A/N: So, I recently got God of War. I know, I know, all late. I haven't gotten very far yet so far, but I have killed Medusi. It's a fun game.

Also, this is the second chapter I've written so far this morning. I like this one more than the other, since the other was mostly fight scenes that I feel came across as a little choppy and this one is more exposition, which I like

Anyways, enjoy!

Published: 1/30/2018

Warnings: A few FFVI Spoilers, but nothing too consequential

Chapter 14

The Champion

"So… You claim you're from another world, and that Jason's imaginary friends mom sent you here to look for him."

"Sora isn't imaginary. If he was, Juno wouldn't have sent me here for you, and this guy wouldn't be here either." Jason pointed out.

Leo thought the words over for several seconds before nodding, conceding the point.

"True, true." Then, without hesitation, the little boy took a gigantic bite out of the cheeseburger in front of him, getting sauce all over his face.

The first thing Sabin had done after cornering the kids had not, in fact, been to drag them off to some random secluded place to explain things. He had taken one look at the seemingly sunken cheeks of Leo and, for a second, he remembered another boy.

Gau, small and wild, covered in dirt and his hair a complete and utter grimy mess, glaring up at him, years alone in the wild having warped his mind.

This kid… This kid wasn't anywhere near as bad as Gau had been, but Sabin recognized the look in the boy's eyes. It didn't matter that it wasn't anywhere near as bad as with Gau, who'd been tossed aside by a father who was slowly falling into madness. This kid had been hurt. He'd been harmed. He had the look.

He had that haunted gaze that no child should have.

The way he was digging into his burger, Sabin had to wonder… How long had it been since he had a proper meal?

"Slow down a bit, Leo. Don't worry, it's not gonna vanish on you. If you want more, I've got plenty of money so that isn't a problem either." Sabin told the boy.

Money that Sabin had gotten from a couple of thugs that had tried to mug him after he'd landed on Earth, but the kids didn't need to know that.

Leo blinked up at him in surprise before looking away, his eyes downcast. There it was. That shadow. Shyly, Leo nibbled at the burger.

Sabin felt his blood boil.

Orphanages were meant to take in kids and make them feel loved, as far as Sabin was concerned. Yes, the whole point of an orphanage was a place that took in kids without guardians, and the main goal was to eventually give them a home, but still. Sabin remembered a small little town on a far off place, after the Fall. Despite the scorched skies and the red seas, he remembered Tina taking in a group of children, all strangers, and watching over them all, with love and care.

This kid looked like he hadn't had any form of the word 'care' in a very long time.

Sabin felt a glare and turned. Jason didn't seem pleased at all with the change in Leo's attitude, and was laying the blame squarely on Sabin's shoulders.

Jason didn't comment on it, though. Instead, he set down his own burger. Ignoring the wild chaos of a McDonalds in the morning of a rather busy city, Jason frowned up at Sabin.

"You know Sora."

Sabin nodded, accepting the change in topic easy enough. Leo seemed to like it as well, burying himself into his meal with more gusto now that the attention was away from him. With his shoulders on the table, Sabin rested his head easily enough onto his crossed hands.

"I do. Or, rather, I know his mom. She and I… We go way back."

A couple of millennia, but who was counting? It's not like Sabin was awake for it all.

"So… So it wasn't just in my head, then?"

Sabin could see from Jason's expression that, for a moment, he had doubted. Sabin couldn't blame him. The dreams must have seemed odd, especially when he couldn't remember them when waking until now, and that had been odd indeed. Sora had always remembered, had always blathered about his so called siblings to Tina like it was second nature. However, he was the only one who was aware.

Everyone else wasn't.

Which meant, someone had blocked it, blocked their memories, blocked them from remembering. Sabin had a pretty good idea as to who did it, too.

Jason was right to doubt himself. Juno had every reason to mess with him, even if he had technically done nothing. That's what gods did. If they could not strike retribution directly at another deity, they would attack mortals that the god cared for instead.

Juno was perfectly capable of manipulating memories. That woman could be just plain brutal if she wanted to.

"No, it wasn't in your head. You're the first one I've found, too. Tina said something about Juno enacting some plan, and how she wasn't going to go for it. She wanted me to take you all to her, unless you ask me not to."

Jason looked outright alarmed at the words. His body tensed, preparing for a fight. No child should have that look. No child should look like they were getting ready to fight for their lives.

That, perhaps, was what Sabin hated the most about the Olympians. This is what they bred. Child soldiers.

"I won't take you to her by force." Sabin emphasized, "We won't make you stay either, if you don't want to. That choice is yours."

Jason looked less frightened, but tense nonetheless.

"You're making moves against my Stepmother. She isn't going to like it." Jason pointed out the obvious.

Sabin shrugged.

"We've dealt with pissed off deities before. It's nothing new." he replied.

Leo finished his burger before taking a swig of soda. Letting out a loud belch, the small boy drew in their attention. Leo blushed, his ears going red. "Eh, sorry hehe. Anyways, why do you guys wanna mess with- eh, what was her name again?"

"Juno." Sabin told him. "And, we're doing it because we don't know what her aim is. We doubt she'd got your best interests at heart, which is why Tina sent me." Sabin informed them.

"And what about Leo?" Jason interjected.

Sabin's eyes snapped to him, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Sora's mom sent you for me. She didn't send you for Leo. What happens to him?" Jason asked.

Sabin's confused expression didn't shift for a second.

"... We take him with us, of course. Unless he'd rather stay. Why is that even a question?" Sabin asked rhetorically, scratching the back of his head.

Leo looked surprised at the words.

"I can come?"

"Why wouldn't you? Weird kids. Anyways, do you guys want more or should we continue on?" Sabin changed the subject.

Leo's eyes darted hungrily towards the menu, and Sabin briefly wondered if this had been a good idea. Not the food bit, but the fast food. It wasn't exactly healthy, but Sabin wasn't about to sit down and cook a full blown meal for a kid who looked like he needed a meal then and there and not later.

Whatever. He'd feed them something healthier later.

That wouldn't be too hard, right?

Percy sat patiently, waiting for his mom to respond. He had told her everything, leaving not a single detail out. He told her about how he had first woken up on the island. He told her about Sora, Thalia, Nico, and Jason. He described a few of the things they did, like how Thalia and Nico would occasionally spar or how annoying Jason was when he was running around shocking everyone while giggling like mad.

He told her about Ventus, falling down from the skies, crashing down like a falling meteor. He left out the bit where he had seen Ventus in a dream, a pair of mismatched eyes and darkness clinging to him like a second skin.

He told her about Thalia, her form shifted, the sister he knew gone, ripped away. Her flesh turned to wood, her hair turned to leaves, her legs becoming roots digging into the sand.

His mom heard it all, occasionally encouraging Percy to continue on with a small gesture, which Percy would do happily enough.

At long last, Percy was finished, smiling up at his mom.

His mom, who was frowning at him, her expressio troubled and just a bit pained.

Percy felt an uncomftrable coldness seep into his stomach.

His mother sighed, looking away.

"Percy… Did you ever ask yourself why I never told you anything about your father?"

Percy had wondered. Sure, mom had given him stories before, but Percy had assumed mom hadn't really known his dad was Poseidon. But, looking at her now, it didn't take a genius to realize that his mom had been perfectly aware of the reality.

"I- I assumed you didn't know who he was." Percy admitted.

His mother shook her head before looking back at him, a sad expression on her face. His mom reached out, a hand stroking along his cheek softly.

"My precious boy. My baby. My little sea prince. Now that you know, now that the illusion has been stripped away… They will come for you."

Percy normally didn't mind being touched by his mom. He hadn't yet reached that stage where he shied away from it because it was embarrassing and ew, mom, stop. Right now, though, Percy pulled back, eyeing his mom wearily.

"Who's gonna come, mom?"

Tears fell from her eyes. It made Percy angry. It made him even angrier than when he had seen that bastard hurt her. This was his mom. She was never supposed to have that look. Percy wanted his mom to be happy, but, right now, she looked like her heart was breaking instead, and Percy just couldn't stand it.

"Mom?"

"I just… I wanted you to be my little boy, for just a bit longer. You shouldn't have to grow up. Not this fast. Not this quick. My baby. My precious baby."

Arms wrapped around him as his mother pulled him close. Percy didn't really understand what was going on. He didn't know who 'they' were. He didn't know why his mom was so scared, so terrified. It didn't matter, really. His mom was scared, so Percy wrapped his arms around her and hugged back.

His mom was scared.

His mom was scared.

His mom was scared for him.

To a child, who has always looked up to their parent as a pillar of support and love, nothing is more terrifying than seeing that same parent scared out of their minds.

His mom needed him, Percy realized. His mom was scared. Percy had to be the strong one, then. And, he would. His mom would have nothing to worry about. Percy would protect her. Percy would keep her safe, no matter what. He swore it.

Only, Percy didn't realize. His current mentality, his current thought process, was exactly what his mom was so scared of. Her son, her baby, growing up too fast, tossed into a world of god and monsters that would tear him apart as soon as look at him.

Hera tilted her head.

Well… That was a rather unexpected twist.

On the bright side, she now had at least a fluttering idea as to where Hestia had hidden her son. On the negative side, if Hera was right, Hestia had gone all out and hidden the boy in a place, or rather with a person, that even Zeus would be weary of moving against.

Very few things could harm a god. Very few things could challenge a god. A demigod could certainly harm a god, but that was usually the extent of a demigod's ability. Very rarely did you get one that could seriously injure a deity.

The current generation of demigods had more than half a dozen that could do just that. But not one of them could challenge Zeus or any of the Big Three. Well, sure, they could do it, but the end result would be Zeus cleaning off his fingers across from an unrecognizable blood splatter on the ground.

Hestia, though, had apparently one upped Hera by presenting a new, rather interesting challenge.

Hera backed away, melting into the shadows, away from Sabin and the two boys. Leo, for a moment, seemed to spot her, his face twisting a bit as recognition lit in his eyes just before Hera vanished. It wouldn't do to get detected. Not by Figaro.

Sabin Rene di Figaro. Chosen Champion of the Espers. How he had survived all this time, Hera wasn't sure. Regardless, that… Being… Could pose a threat even to Hera. She would have an easier time fighting off a Titan, to be sure.

She, and every other god, had reason to fear the Champions of the Espers. True, one hadn't been seen in centuries, but regardless, their ability was one to be feared. The Espers, in a desperate attempt to save a dying world, had taught a group of humans how to extract and channel a god's power.

True, the Olympians, and indeed, the gods of this world were far more powerful than any one of the Espers could ever hope to be, but regardless, the Champions could prove a threat.

They had been born to combat something far more twisted than themselves, an evil that had been sealed away. They had been strong enough for that task, and even Hera was weary of approaching one lest she suffer a similar fate.

"Hestia, Hestia, Hestia… You really do know how to play a good game. Careful, sister, or the pieces will explode in your face." Hera muttered to herself before vanishing away.