A/N

Thanks everyone for voting!:) I decided to add the OC's, because I don't want any of the canon characters to play such small parts:) Also, I kind of ran out of canon characters I wanted to use that didn't need to be elsewhere! So, without further ado, here is the next chapter:)

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Percy woke up the next morning slightly disoriented, wondering why he was in Jason's living room. Then, all of the previous day's events crashed down, the weight nearly smothering him, and he struggled to breathe for a moment.

Just when he had regained his breath, his chest spasmed and he leaned forward in a coughing fit. Jason stirred from across the room, and he focused on evening his breaths. As Percy drew his arm away from his mouth, he was less surprised than he should have been to see flecks of blood. Impatiently, he rubbed them away.

His head aching slightly, he yawned and stretched, then rubbed his palms into his eyes to wipe away the sleep.

Once Jason woke up, the two of them headed into the kitchen, where Mrs. Grace had prepared a large breakfast of pancakes, toast, eggs, bacon, and waffles.

Not having much of an appetite, Percy picked at everything and nibbled a bit of toast before excusing himself and telling the Graces that he needed to be home.

Jason headed off to school, and, after one last hug from Mrs. Grace and Rosie, Mr. Grace drove Percy to his house.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Gabe wasn't home when Percy arrived. Percy figured he was already at work, and he hoped someone from the hospital had called him, since he really didn't want to be the one to tell Gabe that his mom...

Percy pushed the thought out of his mind, not wanting to cry alone in an empty house.

Instead, he started cleaning.

When his mom had been well, she had always made sure the house was spotless at all times. The carpets were vacuumed daily, the silver was polished once a month, and the whole house was thoroughly dusted once a week.

Ever since Sally had been diagnosed and staying in the hospital, the house slowly dissolved into entropy. The carpets were lucky if Percy remembered to vacuum once every two weeks, and Percy had never had the patience to polish any candlesticks. And dusting? Not once since Sally checked into Samaritan Mercy.

Percy brought out the duster now and set to work on the disastrous area. Fixing up the house felt like he was honoring her memory, in a way, and the work took his mind off things. He scrubbed the floors and walls, polished the furniture, cleaned the windows, washed all the dishes, tidied every room, sanitized the bathrooms, dusted every picture frame, and changed all the burnt-out lightbulbs.

Percy cleaned all day, ignoring his headache and simply wiping up the speckles every time he coughed up blood. When he had finished, it was nearly dark outside, and he was very proud of himself. The house was sparkling, and he knew his mom would be proud.

Would have been, he mentally corrected himself, and he bit his lip hard to stop it from quivering.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts, then checked the fridge and pantry. They were running low on lots of food, so Percy grabbed a few bills out of the grocery fund and headed to the store, not wanting to stop moving.

Every time he stopped, his heart ached too much.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sunday, the morning of the funeral, came bright and early. The weather was beautiful for winter; the sun was shining cheerfully and clouds floated softly across the sky.

Percy despised it.

He dressed in the same outfit he wore to Piper's dad's promotion party, since Jason had insisted he keep the suit jacket. He knew that one was supposed to wear all black to a funeral, but he and his mother had both loved blue, so he felt the dark blue dress shirt was appropriate.

Percy was glad the service was going to be held early; he just wanted it to be over with. The funeral would be hard enough without having to dread it all day.

He knew his day was going to be even harder when he heard Gabe stomp down the hallway.

"Where are you, you little brat?" he screamed, slamming open Percy's door.

This suit must be bad luck, Percy thought wryly as Gabe stalked towards him. Gabe raised his hand and smacked Percy across the face as hard as he could, and Percy's head jerked to the side.

Without giving a reason, he continued his assault and sank his fist into Percy's abdomen, and Percy doubled over, coughing.

As he bent in half, Gabe threw his other fist upwards, hitting Percy squarely on the chin, and he flew backwards.

"This... This is your fault," Gabe spat at him, slurring his words slightly. "It's all your fault!"

Percy didn't respond, he was too dazed.

Gabe shouted angrily, and grabbed the corner of Percy's dresser, shoving it over onto his stepson.

Percy cried out as the dresser drawers fell open, one by one hitting him until the entire dresser slammed into his side.

Miscellaneous items from the top of his dresser slid off and hit him in the face; pencils, a comb, a few CD cases.

"You should've died instead," Gabe said meanly, his voice cracking slightly. "She didn't deserve to. You do."

Then, he turned and stumbled out.

Percy heard him open the fridge and clank a few beer bottles around, and when he heard him slam the front door he slowly slid out from under the heavy dresser.

Gabe's right, he thought, his ears ringing with his final words. I wish it had been me.

Then, he picked himself up and brushed himself off as best he could. He squared his shoulders, trying to ready himself to face the funeral ahead of him, then headed out the door to Gabe's car.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Percy drove to the church he had attended with Jason a few weeks ago, then parked. He sat in the car as long as he could, right up until ten o'clock, when the service officially started. He heard the group inside stiffly singing Amazing Grace, and headed inside himself.

He pushed open the doors of the sanctuary, but when he saw the shiny black coffin glinting at the end of the aisle, his heart stopped.

Open-casket.

Something he wasn't prepared for.

He paused in the doorway for a moment, staring at his shoes, one hand holding the door open, before letting it close and stepping back into the foyer.

Come on, Percy, you can do this, he thought to himself.

The doors opened, and Jason appeared in front of him.

"You okay?" he asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. Jason looked like a model mourner, dressed completely in black with his hair parted and combed neatly to the side. Percy second-guessed his own choice of clothing, but waved it aside with more pressing matters on his mind.

"Yeah." Percy took a deep breath and let Jason lead him towards the doors again.

Jason pushed them open, and Percy bravely looked at the casket once more.

Gleaming, dark, and new, the piece itself was relatively unremarkable, but a flowing green gown was spilling over the edge of it, carefully having been spread out by somebody.

Percy's knees buckled.

No.

Wrong.

All wrong.

His mother had never worn green, since it was Gabe's favorite color, and she would have never worn something as thick, heavy, and impractical as that long velvet. In fact, the only time she had willingly worn a gown was at her wedding. The weighty green fabric she was clothed in for everyone's last memory of her was just... Wrong.

"I can't do this," Percy choked out, stepping backwards and reaching for the door.

"Percy," Jason said softly grabbing his arm, but Percy shook his head violently.

"Please don't make me stay," he begged tearfully. "I can't do this."

Suddenly, the doors to the sanctuary burst open, and a very drunk Gabe stumbled in.

"Lemme see her!" he slurred, staggering down the aisle towards the casket. "I wanna see my Sally!"

Mr. Grace shot up in his seat, with lightning in his eyes.

"Sir," he said furiously, stepping in front of him. "This is completely inappropriate. You need to leave right now."

Gabe pushed him aside. "Don't tell me what to do, smartass."

Mr. Grace grabbed Gabe firmly by the arm and practically dragged him out of the church.

Percy was mortified. Every eye was now on him, and he could feel the judgmental stares.

He glanced again at the beautiful velvet gown spilling over the edge of the gleaming casket.

Mrs. Atropos clucked her tongue and said loudly, "I told you he was ill-bred."

That was the last straw for Percy. Eyes stinging, he thought, I'm sorry, mom, and he turned and ran out of the church, ignoring Jason's calls after him.

He threw himself into his car and slammed the keys into the ignition. He squealed out of the parking lot, hardly noticing where he was going and barely able to see the road through his tears. He tugged off his tie and unbuttoned the top few buttons of his dark blue shirt, which had been making it difficult to breath. He ran his fingers through his hair, making it stand every which way, then he fumbled for the pack of cigarettes on the dashboard. He clumsily knocked into the ashtray, which deposited a small mountain of gray onto his black dress pants. He impatiently brushed it to the floor and reached once again for the cigarettes, managing to retrieve one and light it as he drove.

His hands were shaking badly, and he dropped the cigarette several times, cursing as he did so. Several holes were burned into his clothes from the fiery end of his cigarette, and he angrily threw it out the window. Percy's heart ached, and he clapped his empty hand over his mouth to hold back a sob, though no one was there to see him cry. The lump in his throat nearly choked him, and he gasped for air as hot tears flowed down his cheeks.

He narrowly avoided several collisions, driving through blurred vision and steering with one hand, sometimes with no hands as he lit another cigarette.

His mind was all jumbled, his thoughts making no sense. She hated green. Wouldn't wear the dress. She was right there. Mrs. Atropos was right. Gabe.

Percy had no destination in mind, he just sped down an old country road, wanting to forget that church and everyone and everything in it. He hated it. Percy had no intention of ever stepping foot inside a church again. He would be married in a barn, christen his children in a pool, and make sure his own funeral was outdoors.

So, he was deeply surprised when he found himself parked in front of another church, this one smaller and older, but one hundred times more inviting.

Evergreen bushes grew in a row along the sidewalk leading up to the door, and a few types of flowers that only bloomed in winter had been planted beside them. The sidewalk itself was free of snow, and had been carefully sprinkled with ice.

Percy rolled down his window to get a better look, and when he did he could hear the congregation inside singing a beautiful melody.

Intrigued, Percy shut off the engine and listened to the music for a moment. Quite a contrast to the forced, memorized Amazing Grace he had just heard at the other church, this song was being sung from each person's heart.

Not quite sure what he was doing, Percy got out of the car and stomped his burnt-out cigarette on the ground, then walked up to the door and quietly pulled it open. He hesitantly walked towards another set of doors, where the voices were coming from. He could hear the words more clearly now:

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Percy stepped up beside the door and desperately hung on to every word. When the music was over, he heard the preacher start his sermon, and he was debating whether or not to leave when the preacher said something that caught his attention.

"There is no such thing as an orphan."

Percy was curious. I'm technically an orphan, aren't I?

"No matter who you are, or what your situation is, you will always have a Father who loves you. We have all been adopted by our Heavenly Father, and we are his children."

Percy smiled a little at that. He liked the way it sounded. He crept closer to the door so he could hear better.

Suddenly the door swung open, and a well-dressed man stepped out.

"Excuse me," the man immediately apologized, but Percy was already heading towards the door. The church, the music, the sermon; everything here was beautiful. He realized he didn't want to stay any longer and taint it with his presence.

Ill-bred, he remembered, pushing open the front door.

"Percy?" the man said, and his voice was familiar enough that Percy stopped.

He turned to see Officer Poseidon, the man who had bumped into him, wearing a suit and looking curiously at him.

"What are you doing here?" the officer asked.

"I was just leaving, sorry," Percy blushed, glancing down at himself and realizing he must look a sight. There were ashes all over his pants and shirt, not to mention burn holes, and as he caught a glance of his reflection in the glass door, saw that there were some ashen streaks on his face. He smelled like smoke, his hair was a mess, his eyes were bloodshot, and there was a cut on his lip and a bruise on his chin from Gabe's attack that morning.

"Where are you going?" Poseidon stopped him, and when Percy answered he continued, "Wouldn't you like to stay?"

"Oh, no, I couldn't," Percy shook his head, blushing even more deeply. "No one wants me here."

"Nonsense," Poseidon said after giving him a strange look. He walked over to Percy, who flinched only slightly as the officer put his arm around his shoulders. "We'd love to have you stay."

Poseidon steered him towards the sanctuary doors and pushed them open. A few heads turns, and Percy immediately looked away. When he shyly glanced up, he realized with a shock that many of the people were smiling at him. He hesitantly smiled back, and they turned their attentions back to the sermon.

Poseidon led him straight up the center aisle, walking him to a pew that was nearly in the front, and they sat down together.

Percy gladly listened to the sermon, which was so different than the one at Jason's church. The sermon there had been about fire and brimstone, and how if they sinned they were damned to hell forever. This sermon was full of words of love and encouragement, and Percy's heart lifted with each statement.

When the pastor had finished, the congregation rose to sing a song. Percy was ready to mouth "watermelon, cantaloupe," when Poseidon handed him a book with the words in it. Percy flipped through the hymnal until he found the right song, Redeemed, and sang along with the beautiful voices.

The pastor said a closing prayer when the song was over, and the congregation all spread out. Percy suddenly found himself at the center of attention.

"Hello, young man," a kind woman said, shaking his hand. "We're so glad to have you here."

"I'm happy to see a new face!" another woman, this one elderly, said brightly.

"Will you be staying for potluck, son?" one man asked, gesturing to another set of doors leading out of the sanctuary.

"Oh, um, I don't..." Percy trailed off, but Poseidon put a hand on his shoulder.

"Please stay, Percy," he smiled. "We'd love to have you."

"Alright," Percy stammered, and he was led to the fellowship hall.

Someone pulled out a chair for him, and he mumbled a thank you.

"Let me round up some of the youth class," Poseidon said. "I'm sure they'd like to meet you."

"No, that's okay," Percy tried to protest, remembering the judgmental teenagers at Jason's church, but Poseidon had already reached the group of kids.

"Here we are," Poseidon said, returning with a group of friendly-looking teens. "Not everyone is here today, but this is most of them. Let's see. Everyone, this is Percy Jackson. Percy, this is Frank Zhang, Michael Yew, Hazel Levesque, did I say that right, honey?" The short, dark skinned girl shook her head and corrected him. "Oh okay, it's Hazel Levesque, and we have Axl Moretti, Riley Whitley, and Bianca and Nico DiAngelo."

Percy smiled shyly at the group, who all grinned back.

"I'll leave you kids to it, then," Poseidon said, sensing the reluctance to speak in the presence of an adult.

"Are you new here?" Michael, the tall blonde boy, asked immediately.

"Not really," Percy answered. "I've lived here my whole life, I've just never been to this church before."

"It's kind of hidden way back here," Hazel, the youngest looking girl, nodded. "But I've never even seen you at school. What school do you go to?"

"Goode High," Percy said. "I don't think any of you go there."

"No, we all go to Yancy Academy," Frank, the tallest of the bunch, said.

"Except for Bianca and Riley," Michael grinned. "They go to Clarion Ladies Academy."

"Oh, shut it, will you?" Riley, the petite Asian-American girl grumbled. "You don't have to remind me every two seconds."

"It's really nice there," the dark-haired girl named Bianca assured Percy. "Riley just isn't a fan of the rules."

"How am I supposed to be a fan of 'no boys allowed,' and 'no PG-13 movies?'" Riley complained, earning more snickers from the public-schooled teens.

"That's what you get for being kicked out of our school," Michael teased.

"I was kicked out of Yancy, too," Percy grinned. "It was in sixth grade."

"High-five then, fellow rebel," Riley said, holding out her palm.

Just then, it was announced that potluck was ready, and the teens all stood up for the prayer. After getting their food, they sat down together at a table, and Percy felt at ease. No one said anything about his messy appearance, though Bianca did get him a napkin to wipe the ashes from his clothes, and Hazel re-tied his tie for him.

"I hope you can come again next week," Axl, the dark-haired boy with the slight Italian accent, said sincerely, once they had finished eating. "If you come earlier, we can go to Sunday school together."

"It's a lot of fun," the youngest teen, Nico, said. "Think you can?"

Percy smiled at his new friends. "Definitely."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A/N

Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it:) And there we go, lol the OC's didn't steal the show, and my Bible thumping is done XD Also, a lot of you wanted a more emotional Percy, so I hope I broke him down enough for you there! Haha... What do you think of Percy's new friends?:)

All the reviews/views/follows/favorites are incredible, I cannot thank you guys enough:) Lol, honestly, I still can't believe people like the story so much, but I'm so glad you do!

I know I said I will try to update at least once a week, but... It's finals week D: So yeah, I really need to study! I'll still try to write if I have time:)

Thanks everyone for voting on the poll, and giving me your opinions, it was much appreciated!

Ohhh, and, I'm sure no one really cares, but, do y'all have any questions for me? Anything at all really, just to get to know your author:) I'll try to answer them all lol!

Thanks again for reading:) Please review!

Xoxoxo,

EmMarie