AN: Coming up next is fantasy AU or circus AU, depending on which one I'm happy with first. (Circus is already written, but fantasy is nearly done, and I think I might finish it today. Other ideas in the works include rom-com AU, a kind of pseudo-hospital AU- I can't write angst or tragedy, so it's a pseudo-hospital AU, boarding school AU and possibly coffee shop AU. I also have an odd idea for a special agent/NCIS AU and maybe a fitness instructor one too.)


Sons of the Gods is the biggest boyband on the planet. The five young men that make up the band are obsessed over by young and not-so-young girls all over the world.

There's Percy Jackson, lead singer. (The silly one.)

Jason Grace, lead guitarist. (The perfect one.)

Nico di Angelo, keyboard. (The mysterious one.)

Frank Zhang, bass guitar. (The adorable one.)

And then there's me, the super-hot McShizzle, also known as Leo Valdez, drums. (Or the funny one to those teen girls' magazines.)

Right now, we're the hottest thing since sliced bread and we've got a whole legion of adoring fans. They can't get enough of us. (Which surprises me sometimes.) They can't get enough of me either. (Hey, I'm hot stuff.)

But that wasn't always the case.

The very first time we all played together was in the di Angelos' garage, and we had an audience of zero.

Percy was a Senior, Jason, Frank and I were Juniors, and Nico was a Sophomore.

We had managed to cajole a very, very reluctant Nico into playing keyboard for us, because after being a band for two months, Percy, Jason, Frank and I had realized that we really needed a keyboard. Nico went to our high school, seemed nice enough (or at least according to the others he was- I was convinced that Death Boy was a wannabe serial killer at that stage), and we knew he played the piano well.

Since his dad was away, we'd also managed to cajole him into letting us use his garage for practice.

About halfway through the rehearsal, a really cute girl with cinnamon curls, dark skin and golden eyes walked in. She listened to the rest of our rehearsal, and clapped and cheered after every song.

Turned out her name was Hazel, and she was Nico's half-sister. (Same father, different mothers. Really messed up family. We all have freaking complicated families, actually, and shitty fathers. Maybe that's why we all get along so well. And it makes the band name really freaking ironic.)

That night, I witnessed the weirdest thing I'd seen in my seventeen years.

Nico didn't know whether he actually wanted to join the band or not. Obviously, we all wanted him to, because despite the serial-killer vibe, he was a really awesome keyboardist and he made us sound even more awesome than we already were.

But Hazel pulled him aside, talked to him for a few minutes, and next minute he's kissing her on the forehead (Nico 'don't touch me' di Angelo was kissing her on the forehead!) and agreeing to join the band.

We all stood there and stared at her in awe.

Then she noticed all of our junk food (including the love of my life, Fonzies- wait, don't tell the girls that. Or Festus.), wrinkled her nose and declared that it would kill us.

(No it wouldn't have, with all those preservatives, we'd have lived forever!)

She then proceeded to make us the most delicious gumbo I've ever had in my life (seriously, I've actually been to New Orleans, and no gumbo there beats Hazel's gumbo) and some really kickass brownies.

We probably all fell a little in love with Hazel that night.

Well, except Nico, cause that'd be gross, and Percy, who was already head-over-heels for Annabeth, who'd been his friend since he started high school (according to him) and since Sophomore year (according to her), and Jason, because she was only fourteen years old and Jason is proper and perfect and a stickler for the rules.

Okay, Frank and I both fell a little in love with Miss Hazel Levesque that night.

But she seemed to have taken a liking to Frank, because next thing they've become best friends, she's told him her tragic backstory and they're blushing when their hands touch.

I probably never had a chance (against Frank, really? The human teddy bear? Who looks like a toddler on steroids who joined the Marines? And is the biggest klutz I've ever met? Well, he's also the nicest guy I've ever met, and once he'd finished his growth spurt...But my manly ego took a hit, okay?), but in the end, I didn't mind at all. (Hey, being single and famous is great! Okay, well, I suppose it'd be nice to have what the others have sometimes and not feel like a seventh wheel...getting off topic here, Valdez. Stay on topic. Damn you, ADHD.)

But I'm happy for them, I really am.

Fast forward a few years, and we're all at college together.

The band took a bit of a hit while we were all split up, some of us at college, some still in high school, but we found our mojo again pretty quickly.

Frank and Hazel and Percy and Annabeth were still together and going strong.

We actually started making it (we were, like, playing gigs every couple of nights, which was pretty freaking incredible for a band that started in a garage), and ended up with a manager. (Reyna, who was Jason's best friend. It got messy for a while because she had unrequited feelings for him- I so felt her pain, but she wasn't interested in me for some reason- but it's all good now.)

Somehow (okay, not somehow, but you can read it in the tabloids or on our Wikipedia page and it's kind of boring to explain) we made it to the big time, and we all put college on hold for fame and fortune.

And now we're the biggest boyband on the planet. Rich, successful, famous and popular.

We're currently being interviewed live on TV...and oh, crap, I've gone and zoned out during the interview. Reyna's going to be pissed.

What in the hell are they asking us about?


The presenter, an overly preppy young woman, leans closer to the five young men, smiling in a way that is a little too predatory for Leo's taste.

'So...onto the topic that holds the attention of millions of your fans all over the world. Have you boys got any special ladies in your lives?'

(They've been asked this question a million times, surely everyone knows the answers they give by now, but it seems the media vultures are holding onto the idea that they might reveal a little more each time, or some drama might happen or something. Leo doesn't really get it.)

The presenter focuses on Jason.

'Jason, is there any truth to the rumours about you and the actress Piper McLean?'

(Well, Leo takes it back. This is new. Jason and Piper have been together for a year, but Piper's really good at being sneaky and avoiding the media, since her dad's a famous actor too. Leo wonders whether they actually slipped up or have decided to go public.)

Jason smiles his perfect blond Superman smile.

'Yes, there is, Lacy. Piper and I are very happy together, but I'm afraid you're not getting any more details out of me!'

Lacy pouts, but turns to her next victim, Percy.

'And you, Percy?'

Percy grins and shakes his head.

'I've said it a million times, Lacy, but I'll say it again. I've got a very special lady out there. Hi Wise Girl, Seaweed Brain here! Look, I'm on TV!'

The other four band members, even Nico, all roll their eyes, because Percy's so getting it from Annabeth (an architect) for that last phrase. Look I'm on TV? Sometimes they really think he does have kelp for brains.

Lacy turns to Frank next, and somehow, the guy still gets flustered even though they're not exactly new to the fame game.

'I've got an absolutely amazing girlfriend, and I love her very much...but we prefer to keep our relationship private, so everyone, please respect our privacy.'

He gives the cameras and the studio audience an adorable pleading look (sometimes, Leo swears, Frank can actually turn his eyes into puppy dog eyes), and they all know that everyone will actually listen, because everyone loves Frank. Besides, he and Hazel are really good at keeping their relationship private. It probably helps that their favourite date nights include watching movies at home, cooking and eating dinner together, playing board games and visiting those ridiculously obscure bookstore cafes. And it definitely helps that Nico, who is seriously sneaky (it's like the guy can melt into the shadows or something), is incredibly determined to keep his medical student sister out of the limelight.

Lacy turns to Leo next, and he shoots her his trademark manic grin.

'Nah, I'm single and ready to mingle, Lacy.' He flings out his arms and winks. 'Besides, if I were to pick just one girl, I'd disappoint so many ladies, and this piece of hot stuff can't bear that thought!'

(It hasn't fooled his band-mates for years, but it's fooled dozens of interviewers and millions of fans.)

Nico is Lacy's last victim.

The other four make a conscious effort to not shoot a glance at Nico, but inside, they're all wondering if this is going to be the day.

(Nico had come out to them a couple of years back, but he was definitely not publically out.)

The keyboardist took a deep breath.

'No, Lacy, I haven't got a special girl out there... But I've got a very special guy...and he's actually right here.'

Nico's boyfriend, Will Solace, a freshly-graduated doctor, takes that as his cue to stand up from his seat in the studio audience. (They hadn't noticed him before, so Nico must have actually planned this out really well, the sneaky bastard.)

Everyone else is silent and stunned for a while. Some of Nico's fangirls faint.

Then applause starts to applaud, led by the other Sons of the Gods members, and Nico's face slowly breaks into a grin as Will Solace practically beams.

(He seems to be restraining himself from running onto the stage and kissing Nico, which is probably good since Nico hates PDA and the media would have a field day if he did.)

Lacy, who is still as shocked as the studio audience, smiles at Nico before turning to the cameras.

'Well, it appears that Nico di Angelo is not only an excellent keyboardist, and an incredible songwriter, but he's also a very brave man! That was Sons of the Gods!'

She signs off, and Leo, Frank, Jason and Percy jump up and start congratulating Nico.


Leo hums to himself as he walks down the corridor, a can of Coke in hand.

This interview had been a really, really good one.

Nico had come out of the closet, to a warm reception.

That meant his angst would probably tone done. That meant they didn't have to deal with his crazy need for secrecy, and Will and Nico's mutual moping at having to hide their relationship.

It also meant that they'd have at least one really great song for their next album. Nico had written an awesome song about his struggle with his sexuality. Leo didn't say this very often, but it really, really touched his heart. Genuinely, honest to God, it did. That meant they would probably go with a more ballad-y, emotional tone to their next album, which would mean less for him to do, but then they could also include a lot of the really sappy stuff that Frank, who along with Nico was their best songwriter, had written. It was mostly about Hazel, which Nico only allowed because it was Frank and it was just gushingly sweet, with nothing inappropriate, but there was one about his mom too.

Leo is so caught up in his thoughts that he doesn't watch where he is going. Thus, he finds himself walking straight into someone, and spilling Coke all over her white shirt.

He blinks.

His first thought is that she was really hot, with her cinnamon hair and milky skin.

His second thought is crap, because he's just spilt Coke over not just any girl, but Calypso, the hottest pop star of the last year and a half.

And she does not look happy.


AN: If you didn't realize, pairings in this series are going to be quite strictly canon or could-be-canon. So that means we've got Percabeth, Frazel, Caleo, Jasper, and Solangelo, as this is a HOO-focused series, as the predominant ones, though Dakota/Gwen, Gruniper and Tratie may be mentioned. There will also be mentions, as appropriate to the plot-line, of Calypso/Percy, Reyna/Jason, Leo/Khione, Leo/Thalia, and Leo/Hazel, as there are in canon.