Disclaimer: I only own the plot and my OCs. Anything you recognize as not mine belongs to Rick Riordan, Greco-Roman mythology, and/or their otherwise respective owners.

Author's Notes: ...And now, here is the chapter that you have all been waiting for! Well, at least one of them anyways ha ha. The other big chapter for the TLT arc is Chapter 26/27...I haven't decided if I want to have another chapter before it yet lol. We'll see.

Next chapter will be posted on Friday. So, that being said, until then,

~TGWSI/Selene Borealis

~The Finding Home Saga~

~Finding Home~

~Chapter 23: There's A First Time For Everything~

When I got back to Camp Half-Blood around two and a half hours after I had returned Zeus's master lightning bolt to him and had a conversation with Poseidon and Demeter, I was immediately greeted by...well, pretty much everyone. All of the campers – Katie, Silena, Nico, and Bianca included – had gathered at the top of the hill as soon as they realized that I had returned, with Chiron, Mr. D, and even a few wood nymphs trailing after them. Most of them seemed excited that I had returned – although if that was because they were happy that I had actually come back alive or happy because I had successfully averted World War III, I didn't really know.

Unfortunately, because of all of the hustle and bustle at my return, I didn't instantly get to talk to Luke like I wanted to. No, instead, me, Silena, and Katie were pretty much instantly swarmed by campers who treated us as if we'd won some reality-TV contest, as they thrust laurel wreaths on our heads and constantly asked us about how everything during our quest went down. Nico and Bianca pretty much got the same treatment, due to us finding them on our quest and all that, except there were no laurel wreaths for them and no big feasts prepared in their honor like one was for ours.

After the feast, the Apollo cabin led a procession down to the bonfire, most of them singing about quests and epic heroes and everything else along those lines. Everyone got into even more of a festive mood because of it, especially because Katie, Silena, and I got to actually burn the burial shrouds our cabins had made for us in our absence, instead of...you know...them burning the shrouds for us.

...Or, at least, Silena got to the burn the burial shroud her half-siblings had made in her honor, which was a shroud that was just as kaleidoscopic as her eyes, with the various symbols of her mom embroidered into it. It was really beautiful and obviously well-made, which made me more than a little sad to see it go. Likewise, Katie's shroud – which had been made by the Athena campers, much to my surprise – was also really beautiful, as it was a shimmering, deep golden-green with a giant-ass cornucopia on it in order to honor her mother. I was more than a little impressed with it – and more than impressed by Annabeth's ability to seemingly put her hatred towards me about the quest aside when it came to Katie – and so, like with Silena's, I couldn't help but look at it with wide, admiring eyes.

As for mine...well, I hadn't really known what to expect when I had been told that the kids from Cabin Eleven had volunteered to do my shroud for me, but it definitely wasn't the result that I got – because oh my gods, was it beautiful. The shroud was a light, ocean blue that was the same color as the oceanid's scarf that I still had, with a brilliant sea green trident embroidered in the middle. Around it, a school of equally sea green fish and dolphins swam – yes, they were moving, like the paintings from Harry Potter – and gentle waves seemingly lapped over them, as if the shroud really was a piece of the sea.

As soon as I had seen the shroud and taken in all of its splendor, I had instantly looked up and towards the Cabin Eleven kids, my eyes watering with disbelief. Alabaster winked at me in response, while next to him, Chris gave a grin and Ethan a small smile. But then, Ethan turned his head slightly, making it lean in the direction of Luke, who was standing just behind him. Luke, who was looking at me with a grin of his own, along with a light blush on his cheeks that I could just barely make out in the darkness.

In that moment, as soon as our eyes locked and the realization he had been behind the whole design of my shroud hit me, my heart sped up to what had to be a million miles per minute and I almost swooned, right then and there.

...The key word here being "almost", because before I could swoon, a torch was thrust into my hands by an excited son of Apollo, who hurriedly encouraged for me to burn my shroud. I almost decked him in response – both for interrupting my mind melt and for suggesting that I burn such a beautiful thing – but then my common sense won out and I did as I was told.

After the three of us all finished burning our burial shrouds, though, I was able to slip away from all of the celebrations while the Apollo cabin led the sing-along and passed out s'mores. No one except for Katie and Silena saw me go, and both of them gave me a quick smile as I left before they started talking loudly about the quest as a distraction for my disappearance. Idly, I made a note that I would have to thank them for it later as I slipped into a loose cluster of trees that was only about eighty or so feet away from the bonfire.

I didn't need to wait long before I heard the soft crunch of twigs and branches from right behind me. Like, maybe only a minute or two. Smiling, I turned around, and locked eyes with Luke once again, just able to make out his brilliant blue eyes in the dark night. "Hey," I said softly.

"Hey," he replied with what I hoped was a grin of his own.

At first, neither of us said anything, because, well...what was there to say? I mean, sure, we liked each other, but we hadn't really addressed that yet, due to me going on my quest and all. And even if we had, I now knew that he was the person that had stolen Hades and Zeus' symbols of power, and I also kinda-knew about Alan and about...

"So," Luke said awkwardly, causing me to blink in surprise and stop thinking about the very world-shattering mysteries that I was just about to figure out. "About that talk we agreed to have as soon as you got back, along with that kiss..."

"...Yeah?" I asked with a grin.

"I – " Luke began, but then he shook his head. "Look, I'm not exactly...good when it comes to this sort of stuff, but I...I really like you, Percy. I know we've only know each other for a month or so, but you're...you're just amazing. You're smart, you're kind, you're caring...just everything I'm not, really." When I opened my mouth to protest that train of thought, he shook his head and and said, "No, let me finish, 'cause I've been giving this a lot of thought. You're brave, and pretty fucking selfless, considering how you rescued Nico and Bianca from that Lotus Hotel and all that. And you're pretty good at sneaking around and fitting in with us Cabin Eleven kids, even if you're not a child of Hermes or any of the minor deities. Oh, and before I forget: you're beautiful, too. Like, really beautiful. I don't think you even realize it, either, which absolutely blows my mind and...and..." He paused, before he scratched the back of his head nervously. "Sorry, I'm rambling now, aren't I?"

"Yeah," I agreed with a slight laugh, even though I could feel myself blushing so bad that I was pretty sure I was about to pass out from all of the concentrated blood in my head. "But...that's okay. Especially if you're going to keep complimenting me as much as you are now."

Luke laughed in response, before he calmed down and said with a more serious tone, "Look, all of this is my way of saying that, like I said, I really like you, Percy, and I want to...want to date you, I guess?" He paused, but when he must have realized how that sounded, he added, "I mean, I do want to date you. But, that being said, if we date, things between us could get...complicated."

"C – complicated?" I asked, not sure of what he meant by that besides the strong possibility that he was going to reveal to me that he was working for Kronos already, before I even had a chance to sway him back over to the gods' side.

My heart quickened its pace by what felt like a hundred times at the thought.

"I – " Luke said, "I'm just...I have a lot of metaphorical baggage, okay? A lot of stuff that I want to talk to you about, but I'm not ready to. Not yet. And I don't want you to feel like you have to keep on waiting for me to – to open up before that. Plus," he added, "I'm what – two, three years older than you?"

"My fifteenth birthday's in August," I interjected quickly, before he could say anything else.

"Two-and-a-half years then," he corrected himself. "Which is...not a lot in the eyes of our – the gods, but it's still a – a lot, to – to some campers here. And I don't...I don't want you to have to deal with the possible backlash from it if we...if we started to date."

I frowned. I could see where Luke was coming from, I guess, because just earlier today I had been thinking about what my mom and Smelly Gabe would say if they found out that I was dating a guy that was older than me like Luke was, but...my mom's opinion was one thing, everyone else's was another. Because while I cared about my mom and her input, at the end of the day, I couldn't really give a fuck about everyone else's – especially when Demeter, my stepmom of all people, seemingly approved of the idea of a relationship between me and Luke.

Still, though, even if I didn't really care about what others would say about us, it was nice that Luke did...well, more like it was nice that he was willing to open up about such a thing, because this was a side to him that I had maybe really only seen once, that night after my first dinner at camp. And I had a feeling that this side of him – along with all of the nervousness that he was showing, which, oh my gods, was so fucking cute – was a side of himself that he didn't show often, so the fact that he was showing it to me meant something.

And that "something" was pretty fucking huge.

So, with all of those thoughts in mind, I leaned forward, and was silently thrilled that Luke did the same as well. "Look," I said softly. "I don't – I don't really care about what others will think of us. I mean, I care about what my mom thinks, but when – not if – she finds out, I know she'll be understanding. That's just who my mom is. And as for your 'baggage'...I can wait. In fact, I'm fine with waiting. Besides, I think you've opened up to me more tonight than you probably have in a long time...am I right about that?"

Nervously, he nodded in response.

I smiled. "So, that's that, then," I said. "We're both on the same page. Now, are you going to kiss me or not?"

Wordlessly, he leaned forward all the way and kissed me – and oh my gods, was it the kiss of a lifetime. I mean, I had never been one to believe in true love's first kiss and all that, but as his lips moved with mine, something magnetichappened between us. It was like a tidal wave crashed over me and submerged me beneath love's waves, like an electric shock jolted through my lips and all the way through the rest of my body, and like my very center of gravity had shifted, all in one. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before, but it felt so right, so true, that I couldn't help but reciprocate the intricate movements that Luke was performing with his own lips as best as I could manage.

...Of course, though, no matter how much I wanted that very moment, that first kiss of mine to last for forever, for an eternity, eventually both of us had to come up for air...which we did a few minutes later with breathless gasps. My face was red again, but this time it was from an exhilarating lack of oxygen instead of embarrassment or humbleness or anything like that.

"...Wow," I said after a few moments, once I had managed to get a sturdy grip on my breathing. "That was..."

"Amazing?" Luke finished for me. When I nodded, he replied, "Yeah, it was."

For a moment, neither of us spoke. But then, with what I could see was a wry grin, Luke said, "Want to do it again?"

I gave him a grin of my own. "Oh fuck, yes."

Later that night – so late in the night, in fact, that I was pretty sure that the clock had already slipped into the early hours of the next day – I sat on the driftwood floor of Cabin Three, staring up at the waning crescent of the moon that I could just barely see through one of the cabin windows. Artemis must be happy now that Dad and our uncles aren't going to war now, I thought idly, in a desperate attempt to calm my nerves in order to prepare for what was about to happen.

After all, there's a first time for everything. A first time for your first kiss – which I had just received hours earlier – and a first time for your first boyfriend – which I now had. A first time for riding a bike, a first time for fighting a monster, and a first time for going on a quest. There's also a first time for sex – but don't worry, I was nowhere near prepared for that first time yet. I wasn't even fifteen yet, after all.

Still...seeing as how there's a first time for everything, I figure there's also a first time for pledging your allegiance to a goddess in order to become her champion and everything that comes with it. Which, if I'm being perfectly honest, is rightfully much more of a mouthful than all of the other things that I had just listed...which was probably why I was as nervous as I was. After all, while a first kiss as amazing the one that I had just had was memorable, it was also fleeting. But this...

...This was permanent.

Shakily, I took in a deep breath. I knew that I had to do this. For Luke, for our relationship, and for the good of everyone, really. So, with that thought in mind, I ran a trembling hand through my hair as I whispered, "Demeter? Milady? I...uhm...I've made my decision already. And I...well, I accept your offer."

At first, nothing happened.

But then, a sudden gust of wind blew through the cabin, even though the door and all of the windows were closed. It smelled like flowers, like autumn, and like my mom's chocolate-chip cookies. But, most of all, it smelled like home. But not in the hearth kind-of-way, like I imagined it would if the wind had been caused by Hestia. No. Instead, it smelled like home in the mothering kind-of-way, and for a second, I could imagine myself sitting in a kitchen in a house that was all the way out in the country, with the windows open and a nice breeze billowing it's way through the house...does that make sense?

In the back of my mind, a voice that was distinctly not mine said, "Close your eyes, Perseus."

I did as I was told.

A few moments later, the owner of the voice said from a spot just in front of me, "You can open your eyes now, Perseus."

Once again, I did as I was told, and saw that Demeter was standing just in front of me like I had thought she was. Unlike earlier that day, though, she was normal human-sized – like, she was maybe only a few inches taller than my mom. Also unlike earlier that day, she was wearing a completely different outfit, in the form of a dark green chiton with a golden girdle and equally-gold sandals. She was also wearing a golden armlet on her right arm and a golden anklet on her left ankle, and her hair was kinda done-up like Hera's was, except there was a distinctive gold netting keeping it in place.

All in all, she looked like the picture-perfect woman from Ancient Greece, like the goddess that I knew she was. And despite the fact that I was one-hundred-percent gay, I couldn't help but tremble at the thought, due to how awed I was by her presence.

At first, Demeter didn't say anything. In fact, all she did was tilt her head wordlessly, as if she was bemused at the fact that I had called upon her so soon, considering that she had just given me the offer to become her champion today. Still, though, after a few moments, a small smile appeared on her face, and she said, "So, you have decided to become my champion?"

Wordlessly, I nodded.

Demeter's smile widened. "Very well," she said. "Then let us begin."

...And that, my dear readers, is how I became Luke's boyfriend and Demeter's champion, all in one night.

Little did I know that both of those things would irrevocably change my life forever.

...Ah, well. I suppose that's life for you, right?

Word Count: 3,002

Next Chapter Title: I Make Good On My Promises Pt. 1 (don't worry, this is the last two-parter chapter that you guys will be getting for a while ;) )