The Fires of Hestia
Mikkal
LEO
"WHEN I SEE THAT STUPID Seaweed Brain again I'm going to make him wish he'd—Gah!"
Leo grinned nervously as Annabeth paced the deck, a slight limp in her steps and a few scraps still on her face and arms. She was alternating between grumbling under her breath (with a few growls mixed in) and shouting angrily at the air when she would rather be shouting at Percy.
She appeared out of nowhere on deck a few days ago, unconscious, bloody, and looking as if she'd gone a few rows with a god. Her cheeks had been sunken in, bags were under her eyes, and her eyes were dead, shattered—much like Nico. She couldn't answer how she got out, who got her out, if Percy got out too, or any other questions they asked her. Not even "are you okay?" because she wasn't. Every night she screamed and every second she would glance over her shoulder in a panic.
They knew nothing and could do nothing to but let her wallow in her nightmares and misery. Only Nico could comfort her in some way.
Until yesterday.
They had a well-tended fire in the dining room, one where they hung out during their rare slow nights and told stories while toasting marshmallows. The last time it had been used for something like that was right before Rome, but Leo still tended to it so it would bring them warmth during their meals.
Last night's meal was interrupted by a young woman stepping out of it, her eyes the color of glowing embers and her hair tied into a high ponytail. She was smiling gently, if not a little sadly.
Annabeth gasped and stood from her seat, whispering, "Lady Hestia," in a voice Leo never heard from her before.
The goddess turned her smile solely on her. "Vesta," she corrected. "Though there isn't much of a difference between my two aspects, unlike the others. I'm glad to see you whole and well, child."
"Did you get her out?" Jason demanded. Leo was surprised at that, usually Jason was painfully respectful to all gods, no matter how much they ticked him off, but something went funky when Annabeth and Percy fell and it just got worse when Annabeth was the only one who came back.
"Yes, I did," the goddess responded sagely. Her form flickered, like bad static, and her hair was suddenly flowing long and free, slightly frizzy like she'd been near heat for too long and she was a young child, then Vesta was back. Leo wasn't stupid; he knew that was Hestia for a second. "I was blessed by Pluto. Annabeth," she nodded towards the blonde, "created a fire, tended so warmly I was able to find it. But I only had the power to save one. Percy chose."
And that was, basically, how Annabeth became grumpier and, as a matter of fact, so did Jason. Apparently their friendship had grown a lot more than Leo thought.
Don't get him wrong or anything, Leo thought Percy was a pretty cool dude. But there was something…off about him. Percy was so powerful, yet he seemed so normal. Something was just seriously wrong about that. Jason was powerful, but he had this air about him that just screamed DANGER! DANGER, WILL ROBINSON!
Percy…Percy you thought was just some stupid sixteen year old until, suddenly, he wasn't.
He gave Leo the heebee-jeebees.
They were on their way to Greece and the Doors of Death in the House of Hades. What was with "the _ of the _" sometimes without the second "the?" The Mark of Athena, the Son/Daughter of whatever god. It was a little annoying.
"We'll find him, Annabeth," Piper assured. "Trust me. It's Percy Jackson. I couldn't go anywhere at camp without hearing his name, that's gotta say something right?"
"Oh, yeah. He's amazing!" She said sarcastically. Leo winced and ducked his head to hide his smile. He did not want the wrath of Annabeth turned on him. "That's why he's stuck in Tartarus!" She slumped against a pillar and rubbed her head. "Sorry, Piper," she mumbled.
Piper smiled encouragingly and pulled her into a hug. "Come on," she said. "Let's get some food. And Hazel. We'll have a girls' dinner."
Leo watched the two of them go below deck, feeling a little bad. He couldn't think of anything that would help, every time he cracked a joke he would get glared at (except Hazel, she would giggle a little, but now Leo wasn't sure if she was giggling at him or at Sammy.)
"We'll get him out," Frank said, he'd been quiet lately. Well, he wasn't exactly a talkative dude in the first place, but he was pretty close to Percy.
Was everyone close to Percy but Leo? Annabeth, she was dating him. Frank and Hazel went on that quest to Alaska—not to mention, Frank was related to him…distantly. Then Piper and Jason had that epic almost drowning/defeating two giants adventure. And Jason and Percy seemed better friends now, most of their competiveness going away with the epic adventure. Nico was his cousin and went through the first Titan war with him!
Leo…the only thing he did was bomb Camp Jupiter—the very camp that 3 out of seven/eight (At this point Leo felt that Nico was the seventh half-blood of the prophecy and Leo was just the pack mule who made awesome ships and ruined everything) of them came from. The camp that Percy fell in love with. (it was obvious).
"I don't know, Frank," Nico said. "I mean… It's Tartarus. Imagine me and Annabeth, but ten times worse because Percy's going to be there ten time as long. An entire month, almost two weeks without Annabeth. Time moves differently down there, it goes slower. two weeks for us is going to be at least two months for him…hopefully." He rubbed his wrist nervously. "He's not going to be the same Percy we know and love, even if he is the most powerful demigod of the century."
Jason scowled and dragged a hand over his face. "I'm going to bed," he announced."
"Dinner?" Frank asked. "You've barely been eating." Frank would know, Leo thought, he's been practically mother hen-ing them all since Annabeth came back.
"I'm not very hungry," was all Jason said before he disappeared below deck.
Soon Leo was left alone when Frank made his way down as well. Leo started moodily at the horizon. This was not what he expected when it came to the epic world-saving question he was told about months ago.
Okay, he was expecting it to be a little easier than this. He didn't expect to lose their friends, especially not like that.
Everyone tried to push out of their heads, but they knew…every time they killed a monster they were just giving Percy more things to fight and possibly die from.
"Valdez," Coach Hedge barked, coming up from where he'd hole himself in his cabin watching movies. He'd gotten a little nastier since Rome. "Go to bed," he ordered. "I'll keep an eye out."
Leo gave him a grateful smile, which the satyr winked at him for—weird—and scurried down the steps. It was quiet. The Mess Hall was quiet and each room—save for three, his, Percy's, and Coad Hedge's—had their doors shut. When both Annabeth and Percy were gone they never those two doors, it was weird now that Percy's was the only one open.
He grabbed some cookies and headed to his own room, shutting the door silently. Leo stuffed the last one in his mouth and crawled into bed, not even bothering to change. For all his luck something was going to attack and he did not want to get stuck fighting in his nightclothes.
Unfortunately, his dreams were strange—not entirely bad, but nothing something he wanted to dream ever again. Except…
He was standing in an empty room, except for a fire that burned in the middle. Hestia kneeled next to it—she was Hestia this time, not Vesta—and stoked the flames. She flashed a smile in his direction.
"Leo Valdez," she said, her voice warm. "I've been wanting to meet you. It's been a while since a Child of Hephaestus had the ability of fire."
He couldn't help but smile back. She reminded him of his mom, all warmth and family but with that hint of a warrior. Leo held out his hands and let flames dance along the tips of his fingers. "Why did you decide to risk saving Annabeth?" He asked. "I thought all gods were suppose to cut all contact?"
"We are," Hestia said. "But where there is a hearth I can not help but be there as well. Percy holds a special place in my heart." She grinned, almost a smirk. "I am still trying to convince his father to let me be one of his patrons. Trust me, it's a difficult position, almost everyone wants it."
Leo was at a lost for words. Percy had gods fighting over him? Really? That was...okay, not as weird as he thought.
"I should've known he would choose Annabeth," she said fondly.
"Why am I dreaming about you?" Leo asked. "I mean. The last time I talked to a god in my dreams was my dad. And then my dragon broke. So, yeah, bad experiences with these sort of things, ya know?"
She chuckled, making him feel a little pride at that. "I'm going to tell you a secret, Leo Valdez. A secret that you're not allow to tell anyone."
He swallowed and stepped a little closer to the hearth, waving his hand around it in lazy circles to create dancing figures. It took a lot of practice with a lighter and it was harder with this much, but he managed to get a few demigods to pop up and being fighting.
"Why me?" He asked.
Hestia watched his little show for a moment before saying, "Because you can save Percy."
Leo jerked back, the figures dying and his eyes widening. "I can what?"
He could save Percy?
She made the flames a little bigger, and little brighter. "What do you know of the Doors of Death?"
"That they're called the Doors of Death," Leo said. "And they're open."
Hestia hummed. "Tartarus is both a place and a being," she said. What did this have to do with Doors of Death? "Empty, yet full. You never know where you are, because there's nowhere to be. When you fall in, you fall for nine days. Just as if you were to fall from Olympus. Percy and Annabeth fell for nine days and were together, fighting, for three more before I was able to find them."
Leo raised an eyebrow. "What does this have to do with the Doors of Death?"
"Nico never found the Doors," she continued as if he hadn't spoken. "Gaea had her forces take him out before he could even try. Leo," she said seriously, catching his gaze and holding it. His throat began in burn in a not-very-pleasant way. "The Doors of Death are impossible to find from the Tartarus side."
He choked. "What? Then…then this is pointless! Percy's going to be stuck and everyone's going to be miserable and the Romans and Greeks are going to slaughter each other because one of their leaders is missing!"
And how weird was that? Percy missing meant that each camp was down a leader. Sure Camp Jupiter had Jason, but something told Leo it still wouldn't sit well with them.
"Poseidon created those Doors," Hestia said. Leo was startled yet again. Man, she kept dropping these bombs of information. He might need to sit down. "In the stories. Tartarus is a cage, with bronze circling it like an area. This is wrong, Tartarus is infinite. As big as anyone could imagine. It runs between the core and surface. The Doors, Poseidon created them from bronze. They are actual doors, that, if opened are a portal."
"Does this mean only Percy can close them from the inside?" Leo asked. He sunk to his knees, falling towards the fire a bit.
She nodded. "Anyone can touch the Doors from the mortal world and it will open on both sides. But a certain god, or demigod, must close them from the inside."
"That's a terrible standard of practice," Leo said, breathless. "Did they never think this would happen?"
Hestia looked at him sadly when she said, "We, gods, do not always think far ahead, so caught up in our own minds we forget many things. If we'd remember so many horrible things could've been prevented.
Leo ran a hand through his hair. "Then how can I save Percy if he's the one who needs to close the doors from the inside? He'll be trapped. And Nico can't do it."
"I gave him a gift," she said. "A very special compass that will led him to the Doors. A creation by Hephaestus, Hades, Zeus, and myself. Trust me, when the time comes, you will know what to do."
And then he was woken by the sounds of Annabeth screaming hysterically, shouting pleads and yelling threats.
Well, that was maddeningly unhelpful. Were all gods like that?
"Percy!" Annabeth screamed.
He winced. At this point, if she was yelling for Percy, no one could wake her up. They just had to watch her suffer with heavy hearts and grim faces.
Leo sat up and ran a hand through his hair before shuffling to the Mess Hall where the rest of the crew were already sitting somberly around the table. Each person's comfort food popped up and no one was eating.
He sighed and sat down. "So, what's the plan now?" They'd never really discussed it.
There was a long silence. Oh joy.
