Chapter 34-

Pegasus and Persephone walked through the quiet gardens. Pegasus was explaining sea politics to her while Percy listened with mild interest. The gods where having a big discussion on the risks of taking Perseus as a spy and neither had wanted to be part of it.

"Pegasus." She questioned "Why is it that gods can choose their shape, but you cannot?" the question had been haunting her for years and now was as good as any time to ask. He watched her with a curious eye for a moment before shaking his head.

"Who says I cannot?" with that, he rose up into a marvelous rear and glowed brightly for a moment, forcing Persephone to cover her eyes. 'I've not shown many this form of my being." He stated after several seconds. Persephone uncovered her eyes to see her half-brother standing before her in human form. Dark jeans and a deep grey t-shirt stood out against his pale skin. Pegasus's dark eyes held a green glint to them as he spread his arms wide.

"Does father know?" was her first question. Pegasus lifted his head to the sky, shaking his head.

"No. Only Triton." He declared, running his hand through his hair as she walked up to him. The sky had darkened and Persephone could tell that Zeus was angry about something.

"Why haven't you shown anybody?" they continued to walk down the path, the flowers blooming around them.

"I don't know." He pauses to look at her then steps ahead so she can only see the back of him "I guess I've always been scared to be seen differently. With the gods believing I'm just an immortal horse with wings, I can be free to look after the equine animals of this world." Persephone understood. She had once been afraid to show her power because it meant sacrificing the refuge she had. She still hid some of her power.

"If your power was discovered, they'd force you to take on more." She nodded her head in understanding.

"So, what about you?" Pegasus asked after a moment. His dark green eyes flashing with mischief.

"What about me?" she turned to look at him with questioning eyes as he rolled his.

"Obviously you're hiding something. I've spent so long hiding my aura, I can tell when another is hiding theirs." He grabbed her arm as she took a step away. She let her guard slam down and emotion left her eyes, turning them an ugly green.

"I'm just a demigod." She spat, ripping her arm out of his grasp. A deep chuckle resounded from Pegasus as he flashed in front of her.

"Yes. You're a demigod. A daughter of Poseidon." His eyes became mirthful for some reason.

"What do you want?" she growled, reaching for her sword. His chuckle again resounded around them.

"When are you going to let the gods know what you can do?" he paused "I've talked to my son, Blackjack." This sent cold shivers up her spine. Only Blackjack had seen what she could do, she hadn't thought about him sharing it with anyone.

"You know what Zeus would do to me if he found out." She hissed, striding away from him, back the way they came.

"You're not going to die from disownment." He was again at her side in an instant and Persephone cursed his godly powers.

"No." stated simply, the word could have meant anything, but she stopped. Having admitted it, she realized that her life was now in the hands of her psychotic brother.

"It'll take years for you to heal. First you'll get worse, but as all things godly are, you'll get better." He leaned against an old willow tree, its branches hiding them from sight of the city nearby.

"I'm not a god though."

"No. You're damn close though." He paused to let it sink in "Your demigod body can no longer support the power you have and it'll either kill you or make you immortal."

"Exactly." She stated, running her hand along the bark, drawing its water stores out momentarily to draw strength from it.

"An immortal not contained by the Ancient Laws." A giant clap of thunder echoed around his words and both jumped. In an instant, Pegasus was back in his equine form. He lifted his great wings into the sky and took off just as rain started to pound down, weighing the branches of the willow tree down. "I'll keep your secret if you keep mine." His voice echoed throughout her head and she nodded slowly. Stepping out into the rain, letting it strengthen her and soak her skin and hair. She laughed in delight as her aura coursed around her. For a moment, she let her it go, letting it surge to its full being before flickering slowly back to its captured state.

"Some day." She whispered softly to it. As if it had a mind of its own, the power aura flickered angrily for a moment before becoming normal. Persephone shook her head.