite demigod acted so rashly.

Seeing Percy's call, Ares also called, counting his lucky stars of the opportunity to beat both Hephaestus and Percy. Zeus, seeing the raise, contemplated for a minute and a half prior to folding. At that action, Poseidon couldn't help but shake his head at the proclaimed god of theatre's antics. He would have called the clock on Lord Zeus, if he was not afraid of having a lightning bolt strike the deep-sea jewels.

Apollo once again, collected the stacks from Ares, Percy, and Hephaestus. He then flipped over the penultimate community card, the Seven of Clubs. Percy couldn't help but slightly smile seeing the card. Unfortunately, Hephaestus saw it and checked as he was first to act.

Percy, confirming the god's suspicions, bet a small stack of Drachma. Ares, not believing in beginner's luck, instantly called. Hephaestus folded, giving a knowing grin on what was sure to happen.

Apollo one last time, collected Percy's and Ares' bets, and flipped over the Seven of Spades. Percy, being Percy, thought that to win the pot, he needed to keep on betting. Well, at least that was what his gut told him to do anyway. With little fanfare, Percy pushed in a good chunk of Drachma.

Ares, thinking he had the best hand with two pair, was struggling with his decision. He had had a fair bit to drink, and the buzz was well, affecting his decision making. Fortunately for him, Ares only called. Upon seeing Percy's made full house, Ares felt like he got sucker punched. His Queen-Jack was trumped.

Apollo, during Ares' embarrassment and the loud laughing of other Olympians, pushed the pot to Percy. "Nicely done cousin!" he praised. Turning to the cards, he shuffled them up and began to deal again.

After the first hand, cards began to fly at a frenzying pace. The betting was fast, but had an element of conservative play. The largest pot was only a fraction of the large pot between Percy and Ares. The gods and goddesses were worried about their reputations with Percy in the room. They were aware that the Son of Poseidon would not be drinking tonight. That meant whatever happened in the room could end up as gossip the next day at Camp Half Blood. A thought which specifically made one moon goddess, very nervous. Fortunately for said goddess, this seemed to be one of her better nights, as Artemis' stack was steadily swelling to a large size.

For everyone else, it seemed that their stacks were more less the same as they started the night with, with a couple of notable exceptions. Ares and Athena both found their chips going towards Artemis and the other players over the next few revolutions of the blinds. Frowning, Athena couldn't help but wonder if it was simply luck, or some bad reads she was making on her opponents tonight. For Ares, frustration was visibly present behind the shades he wore. His eyes, normally flickering red-orange, were now a very nasty royal purple and azure, as they tried to quell the raging storm inside. Seeing that he had maybe a fraction of chips left. Looking down at his next dealt hand, he saw a stroke of good fortune; Ace of Diamonds, Ace of Clubs. Ace-Ace was the best possible starting hand in Hold'em.

Ares pushed his chips into the middle, announcing "All In". Ares had little more than a fifth of his original stack left, the action was justifiable by most professional players. As Ares was the first to act this hand, the rest of the table noted the change in coloration of his eyes from violet to a red-orange. Noticing this change, Hephaestus read that Ares probably had a two Queens at the least. Looking down at his hole cards, Hephaestus was also pleasantly surprised. The Ace of Hearts and the Ace of Spades looked back up to him; an identical hand to Ares'. Nodding to himself, Hephaestus called the rather large Drachma rich bet. It was roughly a quarter of his stack to do so. Seeing the two go head to head, the rest of the table including Percy quickly folded. Ares frowned, he was hoping another one or two would call his bet to make up the chip debt he found himself in. Tring to get more value for his hand, Ares asked…

"Just to make this interesting, Hephaestus, what would you estimate Aphrodite's hand to be worth?"

Dead silence. The air in the room instantaneously morphed from joyous to something much colder. Hephaestus was visibly upset; ignoring the look of feminine fury from Aphrodite to his distant right, he wondered if this was his shitty luck coming into play again. However, it was pocket Aces. Something that he could not fold in Hold'em, much less when with the stakes now. Looking at his wife's expression, he thought to all the horrible things she had done to him. She knew it wasn't his fault that he fell from Olympus, much less had a marred apperance. She was cognizant of the fact that he loved her, as he always had. Yet, she knew what the eons long fling with Ares had done to his self-confidence and emotional well-being. And now she was angry at the prospect that she was a token? Frowning Hephaestus thought 'She wasn't even his to bet!'

"Ares, I'm not betting on Aphrodite's Hand." He calmly replied. "Emotions, as weird as they are, change over time. Admittedly, I am not good with them; but this is not the place to deal my marriage issues". With his two cents said, Hephaestus matched Ares' chip stack and crossed his arms on the table lip. "How many times do you want to run this Ares?"

"Coward. You know as well as I do that you have no backbone," Ares retorted. "Grow a pair and let me take Aphrodite's hand like the good cuckold you are". At his words, there was a brief period of stunned silence.

*SMACK*

Wincing, Ares turned to his right to see who threw the stiletto to the back of his head. He instead saw a glaring Artemis and Aphrodite; both were holding objects cocked and ready to throw at Ares' face. Ares, a fair bit uncomfortably sitting with those glares, turned back to Hephaestus and simply flipped his Aces over for Apollo. "Once is fine with me Hephaestus, All or nothing is how I prefer to go".

Hephaestus, staring evenly back, also flipped his Aces over. Once the rest of the table saw the predicament, they all groaned inwardly inside. There was no way that this pot was going to end in anything but a split pot.

Apollo was one of the few who did not express concern as the hole cards were flipped over. He just had that feeling after collecting the white and green chips, that something unpleasant was about to happen. Taking the remaining deck of cards, Apollo burned the first card and flopped the next three over- the Two of Diamonds, The King of Hearts, and the 5 of Hearts. Upon seeing the flop, Ares frowned. There was no possible way for him to win the hand outright, apart from hoping for a chop. Hephaestus on the other hand, was presently surprised- as there was a slim shot he could win.

Apollo, thinking that this was another routine hand, quickly turned over the penultimate community card, the four of Hearts. An audible gasp was heard from Hephaestus, realizing his chances of winning this hand outright just got much better- and the best part? He couldn't do anything worse than win his money back. Fighting a grin, Hephaestus began to pull out his camera, just in case lady luck was kind to him tonight.

Ares was pale white- his eves, to match his pale expression also reverted a hot white expressing his discomfort of the situation. There was no way he was going to lose this wager! Holding his breath, he watched as the final card was burned, then-

Apollo then flipped over the final card in the community, the Two of Hearts. The moment Ares saw the card, a god size fist slammed in the poker table. His expression was one of mixed rage and fear. Yet, his mouth was open and no words were spoken through it. Just as quickly, the fist was lifted from the table and both hands went behind Ares' head, in a shape resembling a Cobra poised to strike.

*FLASH*

The camera went off. Hephaestus could no longer contain his smile. Fetching an Automation from his belt, he had said automation take the camera to his temple for safekeeping. There was no way he was going to lose that memory, as Hephaestus had plans of framing the image in his temple.

Apollo, grinning at the result, pushed the pot to Hephaestus. "How does it feel?"

"Amazing," Hephaestus grinned back. Ares was still frozen in the surrender cobra stance. He had to be lightly zapped by Zeus to snap out of the bad beat. Coming to his senses, he relaxed and like the idiot he can be at times, dug his own grave further.

"At least Aphrodite will make it up to me tonight," he pouted.

*SMACK* *SPLAT*

The barely audible pout earned him another stiletto to the back of his head and a knife embedded in his left arm. Ichor oozed from the open wound, but a high pitched feminine reply hurt him more than the physical pain he felt.

"Listen well Ares; I am in no circumstance an object to be treated as a prize!" Aphrodite roared. "I am a goddess who deserves the same treatment as other Olympian gods. By no means am I anything less than that." Standing up, Aphrodite's intimidating glare caused all the males in the room to inwardly curl with both hands covering their respective family jewels. "Ares, get out of my sight!"

Percy would have sworn that Ares outran Hermes in the 100-yard dash tonight, as he couldn't recall seeing a blur go faster. Ichor drops marked the path that Ares took to leave the room. Hermes scoffed at the slow speed Ares ran. If that was as fast as he could go, he wasn't worried about his performance in the upcoming Olympic Games.

There was one god however at the table that was not interested in Ares. That god instead looked at Aphrodite with curiosity and puzzlement. Hephaestus couldn't recall a time where Aphrodite acted in such a manner, much less spurned her lover. Sighing, he was reading too much into it anyway. It wasn't like thousands of years of attitude would change in a single night.

Apollo, quickly removed the extra chair and play resumed. Some more time had passed, and the betting became fiercer and bolder. However, none of the hands came close to the Ares-Hephaestus cold beat earlier in the night. Percy found himself taking less and less risks with every revolution of the table, however he was watching his chip stack dwindle. The blinds and antes were taking significant chunks of his stack away from him, and it would only be progressively worse until he won a pot or two. He already owed Aphrodite a grand of Drachma, he didn't need to add to that debt!

Poseidon, for all the fatherly advice he bragged about earlier in the night, couldn't see past his two hands. Such was the effect of Dionysus' super special Captain Morgan and Blue Coke. Poseidon found himself eating blue food all the time now, since Percy has had that influence over him. He just counts himself lucky Amphitrite didn't make the connection between blue food and Percy… his life would be that much more unpleasant if she had. Looking down at his hand, Poseidon saw the Three of Spades and the Four of Spades. Feeling bold, he raised the big blind and crossed his fingers under the table.

Aphrodite, looking at her hand, saw the King of Hearts and the King of Diamonds. Seeing Poseidon's raze, she simply called. Better to trap Poseidon in a net before going for the dagger in the side she figured.

Percy and Poseidon immediately shivered unconsciously for some strange reason. They just don't do nets as they saw them as inhumane and despicable creations that did nothing other than trap sea creatures.

Apollo, collecting the chips in the pot, flipped over the Three of Diamonds, the Three of Clubs, and the King of Spades. The Fates, watching the events unfold, winced. It was full boat over set, a scenario that only spelt trouble for the set. Poseidon, feeling cautious checked the action to Aphrodite. Aphrodite, knowing that she flopped a full house and unknowingly flopped Poseidon all but dead, checked behind. Hook.

Apollo flipped over the Queen of Spades- even worse for Poseidon, as he already had a set and could now improve his hand to a flush… which was still trumped by a full house.

Poseidon, in his gut knew he needed to bet. He still had a semblance of cognitive functionality left. Unfortunately, that section of his head screamed 'I CAN'T LOSE THIS HAND! MUAHAHAHAH'. Poseidon, bet about a tenth of his stack to see how Aphrodite would react. Aphrodite, for her part looked stoic, but was anything but in her head. Heart beating fast with golden ichor, she re-raised Poseidon for the remainder of his stack. She had him covered, but just barely. She was crossing her fingers that he would call, and phase one of her romantic night for percabeth would be complete. Line.

Poseidon frowned at the action, wondering what the goddess of love could have to raise him so much with. Mulling it over in his mind only made it worse, as he couldn't focus on much else than the wonderful buzzed feeling he had with his rum and coke. However, the answer presented itself in the form of King-King. Realizing that fit the story of Aphrodite's hand, he decided. He was about to fold his hand when…

"Poseidon, I will bet the remainder of my stack if you allow me to 'bless' Percy should you lose this hand," Aphrodite quickly blurted out. Sinker. Her bait casted, she saw the great Poseidon reconsider as the chance to more than make up for his losses was appealing indeed. The blessing was a minor thought in his mind, as he was focused on the hand.

Immediately after hearing Aphrodite's offer, Percy paled bone white, while Athena shot a piercing glare at Aphrodite wondering what the love goddess' plan was. She had a gut feeling that this would be troublesome.

Poseidon fought inside a little longer, the seas of rum and coke were doing a number to the poor god. He made his decision a minute later.

"I call; beat this Aphrodite!" He triumphantly smirked. Showing the Three of Spades and the Four of Spades, Poseidon was confident…only to watch his smirk turn into horror upon seeing Aphrodite's pocket Kings… and realizing he was drawing for one out *[1]. Poseidon briefly saw a flash from the corner of his eyes, as Zeus took a quick picture for himself. Nodding at Hades, he promised to give everyone else copies at the earliest convenience, including Mother Rhea.

Apollo grinned, his pervy senses were tingling; he pushed the pot of chips to Aphrodite after placing the Seven of Diamonds on the river to make it official. Aphrodite giggled as she stacked her chips. After the task was done, she stood up to 'bless' Percy, and slip an aphrodisiac unnoticed by the poor demigod into his blue cherry coke.

Percy, who was stiff as a board, was on full-alert. He knew from his prior meeting with Aphrodite that this was part of her plan, and he was nervous as Tartarus on what she would do to him.

"Relax, and trust me Percy," Aphrodite calmly told him. Placing her hand just over his heart, she first sent soothing vibes into the demigod. This served to stop the poor demigod from going into pseudo-rigor mortis, and allowing her to access the point in which a faint owl mark rested above his heart. Aphrodite 'opened' his heart and the owl faded. Athena went immediately on high alert, as she felt her mark fade. It took all of Athena's willpower not to run out to the main party to whisk Annabeth away. She couldn't leave the room unless she lost her drachma or Zeus called it a night.

Percy, on the other hand, felt amazing. Subtle things changed; his scars were removed by the first part of the blessing as well as his apparel changed. He now wore a cerulean button-up shirt with matching black tie with wave patterns. His pants were traded out for a pair of black dress pants and black shoes. Feeling relief thinking that this was the only thing Aphrodite was going to do; he was shocked once he felt a barrier within himself be removed. His heart began to scream in excitement. Now being able to communicate to his consciousness, Percy's heart conveyed newfound feelings to the poor demigod. As a demigod, he grew up a little bit faster than normal mortals; the reason for this is quite simple. Demigods usually die young. To experience everything the world had to offer, things had to be sped up. Which was why at the ripe old age of 14, he felt more like a mortal 17-year-old.

He wondered what this warmness he felt was. He thought of his mother, and his heart responded in kind. He thought of good old reliable Grover, and his heart was amused at his antics over the past few years. He thought of Luke, the older brother figure turned traitor. His heart was sympathetic, felt a pang, but was very jealous of Luke. Why in Tartarus was he jealous of Luke? He thought of Annabeth and how great her ass looked to him. His heart thumped even harder than he thought was possible. A warm feeling spread throughout his body at the mere thought. Percy's features red as other suggestive thoughts on what exactly he could do with Annabeth's hair came to his mind. Along with the suggestive thoughts, Percy thought of the innocent water whip question he asked of Annabeth. As the innocent question now had a new connotation, Percy went crimson from head to toe. 'Oh gods! I didn't ask her that in-front of the whole camp?! Wait, she likes that stuff?!'

Apollo couldn't take it anymore. Seeing the large crimson blush on his face, the god of sexual frustration collapsed to the floor laughing. Poseidon, still devastated from his loss, was too busy sulking to notice. Hermes, Hades, Zeus, and Dionysus shared knowing grins. Artemis and Hephaestus looked just as puzzled as Percy was, as they didn't understand why the son of Poseidon was reacting so strangely to the blessing.

Athena looked ready to murder Aphrodite now. She told her daughter that the sea was nothing but trouble. Her daughter knew of the rivalry between herself and Poseidon. Her daughter knew forbidden fruit was not to be touched for a good reason. She knew the Tartarus-crap Percy would go through in the next few years, and wanted her daughter to be safe from all of that. She wanted what was best for her daughter, 'Hades-dammit!' she cursed. Just the thought of her daughter and Percy made her skin crawl more than spiders!

Unfortunately, while she was fuming, Athena didn't notice the little pill Aphrodite slipped into Percy's Blue cherry coke. That same glass from which Percy was drinking from at this very moment. The only individual who did apart from the culprit herself was Apollo. He felt as if he could write an epic based on the exploits that were likely to follow. 'Gi-gi-giggity!' he thought with joy. He refrained from making the accompanying hip-thrusts for fear of giving the knowledge of the aphrodisiac away. After Apollo composed himself, he began to shuffle out the deck and deal the next hand of cards.

Poseidon decided it was time for him to return to Atlantis, as he didn't need to bet anything else tonight. Hugging his son goodbye with all his chips a part of Aphrodite's stack, he left the poker room in a sea breeze.

With his father gone, Percy began to get uncomfortable sitting next to the love goddess. For good measure, she scooted a bit closer to Percy, while removing Poseidon's now vacant chair. As the cards for the next hand were delt, Aphrodite leaned into the demigod.

"Percy," Aphrodite whispered.

"Yes L-Lady Aphrodite?" He stuttered. He was very much flustered from images of Annabeth in suggestive poses in his head, courtesy of the fast-acting aphrodisiac.

"I will forgive that loan of Drachma if you get Athena to bet Annabeth's hand," she whispered back.

Percy looked dumbstruck. Then shivered as he heard a wheat-stone grind on metal. Turning to the source of the sound, he saw Athena casually sharpening her spear. However, what was more disturbing was the fact that Athena's grey opals were eye-locked on him. It was as if they dared his soul to make one toe-step out of line. Without the soothing presence of his father, Percy had to contain himself from bolting the room as it was.

Turning his head away from the raging storm known as Athena, Percy saw Hephaestus frown at him. Something within Percy broke at the sight. The god of the forges has gone through so much in his lifetime. Percy wondered if the closeness in which Aphrodite was to him now, was the cause of Hephaestus' downcast expression. He just had this gut loyalty to make it up to Hephaestus…

"Aphrodite, I will only do that if you forgive my loan and swear on the River Styx to give Hephaestus a chance," Percy didn't know where the words came from, but it was said louder than he intended.

Aphrodite looked intently at Percy then in disbelief. 'What- where did that come from?' she frowned. Aphrodite; the goddess of love, romance, and everything in between; give Hephaestus, a marred god, a chance? Ha! A fat chance in Tartarus that was. She felt little, if any affection for her despicable husband. For eons, love has always been defined by outward appearance of individuals, nothing more and nothing less. That was why the goddess always felt the need to change form, as everyone's idea of love was different. For the whimsical goddess, she was these ideas personified. She was the crux of love, set in stone for eons. Her admitting Hephaestus was attractive in a way was an affront to the idea of personal appearances. 'Gods forbid, what would happen in the world should that idea change?' Aphrodite was conflicted.

However, that crux of love was why Hera treated Aphrodite with distain. Hera witnessed more mortals' marriages crumble day after day, because mortal appearances change over time. Was the story of Narcissus not enough for the ditsy goddess? What Aphrodite failed to realize, as Hera had, was that love took other forms as well. The love of family was the first of which that came to the Queen's mind.

The Fates smiled at their champion then. They knew that better things were to come out of this night than any other. Maybe more couples could form if Aphrodite was to rediscover what love meant. Hera saw it from day one- well, after she dropped her son in disgust.

"Perseus, you ask for much of me. Why?" Aphrodite urgently pressed. Trying to keep her voice low, she failed as the rest of the table stopped play to ease drop on the conversation across the table. Hephaestus himself could hardly breathe as he tried to listen into the conversation.

Finding it difficult, his newly 'opened' heart put it best. "Because, you never know unless you try, Aphrodite," Percy replied. "Has he ever done anything degrading to you in the past? Hasn't he always kept your best interests in mind?"

Aphrodite scoffed hearing that. Hephaestus always was trying to embarrass her in front of everyone else. She was tired of having to sneak around because of the threats those blasted automations were. She was furious that he couldn't see she friend zoned him, and was livid for the past centuries she was in this predicament for. But why was her own heart uneasy at the thought? It was in pain, and as well as she could help others' love lives, she never knew how to solve her own. 'For Percabeth' she grimly told herself. She took comfort in the fact that the term a try was very vague, it was an easy loophole to exploit.

"I Aphrodite, swear on the River Styx to give my husband Hephaestus 'a try'". Thunder across the evening sky was the bright response. As the thunder struck, Aphrodite could have sworn she heard a whisper. 'This is an easy vow to keep on my river. I think you will find it to be much less troublesome than you could ever imagine'. Feeling as her two cents were said, Lady Styx's presence retreated from Aphrodite's mind.

Upon hearing her vow, Hephaestus had tears in his eyes. Overcome with emotion, the large god stood up and immediately captured Aphrodite in his warm embrace. Aphrodite was frozen in shock at the contact. Her arms couldn't move at first, frozen at the contact. Then, they slowly raised up to encircle the large god to return the gesture. At the sight of Aphrodite's reaction, the rest of the table smiled.

Hera, sensing the overwhelming positive emotion within her domain, flashed into the Poker room. Realizing where she was, and how much she despised the game, she moved to slap Zeus. What made her hesitate her motion was the heartwarming embrace she saw between her son and daughter in law. 'Ah,' she thought, 'See! I told her I was right! Humph. Take that, goddess of love!' She smiled seeing one of the most infamous marriages returning to the right path. It was far from whole, but it was a start she noted.

As much as he hated to break the moment, Apollo knew he had to hurry things along. "Are we ready to continue ladies and gents? Aphrodite, Hephaestus; I can deal you two out if you would like that?"

Coming to their senses, the pair separated and nodded. As they left the table, Aphrodite turned to look back to Percy. Smiling, she made the peace hand gesture to the demigod. Turning away, the couple grabbed a seat on the love cushion couch in the far corner of the room and began to talk. Hera, noticing this, smiled and walked over to moderate the conversation. Pulling out a large book titled Marriage Vows, the Queen approached the couple and sat down in a chair formed out of thin air. As she sat down, large velvet drapes came out from the wall to hide the sight away from observing eyes.

Percy smiled. His good deed was done for the day, he turned to the table with a happy grin. Looking up, he saw Athena glaring at him once again. That grin morphed into an expression of terror. This time, Athena was spraying her shield with a 'mortal blood repellant'. Polishing the surface until the celestial bronze gleamed, her piercing gaze was still locked onto Percy's sea green eyes. Paling, Percy the seaweed brained individual he was, suddenly remembered the deal he just made with the Lady of Doves.

I'm so fucked he dully thought. His heart for once, agreed.

LINE BREAK

Author's notes: I meant for this to be a one-shot, but 14K+ words were more than enough for one chapter. This is the re-edited first chapter with grammar fixes and it took me the better part of my Sunday to update this! Please review and I will have a second part up for this hopefully after Xmas time when I have more time to work on this. In the conclusion of this two-shot, I will have more poker hands as well as a solid conclusion that hopefully ties into cannon. I will be tying these poker hands into scenarios that have happened in real-life for a more interesting take on what happened in these hands.

Imbedded Author's notes

*[1] Outs refers to the number of cards a player who is behind in the hand can have dealt to win the hand. In this instance, Poseidon could only beat Aphrodite's hand with the Three of Hearts. As of all the hands he could make to beat Aphrodite's full house, he needed to make a four of a kind. Thus, this was an instance where Poseidon had one card remaining in the deck that would allow him to win the hand. As for the flush, that is considered inferior to a full house. Google search 5 card poker hands to see the hierarchy from lowest to highest.

Feel free to PM or positively critique this work as you may.

Until next time, Fox Two!

Mobius Legacy