Three Times Two

by Takara Phoenix

Charles and Silena didn't die during the Titan War and grew to become parental figures to Leo. They disapprove of the Romans who seem so obsessed with Leo since the war. Frank and Hazel disapprove of those 'strangers' and their intentions toward Percy. Now they're all moving in with Jake and Nyssa and, well... Charles/Silena/Percy and Frank/Hazel/Leo

PJatO || In3pendensome || PJatO || Three Times Two || PJatO || Frazeleo || PJatO

Title: Three Times Two – The Slightly Different Rooming Arrangement

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; post both series

Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, they belong to the old Greeks. This fanfiction and its OCs on the other hand are entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, hetero, threesomes, fluff, hurt/comfort, dealing with the wars

Main Pairing: Charles/Silena/Percy, Frank/Hazel/Leo

Side Pairings: Charles/Silena (established), Frank/Hazel (established), Jake/Will (mentioned)

Percy Jackson Characters: Perseus Jackson, Silena Beauregard, Charles Beckendorf, Leo Valdez, Hazel Levesque, Frank Zhang, Jake Mason, Nyssa Black

Summary: In a world where Charles and Silena lived, how would they have changed Leo's life? With the two overly protective parental figures, Leo doesn't really know how to approach Frank and Hazel though. And then there are Charles' and Silena's desires for the pretty yet oblivious Sea Prince. Once you throw all of them together into one apartment, disasters ensue.

Three Times Two

The Slightly Different Rooming Arrangement

The apartment was rich. Literally so. Most likely because it was owned by the daughter of wealth. Not only by her, but her connection to riches had made it easier to find a nice, spacious apartment in New York. Nyssa smiled amused as she carried a box over to the room designated to be Leo's.

Many things had changed in the past year, she mused.

They had thought the Titan War had been rough. It had by far not been their hardest challenge.

The thought of the Titan War made her shudder. She had nearly lost the two people that had been like parents to her ever since she had joined camp. Beckendorf, her oldest brother and the leader of the Hephaestus cabin, nearly had died during a quest with Percy Jackson. That had been the only time Percy's crush on Nico had actually proven to be useful, because the son of Poseidon had insisted that quests, any quest, should be taken by three demigods as it was intended and that they should take the shadow-traveling demigod with them in case something went wrong. Something went wrong. But Nico had found just enough energy to bring himself and Beckendorf to safety, albeit he couldn't transport them too far, but far enough to be out of harm's way. Silena Beauregard, girlfriend of Beckendorf and considered the mother of the Hephaestus cabin to complete Beckendorf's fatherly figure, would have died without Percy too. But with the aid of a little water, he had been able to use his healing powers on her and restore enough energy in the daughter of Aphrodite until the children of Apollo reached her and saved her life during the Battle of Manhattan. Nyssa knew of the couple's infatuation with Percy Jackson. It had been the reason Beckendorf had gone onto that mission to sabotage the Princess Andromeda to begin with. Because he didn't want Percy to go alone.

Reaching Leo's room, she dumped the cardboard box next to the ones labeled as Percy's. Those two as roommates, she already saw the chaos it would cause. But she had seen that one coming.

The Titan War had not been the last cruelty they had seen.

The Giant War though had brought them something new, something valuable, something lovable. Short, it had brought them Leo Valdez, who in Nyssa's books was one of the most adorable things ever. The Latino was insecure and lonely, had been living on the streets all alone for too long. It had woken every motherly instinct in Silena and every protective big sibling instinct in Beckendorf, Jake and Nyssa. They had taken the boy under their wings and helped him through.

Not that they were the only ones with a new sibling. Silena too got a younger sister to tend to. But Piper had soon become someone else's responsibility as she had started dating Annabeth Chase.

Fighting the war was hard, adjusting to normal life after it had become a little harder even.

Percy had met and befriended two Romans, Frank and Hazel, during his stay over there. That stay was, at least to Nyssa and Jake, better known as Charlena's Yearning (not that Beckendorf and Silena knew that they secretly called them that when talking about them, or that the two younger children of Hephaestus knew about the couple's feelings for Percy). Much to the dismay of the older children of Hephaestus, Leo had fallen head over heels in love with Frank and Hazel during the quest of the Seven. A horrible time where Beckendorf and Silena were worried out of their minds, not just for the Sea Prince they loved, but also for the younger siblings they had only just gained.

Due to Leo's (albeit secret) feelings for Hazel and Frank and Percy's deep friendship, the rooming arrangements that Beckendorf and Silena had planned for months had needed some adapting.

Beckendorf and Silena had wanted to move to New York, live as close to Percy as possible. Losing him to Hera and then losing him to Tartarus, they would never let him go unsupervised again. They had wanted to move in together with Nyssa, Jake and Leo, because the four children of Hephaestus wanted to open a car shop together. Much to their surprise though, Silena and Charles, they had two pair of big, pleading eyes aimed their ways and two slightly embarrassed and maybe a little grumpy Romans. Percy didn't want to be alone again, but as Leo had explained that he wanted to move together with his three older siblings, Percy knew where he wanted to be, where he wanted to belong. Seeing as Piper and Annabeth were moving to San Francisco to be close to both their parents and Jason and Reyna had gone back to Camp Jupiter, Percy had begged to join them. With Percy also came Frank and Hazel. Nyssa knew why. Two reasons. One was because they really wanted to get into Leo's pants, like seriously. The other was that they had developed a sibling-like protectiveness over Percy. The trio rescuing Thanatos, then attending the quest of the Seven, they had grown close. And Frank and Hazel knew of the impure intentions Charles and Silena had toward Percy. On the same note, Charles and Silena also knew of the impure intentions Frank and Hazel had toward Leo. Ironically, both couples sabotaged each other as best as possible, each trying to protect their charge from heartbreak when, really, all of them could live happily ever after if they wouldn't be that stubborn. Now Nyssa and Jake were stuck living with six love-sick people. If Charles and Silena would have had a say in it, they wouldn't have allowed Frank and Hazel to move in. But they couldn't deny Percy when the Sea Prince turned those wide, begging sea-green eyes on them. And Hazel had made the whole finding a car shop with a loft above that was spacious enough for now eight people way easier due to her Pluto powers. Ever since her curse was broken, she had access to riches without anyone dying. With that kind of money, it was easy to find a place.

"Thank you, Nys", chimed Leo as he passed his sister and kissed her cheek.

"Yeah, yeah", huffed the daughter of Hephaestus and ruffled his hair. "It would be easier to say no to you if you weren't that adorable. Damn you."

"I think this is going to be pretty awesome", hummed Percy as he followed his roommate.

He wrapped one arm around Leo's shoulders, grinning broadly. This was going to be torturous, Nyssa knew it. Rolling her eyes at them, she left their room again to get back to her own which she was sharing with Jake. She had been sharing a cabin with him and their other siblings for long enough, it had been kind of weird to sleep in a room all alone at first anyway.

/break\

Silena hummed softly as she stood at the stove and finished breakfast. Blueberry pancakes, especially for Percy. A delighted grin spread over her face and lit her eyes up as she thought of the pretty Sea Prince. She had been intrigued by him ever since they had retrieved Festus together – Percy, Silena, Charlie and Annabeth, that is. Percy had such a big heart, such a bright smile and he was such a cute thing. Silena knew she needed to have him. But she kept silent about it, because she already had Charlie and she couldn't expect to get both of them. After the quest where Charlie accompanied the two sons of the Big Three to the Princess Andromeda though, Charlie confessed to her that he was very much in love with Percy too. The two of them had planned in great details how to make Percy Jackson theirs, but the titans had demanded their full attention. And after the war, Percy hadn't been ready yet to get romantically involved. They wanted to give him some time to get settled again, to cope with the losses and the pain the war had put him through. So they had changed their plans. Silena had planned a sweet, romantic Christmas dinner, just for the three of them and as a personal Christmas present for Silena and Charlie, they wanted to unpack the Sea Prince. But as fate had deemed it, Percy got abducted by Hera before Christmas. Then came the Giant War. Now that this war too was over, they were even more determined than ever to claim Percy and make him theirs. There was just one problem. Well, two problems. Namely, Frank and Hazel. The Roman couple had caught on and they did not like the notion of two 'strangers' 'suddenly' invading their friend's life. They had only met after the war was over and to them, Charlie and Silena did not belong to Percy's and Leo's lives. Silena snorted annoyed at that. A couple of weeks with Percy didn't give them any right to be so protective over the Sea Prince. Then again, it also somehow made her happy that Percy had fought this war with friends so determined to protect him. It still annoyed her that Frank and Hazel butted in on every occasion where Charlie and Silena tried to make a move. But payback was a bitch and Charlie and Silena made sure to never leave their adorable firebug alone with Frank and Hazel. She was a daughter of Aphrodite, she could sense the dirty, dirty intentions they were having with her baby. He wasn't hers, she knew that. But being Charlie's girlfriend had made her feel responsible for the younger Hephaestus children, especially the lonely, cute Latino. He was too pure and innocent to be corrupted by those Romans. So now her and Charlie were dancing an awkward dance with Frank and Hazel, each couple trying to come close to one of the two cute Greeks while simultaneously trying to protect the other cute Greek from the other couple. It gave her and probably everyone involved a headache.

"Good morning, Silly", grinned a soft voice from behind her. "Morning Jake, Nyssa."

Turning some, she looked at the brightly smiling Sea Prince. Percy was only wearing his blue boxer-shorts with the little Flounders and the logo of Disney's The Little Mermaid. They were cute and they fit Percy's happy and carefree nature. And they showed off all the... well, all the Percy, in lack of a better word. A bright blush lit up Silena's face as she checked the Sea Prince out. Percy wasn't the cute little boy she had first met, he was strong and lean, long legs, tanned skin, ripping muscles, pink cute nipples, sea-green and deep eyes, those very kissable, reddish lips and his raven-black hair pointing up into every possible direction as he had just woken up. There were things she didn't want to see too, like all the scars littering Percy's otherwise perfect body, the reminders of all the pain her beloved little Sea Prince had been through. He gave Silena one of his charming, breathtaking smiles as he ran one of his hands through his hair.

"Morning, Percy", smiled Silena. "How was your first night here?"

She expected him to sit down at the table with the two children of Hephaestus, but it seemed Percy wasn't as spoiled a brat as Jake and Nyssa. Then again, Silena was at fault for that with the way she took care of the children of Hephaestus. Sally must have done a better job raising Percy. Instead of sitting down, Percy was resting his chin on Silena's shoulder to look at what she was doing.

"Blue pancakes!", yelped Percy happily. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"It's so easy to make him happy", snorted Jake with one raised eyebrow.

Grinning broadly, Percy wrapped his arms around her waist in a grateful hug. She turned some to ruffle his hair affectionately, getting lost in those deep, beautiful sea-green eyes. Leaning over some, she placed an innocent kiss on Percy's cheek, turning them a bright, embarrassed red. It was so easy to make the Sea Prince blush.

"C—Can I help you, Silena?", asked the son of Poseidon softly.

"Yes. But take an apron", smiled Silena with a nod.

Percy grinned and took the blue apron with the hearts from the hook, tying a bow behind his back and starting some eggs sunny side up. After a little while, he started to tune in on Silena's humming. Nyssa raised one eyebrow as she watched how Percy and Silena worked in the kitchen, completely in sync, not once running into each other's ways. She elbowed Jake, but he only grunted and concentrated on his newspaper, ignoring her in favor of reading.

"Morning, family", grunted Beckendorf in his dark, baritone voice.

He was rubbing his eyes tiredly as he entered the kitchen. The first ones to greet him were Jake and Nyssa, both sitting at the set table, his sister drinking a coffee while his brother was reading the papers. Stepping more into the room, he wanted to greet his girlfriend, already used to her standing at the hearth to cook breakfast for his spoiled siblings. What he saw there though was quite the surprise. Silena had her blonde, long curls put up into a high ponytail, wearing a pink apron over her light red dress. Next to her stood the surprise. Percy Jackson, only dressed in his The Little Mermaid boxershorts and the blue apron they had gotten for him when they had learned that he enjoyed baking. As Charles stepped up to them, standing between them to place a soft kiss on Silena's cheek, he laid one arm around each their waists.

"Blue breakfast?", chuckled Beckendorf amused, staring at Percy.

"It was Silena!", protested the Sea Prince with a pout. "Not me."

"I wasn't complaining or anything", laughed the son of Hephaestus, also kissing Percy's cheek.

"Stop teasing him, love", chided Silena as she leaned up to kiss his cheek. "Sit. Drink your coffee."

"Yes, stop teasing me", huffed Percy flustered. "Or I'll burn your eggs."

"That sounded so wrong", snorted Nyssa and shook her head.

Charles glared at her as he sat down next to his sister. His eyes were trained on the two people he loved. Sadness filled them as he looked Percy up and down. It amazed him that Percy had managed to keep his humor and his carefree attitude after everything he had been through. Only wearing his boxershorts revealed all those horrible scars covering his sun-kissed skin. Two wars, Tartarus and an abusive stepfather had left their marks on him and yet he still had such a positive worldview, not even caring to hide them. It was probably what Charles loved most about him.

"Well, Percy. Did you sleep well?", repeated Silena her question from earlier.

"If you call kicking the air and crying the whole night well, then he did", yawned Leo as he entered the kitchen, dark bags beneath his eyes. "What in the world have you been dreaming about...?"

Percy froze up before slowly turning toward them and throwing the most dazzling apologetic smile in Leo's direction. "I'm sorry. I don't think you're going to have a happy time being my roommate... Haven't thought about it. Should have though. Sorry."

"Thought about what?", frowned Leo confused as he sat down next to Jake.

Folding his arms on the tabletop, he rested his head on them and closed his eyes.

"The nightmares", replied Percy with a casual shrug. "Of Tartarus. The wars. Gabe. I have them every night. Didn't count in that they will probably keep you awake... Sorry."

"Are you... seriously apologizing for having nightmares?", asked Nyssa slowly, ridiculed.

"Uh... Yeah?", nodded Percy a little confused. "I mean, I can manage. I'm used to them by now. But I should have thought of Leo too... The way mom described it, I can get... pretty loud..."

"Uhu", grunted Leo with another yawn. "I'm pretty sure if we wouldn't have soundproof walls to save our ears from having to listen to our two happy couples going at it, we would have had everyone gathered in our bedroom last night. You were really freaking me out there."

"Sorry", sighed Percy again, frowning upset. "I knew this was a stupid idea..."

"Percy", interrupted Silena in a soft yet firm voice, grabbing Percy's face with both her hands, forcing him to look at her. "Are you serious about this? Are you really having nightmares every night? Why haven't you told us about them?"

"What would it change?", shrugged Percy awkwardly. "They're not demigod dreams, they're nightmares. Nothing to stop them from happening. They're about... my life."

"Percy...", sighed the daughter of Aphrodite softly, running her thumbs over his cheeks.

She wasn't sure what to say. Seeing her Sea Prince in pain was driving her crazy, all she wanted was to comfort him, to make him feel safe and not afraid. Her hands slid down Percy's body to his waist so she could pull him into a tight hug, kissing his forehead softly. He shrugged her off though and turned to leave the kitchen again, first hanging his apron onto the hook.

"I'll... take a nap, or something", whispered the son of Poseidon.

"But Percy—breakfast", blinked Leo confused.

"Not hungry", muttered Percy as he left.

"I... shouldn't have said it, right?", whispered the fire-bender upset.

"No, Leo", grunted Charlie, resting one broad hand on his shoulder. "You were right telling us."

He wasn't good with these kind of things, the feelings-aspect of everything. Like all tinkerers, he was better with mechanisms than with feelings. Of course he could relate to the nightmares, he had them himself too. About the Giant War, about his old foster homes and his time on the streets. But Leo had no idea how to handle someone else's nightmares. He cared a great deal about Percy, he didn't want to see his friend in pain. Suddenly, he wasn't hungry anymore either.

"I'll go and wake Hazel and Frank", announced Leo and stood up.

Jake and Nyssa exchanged a look, half pained and half amused. Jake folded his newspaper and got up together with Nyssa. The two of them joined Silena, who was still staring at the door.

"Why don't we finish up breakfast here and you go and check on Percy?", suggested Nyssa.

"And if you're not back in half an hour, we'll just eat on our own. You know how starved Will can be after a long week of college", added Jake teasingly. "And I invited him over to celebrate our moving in. Which is why Nyssa wanted to go shopping today, isn't it?"

"Yeah, because there are things I really don't need to see", chuckled Nyssa, rolling her eyes.

/break\

Frank and Hazel were still half-asleep as they languidly made out with each other. They contemplated getting up and getting breakfast, but that would mean having to face Silena and Beckendorf and as used as the Romans got to the hostility, they weren't sure how well they could handle it that early in the morning. And still they had chosen to come here after the war.

The war had changed a lot for them and while most had moved on to be happy, they had felt drawn to the only two members of the nine who seemed a little (or a lot) lost. Jason and Reyna had returned to New Rome, Reyna was now dating the titaness Calypso and Jason had sort of forced Nico to come with them. As far as Hazel was informed, her brother and Jason were semi-dating at this point. Nico wasn't comfortable with PDA yet or even with admitting it aloud. But Jason was good for him and Hazel was grateful for that. Annabeth and Piper were happy with each other too.

The war had been over for nearly two years now, renovations on both Greek and Roman sides had taken long and had been, at times, nearly painful. They had elected new praetors recently and Frank had been more than grateful to give his title to Nico – the boy who had helped save them all, without being part of the Seven, the ambassador of Pluto. And Hazel thought that this kind of thing was the boost Nico needed to grow more confident and feel more valued.

They all were moving on in their own pace, only Leo and Percy seemed to be drifting around. And now the two Greeks had decided to move in with Leo's older Greek siblings. It had been weird for Frank and Hazel after the war, when all had met in Camp Half-Blood, to see those two complete strangers fawning over Percy and treating Leo like he was their son. Somehow, during the quest of the Seven, it had felt like Annabeth, Leo, Piper and Percy were, well, all. All Greeks. But that they had such deep ties to the Greeks, to other Greeks who Hazel and Frank didn't know, it was weird to them. Sadly enough, Leo's oldest brother Beckendorf had a girlfriend who was a daughter of Aphrodite and it didn't take her long to recognize the feelings Frank and Hazel had for Leo. The two older Greeks went into protective-mode and ever since the return from the war, Frank and Hazel hadn't gotten to spend a single second alone with Leo. Which was also weird for Frank and Hazel, because during the quest, both had spend most of their time with Leo actually.

And then there was the matter of Percy, who ever since the trio had rescued Thanatos, had become one of their closest and most cherished friends. So when those two pedophiles – they were at least five years older than Percy, after all – had started shadowing Percy, the Romans saw it in their responsibility to put a stop to that. Mainly so because they didn't know those Greeks.

"Guys? Are you awake?"

Hazel blinked a couple of times, not moving from her spot laying between Frank's legs, with her arms supporting her on Frank's chest. The door opened and their little object of affection entered. Leo blushed instantly and caught a little fire as he stared at Hazel in a lacy bra and panties and Frank in boxer-shorts. Frank and Hazel exchanged a wicked grin.

"We refuse to get up yet", chimed Hazel with a grin. "Care to join us?"

She had not expected for Leo to actually take her up on the offer and sit down at the edge of the bed after closing the door behind himself. But sadly enough, Leo didn't look like he had naughty intentions. He looked somehow hurt. Pained. Like something was troubling him. Hazel frowned concerned and sat up while Frank grabbed his hoodie from the nightstand and handed it to her. It helped him concentrate when Hazel wasn't just barely clothed.

"What's wrong, Leo?", wanted Frank to know.

"Do you have nightmares?", asked Leo, drawing his legs up against his chest. "I don't mean demigod-dreams. I mean... nightmares, of the... war. Of what happened."

"Sometimes I wake up and I still think you're dead", whispered Hazel back, honestly. "I wake up crying, afraid that you're gone forever. Many bad things happened during the war, but nothing was as frightening as when I saw you exploding in the sky, thinking you're dead..."

Leo flinched in guilt. He had given Calypso his promise and he stood true to his promise. In retrospect, he regretted that he hadn't gone to camp to tell everyone he was alive first – and he was aware that his little stunt was the main reason why Beckendorf and Silena practically refused to leave him out of sight and had mutated into full-blown overbearing parents. But he had brought Calypso to New Rome and as much as she may have fallen in love with Leo, just like she had with every other hero who had been stranded in Ogygia, New Rome held something she hadn't seen in thousands of years. Women. For thousands of years, she had been cursed with one-sided love for male heroes, had not even gotten to see a woman and the first time she had laid eyes on Reyna, who had been as punished by love as Calypso herself, something had clicked. And Leo was happy for them both, honestly. After all, he had his family and he had Frank and Hazel. More or less. They weren't his, but they were here, with him and he was content with that.

"I'm sorry", mumbled Leo, eyes large and guilty.

"It's... okay. It's the main reason why we're here and putting up with the united force of your overprotective siblings", grunted Frank half amused, ruffling Leo's curls. "But why do you ask?"

"It's because... I'm sharing a room with Percy now and... he had nightmares, had been struggling with them the whole night", replied Leo, biting his lower lip. "I just.. worry about him, I guess..."

"Oh. I didn't know that...", whispered Hazel concerned. "What are they about?"

"I'm not sure. I can only guess", answered Leo, frowning a little. "But... I mean, we have only seen the Giant War. There was a whole war before that, one that had been building up for for years before unfolding, not just a one month mission like what we've participated in. A four years lasting fight against your own kind. The main enemy of the camps were the traitors, after all. Could you picture having to fight against a member of your own cohort? Or holding the boy who first taught you how to hold a sword during his last breaths..."

Frank and Hazel exchanged a mournful look at that. Of course Leo would know a bit more about the Titan War than them, probably having heard about it from Annabeth, Percy, Beckendorf and Silena or anyone else from Camp Half-Blood while he had stayed there the first six months before the Argo II had gone to fetch the Romans. Still, hearing about it truly was a different matter than participating. Hazel, Leo, Frank and Piper had all been fifteen when joining a 'war' that had only lasted two months. Annabeth and Percy had been twelve when the Titan War had caused the first ripples in the demigodly world and they had been involved with it for four years before it had found its end, just to be thrown right into the Giant War. And like those experiences weren't bad enough, the two had also been through Tartarus together. Honestly, that was another reason why Frank and Hazel had decided to move in here, because they were worried about Percy.

"I don't think anyone can picture what it's like if they haven't been through it", mused Frank.

"But I... I want him to be happy again. He's a good guy and he did so much for the gods... he deserves a break. A happy ending", frowned Leo upset.

"I... Yeah", nodded Hazel thoughtful. "But... What would be a happy ending for him?"

Leo caught his lower lip between his teeth and looked around, like he was looking for spies. "He told me, while we were painting our room, that he's been crushing on 'Charles' and Silena for like years – and not even Nys, Jake or I call him that. That's why he wanted to move in with us."

"Really?", asked Hazel, her face falling. "But... I..."

"What?", asked Leo confused, frowning.

"We've been trying to intervene there because we thought that, well, after everything Percy's been through, he doesn't need romantic confusions", admitted Frank awkwardly.

"What?", repeated Leo, growing a little suspicious.

"Yes, we thought that would be too much for him at the moment", agreed Hazel. "And maybe a little as revenge because they kept interrupting us too!"

"Seriously; What?", grunted Leo rather demandingly. "If you've been deliberately sabotaging the happiness of my parental figures and the boy who's become like a brother to me, you two are in a whole world of trouble right now. And what do you mean they interrupted you?"

"Well, uhm... I guess now is as good a time as any?", inquired Frank, looking at Hazel.

"Sure. I mean, first time the union of Charlena aren't hanging over Leo's shoulders", nodded Hazel.

"What. In. The. World?", huffed Leo, growing frustrated with his two Romans.

And then he was attacked. By lips and hands and Romans. He was kissed and groped and then they switched and someone else was kissing him and the other was groping him and he was pretty sure he was still asleep in his bed. Wait. Was this why Silena and Beckendorf had been glaring at Frank and Hazel ever since they had met them? Why they refused to leave Leo alone with them?

"They worry about my virtue!", yelped Leo in sudden realization.

"Yes, they do", said Hazel after a moment. "But we wouldn't mind... taking that burden from you."

Leo blushed furiously, causing Frank and Hazel to laugh. Frank leaned in to kiss his neck.

"Not now. Don't worry", whispered the former praetor. "After all, we do want to prove your guardians wrong. We don't just want sex from you. We want you to be ours. We'd like to take you out on dates and kiss you and make you happy. If... you'd want that."

"I... I'd want that very much", nodded Leo shyly.

"Perfect. So, let's use the time without your overbearing parental unit", suggested Hazel, grinning.

"Uhm, I think I'd like that too", nodded Leo, blushing a bit.

Frank and Hazel were grinning like sharks at him and then he was pushed onto the bed.

/break\

"Percy, dear? Can we come in?", asked Silena to be polite before just entering the room.

She looked upset as she found her little Sea Prince curled together on his bed. Silena and Charlie slowly approached the bed and sat down, Charles on the foot-end and Silena next to Percy's head.

"It's okay to have nightmares", whispered Beckendorf, running his fingers over Percy's calves in a soothing manner. "We all have them. I still sometimes see the Princess Andromeda burning, the... the demigods who didn't manage to escape, burning alive because of us..."

"Honey, we all carry our burden from the wars", murmured Silena, combing her fingers through Percy's soft raven locks. "But the thing is... you have to share your burden. Charlie and I, we share our burden. Charlie helps Jake, Nyssa and Leo, I help Piper, Mitchell and Lacy. We support each other. And... I had hoped that when you asked us to move in, you'd let us carry part of your burden."

"I don't want to be a bother", whispered Percy, voice flat.

"You're more of a 'bother' by trying not to burden us", stated Beckendorf bluntly. "Percy, we want to help you. But you make things more complicated for yourself and for us by not sharing."

"I just... I feel like it's egoistic to push all my baggage onto others", countered Percy upset.

"Silly little Sea Prince", chided Silena and leaned down to kiss his forehead. "You share your worries and nightmares with us, we share ours with you. We'd be helping each other, Percy. So, in a way, you're sabotaging our healing process too by being egoistic and not letting us help you."

"...That's cheap, Silly",complained Percy with a glare.

"What can I say? I know what buttons to push with you", teased Silena with a grin.

"Now, do you want to tell us about your nightmare?", asked Charles, getting more comfortable.

He leaned his back against the wall, pulling Percy's feet into his lap. Percy protested a little as Silena did the same, just that she proceeded to pull Percy's head into her lap. His protests were weak though, because if he was honest to himself, he wanted to be right where he was.

"It was... about Tartarus... I was so afraid of never getting out again and the whole place made me feel so... so guilty for what I've done", admitted Percy lowly, fingers clawed into Silena's skirt.

"It's alright, honey. You're not at that awful place anymore and you never will be again", promised Silena and leaned down to kiss his cheek. "And when you have a nightmare again, don't hesitate to come to us. Please. Tell me what I can do to make sure that you will."

"Just... what you're doing right now...", mumbled Percy embarrassed. "Just be with me, please..."

Silena's eyes softened as she looked at Percy. He looked so lost and vulnerable and only then did she truly see what the wars had done to her bright Sea Prince. She couldn't help but lean down and place a tender kiss on his lips. He was startled at first, but then he gladly accepted the kiss and started moving his lips against Silena. When they parted, he was breathless. And he didn't get a chance to catch his breath because Beckendorf leaned up and cupped his cheek, directing his lips to another kiss. And for the first time in what felt like years, Percy felt at ease.

"Can we... stay right here for a little longer and just... lay together?", requested Percy softly.

And Charles and Silena couldn't have been more happy to oblige his request.

/break\

All the while, Nyssa was enjoying a breakfast meant for eight all on her own, trying not to think about what Will and Jake were doing in her room, or what was happening anywhere else in the loft.

~*~ The End ~*~