AN: Yes I'm aware this happened before Rome but Zoe Nightshade is a fictional character just like Percy Jackson, so deal with it! Besides I still want Percy to wield Riptide because it's just a plain badass weapon and this is the easiest way to get it to him. If you dislike the timeline, then just don't read it... I'll live.
50 Years Later
3rd Person POV
Garden of the Hesperides
A giant of a man stood at the entrance of the garden, Golden Apple of Immortality in hand as he walked out of the garden having completed his 11th labor. In his other hand was a sword, celestial bronze with an inscription written in Greek, Anaklusmos. Waiting near the entrance was a beautiful woman with long silky black hair, dark eyes that resembled volcanic rocks and a slightly upturned nose.
"Where are you going next Heracles?" The young woman asked the giant of a man.
"I am off to complete my final task so that I can return to my home." He replied while looking off in the distance. "Thank you for your help and the sword but I really must be going now".
The woman seemed taken aback by his response. "Can I accompany you on your journey or at least until the next town? Now that I have aided you in retrieving an apple I will be considered a traitor by my family. I will be banished from the garden and have nowhere to go now." She stated looking scared of the fact he was planning on leaving her here.
"I am sorry pretty one but my journeys are no place women, I cannot protect you while we travel and I must complete my tasks quickly, I cannot afford to have you slow me down on my journey." Heracles responded as he looked out to the west with a smug smile on his face. The woman simply turned away with a heartbroken and lost look on her face as well as clear betrayal in her eyes. She had helped him achieve his task and he would not even let her accompany him to the next town. Having spent her entire life in her home she did not know what she could do on her own and feared being left abandoned and unwanted in the wilderness.
As the son of Zeus walked away without a second thought, the woman collapsed on the ground trying understand the gravity of the situation she was in. She would be banished, stripped of her immortality with nowhere to go and no one to go to. No one will want to help the daughter of a Titan. She had put her trust in this man only to lose everything in the end. She had even given him her sword, the one she created using her power given to her by her mother the sea goddess Pleione.
Unknown to either of the two, a young man with long jet black hair and black and silver eyes that seemed to pulse with power had watched the entire scene play out from the beginning. He watched as Heracles had used the girl's feelings for him to convince her to betray her family and now he planned on abandoning her now that his task was complete. The young man's eyes burned with rage so bright he struggled to contain his true form. After spending a couple minutes calming himself he decided he would disobey his father's order to stay away from any situation that would bring attention to himself. He knew the circumstances of his birth and what had brought him to his adoptive father whom he loved very deeply. He just couldn't stand to watch someone with power use that power over another in a cruel way, especially against a woman. Without thinking of the consequences of his actions, he teleported himself behind the giant of a man without the man noticing; after making sure his enchanted hood was up so as to make sure the hero would not see his face he decided he would dish out a little justice himself.
Quietly drawing out two throwing knives he waited for Heracles to near a tree before throwing the two knives. They flew by the hero so close that they left two deep gashes on each of his cheeks before imbedding themselves in the tree. Before Heracles could fully turn around Perseus was already behind him with his fist cocked back waiting to unload on the arrogant fool.
"Who dares attack a son of Z….." was all Heracles got out before Perseus knocked him out cold with a powerful punch to the jaw.
As Perseus looked down at the son of Zeus he saw the two deep gashes on his face along with a broken jaw and thought to himself that the scars would serve as a great reminder to the oh so great hero Heracles of his trip to the Garden of the Hesperides. He also saw the bronze sword glowing in the scabbard of Heracles and deciding this man had no right to wield the sword the woman had given him took the sword and left the now unconscious "hero" to wonder who had knocked him out before he could even turn around.
Unknown to Perseus, the young woman had watched the encounter from the beginning and was now staring at the son of Lupa with wonder and fear. Noticing that the ordeal had not gone unseen he decided he would talk to the distraught young woman, return her sword and help her if he could.
"….Wh who are y you?" The woman stuttered out as she watched the young god approach her. As he lowered his hood she couldn't help notice the large canines poking out of the young man's mouth as he was about to speak. She was concerned he was some kind of monster but considering her situation she decided she had nowhere to run so her best option would be to listen as he answered her question.
"My name is not important at the moment. I believe this belongs to you." Perseus replied to the woman still sitting on the ground, tears still visible on her face as he handed her the sword, hilt first. He watched as the sword retracted back into a hairpin at her touch.
"Why did you attack him?" She asked as she began to relax. Despite the vast amount of power the man radiated, she sensed something calming and peaceful about his aura and in his features.
"I watched the entire scene between the two of you from the moment he walked into the garden. I saw the way you trusted him only for him to abandon you once you helped him complete the task." He responded with a look of disgust.
"Ok, but that still doesn't explain why you attacked him… you do not know me and yet you came to my defense… why?" She asked as she looked at him warily but also with appreciation and curiosity.
"I despise people with power who use it against others, especially against a woman…. I have experiences in that kind of situation and will not stand by and watch it happen if I can do something to stop it." Perseus replied as he thought of his mother and the first time they had spoken about the circumstances of his birth. He remembered the pain and anguish in his mother's eyes when the topic came up.
Zoe looked at the young man for a moment as she tried to detect any deceit or lies in his statement. Seeing no sign of deception she decided it would probably be best to thank him for his help.
"Well thank you for helping me and retrieving my sword…. My name is Zoe… Zoe Nightshade" Zoe stated as she thought about the pain and hurt in his eyes when he mentioned his own experiences. Perseus looked at the young woman with sympathy and another feeling could not identify as he contemplated what he should say next. After staring into her beautiful eyes for a moment he decided to tell her his name. This is the first experience he had had outside of the void with anyone besides his mother and he longed for someone to talk to outside of his parents and his father servants and advisors.
"If I tell you my name, will you swear on the river Styx to never tell anyone who I am or anything about our meeting?" He asked his stomach turning into knots as he thought how angry his mother and father would be if they discovered he revealed himself to someone, let alone telling them his name. But the thing was Perseus had never had a friend before. Although he did not know her, there was something about her that made him feel like she could be trusted.
Zoe looked at the man apprehensively as she weighed the pros and cons of swearing to keep his secret. Realizing that he most likely wouldn't tell her his name and leave her alone once again if she did not swear, she decided to agree. "I Zoe Nightshade, swear on the river Styx to tell no one your name or anything about our meeting."
Thunder boomed overhead, sealing the oath.
"Alright, my name is Perseus. But you can call me Percy if you want." He said with a fanged smile.
"Who are you parents?" Zoe asked assuming it was a simple question. She could tell he contained immense power but assumed he was just a powerful demi-god. She became confused when Perseus immediately tensed up.
"That is a much larger question than you may realize." He replied with a weary look on his face. But after looking into her eyes again he decided he would tell her his story, omitting the names of those involved of course. She had sworn on the Styx to reveal nothing of their meeting and he doubted she valued a story over her own life, so it was probably safe to tell her.
"The story of my parents is not for the faint of hearts, but if you wish to know then I will tell you. Sixty years ago, my mother was raped by a god who was more powerful than she was as a minor goddess. Unsure of what to do she fled into the wilderness to deal with my childbirth as she knew if found I probably would have been killed after my birth. As she fled into the woods looking for safety she ran out of time and collapsed from pain. As she was losing consciousness a man appeared and said he was there to help. The next thing she remembered was waking up in a room alone. Shortly after the man walked in with me in his arms and said he would help keep me a secret and wanted to become my adoptive father. My mother agreed and my father has raised me as his own for the past sixty years. I stumbled upon your garden on my way home from visiting my mother." Perseus stated sadly as relived the story of his birth with a couple tears tracing down his face of the thought of his mother's suffering.
Noticing the questioning look in Zoe's eyes, Perseus quickly added, "My birth father is a powerful man who would kill to keep his actions a secret. I haven't said their names for your safety as well as my mothers. If someone found out what you knew, your life as well as hers could be in danger."
Zoe stared at Perseus for a moment taking in his words, when she noticed his tears she reached forward and hugged the young god. After a few moments she pulled back unsure if she was out of line to hug a god, but when she looked at him she saw nothing but appreciation and gratitude in with black and silver eyes.
Deciding to change the subject off of himself Perseus asked his own question, "So what will you do now that you cannot stay here anymore?"
Zoe's expression changed from concerned to anxious and depressed, "I…I don't know. I have nowhere to go now. I'm sure my family already knows what I have done as I can sense I am no longer immortal. My immortality was connected to me being a Hesperide. Now that I am banished I will have to find my own way in the world until the end of my days." She said as tears began to flow freely down her face.
As Perseus watched her cry he went with instinct and immediately embraced Zoe as she cried freely into his shoulder. After a few moments her sobbing began to die down as Perseus rubbed her back silently letting her free herself of her grief. As she calmed Perseus knew who could not abandon her like the arrogant hero had, who happened to still be unconscious a couple hundred yards away. Thinking quickly he decided he knew of only one way for Zoe to find a home and also regain her immortality.
"Zoe, I know of a place you can go where you will find a home, a family, and regain your immortality." He said as he released her from the hug but held onto shoulders so he could look into her dark eyes.
"If I could I would take you with me, but as I told you, my life is a very well-guarded secret and my father will not allow me to bring anyone into my home. Believe me, I would gladly take you with me but I am sure my father is already aware of our encounter and I can't imagine how angry he will be with me. Regardless, so far you are the only friend I have ever had, if you consider me a friend that is, and I will not abandon you. I am going to send you into the camp of the Hunters of Artemis where I know they will offer you a home if you tell them your story. But please I beg of you do not reveal anything about our encounter as it will only cause problems. One day I swear to you I will tell you my whole story. But I cannot do that today." Perseus said as he continued to stare into Zoe's eyes.
As they continued to stare into each other's eyes, Zoe did the last thing Perseus ever expected her to do; she leaned up and kissed him. It was a short, soft and gentle kiss but it immediately sent a spark through both of them.
As they broke the kiss, Zoe blushed a deep shade of red and Perseus followed suit.
"Thank you for everything you've done for me today Percy." Zoe said shyly as she looked at her feet.
"I would do it again in a heartbeat." Perseus said warmly as pulled Zoe's head up so she would look at him. "But I wouldn't mention that kiss around the hunters though." Perseus said with a chuckle as he looked at her.
Before Perseus could say anything else, Zoe reached into her hair and pulled out the hairpin. She handed it to Perseus who looked at it with confusion. When it touched his hand it elongated into the sword he has just retrieved for her from Heracles.
"I want you to have the sword. I made a mistake giving it to him. It would make me very happy to know that it went to a good man, one that I trust." Zoe said with a warm smile.
"I am honored to carry your sword." Perseus said returning the warm smile.
Perseus waved his hand and a wolf pendant appeared in his hand. It was silver and attached to a beautiful silver necklace. "If you are ever in need of help, rub the pendant and pray to me and I will come to your aide. Or if you are away from the hunt and want to talk I should be able to sneak off for a little while and come see you." Perseus told her. "If the hunt asks you, tell them a woman who you met after you were exiled gave it to you. Tell them she is the one who sent you to the hunt. She is a friend who is close to Lady Artemis; she will back up the story of how you ended up in camp as well."
In response Zoe just gave him a bone crushing hug. "Thank you." He heard her say before she stepped back with a grateful smile on her face.
When she closed her eyes she felt herself disappear. When she opened them, she was standing in the middle of a camp surrounding by silver tents with teenage girls all in silver parkas with bows strapped to their backs.
Perseus on the other hand opened up what appeared to be vortex before stepping in to face the consequences of his actions today. Although he was worried, the fact he had helped Zoe made it a little less bad. The butterflies in his stomach told him he would make sure that it was not their only meeting.
Unknown to Perseus, in the throne room of the Primordial Gods, Chaos had watched the entire day unfold with a proud smile on his face as he watched his son save someone from hardship and even got his first kiss from a beautiful woman.
A.N: He didn't take the apple because Heracles will make a few more appearances in the story...
And should only be another chapter or two before it jumps into the PJO time period
